UP STF raid at Delhi state office part of 'ongoing vendetta': Popular Front

By Our Representative
Condemning recent raids conducted by the Uttar Pradesh special task force (STF) at its Delhi state committee office in Shaheen Bagh, New Delhi, the civil rights group, Popular Front of India (PFI), has alleged that it is “part of the ongoing harassment launched against” it by the Yogi Adityanath government.
“There was a raid at our state office a couple of months back by the Enforcement Directorate and the agency could not find any shred of evidence for anything against the law from our office. So, it is clear that the present raid of UP STF was conducted only to harass us”, PFI said in a statement.
“The UP STF did not follow any legal process and did show the search warrant nor gave the seizure report to the office staffs. Flags, published PR documents and handbills were seized and we are sure the STF will present this as ‘incriminating documents’”, it asserted.
PFI said, since past few months the UP government has initiated “a vicious vendetta against PFI by illegally arresting its members on fabricated charges and linking the organization in false terror conspiracies”, insisting, “It all began with the arrest of our state adhoc committee members during the anti-CAA protest alleging them to be the mastermind of the protests.”
Pointing out that PFI responded with legal action for ensuring justice to the innocent people killed and tortured by Uttar Pradesh police during the citizenship agitations, the statement said, “The organization had filed a PIL against UP police in the High Court seeking judicial probe into the police atrocities on minorities”. It alleged, “As a revenge to these interventions, UP Police arrested our state ad hoc committee member and even harassed their family members.”
The statement, signed by its general secretary Anis Ahmed, underlined, “Even after the Hathras rape case the UP police tried to hide its failure by arresting journalist and student activists as instigators of an ‘imaginary caste violence’ and also linking them to Popular Front. The abduction and illegal detention of our members Anshad and Firoz from train on their way to home and the present raids are latest of the vindictive moves.”

Comments

Young environmentalist's arrest 'sinister', even parents not told of her whereabouts

By Our Representative The Coalition for Environmental Justice in India (CEJI), a civil society network, has said that it is “highly disturbing” that Disha Ravi, a young woman climate activist from Bengaluru was “picked up” in what is referred to as a “closely guarded operation” of the Delhi police. Disha, 21, has been remanded to police custody for five days after she was taken from Bengaluru to Delhi.

Mukesh Ambani's earnings during Covid 'can lift' 40% informal workers out of poverty

By Dr Gian Singh* The Inequality Virus Report released by Oxfam, a non-profit organization, on January 25, 2021 on the growing inequalities in different parts of the world, sheds light on the growing economic, educational, healthcare and gender inequalities in India. The report has revealed that the wealth of billionaires has increased by 35 per cent during the lockdown period in the country.

US forensic revelation enough evidence to release Sudha Bharadwaj, others: Civicus

Counterview Desk Civicus, a Johannesburg-based global alliance of civil society organisations and activists claiming to have presence in 175 countries with 9,000 members and working for strengthening citizen action, has sought immediate release of Sudha Bharadwaj, arrested in 2018 under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and accused of having links with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist).

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.

Golwalkar's views on tricolour, martyrs, minorities, caste as per RSS archives

By Shamsul Islam* First time in the history of independent India, the in-charge minister of the Cultural Ministry in the current Modi government, Prahlad Singh Patel, has glorified MS Golwalkar, second supremo of the RSS and the most prominent ideologue of the RSS till date, on his birth anniversary, February 19. In a tweet he wrote : “Remembering a great thinker, scholar, and remarkable leader #MSGolwalkar on his birth anniversary. His thoughts will remain a source of inspiration & continue to guide generations.”

Australia least prepared to fight Hindu 'extremism', admits diaspora NGO group

Tiranga rally in Sydney: Cause of stir among diaspora By Our Representative The Australian Alliance Against Hate and Violence (AAAHAV) has said that Australia is “least prepared” to counter the allegedly “rising threat of Hindu far right extremism”. Calling upon politicians, federal and state governments to “urgently recognise the threat far-right Hindu extremism”, it asks “to take concrete steps to address this threat.”

20% of FIRs against journalists in 2020 alone, targeted attacks in 2021 'too many to count'

Counterview Desk Condemning what it calls “alarming rise in state repression and clampdown on news outlets and journalists” that “expose” the anti-people nature of the establishment, India's top civil society network, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) has demanded “immediate release of arrested journalists, withdrawal of arbitrary charges and protection of media persons facing threats.”

'Viability' of agricultural cooperatives vs govt proposed pro-corporate economic model

Dr Gian Singh* The farmer struggle started from Punjab against the promulgation of three agricultural ordinances by the Union government in June 2020 and the enactment of three bills by Parliament in September 2020 to replace these ordinances is unique in many respects. There is no other example of such a peaceful and democratic farmer struggle.

Whither right to food? Social security scheme allocation for woman, child 'reduced'

Counterview Desk Pointing out that women and children have been ignored in the Union Budget 2021-22, the advocacy group Right to Food Campaign (RtFC) has said that the Government of India should have taken into account the fact that even after the lockdown was lifted, distress among marginalized communities continues, with people having lower incomes and reduced food consumption.

NAPM extends support to Indian, Aussie citizen groups 'opposing' Adani ventures

#StopAdani action in Australia Counterview Desk The civil rights network, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM), extending solidarity to the global campaign by the Youth Action to Stop Adani (YAStA), held in recently in Australia and India, has said that the effort was to bring more attention to the struggle aboriginal, indigenous peoples, farmers, working class and other oppressed communities against allegedly anti-people multinational corporate conglomerates.

Counterview

Search This Blog