[sacw] sacw dispatch #2 (24 June 00)

[aiindex@mnet.fr]

South Asia Citizens Web - Dispatch #2.
24 June 2000
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

[IMPORTANT CORRECTION:

There was a major mistake in the title of item 3 in SACW Dispatch No.1 of
23 June 2000. These were excerpts from the autobiography of a
highly respected secular government official from India which is a rarity
these days. Please see to it that no injustice is done to Rajeshwar Dayal
who is no
more. Many appologies for having referred to him as a member of the Hindu
Right.]

__________________________
(INDIA SPECIAL)

#1. India: Bajrang Dal leaders say they want Christians out
#2. Report of demolition anf firing in Malavani
#3. Prakash Shah's letter to BJP declining felicitations for MISA
__________________________

#1.

The Times of India
23 June 2000

Bajrang Dal leaders say they want Christians out

By Siddharth Varadarajan

The Times of India News Service

MATHURA: The Bharatiya Janata Party high command in Delhi may insist the
Sangh Parivar has no anti-Christian agenda and that recent incidents of
violence against church institutions in Uttar Pradesh are the handiwork of
Pakistan, but their foot soldiers in the state make no bones about their
intention to drive away Christians.

While denying any involvement in the murder of Brother George of Mathura or
the attack on Father Thomas of Kosikalan, local Bajrang Dal leaders said
Christians were now bigger enemies than Muslims. Dharmendra Sharma, the
Bajrang Dal's "sah-sahayojak" for the Braj region, declared that his
organisation was ready to fight wherever church institutions were active.
``Maar-peet to kya, hum sab kuchch karne ke liye taiyar hain" (We are
prepared to use violence. There is no limit).'' When this reporter
suggested such talk lent credence to the theory of a possible Bajrang Dal
link to the murder of Brother George, he replied: ``So what? We feel that
every time there is a crime like this, the Bajrang Dal's name should be
taken. Hindus will respect us more and Christians will fear us.''

``When people blame us,'' said Rajesh Choudhary, district convener of the
Bajrang Dal in Mathura, ``it helps spread the word that we have extreme
views and that we use violence. This strengthens our movement.'' He claimed
Christians were involved in the murder of Brother George. ``The padre was a
bad man and he must have had enemies.'' Asked to elaborate, he said,
somewhat sheepishly, ``He used to roam around with nuns.''

Choudhary said the Bajrang Dal was not the sort of organisation to dabble
in random violence. ``The Christians want to take over the country. What is
the point of us targeting one or two? Our aim is to drive them all away,''
he said. ``Jis samay hum bhagana shuru karenge, yeh nahin bach payenge<"
(The day we start chasing them away, they won't be able to save
themselves). Even the administration won't be able to help them.'' Sharma,
on his part, freely recounted incidents where he and his associates have
attacked Christian preachers around Agra for trying to convert Dalits.

Both leaders lamented the fact that the Sangh Parivar had not reacted
earlier to the ``dangers'' posed by Christians. But at a national
convention of the Bajrang Dal in Brindavan in March this year, the matter
was discussed and a decision taken to launch a campaign against church
institutions, Sharma revealed. However, he dismissed as mere coincidence
the fact that there has been a spate of anti-Christian violence around
Brindavan ever since.

Asked about the murder of Graham Staines and his sons, Sharma denied the
Bajrang Dal was involved. Another Dal activist narrated how Hindus in
Orissa worship Staines' killer, Dara Singh, as a hero. Asked whether that
was a good or bad thing, the activist laughed. ``Very good,'' he replied.
Sharma was embarrassed. ``The two boys should not have been killed. And the
way Staines was killed was not good.'' He then paused for a moment and
thought deeply. ``We should be prepared for any eventuality,'' he said.
``Lekin inke liye "

_______

#2.

EKTA

(Committee for Communal Amity)

Campaign and Advocacy for Human Rights

(Build)

Report of Citizens Inquiry Committee in the Police Firing in Malavani
following the demolition of shed of the Mosque on 7th June 2000.

Mumbai, 22nd June

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----

Report of Citizens Inquiry Committee in the Police Firing in Malavani
following the demolition of shed of the Mosque on 7th June 2000.

On 7th June the Municipal demolition squad, under heavy police escort
demolished substantial part of the shed of the mosque, part of which was
not built with the municipal permission. The police firing nearly 2
Kilometers away from the demolition site followed this. In the firing one
person died and another was seriously injured and had to be hospitalized.
Death of an individual following the demolition and the disturbing
statements by various political persons prompted EKTA (Committee for
Communal Amity) and Campaign and Advocacy for Human Rights to constitute a
citizens inquiry committee to investigate the whole episode to

a) Find out whether the demolition was necessary, whether the part of
the mosque demolished was causing any public nuisance.

b) Whether proper procedures were followed in the demolition.

c) What prompted the police to open the fire, whether there was an
organized or spontaneous response threatening the security of the
residents/police or the property of the area?

The following committee was constituted

1. Jalinder Adsule- Secretary, Committee for Rights for Housing
2. Masud Pesh Imam- Editor- The New Break, Kalyan
3. Ankush Bhoge- Social Worker, Campaign and Advocacy for Human
Rights (Build)
4. Sanjay Shinde- Dalit Shramik Andolan
5. Ram Puniyani- Secretary- EKTA (Committee for Communal Amity)

The Committee visited the Kabristan (Muslim burial ground), the area where
the firing took place, the police station, met the ACP, the community
leaders and went through different relevant documents.

Investigation:

1.The committee talked to the Shiekh Ramjan Ali President of the Masjid
(Masjid Avees Quarni), which is located in the Kabristan. Mr. Ali is
65-year-old businessman who had twice been the municipal corporator. He was
assisted by the naib imam Asarar Ahmad Rizvi and Mohammed Eklate, a
shopkeeper whose shop is in part of the wall of the kabristan, in giving us
their version of the events as they took place.

2. This Kabristan is on the Marve road and there is a huge open area on the
opposite side of the road where many a hutment's are there. Many of which
keep getting subjected to the 'treatment' of bulldozer of the municipality.
The people from Kandivli, Madh island and Orlem use this ground to bury
their dead and on average 4-5 bodies is buried daily. As the people, coming
for burial offer prayer and they could not be accommodated in the mosque a
shed was erected nearby to accommodate the people, who either accompany the
burial procession or come to pray here on regular basis. The shed developed
some cracks in 1997. The trustees approached the municipality for
permission to repair and expand the area of the shed. They did get
permission to expand but earmarked the area larger than the permission for
construction. As the construction was on, they got a letter from
municipality to stop the work, four months ago. They complied with the
letter and construction work had stopped four months ago. This shed was
made from the municipal funds. We saw that the whole shed outside the
structure had been razed to the ground, not sparing anything outside the
mosque.

3.Prior to the day of demolition a huge police patrolling was witnessed and
over 20 police vans were stationed in the area. In the morning when the
squad arrived with the bulldozer, they closed the door of burial ground
from inside and the people working nearby were interned inside and the gate
was locked. The demolition squad went on rampage and along with the
non-permission structure, they razed to the ground the earlier shed also,
which was built with the help of municipal funds and was totally legal. We
could see the solid boulders and other remnants of the pillars scattered
nearby. Prior to the demolition they had not received any notice what so
ever from the corporation.

4.We visited the house of the deceased Mr. Kailm Yusf Sheikh. His house is
in a chawl in area called as Gate No.7, which is around 2 K.M. away from
the place of demolition. There was an atmosphere of gloom in the house as
we talked to his relatives, including his 22 years old widow and three
children aged 4 1/2,3 years and the infant aged 6 months. Kalim had lost
his father just four months ago due to illness. Kalim was an electrician
and his elder brother Sayeed gave the detailed version.
The firing took place around 11.30 A.M. when Kalim was going to one
hardware shop to buy the material for his contract of wiring in one of the
houses. There was no particular pretext for the firing as the people
disturbed by the news of demolition of the mosque were moving about without
any violence.
On hearing that some action is going on in the mosque people came on the
streets and took a morcha towards the burial ground. Since the police
patrolling was intense this morcha was dispersed a kilometer away from the
burial ground. As people were moving in the streets near gate 7 police
without probably the need for the same to disperse the crowd opened the
fire. Kalim after being hit by the first bullet fell to the ground. The
police constable kicked him and turned him on his face before firing twice
on his body. The details of second person are not available but apparently
he reached Nair hospital on his own and was undergoing treatment there.
Kalim was taken to the police station and made to wait there. Meanwhile
women from both the communities took a morcha and requested for the release
of Kalim as he was deeply injured by three bullets. He was taken in a
rickshaw to Bhagwati Hospital, nearly 10 KM away where he breathed his
last. Even in hospital he had to wait for some time to make the case paper
despite being an emergency case. This firing was above the waist and even
when Kalim fell down he was turned around to be shot twice again. The
police rounded up around 40 boys, and put charges against, around 24 boys
and except 9, others have been released on bail and bonds. The boys have
been rounded up under the serious charges of rioting etc, while most of the
people we talked to maintained that there was no rioting of any kind. The
people we talked to were Rehana Sheikh Jamal,Sayeed, Dawwood Adam Patel and
many others in the area.

5. When we visited the police station out side we met trustee of Anjuman
Jama Masjid Mr. Abdul Jabbar and one Mohammed Rahil who are trying to get
the boys released from the police custody.
They told us that after the firing some boys became more rowdy and few
politically motivated one's broke the Hanuman idol in a temple nearby. They
also told us that even in the worst days of rioting in 92-93, post Babri
demolition there were no riots in Malavani. The crowd, which broke the
idols of Hanuman and Ambe Mata, was a mixed one and more of an anti-social
one rather than a community specific one. Also the boys who were picked and
arrested by the police were from different areas and some of them were
dragged out from their houses. There was some stone throwing in some areas
but no organised and serious matter in any of the localities. This version
was confirmed by most of the people we talked to barring the police. They
also went and meet the trustee of Hanuman temple and apologised for the
damage to the idol, by who so ever might have done it.

6.The police officer who talked to us did not wish to be quoted. As per him
after the demolition began there was a morcha of the residents, which had
to be dispersed. There was intense rioting, swords were being brandished
and fireballs were being thrown on the police officers. The jeep of one
patrolling officer Mr. Bhavasar and his team was surrounded and he felt the
threat to their lives because of which he ordered the constable Sanjay
Pawar to fire one 'effective' round due to which one person was injured and
other died. Despite the heavy number of police personnel, this patrolling
jeep was alone and did not have the tear gas shells, so they had to open
the firing in 'self-defense'. The crowd also pelted stones on the BEST
buses as well damaging 11 of them. Nearly 12 police personnel incurred
injuries including Prakash Shinde who was hit by a stone on the nose
requiring stitches.

7.We met the ACP Mr. Subhash Avate. As per Mr. Avate there was no mosque in
the burial ground. Gradually the local trustees have been expanding the
existing structure into a regular mosque and were planning to make a three
storied structure. The plinth around the structure was very strong and
could not be demolished. Crowd of thousand each from front and rear
surrounded the jeep of Mr. Bhavasar so he had to order for the firing. The
crowd was very rowdy and there was a threat to the life of patrolling
party. In such situations firing in the air is of no help. They don't use
rubber bullets, as they are not effective. They did not have tear gas
shells. Also in such situations it is difficult to aim just below the waist
as even a slight change in aiming can result in the bullet hitting the
abdomen or chest. Only one round was fired and the bullet scrapped past the
first rioter and entered the body of the second one. The police was not
aware of the death immediately and the body of Kalim was brought to police
station by people and later taken to Bhagawati Hospital jointly by people
and police. The post- mortem report was not shown to us on the ground that
it is not yet available.

8. The study of the illegal places of worship in Mumbai gives a very
interesting statastics, Times of India April 1st (Encroachers have Divine
Weapon against BMC squads). As per this report according to one of the
studies done by BMC 792 illegal, unauthorised places of worship have come
up creating hassles for the traffic. Out of this 725 are Hindu temples, 20
belong to Muslims, 42 to the Christian community. The bias in the
demolition of these is very obvious and the minority structures are the
ones' preferred by the BMC squad. The present structure was in the compound
of the Kabristan with no possibility of obstructing the traffic in any way.

Observation:

1.The construction of the illegal structure was stopped after the notice
from the corporation. This structure was within the walled burial ground,
away from any road and was not likely to disturb the traffic and other
civic activities. Also trustees of the burial ground had stopped the
construction in response to the letter. They did not get the usual notices
which corporation must send before demolitions are to be undertaken.
2.There was no rioting warranting the firing. There was no desperate
situation to necessitate the opening of firing above waist. Most of the
disturbances took place after the firing by the police.
3.It is not sure as to who damaged the Hanuman idol.
4.Kalim was shot at thrice, that is unlikely to be for the sake of curbing
the riot.
5.He was detained in the police station for 1 1/2 hours despite the three
bullet wounds and then the relatives were made to take him in an auto
rickshaw. This defies all the logic of the norms of handling emergency
cases.
6.There were no signs in the locality of the destruction of property by the
mob or the use of fireballs etc. by the mob.

Conclusion:

This demolition was totally thoughtless and probably the authorities could
have talked the matter to the trustees and sorted out the matter. The
demolition of the legal part is an act, condemnation of which is beyond
words. It is and outright waste of social resources.

