The KK Shahina Solidarity Forum has planned a candlelight vigil at Thiruvananthapuram on Friday, January 15, 2011.
The Forum says in a communication:
KK Shahina, Kerala correspondent of Tehelka was framed by the Karnataka police under Section 506 (2) of the Indian Penal Code allegedly for trying to influence witnesses in the Bangluru bom case in which Abdul Naser Mahdani is an accused. Later She was later charged also under section 22 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a draconian law designed to silence voices of dissent and bury political freedom. The lower courts in Karnataka have denied her anticipatory bail.
Shahina is being punished for carrying out independent investigation into the charges slapped on Madani and for writing about a fragile and unfair legal system working against minorities. She is a journalist of considerable experience. We see her framing as part of arrests, illegal detentions, incarcerations and disappearances of human rights activists and political activists in the country in the recent past. None of the political parties in power in various states – the BJP, the Congress or the CPI(M) -- have been an exception in carrying out such violent acts. The case of Dr. Binayak Sen confirms our worst fears -- that nobody who exercises the right of free speech to expose the violent state will be spared.
On 14th January we will walk wearing black gags and holding lighted candles in support of Shahina demanding immediate withdrawal of charges against her. The procession will start at 5.30 from Statue Junction and end at Swadesabhimani Square near the Martyr’s Column. Prominent artists, journalists and social activists will speak
Please join.
For more information, please contact Kuryachan TD 9447713466
Showing posts with label Abdul Naser Mahdani. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Abdul Naser Mahdani. Show all posts
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Monday, December 21, 2009
History repeats itself -- with a small change
B R P BHASKAR
Gulf Today
History repeated itself last week -- with a small but significant change.
Eighteen years ago the Kerala police arrested People's Democratic Party chairman Abdul Naser Madani in connection with some allegedly incendiary speeches he had made years ago. He remained in a Coimbatore jail for nearly 10 years thereafter as an undertrial prisoner.
The Tamil Nadu police alleged that he was a party to the conspiracy that resulted in a series of blasts in Coimbatore shortly before the Bharatiya Janata Party leader and then Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani arrived there. Since the charge was one of terrorism he was denied bail and parole.
The wanton denial of Madani's human rights generated a certain measure of sympathy for him in all those who did not put narrow political interests above basic human values. At one point the State Assembly unanimously passed a resolution voicing sympathy for him.
The main political formations sent their emissaries to jail to seek his support in the elections. It was the Left Democratic Front government headed by EK Nayanar which arrested Madani and handed him over to Tamil Nadu to stand trial in the bomb blast.
Initially, therefore, he asked his supporters to back the United Democratic Front in the elections. Later he felt that the UDF was not doing enough for him and he switched his support to the LDF.
On his return from jail the LDF gave him a hero's welcome. To ensure his support in the last Lok Sabha elections, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) accepted his suggestion to give the Ponnani seat to an independent candidate. He appeared on the dais with CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan.
After the elections, the CPI-M central leadership concluded that the camaraderie with the PDP had not done the party any good. However, the state party leadership continued to maintain good relationship with Madani and his party.
Last week the LDF government arrested Madani's wife Soofia in connection with the burning of a Tamil Nadu bus near Kochi when Madani was still in jail. The bus was burnt ostensibly to press the demand for his release.
The case had been under investigation for many years. At the time of the Lok Sabha elections, the media carried many reports implicating Soofia Madani in the case based on statements given to the police by some persons arrested in the case.
After the elections were over, the police questioned Soofia Madani. However, there was no further action. The state government became active following the arrest of Thadiyantavida Naseer of Kannur, whom the intelligence agencies describe as Pakistan-based Laksar-e-Taiba's commander in south India, in Bangladesh.
As Karnataka police obtained his custody for questioning in connection with a terror case in Bangalore, the state police deputed Inspector General of Police (Northern Range) Tomin J Thachankari to Bangalore to join in the interrogation.
Thachankari is said to be close to the CPI-M leadership. UDF leaders alleged that he had been sent to Bangalore to protect the interests of the party. As Karnataka police arrived in the state with Naseer to gather evidence, there was an abrupt change in the official attitude.
Apprehending arrest, Soofia Madani approached the high court for anticipatory bail, which was refused. She was taken into custody immediately.
