Thousands join mass hunger strike in Assam against Citizenship Bill

12/06/2018

Assam, if not Barak valley, is otherwise burning over the debate of Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. If one follows the media reports can believe that the Brahmaputra valley has been witnessing an uproarious situation for past few weeks now. Other states of the northeast region have also started experiencing the heat of the pertinent debate on Citizenship Bill. Few observers compare the situation to the days of Assam agitation, which culminated in 1985 with an accord signed by the agitators and the Union government in New Delhi.

Millions of participants in the six-year-long agitation wanted to deport all illegal migrants (Bangladeshi nationals) from Assam, but, the leaders agreed in the accord to accept the migrants till 25 March, 1971. The agitation led by All Assam Student’s Union (AASU), witnessed the sacrifices of over 850 martyrs and thousands of others who all wanted to deport the illegal migrants with the national cutoff year (1951). However, the accord only agreed to identify people who had entered Assam after 25 March, 1971, as illegal foreigners. Need to be mentioned that the accord was never placed in the Parliament for endorsement. After more than three decades of the signing of the accord, the people of Assam (more precisely the civil society group representatives and media stalwarts in Brahmaputra valley) are fantasising of another uprising. This time it is against the Centre’s initiative to grant citizenship to the religious asylum seekers from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Hundreds of Assam based organisations, including few from other parts of the region, are on the streets asking the central government to withdraw the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016. They came out with a clear demand that the Narendra Modi-led government’s move to grant citizenship to those religious asylum seekers (including Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christians from the three neighboring countries who had taken shelter in India prior to 31 December 2014) must be abandoned. The logic include that Indian citizenship cannot be conferred on the basis of religion as it is a secular country and if done it would go against the spirit of the constitution. The other one, which has been supported by 95% agitation organisations, argues that Assam has already taken the burden of numerous illegal migrants (from 1951 to 1971) and it must not get more migrants, as there is a threat to Assam’s demography and Assamese as language.

The protest escalated when the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) arrived in Guwahati for the hearings. A number of indigenous organisations, local politicians, intellectuals, media personalities, etc. assembled on the venue to raise their voices against the Bill. However, subsequent hearings in Silchar of Barak valley witnessed a different picture as most of the organisations came out in support of the Bill. Media organisations in Assam came out to oppose the Centre’s move. Even, some of the editors of Assam’s prominent newspapers and news channel met Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal who assured them that the BJP leader would protect the interest of Assamese people. Many protesters argued that the amendment would go against the spirit of Assam accord and AASU, Asom Sahitya Sabha, Asom Gana Parishad along with many ethnic outfits of the State made it clear that they would not accept any migrants after 25 March ’71.

Even, Centre has assured that Assam or northeast region will not face implications if the Bill is implemented, there are people who are opposing the exercise. The repeated assurance of the Assam government that it would not go against the interest of the people only indicates of a resolution expected to surface soon. The influential minister in Sonowal’s cabinet, Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, has made it clear that the state government will take a position over the matter only after the release of National Register of Citizens (NRC)’s final draft which will by 30 June. The updating of NRC is presently going on in Assam with the direction and monitoring of the Supreme Court. “The final draft will provide a clear picture of the volume of people taking shelter in the state without valid documents,” Sarma said. One of the government sources pointed out that those without valid papers would not only be Bangladeshi Muslims or Hindus, but a mix of Rajbongsi, Hajong, Jayantiya, Bishnupriya, Chakma, Garo, Khasi, Boro, Adivasi, etc. people. Locals in the region would find it difficult to raise voices against the ethnic families. Therefore, the anger will be concentrated on Bangladeshi migrants (Muslims or Hindus) only. If the amendment identifies only the Muslims as the illegal settlers, then the government should take the responsibility in indentifying Bengali speaking Hindus from Bangladesh. This seems to be relatively an easy solution for the governments in Dispur and New Delhi.

The author is a Guwahati based political commentator

letters@tehelka.com

Are Assam sandbars a safe haven for illegal Bangladeshi migrants?

tehelka

12/06/2018

The boats of vegetables and pulses that touch the Brahmaputra river bank in Guwahati every morning are mostly grown in the hundreds of fertile sandbars, locally called chars that dot the 800-km stretch of the mighty river of Assam — from Sadiya in the east to Dhubri in the west.

Though chars in the eastern parts of Assam are inhibited by the ethnic Mising tribes, the immigrant Muslims who had migrated to Assam from erstwhile Pakistan, even during the British reign, dominate the western parts which is close to present Bangladesh.

The similar living condition and the alluvial land in neighbouring Bangladesh and in Assam’s sandbars continue to attract the migrant Bangladeshis. The trend, however, has turned into a political issue in Assam over the decades as the sandbars are considered to be the den of “illegal migrants” from Bangladesh that threaten Assam’s demography and deepen the fear of identity crisis among the state’s ethnic tribes.

A committee constituted by the BJP-led government in the state that came to power in May 2016, said that chars have become a “safe haven for illegal migrants from Bangladesh” and is pushing the growing threat of identity to indigenous people of the state.

How do they Cross the International Boundaries?

The five-member committee, which submitted its report to Assam government in April this year said Bangladeshi migrants enter through the porous stretch of 1880-km Indo-Bangladesh borders that touches Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

According to a report it says, “The Border Security Forces (BSF) or other paramilitary forces that are entrusted with guarding the borders make their job easy by allowing these seekers of greener Pasteur in Assam to cross the border for a little personal gain. It is an open secret that anyone who wants to enter in to Assam has only to pay 200 or so.

In fact, the whole process of the immigration is conducted by well-knit special agencies or organisations that operate on both sides of the borders and take over the entire process of depositing the infiltrators in the Assam side of the borders. Before they cross the border, they are reportedly given language training, names of their destination and contacts on arrival in Assam.

Some private Madrassas are reported to play dominant roles in the whole process of sending such consignments to Assam. On reaching Assam, the infiltrators are taken over by the respective assignees who utilize their vibrant network to various destinations allotted to each and the process goes on silently and smoothly perennially.

And the Government of Assam finds no reason to be concerned with such arrivals which causes definite threats to the land rights of the indigenous citizens of Assam as also to their very identity.”

How do they settle in the sandbars?

The committee report said all lands in the char areas virtually belong to and are settled by a well-established institution known as Matabbar or Dewani. For all practical purposes, they play the real role of the government, making allotment of land to or settling land with new arrivals of the infiltrators from across the international borders, collecting revenue, exercising monopolistic authorities over the settlers who live there at the complete mercy of the Matabbar and controlling all facets of their activities.

