[sacw] SACW #2 | 1 June 02 [India / Gujarat, Communalism]

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire Dispatch #2 | 1 June 2002
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

All are Invited to visit the Updated web pages of South Asians Against Nuke=
s:
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex/NoNukes.html
__________________________

#1. Another NHRC report indicts Modi
#2. Final Order on Gujarat dated 31st May, 2002 (National Human=20
Rights Commission)
#3. Gujarat rulers flayed over sectarian attacks (Rajyasri Rao)
#4. Audio video report on BBC - Author of Human Rights Watch report=20
on Gujarat Smita Narula
#5. The Guilty of Gujarat (Kingshuk Nag)
#6. Investigation as collusion - II (Brinda Karat & Subhashini Ali)
#7. The Gujarat Massacres: The Cost of Silence (EKTA [in California])
#8. Ode to joy (Amit Sengupta)
#9. Congress Party brainstorming session on secularism
#10. Painful reminder (edit Economic Times)
#11. Convention on peace secularism & democracy postponed (Jatin Desai)
#12. Article on Ahmedabadi Youth (Economic and Political weekly)

__________________________

#1.

The Hindustan Times
Saturday, June 1, 2002
=20=20=09=20
Another NHRC report indicts Modi
HT Correspondent
(New Delhi, May 31)
The National Human Rights Commission on Friday released another=20
report on the Gujarat violence, indicting the Narendra Modi=20
Government for its failure on all fronts. The indictment came after=20
the state administration failed to respond, despite repeated=20
reminders, to queries raised in a confidential report.

The NHRC further noted that the government's April 12 response to the=20
panel's preliminary comments (made public) also failed to rebut the=20
presumption that the state administration was unable to deal with the=20
violence.

In continuation of its April 1 preliminary comments, a bench headed=20
by NHRC chairman Justice J.S. Verma concluded on Friday that the=20
government had failed to gather intelligence to anticipate the likely=20
fallout from the Godhra incident. Neither did it take action against=20
the rioters nor were local factors and players behind the violence=20
identified.

The panel said the government's report to the NHRC lacked=20
transparency with regard to the pattern of arrests. Referring to the=20
report of the NHRC's special representative in Gujarat, the bench=20
said that 90 per cent of the suspects in heinous offences like murder=20
and arson could manage to obtain bail soon after arrest.

The panel also charged the Modi regime with discriminatory handling=20
of major cases. It said the government failed to identify persons who=20
had played a partisan role in tackling communal violence.

The NHRC said the police misrepresented facts in FIRs relating to=20
cases of rape and killing.

The NHRC recommended that heinous offences be probed by the CBI. It=20
also sought a report from the government by June 30 on its latest=20
comments.

_____

#2.

NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
SARDAR PATEL BHAVAN
NEW DELHI

Final Order on Gujarat dated 31st May, 2002

Name of the complainant : Suo motu
Case No. :=20
1150/6/2001-2002
Date :=20
31 May 2002
[...]
{ See Full text at : http://nhrc.nic.in/ }

____

#3.

BBC News
Friday, 31 May, 2002, 20:52 GMT 21:52 UK
Gujarat rulers flayed over sectarian attacks
By Rajyasri Rao
BBC reporter in Delhi
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_2019000/2019529.st=
m

_____

#4.

BBC News [Audio Video]
WATCH/LISTEN

Author of Human Rights Watch report Smita Narula
"An overwhelming majority of the victims were Muslim"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1955000/video/_1959636_gujarat15_narula_vi.ra=
m

____

#5.

The Times of India, JUNE 01, 2002
EDITORIAL

The Guilty of Gujarat
KINGSHUK NAG

Ahmedabad's former police commissioner, P C Pande, has moved to his=20
new office at the Police Bhawan in Gandhinagar, smug in the knowledge=20
that he has a bright career ahead of him.
Within a year and a half, Mr Pande, currently an additional director=20
general, will become a director general of police and another year=20
thence, the seniormost cop in the state. In this position he will=20
continue till 2009 when he would superannuate.
Mr Pande joined the Indian Police Service at the young age of 21 and=20
with seniority on his side, it really doesn't matter that he stood=20
paralysed in the last few months even as the city he was supposed to=20
control went up in flames and horrendous crimes were committed. It's=20
also immaterial that Ahmedabad's men in khaki lost the respect and=20
fear of the public during Mr Pande's tenure. Even his own office was=20
encircled by mobs and properties around it wantonly destroyed.
But then it would be unfair to brand Mr Pande as the only guilty man=20
of Gujarat to have a bright future. Before the arrival of K P S Gill,=20
M K Tandon was the joint commissioner of Ahmedabad's police force and=20
number two to Mr Pande. He has now been transferred to Surat as the=20
range inspector general.
That's a post which many in the Gujarat police would love to occupy.=20
Mr Tandon was directly in charge of some of the areas, including=20
Naroda Patia and Gulberg Society, that saw the most gruesome=20
incidents in the communal flare-up.
Indeed, on that fateful evening when mobs collected outside Gulberg=20
Society, Mr Tandon happened to pass that way. But he didn't think it=20
prudent to halt and disperse the crowds as he had to go elsewhere.
Messrs Pande and Tandon have at least been transferred. Gujarat's top=20
cop K Chakravarthi continues to be the director general of police,=20
even though his reputation has been seriously tarnished.
It's commonplace to hear a refrain like the following in the police=20
headquarters: If the DGP meant business, he should have collected=20
some force, climbed onto a jeep and rushed to Gulberg Society the=20
moment he heard that mobs had encircled the building. But what does=20
Mr Chakravarthi care about his reputation as long as he keeps his job.
The only silver lining in Mr Chakravarthi's career in the last two=20
months has been the feeble note that he wrote to the government after=20
four superintendents of police, who were doing their job effectively,=20
were transferred in the middle of the riots.
The note merely complained that he was not consulted on the=20
transfers. Interestingly, only a few months ago, Mr Chakravarthi's=20
name was being considered for the post of CBI director. Even as top=20
police honchos in Gujarat continue to make hay, the fate of the=20
actual perpetuators of the horrendous crimes is no worse.
More than 700 FIRs have been filed in Ahmedabad alone, but=20
investigations have made no progress. Frequent transfers in the last=20
two months in the lower and middle rungs of the police have hampered=20
investigations as much as the fact that most of the FIRs, under=20
police insistence, name no names.
The situation is so bad that the new security advisor, Mr Gill, has=20
publicly acknowledged that "the FIRs relating to the riots were=20
incomplete, which initially took investigations off the track".=20
Admittedly, after Mr Gill's arrival, things have started looking up=20
and there is now talk of investigations being taken up afresh.
Meanwhile, some two to three months have elapsed and vital proof that=20
could nail offenders has been lost. This is especially true of rape=20
cases, which are difficult to prove at the best of times.
That many offenders - even if they are booked - might find it easy to=20
get away is clear from another development. Last fortnight the=20
government appointed a new panel of public prosecutors to argue the=20
state's criminal cases. Some of these prosecutors have hitherto=20
fought only small-time cases like those arising from bouncing of=20
cheques.
Even if one assumes that the constitution of this new panel had=20
nothing to do with nepotism, it's difficult to see how these lawyers=20
can successfully obtain convictions against the accused.
The Sangh Parivar and those who subscribe to its philosophy have been=20
berating the national media for underplaying the Godhra incident.=20
Thanks to the Modi government, even the guilty of Godhra might get=20
away.
Though 64 persons have been put behind bars, the police have been=20
unable to complete the investigations even three months after the=20
gory incident. Last heard, they had barely managed to file an interim=20
chargesheet. Available information suggests that the investigations=20
are in a state of disarray, given the multiplicity of agencies and=20
police officials dealing with the case in the last 90 days. The main=20
accused - Razak Kurkur - is still at large.
At the end of the day then, even as thousands struggle and try hard=20
to pick up the threads of their lives, it is not merely Narendra Modi=20
and his cohorts like home minister Gordhan Zadhphia who remain firmly=20
in the saddle. Virtually anyone who had anything to do with the=20
events of the last three months in Gujarat seems to be having a jolly=20
good time.

_____

#6.

The Hindu, Jun 01, 2002
Opinion - Leader Page Articles

Investigation as collusion - II
By Brinda Karat & Subhashini Ali
You cannot commiserate with wounded and violated women and=20
children... without exposing, condemning and bringing to justice=20
those who are responsible.
http://www.hinduonnet.com/stories/2002060100931000.htm

_____

#7.

THE GUJARAT MASSACRES: THE COST OF SILENCE

The state of Gujarat in India once renowned as the home of the peace=20
activist, Mahatma Gandhi, is today home to over 100,000 victims of=20
recent communal violence, most of them Muslims. Of these numbers,=20
over 2000 were brutalized and killed in every way imaginable and in=20
ways till now unimaginable-stoned; burned alive with kerosene;=20
stabbed; butchered; raped and burned; and, raped and cut open with=20
fetuses removed, displayed on a tip of a sword and then discarded in=20
fires. The unfortunate survivors that witnessed entire families=20
erased continue to suffer in over-crowded make-shift relief camps=20
and now face a different specter of death in the form of disease, an=20
unrelenting heat wave, the approaching monsoon, and starvation.

The violence in Gujarat began soon after an incident on February 27,=20
2002, when the Sabarmati Express was stopped near Godhra and several=20
compartments were torched leading to the death of 58 Hindu=20
passengers, including women and children. While conflicting reports=20
exist about the exact sequence of events, it is clear that a=20
confrontation between Hindutva activists returning from the=20
controversial site of Ayodhya and the mainly Muslim residents of=20
Godhra escalated to the point of the train being deliberately set on=20
fire. What ensued in the wake of the heinous attack on the Sabarmati=20
Express was a state-wide retaliatory carnage of unimaginable=20
proportions the social, psychological and economical damages of=20
which defy quantification. Immediately following the train incident=20
at Godhra, frenzied Hindu mobs across the state of Gujarat unleashed=20
their fury on the Muslim population by brutalizing and obliterating=20
entire families and neighborhoods, looting their property, and=20
destroying places of worship. To date, the numbers are as follows:=20
over 2000 dead and buried in mass graves, over 100,000 in inadequate=20
relief camps, and an estimated Rs. 10, 000 crore ($2 billion) in=20
property damage. The unaccounted damage to the people of Gujarat as=20
a whole, to the cause of communal harmony, and to India as a nation=20
far exceeds these numbers.

As NGOs and activists for communal harmony seek ways to bring relief=20
and justice to the victims of the Gujarat massacre, fact-finding=20
reports point to the following critical findings:

=85 State participation and complicity in communal violence in Gujarat:

While the Gujarat government has labeled the massacre a "spontaneous=20
reaction" to the train incident in Godhra, research by several human=20
rights and civil liberties organizations indicates that the attacks=20
against Muslims were pre-meditated and planned well before the Godhra=20
incident, and were supported by the police and the Bhartiya Janata=20
Party (BJP, Indian People's Party) state government in collusion with=20
the Rashtriya Swamsevak Sangh (RSS), Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP),=20
and the Bajrang Dal. One of many examples of this diabolical=20
collusion is that the Hindu attackers were guided by computer=20
printouts listing the addresses of Muslim families and their=20
properties-information obtained from the Ahmedabad municipal=20
cooperation. Equally outrageous is the cover-up of the state's role=20
in the massacres: even though eyewitnesses filed numerous police=20
First Information Reports (FIRs) that named local leaders as=20
instigators or participants in the attacks, few if any of the leaders=20
have been arrested. A Citizen's Initiative report states the=20
following: "Video footage by the fact-finding team showed slogans=20
like, Yeh andar ki baat hai, police hamare saath hai (The inside=20
story is that the police is on our side)-written boldly on the walls=20
of gutted Muslim homes." (p. 18, April 16, 2002). And as for the=20
police officers who made an attempt to do their job and maintain=20
peace in their areas, the state government promptly transferred them=20
but took little action against officers who did nothing to control=20
the rioters.

