New Delhi: Over 350 Indian academics, researchers, legal experts, artists, and civil society members issued a statement on Thursday, June 1, strongly condemning the interrogation of researcher, author and activist Dr. Navsharan Singh by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Singh was summoned under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and interrogated on May 10. She was an active supporter of and participant in the farmers’ protests, which led to Prime Minister Narendra Modi rolling back three contentious farm laws his government had introduced. She is also on the board of Aman Biradari, a trust headed by rights activist Harsh Mander.
“Dr. Navsharan Singh’s elongated interrogation by the ED appears to follow a pattern similar to the questioning of many other academics and human rights activists in recent years, wherein the constitutional rights of citizens and their legitimate critical evaluation of state policies and practices are sought to be curtailed. The PMLA is a dark spot on Indian democracy,” the statement said.
It also emphasised that Singh is a scholar of the highest integrity and a well-known researcher in the fields of agriculture, women’s rights, farmers and peace. Her work has called for policy attention to the struggles of poor farmers, forest dwellers, Dalit women and other underprivileged communities.
The signatories pointed out that “government policies have themselves emphasised the economic and social inclusion of India’s poor and marginalised”, hence Dr Singh “should be seen as furthering these very objectives”.
Noting that the PMLA “is a dark spot on Indian democracy”, the signatories urged the government and the ED to cease the persecution of eminent scholars who have upheld constitutional values.
The full letter and the list of signatories are reproduced below.
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We, the undersigned, strongly condemn the recent interrogation and intimidation, without any specific charges, of Dr. Navsharan Singh by the Enforcement Directorate under the PMLA.
Dr. Singh is a scholar of the highest integrity. She is a well-known researcher in the fields of agriculture, women’s rights, farmers and peace. She has written extensively on informal sector workers, MSMEs, agrarian change, and the vulnerability of internally displaced people affected by sectarian violence. Her work has called policy attention to the struggles of poor farmers, forest dwellers, Dalit women and other underprivileged people to eke out sustainable livelihoods.
Government policies have consistently emphasized the economic and social inclusion of India’s poor and marginalized. Dr. Singh, in highlighting their struggles based on her laborious and insightful fieldwork, should be seen as furthering these very objectives. It is not possible to make relevant policies without critical analysis.
Dr. Singh is excellently placed to provide such analysis. She holds an MA and PhD from Carleton University – one of Canada’s top universities — and was honoured by the University in 2017 as one of its 75 most distinguished alumni. She has also worked at Rohtak University, the National Council for Applied Economics Research (NCAER), and the International Development Research Council, before resigning from IDRC in 2021 to pursue her research more consistently.
Dr. Navsharan Singh’s elongated interrogation by the ED appears to follow a pattern similar to the questioning of many other academics and human rights activists in recent years, wherein the constitutional rights of citizens and their legitimate critical evaluation of state policies and practices are sought to be curtailed. The PMLA is a dark spot on Indian democracy.
As academics, scholars, researchers, and concerned citizens we stand in solidarity with Navsharan Singh and others who have upheld constitutional values and the rights of India’s underprivileged.
We call upon the government and the enforcement agencies to cease their unwarranted persecution. Our eminent scholars are India’s pride and need to be treated as such.
