By Syed Zahid Ahmad,

There are as many as 150 Parliamentary Constituencies where Muslim voters will decide results in the Lok Sabha Election 2014.

Even Narendra Modi (promoted candidate of RSS) has now realized that the Gujarat Riot is not going to make him the Prime Minister of India unless the Muslim voters of Utter Pradesh support him. Muslims on the other hand are now fed up with religion oriented politics (catered by so called secular parties) without any remedial measures to the challenges faced by Indian Muslims. What mistakes have brought UPA to a level down where the party is found out of race? Congress and other secular parties have been marginalizing Muslims by allocating Muslim intelligence to fight in a corner called Minority cell. These parties hardly bring Muslims into mainstream politics and economic development.

After observing the odd treatment to Dr. Faheem Baig when he opened his mouth before the Prime Minister, Muslims have realized that they would be thrown out of the door if they dare to speak the truth before secular parties like Congress (I). These parties kept on listening and assuring to take action; to help Muslims, but never presented the required solutions.

Political leaders like Rahul Gandhi, Mulayam Singh, Laloo Yadav, Mamta Banerjee Nitish Kumar, Sharad Pawar and Mayavati etc. keep silence over demand by a section of Muslims to provide room for faith based financial system (as alternative to interest based system) so that Muslims can draw needed finance for economic growth violating Islamic laws. They might just not be interested to allow Indian Muslims access finance in accordance to their faith. Dr. Subramunium Swamy has raised objection over Islamic banking, despite the fact that he has no objection in the mechanism of Islamic banking except ruling of Muftis and clerics. If that is the case, why politicians like Narendra Modi and Dr. Subramunium Swamy not assured prompting secular mode of Islamic financial products and services like equity finance, lease finance and forward Sale contracts etc. through networks of retail banks, NBFC or MFI network. Why all subsidies in India are linked with interest based loans only? These politicians just don’t like to allow Muslim achieve better living of standard unless Muslims avoid practicing Islamic economic principles.

If party desirous to win Lok Sabha election in 2014 it would be important to envisage the urgent need of Muslim community. Muslims are also human beings like non Muslims and have similar problems of finance, shelter and livelihood (added with following Islamic ethics and culture). They need socio economic welfare schemes complying with Islamic faith; not schemes like distribution of cycles to teenage girls. They just don’t need any parallel economic or financial system, but a room in the existing financial system where they can follow Islam along with achieving better lives.

Ask any young Muslim about their need and priority. All would ask for better live along with freedom to follow Islamic ethics. They have no point of naming any street or university on the name of any Muslim leader or else. They just wish to grow higher along with freedom to follow Islam. Despite several appeals by Muslim intellectuals and leaders, the UPA failed to realize the need to deliver any room for Muslims where the community can grow economically along with freedom to follow Islamic ethics (defining the lawful and unlawful activities) restricts Muslim participate in interest based and unethical activities. Thus Muslims fed up with assurances and promises of parties like Congress. Annoyed with ill treatment by Up Government to protect riot victims, Muslims have now changed their minds and would certainly not extend political support to parties like Congress, SP, BSP, NCP and RJD etc.

So, any new party (without any image of reflecting religion or caste based politics) providing assurance to Muslims that if comes into Power, the party shall give priority to do the following would certainly have an edge over others –

1. Financial products like Equity finance; lease finance and forward sale contracts would be promoted at retail level so that smaller and micro level entrepreneurs as well as farmers can avail such products from local bank branches or NBFCs or MFIs.
2. Release the innocent Muslims from jails whose cases are carried out for more than 6 months.
3. Compensate the innocent Muslims who came out of jail after no evidence against them.
4. Evoke the subsidy scheme over Hajj Tours and make the Hajj Committee of India an autonomous body.
5. The Communal Violence Bill will be implemented and enforced as powerful act.
6. Poverty eradication program and educational development programs for the community shall draw full support.
7. Stakeholders like Community based NGOs and social leaders shall be consulted before making strategic recommendation for community welfare schemes.
8. The trade and industries where Muslims are participating in large proportion (like silk sarees, embroidery, Zari works, retail business including hawking, imitation jewellary, readymade garment, handloom, handicrafts, carpets, bangles, Muradabai vessels, bidi etc. ) shall be provided due safety nets and incentives.
9. There would be proportionate representation of Muslims in all elections (whether it is lok sabha, rajya sabha, assembly or panchayat level).
10. There would be equal participation of Muslims in Government jobs including intelligence, police force, Military, Judiciary and legislation.

These all can be done with maintaining secularism; without appeasing any particular religious community and annoying others, but bridging the inter community socio – economic differences. Thus such schemes should not be proposed under the Ministry of Minority Affairs, rather be proposed through respective concerned ministries (like Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce and Trade, Ministry of Home Affairs etc. )

Now all political parties should realizing the making minority cell in the party or framing Ministry of Minority Affairs is not going to help them draw Muslims support. Muslims have now realized how so called secular parties have been ruling after drawing votes of Muslims, and declining demands of Muslims for decades after decades. So, Muslims have now to think thrice to safeguard their votes in respective constituencies from division of votes and waste in power equation. Political parties who will successfully convince Muslims that Muslims are not befooled on the name of Minority cell or quota; but are addressed properly with adequate provisions that will allow Muslims grow like other communities without avoiding Islamic laws.

By IANS,

Patna : The trial of the re-opened cases relating to the 1989 Bhagalpur communal riots in Bihar has been hit by an acute paucity of judges, a senior lawyer said Wednesday.

"Trial of Bhagalpur riots cases has been badly hit as many posts of judges have been lying vacant for more than a year," Additional Special Public Prosecutor Atiullah said in a letter addressed to the Patna High Court chief justice.

Atiullah said that vacant posts of judicial officers were delaying justice to hundreds of victims of the Bhagalpur riots.

Over 1,000 people, a majority of them Muslims, were killed in the month-long riots in Bhagalpur city in October 1989.

"The posts of third, fifth and seventh additional district and sessions judges, earmarked for trial of Bhagalpur riot cases by the high court have been vacant for more than one year. While post of second additional district and session judge fell vacant after the incumbent judicial officer took over as first additional district and session judge in June 2013," he said.

Atiullah said that it was not first time trial of Bhagalpur riots cases has come to a halt.

A similar situation cropped up due to vacant posts of judges in the past.

