Minority panel report puts Akhilesh govt in the dock
A report of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) that visited Muzaffarnagar on September 19 after the riots has put the UP government in the dock. The commission concluded that transfer of DM Surendra Singh and SSP Manzil Saini within hours of the incidents at Kawaal village, where three persons were killed, seemed hasty and detrimental to law and order. At Kawaal, two men, Gaurav and Sachin, killed one Shah Nawaz after a quarrel and both were lynched by villagers on August 27. The government transferred Singh and Saini.
In the report, NCM Chairman Wajahat Habibullah stated the new incumbents were said to be new to the districts. The commission stated that fortunately, that now stands remedied and NCM would commend the present incumbents for grip and understanding of the current challenges faced by the public and the administration"
But the initial spark was lit in the villages and so, because of an apparent lack of preparedness at that level, it became a rural riot," the report, posted on the commission's website on Sunday, said. The commission concluded that the Mahapanchayat at Nangla Mandaur on September 17 should not have been allowed. During its visit, the administration explained its inability to prevent it, despite engaging with the Jat leadership but the explanation was unacceptable.
"Having said that, it needs to be added that Jats were agitated and a confrontation between them and the police could have seen considerable blood spillage. It is regrettable that MLAs addressed the gathering and did little to calm passions," the commission stated.
The commission said, "Although there appears to have been effective administrative intervention at Jan Sabha in Muzaffarnagar on August 30 by then newly appointed DM Kaushal Raj Sharma, the mahapanchayat appears to have seen a supine police response.".. read more:
