IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – March 16th, 2009

by on August 11, 2009

IN THIS ISSUE

COMMUNAL HARMONY

NEWS HEADLINES

OPINIONS & EDITORIALS

BOOK REVIEW

COMMUNAL HARMONY

WALK FOR HARMONY TO BE HELD IN MANGALORE (MAR 12, 2009, THE HINDU)

Concerned over the increasing intolerance and attempts to create communal disharmony, intellectuals, writers and artistes, under the aegis of Manavata Vedike, will take out a "Souharda Nadige" (walk for harmony) and hold "souharda samavesha" (harmony meet) in Mangalore on April 14.

Addressing presspersons here, tele-serial maker B. Suresh said: "In the wake of atrocities in the State [Karnataka] by self-proclaimed saviours of culture, who have been sowing seeds of intolerance and communal disharmony, believers of secularism and diversified cultures will take out a march from Old Bus Stand in Mangalore to the Deputy Commissioner’s office and hold a meeting at the Deputy Commissioner’s office grounds there."

Organised by the Manavata Vedike, Mangalore, the event will include address by theatre director Prasanna, writers Ramzan Darga and Meenakshi Bali, State unit president of Samudaya R.K. Hudagi and Sanehalli Sri Math seer Panditharadhya Shivacharya Swamiji. There will be performances by artistes and singers.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/12/stories/2009031255690700.htm

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NEWS HEADLINES

GUJARAT RIOTS: COPS REMOVED NAMES OF ACCUSED LEADERS (MAR 14, 2009, THE TRIBUNE)

Victims of the 2002 Gujarat riots had mentioned the names of minister Maya Kodnani and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Jaydeep Patel in connection with the sectarian clashes to the probe agencies, but the state police removed their names from the reports, the prosecution has told the state high court.

Minister of state for higher education Kodnani and Patel are accused of leading mobs in the Naroda Patiya and Naroda Gaam localities here in 2002 – 106 people were killed in the these incidents alone. Special Public Prosecutor JM Panchal told the high court yesterday the riot victims had mentioned the name of Kodnani and Patel in the statements recorded by them with the investigative agencies.

Today, the high court will hear an appeal filed by Supreme Court appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) seeking cancellation of the anticipatory bail of the two in connection with the post-Godhra riot cases in Ahmedabad. According to witnesses’ accounts, Kodnani was part of a mob that attacked members of the minority community in 2002.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090314/nation.htm#5

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PAWAR ATTACKS COMMUNAL POLITICS OF NARENDRA MODI (MAR 2, 2009, THE HINDU)

Nationalist Congress Party president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Sunday attacked the "communal politics" of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and said there was no need for him to turn Maharashtra into Gujarat. A few days ago, Mr. Modi addressed a rally at Pimpalgaon near Nashik, where he extolled the virtues of Gujarat and criticised the pathetic situation of Maharashtra. Speaking at a rally to mark the launch of the NCP’s election campaign, Mr. Pawar said Gujarat for him was a State which embodied Mahatma Gandhi’s ideals of non-violence. It was not the Gujarat under Mr. Modi’s rule, which spread communal divide, resulting in violence and death of poor people.

The NCP leader said there was bloodbath in Ahmedabad and even 60-year-old former Congress MP Ehsan Jaffri was killed in mob violence during 2002 riots, despite so many pleas for help. Wheat price Mr. Pawar asked Mr. Modi to remember the prices of agricultural commodities like wheat during A.B. Vajpayee’s tenure as Prime Minister. Then the price of wheat was Rs.630 a quintal and now the United Progressive Alliance government had given Rs.1,080 a quintal. The NCP supremo referred to the need for a united fight to counter terrorism.

Mr. Pawar lauded the UPA for its historic Rs. 71,000-crore loan farm loan waiver. The Centre’s policies had resulted in record food grains production and godowns were full with rice and wheat. He called upon the Congress to lead a joint fight to address various issues in the country and said that without the Congress, this battle would be weakened. Leading lights of the party, including the former Home Minister, R.R. Patil, who is now State NCP president, and Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal backed Mr. Pawar for Prime Minister.

