Hail DemonoCracy

Democracy means Rule by Majority. What if the Majority is sleeping like a log since time immemorial? Strategy of CRY BABY, Playing Victim, Human Rights & Cultural Aggressiveness. The Appeased Minority becomes KingMaker by En-Bloc Vote Bank..Extremely AGGRESSIVE in Conversions & ...changing the Demographic structure in its favour by Pushing forward its Agenda of Leading by Enhancing Populations & Frantic Multiplication. Long Live Minorityism! Long Live DemonoCracy!!!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

The Hindu : News / The India Cables : 82638: Afzal Guru's pending execution causing strife for Congress

The Srinagar Valley erupted in protest during the first weeks of Ramazan when the Indian Supreme Court upheld a death sentence for Mohammad Afzal Guru, a convicted facilitator of the 2001 attacks on the Indian Parliament.

82638 10/20/2006 12:49 06 NEWDELHI 7273 Embassy New Delhi CONFIDENTIAL "VZCZCXRO5676OO RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROVDE RUEHNE #7273/01 2931249ZNY CCCCC ZZHO 201249Z OCT 06FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHITO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9763INFO RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVERUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 4067RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 7475RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 757RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0556RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 3490RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 8202RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1718RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 0231RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 3928RUEHCI/AMCONSUL CALCUTTA 6847RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 6901RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 5704RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 3097RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 6128RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 3714RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDCRHEHNSC/NSC WASHDCRUEIDN/DNI WASHINGTON DCRHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HIRUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2613RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FLRUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 4921RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HIRHMFISS/HQ USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FLRUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC" C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 007273

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2016

TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PTER, PINR, PBTS, MOPS, KDEM, KISL, PK, IN

SUBJECT: KASHMIR: PENDING EXECUTION CAUSING STRIFE FOR CONGRESS NEW DELHI 00007273 001.2 OF 003

Classified By: PolCouns Ted Osius for Reasons 1.4 (B, D)

1. (C) Summary. The Srinagar Valley erupted in protest during the first weeks of Ramazan when the Indian Supreme Court upheld a death sentence for Mohammad Afzal Guru, a convicted facilitator of the 2001 attacks on the Indian Parliament. The Indian President has granted Afzal's family a temporary reprieve, postponing indefinitely his execution until the Home Ministry puts forward a recommendation for or against clemency. India rarely carries out the death penalty, and if Afzal is hanged, he would be only the second convicted terrorist from Jammu and Kashmir formally executed during more than 15 years of armed conflict. For the sections of Srinagar's Muslim population who have been outspoken on this issue, the possible execution highlights concerns about the fairness of the Indian justice system and failures in India's longstanding program to demobilize and reintegrate surrendered militants. For much of the rest of the Indian public, especially non-Muslims, Afzal is a confessed terrorist, who is unrepentant for his role in the 2001 attack on India's Parliament. For much of the public, commuting his sentence would demonstrate that India remains weak in the face of attacks emanating from Pakistan. For the Congress government, the execution presents a significant electoral dilemma. Congress sources tell us that if the UPA grants a pardon for Afzal or stalls his execution, the Congress Party will be portrayed by BJP leaders as weak on national security. If, however, the President lets him hang, some fear Congress may lose support from their traditional Muslim vote block on a national scale. End Summary.

Guilty As Charged?

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2. (C) Mohammad Afzal's part in the Parliament attacks appears to have been as a direct facilitator. Press reports indicate that he gave shelter to Jaish-i-Muhammad members in New Delhi before the attack, was in constant contact with them during their time in New Delhi, and purchased the Ambassador car that was used to get them past the Parliament's first line of security. In trying Afzal, the prosecution found that the now defunct Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) was not strong enough to seek the death penalty for his facilitating role. To be given the death penalty, under POTA, one had to be involved in the attack itself or its direct planning. Instead, Afzal was convicted under Section 120(b) of the Indian Penal Code for conspiring to wage war against the state -- a statute that human rights attorney Ravi Nair claims was written for attempted coups leaders. He says the strongest piece of evidence presented by the prosecution at Afzal's trial was a confession, which the police video taped and aired publicly before his trial began. Chief among Nair's concerns is whether torture was involved in obtaining this confession. Nair also argued that Afzal was denied a lawyer during the first stages of his trial, but when prompted further by PolOff, Nair admitted that the government appointed Afzal a public defender.

Kashmiri Anger

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3. (C) Nair's comments mirror strong public statements by Kashmiri leaders ranging from separatist leader Yasin Malik to former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah that the entire

NEW DELHI 00007273 002.2 OF 003 Srinagar Valley will go up in flames if Afzal is hanged. Press reports indicate that hardline separatist Sayed Ali Shah Geelani has led multiple protests in Srinagar, calling for Afzal's martyrdom, and using the slogan ""Go forth, Afzal. We are with you."" Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad also stepped into the controversy, urging the President to at least postpone the Supreme Court's order to hang Afzal until after Ramazan because of religious sensitivities. The President subsequently agreed to hear Afzal's wife's request for clemency, a decision that fulfilled the Chief Minister's request and could potentially postpone the execution for many years, as has been the practice with several death penalty cases in the past.

Surrendered Combatant

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4. (C) For Yasin Malik -- himself a former terrorist who has become an advocate against violence -- the case represents a crucial problem for India in its efforts to bring former combatants back into mainstream society. Press reports argue that Afzal's history as a surrendered militant, who was prompted by the Indian government to spy on his former colleagues, left him vulnerable to Jaish-i-Muhammad members when they came to New Delhi asking for help in carrying out the attack. When so many common citizens in the Valley are threatened by both security forces and militants, Malik commented to PolOff, many Kashmiri Muslims feel sympathy for Afzal. Afzal's only crime, Malik argued, was buying a car. How does this warrant a death sentence?

Meeting a Violent End

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5. (C) Malik's comments, however, do not reflect the beliefs of many Kashmiri separatist leaders in the Valley. Moderate XXXXXXXXXXXX\ Hurriyat Leader XXXXXXXXXXXX told PolOff candidly that his faction of political separatists were remaining as quiet as possible about the issue because they do not feel strongly that India should pardon Afzal. While they were concerned that Afzal did not have adequate representation during parts of his trial, privately they say that he should be executed if he is guilty. ""If someone is a terrorist,"" XXXXXXXXXXXX said, ""they should meet a violent end."" He said politically, however, moderate members of the Hurriyat are unable to express this view publicly, given the mood in the valley and the threat from terrorists. For this reason, the moderate Hurriyat as a body has remained relatively quiet about the issue. While some may speak on Afzal's behalf individually, this was only out of a sense of obligation rather than strong conviction. XXXXXXXXXXXX further commented that moderates like himself were losing support because of the controversy among Kashmiri Muslims, especially a small but growing cadre of Kashmiri youth who are being educated in extremist madrassas springing up across Srinagar with Pakistani Jamaat-i-Islami party funding.

Let Him Hang

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6. (C) Kashmiri Pundit leader Shokti Bhan mirrored many of XXXXXXXXXXXX arguments about the Afzal case. Having protested the President's willingness to consider clemency, Bhan argued that the Supreme Court's decision to overturn two other convictions and to commute another death sentence stemming from the attack to life imprisonment demonstrates that Afzal's case has been held up to significant judicial scrutiny. If the Supreme Court believed that he was not given a fair trial, they would have overturned his sentence. She applauded a recent Supreme Court decision admonishing the President and state governors from granting clemency purely for political reasons. She said that it didn't matter that Afzal did not pull the trigger in the case -- he knew what was being planned, and he helped the terrorists carry out that plan. She said if the Congress government spares Afzal, the entire country will be against them because they are leaving India vulnerable to terrorists.

An Electoral Dilemma for Congress

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7. (C) Comment: The case raises electoral problems for Congress at a national level. Outside of Kashmir, public opinion -- still raw from Mumbai -- is strongly in favor of Afzal's execution. A journalist commented that Congress can't be seen giving a pass to both Pakistan in the Mumbai case as well as giving clemency to Afzal or else the BJP will subject them to withering attacks. On the other hand, Congress does not want to anger the Muslim population in Uttar Pradesh just ahead of crucial elections in February 2007. The Afzal case has also provided an issue to the Left parties, which have called for clemency and the abolition of the death penalty, winning points from both Muslims and secular leftists. This means that the Congress is now under pressure from both the Left and the Right. Internally, the case may also bring to light longstanding animosity between President Kalam and Sonia Gandhi, especially as a member of her own party, Chief Minister Azad, has argued on Afzal's behalf. The easiest option for Congress may be to delay Afzal's execution for years to consider his appeal for clemency, but if President Kalam believes Sonia won't grant him a second term next summer, he may choose to push the issue into the forefront again at a crucial moment. Regardless of the outcome, the case presents a difficult electoral challenge for Congress.

PYATT

Keywords: The India Cables, cable82638, Geoffrey R. Pyatt, Afzal Guru, Congress, Parliament attack

The Hindu : News / The India Cables : Sonia versus Kalam?

U.S. Embassy official on the Congress ‘dilemma' over Afzal Guru's execution

The issue of executing Mohammed Afzal Guru, sentenced to death in the 2001 Parliament attack case, “may bring to light longstanding animosity between President [A.P.J. Abdul] Kalam and Sonia Gandhi,” states a cable sent by the United States Embassy in New Delhi to Washington in 2006. It added that this was so “especially as a member of her own party, [Jammu and Kashmir] Chief Minister [Ghulam Nabi] Azad, has argued on Afzal's behalf” — a possible reference to news reports that Mr. Azad had pressed for clemency to be granted to the convict.

Sent on October 20, 2006 by Geoffrey Pyatt, U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission, the cable (82638: confidential) goes on to conjecture mischievously that “if President Kalam believes Sonia won't grant him a second term next summer, he may choose to push the issue into the forefront again at a crucial moment.”

Accessed by The Hindu through WikiLeaks, the cable highlights the “significant electoral dilemma” the Afzal Guru issue posed for the Congress, just ahead of the “crucial” elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly in early-2007. It quotes unnamed party sources as telling the Embassy that if “the UPA grants a pardon for Afzal or stalls his execution, the Congress Party will be portrayed by BJP leaders as weak on national security. If, however, the President lets him hang, some fear Congress may lose support from their traditional Muslim vote block on a national scale.”

