Gomantak Times, 11/06/07
BY A STAFF REPORTER
reporters@gomantaktimes.com
The Additional District Magistrate Y.B. Tavde has directed the SDM Margao to give any necessary permission to Citizens' Initiatives for Communal Harmony for its talk by Prof. Ram Puniyani titled "Communal Threats to Secular Democracy in India" and directed the police to provide protection, if required, to hold such programmes.
The ADM also exonerated CICH from the charges by SDM Margao that they have 'quoted a particular community', stating that 'the concept of "community" of SDM Margao is not correct.' The ADM has indicated that the talk should not have been stopped in the first place.
It may be recalled that Prof. Ram Puniyani's scheduled public talk on the subject 'Communal Threats to Secular Democracy in India' on 24 May 2007 at Kare Law College Margao was required to be stopped by the Margao SDM, by stating that the organizers had in their pamphlet "quoted a community which has caused insecurity to the communal harmony" referring to the phrase "political ideology of right-wing Hindutva".
The organizers submitted to the SDM that he had pre-judged them, and that even the Supreme Court had held that Hindutva does not refer to the Hindu community. The SDM referred the matter to the District Magistrate who had in turn allotted the matter to the ADM.
ADM Tavde recorded the arguments and statements of Albertina Almeida, convenor of Citizens' Initiatives for Communal Harmony, a citizens' group which had organised the talk, and the Margao Town PSI Navlesh
Desai. The ADM had also asked the PI Margao Town Police Station to summon the complainants, Abhay Khaunte and Shivanand Karapurkar, for examination.
However, the complainants did not turn up for the hearing. PSI Navlesh Desai stated that Abhay Khaunte accompanied by one Sawaikar visited the police station at 2.55 am on 24th May and made a verbal complaint. When asked to make their complaint in writing, they refused.
PSI Desai stated that he then consulted with his superiors and on their instructions registered an offence on behalf of the state, and also communicated the matter to the SDM.
Meanwhile, the CICH has welcomed the upholding of academic freedom and the fundamental right of freedom of speech by the ADM, stating that these matters are fundamental to a democracy and of particular
importance in a situation where the social fabric in Goa is getting communalized.
The CICH has stated that the reality of communal forces can be brought before the people of Goa only in a situation where the freedom of speech is guaranteed.
The CICH is now rescheduling the talk by Prof. Puniyani and the details will be announced later, informed convenors Albertina Almeida and Ramesh Gauns.
Both the CICH convenors also pointed out that the people in communalism-affected areas in Goa have conveyed a fitting "No to communalism" in the recent Assembly elections with the BJP candidates losing the Curchorem and Sanvordem seats and not winning the Margao seat.
|
