by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Stating that conviction of party leader Sajjan Kumar in an 1984 anti-Sikh riots case should not be politicised, the Congress on Monday raked up the 2002 Gujarat riots demanding punishment for BJP leaders alleged to be involved in the communal violence that claimed over 1,000 lives.
On a day when the Delhi High Court convicted and sentenced Kumar to life imprisonment, Congress leader and former Union Minister Kapil Sibal pointed finger at Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was at the helm of Gujarat during the 2002 riots.
“Kumar doesn’t hold any office nor was given ticket by the party to contest polls, whereas the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, who were involved in the riots, have been given positions of power. The one who was the Chief Minister then has become the Prime Minister now,” Sibal told the media here.
While Modi, the then Gujarat Chief Minister, was given a clean chit by the special investigation team (SIT) in connection with the 2002 Godhra riots, it has been challenged before the Supreme Court which has adjourned the matter till January.
The clean chit to Modi has been challenged by Zakia Jafri — widow of Congress leader and former member of Parliament Ahsan Jafri — who was killed in the Gulbarg Society massacre, one of the worst incidents during the riots.
Reacting to Kumar’s conviction, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi also said that the matter should not be politicised.
“His conviction is not a political issue, the cases have been on for over 20 years and there have been several convictions and acquittals. This should not be seen in a political context and people should not try to seek political mileage from it,” Singhvi told the media here.
Kumar was sentenced to imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life, with the Delhi high Court holding that the violence was a “crime against humanity” engineered by politicians with assistance from police.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Amnesty International on Saturday castigated the Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh for doing little to ensure justice and rehabilitation for the survivors of the 2013 Muzaffarnagar communal violence.
On the fifth anniversary of the deadly riots in Muzaffarnagar district that claimed at least 60 lives and displaced over 50,000 people, the Amnesty International India blamed the state government’s apathy for seven gang-rape survivors still awaiting justice and the displaced continuing to look for rehabilitation.
“The Uttar Pradesh government has forgotten the riot survivors of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli. The state has done very little to redress the injustice they have faced. The government’s attempt at rehabilitation and compensation has been woefully inadequate”, said Asmita Basu, Programmes Director, Amnesty International India.
She said justice remained elusive for the seven gangrape survivors who have received little assistance from authorities to rebuild their lives and livelihoods.
“There has not been even one conviction in any of the seven cases so far. In 2016, one of the survivors died during childbirth,” she said.
Quoting one of the survivors, a mother of five, Amnesty International India said the victims have lost all hope of getting justice and are now hoping for survival of their families.
“Their rapists are out in the open for years now. Women are scared to pursue their cases and they cannot be blamed for this. There are media reports of compromises being made and of money being offered and accepted by many of the seven families. We need to understand the realities in which these women have survived all these years. They are scared and have lost all faith in the system,” said Rehana Adeeb, an activist working with the survivors.
THe rights body said an overwhelming majority of families in resettlement colonies lack access to basic services like clean drinking water and drainage facilities.
“The Uttar Pradesh government’s callous treatment of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli riot survivors is a breach of its commitment to uphold basic constitutional values. The riot survivors have been forced to live in a vicious cycle of poverty and discrimination. The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister must ensure that the voices of the survivors are heard immediately and justice is delayed no further”, added Basu.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Ahmedabad : A special trial court here on Monday sentenced two more persons to life imprisonment and acquitted three others in the 2002 Sabarmati Express train burning case at Godhra railway station, which triggered large scale communal violence across Gujarat.
Different investigating agencies had arrested five persons in 2015-16 and they were put on trial by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Supreme Court.
With this, as many as 33 people have been sentenced to life imprisonment in the case while 66 others have been acquitted. A Special SIT court had convicted 31 people on March 1, 2011, and 11 of them were awarded death penalty and the others were sentenced to life imprisonment. However, in October last year the Gujarat High Court commuted the death sentences to life imprisonment.
Special Additional Public Prosecutor N.N.Prajapati told reporters that the court sentenced Farukh Bhana and Imran alias Sheru Batik to life imprisonment. The judgment was pronounced from Sabarmati Central Jail where the trial took place.
Investigating agencies accused Bhana, who is in his 50s, of being a key conspirator of the train attack. He was arrested by Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad in May 2016. Bhana, a sitting corporator of Polan-Bazar area of Godhra municipality, was on the run since the day of the train burning incident on February 27, 2002.
It was alleged that on the night of February 26, Bhana and other accused persons had held a meeting at Aman Guest House near the railway station as part of their conspiracy to set ablaze the S6 coach of the train.
For almost a decade, he remained underground hiding his identity and would meet his family at different places. He was arrested in Panchmahal district from a toll plaza where he had come to meet his family members.
The convict Imran alias Sheru Batuk was also found guilty of conspiracy and being part of the mob which set the train on fire. He was arrested by Detection of Crime Branch, Ahmedabad in 2016 from Malegaon in Maharashtra.
The other three accused — Hussain Suleman Mohan, Kasam Bhamedi and Faruk Dhantiya — were acquitted.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | World
By Arul Louis,
United Nations : UN Under-Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman is to visit the Sri Lankan city of Kandy, at the centre of incidents of communal violence. He will meet religious leaders there this week, a UN spokesperson said.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is concerned by reports of communal violence in Sri Lanka and is urging dialogue to solve the differences, his Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday while announcing the visit.
The visit by Feltman, who is in-charge of Political Affairs at the UN, starts on Friday and it is “part of ongoing UN engagement with Sri Lanka”, Dujarric said.
During the three-day visit, Feltman is also expected to meet Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and representatives of political parties and civil society groups, he said.
“We’re obviously concerned over the reports of the ongoing communal violence, and we welcome the government’s commitment to addressing the tensions and achieve reconciliation,” Dujarric said. “We urge all Sri Lankans to resolve their differences through dialogue.”
On Tuesday, Maithripala Sirisena declared a 10-day state of Emergency after communal clashes involving Buddhists and Muslims erupted in Kandy district.
The violence flared up on Sunday after the funeral of a Sinhala Buddhist truck driver who died after a confrontation involving Muslims, according to officials.
One Muslim man was reportedly killed when Sinhala mobs attacked Muslim houses and businesses, setting some on fire.
The government has deployed police and military forces to patrol potential trouble spots to prevent violence.
In February in another incident, five persons were injured and several shops and a mosque damaged in a clash involving the same communities in Ampara in eastern Sri Lanka.
(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Lucknow : An angry mob on Saturday attacked a Jawed Habib salon in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district and vandalised the property over the use of Hindu gods’ caricature in one of his advertisements.
Police said the mob was led by workers of the Hindu Jagran Manch, who attacked the beauty salon in Motinagar in the district neighbouring the state capital.
As the mob vent its ire on the salon, some customers were trapped inside.
The activists of the Hindu outfit also threatened the owner to wind up his business or face consequences, following which a police complaint was filed.
A police team visited the salon and took some eyewitness account of the attack.
Regional Secretary of the Hindu Jagran Manch Vimal Dwivedi said sacrilege of Hindu gods would not be tolerated at any cost. “We will not allow the salon to operate,” he said.
The controversial ad in question carried the caption ‘Gods too visit JH Salon’ that led to a case being registered against the hair-stylist in Hyderabad. Habib has already offered his apology and maintains that the ad was released in Kolkata by a partner concern without his knowledge.
—IANS
