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Tag: UAPA

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act is a blot on the nation

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act is a blot on the nation

The Telegraph / by Prabhat Patnaik

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act is a blot on the nation. In no nation reputed to be civilized is there a law that allows the State to pick up literally anybody and keep the person in jail for years, without trial and without bail; and, if, at the end of the trial, whenever it occurs, the person is found innocent, then there is no question of the State being obliged to pay any compensation for the lost years in the person’s life. But this is exactly what the UAPA does.
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PUDR report: Framed to Die – The Case of Stan Swamy

PUDR report: Framed to Die – The Case of Stan Swamy

By Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR)

Marking a month since Stan Swamy passed away in judicial custody in a private hospital, a month in which no official inquiry, even the mandated magisterial inquest, has not been initiated, Framed to die: The case of Stan Swamy documents the manner in which Stan Swamy was framed, fettered, and finally forced towards a fatal illness under due process of law called Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Framed to Die argues that Stan’s experiences of persecution provide an understanding of many others, including the 15 accused in the Bhima Koregaon case. Beyond chronicling Stan’s persecution under law, Framed to Die documents why Comrade Stan was a dissenter and a true patriot and why the state feared and criminalized his dissent under the UAPA.

Download full report (45 pages) here

Bangalore Protests against Sedition, UAPA and demand Justice for Stan Swamy

Bangalore Protests against Sedition, UAPA and demand Justice for Stan Swamy

Gauri Lankesh News / by Gauri Lankesh News Desk

Father Stan Swamy is seen as a guiding figure who has served as an inspiration to many encouraging them to pick up and fight for good causes.
Bengaluru: Protests demanding repeal of regressive laws like UAPA, sedition and justice for Father Stan Swamy took place near the Gandhi Statue at Maurya Junction on Tuesday. The demonstration was organized by The National Action to Defend Democracy to protect the citizens’ right to dissent.
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Report: LRS Webinar on the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)

Report: LRS Webinar on the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)

By Lok Raj Sangathan

Over a hundred and fifty people from all over India, and a few Indians abroad too, participated in an online event organised by Lok Raj Sangathan on the pressing issue of the draconian UAPA.
It began with a presentation explaining the history of the UAPA and other similar laws like TADA and POTA. It showed how authoritarian laws were made more repressive over the years; explained the provisions in the UAPA at present which render it totally brutal and violative of basic human rights.
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How 5 Reliance Workers Fighting For A Better Deal Found Themselves In Jail On Terrorism Charges

How 5 Reliance Workers Fighting For A Better Deal Found Themselves In Jail On Terrorism Charges

Article 14 / by Jyoti Punwani

For 15 years, these Mumbai contract workers struggled to be treated on par with regular workers and went from success to success, despite arrests and dismissals. Then the State used a law meant to be used against terrorists to incarcerate them with scant evidence of such crimes.
… So, long before the June 2018 arrests of six Left activists in what has come to be known as the Bhima Koregaon case, the Maharashtra Government’s narrative that the violence on 1 January 2018 was planned by “urban Naxals” was set into motion by the arrests of these workers. 
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Also read:
• Bail After 3 Years for the Incarcerated Mumbai Electric Employees Union Workers (groundxero, June 2021)
• Statement on release of four Reliance workers – First to be falsely implicated in Bhima Koregaon case (Sanhati India, January 2019)

UAPA should not remain in this form: Former SC judges flag misuse of anti-terrorism laws

UAPA should not remain in this form: Former SC judges flag misuse of anti-terrorism laws

The Definition of “Terrorist Act” in UAPA Is So Vague That It Is Susceptible To Misuse: Justice Anjana Prakash

26/07/2021

Live Law / by Mehal Jain

Former Patna High Court judge Anjana Prakash on Saturday asserted that while the anti-terror and national security laws are to be used towards the sovereignty and protection of the State, in India, they are being employed for the sovereignty and protection of a political party.
The Supreme Court Senior Advocate was speaking at a webinar by CJAR- “Discussion On DEMOCRACY, DISSENT AND DRACONIAN LAW- Should UAPA & Sedition Have A Place In Our Statute Books?”
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UAPA should not remain in this form: Former SC judges flag misuse of anti-terrorism laws

25/07/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

FormerSupreme Court judges Aftab Alam, Madan B Lokur, Gopala Gowda and Deepak Gupta on Saturday raised concerns on the misuse of anti-terrorism laws in India, reported The Hindu.
Justice Gupta said the courts should intervene and lay down guidelines on the use of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. “The UAPA should not remain in this form,” he said. Gupta was speaking at a virtual conference on “Democracy Dissent and Draconian Laws – do UAPA and sedition have a place in our statute books”, organised by the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms.
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It’s Time for the Government To Redeem Itself and Repeal the UAPA