"It is bound to affect and delay proceedings of the courts for trial of riot cases," he said.

A total of 876 cases were registered by police of which chargesheets were filed in 293. The remaining 583 cases were closed by police citing lack of evidence for investigation.

However, 39 riot cases were reopened between 2006 and 2009 on recommendation of a judicial committee appointed by the Nitish Kumar government.

In 2006, Nitish Kumar instituted a fresh probe to re-investigate the riot cases that were closed by the police for lack of evidence.

The commission, headed by Justice (retd) N.N. Singh, submitted an interim report in 2007.

Till date, police have filed chargesheeted in 29 of 39 re-opened cases and 10 cases were again closed.

Atiullah said a total of 346 accused have been convicted. As many as 107 have been awarded life term.

By IANS,

New Delhi : In a major embarrassment for the government, attempts to introduce a new version of the anti-communal violence bill in the Rajya Sabha were Wednesday thwarted as the entire opposition became united against the bill.

An ugly spat erupted between members of the ruling Congress and main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, as Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley pointed out that the bill was against federal structure.

"The central government has no jurisdiction to formulate this bill," Jaitley said, opposing the motion to introduce the bill.

He was joined by several opposition leaders, including from the Left, DMK, AIADMK, Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party, who agreed that the bill impinged upon rights of the state governments.

Law Minister Kapil Sibal, however, offered a clarification that the central government will not have any powers to take a decision as that power will be with the human rights commission.

"No provision in the bill affects the federal structure. The centre can take action only if states consent, and the power has been given to the human rights commission," Sibal said.

Jaitley, however, said the issue was not of execution but of "legislative competence to enact such a law".

"The power to enact such a law is with the state legislature," he said.

The law minister retorted that the bill was needed when state governments disrupt law and order as it happened in Gujarat, leading to angry responses from the BJP.

He said the bill was needed in a situation where "... the state indulges in disrupting law and order... as it happened in Gujarat, if the state sponsors communal activity".

This led to a huge uproar from both sides.

Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien thereafter deferred the introduction of the bill.

The attempt to introduce the bill was made by Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde Wednesday morning, on the first day of the second half of the winter session.

The upper house has already seen two adjournments by that time and another one followed after a protest against the bill.

In a blog published Wednesday, Jaitley said the bill, as proposed, creates a "new category of offences".

"It deals with declaration and notification of areas which are disturbed areas. It suggests steps for prevention of acts in relation to communal violence. It has a chapter dealing with maintenance of public order.

"It then deals with the compensation mechanism and action to be taken against officers of the state government and the penalties which can be imposed upon them," he wrote.

"All these matters are exclusively within the domain of the state executive," Jaitley said in his blog.

The opposition has said the bill deals with issues like public order, police and public services of the states.

The bill proposes that the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) can directly intervene in a riot-affected area.

The eariler version of the bill said the Centre would create a separate body for this.

However, as per this bill, the NHRC will require the state government's nod for it.

It also expects the NHRC to monitor performance of civil servants in preventing and controlling riots.

BJP leader Ravishankar Prasad said the government was trying to bring the communal violence bill in a hurry.

"They were bypassing the whole constitutional scheme to bring this bill, and it was deferred only because the government was afraid of losing the vote," Prasad said.

This came as a major embarrassment for the government, which has given huge emphasis to the bill, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance chief Sonia Gandhi promising on several occasions that they will pass the bill.

Sonia Gandhi, in a recent function, had promised passing of the bill in this session.

This bill also seeks to penalise district officials of a riot-hit area for dereliction of duty. It also seeks to establish a uniform standard of compensation and rehabilitation.

By IANS,

Lucknow : More than 185 representatives of 'khap panchayats' from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh will converge on Muzaffarnagar Feb 9 for a 'maha panchayat'.

The 'khap' leaders would be meeting in Phugna village to discuss their future plan of action against what they allege is one-sided police action post-Muzaffarnagar riots.

Village elders in western Uttar Pradesh allege that police "under political pressure and electoral considerations" has victimized the Jat community and implicated them in false cases.

"We are being framed in false cases and now heinous cases like gang rapes are also being slapped on us," a senior village panchayat leader of Phugna told IANS.

He also said that the meeting would chalk out a long term plan to counter police action.

The villagers have also demanded that rape and molestation charges against village youngsters be probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

"We have tried our best to show reason to police but they refuse to pay heed to our witnesses and records. Our only hope is a CBI investigation to clear our names," the counsel of one of the accused said.

Communal clashes in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining areas last year claimed 63 lives and rendered 40,000 people homeless, of whom hundreds are still forced to live in government relief camps for fear of being targeted.

By IANS,

Patna : A day after she resigned from the government, Bihar's first Muslim woman minister, Parveen Amanullah, alleged that there was rampant corruption in the state.

"Corruption is (raging) out of control and the grievances of the common people are not heard by authorities," Amanullah said after submitting her resignation to assembly Speaker Uday Narain Choudhary.

It is the first time the social welfare minister has attacked the government of Nitish Kumar.

The daughter of diplomat-turned-politician Syed Shahabuddin and wife of IAS officer Afzal Amanullah, the Janata Dal-United minister said she won't reconsider her decision and hinted at joining the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

"There is no question of taking back my resignation," Amanullah told the media earlier after meeting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Nitish Kumar tried to persuade her to take back her resignation. But she refused to heed to his pleas.

"I don't have any grievances and enmity with anyone. But there is a need to improve the present system," she said.

Amanullah refused to disclose the reasons behind her decision to quit the government and the party.

Amanullah has praised AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. "Let's see what happens next."

Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi has asked her to join the BJP.

Panchayat and Rural Development minister Bhim Singh, meanwhile, agreed that Amanullah's complaints about corruption were genuine.

"Certainly, there are some shortcomings in the system. I agree with her that the system has to be (challenged)," he said.

In 2009, Amanullah wanted to contest for the Lok Sabha from Kishanganj as the Janata Dal-United candidate but was denied a ticket. Her father had won the seat in the 1990s.

A former RTI activist, she said she was open to returning to social work.

In 2010, she was elected to the Bihar assembly from Sahebpur Kamal in Begusarai district.

By IANS,

Kolkata : Ridiculing the meeting of 14 parties in Delhi to give formal shape to a "third force", BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain Wednesday said it was only a gathering of outfits who would finish third in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

"The third front, what is this? Those in the third position in their areas of influence, they are coming together to form the third front," Shahnawaz Hussain said at a party rally here.

