On March 16, in the ongoing budget session of the Parliament, Lok Sabha member Shri Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM) had put forth a question regarding the representation of minorities in public sector institutions. Responding to the same, the minister of minority affairs, Srimati Smriti Zubin Irani, informed the Lok Sabha that the Department of Public Enterprises does not maintain data about religion-wise distribution of jobs for minority communities in Public Sector Institutions. In addition to this, the Minister provided the staple answer wherein they highlighted that the Ministry of Minority Affairs has adopted multi-pronged strategy so as to enhance the employability, including in Public Sector Institutions, of notified minorities (Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Parsis and Jains) by way of implementation of schemes which aim at their educational empowerment, employment-oriented skill development, infrastructure support, etc.

The full answer can be read here:

This poor representation of various sections of India’s marginalised, make it almost impossible for the social issues and crimes most plaguing the country today, to be taken seriously. The schemes that are in place, mostly initiated by the previous governments, are used as a gag whenever statistics on actual representation in various sectors are demanded. It is further important to note that public sector institutes are the only sectors that do not have any data on the number of religious minorities employed there, and since 2013, the National Crimes Records Bureau annual report has ceased reporting the level of Muslim representation in the police.

A deeper analysis on lack of representation of Muslim in police force and de-sensitized police force can be read here.

Related:

Who is to be blamed for the consistently low Muslim representation in the police force?

Study finds anti-Muslim prejudices among police personnel

How diverse and inclusive is the Indian judiciary?

Review of 2022: A year of discrimination & violence experienced by India’s religious minorities

Uttar Pradesh has highest number of cases “closed by the NHRC without reason”: NHRC data

The post No data maintained on religion-wise distribution of jobs for minority communities in Public Sector Institutions: MoMA appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Protests continue in Bangladesh as thousands of citizens stand in solidarity with their Hindu compatriots in the wake of violence against the minority community. International media has covered how for the past few days Bangladeshis, across religions are seeking justice for their Hindu fellow citizens who have borne the brunt of recent communal attacks during Durga puja.

On Saturday, October 23, 2021, a mass strike and protest rally has been called for “in districts and sub-districts across the country” by the  Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Parishad to “condemn, protest and condemn communal attacks and want the overall security of religious-ethnic minority population.” Citizens of the country are taking to the streets demanding safety of Bangladeshi Hindus, and taking their campaign online with hashtags such as SaveBangladeshiHindus.

According to a report in Al Jazeera, the mob attacks on Hindu temples and clashes with police in various parts of Bangladesh “have left  at least six people, including two Hindus, dead and more than 100 injured.” Local police told the media that “more than 200 attackers beat and stabbed to death an executive member of the temple committee in the southern town of Begumganj” at a time when the final ceremonies of the Durga Puja festival were being carried out. Shahidul Islam the district police chief told AFP  that on Saturday another Hindu man’s body was found near a pond next to the temple. Four others were killed late on Wednesday “when police opened fire on a crowd of about 500 people attacking a Hindu temple in Hajiganj, one of several towns hit by the disturbances” stated Reuters.

Fresh violence in Bangladesh reported 

Fresh violence in Bangladesh was reported when a mob attacked houses belonging to members of the community at a village in Rangpur’s Pirganj Upazila. The trigger for the violence, police said, was a Facebook post with “religiously abusive content,” believed to have been made by a Hindu man. According to a report in HT, Mohammad Sadequl Islam, the chairman of the local Union Parishad, said, “Around 65 houses were torched during the attack on Sunday night, resulting in at least 20 houses being completely burnt down.” He alleged, the mob was of “local units of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir.”

Hindus comprise around 10 percent of Bangladesh’s 165 million population and have been shaken and left fearful since violence also broke out in the nation’s capital Dhaka, and the port city of Chittagong. High-speed mobile phone internet services were shut and police resorted to fire “tear gas and rubber bullets at thousands of brick-throwing Muslim protesters”. Protests have continued in the country and according to news reports at least 150 Hindus were injured across Bangladesh. According to  community leader Gobinda Chandra Pramanik, “At least 80 makeshift temples had been attacked” in Noakhali, Bangladesh. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) called on the Gov’t of Bangladesh “to ensure the safety of all Hindus and bring the perpetrators to justice”.

ISKCON temple & devotees were violently attacked today by a mob in Noakhali, Bangladesh. Temple suffered significant damage & the condition of a devotee remains critical.

We call on the Govt of Bangladesh to ensure the safety of all Hindus & bring the perpetrators to justice. pic.twitter.com/ZpHtB48lZi

— ISKCON (@iskcon) October 15, 2021

Radharamn Das, Vice President , ISKCON, Kolkata, announced a “1-day protest & prayer meetings for victims in Bangladesh on 23 Oct, in almost 150 countries at all ISKCON centers”.

We’re planning a 1-day protest & prayer meetings for victims in Bangladesh on 23Oct, in almost 150 countries at all ISKCON centers: Radharamn Das, Vice Pres, ISKCON, Kolkata

These protests are being held after a mob vandalised an ISCKON temple & killed 1 in Bangladesh 3 days ago pic.twitter.com/DzJA0Zhn5h

— Prasar Bharati News Services पी.बी.एन.एस. (@PBNS_India) October 19, 2021

Bangladesh Police have reportedly detained at least 300 suspects in connection with the riots. However, attacks targeting Hindus continue in Bangladesh despite Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina making a strong statement that the guilty will be punished regardless of their religion. Bangladesh Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Sunday said that the attacks on Durga Puja pandals were “pre-planned” adding that those found involved will be given “exemplary” punishment.

The Indian right-wing adds communal fuel

Many right-wing influencers from India have meanwhile decided to add communal fuel to what is happening across the border in Bangladesh. Most recently, they have shared a video from Tripura and claimed it is of the ongoing violence against Hindus minorities  in Bangladesh 

Now Hindu homes being systematically burnt in Bangladesh. Will we wait till we have to airlift the last Hindu like we did from Afghanistan?

We forget: Bangladesh & Pakistan will soon go the way of Afghanistan. It is their wish their destiny. What is ours? https://t.co/FWUCzyVAst

— Anand Ranganathan (@ARanganathan72) October 18, 2021

The image shared was originally posted by Twitter handle @UnityCouncilBD of the ‘Bangladesh Hindu Unity Council’. It claimed the violence was  from Rangpur. However a fact check by Alt news revealed that “the samee video was shared by a Facebook page named ‘Social Tripura Network’. The news ticker in Bengali flashing at the bottom says that the incident took place in ‘মরাছড়া বাজার’ or Mara Cherra Bazar which is in Karatichhara, Tripura.” The cause of the fire was yet to be determined though “ some locals suspected that the fire started from the mandap, others think that a short circuit in one of the shops caused the fire outbreak.”

Related

‘Zero tolerance for communal violence’: Dhaka Tribune editorial
Don’t consider yourselves as minorities: Sheikh Hasina reassures Hindus

The post Bangladesh: Mass strike called on October 23 to protest attacks on minorities appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Justice Mukta Gupta granted bail to Preet Singh, who allegedly raised inflammatory and anti-Muslim slogans at Jantar Mantar, on August 8. The court noted that he was not needed for custodial interrogation any longer and could be released on bail.

Without indulging in the issue of whether or not Singh was involved in hate speech, the court noted in its order that as per the video footage and the call records of Singh, he had left the spot at around 2:00 P.M., whereafter the main provocative words/slogans were shouted by the co-accused at around 4:00 P.M.

During the bail hearing, Preet’s lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, had argued that if the demand for a Hindu Rashtra (Hindu nation) comes within the ambit of hate speech laws that intend to hurt the sentiments of a particular community, he will not press the bail application.

Tarang Srivastava, the Additional Public Prosecutor, representing the state, had opposed the bail application stating that Preet Singh was a co-organiser of the event and is thus responsible for the incitement which continued till the evening. He pointed out that even in an interview given by Singh along with co-accused Pinki Chaudhary, he used inciting words against the Muslim community.

To this argument, the high court said, “the interview by the petitioner was not an isolated interview and was part of simultaneous conversation with a number of speakers. Further large numbers of people gathered at the spot due to the petitioner co-organizing the protest and therefore the petitioner would be liable for any offence committed in furtherance of the common object of the assembly.”

However, Justice Gupta relied on his call records to observe that Preet had already left the spot before the Islamophobic sloganeering started.

On August 27, the district court refused to grant him bail on grounds that prima facie, there was material to believe that there had been active participation by Preet in his individual capacity and also as the main organizer of the Jantar Mantar event in spite of the denial of permission by the Delhi Police and total disregard to Covid­-19 protocol issued by the government.

Additional Sessions Judge Anil Antil of the Patiala House court had said, “Given the stature of the applicant, it was expected that he ought to have exercised his authority, in these circumstances, and prevented participants from erring such inflammatory opinions in the larger interest of the public/Committee welfare. On the other hand, the applicant is clearly seen actively participating in the incendiary speeches along with his other associates.”

