India: Umar Khalid’s five-year imprisonment without trial exemplifies derailment of justice

As Amnesty International and six other international human rights organizations released a joint statement calling on the Government of India to immediately release human rights defender and student activist Umar Khalid, ahead of the five-year anniversary of his continued unjust detention without trial, Amnesty India’s chair of the board, Aakar Patel said:

“The Government of India must immediately and unconditionally release human rights defender and student activist Umar Khalid who has been incarcerated for five long years without trial on politically motivated charges. Starved of justice, Khalid’s prolonged persecution exemplifies the derailment of justice in India as it makes a mockery of international human rights principles. The repeated bail denials combined with persistent delays, and the continued absence of trial proceedings, amount to a violation of Khalid’s right to a fair and speedy trial, guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which India is a state party, as well as under the Constitution of India. 

“In India, the overbroad Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) is routinely and selectively used against human rights defenders including journalists, civil society activists and students who remain imprisoned without trial such as Khalid. The application of bail standards in such cases is also discriminatory as similarly situated accused have been granted bail while Khalid continues to be repeatedly denied relief. All this really demonstrates India’s deep fear of human rights defenders like Umar Khalid who dare to dissent.

“Khalid’s detention is not an isolated case and is emblematic of a broader pattern of repression faced by those who dare to exercise their rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. Other students and human rights activists, including Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi, Shifa-ur-Rehman and Meeran Haider, also remain in detention for their peaceful opposition to CAA, while police officials and political leaders responsible for incitement or complicity in violence that followed the anti-CAA protests in 2020 continue to enjoy impunity. These are clear cases of selective prosecution aimed at criminalizing and chilling dissent in India.”

Starved of justice, Khalid’s prolonged persecution exemplifies the derailment of justice in India as it makes a mockery of international human rights principles.

Aakar Patel, Amnesty India’s chair of the board

Background:

In December 2019, the Government of India introduced CAA, which alongside the proposed National Population Register prompted nationwide peaceful protests. In February 2020, communal violence erupted in the context of the protests, leaving 53 dead – 38 of them Muslims – and hundreds injured. The Delhi Police failed to bring perpetrators to justice. Instead, they arrested peaceful protesters, including at least 18 students and activists, the majority of them Muslims, including Khalid. Authorities accused them of instigating violence and conspiring to defame the Indian government. 

Khalid was arrested on 13 September 2020 and subsequently charged under the Indian Penal Code with offences including sedition, murder, promoting enmity between religious groups, unlawful assembly, and rioting amongst others. He was also charged under the UAPA for alleged unlawful and terrorist activities and conspiracy and under the Prevention of Damage to Property Act and the Arms Act.

Over the past five years, his bail applications have been denied at least four times by trial and appellate courts, most recently on 2 September and his petition before the Supreme Court of India was adjourned at least 14 times in eleven months ultimately leading Khalid to withdraw his petition.

On 12 September, a joint statement asking for Umar Khalid’s immediate release was issued by Amnesty International, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Forum Asia, Front Line Defenders, and World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders 

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India: Free Umar Khalid – Stop Invoking Counter-Terrorism Law to Silence Dissent

The undersigned organisations call for the immediate and unconditional release of human rights defender and student activist Umar Khalid, who was arrested on 13 September 2020 on politically motivated and spurious charges, including for alleged terrorism-related offences, and who remains in detention without trial five years later.

In December 2019, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government introduced the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The law discriminates on the basis of religion by explicitly excluding Muslims from expedited access to citizenship and from legislative protection against deportation and imprisonment. The passage of the CAA, alongside the proposed National Population Register, prompted nationwide peaceful protests over fears that millions of Muslims could be excluded in their access to citizenship. These concerns were reinforced by the precedent of a similar exercise previously undertaken in Assam under a BJP-led state government. Khalid had actively voiced his protest against the CAA on X (formerly Twitter) and through his speeches in Delhi, Mumbai and Bihar amongst others.

In February 2020, following legislative assembly elections in Delhi, communal violence erupted in the context of the protests, leaving 53 people dead – 38 of them Muslims – and hundreds injured. The Delhi Police failed to conduct effective investigations and bring perpetrators to justice, thereby fostering impunity. Instead, they arrested peaceful protesters, including at least 18 students and activists, the majority of them Muslims, including Khalid. Authorities accused them of instigating violence and conspiring to defame the Indian government.

