NEW DELHI: All India Students’ Association (AISA) national president Neha Bora on Saturday criticised the use of peace bonds against protesters, arguing that such measures were being “weaponised” to curb democratic dissent.
Addressing a press conference, Bora said AISA, the student wing of CPI(ML) Liberation, would not participate in what she described as the normalisation of peace bonds, asserting that signing such documents amounted to surrendering the democratic right to dissent.
“On one side, the Constitution gives us the right to dissent. On the other hand, such peace bonds are invoked only to detain people in the name of breach of peace,” Bora said, referring to the detention of protesters at Mandi House on October 16, within minutes of their demonstration.
Bora said the organisation would continue challenging such measures and expressed hope that courts would examine what she described as a contradiction between constitutional freedoms and the enforcement of peace bonds.
Clarifying the status of AISA’s legal challenge, she said the court had not examined the merits of the challenge to a notice issued by the Special Executive Magistrate (SEM), but had asked those concerned to participate in the inquiry. She added that, according to her understanding, the SEM could not compel people to sign documents merely by issuing show-cause notices and that the principles of natural justice would apply.
The AISA leader also raised concerns over the deletion of names from electoral rolls, claiming that 13 crore voters had been removed. She said media reports, ground-level accounts, testimonies of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and statements by two Election Commissioners had raised questions about the electoral process.
Bora maintained that peaceful protest was a democratic means of raising concerns over alleged injustice and questioned whose interests were served by invoking the concept of a “breach of peace.”
She alleged that protesters at the October 16 demonstration had acted peacefully, while police personnel resorted to lathi-charge and violence. She further alleged that women protesters’ clothing was torn and journalists and media personnel were also subjected to violence.
“When you talk about peace—whose peace are you talking about and for whom?” Bora asked, arguing that people affected by voter deletions should be able to raise their concerns through peaceful demonstrations and constitutional remedies.
She said AISA would continue to oppose and legally challenge peace bonds, maintaining that peaceful dissent should not be treated as a threat to public order.
