Is it a crime to fight for human rights?
Two incidents occurred on Thursday have somewhat provided an indication about which way the country is headed. An eight year old boy has been lynched by a mob. This is another addition to the mass hate crime that is engulfing the nation. No one has been arrested yet in connection with this inhuman and gruesome act. Media and governments have turned a blind eye towards this as usual. Another incident is that of a sponsored raid on Amnesty India which is known for its fights on human rights. All the bank accounts of the international NGO have been sealed and confiscated rendering the organization paralysed. The government which has to take punitive action against the criminals has been nourishing them under the guise of them being protectors of culture, and the ones that are creating trouble are being arrested and put into jails. After having illegally detained a few human rights activists under the guise of ‘naxals’, this is the next state-sponsored attack on the human rights efforts in the country. Another NGO GreenPeace accounts were also frozen sometime early during the term of this government.
One aspect was very clear for the joint ‘Corporate-RSS’ government led by Modi after last Lok Sabha elections. There is no opposition party that exists which would oppose the implementation of agenda of Sangh Parivar and the corporates. The only opposing forces that can see through their design is human rights organisations. Mega industrialists fear the voice raised by human rights NGOs when large swathes of lands, encroached forests are being leased out to them to set up industries by the government. Many organisations were already exposing big companies and their agendas to the people. Green Peace is in the forefront of such efforts. Hence soon as the government assumed power, it attacked GreenPeace and put it under the surveillance radar starting from the origin of their funds and disrupting works. The bank accounts of this NGO were frozen last month.
At the same time, Modi government is not too comfortable with the human rights NGOs which speak against the RSS ideologies which are deemed irrational, unscientific, anti-human and against the spirit of the constitution. The opposition of such NGOs unsettles the government and hence such organisations have been rattled by the government time and again to push them into silence through various means of torture.
On one hand as the mob violence increased, efforts to silence the voices that spoke against this increase in new kind of mob hysteria had also gone up. Fake Gau Rakshaks have been ruling the roost on the streets of the country yet no legal system would act against them. Even the cops work in favour of such evil forces. The human rights activists who were out to expose the inability of the government to safeguard the interests of innocent people are seeming like anti-national elements to them. Which is why fake cases are being registered against them under the leadership of government. Further, the government is acting against those websites and news channels that publish/air reports that expose the claims of the government.
Amnesty International has been working for the protection of human rights and dignity within all strata in the country. They are the conscience keepers of the society who ensure the politicians and governments don’t cross a line in their priorities ignoring the people. Not only that; such organisations practice total transparency in their works. They have shared all their documents and records on their website with access open for all to see. Yet, with all this, what’s the reason for the government to launch an attack on Amnesty? Are they telling the people of India that one should never question the attempts to usurp human rights in this country? Is the government party to this entire silencing operation?
Government should actually conduct raids on Sanatan Sanstha, Abhinava Bharat and other organisations which have been named in various attacks, murders and bomb blast cases. Cases have been registered against Sanatan Sanstha activists. Yet, why are those organisations not being raided and their fund sources are not being questioned? RSS is collecting huge funds from NRIs. Why no investigation agencies have raided the Nagpur office? One need not even explain the agenda of this government. Hindutva in the garb of culture will have goondas ruling us in the future. Just as the government attempts to silence the voices, dissidence will explode from unexpected corners. When all democratic channels are closed, it may even result in counter violence. Anarchy may be the order of the day then. The government may even want this to happen and is pushing the situation towards that point. The citizens of this country are watching all this, rather helplessly.
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UDF leaders see local body poll trends as pointer to 2026 Assembly elections in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Buoyed by the strong performance of the Congress-led UDF in the local body polls, KPCC president Sunny Joseph said on Saturday that the front's results indicated the people had rejected the LDF government.
According to early trends, the UDF was leading in more grama panchayats, block panchayats, municipalities and corporations than the LDF.
The local body polls were held in two phases in the state earlier this week.
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Speaking to reporters here, Joseph said the people of Kerala had extended their support to the UDF.
"We could expose the LDF government’s anti-people stance and the people understood it. The LDF’s fake propaganda was rejected by the people. The UDF is moving towards a historic victory," he said.
He said a united effort, proper preparations, good candidate selection and hard work had resulted in the Congress and the UDF’s victory in the elections.
Asked about the prospects in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Joseph said the party was studying the matter and would comment later.
LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said the results would be closely examined.
According to him, the government had done everything possible for the people.
"Why such a verdict happened will be examined at the micro level. People’s opinion will be considered and further steps will be taken," he said.
He added that decisions would be taken after analysing the results. "If any corrective measures are required, we will initiate them and move forward," he said.
AICC leader K C Venugopal said the results showed that people had begun ousting those who, he alleged, were responsible for the loss of gold at Lord Ayyappa’s temple.
"This trend will continue in the Assembly elections as well. It is an indication that the people are ready to bring down the LDF government," he said.
Venugopal said the UDF had registered victories even in CPI(M) and LDF strongholds.
"I congratulate all UDF workers for their hard work. Congress workers and leaders worked unitedly," he said.
Referring to remarks made by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan against the Congress on polling day, Venugopal said the voters had responded through the verdict.
"I do not know whether the chief minister understands that the people are against him. Otherwise, he does not know the sentiment of the people. The state government cannot move an inch further," he said.
He said the results indicated a strong comeback for the UDF in Kerala.
Asked whether the Sabarimala gold loss issue had affected the LDF in the local polls, Venugopal said the CM and the CPI(M) state secretary did not take the issue seriously.
"We took a strong stand on the matter. The BJP played a foul game in it," he alleged.
On the BJP's role in the local body elections, Venugopal alleged that the party operated with the CPI(M) 's tacit support.
"The CPI(M) supported the central government on issues such as PM-SHRI, labour codes and corruption in national highway construction. The CPI(M) is facing ideological decline, and the state government’s policies are against the party’s own decisions," he said.
Meanwhile, LDF ally Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani said the party could not win all the wards it had expected in the elections.
He congratulated winners from all parties and said the party would closely examine the losses and identify shortcomings. "Later, we will take corrective measures," he added.
Senior Congress leader and MP Rajmohan Unnithan said the trends in the local body elections indicated that the UDF would return to power in the 2026 Assembly elections.
"We will win 111 seats as in 1977 and return to power in 2026. The anti-government sentiment of the people is reflected in the elections," he said.
Unnithan said the people were disturbed and unhappy with the present government.
"The trend indicates the end of the LDF government," he added.
CPI(M) MLA M M Mani said the people had shown ingratitude towards the LDF despite benefiting from welfare schemes.
"After receiving all welfare schemes and living comfortably, people voted against us due to some temporary sentiments. Is that not ingratitude," he asked.
Mani said no such welfare initiatives had taken place in Kerala earlier.
"People are receiving pensions and have enough to eat. Even after getting all this, they voted against us. This is what can be called ingratitude," he said.
Muslim League state president Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said the results were beyond expectations.
"The outcome points towards the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram, indicating that a change of government is imminent. We are going to win the Assembly election," he said.
