By IANS,

Kolkata : Reacting to BJP leader L.K. Advani's decision to quit key party posts, Congress Rajya Sabha member Pradip Bhattacharya Monday said the stalwart's "revolt" against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi would spread across the country.

"The person, who worked for the party for 52 years, is now hurt and devastated and drenched in pain, resigned today. I thank this 'loh mahapurush' (great ironman) for protesting against the elevation of Modi - the face of communalism," Bhattacharya, also West Bengal Congress chief, said at a programme here.

"The resignation is the first sign of protest against elevation of the 'communal' Modi. The protests will spread to other parts of the country," Bhattacharya said at a public rally.

A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) named Modi to lead its campaign in the next Lok Sabha election, Advani declared Monday he was quitting all major party posts and accused most party leaders of pursuing "personal agenda".

Advani, who helped the party to grow from an also-ran into a powerful entity in the 1980s and gave it its hardline Hindutva ideology, had failed to persuade the BJP against elevating the ambitious Gujarat chief minister.

In a stinging letter to BJP president Rajnath Singh that was made public, Advani said he found it "difficult to reconcile either with the current functioning of the party or the direction in which it is going".

The three-para letter made no reference to Modi, who for years enjoyed Advani's patronage, but its tone made it evident that the resignation was linked to his elevation at a party meet in Goa Sunday.

By Cycling Sultan

By IANS,

Lucknow : The Uttar Pradesh government would soon undertake a drive to map relatively unknown Sufi sites in the state and develop them into heritage tourism spots, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said.

The tourism department would be entrusted with identifying relatively unknown Sufi sites and further developing popular Sufi sites in the state, the chief minister announced here late Monday.

"A lot of initiatives have been taken to promote tourism in Uttar Pradesh. In the coming days, I am sure the development of Sufi sector could be a great boon for the state," Yadav said after releasing a book titled "A Leaf Turns Yellow - the Sufis of Avadh", authored by filmmaker Muzaffar Ali.

The chief minister regretted that despite the state being one of the prominent centres of Sufism for hundreds of years, many Sufi sites have been lost and are unknown to the present generation.

"It will be the endeavour of the state government to find them and restore their lost glory," the chief minister said.

By Subhash K. Jha, IANS,

Mumbai : Shabana Azmi is the most academically qualified actress in India by far and now the veteran actress is all set to receive another doctorate, this time from the Simon Fraser University in Vancouver Wednesday.

This would be the "Masoom" actress's fourth honorary degree. Earlier, she has received the same honour from Leeds University in Britain, the Jamia Millia Islamia and the Jadavpur University.

"It's good to be honoured in a domain away from my home ground. For the academic world to acknowledge my contribution is gratifying. Yes, this is my fourth doctorate," said the actress known for her roles in "Junoon", "Sparsh", "Saaz" and "Earth".

A poor auto-wala succumbs to police brutality away from media glare.

By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net,

Hyderabad: Khaki brutality in our nation is not a new dilemma, every day we come across gruesome cases of extreme police cruelty on people whom law provided their custody. It is often reported when it falls in radius of media in cities and major towns, but there are many victims like Shiekh Javed in rural lands where their story is being buried deep away from any media glare.

Arrested for ‘obstructing legal duty’

On April 20, earlier this year, after day long work with his rented Auto rickshaw, Shiekh Javed was having a ‘light moment’ with his friend Jagan at midnight near Vidyanagar water tank. He was a resident of village located in the outskirts of Sricilla town in Karimnagar district, but use to spend much of his time in passenger carrying service in the town.

Javed's faimly members

Two police officers on bike, one constable and other home guard approached the duo and got into a verbal spat. Very soon the constable called the Sircilla Police Station circle inspector who took Javed into custody and booked him under Section 353 of IPC (obstructing government servant from discharging duties).

The family of Javed claimed that constable was asking ‘Mamool’ (weekly bribe) as Javed have earlier given the same, but this time he got agitated and was caught into a verbal spat, the officers booked him in false case to make a lesson out of him. While police maintain that Javed was intoxicated and abused the officers on night duty.

For next two days, 25 year old Javed have to stay in jail, and only on the evening of 23 April he got bail and returned to his small kacha house where he was living with his ailing mother. His family claims that when he returned back he had serious head injury, which according to Javed, was inflicted upon him by the CI with revolver grip.

Javed succumbs to head injuries

For two long days he complained about serious pain in his head, on 25 April he got seizures and was quickly rushed to a government hospital in Sricilla town, where doctors refused to admit him as he was already unconsciousness. In order to save his life humble family has to take him to Karimnagar city at CAR hospital, where doctors informed the family that injury over his head has caused cerebral hemorrhage in brain tissue, which urgently need to be operated.

His extended family put up money together and aided his operation in that private hospital, his operation was successful, but he had to stay for more 25 days in the clinical care. His family had to take him out from the hospital on May 20th as the bills were becoming unbearable.

Javed, even after his family’s best efforts, couldn’t get complete treatment due to their economic conditions, but he was recovering on medicines in his home and even started communicating through hand signals. However suddenly something unexpected struck them again, Javed again got seizures on 31st May and was rushed to the same hospital, on 1st June at 8:0 pm in ICU, where he breathed his last.

Doctors told his family that hemorrhage in brain tissue was caused as the head injury wasn’t completely treated when Javed was shifted out of hospital due to financial problems, and that hemorrhage caused more bleeds in his brain tissue, leading to seizures and his subsequent death.

His Uncle claims Javed was beaten up in police custody

Deceased Sheikh Javed’s uncle Ghulam Samdani, speaking with TwoCircles.net, told that there is no doubt in his mind that police is responsible for his nephew’s death. He said, “When I met Javed on second day of his arrest in the court room, he was crying and trying to show the injury on his head which was covered with balm to stop the bleeding. When I asked him did police beat him in the jail, he started crying and didn’t give any answer, as two officers were escorting him. But his crying eyes already gave me my answer. When he got back on bail I asked him again to conform his cry, and again with numb eyes he told me that the Inspector had beaten him up with police revolver accusing him of insulting police.”

Mr. Samdani who work as attendant in district court said they didn’t inform the hospital in which he was admitted that it was a police torture case fearing that hospital will ask them to complete formalities. Thus no postmortem was done on his body, and now his mother and one elder brother who lives separately is afraid of fighting against police.

Javed’s uncle also added that Javed did not have any previous seizures and that only after getting injury on head he started developing epilepsy and subsequent hemorrhage.

Ghulam Samdani further told TCN that it is nothing but a case of a poor worker who refused to pay his weekly bribe ‘Hafta’ to collector cop, which led to his inhuman beating, incarceration and subsequent painful death.

Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee, in its fact finding report, stated that local police has threatened the family members of Javed from filing any complaint against police officers who arrested them. Citing reports of Javed’s medical treatment, APCLC claimed that hemorrhage in his brain tissue developed before he got admitted to the hospital which was caused by a powerful hit on his skull, which clearly indicates, he was beaten up in police custody.

APCLC also claimed that harassment of workers in Sircilla town who failed to give Mamools to police is becoming rampant.

Death from torture medically impossible: Police

Local police Circle Inspector Nagendar Chari who arrested Javed on the night of April 20 and allegedly beat him up denied all charges. Speaking with TCN, he refuted all the allegations leveled against him and his department by family and human rights groups.

He reiterated that Javed was drunk and obstructed night patrolling officer’s legal duty. CI Nagendar Chari even claimed that Javed used to quarrel a lot with police even in Jail but neither he nor his station staffs ever tried to beat him. Inspector also refuted the claim that his cops got into verbal spat with Javed over collection of ‘Hafta’, he said, “This is a small rural town, it’s not Mumbai, people leveling this allegations against us, and want to scare us in executing our duties.”

He denied that family is leveling allegation against him of torture by stating that Javed’s family till date didn’t file any complain with the police. Inspector also claimed that local civil rights groups are instigating family to malign him.

Inspector Chari went on to say that even medically Javed’s death is not possible by police torture. He said, “Javed died 1 ½ month after getting out on bail, medical reports claim that he died of cerebral hemorrhage, he was in police custody for nearly three days, if he was beaten to an extent of getting hemorrhage he would have died within 40-60 hours without any treatment.” Police claimed that Javed was fine and healthy in their custody, it was only after he got out on bail he suffered from seizures and hemorrhage.

On the allegation of threats to the family against filing any complain, inspector giggled and then said, “We are officers not rowdy elements; I didn’t even speak to any of their family members.”

On questioning even after this kind of serious allegation of death due to torture, why didn’t police conduct post-mortem? Inspector said they couldn’t do it as family didn’t file any written complaint of torture.

Another state base Human rights group Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee (CLMC) commenting on the case said Sheikh Javed’s death is highly suspicious as police inspector does not seem in a position to give rational answer on his death. CLMC said that police stations are increasingly becoming dangerous place especially for Muslims. Committee demanded that this case should be deal with the provisions of communal violence bill.

‘Police manages to diminish wall for justice’

Even as civil rights groups are holding cannons against police as APCLC demanding CID inquiry into the death, and CLMC stating that it is planning to approach State minorities commission and Human Rights commission, family of Sheikh Javed and local Muslims who on the day of his death even threatened of going on hunger strike with dead body in front of Superintendent Police camp office is now literally numb; they are not even ready to say a word against police.

Local sources told TCN that police who was increasingly getting in the line of fire managed the poor family by giving them Rs. 4, 50,000 as informal compensation, by keeping one local MIM leader as intermediary. The police thus saved its face and bolted the mouth of the victim’s family and local Muslims.

In this all managing play of our police, at the end of the day Sheikh Javed who is buried deep in some rural hamlet and whole society emerges as the biggest loser, as the saying goes ‘justice denied anywhere diminishes justice everywhere’. Justice is the true parameter to portray the image of our society and the nation, of who we are and what we stand for.

By TCN News,

New Delhi: Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam, General Secretary of All India Milli Council, has written an open letter to the senior BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani.

Comparing the 2002 Gujarat pogrom and the demolition of Babri mosque and subsequent communal riots, Dr Alam writes, “Now that you are likely to have more time,), we hope you would think in larger, non-sectarian terms to benefit the whole country, including the religious minorities and other weaker sections.”

According to Dr Alam this the seventh letter he has written to the former Deputy Prime Minister.

He further writes, “We hope that with your age and experience you will choose to guide and work for all of us, rather than lending your support to people who want to impose a one-sided civil war on minorities, especially Muslims.”

And added, “We also hope that you will own up to a measure of responsibility for the monumental violence against Muslims and try to steer a peaceful path of co-existence and mutual understanding rather than permanent conflict.”

Full text of the letter:

Mr. L K Advani
Leader of Opposition in Parliament
New Delhi

Dear Sir,

This is one of the letters we have been writing you in crucial moments of our country. Curiously, we have yet to get a reply.

This letter, too, is being written to you at a crucial moment, when Shri Narendra Modi of Gujarat 2002 infamy is lunging for prime ministerial chair and you have been reported to have “resigned from all your party positions”. As far as we are concerned, it could as well be a tactical move.

For us, Muslims, it may not have much significance as there is hardly any choice between being killed in Ayodhya 1992 under your able leadership or in 2002 Gujarat mass murder of Muslims under the supervision of Shri Modi.

What interests us more is that you will now have more time to pay a look at the great killing of innocent Muslims in 1992 and your solid backing to Shri Modi in post-Gujarat killings in staying CM. We hope you will give a thought to such blatantly anti-Muslim politics and the moral justification for it.

Now that you are likely to have more time (supposing that you will not be sucked back into the party and embark on the old destructive path once again), we hope you would think in larger, non-sectarian terms to benefit the whole country, including the religious minorities and other weaker sections.

The fire lit in Ayodhya consumed thousands of lives, mainly Muslims, as it spread to Mumbai and other areas, crossing even Indo-Pak and Indo-Bangla borders. Even Gujarat 2002 had an Ayodhya connection. The fire of hatred is crackling and burning today also in people’s hearts. Such fire has a tendency to consume even the person that stokes it. The fire is still being stoked by people like Shri Modi and Shri Togadia (even though they do not see eye to eye any longer).

This is the seventh letter I am writing to you, without getting a reply or a courteous acknowledgement, as written above.

We hope that with your age and experience you will choose to guide and work for all of us, rather than lending your support to people who want to impose a one-sided civil war on minorities, especially Muslims. We also hope that you will own up to a measure of responsibility for the monumental violence against Muslims and try to steer a peaceful path of co-existence and mutual understanding rather than permanent conflict.

With this we wish for a long, healthy life, and fruitful work for integration and brother/sisterhood.

With profound regards,

Yours sincerely,

(Dr. M. Manzoor Alam)
General Secretary, AIMC

http://www.iosworld.org/download/letter_to_MrLKAdvani.pdf

By IANS,

New Delhi : The Supreme Court Tuesday dismissed a petition of Additional Director General of Gujarat Police Puthvipal P. Pandey challenging an arrest warrant issued against him in the 2004 staged shootout killing of Ishrat Jahan and three others.

The apex court bench of Justice Gyan Sudha Misra and Justice Madan B. Lokur said the petitioner, a Gujarat cadre Indian Police Service officer, could not approach them for challenging the arrest warrant issued by a magistrate without approaching the high court.

