I endorse this appeal. Rgds, Shashir Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel
-----Original Message----- From: sandhya gokhale <[email protected]> Sender: [email protected] Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:24:59 To: <[email protected]> Reply-To: [email protected] Subject: [humanrights-movement:3773] Please endorse the Appeal : Justice for Survivors of Guj 2002 carnage Dear Friends, This is an appeal we would like to submit to the authorities mentioned here. After long struggle of nine years, the Gujarat 2002 carnage survivors are likely to get some justice soon, But State machinery is trying its best to vitiate the process. This is our attempt at supporting the survivors. We appeal to all Women's Organizations, Human Rights Groups and networks to endorse this appeal.Please respond as soon as possible. Hon’ble Mr. Justice S.J. Mukhopadhaya 21st February 2011 Chief Justice, High Court of Gujarat Phone : 079-27664601-15 E-Mail : [email protected] Shri Manmohan Singh Prime Minister Fax: 011-23019334 Ph: 011-23018939/1156 Email: [email protected] Hon'ble Mr. Justice S.H. Kapadia Chief Justice of India Fax: 011-23381508/1584 Ph: 011-23388922-24 Email: [email protected] Victimization of Teesta Setalvad CJP, Advocate M.M. Tirmizi & victims survivors of 2002 We the undersigned Citizens, Women’s Organizations, Human Rights organizations are gravely concerned at the continued persecution of human rights defender Teesta Setalvad, Secretary, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP). Further, Advocate Sohail Tirmizi, and several other human rights campaigners are also being harassed. These people have been in the forefront of the struggle to secure justice for the victims of the 2002 Gujarat riots. Ms. Teesta Setalvad is a human rights activist and journalist, whose unflagging struggle to secure justice for the victims of the mass violence in Gujarat 2002 evokes our admiration and support. Instead of awarding her a high place of honour in society, divisive elements are now attempting to stifle her voice, by organizing a malicious campaign. Elements in the State of Gujarat are trying to intimidate and threaten her through a series of false cases and malafide prosecutions. What is at stake is the conviction of over 350 accused in the nine major trials (Gulberg, Sardarpura, Odh, Naroda Patiya, Naroda Gaam) as also the inquiry into the role of the chief minister Narendra Modi and cabinet ministers, along with IAS and IPS officials who allowed the carnage to take place unchecked. The Citizens for Justice and Peace is co-petitioner in the petition that led the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate criminal charges of conspiracy to commit mass murder, destruction of evidence and subversion of the process of public justice. The attempts to implicate Teesta Setalvad in some criminal offence or other is an attempt to discredit the petitioners. Gujarat State's police is making false accusations of doctoring testimonies (FIR lodged under the IT Act, February 10 2011) and affidavits, and also of instigating victims to exhume the dead bodies of their loved ones (CR 3/2006), against MS. Teesta and CJP, an organisation that has stood for nine years supporting the legal battle of the survivors. There is no guarantee that more false cases will not also cooked up by the police who are pressurised by a vindictive state government. After Tehelka's exposure of the SIT report indicting Modi, "The Smoking Gun" (February 10, 2011), IPS officer Rahul Sharma was served with a show cause notice for placing crucial telephone records before the Nanavati Shah Commission and the SIT. Clearly the Gujarat government, worried by indications that offences could be registered against its chief functionaries for not just aiding a massacre in 2002, but also of destroying evidence and subverting the course of justice, is doing all it can do intimidate the victim survivors and the human rights groups who have stood by them. Earlier, in the Best bakery case which was shifted to Mumbai, a 'star witeness' was induced to change her testimony and claim false affidavits were filed, while all other witnesses stood by the case. Since September 2010, Mr. Rais Khan, a former CJP employee, whose employment with CJP was terminated for financial irregularities and suspicious conduct in January 2008, is being made to collaborate with the State agencies to implicate Teesta and others who are fighting legal battles along with the victims. We would like to respectfully point out that this sinister campaign has been launched at a time when crucial trials are nearing completion. These trials involve victims/survivors who have courageously testified against powerful Gujarati perpetrators, at grave risk to their lives. The evidence gathered against three hundred and fifty (350) perpetrators is extremely strong, and is expected to result in the conviction of a large number of accused. In the Best Bakery case mentioned above, the Honourable Court had ordered an inquiry by the Registrar General of the Supreme Court which cleared Ms. Setalvad of the malicious charges, and in fact punished the witness for perjury. It can be seen therefore that from the outset the government of Gujarat, through agent provocateurs, has subverted all efforts to punish the perpetrators of the anti minority pogrom of 2002. The current campaign was initially launched in May 2009, by the State of Gujarat’s counsel in the Supreme Court, and is now being echoed by Mr. Rais Khan. This vindictive onslaught against Ms. Setalvad and her lawyers is a determined bid to disrupt the trials, derail the course of justice, and to influence the course of conviction - in short, to derail the course of public justice. We respectfully and urgently request your attention towards this matter and to ensure that injustice will not prevail. FORUM AGAINST OPPRESSION OF WOMEN, MUMBAI AWAAZ-E-NISWAAN, MUMBAI -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
