Project
The Forced Guilt Project
The mechanics behind the near-perfect conviction rate of India’s counter-terrorism agency
The Wire’s investigative series, The Forced Guilt Project, reveals how prolonged detention under the draconian UAPA law, repeated bail denials, and alleged pressure tactics are forcing many to plead guilty.
India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) boasts a near 100% conviction rate in terror cases.
But at what cost? The Wire’s investigative series, The Forced Guilt Project, in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center, reveals how prolonged detention under the draconian UAPA law, repeated bail denials, and alleged pressure tactics are driving many accused, mostly Muslim men from marginalised backgrounds, to plead guilty after 5–7 years in jail and without a full trial ever taking place.
The investigation reveals formulaic guilty pleas, shocking allegations of torture, and the fact that over 40% of convictions are secured through pleas rather than evidence.
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