Dhaval Patel

Journalist

Gujarat

HRDA has issued an urgent appeal to the National Human Rights Commission of India on June 19, 2020 regarding the arrest of Mr. Dhaval Patel on charges of sedition following the publication of a news article. Mr. Patel is the owner and editor the ‘Face of Nation’ portal and a human rights defender.

On May 7, 2020, Mr. Patel was arrested by the Central Burea of Investigation, Gujarat from his home in Ahmedabad in connection with an FIR registered under Section 124(A) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and Section 54 of the Disaster Management Act. The Gujarat government alleged that Mr. Patel “tried to instigate and create a feeling of hatred in the minds of the people against the chief minister of the state and also tried to spread rumors, false news and mislead the people of the state by creating panic in public.” Though he was granted regular bail by the sessions court, he was arrested after he published a news story titled ‘Mansukh Mandaviya called by high command, chances of leadership change in Gujarat’ due to the leadership’s failure in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.