Before this, on August 12, the Metropolitan Magistrate, Udbhav Kumar Jain, had observed that accused persons Deepak Singh and Preet Singh were seen together making “scathing remarks which are undemocratic and uncalled for from a citizen of this country where principles like Secularism hold the value of basic feature imbibed in the Constitution.” The MM had also rejected his bail plea.

On August 8, vile slogans like Mu*** (slang term for Muslims) kaate jaaenge, Ram Ram chilaenge” (Muslims will be slaughtered in the name of Lord Ram), “s**r kaate jaaenge, Ram Ram chilaenge” (Pigs will be slaughtered in the name of Lord Ram), and “Hindustan mein rehna hoga, Jai Shri Ram kehna hoga” (If you want to live in India, one must say long live Lord Ram) were raised by a group of people.

After the Delhi Police registered an FIR, 6 people, including supreme court lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay, were arrested on August 10. As per a SabrangIndia report, the next day, on August 11, Magistrate Udbhav Kumar Jain had granted relief to Upadhyay, while saying, “Except for a mere assertion there was nothing on record to show that the alleged hate speech to promote enmity between different groups was done in the presence or at the behest of the applicant/accused.”

Other people booked and arrested for this event are Deepak Singh, Vinod Sharma and Pinky Chaudhary. While dismissing Chaudhary’s bail plea, Additional Sessions Judge, Anil Antil, had said, “applicant’s interview is impregnated with high octane communal barbs, laced with inflammatory, insulting and threatening gestures, ex facie indicative of the calculative design on the part of the applicant to promote hatred and ill will amongst other section of the community”.

The HC order may be read here:

Related:

Preet Singh involved in incendiary speech: Delhi court denies bail
Delhi Court rejects bail pleas of three accused in the anti-Muslim sloganeering in Jantar Mantar rally
Court reminds hate mongers, India is not a Taliban State
Jantar Mantar rally: BJP leader, SC lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay among six arrested
Anti-Muslim hate speech at Delhi rally calls for communal violence

The post Jantar Mantar hate speech case: Delhi HC grants bail to accused Preet Singh appeared first on SabrangIndia.

As many as 11 families, all hailing from the minority community, have been allegedly asked to vacate their homes located near the Gorakhnath temple in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, reveals a shocking report in The Quint. The families were all made to sign “consent letters” saying that they would willingly vacate their homes to enable better security arrangements around the temple.

Land surrounding the temple, of which Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath is incidentally the chief Mahant (priest), is being acquired by the UP government purportedly to build a police booth. The Gorakhnath temple complex is spread over 52 acres. According to The Wire, there is a police booth inside the temple complex and a police station is located near the temple’s main gate. It I salso noteworthy that surrounding areas such as Naurangabad, Zahidabad, Purana Gorakhpur, Humayunpur and Rasulpur are predominantly inhabited by Muslim families, most of whom are traditionally engaged in weaving and allied activities.

According to The Quint, the ‘consent letter’ says, “In the surrounding of Gorakhpur temple, keeping in mind the security, the administration has decided that in the southeast side of the temple in Tappa town in the Sadar area, the people named below will give our land to the state government and our signature stands as proof for the same. We have no objections to giving our land away. Please find enclosed signature below.”

However, some families told media persons that they had been pressured into signing the letter.

71-year-old Javed Akhter, a retired engineer with the Indian Railways, told Al Jazeera that Gorakhpur district officials including policemen visited his house and took measurements. They handed him a letter signed by a few other families and asked him to sign as well. “The officials told us that if we do not sign the letter, they have other ways to get our signatures as well. We were pressured,” he said.  

Meanwhile, 70-year-old Musheer Ahmed told The Quint that only Muslim families were asked to sign the letter as there were no homes owned by Hindu families in the area. “No Hindu family has a house here. Only 11 Muslim families had to sign it. We have been living here for over 125 years,” he said lamenting he had nowhere else to go.  

However, Gorakhpur District Magistrate (DM) Vijyendra Pandian rubbished claims that people were made to sign the letter under duress. He told The Quint, “Where are we putting pressure on them? This entire process is in a nascent stage. These men have signed on their own and initiated these proceedings.” He further said, “They are getting a good quantum of money, running into crores of rupees, which is why they signed and they are also getting an alternative piece of land. The entire process is in a preliminary stage so the quantum of money was only informally communicated as it is not supposed to be disclosed in the media. Now they are playing politics.”

