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Keep Gauri Lankesh away from naxal panel, tells BJP; CM refuses

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Photo: K . Bhagya Prakash

Photo: K . Bhagya Prakash

Bengaluru: The Bharatiya Janata Party has urged the Karnataka Governor to direct the state government to keep senior journalist Gauri Lankesh away from the committee formed by the government to help bringing the naxals into the mainstream by convincing them to shun violence and surrender.

A delegation of the BJP leaders comprising legislators and leaders from the Malnad region C. T. Ravi, D. N. Jeevaraj and Bhanuprakash, accused Ms. Lankesh of having a soft corner for naxals and said it would not be possible for the government to have a dispassionate view on the issue if she was present on the panel.

Emerging from Raj Bhavan after submitting a memorandum to governor Vajubhai Vala, former minister, C.T. Ravi claimed Ms Lankesh, who is convenor of the Civilian Forum for Peace, was a Naxal supporter and her presence on the committee was likely to help the ultras rather than the government.

Criticising the ongoing efforts to ensure surrender of naxals Sirimane Nagaraj and Noor Zulfiqar, the BJP said the two were old and ill. Instead, efforts should be made to convince the young and active naxals to shun violence.

Meanwhile Chief Minister Siddaramaiah shunned the BJP’s suspicions over Ms. Lankesh. He accused the party of seeing everything with a biased view.

'Garm Hawa' – as timeless and relevant now as then

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The Mirza family of Garm Hawa, in 1973

The Mirza family of Garm Hawa, in 1973

by Subhash K. Jha

Very few Indian films have had the enduring impact of M S Sathyu’s “Garm Hawa”. This is the kind of rare cinema that serves the very core purpose of art. And now this tale of imperishable resonance comes to us in a restored digitally mastered avatar.

It stimulates the heart, stirs the soul, lifts the spirit and pricks the conscience. Dealing with Muslim pride and Islamic isolation during times of the stress and separation of the Partition, the relevance of “Garm Hawa” resonates to this day.

M S Sathyu’s “Garm Hawa” brought in furious winds of change in Hindi cinema and its approach and attitude to the theme of Muslim isolation in pre-Partition India. Though it is set in Agra just after the division of India into two separate countries, “Garm Hawa”, which re-released on Children’s Day Friday, doesn’t focus on the riots and bloodshed that followed the decisive moment in history.

Sathyu’s film, brilliantly written by Kaifi Azmi and Shama Zaidi, seeks to pin down the violence that the community experienced from within their own hearts and souls. That sense of agonised isolation when history seems to have betrayed a whole community and its people comes vividly alive in “Garm Hawa” as Salim Mirza (Balraj Sahni) watches his family torn apart as one by one they all leave, most of them across the border and a beloved daughter for the other world.

Heartbreak is a constant in the narration. But the sound of the broken heart is muffled in the aggressive voices of politicians and religious leaders seeking to establish their own self-interest in a nation that desperately needed selfless leaders in the post-Gandhian era.

“Garam Hawa” is as real as Indian cinema gets. The crowded mohallas and gallis of Agra are shot in documentary style. But the characters don’t seem to occupy that dispassionate space that documentaries are known to nurture.

We are without fuss taken into the world of Mirza’s family. We learn soon enough that Ameena (Geeta Siddharth) is the apple of Salim Mirza’s eyes. Co-writer Kaifi Azmi drew liberally from his own gentle and sensitive relationship with his daughter Shabana Azmi. And Balraj Sahni, that actor-extraordinaire who didn’t seem to be acting at all, drew from his own relationship with daughter Shabnam who, like Ameena in the film, committed suicide.

“Garm Hawa” is many things at the same time. It’s an evocative mirror of a people who chose to stay on when the land was divided. The film is also a love story. It is the intense tragic story of Ameena’s two aborted relationships, first with her cousin Kazim(Jamal Hashmi) , her childhood sweetheart who’s stolen away by Pakistan, and then her ardent suitor Shamshad(Jalal Agha) who leaves the country promising to return but never does. The second betrayal kills Ameena.

Finally , in a bizarre evocation of Agatha Christie’s “And Then There None”, Salim is left in India with only his wife and younger son, the rebellious Sikandar(Farouq Shaikh) who refuses to leave India for “greener pastures”(read: Pakistan).

The film ends on a note of heart-wrenching optimism when Salim Mirza changes his mind at the last minute about leaving the country.

Balraj Sahni as Salim Mirza gives what many film experts consider the one single-most flawless performance in the history of Hindi cinema. He gets into the skin of his character and inhabits the inner-most recesses of Salim Mirza’s soul. You really don’t see Balraj Sahni on the screen. You see this Muslim patriarch of a disintegrating family who never stops believing his God even when He seems busy elsewhere.

“Garm Hawa” is not just a cinematic experience. It is much more. It is a treatise on life’s most precious emotions. Unfiltered, raw and still hurting.

(IANS)

Crowdfunder Indiegogo hosts campaign to destroy al-Aqsa mosque

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A campaign to destroy the al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock and build a “Third Jewish Temple” in their place is raising funds on Indiegogo.

A campaign to destroy the al-Aqsa mosque and Dome of the Rock and build a “Third Jewish Temple” in their place is raising funds on Indiegogo.

by Sarah Irving, Electronic Intifada

What do a “fashion label” which celebrates the Israeli army with sexist images of scantily clad female soldiers and inflammatory plans to build a “Third Jewish Temple” on the Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem have in common?

