SACW | 25-26 June 2006 | Pakistan Homeless; Change in Nepal; India: Staged shoot outs by Police, Dam Oustees, Partition, Peddling Hindutva
Harsh Kapoor
aiindex at mnet.fr
Sun Jun 25 20:03:29 CDT 2006
South Asia Citizens Wire | 25-26 June, 2006 | Dispatch No. 2264
[1] Pakistan: Why make people homeless? (Zubeida Mustafa)
[2] Nepal: Women Won't Let This Slight Pass (Marty Logan)
[3] India: New Delhi's Silence on Nepal's Change (J. Sri Raman)
[4] India: Taslima Nasreen Threatened by Mullahs ()
[5] India: Terror Attacks: More to it than meets the eye (Ram Puniyani)
[6] India: Oustees of six Narmada dams march in Bhopal demanding
justice, rehabilitation
[7] Book Review: Torn From The Roots: A Partition Memoir (Kamla Patel)
[8] India: BJP - Peddling Hindutva steadily, despite claims of it
having fizzled out
___
[1]
Dawn
June 21, 2006
WHY MAKE PEOPLE HOMELESS?
By Zubeida Mustafa
IT IS ironical that it required a massive show of strength in the
form of a large demonstration in Karachi on June 2 to get the city
government to stop the demolition of katchi abadis it had been
carrying on in a very determined way.
The protest rally organised by the Pakhtoon Action Committee two
weeks ago blocked the main arteries of Karachi and caused such a
traffic jam that the administration was forced to rethink its
policies - at least for the present.
Those who protested had many grievances. Their main grouse was
against the forced eviction of the dwellers of the katchi abadis and
the demolition of their homes which the city government has
undertaken as a part of its so-called gentrification programme. In
the name of renewal and rebuilding of Karachi under a new master plan
still on the anvil, the city fathers have bulldozed 3,490 housing
units since January 2006. Apart from these, nearly 14,000 housing
units and shops have been demolished since 2002 to make room for the
Lyari Expressway project. The transporters joined the demonstration
to add to the size of the procession.
Daily reports by the press at times fail to create an impact. But
seen collectively, the human suffering is colossal. It is estimated
that over 23,000 people have been made homeless in the process and
their monetary loss is calculated to be to the tune of Rs 1.047
billion which they had invested in the construction of their homes.
If people are upset it is understandable. Describing the katchi
abadis as eyesores and the havens of criminals and the land grabbers,
the city administration has moved to strike them down . It has
justified its action by terming the abadis as encroachments that are
illegal.
There are two aspects of this issue that have been totally
disregarded. First, the modality of the eviction has not been as
humane and compassionate as it should have been. Secondly, there is
the issue of pinning responsibility for encroachment when it takes
place and if it is morally and legally correct to penalise the
so-called encroachers when others have committed a graver crime.
As has been reported widely, the evictions have been carried out
brutally with the use of force, without any prior notice and no
compensation or alternative land being given to the affected people.
None of the internationally recognised guidelines for
development-related evictions were observed. It should be stressed
that all the people who are thrown out are the poorest of the poor.
It is wrong to declare them wrongdoers who have breached the law and
illegally seized government land.
One has to understand the process of encroachment to realise how
wronged the inhabitants of katchi abadis are. In Karachi alone six
million people live in 539 katchi abadis. They are the people whose
fundamental right to adequate housing and shelter has not been
recognised. They are forced to fend for themselves.
Since the government does not feel it is its duty to provide low cost
housing for them - Karachi needs 25,000 housing units a year - they
are forced to turn to the land grabbers. The land grabbers do for the
poor what the government should have been doing. After all, isn't it
the state's duty to provide the poor land at affordable prices, with
possession given without delay? At present, land for low cost housing
is not that low in cost and formal documentation involves weeks of
legal processes and repeated visits to various offices.
The land grabber is in league with the police and the functionaries
of the local government. Together they ensure that the so-called
encroachers are allowed to settle on the land the land mafia has
seized illegally and charged the poor to erect their homes on. The
poor build a shelter for themselves incrementally as they gradually
invest in adding concrete structure, getting electricity, gas and
water connections.
All this takes quite a few years. When they are evicted, as is
happening now, their earnings of a lifetime are lost. Meanwhile, the
mafia, the police and the revenue department officials who had become
rich by selling land they had grabbed free of cost cannot be traced
and get away with their loot.
The key question is who is responsible for the problem of
encroachments? The fact is that the appetite for land seems to be
insatiable. It is increasingly being controlled by market forces.
That is why we keep hearing of so many land scams. There is the
common phenomenon of utility land being commercialised and land being
unlawfully allotted. According to Arif Hasan, the chairman of the
Urban Resource Centre and the OPP-RTI, 8,000 acres of amenity land
has been converted into commercial plots in Karachi since the early
nineties.
Tasneem Siddiqui, who retired recently as the director general of the
Sindh Katchi Abadis Authority and has contributed in a big way
towards housing for the poor, pins the blame on the revenue
department which is notorious for its corruption. He cites the case
of the Sindhi goths which have existed for centuries and naturally
have no legal documentations. The revenue department failed to
demarcate them and as a result it is now difficult to even determine
the boundaries of the goths and where the encroachments begin. For
the present, the evictions have mercifully stopped, but it is
unlikely that the policy will be abandoned altogether. Those whose
homes have been demolished have had to move to the periphery of the
city, again on state land. Those who could not find new homes
continued to squat in the open on the rubble of their homes. Of
course, the land mafia must be having a field day in the process. But
for many, this shifting will bring unemployment, uprooting from their
social support structures, an end to their children's education and
psychological trauma from which they may never recover.
Since the law provides for the notification of many of these katchi
abadis, the government should provide the lease to those who have not
received it so far. The basic intention should be to cause the
minimum of uprooting and suffering. There will be some abadis that
might have to be razed to the ground. That should be done as a last
resort and only after due notice has been given and alternative land
provided. A resettlement policy will have to be formulated before
anyone is evicted.
In most other cases, it should be possible for the city government to
upgrade and improve the katchi abadis themselves so that they do not
remain black spots in a city the administration is attempting to
gentrify.
But that is only possible if our rulers approach the poor with
empathy and attempt to understand their needs and how they strive to
meet their needs. Policies which take the needs of the people into
account will succeed.
It is also important that the greed, cupidity and avarice of the
vested interests who act in league with the government functionaries
are not allowed to play with the lives of the people. Since
corruption is so rampant in the government, the land grabbers can get
away with their evil ways.
It is time the administration stopped looking for its political gains
at the expense of the poor. A general impression is that most of the
people uprooted are not Mohajirs, hence they do not constitute the
vote bank of the MQM that is in power in the local government and in
the Sindh provincial coalition. Quite a chunk of the evictees are
Pakhtoons who therefore rallied behind the ANP on June 2. This gives
the entire problem an ethnic and political colour. One can ask if
this is a form of gerrymandering?
_____
[2]
Inter Press Service
June 24, 2006
NEPAL:
WOMEN WON'T LET THIS SLIGHT PASS
Marty Logan
KATHMANDU, Jun 24 (IPS) - It was just another empty promise. That is
how senior women politicians and activists are feeling after being
shut out of ad hoc committees designing the 'new Nepal', less than a
month after parliament proclaimed it would fight for women's rights.
Talks last week, between Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and top
Maoist leaders, yielded a roadmap leading to elections for a
constituent assembly whose main tasks will be to unveil a new
constitution and decide the fate of the monarchy. To get there an
interim constitution will have to be drafted and progress in peace
talks between the two sides closely monitored, the leaders agreed.
Two committees were created for that purpose. But no women were
included in the six-member group drafting the interim supreme law and
only two of 31 members of the monitoring body are women.
In response, women have taken to the streets, blocking the road in
front of parliament for hours last week and, in recent days,
encircling the headquarters of the parties in the seven-party
alliance (SPA) that spearheaded April's 'people's revolution' against
King Gyanendra.
They got some good news late Friday, says senior lawyer Sapana
Pradhan Malla -- the SPA has agreed to expand the interim
constitution drafting committee by two members, both women. "It's
very critical as it will provide the vision for the new constitution.
This transition phase is very important," adds Pradhan Malla, who
returned to her office late and out of breath Friday evening after
leading protests at two SPA offices.
"Everyone tells us, 'it's a transition time, now peace is very
important. Why do you have to make demands'? Definitely peace is
important but why can't we participate in the process to ensure that
the outcome includes women?" added the executive director of the NGO
Forum for Women, Law and Development.
On May 30, the restored House of Representatives ended one of myriad
practices in the former Hindu kingdom that discriminated against
women, declaring that a child's citizenship can be registered in the
name of the mother or the father. Formerly the mother's name could
not be used, a practice that discriminated against many women,
including rape victims and single mothers.
The proposal, passed unanimously, along with pledges to reserve 33
percent of places in the civil service for women and to target all
legal provisions -- women's rights activists have counted 118 of them
-- that treat women as lesser than men. "The government now has the
duty to adopt laws to guarantee at least 33 percent women's
participation in state mechanisms, distribute citizenship by the name
of mothers and curb domestic violence," Minister for Women, Children
and Social Welfare Urmila Aryal told state-run Radio Nepal.
But this week Aryal was threatening to resign as women were excluded
from the redesign of this small nation wedged between giants China
and India and one of the poorest in Asia.
