By TCN News,
New Delhi: The Council of Indian Muslims of UK has strongly condemned the killing of eight Muslims by police in Gopalgarh area of Rajasthan’s Bharatpur district last week. The group in an open letter to India’s Prime Minister has demanded immediate apprehension of all the high and low ranking officials involved in the killings and permanently remove them from their posts.
M Munaf Zeena, chairman of Council of Indian Muslims-UK, has also demanded the prime minister to take immediate and strong measures to implement Sachar Committee’s recommendations and give Muslims due representation in police and other agencies.
Last Wednesday (14th September) eight Muslims were killed and 21 injured outside and inside a mosque at Gopalgarh village in Rajasthan’s Bharatpur district. Muslims have blamed the police for the killings.
Slide show:
Text of the Letter:
Dear Mr Prime Minister,
We are aghast at the brutal and extra-judicial killing of eight Muslims in Gopalgarh in Bharatpur District of Rajasthan. Even more shocking in these cold blooded murders is the participation of local police whose fascist and blood thirsty soldiers entered the mosque and showered bullets at the worshippers.
Mr Prime Minister we are virtually confused on how to react at the decision of the state Chief Minister of your party, Mr Ashok Gehlot, for quickly ordering a CBI led inquiry into the incident and transfering police and district officials because by Indian standards it is too good to be true. Nevertheless we thank him for showing such efficiency.
Mr Prime Minister, unfortunately in the light of a long history of intermittent anti-Muslim violence in various parts of the country these moves mean to have no meaning and no significance. Several Enquiry commissions’ reports have already been gathering dust in your government offices in which culprits have been named and measures to control and stop the repetition of such crimes have been suggested.
Sadly, 63 years on since the country became independent Muslims continue to deal with anti-Muslim government machinery and blood thirsty gangs in khaki. They continue to be victimised, harassed, killed, detained as “terrorists”, their properties looted and ransacked and women dishonoured.
Mr Prime Minister, let me once again quote from my letter that I had written to you in 2004 congratulating you on your election victory. This is what I had then written, “After the anti-Sikh riots in 1984, Khushwant Singh had written in the Sunday magazine that for the first time he had realised how the Muslims would have felt in Moradabad during the anti-Muslim riots of 1982. Unfortunately Moradabad was not the last to witness the cruelty being meted out on Muslims. It was followed by Meerut and Bhagalpur. However, the savagery and ferocity displayed in Gujarat surpassed all the barbarism that had happened in the past. We are sure that as a member of a minority community like Khushwant Singh you too understand the difficulties being faced by Indian Muslims.”
Obviously in 2004 we had in mind the mass murders of Muslims in Gujarat. But since then there have been several cases of naked display of fascism by the police and government officials and absolutely nothing has been done by your government to detoxify the poison that pervades these agencies and Muslim blood continues to be shed as usual, children continue to be orphaned, women continue to be widowed, youths continue to be detained for years on false charges.
Mr Prime Minister, in plain and simple language, bigoted police officials are creating a very dangerous situation. According to a report this is how the survivors of Gopalgarh feel, “We were completely helpless as police joined Gujjars in firing. We saved our lives by running from the spot and jumping into the pond. But I could clearly see police and Gujjars firing at people in the mosque, killing most of them on the spot. They were also burning people.”
Mr Prime Minister, in expressing their distrust in law enforcement agencies these survivors have, inadvertently, reflected what the Indian Muslims in general feel about their treatment by the police. And we hardly need to emphasise that what such desperation can lead to.
Therefore, Mr Prime Minister, we urge you to:
1) Immediately apprehend all the high and low ranking officials involved in the killing of innocent Muslims and permanently remove them from their posts. Transfers and suspensions of guilty officers, being practiced since 1947, have no meaning, have not deterred anti-Muslim officials from violating country’s constitution and have not served any purpose;
2) In addition to being given employment to the members of the families of the victims of Gopalgarh anti-Muslim riots, as has been promised by the state government, increase the compensation Rs 50,000, the humiliating amount declared by the Chief Minister, increase it to Rs one crore;
3) Take immediate and strong measures to implement Sachar Commission’s recommendations and give Muslims due representation in police and other agencies;
4) Arrange special training for the shamefully uncivilised Indian police in treating Indian citizens as humans irrespective of their caste, creed and religion. Unfortunately, even in post colonial, independent and free India in 2011 they continue to behave like the soldiers of King Edward the Sixth in 1857 whose aim was to demoralise, subjugate and humiliate the Indian subjects.
Sincerely yours
M Munaf Zeena
Chairman
Council of Indian Muslims UK
[Photo by Md. Ali of TwoCircles.net]