New Delhi: Al vida’, said Afzal Guru to his executioner, who had himself bid him good bye with the same words a few seconds earlier. And then as the executioner pulled a lever, Afzal’s frame hung from the gallows. “He was dead in a minute, though”, as per the jail norms, the body was kept hanging for a full half hour, said an official who witnessed the hanging told a national newspaper. Thereafter Afzal’s body was taken down from the gallows and buried with full religious rites near Jail No. 3, right next to the grave of Kashmiri separatist Maqbool Bhat who too was hanged in Tihar (on Feb 11, 1984). While right-wing activists across the country celebrated Afzal’s execution, in the jail itself there was no celebration. Rather, the staff appeared glum. “He was a pious soul and was extremely well behaved. Even as he was being taken to the gallows, he greeted the jail staff he knew by their first names. The only thing he requested before the hanging was that ‘mujhay ummeed hai aap mujhay dard nahin karaogay’ (I hope you will not cause me pain).And he was assured by the executioner, who himself was overcome with emotion as he kept looking into his eyes as the black cloth was drawn over them, that it would be a smooth journey. And so it was."
Contrary to some media reports, Afzal was told of his impending execution on the actual morning and not the previous evening. “The only thing he had in the morning was a cup of tea. But that is because he was not offered any food. Otherwise, he was so normal that he would have had that too.” Initially Afzal was wearing a pheran, or Kashmiri gown. He later took bath and changed into a white kurta-pyjama and offered namaz."There have been about 25 executions in Tihar and senior officials [here] have witnessed the last 10, but never have they seen a man so calm and composed on learning the news of his impending death."
In the last couple of hours of his life, Afzal had the company of some jail officials. And he narrated to them his thoughts about life and death."He spoke of universal brotherhood and oneness of the mankind; how no human being is bad and how the soul in each one was a creation of the same God. He believed that if you moved on the path of truth that was the biggest achievement."
In fact, Afzal was so calm in the morning that he even penned down some of his thoughts, put the date and time on the paper and signed it. When asked by the jail staff about his last thoughts of his family, on who would take care of them, Afzal said"it was God who looks after each one of us and so would be the case now"."His strength came from his spirituality. He was a learned man; as well versed in Islam as with Hinduism. Often, he would tell us about the similarities in the two religions. Some time ago he had read all the four Vedas. How many Hindus have actually done that? You normally rejoice at the end of evil, [but] when a pious soul goes away, it leaves behind a tinge of sorrow,"the official said. Recalling, how all through Afzal was"joyful"as also"cool and calm", the officials said in the past they have seen people shiver at being told about their being taken to the gallows."But here it was just like what we had heard about people going to the gallows smiling."
“Another difference between Afzal and others who were executed for militancy related incidents was while almost all others had made religious or political cries before being hanged, Afzal just walked the last 100 steps from his cell to the gallows as he normally would and went away wishing those around him,” the official added. (Agencies)
“Questions need to be asked why the Indian government executed Afzal Guru now. No one argues that those who engage in serious crimes should not be punished, but the death penalty is brutal and irreversible, and there is no convincing evidence to suggest it serves as a deterrent.”
Under Indian law, the death penalty is supposed to be carried out only in the “rarest of rare” cases.
Afzal Guru was convicted for providing logistical support to those involved in the attack on the Parliament building in New Delhi on December 13, 2001, in which five heavily-armed gunmen entered the complex and opened fire indiscriminately, killing nine, including six security personnel, two parliament guards, and a gardener. All five attackers, later identified as Pakistani nationals, were killed. No member of parliament was hurt.
Four people, including Afzal Guru, were charged with conspiring in the attack and waging war. In December 2002, three people,Syed Abdul Rahman Geelani, Shaukat Hussain Guru, and Afzal Guru, were sentenced to death. The fourth, Afsan Guru, was acquitted. Geelani was acquitted on appeal. In August 2005 the Supreme Court commuted Shaukat Hussain’s sentence to 10 years in prison but confirmed the death sentence of Afzal Guru. An appeal for clemency was filed for Afzal Guru but was rejected by President Pranab Mukherjee on February 3.
Many Indian activists and lawyers have claimed that Azfal Guru did not receive proper legal representation. He did not have a lawyer from the time of his arrest until he confessed in police custody. Azfal Guru claimed that he had been tortured into making his confession, which he later retracted. Several Indian activists and senior lawyers have said that he did not have effective assistance of counsel.
The Indian government has defended the conviction, saying that Azfal Guru was able to appeal his conviction and that his claims were rejected by higher courts.Human Rights Watch opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as an inherently irreversible, inhumane punishment. In July 2012, 14 retired Supreme Court and High Court judges asked the president to commute the death sentences of 13 inmates they said had been erroneously upheld by the Supreme Court over the past nine years. This followed the court’s admission that some of these death sentences were rendered per incuriam (out of error or ignorance). In November 2012 the Supreme Court ruled that the “rarest of rare” standard for capital punishment had not been applied uniformly over the years and the norms on the death penalty needed “a fresh look.”
“India should end this distressing use of executions as a way to satisfy some public opinion,” said Ganguly. “It should instead join the nations that have chosen to abolish capital punishment.”
