Who are the acclaimed ‘BK-16’? Five years have passed, and human rights defenders (HRDs) and their families continue to await justice
22, Jun 2023 | CJP Team
Surendra Gadling
Status: Detained without trial
Charges:Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since June 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Gadling is a human rights lawyer and a Dalit activist. Over time, Gadling established himself as a keen advocate and a key figure in cases related to extrajudicial killings, police misconduct, false accusations, and injustices against Dalits and Adivasis in the region. He gained expertise in specialised laws such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the Forest Rights Act, and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Notably, he was involved in handling the case of G.N. Saibaba, a wheelchair-bound professor from Delhi University who was imprisoned on allegations of having links with Naxalite groups. Gadling offered his legal services pro bono for most of these cases. Gadling has played a crucial role as a lawyer in the case of the Khairlanji Massacre as well as the investigation done in the aftermath of the encounters of tribals in Gadchiroli. Gadling was arrested and charged under the UAPA doe allegedly distributing controversial pamphlets as well as delivering ‘hate speech’ at the Bhima Koregaon incident of violence.
Rona Wilson
Status: Detained without trial
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since June 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Originally hailing from Kerala, Rona Wilson has served as the public relations secretary for the Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners in Delhi. As noted by SAR Gilani, the founder of CRPP and an individual who faced accusations but was eventually acquitted in the 2001 Parliament attack case, Wilson’s role involved working with incarcerated individuals who criticised the government. This included those wrongly implicated in terrorism cases, and individuals charged under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act). Wilson’s own research as a PhD scholar revolved around this field. Wilson was accused of inciting caste-based violence through speeches on the day preceding the Bhima Koregaon violence. Authorities have also accused him of having ties with banned Maoist groups.
Right after his arrest, the police announced that they had found a letter by Wilson on his laptop where he allegedly wrote to a Maoist leader urging the assassination of Narendra Modi.
In 2021, US-based security firm Arsenal Consulting concluded that a hacker had planted over 30 documents on Wilson’s laptop. It was further reported that Wilson was also one of the BK-16 whose mobile phone had been infiltrated and targeted using the NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware prior to his arrest.
Image: SabrangIndia.com
Shoma Sen
Status: Detained without trial since June 2018
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)
Location: Byculla Jail, Mumbai
Shoma Sen, the head of the English literature department at Nagpur University, was detained due to her advocacy for human rights and civil rights for marginalised religious communities.
In June 2018, Sen, along with other prominent activists championing the rights of Dalit and Adivasi communities, was arrested by Maharashtra police. The authorities alleged her speech, along with the rest of the accused, on December 31, 2017, incited caste-based violence, leading to clashes in Bhima Koregaon and neighbouring villages in Maharashtra the following day. Additionally, she was accused of having affiliations with banned Maoist groups.
Image: Frontline Defenders
Sudhir Dhawale
Status: Detained without trial
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since June 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Sudhir Dhawale, a prominent activist, has been actively advocating for the effective implementation of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. He has been involved in raising awareness and seeking justice for marginalized religious communities, particularly Dalits, in various violent incidents, including the Ramabai Nagar Dalit Hatyakand in Ghatkopar, Mumbai (1997), the Kherlanji massacre, the murders of RohidasTupe and BabanMisal, the Manorama Kamble gang rape and murder case in Nagpur, and the SahebraoJondhale murder. As a founding member of the Republican Panther JaatiyaAntachiChalwal, formed in 2007, Dhawale aimed to eradicate the caste system in India.
On June 6, 2018, Dhawale, a writer and one of the organisers of the Elgar Parishad event, was arrested by Maharashtra police, facing charges under various sections of the Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Concerns were raised by several UN human rights experts on October 5, 2018, regarding the charges against Dhawale being used to suppress human rights defenders advocating for the rights of Dalit, indigenous, and tribal communities in India. Several reports indicate Dhawale has been denied adequate medical care, including dental treatment.
Image: Frontlin Defenders
Mahesh Raut
Status: Detained without trial
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since June 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Mahesh Raut, a prominent advocate for Adivasi rights and environmental justice,has been imprisoned without trial for two years, accused of promoting Maoist ideology and engaging in unlawful activities. Raut’s commitment to defending Adivasi communities led him to actively participate in networks such as the Community Forest Rights Learning and Advocacy Network and the Campaign for Survival and Dignity. Within these networks, he contributed to assessments of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) in Maharashtra.
Raut’s advocacy work often brought him into conflict with powerful corporate interests that sought control over mineral-rich forests in the region. He stood alongside communities opposing damaging mining leases, auctions, and forest clearances. In Gadchiroli, Raut excelled as a community organizer, facilitating the mobilization of Adivasi villages into Gram Sabhas, empowering them with statutory powers. Through these efforts, they aimed to secure formal land titles to the forest, asserting their rights to forest management and conservation under the FRA.
