Shri P. Chidambaram
Hon’ble Union Home Minister
Government of India
April 29, 2011
Subject: Request for providing adequate and effective security to Shri Sanjiv R. Bhatt (IPS 1998), Principal SRPF Training College, Junagadh
Dear Mr. Chidambaram,
We are deeply perturbed by the media reports (pasted at the end of this letter) : Gujarat Govt withdraws security cover of IPS officer who deposed against Modi, Express news service, Fri Apr 29 2011, 00:36 hrs.
Sanjiv Bhatt IPS, DIG SRPF Training College, Junagadh, had filed an Affidavit relating to SIT investigation on the complaint by Smt. Ahsan Jafri against Shri Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat, senior politicians and bureaucrats in the Supreme Court of India.
Sanjiv Bhatt’s Affidavit filed in Supreme Court contains important evidence against Narendra Modi. Earlier, the late Haren Pandya, the former State Minister, who submitted similar information to the Citizens Tribunal, headed by Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer, had been assassinated in suspicious circumstances.
In the background of these circumstances and the prevailing conditions in Gujarat of ‘No to any Dissent’ today’s media reports about the withdrawal of security from Sanjiv Bhatt comes as a rude shock and is very disturbing.
There is a long list of serving officers who have been penalized by the state government for stopping the riots in 2002 in the areas under their jurisdiction and they continue to be harassed.
We as concerned citizens, individuals, activists, political workers, leaders feel extremely perturbed by this recent development.
We are writing to urge you to ensure that adequate and effective security cover be provided to Sanjiv Bhatt and his family urgently.
He is entitled to protection as per the witness protection rules ordered by the Honorable Supreme Court for the witnesses of the communal riot cases, being investigated by the SIT constituted by the Supreme Court.
Yours Sincerely
Released by Shabnam Hashmi on behalf of
1. Aamir Edresy, Association of Professional Muslims, Mumbai
2. Abdul Khaliq, Awadh Public Charitable Public Trust, Delhi
3. Abu Saleh Sharief, economist, Bangalore
4. Aditi Mangaldas, Dancer, Delhi
5. Admiral Ramdas, peace activist, former naval chief, Alibag, Maharashtra
6. Amitabh Behar, social activist, Delhi
7. Annie Raja, President, National Federation of Indian Women, Delhi
8. Anuradha Chenoy, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University
9. Biju Mohan, filmmaker, Barabanki, UP
10. D Raja, MP, leader, Communist Party of India, Delhi
11. Danish Ahmed, National Secretary, Janata Dal (Secular)
12. Dhirendra Panda, social activist, Orissa
13. Dr Harshvardhan Hegde, orthopedic surgeon, Delhi
14. Dr Jaya Mehta, Economist, Sandarbh, Indore
15. Dr. Ram Puniyani, writer and activist, Mumbai
16. Farukh Shaikh, film actor, producer, Mumbai
17. Father Cedric Prakash, Human Rights activist and Director Prashant, Ahmedabad
18. Gagan Sethi, social activist, Centre for Social Justice, Ahmedabad
19. Githa Hariharan, writer, novelist, Delhi
20. Hanif Lakdawala, social activist, Director Sanchetna, Gujarat
21. Harsh Dobhal, Human Rights Law Network, Delhi
22. Harsh Mander, activist, writer, member NAC
23. Indu Kumar Jani, writer, journalist, Ahmedabad
24. Jai Sen, CACIM , Delhi
25. Kamla Mitra Chenoy, Professor, JNU
26. Kavita Srivastava, General Secretary, PUCL, Rajasthan
27. Kedar Mishra, poet, journalist, Orissa
28. Lalita Ramdas, peace activist, Alibag
29. Madhumita Ray, social activist, Orissa
30. Mahesh Bhatt, filmmaker, Mumbai
31. Manas Ranjan, social activist, Orissa
32. Mohd Azam Khan, activist, Hyderabad
33. Mushirul Hasan, Historian, Delhi
34. Nandita Das, Actor, Director and Activist, Delhi
35. Nasiruddin Shah, Actor, Bombay
36. Paul Divakar, National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights, Delhi
37. Prasad Chako, social activist, National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights, Ahmedabad
38. Prashant Paikray, social activist, Orissa
39. Prof KN Panikkar, Historian, Kerala
40. Prof Ramesh Dixit, Lucknow University, Lucknow
41. Prof Rooprekha Verma
42. Ram Vilas Paswan, President, Lok Jan Shakti Party
43. S Irfan Habib, Historian, Delhi
44. Saba Dewan, filmmaker, Delhi
45. Saeed Mirza, film director, writer, Mumbai, Goa
46. Sampad Mohapatra, journalist, Orissa
47. Sania Hashmi, filmmaker, Delhi
48. Seema Duhan, social activist, Orissa
49. Seema Mustafa, journalist, Delhi
50. Shabnam Hashmi, social activist, Anhad, Delhi
51. Sharmila Tagore, actress, Mumbai, Delhi
52. Sheba George, social activist, Director, Sahrwaru, Ahmedabad
53. Shubha Mudgal, artists, singer, Mumbai
54. Sohail Hashmi, filmmaker, writer, Delhi
55. Sonia Jabbar, filmmaker, Delhi
56. Subhash Gatade, columnist, writer, Delhi
57. Sukumar Muralidharan, Journalist, Delhi
58. T Haridas, Jansanskriti, Delhi
59. Utkarsh Sinha, activist, INSAF, Lucknow
60. Uttam Parmar, social activist, Surat
61. Vineet Tiwari, Progressive Writers ‘Association, Sandarbh, Indore
62. Vrinda Grover, advocate, Supreme Court
63. Zafar Agha, Editor, Jadeed Mail, Delhi
64. Zakia Soman, social activist, Bhartiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, Gujarat
MEDIA REPORT
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/gujarat-govt-withdraws-security-cover-of-ips-officer-who- deposed-against-modi/783206/
Gujarat govt withdraws security cover of IPS officer who deposed against Modi
Express news service
Posted: Fri Apr 29 2011, 00:36 hrs
Days after he submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court to say Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi wanted “Muslims taught a lesson” for “the burning of kar sevaks at Godhra” in 2002, IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt’s security detail was withdrawn on the orders of the state Director General of Police. Instead of four guards, he will now have a lone policeman guarding him.
“There is no way I am going to allow this. My family needs to be protected,” Bhatt told The Indian Express, saying he was drafting a reply to the DGP.
Bhatt had been recommended Y-category security — it comprises a security team of 11, including seven armed guards outside the house — after police intelligence underlined the threat he faced in view of his disclosures to the Special Investigation Team probing the riots cases.
Since no decision had been taken on providing him Y-category cover, he had made his own security arrangement at his residence, using four men drawn from the SRP Training College where he is currently posted as Principal.
|
April 28, 2011
Why do I, among others, feel excluded, Mr Hazare?
Over The Top - A Himal blog, 27 April 2011
By Sharib Ali and Shazia Nigar
The effectiveness of the Jan Lokpal bill, drafted by our respected Annaji and other luminaries, has been argued by many. Shuddhabrata Sengupta has dismissed the bill on Kafila, Nigam while accepting its appeal seems cynical about it, and P Sainath in a lecture at UC, Berkeley has famously asked us to ‘forget it’. These are, of course, opinions from civil society which has attempted to assess the bill – or in fact, the movement – and what it can achieve, as opposed to the masses who see it as the final solution, so to speak.
I am probably too naïve to pass a judgment on whether the bill will be able to rule out corruption from a complex society such as ours – we have just been too good at it. But in spite of my desire to help remove the ills that plague our country, I, as a student and a Muslim, feel quite excluded from the movement, and not just from the movement, but from the very idea of the Indian nation that the ‘second revolution’ seeks to build. This I feel from the political aspirations of those who not only sat with Anna, but whose contributions were central to the movement itself.
What actually happened in the three-day spectacle was a legitimate expression of public anger over injustices seeking to get away in the name of fate, but arising from an unequal and exploitative social structure. We have been talking about rising food prices, rising crime rates, famer suicides, and unscrupulous looting, in streets, at homes, in local trains, and rotten fields of failed crops. What Anna did by sitting there in perfect white kurta was to transform this anger into a sane, civilized and harmless movement against a specific grievance: corruption, which has been unusually high and widely reported in the last few years. There is no doubt that, Anna was able to connect with a much wider audience, beyond the influence of the corporate media.
The 90-hour spectacle, performed on television sets across the country, produced a collective catharsis of the anger accumulated over the last two decades in India. With its controversial tryst with neo-liberalism, and wondrous rates of growth accompanied by wondrous rates of suicides and dispossession, genocide, communalisation, and the rise of terrorism, we had felt suffocated. This is not to say that the anger has now disappeared. It is just that at that specific moment when Hazare fasted, the middle class moved beyond their four walls and came together for a potential revolution.
The ‘revolution’ we just witnessed arrived with a bang and became a brilliant safety valve, but sought to produce just a whimper – and that too, a seriously debated one. It never, from its very inception, sought to alter the state of affairs in any meaningful way or in a way that questions, or threatens the powers that be – and here I don’t mean just the present government, but very hegemonic order itself. It is here lies the answer to Sengupta’s question on the difference between this fast and all the others.
Given the quite harmless character of the fast and its therapeutic potential to strengthen, sustain, and perpetuate not just the system but also the specific desires of those in power, it was not surprising that all parties joined in, and consciously promoted the spectacle – from corporate media to bureaucrats and politicians.
Photo: Indianexpress.com
Photo: Indianexpress.com
I joined in with great enthusiasm when it all started. The impeccable white of Anna Hazare on his fast at Jantar Mantar was comforting. But then as the cameras zoomed out, it was a little unnerving. India was there, for sure – standing tall from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and wide from Northeast to Gujarat. But there was in that particular representation of India something that blocked my vision entirely – a deity draped in deep red. It was a shocking, though not an unfamiliar, sight, reminding me of all the calendars of banks and companies that came to my home with their versions of Bharat Mata. But what was it doing here, right at the center where people sought to build a new India?
Below Bharat Mata stood the faces of three leaders: Gandhi, Vivekananda, and Rani Laxmibai. On the left were the staring faces of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev. A peculiar choice, from the mosaic of leaders, invoked to inspire and bless the proceedings. The peculiarity stems, not from the character of the historical figures themselves, but rather, from the way they have been appropriated by the Hindu rightwing to promote the Hindutva brand of politics: a mix of ideas of purity and violence. Vivekananda is evoked in every argument of the ABVP, the RSS and the BJP.
Standing in front of Bharat Mata and other visionaries, Hazare requested his fellow countrymen to join in his struggle against corruption, but the very vision and its ideals as displayed behind him seemed to be an indicator of who was invited and who wasn’t, for, in the collective imagination of at least one third of the nation’s people, India has never been a sari draped Bharat Mata, while Vivekananda and the others have remained a reminder of saffron fear.
I am probably over reading it, but am I unjustified in expecting sensibility from a movement on which I pin my hopes, or in which I want to participate?
The exclusion was not concretized yet, and not until it all started – from chants of ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’, to the saffron brigade joining in with RSS national executive committee members; other senior office bearers like Madhubhai Kulakarni, Bajaranga Lalji Gupta, Dr.Shyam Sundar, Om Prakash; and several other ‘karyakartas’ sitting in with Mr Hazare, while Javed Anand, a journalist was asked to join because they did not want ‘bad Muslims’.
Then Ramdev stood on the platform talking of bringing ‘pavitrata’ to the nation and hanging all the corrupt ones. I was confused. Listening to him and to news reports of Anna Hazare’s support of Raj Thackeray’s agenda against north Indians, coupled with tales of public floggings and bhajans as the only celebratory music allowed in Hazare’s model village, I wondered at the nation that he, along with his friends, wanted to build. That Anna Hazare sat surrounded by, and enthusiastically enjoyed the support of a colorful set of people who think that Muslims don’t belong in India; who think that homosexuality is a disease; and who belong to a color which has come to symbolize a demolished Babri Masjid, hundreds of massacred Muslims in Bombay and a bloody state-sponsored riot in Gujarat, is in itself not a problem.
Photo: coolgraphic.org
Photo: coolgraphic.org
Everyone has the right to participate in the building of a new nation. The presence of Medha Patekar and others from the civil society was a case in point – all were there against corruption. But I had hoped, and let’s confess, prayed for the crucial line between receiving support and joining the brigade to stay. But after the majority of India joined in and the spectacle reached its climax with Hazare being touted as the new Gandhi, Hazare’s (first) statement of his vision collapsed this line and brought together all those little signifiers around him into a final, definitive and meaningful gesture of exclusion.
‘The kind of model that Gujarat and Bihar chief ministers have presented, that model should be emulated by all other chief ministers…’
But let’s come to rural development first. According to the Planning Commission report Gujarat hosts 31.8% of the poor, the highest in India. At the same time, 16,000 farmer suicides have taken place in Modi’s vibrant Gujarat. The agriculture production has also decreased from 65.75 lakh tons in 2003-04 to 51.33 lakh tons in 2004-05. Further, as pointed out by Mallika Sarabhai in her letter to Annaji, Modi’s regime in Gujarat has witnessed several instances of corruption. There has been no Lokayukta in Gujarat for nearly seven years, so hundreds of complaints against corruption are lying unheard. From the Sujalam Sufalam scam of IRs 1700 crore to the NREGA boribund scam of IRs 109 crore and the fishery scam of IRs 600 crore, every department is involved in thousands of crores of scams. The poor and the rural people are being sold to Modi’s friends, the industrialists.
It is difficult to understand how Mr Hazare was unaware of the situation in Gujarat. Even if Gujarat had a blindingly beautiful picture of rural development to present, how could our new leader present Gujarat as an ideal state, where very recently about 2000-5000 Muslims were murdered and another 150,000 rendered homeless in an act of communal genocide? How could Hazare present Modi as an emulative Chief Minister when the latter not only organized and saw through the genocide, but also had the nerve to call it ‘Gujarat Shining’? Is the genocide of Muslims absolutely disconnected from humanity or from that very idea which informs what Mr Hazare calls ‘rural development’? Is this the new India (free of corruption, of course) that we are building?
As the Bill gets embroiled in controversy, losing its strength as several key people either are disassociating themselves from it or threatening to do so, it is time not to play identity politics. What we should work towards is something that will be a step towards inhibiting the conscious, unscrupulous looting of the common people of India – and this requires a lot more than just bringing to court all those who have been caught in scams.
And when that happens Mr Hazare, I would like to be a part of it.
Sharib Ali and Shazia Nigar are students of Media and Cultural Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
By Sharib Ali and Shazia Nigar
The effectiveness of the Jan Lokpal bill, drafted by our respected Annaji and other luminaries, has been argued by many. Shuddhabrata Sengupta has dismissed the bill on Kafila, Nigam while accepting its appeal seems cynical about it, and P Sainath in a lecture at UC, Berkeley has famously asked us to ‘forget it’. These are, of course, opinions from civil society which has attempted to assess the bill – or in fact, the movement – and what it can achieve, as opposed to the masses who see it as the final solution, so to speak.
I am probably too naïve to pass a judgment on whether the bill will be able to rule out corruption from a complex society such as ours – we have just been too good at it. But in spite of my desire to help remove the ills that plague our country, I, as a student and a Muslim, feel quite excluded from the movement, and not just from the movement, but from the very idea of the Indian nation that the ‘second revolution’ seeks to build. This I feel from the political aspirations of those who not only sat with Anna, but whose contributions were central to the movement itself.
What actually happened in the three-day spectacle was a legitimate expression of public anger over injustices seeking to get away in the name of fate, but arising from an unequal and exploitative social structure. We have been talking about rising food prices, rising crime rates, famer suicides, and unscrupulous looting, in streets, at homes, in local trains, and rotten fields of failed crops. What Anna did by sitting there in perfect white kurta was to transform this anger into a sane, civilized and harmless movement against a specific grievance: corruption, which has been unusually high and widely reported in the last few years. There is no doubt that, Anna was able to connect with a much wider audience, beyond the influence of the corporate media.
The 90-hour spectacle, performed on television sets across the country, produced a collective catharsis of the anger accumulated over the last two decades in India. With its controversial tryst with neo-liberalism, and wondrous rates of growth accompanied by wondrous rates of suicides and dispossession, genocide, communalisation, and the rise of terrorism, we had felt suffocated. This is not to say that the anger has now disappeared. It is just that at that specific moment when Hazare fasted, the middle class moved beyond their four walls and came together for a potential revolution.
The ‘revolution’ we just witnessed arrived with a bang and became a brilliant safety valve, but sought to produce just a whimper – and that too, a seriously debated one. It never, from its very inception, sought to alter the state of affairs in any meaningful way or in a way that questions, or threatens the powers that be – and here I don’t mean just the present government, but very hegemonic order itself. It is here lies the answer to Sengupta’s question on the difference between this fast and all the others.
Given the quite harmless character of the fast and its therapeutic potential to strengthen, sustain, and perpetuate not just the system but also the specific desires of those in power, it was not surprising that all parties joined in, and consciously promoted the spectacle – from corporate media to bureaucrats and politicians.
