Girishbhai&#39;s ‘home-office’ was open to everybody: slum dwellers to rural folk

Girishbhai's ‘home-office’ was open to everybody: slum dwellers to rural folk

By Fr Cedric Prakash sj*
This is a personal tribute to Girish Patel, doyen of the human rights movement in Gujarat, who died in Ahmedabad on October 6, 2018. It is hard to say goodbye to someone who has been so very special; someone who has meant so much to me and many others too.
I can hardly believe that you are no more, Girishbhai; I find it difficult to come to grips with this painful reality. Since I awoke this morning and learnt from several of my friends and contacts in Ahmedabad that you had said “goodbye”, I have been overwhelmed with emotion! There are innumerable memories of you that have been racing through; warm memories of you: as a person and a professional, which I will always cherish.
You epitomized human rights and you championed the rights of the poor, the marginalised, the downtrodden, and the excluded. Your tremendous concern for them has had a profound impact on my life. You ALWAYS took sides Girishbhai and you never had a modicum of regret for it. All who knew you were very clear of where you stood on every issue. You were transparent, you were unequivocal, and you were strong. You took sides with those who had nowhere to go, with those who were being denied their legitimate rights.
Your forthright stand on key issues was a beacon of hope and inspiration to many: you fought for the oustees of the Narmada Dam; for the other Adivasis whose rights were being trampled upon; for the Dalits; the manual scavengers; the slum dwellers who were displaced overnight by bulldozers and for many other vulnerable people who live on the peripheries of our society. Then there was the ‘Freedom of Religion’ issue: how doggedly you defended the right of every citizen to fearlessly preach, practice and propagate ones religion. The arguments you gave in court challenging the Government on the obnoxious content in the school textbooks, will forever reverberate among those who care about what is happening to the education in this country.
Your doors were always open till rather late at night. I was always welcomed; you seemed to be ever available though I knew how busy you were to prepare yourself intensively for a case the next day. The wonderful part of your availability was that your ‘home-office’ was open to everybody: there were slum dwellers and folk from the rural areas too! Everybody found in you a home: a source of comfort, hope and strength. I hardly ever received a no from you whether it is to meet you at a short notice or to ask you to come for a meeting or a programme. Inspite of your many commitments you always had the graciousness to oblige, to find the time.
Your life was amazingly frugal and simple! You could have had the world at your feet. One needs only to look around to see how several from the legal fraternity literally milk their clients and make plenty of money. Many from among the criminals and corrupt would have loved to have you as their Counsel; but you were committed to justice, truth, fair play and the rights of the poor. When you took a stand on critical issues the other side booed you, threw stones at your house, sent you hate mails, threatened you and much more; however, you were always unrelenting in the pursuit of the justice you believed in and you did it pro bono.
Above all, I was deeply touched and edified by your warm, endearing and unassuming demeanor. You had that special smile even in the heat of an argument. You never seemed to lose your cool even when the going was rough. You minced no words when attacking the system: the biases, the prejudices, the injustices that exist; but you did so in your typical style — softly, incisively, and sagaciously. I doubt if anybody can do it your way!
Then there was your trademark humour — when one least expected it; you would make a witty comment, crack a joke, which would help ease the tension. Even when you delivered a very serious speech, you said things, which made the listeners, smile; but then you were not exactly joking just sharing the plain truth in a rather acceptable way.
My last meeting with you was in mid-April during my visit to Ahmedabad; you did not seem too well that day and you were upset about some things. At first you thought that I returned for good; when I mentioned that I still have some months left in my assignment in the Middle East, you just asked. why? The last words you said me were, come back soon! Those words have constantly kept ringing in ears. Today I must have heard you say those words to me a thousand times over and tears well up as I do so!
Since October 6 morning, I was planning to write something about you. I must have begun about a dozen times; after a couple of sentences, I aborted each attempt. Then suddenly late tonight I realized that the only way to pay my tribute to you is to be as personal as possible — that is what I have tried to do! I am aware though there is much more which I would like to say!
It is not easy to say “goodbye” to you dear Girishbhai, to me you were a friend, a mentor, a guide, an elder brother! There is so much that I have learnt from you over the years.
Finally, the best tribute I think I can pay you is to internalize and practice, in some ways the values and the lofty ideals you believed in and fought for all your life! These are also enshrined in the Constitution of India, which you always treasured! Therefore, whilst I am saying “goodbye” to you, I do believe that great human beings like you never die; you will live forever in my heart and in my life and in the hearts and lives of many others.
Continue troubling us from wherever you are — until that day when the ‘rights of all’ are respected on this earth!
Aavjo Girishbhai until we meet again!
—
*Indian human rights activist

