Delhi police have arrested a 22-year-old climate activist from Bangalore on sedition charges, accusing her of being an “editor (of) and key conspirator” behind a social media “toolkit” on the farmers’ agitation that Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg had tweeted early this month.

The Delhi police’s long silence on Disha Ravi’s arrest and a haze on whether transit remand was obtained before she was taken to Delhi have prompted activists to call the police action “sinister” and an “extra-judicial abduction”.

According to Delhi police, the toolkit — which allegedly provided advice on how to participate in the January 26 Kisan Parade — was part of an international conspiracy, with Khalistani involvement, to wage war against India.

Bangalore police were tight-lipped but sources said Delhi police officers had taken Disha into custody from her north Bangalore home on Saturday, seized her laptop and mobile phone, and flown her to Delhi the same night. While Delhi police report to the BJP-run Centre, Karnataka has a government headed by the party.

Disha broke down during her production at Delhi’s Patiala House courts on Sunday, denied the conspiracy charge and said she was only supporting the farmers’ protest. She has been remanded in police custody for five days.

A business administration graduate from the Mount Carmel College in Bangalore, Disha is part of the Thunberg-initiated Fridays For Future global movement that encourages schoolchildren to skip classes on Fridays to demonstrate for action to prevent climate change.

An unsigned media release from a group of “youth-based environmental collectives” that condemned Disha’s arrest described her as the sole earning member of the family. A friend said Disha worked for a company that made “vegan products”.

The group accused the government of targeting dissenting youths and urged it to stop the “witch-hunt” and “start treating citizens of this country with greater humility and respect”.

A Delhi police tweet said on Sunday, tagging the offices of the Prime Minister and the home minister: “Disha Ravi, arrested by Delhi police, is an editor of the toolkit Google Doc & key conspirator in document’s formulation & dissemination.”

The police added: “She started WhatsApp group & collaborated to make the toolkit doc. She worked closely with them to draft the Doc. In this process, they all collaborated with the pro-Khalistani Poetic Justice Foundation to spread disaffection against the Indian State. She was the one who shared the toolkit Doc with Greta Thunberg.

“Later, she asked Greta to remove the main Doc after its incriminating details accidentally got into public domain. This is many times more than the 2 lines editing that she claims.”

Thunberg had on February 3 night shared an old toolkit that expressed support for the Republic Day tractor rally and provided details of the upcoming online and street protests.

She then realised her mistake and on February 4 uploaded an updated toolkit that offered tips on how to join the farmers’ ground protests, express support on social media, sign petitions and demonstrate near Indian missions abroad.

While the police were not very forthcoming, it appears the charges are related largely to the older toolkit.

On February 4, Delhi police had registered an FIR against the unnamed creators of the toolkit, alleging an international conspiracy to defame the country and wage “social, cultural and economic war against India” by instigating the farmers’ protest.

Charges were slapped under the Indian Penal Code’s Sections 124A (sedition), 153A (promoting enmity between groups), 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot) and 120B (criminal conspiracy).

A statement from the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, which is leading the farmers’ protest, said: “SKM condemns the arrest of young climate change activist Disha Ravi, who stood in support of the farmers. We also demand her immediate unconditional release.”

The statement from the “youth-based environmental collectives” said: “We are extremely distressed to find out that a daughter of a single mother, an avid animal lover, sole earning member of the family was whisked away forcefully by members of Delhi police.

“To imply that toolkits are some conspiracy gizmos used by foreign forces to destabilise India is as stupid as the ‘Cow was abducted by aliens’ rubbish that was aired by some mainstream media channels that are now airing this nonsense.

“We know Ms Disha to be a member of this vast collective network. We know her to be a person of immense integrity who has nothing but the best interests at heart. She, like us, is invested in this work that we do because she knows and understands the severity and seriousness of the climate crisis all of us find ourselves in.”

It added: “We are sure that her social media and personal equipment that have been confiscated will reflect nothing other than the immense concern that she, like us, has for this world…. We are... extremely worried about her safety and well being.”

The group demanded that Disha be “released immediately, her records (be) expunged and she (be) escorted safely back to her home and to her family”.