Photo: Indianexpress.com
Photo: Indianexpress.com
I joined in with great enthusiasm when it all started. The impeccable white of Anna Hazare on his fast at Jantar Mantar was comforting. But then as the cameras zoomed out, it was a little unnerving. India was there, for sure – standing tall from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and wide from Northeast to Gujarat. But there was in that particular representation of India something that blocked my vision entirely – a deity draped in deep red. It was a shocking, though not an unfamiliar, sight, reminding me of all the calendars of banks and companies that came to my home with their versions of Bharat Mata. But what was it doing here, right at the center where people sought to build a new India?
Below Bharat Mata stood the faces of three leaders: Gandhi, Vivekananda, and Rani Laxmibai. On the left were the staring faces of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev. A peculiar choice, from the mosaic of leaders, invoked to inspire and bless the proceedings. The peculiarity stems, not from the character of the historical figures themselves, but rather, from the way they have been appropriated by the Hindu rightwing to promote the Hindutva brand of politics: a mix of ideas of purity and violence. Vivekananda is evoked in every argument of the ABVP, the RSS and the BJP.
Standing in front of Bharat Mata and other visionaries, Hazare requested his fellow countrymen to join in his struggle against corruption, but the very vision and its ideals as displayed behind him seemed to be an indicator of who was invited and who wasn’t, for, in the collective imagination of at least one third of the nation’s people, India has never been a sari draped Bharat Mata, while Vivekananda and the others have remained a reminder of saffron fear.
I am probably over reading it, but am I unjustified in expecting sensibility from a movement on which I pin my hopes, or in which I want to participate?
The exclusion was not concretized yet, and not until it all started – from chants of ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’, to the saffron brigade joining in with RSS national executive committee members; other senior office bearers like Madhubhai Kulakarni, Bajaranga Lalji Gupta, Dr.Shyam Sundar, Om Prakash; and several other ‘karyakartas’ sitting in with Mr Hazare, while Javed Anand, a journalist was asked to join because they did not want ‘bad Muslims’.
Then Ramdev stood on the platform talking of bringing ‘pavitrata’ to the nation and hanging all the corrupt ones. I was confused. Listening to him and to news reports of Anna Hazare’s support of Raj Thackeray’s agenda against north Indians, coupled with tales of public floggings and bhajans as the only celebratory music allowed in Hazare’s model village, I wondered at the nation that he, along with his friends, wanted to build. That Anna Hazare sat surrounded by, and enthusiastically enjoyed the support of a colorful set of people who think that Muslims don’t belong in India; who think that homosexuality is a disease; and who belong to a color which has come to symbolize a demolished Babri Masjid, hundreds of massacred Muslims in Bombay and a bloody state-sponsored riot in Gujarat, is in itself not a problem.
Photo: coolgraphic.org
Photo: coolgraphic.org
Everyone has the right to participate in the building of a new nation. The presence of Medha Patekar and others from the civil society was a case in point – all were there against corruption. But I had hoped, and let’s confess, prayed for the crucial line between receiving support and joining the brigade to stay. But after the majority of India joined in and the spectacle reached its climax with Hazare being touted as the new Gandhi, Hazare’s (first) statement of his vision collapsed this line and brought together all those little signifiers around him into a final, definitive and meaningful gesture of exclusion.
‘The kind of model that Gujarat and Bihar chief ministers have presented, that model should be emulated by all other chief ministers…’
But let’s come to rural development first. According to the Planning Commission report Gujarat hosts 31.8% of the poor, the highest in India. At the same time, 16,000 farmer suicides have taken place in Modi’s vibrant Gujarat. The agriculture production has also decreased from 65.75 lakh tons in 2003-04 to 51.33 lakh tons in 2004-05. Further, as pointed out by Mallika Sarabhai in her letter to Annaji, Modi’s regime in Gujarat has witnessed several instances of corruption. There has been no Lokayukta in Gujarat for nearly seven years, so hundreds of complaints against corruption are lying unheard. From the Sujalam Sufalam scam of IRs 1700 crore to the NREGA boribund scam of IRs 109 crore and the fishery scam of IRs 600 crore, every department is involved in thousands of crores of scams. The poor and the rural people are being sold to Modi’s friends, the industrialists.
It is difficult to understand how Mr Hazare was unaware of the situation in Gujarat. Even if Gujarat had a blindingly beautiful picture of rural development to present, how could our new leader present Gujarat as an ideal state, where very recently about 2000-5000 Muslims were murdered and another 150,000 rendered homeless in an act of communal genocide? How could Hazare present Modi as an emulative Chief Minister when the latter not only organized and saw through the genocide, but also had the nerve to call it ‘Gujarat Shining’? Is the genocide of Muslims absolutely disconnected from humanity or from that very idea which informs what Mr Hazare calls ‘rural development’? Is this the new India (free of corruption, of course) that we are building?
As the Bill gets embroiled in controversy, losing its strength as several key people either are disassociating themselves from it or threatening to do so, it is time not to play identity politics. What we should work towards is something that will be a step towards inhibiting the conscious, unscrupulous looting of the common people of India – and this requires a lot more than just bringing to court all those who have been caught in scams.
And when that happens Mr Hazare, I would like to be a part of it.
Sharib Ali and Shazia Nigar are students of Media and Cultural Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
April 27, 2011
Bhagwan Sri Satya Sai: Faith Marginalises Reason
Ram Puniyani
The death of Satya Sai Baba, April 24th 2011, has created a big turmoil, not only amongst his followers but also amongst those who had more mundane things to look after, like law and order, visit of VVIP’s to Puthaparthi etc. Bhajans (devotional songs) to mourn his death are being held all over in the country and abroad. A large number of those belonging to the list of ‘Who is who’ of the political, business world, and all those who matter in the country are already there to death of the God. In addition ‘who will inherit his vast empire’, created singlehandedly out of no where, the way he used to ‘create’ Vibhuti, gold chains etc. from the thin air is another issue haunting those concerned.
Undoubtedly Bhagwan (God) Sai must have been the God man with a very large following and probably largest wealth amongst the leading Godmen. The latter can not be confirmed, as large part of the wealth controlled by those presented as divine beings, is not known for various reasons. Not only that one does not know if any body can dare to think that Lok Pal type auditing of the wealth of these renunciators of Worldly goods should also be thought of. Such Godmen do demonstrate that you get more when you know how to ‘renounce’ the World, and of course part of the earnings are put as a part of social service, which is made prominently visible part of activities of these men of God.
Bhagwan’s life is mired with multiple controversies and there are many a dilemmas in understanding him. He was expert in the tricks of Vibhuti production from air and also production of gold chains as well. Earlier he was also ‘producing’ HMT watches, but that was stopped soon enough as the watches carry the date of manufacture on them. Many a rationalists confronted him by and replicated his tricks and even took out yatras to demonstrate that there is nothing divine about such tricks. They are but clever maneuvers of hand and even magician of repute P.C. Sarkar also challenged the divine nature of these acts. Interestingly he was challenged to produce things like pumpkin, which he refused to do for obvious reasons.
Notwithstanding that his followers were undeterred and the number of his followers cutting across different spheres of life kept swelling. He had proclaimed that he is reincarnation of Sai Baba of Shirdi. As an aside, the transformation of Shirdi Sai to present level of opulent divinity is a phenomenon in itself as Shirdi Sai had lived a Spartan life under the tree with no material wealth to his credit and currently his idol sits on a Golden throne.
This self proclaimed reincarnation of Shirdi Sai not only must be sitting over one of the wealthiest empires but also went on to proclaim to be a God himself and also prophesied that he will leave this physical body at the age of 96 years. Unfortunately the physical body could not be saved beyond the age of 85 years. Bhagwan who has saved so many lives through divine powers was to be put on ventilators for survival for quite some time and he could not be made to live his prophesy.
The remarkable thing about Bhagwan Sai is that he survived many controversies associated with his life. He was charged with Pedophilia, sexual abuse by various sources but such mundane things could not shake the firm faith of ever expanding tribe of followers at home and abroad. Tom Brooke’s book (Avatar of the Night: Hidden Side of Sai Baba) described his own experience. Similarly sexual abuse of young male devotees on the pretext of yogic technique of ‘Kundalini raising’ also came to light. There was also a case of murder in his living quarters to which Bhagwan himself was a witness, but it was not investigated beyond a point as worldly laws probably don’t reach in the realm of spiritual world. The ties of Bhagwan with the one’s at the topmost echelons every tine ensured that the matters are not pursued, be it the expose’ of his tricks or the cases of murder in his living quarters, all were ignored and soon forgotten from public memory.
To be fair to him, Bhagwan Sai is not the first one to proclaim himself as God. There have been the likes of Rajneesh, who for example began his Godly career from Acharya Rajneesh, promoted to Bhagwan Rajneesh and then attained the status of Osho.
After the death of Bhagwan all those who matter in the echelons of power are making a beeline to visit his mortal remains. One does not know whether these visits by the state functionaries are official or personal, one does not know whether such distinctions are any longer valid in our country, where the Constitution does permit us to practice and preach our faith at personal level but not at political level. State visits to such events in official capacity should be a strict no no. Our Constitution does direct us to promote rational thought; but that again remains ignored as all the rationalists like Abraham Kovoor or Premanand were totally by passed by the mainstream power centers and the issues raised by them remained unanswered and unattended to. There are a couple of films questioning Bhagwan’s claims and also accusing him of sexual abuse, ‘Guru Busters’ and ‘Secret Swami’ are couple of such films.
Some one interestingly remarked that there are two types of politicians who visit the Bhagwan. First are those who are corrupt and want to hide their sin, and second are those who are sincere and work with the first lot. That apart, the impact of such Baba’s, has been a major accompaniment of the politics in the name of religion. This is an era, where the waves of faith are trying to drown the boat of reason, with due support from the incompetent boatman, in the form of state power. The tempest of faith is becoming so overwhelmingly powerful that even raising the questions against these God man is becoming difficult, else how does one explain that a person calls himself God, does tricks which magicians can replicate with ease and is able to collect huge wealth, part of which is showcased as the charity work. One also knows that to expose the prevalent blind faith is swimming against the tide.
One also concedes that these are also the times when the existential anxiety of a section of population forces them to resort to some support system. In the decades of 1970s it was LSD, now it is the ever proliferating posse of God men. Sai’s prediction about his future reincarnations will be a matter of great interest and curiosity, how the God will resurface and how his followers will recognize and worship his new reincarnation will unfold over a period of time. Meanwhile one hopes that some semblance of reason is brought forth while dealing with the innumerable Godmen, flourishing all around like mushrooms.
The death of Satya Sai Baba, April 24th 2011, has created a big turmoil, not only amongst his followers but also amongst those who had more mundane things to look after, like law and order, visit of VVIP’s to Puthaparthi etc. Bhajans (devotional songs) to mourn his death are being held all over in the country and abroad. A large number of those belonging to the list of ‘Who is who’ of the political, business world, and all those who matter in the country are already there to death of the God. In addition ‘who will inherit his vast empire’, created singlehandedly out of no where, the way he used to ‘create’ Vibhuti, gold chains etc. from the thin air is another issue haunting those concerned.
Undoubtedly Bhagwan (God) Sai must have been the God man with a very large following and probably largest wealth amongst the leading Godmen. The latter can not be confirmed, as large part of the wealth controlled by those presented as divine beings, is not known for various reasons. Not only that one does not know if any body can dare to think that Lok Pal type auditing of the wealth of these renunciators of Worldly goods should also be thought of. Such Godmen do demonstrate that you get more when you know how to ‘renounce’ the World, and of course part of the earnings are put as a part of social service, which is made prominently visible part of activities of these men of God.
Bhagwan’s life is mired with multiple controversies and there are many a dilemmas in understanding him. He was expert in the tricks of Vibhuti production from air and also production of gold chains as well. Earlier he was also ‘producing’ HMT watches, but that was stopped soon enough as the watches carry the date of manufacture on them. Many a rationalists confronted him by and replicated his tricks and even took out yatras to demonstrate that there is nothing divine about such tricks. They are but clever maneuvers of hand and even magician of repute P.C. Sarkar also challenged the divine nature of these acts. Interestingly he was challenged to produce things like pumpkin, which he refused to do for obvious reasons.
Notwithstanding that his followers were undeterred and the number of his followers cutting across different spheres of life kept swelling. He had proclaimed that he is reincarnation of Sai Baba of Shirdi. As an aside, the transformation of Shirdi Sai to present level of opulent divinity is a phenomenon in itself as Shirdi Sai had lived a Spartan life under the tree with no material wealth to his credit and currently his idol sits on a Golden throne.
This self proclaimed reincarnation of Shirdi Sai not only must be sitting over one of the wealthiest empires but also went on to proclaim to be a God himself and also prophesied that he will leave this physical body at the age of 96 years. Unfortunately the physical body could not be saved beyond the age of 85 years. Bhagwan who has saved so many lives through divine powers was to be put on ventilators for survival for quite some time and he could not be made to live his prophesy.
The remarkable thing about Bhagwan Sai is that he survived many controversies associated with his life. He was charged with Pedophilia, sexual abuse by various sources but such mundane things could not shake the firm faith of ever expanding tribe of followers at home and abroad. Tom Brooke’s book (Avatar of the Night: Hidden Side of Sai Baba) described his own experience. Similarly sexual abuse of young male devotees on the pretext of yogic technique of ‘Kundalini raising’ also came to light. There was also a case of murder in his living quarters to which Bhagwan himself was a witness, but it was not investigated beyond a point as worldly laws probably don’t reach in the realm of spiritual world. The ties of Bhagwan with the one’s at the topmost echelons every tine ensured that the matters are not pursued, be it the expose’ of his tricks or the cases of murder in his living quarters, all were ignored and soon forgotten from public memory.
To be fair to him, Bhagwan Sai is not the first one to proclaim himself as God. There have been the likes of Rajneesh, who for example began his Godly career from Acharya Rajneesh, promoted to Bhagwan Rajneesh and then attained the status of Osho.
After the death of Bhagwan all those who matter in the echelons of power are making a beeline to visit his mortal remains. One does not know whether these visits by the state functionaries are official or personal, one does not know whether such distinctions are any longer valid in our country, where the Constitution does permit us to practice and preach our faith at personal level but not at political level. State visits to such events in official capacity should be a strict no no. Our Constitution does direct us to promote rational thought; but that again remains ignored as all the rationalists like Abraham Kovoor or Premanand were totally by passed by the mainstream power centers and the issues raised by them remained unanswered and unattended to. There are a couple of films questioning Bhagwan’s claims and also accusing him of sexual abuse, ‘Guru Busters’ and ‘Secret Swami’ are couple of such films.
Some one interestingly remarked that there are two types of politicians who visit the Bhagwan. First are those who are corrupt and want to hide their sin, and second are those who are sincere and work with the first lot. That apart, the impact of such Baba’s, has been a major accompaniment of the politics in the name of religion. This is an era, where the waves of faith are trying to drown the boat of reason, with due support from the incompetent boatman, in the form of state power. The tempest of faith is becoming so overwhelmingly powerful that even raising the questions against these God man is becoming difficult, else how does one explain that a person calls himself God, does tricks which magicians can replicate with ease and is able to collect huge wealth, part of which is showcased as the charity work. One also knows that to expose the prevalent blind faith is swimming against the tide.
One also concedes that these are also the times when the existential anxiety of a section of population forces them to resort to some support system. In the decades of 1970s it was LSD, now it is the ever proliferating posse of God men. Sai’s prediction about his future reincarnations will be a matter of great interest and curiosity, how the God will resurface and how his followers will recognize and worship his new reincarnation will unfold over a period of time. Meanwhile one hopes that some semblance of reason is brought forth while dealing with the innumerable Godmen, flourishing all around like mushrooms.
April 23, 2011
Prosecute of Narendra Modi Now SAHMAT Statement on Bhatt’s affidavit
SAHMAT
Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust
29, Feroze Shah Road, New Delhi -110001
Telephone 23381276/ 23070787
e-mail-sahmat@ vsnl.com
23.4.2011
SAHMAT Statement on Bhatt’s affidavit
Prosecution of Narendra Modi must begin without further delay
We call on the Supreme Court appointed Special Investigating Team (SIT) to take immediate note of the consequences arising from the affidavit filed by the senior Gujarat cadre police officer, Sanjeev Bhatt, pointing directly towards the culpability of chief minister Narendra Modi in the state-wide pogrom against Muslims in 2002.
Several of the revelations made by Bhatt suggest that the SIT has not been true to its mandate to investigate the riots impartially and effectively. We are disturbed by the allegation that the SIT tried to tutor Bhatt prior to his formal deposition and that it has tried to suppress his damaging revelations about Modi’s explicit instructions that the police should allow the free expression of “anger” by rioting mobs.
We have always been aware of Modi’s criminal culpability in the riots that swept through Gujarat for over a month after the Godhra train arson of February 2002. Bhatt’s affidavit provides a sound legal foundation to the case against the chief minister and establishes a sound basis to begin the process of prosecution against him.
We call on the SIT to show the necessary sensitivity and commitment to the urgency of justice for the victims of the murderous Gujarat riots, engineered by those who were entrusted with the job of governing the state.
