Hadiya ‘Love Jihad’ case: What exactly happened during frenzied arguments in SC

November 29, 2017

SC Bench debates pros and cons for two hours before hearing Hadiya. After her statement, it allows her to pursue her studies.

Image Courtesy: The Asian Age

On 27 November, Hadiya (formerly Akhila Ashokan), wearing red scarf, entered court number one of the Supreme Court around 2:55 pm. She had embraced Islam in 2015 and married a Muslim man Shafin Jahan. She had come to give her side of the story after it was alleged that she had been converted to Islam against her will.

The proceedings began at 3 pm. But Hadiya turn to speak out took a long time to come. It took apex court bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud a good two hours to arrive at the conclusion that they should listen to her own deposition.

When the hearing began at 3 pm, advocate Shyam Divan, representing Hadiya’s father KM Ashokan, pressed his application and submitted that the court should interview Hadiya in-camera. “The purpose is to learn from her the forces behind her (conversion). There is tremendous organisational support; therefore, some degree of interaction and element of probing is necessary. The atmosphere must be closed door,” he told the court.

Divan then said there was a “highly communally charged” atmosphere in Kerala. He said that there would be some threats to what she might say in the open court. “Please revisit that decision to hold a public hearing,” he pleaded.

Repeating his previous arguments, Divan added that there is “well-oiled machinery working in Kerala involved in indoctrination and radicalisation of young women and converting them”.

Arguing on behalf of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which was tasked by the apex court to investigate the alleged Love Jihad case, Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh told the bench that a wider hearing on indoctrination and its impact is needed.

He said by interacting with her in the open court, the Supreme Court cannot decide whether or not a person has been indoctrinated. “It is psychological, a result of kidnapping, and involves individual autonomy. Such indoctrination is called ‘neuro-linguistic programming,” he told the court.

The bench then asked the NIA, “Should we delink the larger issue of indoctrination with the specific case of Hadiya’s marriage? At what stage can personal liberty be suspended by the court?”

CJI Dipak Misra asked, “If it is established that the consent of the individual is not voluntary, what should the court do?”

The NIA in its reply told the court, “We have submitted a 100-page report…before any decision, take a look at what our investigations have found.”

Senior counsel, Kapil Sibal, representing Hadiya’s husband, Shafin Jahan, told the bench that assuming whatever the other side says is true, she still has a right to say what she wants.

“To know whether she was indoctrinated or not, one has to talk to her. Your lordships should hear Hadiya. Her statement is more important than that of the NIA.”

The CJI replied, “I have never seen such a case in my life.”

Opposing the plea for in-camera hearing of Hadiya, Sibal said he was concerned about her autonomy. “In the national interest, it should be done in the open court. She may decide whatever she wants to decide,” he said.
Responding to Divan’s argument on communalisation, he said he was “saddened” with the “expression of venom”. “I can give a communal response to communal argument,” he said and asked “What has it got to do with Hadiya?”

“She has been in the custody of her parents for the past eight months, with no access to anybody else. Why do you want to communalise Kerala in this fashion,” he asked.

He said Hadiya is an adult and entitled to make her decisions. “Whatever NIA says is not the gospel truth. How can I be indoctrinated if I am in custody?” he asked reminding the bench that the NIA takes U-turn in many cases.

Sibal told the bench, “If there is compelling evidence and if it persuades you that there is no choice involved in the conversion to Islam, then take action.”

“Even she made a wrong decision she is entitled to go through it. If there is a break-up, so be it. After all, so many marriages break up,” Sibal said.

He said even if the indoctrination story is true, she (Hadiya) says she still wants to go. “First talk to her, get prima facie idea about her, see whether there is compelling evidence to conclude. Send her to a medical facility or declare that she is exercising free choice. She is here for that purpose,” the senior counsel told the bench.

Justice Chandrachud said the bench is “concerned about the danger of indoctrination”. “We are sworn to do our duty,” he said.

Sibal, in response, said: “So are we.”

Intervening at the point, Justice Khanwilkar said, “In a normal case, we would have heard the girl and decided, but this is an unusual case.”

As Sibal stressed on individual autonomy as the only factor that needed to be considered in the case, Justice Chandrachud questioned what the threshold for determining the autonomy should be. “What would be the guiding principles for the court to determine if the autonomy of an adult has been compromised? If we proceed with interviewing the girl in question, would that not amount to the court accepting that there has been no indoctrination?” he asked.

Pointing to a phenomenon called the ‘Stockholm Syndrome’, Justice Chandrachud said, “We are not saying that this is in your case, but there is one phenomenon called Stockholm Syndrome. Even though there is a free consent or person is a major but due to this syndrome, they cannot take their decisions freely.”

“The ability of the individual to be an independent agent herself/himself is also an important aspect,” he further added.

Sibal then asked, “Why did the bench call Hadiya all the way from Kerala if it was going to decide whether to hear her or not?”

When the bench could not decide for two hours, it infuriated senior counsel and former Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaising, also appearing for Shafin. “Had Hadiya been a man, would the bench have doubted her faculties?” she asked.

To this Justice Chandrachud lost cool and said “the bench treated both genders equally”.

CJI Dipak Misra also asked her with displeasure, “How did the gender issue come in here?”

The battery of lawyers representing Shafin and Hadiya urged the court to at least hear the woman as she is a medical doctor and has her own mind. “If the Court did not hear after calling her, what would she think? She understands all that is going on in the court,” they told the bench.

