INDIAN ENVOY DEVYANI KHOBRAGADE HUMILATED BY THE US

 

The statement issued by Preet Bahara US attorney defending the action against Devyani Khobragade is available here. It is a well contrived bundle of lies and proves the Indian assertion that the entire chain of events was to humilate Indians. Arrogance and US superiority stinks through out the statement issued by Preet Bahara . Let us examine the statement :

 1. The statement mentions that a complaint was received. It is not clarified from whom the complaint was received. From reports emerging till date , no complaint was  ever lodged with the US Govt  by the maid servant of the diplomat .Moreover the maid servant Sangeeta Richard was reported missing by Indian Govt and her passports were cancelled. This was informed to the US authorities.  Incase the maid approached the US authorities for lodging a complaint it was their duty to hand over her to the Indian authorities. It is therefore obvious that the US Govt suo-motto took the decision to prosecute the lady diplomat and to humilate her.

He further states that a US law which has been made to prevent exploitation of servants of diplomats/consular employees has been broken. First of all I am really aghast at the arrogance of the US to decide how much a national of a foreign nation should pay to his employee. I can understand a advisory/guidelines in this regard but here surely the US is acting as if it has the right to dictate others. Should a nation pay their employees according to the per capita income of its people or should pay it according to US standards? Should the servant be paid $4200 dollars when the diplomat is getting a salary of $4500? It is ridiculous to think even that this is possible.
So let us be clear on one thing that there was no exploitation of the servant. Her entire boarding charges,travelling expences,medical expenses plus her salary comes to a handsome amount. There was even no complaint from the servant during her tenure that she was being exploited.

It is unfortunate that a US attorney is drumming these charges of exploitation on technical grounds to hide its real intention of targeting the Indian Govt.This person Preet Bahara is of Indian origin and it seems that to enhance his acceptability among the white people he is particularly enthusiastic in targeting the Indians.

There is one other point which I want to bring out especially when the US in this case is projecting itself as a superman coming to the rescue of  the poor and exploited. Does the US pay the domestic helps employed by their diplomats US minimum wages? Surely the US embassies are US territories by definition and the local domestic helps working there should get salaries according to US standards. But the US empathy for the poor ends here. According to reports the salaries of these employees in their south asia centers are a meager $1 per day!

So this US law about enforcing US minimum wages on foreign diplomats is not only defective but obnoxious and unfair. The other fact is that the unpractibility of this law was in the notice of the US Govt and they knew that almost all the third world embassies were not adhering to it. The anomaly between the salary paid and that declared on the visa application form was known to the US authorities. And this practice was in vogue for the past several years. Then how is that suddenly they woke up to this great injustice being done and arrested  the Indian diplomat. To be precise not only arrested but handcuffed and body searched. If they suddenly woke up to the issue then in all fairness they should have given prior notice to all the embassies and consular offices warning them of strict implementation of the law. The diplomats would have either terminated the services of the domestic helps or would have taken some other appropriate action to protect themselves. But here I would again like to point out that this was preplanned operation to target the Indian Govt.

Therefore as claimed by Mr Preet Bahara there was no evading of the US law but a mere continuation of  the custom prevailing till now with the silent approval of the US. It is another matter that the US suddenly decided to implement it without issuing any warnings.

It is also incorrect as alleged that the diplomat created false documents knowingly. The visa application was signed by the maid servant fully aware that the salary mentioned would not be paid and was a mere formality to complete the paper work. It is already stated above that this practice was in vogue since past several years  because of the simple reason that the salary of a servant cannot be more than a employer and US was well aware of it.

The statement further expresses its dismay that a petty matter like the treatment to the diplomat is being given more importance instead of  focusing on the treatment meted out to the servant. This statement proves in a nutshell that demeaning and humiliating behavior towards Indian diplomats is a insignificant matter for the US. How was that Mr Preet was so sure that the the maid servant was not indulging in a well thought out plan to blackmail  her employer to extract financial gains and to seek permanent residence in the US? Obviously this attorney was acting with a ulterior motive  and therefore completely avoids this angle.

I would like  to present several facts which points towards a conspiracy by either Sangeeta Richard alone or in connivance with the US authorities.

 First the maid servant accepted the employment fully aware that the salary mentioned in the visa application would not be paid to her. Second  she worked with the employer for 8 months and never complained about her salary. One fine day she tells the employer that she wants to work outside during holiday.Note that she was given holidays also. No exploitation. The permission is refused rightly by the employer since it would violate the terms of employment in the US. The diplomat goes out of station and when she returns the maid is not there.  The date was 23.6.13 .She has just disappeared. The Indian Govt informs the US authorities and revokes her passport. There is no help from the US side to trace the missing maid. On 1.7.13 the diplomat Khobragade receives a anonymous call asking for certain favors in return for not filing a court case against her. Is this not blackmail and clearly shows the intention of the maid servant.? On 2.7.13 the diplomat reports the matter to NYPD and tells them that she is being blackmailed and to trace the call received by her. There is absolutely no action. It seemed that a plot designed by top US authorities was at work to ensnare the lady diplomat. In despair the diplomat files a case in India for restraining Sangeeta Richard from filing any case against her in the US and also praying for anticipatory bail. Then one fine day on 4.9.13 the Indian Embassy receives a letter from US authorities informing that the charges made by the maid is serious. So it was admitted that the maid was in contact with the US authorities and deliberately not handed over inspite of missing complaint lodged by the Indian embassy . This clearly proves the conspiracy angle.

On 21.9.13 Delhi High Court passes the order restraining Sangeeta Richard from filing any court case against the diplomat outside India and on 19.11.13 issued a arrest warrant for her arrest. Inspite of these orders being immediately forwarded to the US authorities no action was taken. The orders of the Indian court was rather treated as a piece of garbage.A completely opposite action was taken, that is to file a case against the diplomat and then to arrest her.

