[sacw] SACW | 24 July 02

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire | 24 July 2002

>From South Asia Citizens Web:
http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex

__________________________

#1. Letter from Pakistan (M. B. Naqvi)
#2. India: SAHMAT Swats Modi Claim
#3. India: Godse's Gujarat =
=20
Post-genocide, the choice before Muslims in the state
where Narendra Modi rules is simple: servility, boycott or exodus.=20
Part II (Teesta Setalvad )
#4. India: Manushi Petition to the Prime Minister of India
#5. India: Bhopal - Now, the fourth tragedy (Praful Bidwai)

__________________________

#1.

[Karachi July 23, 2002]

Letter from Pakistan

By M. B. Naqvi

'Pakistan is neither a secular state nor the government or army wants=20
to run it against the principles of Islam', thus assured the=20
COAS-President Pervez Musharraf a delegation of Muttaheda=20
Majlis-e-Amal, an alliance comprising the main religious parties=20
thought to be on a war path with the military regime after it had=20
betrayed the Taliban regime. He went further and assured them that he=20
would transfer power to MMA 'if they are elected by the people of=20
Pakistan in October general election'.

This is Pakistani ruler's latest moderate stance that it is miles=20
away from his January speech is of course a well-known story by now.=20
Although the religious parties are said to be greatly displeased with=20
the soldier-President, the miasma of scepticism is such that the=20
authorities had to deny several times that the MMA itself was formed=20
after intense efforts by a certain intelligence agency.

These parties were threatening, at one stage, fire and brimstone to=20
the regime and the whole world was speculating that the whole of=20
Pakistan would be convulsed in protests and struggles that religious=20
parties and their militants would start in the streets against the=20
anti-Islamic trends of the regime. Sometime later the wise men in the=20
regime remembered the virtues of moderation. They then proceeded to=20
moderate the anti-terrorist ardour of General Pervez Musharraf. That=20
was the time when he diluted the pledges given to American and=20
British envoys vis-=E0-vis the stoppage of Kashmir Jihad: 'that promise=20
was not for "permanent" end to Jihad'.

The anti regime passion of the main religious parties also underwent=20
a similar transformation in the second half of May and June. The=20
fire-spitting religious leaders didn't exactly start cooing: they=20
remain steadfastly against all evil secularist trends if also with=20
more statesmanlike moderation. Thus they had no compunction in=20
meeting the President when invited. But they presented him with a=20
memorandum giving their views on the constitutional package given by=20
the regime in which they said what other liberals are saying: no=20
individual has the right to change the Constitution and the election=20
should be free and fair and the like.

So the caravan of moderation is sweeping Pakistan. Its heralds and=20
vanguards comprise Musharraf-loving gentry preaching the virtues of=20
taking the middle road and recognising the facts of life for what=20
they are. True, there are many recalcitrants and even intransigents=20
such as the mainstream PPP and PML(N), the parties who won four=20
recent general elections in a row. The religious lobbies,=20
particularly the two parties --- Jamaat-e-Islami led by Qazi Hussain=20
Ahmed and the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam of Moulanas Fazlur Rehman and=20
Samiul Haq in their separate factions --- were thought to be outside=20
the mainstream and supposedly threatening the whole system. They were=20
thought to be working for the Talibanisation of Pakistan violently if=20
necessary.

The only facts that are cognisible today are (a) the well entrenched=20
power of the Pakistan Army, symbolised by General Musharraf's=20
presidency; (b) the mainstream parties remain unreconciled and are=20
constantly being excoriated by the military regime; and (c) there are=20
the bewildered, sullen and unhappy people of Pakistan, in whose name=20
everyone vainly seeks power.

****************

There comes a time in the life of every military dictatorship when it=20
wants the moon In such cases two contradictory goals are sought: the=20
dictator being able to claim legitimacy of being an elected head of=20
state, while making sure that the election that gives him legitimacy=20
does not also bring into being a Parliament and provincial Assemblies=20
the majorities of which are likely to reject him and work against his=20
wishes.

No such political formula has been evolved. An election can either be=20
rigged to produce overwhelming support for the dictator, or if the=20
polls be actually free, the results are simply unpredictable. There=20
have been three military dictators in Pakistan who have held=20
elections in search of legitimacy: Ayub Khan could never pass of as=20
an elected leader, despite the western media; Yahya Khan held the=20
free elections and paid a horrible price for rejecting its results;=20
and General Ziaul Haq faked an election and the world saw him die as=20
an illegitimate ruler.

Now the fourth dictator is trying to square the circle: hold a=20
(hopefully) free election that will produce a Musharraf-patented=20
'real' democracy that will never go against his nostrums --- unless=20
he is lucky enough to discover the elixir of political life that=20
every dictator seeks.

****************

In this mellow phase, the dictators start invoking the poor masses.=20
Their hearts suddenly start bleeding for the poor and the deprived.=20
President Musharraf's hardest labours today are meant to alleviate=20
poverty from the fair face of Pakistan. He has just undone (stayed=20
actually) the hike in electricity tariff that had been achieved by=20
various bureaucratic bodies over months of efforts to agree upon.

Since the average increase was 40 Paisa per unit, there was an outcry=20
in the press and even in nonofficial electronic media. The President=20
has graciously noted how painful would have been this imposition on=20
the poor. Thus he has acted firmly by staying the proposed impost and=20
has asked the highest bureaucratic authority, a supposedly=20
nonpartisan authority, to reconsider the matter. No matter what do=20
the IMF and his own Finance Minister will say, though the latter=20
boasts that this is the only government which has had the courage to=20
take and implement in full the necessary painful economic decision.=20
The FM should remember that an election impends.

_____

#2.

The Telegraph
24 July 2002

SAHMAT SWATS MODI CLAIM

FROM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi, July 23:
Sahmat, a cultural organisation that recently toured Gujarat, today=20
said there can be no "free and fair" polls in the state at this=20
juncture.

"We will meet the Election Commission later this week to impress our=20
views on them," said Gauhar Raza, who was part of the two-member team=20
that visited Panchmahal and Dahod earlier this month.

Sahmat will give the Election Commission a detailed report based on=20
interviews with people in relief camps.

Releasing the report at a news conference this afternoon, Sahmat=20
activists said: "The situation in Ahmedabad may look normal, but all=20
you have to do is enter the villages and they look as devastated as=20
before."

They stressed that the incident-free passage of the rath yatra was no=20
yardstick for judging whether the state had returned to normal.

"It certainly does not reflect any return to normality," Gauhar said,=20
pointing out that Muslims and sections of Hindus who had tried to=20
save Muslim families were still in the grip of terror.

Based on interviews with camp inmates, the report outlines the=20
character of the violence and the mob. "The witnesses expressed=20
extreme revulsion towards the RSS, the Bajrang Dal and the VHP, but=20
had no bitter remarks for Hindus at large," Sahmat said. According to=20
the organisation, incidents of Hindus saving Muslim families have=20
been under-reported.

Expressing grave doubts on the feasibility of having free and fair=20
polls in Gujarat, Gauhar said: "It is not only the Muslims who will=20
hesitate to come out and vote. There will also be a whole section of=20
Hindus who will not come out fearing violence."

The report underscores the huge loss of property and lives and the=20
pittance of a compensation that Muslim families have got. An Assembly=20
election at this juncture, it suggests, would only aggravate tension=20
in a highly polarised society.

"The scale of devastation is such that it is only the state=20
government which can undertake proper rehabilitation even though NGOs=20
are now doing all the work," said Gauhar.

According to the report, the loss of moveable property that the=20
sampled victim population suffered was to the tune of Rs 27 crore.=20
But the average compensation per family has worked out to just Rs=20
1,422. The total amount that has been paid to the riot victims as=20
compensation is just 1 per cent of the damage caused during the=20
carnage.

_____

#3.

[Continued from SACW 23 July...]

Godse's Gujarat =
=20
Post-genocide, the choice before Muslims in the state
where Narendra Modi rules is simple: servility, boycott or exodus.

BY TEESTA SETALVAD

[...]

Officially, there are now only 13, 482 refugees in the state (all of=20
them in Ahmedabad city) to whom food grains are grudgingly being=20
provided by the district collector, with only three-four days ration=20
being dished out at a time. An additional 6,500 persons continue to=20
live in other camps in Ahmedabad even today but they have ceased to=20
exist in official records after being coerced into closing down=20
between June 10-18. (CJP-CC survey for the PIL.) This, despite the=20
pendency of the writ petition and the government assurance that there=20
would be no closure of camps.

Over two dozen affidavits filed by the petitioners, 24 camp managers=20
and refuge seekers for the hearing of the writ that came up before=20
Justices Sinha and Panchal of the Gujarat High Court on June 26, show=20
that blatantly aggressive methods (including threatening camp=20
managers with detention under POTA) were used by the district=20
collectors to shut down the camps in mid-June. (See box). With the=20
petitions still pending before the court, the government continues to=20
pretend the camps were closed down voluntarily.

In short, around 20,000 persons today remain in camps within=20
Ahmedabad city (only 13,500 as per government figures) and another=20
2,000-odd persons are in camps located elsewhere in the state but=20
which have ceased to exist for the government. These camps - Nandasan=20
(419 persons), Dasaj (400 persons), Lunva (100 persons), Shivali=20
(400), Gunja (near Visnagar-50 persons), Unjha (250 persons) and=20
Lunavada (460 persons) - were summarily closed down between mid-May=20
and early July and the government assumes no responsibility for the=20
relief or rehabilitation needs of these people.

Gujarat's principal secretary, revenue, CK Koshy told CC that there=20
are 11 official camps with 13,482 inmates in Ahmedabad. Stating that=20
he was open to examining the independent figures gathered by us about=20
camps and its inmates from all over the state, he added that=20
rehabilitation packages had already been disbursed in their entirety=20
by the government.

The demonisation of Muslim survivors huddled in relief camps is an=20
ugly reality of post-genocide Gujarat. Be it the CM or his senior=20
ministers, vicious and highly publicised statements ("anti-national=20
elements are suspected to be seeking shelter in relief camps") have=20
only rubbed salt in the wounds of the traumatised victims of violence.

Modi had made repeated noises, wanting to wind up the camps even=20
before Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's visit to Ahmedabad on=20
April 4. The BJP state food and civil supplies minister, Bharat Barot=20
had also made widely publicised statements about the 'anti-national=20
elements residing within camps', urging the state minister for home,=20
Gordhan Zadaphiya that they should be wound up.

After the violence occurred and was allowed to spread, the party in=20
power and it's spokespersons made their disregard for state=20
responsibility within constitutional boundaries apparent. The=20
existence of some democratic institutional safeguards availed of by=20
the citizenry helped alleviate, the designs of the BJP-ruled=20
government to some extent.

That legal interventions concerning relief camps were imperative is=20
evident from what happened in Ahmedabad city on April 3. Soon after=20
the Ahmedabad collector, Pandaya completed his visit to the Suleimani=20
Roza Relief Camp located in curfew-bound Gomtipur in the presence of=20
Mr Parmar of the Ahmedabad collectorate, the police targeted camp=20
residents. Led by PI SD Sharma, the police set upon the 750 refugees=20
of the Suleiman Roza Relief Camp (behind Nutan Mills), Saraspur and=20
actually shot at two persons, Pirujbhai Mohammad Sheikh (30) and=20
Khatoonbi Sharfuddin Saiyed (45).

The camp, which had been home to 750 displaced persons for over a=20
month, was thus wound up in brutal fashion. The residents fled and=20
many were forced to sleep under the open sky in fear and terror. The=20
35 Al Iqwan Chaali camp also received continuous threats and faced=20
attacks from local mobs. Two other camps - the Char Toda relief camp=20
at Gomtipur and the Al Iqwan Committee at Saraspur were threatened by=20
the police in early April, asking them to shut down.