"The government's move is unjust, impractical and against the
declaration of the House of Representatives.I am ready to resign,
write a note of dissent, talk to the party leadership or take to the
streets for the 51 percent of women population in the country," Aryal
told a public meeting.
Civil society leader Devendra Raj Panday told IPS that male MPs
probably "mean it when they talk about 'inclusive democracy' but
their mindset and baggage are such that they aren't able to free
themselves. That's why you see things like no women being named to
these committees. The government could have done that."
Malla blames a "patriarchal social structure": "It's not that
patriarchy is rooted in men, it's in women too...also among the
Maoists. I had the expectation that because they had been challenging
the socio-cultural structure (they would treat women differently) but
it is deeply rooted among them."
The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) launched its armed revolution
from Nepal's western hills 10 years ago. Leaders said they were
fighting for justice and equality for the "oppressed" classes: Dalits
(so-called 'untouchables'), indigenous people and women.
But, just like the government, the Maoists did not name any woman to
their talks team that held two meetings prior to last Friday's
leaders' high-level discussion.
April's successful 'people's movement', which saw waves of tens of
thousands of Nepalis fill streets and public squares countrywide in
defiance of 'shoot-on-sight curfews', has encouraged various interest
groups to make public their demands for justice.
Two weeks ago women activists from various districts travelled to the
capital Kathmandu to press the Supreme Court to order the government
to enact laws guaranteeing equal pay for equal work.
"We are not asking for every right that men have but this is such
gross discrimination," activist Bishnu Maya Pande from Chitwan told
'Nepali Times' newspaper.
Malla said the current protests, led by the women's wings of
political parties, might be expanded if the SPA does not add women to
the committees. "We are trying first to convince the political
parties. Ultimately it's them who must change the structure they
created. But if that doesn't work then we will go to the
international community."
In the long run, "We have to draft legislation clarifying where
women's participation is critical and ensuring that the government
can be held legally accountable," she added. (END/2006)
_____
[3]
truthout.org
22 June 2006
NEW DELHI'S SILENCE ON NEPAL'S CHANGE
by J. Sri Raman
A week of worldwide notice has elapsed after what has been
described as a "historic accord" between Nepal's interim prime
minister, Girija Prasad Koirala, and the hitherto mystery-shrouded
Maoist leader, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, with the popular nom de guerre of
Prachanda. Only eloquent silence, however, has emanated from the two
capitals, though it is their official responses that the people of
the Himalayan state await with utmost anxiety.
The accord between the top leaders of the Seven-Party Alliance
(SPA) in interim power and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) or
the CPNM, reached and announced on June 16, can mean a quantum leap
for the mountain country that has just overthrown a cruelly despotic
monarch. But it is a leap in the dark, so long as the accord is not
assured of a modicum of support by these two capitals that stood by
the now-dethroned king till the very last.
The silence from Washington was very much expected. The
anti-monarchy movement, which had brought the CPNM and the
parliamentary parties together, did not make the Bush administration
more benign toward the Maoists. The US ambassador to Nepal, James F.
Moriarty, said on June 8 that the administration had not yet taken
the CPNM off its list of "terrorist organizations," on the basis of
which it had backed King Gyanendra with military largesse. Moriarty
has made no subsequent statement that shows any change in the US
assessment.
New Delhi, however, was in a different category, despite its
anxiety not to be out of step with its newfound "strategic partner"
in Washington. Its pro-king diplomacy, when the popular upsurge
against Gyanendra was its peak, drew considerable flak inside India
as well - even from peddlers of the "strategic partnership" who felt
that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government should not have
allowed itself to be seen on the losing side.
Ever since the king's defeat in the streets of Kathmandu, New
Delhi's mandarins have stopped talking of the "twin pillars" of
Nepal's stability as the monarchy and the parliament, tacitly putting
the Maoists out of the pale. India's external affairs ministry has
not followed Moriarty in reiterating that the Maoists are not yet
free from the "terrorist" tag. Its reluctance to hail the historic
accord, however, is an ill-concealed expression of its continuing
reservations about the Maoists.
The government would seem to have left it to a Left ally to
welcome the accord. Sitaram Yechury, a leader of the Communist Party
of India (Marxist) or the CPI (M), had brokered an SPA-CPNM alliance
against the king earlier. And the CPI (M) extends crucial outside
support to the minority government of Manmohan Singh. This, however,
does not ensure indefinite or unconditional New Delhi indulgence for
the Maoists.
As noted before in these columns, Gyanendra enjoyed support from
India's far right and some of its feudal "houses of royalty." They
kow-towed to him, above all, as a "Hindu king" and, indeed, sought to
crown him as a "Hindu emperor." It is now too late in the day for
them to pursue this particular line of support. But they can still
ally covertly with Gyanendra (who may not have given up the game for
lost) on anti-Maoist grounds.
