Arrests in Noida workers’ protests ‘illegal’, say activists

The Uttar Pradesh police crackdown in connection with the workers’ protest in Noida, which saw incidents of violence on April 13, was “illegal” and “extrajudicial”, with those arrested denied their legal rights and lawyers who went to meet them also detained, activists and advocates alleged at a media briefing at the Press Club of India in the Capital on Sunday.

On April 13, the workers’ protest, primarily driven by demands for higher wages and improved working conditions, also witnessed incidents of vandalism, following which the police apprehended over 350 workers, alleging that “external elements” were fuelling the violence through social media.