Comments

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

The curious case of multiple entries of a female voter of Maharashtra: What ECI's online voter records reveal

By Venkatesh Nayak* Cyberspace is agog with data, names and documents which question the reliability of the electoral rolls prepared by the electoral bureaucracy in Maharashtra prior to the General Elections conducted in 2024. One such example of deep dive probing has brought to the surface, the name of one female voter in the 132-Nalasopara (Gen) Vidhan Sabha Constituency in Maharashtra. Nalasopara is part of the Palghar (ST) Lok Sabha constituency. This media report claims that this individual's name figures multiple times in the voter list of the same constituency.

Spirit of leadership vs bondage: Of empowered chairman of 100-acre social forestry coop

By Gagan Sethi* This is about Khoda Sava, a young Dalit belonging to the Vankar sub-caste, who worked as a bonded labourer in a village near Vadgam in Banskantha district of North Gujarat. The year was 1982. Khoda had taken a loan of Rs 7,000 from the village sarpanch, a powerful landlord doing money-lending as his side business. Khoda, who had taken the loan for marriage, was landless. Normally, villagers would mortgage their land if they took loan from the sarpanch. But Khoda had no land. He had no option but to enter into a bondage agreement with the sarpanch in order to repay the loan. Working in bondage on the sarpanch’s field meant that he would be paid Rs 1,200 per annum, from which his loan amount with interest would be deducted. He was also obliged not to leave the sarpanch’s field and work as daily wager somewhere else. At the same time, Khoda was offered meal once a day, and his wife job as agricultural worker on a “priority basis”. That year, I was working as secretary...

Ground reality: Israel would a remain Jewish state, attempt to overthrow it will be futile

By NS Venkataraman* Now that truce has been arrived at between Israel and Hamas for a period of four days and with release of a few hostages from both sides, there is hope that truce would be further extended and the intensity of war would become significantly less. This likely “truce period” gives an opportunity for the sworn supporters and bitter opponents of Hamas as well as Israel and the observers around the world to introspect on the happenings and whether this war could have been avoided. There is prolonged debate for the last several decades as to whom the present region that has been provided to Jews after the World War II belong. View of some people is that Jews have been occupants earlier and therefore, the region should belong to Jews only. However, Christians and those belonging to Islam have also lived in this regions for long period. While Christians make no claim, the dispute is between Jews and those who claim themselves to be Palestinians. In any case...

Proposed Modi yatra from Jharkhand an 'insult' of Adivasi hero Birsa Munda: JMM

Counterview Desk The civil rights network, Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha (JMM), which claims to have 30 grassroots groups under its wings, has decided to launch Save Democracy campaign to oppose Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vikasit Bharat Sankalp Yatra to be launched on November 15 from the village of legendary 19th century tribal independence leader Birsa Munda from Ulihatu (Khunti district).

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Two more "aadhaar-linked" Jharkhand deaths: 17 die of starvation since Sept 2017

Kaleshwar's sons Santosh and Mantosh Counterview Desk A fact-finding team of the Right to Feed Campaign, pointing towards the death of two more persons due to starvation in Jharkhand, has said that this has happened because of the absence of aadhaar, leading to “persistent lack of food at home and unavailability of any means of earning.” It has disputed the state government claims that these deaths are due to reasons other than starvation, adding, the authorities have “done nothing” to reduce the alarming state of food insecurity in the state.

Govt of India "tarnishing" NGO reputation, dossier leaked selectively: Amnesty

Counterview Desk Amnesty International India has said that a deliberate attempt is being made to tarnish its reputation by leaking a dossier, supposedly made by investigating agencies, to media without giving it access to any such information. The high profile NGO’s claim follows a Times Now report about proceedings launched by investigative agencies, including Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the rights body for “violations” of rules pertaining to overseas donations.

Search This Blog