2008 – Round-up
Highlights:
Indira is engaged to Manish
Daniel’s arrival – my status elevated to Grandfather
Stupendous Concert-Tour in Europe
Little Bharat scales new heights with three silver medals in Bali
2008 had its ups and downs, the highs and the lows – with enough and plenty to thank the Lord for. The year end has seen me with so much more than ever so many others who have less. With relentless tumult, turmoil and terror – ‘midst so much misery, violence and insecurity around the world, the Lord spared me and my near and the dear from adversity and want, and showered on me blessings I was not worthy of. This perhaps is the most precious heavenly gift to be remembered at this moment with eternal gratitude, as I look back in retrospect at the events that touched my life this year.
The highlights of 2008 included lots of travel and bonhomie with family and friends, and a greater and satisfactory productivity for self in the literary field (soon after the launch in November ’07 of my book “The other side of Policing” and the good reviews it got) and no less in the visual media – coupled with the stupendous experience of a multi-country Concert tour across Europe during summer as part of Delhi’s Capital City Minstrels. Between terrorism and atrocities there was neither respite nor a dull moment for my pen and laptop, not for appearances on television either, for impactful and fiery articles and debates.
On our maiden Concert Tour in Europe (May-June) we The Capital City Minstrels of Delhi performed in Hungary, Germany and France – sang jointly with two local choirs of repute, the Remsheid Vokal Ensemble (RVE) in Germany, and with the Suresnes Chorale Group in Paris; singing also in two historic castles – in Budapest at The National Gallery of Art in Buda Castle, and in Germany inside the Schloss (castle) Burg in Solingen... and in historic churches too – St Michael's in Budapest and Eglize St Elizabeth de Hongre on Rue Temple within Paris. We were felicitated at receptions hosted for us by the Indian Ambassadors in Budapest and Paris, and the French Ambassador in Hungary; as also by the Mayor(ess) of Remscheid (Germany) and the Mayor of Suresnes (Paris). Our performances attracted considerable interest and appreciation from European audiences and the media, making Werner Rizzi – composer and conductor of repute in Germany and Professor of Music at the University – declare in amazement to Gabriella Boda-Rechner our conductor that in all his 24 years of conducting choirs only on two occasions had he come across German audiences giving a standing ovation – the CCM being the second so privileged! Thank you Gabriela and fellow ‘CCM’ers for making this possible.
Though Paris was not new to me, other glorious touristic sights in Hungary, Germany and France were an added treat – including the ones in beautiful Budapest, Remsheid, Cologne and Paris, the awesome Cathedrals and Museums, places of historic and artistic interests, and the delightful boat rides over the three romantic rivers of Europe – the Danube, the Rhine and the Seine.... Thank you my hosts – Mechthild and Hans Dieter Hoffman (in Wermelkirchen/Germany) and Marie-Danielle & Jean-Louis Boivin (in Surenses/Paris). Thank you also Babby (Golak Chand Misra in Dusseldorf) for spending time with me.
Other travels saw me in Connecticut and California in January and February and again in June and July later – at daughters Indira’s in East Haven, and Sonal’s in Santa Clara/San Jose; also visiting family and friends on USA’s east coast and on the west coast. Though San Francisco was not a stranger, it was wonderful to experience its scenic splendour again with Sonal, thanks to whose energy and drive I could taste the wines of Napa Valley, gamble in Las Vegas over a crazy weekend, and also visit among others and see – Lake Tahoe (thank you David & Becky), Palo Alto and Stanford (thanks Rohan), Alamo heights (Aroon & Usha) Saratoga (Denis & Jennifer), Sunnyvale (Tina & Leslie, Asha & Roy), Stockton (Merlyn & Michelle) Sausalito, Muir Woods. Thank you Inidra for Mystic Aquarium and Gillette Castle, Trumbull (sister Marjorie & Bon), Poughkeepsie (sister Meera & Ted), Scarsdale (Neela & Ravi), Long Island (Ashok & Swapna), Fairfield (Sunil & Subasree) and Westport (Allan & Nirmala). Not to forget a delightful and restful sojourn in the Himalayan foothills at Nimi and Pawan Khanna’s Nandalya (thank you both) in Bhavali-Uttarkhand and a great holiday in our own Goa attending friend Estelle’s daughter Pia’s wedding (thank you Estelle and Rajiv) in Uccasain (Uskain) Mapusa, Betim, Candolim and Aguada. Thank you hosts Aneel & Nayen at Sur la Mer (Ashyem/Morjim) and Seby & Lourdes (Margao).
A landmark event of the year for me was when my status was at last elevated to grandfather when on Aug-4 son Prashanth (Anthony) and Sarah his wife were blessed with a bonny baby boy – my first grandchild and grandson, Daniel Ligoury Pereira (named partly after my dad Ligoury). There were other thresholds and landmarks too – among them, two more additions to the immediate family – baby Shona on Mar-19 to nephew Subash and his wife Bharati (third grandchild to my late brother Melville), and baby Benjamin – a grandson to my brother Manu, the second child to his daughter Arema and her husband Rodney.
Sister Meera and Ted’s youngest, Sheila – my godchild, graduated from school in June and traipsed off to Bryn Mawr College, while sister Bullu’s grandson Andrew entered College at the University of Pennsylvania and grand-daughter Adele with her musical troupe performed in Europe too.
And to Subash's son little 8-year-old Bharat (Melville's eldest grandson) in Bangalore goes the credit for being the youngest ever achiever in the family in an international arena, by winning three silver medals in Sport Climbing at The Asian International Youth Meet at Bali (Indonesia) in August.
On Dec-11 my Indira announced her engagement to Manish Chowdhary – her boyfriend of three years to fill our cup of joy no end. Manish, who studied in Panchgani, Bangalore, Mangalore/Manipal and in the US is currently an IT professional and entrepreneur with his own business in the USA.
This followed by Daniel's Christening and Baptism at the London Brompton Oratory on Dec-22 – at which I proposed the toast, and he had his entire paternal side of the family represented (on the maternal side we missed you Phil, Lee and Louise), was an occasion that called for celebration – which occasion obviously was a prelude for a family Christmas at Tony and Sarah’s in Putney, London. Thank you Tony and Sarah – the Lord be praised and thanked for making all this possible.
On the whole the Lord be praised for 2008 – the year that is gone, yet another year that He saw us through despite the surrounding adversities, with more to my lot to thank for than worry about. To mention the adversities that touched us during the year I am inhibited – if not personal, especially the ones on the front of atrocities against Christians that surfaced this year in our country, in Orissa’s Kandhmal and Mangalore – like the hydra-headed monster in real life – making us fear realistically for our future here. The Orissa carnage prompted a trip to Bhubaneshwar on the request of and accompanying Archbishop Vincent Concessao for a dialogue with the local constituents of the Sangh Parivar – leading to a bit more personal involvement than perhaps otherwise would have been. And on the financial front with the market crash and recession around the world which affected each of us in some way or the other, I suppose one can only try bury one’s head in sand Ostrich-style and pray for better times ahead. In conclusion, one would feel guilty claiming that the Lord saw me and my loved ones through it all comparatively unscathed as to feel any want or any physical hurt. (Much as it did hurt and cause concern, for the sheer ridiculous hilarity of it all now that it’s all over and done with, I do not rank my nephew Allan breaking both his arms this year in a single fall at tennis, in these categories of hurt!)
Thanks are also due to all family and friends (specially those in Delhi/Gurgaon and elsewhere – mentioned, not mentioned), without whose whole-hearted love, affection and active support, the year would not have been what it was! Thank you Lord for giving me such lovely family and friends! Make them last forever!
Tomorrow is a new year, and today on the last day of 2008, it is time to reflect and also to remember family and friends.... May we all be blessed with The Almighty's benevolence in 2009 too, the year that's next – with good health, productivity and progress, and a bit more prosperity to make our lives easier so we can thank Him more.
--------------------------------------------------
Wednesday 31 December 2008
Friday 5 December 2008
Open letter to Prime Minister - 05 Dec 2008
Hon’ble Prime Minister,
The entire nation stands traumatised by the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Despite best efforts on our part, a small gang of ten desperadoes was able to hold the country to ransom for three days. It is a sad reflection on the competence of the state police that they were in no position to engage and liquidate the terrorists, and that the entire state machinery depended on the arrival of the Army and the NSG to deal with the situation. The common man is deeply aggrieved and in anguish, as to why after nearly 60 years of independence, we are still unable to protect ourselves from such terrorists attack.
