MUHAMMAD SHAFI MADNI is former president Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Gujarat and ex-chairman Islami Relief Committee, Gujarat (IRCG). He has a long experience of relief and rehabilitation work that he undertook during the Kutch earthquake and Gujarat riots. During his recent sojourn in New Delhi, SIKANDAR AZAM got a chance to talk to him on the achievements of IRCG, especially its victory in a 2003 case – a verdict, in which the division bench of Acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J.B. Pardiwala of Gujarat High Court on Feb. 8 pulled up the state government for “inaction and negligence” on its part during the 2002 riots that led to large-scale destruction of religious places. Excerpts:
Gujarat High Court rapped Narendra Modi government for ‘inaction and negligence’ during the Gujarat riots 2002 that led to large-scale destruction of religious places. Your comments?
This is for the first time since the riots shook the state in 2002 that a court of law has held the state government responsible for desecration and destruction of 572 religious places during the violence. We welcome the verdict and thank the Hon’ble Judges for pronouncing such a strong verdict and indictment of the government. We hope the verdict would go a long way in leaving far-reaching impact on the victims of Gujarat riots.
What kind of religious places are there in the list of destroyed places of religious importance?
Over 70 per cent of them are mosques. Besides, there are also some idgahs, dargahs, imambadas, graveyards, and a bachchon ka ghar [home for (hapless) children].
What led the IRCG to file the PIL to seek justice for the religious places destroyed during the riots?
We felt apprehensive of total inaction and indifference of the state government to the issue of repair and reconstruction of such religious places. So we filed the PIL in 2003.
Do you think the state government that has been defiant ever since will follow the directions of the High Court?
This is a very important question. You see the court has directed the principal judges of 26 districts of the state, and not the government machinery, to receive the applications for compensation of religious places in their respective districts, decide on it, and send their decisions to the High Court within six months.
Are you satisfied with the pace of justice in this case?
Though there is delay in doing justice to the victims in this case – and it is widely acknowledged that justice delayed is justice denied – yet we are satisfied that at last justice has started to provide relief for the victims notwithstanding the fact that it took so many long years.
In the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and Babri Masjid demolition cases we have seen greater delay. But there is no room for disappointment. We should continue to strive for justice. It is also for the courts to pay attention to speedy disposal of cases.
Who were the lawyers IRCG engaged to plead in this case?
IRCG’s Cell for Legal Help and Guidance (IRCG-CLHG) has a team of lawyers led by Adv. Yusuf Muchala of Mumbai. Advocates Tahir Hakeem and Mohammad Farooq Kharadi along with their juniors Maqbool Mansoori and Sabir Syed were assisting Yusuf Muchala. They worked with utmost concern and dedication.
How much did this legal battle cost?
This PIL cost about Rs. 40 lakh.
What are the other major achievements of IRCG so far?
IRCG was formally launched in 2001 to undertake relief and rehabilitation work when a devastating earthquake had shaken Kutch district of Gujarat. Over a million houses in and around Bhuj, Anjar and Bhachau were damaged or destroyed. IRCG was busy in providing relief and rehabilitation for the quake victims. This work was going on when the riots enveloped many parts of the state. IRCG took the cudgel and started working for the relief and rehabilitation of riot victims as well. It has built 1,321 new homes and repaired 4,946 homes that had been damaged or destroyed during the riots.
Besides playing this major role in providing relief and rehabilitation for the quake and riot victims on purely humanitarian ground, IRCG is also active in running schools and dispensaries, maintaining water resources and providing drought relief in many areas of the state including Adivasi localities. In this wide humanitarian work we also coordinate with other NGOs.
Your message for the readers of Radiance?
I extend my heartiest thanks to all those well-wishers who coordinated with IRCG with their duas, good wishes or invaluable contributions in cash or kind. I also request them to remember IRCG in their duas.
One thing I want to convey to the readers of Radiance is that Muslims should come up as a Ummah to face the circumstances they have been in. And to think of legal challenges is of course more important. We can still pin trust on judiciary. Muslims should not give way to disappointment or frustration.