India: Indigenous activist arrested after protesting luxury Hyatt hotel project
Dozens of police officers in India have arrested the prominent Indigenous rights activist Pranab Doley, and two other men. Two others surrendered to the court after police came looking for them.
Police surrounded the house where Mr Doley was staying... and took him into custody without an arrest warrant. His arrest, which was caught on camera, comes after years of campaigning against conservation-related human rights abuses, and plans for a five-star Hyatt hotel near the notorious Kaziranga National Park — built on land Adivasi (Indigenous) people have rights to.
As he was being arrested Mr Doley, a member of the Mising Indigenous people, said: “What kind of democracy is this if we are not allowed to raise the voice of the people? The police who came to arrest me didn’t produce any arrest warrant.”
... The planned Hyatt hotel has reportedly led to the eviction of over 45 Adivasi families, and will affect the livelihoods of hundreds more.
... The Greater Kaziranga Land and Human Rights Protection Committee (GKLHRPC) (of which Mr Doley is the convenor) said in a statement “[We] deny these targeted and egregious charges imposed on Pranab Doley and other activists and demand their immediate release.
“We strongly condemn the unlawful treatment meted out to Pranab Doley and other activists. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of the three activists, and that the Assam government stops the harassment of indigenous activists, who have been defending the rights of the affected Adivasi communities.”