Tag Archives: Police Repression

Politics, religion, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Khureji Crackdown Fact Finding Report: Lawyers Against Atrocities

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[The followng is a report of the police crackdown on the peaceful protest in Khureji, against the CAA-NRC-NPR that had been going for quite some time. The team of Lawyers Against Atrocities comprising Ashutosh, Harjot, Harshita, Nasir and Rahul visited Khureji on 29 February 2020]

Brief Overview of the Situation in Khureji Khas

Since the 14thof January 2020, Khureji Khas in North East Delhi has witnessed peaceful protests against the divisive Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), National Registry of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR). The people of the locality, especially women,had been congregating day and night at an open site adjacent the Hindustan Petroleum pump on the Patparganj Road. On the 23rdof February 2020, responding to the Bhim Army’s call for a Bharat Bandh, the people of Khureji Khas conducted a sit-in protest on the Patparganj Road. On request from police officials to allow for the flow of vehicular traffic, the protesters complied by first allowing road access to the nearby Vivekananda Yogashram, then vacating half the road by the night of 23rd February and finally the entire road by noon of the following day.

Despite returning to the protest site to continue the peaceful protest, heavy police deployment continued in Khureji Khas. On Monday and Tuesday (24th and 25th of February), the Delhi Police were a constant presence at the protest site. Lining the roads, the police intimidated protestors, especially women. Suddenly without provocation, on the morning of 26th February 2020, the police personnel, many of whom did not bear their name tag, stormed into the protest site brandishing and discharging firearms and proceeded to evict the protestors, beating and injuring several in the process. It is reported that during this process, the police were seen destroying CCTV cameras, notably the one in front of the Hindustan Petroleum Pump. The police arrested several protestors, from the protest site and from their homes including Ishrat Jahan, Khalid Saifi, Mohammed Salim, Vikram Pratap, Salim Ansari and Sabhu Ansari among others taking them to the Jagatpuri Police Station.

Continue reading Khureji Crackdown Fact Finding Report: Lawyers Against Atrocities →

Politics, Right watch, Sex, Theory, Violence-Conflict

The Yogi and the Erotics of Violence: Jaya Sharma

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Guest Post by JAYA SHARMA

This article that explores the enjoyment of violence, epsecially in the social media world, in the wake of the brutal violence perpetrated by the Yogi Adityanath regime in Uttar Pradesh. It should be read as a sequel to Jaya Sharma’s earlier article published in Kafila in June last year.

‘Maza aa gaya Yogiji maza…Lathi aisi lagi ki maza aa gaya…’

Maza is a word used often in tweets in response to police attacks on CAA-NRC protestors in UP.  Unlike it’s staid, sanskritized counterpart anand, maza has a charge, a buzz and could translate into English as ‘thrill’.  ‘Thrilling Yogiji thrilling’… ‘The way the lathi struck…thrilling’.  I’ll return to such tweets to explore the following questions.

Might it be that there is an erotic charge to political violence?  Might it be that the erotic charge is not limited to those who perform the violence but also animates the millions who hear, see or read that such violence has been meted out?  Well beyond “not caring”, might it be that they “get off” on such violence?  Can the proactive, enthusiastic support for political violence be understood only in terms of “ordinary folk” being corrupted by evil leaders? Might we also need to see what within the collective psyche could be pushing them towards a terrible kind of enjoyment of such violence? Continue reading The Yogi and the Erotics of Violence: Jaya Sharma →

Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Concerned Delhi University Teachers In Solidarity with the Universities’ Struggles Against CAA/NRC

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Teachers from different colleges and departments of the University of Delhi have expressed shock at the police repression on the struggles of the academic community across different universities in India and issued the following statement in support of the students.
We, concerned teachers of Delhi University, extend solidarity to the struggling academic communities of Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi University (DU), and other central and regional universities that have borne the brunt of police excesses these past few days. We also express condemnation of the authoritarian and undemocratic manner in which the current dispensation is using all kinds of power to crush the basic rights of people to peacefully protest and question unjust laws. The closing off of metro stations, arterial roads, blocking of mobile networks, en masse detention of citizens who are peacefully gathering to protest, growing number of FIRs, 5000 plus preventive detentions, consistent heckling of protesters, including attack on public property during police raids, etc. are shocking and reflect blatant misuse of state power. The shameful act of interrupting media interactions / press briefings of vocal scholars/academicians through coercive police action is nothing short of sinister. The 25 plus and rising death toll of protesters, as well as the reports of police raids of Muslim localities, households and institutions is highly condemnable.

