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New Delhi: Activists arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police over the labour protests in Noida have told the Supreme Court that police played an active role in inciting the violence that they were held for. 

The Uttar Pradesh police has arrested several labour activists and one senior journalist, Satyam Verma, on allegations of hatching a conspiracy and inciting violence in Noida. Verma and student activist Akriti Choudhury, have been slapped with the National Security Act.

The brother of one of the two arrested activists moved the Supreme Court on May 17, alleging that police itself incited violence and tortured activists in custody.

In a copy of the writ petition accessed by The Wire, filed on behalf of two labour activists, Aditya Anand and Rupesh Roy, the petitioner Keshaw Anand alleges a gross violation of the right to life and liberty. The petitioner also alleges that “the Uttar Pradesh Police is again seeking police custody after almost one month of arrest only for further custodial violence and fabrication.”

‘Police presence in WhatsApp groups’

Annexure 8 in the petition, titled ‘Submission of evidence relating to the role of the police in Noida Violence, to the Uttar Pradesh Police’ is relevant.

 Annexure 8 is an email from Advocate Manik Gupta to Laxmi Singh, Commissioner of Police, Noida, and to Rajeev Krishna, Director General of Police. The advocate states: 

“This is to bring to your notice the involvement of police officials in the Noida workers’ protest. We have evidence that officials of the UP Police were part of one of the workers’ WhatsApp groups,........

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