By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
Bhopal: Police and administrative officers should not be loyal to any person or persons. Their loyalty should be towards the Constitution, law and the rules. In Gujarat, some officers are so loyal towards Narendra Modi that they can go to any extent to please him. And that is what happened in February-March 2002 when the administrative and police officers, throwing the rules and traditions to wind, indulged in highly objectionable activities.
These views were expressed by R. B. Sreekumar, former Director General of Police, (DGP), of Gujarat, while delivering a lecture on “The truth and lessons of Gujarat pogrom” at a function organised by Rashtriya Secular Manch here the other day. KS Dhillon, former DGP of MP and Punjab, presided over the function.
R. B. Sreekumar, former Director General of Police, (DGP), of Gujarat, delivering a lecture on “The truth and lessons of Gujarat pogrom” in Bhopal.
It may be pointed out here that Sreekumar was persecuted by the Gujarat government. He was denied promotion from the post of ADG to DG and his pension was also withheld. Later, on the orders of the High Court of Gujarat, he was given promotion with retrospective effect.
Dhillon said that if Modi becomes the Prime Minister of the country, it would have detrimental effect on the unity of the nation. He lauded Sreekumar, who was his probationer, for standing up against Modi’s misrule ad said: “I am proud of you”. He hoped that in the coming generations such upright police officers would not let down the dignity of police force.
Secular Manch convener Lajja Shankar Herdenia said that Modi will start imposing the RSS ideology on the country. Guru Golwalkar, the second Sarsanghchalak of RSS and its chief ideologue, believed that ‘Manusmriti’ was a great Hindu scripture. He held the view that the minorities can live in the country but as a second class citizens, Herdenia added.
Sreekumar said that violence is the outcome of lack of mutual faith among the people and if the institutions of the State like legislature, executive and judiciary do not intervene effectively, the violence assumes the form of a riot. What happened in Gujarat was exactly that. He said that Modi’s mind was driven by the software of RSS, which is divisive and narrow. A person whose mind is driven by the software of the Constitution should become the PM of the country. He said that Modi rewarded police officers who did not try to put an end to the violence during Gujarat 2002 riots and penalised those who did their duty.
At the outset of his lecture Sreekumar asked: “Did segments of society and wings of the State rose to the level of expectation of the citizens, during and after the protracted communal disturbances in Gujarat in 2002”? An impartial feedback from the riot victim survivors provides a frustratingly dismal story, he said.
Elaborating he said that history of communal clashes in Gujarat, particularly in Ahmedabad city had started from 1714 A.D and major riots took place in 1969 (600 deaths), 1985, and in 1992 but the prolonged riots in 2002 with the unprecedented highest casualty of nearly 2000 killings, were notorious for the criminal collaborative role of the State functionaries (Neros according to the Apex Court) in the anti-minority pogrom with pronounced ingredients of a genocide as defined in United Nations Covenant on Genocide 1948. To illustrate, large scale killing of a specific group (761 in riots – 177 Hindus and 584 Muslims; 200 in police firing, 83 Hindus and 117 Muslims and physical destruction of socio-cultural and religious symbols of a targeted group – 302 Dargahs, 209 Mosques, 113 Madrasas, 30 temples and 3 churches; total property lost to Muslims comes to 244 crore and 31 crore to Hindus). Two Commisionarates (Ahmedabad city and Baroda city) and 9 districts have seen high voltage violence out of 26 police districts and 4 Commisionarates (data on missing persons not included).
The societal movement against riots in general was lukewarm, nominal and that too limited to cities and regional pockets and thus ineffective and direction-less, though, some aid has come for organizing relief camps for the displaced, action to re-activate the subverted Criminal Justice System (CJS), manipulating available channels of grievance redressal to the advantage of the riot victims was grossly inadequate. Except a few NGO’s like Citizen for Justice and Peace (CJP), led by Teesta Setalvad and a few others like well known artist Mallika Sarabhai, no well focused moves to depute advocates to take up major carnage cases were visible. Effective micro-level monitoring of investigation and prosecution of major carnage cases by CJP could get 116 rioters – including a former state minister – (direct perpetrators of violence) convicted with life imprisonment – an unprecedented achievement for human rights activists, in history of anti-minority riots in India since 1947.
