Uwazi

On 26 November 2020, the Special National Investigation Agency (NIA) Court in Mumbai, rejected human rights defender Stan Swamy’s request for a straw, a sipper bottle and winter clothing. The human rights defender suffers from Parkinson's and therefore is unable to hold a cup and drink from it, hence the need for a straw and sipper bottle. During the hearing, the NIA told the special court that they did not have the requested items to give the defender and asked the court for 20 days to respond to the defender’s request. The judge directed a medical officer to revert back to the requirement of the requested items for the 83 year old human rights defender on 5 December 2020.

FLD

Rakesh Singh Nirbhek, a reporter working for Rashtriya waroop newspaper and his friend Pintu Sahu were assaulted and suffered fatal burn wounds when his house set on fire by three assailants in the journalist’s house in Kalwari village. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its Indian affiliates the Indian Journalists Union (IJU) and National Union of Journalists (NUJ-I) condemn this heinous murder and urge the authorities to hold its perpetrators accountable.

On November 27, Singh’s house was burnt down, causing serious burn injuries to him and his friend Pintu Sahu, who died on the spot , while Singh died hours later at King George's Medical University’s Trauma.

Minutes before dying, the journalist said the attack was due to his reporting on corruption by the Kalwari village head Sushila Devi and her son. “This is the price for reporting the truth,” he said in a video recorded by the police at the hospital.

The Balrampur police arrested the son of the village head and two other suspects who were allegedly involved in the crime. They all confessed to the crime and were sent to jail on December 1.

Singh’s reported on the alleged corrupt practices of the village major Sushila Devi over the installation of solar panels and the construction of roads and sewage facilities.

Singh is the second journalist murdered because of his reporting in November alone. Earlier, G. Moses, a reporter for Tamilian TV, was murdered in a western suburb of Kundrathru, following his coverage of illegal land grabbing. Impunity for crimes against journalists in India is rampant.

The IJU president Geetartha Pathak said: “The IJU expresses serious concerns over this murder and frequent attacks, arrests and other forms of media right’s violations in Uttar Pradesh. The IJU urges for exemplary punishment to the murderers of Rakesh Singh Nirbheek.”

The NUJ-I President Ras Bihari said: “We strongly condemn the gruesome murder of journalist Singh, appeal the state government to set up a high-level judicial commission to probe the incident and punish those behind the murder.”

The IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “The horrible murder of Rakesh Singh for his reporting exposes the critical situation of journalists in India. The IFJ urges the Indian authorities to end impunity for crimes against media workers and punish those responsible for this crime regardless of their political affiliation.”

IFJ

Hundreds of farmers from Punjab and Haryana marched towards Delhi with tractor-trailers on Wednesday to protest against the Centre’s agriculture-related laws, prompting the Haryana Government to deploy their police force in large numbers and invoke Section 144 of the CrPC to prevent assembly of protesters.

Haryana's government under Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had ordered borders between Punjab and Haryana to be closed in an attempt to force the protesters back---a development that farmers criticised later as an attempt to silence them.

In Haryana's Kurukshetra, farmers tore down police barricades near Shahabad and were heading towards Pipli. Haryana Police used water cannons to unsuccessfully scatter the crowd. In

Karnal, police put up a check point at Oasis Tourist Complex on the National Highway 44. Protesters stopped to set up camp near Karnal's Samanabahu village for the night. They will resume their march to Delhi on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the protest march led to traffic jams on the NH-44, catching out several commuters, including wedding parties with grooms. Harried commuters now accuse authorities of not diverting traffic in advance.

"Today is my wedding and we left for Delhi from Ludhiana at 11 am, and we had to reach in Delhi before 8pm and now we are here in Karnal at 8.30pm. There’s still no clarity of how long this will take to clear,” a groom stuck in the traffic jam said.

Also, the police had taken nearly 100 farmer leaders from the state into "preventive custody".

As per the police estimates, around 2,00,000 farmers from Punjab are set to leave for Delhi as part of their 'Delhi Chalo' agitation from November 26.

Farmer body Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) President Balbir Singh Rajewal said Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has got sealed the interstate borders for Punjab farmers to prove that "Punjab is not part of India".

"We will peacefully block the routes to Himachal and Jammu and Kashmir. Will start dharna on the roads," he tweeted.

Rajewal questioned Khattar for refusing to give passage to the farmers to go to the national capital.

At a press interaction in Rohtak, Inderjit Singh, a senior leader of All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), condemned the sealing of the borders and demanded an anser from Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala for the police action against farmers.

"Dushyant claims himself to be a big well wisher of the farmers but why he is keeping mum when the farmers are being suppressed by the police at the instance of his government,” he said.

Farmers affiliated to 33 organisations are part of the United Farmers Front, an all-India body of over 470 farmer unions that will participate in the indefinite protest in the national capital from November 26.

The protesting farmers have threatened to block all roads to Delhi if they were denied permission to travel towards Delhi.

The Delhi Police asked the farmers not to enter Delhi as they don't have permission to protest in the city.

Haryana Police too have issued a travel advisory, asking commuters to avoid certain national highways along the state border with Punjab and Delhi for three days, starting Wednesday, in the wake of the protest.

Road blockades have been put at several places along the state border as per Chief Minister Khattar's directive to ensure "law and order", the police said.

A state police spokesperson told IANS that elaborate arrangements have been made by the civil and police administration.

The primary objective of these arrangements is to maintain proper law and order to prevent any kind of violence, facilitate functioning of traffic and public transport systems and to ensure public peace and order.

The spokesperson said a large number of protesters are likely to enter Haryana from Punjab through various border entry points for their onward journey towards Delhi.

The main focus points of the protestors originating from within Haryana will be the four major national highways leading towards Delhi, i.e., Ambala to Delhi, Hisar to Delhi, Rewari to Delhi and Palwal to Delhi.

A specific call has been given by protesting organisations for congregation at Shambhu border near Ambala city, Mundhal Chowk in Bhiwani district, Anaj Mandi in Gharaunda town in Karnal district, Tikri border in Bahadurgarh town in Jhajjar district, and the Rajiv Gandhi Education City in Rai in Sonipat district.

The spokesperson said that to ensure appropriate law and order arrangement, it is likely that the traffic diversion or roadblocks may be put up by the police on November 25, 26 and 27.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Tuesday welcomed the Centre's decision to take forward the talks with various farmer organisation on the farm laws issue in Delhi on December 3.

He said the forthcoming talks would pave the way for early redressal of the concerns of the farmers on the Central agricultural laws.

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU-Ekta Dakonda) President Buta Singh Burjgill said the 'langar' (free meal service) will go on until the Central government takes back the laws.

"It will be a historic protest in Delhi amid the presence of two lakh farmers. We won't go back from our protest even half an inch." Farmers protesting against the laws have expressed apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system, leaving them at the 'mercy' of big corporate entities.

Tribune India

Several unions have called for protest rally against farm laws on Nov. 26, 27

Around two dozen farmer leaders were taken into preventive custody by the Haryana Police on Tuesday early morning in raids across the State, ahead of the farmers groups’ two-day call for “Dilli Chalo” on November 26 and 27 to protest against the farm laws. The arrests sparked off protests in many parts of the State with various farmers’ and workers’ unions condemning the action as “undemocratic”. Midnight clampdown

In a post-midnight clampdown in several districts, including Jhajjar, Hisar, Sirsa, Karnal and Bhiwani, police teams mounted raids at the houses of farmer leaders and took them in preventive custody. Jhajjar Superintendent of Police Rajesh Duggal told The Hindu that nine farmer leaders were arrested and sent to judicial custody.

Swaraj India national president Yogendra Yadav, in a press conference during the day, claimed that at least 31 farmer leaders were detained in raids across the State in the early hours. He said the farmers were committed to peaceful and disciplined demonstration against the farm laws, but the Haryana government seemed bent on creating anarchy by arresting the movement’s leadership. He said the government was nervous and resorting to crackdown to suppress the “historic movement”.

Mr. Yadav said farmers groups were committed to their call for “Dilli Chalo” and made an appeal to all citizens, citizen groups and political and democratic outfits to raise their voice against the crackdown.

More than 500 farmers groups across the country have given the call to march to Delhi on November 26 and 27 to hold a protest against the farm laws at Jantar Mantar. Mr. Yadav said that farmers from five States – Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand – were scheduled to gather at five points on November 26 morning and march towards Delhi. “Four of these assembly points are in Haryana at Sampla, Panchgaon, Sector 12 Faridabad and Kundli border,” said Mr. Yadav. He added that delegations from 15 more States were expected to join the protest.

Later, angry protesters assembled at Rohtak’s Mansarovar park and took out a protest march to mini secretariat in protest against the arrests of the farmer leaders. Kisan Sabha vice president Inderjit Singh criticised the BJP-JJP alliance government.

Hindu

Police fired tear gas and used water cannons Friday as thousands of farmers from northern India marched to protest new laws that the government says will revolutionize the farm sector but which farmers fear will expose them to exploitation by big corporations.

Scuffles erupted on the outskirts of New Delhi as angry farmers pressed against heavily guarded concrete barricades set up along the city's border to stop the marchers. Waving flags and shouting slogans, some tried to remove the barriers.

Many farmers have traveled on their tractors and motorcycles from the northern farming state of Punjab, vowing to camp in the Indian capital until the government amends the recent laws.

It was the second day that farmers clashed with police. On Thursday security personnel used water cannons on farmers as they traveled through neighboring Haryana state to reach Delhi.

Hours after the farmers demanded to know why they were not being allowed to protest, police announced that they would be allowed to enter the city.

Criticizing the use of what he called "brute force," Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said the government should initiate "immediate talks to address farmers' concerns on the farm laws and resolve the simmering issue."

The contentious legislation, passed in September, aims to reform decades-old laws under which farmers mostly sell their produce through state-run wholesale markets at prices set by the government and paves the way for them to sell their produce to private companies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described the new laws as "historic" and said they will increase farmers' incomes, boost productivity and liberate farmers from dependence on middlemen. Supporters of the legislation say it could draw in private investment and help modernize Indian agriculture.

However, Indian farmers, who have long been protected from the free market, fear that the removal of government controls will leave them with little bargaining power with large corporations and force them to sell their produce at cheaper prices. While they have been demanding better prices for their crops, they worry that the new laws will further depress rural incomes.

Nearly half of India's population depends on agriculture, but it accounts for just 17% of India's gross domestic product. Most of the farmers own small plots of land, have tiny incomes and are often in debt.

Food and farm policy analyst, Devinder Sharma said the scale of the protests shows that farmers are "not in tune" with the government's plans.

"At no stage were the farmers of India consulted about it," Sharma said.

"The result," he said, "is that it is industry and markets who are excited about it, while the farmers are convinced it will be detrimental to them."

The farmers say they will continue their protest until the government rolls back the reforms. Many have come prepared for a long haul with their vehicles stacked with provisions and even cooking gas cylinders.

VoA News

The image of a local journalist being tied to an electric pole while a group of men assault him in a broad daylight has gone viral in Assam. Milan Mahanta, a correspondent for the Assamese daily Pratidin, had stopped at a paan shop on Sunday afternoon at Mirza, a town located in Kamrup district, when the assault took place.

Mirza is around 35 kilometres from state capital, Guwahati. Incidentally, the attack took place on the day the nation marked National Press Day. The incident has sparked uproar on social media, with many expressing concern for journalists working in Assam under the present political dispensation.

Mahanta was on his way to attend a meeting when a group of seven men surrounded him and dragged him from the paan shop before tying him to an electric pole with cables at Mirza Teeniali, a well-known spot located in the centre of Mirza town.

For the past week, Mahanta has been reporting on illegal gambling activities, which have been mushrooming with the onset of Diwali festivities. He angered an alleged local ruffian who, as accused by locals in Mirza, has also indulged in land grabbing activities.

Mahanta has since filed an FIR at the Palash Bari police station. A case has been registered against the perpetrators. Local Mirza residents have protested, condemning the incident, and have also questioned as to why the police have not been able to nab the culprits.

The Wire reached out to Mahanta on Monday. The reporter could barely speak due to injuries sustained on his head, neck, and ears. He also said that he could not hear properly as many of the blows had landed on his ears.

“I had stopped by the paan shop. Seconds later, the goons roughed me up, and while beating me, they tied me to an electrical pole. They had plans to abduct and kill me. There was a vehicle parked nearby to put me inside. They brought cables and cloth. While I was being beaten, they warned me that no one would come and help me, not even the police.

They were boasting that they are not scared of police and do not care about journalists. They were brazening and outwardly stated that they had been observing me and what I have been reporting. The fact that it happened in broad daylight has shaken me and the police is yet to catch them despite their faces being clear on the viral photos. If it were not for locals, they would have managed to slip me away. I would have been dead,” he said.

He continued, “I have struggled my entire life. I have been reporting for the past 14 years. What is my crime? That I was reporting against illegal activities and the nexus between those involved in land grabbing and illegal gambling? I am sick now and my body hurts. My friend and neighbours are giving me protection. Even after 24 hours, they are roaming free.”

Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, while attending an event marking National Press Day, told the media that he had instructed the police to take immediate action against the culprits.

The same was echoed by Parthasarathi Mahanta, the superintendent of police (SP), Kamrup district. “The culprits will be punished as per law,” he told the media.

On Monday, protests took place both in Mirza and Guwahati, with journalists and civil society members questioning the safety of journalists under the current regime. Local press bodies have also issued statements condemning the incident.

Sanjoy Ray, the general secretary of Guwahati Press Club told The Wire, “The incident of attack on journalist Milan Mahanta by some anti-social elements and that too in broad daylight is highly condemnable. We have taken up the matter with the senior police officials demanding that culprits be arrested at the earliest. Security of journalists has become a major area of concern and the government, particularly the law enforcers, must get their acts together to prevent such attacks.”

With journalists being targeted for questioning the state machinery from different parts of India, the latest incident in Assam has prompted politicians to question the ruling BJP and the emerging pattern of jailing and attacks on scribes in the state.

Debabrata Saikia, the leader of the opposition in the Assam legislative assembly, told The Wire, “Ever since the BJP has gained political power, there have been attacks on journalists and the media. Whether it is Gauri Lankesh or Milan Mahanta the pattern is the same. We are questioning BJP leaders both at the Centre and at the state as to what is leading to such incidents, and why they are not preventing? We demand strict action against the perpetrators.”

Param Prakash Gogoi, a senior journalist for Pratidin, speaking to The Wire said, “The brazenness of the act in front of the public is shocking. But what remains to be seen whether the culprits will be caught. It is unbelievable that such an incident can occur.”

Wire

A senior journalist working with a local daily in Uttar Pradesh’s Lalitpur region was beaten up publicly and threatened allegedly by a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and his sons while returning from work. Police have lodged a complaint against five people including the BJP leader.

Journalist Vinay Tiwari, a resident of Dhaurra village that falls under Jakhlaun police station, said he had gone on Saturday to carry out a fact check on irregularities in implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA). He alleged he was waylaid by over half a dozen armed men along with the family members of the village head, whose husband is also associated with BJP, while returning home on a motorcycle.

"I was informed by my sources that simple work, like ‘trench work’ is also being done with the help of JCB machine for construction of a link road at Dhaurra village instead of hiring manual labour under MGNREGA in my own panchayat by the Gram Pradhan (village head). I rushed to the spot as soon as I got the information,” Tiwari told NewsClick.

“When the village head got information about my investigation of the coverage, she sent some miscreants along with her sons who stopped me midway and attacked me with sticks and batons and left me half dead. They even snatched my phone, camera and deleted photos and videos. They took away Rs 9,500 cash from my pocket," alleged Tiwari, who has now been referred to Jhansi Medical College from Lalitpur District Hospital for treatment as he was in critical condition.

Tiwari, who is associated with a local news website called Bundelkhand Times, reports on incidents in rural areas. He further alleged that the MGNREGA guidelines are meant to protect the workers but they are being misused at a massive scale in most of the places. "I knew that they were angry with my news. But I did not expect them to attack me because they are my neighbours. Now it is very clear that I was attacked because my story exposed their (BJP workers) plan of rigging,” Tiwari alleged, adding that “no action will be taken against them since the attackers belong to the ruling party.” The journalist also alleged inadequate action taken by the local police post in-charge.

Meanwhile, on the complaint of one Tiwari, [A1] the police have registered a case under Section 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (assault), 504 (abusive death) and 506 (threatening to kill) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against village head Babita Mishra, her son Vivek Mishra, Aryan alias Abhishek Mishra, Bharat Mishra and the BJP leader Rameshwar Mishra who also happens to be the husband of Babita.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Lalitpur, Mirza Manzar Baig said that one accused Abhishek Mishra has been arrested so far and the investigation is going on.

Hearing about the incident, journalists from various news organisations staged a demonstration outside the district commissioner’s office in Lalitpur on Sunday against the incident. They also sought action against the accused and the BJP leader's son who was involved in beating Vinay. MEDIA OUTFITS CONDEMN ATTACK

Observing that attacks on journalists in Uttar Pradesh under Yogi Adityanath-led government has been increasing in recent times, the Uttar Pradesh State Accreditation Correspondent Committee demanded that the government bring to book all the culprits in the attack on Tiwari as well as in other assaults on scribes in the state.

"We observe that attacks on journalists in Uttar Pradesh have been increasing in recent times. At the same time, no concrete action has been taken by the state government in many of the cases," the press association told NewsClick.

Hemant Tiwari, president of Uttar Pradesh State Accreditation Correspondent Committee said it was very unfortunate that atrocities against scribes in the state were rising since the past three years.

"Attack on journalists in Uttar Pradesh has increased in the last three years, be it by goons, fringe elements or the government machinery. It seems that the government is letting it happen to hide its failure. Otherwise, they intervened long back when a journalist in Mirzapur was booked for exposing scam in mid-day meal,” Tiwari said.

Recounting a similar incident of another journalist in Jaunpur who was attacked by local goons but did not get media attention, Tiwari alleged, “It has become a daily routine affair in Uttar Pradesh. Last week, a journalist named Kaushlendra Upadhyay, who report for several mainstream media outlets, was beaten up by local goons. Ironically, he had informed the district authority before, but no action was taken.”

Tiwari pointed out that even though UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath condemned the arrest of Republic TV Editor Arnab Goswami by the Mumbai police, he keeps mum on the situation in his own state. “Yogi Adityanath recently said that the arrest of Arnab Goswami is an assault on freedom of expression by the Congress party and its allies, but he never utters a single word on attacks on journalists in UP,” he said.

Another senior journalist Sharat Pradhan criticised Adityanath over his silence on attacks on journalists in the state. "Over two dozen journalists in UP have been arrested in false cases, but the CM can’t see this; rather, he is more concerned about Arnab Goswami who is not even a journalist. This government is acting like a dictatorship and wants journalists who tout its line," Pradhan said.

The latest incident occurred months after journalist Shubham Mani Tripathi was killed by unidentified persons in broad daylight while he was on his way home with his friend on a motorcycle, about 20 kms from Kanpur. NewsClick had reported that the young journalist was allegedly killed for exposing the sand mafia and land grab incidents.

News Click

Targetting the anti-CAA and anti-NRC activists, the UP police on Thursday arrested the family members of activist Zainab Siddiqui.

Among those, who were picked up along with Zainab included his brother and father.

However, Station House Office (SHO) of Hasanganj Police Station, when contacted, told India Tomorrow that it was Special Task Force (STF) personnel who had detained Zainab and her family members.

He said that while the STF, later on, released Zainab and her brother but handed over her father to anti-terrorist squad (ATS) for interrogation.

The official, however, did not say for what crime Zainab’s father was arrested and was being questioned by ATS.

“Even I don’t know on what charges Zainab’s has been arrested”, said the police official and abruptly disconnected the phone.

However, NGO Rihai Manch general secretary Rajiv Yadav told India Tomorrow that police on Thursday all of a sudden barged into the house of Zainab and asked her father if Zainab was associated with anti0-CAA and NRC agitations.

The cops, according to Rajiv, went back after they were told that Zainab worked with a women’s organization.

“However, they returned within an hour and started assaulting the family members with baton. Cops used abusive language for Zainab’s younger sisters, chased them on the road and assaulted them with lathis. About 10 to 15 policemen caught Zainab’s father, sister and mother and took them to Hasanganj Police Station”, alleged Rajiv.

Condemning the police atrocity, Rajiv demanded immediate release of Zainab’s family members and proper security for her family.

“Taking anybody to police station without any reason is illegal. The purpose of the harassment is to silence the voice of dissent. Yogi police is trying to silence the voice of dissent by ignoring Constitution and democracy”, Rajiv alleged.