=85 The Gujarat massacre and minority women:

While no victim's pain is more or less than another's in a holocaust=20
such as this, it is true that Muslim women have been used as a=20
battle-ground by Hindu attackers to "settle" religious differences.=20
A six-member team of women undertook a fact-finding mission at the=20
end of March to assess the impact of the continuing violence against=20
minority women in Gujarat and found that the sexual crimes were=20
grossly under-reported. They found the following types of compelling=20
and disturbing evidence of sexual violence against Muslim women:=20
"Among the women surviving in relief camps, are many who have=20
suffered the most bestial forms of bestial violence-including rape,=20
gang rape, mass rape, stripping, insertion of objects into their=20
bodies, molestations. A majority of rape victims have been burnt=20
alive". (p. 6, Citizen's Initiative, April 16, 2002).

=85 A deafening silence in the international community:

With the exception of a few activists and grassroots organizations=20
in the United States and a vague public acknowledgement of the riots=20
in response to a front-cover photograph of a Hindu militant=20
brandishing a sword, the Gujarat incident has received very little=20
attention in America. It is very important to note that prompt and=20
appropriate response to the carnage-particularly relief efforts by=20
the majority of non-resident Indians-has been severely lacking. This=20
silence and the failure to act are in sharp contrast to the=20
instrumental role of such groups in raising funds for the 2001=20
Gujarat earthquake. Whereas in 2001 millions of dollars in aid from=20
the international community poured into the state for earthquake=20
relief, the burden of providing food, medical support, and other=20
supplies for the victims of the recent violence is being shouldered=20
by local NGOs and Muslim voluntary groups. It is also worth=20
mentioning that the lack of support from certain segments of the NRI=20
community, though appalling, is not particularly surprising given=20
that such groups have provided substantial support to the=20
increasingly militant and powerful Hindu right in India. Finally,=20
the stand of the Indian government that the recent occurrences in=20
Gujarat are an "internal matter" and that condemnation by other=20
countries would be construed as "interference" has also encouraged=20
the silence of the international community.

EKTA stands in solidarity with the many concerned people throughout=20
India and the world who are outraged and ashamed by what is=20
happening in Gujarat. For what occurred in Gujarat in February and=20
what continues to happen today, EKTA unequivocally condemns the=20
actions and transgressions of the following key agencies amongst=20
others:

=85 The Gujarat government for: inciting violent riots against=20
Muslims; aiding and abetting the perpetrators of the communal=20
violence; ignoring and discounting the magnitude of the carnage; and=20
for its continued failure to provide relief and aid to the victims.

=85 The Gujarat state and local media for: anti-minority propaganda;=20
distorting facts and fabricating others as a means to instigating=20
violence by Hindus against Muslims; and for the failure to report=20
the extent of the atrocities in the days following Feb 27,=20
particularly the sexually violent crimes against Muslim women.

=85 All members of the Sangh Parivar (the ruling BJP, the RSS, the=20
Shiv Sena (SS), VHP, and the Bajrang Dal) for: engaging in the=20
politics of hate and violence for political and financial gain;=20
demonizing and terrorizing entire communities of fellow citizens=20
(Muslims, Christians, and Dalits); opposing the very fundamental=20
principle of equality and liberty upon which the Indian state is=20
based; and propagating a narrow and distorted version of Hinduism=20
which is profoundly anti-Hindu at its core.