The NCP considers the Nashik area its stronghold and the huge crowd that had gathered to hear the speakers bore this out. As expected, the former Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president, Govindrao Adik, joined the NCP along with several supporters. At the rally, Mr. Adik who had been a critic of Mr. Pawar in the past and a Congress loyalist, said it felt like a homecoming. Last Friday, Mr. Adik backed Mr. Pawar for Prime Minister.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/02/stories/2009030259521500.htm

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COMMUNAL FIRE SINGED BJP-BJD TIES IN ORISSA (MAR 9, 2009, HINDUSTAN TIMES)

The violence against Christians in Kandhamal was one of the key reasons why the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) ended its 11-year-old alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Orissa. Pyari Mohan Mohapatra, a leader just a rung below Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik in the BJD hierarchy, hinted at Kandhamal while citing "the BJP’s experiments in Orissa" killed the alliance. Mohapatra, the principal secretary to chief minister Biju Patnaik in the 1990s, has emerged as the chief architect of the BJD’s election strategy.

Participating in a panel discussion aired on Orissa Television, Mohapatra said, "In the last five years, the BJP has not been able to put its house in order. It is losing popular support. Secondly, the BJP also started experimenting in Orissa." Although Mohapatra did not spell out Kandhamal, he said, "Communal forces won’t be accepted by the people of a culturally rich state like Orissa. Because of their experiments, the BJD would have suffered losses."

So, why did BJD partner the BJP, whose Hindutva agenda is well known? "When the NDA was formed, the BJP agreed to drop its controversial agenda. They were ready to work according to the National Agenda for Governance. Despite that, they decided to experiment in Orissa." The BJD, BJP agreement over seats stood strong for five elections – the 2000 and 2004 Assembly polls and Lok Sabha polls in 1998, 1999 and 2004.

"In 1998, the seat-sharing ratio was fixed soon after the BJD was formed. The party did not have the necessary bargaining power. The formula remained unchanged in 2004 as there was not much time to re-examine the issue. The political scenario now is entirely different. Our BJD has gained in stature and strength since 1998," Mohapatra, a Rajya Sabha MP, said. Meanwhile, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s international president Ashok Singhal held a press conference in Bhubaneswar to launch a scathing attack on Patnaik for being unable to arrest the real killers of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati. It his murder that had sparked the anti-Christian violence in Kandhamal, in which 38 people died.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print.aspx?Id=4db07817-3c8d-4f34-b7af-edab60798555MyIndiamyvote2009_Special

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THIRD FRONT LAUNCHED (MAR 13, 2009, THE HINDU)

The Third Front was officially launched at an impressive rally here on Thursday, with a coalition of Left and major regional parties vowing to defeat the Congress-led UPA and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA in the Lok Sabha elections to form the next government at the Centre. The mammoth rally saw the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Janata Dal (Secular), the Telugu Desam Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Forward Bloc, and the Janhit Congress Party of the former Haryana Chief Minister, Bhajan Lal, closing ranks against the Congress and the BJP.

The former Prime Minister and JD (S) supremo, H.D. Deve Gowda, who presided, said a national policy document would be prepared soon and placed before the people. CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat set the tone for the rally, stating that the "historic" convention was organised to address the "country’s need for a new alternative." The coming electoral battle would give the people a chance to choose a new secular democratic alternative that would meet the aspirations of the masses. CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan said the aim of the Third Front was to come to power. "It is an alternative to the policies and programmes [pursued by the UPA and the NDA]," he said.

Mr. Bardhan claimed that the Front could expand in the run-up to the elections and cited the possibility of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) joining forces with it. "They have snapped ties with the BJP. They will not go to either the Congress or the BJP," he said. BSP MP Satish Sharma, who was deputed by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati to attend the rally, said the Front was the "only alternative" at the Centre. AIADMK representative V. Maithreyan accused the UPA of being "soft" on terrorism, while TRS president Chandrashekara Rao’s son and party leader Taraka Rama Rao accused the Congress of "betraying" the party by doing a U-turn on the issue of statehood for Telangana.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/13/stories/2009031358100100.htm

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INNOCENT MUSLIMS FRAMED IN TERROR CASES, SAYS MADANI (MAR 9, 2009, EXPRESS BUZZ)

Innocent Muslim youths are being framed in terrorism-related cases even though they were not involved, alleged Maulana Arshad Madani, president of Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind. Speaking to reporters here on Sunday, Madani said the police have always been rude and harsh with Muslims, compared to other communities while dealing with terror or crime incidents.

"Innocent Muslim youths are framed in terrorism cases, thus making them spend a part of their lives in prison. Even after they are acquitted by the court, the time they served in prison ruins their future," Madani said. He said that the Malegaon bomb blast was the best example to prove that criminals belong to all castes and creeds. "The law should treat people belonging to all communities without bias," he said.

Responding to a question about his opinion on Ajmal Amir Kasab, a Pakistani terrorist involved in the recent Mumbai terror attack, Madani refused to comment saying that he did not know him personally. He said that Muslims want to play an active role in the development and welfare of the country like all other communities. "It is necessary to create a conducive atmosphere to make Muslims feel safe and secure in the country," he added.

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/print.aspx?artid=YRu9/Fx1I0I=

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TWO KILLED IN COMMUNAL CLASH IN UTTAR PRADESH (MAR 11, 2009, HINDUSTAN TIMES)

Two people were killed and at least seven injured as the police opened fire on clashing groups of two communities in Varanasi town of Uttar Pradesh Wednesday, an official said here. The police opened fire to quell communal violence that broke out during Holi celebrations near the Gauriya Masjid in Bazaridiha locality under the Bhelpur police station in the heart of town, a home department spokesman said.

"The trouble erupted after a group of Hindu revelers went about splashing colours on some Muslims coming out of a madrassa," Varanasi city superintendent of police Vijay Bhushan told IANS by telephone. "What began as a verbal duel flared up into a violent clash, as both sides refused to calm down," he said.

"With the rioters taking to brick-batting and even firing, the police were left with no option but to use force. Initially, we tried to control the violence by lobbing teargas shells but when some people opened fire, we were compelled to retaliate," Bhushan said. "We have detained at least 10 people from each side and intensified security in the locality where we will maintain a round-the-clock vigil to prevent any recurrence of violence." He described the situation as "well under control".

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print.aspx?Id=977c6255-c394-4beb-b9ff-629145a20bc4

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MAGISTRATE ALLEGES THREAT BY INSPECTOR IN ENCOUNTER CASE (MAR 9, 2009, TIMES OF INDIA)

In a shocking case, railway metropolitan magistrate R B Shaikh, who recently submitted her report about an alleged encounter, has been threatened by a police officer. The woman magistrate is believed to have been threatened by a lawyer representing this inspector and she has complained to the Bombay high court. "Yeh tumne accha nahi kiya, hum tumko dekh lenge" (You should not have done this. We will see you) is what the lawyer is believed to have told Shaikh. The high court has taken serious note and has asked Mumbai police commissioner Hasan Gafoor to probe into her complaint and submit a report. Gafoor in turn has asked the joint commissioner of police (crime) Rakesh Maria to investigate. "We have received a complaint about some lawyer. We are looking into it." said an officer.

Police said this could be a very serious matter as the court takes serious cognisance of such complaints, particularly when the person who has threatened a magistrate happens to be a policeman. The case relates to Ramnarayan Gupta of the Lakhanbhaiyya faction of the Chhota Rajan gang, who was shot dead on November 11, 2006, outside the Nana Nani park at Versova. The inspector concerned was part of the special squad which took part in the encounter. Gupta’s family members challenged the police theory that he was killed in encounter. Instead, they alleged that the inspector and his team had picked him from Vashi a few hours prior to the encounter.

Gupta’s advocate brother Ramprasad Gupta filed a petition in the high court, alleging that his brother was cold bloodedly killed and demanded a judicial inquiry. Interestingly, Gupta has also roped in then police commissioner A N Roy, stating that he had sent a telegram to Roy’s office a few hours before the encounter that his brother has been picked up by plainclothes policemen from Vashi. Metropolitan magistrate (railway) Shaikh was asked to conduct a probe. In July 2008, Shaikh submitted the confidential report about her findings to the high court. "There is strong circumstantial evidence which suggest that the deceased was abducted by the police and killed in custody," the report said. Various forensic reports also pointed out loopholes in the police version.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4242490.cms

