Mount Carmel College alumni stand in support of Disha Ravi

Alumni of Mount Carmel College came together on Tuesday to condemn the arrest of activist Disha Ravi who was arrested in connection with the 'toolkit' case.

In a letter released by the media, they described Disha's arrest by Delhi Police as "blatant targeting of a young woman citizen expressing her support" to farmers and arrest was "horrifying and unacceptable".

The letter, signed by more than 500 persons, who claimed to be alumni of Mount Carmel College and mentioned their batch year, said that Disha was "fulfilling her duty" to the nation and the world by fighting for climate.

"Her arrest, we believe, is a way to browbeat young, articulate women—which Mount Carmel College has produced for generations—into silent submission," it said.

Expressing "unconditional support" to Disha and her family, the letter said, "We demand that the Delhi Police release her and the Bangalore police and Karnataka government act to protect the constitutional rights of a woman resident of the state of Karnataka," the letter said.

One of the co-authors of the letter said that the letter has no connection to the official alumni association of the Mount Carmel College.

Aishwarya Ravikumar, a 2017-batch student, said the expression of support was born out of the need to "protect" free speech. "We don't need to be a part of any formal association. We are keeping track of people who are signing it. We are deeply concerned about the arrest and want to help an alumnus in whatever wway we can," she said.

She said people who are signing and expressing support were also afraid. "We don't have a space to express our concern to a student. As former MCC students we are just expressing our solidarity," she said.