Signed/-
Complete list of signatories by broad professional categories:
| Sr no. | Name | Designation |
|---|---|---|
| ACADEMICS AND RESEARCHERS | ||
| 1 | Ravi Srivastava | Professor (Retd.), Delhi |
| 2 | Bikramaditya Choudhary | Professor, Delhi |
| 3 | Bina Agarwal | Professor, Delhi |
| 4 | B S Butola | Professor, Delhi |
| 5 | Rekha Rajan | Professor (Retd.), Delhi |
| 6 | Mridula Mukherjee | Professor (retired), Delhi |
| 7 | Harbans Mukhia | Former Professor and Rector, Delhi |
| 8 | Lakhwinder Singh | Professor, Patiala |
| 9 | Zoya Hasan | Professor Emerita, Delhi |
| 10 | S. D. Muni | Professor Emeritus, Delhi |
| 11 | Ranjit Singh Ghuman | Former Professor & Head, Patiala |
| 12 | Surinder Kumar | Professor (Retd.), Rohtak |
| 13 | Dr Kesar Singh Bhangoo | Former Dean & Professor, Patiala |
| 14 | Padmini Swaminathan | Independent Researcher, Chennai |
| 15 | Sucha Singh Gill | Professor (Retd.), Patiala. |
| 16 | Dr Sukhwinder Singh | Professor (Retd.), Patiala |
| 17 | Dr Gurjit Singh Bhathal | Assistant Professor, Punjab |
| 18 | Harjit Singh | Professor (Retired), Delhi |
| 19 | Anuradha chenoy | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 20 | Sumangala Damodaran | Professor, Delhi |
| 21 | Praveena Kodoth | Professor, Trivandrum |
| 22 | Baldev Singh Shergill | Assistant Professor, Punjab |
| 23 | Ira Bhaskar | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 24 | Chaman Lal | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 25 | Surajit Mazumdar | Professor, Delhi |
| 26 | Baldeep Singh | Professor (Retd.) |
| 27 | Sucharita Sen | Professor, Delhi |
| 28 | Brahma Prakash | Assistant professor, Delhi |
| 29 | Pramod Yadava | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 30 | Asha Puri | Teacher (Retd) |
| 31 | Atiya | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 32 | Chirashree Das Gupta | Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 33 | Milap Sharma | Professor |
| 34 | Dharminder Singh | Professor |
| 35 | Amit Thorat | Assistant Professor |
| 36 | Ritu Dewan | Professor & Director (Retd), Mumbai |
| 37 | Achin Vanaik | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 38 | Balbir Singh Butola | Professor, Delhi |
| 39 | Peggy Mohan | Professor, Delhi |
| 40 | Ravi Duggal | Public Health Researcher |
| 41 | Sharmila Purkayastha | Independent Scholar |
| 42 | Avinash Kumar | Academic, Delhi |
| 43 | Aasha Kapur Mehta | Professor, Delhi |
| 44 | Seema | Independent researcher |
| 45 | Moushumi Basu | Academic, Delhi |
| 46 | S. Sauel Asir Raj | Professor |
| 47 | Kishor Jose | Faculty, Gujarat |
| 48 | Vibhuti Patel | Teacher (Retd) |
| 49 | Sushil Khanna | Professor (Retd), Calcutta |
| 50 | Mumtaz Khan | Former Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 51 | Anita Rampal | Educationist |
| 52 | Dilip Simeon | Research scholar |
| 53 | Vikas Rawal | Professor, Delhi |
| 54 | Romar Correa | Independent Researcher |
| 55 | Sandhya Kumari | Professor |
| 56 | Shipra Nigam | Research Scholar |
| 57 | Nandita Narain | Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 58 | Indu Agnihotri | Researcher |
| 59 | Wandana Sonalkar | Professor (Retd), Mumbai |
