CASR alleges illegal detention of students, activists; calls for immediate disclosure

By A Representative 

A coalition of organisations under the banner of the Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) has strongly condemned the alleged abduction of 10 activists, including labour rights activists, anti-displacement campaigners and students, by the Delhi Police, stating that their whereabouts remain unknown and raising concerns over their safety.

According to CASR, Ms Ilakkiya (photo), a student of Delhi University pursuing a Master’s degree in Psychology and associated with the student organisation BSCEM, along with labour rights activist Shiv Kumar (photo) of Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, had arrived at Dyal Singh College to meet Sachin N, a faculty member and former elected executive of the Delhi University Teachers’ Association. The meeting was reportedly related to organising activities for Anti-Imperialism Week.

They reached the campus around noon and, as the faculty member was running late, had lunch at the college canteen. When they stepped out of the campus around 1 pm near the college gate close to the Delhi Metro’s JLN Metro station, they were reportedly picked up by unidentified personnel believed to be from a state agency. Local shopkeepers told CASR that a woman in civil clothes forcibly escorted Ilakkiya into a waiting Scorpio vehicle carrying VIP lights. Witnesses said the incident took place quickly and involved three to four individuals in plain clothes. Ilakkiya had sent a message around 1 pm to the faculty member she was scheduled to meet, but when he tried to call her about half an hour later her phone was switched off. CASR said neither Ilakkiya nor Shiv Kumar has contacted their friends, family members or colleagues since then.

CASR further stated that Manjeet, another activist associated with Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, has also gone missing. He was reportedly last seen returning home after attending a programme organised by CASR demanding the release of lawyer Surendra Gadling, who is currently incarcerated in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case.

The coalition said it had also received information from local residents that several students and activists were picked up by Delhi Police personnel from the office of the student organisation BSCEM in Vijay Nagar near the North Campus area of Delhi University. Those reportedly taken include Akshay, Drishti, Rudra, Kiran and Gaurav of BSCEM, as well as Badal and Ehtemam associated with the Forum Against Corporatisation and Militarisation (FACAM).

CASR noted that Shiv Kumar had previously been arrested during the Singhu Border farmers’ protest along with labour rights activist Nodeep Kaur. It said his case concerning allegations of custodial torture remains pending before the Punjab and Haryana High Court. In earlier observations in the matter, Justice Deepak Gupta had noted that Shiv Kumar was kept in illegal confinement for several days before being formally shown as arrested. The court had recorded that he suffered multiple injuries, including fractures, and had been examined several times before a medical examination at Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh was conducted on court orders.

CASR also pointed out that Ilakkiya, Kiran and Akshay had earlier been arrested during a protest at India Gate against severe air pollution in Delhi and were later released after spending a month in Tihar Jail. It further alleged that Ehtemam, Badal and Gaurav had previously been picked up by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police and held in illegal custody for more than a week, during which they were allegedly subjected to torture.

Stating that the repeated detention and disappearance of activists raises serious concerns about unlawful actions by state agencies, CASR demanded immediate disclosure of the whereabouts of Ilakkiya, Shiv Kumar and Manjeet, assurance of their safety, and access to legal counsel and communication with their families. The coalition also called for accountability from the authorities and urged students, teachers, trade unions and civil society groups to raise their voices and demand the immediate disclosure of the whereabouts and safety of Ilakkiya, Shiv Kumar, Manjeet, Akshay, Drishti, Rudra, Kiran, Gaurav, Badal and Ehtemam.