The answer: support from Indiegogo, the social media fundraising platform which calls itself “the most trusted platform in the crowdfunding industry.”

In the past three months, Indiegogo has permitted two separate campaigns which clearly violate its terms of use to raise money through its website. Between them, the projects of the Temple Institute and fashion label MTKL promote racism, ethnic cleansing, open sexism, misogyny and rampant militarism — but Indiegogo seems determined to look the other way.

At the end of September 2014, the Jerusalem-based Temple Institute, an extremist organization which is part of the wider “Temple Movement,” successfully raised more than $100,000 to complete “architectural plans for the actual construction” of a “Third Temple” on the Haram al-Sharif. The Jerusalem site is home to the al-Aqsa mosque, the third most holy site for Muslims, and the Dome of the Rock, one of the earliest and most significant pieces of Islamic art and architecture in the world.

A better place?

Indiegogo markets itself as a supporter of “independent” initiatives. Using statements like “Indiegogo is a way for people all over the world to join forces to make ideas happen. Since 2008, millions of contributors have empowered hundreds of thousands of inventors, musicians, do-gooders, filmmakers — and other game-changers — to bring big dreams to life,” it plays on the creative, progressive images evoked by the ideas of artists and — as the company puts it — “do-gooders.”

Words like “empowering” litter the site, and staff profiles include promises that “My dream in life is to make the world a better place. Enabling people to raise capital using Indiegogo is my way of fulfilling that dream.”

But recently, these two campaigns on Indiegogo have shown that it is willing to help groups which are very far from “making the world a better place” to raise funds.

Inciting violence in occupied Jerusalem

The Temple Institute was founded in the early 1980s by a former high-ranking member of Meir Kahane’s Kach Party, which was banned for its extremist positions and links to the Jewish Defense League, a violent group regarded as a terrorist organization by even the US and Israeli governments. The institute, however, has since received hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding from the Israeli government.

The Civic Coalition for Palestinian Rights in Jerusalem called the plans illegal, and coalition spokesperson Ingrid Jaradat Gassner, calling on Indiegogo to remove the Temple Institute’s campaign, told the press at the time that:

Numerous UN resolutions affirm that East Jerusalem, including the Old City and its religious sites, are part of the occupied Palestinian territory, where sovereignty belongs to the Palestinian people … this is an illegal campaign as defined by [Indiegogo’s] terms, violating international law and human rights, resulting in the destruction of property, inciting for religious intolerance, hatred and violence.

The Temple Institute bills itself as the “only one organization is paving the way for the rebuilding of the Temple,” and has already, it claims, produced a number of the ceremonial items which would be used for worship in a reconstructed temple.

The Institute’s fundraising page on Indiegogo — which features the video below — specifies the use to which money raised on the site will be put:

The Temple Institute has engaged an architect to map out the modern Third Temple’s construction. Your contribution will go towards completing this ambitious project and the continued research and development which will make the Third Temple a reality. With every detail of the future Temple’s requirements listed in the written and oral law, our architects are not only designers, but Torah scholars who will ensure that everything is built to the highest modern standards, while adhering to the letter of Jewish law.

Sweeping harassment

The Haram al-Sharif has been the site of many attacks by Israeli settlers, the Israeli military and Israeli police against Palestinian worshippers, and Israeli extremists have stepped up their attempts to take over the compound in recent months.

This has led to violence in Jerusalem and has been used by the Israeli authorities in Jerusalem as an excuse for sweeping harassment of Palestinian communities and hundreds arrests, including those of many children. Observers have accused Israeli extremists — similar to those at the Temple Institute — of trying to start a “holy war” in Jerusalem.

Hardly the “better world” which Indiegogo claims to be helping to build.

Misogyny, militarism and crowdfunding

Personally, I would really like this next example of Indiegogo’s support for demeaning, discriminatory projects to be a spoof. It looks like it could be satire, but all current indications seem to be that it is real, and that its revolting combination of sexism and militarism is genuine.

MTKL calls itself a fashion label, but its first product looks set to be a calendar filled with photos of scantily clad female Israeli soldiers. Using language such as “ the chosen amongst the chosen people, real women soldiers of the IDF [Israeli army],” it claims that “MTKL was founded by 2 former soldiers that always dreamt to show the world the beauty of Israel and its people.”

Despite the nauseating misogyny of the calendar, the brand’s Indiegogo page even has the gall to claim that “the initiative also shows a side of Israelis the world rarely sees; attractive, egalitarian and determined to fight for their right to survive.”

But most disturbingly, the women aren’t just depicted half-naked, they are also shown in military “themed” clothing, camouflage makeup and carrying large pieces of automatic weaponry. Even the brand name — MTKL — is a play on the Hebrew word matkal, which means “army command.”

The sinister blend of sexuality, sexism and violence is carried through into the project’s fundraising on Indiegogo. The wording of the funding campaign’s video, transcribed by blogger Richard Silverstein, contains passages which present Israeli culture as a combination of indiscriminate violence and objectification of women, but as somehow embodying emancipation at the same time:

Shenfeld: we are now producing the world’s first Israeli army girl calendar. We recruited a real group of Israeli soldiers as our models, and we tell the stories of their actual military service while sporting the best military-inspired apparel ever designed.

Missulawin: these are not your run-of-the-mill models. These are real soldiers of an army which sees plenty of combat action. Contribute a few dollars to help us publish this calendar as a premium printed product and take a stand with us in the name of freedom, life and having fun.

Narrator: Women who handle guns, lead operations, and fight terror; highly-trained army machines by day, supermodels by night. Because when you only have one shot, it has to be a killer one [sic]. Now, MTKL: over and out.

Ducking the issues

In an emailed response to an enquiry from The Electronic Intifada about its attitude to fundraising for projects which were misogynistic or politically inflammatory, John Eddy of Goldin Solutions, Indiegogo’s media representative, would say only that “Indiegogo requires all campaigns to follow the terms of use.”

These terms of use state that Indiegogo itself “makes no representations about the quality, safety, morality or legality of any Campaign,” effectively attempting to wash its hands of liability for the results of immoral or illegal use of its fundraising platform.

Despite Indiegogo’s tolerance of the MTKL and Third Temple projects, both seem to infringe a number of the “terms of use” by which Eddy claims that users must abide.

For example, “Campaign Owners are not permitted to create a Campaign to raise funds for illegal activities, to cause harm to people or property, or to scam others” and “perks” offered to donors to campaigns must not include “any items promoting hate, discrimination, personal injury, death, damage, or destruction to property.”

Given that MTKL’s perks and other plans include blatantly misogynistic calendars and are intended to promote the image of an army which, less than three months before the campaign was launched, killed 2,100 people and destroyed thousands of homes and public buildings in its attacks on Gaza, it very much seems to violate the supposed bar on associations with “promoting hate, discrimination, personal injury, death, damage, or destruction to property.”

And the plans to build the Third Temple, as well as being illegal in relation to the status of Jerusalem, also by definition entail “damage [and] destruction to property” — in this case, some of the holiest and most artistically significant Islamic sites in the world.

Violating terms of use

In addition, the plans are part of a wider, viciously racist program of ethnic cleansing which is intended to force the Palestinian people from their land and deny them their basic rights.

Indiegogo also states that users should not use campaigns to:

“use the Services to promote violence, degradation, subjugation, discrimination or hatred against individuals or groups based on race, ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity”

… a list which, again, includes a number of stipulations which the MTKL and Third Temple campaigns blatantly violate.

Since Indiegogo’s terms state clearly that it “reserve[s] the right to refuse use of the Services to anyone and to reject, cancel, interrupt, remove or suspend any Campaign, Contribution, or the Services at any time for any reason without liability,” it remains unclear why both of these campaigns have been allowed to use to site to raise money.

Israel lifts age restriction for al-Aqsa prayers after Amman meetings

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A Palestinian woman in front of the al-Aqsa Mosque during Friday prayer in annexed East Jerusalem on November 07, 2014. Anadolu / Salih Zeki Fazlıoğlu

A Palestinian woman in front of the as-Sakhra Mosque (in Al-Aqsa compound) during Friday prayer in annexed East Jerusalem on November 07, 2014. Anadolu / Salih Zeki Fazlıoğlu

by Al-Akhbar

Palestinians of all ages will be allowed to perform prayers Friday at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed East Jerusalem for the first time in months, an Israeli police spokesman announced, a day after US Secretary of State John Kerry said “firm commitments” have been made during the Amman meetings to maintain the status quo at the compound.

“No age limit on the Temple Mount, we’re hoping things will be calm and quiet today,” spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld told AFP, using the Zionist term for the al-Aqsa mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem.

“Extra police units were deployed in Jerusalem this morning to prevent any incidents in and around the Old City,” he added.

Israeli forces have long restricted Palestinians’ access to the al-Aqsa compound based on age and gender, but in the past months they have further prevented Muslim worshipers from entering the mosque while facilitating the entrance for Zionist extremists.

Rosenfeld linked the decision to lift age restrictions to talks in Jordan on Thursday after which Kerry said steps were agreed between King Abdullah II and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to lower tensions at the al-Aqsa mosque compound.

“Firm commitments” were made to maintain the status quo at the compound, Kerry said at a press conference with Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, asserting that both Israel and Jordan agreed to take steps to “de-escalate the situation” in Jerusalem and “restore confidence.”

“We are not going to lay out each practical step. It is more important they be done in a quiet and effective way,” Kerry stated, adding that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who joined in over the phone, “promised” to encourage resumption of collapsed Palestinian-Israeli talks.

“It is clear to me that they are serious about working on the effort to create de-escalation and to take steps to instil confidence that the status quo will be upheld,” he stated.

The US diplomat also met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas Thursday, and they, according to Kerry, “discussed constructive steps, real steps, not rhetoric, that people can take in order to de-escalate the situation.”

Tensions have been running high in the occupied West Bank, annexed East Jerusalem and other regions in Occupied Palestine, where in recent weeks Israeli forces shot and killed six Palestinians.

Israeli authorities have also allowed Zionist settlers to take over homes in Palestinian neighborhoods, have announced plans to build thousands of settlements strictly for Israeli settlers in the city while ignoring Palestinian residents, and have generally looked the other way at rising violence by Zionist settlers against Palestinians across the city.

The anger has been further provoked by the Israeli authorities’ decision to hold a vote on splitting the al-Aqsa compound, Islam’s third holiest site, despite the existence of a Jewish prayer area at the Western Wall immediately next door.

Jordan’s King called for Israel Thursday “to put an end to its unilateral action and repeated attacks against holy sites in Jerusalem, especially those targeting the al-Aqsa mosque compound,” his palace said.

Recent clashes between Israeli Occupation Forces and Palestinians protesting the storming of al-Aqsa by several far-right Israeli members of the Knesset as well as groups of Zionist settlers, prompted Jordan last week to recall its ambassador to Israel “in protest at Israel’s escalation” and move to file a UN complaint.