From
SAHMAT
Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust
29, Feroze Shah Road, New Delhi -110001
Telephone 23381276/ 23070787
e-mail-sahmat@ vsnl.com
23.4.2011
SAHMAT Statement on Bhatt’s affidavit
Prosecution of Narendra Modi must begin without further delay
We call on the Supreme Court appointed Special Investigating Team (SIT) to take immediate note of the consequences arising from the affidavit filed by the senior Gujarat cadre police officer, Sanjeev Bhatt, pointing directly towards the culpability of chief minister Narendra Modi in the state-wide pogrom against Muslims in 2002.
Several of the revelations made by Bhatt suggest that the SIT has not been true to its mandate to investigate the riots impartially and effectively. We are disturbed by the allegation that the SIT tried to tutor Bhatt prior to his formal deposition and that it has tried to suppress his damaging revelations about Modi’s explicit instructions that the police should allow the free expression of “anger” by rioting mobs.
We have always been aware of Modi’s criminal culpability in the riots that swept through Gujarat for over a month after the Godhra train arson of February 2002. Bhatt’s affidavit provides a sound legal foundation to the case against the chief minister and establishes a sound basis to begin the process of prosecution against him.
We call on the SIT to show the necessary sensitivity and commitment to the urgency of justice for the victims of the murderous Gujarat riots, engineered by those who were entrusted with the job of governing the state.
From
SAHMAT
Invitation: Post Carnage Gujarat & its Socio Political Reality - Talk by Teesta Setalvad (26 April 2011)
SAHMAT
Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust
29, Feroze Shah Road , New Delhi -110001
Telephone- 23381276/ 23070787
e-mail-sahmat@ vsnl.com
18.4.2011
You are invited to a talk
by Teesta Setalvad on
Post Carnage Gujarat & its Socio Political Reality
On Tuesday, 26th April, 2011 at ICSSR Conference Room,
35 Ferozshah Road, New Delhi at 4.30 p.m. (Behind Rabindra Bhavan.)
Prof. C.P.Chandrasekhar will chair
SAHMAT
Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust
29, Feroze Shah Road , New Delhi -110001
Telephone- 23381276/ 23070787
e-mail-sahmat@ vsnl.com
18.4.2011
You are invited to a talk
by Teesta Setalvad on
Post Carnage Gujarat & its Socio Political Reality
On Tuesday, 26th April, 2011 at ICSSR Conference Room,
35 Ferozshah Road, New Delhi at 4.30 p.m. (Behind Rabindra Bhavan.)
Prof. C.P.Chandrasekhar will chair
SAHMAT
Text of Sanjiv Bhatt's affidavit in the Supreme Court regarding involvement of Modi in Godhra
Download Sanjiv Bhatt's affidavit in the Supreme Court [PDF, 540 KB]
http://tehelka.com/channels/Web_Specials/2011/April/22/images/Sanjiv_Bhatt.pdf
http://tehelka.com/channels/Web_Specials/2011/April/22/images/Sanjiv_Bhatt.pdf
April 22, 2011
Gujarat CM Narendra Modi involved in Godhra case says top cop
The Times of India
Top cop says Gujarat CM Narendra Modi involved in Godhra case
Agencies | Apr 22, 2011, 02.31pm IST
NEW DELHI: Senior IPS officer Sanjeev Bhatt, who was posted in the Intelligence Department, has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court accusing Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi of complicity in the 2002 Godhra case.
Bhatt in his affidavit states that he was that he attended a meeting held at the chief minister's residence on February 27, 2002.
Stating that the senior police officials had blindly followed Modis instructions in 2002, the officer in his affidavit further stated that this was responsible for the deterioration in the law and order situation in the state.
The officer claimed that he has filed this affidavit in the apex court because he has no faith in the Special Investigation Team ( SIT) appointed to probe the case.
Bhatt has also made a request to the apex court to provide protection to him and his family.
A special court in Ahmedabad had on March 1 awarded death penalty to eleven accused and life imprisonment to 20 others in the 2002 Godhra train burning case.
Earlier on February 22, the court convicted 31 and acquitted 63 others, including the prime conspirator Maulvi Hussain Umarji
Apart from the charges of murder, attempt to murder and criminal conspiracy, the accused were convicted under IPC sections 147, 148 (rioting with deadly weapons), 323, 324, 325, 326 (causing hurt), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on religious grounds), various sections of the Indian Railways Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Bombay Police Act.
The court pronounced judgment on the role of over 90 people accused of conspiring and burning the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express on February 27, 2002. Fifty-nine people, mostly Kar Sewaks returning from Ayodhya, were killed in the incident.
Following the Godhra train burning incident, widespread communal riots broke out in various parts of Gujarat in which over 1,000 people, mostly from the minority community, were killed.
Top cop says Gujarat CM Narendra Modi involved in Godhra case
Agencies | Apr 22, 2011, 02.31pm IST
NEW DELHI: Senior IPS officer Sanjeev Bhatt, who was posted in the Intelligence Department, has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court accusing Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi of complicity in the 2002 Godhra case.
Bhatt in his affidavit states that he was that he attended a meeting held at the chief minister's residence on February 27, 2002.
Stating that the senior police officials had blindly followed Modis instructions in 2002, the officer in his affidavit further stated that this was responsible for the deterioration in the law and order situation in the state.
The officer claimed that he has filed this affidavit in the apex court because he has no faith in the Special Investigation Team ( SIT) appointed to probe the case.
Bhatt has also made a request to the apex court to provide protection to him and his family.
A special court in Ahmedabad had on March 1 awarded death penalty to eleven accused and life imprisonment to 20 others in the 2002 Godhra train burning case.
Earlier on February 22, the court convicted 31 and acquitted 63 others, including the prime conspirator Maulvi Hussain Umarji
Apart from the charges of murder, attempt to murder and criminal conspiracy, the accused were convicted under IPC sections 147, 148 (rioting with deadly weapons), 323, 324, 325, 326 (causing hurt), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on religious grounds), various sections of the Indian Railways Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Bombay Police Act.
The court pronounced judgment on the role of over 90 people accused of conspiring and burning the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express on February 27, 2002. Fifty-nine people, mostly Kar Sewaks returning from Ayodhya, were killed in the incident.
Following the Godhra train burning incident, widespread communal riots broke out in various parts of Gujarat in which over 1,000 people, mostly from the minority community, were killed.
April 21, 2011
Madhya Pradesh: Shadows of Hindu Rashtra
by Ram Puniyani
Madhya Pradesh is being ruled by the BJP Government from last several years. This is one state where BJP and its erstwhile avatar, Bhartiya Jansangh had a good deal of following in the past also. During last few years one has seen with the BJP Government in the saddle, the state is imposing the norms which are intimidating to minorities, the BJP associates have become more assertive, state is promoting the outright Hindu culture, and it is also the place where the terror component of RSS affiliates has been having its dens at various places in the state.
Recently (March 2011) the police stations got a circular from the head office which required them to collect the information about Christian minorities. This information pertained to various facet of social life of the community. The order candidly sought information about Christians of all denominations such as number of priests, bishops, schools, institutions, political patronage, Christians with criminal antecedents, economic sources, among many other things. When one priest refused to divulge the information, meant to profile the community, he was taken to police station. When the community leaders took the matter with the top police officers, they expressed their ignorance, and it seemed like the case of ‘No One Killed Jessica Lall’, as if no one has issued the circular, or the one who issued this illegal circular is being shielded. With this the subtle ways of operation by the RSS controlled state mechanism became clear.
With BJP government in the seat of power the RSS associates have become much more dominant and there are activities, which begin as ‘religious’ one and end up being hateful to minorities the way the events are tilted and given shape by those controlling these organizations. This is one state where the RSS has been very active in the Adivasi areas. Like in case of Gujarat, on the pretext that ‘Christian missionaries are converting’ many acts of violence have been taking place in these areas. One recalls the rape of nuns in Jhabua, followed by the comment by ‘B.L. Sharma Prem’ from RSS stable, who proudly boasted that the rape of nuns is the act of nationalism. In the same areas the followers of Asaram Bapu have been very active, spreading venom against the minorities.
Pursuing this line of action, they had earlier also organized meetings in Adivasi areas, now this agenda got culminated in the organization of Narmada Samajik Kumbh (Feb 2011), on the lines of Shabri Kumbh in the Dangs of Gujarat. These Kumbhs have been creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity amongst Christians in particular and in these events they undertake the “Ghar Vapasi” (Returning Home), which in real sense means the conversion of Adivasis, to Hinduism under direct or indirect pressure. Now these efforts are totally being backed up by the facilities from the state Government. There is a plethora of anti Minority literature which is distributed en masse. Such intervention in Adivasi areas is dampening the educational and health welfare work of Missionaries in the Adivasi areas.
With this Government in power, the Muslim minorities were clearly told that MP is not going to implement Sachar Committee report. Rather than seeing it as a necessary affirmative action for the poor Muslims, it is being projected in the divisive communal language.
Going against the spirit of Indian Constitution, the MP Chief Minister has given a call to the Government servants to join RSS, while being on the active service. One recalls in Gujarat similar call was given by Narendra Modi. At that the Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime minister, he felt so embarrassed by this move that he insisted upon the state Government to withdraw the circular permitting state employees to join the RSS. As such it is RSS trained and coordinated Swayamsevaks, who not only work in BJP, in the important positions of power but they also manipulate politics in more ways than one. To argue that RSS is not a political organization is factually wrong as RSS is has a political agenda of Hindu Rashtra, which it operates through multiple progeny. So while the Government servants are barred to join politics, MP government is openly flaunting this norm.
In Gujarat one witnessed the advent of Hindu Rashtra through massive anti Muslim violence backed up by cultural manipulation. In MP the cultural instance is more dominant and visible. Hindu terminologies are being picked up for every instance and implemented. For School teachers the term coined was Rishi, as in ancient India, it was Rishis committed to giving knowledge. Interestingly, Rishi is a masculine gender, so the large number of women teachers is out of this ambit. And more interestingly these Rishis were lathi charged when they came together to demand for implementation of better pay scales!
M.P. has also been the place where the Hindutva terror groups got a good shelter, safe heaven for them. People like Sunil Joshi, Pragya Singh Thakur, Kalsangra, Devendra Sharma, Sandeep Dange and others could operate comfortably due their saffron association in a BJP ruled state. State has been totally insensitive to the feelings of minorities and all its schemes have been named in the Hindu terminology, Girls welfare scheme: Ladli Laxmi, Child Nutrition program: Anna Prashan, Water Harvesting: Jalabhishek are just few of the names of state government schemes currently in operation in the state. Similarly the schools have been made to start Surya Namaskar, (Sun Worship), a sort of exercise-worship routine from the Hindu mythology. The state officials openly participate in Arms Worship (Shastra Puja) a ritual on Dusshra festival. In this worship the Guns and weapons from police department are freely used. This taking out arms from armed police must be regarded as a serious violation of law. Yoga was initially introduced as a compulsory discipline. Now it is optional, but than with majority Hindus opting for it, the minority children do feel left out.
State has showered the gift of land to various trusts formed by RSS associates. Recently one donation of large plot of land to Kushabhau Thackeray (the founder of RSS-BJP activities in the state) trust has been quashed by the Court, but such instances abound.
Madhya Pradesh Government is combining subtle and overt intimidation along with cultural manipulation to Hindutvaize the state. The minorities are feeling marginalized and insecure due to the atmosphere created by the state machinery and RSS affiliates. After Gujarat, many a states are vying for emulating its model; Madhya Pradesh already seems to be way ahead!
Madhya Pradesh is being ruled by the BJP Government from last several years. This is one state where BJP and its erstwhile avatar, Bhartiya Jansangh had a good deal of following in the past also. During last few years one has seen with the BJP Government in the saddle, the state is imposing the norms which are intimidating to minorities, the BJP associates have become more assertive, state is promoting the outright Hindu culture, and it is also the place where the terror component of RSS affiliates has been having its dens at various places in the state.
Recently (March 2011) the police stations got a circular from the head office which required them to collect the information about Christian minorities. This information pertained to various facet of social life of the community. The order candidly sought information about Christians of all denominations such as number of priests, bishops, schools, institutions, political patronage, Christians with criminal antecedents, economic sources, among many other things. When one priest refused to divulge the information, meant to profile the community, he was taken to police station. When the community leaders took the matter with the top police officers, they expressed their ignorance, and it seemed like the case of ‘No One Killed Jessica Lall’, as if no one has issued the circular, or the one who issued this illegal circular is being shielded. With this the subtle ways of operation by the RSS controlled state mechanism became clear.
With BJP government in the seat of power the RSS associates have become much more dominant and there are activities, which begin as ‘religious’ one and end up being hateful to minorities the way the events are tilted and given shape by those controlling these organizations. This is one state where the RSS has been very active in the Adivasi areas. Like in case of Gujarat, on the pretext that ‘Christian missionaries are converting’ many acts of violence have been taking place in these areas. One recalls the rape of nuns in Jhabua, followed by the comment by ‘B.L. Sharma Prem’ from RSS stable, who proudly boasted that the rape of nuns is the act of nationalism. In the same areas the followers of Asaram Bapu have been very active, spreading venom against the minorities.
Pursuing this line of action, they had earlier also organized meetings in Adivasi areas, now this agenda got culminated in the organization of Narmada Samajik Kumbh (Feb 2011), on the lines of Shabri Kumbh in the Dangs of Gujarat. These Kumbhs have been creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity amongst Christians in particular and in these events they undertake the “Ghar Vapasi” (Returning Home), which in real sense means the conversion of Adivasis, to Hinduism under direct or indirect pressure. Now these efforts are totally being backed up by the facilities from the state Government. There is a plethora of anti Minority literature which is distributed en masse. Such intervention in Adivasi areas is dampening the educational and health welfare work of Missionaries in the Adivasi areas.
With this Government in power, the Muslim minorities were clearly told that MP is not going to implement Sachar Committee report. Rather than seeing it as a necessary affirmative action for the poor Muslims, it is being projected in the divisive communal language.
Going against the spirit of Indian Constitution, the MP Chief Minister has given a call to the Government servants to join RSS, while being on the active service. One recalls in Gujarat similar call was given by Narendra Modi. At that the Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime minister, he felt so embarrassed by this move that he insisted upon the state Government to withdraw the circular permitting state employees to join the RSS. As such it is RSS trained and coordinated Swayamsevaks, who not only work in BJP, in the important positions of power but they also manipulate politics in more ways than one. To argue that RSS is not a political organization is factually wrong as RSS is has a political agenda of Hindu Rashtra, which it operates through multiple progeny. So while the Government servants are barred to join politics, MP government is openly flaunting this norm.
In Gujarat one witnessed the advent of Hindu Rashtra through massive anti Muslim violence backed up by cultural manipulation. In MP the cultural instance is more dominant and visible. Hindu terminologies are being picked up for every instance and implemented. For School teachers the term coined was Rishi, as in ancient India, it was Rishis committed to giving knowledge. Interestingly, Rishi is a masculine gender, so the large number of women teachers is out of this ambit. And more interestingly these Rishis were lathi charged when they came together to demand for implementation of better pay scales!
M.P. has also been the place where the Hindutva terror groups got a good shelter, safe heaven for them. People like Sunil Joshi, Pragya Singh Thakur, Kalsangra, Devendra Sharma, Sandeep Dange and others could operate comfortably due their saffron association in a BJP ruled state. State has been totally insensitive to the feelings of minorities and all its schemes have been named in the Hindu terminology, Girls welfare scheme: Ladli Laxmi, Child Nutrition program: Anna Prashan, Water Harvesting: Jalabhishek are just few of the names of state government schemes currently in operation in the state. Similarly the schools have been made to start Surya Namaskar, (Sun Worship), a sort of exercise-worship routine from the Hindu mythology. The state officials openly participate in Arms Worship (Shastra Puja) a ritual on Dusshra festival. In this worship the Guns and weapons from police department are freely used. This taking out arms from armed police must be regarded as a serious violation of law. Yoga was initially introduced as a compulsory discipline. Now it is optional, but than with majority Hindus opting for it, the minority children do feel left out.
State has showered the gift of land to various trusts formed by RSS associates. Recently one donation of large plot of land to Kushabhau Thackeray (the founder of RSS-BJP activities in the state) trust has been quashed by the Court, but such instances abound.
Madhya Pradesh Government is combining subtle and overt intimidation along with cultural manipulation to Hindutvaize the state. The minorities are feeling marginalized and insecure due to the atmosphere created by the state machinery and RSS affiliates. After Gujarat, many a states are vying for emulating its model; Madhya Pradesh already seems to be way ahead!
April 20, 2011
Invitation to Press: KN Panikkar and Mahesh Bhatt to speak on anti corruption campaign and democracy" (22 April 2011)
Media Invite
Prof KN Panikkar and Mahesh Bhatt will address a press conference on
’Anti Corruption Campaign and Indian Democracy in Search of An Alternative’
On April 22, 2011 at IWPC, 5 Windsor Place, New Delhi at 12 noon.
Please depute a reporter and a camera person to cover the press conference.
Shabnam Hashmi
Anhad
Prof KN Panikkar and Mahesh Bhatt will address a press conference on
’Anti Corruption Campaign and Indian Democracy in Search of An Alternative’
On April 22, 2011 at IWPC, 5 Windsor Place, New Delhi at 12 noon.
Please depute a reporter and a camera person to cover the press conference.
