Police assaults activists

Several protestors who had gathered outside Chhattisgarh Sadan were pushed and dragged by the police at the behest of Chief Minister Raman Singh
Hardnews Bureau Delhi

Several protestors, mostly women from various rights groups, were assaulted, pushed and manhandled by the Delhi Police outside Chhattisgarh Sadan in Delhi on Thursday, December 1. They had assembled to protest against the brutal torture unleashed on Soni Sori, a tribal teacher in Dantewada, by the state police despite the Supreme Court (SC) monitoring the case. A hearing on a petition demanding Sori be shifted out of Chhattisgarh is scheduled to be held today in the SC.

The protestors were dragged and pushed by the police personnel at the behest of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh who is in the capital. The group had assembled to meet Singh and demand action against the police officers especially Dantewada SP Ankit Garg who reportedly ordered the torture of Soni Sori. Foreign objects have been reportedly found in her private parts after she was allegedly stripped and tortured in custody. "We plan to take up the issue with the president of India, congress president and the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha who are all women," said Mamta, an activist with National Forum of Forest People and Forest Workers.

"We assembled at the gate peacefully and were demanding that Raman Singh should meet us. After an hour the police personnel who had by now surged in numbers unleashed force on us when the officials told them that chief minister has to attend another meeting and these people must be removed," said Vijayan MJ, an activist with National Alliance of Peoples' Movement.

"This has once again proved the arrogance of the BJP-led Raman Singh government towards issues of social justice, and their utter disregard for the law. We fear for the lives of the activists upon whom false charges are forged and who are undertrials in the state of Chhattisgarh," said a statement released by the protestors.

After the gruesome details of torture and police atrocities on Soni Sori came out in the open, several groups have written letters to the state government and the chief minister. However, they got no response.

Ironically, among other things, Raman Singh is in Delhi to attend a media conclave where he will speak on 'good governance'. "His definition of good governance is confined to brutal repression of any democratic dissent," said Vani Subramaniam, an activist with Saheli, a womens' rights group. "How can he not meet people on issues concerning the well being of people in his own state," she added. "We will write to the governor and demand that this government be removed immediately," said Mamta.

The groups have demanded: