Rights activists' arrest: Father Stan Swami terms crackdown as unofficial emergency

RANCHI: Terming the crackdown against human rights activists as a direct attack on democracy, Father Stan Swami urged the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to intervene urgently to ensure the release of arrested activists.

He also asked the Commission to order “immediate, transparent and impartial investigations” into the multi-city raids based on “false and fabricated accusations”.

Swami was among the nine activists whose houses were searched by the Pune police on Tuesday in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence.

“All these human rights activists have tirelessly been involved in advocating the cause of and fighting for the rights of the most poor, marginalised sections of society against state violations and unscrupulous corporates. They have also stood for the principles of human rights enshrined in the Indian Constitution and international standards of human rights,” said Swami.

The crackdown on the activists signals the imposition of unofficial Emergency in the country, Swami said. He demanded the government to release all those who were arrested and drop the “false cases lodged against them”.