The state police forces all over the country are in shambles. It is sad that the ruling parties have been using them more to further their political agenda rather than to protect the lives and property of the common man. Unfortunately, the callous bureaucracy hardly has any accountability when things go wrong on the law and order front. On the other hand, the police have a poor infrastructure and are low on morale. Their infrastructure comprising the buildings are more often than not shanties, they have ramshackle vehicles, their weaponry is outdated, communication equipment is poor and their service conditions leave much to be desired.
The country needs a modern, well equipped and highly motivated police force. Whatever the Centre has done so far by way of modernisation does not appear to be adequate. At the state level, the governments have been niggardly in meeting the essential requirements of the police. All this has to change requiring complete overhaul.
There are acute shortages of manpower in the police. The police-population ratio in
The policemen are going to be in the forefront in our battle against terrorism. They would be required to make sacrifices. Unless we make police, the premier service of the country - second to none, in terms of pay, allowances and service conditions - it is unlikely that we will get the best committed human talent.
The environment in which the police work must also change. They should consider themselves as servants of the people rather than servants of the party in power. The Supreme Court of India, with the above objective in view, on Sept. 22, 2006, directed the setting up of three institutions at the state level with a view to insulating the police from extraneous influences, thus giving it functional autonomy and ensuring greater accountability. These institutions are: State Security Commission which would lay down the broad policies and give directions for the performance of the preventive tasks and service oriented functions of the police; Police Establishment Board which shall decide personnel matters of the department; and Police Complaints Authority to inquire into allegations of serious misconduct by the police personnel. Besides, the
The aforesaid orders were to be implemented by March 31, 2007. It is unfortunate that most of the bigger states are still dragging their feet in the matter. It is also inexplicable that despite repeated assurances on the floor of the Parliament, the central government has yet to introduce the Model Police Bill.
If we have to make our Police force capable of protecting the common man during extreme situations like terrorist attacks, it is imperative that the Supreme Court’s directions on police reforms be implemented without further delay. These directions, if sincerely implemented, would bring about a sea change in the working culture of the police and transform what has so far been the Ruler’s Police into a People’s Police force.
We urge your personal intervention in the matter. The country is not prepared to see the government machinery benumbed and paralysed even for a few hours by any group of terrorists. A well organised and well equipped police supported by efficient intelligence services is the only answer.
Some work in the direction of Police Reforms has been initiated through various Commissions and also by the Soli Sorabji Committee that drafted the New Police Act. There is an urgent need to categorise federal and local crimes, with a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to move in ab initio to investigate and prosecute federal crimes having national and international ramifications. The Mumbai blasts has amply highlighted this need.
In conclusion, Sir, we urge your personal intervention in implementing the following on topmost priority:
- Set up the National Security Commission
- Set up the Federal Investigating Agency immediately with appropriate legislative backup.
- The Model Police Bill should be finalised and passed. The separation of investigation from law and order should also be brought about expeditiously.
- Honout the Supreme Court directive to set up State Security Commission, Police Establishment Board and Police Complaints Authority according it the utmost priority. For the purpose, the needed financial assistance to the States be provided by the Centre.
- Review the infrastructure of the Police force together with their pay, allowances and service conditions, to ensure that only the best and committed people capable of sacrifice in the hour of need, get attracted to the force.
- Ensure that the most competent and upright professionals are appointed to head the security and intelligence agencies like IB, R&AW, CBDT, DRI and the like.
- Urgently introduce an amendment in the electoral laws, especially the Representation of People Act, to prevent charge-sheeted criminals from entering Parliament or State Assemblies - while guarding against genuine candidates being targetted with false cases.
We feel confident, Sir, that under your leadership the Country would rise to the occasion to deal with the national threat on account of terrorists attack, in a befitting manner.
Maxwell Pereira
(In drafting this letter, I have taken the help of Mr Prakash Singh - former DGP/UP and BSF, the man who went to Supreme Court demanding police reforms and obtained the firm directions reflected in this letter to the PM)
(This draft has also been shared with NGOs and other organizations, in a nationwide campaign for solidarity and action - a campaign for people's participation in concrete action for proper governance... by appending their own signatures to this letter in whatever whichever means deemed appropriate).
Wednesday 3 December 2008
081203: The Times: Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by First World War weapons
Mumbai (Bombay) police had First World War weapons
3 Dec 2008 ... “That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if ...
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5276283.ece -
From The Times
December 3, 2008
Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by First World War weapons
Jeremy Page in Delhi
Indian police who bore the brunt of last week’s attacks on Mumbai had defective bulletproof vests, First World War-era firearms and insufficient weapons training, police sources have told The Times.
Many wore plastic helmets and body protectors designed for sticks and stones, rather than bullets, as they fought highly trained militants armed with AK47 rifles, pistols, grenades and explosives.
The contrast between them was vividly illustrated yesterday by CCTV footage of two militants attacking Chhatrapati Shivaji terminus, Mumbai’s main railway station, last Wednesday.
It shows the gunmen spraying automatic fire while two constables cower behind pillars, one armed with a .303 rifle similar to the Lee-Enfield weapons used by British troops in the First World War.
Similar scenes were played out at other targets in the first seven hours of the attacks, in which 16 policemen died, including three of India’s top officers.
“That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if they’d been properly equipped.” The abysmal state of police equipment helps to explain how ten gunmen managed to paralyse a metropolis of 18 million people for more than 60 hours.
It also illustrates how ill-prepared India’s 2.2 million-strong police force is to tackle another such attack.
“We’d react exactly the same way tomorrow,” Ajay Sahni, of the Institute for Conflict Management, said.
He described India as one of the “least policed” places in the world, with 126 officers per 100,000 people, compared with 225-550 per 100,000 in most Western countries.
Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital, has one of India’s better police forces, but even it is woefully ill-equipped because of a centralised and highly corrupt procurement system.
Y. P. Singh, who retired after 20 years in the Maharashtra police in 2005, said that he knew of two batches of body armour that had failed tests in 2001 and 2004. “They couldn’t take rounds from AK47 or AK56,” he said. “The bullets pierced the jackets.”
He now believes that the Maharashtra police purchased the defective vests and issued them to officers last week.
On Wednesday, television stations showed Hemant Karkare, the head of the AntiTerrorist Squad, donning a bulletproof vest and a battered tin helmet as he arrived at the scene in Mumbai.
He was shot in the chest three times soon afterwards and died.
Two other senior officers who were travelling in the same car as Mr Karkare and were also wearing body armour were shot dead at the same time.
“If they’d been properly equipped they might have only been injured,” Mr Singh said. “Their vital organs would have been protected.” Other officers were only issued 5mm-thick plastic body protectors designed for riot control.
That is because India has only 100,000 bulletproof vests for police and paramilitary forces, according to Anurag Gupta, the managing director of MKU, which supplies the vests to the Government.
“The helmets used last week were World War Two-era, not designed for combat,” he said.
Most of the police involved were carrying .303s or self-loading rifles like those adopted by the British Army in the 1950s.
Some officers said that they were not given enough weapons training because of a shortage of ammunition and shooting ranges. In theory, all officers shoot 50 rounds a year in training. In practice, senior officers get their full quota with small arms.
“The rest is all bunkum,” Mr Pereira said. “It’s target practice with a .303 rifle. I wouldn’t call it suitable knowledge of weapons and their uses in urban policing.”
All those interviewed said that the issue was not money: the Government allocated £154 million for modernising the police in 2007-08 alone. The problem, they said, lay with the Home Ministry’s procurement system, which is dominated by corrupt bureaucrats and politicians rather than technical experts.
“It’s a cartel,” Mr Singh said. “The Government is spending millions, but the police isn’t getting the equipment it needs.”