They are the real Zamindars and wield tremendous political and financial clouts such that nobody can gather any courage to raise any voice against them if they want to live there or be alive at all. “To inject fear psychosis in their mind, the Matabbar has his ready weapon of threatening to get them detected by police.

So the Matabbar exercises the full power of the absenting government authorities and make allotment or settlement of land to the new arrivals of suspected Bangladeshis, give them money for being settled at highly exorbitant rate of interest and, in addition to keeping them in perpetual fear and control, the Matabbar builds the way to exploit them in all conceivable way, often treating the victims as animals,” said the report.

Gravity of the Problem

The Char villages spreading from Dhubri to Sadiya comprise a total area of 3,609.27 sq. Kms (2003-04) and accounts for 4.60 per cent of the state’s total geographical area. There are 2,251 Char villages spread in 14 of the state’s 36 districts and occupying 3,609. 27 sq. Kms of land with the Char area being the largest in Dhubri followed by Jorhat district, suggesting that the demography of Assam was fast changing due to high population growth rate in the char areas. The total population of the char areas in 2003-04 was 24.9. lakhs, with an explosive growth rate of 195.83 per cent in Dhubri (between 1992-2003) 98.85 per cent in Nagaon, 51.58 per cent in Jorhat, 58.30 per cent in Sonitpur and 59.25 per cent in Tinsukia.

“The most distressing point of concern is that almost all the settlers are either immigrants from erstwhile East Pakistan or Bangladesh, a section of whom has now become citizens as per the Assam Accord, 1983, or they are illegal Bangladeshis coming after 24 March, 1971- all living together without the illegal Bangladeshis being identified,” said the report.

The ploy to grab Assam land

The report says as the chars are in total control of the illegal migrants, they often wander in other places in Assam for jobs and new areas for encroachment. “While so wandering, they have their ploy handy and plead that they are flood and erosion-affected people displaced from their home Barpeta or Dhubri districts. They take advantage of the fact that the illegal Bangladeshis of Assam have not been identified and pose that they are citizens of India.”

“The fact, however, remains that they neither understand anything of the local language nor are they acquainted with the locality they want to grab. Their invisible leaders guide them and teach them one or two things about the local language or culture to hoodwink the local indigenous people or the police authority. Once they successfully grab the new lands/ areas in the community, they take the full benefits of the flood relief under the disaster management department of Assam government.

They, however, are different from the large population of indigenous Muslims in Assam. In fact, indigenous Muslims continue to complaint of fear of losing their identity from the Bengali speaking Muslims from Bangladesh.

Detection of illegal migrants

Assam, meanwhile, is about to update the National Register of Citizens 1951 to segregate its citizens and illegal migrants, mainly from Bangladesh. The NRC is being updated with Mach 24, 1971 as the cut-off date under the supervision of the Supreme Court, which directed the Centre to complete the exercise by June 30 this year.

This means those proving their/their forefathers’ stay in Assam (with documents) till March 24, 1971, will be enrolled as Indian citizens and those failing to do so will be identified as illegal migrants from Bangladesh.

Threat to ecology

The chars or sandbars are temporary accretions formed due to deposits of the silts carried by the river Brahmaputra and are highly susceptible to demolition due to strong river current during the high annual floods. As the report said, “When human habitation in the char obstructs its natural or new courses, it either demolishes the existing char or takes the easier route to maintain its unobstructed course by eroding new villages on its banks.

How different Assam sandbars from Bangladesh?

The report said the basic features of the chars of Assam and Bangladesh are same except that the average cropping intensity of the chars of Assam is more than that of Bangladesh probably because unlike in the chars of Bangladesh, the seawater alkaline components in the chars of Assam are non-existent. And, with the plentiful growth of luxuriant vegetation, high cropping intensity with minimum labour, fishing, boating and thatching opportunities, and above all, the absence of government administration and encouragement by both the “communal politicians and the Government of Assam, lured by vote bank politics, the chars of Assam have become the paradise of illegal Bangladeshis. Interestingly, human habitation in the chars of Bangladesh is known to be banned by Bangladesh government.

Who are the members of the committee?

The report was submitted by five members of the committee — former IAS officer Rohini Kumar Baruah, Gauhati University Law College dean Ramesh Borpatragohain, senior Gauhati High Court advocate Anil Bhattacharya, former Assam MLA Ajoy Dutta and a commissioner and secretary of the state revenue department.

What do Muslim organisations say?

Some Muslim organisations, however, see this report as “a ploy by the BJP government” to tag all char dwellers as illegal Bangladeshi migrants. They said the chars are mostly inhibited by Muslim migrants who were either brought by the British to grow food items in Assam or had settled in Assam before March 24, 1971, the cut-off date decided in the 1985 Assam Accord, for detection and deportation of foreigners.

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HSSC under fire for repeated lapses, govt forced to suspend chairman

tehelka

12/06/2018

The Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC) scam, better known as ‘Cash for jobs’ scandal has rocked Haryana for the last two months. As soon as the scam broke out in April, the opposition cried foul and sought immediate suspension of the HSSC Chairman, Bharat Bhushan Bharti. Surprisingly, at that time the state government gave him a clean chit, notwithstanding the fact that the scam was a blot on the otherwise unblemished governance record of the Manohar Lal government.

The HSSC Chairman would have probably survived the wrangle. But in a new twist recently HSSC got embroiled in another controversy over a crude and derogatory question asked about the Brahmin community in a written test conducted by the commission. As the BJP government came under fire from the opposition, Haryana Chief Minister was forced to suspend the Chairman, using powers under the more than a century old Punjab General Clause Act, 1898 as the state government does not have the powers to suspend the HSSC Chairman under the HSSC Act.

Now, the HSSC Chairman Bharat Bhushan Bharti will remain suspended till the enquiry in the matter is complete. Meanwhile, the Haryana government has appointed the 1993 batch IAS officer Deepti Umashankar as the chairperson of the Commission.

Incidentally, the suspension order came in the aftermath of the great hue and cry by the Brahmin community in the state, over a derogatory question about Brahmins in the written exam conducted by HSSC to recruit junior engineers. One of the multiple choice objective questions in the paper asked the students, ‘Which among the following is not a bad sign of omen in Haryana? — Empty pitcher, meeting with a black Brahmin and sight of a Brahmin girl’.