Afzal Guru was hanged today. Days after Narendra Modi managed to “enchant” students at SRCC, Delhi. I woke up to this horrible news and felt really low. I wanted to talk to someone, express my grievances, express my sadness. With the murderers of thousands of innocent Kashmiris roaming around freely, I felt enraged as a Kashmiri. Afzal Guru was hanged for political gains alone, not because the Congress loves the Nation a lot. Yes, the Parliament attack was an attack on the Indian nation. So was the cold-blooded murder of Jaleel Andrabi– an attack on Kashmiri nationalism. When they raped the women at Kunan Poshpora, they raped a nation. The cover-up that was given to the murderers of Jaleel Andrabi, Asiya and Neelofar was an attack on our dignity. When the government of India refused to give sanction to prosecute the perpetrators of Pathribal fake encounter, our dignity was lost forever. So was our faith in the Indian judicial system. Two men implicated in Lajpat Nagar blasts were acquitted of all charges after more than a decade of detention and after two years of being on death row!
The murderers of Graham Staines, who along with his two little kids was burnt to death, were not awarded death penalty as the court refused to term it rarest of rare! The perpetrator of 1984 riots, Sajjan Kumar is still free. Maya Kodnani and Babu Bajrangi were given a life sentence and not death as they were not directly involved. So, why Afzal Guru? Was it the symbolism of the attack? Was the Nation and the very idea of it not attacked when Muslims were brutally murdered and raped in Gujarat? Was the symbolism of that attack any less? There are apprehensions that his trial was not fair. Even his death sentence was not carried out in a fair manner. His last wish was to meet his family. But his family was informed through speed post. They could not even see his body as he was buried in Tihar Jail!
What happened at Jantar Mantar
A dispersed bunch of people gathered at Jantar Mantar today to express their sadness. To our left were Bajrang Dal goons with saffron colored scarves and tilaks (vermillion) on their foreheads. Initially we did not even have placards. Then some activists brought in the placards and the media immediately got enthusiastic about our protest. They finally got something colorful to show on TV. The police followed, with lathis and elaborate riot control tools. No sooner had the media and the police arrived, the Bajrang Dal goons started attacking us. Initially the police tried to push them back. But finally the goons were let loose on us. One of the goons jumped into the space between the cameras and us and started abusing us. We were still calm. He then tore off the posters. We didn’t react. When he finally attacked one of us physically, a brawl erupted.
We were pushed away. Then the police stopped intervening. We were getting pushed further and further towards the left. The goons kept attacking us, we didn’t hit back. We were only protecting ourselves. I was holding a placard that said, Afzal Guru was not given a fair trial. One of the goons jumped at me and tore off my poster. I just said, ‘bastard’ quietly and didn’t hit him in the balls.
We gathered again. But we were getting pushed to the wall. Quite literally. We were squeezed between a wall and the cameras and the goons who were attacking us over and over again. Two young Kashmiri boys, realising their helplessness, broke down. I, in a moment of rage, went berserk and started screaming at the top of my voice against the police. I think that moment was when the riot police tore off our posters. I screamed, “Sir yeh bomb nahi hai, poster hai” (Sir, this is a poster not a bomb), “Sir, aap hamein kyun rok rahe ho, in ko kyun nahi rok rahe” (Sir, why are you stopping us, and not them?). They were probably shocked by my screams for a while. They said, “dekhiye aap yeh sab nahi karo” (See, please don’t do all this), I screamed again, “Sir kya nahi karein, hum ne kiya kya hai, hamara toh peaceful protest bhi aapko terrorism lag raha hai aur jo hamein peet rahe hain un ka kya” (Sir, what is it that you want us to stop doing? Our peaceful protest looks like terrorism to you and what about the people who are beating us up?).
After a while, mud was thrown at us. Before I realised, I was being taken away by female cops. No, I wasn’t courting arrest. I just wanted a space to express my feelings. I have protested at Jantar Mantar before. For causes other than Kashmir. Since this time it was Kashmir, I was a terrorist by default who had to be detained. I kept asking them why they are detaining us rather than controlling and detaining those goons. I was put in a van along with one other JNU student. I was released after being detained for a while. I narrated the whole incident to Vrinda Grover, Gautam Navlakha, among others and told them that there might be others who were detained. While I was talking to him, another goon stealthily came up and smeared Gautam Navlakha’s face with mud. Yes, they blackened his face. I realised that I was released only because the police brought in a huge bus in which they started taking protesters away. The police van in which I was detained did not seem enough. A boy who voluntarily sat in the van was asked to get down. I was released after a while. I did not court arrest. I came away because it is important to narrate the story as Indian media might not show what happened.
They won’t tell you how the Delhi police protected goons in saffron and detained us instead. They won’t tell you that the police tore off our posters and asked us to stop! They won’t tell you all this. Many protesters have been arrested and lodged at Mandir Marg police station. On my way back, I saw many police barricades enroute Jantar Mantar with cops who were on the look out for Kashmiri-looking-men-and-women, potential protesters and I did spot a few of them heading in auto rickshaws toward Jantar Mantar, their eyes eager and their faces betraying a helpless look.
A rusted table, and behind it stood a well built man in uniform holding a spoon in his hand. Visitors, all of them looked habituated, queued up to open their plastic bags containing food, allowing it to be smelt, sometimes even tasted. The security man’s spoon paved its way through the thick grease floating curries—Malai Kofta, Shahi Paneer, Aalu Bengan, and Mixed Vegetables. As the visitors opened tiny bags of curries the spoon separated each piece of vegetable from the other, quite mechanically. 'Frisking' the food of a middle aged woman the spoon took a dip at the water in the steel bowl nearby. It then moved to the plastic bags of the next in the queue, an early teenage boy. By now water in the steel bowl has all kinds of colours. The floating oil gave it a vibgyor effect when light hit at it on the winter afternoon. Around 4.30 my turn came. The man left the spoon on the table and frisked my body top to bottom, thrice thoroughly. And when the metal detector made noise I had to remove my belt, steel watch, and keys. The man on duty bearing the badge of Tamilnadu Special Police (TSP) looked satisfied. I am allowed to enter now. This is the fourth security drill I had to go through to get into the High Risk Ward of Prison No 3 in Tihar Central Prison. I am on my way to meet Mohammad Afzal, one of the most talked about man in the contemporary times. A room with many tiny cubicles. The Visitors and inmate are separated by a thick glass, and iron grills. The two connected through a mike and a speaker fixed on the wall. Poorly audible, people at both sides of the glass strained their ears out touching the wall to listen other. Mohammad Afzal was already at the other side of the cubicle. His face gave me an impression of unfathomable dignity and calmness. A little short man in his mid thirties wearing white kurta paijama had a Reynolds pen in his pocket. Very clear voice welcomed me with the best of all mannerisms.
