Shila Bewa
Shila Bewa is a human rights defender who campaigns against state atrocities including extrajudicial killings. She is also an active member of Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), a human rights NGO based in West Bengal that documents and investigates alleged state atrocities committed in and around the Indo-Bangladesh bordering districts of West Bengal. Shila Bewa started her campaigning after her husband, Imajuddin Mondal, was killed by a Border Security Force (BSF) personnel on 17 April 2015. She continues to be steadfast in her struggle to seek justice for her husband’s murder notwithstanding the repeated threats she has received from the police and the severe economic hardship she has faced since her husband’s death.
Human rights defenders in India face a diverse range of attacks and harassment from state and non-state actors alike, including killing, physical assault, arbitrary detention, threats and judicial harassment. Police officials are often the perpetrators of violence against HRDs, which is usually carried out with impunity.
