India had little choice but to engage Iran. It was more necessity than principle. But even in global politics, abandoning friends when it matters most undercuts any claim to moral leadership. That’s not what a “vishwaguru” looks like. consortiumnews.com/2026/04/13/w...

"I can send my daughters to study abroad, but we can’t move to any posh or even middle-class society in the rest of Ahmedabad" In a city set to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, segregation & Islamophobia shape everyday life #fieldnotes article14.substack.com/p/field-note...

On Ram Navami, a gory tableau of a fridge, with a woman's dismembered body & blood dripping out “This is to show where women will end up in pieces if they trust Muslim men.” How the birth of Lord Rama is celebrated in India today. article-14.com/post/late-ni...

#UmarKhalid case shows that questioning the govt is criminalised & treated as an attack on the country: a dangerous conflation 50 people were killed in the riots. They, & all of us, deserve the truth, based on an honest investigation/ evidence, not a predetermined

📣 Missed our webinar 'Justice on hold: Umar Khalid's story of Resistance' with Hannah van Dijcke (@hrf.org), Dr Banojyotsna Lahiri and Betwa Sharma (Article 14) ? You can watch the full recording on our YouTube channel 👉🏽 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jt8A... !

The war on Iran has exposed the fragility of BRICS as a rising alternative to the U.S.-led global order Under pressure, it looks less like a unified bloc & more like a group with overlapping interests that diverge sharply under pressure. consortiumnews.com/2026/03/26/i...

A Minnesota family rewrote “San Francisco” after ICE agents fatally shot two protesters, with the line “There comes a time, it will be beyond repair.” In India, that time appears to be here already, writes @betwasharma.bsky.social For our edit notes, subscribe article-14.com/subscribe

"I had decided to construct the school on my private land so that my village can progress and some people can study." Abdul Naeem spent about ₹20 lakh building a school for village children in Madhya Pradesh. What followed: Madrasa rumours and a demolition indianexpress.com/article/indi...

"We are being punished because of our identity. If the Supreme Court won’t spell it out, it serves no purpose" 3.5 years on, the petition against the demolition of her family home remains unheard. Afreen Fatima on documenting 53 more cases & why they won't stop article-14.com/post/her-hom...

5+ years in pre-trial detention Fabrications, poor evidence & investigation —all ignored Umar Khalid & Sharjeel Imam denied bail By allowing endless punishment, the courts have enabled the government’s silencing of Muslim voices & ensuring no more emerge article-14.com/post/how-the...

"We are being punished because of our identity. If the Supreme Court won’t spell it out, it serves no purpose" 3.5 years on, the petition against the demolition of her family home remains unheard. Afreen Fatima on documenting 53 more cases & why they won't stop article-14.com/post/her-hom...

5+ years in pre-trial detention Fabrications, poor evidence & investigation —all ignored Umar Khalid & Sharjeel Imam denied bail By allowing endless punishment, the courts have enabled the government’s silencing of Muslim voices & ensuring no more emerge article-14.com/post/how-the...

From 2019: "Muslims ask for their basic rights through the Constitution? Where does it say in the Constitution that Hindus can live w/o fear, but Muslims cannot?” Danish, Mohammad Akhlaq's son, who underwent 2 brain surgeries "If I live in fear, that is no life. I want to live with a free heart"

"I was barred from walking on common land, accessing water and the community toilet" Wife of a #Dalit Christian, whose corpse was ‘converted’ to #Hinduism, faced exclusion before burial in Odisha, a pattern of burial denial under the BJP Read our #fieldnotes article14.substack.com/p/field-note...

From 2019: "Muslims ask for their basic rights through the Constitution? Where does it say in the Constitution that Hindus can live w/o fear, but Muslims cannot?” Danish, Mohammad Akhlaq's son, who underwent 2 brain surgeries "If I live in fear, that is no life. I want to live with a free heart"

"There was no time to say anything to them. I was thinking how can I save my face. I was thinking how can I stay alive." Read Danish’s account of the brutal assault on him and his father, Mohammad Akhlaq, who was lynched by a Hindu mob on 28 September 2015. UP has moved to withdraw the case.

“Where is the justice?” “I feel as if something will break in our country and we will not be able to fix it.” Danish said this in 2019, 3.5 years after a mob beat him senseless and lynched his father, Mohammad Akhlaq. 10 years on, UP moves to drop the murder case www.huffpost.com/archive/in/e...

