Hindus for Human Rights is sharing this urgent statement from concerned citizens in India warning of a dangerous breakdown in democratic norms, rule of law, and institutional accountability.
The statement, issued from Mumbai on June 3, 2026, has been signed by twelve dozen people across Indian public life, including activists, academics, former union ministers and civil servants, writers, journalists, artists, scientists, faith leaders, and social justice organizers. Among the signatories are Yashwant Sinha, Teesta Setalvad, Javed Anand, Ram Puniyani, Shabnam Hashmi, Tushar Gandhi, Father Frazer Mascarenhas, Father Cedric Prakash, Anand Patwardhan, Mallika Sarabhai, Raju Parulekar, Susie Tharu, Navin Kumar, Venkitesh Ramakrishnan, Nandita Narain, Ram Rahman, Virginia Saldanha, Dolphy D’Souza, and many others.
The statement warns that recent attacks in West Bengal, including attacks on Members of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee and Kalyan Banerjee, should not be treated as isolated incidents. The signatories describe these events as part of a wider breakdown of the rule of law and a warning sign of possible mass political violence if institutions, political leaders, and ordinary citizens remain silent.
At the heart of the statement is a question that feels increasingly urgent: when democratic institutions freeze, when elected representatives are attacked, when constitutional procedure is ignored, and when violence is normalized as a political language, will silence be the only answer?
As a Hindu human rights organization, we believe that democracy depends not only on elections, but on the protection of dissent, the safety of opposition voices, the independence of institutions, and the refusal to treat violence as an acceptable tool of political power. Ahimsa is not passive. It requires courage, vigilance, and public action when the dignity and safety of others are under threat.
We share this statement in that spirit: as a call to conscience, a warning against silence, and an invitation to defend constitutional democracy before the space for peaceful civic life narrows further.
Read and download the full statement with signatories below.