Shocking news.
"In a significant development, the SIT led by former CBI director R K Raghavan told the Supreme Court on Monday that the celebrated rights activist cooked up macabre tales of wanton killings.
The SIT also found no truth in the following incidents widely publicised by the NGOs:
- A pregnant Muslim woman Kausar Banu was gangraped by a mob, who then gouged out the foetus with sharp weapons
- Dumping of dead bodies into a well by rioteers at Naroda Patiya
- Police botching up investigation into the killing of British nationals, who were on a visit to Gujarat and unfortunately got caught in the riots
Rohtagi said: "On a reading of the report, it is clear that horrendous allegations made by the NGOs were false. Stereotyped affidavits were supplied by a social activist and the allegations made in them were found untrue.""
The Indian Express alls this an unconscionable act:
The news reports of the Supreme Court appointed SIT’s charges against a leading activist, Teesta Setalvad are truly disturbing. She is charged with adding morbidity to the post-Godhra riots in Gujarat by "cooking up macabre tales of killings". One has to see the full SIT report to come to terms with how grievous the charges are. On the face of it the SIT is credible. But by all news accounts Teesta Setalvad has done the cause of justice irreparable harm. And her actions, as described, will undermine the capability of civil society to have any imprimatur of impartiality in investigating riot cases.
Justifiably so.
And there is a blog, Intellibrief, , which goes hammer and tongs at Teesta, and it has good links to back its contentions, among which is an article by Tavleen Singh in The Indian Express.
Tavleen Singh says, among other things,
"When Zaheera Sheikh charged that Teesta had exploited her for monetary gain I remembered that people often wondered about Communalism Combat’s funding and saw it as an NGO with an agenda. Inquiries with the Charity Commissioner of Maharashtra revealed that they were not listed as an NGO, so I rang Javed Anand and asked why not. He said it was because they were a private limited company. I asked him outright if he would like to answer the charge that Communalism Combat was funded with Saudi money. No insinuation there. The reason I asked was because an editor I know was once asked to edit a magazine on communalism and refused when it was revealed that money for the enterprise was coming from the Gulf."
"I believe also that people like Teesta and Javed get into dangerous territory when they equate Hindu fundamentalism with radical Islam. One of their own headlines speaks for itself ‘Denying a shared past’ (RSS and Tableeghi Jamaat two sides of the same coin). I believe they are as different as Hinduism and Islam."
"Another problem I have with crusaders against ‘‘communalism’’ is that by banging on about secularism and communalism they distract attention from the real issue, which is the justice system. The only way to stop hate crimes is severe punishment for those who commit them. It is about justice never being done and not about that uniquely Indian, and much used, word, communalism."
"Politicians have long used secularism and communalism to distract attention from their inability to solve our real problems. But it is much easier to stir up religious and ethnic passions than to provide a billion people with drinking water, electricity, jobs and housing. Isn’t that what Modi did in Gujarat? "
Teesta is a 2005 Padma Shri awardee, we cannot comment on that.
It is sad to see that righteous indignation has degraded a person who had the courage to engage herself in moral issues, to this state of deceit and hyperbole, recklessly inciting communal hatred:
As Nietszche, that modern day prince of aphorists put it, "Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster, and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you."
Teesta Setelvad is a cautionary tale for all us: Get off your moral high horse as quick as you can, don't enjoy the ride- you don't know where you will end up.
Teesta is a 2005 Padma Shri awardee, we cannot comment on that.Why?
ReplyDelete‘‘If a high-flying columnist such as Tavleen Singh were to limit herself to peddling prejudice, paranoia and sheer naivete as informed opinion, who are we to stand between her and her precious constituency? But when basic journalistic ethics are given the go-by even while a facade of objectivity is maintained, when insinuation is paraded as argument, when facts are selectively hand picked to dress up fiction, Ms Singh’s bluff needs to be called’’This was CC's rejoinder to Tavleen Singh. Read it slowly if you don't get the 'hidden crux'.
Re Padma Shri award:
ReplyDelete"Teesta and Javed's publication, Communalism Combat, requested and received funds from the Congress Party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India and ten individuals to run advertisements in national dailies attacking the Sangh Parivar, including the Bharatiya Janata Party, before the 1999 Lok Sabha elections.[10]"
-wikipediaUPA gave her the award, right?
The disinformation continues, CJP alleging that the report is not by SIT, but something circulated by the Gujarat Government, to which TOI gives this rejoinder:
"My report was based on the SIT report and not any document circulated by the Gujarat government, as suggested by CJP. Whether any section of the
media has the report or not is irrelevant as TOI has access to the report..."
-Times of India"When people are not careful about truth, it is a sign of dementia or something like that.
Teesta always came across as a motivated person who is far from neutrality. Not surprised by SIT's indictment of Teesta.
ReplyDeleteHere’s some of what the SIT said yesterday (April 21st):
ReplyDelete* The Special Investigation Team (SIT) ... on Tuesday slammed reports that riots witnesses were tutored to give false evidence for exaggeration of the situation, by activists and organisations helping the victims.
* [T]he Supreme Court termed the leak as a “betrayal of the faith reposed in those to whom the report was allowed access”.
* “The alleged reported leaks appear to be inspired by dubious motives. I cannot confirm such claims. The act is highly condemnable,” [SIT chief] Raghavan said.
* The SIT sources said the alleged leaks appear to have been based on statements of state police officials and “cannot be termed as findings of the report.”
All from the Hindustan Times today (April 22), this report: Gujarat riots witnesses not tutored: SIT.
(This is all in a post on my blog, More about warped minds).