The question then is: What can each of us do? One thing is clear: no=20
matter what our individual beliefs and persuasions, what is=20
happening in Gujarat-whether measured by the erosion of humanity,=20
the breakdown of law and order, business loss, or the decline in=20
tourism and foreign investment-harms everyone equally. What we can=20
do is the following:

=85 Voice our outrage and denounce the Gujarat and Indian government =85=20
Petition the Gujarat and Indian government through local consulates =85=20
Write letters and articles to the press =85 Encourage all our family=20
and friends to speak out =85 Educate the community through gatherings=20
in homes and places of worship, and at community functions =85 Host=20
interfaith gatherings, and =85 Raise funds for relief work

As part of its continuing involvement with raising funds for relief=20
work in Gujarat, EKTA is organizing a large-scale performing arts=20
event on July 13 in the Bay area that will serve as both a=20
fundraiser and as an occasion for community outreach and education=20
on the violence in Gujarat. The benefit will be a tribute to the=20
life and work of the late Ahsan Jafri, a former Member of Parliament,=20
poet, and activist for communal harmony. On February 28, 2002, Jafri=20
along with 160 other people who were seeking refuge in his home,=20
including women and children, were attacked and burnt alive by a mob=20
despite countless phone calls to the police asking for protection.

Because the goal of bringing information to the public and of=20
raising political and social consciousness is central to EKTA's=20
mission, we would like to recognize the exemplary efforts of the=20
following organizations and their fact-finding efforts that, in our=20
estimation, constitute credible sources of information regarding the=20
Gujarat incidents:

Coalition Against Communalism: http://www.ektaonline.org/cac

Citizen's Initiative report: How Has The Gujarat Massacre Affected=20
Minority Women? The Survivors Speak=20
http://www.extaonline.org/cac/resources/reports/womensreport.htm

Human Rights Watch report: 'We Have No Orders To Save You' State=20
Participation and Complicity in Communal Violence in Gujarat=20
http://hrw.org/reports/2002/india/

Communalism Combat:
Genocide Gujarat 2002
http://www.sabrang.com/cc/current/index.html

EKTA
email: info@e...
email: contactus@e...
website: http://www.ektaonline.org

_____

#8.

The Hindustan Times
1 June, 2002
Ode to joy
Amit Sengupta
http://www.hindustantimes.com/nonfram/010602/detide01.asp

_____

#9.

Cong. brainstorming session on secularism
DH News Service
BHOPAL, May 30

Why do Indian Muslims burst crackers when Pakistan wins a cricket match?
If the Hindu Code bill can be introduced, why were Muslims allowed to
stick to the Shariat? Why should the Gujarat government be dismissed when
no such action was taken when thousands of Sikhs were slain after the
murder of Indira Gandhi? How is Banatwalas Muslim League different from
Jinnahs Muslim League? Why should Article 370 not be scrapped for a
permanent solution to the Kashmir problem?

This is a sampling of the model questions on the basis of which 750
Congressmen from all over the country will be interacting with 40 experts
at the three-day Training camp on secularism beginning here from June 1.
We have decided to take the bull by its horns. We will provide secular
answers to communal questions, said Mr Amit Goel, the co-ordinator for the
event from the AICC.

The camp, party leaders say, was a brain-child of Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar
and will be in line with a similar event at Surajkund (Haryana) way back
in 1993. Skirting uncomfortable questions on minority communalism would no
longer do. If we have to combat the sangh parivars brand of rabid Hindu
fundamentalism, we have to be ready to face embarrassing questions and be
equipped with convincing responses, says Mr Surendra Singh Thakur, the
state PCC general secretary.
The camp would be inaugurated by Chief Minister Digvijay Singh and it
would be open to media on all the three days. We have nothing to hide.
Everything will be debated with brutal frankness before anyone who cares
to listen, Mr Goel said. Barring Goa and Andaman and Nicobar, Congress
leaders from all other states and Union territories would be attending the
camp.

