India: FIR against Lawyers’ Collective a ‘witch-hunt’ against outspoken human rights defenders

June 21, 2019

In a statement, Ravi Kiran Jain* and Dr V Suresh** of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) have said the CBI’s FIR against the Lawyers’ Collective and senior advocate Anand Grover is an undisguised attempt to silence not just the top human rights organization but is also meant to “serve as a lesson to all others who dare to challenge the Central Government.”
Calling the FIR “motivated, vengeful and vituperative act”, PUCL said the Lawyers’ Collective, which has for 38 years of its existence has taken up cases related with domestic violence, human rights, labour and womens’ rights, adding, among the important ones are the “Naz case on rights of the LGBTQ community, the Novartis case, the Sabarimala case, the triple talaaq case and the Sohrabuddin case, in which current Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah was involved.”
Demanding immediate withdrawal of the FIR, PUCL said, “The case lodged against the organization smacks of vendetta for its exceptional work on securing rights for the marginalized. It is ill-conceived, vindictive, politically motivated and designed to have a chilling effect on all those who raise a voice of dissent.”

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https://www.counterview.net/2019/06/fir-against-lawyers-collective-witch.html

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/cbi-files-fir-against-anand-grover-his-ngo-lawyers-collective/articleshow/69849563.cms

FIR against Lawyers Collective: NHRC asks CBI to provide status report of their investigation

https://scroll.in/article/927800/the-daily-fix-cbi-action-against-lawyers-collective-smacks-of-vendetta-it-must-prove-why-it-isnt

https://www.firstpost.com/india/cbi-books-indira-jaisings-ngo-lawyers-collective-founder-anand-grover-for-foreign-funds-irregularities-6842841.html

https://www.devdiscourse.com/article/national/569455-nhrc-seeks-status-report-of-cbi-probe-into-case-against-lawyers-collective

https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/cbi-registers-case-against-lawyers-collective-for-alleged-fcra-violations-145751

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/fir-against-lawyers-collective-draws-flak/article28090572.ece

https://scroll.in/latest/927721/full-text-lgbtiq-citizens-and-groups-urge-centre-to-stop-harassing-ngo-lawyers-collective

PUCL Statement Condemning registration of FIR against Lawyers Collective

https://thewire.in/rights/bhima-koregaon-activsts-arrests-bail

https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/india/activists-protest-against-state-repression-call-for-releaseof-bhima-koregaon-accused

https://scroll.in/article/925929/bhima-koregaon-what-has-happened-to-the-five-activists-who-were-arrested-a-year-ago

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/bhima-koregaon-a-year-on-all-five-activists-still-in-jail/article27585340.ece

Standing up for those who stood with us: Support for Lawyers Collective

NGOs come out in support of India’s Lawyers Collective

http://www.omct.org/human-rights-defenders/urgent-interventions/india/2019/06/d25401/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawyers_Collective

Arun Ferreira, Surendra Gadling, Sudha Bharadwaj are all criminal lawyers defending human rights & political prisoners. This is precisely why they are arrested under
draconian #UAPA
Lawyering is no crime @PuneCityPolice @CMOMaharashtra
RELEASE THEM NOW.#1YearBhimaKoregaonArrest

— Meera Sanghamitra (@meeracomposes) June 6, 2019

United Nations Human Rights Council termed implication under terrorism charges as government of India's pretext to silence human rights defenders. https://t.co/XgiZdMlz5Q
But all 9 arrested activists and lawyers continue to remain in prison#1YearBhimaKoregaonArrest

— MumbaiRisesToSaveDemocracy (@MumbaiRises) June 6, 2019

All arrested under forged case and no development in case from last one year. This oppression of Human Rights lawyers and activists is not acceptable. Free them all.#DissentNoCrime
#1YearBhimaKoregaonArrest@CMOMaharashtra@PuneCityPolice pic.twitter.com/4hT4QVfjqt

— Anand Wakde (@anandwakde) June 6, 2019

Tagged: India