In a fascist attack all across India, RSS-BJP Central Govt. has arrested a large number of civil liberties and democratic rights activists. For this nefarious anti-people attack on the democratic rights, FIR lodged after Bhima Koregaon violence has been twisted. Central Govt. and Maharashtra Govt. led by RSS-BJP has shielded those who masterminded attacks on Dalits but has launched an all out attack against progressive and democratic individuals. Police has swooped down on these intellectuals in various parts of the country on the 28^th August morning, variously lodging cases under UAPA and for sedition. They were detained for hours, not allowed to meet any one.

Trade Unionist Advocate Sudha Bhardwaj, lawyers in Maharashtra who are handling the cases of other intellectuals and democratic rights activists arrested under UAPA in this FIR Arun Pareira and Vernon Gonsalves and Gautam Navlakha, a well known human rights activists and ex-Resident Editor of EPW. In Hyderabad, Varavara Rao has been arrested. These large scale arrests of democratic rights activists and trade union activists and lawyers is part of an attempt both to frighten progressive intellectuals from any dissent against communal, casteist fascist RSS-BJP Govt. at the Centre and in many states. Those who speak against anti-people and pro-imperialist policies, against attacks on democratic rights of oppressed people, struggling and revolutionary forces, against attacks on Muslims and Dalits and other oppressed sections, are being gagged, jailed and intellectuals frightened into submission. The attack is also on working class organizations and peasant struggles.

This all out attack on the right to dissent and protest must be condemned by all progressive and democratic forces and individuals. This attack to crush the voice of dissent and struggle must be opposed. CPI(ML)-New Democracy strongly condemns this fascist attack. We call upon all organizations and individuals to come out in protest against this attack. We must organize such protests at broad scale and participate with other organizations in such protest. People should be mobilized on to oppose this attack on the widest scale.

Central Committee

CPI(ML)-New Democracy

August 28, 2018