The choices for selection to the question were objectionable as well as offending and the Brahmin community considered it a grave insult. Up in arms, the upset Brahmin community in Haryana demanded immediate action against HSSC officials responsible for the bloomer. Quick to fuel the fire, all the opposition parties in Haryana including the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) voiced protests and started demanding probe in to the matter and action against the culprits.

According to R S Chaudhary, a former bureaucrat, and national secretary of INLD, the decision to suspend the HSSC chairman was an eyewash because his appointment is anyway contractual in nature. “HSSC is already under fire for cash for jobs scam. I feel that instead of suspension, the controversial chairman should have been straightway fired by the Chief Minister Manohar Lal. This was necessary to uphold the dignity of the institution,” said R S Chaudhary.

Upset over the controversy, AAP’s Panchkula district president Yogesh Sharma said it was most unfortunate that the HSSC had besmirched the image of a community like this. He demanded strict action against the culprits.

Former Chief Minister of Haryana and senior leader of the Congress, Bhupinder Singh Hooda and AICC Spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala also condemned the incident, saying it was in a very bad taste and should not have happened if responsible people were handling the issue.

The government did decide to conduct an inquiry, preferably by a retired high court judge, to find out how the question sneaked into the test paper and also register an FIR against the Delhi-based company that got the contract to set the question paper, the paper-setter, and the publisher. But all these were damage control measures to assuage the feelings and sentiments of the Brahmin community in the state which has been up in arms ever since.

Incidentally, it was Haryana’s Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma who on behalf of the Brahmin community raised the issue before Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Sharma told the media in Chandigarh that the faux pas by the HSSC was serious and in very bad taste. He said a retired high court judge was likely to investigate the issue as HSSC is an autonomous body. The advice of the Haryana advocate general is also being sought, said Ram Bilas Sharma. He said that HSSC issues directions to a company to set the paper and instructs it to abstain from using objectionable language for any community, caste, organi sation or group. He said that the concerned company has tendered an apology, but the government has blacklisted it along with the publisher from all future assignments.

A spokesperson of Rashtriya Brahmin Sangh said, “The state government by asking questions like this seems hell-bent to divide the society. This is highly condemnable. The question asked in the exam is an insult to the community,’’ he said.’’

Just a month ago a shameless deed of the HSSC had come to light when its employees were caught selling jobs in the infamous ‘cash for jobs’ scam. It was the Flying Squad of the Haryana Chief Minister on April 5 which raided and unearthed the job racket, being run by a group of employees of the Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC) and other departments.

Their brokers were also held. The scam was linked to the appointments to the posts of drivers, clerks and nurses, advertised by the commission over a period of one-and-a-half years. The flying squad arrested eight employees at the HSSC office, Sector 4, Panchkula. The accused used to take money from aspirants for getting them selected for government jobs. The SIT later recovered `2 lakh from the residence of one of the accused-a HSSC assistant. AICC. At that time too the opposition parties had demanded a thorough probe into the matter. In fact, the INLD had demanded a CBI probe in the ‘cash for jobs’ scam. “HSSC should be dissolved immediately and investigation into the scam must be handed over to the CBI,’’ Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala demanded.

AICC Media-in-Charge and senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had accused Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal of protecting the accused in the ‘cash for jobs’ scam. “If the CM does not sack the HSSC immediately and order an enquiry by two sitting judges of the Punjab and Haryana High Court then it will be understood that the kingpins of the scam have flourished under the protection of Haryana CM,’’ Surjewala had said. HPCC spokesman Rann Singh Mann too had demanded an enquiry by a sitting High Court judge.

Led by AAP Haryana president Naveen Jaihind and Panchkula district president Yogesh Sharma, AAP had held a protest against the HSSC job scam in front of the HSSC Board office in Panchkula carrying posters and banners and forming a human chain to demonstrate a sale of jobs.

The rot in the system is deep rooted. The probe in the ‘Cash for job’ scam as well as the controversial question issue may indict some officials of the HSSC. But the question is whether the system will be cleansed or not. The complete system from top to bottom needs to be overhauled. Mere action against a few lower category officials will not be sufficient. Only if the suspension of the HSSC Chairman and the probe into the scam leads to the cleansing of the system will the entire exercise be fruitful. Otherwise, things will remain the same.

letters@tehelka.com

When exam toppers become prime accused in paper leak

Bharat Hiteshi

12/06/2018

When the Punjab and Haryana High Court criticised Chandigarh Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) by calling its enquiry into the paper leak of the Haryana Civil Service (Judicial) recruitment exam “putting chilies in the eyes of Bench”, it reflected that the court was unhappy with the SIT’s lackadaisical effort in the case. It appears that had the full bench of the Court not pulled up the team, the case would have been treated as closed, thus making a mockery of the investigations.

The police was expected to take special care and the SIT constituted by it should have worked diligently as the main accused was none other than the Registrar (Recruitment), an officer of the rank of Additional District Judge. Using his legal expertise, he deftly managed to secure an order that helped him access statements of witnesses recorded before a magistrate under Section 164 of the CrPC. The High Court has not only censured the police but also questioned the public prosecutor’s “intentions”. The public prosecutor neither appealed against the order allowing sharing of vital evidence, nor informed the court. Significantly, the Punjab and Haryana High Court is itself monitoring the case. The High Court is the recruitment authority for judicial services and as such its own prestige and image is at a stake. The Full Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has questioned the failure of the Chandigarh Police to file an appeal as the trial court order can jeopardise the outcome of the case. The manner in which the SIT has allowed the case to proceed, raised the needle of suspicion on the investigators rather than the accused.

When the Court summoned Chandigarh DGP, it was not surprising in the given circumstance. The court has not minced any words in observing that the SIT appears to have “connived” with the accused.

The SIT formed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court and headed by Ravi Kumar Singh, IPS, Superintendent of Police (Crime and Investigation) has arrested its former Registrar (Recruitment) Balwinder Sharma after evidence showed he was in constant touch with the prime accused in the paper leak. Sharma, who had been transferred from the high court after his suspension and pending action, was arrested for custodial interrogation at Ropar. The probe revealed that hundreds of calls were exchanged between Sharma and the two candidates- Sunita and Sushila, who later turned out to be toppers in the judicial exam in general and reserved category, respectively.

The high court had on September 15 entrusted the probe into the case with the Chandigarh police since the examination was held there. The SIT was constituted on September 18 and an FIR was registered. Sharma’s arrest is in line with the recommendations of the Recruitment/ promotion/Court Creation Committee, which had said in September that, “Keeping in view the finding that Dr. Balwinder Sharma, Registrar (Recruitment) unequivocally stated that he had no prior acquaintance with Ms Sunita (the topper in general category), while the call details given by the service provider reveal that there were a total of 760 calls and SMSs exchanged between Dr. Balwinder Sharma and Ms. Sunita during the last one year, indicate that the matter requires a deeper probe.

