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| << April13, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net] CHRO daily news update |
April18, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net] North-East India news updates >> |
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CHROkeralam" <chro1@rediffmail.com> Date: Wed Apr 13, 2005 Subject: KARNATAKA: A Camera, A Dargah, A Temple, And Police Terror chro2003 Tehelka (Weekly), April 16, 2005 A camera, a dargah, a temple, and police terror Right to record: Why was a filmmaker hounded by the police at Bababudangiri? Chinmayee Manjunath Bangalore This was what the police asked S. Vijayakumara, a filmmaker, and Charitha, a researcher, at the Urs last month in Bababudangiri, 30 km outside of Chikamagalur. The two were detained overnight and threatened for having ???dared to attend a Muslim festival???. A dargah and temple stand at this site and have been a communal flash point in recent years, triggered by the rss/vhp. Vijayakumara has been filming at Bababudangiri for four years and is associated with Pedestrian Pictures, a Bangalore-based media activist group. Charitha is studying at Mysore University. They arrived at Bababudangiri on March 26 this year, when the Urs started. ???From day one, there were unhealthy vibes,??? says Vijayakumara. While press photographers were left alone, he was followed and questioned because he filmed the police removing the chadars from the shrine. Both of them were being constantly watched by the police. On March 27, at around 10 pm, Vijayakumara was approached by two plainclothes policemen who said that Charitha was waiting for him at the police station. ???I got worried about her and went,??? he said. Charitha had been questioned earlier while she was taking a walk. Both of them were then jailed separately and interrogated. ???It was terror tactics. Where are you from, why are you here, again and again???? said Vijayakumara. Charitha was told, ???Women who walk alone like you cannot be respected. Why are you here without your family???? They were not allowed to speak with one another or call their friends or family. Eventually, Superintendent of Police (Rural) hd Kulkarni came in from Chikamagalur and took on a harsher tone. ???They used foul language against me and the Muslim community,??? says Vijayakumara. Charitha was asked what her relationship was with him. By about 1am, they were moved to Chikamagalur. When Vijayakumara wanted to use the phone, he was told to ???shut up before we kick you???. Circle Inspector Kashi asked, ???Why don??™t you just make a film on Hindu gods???? The questioning continued into the night and by the time they were released, it was 11am on March 28. Their confiscated cameras and mobile phones were returned; but the police had checked all the dialled telephone numbers and questioned them about it. Kulkarni told Vijayakumara, ???We will leave that girl but you will not be spared.??? Though complaints have been lodged with the deputy commissioner of police, Chikamagalur, no action has been taken. Neither has a reason been given for their detention. It is ironic that at Bababudangiri, known as a historic symbol of peace and secularism, the knowledge of another religion is banned and the right to freedom is muzzled so brazenly. April 16, 2005 http://www.tehelka.com/story_main11.asp?filename=Cr041605A_camera.asp ----------------------------------------------------------------- [2] * The contents of the article are solely the ideas of the contributor. HAVALDARMUMBAI <madhu_sawant2000@yahoo.com> Date: Wed Apr 13, 2005 1 Subject: Dance Bars Ban is a non-issue. Why MEDIA is playing it as if an "Essential -Commodity" ? madhu_sawant200... 13.4.2005 To, The Editor, Sub.:-- ???Curtains for Mumbai??™s 700 dance bars??? Respected Sir / Madam, It was with amusement and dismay that one observes the amount of unjustified hue and cry being raised, by the dance bar owners??™ associations, the bar girls and faithfully echoed by the print and electronic media, against the Maharashtra Government??™s proposal to close down the 700 dance bars in Mumbai in addition to the 650 odd dance bars outside the city. The main reason for protest against the proposal being the "welfare and livelihood??? of the 75,000 odd dance girls, the latter being rendered jobless, that they would be forced into prostitution or the Government losing lakhs of Rupees per bar annually as revenue. There hardly seems to be any basis for such apprehensions. Firstly, the permit rooms have not been banned, thus these girls and waiters could always take up jobs as waiters / waitresses or bartenders. Secondly, as for the ???loss of revenue??? for the government, it would not be Rs. 10-12 lakhs per dance bar per annum (as reported) but the loss would only be a fraction of the above i.e. from the performance license fees and stage license fees, whereas the liquor / restaurant license fees, entertainment tax, excise tax. Income tax and sales tax would be left untouched and continue to be raked in by the government. Thirdly, the patrons??™ grouse that they would be deprived of seeing girls dance, is hardly an issue worth giving a second thought to. If some people are keen to watch girls dance (in various stages of undress) then what??™s keeping the bar owners from installing widescreen Television sets in the bar wherein a range of channels (ranging from the MTV, Channel V, Fashion TV and many more) airs such vulgar fare day and night. Fourthly, the Home Minister in his statement to the Press, has promised rehabilitation to the girls thus affected. So where is the question of these girls being ???forced into prostitution??? ? If any girls wishes to join the oldest profession for the wealth and luxury that she would get, then in any case she would join it ??“ dance bars or no dance bars. One wonders why such a shortsighted view is sought to be taken by the media too on this issue of an excellent piece of legislation. Look at the other side of the coin ??“ the amount of money wasted by the patrons on such frivolous and basal pursuits could easily be prevented. The rapid erosion of morality and virtues amongst the youth and even the school children could do with some corrective measures. Also the mental agony caused to wives and children of these patrons could be prevented. Not to mention the risk of contracting dreadful sexually transmitted diseases by them if they have to have sexual contact with the bar girls. If one considers the number of people (i.e. the dance bar owners and girls) who have protested against the proposal, then it is a great minority as against the vast silent majority of citizens (including the unanimous condoning of this ban by the legislature) who have wholeheartedly welcomed the ban in the interest of the general public and social well-being of the State. Thank you. WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE, IF WE CARE. G R Vora. Plot - 275/3, Gope Nivas, Sion E, Mumbai-22. frcf_b22@... Ph - (022) 24091193 / 9869 195785 MadhuSawant Save Mumbai ... Save Youself --------------------------------------------------------------------- [3] From: Sukla Sen <suklasen@yahoo.com Date: Thu Apr 14, 2005 Subject: A Farcical Enquiry! NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF PEOPLE??™S MOVEMENT Haji Habib Building, Naigoan Cross Road, Dadar (E), Mumbai Phone: 022 24150529; Email: napm@... April 14, 2005 To, Mr. R. R. Patil, Deputy Chief Minister, Government of Maharashtra, Mantralya, Mumbai. Sub: Regarding enquiry commission on lathi charge on April 6th, 2005 Dear Sir, We appreciate your concern you have towards the slum dwellers and read about the displeasure about the police beatings. We also recall the meeting we had with you on April 8th, 2005 where you promised that you would personally look into the matter. We have received a letter intimating about the enquiry which is set up to look into the police atrocities including lathi charge on April 6th on peaceful demonstrators of National Alliance of People??™s Movements protesting against the demolitions of the slums demanding proper rehabilitation at the original place of residence and compensation. We are also informed that Mr. Surendra Kumar, Additional Commissioner in charge of protection and security will enquire into the incident. Our demand is for an independent enquiry, which is binding, and which would be acted upon. We state our apprehensions on a departmental enquiry, which we doubt, cast on the impartial nature of any such enquiry. It is natural justice that a different authority looks into the excesses by the police department. We would also like to state our most vehement protest against the choice of Mr. Suredra Kumar, who has been reprimanded by the Sri Krishna Commission for ???covering up the cold blood murder of one young Muslim boy??™ (Para 5.60). We would also like to point out the Mr, Sri Krishna honourable judge, who is now serving in Supreme Court has said ??? Deputy Commissioner of police has adroitly white washed the affair??™. (Please see attachment) We would prefer an independent and impartial enquiry, which is binding and will be acted upon. We will be sending our statements to the present enquiry officer with our reservations. In that circumstance, we would like your officer to look into the statements and consider them as FIR and take necessary action against the guilty. We would also like to request your officer to call for the footages of different visual media who have recorded the incident and photographs from various media personals for this purpose. We have definite information that some of the press people also got hurt in this incident and want you to call them also for your enquiry process. We reiterate our demand for an independent enquiry, which is binding while participating in this process of ???peer enquiry??™ of excesses. Thanking you, Yours truly, Sanjay M. G (National Co Co-ordinator) Copy to: Mr. Surendra Kumar Additional Commissioner in charge of Protection and Security Azad Maidan, Mumbai. ------------------------------------------------------------- [4] Regi P George <george_regi@yahoo.com> Date: Wed Apr 13, 2005 10:28am Subject: The changing definition of Kashmir george_regi The changing definition of Kashmir With the start of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service and the popular mood straining for peace and development, prospects for Indo-Pak relations never looked brighter than they currently do ASHUTOSH MISRA http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=68251 If the attack on the district collector??™s office in Srinagar in January and the attack on the Jammu and Kashmir tourist office on the eve of the inauguration of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service came as a harsh reminder of Kashmir??™s violent history, the overall mood in the valley, for a couple of reasons, suggested otherwise. In recent months, the people of Kashmir have sent a message: Freedom can wait, but development cannot. Two developments symbolise the transformation of popular mood. First, the municipal corporation elections and the second, the operationalisation of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service. The civic polls??”held in all 14 districts of J&K after a span of 25 years (last time in 1980)??”witnessed a large voter turnout, with women outnumbering men in the queue at polling booths in many places. It suggests that militancy now seems to be losing steam and the common man is ready to fight for peace, basic amenities and development. In the municipal elections, voter turnout was recorded between 30-35 per cent with disturbed areas like Qazigund in Anantnag recording 78 per cent turnout. Pulwama with 56.6 per cent, Dooru with 65.99 per cent and Jammu with 65 per cent hinted the dawn of a new phase in the troubled state. In Srinagar, killings of several candidates by terrorists and call for a boycott by them along with APHC fell on deaf ears. Ignoring their calls, people came out to vote and the turnout was around 20 per cent, which was very impressive. Rajouri and Poonch recorded 81 and 76 per cent turnout respectively. The fact that no single party could sweep the polls speaks of the representative character of democracy in J&K. If the Progressive Democratic Party won in Ganderbal, home constituency of the Abdullahs, it lost to the National Conference in Srinagar. The Congress and PDP won in Charar-e-Shareif and in Jammu, the Congress edged past the BJP??™s tally of 26, with 27 seats. If the bus service has been underscored by the criticism of parties like the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistan, it has given the people of not only PoK but J&K too, a cause for celebration. The service goes to benefit the common people who are, after all, at the ??????core??™??™ of the core. Such an exchange will not only transform the perceptions of the people about each other, but also improve the overall atmospherics of Indo-Pak ties. The impact of the bus service in the overall rapprochement can be discerned from the threats that have come from the terrorists to the passengers of the bus. By the same token, courage shown by the passengers to board the bus against all odds could well open a new chapter in the history of Indo-Pak relations. No wonder, it has been considered the ???Mother of all CBMs??™ and rightly so. It is a clear indication that people on both sides of the Chenab have been longing to meet and have been given a new lease of life. The link that would be maintained through the bus service, once every two weeks, alone has the potential of transforming Indo-Pakistan relations. Its importance is also augmented by the enthusiasm shown by PM Manmohan Singh himself, who initiated the policy of ???peace with dignity??™ and ???wining hearts and minds??™ and even went to Srinagar to flag off the bus, despite terrorist threats. Even long-time political foes Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have been unanimous in their support for the bus. It is sad to see some analysts in discussions on TV demeaning the importance of the bus service, by labelling the coverage by the press as unwarranted ???hype???. To see the bus service as just another CBM in the long list of CBMs, would be a big mistake. The decision by India and Pakistan to start the bus service holds immense promise for the troubled state. It suggests that both have the political strength to take bold decisions and to break from past prejudices. On the bus service, two issues caused repeated deadlocks??”travel documents and domicile of the passengers. On both fronts, the two sides showed flexibility and understanding. Pakistan insisted on UN documents for travel and keeping the service exclusively for Kashmiris. India??™s contention was to use passport as a travel document and for the service to be open for all Indians. The two stands were reflective of the respective official stands on Kashmir, and how India and Pakistan looked at the Kashmir issue. However, as Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran said in his press conference in Islamabad, the bus service has been effected without any prejudice and with a humanitarian approach, where it becomes a win-win situation for all. The bus service could well become a psychological facilitator when India and Pakistan discuss the Kashmir issue. A lot still remains to be achieved. Many such measures have to be taken to soothe historic wounds and mend strained bilateral relations. The future would demand much greater compromises and policy shifts by both sides on Kashmir. For Pakistan, it still is the ???problem of Kashmir??™, i.e., Kashmir is a ???disputed territory??™ and an ???unfinished agenda??™ of Partition; and for India, it is the ???problem??™ in Kashmir, suggesting that the accession of Kashmir to India is final and complete, and the challenge now remains in addressing cross-border terrorism, development and grievances of the people of Kashmir. The two divergent approaches leave little scope for a compromise. It is a challenging proposition, but the breakthrough in the bus service has shown that both sides possess the political will. The future of Kashmir and Indo-Pak relations has never looked as bright as it currently does. The writer is a Research Fellow, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=68251 |
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