Tag: Kashmir Media Service

New Delhi, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): Ahead of the Hindu festival of Ram Navami, tension is brewing in Indian state of Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone city as saffron banners and posters with the words “Jai Hindu Rashtra” have been spotted in some areas. The development has caused concern and fear among the locals as they are apprehensive of the repeat of violent clashes that shook the city last year. Adding to the already unsettled situation in the region, the appearance of such banners has the potential of vitiating the atmosphere further, reports reaching here said. “Jai Hindu Rashtra” banners surfaced at four locations including Sarafa Bazar and Talab Chowk, major points where violence unfolded last year.

“Hindu Rashtra” refers to the concept of Hindu nationalism that advocates the establishment of India as a Hindu state. The term is controversial as it is associated with the exclusion of religious minorities and the erosion of India’s secular traditions. Residents of Khargone areas where such banners and posters have appeared are unnerved and are questioning the motive behind such a move. “Such banners are unconstitutional and have been put up deliberately to provoke Muslims and create a fear psychosis among the minorities”, a resident told media over the phone.

“Police administration is responsible if anything untoward happens once again”, he said. He said the city was yet to recover from the destruction caused by violence last year. “Some families are still struggling to establish themselves,” he said. Talab Chowk area was the epicentre of last year’s violence that resulted in the death of Ibraish Khan. The administration arbitrarily blamed Muslims for instigating violence, clearly ignoring the brandishing of swords and provocative slogans being raised by Hindutva supporters participating in the Ram Navami procession. The clashes were followed by a strict curfew and the administration found the time convenient to demolish several Muslim homes and shops in the area.

Ravi Joshi, Khargone MLA, told media that the controversial banners have not been put up ahead of the festival. He said he has strictly instructed the administration to be more attentive and active during these year’s Ram Navami celebrations. “I had a meeting with the city’s administration and we are trying our best that both communities celebrate their festivals Ramadan and Ram Navami peacefully and we are taking appropriate measures in this regard”, Joshi said. “I’ve requested the administration that there should not be a repeat of 2022. The administration is keenly keeping an eye on every development in the city”, he added.

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New Delhi, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): More than 300 lawyers from across India, wrote an open letter, demanding Indian Law Minister Kiren Rijiju to withdraw his comment that a few retired judges are “part of an anti-India gang”. “The allegations of anti-nationalism against people who have dedicated their lives to upholding the rule of law, and the naked threat of reprisals against them, marks a new low in the public discourse of our great nation,” the letter read. On March 18, Rijiju had said that there were “three or four” retired judges who are part of an “anti-India” gang, adding that anybody who has worked against the country “will have to pay a price”.

He made these remarks while speaking at the India Today Conclave. He spoke about a seminar in which judges and senior advocates participated. “The topic of the seminar was ‘Accountability in Judges Appointment’ but the discussion [the] whole day was how [the] government is taking over the Indian judiciary,” he continued. “It is a few of the retired judges, few maybe three or four few of those activist, part of that anti-India gang, these people are trying to make Indian judiciary play role of opposition party. Some people even go to court and say that and please rein in the government, please change the policy of the government.”

“Judiciary is neutral; judges are not part of any group of political affiliation. How can these people openly say that [the] Indian judiciary must take the [government] head on? What kind of propaganda is this?” he asked. The letter written by the lawyers, therefore, said: “By bracketing the critics, that too without naming them, as an ‘anti-India gang’, the minister has transgressed all limits of constitutional propriety by claiming that the members of this ‘anti-India gang’ wanted to “make the judiciary play the role of the opposition.”

It further said: He pointedly threatened these retired Supreme Court judges that “no one will escape” and “those who work against the country will pay the price.” “By threatening retired judges, the law minister is clearly sending a message to every citizen, that no voice of dissent will be spared.” “We condemn these remarks in unambiguous terms. Such hectoring and bullying are unbecoming of the high office held by the minister. We may remind the minister that criticism of the government is neither against the nation, nor unpatriotic, nor ‘anti-India’. He must remember that the government of the day is not the nation, and the nation is not the government.”

