GULFISHA FATIMA

As a Muslim student activist, Gulfisha became involved in peaceful women-led protests in Selampur, in the North-East of Delhi, for religious freedom and secularism in India.

In 2019, she joined nationwide protests against the Citizen Amendment Act, a new piece of discriminatory legislation which effectively denies Muslims from abroad the right to claim citizenship in India.

On 9 April 2020, she was arrested under First Information Report (FIR) 48/2020 for her role in the protests in Jaffrabad and charged with rioting, among other charges. These were followed up with further charges under FIR 59/2020, accusing her of instigating the 2020 riots in Delhi, and was charged under India’s Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).She was accused of rioting, “promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony”, unlawful activities, terrorist acts and conspiracy, among other charges. In July 2020, she was charged yet again under FIR 83/2020 and FIR 50/2020.

Currently detained in Tihar jail in Delhi, there have been multiple delays and obstacles to securing her release on bail. She has previously been granted bail related to some of the charges against her but could not leave detention because of the remaining charges under UAPA. Her bail petition has been listed between 30 and 60 times, and despite hearings being concluded, the court failed to deliver a final judgement. The recent transfer of judges by the Supreme Court has led to a newly appointed bench to hear the cases again in 2024. 

UN human rights experts have called on the Indian government to release Gulfisha from detention, stating that her arrest was politically motivated and designed to silence criticism against the BJP-led government. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom considers her a prisoner of conscience.

She has been in detention for nearly four years.

Gulfisha’s case is part of a growing pattern of attacks against human rights defenders and religious minorities by the Indian authorities.

The South Asia Justice Campaign calls for her immediate release, as well as the release and protection of many other human rights defenders who have been targeted for exercising their right to freedom of speech and freedom of religion.