Here they can find an ally also in the Singh government and its
retinue of security experts. New Delhi has lately discovered that
Indian variety of Maoists, better known as Naxalites, pose the
primary internal security threat to India. They thrive especially
among tribal people, who have been losing their land and forests to a
variety of exploiters ranging from the feudal to the transnational.
The far-right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - which rules in two
States with sizeable tribal populations, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand -
is making anti-Maoism a multi-purpose issue.
The BJP regime in Chhattisgarh is pursuing a program called
"Salwa Judum (Campaign for Peace)," portrayed in its propaganda on
television channels and elsewhere as popular resistance to the local
Maoists. The CPI (M) has exposed the program as really "a police
action," with the participation of deserters from the Maoist ranks.
The BJP has not stopped with condemning this as Left support for
"terrorism." The far-Right's media friends are busy trying to rouse
fears of dangerous links between Nepal's Maoists and those wearing
the same label in Chhattisgarh and elsewhere. We may hear more of the
same in the coming days.
The CPNM would seem to nurse no illusions on this score. Around
the same time as Moriarty was warning Nepal's Maoists, Prachanda was
cautioning India and the SPA against hatching any anti-Maoist
"conspiracy." "Why are they trying to bypass us?" he was quoted as
asking.
He and his colleagues may be less suspicious now of the SPA, and
the CPNM is also indulging in its share of what history may prove to
be hype over the accord of June 16. Nepal's Maoists, however, do not
conceal their continuing worry and wariness over New Delhi's future
role.
Dev Gurung, a top CPNM leader and a member of the Maoist team
holding talks with the CPA, has spelt it all out. On the day of the
Koirala-Prachanda accord, Gurung told the media of the importance the
Maoists attached to abrogation of the India-Nepal Treaty of Peace,
Friendship and Cooperation signed in 1950. There is no section of
Nepal's political spectrum that does not denounce the treaty as
utterly unequal. Even impeccably pro-Bush sections of the India media
have asked for a replacement of the treaty with one representative of
the post-monarchy Nepalese reality.
When Koirala came to New Delhi in the first week of June, he came
with an SPA mandate against committing himself to any treaty with
India. If the Singh government plans to propose a new treaty, it is a
closely guarded secret.
Gurung raised another prickly issue of India-Nepal relations when
he said the 1,800-km-long border between the two countries could not
remain porously open forever. He could not but have alarmed interests
with clout in the Indian capital when he declared that Nepal could
not continue to be "a captive market for Indian goods."
The Maoists are not silent all about their India-related
apprehensions. It is for New Delhi to break its silence over its
response to the change in Nepal, to new history in its neighborhood.
A freelance journalist and a peace activist of India,
_____
[4]
The Hindu
June 26, 2006
TASLIMA ALLEGES THREAT TO LIFE, 'WILL FIGHT BIGOTRY'
Special Correspondent
One does not expect such threats in a democratic country like India:
Bangladeshi writer Fatwas are not new to the writer, who describes
herself as a "secular humanist" fighting intolerance
Kolkata: Controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen said here
on Sunday that she had learnt "of a threat to eliminate me, something
one does not expect in a democratic country like India with its
respect for the freedom of expression."
Ms. Nasreen also faces a fatwa issued by an imam of a city mosque,
who has reportedly offered a reward of Rs. 50,000 to anyone who
smears black paint on her face and drives her out of the country.
Speaking exclusively to The Hindu , Ms. Nasreen expressed the hope
that "neither this Government nor the people would encourage such
fanatics."
"If I want to fight for humanity I automatically will have to fight
religious fundamentalism and bigotry as they are intolerant to human
values and women's emancipation, which is what my books deal in."
Zealots' conspiracy
She thinks that the fatwa threat could be part "of a conspiracy by
religious zealots against me to drive me out of the country at a time
when I have sought from the Government an extension of the
residential permit, which expires in August." Her appeal for Indian
citizenship was rejected last year.
"Over the past few days my security has been tightened presumably in
view of the fatwa issued against me, though I have not as yet been
confronted with any such threat directly," the writer-in-exile said.
Such fatwas, however, are not new to Ms. Nasreen, who describes
herself as a "secular humanist engaged in a struggle against
religious fundamentalism."
"For the same reasons I have not been able to return to Bangladesh
for the past 12 years ... " But why should such fatwas come from
people living in India "a country which recognises democratic values
and is not a theocratic State?" she wondered. As for those who issue
such fatwas, "they too have the right to express their views - for
this right I will give my last blood," Ms. Nasreen said.
"But in a civilised society threats to kill someone and offering
monetary rewards for the deed not only goes against the law but also
stirs up passions. If such things are allowed to continue then surely
democracy will be in peril," she added.
"I have always believed in the plurality of thought but not at the
risk of endangering lives," the writer said. "I have nothing against
religion but only against those tenets which deny women their rights
- a fundamental human right in any democracy."
_____
[5]
Issues in Secular Politics
June 2006 II
TERROR ATTACKS: MORE TO IT THAN MEETS THE EYE
by Ram Puniyani
On April 6th 2006, two Bajrang dal Activists were killed while making
a bomb in the house of an RSS sympathizer. The event was not much
taken note of by the national media. Maharashtra's Anti Terror Squad,
after investigating the event confirmed that these activists were
being trained in making bombs. On the site, a powerful IED, pipe
bomb, and a diary with the tips for making bombs was found. All the
functionaries of RSS affiliates went to offer condolences for the
dead and most of them visited other activists who were in hospital.
The BJP MP of the area asked the police not to 'harass' the
'innocent' members of Bajrang Dal. The bail was granted to the
collaborators of the accused while the police prosecutor had no
objections to bail being granted.
After this incident, police conducted many a raids in nearby places
and haul of explosive material and other ammunition was found. It was
claimed that this was seized from the 'usual suspects', the 'Islamic'
terrorists.
On 1st June, in Nagpur, in an early morning encounter, the police
claimed to have killed three dreaded terrorists of Fidayeen group,
who as per the police version, were planning to attack the RSS head
office. In this encounter, no eye witnesses were there, and police
version was the only source of knowing the truth. The police
commissioner claimed that the car had huge quantities of ammunition,
but all the same, police could decimate all the three terrorists,
without getting any serious injury. The next morning police hogged
the lime light for its act. It was claimed that police had got a
diary from the car giving the details of the terrorists; they were
Islamic terrorists from Pakistan, and were cremated in the Islamic
manner. As usual it was a screaming headline in most of the national
media
So far in such incidents, the police version is accepted by the media
and the nation in an uncritical way. Since all around the air of
terror perpetrated by Islamic terrorists is heavy, one more such
incident is received with some alarm, demonization of Muslims and
Islam is taken one step higher, and the matter rests there. In this
case two of the RSS trained politicians, Gujarat Chief Minister Modi
and MP Chief Minister Chauhan, gave cash rewards to the police
personnel who killed the terrorists, in other state. Not to be left
behind, the ex Chief of Bajrang dal, another RSS prachark, announced
a hefty cash reward to any civilian who kills the terrorists. Here
all the legal niceties were kept aside and two CMs and one top BJP
leader, as if reading from a prepared script, went on to maul the
norms of Indian constitution and talked of things which cannot stand
the scrutiny of law of the land..
Smelling a rat, some civic action groups formed a citizen's inquiry
committee to know the truth of the incident (
http://www.pluralindia.com/articles.php?id=115). So far not many
citizens groups have investigated such acts of terror. The team had
retired Judge of Maharashtra high court as the Chair person and many
prominent social activists as the members. The team did all in its
means to piece together the available information from local media
and people concerned and concluded that police version has too many
holes to be trusted. The committee has demanded a probe by the
competent authority from the center. Despite its frequent requests,
the police officials refused to talk to them as if they have
something to hide. On the contrary police cast aspersions on the
motives and linkages of the team members. Police claims of the
terrorists carrying 5.4 Kilos of RDX and a sealed box of hand
grenades does not match with the meek surrender of the terrorists.
Some of the local people whom the committee met said there was a
firing in the air few days before in the same area where the incident
took place. And this firing sounded like a repeat of the earlier one.
Had this act been rehearsed already?
One realizes that investigating such incidents by civil groups is
very difficult. Police and authorities don't cooperate; on the
contrary they put up all the roadblocks. In the Ansal Plaza case also
Kulpdeep Nayyar's petition to human rights commission, doubting the
police version, went unanswered. Interestingly, all such attacks hog
the headlines for days, and eyes are closed to the holes in the
police version in the name of national security.
In the present case what is worrisome is the attitude of state and
police in tackling the Nanded blasts, where there is a concrete
involvement of RSS affiliates, seriously. It has been pushed to the
background, without taking it to the logical conclusion of arresting
the Bajrang Dal activists and other affiliates. Despite the Anti
Terrorist Squad's conclusion that the activists who were involved
belonged to Bajrang Dal, this organization continues to be a legal
entity. Also the affiliate and sister organizations have not been
touched. Despite the alarming fact that they were being trained in
bomb making, the state govt is sleeping over the issue.