How are you sir?, he said. I said, I'm fine. Am I to return the same question to a man on the deathrow, was apprehensive for a second, but I did. Very fine. Thank you sir, he answered with warmth. The conversation went on for close to an hour, and continued a fortnight later with a second Mulakat. Both of us were in a hurry to answer and ask whatever one could in the time. I went on scribbling him in my tiny pocket book. He seemed to be a person who wanted to tell a lot of things to the world. But repeated his helplessness to reach people from the current stature of ‘condemned for life’.
Excerpts of the interview There are so many contradicting images of Afzal. Which Afzal am I meeting? Is it? But as far as I’m concerned there is only one Afzal. That is me. Who is that Afzal? A moments’ silence Afzal as a young, enthusiastic, intelligent, idealistic young man, Afzal a Kashmiri influenced like many thousands in the Kashmir Valley in the political climate of early 1990s, who was a JKLF member and crossed over to the other side of Kashmir, but in a matter of weeks got disillusioned and came back and tried to live a normal life, but was never allowed to do so by the security agencies who inordinate times picked me up, tortured the pulp out of me, electrified, frozen in cold water, dipped in petrol, smoked in chilies you name it, and falsely implicated in a case, with no lawyer, no fair trial, finally condemned to death. The lies the police told was propagated by you in media. And that perhaps created what the Supreme Court referred to as "collective conscience of the nation”. And to satisfy that "collective conscience” I’m condemned to death. That is the Mohammad Afzal you are meeting. After a moments’ silence, he continued. But I wonder whether the outside world knows anything about this Afzal. I ask you, did I get a chance to tell my story? Do you think justice is done? Would you like to hang a person without giving him a lawyer? Without a fair trial? Without listening to what he had to go through in life? Democracy doesn’t mean all this, does it? Can we begin with your life? Your life before the case… It was a turbulent political period in Kashmir when I was growing up. Maqbul Bhatt was hanged. The situation was volatile. The people of Kashmir decided to fight an electoral battle once again to resolve the Kashmir issue through peaceful means. Muslim United Front (MUF) was formed to represent the sentiments of Kashmiri Muslims for the final settlement of the Kashmir issue. Administration at Delhi was alarmed by the kind of support that MUF was gaining and in the consequence we saw rigging in the election on an unprecedented scale. And the leaders, who took part in the election and won with huge majority, were arrested, humiliated and put behind bars. It is only after this that the same leaders gave call for armed resistance. In response thousands of youth took to armed revolt. I dropped out from my MBBS studies in Jhelum Valley Medical College, Srinagar. I was also one of those who crossed to the other side of Kashmir as a JKLF member, but was disillusioned after seeing Pakistani Politicians acting the same as the Indian politicians in dealing with Kashmiris. I returned after few weeks. I surrendered to the security force, and you know, I was even given a BSF certificate as surrendered militant. I began to start the life new. I could not become a doctor but I became a dealer of medicines and surgical instruments on commission basis (laughs). With the meager income I even bought a scooter and also got married. But not a day passed by without the scare of Rashtriya Rifles and STF men harassing me. If there was a militant attack somewhere in Kashmir they would round up civilians, torture them to pulp. The situation was even worse for a surrendered militant like me. They detained us for several weeks, and threatened to implicate in false cases and were let free only if we paid huge bribes. Many times I had to go through this. Major Ram Mohan Roy of 22 Rashtriya Rifles gave electric shock to my private parts. Many times I was made to clean their toilets and sweep their camps. Once I had to bribe the security men with all that I had to escape from the Humhama STF torture camp. D.S.P. Vinay Gupta and D.S.P. Davinder Singh supervised the torture. One of their torture experts, Inspector Shanty Singh, electrified me for three hours until I agreed to pay one lakh rupees as bribe. My wife sold her jewelry and for the remaining amount they sold my scooter. I left the camp broken both financially and mentally. For six months I could not go outside home because my body was in such a bad shape. I could not even share the bed with my wife as my penile organ had been electrified. I had to take medical treatment to regain potency…. Afzal narrated the torture details with a disturbing calmness on his face. He seemed to have lot of details to tell me about the torture he faced. But unable to hear the horror stories of security forces that operate with my tax money, I cut him short and asked: If you could come to the Case…, what were the incidents that led to the Parliament attack Case? After all the lessons I learned in STF camps, which is either you and your family members get harassed constantly for resisting or cooperate with the STF blindly, I had hardly any options left, when D.S.P Davinder Singh asked me to do a small job for him. That is what he told, “a small job”. He told me that I had to take one man to Delhi. I was supposed to find a rented house for him in Delhi. I was seeing the man first time, but since he did not speak Kashmiri I suspected he was an outsider. He told his name was Mohammad [Mohammad is identified by the police as the man who led the 5 gunmen who attacked the Parliament. All of them were killed by the security men in the attack]. When we were in Delhi Mohammad and me used to get phone calls from Davinder Singh. I had also noticed that Mohammad used to visit many people in Delhi. After he purchased a car he told me now I could go back and gave me 35,000 rupees saying it was a gift. And I left to Kashmir for Eid. When I was about to leave to Sopore from Srinagar bus stand I was arrested and taken to Parimpora police station. They tortured me and took to STF headquarters and from there brought me to Delhi. In the torture chamber of Delhi Police Special Cell, I told them everything I knew about Mohammad. But they insisted that I should say that my cousin Showkat, his wife Navjot S.A.R. Geelani and I were the people behind the Parliament attack. They wanted me to say this convincingly in front of media. I resisted. But I had no option than to yield when they told me my family was in their custody and threatened to kill them. I was made to sign many blank pages and was forced to talk to the media and claim responsibility for the attack by repeating what the police told me to say. When a journalist asked me about the role of S.A.R. Geelani I told him Geelani