Since Israel occupied East Jerusalem in 1967, an agreement with Jordan has maintained that Jewish prayer be allowed at the Western Wall plaza – built on the site of a Palestinian neighborhood of 800 that was destroyed immediately following the conquest – but not inside the al-Aqsa mosque compound itself.

In a letter to the UN Security Council sent on Wednesday, Palestinian ambassador Riyad Mansour demanded international intervention over Al-Aqsa, warning tensions could “spiral out of control”.

Furthermore, in a move likely to further heighten tensions around al-Aqsa, Israel’s Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch said late Wednesday that Israel will “increase the supervision of people entering the [al-Aqsa] compound” by reintroducing metal detectors and facial-recognition technology that were removed from the compound’s entrances in 2000.

In September 2000, a visit to al-Aqsa by controversial Israeli politician Ariel Sharon triggered what later became known as the “Second Intifada,” a popular uprising against Israel’s decades-long occupation in which thousands of Palestinians were killed.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank during the 1967 Six-Day War. It later annexed the city of Jerusalem in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the self-proclaimed Zionist state – a move never recognized by the international community.

(AFP, Anadolu, Al-Akhbar, Reuters)

Syrian rebels reject UN's Aleppo truce plan

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FSA commander says proposal only serves Assad regime, amid reports of fresh violence and arrest of prominent dissident.

Images of a reported strike in Aleppo's al-Marjeh district showed men digging through rubble. Photo: Reuters

Images of a reported strike in Aleppo’s al-Marjeh district showed men digging through rubble. Photo: Reuters

by Al Jazeera

The opposition-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) in Aleppo has rejected a UN truce proposal that seeks to suspend fighting in Syria’s second city, a day after the government hinted at considering it.

Zaher al-Saket, FSA military commander in the city, said on Wednesday that the proposal only serves the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, and pledged that his troops would continue their fight.

“First I would like to say that we completely reject this so-called freeze plan and truce,” he said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

“We learned not to trust the Assad regime because they are cunning and only want to buy time. We saw what happened in Homs and we will never accept the same scenario in Aleppo.”

The news came as forces loyal to Assad dropped a barrel bomb on Wednesday on Aleppo’s al-Marjeh neighbourhood, according to activists.

Images from the aftermath of the reported strike showed men digging through a rubble of a building.

There was no immediate report on casualties from the attack.

Staffan de Mistura, UN special envoy to Syria, said on Tuesday the Syrian government had responded with “constructive interest” to the UN proposal.

De Mistura set out the plan last month that would allow humanitarian aid through, and will lay the groundwork for peace talks.

As he continues to press for a diplomatic solution, there is no sign of let-up in fighting on the ground.

Syrian state media reported on Wednesday that two rockets were fired at a school in the central province of Hama, killing seven children.

Opposition leader detained

Separately Syrian authorities detained a prominent Damascus-based writer and dissident, Louay Hussein, as he was trying to leave the country at the Syria-Lebanon border bound for Spain.

Hussein is a longtime opposition activist and the leader of Building the Syrian State.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported on Wednesday Hussein’s arrest, saying he was taken to the justice palace in Damascus.

Human rights groups said the government has rounded up tens of thousands of Syrians, many of whom disappear in custody never to be seen again.

A UN panel last year accused Assad’s government of committing a crime against humanity by making people systematically vanish.

More than 195,000 people have been killed in Syria since the beginning of the conflict in March 2011, with successive attempts at internationally backed negotiations failing to yield a peace deal.

Nearly 10 million people have been displaced by Syria’s civil war, and more than three million have fled the country.

IPL match fixing: Gurunath Meiyappan, Raj Kundra named in Mudgal Committee report

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IPL match fixing

New Delhi: N. Srinivassan, his son in law Meiyappan, Sunder Raman former COO IPL, Rak kundra, co owner of Rajasthan royals and husband of bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, figure in the list of those Mudgal committee, who probed the IPL match fixing and betting, mentioned in its report.

Supreme Court today revealed the six names including Stuart Binny who was named in the remaining two ODI against Sri Lanka.

After the revelation the AGM of BCCI has been postponed for four weeks. The meeting was scheduled to be held on 20th of November. The meeting was to be followed by the elections of BCCI President. Former president Srinivasan had to step down after Mudgal committee mentioned his son inlaw in the IPL match fixing.

Srinivasan is desperately trying to make a come back and postponement may come a breather for him as it will give him more time to garner the support.

Supreme Court has not mentioned their roles in the match fixing. Mudgal Committee has mentioned 13 names in its report which was submitted to the apex court.

The apex court bench headed by Justice T. S. Thakur said that the report dealing with the conduct and role of Srinivsasan, Meiyappan, BCCI official Sundar Raman and Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra will be given to these four people as well as to the BCCI and the petitioner Cricket Association of Bihar.

The court, however, said that the names of the players named in the report will be held back for the time being.

The court said all the parties will file their objections to the report within four days of its receipt and they will have the liberty to file responses to rival objections in another four days and directed the listing of the matter for Nov 24.

The court recorded the statement by BCCI counsel T.A. Sundaram that the meeting of the BCCI annual general body which was scheduled to be held Nov 20, will now take place after four weeks.

The sixth IPL season last year was marred with a major controversy after police launched legal proceedings against several IPL officials and cricketers, including former Test fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, for illegal betting and spot-fixing.

The IPL, which began in 2008, features the world`s top players signed up for huge fees by companies and high-profile individuals in a glitzy mix of sport and entertainment.