After Madani's arrest, the Nayanar government had listed it as one of its achievements. After Soofia's arrest Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan claimed it had improved the image of the government.
Will Soofia Madani get a fair trial? Some citizens' groups have voiced concern over the matter. The concern is based on two factors. One is the politicisation of the case. The other is the malicious media coverage based on selective leak by the police. Newspapers have been full of reports about telephone calls Soofia made or received before and after the burning of the bus. Undeterred by the fact that the contents of the conversations are unknown they have been conveying the impression that they are clinching evidence of her complicity in the bus burning conspiracy.
To begin with, Madani had said the PDP would face the matter legally. Now he is said to be planning a fast unto death with his children demanding justice for his wife. --Gulf Today, Sharjah, December 21, 2009.
Gulf Today
History repeated itself last week -- with a small but significant change.
Eighteen years ago the Kerala police arrested People's Democratic Party chairman Abdul Naser Madani in connection with some allegedly incendiary speeches he had made years ago. He remained in a Coimbatore jail for nearly 10 years thereafter as an undertrial prisoner.
The Tamil Nadu police alleged that he was a party to the conspiracy that resulted in a series of blasts in Coimbatore shortly before the Bharatiya Janata Party leader and then Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani arrived there. Since the charge was one of terrorism he was denied bail and parole.
The wanton denial of Madani's human rights generated a certain measure of sympathy for him in all those who did not put narrow political interests above basic human values. At one point the State Assembly unanimously passed a resolution voicing sympathy for him.
The main political formations sent their emissaries to jail to seek his support in the elections. It was the Left Democratic Front government headed by EK Nayanar which arrested Madani and handed him over to Tamil Nadu to stand trial in the bomb blast.
Initially, therefore, he asked his supporters to back the United Democratic Front in the elections. Later he felt that the UDF was not doing enough for him and he switched his support to the LDF.
On his return from jail the LDF gave him a hero's welcome. To ensure his support in the last Lok Sabha elections, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) accepted his suggestion to give the Ponnani seat to an independent candidate. He appeared on the dais with CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan.
After the elections, the CPI-M central leadership concluded that the camaraderie with the PDP had not done the party any good. However, the state party leadership continued to maintain good relationship with Madani and his party.
Last week the LDF government arrested Madani's wife Soofia in connection with the burning of a Tamil Nadu bus near Kochi when Madani was still in jail. The bus was burnt ostensibly to press the demand for his release.
The case had been under investigation for many years. At the time of the Lok Sabha elections, the media carried many reports implicating Soofia Madani in the case based on statements given to the police by some persons arrested in the case.
After the elections were over, the police questioned Soofia Madani. However, there was no further action. The state government became active following the arrest of Thadiyantavida Naseer of Kannur, whom the intelligence agencies describe as Pakistan-based Laksar-e-Taiba's commander in south India, in Bangladesh.
As Karnataka police obtained his custody for questioning in connection with a terror case in Bangalore, the state police deputed Inspector General of Police (Northern Range) Tomin J Thachankari to Bangalore to join in the interrogation.
Thachankari is said to be close to the CPI-M leadership. UDF leaders alleged that he had been sent to Bangalore to protect the interests of the party. As Karnataka police arrived in the state with Naseer to gather evidence, there was an abrupt change in the official attitude.
Apprehending arrest, Soofia Madani approached the high court for anticipatory bail, which was refused. She was taken into custody immediately.
After Madani's arrest, the Nayanar government had listed it as one of its achievements. After Soofia's arrest Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan claimed it had improved the image of the government.
Will Soofia Madani get a fair trial? Some citizens' groups have voiced concern over the matter. The concern is based on two factors. One is the politicisation of the case. The other is the malicious media coverage based on selective leak by the police. Newspapers have been full of reports about telephone calls Soofia made or received before and after the burning of the bus. Undeterred by the fact that the contents of the conversations are unknown they have been conveying the impression that they are clinching evidence of her complicity in the bus burning conspiracy.
To begin with, Madani had said the PDP would face the matter legally. Now he is said to be planning a fast unto death with his children demanding justice for his wife. --Gulf Today, Sharjah, December 21, 2009.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Poll debacle brings CPI-M infighting to the fore
B.R.P.BHASKAR
Indo Asian News Service
The national leadership of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) will soon be called upon to adjudicate on the sectarianism in the party's Kerala unit, which has been laid bare by the electoral debacle.
The ruling Left Democratic Front led by the CPI-M, which held 19 of the state's 20 seats in the last Lok Sabha, has only four members in the new house. The CPI-M can derive comfort from the fact that all four are its nominees.
In an attempt to maximise the front's tally, CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan had gifted the Muslim-majority Ponnani constituency to an independent candidate of People's Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Abdul Naser Mahdani's choice in return for his support in the remaining constituencies.
The Ponnani gamble failed but Mahdani claims credit for the CPI-M's four wins. The party's own assessment, disclosed after a series of state-level meetings, is that the deal with Mahdani did not yield the expected benefits. It reckons that the propaganda unleashed by the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and hostile media on the PDP link and the Lavalin scandal confused party sympathisers.
The party's association with the PDP may not have precipitated a Hindu backlash against it, but it appears to have helped the UDF by bringing about a consolidation of other Muslim groups behind it.
An accused in the Coimbatore serial bomb blast case, Mahdani was in a Tamil Nadu jail without bail or parole for nearly 10 years. After acquittal in 2007, he returned home a hero and resumed his self-appointed mission of weaning Muslims away from the Muslim League, a long-time UDF constituent.
Many viewed Mahdani's activity with suspicion as his campaign in the wake of the demolition of the Babri Masjid had aroused communal passions in the state in the 1990s. CPI-M leaders sought to dispel their fears by asserting he was a changed man.
To the party's embarrassment, the media carried a series of reports based on leaked contents of statements made to police by some terror suspects about contacts with Mahdani or his wife. Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said the reports were based on old material.
The statements were indeed old, but the police had failed to follow them up. It was only after the elections that the police questioned Mahdani and his wife in the light of these statements. Apparently the police had deliberately delayed the follow-up action.
In the Lok Sabha elections of 2004 and the state assembly elections of 2006, the LDF could take the PDP's support without provoking any controversy. It became a matter of debate this time because it was seen as a prelude to the PDP's entry into the LDF.
The CPI-M has only itself to blame for the adverse impact of the Lavalin case. Pinarayi Vijayan was power minister when the state government gave the Canadian company, SNC Lavalin, a contract for modernisation of hydel projects. When the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) named him an accused, the party said the action was politically motivated. The party's state committee directed the chief minister to advise the governor against sanctioning prosecution by the CBI.
The governor, who can take a decision in the matter independent of the cabinet's advice, has not so far accepted or rejected the CBI's request. The length to which the party has gone to avoid Vijayan's arraignment in court has led to a suspicion that it has something to hide.
While identifying disunity in the LDF and the party as a factor that contributed to the electoral drubbing, the CPI-M has glossed over the causes of the disunity. It has also overlooked the role played by party rebels in its rout.
The CPI-M could pacify the Communist Party of India (CPI), which was angered by the allotment of its Ponnani seat to Mahdani's nominee, by offering Wayanad instead. However, the relationship between the two parties at the grassroots level remained strained, affecting the front's campaign.
The state leadership of the Janata Dal-Secular, which was infuriated by the CPI-M's takeover of its Kozhikode seat, openly backed UDF candidates in many places.
The decisions which annoyed the two LDF constituents were not taken in the normal course. They were taken unilaterally by the CPI-M leadership and imposed on the partners. Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan dropped broad hints about his differences with the party decision on both the seats.
Pinarayi Vijayan, while explaining the party's assessment of the electoral debacle, made an ominous reference to "breach of Leninist principles of party organisation". Although he did not mention Achuthanandan by name, he was clearly alluding to the latter's distancing himself from the party's stand on the PDP and Lavalin issues.
In the party forum Vijayan's supporters reportedly demanded Achuthanandan's resignation. One of them alleged that three years ago Achuthanandan had discussed with his aides a plan to float an alternative party.
The state leadership is likely to place these matters before the politburo, which alone is authorised to deal with charges against Achuthanandan as he is a member of that body. The politburo has to walk a tightrope, knowing that while Vijayan has complete hold on the organisation Achuthanandan commands popular support beyond the party.
Indo Asian News Service
The national leadership of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) will soon be called upon to adjudicate on the sectarianism in the party's Kerala unit, which has been laid bare by the electoral debacle.
The ruling Left Democratic Front led by the CPI-M, which held 19 of the state's 20 seats in the last Lok Sabha, has only four members in the new house. The CPI-M can derive comfort from the fact that all four are its nominees.
In an attempt to maximise the front's tally, CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan had gifted the Muslim-majority Ponnani constituency to an independent candidate of People's Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Abdul Naser Mahdani's choice in return for his support in the remaining constituencies.
The Ponnani gamble failed but Mahdani claims credit for the CPI-M's four wins. The party's own assessment, disclosed after a series of state-level meetings, is that the deal with Mahdani did not yield the expected benefits. It reckons that the propaganda unleashed by the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and hostile media on the PDP link and the Lavalin scandal confused party sympathisers.
The party's association with the PDP may not have precipitated a Hindu backlash against it, but it appears to have helped the UDF by bringing about a consolidation of other Muslim groups behind it.
An accused in the Coimbatore serial bomb blast case, Mahdani was in a Tamil Nadu jail without bail or parole for nearly 10 years. After acquittal in 2007, he returned home a hero and resumed his self-appointed mission of weaning Muslims away from the Muslim League, a long-time UDF constituent.
Many viewed Mahdani's activity with suspicion as his campaign in the wake of the demolition of the Babri Masjid had aroused communal passions in the state in the 1990s. CPI-M leaders sought to dispel their fears by asserting he was a changed man.
To the party's embarrassment, the media carried a series of reports based on leaked contents of statements made to police by some terror suspects about contacts with Mahdani or his wife. Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said the reports were based on old material.
The statements were indeed old, but the police had failed to follow them up. It was only after the elections that the police questioned Mahdani and his wife in the light of these statements. Apparently the police had deliberately delayed the follow-up action.
In the Lok Sabha elections of 2004 and the state assembly elections of 2006, the LDF could take the PDP's support without provoking any controversy. It became a matter of debate this time because it was seen as a prelude to the PDP's entry into the LDF.
The CPI-M has only itself to blame for the adverse impact of the Lavalin case. Pinarayi Vijayan was power minister when the state government gave the Canadian company, SNC Lavalin, a contract for modernisation of hydel projects. When the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) named him an accused, the party said the action was politically motivated. The party's state committee directed the chief minister to advise the governor against sanctioning prosecution by the CBI.
The governor, who can take a decision in the matter independent of the cabinet's advice, has not so far accepted or rejected the CBI's request. The length to which the party has gone to avoid Vijayan's arraignment in court has led to a suspicion that it has something to hide.
While identifying disunity in the LDF and the party as a factor that contributed to the electoral drubbing, the CPI-M has glossed over the causes of the disunity. It has also overlooked the role played by party rebels in its rout.
The CPI-M could pacify the Communist Party of India (CPI), which was angered by the allotment of its Ponnani seat to Mahdani's nominee, by offering Wayanad instead. However, the relationship between the two parties at the grassroots level remained strained, affecting the front's campaign.
The state leadership of the Janata Dal-Secular, which was infuriated by the CPI-M's takeover of its Kozhikode seat, openly backed UDF candidates in many places.
The decisions which annoyed the two LDF constituents were not taken in the normal course. They were taken unilaterally by the CPI-M leadership and imposed on the partners. Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan dropped broad hints about his differences with the party decision on both the seats.
Pinarayi Vijayan, while explaining the party's assessment of the electoral debacle, made an ominous reference to "breach of Leninist principles of party organisation". Although he did not mention Achuthanandan by name, he was clearly alluding to the latter's distancing himself from the party's stand on the PDP and Lavalin issues.
In the party forum Vijayan's supporters reportedly demanded Achuthanandan's resignation. One of them alleged that three years ago Achuthanandan had discussed with his aides a plan to float an alternative party.
The state leadership is likely to place these matters before the politburo, which alone is authorised to deal with charges against Achuthanandan as he is a member of that body. The politburo has to walk a tightrope, knowing that while Vijayan has complete hold on the organisation Achuthanandan commands popular support beyond the party.
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