Police faced militants using World War I-era weapons | The Australian
4 Dec 2008 ... "That's 16 too many," said Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police. "These casualties could have been prevented if ...
www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24747174-5018491,00.html
Home » General » Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by WWI Weapons
“That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if they’d been ...
www.jewishblogging.com/blog.php?bid=169794 - 35k
Comments
'Hampered by WW1 weapons', really, I wonder how we won that one then? In fact, most Indian soldiers and police were carrying the brilliant - 7.62mm SLR rifle (no doubt sold to them by the British for a song) a military weapon now denied to the British troops in Ahfganistan. --Dennis, Plymouth, Devon, UK
The problem has far reaching consequences in India. Isn't it by now obvious that the politicians cover themselves with advanced protective forces and equipment while the common man's life is dispensed with? And this from leaders who pledge among other things to die for the country and its people??? --Priya Rajaram, Chennai, India
This type of terrorist attack could happen anywhere with similar results. The police should be sent to compete in civilian IDPA, Glock, and 3 gun type contests. With competition comes proficiency and confidence in your self. Most police training ignores the practical use and application of guns. --Sam, Birmingham, USA
I have both an SMLE in .303 British, and an AK-47 in 7.62 caliber. I would go into any combat situation with the SMLE. Accuracy and performance are not benchmarks of the AK-47, the SMLE is a tremendous rifle. The problem in India, I believe, is lack of training and adequate resources. --Matamoros, Miami, USA
One or two motivated police officers could have cut the casualty rate in half by simply shooting some of the terrorists as they walked about in the open. Lee Enfield rifles are old, but a .303 bullet will kill anyone and go right thru body armor. The failure of the police was lack of determination.--Patrick Creed, Philadelphia, USA
Be serious on the armaments issue. An AK-47 loses all accuracy by 200 yards and is uncontrolable on auto fire. A Lee-Enfield (the Indian rifles were in 7.62 NATO, not .303) has match-grade accuracy to 800 yards. The Indian police and military became substandard when the Sikhs were purged from them. --James AF Compton, La Mesa Califonia , USA
The Indian police behaved like a bunch of cowards. Reports of them hiding and failing to even shoot back are numerous. A dozen or so terrorists could have a city of 20 million cowering for 60 hours before the attack was foiled? That is a disgrace on its face in this age of terrorist plots. --jack Weedley, Alpharetta Georgia, usa
Whilst some of the equipment they need, such as proper body armour was clearly lacking, the weapons weren't necessarily poor. The guns that were listed in this article are perfectly potent, what was lacking was training. The most important piece of equipment is the one between an officer's ears. --TC, London,
In close quarters city fighting, I would take an AK47 over a bolt-action anyday. At the very least they should have semi-auto rifles. --Richard Wood, Gelly, KY
Lots of gun experts, I see... That was close quarters. Accuracy it's not the issue. Fire rate is. That copper on the alcove needed to be extremely well trained to be able to aim from a ground level non cover position at a guy firing an AK at him from less than 20 meters. We're talking John Rambo. --Swift, Lisbon, Portugal
Though serious questions can be raised about the quality of body-armor issued to the police, the criticism of the weapons "..carrying .303s or self-loading rifles..." shows a lack of weapons familiarity by the journalists involved. A properly trained rifleman should have been effective with either. --AOracle, Downey, USA
Terrorists should have been shot dead as fast as they showed themselves by FAL and Enfield riflemen, starting at 700 meters- twice AK effective range. Indian RIFLES outclass AK CARBINES in terms of power and range. Does India value arms ownership, access and proficiency? Armed= less vulnerable. --Francis Marion, Dana Point, USA
It is really shame for all indians ,that the police using these type of weapons to fight against terrorists. But we are very proud of our police because they are very courragious to fight against terrorists with these antique weapons. think about corrupt politiciansand punish thanks mumbay Police. --eltho, london, UK
It's a perfect example of a country trying to run before it can walk,`what a joke.Yet individuals are worth billions in India.How heartless can people be? Especially when u see videos of your police force "sharing a gun"! How much money does 1 honestly need. Especially when your people are starving! --Dave Smith, London, U.K
We don't have time. We got to improve our defence and border security . Spend money on military and counter-terrorism not on bureaucracy. we can not afford to wait until the next attack comes. --Sheela, edinburgh, u.k.
I think India has come a long way very quickly. I think poor Domestic policies are a result of this enormous growth. They're slowly changing everything however comparing them with the UK and USA is unfair because they spend Billions on military and counter-terrorism whereas India only spends 70 pp ---Sun, Cov,
Procures system in India needs to be under an independent organisation chaired by eminent elite to avid corruption that is so endemic in India's government procurement. ---sur pars, london, U K
well.....what to say but that India needs to up-grade itself and the police by having people who are honest and straight. ---Laurence Goh, Punggol, Singapore
Corruption and laziness is the only reaosn for the deaths of three best police officers and policemen. I don't think that the Indian and state gov. will wake up and act to upgrade the police force. Only Indian army and NSG are well armed. Others are left to die by enemy's AK-47 and granades. ---Vitthal, Mumbai, India
Good luck stopping a 5.56X45 or 7.62X39mm round with standard issue body armor. Even with plates a decent 3A is going to have a difficult time with an angled shot a close range; much less a straight-on shot. They need to focus on better weapons/equipment and tactics. ---Dave, Las Vegas, USA
Nothing wrong with those weapons the police had. A .303 is hardly a "pop-gun". That is a powerful round. Also, the AK47 (as in 1947) isn't exactly a new weapon design either. ---Ernest Radly, Kakinoki, Japan
those .303's carried a heluva punch but were single shot bolt action rifles ---peter c, Devizes, Wessex
we need a safe world to live in ---Manisha, Delhi, India
Rifle was probably a 7.62 Nato Ishapore 2A1 the final version of the SMLE pattern.
As for its adequacy in the field, many a solider did house to house fighting with them, that being said is does take more practice to work a bolt action, the police needed proper training what ever weapon they use ---N.Rivera, San Antonio, USA
The centralized procurement bureaucracy has to go! It should be replaced by a panel of experts that have the expertise and knowledgeto procure necessary weapons and supplies. I agree with Pushpa from Brisbane, Australia, in this. World War I era weapons? Good God! We live in 2008! ---Lev D. Zilbermints, Newark, United States of America
The Lee Enfield may not have the rate of fire of an AK47, but it is more powerful and far more accurate. It was highly effective in two world wars and was still the main British infantry weapon in 1945. An AK47 is far better at close quarters, but a Lee Enfield only needed one hit to be effective. ---Martin, London,
C Hill, been to Central London recently? Armed Police are a common sight, the Met has a specialist firearms unit who are highly trained and there are Special Forces Soldiers based in the city. It is hard to prevent an attack like this, but the response would of differed, they picked a soft target. ---Andy, Northants, UK
At least, top officers should be well equipped and well trained with the very latest available technological weapons.This will definitely create a kind of fear on the attackers. ---Rajendra, Bangalore, India
To the guy who said English Police are unarmed, have you been to London? The regular guys are unarmed but when i went to london i saw plenty of cops carrying MP5's around tourist attractions, it was rather intimidating ---Justin, Santa Barbara, United States
Perhaps before criticising the Indian police and their equipment too much, people should consider how well the UK police, who are mostly unarmed, would be able to react to a distributed group of fanatics for example in London. ---C Hill, Houston, USA
The moment I saw the "elite" troops in action I knew they were ill equipped; their clothing, weapons were nothing short of ragtag, and they were rather hesitant on the helicopter landing - commandos are supposed to be precise and ruthless. ---Howard, Manchester,
It is very sad to hear that Hemant Karkare & other senior Mumbai police officers were killed due to out dated Bullet Proof vests & plastic helmets they wore. The entire Indian Police Force needs a complete overhaul immediately & be supplied with latest bullet-proof vests, helmets & automatic weapons ---Pushpa, Brisbane, Australia
For a country that has recently launched a mission to the moon and received millions in aid from the UK this year, you would think the era of pop guns and tin hats would be long past. If this is not a wake up call, I don't know will be. ---Martin, York, UK
So: India failed to heed warnings; cops failed to contain 10 men; elite troops failed to move quickly; "elite" troops failed to cope with 8 men armed only with rifles & grenades.
And now India lacks the courage even for the gesture of striking terror camps within Pakistan. Superpower ? Hah ! ---T Hunter, London,
3 Dec 2008 ... “That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if ...
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5276283.ece -
From The Times
December 3, 2008
Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by First World War weapons
Jeremy Page in Delhi
Indian police who bore the brunt of last week’s attacks on Mumbai had defective bulletproof vests, First World War-era firearms and insufficient weapons training, police sources have told The Times.
