We live in a legal system that promotes the idea of innocent until proven guilty, but as one Supreme court observation notes that under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act or the UAPA, jail is the rule, while bail is only an exception.In the past five years, UAPA was invoked several times to suppress any form of dissent. Although many a time, the cases registered were bizarre in nature, like the way 10 Kashmiri men were booked under the law for playing cricket in the memory of a slain militant or the case of Siddique Kappan, where he was booked for wanting to report the 2020 Hathras rape case.In Episode 4 of The Wire’s new show, ‘Spotlight’, we understand the UAPA, its history and how the 2019 amendment of the law has pushed India’s legal justice system on the brink.In the video, we delve into the evolution of the UAPA in India, highlighting its colonial roots and subsequent amendments in 2004, 2008, 2012, and particularly the significant changes made in 2019 under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.It focuses on how the UAPA, originally intended to combat terrorism, has expanded to suppress dissent, with instances of its alleged misuse leading to the wrongful incarceration of individuals. Through examples like Umar Khalid’s case and statistics revealing a high rate of acquittals, the video also focuses on the human cost of draconian laws.You can watch episodes 1, 2, and 3 here, here, and here.