The PIL still pending before the Gujarat High Court argues that the=20
basic rights to a life with security and dignity, and free from dire=20
need are a responsibility of the State. And, that, apart from the=20
ex-gratia payment offered to those killed during the communal riots,=20
no comprehensive rehabilitation plan was offered by the Gujarat=20
government; nor were steps taken in this direction made public. Fair=20
and non-discriminatory relief and rehabilitation are a must to=20
restore people's faith in the government and the administration, the=20
petitioners have argued.

The same state that was quick to declare a sizable rehabilitation=20
package for the survivors of the January 2001 earthquake has been=20
silent following the genocide. The earthquake package had included an=20
ex-gratia amount to the next-of-kin of those killed, compensation for=20
loss of housing and property, dole money to meet the routine expenses=20
of the earthquake affected and rehabilitation. This time it is=20
different.

The petitioners have also demanded a comprehensive survey by an=20
independent and autonomous committee to assess the extent of damage=20
caused to life and property to enable the drawing of a reasonable=20
rehabilitation plan. The absence of a proper plan for the=20
rehabilitation and re-location of refugees within Gujarat, the=20
proclaimed 'laboratory for Hindutva', has only compounded the pain=20
and insecurity of tens of thousands of refugees who, reeling under=20
the trauma of brutal massacres and violence, had to stay huddled=20
together for three-four months in camps run by their community=20
leaders all over the state.

In most cases where Muslims have returned to their villages, they are=20
faced with economic and social boycott for having had the audacity to=20
name the perpetrators of violence in their complaints to the police.=20
In other villages of Gujarat, a land once associated with Mahatma=20
Gandhi, the village leaders address Muslims wanting to return in=20
derogatory terms and tell them bluntly: "Baandyaon nathi joyita" ("We=20
do not want any Muslims here").

A statewide survey undertaken by Communalism Combat on the status of=20
refugees, reveals a dismal picture (see accompanying story). The=20
options before Gujarat's Muslims are clear and harsh: servility,=20
boycott or exodus.

While in many cases, in the villages and towns of Gujarat, the=20
collector and mamlatdar (civil servants) have attempted the return of=20
refugees with dignity of their own accord, the hate campaign of the=20
RSS/BJP/VHP and BD has undermined their constitutional writ and=20
allowed the denial of basic rights to continue. Though attempts were=20
made in many cases for dignified rehabilitation, threats and warning=20
to withdraw criminal complaints and FIRs have won the day.

Three months ago, as per the government's own admission, there were=20
over 66,000 refugees in camps in Ahmedabad and another 21,000=20
elsewhere in the state. Hence, in a matter of two-and-a-half months,=20
as per official figures, 52,500 persons from Ahmedabad city and=20
another 21,000 from elsewhere (73,500 in all) have left the relief=20
camps without any systematic survey on their rehabilitation. At least=20
half the number from within Ahmedabad and a significant majority of=20
those from the rest of the state have been coerced into leaving with=20
no state guarantee or responsibility for their security or future.

Even the measly amount of Rs 2,500 (increased from the Rs 1500=20
announced earlier) for ghar vakhari - purchase of utensils for=20
restarting a home - has not been paid in 70 per cent of the cases.=20
The compensation amount of Rs 40,000 for destroyed houses announced=20
by the Prime Minister at the Shah-e-Alam camp on April 4 has reached=20
only a small percentage of those eligible.

In what is nothing short of a cruel mockery of the idea of the=20
State's obligation towards rehabilitation, the victims of Naroda=20
Patiya - where one of the worst massacres took place - have received=20
cheques ranging from Rs 500-1,500. The same is true in most other=20
cases.

Modi has doggedly refused to commit himself to any demand for the=20
purchase of land and re-building of homes. The CC's statewide survey=20
shows that the vast majority of homes have been rebuilt by NGOs. Some=20
90 per cent of these have been at the initiative of Muslim=20
organisations - Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind, Jamaat-e-Islami, United=20
Economic Forum and Afmi Charitable Trust, Baroda. The Asha Kiran=20
Trust, Jansangharsh Manch and SPRAT, are among the non-Muslim=20
organisations to have contributed the rest.

Given the abject failure and refusal of the state and central=20
governments to resettle the survivors through reasonable and speedy=20
rehabilitation, the onus has fallen, almost entirely, on the Muslim=20
community to look after their co-religionists. A sad commentary on=20
the social and political reality in India today.

