40 Facts About Binayak Sen

Binayak Sen is a paediatrician, and public health specialist.

Binayak Sen is the national Vice-President of the People's Union for Civil Liberties.

Binayak Sen is the recipient of several awards including the Jonathan Mann Award, the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights, and the Gandhi International Peace Award.

Binayak Sen has been convicted of sedition by a local Court in India which was later upheld by the High Court of Chhattisgarh.

Binayak Sen was granted bail by the Supreme Court of India on appeal.

Binayak Sen is a member of the policy group for Police Reforms of Aam Aadmi Party.

Binayak Sen originally started working as a paediatrician extending health care to poor people in the rural-tribal areas of the Chhattisgarh state, doubling up as a human rights activist.

Binayak Sen first applied for bail before the Raipur Sessions Court and then the Chhattisgarh High Court in July 2007, soon after his arrest, but was granted bail by the Supreme Court of India on 25 May 2009.

Binayak Sen was granted bail on 15 April 2011 by the Supreme Court of India which gave no reason for the order.

Binayak Sen has filed an appeal before the Chhattisgarh High Court and the case is pending.

Binayak Sen has been published in the prestigious British medical journal The Lancet where he talks about the severe inaccessibility of the healthcare to the poor in India.

Binayak Sen is the National Vice-President of the People's Union for Civil Liberties and General Secretary of its Chhattisgarh unit.

Binayak Sen was the recipient in 2004 of the Paul Harrison award for a lifetime of service to the rural poor.

Binayak Sen was selected for the Jonathan Mann Award for Global Health and Human Rights in 2008.

Binayak Sen has been awarded the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights 2011 in memory of the Gwangju Democratization Movement of South Korea.

On 14 May 2007, Binayak Sen was arrested in Bilaspur on the charges of acting as a courier between jailed Naxalite leader Narayan Sanyal and businessman Piyush Guha, accused of having links with Naxalites.

Binayak Sen had met the 70-year-old Sanyal 33 times in Raipur jail, though all the visits were with prior police permission.

On 15 May 2007, Binayak Sen was presented before a local court where he was denied the bail and was remanded to judicial custody.

The people who were against the bail to Binayak Sen claimed that the protestors were not well versed with the workings of Binayak Sen or the Naxalite-Maoist insurgency.

On 7 June 2007, the British House of Commons published an Early day motion entitled "Arrest of Dr Binayak Sen" supported by several members of parliament across party lines, including Diane Abbott, Peter Bottomley, John Hemming, Dai Davies, Mike Weir, among others.

On 20 June 2007 a delegation from the PUCL met the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh state, and objected to Binayak Sen being accused of supporting the Naxalites.

Nobel laurate economist and thinker Amartya Binayak Sen criticised the Dec 2010 verdict for Binayak Sen's imprisonment.

Binayak Sen stated that instead of getting his due honour for his service, Sen had met with an unfortunate verdict.

In July 2007, Binayak Sen's bail was rejected by the Chhattisgarh High Court after Police claimed that they had got incriminating evidences against Binayk Binayak Sen from his hard disc belonging to him.

The bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhan and D K Jain refused to accept Binayak Sen's plea stating that he was only an activist of People's Union for Civil Liberties and was in no way connected with the banned outfit CPI.

Binayak Sen was kept in solitary confinement during the period from 15 March to 11 April 2008.

The Global Health Council, Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School and several other prominent global health organisations issued a joint statement of support for Binayak Sen, requesting that Indian authorities allow the doctor to receive the Jonathan Mann Award for Health and Human Rights in person in Washington, DC on 29 May 2008, at the 35th Annual International Conference on Global Health.

Dr Binayak Sen has denied all wrongdoing and nothing in his character or history, as a dedicated community leader who has urged a peaceful settlement to this conflict for years, would support the accusations made against him.

The Government feels that the issue around Dr Binayak Sen is a well orchestrated campaign and just because he is selected for a western award, does not make him less guilty in their view.

The trial against Binayak Sen began in the trial court in Raipur on 30 May 2008.

Binayak Sen was granted bail on 25 May 2009 by a vacation bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Deepak Verma as his health conditions were deteriorating.

Immediately after the sentencing, Dr Binayak Sen's bail was revoked and he was taken back into custody.

Binayak Sen was held guilty under Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act 2005, Unlawful Activities Act 1967, of being a conduit between Naxals and of meeting Narayan Sanyal in jail.

Binayak Sen's sentence has been condemned both in India and internationally.

Nobel Laureate Amartya Binayak Sen has condemned the judgement as "unjust".

Against this judgement, Binayak Sen again applied for bail on 6 January 2011.

Dr Binayak Sen had moved the apex court challenging the order of the Chhattisgarh High Court which had rejected his bail plea on 10 February 2011.

Dr Binayak Sen has sought bail contending that the trial court has erred in convicting him as there was no substantial evidence against him.

The Supreme Court on 11 March 2011 issued notice to the Chhattisgarh government on a petition by rights activist Binayak Sen seeking bail and stay on his life imprisonment imposed by a sessions court for his links with Maoists.

The bench passed the order despite counsel for Dr Binayak Sen seeking adjournment of the matter.