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Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

University of York in Solidarity with Student Protests Against CAA

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As students, alumni and faculty members of the University of York, UK, we stand in solidarity with all students in India who are engaged in protests against the discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. We believe that the right to dissent, protest and demonstrate are fundamental rights integral to all democracies. Articles 19 (1) (a) and 19 (1) (b) of the Indian Constitution explicitly state that the right to protest is a fundamental right. Such a right is safeguarded in international human rights conventions as well.

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Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Dublin City University Faculty and Students Condemn Repression of Peaceful Protests in India

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The wave of protest in India in response to The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA) passed on 11th December 2019 is being violently suppressed. Protesters claim the Act fundamentally alters the concept of Indian citizenship and is against the secular and inclusive India Constitution as it introduces discrimination against Muslims and other ethnic minorities. Protests are happening across all the states in the Northeast of India and have spread to the university campuses in the rest of the country. There have been deaths and injuries in the Northeast and the government has imposed an internet blackout effectively cutting them off from the rest of the world. Injuries have also been reported from JamiaMillia and AMU. On the 19th December, students, noted academicians, activists and political leaders have been detained by the police, following peaceful protests. Continue reading Dublin City University Faculty and Students Condemn Repression of Peaceful Protests in India →

Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Statement Against Police Action from Students, Alumni and Faculty of IIM Calcutta

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As members of the academic community in India, we the undersigned, stand in solidarity with students across the country protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens of India (NRC). Fundamentally discriminatory and unjust, CAA-NRC contradict the founding principles of the Indian Constitution and undermine international human rights conventions such as the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Act institutionalizes discrimination based on religion, besides threatening the interests of indigenous people of the North-Eastern states.

Continue reading Statement Against Police Action from Students, Alumni and Faculty of IIM Calcutta →

Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Health Workers, Health Professionals, Women’s Rights Activists Condemn Use of Force by Police against Students of JMI, AMU

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Concerned health activists and health professionals and women’s rights activists have issued the following statement against the brutal use of force by the police against students, especially in Jamia Millia Islamia and AMU.

We, the health networks, health activists, health professionals, Women’s Rights Activists and concerned activists strongly condemn this abhorrent act by the police force on the students of Jamia Milia Islamia University, Delhi and  Aligarh Muslim University, Uttar Pradesh on 15th – 16th December 2019.

Following the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), violence was unleashed and Jamia and AMU were particularly targeted. According to the reports from JamiaMiliaIslamia on Sunday, the police force entered the premises, targeted individuals indiscriminately, used tear-gas shells and lathi charge against the students, along with the forceful entry in their university premises.  Continue reading Health Workers, Health Professionals, Women’s Rights Activists Condemn Use of Force by Police against Students of JMI, AMU →

Government, Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Support for Anti CAA/NRC Struggle from University of South Florida

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Following is a statement by the faculty, researchers and students of the University of Southern Florida, USA, in support of the struggle of students across universities against CAA and NRC.

We, the undersigned, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, students, and alumni of University of South Florida (USF), in strongest possible terms,condemn the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and assault and police crackdown on anti-CAA protests across India. We staged a protest on USF’s Tampa campus on December 19, the day widespread protests were organized across India on this issue. Even though our protest is India-specific, this is about protecting democracy and minority rights.

The Indian government recently passed the CAA, which we believe, allows for the first time in secular India, a citizenship provision based on religion. When combined with National Register of Citizens (NRC), and National Population Register (NPR), the CAA can strip Indian Muslims of their rights and citizenship.The NRC and NPR also threaten transgender communities, dalits, the homeless, indigenous communities, and others who will not be able to provide necessary documents.We believe that the Indian government’s actions are unconstitutional and fundamentally violate the principles of equality and non-discrimination in a democracy. Continue reading Support for Anti CAA/NRC Struggle from University of South Florida →

Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

Another International Statement Condemning State Violence Against Students of JMI and AMU

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Support for the students of Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University is continuously pouring in from different of the world as people watch the horrors perpetrated by the Indian police on unarmed, peacefully protesting students. The following is yet another of an international statements of support.

