Arrests – Journalists

Police arrested Jharkhand-based independent journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh on July 17, accusing him of supporting Maoist groups. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Indian Journalists Union (IJU), condemn the arrest and call for the journalist’s immediate release.

According to Singh’s wife, Ipsa Shatakshi, at 5:25 am on July 17 Saraikela Kharsawan district police conducted a 9-hour raid at their home, seizing a bed sheet, a nine-page notebook, a tax invoice for a motorcycle, two mobile phones, one hard-disk, the retail invoice of a car and two laptops, among other personal items.

Immediately following the raid, the police arrested Singh and charged him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and sections of the Indian Penal Code.