And finally, are these two incidents, Nanded blasts and Nagpur
episode, linked in some way? The claim to unearth the arms and
ammunition, the projection of terrorist activity in nearby areas, the
probable stage managed attack on Nagpur Head Quarter of RSS, are
these meant to hide, the Nanded blasts and involvement of RSS
affiliates in the ghastly crime, under the carpet? One wonders a
nation conscious of its security, suffering so many attacks, off and
on, is taking the Nanded blasts easy. The attitude of media is also
worrisome. While the acts of "Islamic terrorist", though having lots
of doubts in the story, are accepted as presented by police and
highlighted, the event like the one of Nanded has been pushed under
the carpet and forgotten. One hopes the central government wakes up
to the crude reality of these happenings in Maharashtra. The home
ministry is sleeping over matters of a serious concern. In such a
situation who will tackle the issue of terrorism?
_____
[6]
Narmada Bachao Andolan
Jail Road, Mandleshwar,
District Khargone, M.P,
Tel : 09425094606, 09425928007
E-mail : nobigdam at sancharnet.in
Press Note, Bhopal, 22.06.06
Oustees of six Narmada dams march in Bhopal demanding justice,
rehabilitation and audit of benefits
Dharna begins at Tin Shed, talks with State Government today
Around 5000 people of around 400 villages affected by 6 large dams
being built in the Narmada valley - Indira Sagar, Omkareshwar,
Maheshwar, Man, Veda and Bargi dams marched in Bhopal from Shahjahani
Park to Tin Shed in New Market where a public meeting was held today
under the aegis of the Narmada Bachao Andolan to protest against the
destruction of the Narmada valley in the name of development, and
their dispossession and forced pauperization being masked as
rehabilitation. A large number of the affected people are tribal and
women. A large number of the oustees, especially those from
Omkareshwar had to walk 35-40 kms to reach a rail head to come to
Bhopal.
The oustees expressed their disturbance and warned the Government
that if they continued with their present policy of arbitrary and
illegal exclusion of several thousand families affected at Maximum
Water Level and Back-water level of the Indira Sagar and Omkareshwar
dams from the ambit of submergence and rehabilitation, not one but
several Dharajis were likely to be the consequence, with the real
likelihood of several thousand families being washed away in the
monsoon in these areas. In the last one year, the State Government
had surveyed and numbered thousands of houses in the ISP and
Omkareshwar areas at Maximum Water Level, over which a large chunk of
about 5000-6000 houses or more were finally excluded from the process
of land acquisition and rehabilitation. Naturally there was fear and
panic in the areas. Surveys at Back-water level was yet to even
begin. Meanwhile the government officials were perpetrating a reign
of terror in the villages, threatening the villagers to
break their houses with bulldozers despite protective orders from the
High Court. Several houses were broken under their compulsion and
supervision, including houses that had not been compensated. A Korku
from Village Kukdhal - Bhagirath Shivlal was beaten up when when he
refused to berak his house that had not been compensated.
The oustees asserted that they were not willing to accept this
exclusion and pauperization any more and would actively prevent the
Government from pushing them towards certain death. They stated that
their prayer to the High Court not to allow impoundment above 245
meters this year, and full closure of dam gates only after all
oustees affected at FRL and BWL had been rehabilitated as per the
requirements of the Rehabilitation Policy, Narmada Award and the
Supreme Court, was under consideration. It may be noted that the
Supreme Court had stipulated that both oustees affected at FRL and
those affected at BWL would have to be treated at par and
rehabilitated and resettled six months prior to submergence.
The oustees demanded a public audit of the actual benefits of the
large dams already built in the Narmada valley. They said that even
dams like Bargi built 20 years ago was yet to deliver commensurate
irrigation benefits. Similarly even though the Indira Sagar dam was
constructed at a reckless pace, the electricity situation in the
state has not improved substantially. Yet once again, the State
Government was hastening the pace of construction of the Maheshwar
and Omkareshwar dams putting rehabilitation aspects into abeyance.
The oustees said that even a miniscule saving in the huge T&D losses
in the state would provide more electricity than all the Narmada dams
put together.
The villagers and the Narmada Bachao Andolan stated that they would
not permit the Government to function as deputies of foreign capital
conduited thorough the Power Finance Corporation and National
Hydro-Power Corporation into private companies and public
corporations - SMHPCL and NHDC building the Indira Sagar, Omkareshwar
and Maheshwar dams or to bolster the profits of these companies by
the minimization of compensation, rehabilitation, extent of
submergence and the exclusion of oustees. Global dam builders and
power equipment suppliers were pressuring Third World governments to
build large number of dams to have assured markets but it is clear
that the popularly elected governments cannot serve the agenda of the
global companies but work to provide electricity and water benefits
for its people.