was innocent. A.C.P. Rajbeer Singh shouted at me in the full media glare for talking beyond what they tutored. They were really upset when I deviated from their story and Rajbeer Singh requested the journalists not to broadcast that part where I spoke of Geelani’s innocence. Rajbeer Singh allowed me to talk to my wife the next day. After the call he told me if I wanted to see them alive I had to cooperate. Accepting the charges was the only option in front of me if I wanted to see the family alive and the Special Cell officers promised they would make my case weak so I would be released after sometime. Then they took me to various places and showed me the markets where Mohammad had purchased different things. Thus they made the evidence for the case. Police made me a scapegoat in order to mask their failure to find out the mastermind of Parliament attack. They have fooled the people. People still don’t know whose idea was to attack the Parliament. I was entrapped into the case by Special Task Force (STF) of Kashmir and implicated by Delhi Police Special Cell. The media constantly played the tape. The police officers received awards. And I was condemned to death. Why didn't you find legal defence? I had no one to turn to. I did not even see my family until six months into the trial. And when I saw them it was only for a short time in the Patiala House Court. There was no one to arrange a lawyer for me. As legal aid is a fundamental right in this country I named four lawyers whom I wished to have defended me. But the judge S.N. Dhingra, said all four refused to do the case. The lawyer whom the Court chose for me began by admitting some of the most crucial documents without even asking me what the truth of the matter was. She was not doing the job properly and finally she moved to defend another fellow accused. Then the Court appointed an amicus curie, not to defend me, but to assist court in the matter. He never met me. And he was very hostile and communal. That is my case, completely unrepresented at the crucial trial stage. The fact of the matter is that I did not have a lawyer and in a case like this, what does not having a lawyer mean everyone can understand. If you wanted to put me to death what was the need for such a long legal process which to me was totally meaningless? Do you want to make any appeal to the world? I have no specific appeals to make. I have said whatever I wanted to say in my petition to the President of India. My simple, appeal is that do not allow blind nationalism and mistaken perceptions to lead you to deny even the most fundamental rights of your fellow citizens. Let me repeat what S.A.R. Geelani said after he was awarded death sentence at the trial court, he said, peace comes with justice. If there is no justice, there is no peace. I think that is what I want to say now. If you want to hang me, go ahead with it but remember it would be a black spot on the judicial and political system of India. What is the condition in jail? I’m lodged in solitary confinement in the high risk cell. I’m taken out from my cell only for a short period during noon. No radio, no television. Even the newspaper I subscribe reaches me torn. If there is a news item about me, they tear that portion apart and give me the rest. Apart from the uncertainty about your future, what else concerns you the most? Yes, a lot of things concern me. There are hundreds of Kashmiris languishing in different jails, without lawyers, without trial, without any rights. The situation of civilians in the streets of Kashmir is not any different. The valley itself is an open prison. These days the news of fake encounters is coming out. But that is only the tip of a big iceberg. Kashmir has everything that you don’t want to see in a civilized nation. They breathe torture. Inhale injustice. He paused for a moment. Also, there are so many thoughts that come into my mind; farmers who get displaced, merchants whose shops are sealed in Delhi and so on. So many faces of injustice you can see and identify, can’t you? Have you thought how many thousands of people get affected by all this, their livelihood, family…? All these things too, worry me. Again a longer pause Also global developments. I took to the news of the execution of Saddham Hussain with at most sadness. Injustice so openly and shamelessly done. Iraq, the land of Mesopotamia, world’s richest civilization, that taught us mathematics, use a 60 minute clock, 24 hour day, 360 degree circle, is thrashed to dust by the Americans. Americans are destroying all other civilizations and value systems. Now the so called War against Terrorism is only good in spreading hatred and causing destruction. I can go on saying what worries me. Which books are you reading now? I finished reading Arundhati Roy. Now I’m reading Sartre’s work on existentialism. You see, it is a poor library in the jail. So I will have to request the visiting Society for the Protection of Detainees and Prisoners Rights (SPDPR) members for books. There is a campaign in defence for you… I am really moved and obliged by the thousands of people who came forward saying injustice is done to me. The lawyers, students, writers, intellectuals, and all those people are doing something great by speaking against injustice. The situation at the beginning, was such in 2001 and initial days of the case that it was impossible for justice loving people to come forward. When the High Court acquitted SAR Geelani people started questioning the police theory. And when more and more people became aware of the case details and facts and started seeing things beyond the lies, they began speaking up. It is natural that justice loving people speak up and say, injustice is done to Afzal. Because that is the truth. Members of your family have conflicting opinion on your case? My wife has been consistently saying that I was wrongly framed. She has seen how the STF tortured me and did not allow me to live a normal life. She also knew how they implicated me in the case. She wants me to see our son Ghalib growing up. I have also an elder brother who apparently is speaking against me under duress from the STF. It is unfortunate what he does, that’s what I can say. See, it is a reality in Kashmir now, what you call the counter insurgency operations take any dirty shape—that they field brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor. You are breaking a society with your dirty tricks. As far as the campaign is concerned I had requested and authorized Society for the Protection of Detainees and Prisoners Society (SPDPR) run by Geelani and group of activists to do the campaign. What comes to your mind when you think of your wife Tabassum and Son Ghalib? This year is the tenth anniversary of our wedding. Over half that period I spent in jail. And prior to that, many a times I was detained and tortured by Indian security forces in Kashmir. Tabassum witnessed both my physical and mental wounds. Many