Communalism Watch: Sleeping with the Enemy: Muslim Leaders attending Modi's Coclave : Ram Puniyani

Communalism Watch: Sleeping with the Enemy: Muslim Leaders attending Modi's Coclave : Ram Puniyani:

July 04, 2013

Sleeping with the Enemy: Muslim Leaders attending Modi's Coclave : Ram Puniyani

Sleeping with the enemy

Should minorities get lured by the invitations of Modi And Company?

Ram Puniyani

From 2002 Gujarat carnage Gujarat in particular and India in general has seen the rise of Narendra Modi on the political firmament. His propaganda machinery has given him the image whereby he is regarded as the ‘development man, non corrupt, strong and all that. A substantial section of society has bought this propaganda uncritically. Modi asserted himself within BJP to be named as the Chairman of their election campaign committee of 2014 and in turn giving the overt hints that he is the Prime Ministerial candidate from the side of BJP-NDA. Pursuing this path he has begun organizing conclaves to woo the Muslim community. He has been advising the BJP people that they should try to reach the minorities. As a step in that direction a conclave was organized in Ahmadabad with nearly 200 activists, scholars of different persuasions (June 2013). Thirty of these were Muslims. Many a Muslim leaders/activists/scholars were invited but many of them turned down the insistent invitations from the organizers arguing that it is an attempt by Modi to get credibility by inviting the Muslim leaders to his meeting. No community and group are uniform. Some of Muslim leaders turned up for the sessions, one of them Syed Zafar Mahmood attended the meeting and gave a detailed presentation. Before the meeting when Mahmood was asked how come he is attending the meeting as he has been critical of the policies of Modi? He replied that this question should be asked after he has said what he had to say in the meeting. Mahmood has been the Officer on Special duty for Sachar committee and is currently the chairman of Jakat Foundation of India.

His argument in attending the meeting might have been that it is an opportunity to present the plight of his community to Modi and use this space to articulate the grievances of his community. The presentation made by Mahmood was comprehensive, well researched and gave the picture of the community and criticized the BJP for its various policies. He also advised the BJP as to what they should be doing in coming times. In nutshell he said that the BJP’s is ideologically opposed to Muslims. For Mahmood it was not just a question of asking for justice and constitutional rights for the deprived Muslims of India. He quoted from BJP website to show the anti Muslim stance of BJP at various levels. For example, he pointed out that one of essays on website of BJP titled “Hindutva: The Great Nationalist Ideology” was “full of hate and provocations against Muslims.” Then, he pointed out another essay, with headline, ‘Give us this day our sense of mission’ written by MV Kamath was a “call to Muslims to adopt Hindu names and [for] Muslim women to wear the mangal sutra (a black thread with ornaments to show that a women is married, worn by hindu women in some parts of India).” The third one quoted by him titled `Semitic Monotheism’, saw Muslims and Islam as a problem. This essay posits “We must realize that we have a problem on hand in India, the problem of a stagnant and conservative Islamic society. A national effort is called for to break Islamic exclusivism and enshrine the assimilative Hindutva.”

So far so good all these points are valid as they are blatantly anti Muslim. Presenting the plight of Muslim community, he demanded for implementation of schemes and measures for alleviation of the condition of Muslim minorities. He asked Mr. Modi to implement various demands the major one of which has been implementation of Sachar Committee recommendations. It is to be noted that Gujarat is one of the states which has been returning the scholarship for Muslim students. Incidentally another BJP Chief Minister has declared that he will not implement these recommendations. Mahmood also presented the plight of Muslim community, in Ahmadabad itself.

One concedes that the points made by Mahmood are on the dot. The issue lies somewhere else. Whatever he said is a common knowledge. Many an activists, writer has been pleading from roof tops about the worsening plight of Muslim community in Gujarat. The ghettoisation of Muslim community, the lack of access to banking and educational facilities and pushing them out from the common stream of society have all been well documented. Many reports, articles and books devoted to this topic are struggling to grab the attention of society and political leaders as such. Modi, more than others is aware of this all round marginalization of Muslim community. His Sadbhavna fasts also showed his refusal to accept the diversity of India, the cap offered by Muslim cleric was refused while he adorned all multi designed head gears given by others. His discrimination against Muslim community is too well known.