It has been established that Sharma, the main accused and a former registrar of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, allegedly gave the paper to Sunita, who shared it with her friend Sushila. Both Sharma and Sunita duped several people. According to the 2,400-page charge-sheet filed in the trial court, Sunita, through her roommate Ayushi, a student, procured a SIM in the name of a former employee with a telecom company. She gave the SIM to Sharma, who then used it to register with cab aggregators Uber and Ola with fake names. Between January and April 2017, he booked the cab twelve times to go from the high court to a temple in Sector 18 temple, near which Sunita stayed.

Sunita reportedly told the SIT that she procured her secret number in the name of Naresh Sharma, who sells flowers outside the temple and also runs a canteen. Naresh told the police that Sunita continuously pestered him for SIM claiming she didn’t have a Chandigarh address. Sunita also got a SIM from autorickshaw driver Varinder Kumar registered on Jugnoo auto hiring app by luring him with the promise of getting a peon’s job in the high court. She often used his service for commuting and also got him to deliver tiffin and fruits to Sharma.

The High Court constituted Committee recommended that regular enquiry be initiated against Dr. Balwinder Sharma, Registrar (Recruitment) on the basis of preliminary enquiry”.

Genesis of the controversy

On March 20, the Haryana Public Service Commission advertised 109 posts of HCS (judicial branch) for recruitment to subordinate judicial services. Suman, an advocate, applied for the same and started attending Jurist Academy in Chandigarh for preliminary examination.

The petitioner and her husband, in order to elicit truth, started conversing with Sushila regarding availability of question paper. Somewhere around July 16, Sushila told Suman that she had struck a deal with Sunita and disclosed 5-6 questions which she said would come in the preliminary examination. Suman was shocked to realise that all those questions did come in the preliminary examination. Sushila had also told Suman that no amount of preparation would help as all the post for the general category have already been booked or sold.

Taking serious view of the matter

A single judge took note of the matter and on August 8, summoned the Registrar-General who informed that an enquiry is being conducted.

On August 16, the single judge had ordered “Since it is claimed in the petition that not only the paper of HCS preliminary examination was leaked but it was a whole package involving the main examination which is yet to be conducted and for which paper was yet to be set and also the process of interview, therefore, tentatively I am of the view that the inquiry should have been conducted at much higher level which is now to be considered and decided by this court….”

The result of the exam was placed before the court in a sealed cover and it was found that Sushila and Sunita had topped the exam. The single judge ordered, “in the meantime, the declaration of the preliminary examination result is hereby stayed”. “The registrar recruitment of this court is directed to a file affidavit stating as to who had handled the examination papers right from the time it was set till it was distributed in the examination hall and also disclose the name of the officials who have been deputed in handling and printing of the papers officially and whether anybody else entered the room where the papers are printed without being deputed for the same..”

After the single judge passed the order indicating involvement of high and mighty, the members of the recruitment committee approached the acting Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court on August 28 itself seeking transfer of the case from the single judge.

Suman then moved the Supreme Court seeking transfer of her petition. The Supreme Court, however, refused to entertain the transfer petition and suggested that it can be approached after the high court decides the matter after which Suman withdrew her transfer petition. On September 15, a three-judge bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed Chandigarh police to register an FIR in the matter. On September 18, it constituted a three-member SIT and in November, Sunita was arrested from Delhi. The Chandigarh police will have to pull up its socks and do investigations property as it won’t be able to put chilies in the eyes of the Court, as observed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

letters@tehelka.com

TN Govt shuts down Sterlite plant in Thoothukudi, but for protesters, the fight has just begun

tehelka

12/06/2018

The cocky confidence of the management that it will take legal recourse perhaps has its basis in the fact that it has seen four such closures in the past and re-opened just like it was business as usual. At one time, even the Supreme Court fined the company 100 crore but allowed it to continue operations.

But, this time around, with blood of 13 protesters on its hands, albeit indirectly, the company sure does tread on a dangerous path as not many political parties at this stage would like to be seen on the right side of the plant that devoured the lives of innocent protesters — of course, at the hands of the police who appeared to be shooting to kill rather than shooting to bring a “mob” under control.

On May 28, Toothukudi collector Sandip Nanduri oversaw the sealing of the company amid whistles, cheers and claps by the protesters. He had the company premises within minutes of GO, directing the permanent closure of the company even as the Tuticorin town was limping back to normalcy.

The protest this time around was over the Sterlite plant’s announcement of doubling its capacity and size of the plant, and hence the doubling of the danger it posed to the well-being of the people living in the vicinity. With reports of cancer among villagers, the slogan “Copper for Sterlite, Cancer for People” became a rallying cry for the villages around the SIPCOT complex in Toothukudi. In fact, Sterlite agitation began way back in 1994 in A Kumareddiyapuram. But the fear of expansion of the plant sparked off fresh agitation as in the perception of the villagers, the plant would pollute the environment further. The agitation slowly attracted people from South Veerapandiapuram, Pandarampatti, Silverpuram, Madathur, Meelavittan, Ayyanadaippu, Sankaraperi and Mappillaiyoorani. These villages are situated close to Sterlite Copper plant, where people suffer from respiratory diseases, birth of children with congenital disorders and increased instances of miscarriage. The villagers suspect liquid and gaseous effluents discharged from the copper-manufacturing unit to be the cause. And this anxiety, fear and anger brought the people together against the mega-project.”

There is no doubt, said environmentalist Nityanand Jayaraman that the police were brutal and decisive and determined to instil fear among the protesters and shot to kill them rather than shooting below the waist as is mandatory.

“Supreme sacrifice of the 13 villagers, shot and killed by police, will not go in vain,” Jayaraman said, adding that the Vedanta group was notorious for flouting environmental norms wherever it operated in the past. “We hope this closure is really permanent. We have seen in the past closures and reopening,” said S Raja, a member of the Tuticorin traders’ association.

The decision to close the plant came after the government lost the war of public perception and with assembly session commencing, it was sure to face more negative publicity with the opposition DMK moving in for the kill. It is to blunt the opposition onslaught rather than a will to care for the people and address their grievances that the Edapaddi Palaniswami government took the final call. Besides, the public perception was also going against the Centre and the BJP, which many believe in Tamil Nadu are back-seat driving the Tamil Nadu government.