‘We crossed the line’, US admits to UN anti-torture body

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gitmo-prisoners

by Agence France-Presse

The United States said Wednesday it did not condone torture under any circumstances, but acknowledged to a UN anti-torture watchdog it had “crossed the line” following the September 11 attacks.

“The US is proud of its record as a leader in respecting, promoting and defending human rights and the rule of law, both at home and around the world,” acting US legal advisor Mary McLeod told the 10-member UN Committee on Torture.

“But in the wake of 9/11 attacks, we regrettably did not always live up to our own values,” she said.

“We crossed the line and we take responsibility for that,” she said, quoting US President Barack Obama.

McLeod was one of about 30 top US officials gathered in Geneva for Washington’s first grilling by the committee since 2006.

In its first review since Obama came to power, several delegates acknowledged abuses had occurred during the so-called “War on Terror” under the previous administration of George W. Bush.

“We recognise that no nation is perfect, ours included,” Keith Harper, US ambassador to the UN Human Rights Council, told the committee.

The delegation faced a barrage of questions from committee members on how the country was dealing with rectifying and providing redress for acknowledged abuses during the “war on terror”.

The US delegation was asked to explain why the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba remains open, why many detainees remain there without charge and when Washington plans to shut it down.

The committee members also questioned the treatment of prisoners there, and lack of redress for victims of the widely publicised abuses by US troops at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in the early 2000s.

Beyond the “war on terror” legacy, the committee members raised issues of abuses in US prisons, rape in prisons, the broad use of drawn-out solitary confinement, and long years on death row.

And they asked how Washington could justify its widespread detention of non-violent, non-criminal illegal immigrants, including minors.

And they slammed police brutality that appears to disproportionately affect minorities, such as 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was shot and killed by white police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri last August.

His parents were in Geneva this week to take part in events on the sidelines of the committee hearing.

The committee is set to publish its conclusions on November 28.

Supreme Court of India Orders Day to Day Trial in Gulbarg Society massacre case

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Zakia Jafri and Teesta Setalvad visit her Gulbarg Society home in Feb ’10

Zakia Jafri and Teesta Setalvad visit her Gulbarg Society home in Feb ’10

by Teesta Setalvad

Today i.e.. November 13 2014 the Supreme Court of India Ordered Day to Day Hearing of the Gulberg Trial and completion of the Trial within 3 months. It did not Its Vacate Stay on the Trial Court Judgement (operative since May 2010) (as requested by SIT). The state of Gujarat tried to confuse the issue but fortunately our team, Ms Aparna Bhat had a detailed status report prepared by us which was read out to the Hon’ble Court.

Detailed Background / Status report on Gulberg Trial is Pasted Below

SIT has filed an application to Vacate Stay on Judgement. Our Advocate Ms Aparna Bhatt pointed out to the Court that over two years delay had been caused by the SIT refusing to produce documents related to Witness Application under Section 319 seeking to make MK Tandon, PN Gondia and others accused in the Trial. Finally after the HC rejected their obstructionist attempts they produced the documents in August this year. We have still not been given a copy. (Detailed Dates and SIT instructions given below).

Gulberg Case – SC No. 152/02

Update

Trial Suspended from July 2012 until March 2014 when the Gujarat High Court rejected SIT’s frivolous application challenging the Order of the Sessions Court dated May and June 2012.

Background:-

Special Court Judge BJ Dhandha in Sessions Case No. 152/02 and others through an order 31 May 2012 (Order at Exhibit 1577) directed the SIT to produce documents related to joint commissioner of police, MK Tandon and P.B. Gondia as the papers were related to the further investigation directed by the Supreme Court. The further investigations into the Gulberg trial, especially vis a vis the alleged criminal conduct of these two police officers were sought to be prevented from coming on record by the SIT by deliberately confusing this case with the wider criminal conspiracy in the Zakia Jafri v/s Narendra Modi and 59 Others case.

The further application u/s Section 319 ( Exhibit 1577) was moved by us witnesses in Special Sessions court dated 12.5.2012 and it was on this application that the Court pronounced the order on 31.5.2012 stating inter alia that, while at this stage no order is passed in this application.

The SIT did not comply with the said order dated 3.7.2012 passed by the Sessions Court

[Exb.1661] and in fact moved the Sessions Court to review its own Order. This was also turned[ down by a final Order of the Sessions Court passed on 3.7.2012. (Exb.1748 and 1730) In this context the affidavit filed by Himanshu Bhatt of the SIT dated 18.6.2012 resisting the application of the Sessions Court Order (Exhibit1754) is noteworthy. It is important to note that the Special PP RC Kodekar had noted that he had no objection to the documents being prayed for in our application. The SIT continued to play a dilatory and destructionist role.

The SIT submitted the closure report filed before a lower court in the Zakia Jafri case but this has been kept in a sealed cover and sought to leave to challenge the orders in the High Court. The SIT thereafter on 24.7.2012 moved the Special Criminal Application (SCR) 2249/2012 in the Gujarat High Court. (Exhibit 1730 and 1748).

Witness Survivors have filed their Affidavit-in Reply in the said SCR but were distressed that no hearings have taken place in the Gujarat High Court and the entire the Trial process has been stalled.

Judge BJ Dhandha retired in September 2013 and another Judge KK Bhatt has been assigned to hear the Trial but not a single hearing has taken place.