Many wore plastic helmets and body protectors designed for sticks and stones, rather than bullets, as they fought highly trained militants armed with AK47 rifles, pistols, grenades and explosives.
The contrast between them was vividly illustrated yesterday by CCTV footage of two militants attacking Chhatrapati Shivaji terminus, Mumbai’s main railway station, last Wednesday.
It shows the gunmen spraying automatic fire while two constables cower behind pillars, one armed with a .303 rifle similar to the Lee-Enfield weapons used by British troops in the First World War.
Similar scenes were played out at other targets in the first seven hours of the attacks, in which 16 policemen died, including three of India’s top officers.
“That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if they’d been properly equipped.” The abysmal state of police equipment helps to explain how ten gunmen managed to paralyse a metropolis of 18 million people for more than 60 hours.
It also illustrates how ill-prepared India’s 2.2 million-strong police force is to tackle another such attack.
“We’d react exactly the same way tomorrow,” Ajay Sahni, of the Institute for Conflict Management, said.
He described India as one of the “least policed” places in the world, with 126 officers per 100,000 people, compared with 225-550 per 100,000 in most Western countries.
Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital, has one of India’s better police forces, but even it is woefully ill-equipped because of a centralised and highly corrupt procurement system.
Y. P. Singh, who retired after 20 years in the Maharashtra police in 2005, said that he knew of two batches of body armour that had failed tests in 2001 and 2004. “They couldn’t take rounds from AK47 or AK56,” he said. “The bullets pierced the jackets.”
He now believes that the Maharashtra police purchased the defective vests and issued them to officers last week.
On Wednesday, television stations showed Hemant Karkare, the head of the AntiTerrorist Squad, donning a bulletproof vest and a battered tin helmet as he arrived at the scene in Mumbai.
He was shot in the chest three times soon afterwards and died.
Two other senior officers who were travelling in the same car as Mr Karkare and were also wearing body armour were shot dead at the same time.
“If they’d been properly equipped they might have only been injured,” Mr Singh said. “Their vital organs would have been protected.” Other officers were only issued 5mm-thick plastic body protectors designed for riot control.
That is because India has only 100,000 bulletproof vests for police and paramilitary forces, according to Anurag Gupta, the managing director of MKU, which supplies the vests to the Government.
“The helmets used last week were World War Two-era, not designed for combat,” he said.
Most of the police involved were carrying .303s or self-loading rifles like those adopted by the British Army in the 1950s.
Some officers said that they were not given enough weapons training because of a shortage of ammunition and shooting ranges. In theory, all officers shoot 50 rounds a year in training. In practice, senior officers get their full quota with small arms.
“The rest is all bunkum,” Mr Pereira said. “It’s target practice with a .303 rifle. I wouldn’t call it suitable knowledge of weapons and their uses in urban policing.”
All those interviewed said that the issue was not money: the Government allocated £154 million for modernising the police in 2007-08 alone. The problem, they said, lay with the Home Ministry’s procurement system, which is dominated by corrupt bureaucrats and politicians rather than technical experts.
“It’s a cartel,” Mr Singh said. “The Government is spending millions, but the police isn’t getting the equipment it needs.”
Police faced militants using World War I-era weapons | The Australian
4 Dec 2008 ... "That's 16 too many," said Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police. "These casualties could have been prevented if ...
www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24747174-5018491,00.html
Home » General » Outgunned Mumbai police hampered by WWI Weapons
“That’s 16 too many,” Maxwell Pereira, a former joint commissioner of Delhi police, said. “These casualties could have been prevented if they’d been ...
www.jewishblogging.com/blog.php?bid=169794 - 35k
Comments
'Hampered by WW1 weapons', really, I wonder how we won that one then? In fact, most Indian soldiers and police were carrying the brilliant - 7.62mm SLR rifle (no doubt sold to them by the British for a song) a military weapon now denied to the British troops in Ahfganistan. --Dennis, Plymouth, Devon, UK
The problem has far reaching consequences in India. Isn't it by now obvious that the politicians cover themselves with advanced protective forces and equipment while the common man's life is dispensed with? And this from leaders who pledge among other things to die for the country and its people??? --Priya Rajaram, Chennai, India
This type of terrorist attack could happen anywhere with similar results. The police should be sent to compete in civilian IDPA, Glock, and 3 gun type contests. With competition comes proficiency and confidence in your self. Most police training ignores the practical use and application of guns. --Sam, Birmingham, USA
I have both an SMLE in .303 British, and an AK-47 in 7.62 caliber. I would go into any combat situation with the SMLE. Accuracy and performance are not benchmarks of the AK-47, the SMLE is a tremendous rifle. The problem in India, I believe, is lack of training and adequate resources. --Matamoros, Miami, USA
One or two motivated police officers could have cut the casualty rate in half by simply shooting some of the terrorists as they walked about in the open. Lee Enfield rifles are old, but a .303 bullet will kill anyone and go right thru body armor. The failure of the police was lack of determination.--Patrick Creed, Philadelphia, USA
Be serious on the armaments issue. An AK-47 loses all accuracy by 200 yards and is uncontrolable on auto fire. A Lee-Enfield (the Indian rifles were in 7.62 NATO, not .303) has match-grade accuracy to 800 yards. The Indian police and military became substandard when the Sikhs were purged from them. --James AF Compton, La Mesa Califonia , USA
The Indian police behaved like a bunch of cowards. Reports of them hiding and failing to even shoot back are numerous. A dozen or so terrorists could have a city of 20 million cowering for 60 hours before the attack was foiled? That is a disgrace on its face in this age of terrorist plots. --jack Weedley, Alpharetta Georgia, usa
Whilst some of the equipment they need, such as proper body armour was clearly lacking, the weapons weren't necessarily poor. The guns that were listed in this article are perfectly potent, what was lacking was training. The most important piece of equipment is the one between an officer's ears. --TC, London,
In close quarters city fighting, I would take an AK47 over a bolt-action anyday. At the very least they should have semi-auto rifles. --Richard Wood, Gelly, KY
Lots of gun experts, I see... That was close quarters. Accuracy it's not the issue. Fire rate is. That copper on the alcove needed to be extremely well trained to be able to aim from a ground level non cover position at a guy firing an AK at him from less than 20 meters. We're talking John Rambo. --Swift, Lisbon, Portugal
Though serious questions can be raised about the quality of body-armor issued to the police, the criticism of the weapons "..carrying .303s or self-loading rifles..." shows a lack of weapons familiarity by the journalists involved. A properly trained rifleman should have been effective with either. --AOracle, Downey, USA
Terrorists should have been shot dead as fast as they showed themselves by FAL and Enfield riflemen, starting at 700 meters- twice AK effective range. Indian RIFLES outclass AK CARBINES in terms of power and range. Does India value arms ownership, access and proficiency? Armed= less vulnerable. --Francis Marion, Dana Point, USA
It is really shame for all indians ,that the police using these type of weapons to fight against terrorists. But we are very proud of our police because they are very courragious to fight against terrorists with these antique weapons. think about corrupt politiciansand punish thanks mumbay Police. --eltho, london, UK
It's a perfect example of a country trying to run before it can walk,`what a joke.Yet individuals are worth billions in India.How heartless can people be? Especially when u see videos of your police force "sharing a gun"! How much money does 1 honestly need. Especially when your people are starving! --Dave Smith, London, U.K
We don't have time. We got to improve our defence and border security . Spend money on military and counter-terrorism not on bureaucracy. we can not afford to wait until the next attack comes. --Sheela, edinburgh, u.k.
