Raj Niwas officials claim that Delhi lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena authorised Arundhati Roy’s prosecution on Friday under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for her purportedly “provocative” remarks made at a 2010 event.
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The Case in Detail
Under section 45 (1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Dr Sheikh Showkat Hussain, a former professor of international law at the Central University of Kashmir, and Arundhati Rout have been approved by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena.
In addition, Section 13 of the UAPA—which addresses penalties for illegal activity—was recorded about this case. As to the statement, an individual who engages in, advocates, aids, counsels, or encourages the commission of any illicit activity faces a maximum sentence of seven years in jail and a monetary fine.
The 14-year-old Event
At a symposium held on October 21, 2010, at LTG Auditorium, Copernicus Marg, with the theme “Azadi – The Only Way,” Roy and Hussain are accused of making provocative speeches.
Raj Niwas officer asserted that “the issues spoken about and discussed at the conference propagated the separation of Kashmir from India.” The complaint presented tapes featuring Geelani and Arundhati Roy passionately stating that Kashmir was never a part of India, that the Indian Armed Forces had forcibly invaded the territory, and that every attempt should be made to split J-K from India.
In addition to Roy and Sheikh Showkat Hussain, speakers included Varavara Rao, late Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, and SAR Geelani, who served as the Conference’s anchor and one of the main defendants in the Parliament attack case. S.A.R. Geelani died in 2019 of cardiac arrest, while Syed Ali Shah Geelani passed away in 2021 after a long illness.
The Indian Penal Code has three sections that carry such penalties: 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony), 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration), and 505 (statements conducive to public mischief). Last year, the LG granted sanction to prosecute them under section 196 of CrPC for these offences.
In accordance with Section 156(3) of the CrPC, the complainant lodged a complaint with the Metropolitan Magistrate Court in New Delhi. On November 27, 2010, the court resolved the matter and instructed the complainant to make a formal complaint. According to reports, Saxena stated that Sections 153A, 153B, and 505 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) establish a prima facie case against Roy and Hussain.
These parts deal, respectively, with promoting enmity amongst various groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth, domicile, language, claims detrimental to national integration, and deliberate insults meant to incite public disturbance.
What is UAPA?
The Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) was repealed in 2004 and the TADA (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act) was allowed to expire in 1995. The UAPA, their enhancement, was first passed in 1967 during the Congress government led by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Among other things, the Act provides particular procedures to deal with terrorist activity. Its goal is to effectively deter associations engaged in illegal activities within India. Any action conducted by a person or organisation to undermine India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is referred to as unlawful activity.
