Former Civil Servants Call to restore constitutional norms​ in Uttar Pradesh

OPEN LETTER ON COMPLETE BREAKDOWN OF GOVERNANCE AND BLATANT VIOLATION OF THE RULE OF LAW IN UTTAR PRADESH

A large number of former civil servants have expressed deep anguish over happenings in Uttar Pradesh and demanded restoration of constitutional norms. They have written an open letter to draw attention of the central and UP governments ON COMPLETE BREAKDOWN OF GOVERNANCE AND BLATANT VIOLATION OF THE RULE OF LAW IN UTTAR PRADESH.

These officers have served in senior positions in central and state governments. They have no political affiliations .
A large number of eminent citizens including retired judges , professors and others have endorsed the letter.
Media Swaraj is publishing the full text of the letter in the interest of democracy, rule of law , justice and fair play .

They have raised following issues in the letter :

1. Detentions, criminal charges, and recoveries to suppress dissent.

2. Encounter injuries and killings as official hate targeting.

3. Institutionalization and legitimization of vigilantism with the phenomenon of ‘police mitr’ etc.

4. The law on what is termed as ‘love jihad’, and biased investigations and arrests.

5. Misuse of NSA in the name of cow slaughter and against dissenters​.

6. Handling of the Covid crisis​.

OPEN LETTER ON COMPLETE BREAKDOWN OF GOVERNANCE AND BLATANT VIOLATION OF THE RULE OF LAW IN UTTAR PRADESH

We are a group of former civil servants of the All India and Central Services who have worked for decades with the Central and State Governments. As a group, we have no affiliation with any political party but are committed to the Constitution of India.

मुख्यमंत्री योगी आदित्यनाथ
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister , Yogi Adityanath

​We write today to convey to the Government of India and the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP), as also to the people of India, our deep anguish at what we see happening in UP.  We note with mounting alarm that the present ruling regime in UP has ushered in a model of governance which swerves further and further away from the values of the Constitution and the rule of law with each passing day. It seems clear that all branches of the administration, including the executive magistrates and the police, have collapsed.  We fear that, unless checked now, the damage to the polity and institutions in the state will result in the decay and destruction of democracy itself. 

​We write today to convey to the Government of India and the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP), as also to the people of India, our deep anguish at what we see happening in UP.  We note with mounting alarm that the present ruling regime in UP has ushered in a model of governance which swerves further and further away from the values of the Constitution and the rule of law with each passing day. It seems clear that all branches of the administration, including the executive magistrates and the police, have collapsed.  We fear that, unless checked now, the damage to the polity and institutions in the state will result in the decay and destruction of democracy itself. 

1. Detentions, criminal charges, and recoveries to suppress dissent have become common instruments to be employed against all those who exercise their right of democratic protest. Even as peaceful protests broke out countrywide against CAA, NRC and NPR, the UP government stood out by responding almost immediately with an armoury of  repression, including a) police attacks on peacefully protesting students in Aligarh Muslim University, including using stun grenades, normally deployed against terrorists, and tear gas shells; b) filing 10,900 FIRs against protestors; c) resort to police firing killing 22 people; d) arrest of 705people on charges of rioting, property destruction and attempt to murder; e) investigating 13000 social media posts and filing 63 FIRs with arrests of 103 netizens; f) detention and torture of 41 minors;  g) serving over 500 notices for alleged damage to property, and notices served for recovery to 57 persons; h) erecting hoardings in Lucknow displaying photographs of activists and civil society members accused of instigating violence and damaging public property (The Allahabad High Court declared this to be undemocratic and admonished the state government); i) passage of the Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Ordinance, 2020  which empowers the state to set up a claims tribunal to recover compensation from citizens, not requiring the presence of the accused before passing final orders. (The Allahabad High Court observed the “ordinance is arbitrary”, designed only to frustrate the law and stayed orders in several cases of recovery. However, the UP legislature approved the conversion of the Ordinance into an Act without removing the flaw of arbitrariness.) 

​One particularly egregious example is the arrest of Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan, on his way to the UP town of Hathras to report on the brutal gang-rape of a 19-year-old Dalit girl and the complicity of the administration in the hurried overnight cremation of her body that had caused national outrage. Kappan has so far spent more than 200 days in prison. More recently, these repressive measures have taken the form of punitive actions against those highlighting lethal shortcomings in UP’s healthcare system.