The TN government failed to come out with satisfactory explanation of why snipers and police personnel armed with automatic assault rifles were let loose on civilian protesters. Human rights activists asked why standard operating procedures were not followed and why police aimed and shot at the protesters, in chest and face, as if to kill them.

It was after six days of the killings that junior officials owned up to ordering police firing, indicating a clear cover-up of the incident ahead of the assembly session.

Sekar, a deputy Tahsildar was among the few officials who filed an FIR at Tuticorin on May 22, the day of firing itself, detailing as to what led to his decision to order firing. He insisted that all the usual standard procedures were followed and only when everything else failed, firing order was given. Though there are not many takers for this version, as the victims of the police excesses and brutality cornered deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam when he went to visit them at Tuticorin government hospital. He was put through a Spanish inquisition, indicating the anger of the people against the government and all it represents. Sceptics also wondered if the SP would follow the orders of a junior administrator like a tahsildar and carry out firing on protesters.

The government in its order said the TN pollution board had not renewed the consent to Ms Vedanta Limited to operate its Copper Smelter Plant. Subsequently, after the protests and killing the board issued closure notice and stoppage of power supply to the plant on May 24. In the closure order, the government said, “The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country. Under Sections 18(1) (b) of the Water Act, 1974 in the larger public interest, the government endorse the closure direction of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and also direct the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board to seal the unit and close the plant permanently.”

But the cocky confidence of Vedanta Limited and its reactions on the Government order directing a permanent closure of the plant in Tuticorin is something that the protesters and activists worry about and has the DMK working president MK Stalin reading a hidden message of the government to the management to “now go and get court orders against this.”

Stalin described the government order as a ‘drama’ and an ‘eyewash.’ If this decision had been taken without the ‘killing’ of 13 lives, the government’s good intention could have been appreciated. But that was not the case and this laid bare the government’s real concerns and its ulterior motives, Stalin said, echoing the sentiments of other opposition leaders as well. Earlier, in 2013 too, the government ’s decision to close the Sterlite plant was an ‘eyewash,’ he said.

But Rajinikanth, actor-turning to politics, described the closure order as a victory. The company for the record said, “closure of Sterlite Copper plant is an unfortunate development, especially since, we have operated the plant for over 22 years in most transparent and sustainable way, contributing to the Tuticorin and State’s socio-economic development. We will study the order and decide on the future course of action.”

Legal experts were divided in their opinion on the maintainability of the government order that was issued without following due procedures and said the courts granting relief to the ‘aggrieved’ company was a real possibility too.

Environmental lawyer MC Mehta felt that the TN government had slept over for many years and acted only when there was bloodshed. But, the pollution board, former solicitor general, Mohan Parasaran, felt exercised its powers after complying with the “due process requirements.” The industry though it adds to economic activity has no right to destroy ecology, degrade the environment and pose a health hazard.

Experts agree that if the Tamil Nadu Board’s closure order is challenged in court, the test would be whether the principles of natural justice were observed by the Board before the exercise of its power.

But for industrialists across the state, it is akin to the Nandigram moment after TN government ordered a permanent shutdown of Sterlite plant at Tuticorin. This is one decision that can hurt the case of Tamil Nadu when investors gather for the Global Investors’ Meet in 2019. Instead of closing the company down, the government should have come out with alternative arrangements so that the interests of all the stakeholders were served. But now who will look after the people who lose jobs at Sterlite factory, questioned an industrialist, a member of a chamber preferring anonymity. For sure, the confidence of the industry is dented.

Industrialists, already wary of coming to Tamil Nadu, would prefer not coming here at all as the Sterlite affairs send out a big negative signal to investors, rued another industrialist.

The industry is of the opinion that a commercial issue was politicised and the company, even if erring, was given death sentence. Now the country will have to import copper, he said.

In fact, Sterlite Copper plant executives were fearing that the protests were not going to be peaceful and felt that ‘external forces’ could incite people of Tuticorin. But as the company can hardly exit the state, it will fight it out legally. So, the last on the matter has not yet been heard and the issue will be battled out in courts, here in Tamil Nadu and at the Apex court in New Delhi.

letters@tehelka.com

SIKH SAVIOUR OF MUSLIM MAN TURNS ONLINE STAR

tehelka

12/06/2018

Whether it was the Kolkata metro episode where a couple was beaten up for showing up physical intimacy by “standing close to each other” or when a woman was assaulted in northeast region for accompanying her male friend or handling of sensitive cases of women harassment, the cops have always been caught on the wrong foot. In such a scenario, a young Sikh cop coming to the rescue of a Muslim guy in the company of a Hindu girl friend has earned kudos from all and sundry.

The Sikh cop turned saviour when Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) workers allegedly beat up two Muslim youths after they spotted them with a Hindu girl. The incident took place in the premises of the Garjiya temple at Ramnagar town, Uttarakhand. However, matters escalated when some VHP workers shut the main gate of the temple to prevent people from entering. When they were questioned by sub-inspector Gagan Deep, they informed that the couples visiting the area were indulging in unethical behaviour and hurting religious sentiments. To prove their point, they went to the Kosi river where they spotted a Hindu girl with the two Muslim youth and started beating the boys.

However, the Sikh cop soon came to their rescue. He not only stopped the violence but also prevented the workers from attacking the youth. A video of the incident was posted on social media and since then, it has created quite a buzz. In an act of bravery, a Sikh sub-inspector averted a possible communal flare-up by saving a Muslim youth from the fury of lynching mob near a temple in Ramnagar district of Uttarakhand.

Police said that Sub-Inspector Gagandeep Singh received an alert of a communal build up near Girija Devi temple, some 14-15 km from main Ramnagar city as a Muslim youth who had come to meet his girlfriend in the temple was caught by the local mob which was objecting to his relationship with the girl who was Hindu. The police, later on, called the families of the girl and the man and handed them over to their respective parents. ADG (law and order) Ashok Kumar said the incident occurred when a Muslim youth went to meet his girlfriend, a Hindu, at Garjia Devi temple about 15 km from Ramnagar. On being informed about a trouble in the area, Sub-Inspector Gagandeep Singh rushed to the spot where he found a mob preparing to attack the couple. He drew Muslim youth close to him to act as a shield to him, and in the process taking several blows from the mob on himself, the ADG said, adding the mob was dispersed and the couple was taken to a police station from where they were sent back to their families.

Five people whose faces are visible in the clip have been booked and a search is on to nab them. A reward of
2,500 has been announced for Gagandeep Singh for his act of bravery, he said.