25/07/2021

The Wire / by Anjana Prakash

The UAPA over the years has degenerated into a lethal weapon to quell dissent, and has been used by successive governments to legitimise sinister motives.
Whether the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) fits in with India’s constitutional framework, the international covenants it has signed, its adversarial system of trial, and whether the Supreme Court correctly decided the legality of the law’s bail pre-conditions – which are so irksome and a source of abuse – are questions that need urgent answers. Though the statute was brought in with an objective contrary to what we see today, the UAPA over the years has degenerated into a lethal weapon to quell dissent, and has been used by successive governments to legitimise sinister motives under the clichéd “procedure established by law”.
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In UAPA Cases The Process Itself The Punishment, It Stares Us In The Face In The Death Of Father Stan Swamy Without Trial: Justice Aftab Alam

25/07/2021

Live Law / by Mehal Jain

“Where has this draconian law in the world’s largest democracy taken us? The results are all there for everyone to see. It stares us in the face in the death of Father Stan Swamy without a trial”
“The UAPA shows we are willing to rob our people of freedom far more than any other country without any accountability!”, commented Justice Aftab Alam on Saturday.
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Protest to seek justice for Stan Swamy / Remembering the revolutionary who challenged everything

Protest to seek justice for Stan Swamy / Remembering the revolutionary who challenged everything

Ranchi, July 23

Pan India agitations protesting ‘institutional murder’ of Fr Stan

24/07/2021

The Telegraph / by Animesh Bisoee

The protests are part of a series of public observances called by rights groups, trade unions, Christian organisations, Left parties and their student and youth wings
Human rights activists, civil society groups, mass organisations and trade union members staged agitations in Jharkhand, Delhi and other parts of the country on Friday in protest against the “institutional murder” of Father Stan Swamy.
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Delhi, July 23

Kolkata, July 23

In Jharkhand, Stan Swamy’s Friends and Colleagues Vow to Keep His Fight Alive

22/07/2021

The Wire / by Santosh K. Kiro

A fortnight after tribal rights activist Father Stan Swamy’s death, his friends and those he worked were are still in mourning – and also determined to take forward his work.
On July 18, Swamy’s name was engraved on a stone in Bagaicha, the centre he had developed in Ranchi two decades ago to fight for the tribal cause. Every other day, different tribal communities from across Jharkhand are arranging meetings to pay tribute to the activist.
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OPEN NATIONAL CALL: DEFEND RIGHT TO DISSENT

July 2021

Issued by several organizations across the country

Join National Action to Defend Democracy:
Defend Right to Dissent,
Repeal Sedition Law,
UAPA and Repressive State Laws,
Restore Right to Bail

Dear Friends,
The Institutional murder of the 84-year-old Jesuit priest Father Stan Swamy in judicial custody on 5th July 2021 has brought home to all of us the urgency of the need to take up the defence of democracy against repressive laws.
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Remembering Stan Swamy, the revolutionary who challenged everything – including the Church

21/07/2021

Scroll.in / by Jyoti Bahen Urumpil, The India Forum

He was a fiery, ruthless messiah for the oppressed and exploited.
Stan Swamy’s mortal remains have been placed reverently with proper dedication. We all know that his spirit and commitment will live forever in the whole world. Swamy was gifted with a good intellect and a warm, tender heart that could almost burst out of anger for justice.
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Open National Call: Defend Right to Dissent, Repeal Sedition Law, UAPA and Repressive State Laws

Open National Call: Defend Right to Dissent, Repeal Sedition Law, UAPA and Repressive State Laws

Call issued by several organizations across the country

Join National Action to Defend Democracy:

Defend Right to Dissent,

Repeal Sedition Law,

UAPA and Repressive State Laws,

Restore Right to Bail

Dear Friends,

The Institutional murder of the 84-year-old Jesuit priest Father Stan Swamy in judicial custody on 5th July 2021 has brought home to all of us the urgency of the need to take up the defence of democracy against repressive laws. Father Stan, who spent a lifetime working with Adivasis in Jharkhand in defence of their rights, was arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case even though he had no connection with it and the police did not require him for any investigation. Father Stan died waiting for a chance to clear his name. In denying Fr Stan bail, the NIA judge, D. E. Kothalikar argued that “the collective interest of the community” outweighed Fr. Stan’s right to personal liberty. His death should shake the conscience of the nation and the judiciary as it “brings to an end a stark tale of injustice – one that has left the highest institutions of India’s justice system diminished.” But even after Father Stan’s death, the same court denied bail to Anand Teltumbde, another member of the BK-16, as the advocates, artists, journalists and intellectuals who have been imprisoned under the Bhima Koregaon case are called. …

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BK16: Why Is The Judiciary Still Sleeping? / Demise of Father Stan Swamy Marks Death of India’s Conscience

BK16: Why Is The Judiciary Still Sleeping? / Demise of Father Stan Swamy Marks Death of India’s Conscience

BK16: Why Is The Judiciary Still Sleeping?

