Pics: Prajwal Ukkuda
Daijiworld Media Network—Mangalore (RS/CN)
Mangalore, May 15: The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) called for the unconditional release of human rights activist Dr Binayaka Sen by protesting in front of the deputy commissioner’s (DC) office here on Thursday May 14.
The protesters urged that Dr Sen, who has been in Raipur jail for two years, be released immediately as the Chattisgarh government had failed to prove the charges against him.
P B D’Sa, district president of PUCL, said, “Dr Sen’s remand is a conspiracy by the government and it is a clear act of destroying the power of activism and compressing the pro-people’s voice.”
“Of the 83 prosecution witnesses, 16 were dropped and six declared hostile while another 61 have been deposed without corroborating any of the accusations against him. Dr Sen is in jail and his health is critical as he has been denied medical treatment”, he said.
Pattabhirama Somayaji said, “The only accusations against Dr Sen are the comments on ‘Salwa Judum’, which is a private team against the activists powered by the state government of Chattisgarh led by the BJP. The arrest and remand of Dr Sen over the past two years is a violation of human rights. The state government of Chattisgarh wants to keep the human rights activist in jail, hence he has not been released despite demands from all over the world.
PUCL leaders Suresh Bhat, Melvin Pinto, and Kabir Ullal were present.