Most of the experts invited to interact with the trainees are non-Hindus
because they will be better equipped to answer questions about the psyche
and conduct of the minorities. Among them are journalists Mohit Sen, A J
Philip and John Dayal, Mushir-ul-Hasan of the Jamia Milia Islamia,
academician Arjun Dev, former chief justice of India A H Ahmadi, activist
Madu Kishwar and Shabnam Hashmi, Prof Imtiaz Ahmed of the JNU and Congress
leaders Salman Khursheed, Jaipal Reddy, Girija Vyas, Najma Heptullah, Syed
Sibte Razi and Prithviraj Singh Chauhan.

_____

#10.

The Economic Times (India)
May 31, 2002 | Updated at 15:30 hrs

Painful reminder
EDITORIAL
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ FRIDAY, MAY 31, 2002 12:22:45 AM ]
The bomb blasts in buses in Ahmedabad as well as the recurrence of=20
violence in some other parts of Gujarat are yet another reminder of=20
just how difficult it is to put out communal fires.
The relative calm of last week was evidently the result of a=20
combination of riot fatigue as well as improved policing under KPS=20
Gill.
The fact that Mr Gill was able to bring in a degree of relative calm=20
is a damning indictment of the top brass of Gujarat police and those=20
who controlled them prior to the arrival of the supercop from Punjab.
But ending riots is not a matter of policing alone. There is=20
obviously a deep divide between the two communities in Gujarat. Both=20
communities also seem to believe revenge is the appropriate response=20
to unjust violence.
Unless there is a perceptible shift in this mind-set, it is difficult=20
to see Gujarat breaking away from the current cycle of violence and=20
counter violence.
The state government must realise that the only way it can hope to=20
redeem its badly tarnished reputation is to see that such stray=20
incidents are not allowed to escalate into major conflagrations.
Unfortunately for Gujarat and the rest of the country the political=20
class, which is expected to provide leadership at times of crisis,=20
has little incentive to alter this mind-set.
For those in power, blaming a community rather than specific=20
criminals hides their inability to control criminals of any kind.=20
Communal hatred also brushes aside the other failures of the party in=20
power.
The major opposition party too may be inclined to believe that the=20
violence is not without potential for political gain. The suffering=20
hatred has caused to all the communities in Gujarat could easily=20
result in a desire for political change.
It is thus hardly surprising that both the Congress and the BJP are=20
now demanding early elections in Gujarat.
The political leadership that will be thrown up by such Machiavellian=20
manoeuvres can hardly be expected to have the commitment to humanism=20
that is required to wipe every tear from every eye.

______

#11.

From: Jatin Desai
Subject: postponement of convention
Date: Thu, 30 May 2002 22:58:56 +0100 (BST)

Dear [..],
I am sorry to write to you that national convention on
peace secularism & democracy to be held in mumbai on
1st & 2nd June on Gujarat Genocide has to be postponed
due to sudden & arbitrary withdrawal of the permission
by the mumbai police.
The permission granted by the police on may 24 was
uniletarily cancelled on may 29th night.
This is a blatant violation of the fundamental Rights
and the Freedoms of Expression and Association
guaranteed by the constitution.
This action by the police has consciously sabotaged
the effort of peace loving democratic people &
organisations in mobilising public opinion in favour
of secular & democratic values against communal &
fascist forces of all kinds.
We r planning to organise now at the end of june. We r
expecting your co-operation in this.
Please also spread word about postponement of
convention.
Thanking you,

______

#12.

Economic and Political Weekly (Mumbai)
VOLUME 37 NO 21 | May 25 , 2002

Ahmedabadi Youth
A profile of the 'Hindu terrorist' of Ahmedabad, the Ahmedabadi=20
youth. Among middle class semi-educated youth whose expectations and=20
fantasies have been whetted by numerous developments internal and=20
external to the community, rage follows if desires are unfulfilled.=20
Such a situation is fertile ground for partial truths, limited truths=20
and untruths skilfully woven into a texture that obscures, misleads=20
and incites to take root and fester.
http://www.epw.org.in/showArticles.php?root=3D2002&leaf=3D05&filename=3D449=
2&filetype=3Dpdf

--=20
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