times I returned from the torture camp, unable to stand, all kinds of torture including electric shock to my penis, she gave me hope to live…We did not have a day of peaceful living. It is the story of many Kashmiri couples. Constant fear is the dominant feeling in all Kashmiri households. We were so happy when a child was born. We named our son after the legendary poet Mirza Ghalib. We had a dream to see our son Ghalib grow up. I could spend very little time with him. After his second birthday I was implicated in the case. What do you want him to grow up as? Professionally, if you are asking, a doctor. Because that is my incomplete dream. But most importantly, I want him to grow without fear. I want him to speak against injustice. That I am sure he will be. Who else know the story of injustice better than my wife and son? [While Afzal continued talking about his wife and son, I could not stop recollecting what Tabassum told me when I met her outside Supreme Court in 2005 during the case’s appeal stage. When Afzal’s family members remained in Kashmir Tabassum dared to come to Delhi with her son Ghalib to organize defence for Afzal. Outside the Supreme Court New Lawyers chamber, at the tiny tea stall on the roadside, she chatted in detail about Afzal. While sipping and complaining the tea for excess sugar she told me how Afzal enjoyed cooking.
One picture she painted struck me deep—one of those dear private moments in their lives, he would not allow her to enter kitchen, make her seated on the chair nearby and Afzal would cook, holding one book in his band, a ladle in the other and read out stories for her.] If I may ask you about Kashmir issue…how do you think it can be solved? First let the government be sincere to the people of Kashmir. And let them initiate talk with the real representatives of Kashmir. Trust me, the real representatives of Kashmir can solve the problem. But if the government consider peace process as a tactics of counter insurgency, then the issue is not going to be solved. It is time some sincerity is shown. Who are the real people? Find out from the sentiments of the people of Kashmir. I am not going to name x, y or z. And I have an appeal to Indian media; stop acting as a propaganda tool. Let them report the truth. With their smartly worded and politically loaded news reports, they distort facts, make incomplete reports, build hardliners, terrorists et al. They easily fall for the games of the intelligence agencies. By doing insincere journalism you are adding to the problem. Disinformation on Kashmir should stop first. Allow Indians to know the complete history of the conflict, let them know the ground realities. True democrats cannot turn down the facts. If Indian government is not taking into account the wishes of Kashmiri people, then they can’t solve the problem. It will continue to be a conflict zone. Also you tell me how are you going to develop real trust among Kashmiris when you send out the message that India has a justice system that hang people without giving a lawyer, without a fair trial? Tell me, when hundreds of Kashmiris are lodged in jails most of them with no lawyer, no hope for justice, are you not further escalating the distrust on Indian government among Kashmiris? Do you think if you don’t address the core issues and do a cosmetic effort, you can solve Kashmir conflict? No, you can’t. Let the democratic institutions of both India and Pakistan start showing some sincerity, their politicians, Parliament, justice system, media, intellectuals... 9 security men were killed in the Parliament attack. What is that you have to tell their relatives? In fact I share the pain of the family members who lost their dear ones in the attack. But I feel sad that they are misled to believe that hanging an innocent person like me would satisfy them. They are used as pawns in a completely distorted cause of nationalism. I appeal them to come out of it and see through things. What do you see is your achievement in life? My biggest achievement perhaps is that through my case and the campaign on the injustice done to me, the horror of STF has been brought into light. I am happy that now people are discussing security forces’ atrocities on civilians, encounter killings, disappearances, torture camps, etc...These are the realities that a Kashmiri grows up with. People outside Kashmir have no clue what Indian security forces are up to in Kashmir. Even if they kill me for no crime of mine, it would be because they cannot stand the truth. They cannot face the questions arise out of hanging a Kashmiri with no lawyer. An ear-splitting electric bell rang. Could hear hurried up conversations from the neighbor cubicles. This was my last question to Afzal. What do you want to be known as? He thought for a minute, and answered: As Afzal, as Mohmammad Afzal. I am Afzal for Kashmiris, and I am Afzal for Indians as well, but the two groups have an entirely conflicting perception of my being. I would naturally trust the judgment of Kashmiri people not only because I am one among them but also because they are well aware of the reality I have been through and they cannot be misled into believing any distorted version of either a history or an incident. I was confused with this last statement of Mohammad Afzal, but on further reflection I began to understand what he meant. History of Kashmir and narration of an incident by a Kashmiri is always a big shock for an Indian whose sources of knowledge on Kashmir happen to be confined only to the text books and media reports. Afzal did just that to me. Two more bells. Time to end Mulakat. But people were still busy conversing. Mike put off. Speaker stopped. But if you strained your ear, and watched the lip movement, you could still hear him. The guards made rough round-ups, asking to leave. As they found visitors not leaving, they put the lights off, mulakat room turned dark. In the long stretch of walk out from the Jail No 3 of Tihar jail compound to the main road I found myself in the company of clusters of twos and threes, moving out silently—either a cluster of mother, wife and daughter; or brother, sister and wife; or friend and brother; or someone else. Every cluster had two things in common. They carried an empty cotton bag back with them. Those bags had stains of Malai Kofta, Shahi Paneer and Mixed Vegetables, often spilled over by the rash frisking of the TSP man’s spoon. The second, I observed, they all wore inexpensive winter clothes, torn shoes, and outside Gate No 3 they waited for Bus No 588, Tilak Nagar-Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium bus, that perhaps took them to Dhaulakuan main junction—they are the poor citizens of this country. Remembered President Abdul Kalam’s musing how poor people were the awardees of capital punishments. My interviewee is also one. When I asked him how much ‘tokens’ (the form of currency allowed in the jail) he had, he said “enough to survive”.