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RAGGED TO DEATH: 4 ARRESTED, PRINCIPAL SACKED (MAR 10, 2009, INDIAN EXPRESS)

Four medical students accused of ragging a junior leading to his death were arrested and charged with culpable homicide as the Himachal Pradesh government on Tuesday ordered a magisterial probe into the shocking incident. The four were remanded to police custody for varying periods by a local court in connection with the death of 19-year-old Aman Kachroo, a student of Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda. Aman, an alumnus of DPS International, Delhi and a resident of Gurgaon, had died on Sunday night in a hospital in Tanda due to severe injuries. His family alleged that he was slapped, punched and kicked many times on the head and chest by his seniors who also shaved off his head.

Taking serious note of the incident, the state government ordered a magisterial probe into the incident and promised stern action against the guilty. College principal Suresh Sankhayan was also replaced by Anil Chauhan, Head of Department of Opthalmology. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal sought a detailed report on the incident from college authorities which suspended a hostel warden, manager and two guards. While two second year students Ajay Kumar Verma and Naveen Verma, who were arrested on Monday, were remanded to police custody till March 13 by District and Sessions judge P S Rana, Abhinav Verma and Mukul Sharma surrendered today and were sent to police custody till March 16.

A case has been registered against them under section 304 of IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) with Kangra police station, Superintendent of Police of Kangra district Atul Kumar Fulzule said. They have been also booked under the anti-ragging ordinance. The magisterial inquiry will look in detail the cause of death of the student Aman Kachroo and also fix role and responsibility of the involved people in the unfortunate incident, Health Minister Rajeev Bindal said.

As a precautionary measure, a police team comprising an Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI), two head constables and 25 constables has been deployed on the college premises. Classes, which were suspended on Monday in the wake of Aman’s death, however, resumed on Tuesday. In Gurgaon on the outskirts of Delhi, a shocked family of the student, who was cremated at the Lodhi Crematorium in the national capital, said the boy was subjected to immense violence and demanded action against the medical college. Rohit Kachroo, his uncle, said Aman had told his parents about the ragging in the institute. "He had told his parents about the ragging. We did not think, it will turn this violent," he said. "I spoke to him last Thursday only. He told me that he lodged a complaint with the house warden. No action was taken," claimed a friend of Aman. "He told me seniors used to call him up at around 3 AM or 4 AM and would even ask him to get alcohol from market and if he didn’t they would beat him up," he claimed.

Virkein Dhar, a cousin of the victim, claimed Aman was tortured for over two hours along with other juniors after the four seniors managed to get inside the hostel after bribing the guard. Condemning the ragging incident, Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said "killing (of the student) is something really not acceptable. Strong anti-ragging measures should be taken and whoever is responsible should be punished". The Supreme Court had in 2007 directed educational institutions to register criminal cases against those indulging in ragging activities.

http://www.indianexpress.com/story_print.php?storyid=433168

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HARASSED FOR DOWRY, WOMAN IMMOLATES SELF (MAR 8, 2009, TIMES OF INDIA)

Bhaktinagar police station officials registered a case of suicide by a woman due to dowry harassment on Saturday. According to police officials, victim Manju Bambhava (26) set herself ablaze at her residence in Malakari society on Friday.

"We’ve registered a case on the basis of a complaint by Manju’s mother Jashu Dabhi, who alleged that her daughter had taken the drastic step as she was constantly being harassed for dowry of Rs 5 lakh by her in-laws," said sub-inspector BR Devra of Bhaktinagar police station.

"We’ve booked Manju’s husband Mukesh Bambhava, father in-law Jilu Bambhava, mother in-law Bhanu Bambhava, brother in-law Naresh Bambhava and sister in-law Hira Bambhava under sections 306, 498 (K) and 114 of Indian Penal Code," said Devra. "According to the complaint, all the accused had repeatedly physically and mentally abused Manju, driving her to the extreme step," he added.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4241904.cms

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27-YEAR-OLD DALIT SET ABLAZE IN UTTAR PRADESH (MAR 13, 2009, TIMES OF INDIA)

A physically handicapped Dalit man died after he was set on fire by three men in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district, police said on Friday. Ram Sagar, 27, was set ablaze in Saraibibi village of Sitapur district, about 80 km from here on Wednesday.

