As a preventive measure, police have asked the Amnesty International India to keep its office in Bengaluru closed till the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) protests subside.
The ABVP had lodged a complaint against Amnesty after its event on highlighting the plight of Kashmiri families had ended in slogans of ‘Azaadi’ (freedom). The police have filed a sedition case against the rights group.
With the possibility of protests outside its headquarters in Bengaluru, Amnesty closed its office there and asked employees to work from other locations on Thursday.
A spokesperson for Amnesty said the 86 employees working in the city had been asked to work from their homes. “The police are also gauging the situation, and will inform us when it would be safe to go back to our workplace. It may take until Monday to get a clearer picture,” said the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, there is no clear evidence yet of sedition or “anti-national activities” by Amnesty, said Karnataka Director-General and Inspector-General of Police Om Prakash on Thursday.
“There is no evidence yet against the organisers. But in the first information report [FIR], the complainant has not mentioned any specific name. We are still examining the video footage,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an event, organised by the Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissionerate.
