A group of 42 scholars and academics from across the country have issued a statement expressing concern over the ordeal of Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati (IIT-G) faculty member Arupjyoti Saikia, who was summoned and grilled by the National Investigation Agency on February 1.
The NIA did not specify why Prof. Saikia had been questioned for about four hours. His colleagues suspected it was in connection with the violent protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in December last year.
"We... write in distress and with concern with regard to the ongoing ordeal of... Professor Saikia is one of the country's most distinguished and respected historians. The author most recently of a landmark history of the Brahmaputra River, he has also written significant works on forest and agrarian history," the statement said. "That a scholar of such standing, and a human being of such decency, has been called for intensive grilling by the NIA is deeply distressing. We urge that the NIA treat him with the dignity and respect he deserves, and allow him to continue his professional work unimpeded."
Among the scholars and academics who issued the statement are Ramachandra Guha, Niraja Gopal Jayal, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Geetha Venkataraman, Nandini Sundar, Nayanjyot Lahiri, Janaki Nair and Raziuddin Aquil.
Full list of the scholars and academics:
Dr Sukanta Chaudhuri, Professor Emeritus, Department of English, Jadavpur University, Kolkata
Dr Ramachandra Guha, Satish Dhawan Visiting Professor, Centre for Society and Policy, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
Professor Niraja Gopal Jayal, Centre for the Study of Law and Governance, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Professor Partha Chatterjee, former Director, Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Kolkata
Professor Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Department of Political Science, Ashoka University
Professor Geetha Venkataraman, Department of Mathematics, Ambedkar University
Professor Samantak Das, Department of Comparative Literature, Jadavpur University, Kolkata
Professor Amita Baviskar, Department of Environmental Studies, Ashoka University
Ramaswamy Sudarshan, Dean, School of Government and Public Policy, OP Jindal Global University
Dr Harini Nagendran, Professor of Sustainability, Azim Premji University, Bangalore
Dr M. D. Madhusudhan, Co-Founder, Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore
Dr Venu Madhav Govindu, Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
Professor Rajeshwari S. Raina, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Shiv Nadar University
Professor Subhashis Banerjee, Department of Computer Science, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi
Professor Srinath Raghavan, Department of International Relations, Ashoka University
Dr Sharachchandra Lele, Distinguished Fellow, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Bengaluru
Dr Geetanjoy Sahu, Centre for Science, Technology, and Society, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Gautam Bhadra, Honorary Professor, Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Kolkata.
Dr Supriya Chaudhuri, Professor Emerita, Jadavpur University, Kolkata
Professor Nandini Sundar, Department of Sociology, Delhi University
Professor Nayanjot Lahiri, Department of History, Ashoka University
Dr Dinesh Mohan, Honorary Professor, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi
Professor Mahesh Rangarajan, Department of History, Ashoka University
Jatindra Kumar Nayak, Professor of English (Retired), Utkal University
Professor A. R. Venkatachalapathy, Tamil historian and writer, Chennai
Dr Manu V Devadevan, Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi
Professor Nivedita Menon, Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Professor Amitabh Joshi, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru
Professor Enakshi Bhattacharya, Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras
Dr Indira Chowdhury, Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bengaluru
Professor Suresh Govindarajan, Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
Professor K Srilata, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras
Dr Janaki Nair, Professor of History (Retired), Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Dr Vishwesha Guttal, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
Dr Rahi Soren, School of Oceanographic Studies, Jadavpur University, Kolkata
Professor K. V. Subrahmanyam, Chennai Mathematical Institute, Chennai
Dr Anindiya Sinha, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru
Professor Arnab Rai Choudhuri, Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
Professor Sudhir Chella Rajan, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras
Dr Raziuddin Aquil, Department of History, Delhi University
Professor Rita Kothari, Department of English, Ashoka University
Kishalay Bhattarcharya, Associate Professor, OP Jindal Global University