The Campaign for Khurshid Anwar
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
This is concerning the circumstances surrounding the recent suicide of prominent Delhi-based NGO activist Khurshid Anwar. On the morning of December 18 2013, Dr Anwar took his own life by jumping from the roof of the apartment building where he resided.
He was pushed to this extreme step following a sustained vilification campaign on Facebook, and subsequently on Television, following allegations of rape levelled against him. Curiously, despite his repeated pleas, the complainant and her friends avoided filing an FIR, undergoing a medical test or taking any other legal course of action. Dr Anwar, who had fought for secularism and gender rights his entire life, was shattered at the damage to his reputation, hence his pleas for a legal process so that he gets a chance to clear his name.
Instead, a video of the complainant, shot by prominent social activist Madhu Kishwar, was circulated far and wide in an attempt to further harm Dr Anwar's reputation, personally and professionally. Prominent intellectuals, activists and journalists have spoken out against the manner in which Dr Anwar was systematically maligned and ultimately hounded to his death. See our blog for details and video recordings.
We need your support! Mechanisms need to be put in place to check the misuse of social media and broadcast media, while safeguarding the freedom of expression.
The entire sordid chain of events leading up to this tragedy is attached for your perusal. We Want:
1. A thorough and objective probe into the matter, without assuming the guilt of either the accused or the accusers, including but not limited to the entire chain of events unfolding on Facebook and the events pertaining to the distribution of the CD shot by Ms. Madhu Kishwar. Which interests were involved in the energetic distribution of the CD in various towns of north India within a short period of time? Who was financing this operation? There are many questions, answers to which can only be unearthed by a competent investigation.
Current status: A complaint has been filed with the police on 23 December but we feel, given the interests involved in the matter, that the police are dragging their feet over registration of an FIR. Our immediate challenge is to mount pressure on the police via all democratic means at our disposal so that an FIR can be registered and an investigation can begin in right earnest.
2. Action, within the ambit of the legal and regulatory framework in place, against those actors on social media and broadcast media who vilified Dr Anwar even before charges had been framed, ultimately pushing him to suicide.
3. The formulation of a transparent set of guidelines on crime reporting by TV news, to preserve the dignity of both the accusers and the accused, and to prevent cases of ‘trial by media’.
About Khurshid AnwarBorn in Allahabad in 1958, Anwar received his Ph.D in Urdu Literature from New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, where he was an activist with the All India Students Federation, the student wing of the Communist Party of India. Anwar was a well known figure in activist circles in Delhi.
Over a long career as a grassroots activist, Anwar pioneered the concept of training volunteers in issues of communal harmony, secularism and related areas. He has trained thousands of volunteers to uphold these ideals in public spaces in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and other countries. He was a fierce critic of communalism, particularly of the Muslim variety. In 2013, he wrote a series of opinion articles in the respected Hindi daily Jansatta, sharply attacking Wahabbism. He received many death threats over these articles.
His NGO, Institute for Social Democracy, was one of the spearheads of the Nirbhaya anti-rape protests in Delhi in 2012-13. His was the only organization in the country to observe December 16 as a holiday in memory of Nirbhaya’s struggle. Dr Anwar was married to Dr Meenakshi Sundriyal, who teaches Spanish at Jawaharlal Nehru University. Their son, Samar, is a musician and a journalist with the Asian Age.
1. A thorough and objective probe into the matter, without assuming the guilt of either the accused or the accusers, including but not limited to the entire chain of events unfolding on Facebook and the events pertaining to the distribution of the CD shot by Ms. Madhu Kishwar. Which interests were involved in the energetic distribution of the CD in various towns of north India within a short period of time? Who was financing this operation? There are many questions, answers to which can only be unearthed by a competent investigation.
Current status: A complaint has been filed with the police on 23 December but we feel, given the interests involved in the matter, that the police are dragging their feet over registration of an FIR. Our immediate challenge is to mount pressure on the police via all democratic means at our disposal so that an FIR can be registered and an investigation can begin in right earnest.
2. Action, within the ambit of the legal and regulatory framework in place, against those actors on social media and broadcast media who vilified Dr Anwar even before charges had been framed, ultimately pushing him to suicide.
3. The formulation of a transparent set of guidelines on crime reporting by TV news, to preserve the dignity of both the accusers and the accused, and to prevent cases of ‘trial by media’.
About Khurshid AnwarBorn in Allahabad in 1958, Anwar received his Ph.D in Urdu Literature from New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, where he was an activist with the All India Students Federation, the student wing of the Communist Party of India. Anwar was a well known figure in activist circles in Delhi.
Over a long career as a grassroots activist, Anwar pioneered the concept of training volunteers in issues of communal harmony, secularism and related areas. He has trained thousands of volunteers to uphold these ideals in public spaces in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and other countries. He was a fierce critic of communalism, particularly of the Muslim variety. In 2013, he wrote a series of opinion articles in the respected Hindi daily Jansatta, sharply attacking Wahabbism. He received many death threats over these articles.
His NGO, Institute for Social Democracy, was one of the spearheads of the Nirbhaya anti-rape protests in Delhi in 2012-13. His was the only organization in the country to observe December 16 as a holiday in memory of Nirbhaya’s struggle. Dr Anwar was married to Dr Meenakshi Sundriyal, who teaches Spanish at Jawaharlal Nehru University. Their son, Samar, is a musician and a journalist with the Asian Age.
About the Campaign for Khurshid Anwar
We are friends, family and well-wishers of the late Dr. Khurshid Anwar. We have come together to keep alive the memory of his signal contribution to peace, secularism and communal harmony in the subcontinent.
We are deeply shocked and concerned at the trial by media and social media, which he was irresponsibly subjected to in what proved to be his last months, on a matter which had never been subjected to any kind of formal scrutiny by any responsible authority.
We seek to catalyze discussions on these aspects, via blogs, social media as well as public events and in responsible sections of the mainstream press. We strongly affirm the freedom of expression of the press as well as of individuals, but insist that such freedoms place an onus upon all to act with responsibility. We can be reached via the following channels:
We are friends, family and well-wishers of the late Dr. Khurshid Anwar. We have come together to keep alive the memory of his signal contribution to peace, secularism and communal harmony in the subcontinent.
We are deeply shocked and concerned at the trial by media and social media, which he was irresponsibly subjected to in what proved to be his last months, on a matter which had never been subjected to any kind of formal scrutiny by any responsible authority.
We seek to catalyze discussions on these aspects, via blogs, social media as well as public events and in responsible sections of the mainstream press. We strongly affirm the freedom of expression of the press as well as of individuals, but insist that such freedoms place an onus upon all to act with responsibility. We can be reached via the following channels:
Email - campaignforkhurshidanwar@
Blog - http://splashurl.com/osqn9hd
Facebook - http://splashurl.com/ok7p9xn - Please 'like' our Facebook page!
Twitter - http://splashurl.com/ns8n74f - Please tweet in support of our campaign!
Please join us in our fight. With your cooperation, we can help bring closure to Dr Anwar's friends and family.
With Regards,
The Campaign for Khurshid Anwar
