New Delhi: The German and French ambassadors to India have sent condolences letters to the family of former Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba, describing his “unwavering commitment to civic rights” and a “rich legacy of service”. Saibaba, passed away earlier last week due to health-related complications in the city of Hyderabad.
“Professor Saibaba leaves behind him a rich legacy of service and dedication. As a committed academic, writer and human rights activist, his work was known and appreciated in India and beyond,” writes Thierry Mathou, the French ambassador to India, in a letter to the professor’s family.
The French ambassador added: “I myself have fond memories of my interaction with him at the Residence de France in April 2024, during which we discussed, among other things, the importance of promoting the universality of human rights.”
The letter was shared on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) by Christophe Jaffrelot, the French political scientist.
The French Ambassador to India, Thierry Mathou’s has « fond memories » of Prof. GN Saibaba. In memoriam. Thank you. pic.twitter.com/GDY8ubFJjY
— Jaffrelot Christophe (@jaffrelotc) October 20, 2024
Prof Saibaba passed away on 12 October, 2024, barely 7 months after he was acquitted in a case of alleged links with Maoists after spending a decade in prison. He breathed his last around 9 pm, and died due to a gall bladder infection, according to reports.
Mathou was not the only ambassador to reach out to Saibaba’s family. The German ambassador Philipp Ackermann also reached out to Saibaba’s daughter Manjeera, to share his condolences over the professor’s death.
“You might remember: I met you and your father last April jointly with my French colleague. Even though our meeting was brief, it left me with a deep impression: Your father’s story, his long imprisonment and his unwavering commitment to civic rights in India commanded a tremendous amount of respect from me,” said the German ambassador in his letter.
Very gracious condolence letter from the German Ambassador to Prof Saibaba’s daughter about his demise pic.twitter.com/rkip6Bcd4X
— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) October 18, 2024
The former Delhi University professor was first arrested by Maharashtra Police in 2014 on charges of being a member of the banned outfit Communist Party of India (Maoist), providing them logistical support and aiding in recruitment efforts for the organisation.
In 2016, Saibaba was granted interim bail, but was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in March 2017. He was lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail since his conviction, before his acquittal earlier this year.
Since the age of 5, Saibaba had to use a wheelchair after being affected by polio. In March this year the Bombay High Court threw out Maharashtra police’s case against Saibaba and five others.
Non-compliance with provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA), along with the failure to maintain a hard-bound case diary, using different pens and different inks to file the First Information Report (FIR), discrepancies in date of arrest, issues surrounding the recording of the accused’s confessions and the use of “stock witnesses” were looked into by the Bombay High Court before acquitting Saibaba, as reported by ThePrint earlier.
The court also ruled the sanction to prosecute Saibaba was invalid and that the trial court acted with jurisdiction in the case.
Before his death, Saibaba was fighting to be reinstated as a professor at Ram Lal Anand College. His professorship was terminated in 2021 after being implicated in the case against him.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
Also Read: ‘Only looked at closed walls for yrs, couldn’t see my dying mother’: GN Saibaba on decade in prison