He stated that in any mass violence, according to criminologists, 5 category of criminals will imperatively come together. They are (i) Planners (state level Sangh Parivar leaders); (ii) Organizers (district level Hindu activists); (iii) Ground level mobilisers of resources, weapons and foot soldiers (VHP/RSS activists); (iv) Facilitators, enablers and abettors from the administration (officers from executive magistracy and police in areas affected by intense anti-minority violence and (v) Perpetrators of violence who had personally indulged in criminal acts.
Sreekumar recalled that most gruesome man slaughters took place in Godhra railway station (59 deaths), and places like Naroda Patia (109), Gulbarg society (69) both in Ahmedabad city, Sardarpura (33) Deepada Darwaja (11) both in Mehsana district, Best bakery in Baroda city(14), Ode village (27) in Anand district and Kidiad (63) in Sabarkanta district. Thousands of internally displaced housed in relief camps were driven out by the State administration in June/July 2002, to project a false picture of normalcy before the Central Election Commission, under pressure from Modi government to hold early assembly election, ostensibly to cash on the anti-minority impulse and communal consolidation of Hindus for Narendra Modi, the architect of genocide. Limited protests by socio-religious, cultural and commercial organizations did not create any discernable impact, so Vajpayee Government after condemnation of riots initially through public statements, had endorsed the Sangh Parivar’s stand on riots as genuine and legitimate expression of anger by majority community on the community responsible for “conspiring and killing Ram Bhaktas” at Godhra railway station on 27/2/2002.
He lamented that the octogenarian Sanskrit scholar K. K. Shastri had even eulogized tormentors of Muslims, by calling them Tigers – “Waghri Wagh Thai Gai”. Gandhians also did not resort to Mahatma’s methodology of Satyagraha or fasting to generate nationwide moral pressure on Central government to make a leadership change in Gujarat and to correct malady in the state administration about which the Apex Court observed “The modern day ‘Neros’ (Gujarat Police) were looking elsewhere when Best bakery and innocent children and women were burning and were probably deliberating how perpetrators of the crime can be saved or protected. Law and justice became flies in the hands of this wanton boys” (Judgment in criminal appeal n0 446-449/2004, Zakira Sheikh versus State of Gujarat, on April 12 2004).
He said that pertinently most of the religious leaders of the Muslims were paralysed by fear complex and Modi-phobia. Deplorably, many of the Hindu religious congregations had exhibited a mind set of deeming the anti-Muslim bloodbath as a spontaneous, uncontrollable upsurge against the community responsible for Godhra train fire. Corporate units owned by Muslims also did not come with any decisive, well-directed and consistent measures for ensuring effective justice delivery and substantial relief, reconciliation, rehabilitation and resettlement schemes for the riot victim survivors.
A major silver lining is the role of media, both Print and Electronic, particularly the National English Press and channels, which had graphically brought out practically all nuances of the genesis, course and aftermath of the communal holocaust. Another redeeming feature was the initiative by numerous Hindus who offered shelter, security, relief and rehabilitation to Muslims targeted by marauding Hindu brigands, even risking their lives, he added.
Sreekumar moaned that Hindu militants, programmed to nurture deep-rooted hatred against Muslims, through prolonged indoctrination had acted like human robots butchering and plundering their “enemy community”. Extremists among Muslims have also been equally devilish. This was possible due to long inertia of the secular civil population whose socio-religious, political and cultural bodies remained sluggish and un-responsive to the trends of de-spiritualisation and politicalisation of Hindu-Muslim religious institutions. This gave fillip to the process of saffornisation and exclusivism of Hindus, Jihadism and Arabisation of Muslims. Increasingly through well-designed deliberate actions, areas of cooperation and collective joint activities between Hindus and Muslims have been brought down by radical sectarian activists in both communities. Alienation of Muslims from local culture, conventions, customs, and costumes etc. in the name of assertion of Islamic identity to counter alleged danger to Islamic way of life, has adverse impact on social amity and fraternity between communities. Ram Janambhoomi movement, Advani Rath Yatra, mass migrations of Kashmiri Pandits from the valley (5 lacs – largest migration from ones native place since Partition), demolishing of Babri Masjid and subsequent riots, rise of terrorizing Muslim underworld under the political and police patronage in Gujarat cities like Abdul Latif in Ahmedabad city etc., have pushed sizable number of traditional supporters of Congress Party to saffron camp.
