Police round up activists as lockdown to control outbreak makes protests difficult.
Financial Times: Stephanie Findlay and Jyotsna Singh in New Delhi, 4 May, 2020.
Indian police are arresting high-profile Muslim activists and ordinary civilians under the cover of the coronavirus pandemic in a crackdown that follows anti-government protests and communal riots this year.
Over the past five weeks since India imposed a lockdown to curb the spread of the disease, New Delhi police have been “indiscriminately” arresting people, lawyers and activists said.
The controls on movement were limiting detainees’ access to legal assistance.
Criminal lawyer Nitika Khaitan said at least 50 people had been questioned, detained or arrested in connection with the riots in February, which killed more than 50 people.
“We have been receiving daily calls from people for help,” said Ms Khaitan, who is part of a collective of lawyers offering assistance to those affected by the violence.
“We fear that arrests happening now are not on strong grounds.”
Religious tensions in India have been building for months since the Bharatiya Janata party-led government of Narendra Modi introduced a citizen a citizenship law that critics argue discriminates against Muslims.
https://www.ft.com/content/34ad9282-74d7-4a85-a629-a9655339c366
Financial Times: Stephanie Findlay and Jyotsna Singh in New Delhi, 4 May, 2020.
Indian police are arresting high-profile Muslim activists and ordinary civilians under the cover of the coronavirus pandemic in a crackdown that follows anti-government protests and communal riots this year.
Over the past five weeks since India imposed a lockdown to curb the spread of the disease, New Delhi police have been “indiscriminately” arresting people, lawyers and activists said.
The controls on movement were limiting detainees’ access to legal assistance.
Criminal lawyer Nitika Khaitan said at least 50 people had been questioned, detained or arrested in connection with the riots in February, which killed more than 50 people.
“We have been receiving daily calls from people for help,” said Ms Khaitan, who is part of a collective of lawyers offering assistance to those affected by the violence.
“We fear that arrests happening now are not on strong grounds.”
Religious tensions in India have been building for months since the Bharatiya Janata party-led government of Narendra Modi introduced a citizen a citizenship law that critics argue discriminates against Muslims.
https://www.ft.com/content/34ad9282-74d7-4a85-a629-a9655339c366
