Indian State refuses to answer questions about the health of Prof. Saibaba
Featured image: G.N. Saibaba. Source: Telegraph India.
A letter by two UN special rapporteurs with questions to the Indian Central Government about imprisoned democratic rights activist Professor Dr. G.N. Saibaba was recently made public. The letter was sent on the 3rd of August, but has still not been answered.
The letter states the following regarding G.N. Saibaba: “His health has continued to deteriorate in detention, with the human rights defender currently suffering from a brain cyst, a lump in his abdomen, breathing difficulties and a heart condition, cumulatively requiring specialised care only available in New Delhi.”
Four questions are asked in the letter:
“1. Please provide any additional information… you may have…
2. Please provide information as to Dr Saibaba’s conditions of detention in Nagpur Central Prison, including concerning measures adopted to assess the alleged inappropriate nature of the facilities to address the needs resulting from the human rights defender’s disability.
3. Please provide information as to the justification for the enhanced security measures in place regarding the detention of Dr Saibaba, and the necessity of such measures in light of his significantly limited mobility due to his disability.
4. Please provide information as to Dr Saibaba’s current state of health, including measures taken to evaluate and monitor whether appropriate medical care and treatment can be provided under his current conditions of detention…”
We have previously reported on G.N. Saibaba, who is an internationally recognized activist for the democratic rights of the people, who was arrested in 2014. In 2017 he was sentenced to life imprisonment for alleged links to the Communist Party of India (Maoist), based only on his activism against the reactionary government of the old Indian State. His arrest has been declared in violation of international law by the UN in 2021, and his trial was declared “bad in law and not valid” by the High Court of Bombay in 2022. Only few hours after the sentence by the High Court of Bombay, which canceled his sentence and ordered his release, it was overruled by the Supreme Court of India which argued that it effects “the sovereignty and integrity of India”.
G.N. Saibaba was an English professor at the University of Delhi. After he suffered from polio and problems with his spine in his youth, he was left in a wheelchair. He has several other health problems that are worsening as a result of the terrible conditions of his detention and lack of needed medical assistance. The old Indian State is trying to silence this voice of the people by any means, perpetrating torture and slowly murder this true democrat.
