Indian Government, Anna Hazare Reach Agreement

After two nights in Tihar Jail and hard bargaining, Anna Hazare and Indian Government reached an agreement on early morning of 18 August under which Delhi Police removed all restrictions and allowed him to carry out his hunger strike for a fortnight in the spacious Ramlila Maidan, Delhi. The breakthrough in the battle of attribution between the two sides came in the wee hours of the day after top aides of Hazare met Delhi Police Commissioner Brijesh Gupta and reached an agreement.
The deal marks a major climb down from government and police's earlier insistence that the fast would be allowed at J.P. Park, a smaller venue, only for three days with maximum of 5,000 protesters in addition to a number of other conditions.
Result of Hard Negotiations
The agreement came more than 40 hours after Hazare's arrest of 16 August and release the same night. However, the Gandhian refused to come out of the jail, continued his fast and carried out hard negotiations from Tihar through his emissaries.
Activist Kiran Bedi tweeted that Hazare has accepted the Delhi Police offer of 15 days and announced that he will go to Ramlila Maidan after 1500.
However, another close aide of the 73-year-old Gandhian said this morning that it may not be possible for Hazare to launch his protest from the Ramlila Ground Thursday as the venue was full of muck and needs cleaning up.
Confirming the deal, Home Secretary R K Singh said: ‘Delhi Police and Anna Hazare Team have agreed on the venue, duration, conditions etc.’
‘Delhi Police and the Anna Hazare team worked out between themselves this agreement. The Delhi Police has no problem in giving 15 days time and the 15 days also suits the Anna Team,’ he said.
Kejriwal said Hazare does not want to go before proper arrangements are made at the fast venue because once the crowd gather, it would be difficult to put in place proper facilities.
He stated that arrangements like erection of tents and provision of drinking water facilities were being made. He said that Hazare's health was perfectly all right and doctors from Medanta Medicity headed by Naresh Trehan have already checked him and certified him fit.
Last night, Hazare refused a check up by doctors from GB Pant Hospital apprehending that they may remove him from the jail on health grounds.
Asserting that the government has bowed down to people's pressure, Kejriwal said: ‘We have just entered the battle, a long fight remains.’
He appealed to the government to give a chance to the Jan Lokpal [Ombudsman bill] draft prepared by the civil society for Parliament to discuss.
‘People have a right to say what draft will go to Parliament. They are supreme in democracy,’ he said rejecting government's contention that civil society cannot make law. Kejriwal also attacked the government for the arrest of Hazare and seven of his associates, including himself, on the morning of Tuesday and the decision to release all of them within hours.
He also disputed government's contention that the police did not seek remand of Hazare and others and that it was the decision of the executive magistrate's decision to remand them to seven days judicial custody.
‘First they arrested us on the ground that we will disturb peace. Police asked us to give a written undertaking that we will not go to JP Park. But we told them we will go there soon after our release. Then they asked for seven days custody,’ he said.
Kejriwal said there was a need for a debate over police power to detain and release people at will. ‘They say we are bad but how in two hours, we have become alright?...Are we toys? What kind of law and order and democracy is this?’
Hazare credited the people of India for this ‘victory’ and thanked them and thousands of people who took to the streets in a non-violent way throughout the country, he said quoting the Gandhian.
He said violence occurs only in rallies of political parties not in the campaign of Hazare. ‘This only shows the government will have to bow before the demands of the people,’ he said.
Former Law Minister and Hazare associate Shanti Bhushan said the decision to allow Hazare to fast for 15 days showed that his demands were reasonable and that the government should bring in a new Lokpal Bill after consulting the Gandhian.
Provisions of Lokpal Bill
He claimed the provisions of the Lokpal Bill put forward by the Hazare team were ‘totally’ Constitutional. ‘I can certify that they are Constitutional and I think it would be wise for the government to withdraw the (present) bill from Parliament and move a fresh bill after talking to Anna.’
Meanwhile, Hazare's supporters gathered outside Tihar Jail to greet the news of government agreeing to the demands of the Gandhian.
As supporters started pouring in chanting anticorruption slogans, about 250 Delhi police personnel were deployed to provide security around Tihar, while another 200 men in uniform were kept on standby.
Bomb disposal teams and dog squads conducted a surprise check outside Tihar Jail, soon after the Anna Hazare team announced that the Gandhian would move out of the prison to launch his anti-corruption protest at Ramlila Maidan.
The teams descended outside the jail, where Hazare supporters were camping to express solidarity with the social activist, at around 0330 and conducted a thorough check and sanitized the area.

Increasing Crimes and Commonwealth Games

Preparations to stage the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi are on, but nothing can be said with certainty at this point of time to what extent Delhi would succeed in fulfilling this responsibility. Though various organizations and institutions affiliated with the games are making tall claims, the slow pace of preparations and other issues are a cause of grave concern.
To make the games a great success, these issues need to be addressed immediately. One such issue that deserves urgent attention is the ever-increasing rate of crimes in the capital, Delhi, and the National Capital Region. If serious efforts to improve the law and order situation in the capital were immediately not made, it would have a negative impact on the Commonwealth Games.

Rise in Rate of Crimes
Delhi Police Commissioner Y. S. Dadwal has admitted to the rise in rate of crimes in Delhi. The evidence is that there is no stability, let alone improvement in the law and order situation. The graph of crimes is rising rapidly. The issue is not confined to Delhi alone; the situation is similar in Delhi's vicinity, more particularly in areas like Ghaziabad and Noida, which are part of the National Capital Region. Despite claims of improvement in the situation, the rate of crimes in these areas has increased during 2009 as compared to the previous year.
Dadwal admitted at a press conference that crimes like murders and robberies have seen a spurt in 2009 as compared to 2008. More serious is that the Delhi police have failed in solving serious crimes. What could be the reason behind this failure? Should we take it for granted that the police efficiency has taken a beating, or is it due to lack of manpower? Whatever be the reason, the increase in crime rate is a matter of grave concern for the entire country, as Delhi is the capital where there are foreign missions and government offices. Foreign visitors, government officers, and officials of multinational companies continue to visit Delhi all through the year. If these foreign visitors feel insecure in the capital, or face some other kind of untoward incident, it would send a wrong message to the world, and tarnish the country's image as a whole.

Growing Population
The Delhi police commissioner has admitted that crimes in Delhi rose by 1.42 percent in 2009 over 2008. He held those living in slums responsible for the rise. He maintained that the population in slums is constantly increasing, and those living in these areas are involved in crimes. He also said that those who visit Delhi to indulge in criminal activities from the NCR go back immediately after committing a crime.
What Dadwal has said could be true in the light of statistics. Yet, one wonders if he is aware that most crimes taking place in the capital are largely by those living in slums, why has he not strengthened security in such areas by deploying more police force? Why is the strength of police patrolling at borders and entry points from neighboring states not increased?
Holding those living in slums responsible for the spurt in crimes is only half the truth. The fact remains that spoilt children and youth of the rich and high and mighty have been found involved in criminal activities to carry out their lavish style of living. Several of these sons of the rich and mighty are sons of police officers, which has been publicized by the media.

Indifferent Attitude and Laziness
Though he gave details of efforts being made by the police to check crimes in Delhi, and attempted to prove that indifferent attitude and laziness or inefficiency of the Delhi Police are not responsible for it, yet the factual situation cannot be changed by making such tall claims.
Undoubtedly, the country's capital is fast turning into the crime capital as well. Delhi is constantly becoming more insecure for common man. Such a situation makes those visiting Delhi for the Commonwealth Games, foreign tourists, and players feel that Delhi is an insecure city, and it is dangerous to visit the same.

Adverse and Negative Impact
This would indeed have an adverse and negative impact on the games, and the capital's economy. The Delhi Police that continue to hype the threat from terrorism need to pay greater attention to the real threats that Delhi faces.
Also, there is need that the police adopt a serious and responsible attitude to check them. Pacifications, promises, and talking of new plans for security would prove futile unless serious and concerted efforts are made in this direction.

Police Exposed Again

The escape of three dreaded terrorists under police escort from a hospital in Delhi, and dancing police officers in an underworld don's party in Mumbai are enough to expose the police who always claim to remain on alert. Even if the police were not hand-in-glove in the escape of Pakistani terrorists who had served sentence for bomb explosion, it is such carelessness that exposed Delhi Police, which claim to be the most capable in the country.
When the country's big cities are on the hit list of terrorists, and the Home Ministry issues alert against such threats from time-to-time, it is really shameful to make such a big mistake. The home minister has also publicly stated that if there has not been any big terrorist attack in the country after 26 November 2008, it should be considered the country's good fortune. This means that even Home Minister P. Chidambaram admits that if terrorists decide to attack, it would not be easy to stop them.

Utter Carelessness
Despite deaths of thousands of innocents in terrorist attacks in the last 30 years, how could the common man trust Delhi Police after such utter carelessness? And why should he? If there has not been another terrorist attack in the United States after the 9/11, it should be considered more as success of US police, rather than terrorist failure. It is not that terrorists are only trying to target India. Terrorists have not given up their intentions of destroying the United States, but the police, intelligence network, and the Defense Ministry there are so alert that in spite of wanting to, terrorists are unable to succeed.
After the escape of three terrorists, the Delhi Police, as usual, are trying to cover up the matter in its defense, but the government should take tough steps in this matter and should not hesitate to take strong action against the guilty police officers. After all, it is a matter linked to the country's security and adopting lax attitude in it is not going to be in anybody's interest. This was an incident of carelessness. The dancing of police officers in a party thrown by an underworld don is an even more serious matter. This is an open example of the nexus that exists between the police and dangerous criminals.

Lack of Evidence
Just imagine, what would have happened had this matter not been exposed in media? Nexus between the underworld and police officers is talked about from time-to-time, but the faces of such treacherous police officers remain unexposed for lack of evidence.
Now the matter is quite clear. Simply suspending such police officers is not going to break this nexus. Such nexus should be probed deeply and the guilty should receive such severe punishment that no other police officer dares to insult his uniform in this manner. If police officers who are paid to put dangerous criminals behind bars start saving them, who would then catch criminals?

NHRC Rubs Salt into Muslims' Wounds

The two youth, Atif and Sajid, were rightly killed at Batla House on September 19, 2008. The police was justified in killing them. Whatever the police did was in self-defense. The youth fired at the police first, therefore, the police retaliated in self-defense.

There is no lacuna in the police story. Almost after a year since the incident at the Batla House in Delhi in which two Muslim youth were shot dead, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has given a clean chit to the Delhi Police.

Clean Chit to Delhi Police
Had the report come from a police officer, he could not have given the clean chit to the police so shamelessly. The NHRC did not feel the need to visit the incident site, nor did it talk to eyewitnesses or investigate their colleagues in jail.

The NHRC did not even examine the postmortem reports. It did not talk to the defense council of those children or paid any heed to the reports that appeared in the media. What it did was to give a clean chit to the Delhi police in one stroke of the pen.

Raising Doubts and Concerns
Sweeping all doubts and concerns under the carpet, the NHRC reported what the police wanted. The NHRC clearly stated that it spoke to the police, served its report, and jumped to conclusion. Shelving all bleeding questions and queries, it decided to thumb its nose to justice and the truth.

During the past 60 years, whenever any tyranny was perpetrated against Muslims, the Government, instead of meeting out justice to them and hanging the culprits to death, constituted only one commission, and the commission that does not aim at revealing the truth, instead it woks to hide it, and throw cold water on the annoyance and anger of Muslims.

Blackening the Truth.
Commissions of investigation are, in fact, toys given to Muslims to satiate them. Whether it is the Srikrishna Commission on Mumbai riots, or the Nanavati Commission on Gujarat riots or the Liberhan Commission constituted after the demolition of the Babri mosque, all these commissions worked for the same purpose, to sweep the truth under the carpet, save the killers, and by satiating Muslims, make them raise slogans for the murderers. All commissions constituted in the past were only for the sake of it. They superficially acted, but in the case of the Batla House, by putting all norms of justice and morality in backburner, shamelessly and without any qualm, blackened the truth. It did not even feel the need of making Muslims look satisfied.

The Government has understood that the annoyance of Muslims is like soap lather that subsides soon. Else, Muslims residing in Okhla would not have so enthusiastically voted for the Congress.

Until now, all had great reliance on the NHRC, particularly at the time when Justice Ranganath Mishra, who hails from Allahabad and is a former Supreme Court judge, heads the NHRC. None of its members is a Dalit or a minority. These are the communities whose human rights continue to be violated everywhere. Yet, the present Government had the cheek not to take any member of Dalits or minority into it. It appears that the federal Government has constituted the commission in such a way that instead of being a protector of human rights, it becomes a protector of murderers. Its term of reference is not to bring out the truth, but to throw the truth behind the curtain.

Some believe that NHRC is working under Delhi police pressure. Yet, it cannot be true. The NHRC has powers similar to that of the Supreme Court and, therefore, it cannot at all work under pressure of the Delhi police. The home ministry nominates its members and they work under its pressure. Certainly, there are some members on it who perform their duty honestly, sincerely, and responsibly. Yet, it is clear that in the Batla House case, it was under the home ministry's pressure. The home ministry and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh do not want that the truth of the Batla House and other similar encounters should come to public knowledge. They want that the lid on the truth should continue to be on and the mask of secularism that they have adorned continue to be there. Had it not been so, responsible NHRC members would have certainly attempted to reach the bottom of the truth.

Contradictory Statements
The NHRC office is hardly a 30-minute drive to the Batla House. Yet, it appears that the commission was aware from day one that it has to sweep the truth under the carpet. If the commission has been largely dependent on the police statements, it should have paid attention to the contradictory statements made by senior police officers. It should have made a reference to it in the report. Additional Police Commissioner R.B. Upadhyaya and Joint Police Commissioner Karnail Singh have made contradictory statements, which manifest that the police is certainly hiding something.

Additional Police Commissioner Upadhyaya has said in his report of 23 October 2008, "Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma of Sepcial Cell had entered along with his colleague into the L-18 building, Batla House, to arrest some suspected terrorists. While other members of the raiding team stayed behind to keep an eye on the building, the team knocked at the first floor house revealing their identity, but the door was not opened."

Joint Police Commissioner Karnail Singh submitted his report on 19 November 2008. He said that a police team led by Inspector Sharma reached the place of incident to arrest the culprits. A helping team wearing bulletproof jackets and armed with AK47 rifles was stationed at some distance. Inspector Sharma asked Sub-Inspector Dharmendra to enter the flat in the guise of a representative of a mobile company that had come to investigate about the phone number 9811004309. Dharmendra went up the staircase. He heard some voices in the flat, came down to tell Inspector Sharma, then the two of them went up to the flat.

There is a world of contradiction between these stories put up by the police. In Upadhyaya's report no mention of Dharmendra has been made. His report maintains that Sharma went up alone, leaving the team behind while Karnail's report says that he stationed two teams at some distance and went up.

It appears that the NHRC did not take the trouble to study postmortem reports of Atif and Sajid. Both of them were shot at from a close range. Atif received two bullets in his chest while Sajid received five. Three of which were on is forehead, one in the middle of the head and one on the shoulder. Experts say that only a sitting person can receive bullets in such a position and not a person who is standing. They were fired upon with the intention to kill. The NHRC report discusses the postmortem report of Inspector Sharma in detail, but has swept the contradiction in the postmortem reports of Atif and Sajid under the carpet.

Exploit Innocent Minorities
Instead of applying some balm on the wounds of Muslims, the NHRC is attempting to scratch them yet again. How long would the Union Government and Manmohan Singh continue to keep the lid on the truth? How long would they try to appease Muslims by giving them toys to play with? How long would the Congress Government continue to derive mileage from the opportunism indulged in by the Muslim leaders and exploit innocent Muslims.

The NHRC report has made it clear that the Government would no longer attempt to protect the minorities. If the minorities do not comprehend that they are being subjected to a game plan, a time would soon come when there would be none to raise his voice against the tyranny perpetrated against them.