Irrespective of the claims that Muslims in Gujarat are comparatively better off, the truth is that Gujarat was a state where the condition of Muslims had been better than in other parts of India. What one observed with the ascendance of Modi and his iron like grip over the matters of Gujarat state is the worsening plight of Muslim in particular and also of Christians to some extent.

Muslims of Gujarat have known Modi too well for the last twelve years. They are the victims of Modi’s fascist and communal policies. Modi led the 2002 genocide from the front. So what did Mahmood achieve in telling Modi what he inherently knows and what the Muslim community is suffering. One understands that while Modi apparently told Mahmood that he will consider Mahmood’s points, Mahmood’s speech was blacked out. On the contrary Modi has been the victor in his attempt to gain legitimacy from the section of Muslim leadership. Dr. Bandookwala, one of the foremost human rights activists from Gujarat, who has been the victim of carnage itself, points out “Right now he (Modi) is obsessed with becoming Prime Minister. That is not possible with strong Muslim opposition. And so there is desperation to appear in public with prominent Muslims, to showcase his acceptability to all Muslims. Sadly our leaders have given him a golden chance, in the naive belief that he must be told what the community feels. Does Zafar Mahmood think we Gujarat Muslims have not spoken on these issues in print and on TV, repeatedly over the last eleven years?”

Modi’s choosing of this time to hold these meetings with a section of Muslim leadership should have alerted the likes of Mahmood, whose naïve approach that it is chance to express our demands is of no use as the real trick being played by Modi is to gain credibility and to win over elements from Muslim community, the way he lured Zafar Sareshwala a businessman who is now serving the cause of Modi in a most loyal fashion. While Mahmood seems to have done some homework by going to the website of BJP and picking up some of the essays with anti-Muslim tone, what else did he expect? The practice of BJP, the political child of RSS, has constantly shown its anti Muslim orientation through the issues which it has taken up all through, the ones’ like Ram Temple leading to demolition of Babri demolition, the one like cow slaughter ban, the ones like freedom of religion bills. One has to know BJP is a part of RSS; the BJP is manned by the swayamsevaks trained by RSS, Modi being one of them. What does RSS want, Hindu Nation. What was its role in freedom movement-a total absence and criticizing the freedom movement as being merely anti British! What type of Constitution does it want? Why did BJP led NDA went for review of Constitution?

There are stark observations and ample literature on the agenda of RSS and its progeny. Modi’s temporary mask of trying to reach to Muslim community is the chameleon like behavior. It is an attempt with the elections of 2014 in mind, a mask is being tried to woo over the minorities. Giving importance to these attempts and to attend their conclaves and meetings may give a moments fame to the one’s attending them, few TV appearances and interviews, they can also be satisfied that they have made their point, but it is an extremely retrograde step for the community. It is like the leaders of Jews calling upon Hitler and telling him that they are being subjected to gas chambers and expecting that they have made the point. It is time that minority communities go beyond the obvious and introspect about the agenda of RSS, which is out to intimidate and subjugate minorities and other weaker sections of society. Some readings into the books like, ‘We or Nation Hood defined’, which praises Hitlers methods vis a vis minorities or Bunch of Thoughts which label Muslims, Christians and Communists as internal threat to Hindu nation, by the ex- RSS Chief Golwalkar may work as an eye opening stimulus for those who still think that BJP can change its long term agenda and that making a point at Modi conclave will change BJP policies towards religious minorities!  

'via Blog this'

Lies, Damn Lies and NaMo : Why I do not support Modi and why you shouldn't either | Bodhi Commons

Lies, Damn Lies and NaMo : Why I do not support Modi and why you shouldn't either | Bodhi Commons:

Lies, Damn Lies and NaMo : Why I do not support Modi and why you shouldn't either

M Akhil

July 8, 2013

---

Image credit: World Economic Forum M Akhil says he will never support Narendra Modi for the post of Prime Minister of India because he is just an enormous bubble, which his supporters claim to be full of righteousness, but is actually inflated with divisive communal politics, anti-people neoliberal policies, false development claims and a deeply patriarchal worship of the dominant male.

Listen to the flourish. The stage is set, the side-kicks are in place and the sycophants are scampering tirelessly to welcome their emperor. Narendra Modi has started his journey to the high seat of Indraprastha.