Besides seeking the quashing of the arrest warrant, Pandey had sought the quashing of the second first information report (FIR) filed in the case on the direction of the Gujarat High Court after the investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

An Ahmedabad magistrate had issued the non-bailable arrest warrant against Pandey May 2. The CBI has told the apex court that Pandey is absconding.

Mumbai college girl Ishrat Jahan, Pranesh Gopinath Pilai, Amjad Ali and Jishan Johar were killed by Gujarat Police in a staged shootout June 15, 2004, in Ahmedabad.

At the outset of the hearing, senior counsel Shekhar Naphade, appearing for the police officer, told the court that matter may be adjourned for the next day (Wednesday) as Pandey had filed another petition challenging the Dec 1, 2011, high court order directing the registration of the second FIR in the shootout case and handing over the investigation to the CBI.

Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaisinh opposed the adjournment plea and said the Gujarat Police officer moved court to challenge the Dec 1, 2011, order of the high court only after she pointed out in the course of the last hearing that the order by which investigation was handed over to the CBI had never been impugned.

As Naphade pressed his plea for adjournment, the court said the subject matter of the plea before the court was different from one being raised by him.

The court told Naphade that the question was whether plea for quashing of the FIR could be gone into under Article 32 of the Constitution.

Jaisinh opposed the suggestion of maintaining status quo till the matter was taken up for hearing, which meant that the warrant against Pandey would not be enforced.

As court asked how Pandey's plea for quashing the FIR and arrest warrant was maintainable, Naphade said that all the high court's orders, including the direction for the registration of the second FIR and handing over of the investigation to the CBI, were patently illegal.

As the court rejected Pandey's plea for quashing the second FIR and his arrest warrant, Naphade said his petition challenging the Dec 1, 2011, order of the high court could be taken up at a later stage.

By TCN News,

New Delhi: A number of students and teachers of the University of Delhi staged a protest demonstration in front of Ministry of Human Resources Development at Shastri Bhawan today.

A meeting of the Standing Committee of National Monitoring Committee for Education of SCs, STs and Persons with Disabilities was in session at that time. The teachers and students demanded that the Standing Committee should place the question of Four Year Undergraduate Programme of Delhi University on the agenda of National Monitoring Committee as it adversely affects the students coming from the Scheduled Castes and Tribes, and Persons with Disabilities.

The protestors from Campus Front of India, Save DU, DSU, AISA, SUI and others raised the slogans against MHRD and UGC for not stopping the FYUP even after eminent academicians of the country presented them with the major flaws the FYUP to be launched by DU in July 2013.

The demonstration continued till the representatives of various teachers and students organisations were given an opportunity to present before the Standing Committee about how FYUP adversely affects the SC, ST and Disabled students.

A delegation of three teachers were invited to the Standing Committee meeting at around 12.30 pm and given time to make a brief presentation. Professor Thorat was in chair. The Committee listened carefully to the presentations of major issues with FYUP.

The delegates presented the plight of SC, ST and OBC students and teachers at Delhi University. They also presented how FYUP flushes out students coming from all marginalised communities. The representatives urged the Committee to place the FYUP as part of the National Monitoring Committee for Education of SCs, STs and Persons with Disabilities. They also requested the members of the Standing Committee to deliberate on FYUP and stop its implementation at least for a year to study its ramifications by expert academicians. They also explained the Committee how the lack of preparation of study material of the new course in accessible formats for the visually challenged teachers and students hampers their teaching-learning process.

The delegation presented how the Vice-chancellor claimed the meetings and academic congress he conducted as part of the consultations on FYUP, whereas in reality there were no such consultations in all those meetings on the new Course. Similarly, the outcome of the discussions of those meetings was not even placed in the AC and EC meetings at any point of time. As a result the teachers have never been in a position to discuss the implications FYUP for the SC, ST, OBC, Minority students and persons with disabilities within the University forums.

Professor Thorat accepted a representation from the delegation and advised them to seek permission from HRD Minister to represent themselves at tomorrow’s meeting of National Monitoring Committee for Education of SCs, STs and Persons with Disabilities at Vignan Bhwan. The Delegation has immediately approached the Office of the HRD Minister and submitted a written request for permission to represent themselves and place their views on FYUP in the meeting.

By IANS,

New Delhi : India has sought a hike in the Haj quota and also requested Saudi Arabia to reconsider its decision of slashing the numbers of Haj pilgrims, an official said Tuesday.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said here Tuesday that India is in regular dialogue with the Saudi authorities in view of the growth in numbers of Indians wanting to go for the annual pilgrimage.

Last year over 1,25,000 Indian pilgrims went for Haj.

Akbaruddin added that India has indicated to the kingdom that India will “require slightly larger numbers” this year.

To a query regarding 20 percent reduction in Haj quota for all pilgrims coming from outside, the spokesperson said later that India has been informed by the Saudi government “that they intend to bring about reduction of 50 percent internal pilgrims from Saudi Arabia for the Haj and 20 percent from all pilgrims overseas”.

“Given the fact that the processes for Haj pilgrimage have already been initiated, we have requested the Saudi authorities both in Delhi and in Riyadh to reconsider their decision taking into account the advanced stage of preparations. We are awaiting a response from them,” he added.

According to an answer last year by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid to the Rajya Sabha on Haj quota: “As per bilateral Haj agreement signed between Government of India and Saudi Arabia, the quota allocated to India for Haj-2012 was 1,70,000 with 1,25,000 to go through the Haj Committee of India (HCOI) and 45,000 through Private Tour Operators (PTOs)."

By IANS,

Patna : The Bihar cabinet Tuesday approved a grant of Rs.5,000 per month to 17-year-old conjoined twins living in Patna, an official said.

"The state cabinet has cleared a grant of Rs.5,000 to conjoined twins Saba and Farah," Cabinet Secretary Brajesh Mehrotra told media persons here.

He said the state government had agreed to pay the grant following a Supreme Court directive in April.

The court ordered the Bihar government to pay the twins and take care of their medical expenses. The court direction came on a public interest litigation filed by Aarushi Dhasmana, a law student at Symbiosis Law School in Pune.

Saba and Farah are living with their parents in Samanpura locality in Patna.

The father of the girls, Shakeel Ahmad, said it would help the family take proper care of them. Ahmad runs a small roadside eatery here.

The Supreme Court in its order had ruled out surgery to separate the two sisters as the parents were not willing.

By IANS,

New Delhi : India said Tuesday it is looking to help its expatriate workers in Kuwait who would be affected by the Gulf nation's decision to reduce the number of its overseas workers even as 72,000 Indians have applied in neighbouring Saudi Arabia for Emergency Certificates to return home over the kingdom's new work policy.

