Magsaysay Award winner and social activist Sandeep Pandey on Sunday claimed that he was put under house arrest on three occasions in the past week after he announced a dharna to protest against the abrogation of Article 370 and the shutdown in Jammu and Kashmir. The Lucknow district administration, however, rejected the claim. Pandey had won the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2002 in the emergent leader category.
“In the past one week, we have been stopped thrice by the police and administration from freely expressing our views. I was put under house arrest on three occasions; 11th August, 16th August and 17th August,” Pandey claimed, adding that they were prevented from going to Ayodhya for a two-day programme on communal amity on Saturday.
Lucknow District Magistrate Kaushal Raj Sharma rubbished the claims made by Pandey. He said:
“Who is stopping him from holding protests at the Eco Garden in the city? He cannot stage any protest in Hazratganj – the heart of the state capital – as the high court has banned all protests in the area.”
On 16 August, Pandey said that he was prevented from going to Hazaratganj in Lucknow, where he was scheduled to hold a candlelight demonstration near the Mahatma Gandhi statue against the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking to IANS on the phone, Pandey had said on 16 August,
All of a sudden, police in four vans arrived at our house in the morning and told us that we cannot stage the dharna, because of prohibitory orders in the city. They said the prohibitory orders would be lifted after Independence Day. So I told them that we would stage the dharna after the orders are lifted. Yet, they are standing outside my house and no one is allowed to enter or leave the house.
Respnding to the claims of house arrest by Pandey, the District Magistrate of Lucknow said, “The protest venue of the district has been identified and he (Pandey) is most welcome to hold any protest, dharna or agitation there for as many days he likes. Why does he deliberately opts for spots where protests are not allowed?”
He also denied that Pandey was put under house arrest and said, “He was neither put under house arrest nor detained. We intervened when they announced to go to Hazratganj.”
His wife Arundhati Dhuru, who is the national convener of the National Alliance of People's Movement (NAPM), told The Hindu that there were police outside their home and were not letting anyone go out. The police team, according to Dhuru, left their residence around 4 pm.
Lucknow District Magistrate and Senior Superintendent of Police did not respond to calls of the news agency and the government spokesman refused to comment on the matter.
Pandey had won the Ramon Magsaysay award in 2002 in the emergent leadership category.
(With inputs from IANS, The Hindu)
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