The acquittal of Faheem Ansari and some questions

The trial court in Ahmedabad created history of sorts by convicting a senior BJP leader and former minister in the Narendra Modi government, Mayaben Kodnani, and a former Bajrang Dal convener Babu Bajrangi along with 30 others for the massacre of innocent Muslims in Naroda Patiya. This is the first case in which political leaders, if one can call them that, have been found guilty. The tears streaming down the faces of the survivors of this terrible terrible massacre was indication of the suffering and trauma they have gone through in all these years.

The Supreme Court, while convicting Kasab, acquitted two Indian Muslims, Farheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed, who had been accused by the Mumbai investigators of being co-conspirators. The lower courts had acquitted them, but clearly the authorities had gone in appeal to the apex court that has upheld the acquittal. Significantly, except for a few newspapers no one even bothered to speak of this important acquittal, and even the sections of the media that reported the facts did not dwell on the trauma that the two men and their families must have gone through.

Who is going to compensate them? Rehabilitate them and their families? There isn’t even a hint of an apology from the state government and all those responsible for keeping two innocent men in jail for a crime they clearly had no part in. In fact more and more reports from Maharashtra suggest that such arrests have become a common practice with the police and the politicians totally unaccountable for the numbers of innocent people they arrest, torture and jail without any proof whatsoever. So while the nation exults over the death sentence for Kasab, it should also pause to pay some thought to the two innocent men whose lives have been ruined in the process.

The second case of Naroda Patiya also has an untold story, of the 97 victims who were brutally raped and killed by a 5,000 strong mob on February 28,2002 of whom 32 have been convicted by the courts. But what about the rest? Where are they? Why have they not been arrested? This along with the trauma and the suffering of the victims is a story that needs to be tracked down, and told. For, while justice has been dispensed, the country needs to assess whether it has been enough, whether there are several loose ends that need to be tied so that the secular and just foundations of India are not just strengthened, but protected against future assault.

The investigating authorities seem to be falling short in more ways than one. Innocent persons are arrested, tortured, jailed and released only after the court’s intervene. Guilty persons are able to evade the investigators and walk free as the investigating agencies fail to collect sufficient proof, or at times, even find the accused even though they are giving interviews to the media. The point here is that while the higher judiciary at least is trying to do its job with a modicum of responsibility and honesty, politicization and corruption has hit the police and the investigating agencies to a point where fiction often replaces facts.

Seema Mustafa in DNA. Here

Hemant Karkare, unsung hero of 26/11

In Hemant Karkare’s net (of investigations, of course) many big and small fishes of VHP, RSS, Bajrang Dal and Sanatan Sanstha (which has been found to be involved in Diwali-eve blasts in Goa last week) had been trapped. Serving and retired army officers, academics, serving and retired officials of India’s premier intelligence service were ensnared in Karkare’s fishing net. The menacing power of the latter groups, inspired by sustained anti-Muslim hate campaigns of the last six decades, gave the plot a sinister and highly destructive character.

Among the plans unearthed by Karkare was a blueprint for the assassination of 70 prominent Indians who could by a hindrance to the project of Hindutva. Interestingly, most of the persons marked for elimination would, naturally, be Hindus because it is they who primarily run the dispensation. The conspirators were also unhappy with organisations whose Hindutva they suspected to be less virulent than desired.

M. Zeyaul Huque in Milli Gazette. Here

Mumbai Terror and 'Rebuild India!'

Mumbai Terror has gripped the nation.
The dust has settled now. The Taj is cleared. The Leopold Cafe, a place frequented by liquor drinking westerners is buzzing with the sounds of clattering glasses.
The politicians are playing their own games. Resignations, blame games, rhetoric etc etc have become the order of the day.
The good thing about the Mumbai Terror is that it has stirred the nation as a whole. Particularly, the elite has swung into action. Those who never voted in their life, those who gone out on picnic on the day of polling now talk about CHANGE in politics.

The wrath of the public towards the politicians is unprecedented. It was evident, when Naredra Modi was booed loudly, when he visited the site. To add insult to the injury, Mrs Hemant karkare, the widow of the slain patriot refused to accept his Rs One Crore compensation - the largest sum as compensation in the country - and sent him off. Similarly, when kerala CM went to Bangalore to meet the family of Major Unnikrishnan, an NSG commondo who laid his life in the operation, the father of the slain Major literally shooed away the CM.

And the message from the voters of the five states was even more louder. They dumped those politicians who tried to catch fish in the troubled waters. They trounced the veterans who shamelessly sought to gain political mileage from the tragedy. They shooed away the smart players who overplayed the plank of terror. God bless India!!

The fury of the public is palpable.

Now, a small group of bloggers but 'with huge levels of motivation'...initiated a movement to publicize the voice of the citizen. And the "Rebuild India' mission was born. As a first step, bloggers were invited to sublimate their anger into positive action by listing out action points that need to be taken in order to get the nation back on track post the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. Based on suggestions received, an online survey with 17 simple questions has been formulated which is currently open to all for participation.
The questionnaire is lengthy. It may test your patience. But, it is the little price, you have to give back to your nation. The survey details are follows:

Survey Details

The motive behind conducting this survey is to get the suggestions presented by bloggers, certified by general internet users. (For further details on the 'Rebuild India' plan of action, please click here). The survey comprises of 17 questions, which would hardly take around a couple of minutes to respond to. However, since the survey consists of proposed actions steps as options, it is advisable to ponder over each and every option mentioned in order to gain valuable perspective on where the nation stands at this point of time. If done with the focus and attention, the survey in itself would prove to be a huge learning curve with respect to where the nation stands as of now.

Please go to the site (Let us all make it our site and our mission) at
http://www.intheorbit.com/.
Participate and be a part of the rebuilding process ! Hearty congratulations to the team behind it!

And please spread the word around.