Kuwait, where around 700,000 Indians work, has announced a policy ro reduce the number of its expatriate workers over a 10-year period. The Kuwaiti government's policy would affect only those workers who have invalid visas, said external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin at a briefing here.

Explaining, he said those Indian workers who had entered on a domestic worker visa but took up a job in a different category would be affected.

He said the Indian embassy there was working to help the affected Indian workers and added that the measure was "not targetted at Indians" who comprise the largest expatriate workforce. The embassy there has issued around 8,000 Emergency Certificates to Indian workers. The Kuwait government has offered to pay for the return airfare of the Indian workers till Mumbai. The Indian embassy will pay the Indians the remaining amount that they need to go from Mumbai till their home destination, he informed.

In neighbouring Saudi Arabia, where 2.8 million Indians work, the Indian embassy has issued Emergency Certificates to 72,000 Indians to help them return home.

According to Akbaruddin, India has taken up with Saudi Arabia the Nitaqat issue, under which it is mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers, at both the political and local level.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid had visited Saudi Arabia on May 24-27, the first visit by an Indian foreign minister in the last five years, during which he had discussed the kingdom's Nitaqat work policy with the authorities.

His visit followed that a high level Indian delegation, led by Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi, to the kingdom to discuss with the Saudi labour ministry how to help the Indians who would be affected.

Akbaruddin said the Nitaqat law is not targetted at Indians and the Saudi authorities have praise for the Indian workers.

The embassy at Riyadh and the consulate at Jeddah has been working to help the Indians by setting up help desks and employing volunteers to assist the Indian workers.

The kingdom had announed in April a three-month grace period which would end July 3. The spokesperson said he did not have any exact figures of how many Indians would be affected.

By Ayesha Ansari, TwoCircles.net,

Mau, UP: “Without reservation in government jobs and educational institutions the development of Muslim community is not possible. Unless the Muslims are given equal opportunity in every walk of life the Muslim community will remain backward,” said Dr. Shakeel Samdani, president of Sir Syed Awareness Forum and a senior law faculty of the Aligarh Muslim University.

Dr Samdani was the Chief Guest in ‘Talent Spotter Award Function’ organized by Superior Group of Institution at Sir Iqbal Public School, Mau in UP. Superior Group of Institutions had organized a competition for Science and general knowledge for the first time in this small town in which about 1500 students participated. About 100 students were given attractive prizes by the organizers.

Dr. Shakeel Samdani speaking at the function.

The first prize was secured by Nadeem Akhtar ( Shibli National College ), second prize by Mohd Nasir ( Talimuddin Inter College )and the third prize was bagged by Shahid Kamal ( Talimuddin Inter College ). They got computer, micromax mobile and water filter respectively. President of Superior Group, Miss Rizwana, manager, Rashid Jamal and deputy manager, Imran Asad said that there is no dearth of talent in Mau and we have to find them. Mr. Owais Tarafdar and Mr Bharatlal Rahhi also spoke on this occasion. The function was presided by Mr. Sarvesh Dubey, Principle A.L Nomani College.

Dr Samdani said that in 50% open quota the Muslims are getting about 3% jobs, had it been 100% they would have secured 6%. Since this is not possible in independent India, the only possible way to enhance the Muslim ratio in jobs and admissions is to extend the benefit of reservation to them. They may be given reservation under Article 16 clause (4) or their separate quota being fixed in OBC category of 27%.

Regarding Urdu language, he said that India is the birth place of Urdu and this language flourished in British India. After independence Urdu was denied its due share and importance due to government apathy and discrimination. The biggest loss to the entire nation is that the people of India are unable to pronounce certain words correctly. This is a national loss which can be rectified only by teaching Urdu in schools and colleges.He expressed his unhappiness on non implementation of election promises by the Samajwadi government in UP.

Dr. Samdani also appealed to the students to work hard to come at par with their Hindu brethren and equip themselves with modern state of the art techniques and infrastructure as it is the only way to achieve success. He expressed his happiness that the students of a small city like Mau are organizing such wonderful and excellent programs.

Samajwadi Party leader, Altaf Ansari said that to brighten the future we will have to make arrangement for that. Struggle is mandatory and without struggle progress is not possible. He promised that the issues raised by Prof. Samdani will be communicated to the Chief Minister and top functionaries of the government.

Manager of Sir Iqbal Public School Uzair Girhast, while addressing the participants said that the target should be fixed and then effort should be made to achieve that. Non Muslims have progressed too much and the Muslims are far behind. The competition is very tough and for that hard work is must. He also emphasized for female education. He advised the parents to devote their time and energy for the future of their children.

The function was conducted by Asif Iqbal, Vakil Ahmad and Rashid Jamal collectively. Mohd Haris, Shafiq ur Rahman, Shahbaz Alam, Zeba Tasneem and Shamshul Haq played an important role in organizing this program.

Later on the convener of ‘Urdu Padhao Tahkeeq’ (Teach Urdu Movement) Mr. Ozair Girhast organized a meeting with Dr. Shakeel Samdani and discussed ways and means to teach Urdu language to the new generation.

By TCN News

New Delhi: K. Rahman Khan, the Union Minister of Minority Affairs has directed the Department of Personnel and Training that there should be at least one member belonging to the minority committee in all Selection Boards/Committees set up for recruitment in Government and Public Sector units.

This has been a recommendation of the Prime Minister’s 15-point programme which as Sachar Committee noted has largely been ignored.

In a meeting with representatives of industrial groups like CII, FICCI and PHDCCI, Minister Khan urged industries to help promote employment opportunities for minorities in public and private sector.

The Minister asked them to join hands with the efforts and initiatives of the Ministry as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility for Skill Development. Referring to Multi-sectoral Development Programme (MsDP) of the Ministry for creation of infrastructure like ITIs, Polytechnics etc. in minority concentration blocks and towns.

The Minister also suggested to launch a sustained awareness campaign to disseminate information on the initiatives taken by the Ministry in partnership with Private Sector. Elaborating about the activities of Maulana Azad Educational Foundation, Mr. Khan wanted that all efforts must be made to make use of MAEF as a vehicle for educational advancement of minorities. The Minister urged that the resources of private business houses can be provided to MAEF under the Corporate Social Responsibility for the development of minorities in the fields of education, infrastructure development, providing scholarships, skill development and entrepreneurial development.

Informing that Government intends to give incentive to the institution that promote diversity, the Minister also wanted to know what else Government can do for such institutions.

The officials from Ministry of Labour and Employment, Department of Personnel and Training, Department of Public Enterprises, representatives of CII, FICCI, PHDCCI along with the senior officers of the Ministry of Minority Affairs attended the meeting.

By Mohit Dubey, IANS,

Lucknow : As Amit Shah, the controversial close confidante of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, arrived here Wednesday on his maiden visit to Uttar Pradesh, opinion is divided on his ability to deliver the country's most populous state to the BJP.