Shabnam Hashmi
Anhad
April 16, 2011
Saffronisation of the Holy Cow: Unearthing Silent Communalism
(The Economic and Political Weekly, VOL 46 No. 15 April 09 - April 15, 2011)
by Smitha Rao
The principles of environmentality are employed in this study to look at how law, science and policy can mould environmental subjectivities of people to conflicting ends. The study locates the environment and animalrights debate within the complex of underlying exclusivist Hindu nationalist philosophy. This case study of Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Protection of Cattle Bill 2010, which is considered a direct attack on the dietary practices of the minorities, is an extension of the critiques of religious-environmentalism and showcases the machinations of a fundamentalist metanarrative that obscures environmental thought. This silent form of communalism tends to go unnoticed when couched in scientific or politically correct language.
FULL TEXT AT: http://epw.in/epw/uploads/articles/15932.pdf
by Smitha Rao
The principles of environmentality are employed in this study to look at how law, science and policy can mould environmental subjectivities of people to conflicting ends. The study locates the environment and animalrights debate within the complex of underlying exclusivist Hindu nationalist philosophy. This case study of Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Protection of Cattle Bill 2010, which is considered a direct attack on the dietary practices of the minorities, is an extension of the critiques of religious-environmentalism and showcases the machinations of a fundamentalist metanarrative that obscures environmental thought. This silent form of communalism tends to go unnoticed when couched in scientific or politically correct language.
FULL TEXT AT: http://epw.in/epw/uploads/articles/15932.pdf
Godhra: The Verdict Analysed
(The Economic and Political Weekly, VOL 46 No. 15 April 09 - April 15, 2011)
by Nitya Ramakrishnan
A judgment has branded the Muslims of Godhra “Hindu killers” by tradition. The 27 February 2002 train fire, it declares, was a conspiracy to kill karsevaks.
FULL TEXT AT: http://epw.in/epw/uploads/articles/15928.pdf
by Nitya Ramakrishnan
A judgment has branded the Muslims of Godhra “Hindu killers” by tradition. The 27 February 2002 train fire, it declares, was a conspiracy to kill karsevaks.
FULL TEXT AT: http://epw.in/epw/uploads/articles/15928.pdf
April 15, 2011
BJP ruled Madhya Pradesh state orders survey on Christians
Indian Express
Madhya Pradesh orders survey of all Christians in state
Milind Ghatwai
Fri Apr 15 2011, 01:56 hrs Bhopal:
An official survey ordered by the police headquarters here seeks to find out details about the Christian population in Madhya Pradesh, including their total strength, the political patronage they enjoy, the source of funding of Christian schools and the number of churches in the state.
The order, issued by police headquarters on March 22, asks officers-in-charge of police stations to file reports within “10 days”. The survey, at the district and tehsil level, must include:
Number of Christians, with a break-up of Catholics and Protestants, where they stay, and their economic status.
Details of schools run by Christian bodies — numbers of staff and students, source of income, whether they get foreign funding.
Number of existing and under-construction churches, with details of the fathers/ bishops heading them.
A list of Christians involved in criminal activities, with details about whether they enjoy any political patronage, and their clout.
Details of annual functions held at district and tehsil level, including venues, organisers and funds.
Areas which are sensitive because of their Christian population.
The matter became known after officials of Ashta police station in Sehore district reportedly threatened to arrest a priest who refused to cooperate in the survey.
Members of the Christian community met senior police officers, and were assured that the survey would be immediately stopped. But two days ago, the police approached the office of Fr Anand Muttungal, spokesman of the Catholic Church, in Bhopal, seeking details about the community members in his area. When he asked them the purpose of the survey, they showed him a copy of the circular.
“Are we criminals that the government is profiling us,” said Fr Muttungal.
The community approached Director General of Police S K Raut, who reportedly said he was not aware of any such exercise.
Additional DGP R K Shukla told The Indian Express that orders had been issued to stop the survey. “There will be no profiling of the community,” he said.
Minister of State for Home Narayan Kushwah claimed that he was not aware of the survey.
Madhya Pradesh orders survey of all Christians in state
Milind Ghatwai
Fri Apr 15 2011, 01:56 hrs Bhopal:
An official survey ordered by the police headquarters here seeks to find out details about the Christian population in Madhya Pradesh, including their total strength, the political patronage they enjoy, the source of funding of Christian schools and the number of churches in the state.
The order, issued by police headquarters on March 22, asks officers-in-charge of police stations to file reports within “10 days”. The survey, at the district and tehsil level, must include:
Number of Christians, with a break-up of Catholics and Protestants, where they stay, and their economic status.
Details of schools run by Christian bodies — numbers of staff and students, source of income, whether they get foreign funding.
Number of existing and under-construction churches, with details of the fathers/ bishops heading them.
A list of Christians involved in criminal activities, with details about whether they enjoy any political patronage, and their clout.
Details of annual functions held at district and tehsil level, including venues, organisers and funds.
Areas which are sensitive because of their Christian population.
The matter became known after officials of Ashta police station in Sehore district reportedly threatened to arrest a priest who refused to cooperate in the survey.
Members of the Christian community met senior police officers, and were assured that the survey would be immediately stopped. But two days ago, the police approached the office of Fr Anand Muttungal, spokesman of the Catholic Church, in Bhopal, seeking details about the community members in his area. When he asked them the purpose of the survey, they showed him a copy of the circular.
“Are we criminals that the government is profiling us,” said Fr Muttungal.
The community approached Director General of Police S K Raut, who reportedly said he was not aware of any such exercise.
Additional DGP R K Shukla told The Indian Express that orders had been issued to stop the survey. “There will be no profiling of the community,” he said.
Minister of State for Home Narayan Kushwah claimed that he was not aware of the survey.
April 14, 2011
Communalism Bad, Development Good : Anna lauds Modi
ZCommunications
Communalism Bad, Development Good : Anna lauds Modi
By Badri Raina
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Anna, the Voice of the Upwardly Mobile:
A voice has been raised in India against the venal misdeeds of politicians and, mutedly, of bureaucrats (no mention of the corporates here).
Groups of protestors led by a most unlikely mix of civil society leaderships, ranging from those with staunch secular credentials and proven personal integrity (Prashant Bhushan, Arvind Kejrival, Kiran Bedi, Swami Agnivesh, Mallika Sarabai) to those others with known affiliation to right-wing Hindu organizations and dubious claims to probity (Baba Ramdev, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar), racuously foregrounded by corporate electronic channels with barely concealed antipathy to any mass assertion from the Left, have been holding fort.
True to pattern and apprehension, the politics of a section of the protestors could not after all hold back mentioning chief ministers of two BJP- ruled and BJP-in-coalition- ruled states as exemplars of the India of their dreams. Most significantly, that mention this time came from no less than Anna Hazare himself.
As per Anna speak, Nitish Kumar and Narendra Modi belong to a common category—chief ministers who do good development work without being corrupt. More of the corruption part hereunder. But, what of Modi’s fingers dipped in blood? Response: communalism is bad, but “I was speaking only of his development work.”
To be fair to Nitish Kumar, he, although bracketed with Modi, has sought consistently to resist the equation, and keep the fascist Modi at arms length, disallowing the BJP to unleash him in the last two election campaigns in Bihar, thereby seeking to draw a line between himself (and presumably a section of his party, the JD-U) and Modi atleast on the issue of secularism even if merely to avoid offending Bihar’s considerable Muslim electorate.
So, here is the inference, one that neo-Nazis—many of them Indians-- to this day make with aplomb and pride: Hitler may have liquidated some six million innocent human beings for no fault than their racial characteristic, but look he gave to Germany great autobahns and provided fillip to German industrial houses at a time of depression. Whereas what they always mean to say is how Hitler’s greatest contribution was to achieve Aryan racial purity. (See Golwalker’s, We, Our Nationhood Defined, 1923, and Bunch of Thoughts, 1938—two texts on which the edifice of the RSS rests.)
This is precisely the hub of the barely concealed support that Modi enjoys among India’s proto-fascists; namely, that whereas they may feel on occasion publicly obliged to disapprove of the Muslim massacres of 2002, all under total State connivance, at bottom, in their hearts they are filled with glee that he gave to the Muslims what has been coming to them, setting in motion the Hindutva-fascist project of purifying India racially as Hiter had sought to do to Germany and Europe. Add to that the welcome to the corporate chiselers, and Modi is up on the middle-class pedestal.
Here is what we ask, charitably: if the operative profiles of political leaders can be so neatly and conveniently separated, why wouldn’t Anna and those others with him agree that many among the politicians they seek to pillory may be corrupt, but are also known to be fine administrators with substantial records of achievement to their name. After all, many corrupt politicians since 1947 must have done some development work to bring India to her present status among the comity of nations that matter (sic). So why does not the same charitable double-speak apply to them as it does so often and so heinously to Modi? Modi may be a communalist murderer, but look at his developmental activity; likewise, why can’t it be said, X or Y may be corrupt, but look at his record of achievement in government?
The Modi model of “development”:
There has of course been a studied refusal to question the Modi model of “development.” Tainted and disfigured by his marshalling of the massacres of 2002, influential sections of his party leadership, closet communalists among the new middle classes, and those in the corporate media who have been busy touting and boosting the “India story,” the future they desire for Modi has been sought to be pinned on his personal probity and developmental genius. Clearly, those that wish Modi to occupy the high table in Delhi sometime soon use with ruthless dishonesty the Podsnappian fore-arm to deny some pretty ugly truths about what he has done for which Gujaraties. If only they would listen to a litany of facts on this that are in the possession of social service organizations located in Gujarat.
Briefly, without let or hindrance, Modi has sought to parcel out Gujarati assets in land and other natural resources at a pittance to a clutch of favoured industrialists whose every wish takes precedence over the lived requirements of rural Guajrat and of its forest dwellers. Innocent as he may be, Anna Hazare, the part-Gandhian (since, it turns out he is also by his public admission a votary of Shiva ji Maratha, by no means an icon of non-violence in the annals of Indian history) needs to know that of all chief ministers now operating in India, not one may be more rapaciously anti-rural than Modi. And what would Gandhi have said of that preference in “development” given his passion for a village-centred India?
Indeed, the Mahuva farmer’s agitation in Gujarat was to showcase all of those preferences. Farmers, fishing communities, salt-pan workers, tribals, dalits, industrial workers, minorities—a pretty substantial section of Gujaraties wouldn’t you say—all have come to be at the receiving end of those preferences, as gauchar lands and irrigated farmlands have been acquired to be at the service of a club of industrialists, all at throwaway prices. One has to visit rural and tribal Gujarat to register the extent of the loss of livelihoods, displacement and loss of natural resources, and the pace of land grab, with withering consequences for swathes of poor and indigent Gujaraties. And, as to the Muslim minority, read the recent Wikileak US consulate report of how Modi has sought with unmitigated single-mindedness to marginalize and ghettoize the Muslims of Guajrat. And never to this day as much a politic “regret.” Only continued machinations to thwart and vilify the plethora of investigative mechanisms ordered into the Gujarat massacres and the countless fake encounter liquidations of Muslims by no less than the Supreme Court of India.
Does Corruption Apply to Modi and Nitish?
A recent report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, a Constitutional body (CAG) has indicted the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar for submitting no “detailed contingency” bills against “abstract contingency” withdrawals amounting to no less than Rs.15,850.41 crores! Useful to know that this is the same CAG whose report on the 2G Spectrum goings-on was to bring about the current massive upheaval in how neoliberal economics in India has been proceeding, leading to the arrest of the central cabinet minister in-charge of Telecom. That being the case, it may be a forgiveable question to ask Anna ji as to why CAG should be so venerated with respect to the central ministry, but wholly side-stepped with respect to Bihar. Remarkably, although a CBI enquiry has been ordered into the Bihar matter, ask any tv-guzzling middle class Indian and he would not have heard of it. For the simple reason that the very media that pillories the said Telecom minister turns a Nelson’s eye elsewhere.
And what of Modi? Three fair-sized scams come readily to mind: the Sujalam Sufalam scam estimated to be of the order of Rs.1700 crores; the NREGS Boribund scam (Rs.109 crores), and the Fisheries scam worth about Rs.600 crores.
And would you know, whereas the whole Anna-led “movement” has had the institution of an all-powerful Lokpal (Ombudsman) at its focus, Modi in Gujarat has refused to implement the mandatory requirement to install a Lokayukta in his own state, even as he is heard ranting about the need for the Lokpal at the centre!
The less said about the Yog guru, Baba Ramdev, the better. Only a few years ago the world came to know how he refuses to supply correct information about the content of the medicines he sells from his establishment, defying thereby a statutory requirement. The disclosure that those medicines contain human-bone components was to be made in full public view in Delhi by dozens of people who have been working at his medicine factory. Just as it was found that he violates another statutory requirement as well, namely, refusing to pay mandated “minimum wages” to workers who make his millions possible. Indeed, just last night here in Delhi on one electronic channel, a venerable sadhu maharaj from the holy city of Hardwar had this to say: “Ramdev is the Hassan Ali of Hardwar; more dubious, in fact, because Hassan Ali atleast had horses for generating those thousands of crores, Ramdev did not even have a donkey.” Hassan Ali, you might know, is the man currently in the eye of the storm as India’s biggest tax-defaulter, and thought to have billions stashed away in those Swiss and suchlike other banks.
Corruption vs All the Rest
The fact here, we hold, is a rather ugly one. Crimes issuing from class or caste or community or gender based oppressions have never borne the same purchase among upwardly-mobile Indians as “corruption” for the two reasons that “corruption” as enemy brooks no opposition, obliges no self-definition and scrutiny, and can be fashionably deployed to decry not just politicians but the institution of politics per se. It was no mere accident that the Nazis during the twenties and thirties of the last century in Germany made a big issue of “corruption” with the ulterior purpose of doing dirt on all democratic institutions floated by the Wiemar republic, and dissolving the nation into the State, and vice versa. Keeping those histories in mind, there is more than a valid point to voices today who caution that the Anna Hazare phenomenon has to it aspects which are deeply anti-democratic, and which threaten to void all institutional procedures authorized by the Constitutional regime. Recall that only some months ago the Left parties came out in even bigger mobilization against corruption on the streets of India; yet one saw nothing of that protest on India’s gung-ho electronic channels. What one did see over the last week of the Anna mobilization however, was more than a sprinkling of Hindutva-based icons and groups, making strenuous efforts to float symbols and slogans with barely concealed pedigree. Predictably, one did not see a single shot of supporters of the cpi (ml) who, in their wisdom, had decided to stand with the Anna-led protestors at Jantar Mantar.
Put the question to any of India’s current day urban-elite young person as to whether the roots of corruption being talked about lie only in corrupt politicians or in a political economy driven by neoliberal capitalism, and you will be told unambiguously that the latter has nothing to do with what has been happening. Some reason why during the current campaign one has heard no mention of corporate houses whose corruption it is at bottom that has been spilling all over the systems of governance. After all, those corporate fortunes are precisely where so many of the protestors who have been on display hope to find entry as India rises and shines. Not to speak of systems of electoral funding that ensure that politicians must do the pay back. Again, not an issue for the “corruption”-baiters. And for good reason: make elections state-funded, and the corporates lose what clout they have under the present dispensation. Anna’s young warriors might not see that as a desirable prospect, assuming that they have any use for elections in the first place. The eradication of corruption merely and only requires the clenched fist from the Right.
You may then well wonder whether we will soon see another Anna-type “movement” on the subject of refurbishing the governmental draft of a bill designed to eradicate communal mayhems, or an Anna putsch to seek the adoption of the Womens’s Reservation Bill, pending in parliament now for aeons. Or to force the government to draft purposive legislations to eradicate female infanticide, atrocities on dalits and adivasis, or to enforce without nonsense the right to food and education. Or how about ensuring clean drinking water, affordable health-care and sanitation, and securing housing, and freedom from police atrocities to some eighty percent of Indians? Or easy and credible access to systems of justice and grievance redressal? Or justice for a Binayak Sen who rots in a Chattisgarh jail on a charge of sedition, and sentenced without a shred of proof for no less than life. Or indeed a “movement” in support of an Irom Sharmila in Manipur who has now entered the eleventh year of her fast (kept forcibly alive on drips by a terrified state) for the withdrawal of the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act. Not a chance.
I doubt me very much that any such “movements” are in the offing on behalf of the support base that has been on show during the Anna-led putsch.
And thereby hangs a tale.
Just as well to suggest that in the days to come the ideological content, the active politics, the leadership-profile, and the Constitutional consequences of this recent event receive considered debate. Most so among sections of civil society and individuals whom I respect deeply who for idealistic reasons chose to be a part of what they thought to be a single-minded objective (the Lokpal Bill), with insufficient attention perhaps to the surrounding political milieu of the Anna event.
Truth Behind the Fire in Sabarmati Express (Godhra, February 27, 2002) : KS Subramanian
From Mainstream Weekly, 9 April 2011
Truth Behind the Fire in Sabarmati Express (Godhra, February 27, 2002)
The special fast-track court judge, P.R. Patel, has pronounced his verdict on the mystery behind the fire incident in the Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 27, 2002. The conspiracy theory put forward by the Gujarat Police has been upheld. A volley of protests has followed pointing to the many contradictions in the judgement, which will surely be contested before higher judicial authorities.