Good Evening ! I am Arnab and tonight on Newshour we are talking about the US decision to reward anyone giving out details about Hafiz Saeed. With me on the Newshour tonight are: Mahroof Raza, the impeccable. K.C. Singh, the incredible Joining me from Pakistan is Mr. Hilali (read as Hillei Lee) And from Washington DC first time in the history of Indian Media we are joined in by Mrs. Hillary Lewinsky Clinton, O ! I beg your pardon, joining me from Washington DC is Mrs. Hillary Clinton.
My first question as usual to Marhoof. Arnab:
Mahroof ! Now that Washington has realised what I was telling them since all these years and have announced a bounty on the head of Hafiz Saeed, what do you see in this ?
Mahroof: Well ! Pakistan is cornered. It has to take action, if it wants to earn 10 million dollars. I know they will not arrest him because they have a suspicion that US might ditch them and won't pay them the money. India should not sit silent and should cry all the lungs out. If Pakistan does not take action now, then we should send our army in TATRA trucks to Pakistan to spy on him and find out his whereabouts. Then we should reveal the info about him to US and claim the bounty. This will serve us in the long run. We can pay 1 million dollars from the amount to our Gen VK Singh at the time of his retirement. Rest 9 million dollars could be handed over our government for them to decide about the share of each minister, sorry I mean say share of each ministry.
Arnab: My next question to KC.
KC! Is not this the vindictiveness of Indian stand on Pakistan ? Has US now realised that the real power of world is India? KC: Yes, it is the recognition of our might. We told them that he is a terrorist and they announced the reward on his head. How can US afford to ignore our power? Afterall India is a real super power. World knows it. Pakistan knows that, China perhaps also knows that now.
In a recent report by the International Academy for Economic Evaluation of Countries of Grandeur Delusion Club (GDC) , it is clearly stated how powerful India is.
As per its report, India has an army which can win any war by using merely 3 % of its arsenal. Rest of the 97 % resource is simply meant to fill in the gaps and pockects. We possess TATRA trucks, we possess BOFORS guns, We possess AGNI. We possess RAJNI. We possess MIGs and PIGs. We possess PRITHVI and AAKASH VANI. We possess NUKES and MMS and last but not the least we possess ARNAB. We are the Power. Pakistan and US fear us and after reading this report I hope China will also start fearing us.
My next question to Mr Hilali (read Hillei Lee)
Arnab: Mr. Hillei Lee, Do you feel ashmaed of youself today ? Come on, world wants to hear it from you tonight on your channel. Say ! yes, we are ashamed of ourselves for shielding and hiding a terrorist like Hafiz Syed. Say yes, Pakistan is a terrorist country. Come on world is watching you on your channel.
Mr. Hilali : Listen……. Mr. Arnab. This is all non sense (Arnab intervenes)
Arnab: That is what India has been telling to the world. To engage with Pakistan is non sense. (Hilali want to speak again) and Arnab, Yes Mr. Hillei Lee we are listening you.
.
Mr. Hilali: You are putting words into my mouth Arnab. (Arnab intervens again)
Arnab: Come on ! Mr. Hillei Lee. You can't say that whatever I said is not true. (Hilali intervenes again)
Hilali: Listen you dimwit scoundrel ! If you again talk in between, I will break your denture. You oily rodent. Let me talk. ( Arnab shuts up and looks like a zobie, listening all cooly).
Why should Pakistan appologise for something imaginery? You claim that Hafiz Saeed is hiding but let me show you something. Hafiz Saeed is sitting with me here. He is watching your dripping nose and your over oiled hair. (Mr. Hilali asks cameraman to focus on Hafiz Syed)
And Hafiz Syed starts speaking.
Hafiz Syed: Ye paleet insaan kab sey kuttey ki tarah bhonk raha hai. Sunn ai mardood, Mei yahan hoon kisi gaar me chupa huwa nahee hoon. (This dirty man (Arnab) is barking like a dog. I am here in the open and am not hiding in caves)
Arnab starts to shout as the audio line from Paksistan has been snapped.
Arnab: This is first time in the history of any TV channel in that world that a terrorist having a reward on his head has appeared on a live show. We have cornered him and we know his whereabouts. Your channel has done it. It has done it. US owes us the money. We have found them the man they are looking for.
I will now get Mrs. Hillary Monica Clinton, O! sorry once again, Hillary Clinton to talk to me.
Arnab: Good evening ! Mrs Clinton
Hillary: Actually Good Morning!
Arnab: Sorry, Good Morning ! Mrs Clinton. The person you were looking for has been tracked down by this channel on live telecast. Whole world watched how we nailed that man. Now we want our money. 10 million Dollars in CASH. Mrs. Clinton, When shall the US administration invite me to US to hand over me my cheque. I want an honest answer from you Mrs. Clinton tonight on your channel.
