Anhad

Send your signatures for our tribute on Mumbai

anhad e-admin — 2008-12-15T01:39:52Z

Dear all,

1. I am enclosing a 10x 3 feet banner. It is easy to get it printed on flex / or any other material. If people of Indian origin in various parts of US/ other countries can take the print outs , get them signed with the names of their cities and any organisations written on them and courier them to us so it reaches by 19th December. we can have the banners dispayed at the programme.

2. If the banner size is too much then poster can be used. Poster can also be printed either on paper or flex and couriered back to us.

3. If even that is not possible then take A 4 print outs get them signed, put the names as well as org names and scan and send them back on the mail. we will take th eprint outs here.

Shabnam


We Condemn Terrorism of All Kinds: December 2008, Poster

The programme on 20th in Delhi

The terror attacks that took place in Mumbai leading to the loss of many precious lives and injuries to many others have deeply shocked the nation. We strongly condemn the senseless violence against innocent people and the dastardly terror attacks that took place in Mumbai.

We salute the courage and patriotism of the police officers, including the Chief of the Anti-Terror Squad, Hemant Karkare and his team who have laid down their lives in fighting these terrorists.

While mourning our dead we feel strongly that we cannot let the divisive forces of hatred use this unfortunate and dreadful attack to polarize the nation. We strongly want to emphasis that

Condemn Terrorism of all Kinds
Shun Violence of all Types
Seek Justice and Peace.

We are proposing to organize a programme to pay tribute to the memory of those who have lost their lives in the Mumbai attack and in other violent incidents earlier this year. The programme is for Unity, Peace and Justice.

It is also to defend the sovereignty of our country, the spirit of our Constitution, which we have received as inheritance from our ancestors.

We propose to collect signatures from ordinary people, school & college students, activists, intellectuals, professionals etc on specially designed posters and banners and organise a 3-4 hour long programme of poetry, music and dance on December 20, 2008 at the Constitution Club Lawns, Rafi Marg, New Delhi. We request you to kindly

organise signature campaigns in your areas/ schools/ colleges and send them to us by December 18th as well as request people to participate in the programme on December 20th( for Delhi groups -posters and banners contact: Sanjay Sharma- 23070740/ 9213135102). For those of you who are outside Delhi please take colour print outs of the posters / also translate th same text into your local langauge and get a banner done with the text and get signatures on the banner or/ and posters. Put the name of our organisation/ city and address on the banner/ poster.
Send us the name of your organisation if you would like to endorse this programme.
You are welcome to send your own statements on the banners if you so wish as long as the over all spirit remains against violence and for unity & peace.

Anhad/ Peace
23, canning lane new delhi-110001
tel- 011 23070740/ 22

'No Double Standards in the Fight Against Terrorism'

anhad e-admin — 2008-10-03T02:18:00Z

An earlier version of the following statement was first circulated for the 28th September 2008 meeting organised by a group of citizens at the Press Club, Raisina road, New Delhi. The revised final version endorsed by 88 signatories is as follows:

In recent months the country has witnessed a spate of terrorist attacks in different cities as well as organised communal violence against religious minorities in several states.

We the undersigned strongly condemn all these acts of violence that have resulted in loss of life and grievous injury to scores of innocent people. It is clear that whoever is responsible for such violence should be severely punished under Indian law and all measures be taken to protect the lives of ordinary citizens under threat from their activities.

We find it deeply disturbing however that the Indian government as well as concerned state governments have adopted double standards in dealing with the two equally deadly phenomenon of terrorist bombings and communal violence.

On one hand throughout the country Muslim youth are being targeted, without any or little evidence, as responsible for terrorist attacks. In our view there is a concerted attempt by the Indian police, sections of the media and certain political parties to portray all members of the Muslim community as 'terrorists and extremists' - to be arbitrarily arrested, tortured and killed in fake encounters.

On the other hand Hindutva extremists behind the communal violence in Orissa, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh against Christian populations are being allowed to go scot-free. The term 'terrorism' is never associated with the Hindutva extremist outfits like the Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad or the Shiv Sena despite their clear and acknowledged role in the murder and injury of hundreds of innocent Indian citizens.