In this context, it is necessary to examine the verdict on the Sabarmati Express fire episode put forward by the Concerned Citizens’ Tribunal (CCT) on Gujarat 2002, led by Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer and consisting of former judges, P.B. Sawant (Supreme Court) and H. Suresh (Bombay High Court); civil rights lawyer K.G. Kannabiran; social activist Aruna Roy; scholars Tanika Sarkar and Ghanshyam Shah; and the present writer. The tribunal produced painstaking and massive three-volume documentation on the Gujarat carnage, 2002, titled “Crime against Humanity”.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by R.K. Raghavan, was tasked by the Supreme Court of India to supervise the Gujarat Police’s investi-gation of the case. While the SIT chief has expressed his ‘professional’ satisfaction over the ‘success’ of the prosecution case, his role has come in for criticism. He is alleged to have failed to take an objective and detached view of the evidence collected by the Gujarat Police with some in the IPS fraternity holding that he acted as the ‘B team’ of the Gujarat Police. Others say that he is involved in a clear case of conflict of interest: being a well-paid cyber security consultant for the Tatas who have massive investments in Gujarat, he has nevertheless associated himself with a major criminal investigation to help the controversial Gujarat Chief Minister win a crucial political battle against his opponents.
We may here briefly examine the findings of the Concerned Citizens’ Tribunal (CCT) on the issue of the Sabarmati Express fire incident on February 27, 2002 and put forward a counter- case, which needs consideration.
The Sabarmati Express, on its return journey from Ayodhya to Ahmedabad, reached Godhra on the morning of February 27, 2002. It was full of activists armed with trishuls and lathis, who got down at every passing station shouting Hindutva slogans. Many passengers felt harassed by this misbehaviour but kept quiet since the slogan-shouters had captured all the reserved seats in the train, which was packed to capacity.
The train arrived at the Godhra railway station at 7.30 am (three hours late). There were certain unsavoury incidents on the platform. A Muslim girl was molested and an attempt made to pull her into the train. A Muslim tea vendor, who boarded coach S-6, was insulted and sent out of the coach by the rowdy elements some of whom climbed onto the roof of the train and made obscene gestures at Muslim women living opposite the railway station. There was some stone-throwing, from both inside and outside the train.
The train left the platform at 7.48 am but was soon stopped by chain-pulling by some to enable some young men on the platform to get into the train, which was again stopped a kilometre ahead at Singal Falia. The engine driver saw some people outside pelting stones at the train. Soon thereafter, coach S-6 was on fire. How did the fire start?
The State Government has held that the Ghanchi Muslims residing near the railway station gathered in large numbers and attacked the kar sevaks by throwing fireballs into the train, which caused the fire. The full capacity of the train was about 1100 but it was actually carrying about 2000 passengers, mainly kar sevaks spread all over the train and not just in coach S-6.
Why did anyone target coach S-6 alone? If 2000 Muslims, as alleged, had gathered on the spot, why did they not attack the other coaches as well? Again, did anyone try to come out from the other coaches? If some of the passengers, including kar sevaks, rushed out, did anyone attack them?
After the fire, 58 dead bodies were found in coach S-6 (26 women, 12 children and 20 men). 43 persons had sustained injuries. The bodies were charred badly preventing easy recognition. The Collector of Godhra informed the Tribunal that five bodies could be identified. One was that of the local railway station master’s wife. No one could assert that all the dead bodies were those of kar sevaks.
Mystery of the Fire
Significantly, only one coach, S-6, had been burnt and the fire had not spread to the other coaches. It was not clear whether the train was stopped because of the fire or whether the coach was set on fire after the train had stopped. If the latter was correct, why was the train stopped at all? It could be that because of the fire, someone pulled the chain.
As the train left the Godhra station, all the windows and doors of coach S-6, as well as those of the other coaches, remained closed because of the stone throwing. When the train was stopped, nobody from the outside could identify any particular person from any particular coach as a kar sevak, though they were overwhelmingly present in the train. The fact that the fire did not spread to the remaining coaches clearly indicated that it originated within S-6. This also explains why only persons in that coach died. In all probability, as the fire broke out, extreme panic resulted. Many men managed to escape through the vestibules to the other coaches, leaving mostly women and children behind, who succumbed to the fire. The evidence suggested that the passengers had had their belongings stacked against the doors making it impossible for anyone to easily get out of or get into coach S-6.
The Tribunal inspected the burnt coach S-6 on May 7, 2002. The sloping site where the train had stopped is an elevated bund. From the ground level, the height of the bund could be about 12-15 feet high. At the top, there was no space for 2000 persons to assemble on both sides of the track. If so many had actually gathered there, the crowd would have spread over a much larger area than the stretch of coach S-6. If the government version were true, the other coaches should have been targeted as much as coach S-6. Taking into account the height of the bund and the height at which the train stood, no fire-balls could have been lobbed in; the outside of the coach did not show signs of charring. The Tribunal found no marks below the coach windows; the charred marks were to be seen only at or above the window level, clearly indicating that the fire had actually started inside the coach and its leaping flames had singed the outside of the compartment, above the window level. Even to the naked eye, it was clear that the fire was from within, not from outside.
The findings of the Tribunal were later confirmed by the reports of the State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL). The relevant section of the Forensic Science Laboratory report (State of Gujarat, New Mental Corner, Ahmedabad-16, Spot Investigation Report No. 2 regarding CR No. 9/2002, Godhra Railway Police Station), filed by Assistant Director Dr M.S. Dahiya, clearly stated:
”It was found that the height of the window of the coach was around 7 ft. from the ground at the place. Under this circumstance, it was not possible to throw any inflammable fluid inside from outside the coach from any bucket or carboy, because by doing this, most of the fluid was getting thrown outside. At the place of the incidents, there was one heap of grit, of three feet height at a distance of around 14-ft, in the southern side of the coach. Water was thrown on the windows of the coach with the help of bucket standing on the top of the said heap, in that case only about 10 to 15 per cent of the water went inside and the rest of the quantity was spilled outside itself. Thus, if the inflammable fluid is thrown from outside, then a major part of it would fall around the track outside and catch fire and cause damage to the outer part of bottom side of the coach. But after examination of the coach and the track, no effect was found of the fire on bottom side below the windows of the coach. By taking into consideration this fact, and also the burning pattern of the outer side of the coach, a conclusion can be drawn that no inflammable fluid had been thrown inside from outside the coach.
“There also appears to be no possibility that any inflammable liquid was thrown through the door of the bogie. By observing the condition of the frames of the windows of the coach, it appears that all the windows of the coach were closed during the time of the fire.”
The Tribunal was convinced that the fire came from inside. This was seen from the inner side of the coach. The intensity of the fire was such that even the iron rods, the seats, the fans were all burnt to such an extent that we found them twisted and molten out of shape. The Tribunal found rice and wheat partly burnt and scattered all across the floor of compartment S-6. Some of the Tribunal witnesses stated that kar sevaks had stoves in the train. The FSL report showed that for such an intensity of fire, 60 litres of inflammable liquid had to be poured into the coach, “by using a wide mouthed container”. The question arose: where was this container? There is no evidence of anyone carrying 60 litres of inflammable liquid. At what point of time was the liquid taken inside the coach, or into the passage? Who was travelling in the train? If such a large number of kar sevaks, armed with trishuls and in an aggressive mood, were inside the train, how could the Ghanchi Muslims enter the train? And how could they have carried so much petrol openly or even clandestinely without being discovered by the passengers?
So, the mystery of the fire remained, the only thing certain being the fact that it came from within.
Was Godhra Pre-Planned?
The evidence analysed above clearly indicated that the incident was not pre-planned by the Muslims, as alleged by the State Government. In this connection, The Times of India on March 29, 2002 reported a statement made by the IGP, Railways, P.P. Agja, to the effect that there was no evidence of a pre-planned conspiracy behind the Godhra incident. He added: “The case is still being investigated and if there was some deep conspiracy, then we are yet to find it.’’ He further told The Times of India, standing in front of the railway police station on the platform where the trouble had began:
“According to the sequence of events as found by the police, all was not well in coach S-6 of the Ahmedabad-bound Sabarmati Express on that day. A group of unruly Ram sevaks had boarded the train at Lucknow without reser-vations and had put to discomfort the 66 genuine passengers of the coach. Some of the ticket-paying passengers had to sleep on the floor; so overcrowded had the compartment become that the ticket collector who came aboard the train at Ratlam (two stations before Godhra) was not allowed to enter the coach.
“At Godhra station, the hawkers on the platform started stoning the train after an unsavoury incident, especially targeting coach S-6, because some occupants of the coach had given offence. At any point of time, there are some 250 hawkers on the station. Some of them carry stoves with kerosene in them. All of them live in the slum called Signal Falia, next to the station.
“This means it is not surprising that a crowd could collect at the station so fast. The people, who live cheek by jowl in the slums next to the station, include a fair share of criminals indulging in railway crimes like looting, pick-pocketing and stealing of goods of passengers and also railway property. All of them are Ghanchi Muslims and they are uneducated, without any jobs and poor.”
It was thus clear that the attack on S-6 coach was not pre-meditated. From 8.30 am, just after the fire on the Sabarmati Express took place, until 7.30 pm that evening, repeated statements by the Godhra District Collector, Smt Jayanthi Ravi, relayed on Doordarshan and Akashwani (radio) stated that “the incident was not pre-planned, it was an accident”.
As is evident from the voluminous evidence recorded by the Tribunal, and substantive other evidence made available to it, investigating officials did not find any proof of the Godhra atrocity being pre-planned.
However, by the evening of February 27, a well-thought-out scheme to extract maximum political capital out of Godhra had been launched. As part of this scheme, at around 2.30 am, the bodies of the kar sevaks were brought to Ahmedabad in a provocative procession. Around 500 people were waiting outside the Sola Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad for the charred bodies to arrive from Godhra. By 3.35 am on February 28, a convoy of five trucks led by a pilot Gypsy entered the hospital compound. The State Government and the administration, instead of appealing for restraint and peace, became the agents of a well-planned action against innocent Muslims of the State that was in fact projected as a ‘reaction’. The corpses of the unfortunate victims of the Godhra train fire were used to launch a Statewide pogrom.
Was ‘Godhra’ Allowed to Happen?
During the period, Gujarat and the country was on red alert due to the aggressive mobilisation by the VHP on the issue of the projected temple at Ayodhya. While the Mumbai Police had made preventive arrest of as many as 8000 persons in the first week of March, in Gujarat, even after the Godhra fire incident, the State Police arrested only two persons in Ahmedabad, both Muslims.
A major administrative lapse in the antici-pation and handling of the violence was the blatant ignoring of the basic principles of law and order maintenance and governance. In 1965, when disturbances erupted in Godhra, the then Collector promptly arrested both Muslims and Hindus whose names appeared in FIRs. In a couple of days, the disturbances were curbed. After the October 1980 disturbances, the then Collector immediately put the miscreants behind bars. If a similar non-partisan approach had been followed in Godhra after the fire incident of February 27, 2002, the prevailing tension would have been contained and the chances of a vengeful and highly-organised spree of retaliatory killings demonstrating every element of ethnic cleansing and genocide would have been pre-empted. That this did not happen suggests a lack of intent, on the part of those in government, to take prompt preventive measures in order to de-escalate the situation.
On February 27, 2002, the Tribunal recorded the evidence of both the Collector and DSP of the Panchmahal district at Godhra. The evidence showed that though the Central Government’s Rapid Action Force (RAF) had been called in, adequate powers were not given to it. Despite the curfew, the RAF men were made to sit in the officers’ mess, helpless, unable to do anything. Though the Fire Brigade Station was only five minutes away from the railway station, it took a while for the fire brigade to reach the torched S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express.
Conclusion
Four official reports and at least three non-official reports on the Gujarat violence have rejected the thesis of a conspiracy behind the fire incident in the Sabarmati Express at the Godhra railway station on February 27, 2002. Only the Nanavati Commission and the recent special court judgement have intriguingly opted for the theory. A prolonged legal battle appears to be in store for the affected people.
The author is a former IPS officer who is currently an ICSSR Senior Fellow at the Council for Social Development, New Delhi.
Truth Behind the Fire in Sabarmati Express (Godhra, February 27, 2002)
The special fast-track court judge, P.R. Patel, has pronounced his verdict on the mystery behind the fire incident in the Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 27, 2002. The conspiracy theory put forward by the Gujarat Police has been upheld. A volley of protests has followed pointing to the many contradictions in the judgement, which will surely be contested before higher judicial authorities.
In this context, it is necessary to examine the verdict on the Sabarmati Express fire episode put forward by the Concerned Citizens’ Tribunal (CCT) on Gujarat 2002, led by Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer and consisting of former judges, P.B. Sawant (Supreme Court) and H. Suresh (Bombay High Court); civil rights lawyer K.G. Kannabiran; social activist Aruna Roy; scholars Tanika Sarkar and Ghanshyam Shah; and the present writer. The tribunal produced painstaking and massive three-volume documentation on the Gujarat carnage, 2002, titled “Crime against Humanity”.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by R.K. Raghavan, was tasked by the Supreme Court of India to supervise the Gujarat Police’s investi-gation of the case. While the SIT chief has expressed his ‘professional’ satisfaction over the ‘success’ of the prosecution case, his role has come in for criticism. He is alleged to have failed to take an objective and detached view of the evidence collected by the Gujarat Police with some in the IPS fraternity holding that he acted as the ‘B team’ of the Gujarat Police. Others say that he is involved in a clear case of conflict of interest: being a well-paid cyber security consultant for the Tatas who have massive investments in Gujarat, he has nevertheless associated himself with a major criminal investigation to help the controversial Gujarat Chief Minister win a crucial political battle against his opponents.
We may here briefly examine the findings of the Concerned Citizens’ Tribunal (CCT) on the issue of the Sabarmati Express fire incident on February 27, 2002 and put forward a counter- case, which needs consideration.
The Sabarmati Express, on its return journey from Ayodhya to Ahmedabad, reached Godhra on the morning of February 27, 2002. It was full of activists armed with trishuls and lathis, who got down at every passing station shouting Hindutva slogans. Many passengers felt harassed by this misbehaviour but kept quiet since the slogan-shouters had captured all the reserved seats in the train, which was packed to capacity.
The train arrived at the Godhra railway station at 7.30 am (three hours late). There were certain unsavoury incidents on the platform. A Muslim girl was molested and an attempt made to pull her into the train. A Muslim tea vendor, who boarded coach S-6, was insulted and sent out of the coach by the rowdy elements some of whom climbed onto the roof of the train and made obscene gestures at Muslim women living opposite the railway station. There was some stone-throwing, from both inside and outside the train.
The train left the platform at 7.48 am but was soon stopped by chain-pulling by some to enable some young men on the platform to get into the train, which was again stopped a kilometre ahead at Singal Falia. The engine driver saw some people outside pelting stones at the train. Soon thereafter, coach S-6 was on fire. How did the fire start?
The State Government has held that the Ghanchi Muslims residing near the railway station gathered in large numbers and attacked the kar sevaks by throwing fireballs into the train, which caused the fire. The full capacity of the train was about 1100 but it was actually carrying about 2000 passengers, mainly kar sevaks spread all over the train and not just in coach S-6.
Why did anyone target coach S-6 alone? If 2000 Muslims, as alleged, had gathered on the spot, why did they not attack the other coaches as well? Again, did anyone try to come out from the other coaches? If some of the passengers, including kar sevaks, rushed out, did anyone attack them?
After the fire, 58 dead bodies were found in coach S-6 (26 women, 12 children and 20 men). 43 persons had sustained injuries. The bodies were charred badly preventing easy recognition. The Collector of Godhra informed the Tribunal that five bodies could be identified. One was that of the local railway station master’s wife. No one could assert that all the dead bodies were those of kar sevaks.
Mystery of the Fire
Significantly, only one coach, S-6, had been burnt and the fire had not spread to the other coaches. It was not clear whether the train was stopped because of the fire or whether the coach was set on fire after the train had stopped. If the latter was correct, why was the train stopped at all? It could be that because of the fire, someone pulled the chain.
As the train left the Godhra station, all the windows and doors of coach S-6, as well as those of the other coaches, remained closed because of the stone throwing. When the train was stopped, nobody from the outside could identify any particular person from any particular coach as a kar sevak, though they were overwhelmingly present in the train. The fact that the fire did not spread to the remaining coaches clearly indicated that it originated within S-6. This also explains why only persons in that coach died. In all probability, as the fire broke out, extreme panic resulted. Many men managed to escape through the vestibules to the other coaches, leaving mostly women and children behind, who succumbed to the fire. The evidence suggested that the passengers had had their belongings stacked against the doors making it impossible for anyone to easily get out of or get into coach S-6.
The Tribunal inspected the burnt coach S-6 on May 7, 2002. The sloping site where the train had stopped is an elevated bund. From the ground level, the height of the bund could be about 12-15 feet high. At the top, there was no space for 2000 persons to assemble on both sides of the track. If so many had actually gathered there, the crowd would have spread over a much larger area than the stretch of coach S-6. If the government version were true, the other coaches should have been targeted as much as coach S-6. Taking into account the height of the bund and the height at which the train stood, no fire-balls could have been lobbed in; the outside of the coach did not show signs of charring. The Tribunal found no marks below the coach windows; the charred marks were to be seen only at or above the window level, clearly indicating that the fire had actually started inside the coach and its leaping flames had singed the outside of the compartment, above the window level. Even to the naked eye, it was clear that the fire was from within, not from outside.
