Is UAPA Process The Punishment? In 7 Yrs, 72% Acquitted!

by GoNews Desk 2 years ago Views 5257

In 2014-20, 10,552 UAPA Cases, 72% Acquitted
There have been unimpeded arrests and detentions under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or UAPA during the seven years of the Modi government. Recently, 102 individuals, among the journalists, activists, and influencers, were booked under this act for writing and posting about anti-Muslim violence in Tripura.

10,552 people had been arrested under this law over the pat seven years. Of these, only 253 people have actually been convicted. This number does not include recent arrests and convictions.


Between 2014-2020, there were 985 cases registered under UAPA on average per year, while pending cases have increased by an average of 14.38% every year. In these seven years, an average of 40.58% cases were sent to trial but the trial could be completed in only 4.5% of the cases.

No Mention Of UAPA Before 2014!

As reported by a fact-checking website, there was no mention of UAPA crimes in data released by the NCRB between 2010-13. The preponderance of arrests and detentions under UAPA has only increased post 2014. The website Factchecker cites NCRB data to state that there were 6,900 arrests under the UAPA between 2014-20. This is an average of 985 cases per year. Within these seven years, maximum, i.e., 1,226 cases, were registered in 2019, a year of tumultuous mass protests against the CAA, NRC and NPR, among other issues.

Before this, there were 1,182 cases registered in 2018. In 2020, there was a 35% drop in UAPA cases registered, and a total of 796 cases were registered. Please not that these are only the number of cases registered, and that each case may have multiple accused individuals.

 

 
The report by Factchecker presents astounding figures. Although the government is on a spree to arrest and detain people under the law, the pendency and conviction rates of the same cases show that most of these arrests run up against a dead end.

It has been alleged many times that the Centre has used the law as an underhanded method of suppressing dissent and diverting attention, and the report attempts to provide substance to this accusation.

Between 2017-2020, 165 cases on average were registered every year, representing 16% of all the cases filed during this period. An average of 1,834 cases were sent to trial annually between 2014-2020, the time period of the Modi-led BJP (NDA) government. This represented 40.58% of the total cases facing trial. The significant point is that trial could be completed in only 4.5% of such cases.

 

 
72% Acquitted After Facing UAPA Charges In Court

‘Completion of trial’ means that the accused individual is either found guilty, acquitted, or set free from incarceration. Of the completed trials under the UAPA between 2014-20, 72.4% of accused were acquitted, while only 27.5% were found guilty. In these seven years, 493 people were acquitted, 57 were released, and 253 were found guilty.

At 2,158 arrests, Manipur leads the country in arrests under UAPA, followed by Uttar Pradesh (1,400) and Assam (1,003). All three of these states are ruled by the BJP.

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