Curiously enough, his current ride is being celebrated as a victory lap by his ardent supporters. A bit too quick, don't you think? Especially for a man who was only a few years ago, in terrible danger of being convicted for one of the most gruesome state-sponsored genocides in the history of independent India. Of course, he hasn't been convicted yet, but many of his ministers and close aides have been. Babu Bajrangi's confessions on record must be more than enough proof for Modi's culpability. ¹ Alas! Facts get twisted in the most unimaginable ways as they threaten to blow away an edifice carefully built by a dominant plutocracy with immense help from the 'State-Temple-Corporate Complex'. ²Here, I shall attempt to bust the Modi bubble which is being ridiculously pumped up by the holy nexus, even as you are reading this. After all, the BJP is possibly the party with the highest following among Indian netizens and the online publicity team of the current supremo is meticulous. An alternative view will be stark, but hopefully it will serve as food for thought for those among us getting nauseated by the dominant narrative.

While Gujarat is not ranked among the top five states even in economic indicators, its performance in most social and human development indicators is simply abysmal. Yet, Modi aficionados claim Gujarat to be a free-market capitalist haven even for the poor and the oppressed, much different from the rest of India.

In a recent article, Mr. Avay Shukla, ³ a former IAS officer from Himachal Pradesh, has argued why he shall support Modi in 2014. Leaving aside all queries of personal affiliation, it is worthwile to look at his arguments seriously. The author starts off with worries about the current state of the nation at near-apocalyptic proportions. The economic slowdown, the falling rupee, the Naxalite (Maoist) threat and the appeasement of minorities by the state are among his top concerns. The people of India cannot possibly agree more with the reality of these problems. But, he goes on to say ”it is time for a change”. Of course, he is within his rights to borrow Obama's famous slogan for change in the United States, even if it is for Modi. But let's think, what change is he hoping for? It's not the case that the BJP is a party of young turks, about to revolutionize governance, once they get power. The NDA government at the Centre from 1999 to 2004 could be unfamiliar to relatively recent political observers, but it is well-remembered by others. That too as a painful experience at best. Nothing exemplifies the failure of that regime as neatly as the failed 'India Shining!' campaign. At a time when the common people were tormented by pretty much the same catastrophe as it faces now, the NDA decided to project India as an 'emerging global force'. The backfiring of that shameless campaign is well-documented in the media as well as in popular imagination. The Left parties offered outside support to UPA I, led by Congress (a major political opponent of the Left in all the three major states under its influence) just to put an end to the crippling NDA rule at the national level. This is because under NDA, India witnessed the worst anti-people, neoliberal policies till date. For instance, it was the NDA which first moved towards 100% FDI in retail sector in 2002, ⁴ its anti-labour policies invited critcism even from the then BMS general secretary Mr.Hasmukhbhai Dave, ⁵ it kick-started ⁶ the policy of disinvestment of major PSUs which is still being blindly followed by the UPA and so on. These are in addition to the various embarrassing scandals such as the erstwhile BJP president Bangaru Lakshman's acceptance of a Rs.100,000 (US$1,700) bribe for supply of fake weapons and the Kargil coffin scam. If this is the change that you wish us to embrace, Mr. Shukla, then – no, thank you. You have argued that the “crucial add-on” that you speak of, Narendra Modi, makes all the difference. Sorry to disappoint you sir, but he is analogous to a cancerous growth on an already frail body, which I shall explain.

Narendra Modi is not the kind of organic nationalist that at least some among the secular sections of the society found in A.B.Vajpayee, the first and only PM from the NDA so far. Modi started his career as a pracharak of the RSS and as recent events prove, still enjoys the full support and blessings of the Sangh. His image as a hardcore follower of Hindutva (sometimes even Hindu fundamentalism ⁷) falls in sharp contrast with many ordinary members of the BJP itself, let alone the rest of the country. Also, his brand of nationalism is the fake kind, in the sense that he has been fairly outspoken in his support for global capital and has relied on the U.S.' comments on him whenever it was favourable. ⁸ These are crucial factors in understanding the hollowness of the argument that Modi is going to be the winning factor for NDA in the 2014 general election. It might be true that Modi has not yet been convicted for the 2002 pogrom in Gujarat, but he remains a deeply polarising figure in Indian politics. Proof of this came instantly when JD(U), a long-standing NDA partner which even had its president as the convener of the Alliance, left the coalition after explicitly pointing out the divisive character of Narendra Modi. If anything, Mr.Modi is only going to pull the NDA away from power and down with him. So, unless you are an orthodox Hindutva purist, there is hardly any reason for you to support him, which is the case for an overwhelming majority in India.