The oustees stated that there is no way that the question of
displacement of several million people of the Narmada valley could be
brushed under the carpet by overnight displacement and dispersal of
the affected people as was done in the town of Harsud where the town
people were forced to break their homes with their own hands in the
shadow of bayonets and the fait accompli of submergence. Rather, it
would become a festering wound in the body of society. In New Harsud
today, the people were facing large scale un-employment and rampant
hunger and were forced to migrate in the search of employment, and
women were now so desperate they were asserting that they sell
themselves if required rather than die of hunger. Two oustees -
Santosh Paliwal and Amrabai have committed suicide in the last three
months because of exclusion and delayed compensation.
The oustees of the Man and Upper Beda dams in the Districts of Dhar
and Khargone stated that although they were almost wholly tribal
areas and are protected by the Indian Constitution, they have been
denied even the basic land provisions in the Rehabilitation Policy
and forced to depart with small pittances in the name of
compensation. Their demand is that the Government must provide them
with a minimum of irrigated and cultivable lands.
The NBA demands that the State Government institutes a CBI enquiry
into the suicides and the large scale exclusions of several thousand
submergence families from the ambit of rehabilitation and acquisition
in the Omkareshwar and Indira Sagar Projects, and rectifies the
situation immediately to prevent any more suicides. It asks the State
Government to immediately conduct surveys at Back-Water-Level in the
Omkareshwar and Indira Sagar dam areas and to rehabilitate and
compensate the affected people. The NBA also asks that the State
Government immediately start acquisition of tapu and unviable
villages, and villages where the majority of the lands are in
submergence as well as rehabilitate the oustees as per Rehabilitation
policy and Plan.
The NBA also demands that an Employment Guarantee Scheme on the lines
of Rural Employment Guarantee Act be initiated for the town of Harsud
by the State Government and the Harsud residents should be
distributed 5 acres of reservoir draw down land on a temporary patta
basis and given electricity facilities to cultivate the same.
Regarding the Maheshwar Project, it is clear from the recent MOEF
order that there is no rehabilitation Plan for the affected people,
and in the situation work on the dam must immediately stop. It may
also be noted that the State Government in an act of unexplained
munificience to the willful defaulters- the S.Kumars against whom
they have filed charges of criminal conspiracy have waived the
condition of grant of security to MPISDC by handing over shares of
the Shree Maheshwar Hydel Power Corporation Limited of Rs. 30 crores
against the settlement of outstanding loan of Rs. 103 crores, as
decided in the settlement letter of 16th September 2005. The State
Government also reduced the returnable amount from Rs. 103 crores to
Rs. 77 crores and the rate of interest from 14% to 8%. The Government
will have to explain publicly why all these concessions are being
given to a private party and willful defaulter at the cost of the
public exchequer.
Regarding the Bargi Project, the NBA demands that the earlier order
of permitting the water level to come down to 418 m by the 15th of
December every year, so as to allow timely draw-down cultivation,
that had been cancelled in the interim be re-issued so that the
oustees who are making a living by cultivating the draw-down lands
may continue to do so.
The NBA and the people of the Narmada valley express their
determination to intensify their struggle and will be in Bhopal on
dharna for the next few days until their demands are met.
Alok Agarwal Chittaroopa Palit Shamma bi
Bhagwan Birle
ISP Dam Maheshwar Dam
Govind Bhai Banabai Mojiramji
Kehar Singh
Man Dam Upper Veda Dam Omkareshwar Dam
Bargi Dam
_____
[7]
Outlook Magazine | July 03, 2006
[BOOK] REVIEW
Of A Boss And Her Able Aide
A tale of two Gujarati women who made it their mission to rescue
women abducted during Partition
Khushwant Singh
TORN FROM THE ROOTS: A PARTITION MEMOIR
by Kamla Patel (Translated by Uma Randeria)
Women Unlimited
Pages: 261; Rs: 350
Few of the present generation will be familiar with the name
of Mridula Sarabhai. And even fewer will have heard of the name of
Kamla Patel. Both were undoubtedly heroines of independent India.
Apart from being Gujaratis, they had little in common in their
backgrounds. Mridula Sarabhai (1911-72) was the eldest of the eight
children of Seth Ambalal Sarabhai, a textile magnate of Ahmedabad and
among the top ten richest of the rich of the country.
They were Shwetambar Jains. Better known among the siblings was
Mridula's younger brother Vikram who rose to eminence as a nuclear
and space scientist. Mridula was involved in the freedom movement
before she was asked to take over operations to rescue women abducted
during Partition riots in Pakistan and India. Later she espoused the
cause of Sheikh Abdullah who had been imprisoned by the Nehru
government. In 1958, she too was arrested and put in Tihar jail for a
year. She developed cancer and was packed off to Ahmedabad and kept
under house arrest. She succumbed to cancer in 1972.
Kamla Patel (1912-92) came from a middle-class family. She became a
disciple of Gandhi and spent many years in Sabarmati ashram where
Mridula was a frequent visitor. That's where they met. The one thing
the two women shared with passion was veneration for Gandhi and what
he stood for. The most important lesson they learnt from him was that
once you are convinced your cause is just, then fight for it without
fear of consequences: fear is cowardly, fear is sinful.