I think India has come a long way very quickly. I think poor Domestic policies are a result of this enormous growth. They're slowly changing everything however comparing them with the UK and USA is unfair because they spend Billions on military and counter-terrorism whereas India only spends 70 pp ---Sun, Cov,
Procures system in India needs to be under an independent organisation chaired by eminent elite to avid corruption that is so endemic in India's government procurement. ---sur pars, london, U K
well.....what to say but that India needs to up-grade itself and the police by having people who are honest and straight. ---Laurence Goh, Punggol, Singapore
Corruption and laziness is the only reaosn for the deaths of three best police officers and policemen. I don't think that the Indian and state gov. will wake up and act to upgrade the police force. Only Indian army and NSG are well armed. Others are left to die by enemy's AK-47 and granades. ---Vitthal, Mumbai, India
Good luck stopping a 5.56X45 or 7.62X39mm round with standard issue body armor. Even with plates a decent 3A is going to have a difficult time with an angled shot a close range; much less a straight-on shot. They need to focus on better weapons/equipment and tactics. ---Dave, Las Vegas, USA
Nothing wrong with those weapons the police had. A .303 is hardly a "pop-gun". That is a powerful round. Also, the AK47 (as in 1947) isn't exactly a new weapon design either. ---Ernest Radly, Kakinoki, Japan
those .303's carried a heluva punch but were single shot bolt action rifles ---peter c, Devizes, Wessex
we need a safe world to live in ---Manisha, Delhi, India
Rifle was probably a 7.62 Nato Ishapore 2A1 the final version of the SMLE pattern.
As for its adequacy in the field, many a solider did house to house fighting with them, that being said is does take more practice to work a bolt action, the police needed proper training what ever weapon they use ---N.Rivera, San Antonio, USA
The centralized procurement bureaucracy has to go! It should be replaced by a panel of experts that have the expertise and knowledgeto procure necessary weapons and supplies. I agree with Pushpa from Brisbane, Australia, in this. World War I era weapons? Good God! We live in 2008! ---Lev D. Zilbermints, Newark, United States of America
The Lee Enfield may not have the rate of fire of an AK47, but it is more powerful and far more accurate. It was highly effective in two world wars and was still the main British infantry weapon in 1945. An AK47 is far better at close quarters, but a Lee Enfield only needed one hit to be effective. ---Martin, London,
C Hill, been to Central London recently? Armed Police are a common sight, the Met has a specialist firearms unit who are highly trained and there are Special Forces Soldiers based in the city. It is hard to prevent an attack like this, but the response would of differed, they picked a soft target. ---Andy, Northants, UK
At least, top officers should be well equipped and well trained with the very latest available technological weapons.This will definitely create a kind of fear on the attackers. ---Rajendra, Bangalore, India
To the guy who said English Police are unarmed, have you been to London? The regular guys are unarmed but when i went to london i saw plenty of cops carrying MP5's around tourist attractions, it was rather intimidating ---Justin, Santa Barbara, United States
Perhaps before criticising the Indian police and their equipment too much, people should consider how well the UK police, who are mostly unarmed, would be able to react to a distributed group of fanatics for example in London. ---C Hill, Houston, USA
The moment I saw the "elite" troops in action I knew they were ill equipped; their clothing, weapons were nothing short of ragtag, and they were rather hesitant on the helicopter landing - commandos are supposed to be precise and ruthless. ---Howard, Manchester,
It is very sad to hear that Hemant Karkare & other senior Mumbai police officers were killed due to out dated Bullet Proof vests & plastic helmets they wore. The entire Indian Police Force needs a complete overhaul immediately & be supplied with latest bullet-proof vests, helmets & automatic weapons ---Pushpa, Brisbane, Australia
For a country that has recently launched a mission to the moon and received millions in aid from the UK this year, you would think the era of pop guns and tin hats would be long past. If this is not a wake up call, I don't know will be. ---Martin, York, UK
So: India failed to heed warnings; cops failed to contain 10 men; elite troops failed to move quickly; "elite" troops failed to cope with 8 men armed only with rifles & grenades.
And now India lacks the courage even for the gesture of striking terror camps within Pakistan. Superpower ? Hah ! ---T Hunter, London,
Monday 1 December 2008
IPS for Home Secretary - 01 Dec 2008
Times of India -Editorial-Opinion-Subverse
Cops to the rescue
9 Dec 2008, 0010 hrs IST, MAXWELL PEREIRA
"Enough is enough" is the anguished war cry sounded across the country following the terrorist attack on Mumbai. Shaken and shattered by the onslaught on the financial capital, the people of
But what about our administrators who hold the strings for the politicians and are expected to guide and help them take the right decisions and ensure action? In the 60-plus years since independence, how have our administrators fared in administering areas, like internal security
for instance, in which they claim expertise? There are many who believe that the root cause of unrest, violence, and growing Naxalism in the country is the inefficient management of land revenue and land records, both fiercely protected turfs of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
There are blogs on the internet that describe
Back in December 1974 the underground insurgent leader Laldenga's MNF cadres in Mizoram stormed the state police headquarters in Aizawl and killed G S Arya, L B Sewa and Panchappageshan, the three most senior police officers of the state at point-blank range. At a time when the whole territory and its administration was rendered rudderless and was in utter chaos, it was Surinder Nath an IPS officer of the Union territories cadre who was chosen to take the seat of chief secretary to restore state authority and enforce the rule of law that made developmental governance possible and eventually led to the wiping out of insurgency, bringing peace to the people within a democratic framework.
Later, during the Khalistan movement and Punjab insurgency, when all semblance of governance had broken down when even post offices and other essential services in the state had to be run either by the police or with police help it was the sheer tenacity and administrative acumen of IPS officers like Julio Rebeiro and K P S Gill that saved the day. They could overawe and wipe out the militants and their sinister designs for secession, and restore democracy in that part of our country.
When matters came to a head in
When IPS officers have proved their mettle time and again and rescued the government, why then are they always given stepmotherly treatment and thought of only in times of crisis?
Many feel that the duties of a home secretary, especially those related to internal security, would be better discharged by an officer from the IPS, who would be professionally better qualified because of greater exposure and experience in the field of law enforcement. Chances of enforcing the rule of law would be better, and therefore people's faith in democracy would be firmer.
It may sound radical, and pretty unpalatable for our administrators, but isn't it high time that the country thinks in terms of having the right and the best person for every position, the one most qualified and with the right kind of experience? This includes choosing the best candidate as home secretary who is responsible for the internal security of the country, be it at the Centre or state level.
The writer is a former joint commissioner of police,
Monday 13 October 2008
Police action in Kandhmal - 13 Oct 2008
By Maxwell Pereira
Kandhmal is a failure on many fronts. But from basic policing point of view, the performance of Orissa Police is reminiscent of wanton police inaction as happened in the Nov-84 Sikh riots, as also the government sponsored connivance or tacit collusion in the 1992
Talking of basics, at the outset of violence the focus should have been on strict action against those indulging and spreading violence without waiting for political direction. There needed to have been adequate mobilisation of force, and visits by senior officers to the affected areas, their continued presence there for warranted action, and camping in the theatre of violence till normalcy was restored.
Instead, what was the immediate response of the Orissa police, and how did the police leadership react? They suspended SP Kandhmal - the one man who was known to have controlled the area for the past seven months with an iron hand. While the SP was suspended, the DM who with the SP had constituted an effective team was transferred out. The sinister designs behind this move are now surfacing, but for reasons not known are being suppressed from public knowledge.
On Christmas Day December 2007 gangs of fanatical elements in Kandhmal District had attacked churches and Christian institutions, desecrating statues and Bibles, and burning houses in Christian bastis in a series of pre-meditated and well organised assaults. In the atrocities that continued for a month, 107 churches were destroyed in arson, at least six people died and thousands were rendered homeless. The victims, practically all tribal or dalit Christians, very poor, and exploited. The declared perpetrators, none other than local Bajrang Dal units, the militant wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad under the umbrella of the total Sangh Parivar; pursuant to Swami Laxmanananda’s declared agenda of wiping out Christians off the face of Orissa.
Following widespread outrage from all quarters national and international over this carnage, the state government - whose benevolent protective hand over the rabid communal forces was evidently and eminently seen - reacted by suspending the Kandhmal Superintendent of Police, replacing him with young Nikhil Kanodia – a 2003 entrant into the IPS, who had already made a name for himself for controlling with an iron hand another local district infested with Hindu-Muslim communal tension. Kanodia was overnight summoned to State Headquarters to be told he has been specially selected, and sent to Kandhmal to restructure and rejuvenate effective policing in the riot-ridden District. The State govt simultaneously ordered a judicial commission to look into the causes and effects of the Kandhmal riots.
