South Asia Citizens Web

UN proposal condemning "defamation of religion" cements oppressive governments’ control of free speech

In a historic judgement, the Delhi High Court on the 2nd of July 2009 decriminalized homosexuality by striking down section 377 of the Indian Penal Code.

The Section 377 of the IPC as far as it criminalizes gay sex among consenting adults is violation of fundamental rights, said the high court.
Any kind of discrimination is anti-thesis of right to equality, said the court, while allowing plea of gay rights activists for decriminalization of homosexuality. A bench of Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice S Muralidhar said that if not amended, section 377 of the IPC would violate Article 21 of the Indian constitution, which states that every citizen has equal opportunity of life and is equal before law.

Ram Narayan Kumar, one of the finest human rights researcher, activist and campaigner in South Asia, passed away on June 28 at his house in Kathmandu (Nepal). His death at a relatively young age of 54 has sent shock waves among all those struggling for justice and fairness in South Asia.
His first major confrontation with state power was in 1975 when he opposed the authoritarian Emergency regime in India and was imprisoned for 19 months for his political act of defiance to defend (…)

Nothing better illustrates the flaws in our legal and political system than a comparison of the treatment meted out to Binayak Sen in Chhattisgarh and that enjoyed by State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) Sub-Inspector Manohar Kadam in Mumbai.