"Raj Kishore, Sushil and Rajesh of the same village took Sagar along with them and set him on fire after pouring kerosene on him," police inspector R.P. Shahi said. He said Sagar threatened to expose the three men after they stole a hand pump from a brick kiln.

All the four men were employed in the brick kiln in Ludahaura village of Sitapur. Sagar, who was undergoing treatment in a government-run hospital, succumbed to his injuries on Thursday. The three suspects are absconding.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4259245.cms

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OPINIONS AND EDITORIALS

ET TU, NAVEEN? – EDITORIAL (MAR 10, 2009, THE TRIBUNE)

Mr Naveen Patnaik has indeed given the BJP a jolt by walking out on it in Orissa and choosing to ally with the Left. It is bound to hurt the BJP’s ego and electoral prospects for the Lok Sabha and the State Assembly. Indeed, by taking this decision, the suave and soft-spoken Chief Minister and BJD supremo has caught the BJP off the guard. Feeling hurt, the BJP has withdrawn support to the government in retaliation. Though the relationship between the two alliance partners has been tenuous ever since the Kandhamal attacks on Christians by Sangh Parivar activists, the BJP didn’t expect the BJD to walk over to the Left. It has often accused the BJD of acting like a big brother in Orissa while the state party thought the BJP was acting too high and mighty. The BJD was reluctant to give more seats to it for the ensuing elections, particularly after the BJP’s humiliating defeat in the municipal polls, including those for the prestigious Bhubaneswar and Cuttack corporations.

Going by the number of MLAs paraded by Mr Patnaik before Governor M.C. Bhandare in Bhubaneswar on Sunday, there seems to be no threat to his government. In the 147-member House, the BJD (61 MLAs) has the support of another 15 members – one each from the CPM and the CPI, the NCP (two), the JMM (four) and Independents (seven). Incidentally, these members had won the 2004 Assembly elections with the BJD’s support. Nonetheless, the Governor has rightly asked the Chief Minister to prove his majority in the State Assembly on March 11. This is in tune with the recommendations of various expert committees and the Supreme Court which held that a Chief Minister should prove his government’s majority by seeking a vote of confidence in the State Assembly and not by parading MLAs at Raj Bhavan.

A fallout of Sunday’s divorce between the BJD and the BJP is its impact on the nebulous Third Front. The Left leaders like Mr Sitaram Yechury have been holding parleys with the BJD for some time. They will be too happy to rope in the BJD into the Third Front though Mr Patnaik is keeping his cards close to his chest. The Left wants the BJD to set aside one Lok Sabha and 22 Assembly seats in Orissa. Of the 21 seats in the outgoing Lok Sabha from Orissa, 18 are held by the erstwhile alliance of the BJD (11) and the BJP (7). And if the BJD-Left pre-poll alliance comes through, it will give a fillip to the Third Front – at the cost of the BJP, which is still trying to get over the shock given to it by Mr Patnaik. Mr Prakash Karat has begun smiling seeing the BJP slipping.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090310/edit.htm#1

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THIRD FRONT: TOO DISPARATE TO BE COHESIVE – EDITORIAL (MAR 14, 2009, THE TRIBUNE)

The launch of the Third Front, spearheaded by former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda, in Tumkur district, raises more questions than it provides answers to. That is only to be expected given the imponderables in a situation where no party or alliance is a clear frontrunner in the run-up to the general election. While the principal contenders – the Congress-led UPA and BJP-led NDA – have, predictably, sneered at the launching of the Third Front, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar has taken a realistic view of the emerging proposition. Mr Pawar may have stated the obvious in saying that if neither of the two alliances get a majority, they will have to talk to the Third Front. Yet, in doing so, he has shown both savvy and candour; savvy in keeping open his lines of communication to the Third Front, and candour in acknowledging the circumstances in which the Third Front could become a critical player.

That underscores both the strength and weakness of the Third Front. Its strength is that it is a platform ostensibly equidistant from the Congress party and the BJP. The platform is ideologically disparate enough to hold all comers, and the lack of cohesion can be projected as the flexibility of those who constitute the grouping. With the exception of the TDP’s Chandrababu Naidu, no heavyweight in the sense of a prime ministerial aspirant, has come up on the Front’s platform. Yet this is precisely the Front’s weakness – of being a platform for too many aspiring prime ministers who are not even willing to stand up and be counted now.

