-organisers of the demonstration. India today: A big contingent on last Sunday's demonstration against repression in India was organised behind the banner of the Campaign for the Release of Indian Political Prisoners (CRIPP). CRIPP stands for the building of a working class united front against the Gandhi regime rather than the multi-class alliance - involving such right-wing forces as the Jan Sangh - represented by the The need for such action was brought home only last week with the release by CRIPP of a letter sent to the Indian Government by Alice Fernandes. Her son George, a leader of the Socialist Party, was one of the most prominent figures in the underground resistance until his arrest in Calcutta earlier this month. In the letter she outlines what it means even to be associated with political opponents of the Gandhi regime in *..•... On Saturday 1 May, at about 9 p.m., my 44-year-old second son, Lawrence Fernandes, was taken away from our residence by the police, on the pretext that they wanted to interrogate him about the habeas corpus petition filed in February .... by my third son, Michael Fernandes (an officer of the Indian Telephone Industries and a trade union leader) who has been detained without trial under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act in prison since 22 December 1975.
'After keeping up this pretext for about an hour, the police began questioning him about the whereabouts of my eldest son, teorce remandes. ame men supiecen nim 1n a most inhuman, reckless and ruthless manner to third degree methods of physical torture into the small hours of the morning until about 3 a.m. Besides beating him with clubs (until five of them were broken to pieces) they used a banyan tree root to clout him with, and booted him and slapped him ......
Starved and Tortured "After reducing him to the condition of a physical, mental and nervous wreck, he was kept in solitary confinement in different police lock-ups in the most unhygienic condition until 20 May, during which period he was subjected to further torture and interrogation. He was kept without food for three days, and was not given proper food on other days, not 1 May .....
Mortally Afraid detained in a wing reserved for those who are mentally hand are still swollen.
least 40 pounds in weight during these 20 days ..... ministers keep telling the public in our country and also on behalf of the Government?
views held by my son George Fernandes? ......
allowed cigarettes. During all these 20 days he was allowed both only on three days, and he was made to remain in the same clothes he was wearing when he was:taken away on "He was continuously interrogated about the whereabouts of George Fernandes. He was refused a lawyer's help, and not allowed to contanct home or anybody else either by letter or phone. He was not allowed newspapers and kept in solitary continement. He was threatened with dire conseguences if he reported to the magistrate or anybody else about the torture.
*Finally, on 20 May, he was produced in the Second Metropolitan Magistrate's chambers during lunch time and then removed to tne bangaiore central frison, wnere ne nas deen unsound or are under punishment for violation of jail rules 'On 21 May, after waiting for over three hours from 10.45 a.m. at about 2 p.m. I was taken to the cell to see him .... I found him looking dead. He was unable to move except without two persons helping him about, and then only with great pain and limping. His left side is without use as if crippled, and both his left leg and 'He is in a mentaliv and phvsicallv wrecked condition and is unable to talk freely without faltering. He is terribly nervous and mortally afraid of police, of anyone in khaki uniform, of the approaching sound of anyone walking with shoes on, or of any other person, all of whom he fears to be interrogators and tormentors. He looks completely haggard and he has lost at *When the Prime Minister, Home Secretary and her other people abroad that the political prisoners here are well looked after and there is no torture or inhuman acts against the police ..... amo Deneve mar te torre ormav son 1s a numane ac •Is it moral or right that my family should be so harassed and tormented for the political