​One particularly egregious example is the arrest of Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan, on his way to the UP town of Hathras to report on the brutal gang-rape of a 19-year-old Dalit girl and the complicity of the administration in the hurried overnight cremation of her body that had caused national outrage. Kappan has so far spent more than 200 days in prison. More recently, these repressive measures have taken the form of punitive actions against those highlighting lethal shortcomings in UP’s healthcare system.

2. Encounter injuries and killings as official hate targeting

 ​From 2017 to 2020, 124 alleged criminals were shot dead in 6,476 “encounters”, according to data compiled and released by the UP police to the media. The word “encounters” has been used to also include the infliction of serious injuries caused, for example, by shooting a person in both knees and leaving him disabled for life. This means a police “encounter” every five hours every day during the first three years of CM Adityanath’s tenure. In a January 2019 letter to district magistrates, the Chief Secretary listed these “encounters” including  extra-judicial killings to be among the prominent “achievements” of the Adityanath administration. The “encounter” campaign led by Adityanath crosses new lines, because data shows that most of those killed in these encounters are either petty criminals or innocents,against whom no charge has been proven. They are alsopredominantly Muslims, Dalits and other backward castes. . The fact that a significantly disproportionate percentage of those killed till August 2020 were Muslims carries its own message. 

3. Institutionalization and legitimization of vigilantism with the phenomenon of ‘police mitr’ etc. 

​UP has seen a systematic blurring of the lines between actions of the state, particularly its police force, and that of vigilante groups such as the Hindu Yuva Vahini and other ‘cow vigilante’ groups that have enjoyed immunity for their violent actions. Members of these groups are appointed as “police mitr” or friends of the police, endowing them with authority and legitimacy, and enabling the police to work openly with vigilante groups. Recent administrative orders further institutionalise vigilantism under the garb of community policing through the ‘Prantiya Rakshak Dal’ and the ‘S10’. 

4. The law on what is termed as ‘love jihad’, and biased investigations and arrests

​On 24 November 2020, the Uttar Pradesh cabinet passed an ordinance “Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance”. On 25 February 2021, this was passed in the legislature by a voice vote.  The SIT set up by the state government to look into the cases of “love jihad” could find “no evidence of foreign funding or organised conspiracy”. On another occasion, the Union home ministry in February told Parliament that “love jihad” was not defined under the current laws of the country. The bogey of “love jihad”, thus  has no empirical, legal or official standing. 

Euphemistically against ‘forceful conversion’, the law prohibits conversion from one religion to another by what it calls the use of misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement, fraud or marriage. These are defined ambiguously leaving ample space for the police and administration to misuse the law against minorities; for the police to file arbitrary cases; and for vigilante groups to threaten families, assault minorities, organise mobs and create conditions for minority exodus. 

This law has been used by the state to frame innocent Muslim men who have friendly or romantic relations, or enter into marriage, with Hindu women. In just a month after the Ordinance, 86 people were booked in 16 cases alleging conversion for love or marriage among Hindu women and Muslim men. 54 people were arrested, including friends and family members of the main accused. The key accused in all the cases are Muslim men. 

Since coming to power, the bias of the present government of UP against Muslims has been open and uninhibited. The recent instance of the destruction of a building allegedly housing a mosque in Barabanki, in contravention of a high court stay order, is a flagrant display of disregard for law and procedures. Further, keeping in mind the forthcoming elections, we apprehend that such actions by the UP government, if not controlled, may cause communal polarisation and disturbances. 

5. Misuse of NSA in the name of cow slaughter and against dissenters​.

The National Security Act, 1980 (NSA) is a draconian preventive detention law under which the government can pre-emptively detain, up to one year, anyone it thinks is a threat to the security of the country or state, public order or maintenance of supplies and services essential to the community. 

​However, officials under the UP government have been using the law openly against mainly Muslims, Dalits and dissenters, for alleged offences that cannot be seen as a threat to national security. As per reports, of the 139 people booked under the law the year 2020, 76 are for alleged cow slaughter, 13 for anti-CAA protests and 37 for alleged heinous crimes. In 2017, the Director General of Police directed SPs and SSPs of all districts to book people accused of cow slaughter or transportation of cows for slaughter under NSA and the Gangster Act. In April 2020,the government said that whoever attacks police personnel during the COVID-19 lockdown will be booked under NSA. These blanket orders to apply NSA defeat the purpose of letting District Magistrates, who understand the ground situation, to judiciously apply their judgment to each case. 