India Tomorrow

A reporter of Tamilan TV was hacked to death by a few known persons near his house in the city’s outskirts, reportedly over his questioning of the illegal sale of government poramboke land.

The victim G. Moses, 26, was residing at Nallur village near Somangalam in Kundrathur and he was covering the Sriperumbudur and Kundrathur areas for Tamilan TV. His father, Gnanaraj Yesudasan is a reporter with Malai Tamizhagam, a daily. At 10.30 p.m on Sunday, somebody called him out, and Moses stepped out of his home. His father was under the impression that he was going to meet some friends.

Police said Moses was made to walk up to the lakebed, a few yards away from the house. The suspects then attacked him using knives. Moses ran from there towards his house, but the suspects again attacked him again and fled the spot by the time, his father and neighbour came out, on hearing his cries.

Moses was taken to Government Chromepet Hospital, where the doctors declared him ‘brought dead’.

Kancheepuram district Superintended of Police D. Shanmugapriya and other police officers visited the spot and held enquiries. Police sources said a few antisocial elements had encroached upon poramboke land on the lake and attempted to sell the land fraudulently. The residents in the area reportedly demolished the structure on the layout besides reporting the incident to the police and had caused police action to be taken upon the illegal encroachers. The encroachers believed the the father and son were those leading the local residents.

Police arrested the suspects, Attai alias Venkatesan, 18, Navamani, 26, Vignesh, 19, and Manoj, 19, and further investigations are on.

The Hindu

The Human Rights Defenders’ Alert (HRDA) on October 29, 2020 urged the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to ensure the physical safety of journalist S. K. Lenin his family from corrupt panchayat leaders in Nagaram village of Tamil Nadu.

The organisation requested the Director General of Police (DGP) to initiate an inquiry into the physical and verbal assault on Lenin by Panchayat leader Gopi Krishnan on August 2 whom the journalist had named in his report on corruption in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (MNREGA) run by the Union Ministry of Rural Development.

Similarly, they also demanded an inquiry against District Collector Uma Maheshwari for ignoring corrupt activities practiced by local authorities under the MNREGA and for ignoring Lenin’s complaints about the same.

The undeterred journalist approached the local Vadakadu police station instead who arrested Krishnan. However, when nothing was done about the rest of the panchayat members, Lenin chose to go into hiding fearing the political power of those involved.

“Whatever scam they will do, we will share with you, you jobless reporter. You are a human rights activist; you are not a big shot. Even if you give a complaint to the district collector you can do nothing to me nor shake me,” Krishnan had said outside a local shop, while leaving blood marks around Lenin’s neck.

The HRDA condemned the incident as a criminal act that barred journalists and similar Human Rights Defenders from exercising their right to dissent against a public official enshrined within Article 19(a), Freedom of Speech and Expression, of the Indian Constitution.

“If journalists are physically assaulted when they criticise politicians and public officials, seldom journalists will dare to take a stand and the fourth pillar of the democracy will be crushed further,” they said.

On August 1, Lenin collected information about corruption in the MNREGA – a government scheme that aims to help underprivileged people find a job, especially during COVID-19. He said that these jobs are vulnerable to corrupt practices by some panchayat members who show fake accounts to manage salary transfers to people who have not done any work.

Lenin also mentioned that corruption within the MNERGA scheme has been happening at Nagaram village for some time as per panchayat leaders Mr. Ramaiah and Muthuraj Durai.

Sabrang India

The members of Makkal Pathai, a not-for-profit organisation based out of Chennai, have been on a hunger protest against National Eligibility cum Entrance Examination (NEET) in their offices in Chennai over the past week. On Sunday, the seventh-day of protest in Chennai, the members were forcefully dragged away by the police. Members also allege that the police misbehaved with them. Koyambedu police have lodged about 30 members at a kalyana mandapam while six who were on the hunger-protest have been admitted to Kilpauk Medical College (KMC). No case has been registered.

Visuals shared on Makkal Pathai’s Facebook page shows police forcefully entering into the office premises following which members are dragged out. They can be heard condemning police brutality.

Sharing voice notes from KMC where about six of them are currently kep, member Chandra Mohan (41) says, “We have been continuing our hunger protest for six days. They have hit us and admitted here at KMC. Women’s clothes were lifted, they were shamed, we were shamed and we have been brought here. We condemn this brutality.”

In an audio note, Chandra Mohan says the members have rejected IV fluids and are still fasting in the hospital. "We gave our word to the people. We will continue our fasting until they tell us." He further alleges that the police have ransacked their office in Chennai taking away phones and computers.

Speaking to TNM, Koyambedu police station Inspector K Madeswaran says no complaint has been filed on the members but their protest had to be stopped since it was a health risk. “We have been asking them every day to stop their hunger protest. Moreover, groups of people gather there on a regular basis. Press is invited and this crowding of people is a risk especially due to the pandemic,” he tells TNM.

“We have not registered any case against them yet because they are giving us their details. They are requesting for the Chief Minister to come down in person to listen to their demands and scrap NEET,” he adds.

When asked about allegations of women being harassed the officer says, “We only tried to end their fasting. Even though they have not eaten in six-days, they put up a good resistance.”

Vignesh, the coordinator from Coimbatore says, “We are holding a one-day fasting protest here in Coimbatore office. Police have arrested our members who were holding hunger-protest for six continuous days in Chennai. We condemn this.”

NEWS Minute

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) launched a major crackdown on terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir and conducted raids on NGOs and journalists across 10 locations in Kashmir and one in Bengaluru on Wednesday morning.

NIA sources have said terror operations were being funded by sourcing funds from foreign countries in the name of business, religious works and other social works by these organisations in Jammu and Kashmir.

The probe agency raided NGO Athrowt at Nawakadal, the Greater Kashmir office at Press Colony and the residence of activist Khurram Parvaiz, among other places.

Sources told India Today TV that the money came through hawala channels from different parts of the country and abroad and was being used to fund terror activities in Kashmir through NGOs.

"These NGOs were not registered. That means they did not have the FCRA license, yet they were getting funds from Pakistan and Europe, and even countries like Fiji and East Timor," the sources said.

The NIA sources said that the probe agency is looking at two aspects - terror funding and secessionist activities.

In a statement, NIA said, "This case was registered by NIA on 8/10/2020 u/s 120B, 124 A IPC and sections 17, 18, 22A, 22C, 38, 39 and 40 UA(P)A, 1967 on receipt of credible information that certain NGOs and Trusts are collecting funds domestically and abroad through so-called donations and business contributions, etc and are then utilizing these funds for secessionist and terrorist activities in J&K."

"Those whose premises have been searched include residence and office of Khurram Parvez (co-ordinator of J&K Coalition of Civil Society), his associates viz. Parvez Ahmad Bukhari, Parvez Ahmad Matta and Bengaluru-based associate viz. Swati Sheshadri; Ms. Parveena Ahanger, Chairperson of Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons ( APDPK) and offices of NGO Athrout and GK Trust," said the NIA.

The probe agency said that the raids were conducted after specific inputs and more NGOs are also under scanner. The documents and phones seized will be sent to the forensic lab, the sources said.

The NIA sources told India Today TV that the case was registered last week, but was not mentioned on the NIA website to maintain confidentiality. The NIA raids were led by the IG and DIG, who flew Srinagar specially for the raids.

Slamming the move, former J&K chief minister and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti has said, "NIA raids on human rights activist Khurram Parvez & Greater Kashmir office in Srinagar is yet another example of GOIs vicious crackdown on freedom of expression & dissent. Sadly, NIA has become BJPs pet agency to intimidate & browbeat those who refuse to fall in line."

India Today

A group of slogan-raising men had assembled outside the residence of lawyer Deepika Singh Rajawat in Jammu late on Tuesday night, a day after a cartoon she posted on micro-blogging site Twitter stirred controversy.

Rajawat, who received limelight for representing the victim’s family in Kathua rape and murder case in 2018, told NewsClick that a mob gathered outside her accommodation, raised slogans and gave her death threat by chanting “Deepika teri kabar khudegi, Jammu Kashmir ki dharti pe (Deepika your grave will be dug in the land of Jammu and Kashmir).”

Narrating the sequence of events, Rajawat said that it was 12.30 am in the night when she heard few men shouting her name. “I was scared to death. I alerted my PSOs and phoned IG Jammu who responded immediately and sent police who later cleared the mob,” she said.

The cartoon posted by Rajawat, with a caption “Irony,” juxtaposed two paradoxical scenes: in one scene, a man touching feet of a female Hindu deity during the nine-day Hindu festival of Navratri; in the other scene, with the header “Other Days,” the same man is aggressively holding both legs of a woman, depicting sexual violence.

The cartoon was accused of hurting Hindu religious sentiments resulting in a section of social media users demanding Rajawat’s arrest. Since then, as per Rajawat, she and her family have been receiving calls threatening her to remove the cartoon and tender an apology.

“Don’t rapes happen? If they can prove that rapes don’t happen in India then I will tender a public apology. I have also not removed the cartoon as it was not meant to hurt religious sentiments but to highlight the hypocrisy of the society towards women,” Rajawat said.

Rajawat personally identified the mob as related to right-wing Hindu groups and said that it was an attempt to silence her. “At that time, I felt like Gauri Lankesh. Her image kept crossing my mind. I was shivering,” the lawyer said. Gauri Lankesh, a journalist known to be critical of the right-wing and accused of “outraging the sentiments of Hindus”, was shot dead by bike-borne assailant outsider her residence on September 5, 2017.

Much solidarity with Rajawat has also poured in from several sections including Bollywood actors, directors, lawyers, and opposition leaders who are tweeting using the hashtag #IStandWithDeepikaRajawat.

In 2018, Rajaswat faced a similar backlash when she took up the case of a minor Bakarwal girl who was raped and murdered in Kathua. She was then accused of being “anti-Hindu.” Later, the victim’s family had removed her from the case by accusing her of “not attending the court proceedings.”

Rajawat believes that she has been targeted for being vocal against policies of the present government. “They wanted to threaten to silence me as I am vocal against the Modi government and its policies.”

In Jammu, which has a prominent presence of right wing politics, it has become risky to voice dissent, especially after the abrogation of Article 370 last year. Last month, a young man popular as the Mask Man was taken away by the police and was released after being questioned for hours after he silently held a placard questioning the government and its promises.

News Click

A journalist working with The Caravan magazine was on Friday allegedly assaulted by a senior police officer in North Delhi and detained for nearly four hours while he was reporting on protests against the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl in the area.

“Today [Friday] afternoon, the Delhi Police assaulted The Caravan India’s staffer Ahan Penkar while he was reporting,” the magazine tweeted. “ACP [Assistant Commissioner of Police] Ajay Kumar kicked and slapped Penkar inside the Model Town station premises. Penkar repeatedly told the police that he was a journalist and prominently displayed his press ID.”

However, the deputy commissioner of police, North West Delhi, on Saturday said that Penkar was seen protesting and was detained, after which he had said he was a journalist. The police have sent him a notice on the matter.

Penkar was reporting on a protest concerning the alleged rape and murder of a teenager in North Delhi, the magazine added. “Students and activists had gathered outside the Model Town police station to demand the registration of an FIR in the case,” it said. Caravan also shared a photo of the injuries on Penkar’s back.

Penkar later submitted a complaint to Delhi Commissioner of Police SN Srivastava. The journalist said that he saw a group of people gathered around the police station, demanding that the police file an FIR in the rape case.

Penkar said he was speaking to the 14-year-old girl’s aunt when the police began taking the protestors inside the station. He held up his press card and kept repeating that he was reporting the news, but the police took him inside too.

The journalist said that the police forcibly took his phone from him and deleted all the videos that he had recorded while reporting. “The police was abusing us the whole time and threatening us,” Penkar said in his complaint. “After a little time, the ACP Ajay Kumar came into the room holding a steel rod and threatened to beat us with the rod.”

Penkar added that Kumar kicked him in the face, back and shoulders. He also said that the police officer stamped on his ankle and threatened to register a case against him and others. The journalist added that he also saw the police beat up a Muslim man and a Sikh boy. He demanded an FIR against the police officers who assaulted him.

In August, three journalists from magazine were attacked by a mob in North East Delhi’s Subhash Mohalla neighbourhood while they were reporting on a story.

Journalists Prabhjit Singh, Shahid Tantray and their colleague were covering communal tensions that broke out in the area on the night of August 5, following the foundation-laying ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. In his complaint to the police, Singh said that had he not intervened, Tantray would have been beaten to death by the mob since he was a Muslim.

At a meeting organised by the Press Club of India on August 13, the journalists said that the Delhi Police had been helpless and scared of the mob.

Several journalists’ organisations had expressed outrage over the attack on Singh, Tantray and their colleague and demanded a first information report against the accused. The Editors Guild of India called the attack on the journalists “reprehensible” and demanded that the police take quick action against the guilty.

Scroll

A Dalit writer and activist, Durai Guna, has been arrested in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukottai district for putting up sarcastic ‘recruitment’ posters — critical of the district administration in a circuitous way — across his native town. The posters are a way to protest against alleged administrative apathy and inaction against encroachment of a waterbody in his village.

The posters appeared as an advertisement and mockingly ‘invited’ candidates for posts ranging from tehsildar to district collector, leaving Revenue officials fuming, according to a senior police officer.

The waterbody concerned — Vettukulam water tank, spread on 3 acres of land — is in Karambakudi village of the district.

The police officer said Guna was arrested late on Tuesday based on an FIR registered under non-bailable charges under IPC Sections 170 (pretending to hold any post as a public servant) and 501 (printing any matter known to be defamatory), among others.

The officer said, “The posters defamed the administration. We received the complaint from a village official, and were told to file a case and arrest him.”

Maintaining that Guna had “motives” to defame the administration when he had proper methods to raise a complaint, District Collector P Uma Maheshwari said, “Now I have decided to book all encroachers (of the waterbody concerned) under Goondas Act.”

The poster — titled “Job Openings, People Needed” — invited honest and efficient candidates for the posts of collector, district revenue officer, tehsildar and village administrative officer in order to revive a waterbody by removing encroachment as per Madras High Court’s order. According to it, qualifications required were “common sense, self-respect and maturity.”

Asked about the arrest on serious charges for what was seemingly a harmless protest criticising the administration, District Collector Maheshwari said, “There were many complaints against him. He was arrested twice for different offences. I am told by the police that there are four FIRs against him and he was let out on bail after arrests on both occasions.”

Stating that Guna never approached her with a petition on the issue, Maheshwari said: “He petitioned the tehsildar. Our officials inspected the land and decided to give two months’ time since they (villagers) had already sown crops for this year.”

Indian Express

The Uttar Pradesh Police has booked Malayalam journalist Siddique Kappan and three others for sedition as well as under the stringent UAPA, a day after they were stopped on their way to Hathras, home to a Dalit woman who died after being allegedly gang-raped. Siddique from Malappuram, Atiq-ur Rehman from Muzaffarnagar, Masood Ahmed from Bahraich and Alam from Rampur have been booked by the Mathura police. Siddique Kappan is a senior Delhi-based journalist, doing freelance work for several Malayalam media houses, including azhimukham.com.

The FIR (first information report) copy, accessed by TNM, alleges that the four men had gone to disrupt the peace in Hathras and there is a big conspiracy behind their visit. The Uttar Pradesh police had earlier said that they had arrested them for having links with the Popular Front of India (PFI) and its affiliate in Mathura. However, the PFI link has not been mentioned in the FIR at all.

The FIR shows that the four have been booked under 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings) and 124A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code, as well as section 17 (punishment for raising funds for terrorist act) and 14 (punishment for unlawful activities) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

All the four have also been booked under section 65 (tampering with computer source documents), 72 (punishment for sending offensive messages through communication service) and 76 (punishment for violation of privacy) of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008.

The FIR also mentions the website, justiceforhathrasvictim.carrd.co, which had information on how to protest safely and avoid the police. The police have stated that the website incites violence and threatens the law and order situation. “The main intention of this website has been found to be to encourage communal hatred, cause unrest in the society and to spark riots on a large scale,” the FIR states, adding that the four have been arrested over “larger conspiracy”. The four accused have been accused of running the website and that it has been created under the garb of 'collecting funds' to incite violence. However, the PFI link has not been mentioned in the FIR.

The Uttar Pradesh police had on Monday said that it seized the mobile phones, laptops and some literature, which “could have an impact on peace and law and order”, from the arrested people. During interrogation, it came to light that the four arrested people had links with the PFI and its associate organisation Campus Front of India, the UP police had claimed.

The Delhi unit of Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seeking his release, saying he was going to Hathras only to perform his duty as a reporter. Terming Kappan's arrest as illegal and unconstitutional, the KUWJ also filed a habeas corpus petition in the Supreme Court on Tuesday seeking his immediate production before the court and release from the "illegal detention".

Kappan is also the KUWJ's secretary and was proceeding to Hathras only to do his duty as a reporter, KUWJ's Delhi unit president Miji Jose told the Chief Minister in her letter, urging him to order his release.

"We understand that he was taken into custody by Uttar Pradesh police from Hathras toll plaza. Our efforts and the efforts by some advocates based in Delhi to contact him were not successful," KUWJ said.

Hathras has been in the news following the death of a 19-year-old Dalit woman who was allegedly gang-raped on September 14 in a village in the district. And her cremation at night, allegedly without the parents' consent, has triggered widespread outrage.

NEWS Minute

An 83-year-old Jesuit priest has been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the probe into the 2018 violence in Maharashtra's Koregaon-Bhima village.

Father Stan Swamy, an activist working with tribals, was picked up from his home in Jharkhand capital Ranchi by a team of NIA officials from Delhi. The officials reportedly spent around 20 minutes at his home before taking him away.

The arrest has sparked outrage. Author and historian Ramachandra Guha said Stan Swamy has spent a "lifetime fighting for the rights of adivasis."

"That is why the Modi regime seeks to suppress and silence them; because for this regime, the profits of mining companies take precedence over the lives and livelihoods of adivasis," Mr Guha tweeted.

Lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan tweeted, "...Now arrested by the NIA under UAPA! The venality of this BJP govt & NIA knows no bounds (sic)."

The probe agency claimed that Stan Swamy is a member of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) and was "actively involved in its activities".

"He also received funds through an associate for furtherance of the CPI (Maoist) activities," officials of the probe agency said.

The agency said documents and propaganda material of the CPI (Maoist) and literature were seized from Stan Swamy, adding that he was in contact with the other accused in the Koregaon-Bhima case.

"The NIA is after me. I'm being pressurised to go to Bombay... The NIA questioned me for 15 hours... I'm being called to the Mumbai office of the NIA. I refuse to go there. I am 83 and have health issues. I don't want to expose myself to the coronavirus. I have never been to Bhima Koregaon," Stan Swamy had said in a video on October 6.

"If NIA wants to question me, they can do so via video-conferencing," he said.

Several prominent activists, scholars and lawyers have been jailed for over two years while they await trial.

Stan Swamy, who has several health issues, is the oldest person to be in custody in the Koregaon-Bhima case. He has been questioned several times in the past in connection with the case. Originally from Kerala, Stan Swamy has been working for tribals in Jharkhand for over five decades.

The case relates to an event on December 31, 2017 in Pune which was followed by violence and arson in Maharashtra that left one person dead.

Investigators claim that the activists at the Elgar Parishad meet had made inflammatory speeches and provocative statements, which it said had triggered violence the next day.

Last month, the Supreme Court declined to entertain a plea for an interim bail on medical grounds by lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj, who is among the accused in the case. Ms Bharadwaj, 58, has been in jail in Mumbai for over two years and is suffering from diabetes and comorbidities and wanted interim bail so that she could take a medical check-up, her lawyer had said.

The investigation also claimed to have uncovered a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

During the investigation, the NIA said, it was revealed that senior leaders of the CPI (Maoist), a banned organisation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, were in contact with the organisers of the Elgar Parishad event as well as the accused arrested in the case to spread Maoist and Naxal ideology and encourage unlawful activities.

