Ram Puniyani
Ram Puniyani is an Indian author and former professor of biomedical engineering. He worked at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay as a senior medical officer. He began his medical career in 1973 and served at IIT in various capacities for 27 years, starting in 1977. He has been involved in human rights work and initiatives opposing Hindu fundamentalism in India. He is currently serving as the President of the Executive Council of the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism. He is also an advisory board member of the Muslim Mirror.
Activism
He has been associated with various secular initiatives and has participated in several investigations concerning human rights violations against minorities.He also served on an Indian People's Tribunal that investigated the violation of the rights of minorities in the states of Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.
He gives seminars and workshops on topics such as communal politics, human rights, secularism and the Uniform Civil Code debate, the Partition of India, and the Kashmir conflict. His articles and essays regularly appear in various Indian magazines and newspapers.
He also runs a fortnightly e-bulletin, Issues in Secular Politics.
In March 2019, men in plain clothes, claiming to be from the CID, inquired about the whereabouts of his children.
In early June 2019, he reported receiving threatening phone calls from unknown individuals who demanded that he cease his activities and leave the country. After these incidents, Puniyani filed a report with the Mumbai Police.
Awards
- Maharashtra Foundation award for Social Awareness about the threat of Communal Politics
- National Communal Harmony Award
- NCHRO's Mukundan C.Menon award