While the BJP's old guard is edgy about Shah's entry into UP politics, the new generation leaders feel the newly-appointed general secretary in-charge of the party's state unit could bring in the "much awaited generational change".

The popularity of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been on tehe decline in the state for the last one decade.

Those were heydays of the Ram Janma Bhoomi movement, an old-timer pointed out while admitting that "such a spectacular turnaround is not possible now".

He, however, conceded that Shah could be a "polarising factor" in the state, which is "on the boil due to minority appeasement policies of the Samajwadi Party (SP) government".

"We are very hopeful that Amit Shah's entry into UP will reap rich dividends for us," said BJP's state spokesperson Vijay Pathak. Pointing out that the Narendra Modi team had repeatedly proven its mettle in election management, Pathak added that a road map would soon be chalked out for the party.

"People have become disenchanted with the state as well as the union government. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is still a rejected lot. I feel the time is ripe for us to cash on the anti-incumbency," said Hriday Narayan Dixit, a BJP veteran and former state minister.

The younger generation in the BJP says that Amit Shah and his team will "add value" to the party's fight in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.

The BJP for long has not had a vote-rich face in the state. The tallest state leader the BJP had was former chief minister Kalyan Singh, who twice left the party in a huff - first after his tiff with former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and later when he was not allowed to handpick candidates for the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.

The party, which had 182 seats and a 25 percent vote share in the late 1990's, has now been pushed out of contention in Uttar Pradesh.

With the rise of Samajwadi Party and the BSP, the political space has shrunk for national parties in UP.

However, political observer and senior journalist Rajiv Ranjan Jha said: "The BJP is well-placed to take on the Congress nationally in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls."

"The fact remains that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) at the centre is scam tainted and the SP state government has not much to show. I think the BJP will do well this time," he added.

A party source said that Shah's entry would also herald a "corporate-politics nexus" based on the Gujarat model and electioneering will become more jazzy, tech-savvy and modern.

"The old guard, both at the central and state levels, would perish now. The generational change taking place within the party is coming to UP in the form of Amit Shah," the source said.

A close aide pointed out that Shah knows he is against an "uphill task".

"UP is a dicy and huge state. It has its own political thought. One has to completely understand how things play out here, and that is why Amit bhai has extended his stay in the state by another day," he said.

To understand the politics of UP, Amit Shah would spend two days in the state capital and would hold meetings with all state unit functionaries, eight regional presidents, general secretaries, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leaders and party workers.

There is also a clamour in the state unit about seeing Narendra Modi contesting from a Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh and party sources say that Varanasi and Lucknow could be the potential seats for the Gujarat satrap.

(Mohit Dubey can be contacted at mohit.d@ians.in)

By Ravi M. Khanna, IANS,

The controversial BJP decision to elevate hardliner Narendra Modi to run the party’s campaign in 2014 elections and ruthlessly sideline a leader such as L.K. Advani is bound to damage its image, but let us not forget that it is a decisive victory for the RSS, which forced BJP President Rajnath Singh, from behind the scenes, to go ahead with the drastic step.

Hardline groups such as RSS, Shiv Sena and Vishwa Hindu Parishad have been waiting in the wings for decades to somehow harden the BJP’s Hindu nationalist image by encouraging leaders like Modi to lead the party campaigns and also the party.

Surprisingly, some BJP leaders and most of the Indian media are describing it as a personal feud between a senior and a junior leader of the party. But apparently it is more than that. Advani realizes that Modi is perceived as a divisive and controversial force that can damage the party’s chances of heading a coalition in 2014. Who can deny that Advani is the same leader who in the past did step aside when he realized that Atal Behari Vajpayee would prove to be a better prime minister for the party than him.

Anyhow, the appointment of Modi as the chairman of the BJP’s 2014 Election Management Committee has set the stage for next year’s Lok Sabha elections, which now will be a contest between Modi on one side and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on the other. So the fight will now be between the two parivars - the Sangh Parivar and the Gandhi Parivar.

It is very convenient for the Sangh Parivar to say that the ongoing feud is nothing more than a manifestation of the internal democracy of the party. But the fact remains that the old guard has openly expressed its concern that elevating a known Hindu hardliner as the top national leader in the party could be a big gamble in today’s India. The simple reason is that the number of hardline Hindu voters in India is much less than the total number of liberal Hindus and minorities combined.

Modi sees his leadership as the best bet for the BJP in 2014 polls. He cites his three consecutive victories in the Gujarat elections, his rapport with India’s top industrialists and the economic development he has achieved in Gujarat as his top qualities to be projected as the prime ministerial candidate. Although his personality is not charismatic, his ability to rebutting the Congress party slogans is great and his criticism of some of the present government policies is valid. But the problem is he also carries the taint of the 2002 Gujarat riots and an almost visceral hate for Muslims.

There was a time in 2004 when the most accepted BJP leader and then prime minister Vajpayee also distanced himself from Modi. He had asked Modi not to discriminate between Hindus and Muslims in the aftermath of the 2002 Gujarat violence and had pushed for his resignation as chief minister. And when the BJP lost the elections, Vajpayee held the violence in Gujarat as one of the main reasons and acknowledged that not removing Modi immediately after the Gujarat violence was a mistake. Modi, instead had tried to equate the Gujarat violence with the 9/11 terror attacks in the US and responded to a newspaper's criticism that compared him to Hitler by saying: "I have not read and I would not like to read (the criticism).”

Perception matters a lot in politics. And when one talks to Indian voters and watches the TV talk shows about Indian politics, Modi’s image comes across as a dictatorial leader who has never felt any need to express any regrets about the 2002 riots, who is ruthlessly in a hurry to rule India and who doesn’t care about the country’s minorities and feels that his party can win the elections with the support of just the Hindu majority of the country.

Modi, according to some experts, comes across as a crude politician who does not have any political “sanskars” and does not have an open mind and the charisma for running a country like India. The way Modi sent his supporters to demonstrate outside Advani’s home in Delhi; the way he treated a whistle blower (senior IPS officer Kuldip Sharma) who exposed some of his controversial actions, and the way he allegedly shunned his wife are some clear indications that he can use any means to achieve what he thinks is right. Deep down he is an authoritarian man ill at ease with dissent. Even his wife has alleged that she is afraid of losing her job and livelihood if she says something against her politically powerful husband.

The bottom line is that Modi is now set to face Rahul Gandhi, who, in a total contrast to Modi’s “clamouring approach” for the prime ministerial post, is using the “renunciation approach” with a touch of magnanimity. Rahul Gandhi has said he is in no hurry to become the prime minister because at first he wants to work for the unity of his party.