NDTV

On 7 and 8 September 2020, human rights defenders, Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe, RameshMurlidhar Gaichor and, woman human rights defender Jyoti Jagtap of the Kabir Kala Manchwere arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in relation to the violence that broke-outat Bhima Koregoan on 1 January 2018. The three defenders are currently being held in NIAcustody in Mumbai.Kabir Kala Manch (KKM) is a Pune based cultural troupe formed by members of the youth in theBahujan community in the state of Maharashtra. Their performances speak out against the castesystem and the various atrocities committed against the community across the country. SagarTatyarao Gorkhe, Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor and Jyoti Jagtap form part of a group of musiciansand poets in the cultural organisation. As part of the group, the three defenders performed at the‘Bhima Koregaon Shaurya Din Prerana Abhiyan’ on 31 December 2017,a celebration of the 200thanniversary of the Dalit victory over the Peshwas (upper caste rulers) in the Battle of Koregaon. On 7 September 2020, human rights defenders Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe and Ramesh MurlidharGaichor were arrested at the NIA office in Mumbai. Almost two months previous, between 13 and15 July 2020, the defenders had been called in for interrogation by the NIA, under the pretence ofbeing witnesses to Maoist activity. On 2 September 2020, both defenders were issued a notice bythe NIA, asking them to appear again on 4 September 2020 for further questioning. During theinterrogation, both Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe and Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor were asked to implicatethose currently detained in the Bhima Koregaon case by making a false admission that thedetainees had been in touch with Maoists. Furthermore, the interrogation officials went on to statethat they would release the two defenders if they gave a such a statement under Section 164 of theCode of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which has a provision for witnesses to avoid arrest. Bothdefenders were then asked to go to the NIA office on a daily basis until 7 September 2020, at whichpoint they were arrested. The following day, the defenders were brought before a NIA SpecialJudge who ordered them to be held in NIA custody until 11 September 2020. The custody hasbeen extended until 19 September 2020.On 8 September 2020, woman human rights defender Jyoti Jagtap was arrested by the Anti-Terrorism Squad in Pune, and then later brought to the NIA in Mumbai. The previous day, on 7September 2020, the defender had gone to the NIA office in Mumbai after receiving a notice topresent herself earlier that day. She was briefly questioned but no statement was taken by theauthorities. When she was arrested the next day, she was brought before the NIA Special Judge on9 September 2020, who remanded her to police custody until 11 September 2020. The custody hasbeen extended until 19 September 2020.The three defenders have been targetted since their participation in the ‘Bhima Koregaon ShauryaDin Prerana Abhiyan’ in December 2017. Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe, Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor andJyoti Jagtap were all named in the initial First Information Report of the Bhima Koregaon case. On17 April 2018, the homes of all three defenders were raided by the Pune police, who seized all oftheir electronic devices, including mobile phones, CDs and hard disks. The defenders were notpresented any warrants authorising the search and neither was an inventory of items provided bythe police.The arrest of Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe, Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor and Jyoti Jagtap, and thecontinued incarceration of twelve others accused in the Bhima Koregaon case are a direct reprisal for their peaceful human rights work. The arrests take place during COVID-19, despite the risk thatimprisoned human rights defenders face in this context. Front Line Defenders has previouslyexpressed concerns over the continued detention and health of the accused in the context of thepandemic, seeing most of them fall in the ‘at-risk’ category, and in particularhas askedthatimmediate medical attention be provided toVaravara Rao.Front Line Defenders condemns the arrest of Sagar Tatyarao Gorkhe, Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichorand Jyoti Jagtap and the continued incarceration of Varavara Rao, Sudha Bhardwaj, VernonGonsalves, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Ferreira, Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Shoma Sen, AnandTeltumbde, Mahesh Raut, Surendra Gadling and, Hanu Babu as it believes they are directly relatedto their peaceful human rights work on behalf of the most marginalised communities in India.

FLD

On television and in the courtroom, the young lawyer could be a force. Babar Qadri stood as a rare, pugilistic voice arguing on behalf of his native Kashmir, the rocky region long torn between India and Pakistan, on India’s combative and increasingly nationalistic talk shows.

Shouted at, he would shout back. More than once, an angry host kicked him off the air.

On Thursday, Mr. Qadri, 40, was shot to death in his home, making him one of the most high-profile casualties of the violence wracking Kashmir.

Family members said an assailant posing as a potential client shot him in the head and chest in the courtyard of his home in the old part of Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir. The identity of the assailant was not clear, the police said, according to local media. They declined to answer questions from The New York Times on Friday.

Kashmiris on Friday mourned Mr. Qadri as a rare public advocate for his home in a troubled time. One year ago, India tightened its hold on the Kashmir region, and local activists say speaking out has become increasingly dangerous.

“The lion was killed in his den,” said Majid Hyderi, a longtime friend of Mr. Qadri, citing a common nickname for him. “With his killing, we have lost a roaring voice for peace.”

Long volatile, the predominantly Muslim Kashmir region has suffered growing violence since the Indian government last year revoked the region’s semiautonomy and increased its security presence there. The move hardened the attitudes of militants who have fought for years for independence from India and sidelined moderate voices calling for ways to improve relations with the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has taken an increasingly hard line toward India’s Muslims.

Mr. Qadri’s death is part of a wave of political assassinations that have shaken the region in the last few months. It was the first killing of a prominent civil society member since the killing of Shujaat Bukahri, the editor of a local daily newspaper, two years ago. Editors’ Picks Nicole Kidman Leans Into the Pain The One Name the W.N.B.A. Won’t Say Buried in Salt, These Potatoes Are a Joy to Eat Continue reading the main story

Mr. Qadri had said in recent weeks that he had received death threats. On Twitter this week, he said the police should investigate people who had accused him of being a man of “agencies,” implying he worked secretly for Indian intelligence.

“The sense of tragedy is all the more because he warned of the threat,” Omar Abdullah, a former chief minister of the region, wrote on Twitter. “Sadly his warning was his last tweet.”

Mr. Qadri’s round, bespectacled face was famous in the region and throughout India for his vociferous criticism of New Delhi’s increasingly stronger hand in Kashmir. In person, he could be shy and retiring and would rarely interrupt others, unlike when he was on television. He also had sharp words for Pakistan, which India accuses of supporting pro-independence Kashmiri militants and other armed groups.

Both countries, Mr. Qadri said in an interview with The Times about a month before his death, “play with the dead bodies of Kashmiris.”

Mr. Qadri grew up in Srinagar speaking Kashmiri, Hindi and English, which later made him an effective spokesman in polyglot India. He studied law in the city and became a human rights lawyer. He was a common sight in Srinagar, driving around the city in a gray hatchback with his two young daughters.

He rose to prominence in 2012, when Indian police forces accused a number of children of attempting to murder officers and burning police vehicles. A photo of him wearing a gray suit, perhaps a size too large, while trying to comfort a terrified boy being led away by a police officer went viral on the Kashmiri internet. When the boy was set free, his family members said Mr. Qadri had argued in court on his behalf “like a lion,” giving the young attorney the nickname.

As security forces put more Kashmiris in prison, Mr. Qadri was widely sought after, and he became known for his ability to win the freedom of children in particular. He also became a frequent guest on Indian television, where he sharply criticized the Indian forces for their harsh oversight of Kashmir.

Mr. Qadri kept up his television appearances even as Indian media became increasingly nationalistic after the election of Mr. Modi in 2014. As Indian forces stepped up their enforcement efforts in Kashmir in the name of fighting terrorism, he faced an increasingly difficult reception. Other panelists often called him “Mr. Traitor.”

Late Thursday, as the dust settled in the city, Mr. Qadri’s body, covered by a red blanket, was put in an ambulance and taken to his ancestral home in north Kashmir, where family and friends lowered his body into the ground and bade him farewell.

Friends and relatives beat their chests. During the procession, one of Mr. Qadri's daughters — Zahera, 4 — asked her mother where her father was, according to Surat Shakeel, a family friend. Mr. Qadri’s wife told her that he had gone to perform the hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca. Kashmiri parents often tell their children that the dead have gone to hajj.

Burhan Ahmad Bhat, a university student who participated in the procession, said he wondered whether Mr. Qadri’s killers would be found and whether they would continue to be labeled “unidentified,” like the killers of so many other Kashmiris.

“All we know is that they are killed by unidentified gunmen,” Mr. Bhat said. “But we never come to know why.”

NY Times

The complete freezing of Amnesty International India’s bank accounts by the Government of India which it came to know on 10 September 2020, brings all the work being done by the organization to a grinding halt. The organisation has been compelled to let go of staff in India and pause all its ongoing campaign and research work. This is latest in the incessant witch-hunt of human rights organizations by the Government of India over unfounded and motivated allegations, Amnesty International India said today.

“The continuing crackdown on Amnesty International India over the last two years and the complete freezing of bank accounts is not accidental. The constant harassment by government agencies including the Enforcement Directorate is a result of our unequivocal calls for transparency in the government, more recently for accountability of the Delhi police and the Government of India regarding the grave human rights violations in Delhi riots and Jammu & Kashmir. For a movement that has done nothing but raise its voices against injustice, this latest attack is akin to freezing dissent,” said Avinash Kumar, Executive Director of Amnesty International India.

Amnesty International India stands in full compliance with all applicable Indian and international laws. For human rights work in India, it operates through a distinct model of raising funds domestically. More than four million Indians have supported Amnesty International India’s work in the last eight years and around 100,000 Indians have made financial contributions. These contributions evidently cannot have any relation with the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. The fact that the Government is now portraying this lawful fundraising model as money-laundering is evidence that the overbroad legal framework is maliciously activated when human rights activists and groups challenge the government’s grave inactions and excesses.

The attacks on Amnesty International India and other outspoken human rights organizations, activists and human rights defenders is only an extension of the various repressive policies and sustained assault by the government on those who speak truth to power. “Treating human rights organisations like criminal enterprises and dissenting individuals as criminals without any credible evidence is a deliberate attempt by the Enforcement Directorate and Government of India to stoke a climate of fear and dismantle the critical voices in India. It reeks of fear and repression, ignores the human cost to this crackdown particularly during a pandemic and violates people’s basic rights to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, and association guaranteed by the Indian Constitution and international human rights law. Instead, as a global power and a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council, India must fearlessly welcome calls for accountability and justice,” said Avinash Kumar.

As part of the Nobel Prize winning movement, Amnesty International India holds itself to the highest evidentiary standards. Our work in India, as elsewhere, is to uphold universal human rights and build a global movement of people who take injustice personally. These are the same values that are enshrined in the Constitution of India and flow from a long and rich Indian tradition of pluralism, tolerance and peaceful dissent.

———

BACKGROUND: CHRONOLOGY OF ATTACKS AND HARASSMENT OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL INDIA:

On 25 October 2018, Amnesty International India endured a 10-hour-long raid as a group of officers from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), a financial investigation agency under the Ministry of Finance, entered its premises and locked the gates behind them. Most of the information and documents that were demanded during the search were already available in the public domain or filed with the relevant government authorities. The residence of a Director was also raided.

Immediately after the raid, the bank accounts were also frozen by the ED. As a result, Amnesty International India was forced to let go of a number of its staff, adversely affecting its work in India including with the marginalised communities. Despite the ongoing investigations and before the framing of charges, the Government of India started a smear campaign against Amnesty International India in the country through selective leaking of documents gathered by the ED, to government-aligned media outlets. This resulted in a malicious media trial against the organization.

In early 2019, the Department of Income Tax started sending investigative letters to more than 30 small regular donors. Apparently, the department did not find any irregularities but the process adversely affected the fundraising campaigns of Amnesty International India.

In June 2019, Amnesty International India was denied permission to hold the press conference launch in Srinagar to release its third ‘Lawless Law’ report on the misuse and abuse of Public Safety Act in Jammu and Kashmir. It was forced to digitally release it.

On 22 October 2019, Amnesty International testified at the US Congressional hearing on the situation of human rights in South Asia with specific focus on Jammu and Kashmir since the unilateral abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India.

On 15 November 2019, two weeks after the testimony and amid rumours of impending arrests of the organizations top officials, the offices of Amnesty International India and the residence of one of its directors were raided again by the CBI. The raids were conducted on the basis of a First Information Report filed by the Ministry of Home Affairs over unsubstantiated allegations of suspected violations of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. It suggested investigations be launched under other laws like Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

On 13 April 2020, Amnesty International India called on the Uttar Pradesh Government to stop its intimidation of journalists through use of repressive laws during a pandemic. On 15 April 2020, the Cyber Crime Police Station, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh notified Twitter to furnish information about Amnesty International India’s Twitter account @AIIndia which the organization uses to monitor and analyse developments in international human rights law and Indian constitutional and criminal law related to human rights issues.

On 5 August 2020, marking the first anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India, Amnesty International India released an update on the situation of human rights in Jammu and Kashmir.

On 28 August 2020, marking the six-month anniversary of the riots that took place in North-East Delhi in February 2020, Amnesty International India released an investigative brief on the complicity of Delhi police in the riots which claimed the lives of at least 53 people, mostly from the minority Muslim community.

The release of the two publications has provided fresh impetus to the establishment to harass and intimidate Amnesty International India through its investigative agencies.

On 10 September 2020 Amnesty International India came to know that all its bank accounts were completely frozen by the Enforcement Directorate bringing most of the work of the human rights organization to a grinding halt.

Amnesty International

Expressing grave concern about the physical assault of a human rights defender and the subsequent apathy by Satara police, the Human Rights Defenders Alert and the National Dalit Movement for Justice (NDMJ) have written an urgent letter of appeal on September 29.

The letter addressed to the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC), the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) and various UN officials demanded action against the rural police for their apathetic treatment of the physical assault case of Advocate Sujit Nikalje and his family by local goons for his work as a human rights defender.

As many as six people allegedly assaulted the Dalit rights activist and lawyer, who was returning to Phaltan from Dhumalwadi on September 6, along with his wife and his brother’s family. The family was returning from a visit to a nearby waterfall when the group of miscreants verbally and physically harassed them. A crowd that had rushed to the family’s help after hearing their shouts caught one attacker Kunal Gaikwad and handed him over to the police.

The organisations alleged that the Inspector of Phaltan rural police, Nitin T Sawant, not only failed to apprehend the attackers but also threatened Nikalje for a baseless offence of entering a restricted waterfall area.

“The fact is that the waterfall comes under the jurisdiction of Dhamalwadi Panchayat, which had decreed that locals were allowed to visit it. The attackers were in fact in contravention to the Panchayat’s orders barring outsiders from visiting the waterfall. Furthermore, the police let off the Mr. Gaikwad on September 6, 2020, without registering a case despite having been caught red handed,” wrote the organisations.

They demanded that Satara’s Superintendent of Police file a report against the Inspector, the rural police and other personnel for wilful negligence and inaction to register the Advocate’s case.

The organisation also asked that the charge of attempt to murder be added to Nikalje’s existing FIR along with other charges of voluntary hurt, assault on a woman to outrage her modesty, unlawful assembly and armed rioting. Lastly, they demanded compensation for the Dalit rights activist who was assaulted on account of his human rights work.

“We urge that this case is treated as a case of reprisal on the human rights defender,” said the letter.

Five of the six accused were arrested on September 10 following intervention by Superintendent of Police Ms. Tejaswi Satpute. However, Mr. Deepak Gaikwad continues to be absconding.

The organisations that believed the attack was of a pre-meditated nature said, “He [Gaikwad] has been identified by the HRD as being the leader of the pack and took the lead in instigating the attack against the HRD. The fact that he continues to be free puts the life of the HRD [Nikalje] and his family in imminent threat.”

Sabrang India

The malicious attacks on Adivasis are on the rise even as illegal felling of trees and other intimidation tactics by the forest department continue in isolated incidents across the country. The latest incident took place in Madhya Pradsh where some forest officials illegally detained, assaulted and tortured two activists: Kailash Jamre and Pyarsingh Waskale working for Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sangathan in Burhanpur district Madhya Pradesh.

On August 29, two Adivasis- Jabarsing Keriya and Somla Chamarsingh were picked up while going back to their village after buying groceries. No information was provided to villagers until late that night. The next morning, the forest staff called Kailash Jamre and asked some of them to come to court to apply for bail for the two tribals. Pyarsingh Waskale accompanied Kailash as they attended the hearing of Jabarsingh and Somla. The forest department offered no evidence, nor did they present a chargesheet of the crimes committed by the two, however their bail application was rejected. As Kailash and Pyarsingh were exiting the court, on August 30, they were forcibly picked up by Khaknar Range Officer Abhay Singh Tomar and a few others.

Kailash and Pyarsingh were then taken to Khaknar Range office, where they were illegally locked up all night, and were allegedly brutally beaten up by around 20-25 staff and officers. According to Kailash, 2 or 3 people would hold their limbs while the others beat them with lathis. Most were drunk, and kept abusing them for ‘talking too much about the law and being the leaders of the sangathan’.

When the news of the illegal detention reached the village, many Adivasis gathered at Khaknar police station late at night and demanded registration of FIR against the forest officials. But, like in so many other cases of recent times, the police refused to file FIR and instead threatened the Adivasis with arrest. They were also allegedly misled by the police that Kailash and Pyaarsing had been taken to Burhanpur and that they had not been mistreated and would be produced in Court the next day.

They were brought to the District Court, Burhanpur, the next day and as Kailash and Pyarsingh were so brutally beaten up in custody, Kailash could barely stand and collapsed in court, whereafter he was hospitalised for 6 days and he is still unable to walk.

Both Kailash Jamre and Pyarsing Vaskale, of Rehmanpur village in Khaknar block are active members of Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sangathan and constantly educate Adivasis about the provisions of the Forest Rights Act and their other legal rights. They have also, along with others, been active in opposing illegal clearing of forests which is happening with the active connivance of forest officials. They were mercilessly beaten up by forest department officials who said, “Tum hi jyaada kanoon karte ho.. dekhte hai teri sangathan kitni mazboot hai” (You are the ones who talk too much about the law.. now let’s see how strong your organisation is).

The region has a history of violence against Barela and Bhilala Adivasis who are claimants under the FRA. The forest staff, for decades has been demanding money from Adivasis for sowing, harvesting along with threats of false charges and cases slapped on them. Kailash and Pyarsingh are activists who for the past two years have been generating awareness about the Forest Rights and other legal rights and entitlements for Adivasis – putting an end to the decades of extortion by forest staff and officials from Adivasis for simply growing food.

Kailash himself and Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sangathan, as an organization have written to the District Collector and Superintendent of police giving a detailed account of the incident and demanding action. They have demanded that strict action be taken against the forest officials and they be booked under sections of the IPC as well as the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act as also the false cases against the adivasis and the activists be withdrawn.

Organisations that work at grassroots level to awaken and strengthen tribal communities seems to have become the new target of forest officials possibly because these activists always come to the rescue and raise their voice along with fellow adivasis whenever any injustice is meted out by forest officials.

Sabrang India

A fortnight ago, tribal rights champion Soni Sori found herself in quite a conundrum. On September 24, she had tested positive for COVID-19. A day later, she was supposed to present herself before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for an inquiry in the killing of Bheema Mandavi, a Bharatiya Janata Party MLA, and four policemen in an alleged Naxal attack from the past year.

Sori had informed the officials about her health condition; they, however, insisted she still appears. Four days later, the local administration went ahead and booked her under sections of the Indian Penal Code for violating the quarantine rules.

Sori, who had remained active through the lockdown, visiting villages and helping people in need in the tribal district of Dantewada in Chhattisgarh, developed symptoms in the month of September. As fever persisted, she decided to get herself tested. “The result stated I was infected by coronavirus. The local health officials came and put me in quarantine immediately at my residence in Geedam (a tehsil in Dantewada),” she says.

But when Sori called the NIA officials informing them about her health status, she says the officers refuse to believe her. “I was asked to make arrangements and be present before the NIA’s Dantewada office, over 80 km away,” she says. Sori’s health condition scared her neighbours, and local travel agents were unwilling to lend their vehicle for the travel, her nephew Lingram Kodopi says. The two were then forced to travel on a bike amid heavy rains.

“I was burning with a high fever. I was afraid they would detain me in the case. They questioned me for over seven hours despite my condition,” she adds.

Sori was informed about her health condition by Devendra Pratap Singh, a health officer in Geedam. Despite the positive report, the Dantewada police, along with the NIA insisted a second test was conducted. The second test too came out positive. But Sori alleged that despite the rapid test kit clearly indicating that she was positive, the police and Pratap declared that she had tested negative and is fit to face the inquiry.

But then, Singh later went ahead filing a case against Soni under Sections 188, 269, and 270 of the Indian Penal Code for disobeying an order duly promulgated by a public servant, for indulging in a negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life and malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life respectively. All three sections are bailable.

When The Wire approached Singh for his comment, he confirmed that an FIR has been registered. “I merely did my job. I am in-charge of the region and since Sori had travelled even when she was put under strict quarantine, I was duty-bound to report her to the police,” he said. When asked why he had claimed that she was negative on the day of Sori’s appearance before the NIA, Singh denied having made such a statement. He also confirmed that she tested positive both times. The former chief medical officer, Dr S.K.P. Shandilya, who was in-charge of the Dantewada region until three days ago, also confirmed that Sori had tested positive. The Wire has accessed her medical reports and also the FIR registered by Singh.

