IPT 1.1 | september 2022 | Section 8
Despite the widespread and systemic nature of violence and discrimination against religious minorities taking roots in India, there is only little effort by justice institutions to provide remedy.
Absence of justice
In December the Supreme Court of India dismissed a plea by Bilkis Bano to review its recent judgment which allowed the Gujarat government to consider and release prematurely 11 convicts serving life sentence for gangraping her during the 2002 riots. As reported by The Hindu, Bano argued that the early release of the convicts amounted to a violation of her fundamental right to life. She also said the remission policy of the State of Maharashtra, where the trial took place, and not Gujarat, should have governed the case. The affidavit by the State of Gujarat had revealed that while the Superintendent of Police, CBI, Special Crime Branch, Mumbai and the Special Judge (CBI) of Greater Bombay opposed the premature release, all the authorities in Gujarat and the central Home Ministry recommended their release.
The year witnessed many instances of ‘bulldozer justice’: demolishing homes as punitive action especially against Muslims without due process of law. The demolitions began in states ruled by the BJP – Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Assam – and have also taken place in Delhi, Bihar. There have been many cases of houses of Muslims accused of crimes, including participating in protests and activists, as well as communities accused of encroaching on government land, with victims alleging that due process was not followed with regard to notices being issued, adequate time provided for resettlement, demolition of houses and eviction from properties with legal occupancy, among others. The courts have generally been silent on the demolitions, as analysed in reports here, here and here.
Legal accountability for those inciting violence, discrimination and hostility through hate speech has proved to be lacking the past year. The year began with videos showing religious leaders inciting violence against Muslims in Hindu religious parliaments (Dharam Sansad) in December 2021 and January 2021 from Haridwar, Delhi and other parts of the country. Despite video evidence and a public outcry, only three of the ten responsible in the Haridwar Dharam Sansad were arrested after public outcry. They were soon released on bail. When senior Hindu religious leaders at another gathering in January 2021 in Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh), called to attack mosques and declare India a Hindu Rashtra (Hindu Nation) , authorities took no action, despite complaints made by individuals.
The lack of punitive action against those making even the most egregious hate speeches continues to ensure impunity to repeat offenders such as Yati Narsinghanand, Anand Swaroop, and BJP leaders and office holders. There is a 1230 % increase in senior leaders and politicians making hate speeches under the BJP government since 2014, according to an analysis by the NDTV news channel, highlighting the severity of the issue.
Criminalising minorities
While lack of effective remedy and fair trials violations continue without redress, we are seeing a pattern setting in on the daily life of Muslims is bring criminalized in the country by ignoring constitutional provisions and instead prioritizing criminal provisions against them.
The use of ‘bulldozer justice’ continues with houses and properties being targeted to penalize Muslims. The latest report by the Housing and Land Rights Network points to demolitions in India being ‘arbitrary acts’ used as ‘a punitive measure’.
On October 4, the houses of three Muslims were razed following a personal rift which turned communal in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh. Building permission notices were posted outside the houses of three Muslim men in the evening, and their houses demolished the next day. These are demonstrative of the Madhya Pradesh BJP government’s continuing use of this arbitrary punishment and denial of a fair trial to Muslims in the state
In incidents of communal violence, minority communities continue to be unfairly penalized. Following up on the communal violence in Khargone, Madhya Pradesh, in April, a 12 year old Muslim boy was issued a notice to pay ₹2.9 lakh fine ($3500) for damages to property, a charge under a new law for recovery of damages to public property which allows juveniles to be tried for civil offences.
According to a report on ‘Religious Minorities in India’ published by Council on Minority Rights in India in November, law enforcement agencies are furthering anti minority violence in India. The report recorded 194 cases of hate crime against Muslims, 95 against Christians and 7 against Sikhs. The report outlines a ‘lack of action against law enforcement’, ‘clear bias’ of the police, law enforcement personnel engaging in offences against minorities, and FIRs being lodged against the victims, as some of the ways in which the legal and judicial systems are failing to protect minorities in the country