The term `house arrest’ does not find any mention in the CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) or the IPC (Indian Penal Code). But certain judges have invented this term to justify their decree, presumably by falling back upon an Article in our Constitution. Article 142 empowers the Supreme Court to “pass such decree or make such order as is necessary for [Read More…]
The supreme court has extended the house arrest of five human rights activists who were arrested last week. However, when the case comes before it on 12th September, it would be a enormous service to nation if it could reflect on the larger picture of the country in which human rights activists are branded, framed, arrested and sent to jail[Read More…]
There is a nation-wide scare about a plot to kill our beloved prime minister Narendra Modi-ji by Maoists. Thanks to the ever alert police force of Maharashtra – and aided by our even more alert national investigative agencies – the conspirators have been apprehended before they could carry out their plot. But it is a matter of grave concern [Read More…]
The Press Conference Parambir Singh, ADG (Maharastra Police), flanked by his two deputies – Shivaji Bodkhe, JCP, Pune and the investigating officer, Shivaji Pawar, ACP, in a press conference in Mumbai, inaugurated a distinctly new storyline, incorporating and retaining only fragments of the earlier official versions, on the nationwide raids and arrests carried out on August 28. (Ref.: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=PCVKfstx2Qc&app=desktop#dialog>,[Read More…]
The members of Indians Abroad for Pluralist India (IAPI) held a rally against the recent arrests of five political activists in India. The Friday rally organized at Holland Park in Surrey was attended by the representatives of various progressive groups. The speakers unanimously condemned the the arrests of revolutionary poet Varavara Rao, Human Rights lawyer Sudha Bhardawaj, besides authors and[Read More…]
I am writing to voice my deep concern about the the arrests of Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira and Varavaa Rao, as I strongly believe that they are directly linked to their peaceful and legitimate work in defence of human rights.
Dear Shri K. Venkateshan I feel terribly sorry about your future career. You missed a chance of winning a police medal – or even a Padmashri. Even though you got custody of the five rights activists (Varvara Rao Gautam Navlakha, Sudha Bharadwaj, Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Ferreira) – you failed to bump them off in a false `encounter’, the oft-repeated [Read More…]
A few serious questions have been raised about the arrest of activists. People are talking about their caste and connections and suggesting that ‘India’ is ‘waking’ up because of their castes, as most of them are savarnas or brahmins but I think it is a generalisation without understanding the realities. Yes, a number of them may be well connected with[Read More…]
On 28th August 2018, simultaneous raids were conducted by Police on the premises of prominent human rights and civil liberties activists and public intellectuals – Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj (National Secretary, PUCL) in Faridabad, Father Stan Swamy in Jharkhand, Senior Writer and Poet VaravaraRao, his two daughters – Anala and Pavana, ‘The Hindu’ journalist KV Kumaranath, English and Foreign Languages[Read More…]
The action of Pune police arresting a number of progressive intellectuals and human rights activists in various parts of the country is highly condemnable. The world knows that the violence perpetrated on thousands of Dalit men and women on 1st Jan. 2018 in Bhima-Koregaon, Maharashtra, was planned and wickedly executed by certain ‘Hindutvwadi’ persons. One of them Milind Ekbote was arrested[Read More…]
This morning’s papers (August 30 2018) settle something that we have been debating for a while. A front-page report in the Indian Express says “Police to Court: Those held part of anti-fascist plot to overthrow govt.” We should know by now that we are up against a regime that its own police call fascist.In the India of today, to belong[Read More…]
We, the undersigned, strongly oppose and condemn the illegal raids carried out in different cities, and arrests of Gautam Navlakha, Sudha Bharadwaj, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves and Varavara Rao by the Maharashtra Police on 28 th August 2018. These are only the most recent arrests in a continuing wave of repression spearheaded by the police at the behest of their[Read More…]
Statement by People’s Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS) against arrest of five Intellectuals and Human rights Activists on 28 August, 2018 Pune police under BJP government in Maharashtra arrested five well known left leaning intellectuals and activists under UAPA on 28th August. Eighty years old Varvara Rao is a famousTelegu poet.Sudha Bhardwaj is general secretary of People’s Union for[Read More…]
We, the undersigned, are shocked by the serial raids across the country on the homes of activists and public intellectuals who are critical of the government and the ruling party at the Centre. The arrests of prominent activists and intellectuals Sudha Bharadwaj, Vernon Gonsalves, Gautam Navlakha, Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and others are nothing but an attempt by the government[Read More…]
PUCL STRONGLY Condemns and denounces THE ARRESTs under the draconian UAPA OF – Sudha Bharadwaj, PUCL National Secretary Gautam Navalakha of PUDR, Prof. Anand Teltumbde of CPDR, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, advocates, and Vara Vara Rao, noted poet and rights activist. PUCL also denounces the simultaneous multi-city raids conducted today, 28th August 2018 in a concerted and pre-meditated manner[Read More…]
I had just woken up somewhat late, tired of late night arrival of the flight. Just saw missed calls from Prof Ajit Parulekar, who is a colleague and director of Goa Institute of Management where I work a Senior Professor and Chair, Big Data Analytics. He shocked me by informing that the Pune Police accompanied by Goa Police entered the[Read More…]
The members of Indians Abroad for Pluralist India have unanimously condemned the arrests of five political activists in India. In all, ten resolutions were passed at the emergency meeting of the IAPI in Delta on Tuesday evening, August 28. One of the resolutions condemned the arrests of political activists and raids on the houses of others across India. Those arrested[Read More…]
We, the undersigned, are shocked by the serial raids across the country on the homes of activists and public intellectuals who are critical of the government and the ruling party at the Centre. The arrests of prominent activists and intellectuals Sudha Bharadwaj, Vernon Gonsalves, Gautam Navlakha, Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Kranthi Tekula and others, are nothing but an attempt by[Read More…]
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Our beloved K.P.Sasi is no more. Filmmaker, cartoonist, writer, mentor, friend and above all tireless activist championing the cause of every underdog, Sasi breathed his last, mid-afternoon this Christmas day – after battling a medical condition for months. I remember the last time I met him, almost exactly a month before he passed away, at the ayurvedic healing center in[Read More…]