Meanwhile, Shahnawaz Alam, president of the state minority cell released an audio recording of the DM allegedly accusing Masihuzzama Ansari, a staff correspondent with India Tomorrow of falsely adding a communal hue to the story, “Please leave your religion behind when you report. Why are you spreading false information?” He then goes on to say that people spreading false information will be charged under the National Security Act.

अपनी नहीं तो अपने पद और गोरखनाथ जी की गरिमा का खयाल रखें योगी जी |
पत्रकार को एनएसए लगाने की धमकी देने वाले गोरखपुर डीएम का ऑडियो किया जारी
बिना सहमति के जबरन मुसलमानों की जमींन छीनने का मामला |@INCUttarPradesh@priyankagandhi@ShayarImran@TirangaBhaiya
https://t.co/BvNCuB8Lli

— Shahnawaz Alam (@UPkaAlam) June 4, 2021

Related:

Yet another demand for ASI survey in UP, plea to look for idols buried under mosque
Gyanvapi case: Pleas before Allahabad HC challenging ASI survey order
Krishna Janmabhoomi: Plea in Allahabad HC to remove Idgah Mosque

The post Were minority community families asked to vacate homes near Gorakhnath temple? appeared first on SabrangIndia.

“The government of India should demonstrate its commitment to protecting the rights of minorities by implementing the following recommendations at the earliest possible date. In compliance with the Indian constitution and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, it should ensure that all citizens may equally enjoy freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice, propagate, and adopt religion. In particular, it should commit to taking steps to prevent further violence and prosecute both state and private actors responsible for attacks on religious minorities.

Ø Recommendations to the Government of India provide adequate police protection to Christians and other minority communities in violence-affected areas and increase the number of police stations and outposts in each district.Require that police register all cases of communal attacks, regardless of the religious background of the complainant, and enforce this regulation through frequent reviews of registers by a magistrate or other competent judicial authority and the establishment of a civilian review board mandated to investigate complaints. Police who violate the regulation should be dismissed.Investigate and prosecute state officials complicit in attacks onminorities. Police who are found to be complicit should be dismissed.End impunity for past campaigns of violence against minorities. That is, prosecute and punish all those found responsible for murder, rape, assault, and destruction of property during the post–Ayodhya violence of December 1992 and January 1993. Police responsible for excessive use of force should be prosecuted; those who having the power and duty to stop the violence but did not intervene should be punished accordingly. Victims and family members should be paid compensation.Implement the recommendations made by the National Commission for Minorities in its reports on attacks on Christians in various states.Make public the recommendations of the Wadhwa

Commission and prosecute those found responsible for the 1999 attacks in Orissa.Ensure speedy review and publication of findings by commissions of inquiry appointed by the state to investigate abuses against minorities.Strengthen the capacity of the National Human Rights Commission, the National Commission for Minorities, and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to operate branch offices in all states with enough financial resources and powers to initiate Prosecution of cases.

Ø Prohibit surveys by district administrations to assess the activities and whereabouts of minority community members and leaders.Launch a nationwide public awareness campaign regarding the dangers of communal violence. This campaign should explain in simple terms what actions are legally prohibited, what recourse is available to minorities, and what the procedures are for filing a First Information Report (FIR: the first report, recorded by the police, of a crime). It should also include a program of public service announcements in all states aimed at sensitizing the population against any form of religious extremism and creating awareness of minority rights.Implement the recommendations made by the U.N. special rapporteur on the question of religious intolerance in his report on his December 1996 visit to India. In particular, the following recommendations should be implemented:

1. Increase awareness of the existence and dangers of extremism because, despite the fact that it is confined to a minority, its influence on the masses through political parties, places of worship, schools and even seats of power, could well destroy community and religious harmony in India.

2. The Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951, should be scrupulously implemented and that in addition it should be speedily supplemented by a new act debarring political parties from the post-election use of religion for political ends.

3. Places of worship should be used exclusively for religious, and not political, purposes.

4. Education can play a vital role in preventing intolerance, discrimination, hate and violence (including violence motivated by extremism) by creating and disseminating a culture of tolerance among the masses and the most disadvantaged segments of the population. It can make a decisive contribution to the assimilation of values based on human rights by the use of school curricula and textbooks reflecting principles of tolerance and non-discrimination.

Recommendations to the International CommunityIndia’s donors and trading partners should pressure the Indian government to implement the recommendations of the Srikrishna Commission on the 1992–1993 Bombay riots, and the recommendations of the National Commission for Minorities on attacks against Christians.

Archived from Communalism Combat, January 2000. Year 7  No, 55,  Human Rights 3

The post Erosion in minority rights: India criticised appeared first on SabrangIndia.