6. Handling of the Covid crisis

The hubris customary with the UP government, is also in full display in its handling of the Covid crisis. The Allahabad High Court scathingly observed that medical services in UP are running at god’s mercy. (Ram Bharose). The doctors trying to meet the Chief Minister to explain the ground situation and to present a set of demands were instead detained. A news article on health services in rural UP was titled, ‘People are Dropping Dead like Flies in Uttar Pradesh Villages’. As a case in point,Dhanoli village in Gorakhpur District did not have a single house without a Covid patient. Many of the PHCs in villages are shut or do not have any medical personnel. The people are left to fend for themselves. There are no testing centres available. Reports of patients dying due to non-availability of oxygen have been frequent in UP.  

The Chief Minister however claimed that not only was there no such shortage, but those alleging this on public forums would be arrested for spreading false information, and their properties seized. The police proceeded to frame chargesagainst hospitals which claimed oxygen shortage.

People faced massive difficulties in getting tested for Covid. Reports emerged that ‘unofficial’ orders had been issued to private labs to stop testing. 

Corona dead bodies in ganga river
Covid dead bodies on the bank of the Ganges in Prayagraj

The most damning illustration of the government’s failure to provide healthcare to Covid patients was the gruesome spectacle of several thousand dead bodies floating in the Ganga river and buried in shallow graves in the sands along its banks. The world bore witness to the catastrophe that the people of UP had to endure owing to the failure of the government to act in time. Reports from crematoria show that across districts, deaths are being massively undercounted in Uttar Pradesh.

The most damning illustration of the government’s failure to provide healthcare to Covid patients was the gruesome spectacle of several thousand dead bodies floating in the Ganga river and buried in shallow graves in the sands along its banks. The world bore witness to the catastrophe that the people of UP had to endure owing to the failure of the government to act in time. Reports from crematoria show that across districts, deaths are being massively undercounted in Uttar Pradesh.

A call to restore constitutional norms

We demand that:

● Arbitrary detentions and torture of and police attacks on peacefully protesting students, minorities, dissenters and others be stopped forthwith and recoveries for alleged damage to property under an “arbitrary” law be discontinued. 

● There have been more than 6000 “encounters” including both serious injuries and extra-judicial killings, which are eulogized as achievements by top bureaucrats, their main targets being Muslims, Dalits and other backward castes. This illegal and unconstitutional practice must stop.

● The institutionalization and legitimization of vigilantism by appointing “police mitras” and giving immunity to cow protectors for the violence they inflict dissolve the distinction between the State and private armies.

These policies must end.

● Targeting Muslim men for alleged “forced conversion” of Hindu women with whom they have a friendly or romantic relationship continues apace under a vaguely worded law that allows the police and administration to misuse it. This idea of “love jihad” – without legal empirical or official basis – must be jettisoned.

● The draconian preventive detention law, the National Security Act (NSA), has been mainly used against Muslims, Dalits and dissenters for alleged offences like cow slaughter, protests against the CAA and attacks on the police, that cannot be seen as a threat to national security.This misuse of law must stop and normal penal provisions invoked, if at all justified.

● Finally, the Covid crisis has been wholly mismanaged and thousands have lost their lives for want of health facilities like trained staff, hospitals, ICUs, oxygen and medicines. But the administration has denied any crisis and has slapped charges against those who write objectively or complain of the situation on the ground.  The crisis needs urgent handling and the practice of harassing or penalizing media or persons who report on inadequacies in the health system or voice their grievances in that regard cannot be allowed to continue. The invidious tendency to “shoot the messenger” must stop.