The CJI then said the bench was only exploring the sequence of steps to be taken. Justice Chandrachud said that the question was at what stage could the court step in and she could decide as an adult individual?

The lengthy arguments then followed the one-to-one interaction between Justice Chandrachud and Hadiya. The court was told that though she can communicate in English, she may not be able to effectively articulate that in the language. The court requested Advocate V Giri, who represents the State of Kerala, to assist in translating.

The range of questions that were posed by the court basically pertained to her qualifications, studies, perception of life and what she intends to do in future. In response, she told the court that she passed class 10th from Higher Secondary School in KV Puram, Viakom in Kottayam district. Thereafter, she was pursuing her BHMS (Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery) from Shivaraj Homeopathy Medical College at Salem in Tamil Nadu.

She told the bench, “I want freedom. I have been in unlawful custody for last 11 months. I want to be a good citizen, a good doctor. I want to live true to my faith.”

The court told her she can profess her faith and be a good doctor.

When the bench asked Hadiya what your dreams are for the future, she replied she wanted freedom and to live with her husband.
She also told the Court that she intends to continue her internship, which she had left because of certain reasons, and her ambition is to become a full-fledged homeopathic doctor. She expressed her desire to stay in the hostel and complete her course in the said college, if a seat is made available.

As desired by her, the court directed that she be taken to Salem so as to enable her to continue afresh the internship, the duration of which is likely to be 11 months.

“If any formality is to be complied with, the college shall communicate with the university and the university shall accede to the same. Our directions are to be followed in the letter and spirit by all concerned,” the court said in its order, a copy of which is available with the NewsClick.

When the bench asked Hadiya to name any relative or any near acquaintance as her local guardian in college at Salem in Tamil Nadu, she said only her husband could be her guardian and she does not want anyone else in that role.

Hadiya further told the court, “If I am sent back to college to complete my course I want my husband to be my guardian.”

“A husband cannot be a guardian of his wife. Wife is not a chattel. She has her own identity in life and society. Even I am not guardian of my wife. Please make her understand,” Justice Chandrachud said.

The CJI asked her, “Would you like to continue your studies on state’s expense?”

Hadiya replied, “I want to but not on state’s expense when my husband can take care of me.”

The court also directed the college to treat her like any other student and she will be guided by the hostel rules, which implies, according to her lawyer, that she can meet her husband as well.

The bench ordered the dean of the college to approach the apex court if there is any problem with regard to any aspect. “‘Any problem’ does not mean admission in the hostel or continuance in the course,” the bench clarified.

If necessary, the court said, the expenses for pursuing the course and for the hostel shall be borne by the State of Kerala.

The bench also directed the State of Kerala to make all necessary arrangements so that she can travel to Salem at the earliest.

Hadiya made a request that she should be accompanied by policewomen in plainclothes. “The state shall attend to the prayer appropriately. If any security problem arises, the State of Tamil Nadu shall make local arrangements for the same,” the court directed.

(Courtesy: Newsclick)

Thousands denied drinking water, farmers denied water for irrigation: The true cost of Sabarmati Riverfront

November 28, 2017

The ‘Sabarmati Riverfront’ has been for many, one of the crowning jewels of the Gujarat government during the period of Narendra Modi as its Chief Minister. The riverfront, in Ahmedabad, has been used time and again to show the ‘development’ that the state has witnessed under the leadership of the BJP. In truth, however, the Riverfront is nothing short of an ecological disaster, with the project denying thousands of Gujarat residents the right to drinking water.

Sabarmati Riverfront [Courtesy – sabarmatiriverfront.com]

On the first look, it is evident that the Sabarmati Riverfront developed in Ahmedabad gives a new look to the Sabarmati river, which, like most rivers in urban India, had been on the verge of death. But revealed to the public in 2005, the riverfront is drawing water from drought-prone Kutch area of Gujarat to keep the riverfront alive and “beautiful”.

Narmada river meeting seasonal Sabarmati river [Courtesy – SANDRP]

A tweet trail by twitter user Jayesh Bhatia (@bjayesh9) caught our attention, so we thought to research a bit go the story.As the Sabarmati is a seasonal river and only gets the water during the Monsoon season, the water body has to get the water from Narmada river. And the water from the Narmada comes via Narmada Canal, which was inaugurated in 2008 for irrigation purposes.

The Narmada Canal, which runs for over 500 km, is the main feeder to the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad. [Amit Kumar/ TwoCircles.net]

Various ecological experts and research scholars have already raised the question on the kind of development brought about by the riverfront, but very few have shown concern with the people of Kutch, Saurashtra and North Gujarat, who first have the rights on the water of Narmada river.Amruta Pradhan, a research associate with SANDRP (South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People), wrote in her field study report, “City of Ahmedabad or Sabarmati River has no right on Narmada River Water, it’s the water meant for drought-prone areas of Kutch, Saurashtra and North Gujarat. Thus the water we see in Sabarmati in Ahmedabad is water deprived of the drought-prone areas.”

The purpose of building Narmada canal was to have a channel so that excess water from Sardar Sarovar Dam could be extracted into Narmada river to avoid the flood. But soon after the riverfront work started, it was a challenge to maintain the flow into the Sabarmati river.

The Narmada Canal, as we had showed in our story earlier this month, has also been built at a great cost for the local farmers of the Narmada district. While the canal, which is over 500 km long, feeds water to the rest of Gujarat, the locals allege that they still have to depend on monsoon for irrigation. They also allege that despite losing thousands of acres of land in the canal project, they have received no benefits from the canal and like the Sardar Sarovar Dam, this project too has only led to the destruction of their livelihoods.

To ensure the river flow in Sabarmati river, specifically in Ahmedabad region, Gujarat government took two extreme decisions. One, it reduced the width of Sabarmati river to 275 meters from the original 382 meters, and two, it started drawing water from Narmada river through Narmada canal.
So for developing riverfront, the original Sabarmati river was reduced to a canal.

Another factor hindering into the riverfront project was to keep Sabarmati free of sewage water and let only one hundred percent treated sewage water enter into the Sabarmati water. To meet this demand, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) started working and claimed very recently that it has succeeded in treating every amount of sewage coming down to Sabarmati.

But it was revealed in a field study in 2014 that Gujarat government did not actually treat the sewage water, but was dumping the untreated sewage water into Sabarmati few kilometres downstream of Ahmedabad at Vasna Barrage.

Contrary to the claims, untreated sewage is being discharged into Sabarmati. [Courtesy – SANDRP]

Himanshu Thakkar, the coordinator at SANDRP talked with TwoCircles.net over the issue. He said, “The Gujarat government has been saying that they have rejuvenated the Sabarmati by developing a riverfront, but it seems that they are basically lying.”“If you look at the facts, the river is a dry stream upstream of Ahmedabad and a sewage body downstream of Ahmedabad. It only looks fancy during the riverfront stretch, which Gujarat government has made by containing it in concrete walls,” said Thakkar.

Satellite imaging confirms the only wide stretch of Sabarmati river in riverfront region, possible because of Narmada Canal. [Courtesy – Jayesh Bhatia]

The Rs 1,150 crore project of Narendra Modi – who was serving as a chief minister of the state by then – also compelled Akhilesh Yadav, ex-chief minister of Uttar Pradesh to develop the same riverfront at Varuna and Yamuna river in the state. But what has been ignored that by developing and maintaining the riverfront, the governments have been actually killing fastened the pace of killing the river.Thakkar said, “The government basically snatched the water which was meant to help people in times of drought and it is the cleverness of the government that anyone hardly knows about this in Gujarat or in the country.”

Saurashtra and Kutch regions of the state have been fighting hard for many years to cope up with the state economy, even after receiving low rainfall than the state’s average. Moreover, it was the cotton and groundnut farmers of the Saurashtra who joined the farmers’ protest happened in most of the Indian states mid of 2017.

A farmer in front of ‘mini canals’ that were supposed to provide water to farms around the canal but are now overgrown with weeds as they have seen no water in over two decades.[Amit Kumar/ TwoCircles.net]

The issue of Minimum Support Price (MSP) and the condition of groundnut and cotton farmers of Saurashtra region prevail in current Gujarat election. The state BJP government has been accused of not caring about the farmers who have been delivering despite low rainfall. But the farmers know very little about whereabouts of the Narmada river water. They are not aware of the fact that Narmada’s water is being directed to keep riverfront alive.In 2014, after several complaints of mosquito problem in Ahmedabad arose because of stagnant water, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation introduced mosquito repellant inside the river water, making the water even more unusable to use. Officials also claimed that the mosquitoes were “harmless” and “non-infectious”, contrary to the scientific findings that mosquitoes were Culex: a carrier for filariasis.

Sabarmati riverfront, which is constantly being loaded with several market plaza and amusement setups, is also not immune to the excess flow of water during monsoons.

In July this year, the lower promenade of the riverfront drowned after 1.3 lakh cusecs water was released from Dharoi dam, and authorities came under questioning. In the years 2006, 2011, and 2015, the lower promenade was submerged because of the same reason.

When TwoCircles.net tried to contact Babubhai Bokhiria, the water resource minister of Gujarat, he put the blame on the local body for allowing the untreated sewage to go into the river body.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the SAUNI (Saurashtra Narmada Avtaran Irrigation) Yojana in April this year, the tender for which is still to come out. Talking about the same, Bokhiria told TwoCircles.net, “We had Sauni scheme in 2012 also. But this time we are more determined to make it possible.”

The responsibility of Gujarat government – irrespective of incoming or outgoing one – the task is bigger to deliver a more ecological and socially efficient and healthy development setup to the people of Gujarat.

Courtesy: Two Circles

What the Nation Celebrated, the RSS Mourned

November 28, 2017

68^th Anniversary/Adoption of the Indian Constitution:

An interesting fact about the Indian Constitution adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India (CA) on November 26, 1949 is that out of 35 constitutional polities born after World War II, India is the only country which survives with its Constitution in tact. All other countries have fallen prey to totalitarianism, civil war and military take-over. It is not that Indian democracy has had smooth sailing entirely. It is not that the constitutional structure has had no infirmities, India has not been able to do real justice to the have nots. However, only in India has a foundational document –the Constitution –based on liberal democracy and secularism been able to survive. Its emphasis on an all-inclusive polity assuring social, political and economic justice was, in essence a continuation of the anti-imperialist legacy of the national movement.

Constitution framing was arduous. It took 2 years, 11 months and 18 days of hard work after which the Constituent Assembly (CA) adopted the Constitution on November 26, 1949. As many as 284 members signed the document when it was drizzling outside. It was also decided that the whole Constitution would be enforced on January 26, 1950 to be then celebrated as the Republic Day. This great accomplishment was celebrated not only in India but the world over. In almost all parts of India there were jubilant scenes celebrating the occasion.

However, there was one significant exception. The Hindutva camp led by RSS which had consciously denigrated the anti-British freedom struggle mourned this historic achievement. Three days after the CA passed Constitution the RSS’ English organ, Organizer on November 30, 1949, in an editorial, rejected it and demanded the archaic, Manusmriti, as the constitution. It read:

“But in our Constitution, there is no mention of the unique constitutionaldevelopment in ancient Bharat. Manu’s Laws were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To this day, his laws as enuniciated in the Manusmriti excite the admiration of the world and the world and elicit spontaneous obedience and conformity. But tour constitutional pundits that means nothing”.

Even after Independence was attained, the RSS kept on denigrating the Constitution of India. From MS Golwalkar, (Guru) to most of the present Hindutva rulers including the Indian prime minister, they have rejected in totality the Indian Constitution in the following words:
“Our Constitution too is just a cumbersome and heteregoneous piecing together of various articles from various constitutions of western countries. It has absolutely nothing which can be called our own. Is there a single word of reference in its guidling principles as to what our national mission is and what our keynote in life is?”[i]

This hatred towards democratic-secular Indian Constitution overflows in everyday prarthana (prayer) of RSS which worships Hindu Rashtra and pledges to accomplish a Hindu state. It reads:
“Affectionate Motherland, I eternally bow to you/O Land of Hindus, you have reared me in comfort/O Sacred Land, the great creator of good, may this body of mine be dedicated to you/I again and again and again bow before you /O God akmighty, we the integral part of the Hindu Rashtra salute you in reverenve/for your cause have we girded upour loins/give us your blessings for its accomplishment.” [ii]

Importantly, the RSS organ Organizer in its issue on the very eve of Independence, dated 14 August, 1947, rejected the whole concept of a composite nation (under the editorial title ‘Whither’):

“Let us no longer allow ourselves to be influenced by false notions of nationhood. Much of the mental confusion and the present and future troubles can be removed by the ready recognition of the simple fact that in Hindusthan only the Hindus form the nation and the national structure must be built on that safe and solid foundation, the nation itself must be built up of Hindus, on Hindu traditions, culture, ideas and aspirations..

RSS not only decried democratic-secular Indian polity but all those symbols which represented an all-inclusive India. It was ruthless in denigrating tri-colour or national flag.. On the eve of independence the RSS mouth-piece,Organiser, in its issue dated August 14, 1947, rejected this choice in the following harsh words:

“The people who have come to power by the kick of fate may give may give in our hands the tricolor but it will never be respected and owned by Hindus. The word three is in itself an evil, and a flag having three colours will certainly produce a very bad psychological effect and is injurious to a country.”
If the RSS is dead against the democratic-secular Constitution of India and all symbols that are manifestations of it, why are RSS cadres and prime minister Modi (and many of his colleagues) celebrating the 68^th anniversary of Indian Constitution. As masters of doublespeak these proponents of a Hindu theocratic state are buying time and waiting for an opportune moment to strike from within. Over the last three and half years they have surely been destroying democratic institutions of Indian polity one by one, and are just waiting to demolish democratic-secular Indian polity as a whole. This plan was outlined by Guru Golwalkar long back in 1940. Golwalkar while delivering a speech before the 1350 top level cadres of the RSS at Resham Bagh, RSS headquarters in 1940 declared:

“RSS inspired by one flag, one leader and one ideology is lighting the flame of Hindutva in each and every corner of this great land”.[iii]

All those concerned about the future of democratic-secular Indian polity must come together to resist this anti-national agenda of RSS. The Indian Constitution today faces most critical challenge to its existence. Those who rule India have openly declared that they would over-throw democratic-secular Indian Constitution. For the first time in independent India’s history, the man who would be prime minister, Narender Modi, while chief minister of Gujarat called himself a ‘Hindu nationalist’.[iv] He is our prime minister now.

All patriotic Indians should unite to break the stranglehold of this Hindutva conspiracy aimed at destroying this historic reality, the democratic-secular polity, today a lone sentinel of all nations born after the World War II.

[i]M.S. Golwalkar, Bunch of Thoughts, Sahitya Sindhu, Bangalore, 1996, p. 238.

[ii]RSS, Shakha Darshikha, Gyan Ganga, Jaipur, 1997, p. 1.

[iii]MS Golwalkar, Shri Guruji Samagar Darshan (collected works of Golwalkar in Hindi), vol. 1, Bhartiya Vichar Sadhna, Nagpur, p. 11.

[iv]Modi as CM of Gujarat interviewed by Reuters at former’s residence at Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat, July 12, 2013.

BJP Can Be Beaten In Gujarat

November 27, 2017

Local bodies’ elections in 2015 showed that BJP has lost its rural support base – and things have gone downhill since then.

It is customary to believe that Modi led BJP is unbeatable in Gujarat. But there is a strong element of hype in this belief. Electoral trends of vote shares in the past several elections in Gujarat show that the BJP’s stranglehold is cracking up, and it is not at all certain that they will win the forthcoming Assembly elections.