The activities of Laxmanananda in the area, inciting disharmony and communal disturbances in the Kandhmal district over the past many years, had led the Orissa police to open and maintain a police file on him which has grown fat over the years with accounts of riots caused or triggered off by him. Strangely, his activities were not checked by the police even after the December carnage. Instead, he was provided police protection – ostensibly after receiving written threats on his life from local Maoists whose displeasure he had also incurred.
Despite the police protection Laxmanananda and other adult members of his ashram were murdered on August 23. The attackers identified themselves as Naxalites and left a letter at the scene of murder claiming responsibility and stating why they murdered the Swami. On the basis of evidence of AK-47 used in the attack and the letter left behind, Kanodia briefed the media on Aug-24 that Maoist hand was indicated in the Swami’s murder – which position was soon after endorsed and reiterated by the Police Headquarters too in briefings at the State level.
This however did not, it appears, suit the Sangh Parivar in their designs and ultimate objective of targeting Christians. Praveen Togadia, the virulent head of the Bajrang Dal visited Orissa the next day and declared it was Christians not Maoists who killed the Swami. As if in support of his line, the BJD led State government of Naveen Patnaik deemed it fit to place under suspension its specially selected SP Kandhmal Kanodia, and removed him from the scene asking him to report to the Lines in Police Headquarter at
Not only was the one man who had kept the communal forces under check over the past seven months ignominiously suspended, he was also conveniently removed from the scene to ensure a clear ground for Bajrang Dal goons to unleash their violence with no State intervention at all to be witness to or enforce law.
If this is not criminal connivance, what else is? And yet the
The Orissa police, particularly the police leadership, has failed miserably too – by succumbing to political dictates and not enforcing the rule of law as it should be. If
© Maxwell Pereira: Emai: mfjpkamath@gmail.com;
Saturday 11 October 2008
What now for Mangalore? - 11 Oct 2008
By Maxwell Pereira
The first holocaust for Mangalore Catholics happened in 1784 at the behest of Tippu Sultan. Following his defeat by the British in the 1st battle of Mangalore, Tippu’s wrath had turned on the local Christian community, in the belief that it was their aid and support to the British that cost him his battle. In a ruthless swoop by his marauding armies 85,000 Christians were rudely uprooted from village homes, herded and marched off through arduous jungle terrains of the Western Ghats for incarceration in the dungeons of Seringapatam. Rigours of the journey coupled with malaria and dysentery had decimated the numbers and not all captives reached the destination.
Release came only in 1799 to about 15,000 of the motley bunch that had survived by then – only after the fall of Seringapatam and Tippu's death following the second battle of Mangalore. With release had come a sense of purpose, a common identity, for a people who had hitherto considered themselves migrant Goans. For the first time a distinct “Mangalorean” identity was born. Over the years the close-knit and homogeneous small community of 1799 grew, diverging into fields and destinations anew. Leaving their native shores they spread far and wide pursuing new and rewarding careers elsewhere in India and all over the world. In India, other than that of a President or a Prime Minister, there is no seat of honour, profession, trade or virtue that has not been claimed, graced or enriched by a Mangalorean. This was possible because of the environment of amity and understanding that prevailed in the region.
This communal harmony which was the hallmark of the region was suddenly shattered on September 14, 2008 when goons of the Bajrang Dal went on rampage vandalising Churches, assaulting Christians, and desecrating holy artefacts. Mangalore since then has gone through a period beset by challenges not faced in over 209 years of communal harmony. The current lull in violence has resulted only due to unprecedented solidarity (perhaps totally unexpected by the perpetrators) and protests by the Christian communities of Mangalore, and the support they received from the right-minded from other local communities, leading to nationwide and worldwide condemnation of the heinous acts of the Sangh Parivar and particularly by the Bajrang Dal in Mangalore and elsewhere
While social scientists and analysts will try to unravel the deep rooted prejudices or political agenda that led to the shattering of the harmonious relationship between communities in the area, there needs to be some thought spared to checks and balances to be supplanted which will preclude such gratuitous violence between communities in future.
Mangalorean communities including Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Jains are a peaceful, law-abiding and religiously tolerant people, often of similar ancestry and traditional heritage. Against this background, there is consensus that a small minority of misguided elements cannot be allowed to orchestrate well organized and premeditated attacks on minorities. The Government justice needs to look at the causes for the violence that occurred, identify those who instigated and book the criminals who carried out the attacks. There is need also to examine the role of the police during the violence and their provocative actions during peaceful protests.
What was sorely found missing was the presence and intervention by community peace committees – the need of which no efficient police organization is not acutely aware of and strives to ensure. So a standing nodal agency with representation from major religious communities, major political parties and the police – to ensure preventive measures through regular meetings to monitor simmering tensions, etc is a must.
From the outpourings of the anguished voiced in the media, it is evident that majority of Indians (particularly Hindus) do not believe in the Sangh Parivar's ideology, and yet are forced to go along with it as a necessary evil, partly for lack of an alternative party with strength to lead the country with a viable government. There has perhaps never been a time of greater need to join hands with people of good will among all faiths and even with people of no faith to make common cause on important issues.
The public today are subjected to propaganda spread by aggressors – about conversions and foreign funds. Despite categorical assurances that there cannot be forcible conversions to the Christian faith, and there exists not a single chargesheet or conviction under the highly hyped Anti-Conversion Laws enacted in many States, the canards on this score continue. While no one in government or the Sangh leadership explains why this imbroglio cannot be nailed once and for all with a national debate, the ploy continues to be used as a plank for propaganda and more attacks.
There is need for the entire nation and its people to know what is the Sangh Parivar, what it stands for, its tactics, its strategy, its political policy. As there is need for the hitherto complacent Christian community to be involved more in the political arena – not alone to understand and expose the political policy of the Sangh Parivar, but to know and understand policies of other parties too - to identify such that hurt the interests of all in the sphere of human rights, and constitutional rights that guarantee freedom to practice and preach one’s religion. If not acted in time, there is danger of the Sangh Parivar succeeding in abrogating these very rights, or writing rules to circumvent these.
It is immensely evident that the Bajrang Dal has realized that Mangalore Christians stand for their rights, and that support for them has come forth from every imaginable quarter. Going forward, there is need to focus less on reprisals and recrimination, but on ensuring sustainable peace in times to come and especially for future generations.
**published by IANS as "Cry, my beloved Mangalore"
**carried also by various publications including Indian Currents under the same title.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
© Maxwell Pereira: Email: mfjpkamath@gmail.com;
Web: www.maxwellpereira.com ; www.theothersideofpolicing.com
The first holocaust for Mangalore Catholics happened in 1784 at the behest of Tippu Sultan. Following his defeat by the British in the 1st battle of Mangalore, Tippu’s wrath had turned on the local Christian community, in the belief that it was their aid and support to the British that cost him his battle. In a ruthless swoop by his marauding armies 85,000 Christians were rudely uprooted from village homes, herded and marched off through arduous jungle terrains of the Western Ghats for incarceration in the dungeons of Seringapatam. Rigours of the journey coupled with malaria and dysentery had decimated the numbers and not all captives reached the destination.
Release came only in 1799 to about 15,000 of the motley bunch that had survived by then – only after the fall of Seringapatam and Tippu's death following the second battle of Mangalore. With release had come a sense of purpose, a common identity, for a people who had hitherto considered themselves migrant Goans. For the first time a distinct “Mangalorean” identity was born. Over the years the close-knit and homogeneous small community of 1799 grew, diverging into fields and destinations anew. Leaving their native shores they spread far and wide pursuing new and rewarding careers elsewhere in India and all over the world. In India, other than that of a President or a Prime Minister, there is no seat of honour, profession, trade or virtue that has not been claimed, graced or enriched by a Mangalorean. This was possible because of the environment of amity and understanding that prevailed in the region.