Satyameva Jayate

Names of CCG members who are signatories

 Name ServiceLast post/designation before retirement
1.  Salahuddin AhmadIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan
2.  S.P. Ambrose IAS (Retd.)Former Additional Secretary, Ministry of Shipping & Transport, GoI
3.  Anand ArniRAS (Retd.)Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI
4.  G.BalachandranIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
5.  Vappala Balachandran IPS (Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI
6.  Gopalan Balagopal IAS (Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
7.  Chandrashekhar Balakrishnan IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Coal, GoI
8.  T.K. BanerjiIAS (Retd.)Former Member, Union Public Service Commission
9.  Sharad BeharIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh
10.  Aurobindo BeheraIAS (Retd.)Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Odisha
11.  Madhu BhaduriIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Portugal
12.  K.V. BhagirathIFS (Retd.)Former Secretary General, Indian Ocean Rim Association, Mauritius
13.  Ravi BudhirajaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, GoI
14.  Sundar Burra IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra
15.  Kalyani Chaudhuri IAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
16.  Gurjit Singh CheemaIAS (Retd.)Former Financial Commissioner (Revenue), Govt. of Punjab
17.  F.T.R. ColasoIPS (Retd.)Former Director General of Police, Govt. of  Karnataka & former Director General of Police, Govt. of Jammu & Kashmir
18.  P.R. DasguptaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Food Corporation of India, GoI
19.  Nitin Desai Former Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance, GoI
20.  M.G. DevasahayamIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Govt. of Haryana
21.  Sushil DubeyIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Sweden
22.  A.S.DulatIPS (Retd.)Former OSD on Kashmir, Prime Minister’s Office, GoI
23.  K.P. Fabian IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Italy
24.  Prabhu GhateIAS (Retd.)Former Addl. Director General, Department of Tourism, GoI
25.  Arif GhauriIRS (Retd.)Former Governance Adviser, DFID, Govt. of the United Kingdom (on deputation)
26.  Gourisankar GhoshIAS (Retd.)Former Mission Director, National Drinking Water Mission, GoI
27.  Suresh K. GoelIFS (Retd.)Former Director General, Indian Council of Cultural Relations, GoI
28.  H.S. GujralIFoS (Retd.)Former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Govt. of Punjab
29.  Meena GuptaIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests, GoI
30.  Wajahat HabibullahIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary,GoI, and former Chief Information Commissioner
31.  Kamal JaswalIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Department of Information Technology, GoI
32.  Najeeb JungIAS (Retd.)Former Lieutenant Governor, Delhi
33.  Brijesh KumarIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Department of Information Technology, GoI
34.  Ish KumarIPS (Retd.)Former DGP (Vigilance & Enforcement), Govt. of Telangana and former Special Rapporteur, National Human Rights Commission
35.  P.K. LahiriIAS (Retd.)Former ED, Asian Development Bank & Former Revenue Secretary, GoI
36.  Subodh LalIPoS (Resigned)Former Deputy Director General, Ministry of Communications, GoI
37.  B.B. MahajanIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Deptt. of Food, GoI
38.  P.M.S. Malik IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Myanmar & Special Secretary, MEA, GoI
39.  Harsh Mander IAS (Retd.)Govt. of Madhya Pradesh
40.  Lalit MathurIAS (Retd.)Former Director-General, National Institute of Rural Development, GoI
41.  L.L.MehrotraIFS (Retd.)Former Special Envoy to the Prime Minister and former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, GoI
42.  Aditi MehtaIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan
43.  Shivshankar MenonIFS (Retd.)Former Foreign Secretary and Former National Security Adviser
44.  Malay MishraIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Hungary
45.  Noor MohammadIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, National Disaster Management Authority, Govt. of India
46.  Avinash MohananeyIPS (Retd.)Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Sikkim
47.  Deb Mukharji IFS (Retd.)Former High Commissioner to Bangladesh and former Ambassador to Nepal
48.  Shiv Shankar MukherjeeIFS (Retd.)Former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
49.  Gautam MukhopadhayaIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Myanmar
50.  Pranab S. MukhopadhyayIAS (Retd.)Former Director, Institute of Port Management, GoI
51.  Nagalsamy IA&AS (Retd.)Former Principal Accountant General, Tamil Nadu & Kerala
52.  Sobha Nambisan IAS (Retd.)Former Principal Secretary (Planning), Govt. of Karnataka
53.  P.A. Nazareth IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Egypt and Mexico
54.  P. Joy OommenIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Chhattisgarh
55.  Amitabha Pande IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Inter-State Council, GoI
56.  Niranjan PantIA&AS (Retd.)Former Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General, GoI
57.  P. R. Parthasarathy IPS (Retd.)Former Director, Anti-Corruption Bureau, Govt. of Maharashtra
58.  Alok Perti IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Coal, GoI
59.  R. PoornalingamIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, GoI
60.  Jayant PrasadIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Nepal
61.  Rajesh PrasadIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to the Netherlands
62.  T.R. Raghunandan IAS (Retd.)Former Joint Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, GoI
63.  N.K. Raghupathy IAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Staff Selection Commission, GoI
64.  V.P. RajaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission
65.  M.Y. Rao IAS (Retd.) 
66.  Vijaya Latha ReddyIFS (Retd.)Former Deputy National Security Adviser, GoI
67.  Julio Ribeiro IPS (Retd.)Former Adviser to Governor of Punjab & former Ambassador to Romania
68.  Aruna Roy IAS (Resigned) 
69.  A.K. SamantaIPS (Retd.)Former Director General of Police (Intelligence), Govt. of West Bengal
70.  Deepak SananIAS (Retd.)Former Principal Adviser (AR) to Chief Minister, Govt. of Himachal Pradesh
71.  Shyam SaranIFS (Retd.)Former Foreign Secretary and Former Chairman, National Security Advisory Board
72.  N.C. Saxena IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Planning Commission, GoI
73.  Ardhendu SenIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
74.  Abhijit SenguptaIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GoI
75.  Aftab Seth IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Japan
76.  Ashok Kumar SharmaIFoS (Retd.)Former MD, State Forest Development Corporation, Govt. of Gujarat
77.  Ashok Kumar SharmaIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Finland and Estonia
78.  Navrekha Sharma IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Indonesia
79.  Raju Sharma IAS (Retd.)Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh
80.  Tara Ajai SinghIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Karnataka
81.  Tirlochan SinghIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, National Commission for Minorities, GoI
82.  Jawhar SircarIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GoI, & former CEO, Prasar Bharati
83.  Parveen TalhaIRS (Retd.)Former Member, Union Public Service Commission
84.  Thanksy Thekkekera IAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Minorities Development, Govt. of Maharashtra
85.  P.S.S. ThomasIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary General, National Human Rights Commission
86.  Hindal TyabjiIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary rank, Govt. of Jammu & Kashmir
87.  Rudi WarjriIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Colombia, Ecuador and Costa Rica