Meanwhile, the Gujarat police was consistent in its indiscriminate=20
targeting of Muslims even through April and May. Violence broke out=20
once more in Ahmedabad and it's outskirts on April 3, with the=20
police, RAF and SRP forces numbering around 150, shooting 29 innocent=20
victims and killing one. Advocate Nizam was shot dead by the police=20
inside his home. The same day, on the eve of the PM's visit, Dr Ishaq=20
Sheikh, vice-president of the Al Ameen Garib Niwas Hospital,=20
Ahmedabad - an institution that had been at the forefront in helping=20
the injured and brutalised over the past month or so - was pulled out=20
of his ambulance by the Ahmedabad police, SRP and RAF personnel and=20
brutally beaten up.

Police inspectors Modi and Parmar who were present while this=20
happened did nothing to stop the assault. The second person shot dead=20
in police firing, Mohammad Yunus Akbarbhai, hailed from Sakhar=20
Ghanchi ki Chawl. The policemen named by eyewitnesses are NA Modi=20
(PSI D Staff), NR Jadhav, senior police inspector and Mr. Sawani, DCP.

On April 21, after a constable was killed at Dani Limda, the police=20
went on the rampage and shot dead six persons in brazen 'reprisal=20
killings.' Hanifabibi Bashir Ahmed Shaikh (42), living at Modi Chawl,=20
Kalubhai Shaikh (20), living at Jhoolta Minara, Naziabibi and Mehmood=20
Hussein Shaikh (daughter and father) aged 13 and 42 respectively,=20
residents of Patel Chowk, Kamdar Maidan, Abrar Ahmed Hanif Qureshi=20
(22) also living at Patel Chowki and Mehmoobbhai Sultanbhai=20
Shaikh(22) living at Maniarwada, Gomtipur, fell victim to police=20
violence and bullets.

In Baroda on May 1, policemen brutally beat a nine-month pregnant=20
woman. A week later, when the Concerned Citizens Tribunal recorded=20
the testimony, her mother said that she had delivered her baby=20
post-trauma but she could only breast feed her baby from one breast=20
as from the other, oozed blood, not milk.

Selective and large-scale arrests of members of the minority=20
community have continued in Ahmedabad, Baroda, Godhra and elsewhere.=20
In Godhra and other places, despite the passage of three months,=20
young men have not been released. In the Gulberg society Chamanpura=20
massacre, 21 arrests have been made while three accused roam=20
scot-free.

In the Sardarpur massacre at Mehsana in which 34 persons were=20
brutally killed, the additional sessions judge, Mehsana, DR Shah,=20
released all the 46 accused when even the primary investigations were=20
not complete. Interestingly, the public prosecutor in the case is=20
Dilip Trivedi, general secretary of the VHP, Mehsana district, who=20
was responsible for publishing an extremely provocative statement in=20
the widely circulated Gujarati daily, Sandesh, on February 28. (See=20
legal initiatives section.) Many other legal initiatives being=20
undertaken in the state face stumbling blocks because public=20
prosecutors, displaying a blatantly partisan attitude, simply do not=20
do justice to the cases in hand.

In some cases, after the initial paralysis and complicity, policemen=20
have attempted speedier and fair investigations (See legal=20
initiatives.) However, sections of the prosecutors who are partisan=20
appointments by the government and a conveniently non-interfering=20
judiciary have allowed injustice to continue.

That, fortunately, some institutions still work, even in=20
Hindutva-driven Gujarat, is apparent from the forensic investigation=20
into the Godhra tragedy, which resulted in the first chargesheet=20
being filed by the police. This investigation by the Ahmedabad-based=20
Forensic Science Laboratory, contradicts the view held so far that=20
the attackers had thrown the inflammable liquid at the train from a=20
distance. Specifically, it explodes the carefully-touted theory by CM=20
Modi and even hinted at in early March by then Union home minister,=20
Lal Krishna Advani, that the Godhra tragedy was the result of=20
Machiavellian pre-planning.

