Supreme Court urged to show courage: Immediate bail demanded for journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh

By A Representative

The Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) has called on the Supreme Court to demonstrate courage and uphold the principle that "bail is the rule, jail is the exception" by granting immediate bail to Jharkhand-based journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh. Singh has been incarcerated for over two and a half years in connection with alleged links to top Maoist leaders, a case that has drawn widespread criticism for its apparent misuse of stringent laws to silence dissent.

On January 27, the Supreme Court rejected Singh's bail application, further prolonging his detention despite the absence of a trial. Singh, a freelance journalist known for his ground reporting on issues such as extrajudicial killings, human rights violations, corporate exploitation, and environmental destruction in Jharkhand, was arrested in 2022. Since then, he has been implicated in approximately five cases, ensuring his prolonged incarceration without trial. In a concerning development, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) raided his residence on May 2, 2023, in connection with another alleged Maoist conspiracy case, despite Singh already being in pretrial detention.

The Supreme Court's decision has sparked outrage among civil society groups, journalists, and human rights activists. CASR, a coalition of over 40 progressive and democratic organizations, has condemned the denial of bail as a violation of Singh's fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. The coalition has also criticized the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led state government for opposing Singh's bail application, accusing it of hypocrisy given its claims of protecting tribal rights while using draconian laws like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) to suppress dissent.

In a statement, CASR highlighted the Supreme Court's own ruling in Jalaluddin Khan vs. Union of India (2023), where a bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Augustine George Masih emphasized that "bail is the rule, and jail is the exception," even in cases under special statutes like the UAPA. The bench had cautioned courts against denying bail in deserving cases, warning that such actions would violate constitutional rights. CASR has accused the Supreme Court of failing to uphold this principle in Singh's case, describing the denial of bail as an act of "cowardice."

Rupesh Kumar Singh's reporting has consistently exposed the nexus between corporate interests and the state, particularly in Jharkhand. Just two days before his arrest, he published a report on the dumping of industrial waste on tribal agricultural land in Giridih District, which has had catastrophic effects on the health of local communities. His arrest and subsequent prosecution have been widely viewed as an attempt to stifle his investigative journalism and intimidate others from speaking truth to power.

CASR has demanded the immediate release of Singh and the scrapping of all "bogus" cases against him. The coalition has also called on media houses, progressive organizations, and individuals to rally behind Singh and raise their voices against his unjust imprisonment. The statement further criticized the JMM-led Jharkhand government for its complicity in the repression of democratic voices, accusing it of aligning with the same corporate and fascist forces it claims to oppose.

The case of Rupesh Kumar Singh underscores the growing threats to press freedom and democratic dissent in India. As corporate exploitation and state repression intensify, the role of journalists like Singh in exposing injustices becomes ever more critical. CASR's call for his release is not just a demand for justice for one individual but a broader appeal to safeguard the democratic space and the rights of all marginalized communities.

Comments

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Lata Mangeshkar, a Dalit from Devdasi family, 'refused to sing a song' about Ambedkar

By Pramod Ranjan* An artist is known and respected for her art. But she is equally, or even more so known and respected for her social concerns. An artist's social concerns or in other words, her worldview, give a direction and purpose to her art. History remembers only such artists whose social concerns are deep, reasoned and of durable importance. Lata Mangeshkar (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was a celebrated playback singer of the Hindi film industry. She was the uncrowned queen of Indian music for over seven decades. Her popularity was unmatched. Her songs were heard and admired not only in India but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and many other South Asian countries. In this article, we will focus on her social concerns. Lata lived for 92 long years. Music ran in her blood. Her father also belonged to the world of music. Her two sisters, Asha Bhonsle and Usha Mangeshkar, are well-known singers. Lata might have been born in Indore but the blood of a famous Devdasi family...

'Batteries now cheap enough for solar to meet India's 90% demand': Expert quotes Ember study

By A Representative Shankar Sharma, Power & Climate Policy Analyst, has urged India’s top policymakers to reconsider the financial and ecological implications of the country’s energy transition strategy in light of recent global developments. In a letter dated April 10, 2026, addressed to the Union Ministers of Finance, Power, New & Renewable Energy, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, and the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog, with a copy to the Prime Minister, Sharma highlighted concerns over India’s ambitious plans for coal gasification and the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR).

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Kolkata dialogue flags policy and finance deficit in wetland sustainability

By A Representative Wetlands were the focus of India–Germany climate talks in Kolkata, where experts from government, business, and civil society stressed both their ecological importance and the urgent need for stronger conservation frameworks.

Subaltern voices go digital: Three Indian projects rewriting history from the ground up

By A Representative A new wave of digital humanities (DH) work in India is shifting the focus away from university classrooms and English-language scholarship, instead prioritizing multilingual, community-driven archives that amplify subaltern voices . According to a review published in the Journal of Asian Studies , projects such as the People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI), the Oral History Narmada archive , and the Bhasha Research and Publication Centre are redefining how the country remembers its past — often without government funding or institutional support.

Search This Blog