Image: CJP
Sudha Bharadwaj
Status: On bail
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since August 2018
Widely known as the “people’s lawyer” in India, Bharadwaj was granted default bail in 2021, marking the first among the 16 activists and academics arrested in the case. With a focus on serving the most marginalised communities, particularly in the conflict-ridden state of Chhattisgarh, she has dedicated over three decades to this cause. Bharadwaj’s involvement in the human rights-based movements led her to pursue a career in law, completing her law degree in 2000. Her interest in mathematics took her to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur, where she studied from 1979 to 1984. During her time at college, she actively engaged in politics and faced isolation as a woman in a predominantly male-dominated environment.
Additionally, she enrolled in the National Service Scheme, a government program for young people, and developed a keen interest in teaching. Through her involvement in the NSS, she gained first-hand exposure to the harsh realities of caste and rural India. Even during her imprisonment, Bharadwaj remained dedicated to her cause. She attended meetings in jail where she proposed that legal aid lawyers should visit their clients once every three months and receive fair compensation.
After nearly three years of being incarcerated in the Bhima Koregaon case, Sudha Bharadwaj was finally released from prison in December 2021.
Image: Mumbai Mirror
Arun Ferreira
Status: Detained
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) August 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Arun Ferreira is a prominent activist and lawyer in India associated with the Indian Association of People’s Lawyers (IAPL). After college, he worked with slum dwellers in Mumbai and later became a community organiser in the rural Maharashtra state of Vidarbha.
In 2007, Ferreira was arrested on charges of being a ‘Naxalite,’ a term used interchangeably with ‘Maoist’ in India. He was accused of plotting to blow up Deekshabhoomi, a significant location where Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, converted to Buddhism. Over a four-year period, he faced multiple charges under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), a law applied to individuals suspected of committing crimes against the state. However, none of the charges were proven in court, and Ferreira was acquitted in 2014. During his imprisonment, he endured brutal torture and illegal narco-analysis.
Following his release, Ferreira pursued a career in law and joined a group of legal professionals advocating for the release of five prominent activists arrested in June 2018 in connection with the Bhima-Koregaon event. This case gained national attention and was brought before the Supreme Court of India. Ferreira’s involvement in this cause eventually led to his recent arrest on similar charges. In August 2018, he was among the initial five BK academics and activists arrested by Indian police, and later, in October 2018, he was taken into custody after a month under house arrest.
Image: Times of India
Gautam Navlakha
Status: House Arrest post Detainment
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) August 2018
Navlakha, a civil rights activist hailing from Gwalior, residing for long years in Delhi, is an engaged member of the People’s Union of Democratic Rights (PUDR). With a background in economics and political science from Mumbai, the 65-year-old Navlakha had been associated with the digital news portal Newsclick prior to his arrest. He also contributed to the academic journal Economic and Political Weekly for over three decades. Navlakha is the author of the book “Days and Nights in the Heartland of Rebellion.”
According to his colleagues, this was the first instance where he faced criminal charges.
Following his plea based on his deteriorating health condition, his request for house arrest has been approved. As per the Supreme Court’s instructions, he has now been placed under house arrest until further notice.
Vernon Gonsalves
Status: Detained
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
With a background in teaching at renowned colleges in Mumbai such as HR College of Commerce and Economics, as well as Akbar Peerbhoy College of Commerce and Economics, the septuagenarian Vernon Gonsalves, imprisoned in jail for the cases related to the Bhima Koregaon violence, has been not only a prominent writer but also an active social activist. His writings have frequently appeared in various online publications. Before his arrest, when the initial arrests of the first five activists were made on June 6, 2018, related to the Bhima-Koregaon protests, Gonsalves had described it as “sinister sensationalism.”
Susan Abraham, activist and lawyer and also wife of Gonsalves, expressed her belief that the ongoing raids are being carried out due to government pressure.
In a hearing of his case in March 3rd 2023, Senior advocate Rebecca John has argued that denying bail to Vernon Gonsalves, who is accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, based on the limited evidence presented by the prosecution, was an excessive and unfounded decision.
Varavara Rao
Status: Granted bail on medical grounds
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) August 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Varavara Rao, an octogenarian poet-activist, has been in jail since 2018 in connection with the Elgar Parishad case. Rao, born in 1940 into a middle-class Telugu family in Warangal. He began his literary journey at the age of 17, writing poems and went on and pursued a postgraduate degree in Telugu literature from Osmania University in Hyderabad, working as a lecturer in private colleges in Telangana. Rao’s writings reflect his deep-rooted Marxist philosophy and convey his pro-people sentiments as well as his opposition to neoliberalism.