In the cities and villages of Gujarat convulsed by the violence that=20
spread across 16 of the state's 24 districts, the aftermath for the=20
minority community is laden with tension and the cold realisation of=20
a new phase and stage of existence. Forced to go back to their=20
villages or to re-locate where the former option is simply=20
unavailable, Muslims in Gujarat face a bitter reality.

In mid-April, they were convinced or compelled to cancel the Muharram=20
tazia procession. But when it came to the Lord Jagannath rathyatra,=20
despite police advice to the contrary, Modi insisted it must follow=20
the traditional route that winds its way through Muslim areas and=20
mixed localities. On July 12, it was the Muslims who were asked by=20
the Ahmedabad police to maintain 'junta curfew' (self-imposed=20
curfew). On the eve of the procession, it was the homes of Muslims en=20
route in Jamalpur that were searched and re-searched. And it was=20
Muslims who fled their homes for a few days to return only after the=20
rathyatra was over.

In Ahmedabad and in Baroda, a silent yet effective boycott of=20
Muslims, socially and economically, continues. A few icons from the=20
Gujarati business community have tried to counter the hate politics=20
led or encouraged by the Gujarat government. (See Good News section).=20
But schools in Ahmedabad and Baroda have now, more so than before=20
(See CC, 'Face to Face with Fascism', April 2000), bid good-bye to=20
Muslim students.

For the state, Gujaratis and the rest of India, post-genocide Gujarat=20
presents a grimmer challenge than before. Constitutional breakdown=20
has been evident there since 1998 when the BJP assumed power in the=20
state. The period between end-February and May provided grim evidence=20
of what the ideology of supremacy and hatred can achieve when it=20
comes unto its own; post-May, Gujarat has settled into a state that=20
lives outside the Indian Constitution; normalcy for 'us', trauma for=20
'them'.

In his book, We, Or Our Nationhood Defined, which many consider to be=20
the 'Bible of Hindutva', the revered ideologue and sarsanghchalak of=20
RSS, Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar ('Guru Golwalkar') wrote in the=20
mid-30s:

"The foreign races in Hindusthan (Muslims and Christians - ed) must=20
either adopt the Hindu culture and language, must learn to respect=20
and hold in reverence Hindu religion, must entertain no idea but=20
those of the glorification of the Hindu race and culture, ie, of the=20
Hindu nation and must lose their separate existence to merge in the=20
Hindu race, or may stay in the country, wholly subordinated to the=20
Hindu Nation, claiming nothing, deserving no privileges, far less any=20
preferential treatment - not even citizen's rights. There is, at=20
least, should be, no other course for them to adopt. We are an old=20
nation; let us deal, as old nations ought to and do deal, with the=20
foreign races, who have chosen to live in our country."

Were he to be alive, Guruji would proudly proclaim today's Gujarat as=20
the 'Hindu Rashtra' of his dreams.

Yet, the institutions of Indian democracy and those who man them seem=20
oblivious to or complacent about the ominous implications of Gujarat=20
for the rest of India. What more will it take to shake them out of=20
their complacency?

(With field reports from Rais Khan.)

_____

#4.

Subject: Manushi Petition to the Prime Minister of India
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 2002 17:14:09 +0530

Dear Friends,

We invite you to sign the following petition to the Prime Minister=20
and encourage others to sign as well.

Madhu Kishwar

For Manushi

o o o o

Petition to the Prime Minister of India

Dear Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayeeji,

We the undersigned feel deeply concerned about the conduct of the=20
government with regard to the Gujarat massacre, the Tehelka expos=E9=20
into the corruption in Defence deals and the subsequent witch hunt of=20
the First Global couple. We endorse the following resolutions passed=20
in a meeting organised by manushi on May 14, 2002:

On the Gujarat Carnage:

We demand that the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi be=20
removed immediately.

We demand that the CBI be given charge of expeditiously=20
investigating all the major incidents of violence (including Godhra)=20
in Gujarat and identifying the perpetrators of violence.=20=20

A high powered independent Committee headed by a reputed retired=20
judge and assisted by prominent Hindu and Muslim citizens should be=20
appointed for receiving the complaints against the police and civil=20
administrators for their connivance in violence or wilful dereliction=20
of duty. This Committee should also assist the victims of communal=20
violence in filing accurate F.I.Rs with the police.