This includes not just citizens from religious minorities but also anyone who happens to differ from the Hindutva extremists. While a vast majority of the Hindu population is peaceful and tolerant of diversity those upholding the politics of 'Hindutva' are misusing symbols and beliefs of the Hindus to impose a fascist majoritarian dictatorship on the country.

Hindutva religious terrorists have also been found time and again planting bombs in Muslim religious places or localities in Nanded and Malegaon in Maharashtra, Tenkasi in Tamil Nadu and suspected of carrying out the heinous bomb blasts on the Samjhauta Express in 2007. The recent attacks on Christian religious institutions are in fact openly claimed by Hindutva terrorist groups, like the Bajrang Dal, in front of television news cameras and yet no action is taken against them.

It is in this context of utter hypocrisy of the Indian and state governments towards what really constitutes terrorism that we would like to demand the following:

1) An immediate ban on all organisations and individuals carrying out or inciting communal violence particularly the Bajrang Dal, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Shiv Sena. Investigation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh for involvement in terrorist activities and prosecution of its members if found guilty;

2) Stringent punishment for those organising or participating in communal violence against Christians or carrying out forcible 're-conversion' in Orissa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and other parts of the country;

3) Special investigation by an independent body of the involvement of Hindutva extremist organisations in terrorist activity such as planting explosives, manufacturing arms and mobilising mob attacks on religious minority populations;

4) Disbarment from contesting national or state elections, by the Election Commission, of political parties found guilty of using religious, regional, linguistic hatred and violence to further their electoral fortunes;

5) Setting up of an independent judicial commission to inquire into the indiscriminate arrests, torture and killings of youth belonging to the Muslim community. Investigation of the unlawful activities of the 'special cells' and 'anti-terrorist squads' of the police and if necessary their disbandment

6) Payment of adequate compensation to each person, from all communities, arrested, tortured, injured or killed on false charges by the Indian police; prosecution of police officers guilty of planting evidence and framing false charges against innocent people;

7) Initiation of action on the recommendations of the Srikrishna Commission Report, expediting of pending cases against those involved in the demolition of the Babri Masjid and speedy justice for the survivors of the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat.

8) A ban on regional chauvinist organisations such as the Maharashtra Navnirman Samithi of Raj Thackeray responsible for attack, injury and murder of North Indians living in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra.

9) Prosecution of bar association office bearers who have expelled members of the legal fraternity taking up cases of human rights violations or of those upholding the right to legal aid of those accused of terrorist activities and involvement.

10) Prosecution of media groups and outlets found guilty of defaming individuals and communities while reporting on the phenomenon of terrorism in the country.