This communal harmony which was the hallmark of the region was suddenly shattered on September 14, 2008 when goons of the Bajrang Dal went on rampage vandalising Churches, assaulting Christians, and desecrating holy artefacts. Mangalore since then has gone through a period beset by challenges not faced in over 209 years of communal harmony. The current lull in violence has resulted only due to unprecedented solidarity (perhaps totally unexpected by the perpetrators) and protests by the Christian communities of Mangalore, and the support they received from the right-minded from other local communities, leading to nationwide and worldwide condemnation of the heinous acts of the Sangh Parivar and particularly by the Bajrang Dal in Mangalore and elsewhere
While social scientists and analysts will try to unravel the deep rooted prejudices or political agenda that led to the shattering of the harmonious relationship between communities in the area, there needs to be some thought spared to checks and balances to be supplanted which will preclude such gratuitous violence between communities in future.
Mangalorean communities including Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Jains are a peaceful, law-abiding and religiously tolerant people, often of similar ancestry and traditional heritage. Against this background, there is consensus that a small minority of misguided elements cannot be allowed to orchestrate well organized and premeditated attacks on minorities. The Government justice needs to look at the causes for the violence that occurred, identify those who instigated and book the criminals who carried out the attacks. There is need also to examine the role of the police during the violence and their provocative actions during peaceful protests.
What was sorely found missing was the presence and intervention by community peace committees – the need of which no efficient police organization is not acutely aware of and strives to ensure. So a standing nodal agency with representation from major religious communities, major political parties and the police – to ensure preventive measures through regular meetings to monitor simmering tensions, etc is a must.
From the outpourings of the anguished voiced in the media, it is evident that majority of Indians (particularly Hindus) do not believe in the Sangh Parivar's ideology, and yet are forced to go along with it as a necessary evil, partly for lack of an alternative party with strength to lead the country with a viable government. There has perhaps never been a time of greater need to join hands with people of good will among all faiths and even with people of no faith to make common cause on important issues.
The public today are subjected to propaganda spread by aggressors – about conversions and foreign funds. Despite categorical assurances that there cannot be forcible conversions to the Christian faith, and there exists not a single chargesheet or conviction under the highly hyped Anti-Conversion Laws enacted in many States, the canards on this score continue. While no one in government or the Sangh leadership explains why this imbroglio cannot be nailed once and for all with a national debate, the ploy continues to be used as a plank for propaganda and more attacks.
There is need for the entire nation and its people to know what is the Sangh Parivar, what it stands for, its tactics, its strategy, its political policy. As there is need for the hitherto complacent Christian community to be involved more in the political arena – not alone to understand and expose the political policy of the Sangh Parivar, but to know and understand policies of other parties too - to identify such that hurt the interests of all in the sphere of human rights, and constitutional rights that guarantee freedom to practice and preach one’s religion. If not acted in time, there is danger of the Sangh Parivar succeeding in abrogating these very rights, or writing rules to circumvent these.
It is immensely evident that the Bajrang Dal has realized that Mangalore Christians stand for their rights, and that support for them has come forth from every imaginable quarter. Going forward, there is need to focus less on reprisals and recrimination, but on ensuring sustainable peace in times to come and especially for future generations.
**published by IANS as "Cry, my beloved Mangalore"
**carried also by various publications including Indian Currents under the same title.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
© Maxwell Pereira: Email: mfjpkamath@gmail.com;
Web: www.maxwellpereira.com ; www.theothersideofpolicing.com
Friday 10 October 2008
Will the right-minded speak up? - 10 Oct 2008
By Maxwell Pereira
In the context of the still ongoing violence against Christians in various states when I wrote about the sinister designs of the Sangh Parivar and their declared agenda, as also of the canards spread by the 84 percent strong majority community drowning the voice of a mere two percent minority Christians, some of my Hindu friends took offence. “Is every Hindu spreading canards against Christians?” they asked me, dubbing my remark as doing great injustice to non-extremist Hindus, who constitute the larger majority within the Hindu community.
They were disturbed no end with my answer “Isn't the silence of the 84% majority on the canards being spread in their name by some amidst them not construed as their voice?”
In recent weeks voices of many a right-thinking Hindu have been raised in public forums – in articles, television debates etc condemning the violence against Christians perpetrated by criminals and goons who openly identify themselves under the over all banner and umbrella of the Sangh Parivar. On this score very powerful declarations of how individually one is ashamed to call himself a Hindu have appeared in the printed medium (Karan Thapar’s “Who is a Hindu” in the Hindustan Times, Shashi Tharoor’s in the Times of India, etc) with many an agitated soul also stopping me during morning walks to tell me how ashamed they themselves are to identify themselves with the religion in the name of which the goons are perpetrating their heinous deeds.
On Christmas Day December 2007 gangs of fanatical elements in Kandhmal District Orissa had attacked churches and Christian institutions, desecrating statues and Bibles, and burning houses in Christian bastis in a series of pre-meditated and well organised assaults. In the atrocities that continued for a month, 107 churches were destroyed in arson, at least six people died and thousands were rendered homeless. The declared perpetrators none other than local Bajrang Dal units, the militant wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad under the umbrella of the total Sangh Parivar; pursuant to Swami Laxmanananda’s declared agenda of wiping out Christians off the face of Orissa.
Following widespread outrage from all quarters national and international over this carnage, the state government - whose benevolent protective hand over the rabid communal forces was evidently and eminently seen - reacted by transferring out the then Kandhmal Superintendent of Police, replacing him with young Nikhil Kanodia – a 2003 entrant into the IPS, reputed to have controlled with a firm hand another local district infested with Hindu-Muslim communal tension. Specially selected, Kanodia was overnight sent to Kandhmal to restructure and rejuvenate effective policing in the riot-ridden District. The State govt simultaneously ordered a judicial commission to look into the causes and effects of the Kandhmal riots.
The activities of Swami Laxmanananda in the area, inciting disharmony and communal disturbances in the Kandhmal district over the past many years, had led the Orissa police to open and maintain a police file on him which has grown fat over the years with accounts of riots caused or triggered off by him. Strangely, even while supposedly keeping violence under control, his activities were not checked by the police after the December carnage too. Instead, on State Govt’s direction he was provided police protection – ostensibly after receiving written threats on his life from local Maoists whose displeasure he had also incurred.
Despite the police protection, Laxmanananda and other adult members of his ashram were murdered on August 23. The attackers identified themselves as Naxalites and left a letter at the scene of murder claiming responsibility and stating why they murdered the Swami. On the basis of evidence of AK-47 used in the attack and the letter left behind, Kanodia briefed the media on Aug-24 that Maoist hand was indicated in the Swami’s murder – which position was soon after endorsed by the Police Headquarters too in briefings at the State level – reiterated in a televised interview more recently also by underground Naxalite leader Sabyasachi Panda.
This however did not, it appears, suit the Sangh Parivar in their designs and ultimate objective of targeting Christians. Praveen Togadia, the virulent head of the VHP visited Orissa the next day Aug-25 and declared it was Christians not Maoists who killed the Swami. As if in support of his line, the BJD led State government of Naveen Patnaik placed Kanodia under suspension, and removed him from the scene to the Lines in Police Headquarter at
Not only was the one man who had kept the communal forces under check over the past seven months ignominiously suspended, he was also conveniently removed from the scene to ensure a clear ground for Bajrang Dal goons to unleash their violence with no State intervention. The whole exercise smacked of criminal connivance. And yet Naveen Patnaik denies inaction and blatantly claims innocence even as his government is openly attempting now to deflect the blame from the Dal resting it solely on the Swami’s students?
Orissa violence was followed by incidents elsewhere, mainly in BJP ruled southern state of Karnataka, when Bajrang Dal goons struck in Mangalore and around vandalising churches, attacking nuns, and desecrating sacred artefacts. But Mangalore was not Kandhmal. The reaction of the people at large, not only of Christians, stunned the perpetrators. The State Bajrang Dal chief who had himself gone on television to proudly boast and claim responsibility had to be axed by the BJP leadership and faced arrest.
The main canards floated by the Sangh Parivar as reasons for attacks on Christians are about forced conversions and foreign funds. Despite categorical assurances that there cannot be forcible conversions to the Christian faith, and there exists not a single chargesheet or conviction under the highly hyped Anti-Conversion Laws enacted in many States, the canards on this score continue. The myths have been blasted time and again, but the bogey is sought to be kept alive without ever sitting across the table to thrash it out once and for all. While no one in government or the Sangh leadership explains why this imbroglio cannot be nailed once and for all with a national debate, the ploy continues to be used as a plank for propaganda and more attacks.