The following persons have endorsed the letter written by the retired civil servants1. Justice A. P. Shah, former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court and former Chairman, Law Commission2. Admiral L. Ramdas, PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM, ADC, former Chief of Naval Staff3. Captain S.Prabhala, IN (Retd.), VSM4. A. Mangai,Academician and Theatre Artist,Marappachi5. A.R.Vasavi,Professor,Independent Researcher6. Aakar Patel,Columnist,Independent7. Abha,Executive director,One Billon Rising India coordinator8. Abhijit Guha,Former professor in anthropology at Vidyasagar University,Retired9. AC Michael ,Former Member of Delhi Minorities Commission,United Christian Forum (UCF)10. Achin Vanaik,Retd. Professor,University of Delhi11. Aditi Yajnik,Astt Coordinator- Organising ,SEWA12. Aditya Mukherjee,Professor (Retired),Jawaharlal Nehru University13. Aditya Vikram Rametra,Social worker,14. Adv. Philo Thomas,Director,Women’s Welfare Centre15. Ajaya Kumar Singh,Citizen,Bhubaneswar16. Alka Hingorani,Associate Professor,IIT Bombay17. Allwyn,Citizen,Jesuits18. Amarjeet Kaur,General Secretary AITUC,AITUC is national centre of trade unions19. Amit Bhabhri,Resigned as Professor Emeritus from JNU,20. Amitava Choudhury,Working Committee member,National Campaign for Peoples Right to Information21. Amrita Mondal,Assistant professor,University of North Bengal22. Ana Maria R. Nemenzo,National Coordinator,Woman Health Philippines23. Anand K Sahay,Columnist,Journalist24. Anand Kumar,President,Society for Communal Harmony25. Anil Sadgopal,Former Head & Dean of Faculty of Education in Delhi University,All India Forum for Right to Education26. Anita Cheria,Director,OpenSpace27. Apoorvanand,Professor,Delhi University28. Archana Prasad,Professor,Jawaharlal Nehru University29. Arun Khote,Editor of Justice News,PMARC30. Arun Mitra,ENT Surgeon (Senior Vice President) ,Indian Doctors for Peace and Development31. Aruna Burte ,Retired ,Individual32. Aruna Rodrigues,Private Citizen,33. Arundhati Dhuru,National Alliance of People’s Movements,Lucknow34. Arvind Kaul,IAS (Retd),35. Asha Dey,Housewife,36. Ashim Jain,Concerned individual,37. Ashish Ranjan,Secretary,Jan Jagran shakti sangathan38. Ashok Choudhary,General Secretary,All India Union of Forest Working People39. Ashok Kumar,Community Mobilizer,Satark Nagrik Sangathan40. Ashutosh Varshney,Sol Goldman Professor of International Studies and the Social Sciences ,Brown University41. Asmina Venkatesh,Concerned individual,42. Atul Deshmukh,National General Secretary,Rashtra Seva Dal43. Beena Choksi,Educator,Independent44. Bharat Dogra,Journalist and Honorary Convener of Save the Earth Now Campaign,Independent writer45. Braj Kishore Jha,Ecoactivist ,Society46. Brinda Adige,Social Worker,Indian Citizen47. Bubla Basu,Educationist,Freelance48. C R Bijoy,writer-researcher,independent49. Cedric Prakash,Human Rights and Peace Activist/Writer,Jesuits50. Chayanika Shah ,Retired College Lecturer,Forum Against Oppression of Women in Mumbai51. Chhotebhai Noronha,National Convenor,Indian Catholic Forum in Kanpur52. Chun,Housewife,53. Clifton D’ Rozario,National Convener,All India Lawyers Association for Justice54. D R  Chand,Retired,55. Deepa Balsavar,Writer and illustrator,56. Deepa Vasudevan,Managing Trustee,Sahayatrika57. Deeptha Umapathy,Social Researcher,58. Denzil Fernandes,President,Social Action Trust59. Devika Singh,Individual,Member of Alliance for the Right to ECD60. Dilip