Johannesburg. 14 January 2011. CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is appalled at the life sentence imposed on eminent Indian civil society activist Dr Binayak Sen, and is concerned that the ruling is verification of a deterioration in the state of India's political system.
Dr Binayak Sen - Vice President of one of India's best respected civil liberties groups, the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) - is a well known pediatrician who has dedicated a significant portion of his medical career to helping impoverished communities. On 24 December 2010 he was convicted of sedition and criminal conspiracy under India's colonial era penal code. Dr Sen was also convicted under the draconian Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of providing assistance to and supporting the activities of outlawed Maoist groups.
The manner in which the police charged Dr Sen and the weak evidence relied upon by the court to convict him has been the subject of severe criticism by eminent Indian jurists. A number of civil society groups have warned that the sentencing of Dr Binayak Sen makes a mockery of the Indian criminal justice system and is indicative of the growing brazenness with which India’s political class is subverting the rule of law, spawning multiple insurgencies and law and order problems in the country.
Dr Binayak Sen was documenting human rights abuses by security forces and government supported militias in the state of Chhattisgarh at the time of his arrest in May 2007. He was accused of passing on the messages of Maoists whom he used to visit in prison as part of his civil society work. Despite his reputation and long-standing record of community service, he was repeatedly denied bail for two years by different courts until May 2009 when the Supreme Court of India ordered that he be released on bail.
"The way in which the state has dealt with Dr Sen is symptomatic of the dangers faced by civil society activists exposing the rot in India's political system", said Ingrid Srinath, Secretary General of CIVICUS. "It is appalling that a country that takes pride in calling itself the world's largest democracy should have such weak checks and balances permitting such a travesty of justice".
CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation is a global movement of civil society with members and partners in over a hundred countries. The Civil Society Watch (CSW) Project of CIVICUS tracks threats to civil society freedoms of expression, association and assembly across the world.