Besides Mr Naidu and Mr Pawar, the other obvious contenders are Ms J. Jayalalithaa and Ms Mayawati. Mr Gowda is no less an aspirant though he may have explicitly ruled himself out. There are others who will proclaim their interest and stake their claims after the elections. This means that the cohesion and efficacy of the Front will be tested after the elections rather than in any pre-poll arrangement. The presence of too many heavyweight personalities aspiring to lead the Front and the country is suggestive of confrontations and conflicts that cannot be ignored merely because they are not visible and upfront now.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090314/edit.htm#1

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MISSING JUSTICE – EDITORIAL (MAR 7, 2009, ECONOMIC & POLITICAL WEEKLY)

Seven years after the 2002 Gujarat massacres, the state government has started the process of officially revising the death toll in the anti-Muslim violence upwards to 1,180. The 228 "missing" persons will soon be listed among the dead following the end of the stipulated seven-year period for declaring the missing as dead. The families will, if they want to, now be able to claim compensation and complete other legal formalities. Many families could not claim compensation for their dead b ecause the district administration demanded to see the post-mortem reports. But these officially "missing" persons were killed and burnt in circumstances that rendered such demands, at the very least, insensitive. And, in a number of instances, the official "closure" does not mean the bereaved are assured that the State agencies did their best to trace the missing or unearth the c ircum stances under which the victims died. In the end, the issue is not of compensation but of faith in the system that justice is possible.

The confidence of the Muslim community in the state machinery could not have been strengthened by the recent "absconding" of Gujarat’s Minister for Women and Child Development, Maya Kodnani who, the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) said, was seen by witnesses instigating rioters in the Naroda Patiya and Naroda Gam areas of Ahmedabad, where some of the most gruesome of murders took place. Now, the state government has sent an affidavit (based on the SIT’s own affidavit) to the high court saying that the minister led a mob that killed 95 Muslims in 2002. Yet, Chief Minister Narendra Modi still does not think it necessary to dismiss K odnani from his cabinet.

There are many instances of official complicity which convince the minority community in Gujarat that it cannot expect justice from the state administration. Human rights bodies estimate the number of missing at 500 as against the official figure of 228. Gujarati society remains unwilling to confront the acts of 2002. A good example of this is that till date the film Parzania, which tells the story of a Parsi couple, whose 14-year old son went "missing" when a mob attacked the Gulbarg Society in 2002, has not been shown in the state due to threats from Hindu fundamentalists. The state government’s steps to inquire into the riots too have been ambiguous and dogged by controversy. On 6 March 2002, it had appointed the retired high court justice K G Shah to head an inquiry. However, following complaints from a number of quarters about Shah’s closeness to the Bharatiya Janata Party, r etired Supreme Court justice G T Nanavati was asked to take over in May.

The Nanavati Commission took six years to submit one part of its report to the state government in September last year. It said that the fire in the Sabarmati Express coach S6 was a "preplanned conspiracy" and not an accident and went on to give a clean chit to Modi, some of the ministers in the state cabinet, and the police. In 2003, five years before the submission of his report, print and television media had quoted justice Nanavati as saying that the Gujarat government had no part in the riots. The commission has been granted a year’s extension (until December 2009) to submit the second part of its report. The Nanavati report also contradicts the justice (retired) U C Banerjee report, commissioned by the Ministry of Railways, which said that the fire in the train which killed 58 Hindus was an accident. This report however has not yet been tabled in Parliament because a challenge to its constitutional validity (by a relative of one of the train fire victims) and the centre’s appeal to allow its tabling are pending before the Gujarat High Court.