1. A Sohaib
2. AC Michael
3. AK Ramakrishnan
4. Ali Bin Ahmed
5. Amitabh Pandey
6. Anand Patwardhan (Film maker)
7. Angela Farooq
8. Anil Chaudhary (Peace)
9. Anil Sadgopal (Educationist, Bhopal)
10. Apoorvanand (Lecturer, Delhi University)
11. Arif Azam Khan
12. Asad Zaidi (Writer & Publisher)
13. Ashish Nandy (CSDS)
14. Avinash Kumar
15. Azra Razzack
16. Dr Anuradha Ghosh
17. Dr John Dayal (Member, National Integration Council, Govt of India)
18. Dr Sabu M George
19. Dunu Roy (Ecologist)
20. Dushyant Bhai (AVHRS, Vadodara)
21. Farah Farooqi
22. Father T.K.John (Vidyajyoti College of Theology)
23. Fr Cedric Prakash (Director, Prashant)
24. Fr Dominic Emmamuel
25. Ghanshyam Shah (Historian, Ahmedabad)
26. Hanif Lakdawala (Sanchetna, Ahmedabad)
27. Harsh Dhobal ( Human Rights Law Network)
28. Harsh Kapoor (South Asia Citizens Web)
29. Harsh Mander (Aman Biradari)
30. Hiren Gandhi (Samvedan Cultural Programme, Ahmedabad)
31. Hozefa(Aman Samudaya, Ahmedabad)
32. Iftikhar Ahmad Khan (Professor of History, Vadodara)
33. Iqbal A Ansari (Social Activist)
34. Jagadish (New Socialist Alternative, Bangalore)
35. Jaya Mehta (Sandarbh Kendra, Indore)
36. Jenis Francis
37. Jitendra Chauhan
38. Jitendra Kumar
39. John Chathanatt (Vidyajyoti College)
40. Joys Sebastian
41. JunaidBhai Pathan(United Education Charitable Trust, Vadodara)
42. K Dasgupta
43. Kamla Bhasin (SANGAT)
44. Kavita Srivastava (PUCL, Rajasthan)
45. Mallika Sarabhai (Darpana Academy, Ahmedabad)
46. Manisha Sethi (Lecturer, Jamia Millia Islamia)
47. Manohar Singh
48. Manoj Verma
49. Mansi Sharma (ANHAD)
50. Mukul Mangalik
51. Nafisa Ali Sodhi (Social Activist)
52. Nalini Taneja (Delhi University)
53. Neelabh Mishra
54. Neshat Kaisar (Lecturer, Jamia Millia Islamia)
55. Nithiya
56. Omar Farooq
57. Pallavi Deka (General Secretary, JNUSU)
58. Poorva Bhardwaj (Nirantar)
59. Prabhu Ghate
60. Pradeep Bhattacharya
61. Praful Bidwai
62. Prasad Chacko (Activist, Ahmedabad)
63. Professor S. Hasan Mahmud (Vadodara)
64. Ranjit Abhigyan
65. Ravi Shankar Mishra
66. Rohit Prajapati (Activist, Gujarat)
67. S Waheed
68. Sachin Gupta
69. Salem Nusrat Ahmed
70. Sanjeev
71. Saroop Dhruv (Darshan, Ahmedabad)
72. Satya Sivaraman (Journalist)
73. Senthal
74. Shabnam Hashmi (ANHAD)
75. Sheba George (SAHR WARU, Ahmedabad)
76. Shivraj
77. Sivapriyan
78. Sonia Jabbar (Independent journalist)
79. Sumit Sarkar (Historian)
80. Tanika Sarkar (Historian)
81. Tanveer Fazal (Lecturer, Jamia Millia Islamia)
82. Tapan Bose(Social Activist)
83. Trupti Shah(Activist, Gujarat)
84. V.Srinivasan (Chennai Metro Union)
85. Vijay Parmar (Janvikas, Ahmedabad)
86. Vineet Tiwari (Madhya Pradesh Progressive Writers Association, Indore)
87. Waqar Qazi (Samvedan Cultural Programme, Ahmedabad)
88. Yusuf Shaikh (AIQM, Vadodara)

Some Questions about the Counter-Terror Operation at Jamia Nagar, New Delhi

Shabnam Hashmi — 2008-09-20T19:12:16Z

A team comprising activists, academicians and journalists visited the site of the police operation against alleged terrorists staying in an apartment in Jamia Nagar in the afternoon of 20.09.2008 (Saturday). Two alleged terrorists Atif and Sajid, along with Mohan Chand Sharma, an inspector of the Delhi Police's Special Cell died in the operation while a third alleged terrorist was arrested.

On the basis of our interactions with the local residents, eye witnesses and the reports which have appeared in the media, we would like to pose the following questions:

1) It has been widely reported (and not refuted by the Police) that in early August this year Atif, who is described by the Delhi Police as the mastermind behind the recent terrorist bombings in Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Delhi, underwent a police verification exercise along with his four roommates in order to rent the apartment they were staying in Jamia Nagar. All the five youth living in the apartment submitted to the Delhi police their personal details, including permanent address, driving license details, address of the house they previously stayed in, all of which were found to be accurate.

Is it conceivable that the alleged kingpin behind the terrorist Indian Mujahideen outfit would have wanted to undergo a police verification- for whatever purpose- just a week after the Ahmedabad blasts and a month before the bombings in Delhi?

2) The four-storeyed house L-18 in Jamia Nagar, where the alleged terrorists were staying, has only one access point, through the stair case, which is covered by an iron grill. It is impossible to leave the house except from the staircase. By all reports, the staircase was taken over by the Special Cell and/ or other agencies during the counter-terror operation. The house, indeed the entire block, was cordoned off at the time of the operation.

