Deeply divided Godhra braces for poll

December 14, 2012

godhra

Godhra, December 14: A decade after Godhra provided the spark that ignited almost the whole of Gujarat into a communal cauldron, this relatively underdeveloped constituency in the prosperous state remains deeply divided along religious lines.

Going to poll in the second phase on December 17, the Muslims, who have a large presence among the 2.13 lakh electorate, are still not ready to forget and forgive the 2002 communal carnage, notwithstanding Chief Minister Narendra Modi's much publicised "Sadbhavna Mission" and numerous other overtures to woo them.

Amid the seemingly unbridgeable chasm, voters of this constituency, nearly 150 km from capital Gandhinagar, will decide the fate of eight candidates, including sitting Congress MLA C K Raulji who has thrice won the seat in 1990, 1995 and 2007, contesting as Janata Dal, BJP and Congress nominee respectively.

He is locked in a triangular fight with BJP's Praveensinh Chauhan, son of sitting MP from Panchmahal, Prabhatsinh Chauhan. Praveensinh is a political novice and is contesting an election for the first time.

Also in the fray is Girwatsinh Solanki of Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP), a BJP breakaway faction headed by former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel.

Though poll watchers are not giving independent candidate Rameshbhai Patel much of a chance, the realtor from Surat, a moneybag, is also in the fray, banking on the politically influential Patel votes.

The Muslims, with nearly 45,000 votes, have been exercising their franchise, almost en bloc, for Congress since 1962 when the first assembly polls were held after bifurcation of Bombay Presidency into Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Congress candidates have won the seat in five of the 11 assembly elections held in the state. However, Muslim candidates have bagged the seat only four times with Abdulrahim Ismail Khalpa alone winning in 1975, 1980 and 1985.

Four Muslims had filed their papers as independent candidates this time too but all of them withdrew at the last moment.

"Godhra is a prestige issue for Narendra Modi. So, he fielded Muslim candidates to divide Congress votes but Congress made sure they backed off," says Firdausbhai Kothi, president of the Muslim Ganchi Samaj Panch and owner of Kothi Steel Limited.

Kothi had sheltered hundreds of Muslims when Gujarat burned in communal strife for months in 2002.

"Muslims can make or mar the electoral fate of a candidate in Godhra but this time they stand divided. There can be a three-way split in the votes with Congress, Independent Rameshbhai and, to some extent BJP, being the beneficiaries", he said.

Asked why some Muslims would vote for BJP as the chasm remained as wide as ever, he says "they (Muslims) have forgotten the families of those convicted and sentenced to death for Sabarmati Express fire tragedy. Jamat-e-Islamia collects donations to sustain their families. Money plays a big role in elections these days."

58 people, mostly Karsevaks returning from Ayodhya by Sabarmati Express train, were burnt alive allegedly by Muslims living near Godhra Railway Station on February 27, 2002, throwing Gujarat into a spiral of communal violence which took months to ebb away and left more than 1000 killed and many times more maimed and scarred for life.

"The Congress candidate is not good but he will win," says Osmanbhai, a tailor, who feels BJP's Praveensinh, given his inexperience, is not a formidable challenger .

"The weakness of one becomes the strength of another," he says broodingly.

Godhra, the headquarters of Panchmahal district, has a history of communal violence. In 1980, five members of a Sindhi family, which had migrated from Pakistan during the Partition, were burnt alive at Muslim-dominated Signalfalia.

Their's was the lone Hindu family in the area and oldtimers say Muslims wanted them to vacate their house and leave.

"In the wake of rioting that had ensued, Godhra was under curfew for nearly six months," says Pradeep Soni, a teacher.

In 1990, four Hindu teachers of Saifia Madarsa in Vorwad area of Godhra town were killed by Muslims, he says, adding, "the mistrust between the two communities runs very deep and Modi's goodwill mission cannot bridge the divide."

Modi, who has spent quite some time in Godhra running RSS 'Shakhas' as a 'Pracharak', has made several overtures to Muslims.


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News Network
January 10,2020

New Delhi, Jan 10: One woman reported a rape every 15 minutes on average in India in 2018, according to government data released on Thursday, underlining its dismal reputation as one of the worst places in the world to be female.

