Skip to main content

'Intimidation and harassment' of political activists: CASR condemns NIA’s actions in Lucknow Conspiracy Case

By A Representative
 
The Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) has issued a strong condemnation of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for what it describes as the "intimidation and harassment" of political activists, particularly Vinay, in connection with the so-called 'Lucknow Conspiracy Case'. The organization has called for the quashing of FIR No. RC-01/2023/NIA/Lucknow, which it claims is being used to target activists across northern India.
According to CASR, Vinay, a former vice president of the Bhagat Singh Students Morcha (BSM) at Banaras Hindu University (BHU), has been summoned for interrogation. The case, which has led to raids on the homes of approximately 30 activists in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Punjab, and Chandigarh, has already resulted in the arrest of Chandigarh-based lawyer and anti-displacement activist Ajay Kumar.
CASR alleges that the investigation is part of a broader pattern of repression, comparing it to the Bhima Koregaon case, in which several activists were arrested on allegations of links to Maoist groups. The organization claims that members of BSM have been under increasing pressure from authorities, citing multiple FIRs, suspensions, and arrests following their protests against a reported gang rape at IIT BHU. It also referenced the 2023 NIA raid on the BSM office and the detention of its president, Aakanksha Azad, as evidence of ongoing suppression.
The press statement also criticized the government for allegedly using security agencies to silence dissent, linking the current investigation to previous actions against activists and scholars accused of supporting outlawed groups. CASR has called for an immediate end to the NIA’s actions in this case and urged democratic and progressive organizations to oppose what it describes as a "witch hunt" against activists.

Comments

TRENDING

The 'Dr' debate masks a larger crisis in allied-health education

By Dr P K Gupta*  India’s allied-health professions have long operated in a fragmented landscape of universities, hospitals, State authorities and private institutions, each with its own nomenclature, curriculum and standards. The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021 was meant to correct this by creating a unified national framework for education, professional regulation and institutional recognition. Few dispute the need for such oversight. The real question is whether standardisation is quietly becoming synonymous with longer courses, additional internships and new professional titles—changes that risk masking deeper gaps in clinical training, institutional capacity and affordability.

Arrival of USS Lincoln: A ‘leisure trip’ to Thailand or a neo-colonial move to commodify women?

By Benyasiri Eimviriyapong   The arrival of the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) for a ‘leisure trip’ in Thailand before returning to its campaign of destruction against the people of West Asia demands immediate interrogation and opposition. For us Thai people, and those in sites of American plunder across the globe, this a rattling of the US’ cold war colonial chains on its most loyal lap dog, while conducting a war of aggression in Iran and the ongoing genocide in Palestine. In allowing the USS Lincoln to dock, the Thai ruling elites are once again facilitating a system of imperial violence that extends far beyond Southeast Asian borders, a system which in our case, is predicated on sexual violence and femicide.

Pilgrimage or pollution? The waste crisis of Indian faith

By Raj Kumar Sinha*  In today's times, there are certain issues that are constantly talked about and discussed, yet no visible impact seems to be made. Beyond water, soil, and pollution, one crisis that continues to be overlooked is waste. Like other life-threatening problems, waste too is gradually moving toward burying and obliterating us. After the Kanwar Yatra in Haridwar, approximately 8,000 tonnes of waste were left behind on the riverbanks, including bottles filled with urine.