Sori, who has faced police atrocities including sexual torture and prolonged incarceration in the past, shared that she finds the state police and the NIA’s act inhumane. “If questioning me was so important, the NIA could have waited for a few weeks. Why did they insist I travel even when they are fully aware that this illness spreads super fast? It wasn’t just about my health alone, I could have endangered so many more lives,” she says.

Under Section 160 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the investigating agency ought to have travelled to her residence. The section states, “…provided that no male person under the age of fifteen years or woman shall be required to attend at any place other than the place in which such male person or woman resides.” The section also makes provision for travel allowance. But Sori says she was asked to make her own arrangement.

Bheema Mandavi murder case

On April 9, 2019, Bheema Mandavi, then the sitting BJP MLA from Dantewada, and four personnel of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) were killed after Maoists had allegedly blown up their vehicle with an IED. This incident took place near Shyamgiri village under the Kuakonda police station area of Dantewada. The case was handed over to the NIA for investigation and on October 2, the agency filed a bulky chargesheet and named 33 persons as accused.

The NIA was in a hurry to question Sori before filing the chargesheet.

In the chargesheet, the NIA has claimed that the attackers after the ambush had also looted the arms and ammunition of the security personnel. All accused have been booked under several sections of the IPC, the Arms Act, the Explosive Substances Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

While the Jagdalpur team of the NIA refused to take Sori’s health condition seriously, its Bombay team, investigating the 2018 Elgar Parishad’s case, cancelled its scheduled questioning last week. Sori, who was one of the many guest speakers at the Elgar Parishad event organised in Shaniwarwada of Pune to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the battle of Bhima Koregaon, was to be questioned by the NIA. A team of officers had reportedly traveled to Dantewada but decided to return on finding out about her health condition. The team spoke to Sori on the phone instead and has rescheduled a visit to Dantewada to the coming week.

Wire

Mr. Dhirendra Pratap isa Dalit rights activistandthe national president of an organization called "Purvanchal Sena” formed in 2006 and working against the oppression of Dalits.

On September 08, 2020,in Kusmaul village in Gorakhpur, a candidate for Pradhan’s election Mr. Sonu Jatav was abusedwith‘casteist slurs’by the sitting Gram PradhanMr. Vivek Shahi.Mr. Dhirendraand his organisationopposedthis incident and the police filedan FIR under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (PoA) against the Pradhanon September 09, 2020.However,Mr. Vivek was not arrested and he is alleged to have gone to the Dalit colony and abused Dalits in front of the police.The police instead of upholding law and order and arresting Mr. Vivek, remainedsilent and abetted the atrocities. A video was also made of this incident.Mr. Dhirendra and his organisation were constantly demanding the arrest of Mr. Vivek.

On September 18, 2020, around 02:00 AM, 20-25 men in plain clothes, armed with guns,jumped the wall and entered Mr. Dhirendra’shome in village Betiahata,Gorakhpur.When Mr. Dhirendra’s fatherenquiredwho they were and how did theyenter hishome, they said that theywere from the crime branch andhad come for an investigationand started searching their home room by room. Mr. Dhirendra was sleeping in hisroomduring this time. When he woke up, the intruders told him too that theyare from the crime branch and said that “You are Dhirendra ‘Purvanchal Sena’ president, now you will know how to become a leader.”Mr. Dhirendra asked them for anarrest warrant or notice, hearing which theystarted abusing himand forcibly triedto take him. Mr.Dhirendra's younger brother was recording this entire incident onhis mobile. After seeing him record the incident, the policemen snatched the mobile from the younger brother and took him too forcibly. They also abused and harassed women.When the two brothers were brought out of the house, the family also came out and noticed that some policemen inuniformwere standing outside the house.There were 6-7 cars,including a police jeep. The policemen started slappingboth HRDs, while trying to force both brothers into theircar. When their father tried to rescue his son, they tried to beat him with a lathi. Then theyforcibly abducted both thebrothersandtook them.In themorningtheirfather went to nearest police station–Cantt Police Station in Gorakhpur –and asked about his sons. But the policemen replied that they did not knowabout them. He then went to successive police stations to ask about his sons but did not get any information. Then he went to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP)GorakhpurMr.Bhupendra Kumar Singh’s office but Mr. Singh was not present,so he left a letter regarding the incident. Around 02:00 PM,hemet the District Magistrate(DM) of Gorakhpur Mr. VijendraPandiyan and told him the incident. The DM assured him that he will find his sons. Around 03:00 PM,Mr.Dhirendra and his brotherwere brought to the district hospitalof Gorakhpur for medicalexamination andafter medical theywere sent to the Gorakhpur District Jail. At 3:03 pm an FIR was registered by Mr. Amit Kumar Chaturvedi, Sub-Inspector atCantt Police Station, Gorakhpurunder sections307(Attempt to murder),332(Voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353(Assault or criminal force to public servant from discharge of his duty)against Mr. Dhirendra, Mr. Yogendra Pratap and another personMr. Vicky David.TheFIRstated that on the night of September17-18, 2020, Mr. Chaturvedi, (Sub-Inspector) along with Constables Deepak Kumar and Ram Chander Yadav were on duty at Betiahata Chauraha, Betiahata, Gorakhpur.From the Crime Branch, Mr. Sadiq(SI), Mr. Chandrabhan (SI), Mr. Rashid (Head-Constable), Mr. Dharmendra (Constable), Mr. Yogesh (Head-Constable), Mr. Pradeep (Constable), Mr. Rakesh (Constable), Mr. Indresh (Constable), Mr. Qutbuddin (Constable) and Mr. Monish (Constable) had gone to the Betiahata Chauraha. They were told by aninformer that a wanted criminalMr. Vikky David is standing near Hanuman temple with two people.After getting the information, 15 policemenreached Hanuman Templewhere theysaw three people standing who said their names wasMr. Vicky David, Mr. Dhirendra Pratap and Mr. Yogendra Pratap. When all of them were body searched,it seemed as if Mr. David had a gun and in the scuffle severalpolicemen fell downand all three of themran away firing.Mr. Chaturvedi statedin FIR that,“the police searched for them but all three could not be found. That's why I'm filing a FIR”.Mr. Dhirendrawas constantly persuadingthe policeto uphold the constitution and act against Dalit atrocities. This is the main reason why the police targeted Mr. Dhirendra.The entire narrative showcasesextreme neglect and misuse of power by the Gorakhpur police. From not arresting Mr. Vivek and then abetting crime against Dalits to the post-midnight raid, abduction and illegal arrest in a fabricated case demonstrate a state of complete lawlessness in Gorakhpur. Acts by the police depict extremely serious and blatant violations of arrest procedures of the Cr.P.C, the DK Basuguidelinesand NHRC’s ownguidelineson arrestprocedures.

HRD Alert India

Adv. Varsha Deshpande is a well-known activist in Maharashtra and is based out of Satara district. She has worked for many years against social malpractices such as female foeticide and child marriages. She is also the founder president of the organizationcalled ‘Dalit Mahila Vikas Mandal’ which works with Dalit women for self-employment and has also established Free Legal Aid Center in 1996 with the help of Maharashtra Legal Aid Society.

Ms. Tamanna Mujawar and Ms. Aishwarya Jadhav, both residents of Satara,had money dealings in the past due to which a dispute broke out between them. Ms. Jadhavhad borrowed Rs. 15000 from Ms. Mujawar of which she had returned Rs. 12,500.Since they were unable to resolve the issue,Ms. Jadhav approached the Free Legal Aid Centre on August 24, 2020. However unable to resolve the issueeither, both wereaskedby the WHRD to visit the Satara City police station.

On August 25, 2020, the Satara City Police registered an FIR against Adv. Varsha Deshpandebased on a complaint filed by Ms. Mujawaralleging that the WHRD had physically assaulted her and demanded a ransom.The complaint stated that whenadispute croppedup between her and Ms. Jadhav at the Free Legal Aid Centre, Adv. Deshpande threatened her that she would initiatea legal case against her and also slapped her. Ms. Mujawar also accused Adv. Deshpande of demanding aransom of Rs. 50,000, failing which shewould file a complaint against her.Based on her complaint,the Satara city policestationcharged the WHRD under sections 384 (extortion) and 323 (causing voluntary hurt) of the Indian Penal Code(IPC).In her complaint, Ms. Mujawarsaid that the Ms. Jadhav had asked her to come to Adv. Deshpande’s office at 2.30 p.m. However, Adv. Deshpandehas clearedthat she hadnever called Ms. Mujawar to the office and the latter had come on her own volition. On August 26, 2020, Ms. Jadhav filed a police complaint stating that she had approached Adv. Deshpande as she wanted help on how to get out of her current predicament. However,in her office,Ms. Mujawar started a verbal fight with Adv. Deshpande. She also alleged that Ms. Mujawar was forcing her into a prostitution and blackmailing racket. Ms. Mujawar allegedly demanded that Ms. Jadhav pay her the amount due with interest when she refused to do Ms. Mujawar’s bidding. Based on Ms. Jadhav’s complaint the Satara city policestationhave filed an FIR under sections 452 (House Trespass), 342 (Wrongful Confinement), 323 (Voluntary Hurt), 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (Criminal Intimidation), and section 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 which pertains toprocuring, inducing or taking an individual for the sake of prostitutionagainst Ms. Mujawar. No one has yet been arrested.We believe that the Ms. Deshpande, a longstandingwoman Human Rights Defenderof repute,has been implicated in a false case by the Satara police since she hasbeen vocal about police inaction on several occasions in the pastregarding sexual harassment of women. Recently,the WHRD had also complained to the state DGP about SDPO Mr. Sameer Sheikh and his handling of cases.Since there seems to have been a recent history with Mr. Sheikh as well as the facts of the above case, we are inclined to believe that the case against Adv. Deshpande is fabricated and false and has been filed with a malicious intent.

HRD Aleret India

With top Congress leaders like Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hitting the streets to highlight the Uttar Pradesh government’s mishandling of the Hathras gangrape-and-murder case, one would assume that since at least in the states where the party is in power, individuals’ right to protest would be honoured.

But in Maharashtra, particularly in Mumbai, that is not the case. The city police began tracking 24-year-old anti-caste activist Suvarna Salve at 1 am on October 2 and at the crack of dawn, they were at her doorstep armed with a legal notice to prevent her from participating in any protests in the city.

Suvarna, a student and cultural activist, says the police first called her on her cell phone at midnight and inquired about her whereabouts. “They asked me for my address and said they want to serve me a notice at 1 am. I informed them that I was away and they should not bother my family. But at around 7:15 am, the police were at my doorstep with a notice. My family received the notice,” she says.

The notice, typed in Marathi, stated that Salve was prohibited from participating in a “peaceful protest” organised by a Mumbai-based collective ‘Hum Bharat ke Log’ (We the People of India). Issued by the Marine Drive police station and signed by senior police inspector Mrityunjay Hiremath, the notice states:

“In the peaceful protest, banners and placards with messages like “Sab Nirbhay Bano, Loktantra Zinda Rakho, Savidhan ka SanmaaN karo” (Become fearless, keep democracy alive, respect the constitution) are to be displayed near a Gandhi statue at Madam Cama road.”

In the notice, issued under section 149 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), the police have quoted a whole bunch of sections, including those under the Maharashtra Police Act, the Epidemic Diseases Act and other sections of unlawful assembly claiming that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the public gathering is prohibited. Section 149 of the CrPC implies that every police officer may intervene for the purpose of preventing, and shall, to the best of his ability, prevent, the commission of any cognizable offence

Salve says while the sections applied are understandable, the motive behind serving a notice only to her is not. “It was supposed to be a public gathering. Several people had decided to participate. But they identify just a few in the crowd and serve a notice. How to even understand this behaviour,” she asks.

Besides Salve, at least two more persons who were to participate in the protest have been served with similar notices. Salve did not attend the protest and Firoze Mithiborewala, one of the protestors, confirmed that the police served similar notices to two teenagers who had assembled at the protest site.

Interestingly, when The Wire contacted the Marine Drive senior police inspector Hiremath to inquire about the grounds for issuing this notice, he said that he was not aware of it. “There is no protest organised within my jurisdiction. We have not issued any notice,” he claimed over the phone. The letter has his name and signature on it.

This is not the first time that the Mumbai police have served a notice on Salve. On August 29, The Wire, in a detailed piece had reported the Mumbai police’s attempt to classify Salve as a “habitual offender” and initiate the administrative procedure of “externment” against her. In that notice, the Mumbai police also demanded a whopping surety of Rs 50 lakh from her. The notice was served to her for participating in an impromptu protest organised in the city in January in the wake of the attack on students and faculty members inside the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus.

Salve says she has been singled out and harassed by the current state dispensation. She says the police’s act of serving notices on her for every public appearance is crafted with a clear intention to profile and criminalise her.

Since her college days, Salve has been a vocal anti-caste voice, participating in protests and students’ agitations across India. In 2016, after the death of Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar at the University of Hyderabad, which many described as an “institutional murder”, Salve joined the Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed to fight for justice for Vemula and other Bahujan students who face discrimination in campuses.

Salve told The Wire, “The protests that I have participated in have always been peaceful and organised against the atrocities and violations of human rights in the country. This protest [on October 2] was organised to register our protest against the inhuman treatment meted out to a Dalit family, whose 19-year-old daughter was allegedly gang-raped and killed. And the irony is, the Mumbai police identifies one Dalit woman and prohibits her from protesting.”

Wire

The cyber wing of the Jammu and Kashmir Police summoned and abused Auqib Javeed, a Kashmir based journalist, over a news report about police intimidation of social media users. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its India affiliate Indian Journalists Union (IJU) condemn the police’s highhandedness and urge the Indian authorities to stop such the violence and intimidation of journalists.

Javeed was assaulted and harassed by Jammu and Kashmir Cyber Police on September 19 for his news report entitled ‘Police Question Kashmir Twitter Users For 'Anti-Govt' Posts’ published on the Article 14 online site. His article highlights cases of the intimidation by the Jammu and Kashmir police to civil society members, journalists and students for their tweets critical of government actions on article 370 and the internet shutdown in Jammu and Kashmir. The article claims that dozens of Twitter users in Kashmir have been forced to maintain their silence after being interrogated by the police about their posts on Article 370 and the Internet shutdown. The police have accused Javeed’sreport of being ‘fake and baseless’.

According to Javeed, after being summoned he was abused and assaulted at the cyber-police’s police on September 19 along with two members of the Kashmir Press Club. He said two masked police slapped him and Tahir Bhatti, the Superintendent of Police who is in charge of the police’s cyber cell, abused him. The journalist was released after five hours. The police have refuted his allegations of abuse.

Journalists in the J&K region are frequently harassed, threatened and summoned particularly over any criticism of the Indian government revocation of article 370 which lead to the imposed internetshutdown in August 5, 2019.

On July 31,Qazi Shibli, the editor of news portal The Kashmiriyat , was detained whileFahad Shah, editor of news portal Kashmir Walla, was summoned on May 20. The police in Srinagar also filed separate investigations or First Information Reports (FIR) against Kashmiri photojournalist Masrat Zahra and journalist Gowhar Geelani on April 18 and April 21 respectively. And, cyber police in Srinagar questioned journalist Peerzada Ashiq on April 19 in relation to the journalist’s news articles.

IFJ

A journalist from Tripura was beaten up by unidentified individuals, after he criticised Chief Minister Biplab Deb’s remark that he will not forgive media houses for publishing stories of alleged mismanagement of the coronavirus crisis by the Bharatiya Janata Party government, NDTV reported on Monday.

Parashar Biswas, a journalist with a Bengali newspaper, made the criticism after being discharged from a coronavirus care centre. In his video, posted on Facebook on Saturday, Biswas said he wanted to warn the chief minister that he should not threaten the media.

Biswas was thrashed at his house in Ambassa, the headquarters of Dhalai district, on Saturday night. He was critically injured and was taken to a hospital in Agartala. “We have filed a case and are investigating the attack,” Deputy General of Police Rajiv Singh said.

Subal Dey, the editor of Syandan Patrika, where Biswas works, said he was attacked within 12 hours after he made the Facebook post. “He was attacked within a day after the chief minister issued a threat against the media and within 12 hours of his Facebook post. We suspect this attack to have been carried out by BJP members.”

But the BJP denied it was responsible for the attack. “We condemn the attack on the journalist,” Tripura BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharjee said. “None of our party members are involved in this. Police has started investigation. If any political party members are involved, law will take its course.”

Deb had said on Friday that he would not “forgive” the media for its allegedly “confused” coverage of the coronavirus situation in the state. “A few newspapers and journalists are getting overexcited and confusing the people of Tripura,” he had said. “History would not forget them. I will also not forgive them. People of Tripura will not forget them. Biplab Deb will not forget them. I do what I say, I keep my words. History will remain witness to it.”

Journalists in Agartala held a meeting on Sunday under the forum “Assembly of Journalists”, and asked Deb to withdraw his statement. “Within 24 hours of Chief Minister’s public threat to newspapers, a journalist has been attacked, beaten brutally,” they said in a statement. “This has led to a feeling of insecurity among journalists in the state.” The group said that if Deb did not withdraw his statement, they might have to approach Governor Ramesh Bais, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Press Council of India.

Forum for Protection of Media and Journalists in Tripura Chairperson Subal Kumar Dey said the comments of the chief minister were “undemocratic and unconstitutional”, News18 reported. “We hope he will withdraw his remark within the next three days,” Dey said.

Dey claimed that not one but two journalists have been attacked since Saturday. “The state is trying to enslave media persons,” he alleged. “State government orders are issued to choke journalists’ voices.”

Tripura has so far reported 19,165 cases of the coronavirus, including 200 deaths, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. As many as 11,536 people have recovered.

Scroll

The famous Urdu poet Munawwar Rana’s daughters, Sumaiya Rana and Uzma Parveen had asked people to gather near the Chief Minister’s residence and beat ‘thalis’ to make their voices heard.

Post this, they have been placed under house arrest on Wednesday in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow, over their call for the protest against the UP government led by the Chief Minister Ajay Singh Bisht also known as Yogi Adityanath, the police said.

Sumaiyya and Uzma, who had also played a key role in the anti-CAA protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, in Lucknow earlier this year, had asked the public to raise their voices against a host of increasing ongoing issues, and mishandling of the raging coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

Sumaiyya who lives at Kaiserbagh in Lucknow, said, “The UP government has failed in containing the contagion in the state. Private hospitals are fleecing the public because the state government is turning a blind eye on them. The COVID-19-related high mortality rate has further worsened the healthcare crisis in UP. Besides, the state government has also failed in curbing unemployment that has started taking a toll on the state’s youths. I had given a call to make our voices heard. ”

After this incident, a large number of policemen were seen outside the Silver Heights Apartments in Kaiserbagh area where they live.

Besides, the police didn’t allow the protesters to gather outside the CM’s residence.

The police spokesperson said since Section 144 is in force in the state capital, no congregation of people could be allowed.

The cases against them have been registered on charges making objectionable comments on social media, public obstruction, violating Section 144 and disturbing peace.

Kasmiriyat

Delhi Police arrested former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for instigating the North-East Delhi riots that broke out in February this year.

“Khalid was one of the main conspirators of riots in which 53 persons died and over 400 were injured,” special cell of Delhi Police said after the arrest.

The former JNU scholar has been questioned twice by the police over the last two months for speeches he delivered at the Shaheen Bagh protest site. According to the police, Khalid had planned the riots with former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain.

Khalid was charged with sedition and arrested in February 2016 too, for allegedly shouting anti-India slogans inside the JNU campus along with former student union president Kanhaiya Kumar and others.

“We arrested Umar Khalid late Sunday night,” said a senior police officer associated with the probe, requesting not to be named.

On August 3, the suspended AAP councillor had reportedly confessed to his crime and told the police that he was given the task to collect as much glass bottle, petrol, acid, stones as possible during the violence.

Communal violence broke out in Delhi between anti-CAA and pro-CAA protesters in February this year. Hundreds of people were detained in connection with the violence and police faced criticism for their slack management of protesters and ineffective handling of the riots.

Hindustan Times

The cost of exercising one’s constitutional right to protest in Mumbai has been fixed at Rs 50 lakh.

The Mumbai police has issued a notice seeking surety of a whopping Rs 50 lakh from a 24-year-old student and cultural activist Suvarna Salve for participating in an impromptu protest in January, organised in Mumbai in the wake of the attack on students and faculty members inside the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus.

