10 Oppn leaders seek accountability for Stan Swamy's death

Blurb: Demand release of persons jailed in Bhima Koregaon case

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 6

Leaders of 10 political parties, including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, have urged President Ram Nath Kovind to immediately direct the government to hold accountable those persons who were responsible for foisting false cases on Father Stan Swamy, his continued detention in jail and his inhuman treatment.

“It is now incumbent that all those jailed in the Bhima Koregaon case and other detainees under politically-motivated cases, be released forthwith,’’ the leaders wrote to the President.

Besides the Congress president, others who signed the joint letter are Sharad Pawar (NCP), Mamata Banerjee (TMC), MK Stalin (DMK), Hemant Soren (JMM), HD Deve Gowda (JD-S), Farooq Abdullah (JKPA), Tejaswi Yadav (RJD), D Raja (CPI) and Sitaram Yechury (CPM).

Tracing his travails, the leaders noted that it was due to the Bombay High Court’s intervention that he was admitted to a private hospital when his condition started deteriorating after he was infected with Covid. “But it was too late to prevent his death in custody,’’ they said.

The central government also came under attack from international human rights organisations, including the UN Human Rights Council whose chief Michele Bachelet as well as the UN’s independent experts have repeatedly raised the cases of Swamy and 15 other human rights activists and called for their release from pre-trial detention.

Nadine Maenza, chief of US Commission for International Religious Freedom; Eamon Gilmore, EU Special Representative for Human Rights, and several UN special rapporteurs described Swamy’s death as “inexcusable’’ and “devastating”.