| 60 | Dr. Rosemary Dzuvichu | Professor, Nagaland |
| 61 | Indira Krishnaswami | Retired educationist |
| 62 | Susie Tharu | Professor (Retd), Hyderabad |
| 63 | Shamsul Islam | Former faculty, Delhi |
| 64 | Rama Melkote | Professor (Retd), Hyderabad |
| 65 | Ravinder Goel | Retired teacher, Delhi |
| 66 | Meera Velayudhan | Policy Analyst |
| 67 | Ashwini Deshpande | Professor, Delhi |
| 68 | Achin Chakraborty | Professor, Kolkata |
| 69 | Raina Ghosh | Research Scholar, Delhi |
| 70 | Sonali Bhatia | PhD Scholar, Delhi |
| 71 | Sachidanand Sinha | Former Professor, Delhi |
| 72 | Anvita Abbi | Professor, Delhi |
| 73 | Shireen Moosvi | Professor (Redt), Delhi |
| 74 | Paromita Sen | Research Director |
| 75 | Lakshmi Lingam | Professor (Retd), Mumbai. |
| 76 | Satyaki Roy | Associate Professor |
| 77 | Jeemol Unni | Professor of Economics, Ahmedabad |
| 78 | Pramod Kumar | Academic |
| 79 | Rakhi | Associate Professor |
| 80 | Narasimha Reddy D | Professor (Rtd), Hyderabad |
| 81 | Meera Samson | Researcher |
| 82 | Bir Singh | Associate Professor |
| 83 | Rohit Azad | Academic, Delhi |
| 84 | Naushad Ali Azad | Professor (Retd) |
| 85 | Manmohan Singh | Professor of English ( Retd.), Patiala |
| 86 | Harish Dhawan | Academic, Delhi |
| 87 | Dr. Neelu | Assistant Professor |
| 88 | Aparajay | Scientist |
| 89 | Lata Singh | Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 90 | Udaya Kumar | Academic, Delhi |
| 91 | D. K. Lobiyal | Professor |
| 92 | Jeroo Mulla | Sophia Polytechnic |
| 93 | Sushama Jain | Retired Professor, Delhi |
| 94 | Santosh Das | Academic, Delhi |
| 95 | Anita Dighe | Retired Professional |
| 96 | Paaritosh Narh | Faculty, APU, Bangalore |
| 97 | Saswata Ghosh | Researcher, Kolkata |
| 98 | Yogendra Samyak | Assistant Professor |
| 99 | Siva Prasad Rambhatla | Retired Professor, Hyderabad |
| 100 | Atanu Sengupta | Professor |
| 101 | Neeraj Malik | Retired Professor, Delhi |
| 102 | Jaya Mehta | Researcher |
| 103 | Amita Pitre | Independent Researcher and Development Practitioner |
| 104 | Manjeet bhatia | Independent academic |
| 105 | Beena PL | Professor, Trivandrum |
| 106 | Shinu Varkey | Assistant Professor & Head, Economics, Kerala |
| 107 | Ajmer Singh Kajal | Professor, Delhi |
| 108 | Vyjayanti Raghavan | Retd Professor |
| 109 | Surinder Kumar | Professor |
| 110 | Jaspal Bhatia | Retd college teacher, Amritsar |
| 111 | Dulali Nag | Retired Academic |
| 112 | Namita Ranganathan | Delhi University |
| 113 | Madhumati Dutta | Retired Professor and Dean |
| 114 | Madhura Swaminathan | Professor, Bengaluru |
| 115 | Rajinder Chaudhary | Former Prof of Economics, Rohtak |
| 116 | Kulwant Nehra | Faculty |
| 117 | Sunil | PGT ECO |
| 118 | Mukesh | Principal |
| 119 | Tapasi Biswas | Associate professor |
| 120 | Surasri Chadhuri | Associate Professor, Kolkata |
| 121 | Rukmini Bhaya Nair | Professor, Delhi |
| 122 | Saroj | Professor, Haryana |
| 123 | Rajeev Bhargava | Professor, Delhi |
| 124 | Somjita Laha | Independent Researcher |
| 125 | Surinder S. Jodhka | Professor, New Delhi |
| 126 | Deepa Kumari | Principal Retd |
| 127 | Paramita Roychowdhury | Associate Professor |