The mob was scattered and the firing was an act more out of prejudice than
to control the situation. It is one more instance of police bias against
the Dalits and minorities the examples of which we have seen aplenty be it
the post Babri demolition riot of 92-93 or the firing of Ramabai Ambedkar
Nagar. Shrikrishna commission and Gundewar commission of inquiry have
proved this bias without any shadow of doubt.

Recommendations:

1.There is an urgent need to formulate the demolition policy and to put
some rationality and sanity into it.
2. While demolishing the part of places of worship it is very important not
only to give the notice and have the proper police bandobast but also to
take the community leaders in to confidence.
3.The police personnel are heavily biased against the minorities and the
dalits. They do require to be trained and retrained in the concept of
Secularism, pluralism and multicultural values. Many of these biases are
due to their exposure to communal literature. These communal myths need to
be countered.
4. It seems the very basics of decency in handling the emergencies are
missing due to heavy anti-minority bias. We need to have a look at the
training of police personnel in Human rights and to suitably punish the
erring officers to set an example to the rest.

________

#3.

Mr. Prakash Shah turns down the invitation extended to MISA detainees to be
honoured during the silver jubilee function organized by the BJP

Prakash Shah, the editor of 'Nireekshak' magazine has turned down the
invitation extended to him by the BJP Gujarat Unit to participate in the
function to honour Emergency detainee.

Mr. Shah, who was an active member of the JP movement 'Lok Swaraj
Andolarn', was jailed along with other political leaders during emergency
rule in 1976-7. He had played a leading role in organizing people=EDs
resistance and also in the formation of the Janata Morcha (alliance) at
that time. Shri Morarji Desai in his autobiography has mentioned the names
of B.K. Mazumdar, Umashankar Joshi, Bhogibhai Gandhi, Ishwar Petlikar and
Prakash Shah as the five non-party intellectual activists who were
responsible for the formation and sustenance of the Janata Morcha. Soon
after the fall of Babubhai Jasbhai ministry in March 1976, Prakashbhai was
among those who were detained under MISA. He was released in January 1977
when fresh elections were declared and emergency rule was relaxed.

He has served as the resident-editor of the Gujarati daily, 'Jansatta' and
is a regular columnist in various newspapers and magazines like Gujarat
Today, Janasatta, Gujarat Mitra, Samkaleen, etc.

At present Mr. Shah is the Convener of the Movement for Secular Democracy
in Gujarat and is in the forefront in organizing and fighting against human
rights abuse, communalism, religious fundamentalism and fascism.
=46ollowing is the free rendering of the text of his letter in Gujarati
addressed to Shri Rajendrasingh Rana, President of Gujarat State Unit of
the BJP.

=46rom,
Prakash N. Shah,
'Prakash',
B/H Navarangpura, P.O.,
Ahmedabad - 380 009.

To,
Mr. Rajendrasingh Rana,
President,
Gujarat BJP,
Khanpur,
Ahmedabad 380 001.

Dated, 19th June, 2000.

Dear Shri Rajendrasinghji,

Gujarat Pradesh BJP has organized the function to honour the fighters
against emergency under the auspices of the 'Committee to felicitate the
promoters of democracy'. This committee also invites me since activists
like me "stood up to the emergency and was jailed for it".

While thanking you sincerely and expressing my regrets at not being able to
accept this invitation, I do hope you will accept my sincere and humble
sentiments why I decline this honour and try to understand my viewpoint.

As concerned non-political citizens and also Jan Sangh, Socialist party and
Congress (O) members we came together. As followers of JP, we are glad to
have shouldered our historical responsibility in the role of catalysts and
feel satisfied that if not in the first struggle of Swaraj, at least in the
second struggle we could participate in it and as companions in the
struggle as well as companions in jail, I recall the shared memories of our
jail life together.

But I would like to remind you that the JP movement and the fight against
emergency was the polarization of people=EDs struggle against authoritarian
rule to safeguard democracy. Any effort to rally the people in this 25th
anniversary year of the emergency has to be done on the basis of a wider
citizens' committee and not by a party committee as you have planned.
(Dynamite fame Kirit Bhatt and his companions have planned such a programme
on the basis of people=EDs participation at Vadodara and they want to discus=
s
under the provisions of the constitutions, the implications of possible
emergency during the reign of those who had opposed emergency at one time).