But Rahul Gandhi also has a perception problem. He comes across as a young man who has no experience at all of holding any position in the government or otherwise. His critics say he is surrounded by the most ineffective cronies led by a very insecure adviser like Kanishka Singh, who for his own job security has been limiting Rahul Gandhi’s exposure. The critics also say if he becomes the prime minister, it will not be because of his ability but because he is a member of the Gandhi dynasty.

But it is also clear that Rahul Gandhi’s ‘sanskars’ are solid. When he says becoming the prime minister is not his top priority, he means it. He did not say he does not want to become the prime minister, but only that it is not his top priority and that the party comes first.

Rahul has perhaps inherited this quality from his mother. For years after Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, Sonia Gandhi kept on rejecting the party leadership until one day all senior politicians, who were fighting over it, forced her to become the Congress chief.
So at a time when cracks are appearing in the BJP’s unity, Rahul Gandhi comes across as a Congress leader who is trying to unite his Congress party by making it more democratic and giving more power to the middle ranks.

The young Congress vice-president, it seems, is following his father’s footsteps. But, unlike his father, he doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to implement the changes overnight. Rahul Gandhi, with his hard work and interaction with the grassroots for the past nine years, probably realizes, more than his father did, how murky and ruthless Indian politics can be. And perhaps he also realizes that once he is able to democratize the party and empower the neglected ranks in the Congress, he will automatically become their natural choice for leading them in parliament.

Whatever the results, one thing is certain that next year’s Lok Sabha elections are bound to have far reaching repercussions for Indian politics. Also, the RSS victory in forcing the BJP to sideline the more acceptable moderate leaders and elevate a Hindu hardliner for the 2014 polls can prove to be a tipping point for the world’s largest democracy.

(Ravi M. Khanna has covered the South Asian political scene for Voice of America from Washington and New Delhi for more than 24 years. He can be contacted at ravimohankhanna@gmail.com)

By TCN News,

Ahmedabad: Muslim Students’ organization of India (MSO) National Executive passed a project to ‘moralize’ the colleges and University campuses of the country. The National camp was held on 8th June, Saturday at Hotel Le-Meridian in Ahmedabad, where delegates from 20 states of the country participated.

The camp also put forward a whole year plan including formation of MSO state committees, District committees, Local and campus committees, membership campaigns and establishing Hostels.Formation of MSO planning board was also announced in the meeting with Dr.Abdul Hakeem Azhari, Dr.Sarwar Alam, Advocate Shahnawaz Warsi and Syed Thurab Thangal as its members.

While R.P Hussain from Kerala was declared as new General Secretary of the organization with Syed Muhammad Qadri continuing his post of President.

The program was inaugurated by the Daryapur MLA, Giyasuddin Sheikh. Vice Chancellor of Sunni Markaz, Calicut Dr. Hussain Saqafi presided over the programme. Maulana Shauqat Naeemi from J & K spoke on the need and necessity of students’ movement.

By IANS,

New Delhi : With the BJP having weathered a crisis soon after his elevation as the chief of party's campaign committee for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is unlikely to find the going easy in his new role that will require straddling intra-party tussles and strengthening bridges with allies.

Modi had begun his new innings on a high note, declaring after the BJP's national executive meeting in Goa Sunday that "a job well begun, is half won". But the words sounded hollow as Bharatiya Janata Party patriarch L.K. Advani resigned from his three organisational posts Monday, taking the focus away from Modi's newfound stardom.

The crisis blew over only with the intervention of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the BJP, but reinforced views about fissures in the party.

Analysts said it will not be easy for Modi to take the BJP-led NDA to power in the 2014 polls as he faces a multitude of challenges.

Nisar Ul Haq, a professor of political science at Jamia Milia Islamia, said Modi will not find the going easy as there was "no unanimity" about him in the BJP.

"You are seeing clearly one set of people are aligned with Advani and would not like Modi to be the prime ministerial candidate. The BJP clearly is a divided house," Haq told IANS.

Haq said it was possible that BJP improved its tally from 116 to 140-150 seats in 2014 but that will mainly be due to the dissatisfection of the people with the ruling United Progressive Alliance and not due to Modi being helming the BJP's campaign.

He said Modi's influence was "limited" to Gujarat.

Haq also added that Modi's elevation will cause polarization of Muslims against the BJP, due to which the Congress and regional parties will gain.

"There is no unanimity in the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) on his name. Look at the stance of JD-U," Haq said.

Janata Dal-United is opposed to projecting Modi as the NDA's prime ministerial candidate.

A.S. Narang, a professor of political science at the Indira Gandhi National Open University, felt Modi can succeed if there is no factionalism in the BJP.

He said Modi would have limited appeal for people in rural areas as they were not drawn by his vaunted growth rhetoric.

"People in rural areas would be largely influenced by caste and local issues in the next Lok Sabha election," he said.

"In the urban electorate, there is a intellectual class opposed to Modi," Narang pointed out.

Referring to criticism about the personality cult associated with Modi, Narang said the Gujarat chief minister could be more consultative in his new role.

"It will be clear in a few months how he operates," Narang said.

Modi will face challenges improving BJP's stock in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka due to the party's problems in the two states. The BJP does not count for much in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and is a minor player in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.

It has also suffered setbacks in the past elections in Odisha and Assam.

G.V.L. Narasimha Rao, a member of BJP's electoral reforms committee, admitted that Modi will face challenge in states the party is weak but added that the Gujarat chief minister "loves challenges."

He said Modi will be able to maximize BJP's gains.

"The image he carries, he will be able to deliver astounding results for the BJP," Narsimhan said.

He said the party could win over 200 seats with Modi as the face of party's campaign.

"I don't see any internal challenges (to Modi)," he said.

BJP MP from Meerut Rajendra Agarwal said Modi's record "as a good administrator" will be an asset during the Lok Sabha campaign.

"The next election will be fought on the issues of corruption and good governance. Modi has a very good record on this," he said.

Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam asks countrymen and women to give a moment’s thought to where the country is headed for as corporate media tomtoms Modi as next Prime Minister.

Narendra Modi of Gujarat 2002 infamy is on a roll. India’s corporate media is acting as if the silent majority spread over villages, talukas, mofassils, district towns, state capitals and NCR does not exist, as if it is not the “Little Citizen” who will decide the future of India with his precious vote, but the corporate boss sitting in his air-conditioned cabin and the moneybag manipulating things from behind the screen. People are still important, and urban middle class Modi fans are not the only people India has: Modiwadis are just a small fraction of the sea of humanity called Bharat.

