IT News
Imphal, Oct 3,
Popular Front of India Chairman E. Abubackar has in a statement expressed disappointment over the Supreme Court judgment that allowed Pune Police to continue their fishy investigation against prominent activists Gautam Navalakha, Sudha Bharadwaj, Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves linking them with Bhima Koregaon violence under the draconian provisions of UAPA.
The majority judgment of the Supreme Court seems to have taken the narrative of Pune Police at face value despite the existence of ample evidence against it and dismissed genuine concerns raised in the Public Interest Litigation filed by Romila Thapar, Devika Jain, Satish Deshpande, Prabhat Patnaik and Maja Daruwalla. It is quite unfortunate that SC failed to see the systematic attempts being made in the country to quell democratic dissent by those in power by using police and right wing goons . Pune Police had used unconstitutional ways including fabricating evidence and character assassination and manipulation of media against the activists. Yet, strangely, the court rejected the request to move the investigation to an SIT. It is tantamount to giving impunity to Pune Police.
E Abubacker also questioned the use of UAPA in the case. Laws like UAPA are a blemish in a democratic society. Since its provisions strip the accused of their fundamental rights and gives excess power to police, it is widely misused in the country to suppress dissent. Studies show that majority of the UAPA cases end in acquittals.
