On Wednesday, on the 1600th day that human rights activist Umar Khalid spent in Delhi’s Tihar prison, 160 writers, academics, artists, and activists wrote an open letter demanding his release and that of all equal citizenship activists.
The prominent signatories to the letter include renowned historians Irfan Habib, Romila Thapar, Tanika Sarkar, and Ramachandra Guha, novelist Amitav Ghosh, veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah, and scholars Akeel Bilgrami and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak and rights activists John Dayal and Anand Teltumbde, among others.
The letter underlines that the 1,600th day of Umar Khalid in prison also marks the 77th anniversary of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi’s assassination by a Hindutva fanatic, recalling Umar Khalid’s speech before his arrest, where he asserted that the same forces responsible for Gandhi’s killing had also introduced the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which he and many others protested against.
The letter accuses that Umar Khalid, known for his eloquent speeches advocating for pluralism, secularism, and constitutional values, has been falsely accused in the most brazenly twisted manner of conspiring to incite violence.
The letter observes that the repeated denial of bail and prolonged incarceration without trial, in fact, is one of the most “distressing” aspects of Umar Khalid’s case and that of the others in this case.
The letter criticizes draconian laws like the UAPA, along with inordinate judicial delays, which make obtaining bail notoriously difficult, resulting in situations where individuals are effectively punished through prolonged detention without any trial or proven guilt.
Umar and many others like him are in prison, charged under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), not because they motivated or instigated anybody to commit any act of violence, but because they stood in defense of peace and justice and advocated non-violent dissidence against unjust laws, the letter highlights.
The letter also reminisces about Gulfasha Fatima, Khalid Saifi, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider, Athar Khan, Shifa Ur Rahman, and others, “who have been selectively persecuted by the predatory regime for raising their voices against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which discriminates against Muslims.”
The letter draws attention to one of his speeches, where he is heard saying, “We will not respond to violence with violence. We will not respond to hate with hate. If they spread hate, we will respond to it by spreading love. If they beat us with lathis, we will hold aloft the tri-colour. If they fire bullets, then we will hold aloft the Constitution in our hands.”
They alleged, despite this, the authorities have gone out of their way to frame him using the most “devious lies and distortions of facts.”
The signatories expressed their deep disturbance to witness a bright and compassionate young man like Umar who is trained as a historian and a critical thinker, repeatedly been targeted, vilified, and branded by an authoritarian regime.
“We, the undersigned, are deeply disturbed to witness how a bright and compassionate young man like Umar who is trained as a historian and nurtured as a critical thinker, has repeatedly been targeted, vilified, and branded by an authoritarian regime,” reads the letter.
“We sincerely hope to see Umar and these equal citizenship activists to be free so that they may contribute towards an equal and just future,” they added.
Umar Khalid was arrested on 13 September, 2020, under the draconian UAPA in connection with the Delhi riots of February 2020. These riots resulted in 53 deaths, 38 of whom were Muslims. However, instead of holding accountable those who incited and perpetuated the violence, the state targeted activists and protestors who peacefully opposed the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
