Amnesty Hits ABVP With Detailed Rebuttal of Sedition Charge

Amnesty India responds to charges of sedition.

The ABVP protest after a sedition case was filed. (Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ANI)

Amnesty International India on Tuesday dismissed all claims made by ABVP, the RSS’ student wing, stating that anti-India slogans were allegedly raised during a debate on Kashmir organised in Bengaluru on Saturday. The Karnataka Police had filed an FIR on Monday on account of charges of sedition filed by ABVP against the organisation, though Amnesty has claimed that it has not received a copy of the FIR.

The panel discussion on Saturday had turned chaotic as some “pro-freedom” Kashmiris, most of whom were youngsters and students, entered into heated arguments with a Kashmiri Pandit leader for hailing the Indian Army.

The alleged slogans were raised at the event – ‘Broken Families’ – held at United Theological College as part of a three-city campaign by Amnesty International India against alleged human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir.

Amnesty has claimed in a rebuttal of sorts that the the allegations mentioned in the complaint are without substance and that they are preventing the families of victims of human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir from having their stories heard.

The press release mentions that the event was part of a campaign that was based on a report dealing with the obstacles to justice faced in several cases of human rights violations believed to have been committed by Indian security force personnel in Jammu and Kashmir, and the virtual immunity enjoyed by security forces when it comes to prosecution in civil courts in cases of human rights violations.

Photo from the protest. (Photo Courtesy: Twitter/ANI)

The organisation has put out a point-by-point rebuttal to the allegations raised in the ABVP complaint. Here are some of the highlights:

• To the allegation that anti-national songs were sung and slogans raised by a bunch of people, the press release not only recounts exactly how these people contributed to the event and what they did on stage (contrary to what ABVP has claimed), but also mentions their respective professions. Amnesty has claimed that video footage of the event has been shared with the Bengaluru Police who were invited to the event.

• To allegations that slogans were raised that Indian Kashmir should be a part of Pakistan, the statement claims that no Amnesty International India employee shouted any slogans at any point.
  
  
• To the allegation that the event indirectly supported Pakistan and the ISI, the press release states that the focus of the event was squarely on allegations of human rights violations and the denial of justice in Jammu and Kashmir.
  

Here’s the entire response:

Apart from all of this, the rebuttal also makes its case by citing Supreme Court rulings on more than one occasion that makes clear distinctions in regard to what qualifies as ‘sedition’.

Amnesty International India considers that the right to freedom of expression includes the right to peacefully advocate political solutions. 

(With inputs from Indian Express, NDTV and PTI)