The video of the Sikh police officer saving a Muslim man from a possible lynch-mob in Uttarakhand is being shared widely on social media. The video shows the Muslim man surrounded by an angry, shouting crowd, as the police officer keeps him close. When the crowd tries to beat the man, Gagandeep Singh is seen using his body to shield him. The mob is seen getting bolder and trying to hit the man. The clip has drawn numerous reactions on Twitter, with many posts calling the officer a hero.

Former Chairman, Press Council of India, Justice Markandey Katju wrote: “It was heartening to see on Youtube the videos of a brave young Sikh police officer, Gagandeep Singh, saving the life of a Muslim youth who may have been lynched by a frenzied Hindutva mob had it not been for the courageous intervention of Gagandeep. Sikh cop posted in Ramnagar, Uttarakhand restored faith in humanity after he saved a Muslim man from a mob attack”.

Sikh cop’s “courage” was hailed by the IPS Association as well “We salute the courage, compassion and presence of mind of our young colleague from Uttarakhand Police in saving a man from a lynch mob. SI Gagandeep Singh exemplifies the values that should guide every police officer,” IPS Association said in a tweet.

letters@tehelka.com

IRISH ANTI-ABORTION LAW HISTORIC IN MANY WAYS

Pari Saikia

12/06/2018

A new dawn has broken over the pre-dominated Catholic Ireland after the country voted by a landslide margin to abolish the 1983-anti-abortion law, responsible for the death of Dr Savita Halappanavar. In 2012, the 31-year-old Indian-origin dentist died after she was denied termination of foetus by a hospital authority due to the State’s strict abortion law.

The vote in Ireland last week marked a historic victory in the fight for women’s reproductive rights as 68 per cent of voters backed the end of the eighth amendment. Anti-abortion activists, campaigners and locals give due credit of the move to Savita, saying that the country owes her a “great debt”.

Another campaign led by her father Andanappa Yalagi has now urged that the new pro-abortion law should be named as “Savita’s law”.

Calling the movement as “culmination of a quiet revolution”, the Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar, who also supports pro-abortion law said, “What we see is the culmination of a quiet revolution that has been taking place in Ireland over the last couple of decades.”

“The public has spoken. The result appears to be resounding … in favour of repealing the Eigth Amendment,” Varadkar said.

The law that killed Savita

Abortion in Ireland is a criminal offence under the Offences Against the Person Act, 1861. According to the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution Act, 1983: “The state acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.”

Savita died on October 28, 2012, after University Hospital Galway denied her abortion, a request made by her after she was contracted with an infection due to septic miscarriage. She was 17 weeks pregnant with her first child.

The hospital and Savita’s midwife cited reasons for denying the termination of the fetus as the same old ‘Irish law’ of 1983 that restricts abortion as Ireland is a “Catholic country”. Savita’s death immediately sparked a massive outrage across the world, questioning rights of a woman to take decisions and the anti-abortion law in particular, when it involves risking mother’s health and life. “Under Irish law, if there’s no evidence of risk to the life of the mother, our hands are tied as long there’s a fetal heart,” said a Consultant in an interview to Irish media post the incident.

An investigation by Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) further proved that Savita’s death was the result of restrictions by the Irish anti-abortion law that stated:

1 General lack of provision of basic, fundamental care, for example, not following up on blood tests.

2 Failure to recognise that she was at risk of clinical deterioration.

3 Failure to act or escalate concerns to an appropriately qualified clinician when there were signs of clinical deterioration.

Lesson Learnt

Many human rights groups have been nailing hard to make abortion legal in countries so that women could lead a life with freedom and dignity. “Governments should respect a woman’s right to make decisions regarding her reproductive life. A woman who decides to have an abortion must have access to the facilities and care that will enable her to terminate her pregnancy safely. Governments that prosecute and punish women who have had abortions penalize women for exercising their basic rights. These rights are no less compromised when a woman who decides to terminate a pregnancy can do so only by undertaking a serious risk to her life or health,” human rights groups pointed out.

There have been decades-long fights to legalise safe abortion — a reproductive right of every woman which has been denied time and again in many countries. A woman only has the right to her health, mind and body and nobody else, therefore, she should be independently allowed to take a decision whether she wants to have an abortion or not. And, it is the duty of the government to ensure that her reproduction rights are allowed; provide safe medical care facilities. There should be zero inference from family, government or society.

What the death of Savita Halappanavar teaches us is that the women should now be given their long-pending rights to make choices whether it is about having an abortion, bearing a child, sexual health, career or life.

letters@tehelka.com

Girls remain most vulnerable targets

tehelka

12/06/2018

Tamanna (17) and Hafiza (16) are residents of 24 South Parganas, Kolkata from the state of West Bengal. The girls were sold to two Kashmiri men, much older than them for an amount of 25,000 each. Both the men are from Tujan area of district Pulwama, around 40-km away from the main city of Srinagar, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

The girls’ parents are daily wage labourers who live in a slum under extremely poor condition. On top of that, supporting a family of seven members isn’t easy at all.

One day, the parents decided to marry off Tamanna and her sister in Kashmir after an agent Shubnam persuaded them that their daughters could lead a comfortable life and they too can earn some money in return.

Soon, these men from Kashmir got in touch with this family from Bengal through Shubnam, a native of Bengal. The sisters were informed by the family that their marriages have been fixed and both of them will be travelling to Kashmir with their husbands. The marriage happened in an informal set-up. The Nikhnama (marriage contract) was signed and both the sisters were given a small amount of money as ‘Mahr’ (alimony) for namesake.

The assurance of wealthy family, healthy lifestyle-two meals a day, and decent clothes to wear was more than everything for the girls and the family to fall into the trap. Soon, they arrived in Kashmir via Bengal-Delhi-Jammu route. Once they reached Tujan, Pulwama, their world turned upside down. The girls were kept in horrific conditions where husbands would rape them through the hours of darkness and family members would make them do all the household chores throughout the day. They were deprived of proper food and kept indoors to avoid contact with outside world. Nevertheless, the girls were in different families but experiencing a similar life of horror. The sisters were restrained to get in touch with each other.

The Escape

One day in early morning, the younger sister, Hafiza, escaped the house barefoot. Luckily, she saved the money that she received as ‘Mahr’ to use when the right time comes.

Hafiza narrated, “I was praying hard that my attempt to escape should not fail… Had I been caught, I would have been beaten to death.”

