NHRC issues notice to Maharashtra chief secretary, DGP over activists' arrest

Gautam Navlakha

By Our Representative
Taking suo motu congizance of media reports on the arrest of five activists from different parts of the country, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has said that “the standard operating procedure in connection with these arrests has not been properly followed by the police authorities, which may amount to violation of their human rights.”
Accordingly, it has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police (DGP), Maharashtra, calling for a factual report in the matter within four weeks.
NHRC notes, the Delhi High Court has “already stayed the transit remand for civil liberties activist Gautam Navlakha, observing that police have not been able to satisfactorily explain the offence, he had been arrested for”, adding, “The decision on a transit remand for lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj is also pending before the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Faridabad.”
NHRC approvingly quotes Bharadwaj as having told the court that she had nothing to do with the incident for which she has been arrested. “According to her, the FIR did not even name her and she is being harassed and arrested only because of her ideology”, it adds.
“In the case of activist Gautam Navlakha, reportedly, the court has questioned how Pune police managed to get a transit remand from a Delhi court without any local witness. The court has also directed translation of the police documents into English which are in vernacular language”, NHRC assserts.
Recalling the earlier arrest of five human rights defenders – Surendra Gadling, Rona Wilson, Sudhir Dhawale, Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut by Maharashtra police – in June 2018, NHRC regrets, it “issued a notice on the 29th June, 2018 to the DGP, Maharashtra calling for a report in the matter within four weeks, which is yet to be received.”

Comments

US govt funding 'dubious PR firm' to discredit anti-GM, anti-pesticide activists?

By Our Representative The Alliance for Sustainable & Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has vocally condemned the financial support provided by the US Government to what it calls questionable public relations firms aimed at undermining the efforts of activists opposed to pesticides and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in India.

Modi govt distancing from Adanis? MoEFCC 'defers' 1500 MW project in Western Ghats

By Rajiv Shah Is the Narendra Modi government, in its third but what would appear to be a weaker avatar, seeking to show that it would keep a distance, albeit temporarily, from its most favorite business house, the Adanis? It would seem so if the latest move of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) latest to "defer" the Adani Energy’s application for 1500 MW Warasgaon-Warangi Pump Storage Project is any indication.

Fostered by those in power, hatred 'hasn't been' part of Indian narrative

By Osman Sher* It is strikingly ironic that the current climate of prevalent hate in India is fostered not by a disruptive fringe of society, but by those in power—individuals entrusted by the citizens to promote their welfare and foster peace and harmony. It is their responsibility to guide and nurture the populace as if they were their flock.

Bayer's business model: 'Monopoly control over chemicals, seeds'

By Bharat Dogra* The Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) has rendered a great public service by very recently publishing a report titled ‘Bayer’s Toxic Trails’ which reveals how the German agrochemical giant Bayer has been lobbying hard to promote glyphosate and GMOs, or trying to “capture public policy to pursue its private interests.” This report, written by Joao Camargo and Hans Van Scharen, follows Bayer’s toxic trail as “it maintains monopolistic control of the seed and pesticides markets, fights off regulatory challenges to its toxic products, tries to limit legal liability, and exercises political influence.”

Muslims 'reject' religious polarisation of Jamaat-e-Islami: Marxist victory in Kulgam, Kashmir

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* In the international sphere, an orgy of imperialist violence and wars on multiple fronts is unleashed on the world's population to divide people on religious and nationalist lines, destabilise peace, deepen crises, and control resources in the name of nationalism and religion. Under the guise of fighting Islamic terrorism and exporting the so-called market-led Western democracy, imperialist powers are ghettoising Muslims to control natural resources in various parts of Asia, as well as in Arab and Middle Eastern countries.

Militants, with ten times number of arms compared to those in J&K, 'roaming freely' in Manipur

By Sandeep Pandey* The violence which shows no sign of abating in the ongoing Meitei-Kuki conflict in Manipur is a matter of concern. The alienation of the two communities and hatred generated for each other is unprecedented. The Meiteis cannot leave Manipur by road because the next district North on the way to Kohima in Nagaland is Kangpokpi, a Kuki dominated area where the young Kuki men and women are guarding the district borders and would not let any Meitei pass through the national highway.

Can voting truly resolve the Kashmir issue? Past experience suggests optimism may be misplaced

By Raqif Makhdoomi* In the politically charged atmosphere of Jammu and Kashmir, election slogans resonated deeply: "Jail Ka Badla, Vote Sa" (Jail’s Revenge, Vote) and "Article 370 Ka Badla, Vote Sa" (Article 370’s Revenge, Vote). These catchphrases dominated the assembly election campaigns, particularly across Kashmir.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

NITI Aayog’s pandemic preparedness report learns 'all the wrong lessons' from Covid-19 response

Counterview Desk The Universal Health Organisation (UHO), a forum seeking to offer "impartial, truthful, unbiased and relevant information on health" so as to ensure that every citizen makes informed choices pertaining to health, has said that the NITI Aayog’s Report on Future Pandemic Preparedness , though labelled as prepared by an “expert” group, "falls flat" for "even a layperson".

Search This Blog