Amnesty chair Aakar Patel moves Delhi court after being stopped at airport
Aakar Patel, journalist and chair of human rights watchdog Amnesty International India, on Wednesday (April 6) was stopped at Bengaluru airport from leaving the country.
Patel was to travel to the US to deliver lectures at Michigan University, Berkeley University and New York University.
Also read: Aakar Patel booked over social media remarks
The development comes a week after journalist Rana Ayyub was stopped from travelling to London, due to summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The Delhi High court, however, later allowed her to travel to the UK.
Patel took to Twitter to say that he was informed by the immigration officials that he was on the exit control list and that a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which he wasn’t aware of.
“CBI officer called to say I am on the Look-Out Circular because of the case Modi govt has filed against Amnesty International India,” he tweeted.
CBI officer called to say I am on the Look-Out Circular because of the case Modi govt has filed against Amnesty International India
— Aakar Patel (@Aakar__Patel) April 6, 2022
Patel told The Federal that he got to know about the development only upon reaching the airport, after check-in, at the immigration counter. He said he will take up the issue in a legal way.
Meanwhile, according to a report on the LiveLaw website, a Delhi court has issued a notice to the CBI on the look-out notice after Patel moved the court, seeking permission to travel to the United States and withdrawal of the order. The matter will be heard on Thursday (April 7).
Surat court order
This is in connection with a CBI case filed against Amnesty International India in late 2019 over alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).
The human rights organisation in September 2020 halted its India operations as the government froze all its bank accounts.
“I have presented myself to the CBI whenever they have called me. The last time they called me to question was back in December 2020. After that, there was no communication.” Patel said.
He further shared details of a Surat (Gujarat) court order that has directed that his passport be released from March 1 to May 30 for the purpose of visiting the US.
stopped from leaving india at Bangalore airport. am on the exit control list. Got passport back through court order specifically for this trip to the US
— Aakar Patel (@Aakar__Patel) April 6, 2022
Patel’s passport was impounded in Surat in connection with another case filed against him by a BJP MLA, over his social media comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Ghanchi community.
Patel and his books
The Surat Police arrested him in connection with the case and he was later let out on bail.
Patel, a critic of the Narendra Modi government, has published books on India’s performance under PM Modi and the growth of Hindutva in the country.
Both Patel and Amnesty have been targeted over their works in the past by the ruling dispensation.
In 2016, the Bengaluru police booked Amnesty for ‘sedition’ and for ‘promoting enmity’ when it organised an event to discuss human rights violations in Kashmir.
Again in 2020, a case was registered against Patel for allegedly trying to instigate minority communities in India to protest on the lines of ‘Black Lives Matter’ in the US.
