The civil rights movement in India has emerged as an autonomous voice in defense of civil liberties and democratic rights of our people. The Peoples Union for Democratic Rights, Delhi, is one such organisation. It came into existence in 1977 as the Delhi unit of a larger national forum, PUCLDR, and became PUDR on 1 February, 1981.
Remembering Stan Swamy (26 April 1937 – 5 July 2021)
The state persecuted Stan Swamy under the UAPA, a punishment that precipitated his death as an undertrial in judicial custody. Stan Swamy was framed, fettered, and finally forced towards a fatal illness under due process of law called the UAPA. The charges levelled reveal the state’s deep prejudice against an upright activist who spent decades in building and empowering Adivasi rights against historic neglect and exploitation. Stan Swamy’s persecution under the UAPA offers an understanding of how many others have been similarly punished by the state for their dissenting politics.
Prior to his incarceration, Stan Swamy’s failing health was well-known, but he was not granted even medical bail let alone regular bail. The NIA and the prison authorities refused to acknowledge the deterioration that he suffered in prison, and they failed to uphold his rights as a prisoner, a right to decent health care and facilities.
Read: Framed to Die: The Case of Stan Swamy at Framed_to_
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Latest Press Statements
PUDR release its report, ‘Another Weapon in the Arsenal: A critique of the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Act, 2026 and the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Act, 2026’
People's Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR)’s report, ‘Another Weapon in the Arsenal: A critique of the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Act, 2026 and the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Act, 2026’ examines two laws...
Khurram Parvez and Irfan Mehraj granted bail under strict conditions
PUDR welcomes the release of Khurram Parvez and Irfan Meharaj on bail but is alarmed at the restrictive and unreasonable bail conditions set forth in the order of the trial court. The NIA has registered two cases against Khurram Parvez, an activist with decades of...
Release of PUDR Report – REDDENING THE GREEN: COSTS, CONTEXTS, AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE WAR IN BASTAR (2024-2026)
This report presents an account of 27 months of Operation Kagaar – security operations conducted jointly by the central and state governments between January 2024–March 2026 with the professed object of complete elimination of ‘Naxalism’ or ‘Left-Wing Extremism’....
Release of two reports concerning mohalla violence and politics of communal state actions in Nand Nagri and Uttam Nagar
On February 17, 2026, around 5.30 pm, a 41-year-old man, Umardeen was shot dead near the Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya in Nand Nagri’s Block B by Sunil Sardar, a resident of the same block. A driver by profession, Umardeen supported his wife and five children in a small,...
नंद नगरी और उत्तम नगर में मोहल्ले की हिंसा की वारदातें और सरकारी कार्रवाई में सांप्रदायिक राजनीति से जुड़ी दो रिपोर्ट जारी
17 फरवरी 2026 को शाम करीब 5:30 बजे, नंद नगरी के ब्लॉक B में सर्वोदय बाल विद्यालय के पास, उसी ब्लॉक के रहने वाले सुनील सरदार ने 41 साल के उमरदीन की गोली मारकर हत्या कर दी। उमरदीन पेशे से ड्राइवर थे और नंद नगरी के ही पास के ब्लॉक C में एक छोटे से किराए के घर में अपनी...
Latest Publications
Another Weapon in the Arsenal: A critique of the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Act, 2026 and the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Act, 2026
This report examines two laws enacted by the recently elected BJP-led West Bengal government. The report highlights how the two laws that came into force on 13th July, construct a coercive apparatus that reaches deep into the ordinary civic and political life of the...
REDDENING THE GREEN: Costs, Contexts and Consequences of The War in Bastar (2024-2026)
On 24 August 2024, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the deadline of 31 March 2026 for the complete eradication of Naxalism from the country. This report presents an account of 27 months of Operation Kagaar – security operations conducted jointly by the central...
नन्द नगरी में उमरदीन की हत्या
समाज में आमतौर पर होने वाले आपसी विवादों/ झड़पों या मतभेदों को साम्प्रदायिक राजनीति के लिए चारागाह बनाने की दो मिसालें है- नंद नगरी और उत्तम नगर हस्तसाल जे जे कालोनी की घटना। साम्प्रदायिकता का मुख्य औजार लोगों को एक दूसरे के साथ घुलने मिलने की सामाजिक प्रक्रिया को...
उत्तम नगर में संवैधानिक मशीनरी के साम्प्रदायिकरण की मिसाल
समाज में आमतौर पर होने वाले आपसी विवादों/ झड़पों या मतभेदों को साम्प्रदायिक राजनीति के लिए चारागाह बनाने की दो मिसालें है- नंद नगरी और उत्तम नगर हस्तसाल जे जे कालोनी की घटना। साम्प्रदायिकता का मुख्य औजार लोगों को एक दूसरे के साथ घुलने मिलने की सामाजिक प्रक्रिया को...
Delhi 1984: The Long Aftermath – 41 Years of Criminal Injustice, Apathy, and Struggle of Survivors
The anti-Sikh violence in Delhi that followed the assassination of the then PM Indira Gandhi on 31 October 1984, resulted officially in 2733 persons murdered though unofficial figures were much higher. It lasted between 31 October and 10 November, 1984, with the...
Latest Prison projects
Testimony of Atikur Rahman
On October 5, 2020 the UP Police detained the four—social activist Atikur Rahman, journalist Siddique Kappan, student Masud Ahmed and Alam, the driver—at Mant Toll Plaza PS, a little before Mathura. They were arrested on their way to Hathras to show solidarity with...
Living Inside Tihar
This piece is a glimpse into the everyday life of people living in Tihar jail in Delhi and how they access to the most basic daily requirements. It is based on a series of interviews by PUDR in the months with three persons about their time in Tihar’s undertrial ward....
Testimony of Prashant Rahi
Prashant Rahi spoke with PUDR on a series of phone calls following his release from prison in March 2024. His testimony, reproduced with only stylistic edits, draws attention to the multiple challenges of incarceration in prisons and the presence/absence of judicial...