The closure report in the Zakia Jafri case was filed on 8.2.2012 before the Magistrate (a lower court than the Special Court hearing the Gulberg trial) and the protest petition therein was argued through 2013. While the Magistrate hearing the case rejected the protest petition by it’s Order dated 26-12-2013, the SIT is seeking shelter under this to conceal critical evidence about the allegedly criminal conduct of Tandon and Gondia before a higher court, the Sessions Court hearing this, i.e. the Gulberg trial.

In effect therefore, the Trial in the Gulberg Society Carnage case had been completely stalled since July 2012 largely because of the SIT’s reluctance to make available relevant documents.

In December 2009, witnesses had moved an application under Section 319 of the CrPC seeking to arraign more accused (Exhibit Nos exhibit 738) including former joint commissioner of police MK Tandon and former deputy commissioner of police PB Gondia. In its order passed on 18.1.2010 vide Exb.738 the Special Sessions Judge allowed the application vis a vis one accused namely Rajesh Dayaram Jingar, rejected it vis a vis three accused namely (1) Manish Somabhai Patel @ Manish Splendar (2) Mahendra Pukhraj (3) Jagrupsing Rajput but kept the issue of arraigning the two senior policemen pending since further investigation into their criminal negligence was still being conducted by the SIT on 3.10.2011,

Witness Victim Survivors thereafter moved an Application (Exhibit Nos 1661) to access the relevant documents of investigation. An application to stay the proceedings until these documents were brought on record was rejected by the Sessions Court and the matter appealed by Victim Survivors in the Gujarat high Court (SCR 3322/2011). While rejecting the application, the Hon’ble Gujarat high court in its order dated 29.12.2013 (Para 17) observed, “I have given thoughtful consideration to this aspect of the matter. There is no dispute that the Hon’ble Apex Court directed the SIT to comply with the directions issued in paragraph no.9 in the order dated 12.9.11 and thereafter even the Sessions Court vide order dated 9.11.11 almost issued the said direction to the SIT and till date no report is filed either before the Court having competent to take cognizance of the matter and till date no copies of such report and documents have been furnished to the Court of Session. In the above view of the matter. The respondent no.2 should take immediate action and the submissions advanced by Mr.A.C. Choksi. Learned Special Public Prosecutor for the respondent no.2 that the report shall be submitted at the earliest should be followed in its true spirit.”

The entire evidence in this trial has been recorded and final arguments have been virtually concluded in the trial. It was a pending application under Section 319 CrPC where a judicial order had kept the issue of arraigning joint Commissioner of Police MK Tandon, DCP P.B. Gondia, (Note No.2) Police Commissioner P.C.Pandey and I.O. S,S,Chudasma A.C.P. Crime Branch pending, that the applications by Witness Survivors for additional documents were made. The next date of hearing in SCR 2249/2012 was then on 19.2.2014

Finally the Gujarat High Courtr dismissed the Application by the SIT ruling against it. The SIT finally submitted the Index of Documents from which Witmess Advocates have to indicate the relevant documents on 05.08.2014. The next date for hearing is 25.07.2014

ROZNAMA (while SIT had effectively stayed the Trial by Its application against the Sessions Court Order granting documents dated May and June 2012).

Date Details

17.9.13 Formal date is given.

1.10.13 Accused produced in the ‘E’ Court. Accuse No.17 and 49 accused exception from appearance application submitted in the court and granted vide exb. No. 1822

12.10.13 Addl Session Judge K.K. Bhatt. [Sp. P.P. Shri R.C. Kodekar was absent} SIT moved for medical relief for accused [PC Mehboobbhai was present] Accused No.17 Kalpesh Purohit’s medical certificate produced vide exb. 1823 in the court. Notice issued to guaranteer and NBW against accused No. 1 to 7.

25.10.13 Matter adjourned to 11.11.13 for final arguments due to matter pending in High Court

11.11.13 Matter adjourned to 25.11.13 for final arguments due to matter pending in High Court

25.11.13 Matter adjourned to 10.12.13 for final arguments due to matter pending in High Court

3.12.13 Accused produced in the court today. Accused No.3 Sandeep @ Sonu Ghungruvado ( SC. No. 167/03) And accused No.3 Surendrasing Digvijay Singh ( SC. 152/02) and Accused No. 43 Narayan Sitaram (S.C. No. 194/04) application about discussion and to take guidance vide exb.1829. Exb. 1829 application of the accused rejected.

10.12.13 Matter adjourned on. 26.12.13 due to matter pending in High Court

26.12.13 Pursis vide Exb.1832 about death certificate of Accused No.17 Court is on leave today. So, next date on 9.1.14

Matter adjourned to 9.1.14 due to matter pending in High Court

9.1.14 Order as per Exb.1834. Recorded Nodel Officer to File The report

Matter adjourned to 21.1.13 due to matter pending in High Court

21.1.14 Report not submitted vide Exb. 1835 accused no.17’s death

Matter adjourned to 4.2.14 due to matter pending in High Court

24.1.14 Order to take necessary action against Transfer warrant of Accused No.1 Kailash Lalchand Dhobhi by DCB II Cr.No.3132/13 and send to criminal department II. SIT submitted report to inquire about the death of accused no.17 vide exb.1836

Matter adjourned on. 17.2.14 for final arguments due to matter pending in High Court

17.2.14 Matter adjourned on. 3.3.14 to submit arguments due to matter pending in High Court

20.2.14 Copy of order by the Gujarat High Court in Cr.Mis.A. No. 136/14 submitted in the court by accused Jayesh Ramjibhai Parmar vide exb.1838.