Mrs. Clinton: Well ! that is a wisful thinking. You never deserve the bounty. It is clearly written on the Justice Department website that any information which can lead to the arrest of Mr. Hafiz Syed shall be deemed as the winner information and the informant shall be paid the reward of 10 million United States Dollars.
Since Mr. Hafiz Syed has not been arrested yet and has perhaps left the studio by now, your claim stands rejected. Arnab: This is a new twist. You cannot deny us the money. India has done it again. We informed you about OBL, you duped us then and now this. This is atrocious.
Mrs. Clinton: Good bye ! See you again next time.
Arnab: Yes ! OK. Let me wrap up the debate. Thank you Mahroof, KC, Mr. Hillei Lee and Mrs. Monica Hillary Clinton sorry Mrs Clinton. (Mr. Hafiz Syed is intervening)
Hafiz Syed: Khabees, mei bhi hoon yehaan. Mei bhaga nahi hoon yehan se. (Rascal ! I am still here and have not fled)
Arnab: Sorry, we cant hear you and we are short of time now. From the studios of Times Now, good night ladies and gentlemen.
Mar 7 (Agencies): Located in the remote northern district of Kupwara, Kunan Poshpora looks like any other village in Indian-administered Kashmir. But on Feb. 23, 1991 something happened here that would change this village forever.That night, villagers say that Indian troops laid siege to their village. The army assembled the men at several locations in the town and then entered homes.
"There were too many of them," says Saleema, a middle-aged woman whose last name was withheld to protect her safety. "Our lawn was filled with the army. They broke lamps, drank alcohol." She says she tried to flee but turned back to rescue one of her children. "I tried to flee, but one of my children was left in the house," she says. "I came back [to] get him, and they caught me. I tried to flee again but couldn't."
She says the soldiers terrorized her and the other women in their homes for nearly 12 hours.
"We were violated," she says. "The army entered our houses at 10 in the evening and left at 9 in the morning. First, they took out the men, and only God knows what they did to us then." She says that no one in the village was spared. "There were screams everywhere - from almost every house in the village," she says.
Despite the high number of women who were raped, she says that many declined to report the incidents because of the stigma suffered by the women who did. "My sister who was unmarried was here," she says. "She was raped, too. I didn't disclose her name, thinking who will marry her then?" Because of this stigma, Saleema is reluctant to go into many more details about the night."Only God knows what happened to us that night," she says. "It is an embarrassment talking about it again and again."
Kashmir, KUNAN POSHPORA MASS RAPE BY INDIAN TROOPS
Twenty years later, the night still haunts the residents. Men narrate tales of physical torture during their detention that night."It was a tragedy for the entire village," Saleema says. "We could hear cries from every house. The men were away, unawares."Villagers say that army soldiers stormed the village two decades ago, torturing the men and raping the women. The army denied the allegations, and the government determined that evidence was insufficient. But international organizations criticize the lack of prompt, thorough and independent investigations into the villagers' claims. Sociologists say the event has had severe socio-cultural effects, with villagers saying that the night destroyed their prospects for education, marriage and relations with other villages. The State Human Rights Commission directed the government to reopen the case toward the end of last year, but villagers are skeptical that justice will be served twenty years later.
Locals say they reported about 30 cases of rape to the police during the days following the event. But they say that the actual number of victims was much higher as many women chose not to disclose it because of the stigma it would bring. Human Rights Law Network, a collective of lawyers and social activists dedicated to the use of the legal system to advance human rights in India and the subcontinent, and Act Now for Harmony and Democracy, an Indian socio-cultural organization, heard the testimonies of various human rights violations in Kashmir in 2010. Their report deemed the incident in Kunan Poshpora "the worst of the human rights violations." The men of Kunan Poshpora say that the soldiers took them out of their homes to different places in the village. They say that they beat and tortured them throughout the night.
Abel Dar, an elderly resident, pulls up his shirt sleeve to show the scars on his arm from the night."All men were taken out of their homes, except little boys," he says. "We were all mercilessly beaten. They asked no questions - just beat us all night."But Dar says that what he found out at his home when he returned the next day. was much worse. His elderly mother, wife, two sisters-in-law, daughter-in-law, aunts and cousins had all been raped. His mother was in her 80s, and his daughter-in-law was just 18.
"My daughter-in-law was very beautiful," he says. "They took her along and released her next day around 1 p.m. My wife had to be operated upon after that incident. I had to spend a lot on her treatment."His daughter-in-law, a newlywed, was the last of the women in the family to be released. "It was the 11th day of my marriage," says Dar's daughter-in-law who requested anonymity to protect her family. "I was still a bride."
She says the soldiers broke in during the night."We were in our rooms," she says. "They broke doors and windows. They broke the door of the cattle shed to get into our house. We, the three women of the house, huddled in a single room." She says they had already taken the men away earlier in the evening."The men were taken out in the evening, and we had locked the doors then," she says. "Then there was chaos. There was no light, and we could only hear cries."
Then, they took her from her home. "They took me along to another village, and I was raped again and again. They left me three villages away at around 1 p.m. the next day."
Another victim, Saja, whose last name was also withheld, says her daughter needed surgery after the siege. "My daughter was stepped over in the dark by the security forces," she says. "Her legs were broken, and then she was kept in cold in the snow. I had to sell my land to get her operated upon."
After the rapes were reported the army denied the allegations, but the villagers' protests forced local police to address their complaints. A top district official at the time, S.M. Yasin, wrote in his report to the government that the armed forces had "behaved like beasts."