The state has seen six elections since 2007: two each of local bodies’ elections (in 2010 and 2015), Assembly (2007 and 2012), Lok sabha (2009 and 2014). Till 2014 the gap between BJP and its only challenger in Gujarat, Congress, was seemingly widening. In the 2012 Assembly elections BJP got nearly 48% vote share as opposed to the Congress’ 39%. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP won all 26 Lok Sabha seats in the state capturing a phenomenal 59% of vote share. This is what created the image of invincibility.

But in the last elections held in the state – the local bodies’ elections of 2015 – the whole equation started changing. For the first time in over a decade, ruling BJP lost the rural local bodies to Congress, while in urban local bodies the BJP still won but with a much reduced gap. The Congress won 24 of the 31 district panchayats and 134 of the 230 taluka panchayats. In 2010 it had held only 6 district panchayats and 67 taluka panchayats.

In terms of vote share, Congress increased its vote share from 44% in 2010 to nearly 48% in 2015 in district panchayats; and from 42.4% to 46% in taluka panchayats. On the other hand, BJP’s vote share declined from over 50% to 44% in district panchayats and from 48.5% to 42.3% in taluka panchayats.

Clearly, rural areas, in the throes of a deep agrarian crisis, had turned against the BJP. The vehicle of this change was the patidar agitation led by Hardik Patel, which started in early 2015, before the local bodies’ elections were held in August of that year. The Patel community had been supporting BJP solidly for years but it became hostile to the rulers after the police crackdown on their agitation for job reservation in which 14 lives of Patel youth were lost.

In local bodies of urban areas the BJP held its ground in the 2015 elections although their vote share dipped. It retained all 56 municipalities and all 6 municipal corporations although its vote share reduced from 48% to 45% in the former and from 52% to 50% in the latter.

The rural-urban divide in the BJP’s vote base had thus crystallized in the 2015 elections. And, now after two years there is no reason to believe that there has been a reconsolidation behind BJP. In fact other fissures have emerged that may further damage BJP’s position and its support base has been further eroded. Other Backward Classes and dalits, have started fighting for their rights in opposition to BJP. The dalits have raised their voice at continued atrocities against them, sparked off by the Una incident of stripping and public beating of dalit youth for going about their traditional occupation of flaying and disposing off cattle carcasses. There are rumblings of dissent in tribal areas against continued neglect by the BJP govt.

In short, the whole social base built by BJP after the communal holocaust of 2002, based on an imposed Hindutva identity that subsumed various castes and social identities has been torn asunder by the much deeper agrarian economic crisis. Food grain and oilseed production is stagnating for the past nearly a decade, and cotton output is stagnating for the past 6-7 years with some ups and downs, as per RBI data on output. Farmers’ debt is increasing while incomes are stagnating. All this is finding expression in various caste based movements, but also in farmers’ agitations on their issues. Unemployment is increasing generally as industrial production has plateau-ed off.

So, the BJP may well be on the brink of a shock in the coming Assembly elections.

Courtesy: Newsclick.in

Judicial Inquiry Into Death of Loya Must: Ramdas

November 27, 2017

Retired Indian Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Ramdas, has in a letter to Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra, urged that a special, judicial inquiry needs to go into the shocking circumstances behind Judge Loya’s death. The Caravan Daily had broken this story last week after which it was re-published on Sabrangindia.

In this letter, Admiral Ramdas, who is also recipient of the Magsaysay Award for Peace stresses how crucial this investigation is for the health of any democracy.

Text of letter:
All Democracies exist and survive on three main pillars – namely the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary. Freedom from British rule, was won after a prolonged struggle and The Indian Constitution was evolved after nearly two and a half years of debate in the Constituent Assembly, and passed on November 26, 1949 and India became a Republic on January 26, 1950. Our Constitution became effective. This one and only holy book which matters, subscribes to the above concept of our Democracy, wherein all our citizens are considered to be equal in the eyes of the law.

This is all the more important when a CBI judge, Justice Loya, specially appointed by the CJI of the Mumbai High Court to investigate the murder of Sohrabbudin , dies under mysterious circumstances while on a visit to Nagpur. The silence of the two judges who apparently persuaded the late Judge Loya to travel to Nagpur, and accompanied him, is disturbing to say the least. The inaction of the judiciary about this sequence of events thus far is indeed surprising. This is all the more puzzling in the context of the recent revelations by family members of the late Justice Loya, who have raised certain questions, apprehending foul play in the circumstances leading to his sudden death.

A judicial probe at this point, at least to respond to the queries raised by the family, and to uphold the image of the judiciary in the eyes of the people of India, is absolutely necessary.

As a former Chief of the Indian Navy, I feel strongly that it is critically important to clear any doubts about this entire incident. Therefore in the larger interests of the nation and its people, and above all in upholding the Constitution of India and the image of our entire legal system, a high level judicial enquiry be initiated immediately.

It is to be hoped that serious note will be taken of this communication.

Myanmar and Bangladesh strike a shameful deal on Rohingya refugees

November 25, 2017

Returning Rohingya people to the hands of their persecutors not only violates international law, but raises fundamental questions about how the world protects those fleeing the most heinous crimes and abuses.

A deal done: the foreign minister of Bangladesh, Abul Hassan Mahmud Ali, visits Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi. EPA/Myanmar Ministry of Information

Many Rohingya people who have fled the ethnic cleansing in Myanmar are now living as refugees in Bangladesh. And now, the two countries have reportedly struck a deal to return them home. Returning Rohingya people to the hands of their persecutors not only violates international law, but raises fundamental questions about how the world protects those fleeing the most heinous crimes and abuses.