Hussain said while the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) would finish after the BJP and the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal in the coming polls, the same fate awaits the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh and the Janata Dal (United) in Bihar.

Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha leaders of 11 non-BJP and non-Congress parties, as also leading figures of three other parties which do not have representation in either House of parliament met in Delhi during the day.

Seeing a Congress hand in the meeting of the 14 parties, Hussain said: "The Congress knows it cannot fight the BJP on its own strength. So, it is bringing its foot soldiers to the fore."

By IANS,

Dubai : The shortage of Indian workers has forced around 400 jewellery workshops in Saudi Arabia to shut down with 100 others struggling to survive.

“We now have 100 gold workshops that employ about 5,000 foreign workers, but there are very few skilled workers in the industry following the labour ministry’s decision to reduce the quota to 40 percent,” the Arab News quoted Abdulghani Al-Muhanna, chairman of the gold and jewellery committee of the Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Dammam, as saying.

He said most of the closed workshops had employed illegal workers and had benefited from high gold prices in recent years.

But the introduction of a strict new labour law in the country has driven out many Indian workers.

“The nature of the gold and jewellery sector is different from other sectors. It needs skilled professional workers, otherwise investors and merchants will have to depend on neighbouring countries,” Al-Muhanna said.

He welcomed the country's labour ministry campaign to remove illegal workers from the market, but said the government should now allow more legal workers.

Khaled Al-Amoudi, a member of the Council of Saudi Chambers said Indian workers are sought after in the jewellery industry because of their skills.

After introducing a new labour policy in the country, Saudi authorities had granted a seven-month grace period last year for illegal expatriates to either rectify their residency status or leave the country.

The new Nitaqat or Saudisation policy in that Gulf nation makes it mandatory for all Saudi companies to reserve 10 percent of jobs for Saudi nationals.

By TCN News

New Delhi: Mushawarat President, Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan, has written to the Union Home Minister asking him why organisations under his direct control are going slow on Hindutva terror?

The letter was in response to the article in the latest issue of Caravan magazine in which terror-accused Swami Aseemanand talking to Caravan reporter Leena Gita Reghunath implicated RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and top leader Indresh Kumar as part of the terror conspiracy.

Link:

The Believer: Swami Aseemanand’s radical service to the Sangh

Full letter

5 February, 2014
Shri Sushil Kumar Shinde
Hon’ble Home Minister of India
New Delhi 110001

Dear Sushil Kumar Shindeji,

I hope you had time to read “The Believer” report in the current issue of Caravan magazine which is on the news-stands now. Based on four interviews with Swami Aseemanand, a prime accused in Hindutva terror cases, this report makes abundantly clear that the umpteen terror attacks across the country including Samjhauta, Ajmer and Makkah Masjid, were not the handiwork of a small group. Rather, the whole RSS organisation including its current supremo Mohan Bhagwat and top leader Indresh Kumar blessed, planned, financed and protected the saffron terrorists. It is also clear that Aseemanand is not remorseful in the least about what he and his group of terrorists did as says that there is no point of being sorry about them and that these acts will continue.

It is a painful reality that the security and probe organisations under your direct control have failed to properly probe the saffron terror attacks which were passed off as handiwork of Muslim boys. The organisations under your direct control are yet to even interrogate Mohan Bhagwat and Indresh Kumar. This should have been done long ago as Malegaon 2008 and Ajmer blast chargesheets are clear about these and other RSS leadres’ role in planning and financing those blasts.

This is a fit case to outlaw RSS as it has been flagrantly violating the undertaking it gave in 1949 to get the ban lifted on its activities (which was imposed after the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi by its members in 1948) that it will remain a social organisation and it will shun political activity. Now it is clear that not only it indulges in divisive political activity through its proxy (BJP), it also clearly indulges in high treason by planning, financing and abetting terror activities aimed at dismantling the secular and constitutional system of our country.

Mr Shinde, you and your UPA government will be responsible to the nation and to history if you fail in your constitutional duty to punish the real perpetrators of terror in India as this activity is not a simple crime but high treason since it involves a plan to illegally demolish the legitimate secular edifice of our polity.

Yours sincerely

Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan
President,
All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat

By TCN News,

Calicut: Popular Front of India (PFI) has spent nearly nine crores for its educational and economic empowerment programmes in 2013. It has come to light in the report presented in the annual National General Assembly(NGA) meeting held at Puthanathani, Kerala on 1-3 Feb that the organization have largely focused on socio-economic development and have successfully implemented various projects like school kit distribution, single teacher schools, interest -free micro loans, Sarva Shiksha Grams in different states.

Delegates from different states who participated in the meeting stressed that the organization now, twenty years after its formation in 1993, has to expand its activities to new fields. It was also observed that the organization could not make expected advancement in fields like media and social networks but have had increased support from students and ulema.

In the discussion held on the topic “100 Years of Freedom”, most of the delegates expressed the opinion that the country’s greatest threat in coming years would be the instabilities created by the rapid advancement in technology.

E Abubacker in his concluding remarks said that the organisation should pull back the new generation to the ground realities. Addicted to social networks, they withdraw themselves after personally reacting to the injustice on social networks. Only when we get them involved in social realities an alternative political strategy could be evolved instead of the current musical chair of similar combinations.

Chairman KM Shareef, Vice Chairman Prof. P Koya, General Secretary O M A Salam, Muhammadali Jinnah, Elyas Mohammed Thumbe, (Mangalore) Ansar Indori (Delhi), Karamana Ashraf Moulavi (Kerala), K Sadath (Kerala), Aslam Master and Haseebul Islam (Murshidabad) led the discussions

The NGA concluded on 3rd February by a valedictory speech by K.M. Shareef in which he reminded the leaders about their responsibilities and motivated them to become a vehicle of empowerment for the marginalized sections of our society. The NGA passed the following resolutions:

Resolution 1: Defeat the Fascist Forces

The annual National General Assembly calls up on the people to use their franchise wisely in the coming General Election and defeat the rightist fascist forces coming with the false slogan of economic development and evoking intensely sectarian and exclusivist national feelings. We have clinching evidence that BJP works hands in glove with Indian National Congress when economic policies are concerned. They followed the neo-liberal and anti poor economic prrogramme when in power and even started divesting many public sector enterprises for a pittance and supported the big corporate houses to plunder the country’s natural resources. The deprivation, poverty and hunger in many Indian states are a direct result of such policies .The saffron brigade is also notorious for dividing people on the basis of religion and has supported sabotage ,bombings and anti- Muslim riots for political objectives and also to instill fear among the minorities. The genocide in Gujarat in 2002 leaves an indelible mark on the national psyche for the mayhem and cruelty shown by the state government and the Hndutwa mobs. It still remains a bleeding wound of the nation.

