For those of you not familiar with the background on the series of blog posts on this subject, it started with this post by Offstumped followed by this one by Nitin and then this response from Binayak Sen’s friends and family.
In one of the comments by Binayak Sen’s family it appears that the December 2005 press release by Dr. Sen on Narayan Sanyal that prompted Offstumped to post on this subject in the first place was?uknown to his family as Sanyal was referred to by an alias in that release.
The circumstances of the December 2005 press release are curious and should lead one to question if the Maoists played Dr. Sen into unwittingly helping them.
How ?
Well consider this, the press release speculates that Sanyal may have been arrested in Raipur on 28th Dec. Then we hear nothing of him till January 4th when we are told of his arrest in Bhadrachalam in Andhra Pradesh during the wee hours of the morning at a Bus Station.
Now for those unfamiliar with the geography here check this blog out on a road trip to Raipur from Hyderabad. Bhadrachalam is right there on the border with Chattisgarh, the blogger talks about the heavy BSF presence and checkposts along the border.
So coming back to the December 2005 press release why should the CPI-Maoist send a letter to the PUCL on the 28th in Raipur when Sanyal surfaces in Bhadrachalam 350km away on the other side of the border about a week later ?
One theory floated by the Maoists is in this interview by the elusive Ganapathi alleging illegal detention and torture by police before going public with his arrest.
Hard to believe for if a prize catch like Sanyal was netted by the police in Raipur and handed over to Andhra they would have taken him to Hyderabad and paraded him in full media glare to earn maximum brownie points. It defies logic why they would stage an arrest in Bhadrachalam on the border risking a road trip through what is treacherous Maoist territory.
So we must consider an alternate hypothesis here that the December 2005 press release was a smokescreen put out by the Maoists to confuse the police while Sanyal makes his way out of Chattisgarh into Andhra.
What?makes this hypothesis plausible ?
The Maoists have a track record of directly making press releases and even speaking to the media as in the case above. In fact a scan of the PUCL website shows no previous instances of letters and press releases being delivered exlcusively to PUCL office bearers for release to the general public.
So it is entirely possible the Maoists used this channel to make the smokescreen seem credible. We dont know if Binayak Sen was in the know on this or not. We have only have his family’s word on this.
This goes to highlight Nitin’s point on how inadvertently Human Rights Activists could end up playing into the Maoists hands. The Maoists have clearly mastered the art of playing the morality of Rights Activists to their advantage as in this case while the Binayak Sens pay the price in Jail.
Offstumped Bottomline: This case must go to highlight the immorality of the Maoists cause and a lesson for Human Rights Activists in aiding and abetting the Maoists inadvertently while championing causes like illegal detention. As for Dr. Sen one hopes he is innocent and the powers that be can influence the BJP Government in Chattisgarh to take a sympathetic second look at his case.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Very important bottomline.
Another point i wanted to say is that “Human right activists” should aid *humans*. I wonder if terrorists, who do such inhumane things, are really “human beings” ?
If I were a Human right activist, before intervening to help a hard-core maoist terror leader like Sanyal, I would have asked myself the following questions: Have Sanyal and other Maoists been doing *humane* things ? Weren’t they *inhumane* in killing so many people and perpetuating terror in many states across India ? Aren’t there millions of other *human beings* in this country who deserve my help, time and attention more than these Maoists ?
If I am not convinced that their acts are indeed *humane*, and that they need my help, I would never even bring out a press release, unlike Dr. Sen.
If Dr. Sen is innocent, i wish he gets justice at the earliest and i wish, in the future, he will spend his valuable time to help human beings and not maoists.
R,
I don’t think human rights activists (or indeed the law) distinguish between a terrorist and an ordinary person; rights are rights, and everyone has them. Just that the law should punish the bad guys.
But when it comes to advocacy, we cannot take activists who condemn violence by the state, but spare the violence by Maoists. It stems from what I wrote in the first paragraph: if rights are universal, activists who discriminate by perpetrators cannot be taken seriously.
So I think there is a genuine role for activists to act as watchdogs: but they cannot be selective and must be aware of the context in which they operate.
>>So I think there is a genuine role for activists to act as watchdogs: but they cannot be selective and must be aware of the context in which they operate.
Exactly, this is the crux of the argument, whether in this maoist issue, or in case of secularism vs psuedo-secularism.
Read this
http://www.dailypioneer.com/indexn12.asp?main_variable=front%5Fpage&file_name=story2%2Etxt&counter_img=2
We got more important issue than one individual Dr.Sen who has got wide Network upto Switzerland.
Let him go to US and become millionaire and for God Sake stop showing Sympathy towards we so called Poverty Indians.
These so called activisit feel they are doing great Sacrifice by living in India when they could have earned million in US.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/When_Arundhati_had_to_flee/articleshow/2848632.cms
Notice the tone and tenor of the article which brings out the writers prejudices.
This goes to highlight Nitin’s point on how inadvertently Human Rights Activists could end up playing into the Maoists hands.
There is nothing inadvertent about it, some of these human rights organizations (like MASS in Assam) are legal fronts of terrorists while some are run by extreme leftists who feel obliged to support any opponent of the Indian state.
A few years ago Amnesty in London refused to support a exhibition on the exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from the valley.
Prashanth,
Dr. Sen has a wide network not just upto Switzerland but through the franternity of doctors the connection is worldwide, repeat worldwide. He is an emminent doctor who has championed the cause of EVERY community. In the Tehelka expose he has denounced the maoist movement and the salwa judum. Please take note and do yourself a favour, stop repeating Switzerland like it is some kind of wonderland. I responded to your attempt to insult me by calling me a dhotiwala…..I also tried to repsond to your quiz contest of guessing who Yossarin was with a free trip to Switzerland and the five star journalism.
You should not be taken seriously about such a serious subject that involves people’s lives and liberty. With all due apology, people like you will not understand such concepts because it is happening to someone else. Until and unless, God forbid, your house is burned, your family persons raped and starved with no recourse to any help, you will not understand the works of Dr.Sen and other doctors and professional like him. Then it will be too late but realisation will dawn.
Until then be happy.
Prasanth,
When you watch on TV here, the plight of low caste indians picking with their bare hands the excrement of the high caste, carrying it in wick baskets for disposal, I do feel embarrased. So do the Indian diplomats of the embassy. This is what I watched, first on CNN some years ago and then another version on the same subject, yesterday. Of course, you are not affected by it.
I watched with horror the underbelly of India Shining, it was India Crapping.
Guess what, instead of denouncing Dr. Sen as a maoist why dont the likes of you join him and return India to its very well deserved dignity that she once had. Just remove corruption and everything come closer to a just and fair society. India spends about 2 lakh crores of rupees on corruption. If this money had been well spent, then we would not have such discussions.
Yossarin (the original): Today finally the RSS – CPI(M) feud came out in the open in New Delhi.
I think the fight needs to be taken to the enemy camp using methods the enemy understands – direct action.
RSS activists get attacked daily by CPI(M) goons and Muslims (especially in North Kerala).
Time the RSS responds directly.
What is your take on this? I am waiting to see your post tomorrow on the subject.
Yoss2, fyi, blacks still do the crap-cleaning in the west. How many times CNN or FauxNews highlight the plight of these wretched still-to be-freed-slaves? These are the people not in a third world country like India but numero uno super-duper power USA. They might wear a space-suit, mask and get fancy names,Excrement Extraction Engineer, but the goddamn job remains the same for all.
Food for thought,
http://www.saharatime.com/NewsDetail.aspx?newsid=834
“The new social order
A survey says that 70 per cent of the people employed in 1,783 public toilets in Delhi belong to upper castes including Brahmins
The government is leaving no stone unturned to implement caste-based reservations in the central educational institutions. But Fact India, a Delhi-based trust and Youth For Equality (YFE) have made the shocking revelations that Brahmins and upper caste Hindus are doing menial jobs including cleaning toilets.
Their survey says that 70 per cent of the people employed in 1,783 public toilets in Delhi are upper caste Hindus including Brahmins.”
——
All maoists and their sympathizers/over ground workers should get a bullet between their eyes as and when these dirty rats emerge out of their holes.
