Sudha Bharadwaj (born 1 November 1961)[2] is a trade-unionist, activist and lawyer who has lived and worked in Chhattisgarh for over three decades. She is an active member of the Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha (Mazdoor Karyakrta Committee).[3]

Sudha Bharadwaj
Bharadwaj in 2020
Born (1961-11-01) 1 November 1961 (age 62)
NationalityIndian
Occupation(s)Trade unionist, activist, lawyer
MotherKrishna Bharadwaj[1]

She was among the activists, lawyers and academics arrested on 28 August 2018 under UAPA in the contentious Bhima Koregaon case. On 8 December 2021, she was granted bail by a special NIA Court.[4]

Life

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Early life

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Sudha was born in Boston and lived in the United States and United Kingdom as a child.[5] Sudha's mother, Krishna Bharadwaj, was a well known academic and economist, who had founded the Centre for Economics Studies and Planning at Jawaharlal Nehru University. At age 11, she moved with her mother to Delhi.[6]

She joined the integrated mathematics (five year) program of IIT Kanpur in 1979.[6] At IIT Kanpur she joined NSS, teaching in the caste-ridden rural neighborhood.[7] After finishing the program at IITK in 1984, she taught at DPS, for a couple of years in Delhi.[7]

Arrest

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On 28 August 2018, along with other lawyers, writers and activists, Sudha was arrested and charged with UAPA in the Bhima Koregaon case.[8][9][10][11][12] A special NIA court granted Sudha Bharadwaj, accused in the Bhima Koregaon violence case, bail, on a surety of Rs 50,000 on 8 December 2021 after an incarceration of over three years.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Row in JNU after Dean replaces speaker invited by centre for economic studies". The Indian Express. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  2. ^ "As Sudha Bharadwaj Spends 4th Birthday in Jail, a Reminder That UAPA Enables Her Incarceration". The Wire. Retrieved 2 December 2021. Sudha Bharadwaj's birthday coincides with the Chhattisgarh state formation day on November 1.
  3. ^ "CMM (Mazdoor Karyakarta Committee) - a political engagement of Sudha Bharadwaj".
  4. ^ "Bhima Koregaon case: How lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj got bail after three years in jail".
  5. ^ Slater, Joanna (28 September 2018). "India's government is arresting lawyers and activists amid accusations of plotting to overthrow Modi". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b Masoodi, Ashwaq (7 November 2015). "This land is your land". LiveMint.
  7. ^ a b Bureau, N. H. S. (9 August 2020). "Sudha Bharadwaj: The lawyer for poor and labourers". National Herald. Retrieved 9 June 2021. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  8. ^ "Why Modi and Shah Took the Bhima Koregaon Investigation Away From Maharashtra".
  9. ^ "Bhima Koregaon Files: The Story Of Nine Activists Being Punished Without Trial".
  10. ^ "Anand Teltumbde: How the police can fabricate evidence to suggest that anyone is an 'urban Maoist'".
  11. ^ "Two years of Bhima Koregaon Arrests by Nihalsing B Rathod".
  12. ^ "Who Is Vernon Gonsalves, the Activist Held for 'Naxalite' Links".
  13. ^ "Sudha Bharadwaj, accused in Bhima Koregaon violence case, released after 3 years in jail". The Printers (Mysore) Private Ltd. Mumbai. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2021.