This deal comes just days after Ratko Mladic was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the Srebrenica massacre, which took place in Bosnia even as news cameras broadcast footage around the world – in much the same way as they have documented this latest crisis of ethnic cleansing.

As far as Myanmar is concerned, the deal will ease the increasing pressure it faces from both the United Nations and its Asian neighbours. The Myanmar government has no interest in welcoming Rohingya refugees home with open arms; those Rohingya who remain in Myanmar are treated as an alien people, denied citizenship and basic rights, and systematically persecuted. The Myanmar government maintains that the recent spike in violence did not amount to ethnic cleansing, that it was not state-sponsored, sanctioned or condoned, and that the Rohingya are safe to return. But those words are empty.
Abundant first-hand reports and documentary footage all point to the same thing: ethnic cleansing conducted by state actors. Top UN officials have been using the term “ethnic cleansing” for some time, and the US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, is now using it too.

Given that Myanmar is refusing to take responsibility for the atrocities, let alone to provide guarantees of protection and justice for the Rohingya, it beggars belief not just that the country is asking those refugees to return, but that Bangladesh would provide its support.

Under international law, refugees who flee atrocities are afforded fundamental protections. Above all, they are protected by the principles of offering asylum and of non-refoulement – protection against return to a country where a person has reason to fear persecution.

Bangladesh will of course insist that Myanmar wants these people to return, and that only those choosing to do so voluntarily will be returned. But that ignores the facts on the ground. Rohingya refugees’ options are bleak: remain in the squalid camps, somehow escape into Bangladeshi society with no formal documentation or status, or return home and face persecution.

Bleak future

Bangladesh has not acceded to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol. The country has no law to regulate the administration of refugee affairs or guarantee refugees’ rights. And despite many decades of persecution and abuses in Myanmar, Bangladesh has never allowed the Rohingya to claim asylum. Those who make it to Bangladesh are placed in overcrowded camps without basic provisions, and there they remain unless they choose to return to Myanmar.

The idea of voluntary return stems from a 1993 agreement between Bangladesh and Myanmar, under which those Rohingya who can prove their identity must fill in forms with the names of family members, their previous address in Myanmar, their date of birth, and a disclaimer that they are returning voluntarily. But those who do choose to return will face extortion, arbitrary taxation, and restrictions on freedom of movement. Many will be required to undertake forced labour, and some will face state-sponsored violence and extrajudicial killings.

A refugee camp in in Coxsbazar, Bangladesh. EPA/Abir Abdullah

Those who remain in Bangladesh, on the other hand, face a lifetime in camps where human rights abuses are rife, with insufficient and inadequate food, water, housing or healthcare. Fleeing these camps leaves them undocumented and vulnerable to trafficking, exploitation and abuse.

Whatever individual Rohingya people in Bangladesh might decide to do, their future is bleak. And that’s not good enough. The international community has long known about the systematic persecution of this people. The international community has long ignored the atrocities perpetrated against them. And the international community has long tolerated the cover-ups and excuses from the government of Myanmar. This time it needs to be different.
Bangladesh should step up and provide refuge to those who have been seeking it for 25 years. Myanmar’s neighbouring states and allies should help properly resettle the hundreds of thousands of undocumented Rohingya who have fled Myanmar, and Myanmar itself should be held to account for the atrocities it commits. There’s no point saying “never again” unless action is taken.

Rosa Freedman is Professor of Law, Conflict and Global Development, University of Reading

This story was first published on The Conversation. Read the original.

Bangladesh: Justice hard to come by for victims of sexual violence

November 25, 2017

On average, a victim has to wait at least four years before a trial court resolves a case and passes its verdict on the alleged perpetrators

Justice hard to come by for victims of sexual violence

Fighting for women’s rights. Photo Credit: Syed Zakir Hossain/Dhaka Tribune

Sexual assault victims in Bangladesh are being discouraged from seeking justice by the painstakingly slow trial process and a surprisingly low conviction rate, lawyers say.

On average, a victim has to wait at least four years before a trial court resolves a case and passes its verdict on the alleged perpetrators.

Lawyers dealing with such cases say they believe the conviction rate is very low – 3% at best.

Rights group Odhikar in a recent statement said incidents of child rape outnumber reported rapes of adult women. Between 2012 and October 2017, a total of 2,788 minor girls and 1,597 women were raped.

According to Odhikar, however, the data is just the tip of the iceberg because most rapes go unreported due to social stigma and fear of further harassment and abuse.

In many cases, the perpetrators are influential or politically well-connected men, who then threaten the victims or their families into silence.

There are also allegations that some of the plaintiffs accept out-of-court financial settlements with the accused in exchange for dropping the charges.

For those who do seek justice against all odds, the journey is not smooth.

“Many victims and their families lose hope and stop showing up at court because of the lengthy trial proceedings,” Fahmida Akter Shirin, of Bangladesh National Women Lawyers’ Association (BNWLA), said.

Fahmida gave the example of an 18-year-old speech-impaired girl who still awaits justice over four years after she was allegedly raped by her father for 15 days in April 2013.

The girl was rescued by police and BNWLA representatives from her family’s West Agargaon residence.

The victim testified against her father, Md Jahangir Hossain, using sign language. Her stepmother had also testified before the court.

