We support the CJP petition demanding the release of labour activist Nodeep Kaur
We have signed the above petition and also sent the letter below to the jail authorities in Karnal, Haryana, India, condemning the custodial violence carried out against Nodeep Kaur
Shri Amit Kumar,
Superintendent,
District Jail, Karnal,
Mustafabad, Karnal,
Haryana – 132036
08 February 2021
Release of Nodeep Kaur
We, members of the international academic community, are shocked to learn that Nodeep Kaur has been in jail for over a month, denied bail twice, and has allegedly been assaulted in Karnal jail.
We are gravely concerned that this 23-year-old labour union organiser has been arrested on outrageous charges of extortion, rioting while armed, unlawful assembly, assaulting a public servant, intimidation and attempt to murder.
Nodeep has been working for the rights of labourers, and has been active in mobilising support for the farmers’ movement. This is well within her rights as a citizen of India. As academics, we are well aware that the farmers’ movement concerns not only farmers but all sectors of rural life, workers, scholars, and citizens of the country.
We urge you to make use of the powers at your behest to ensure Nodeep Kaur’s immediate release and conduct an independent inquiry into the allegations of physical abuse under custody. Nodeep’s detention and custodial abuse is a breach of human rights under the International Human Rights agreements. The case of Nodeep Kaur is of concern to our collective, InSAF India, as she should have been and deserves to be a student at a university, and it is a matter of shame that she is being punished and abused for a crime that she never committed.
We demand Nodeep’s release and that all charges against her are dropped with immediate effect. We also demand an independent investigation of the allegations of her custodial abuse.
This letter will be published as an open letter on our website and circulated via our social media channels.
Yours sincerely
All Members
International Solidarity Network for Academic Freedom in India