Continuing, he said that renaming places with Hindu names, installation of images of Hindu deities in government premises, identification of Muslim trade and commercial establishments for targeted attack during communal riots (exemplified by the destruction of showrooms of Bata, Pantaloons, Metro shoes, hotels bearing Hindu names but owned by Muslims in 2002 riots), government servants participating in Sangh Parivar sponsored programs for their “career advancement” and so on, became quiet prominent since late 1990’s. Why did secular sections not take any pro-active, counter active or remedial measures at suitable time and place against the divisive trends in the society? No demonstrative action by secular groups – social political and cultural- and even Hindu bodies like Ramkrishna Mission with its clear image of equal respect to all religions – Sarwa Dharma Samabhavna, hardly took any substantial action against communal movements. Gradually most facets of community life came under the grip of dominant sectarian groups in both communities. Should we learn anything from this suicidal inaction of civil society during the long gestation period in the pre-riot era, duration of riots and post riot days in Gujarat?
He stated that the secular political elite at the national level also did not launch convincing campaigns exposing the Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s grave omissions like: 1) Not disassociating his government from VHP sponsored bandh in Gujarat on 28/2/2002; 2) Not warning of strict actions against all bandh enthusiasts; 3) Tasking ruling party leaders (M.L.A, M.P) to initiate action at grass root level to maintain public order and normalcy by touring in their areas of influence, 4) Not to obstruct bureaucrats and police from implementing government regulations on riot control, and 5) Plan and implement meaningful schemes for relief, rehabilitation, reconciliation and resettlement of riot victims in the pre riots ambience. Significantly, BJP leaders who refused to actively support the anti-Muslim agenda of Modi like Suresh Mehta (Ex C.M ) of Kutch, Kashiram Rana of Surat, Vallabh Kataria of Rajkot and Haren Pandya of Ahmedabad city (who was later killed in suspicious circumstances), where ill treated by the C.M and all had gradually disappeared into political “sanyas” (oblivion).
He pointed out that of the three wings of the state, the Legislature and the Executive had failed to become an effective fortress for the targeted citizens, for saving them from the rioters. None had mobilized their supporters in the party in favour of the Muslims.
The Executive component consisting of the police, the executive magistracy and many in statutorily empowered government departments to maintain public order, take ameliorative measures after any disaster etc. had unabashedly betrayed criminal negligence culpable under sections 166, 186 and 187 IPC. Pinpointed procedural directives in the Gujarat Police Manual, Government of India compilation “Communal Peace” and pamphlet by DGP K.V Joseph “Strategy and approach to deal with communal riots” were not implemented. In fact, Ashok Narayanan, the then Additional Chief Secretary/ Home in his voice recorded interaction with a senior police officer had frankly depicted the situation during the riots thus “Now I am telling you environment at that time….. all vakils on … VHP side, all Judges …. many of the Judges were also on VHP side, right, Doctors also did not treat patients because they were Muslims….. in that situation, what can be done……… tell me. Bail applications neglected….. what can we (Home Deptt.) stay on? What can we say?….. The entire society is like that”. (see SreeKumar’s 9th affidavit dated 12/1/2012, Annexure B page 10)
But as projected by some specialists, it was not a system failure. Actually individual officers’ intentional dereliction of duties and legal assignments to them created the anarchy. In many places public order was maintained effectively by enforcing the standard drill for normalcy professionally, thanks to dedication of a few offices in police and bureaucracy. To illustrate in Surat City, the second populous city in Gujarat, which witnessed high voltage violence in 1992- 1993, there were only 7 deaths due to riots, as against 326 in Ahmedabad city, Baroda city (36), Godhra district (93), Mehsana (61) and so on. There were no killing by rioters in 11 districts out of 30 police districts. Effective action against trouble makers in the nascent stages of riots, on the bandh day on 28/2/2002; arrest of communal elements figuring in police records; courageous resistance to arbitrary intervention by BJP leaders bent upon harming Muslims as part of a strategy of giving free play to Hindu revengefulness for electoral dividends; proper rapport among the executive magistracy, police, medical services etc. – are major factors which contributed to peace and social cohesion in areas of laudable performance by officers, he asserted.