The General Assembly is also of the opinion that the saffron brigade is trying to take benefit of the strong mood of the nation against the maladministration and rampant corruption of UPA government .It reminds the voters that all corruption scandals in the country have a saffron touch and no list of beneficiaries with out Hindutwa leaders among them. From Yediyurappa to Gadkari we have a rogues gallery of corruption. All BJP led governments including Modi’s Gujarat are cess- pools of corruption. So instead of the corrupt Congress what we get is institutionalized system for national loot. The Assembly also requests people not to be carried away by the high-voltage propaganda unleashed by Modi and his henchmen.

It is also to pointed out that new avatars like AAP in Delhi are only trying to capture power with out clear cut ideology or action plan but with a single point agenda of fighting corruption. Gimmicks and unsustainable populist slogans are not going to solve the country’s perennial problems like hunger illiteracy, sectarianism and child deaths.

The only option for the people of India is to develop grass root level political movements with fresh ideas and programmes.It is only simple wisdom that they vote truly democratic and secular forces untainted by corruption and hunger for power. Muslims as a community have to be exceptionally vigilant and careful in using their votes this time.

Resolution No 2: Constitute a judicial commission to investigate Hindutwa engineered blasts.

The National General Assembly expresses its deep concern at the recent disclosure of Swami Aseemananda to a Delhi based magazine that RSS supremo Mohan Bhagwat supported and encouraged him to launch terror attacks in various parts of the country.

Aseemananda has divulged that and his fellow criminals ware behind murderous bomb blasts against Muslim targets. To achieve their nefarious objectives he conspired with prominent RSS leaders like Indresh Kumar, Sunil Joshi, Sandeep Dange, Ramji Kalsangare, Lokesh Sharma etc.

The Popular Front of India has always expressed the the view that most of the terror attacks that killed or maimed innocents were part of Hindutwa conspiracy to create terror and destabilise the country .It is nothing revelatory when we learn that Narendra Modi rendered crucial assistance to the attacks on the Christians in Daangs in Gujarat. It is now open that Aseemananda was given ‘Guruji Puruskar’ by RSS leadership for his role in in Daangs carnage. His new revelation buttresses his earlier confession before the magistrate about the involvement of RSS and its allies in the blasts.

In the light of these shocking revelations the Assembly calls up on constitute a judicial commission to probe on the entire activities of RSS and its frontal outfits and to chalk out plausible mechanism to curb the sinister anti-national agenda of the organization.

· Reinvestigate all the terror alleged blasts and attacks that took place since 1992 on war footing and bring all people involved to book.

· Take emergent steps to release the innocent youths kept in various jails in the country under terror alleged cases and pay them sufficient compensation.

Resolution No. 3: Regrets the return of autocracy and dictatorship in middle east

The NGA of Popular Front deeply regrets the re-emergence of military backed dictatorship in the Middle Eastern countries. This is indeed an insult to the sacrifices of the men and women who gave their lives to overthrow brutal dictatorship regime and defend democracy. The role of anti-democracy military regimes in the murder of democracy was not a shocking act but the foul role of western powers who claim to be protectors of democracy has once again exposed their hypocrisy. The most unfortunate attitude was that of the Indian government which chose to be silent during the mass killings of pro-democracy activists. Being the world’s largest democracy our country has failed miserably to intervene in protecting democracy in countries like Egypt which has been a historical friend of India. Such a stand by our country presents a poor image of India as a stooge of the imperialist and Zionist powers.

Resolution No. 4: High illiteracy rate in India is an alarming sign

According to a report by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, India has the highest population of illiterate adults at 287 million and India’s illiteracy rate has increased to 63%. Illiteracy has been a major issue for the country since decades. There have been tall claims by successive government about steps to resolve this problem but the facts revealed by the UN makes us question such claims. It is indeed ridiculous that our state and central governments are boasting India as the next super power but the fundamental question of how a country with such a huge illiterate population can claim such super power status has never been answered. The NGA of Popular Front strongly demands the Central and State government to give due priority to this problem by a serious review of its failed policies and implement a strong action plan.

Link:

http://www.popularfrontindia.org/

By Ram Puniyani,

In a recently televised interview the Vice-President of Indian National Congress, Rahul Gandhi (Jan 2014) raised the storm when he said that some Congressmen might have been involved in 1984 Sikh Massacre and that Narendra Modi has a blame to take for the Gujarat carnage of 2002.

There were multiple responses to this interview. Already Arvind Kejriwal had promised to set up SIT into Anti Sikh violence of 1984 even before elections. Now his Government seems to be taking it up more seriously and it is likely that a SIT will be formed to investigate the Delhi tragedy. One can say that it may be too late by now as lot of valuable evidence might have been lost or destroyed. Still whatever of process of law can be retrieved, should be saved and justice should be done to victims of Delhi. It goes without saying that the justice should be done to the victims of communal violence irrespective of the fact as to which religious community they belong to. The Kashmiri Pundits also need to be given required justice and rehabilitation even today. The tendency to flaunt Kashmiri pundits or anti Sikh massacre, after every talk of justice to violence victims of Gujarat or any other place is an attempt to deflect the attention from issue on hand.

Two wrongs don’t make a right. Violence against one religious community can’t give justice to another religious community which has been wronged. On the same level to turn a blind eye to the atrocities on Muslim minorities in India because Hindus are being persecuted in Pakistan or Bangla Desh is totally inhuman and vice versa. Justice should be demanded for all religious minorities, in all the countries, all the time. Tolerating injustice at one place is like tolerating injustice everywhere.