Another argument an ordinary middle-class Indian finds being thrown at her all the time is the claim that Modi is the most 'development-oriented' politician in India. Indeed, the author cites statistics from an article ⁹ which came in the Hindustan Times as proof of this. But merely a cursory look at this article itself will reveal the shamelessness of this claim. The article is a data-analysis of Gujarat's socio-economic and human development indicators which clearly show that the image of 'development-oriented NaMo' is nothing but a bubble. The contradiction between the claims of Modi-supporters and actual data has been unveiled quite authoritatively in the past. ¹⁰

Status of Gujarat as per selected development indicators

Number	Indicator	Gujarat	India	Rank among States/UTs
1	% GSDP Growth rate at constant prices, average 2004-05 to 2011-12	10.08	8.28	8
2	% BPL 2009-10 (2004-05)	23.00 (31.06)	29.80 (37.2)	18
3	Sex ratio (Females per 1000 Males [2011])	918	940	20
4	% Households living in houses with concrete roofs	43.9	29.1	9
5	Literacy rate	79.31	74.04	15
6	Avg person days per household getting job under MGNREGS 2011-12	34	34	7
7	Infant mortality rate 2010	44	47	18
8	Maternal mortality ratio 2007-2009	148	212	5

[Sources : 1, 2, 3 - Planning Commission; 4 - Census 2011; 5 - Census 2011 and Planning Commission; 6 - Annual Administrative Report MoRD, 7 - Planning Commission; 8 - Census 2011]

While Gujarat is not ranked among the top five states even in economic indicators, its performance in most social and human development indicators is simply abysmal. Yet, Modi aficionados claim Gujarat to be a free-market capitalist haven even for the poor and the oppressed, much different from the rest of India. Mark Twain must be quite outraged at these damn lies.

The patriarchal overtones of the personal appreciation of Modi are unmistakable. The author cites the fact that Mr.Modi has no family as an important credential in his possible candidature (even though Jashodaben Chimanlal Modi, a woman hailing from Modi's native village has claimed to be married to him since she was 18; but she was apparently ignored later by the rising politician ¹¹). Having no immediate family might erase some doubts about nepotism. Barring that, what does the author mean by mentioning it? It is here that we really sense the deeply male-centered and patriarchal sentiments behind the hero-worship of Narendra Modi. His apparent machismo and daring have been praised endlessly by his devotees. By this what they actually do is to elevate Modi to the status of a modern-day Sri Rama, while ignoring the obvious lack of redeeming qualities of Rama that one may find in the story of Ramayana. Blatant testosterone-fuelled hooliganism at its best!

At least 17 scams about the Gujarat government have been brought under public scrutiny in 2011 and the Krishna-Godavari gas deal scam of 2002 could be even bigger than the 2G scam.

Avay Shukla, in his article, goes on for several paragraphs about the 'virtues' of Narendra Modi. He says, “Modi has had the courage to raise these questions and is therefore being reviled by those political parties whose apple carts he is threatening to upset”. No one doubts that Mr.Modi has courage. The question is whether he has too much courage. To successfully lead a coalition one needs a little more than courage - the ability to arrive at a consensus. Even if Modi tries to transform himself into a unifying figure in the next year, this will only cause an erosion in his fundamentalist vote bank. Therefore, in all probability Modi will either remain as a Hindutva trumpeteer or harden his extremist credentials. The article also praises Modi's integrity with a claim, “I am not aware of a single major scam unearthed during his term.” Well, that is quite unfortunate. At least 17 scams about the Gujarat government have been brought under public scrutiny in 2011¹²and the Krishna-Godavari gas deal scam of 2002 could be even bigger than the 2G scam. ¹³ The author also says, “we are looking for someone who can restore our identities as INDIANS and not merely as Brahmins or Scheduled castes or Muslims or Backward castes”. But if the person you found for that is Narendra Modi, best of luck!

To be fair, Shukla does criticize the BJP- “That leaves only the BJP, with its historical baggage of the RSS, Hindutva, Ramjanmbhoomi (by the way, this baggage also includes five years of exemplary governance under Vajpayee from 1999 to 2004) -perhaps enough baggage to dissuade me from voting for the party.” But he goes on to say, “Except that this time the BJP has an add-on: Narender Modi.” I believe it must be clear now that far from being a saving factor, Narendra Modi exacerbates the possibility of supporting the NDA led by BJP. I agree with his comment, “In any case, who in the country would lead the Congress- a reluctant dynast, or an ageing economist who has discovered his true skills lie in politics, or a backroom puppeteer? Or, God forbid, all three? (Seriously, this is a possibility- after all not one of these three want to shoulder sole accountability, and they may reason that if a dual power centre can ensure two terms, a triple may be good for even more!) No, to my mind the Congress is not an option”[sentence in parentheses also by Mr.Shukla]. But it is too early to say that there is no third option, as he claims. Alliances are still being forged.

Mr. Shukla's article, however, conveniently fails to mention the recent adventure that Mr. Modi embarked upon in Uttarakhand. One must welcome any positive action in the face of such a calamity. But must we also welcome political profiteering that makes use of people affected by the disaster? Modi's PR firm, APCO Worldwide ¹⁴ staged a media stunt ¹⁵ making him the hero in the rescue of over 15,000 Gujaratis from disaster-affected areas. This quickly earned him the title 'Rambo Modi' among his critics as well as supporters. Unfortunately for him, neither the number nor the mesmerizing manner in which he supposedly saved the distraught pilgrims (claims of Modi-sponsored choppers air-dropping rescue personnel were abundant in the immediate aftermath of the disaster) turned out to be accurate. How myths fill up the blanks in a popular hero's story even when he is alive!

To sum up, I will never support Narendra Modi for the post of Prime Minister of India because he is just an enormous bubble, which his supporters claim to be full of righteousness, but is actually inflated with divisive communal politics, anti-people neoliberal policies, false development claims and a deeply patriarchal worship of the dominant male. Considering how it is impossible for the common people of a country as diverse as India to imagine such a person as their Prime Minister, it follows quite easily that most of us would not end up supporting him despite the highly professional publicity team serving Modi's interests. Let us remain hopeful for a NaMo-free political environment after 2014 at the national level.

---

M Akhil is an Integrated Master of Arts (Economics) student at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Madras.

Author's note: I would like to thank Pratheesh Prakash for his help and solid encouragement throughout the making of this article. Also thanks to Binny Alexander for some crucial links and comments regarding the erroneous interpretation of statistics used in support of Narendra Modi. Shared effort is strength!

'via Blog this'

Encounter Machinery of Gujarat Limited - The Business of Encounters : Truth Of Gujarat

Encounter Machinery of Gujarat Limited - The Business of Encounters : Truth Of Gujarat:

Encounter Machinery of Gujarat Limited – The Business of Encounters

Mukul Sinha July 22, 2013 | 3 Responses

By now, the netizens reading Truth Of Gujarat would have gotten a reasonable idea regarding the fake-ness of the encounter of Javed-Ishrat. But perhaps, haven’t yet realized the level of perfection achieved by the Encounter Machinery of Gujarat Ltd (EMGL).  By 2005, EMGL had perfected the art of encounters so well that other states were actually outsourcing their encounters to Gujarat.

Sohrabuddin Sheikh was alleged to have harassed and extorted money out of the Rajasthan marble lobby and had targeted one of the big marble companies named RK Marbles. As per the latest supplementary charge sheet filed by the CBI on 07.05.2013, Mr Vimal Patni, the owner of RK Marbles, sought the help of then Rajasthan Home Minister Mr Gulab Chand Kataria who in turn entrusted the job of ‘encountering’ Sohrabuddin and his confidante Tulsiram Prajapati to the Police Superintendent of Udaipur Shri Dinesh MN IPS. Somewhere down the line, the Rajasthan Government developed cold feet and outsourced the job to EMGL. Abhay Chudasama, the notorious policeman from Gujarat, promptly traced Sohrabuddin out through Tulsiram and a team of Gujarat Police lead by Rajkumar Pandian affected a smooth abduction of Sohrabuddin and his wife Kausarbi from a bus in which they were travelling from Hyderabad to Sangli on 22nd November 2005. EMGL not only eliminated Sohrabuddin on 26th in a fake encounter near Vishala in Ahmedabad, but also ruthlessly murdered Kausarbi right in the Crime Branch office in Ahmedabad on 29th evening by injecting her with a high dose of anesthesia. EMGL also has a doctor in its rank and it was Dr NK Amin DySP who did the dirty job of killing Kausarbi. The body was taken to the village of DG Vanzara and burnt on the river bank. Most of investigation in the Sohrabuddin/Kausarbi case has been done by the Gujarat Police, and it is their own lawyer Mr KT Tulsi who had informed the Supreme Court that the encounter of Sohrabuddin was fake. Later on Tulsiram, the sole witness of Sohrabuddin and Kausarbi’s abduction, was also killed in a fake encounter on the national highway near Ambaji, close to the Gujarat-Rajasthan border on 28th of December 2006. It is rumoured that EMGL charged their Rajasthan counterparts around 100 crores for this turnkey project of ‘encountering’ Sohrabuddin and Tulsiram. It may be recalled that Amit Shah is the main accused in the Sohrabuddin-Tulsiram case along DG Vanzara, Abhay Chudasama, NK Amin, Rajkumar Pandian, Dinesh MN and others.

We already know about the Javed-Ishrat encounter. Suffice is to mention that here again the 3 abductions (Jeeshan, Amjad Ali and Javed-Ishrat) were carried out and thecrack team of NK Amin and the SIB officers were allocated the job with ofcourse the due approval of Amit Shah. Just about an year ago, Sadik Jamal was abducted from Mumbai with the help of CIU Mumbai (Crime Investigation Unit) and SIB Mumbai and were brought to Ahmedabad by Tarun Barot on 3rd of January 2003 and ‘encountered’ in the early morning of 13th January.

Another two encounters which are yet to be investigated are the encounters of Samir Khan Pathan in 2002 and four Kashmiri youth on March 17th 2006. It should be noted that in the case filed by the Gujarat Police against Samir Khan Pathan and 8 others alleging that they had come to kill Modi and commit terrorism was thrown out by the trial court in Ahmedabad and all accused were acquitted. The High Court and theSupreme Court later on confirmed the trial court’s order.

Thus between 2002 to 2006 EMGL had successfully carried out 6 encounters causing the collateral damage of 13 deaths including 2 women. That business would have kept flourishing, and EMGL may well have become a multinational entity in the business of encounters, but for the intervention of Supreme Court that has landed most of EMGL’s rank and file behind the bars. One of the notable aspects of functioning of EMGL was their meticulous execution of the abductions. All 13 who were killed were picked up from different parts of India without anybody noticing the daredevil kidnappings and ofcourse the bloody executions to make it appear that the officers of EMGL had to really resort to heavy firing in self defense to subdue the dreaded terrorists.

In all the above six encounters, the trademark of EMGL was stamped on the FIRs they filed – that the dreaded terrorists had come to kill Modi.

'via Blog this'

The Great Divide - Between the Upright and Yes-Sir Officers of the Govt. : Truth Of Gujarat

The Great Divide - Between the Upright and Yes-Sir Officers of the Govt. : Truth Of Gujarat:

The Great Divide – Between the Upright and Yes-Sir Officers of the Govt.

Mukul Sinha and Pratik Sinha July 31, 2013 | 1 Response

Let me first concede that Gujarat is not the only state where the good officers of the Government are treated badly and the bad officers are treated “goodly”! Very recently, a very young SDM, Ms Durga Shakti Nagpal, IAS was suspended as she ruffled the feathers of Akhilesh Mulayam Yadav Government in UP whose MLAs were allegedly supporting the mining mafias. But the stark difference between UP and Gujarat is that the fraternity of officers, be they from the IAS or IPS cadre stood up for the victimized officer in UP but not so in Gujarat. The Gujarat officers have a lesson or two to learn from other states where in case of suspension of Nagpal, the U.P. IAS officers resisted the suspension right from Day 1.

Now let’s look at the treatment meted out to IPS officers of Gujarat since 2002. Rahul Sharma, IPS holding the rank of DIG has been charge-sheeted and his AnnualConfidential Reports (ACR) of recent years have been wholly spoiled for the only reason that he disclosed before the Government appointed Nanavati Inquiry Commission the existence of the CD containing the phone call data of the rioters of February-March 2002, leading to the arrest of BJP/Bajrang Dal leaders like Mayaben Kodnani and the notorious Babu Bajrangi.

Another upright officer DIG Rajnish Rai, IPS, who arrested the trio of DG Vanzara, Rajkumar Pandian and Dinesh MN on 25th April 2007, the very first arrests made in  encounter cases in Gujarat that resulted in a complete halt of fake encounters, has had to approach the Central Administrative Tribunal to quash the adverse remarks recorded by PC Pandey and OP Mathur. Both Pandey and Mathur have now been charged in the Sohrabuddin murder case.

The worst fate was reserved for Satish Verma who exposed the entire Javed-Ishrat fake encounter. The Gujarat Government has now constituted a SIT to investigate an 18 year old criminal case against him, even though in the past Government themselves defended Satish in the same case.

While such honest and upright officers are being victimized for their good work, officers like PP Pandey  get all the support from the Government to escape the long arms of law. No action whatsoever has been taken by the Government of Gujarat against Pandey for being absconding from duty for the last three months and a proclaimed absconder was even allowed to attend his duties on Saturday without any questions being asked – as if he’s just come back from an unusually long vacation.

No IPS officers have still opposed the victimization of Rahul, Rajnish or Satish. In fact it wouldn’t be surprising in the least if some of them get rewarded for not protesting and keeping their lips sealed.  This is the Good Governance of Gujarat.

'via Blog this'

Karnataka: Rs 1 crore for government jobs, allege toppers:

IBN Karnataka

Karnataka: Rs 1 crore for government jobs, allege toppers

Deepa Balakrishnan, CNN-IBN | Updated Jun 12, 2013 at 08:21am IST

New Car Prices

Don't pay MSRP! Find our Lowest   Price on a New 2013 Vehicle.New.CarPriceSecrets.com

Ads by Google

Bangalore: A crore or more for a government job - that's the going rate in Karnataka. In March 2013, Dr HPS Mythri got a high rank in the recruitment exam for the Karnataka Administrative Service. She was confident of a top job until she went for her personality test.

Dr Mythri said, "I got a call from the KPSC member saying I'm the topper in ST category and I should go and meet the member for a negotiation. Since I'm ST woman, the price is concessional, or else it would be Rs 1 to Rs 1.5 crore."

Dr Mythri didn't pay. She was given a low score on the personality test. The girl who got 70 marks lesser than her got a boosted score on the same test.

Even Ajay, her batchmate's rank slipped from 34 in the written exam to 157 after the personality test. G Ajay said, "They spoke to my father and said if we're aiming at Assistant Commissioner Post, the cost is Rs 1 crore or more. It's a huge amount and we didn't want to buy a job."

Mythri and Ajay are just two of the 200-odd of the candidates who've complained to the government in protest about the blatant corruption for a government post. "I've seen many candidates crying in front of the commission when they see the marks though they have done well in the main exam," said Dr Mythri.

The government has put all recruitment on hold until an enquiry is completed. Chief Minister K Siddaramaiah said, "After getting the enquiry report I will take the action needed in accordance with the law as it is a constitutional body."

Candidates allege that government posts are almost auctioned blatantly, with some of them being bid against each other. So in a way government officers are forced to become corrupt even before they're recruited and then get caught up in a vicious cycle.

'via Blog this'

A Wake-Up Call For BJP - Analysis Eurasia Review

A Wake-Up Call For BJP - Analysis Eurasia Review:

A Wake-Up Call For BJP – Analysis

By: B. Raman

December 21, 2012

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reasons to be concerned over the results of the elections to the State Assemblies of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh announced on December 20, 2012.

The elections were preceded by a sustained campaign based on allegations of corruption against the Government of Dr. Manmohan Singh, and some Congress leaders of Himachal Pradesh They were also preceded by a steady increase in inflation and by the economy reaching a road-block. The campaign of Anna Hazare and the anti-corruption activists headed by Shri Arvind Kejriwal since August last year was mainly directed against Congress misgovernance.

