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Who is Disha Ravi?
Disha Ravi is a graduate in Bachelor of Business Administration from a private college in Bengaluru and is an alumni of Mount Carmel School. The 21-year-old climate activist was instrumental in setting up the Indian chapter of 'Fridays for Future' - the global movement for climate justice founded by Greta Thunberg, an 18-year old climate activist from Sweden.
She is actively involved in environmental issues across India. She has appeared in media reports across the world, including ‘The Guardian’ and ‘Vogue’, for her campaigns. Her motivation to become a climate activist came from watching her grandparents, who are farmers and struggle with the effects of climate change, she told Auto Report Africa last year.
The change in Bengaluru’s weather patterns affected her directly, she told ‘Vogue’. “In Bengaluru, we have been experiencing severe rainfall and flooding. My own house got flooded,” she had said.
FFF shot into limelight in July 2020 when it campaigned against the Draft Environment Impact Assessment Notification, which led to the blocking of FFF India website and a UAPA case that was later revoked.
The organisation is also involved in campaigns for the protection of Mollem forest area in Goa, an elephant conservation zone in Uttarakhand, Aarey forest in Mumbai, Raika forest in Jammu and Dumna nature park in Madhya Pradesh. Disha is an active participant in these causes.
Disha Ravi's arrest
The climate activist was arrested from Bengaluru on February 13, 2021 for allegedly sharing with Greta Thunberg the "toolkit" related to the farmer's protest against the Centre's three farm laws.
The Delhi Police claimed that Disha Ravi was an editor of the "toolkit Google doc" and "key conspirator" in the document's formulation and dissemination. Police also alleged that Disha Ravi and others "collaborated with pro-Khalistani Poetic Justice Foundation to spread disaffection against the Indian State.”
Nationwide outrage over Disha's arrest
After she was remanded to five-day Delhi Police Special Cell custody, the Opposition hit out at the government with Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal terming the arrest of Disha Ravi as an “unprecedented attack on democracy”. On February 14, over 50 Indian academics, artists and activists released a joint statement in support of Disha. Former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh tweeted, "Completely atrocious! This is unwarranted harassment and intimidation. I express my full solidarity with Disha Ravi." The farm union Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) issued an official statement that condemned Ravi's arrest and called for her "immediate unconditional release," and SKM leader Kavitha Kuruganti stated, "it is atrocious that such action was taken because of a toolkit, which is simply something that alerts citizens to what they can do to support the farmers."
The support for the young climate activist grew in her alma mater , Bengaluru's Mount Carmel College too. A letter of solidarity condemned her arrest. Her supporters denied she did anything illegal and said the toolkit was an information pack about the farmers' protests.
Following Ravi's arrest, there have been protests in Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai.
Disha Ravi's name controversy
Controversy over her name erupted after a viral tweet claimed that Disha's actual name was Disha Ravi 'Joseph' and that she was a Syrian Christian. The claim was shared by several right wing Twitter handles making 'Disha Ravi Joseph' one of the top Twitter trends February 17, 2021. The claim was debunked by her school friends and other fact checkers, who said her full name was Disha Annappa Ravi.
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