SC restrains Tripura Police from arresting 2 lawyers, journalist booked under UAPA

By Dilip -

The plea said that “if the quest for truth and reporting thereof itself is criminalized then the victim in the process is the idea of justice” and that “such circumstances strike at the very foundations of a participative democratic society as it curbs the ‘free flow of information and ideas’…

The Supreme Court Wednesday asked the Tripura police not to initiate any coercive action against the lawyers and a journalist who were booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967 for their “fact finding” report and tweets on the communal violence in the state.

A bench of Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, D Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant also issued notice on the plea filed by Advocates Mukesh, member of People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Ansar Indori, Secretary, National Confederation of Human Rights Organisation and Newsclick journalist Shyam Meera Singh seeking quashing of the FIR against them and challenging the constitutionality of certain provisions of UAPA.

The petition contended that UAPA was invoked against the lawyers “to supress a fact finding report” released by them under the title “Humanity Under Attack in Tripura #Muslim Lives Matter” and against Meera “for merely tweeting “Tripura is burning”.”..

https://indianexpress.com/article/north-east-india/sc-tripura-violence-uapa-2-lawyers-journalist-7627040/


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