Mridula was a born leader. Being the eldest, her siblings looked up
to her. She grew up knowing how to organise and give orders. Everyone
in the family called her Boss. Bossy she was-with no small talk or
banter. She cut her hair short, wore no cosmetics or jewellery. When
she joined the freedom movement, she took to wearing Punjabi style
salwar-kameez. After Independence and the partition of the country,
she realised there was more work to do and moved to Delhi.
Gossip-mongers said she had developed a Nehru fixation. The most
important work on hand was the rehabilitation of millions of Hindu
and Sikh refugees forced to flee from Western Pakistan. And the most
humanitarian task requiring immediate action was rescuing women
abducted on either side of the border and restoring them to their
families. In a speech delivered on December 7, 1947, Gandhiji brought
up the matter in his usual matter-of-fact manner of speaking. He said
it was reported at a joint Indo-Pak meeting held in Lahore that the
number of abducted women was 12,000 for Muslim women abducted on this
side and over twice that number of Hindu and Sikh women abducted in
Pakistan. His figures were undoubtedly underestimates. But how were
these women to be located and taken out of the clutches of their
abductors and given the freedom to choose their destinies? From the
Indian side, Mridula Sarabhai was chosen to lead the operations. In
her turn, she chose Kamla Patel to be her principal aide and posted
her at Lahore.
The atmosphere on either side of the border was full of hate and
distrust. Though Muslims had asked for dividing the country, they
felt more aggrieved than non-Muslims. Their hatred was further
inflamed by the ongoing war in Kashmir. The Pakistan government and
the army continued to let in frontier tribesmen to infiltrate Kashmir
which they did in the thousands, pillaging, looting, raping
women-including nuns-as they advanced towards Srinagar. Then the
Indian air force and the army pounced on them and drove them back
with great slaughter. What Pakistani authorities believed would fall
into their hands like a ripe apple turned out to be a scorpion. They
had more reason to hate India. Soon after came the annexation of
Hyderabad. Indians called it "police action"; Pakistan saw it as yet
another example of Hindu perfidy to extinguish a Muslim dynasty.
How could they trust any Indian?
The most tragic part of the operation to rescue abducted women was
the way Punjabis looked down upon them as cattle or household
chattels to be looted, sexually abused, shared with friends, sold or
discarded. Police, civilian authorities and the general public
connived with the abductors to frustrate the efforts of do-gooders
who came to rescue them. Everyone lied, everyone believed that
murdering innocent people in cold blood and raping their women were
acts of heroism: indeed human beings had become sub-human species
worse than beasts.
Kamla Patel put down her experiences of shuttling between Lahore,
Amritsar and Jalandhar, going into remote Pakistani villages looking
for lost women and the walls of resistance she had to break through.
Wherever she went, there was grave danger to her life. There were
cases where underage Muslim girls had willingly eloped with Hindu
boys and Hindu girls run off with their Muslim lovers: such liaisons
were not acceptable to their parents. Most heart-rending were cases
of women with babies born out of wedlock or still in their wombs. Who
did these women and their children belong to? Hindus, Sikhs or
Muslims? To India or Pakistan?
Kamla Patel's experiences were first published in Gujarati under the
title Mool Sotan Ukhdelan and was received well enough to be
translated and published in English to reach wider audiences.
Mridula's younger sister Gira Sarabhai made funds available from the
family's charitable trust to make this possible. Unfortunately, like
Gandhiji's speeches which were short on oratory but came from the
heart, Kamla Patel's text has no literary flourishes but also comes
from her heart. Despite being cliche-ridden, choppy and repetitive,
it is worth reading because it reminds us of the darkest period of
our recent history. It is a timely reminder that we have yet to purge
ourselves of communal venom, which was evident in the anti-Muslim
riots in the home state of Mridula Sarabhai and Kamla Patel.
_____
[8]
BJP: HINDUTVA'S PARLIAMENTARY ARM STEADILY AT WORK DESPITE CLAIMS OF
IT HAVING FIZZLED OUT
BJP opposes bill to fight riots
http://communalism.blogspot.com/2006/06/bjp-opposes-bill-to-fight-riots.html
BJP on renaming bridges drive
http://communalism.blogspot.com/2006/06/gujarat-bjp-on-renaming-bridges-drive.html
Attacks on Christians rise in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh
http://communalism.blogspot.com/2006/06/attacks-on-christians-rise-in-bjp.html
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
Buzz on the perils of fundamentalist politics, on
matters of peace and democratisation in South
Asia. SACW is an independent & non-profit
citizens wire service run since 1998 by South
Asia Citizens Web: www.sacw.net/
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