However, the police claimed in their final report filed over the case in 2013 that no evidence of forced sexual intercourse was found during forensic tests conducted on the victim by the Dhaka Medical College.

Lawyer Fahmida said the court had felt that the incident was true and the police findings were flawed. “Sometimes two-finger tests do not yield the correct result,” she said.

The BNWLA filed a no-confidence plea. This was taken into cognisance by Dhaka’s fourth Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, which ordered Jahangir’s arrest.

Jahangir moved the High Court against the tribunal’s decision to frame charges in the case, which has been pending with the High Court for over four years.

Fear and threats hold victims back

In another 2013 case, an eighth grader was raped by six men on a boat in Keraniganj when she took a ride with a friend.

The victim’s sister filed a case. Two of the accused have confessed to their crimes and four witnesses have testified before the court.

But the victim and plaintiff stopped showing up at the court because of fears for their safety.

The court even ordered the police to arrest the plaintiff and produce her before it. But when police went to her house, they found that the family had left the area after being threatened by the accused.

On August 22 this year, the fourth Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal assigned a female lawyer and women rights activists to contact the plaintiff.

The court noted that it was not unusual for the plaintiff to skip hearings in this case as the accused were socially influential. However, it said the confessional statements, witness accounts, doctors’ report and the victim’s statement were enough to prove the crime.

The court has fixed November 30 for the next hearing.

‘Inefficiency of investigators’

Some of the investigators tasked with probing cases of sexual violence lack experience and skill.

Also, many police stations do not assign female officers to such cases. Several lawyers said that the police track record in dealing with child abuse cases is unimpressive.

BNWLA lawyer Fahmida cited a case in which the police did not even include the doctor who had conducted the medical tests on the victim as a witness.

The 2012 case involved the rape of a 16-year-old tenth grader by a 45-year-old man with the help of two others in the Lalbagh area of the capital.

Medical tests showed that the victim was raped and the report was also attached with the charge sheet. But Hazaribagh police did not include the doctor’s name in the witness list.

The victim’s lawyer then notified the court about the matter. The court is currently recording the testimonies of witnesses – five years after the alleged crime.

Misuse of law

Arfan Uddin Khan, who has served as special public prosecutor of a tribunal in Dhaka for several years, told the Dhaka Tribune that false cases were burdens for the tribunals.

These cases are creating a backlog and causing a delay in delivering justice in other cases.

“People also misuse the law when procuring documents,” Arfan said. “For example, the law requires the victim to get a certificate from a government hospital before filing cases alleging torture, but we have seen people illegally obtaining these certificates in exchange for money.”

Usually, the tribunals do not ask to scrutinise the certificates before the cases are accepted and proceed to trial.

Arfan pointed out that the law required that the lower court judges inform the Supreme Court and the public prosecutors inform the government from time to time about the progress of a case.

“But that never happens,” he added. “As a result, the law which is meant to protect the victims is misused by many to harass their opponents.”

Republished with permission from Dhaka Tribune.

Gujarat Polls: Juhapura, The Largest Muslim Ghetto In Gujarat, Is A Picture Of Deliberate Neglect

November 25, 2017

Situated seven kilometres from the city centre of Ahmedabad, the prosperous economic and political capital of Gujarat, Juhapura locality is a symbol of alienation of the minority community.

Photo credit: Nitesh Kumar/Newsclick

Situated seven kilometres from the city centre of Ahmedabad, the prosperous economic and political capital of Gujarat, Juhapura locality is a symbol of alienation of the minority community. It is deprived of basic infrastructure and public services. Heaps of debris and garbage lying around are common sight here. Residents talk of lack of education, transportation, water supply and sewerage.

‘Development’, the mantra of BJP, seems to stop where Juhapura begins. Even the BRTS’s proposed last stop is a kilometre away, from where it takes a detour away. But for the good main road, part of the Ahmedabad-Vadodara expressway, Juhapura’s internal roads are in neglect. The locality became part of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation only in 2007, but that hasn’t helped.

It does not take much to figure out the reason for the pathetic situation of the area – it is because Juhapura is the densest concentration (over 4 lakh people) of Muslims in one place in Gujarat. Testimonies from local residents confirm this. Its estimated 1.07 lakh registered voters account for around 35% of the total electorates of the Vejalpur Assembly constituency of which Juhapura is part. Ahmedabad is a polarised city and its development can be fully understood only after visiting Juhapura.

Juhapura came into existence in 1973 when over 2,200 inhabitants of the Sabarmati’s banks were rehabilitated here after a severe flood. Earlier, it was basically a slum located at Ahmedabad’s western suburb that housed both Hindus and Muslims. But after the communal violence following the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992, Hindus left the neighbourhood, turning it into an all-Muslim area. Then, one year after the 2002 riots, nearly 180 families from Naroda Patiya, Asarwa and other riot-hit localities were shifted here.

Over the years, more and more Muslims have come to settle in Juhapura, often due to the feeling of insecurity in Hindu-dominated areas. Justice Akbar Divecha of the Gujarat High Court, who had moved out from Juhapura, became the target of mob violence in 2002.

The locality has now changed its face from just another slum to urban Muslim ghetto and second biggest Muslim locality in India after old city of Hyderabad. Christophe Jaffrelot in his recent book ‘Muslims in Indian City’ described Juhapura as a “city within a city”.

