Press Release
February 13th 2026
Solidarity of the Revolutionary Student-Youth Movement, Bangladesh with Comrade Pramod Mishra's Indefinite Hunger Strike!
For
the past three years, Comrade Pramod Mishra, an activist of India's
revolutionary movement, has been detained in Beur Central Jail in Patna,
Bihar, India. The Indian state claims that Comrade Mishra is a Central
Committee and Politburo member of the Communist Party of India (Maoist).
Although Indian law recognizes the right of a person in custody to
basic human dignity, Comrade Mishra began an indefinite hunger strike in
prison on 26 January, demanding adequate food and breakfast, access to
daily necessities, and regular communication with family members and
lawyers. At 74 years of age, after being subjected to inhumane prison
torture in Beur Central Jail, his decision to begin a hunger strike
clearly exposes, in our view, the extent to which the fascist Indian
state respects its own laws regarding "human dignity."
This
method of slow custodial killing-whether in police or prison custody is
not a new crime of Indian Hindutva fascists. Nor is the case of Pramod
Mishra an isolated incident. In recent years, the ruling Hindutva
fascist Modi government has used its power to carry out what it calls
"encounters" or direct armed confrontations in Dandakaranya, effectively
conducting massacres against the Communist Party of India (Maoist) and
the indigenous people of that region. The Hindutva fascist Modi
government continues to intensify its repressive actions. At the same
time, it has increased repression against all democratic and progressive
forces who speak in favor of the people's revolutionary struggle. The
state is denying even minimal civil rights to detained activists of the
revolutionary movement and subjecting them to inhumane physical and
psychological torture inside prisons.
India
is claimed to be the world's largest "democracy"! Yet in this state,
those who raise their voices against those in power are arrested and
subjected to the most inhumane and undemocratic torture in prison, often
leading to death. The age or physical condition of detainees is of no
concern. In recent years, Father Stan Swamy and G. N. Saibaba have
fallen victim to such actions by the Indian state. Repression continues
against Comrade Prashant Bose and, more recently, against Comrade Pramod
Mishra, who has begun his indefinite hunger strike. To suppress India's
revolutionary movement, the anti-people Hindutva fascist Modi
government has adopted two methods: the so-called "encounter" operations
in Dandakaranya and the slow killing of prisoners in custody.
We
express our solidarity with Comrade Pramod Mishra and the three demands
raised by the Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) against state
repression in India. The demands are as follows:
1. Immediate provision of adequate nutritious food and necessary items for all prisoners.
2. Ensuring regular telephone communication with family members and lawyers.
3. Independent and transparent medical monitoring of Pramod Mishra, considering his age and ongoing hunger strike.
We
call upon democratic forces, civil rights organizations, and mass
movements to raise their voices against repressive actions inside
prisons and to intervene immediately to prevent any irreparable harm.
Signed by-
Azad
Member, National Committee
Revolutionary Student-Youth Movement