Delhi: Rights group Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) on Wednesday, March 18, strongly condemned the Delhi Police for allegedly abducting 10 people – two labour rights activists, two anti-displacement activists and six students – whose whereabouts remain unknown.
The abductions began on March 12 when Delhi University psychology student Ilakkiya and labour rights activist Shiv Kumar were reportedly picked up by unidentified individuals in plain clothes from the Dayal Singh College.
Local shopkeepers claimed a woman in civilian clothing forcibly took Ilakkiya to a Scorpio car with VIP lights waiting near the Jawaharlal Nehru Metro station around 1 pm. Kumar had already been forced into the vehicle by then.
CASR stated that by 1:30 pm, Ilakkiya’s phone was switched off and neither has contacted their families since. “Their detention was carried out without any due process, in blatant violation of their fundamental legal and constitutional rights,” the CASR said in a statement.
The arrests continued on March 13, when Manjeet, an activist also associated with Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, a labour union in Haryana, was reported missing. He had attended a CASR programme demanding the release of Surendra Gadling, a lawyer incarcerated in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The same evening, at around 8 pm, locals said that Delhi Police detained seven people from the office of Bhagat Singh Chhatra Ekta Manch (BSCEM), a student organisation. Those picked up were Akshay, Rudra, Kiran, Gaurav and Drishti from BSCEM, as well as Ehtemam and Badal from the Forum Against Corporatisation and Militarisation (FACAM).
Most of the activists, including Shiv Kumar, Ilakkiya, Kiran, Akshay, Gaurav, Ehtemam, and Badal were arrested in the past, with some being released only recently.
Activists forced into sexual acts, humiliated, assaulted on genitalia, CASR claims
CASR’s statement shared the gruesome details of the assault faced by the activists under Delhi police custody. They alleged that the activists were subjected to severe forms of assault, including sexual violence, physical abuse, coercion and humiliation.
Shiv Kumar was reportedly subjected to severe physical and sexual torture with police officials beating him with his own belt, “with the metal buckle repeatedly directed at his genitals.”
“He was suspended upside down for over two hours and beaten with a rubber baton on his lower body. Officers lifted him by his beard, crushed his foot under their shoes, and kept him handcuffed throughout his detention,” the organisation said. He was even forced to record a statement at gunpoint claiming he had gone into hiding.
He was previously arrested in 2021 during the Singhu Border farmers’ protest and was brutally tortured in Haryana police custody, with medical records showing proof of assault.
Rudra, a member of the BSCEM, was reportedly beaten, stripped naked multiple times and faced extreme sexual violence.
“He was threatened with extrajudicial killing and told his death would be staged as a suicide,” the statement read. “In an egregious act of sexual violence, Shiv Kumar and fellow detainee Rudra were stripped naked in each other’s presence and subjected to sexual humiliation and assault.”
Manjeet was also severely beaten and was subjected to caste-based humiliation. CASR alleged that he was made to clean rooms while naked and was forced into a sexual act by an officer, while other officers present in the room recorded the abuse.
“He was stripped naked, forced to lie face down, and beaten on the soles of his feet while officers sat on his back. Upon discovering his Dalit identity, officers subjected him to caste-based humiliation, forcing him to clean rooms while naked.”
Akshay and Avinash, who were abducted on March 13, were also tortured by the police. “Officers deliberately targeted his (Akshay’s) previously injured knee, forcing his legs apart and applying pressure while beating him.”
While Avinash was “slapped, kicked, and humiliated, including being mocked and feminised. He and Gaurav were forced into degrading acts under threat of violence, and further abuse was inflicted on all detainees.”
Demands
The rights group stated the testimonials received from the detained collectively reveal a “systematic campaign of state terror,” targeting labour activists, student activists, anti-displacement activists and those seeking justice.
The acts committed by the officials not only violate the Constitution of India, but also constitute a grave violation of international law, the group said.
“The methods employed—including illegal abduction, incommunicado detention, custodial torture, sexual violence, caste-based degradation, forced confessions, and threats against families—constitute serious violations of the Constitution of India, the Protection of Human Rights Act, and India’s obligations under international law, including the UN Convention Against Torture.”
The rights group asked for an immediate end to the illegal detentions, torture, and harassment of the activists and an independent judicial probe into these incidents. They demanded the prosecution and punishment of the Delhi police officials responsible and the release of all personal belongings of the activists, including the allegedly illegally seized digital devices.
High Court issues notice to Delhi police
The Delhi High Court, on Sunday, March 15, issued notices to the Delhi Police following habeas corpus petitions alleging the illegal detention and torture of ten activists.
While the police claimed all individuals had been released and that the situation was more complex than portrayed, counsel for the petitioners argued that the activists were seized by men in plain clothes and held in unmarked safe houses rather than official police stations. The court expressed particular concern over the whereabouts of one individual, Rudra, who was reportedly still in custody, and directed the police to trace him and report back by the following day.
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