Together with SOAS’ South Asia Institute (SSAI), we had the pleasure of co-hosting a talk with Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court of India, Anand Grover. Mr Grover spoke on the topic of ‘democracy and dissent in India’, highlighting the crackdown on the right to protest and how the independent institutions tasked with protecting the rights of Indian citizens have failed.
By referencing examples such as the Bhima Koregaon cases, arrest of opposition leaders like Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and the plight of protesters, Mr Grover laid out for attendees how the Government has been misusing legislation like the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Instead of using legislation like the Indian Penal Code, terrorism laws and economic legislation are being used in extreme ways to silence and punish those who oppose the government.
Mr Grover’s talk went into deep details of how legislation has been abused to curtail the rights of Indian citizens and has contributed to the alarming democratic backsliding we have been witnessing in India. With first-hand experience of these cases at the Supreme Court of India, attendees were given a unique insight into how cases tried under the laws like UAPA and PMLA play out, what the desired effects are for the government and the consequences for those accused.
One of the most concerning takeaways from Mr Grover’s talk was that in India, defendants must prove their innocence, rather than the prosecutors being tasked to prove their guilt. For us in the UK, which practises ‘innocent until proven guilty’, this is completely at odds of our understanding of a free trial as those arrested are presumed guilty on arrival at court. This often leads to extended time, even years, in jail or on bail. Not only that, but in legal cases it is much harder to prove the negative than it is to prove the positive. For many defendants, it is impossible to source the proof required to prove their innocence which leads to regular miscarriages of justice.
The concerning details that Mr Grover laid out over the course of the evening lays bare a painful truth: India’s democracy is in trouble. Justice regularly fails to prevail with the abuse of terrorism laws, compromised independent institutions and the presumed guilt of anyone who finds themselves on the wrong end of draconian legislation. Democracy and dissent go hand in hand. Everyone has the human right to protest and challenge the government in a democracy without fear of being arrested and left in jail. Brave lawyers, like Anand Grover, are working tirelessly to protect and uphold India’s democracy but without a government dedicated to democratic principles and independent institutions keeping the Executive accountable, it will always be an uphill battle.
