PUCL condemns attempts to silence civil society voices on Assam evictions and detentions

By A Representative

The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has criticised what it described as attempts to silence civil society groups highlighting alleged unconstitutional evictions and detentions in Assam. The organisation has demanded the withdrawal of criminal cases filed against Syeda Hameed, a member of the “People’s Tribunal on Assam: Evictions, Detentions and the Right to Belong.”

On August 24, 2025, Hameed attended a meeting in Guwahati organised by several civil society organisations and chaired by Rajya Sabha MP Ajit Bhuyan. After the meeting, she told reporters that even Bangladeshis “deserve the right to life” and added, “If some Bangladeshis also live in Assam, then what is the problem?” Following her remarks, complaints were lodged against her in all 16 districts of Assam by the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), accusing her of creating communal tension.

PUCL said her comments were taken out of context and argued that she was exercising her constitutionally guaranteed right to free speech. It called for the repeal of Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which it described as “sedition law in a new avatar.”

The group also condemned the disruption of the tribunal held in Delhi on August 26, 2025, which was convened by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) and Karwan-e-Mohabbat. The event, which examined alleged state-led evictions and detentions in Assam, was interrupted by a group of protesters led by Hindu Sena chief Vishnu Gupta and BJP member Chaudhary Parvez Alam Baliyan. Videos of the disruption showed participants raising aggressive and communal slogans.

According to PUCL, the disruption reflected a broader attempt to prevent discussion on human rights violations in Assam. It also pointed to recent cases against journalists, including Siddharth Varadarajan and Karan Thapar of The Wire and independent journalist Abhisar Sharma, filed under Section 152 of the BNS, as evidence of a “chilling effect” on press freedom.

The organisation demanded withdrawal of the cases against Hameed, registration of an FIR against those who disrupted the Delhi tribunal, and protection of free speech and assembly rights under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.

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