India: CASR press note
Hereby we publish a pres note we have received from Campaign Against State Repression.
Campaign Against State Repression organized a protest against the imprisonment of BK-16 activists under UAPA. The protest was carried out on 6th June, when across the country activists were arrested for participating in people’s struggle and supporting them. Activists from across India were arrested under trumped up charges and were red tagged by the state by claiming that these activists were associated with either CPI (Maoist), which is a banned party. No evidence regarding the trumped up charges or their association with CPI (Maoist) was found. In fact, through the usage of Pegasus evidence was planted on the devices of activists like Rona Wilson. Students from AISA, Fraternity, Collective, bsCEM and Nazariya Magazine participated in the protests and demanded the release of all of the BK-16 activists who continue to be imprisoned under the UAPA. Dr Saroj Giri from Delhi University and Nandita Narain from DUTA spoke in solidarity of the BK-16 activists and demanded their release. Students and intellectuals discussed the nature of the fascist repression in India. On how, the assault on civil society that backed people’s struggle started during the time of Congress and how it was intensified during the time of the Brahmanical Hindutva fascist BJP regime. Investigative agencies such as the NIA were built up by Congress and were strengthened by the BJP regime. The nature of the people arrested under the laws created for ‘national security’ was also discussed. People like Rona Wilson and Hany Babu were talking about the repression faced by minorities and the exploited classes within the country. Sudhir Dhawale was trying to unite the different oppressed and exploited classes against Brahminical Hindutva fascism. These people who standed against fascism and for the people were arrested under UAPA for the sake of national security. The activists of Kabir Kala Manch were artists who did artwork for the people against Brahmanism and exploitation. Along with this, speakers questioned why fascist elements like Sambhaji Bhide who created the riots against the Dalits were not arrested, although the initial investigation was against them. The speakers discussed how similar repression was conducted upon the PFI. Muslims and Kashmiris who discuss pro-people politics are targeted as terrorists and face repression by the state. The people who gathered for the protest demanded the release of all political prisoners and the repealing of black laws like UAPA, and the disbandment of NIA, an agency developed to intimidate and torture pro-people activists. Protesters also sloganed for the release of Sunita Potam who was abducted by the police in Bijapur.