Simeon,Scholar and writer,Not applicable61. Dinesh Abrol,Professor ,TRCSS JNU62. Dinesh C. Mali,Advocate,Rajasthan Highcourt Principal seat63. Dipak Dholakia,Convener,Indian Community Activists Network – ICAN64. Dr Lubna Sarwath,State General Secretary of Telangana,Socialist Party (India)65. Dr. Mohan Rao,Retired professor,Former professor at JNU in New Delhi66. Dr. Sanjay Mangala Gopal,National Convener,National Alliance of Peoples’ Movements (NAPM)67. Dr. Sudhir Vombatkere68. Dr. Gabriele Dietrich,Professor retd,NAPM69. Edwin M John,Founder,VHAK70. Elsa Muttathu,Member,Indian Christian Women’s Movement71. Faisal Khan,National Convenor,Khudai Khidmatgar in Delhi and Farukkhabad72. Flavia Agnes,Founder Majlis Mumbai,Majlis73. G. N. Devy,National President,Rashtra Seva Dal74. Gabriele Dietrich,President of Pennurimai Iyakkam,NAPM75. Gauhar Raza,Former Chief Scientist,CSIR76. Gautam Chaudhury,Disability Development worker,77. Ghanshyam Shah,Retired Professor JNU in New Delhi,Free Lance social researcher78. Gulshan Dietl ,Professor (Retired),79. Hannan Mollah,General Secretary,All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS)80. Hasina Khan,Gender activist,Bebaak Collective81. Indu Prakash Singh,Facilitator,CityMakers  Mission International82. Irfan Engineer,Member,All India Secular Forum83. Ishwarbhai Prajapati,Retired from Physical Research Laboratory in Ahmedabad,New Socialist Initiative.84. J. Siqueira,Retired,IWTF85. Jagdeep Chhokar,Professor (Retired),Free lancer86. Jagdish Patel,Director,87. Jagriti Rahi,Gandhian Social Activist,Varanasi88. Jashodhara Dasgupta,Independent Researcher,89. Javed Anand,Convener,Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy90. Jaya Iyer,Artist teacher,Aalaya91. Jayapadma,Teacher,Rajghat Besant School92. Jayati Ghosh,Professor,University of Massachusetts at Amherst in USA93. John Dayal,Writer,AICU94. Joseph Chenakala,Social Activist,Reg. non profit organization95. Joseph Vijayan,Spokesperson,Coastal Watch96. K Babu Rao,President,Human Rights Forum of Hyderabad City97. K J Joy,Coordinator,Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India98. Kalyani Menon Sen,Independent researcher,Independent researcher99. Kapil Patil,MLC from Maharashtra,Managing Trustee of the RSD100. Kochurani Abraham,Doctor ,Indian Women Theologians Forum101. Koninika Ray,National Secretary,National Federation of Indian Women102. Krishna Das TN,Employee,103. Laji Paul,Pastor,Pentecostal104. Lakshmi Krishnamurty,Researcher in education and women’s empowerment – retired,Alarippu105. Lalita Ramdas,Educator,Lara-Ramu Farm106. Lata Singh,Associate Professor,Centre for Women’s Studies in JNU107. Leela Samson,Bharatnatyam dancer,108. Manju Kapur,Writer,109. Manoj Misra,Convener,Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan110. Maria James,Advocate,All India Lawyers Union111. Mathew,Counsellor,112. Mathew,Teacher,113. Maulshree Sinha,BI Consultant,114. Maya Krishna Rao,Theatre Artist,115. Md. Jahangeer,Teacher,Concern citizen of India116. Meera Dewan,Filmmaker,South View Productions117. Meera Sanghamitra,Social Activist ,National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM)118. Monisha Rao,President,India Friends Association119. Moti Lal Nepali,Chair,Dalit Welfare Association120. Mridula Mukherjee,Professor (Retired),Jawaharlal Nehru University121. Mritiunjoy Mohanty,Professor,IIM Calcutta122. Muniza Rafique Khan,Registrar,Gandhian Institute of Studies in Varanasi123. Muralidharan,General Secretary,National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled124. Nachiket Udupa,Member,Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan125. Nalini Nayak,Member,Protsahan126. Nandini Sundar,Professor of Sociology,Delhi University127. Nandita Narain,Associate Professor ,St.Stephen’s College at Delhi University128. Naresh Dadhich ,Emeritus Professor ,Former Director at IUCAA in PUNE129. Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry ,Theatre Director and teacher & Professor Emeritus from Panjab  University,130. Neera Chandhoke,Professor,Delhi University  retd131. Neeraj Jain,Convenor,Lokayat in Pune132. Niloufer Bhagwat,Vice President,Indian Association of Lawyers133. Nisha Biswas,Scientist,CSIR134. Nivedita Menon,Professor,JNU135. Noopur,Executive Director ,National Coalition for Education136. Om Prakash Singh,Senior Advisor,Centre for Financial Accountability137. P.L.Mimroth,Chief functionary,138. Pamela Philipose,Journalist,Independent139. Panchali Ray,Researcher,Independent Researcher140. Pandurang Hegde,Activist,Chipko-Appiko Movement141. Paul Divakar N,Chair,Asia Dalit Rights Forum142. Pavan Nair,Veteran,143. Peehu Pardeshi,Assistant Professor,TISS144. Prabhat Patnaik,Professor Emeritus,Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi145. Pradip Prabhu,Advocate,Kashtakari Sangatana & Campaign for Survival and Dignity146. Prakash Louis,Coordinator,Jesuit Migrant Service147. Pramod Yadava,Professor (superannuated),Jawaharlal Nehru University148. Preeti Sampat,Academic,India149. Prem Krishna Sharma,Advocate,P.U.C.L.150. Primila Lewis,Social activist ,None now but with the common people everywhere151. Prof Santosh Mehrotra ,Visiting Prof at University of Bath in UK,Former Prof Econ JNU & Director General at National Inst for Labour Econ Research152. Prof. K.L. Sharma,Former Professor of Sociology and Rector at JNU in New Delhi,Former Vice Chancellor of the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur153. Professor Ajay K. Mehra,Professor and former Atal Senior Fellow in NMML,Retired154. Puran Bartwal,Independent human rights worker,155. Purushothama Bilimale,Professor (retired),Former professor  JNU156. Pushkar Raj,Researcher ,PUCL157. Radha Holla,Independent researcher on child nutrition and conflict of interest,158. Rahul Basu,Concerned individual,159. Rahul Mukherji,Professor and Executive Director,South Asia Institute at Heidelberg University160. Rajendran Narayanan,Assistant Professor,Azim Premji University161. Rajni Bakshi,Author,PUCL162. Rakesh Gupta,Retired Professor at CPS in JNU,163. Ram Puniyani,Writer,Center for Study of Society and Secularism164. Ramani Atkuri,Public Health Professional,165. Ramesh Dixit,Retired professor,Lucknow University166. Ranin Chakraborty,Retired Reacher,Individual167. Ravi Srivastava,Former Professor at JNU,IHD168. Reni Jacob,Advocate,Madras HC169. Richa Audichya,Member,BBAVM170. Rohan D’ Souza,Professor ,ASAFAS at Kyoto University171. Rohini Hensman,Writer ,Independent scholar172. Romi Mahajan,CEO,KKM Group173. RP Kaushik,Former Professor at SIS in JNU,Former Ambassador174. S Balakrishna,Retired ,175. Sagari Ramdas,Veterinary Scientist,Food Sovereignty Alliance in India176. Salil Shetty,Senior Fellow,Harvard University177. Samar Bagchi ,Retired,NAPM178. Samuel Asir Raj,Professor,Manomaniam Sundaranar University at Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu179. Sandeep Pandey,Vice President,Socialist Party (India)180. Sandhya Gokhale,Activist