Reading the riots
The affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court by Sanjiv Bhatt,a senior Gujarat IPS officer,implicating Chief Minister Narendra Modi of deliberate inaction in 2002,has been the subject of great discussion in the Urdu press. Rashtriya Sahara writes in its April 24 editorial: The most important thing is that Mr. Bhatt made the allegations against the chief minister not at a press conference or briefing,but through an affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court. Not only this,he made the sensational statement that he had provided these and other facts related to the Gujarat riots to the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigative Team (SIT) but no action was taken on his submissions… It can be said with full confidence that Mr. Bhatts affidavit is the first direct statement against the CM regarding the communal riots of 2002,that has been received by the Supreme Court. If true,it is a serious matter for the country.
Another Hyderabad-based daily,Munsif,in is editorial on April 25,writes: The massacre of Muslims in Gujarat in 2002 was an organised conspiracy… We firmly hope that the oppressed will get justice from the Supreme Court and punishment would given to the culprits … Many commissions have given recommendations for putting a stop to communal violence against Muslims and ending Muslims backwardness. Action on these recommendations must be considered the most important need of the time.
The daily Sahafat,in its editorial (April 25) demands Modis resignation. It asks: Does a lawyer of the level of Arun Jaitley not know what a big crime it is to submit a false affidavit to the countrys apex court and the fate of a person who submits it? Why doesnt Jaitley file a case of perjury against Sanjiv Bhatt if he really thinks that his submission is not true?
The Jamaats party
The newly launched Welfare Party of India has been sponsored by Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. In the Jamaats biweekly,Daawat (April 25),its chief editor,Parvaz Rahmani,writes: Informed circles know that the establishment of the Welfare Party has been the result of Jamaat-e-Islamis desire and campaign. The Jamaat had made it obvious,at the time of its formation in 1948,that it would also adopt the path of electoral politics to achieve its objectives,at the appropriate time.
According to Rahmani,the party has accepted the challenge posed by the distorted political culture of the country…Today,Indias electoral politics has become the most corrupt politics of the world… The political acts of privatisation and market economy have doubly distorted the situation… The cadre should be aware of the fact that this party is not a political party of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
Rahmanis piece also reveals that there are serious differences and reservations among the Jamaats cadre about this plunge into electoral politics,as it is not our job and it is not even appropriate from the point of view of our conscience and belief (imaan-o-aqeede ke pahloo say bhi).
Describing the basic objectives of Jamaat-e-Islami as stability of religion and establishment of a rule of God (aqaamat-e-deen aur hukumat-e-Ilahiya), Delhi-based daily Jadeed Khabar,in its editorial entitled Muslim siasat mein hulchul (stir in Muslim politics),writes: There was not only a ban on participation in politics for Jamaats members in the past,they were also deprived of their right to vote. It was only a few years ago that members of the Jamaat were given permission to vote,on the condition that they would act according to the instruction of the Jamaat.
War of the veil
The enforcement of the burqa ban in France has generated hostile commentary. Hyderabad-based daily,Rahnuma-e-Deccan,in its editorial entitled Islam dushmani mein France sub say aagey (France leads,in terms of animosity to Islam) on April 22,writes: The French president,known as the torch-bearer of human rights,is apprehensive of the damage to secular identity posed by the public expression of Muslim beliefs. Therefore,he has an objection to the observance of namaz on streets outside some mosques in France,along with use of niqaab (or burqa) and hijab by Muslim women.
Siasat writes in its editorial,Europe mein taassub pasandi (communal attitudes in Europe) on April 13 observes: By targeting only Muslims,the French government has enforced a law that attempts to curtail their rights,which must be protested. And this law can also be challenged in the courts.
