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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Ready to face no-confidence motion, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah
Hassan (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the Congress government led by him was ready to face the no-confidence motion if moved by the opposition during the legislature session from December 8.
With Deputy CM D K Shivakumar by his side, he reiterated that they would both abide by the high command's decision on the leadership issue.
"Let them (opposition) bring in a no-confidence motion or adjournment motion or any other motion. We are ready to face it. Ours is an open book, transparent government. We are ready to face anything," Siddaramaiah said in response to a question.
However, BJP state President B Y Vijayendra and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, clarified that the party, along with the JD(S) has not discussed or decided anything so far regarding moving a no-confidence motion against the government.
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The winter session of the Karnataka legislature will begin in Belagavi, bordering Maharashtra, on December 8 and will go on till 19th of this month.
Not wanting to react to a question on the leadership issue, the CM said the Congress high command is very strong.
"D K Shivakumar and I will be committed to whatever the high command decides," he said.
Earlier in the day in Bengaluru, Shivakumar accompanied AICC Mallikarjun Kharge till airport from Vidhana Soudha, after paying tributes to B R Ambedkar on his 69th death anniversary, which had led to some speculation about possible discussion between the two on the leadership issue.
The power tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a change in chief minister in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.
However, both the CM and Deputy CM had recently held breakfast meetings at each others residences, on the instructions of the high command, which is seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah's continuation as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.
