Arresting Teltumbde was to silence Dalit voices
In the arrest case of Dalit thinker Anand Teltumbde, state and central government have been rapped on the knuckles really good. The police forcibly arrested Teltumbde on the wee hours last week. They arrested him and produced him before the court.
But the Court called this arrest ‘illegal’ and contempt of court, ordering for his immediate release. Teltumbde has been given immunity for four weeks from arrest. The court also said his arrest can be ordered only by Bombay High Court or Supreme Court after his bail application was cancelled. The issue of why the state hurried over his arrest by the police, while grossly misinterpreting the court rule, is worth pondering over now.
Anand Teltumbde has worked in various sectors. He was an engineer by profession and worked in prestigious positions in many private sector companies in both India and abroad. He is also known for his work in education sector, and as an activist for human rights.
His writings around the time when barbaric attack on dalits happened in Khairlanji ensured the issue got international focus. He is working relentlessly to spread Ambedkar’s thoughts and messages across the country as part of his commitment to preserve the country’s constitution. He is a public person, and not the one who would work underground or clandestinely over anything.
Today, the police are not interested in catching those who are spreading communal wildfire, lynching persons and creating chaos in the society. At the same time, the police are in great hurry to put a rational thinker, who has not committed a single crime, behind bars. What is the reason for this? What would the country gain if Teltumbde is called an ‘urban naxal’ and jailed?
Arresting him would be part of a bigger scheme of silencing voices that speak the language of dissidence in the society. This in real sense would be a loss to democracy. Hence the police wants to hold him captive so that the operation to shut the mouths of democratic voices can begin full force. If there was not an immense political pressure, his arrest wasn’t so inevitable despite the court order.
This Dalit Vijayotsava is not a new event that’s happening in Koregaon. This day marks the victory of 500 Mahar Dalits against casteist Peshwas. That day the Peshwa rule ended forever. Ambedkar set the practice of Koregaon Vijay Diwas. If all those who gather to celebrate Koregaon Vijay Diwas, the very first person as per the police department to earn this title would be Ambedkar. The police have always been against Koregaon Divas.
Sangh Parivar created a situation where a planned ruckus would break out at the time of celebration. Sangh leaders desecrated the burial site of Mahar Dalit which was right next to Sambhaji’s cemetery.
Their intention was to instigate the Dalits. Dalit leaders and followers held their composure. The police even have a video of the entire duration of speeches made at the event. It should have had records of instigative speeches if any were made. There’s nothing as such.
How does then one become responsible for the violence at the event or after that? At the same time, there are witnesses to prove Sangh Parivar attacked the Dalits. Yet, none of the main accused have been arrested.
Even those who were arrested have been released without delay and it is important to note that all of them have criminal backgrounds. But the police are blind to such truths and are targeting social activists time and again.
Teltumbde had not even participated in this programme and yet was targeted. So the motive is pretty clear here. Koregaon Vijayotsava is the main problem for the police and the state. Now the Peshwa bloodline is ruling the state of Maharashtra. This Vijayotsava is an indirect rap to them.
But the government has no power to stop the celebrations. If that’s done, the Dalits would rise against the government. And the Dalit leaders cannot be arrested directly. As a result, the organisers were called ‘Urban Naxals’ and allegations were made against them that they had plotted to kill the PM. Subsequent to that, their arrest was arranged for.
State hopes to finish all Dalit leaders who participate in Koregaon Vijay Diwas by way of arresting them one after another. They are trying to hold this shield of Urban Naxals and attacking the Dalits at the very root of their self respect.
Teltumbde may have escaped an arrest right now. But the police wont spare him for too long. This is the first attack on silencing the dalits. If the dalits do not come together to protest against this they won’t be able to save their own lives in the future.
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Citizens’ Collective launches national campaign, urges EC to ensure electoral transparency
New Delhi: A collective of concerned citizens, civil society organisations, and technical experts has launched a nationwide campaign for accountability in the electoral process, raising serious concerns over the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the lack of transparency in the conduct of elections.
Coordinated by the platform ‘Vote for Democracy,’ the group has submitted a detailed memorandum to the ECI, reiterating six key demands aimed at restoring public faith in the electoral system. The memorandum comes in the wake of mounting scepticism around the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and allegations of procedural manipulation, particularly after recent elections in Haryana, Maharashtra, and Delhi.
Among the central questions posed in the memorandum are:
- Why are the complete past and present voters’ lists not available in a searchable database on the ECI website?
- Why are Forms 17C, which record the number of votes polled, and other aggregate voter count data not publicly accessible in a digital format?
- Why is there no transparency in publishing Forms 9, 10, 11, 11A, and 11B that document additions and deletions in the voter rolls?
- Why is the EVM source code not open for public inspection to ensure software integrity?
- Why is there no full disclosure of Symbol Loading Unit (SLU) contents with oversight from independent technical experts?
- Why are VVPAT slips not counted in their entirety, and why can voters not verify and deposit the slips themselves?
The group has termed India’s current electronic voting system as semi-automated and riddled with vulnerabilities, demanding immediate systemic reforms. The six specific demands include:
1. Making all voter rolls—past and present—searchable and publicly accessible online.
2. Publishing Form 17C data from each booth and constituency in a searchable format.
3. Releasing Forms 9, 10, 11, 11A, and 11B detailing voter roll revisions.
4. Making the EVM source code open-source for public and expert scrutiny.
5. Publishing SLU contents and allowing monitoring by independent technical experts.
6. Restoring the integrity of the voting process by allowing voters to physically verify and deposit their VVPAT slips, followed by 100% slip counting. Final vote tallies, they argue, should be based solely on these physical paper records.
The memorandum, endorsed by 83 prominent individuals including former civil servants, judges, computer scientists, journalists, and grassroots activists, highlights concerns over the increasing opacity in electoral procedures. Among the signatories are MG Devasahayam, former IAS and Army officer; computer science experts Madhav Deshpande and Professor Harish Karnick; Justice D. Hariparanthaman and Justice B.G. Kolse Patil (retired High Court judges); Aruna Roy (Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan); Venkatesh Nayak (CHRI); Anjali Bhardwaj; E.A.S. Sarma, IAS (Retd); Teesta Setalvad; Prashant Tandon; and Raju Parulekar.
The signatories cited a recent CSDS survey that shows only 28% of Indians trust the ECI today, indicating serious democratic backsliding. They criticised the Commission’s perceived closeness to the political executive and its reluctance to act against violations of the Model Code of Conduct, including hate speech during elections.
During a recent three-hour national consultation with people’s organisations and civil society groups, participants highlighted the urgent need for systemic reform and greater transparency. State-wide consultations with expert committees are expected to follow.
Participants raised serious concerns over the integrity of voter rolls. In Maharashtra alone, 37 lakh new voters were reportedly added in the five months leading up to elections, without a credible explanation from the ECI. Similar concerns about large-scale voter additions and deletions have been flagged in states like Haryana, Delhi, and West Bengal.
The campaign aims to create national consensus around the need to replace EVMs with paper ballots, citing growing public mistrust. It seeks to address all facets of electoral conduct, from the misuse of the Model Code to the manipulation of voter lists, demanding a level playing field for all political actors.
The memorandum calls on the Election Commission to open itself to dialogue with citizens, technical experts, and political stakeholders. It warns that continued silence or inaction will deepen the erosion of public confidence in India’s democratic institutions.
The nationwide campaign is being led by several prominent voices including MG Devasahayam (Citizens Commission on Elections) and Teesta Setalvad (Vote for Democracy). A detailed programme outlining the next steps of the campaign is expected to be released shortly.