Khalid was arrested on 13 September 2020 and subsequently charged under the Indian Penal Code (since replaced by Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita) with offences including sedition, murder, promoting enmity between religious groups, unlawful assembly, and rioting amongst others. He has also been charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for alleged unlawful and terrorist activities and conspiracy, and under the Prevention of Damage to Property Act and the Arms Act. In December 2022, a Delhi court acquitted Khalid in the case involving rioting, property damage, and vandalism. However, he has remained arbitrarily detained – and continues to be detained in Delhi’s Tihar Jail – in connection with the broader conspiracy case under the UAPA, in which eight other activists have also been charged and remain behind bars after having their own bail applications rejected.

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, with its overbroad definition of “terrorist act” coupled with stringent bail provisions and lengthy investigation, contributes to prolonged, and in many cases, indefinite detention, contravening international human rights law guaranteed the right to liberty, including on presumption of innocence and the right to a fair trial. The legislation is rampantly and selectively used against human rights defenders including journalists, civil society activists and students who remain imprisoned without trial such as Khalid. In 2024, the Financial Action Task Force in India’s Mutual Evaluation Report highlighted that the delays in prosecutions under the UAPA are “resulting in a high number of pending cases and accused persons in judicial custody waiting for cases to be tried and concluded.” The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and several independent experts of the United Nations Human Rights Council (special procedures) have consistently raised concerns about the vague and overly broad provisions of the UAPA and its use to criminalise legitimate human rights work in India. They have repeatedly called on the Government of India to end the use of the UAPA to curtail human rights and fundamental freedoms. Amnesty International has also echoed these concerns, noting the poor conviction rate under the UAPA and the prolonged detentions, which illustrate how the process itself has become a form of punishment, and has therefore called for its repeal. However, the Indian authorities have not responded to these calls.

In Khalid’s case, the prosecution has primarily rested the invocation of India’s counter-terrorism law on his speech in the Amravati town of Maharashtra state in India on 17 February 2020 that referred to phrases like ‘inquilabli salam’ (revolutionary salute) and ‘krantikari istiqbal’ (revolutionary welcome). While referring to these phrases, Khalid praised the attendees of the event for daring to peacefully dissent against the discriminatory law in the prevailing political context. This did not constitute incitement to violence in any way, and instead showed Khalid exercising his right to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly.

However, over the past five years, his bail applications have been denied at least four times by trial and appellate courts, most recently on 2 September 2025. His petition before the Supreme Court of India was adjourned at least 14 times in eleven months due to requests for adjournment by the state, scheduling delays, and judicial recusals, ultimately leading Khalid to withdraw his petition. In the latest order denying bail, the Delhi High Court described five years of his pre-trial detention as the “natural pace” of proceedings, despite the fact that the trial has yet to begin and the evidence has not been substantively examined. The Court further characterized Khalid’s speeches, mere membership in WhatsApp groups and his role in mobilising protests as part of a “well-orchestrated conspiracy” without demonstrating substantial links to the incitement of violence. These repeated bail denials combined with persistent delays, and the continued absence of trial proceedings, amount to a violation of his right to a fair trial, including speedy trial, guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which India is a state party, as well as under the Constitution of India.

We are further concerned about the discriminatory application of bail standards in cases arising from the violence surrounding the CAA protests and more broadly in cases involving the UAPA. While similarly situated accused have been granted bail, Khalid continues to be denied relief. Such unequal treatment violates the principle of equality before the law and sets a deeply troubling precedent.

Independent investigations, including by Amnesty International India, Human Rights Watch and Delhi Minorities Commission, have documented the role of the Delhi Police in human rights violations during the CAA protests and the ensuing violence. Police officers were recorded engaging in beatings, torture and other ill-treatment, and arbitrary arrests, and in some cases standing by as mobs attacked protesters. Courts in India have repeatedly criticised the quality of the police investigations, describing them as “very poor,” “callous,” and “fraught with multiple flaws,” and have noted instances of fabricated cases and manipulated records. At the same time, senior political leaders employed inflammatory hate speech, branding protesters as “traitors” or “anti-national” and openly incited violence. Despite the existence of video and documentary evidence, no meaningful accountability measures have been taken against implicated political figures or police officials.

Khalid’s detention is not an isolated case; it is emblematic of a broader pattern of repression faced by those who dare to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and association. Other students and human rights activists, including Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam, Khalid Saifi, Shifa-ur-Rehman and Meeran Haider, also remain in detention for their peaceful opposition to the CAA, while police officials and political leaders responsible for incitement or complicity in violence continue to enjoy impunity. This selective prosecution erodes public trust in the justice system, entrenches impunity for state actors, and criminalises free expression.

