Free Binayak Sen, 40 Nobel laureates urge PM

Even as the Chhattisgarh High Court continues Binayak Sen's bail plea hearing today, an informal group of as many as 40 Nobel laureates from 12 countries have written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging for Dr Sen's immediate release on bail.

Paediatrician and human rights activist Sen was sentenced to life term by a trial court in Raipur on 24 December on sedition charges over his alleged links with Maoist ideologue Narayan Sanyal.

Senior criminal lawyer Ram Jethmalani is representing Sen in court. He has been getting a lot of support from several quarters, including a largely unified media, where it is felt that what he did does not amount to sedition.

The Nobel Prize winners said they hoped Sen's appeal would be heard without delay under the highest standards of Indian law. They referred to Sen as an "exceptional, courageous and selfless colleague, dedicated to helping those in India who are least able to help themselves".

The group of 40 includes Indian-born Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, who got a Nobel in 2009, and 91-year-old French scientist François Jacob who got a Nobel Prize in 1965. Oddly enough though, it does not include Amratya Sen, India's most celebrated living Nobel winner. Amratya Sen has, however, spoken out against his namesake's incarceration in other forums.

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. However, many experts have said the judgement is flawed, as it depends on dubious evidence to draw extreme conclusions. See: Appeal for Indian Medical Doctor, Binayak Sen