Bulldoze-police in Uttar Pradesh 'being used' against anyone BJP wants to silence

By Amit Srivastav*
On June 3, 2022, violence erupted in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur and has made headlines ever since with new leads in the case. At the time, it was reported that at least six persons were injured, as protestors from the Muslim community apparently clashed with the police, after BJP member Nupur Sharma had made inflammatory speech against the Prophet.
The next day, the police registered three FIRs against more than a 1,000 unknown persons, out of which 55 people have been named as accused. All of these people are from the Muslim community.
Now, the Uttar Pradesh police have arrested a local Bharatiya Janata Party leader and 12 others in connection with the Kanpur communal violence. The total number of arrests is now 51.
On June 8, the Delhi police registered two FIR as well. The first includes the names of 8 people, including Naveen Kumar Jindal of BJP, Pooja Shakun of Hindu Mahasabha, etc.
The second names Nupur Sharma of BJP and others for social media posts. Hindutva priest Yati Narsinghanand has also been named by the Police, who was in the news for making hate-speech in Haridwar a few months ago.
The people responsible for the case are all part of the nexus of hatred that is sponsored by the government. A lot of people have a history of making hate-speeches, particularly against Muslims. And most of them are members of some Hindutva organisation.
In the past, there have been literal calls for genocide of the Muslim community. Yet the perpetrators of such speeches roam around freely.
Instead, the BJP government in UP under Ajay Singh Bisht, also known as Yogi Adityanath, has decided to bulldoze the houses of the accused. The bulldoze-police has been used against anyone the BJP wants to silence, and is their tactic of intimidation.

Afreen Fatima

Needless to say, it is highly vengeful and has nothing to do with the constitutional way of dealing with such cases. Bulldozing a house also means everybody who lives in that house will become homeless. It is an attack on the entire family of an accused.
Among the victims of this policy of bullzoding is Afreen Fatima, who is a student activist. She is a student at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and a former president of the students union of Women’s College, Aligarh Muslim University.
She was also active during anti-CAA/NRC protests in 2019-2020 at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, and organised Muslim women and has held protests against bans on hijab as well. Her family was detained without any warrant on June 10, 2022.
This vengeful politics of hatred that the BJP has been practicing must be opposed radically. This is not the sign of a democratic country. These are signs of an authoritarian dictatorship, where anybody even with even suspicions of something will be attacked, and where even their families will be made victims.
All progressive organisations and individuals should come forward against this.
---
*Advocate, President, National Confederation of Human Rights Organisations (NCHRO), Delhi

Comments

Academics urge Azim Premji University to drop FIR against Student Reading Circle

By A Representative A group of academics and civil society members has issued an open letter to the leadership of Azim Premji University expressing concern over the filing of a police complaint that led to an FIR against a student-run reading circle following a recent incident of violence on campus. The signatories state that they hold the university in high regard for its commitment to constitutional values, critical inquiry and ethical public engagement, and argue that it is precisely because of this reputation that the present development is troubling.

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

UAPA action against Telangana activist: Criminalising legitimate democratic activity?

By A Representative The National Investigation Agency's Hyderabad branch has issued notices to more than ten individuals in Telangana in connection with FIR No. RC-04/2025. Those served include activists, former student leaders, civil rights advocates, poets, writers, retired schoolteachers, and local leaders associated with the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Indian National Congress.

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

Aligning too closely with U.S., allies, India’s silence on IRIS Dena raises troubling questions

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The reported sinking of the Iranian ship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka raises troubling questions about international norms and the credibility of the so-called rule-based order. If indeed the vessel was attacked by the American Navy while returning from a joint exercise in Visakhapatnam, it would represent a serious breach of trust and a violation of the principles that govern such cooperative engagements. Warships participating in these exercises are generally not armed for combat; they are meant to symbolize solidarity and friendship. The incident, therefore, is not only shocking but also deeply ironic.

India’s foreign policy at crossroads: Cost of silence in the face of aggression

By Venkatesh Narayanan, Sandeep Pandey The widely anticipated yet unprovoked attack on Iran on March 1 by the United States and Israel has drawn sharp criticism from several quarters around the world. Reports indicate that the strikes have resulted in significant civilian casualties, including 165 elementary school girls, 20 female volleyball players, and many other civilians.

India’s green energy push faces talent crunch amidst record growth at 16% CAGR

By Jag Jivan* A new study by a top consulting firm has found that India’s cleantech sector is entering a decisive growth phase, with strong policy backing, record capacity additions and surging investor interest, but facing mounting pressure on talent supply and rising compensation costs .

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Search This Blog