'Around 5,000 migrant workers from Assam and other parts of the country were rounded up in a supposed 'document-verification drive', after a pro-Hindutva organisation alleged that they were illegal immigrants. On Wednesday evening, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Kodagu, Suman D Pennekar issued an order to all police stations in Kodagu to conduct a document-verification drive.
'Earlier this month, a resident of Aglar village (name withheld by request) in south Kashmir’s Shopian district received a call from an Army officer, asking him to deposit his private vehicle at the local Army camp by evening. The man did that, turning over the car’s keys to Army personnel. Next morning, he collected the car. It had been used during the night. His is not a one-off case. In at least two villages of Shopian, residents say it has become a regular practice for the Army to call owners of commercial and private vehicles, and use their vehicles at night — for free.
'An FIR was filed against Magsaysay Award winner and human rights activist Sandeep Pandey for allegedly making inappropriate comments against Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar during his speech at the Aligarh Muslim University. On Tuesday, national vice president of Hindu Mahasabha Rajiv Kumar filed a complaint alleging that Pandey made the comments while addressing anti-citizenship law protestors at AMU on Sunday, police said.
'Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has granted power of detaining authority to the Delhi Police Commissioner under the National Security Act, according to a notification. The NSA allows preventive detention of an individual for months if the authorities feel that the individual is a threat to the national security, and law and order, sources said...'
'While limited Internet and mobile connectivity services have begun in certain parts of the Jammu and Kashmir Union territory, residents will only be able to access 153 government-approved websites. Details of this “whitelist” – which was first announced on January 14, when Internet service providers were ordered to install the necessary firewalls – have now become public.
'...On Wednesday, an order similarly high on rhetoric but low on substance was passed by a court in New Delhi. Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad had been in custody for 25 days for allegedly instigating violence during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Jama Masjid in New Delhi on December 20. He had initially even been denied proper medical attention when in custody, forcing the courts to intervene. He then moved a bail application...
'Even as several groups in Chennai continue to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the City Police Commissioner AK Viswanathan promulgated an order prohibiting all protests, meetings, assemblies etc. for the next 15 dates. The Hindu reported that Monday’s order has been brought into effect under section 41 of the Tamil Nadu City Police Act 1888, which grants police the “power to regulate assemblies, meetings and processions in public places.” The order that is passed will not apply to any procession or demonstration for which permission has already been granted.
'A Delhi court granted bail to Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekar Azad Wednesday in a case related to anti-CAA protests at Delhi’s Daryaganj. While hearing Azad’s bail plea today, Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau imposed certain conditions on his bail and said the Bhim Army chief should not be in Delhi for the next four weeks. The judge expressed concern about security in Delhi given elections are around the corner. “Azad has to mark his presence with SHO in Saharanpur every Saturday for the next 4 weeks.
'The unintended consequence of the Supreme Court’s order on Internet Shutdowns in Kashmir — where it put down accountability norms for Internet shutdowns, and said that some essential websites should be accessible, is that it has given rise to the creation of the Great Indian Firewall: filters that control what users can and cannot access online.
'A publisher-cum-author was evicted from his rented stall at the ongoing 43rd Chennai Book Fair by The Booksellers’ and Publishers’ Association of South India (BAPASI) for “violating rules and displaying for sale a controversial book against the government”. On Sunday, the police arrested V. Anbazhagan, who wrote a book on alleged corruption in the Chennai Corporation’s Smart City project, on charges of criminally intimidating office-bearers of BAPASI on Saturday when the eviction notice was served on him...'
