Abu Bakar, the old paralysed father of Ahmedabad blasts ‘mastermind’ Abu Bashar, was made to sign on blank sheets of paper by the police raiding his house in village Binapara of Sarai Meer in Azamgarh soon after his eldest son was officially arrested in Lucknow on August 16. The drama was repeated on August 30 in Aminabad in Lucknow when policemen searched the house of the alleged mastermind of the Jaipur blasts Shahbaz Ahmad and made his father-in-law sign on blank sheets of paper. Pointing out these parallels in the two cases, renowned human rights activist Teesta Setalvad hit out at the law-enforcing agencies for violating set legal procedural norms in the name of combating terror. Speaking at a workshop on “Enforcement of Rule of Law” organised by the Movement Against Terrorism, Setalvad said there were many similarities in the procedural lapses in the two cases.
In both cases, she pointed out, the suspects were arrested without warrants, the family had no idea where they were taken or the condition they were in, searches were repeatedly carried out by the police in their houses without search warrants. There were no independent witnesses to confirm what was taken away from their houses. Another common factor was that both families accused the police of taking away cash during these searches. While Abu Bashar’s family charged the police of taking away Rs 10,000, the family of Shahbaz Ahmad said the police took away Rs 1,000 in cash from the purse and an account payee cheque of Rs 15,000. Setalvad was also critical of the media of abdicating its duty to uphold the rule of law. “It is so surprising that the same media which had done an excellent work in exposing police encounters and custodial rapes is now ready to believe every word the same police is saying regarding these men who are being condemned as terrorists even before the trial has begun,” she said.
Former Vice-Chancellor of Lucknow University, Dr Roop Rekha Verma warned against the attempt of the state to create an environment of terror where citizens readily renounced their civil rights in the name of combating terrorism. “We should not let this happen. This is what ultimately leads to a fascist state. We, as responsible citizens, have to continue to ask critical questions. Journalists should also gather more facts through investigative journalism rather than completely depending on official briefings,” she pointed out.