15/07/2021

Countercurrents / by Sangeeta Kamat

The Bhima Koregaon15 spending a single additional night in jail is a travesty of justice.
The third report by Arsenal on evidence planting became public on July 6, with even more damning evidence corroborating the first two reports in February and April that confirmed extensive evidence planting on Rona Wilson’s hard drive, the first of the arrestees in the BK16 case. The third report meticulously documents transcripts of the malware and external activity on co-defendant Surendra Gadling’s hard drive from 2016 onward by the same attacker! Should not the Indian judiciary take account of the Arsenal reports to declare a fresh line of investigation into the so-called Bhima Koregaon case and release the 15 immediately?
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Demise of Father Stan Swamy Marks Death of India’s Conscience

15/07/2021

The Leaflet / by Aninda Dey

There was hardly a whimper in response to the sudden arrest of Father Stan Swamy on unproven charges of links to Maoists and sparking violence at Bhima Koregaon. His months-long incarceration under the UAPA, inhuman treatment, and tragic death is a dangerous trend that we Indians cannot ignore, for anybody could be next, writes Aninda Dey.
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Also read:
►Evidence found on a second Indian activist’s computer was planted, report says (Washington Post, July 6, 2021)
► Surendra Gadling’s Computer Was Attacked, Incriminating Documents Planted: Arsenal Consulting (The Wire, July 6, 2021)

Release BK15 and all Political Prisoners / Protest & Solidarity: Dhanbad – Bangalore – Varanasi – Bhilai – Pune

Release BK15 and all Political Prisoners / Protest & Solidarity: Dhanbad – Bangalore – Varanasi – Bhilai – Pune

Pan-India movement call by Shahid Father Stan Swamy Nyayik Sangarsh Morcha

14/07/2021

The Telegraph / by Animesh Bisoee

The morcha has held discussions with the Aituc, Intuc, SFI and social organisations for an all-India coordination committee
Trade unions, farmer unions, student unions and social organisations protesting against the death of Father Stan Swamy in judicial custody will form a coordination committee to submit memoranda to governors of different states for the repeal of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and release of rights activists arrested under the anti-terror law on allegedly flimsy grounds.
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Bangalore, July 14

Varanasi demands justice for Fr Stan Swamy

13/07/2021

Sabrangindia / by Sabrangindia

In memory of Fr Stan, Varanasi demands release of Bhima-Koregaon accused and other political prisoners
The Samiksha Sanskrit Manch, a Varanasi-based citizens’ group has demanded the release of those arrested under draconian laws.The demand was made during a tribute meeting and candle march organised on July 12, 2021 in memory of Adivasi rights activist and Jesuit priest Fr. Stan Swamy.
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Bhilai, July 13

By Progressive Writers Association, PUCL, AITUC, ACTU, TUCI, Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha Mazdoor Karyakarta Samiti, Mahila Mukti Morcha & Rela among others

Release Political Prisoners: CJP to Maharashtra CM

13/07/2021

By Citizens for Justice and Peace

In wake of Fr. Stan’s passing, CJP appeals for release of remaining Bhima Koregaon accused.
Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) has once again written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, urging him to consider recommending to the high-power committee, that the remaining accused in the Bhima Koregaon case be released on interim bail. There are still 14 people languishing in jail after Fr. Stan Swamy passed away and Varavara Rao was released on medical grounds.
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NIA, NHRC, Modi govt and judicial system executed plot against Stan Swamy: Maoists

13/07/2021

The New Indian Express / by Mukesh Ranjan

The CPI (Maoists) has demanded immediate release of all the activists lodged in jail in Bhima Koregaon case.
The Maoists on Tuesday alleged that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) framed Stan Swamy in a fake case and demanded immediate release of all the activists lodged in jail in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The CPI (Maoists) also demanded the withdrawal of all the cases filed against them and appealed to the writers, artists, singers, lawyers, and democratic intelligentsia to support them.
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Murder by the system: Cops, activists launch into verbal clashes at protest site

13/07/2021

The Indian Express / by Express News Service

Claiming that Swamy’s death was “murder by the system”, and that he was treated inhumanly after his arrest, activists gathered under the banner of ‘Bhima Koregaon Shauryadin Prerna Abhiyaan’ and staged a protest.
Heated arguments broke out between police and activists gathered at the Pune district collectorate during a protest on Monday against the death of Father Stan Swamy, an accused in the Elgaar Parishad case.
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London, July 10

South Asia Solidarity in London, outside the High Comm of India.