Sreekumar revealed that strangely most of the dedicated enforcers of law, peace and order were ill-treated by Modi government and were punished with bad postings, transfer in the thick of riots, denial of promotion, and serving charge-sheet for departmental action. A few were forced to migrate to the Central Government on deputation assignments. Those officers who provided evidence on complicity of State Government on riots – myself (as I was then ADGP), D.I.G. Rahul Sharma and D.I.G Sanjeev Bhatt – were doubly harassed and they were forced to seek justice from judiciary.
He recalled that higher judiciary had shown clear indications about their impression on Modi administration through many observations and orders, that is, transfer of cases to other states for trial, reopening of 2000 odd closed cases by Gujarat police, constitution of SIT and a judicial inquiry unit to probe into fake encounters, assailing the state government for their failure to protect minority monuments etc. Unfortunately the investigating agencies – Gujarat police and SIT under Dr. R. K. Raghavan – reportedly had acted as defence lawyers of the authors of riots and so far had arrested only 2 Police Inspectors for their involvement in riots.
He suggested that the solution lies in implementation of police reforms in the recommendations of Padmnabhaiya and Reibero committees and the Apex Court orders in Prakash Singh’s case. Creation of bodies suggested by the court could have resulted in their effective intervention to prevent officers from becoming collaborators to rioters, through acts of omission and commission. This would have prevented the democratically elected Modi government from carrying out its covert illegal anti minority agenda through mobocracy.
The area of discretion to the field officers in implementing statutory directives on prevention, control and containment of riots should be reduced to the minimum. The exact operational role of each police officer and the Executive Magistrate at different ranks of hierarchy have to be standardized and compiled on the pattern of the much admired “Blue Book” on VIP security. This should contain Standard Operating Procedure, (SOP), for each officer and specific drill manuals, with situation wise directives. Intentional non-implementation and serious acts of omission and commission vis-à-vis SOP be made punishable acts of crime as in the case of Civil rights Act and Prevention of Atrocity on SC/ST Act, he opined.
Expectedly, many in the state administration since 1990’s have deviated from their constitutional obligation and acted as part of the collateral wing of the Sangh Parivar to get favours from the government and for career advancement. Thus, during 2002 riots in areas of genocides (mass violence), government officers did not respond to distress calls from the minorities under brutal assault by armed Hindu communal gangs, he pointed out.
Finally, Sreekumar emphasized, the civil society has to plan and implement area – specific and issue based schemes to arrest the debilitating trends of de-spiritualisation and politicalisation of religious bodies, and the communalisation of all facets of public life. Any act of government functionary going against the requirements of the Rule of Law, Democracy and Secularism, from the highest to the grass root level be checked and corrected through legal channels and collective public action. All available fora – administrative, legal, political, social and cultural – be moved to make persons in authority, accountable, perform and deliver, as per the concept of command responsibility.
A broad fraternity of those who are intrinsically faithful to God Almighty and righteousness has to be established based on essential conceptual and spiritual unity of all religions. All citizens conscious of India’s age old symbiotic syncretised heritage should join together for creation and eager maintenance of an ambience and atmosphere for the realization of the basic ideals and vision of the Constitution of India – Justice, Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, Human dignity, Secularism, Democracy (quintessence of voluntary social contract of Indian people given to themselves as the Constitution of India).
He concluded questioning – “Did we fail the Constitution or it had failed us? Let our citizens do not forget the exhortation of Saint Tiruvalluvar (Second Century B.C) in the ancient Tamil work, Tirukural, “No burden is harder for the earth to bear than the cruel sceptre wielded by the unwise” (Kural No. 570 in chapter on tyranny).
Deepak Bhatt conducted the programme. On this occasion, five former DGPs of MP police, representatives of political parties, litterateurs and journalists were present.