After the police booked two students from Jamia Millia Islamia under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, several activists on Thursday issued a statement condemning the arrests and also the charges leveled against former Jawaharlal Nehru University student Umar Khalid.
The police had arrested the two students — Meeran Haider and Safoora Zargar — in a case related to communal violence in Delhi over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, said a lawyer. The activists, under the banner of “Hum Bharat Ke Log-We the People of India”, also sought removal of the charges, saying those involved in inciting violence should be held accountable.
“It is shocking to see that while the entire nation has come together to deal with the health emergency caused by COVID-19 and the consequent nationwide lockdown, the government, instead of focusing on saving lives and livelihoods of citizens, is conspiring to crush people’s movements by incarcerating activists,” the statement read.
Mr. Haider’s advocate Akram Khan had said Mr. Khalid too was booked under the UAPA. Seeking clarification from the police Delhi Police on whether and on what grounds the UAPA was invoked, the statement read, “Such ridiculous and draconian charges, clearly meant to intimidate activists and quell dissent, be immediately removed. Those who were actually responsible for issuing communally charged statements, leading to violence, must be held accountable and punished as per law.”
Stating that protesters against the NPR, NRC and CAA acted in accordance with their fundamental rights, the statement released by the activists said, “The invocation of UAPA and the colonial sedition laws are inherently illegal. This amounts to wrongful exercise of authority against lawful acts of citizens.”
It also said: Further the statement added, “It is clear that the government is trying to intimidate the leading anti-NPR, NRC, CAA protesters in an attempt to crush the movement, forgetting that India is the land of [Mahatma] Gandhi where Satyagraha is still alive. No matter how cruel be the action of the government, the protesters will continue to raise their voice in peace and with greater determination.”
Both the students from JMI , who have been Jamia Milia Islamia who were booked, were a part of the Jamia Coordination Committee.