Location of Gujarat in India

Many of us formed the perception that the public disenchantment against the Congress was so strong that its electoral defeat in the various elections to the State Assemblies and to the Lok Sabha in 2014 would be certain. We were surprised when public opinion polls held in some states a few months ago indicated that the disenchantment with the Congress was not as widespread as one thought it would be and that any disenchantment that did exist had not translated itself into enchantment with the BJP.I had pointed out in earlier articles and tweets that the BJP had not been a beneficiary of any disenchantment with the Congress.

This was because of public skepticism over the capability of the BJP to set right matters and over the internal mess in its organization in States such as Karnataka. It was apparent that campaigns solely based on allegations of corruption and criticism of the dynasty rule were not making headway with the rural and small town voters. Signs of a creeping disillusionment with the BJP were there for all to see if only they wanted to see them.

The results of the elections to the Gujarat and HP State Assemblies clearly show that these misgivings were not ill-based. The elections to the Gujarat Assembly were preceded by months of a high-voltage campaign mounted by a group of Gujarati whiz-kids from the diaspora in the US to project NaMo as the coming saviour of India, who had performed economic miracles in Gujarat, which he was destined to repeat in New Delhi after gravitating to New Delhi and taking over as the Prime Minister of India following the 2014 elections.

NaMo willingly and uncritically allowed these whiz-kids from abroad and their associates in Gujarat to project him in a new designer-made personality as the development man, as India’s man of economic miracles, as the ruler who turned Gujarat into India’s Guangdong. Interestingly, some of these Hindutva whiz-kids from the US were earlier associated with some Telugu whiz-kids from Andhra Pradesh in the US, who had mounted a campaign some years ago to project Shri Chandra Babu Naidu, former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, as the man of the technology-based development miracle sweeping across AP and as the coming saviour of India when the NDA under Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee was in power.

These whiz-kids and NaMo had so convinced themselves that Gujarat was shining under him that they created for themselves an illusory world of unstoppable NaMo who was bound to sweep the polls in Gujarat before moving on to New Delhi. Their exaggerated expectations, based on hype and delusions, on the number of seats that NaMo was likely to get far exceeding what he got in 2007 drove them blind to the ground reality.

The Congress poll strategists, advised by sons of the soil analysts and not by imported whiz-kids, concluded that the strong state of the BJP in Gujarat and its undoubted economic record and the poor state of the Congress would not enable them to prevent another NaMo victory. Their strategy was, therefore, designed to devalue the significance of NaMo’s hat-trick.

Whatever NaMo’s spin-kids may say, his was not a phenomenal victory. That NaMo himself realizes this is obvious from his remark in the victory speech “a victory is a victory, whether one gets 93 or more”. The tone of his victory speech was that of an embarrassed leader whose Himalayan expectations have been belied.

Two significant indicators of the Gujarat poll results are the fact that the BJP got two seats less than in 2007 and registered a fall of one per cent in its popular support (48 %).As against this, the popular support of the Congress went up by one per cent to 40. The poll results clearly show a saturation effect and the onset of a NaMo fatigue. NaMo’s victory speech in Hindi was designed to conceal the signs of this fatigue and to project the significance of his hat-trick against a pan-Indian instead of a purely Gujarati background. NaMo is no longer the man going up and up and up. He is an engine which is beginning to stall.

If the Gujarat results are significant purely against the State perspective, the HP results are very significant from the pan-Indian perspective against the background of the sustained anti-Congress and anti-dynasty campaign mounted by the BJP. This campaign has failed to dent the Congress image. The BJP has not been a beneficiary of this campaign and is unlikely to be its beneficiary in other States too during the 2014 polls to the Lok Sabha.

If the BJP does not revamp itself and design a new poll strategy based on ground realities and not on imported myth and delusions of diaspora origin, its hopes of returning to power in New Delhi in 2014 are likely to be belied. If its own chances of returning to power are so weak, where is the question of NaMo assuming its leadership and becoming the next PM. It will be premature and futile to analyse NaMo’s chances, when the BJP’s own chances are questionable.

The BJP leaders should stop building castles in the air.

3

About the author:

B. Raman

B. Raman is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai and Associate, Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com

'via Blog this'

We, The People - YouTube

We, The People - YouTube:
(Tehelka debate- Rajib Chandrasekhar & Rajib Chandrasekhar discuss corruption)
'via Blog this'