New Delhi:
Fifty eight-year-old Dr Binayak Sen was found guilty of waging war against India and
sentenced to life term by a Chhattisgarh court on December 24.
He was accused by the prosecution of being a conduit for carrying letters from senior Naxal leaders like Narayan Sanyal, who was in prison, to his supporters.
A paediatrician and human rights activist, Sen was arrested in May 2007 from Bilaspur town under the stringent Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act. The trial began in May 2008 and 97 witnesses were examined in the case.
Sen's arrest provoked a massive outcry by human rights activists who rallied across India in his support.
Between March 15 to April 11, 2008, Sen was kept in solitary confinement after prison authorities cited security concerns.
Sen was accused of establishing an urban network for the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist). The prosecution claimed that Sen had met Sanyal 33 times in Raipur central jail in just about a month and passed on some seditious letters between Sanyal and Kolkata-based businessman and alleged Maoist Piyush Guha.
The defence strongly denied prosecution charges and argued that Sen met Sanyal with the permission of the jailer and the meetings were held in the jailor's room.
He was freed on bail last year (May 25, 2009) on Supreme Court's order.
The trial in the case resumed once again in November. The defence presented 12 witnesses along with supporting documents that finally led to Sen's sentencing.
Since coming to Chhattisgarh in 1981, Sen had spent much of his time bringing healthcare to tribals in impoverished areas. In 2008, when he was in jail, the US-based Global Health Council awarded him for his work in global health and human rights. The same year, a group of 22 Novel laureates condemned Sen's incarceration.
Sen, a renowned member of the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), was awarded the R R Keithan Gold Medal by the Indian Academy of Social Sciences in December 2007.
The government has been facing allegations by activists in recent years for taking a tough stand against those who voice concern about rights abuses or refuse to toe the government line against Maoists.