And now the best part. The husband and the daughter was secretly granted visa by the US embassy in Delhi and flown away to USA on the same day. It is now reported that they are being granted green cards. The question  is whether the objective of the  Richards( quite a impressive name) was to gain permanent status? Or they were part of a conspiracy to malign India? Or may be  Sangeeta supplied some information to the US intelligence and her family received a reward in the form of permanent immigration.

Therefore it is surprising that Mr Preet Bharara did not look into the possibility of conspiracy and blackmail by the maid.

The entire timeline of the episode can be found here

 2. Here Mr Preet only repeats the justification of his action. He completely refuses to acknowledge the chain of events ending with the escape of the husband. The hand of the US in keeping the maid hidden. Inaction of NYPD. Ignoring of Indian court orders for the arrest of the maid servant and for not initiating any legal action against Devyani. This is amazing Mr Preet !

The truth is that she was betrayed by the US and ensnared and used for ulterior reasons. The entire truth will come out some day.

 3. The third paragraph by the most loyal servant of the United States is entirely devoted to the allegations made by the maid. The allegations among others that she was made to work 40 hours a week  and was forced to change the contract are merely in the realm of speculations. Arrest,handcuffing and other atrocities are not required just because somebody has made certain allegations. That too without even hearing the other side which happens to be a diplomat of a friendly country. Obviously the learned attorney was more interested to serve  the orders of his superior masters rather than administering justice.

 4. This part in which Mr Preet sketches a rosy picture of all the courtesy accorded to the victim is most interesting. Earlier the State Deptt officials completely washed their hands off the entire matter of subjecting the diplomat to humiliating treatment. Saying that once the case is transferred to the arresting authorities they have no role to play in it. But now Mr Preet remembers every detail vividly. Everything was hunky dory ! they even offered her food. But he also cleverly does not deny handcuffing and cavity search. Of course it was all standard procedure.

It does not occur to this learned attorney that under the Vienna convention for consular's all due respect is to be extended. The diplomat could have been called to the office of the arresting official and then questioned and offered bail. Of course it is another thing that by doing such a thing they would be defeating the very purpose for which this intricate web was woven. That is demeaning and humiliating India before the international community. This is a classic example of rubbing salt to the injuries.
In the Raymond Davis case the US demanded diplomatic immunity from Pakistan even though he was not a diplomat attached to the US embassy there. He was a US citizen as a consular. So how is that our diplomat is not covered under immunity? But then Mr Preet conveniently becomes blind to the fact .

 5. Here Mr Preet acknowledges that the US arranged for extracting the family of the maid from India and clandestinely flew him to the United States. All in the name of dispensing justice! What other proof one needs that the entire operation was meticulously planned. Just after 2 days after the arrival of the family in the US, Devyani was arrested. It all looks like a spy thriller. Till now spies were being secretly extracted from enemy territory. Now even in cases of wage disputes the US is ready to transcend all international laws and undermine the sovereignty of nations. This is a dangerous trend. Does the jurisdiction of the  justice deptt of the US envelopes all nations in the world? But the learned attorney justifies it in the name of justice. If this concept is followed by other countries,complete chaos would reign. Each country has its own laws and the concept of justice varies. Should a country in which death penalty is not allowed should start extracting people under sentence of death in the US. What type of attorney is Mr Preet ,giving such a ridiculous argument? If his argument is followed then we would be completely justified to give asylum to Snowden.

 Mr Preet please note that the world is not the private domain of the United States. People like you with inflated ideas of greatness do utmost harm to friendly relations and sow the seeds of hatred and contempt for the US. You have done nothing in this case for the sake of justice but for the sake of feeding the inflated ego of the US. The entire case is fabricated,preplanned ,unconstitutional and contrived deliberately to bully India. Iam  sure that the details of the conspiracy would surface one day.

In the end I would state that the Indian people are united to condemn this nefarious action of the United States. Rest assured Ms Devyani Khobragade would emerge out of this episode clean and shining. The humiliation would be of the United States

 

 

AK BUNDI

19.12.13

 

AAM ADMI PARTY OR KAAMSE BHAGO PARTY  13.12.13

 

The much awaited election results of the Delhi assembly were out on 8.12.13. The AAP won 28 seats, the Congress 8 and the BJP 32 seats. What astonished everyone was that the newly formed AAP was able to win such a large number of seats and even the  Chief Minister Sheila Dixit was defeated by a margin of 25000 votes by Kejriwal the chief of AAP. It was clear that the Delhi voters wanted the AAP to govern Delhi and bring in the changes promised by them. Namely a corruption free governance,reduction in electricity bills,reduction in inflation,security and  decentralisation of power. In short implementation of the lofty ideals preached by them. The public in their enthusiasm no doubt overlooked the fine work done by the previous Sheila Dixit Govt in the past 15 years. Entire Delhi from east to north and south to west witnessed a tremendous development in all fields be it electricity,water,metro, parks,airport,road connectivity,overbridges and pollution free atmosphere. But this is the public verdict and should be respected. The people considered these development work as insufficient and expected that AAP would deliver much better than this. So be it. The question is that why has the AAP refused to govern Delhi and take on the responsibilities.

1. AAP declared that they would form Govt only if they secure majority in the assembly that is if they get 36 seats or more. Are they dictating terms to the  voters? What is the guarantee that they would secure majority in the next elections? They have thus betrayed the voters and have not reciprocated the faith which the voters reposed in them by not forming the Govt.

2. AAP could have formed a minority govt which would only restrict them from passing bills. Otherwise all other works like streamlining education,water,electricity,poverty alleviation programs etc could have initiated. After all this is not the first time a minority govt would have been formed. This is part of democracy and completely legitimate. This step taken by the AAP only betrays their reluctance to take on responsibility. Shirking from  their duties.

3. Congress has already declared that they are ready to give unconditional support to AAP. With their 8 seats AAP could have easily form the Govt. If there is a unconditional support why is not AAP going for it? Even the argument that they dont want to tie up with corrupt political parties do not matter here. The support is unconditional and AAP can pursue their agenda as they wish. However by not availing of this offer AAP has only shown that it not ready to govern and is only fit for opposing things and for shouting slogans of unpractical lofty ideals.

4. AAP has just refused to even consider a dialogue with other parties for formation of the Govt.Even the BJP could have been persuaded to abstain from the house during the confidence motion thereby reducing the number of present and voting. This way also the AAP could have won the confidence motion and then continue to govern.

The fact is that AAP has betrayed the people who voted them. The only reason seems to be that they were not confident enough to fulfill the promises they had assured to the public. The question is that whether such a party is dependable to rule such a sensitive city like Delhi which is the capital of India. If such is the attitude of AAP it would be better that the Congress comes to power so that they continue the good work they were doing.

 

 

AK BUNDI

SHERRY REHMAN LECTURE AT THE JAMA MILLIA,DELHI ON 31.7.13

                                                                       
                                                                                                                                   8.8.13

Sherry Rehman was born on 21.12.60 in Karachi as Shehrbano ‘Sherry’ Rehman. She is the founding chairperson of Jinnah Institute a think tank in Pakistan, former Information Minister and Pakistan ambassador to the United States.She is married to Nadeem Hussain founder of Tameer Bank. Don't  be misled by the name Sherry which  reminds one of merry days full of fun and frolic spiced with occasional sinful pleasures behind the curtains. Not with Sherry Rehman. She is a intellectual,diplomat,parliamentarian and a social activist. She introduced 5  five PPP bills tabled in the National Assembly: the Women Empowerment Bill, Anti-Honor Killings Bill, Domestic Violence Prevention Bill, Affirmative Action Bill and Hudood Repeal Bill. She also moved two bills concerning the media: the Freedom of Information Bill and the Press Act, which prevents working journalists from being arrested under the 1999 Press Ordinance. A case was registered against her under the notorious Anti Blasphemy Law of Pakistan. Occasionally she has dragged herself into scandals also. The most famous being her merrily puffing a cigarette. You can see the video here.
After the change in Govt in Pakistan the Jinnah Institute is her pet project.Certain quarters in Pakistan have raised concerns that Jinnah Institute is being funded by the ISI through Tameer Bank.Dr Siddiqa who is a prominent Pakistani scholar has already exposed the ISI plan to infiltrate the US think tanks to echo the nefarious agenda of the military establishment of Pakistan. In 2011The Jinnah Institute  together with  the United States Institute of Peace(ULIP) produced a report entitled "Pakistan, the United States and the End Game in Afghanistan: Perceptions of Pakistan". The report stressed the importance of a dialogue between  Pakistan and US governments with  the Taliban with the intention of paving way for Mullah Omar’s rule in Kabul and Kandahar, consistent with ISI’s agendas. This is the goal of the  Pakistan military and ISI and the Jinnah Institute  faithfully incorporated it in its report .

However coming to her lecture at the Jama Millia on 31.7.13 it may be said it was literary a lecture to India. She kept her face straight and gave a lecture on how India is not reciprocating the love and effection Pakistan is pouring on it. Incidentally if you see the picture above, you would observe that her face has started resembling the gentleman whose photograph is hanging behind her. Mohd Ali Jinnah divided India in the name of religion . After getting Pakistan he changed track and started harping that religion and state would be kept separate in Pakistan. This new found ideology he announced in a speech on 11.8.47. The records of this speech has mysteriously disappeared from the archives of the Pakistan radio. Similarly Ms Sherry Rehman is also saying something which is not the truth. The art of subterfuge has been perfected by the Pakistani establishment. They seldom say something which they believe and they seldom believe in what they say. So Sherry Rehman is not a exception.

 I have not been able to lay my hands on the full text of her speech. Let us analyse some of the issues she has raised as reported in the media :

 1. "Kashmir will remain a core concern but we need to move beyond that," she said.

 How is that Kashmir is a core issue for Pakistan? Was it earlier part of Pakistan and India snatched it? The truth is that a part of Kashmir has been snatched away by Pakistan which has still not been returned to us. The entire Kashmir has been acceded to India legally by then Maharaja Hari Singh. So the core issue is returning of POK to us. It is another matter that India is not pressing for it. Ms Sherry Rehman is aware that Kashmir is legally and constitutionally integral part of this country now. Issues like UNO resolution or plebiscite have become redundant and time barred. India will never enter into any negotiations with anybody for deciding the status of  of Kashmir. As far as POK is concerned, Pakistan may return it back to us since it is illegally occupied since 1947. Therefore core issue drama of Pakistan just does not hold water. It is only a cleverly devised tool to needle India and a medium for its political elite to remain in power. The reality is that Pakistan is not interested in the welfare of Kashmiri's. Its only wants its territory and rich natural resources.Pakistan love for the Kashmiri's and its support for the Kashmir cause is also exposed.There has been a number of killings of persons in Pakistan who advocated a independent Kashmir. The most prominent was the killing of Arif Shahid  (based in POK) who advocated Independence for Kashmir. On one side Pakistan continuously shouts that Kashmir's should decide the status of Kashmir and on the other side it is itself eliminating those who are supporting its independence. It only goes to prove its real intention of swallowing Kashmir. This is the core issue for Pakistan. Report.

Since the core issue is a fake issue the condescending words of Madam Sherry that"We need to move forward" as if Pakistan is doing a great favour is unnecessary.

 2.   She also said the rise of Hindutva in India was a cause of concern for Pakistan

 Now this statement is the funniest one I have heard in the last two decades of Indo-Pak relations.

Which Hindutva is she talking about? After Independence India adopted a secular democratic constitution whereas Pakistan became a Islamic country. Religion and state are separate here. In Madam Sherry country the state itself is Islamic and is actively engaged in promoting Islamism and Islamic extremism. If she is pointing her fingers towards the RSS,VHP then these organisations are here since independence and they are not armed lashkars like the TTP ,Taliban. In the past 65 years  there may been a occasional spurt in their activity but it has seldom disturbed the calm waters of secularism.These occasional spurt in their activism cannot in any sense be termed as rise of Hindutva. It is said that attack is the best form of defense. Therefore  Ms Sherry Rehman is taking resort to this gimmick to defend the indefensible spread of cancer of terrorism in Pakistan which is affecting the entire world.First Ms Sherry Rehman builds a imaginary evil doll of rising Hindutva in India and then further gives it a life by expressing  her concerns from it. Pakistan which has the most dreaded demons of terrorism  fearing from Hindutva peanuts in India! Ridiculous . It would be better to leave this to the readers to judge themselves.
While on the subject it would be proper for me  to point out that mass international killings like 9/11,26/11  and other numerous terrorist attacks have been planned and executed by elements in Pakistan. In most of the cases ISI has provided logistic support as well as supply of weapons to the terrorist. Intelligence reports gathered during a long span of time by the US and other nations have clearly established the nexus between the Pakistani state and terrorist. Everybody knows the ties between the PMLN and TTP,LeT,LeJ. The previous Govt of PPP was obediently at the pleasure of the Army which in turn was using terrorist as a legitimate force. It has became very difficult for Pakistan therefore to hide the nest of snakes which it is feeding .Moreover the fire it ignited for others have started burning in its own backyard. Since Pakistan cannot hide the devil and neither it can destroy it the best next thing it did was to justify it. Mumbai 26/11was because of Kashmir problem, Train blast, Akshardam killings because of Babri masjid, New York was attacked because of Palestine problem, Bodh Gaya attacked because of Rohingya problem, Innocents massacred because of drone attacks,London metro attacked because of Muslim discrimination, London soldier attack because of Afghanistan problem,Indian Embassy attacked because of strategic depth problem. The list is long. Now Pakistan is cherry picking some episode and justifying jihadis. Wait ! Imran Khan is now going one step further to hug the Talibs.
That is why people in India just smiled politely when Sherry Rehman spoke at the Jama Millia.

 3. She said both countries need to move beyond "cold war politics" and "tired posturing of hyper nationalism".

 India is a vast country and it can adjust 4 Pakistans in it if we go area wise. What will it do with more territory? Pakistan has constantly crying wolf over India as if we are going to annexe it territories.There is nothing worthwhile in Pakistan which India would like to possess. Infact some people in India thank God that Pakistan was formed and all the Jihadis, Fasadis and Wahibis shifted there. Pakistan propaganda about India intimidating has however paid rich dividends to it. Possession of Nuclear weapons and billions of dollars in US aid and advance weapon systems . So the cold war which Ms Sherry Rehman is referring to does not exist as far as India is concerned but for Pakistan it is important to continue this bogey.India has yet to be granted MFN status,Kashmir is not recognised as part of India,Parts of Leh/Ladakh given to China,ISI sponsored attacks, beheading of soldiers and so on. Are these not cold war attacks on India. The cause of the cold war is Pakistan and it is expected that Ms Rehman would impress on the leaders of her country to drop these tactics and embrace the hand of India to promote peace and prosperity in the region.

Now what is this "tired posturing of hyper nationalism" ? Has Ms Rehman   ever gone through school text books prescribed in Pakistan? Millions of Pakistani children are taught that Hindus are cunning kafirs and India is Pakistan enemy one. Thousands of Madrassa's believed to be approximately 40,000 are jihadi producing factories which churn out thousands of jihadis every month. After years  of such indoctrination the majority of youngsters in Pakistan now consider themselves as Arab as if their ancestors never belonged to the great Ganga-Jamuna tehzeb. So this is the kind of nationalism which Pakistan is injecting into its population which is inimical and hostile towards India. There is no such indoctrination in India. Yes there is the pain of partition but there is no malice born out of religious differences. And please remember Ms Sherry that India has more Muslims than Pakistan and they are increasing but your country has reduced the Hindus from 22% to 2%. So Ms Sherry don't make us a partner in the sort of nationalism which you are nurturing. It can be termed as 'viper' nationalism and  not' hyper' nationalism.

 4. she said, “we are here building bridges”.

 Would Ms Sherry Rehman tell us what sort of bridges she intends to build.Horrible attacks from Pakistan based terrorists and from the Army has now become a common occurrence. Thousands of Indians have been killed in these attacks. Our soldiers have been beheaded and those captured have been mutilated. The perpetuators of these crimes are roaming free and boasting about their vile acts in Pakistan. The Let/JuD chief  Hafeez Sayeed who has blood on his hands openly threatens India from Lahore in his daily speeches. In one of his speeches he said that " Hindus are mean enemy" and "they have to be crushed as our forefathers have done". Instead of putting this rascal behind bars guess what the  Pakistan Government does .It releases a grant of 61.35 million to his  organisation JuD based in Muridke. A award for his blood thirsty intention against India.Report. Capt Saurabh Kalia was captured, tortured and mutilated and then his body was thrown in a pit by the Pakistani Army. All along Pakistan denied this but now see how a Pakistani soldier is boasting about it in a function organised by the Pakistan Army. Video.

It is clear that Pakistan never wanted bridges to be built. Its entire military and civil complex is working overtime to devise new ways to target the people of India. Even a small thing like granting MFN status to India cannot be carried out by Pakistan and and Ms Sherry Rehman is talking about building bridges.Ms Sherry show yourself a mirror and you would see the utter falsehood of the statement you are making. First apologise for your misdeeds,punish those responsible for it,apprehend the terrorists, control your army and then come for building bridges.

 5. she also mentioned that “India still looks at Pakistan through an outdated lens” and while they try to move forward with any discussion, the Mumbai attacks “burns a hole in every conversation” and “negotiations in this view are not possible.”

 India still looks at Pakistan through a outdated lens? What does it mean? The entire world and not only India knows that the entire ground in Pakistan has become a quick sand in which it is slowly being swallowed. Killing have become norm there,Muslims are killing Muslims. The administration has become ineffective and Army has been infiltrated by Jihadis. Elections are won by getting support from extremist organisations.Mediveal laws like the blasphemy law , anti Ahmedi laws , non Muslims voter rights law are prevailing there. People like Salman Taseer are publicly executed and his killing is celebrated by educated citizens of Pakistan. The killer is showered with rose petals.The judiciary has become redundant. The judges do not pronounce judgments because of threats to their life.Witnesses fear to depose. Hindu girls are kidnapped ,converted and forced into marriage with Muslim landlords. Nobody even blinks.Even TV shows are aired showing some poor Hindu  being converted to Islam with much fanfare and the entire Pakistan audience applauds. Presidents and Prime Ministers run away from Pakistan and take shelter in Dubai or London. Even your former ambassador to US Hussain Haqqani has to run away to prevent his throat being slit by some  celebrity extremist or the ISI.

I am quite sure Ms Sherry is aware of all these facts. India is looking at Pakistan with the latest modern lens and not with a outdated one. The more you remain in a self denial mode the sooner you will hasten the disintegration of your country. India is wisely taking precautionary steps while dealing with such a messy country.
The next part of Ms Sherry statement is the cherry on the cake. Rubbing some extra salt on the wounds.The Mumbai attacks was one of the most murderous event after 9/11 perpetuated by LeT and the ISI. It was organised and planned by the ISI of Pakistan together with Pakistani terrorist organistion the LeT. There is a well planned conspiracy to protect the perpetuators of this crime in Pakistan. 5 years have passed and there is no progress in the case. To escape criticism from the international community a drama is being enacted where some of the accused are kept behind bars where they are enjoying all the luxuries. There is absolutely no progress in the case otherwise. Sometimes the lawyers make themselves absent, sometimes witnesses don't appear, sometime the judge is not well and sometimes they are on leave.Sometimes even some remote sections of the law are digged into and quoted to delay the proceedings. Incidentally the lawyer in the case ChaudharyZulfiqar has also been killed .Hafeez sayeed the brains behind this crime is a hero in Pakistan and promising a second episode. Even a fool can see the real intentions behind these mask of appearances. It looks that so many killings in Pakistan has made you people immune to killings. For us every life is precious and every killer is accountable for his actions.
 Pakistan should not further degrade itself by treating the Mumbai attacks as something which is of little importance and can be set aside in favour of a dialogue. Dialogue is not possible with people who hide murderers ,terrorists and assassins. What you are trying to suggest Ms Rehman is preposterous. You want a dialogue with a country after killing 200 of its people and then having the temerity to protect the killers. This type of twisted logic only Pakistan can practice.

 6. She said one key difference in the Pakistani mood today is that India is no longer seen as Pakistan's principal enemy.

 The military and civil complex of Pakistan sings a different song. There is no ground evidence to suggest that Pakistan has changed its policy of enmity with India. Merely stating something does not make it a fact. Leaders of terrorist organisations vowing to decimate India are still being patronised. There are as much as 42 terrorist training  camps running at various places in Pakistan specifically for targeting India. The Pakistani army regularly gives fire cover to militants crossing the LOC into Kashmir. The ISI is providing funds and support to local groups in India to carry out extremist activities. Groups like the Indian Mujahidin have become extension of the ISI. Almost all the Indian terrorist are trained and sheltered in Pakistan. There are almost 50 dreaded  Indian terrorists who have been given shelter in Pakistan. There has been no response from Pakistan to various appeal made by India to hand them over. Killing of Indian soldiers on the LOC is merrily going on. As recently as at the time of writing this article 5 Indian soldiers have been killed in Poonch by a joint team of Pakistan army and the jihadis. Pakistan has a special regiment called mujahedeen 801 or BAT comprising of regular Pakistan soldiers and LeT cadre terrorists to carry cross border attacks. There is already evidence that after the withdrawal of US from Afghanistan, Pakistan has planned to divert the bulk of mujahedeen's toward India.

So how is the mood changed? There is no evidence of it. The  declared goal of Pakistan to bleed India through a thousand cuts is still being pursued vigorously. So if Ms Sherry Rehman thinks that by voicing such homilies she can hide the ground realities then she is sadly mistaken. She should cite some hard facts to substantiate her claim that the mood in Pakistan has changed. Action speaks louder than words.

 In the end I would state that we all want a lasting friendship with Pakistan but not on the terms which Pakistan is insisting. Dialogue for dialogue sake is meaningless. Friendship with a demon is suicide. Cosmetic changes are useless. Pakistan has to make fundamental changes to its polity by taking  pro active steps. Reverse its present engagement to deploy and support terrorism against India by taking positive steps. Then only a lasting and true friendship between our two nations can be a dream come true.

 

 

AK BUNDI

 



THE MURDER OF ISHRAT JAHAN

 



 

 

There is a lot of confusion in the minds of  certain individuals about the actual sequence of events in the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case. This has given a lot of opportunity to members of Sangh Parivar to distort and mislead the public and present the murder of Ishrat Jahan as if it was a genuine encounter. Encounter as the name suggest means killing in self defense when the opponent challenges or open fires on the law enforcement agencies. This never happened as the case reveals

I am giving below a detailed account of the event which has generated a lot of interest in the media and in the minds of the common public.

 

THE CASE

 

1.    15.6.2004    

(A)            Ishrat Jahan and 3 others gunned down by Gujrat Police led by PI(Police Inspector) J.G.Parmar

(B)      FIR NO 8/2004 filed by Crime branch Gujrat Police against the following 4 persons

                     Jishan Johar,Amjadali,Javed & one unknown female terrorist

 2.    08.6.2006

  The I.O in the case Mrs Parixita Gurjar submitted her report concluding that they were terrorist and encounter was genuine. The report was submitted to Special Judge POTA

 3.    07.7.2006

  The POTA judge rejects the findings of the I.O and orders further investigation of the matter.

4.    24.9.2010

  The Gujat High Court in pursuance of various petitions filed before it, orders constitution of  a SIT.

 5.   01.12.2011

 The SIT unanimously concludes that the encounter was fake and submits its report to the Gujrat High Court.  Court orders filing of FIR with the CBI.

 6   15.12.2011

 Shri R.R.Verma head of the SIT files FIR with CBI. It states that since the encounter was fake, benefit of killing in self defense does not accrue to the Gujrat Police officers. They have therefore committed offences under section 302(murder) and various other sections of Arms Act

Accordingly CBI registers the case. Shri R.R.Verma subsequently left the SIT leaving behind the next senior officer Satish Verma to complete the job.

 7.  03.7.2013     CBI completes investigation and files charge sheet  

 

 

INVESTIGATION REPORT OF CBI IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

              SUBMITTED TO THE GUJRAT HIGH COURT ON 3.7.13

 

1. April 2004

  Jishan Johar abducted from Ahmedabad by Sh Rajinder Kumar ( IB Special Director) and Sh G.L.Singhal IPS Officer. They were assisted by passive agents C1 and C2. According to Sh. Praween Swami ( Noted security analyst ) these were Gujrat based  jihadis trained in Pakistan who were persuaded to change sides.

Jishan Johar was kept in Gota Housing, Ahmedabad.

2. 26.5.2004

 Amjadali abducted from Ahemdabad by DCB and SIB officials

Kept in Arhan Farm house. This place was arranged by JG Parmar PI Crime branch. Amjadali has stated that he had come to commit some terrorist act in Ahmadabad.

3. 12.6.2004

 Javed and Ishrat Jahan abducted from Vasad Poll Booth Anand while travelling in a blue color Indica car Regd No 4786

Kept in Khodiyar farm. This place was arranged by Sh DG Vanzara .The following officers of the Gujrat Police met Javed and Ishrat Jahan while in illegal custody

Sh DG Vanzara,Sh PP Pandey,Sh Rajinder Kumar & Dr NK Amin

4. 13.6.2004

Jishan Johar shifted from Gota Housing to Khodiyar Farm

In the evening a plan to eliminate all the four was discussed at DG Vanzara office. Other present were PP Pandey and Sh Rajinder Kumar. The plan was to kill them and then lodge a FIR showing their death in a encounter.

 5. 14.6.2004

 3PM  Sh GL Singhal was called by Sh DG Vanzara at his office. A draft of the FIR which was to be lodged after the killing was there. Sh DH Goswami PI was also present

 11PM Sh DG Vanzara briefed the officers about the operation to be carried out which was to be according to the FIR already prepared

 6. 15.6.2004

 2AM  Gunmen Menat & Kalaswa report to GL Singhal

 4AM  NK Amin proceeds to the scene of the crime i.e Kotarpur Water Works with gunmen

Menat, JG Parmar,KS Desai and driver Rupabhai

Two constables bring Jishan Johar,Javed and Ishrat Jahan to the scene of the crime in a Indica Car. The same indica car in which Javed and Ishrat were travelling when abducted on 12.6.2004.

Car is parked across the road divider and Javed is shifted from backseat to the driver seat.

 GL Singhal reaches scene of the crime along with gunmen Barot,Kalaswa,Chaudhary,Chauhan and Nizammudin.

 BA Patel and Taljabhai brings Amjadali to scene of crime in a white qualis.He was made to stand behind the Indica car. BA Patel drove away and Taljibahi remained behind.

 Immediately afterwards NK Amin,Barot,Parmar,Kalaswa,Chaudhary opened fired killing all 4 of them.

 Kalaswa was further ordered to fire from AK-56 on the official gypsy of NK Amin. This gun was then planted on the body of AmjadAli.

 5AM The mission was complete and message was sent that in continuation of Intelligence  output a encounter took place and 4 suspected terrorist killed.Thereafter the FIR was registered.

 

A INTRODUCTION TO MAIN PERSONS INVOLVED IN THIS OPERATION

 

 

 

1. DG VANZARA    1987 batch IPS officer considered close to Modi. He  was DCP Gujrat Crime Branch. He is a encounter specialist responsible  for encounter killings of Soharubdin and his wife,Ishrat Jahan and 3 others, Samir Khan,Sadiq Jamal and many others. After every killings he used to say that they were out to kill Modi. Arrested in 2007

 

2. PP PANDEY  Senior Gujrat IPS officer( 1982 batch ). He was  the Joint Commisioner of  Police heading  the Gujrat Crime Branch when Ishrat Jahan was killed. Vanzara was working under him. He  is absconing and his whereabouts are unknown.

 

 

3. GL SINGHAL  Senior Gujrat IPS officer.Asstt commissioner of police Gujrat crime branch. He led the team which killed Ishrat Jahan. He is currently on bail.Reportedly he has handed over a tape to the CBI containing conversation with Home Miniser of Gujrat.His only son 17 yrs old has committed suicide.

 

 

4. NK AMIN  DSP Gujrat Police.He is also charged in the fake encounter of Sohrabbudin and burning the body of  his wife Kausarbi( The body was never found) . He was one of the person who fired on Ishrat Jahan to kill her and 3 others.He is under arrest.It is reported that he may turn approver.

 

 

 

5. JG PARMAR  Gujrat Police officer who fired on Ishrat to kill. Currently on bail

 

 

 

 

6. TARUN BAROT  Gujrat Police Officer he also fired on Ishrat to kill.   

 

7. MOHAN KALASWA  Fired 32 rounds from his AK-56 to kill. Later the gun was planted on the dead AmjadAli. Mohan Kalaswa is now dead.

8. RAJINDER KUMAR  1979 batch IPS oficer. Special Director IB.Generated the report that Ishrat and 3 others were terrorist. Supposed to be the main planner to kidnap and kill them. Went to meet Ishrat one day before killing them. Said to be present at the crime location when killing took place.

It is expected that he will be named in the supplementary charge sheet.

 

 

SOME FACTS AND CONCLUSIONS

 1. It would be seen that right from the beginning there was a deliberate delay by the Gujrat Govt to derail the investigation. Ishrat was killed on 15.6.2004. Gujrat Police submitted the report after 2 years on 8.6.2006.When the court rejected the report and ordered a fresh investigation the matter was kept pending for over 4 yrs. It  was only on 24.9.2010 that the Gujrat High Court took the matter in its own hand and ordered a SIT. There was absolutely no response from the Gujrat Govt to investigate the fake encounter inspite of serious allegations of murdering Ishrat. It would also be seen that the allegation by the BJP that Congress was behind this is entirely false. The entire investigation was ordered by the Gujrat High Court and is being monitered by it.

2. Ishrat and others were in police custody and were taken out early morning on 15.6.2004 and killed in cold blood. Under no stress of imagination this can be described as a encounter.

3. I for one would even go further and support the killings of  AmjadAli,Johar and Javed if it comes out to be that they were terrorists. Certain information do point towards that direction but needs further clarifications. But what was the sin of Ishrat? Just because she was travelling with Javed does she becomes a terrorist? She was a student supporting her family after her father's death by taking tuitions and embroidery work. She was working with Javed who she probably thought was into some genuine business. Javed knew the family and after the death of  Ishrat father  decided to help the family by employing her. She was travelling with Javed because he was her employer.There  is not a shred of evidence that she was a terrorist.

 4. BJP quotes that Headley statement to NIA mentions her as a suicide bomber. There is absolutely no mention of Ishrat in the NIA report. The former Union Home Secretary NK Pillai has categorically stated that there is not mention of Ishrat in the NIA report. Obviously this is invented by the BJP to justify her killings. Moreover Headley interrogation was done in 2010 so in 2004 how did the IB came to know that she was a  terrorist.

The other fact which BJP repeats is that Ishrat name is mentioned on the LeT website. The fact is that the LeT has already clarified that she has no connection with them. The Gujrat Police and the IB knew very well that Ishrat was innocent. They could have easily devised their operations in such a way that Ishrat could have been spared. But probably a innocent life has no value for them.

It is interesting to note that GL Singhal whose 17 yrs old son committed suicide told the CBI that divine justice was meted to him since he killed a innocent person.

 5. Another interesting fact comes out in the confessional statement of Bharat Patel a accused cop. He states

 " “On June 9, 2004, I (Patel) was with Singhal at about 10.15pm. Singhal had received a message from DG Vanzara to speak to him on the phone. When Singhal called him, Vanzara had instructed him to meet Rajinder Kumar at his residence.
It further states, “Accordingly, we both had reached there. We were told by JD (Rajinder Kumar) that Javed alias Pranesh Pillai, who was under watch of IB for associations and activities with Amjadali, was coming to Ahmedabad along with a girl.” “JD said that the persons would come in the Indica car, gave the number and colour (of the car) and directed to pick up both persons before they reached Ahmedabad, Singhal thought that the idea of picking up the girl was bad: first, the girl was not needed for operational purposes, and it would also lead to complications.”
The statement goes on: “Therefore, Singhal had opined that we should allow them to reach Ahmedabad and then wait for an opportunity to take the boy (Javed Sheikh) alone. Therefore, Kumar had talked with Vanzara. After an hour, NK Amin had come and I (Patel) and Singhal were relieved by Kumar.”

 In my opinion this was the right approach to spare the innocent girl. Javed could have been abducted unseen by Ishrat so that she would have remained ignorant about his whereabouts. Subsequently she would have been under the impression that Javed was killed in a real encounter. Though this was also unethical  but  if thought to be necessary by Crime Branch because of solid evidence that the 3 were terrorist,could be condoned.

GL Singhal advise also proves that the IB & Gujrat Crime Branch were absolutely certain that Ishrat was innocent.

6. Other fact which points towards the murder is that the FIR was drafted in advance on 14.6.2004 in the office of DG Vanzara. This pre prepared FIR was lodged after the killings were complete on 15.6.2004.

 7.  2 years later on 17.7.2006 Modi while addressing a Maharashra state BJP speaks about Ishrat. He says

“…Ishrat Jahan naam ki ek aatankvaadi ladki, jiska HAMARE Gujarat Police ke saath encounter hua…(wipes his face)…aur use maar giraya.”

He is not least bothered that a 19 yrs old girl is brutally murdered and her family is begging for justice. This is the extent that Modi can go to propagate that Muslims are out to kill him, a Virat Hindu. This is the false propaganda which has helped him win the 3 elections. Communal divide is his speciality not development. See the video.

Here it may also be mentioned that when GL Singhal met DG Vanzara on 14.6.2004 Dy SP DH Goswami was also present. DH Goswami has stated that Vanzara clearly told that Kaali Dari wala(Amit Shah) and Safed Dari wala(Modi) has given the clearance to kill Ishrat and others. Modi has now suddenly become dumb and refuses to speak on this case.

 8.  Let us throw some light on the contention of the BJP that since the operation was a joint operation of IB and Gujrat Police the Centre is involved and therefore the PMO is also involved. I heard on a TV discussion where a BJP representative was shouting that even Sonia Gandhi is involved ! At the time of the incident the chief of IB multi agency centre was Ajit Doval who ,it can be safely said must be advising the PMO. After retirement Ajit Doval has become Director of the BJP think tank Vivekanand International Foundation .He is a regular advisor to the BJP.He vociferously supports the killing of Ishrat. So if any information was conveyed to the PMO it was from a BJP sympathiser.

 9. After the killings it was claimed by the Gujrat Police that a bag containing explosive powder was recovered  from the blue Indica car. It  has now been established by the  forensic lab that the yellow powder was not at all explosive material. It is obvious that after the killing the fake powder was planted to show that the terrorists were travelling with the explosives to kill Modi.

 10. It is amazing that the killing squad did not receive a single scratch in the encounter. If the terrorists were armed( including a AK-56) how was it that they could not fire a single bullet on the Gujrat Police. This proves they were not armed but the guns were later planted on them.

 11.Statment of  9 police personnel's were recorded under section 164 CrPC before a magistrate. They vividly described how the police fired Nazi type on the unarmed persons killing all of them.

 12. It was claimed by the Gujrat Police that the persons in the Indica car were firing on them to prove that it was a encounter. Later on when the investigation was done by the SIT it was discovered that the empty shells found in the car did not match with the guns found on the bodies of the killed persons. It is clear that nobody fired on the police but the guns were planted later on.

 13. It was claimed that 4 persons were travelling in the Indica car. But later on after investigation it was found that 3 person were brought from Khodyar farm where they were being kept and  Amjadali was brought from Arhan farm house by a seperate car to the scene of the crime.

 

14.

From the above photograph it would be seen that though the floor of the car is fullydrenched in blood there is absolutely no blood on the AK-56 magazines. This could happen only if these magazines were planted after the killings.

 

15. 

From the above picture it would be observed that bullets were fired from the left of car and they emerged from the right of the car.The exit points of the bullets have a downward path. If as claimed by the police they were firing from across the road from depressed ground the exit path would have been upwards. Clearly these bullet holes shows that they were killed from very close quarters and barrels were pointed downwards.

See the the picture below. The body next to Ishrat is of Javed. His body is fully drenched in blood but the body of Ishrat has hardly any blood on it. It was claimed that Javed was on the driver seat and Ishrat was sitting beside him. So how is that Javed received so many bullets and Ishrat hardly any. It therefore looks like Ishrat who was drugged was killed separately. Javed received 14 bullets and Ishrat 4 that too on her neck only.

 

16. Many other facts would come to light when the CBI will file the 2nd charge sheet in the last week of this month. It may be pointed out that the Gujrat High Court has restricted the investigation to finding out only if the  encounter was fake or not. Whether the persons were terrorist or not is outside the scope of the SIT. Whatever it may be, if it is proved that the encounter was fake the culprits would be charged for murder under section 302 of CprC.

 

17. In the end it is my opinion that fake encounters to wipe out dangerous terrorists and gangsters cannot be entirely ruled out in view of the ground realities. There is a serious threat to our society from not only Pakistan but also from certain religious extremists inside the country. We can also not close our eyes to extremely slow moving criminal justice system. Bails are easily obtained and cases remain pending for years. Ultra Liberals on one side want all terrorists to be treated strictly under the judicial system and fanatics nationalist want them all to be shot in fake encounters. Both of these extremes cannot be justified. There has to be a middle path. The IB and Crime Branch should not go for killings under any pressure from political masters or in the pursuit for promotions and goodies from superiors. Terrorist are not born in one day. They have a background history,a record of their movements, record of their calls made on phones and so many other details which should be studied by the security agencies. Only on these basis when the concerned officers are satisfied that these are dangerous men with a mission to kill a decision to eliminate them shoud be taken. In this case Ishrat jahan was absolutely not a terrorist. This could have been easily discovered by visiting her family and knowing her background. Killing a innocent 19 yrs old girl was a heinous crime.

Now certainly extra judicial killings are punishable.Laws are necessary to protect the citizens from crime and are here to stay. One cannot throw out the baby together with the bath water. Therefore any such killings which are necessary to protect the society from heinous criminals should be properly planned and cunningly executed so that they remain outside the limits of law. There are many options. Killing them anonymously or killing them without any witnesses. Killing them through means other than shooting. Giving them option of torture or suicide. And so on.  In this case the Gujrat Police made the mistake of mixing Ishrat with these men. It therefore became necessary to kill her also. The IB and the Gujrat Police became extremely careless as if the judicial system did not exist for them.Even a fake encounter has to be genuine.

 

18. Inspite of whatever has been said above the feeling does remain in some corner of the heart that extra judicial killing is cruel. It is also true that our secret security organisations cannot be given unlimited freedom to decide whom to kill. History is witness that such organistions later on become a Frankenstein monster taking law into their own hands in pursuit of some fascist ideology or dangerous patriotism. They become rogue organisations. Hitler Gestapo can be quoted as an example. A perfect example is the ISI of Pakistan which has become a law unto itself. It has permeated all the Govt institutions and even decides the foreign policy of Pakistan. We cannot allow the IB or CBI to become a ISI. Therefore the time has come to give such encounters/killings the approval of the law of the land. We must appreciate that these agencies are working in difficult circumstances. Generally they are discharging their duties to protect the citizens and the nation from our enemies. So why should they be exposed and hounded like criminals when circumstances demand such killings. The Govt should consider inserting clauses in the CprC or amendment in the constitution to legalise such killings when authorised by the competent authority. At present a superior officers gives verbal instructions to his juniors to execute a encounter which is illegal in law. Instead this authority should be legally given to a committee or to a certain rank in the hierachy. The case should be put before them for their consideration  and they should issue orders for the encounter or killing if they are satisfied. This should be made legally valid. It would be something like President Obama issuing a executive order to execute Osama Bin Laden.

 

A.K. BUNDI

Subsequent to the writing of the above blog certain other developments have taken place in the case.

23.7.13  CBI announces a reward of 5lakhs each to anybody giving credible  information about 'Real Identity' of Zeeshan Johar and Amjad Ali Rana. Quite strange that these two were killed without knowing who were they.

 31.7.13 The main conspirator PP Pandey who has been absconing for the past 2 months presented himself before the CBI court in a strecher in connection with his bail application.He has been granted bail upto 06.08.13 by the Gujrat High Court .