How then was it then possible, as claimed by the police, for two alleged terrorists to escape the premises during the police operation?

3) The media has quoted 'police sources' as having informed them that the Special Cell was fully aware about the presence of dreaded terrorists, involved in the bombings in Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Delhi, staying in the apartment that was raided.

Why was the late Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma, a veteran of dozens of encounter operations, the only officer in the operation not wearing a bullet proof vest? Was this due to over-confidence or is there something else to his mysterious death during the operation? Will the forensic report of the bullets that killed Inspector Sharma be made public?

4) There are reports that towards the end of the counter-terror operation, some policemen climbed on the roof of L-18 and fired several rounds in the air. Other policemen were seen breaking windows and even throwing flower pots to the ground from flats adjacent or opposite to L-18

Why was the police firing in the air and why did it indulge in destruction of property around L-18 after the encounter?

5) The police officials claim that an AK-47 and pistols were recovered from L-18.

What was the weapon that killed Inspector Sharma? Was the AK-47 used at all and by whom? Going by some reports that have appeared (see 'Times of India', 20.09.08), the AK-47s have been used by the police only. Is it not strange that alleged terrorists did not use a more deadly and sophisticated weapon like the AK-47, which they purportedly possessed, preferring to use pistols?

We feel that there are far too many loose ends in the current story of the police encounter at L-18 in Jamia Nagar. We demand that a fair, impartial and independent probe into the incident be initiated at the earliest to answer the above questions as also any other ones that arise from the contradictions of the case.

Signed/- Shabnam Hashmi, Satya Sivaraman, Manisha Sethi, Tanweer Fazal, Arshad Alam, Pallavi Deka

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of India

Shabnam Hashmi — 2008-09-15T10:46:10Z

September 15, 2008

New Delhi

Dear Dr. Manmohan Singh,

The blasts in Delhi (September 12, 2008) are another in the series of tragic blasts in which scores of people have been killed. We strongly condemn the blasts and demand a proper, unbiased investigation into the same. We demand that the guilty be punished. At the same time it seems that our investigating agencies are ignoring some thing very crucial in the matters of investigating the acts of terror.

The acts of terror have been occurring and Home Ministry is watching helplessly. While the current investigation is totally focused around SIMI, many an alleged culprits have been put behind the bars, despite which now some unknown entity Indian Mujahideen seems to have been projected as being responsible for the current ones. At the same time another stark truth is being deliberately sidelined and undermined. And that relates to the blasts done by Bajrang Dal and Hindu Jagran Samiti. We fail to understand as to why the investigation authorities are turning a blind eye to some of the well established facts.

1. In a serious case of blasts in Nanded in April 2006 two Bajarang Dal workers died when making bombs. Similar incidents of bomb blasts were witnessed in many places around that time, Parabhani, Jalna and Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Most of these were in front of the mosques. The Nanded investigation 'leads' were not followed. On the contrary the investigation in that direction was not pursued at all. The attitude of police in this investigation has been totally lax. Social activists made the complaint about this to Human Rights commission. The commission summoned the Superintendent of police, Nanded, in its hearing held on 17th June. The SP failed to turn up for hearing! There seems to be a deliberate cover up of this important finding of Maharashtra Anti terrorist Squad. ATS did investigate the links of the dead with Bajrang Dal, an RSS affiliate. At the same time the injured were visited in the hospital by the top brass of local BJP and associates. Local BJP MP told the police not to harass those related to the culprits in the wake of the Bajrang Dal involvement in the bomb making. In Nanded, ATS also found fake moustache and pajama kurta, the idea being that the culprits will dress like a Muslim while doing these black deeds.

2. A bomb blast took place at the RSS office at Tenkasi, in the Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu on January 24. After a thorough investigation, the Tamilnadu Police had arrested 7 persons belonging to Sangh Parivar outfits. They had confessed that they indulged in this terror act to instigate the local Hindu population against the Muslims.

On further investigation, the Tamilnadu Police arrested Siva Alias Sivanandam, who is the General Secretary of Hindu Munnani at Kadayanallur, a neighbouring town of Tenkasi. Formed in 1980, Hindu Munnani is a frontal organisation of Sangh Parivar operating in Tamilnadu.