3.3.14 Speedy Trial Application submitted in the court vide exb. No.1839 on behalf of witnesses Sayraben Sandhi, Firoz Gulzar Pathan, Rupa Dara Modi and Salim Noor Mohammed Sandhi by Advocate S.M. Vora. Copy was received by Prosecution. Next date of hearing on 10.3.14

Matter adjourned to. 18.3.14 due to matter pending in High Court

5.3.14 Received the copy from criminal department II vide exb.no. 1841 about Writ in the Hon’ble Gujarat High Court Cr.M.A. No. 2249/12

10.3.14 Court is on leave so hearing of Exb.1839 postponed.

18.3.14 Written reply submitted in the court by Sp.P.P. about SIT officer application vide exb.1839. which submitted Exb.1843

Matter adjourned to 15.4.14 to, submit arguments

Hearing of Exb.1839 on dt.7.4.14

Next date. 31.3.14

31.3.14 Court is on leave. Next date 15.4.14

7.4.14 Rejoinder affidavit Exb.1845 submitted in the court against the witnesses vide exb.1843 reply by the SIT.

For hearing vide exb. 1839 on dt.18.4.14 in the noon around 2.45 pm

11.4.14 Writ certified copy of Honble Gujarat High Court in Cr, M.

A.No.3911/14 vide exb.1846 submitted in the court.

15.4.14 Matter adjourned to 29.4.14

For hearing vide exb. 1839 on dt.18.4.14 in the noon around 2.45 pm

18.4.14 Court heard arguments in Exb.1839 and admitted SIT IO Sur-Rejoinder vide Exb.1848 Court heard Sp.PP’s Arguments

Court adjourned for argument reply by Sp.PP .

Next date.22.4.14

22.4.14 Court heard in Exb.1839 Sp.PP argument reply by S.M. Vora. So, adjourned and on order vide exb.1839.

Next date.9.5.14

29.4.14 Matter adjourned to. 13.5.14 to for final arguments due to matter pending in High Court;

For further hearing and order in Exb.1839 . So, adjourned to

dt.9.5.14

13.5.14 Matter adjourned to 27.5.14 to submit arguments in favour of Accused due to dilatory tactics by the SIT. For further hearing and order in Exb.1839 . So,

adjourned to dt.27.5.14

27.5.14 Matter adjourned to 10.6.14 to submit arguments

For order in Exb.1839 . So, adjourned on dt.27.5.14

10.6.14 Court is on leave. So next date.24.6.14

Matter adjourned to 24.6.14. For orders in Exb.1839 .

24.6.14 Matter adjourned to 08.07.2014 to submit arguments in favour of accused due dilatory tactics by the SIT For order in Exb.1839 . So, adjourned on dt.8.7.14

8.7.14 Order declared in Exb.1839- Witness application for Documents was finally allowed

Matter adjourned to 22.7.14

22.7.14 Court is on leave. SIT IO Himanshu Shukla given application to take

15 days time to submit the copies in the court to Sp.P.P. vide Exb.1839 and this exb. No. 1856.

Application granted…..

Matter adjourned to 5.8.14.to submit arguments in favour of accused due to Supreme Court stay order

2.8.14 Cr.M.A. No. 11343/14 of the Gujarat HC Xerox copy of writ vide exb.1858

Cr.M.A. No. 11260/14 of the Gujarat HC Xerox copy of writ vide exb.1859

Cr.M.A. No. 10494/14 of the Gujarat HC Xerox copy of writ vide exb.1860

Cr.M.A. No. 9491/14 of the Gujarat HC Xerox copy of writ vide exb.1861

5.8.14 Order’s copy submitted in Exb.1839 by the Sp.P.P. in the court vide Exb. 1863

Order to “abate” Accused No.17 Ratilal Ganeshji Kumbhar on cause of death.

Matter adjourned to 19.8.14 for arguments

INDEX of Documents submitted to Witness Advocates by the SIT

7.8.14 Cr.M.A. No. 11260/14 of the Gujarat HC Xerox copy of writ vide exb.1864

19.8.14 Application to provide documents in favour of witnesses in Exb.1839 by Advocate S.M. Vohra’s with Exb.1866.

Fixed for hearing. Matter adjourned to. 2.9.14 to submit arguments in favour of accused due to Supreme Court stay order

2.9.14 Copy of order by the Gujarat High Court in Cr.Mis.A. No. 12643/14 submitted to the court by accused Jayesh Madanlal Jingar vide exb.1868

Copy of Letter of High Court Ahmedabad about the order of the Supreme Court by Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court wide Ex.1869

Matter adjourned on. 11.9.14.for final arguments

For hearing in Ex.1866

Next date 11.9.14

11.9.14 Court adjourned for requested by Advocate Salim in favour of witnesses and Sp.P.P. Kodekar to give copy of documents oraly.

Next date 25.9.14

Matter adjourned to 25.9.14 for witnesses to submit list of documents needed to press Section 319 application

Update for 13.11.2-14

Note:- Judge K.K. Bhatt retired on.30.9.2014 and the new designated Judge P.B Desai was appointed on 15.10.2014

(Note: List of Documents from Index along with all documents pertaining to more accused sought to be arraigned in the Section 319 application i.e. MK Tandon –then Joint CP, Ahmedabad, PB Gondia, then DCB Crime Branch, Ahmedabad etc submitted by the SIT to the Court on 5.8.2014. Witness Survivors moved application before the Court to provide them with a copy on 19.08.2014 (Exhibit 1866). Though the Court fixed the date for hearing of the application on 2.9.2014, the said application has not yet been heard by the Court and no documents have been received by us to this day.)