The findings of the Tribunal were later confirmed by the reports of the State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL). The relevant section of the Forensic Science Laboratory report (State of Gujarat, New Mental Corner, Ahmedabad-16, Spot Investigation Report No. 2 regarding CR No. 9/2002, Godhra Railway Police Station), filed by Assistant Director Dr M.S. Dahiya, clearly stated:
”It was found that the height of the window of the coach was around 7 ft. from the ground at the place. Under this circumstance, it was not possible to throw any inflammable fluid inside from outside the coach from any bucket or carboy, because by doing this, most of the fluid was getting thrown outside. At the place of the incidents, there was one heap of grit, of three feet height at a distance of around 14-ft, in the southern side of the coach. Water was thrown on the windows of the coach with the help of bucket standing on the top of the said heap, in that case only about 10 to 15 per cent of the water went inside and the rest of the quantity was spilled outside itself. Thus, if the inflammable fluid is thrown from outside, then a major part of it would fall around the track outside and catch fire and cause damage to the outer part of bottom side of the coach. But after examination of the coach and the track, no effect was found of the fire on bottom side below the windows of the coach. By taking into consideration this fact, and also the burning pattern of the outer side of the coach, a conclusion can be drawn that no inflammable fluid had been thrown inside from outside the coach.
“There also appears to be no possibility that any inflammable liquid was thrown through the door of the bogie. By observing the condition of the frames of the windows of the coach, it appears that all the windows of the coach were closed during the time of the fire.”
The Tribunal was convinced that the fire came from inside. This was seen from the inner side of the coach. The intensity of the fire was such that even the iron rods, the seats, the fans were all burnt to such an extent that we found them twisted and molten out of shape. The Tribunal found rice and wheat partly burnt and scattered all across the floor of compartment S-6. Some of the Tribunal witnesses stated that kar sevaks had stoves in the train. The FSL report showed that for such an intensity of fire, 60 litres of inflammable liquid had to be poured into the coach, “by using a wide mouthed container”. The question arose: where was this container? There is no evidence of anyone carrying 60 litres of inflammable liquid. At what point of time was the liquid taken inside the coach, or into the passage? Who was travelling in the train? If such a large number of kar sevaks, armed with trishuls and in an aggressive mood, were inside the train, how could the Ghanchi Muslims enter the train? And how could they have carried so much petrol openly or even clandestinely without being discovered by the passengers?
So, the mystery of the fire remained, the only thing certain being the fact that it came from within.
Was Godhra Pre-Planned?
The evidence analysed above clearly indicated that the incident was not pre-planned by the Muslims, as alleged by the State Government. In this connection, The Times of India on March 29, 2002 reported a statement made by the IGP, Railways, P.P. Agja, to the effect that there was no evidence of a pre-planned conspiracy behind the Godhra incident. He added: “The case is still being investigated and if there was some deep conspiracy, then we are yet to find it.’’ He further told The Times of India, standing in front of the railway police station on the platform where the trouble had began:
“According to the sequence of events as found by the police, all was not well in coach S-6 of the Ahmedabad-bound Sabarmati Express on that day. A group of unruly Ram sevaks had boarded the train at Lucknow without reser-vations and had put to discomfort the 66 genuine passengers of the coach. Some of the ticket-paying passengers had to sleep on the floor; so overcrowded had the compartment become that the ticket collector who came aboard the train at Ratlam (two stations before Godhra) was not allowed to enter the coach.
“At Godhra station, the hawkers on the platform started stoning the train after an unsavoury incident, especially targeting coach S-6, because some occupants of the coach had given offence. At any point of time, there are some 250 hawkers on the station. Some of them carry stoves with kerosene in them. All of them live in the slum called Signal Falia, next to the station.
“This means it is not surprising that a crowd could collect at the station so fast. The people, who live cheek by jowl in the slums next to the station, include a fair share of criminals indulging in railway crimes like looting, pick-pocketing and stealing of goods of passengers and also railway property. All of them are Ghanchi Muslims and they are uneducated, without any jobs and poor.”
It was thus clear that the attack on S-6 coach was not pre-meditated. From 8.30 am, just after the fire on the Sabarmati Express took place, until 7.30 pm that evening, repeated statements by the Godhra District Collector, Smt Jayanthi Ravi, relayed on Doordarshan and Akashwani (radio) stated that “the incident was not pre-planned, it was an accident”.
As is evident from the voluminous evidence recorded by the Tribunal, and substantive other evidence made available to it, investigating officials did not find any proof of the Godhra atrocity being pre-planned.
However, by the evening of February 27, a well-thought-out scheme to extract maximum political capital out of Godhra had been launched. As part of this scheme, at around 2.30 am, the bodies of the kar sevaks were brought to Ahmedabad in a provocative procession. Around 500 people were waiting outside the Sola Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad for the charred bodies to arrive from Godhra. By 3.35 am on February 28, a convoy of five trucks led by a pilot Gypsy entered the hospital compound. The State Government and the administration, instead of appealing for restraint and peace, became the agents of a well-planned action against innocent Muslims of the State that was in fact projected as a ‘reaction’. The corpses of the unfortunate victims of the Godhra train fire were used to launch a Statewide pogrom.
Was ‘Godhra’ Allowed to Happen?
During the period, Gujarat and the country was on red alert due to the aggressive mobilisation by the VHP on the issue of the projected temple at Ayodhya. While the Mumbai Police had made preventive arrest of as many as 8000 persons in the first week of March, in Gujarat, even after the Godhra fire incident, the State Police arrested only two persons in Ahmedabad, both Muslims.
A major administrative lapse in the antici-pation and handling of the violence was the blatant ignoring of the basic principles of law and order maintenance and governance. In 1965, when disturbances erupted in Godhra, the then Collector promptly arrested both Muslims and Hindus whose names appeared in FIRs. In a couple of days, the disturbances were curbed. After the October 1980 disturbances, the then Collector immediately put the miscreants behind bars. If a similar non-partisan approach had been followed in Godhra after the fire incident of February 27, 2002, the prevailing tension would have been contained and the chances of a vengeful and highly-organised spree of retaliatory killings demonstrating every element of ethnic cleansing and genocide would have been pre-empted. That this did not happen suggests a lack of intent, on the part of those in government, to take prompt preventive measures in order to de-escalate the situation.
On February 27, 2002, the Tribunal recorded the evidence of both the Collector and DSP of the Panchmahal district at Godhra. The evidence showed that though the Central Government’s Rapid Action Force (RAF) had been called in, adequate powers were not given to it. Despite the curfew, the RAF men were made to sit in the officers’ mess, helpless, unable to do anything. Though the Fire Brigade Station was only five minutes away from the railway station, it took a while for the fire brigade to reach the torched S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express.
Conclusion
Four official reports and at least three non-official reports on the Gujarat violence have rejected the thesis of a conspiracy behind the fire incident in the Sabarmati Express at the Godhra railway station on February 27, 2002. Only the Nanavati Commission and the recent special court judgement have intriguingly opted for the theory. A prolonged legal battle appears to be in store for the affected people.
The author is a former IPS officer who is currently an ICSSR Senior Fellow at the Council for Social Development, New Delhi.
Did the Sachar committee report get it wrong on West Bengal ?
The Hindu, 14 April 2011
Status of Muslims in West Bengal
by Maidul Islam and Subhashini Ali
Misleading data cited in a seminar paper on the situation of the minority community in the State tend to detract from the Left Front government's exceptional record on this count.
Abusaleh Shariff, the Chief Economist of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, who was the Member-Secretary of the Sachar Committee, presented a paper on the socio-economic development of Muslims in West Bengal, at a seminar organised by the Institute of Objective Studies in March. A newspaper report of his presentation claimed that the situation of Muslims in West Bengal was worse than in Gujarat.
This is an erroneous and shocking statement. The ghettoisation and marginalisation of Muslims in Gujarat since the state-sponsored pogrom of 2002 is well-documented. West Bengal, on the other hand, has had no communal violence since l964, and Muslims enjoy security.
The figures of Muslims' access to government employment and education in West Bengal as presented by Mr. Shariff are based on outdated data. He has relied on Census 2001 figures. In fact, the West Bengal government seems to be among the few governments that have taken both the criticism and recommendations contained in the Sachar Committee Report seriously.
The newspaper report said: “Shariff's figures on education, sourced, according to him from the census database and the Planning Commission, show that 50 per cent Muslim children attend school at the primary level, 26 per cent remain in middle school and only 12 per cent complete matriculation against 54 per cent, 30 per cent and 13 per cent respectively for SC/STs and 80 per cent, 58 per cent and 38 per cent for others.” These are data from the Sachar Report (pages 295-299), based on Census 2001. Since then, there has been a significant improvement in the matter of enrolment of Muslims in school in the State. Latest data from the District Information System for Education, which is a joint initiative of the National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA), the Department of School Education and Literacy, the Ministry of Human Resources Development and UNICEF, show West Bengal in a good light.
According to the NUEPA report, in the last three years (2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10), respectively 28.13, 28.28 and 32.30 of every 100 primary school children in West Bengal were Muslims, while 25.25 per cent of the State's population is Muslim. West Bengal's figures for Muslim students' enrolment at the primary level are better than the national average of 10.49 per cent (in 2007-08), 11.03 per cent (in 2008-09) and 13.48 per cent (in 2009-10) respectively, while Muslims form 13.43 per cent of India's population. West Bengal's record is far better than that of Gujarat. There, Muslim students' enrolment at the primary level was 4.57 per cent (2007-08), 4.73 per cent (2008-09) and 6.45 per cent (2009-10). Among all States and Union Territories, West Bengal ranks sixth in primary school level enrolment among Muslim students.
In 2009-10, upper primary school enrolment among Muslim students in West Bengal was 26.46 per cent. At the elementary school level it was 30.56 per cent, more than the proportion of Muslims in the State's population. The State thus occupied the sixth position among all States and Union Territories. The figures for West Bengal are better than the national average of 11.89 per cent and 13.02 per cent respectively, and far ahead of Gujarat: for that State the corresponding figures are 6.44 per cent and 6.45 per cent respectively.
On employment of Muslims in West Bengal, Mr. Shariff has again quoted from the Sachar Report (page 370), which had said its data for West Bengal were incomplete (pages 170, 173). The Report ignores the employment of Muslims in secondary and primary educational centres, which, according to the State government's data is 37 per cent of the total teachers employed. Since more than 20,000 teachers in registered madrasas receive the wages and benefits of government school teachers and the majority of them are Muslims, they should be counted as government servants. For the expansion of madrasa education, the State budgetary provision has increased from only Rs.5.6 lakh in 1976-77 to Rs. 574 crore in the current year. The Central government's allocation for madrasa education (SPQEM) was Rs. 127 crore in the 2011 budget.
In 2010, West Bengal reserved 10 per cent of all State government jobs for OBC Muslims, as per the recommendation of the Ranganath Misra Commission. The newspaper report quotes Mr. Shariff as saying: “A look at OBC statistics in Bengal shows only 2.4 per cent of its Muslims belong to that category.” In truth, after the recommendations of the Misra Commission were made public, a list of 56 ‘more backward communities', 49 of them Muslims, was included in the OBC list in West Bengal. As a result, of the 2.02 crore Muslims in West Bengal, 1.72 crore, or 85 per cent of the total, were notified as OBCs. West Bengal is the first State to implement the Misra Commission recommendations.
The Central government's commitment to the Sachar Committee recommendations is half-hearted and meagre. Whereas the Committee recommended increased spending on Muslim minority educational, health and other needs to the extent of about 15 per cent of the Union Budget, and West Bengal demanded a sub-plan for Muslims on the lines of the SC/ST sub-plans, the Centre has allocated less than 0.5 per cent in the Budgets it has presented since the Committee's Report was tabled in Parliament. In Budget 2011, the Centre reduced the allocation to the Multi-Sectoral Development Plan of minority-dominated districts by Rs. 100 crore. West Bengal, which accounts for 12 of the 90 MSDP districts, has the best record with respect to the implementation of the scheme.
West Bengal's track record in other welfare measures is also impressive. The West Bengal Minority Development Corporation had disbursed term-loans and micro-credit to 1,82,646 persons till January 2011. This is the best record of credit disbursement among all minority finance corporations. The share of bank loans for the minorities in the total priority sector loans of banks in the State increased from 7.89 per cent as on March 31, 2009, to 14.76 per cent as on March 31, 2010. This grew to cross the national level target (15 per cent) and reached 15.01 per cent as on September 30, 2010. At the national level, it is still to reach 10 per cent.
West Bengal is the topper in implementing the Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme. Among self-employed business persons who benefited from PMEG, over 30 per cent are from among the minorities. Among all self-help groups in West Bengal with access to institutional credit, 21.8 per cent are groups with Muslim members.
An important aspect of the backwardness of the Muslim minority is landlessness. In most parts of India, landlessness among Muslims has increased after l947. West Bengal is an exception. The success of land reforms under Left-led governments here has significantly benefited Muslims. Among rural households in West Bengal, Muslim households, which constitute 30.9 per cent, have access to 25.6 per cent of the total cultivated land. This is second only to Jammu and Kashmir, which has a much higher percentage of Muslim citizens who have access to 30.3 per cent of cultivable land in the State. Of the land pattas distributed in West Bengal during the period 1977-2010, 18 per cent went to Muslim households.
While more needs to be done for the Muslim minority in West Bengal and, indeed, all over India, it is important to set the record straight. At a time when incorrect data are being used as part of a propaganda offensive against the Left Front government, this has become even more essential.
(Maidul Islam is a D.Phil candidate in Politics at Brasenose College, University of Oxford. Subhashini Ali is a Central Committee member of the Communist Party of India-Marxist)
Status of Muslims in West Bengal
by Maidul Islam and Subhashini Ali
Misleading data cited in a seminar paper on the situation of the minority community in the State tend to detract from the Left Front government's exceptional record on this count.
Abusaleh Shariff, the Chief Economist of the National Council of Applied Economic Research, who was the Member-Secretary of the Sachar Committee, presented a paper on the socio-economic development of Muslims in West Bengal, at a seminar organised by the Institute of Objective Studies in March. A newspaper report of his presentation claimed that the situation of Muslims in West Bengal was worse than in Gujarat.
This is an erroneous and shocking statement. The ghettoisation and marginalisation of Muslims in Gujarat since the state-sponsored pogrom of 2002 is well-documented. West Bengal, on the other hand, has had no communal violence since l964, and Muslims enjoy security.
The figures of Muslims' access to government employment and education in West Bengal as presented by Mr. Shariff are based on outdated data. He has relied on Census 2001 figures. In fact, the West Bengal government seems to be among the few governments that have taken both the criticism and recommendations contained in the Sachar Committee Report seriously.
The newspaper report said: “Shariff's figures on education, sourced, according to him from the census database and the Planning Commission, show that 50 per cent Muslim children attend school at the primary level, 26 per cent remain in middle school and only 12 per cent complete matriculation against 54 per cent, 30 per cent and 13 per cent respectively for SC/STs and 80 per cent, 58 per cent and 38 per cent for others.” These are data from the Sachar Report (pages 295-299), based on Census 2001. Since then, there has been a significant improvement in the matter of enrolment of Muslims in school in the State. Latest data from the District Information System for Education, which is a joint initiative of the National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA), the Department of School Education and Literacy, the Ministry of Human Resources Development and UNICEF, show West Bengal in a good light.
According to the NUEPA report, in the last three years (2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10), respectively 28.13, 28.28 and 32.30 of every 100 primary school children in West Bengal were Muslims, while 25.25 per cent of the State's population is Muslim. West Bengal's figures for Muslim students' enrolment at the primary level are better than the national average of 10.49 per cent (in 2007-08), 11.03 per cent (in 2008-09) and 13.48 per cent (in 2009-10) respectively, while Muslims form 13.43 per cent of India's population. West Bengal's record is far better than that of Gujarat. There, Muslim students' enrolment at the primary level was 4.57 per cent (2007-08), 4.73 per cent (2008-09) and 6.45 per cent (2009-10). Among all States and Union Territories, West Bengal ranks sixth in primary school level enrolment among Muslim students.
In 2009-10, upper primary school enrolment among Muslim students in West Bengal was 26.46 per cent. At the elementary school level it was 30.56 per cent, more than the proportion of Muslims in the State's population. The State thus occupied the sixth position among all States and Union Territories. The figures for West Bengal are better than the national average of 11.89 per cent and 13.02 per cent respectively, and far ahead of Gujarat: for that State the corresponding figures are 6.44 per cent and 6.45 per cent respectively.
On employment of Muslims in West Bengal, Mr. Shariff has again quoted from the Sachar Report (page 370), which had said its data for West Bengal were incomplete (pages 170, 173). The Report ignores the employment of Muslims in secondary and primary educational centres, which, according to the State government's data is 37 per cent of the total teachers employed. Since more than 20,000 teachers in registered madrasas receive the wages and benefits of government school teachers and the majority of them are Muslims, they should be counted as government servants. For the expansion of madrasa education, the State budgetary provision has increased from only Rs.5.6 lakh in 1976-77 to Rs. 574 crore in the current year. The Central government's allocation for madrasa education (SPQEM) was Rs. 127 crore in the 2011 budget.
