Global Human Rights Groups Call on Indian Authorities to Drop Bogus Criminal Cases Against Activist Nadeem Khan and Mohammed Zubair
Washington, D.C. (December 5, 2024) – A coalition of human rights groups from the United States, United Kingdom, and India today released a joint statement urging Delhi and Uttar Pradesh police to immediately withdraw baseless criminal cases against prominent activist Nadeem Khan and fact-checker Mohammed Zubair.
On November 30, Nadeem Khan, General Secretary of the Association for the Protection of Civil Rights (APCR), was booked by Delhi police for “portraying a particular community as oppressed” after APCR uploaded a YouTube video on the nationwide oppression of Indian minorities under the Modi regime. Police entered a private residence in Bengaluru where Khan was staying and intimidated him for several hours, attempting to coerce him to go to Delhi for questioning.
On December 3, Mohammed Zubair, co-founder of the fact-checking website Alt News, was booked in a criminal case by Uttar Pradesh police, accused of “endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India” for criticizing hate speeches made by prominent Hindu supremacist monk Yati Narsinghanand. Zubair has been previously targeted in legal cases for his work in fact-checking government propaganda and spreading awareness about anti-minority hate crimes.
“The pattern of targeting activists on fabricated pretexts reflects a systematic assault on the defenders of constitutional rights in India,” the coalition stated. “The Delhi Police must immediately halt all harassment and coercive actions against Khan… Similarly, the Uttar Pradesh Police must cease their illegal targeting of Zubair for exposing hate speech and incitement to violence against India’s Muslims.”
The statement was signed by the Indian American Muslim Council, Hindus for Human Rights, the Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations of North America (FIACONA), Justice For All (Save India From Fascism campaign), Foundation The London Story, India Labour Solidarity (UK), International Solidarity for Academic Freedom in India (InSAF India), Association of Indian Muslims of America, and World Without Genocide.