A Special Court for the effective trial of hate crimes in=20
Gujarat should be instituted to punish the administrative and elected=20
officials found guilty of conniving in or abetting the carnage in=20
Gujarat through wilful dereliction of duty or lending active support=20
to anti-social elements who executed the violence.=20=20

The government of Gujarat should be prevailed upon to provide=20
punitive damages to those of its citizens whose life and property it=20
failed to safeguard.

On the Tehelka Expos=E9:

Defence purchases which account for a huge percentage of our national=20
expenditure should be open to public scrutiny. We demand that the=20
Right to Accurate Information Act should replace the Official Secrets=20
Act and this Act should cover Defence purchases as well. 15 Defence=20
deals have come under scrutiny in the Venkatswami "Commission as a=20
result of Operation Westend.

Unfortunately, this part of the investigation has been held in=20
camera. We demand that when the Venkatswami Commission completes its=20
work, its entire report, including the results of its 'in camera'=20
investigation, be made public.

Both the CAG and CVC reports point to serious irregularities and=20
corruption in Defence matters. These reports should be tabled in=20
Parliament and made public.=20=20=20=20=20=20

Shankar Sharma and Devina Mehra of First Global have been=20
witch-hunted for investing in Tehelka, while those blatantly caught=20
in the wrong continue to walk scot-free. Given that not a single=20
charge sheet has been filed against them despite a year of intense=20
scrutiny by a hostile government, Shankar Sharma and Devina Mehra=20
should be restored their right to livelihood and trade until (and=20
if)"they are proved guilty of any wrongdoing.=20=20

The Enforcement Diretor (ED) has investigated and served a=20
summons for "violation" of foreign exchange rules only to Tehelka and=20
its investor Shankar Sharma. Instead, investigations should be=20
launched against all those who either appear on the Tehelka tapes or=20
are referred to as being part of dubious deals involving foreign=20
exchange.

The Government of India has neither investigated nor filed a=20
single affidavit in the Venkatswami Commission against those caught=20
red-handed in the Tehelka tapes. We demand that all those found=20
accepting or facilitating bribes be properly investigated and=20
punished.=20

The one-man Bagai Commission was set up post Operation Westend=20
to investigate the non-uniformed officers. We demand that action be=20
taken on its recommendations. Since the Army Court of Enquiry and the=20
Bagai Commission have already indicted some officers on the basis of=20
the Tehelka tapes, and Justice Venkatswami has also ruled on he=20
veracity of those tapes, the government should stop adopting delaying=20
tactics. Instead, it should assist the Venkatswami Commission to=20
complete its task with speed and determination. The indicted army=20
officers should be given the punishments recommended by the Army=20
Court with immediate effect.

Political parties should be allowed to have legitimate sources=20
of party funding so that one of the root causes of political=20
corruption can be eliminated. We demand thorough going electoral=20
reforms to make political parties accountable and transparent in=20
their functioning.

NAME : ADDRESS : E-MAIL : SIGNATURE : =
=20=20=20

MANUSHI
C 1/3 SANGAM ESTATE
1 UNDER HILL ROAD
CIVIL LINES
DELHI 110054

PHONES : 4044879,
TELE - FAX : 3916437

_____

#5.

Hindustan Times
Wednesday, July 24, 2002
=20=20=09=20
PLATFORM: Now, the fourth tragedy
Praful Bidwai

Bhopal, it has been rightly said, has experienced not one tragedy,=20
but three. The first was the world's worst industrial accident caused=20
in December 1984 by flawed plant design and gross negligence, which=20
instantly killed 3,500 people and poisoned another 150,000 with a=20
deadly cocktail of chemicals, causing a variety of illnesses and=20
disorders, which continue to take their toll every week even today.

So far, 12,000 people have perished due to their exposure to toxic gases.

The second tragedy was the manifestly unjust out-of-court settlement=20
imposed upon the gas victims in 1989 by the Indian government and=20
Union Carbide Corporation of the US, after they were deprived of=20
their right to independent legal representation.