In response to Rahul Gandhi’s comments on Gujarat, the BJP spokespersons lashed out that Modi has been given clean chit by SIT in Gujarat and also by the court of law, by legal process. This is a false propaganda. Right from the beginning of Gujarat violence, the comments of National Human rights commission indict Modi for his role in orchestrating Gujarat Violence. Though Special Investigation team (SIT) commented that there is no case against Modi, in the findings of SIT, there has been a strong element which indicts Modi for his acts of commission and omission. The apologists of Modi will point that in Delhi the military was not called for three days, while forgetting that in Delhi violence was contained in three days and in Gujarat process of violence went on unabated till May 2002, starting from 27th February. This stoppage of violence in Gujarat could happen only when the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee sent K.P.S. Gill as the special officer to overlook the control of violence in Gujarat. Modi personally got adverse comments all through, right from the beginning as his role was too glaring to be undermined at any stage of time.

In the initial period the Hon’ble Supreme Court first pulled up the State government and observed “The Nero’s in Gujarat fiddled as Gujarat burned” (http://teestasetalvad.blogspot.in/2013/12/we-will-soldier-on-zakia-jafri...). Even Atal Bihari Vajpayee had to reprimand Modi that Raj Dharma should be followed. The type of atmosphere created in Gujarat resulted in Supreme Court asking for shifting of the two major cases away from Gujarat, as an intimidating atmosphere was created in Gujarat due to Modi’s high handedness. Even after the latest judgment of the Magistrate’s Court, the human rights’ activists Mallika Sarabhai was forthright to comment, “Silly to have expected anything else but clean chit for Narendra Modi from a Gujarat court.”

Even the interpretation of the report of SIT is fallacious. Supreme Court had appointed the SIT and also Amicus curiae, Raju Ramchandran. To say that SIT gave a clean chit to Modi is not true. The fact is that the SIT in its 2010 report clearly said: In spite of the fact that ghastly and violent attacks had taken place on Muslims at Gulberg Society and elsewhere, the reaction of the government was not the type that would have been expected by anyone. The chief minister had tried to water down the seriousness of the situation at Gulberg Society, Naroda Patiya and other places by saying that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Ramu Ramchandran based on same report pointed out that there is enough evidence in the SIT report to prosecute Modi.

One recalls that NHRC much before all this had concluded its report 31.5. 2002 and said that “there was a comprehensive failure of the State to protect the Constitutional rights of the people of Gujarat” Amicus Curiae in his final report, recommended the prosecution of Narendra Modi under Sections 166 and 153a and 153b of the Indian Penal Code. So where is the clean chit? If we see three major factors, The National Human Rights commission has indicted Modi. Second, based on SIT observations Supreme Court appointed Amicus Curiae holds that Modi can be prosecuted. Third, the process of justice through Courts in Zakia Jafri has begun. After the Court verdict Ms Jafri said that she will appeal to the higher courts. Our process of justice begins with Magistrates Court, does not end with that. Proclaiming that Modi has been given a ‘clean chit’ for his role in Gujarat carnage is far from truth. It’s a clever propaganda, which has been dished out with a deliberate purpose.

At another level, Modi acolytes, Babu Bajrangi and Maya Kodnani are in jails for their role in the carnage. The Tehelka sting shows the collusion between the Babu Bajrangi clan and the state led by Modi. The tribunal set up by Citizens for Justice and Peace with eminent jurists like P.B.Sawant also outlined Modi’s role in a very clear manner. There has been some justice in few cases of Gujarat. And that is due to yeomen struggle for justice launched by the victims and human rights defenders. The process of justice needs to be pursued. The state of Gujarat has created all possible obstacles in the justice being given to the victims. The claims of clean chit hold no water, we need to look beyond the propaganda and the truth will show the blood tainted hands of Modi.

(Response only toram.puniyani@gmail.com )

By Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam,

The Aap and its chief Arvind Kejriwal continue to be an enigma wrapped in mystery. Nobody can really know what are the implications of his announcing a list of corrupt politicians. On one hand his crusade against official corruption is a great service as our public life has become excruciatingly corrupt and any move that looks like helping us fight this menace is welcome. On the other his strategy to fight it creates more problems than solving it.

His list includes leaders from the Congress Party, BJP, BSP, NCP, DMK, SP, NC and YSRC. The people in Kejriwal’s dock are: P. Chidambaram, Veerappa Moily, Pawan Kumar Bansal, Kapil Sibal, Kamal Nath, Shriprakash Jaiswal, Tarun Gogoi, GK Vasan and Naveen Jindal. Rahul Gandhi has been added to the list as an afterthought, not for any precise act of corruption, but for spending too much money on building his own image.

In this honour list the BJP leaders included are: Nitin Gadkari, B S Yedurappa, Anurag Thakur and Narendra Modi, the last one for the same reason as Rahul Gandhi–spending too much on image building. The BJP has hit back by saying that Kejriwal’s name, too, should be included in the list.

Nitin Gadkari has threatened to sue him, and Farooq Abdullah has said he would reply to the charge in a court of law. Vasan has issued an ultimatum that if Kejriwal does not retract within a stipulated time he will be dragged to court. And, we have not heard the last on this issue.

The question to ask is whether this is the best way to deal with corruption. The clear answer is that corruption cannot be eliminated by making allegations and counter-allegations as in this case. A corruption-free society is built on institutions that ensure accountability, integrity, transparency and rule of law. As long as these are missing from public life, corruption is going to remain very much among us.

From the experience of developed countries it is clear that a corruption-free society becomes viable only after a country reaches a per capita GDP level of about $6,000 a year. Below that level it is rare to find a corruption-free society. That means such a society is still a few years away.

Countries that have achieved a high level of integrity in public life have done so only after a long struggle. Transparency, good governance, accountability and rule of law do not come as a result of sloganeering and with allegations-counter allegations.

Long years of social, political and legal work go into making a fair, graft-free order. Kejriwalji’s ideas have a great potential for changing this country for the better, but he needs patient work, not counter-productive short-cuts.

(Dr Mohammad Manzoor Alam is the General Secretary of All India Milli Council and Chairman Institute of Objective Studies.)

By Hassan Zia Rizvi, TwoCircles.net,

Lucknow: The 2-day literary festival organized by Lucknow Society at Convention Centre of Lucknow made a unique mark.

On the 1st February the festival was inaugurated by Governor of Uttarakhand, Luv Bhargava, Janardan Waghmare and Gopaldas Neeraj.

‘Lucknow observer,’ first interactive news magazine of Lucknow, penned by Shamim Arzoo and Atif Hanif of Lucknow society along with ‘Discovering Lucknow’ was launched by Mukhtarul Amin, Asif Mirza and Governor of Uttarakhand.

The festival had all the recipes of literature and culture with distinct emphasis on all kinds of languages and their literature.

English language books like Bina Ramani’s ‘Bird in a Banyan Tree’, Mini Menon’s ‘Riding the Wave- Seven Leaders of Change’, Nikita Singh’s ’25 Strokes of Kindness, Pranesh Prasad’s ‘A Half-Baked Life,’ among other were released during the festival.
Books of writers like Pornpen Hatrakool from Thailand, Satya Verghese from Bulgaria were also launched.

The launching of Hindi books started with the paper presentation: Hindi and Japan by Ms. Tomoko Kukuchi of Japan. Pankaj Prasun’s ‘Janhit Mein Jari’, Jitendra Singh’s ‘Sahil Taley’, Kamlesh Tripathi and Sujata Tripathi’s ‘Aadab Lucknow’ and Janardhan Waghmare’s ‘Dalit Sahitya Ki Prishtbhumi’ etc. were also launched here.

On 2nd February several Urdu books, namely M J Warsi’s ‘Mithilanchal Urdu’, Jawaid Danish’s ‘Chalis Bab Ek Chor’ Rakshanda Jalil’s ‘New Urdu Writings’, Shafey Kidwai’s ‘Urdu Literarure and Journalism,’ and ‘Exploring Geeta in Urdu Poetry’ by Anwar Jalalpuri, amongst others were launched.

The remarkable events of the festival like Kavi Sammelan and Mushaira sailed into the hearts of audience through the river of known poets like Gulzar Dehelvi, Rahat Indori, Nirmal Darshan, Jawaid Danish, Anwar Jalapuri, Hasan Kazmi, Gopal Das Neeraj and Sehba Ali and others, captivated and amazed the audience of Lucknow that included several delegates from abroad.

Raza Neeam of Pakistan read from his works on Sa’adat Hasan Manto.

A Documentary on Majaz Lucknow, an initiative by Zee Salam in which role of Majaz played by famous actor Danish hussain, was screened. Another documentary on Majaz directed by Arvind Pandey and produced by Anshumali Tandon was also screened as tribute to the poet.

There were also discussions on topics like “Munshi Nawal Kishore- epitiome of Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb of Lucknow,” “Impacts of Social Media on Society,” “Sanskrit-Adhunik Bhartiya Bhasha,” and “Should Women be the Political Heads Everywhere.”

A session on “India’s Invisible Mothers,” in association with the INGO Save the Children was also organized.

Litterateurs, poets, writers and actors like Mahmood Farooqui, Darain Shahidi, Danish Hussain, Shabana Azmi, Roop Rekha Verma, Asgar Wajahat, Nighat Gandhi, Sudeep Nagarkar, Mehru Jafer, Sudhir Kakkar, Mini Menon, Sharib Rudaulvi, Veena Talwar, among others participated in the program.

Besides, a discussion on Bridging US and India relations, was sponsored by SPAN magazine, in which Athar Husain and Sulaiman Akhtar participated.

A disciple of Pandit Birju Maharaj from USA Natalia Hilder performed Kathak Dance on the first day of the festival, while Darain Shahidi (Journalist) and Danish Hussain narrated stories (Dastangoi) on second day.

By TCN News,

Aligarh: Millat Bedari Muhim Commttee (MBMC), Aligarh has demanded the implantation of Prof. Akhtar ul Wasey Committee for the promotion of Urdu.

Prof. Razaullah Khan while presiding over a meeting of MBMC said that the recommendations of the HRD Ministry appointed committee is “meaningful and valuable document and if the government of India truly implements these recommendations then not only Urdu language will develop but our composite culture will also be strengthened.”

Prof. Akhtar ul Wasey Committee has recommended that quota for Urdu medium students should be ear marked in government colleges and to collect and preserve Urdu documents related to the freedom struggle and Indian government.

Jasim Mohammad, Secretary of MBMC reiterated another recommendation for an Open University status to Jamia Urdu Aligarh.

Related:

Sub-committee recommends setting up a committee to monitor Urdu-promotion programs

By TCN news,

New Delhi: Aaghaz-e-Dosti, an initiative for Indo-Pak peace and friendship, has condemned the protest and interruptions by cadres of Shiv Sena on Tuesday press conference of Pakistani Sufi band Mekaal Hasan.

It has been reported that a group of 50 people hailing from political party Shiv Sena had barged into the press conference of Pakistani Sufi band Mekaal Hasan held in the Mumbai Press Club on Tuesday and demanded that the musicians return immediately to their country. They were carrying placards with anti-Pakistani slogans and saffron flags.

The Sufi rock band was scheduled to announce the first ever Indo-Pak band with members from both Pakistan and India. This initiative that would have been first of its kind was aimed to create positive interaction between the musicians of both India and Pakistan.

“We condemn this action by Shiv Sena. Shiv Sena and other Hindu fascist groups have in the past taken similar steps to disrupt peace initiative between India and Pakistan. We want peace, not war, read a press statement by Aaghaz-e-Dosti.

It added, “We think that there is a need to increase these cultural ventures and efforts for people-to-people communications as it will lessen miscommunications and change mindsets on both sides. They can play a big role in harnessing good relations between India and Pakistan.”

By TCN News,

Aligarh: ABK High School, Aligarh Muslim University organized an Inter-school Islamic Calligraphy Competition to mark the Eid Miladun Nabi celebrations.

First prize in Arabic Calligraphy was given to Ms. Asra of AMU Girls High School while second prize was received by Ms. Gulshad of ABK High School and third prize went to Mohd Shahid of S.T.S. High School. The Consolation prize was given to Ms. Zeba Azhar of AMU Girls High School.

Winner of Inter School Islamic Calligraphy Competition at AMU ABK School

In Urdu calligraphy, first and second prizes were won by Ms. Tuba Khan and Ms. Zahida Nusrat of AMU Girls High School while third prize went to Ms. Shagufta Naaz of ABK High School (Girls) and consolation prize was given to Mohd Rehan Khan of AMU ABK High School.
The distinguished and illustrious calligrapher, Mr. Sarfaraz Ahmad Zaidi judged the competition.

Dr Mohd Abbas Niazi, Principal of the School said that such a competition has been held for the first time at school level. The aim of organizing this competition was to encourage the art of calligraphy, which has reached to extinction in the advent of computer age.

The ABK School also organized a debate competition as part of the Republic Day celebrations. Ms. Aatika from AMU Girls High School, Master Amin Adil from AMU ABK High School and Ms. Anam Tariq from Senior Secondary School (Girls) won the first, second and third prize respectively.

The consolation prizes went to Ms. Kareena Anees, AMU City Girls High School, Neha Mehdi, Ahmadi School for Visually Challenged and Kaushelesh Verma, ABK High School. Dr. M.A. Jauhar and Dr. Rashid Anwar Rashid from Department of Urdu judged the competition.

Bhagwat ‘knew’ of plans to bomb several Muslim targets around India; allegedly saw it not as crime, but connected it with the ideology that is very important for Hindus.

By TCN News,

New Delhi: Swami Aseemanand, incarcerated in Ambala Central Jail for abetting terrorist attacks on various targets between 2006 and 2008—Samjhauta Express (February 2007), Hyderabad Mecca Masjid (May 2007), Ajmer Dargah (October 2007) and two attacks in Malegaon (September 2006 and September 2008)—which together took the lives of 119 people, has made a revelation to The Caravan which has been published in the latest issue of the magazine.

In the course of over two years, Aseemanand granted four exclusive interviews to The Caravan journalist Leena Gita Reghunath inside Ambala jail, the total duration of which ran into 09 hours and 26 minutes. In the last two interviews, Aseemanand repeated that his terrorist acts were sanctioned by the highest levels of the RSS—all the way up to Mohan Bhagwat, the current RSS chief, who was the organisation’s general secretary at the time.

Aseemanand told The Caravan that Bhagwat said of the violence, “It is very important that it be done. But you should not link it to the Sangh.” (A list of questions was sent to Bhagwat, but he has not responded.)

Extract from the 11,200-word-long The Caravan article:

Over the course of our conversations, Aseemanand’s description of the plot in which he was involved became increasingly detailed. In our third and fourth interviews, he told me that his terrorist acts were sanctioned by the highest levels of the RSS—all the way up to Mohan Bhagwat, the current RSS chief, who was the organisation’s general secretary at the time. Aseemanand told me that Bhagwat said of the violence, “It’s very important that it be done. But you should not link it to the Sangh.”

Aseemanand told me about a meeting that allegedly took place, in July 2005. After an RSS conclave in Surat, senior Sangh leaders including Bhagwat and Indresh Kumar, who is now on the organisation’s powerful seven-member national executive council, travelled to a temple in the Dangs, Gujarat, where Aseemanand was living—a two-hour drive. In a tent pitched by a river several kilometres away from the temple, Bhagwat and Kumar met with Aseemanand and his accomplice Sunil Joshi. Joshi informed Bhagwat of a plan to bomb several Muslim targets around India. According to Aseemanand, both RSS leaders approved, and Bhagwat told him, “You can work on this with Sunil. We will not be involved, but if you are doing this, you can consider us to be with you.”

Aseemanand continued, “Then they told me, ‘Swamiji, if you do this we will be at ease with it. Nothing wrong will happen then. Criminalisation nahin hoga (It will not be criminalised). If you do it, then people won’t say that we did a crime for the sake of committing a crime. It will be connected to the ideology. This is very important for Hindus. Please do this. You have our blessings.’”

Chargesheets filed by the investigative agencies allege that Kumar provided moral and material support to the conspirators, but they don’t implicate anyone as senior as Bhagwat. Although Kumar was interrogated once by the CBI, the case was later taken over by the NIA, which has not pursued the conspiracy past the level of Aseemanand and Pragya Singh. (Joshi, who was allegedly the connecting thread between several different parts of the conspiracy—including those who assembled and those who planted the bombs—was killed under mysterious circumstances in December 2007.)

Sixty-three-year-old Aseemanand dedicated almost his entire adult life to the tribal arm of the RSS, the Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram (VKA). At the time he planned the terrorist attacks, he had been the national head of the VKA’s religious wing, the Shraddha Jagran Vibhag—a position created especially for him—for a decade. In honour of Aseemanand’s service to the Sangh, in December 2005, he was awarded a special Guruji Samman on the occasion of the birth centenary of MS Golwalkar. The award came with a one-lakh-rupee cash prize and the veteran BJP leader and former party president Murli Manohar Joshi gave the ceremony’s keynote address. Not only have the RSS and the BJP never disowned Aseemanand for his roles in the terrorist attacks, or taken back the awards, Aseemanand confessed to The Caravan that RSS-affiliated lawyers are providing his legal aid.

Knowing the national relevance of the sensitive information that Aseemanand revealed to The Caravan journalist, in an interview which was conducted with the full consent of Aseemanand.

The Caravan has placed these facts in front of the public, along with a tape recording and transcript of parts of the conversation that mention Mohan Bhagwat.

Click here to read the full story “The Believer: Swami Aseemanand’s radical service to the Sangh”

Click here to read the Transcript and listen to the Interview.

By IANS,

Mumbai : The Jamiat Ulama-e-Maharashtra (JUeM) has taken strong objection to the depiction of 'madrassas' as schools of terror in the forthcoming Bollywood movie 'Ya Rab', an activist said here Wednesday.

The JUeM has also questioned the portrayal of madrassa 'aalims' (teachers) allegedly brainwashing their students to prepare them for 'jihadi' activities, said the NGO's spokesperson Gulzar Azmi.

"These and other issues form part of a public interest petition I have filed before the Bombay High Court Wednesday against the movie. It will come up for hearing Thursday, before the scheduled release this Friday," Azmi told IANS.

The film's producer seemed unfazed. He told IANS: "It's a nice film and will not hurt anybody's sentiments or any community. The censor board is a responsible body and has seen the film and given a couple of cuts."

Azmi said Muslims are upset by this "blatant, fictitious and wrongful depiction of madrassas and the teachers" who teach Muslim students there.

"In fact, a madrassa not only imparts quality education but also gives shelter to orphans. They are not centres of any such anti-national activity. There are no incidents anywhere in the state where any terror act or anti-national activities are associated with a madrassa," Azmi said.

The panel of JUeM lawyers comprising A.A. Siddiqui, Ansar Tamboli and Mateen Shaikh said there are thousands of madrassas across the state and the rest of the country.

"The exhibition of such gross untruths on the big screen can create general disturbances and also lead to communal disharmony," Siddiqui said.

Tamboli said the censor board has already rejected the film by not issuing it a certificate for exhibition. Later, the film-makers went to the review board where it was rejected.

"It was only after they appealed to the Film Certificate Appellate Tribunal that they finally secured permission to release the movie with a U/A certificate. But we shall oppose the release in the present form," said Tamboli.

Shaikh said the petitioners have sought deletion of certain objectionable scenes and dialogues in the movie before allowing its public release.

The PIL is expected to come up before Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice M.S. Sanklecha here Thursday.

Directed by Hasnain Hyderabadwala, 'Ya Rab' is being promoted and released through veteran film personality Mahesh Bhatt's company, Vishesh Films.

It features actors Ajaz Khan, Manzar Sehbai, Akhilendra Mishra.

By IANS,

Srinagar : A Kashmiri student has received approval for two of his projects from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Kennedy Space Centre.

A defence statement said here Wednesday: "A youth from a remote village in Kashmir, Asif Ali, has brought laurels to the Valley, as his two projects on astronomy have won approval from the Kennedy Space Centre, NASA, the US.

"Asif, who comes from a humble background from a village in Mattan area of Anantnag district in south Kashmir is studying astronomy at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

"The two projects Asif will work on include those on estimation of asteroids (also called minor planets made up of rock and metal and forming part of the inner solar system) and the effect of gamma ray emissions (emitted from radioactive isotopes).

"Asif, who has done B.Tech from IIST and is currently doing M.S. in astronomy from the same college, said he would be flying to NASA soon to start his project work."

The statement said Asif did his basic schooling from the Army Goodwill School, Aishmuqam, Anantnag, and later Government Higher Secondary School, Mattan.

His father retired as an officer from the state animal husbandry department and his mother is a housewife.

By IANS,

New York: Plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Union Carbide Corp (UCC) have released new evidence to show its "direct role in designing and building the pesticide plant in Bhopal" where the 1984 gas disaster killed thousands.

Union Carbide, now a Dow Chemical subsidiary, refuses to clean up the site claiming that its former Indian subsidiary bears sole responsibility for the now shuttered plant in Bhopal.

The victims have sued the Madhya Pradesh government which leased the land on which the plant was built for clean up of the contaminated site which they say has polluted the drinking water supply of nearby areas, according to a statement by EarthRights International.

The new evidence, consisting of statements from former Union Carbide and Union Carbide India employees as well as evaluations by experts in waste disposal systems, establishes that UCC provided critical design for the plant and its waste management system and that this design had caused the ongoing toxic waste problem in Bhopal.

Plaintiffs' evidence released Wednesday also shows that it was a Union Carbide employee who oversaw and approved construction and design of Union Carbide's plan for the plant.

A deadly gas leak from the Bhopal plant in December 1984 killed hundreds instantly and has continued to claim lives, taking the death toll till now to thousands.

Thousands more have suffered irreparable damage on the health front.

The evidence was submitted in court in January in a federal class action lawsuit filed by residents of Bhopal whose land and water remain contaminated by waste from the chemical plant.

A previous lawsuit was dismissed last year after the courts found insufficient evidence that Union Carbide was sufficiently involved in creating the toxic waste, said the statement.

"This evidence demonstrates that Union Carbide was intimately involved in every aspect of designing and building the Bhopal plant, including the waste disposal systems that caused the pollution," said Rick Herz, counsel for the plaintiffs and litigation coordinator for EarthRights International.

Co-counsel Rajan Sharma of the New York law firm Sharma and Deyoung, added: "These families have been living with Union Carbide pollution for decades and they deserve justice.

"Union Carbide refuses to submit to the jurisdiction of India's courts and asserts that American courts may not grant relief without the participation of the Indian government."

The plaintiffs have also sued the state of Madhya Pradesh, which now owns the Bhopal site, to compel its cooperation in the clean up of the contamination. As of today, neither the government of India nor the state of Madhya Pradesh has appeared before the court.

Government of Indian state now named as a party in New York suit by Bhopal residents

By TCN News,

New York: Plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Union Carbide Corp. released new evidence that demonstrates the chemical company’s direct role in designing and building the pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, that caused the world’s worst modern industrial disaster and continues to pollute residents’ water with toxins. Union Carbide, now a Dow Chemical subsidiary, refuses to clean up the site, claiming that its former Indian subsidiary bears sole responsibility.

The victims have recently also sued the Indian State of Madhya Pradesh, (which leased the land on which the Bhopal plant was built), for the purpose of permitting cleanup of the contaminated site which has polluted the drinking water supply of nearby residential areas.

The new evidence, consisting of statements from former Union Carbide and Union Carbide India employees, as well as evaluations by experts in waste disposal systems, establishes that UCC provided critical design for the plant and its waste management system and that this design caused the ongoing toxic waste problem in Bhopal. Plaintiffs’ evidence also shows that it was a Union Carbide employee that oversaw and approved construction and design implementing Union Carbide’s plan for the Bhopal plant. A deadly gas leak from the Bhopal plant in 1984 killed several thousand people, and injured many thousands more.

This evidence was submitted in court in January in Sahu II v. Union Carbide Corp., a federal class-action lawsuit filed by residents of Bhopal whose land and water remain contaminated by waste from the chemical plant. A previous lawsuit, Sahu I, was dismissed last year after the courts found insufficient evidence that Union Carbide was sufficiently involved in creating the toxic waste.

“This evidence demonstrates that Union Carbide was intimately involved in every aspect of designing and building the Bhopal plant, including the waste disposal systems,” said Rick Herz, counsel for the plaintiffs and Litigation Coordinator for EarthRights International. Co-counsel Rajan Sharma, of the New York law firm Sharma & Deyoung, added, “These families have been living with Union Carbide pollution for decades and they deserve justice. Union Carbide refuses to submit to the jurisdiction of India’s courts and asserts that American courts may not grant relief without the participation of the Indian government.”

The plaintiffs have also sued the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, which now owns the Bhopal site, to compel its cooperation in the cleanup of the contamination. As of today, neither the Government of India nor the State of Madhya Pradesh has appeared before the court.

The Sahu II lawsuit is No. 07 Civ 2156 in the Southern District of New York. In addition to EarthRights International and Sharma & Deyoung LLP, the plaintiffs are represented by the Law Offices of Curtis V. Trinko.

EarthRights International is a NGO with offices in the United States, Thailand, and Peru specializing in protecting human rights and the environment, and corporate and government accountability. More information on ERI is available at http://www.earthrights.org.