5–5.5 yrs jailed w/o trial – ignored Bail pleas pending 3+ yrs – ignored Appeal for parity – rejected Prosecution's claims – accepted unchallenged No evidence – unexamined Read our report on why denying bail to Muslim activists defies law, facts & fairness www.article-14.com/post/how-the...

"very disturbing read" "complete breakdown of criminal justice" "Over 80 dates & more than 3.5 yrs of this matter pending" Delhi HC order rejecting bail for Muslim activists, jailed for 5+ years w/o trial, was met with shock & horror @betwasharma.bsky.social reports article-14.com/post/how-the...

5–5.5 yrs jailed w/o trial – ignored Bail pleas pending 3+ yrs – ignored Appeal for parity – rejected Prosecution's claims – accepted unchallenged No evidence – unexamined Read our report on why denying bail to Muslim activists defies law, facts & fairness www.article-14.com/post/how-the...

The political prisoners India's justice system is letting languish for years in prison without bail or trial on behalf of the state.

🧵After 5 years in jail without a trial, Umar Khalid was today denied bail by the Delhi High Court in the Delhi riots case invoking terror charges Revisit our reports that show how the case against him and the other anti-CAA activists denied bail today is without evidence and politically motivated

Our story on Suleman, lynched after he was seen talking to a Hindu girl, has struck a nerve, reaching hundreds of thousands of people. He was a kind, community-minded Muslim who called his Hindu friends "jaan" Still, hate didn’t spare him. @betwasharma.bsky.social Subscribe article-14.com/subscribe

"He trusted them more than anyone" Last week, we reported that Suleiman Pathan led Ganpati celebrations in his village in Maharashtra and cherished his friendships with Hindus. But some of those very friends were part of the mob that killed him. article-14.com/post/-in-a-m...

🧵After 5 years in jail without a trial, Umar Khalid was today denied bail by the Delhi High Court in the Delhi riots case invoking terror charges Revisit our reports that show how the case against him and the other anti-CAA activists denied bail today is without evidence and politically motivated

Reminder: Over a month on, the Delhi High Court has yet to deliver its bail verdict (reserved on 9 July) for anti‑CAA activists—Umar Khalid, Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam, Khalid  Saifi & others—jailed for close to/more than 5 years without trial in a Delhi riots case

Reminder: Over a month on, the Delhi High Court has yet to deliver its bail verdict (reserved on 9 July) for anti‑CAA activists—Umar Khalid, Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam, Khalid  Saifi & others—jailed for close to/more than 5 years without trial in a Delhi riots case

The SC judgement goes against the constitutional value of compassion under Article 51A(g), the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, the doctrine of stare decisis “to stand by things decided”, the procedural fairness of audi alteram partem—“hear the other side” article-14.com/post/law-com...

Requesting help in spreading the word so that his thanks reached the Muslim duo who brought his son's body to the hospital amid the India-Pakistan conflict, Sanjeev Bhargav said, “I’d like to ask them to visit our home so we can thank them properly" #fieldnotes article14.substack.com/p/field-note...

Please take a moment to read this alarming and heart-wrenching story by @syed_affan__ about a Rohingya refugee who is currently facing the possibility of endless detention, even after the Patna High Court passed two orders for his release.

"the justice system is a joke" "I feel suffocated" Despite 2 Patna High Court orders to release, a Rohingya refugee jailed in Bihar for 7 years. @syed_affan__ reports this shocking case of judicial and bureaucratic negligence that could lead to indefinite detention article-14.com/post/despite...

"Many of us still choose to ignore that in 2025, Dalits are attacked for entering temples, riding an Enfield motorcycle, growing handlebar moustaches or loving a person of choice," @priyaramani.bsky.social writes in this week's edit note on censorship To read, subscribe article-14.com/subscribe

“Everything is the same as the first day. Nothing has changed" Gulfisha Fatima's brother to @betwasharma.bsky.social as activist is jailed without trial for 5 yrs, bail plea in Delhi riots case pending before the Delhi High Court for 3 yrs in violation of SC orders article-14.com/post/activis...

