Justice Srikrishna Commission Report
Campaign for the implementation of Justice Srikrishna Commission Report
(that inquired into communal violence of ’92-’93 in Mumbai)
A SUMMARY
A. Need
The assertions by Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to the Supreme Court on 30 July 2007 that the state government has implemented Justice Srikrishna Commission (hereinafter referred to as SKC) report on the 1992-93 communal violence in Mumbai, and taken action against the errant police officers named in the report, came as a rude shock to those who are aware of its non- implementation and the daily struggle to bring justice to the survivors.
It is a well-known fact that successive state governments, irrespective of their political ideology, have done very little to take action on the recommendations of the commission. Nine years after the release of the report in 1998, the officers and politicians indicted in the report continue to enjoy total impunity. While on the one hand some of the police officers have been rewarded with increments and promotions, the politicians too have continued being in active politics and often worked with renewed vigour despite the report.
Despite pressure from civil rights groups, the government has done nothing except promise the creation of special courts to take up cases but has actually ignored all the recommendations of the SKC report. A close analysis of the state government’s assurances only makes one realize that the issues which it is willing to look at are just a clever cover–up to avoid addressing the other actual issues, which the survivors of communal violence would expect the government to take up.
Non-implementation of SKC report is a clear example of the selective exercise of political will as to whom to hold accountable under the law. The campaign aims at bringing the voices of the survivors to the forefront, demanding an implementation of the recommendations made in the report. This campaign is a part of the larger campaign against state impunity and complicity in mass crimes, and to ensure justice and accountability to all.
B. Background / History
The communal violence that shook Mumbai happened in two phases. The first phase occurred in when Babri Masjid was demolished on 6th December 2007. The second phase occurred between Jan – Mar 1993. This second phase was much more organized and systematic in targeting members of the Muslim families in the city.
Following the violence, Justice Srikrishna (who was a sitting judge in the Mumbai High Court at that time) was appointed to investigate the violence. He submitted his report in 1998. Through its investigations the Commission confirmed that 900 people had died in the violence. Of these 275 were non-Muslims. As many as 200 people disappeared during the violence. The commission in its report observed that the government did nothing to stop the communal violence for almost three months. Also, despite the presence of the armed forces within Mumbai, the state government did not allow the army to control the situation.
In his report, Justice Srikrishna also named 31 police officers against whom the Commission found substantial evidence indicating indiscriminate shootings that led to the killings of many Muslims, and other such cognizable offences, and had therefore recommended that they be prosecuted for their crimes. Some of the prominent cases that the Commission highlighted were – Hari Masjid Case, Sulemaan Usman Bakery, Abdul Haq Ansari etc. Also, the Commission had recommended that 1371 cases should be re-opened and re-investigated. However, all these cases had been closed by the Government as ‘A Summary’ cases despite the fact that the Commission itself had concrete evidence against the accused in all these cases.
C. The Present Demands
- Immediate suspension of all policemen responsible for the violence, registration of complaints against them and investigation by the CBI;
- Criminal offences should also be registered against those police officers who have registered false cases against innocent individuals in order to protect either themselves or other guilty police personnel/ politician/miscreants. Following the example of false cases put against the innocent persons:
a) Joint Commissioner of Police R.D Tyagi, guilty of indiscriminate firing at the Suleman Usman Bakery, to protect the R.D. Tyagi and his team police registered a false case against the employees of the bakery.
b) Nikil kapse and his squad guilty of indiscriminate firing at the Hari Masjid at Sewri. To protect the Nikhil Kapase and his team, police inspector Chauhan had registered a false case against innocent namazis who were present in the Hari Masjid .
c) In the matter of the burning of the store owned by Abdul Haq Ansari within the jurisdiction of the Byculla Police Station, the Commission had fixed the guilt on the police. But the police lodged false cases against the owner himself as well as the workers at the store.
- Criminal prosecution against politicians named in the Srikrishna Commission report, including Bal Thackeray and Madhukar Sarpotdar, for inciting violence;
- Quashing of false cases registered by the police against persons affected by the violence who named policemen, politicians and other perpetrators.
- Re-opening of ‘A Summary’ cases which had been closed on the ground of insufficient evidence, despite the availability of witnesses for several such cases, and adequate measures to be taken against policemen responsible for the closure of the cases.
- Awarding of compensation of Rs. 5 lakhs to the next of kin of the dead and missing as well as one government job per affected family. Adequate compensation to be awarded to persons who lost their livelihood and property.
- The government should call for fresh evidence from the riot victims and make a public announcement to that effect. Witnesses should be given complete protection. Fresh cases should be lodged on the basis of this evidence.
- There have been several instances of cases discharged or dismissed due to non-proper investigation of cases such as R.D.Tyagi who is discharged. In such cases appeal should be made in higher court and proper reinvestigation should be done.
D. WRAG’s Role in the Campaign
WRAG members have been engaged with the issue for the past several years, in their individual capacity. The revival of the campaign with renewed vigour since August 2007, exacerbated by the many convictions in the Mumbai bomb blast cases that followed the communal violence of ’92-’93, gave an opportunity for the organization to involve itself in this campaign against impunity for mass crimes, and for justice and accountability. WRAG’s interventions have been in the following manner:
- Co-convening strategy meetings among like-minded organizations
- Media Outreach
- Co-organizing / participating in demonstrations / public protests
- Lobbying and advocacy efforts with the state government, National Commission for Minorities and National Human Rights Commission
- Support and solidarity with individual survivors of communal violence
- Information dissemination, particularly among students
Following reports that a delegation of Muslim leaders had met Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh asking for implementation of Srikrishna Commission (hereinafter called SKC) report, WRAG was of the view that the issue was not exclusively one for the minority / survivor community but was of importance to every secular-humanist organization interested in justice and accountability. With this intention, in collaboration with Nirbhay Bano Andolan and Aawaz-e-Niswan, WRAG convened a first strategy meeting of non-governmental and community-based organizations on 13 August 2007, and has been an active participant in subsequent meetings held every two weeks to continuously monitor and strategize on the issue. WRAG co-organized a press conference on the issue on 17 August 2007 along with other organizations, when our specific demands with regard to the implementation of the report were released to the media. On 5 September 2007, WRAG representatives participated in a public consultation with civil society and minority groups convened by the National Commission for Minorities. In the consultation, which witnessed a participation of more than 800 persons from various parts of Maharashtra, the issue of non-implementation of SKC report was raised strongly by WRAG personnel and other like-minded persons. On 6 September 2007, a public protest (dharna) was organized at Azad Maidan to demand implementation of SKC recommendations. WRAG was an active co-organizer of the event. The event was covered widely in the print and electronic media. WRAG personnel have also been part of delegations aimed at advocacy and lobbying missions to the Chief Minister’s office on the issue. WRAG is a signatory to a memorandum submitted to the National Human Rights Commission on the issue, dated20 October 2007. In addition, WRAG personnel have found the need to express solidarity with individual survivors of communal violence, against whom the police had framed false cases, which the survivors continue to defend. Hence WRAG representatives have remained present during such court hearings as a form of support to the individual survivor as well as in the role of watchdogs of the entire process of justice. As a means of involving students in the campaign, WRAG personnel have made presentations on the issue in Nirmala Niketan College of Social Work on 26 September ’07 and in NALSAR University, Hyderabad on 1 October ’07.
E. Other Organizations Involved in the Campaign
Photographs
