Guwahati: The Assam government has invoked the National Security Act (NSA), 1980, against indigenous rights activist Pranab Doley, just a day after a sessions court granted him bail in a case linked to protests against a proposed Hyatt hotel project near Kaziranga National Park. The move means Doley will remain in custody despite the bail order and has drawn criticism as an attempt to silence his opposition to the project.
The Detention Order
According to an order issued by the Assam government’s Home and Political (A) Department on July 30, 2026, Pranab Doley (40), son of Lokhi Doley and a resident of Panbari Mising Gaon under Bokakhat Police Station in Golaghat district, was directed to be detained under Section 3(2) of the NSA.
The government said it had examined a report from the Senior Superintendent of Police, Golaghat, along with case records, statements, and intelligence inputs before concluding that Doley’s activities were “prejudicial to the maintenance of public order as well as the security of the State” and that ordinary criminal law was insufficient to prevent him from continuing such activities. He has been ordered to be lodged in Golaghat District Jail.
An eight-page communication detailing the grounds of detention cited 13 criminal cases registered against Doley between 2017 and 2026 across Bokakhat, Golaghat, and Dergaon police stations. The cases involve allegations of public disorder, violence, criminal intimidation, obstruction of public servants, extortion, communal incitement, and offences against women.
The communication also referred to foreign remittances in his bank accounts, alleging that he received funds from “doubtful sources” in possible violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act. It further noted his travel to countries including Thailand, Spain, Malaysia, the UAE, Nepal, Norway, the Philippines, and Switzerland.
The order also references his role in various protests over the years—including land rights demonstrations in villages proposed for inclusion in Kaziranga, opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, agitation against the Jagiroad Satellite Township, and the campaign against the Hatikhuli hotel project—and specifically cites the June 2026 clashes at the project site, which it alleges involved assaults on police personnel and damage to property.
Timing: A Day After Bail
The NSA order came just a day after Doley was granted bail by a Golaghat court in the very case linked to the protest—a sequence that effectively nullifies the bail order and keeps him behind bars.
Doley was among two activists arrested on July 12, days after participating in the protest against the five star hotel project at Ingle Pathar, a village adjoining Kaziranga. Police alleged that he trespassed into the Tea Tribes Museum site and the adjoining ATDC Hyatt project site while ‘armed with deadly weapons’.
Given that the detention followed immediately after a bail order in the same protest-related case, and involved an activist who has consistently opposed the five-star hotel project, critics have viewed the NSA invocation as an attempt to muzzle Doley’s voice against the project rather than as a genuine public-order measure.
What the Court Said While Granting Bail
In a detailed 24-page order passed on July 29, Additional Sessions Judge N.M. Abdullah Ahmed granted Doley bail in Bokakhat Police Station Case No. 108/2026 on a bond of Rs 20,000 with one surety, while raising pointed questions about the police case.
The court found no prima facie video evidence showing protesters directly attacking police personnel. Instead, the footage showed police pushing protesters out of the project site, resulting in mutual pushing and shoving.
Although the FIR alleged that protesters arrived armed with machetes and sharp sticks, investigators recovered no such weapons. The bamboo sticks seized during the investigation appeared to have been used for the land demarcation process and were later removed by the protesters, with no footage showing them being used to assault police personnel. On the allegation that protesters attempted to set a cement mixer on fire, the video showed a woman pouring diesel on the machine but no attempt to ignite it.
The court also found no video evidence supporting allegations that male protesters had outraged the modesty of women police personnel. It observed that these allegations were general in nature and were not specifically attributed to Doley or any other identified individual.
The prosecution also cited “suspicious” domestic and foreign funds, foreign travel, and money allegedly received from the Delhi-based Environics Trust (which is under CBI investigation) in opposing bail. The court held that these financial allegations did not justify Doley’s continued custody in the present case.
It observed that if there had been sufficient evidence linking him to the CBI probe, he would have been arrested in that case itself, and that any financial investigation could proceed without his continued detention.
On procedural issues, the court noted that Doley was apprehended in Guwahati on July 12 but was formally arrested only in the early hours of July 13. It observed that the grounds of arrest ideally should have been communicated immediately upon apprehension, although it ultimately held that the police had substantially complied with the legal requirements.
The court further noted that Doley had already spent seven days in custody, that key witness statements had been recorded, video evidence secured, and his passport seized. It therefore found little risk of his fleeing or tampering with evidence.
In its concluding observations, the court linked the protest to “deep-rooted anxiety regarding environmental degradation and its impact on the socio-cultural fabric of the local Tea Tribes” and observed that criminal law should not be used to suppress legitimate concerns where environmental protection intersects with indigenous rights.
Judge Ahmed wrote that “true public order is achieved not by silencing the affected, but by listening to them,” and called instead for structured, peaceful dialogue among all stakeholders. The order also cautioned against treating activists and community leaders as “external disruptive elements,” observing that their participation was essential to achieving a fair and sustainable resolution.
Doley’s bail conditions included appearing before the investigating officer once every week, restrictions on travel, cooperation with the land demarcation process ordered by the Gauhati High Court, and refraining from influencing witnesses or committing similar offences.
With the NSA now invoked, Doley remains in detention at Golaghat District Jail despite the bail order, with his legal options limited to making representations before the government or the Advisory Board.