After escaping from Kashmir she managed to reach Bengal. There she met a journalist, who happened to work in Kashmir. Hafiza then narrated her ordeal and revealed the details about her sister too. The journalist contacted a Kashmir-based local NGO and informed them about the case. The NGO with the help of police started a robust investigation and finally, they were successful in tracing out Tamanna.

Today, Tamanna is living with a local family in Kashmir who came to support her. They wish to become her legal guardians now.

On May 22, 2018, Tamanna appeared before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC).

Explaining Tamanna’s situation, CWC Chairperson, Munazah said, “Tamanna wishes not to go back to her hometown neither she wants to stay in a child home. The report has been sent to the CWC, Pulwama for further investigation. Once the report comes, we will be able to decide how to take forward the case.

On the other hand, the man who bought Tamanna is now pressurising her parents to ask her to return. Her parents are now trying to persuade Tamanna to go back as she has been married to him. Although she has been rescued, no FIR has been registered against the husband’s family.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Farooq Ahmad said: “Although we are investigating the case and rescued her on the NGO’s request, but,we cannot register an FIR as she has signed the Nikahnama. Also, the trafficker has provided it as a proof of marriage.”

“During the course of the investigation, we came to a conclusion that Tamanna needs to be handed over to the NGO as the girl is a minor. She was not only married out of her wish but was also kept in an appalling circumstances,” Ahmad further explained.

Here, Hafiza is back to her home but torment has not increased. In a muffled voice, Hafiza shared, “My parents beat me continuously. They ask me, ‘why did you run away? Why did you come back? They have paid us money?’”

“What can a girl like me do apart from weeping in silence?” Hafiza added.

In the case of her agent Shubnam, she too has a similar past- trafficked to Kashmir where she was married-off to a Kashmiri family. However, she soon got separated from her husband, went back to her hometown in Bengal and married a local. Shubnam then stepped in to the business of human trade- buying and sending girls to Kashmir under the garb of employment-giver, match-maker. Being a local of Bengal, it was a cake-walk for Shubnam to target girls from poor and under-privileged families, luring them with a promise of good job, high-end lifestyle or by deceptively buying them from their families.

Bride-buying common in the Valley

The horrific brutality inflicted on these teenagers is not an isolated case. Going by some information, there are more 20 to 25 women from Bengal and other parts of mainland India who have been married-off to Kashmiri men. The kinds of grooms are those men who did not find any match in Kashmir, belong to below poverty line families or are disabled. In such situation, Kashmiri men buy brides from pimps who usually smuggle girls from West Bengal or other parts of India.

In a similar incident, twelve years ago, Naseema, 29, (now a mother of three) was forcefully married off to a Kashmiri truck driver by her parents for some amount. Today, she lives in a dilapidated house at Pampore, Pulwama, where, altogether, a total of eight members live in a tiny two-room house that serves as both kitchen and bedroom. Naseema, too, is a native of Bengal and was trafficked to Jammu and Kashmir as a bride. Her husband is a habitual drinker and largely spent all his earnings on liquor and drugs.

“I do not wish to see my parents or go back to them. They married me off to a person who was double the age of mine and sent me to a place about which I knew nothing, not even the language,” Naseema said.

Human trafficking is a $32 billion industry worldwide and agents like Shabnum are making a flourishing business by buying and selling girls to Kashmiri men who cannot find a match in the Valley.

India’s West Bengal state – which shares a porous border with Bangladesh and Nepal, is one of the hubs of human trafficking. There is a stout human trafficking connection between West Bengal and Kashmir, where families need brides for their sons who are either disabled or do not find local match to marry off their sons.

There is no check on the illegal buying and selling of young girls brought into the Valley as domestic workers and later sold as brides, neither there is any policy in place. Hence, this business is thriving with every passing day.

According to the latest (2016-2017) data by National Crime Record Bureau, there are zero cases of trafficking reported in the state of Jammu & Kashmir.

“We are not able to do anything until and unless a case will not be reported to us. There are agencies registered with us who supply domestic helpers to families in Srinagar and other parts of the state but, till now, no complaint of trafficking has been reported to us,” said Deputy Superintendent Farooq Ahmad.

letters@tehelka.com

Telangana Farmers In Awe Of Rythu Bandhu

tehelka

12/06/2018

Will the flagship scheme of the ruling TRS party help to get back into power? How far will this vote bank magic benefit the ruling party? Can the Opposition party’s allegations about this scheme change the mood of the voter?

The political developments in Telangana State are turning into an interesting scenario as Rythu Bandhu Scheme (RBS) gets underway on 10th of this month. Under this investment subsidy scheme, every farmer in the State, who owns the land, will get an investment subsidy of 4,000 per acre, irrespective of how much he owns. It means that from a farmer holding an extent of one gunta (40 guntas per acre) to a farmer having hundreds of acres will get the investment subsidy, every season.ill the flagship scheme of the ruling TRS party help to get back into power? How far will this vote bank magic benefit the ruling party? Can the Opposition party’s allegations about this scheme change the mood of the voter?

As most of the farmers cultivate two crops per year, they will get the investment subsidy twice a year under the scheme. A total of 58 lakh farmers, owning about 1.42 cr acre of land will benefit from this historical decision. The TRS government says this scheme is the first-of-its-kind, wherein all farmers will be granted financial support, without involving the middlemen, to maximize agricultural production and productivity. The government has set aside 12,000 crore in 2018-19 Budget exclusively for investment subsidy scheme.

However, the Opposition parties are alleging that this scheme is nothing but an election gimmick. The government has started this populist scheme ahead of Gram Panchayat and General elections, they said.

If the TRS government is really committed on farming sector, why it did not give the investment subsidy in last 3 years, the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee Chief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy questioned. The Chief Minister KCR did not even console the family members of 4,000 farmers who committed suicide in last four years. The TRS government did not extend any compensation and are now offering 4,000 per acre, as a sop only to woo farmers ahead of elections, by year-end or early 2019, he added. The main Opposition party also expressed that there would have been no need of investment subsidy amount had the government offered Minimum Support Price (MSP) to agriculture produces.

The Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) president and ex-chairman of T-JAC, Prof. M. Kodandaram, who also played a crucial role during Telangana Statehood movement, alleged that the TRS government was helping the realtors, instead of farmers with the RBS. While only 98 lakh acres were under cultivation across the state for Kharif season, the TRS government was giving away crop investment subsidy of 4,000 per acre for 1.4 crore acres.