Below is the full text of the letter: Lawyers Respond to The Law Minister and #39; s Speech Dated March 18, 2023 We, the undersigned lawyers practicing in diverse courts around the nation, deprecate the unwarranted attack launched against retired judges of the Supreme Court of India by Union Law Minister Shri Kiren Rijiju, at a conclave telecast live by a media house. The allegations of anti-nationalism against people who have dedicated their lives to upholding the rule of law, and the naked threat of reprisals against them, marks a new low in the public discourse of our great nation.

We are compelled to remind Shri Rijiju that as a Member of Parliament, he is sworn to uphold and bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India, and as Minister of Law and Justice, it is his duty to protect the judicial system, the judiciary and the judges, both past and present. It is no part of his duty to single out some retired judges with whose opinion he might disagree, and to issue public threats of action by law enforcement agencies against them.

The Hon’ble Minister, in his speech on March 18, 2023 obliquely referred to a “few retired judges”, who till recently occupied high Constitutional offices, as being part of an “anti-India gang.” By bracketing the critics, that too without naming them, as an anti-India gang the Minister has transgressed all limits of constitutional propriety by claiming that the members of this ‘anti-India gang’ wanted to “make the judiciary play the role of the opposition.” He pointedly threatened these retired Supreme Court judges that “no one will escape” and “those who work against the country will pay the price.” By threatening retired judges, the Law Minister is clearly sending a message to every citizen, that no voice of dissent will be spared.

We condemn these remarks in unambiguous terms. Such hectoring and bullying are unbecoming of the high office held by the Minister. We may remind the Minister that criticism of the government is neither against the nation, nor unpatriotic, nor “anti-India”. He must remember that the government of the day is not the nation, and the nation is not the government. And of course, he will do well to remind himself of what Prime Minister Modi said on Network18 in September 2016, and again in his reply to the Motion of Thanks to President Smt. Draupadi Murmu on the floor of the Lok Sabha a couple of months ago: that the toughest questions and criticism must be levelled against governments, as that is the only way in which governments are kept alert and responsive. We unhesitatingly state that critics of the government are every bit as patriotic as those in government; and critics who highlight failures or shortcomings in the administration, or violations of constitutional norms,

are exercising an inherent and most basic human right, and one which his Ministry is charged with protecting, freedom of speech and expression. Under our Constitutional scheme, the space for criticism of the government is neither reserved for exercise in parliament or legislatures alone, nor is it confined to any particular class of persons or barred to any other. The right of every citizen to dissent, criticise and peacefully oppose any government and its policies or functioning is an inherent basic human right, which is also Constitutionally protected. Criticism of the government does not authorize a high state functionary to besmirch any individual’s patriotism.

Views expressed by former Judges, responsible women and men who have shepherded the courts through thick and thin, even if such views be unpalatable to the ruling political dispensation, does not entitle the Minister to make such outrageous comments. These unacceptable threats meted out against retired judges, have the effect of inciting the public against our judges and judicial system and deserve to be strongly condemned. The nation owes a debt of gratitude to our retired Judges, and it matters not whether one might individually agree or disagree with the views of an individual judge, whether serving or retired.

The Hon’ble Law Minister cannot fail to recall the words attributed to Voltaire, and to remind himself that a Law Minister, more than any other, must unfailingly stand up for those words: I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it and quote; The Hobble Minister must realise that by virtue of his office, he is the bridge between the executive and judicial wings of the state, and that he must therefore maintain a dignified public discourse. We therefore urge the Minister to publicly withdraw his remarks and refrain from making such remarks in the future.

For more information, contact:
Kashmir Media Service
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Fax: +92-51-4861736
Email: info@kmsnews.org
Website: www.kmsnews.org

Panaji, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): In a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at New Delhi, Congress National Spokesperson Dr Shama Mohamed has said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is damaging democracy to save his ‘Param Mitra’ Adani. She also said that Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification was done in a planned manner, however, the Congress will win against the suppression of people’s voice. Addressing a press conference in Goa, Dr Mohamed said that the Modi government is targeting Rahul Gandhi for exposing thieves and scammers.

