MUMBAI, 25 August 2007 — The Congress party-led Democratic Front government is now caught in the web of the Srikrishna Commission report on the 1992-93 communal riots. With the fears of snap elections troubling both Congress and its alliance partner the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the mention of three Congress ministers in the report has shaken the government of Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.
The commission found the three Congress ministers guilty of authorizing the release of people allegedly involved in violence. While the report holds the Shiv Sena responsible for the bloodbath and violence, it does not spare the Congress ministers. The report indicts Babanrao Pachpute, the then Maharashtra minister for home and now minister for tourism; former Minister Javed Khan; and former Railway Minister C.K. Jaffer Sharief. The commission cited allegations that some rioters were released from police custody on their instructions.
The panel report stated that Pachpute was possibly interfering with police work, though police inspector Tikam told the commission that Pachpute was not involved in any incident during the riots.
“The then commissioner of police Shrikant Bapat confirms the fact that there were attempts by politicians to interfere in police work inasmuch as the police were being pressured to release the accused held in riot-related offenses,” the report said.
The commission report also said: “Though the Shiv Sena has often cried wolf with regard to incidents of private firing, in this instance at least, its grievance appears justified.”
The report cited an inspector with Deonar police station as accusing Javed Khan and Jaffer Sharief of interfere with his work. “This officer,” notes the report, “has detailed the manner in which Khan attempted to pressure him in his duties.” Khan made unscheduled visits to the police station and “rudely ticked off officers saying they had arrested innocents.”
Both ministers also showed “extraordinary interest” in meeting “without permission” Sayyed Azmat Ali Khan alias Ramraz Pathan, who had been arrested for some offense in June 1992.
The report, however, said “there is no material on record that can state that during the period from October to December 1992 Javed Khan had told the police not to arrest Muslim accused or to let them go as alleged by the Shiv Sena.”
An aide to the chief minister told Arab News that no Congress minister interfered in the maintenance of law and order or pressured any police officer into releasing anyone from custody. Though the panel report had indicted them on basis of allegations, the fact remains that the three named Congress ministers had moved around the riot-affected areas to urge people to maintain peace and to stop the violence and killings.
“The release of certain selected extracts from the Srikrishna report to the media at this juncture by vested interests, is only to defame Congress as also to flame hatred among communities for political gains,” said a senior Congress leader.
The federal government meanwhile said it was committed to taking action against those who were indicted by the commission report. “No stone will be left unturned and we will deal with those found guilty by the commission very firmly,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister P.R Dasmunsi said in the Lok Sabha.
He was responding to the issue raised by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP Hannan Mollah.
Dasmunsi said Congress President Sonia Gandhi was “seriously concerned” over the issue. “Besides, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has said the recommendations have been partly complied with and his government will soon take action on the remaining recommendations,” he said.
Raising the issue during zero hour, Mollah said no action had been taken on the report despite “it identifying 31 policemen and some others who engineered the riots.”
“Instead (of being punished) these police personnel have been promoted,” Mollah said.
“The government should ensure that the recommendations are implemented and those found guilty are punished immediately. The delay is sending wrong signals to the minority community,” the CPI-M MP said.
The Deshmukh government has been under pressure to revive the report and has been criticized for not taking any steps despite a promise in the party manifesto about the speedy implementation of the commission’s recommendations.
In the aftermath of the destruction of the 16th century Babri Masjid on Dec 6, 1992, Mumbai had witnessed large-scale sectarian strife in December and January. The commission headed by Justice Srikrishna probed the incidents of violence and indicted several Shiv Sena leaders among others.
After the violence, the city was targeted by serial terror bombings on March 12, 1993, in which 257 people were killed.
As a special anti-terror court last month concluded a long trial and sentenced 100 people for their complicity in the terror bombings, many pointed out that the government had failed to take action against those indicted by the Srikrishna Commission report, primarily because they were Hindus and happened to belong to the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
— Additional input from Indo-Asian News Service
