New Delhi: A group of activists and academics have released a statement in solidarity with Rakesh Ranjan, who was summoned for questioning by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on August 14.Ranjan, who is an associate professor of economics at Shri Ram College of Commerce, is reportedly being investigated in the Bhima-Koregaon case with P.K. Vijayan, another Delhi University teacher, who was also summoned on August 14.The statement pointed out that Ranjan, who had completed his BA from Delhi’s Ramjas College and pursued higher studies in JNU and completed MA and MPhil in Economics from the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, had been felicitated with the Distinguished Teacher Award by the President of India in 2009.The signatories held that Rajan was being “trapped” in a witch-hunt alongside a number of individuals who were “being persecuted on patently false charges related to the Bhima-Koregaon incident”.Also read: Elgar Parishad: NIA Arrests Hany Babu, ‘Pressured Him to Implicate Colleagues, Others,’ Says Wife“The Union Government must stop the deliberate harassment of academics and activists, which is destroying our democracy, violating civil liberties and subverting the Constitutional order,” the statement said, demanding an end to the persecution of innocent persons.The entire text of the statement has been reproduced below:§Statement in solidarity with Rakesh Ranjan issued by Emeritus Professors, Faculty Members & Alumni of Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, JNU and Colleagues of Delhi University on August 15, 2020:“Rakesh Ranjan, Assistant Professor, Delhi University, who is our friend and colleague, was summoned for questioning by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on August 14. According to media reports he is being investigated on the Bhima-Koregaon matter. P K Vijayan, another Delhi University teacher was also summoned on the same case.We know Rakesh from his student days. After finishing his BA from Delhi’s Ramjas College, he pursued higher studies in JNU and completed MA and MPhil in Economics from the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning. While pursuing his PhD on the agrarian transformation of Bihar, Rakesh took up the job of teaching Economics in the Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi. He is an accomplished and popular teacher, always accessible to the students. Rakesh was felicitated with the Distinguished Teacher Award by the President of India in 2009. As close friends and colleagues of Rakesh we know that he has never been involved in any activity which can warrant an investigation by the NIA.It is by now clear that a number of individuals are being persecuted on patently false charges related to the Bhima-Koregaon incident. What shocks us is that someone like Rakesh Ranjan is also being trapped in the same witch-hunt. Not only is he a serious academic and teacher, but also a most generous soul incapable of involvement in any violence. We strongly feel that this cruel persecution of innocent persons should immediately end. The Union Government must stop the deliberate harassment of academics and activists, which is destroying our democracy, violating civil liberties and subverting the Constitutional order. There should not be any further action by any investigating agency against Rakesh Ranjan in this matter.”Signatories:Amit Bhaduri, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityAnamitra Roychowdhury, Delhi UniversityArijit Hajra, CESP, 1997 BatchArundhati Sarkar Bose, CESP, 1997 BatchAtulan GuhaAvanindra Thakur, Jindal Global UniversityBodhisatwa MaityDebarshi Das, CESP, 1997 BatchDeepankar Basu, Umass, AmherstDipa Sinha, Ambedkar University DelhiGogol Mitra ThakurHimanshu, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityIndranil Chowdhury, Delhi UniversityJayati Ghosh, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityMalini Chakravarty, Economist, New DelhiMausumi Das, Delhi UniversityMihir Pandey, Delhi UniversityNalini Nayak, Delhi UniversityPoonam SrivastavaPrabhat Patnaik, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityPrasenjit Bose, CESP, 1997 BatchPraveen Jha, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityPrithviraj Guha, Presidency UniversityPriyanka SrivastavaPulin Nayak, Delhi UniversityRajendra Prasad Kundu, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityRavi GoelRohit Azad, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversitySantanu BasuSaumyajit Bhattacharya, Delhi UniversityShantanu De Roy, TERI UniversityShipra Nigam, Consultant Economist, DelhiSmita Gupta, Economist and activistSoumya Dutta, South Asian UniversitySriparna BandyopadhyaySubhanil Chowdhury, Institute of Development Studies KolkataSumangala Damodaran, Ambedkar University DelhiSumit Sarkar, CESP, 1997 BatchSunanda Sen, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversitySurajit Das, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversitySurajit Mazumdar, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityTaposik Banerjee, Ambedkar University DelhiUtsa Patnaik, Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityUttaran Kundu, CESP, 1997 BatchVijay, Delhi UniversityVijoo Krishnan, Ex-President, JNUSUVipin Negi