“There is pain. There is hope she'll come back. We have no choice but to wait." Gulfisha Fatima's brother to @betwasharma.bsky.social as activist jailed w/o trial for 5 yrs, bail plea in Delhi riots case pending before high court for 3 yrs in violation of SC orders article-14.com/post/activis...

5 years in jail without a trial Bail pending for 3 years before Delhi High Court Bail plea heard twice before two benches Her plea is being heard for a third time before a third bench Activist Gulfisha Fatima's brother tells us: "We have no choice but to wait" article-14.com/post/activis...

"Outrageous" Gulfisha Fatima’s bail plea has been pending for 3 years before the Delhi High Court. She has been jailed without a trial for 5 years. This means the 32-year-old activist has spent more time in jail, with bail pending before a constitutional court article-14.com/post/activis...

In saying "dusri taraf Muslim", BJP leader Kapil Mishra made the "distinction of us & them", noted Delhi judge who ordered the first FIR against the law minister in connection with the Delhi riots @betwasharma.bsky.social writes about the judges who hold the line article-14.com/post/how-a-f...

In saying "dusri taraf Muslim", BJP leader Kapil Mishra made the "distinction of us & them", noted the Delhi judge who ordered the first FIR against the law minister in connection with the Delhi riots Read abt the few good judges holding the line in challenging times article-14.com/post/how-a-f...

"Demanding #education is not anti-national." PhD scholar Ramadas PS to @itsswati.bsky.social, as TISS, #Mumbai suspended him for 2 yrs in 2024 for joining a protest on education policies. On 12 March 2025, the Bombay HC dismissed his suspension challenge. youtu.be/XR1rC2eKgFc

The ideal of the apolitical citizen, who participates in politics once every 5 years & returns to a political quarantine, benefits those in power. Kunal Kamra's Naya Bharat calls on Indians to reclaim politics, writes Kavitha Iyer To read, subscribe article-14.com/subscribe

In a functioning democracy, judges fulfilling their responsibilities should not be the stuff of headlines. But when this occurs today, amid extraordinary legal harassment, it elicits an audible gasp & admiration for the courageous judge. Subscribe to read out weekly edits article-14.com/subscribe

The MP police staged a dramatic kilometer-long parade through Damoh’s streets, flogging the five Muslim men. Videos of the spectacle showed them visibly terrified, limping, and wincing in pain, forced to chant slogans as they stumbled forward. ICYMI: article-14.com/post/cow-sla...

In a functioning democracy, judges fulfilling their responsibilities should not be the stuff of headlines. But when this occurs today, amid extraordinary legal harassment, it elicits an audible gasp & admiration for the courageous judge. Subscribe to read out weekly edits article-14.com/subscribe

Considering how difficult it can be to achieve justice in cases when the ruling party desires a specific outcome, it is rare to encounter orders & judges who adhere strictly to the law, writes @betwasharma.bsky.social. She tells us of those who do. To read, subscribe article-14.com/subscribe

"I became a street vendor" "I have no future here" "The feeling of being useless despite years of hard work is crushing" "I feel like a failure, even though I know I'm not" Highly qualified youth who cannot find work speak of their pain, frustration & helplessness article-14.com/post/street-...

Justice Atul Sreedharan accused the government of trying to "psychologically overawe" the courts by claiming national security, nationalism, allegiance to Pakistan, radical Islam & secession of J&K rather than focusing on the facts of the case. article-14.com/post/in-line...

"The cow is our mother The police are our father Hail mother cow" These were the slogans that the Madhya Pradesh police forced five Muslim men accused of cow slaughter to chant as they flogged and paraded them in the quiet town of Damoh.

As a Delhi judge orders an investigation into the alleged role of the Delhi minister in the Delhi riots, our report on how the police have shielded him despite an incendiary speech/eyewitness complaints. This shows arbitrary application of the law based on identity article-14.com/post/how-kap...

"No, please don’t ask them anything" Hindu vigilantes attacked a Muslim student on a college campus in Maharashtra. Read Kunal Purhoit's #fieldnotes on why the student wanted to be shielded from the police, the same police entrusted with protecting the victim. article14.substack.com/p/field-note...

Shah said his heart sank, but he resisted, telling the men he would not show them his ID card and he was not legally bound to do so. “If you claim Kashmir is part of India, why can’t Kashmiris work in India,” he told them. Kashmiri shawl sellers share harrowing accounts of attacks/living in fear.