The cable records the difference in the manner in which Kashmiri Muslims and the rest of the Indian public reacted to Afzal Guru's possible execution. It says that for Srinagar's Muslim population, it “highlights concerns about the fairness of the Indian justice system and failures in India's longstanding program to demobilize and reintegrate surrendered militants [such as Afzal Guru]”… For much of the public, commuting his sentence would demonstrate India remains weak in the face of attacks emanating from Pakistan.”

KASHMIR FACTOR

It quotes Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front Chairman Yasin Malik as telling a Consulate political officer that many “Kashmiri Muslims feel sympathy for Afzal” and that his only crime was “buying a car.” (Afzal Guru was not a member of the team that attacked Parliament but had bought the Ambassador car which breached Parliament's first line of security.) “How does this warrant a death sentence?” Mr. Malik is said to have asked. However, Mr. Malik's comments were at variance with many moderate Kashmiri separatist leaders in the Valley. One Hurriyat leader told the Consulate's political officer that his faction was “remaining as quiet as possible because they do not feel strongly that Indian should pardon Afzal.”

He said “moderate members of the Hurriyat are unable to express this view publicly, given the mood in the Valley and the threat from terrorists. He claimed that the controversy over Afzal Guru had led to a loss of support for moderates such as himself among Kashmiri Muslims, “especially [among] a small but growing cadre of Kashmiri youth who are being educated in extremist madarassas springing up across Srinagar with Pakistani Jamaat-i-Islami party funding.”

The cable suggests that the “easiest option for the Congress may be to delay Afzal's execution for years to consider his appeal for clemency.” This is exactly what has happened. In February 2011, Home Minister P. Chidambaram clarified in Parliament that Afzal Guru's mercy petition, filed on October 3, 2006, had not yet been forwarded to President Pratibha Patil.

Keywords: Cable82638, The India Cables, Cablegate, WikiLeaks, Afzal Guru mercy petition, President Kalam, Sonia Gandhi, Geoffrey Pyatt

The Hindu : News / The India Cables : REVEALED: THE INDIA CABLES FROM WIKILEAKS

Fascinating insights: 5,100 cables, six million words; what they're about & what's in store

Starting today, March 15, The Hindu offers its readers a series of unprecedented insights into India's foreign policy and domestic affairs, diplomatic, political, economic, social, cultural, and intellectual – encountered, observed, tracked, interpreted, commented upon, appreciated, and pilloried by U.S. diplomats cabling the State Department in Washington D.C.

The range of subjects, issues, and persons covered by the India Cables is extraordinary. While the trained diplomat's eye is almost always on the ball – the developing Indo-U.S. strategic relationship and everything that helps or hinders it – the range includes India's relations with its neighbours, with Russia, the European Union, East Asia, Israel, Palestine, Iran, and the rest of West Asia, Africa, Cuba, the United Nations. It covers issues and actions relating to defence cooperation, nuclear policy, arms control, terrorism, intelligence sharing, export control, human rights, Indian bureaucracy, environment, AfPak, and much more. There is a special focus on 26/11, Kashmir, India's policy towards and dealings with Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, and where the Indian polity is headed.

Politicians of all shades, diplomats and other officials, sleuths, businessmen, journalists, busybodies, bigwigs and smallwigs figure in the WikiLeaks India Cache – which comprises 5,100 U.S. Embassy and consulate cables relevant to India (not all of them originating in India) and aggregates an astonishing six million words.

These American diplomats have been trained to listen, probe and prod, massage egos, milk sources, report, and write (supplying accessible and, at times, witty and elegant headings and sub-headings) to inform, analyse, and amuse – as though they were full-time journalists. Many of them work like wire service beavers: long lunches, yes, but very often, same day reports of important meetings. Few things escape their notice. Most of the time, they see Indian men, women, and matters through the reflected mirror of U.S. strategic interests and policy.

The India Cables have been accessed by The Hindu through an arrangement with WikiLeaks that involves no financial transaction and no financial obligations on either side. As with the larger ‘Cablegate' cache to which these cables belong, they are classified into six categories: confidential, confidential/noforn (confidential, no foreigners), secret, secret/noforn, unclassified, and unclassified/for official use only.

Our contacts with WikiLeaks were initiated in the second week of December 2010. It was a period when Cablegate had captured the attention and imagination of a news-hungry world.

On November 28, 2010, five major western newspapers (The Guardian, The New York Times, Der Spiegel, Le Monde, and El Pais) and WikiLeaks made a huge splash by publishing a selection from the cables that provided readers worldwide with what WikiLeaks has described as “an unprecedented insight into U.S. government foreign activities.” These newspapers had put the cables through a painstaking and painfully slow process of ‘redaction,' applying varying criteria according to their lights. They drew on the cables to publish dozens of stories, ranging from the sensational through the instructive to the amusing; the newspapers' journalists provided context, background, analysis, interpretation, and comment.

But by now WikiLeaks was under siege. An organisation committed to openness, transparency, and justice and its charismatic Editor-in-Chief, Julian Assange, had come under fierce, concerted attack orchestrated by the United States. The attack dogs were after Mr. Assange's blood and the organisation had to use the utmost ingenuity to continue to function.

That it was able to do so and even spread its wings in a matter of weeks speaks to the tremendous vitality and technological power of “this new form of indestructible publishing” (to borrow Guardian Editor Alan Rusbridger's phrase) and the solidarity and practical support this mission, which Mr. Assange considers an integral part of journalism, has been able to inspire among thousands of people round the world.

The WikiLeaks database made available to the five newspapers comprised 251,187 cables from 280 U.S. embassies and consulates in 180 countries. The total word length of the cables was estimated to be 300 million. From the start of our interactions with WikiLeaks, The Hindu had its eye on the India Cables, reported to number in the thousands, of which only 40 have been published (http://213.251.145.96/origin /60_0.html).

Hopes of getting our hands on the entire India Cache rose in the second half of December when Julian Assange spoke, in a newspaper interview, of “the incredible potential of the Indian media” in a context of “a lot of corruption” (waiting to be exposed), a rising middle class, and growing access to the internet – and specifically mentioned and praised The Hindu.

To cut the story short, our active contacts with WikiLeaks resumed in mid-February 2011. A breakthrough was achieved without any fuss, resulting in a detailed understanding on the terms and modus of publication, including redacting (where, and only where, necessary) and compliance with a security protocol for protecting and handling the sensitive material – and we had the whole cache of the India Cables in our hands in early March.

Unlike the experience of the five western newspapers, which were involved in a prolonged and complex collaborative venture even while making independent publication choices (described in two books published by The Guardian and The New York Times), The Hindu's receipt, processing, and publication of the cables is a standalone arrangement with WikiLeaks, which, as in the case of the five newspapers, has no say in the content of stories we publish based on the cables.

We quickly assembled a team of experienced journalists – writers, including foreign correspondents, and editors – as well as digital information and data specialists for the India Cables publication project, to which we gave no particular name.

The team worked long hours in a secured office space, practically without a day's break, sifting through the data, categorising, segmenting, and speed-reading the cables, searching with keywords, redacting if necessary, making a large first selection of what seemed most relevant and interesting, and re-reading the cables to write dozens of stories, formatting and uploading the cables online for global reach. Quiet, controlled excitement reigned for the most part within the confined environment, even when fatigue set in and nerves were frayed. It is still work in progress.

Keywords: The India Cables, WikiLeaks, Cablegate, Indo-U.S. strategic relationship, Julian Assange

The Hindu : News / The India Cables : 73697: Indian Muslim resentment smouldering over Lebanon and Gaza

Events in Lebanon and Gaza have attracted considerable attention in India, but are of particular concern to the country's 130 million Muslims. The Urdu press has treated Lebanon/Gaza events in great detail. Editorial opinion --some planted by Iranian agents-- is uniformly anti-Israel and anti-US.

73697 8/4/2006 9:15 06NEWDELHI5470 Embassy New Delhi CONFIDENTIAL "VZCZCXRO0380OO RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHPWDE RUEHNE #5470/01 2160915ZNY CCCCC ZZHO 040915Z AUG 06FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHITO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7344INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVERUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVERUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 3306RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 6651RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 6665RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 9704RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 7346RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 9558RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 3669RUEHCI/AMCONSUL CALCUTTA 5735RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 5760RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 5084RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 2928RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 4973RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 3569RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDCRHEHNSC/NSC WASHDCRUEIDN/DNI WASHINGTON DCRHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HIRUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1940RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FLRUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 4240RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HIRHMFISS/HQ USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FLRUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC" "C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 06 NEW DELHI 005470

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/04/2016 TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, PINR, PTER, KISL, SCUL, EINV, IN, LE, IS SUBJECT: INDIAN MUSLIM RESENTMENT SMOLDERING OVER LEBANON AND GAZA

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Classified By: Charge Geoff Pyatt for reasons 1.4 (B,D)

1. (C) Summary: Events in Lebanon and Gaza have attracted considerable attention in India, but are of particular concern to the country's 130 million Muslims. The Urdu press has treated Lebanon/Gaza events in great detail. Editorial opinion --some planted by Iranian agents-- is uniformly anti-Israel and anti-US. Despite this, Muslims have just started to demonstrate. Islamic firebrand preacher Kalbe Jawad held an anti-US rally in New Delhi on August 3 and numerous Islamic organizations are expected to demonstrate after Friday prayers on August 4. Our Muslim contacts assert that there is growing anger against the US and Israel, with demonstrations and violence possible. Generally pleased with the GOI condemnation of Israeli actions and its support for an immediate cease-fire, they agree that if a cease-fire proposal is tabled soon, with the possibility of enactment in a manner of days, it would take the wind out of the sales of planned protests. However, Indian Muslims are angry and could still be mobilized in the streets should hostilities continue. Seeking to manage this reaction, the Foreign Ministry has issued several strong condemnations of Israeli action, conveniently overlooking the increasingly tight security and technology relationship between the two countries. End Summary.

Following Middle East Events

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2. (C) Our Muslim contacts confirm that India's Muslims are following events in Gaza and Lebanon with great interest, and that the Urdu press has devoted much more space to these issues than English and Hindi language newspapers. Indian media (both print and electronic) have made some of the same points emphasized in other countries with sizable Muslim populations, pointing to the increased prestige accorded to Shias and Hizbollah through its ""resistance,"" and the increased importance of Islamic groups in Lebanon and Palestinian areas. Shias are a small minority among Indian Muslims, but the conflict between Hizbollah and Israel has focused Muslim attention on this Shia organization, with Sunnis expressing admiration for a Shia group they once held in contempt. Following the outbreak of Israel/Hezbollah hostilities, the US has been repeatedly identified within the Muslim community as the power behind Israeli ""aggression,"" while US calls for a ""new Middle East"" and a sustainable cease-fire have been subjected to ridicule.

What the Urdu Press is Saying

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3. (U) A July 26 editorial in the Urdu daily ""Jadeed In-Dinon"" called for the ""Islamic world to stand united against Israel,"" and accused the US of ""double standards"" and ""hypocrisy"" by ""providing sophisticated arms to Israel"" while ""the entire world community is silent over Israeli aggression against Lebanon and Palestine."" The editorial then claimed that Israel is acting as a stalking horse for the US to ""test the courage and spirit of Iran, which has been creating lots of trouble for America for a long time."" A July 27 editorial in the Urdu daily ""Munsif"" praises ""Shah Abdullah of Saudi Arabia"" who ""has once again shown courage by warning Israel of a possible war spreading over the entire West Asian region."" and points out that ""as the custodian of the two

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holy mosques and the ruler of the biggest (sic.) Islamic country, the statement comes as a resurgence of the slumbering Arab conscience."" On July 25, another Urdu newspaper ""Dawat"" criticized the US as the ""self assumed leader of the world"" and warned that the US could be subject to a ""public onslaught in the event of a worsening situation in Palestine and Lebanon."" ""Rashtriya Sahara,"" the Urdu newspaper of the powerful Sahara business combine on July 29 described Israel as a nation ""drunk with power and might,"" which has ""oppressed and wreaked havoc on innocent civilians and helpless citizens."" It urged the US, ""the patron force behind Israel,"" to stop the war at once.

More Demonstrations Expected

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4. (C) Muslim demonstrations in India center around the Friday prayers. July 28 was largely quiet. The big exception was at Old Delhi's Jamma Mosque. In his Friday sermon, Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari told the congregation that Israeli actions in Lebanon ""had the full backing of the United States,"" and was part of a continuing pattern of Israeli and American attacks against Lebanon and Palestine. Bukhari pointed out that the GOI had long been sympathetic towards the aspirations of the Palestinian people, but had now changed its tune, as it had become ""US-centric."" He accused the GOI of taking a muddled stance on the Lebanon issue in response to American pressure. Muslims paraded through the old city after the prayers waving Palestinian flags and shouting anti-Israel slogans. Our Muslim sources tell us that Muslim organizations are planning large anti-Israel and anti-US demonstrations after the Friday prayers on August 4, which they expect will be much more widespread and virulent than on July 28.

Views of a Leading Maulvi

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5. (C) Poloff met with Imam Bukhari on August 1 to sound him out about the Lebanon situation. He predicted that August 4 would be a quiet Friday and that we should expect a quiet weekend. Noting that he had already made a statement on the issue, Bukhari said he had no intention of bringing it up again. He pointed out that the large anti-US demonstrations that took place during the POTUS visit were motivated by the controversy surrounding the Danish cartoons and that Indian Muslims did not look at the Lebanon issue in the same light. Without that emotional catalyst, he maintained, there was little likelihood of a massive spontaneous outburst. According to Bukhari, Indian Muslims look to their leadership to organize a successful agitation, and in this case no ""trusted leader"" has stepped forward. He claimed that several organizations had approached him to lead demonstrations on August 4, but he declined.

Support for Lebanon Not Hizbollah

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6. (C) This does not mean, however, that Indian Muslims are not angry. Bukhari emphasized that there is universal support for Lebanon and against Israel. Despite this, Muslims in India are inherently ""weak"" and incapable of concerted action without direction from above. Bukhari also pointed out that Indian Muslims do not widely admire

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organizations like Hizbollah and the Taliban, as they are ""always preaching war."" Most Indian Muslims have concluded that ""there is something wrong"" with the Jihad approach to Muslim problems. There is a perception that Jihadis are not ""blessed by Allah."" Instead, Indian Muslims look for a ""positive approach."" He asserted that despite the media hype, there has been no appreciable increase of support for Hizbollah in India and that Indian Muslims are tired of the Sunni/Shia divide and look at sectarian organizations like Hizbollah with suspicion.

But Tempers Could Blow

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7. (C) Bukhari warned, however, that Muslim sentiments will become roused if the Lebanon situation goes on much longer, as ""oppression of innocents unites Muslims."" He noted that the onus is on the US and the UN to end this ""oppression"" before sentiments get out of hand. He asserted that Indian Muslims are universally unhappy with the Bush administration's support for Israel, stating that you can ""ask any Muslim and they will tell you they are unhappy with Condaleeza Rice's statement that Israel has the right to defend itself."" He confirmed that Indian Muslims will ""blame the US"" for Israel's actions. Conceding that ""Hizbollah is not a great organization,"" he lamented what he called Israeli over-reaction, saying ""you cannot fight a fire with more fire."" Bukhari urged the USG to sponsor a conference on the Middle East in which prominent Muslims could sit down and discuss US foreign policy with a USG representative, saying that this would go a long way towards cooling tempers.

Barelvi Maulvi Less Complacent

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8. (C) Qari Mian Mazari, a leading Maulvi politician from the moderate Barelvi school, was less complacent than Imam Bukhari. He maintained that Muslim emotions were being fired-up by a steady stream of propaganda from the Urdu press. He pointed out that there are over 100 Urdu newspapers in India with an enormous influence over Muslim attitudes. Mazari claimed that the Iranian Embassy had paid for the placement of 15 anti-Israel/anti-US articles in the Urdu press since hostilities began in Lebanon and planned to continue to spending large sums to play up the Lebanon story. He was particularly angry with the Urdu newspaper ""Nai Duniya (New World),"" which is published by Shahid Siddiqi, a Muslim MP from the Samajwadi Party (SP). Mazari noted that Siddiqi had published a special edition of the paper with 24 pages devoted to the glorification of Hizbollah and had distributed 50,000 copies free of charge throughout India. He claimed that the entire project was funded by Teheran.

9. (C) According to Mazari a loose group of ""wahhabi"" organizations including the Jamaat-Islami, and Jamaat-i-Ulema-i-Hind and the recently-founded ""Peoples' Democratic Front"" of firebrand Shia cleric Kalbe Jawad, have organized protests to follow Friday prayers on August 4. Although these organizations are well-funded, he noted, they have only limited appeal. Mazari agreed with Bukhari that Muslim groups that ""go for the negative"" do not fare well in India. He asserted, however, that Kalbe Jawad's Lucknow following would ensure a sizable turn-out in the Uttar Pradesh capital.

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Muslim Cross-section Angry and Adamant

--------------------------------------

10. (C) On August 2, Poloff met with six Muslims, including a Deobandi Maulvi, a Secretary in All Indian Congress Committee, the leader of a Muslim NGO, and several journalists and Congress party workers to discuss Lebanon/Gaza developments. They expressed happiness with UPA handling of Middle East developments, pointing out that 18 Muslim MPs from various parties met with both the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi to discuss the Lebanon/Gaza issue. In the meeting, the MPs purportedly told the PM and Party President that they unanimously condemned the Israeli actions and urged India to push for an immediate cease fire and for a resolution of all disputes through negotiations rather than armed conflict. The MPs were said to be pleased with their reception and the reassurances provided by Mrs. Gandhi and the PM, who agreed that a committee of Muslim MPs would provide ""advice"" to the GOI on Middle East policy.

11. (C) The group were unhappy with the Urdu media, accusing Urdu newspapers of ""exploiting the feelings of Muslims to encourage sales."" They pointed out that ""educated Muslims"" did not rely on emotions and took a more detached approach to the issues. All agreed that Muslims in India viewed events in Lebanon as a clear case of Israeli aggression. They noted that Muslims may not take out mass processions and protests, but were angry and ""protesting"" in myriads of ways, such as letters to the editor, speeches during Friday prayers and statements in Parliament. They also stated that in Muslim eyes, the US was ""protecting"" Israel and this was increasing anti-US sentiment. They noted that the popular view is that the UN and world opinion had condemned ""Israeli aggression,"" but the US had ignored these developments and ""encouraged Israel to act immorally."" This ""double standard,"" they asserted, had negated all USG Muslim outreach efforts of the past year.

Overlap With the Left

---------------------

12. (C) Muslims are not the only group that has focused on events in Lebanon. India's Leftists have an historic animosity against Israel, routinely link the USG with Israeli policy, and do not want to see New Delhi and Washington growing too close. Their attitude was summed up in a July 26 editorial in ""The Telegraph,"" by veteran journalist KP Nayar, who has close ties to Left. Nayar asserts that the Israeli action against Lebanon mirrors the US policy in Iraq and that both will backfire. He predicted that the Israeli ""aggression"" will destroy Lebanon's nascent democratic government, while increasing the prestige and power of both Hizbollah and Syria. This, he asserted, will reconfigure opposition to Israel into a strict Islamic mode, and Israel will face ""a formidable, wholly radical Islamist enemy in Palestinian territories.""

13. (C) Nayar maintained that this will have a huge impact on Indian Muslims, who will become energized against the US and the budding US/India relationship. As proof, Nayar pointed to a June 22 meeting between two Muslim Congress leaders from Kerala and Party President Sonia Gandhi in which they purportedly ""emphasized to her the need for the UPA to

NEW DELHI 00005470 005.2 OF 006

demonstrate to India's minorities that the country was not cosying up to America."" Nayar asserted that ""from Malaysia to Morocco, for Muslims, America is the number one enemy today. To ignore that sentiment in a country with around 140 million Muslims is to ignore a sizable segment of public opinion.""

But No Intention to Rock the Boat

---------------------------------

14. (C) In an August 2 meeting, veteran journalist Zafar Agha opined that while the Left has traditionally staked out a pro-Palestine stance, it was not going to press the Lebanon/Gaza issue this time. Agha noted that there is a growing consensus among the Left parties that it does no good to overly antagonize the US. This, claimed Agha, stems from the increasing stake that the Left has in managing West Bengal and Kerala and the lack of economic alternatives. The pro-investment camp has purportedly determined that foreign policy issues should not be allowed to endanger foreign investments. Agha maintained that the Left leaders, like the rest of the Indian upper middle class, send their children to study in the US and expect them to land good jobs in American multinationals afterwards and don't want to endanger their future. Thus, he emphasized, the Left will make common cause with the Muslims on Lebanon, but only up to a point and not enough to endanger the status quo.

15. (C) Agha also maintained that the Muslims will ""lie low,"" as they are still reeling from the aftereffects of the Mumbai terrorist attack. The attack focused unwanted attention on the Muslim community and encouraged Hindu nationalists to link Muslims with terrorism. The security apparatus also supposedly engaged in wholesale roundups of Muslims in Mumbai, arresting 2,000 innocent Muslim males and holding them on suspicion, many because they wore skullcaps and beards. Agha stated that with the Mumbai bombing such a recent occurrence, Muslims would not prefer to take to the streets over Lebanon and attract a feared backlash. Describing the Indian Muslim leadership as a ""bunch of mercenaries,"" Agha was all but certain that the GOI/UPA had paid off most prominent leaders to maintain peace, leaving only those on Iran's payroll to sponsor demonstrations.

Has an Impact on the GOI

------------------------

16. (C) Imam Bukhari asserted to his congregation on July 28 that the GOI was rudderless when it came to events in Lebanon as it had grown too close to the US. Stung, and mindful of the electoral clout of Muslims, the GOI moved quickly on August 1 to dispel such notions. In a statement by its official spokesman, the MEA asserted that, ""India strongly condemns the continued irresponsible and indiscriminate bombing of Lebanon by the Israeli military, ignoring calls for restraint. Particularly outrageous is the bombing this morning of a building in Qana in South Lebanon."" The MEA statement went on to call for an ""immediate and unconditional cease-fire."" In addition, Parliament on July 31 passed a unanimous resolution strongly condemning ""the large-scale and indiscriminate bombing by the Zionist Regime on Lebanon,"" and calling for an ""immediate and unconditional cease-fire to prevent further destruction in Lebanon."" These overt condemnations of Israeli policy have yet to have an impact on

NEW DELHI 00005470 006.2 OF 006

burgeoning India/Israel ties. The GOI's quiet, but growing technology and security relationship with Israel continues unabated.

Limited but Noticeable Impact on PA Programs

-------------------------------------------

17. (C) The conflict in Lebanon has had a direct impact on some PA programs, while others have proceeded normally. PA speaker Akram Elias, a Lebanese-American (Christian) in India and part of a program on ""Religious Diversity in the US,"" had two of his speaking engagements canceled due to opposition to US policy in support of Israel. ""Islamic Voice,"" a moderate Muslim magazine in Bangalore canceled his program after receiving letters of protest and threat saying is was inappropriate to have a US-Lebanese speaker now. Saifia College, a Muslim college in Bhopal, also canceled a program citing scheduling problems, although an official informally informed the Embassy it was due to US policy supporting ""Israeli aggression.""

18. (C) Separately, a media outreach program with US speaker Dr. Wais, a scholar on the Urdu language, has proceeded normally in Moradabad (UP), with a DVC with Kashmir University in Srinagar, and a lunch for Muslim Urdu editors in Delhi. Finally, 15 students from Jamia Millia University in Delhi backed out of a planned ""town hall"" meeting with A/S Boucher citing their opposition to US policy in Lebanon.

The Muslim Factor

-----------------

19. (C) Congress came to power on the strength of its oft-proclaimed ""secularism."" It contrasted its attitude towards ""minorities"" (meaning Muslims) with that of the Hindu nationalist BJP. Many commentators have asserted that with the strong overlap in economic and foreign policy between the two parties, this was one undeniable difference. Since coming to power, Congress has tried to win back the Muslim voter from the regional parties to which most Muslims currently claim allegiance. Indian Muslims have demonstrated time and again that they are opposed to the US tilt towards Israel and have strong sympathies with Palestine (and now the people of Lebanon). In the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh (UP), the ruling Samajwadi Party has determined that the best way to maintain Muslim allegiance is to adopt a pro-Iran, pro-Hizbollah, anti-Israel, anti-US stance. While Congress would like to win over the Muslims, it is constrained as to how far it can go, as it does not want to risk alienating the US. At the same time, the Left wing of Congress and the Communist/Socialist parties of the Left front share a deep animosity to US Middle East policy. This has forced the GOI to play a delicate balancing act.

20. (C) Much will depend on the reaction of Indian Muslims to Middle East events. So far, while Muslims are smoldering, their deep resentments have not burst into flame. Demonstrations and public outpouring of emotion have been few. We should expect more demonstrations on August 4 and perhaps throughout the weekend.

21. (U) Visit New Delhi's Classified Website: (http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/sa/newdelhi/)

PYATT

Keywords: Geoffrey Pyatt, cable73697, The India Cables, west asia unrest, India West Asia policy

The Hindu : News / The India Cables : West Asia policy hostage to ‘Muslim vote'

The United Progressive Alliance government's policy towards West Asia is dictated by its anxiety to keep the “politically influential Muslim vote bloc” in good humour, thus forcing it to walk a “tight rope” and refrain from engaging “too deeply” with the region. This is the recurring assessment sent to headquarters by confidential U.S. Embassy cables, accessed by The Hindu through WikiLeaks. New Delhi's reactions to Hamas's election victory in 2006, to Israel's attacks on Lebanon later that year, and to its air strikes on Gaza in 2008 are all interpreted through this lens.

‘GUTLESS’

Communications to Washington from senior American diplomats in the New Delhi Embassy constantly portray India's West Asia policy as being hostage to the Muslim factor in domestic politics. In its bid not to antagonise Muslim voters, the cables explained, the government was forced to play down its “strategic relationship” with Israel.

In one raw cable dated March 31, 2006 (58913: confidential), Ambassador David Mulford characterised India's public position on its relations with Israel as “gutless” and lacking in “moral clarity.” “The underlying straddle of meek statements about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict combined with full-steam-ahead engagement with Israel on practical and strategic matters,” he wrote scathingly, “is unlikely to change. We should not expect any public courage from India anytime soon when it comes to condemning Hamas or reacting on [Ehud] Olmert's recent victory. Pragmatism trumps moral clarity in Delhi's Middle East policy.”

In Mr. Mulford's view, India had “chosen to remain silent” on Mr. Olmert's victory in order “to avoid ruffling Muslim sentiments.” He added: “India will wait until other nations voice their opinions and only then may decide to speak up, if forced or if advantageous to do so, a feature typical of the GOI when it comes to reacting particularly about Middle Eastern issues, given the importance of the Muslim vote bank to the ruling Congress party.”

In a cable dated August 4, 2006 (73697: confidential), a senior U.S. diplomat, Geoff Pyatt, wrote that Indian condemnation of Israeli military actions in Lebanon and Gaza was an attempt to “manage” the Muslim anger over the issue, “conveniently overlooking the increasingly tight security and technology relationship between the two countries.” Another cable, dated December 29, 2008 (184997: confidential), attributed India's strong reaction to Israeli attacks in Gaza to “public consumption.” It was in keeping with “India's past practice of publicly condemning Israeli actions for public consumption, yet privately protecting healthy bilateral relations.”

“The Government of India again walks a tightrope influenced by its election cycle,” the Embassy cable summed up. “It must convey to Israel that it understands Israel's current plight while doing its diplomatic duty to condemn what is seen by many here as oppressive tactics. From time to time Muslim leaders in India organize protests when they feel the GOI has not taken a strong enough stance against Israel during heightened periods of violence, and it is likely that by quickly condemning the air strikes, the Indian government felt it could preempt such demonstrations.”

Keywords: cable58913, cable73697, cable184997, The India Cables, WikiLeaks, Cablegate, West Asia, Muslim countries, UPA government, Muslim vote bank

Saturday, March 5, 2011

"Kashmir Ka Dard" By Dr. Hari Om Panwar (National Awakening)

Uploaded by ShivKumarBhat on Feb 6, 2008

Kashmir Ka Dard is heart rending Patriotic Poem by Dr. Hari Om Panwar Ji, giving true sordid picture of Kashmir and Kashmiri Pandits.
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Kashmiri Pandits (Hindus) meeting Baba Ramdev

Uploaded by undy999 on Jan 24, 2011

No body in India has the Slightest Idea of the persicution kashmiri Pandits have face Not only in the past 20 years but since the time of the mugals....No body has the guts to help them leave alone talking about them....only a pure sole like Guru Tej Bahadurji Stood up for them....Hpe to see people of india change this with the awakening of baba Ramdev.
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Government trying to kill Baba Ramdev. Security cover is tactically remo...

STAR News's exclusive interview with Baba Ramdev

Baba Ramdev Ramlila Ground Ralley 11

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27-02-2011 RAMLILA GROUND BABA RAMDEV BHARAT SWABHIMAN RALLY DELHI

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27-02-2011-BHARAT SWABHIMAN-RALLY-RAMLILA-GROUND-DELHI (5).mp4

27-02-2011-BHARAT SWABHIMAN-RALLY-RAMLILA-GROUND-DELHI, RAJIV DIXIT, SWATANTRATA SANGRAM
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Hindus were burnt in Godhra before: Verdict

Hindus were burnt in Godhra before: Verdict
TNN | Mar 5, 2011, 04.57am IST

AHMEDABAD: The verdict, which gave death to 11 and life terms to 20 in the Godhra carnage case on Tuesday, substantiates the motive of the attack and the conspiracy partly by falling back on Godhra's history of communal riots.

The target of the mob in Godhra on February 27, 2002 was only kar sevaks returning from Ayodhya and not other Hindus travelling on the Sabarmati Express, says the 826-page judgment. Fiftynine passengers of S-6 coach, mainly kar sevaks, were killed that day sparking off riots across the state.

Although judge P R Patel does not pin-point the motive of the attack, he notes, "Godhra is known for its past history of communal riots...For Godhra, this is not the first incident of burning alive innocent persons belonging to Hindu community. Earlier, during many riot incidents in Godhra, persons were burnt alive and shops/houses etc came to be destroyed by fire." He cites 10 incidents of communal riots in Godhra since 1965 and noted that several riots broke out during the rath yatra in 1990 and 1992.

The judge says shouting slogans like 'Pakistan Zindabad', 'Hindustan Murdabad' etc and announcements on loudspeaker from a nearby mosque clearly suggest a motive and pre-planning to attack the train.

The court has substantiated this conclusion by saying: "If the petrol was not kept ready in loose in carboys on previous night near Aman Guest House, it would not have been possible to reach with carboys within 5-10 minutes near S-6 coach...Not possible to gather Muslim persons with deadly weapons within short time to reach near A cabin on the railway tracks".

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Hindus-were-burnt-in-Godhra-before-Verdict/articleshow/7631802.cms

Hindus were burnt in Godhra before: Verdict

Friday, March 4, 2011

Shi'ites stage protests in Saudi oil province -Protesters hold a banner with the faces of prisoners during a demonstration in the Gulf coast town of Awwamiya

Shi'ites stage protests in Saudi oil province -Protesters hold a banner with the faces of prisoners during a demonstration in the Gulf coast town of Awwamiya
Mar 04, 2011 at 01:10
Views (30435) | | | 60 | |

Protesters hold a banner with the faces of prisoners during a demonstration in the Gulf coast town of Awwamiya

March 3, 2011. REUTERS/Zaki Ghawas
By Ulf Laessing, Reuters

QATIF, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - Saudi Shi'ites staged protests in two towns in Saudi Arabia's oil-producing Eastern Province on Thursday, demanding the release of prisoners they say are being held without trial.

Demonstrations of about 100 people were seen in the small Gulf coast town of Awwamiya, as well as in the nearby Shi'ite center of Qatif, demanding the release of those the protesters say were arrested for security reasons and held, in some cases, for more than a decade.

"We want the prisoners free but we also have other demands," said Radi al-Suwaileh, who was in the Qatif march. "We want equality."

They are calling for better access to jobs and to be treated as equals in the ultraconservative kingdom dominated by a rigid form of Sunni Islam, Wahhabism. Shi'ites say that, while their situation has improved under reforms launched by King Abdullah, they still face restrictions in getting senior government jobs.

The government of Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarchy without an elected parliament that usually does not tolerate public dissent, denies these charges.

"We want jobs. I graduated from a U.S. university but did not get a job for 10 months," said one young man who gave his name as Muhammad.

Saudi Arabia's Shi'ite minority mostly live in the east, which holds much of the oil wealth of the world's top crude exporter and is near Bahrain, scene of protests by majority Shi'ites against their Sunni rulers.

More than 2 million Shi'ites are thought to live in the area, and in recent years they have increasingly practiced their own religious rites thanks to the King's reforms.

PROTESTERS SAY DON'T SEEK SYSTEM CHANGE

"We want freedom, we want equality," one woman chanted.

Another clad in black, who called herself Umm Turki, said she wanted her husband, in prison for 13 years, back.

"Peaceful, peaceful," demonstrators in Awwamiya shouted, holding up pictures of Shi'ites they say have been long held without trial, while policemen stood nearby without interfering.

One held a placard saying: "We do not plan to overthrow the system."

In Qatif, a 10 minute drive away, riot police wearing helmets arrived in two troop transport vehicles, blocking protesters from moving further on a main thoroughfare.

Some wielded signs saying: "The reform movement wants reforms," "God is great" and "We want our prisoners free."

Last month, Saudi authorities released three prisoners after a previous protest by Shi'ites in Awwamiya.

Last week, King Abdullah returned to Riyadh after a three-month medical absence and unveiled $37 billion in benefits to help lower- and middle-income people among the 18 million Saudi nationals. It includes pay rises to offset inflation, unemployment benefits and affordable family housing.

The demonstrations in and near Qatif were much smaller than protests staged in 2009 after police launched a search for firebrand Shi'ite preacher Nimr al-Nimr, who had suggested in a sermon that Shi'ites could one day seek a separate state.

The secessionist threat, which analysts say was unprecedented since the 1979 Iranian revolution, provoked anti-government protests, and was followed by clashes between the Sunni religious police and Shi'ite pilgrims near the tomb of Prophet Mohammad in the holy city of Medina.

Since then, Shi'ites say the situation has calmed down but they are still waiting for promised reforms to be carried out.

(Reporting by Ulf Laessing, editing by Elizabeth Fullerton)

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Delhi artist paints Arundhati in the nude

Delhi artist paints Arundhati in the nude

Puts her in bed with Osama and chairman Mao. Says it's his way of protesting against the Booker-winning author for supporting Naxals and Kashmiri separatists

These strokes are enough to give conventionalists a stroke. A naked Arundhati Roy caresses herself as she enjoys a threesome with the two blood thirsty figures of history, Mao and Osama bin Laden, and a voyeur-loving skull looks over their shoulder.

Different strokes: Artist Pranava Prakash with his painting. Pic/Mid Day

Artist Pranava Prakash's 'Goddess of Fifteen Minutes of Fame' sure promises him more than that, as the painter, who was last in news for his controversial nude painting of MF Husain, this time takes on the case of the activist-author as fearlessly as his subject herself.

'Publicity-seeker'
"Arundhati represents all the intellectuals who are selfless promoters of all sorts of causes which can give them publicity. They are dancing to the tune of publicity as a hungry monkey dances to the tune of its master for a banana," explains the painter. He goes on to reason why communist leader Mao and Taliban mastermind Laden needed to be in bed with her: "Arundhati was seen supporting ruthless Naxalites in their war against innocent Indian citizens and then she was hobnobbing with merciless Kashmiri killers who were remorseless in their act."

'Briefs' story
Look at the painting carefully, and you will notice that Mao's underwear shows the hammer and sickle sign of the communist philosophy, which Pranava thinks was "used as an excuse for the large scale killing of dissidents." He is shown reading his famous little red book, and there is a mechanical zip pasted on the corner of Arundhati's lips, "depicting how far our intellectuals are controlled and governed by their masters", in this case Mao and Laden. Coins are stuck all over the canvas, as "a metaphor for all the glitz and glamour associated with being under the limelight all the time." The skull is, in fact, a lamp, the shade of which contains a fragmented part of Jammu and Kashmir.

Brush with trouble

The painter explained its name is borrowed from Arundhati's now famous booker award winning novel "The god of small things", and Andy Warhols's oft referred quote, "In coming time everybody will get fifteen minutes of fame". Prakash took around a month to complete this painting. In the exhibition, which is scheduled from March 22-28 at Lalit Kala Academy will have 15-20 other paintings. MiD DAY contacted Arundhati Roy for comment but she disconnected her phone saying, "I am not talking to the press." MiD DAY dropped an SMS on her mobile number which she did not reply to. Some even allege that in the garb of slamming other public figures, Pranava, himself, is aspiring to be one. But the artist brushes aside these charges. "An artist operates and works within the zone of exalted freedom. The only way he can legitimise his place in society when he stops being neutral and becomes an active participant in all the social debate ¦ may be start a debate on his own, which is exactly what I intend," he said.

And, no amount of criticism will stop him from flirting with controversy in the future. Pranava is ready to stir up another storm with another upcoming work, in which he shows underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and MF Husain in the same frame, juxtaposed with each other.

'Nothing wrong'
Even veteran artists don't see anything wrong in a person expressing his/her thought by painting anyone nude. "It's the artist's way of seeing things and he has freedom of expression. If he paints somebody nude I don't see anything wrong in it," said Subodh Gupta. Other prominent artists too see no harm in painting someone in the nude. However, some feel a creative person can express himself differently. "It is good that the artist liked Arundhati Roy's writing but after seeing her talk about terrorism in Kashmir he was hurt. So he painted her in the nude and I feel he is within his rights. Even the similar trend was seen in foreign country and this form of protest was seen worldwide. But instead of painting her nude an artist could have also portrayed her differently. A creative artist can express himself differently," said Wasim Kapoor, a Kolkata-based painter.

About the artist
Pranava Prakash, who was born in 1979 is an artist working in neo-pop style. Pranava started the "Tuchchart" style with a group of Delhi artists, starting with his Tuchchart show (in 2007) in Delhi.

Pranava is known for his paintings on various socio-political issues like xenophobia. He has done his MBA from Institute of Management Technology, Ghaziabad and MBBS from Nalanda Medical College, Patna.

Arundhati Roy's controversies
Support for Kashmiri separatism
In an interview with a leading Indian newspaper, published in August 2008, Arundhati Roy expressed her support for the independence of Kashmir from India after massive demonstrations following the Amarnath land transfer controversy. According to her, the rallies were a sign that Kashmiris desire secession from India. She was criticised by both the Congress and BJP for her remarks.

Sardar Sarovar Project
Roy has campaigned along with activist Medha Patkar against the Narmada dam project, saying that it will displace half a million people, with little or no compensation and other benefits. Roy donated her Booker prize money as well as royalties from her books on the project to the Narmada Bachao Andolan. Roy also appears in Franny Armstrong's Drowned Out, a 2002 documentary about the project. Roy's opposition to the Narmada Dam project was criticised as "maligning Gujarat" by Congress and BJP leaders in the state.

US foreign policy, the War in Afghanistan
In a 2001 opinion piece in a British newspaper, Roy responded to the US military invasion of Afghanistan, finding fault with the argument that this war would be retaliation for the September 11 attacks. She disputes U.S. claims of being a peaceful and freedom-loving nation, listing China and nineteen 3rd World "countries that America has been at war with - and bombed - since the second world war", as well as previous U.S. support for the Taliban movement and support for the Northern Alliance (whose "track record is not very different from the Taliban's").

India's nuclear weaponisation
In response to India's testing of nuclear weapons in Pokhran, Rajasthan, Roy wrote The End of Imagination (1998), a critique of the Indian government's nuclear policies. It was published in her collection The Cost of Living (1999), in which she also crusaded against India's massive hydroelectric dam projects in the central and western states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

Criticism of Israel
In August 2006, Roy, along with Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, and others, signed a letter in The Guardian called the 2006 Lebanon War a "war crime" and accused Israel of "state terror." In 2007, Roy was one of more than 100 artists and writers who signed an open letter initiated by Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism and the South West Asian, North African Bay Area Queers and calling on the San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival "to honour calls for an international boycott of Israeli political and cultural institutions, by discontinuing Israeli consulate sponsorship of the LGBT film festival and not cosponsoring events with the Israeli consulate."

2001 Indian Parliament attack
Roy has raised questions about the investigation into the 2001 Indian Parliament attack and the trial of the accused. She called for the death sentence of Mohammad Afzal to be stayed and denounced press coverage of the trial. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has criticised Roy for what it alleges is defence of a terrorist going against the national interest.

The Muthanga incident
In 2003, the Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha, a social movement for adivasi land rights in Kerala, organised a major land occupation at a former Eucalyptus plantation in the Muthanga Wildlife Reserve. After 48 days, a police force was sent into the area to evict the occupants-one participant of the movement and a policeman were killed, and the leaders of the movement were arrested. Arundhati Roy travelled to the area, visited the movement's leaders in jail, and wrote an open letter to the then Chief Minister of Kerala, AK Antony, saying "You have blood on your hands."

Comments on 2008 Mumbai attacks
Roy has argued that the November 2008 Mumbai attacks cannot be seen in isolation, but must be understood in the context of wider issues in the region's history and society such as widespread poverty, the Partition of India, the atrocities committed during the 2002 Gujarat violence, and the ongoing conflict in Kashmir. Her remarks were strongly criticised by Salman Rushdie and others, who condemned her for linking the Mumbai attacks with Kashmir and economic injustice against Muslims in India.

Criticism of Sri Lanka
In an opinion piece, once again in a British newspaper (April 1, 2009), Roy made a plea for international attention to what she called a possible government-sponsored genocide of Tamils in Sri Lanka. She cited reports of camps into which Tamils were being herded as part of what she described as "a brazen, openly racist war." Ruvani Freeman, a Sri Lankan writer called Roy's remarks "ill-informed and hypocritical" and criticised her for "whitewashing the atrocities of the LTTE."

Views on the Naxals
Roy has criticised government's armed actions against the Maoists, calling it "war on the poorest people in the country". According to her, the government has "abdicated its responsibility to the people" and launched the offensive against Naxals to aid the corporations with whom it has signed MoUs.

'Husain framed'
In August 2009, MiD DAY reported how the same artist, Dr Pranava Prakash, an Institute of Management Technology (IMT) alumnus, created a canvas that shows a female artist painting MF Husain, as he stands framed against his trademark works. In the painting, Husain is depicted standing with a weasel and a palette. And the artist's inspiration for this controversial painting seems to be a group of woman painters who had taken offence at the master's depiction of the fairer sex in uncompromising positions.

The artist said his paintings reflect his anger against those who disrespect women and justify violence against the fairer sex in the name of tradition. "There has been an increase in attacks on women in the name of moral policing. It is nothing but male chauvinism. The hooligans who attacked the pub in Mangalore in January said they were angered by girls drinking and having fun. But they conveniently chose to ignore boys who were doing the same. Does Western culture corrupt girls alone? This duplicity is the distorted face of modern Indian tradition. And I oppose this," said Dr Prakash. The exhibition was inaugurated on Independence Day, at All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society (AIFACS), in New Delhi.

Colour code
Other artwork by Pranava Prakash, which will be exhibited at Lalit Kala Academy between 22 and 28 March:
Ultimate Justice
Hero of India's freedom struggles and messiah of non-violence Mahatma Gandhi pointing a gun towards the biggest 'treasure-hunter' India has seen former union telecommunication minister A Raja, this composition invites instant participation from viewers and raise simple but strong emotions. This is a humble composition with strong imagery and show of abject frustration of middle class towards nexus of business and politics who are looting public money. It is a mix of sketch and some broad brush stroke. Mahatma's act is quite against his thought but artist who himself is a practising Gandhian, says it is not as if Mahatma is endorsing violence but it shows a state of defeat and disbelief Mahatma would have gone through if he had been at all to India of our times.
India's Most Beloved Sons
The picture depicts MF Husain in the nude, being painted by a women artist. True to the style of socio-pop this is again a composition depicting Dawood Ibrahim and MF Hussain in the same frame, juxtaposed to each other. The artist is very forthcoming in his saying that the act of MF Husain leaving India was an act of disbelief in Indian Judicial System. And it is common with Dawood Ibrahim, both of whom have fled the nation to escape trial.

Pink Chaddi Campaign
The Pink Chaddi Campaign was a non-violent protest movement launched in India in February 2009 in response to notable incidences of violent conservative and right-wing activism against perceived violations of Indian culture, when a group of women were attacked in a pub in Mangalore. The campaign was conceived particularly in protest against a threat by Pramod Muthalik of the Sri Ram Sene, an orthodox Hindu group. This protest was started by four young women, who asked people to send pink underwear to Muthalik's office on Valentine 's Day.

Peta protest
In October 2009, wearing body suits splattered in red and masks of a cow and a horse, activists of an animal rights group painted a gory picture of animal slaughter to protest the international leather fair that begun in Delhi. Their aim was to sensitise people about animal cruelty and to raise awareness that leather is dead skin. The protest was held in Pragati Maidan, the venue as the leather fair. PETA group dressed as a "skinned cow" and a "skinned horse" and slept in an open show box which had tags of well known leather products.

Naked rage
In October last year, an ex-BSF soldier marched naked in protest against injustice. Ashok Kumar Sirohi alleged that he was ill-treated by his department and was expelled on medical grounds. Sirohi claims that he is fit and ready for his job. The jawan and his young kids marched naked through the heart of the city as a mark of protest. Ashok wanted to meet Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi but the cops detained him while he was walking naked on Rajpath. Ashok threatened that if he didn't get his job back, he would commit suicide.

Online outcry
Founded in 2010, 'Choosna Bandh' campaign was launched on Facebook when a retired Air Force officer and his son were allegedly assaulted for standing up against the corrupt practices of the Sector 33, Noida Registrar's office on November 19 last year by the sub-registrar (RK Gautam), the General Secretary Deed Writers & Bar Association (Lakhi Chand Sharma) and their goons, in full public view. They caught them on camera taking bribes, and were going to report them to the police.

Silent and sound
In February, Mangalore witnessed a unique protest. Around one lakh Christians and secular-minded people marched with black flags in hand and black cloth tied to their mouth, indicating silent protest against church attacks in 2008. The march went on from the Jyothi Circle to the Central Grounds on 20th of February 2011. It was organised by the Catholic Diocese of Mangalore together with different Churches and secular-minded associations. It took around one and a half hour for the entire procession to reach the Central Grounds.

Dangerous to know: India’s Right to Information Act

NEW DELHI: Soon after he exposed how bricks were bought for six times their value for roads that were never built in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, Amarnath Pandey was shot near his home.

The bullet, which he believes was fired by contractors who were benefiting from the brick scam, clipped his ear and grazed his skull, leaving him in hospital for weeks.

Pandey, 56, a doctor from Robertsganj, a sleepy city 400 miles (640 kilometres) from New Delhi, has been fighting for better civic amenities in the area for more than two decades.

He used India’s new Right to Information (RTI) Act, passed in 2005, to find out why roads were not being constructed despite funds allocated by the government – and the facts he discovered nearly cost him his life.

“I found that 100 bricks that costs 400 rupees (eight dollars) were shown to be purchased at 2,400 rupees. Money was conveniently being siphoned off and roads were never built,” Pandey told AFP.

“The contractors involved in the wrongdoing resisted my efforts and decided to kill me,” he said after undergoing surgery for his gunshot wounds.

No one has yet been arrested over the attack in January.

Pandey refuses to be put off and is determined to unearth other corruption scams using RTI, a law introduced to promote accountability and good government through giving open access to official data.

It was hailed as a major breakthrough for India’s bureaucratic and graft-ridden public service culture, but few people foresaw the violence that the RTI act would unleash.

At least 11 people were killed, or died in unexplained circumstances, last year after exposing corruption in public utilities, mining, food distribution and unauthorised water and electricity hookups, according to RTI activist groups in New Delhi.

In July 2010, environment activist Amit Jethwa, from the western state of Gujarat, was shot dead by two men on a motorbike outside a court.

Jethwa, 35, had been using the RTI act for two years to fight against illegal mines operating inside the Gir lion sanctuary, the only natural habitat of the endangered Asiatic lions.

“My son dared to ask questions and his fate was sealed by two bullets,” Jethwa’s father Bhiku Batawala told AFP.

Hundreds of other whistleblowers have been attacked, threatened or harassed for pursuing similar crusades, said Manish Sisodia of Kabir, a voluntary organisation who has been spreading awareness about RTI to encourage its use.

The organisation has initiated a “RTI-brotherhood” campaign to provide safety to whistleblowers.

In the latest case, the daughter-in-law of a man who exposed a pension scam in Haryana state was allegedly murdered by a village council head whose role in the corruption had been exposed.

“Mahabir Singh along with his friends had filed RTI to expose the district-wide misappropriation of funds carried out by the village head Dharamvir Malik,” the Times of India reported on February 14.

“Malik and his associates retaliated by beating up Singh and running their vehicle over his 25-year-old daughter-in-law, Sonu, who later died in the hospital.”Last September, justice minister Veerappa Moily called murdered RTI activists “martyrs” and said action was needed to protect those who exposed wrong-doing.

The government now plans to propose the new law in the current parliamentary session, but RTI activists say delays in the police’s response would still provide ample opportunity for any “vested interest” to plot their revenge.

The Bihar Human Rights Commission, a government body working in the eastern state of Bihar released a report last year on harassment of people who made RTI requests and asked the government to suspend 54 guilty officers.

The commission said no action had been taken over the misconduct in Bihar, one of the most underdeveloped states in India.

Sumankant Raichaudhari, a teacher in Bihar’s capital city, Patna, says he has filed 150 applications to find out more about money budgeted for government schools and whether it was all being used on students.

The authorities reacted by trying to bribe him and, when that failed, they threatened to kidnap his teenage daughter, he said.

“I filed a police complaint against the two government officers but no one has been arrested,” Raichaudhari told AFP.

Mumbai-based Sumaira Abdulali, who founded the Movement against Intimidation, Threats and Revenge against Activists, has been attacked twice for exposing a multi-million-dollar sand mining scam allegedly involving politicians, civil servants and police.

“I fought to expose how our government is infected with corruption and greed and now I fight to save my life,” said Abdulali, who had filed a court case against her attackers in 2004.

Abdulali says she is not optimistic the new “whistleblowers” bill would help.

“A few determined people will continue their fight, some will be killed in the process but I worry about the day when people will give up this challenge of cleaning up the system.” – AFP

Read more: india politcs, right to information act
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2 Responses to " Dangerous to know: India’s Right to Information Act "
Xyz says:
Yesterday at 6:00 pm

This is neccesary to curb corruption… In the recent times massive scandals involving huge money is uncovered and mended in india this shows that people has started asking questions!!!
This battle will soon become corrupt politician vs determined public.
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ABC says:
Yesterday at 7:32 pm

I can think of this as some sort of cleansing in the corrupt political system, which is necessary. As more and more scams get exposed and more and more culprits punished, gradually system would be come cleaner. I am sorry to say, but politics is like a contagious disease in these south-asian countries which no one wants to be inflicted with.
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Christians across Pakistan protest Bhatti’s killing

ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of Pakistani Christians demonstrated Thursday against the slaying of a Catholic government minister who had long been their most prominent advocate in the Muslim-majority country, burning tires, demanding justice and even shouting for “a revolution”.

Shahbaz Bhatti, 42, was gunned down in the capital, Islamabad, after receiving death threats because he had urged Pakistan to reform harsh laws that impose the death penalty for insulting Islam. Bhatti was the second Pakistani politician killed in two months over the blasphemy issue. On Jan. 4, Punjab Gov. Salman Taseer was shot dead by one of his own bodyguards who disagreed with his view that the laws need to be changed.

As the government declared three days of official mourning, Christians hit the streets.

In Rawalpindi, a city near the capital, thick clouds of smoke rose from burning tires, while some 300 protesters chanted that Bhatti’s assassins must be brought to justice. One woman shouted that Bhatti’s killers were “defaming the image of Islam and trying to demolish my country of Pakistan.”

In the central city of Multan, about 150 Muslims and Christians staged a peaceful protest, saying Bhatti’s sacrifice would not be in vain.

Christians are the largest religious minority in Pakistan, where 95 per cent of some 180 million people are Muslim. They have little political power. As Taliban violence and extremist ideas have spread, Christians and other religious minorities have increasingly wondered if they have a future here.

“We also do our best to serve society like other citizens, but we also deserve to be treated equally like others,” said Bhatti’s brother-in-law Yousuf Nishan as he received mourners and helped prepare for the slain politician’s Friday funeral.

In the wake of Bhatti’s murder, clerics preferred to talk of conspiracies involving “foreign hands,” though some offered lukewarm condemnations of the murder of a man described as humble, low-profile and devoted to representing the downtrodden.

The statements came even though pamphlets signed by al-Qaeda and the Taliban were found at the scene claiming responsibility for the murder.

“I am afraid that this could be an American conspiracy to defame the government of Pakistan, Muslims and Islam,” said Rafi Usmani, who bears the title of grand mufti of Pakistan.

Some Islamist leaders and elements in Pakistan’s media suggested that the assassination was a way for the US to deflect attention from the case of Raymond Allen Davis, a CIA security contractor who is accused of killing two Pakistanis but whom Washington insists has diplomatic immunity.

Senior Pakistani officials issued condemnations of the attack on Bhatti, denouncing extremism but not mentioning the blasphemy issue. The governing Pakistan People’s Party has said it was not going to touch the statutes, which human rights groups have long deplored.

Analysts say the politicians have to be careful on the subject to avoid getting killed and because the government is too weak to stir Islamist backlash.

The US, which strongly condemned Bhatti’s assassination, has pressed Pakistan to work against extremism.

Black money: What the hell is going on in this country, fumes SC

The Supreme Court today came down heavily on the Centre for failing to crack the whip on black money hoarders and ordered forthwith the reinstatement of three key Enforcement Directorate officials allegedly transferred midway into the probe in a case of foreign exchange law violation by Pune businessman Hasan Ali Khan.

A Bench of Justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar also indicated that if the government fails to act, it would be compelled to appoint a special officer to supervise the probe against the offenders.

The apex court also wanted to know what prevented the government from subjecting Khan and other alleged black money launderers to custodial interrogation.

Khan, who is alleged to have stashed around USD 8 billion in foreign banks, had been earlier served tax notice for about Rs 50,000 crore.

The court castigated the government for failing to interrogate Khan and other alleged offenders despite having sufficient material in the possession of investigators.

"There are instances when minor offenders are shot down for violating Section 144 CrPC, but you don't take any action against these people. We are very sorry. All these people are now free," the Bench remarked expressing its dismay.

When Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium tried to make certain submissions, the Bench virtually snubbed him, saying, "What the hell is going on in this country."

It then said it was very unfortunate that the three key officials of the Enforcement Directorate investigating the black money scandal have been abruptly transferred midway into the investigation.

The Bench granted time till Tuesday to the Centre to file its response failing which it said the court would be constrained to pass necessary orders.

The apex court had on February 10, while hearing a petition by noted lawyer Ram Jethmalani and some former bureaucrats on the issue of black money of Indians stashed abroad and its repatriation, had asked the government to ensure that Khan does not leave the country.

"It is your duty to ensure that he is available to face prosecution," the court had said when Subramanium informed it that Khan is in India and the government is taking all necessary steps against him.

The Bench also queried whether the stud farm owner can be made a party to the proceedings before it.

Supreme Court strikes down P J Thomas as vigilance chief

The Supreme Court on Thursday quashed the appointment of P J Thomas as the Chief Vigilance Commissioner, thereby answering decisively the question over his eligibility to sit on that chair since he faces a criminal case in Kerala.

In what comes as an embarrassment for the UPA government, the court said the recommendation made by the Prime Minister's high-powered committee to appoint Thomas did not consider the relevant material (case against him) and as such its advice “does not exist in law”.

The Bench of Chief Justice S H Kapadia and Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Swatantar Kumar also ignored a desperate plea from Thomas himself that he was a man of 'impeccable integrity'.

The Supreme Court was extremely critical of the Prime Minister's panel that appointed Thomas to the post overruling strong opposition from its only BJP member Sushma Swaraj.

The apex court said the PM panel's appointment of Thomas was against the 'institutional integrity' that the CVC stands for. The court said the panel's choice amounted to 'official arbitrariness'.

The apex court was scathing in its observation that the PM panel's recommendation was not an 'informed decision'.

The court observed: “We declare that the recommendation made by the high-powered committee is non-est in law. Which means that the recommendations made on September 3, 2010 does not exist in law. Consequently, the appointment of Thomas goes."

The court also observed: "The high-powered committee has to take into consideration what is good for the institution and not for the candidate. The touchstone is public interest.”

The court further said the CVC is a "high integrity institution". "If selection affects institutional competency, it was the duty of the high-powered committee to not recommend such a candidate," the Bench observed.

The court said the committee failed to consider relevant material against Thomas and the entire focus was on his bio-data and that none of the government bodies focussed on the larger issue of institutional integrity.

The Bench severely criticised the committee for not considering the relevant material, including the pending criminal case against Thomas in the palmolein import case and the recommendations of the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) between 2000-04 for initiating disciplinary proceedings against him.

The court rejected the contention of Thomas and the government that the appointment of CVC cannot be brought under judicial review and said the legality of the recommendation can very much be reviewed by it.

The Bench also rejected the government's contention that vigilance clearance given by the CVC in 2008 was the basis for empanelment of Thomas as a candidate for the post of the CVC.

While observing that the touchstone for the appointment of CVC is the institutional integrity as well as the personal integrity of the candidate, the court said in future, appointments should not be restricted to civil servants alone but people of impeccable integrity from other fields should also be considered.

The Bench said if there is a dissent note by any of the three members of the high-power panel, it has to be given with sufficient reasons and has to be considered by a majority.

Further, the majority should also give reasons for their decision as this will lead to a transparent process in public interest and also inspire public confidence, it said.

The Bench said, "It is surprising that there were notings by the DoPT between 2000 and 2004 and all observed that penalty proceedings be instituted against Thomas. Such notings were not considered in the case of Thomas, who was given the CVC's clearance on September 6, 2008.

"No reference of such notings made between 2000 and 2004 is there. Therefore, on personal integrity, the high-powered committee did not consider the relevant material."

"We are concerned with the institution and its integrity but not with the individual," the Bench stressed, adding the impartiality of the institution has to be maintained which is envisaged in the CVC Act.

A PIL filed by an NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) and retired bureaucrats and police officials, including former Chief Election Commissioner J M Lyngdoh, had challenged Thomas' appointment to the post in view of a pending criminal case against him in a Kerala court.

Thomas was appointed CVC on September 7 last year.

Thomas has contested the PIL contending that he was appointed to the post in view of the vigilance clearance given to him before his appointment as Secretary in the Union government.

Further, the embattled CVC had said the corruption case pending against him in the Kerala Court was a result of political rivalry between former Chief Minister K Karunakaran and present Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan.

The petitioners had contended Thomas cannot be considered as a person of "impeccable integrity" as a chargesheet was filed against him in palmolein import scam when he was a secretary in the Kerala Ministry of Food and Civil Supplies. He had secured bail from a local court.

The petitioners also said he could not be appointed CVC on account of "conflict of interest" as till recently he was serving as Telecom secretary and that there was the allegation that he was involved in an alleged "cover-up" of 2G spectrum scam.

P,J.Thomas
By: Dr.A.Padmanabhan | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:49:08 PM
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I dont know if Mr. PJ Thomas is a corrupt man or not. But most of our politicians are corrupt and many of the Cabinet decisions made both in the states and centre are of dubious intent. Is the message now sent out that the Cabinet Secretaries and Chief secretaries need not sign on the order unless they are also convinced the cabinet decisions are above board. If a chief Secretary refused to sign a Cabinet decision will the Supreme court come to his rescue?
PAAH!!
By: Sudhir P, Gurgaon | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:34:03 PM
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I don't understand why are there so many protests against this UPA government. In the last 6-7 years there may have been scams, inflation going up beyond 25% and government saying they are helpless, foreigners being preferred over Indian companies etc - so what? These things happen everywhere. Moreover, the entire opposition, including BJP, BJD, AIADMK, Left, SP, LJD etc, are behaving like a responsible opposition by not bring down the government because, the government has another objective to fullfil, in which the entire opposition is supporting the government. THE OBJECTIVE IS THAT 99 % OF THE POPULATION, EXCLUDING INDUSTRIALISTS, BUSINESSMEN, UPPER CLASS, MUST HAVE THE PAUSHTIK PEELI MATAR DAL. JAI HO PEELI MATAR DAL KI.
Jai Supreme court
By: Ravi | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:32:30 PM
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Right decision. Can't see how the govt could uphold the need for unquestionableness of the position, considering what it stands for. The fact of Thomas being guity or otherwise does not arise at all, since this position assumes that the person be seen guilty unless proven otherwise.
and they all fall down..............
By: conscience | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:31:15 PM
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The great (maybe greatest?) GOI could only find Mr Thomas - there was not a single honest man they could locate in the whole country!!! What a fine state of affairs for the 2nd most populous country in the world. What kind of filters and lenses do these people - who happen to be our representatives - use for the selection process?? Lenses specially coated with corruption manufactured especially for politicians and babus.....
wait and see further
By: amoghavarsha.ii | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:31:06 PM
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look at this senario, in comming days, if SC decides that PJ thomas is not guilty (even remotely ) in Palmolive case and 2G scam. what will happen to this court order. Will SC review this Order???? Will PJ thomas (honest or not) will get back his post of CVC which is a high in his career? We all know SC has made innumerable mistakes previously and not even appologised? By the time the sole loser in this would be PJ tomas and to some extent people for not using good officers. SC will lose nothing, nothing and nothing will continue to be alof.
Namjoshi
By: Purushottam | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:28:43 PM
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Good bye Thomas. Dear Thomas, It was very unfortunate for you that you had to go unceremoniously. This is India. To involve one self with a woman or a politician is one and the same thing. Why you waited till verdict from Apex Court. You had been the Chief Secretary of Kerala state and Principal Secretary of the Union government and could have heard the foot falls of time and ought to have resigned long back. But you were made scapegoat by the Congress whole sole, P.M. and Home Minister. Really they were kidding with you. We understand that you might not be greedy about that post but you spoiled your image by remaining on that post till your appointment was not declared illegal. Though heaven falls on some one but he should never be a puppet in any one%u2019s hand. Have always manliness. Now you wait for few days to get ticket for Rajaya Sabha so that you will be elected member of the Upper House and will be more powerful also. You will get a berth in the cabinet as elections in kerala are not far away. Congress always advocates following policies and principles of Mahatma Gandhi that not only aim but means should also be pious and fair. But in fact it has nothing to do with Gandhiji%u2019s policies and principles as to get votes are the only object. Since you belong to Kerala Congress may think that you it may get votes if you become a minister. Wish you to be so. No fault with you, sometimes a man becomes Penny wise Pound foolish. May be so but take advantage of every situation and get rewarded as there are so many persons of vested interest who can reward you. All the best wishes to you as a gentle man.
Own RESPONSIBILITY
By: Dr. M K Sridhar | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:28:14 PM
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Thank God, sanity has been restored finally by the Supreme Court. For 6 months Mr. Thomas held the highest post of vigilence without required legality. No amount of justification like majority decision, political vindictiveness stood the test of law. If some probity and decorum are still left, PM and HM should own responsibility for the fiasco and resign. Or is it too much to expect?
Supreme Court should give general direction to all public sector undertaking for giving a report on promotions as per seniority
By: S.Jaganathan | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:25:06 PM
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Political parties fight for big position like this. See the position of officers in Public sector undeetakings are treated like slaves as no god father is there for them. If Supreme Court interfears, fairness can be ensured.
Wisdom at last!
By: Sreekumar, Varathra | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:19:15 PM
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Kudos to IE for taking a bold stand in the issue. P J Thomas goes, but he is not guilty in this matter (he is alleged to be guilty only in Palmolien case). Who is the guilty and who should resign, then? What about the "impeccable integrity" of those who chose him? What action is possible to re-build the trust of the people on those highest offices which are directly involved in the decision to appoint a tainted person as CVC? Or, shall we, as usual, forget everything and get along indulging in growth rate euphoria?
CVC
By: Vijendra | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:15:13 PM
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Thank god, we have supreme court to monitor these politicians misdeeds. Atleast now the Prime Minister wake up to his image of cleanlyness, and start thinking as an Indian, and not to obey the orders of Italian.

Overreaching by the Supreme Court
By: Gautam Fotedar | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:10:46 PM
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Although the appointment of P J Thomas as CVC was not wise, the SC's decision to quash the appointment is not appropriate either. It is a clear violation of division of powers. The SC is over-reaching. The SC is interfering in a decision that can be made only by elected representatives of the people.
Congress (UPA) and Art of Corruption...
By: manch | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:08:35 PM
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It only proves Congress (and it allies like Pawar) will go to any extent to perpetuate corrupt practices by planting their "own men" at key posts to cover up their grand stealing. They badly needed person like Thomas whom they can blackmail to follow their corrupt orders and deeds. God willing, soon true story behind 2G Scam, CWG scam, Sharp hike in food prices, Brewing Cricket scams, Congress' role in Bhopal Gas etc. (just too many to enumerate) will be out. This will be a very good thing for common man when the politicians of this country (including BJP and others) will know that they cannot get away after looting the nation and treating the nation as their fiefdom.
cvc
By: narendran | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:05:58 PM
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Next.
CPIL and CVC
By: Amrita | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:04:31 PM
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The learned bench has dwelled on some key issues, appointment inspite of strong objections, the need to ensure institutional integrity and the touchstone being public interest. I hope that the UPA government listens carefully cos the man and woman on the street is happy hearing this.Maybe greater care will be taken next time. The courts are having to intervene in all kinds of matters which do matter to the general public even if they are seemingly at a distance. Thank you centre for public interest litogation for that PIL.
Slap on the face of the Govt.
By: H.R. Sreepada Bhagi | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 12:04:03 PM
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The SC judgment is a slap on the face of the PM & UPA Govt. Role of the Congress President should also be probed in this regard. Why a high powered committee was required to select a tainted person to head an organisation, which is there to ensure the system is clean and if not, to clean the system itself. It's a shame on the clean PM & his team. In the meantime the SC should also look in to why the decade old case is still pending against the CVC in a Kerala court.
slap on the face of government
By: SMNAHAR | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:59:16 AM
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THIS APPOINTMENT WAS WAITING THIS FATE FROM LAST SEVERAL MONTHS.THE COURT HAD GIVEN A GOOD ENOUGH TIME TO RECTIFY THE FOLLY BUT THE GOVERNMENT AND IT`S MASTER WERE NOT ONLY ARROGENT BUT WERE NOT ASHAMED FOR THEIR DEADS.THE WHOLE OF INDIA WERE SEEING THIS DRAMA, WERE CONFIDENT OF WHAT THE LEGISTATURE CAN NOT RECTIFY IT WAS THE COURT ,WHO IS SUPREAME AND STILL UNCURREPTED,CAN PUT THESE PEOPLE ON RIGHT PLACE.THIS IS THE FIRST SLAP ON THE FACE OF THIS CURRUPT GOVERNMENT. PLEASE WAIT FOR THE SAME TREATMENT IN MANY A SCHAMES,WHICH ARE GOING IN THIS SAME MANNER.JAI-HIND
shame on congress !!
By: anand | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:55:00 AM
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this is the best ruling by the honest and honorable judges of the supreme court, may god bless them, my faith in the idea of india is regained, i also thank the opposition leader Mrs. Swaraj on her persistent and dogmatic efforts on the PJ Thomas issue, may god bless her !! we the people of india are overjoyed by this decision, now PJ Thomas should be jailed, i am also sure that he was a main player in the 2G scam !!
C V C
By: R C Desai | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:52:13 AM
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Thank God we have an indepedent Judiciary. one more Certificate(!) to our Prime Minister and Congress. What have you to say Mr. DigvijaySinh?
good steps of the SC to quash the Thomas' appointment
By: vegan inc NGO | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:40:54 AM
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to appreciate the SC as well as also slap an assets enquiry
mr. manmohan you are a shame for this country
By: ramachandran | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:38:47 AM
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In every aspect mr. manmohan ssingh government is proving that it is the biggest shame for this country. a corrupt team can appoint only corrupt people. in the case of spectrum raja, former chief justice of india mr balakrishnan and now mr thomas. mr manmohan singh should quit his post by taking moral responsibility of every corruption cases and irregularity of his time. OR THE PUBLIC SHOULD REACT LIKE IN EGYPT, TUNISIA OR IN LIBYA.

An historic decision
By: vishwas | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:38:23 AM
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This is a confirmation that the UPA government has reached a new low in its moral standing. By willfully appointing and pushing a person who would have diluted the position of the CVC, the UPA showed its arrogance and lack of concern for clean governance. The silver lining on this dark cloud is the sliver of hope remaining in the supreme court - which itself has been marred badly by the actions of its previous chief justice.
WISHES
By: THAHIRALI POROPPAD | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:38:06 AM
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I THINK TOO LITE ITS OK WISH U ALL THE SUCCESSES
The Prime Minister should take moral responsibility and resign
By: KSV SUBRAMANIAN | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:37:05 AM
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The Prime Minister and the Home Minister were adamant on appointment of tainted Thomas despite strong objection by the opposition member in the selection committee. If they have any probity in public life and honesty left in them they should also resign as the decision of Supreme Court is also an indictment of their act in appointing Thomas overruling the objection of opposition member. There is every reason to suspect the motive in the appointment of Thomas as the government is totally engulfed in several corruption charges of gigantic proportion which they want to cover up by hook or crook so that the plundering of the nation can be continued without any let or hindrance.
Another Slap
By: Vijaya Dar | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:35:13 AM
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Another slap on the face of our PM of the so-called unquestionable "integrity".I wonder how many such slaps are required to wake him up from his Kumbhakaran like slumber. The country is in the hands of a Ravana, this time disguised as a woman, and she has a much larger horde than the monkey army of the opposition. Ram Rajya is a distant and unattainable goal in this Maha Kaliyug.
Who cares
By: shyam | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:27:56 AM
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PJ Thomas represent the powerful catholic church in Kerala . With the church help the UPA has won last Parlementry election .UPA has suceeded in dividing Kerala -The most progressive state in India, communaly Appointing PJ thomas as CVC as a note of thanks for the Church . Who care for if he is corrupt or note . We just need votes for the coming Assembly election .
Shameless Thomas
By: N Kumaraswamy | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:26:41 AM
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Will the shameless CVC,Thomas,quit now or wait till he is forcibly confined to Tihar Jail?Hon Supreme court assures this nation that it will protect the innocent people from criminals and incompetent but selfish politicians like the sardarji,our spineless PM and the cunning HM,Chidambaram,. Hail Supreme court.
SC on CVC appointment
By: Ramesh | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:24:06 AM
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If some shame and honour is still left, then this PM should quit immediately
B
By: Rajan | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:22:46 AM
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PM should go owning ethical & moral responsibility if he has any ethic & moral left in him.
Supreme Court strikes down P J Thomas as vigilance chief
By: ARVIND KUMAR | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:08:54 AM
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It is shameful for both the UPA government and Congress party. They have appointed Mr Thomas as CVC despite reservations from the leader of opposition.
CVC
By: Girish Pillai | Thursday , 3 Mar '11 11:07:33 AM
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This shows how weak and inefficcient and insincere our PM and Mr. Chidambaram is in reality.They wanted PJ Thomas to cover up scandals and scams. It is ridiculus for PM to continue as PM and UPA to continue ruling India. Shame !!!!

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