Tripura Police Send UAPA Notices To Lawyers Part Of Fact-Finding Team To Probe Anti-Muslim Violence

The Tripura Police on Wednesday sent notices under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act to two lawyers who were part of a fact-finding team that visited the state to investigate the anti-Muslim violence that broke out in October.

Adv Ansar Indori, secretary of the National Confederation of Human Rights (NCHRO) and Adv Mukesh, who works for the People’s Union For Civil Liberties (PUCL), have been charged with Section 13 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), The Leaflet reported.

Both lawyers have also been charged under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 120 (B), 153 (A), 153 (B), 469, 471, 503, 504, among others, which include charges of criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between groups, forgery and provoking breach of peace.

The fact-finding report released on Tuesday said that at least 12 mosques, nine shops, three houses of Muslims were targeted during the violence.

The fact-finding team also included Supreme Court lawyer Ehtesham Hashmi, Advocate Amit Srivastav from Lawyers for Democracy, Advocate Ansar Indori of the NCHRO and Advocate Mukesh, who on behalf of People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) released their findings on Tuesday, 2 November, at Delhi’s Press Club.

The notice of the case filed by the West Agartala police states that the charges levelled are “against the social media posts circulated by you/ statements made by you for promoting enmity between religious groups as well as provoking the people of different religious communities to cause beach of peace”.

Journalist Samriddhi Sakunia, who has been reporting the violence in the state, tweeted earlier today that the “Tripura Police is really trying hard to nab down people who are talking about the Tripura violence”, and stated how the police were checking her claims on social media instead of going after the perpetrators of the violence.

The All India Lawyers Association for Justice (AILAJ) released a statement condemning the cases registered against the lawyers, saying that the notices betray “the communal nature of the Tripura police and attempt to suppress the reality of these communal incidents.”