Human rights defender and trade union leader Anirudh Rajan arrested under anti-terror charges

On 5 September, human rights defender Anirudh Rajan was illegally detained and arrested by the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the Central Crime Branch of Bengaluru Police in Karnataka state. Anirudh Rajan is accused of being a member of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) CPI(M) and charged under the anti-terror legislation, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and other offences. He was presented before the court the following day (6 September) and remanded in police custody for 14 days. He is presently remanded at the Bangalore Central prison.

Anirudh Rajan is a human rights defender and trade union leader who has been actively involved in promoting labour rights in Manesar, Gurugram, Haryana State. He joined the New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI), a federation of independent trade unions in India, in 2017 and is a founding member of the Manesar General Mazdoor Sangh (MGMS), a trade union in Manesar, which is an industrial hub for several multi-national corporations in India. MGMS was founded during the COVID-19 pandemic, when migrant workers in Manesar were compelled to work without wages and confined to living inside factories. Anirudh Rajan was instrumental in educating workers regarding their rights, and advocated against their exploitation. He faced several threats from industrial corporations due to his work. Since 2018 Anirudh Rajan has worked with the Campaign Against State Repression and has participated in campaigns for the releases of jailed human rights defenders including G. N. Saibaba and other Bhima Koregaon detainees.

On 5 September between 9 and 10 am, Anirudh Rajan was stopped by police officers as he was about to board a bus at the Majestic Bus Stand in Bengaluru to Chennai. Police falsely told the human rights defender that he was wanted for questioning in an e-fraud and drug related matter. Despite his objections, the police forcibly detained the human rights defender and held him illegally at a police station for nearly 12 hours before registering a First Information Report (FIR) against him. Anirudh Rajan was denied access to a lawyer despite repeated requests. On 6 September, he was presented before a Magistrate Court, without a lawyer present and remanded in police custody for 14 days.

Anirudh Rajan is accused of raising funds and helping to expand the Maoist network in the Northern states of India. The initial FIR filed on 5 September 2024 includes offences under Section 10 of the UAPA (membership in unlawful organizations), Section 66 of the IT Act (cybercrimes), Section 35 of the Aadhaar Act (unauthorized use of Aadhaar information), and Sections 147 (rioting), 152 (assaulting public servants), 336 (endangering safety), and 340 (wrongful restraint) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. The BNS is the criminal code for India that replaced the Indian Penal Code in 2024. A further offence – section 20 of the UAPA – was added to the FIR by police, after his lawyers filed an application for bail before court.

Anirudh Rajan’s arrest is part of a systemic pattern of reprisals against human rights defenders in India, especially those working for the rights of the most vulnerable communities. The targeting of human rights defenders, which has escalated over the past several months, includes arrest and multiple NIA raids across Delhi, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Front Line Defenders is extremely concerned for the safety of Anirudh Rajan. We believe that his arrest and legal harassment is a direct reprisal for his work concerning labour rights. His work with oppressed communities under extremely difficult conditions should not expose him to unfounded legal cases, deprivation of his liberty and disinformation and labelling as a terrorist. The organisation calls on authorities in India to immediately release him and to drop criminal proceedings against him.