Citizens for Justice and Peace
Bezwada Wilson
Bezwada is an activist fighting against manual scavenging in India. He and his organisation, Safai Karmachari Andolan (“SKA”), serve as watchdogs, pushing for legal action to demolish dry toilets across India and preparing manual scavengers to achieve new sources of income.
Charges
Mahesh Raut
Raut is a grassroots activist who works with the Adivasis of Gadchiroli, Maharashtra. He is a land rights activist who has consistently fought against the displacement of marginalised communities. He has campaigned along with the Adivasi communities of the region to sell Tendu leaves directly into the market without the involvement of the intermediaries. He has also campaigned against mining projects in Gadhciroli, including the Surajgarh mining project.
Charges
Sections 120-B, 115, 121, 121-A, 124-A, 153, 201, and 505(1)(b) along with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, and under Sections 13, 16, 17, 18, 18B, 20, 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
Vipin Kumar Tripathi
V.K. Tripathi is a physicist, activist, and a professor emeritus at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. Barring his immense contributions in the field of plasma physics, he has worked extensively to promote Communal Harmony, Social Justice and increase Political Awareness. He has been dubbed as a Gandhian because of his advocacy for peace and non-violence.
Charges
Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan
About: Chandrashekhar Azad, also known as Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan, is an activist, politician, lawyer, and educationist. He has served as a Member of Parliament in the 18th Lok Sabha from Nagina since June 2024. He is the founder of the Bhim Army and the National President of the Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram). He has worked extensively for the emancipation of Dalits through education. The Bhim Army has provided educational support to thousands of Dalit students, including financial assistance for those securing admission to professional courses. The organisation has also intervened in cases of discrimination in private schools, hospitals, and public spaces, and has supported economically disadvantaged Dalit women with financial assistance for marriages and other needs. The Bhim Army has organised several protests and rallies against violence and atrocities committed by dominant caste groups against Dalits.
Charges
Section 147, 148, 149, 307, 323, 332, 336, 353, 427, 436 of the IPC & Section 3, 4 of the Damage to Public Property Act.
Kunal Kamra
Kunal Kamra is an Indian comedian, satirist, and podcaster. His jokes have been infamously critical of the government. Barring the socio-political commentary he does through his shows, he has been actively involved in advocating for freedom of expression and workers’ rights. Owing to his incisive critique of the Government and the Courts, he is marred with defamation suits and contempt cases. Apart from donating his income from YouTube to raise funds for RT-PCR kits, and collecting funds to buy masks for Mumbai Police during the Covid-19 outbreak, he has also filed PILs protecting people’s civil rights.
Charges
Section 353(1)(b), Section 353(2), Section 356(2) BNS, Contempt of Court (since 2020), Breach of Legislative Privilege Proceedings (since 2025).
Sonam Wangchuk
Sonam Wangchuk is a renowned engineer, climate activist, and education reformer. He co-founded the SECMOL alternative school - which inspired the film, 3 Idiots - and created the “Ice Stupa” artificial glacier. A leading voice for Ladakh’s statehood and Sixth Schedule protections, he was arrested under the NSA in September 2025 after mass protests and was released in March 2026 after the government suddenly revoked his detention order.
Charges
Charges: Detained under the National Security Act, 1980
HANY BABU
Professor Hany Babu of Delhi University is another intellectual who has been targeted merely for being an intellectual with a strong voice of dissent. He has been implicated in the Bhima Koregaon conspiracy case. He was granted bail in December, 2025.
Charges
Sections 153(A) (promoting enmity), 505(1)(B)(statements conducing to public mischief), 115 (Abetment of offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life—if offence not committed), 120(B) (criminal conspiracy), 121 (waging war against Government of India), 121(A) (Conspiracy to commit offences punishable under Section 121), 124(A) (sedition), 201 (disappearance of evidence) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 13 (advocating, abetting or inciting unlawful activity), 16 (terrorist acts), 17 (punishment for raising funds for terrorist act), 18 (conspiracy), 18(A)(punishment for organising of terrorist camps), 18(B)( Punishment for recruiting of any person or persons for terrorist act), 20 (being member of terrorist gang or organisation), 38 (membership of a terrorist organisation), 39 (supporting terrorist organisation) and 40 (fundraising for terrorist organisation) of the UAPA Act.
Rupesh Kumar Singh
Rupesh Kumar Singh, a freelance Hindi journalist from Jharkhand, reports extensively on issues affecting the state’s tribal communities. His work has appeared in Samyantar, Dastak, Media Vigil, Gauri Lankesh News, Janchowk and others. In 2021, his name surfaced among 40 journalists targeted by the Pegasus spyware - three numbers linked to him appeared in the leaked database, months after he reported on the 2017 police killing of an innocent Adivasi man.
Charges
Charges: Sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (Forgery of valuable security, will, etc.); 468 (Forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (Using as genuine a forged document) of the IPC, Section 10 (penalty for being member of an unlawful association) and 13 (punishment for unlawful activities) of UAPA; and Section 17 (deals with unlawful activities) of the Criminal Law Amendment Act.
DR. VARAVARA RAO
An activist and poet, Dr. Varavara Rao has been targeted by the State since the 1970s. He has been in the crosshairs of the Andhra Pradesh government, and was also hounded during the Emergency declared by Indira Gandhi. The octogenarian was most recently implicated in the Bhima-Koregaon case and has once again been incarcerated for months. He was repeatedly refused permanent bail on medical grounds despite his advanced age, a bout of Covid-19, and a progressive deterioration in his health. Finally, the Supreme Court granted him bail on medical grounds in August 2022, deleting the requirement for surrender put forward by the Bombay High Court when it had previously granted him temporary bail.
Charges
Section 124 A (Sedition) of the Indian Penal Code, sections 38 and 39 (support to a terrorist organisation) of UAPA