The deal let Carbide, the mother of modern corporate criminality, off=20
the hook with a paltry $ 470 million in compensation, a sum barely=20
double its insurance cover!

The third, prolonged, disaster was the way the victims' claims were=20
settled. Ninety-five per cent of them received a disgraceful Rs=20
15,000 for a lifetime of physical and psychological suffering,=20
multiple disabilities, and humiliation at the hands of a callous=20
medical profession (which, typically, failed even to relate the state=20
of their collapsing lungs to exposure to Carbide's toxic gas), and a=20
viciously corrupt bureaucracy and magistracy.

The fourth tragedy is unfolding before our own eyes: collusion=20
between the governments of India and the United States, and Union=20
Carbide's former officials, to dilute criminal charges filed against=20
them.

Warren Anderson - who must, logically, take responsibility for the=20
world's gravest industrial disaster caused by the criminal negligence=20
of the company he headed - will now be charged, if our patriotic=20
government has its way, not for culpable homicide and worse, but=20
merely for causing death by a "rash and negligent act".

And what is the punishment for wilful complicity in causing=20
horrifying, gratuitous, mass destruction, on the same scale of=20
fatality as the Twin Towers terrorism of September 11 - two years'=20
imprisonment or a mere fine!

The dilution of these charges is being executed, according to a May=20
24 petition filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in a Bhopal=20
court, at the behest of our hallowed ministry of external affairs=20
which is supposed to guard Indian citizens' sovereign rights and=20
interests in the larger world.

The MEA in a March 20 'communication' to the CBI 'required' it to=20
amend the warrant of arrest on Anderson from a charge under culpable=20
homicide not amounting to murder (304-II of IPC) to committing 'a=20
rash and negligent act' (304A).

It may be a mere coincidence that this 'communication' was preceded=20
by the MEA's valiant determination to build 'a strategic partnership'=20
with the US, by the post-September 11 visits of State Department=20
officials like Colin Powell and Richard Armitage, and by intense=20
lobbying by the Indo-US Business Council and numerous American=20
emissaries.

(Such emissaries, incidentally, have made no secret of their desire=20
to see that the ghastly White Elephant Enron project in Dabhol is=20
rescued by the Indian government in the interests of 'market=20
sentiment', although that company's name has become a transitive verb=20
for corporate malfeasance in the US because it has caused the world's=20
biggest bankruptcy.)

It may also be a coincidence - although that's stretching one's=20
imagination a bit - that neither the MEA nor this country's police=20
agencies could trace Anderson, whose whereabouts are no secret, and=20
serve the warrant upon him, for one full decade!

What is not a coincidence or in doubt is that the MEA is in flagrant=20
breach of a 1991 Supreme Court order specifically directing the=20
government not to drop criminal charges against Carbide as part of=20
the out-of-court settlement. It clarified that the settlement, upheld=20
by it in 1989, only extinguished civil, not criminal, liability.

Indeed, the government is duty-bound to criminally prosecute Union Carbide.

Of course, the MEA couldn't care two hoots about the wretchedly poor=20
victims of Bhopal, mostly day labourers and informal-sector workers -=20
unlike the flying classes of IC-814 and their relatives who ensured=20
that Lord Jaswant Singh of Kandahar would personally accompany=20
terrorists and murderers like Ahmed Omar Syed Shaikh and Azhar Masood=20
as part of his brilliant hostage-rescue mission.

The point is a larger one: should the fundamental rights of the=20
Bhopal victims to justice, even to know who caused the disaster and=20
so much suffering to them, be sacrificed in the interests of Indo-US=20
'strategic partnership', 'investor confidence', 'the right climate'=20
for FDI, etc.?

Should the victims have to go, as they did, on a 19-day long hunger=20
strike on the hot streets of Delhi to demand that the Indian=20
government follow the orders of its own Supreme Court? And then=20
continue a dharna demanding that the Rs 1,360 crore left of the=20
compensation due to them must be spent on their rehabilitation and=20
not distributed among the gas-unaffected people of Bhopal?

_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/

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