Asked why Juhapura has not benefited from PM Modi’s much-touted development, BJP Minority Morcha National Vice President Irfan Ahmed blames it on the residents. “The people here do not want change. When offered biryani, if some people still want only daal, what can one do?” he asks.

Al Ashad Park residential complex in Juhapura borders Vejalpur – a posh Hindu locality in the same constituency. On November 9, Union minister Smriti Irani toured only Hindu areas in Vejalpur, which is highly polarised.

The trend allegedly set by its past leader Amit Shah still haunts it. Shah had cleverly used Hindu-Muslim divide to win Sarkej constituency. He even called Juhapura “mini-Pakistan,” a name that local Hindus often use to describe this Muslim ghetto.

The Bollywood film ‘D-Day,’ which was produced in 2013 based on Dawood Ibrahim, and its scenes of Karachi was shot in Juhapura and neighboring Sarkhez Roza,a prominent dargah.

“No leader from any political party ever pays a visit to the area. We have been neglected for decades,” said 36-year-old Shakeel Ahmad, a resident of the area.

Residents of Siddiqabad, where riot affected people have been rehabilitated by religious bodies such as Jamaat-e-Islami-e-Hind (JIH), say they are in pathetic condition. Govt. officials are not at all bothered. “Elections come and go. But no change has come in our lives. We have to run from pillar to post for our livelihoods, forget about education of our children,” said a female resident of the colony.

Her sentiments were echoed by others. “Our husbands work as daily wage labourers and we work as domestic helps. Then only we manage to run our families. Elections do not mean anything to us,” they said.

Dr Damini Shah, assistant professor at social work department at Gujarat Vidyapith, says it is easy to neglect Muslims as they have been pushed to live in ghettos in several pockets of the state.

“There is a sharp segregation between Hindus and Muslims here. Their connect with mainstream society is negligible. What they get in Muslim majority areas is security and nothing else. There is no scope of their development as the government has measurably failed to improve the life of the riot victims in the state,” said Dr Shah, who has written a book on Muslim ghettoisation in the state.

She also holds the civil society responsible for the ghettoisation. “Post migration in 2002, at least 66 Muslim-only colonies came into existence. But all these colonies were built by religious organisations. As a result, you will see higher number of mosques but not educational institutions. It is a blot on the civil society. Had it come forward, it would have attempted to bring the victims into the mainstream by making arrangements of education and livelihood,” she said.

Asked about the history of ghettoisation in the state, she said it is nothing new here. But there are two types of ghettoisation – one is involuntary because of fear and insecurity and other is voluntary based on the economic conditions of the residents and their caste and class.

“Like Patidars, Jains and Brahmins prefer to live in posh localities of Naranpura, CG Road and Old Pole areas of Ahmedabad only because they cannot afford to live with people who are below their status. These are voluntary ghettoisation. But the migration took place post 2002 was involuntary and because of fear and insecurity,” she explained.

She alleged that following the delimitation of 2008, Muslim majority constituencies were divided into different parts and each small part was added to Hindu dominated constituencies in an effort to make the Muslim community “politically insignificant”.

The result can be seen in Vejalpur constituency. Muslims voters are 1.07 lakh out of the total 3.2 lakh voters and all these minority votes are concentrated in Juhapura. BJP’s Kishorbhai Chauhan defeated Congress candidate Akbarkhan Pathan in 2012 elections.

Earlier, Juhapura was part of Sarkhej constituency, which was represented by BJP President Amit Shah. Before the delimitation, Sarkhej’s 8-9 lakh voters included 1.50 lakh Muslims, including those of Juhapura. After delimitation split the constituency into many, it was the BJP that gained as it won most of the new seats.

It has been 15 years since the deadly riots but still the Hindu-Muslim divide is being exploited to win the elections. But many in Gujarat have claimed that polarization is fading. In 1984 there was a time in Gujarat when 15 Muslim MLAs were elected from the votes of Hindu community, in the coming elections Vejalpur constituency can very well be a secular test for Gujarat politics.

Courtesy: Newsclick.

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Bangladesh: Justice hard to come by for victims of sexual violence

On average, a victim has to wait at least four years before a trial court resolves a case and passes its verdict on the alleged perpetrators

Fear and threats hold victims back

‘Inefficiency of investigators’

Misuse of law

Gujarat Polls: Juhapura, The Largest Muslim Ghetto In Gujarat, Is A Picture Of Deliberate Neglect

Situated seven kilometres from the city centre of Ahmedabad, the prosperous economic and political capital of Gujarat, Juhapura locality is a symbol of alienation of the minority community.

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SC Bench debates pros and cons for two hours before hearing Hadiya. After her statement, it allows her to pursue her studies.

68th Anniversary/Adoption of the Indian Constitution:

Local bodies’ elections in 2015 showed that BJP has lost its rural support base – and things have gone downhill since then.

Returning Rohingya people to the hands of their persecutors not only violates international law, but raises fundamental questions about how the world protects those fleeing the most heinous crimes and abuses.

Bleak future

On average, a victim has to wait at least four years before a trial court resolves a case and passes its verdict on the alleged perpetrators

Fear and threats hold victims back

‘Inefficiency of investigators’

Misuse of law

Situated seven kilometres from the city centre of Ahmedabad, the prosperous economic and political capital of Gujarat, Juhapura locality is a symbol of alienation of the minority community.

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

Important Links

Other Links

CONNECT

68^th Anniversary/Adoption of the Indian Constitution: