CPI(M)'s fact-finding holds Home Minister responsible for Delhi violence, 'prejudicing' probe
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New Delhi: A fact-finding report released by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Wednesday has held home minister Amit Shah responsible for the communal violence that broke out in North East Delhi earlier this year. The riots in February claimed 53 lives, of whom 40 were Muslim and 13 Hindu. The report specifically holds Shah responsible for the “escalation” of violence and prejudicing the police probe in the matter.
The report, titled ‘Communal Violence in North East Delhi, February 2020’, says,“The role of the home ministry under Mr Amit Shah was in substantial measure responsible for the escalation of the violence.”
The Delhi police has so far arrested several activists and students who were a part of the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests, claiming that they hatched a “conspiracy” that resulted in the riots. The name of CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury has also figured in a witness statement part of a supplementary charge sheet on the February riots, allegedly for “provoking and mobilising” anti-CAA protesters, but he was not named as an accused.
The CPI(M) had previously condemned the criminalisation of “peaceful political protests,” referring to the anti-CAA protests. A statement said, “The CPM condemns this obnoxious action by the Delhi Police to further the narrative of its political masters and urges the government to desist from such acts of criminalising peaceful political protests.”
The report released on Wednesday concluded that “it is incorrect to describe the communal violence as Delhi riots. ‘Riots’ describe a situation where both sides are equally participatory… However, the offensive was from the Hindutva mobs while the other side, in the main, was desperately trying to save themselves from such attacks… In almost all areas, there is video evidence of the police siding with the Hindutva mobs.”
The report also lists several specific instances of violence that go against the general narrative pushed by the police and highlights several identical FIRs and confessions cited by the police as well as complaints of torture. Quoting a chargesheet filed in a case in which several students have been charged with terrorism for allegedly inciting riots by their protests against the new citizenship regime, the report shows that the number of personnel deployed during the riots from February 23 to 27 ranged from 1,393 to 4,756 in a district with a population of 26 lakh.
“The question is, when the violence erupted on 24 February, why was the curfew not imposed? After all, why was the army not deployed? Even the number of Delhi Police and Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel was extremely low and the deployment was done very late,” the report asks.
It also alleges that the home minister dismissed the well-documented speeches by Bharatiya Janata Party leaders “that called for shooting traitors or alleging that members of the minority community will invade homes of Hindus to rape and kill.”
The report further reads, “Before any investigation was done, the home minister laid down its findings (in the Lok Sabha on March 11). The subsequent investigation was only to substantiate and validate this narrative…then he went on to describe what he thought were the real hate speeches. He said that Congress leaders gave hate speeches on December 14, 2019, at a rally calling upon people to come out onto the streets because it was a do-or-die battle. With this, he not only sought to build the version that it was really the Opposition that incited violence, but more significantly, he blamed the minority community for the violence.”
In the Lok Sabha on March 11, Shah had called the riots a “well-planned conspiracy” and praised the police for controlling the violence within 36 hours. The Congress and the CPI(M) had walked out during his speech.
Contradictory to Shah’s statement, the report describes attacks even on February 28, five days after the killings began. Besides holding BJP leaders Kapil Mishra and Anurag Thakur’s speeches and the provocative sloganeering in the Shivratri processions on February 21 responsible for the violence, the report also slams Delhi’s AAP government for delays in “partial” compensation given to the victims. The report seeks an independent enquiry by a retired high court judge into the matter.
Courtesy: thewire.in
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NCW chief condemns rape-murder of 4-year-old girl in Pune, calls for swift action
New Delhi (PTI): National Commission for Women (NCW) Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar has condemned the alleged rape and murder of a four-year-old girl in Maharashtra's Pune, calling it "deeply distressing" and a "blot on humanity".
The girl was allegedly raped and killed by a 65-year-old labourer, who has a criminal record, in Bhor tehsil of Pune on Friday. The accused allegedly lured the child to a cattle enclosure on the pretext of giving her food. After raping her, he killed her by hitting her with a stone, according to police.
The accused has been arrested.
In a post on X on Saturday, Rahatkar said the incident in the Nasrapur area in Pune was heartbreaking and has shaken society.
"The brutal torture and murder of a four-year-old innocent girl in Nasrapur (Bhor, Pune) is deeply painful, heartbreaking, and shocking. It is a blot on humanity," she said.
She said Pune Rural police has arrested the accused and noted that Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar have assured strict action in the case.
Rahatkar said the NCW has taken cognisance of the matter and written to the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), requesting the body to ensure necessary and prompt action.
It has also been recommended that the case be pursued under stringent provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and be closely monitored from the filing of the chargesheet to proceedings in a fast-track special court to ensure time-bound justice, she added.
Ensuring justice for the victim and stringent punishment for the accused is a collective responsibility, the NCW chairperson underlined.
In a post on X, the NCW said it has taken suo motu cognisance of the extremely "heinous" incident.
"This heinous crime causes profound pain and outrage, and it highlights serious concerns regarding the safety of young girls," it said.
Strongly condemning this grave "inhuman act", the NCW said such crimes constitute a serious violation of children's rights and raise questions about society's security system.