While this is the only FIR ever registered against Salve, the Mumbai police have also decided to classify her as a “habitual offender” and initiate another administrative procedure of “externment” against her.

Salve, a lead singer and activist of the cultural troop Samata Kala Manch, was one of the 31 persons to be booked by the MRA Marg police for participating in a peaceful rally from Hutatma Chowk to Gateway of India in South Mumbai on January 6. Over 300 people from across Mumbai had joined the rally which was organised in protest against the violent attack on students in JNU campus by activists belonging to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS’s) students’ wing, Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

The Mumbai police’s decision to slap FIRs against activists in the city had attracted severe criticism. Rights activists and political leaders had termed the Mumbai police’s action as excessive and also equated it with the Delhi police which had remained a “mute spectator” and done nothing to control the masked mob that roamed around freely for almost three hours in the JNU campus but later had booked the victims instead.

In Mumbai, the protest was organised at two separate spots, just a few kilometres apart. The police have filed two separate FIRs – one at MRA Marg police station and another at Colaba police station – for those attending the protests. In both places, several prominent figures like former Bombay high court judge B.G. Kolse-Patil, and actor Sushant Singh had participated. When the rally soon transformed into a sit-in protest at Gateway of India and more and more people joined in support, state ministers like Jitendra Awhad visited the spot to negotiate with protestors.

While the initial decision was to not take criminal action against the protestors, the police had eventually changed their stance. In all 31 persons have been named in the FIR and have been booked under section 141, 143 and 149 (unlawful assembly) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the Indian Penal Code, along with section 37 of the Bombay Police Act, 1951.

All sections are bailable and punishable for less than six months. Prominent persons were excluded from the FIR and only student activists and some lawyers were named. Some of them even claimed that they were not present at the protest site but were still named in the FIR.

Despite of filing a case of unserious nature, the police have sought an unusually high surety, and more strangely have demanded it only from Salve. The notice, issued on August 24, has sought an explanation as to why Salve a proceeding should not be initiated against her under Section 110 (e) of the CrPC. The notice also seeks at least one of two persons to appear as a “surety”, pledging an amount of Rs 50 lakh, ensuring her good behaviour for the next two years. If she fails, the amount or the property would be confiscated by the state.

Salve says this is done to discourage her from participating in any political activism in the future. “This is done clearly with an intention to harass,” she said. “There were several influential people who had participated in the protest but they chose to go behind one student activist. They know I will never be able to furnish such surety ever. I belong to a Dalit community, and stay in a slum rehabilitation housing,” she pointed out.

Since her college days, Salve has been a vocal anti-caste voice, participating in protests and students’ agitation across India. In 2016, when Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar at University of Hyderabad, was allegedly killed in an “institutional murder”, Salve joined the Joint Action Committee (JAC) formed to fight for justice for Vemula and other Bahujan students facing discrimination in campuses.

In the past years, when anti-caste organisations and political parties like Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi called for a bandh in the state, Salve like several other activists was served a notice under Section 144 of the CrPC against participating in any public gathering. “There has been a systematic attempt made to curtail dissenting voices. Like me, several other Ambedkarite activists have been served such notices,” she said.

Her lawyer Ishrat Ali Khan says the police’s decision to classify her as an “habitual offender” also stems from the same mentality. “Look at the crime here – organising and participating in a peaceful protest. From no stretch of imagination can an individual exercising their right to expression and protest be termed as a habitual offender,” he said.

Section 110 of the CrPC, also in legal parlance called as “chapter proceedings” is initiated against those who have been booked in multiple crimes. An executive clause, the proceedings under this section is initiated by the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) level officer and if convicted, the person is externed for a stipulated period of time outside the district limit.

Several researchers have pointed to its discriminatory nature and how it gets disproportionately used against marginalised identities like Dalits and Denotified Tribes. In most cases, it is noticed that the executive officials hearing the case convict the person and the individual then has to move the high court to get their name cleared. This is a tedious process, requiring both resources and patience.

Khan, in his over a decade of experience handling cases under this section, said he had never seen the section being slapped against someone for protesting. “The subsections cover several crimes like theft, dacoity and extortion. The police claim to use it against “hardened criminals”, something that Salve or any dissenting activists don’t qualify for, he said.

Wire

The Network of Women in Media, India, condemns the online abuse and harassment of Chennai-based journalist Kavin Malar. The relentless abuse, personal attacks and doxing (a practice where personal identifying information is broadcast online) by droves of trolls are part of growing attempts on social media to silence vocal women journalists in India. Facebook’s reluctance to take down these posts and the delay by the police in registering a complaint have only emboldened online harassers.

After Kavin wrote some comments online about what she felt were political motives behind the arrests of members of YouTube group Karuppar Koottam and, in a different instance, posted in support of another journalist being trolled online, a Bharatiya Janata Party functionary, Kalyanaraman, named Kavin as being anti-BJP. Facebook users who appear to support the BJP flooded her timeline and harassed her for weeks.

On August 9, a user named Sasi Kumar posted two photographs of Kavin with the words “My rate is 1000 rupees”. Soon afterwards, she began to get obscene calls and messages on Facebook from other users. Kavin is a journalist of solid credibility. The implication that she is soliciting is a condemnable attempt to malign her journalistic identity and reputation.

When Kavin and several others reported the post and photograph to Facebook, the social media platform refused to take any action, saying the post was not against their community standards. It was only after over 10 days that Facebook removed the photo. Other abusive comments remain online. So does Sasi Kumar’s profile.

Responding to Kavin’s complaint and the solidarity that poured in for her, on August 17 the Chennai Cyber Crime cell registered a case under Sections 354-D of the Indian Penal Code, and Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act, 1998.

Kavin is an independent Tamil journalist who has been harassed for her courageous reportage on caste discrimination, communal violence and gender rights. She was harassed online in 2013, too, while covering the death of a Dalit man who married a Vanniyar woman in Dharmapuri. NWMI had written to the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu demanding action. It was only when Kavin went to court that the police filed a complaint against her harasser, self-proclaimed political analyst Kishore K Swamy, under court orders.

This March, the police closed the 2013 case saying the abusive comments were “undetected”, when many are still clearly online. Swamy, meanwhile, continues to harass several journalists, especially women and the few mainstream Tamil journalists not from the upper caste. There are at least five police complaints against Swamy, with no proportionate action.

Such police inaction allows online abusers to attack women journalists with impunity. Investigations must be completed and justice done for the internet to be a safer space for all.

Abusive and targeted content in non-English languages is a distressing reality for Indian journalists. Although the recent post was in English, Kavin often faces attacks from social media users who post in Tamil. These abusive comments often escape the notice of Facebook, YouTube and Twitter moderators.

NWMI asks that social media platforms find ways to quell harassment in regional languages, whether with multilingual moderators or better translation algorithms.

Journalists across the world face threats and insults on social networks, from ordinary trolls or professional ones, in an obvious attempt to silence them. Some Indian political leaders have lauded these trolls as “warriors” and have endorsed their synchronised attacks by following their accounts or even offering them positions in their political parties.

Online harassers especially target investigative and female journalists. Doxing endangers reporters and their families. Its psychological effects on the victim and other journalists can lead to self-censorship or leaving social networks which have today become essential to journalistic work. Such online harassment can act as a deterrent to journalists, preventing them from doing their duty.

Our demands:

Chennai police must immediately begin credible investigations into the complaint.
Facebook must promptly take down obscene posts and remove the profiles of serial abusers.
Social media platforms must develop effective moderation procedures that enable quick action on such online attacks, especially on women journalists and those from disadvantaged social groups. 

NWMI

The Delhi Police on Tuesday arrested Sharjeel Imam in connection with the riots in the city in February, Indian Express has reported. Imam has been booked under sections of the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

Booked under the sedition law for a speech in which he had called for a chakka jam, Imam was arrested from Bihar�s Jehanabad on January 28.

He was brought to Guwahati from Delhi in January and has been in Guwahati Jail since then. On July 22, Sharjeel tested positive for COVID-19 and was among 435 inmates of the jail who did so.

He was brought back to Delhi from Assam on Sunday on a production warrant, Express has reported.

Imam, a PhD scholar at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and an IIT alumnus, had been actively involved in the Shaheen Bagh protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

In late April, Delhi Police has booked Imam under the UAPA in connection with the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act near Jamia Millia Islamia in December last year.

Imam has been booked under section 13 (unlawful activities) of the Act in the case, his counsel advocate Mishika Singh had said. The lawyer said the charge has been invoked to delay his release.

The police had earlier charged Imam with sedition, alleging his speech promoted enmity between people that led to riots.

�He was arrested in two cases of violence at Jamia on December 13 and 15, 2019, for instigating and abetting the Jamia riots, due to his seditious speech on December 13 and based on evidences collected, IPC sections 124 A and 153 A were also invoked,� Anil Mittal, additional PRO, Delhi Police had said then.

In late June, 13 United Nations independent experts called on India to immediately release activists who were arrested for protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act. In a statement issued from Geneva, it had named Imam among others.

The Delhi high court in early July said there were �good and justifiable grounds� for extending the time to complete investigation against Imam in a case related to his allegedly �inflammatory speeches� during the anti-CAA protests. Justice V. Kameswar Rao had dismissed Iman�s plea challenging the trial court�s June 25 order granting three more months to the Delhi Police, beyond the statutory 90 days, to complete the case�s investigation under the UAPA.

Wire

Mr. Zakir Ali Tyagi(22)is a social activistassociated with several socialorganisations and hasbeen a part of several human rights fact-finding teamsin Uttar Pradesh.He has also been involved in peaceful anti-CAA protests. In 2017, NSA was filed on Mr. Tyagi regarding his Facebook post, critical of the UPChief Minister.Subsequently, he spent42 days in jailand is currently out on bail.Mr. Mithun Dikshit, the SHO of Parikshit Garh police station,was informed through a phone call by control roominLucknowthat the remains of some dead cows were lying in the forest of Aminabad village (Bada Gaon) Parikshit Garh. The SHO directedSub-Inspector Mr. Mahesh Singh Ranato investigatethe case.SI Mr. Rana went to the Aminabad forest and foundremains of a cowfrom the sugarcane fields of a farmer, Mr. Vipin. These remains were sent for forensic examination and an FIR was lodged against unknown people under Uttar Pradesh Prevention of cow Slaughter Act-1955, Section5 (Prohibition on sale of beef)and Section 8 -Penalty (1) (Whoever contravenes or abets the contravention of the provisions of Section 3, Section 5 or Section 5-A shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years and with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees).Onthe midnight of August 25, 2020, 15-20 policemen reached Mr. Zakir Ali Tyagi�s village Aminabad(Bada Gaon),KilaParikshit GarhinMeerut and entered his home without permissionor any prior notice. The policemenfrom Kila Parikshit Garh police station in Meerut,came in2-3 police jeeps, and somewere without uniform or official badges. Three non-uniformed policemen had covered their faces with black masks. They started to misbehavewithMr. Tyagi�s mother and sister-in-law.WhenMr. Tyagi angrily asked the police why had they entered his housewithout permission, the policeman replied that they had come to take him. They tookhim without any detention orarrest proceduresand when somevillagers opposed this, thepolice threatenedthem.In the morning of August 26,2020,some respected people of the village went to Kila Parikshit Garh police station and asked about Mr. Tyagi, but the constable told themto come later because�Inspector Sahab is sleeping right now�.However,the villagerswere unofficially told by a policeman that Mr. Tyagi is alleged to be involved in the Shaheen Bagh anti-CAA protests and thus won�tbe released. Around 11:15 am,Mr. Tyagi�s familyreceived a phone call from the Kila Parikshit Garh police stationthat he was being sent to jailfor being involved in cow slaughter and that they can comeand meet him.Mr. Tyagihad beendetained at the police station all nightand his family allegesthat he was abused and beaten up.We believe that Mr. Tyagi is ahuman rights defender and this is a completely fabricated case by thepoliceto target him for questioninggovernment policiesand taking part in the peaceful protests. There is no reason to associate Mr. Tyagi with slaughtering the cow. The carcass of the cow was notfound in his fieldsor near his house, nor was Mr. Tyagi�s name mentioned in the original FIR.According to the information available, the farmer on whose land the remains were found also told the police that Mr. Tyagi isinnocent.There is also no evidence that Mr. Tyagi had any connection with the incident in any form. Mr. Tyagi�sdetention and arrest from his home at midnight, by non-uniformed policemen without badges and in black masks and non-production of any document, flouted all laws and procedures on arrest mentionedin the CrPC, DK Basu and NHRC guidelines and raises serious questions.

HRD Alert India

Mr. Manish Kumar Soni(36), resident of Ambikapur, district Sarguja, Chhattisgarh,isasenior investigativejournalist and human rights defender. In his 17-years�career,he haswritten articles aboutcommon citizens, custodial deaths, Adivasisetc. In2016,Mr.Sonifollowed the custodial death cases in the Sarguja and documented how innocent Adivasiswerearrested and tortured to death in the custody. These articles were published indifferent national and state newspapers. Angered by these articles,a false case against Mr. Soni was lodged in Ambikapur Police stationu/s 353 and 186 2of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)and he is out on conditional bail.During the COVID lockdown too,he has video graphedmany irregularities in the health department work and published in different local web portal and social media.

OnMarch 25,2020, journalist Mr. Manish KumarSoniposteda Facebook post with photos of security forces who had died in naxal attacks which said:Look at the caste and community of the killed and the identification of the killers. All will turn out to be from the same community. Now try and understand those who are getting them killed. You will get the answers. The jungles can only be captured by getting the Adivasisto fight against Adivasis.

On August 16,2020, the Assistant Sub-Inspectorof Ambikapur police station, Mr. Rakesh Yadav lodged an FIR(No. 33354002200463) under IPC Sections 153(a)(promoting enimitybetween classes), 153(b)(imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 505(2) (false statement, rumours, with an intent to create enimity) against Mr. Soni for the above-mentioned Facebook post. The FIR statesthat the police had received a written complaint against Mr. Soni fromMr. AlokDubey,local ward member and also associated with the BJP,regarding �a provoking post�byMr. Soni which was a threat to national integrity. According to the complaint, Mr. Soni�s Facebook post insultedthe Adivasi community and createdhatred towards the security forces in the mindsof the ordinary citizen and affects national unity and integrity.Though the police have not yet arrested Mr. Soni, he has been getting repeated calls,harassing and intimidating him,since the FIR has been filed. The HRD allegesthat local policemen have threatened himthat �if you keep doing such things, you will be encountered and even your dead body will not be found.�He wascalled to the police station by the SP Mr. Tilakram Koshimaa week after the FIR was filed, whoquestioned his credentials as a journalist and warned him to stay away from writing aboutthe police and custodial killings. Mr. Soni evencalled the IG Police, Mr. Ratanlal Dangi for help, who said he doesn�t know anythingabout the case, but that the district policemen will handle the work and you should leave �all this.� He was also warned by the Deputy Protection Officer of the court to take anticipatory bail or the police may arrest him anytime.We believe thatMr. Soniis beingthreatened andintimidated for his work as a journalist for hisprevious record of exposing custodial killings as well as writing thepostrelated to Adivasis.It is a matter of grave concern that police officials are giving threats of fake encounters and arrests to citizens and journalists. A free media is an extremely important fourth pillar of the Indian democracy. Our Constitution gives every citizen including journalists the right to exercise freedom of speech. These FIR and intimidation tacticsused by functionaries in power are proof of a vendetta against Mr. Manish Kumar and absolutely violate his right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(a) of the Indian Constitution. Freedom to expression is crucial to the work of HRDs. The right to freedom of opinion and expression encompasses three different aspects: 1) the right to hold opinions without interference; 2) the right of access to information; and 3) the right to impart information and ideas of all kind. On the aforesaid it is stated that Declaration on Human Rights Defenders seeks to protect the monitoring and advocacy functions of defenders by recognizing their right to obtain and disseminate information relevant to the enjoyment of human rights.

HRD Alert India

Several civil society members across the country issued a statement on Friday in support of an Ahmedabad-based anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) activist who was issued a show-cause notice for externment in July, for his alleged involvement in criminal activities.

Kaleem Siddiqui (39) a resident of Bapunagar, was one of the organisers of the two-month-long Shaheen Bagh-like anti-CAA agitation in Rakhial of Ahmedabad. The protest which started on January 14 was called off on March 14 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On July 17, the office of M A Patel, Assistant Commissioner of Police (A division), Ahmedabad Police, had sent a show-cause notice to Siddiqui stating that the police department was contemplating to extern him for two years from Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Mehsana and Kheda.

Siddiqui on July 30, had presented himself before the police and denied the allegations made against him, in a written response.

Expressing solidarity, the civil society signatories to the statement, which include historian Ramchandra Guha, former Amnesty International head Aakar Patel, independent MLA Jignesh Mevani, retired ambassador of India Madhu Bhaduri and others, have stated that the police’s action appears to be an attempt to “silence dissent by civil society actors and the Muslim community,” and is “condemnable and unwarranted.” They have sought that the notice must be revoked immediately.

Siddiqui also filed a plea in Gujarat High Court, challenging the show-cause notice for externment issued against him, while seeking a stay on the operation of it, pending hearing and disposal of the matter.

Indian Express

Mr. Gajendra Singh isa journalist based in Churu district for around five years,working for First India Newsfor last two years. He reports from Sardarshahar Tehsil on all matters. On July 22, 2020, in Sardarshahar of Churu district, the residents of Kaka Colony went inside the office of the executive engineer of the city's water department Mr. Govind Prasad Sharma to give a memorandum for concerns related to water. Mr. Sharma allegedly told the residents that requestwill not be metat which point the residentsof Kaka Colony asked the executive engineer to give the same in writing. At this point, Mr. Sharma allegedly started misbehaving and started abusing the residents telling them to get out of his office. He allegedly threatened the residents that he would take action on grounds that they were crowding in his office and not maintaining social distance.Mr. Gajendra Singh was accompanying the residents of the colony at their request. Before coming to the office of the executive engineer, they had given a similar memorandum at the Sub Divisional Magistratewhose proceedings had been recorded by Mr. Singh. Here too,Mr. Singh started recording the proceedings. Mr. Sharma demanded that Mr. Singh stop recording and even threatened tocharge him with obstructing a public servant, if he didn’t stop. He then pushed the journalist and even triedto snatch themobilewith which Mr. Singhwas recording. When the residents left the premises,Mr. Singh decided to take Mr. Sharma’s view to ensure that hisreporton the incident has both sides. At this point, Mr. Sharma again assaulted Mr. Singh and pushed him outside the premises.Both instancesof assaults and abuses were recorded on camera and there is also CCTV footage that has recorded the incident.The same was aired by news channels.Mr. Singhhas submitted a written complaintto the Sub Divisional Magistrateof Sardarshahar, Ms. Rina Champa,on the same eveningof the incidentwho stated on record that an inquiry will be initiated. However, there has been no inquiry report, nor has any action been taken against Mr. Sharmawhocontinues to hold his office.We are greatly concerned with this blatantmisuse of powerand criminal assault of a journalist by a government employee who was a coveringnews of a delegation for redressal of citizensgrievances.This is also a clear abuse of power by a public servant against the public they serve. It appears that the Executive Engineer was provoked by seeing Mr. Singh recording his abuse ofthe citizens and thus physically assaulted him. This is not only a criminal act, but an action to prevent a journalist from their right to obtain information in public interest. Our Constitution gives journalists the right to exercise freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(a) of the Indian Constitutionwhichis crucial to the work of HRDs, including journalists. The right to freedom of expression encompasses three different aspects: 1) the right to hold opinions without interference; 2) the right of access to information; and 3) the right to impart information and ideas of all kind. On the aforesaid it is stated that Declaration on Human Rights Defenders seeks to protect the monitoring and advocacy functions of defenders by recognizing their right to obtain and disseminate information relevant to the enjoyment of human rights.

HRD Alert India

Delhi University professor Apoorvanand was questioned by the Delhi Police Monday in connection with the Northeast Delhi riots that broke out in February this year.

The professor said his phone has been seized by the police for investigation.

“On Monday, 3 August, 2020, I was asked by the Special Cell, Delhi Police to appear before it in the investigation into FIR no 59/20 related to the violence that happened in NE Delhi in February 2020. I spent five hours there. The Delhi Police also considered it necessary to seize my phone for the purpose of investigation,” Apoorvanand said in a statement issued Tuesday.

Apoorvanand’s phone hasn’t been returned by the police yet.

He told ThePrint that while he was there at the station for five hours, he was questioned for around 3 hours.