Although your planning is not based on people=EDs participation, this is not
the only reason for me to decline your invitation. The most important and
decisive reason for me is that during the last twelve years, especially
since the time of the rathyatra of L.K. Advani, BJP has taken a form (a
distorted form in fact), which is a negation of the values, and the process
initiated by JP. Both are now poles apart. Consequently, the BJP has since
long forfeited the moral authority to celebrate such occasions in the name
of the people.

The fact is that we have received this inheritance and responsibility from
the polarization of people=EDs struggle against authoritarian rule. The
effort of the BJP to divide this people on communal lines in the name of
nationalism and the way it is being promoted by BJP are not in accordance
with this heritage but is really opposed to it.

The emergent mentality after the Ayodhya episode is not only communalist
but also displaying terrifying possibilities of Nazism and Fascism. As a
people we may be able to see through the state authoritarianism, but at
times we fail to see and understand authoritarianism emanating from society
in the name of the people. Those groups, who have received the heritage of
organizing resistance to the authoritarian rule of the state and the greed
for power of the individual, have to remain alert against any manifestation
of oppression by any particular group in the name of society and they
should be in the forefront of people=EDs resistance to such potentially
fascist manifestations of power. Placing the performance of BJP against
this yardstick has made those friends of 1974-77 who fought together for a
just and free India, has disappointed them and also the vast majority of
the people and filled their minds with complaints and dissatisfaction
against the BJP's attitudes and strategies towards the majority of the
people=EDs sentiments.

Since you are elected to in power in Delhi and Gandhinagar, you can ask us:
"how you could best represent the sentiments of the people?". Sir, your
power at the Centre is due to NDA. Even though you have been shouting in
the name of the Hindu majority, you could muster only 20 to 25% of votes
and you had to garner majority with the help of other parties.

This was one of the tactics adopted by the Janata Morcha and Janata Party,
you may retort. In this context, in view of the ethical practice in public
life, I want to make a small point: what is the credibility of NDA in the
context of people=EDs resistance to authoritarianism and the movements for
social change? You have placed in the cold storage what you considered
your most important agenda. As a ruling party, you find safety as a member
of NDA partners. Advaniji, your main ideologue, says "these tactics are
nothing new for us. Earlier during the time of JP=EDs movement and later
during the movement of VP Singh, we have kept aside our main ideological
points".

Yes, exactly here, as a humble volunteer of 1974-77, my disagreement
with you is that the joining of Jana Sangh in JP=EDs movement was only a
tactics for you? In fact, all the various forces who joined this movement
were all subjected to the flames of the fire-test of passing through the
process of revival of values. I remember in March 1979, JP went to address
the open session of Jana Sangh. At that time, while expressing vote of
thanks, Vajpayeejee had expressed this experience. He had said that the
party men are normally of middle-class mentality. But now that they have
joined the movement of people led by JP, their thoughts and mentality are
undergoing change. He summarized his conclusion in the following words:
"Our character is getting transformed". As I listened to Vajpayeejee, I
remembered the famous movelist Rajendra Yadav, in his famous novel, "Sara
Akash", who portrayed effectively the middle class mentality of average
member of the Sangh. Vajpayeejee may be remembering this episode and his
formative years, the mould he might have passed through. Re-examining and
having a fresh look at this past, he may understand the formative nature of
the JP movement. I preferred to think that his confession that =ECour
character is getting transformed=EE, contained the expression of gratitude
to JP and also the expression of the inner feelings of acceptance of the
movement. Is there any comparison, Rajendrasinghji, with your present cold
storage strategy and the 1975 expression of Vajpayeejee?

In recent years I have been criticizing communal politics of our party.
While doing this fearlessly and unrelentingly, the speech of JP in 1975 and
Vajpayjee=EDs vote of thanks are at the back of my mind. I have noticed tha=
t
Sangh Parivar including BJP has no intention of introspecting. You have
regressed to the same past mentality and narrow nationalistic attitude and
fanatic mindset of pre-JP movement era.

As I see it you are bent upon taking authoritarian steps such as the
proposed new TADA, which can potentially even out MISA the earlier MISA.
It is an indication of the sort of undeclared emergency under
constitutional garb. This approach certainly disqualifies you to speak in
the name of popular resistance to Mrs. Gandhi=EDs authoritarian rule?

I would be failing in my duty as a fellow-fighter of earlier days, if I
don't convey my assessment and apprehension to you. And hence this letter
to you following the dictates of my conscience.

Hopefully, you will appreciate my decision of not accepting your invitation
to participate in your programme.

With ward regards,

Yours sincerely
Prakash N. Shah

______________________________________________
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