Citizens Demand Immediate Implementation of  the Justice Srikrishna Commission Report

A high-powered citizens’ delegation led by Justice Hosbet Suresh and consisting of prominent citizens like Alyque Padamsee, Mahesh Bhatt, Javed Akhtar and representatives of over three dozen grassroot level organisations met Maharashtra CM, Vilasrao Deshmukh to demand prompt implmentation of the Srikrishna Commission report into the Mumbai riots of 1992–93.
Two weeks earlier at a meeting of citizens groups, over three dozen organisations and individuals had met and resolved not to let the issue critical for the restoration of Mumbai’s social climate,subside.

At the meeting on December 6, the CM had assured the delegation that he would initiate action within two months that is by February 6, 2000.

In the first week of January, in its first detailed affidavit in the course of the hearing of a public interest writ in the Supreme Court, the Maharashtra government announced that it was referring sections of the report to the Crime Branch of the Mumbai Police before initiating action. Unsure of whether this will prove to be yet another dilatory tactic, the Citizen’s Group have resolved to meet the CM again in February

Meanwhile a signature campaign launched by the Nirbhay Bano Andolan,demanding action the Srikrishna Commission report has elicited a warm response from Mumbaikars. Close to 10,000 signatures have been elicited.

Excerpts from the Citizens’ Memorandum:
1. Citizens of Mumbai and three dozen organisations working at the grassroots in the city, demand the speedy implementation of the Justice Srikrishna Commission Report.
2. The speedy implementation means the scrapping of all governmental committees and swiftly launching criminal prosecutions against 15 police officials and over three dozen politicians found guilty by the judge after charge-sheets are filed against them. Appointing one more committee to look into the report will only delay matters further.
3. We also demand prompt information on the criminal cases that had been prematurely ‘closed’ by the police. As per the Judge’s recommendations, the state government was bound to re–open over 1,000 criminal cases lodged by the survivors of the violence that had, with dubious intent, been ‘closed’ down earlier.
4. Sir, we would like to know what steps the government has taken on the prosecution of newspapers found guilty of inciting hatred and violence.
5. Serious implementation of the report also means putting into effect immediately administrative measures to equip the law and order machinery that was found guilty of gross negligence and bias. As citizens concerned that such a breakdown in law and order is avoided at all costs in future, we demand detailed information on the steps taken.
6. We also earnestly urge that the Maharashtra government abstains from the blatantly dilatory tactics adopted by it before the Courts and files affidavits in the public interest writ petitions filed to further expedite this issue.

For citizens concerned with justice and reconciliation, we are keen to see that the demand for the implementation of the Srikrishna report does not get reduced to gaining political advantage or settling political scores. Grave issues, like the protection of life and security of citizens are at stake here. Already, seven years have passed since the violent occurrences that led to the government-appointed investigation. Justice needs to be done. This is imperative if the faith of the people in accountable governance is to be redeemed.

Five public interest writ petitions filed by citizens’ groups and opposition political parties in the Mumbai High Court and three in the Supreme Court of India, demanding that the Srikrishna Commission Report be implemented and Action Taken Report of the Government of Maharashtra be set aside, have been pending for more than a year.

Our investigations have also revealed that the steps taken by the government’s legal department to ostensibly launch investigations into the Judge’s direct recommendations to prosecute policemen and re-open criminal cases filed by citizens, have amounted to nothing short of further maneuvers to delay the issue.

For both the Congress(I) and Sharad Pawar’s NCP, the implementation of the report was a major election issue during the recently–conducted polls.Since a new government has assumed power in Maharashtra, the time is right for citizens to demand comprehensive details from the government on the issue of the implementation of the Justice Srikrishna report. Political accountability and transparency in administration demand this.

Among the signatories: Justice Suresh, Justice Daud, Iqbal Chagla, Atul Setalvad, Yusuf Muchchala, Nilofer Bhagwat, P.A.Sebastian, Asghar Ali Engineer, Vijay Tendulkar, Javed Akhtar, Mahesh Bhatt, Nikhil Wagle, Ghulam Pesh-Imam,Fazal Shad, Pushpa Bhave, Y.D. Phadke,Arjun Dangle, Nalini Pandit, Ammu Abraham, Sonya Gill, Yogesh Kamdar, Dolphy D’Souza, Ram Punyani, Uday Mehta, Javed Anand,Teesta Setalvad. .The Organisations:Progressive Minorities Council, Mumbai Aman Committee, Ekta, Sabrang Communications (Communalism Combat), Committee for the Protection of Democratic Rights (CPDR), Voice, Centre for the Study of Society and Secularism, Women’s Centre, Akhil Bharatiya Janwadi Mahila Sanghatana,People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Mumbai Sarvodaya Mandal among others.