What is bothersome is the inspiration behind Moditva, and the methodologies and modalities it employs. The inspiration, as the RSS stalwart Guru Golwalker clearly explained in his We, or Our Nationhood Defined decades back, is Hitler and his Nazi party. Golwalker approvingly talks about Hitler’s genocide of Jews to be replicated in India by a similar mass murder of Muslims. Since then the Sangh and its fronts like BJP, VHP, Bajrang Dal and others have been busy creating new opportunities for mass murder of Muslims through smaller “riots” (like 37 episodes under Akhilesh rule in UP) or bigger pogroms like Ayodhya 92 and Gujarat 2002.

The Sangh has been steadily doing it since as far back as 1947, when the ICS officer Madhav Godbole seized a trunk full of RSS maps and plans for ethnic cleansing of Muslims. They have not always succeeded in polarising and dividing people because of the primarily secular and plural nature of India. For reaching 102 seats in Parliament from a mere two they staged the mass killing of Muslims in 1992-93. Mr Modi took up the Sangh torch of hatred from LK Advani, who had emerged as a “hero” in their voters’ eyes just because of the anti-Muslim hysteria he had created.

Modi was protected from being sacked in 2002 by then Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Advani. His sacking would have been justified because of his dereliction of duty (to some, collusion with rioters) in the anti-Muslim pogrom. The Sangh has consistently been undermining the Constitution’s secular values. During NDA rule it even tried to change it.

What is happening today is ominously similar to what happened in the Germany of 1933 and the rise of Hitler with the help of German industry. Today, some of India’s major industrialists and their corporate media are openly backing Mr Modi as the future prime minster who will increase their profits by demolishing all the democratic and secular institutions of the state of India and by ensuring maximum profit on investments. What happens to people, who are not industrialists, the preponderant majority of this country?

Mahabharata, the account of the greatest fratricidal war ever, fascinates both Mr Modi and Mr Advani. A Mahabharata against Muslims of India is the dream of the Sangh stalwarts. The choice between Mr Modi and Mr Advani is that between a rock and a hard place.

By and large, the choice today is between constitutional rule and fascist thuggery; between the common good of the masses, the farmers, the working classes in villages, towns and cities, the peace-loving people of goodwill everywhere on one side and corporate money and Hitler’s chelas on the other.

The choice is very clear, very unambiguous. It is a choice between the idea of India and chaos.

(Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam is the General Secretary of All India Milli Council.)

By TwoCircles.net Special Correspondent,

Gurgaon/New Delhi: The Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) has demolished an Idgah-masjid in Palam Vihar in the district of Gurgaon in the National Capital Region (NCR) that according to locals was on Wakf land, but has illegally been acquired by HUDA.

According to Dr Asrarul Haque, a retired scientist with the Ministry of Environment and Forests and a resident of the locality, who is also a member of the mosque managing committee, said that the land is question is a Wakf property duly allotted to the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee since 2010. He added that HUDA legally has no jurisdiction as Wakf lands cannot be acquired by governments for any other use.

HUDA allegedly plans to develop the land for commercial purposes.

Dr Haque also informed TCN that they had written letters to the Haryana CM in May and were hopeful of amicable resolution. However, on 10 June 2013 HUDA officials came with a large posse of Police and with bulldozers in the morning and demolished all the structures on the site, including its gates, wall, arches meant to indicate the direction of prayer, the under construction store, guard room etc.

Ironically this is not the first instance of illegal encroachment of Wakf lands in the state. TCN had earlier reported how Wakf properties in the state of Haryana are not safe owing to escalating rise in the praise of land. Increasingly we are seeing rise in number of such cases owing to ‘collusion’ between Wakf Board members, land mafia – and as in this case by government authorities.

Background: Palam Vihar in Gurgaon is a recently developed colony, that earlier comprised of few villages surrounded by agricultural land. These villages had good number of Muslims before partition and hence naturally had mosques, graveyards etc. for their use. However, most of the Muslims had migrated during partition, and hence many of Wakf properties were left desolated.

With recent development of the area some Muslim families also came in the new colony i.e. Palam Vihar. They needed mosque for their prayers and graveyard as the resting place after death. The old mosque was thus reclaimed, although with great difficulties, although a large chunk of land surrounding the mosque, which was encroached by some of the villagers, could not be retrieved. Part of the old graveyard land was also reclaimed for burial.

As is the norm across country, the mosque and the graveyard are under the aegis of the Haryana Wakf Board. There was another mosque land (Idgah) belonging to the Haryana Wakf Board in the area. The said land has been in use by the Muslims of the area for their Id prayers and Friday prayers for very long time. There are documentary/photographic evidences of the same.

In 2010 the land was duly allotted by the Haryana Wakf Board to the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee for use as Idgah Mosque (Letter No. Dev/Hy-4/167/97/HWB/2010 204, dated 09.04.2010). During last about one year the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee got a boundary wall constructed there to keep the area clean and free from dogs, pigs and other stray animals. Gates were provided for proper entry.

The entire area was developed as a green area with lush green lawn and large nos. of trees. Also, a walkway was developed inside the area to facilitate residents of the area to use the same for morning/evening walk, most of the beneficiaries of which are non-Muslims. In addition, the entire area was developed for rain water harvesting, a first of its kind for any religious place. A store and a guard room were under construction to keep the prayer related articles and for the guard to stay for protection of the area.

Dispute: This Idgah-masjid land is a place of worship and in principle the land should not be acquired for any other purpose. But knowing the facts and ignoring the legal position of the land the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) and Land Acquisition Authority acquired the land in violation of Section 91 of the Wakf Act, 1995 and Standing Order No. 28 of Financial Commissioner dated 26.06.1909 (last revised on 09.03.1985) relating to acquisition of land for public purposes. Also, the Chairman, Joint Parliamentary Committee on Wakfs, during his visit to Haryana State on October 7, 2007, while presiding over a meeting of the Senior Officers of the State at Chandigarh, had categorically stated that the Wakf properties could not be sold or acquired or be used by the Government for providing public facilities.

Another important issue is that no prior consultations were held although the same were required as per Para 9.1 of Financial Commissioner’s Standing Order No. 28. Further, the Wakf Act, (Act No. 43 of 1995), Section 91(4) makes it mandatory that any order passed under Section 31 or Section 32 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 shall be void if done without giving the Wakf Board an opportunity to be heard. Still the land was acquired by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA).

Once the issue came to the notice of the Haryana Wakf Board, they regularly filed their objections with HUDA. But the HUDA authorities did not respond to the objections and went ahead with their acquisition process in clandestine manner.

According to the functionaries of the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee, they came to know of the acquisition only last month and they approached the Minister of Minority Affairs, Government of India and the Administrator, Haryana Wakf Board. They immediately sent detailed letters to the Chief Minister of Haryana on 14th May and 21st May, 2013 to get the land released from the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA). The Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee was quite hopeful about the outcome and they were waiting for action on the letters.

