Minorities unhappy with riot report
The Nanavati Commission report on the anti-Sikh riots in Delhi in 1984 has finally been released. But critics are not really happy with the report
The Nanavati Commission report on the anti-Sikh riots in Delhi in 1984 has finally been released. But critics are not really happy with the report.
The Bharatiya Janata Party which had set up the commission in 1998 on the eve of the Delhi Assembly elections wanted to derive maximum political mileage out of it, but Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's honest statements in the Parliament, put an end to the BJP plan.
With Delhi Congress leaders Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar tendering their resignations, there is not much fodder left for the BJP.
But National Commission for Minorities chairman Tarlochan Singh takes a more grim and long-term view of the commission's report. In an interview with Gulf News, he says that he is unhappy with the commission's report and the initial Action Taken Report (ATR) of the government.
Excerpts from the interview:
GULF NEWS: What is your general response to the Nanavati Commission report?
TARLOCHAN SINGH: The commission and I have expressed our dissatisfaction with the report at a meeting held on August 10. We have conveyed our views to the government in an official communication.
What is your dissatisfaction really about? Is it about the inaction of the government or the commission's findings?
Both. We are not so much concerned with individuals. It is the whole approach that is at fault.
Do you think that commissions are ineffective?
The Minorities Commission has collected about 32 to 35 reports compiled by commissions after communal riots in different parts of the country at different times. They do not point to any effective action.
What then is the remedy?
It is very simple. Make the police answerable if they fail to control a riot. And cases should be filed immediately after a riot breaks out. No one should wait for a commission to be set up, and for its report to come out months later for cases to be filed against the guilty. Rioting is a criminal activity. If a murder takes place, the charges are filed immediately. No one waits for a commission's report.
Secondly, the police officer in charge of the area where rioting breaks out should be hauled up for failing to control the situation. The problem is that the police are never held responsible for a communal riot. It is my view that if the law and order machinery discharges its duty honestly, then there cannot be any riots.
Do you think the Nanavati Commission report has reopened the wounds of the Sikh community after so many years?
It is the failure of the commission to come up with a satisfying report that is causing the problem.
Do you think that the Sikhs are still alienated?
No. The Sikh community is part of the national mainstream. It does not feel alienated. And it is taking part in the process of national development. The Sikhs are proud of their contributions in nation-building.
Do you have any other suggestion for dealing with communal riots?
There should be greater representation for the minorities in the police force. It is the case all over the world. Once members of the minority communities are part of the police force, then anti-social elements will not dare to attack the minorities.
But will this not further communalise the police force?
It will not. On the other hand, it will inspire confidence among the minorities.
Are you satisfied with the rehabilitation done for the families of riot victims?
I am not. Where is the rehabilitation?
The widows and children of the riot victims are living in slums. They are unemployed and they are mired in poverty.