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Amit Patkar and Media cell Chairman Amarnath Panjikar were also present. Terming the disqualification of the Congress leader “undemocratic”, she said, “They will do everything to weaken Rahul Gandhi, but we all are strong enough to stand with him and save our democracy.” “The sentence could have been less than 2 years. But the quantum of sentence was 2 years only because it paved the way for the BJP government to disqualify him,” she pointed out, while speaking about the defamation case against him.

Rahul Gandhi has been targeted for asking questions on the Adani Mega Scam in his speech in Parliament. “During his speech, Rahul Gandhi had said that there are Rs 20,000 crore in shell companies linked to Adani and had asked whose money was it? He had questioned the relationship of Modi with Adani. But the ruling party remained silent over these questions,” she said.

“Rahul Gandhi was denied an opportunity to speak in Parliament. It is only because he was exposing the links of Modi and Adani,” she said. She said that Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from the Lok Sabha in a planned manner and the haste behind it has been witnessed by people of the nation.

For more information, contact:
Kashmir Media Service
Phone: +92-51-4435548, +92-51-4435549
Fax: +92-51-4861736
Email: info@kmsnews.org
Website: www.kmsnews.org

New Delhi, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): The Supreme Court of India has dismissed a petition by Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, an accused in the Malegaon 2008 blast that contested a Bombay High Court order. The SC stated that it found “no reason to interfere with the same” in denying a petition submitted by Lt Col Prasad Purohit. The appeal was briefly considered by the justices Hrishikesh Roy and Manoj Misra on Monday before being dismissed. The bench took notice that Purohit was contesting the high court’s ruling that the petitioner does not require a sanction under Section 197(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code because his alleged actions had nothing to do with any of his official duties.

“Having noted the basis of the impugned judgment, we see no reason to interfere with the same and accordingly, the Special Leave Petition is not entertained,” said the bench. Purohit’s lawyers Mukul Rohatgi and Viral Babar informed the bench that the trial against Purohit is ongoing and that, as a result, the observation made in the challenged order to examine the issue of sanction should not be viewed as prejudicial to either the prosecution or the defence in the proceedings before the trial court.

“With the above order, the Special Leave Petition stands dismissed,” the bench said. Earlier the Bombay High Court had said, “If the contention of Purohit, that he was directed to perform official duty to gather information regarding ‘Abhinav Bharat’, is to be accepted, then the question remains to be answered: Why he did not avert the bomb blast in the civilian locality of Malegaon, which caused loss of life of six innocent persons and severe to grievous injuries to about 100 persons. Even otherwise, indulging in the activity of a bomb explosion, causing the death of six people, is not an act done by Purohit in his official duty.”

Purohit has petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn this order.

Lt Col Purohit was not performing his official duties as an officer of the Indian army while he attended meetings of the Abhinav Bharat Group, as claimed by the NIA, according to a division bench of the Bombay High Court. Purohit filed a petition with the High Court questioning the legality of the government’s order to pursue him in the case under the strict Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) judge had previously rejected his request to be dismissed from the investigation.

Malegaon Blast

On September 29, 2008, a motorcycle-mounted explosive device detonated in Malegaon, a communally sensitive town in Maharashtra’s Nashik area, killing six people and wounding more than 100. According to the NIA, the LML Freedom motorcycle used in the Ramzan blast, the holiest month of the Islamic calendar, was registered in BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur’s name.

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Kashmir Media Service
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Srinagar, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, seeking dismissal of the writ petition filed by Peoples Democratic Party President, Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter, Iltija Mufti, for issuance of a passport, the Criminal Investigation Department wing of police has informed the High Court in Srinagar that her final verification report was forwarded to the department concerned last month. According to Kashmir Media Service, Iltija,35, sought the intervention of the High Court in February, wherein she stated that her passport was due to expire on January 2 and therefore she had applied for a fresh one in advance on June 8, last year.

“The Passport as per the instruction manual is expected to be dispatched within approximately 30 days…the inaction is discriminatory in nature and unconstitutional,” she said in her writ petition before the court. She said the passport is required immediately by her as she intends to apply for obtaining a master’s degree in sustainable development abroad. In his response through the counsel, the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), headquarters, CID J and K informed the court that the final passport verification report in respect of the petitioner has been forwarded to the Regional Passport Officer, Srinagar, on February 16.