member,Forum Against Oppression of Women181. Saumyajit Bhattacharya,Associate Professor,Kirori Mal College in University of Delhi182. Sebastian Joseph,Assistant Professor,UC College Aluva Kerala183. Selma,A retired teacher from West Bengal,Social Centre in Siliguri184. Shabnam Hashmi,Social Activist & Founder ,Anhad185. Shaikh Ghulam Rasool,Chairperson J&K RTI Movement,National Campaign for Peoples Right to Information186. Shakeel Ur Rahman,Doctor ,CHARM187. Shanti Picardo,Social worker,Forum of Religious for Peace and Justice188. Sharmila,Assoc Prof,IIT Bombay189. Shewli,Associate Professor,Tata Institute of Social Sciences190. Shiraz Bulsara Prabhu,Human Rights defender,PUCL & Kashtakari Sanghatana191. Shiv Visvanathan,Professor,Jindal Global Law School192. Shomie Das,Retd,193. Shruti Kabo,Lead Designer of Research & Strategy,194. Shwetha,Teacher,Indian195. Sr. Justine ,Advocate ,Congregations of St. Joseph196. Sri Mayasandra,Community Development Worker,Independent197. Sucheta Mahajan,Professor,Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi198. Sudhir Kumar,Architect,PUCL199. Sudip Bhattacharya,Free-lancer,200. Suhas Kolhekar,Health Rights and Social Activist,National Alliance of People’s Movements201. Suhasini Mulay,Actor,Individual202. Sujata Gothoskar,Member,Forum Against Oppression of Women203. Sujata Patel,Distinguished Professor ,Savitribai Phule Pune University204. Sukla Sen ,Peace Activist ,PUCL in Maharashtra205. Sukumar Muralidharan,Journalist ,Independent206. Sumit Sarkar,Retired Professor,University of Delhi207. Sunanda Sen,Retired  Professor  jnu,Retired Professor208. Swadesh Mitter Mahajan,Professor pf Physics,University of Texas at Austin209. Syed Ali Nadeem Rezavi ,Professor ,Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh210. Syeda Hameed,Writer & Activist,Muslim Womens Forum211. T. Vijayendra,Author,SAPACC212. Tanika Sarkar,Retired Professor,Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi213. Tara Murali,Architect,Individual214. Teena Gill,Filmmaker,Independent215. Teesta Setalvad,Secretary ,Citizens for Justice and Peace216. Tejaram Mali,Coordinator,SR Abhiyan217. Thalekkara Krishnan Arun,Editorial Contributor,Multiple publications218. Theramma,Social worker,219. Timir Basu,Editor of Frontier,Independent220. Tushar Gandhi,Author & Activist,Mahatma Gandhi Foundation221. Uma Chakravarti,Retired teacher,Independent historian222. Uma V Chandru,Member,WSS223. V. Gadgil,Civil society activists,224. V.Vasanthi Devi,Formerly Vice-Chancellor of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University in Tamil Nadu & Formerly Chairperson of the Tamil Nadu State Commision for Women,Movement to Save School Education in Tamil Nadu225. Vaishna Narng,Professor Retired,JNU retd226. Vandana Kulkarni,Social activist,227. Varghese Theckanath,Convenor,Campaign for Housing and Tenurial Rights (CHATRI)228. Vasudha Dalmia,Professor,University of California at Berkeley229. Vijaya Ramchandran,Jagriti Bal Vikas Samiti,Kanpur230. Vikram Soni,Emeritus Prof  ,Jamia Millia231. Vinay Jain,Graphic designer,232. Vinod Bhagat,Senior Advocate,233. Virginia Saldanha,Coordinator of Indian Christian Women’s Movement Mumbai.,Indian Christian Women’s Movement234. Walter Fernandes,Director ,NESRC235. Wilfred Dcosta,Alliances & Linkages Convenor,Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF)236. Zoya Hasan,Professor Emerita at Jawaharlal Nehru University,JNU

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