By RINA International Service
Mumbai: To ensure implementation of the recommendations of Sri Krishna Commission Report, Muslim leaders filed an affidavit in Supreme Court on September 28, 2007, elaborating on all those matters where state government showed dilly-dallying in taking action as per recommendations of the Commission. In its 85 page long affidavit, the Action Committee for Implementation of Srikrishna Commission Report formed for ensuring implementation of Srikrishna Commission Report appealed to Supreme Court to issue orders to state government to take action against all those erring police officers who have been held responsible by the report for the rioting. Ex-minister of Maharashtra Arif Nasim Khan, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind leader Gulzar Azami and advocate Nafees Siddiqui filed this affidavit. The Court has set October 31 as the date of hearing.
Mr. Arif Khan expressed hope that this attempt for fetching relief to those affected in Mumbai riots shall succeed because judiciary has already ordered the state government to take action as per recommendations of the Commission. Mr. Nasim said that although Maharashtra government formed task force lead by a senior police officer in order to implement Commission’s recommendations but its working remained confined to consolation. Task force did not take any step towards taking action against culprits as recommended by the Commission.
Regarding the incidents of Usman Suleiman Bakery and Haree Masjid, the affidavit says no action has been taken against police personnel held responsible for it by the Commission, additionally demanding that 1259 cases of riot registered in various police stations should be reinvestigated so that innocent people may be delivered justice. These are the cases that the Shiv Sena-BJP-combine government had closed without any investigation. Mr. Arif Nasim, Maulana Gulzar Azami and Maulana Syed Athar Ali said this struggle is not meant to ensure justice for only one section of society; rather attempts are being made to ensure justice for all victims of 1992-93 riots at par. The affidavit request the Court to settle compensations to riot victims on the line of those awarded to the victims of Sikh riots in Delhi and the Gujarat riots. These leaders also stressed on promotion of communal harmony by government and said better atmosphere of communal harmony should be evolved in the country by taking practical measures and ensuring that all such efforts remain above politicking.
The Srikrishna Commission was formed in January 1993, after Mumbai riots during 1992-93. In 1998, the Commission submitted its report to Shiv Sena-BJP government which never released it. Against this attitude of the government, Muslim leaders and organizations, including Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and Ulema Council approached the Court. After court orders, Manohar Joshi government did present that report but it did not implement its recommendations. This Action Committee for Implementation of Srikrishna Commission Report, which approached Supreme Court in 1998, was formed in this backdrop. In an affidavit in 2000, Congress-NCP coalition government assured to implement the report and formed task force for this purpose that submitted its report, contained in eight volumes, to Supreme Court in 2002. The Action Committee approached Supreme Court against these proceeding pleading that the task force has done only consolation job and recommendations have not been implemented.