BENGALURU: Journalist and author Aakar Patel on Saturday commented that it has become difficult to conduct ordinary human rights work in India now.
Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Criminalisation of Activism’, organised jointly by the All-India Lawyers’ Association for Justice, People’s Union for Civil Liberties and Association for Protection of Civil Rights, he said the state has stopped recognising rights under Article 19.
“In Bengaluru, we can only gather at Freedom Park, which is not the way the Article sees it,” he said.
On the Directorate of Enforcement and Central Bureau of Investigation cases filed against him and Amnesty International India, of which he was the director, he said the government does not want to follow the law. “Government’s malice is very high, while its competence is very low. So when they go after you, they don’t necessarily want to follow the law,” he said.
“We are faced with a large number of cases, all linked to the fact that the government doesn’t want us to work on things like Kashmir or mining. Many organisations have stopped working on these issues. You cannot go up against the government without facing the wrath of the state,” he said.