But even such admissions from government officials failed to secure justice for the victims. The army asked the Press Council of India, which aims to preserve the freedom of the press, to investigate the incident. The council's investigation deemed the allegations "baseless" and the medical evidence "worthless."
A report by Asia Watch, a division of Human Rights Watch, questions the investigation, though, stating that it served more to deflect domestic and international criticism than uncover the truth."The alacrity with which Indian military and government authorities in Kashmir discredited the allegations of rape and their failure to follow through with procedures that would provide critical evidence for any prosecution - in particular prompt independent medical examinations of the alleged rape victims - undermined the integrity of the investigation and indicates that the Indian authorities have been far more interested in shielding government forces from charges of abuse," the report states.
Multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions recognize sexual violence in conflict as a matter of international peace and security. They also call on member states for effective steps to prevent and respond to acts of sexual violence. In February 2012, an Amnesty International statement declared that members of the Indian army must stand trial when facing charges of serious human rights violations instead of hiding behind the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. Amnesty International further that the government repeal the act, which exempts security personnel from being prosecuted for human rights violations unless approved by the central government.
Bashir Ahmad Dabla, a sociology professor at the University of Kashmir, says there is bound to be abuses where there is heavy militarization and legislation that removes accountability.
"When the military is put above the law with acts like.
Twelve years on, the villagers of Kunan Poshpora still await justice.Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, AFSPA, there are bound to be cases of molestation, harassment, rape, sexual abuse," he says. "It has happened in all parts of the world: Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan."
The act was extended to Jammu and Kashmir state in 1990. Dabla says such abuse inevitably leaves a strong socio-cultural impact."The rapes of the women at Kunan Poshpora played havoc on the collective psyche of people," he says. "There were many cases of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, suicides and other psychological disease."
From education to marriage to health, villagers of Kunan Poshpora say that night changed everything - not only for the affected women but also for the entire population. They say this is because of the social stigma attached to rape, which is considered a blot on their honor. "The incident affected the education, relationships and every other aspect of our lives," Dar says. "Our children were taunted in schools and colleges, making them leave their education. We could only marry within the village. No marriage has taken place outside the village. Our social relations with other villages also changed."
Hajra, a woman whose last name was also withheld to protect her safety, says that she and her daughter were raped during the attack. In addition to the trauma it caused them, the sexual violence also destroyed her three sons' desires to gain an education.
"Who can tolerate if someone says anything about your mother or sister in school?" she asks. "They stopped going."
Saleema's children reported the same discouragement from gaining an education."Not only did we suffer, our children also became victims," she says. "They couldn't get education as they were taunted in schools. They would come home running, saying they won't go to school. With no education, they are unemployed now."
Ghulam Mohammad Dar, who is not related to Abel Dar, was 7 at the time of the incident. Many of his female relatives were raped, including his grandmother, who jumped out a window and hid in the grass but was caught and raped anyway. He says he dropped out of college because of the unwanted attention of the event that had made his village infamous and the trauma of having to relive it every time someone asked about it."We were taunted in schools and colleges," he says. "On the first day of college, I was asked to give introduction. When they heard I was from Kunan Poshpora, they asked me can I tell what happened and what was it all about. That was it. I didn't go back to college."
He says that many other girls and boys from the village also dropped out of school because of this stigma."It is better to die than listen to the taunts," he says.He says that the decline in education has led to an increase in unemployment and poverty. He says marriage was also affected. "The victims are still reluctant to talk as it brings a bad name," he says. "Since that incident we marry within the village only."He says it also affected pregnancies. His cousin was nine months pregnant when she was gang raped that night. The baby was born with a fractured arm.
"There are so many women among them who never had children," he says. "There were some who could never get married."
In October 2011, the State Human Rights Commission gave directions for reopening the case after hearing pleas from the victims from the village. It recommended the formation of a special investigation team, monetary compensation of around $4,000 to victims and prosecution of the head prosecutor who had ordered the case closed. The state government is not bound to follow the commission's directive. It has been four months, and the government has not made any announcements regarding the case.
But Shamim Firdous, a member of the Legistlative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, says the government is working on it. "The government has already taken up the matter and is very particular to solve the issue," she says.Firdous, who is also the chairwoman of the State Commission for Women, says that the women's commission has already recommended an investigation into the incident to the state government. But she says it's difficult when victims don't want to come forward. "Not all women have come out, and we wanted them to do so and also grant them compensation," she says.
Villagers say they aren't interested in money. They just want accountability.
"We won't sell our honor for those 2 lakhs," Abel Dar says. "The perpetrators should be punished according to the Indian law, and we want to see those men punished with our eyes. The law applies on them as well."Saleema says they want justice - for the guilty to be punished. "They are saying they will give us the money, but we don't want that," Saleema says.
Hajra agrees that justice has not been served.
"Twenty years of giving statements have given us nothing," Hajra says, almost shouting with anger. "What have we gained out of it? I was telling the men not to talk to anyone anymore."
Hajra laments the the compromises and suffering the victims have had to make. She says she had to marry her daughter to a poor man because of the stigma of being a rape survivor.
"I married my daughter, but to whom?" she asks. "The family doesn't even have enough food. What could I have done? Is this justice?" Instead of justice, the villagers accuse the government of being partial to them since the incident.
"They are punishing us since we decided to raise our voice," Ghulam Mohammad Dar says.
Saleema and her fellow villagers say raising their voices does no good, expressing resent toward talking to the media and other agencies."We have been giving statements for the last 20, 22 years," Saleema says. "But nothing happens. I am asking you why nothing comes out of it?"
