Civil society in Bangalore condemns India’s abstention in the UNGA to vote for a truce
Says, K'taka police, govt deliberately curtailed people’s right to freedom of speech, expression
Bengaluru: The Bengaluru for Justice and Peace organization in a release on Tuesday strongly condemned India’s abstention in the UNGA to vote for a truce. “It is condemnable that India decided to abstain from voting in the UNGA for an immediate, sustainable and durable humanitarian truce.”
The civil society organization also questioned the Indian government for stifling voices of solidarity with Palestinians despite India’s historical support for the Palestinian cause.
“ Our Prime Ministers from Jawaharlal Nehru, Manmohan Singh to our current Prime Minister Narendra Modi have spoken in favur of the rights of the Palestinian people. Even the father of our nation Mahatma Gandhi stood in support of the Palestinian independence. In fact on the 19th of October the Ministry of External Affairs released a statement in support of the rights of the Palestinian People,” the release added.
It further pointed out that the Israeli military forces are performing “ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians,” through ground invasion. “Israeli political leaders have issued statements showing clear intent to commit a genocide of the Palestinian people.” The release also mentioned that mass bombardment of all of Gaza violates the rules of Humanitarian law encoded in the Geneva conventions and stated that Israel’s latest bombing of Jabaliya refugee camp killing hundreds is a latest demonstration of impunity with which Israel violates the rules of war. The release further stressed, citing the UN General Assembly. “Genocide is a denial of the right of existence of entire human groups, as homicide is the denial of the right to live of individual human beings’ and ‘such denial of the right of existence shocks the conscience of mankind.”
In the meantime, the organization has strongly expressed its disappointment with the actions of the Karnataka police, which have curtailed protests and public expressions of solidarity with Palestine. It accuses the police of pursuing criminal action against peaceful protestors and mentions the Congress Working Committee's resolution in support of Palestine, contrasting it with the actions of the Karnataka police.
In the release the organisation has also demanded immediate action from both the Central and Karnataka state governments. From the Central government, the demands include an immediate ceasefire, humanitarian aid to Gaza, and efforts to end Israel's occupation of Palestine. While, from the Karnataka state government, the demands incude, upholding the right to freedom of speech and expression and withdrawing FIRs against protestors.
Simultaneously, the Bengaluru for Justice and Peace organization strongly condemned the actions and emphasized the moral obligation of people to speak up for the rights of Palestinian people, especially as the situation continues to escalate. “Bengaluru for Justice and Peace strongly condemn the Karnataka police and the state government for failing its people, and deliberately curtailing their constitutional right to freedom of speech and expression. As the Israeli government is indicating that they will even resort to the use of nuclear weapons, it is the moral obligation of people everywhere to speak up for the rights of Palestinian people,” read the release.
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Woman, 2 sons found dead in Delhi home; suicide suspected
New Delhi (PTI): Three members of a family were found dead inside their home in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji on Friday, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, officials said.
Police said the incident came to light around 2.47 pm when a police team reached the premises to execute a court order related to possession of the property. When repeated knocks went unanswered, the staff used a duplicate key to open the door.
Inside, officers found Anuradha Kapoor (52) and her sons, Ashish Kapoor (32) and Chaitanya Kapoor (27), hanging from the ceiling, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari said in a statement. All three were declared dead.
A handwritten note was recovered from the room, suggesting the family had been struggling with depression.
"The handwritten note indicates emotional distress faced by the family due to which the family may have taken the extreme step," the officer said.
The bodies have been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), police said.
Residents of the neighbourhood said they were shocked to learn about the deaths, adding that the family kept largely to themselves.
Pankaj Kashyap, a resident of Girinagar, said he learnt about the deaths while leaving for work. "I live and work here and was leaving for work when I saw many people standing outside and talking. That is how I got to know that three people had committed suicide. I also saw several police vehicles outside, but I do not know much beyond that," he said.
Baldev, another neighbour, said the family had been living in the newly constructed house for around two years. "We only knew that a mother and her two children lived there. They had moved into the newly built house around two years ago. We did not interact much with them. Today we heard that all three have committed suicide, and whatever we know is based on what people here are saying," he said.
Another neighbour, Ramesh Kumar, claimed the family had earlier attempted suicide.
"About fifteen to twenty days ago, the two sons in the family had attempted suicide and police and ambulances had come. That was when I first got to know who they were. I do not recognise them by face, but we saw the ambulances and police take the two sons that day. Today again we saw ambulances and police arriving, so everyone came out to see what had happened. I do not know how long they had been living here, but this is all we know," he said.
Police said they are examining the family's financial condition, social circumstances, and other factors that may have contributed to the incident. Further investigation is underway.