It is common knowledge that majority of the intelligentsia who has administered this country in the past sixty years has received education in Christian institutions in some form or the other, at some stage or the other. Have they been forced to convert? There are non-Christians who have worked and are working in Christian institutions for generations without ever converting to Christianity - if there was any force or inducement, how come they continued or continue to still benefit the Christian largesse without conversion?
I spent my entire service career pleading with Christian institutions to admit children of my non-Christian colleagues, friends and acquaintances into Christian schools and convents. Why is it the effort of every non-Christian to seek admission not only for their children and wards, but also those of their friends and acquaintances too in a Christian school or convent? Is it because they will be converted?
Talking of Christian concentration in backward and tribal areas: Is it right to fault the missionaries for having ventured into such areas hitherto totally neglected by the country, its successive governments and administrators, and by the very communities who have now suddenly woken up for political vote bank reasons? Was it wrong of them (the missionaries) to have provided succour, healthcare and educated them? Is it the fault of the missionaries that with their newfound knowledge and education, the backward classes and tribals are now being empowered enough to ward off exploitation by the marwaris/ other trader communities/ landgrabbers/ landlords and so on who sucked their blood for generations and hundreds of years?
If the compassion and selfless service of the missionaries, their aid and succour in times of need, medicines and healthcare they provided, and most of all the empowerment through education they enabled - has attracted, motivated or induced the neglected downtrodden from the backward classes or tribal areas to appreciate the "true Christian values" and embrace of his/her own free will the faith of the one that rendered him/her such self-service and gave him such "true values"..... then why should this cause such an irritating 'itch' in the ones of the majority community, or constitute such a threat to their existence as to warrant violence, arson and murder, and sinister designs to eliminate the Christian community from the face of the earth?
Yes, this is the declared agenda of the Sangh Parivar in Orissa and elsewhere, which the 84% majority is silent to, tantamounting to tacit concurrence and approval... Unless right-minded people speak up, the tolerant secular fabric of this country is bound to be destroyed - with a lot of blood on hands that otherwise consider themselves clean. And we will go the way our neighbours have gone - by becoming as is sought to be, a fundamentalist and rabid "Hindu"stan hated by all, and all the way down the drain like the stained-by-shame and disgraced-among-the-world-community as a terrorist-infested fundamentalist "Paki"stan.
Sixty-three million terror-battered and verifiable Pakistanis in a record participation have recently signed up to a unique anti-terror campaign stating “Yeh Hum Nahin!” (This is not us) in an effort to send a strong signal that they neither believe in terrorism nor are a party to it. Do the right-minded of
**published in Civil Society Magazine - November 2008 issue Vol 6 No.1 (www.civilsocietyonline.com) and carried on various websites
© Maxwell Pereira: Email: mfjpkamath@gmail.com; web: www.maxwellpereira.com
Tuesday 30 September 2008
Faith in the police - 30 Sep 2008
Faith in the police is a must if
by Maxwell Pereira
I AM NOT a great proponent of ‘ encounters’. For police encounters have always given me a queasy feeling for various reasons — the foremost being that I firmly believe the right to take life remains solely with the One who created it and none else.
But then we live in a society that creates laws making it justifiable to take life of persons considered a danger to society; and we have societies that wage wars that require one to kill the enemy to emerge victorious.
That’s okay with me, as a necessary evil as long as the law permitting it remains on the statute. As an extension to this argument, I am also okay with police encounters where they are a must, and where they are inevitable.
The Batla House Jamia Nagar encounter of Friday, 19 September, following the
Despite the colossal sacrifice of an illustrious officer’s valued life snuffed out in his prime, and despite the merits of the major breakthrough achieved in the investigation of hitherto unsolved blasts in various parts of the country, there is a shocking effort on to confuse and confound public opinion by sectarian and partisan groups for reasons best known to them.
Even before the investigations are complete, efforts are on to pick holes and contradictions in the police versions emanating from different states — and especially in the Delhi Police brief on the encounter at L- 18 Batla House, without a thought for the interests of safety and security of the people and the integrity of the country which is at stake.
Protagonists of the fake encounter theory are busy feeding stories, not realising that the red herrings and canards they spread will help the real accused whose guilt beyond doubt has ultimately to be established in court. For which purpose, the investigators have to adduce fool- proof evidence that stands scrutiny — and any premature disclosure of details is fraught with danger of attempts to destroy evidence, intimidate or win over witnesses and a plethora of maladies that plague our criminal- justice system. So confident are the ones postulating theories counter to the police version that one of them even challenged me for a bet that not one of those arrested by the police following disclosures made after the encounter would ever be convicted. This is the scenario under which the police work.
Canards
So what are the canards sought to be spread? Firstly about the two in the police version said to have escaped from the tenement - that it is impossible for anyone to escape because of the single access into the building for entry or exit.
Without agreeing or disagreeing with this contention, I ask who cares whether or not there was an escape at all, and how many actually escaped – other than for purposes of further investigation and wrapping up of the case? What matters is whether or not the inmates ( however many they were) were genuinely members of a terror module, and whether they could have been captured alive without resorting to the use of firearms.
The second is the issue of the absence of blood on Sharma’s clothes in the photograph showing him being propped up ( probably while being led to a vehicle to transport him to hospital) by two colleagues.
What expertise does the one who has theories on this issue to speak either way? In my 35 years of active policing, I have witnessed bodies splattered with blood all over – I have also seen bodies which left us wondering: “ where did all the blood go?” Isn’t it best left to forensic experts to provide answers to these seemingly puzzling aspects at the right time and place? The other canard is that the bullet which killed Sharma was from the gun of a fellow raiding- partymember, the result of what in army parlance is termed accidental “ friendly fire”. Anyone with basic knowledge of ballistics would know how preposterous this is, as not by any stretch of imagination can more than one bullet hit the victim in a “ friendly fire” when the raiding party had no repeat- fire automatic weapon with them.
The Muslim community has many issues over being marginalised and discriminated against, as I as a Christian have issues over the burning of churches and raping of nuns. But these community issues cannot be used to deviate from the main issue in hand, to confuse and divert the focus from main investigations – as with the allegation about stereo- typing Muslims by parading arrested suspects with faces muffled in redchecked abaaya scarves associated with the Muslim community. By no stretch of imagination was this a deliberate act with malicious intent — and I wonder if those responsible for raising this realize the greater harm they have done to the Muslim cause by themselves drawing attention to it which would otherwise have gone totally unnoticed.
Broadly summed up, the incident in Jamia Nagar was not a planned encounter, it was primarily a recce for verification that led to chance positive identification of suspects. The unobtrusive communication managed through a cell phone missed call couldn’t tell all – just two things: either something positive, or indicating trouble, which made Sharma rush alone to the spot, simultaneously calling for backups. The actual circumstances that made Sharma go to the ill- fated tenement without adequate protection, no one can tell.
Speculation
The raiding party that followed and faced the bullets were as conscious of their lives as anyone prudent ought to be, and resultantly my enquiries tell me the bit about two escaping was based on the versions of those from the crowd that gathered below on hearing the shots. This in a nutshell is what happened.
Now, whatever be the speculations on the nittygritty surrounding these basic facts — whether by rumour- mongers, vested interests, or mischievous elements with an agenda, ultimately it is the ones in the raiding party who have to depose from the witness stand to tell the truth.
Every police department worth its salt needs its hitmen.
So does Delhi Police, given its peculiar circumstance as a much sought after target for bomb- blasting terrorists, the so- called aggrieved states and communities of the country; and plundering criminals from Delhi’s own bordering lands who find the riches of Delhi too much of a temptation to resist. That
Courage
In hindsight one is often wiser. As perhaps would be the case in the matter of the Jamia Nagar encounter when analysts have finally settled the dust on their deliberations and perambulations – on what could have been and what should have been done. The officers and staff of the Special Cell are an experienced and seasoned lot – of a steel frame and of rare courage tempered in sweat and blood. It is very easy for people to postulate theories from the safety of their armchairs or desks – but how many of these with the fake- encounter theory have guts to stand at the door with bullets flying at them and around them? There is no need to doubt the courage or integrity of the likes of Mohan Chand Sharma whom the nation has awarded for gallantry seven times!
The writer is a former joint commissioner of police
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