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Hello, we are @guneetkaurahuja
and @aimanjkhan, Today's curation is by Advocate Sarim Naved ( @SarimNaved). He is a criminal lawyer based out of Delhi. He has handled several UAPA cases.
and @aimanjkhan, Today's curation is by Advocate Sarim Naved ( @SarimNaved). He is a criminal lawyer based out of Delhi. He has handled several UAPA cases.
I am @SarimNaved! The problem with the UAPA is that it creates a category of accused with dramatically restricted rights. It is one thing to have special laws for terrorism, it is another thing to shoehorn all dissidence under the definition of terrorism. 1/n
This is not a terrorist under the UAPA because mere mayhem and murder is not terrorism, even though the hero murders a hell of a lot of people. 2/n
The following, however, would be liable for trial as terrorists under the UAPA. Context, they say, is king and an out of context conversation can seem very sinister. 3/n
The common understanding of a terror accused is that this is a person who is going to commit mass murder or is at least conspiring to commit mass murder. It is easy to argue for a harsher procedure under criminal law for such people. 4/n
Many terror cases relate to seizure of fake currency or to people in India being in touch with questionable foreigners over the internet. Granted that terror conspiracies are well hidden, but the definition of terrorism has to be narrow. 5/n
Cases under the UAPA range from people being accused of conspiracy to commit terrorism because somebody said they were giving inspiration for jihad, possession of fake currency notes, or just being in touch with certain people. 6/n
It is unfair to lump political dissidents with those who actively commit and propagate violence. Remember, all laws are fine until they are misused and some laws are more prone to misuse than others. Too much power can lead to injustice. 7/n
The most distressing aspect of such laws is not in the main cities of the country where terror accused have access to legal counsel and courts are used to such offences. These laws are most misused in the hinterland and in conflict zones. 8/n https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/manipur-jk-record-maximum-number-of-cases-under-unlawful-activities-prevention-act/article30070028.ece
As with the earlier TADA and POTA, the trials under the UAPA which come to fruition see a high rate of acquittal. 9/n https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/arrested-activists-67-ended-in-acquittal-or-discharge-under-uapa-act-118090800801_1.html
In movies, cases can be split wide open in a matter of seconds. The same takes years in real life. The judge has to go by procedure, regardless of what they feel about the case before them. People are acquitted, but it takes years. 10/n
The constitutional validity of laws like the UAPA, namely the old TADA and POTA, and now the MCOCA, have been repeatedly upheld. The rationale given is that these are a special category of offences requiring special laws. Fair enough. 11/n
However, when laws like the UAPA are sought to be applied against people, just to ensure that they don't get bail until they are acquitted, it becomes a matter of concern. The UAPA also excludes anticipatory bail. 12/n https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/170918/acquittal-in-uapa-a-long-legal-battle-for-prisoners.html
It is said, it is better to let 12 guilty men go scot free. One may quibble over the ratio, but there can be no disagreement with the principle. One of the many ways in which an innocent person can be mistaken for a suspect is as follows.. 13/n
The above is not an attempt to make light of many individual tragedies of people arrested under the UAPA. Many of them do not deserve such treatment. Criminal law should ideally not have such deviant processes. 14/n
TADA passed, POTA passed, so will the UAPA. Lessons have to be learnt so that these laws are not brought back in the future. For that, wide understanding of the peril of such laws is required. 15/15 https://giphy.com/gifs/memecandy-WmWs9Ge8mIpMtRPf7m
We thank @SarimNaved for curating today's thread. Please give feedback and don't forget to stand in solidarity with India's heroes. Ask for #ReleaseofAllPoliticalPrisoners & #RepealUAPA. Image source @AIIndia