The uncultivated land is the property of realtors, who use it for business purposes. As a result of this, 1,720 crore is going to realtors and non-cultivating owners. The Opposition parties also questioned the government regarding non-inclusion of tenant farmers in the scheme, asking why the government was not applying this scheme to tenant farmers. The government should also offer a bonus for the crops along with investment subsidy, a senior leader demanded. However, the government categorically ruled out the proposal to implement this scheme to tenant farmers. It will not be possible and practical to provide the investment support to tenant farmers as there is a possibility of ownership issues arising later, the Municipal Administration Minister KT Rama Rao said.

On the other hand, the Telangana Telugu Desam also criticized the TRS government’s attitude about this scheme. The government spent crores of rupees in publicity, by giving advertisements not only in Telugu media but also in other regional language media across the country, a TDP leader alleged.

Meanwhile, 40 village Sarpanches of Maharashtra have demanded that their villages too be made part of Telangana. These villages of Nanded, about 40-50 km. from Nizamabad district of Telangana, had been part of erstwhile Telangana under the Nizam dominion. A group of Sarpanches of these villages wrote a letter to Telangana government requesting that they should once again be included in Telangana. Responding to this request, TRS MP, Kavitha said, farmers of neighbouring states were noticing the pro-farmer schemes of Telangana government. In this context, it is the time to decide the impact of this populistic scheme.

letters@tehelka.com

Major Gogoi’s unending tryst with controversy

Riyaz Wani

12/06/2018

The news about Major Nitin Leetul Gogoi being caught with a girl at a Srinagar hotel first spread as a rumour in WhatsApp groups. But it was only after the police confirmed the incident, that it caught on like a wildfire across the country. Social media went abuzz and Gogoi’s online hotel booking receipt for two guests went viral. So, did the CCTV footage of his presence in civvies at the hotel reception. The local media splashed the news on their online editions, which instantly racked up thousands of views. Locally, the incident was seen as a deserved comeuppance for the Army officer for using a Kashmiri youth Farooq Ahmad Dar as a human shield by tying him to a jeep during the parliamentary bypoll in Budgam constituency last year.
“What award will you honour him now with? This is what happens when you give them a carte blanché to get away with things,” posted one Shazia Bakshi on Twitter. “But life has different plans, give an evil man enough rope, he›ll hang himself with it”.
Major trouble at the hotel
The Major along with the girl had arrived at the hotel in the afternoon. However, there was a scuffle when the hotel receptionist, suspecting something was wrong, took exception to the girl accompanying him. The receptionist, whose video statement about the incident, went viral had checked the girl’s Aadhaar card and found her below eighteen years old. However, the receptionist’s insistence to not allow the pair into their booked rooms seemed to anger Major Gogoi. Not to give in easily, he allegedly insisted on taking the girl with him to the room. The consequent argument attracted the attention of others around them and soon the word got out bringing passers-by to the scene. Sensing that the situation was going out of hand, the hotel owner Manzoor Ahmad informed the Police. Gogoi, the girl and their driver Sameer Malla were later detained. They were released after recording of their statement. The Major was handed over to his Army unit.
But by then the news was everywhere.
Gogoi, a household name
Last year, Gogoi had become a household name in the country for using Dar as a human shield to apparently safeguard his troops against the protesters. Though the Army later initiated an enquiry against him he was soon exonerated. What is more, even before the Army could complete its investigation, the Army chief General Bipin Rawat honoured Gogoi with a Chief of Army Staff (COAS) commendation card for his “sustained valour” in “counter insurgency efforts.” As a result, Gogoi became a hero among sections of people in the country. But in Kashmir he was widely seen as a villain and, in many ways, a symbolic representation of the alleged state oppression, a perception reinforced further by the Army chief’s award for him. This is why, the hotel incident has thus come as cathartic, a vindication of the public |belief about Gogoi’s alleged wrongdoing last year. In case of the human shield Dar, however, the incident has come as “a divine justice”.
“He (Gogoi) had tied me to a jeep and paraded me across several villages. I was labelled a stone-pelter. Government didn’t support me,” Dar said. “But God has exposed him and shamed him before the world.”
Incidentally, the Army chief who had last year overruled an ongoing enquiry to confer award on Gogoi visited the state a day after the Gogoi incident to take stock of the situation following the announcement of unilateral ceasefire by the centre for the month of Ramadhan. General Rawat was briefed about the security situation by the General Officer Commanding of the Srinagar based 15 Corps Lieutenant General AK Bhatt.
But this time instead of defending Major Gogoi, the Army chief promised an exemplary punishment for him should he be found guilty.
“If any officer of the Indian army is found guilty of any offence, we will take strictest possible action,” Rawat told reporters. “If Major Gogoi has done something wrong, I assure you that he will be awarded punishment at the earliest…the punishment will set an example.”
Meanwhile, the mother of the girl told the media that Major Gogoi occasionally visited their house at night to enquire about their well-being.
Reactions
The incident triggered strong reactions online, both in the Valley and the rest of the country. “In a militarized region where army has absolute impunity, Major Gogoi, who has been celebrated for his previous war crime, can of course feel emboldened to sexually exploit even a minor,” tweeted human rights defender Khurram Parvez. “Those who defended Gogoi in the past, will continue to defend the indefensible, shamelessly”.
But once again, Major Gogoi has not run short of people who are ready to defend him on social media. Many well-regarded journalists, civil society and political activists have called togetherness of the Kashmiri girl and Gogoi as “consensual”, even without any knowledge of why they were together and what they were up to.
“How do we know that Major #Gogoi was not set up or an attempt to honey trap him. I don’t support what he did on the Jeep issue. But if we are liberals, his personal life must be his .I don›t support vigilantism,” Congress supporter, columnist and model Tehseen Poonawalla tweeted. Arguments like these have been a further source of outrage in the Valley. “Sordid saga of Major Gogoi & Indian intellectuals! For those justifying this statutory rape & giving it a shade of ‘consensual sex’ with a minor are oblivious to the disparate power equilibrium that exists between the armed forces, under the protective garb of AFSPA & local Kashmiris (sic),” tweeted Shazia Bakshi.
However, one thing is sure: like the human shield incident, Gogoi’s fresh run-in with the law will have a far-reaching fallout in the state. People are keen to see how the case is handled, both by the Army and the police which was initially reluctant to officially name him. No action against Gogoi will further strain the already diminished faith of the people in the state machinery.
“It is time that the Army takes a strong disciplinary action against Major Gogoi and sends a belated right signal to Kashmiris, to go with the ongoing unilateral ceasefire,” said the local columnist Naseer Ahmad. “Not doing so will only deepen the current cynicism towards the state apparatus and further otherize people”.