Rights activists condemn India arrest of Modi critic

New Delhi, India – (AFP)

Rights activists and journalists on Tuesday condemned the “arbitrary” and “unlawful” arrest of the co-founder of a top fact-checking website in India who has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Mohammed Zubair was detained on Monday after being questioned by police, before a Delhi court ordered he be held for four more days for further interrogation.

Zubair had played a role in drawing attention to incendiary remarks about the Prophet Mohammed recently made by a spokesperson for Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that sparked widespread protests across the Islamic world.

Amnesty International said India was “targeting” Zubair for his “crucial work” combating disinformation and calling out discrimination against minorities

Zubair has been one of the fiercest critics of the BJP and has frequently drawn attention to hate speech by Hindu fringe groups. He has faced several legal cases over the years that supporters have dismissed as politically motivated attempts to silence him.

Police cited a four-year-old tweet by Zubair about a Hindu god as the reason for his arrest, saying complaints had been made by religious groups.

But government critics see Zubair’s detention as part of a crackdown on free speech and rights activists since Modi’s ascent to power in 2014.