25.9.14 Matter adjourned to 9/10/14 for Submission of documents

9.10.14 Matter adjourned to 20/11/14 for Submission of documents

20.10.14 Matter adjourned to 5/11/14 for Submission of documents

05.11.14 Matter adjourned to 19/11/14 for Submission of documents

There is no Order in Gulberg for Fixed days for hearing in the Week

Next date of Hearing is now 19.11.14

Criminal Case filed in Australia against Prime Minister Narendra Modi

by

Modi

The American Justice Center (AJC), an organization established to bring human rights abusers to justice, has announced the filing of a criminal complaint in Australia against visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his role in aiding, abetting and inciting organized attacks against the minorities of Gujarat state before and during the horrific genocide of 2002.

The lawsuit is being brought under the aegis of AJC, by Mr. Asif Vahora, a survivor of the 2002 massacres, in which over 2,000 people were killed and over 150,000 displaced. The complaint refers to the destruction of “20,000 Muslim homes and businesses and 360 places of worship.”

The complaint against Prime Minister Modi has been lodged under Australia’s “The Criminal Code Act 1995” which provides Australian courts jurisdiction over cases involving crimes against humanity worldwide (Id. §§ 268.117(1) & 15.4). Justifying the prosecution of Modi in Australian Courts, the complaint states that Modi’s actions during February-March 2002 violate sections 268.3,4,5,8 & 9 of Australia’s Criminal Code Act of 1995.

The complaint, lodged with Honorable Robert Bromwich SC, Director Commonwealth Public Prosecutions, Australia, charges Mr. Modi with crimes against humanity and genocide resulting in the killing of more than 2,000 Muslims and displacement of several hundred thousand.

“Our relentless pursuit of justice has now taken us to the Australian shores, where Mr. Modi will have to account for his criminal misdeeds in Gujarat,” said Mr. Joseph Whittington, Jr., President of AJC, and also the 2nd Ward Alderman of Harvey, Illinois.

Mr. Modi’s rise to power comes in the backdrop of increasing persecution of religious minorities in India. In August this year, India’s Christian population, numbering about 24 million, marked the sixth anniversary of horrific anti-Christian massacres in the state of Odisha, considered the worst anti-Christian pogrom of the 21st century. Prominent watch-dog group “International Christian Concern,” reported an alarming rise in the attacks on rural churches in recent months. In May 2014, several villages in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh passed local ordinances banning all non-Hindu religious activities, in effect banning Christianity. Vatican Radio, the Holy See’s official news outlet, reported on the possibility of Christians being “purged,” from villages across three states.

Recently, AJC spearheaded an Alien Tort case against PM Modi during his visit to the United States in September. Following the AJC complaint, a US federal court issued a summons against the visiting PM. The case is currently under review by the US Federal Court. As in the Tort case brought against Mr. Modi in the US, AJC is providing legal support and advice to the survivors in their effort to hold Mr. Modi accountable for the loss of lives and property that was caused by his complicity in the Gujarat massacres.

“Under Australia’s criminal code, mere presence of the accused foreigner in Australia is a sufficient basis for jurisdiction over acts of genocide and crimes against humanity committed abroad,” said Mr. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, legal advisor to AJC. “Thus it adopts a mode of jurisdiction equivalent to universal jurisdiction,” added Mr. Pannun.

The Gujarat genocide of 2002 was one of the worst episodes of sectarian violence in independent India, and was marked with horrific crimes against humanity, including the rape of several hundred women. Many of the victims were subsequently burned alive. Although the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the mass violence did not prosecute Mr. Modi, an amicus curiae appointed by the Supreme Court had recommended

Mr. Modi’s prosecution. A case filed by Mrs. Zakia Jafri, widow of slain Parliamentarian Ehsan Jafri, is pending against Mr. Modi in the Gujarat High Court.

The American Justice Center (AJC) is a human rights organization dedicated to holding human rights abusers and perpetrators of mass violence accountable. AJC provides legal aid and support for international judicial redress to victims deprived of legitimate and legal means to justice.

REFERENCES:

Criminal Complaint in Australia Against Indian PM Narendra Modi
http://www.americanjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Modi-CriminalComplaint-Filed-Australia-Nov-13.pdf

Supporting Evidence for Criminal Complaint in Australia Against Indian PM Narendra Modi
http://www.americanjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Supporting-Evidence-Criminal-Complaint-Against-PM-Modi-Australia.pdf

US Court issues summons against Indian PM Modi ahead of his arrival
http://www.americanjusticecenter.org/press-release/

AJC challenges Narendra Modi’s immunity; announces $10,000 reward for serving US Court’s summons
http://www.americanjusticecenter.org/ajc-challenges-narendra-modis-immunity-announces-10000-reward-for-serving-us-courts-summons/

US Federal Court allows AJC, Gujarat victims to challenge US Government’s “Suggestion of Immunity” to PM Modi
http://www.americanjusticecenter.org/us-federal-court-allows-ajc-gujarat-victims-to-challenge-us-governments-suggestion-of-immunity-to-pm-modi/

The Diplomat: US Federal Court Issues Summons Against Narendra Modi
http://thediplomat.com/2014/09/us-federal-court-issues-summons-against-narendra-modi/

REUTERS: Small-town U.S. politician emerges as unlikely foe of Modi
http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/09/27/modi-usa-visit-riots-lawsuit-idINKCN0HM01720140927

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