2 brothers who survived Gulbarg massacre contesting LS poll
Ahmedabad:Two brothers, who survived the 2002 Gulbarg Society massacre here, are contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Gujarat.
Imtiyaz Khan Pathan (42) is a candidate of the Apna Desh Party from Kheda, while his elder brother Firoz Khan Pathan (45) has filed his nomination as an Independent from Gandhinagar, where he is pitted against BJP chief Amit Shah.
The Pathan brothers lost as many as 10 members of their family, including their mother and grandmother, when an angry mob attacked the Gulberg Society in Ahmedabad after the 2002 Godhra train burning incident.
Imtiyaz Khan now lives in Gomtipur area of the city while his elder brother resides in Vejalpur, which falls under the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat.
While Imtiyaz Khan is the key prosecution witness in the Gulberg case, his brother had lodged a complaint against social activist Teesta Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand for alleged misuse of funds collected for the riot victims.
"By deciding to contest from Gandhinagar, I want to give a message to Amit Shah that I am coming to fight against you," Firoz Khan said.
"Though I am a Muslim, many of my Hindu friends have extended their support to me. I am confident that Hindus will give me votes, as my ultimate aim is to establish communal harmony. I will embark on a door-to-door campaign in the coming days," he said.
Ever since he turned against Setalvad, he was perceived as a supporter of the BJP.
However, Firoz Khan claimed he has not taken the plunge into electoral politics just to help the saffron party by dividing the anti-BJP votes.
"If that was the case, I may have became a crorepati by know. But, I still live in a small flat and own only a scooter. I am fighting the poll so that I can represent minorities in Parliament as there is no Muslim MP from Gujarat since long. I am also fighting to spread the message of communal harmony," he asserted.
Echoing similar views, Imtiyaz Khan said both the BJP and Congress did nothing for the riot victims.
"We are victims of the 2002 riots. We are fighting for justice since last 17 years. Firoz and I lost our mother, grandmother and eight other relatives. The BJP and Congress did nothing for people like us," he said.
"I am fighting this election because I strongly believe there must be a leader of minorities who can raise our issues at the national-level," he said.
Though Dalits, Thakors and Patels have their leaders in Gujarat, there is no one for Muslims, he said.
"I also want to spread the message of peace and harmony, so that no other community has to suffer what we went through," the younger sibling said.
Sixty eight people, including former MP Eehsan Jafri, were killed at Gulberg Society on February 28, 2002, a day after the S-6 Coach of the Sabarmati Express was burnt at Godhra, triggering riots in Gujarat.
Polling in all 26 Lok Sabha seats in the state will be held on April 23, and the results will be announced on May 23.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
