Two Left-wing intellectuals said today the arrest of five prominent civil rights activists in police raids across several states showed that the BJP-led central government was nervous about losing support among people.
Criticising the government for arresting Telugu poet P Varavara Rao, civil liberties activist Gautam Navlakha, trade unionist and lawyer Sudha Bhardwaj for their suspected Maoist links, the Left intellectuals told reporters that the government was trying to create an "atmosphere of emergency".
Two more people were arrested yesterday. They are: activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira.
"It is the sign of nervousness of the government because of the fact that they are loosing support among farmers, workers and among people at large. Because of which, it is very important to conjure up an enemy and to create an atmosphere of emergency of terror, or a threat to society," economist Prabhat Patnaik said,
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