Father Stan’s fight goes beyond his death, says his lawyer
Father Stan Swamy’s fight goes on, even beyond his death, said lawyer Mihir Desai, who represented the Jesuit priest and tribal rights activist in the Elgaar Parishad case.
The 84-year-old Swamy died undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Mumbai in July while he was under judicial custody. He was booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Elgaar Parishad case.
“People ask me if I feel guilty for Father Stan’s death. I tell them I don’t. In a court case, when a policeman beats up or kills somebody, we don’t have anything personal to feel guilty about, but we do feel responsible about. The nation has come to a stage today for which all of us are responsible, that maybe we didn’t fight hard enough. Maybe we don’t feel guilty, but we should feel responsible. That is the only way Father Stan would have wanted. He would have wanted to fight against whatever led to his death or led to the unjust incarceration or death of a large number of people in this country,” Desai said at the release of the book titled ‘Father Stan Swamy: A Maoist or a Martyr?’ by Dr Prakash Louis at Saint Xavier’s High School in Naranpura of Ahmedabad Saturday.
Courtesy : Indian express
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