“National Commission of Minorities is not a court, but a door. If the minorities face any challenge in availing the constitutional rights that have been given to them, then NCM is a door which they can knock,” said Wajahat Habibullah, NCM chairperson, at a programme organised by Students Islamic Organisation on October 4, on ‘Minorities in India – Identity and Security.’
He talked about the legal hassles that the NCM face in getting things done. Narrating the events that followed after the Mecca Masjid Blast he said many youths were falsely implicated by the police and were kept in jails. However when the news of Swami’s confession came, the arrested were released, though they were not given any compensation. It was then that the NCM decided to intervene and asked the government to give them compensation and the certificate of their innocence so that they do not face hassles in their future life and along with it handed a list of guilty police officers who were behind their false implication to the authorities.
The government agreed to all the things but failed to respond to the list of the guilty officers and did not prosecute them. “As long as a case goes on in a court, we cannot do anything. We can chip in only after the court ends the case,” he said. Stressing the importance and benefits of RTI, he added, “Right to Information (RTI) is a power given to people and an important tool to make institutions and officers accountable.”
“National Commission for Minorities is concerned about the feeling of insecurity in the Muslim community which is the outcome of arresting of Muslim youths in the name of curbing terrorism. There is an urgent need that through training or other means an effort is made to make police sensitive towards minorities. The NCM recommended that victims who are found to be innocent and acquitted by courts should be rehabilitated and compensated”, he added.
Sharique Ansar, National Secretary, SIO convened the programme and Kashif Ahmad, Asst. Public Relation Secretary, SIO expressed gratitude. The lectures were followed by interactions between the audience and the resource persons.