But on 10th June, 2013 the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) officials came with a large posse of Police and with bulldozers etc. at about 5.00 AM in the morning and demolished all the structures present there including the boundary walls, gates, arches meant to indicate the direction of prayer, the under construction store, guard room etc. They even damaged trees.

All these were done without any prior notice to the Haryana Wakf Board or the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee, which was allotted the land by the Haryana Wakf Board.

Now the HUDA authorities have made it clear that they want to use the area for commercial purposes in violation of all the rules and regulations.

Calling the demolition “totally illegal, one sided and biased,” Dr Asrarul Haque alleged, “Ironically, inside Gurgaon itself there are hundreds of acres of HUDA land under illegal encroachments, but their officials are not taking any action to reclaim them. HUDA officials were, however, overactive and without giving any opportunity to the Wakf Board or the Chauma Masjid Intezamia Committee to put their side and arguments they demolished everything that was there.”

There are about 12954 Waf properties under the Haryana Wakf Board, most of which are mosques, madrasas, graveyards, dargah, etc.

Related:
Wakf properties up for grab by land-mafia in Haryana: Mosques & graveyards too not safe

By TCN News,

New Delhi: While condemning the death of Khalid Mujahid, People Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) has urged the civil society members to strengthen the fight for justice and demanded that the ‘criminal responsibility’ in the death of Khalid be fixed.

It has also urged the democratic and secular minded people to lead movements against “arbitrary picking up and illegal detention of Muslim youth”.

Full text of the PUDR statement:

PUDR strongly condemns the death of Khalid Mujahid, an undertrial arrested in 2007 in connection with bomb blasts in UP earlier that year. Mujahid died on 19 May, 2013 when he was being escorted by a team of the Uttar Pradesh state police from a court in Faizabad to Lucknow jail. His death while under police escort in what is a clear case of custodial killing raises several questions – the rights of citizens, especially Muslim youth; the character of the police and state; the truth behind terror cases and arrests.

Khalid Mujahid, together with Tariq Qasmi had been shown as arrested on 22 December 2007 from Barabanki railway station. The ATS accused them of being behind the bomb blasts in Lucknow and Faizabad courts in November 2007, and the blast in Gorakhpur, claiming that explosives and other incriminating material were found on the two. The Bahujan Samaj Party, then in power, set up a Commission of Inquiry in March 2008 following protests against the arrests.

The Justice RD Nimesh Commission of Inquiry constituted by the state government to look into this matter submitted its report in December 2012 almost exactly five years after their arrests.

The inquiry commission examined police records, affidavits and testimonies of witnesses. On this basis, it concluded there was ample evidence to show that Tariq Qasmi and Khalid Mujahid were arrested not on 22 December 2007 as claimed, but on 12 December and 16 December respectively. The Commission reports that when the National Loktantrik Party’s youth leader in UP Choudhary Chadrapal threatened to immolate himself on 22 December if by then the two Muslim youth were not released, that the top brass decided to show their arrest on 22 December from Barabanki railway station. The Commission recommended action against the concerned officers and personnel who could be identified.

Despite the conclusions of the report and evidence cited, the now ruling Samajwadi Party too dragged its feet. By the time the government acted on the report, another six months passed. Finally on the basis of the Commission’s report the state government moved an application to withdraw the case. However the Special Court in Barabanki turned down the application in May 2013, claiming that the charges were much too serious. And then, nine days later, Khalid died in police custody, in circumstances which remain mysterious.

Some light can be shed on the so-called mystery by recalling that Khalid’s story is one that is being played out over and over again. The forms may be different but the essential plot and characters remain the same. Bomb blast/s occur. Muslim youth are picked up. Connections with SIMI etc. are alleged; seizure of explosives and extremist literature produced as evidence. In many cases the accused are found to be innocent, having been wrongly incarcerated for years. They are either released on bail or cases withdrawn or they may still continue to be in jail due to various reasons. This, if they are lucky. It isn’t unusual that some like Khalid never return. Not too long back in November 2012 Quateel Siddiqui (arrested for his alleged involvement in the German Bakery blasts) too died in a high security cell in Yerawada jail in Pune, in judicial custody. Again, under so called ‘mysterious circumstances.’ However generally no one is held accountable for the years lost and lives destroyed.

In this context PUDR welcomes the fact that in this case a rare FIR has been filed against 42 police personnel, including the former DG of Police Uttar Pradesh. Whether the case will be properly investigated, and the guilty prosecuted, remains to be seen.

Khalid Mujahid’s arrest, imprisonment and custodial death exposes the brazenness with which the police and ATS routinely arrest Muslim youth under false charges, force ‘confessions’, torture and kill them in custody. It also reveals the callous attitude of elected governments wary of displeasing the police, ATS or the Hindutva elements; and a compromised judiciary for whom terrorist activity requires no proof; guilt is decided by the magnitude of the alleged crime.

These acts of omission and commission expose a disturbing synchronicity between various agencies in terrorizing ordinary citizens, particularly Muslim youth, in the alleged fight against terrorism. The fact that a person could remain incarcerated for years after being abducted illegally and implicated in a fabricated case raises the issue of institutionalization of bias against Muslim youth in the name of fighting ‘terrorism’. Not only does ‘let law takes its course’ approach means years can elapse before those falsely implicated, mostly Muslim youth, win back their freedom. But their struggle to do so through the legal system is now coming under attack from Hindutva forces in an organized way amounting to a violation of the right to legal defense. While protests against Khalid’s custodial death were expressed in several cities in UP including Faizabad immediately afterwards, the local Bar Association passed a resolution expelling Khalid Mujahid’s lawyer Jamal Ahmad. His assistant Mohammad Shakeel was grievously injured. Indeed local bar associations have been issuing diktats that those accused of terror attacks will not be defended by their members and anyone who defies this ban will face expulsion and threat to life. Their recurrent diktats and attacks on lawyers who defy their ban has not persuaded either the High Court/Supreme Court or the Bar Council of India to show any concern over this subversion of the ‘rule of law’.

The death of Khalid Mujahid, raises questions about the police, lower judiciary and legal profession and their commitment to uphold, without discrimination, the constitutionally mandated protection of life and liberty of every citizen. PUDR calls upon all democratically minded people to protest against this attack on democratic rights and violation of the laws of natural justice and demands that:

1. Criminal responsibility be fixed in the in death of Khalid Mujahid and the guilty punished.

2. The Bar Associations expel lawyers obstructing legal aid to the accused, and lawyers guilty of attacking Khalid’s defense counsels be immediately disbarred.

3. Arbitrary picking up and illegal detention of Muslim youth be stopped and officials guilty of their wrongful confinement and fabrication of cases against be prosecuted and punished.

D. Manjit and Asish Gupta,

Secretaries, PUDR