In 2010, West Bengal reserved 10 per cent of all State government jobs for OBC Muslims, as per the recommendation of the Ranganath Misra Commission. The newspaper report quotes Mr. Shariff as saying: “A look at OBC statistics in Bengal shows only 2.4 per cent of its Muslims belong to that category.” In truth, after the recommendations of the Misra Commission were made public, a list of 56 ‘more backward communities', 49 of them Muslims, was included in the OBC list in West Bengal. As a result, of the 2.02 crore Muslims in West Bengal, 1.72 crore, or 85 per cent of the total, were notified as OBCs. West Bengal is the first State to implement the Misra Commission recommendations.
The Central government's commitment to the Sachar Committee recommendations is half-hearted and meagre. Whereas the Committee recommended increased spending on Muslim minority educational, health and other needs to the extent of about 15 per cent of the Union Budget, and West Bengal demanded a sub-plan for Muslims on the lines of the SC/ST sub-plans, the Centre has allocated less than 0.5 per cent in the Budgets it has presented since the Committee's Report was tabled in Parliament. In Budget 2011, the Centre reduced the allocation to the Multi-Sectoral Development Plan of minority-dominated districts by Rs. 100 crore. West Bengal, which accounts for 12 of the 90 MSDP districts, has the best record with respect to the implementation of the scheme.
West Bengal's track record in other welfare measures is also impressive. The West Bengal Minority Development Corporation had disbursed term-loans and micro-credit to 1,82,646 persons till January 2011. This is the best record of credit disbursement among all minority finance corporations. The share of bank loans for the minorities in the total priority sector loans of banks in the State increased from 7.89 per cent as on March 31, 2009, to 14.76 per cent as on March 31, 2010. This grew to cross the national level target (15 per cent) and reached 15.01 per cent as on September 30, 2010. At the national level, it is still to reach 10 per cent.
West Bengal is the topper in implementing the Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme. Among self-employed business persons who benefited from PMEG, over 30 per cent are from among the minorities. Among all self-help groups in West Bengal with access to institutional credit, 21.8 per cent are groups with Muslim members.
An important aspect of the backwardness of the Muslim minority is landlessness. In most parts of India, landlessness among Muslims has increased after l947. West Bengal is an exception. The success of land reforms under Left-led governments here has significantly benefited Muslims. Among rural households in West Bengal, Muslim households, which constitute 30.9 per cent, have access to 25.6 per cent of the total cultivated land. This is second only to Jammu and Kashmir, which has a much higher percentage of Muslim citizens who have access to 30.3 per cent of cultivable land in the State. Of the land pattas distributed in West Bengal during the period 1977-2010, 18 per cent went to Muslim households.
While more needs to be done for the Muslim minority in West Bengal and, indeed, all over India, it is important to set the record straight. At a time when incorrect data are being used as part of a propaganda offensive against the Left Front government, this has become even more essential.
(Maidul Islam is a D.Phil candidate in Politics at Brasenose College, University of Oxford. Subhashini Ali is a Central Committee member of the Communist Party of India-Marxist)
A collective response to Anna Hazare and Modi
We, academics, activists, artists and intellectuals strongly condemn the recently reported statement made by Anna Hazareji in which he has brazenly endorsed Narendra Modi, a politician who not only symbolizes the politics of division but unconstitutional governance. For the veteran anti-corruption social activist, Hazare to endorse a politician against whom a Supreme Court led investigation into conspiracy to commit mass murder and rape, subversion of evidence and pressure and intimidation of key witnesses is still underway reveals a narrow and mercenary understanding of the meaning of corruption. Worse, given the support base of the recent high profile and highly televised event agitation, that included open support from Ram Madhav and the RSS as also Baba Ramdev, Hazare’s move could be construed as a bid to actually influence this SC-driven criminal investigation.
Modi stands accused, and has not been yet cleared of serious charges of actively masterminding mass murder, loot and rape of 2,500 of Gujarat’s innocent citizens consciously perverting his position and power as chief minister in 2002. This and other investigations have been rigorously pursued by victim survivors of these gruesome massacres and Hazare’s statement, more than anything else rubs salt on deep wounds. Not once in the nine years since the state sponsored carnage has Modi, who has written a tear-filled communication to Hazare wiped tears from the heavy hearts of Muslim victim survivors in Gujarat. Nor has Modi even apologized for failing to perform his Constitutional duty.
On the issue of corruption and good governance too, Modi may yet fail the exemplary test. Allegations of serious corruption in state government schemes have been steadily documented and printed within Gujarat but have rarely made it to the headlines of national television. There has been little or no rural development in this state. In fact gauchar lands and irrigated farmlands have been stealthily taken by the government and sold off at ridiculous prices to a small club of industrialists. The ridiculously low interest loan given at the expense of five crore Gujarati taxpayers to Tata’s Nano project suggests a corrupt loan write off f public finances.
The irony of Modi being hailed by the leader of the National Lok Pal movement is cruel since there has been no Lokayukta in Gujarat for nearly seven years! Hundreds of complaints against corruption are lying unheard in that state as the common Gujarati reels under his mercenary dictatorship. From the Sujalam Sufalam scam of 1700 crores to the NREGS boribund scam of 109 crores, the fisheries scam of 600 crores, every department has been accused of being involved in thousands of crores worth of scams. The poor and rural people of Gujarat are being sold to Modi's small coterie of friends, the industrialists. The state is in terrible debt because of his largesse to industry while 21 lakh farmers wait for compensation for the land seized from them. How hen can Haraeji call Modi non-corrupt or hail his model of development?
Little or no funds have been released by the GOG to the Minority Finance Development Corporation, even less to the Gujarat State Wakf Board. No figures are provided by the state government for funds allotted to the religious minorities.
The corrosion and corruption in our system is not merely monetary but the subversion of the Indian Constitution and Constitutional Governance has been in large measure due to the unbridled and unchecked growth of state and non state actors who are sworn to partisan politics, ideology and governance. While their was more than some discomfiture felt by many of us when we saw this worthy anti-corruption movement being supported by RSS cadres and Baba Ramdev, guilty of amassing crores of money and property himself, this discomfiture increased as accusation of bus loads of supporters arriving to Jantar Mantar from Gujarat came in and finally dues were extracted by the ruler of that state, Narendra Modi, in the form of praise from Anna Hazareji.
Teesta Setalvad, Rajendfra Prasad, Jawed Naqvi, John Dayal, Henri Tiphagne, Kamal Faruqui, MK Raina and others
Modi stands accused, and has not been yet cleared of serious charges of actively masterminding mass murder, loot and rape of 2,500 of Gujarat’s innocent citizens consciously perverting his position and power as chief minister in 2002. This and other investigations have been rigorously pursued by victim survivors of these gruesome massacres and Hazare’s statement, more than anything else rubs salt on deep wounds. Not once in the nine years since the state sponsored carnage has Modi, who has written a tear-filled communication to Hazare wiped tears from the heavy hearts of Muslim victim survivors in Gujarat. Nor has Modi even apologized for failing to perform his Constitutional duty.
On the issue of corruption and good governance too, Modi may yet fail the exemplary test. Allegations of serious corruption in state government schemes have been steadily documented and printed within Gujarat but have rarely made it to the headlines of national television. There has been little or no rural development in this state. In fact gauchar lands and irrigated farmlands have been stealthily taken by the government and sold off at ridiculous prices to a small club of industrialists. The ridiculously low interest loan given at the expense of five crore Gujarati taxpayers to Tata’s Nano project suggests a corrupt loan write off f public finances.
The irony of Modi being hailed by the leader of the National Lok Pal movement is cruel since there has been no Lokayukta in Gujarat for nearly seven years! Hundreds of complaints against corruption are lying unheard in that state as the common Gujarati reels under his mercenary dictatorship. From the Sujalam Sufalam scam of 1700 crores to the NREGS boribund scam of 109 crores, the fisheries scam of 600 crores, every department has been accused of being involved in thousands of crores worth of scams. The poor and rural people of Gujarat are being sold to Modi's small coterie of friends, the industrialists. The state is in terrible debt because of his largesse to industry while 21 lakh farmers wait for compensation for the land seized from them. How hen can Haraeji call Modi non-corrupt or hail his model of development?
Little or no funds have been released by the GOG to the Minority Finance Development Corporation, even less to the Gujarat State Wakf Board. No figures are provided by the state government for funds allotted to the religious minorities.
The corrosion and corruption in our system is not merely monetary but the subversion of the Indian Constitution and Constitutional Governance has been in large measure due to the unbridled and unchecked growth of state and non state actors who are sworn to partisan politics, ideology and governance. While their was more than some discomfiture felt by many of us when we saw this worthy anti-corruption movement being supported by RSS cadres and Baba Ramdev, guilty of amassing crores of money and property himself, this discomfiture increased as accusation of bus loads of supporters arriving to Jantar Mantar from Gujarat came in and finally dues were extracted by the ruler of that state, Narendra Modi, in the form of praise from Anna Hazareji.
Teesta Setalvad, Rajendfra Prasad, Jawed Naqvi, John Dayal, Henri Tiphagne, Kamal Faruqui, MK Raina and others
Anna Hazare and Anti Corruption Movement
Anna Hazare and Anti Corruption Upsurge
Ram Puniyani
The nation has witnessed a huge spectacle from a section of visible population with Anna Hazare’s fast for getting the Jan Lok Pal bill being drafted and implemented. His fast unto death was an event in which not only we witnessed the ‘Tsunami of Sentiments’ but was also used by media to create an atmosphere as if it a ‘second freedom struggle’. While one can see that the dissatisfaction of the people from the system was overflowing, one also registered that this is a response to the massive corruption scams which have been unearthed during last few years. While Government succumbed to the mass pressure and the media projection, the whole episode also raised many a questions about the message which the fasting and Jantar mantar protest gave.
In the whole event, the backdrop was provided by Hindu imagery of India as Bharat mata, a Goddess. One hoped that such issues needing of worldly grounding can have icons like Gandhi as the central projection. Gandhi as the central backdrop of the movement would not only have given a correct moral message but also had been equally welcoming to all the citizens of the country irrespective of their religion. Gandhi as the backdrop would also have reminded the leaders that corruption cannot be isolated from other political dynamics which is leading to gross injustices to the poor and marginalized of the society.
Unfortunately the criticism of elected leaders and the doubting of the democratic system itself were taken to the cynical extremes. People writing on their hands that ‘Mera Neta Chor Hai’ (My leader is a thief) was one such example where the attempt to denigrate the elected representative along with the electoral process could be discerned. One concedes that there are serious flaws in the electoral system, the money power, muscle power and Corporate influence, but to paint all the leaders in the same brush shows the warped understanding of a section of leadership of Jantar Mantar movement. At the same time all the voters were insulted by stating that people cast their vote just for the goodies they get in advance as if these goodies are the core deciding points of election. Surely our electoral system needs serious reforms but this type of projection also needs to be seriously questioned.
Then we have the issues of leadership of the whole event. We saw Anna Hazare as the Supreme commander with associates like Baba Ramdev trying to moralize the nation in the politics which is not so hidden by now. Baba Ramdev is a partisan of a particular type of politics which bases itself on religion and Baba in the clothes of a yogi is playing the role, which does not promotes democratic values. Baba was accompanied by RSS leader Ram Madhav. Sri Sri Ravishnker was also there. Both these Godmen are for the construction of grand Ram Tmeple at Ayodhya, and that should be enough to tell us their political leanings. Others in the core committee surely have more objectivity but one does not know as to how much influence they could exercise on the tilt being given by Annaji, Ramdev, Ravishanker and Company.
Anna Hazare, in the centre of the whole event also projected his pro right wing politics by praising Narendra Modi. One learns that Annaji has worked in his village in an authoritarian way, keeping the caste and gender hierarchical notions intact in Ralegaon Siddhi. His praise for Modi does let the cat out of the bag. Narendra Modi has successfully created and image of honest administrator but those who know the state better like Malika Sarabhai, Chunibhai Viadya, Rohit Prajapati and Trupti Shah have pointed out that in Gujarat the villages are suffering the rot, poverty levels are abysmal, people are migrating to cities in large numbers and their lands are being given to the coterie of Industrialists who are in the good books of Modi. Lakhs of villagers are yet to get the compensation for the land which has been taken away from them. The very definition of corruption needs to be looked at while talking of Gujarat, as Industrialists are plundering with both the hands and state exchequer is the major victim of Modi’s policies. Instances of this abound, the massive subsidy to Nano being one major example.
Same Narendra Modi not only refused to appoint the Lokayukta in his state and there are multiple unadvertised scams which are away from the media glare. There are criminal accusations against this person who has been called as the Nero by the Supreme Court, and who is authoritarian to the core. With such a role played by Modi in the Gujarat carnage, with blood on his hands, if someone can praise his work, it is not out of naivety, and it is part of the political agenda of that person. Same Anna Hazare had praised Raj Thackeray, the architect of violence in the name of language. As per Annaji, Raj Thackeray’s ideas are correct but violence should not be resorted to, forgetting that violence is a just an outcome of these political formulations which Modi and Thackerays have.
The massive mobilization and channelization of middle class angst is at one level indicator of the deeper levels of frustration in the system. In this whole upsurge there was a spontaneous expression of dissatisfaction and also a planned mobilization all across to take advantage of the situation to enhance the politics of those who have rode on the wave of section of society mobilized earlier also. One recalls that Jaya Prakash Naryan’s movement was much more broad based still it came to be controlled by the RSS, and its Swayamsevak Nanaji Deshmukh became the central person. The JP movement, irrespective of its noble intentions gave respectability to the organization, whose member had killed Father of the nation, and which till that time was looked down upon. Same way V.P.Singh’s tirade against corruption was swept away by the politics of those who were out to demolish Babri Masjid. Sitting on the waves of anti Corruption movement, both time RSS and its political progeny became stronger to the extent of becoming the second largest party in the country.
Ironically in the whole episode while the ruling party and politicians as such were being humiliated the other component of the corruption phenomenon, the Corporate World and the industrial houses were really the beneficiaries of the way anti corruption drive was projected. Corporate World got exonerated by default, of all their crimes of getting around their ways through corrupt route. During earlier decades when the economy was controlled by state, the so called license-permit raj, it was said that corruption is due to state control of economy. Now with globalized economic scenario, the corruption has gone up to unimaginable levels, and the role of Industrial Houses as being the equal party to the game remains hidden from the scene.
Corruption is the big scourge to the system. We do need to look beyond the leaders and parties to realize that Corruption is primarily due to lack of transparency of the system, lack of accountability of the elected representatives and the very nature of our economic system and injustices inbuilt in the social system. While one lauds the tremendous response to the anti corruption movement, one can just hope that the sectarianism of Anna Hazare should be totally bypassed and the religious tilt of the imagers should be done away with. One hopes that while working on the Lok Pal Bill, the collective leadership of the movement will take note of these points to ensure that this movement does not meet the fate of two similar earlier one’s and that Right wing divisive forces are kept at bay.
--
Ram Puniyani
The nation has witnessed a huge spectacle from a section of visible population with Anna Hazare’s fast for getting the Jan Lok Pal bill being drafted and implemented. His fast unto death was an event in which not only we witnessed the ‘Tsunami of Sentiments’ but was also used by media to create an atmosphere as if it a ‘second freedom struggle’. While one can see that the dissatisfaction of the people from the system was overflowing, one also registered that this is a response to the massive corruption scams which have been unearthed during last few years. While Government succumbed to the mass pressure and the media projection, the whole episode also raised many a questions about the message which the fasting and Jantar mantar protest gave.
In the whole event, the backdrop was provided by Hindu imagery of India as Bharat mata, a Goddess. One hoped that such issues needing of worldly grounding can have icons like Gandhi as the central projection. Gandhi as the central backdrop of the movement would not only have given a correct moral message but also had been equally welcoming to all the citizens of the country irrespective of their religion. Gandhi as the backdrop would also have reminded the leaders that corruption cannot be isolated from other political dynamics which is leading to gross injustices to the poor and marginalized of the society.
Unfortunately the criticism of elected leaders and the doubting of the democratic system itself were taken to the cynical extremes. People writing on their hands that ‘Mera Neta Chor Hai’ (My leader is a thief) was one such example where the attempt to denigrate the elected representative along with the electoral process could be discerned. One concedes that there are serious flaws in the electoral system, the money power, muscle power and Corporate influence, but to paint all the leaders in the same brush shows the warped understanding of a section of leadership of Jantar Mantar movement. At the same time all the voters were insulted by stating that people cast their vote just for the goodies they get in advance as if these goodies are the core deciding points of election. Surely our electoral system needs serious reforms but this type of projection also needs to be seriously questioned.
Then we have the issues of leadership of the whole event. We saw Anna Hazare as the Supreme commander with associates like Baba Ramdev trying to moralize the nation in the politics which is not so hidden by now. Baba Ramdev is a partisan of a particular type of politics which bases itself on religion and Baba in the clothes of a yogi is playing the role, which does not promotes democratic values. Baba was accompanied by RSS leader Ram Madhav. Sri Sri Ravishnker was also there. Both these Godmen are for the construction of grand Ram Tmeple at Ayodhya, and that should be enough to tell us their political leanings. Others in the core committee surely have more objectivity but one does not know as to how much influence they could exercise on the tilt being given by Annaji, Ramdev, Ravishanker and Company.
