DELHI, 15 February, 2021 (TON): Disha Ravi, a twenty-one year old environmentalist has been arrested after allegedly using social media to mobilize support for the farmers protesting by sharing the campaign, “toolkit”.

The girl was taken from her home in Bangalore on Saturday and flown to Delhi for police inquiry.

This reflects the capital’s immensely challenging approach to dissent and criticism, said the activists.

The Delhi police said on Sunday, that Disha is a key conspirator in developing and disseminating the toolkit, which they have described as “a call to wage economic, social, cultural and regional war against India”.

Police say Ravi developed the guide, which offered advice on how to support the farmers’ protests and shared it with Thunberg. They also accuse Ravi of collaborating with Sikh separatists “to spread disaffection against the Indian state”.

The girl has been remanded in police custody for five days for interrogation, the court statement said.

Ravi’s detention has prompted alarm among activists and lawyers. “To accuse a young climate activist of sedition even if it’s true that she had some part in a social media ‘toolkit’ is deeply egregious,” said Karuna Nundy, a Supreme Court lawyer. “This comes at a time when those who disagree with government policy are being systematically targeted for saying so.”

Authorities are investigating what they say is an international conspiracy against the Indian government after Thunberg wrote a tweet showing her support for the protesting farmers and providing a link to the toolkit.

Ravi’s detention has prompted alarm among activists and lawyers. “To accuse a young climate activist of sedition — even if it’s true that she had some part in a social media ‘toolkit’ — is deeply egregious,” said Karuna Nundy, a Supreme Court lawyer. “This comes at a time when those who disagree with government policy are being systematically targeted for saying so.”

“Going after perhaps the youngest and most vulnerable of the activists sends out a chilling message,” she added.

The months-long protests against the farm laws are viewed as intentionally deregulating India’s controlled agriculture markets by the overseas Sikh separatists as the Delhi alleges, however, the many consider linking it to a separatist movement has allowed the authorities to use tough tactics.