Raid on Rajasthan human rights lawyer's home 'attack on his professional right'

Counterview Desk
The civil rights group, Campaign Against State Repression (CASR)*, taking exception to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) raid on human rights lawyer Ansar Indori, has said that raid has taken place despite the Supreme Court barring state agencies from taking any coercive action against Ansar and other lawyers providing legal defence to the recently banned People’s Front of India (PFI) activists.
Pointing out that he has been working various fact-finding missions and had led various legal battles against alleged state repression and has been vocal against the “atrocities” on oppressed masses, CASR said in a statement, the raid is in line with “vengeful methods of quelling people’s voices”, as seen state going out of the way to arrest trade unionist-lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj, Nagpur-based lawyer Surendra Gadling and many others.

Text:

On the 18th of February 2023, Human Rights Lawyer Ansar Indori’s house was raided by NIA in Kota, Rajasthan. Ansar Indori has been targeted because he sought to provide legal defence and challenge an FIR (filed before the ban) against some former PFI members in Rajasthan High Court.
Ansar has been working in civil rights field for a long time and has participated in various fact-finding missions, led various legal battles against state repression and has been vocal against the atrocities on oppressed masses.
Raids on activists as such have become the norm in this authoritarian state lately. NIA's 18th February raid was targeted on 9 commercial and residential places, including advocate Ansar's residence, in connection with the same FIR he has challenged in the court of law.
The recent raid is undeniably a violation of the fundamental rights of people to be represented in the legal process as well as an attack on professional rights of pro-people lawyer.
Previous year, Brahmanical Hindutva fascist state banned PFI and its alleged affiliate organisations after two massive raid campaigns across multiple states. The raids led to witch-hunt and arrests of more than 250 Muslim activists.
Ansar Indori being a civil rights lawyer, has provided legal assistance to the falsely accused people. However, he has been a target of this fascist government and agencies from long before. He and other lawyers were charged under draconian UAPA for conducting a fact-finding into incidences of anti-Muslim attacks in Tripura.
The fact-finding was on the monstrous attack by RSS-BJP goons on working-class Muslims and businesses and houses of Muslims. The Supreme Court barred the state agencies from taking any coercive action against Ansar and other lawyers under that FIR.
We can see the rise in such reactionary and vengeful methods of quelling the people’s voices, under the BJP-RSS regime. Trade unionist and lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj, Nagpur-based lawyer Surendra Gadling and many others have also been targeted and jailed in frivolous cases for similar work of representing the oppressed and exploited people.

We condemn the state manufacturing legalities to suppress masses from resisting these anti-people

Journalists, media houses, lawyers, and activists who oppose these reactionary forces face brutal repression. The recent raids at the BBC office in Delhi and Bombay expose the fascist nature of the state.

NIA has purportedly curbed the rights of people which came about in legal connotations that vary from FIRs to UAPAs. Every act of dissent is suppressed by these anti-people laws like UAPA, NSA, PSA etc. We condemn the state manufacturing legalities to suppress masses from resisting these anti-people laws and the nature of the state.
CASR, while condemning the constant attacks on activists, pro-people lawyers, and journalists in general and advocate Ansar Indori in particular, demands that no coercive action should be taken against advocate Ansar and he should be allowed to carry on his legal, democratic and civic activities in the interest of the masses.
We also call upon the democratic and progressive forces, conscious members of legal fraternity, students, intelligentsia, members of civil society and broad masses of people for a united struggle against growing attacks of Brahmanical Hindutva fascism.
---
*AIRSO, AISA, AISF, APCR,BASF, BCM, Bhim Army, Bigul Mazdoor Dasta, BSCEM, CEM, CRPP, CTF, Disha, DISSC, DSU, DTF, Fraternity ,IAPL, Karnataka Janashakti, LAA,Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, Mazdoor Patrika, Mehnatkash Mahila Sangathan, Morcha Patrika, NAPM, NBS, Nowruz, NTUI, People’s Watch, Rihai Manch, Samajwadi Janparishad, Smajwadi lok manch, Satyashodak Sangh, SFI, United Against Hate, WSS, Y4S

Comments

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

The curious case of multiple entries of a female voter of Maharashtra: What ECI's online voter records reveal