As we go to press, a plea for the registration of a first information report (FIR) against Narendra Modi and 70 others for helping rioters is scheduled for hearing before the Supreme Court on 6 March. The Muslims have placed hope in the SIT despite the fact that many of the high-profile politicians and high-ranking police officers accused of participating in the brutalities and killings are yet to be brought to justice. Once more, as in the anti-Sikh massacre of 1984, the cold-blooded murder of about 40 Muslims of Hashimpura, Meerut in May 1987, the anti-Muslim pogrom in Bombay in January 1993, and the many other instances of anti-minority violence, the heinous hate crimes in Gujarat go unpunished and the victims’ pleas for justice remain unheeded.

http://epw.in/epw//uploads/articles/13240.pdf

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POLICE VS LAWYERS – BY R.K. RAGHAVAN (MAR 14, 2009, FRONTLINE)

The recent violence involving lawyers and policemen on the premises of the Madras High Court was as shameful as it was regrettable. It is widely recognised in Chennai that the clash served only to erode further the already low image of both lawyers and the police. It also raised questions on how far the common man can rely on them to uphold the law of the land in a crisis. The prompt arrival of Justice B.N. Srikrishna in Chennai at the instance of the Supreme Court and the businesslike manner in which he completed his preliminary inquiry offer hope of an objective reporting of the basic facts to the court. (My own information is that the lawyers did a good job presenting their case, while policemen were extremely defensive and shy of meeting the judge and articulating their point of view. I am, therefore, apprehensive that their case could go by default.)

Justice Srikrishna’s inquiry is an essential step forward because, at present, some fundamental facts are garbled and disputed. The rival groups could not have asked for a better assessor of the situation. The judge has an excellent reputation, and the clinical approach he brought to bear upon his investigation into the Mumbai riots several years ago was praised widely. It is an entirely different matter that a biased State government was averse to accepting his findings. A judge who is acclaimed as fearless and non-partisan is the best bet to ferret out basic facts in a situation that is surcharged with emotions and acrimony where truth could be a casualty. Justice Srikrishna visited the scene and has formed his own impressions. I am sure that he, being a fair-minded person, will go the extra length to find out how both groups behaved. The dominant view is that both sides indulged in riotous and disorderly conduct. Images shown on television channels depicted high-handedness by both sides. Scenes of policemen beating up hapless advocates and also those caught in the crossfire were disgusting. No less revolting were the images of advocates in robes throwing stones at the police. The arson at the police station on the campus is squarely attributed to the lawyers by the police although the lawyers can easily get away by putting the blame on outsiders.

The findings of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which has been permitted to register a case in this regard, is much anticipated. The dilly-dallying that went on before the Union government issued the notification tells yet another tale that smacks of bureaucratic indecision and something more, on which one can at best speculate. The police are expected to uphold and enforce the law. They do not have the licence to break it, whatever the provocation. The law of the land allows the use of reasonable force to prevent disorder and to intervene in a situation that threatens to disturb the peace. Nothing more, nothing less. By all accounts, the police were unleashed on the Madras High Court campus on that wholly forgettable afternoon. Any person they came across – judge, lawyer or litigant – became a target. I do not believe either the Director General of Police (DGP) or the Commissioner of Police can honestly disagree with the conclusion that the police went berserk.

I personally know how difficult it is to control a police contingent that is asked to tackle a mob. This is where good leadership counts. Possibly, the Chennai Police failed to measure up to the required standards at the High Court. They may, therefore, have to pay the penalty. This is unfortunate because I have heard that the Commissioner of Police is a professional with a good track record. If he is removed, he would be the second Commissioner to be shifted within a space of three months. What more evidence is required to tell the rest of the world that in India policing is a hazardous calling and that it requires extreme political sagacity to survive in sensitive public order assignments. The country’s political masters could not care less when those decisions that impinge on police morale are taken. The media often bay for police blood when events of the kind that happened in the High Court take place. This time, one was surprised that their responses were refreshingly different and bold. To quote from what The Hindu wrote in its editorial on February 28:

"The police action in the court no doubt merited serious concern and urgent response. But to consider only the police excesses, ignoring the circumstances and the situation prevailing on the court premises on that day, and to pin the entire blame for the happenings on the police personnel will be wholly unfair. With a police station already established and strengthened by a judicial order within the court complex, the police did not need permission from the court for their presence on the premises

Related posts:

  1. IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – February 16th, 2009
  2. IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – March 2nd, 2009
  3. IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – March 9th, 2009
  4. IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – November 16th, 2009
  5. IMC-USA Weekly News Digest – March 23rd, 2009

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