J&K, Muslims: Human rights violations in India 'downplayed' in Australian report

Amnesty International, which shut down its India branch after a recent move by the Enforcement Directorate to freeze the organisation’s accounts charging it with “violation” of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) and alleging money laundering, has sharply criticised the Australian government for “dangerously” downplaying human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) in a recent report.
In a statement issued by the top human rights organisation’s Australian arm, it said, the Department of Foreign Affairs’ 2020 Country Information Report on India, published earlier this month, “dangerously downplays serious human rights concerns”, insisting, “Of particular concern are ongoing human rights violations in J&K, including prolonged internet shutdowns, as well as discrimination against minorities.”
“The communication and internet shutdown, its impact on media and the consequent curbing of the freedom of the press is understated in DFAT’s report,” Amnesty International Australia impact manager Tim O’Connor, said in a statement, adding, “The shutdown had a complete silencing effect on regional media. Newspapers only reproduced government information or wire agency reports collected from the Media Facilitation Centre set up by the Government of India in Srinagar.”
Pointing out that the shutdown “also affected other rights such as the rights to health and education”, the statement said, “The internet provides a crucial link to information that helps keep families healthy and safe during this global health crisis. To ensure real-time preparedness of the people against the spread of the virus, full access to high speed internet is essential. However, the people of J&K have been deprived of telemedicine and online education during the pandemic.”
“Amnesty International does not agree with the Department’s finding in part 3.53 of the report that states that Muslims in India ‘face a low risk of official discrimination’. Law reform such as the re-organisation of J&K is state-sanctioned discrimination of Indian Muslims, in favour of the Hindu majority”, the statement said, adding, “The Citizenship (Amendment) Act weaponised the National Register of Citizens, and Foreigners Tribunals, against Muslims. Amnesty’s own research clearly shows that Muslims in India indeed face significant ‘official discrimination’.”
It continued, “The ongoing exclusion of Muslims by the Foreigners Tribunals risks the creation of the largest statelessness crisis in the world”, even as quoting O’Connor as stating, “I note that the report does comment on the broader trend of human rights organisations and other non-government organisations being targeted and restricted, and agree with its findings. As the report notes, Amnesty International India has been one such target.”

Comments

When Pakistanis whispered: ‘end military rule’ — A Moscow memoir

During the recent anti-terror operation inside Pakistan by the Government of India, called Operation Sindoor — a name some feminists consider patently patriarchal, even though it’s officially described as a tribute to the wives of the 26 husbands killed in the terrorist strike — I was reminded of my Moscow stint, which lasted for seven long years, from 1986 to 1993.

Ahmedabad's civic chaos: Drainage woes, waterlogging, and the illusion of Olympic dreams

In response to my blog on overflowing gutter lines at several spots in Ahmedabad's Vejalpur, a heavily populated area, a close acquaintance informed me that it's not just the middle-class housing societies that are affected by the nuisance. Preeti Das, who lives in a posh locality in what is fashionably called the SoBo area, tells me, "Things are worse in our society, Applewood."

Tracking a lost link: Soviet-era legacy of Gujarati translator Atul Sawani

The other day, I received a message from a well-known activist, Raju Dipti, who runs an NGO called Jeevan Teerth in Koba village, near Gujarat’s capital, Gandhinagar. He was seeking the contact information of Atul Sawani, a translator of Russian books—mainly political and economic—into Gujarati for Progress Publishers during the Soviet era. He wanted to collect and hand over scanned soft copies, or if possible, hard copies, of Soviet books translated into Gujarati to Arvind Gupta, who currently lives in Pune and is undertaking the herculean task of collecting and making public soft copies of Soviet books that are no longer available in the market, both in English and Indian languages.

RP Gupta a scapegoat to help Govt of India manage fallout of Adani case in US court?

RP Gupta, a retired 1987-batch IAS officer from the Gujarat cadre, has found himself at the center of a growing controversy. During my tenure as the Times of India correspondent in Gandhinagar (1997–2012), I often interacted with him. He struck me as a straightforward officer, though I never quite understood why he was never appointed to what are supposed to be top-tier departments like industries, energy and petrochemicals, finance, or revenue.

Environmental report raises alarm: Sabarmati one of four rivers with nonylphenol contamination

A new report by Toxics Link , an Indian environmental research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi, in collaboration with the Environmental Defense Fund , a global non-profit headquartered in New York, has raised the alarm that Sabarmati is one of five rivers across India found to contain unacceptable levels of nonylphenol (NP), a chemical linked to "exposure to carcinogenic outcomes, including prostate cancer in men and breast cancer in women."

PharmEasy: The only online medical store which revises prices upwards after confirming the order

For senior citizens — especially those without a family support system — ordering medicines online can be a great relief. Shruti and I have been doing this for the last couple of years, and with considerable success. We upload a prescription, receive a verification call from a doctor, and within two or three days, the medicines are delivered to our doorstep.

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Revisiting Gijubhai: Pioneer of child-centric education and the caste debate

It was Krishna Kumar, the well-known educationist, who I believe first introduced me to the name — Gijubhai Badheka (1885–1939). Hailing from Bhavnagar, known as the cultural capital of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, Gijubhai, Kumar told me during my student days, made significant contributions to the field of pedagogy — something that hasn't received much attention from India's education mandarins. At that time, Kumar was my tutorial teacher at Kirorimal College, Delhi University.

A sector under siege? War and real estate: Navigating uncertainty in India's expanding market

I was a little surprised when I received an email alert from a top real estate consultant, Anarock Group , titled "Exploring War’s Effects on Indian Real Estate—When Conflict Meets Concrete," authored by its regional director and head of research, Dr. Prashant Thakur. I had thought that the business would wholeheartedly support what is considered a strong response to the dastardly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Operation Sindoor.

Search This Blog