We, the undersigned, condemn the recent spate of state violence unleashed against students of Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) and Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) by the ruling BJP government. We are students studying in various universities and educational institutions outside of India, and are extremely appalled to see the brazen attack on the democratic rights of students across universities in India. Students of JMI and AMU have been protesting against the discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), which enforces a highly selective citizenship criteria based on faith that excludes Muslims and effectively reduces the status of millions of Muslims in India to ‘illegal migrants’. The police have shown zero restraint in their attempt to suppress the agitations and it is clear that the students are violently targeted because of their Muslim identity. Continue reading Another International Statement Condemning State Violence Against Students of JMI and AMU →

Law, Right watch, Violence-Conflict

University of Warwick In Solidarity With Students Protesting the CAA in India

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Following is a statement issued by current and former faculty members and students of the University of Warwick in solidarity with the ongoing struggle of the students against the new citizenship law.

As students, alumni and faculty members of the University of Warwick, we stand in solidarity with all students in India who are engaged in protests against the discriminatory Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. We believe that the right to dissent, protest and demonstrate are fundamental rights integral to all democracies. Articles 19 (1) (a) and 19 (1) (b) of the Indian Constitution explicitly state that the right to protest is a fundamental right. Such a right is safeguarded in international human rights conventions as well.

The peaceful and non-violent demonstrations by students have been met with extraordinary police violence, particularly in Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University, with recent reports from established media sources indicating that police and paramilitary forces entered university campuses and hostels by force and brutally attacked students. As a consequence, hundreds of students have been injured, some very seriously. Such police action contravenes both the Constitution of India as well as international human rights laws. We call for an immediate end to state-led violence and for proper action to be taken against the perpetrators of it. Continue reading University of Warwick In Solidarity With Students Protesting the CAA in India →

Capitalism, Centre watch, Government, Movements, Violence-Conflict

Stop the Police Brutality Against Maruti Suzuki Workers: Joint Statement

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The following is a joint statement issued by ADR Punjab, PUCL Haryana, PUDR and NTUI against police repression on Maruti Suzuki workers

Kaithal, 19 May 2013: The Haryana Government yet again in a brazen and outright cowardly manner has sought to protect the interest of capital and particularly the management of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd by refusing to allow the victimised workers and their families to undertake a peaceful demonstration planned for today which was expected to draw in ten thousand people from across the state.

A short while ago, police lathicharged a peaceful demonstration of workers families outside the residence of State Industry Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala. Scores have been hurt in the lathicharge and the demonstrators are being arrested.

The Haryana Government, on the eve of this peaceful protest at Kaithal, imposed IPC Section 144 in the town and arrested close to 100 workers and their family members from the dharna site at the Kaithal Mini Secretariat at 11:30 pm last night. Several more were picked up from the entry points to the town including the bus terminus this morning. The workers and their family members have been sitting on an entirely peaceful dharna at the Mini Secretariat from 28 April 2013 demanding release of the 147 workers in Gurgaon Jail and reinstatement of the workers, both permanent and contract, terminated without enquiry following the 18 July incident. Despite the heavy police mobilisation and barricades at entry points of the town, thousands of people from across Haryana have been pouring into the city to gherao the State Industries Minister, Randeep Singh Surjewala at his residence. Wives, mothers and sisters of workers are present in large numbers at this demonstration demanding a just inquiry and an end to the state effort at criminalisation of the workers.

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Capitalism, Everyday Life, Left watch, Violence-Conflict

Condemn Police Repression on Maruti Suzuki Workers’ Protest Rally: MSWU

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Guest post from Provisional Working Committee (MSWU)

We from the Maruti Suzuki Workers Union (MSWU) and our families continue to face not only an exploitative company management but also continous state repression since we started our agitation demanding justice and legitimate rights of workers.

This morning, Imaan Khan, one of the members of the Provisional Working Committee, MSWU, was picked up by the Haryana police while a Press Conference was underway, from outside the union office of Sarva Karmachari Sangh in Civil Lines, Gurgaon near Puspanjali Hospital.

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