  • Immediately and unconditionally release Umar Khalid and all others detained solely for exercising their rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression;
  • Ensure quality in the application of bail standards and end the discriminatory treatment of human rights defenders;
  • Hold accountable police officials and political leaders against whom there is credible evidence of incitement of and complicity in violence;
  • Repeal the UAPA or amend it to bring it into full conformity with international human rights law;
  • Respect, protect, and promote the rights to liberty, fair trial, freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

SIGNED BY:

Amnesty International

CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation

FORUM-ASIA

Front Line Defenders

International Commission for Jurists

International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

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Türkiye: Crackdown on freedom of expression and assembly exposes troubling pattern of police violence

Responding to the unlawful three-day blanket ban on all protests issued by the Istanbul governor and reports of unlawful use of force by police against protestors, Esther Major, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Research in Europe, said:

“The Turkish authorities’ crackdown on protestors in Istanbul on Sunday and Monday is the latest chapter in an ongoing pattern of police violence that has marred the country for over a decade.

“Blanket bans on protest are a disproportionate restriction on the right of peaceful assembly. Moreover, according to evidence seen by Amnesty International, police used both unnecessary and disproportionate force – deploying water cannons, kinetic impact projectiles and pepper spray against largely peaceful protesters.  

“Turkish authorities must immediately lift the blanket ban and refrain from imposing these bans in future. Authorities have a duty to protect and facilitate the right of peaceful assembly, not to prevent or restrict it. The authorities must also investigate the allegations of unlawful police use of force, bring the perpetrators to justice, and ensure victims receive redress for the harms they were subjected to.”

Background

Last week, an Istanbul court ruled to suspend the Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) Istanbul provincial leadership from duty. The court appointed a temporary board in their place.

On 7 September, the Istanbul governor issued a three day blanket ban on meetings and demonstrations. Hundreds of police officers were deployed to block roads leading to and surrounding the Istanbul headquarters of the CHP. That evening, largely peaceful protesters tried to gather at the headquarters to protest the court order but faced police barriers.

According to internet watchdog NetBlocks, late on Sunday evening internet speed became limited and major social media platforms and messaging services such as X, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and WhatsApp were restricted for at least 21 hours.

According to media reports, a number of protesters were detained.

Three people are also being held in pre-trial detention for their social media posts in relation to the protests. The General Directorate of Security announced that a total of 103 accounts were identified as having shared “provocative and disinformation content.”

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Hong Kong: Rejection of same-sex partnerships bill shows disdain for LGBTI rights

Responding to the Hong Kong legislature’s rejection of a bill that proposed a new legal framework for registering same-sex partnerships, Amnesty International’s Researcher/Policy Advisor on Gender, Nadia Rahman, said:

“Today the Hong Kong authorities failed to address the inequality faced by same-sex couples in all areas of their lives. The proposed bill on same-sex partnerships was flawed, but in rejecting it lawmakers have shown an alarming disdain for LGBTI rights.

“This bill would have provided the bare minimum of protection for same-sex couples – but notably, only those who registered their partnership overseas. On this and other grounds, the draft considered today falls far short of the intentions of the Court ruling that triggered it two years ago.

“Yet even a small step forward in rights for same-sex couples has proved unpalatable to the Legislative Council. It is a setback which shows just how far Hong Kong has to go before everyone in the city can enjoy equal rights.

“The failure of this bill must not be the end of efforts to improve the rights of same-sex couples in Hong Kong. On the contrary, it should be the catalyst for the authorities to produce a stronger bill that enables LGBTI people in Hong Kong to live with equality and dignity.

“Authorities must now urgently introduce a revised bill that establishes a comprehensive legal framework to recognize and protect the rights of same-sex couples, in full compliance with the Court’s ruling. No one should face discrimination because of who they are or whom they love.”

Background

Hong Kong’s Legislative Council today rejected a bill (by 71 votes to 14 with one abstention) that would have established a legal framework for some same-sex partnerships to be recognized.

The framework would have applied only to couples who registered their partnership outside of Hong Kong, providing these couples with limited extra rights solely in relation to medical decision-making and post-death arrangements.

The bill arose from a Court of Final Appeal ruling on 5 September 2023 that the Hong Kong government must establish a legal framework to recognize same-sex relationships, delivering a partial victory for LGBTI rights advocate Jimmy Sham. The Court gave the government a deadline of 27 October 2025 to comply.  

Hong Kong law does not currently recognize same-sex relationships, with same-sex couples not allowed to marry or enter into any form of registered civil partnership.
   
Although Hong Kong courts have in recent years recognized that the denial of rights to same-sex couples is discriminatory, progress to address this issue has been slow. Rulings have extended limited rights to same-sex couples who married or entered civil partnership overseas – such as access to spousal benefits for civil servants and taxation, eligibility for public housing, and access and the right to inherit the estate of a same-sex partner as a spouse/civil partner – but a comprehensive framework has remained absent.

