NOT ONE TO BUDGE OR HIDE

More than a priest, Father Stan Swamy was a fearless activist

- GLADSON DUNGDUNG

WHEN I met Father Stan Swamy for the first time in 2006, he was the only recognized human rights activist in Jharkhand. We traveled several times to the dense forests of Jharkhand on fact-finding missions to probe the brutal killing of Adivasis by the security forces.

Born in Tamil Nadu on April 26, 1937, Father Stan was a Jesuit priest by training. But more than that, he was a fearless human rights activist—a fighter who insisted on the enforcement of the Indian Constitution, safeguarding laws and policies concerning the marginalized. Unfortunately, he was also implicated by the State for fighting for the cause of the marginalised.