“The passport Authorities as quasi-judicial authorities, decide the applications after conducting inquiry wherein reports are sought from different agencies, including Police, CID etc. The report of the CID has only an assistive and not decisive role in such instances. It is the discretion of the Passport Authority to rely or not to rely on the report of the CID based on its subjective satisfaction,” the officer said.

For more information, contact:
Kashmir Media Service
Phone: +92-51-4435548, +92-51-4435549
Fax: +92-51-4861736
Email: info@kmsnews.org
Website: www.kmsnews.org

London, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): The erosion of the rights of human rights defenders and religious minorities, use of repressive laws including counter-terrorism and money laundering to silence dissent, prolonged detentions, and killings feature today’s India as exposed by Amnesty International in its latest report. The report “The State of the World’s Human Rights 2022/23” said the Indian government “selectively and viciously cracked down on religious minorities, and explicit advocacy of hatred by political leaders and public officials towards them was commonplace and went unpunished.” It said that during the said period, the punitive demolitions of Muslim family homes and businesses were carried out with impunity.

Freedom of expression

Several Kashmiri journalists were arrested, including Fahad Shah, Asif Sultan and Sajad Gul. After being granted bail by local courts, they were re-arrested almost immediately under the UAPA. In a continuing crackdown on freedom of expression and movement, journalists Aakash Hassan and Sanna Irshad Mattoo were prevented from travelling abroad by the immigration authorities without a court order, warrant or even a written explanation. Human rights defender Khurram Parvez remained detained under the UAPA without trial since November 2021.

Unlawful killings

According to official data, Jammu and Kashmir accounted for the highest proportion of deaths involving the police in India between April 2020 and March 2022. Media reports suggested that at least 19 civilians were killed by armed groups during 2022, of which seven belonged to the regional Hindu minority community. “Peaceful protesters defending minority rights were presented and treated as a threat to public order. Repressive laws including counter-terrorism legislation were used rampantly to silence dissent. Authorities intimidated human rights defenders using digital technologies, including unlawful surveillance,” the report said.

Amnesty highlighted that Adivasi’s and marginalized communities including Dalits continued to face violence and entrenched discrimination. It said that in a continuing pattern of harassment and intimidation, unlawful and politically motivated restrictions were placed on civil society organizations and human rights defenders including activists, journalists, students and academics. On 14th July, the lower house of parliament banned a number of ordinary words from being spoken during parliamentary debates including, among others, “corrupt”, “sexual harassment”, “criminal”, “eyewash”, “incompetent” and “hypocrisy” to police the speeches of opposition members of parliament.” In September last, mass raids were carried out against the NGO Popular Front of India (PFI) and its affiliates across India which was later declared an “unlawful association” under counterterrorism law, for its alleged involvement in the “funding of terrorism and terrorist activities”, despite no such charges and trials and against those arrested.

The Indian Supreme Court had upheld provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (2002) relating to the powers of arrest, confiscation of property. These powers have been repeatedly abused to repress civil society and limit dissent. Throughout the year, the authorities routinely used international travel bans to stifle independent voices including the human rights activist and former head of Amnesty International India, Aakar Patel, journalist Rana Ayyub and at least two Kashmiri journalists who were scheduled to speak abroad on India’s human rights situation.

The government cracked down on critics by resorting to arbitrary arrests, including without following due process, under draconian and repressive laws. On June 28, Mohammed Zubair, co-founder of the independent fact-checking website ALT news, was arrested by police in New Delhi, for denouncing discrimination against minorities and criticizing increased censorship. Eleven human rights activists continued to be detained without trial in Maharashtra state under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). They were academics Shoma Sen and Hany Babu; tribal rights activist Mahesh Raut; poet Sudhir Dhawale; lawyer Surendra Gadling; civil rights activists Rona Wilson, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves; and members of the cultural group Kabir Kala Manch, Ramesh Gaichor, Jyoti Jagtap and Sagar Gorkhe.

