CPI(M)  Polit Bureau has issued the following statement on July 19:

THE Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) demands the immediate withdrawal of criminal cases filed against people for waving Palestinian flags during Muharram processions. It has been reported that these cases were filed in Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand under stringent sections of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) upon complaints made by BJP and VHP leaders.

Most of these states where the cases were filed are governed by the BJP and its allies or under the direct governance of the central government. The BJP-led government claims to support the Palestinian State, but the filing of these cases exposes its true face. It is unable to tolerate Indian people’s support to Palestine.

The CPI(M) demands the withdrawal of these cases and immediate release of all those who are detained, arrested for expressing their support to Palestine. The central government should unequivocally express its solidarity with Palestine, demand Israel to withdraw from all the territories it had occupied and restore the Statehood of Palestine, with pre-1967 borders and East Jerusalem as the capital.