By Venkatesh Nayak* Cyberspace is agog with data, names and documents which question the reliability of the electoral rolls prepared by the electoral bureaucracy in Maharashtra prior to the General Elections conducted in 2024. One such example of deep dive probing has brought to the surface, the name of one female voter in the 132-Nalasopara (Gen) Vidhan Sabha Constituency in Maharashtra. Nalasopara is part of the Palghar (ST) Lok Sabha constituency. This media report claims that this individual's name figures multiple times in the voter list of the same constituency.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

Spirit of leadership vs bondage: Of empowered chairman of 100-acre social forestry coop

By Gagan Sethi* This is about Khoda Sava, a young Dalit belonging to the Vankar sub-caste, who worked as a bonded labourer in a village near Vadgam in Banskantha district of North Gujarat. The year was 1982. Khoda had taken a loan of Rs 7,000 from the village sarpanch, a powerful landlord doing money-lending as his side business. Khoda, who had taken the loan for marriage, was landless. Normally, villagers would mortgage their land if they took loan from the sarpanch. But Khoda had no land. He had no option but to enter into a bondage agreement with the sarpanch in order to repay the loan. Working in bondage on the sarpanch’s field meant that he would be paid Rs 1,200 per annum, from which his loan amount with interest would be deducted. He was also obliged not to leave the sarpanch’s field and work as daily wager somewhere else. At the same time, Khoda was offered meal once a day, and his wife job as agricultural worker on a “priority basis”. That year, I was working as secretary...

Proposed Modi yatra from Jharkhand an 'insult' of Adivasi hero Birsa Munda: JMM

Counterview Desk The civil rights network, Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha (JMM), which claims to have 30 grassroots groups under its wings, has decided to launch Save Democracy campaign to oppose Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vikasit Bharat Sankalp Yatra to be launched on November 15 from the village of legendary 19th century tribal independence leader Birsa Munda from Ulihatu (Khunti district).

Ground reality: Israel would a remain Jewish state, attempt to overthrow it will be futile

By NS Venkataraman* Now that truce has been arrived at between Israel and Hamas for a period of four days and with release of a few hostages from both sides, there is hope that truce would be further extended and the intensity of war would become significantly less. This likely “truce period” gives an opportunity for the sworn supporters and bitter opponents of Hamas as well as Israel and the observers around the world to introspect on the happenings and whether this war could have been avoided. There is prolonged debate for the last several decades as to whom the present region that has been provided to Jews after the World War II belong. View of some people is that Jews have been occupants earlier and therefore, the region should belong to Jews only. However, Christians and those belonging to Islam have also lived in this regions for long period. While Christians make no claim, the dispute is between Jews and those who claim themselves to be Palestinians. In any case...

Bangladesh alternative more vital for NE India than Kaladan project in Myanmar

By Mehjabin Bhanu* There has been a recent surge in the number of Chin refugees entering Mizoram from the adjacent nation as a result of airstrikes by the Myanmar Army on ethnic insurgents and intense fighting along the border between India and Myanmar. Uncertainty has surrounded India's Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport project, which uses Sittwe port in Myanmar, due to the recent outbreak of hostilities along the Mizoram-Myanmar border. Construction on the road portion of the Kaladan project, which runs from Paletwa in Myanmar to Zorinpui in Mizoram, was resumed thanks to the time of relative calm during the intermittent period. However, recent unrest has increased concerns about missing the revised commissioning goal dates. The project's goal is to link northeastern states with the rest of India via an alternate route, using the Sittwe port in Myanmar. In addition to this route, India can also connect the region with the rest of India through Assam by using the Chittagon...

Two more "aadhaar-linked" Jharkhand deaths: 17 die of starvation since Sept 2017

Kaleshwar's sons Santosh and Mantosh Counterview Desk A fact-finding team of the Right to Feed Campaign, pointing towards the death of two more persons due to starvation in Jharkhand, has said that this has happened because of the absence of aadhaar, leading to “persistent lack of food at home and unavailability of any means of earning.” It has disputed the state government claims that these deaths are due to reasons other than starvation, adding, the authorities have “done nothing” to reduce the alarming state of food insecurity in the state.

Fate of Yamuna floodplain still hangs in "balance" despite National Green Tribunal rap on Sri Sri event

By Ashok Shrimali* While the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday reportedly pulled up the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for granting permission to hold spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's World Culture Festival on the banks of Yamuna, the chief petitioners against the high-profile event Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan has declared, the “fate of the floodplain still hangs in balance.”

Search This Blog