Tripura violence: SC agrees to hear plea by journalist, others booked under UAPA

The petitioners claimed the petition was filed under Article 32 in relation to what they alleged as "targeted political violence against the Muslim minorities"

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to take up a plea against the Tripura Police's decision to invoke the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against several lawyers, activists and journalists.

A bench presided over by Chief Justice N V Ramana initially asked advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing the petitioners, to move the High Court concerned in the matter, but subsequently to agree to list the matter.

Bhushan mentioned the matter before the bench also comprising justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli.

Read | Tripura riots and the misuse of UAPA

He said the petitioners, including Shyam Meera Singh, challenged the constitutional validity of certain widely misused provisions of UAPA and the wide definition of 'unlawful activities'.

The petitioners claimed the petition was filed under Article 32 of the Constitution in relation to what they alleged as "targeted political violence against the Muslim minorities" in Tripura during the second half of the month of October, 2021.

They also questioned the subsequent efforts by the State of Tripura to "monopolise the flow of information and facts emanating from the affected areas by invoking provisions of the UAPA against members of civil society including advocates and journalists who have made the effort to bring facts in relation to the targeted violence in the public domain".

Following the Tripura Police's action against a journalist and other activists for offences punishable under the UAPA, the plea was moved by Mukesh, Ansarul Haq Ansari, and Singh in the top court to quash the FIR lodged against them on November 3 at West Tripura police station and subsequent notices issued against them to join investigation.

Also Read | Tripura violence: Journalists among 102 booked under UAPA for 'distorted and objectionable' posts

The petitioners claimed a report titled as “Humanity Under Attack in Tripura #Muslim Lives Matter”, published on November 2, by Lawyers for Democracy, has brought on record evidences into the "orchestrated and targeted violence perpetrated by political right wing forces on the minority Muslim community in Tripura in October, purportedly as a counterblast to violence perpetrated on minority Hindu community in Bangladesh, which continued until October 26".

The four member "fact-finding" team comprised of advocates Ehtesham Hashmi and Amit Srivastav, Ansar Indori (National Secretary, NCHRO), and Mukesh, member, PUCL Delhi.

"If the State is allowed to criminalise the very act of fact finding and reporting and that too under the stringent provisions of the UAPA in which anticipatory bail is barred and the idea of bail is a remote possibility then the only facts that will come in the public domain are those that are convenient to the State due to the ‘chilling effect’ on the freedom of speech and expression of members of civil society," their plea said.

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