PUDR flags threat to free political speech, urges release of Andhra civil rights leaders

By A Representative

The People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) has condemned the arrest of Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee (APCLC) vice-president Kranthi Chaitanya and fellow activist Mohan Krishna, who were taken into custody on January 9 and remanded the next day. The duo has been booked over allegedly “provocative banners” displayed ahead of a civil liberties conference in Tirupati.

According to the FIR, filed on a complaint by the president of the Sanatana Dharma Protection Committee, the banners amounted to offences ranging from promoting enmity between religious groups to criminal conspiracy, breach of peace, obscenity and insulting the Constitution and national symbols. The police invoked multiple provisions, including Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the new clause that replaces sedition.

One banner cited in the complaint announced the “Civil Liberties Union-20th State Conference, Tirupati, January 10–11, 2026” and called for action against “Hindu extremists who are killing rationalists and democrats.” It carried photographs of assassinated rationalists and journalists Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, M.M. Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh. PUDR said the banner highlighted documented violence against dissenters. Investigations in each of these assassinations have linked suspects to Hindutva organisations, including the Sanatan Sanstha. PUDR also noted that persons accused in the Gauri Lankesh and Kalburgi cases who are out on bail were publicly felicitated in Karnataka in February 2025 as “Hindu Tigers.” One of the accused, Shrikant Pangarkar, contested a civic election in Jalna, Maharashtra, on January 15, 2026.

The rights group said the FIR deliberately recasts a political demand—accountability for murders of democrats—as communal provocation. It criticised the additional use of national honour laws triggered by a satirical alteration of the Lion Capital emblem on one of the banners, which replaced lions with bull faces and modified “Satyameva Jayate” to “Satyameva Parajayate” (Defeat of Truth). PUDR argued that the Constitution protects criticism and satire when there is no incitement to violence.

Pointing to judicial precedents, PUDR recalled that cartoonist Aseem Trivedi faced prosecution under sedition laws in 2012 for similar representations of national symbols, before the Bombay High Court ruled that offensive or humourless depictions do not justify curtailing expression without intent to cause disorder (click here). It cited the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India that speech can be restricted only when it incites violence, not merely when it offends (). More recent Supreme Court rulings have reiterated that speech must be judged by the standards of “reasonable persons,” not those who are easily offended or oversensitive, including in cases available here and here.

PUDR said the use of Section 152 BNS, which it describes as broader and vaguer than the sedition clause it replaces, reflects how the law is likely to be deployed to curb dissent. It added that civil liberties organisations face mounting pressure, citing the Bhima Koregaon arrests as an example.

The statement noted APCLC’s decades-long record since its founding in 1974, including exposing extrajudicial killings and playing a key role in a 2009 Andhra Pradesh High Court judgment requiring murder FIRs against police personnel involved in encounter deaths. The organisation’s advocacy, PUDR said, has come at great cost, including multiple activist murders in the 2000s and recurrent arrests and raids.

PUDR said the FIR invokes non-bailable offences carrying a minimum seven-year sentence and warned that the arrests deepen the erosion of democratic freedoms. “These arrests are wholly unjustified and contribute to the rapid erosion of democratic freedoms essential for sustaining a democracy,” it said.

The organisation demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Kranthi Chaitanya and Mohan Krishna.

Comments

From plagiarism to proxy exams: Galgotias and systemic failure in education

By Sandeep Pandey* Shock is being expressed at Galgotias University being found presenting a Chinese-made robotic dog and a South Korean-made soccer-playing drone as its own creations at the recently held India AI Impact Summit 2026, a global event in New Delhi. Earlier, a UGC-listed journal had published a paper from the university titled “Corona Virus Killed by Sound Vibrations Produced by Thali or Ghanti: A Potential Hypothesis,” which became the subject of widespread ridicule. Following the robotic dog controversy coming to light, the university has withdrawn the paper. These incidents are symptoms of deeper problems afflicting the Indian education system in general. Galgotias merely bit off more than it could chew.

Farewell to Saleem Samad: A life devoted to fearless journalism

By Nava Thakuria* Heartbreaking news arrived from Dhaka as the vibrant city lost one of its most active and committed citizens with the passing of journalist, author and progressive Bangladeshi national Saleem Samad. A gentleman who always had issues to discuss with anyone, anywhere and at any time, he passed away on 22 February 2026 while undergoing cancer treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. He was 74.

From ancient wisdom to modern nationhood: The Indian story

By Syed Osman Sher South of the Himalayas lies a triangular stretch of land, spreading about 2,000 miles in each direction—a world of rare magic. It has fired the imagination of wanderers, settlers, raiders, traders, conquerors, and colonizers. They entered this country bringing with them new ethnicities, cultures, customs, religions, and languages.

Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov, the artist who survived Stalin's cultural purges

By Harsh Thakor* Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov (September 14, 1885 – April 20, 1964) was a Soviet artist, professor, academician, and teacher. His work was posthumously awarded the Lenin Prize, the highest artistic honour of the USSR. His paintings traced the development of socialist realism in the visual arts while retaining qualities drawn from impressionism. Gerasimov reconciled a lyrical approach to nature with the demands of Soviet socialist ideology.

Public money, private profits: Crop insurance scheme as goldmine for corporates

By Vikas Meshram The farmer in India is not merely a food provider; he is the soul of the nation. For centuries, enduring natural calamities and bearing debt generation after generation while remaining loyal to the soil, this community now finds itself trapped in a different kind of crisis. In February 2016, the Modi government launched the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) with the stated objective of freeing farmers from the shackles of debt. It was an ambitious attempt to provide a strong safety net to cultivators repeatedly devastated by excessive rainfall, drought, and hailstorms.

'Policy long overdue': Coalition of 29 experts tells JP Nadda to act on SC warning label order

By A Representative In a significant development for public health, the Supreme Court of India has directed the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to seriously consider implementing mandatory front-of-pack warning labels on pre-packaged food products. The order, passed by a bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K.V. Viswanathan on February 10, 2026, comes as the Court expressed dissatisfaction with the regulatory body's progress on the issue.

Unpaid overtime, broken promises: Indian Oil workers strike in Panipat

By Rosamma Thomas Thousands of workers at the Indian Oil Corporation refinery in Panipat, Haryana, went on strike beginning February 23, 2026. They faced a police lathi charge, and the Central Industrial Security Force fired into the air to control the crowd.

From non-alignment to strategic partnership: India's ideological shift toward Israel

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak* India's historical foreign policy maintained a notable duality: offering sanctuary to persecuted Jewish communities dating back centuries, while simultaneously supporting Palestinian self-determination as an expression of its broader anti-colonial foreign policy commitments. The gradual shift in Indian foreign policy under Hindutva-aligned governance — moving toward a strategic partnership with Israel while reducing substantive engagement with the Palestinian cause — raises legitimate questions about ideological motivation and geopolitical consequence.

Development vs community: New coal politics and old conflicts in Madhya Pradesh

By Deepmala Patel* The Singrauli region of Madhya Pradesh, often described as “India’s energy capital,” has for decades been a hub of coal mining and thermal power generation. Today, the Dhirouli coal mine project in this district has triggered widespread protests among local communities. In recent years, the project has generated intense controversy, public opposition, and significant legal and social questions. This is not merely a dispute over one mine; it raises a larger question—who pays the price for energy development? Large corporate beneficiaries or the survival of local communities?

Search This Blog