“There was violence and, hence, we must all know who the real perpetrators were, it’s only in the best interest of the nation that they are found and the truth established,” Apoorvanand said when approached by ThePrint for a comment.

The DU professor said in the statement that the police shouldn’t harass, and victimise protesters and their supporters who opposed, through Constitutional means, the Citizenship Amendment Act, National Register of Citizens and the process to create a National Population Register.

Apoorvanand, who teaches Hindi at Delhi University, added that he hoped the Delhi Police’s probe into the violence that killed 53 and injured around 250 others will focus on the “real instigators and perpetrators against a peaceful citizens’ protest and the people of North East Delhi”.

When ThePrint reached Delhi Police, its public relations officer Eish Singhal said: “Apoorvanand was called with regard to the Northeast Delhi riots case investigation. He was summoned through a notice. His phone has been taken by the investigating team for a probe.”

Asked when his phone would be returned and if he would be summoned again, the PRO declined to comment. ‘Home Minister, PM treated CAA protesters like enemies’

Urging the police to conduct a just and fair investigation into the violence, the professor said in his statement that it is disturbing to see a “theory” emerging that treats the “supporters of the protesters as the source of violence”.

Speaking to ThePrint, he further said: “What we see is that the February violence ultimately resulted in the disruption of all protest sites that were holding strong since the last two months. Assuming that the protesters whether in Shaheen Bagh or in other places would take such a suicidal step to destroy themselves is absurd.”

He added, “The only thing that these protesters wanted was for the government to hear their concerns and cries, while recognising the legitimacy of the government. In return, the government functionaries, the Home Minister, the Prime Minister and other BJP leaders treated them like enemies and launched a smear campaign against them. They pitched them as being against another section of the society.”

The DU professor also said the whole investigation into the riots has been turned on its head.

“Protests are never against other sections of the society, but this time we saw that misinformation and hate was launched against those showing dissent,” he added.

“Never in the history of independent India has any protest been attacked by other sections of the society. But this time, we saw gangs attacking the protests on behalf of the government. They were legitimised by the state. The point is that we cannot give others the licence to do that with protesters who wanted the government to hear them out,” he added.

On the Delhi Police’s interrogation report that mentioned former AAP leader Tahir Hussain and former JNU student leader Umar Khalid, the DU professor said this is not the natural course of justice.

“It is against the principle of natural justice to publicise something attributed to a person who is in no position to confirm or deny the statement of the police,” Approvanand said.

“We earnestly hope that the professionalism of our investigative agencies is employed in finding the real perpetrators and source of violence, which targeted mainly the protesters and the people from the Muslim community,” he added.

Print

A special court here on Friday remanded Delhi University (DU) associate professor Hany Babu, arrested in connection with the Elgar Parishad case, in judicial custody till August 21.

Hany Babu Musaliyarveettil Tharayil, 54, associate professor at the Department of English of the university, was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on July 28 for his alleged involvement in the case.

He was sent to judicial custody by special court judge D E Kothalikar at the end of his NIA remand on Friday.

Earlier, the NIA had submitted before the court that the accused had links with the CPI (Maoists).

The case relates to the alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial located on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.

The Pune police filed a charge sheet and a supplementary charge sheet in the case on November 15, 2018 and February 21, 2019, respectively.

The NIA took up the investigation in the case on January 24 this year.

Print

Fourteen HIV-positive children at a shelter home run by a non-profit in Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur were allegedly dragged out by officials who had orders from the district administration to close the facility. CCTV footage shows a lawyer who has been representing the children against being shifted from the facility being pushed by officials.

A police case has been filed against the lawyer, Priyanka Shukla, after the incident at Apna Ghar where 14 children between four and 18 years old have been staying. The police said Ms Shukla started a fight with the officials who had gone to shut down the facility.

When NGO staff Deepika Singh asked for a copy of the order to shut down the facility, the officials started manhandling her, dragged out the children and refused to give a copy of the eviction order, Apna Ghar director Sanjeev Thakkar told NDTV on phone. He shared audio recordings of the children calling him and complaining of alleged misbehaviour by the officials.

Women and Child Development Department officials, accompanied by the police, had gone to the facility.

Bilaspur senior police officer Prashant Agrawal denied the officials manhandled the lawyer or the children. "The officials acted as per the orders of the collector. It was the lawyer Priyanka Shukla who got into a brawl with the officials, who suffered bruises. Shukla was arrested on a complaint by Women and Child Welfare Officer Parvati Verma," Mr Agrawal said.

The NGO's director Sanjeev Thakkar said Apna Ghar is Chhattisgarh's only shelter home for HIV patients run by a non-profit. He said he has been running the shelter home for several years with volunteers. A police case has also been filed against Mr Thakkar, who said he was not at the building when the incident happened.

With a high monthly expense of ₹ 75,000, Mr Thakkar said they decided to apply for a grant from the Women and Child development Department, adding their troubles started soon after that.

Mr Thakkar alleged some officials demanded a "30 per cent commission" from the grant, and when he refused, the officials checked the shelter home and claimed they have found certain discrepancies and recommended cancellation of the NGO's registration and shifting of the children.

Mr Thakkar said when they met with Women and Child Development Minister Anila Bhediya, the minister asked questions like how did the children get infected with HIV.

The matter then reached the Bilaspur High Court, which ordered the collector to hear Apna Ghar and take a decision. In March this year, collector Sanjay Alang ordered officials to shift the children. In his order, he said a second report has also cited irregularities at the shelter home.

The children said they don't want to leave Apna Ghar citing discrimination they had faced even in the company of their relatives and at government-run shelter homes.

NDTV

On the afternoon of 11 August, a mob assaulted three journalists working with The Caravan, in Subhash Mohalla, in northeast Delhi�s North Ghonda neighbourhood. The journalists were reporting on a story concerning a Delhi violence complainant. For around an hour and a half, the journalists�Shahid Tantray, Prabhjit Singh and a woman journalist�were under attack, subjected to communal slurs, threatened with murder, and sexually harassed. The journalists were taking photographs of saffron flags that had been tied in the area, when some men approached them and told them to stop. One of the men, who was wearing a saffron kurta and had a bandage on his arm, identified himself as a �BJP general secretary.� He asked Tantray for his identity card. The mob launched their attack upon realising that Tantray was Muslim. During her attempt to get away from the attack, the woman journalist faced sexual harassment from a middle-aged man who exposed himself to her. Later, the mob attacked her as well. To ensure the safety of the journalist, The Caravan is concealing her identity.

The attack began at around 2 pm, when a mob of locals�men and women�surrounded the journalists, and then began assaulting them after learning of Tantray�s Muslim identity. During the attack, the woman journalist extricated herself to get out of the lane through a gate. The mob soon locked the gate behind her, capturing the other two journalists inside. As the attack was ongoing, the woman journalist pleaded with the attackers to let her colleagues go, a man with a crew-cut hairstyle, who had rakhis tied around his wrist, pulled at her clothing to try and drag her inside. The woman journalist ran from the lane to a neighbouring one. As she sat on a slab to compose herself, young men surrounded her. The men, who looked to be in their early twenties, began taking photos and videos of her, and �making cheap and lewd comments and started saying �Dikhao, dikhao����Show, show.� The woman journalist recounted these events in a detailed complaint to the police, filed immediately after the incident.

As she walked away, �a middle-aged man in a dhoti and a white t-shirt, with a bald head and a slim pony-tail stood in front of me,� the woman journalist noted in her complaint. �He then opened his dhoti and exposed his genitals while looking at me. He proceeded to shake his penis with his hand and started making objectionable and lewd expressions, while laughing at me.� After running away from the man, she received a call from Tantray, asking her to come to the Bhajanpura police station. By that time, Tantray and Singh were being taken to the station by the police. As she was asking for directions to the station, the mob found her again and beat her.

At the lane where the attack had begun, Singh recounted that a crowd of around twenty people had already assembled at the area even before the saffron-clad man asked to see Tantray�s ID card. He informed the crowd that the three journalists were members of the press and were not doing anything illegal. �We are only taking photos of the lane, not inside anyone�s house,� Singh told the crowd. �Any journalist would take these photos if they saw so many saffron flags.� But the crowd did not relent. The man in saffron told them, �Tumhari tarah fattichar patrakar bahut dekhe hai��I have seen many wretched journalists like you. �Main BJP general secretary hun, humaara kuch nahi bigaad sakte tum��I am a BJP general secretary, you can�t do anything to us.

Tantray said that when the man saw his name on the press card, he exclaimed, �Tu toh kattua mullah hai��he identified Shahid as Muslim, and used �kattua,� meaning circumcised, and �mullah,� meaning a Muslim man. Both terms are commonly used as slurs against Muslims. The man immediately began calling other locals, and within minutes, the crowd had swelled to around fifty people. �The crowd became really aggressive and numbers increased rapidly after seeing Shahid�s ID,� Singh said. They began hurling communal abuses at Tantray.

For nearly ninety minutes, the mob surrounded the two journalists and shouted communal slurs at Tantray, while also repeatedly and aggressively manhandling, slapping and kicking him. When Singh tried to intervene, they kicked him as well. The mob threatened to break the camera the journalists were using, at which point Tantray offered to delete all the pictures he had taken. The woman journalist, who had escaped from the lane to the other side of the gate, had taken the camera from Tantray, fearing that the mob would break it. After the mob permitted him to move till the gate to take the camera, she handed it back to him, over the gate. He deleted the photos. When the mob persisted with its threats to break the camera, Tantray was forced to give up its memory card. But the mob did not relent, and continued to hit the journalists. �They strangled me with the strap of the camera while others hit me,� Tantray said.

In the police complaint, Singh noted that members of the mob screamed, �Mullah saala kattua� and �Saale jaan se maar denge��We will kill you, fucker. Then, two police men arrived at the scene�an additional sub-inspector, Zakir Khan, and a head constable, Arvind Kumar. �They tried to intervene and pacify the violent, abusive mob,� Singh noted in his complaint. �But the man in the saffron kurta started provoking the women against us. Two women began snatching Shahid�s camera. The mob was uncontrollable despite the presence of policemen.�

Ultimately, more police officials arrived at the scene and they were able to take the two journalists away from the mob. Even as they were being taken away, members of the mob protested. One of them shouted out, �How can you take them away like this?� A police official responded, �We�re taking them to the station. We�ll question them there.� Tantray and Singh were then taken to the Bhajanpura police station, where they wrote a complaint about the incident. In it, Singh observed, �Had I not been there, the mob led by that saffron kurta clad man would have lynched Shahid for his Muslim identity.�

It was after the police took the journalists away from the mob that Tantray had phoned the woman journalist. The mob found her as she was attempting to find her way to the Bhajanpura station. She noted in her complaint that when she was asking for directions to the station, she �saw a mob of 3 women and 2�3 men, pointing towards me and charging in my direction. I started running away. As I was running, I fell, and the mob caught on to me.� The attackers immediately began pushing her around while beating her. �All of them started hitting me on my head, arms, chest, hips.� She recognised the man in the saffron kurta by the bandage on his arm. She had seen him as part of the mob earlier as well.

As the mob continued to attack her, the woman journalist saw a policeman and rushed to him. �This policeman tried to trivialise the situation and told us to resolve the dispute verbally, among ourselves,� she recounted in her complaint. As she pleaded with that policeman for help, another official approached the spot. The second policeman took her to Bhajanpura police station, where she filed a complaint.

The three journalists were conducting follow-up reporting on a recent article by Singh and Tantray, about a woman complainant in a case related to the Delhi violence, who had accused police officials at the Bhajanpura police station of beating and sexually assaulting her and her 17-year-old daughter on the night of 8 August. The complainant had visited the police station that night to seek the registration of a first information report against a complaint they had filed two days earlier. On the intervening night between 5 and 6 August, Hindus from the locality had raised communal slogans and tied an RSS flag at the gate to the Muslim side of the neighbourhood as part of their celebration of the stone-laying ceremony for the Ram temple at Ayodhya. The police gave the women a signed copy of the complaint, but when the women demanded a first information report, police personnel thrashed and sexually assaulted the complainant, her daughter and another woman.

The police personnel at the Bhajanpura station refused to register FIRs against the complaints filed by the journalists as well. Ashok Sharma, the Bhajanpura station-house officer, told The Caravan�s staffers that the locals accused of assaulting the journalists had also filed a complaint, and that the police would need to examine both sides� complaints before registering an FIR. It is unknown what allegations the locals raised in their complaint. Since the violence and even during the national lockdown to curtain the spread of the coronavirus, The Caravan has been at the forefront of reporting on the targeted attacks on Muslims during the Delhi violence, and the police complicity in the same. In a series of investigative reports on complaints by Muslim residents that the police had not acted on, published in June and July, Singh reported that BJP leaders and senior police officials had been accused of participating or orchestrating the violence. In a video story, Tantray, alongside another journalist, reported the testimony of a Hindu rioter who spoke candidly of committing arson and assault on Muslims during the violence, and noted that the police had encouraged Hindu rioters to attack Muslims. In another report for The Caravan, Tantray and a colleague reported the story of a Muslim man who lost one eye to a bullet injury during the violence, and the gaps in the Delhi Police�s investigation into the case. We are committed to continuing our coverage on the communal violence in northeast Delhi.

Caravan

Sankalp Neb, a journalist from Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, was booked for allegedly sharing an unverified Twitter post that suggested negative Covid-19 reports had been manipulated with a positive spin by district health authorities. The International Federation of Journalists and its Indian affiliates the Indian Journalists� Union (IJU) and the National Union of Journalists India (NUJ-I) condemn the harassment of Neb and call for the withdrawal of the complaint.

The tweet screenshot shared by the journalist Neb in a WhatsApp group on August 2 mentioned that Covid-19 negative reports were intentionally shown positive in the interest of private hospitals in the district. The screenshot further accuses the district health authorities hatching conspiracies to serve private hospital interests to receive government funding. It alleged the suspected involvement of the district�s Chief Medical Officer (CMO), BS Sodhi, in the �scam�.

The chief medical officer filed a complaint against the journalist on August 3. The First Information Report (FIR) registered under various sections of the �Epidemic Disease Act� and the �IT Act� accuses the journalist of defaming authorities without any substance.

Neb claimed that he merely re-posted the screenshot. He also advised he had been previously targeted for his past news reports that were critical to the state�s administration.

Neb is one of an increasing number of journalists in India being targeted for stories critical to the government�s handling of Covid-19. Under the cover of the pandemic, the Indian government has introduced restrictions on expression, resulting in a growing number of legal cases and summons against journalists in India.

IFJ

Assam Police on Friday announced a CID investigation into the arrest of a journalist Rajib Sarma, taken into custody on charges of misbehavior with the wife of a district official.

The DY365 channel journalist was arrested from his residence in Assam�s Gauripur at 2 am on Thursday, hours before his 64-year-old father passed away due to cardiac arrest. Following an uproar over his protest, the district superintendent of police and the divisional forest officer (DFO) were transferred, PTI reported.

Sarma was granted interim bail on the same day as his arrest, however he reached home to find that his father had passed away, NDTV reported. �I have not even seen his (Roy�s) wife. I have not even spoken to her. This is a conspiracy on the part of the existing nexus between influential people who are involved in these illegal activities,� Sarma had said after being released.

Sarma did a series of news reports claiming that cattle smuggling in Dhubri district was thriving on the alleged nexus between the DFO and district police. "The case of the arrest of a local journalist of electronic media has been transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department for a proper probe," Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) GP Singh told reporters on Friday.

Meanwhile, Dhubri DFO Biswajit Roy had lodged a police complaint against Sarma accusing him of extortion and misbehaving with his wife. He has been charged under sections 389 (putting person in fear of accusation of offence, in order to commit extortion), 384 (punishment for extortion), 385 (putting person in fear of injury in order to commit extor�tion), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code

On Friday, a local court granted Sarma an interim bail to complete the last rites of his father. The ADGP said the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Cell will be investigating the DFO's case separately and it will be unrelated to the criminal case against the journalist. Dhubri district forest officer Roy alleged Sharma attempted to extort Rs 8 lakh from him on the basis of fabricated news regarding his involvement in a cattle smuggling syndicate.

Singh also said that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) will be formed to inquire about the role of Dhubri district police in cattle smuggling cases in the last two years. "I have done the preliminary inquiry today and will submit my findings to the DGP and the chief minister by tonight," the police officer said.

Apart from bringing the issue to the National Human Rights Commission and Press Council of India�s attention, DY365 channel has also decided to move the Gauhati High Court, according to The Wire. Atanu Bhuyan, consulting editor of DY365, said, �Our decision to move the high court is final. It is not fair that a journalist is whisked away by the police in the late hours, like a common thief. His father died out of shock. Only Rajib and his father lived together in the house. When Rajib was taken away, the neighbours found the doors open the next day. His father was already dead; it is believed he died of shock.�

A BJP delegation met Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and submitted a memorandum denouncing the arrest and seeking an impartial probe into the case. The Guwahati Press Club too sought the chief minister's intervention in the matter so that the scribe's family is not harassed unnecessarily. "We want the CM to intervene and ensure that Mr Sharma is not harassed in the name of investigation," president Manoj Kumar Nath and secretary Sanjay Ray of the press club said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Assam government transferred Dhubri Superintendent of Police Yuvraj to 1st Assam Police Battalion at Ligiripukhuri as its commandant. Charaideo's SP Anand Mishra replaced him. The Environment and Forest Department also transferred Roy to the Genetic Cell Division in Guwahati. The current DFO of the Genetic Cell Division, PV Trimbak, will be posted to Dhubri, according to an order.

Firstpost

Poet and Elgar Parishad case accused P Varavara Rao, who had on Thursday tested positive for Covid-19 after he was shifted out of jail to a hospital, was moved to Nanavati Hospital from St George�s Hospital on early Sunday.

Dr Akash Khobragade, medical superintendent of St George Hospital, said that around 1am, Rao was shifted to Nanavati Hospital for further neurological and urological management. Khobragade confirmed that Rao doesn�t have complications related to Covid-19.

Earlier, Mumbai Police sources had confirmed that 81-year-old Rao, who was first moved out of Taloja Jail to Sir JJ Hospital last week, would be shifted to the private hospital. The decision from the state government came a day after the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued notices to the Maharashtra government on Friday to ensure the health condition of Rao, arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), is taken care of and adequate medical facilities are arranged. Rao was shifted to Sir JJ Hospital on July 13 after his health started deteriorating.

NHRC, based on a complaint from the special monitor of the commission, Maja Daruwala, had issued a notice to the chief secretary and the director-general of prisons of Maharashtra state, asking for a report on the health of Rao within two weeks. It was mentioned in the complaint that Rao was suffering from many ailments, owing to which his health condition was deteriorating.

Taking cognisance of the matter, the commission observed that the right to life and medical care is one of the basic human rights and the state is duty-bound to provide a prisoner who is in its custody appropriate medical care so that there should be no danger to his life.

The commission has also directed the state to constitute a medical board to examine the health condition of Rao and to see whether the treatment being provided to him is appropriate. The commission has mentioned that the board is expected to decide as to which hospital, whether government or private, will give best medical treatment to Rao. NHRC had also asked the state to provide Rao the best possible treatment in a private hospital and also to ensure to bear all the expenditure for his treatment.

Rao was first taken to JJ Hospital on May 28 after he fell unconscious, but was discharged on June 1. The family had alleged that Rao was discharged in a hurried manner to obstruct his bail plea. �He was not normal at the time of discharge. While sodium normal range was 134-145, he attained only 133 and potassium normal range was 3.5 to 5.0, he attained only 3.55, according to the hospital�s own discharge summary. But, later on June 2 it was proved that all this � admission in hospital, getting a normal report, getting him discharged � was part of a conspiracy by the police. June 2 was the date of hearing on his bail application on health grounds in NIA special sessions court and police argued against his bail showing this hospital �normal� report. The judge accepted that and refused bail on June 26,� read a statement from the family.

Later, Rao continued to show signs of delirium and after objections from various quarters, Rao was admitted to JJ Hospital again on July 13. On Thursday, Rao tested positive for Covid-19 and was shifted to St George�s Hospital. Rao�s bail plea in the Bombay high court (HC) will be heard today.

