Gyanen Chakravarty

RTI Activist

Assam

HRDA has issued an urgent appeal to the National Human Rights Commission of India on September 21 regarding the arrest of Mr. Gyanen Chakravarty who had exposed the nexus between All Assam Students Union (AASU) and Bajrang Dal. He was arrested by the Nalbari Police in Assam.

Mr. Chakravarthy is a member of Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), an organisation working for the welfare of peasants using the Right to Information Act in the state of Assam. 

On October 16, 2017, Mr. Chakravarty uploaded videos and photographs of the placards of Bajrang Dal (right-wing organisation of the Sangh Parivar) inside the AASU office in Jagiroad, Morigaon district, on Facebook. These photographs and videos went viral. Mr. Chakravarty wrote in the post: “I am leaving it to the people of Assam to judge the issue.”

AASU claimed that the placards have been kept inside the AASU office intentionally to defame AASU. AASU Morigaon office filed a complaint at the Superintendent of Police’s office in Morigaon demanding proper investigation of the matter. 

On September 16, 2017, personnel from the Nalbari police station arrested Mr. Chakravarthy from his residence and brought him to the Jagiroad Police Station for questioning. He was taken in police custody at the Jagiroad Police Station. A case has been registered against him with number 372/17 and he was arrested under Sections 153 (wantonly provoking with intent to cause riot), 501 (printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act. His arrest was condemned by different organisations across Assam.