Stan Swamy

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Stan Swamy was detained and died in state custody for his civil society work helping religious communities.

On October 8, 2020, the National Investigation Agency arrested Swamy, a Jesuit priest and tribal rights activist known for working to protect the rights of Adivasi peoples and Dalits, from his home in Ranchi. Swamy was charged alongside several other prominent Dalit and Adivasi rights activists, whom authorities accused of inciting caste-based violence through speeches on December 31, 2017, that resulted in violent clashes the next day in Bhima Koregaon and neighboring villages in Maharashtra state. Authorities also accused them of having ties to banned Maoist groups. Swamy was reportedly charged under various sections of the Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), including conspiracy (Sec. 120B IPC), “waging, or attempting to wage war, or abetting waging of war, against the Government of India” (Sec. 121 IPC), “conspiracy to commit offences” waging war against the state (Sec. 121A IPC), sedition (Sec. 124A IPC), unlawful activities (Sec. 13 UAPA), terrorist acts (Sec. 16 UAPA), conspiracy (Sec. 18 UAPA), being member of terrorist gang or organization (Sec. 20 UAPA), associating with a terrorist organization (Sec. 38 UAPA), and supporting a terrorist organization (Sec. 39 UAPA).  At the time, Swamy was reportedly the oldest person to be accused of terrorism. He was 83 years old.

Swamy's requests for bail were repeatedly denied, despite his deteriorating health.  Swamy, who suffered from Parkinson's Disease, reportedly became unable to feed and bathe himself. Prison authorities also reportedly denied him basic amenities, such as a straw and sipper, to help with his Parkinson's.

On July 5, 2021, Swamy died in state custody reportedly from cardiac arrest following his contraction of COVID-19 in May 2021.

In August 2021, the National Investigation Agency submitted draft charges to a special court in Mumbai, claiming that Swamy and others accused in the case were active members of the banned terrorist organization Communist Party of India. It also alleged that the accused wanted to establish a “janta sarkar” “via revolution supported by a commitment to protracted armed struggle to undermine and to seize power from the state.” The accused were charged with over a dozen offenses including, "promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony" (Sec. 153A IPC), public mischief (Sec. 505(1)(B) IPC), “waging, or attempting to wage war, or abetting waging of war, against the Government of India” (Sec. 121 IPC), “conspiracy to commit offences” waging war against the state (Sec. 121A IPC), sedition (Sec. 124A IPC), and several sections under UAPA.

In February 2022, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released an opinion, declaring Swamy's detention arbitrary and his death "utterly preventable."

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