Hindustan Times

Mr. Surendran Natarajan, Mr.Senthil Vasan, Mr. Somasundaram (also known as Sundar) and Mr. Gagan are journalists based in Chennai who work for the YouTube channel Karuppar Koottam which is being webcasted from the past two years from Chennai. The channel creates social awareness videos against superstitious beliefs, women rights and Dalit rights. On July 13, 2020, Mr. Paul Kanagaraj RC, Ex-president of Madras High Court Advocate Association, who is also the founder of the political party Tamil Maanila Katchi, filed a police complaint against the Youtube channel Karuppar Koottam for their 7-month-old video on �Kanda Sashti Kavasam�. The video was about the religious chants for the Hindu deity Muruga, and in their review the channel said that the chants were irrational and objectifies women�s bodies. An FIR 249/2020 was registered under IPC Sections, 153 (Wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153 A (1) (a), (Promoting enmity between classes), 295A (Maliciously insulting the religion or the religious beliefs of any class), 505(1) (b) (False statement, rumour etc,. circulated with intent to cause mutiny or offence against the public peace), 505 (2) (False statement, rumour etc.,with intent to create enmity, hatred or ill-will between different classes). On July 15, the police arrested Mr. Senthil Vasan from Velachery. On July 16, Mr. SurendranNatarajan who runs the channel surrendered to the Puducherry police. The next week Chennai crime branch arrested two more technicians Mr. Somasundaram and Mr. Gagan who were working for the channel. The video for which they are charged was deleted by the channel. The cybercrime police also deleted all the 500+ videos from the Karuppar Koottam YouTube channel which included videos on creating social awareness against superstitious beliefs, women empowerment, women rights and Dalit rights. No notice was given to the channel by the officials involved in the search at their office in T Nagar-Chennai, nor did the police have a search warrant. The YouTubechannel currently has no videos. On July 16, 2020, before Mr. Natarajan had surrendered, the ADSP Mr. Saravana Kumar along with 5 policemen and 1 police woman dressed in plainclothes searched Mr. Natarajan residence for any documents. Mr. Nataraajan�s wife, Ms. Abinaya was threatened and abused by Mr. Saravana Kumarduring the house search. At 4 pm Ms. Abinaya was taken to the commissioner officewithout any prior notice, where she was threatened by the ADSP Mr. Sarvana Kumar that she will be charged with an FIR. Fearing for his wife�s life, Mr. Natarajan surrendered to the police in Puducherry. We believe that this case is an example of the right to dissent and free speech being increasingly criminalised in India. This is a violation of Article 19(a) of the Indian Constitution which provides for free speech and power to express oneself to every citizen. Any individual has the right to review the historical events, stories, to express one�s view and understanding via social media. Freedom to expression is crucial to the work of HRDs. The right to freedom of opinion and expression encompasses three different aspects: 1) the right to hold opinions without interference; 2) the right of access to information; and 3) the right to impart information and ideas of all kind. The right to present arguments from a rationalist perspective, including the right to voicing atheistic views, has been upheld by High court judgements. Further, such a right is guaranteed by Article 51A (h) of the Constitution, which enjoins the development of the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform. This is also an example of the complete misuse of power by the cybercrime officials. There was no prior notice given to the channel for deleting all their videos, nor was a search warrant produced to search their officeor the home of Mr. Natarajan. The illegal detention and threats directed by the ADSP Mr. Saravana Kumar at the wife of one of the accused who was not involved in the case in any manner, is a clear example of how police violatelaws to achieve its malafide ends. We believe that the complaint filed by Mr. Paul Kanagaraj R C of the Tamil Maanila Katchi is politically motivated following the merger with the ruling BJP. The issue at stake has to do with the right to free expression. In a country where there exist diverse belief system, it is imperative that police follows the due process of law when filing an FIR. This is important in a context where the excuse of hurt sentiment, hate speech is let loose against those voicing their opinions.

HRD Alert India

Mr. Raja Bhaiyya is a HRD and founder of an NGO - Vidyadham Samiti - working for human rights of the poor and deprived workers in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh since 2001. In the past his NGO has taken up the cause of exploitation of minor girls etc, rights of workers working in stone crushers etc. On July 07, 2020 Aaj Tak channel telecast a show on sexual exploitation of women and girls working in mines in Karwi at Chitrakoot which got huge public response. (https://youtu.be/FqkqAPoG3HE) On July 11, 2020, Mr. Raja Bhaiyya was sitting in his NGO office Vidyadham Samiti in Atarra, when a government car stopped in front of his office and some policemen entered the office without permission. The policeman told him that they were from Bharatkoop police station and that the Chitrakoot SP has called him. They did not give him a reason nor any notice or warrant and Mr. Raja Bhaiyya was forcefully placed in the police car like a criminal and presented at Chitrakoot SP Mr. Ankit Mittal's office at around 5 pm. SP Mr. Mittal asked Mr. Raja Bhaiyya questions like,�Who went with Mausami Singh? (Aaj Tak reporter who did the story). Why did he go to Dafai? Why did he come to Chitrakoot? Was he the source who told the journalist and took her to the area?� All questions were aimed at establishing his source of the news story done by the journalist on the exploitation of local women. Mr. Raja Bhaiyya replied that he knows Ms Mausami Singh since the past 5 years and she came to the region for a story and accompanied her to the Bharatkoop area since he goes there frequently. However he was not aware of what story she was filing because she talked to the women in that area without his presence. SP Mr. Mittal intimidated and threatened HRD Mr. Raja Bhaiyya that he will file a case against him under the SC/ST Act and the POCSO Act and that he is a criminal. SP then told the policemen standing there to put Mr. Raja Bhaiyya in a lockup. He was put in the waiting room and was called again after 15 minutes inside the SP office. First, the SP shouted at him for sitting without permission; then he accused Mr. Raja Bhaiyya of lying as his photo was in a video and that proved that he accompanied the journalist. SP Mr. Mittal then abused and threatened him with physical torture (ulta latka doonga) and asked the policemen to take him away and torture him with �a hunter�. At this juncture Mr. Raja Bhaiyya again clarified that he didn�t accompany the journalist where she conducted the interviews. The policemen took Mr. Raja Bhaiyya to the Sadar police station like a criminal. His wallet and mobile were taken by the police without any seizure document and he was put in a lockup with other detained persons. Around midnight, the CO of Sadar, called Mr. Raja Bhaiyya to a room. He repeated the questions asked by SP. He also accused Mr. Raja Bhaiyya of having intimate physical relations with the AajTak reporter and said that he will inform his wife. The CO also used vulgar and abusive words against Mr. Raja Bhaiyya who was humiliated in every manner possible. After an hour of interrogation, the CO said that a case is being filed against Mr. Raja Bhaiyya. The victim was further abused by the other policemen who refused to listen to any of his clarifications. He was sent back to the lockup where he had to spend the night. Mr. Raja Bhaiyya was not given anything to eat or even allowed to go to the toilet all throughout the night and was not allowed to call anyone for help. On July 12, 2020, at around 3 AM, the station in-charge gave him a plain paper and asked him to write that �he knew journalist Ms. Mausami Singh and she came here to report on how government schemes are reaching people. He accompanied her to Dafai, Bharatkoop but he had no knowledge about the news story that she had filed. He too found out about her story only when he saw the TV.� Mr. Raja Bhaiyya wrote as directed as this was the only way he would be released and was threatened with cases under the SC/ST Act and POCSO. He was released from lockup only at around 2 PM on July 12, 2020 � more than 24 hours of illegal detention. Following his release, he was repeatedly approached telephonically by various local authorities for his statement in the matter of the AajTak news report. However, he maintained that he will only respond to an official summon. He wrote the same to the Chitrakoot SDM on July 18, 2020. Following this, he was sent an official letter from the Chitrakoot SDM to appear in front of the inquiry team. On July 19, 2020, Mr. Raja Bhaiyya went to the SDM Chitrakoot and the SDM asked him similar questions and told him that �his inhumane treatment and detention by the police was valid as he was a liar�. However, he was let go after being made to sign a document. The actions of the district administration and police in this case are heinous, arbitrary and illegal. They reflect that the police are more interested in knowing the source of the story and hence harassed a HRD through misusing their powers, rather than investigating the crime of sexual exploitation of women. This shows the attitude of the government which is more inclined towards creating obstructions in the work of HRDs and journalists rather than taking steps towards the ongoing crisis. The illegality of the interrogation also exposes the malignant intention of the police and puts a question mark on the freedom of speech for HRDs in the state. The action of the police personnel is also violative of Article 19 of the Constitution which talks about freedom of speech and expression. An illegal detention and interrogation, subjecting an HRD to inhumane treatment in detention, by the police hinders the right of the citizen and the journalists to freely talk on issues of public interest. In the present matter, socially responsible reporting essential for society is being targeted by the police.

The chief judicial magistrate court in Araria district in Bihar has ordered the release of the 23-year-old gang rape survivor who had been sent to jail for breaking into a verbal argument with the magistrate of the Araria magistrate court while recording her statement.

On July 10, the woman and two social activists, who are also her primary caregivers, were arrested after Araria magistrate Mustafa Shahi found them in contempt. All three have been in jail since then.

Their arrest had led to a nationwide outcry and several senior human rights lawyers had written to the Chief Justice of the Patna high court seeking urgent relief. Magistrate Shahi was also accused of having been insensitive towards the gang rape survivor in his decision to send her to jail.

Taking note of the objection, the high court, on two occasions, had scheduled hearings. However, it eventually asked the lower court to expedite the bail hearings, which had been suspended due to the lockdown in Bihar.

At short notice, the lawyers representing the woman and two activists, Kalyani Badola and Tanmay Nivedita, both working with Jan Jagran Shakti Sangathan (JJSS), a non-profit organisation, were asked to attend a court hearing through video conference on July 17. The court granted bail to the survivor. Kalyani and Tanmay�s bail pleas were rejected.

Kamayani Swami from JJSS who had attended the hearing said that the public prosecutor had merely read out the FIR to oppose their bail application in the court. According to the FIR, the woman had requested that Kalyani be allowed to be by her side when her witness statement (under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure) was being recorded.

The FIR claims that the woman did not cooperate with the magistrate and had refused to sign the statement unless Kalyani and Tanmay had read what was written on it. The FIR also claims that the survivor had tried to �snatch� the papers from the investigating officer. All three have been accused of having been contemptuous towards the magistrate and the investigation officer.

While the JJSS activists have rubbished the claims made in the FIR, they pointed to the fact that the police have so far not done much in the actual case of the gang rape. �The woman was sexually assaulted by four persons and one person had abetted the crime. The police have only arrested the abettor, while the others are still at large,� said Sohini, who works with JJSS.

The woman was allegedly gang raped on July 6 and had approached JJSS activists to help in the legal fight. On July 7, upon completing her medical examination, her complaint was lodged. Kalyani, Tanmay and others from the organisation were closely monitoring the investigation in the rape incident. But suddenly, after the survivor�s arrest, focus had to be shifted into getting her and the other two out of jail.

The survivor, along with other two, have been lodged at Dalsinghsarai jail in Samastipur district � 250 km away from Araria.

Although the court ordered her release today, the order copy was not made available immediately. �We will have to wait until tomorrow [July 18] for the order and since the jail is so far away, we will have to make necessary arrangements to get there. The police have refused to help in this,� Swami said, further adding that the woman will have to spend at least a day more in jail.

As for Kalyani and Tanmay, the lawyers have decided to move sessions court. But since Bihar is under complete lockdown and work at the lower courts is completely suspended, they will have to wait until July 20 to challenge the order.

JJSS members have called the July 17 order unfair as the survivor and Kalyani have been accused of identical �crimes�.

There is no clarity on Tanmay�s role besides the fact that he had accompanied the survivor to the court. Tanmay is a transman and is presently lodged at the Dalsinghsarai women�s jail which was converted into a quarantine centre to accommodate women prisoners from all across Bihar.

�While they are both susceptible to infection, this incident has also exposed the structural injustices meted out to trans people in the criminal justice system,� Sohini said.

Wire

Assam activist Akhil Gogoi, who was lodged at the central jail in Guwahati, has tested positive for the coronavirus. Assam Inspector General of Prisons Dasarath Das told Scroll.in that the activist had tested negative earlier in an antigen as well as the confirmatory RT-PCR test but tested positive on Saturday in an antigen test.

He will be treated at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital, News18 reported.

Former chief of National Democratic Front of Bodoland (R), Ranjan Daimary, who is also housed in the Guwahati central jail, had tested positive on Friday. Das said that among the 15 inmates tested on Saturday, three were positive. Nearly 20 prisoners have reportedly tested positive for Covid-19 at the prison.

Reports about Gogoi falling ill had initially emerged in local media in the first week of July. He showed symptoms of Covid-19, it was said. His wife, Geetashree Tamuly, wrote in a Facebook post that she had learnt about his illness from news reports but knew no details about his condition. Soon afterwards, it was reported that Bitu Sonowal and Dhajya Konwar, two other KMSS activists who are also in jail, were showing symptoms. They had a fever, cough and body ache.

Advocates for Gogoi and his aides had filed a petition in a National Investigation Agency court, pleading that they be tested for Covid-19. The court ordered the jail authorities to ensure that they were tested and on July 9, it was reported that Sonowal and Konwar had Covid-19.

Gogoi, the founder of the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti, was arrested in December for leading a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act outside the Jorhat deputy commissioner�s office. The NIA said that Gogoi has been booked for �waging a war against the nation�, conspiracy and rioting. Three days later, the NIA booked the anti-corruption and Right to Information activist under the amended Unlawful Activities Prevention Act � that empowers the government to designate an individual as a �terrorist� if he or she is found to be committing, preparing for, promoting, or being involved in an act of terrorism.

He was granted bail on March 17 by a special NIA court after the investigating agency failed to file a chargesheet against him within the specified period of 90 days. However, he was arrested again, just two days later.

Scroll

Sharjeel Usmani, a student activist from Aligarh Muslim University, was arrested from his home at Azamgarh on Wednesday evening as the Uttar Pradesh police moved to turn the heat up on students and activists involved in protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act last December.

Usmani was picked up from his home town of Sidhari, Azamgarh. His brother said that at around 5 pm, five plainclothes people appeared at the doorstep of Usmani�s home, claiming to be from the crime branch. Asked why they were there, one of the men said, �You don�t need to know. Sharjeel knows why we�re here�, he said, pointing to Usmani, who was along with them, hands tied and head down. He had already been arrested when he was out drinking tea.

Without showing any identification, they demanded to see Usmani�s room. �They confiscated his laptop, all his books, and a solitary set of clothes. Each of us was made to stand and be photographed, stating our relation to him�, Usmani�s brother Areeb said. He also said no female officer was present, even though there were women, such as Usmani�s maternal aunt, who were also compelled to get themselves photographed.

�I refuse to believe it is an arrest. They did not tell us what charges were being pressed, they did not allow us to have any conversation with him�, said Sharjeel�s father, Tariq Usmani.

�As a parent, and more importantly, as citizens, we have the right to know�, said Sharjeel�s mother, Seema Usmani, almost in tears.

Aligarh police officer confirms arrest

While the Azamgarh police has made no formal statement about the arrest, Amar Ujala, quoting the district�s additional SP (crime) Arvind Kumar, has reported that the arrest was made by the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) of the Lucknow police and relates to the case filed in Aligarh last December.

Usmani was one of those who led protests against the CAA-NRC-NPR at AMU inside the campus. The police allege that the students threw stones and refused to disperse, claiming that 19 policemen were injured in the fray, after which they entered the campus with the university administration�s permission.

On their part, the students contest the police claim and say they were attacked inside the campus by the police which forcibly entered. A fact-finding report produced by a team led by Harsh Mander and Professor Chaman Lal has corroborated this claim, and accused the police of severe brutality, especially inside the Morrison Boys� Hostel, and said around 100 students were injured, at least 20 severely.

The FIR registered by the police named Usmani and several other current and former AMU students. They were accused of offences under various sections of the IPC, including 307 (attempt to murder), as also 147 (rioting), 148, 149, 153, 188, 189, 332, 336, 504, 506, section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

Recently, the police have also filed a chargesheet, or final report, in the matter, which means the case will now go to trial.

Before he was picked up himself, Usmani had been a vocal critic of the targeting of other anti-CAA activists and students including Sharjeel Imam, Safoora Zargar, Umar Khalid, Aasif Iqbal Tanha, Chandrashekhar Ravan and Meeran Haider, who had been arrested under various acts such as NSA, UAPA, Goonda Act, and Sedition (IPC 124A).

He has been a contributor to news websites like Firstpost, DailyO and Newslaundry on issues relating to governance, democracy and minority rights.

Wire

Journalist Rana Ayyub took to Twitter Friday to share screenshots of the several rape and death threats she has been receiving on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

According to Ayyub, these threats began after she spoke out against the recent killing of Bashir Ahmed Khan, a 65-year-old Srinagar resident, who was caught in the crossfire between militants and security personnel in Kashmir�s Sopore region Wednesday.

The killing triggered a massive controversy in the Valley, and a photograph of Khan�s grandson sitting atop his corpse has also gone viral.

�Every time I write or speak on Kashmir, the hate is unimaginable. This time however I think they are doing it brazenly. Earlier at least they used to cover their words, use a language that isn�t specific, but this time they are being specific and aren�t scared of anything,� Ayyub told ThePrint.

On Friday afternoon, she had tweeted, �My timeline, my inbox is inundated with death and rape threats the last two days for speaking on Kashmir,� with screenshots of the threats by one Pranay Bhowmik.

One can see in the messages that Bhowmik has not only used extremely foul language but also issued a �rape threat�. He also hurled abuses at Kashmiris and Muslims.

In another screenshot, an account called �Hindu Rashtra� asked Ayyub to recall Gauri Lankesh � a journalist who was shot dead in 2017.

�My Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is completely filled with hate and threats. They are reminding me of Gauri Lankesh. Every time they do this, whenever I make a statement,� she told ThePrint

The threats reminding her of Lankesh�s death have been particularly nerve-wracking for her.

�I remember three days before Gauri died, she posted on my Facebook wall when I was receiving a lot of hate, telling me that I shouldn�t worry and that these people wont do anything. Three days later she was killed so there is always a sense of fear that what if online hate will go offline,� she added. Ayyub�s tweets on Kashmir killing

It all began when Ayyub, who is known for being critical of the Modi government, tweeted Wednesday on Khan�s killing in Jammu and Kashmir.

�When it comes to Kashmir, there are no humanists , just convenient nationalists,� she had written.

On Thursday again, Ayyub tweeted a quote of the deceased civilian�s wife blaming the CRPF for her husband�s death, published in the online news portal, The Kashmir Walla.

Ahmed�s family, in a video message released online, has accused the CRPF of dragging him out of his car and shooting him point blank.

However, Kashmir Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar in a press conference Wednesday rubbished the claims, saying that the family was driven by militant�s threats.

Ayyub had also quoted the child�s account of his grandfather�s death from a report by ThePrint in a tweet.

She had flagged similar reports and statements on Facebook and Instagram, also sharing an illustration of a CRPF jawan holding a child and walking over a dead body, on the social media platforms. Police takes cognisance

The Navi Mumbai Police has taken cognisance of the threats made against Ayyub.

An inspector from the Kopar Khairane Police Station, Abhijit Madke, paid her a visit at her residence within two hours of her tagging the Mumbai Police in her tweet thread.

�The inspector was comforting and asked me to record a statement tomorrow. I will be recording my statement tomorrow and handing over all the evidence including threats on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. They have assured swift action,� said Ayyub.

Inspector Madke told ThePrint, �We are now taking into account the entire scene. Will reach the police station and brief seniors about the whole scene immediately. We start the investigation process from today itself.�

Print

West Bengal authorities must immediately release journalists Suraj Ali Khan and Safikul Islam, as well as Islam�s wife, Alima Khatun, and drop all the charges against them and investigations into their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

At about 3 a.m. on June 29, police arrested Khan and Islam at Islam�s home in Arambagh, in the Hoogly district of West Bengal, for alleged extortion, and also arrested Khatun, their lawyers, Pintu Karar and Samim Ahammed, told CPJ over the phone.

Khan works as a reporter and Islam as an editor and owner at Arambagh TV, a news channel on YouTube that has about 130,000 followers, their lawyers said. Police also detained Islam and Khatun�s two children during the arrests, but later released them, Ahammed said. CPJ could not determine on what grounds police were holding Khatun.

The journalists� arrests were prompted by a complaint filed just after midnight on June 29 by a local resident, whose name was not disclosed, who alleged that Islam and Khan had photographed him cutting down a tree on government land, a criminal offense, on March 16, and then extorted money from him in exchange for not publishing the image, Ahammed said.

The journalists� lawyers told CPJ that they believe the arrests were actually retaliation for Islam and Khan�s reporting on alleged corruption in government funds distributed to private clubs amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

�The arrests of Arambagh TV editor Safikul Islam and reporter Suraj Ali Khan, as well as of Islam�s wife, are clear attempts to intimidate the journalists and force them to stop their critical reporting,� said Aliya Iftikhar, CPJ�s senior Asia researcher, in New York. �The three should be released immediately and all investigations into them dropped. West Bengal police must cease harassing journalists for their work.�

Karar and Ahammed told CPJ that they have moved their case to the state High Court after a lower court refused to grant bail, and said the next hearing is set for tomorrow.

