By People’s Union for Civil Liberties – Chhattisgarh
Release All Political Prisoners!
Repeal Draconian Laws!
Stop Gagging the Media!
June 25th, 2020: On this day in 1975, the then-Indian Government imposed the State of Emergency in India, suspending all fundamental rights and commencing one of the darkest periods of Indian democracy. Today, after a span of forty-five years, we the people of India find ourselves in a similar situation, living in a de facto state of emergency, which has not been officially declared, where scores of ordinary citizens to who dared to criticize the government are being arbitrarily arrested under draconian laws meant only for rarest cases of international terror. The Chhattisgarh chapter of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties is observing this day as the Anti-Emergency Day –to demand the release of arrested human rights workers, and to renew our pledge to uphold the Constitution of India, with all its promises of freedom and equality, in its true spirit. …
By India Civil Watch & Indian Cultural Forum (ICF)
On January 1, 2018, a group of people who had gathered at the site of the battle of Bhima Koregaon, were attacked by Hindutva forces. What followed, is a witch hunt – 11 activists have since been falsely implicated and put behind bars for their alleged, but unproved, role in inciting violence on that day. The civil society in India has come together once again, demanding the release of the wrongfully imprisoned. These videos, released by the Indian Civil Watch, is a part of one such effort. Watch videos on ICF Website
Video: Authors and Poets call on the Government of India to Release the BK11 Activists
The words of 80-year old #BK11 activist/poet Varavara Rao have inspired many. During the #COVID19 pandemic @meenakandasamy @NitashaKaul & Apoorvanand bring his words to life & call for his immediate release along with that of 10 other activists on humanitarian grounds. Watch video
Citing ‘Inhuman Treatment’ of 11 Activists, Brinda Karat Writes to Amit Shah [read letter]
We are herewith releasing the full text of the letter addressed to the Home Minister, Amit Shah by CPI(M) Polit Bureau Member, Brinda Karat. This pertains to the inhuman treatment of human rights activists arrested in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case. The letter was sent today. Read more
MPs demanding intervention for Varavara Rao and other accused [read letters]
Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) Binoy Viswam writes to Uddhav Thackeray joining the other MPs in demanding adequate medical care and intervention for 81-year-old poet Varavara Rao, the other Bhima Koregaon accused and G.N. Saibaba.
Click to enlarge letter
14 MPs WRITE TO THACKERAY RAISING CONCERN AT DETERIORATING HEALTH OF VARAVARA RAO [read letter]
19/06/2020
Maktoob / by Editorial Desk
In a letter to Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, more than ten parliamentarians have registered their grave concern at the deteriorating health of the 81-year-old people’s poet Varavara Rao, now lodged in Taloja Jail under the Bhima Koregaon case. Read more
NEW DELHI: Over 300 prominent citizens appealed for the release of 11 jailed activists, including Varavara Rao and Sudha Bhardwaj, who are yet to get bail despite prisons being overcrowded and some inmates testing COVID positive. Read more
Mahesh Raut, our brother and friend, is in jail for over 2 years. For defending democracy, in his home district, Gadchiroli. He deserves to be free.
This video is an attempt to present the real picture which paid media won’t show you. Watch video
Interview with Maaysha: Please release my mother, Sudha Bharadwaj
On August 28, 2020, the respected lawyer and human rights activist Sudha Bharadwaj will complete two years in jail …
“If somebody is working for poor people, then does it mean they are criminals?”, Maaysha, Bharadwaj’s daughter who got to speak with her mother after four months on June 9, asks Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com. Read more
To dissent is not a crime! Concerned citizens call for the release of activists on humanitarian grounds
We, the undersigned, are deeply concerned about the health of 11 respected fellow citizens:
1. Mr. Varavara Rao
2. Ms. Sudha Bhardwaj
3. Ms. Shoma Sen
4. Mr. Anand Teltumbde
5. Mr. Gautam Navlakha
6. Mr. Arun Ferreira
7. Mr. Vernon Gonsalvez
8. Mr. Surendra Gadling
9. Mr. Mahesh Raut
10. Mr. Sudhir Dhawale
11. Mr. Rona Wilson
These activists, many of them eminent scholars, writers and poets, have worked for the welfare of India’s poorest and most marginalised people over decades. Yet they have been turned into politcal prisoners and incarcerated. They have not been granted bail despite the fact that in the prisons of Maharashtra where they are being detained, some inmates have died and many others have tested positive for COVID-19. Read more
Nearly 100 Global Intellectuals Appeal for Varavara Rao, Saibaba to Be Released
New Delhi: Close to a 100 renowned intellectuals from across the world have appealed to President Ram Nath Kovind and Chief Justice of India (CJI) S.A. Bobde to release professor G.N. Saibaba and activist Varavara Rao, saying they have been imprisoned in ‘fabricated cases’ and that they are vulnerable to infection in the ‘overcrowded Maharashtra prisons’. Read more