Anna Hazare, in the centre of the whole event also projected his pro right wing politics by praising Narendra Modi. One learns that Annaji has worked in his village in an authoritarian way, keeping the caste and gender hierarchical notions intact in Ralegaon Siddhi. His praise for Modi does let the cat out of the bag. Narendra Modi has successfully created and image of honest administrator but those who know the state better like Malika Sarabhai, Chunibhai Viadya, Rohit Prajapati and Trupti Shah have pointed out that in Gujarat the villages are suffering the rot, poverty levels are abysmal, people are migrating to cities in large numbers and their lands are being given to the coterie of Industrialists who are in the good books of Modi. Lakhs of villagers are yet to get the compensation for the land which has been taken away from them. The very definition of corruption needs to be looked at while talking of Gujarat, as Industrialists are plundering with both the hands and state exchequer is the major victim of Modi’s policies. Instances of this abound, the massive subsidy to Nano being one major example.
Same Narendra Modi not only refused to appoint the Lokayukta in his state and there are multiple unadvertised scams which are away from the media glare. There are criminal accusations against this person who has been called as the Nero by the Supreme Court, and who is authoritarian to the core. With such a role played by Modi in the Gujarat carnage, with blood on his hands, if someone can praise his work, it is not out of naivety, and it is part of the political agenda of that person. Same Anna Hazare had praised Raj Thackeray, the architect of violence in the name of language. As per Annaji, Raj Thackeray’s ideas are correct but violence should not be resorted to, forgetting that violence is a just an outcome of these political formulations which Modi and Thackerays have.
The massive mobilization and channelization of middle class angst is at one level indicator of the deeper levels of frustration in the system. In this whole upsurge there was a spontaneous expression of dissatisfaction and also a planned mobilization all across to take advantage of the situation to enhance the politics of those who have rode on the wave of section of society mobilized earlier also. One recalls that Jaya Prakash Naryan’s movement was much more broad based still it came to be controlled by the RSS, and its Swayamsevak Nanaji Deshmukh became the central person. The JP movement, irrespective of its noble intentions gave respectability to the organization, whose member had killed Father of the nation, and which till that time was looked down upon. Same way V.P.Singh’s tirade against corruption was swept away by the politics of those who were out to demolish Babri Masjid. Sitting on the waves of anti Corruption movement, both time RSS and its political progeny became stronger to the extent of becoming the second largest party in the country.
Ironically in the whole episode while the ruling party and politicians as such were being humiliated the other component of the corruption phenomenon, the Corporate World and the industrial houses were really the beneficiaries of the way anti corruption drive was projected. Corporate World got exonerated by default, of all their crimes of getting around their ways through corrupt route. During earlier decades when the economy was controlled by state, the so called license-permit raj, it was said that corruption is due to state control of economy. Now with globalized economic scenario, the corruption has gone up to unimaginable levels, and the role of Industrial Houses as being the equal party to the game remains hidden from the scene.
Corruption is the big scourge to the system. We do need to look beyond the leaders and parties to realize that Corruption is primarily due to lack of transparency of the system, lack of accountability of the elected representatives and the very nature of our economic system and injustices inbuilt in the social system. While one lauds the tremendous response to the anti corruption movement, one can just hope that the sectarianism of Anna Hazare should be totally bypassed and the religious tilt of the imagers should be done away with. One hopes that while working on the Lok Pal Bill, the collective leadership of the movement will take note of these points to ensure that this movement does not meet the fate of two similar earlier one’s and that Right wing divisive forces are kept at bay.
--
April 12, 2011
Anna Hazare and his politics : authoritarian, hierarchical and laden with dominant ideology
From: Kafila .org
The Making of Anna Hazare
April 12, 2011
by mukul sharma
[This piece is based on my extensive field work on Anna Hazare and his movement in Ralegan Sidhi over some years and is also a part of my forthcoming book Green and Saffron: Hindu Nationalism and Indian Environmental Politics. MS]
The anti-corruption movement, spearheaded by Anna Hazare, and the passage of the Lokpal Bill have generated unprecedented interest amongst a wide spectrum of society about the ideas, politics and organisations of civil society in general, and Anna Hazare in particular. Hazare’s anti-corruption crusade merits attention not only for its importance in ensuring a corruption-free society, but also due to its multifaceted nature. Hazare’s politics however has to be seen in a larger framework and in a wider historical context. Howsoever laudable the goals of anti-corruption movement in India today, the movement is not beyond the categories of gender, caste, authority, democracy, nationalism and ultra-nationalism. Far from transcending them, the movement is transforming and being transformed by the implicit deployment of such categories. I wish to place Hazare in the larger context of his environmental journeys, where the elusive but crucial element is one of authority that is exercised due to a large degree of consent and conservatism. Yet, almost all accounts on him, largely celebratory in nature, do not examine the ideology and politics of his works. These are crucial not only to critically assess the present and the future of our anti-corruption movements, but also to interrogate certain brands of civil society activisms and environmentalisms.The rural environmental works by Anna Hazare in Ralegan Sidhi village in Maharashtra have been hailed widely, which are fed by, and feed into, certain dominant political cultures of the state. Though developmental and environmental works form the core of his ideological structures, they include other important issues. A belief system of force and punishment, liberal use of Hindu religious symbols, strict rules and codes, evocation of nationalism and ultra-nationalism, ‘pure’ morality and caste hierarchies, with a marginalisation of women, Muslims and Dalits, form the core of his village regeneration. The basis for the authority of Anna comes from a belief system, where the people following him consider it their natural duty to obey, and the exercising person thinks it a natural right to rule. Thus a former village sarpanch of the region states: ‘Whatever Anna says, we do. The whole village follows his words. Anna’s orders work like the army.’ For another villager, ‘Annajee is like God.’ The absolute recognition of an authority locally works in several internalised ways.
In the process of social transformation, Anna believes that advice, persuasion or counselling do not always work and occasionally force has to be applied. Force can be applied in many forms, physical and social, and often the simple persistent fear of its application regulates society. Force gives a safe and solid grounding to socially accepted values. It is not only Anna Hazare who proposes flogging and fear as essential parts of a green village; it has its wide audience in the village.
In an environmentally sound Ralegan Sidhi, religious symbols are core vehicles for transformation and imposition. Its embodiment in certain places/people legitimises them. The command-obedience relationship also gets its rationale from the belief that a God or a temple is ‘supreme’ and any decision taken in front of them must be obeyed. According to Hazare, Lord Rama set an ideal before every citizen of how to conduct everyday life by his own example. There is need for Lord Shri Krishna to reincarnate and save the country.
It is not only environmental rules, but also rules governing the entire socio-political life of people that make an authority acceptable. Those who make these rules and those who obey them are legitimate; others illegitimate/illegal. Anna Hazare is deeply concerned with rules and norms with a definite model:
“The daily routine enforced in the army such as getting up early in the morning, jogging and physical training thereafter, cleanliness of body, clothing, living quarters and the neighbourhood etc. led to development of a disciplined life, benefits of which I am availing of even today. The habit of giving due respect and regard to the seniors by age, post, or competence was inculcated in us…. This has helped me in conducting the village development work at Ralegan Siddhi according to the rules and regulations decided by us by common consent.”
Others reciprocate this language. Villagers normally say that their village works like an army. As a commandant, Anna orders and we follow. Army discipline is the ideal. The path of rural development here depends in a large measure on many other ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’. No shop in Ralegan can sell bidis or cigarettes. Film songs and movies are not allowed. Only religious films, like Sant Tuka Ram, Sant Gyaneshwar can be screened. Only religious songs are allowed on loudspeakers at the time of marriages. It is emphasised in the village that the villagers themselves decided not to sell bidis in their shops; they themselves do not watch films or listen to film songs. However, the language of acquiescence can be highly brahaminical and hegemonic.
Anna Hazare wants to build India into a strong, powerful nation. Narratives of war, army and enemy remain the core references in much of the discourse on nation and rural development. Here, expressions like ‘national regeneration’, ‘wholesome crop of national glory through comprehensive rural development’ are coupled with others like ‘We have to hold the nation. Otherwise, Pakistan will grab it. That is why we consciously send our sons to the army.’
The concept of morality and subsequent codes/behaviours/practices based on it are important elements in the notion of development. Anna’s concern with the moral is couched in his discourse of the nation that exercise control over the private and the public, the personal and the political. For school children there is moral education and practice, comprising physical training, body building, patriotism, obedience, samskars and Hindu culture. Doing surya namaskar and chanting Om is regular for the students. For women, it is stressed that they should certainly look after the household but they must also participate in activities intended to help their community and country. It is stated, ‘Woman is the Universal Mother, The Great Mother. Many such Great Mothers have given birth to Great Sons — Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Swami Vivekananda for instance.’ She is also a symbol of purity, sublime as well as innate strength. It is significant that much of the problematisation of morality of children, youth and village is done in the context of influence of western, modern culture. ‘Western lifestyle’, ‘modern development’ and ‘invasion of western culture’ invariably emerge as repeated expressions, signifying the collapse of morality in modern India.
In Ralegan, there are a few Mahars, Chamars, Matangs, Nhavi, Bharhadi and Sutars. Since the beginning of his work, Anna has been particularly emphasising the removal of untouchability and discrimination on caste basis meted out to people, who are popularly referred to as Harijans here. The concept of ‘village as a joint family’, or all inhabitants of the village as ‘almighty God’, has prompted the villagers to pay attention to the problems of Harijans. The integration of Dalits into an ideal village has two components in Ralegan. One is to assume that they were always there to perform some duties and necessary services and that their usefulness justifies their existence in the present. The other component is hegemonic, designed to get Dalits into a brahaminical fold. It is not only manifested in the way food or dress habits are propagated; it is prevalent in several other forms.
In spite of the apparent diversities that characterise the various elements that make up Anna Hazare, there is an underlying thread of unity in his ideological positioning. Not only is this authority deeply rooted in the dominant socio-political tradition of the region; it is often blind to many basic and universal issues of rights, democracy and justice. Personal moral authority, while contributing in harnessing water and other natural and human resources for the betterment of economic conditions of the villagers, simultaneously also raises significant questions about its relationship to the making of a democratic, critical community, free from burdens of force, punishment, coercion, obligation, patronage, charity and piety. The present movement led by him too reflects some of these elements. Placing Hazare in a larger context posits in front of us several such questions.
The Making of Anna Hazare
April 12, 2011
by mukul sharma
[This piece is based on my extensive field work on Anna Hazare and his movement in Ralegan Sidhi over some years and is also a part of my forthcoming book Green and Saffron: Hindu Nationalism and Indian Environmental Politics. MS]
The anti-corruption movement, spearheaded by Anna Hazare, and the passage of the Lokpal Bill have generated unprecedented interest amongst a wide spectrum of society about the ideas, politics and organisations of civil society in general, and Anna Hazare in particular. Hazare’s anti-corruption crusade merits attention not only for its importance in ensuring a corruption-free society, but also due to its multifaceted nature. Hazare’s politics however has to be seen in a larger framework and in a wider historical context. Howsoever laudable the goals of anti-corruption movement in India today, the movement is not beyond the categories of gender, caste, authority, democracy, nationalism and ultra-nationalism. Far from transcending them, the movement is transforming and being transformed by the implicit deployment of such categories. I wish to place Hazare in the larger context of his environmental journeys, where the elusive but crucial element is one of authority that is exercised due to a large degree of consent and conservatism. Yet, almost all accounts on him, largely celebratory in nature, do not examine the ideology and politics of his works. These are crucial not only to critically assess the present and the future of our anti-corruption movements, but also to interrogate certain brands of civil society activisms and environmentalisms.The rural environmental works by Anna Hazare in Ralegan Sidhi village in Maharashtra have been hailed widely, which are fed by, and feed into, certain dominant political cultures of the state. Though developmental and environmental works form the core of his ideological structures, they include other important issues. A belief system of force and punishment, liberal use of Hindu religious symbols, strict rules and codes, evocation of nationalism and ultra-nationalism, ‘pure’ morality and caste hierarchies, with a marginalisation of women, Muslims and Dalits, form the core of his village regeneration. The basis for the authority of Anna comes from a belief system, where the people following him consider it their natural duty to obey, and the exercising person thinks it a natural right to rule. Thus a former village sarpanch of the region states: ‘Whatever Anna says, we do. The whole village follows his words. Anna’s orders work like the army.’ For another villager, ‘Annajee is like God.’ The absolute recognition of an authority locally works in several internalised ways.
In the process of social transformation, Anna believes that advice, persuasion or counselling do not always work and occasionally force has to be applied. Force can be applied in many forms, physical and social, and often the simple persistent fear of its application regulates society. Force gives a safe and solid grounding to socially accepted values. It is not only Anna Hazare who proposes flogging and fear as essential parts of a green village; it has its wide audience in the village.
In an environmentally sound Ralegan Sidhi, religious symbols are core vehicles for transformation and imposition. Its embodiment in certain places/people legitimises them. The command-obedience relationship also gets its rationale from the belief that a God or a temple is ‘supreme’ and any decision taken in front of them must be obeyed. According to Hazare, Lord Rama set an ideal before every citizen of how to conduct everyday life by his own example. There is need for Lord Shri Krishna to reincarnate and save the country.
It is not only environmental rules, but also rules governing the entire socio-political life of people that make an authority acceptable. Those who make these rules and those who obey them are legitimate; others illegitimate/illegal. Anna Hazare is deeply concerned with rules and norms with a definite model:
“The daily routine enforced in the army such as getting up early in the morning, jogging and physical training thereafter, cleanliness of body, clothing, living quarters and the neighbourhood etc. led to development of a disciplined life, benefits of which I am availing of even today. The habit of giving due respect and regard to the seniors by age, post, or competence was inculcated in us…. This has helped me in conducting the village development work at Ralegan Siddhi according to the rules and regulations decided by us by common consent.”
Others reciprocate this language. Villagers normally say that their village works like an army. As a commandant, Anna orders and we follow. Army discipline is the ideal. The path of rural development here depends in a large measure on many other ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’. No shop in Ralegan can sell bidis or cigarettes. Film songs and movies are not allowed. Only religious films, like Sant Tuka Ram, Sant Gyaneshwar can be screened. Only religious songs are allowed on loudspeakers at the time of marriages. It is emphasised in the village that the villagers themselves decided not to sell bidis in their shops; they themselves do not watch films or listen to film songs. However, the language of acquiescence can be highly brahaminical and hegemonic.
Anna Hazare wants to build India into a strong, powerful nation. Narratives of war, army and enemy remain the core references in much of the discourse on nation and rural development. Here, expressions like ‘national regeneration’, ‘wholesome crop of national glory through comprehensive rural development’ are coupled with others like ‘We have to hold the nation. Otherwise, Pakistan will grab it. That is why we consciously send our sons to the army.’
The concept of morality and subsequent codes/behaviours/practices based on it are important elements in the notion of development. Anna’s concern with the moral is couched in his discourse of the nation that exercise control over the private and the public, the personal and the political. For school children there is moral education and practice, comprising physical training, body building, patriotism, obedience, samskars and Hindu culture. Doing surya namaskar and chanting Om is regular for the students. For women, it is stressed that they should certainly look after the household but they must also participate in activities intended to help their community and country. It is stated, ‘Woman is the Universal Mother, The Great Mother. Many such Great Mothers have given birth to Great Sons — Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Swami Vivekananda for instance.’ She is also a symbol of purity, sublime as well as innate strength. It is significant that much of the problematisation of morality of children, youth and village is done in the context of influence of western, modern culture. ‘Western lifestyle’, ‘modern development’ and ‘invasion of western culture’ invariably emerge as repeated expressions, signifying the collapse of morality in modern India.
In Ralegan, there are a few Mahars, Chamars, Matangs, Nhavi, Bharhadi and Sutars. Since the beginning of his work, Anna has been particularly emphasising the removal of untouchability and discrimination on caste basis meted out to people, who are popularly referred to as Harijans here. The concept of ‘village as a joint family’, or all inhabitants of the village as ‘almighty God’, has prompted the villagers to pay attention to the problems of Harijans. The integration of Dalits into an ideal village has two components in Ralegan. One is to assume that they were always there to perform some duties and necessary services and that their usefulness justifies their existence in the present. The other component is hegemonic, designed to get Dalits into a brahaminical fold. It is not only manifested in the way food or dress habits are propagated; it is prevalent in several other forms.
In spite of the apparent diversities that characterise the various elements that make up Anna Hazare, there is an underlying thread of unity in his ideological positioning. Not only is this authority deeply rooted in the dominant socio-political tradition of the region; it is often blind to many basic and universal issues of rights, democracy and justice. Personal moral authority, while contributing in harnessing water and other natural and human resources for the betterment of economic conditions of the villagers, simultaneously also raises significant questions about its relationship to the making of a democratic, critical community, free from burdens of force, punishment, coercion, obligation, patronage, charity and piety. The present movement led by him too reflects some of these elements. Placing Hazare in a larger context posits in front of us several such questions.
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