Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are facing accusations of using strong-arm tactics to suppress political opponents and critics. Many officials from the Congress Party, the main rival of Modi's party, are under investigation or in jail. The government claims that the investigating agencies are independent and that the country's democratic institutions are strong.
FILE - Lawmakers from India 's opposition parties protest against the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi outside the parliament in New Delhi, India , March 24, 2023. – India n Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government are increasingly wielding strong-arm tactics to subdue political opponents and critics of theagainst many officials from its main rival, the Congress Party , but few convictions.
Dozens of politicians from other opposition parties are under investigation or in jail. And just last month, Modi’s governmentThe Modi administration says the country's investigating agencies are independent and that its democratic institutions are robust, pointing to high voter turnout in recent elections that have delivered Modi's party a clear mandate.and what is at stake in an election that begins April 19 and runs through June 1, the AP spoke with a lawyer, a journalist, and an opposition politician.The 65-year-old lawyer from India's financial capital Mumbai is now working on one of his – and the country’s – most high-profile cases: defending a dozen political activists, journalists and lawyers jailed in 2018 on accusations of plotting to overthrow the Modi government. The accusations, he says, are baseless – just one of the government’s all-too-frequent and audacious efforts to silence critics.and longtime civil rights activist, died at age 84 after about nine months in custody. The other defendants remain in jail, charged under anti-terror laws that rarely result in convictions. “First authorities came up with a theory that they planned to kill Modi. Now they are being accused of being terrorist sympathizers,” he said.According to digital forensics experts at U.S.-based Arsenal Consulting, the Indian government hacked into the computers of some of the accused and planted files that were later used as evidence against them. He sees threats to Indian democracy all around him. Last year, the government removed the country’s chief justice as one of three people who appoint commissioners overseeing elections; Modi and the opposition leader in parliament are the others. Now, one of Modi’s cabinet ministers has a vote in the process, giving the ruling party a 2-1 majority.Waheed-Ur-Rehman Para, 35, was long seen as an ally in the Indian government’s interests in Kashmir. He worked with young people in theand preached to them about the benefits of embracing India and its democratic institutions – versus seeking independence, or a merger with Pakistan., though, Para was viewed with suspicion by the Modi government for alleged connections to anti-India separatists. Since then, he has been: in 2019 on suspicion that he and other political opponents could stoke unrest; and in 2020 on charges of supporting militant groups -- charges he denies. The accusations stunned Para, whose People’s Democratic Party once ruled Kashmir in an alliance with Modi’s party. But he believes the motivation was clear: “I was arrested to forcibly endorse the government’s 2019 decision,” he said, referring to a clampdown on the resistance inModi's administration argues the move was necessary to fully integrate the disputed region with India and foster economic development there. After his 2020 arrest, Para remained in jail for nearly two years, often in solitary confinement, and was subjected to “abusive interrogations,’’ according to U.N. experts. “My crime was that I wanted the integration of Kashmir, not through the barrel of the gun,” said Para, who is seeking to represent Kashmir's main city in the upcoming election. Para sees his own plight within the larger context of the Modi government’s effort to silence perceived opponents, especially those with ties to Muslims, who make up 14% of India’s population. “It is a huge ethical question … that the largest democracy in the world is not able to assimilate, or offer dignity to, the smallest pocket of its people,” he said.In October 2020, independent journalist Sidheeq Kappan was arrested while trying to report on a government clampdown in the northern Uttar Pradesh state ruled by Modi’s party. For days, authorities had been struggling to contain protests and outcry over a gruesome rape case. Those accused of the crime were four upper caste Hindu men, while the victim belonged to the Dalit community, the lowest rung of India's caste hierarchy. Kappan, a 44-year-old Muslim, was detained and jailed before he even reached the crime site, accused of intending to incite violence. After two years in jail, his case reached India’s top court in 2022. While he was quickly granted bail, the case against him is ongoing.“Those who have tried to be independent have come under relentless attack by the government,” he said. Foreign journalists are banned from reporting in Kashmir, for example. Same goes for India’s northeast Manipur state, which has beenIndependent TV stations have been temporarily shut down, and newspapers that run articles critical of Modi’s agenda find that any advertising from the government – an important source of revenue – quickly dries up.Kappan said he has barely been able to report news since his arrest. The trial keeps him busy, requiring him to travel to a court hundreds of miles away every other week. The time and money required for his trial have made it difficult for him to support his wife and three children, Kappan said.Associated Press writers Piyush Nagpal and Subramoney Iyer in Kerala, India, contributed to this report. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. 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