Skip to main content

Medha Patkar refuses any out-of-court settlement: 2002 attack on her at Gandhi Ashram

By A Representative 
Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar has refused any compromise with Ahmedabad-based businessman-cum-activist VK Saxena of the National Council for Civil Liberties in the Sabarmati Ashram case, in  which she and other activists were attacked during participation in a protest meeting against the Gujarat riots in 2002. The refusal came in the wake of a suggestion from the judicial magistrate at Saket Court, New Delhi, who  was hearing defamation case filed by her against Saxena, and vice versa.
The issue came up when the judge suggested a compromise be reached between the two parties on defamation cases against each other. According to sources, Saxena appeared ready for compromise if Patkar withdrew the case filed by her in 2002 on the attack against her, being heard in an  Ahmedabad court. In the 2002 case, Saxena is one of the accused along with other three others from the BJP and the Congress. Patkar refused on the ground that the attack at the sadbhavna meeting, post-2002 riots, in Sabarmati Ashram, was "brutal and fatal" and was witnessed by 40 eminent persons.
At the commencement of hearing, Patkar's advocate VK Ohri filed an application on behalf of Patkar to reduce the cost for her absence last time when she was on indefinite fast in Golibar, Mumbai. The plea on her behalf was the context of eviction and demolition of houses in Golibar in order to implement the slum rehabilitation project. As the fast continued for nine days and ended with concrete assurances to stop eviction and enquiry into alleged fraud in slum rehabilitation project, she could not attend the hearing in the defamation cases on April 6 in New Delhi.
"Ohri pleaded that since the fast was for a serious public cause and  Patkar belongs to peoples’ movements with financial crunch, the cost may be waived", sources close to Patkar said, adding, "The judicial magistrate reduced the cost from Rs.15000 to Rs.9000, i.e. Rs.3000 in each of the cases. He expressed his inability to waive the cost as it was passed by another magistrate."
The defamation case filed by Patkar is regarding the allegations in a fake advertisement published in the several dailies in November 2000 wherein NBA and Patkar were accused of receiving funds through hawala transaction. Patkar filed a defamation case, saying the so-called transaction involved a fake cheque from a fake account, yet Saxena published it by siting a letter given by Lok Samiti, Malegaon, a supporter organization of the NBA.

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

Grain vs. gasoline: How the global biofuel boom threatens India’s food and water security

By Rajiv Shah  A new report published by the international research and advocacy organization GRAIN has warned that the global resurgence of biofuels is triggering a dangerous dynamic of “more fuel, less food, more land grabs.” Driven by intersecting energy security concerns, geopolitical tensions, and aggressive decarbonization mandates, the expanding agrofuel industry is increasingly pitting corporate energy interests against global food security and indigenous land rights. 
Post a Comment
»

Sikkim governor row: ALIFA asks centre to explain hurried appointment in Ankita Bhandari case

By A Representative   The All-India Feminist Alliance (ALIFA) on Saturday expressed “immense pain and outrage” that even after four years and a national uproar, justice has not been fully delivered in the Ankita Bhandari murder case and that a ruling party politician facing allegations has been “gifted a high-ranking constitutional office.” In a statement, ALIFA extended “unflinching solidarity” to Ankita’s parents, who it said are “fighting for justice on the streets of Delhi,” and demanded that pending the CBI inquiry and judicial decision, the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Kumar Gautam as Sikkim’s Governor be subject to “immediate presidential review.”
Post a Comment
»

Can free‑living Indian street dogs teach us about how to care for pet dogs?

By Daniel Ramp, Kapil Vishwas Patwardhan, Rosalie Chapple  We give our pet dogs shelter, veterinary care, affection, training and play. We decide when they eat, where they sleep, when they go outside, who they meet, and how they move through the world.
Post a Comment
»