Journalist Siddique Kappan and three others remained detained under laws on sedition and the UAPA. The authorities imposed new restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The High Court of Karnataka upheld a state order restricting all protests to a designated area in the state capital, Bengaluru. The Gujarat state police detained human rights activist Sandeep Pandey along with seven others who were due to participate in a march demanding a public apology to gang-rape survivor Bilkis Bano as the convicts been released from prison by the Gujarat government.

The Indian government used criminal laws disproportionately against religious minorities, particularly Muslims as the police routinely arrested Muslims for acts including offering prayers, conducting legitimate business transactions, and eating beef. In the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Gujarat, public calls were made by some Hindu groups for the economic boycott of Muslim businesses. Hate crimes including violence against Dalits and Adivasi’s were committed with impunity. More than 50,000 suspected crimes against members of Scheduled Castes and more than 9,000 crimes against Adivasi people were reported in 2021.

Several Kashmiri journalists were arrested, including Fahad Shah, Asif Sultan and Sajad Gul. After being granted bail by local courts, they were re-arrested almost immediately under the UAPA. Journalists Aakash Hassan and Sanna Irshad Mattoo were prevented from travelling abroad by the immigration authorities without a court order, warrant or even a written explanation.

According to official data, Jammu and Kashmir accounted for the highest proportion of deaths involving the police in India between April 2020 and March 2022. As per the report, the perpetrators continued to commit sexual and domestic violence with impunity. The government of the state of Karnataka imposed a ban on women and girls wearing headscarves (hijab) in public schools which also led to harassment of Muslim women and girls.

For more information, contact:
Kashmir Media Service
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Srinagar, March 30, 2023 (PPI-OT): In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, several journalists and members of civil society paid rich tributes and condolences to martyred journalist, Rayees Ahmad Butt, on his first martyrdom anniversary. Indian troops martyred a young Kashmiri freelance journalist, Rayees Ahmad Butt along with a youth during a cordon and search operation on this day last year in Rainawari area of the Srinagar city. The journalist fraternity of Kashmir valley paid tributes to a wonderful soul to all victim journalists in Kashmir.

Occupied Kashmir is one of the most dangerous places of the world where people associated with the press and media are performing their professional duties in the most difficult circumstances and situations, says a report released, today, by Kashmir Media Service. It said 20 journalists have been confirmed as being killed while performing their duties during the Kashmiris’ ongoing liberation struggle since 1989. They include Shabbir Ahmed Dar, Mushtaq Ali, Muhammad Shaban Wakeel, a woman scribe Aasiya Jeelani, Ghulam Muhammad Lone, Ghulam Rasool Azad, Pervez Muhammad Sultan, Shujaat Bukhari, Ali Muhammad Mahajan, Syed Ghulam Nabi, Altaf Ahmed Fakhtoo, Saidan Shafi, Tariq Ahmed, Abdul Majid Butt and Javed Ahmed Mir.

The report said almost routinely, the journalists in the occupied territory face manhandling, abductions, murder attempts and death threats by the Indian troops and all this has made their everyday work extremely difficult. It pointed out that the Kashmiri journalists and many other scribes while performing their professional duties in the territory are roughed up, threatened, assaulted, summoned and detained by the Indian police, agencies and troops on fake charges. Several journalists, including Asif Sultan, Fahad Shah, Irfan Meraj and Sajad Gul have been facing illegal detention under draconian laws and remain lodged in different jails in India and IIOJK.

The report said India is using different intimidating tactics to harass the journalists in IIOJK and victimization of media persons has increased manifold since August 05, 2019 when the Narendra Modi-led fascist Indian government repealed the special status of the territory. “Fascist Modi’s regime is using strong-arm-tactics to stifle the media in IIOJK. Kashmiri journalists are abducted, threatened and tortured just for doing their job,” it deplored. The report maintained that India was targeting the Kashmiris journalists to hide ground realities of IIOJK from the world but would never succeed in its nefarious designs.

For more information, contact:
Kashmir Media Service
Phone: +92-51-4435548, +92-51-4435549
Fax: +92-51-4861736
Email: info@kmsnews.org
Website: www.kmsnews.org