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A Decade of Shame Victims of Gujarat’S Anti-Muslim Pogrom of February 2002 Are Still fighting for Justice Against a Powerful State Machinery Led by Narendra Modi

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A Decade of Shame Victims of Gujarat’S Anti-Muslim Pogrom of February 2002 Are Still fighting for Justice Against a Powerful State Machinery Led by Narendra Modi FRONTLINEMARCH 9, 2012 WWW.FRONTLINE.IN INDIA’S NATIONAL MAGAZINE RS.25 ENVIRONMENT FLAMINGOES RESERVATION MUSLIMS INTERVIEW RICHARD STALLMAN Halting the pink tide 64 For a fair deal 90 Freedom & software 111 A decade of shame Victims of Gujarat’s anti-Muslim pogrom of February 2002 are still fighting for justice against a powerful state machinery led by Narendra Modi VOLUME 29 NUMBER 4 FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 09, 2012 ISSN 0970-1710 WWW.FRONTLINE.IN ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS COVER STORY A decade of shame Terminal trouble 130 Uttar Pradesh: Interview: Advantage Mulayam 25 Victims of the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in K. Mohandas 132 the State Gujarat are still to get justice but Interview: DEFENCE Rizwan Soomar 134 Interceptor missile: they are determined to continue the fight. 4 Successful launch 29 COLUMN C.P. Chandrasekhar: CONTROVERSY The Chinese way 39 ISRO/Antrix-Devas deal: Bhaskar Ghose: Procedures & lapses 31 Democracy in action 99 Praful Bidwai: SCANDAL Reining in Israel 104 36 Spectrum shocks R.K. Raghavan: WORLD AFFAIRS Murder in school 109 Maldives: Jayati Ghosh: A President’s exit 41 Capital concerns 115 Iran: War of nerves 46 UPDATE Syria: Gen. V.K. Singh: 49 Skewed resolution The waiting game 28 U.S.: Austerity of hope 52 Ghosts of Iraq 55 Hungry & homeless BOOKS 73 in Greece 59 Myanmar: A new chapter 61 LETTERS 126 ENVIRONMENT Flamingoes in Mumbai: RELATED STORIES Halting the pink tide 64 A tale of two reports 10 The police diary 18 OBITUARY ‘SIT too works Interview: Whitney Houston: Every woman’s diva 87 for victims’ 12 Sanjiv Bhatt 20 The trailblazer 88 Standing up to High Court the state 13 censure 22 RESERVATION Interview: Negligence and A fair deal for Muslims 90 R.B. Sreekumar 16 inaction 23 LIVELIHOOD ISSUES Karnataka: Woes of nomadic tribes 95 ENVIRONMENT The Sewri mudflats in Mumbai, GENDER ISSUES home to a rich biodiversity, On the Cover Narendra Modi and Zakia Jafri. Diluting Domestic including flamingoes, is under Violence Act 101 threat from a development PHOTOGRAPHS: ROHIT JAIN PARAS AND PTI project. 64 COVER DESIGN: U. UDAYA SHANKAR SOCIAL ISSUES Tamil Nadu: RESERVATION Published by K. BALAJI, Kasturi Buildings, Quarries of exploitation 106 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600 002 and No one can complain that too Printed by P. Ranga Reddy at Kala Jyothi INTERVIEW much has been given to the Process Private Limited, Survey No. 185, minorities, in particular Muslims, Kondapur, Ranga Reddy District-500 133, Richard M. Stallman on Andhra Pradesh on behalf of Kasturi & Sons Ltd., the future of free software 111 through the sub-quota for B.Cs among the minorities. 90 Chennai-600 002. FOCUS: DRDO EDITOR: R. VIJAYA SANKAR (Editor responsible Indian eye in the sky 118 INTERVIEW for selection of news under the PRB Act). All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or Microwave masters 120 Richard M. Stallman, founder of the GNU in part without written permission is prohibited. MARITIME TRADE project, speaks on the e-mail: [email protected] Waiting for cargo future of the free software Frontline is not responsible for the content of in Kerala 128 movement. 111 external Internet sites. FRONTLINE 3 Cover Story MARCH 9, 2012 A DECADE OF The victims of the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat are still to get justice but are SIDDHARTH DARSHAN KUMAR/AP The Zakia Jafri case symbolises the SAIRABEN SANDHI and Rupa Mody sit quietly on the back benches at the Metropolitan Magist- struggle for justice and is reaching a rate’s Court in Ahmedabad watching the proceed- ings in the Zakia Jafri case. Both the women have crucial stage. It is the only case in witnessed immense tragedy. One saw her son killed, while the other has been searching for her missing which Chief Minister Narendra son for the past 10 years. In the courtroom, there are others too who survived the gruesome massacre at Modi is named as an accused and is, Gulberg Society in Ahmedabad in 2002. All of them have gone through the trauma of seeing immediate therefore, seen as critical in nailing family members hacked or burnt to death. The judge eventually postpones the hearing to another day and the perpetrators of the pogrom. the survivors file out. They seem used to this routine. 4 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 SHAME determined to continue the fight. BY ANUPAMA KATAKAM IN AHMEDABAD perpetrators of the pogrom. Coinci- dently, as the tenth anniversary of the Gujarat riots approaches, the case has taken a significant turn. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has filed a “closure report” saying there is not enough evidence to prosecute Modi. Zakia Jafri’s legal team has gone in appeal. Its main contention is that the riots were meticulously planned and those in seats of power deliberately turned a blind eye to the attacks on Muslims across the State. In the past few years, Modi has tried hard to get rid of the taint of the riots and get what he calls a “clean chit”. However, each time the “clean chit” has been within grasp, the law has intervened to thwart him. With As- sembly elections in Gujarat scheduled for later this year and national politics beckoning him as an aspirant for the prime ministership, Modi appears desperate to get the riots-responsible label off his back. Furthermore, he has worked the corporate sector to project himself as a forward-thinking leader who is interested in bringing prosper- ity and development to his State – and not as a saffron politician interested only in communal politics. Getting the Tatas to shift their Nano small car plant to Sanand from Singur in West JANAK PATEL Bengal was clearly a part of this agen- GULBERG SOCIETY IN Ahmedabad today. Sixty-nine people died in the da, say observers. arson and massacre at the Society in the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom February 28, 2012, will mark a dec- (picture at left). Of the 30 homes and approximately 20 families, only one ade since the Gujarat riots, undoubt- family continues to inhabit what is now virtually a ghost colony. edly one of the worst chapters of communal violence in the country’s There is a level of tension and dis- even if it takes another 10 years,” says history. Official estimates put the appointment among them, but they Rupa Mody. death toll, of both Hindus and Mus- are not entirely disheartened. The Zakia Jafri case has begun to lims, at a little over 1,000, while un- “We come for every hearing in this symbolise the struggle for justice for all officially it has been pegged at more case. Until we are alive we are not the riot victims and is reaching a cru- than 2,000. At least 600 children were going to give up. We are not going to cial stage. It is the only case in which orphaned and more than 400 were leave him [Chief Minister Narendra Modi is named as an accused and is, reported missing. Modi]. We know we will get justice therefore, seen as critical in nailing the Ten years later, the wounds are still FRONTLINE 5 MARCH 9, 2012 to heal. The investigation into the riot single-handedly. Eventually, he lack of prosecutable evidence against cases are plodding along with no clo- stepped out of his house in an attempt Modi. Zakia Jafri’s legal recourse is to sure in sight. The only case to reach a to placate the mob. They killed him appeal for the report. On February 15, conclusion is Sardarpura, where a mob and then burnt his body in front of his she was told the report would be given burnt alive 33 Muslims trapped in a family and neighbours. within a month. This could mean the house. Thirty-one people were impris- Zakia Jafri remembers vividly ev- end of her case but she does have the oned for life in this case. There are ery moment of those two horrific days. provision to appeal in the higher eight other cases that are pending trial. As many as 69 people died in Gulberg courts and eventually in the Supreme For many victims the memories of Society and 28 went missing, one of Court. the violence are still fresh in their them was Azhar, Rupa Mody’s 13- In 2006, Zakia Jafri petitioned the minds. “Only justice will help heal. But year-old son. To date they remain mis- court alleging that Modi and 61 others, nothing they do can bring back my sing. including politicians, policemen and son,” says Rupa Mody. Zakia Jafri, along with several ac- bureaucrats, had colluded to ensure If the nightmares of the 2002 vio- tivists and members of the Citizens of that the victims of the mob attacks lence were not bad enough, the minor- Justice and Peace (CJP), a non-gov- during the riots did not receive help. ity communities have had to cope with ernmental organisation, has main- Zakia Jafri, along with other witness- severe marginalisation. Thousands of tained that the Gujarat riots were a es, testified in court that Ehsan Jafri families have been hounded out of the pogrom and that there is enough evi- repeatedly called Modi when they State, and they have moved with just dence to prove this. Leading a pro- were under attack. But no help came. the clothes on their back to areas such tracted legal fight for justice for the She accused Modi of abdicating his as Mumbra in Maharashtra. On issues past eight years, the feisty 70-year-old duty as the constitutionally elected relating to the minority community, says she will not back down until the head of the State government to pro- the dominant view is that over the past perpetrators and killers of her hus- tect the right to life of all its citizens decade Gujarat has become more po- band and thousands of other Muslims regardless of their caste, community larised than ever before.
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