| 128 | Aasha Ramesh | Women Rights Researcher |
| 129 | Prof Santosh Mehrotra | Researcher |
| 130 | Pramod Gouri | Associate professor (Retd.) |
| 131 | Kavita Sharma | Retired Professor |
| 132 | Hema Swaminathan | Professor, Bengaluru |
| 133 | Manoranjan Mohanty | Professor (Retd), Delhi |
| 134 | Govind Kelkar | Independent Academic |
| 135 | Sujata Patel | Retd Professor, Hyderabad |
| 136 | J Devika | Feminist Scholar |
| 137 | Radhika Chopra | Professor [Retd], Delhi |
| 138 | Rahul Lahoti | Researcher |
| 139 | Mariam Dossal | Prof of History (Retd), Mumbai |
| 140 | Rajesh | Academic, Rohtak |
| 141 | Vinoj Abraham | Professor, Thiruvananthapuram |
| 142 | Rajni Palriwala | Professor |
| 143 | Ayesha Kidwai | Professor, Delhi |
| 144 | Shalmali Guttal | Researcher |
| 145 | Soma Kishore Parthasarathy | Independent researcher |
| 146 | Ameet parameswaran | Academic, Delhi |
| 147 | Indira Hirway | Professor of economics |
| 148 | G Arunima | Professor and Director, KCHR, Thiruvananthapuram |
| 149 | Narendra Panjwani | Research Scholar |
| 150 | Arun Kumar | Retd. Professor |
| 151 | Radhika singha | Professor (Retd) |
| 152 | Parnal Chirmuley | Academic, Delhi |
| 153 | Patricia Uberoi | Professor (Retd) |
| 154 | Ranjani Mazumdar | Professor |
| 155 | ameet parameswaran | Academic Delhi |
| 156 | Shikha Jhingan | Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 157 | Bishnupriya Dutt | Professor, Delhi |
| 158 | Sarmistha Nath | Associate Professor |
| 159 | Riaz Ahmad | Professor, Delhi |
| 160 | Rama V. Baru | Professor, Delhi |
| 161 | Bidisha Dhar | Assistant professor, Tripura |
| 162 | Shikha Jhingan | Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 163 | Vijay Kumar Yadavendu | Associate Professor |
| 164 | Nilanjana Sengupta | Researcher & Teacher, Bengaluru |
| 165 | Ranjana | Retd. Prof.of History, Allahabad |
| 166 | Prabha Krishnan | Women’s Studies Scholar |
| 167 | Dr Ajay Kumar Meena | Professor, Rajasthan |
| 168 | Vikas Bajpai | Assistant Professor, Delhi |
| 169 | Nivedita Menon | Professor, Delhi |
| 170 | Pradip Datta | Retired Professor, Delhi |
| 171 | Vijay Kumar Yadavendu | Associate Professor |
| 172 | Meena Dhanda | University Professor |
| 173 | Bratati Pande | Retd Associate Professor, Delhi |
| 174 | Iqbal Singh | Retd Academic, Delhi |
| 175 | Rupinder kaur | Academic, Delhi |
| 176 | Imrana Qadeer | retired Professor, Delhi |
| 177 | Deepak Mishra | Academic, Delhi |
| 178 | Nira Goyal | Retired academic, Delhi |
| 179 | Ratna Sudarshan | Economist, Delhi |
| 180 | Smitha Francis | Consultant Economist |
| 181 | Jahnvi Andharia | Social scientist, Delhi |
| 182 | Indra Munshi | Social scientist, Mumbai |
| 183 | Sonalde Desai | Demographer |
| 184 | Sudeshna Sengupta | Independent Researcher and Consultant |
| 185 | Anjana Mangalagiri | Retired Academic |
| PROFESSIONALS (law, medicine, development, etc) | ||
| 186 | Amita Joseph | Advocate |
| 187 | Indira jaising | Senior Advocate |
| 188 | Sr.Mary Scaria | Professional |
| 189 | B D Sandhu | Nurse |
| 190 | Deepak Sanan | Retired civil servant |
| 191 | Areet Kaur | Doctor |
