People's Democracy

COMMENT

THE shocking revelations by an Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) in Gujarat, is yet another crystal clear evidence of Narendra Modi himself directly ordering the targeted killings of more than 2000 Muslims during Gujarat riots of 2002.

The ADGP, R B Sreekumar, in his petition to the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), while challenging the decision of the state government to supersede him for promotion, has submitted that messages were sent by the government top brass to eliminate those members of the minority community who were trying to create disturbances. Modi had asked him to tap the telephones of the then Gujarat Congress president Shankersinh Vaghela and senior government officials had also told him to tap the phone of Haren Pandya, a cabinet minister in Modi government (who was later murdered).

Sreekumar has further said that the activities of the Hindu Sangh Parivar activists were ignored. Sreekumar has annexed certain parts of a semi-official register maintained by him during his tenure as state intelligence chief in 2002 along with the petition filed before the CAT. He has stated that he has been superseded for refusing to act upon the respective "illegal and unconstitutional directives" of Narendra Modi. He blamed the Gujarat government and the screening committee for promotion of officers belonging to the Indian Police Service (IPS) cadre for this.

In his register he had mentioned that on May 1, 2002 the then state police chief K Chakravarthy had conveyed to him that union cabinet secretary, Prasad had persuaded Gujarat chief secretary G Subba Rao to "eliminate those Muslim extremists who are disturbing communal peace of Ahmedabad." Similarly an entry dated June 28, 2002 mentions that the chief secretary had in a personal talk told him, "if some one is trying to disturb Rath Yatra (annual religious event) or planning to spoil the same that person be eliminated." Shreekumar further mentions, "He (chief secretary) added that this is the well considered decision of chief minister Narendra Modi." The register says that when Shreekumar replied that this totally illegal action could not be taken and police could only resort to elimination if someone was found indulging in arson and killing, the chief secretary observed that "such action can be taken on situational logic."
There is also a reference dated May 7, 2002 about Modi telling him to concentrate on Muslim militants and not on Sangh Parivar as "they are not doing anything illegal." According to the register when Sreekumar did not relent on ignoring the Sangh Parivar, Modi told him that he (Modi) could be his source for covering Sangh Parivar.

The register also has details on how the state official machinery was annoyed with Sreekumar presenting facts to the Chief Election Commissioner J M Lyngdoh and for providing a statistical presentation of violence from February 27, 2002 to May 31, 2002 that was not in conformity with the reply given by the union home minister L K Advani in the parliament. He has stated that denial of a promotion to him is "politically motivated, based on colourable exercise of power and authority, suffers from personal and professional bias, prejudice and animosity, is absolutely malafide, perverse, based on extraneous considerations, arbitrary, irrational, discriminatory and violative of Indian Constitution."

Sreekumar’s petition before CAT also contains details about attempt by government counsel Arvind Pandya and a senior official G C Murmu to tutor him about his deposition before the Justice G T Nanavati (Retired) and Justice K G Shah (Retired) Commissions probing the Godhra incident and the subsequent violence in 2002. According to his counsel Anand Yagnik, the CAT has issued notices to Gujarat government, Indian government, Modi and others on his plea against his being superseded.

Sreekumar was transferred out of intelligence department in September
2002 after he had reported the highly inflammatory utterances of Modi against Muslims. He is presently ADGP (Police Reforms and Manual). The above mentioned details coming from an officer occupying such a high position in Gujarat police, vindicates the fact that it was none other than Narendra Modi himself who planned and directed the execution of this genocide.

It has been almost ten months now since the BJP-led NDA was punished by the people of India, among other issues, for allowing this shameful act to be committed in Gujarat.

What is worrying now is that, the major constituent of the ruling UPA, the Congress, appears to be soft-pedalling the Gujarat issue. Despite all the tall talk by Congress leaders during the last year’s general election campaign that if voted to power, they would ensure the rule of law is followed in Gujarat, nothing seems to have been done during the past ten months.

It is time for the UPA government to act now, before it is too late! The UPA government should keep in mind that none other than the Supreme Court of the country has not long back described Narendra Modi government as "modern day Neros." Even now the UPA government must work to restore the faith of minorities by getting them justice rather than concentrating on getting a visa for Narendra Modi, who is unwelcome in any other country!