If charged and convicted with extortion, the journalists could face up to three years in jail and a fine set by a judge, according to the Indian penal code.

According to documents reviewed by CPJ, the West Bengal police have also opened five other investigations into Islam and Khan in recent months. In two cases opened on April 28 and others opened on May 6, 13, and 14, police have investigated the journalists for alleged cheating, forgery, defamation, public mischief, criminal conspiracy, wrongful restraint, provocation that will break public peace, criminal intimidation, disobeying a public servant, obstructing a public servant in discharge of public functions, causing grievous harm to a deter public servant from his duty, and assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from the discharge of his duty, according to those documents.

Police are also investigating Khan and Islam for allegedly violating sections of the Disaster Management Law, which was invoked in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and for making false statements and printing or publishing news without conforming to rules under the Press and Registration of Books Law, according to those documents.

On June 2, the Calcutta High Court instructed the police not to take any coercive action against Islam or Khan in relation to the investigations, as the journalists assured the court that they would cooperate with authorities and would be physically present at the police station whenever summoned for questioning, according to Karar.

Islam and Khan followed the court�s instructions and appeared before the Arambagh police for questioning on June 10, Karar said.

CPJ emailed Hooghly Rural Superintendent of Police Tathagata Basu, who oversees the police responsible for the journalists� arrests, for comment, but did not receive any reply. In a press conference held on July 4, Basu denied wrongdoing on the part of police and claimed that Islam was being investigated for fraud and that Arambagh TV was run illegally, without government permission.

Ahammed told CPJ that no regulatory permission is required under Indian law to run an internet-based news outlet.

Previously, in early May, Arambagh TV posted two videos in which Islam and Khatun separately claimed that mobs of 30 to 40 people had surrounded their homes and threatened them over their coverage.

In June, the West Bengal police opened an investigation into the editor of Bengali-daily Anandabazaar Patrika following a complaint from a senior bureaucrat over the newspaper�s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, as CPJ documented at the time.

CPJ

On the June 29, journalist Hofe Dada was confronted and assaulted while filming a piece on pollution levels at a factory in Aruachal Pradesh. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, Indian Journalists Union (IJU), denounce the attempts to silence Dada and call on the police to hold the perpetrators accountable.

Dada, a reporter from a local media outlet Gyoloo News, had been investigating the excessively high pollution levels produced by SMS Smelters Ltd in Lekhi village when he was attacked unprovoked by four men. The factory has continually produced substantial amounts of smoke, visible to those from surrounding villages. Despite explaining to the men that he was covering an issue that affected all members of the community, Dada was threatened with further violence and had his phone stolen. He immediately filed a complaint with Nirjuli police.

The incident is a frightening echo of the attempted assassination of Tongam Rina, a senior reporter from the same district, who was shot for her reporting. Although the incident occurred in 2012, with no perpetrators prosecuted justice has still not been delivered. There are fears that the complacency of the legal system has encouraged perpetrators to silence reporters with any means possible.

The police have so far arrested one suspected assailant, Nangram Tapu, a security officer for SMS Smelters and have informed the media that they are also investigating the legality of the factory.

IFJ

A local correspondent for the Kampu Mail, a Hindi-language daily, Shubham Mani Tripathi died on the spot when he was shot six times, three of them in the head, on 19 June in Unnao, a suburb of Lucknow, the state capital. In a recent Facebook post, he said he feared he could be killed because of his investigations into land expropriations of questionable legality linked to illegal sand mining.

Kampu Mail local bureau chief Ritesh Shukla mentioned the name of Divya Awasthi, a local businesswoman involved in land transactions, as did the reporter�s uncle, Dhirendra Mani Tripathi. The NewsClick website quoted him as saying: �There is some government land that Divya Awasthi wanted to take possession of. [Shubham] exposed the matter and [said] she could not do that (...) Her goons had attacked Shubham at his house last year after he exposed her and now have killed him.�

�We call on the Uttar Pradesh authorities to appoint an independent investigation to shed all possible light on Shubham Tripathi�s horrific murder,� said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF�s Asia-Pacific desk.

�In this region of northern India, the links between sand mafia bosses and local police chiefs mean that, when journalists are murdered in connection with their reporting, the police investigation is almost always closed without further action. The vicious cycle of impunity needs to be broken by means of legislation guaranteeing journalists� safety.�

Dangerous state

India�s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh is also one of the most dangerous regions for journalists, especially those who try to cover the sand mafia, the name given in India to those who illegally mine sand from riverbeds for sale to the construction industry.

In 2016 alone, two journalists, Karun Misra of the Jansandesh Times and Ranjan Rajdev of the Hindustan Daily, were killed by gunmen on motorcycles in separate attacks after covering such illegal mining. In June 2015, the journalist Jagendra Singh died from the severe burns he sustained when set on fire during a police search of his home. He had been investigating a local government minister�s links to organized crime and illegal mining.

The journalist Haider Khan was badly beaten and dragged behind a motorcycle for 100 metres the same month after writing about dubious land expropriations. In October of that year, men on a motorcycle fatally shot journalist Hemant Kumar Yadav in the chest in reprisal for his reporting. In all of these cases, the police investigations drew a blank and the instigators remain unpunished.

Judicial harassment

When they don�t fall victim to physical violence, Uttar Pradesh journalists who try to do their job are often the targets of judicial harassment orchestrated by the state government headed by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, an unwavering supporter of India�s prime minister, Narendra Modi, and his Hindu nationalist policies.

Such was the experience of Supriya Sharma, the executive editor of the Scroll.in news website, and her chief editor, Naresh Fernandes, on 18 June, when the Uttar Pradesh police registered a complaint against them over a story about the coronavirus lockdown�s impact in remote villages in Varanasi, the district that Modi represents in the federal parliament. The two journalists are facing up to five years in prison on the four charges registered by the police.

Siddharth Varadarajan, the editor of The Wire, another independent website, is meanwhile being investigated as a result of a complaint filed on 1 April over an allegedly �fake news� report that the state�s chief minister attended an enormous religious gathering two days after the imposition of a nationwide lockdown.

India is ranked 142nd out of 180 countries and territories in RSF's 2020 World Press Freedom Index.

RSF

Police lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against Supriya Sharma, the executive editor of news portal Scroll.in for her report on the lockdown in India�s prime minister Narendra Modi�s constituency. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the National Union of Journalists (India) (NUJI) urges the Indian government to withdraw the charges.

Mala Devi lodged an FIR at Varanasi�s Ramnagar police station in Uttar Pradesh on June 13, alleging Supriya Sharma misrepresented her interview in Domari village, Varanasi. Accordingly, police charged Sharma under section 501 and 269 of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly printing a defamatory story and a negligent act that is likely to cause the spread of a life-threatening disease.

Sharma�s article documented the impacts of the lockdown and inadequate emergency food support in Domari village, Varanasi. Modi adopted Domari village as part of his constituency in 2018.

NUJI president, Ras Bihari said: �This is a threat to democracy and attacks the origins of freedom of expression.� Ras Bihari expresses grave concern over the harassment of journalists through FIR's in Uttar Pradesh and appeals to journalists to fact-check before publishing a story.

IFJ

About 150 people, including CPI (M) party leaders, local villagers and environment activists, were arrested when they tried to form a human chain near LG Polymers India plant at R.R. Venkatapuram, here on June 5.

The protest was held as part of World Environment Day as also to demand the arrest of the LG management.

�It was a silent protest and we just wanted to highlight the damage caused to the environment and loss of human life by the LG Polymers India plant, but the police arrested us and disrupted the protest, which was part of a global protest,� said CPI (M) State secretariat member Ch. Narasinga Rao.

It may be recollected that on May 7, styrene monomer vapour leaked from the LG plant in R.R. Venkatapuram village in Visakhapatnam at around 3 a.m. killing 12 people and hospitalising over 500.

The incident gathered global attention and protests were organised worldwide, including on June 5 � on the occasion of World Environment Day.

�It was part of a global protest and a silent human chain was formed in Seoul in South Korea, Singapore, Germany, Malaysia and other countries, and they were not arrested. Why should we be arrested for the negligence of an MNC,� questioned Mr. Rao.

While some of the leaders were arrested as early as 5 a.m. when they tried to reach the chemical plant, others were arrested near the protest site at R.R. Venkatapuram.

About 150 persons were arrested and sent to different police stations.

The left and environment activists said that their prime demand was arresting the management of the LG Plant and closure or shifting of the plant.

All reports including that of the NGT clearly specifies negligence on part of the company, but still the police has not arrested any person or booked a strong case against the management, said Lokanathan, District Secretary, CPI (M).

Hindu

Raju Baitha is a Dalit HRD residing in Motihari, East Champaran district of Bihar. He has been active in defending the human rights of Dalits in Bihar for long and is the district coordinator of the NCDHR, a national organisation to protect and promote the human rights of Dalits. Mr. Baitha, in one of his Facebook posts on May 20, 2020, questioned East Champaran�s Superintendent of Police(SP), Mr. Naveen Chandra Jha, about caste determining the punishment for policemen for similar charges against them. His Facebook post said, �just see the mockery of justice. Two cops from the higher caste were only sent to the police lines while another cop from the Dalit community was placed under suspension for the same charge.� Mr Baitha asked the SP for an answer and said that his action was biased and flouted the Constitutional norms. According to the sources, the SP called Mr. Baitha multiple times on WhatsApp and threatened him regarding his Facebook post. The SP also asked whether Mr. Baithawas the DGP to question the charges and that �he will put him in jail within 4 days�. Mr. Baitha recorded the WhatsApp conversation and it was picked up by the local media. On May 26, 2020, at about 6.00 am, the Station House Officer (SHO) of Chhitouni police station Mr. Mukesh Chand Kumar went to Mr. Baitha�s residence with four constables and arrested him without any arrest warrant. He was taken to the Chhitouni police stationand his two mobile phones and Rs 25000 were seized by the police without a seizurememo. An FIR (No. 49/2020) was registered against him by the Motihari police dated January 29, 2020, under IPC sections 143/188/353/149/342/506/427/341 and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, for alleged damage to public property and blocking public roads. The said protest was held on January 29, 2020,under the banner of Bahujan Kranti Morcha against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). After his arrest on May 26, Mr. Baitha was not taken to a police station, but driven around in a police car, till the police got an official warrant signed by the magistrate. He was then taken into judicial custody. On May 28, 2020,Mr. Baithawas grantedbailinCase No.49/2020. However,before he could be released, he was re-arrested in two more FIRs Case no.50/2020 of Chhitouni police station dated January 29, 2020, by a shopkeeper who alleged damage to his shop during the proteston January 29. Another FIR was registered at Mufassil police station�s Case no.153/2020 dated April 5, 2020, filedby a person from the SC community. Mr. Baitha was released on bail only on June 15, 2020. It is obvious that Mr. Baitha has been victimised and harassed by the police, and subjected to harassment which included restrictions on his movement and liberty,for questioning certain actions of the SP through his Facebook post. HRDA believes the police on the directions of the East Champaran SP has misused provisions of law to target a Dalit HRD. This is not only a clear violation of his rights as a citizen of Indian under Article 19(A)but also an act of atrocity under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act (PoAA).

HRD Alert India

The Special Cell of Delhi Police has booked Jamia Millia Islamia student Asif Iqbal Tanha under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for allegedly being part of a larger conspiracy behind the February riots in northeast Delhi, officials said on Thursday. This comes days after the Delhi Police's crime branch arrested the 24-year-old in connection with the violence in the Jamia area during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act in December last year, they said. The police said Tanha, a resident of Abul Fazal Enclave in Shaheen Bagh, is a member of the Students Islamic Organization and was part of the Jamia Coordination Committee which spearheaded protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. He was arrested on production warrant by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Tuesday and booked under the UAPA for being part of a larger conspiracy of the riots in Delhi, said a senior police official, who did not wish to be identified. "We had evidence and wanted him in a case that we were investigating. So we arrested him on production warrant on Tuesday and have been granted seven days of custody," he said. A court in Delhi on Wednesday had sent Tanha to seven days of police custody in the case related to communal violence in February in northeast Delhi during the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, after the police said his remand was required to unearth the entire conspiracy and to confront him with the electronic data collected during investigation. Jamia Coordination Committee members Safoora Zargar, Meeran Haider, President of Jamia Alumni Association Shifa-Ur-Rehman, suspended AAP Councillor Tahir Hussain have also been booked under the anti-terror law in the case. "The Crime Branch of the Delhi Police had arrested Tanha recently in a case registered at Jamia police station on December 16, 2019 in connection with riots in the Jamia area in which he was named as an accused," a senior police officer had earlier said. Tanha is a third-year student of BA in Persian language. He is a key member of the Jamia Coordination Committee and played an active role in organising protests and riots in Jamia in December 2019, police had said. He is a close associate of Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider and Safoora Zargar who had been key organisers of anti-CAA protests and subsequent riots, the police said. On December 15 last year, protesters had torched four public buses and two police vehicles as they clashed with police in New Friends' Colony near Jamia Millia Islamia during a demonstration against the amended Citizenship Act, leaving at least 40 people including students, policemen and fire fighters injured, officials had then said. Communal clashes had broken out in northeast Delhi on February 24 after violence between citizenship law supporters and protesters spiralled out of control, leaving at least 53 people dead and around 200 injured.

Times of India

JNU students Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita, associated with Pinjra Tod, were sent to judicial custody by Metropolitan Magistrate Kapil Kumar after the police said their further custody was not required for the investigation.

A Delhi court on Thursday sent two women associated with Pinjra Tod' group, a collective of women students and alumni of colleges from across Delhi, to judicial custody for 14 days in a case related to communal violence in north east Delhi.

Pinjra Tod (Break the Cage) was founded in 2015 with an aim to make hostels and paying guest accommodations less restrictive for women students.

In 2015, Jamia Millia Islamia University had issued a notice restricting female students to stay out after 8 pm.

When the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) questioned the Jamia administration on it, a group of women students decided to protest against the restrictions not only in Jamia but other universities in Delhi. Later named as Pinjra Tod, the group mobilised people around several issues faced by female residents of hostels and PGs.

JNU students Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita, associated with Pinjra Tod, were sent to judicial custody by Metropolitan Magistrate Kapil Kumar after the police said their further custody was not required for the investigation.

They are currently lodged in Mandoli jail here. Police had earlier told the court that their custodial interrogation was required to unearth the conspiracy behind the case and identify other accused in the case.

Advocate Adit S Pujari, appearing for the women, had told the court that the women were arrested in the case with a "malafide" intent.

They were arrested last Saturday in connection with a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Jaffrabad area in February. On Sunday, they were granted bail by the court in the case.

Moments after the judge passed the order, the Crime Branch of the Delhi police had moved an application seeking to interrogate them and formally arrested them in a separate case related to the violence.

They had sought 14 days custody of the accused. The court had sent them to police custody for two days saying the investigation was at its initial stage.

The case, in which they were arrested on Saturday, was registered under sections 147 (rioting), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 188 (disobedience of order by public servant), 283 (danger or obstruction in public way), 109 (abetment), 341 (wrongful restraint), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal Code.

The case in which they were arrested on Sunday was registered under section 147 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 283 (danger or obstruction in public way), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 332 (causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 307 (attempt to murder), 302 (murder), 427, 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 188 (disobedience of public servant's order) of IPC, relevant sections of the Arms Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

Communal clashes had broken out in northeast Delhi on February 24 after violence between citizenship law supporters and protesters spiralled out of control leaving at least 53 people dead and around 200 injured.

Nesw18

The Kashmir Press Club on Thursday expressed concern over the police summoning journalists in the Valley and urged the �highest authorities in the administration� to look into these issues so that media persons are provided a conducive atmosphere to work.

The cyber cell of the Kashmir Police on Wednesday summoned The Kashmir Walla�s Founding Editor Fahad Shah in connection with his reportage on the Srinagar gunfight. On Tuesday, two Hizbul Mujahideen militants, including the son of a separatist leader, were killed in a gunfight between security forces and militants in the Nawakadal area of Srinagar. The gunfight left destruction in its wake, with several houses being razed to the ground, burnt or partially damaged.

Shah and his colleague had reported on the destruction of the homes. In their report, many people had accused the security forces of stealing their jewellery, money and other items.

In his statement, Shah said that he reached the police station at 1.30 pm on Wednesday and was not informed about the reason for being summoned for the next two hours. �At 3.34 pm a senior official led me to another room in the police station where five other police officials, including senior officials, were present,� he added.

Shah said that the officials objected to the coverage of the aftermath of the Nawakadal gunfight and accused him of �maligning the police�s reputation�.

In his response, the editor said that the reports published were interviews of local residents, on camera, whose houses had been burned. �If the police differed with the allegations of the local residents, we would have given equal space to the same in our report as a professional journalist. However, no such clarification was given,� Shah�s statement read.

The organisation noted that in earlier incidents also journalists have been similarly summoned by the police for their stories. �The KPC has condemned all such incidents and has noted that such summons and FIRs are aimed at harassing and intimidating the journalists and thus are a clear violation of the press freedom,� the press club said.

On April 21, the cyber police issued a statement that it had filed a case against freelance journalist Gowhar Geelani for �unlawful activities� on social media, threatening national security and sovereignty, �glorifying terrorism�, �causing disaffection against the country�. It also claimed to have received complaints accusing Geelani of threat and intimidation.

On April 18, freelance photojournalist Masrat Zahra was charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a law normally used against those allegedly involved in acts of terror. The police said that Zahra, a freelance photojournalist who reports mostly about women and children in conflict, uploaded photographs that could �provoke the public to disturb law and order�.

Over the same weekend, the police filed a first information report against an alleged fake news item about a gunfight between police and militants in South Kashmir and subsequent developments published in The Hindu. Details of the report were �factually incorrect�, could �cause fear or alarm� and had not been confirmed with district authorities, they said. The reporter Peerzada Ashiq told the Committee to Protect Journalist that he had records to show he had reached out to the authorities for comment.

On April 17, Mushtaq Ganaie, a journalist for the Kashmir Observer in Central Kashmir�s Ganderbal district, was detained for two days and booked for �creating hurdles in a police officer�s duty�. His offence: travelling around and trying to report during the coronavirus lockdown.

India has steadily fallen on the World Press Freedom Index, dropping to 142nd place in the latest 2020 survey. Kashmir�s long �electronic curfew� is cited as one of the reasons for this deterioration.

Scroll

Ms. P Ranganayakamma is a 66-year-old woman human rights defender, writer and critic has written extensively on issues relating to women and social justice. She has written 15 novels, 70 short stories, and many essays, publishing about 60 volumes in all. The main theme of her work isthe issue of gender equality for women. Most of her works have been published either in magazines or daily newspapers and subsequently published in the form of books.On May 7, 2020, styrene, a poisonous gas, leaked from a storage tank at LG Polymers plant at Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. It led to the death of 12 people and affected the health of at least 450 people in Vishakhapatnam and 4 other villages around it. Several of them will face long term health complications. However, no arrests were made by the policefor the killings and causing life threatening health hazards. The South Korean company running the plant has not been held responsible for negligencein any manner whatsoever. In such a scenario, WHRD Ms. Ranganayakamma, wrote 20 questions on her Facebook page questioning the government for their inaction. Immediately after posting the questions, an FIR was filed against Ms. Ranganayakamma by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Andhra Pradesh police under Section 505(2) (making statements that create or promote enmity), 153(A) (indulging in wanton vilification), 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 120-Br/w 34 (criminal conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code, and also under Section 67 (Punishment for publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form) of IT Act, 2008. On May 18, 2020, Ms. Ranganayakamma was arrested by the CID. The CID told the media that �action would be taken against those who post false comments against the State Government and misguide the public�. The above incident is a clear case of misuse of power by the police officials. The arrest of Ms. Ranganayakamma is an attempt to stop the senior citizen and WHRD from questioning the government and threaten all others from exercising their free expression. This is a clear violation of Article 19 of the Constitution which provides for free speech and power to express oneself to every citizen. The incident which took place has affected the lives of lot of people in the nearby areas and thus as a concerned citizen in a democracy she has the right to ask relevant questions to the government about the steps taken by them for the well-being of the people. By arresting her the state government not only tried to silence the her and other people questioning them but also tried to hide its failure to do any concrete investigation with respect to the gas leak.

HRD Alert India