| 192 | Ajay Rath | Retired Bank Executive |
| 193 | Sehjo Singh | Development Professional |
| 194 | Parmeeta | Dentist |
| 195 | Adv Dr Shalu Nigam | Lawyer |
| 196 | Dr. P. Prasanthi | Development professional |
| 197 | Ranjana Kanhere | Social worker |
| 198 | Lissy | Social Work |
| 199 | Shilpa Vasavada | Independent professional |
| 200 | Kirti Singh | Advocate |
| 201 | Parvinder Pal | Independent consultant |
| 202 | Flavia Agnes | Advocate |
| 203 | Shah Alam Khan | Professor of Orthopaedics, |
| 204 | Dr Mira Shiva | Public Health Physician |
| 205 | Chakravarty | Advocate |
| 206 | Indu Capoor | Founder Director (Emeritus) |
| 207 | Purvi Vyas | Developmental professional and organic farmer |
| 208 | Satish Agnihotri | Development professional |
| JOURNALISTS, WRITERS, ARTISTS, ETC | ||
| 209 | Pamela Philipose | Independent journalist |
| 210 | Sujit John | Journalist |
| 211 | Arjun Gourisaria | Filmmaker |
| 212 | Satyendra Ranjan | journalist |
| 213 | Joya Roy | Freelance editor |
| 214 | Madhavi Kuckreja | Sanatkada |
| 215 | Ranjita Biswas | Independent journalist |
| 216 | Sheba Chhachhi | Independent Artist/photographer |
| 217 | Rahul Varma | Playwright, Artistic Director |
| 218 | Lola Nayar | Journalist |
| 219 | Samik Bandyopadhyay | Publisher-editor |
| 220 | Ritu Menon | Publisher, writer |
| 221 | Ritambhara Shastri | Journalist |
| 222 | Rukmani Anandani | Writer |
| 223 | Akhileshwari Ramagoud | Journalist and Academic |
| 224 | Vineet Tiwari | Poet, Writer |
| 225 | Urmilesh | Journalist & Author |
| 226 | Sevanti Ninan | Columnist |
| 227 | John Dayal | Writer activist |
| 228 | Lotika Singha | Writer |
| 229 | Rohini Hensman | Writer and independent scholar |
| 230 | Deepa Dhanraj | Researcher/ Filmmaker |
| 231 | Maya Rao | Theatre artist |
| 232 | Laxmi Murthy | Media |
| 233 | Dushyant Arora | Lawyer, Writer, Columnist. |
| 234 | Abha Choudhuri | Freelance cartographer |
| 235 | Rajashri Dasgupta | Independent Journalist |
| 236 | Sujata Madhok | Journalist |
| 237 | Ambika | Freelance editor |
| 238 | Susmita Sinha | Film maker |
| 239 | Pro-People Arts Project media group | Chief editor, Sarokaran di awaz |
| 240 | Neelima Sharma | Nishant Natya Manch |
| CIVIL SOCIETY PRACTITIONERS | ||
| 241 | Chinmayi Naik | National Coordinator, Working Peoples’ Coalition |
| 242 | Jagir Josan | Human rights |
| 243 | Dave Duhre | Punjabi Thinkers Forum |
| 244 | Maimoona Mollah | AIDWA, Delhi |
| 245 | Renu Khanna | Feminist Policy Collective |
| 246 | Dr. Punyabrata Gun | Shramajibi Swasthya Udyog & Swasthya Shiksha Nirman |
| 247 | Poonam Kaushik | Pragatisheel Mahila Sangathan, Delhi |
| 248 | Joyanti Sen | Sachetana |
| 249 | Amiya kumar Mohanty | Joint Forum for Movement on Education, National Convenor |
| 250 | Kanupriya | Activist |
| 251 | K.Sajaya | Women and Transgender organizations JAC |
| 252 | Tejaswini Madabhushi | Hyderabad for Feminism |
| 253 | S.L.padma | IFTU |
| 254 | Madhuchhanda Karlekar | Sachetana feminists |
| 255 | Maria Tabassum | Telangana for Peace and Unity |
| 256 | Jasveen Jairath | Progressive Farmers Front |
| 257 | Ramesh Dixit | Samvidhan Bachao Desh Bachao Abhiyan, Uttar Pradesh |