The highly publicised gang rape and murder of a woman in a bus in New Delhi in 2012 brought tens of thousands onto the streets across India and spurred demands for action from film stars and politicians, leading to harsher punishments and new fast-track courts. But the violence has continued unabated.

Women reported almost 34,000 rapes in 2018, barely changed from the year before. Just over 85% led to charges, and 27% to convictions, according to the annual crime report released by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Women's rights groups say crimes against women are often taken less seriously, and investigated by police lacking insensitivity.

"The country is still run by men, one (female prime minister) Indira Gandhi is not going to change things. Most judges are still men," said Lalitha Kumaramangalam, former chief of the National Commission for Women.

"There are very few forensic labs in the country, and fast-track courts have very few judges," said Kumaramangalam, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The rape of a teenager in 2017 by former BJP state legislator Kuldeep Singh Sengar gained national attention when the accuser tried to kill herself the following year, accusing the police of inaction.

Five months before Sengar was convicted last December, the accuser's family had to be provided with security after a truck crashed into the car she was in, injuring her and killing two of her relatives.

A 2015 study by the Centre for Law & Policy Research in Bengaluru found that fast-track courts were indeed quicker, but did not handle a high volume of cases.

And a study in 2016 by Partners for Law in Development in New Delhi found that they still took an average of 8.5 months per case - more than four times the recommended period.

The government statistics understate the number of rapes as it is still considered a taboo to report rape in some parts of India and because rapes that end in the murder are counted purely as murders.

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News Network
June 6,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 6: The Sabarimala Temple in Kerala is set to reopen from June 14 for devotees for monthly pooja and festival.

The temple will be open for the five-day monthly rituals in the Malayalam month of Midhunom that begins on June 15. From June 19-28 is the Sabarimala festival

A virtual queue system has been put in place in which 200 people will be allowed to register within an hour, Devasom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said.

To avoid crowding, only 50 devotees will be allowed to be present in front of the temple.

Before entering the premises, people will be scanned in Pampa and Sannidhanam. As a precautionary measure, people have been asked to wear mask and sanitation would be carried out at regular intervals.

Notably, no accommodation will be provided to the devotees in Sabarimala.

According to the Devasom Minister the administration has made two slots for the temple visit-- 4 am to 1 pm and 4 pm to 11 pm.

Also, the vehicles will only be allowed till Pampa. People coming from other states are required to register at government COVID Jagrata pass registration portal. Moreover, Appam and Arvana will be provided only through online booking.

Also, the devotees coming from other states will have to upload Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) labs certificate as a proof that they have not been infected with the lethal infection.

Also for the Guruvayoor Temple, the district collector, police and temple administration will hold a meeting to decide on the re-opening of the Temple. Here too devotees have to get themselves registered online.

In a single day, 600 people would be allowed to offer prayers at this shrine. Each hour, 150 people will be allowed to enter the premises.

Also, the time slot will be provided to people. In one batch 50 people will be allowed for 15 minutes inside the premises

Not only that, but marriages can also again be solemnised with divine blessings at the Guruvayoor temple. The administration will allow only 60 marriages in a day.

Weddings were stopped at the temple, due to the COVID-19 lockdown that was in place since March 24.

A marriage group should not have more than 10 people, including the bride and the groom and it is mandatory for the group to abide by the social distancing norm.

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News Network
January 7,2020

New Delhi, Jan 7: The Delhi Police has filed an FIR against JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh and 19 others for allegedly attacking security guards and vandalising the server room of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on January 4.

The police registered the FIR on January 5.

In the complaint filed by the JNU administration, the University alleged that the accused were involved in physical violence and pushed the women guards, verbally abused them and threatened them of dire consequences if they opened the lock of university's communication and information (CIS) office.

"They illegally trespassed the University property with the criminal intention to damage the public property. They damaged servers and made it dysfunctional. They also damaged fiber optic power supplies and broke the biometric systems inside the room," the University officials alleged.

This incident allegedly occurred a day before Aishe Ghosh, other JNU students and teachers were attacked by a masked mob inside the campus.

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