Varavara Rao’s political activism has greatly influenced his poetry and writings, which consistently express his support for the welfare of the people and his opposition to neoliberalism. In 1966, he initiated SahithreeMithrulu (Friends of Literature) and established Srujana, a renowned Telugu literary magazine.
Additionally, Rao is highly regarded as a distinguished literary critic in the Telugu language. His notable work, “Telangana Liberation Struggle and Telugu Novel – A Study into Interconnection between Society and Literature,” published in 1983, is considered a remarkable example of Marxist criticism in Telugu.
Image: CJP
Fr Stan Swamy
Status: Deceased in detention
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) August 2018
Location: Taloja Central Prison, Mumbai
Father Stan Swamy, the then 84-year-old Jesuit priest,was touted as being the oldest prisoner charged under the barbaric Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). He was accused by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of involvement in an alleged Maoist conspiracy that led to the Bhima Koregaon incident. Despite his own challenges, Swamy dedicated much of the past decade to advocating for the rights of under-trial prisoners from the Adivasi and indigenous communities in Jharkhand.
Throughout his last two years in prison, he expressed gratitude in personal correspondence for the assistance provided by fellow inmates who helped him with tasks such as walking, washing, and eating, as these became increasingly difficult for him to perform.
Image: CJP
Hany Babu
Status: Detained
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)
Location: Taloja Central Jail, Mumbai
Hany Babu, an Associate Professor at the University of Delhi, and a prominent anti-caste activist, was the 12th person to be arrested in relation to the Elgar Parishad violence. Known for his strong advocacy of Dalit rights and the Reservation Policy, Hany Babu has consistently denied any involvement in the case. Last year, his residence in Noida was raided by the police, who confiscated his laptop, mobile phone, electronic devices, and books related to the G.N Saibaba Defence Committee. He has been vocal about inadequate implementation of the Reservation Policy in prestigious institutions such as IITs and DU. Dr. Hany Babu MT has also received an honorary doctorate from the Ghent University of Belgium.
Speaking to the Caravan in November 2019, Dr Hany Babu MT raised thought-provoking questions about the definition of being “anti-national.” He questioned whether questioning certain things automatically labels someone as anti-national and emphasised the need to understand who defines the concept of the nation. Hany Babu shared these thoughts just after the NIA raided his home and a few months prior to his unjust arrest.
Image: SabrangIndia.com
Anand Teltumbde
Status: On bail.
Charges: Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)
Location: Taloja Central Jail, Mumbai
Anand Teltumbde is a prominent academic and writer and columnist renowned for his fearless criticism of the Narendra Modi government. Through his column ‘Margin Speak’ in the Economic and Political Weekly, he has voiced strong opinions on issues like social welfare, communal harmony, and the persecution of social activists. Teltumbde has dedicated his writings to advocating for Dalit rights and the anti-caste movement in India. Currently serving as a Senior Professor and Chair of Big Data Analytics at the Goa Institute of Management (GIM), he remains an active contributor to the Economic and Political Weekly and participates in various organisations, including the Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights and the All India Forum for Right to Education.
Teltumbde was also among a group of 16 activists, academics, and lawyers who were arrested in connection with the violence that occurred in Bhima Koregaon village near Pune on January 1, 2018. Despite others being granted bail primarily on medical or procedural grounds, according to Scroll.in, Teltumbde became the first individual in the case to receive bail based on the merits of the case itself.
Image: The Polis Project
Kabir Kala Manch Members:
Sagar Gorkhe
Ramesh Gaichor
Jyoti Jagtap
Driven by his passion for poetry and theatre, he found solace in the Kabir Kala Manch, a cultural organisation founded by artist Amarnath Chautaliya as a response to the Gujarat riots. Through songs, poems, and street plays, the young members of the group sought to promote communal harmony and unity. Despite declining numbers over time, Gaichor and a dedicated few persisted, transforming the Manch into a prominent progressive socio-cultural movement in Pune. Their platform focused on raising awareness about casteism, patriarchy, communalism, farmer distress, and various forms of extremism.
The Kabir Kala Manch was among the 250 Dalit and human rights organisations that jointly organised the Elgar Parishad event in Pune on December 31, 2017. On September 7 2017, Gaichor and his Kabir Kala Manch colleague, Sagar Gorkhe, were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence. The NIA also took Jyoti Jagtap, another member of the Manch, into custody the following day.
Just prior to their arrest, Gaichor and Gorkhe made a Facebook video in which they claimed that the NIA was pressuring them to provide false statements to incriminate the arrested individuals in the case. They alleged that they faced threats of arrest if they refused to cooperate and act as witnesses during the interrogation.
Image Courtesy: Siddhesh Gautam
