PUCL condemns ‘harassment’, ‘malicious FIR’ against human rights activist Nadeem Khan
Bengaluru: The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has condemned the targeted harassment of human rights activist Nadeem Khan, the National General Secretary of the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR), following a "malicious FIR" filed by the Delhi Police. In a statement, PUCL expressed concern over the police's attempts to detain Khan in Bengaluru without any legal warrant or due process.
“PUCL is shocked at the manner in which Delhi Police is conducting a targeted witch-hunt and harassment of human rights activist Nadeem Khan, at the instigation of a few social media accounts on Twitter,” the organisation said. At approximately 5 PM on 30th November 2024, four police personnel, including the Station House Officer (SHO) of Shaheen Bagh Police Station, arrived at a private residence in Bengaluru where Khan was staying. The police attempted to detain Khan “without any warrant or notice.” The officers, who arrived in a "hot haste" without issuing a notice under Section 35(3) or having any authority to arrest, coerced Khan into accompanying them "voluntarily" for an investigation related to an FIR filed earlier that afternoon in Delhi (FIR No. 0280/2024, Shaheen Bagh Police Station).
PUCL further explained, “From 5pm till 9pm, they sat in the hall of the first floor of the house and coerced Nadeem to come to Delhi 'voluntarily' with them under 'informal custody'. It wasn’t until 10:45 PM, after 5.45 hours of badgering Nadeem, that the officials pasted a notice under Section 35(3) of BNSS, asking him to appear at the Shaheen Bagh Police Station.” Despite the minor charges listed in the FIR, including Section 196, 353(2), and 61 (punishable by less than three years), PUCL noted that the law prohibits an arrest under such circumstances, citing the Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar judgment. Despite this, the police persisted with their harassment and intimidation.
PUCL also described the events surrounding the APCR office on 29th November 2024, when 20-25 police officers arrived without providing any legal justification or FIR copy. “The fact that 20 police officials came to the APCR office even before the FIR shows their malicious intent,” PUCL stated. The organisation further condemned the police’s actions and their disregard for due process, calling this a clear attempt to criminalise the exercise of free speech and the advocacy of civil liberties and constitutional rights.
PUCL has demanded that the FIR against Khan be immediately quashed, that the harassment of his family cease, and that compensation be provided for the undue distress. The PUCL also called for an FIR to be filed against the SHO of Shaheen Bagh Police Station for criminal intimidation, trespassing, and harassment.
PUCL Condemns Harassment of and Malicious FIR against human rights activist Nadeem Khan of the APCR by Delhi Police.
— Kavita Srivastava (@kavisriv) November 30, 2024
Demands FIR quashing, Compensation, FIR against the SHO of Shaheen Bagh Police station for criminal intimidation, harassment, trespassing be lodged. pic.twitter.com/zVnJDL2p5O
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Army showcases several AI-driven applications at AI Summit, Rajnath visits pavillion
New Delhi (PTI): From a climatology and diaster prediction system to a device that detects driver's fatigue to avert accidents, the India Army has showcased a slew of artificial intelligence-based applications at the AI Impact Summit here, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visiting the Army pavilion on Friday.
The Indian Navy has also put up a pavilion as part of the summit expo.
The AI Impact Summit is being held from February 16-20 at Bharat Mandapam, in which several heads of state, many global AI leaders, academicians and researchers, and heads of global tech giants, and philanthropists have taken part.
The Army has showcased several AI-based applications at its pavilion in Hall no. 4, and Defence Minister Singh interacted with military officials who gave him a tour of the pavilion, which has attracted both young and old-age visitors.
"Delighted to visit the AI Impact Summit at Bharat Mandapam today. India is rapidly emerging as a global leader in Artificial Intelligence and advanced technologies. The Summit showcases the immense talent of our innovators, researchers, startups, armed forces and industry leaders. India's AI vision MANAV, articulated by PM Shri @narendramodi at #IndiaAIImpactSummit2026, sets humanity’s direction towards a secure and future-ready world," Singh later posted on X.
"Guided by principles of morality, accountability, national data sovereignty, accessibility and robust systems, India is helping shape the next civilisational leap through responsible AI.
"AI is not just a driver of economic growth, but also a force multiplier for national security and good governance. I thank PM Modi for hosting the AI Summit in India. Compliments to the organising Teams and all participants for making this Summit a grand success," he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the summit on Thursday and unveiled the 'MANAV' vision for a human-centric approach and use of AI with a strong accent on sovereignty and inclusivity.
"Army officers and personnel, researchers and scholars, of course have come to our pavillion in the past few days, but youths too are showing keen interest in AI-based military applications. And, today the honourable defence minister visited and showed keen interest in knowing more about these applications," a senior Army official told PTI.
Some of the AI-based applications which have been showcased include 'Prakshepan' a military climatology and diaster prediction system; Xface -- a facial recognition system for rapid image and video-based verification in boosting security and surveillance mechanism; Nabhdrishti -- a telemetry reporting system which can capture positional data, imagery and orientation, "even based on images of an unidentified drone in flight"; and an AI-based device that detects driver's fatigue and alerts the person behind the wheels to avert accidents.
Lt Col A R Packianathan said 'Prakshepan' was launched by the defence minister last November.
The name draws from Sanskrit word 'Prakshepan', which means projection, he said.
At the Army pavilion, a dashboard has been displayed showcasing how the system works, with "near-live data".
"This application is a cutting edge military climatology application developed in-house by the Army's Directorate General of Information Systems. It has been powered by scientific and technical collaboration from several ministries with agencies like India Meteorological Department, National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting, Central Water Commission, North East Space Application Centre, Geological Survey of India and Defence Geospatial Research Organisation," Lt Col Packianathan told PTI at the pavilion.
It has three prediction modules -- prediction of flood, of landslide and of an avalanche.
"This is India's first hybrid military climatology system capable of predicting landslides and avalanches 3-7 days in advance using multi-agency scientific datasets, terrain intelligence, and AI/ML (AI/machine learning) modelling," another Army official said.
The Indian Army in January had declared 2026 as the 'Year of Networking & Data Centricity' and said that this initiative will enhance connectivity, real-time decision-making and combat effectiveness, thereby strengthening resilience and agility for a future-ready force.
In line with the vision, the pavilion also showcases visual representations of Army assets and weaponry using holographic projections.
The Army has said that beyond military use, man of these application can have dual-use and help civilian administration and the masses as well,
So, 'Prakshepan' can provide early warnings to civil administration in remote areas, contributing to national disaster resilience and capacity building, Lt Col Packianathan said.
Similarly, the AI-based device that detects driver's fatigue and alerts the person behind the wheels can help avert accidents on highways for civilian drivers too, another official said.
