SYED KHALIQUE AHMED
NEW DELHI, SEP 2
With the central government using federal agencies as a weapon to silence the political dissenters, the Welfare Party of India has demanded the repeal of all the draconian laws like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Sedition, National Security Act (NSA), Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA), Gujarat Control of Organised Crime Act (GUJCOCA), scrapping of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) that has taken over the jurisdiction of the states about law and order, and a ‘white paper on the number of political prisoners lodged across the country since 2014.
WPI national president Dr. Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas, while addressing media persons at the Press Club of India on Thursday, said that the party had submitted these demands to President of India Droupadi Murmu with lakhs of signatures. The party launched a signature campaign on these issues on August 19, 20, and 21. Other party leaders who attended the press briefing were WPI vice-president Ravi Shankar Tripathi, national general secretary(organization) Subramani Arumugam, national general secretary Sheema Mohsin, national secretaries Razak Paleri and Siraj Talib.
Charges against political prisoners are fake and fabricated
Stating that those who opposed the government policies and actions violating human rights and fundamental rights guaranteed in the Constitution of India were ‘political prisoners’, the party demanded unconditional release of all the political prisoners arrested on “fake and fabricated” charges. He, however, said that he did not have the number of political prisoners who are jailed but said that their number was huge and that is why his party demanded the government to come out with a ‘white paper’ on political prisoners’ number and share it with the people. He named Gautam Navalakha, Delhi University professor G N Saibaba and former JNU researcher Umar Khalid among the political prisoners who had been booked under draconian laws because of their views against the government’s policies and actions on various matters like Citizenship Amendment Act-2019, etc.
Compensate the acquitted political prisoners
Demanding compensation for the political prisoners acquitted “based on the number of days incarcerated for no fault of theirs”, WPI leaders urged the President of India “to make the police department accountable and punish the erring police officers for levelling false and fabricated charges against the political dissenters.”
UAPA slapped to prolong the incarceration
Pointing out that among the political prisoners included human rights activists, academicians, intellectuals, student leaders, and journalists who questioned the government. Dr. Ilyas said that they were charged under the provisions of UAPA and other draconian laws to ensure that they remained in jail for a prolonged period because getting bail in UAPA and other cases was a very difficult and time-consuming process. “Since charges against political prisoners can’t stand judicial scrutiny, the police slap UAPA against them. One has to prove one’s innocence even for bail under UAPA. So, the jail has become a rule and not an exception. Earlier, bail was a rule, and jail an exception,” Dr. Ilyas commented.
Elaborating on his argument, he said that Prof Saibaba has been in jail for the last five years. “He is handicapped, he can’t walk. He is also not getting proper medical facilities. Yet, he is not getting bail because UAPA was slapped against him,” he said.
UAPA takes away fundamental rights
Calling UAPA, Sedition, NSA, AFSPA, MCOCA, and GUJCOCA “black laws”, WPI leaders said that these laws took away fundamental rights allowing the state to imprison the accused for a prolonged period and hence, they should be withdrawn lock, stock, and barrel. Regarding NIA, the party leaders believe that it should also be dissolved because it had encroached upon the jurisdiction of the law and order of states, thus weakening the country’s federal structure.
Dr. Ilyas said that it was wrong on the part of the government to say that there were no political prisoners in the country. “We demand that the human rights of citizens be protected. It is not the issue of a particular community. It is a national issue”, he said. “The number of political prisoners has increased since 2014. And they are those who protested against CAA, farm laws and against undemocratic actions of the government,” he said.
“We are against violation of human rights, irrespective of the party whose governments brought draconian laws. It was (PC) Chidambaram of the Congress who, in 2008, replaced POTA with UAPA, a more draconian law,” the WPI president added.
Prisoners being given inhuman treatment: Prisoners’ families to Peoples’ Tribunal
The party organized a People’s Tribunal on August 31, to re-examine the evidence and arguments in connection with the incarceration of political prisoners. The jury in the tribunal comprised Justice(retd) SS Parkar, Senior Advocate in Supreme Court Prashant Bhushan, Bombay High Court advocate Gayatri Singh, a former Planning Commission member Dr. Syeda Hameed, human rights activist and filmmaker Tapan Das and former chairman of Delhi Minorities Commission Dr. Zafarul Islam Khan.
The families of political prisoners who presented their cases before the jury were Umar Khalid, Safoora Zargar, Khalid Saifi, Athar Khan, Javed Mohammad, Prof. G N Saibaba, Prof. Hany Babu, and Shaheer. The families narrated their tale of woe before the jury. They complained that their loved ones were innocent and implicated on fake charges. They complained of inhuman treatment by jail authorities, absence of medical aid and basic amenities to them in jail
The party also presented to the jury the case history of Natasha Narwal, Gulfishan, Gautam Navlakha, and Siddique Kappan.
A single charge sheet will prolong the trial
After going through the cases and hearing the prisoners’ families, the jury panel observed that a single charge sheet prepared for several people will prolong the trial procedure and by making it a larger conspiracy case will extend the period of incarceration. It will make the bail more difficult.
Police forcing prisoners to become informers: Peoples’ Tribunal
In a serious allegation, the panel observed that “the police are using brutal force to convert those arrested to become police informers and hostile witnesses and forcing them to implicate innocent people. This malicious practice must be put to an end.”
The panel suggested that the erring policemen be punished for implicating innocent people on fake and fake and fabricated charges.
(Syed Khalique Ahmed is the Chief Editor of indiatomorrow.net)
