India Tomorrow
NEW DELHI: A startling fact-finding report released by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) during a press conference held on Tuesday at the Press Club of India revealed the ground realities of the rule of law’s complete failure and the administration’s complicity in enabling migrant vulnerability and communal tensions in Himachal Pradesh.
The document, titled “Creating the Muslim ‘Outsider’: Hate Speech, Migrant Vulnerability and Faltering Law & Order in Himachal Pradesh,” details a distressing sequence of occurrences in multiple areas of Himachal Pradesh, such as Shimla, Sanjauli, Mandi, Solan, Kullu, and Palampur. These developments have ignited significant concern and discussion. There is an escalating necessity for dialogue, comprehension, and a peaceful resolution to these issues.
People from various fields participated in the press conference, comprising prominent human rights advocates, former bureaucrats, legal professionals, journalists, and concerned citizens. The panel featured notable figures such as senior Supreme Court advocates Prashant Bhushan and Sanjay Hegde, Activist and Educationist Syeda Hameed, Former Deputy Mayor of Shimla Tikender Pawar, Haryana journalist Ramandeep Kirtan, independent journalist Srishti Jaswal, freelance journalist Kaushik Raj and APCR national secretary Nadeem Khan.
Senior journalist Pamela Philipose moderated the press conference. Setting the tone of the press conference, she said, “Today, communal agendas have overshadowed classroom agendas,” about the escalating severity and frequency of communal violence in India.
The conference commenced with the fact-finding team presenting their first-hand accounts of the experiences they encountered. Nadeem Khan said there is a parallel government run by BJP and RSS. The biggest failure of the Himachal government is the complete collapse of the rule of law.
Srishti Jaswal shared a detailed account of her observations and said people are so afraid that in their 20-day visit not a single woman is willing to share her views. Even men were also reluctant to speak and some spoke on conditions of anonymity. She added that the mosque committee had begun the process of taking down the mosque in Sanjauli. “Yesterday, they started the process of pulling down the mosque. They could have waited, could have tried to, at least. This is the environment there despite the Congress government being the one in power.” She also highlighted that police in all districts of Himachal Pradesh are demanding character certificates from Muslims, issued from their native state.
This story was originally published in indiatomorrow.net. Read the full story here.