Siva, who has earlier worked in quarries in the neighboring state of Kerala had supplied the ammonium nitrate and other raw materials for preparing the bombs.

3. The bombs which exploded in Gadkari Rangayatan on 4th June 2008 injured seven people. Again Maharashtra Anti Terrorist Squad succeeded in nabbing the culprits. The culprits were part of Hindu Janjagaran Samiti (HJS), an outfit of Sanatana Ashram in Panvel. These culprits were also involved in other blasts, in Vashi, Panvel and Ratnagiri. We have not heard anything about the further tracing of this very important lead.

4. On 24th August, in Kanpur two Bajrang Dal workers died while making bombs. Rajiv alias Piyush Mishra and Bhupinder Singh were killed while making crude bombs on Sunday afternoon.

On 25th August, Monday, police recovered some crude hand grenades, lead oxide, red lead, potassium nitrate, bomb pins, timers and batteries from the spot, inside a hostel in Kalyanpur area of Kanpur, about 80 km from Lucknow. No further investigation, why?

Every time there is a bomb blast immediately the agencies and the media declare that it is done by some Muslim organization without any proof. Hundreds of innocent young boys are picked up, what follows are illegal detentions, torture, arrests, harassment of families, forcing the families and victims to sign blank papers. For years these helpless victims are tortured in jails, denied legal aid, even lawyers who try and fight their cases are attacked openly in courts. Their images tarnished for life time. If they are lucky they get let off after years as neither the agencies or the police have any proof against them. The cacophony of stricter laws rises so that a police can extract a confession by third degree torture and present that as evidence. Through this systematic vilification campaign the process of demonization of minorities continued unabated.

If we look at the timing of the terror attacks it is very clear that one and only one political outfit is gaining from it and that is Sangh. With their eyes on the central government their agenda of polarizing the voter is going ahead successfully.

On the other hand there are constant attacks on minorities on one pretext or another. Orissa thousands of Christians have been attacked, rendered homeless, their homes ransacked and looted and burnt down, churches attacked and even orphanages are not left alone.

Karnataka a similar picture is emerging. We have personally briefed very senior people in the government and the Congress party about the Karnataka situation and that it might explode but nothing was done and we have seen what has happened yesterday.

While we write to you now, the police are firing at Muslims in Yakutpura in Vadodara. Yesterday during the Ganpati procession a local dargah was broken down and shops of Muslims looted and ransacked. Already one boy has died and many are injured.

Last few days the only Muslim village Nandepeda in the Dangs, Gujarat has been attacked, ransacked. Villagers have been beaten up brutally including women and children. All men have fled to the jungles. The police not only took away all the goods but before going they poured kerosene into the eatable good so that they could not eat anything too. A proposed VHP rally today was stopped after spending 4 hours on the phone and pressuring various police departments.

UPA had formed the National Integration Council under tremendous pressure. The first agenda papers which were prepared, if you remember, were highly communal and objectionable. A number of us had raised it during the meeting and the Home Minister had replied' treat them as scrap' in your presence. Probably the Home Minister realized that people like us were too uncomfortable to have in the NIC, who would raise these questions. The NIC was never convened again. It was supposed to meet every six months.

The country unfortunately has been given on a platter to the Sangh and the government looks helplessly in providing security to ordinary citizens whether they are victims of terror attacks or victims of the constant attacks by the Sangh Parivar's various outfits.

We hope you will intervene and question why are such clear cases of involvement of RSS affiliates in terror attacks being ignored. It seems the investigating authorities deliberately want to cover up the role of RSS affiliates in these acts of terror. Can the real truth behind the dastardly acts come out without properly investigating these incidents, where the culprits' involvement is very clear? We urge upon you to instruct the investigating authorities to pursue the investigation in an unbiased, honest and professional manner. The life of innocent citizens is at stake and such irresponsible cover will definitely prevent the real truth from coming out. For the sake of fairness, honesty and the values of our constitution, we need to pursue these cases in their logical direction.

Can we look forward to you, Mr. Prime Minister to make your Government to rise above partisan attitude and unravel the truth behind the blasts which are rocking the country in a painful way?

Sincerely

Shabnam Hashmi, Member, National Integration Counci

Ram Puniyani, Social Activist, and writer