Ahead of the Legislative Council’s vote on the Registration of Same-sex Partnerships Bill, Amnesty International Hong Kong Overseas (AIHKO), along with LGBTI rights groups from across Asia issued a joint letter urgently calling on the Hong Kong government to comply with the Court’s ruling and establish a comprehensive legal framework that recognizes same-sex partnerships.

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Israel/OPT: Israel’s mass displacement order for the entirety of Gaza City is unlawful and inhumane

Israel must immediately rescind the mass displacement order issued by the military to the residents of Gaza City on 9 September as it escalates its assault on Gaza City compounding the suffering of civilians amidst an ongoing genocide, said Amnesty International today.  

The order issued yesterday morning by the Israeli military for the mass displacement of Gaza City residents is cruel, unlawful, and further compounds the genocidal conditions of life that Israel is inflicting on Palestinians.

Heba Morayef, Amnesty International.

“The order issued yesterday morning by the Israeli military for the mass displacement of Gaza City residents is cruel, unlawful, and further compounds the genocidal conditions of life that Israel is inflicting on Palestinians,” said Heba Morayef, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. 

“For the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza City who, for nearly two years, have been enduring relentless bombardment while starved and crammed in makeshift camps or taking refuge in extremely overcrowded buildings, this is a devastating and inhuman repeat of the mass displacement order issued for all of North Gaza on 13 October 2023.” 

Amnesty International has repeatedly and unequivocally stated that forcibly displacing Palestinians within the Gaza Strip or deporting them violates international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity. The organization has collected horrifying testimonies from residents and healthcare workers after the order was issued. Some had already been trying to flee southwards since Israel began striking high-rise buildings last Friday but were unable to do so because they cannot afford transportation costs or because the small area designated by Israel for evacuation is not fit for human habitation. 

A healthcare worker treating children with malnutrition told Amnesty International: “I don’t want to leave my patients, the little children whose bodies are too frail to deal with yet another displacement, but I don’t know what to do. It’s like having to choose between two deaths: death by bombardment or the slow death of displacement, not knowing where to go. I have already been displaced on 15 occasions; I couldn’t sleep a wink for the past few nights because of the heavy bombardment nearby, and we’re still trying to go to our work to treat the children, but we have collapsed.” 

An older woman with disabilities staying at a makeshift camp for internally displaced people in Tal al-Hawa, in southern Gaza City told Amnesty International: “We were displaced from Sheikh Radwan three weeks ago; my son had to carry me on his shoulders because I have no wheelchair and no transportation could reach our area. Now, we are ordered to evacuate again. Where do we go? To secure transportation to the south, you have to pay close to 4,000 shekels [1,000 Euros], and to buy a tent, you have to pay at least 3,000 shekels [800 Euros], and we don’t know if we’ll find any land to pitch our tent on. We had already spent all our savings to survive this war, looking for food and basics. Every day is like the war is starting all over again, only far worse, but we are totally depleted, we have no will or strength to carry on.” 

A grandmother caring for her injured eight-year-old granddaughter, whose parents were killed in an air strike last May, said: “She’s all that I have left, and I have tried everything I can to protect her. We have been displaced twice just in the last week. We don’t have the means to go to the south, and we are tired of being forced to relive this ordeal all over again.” 

The latest displacement order, combined with the expansion of military operations in Gaza, including the destruction of high-rise buildings where thousands of families have been sheltering, is yet another illustration of Israel deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of an already devastated population. That Israel has failed to heed the warnings of humanitarian and human rights groups about the catastrophic implications of this operation, along with its continuous defiance of the orders of the International Court of Justice to ensure that Palestinians in Gaza receive adequate aid and protection is an undeniable indication of its intent to continue its genocide unabated. 

It is unconscionable that states with leverage over Israel continue to provide it with arms and diplomatic support to destroy Palestinian lives.

Heba Morayef.

“Gaza City, which has an ancient heritage that dates back millennia and has already suffered devastating destruction and damage, is now facing complete obliteration. It is evident that Israel is determined in pursuing its goal to physically destroy Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. It is unconscionable that states with leverage over Israel continue to provide it with arms and diplomatic support to destroy Palestinian lives,” said Heba Morayef.  

“Deplorably, companies and investors continue to profit from Israel’s genocide. States and companies that continue to arm Israel risk complicity in genocide All those with influence over Israel must press for an immediate end to Israel’s genocidal campaign and full humanitarian access to Gaza’s civilians.” 

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