When a workers’ protest is branded a conspiracy, who pays for it, and who walks free?
It has been nearly six months since the workers’ protest in Noida. While our lives have moved on, many workers and activists detained on mere suspicion by the police remain behind bars.
A quick recap for those who lost track. In April, workers in Noida’s industrial belt went on strike asking for a wage hike that was long overdue. On April 13, the fourth day, the largely peaceful mobilisation turned violent. What followed was a series of illegal detentions and arrests across months.
At least 155 workers and activists were arrested by the UP police, many under multiple FIRs. The draconian National Security Act was invoked against two of them.
The police called it a larger “conspiracy” and centred their investigation on one WhatsApp group. So, when a workers’ protest is branded a conspiracy, who pays for it, and who walks free?
We are Samra and Tulip, and this is our first investigative story. One of us is still a student; the other has just graduated. For more than three months, we went through hundreds of pages of FIRs, chargesheets, case diaries and bail orders. We navigated courtrooms, lawyers’ chambers, and even chased cops across police stations to find answers, learning to handle the quirks of policemen on the side.
We found that police suspicion and scrutiny did not apply equally to all. At least two government agents in that WhatsApp group sent provocative messages on the day of the violence. Yet, one was not investigated by her colleagues in the UP police, and the other was arrested only when the judiciary raised uncomfortable questions.
Read the story to find out how the two escaped police scrutiny: The Government Agents of Violence in Noida
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