The Pune Police on Tuesday raided rights activists and academicians across the country and arrested five top activists, while raiding the houses of a host of others. A brief profile of the activists
Varavara Rao
A renowned Telugu poet and writer, he founded Virasam (Revolutionary Writers' Association) and is also known for espousing radical causes. A vocal advocate of tribal rights, he has been arrested by successive governments for his views
Vernon Gonsalves
He is a writer, social activist and trade unionist, who was arrested in 2007 under similar charges. The security agencies had filed 20 cases against him, of which he was acquitted in 17. He was formerly a professor at a prominent Mumbai college
Sudha Bhardwaj
A trade union activist, lawyer and visiting professor at the National Law University, Delhi, she is also the national secretary of the People's Union for Civil Liberties. She holds a mathematics degree from the prestigious IIT Kanpur
Arun Ferreira
A human rights activist and lawyer, who was arrested on charges of sedition under the UAPA in 2007. In 2012, he was acquitted and released
Gautam Navlakha
He is a human rights activist, a member of People's Union for Democratic Rights, a journalist (formerly editorial consultant with the journal Economic & Political Weekly). In 2011, he was refused entry into Kashmir at Srinagar airport and was forced to return to Delhi
Anand Teltumbde
He is a civil rights activist and a noted columnist. He teaches data analytics at the Goa Institute of Management. His latest book Republic of Caste on the dalit movement in India, was released recently