Yossarin: You did not post your point of view on the Aurangzeb painting controversy in Chennai. Here is something on the same subject by Mr B Raman:
http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2008/03/aurangzebs-of-today.html
Sukhi, Delhi is not India and India is not Delhi. So your stats are flawed.
Kaushik, try not to propagate violence. You just might end up becoming a victim of it. Please dont wait for that to have a change of heart and mind. The maoists that you are referring to are people, just like you and me. The difference is that they have been expoloited, raped and disinherited. Now they are fighting back. Just like the Dalits. Now that they are defending themselves with guns and violence and you are upset. So they convert en masse to Buddhism and the hindus are upset. Do you want to be the only one to enjoy the benefits of life? If so, how many can you kill without suffering the same fate yourself?
Y2,
Of course, my stats are flawed because they do not support your pet peeves. My bad, I won’t bother you with facts or common sense since your war is based on pernicious ideas.
———
And when did maoists start having so much concern for dalits.
Maoists target Dalits and tribals in Jharkhand
http://www.indiaenews.com/india/20071114/80479.htm
“Tribals and Dalits constitute 70 percent of the people killed in Jharkhand by rebels of the outlawed Communist Party Of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist)”
——–
Also, I like your thought process that people who have been exploited, raped and disinherited should kill the oppressors. As a punjabi, muslims and christians (brits, portuguese, french) should be the first on my hitlist. Wotsay!
——-
Chill down and try not to unleash a tirade based on personal grouses turned into generalisations without facts.
The leftist/commie mindset sees things in this way: in any conflict there is an oppressor and the oppressed, the oppressed is always right, the other absolute evil.
If someone shows them that the oppressor is actually also suffering, they either 1] deny it , 2] downplay it or 3]justify it.
Yossarin 2: what you miss is that Hindus have the capability to accept Buddhism, Jainism and even Sikhism as their own religion. There is no Hindu who will ever feel any qualms in bowing before Lord Buddha, the Jain Tithankaras and the Sikh Gurus.
We are not talking about Hindus converting to the Ambedkar strain of Buddhism here. Sure, Hinduism like any other religion has its own problems. If every other religion was so perfect and egalitarian then Christians and Muslims should not ask for caste based reservations for heaven’s sake. So when Muslims and Christians pontificate and berate Hindus, it is the classic case of the kettle calling the pot black!
We are talking about a bunch of armed and dangerous people who are atheists (since they are Maoists) and their only mission is to destroy India. They are enemies of India and the way they should be dealt with is the same way India or any country deals with enemies – with ruthlessness and without mercy.
yOSSARIN 2 lives in the cosy atmosphere of Switzerland and want us to go out and see the plight of Poor INDIAN.
iT IS PEOPLE LIKE yossarin (Duplicate) who wants this world to belioeve that India is poor.
Forgetting that WE all see how BLACKS are shown sleeping in Garbage Bin in America.
We are poor BUT working hard to make our Country Prosperous.
We have Corruption due to Joint Venture between Congress + Communist + so called Activisit +Main Stream Media who is fooling our People BUT we are fighting that too.
It is Shame that YOU so called people talk at one place that WE are ONE and other hand differentiate People with Dalit,Tribals etc.
iT IS sHAME THAT you people left OUR country for Green pasture and giving us Advice to go and see the poor people.
WE TRAVEL IN BUS DAILY TO GO TO OUR WORK PLACE UNLIKE YOU TRAVELLING IN MERCEDEZ.
DEFINATELY MY ENGLISH NOT GOOD AS YOURS BECAUSE I DONT LIVE IN SWITZERLAND AND CAN TALK IN OUR MOTHER TONGUE.
BUT JUST KNOWING BETTER ENGLIST DONT MAKE YOU INTELLIGENT AS IN ENGLAND A SWEEPER TOO KNOW A BETTER ENGLISH.
DUPLICATE YOSSARIN,
May be in switzerland “Dhotiwala” is insult” But in OUR Country Bharat “Dhotiwala” are respected Elders generally.
Yes in India those So called Activist who gets Funds from Foreign country by showing Poverty Films about India uses “Dhotiwala” as abuse as their Master are “Pantwalla”
How about dhotiwala-traitor-moron? How about what you said, dhotiwala congresi and I dont know what els? I wear dhotis and pajama kurta and am proud to do so. You used it as an insult, and now you change to show it as an expression of respect? Anyway, I am getting out of this hate forum. This is no place for guys like me. This is too hateful.Carry on with your guessing games but try and choose another destination for your hate destinations.
Prashant : want to try hindi with me? dont struggle in english please. But no, best is try not to use the language of hate. I admire you for taking the bus. I take the tram by the way. Pollution is a big concern here. People are discouraged to drive. Once yu are able to get hate out of your heart you will see the world totally differently. You will love people and the environment just for the way they are. Try it and stay in touch. I would love to meet with you and talk with you in a language of your chioce.
Bibek, why someone, why dot YOU show me how the opressor suffers? I can think of only one way, they all end up losing. You mean we were better under the british? Hitler was good? The list can go on and on. But there is only one thing in common with all those oppressors. They lose. I get the impression that you are young and want to rid the world of everyone except yourself and your loved ones. And enjoy this life only by yourself. Well, it is a thought. Like I asked the question, how many can you kill before you fall victim to violence yourself?
Hinduism itself teaches us the right path through yoga and meditation. It teaches us tolerance and love. How,why and where did you get radicalised to hatred and violence? Like I said before, all the great teachers and reformers before Buddha right down to Ramkrishna, RAja Rammohun have taught us the path to peace and prosperity through peace. There are models of economic development prescribed. We have everything in India to live in harmony with everyone. I am just amazed to see so much name calling and hated on this forum. Talking of direct action against the muslims and the dalits etc. Why baba, why?
Yossarin,
Exactly First get Hatred out of your heart and let Law takes its own course.
Remember WE too are sufferer of delayed justice but Unfortunately we dont have Network of Outlook,Tehelka etc….
when we see that this Government just for Vote bank differentiate between two person in Religious or castiesm
Or so call Activist WHO gets funds from Govt,Foreign try to sow the seed of Mistrust instead of making the way for eliminating the poverty make ME angry.
and Remember Dr.Sen is the one of those activist and in this world there are many people who does Service/Charity and to be Honest I hate those guy as they feel they are doing Great SERVICE to mankind.
To hell with those who feel that they are doing SERVICE to poor people….
NOTHING IS FREE IN THIS WORLD.
OH the above mails was for YOSSARIN DUPLICATE.
IT also shows YOUR intention when you Entered in this blog with YOSSARIN 2.
SO first see yourself bfore advicing other.
Sukhi, you mean the upper castes are having to do the work themselves? Why, the rest have left or you cant make them out by their castes in big cities like delhi?
I really dont want to describe what they showed on TV but it was seriously disgusting. Women using their bare hands to clean out dry toilets.
I do hope as a society, which historically, is one of great and deep thoughts and thinkers, I wonder where and how we have descended into this form of scoiety that is without compassion and love. All I have seen is justification of hate and intolerance. Why? Why, Sukhi, why? Is it greed, the need to possess, is it….? I wonder what greater glory awaits us at the end of all this? I would be grateful if you could tell me.
Yossarin(Duplicate)
First I never called you Dhotiwala…..may be some one has said and I protest that.
For your information the Magazine that has written article on Dr.Sen Outlook,Tehelka and Senior and for you RESPECTED editors like VIR,VINOD,TARUN,PRANNOY,RAJDEEP,BARKHA used to call any Sympathiser as “Chaddiwala”
And the so called Activist use to laugh on that.
Once I wrote one mail to Vir Sanghvi that Whether HE dont wear Chaddi…..
And if he dont then it is very Shameful for him.
I apologised I may have used some derogratory statement BUT i think it was essential to expose so called Respected Journalist of using Derogratory work in their article for anyone against Congress + Communist and Yossarin 2 calling them Respected Journalist.
read this about Written statement given in Parliament by Home Ministry.
http://naxalwatch.blogspot.com/2008/03/indian-maoists-have-600-million-rupee.html