| 258 | Renuka Mishra | Civil society |
| 259 | Nisha Agrawal | Former CEO, Delhi |
| 260 | Sharanya Nayak | Rangmatipadar Adivasi commune |
| 261 | Rajaraman Sundaresan | Rangmatipadar Adivasi commune |
| 262 | Gade jhansi | Progressive organisation of women, Telangana state president l. |
| 263 | Rachana Mudraboyina | Transgender people rights activist |
| 264 | Anuradha De | Director, CORD |
| 265 | Suneeta Dhar | Activist |
| 266 | Afaque Azad | Bharat Bachao Aandoln |
| 267 | Vivekanand Tripathi | Social media Activist |
| 268 | Chandan Kumar | Labour Rights Activist |
| 269 | Ajit Patil | CPI ML Liberation |
| 270 | Amita | AIDWA, Haryana |
| 271 | Himmat Singh Ratnoo | Former Secretary, Teachers’ Association |
| 272 | Dr V Rukmini Rao | Feminist Activist |
| 273 | Naresh Prerna | Convenor, Jatan Natya Kendar, Haryana |
| 274 | Sukla Sen | Peace Activist |
| 275 | Sangam Tripathy | Advisor, Indian Federation of App based Transport Workers |
| 276 | Sushovan Dhar | Labour activist |
| 277 | Virendra Singh Malik | CITU State Committee |
| 278 | Sagari Ramdas | Veterinary Scientist, Food Sovereignty Alliance |
| 279 | Shaik Salauddin | State President |
| 280 | Dunu Roy | Civil society |
| 281 | Anil Chaudhary | Chief Educator, PEACE |
| 282 | Dr. Ashish Mital | General Secretary, AIKMS |
| 283 | Kavita Srivastava | PUCL |
| 284 | Ranbir Singh Dahiya | EC member HGVS |
| OTHER CONCERNED CITIZENS (across the country) | ||
| 285 | Sudhir Katiyar | |
| 286 | Sumitra | |
| 287 | Ranjan Chakraborty | |
| 288 | Balbir Rattu | |
| 289 | Pravin Nadkar | |
| 290 | Aishwarya Bhuta | |
| 291 | Selvyn Jussy | |
| 292 | Anna abraham | |
| 293 | Seemantini Gupta | |
| 294 | Anil Rai | |
| 295 | Amit Narkar | |
| 296 | AS Vasantha | |
| 297 | Jyothi | |
| 298 | Gutta jyothsna | |
| 299 | Prachi Jha | |
| 300 | Sangeeta Ghosh | |
| 301 | Madhu Bhaduri | |
| 302 | Azimullah Ansari | |
| 303 | Shantha Sinha | |
| 304 | Jasmine Mann | |
| 305 | Sonal Raghuvanshi | |
| 306 | Naazneen | |
| 307 | Reena Mohan | |
| 308 | Bobby Bhatia | |
| 309 | Dolon Ganguly | |
| 310 | Mukta Naik | |
| 311 | Meenu Vadera | |
| 312 | Claire Noronha | |
| 313 | Kalpana Bandiwdekar | |
| 314 | Gijs Spoor | |
| 315 | Mini Bedi | |
| 316 | Mahnoor | |
| 317 | A.M.Padmanabhan | |
| 318 | Omprakash Kushwaha | |
| 319 | Dev Nathan | |
| 320 | Lalitha Krishna | |
| 321 | Debabrata Pal | |
| 322 | Meghna | |
| 323 | Satish Mohan | |
| 324 | Rakhi Sehgal | |
| 325 | Dhiraj Barman | |
| 326 | Dhruv | |
| 327 | Vanita N Mukherjee | |
| 328 | Swarna Rajagopalan | |
| 329 | Anjali Ojha | |
| 330 | Lourdes Mary S | |
| 331 | Rita Anand | |
| 332 | T bhattacharya | |
| 333 | Amar Jesani | |
| 334 | Sunil Talreja | |
| 335 | Mallarika Sinha Roy | |
| 336 | Tanushree. Gangopadhyay | |
| 337 | Rajeev singha | |
| 338 | Nisha Srivastava | |
| 339 | Sarojini N | |
| 340 | Deepa | |
| 341 | Vijay Lakshmi Dikshit | |
| 342 | Hardeep | |
| 343 | Murad Banaji | |
| 344 | राकेश गर्ग | |
| 345 | pardeep | |
| 346 | Amitgarg | |
| 347 | Karan | |
| 348 | Shweta Damle | |
| 349 | Shambhavi Prakash | |
| 350 | Anita S. | |
| 351-359 | OTHERS | Nine persons |