Prof. Apoorvanand, a professor of Hindi at the Delhi University, a well known activist and prolific writer, has once again been named by the Delhi Police. This time his name is listed along with eminent citizens in connection with the FIR 50/2020 which now has It has a supplementary chargesheet that included “disclosure statements” allegedly made to the police by Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal of Jawaharlal Nehru University – and Gulfisha Fathima of Jamia Millia Islamia, who are the accused in the Jafrabad violence case, and are currently in custody.
Apart from Prof. Apoorvanand, others named are documentary filmmaker Rahul Roy, activist Dr Umar Khalid, economist Prof Jayati Ghosh, and senior political leaders Sita Ram Yechuri and Yogendra Yadav. These names are allegedly mentioned in “statements” the police say were made by the accused, and it is claimed that they “provided support in organising the anti-CAA protests.”
This is the full text of the statement issued by Prof Apoorvanand on Sunday:
“It has been brought to my notice that a supplementary Chargesheet filed in connection with FIR 50/2020 has certain disclosure statements by accused in custody, that mention my name, together with that of Rahul Roy, Umar Khalid, Jayati Ghosh, Sita Ram Yechuri and Yogendra Yadav. These names are mentioned in uncorroborated statements attributed to accused who are in custody, where it is claimed that they provided support in organising the anti- CAA protests.
The supplementary CS proclaims that the accused persons were ‘continuously poisoning the minds of common people against the CAA/ NRC.’ This is the government’s political position; surprisingly being parroted in the supplementary CS as a legal offence.
Although FIR 50/2020 was registered in connection with the death, from gunshot injury, of one Amaan, the investigation seems to have focussed on delegitimising the protests and in trying to make the protestors indirectly responsible for Amaan’s death.
While I am not made accused, it is very surprising that the police should even accuse three young women, without any basis, of having murdered a 17 year old boy, Amaan. It would seem that the accused women are not directly linked to the murder, but the allegation is that they instigated some unknown shooter. The investigation has not revealed who shot at Amaan, but it insists that whoever it was, was instigated by the anti-CAA stance of the accused individuals.
It is also pertinent that on September 1, the Delhi High Court, while hearing a bail application by Devangana Kalita, has categorically held that the police have not been able to give any evidence of any incendiary speech by her. The court also said that the statements of the witnesses were produced belatedly, as an afterthought by the police.
The supplementary CS does not improve upon the legal case, but only seems to be furthering the political agenda of discrediting the protestors, and uses all our names as part of the discrediting exercise. Their act of having planned a protest is being treated as a conspiracy to violence, in which me, along with others, are projected as having abetted that cause, without any basis in law or facts.
We are still waiting for the Delhi police to start an investigation to find out the truth behind the actual act of the February violence. It needs to stop its exercise of criminalising the anti CAA protests which were a perfectly legitimate act of citizenship.”
On August 3, Prof Apporvanand had been called for questioning by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police in connection with the violence that broke out in North East Delhi in February 2020. He was called by the Special Cell, Delhi Police, to appear before it in the investigation into FIR no 59/20 related to the violence that took place in North East Delhi in February, 2020. He spent five hours there and the police had also seized his phone “for the purpose of investigation.” He had issued a statement then too. One of the very few to do so after being questioned by the investigators.
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