UPDATE (India): Three cases of assault in Nandigram, West Bengal

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received further information from MASUM, a local human rights organization in West Bengal, India, regarding the brutal attack by armed carders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI-M] against the villagers in Nandigram. The three cases narrated below shows the extent to which the CPI-M has gone, exploiting their position in power in the state to terrorise the villagers.

CASE DETAILS:

CASE 1:

Mir Bulu [picture 1] is an 11-year-old boy and a student of class three at the Ranichak Upper School. Bulu is a resident of Satenga Bari village within the jurisdiction of Nandigram Police Station. On 25 October 2007 at about 12.30pm Bulu was playing inside his house. Bulu heard shots being fired outside the house and out of curiosity he peeped out through the window. A stray projectile immediately hit him on his right forehead. Bulu fell down and started bleeding profusely.

Bulu’s neighbor Mr. Mir Habibul helped Bulu to be taken to the Nandigram Block Hospital where Bulu received first aid. Later he was sent to Tamluk Hospital from where he was shifted to Seth Sukhlal Karnani Memorial Hospital for treatment. Bulu was released on 17 November 2007. But he could not return home since by then his family had to shift to a camp since life in the village had been disrupted by the incidents that happened in between. Bulu now require specialist attention for the injuries that he has suffered. But at the camp there are no such facilities available. Bulu’s neighbours are certain that the firing was carried out by the CPI-M carders to terrorise the people in the village.

CASE 2:

Ms. Jhuma Das [picture 2] is the daughter of Mr. Santhosh Kumar Maity. Jhuma is married and have three kids. Jhuma is a resident of Kalicharanpur village within the jurisdiction of Nandigram Police Station. On 7 November 2007 at about 11am Jhuma was going to her in-laws’ house to meet her kids. On the road near Tekhali Bazar she was stopped by armed men. They tried to stop her but she informed them that she was going to Shimulkund to meet her kids. As Jhuma walked away one of the persons who stopped her got angry and shot her on right knee. The projectile that hit Jhuma on her right knee also injured her left leg. Jhuma fell on the ground and started to bleed.

Soon a group of persons in a rally protesting against the CPI-M carders’ activities in Nandigram happened to pass by the place where Jhuma had fallen. They saw Jhuma and helped her to seek medical help. Jhuma was taken to Nandgram hospital. The next day she was sent to Tamluk Hospital from where she was shifted Seth Sukhlal Karnani Memorial Hospital for treatment. Jhuma’s father believes that the persons who fired at her belong to the CPI-M. Jhuma and her father being afraid to approach the local police had written to MASUM seeking help.

The three incidents, one just about a month before and the other two just before the recent mass firing in Nandigram by the CPI-M suggests the nature of activities in which the CPI-M carders are involved in Nandigram. As of now the ordinary people in Nandigram and the villages in the surrounding area are caught-up between armed groups trying to exploit the situation in Nandigram which flared up due to the lopsided and myopic policies of the CPI-M led state government in West Bengal.

CASE 3:

Ms. Rehana Bibi [picture 3] is the wife of Mr. Mir Ruhal Amin and a resident of Satenga Bari village within the jurisdiction of East Midnapur district. On 6 November 2007 Rehana was seriously injured in an assault by the CPI-M carders at her home. Rehana had to flee for her life along with other villagers the previous day since the situation in the village was critically bad due to the attacks by and against the CPI-M in the village.

When Rehana fled from her home on November 5 she was not certain where her husband was. So she returned home on 6th in search of her husband, when she was met by Mr. Mir Kalu, a CPI-M person who was part of the CPI-M gang roaming in the village. Kalu dragged Rehana into her house and started questioning her about her address and her family. Rehana denied answering. At this point Kalu called for some of his colleagues. Once they arrived they started questioning Rehana using filthy language. They assaulted her. Later they tied her hands with a rope and threatened her with a knife. She was assaulted all over her body. During the assault Rehana was partially naked. Later Rehana was allowed to leave.

During the assault Rehana could see that some of her assailants were armed with pistols. They were also quizzing her about the whereabouts of her sister-in-law Ms. Najima Bibi. When MASUM contacted Rehana and Najima they informed MASUM that the reason why they were targeted was because they were opposed to the state administration acquiring their land. The entire family members, about 16 in number, are now lodged at the relief camps. Rehana informs MASUM that their house was looted and even the fish from their pond were stolen.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

West Bengal is a state in India that is governed by the CPI-M led government for the past 30 years. The opposition political parties in West Bengal have a very minimal presence in governance since they have lost their mass support due to their own bad policies and lack of vision. Additionally, the CPI-M has spared no resources to literally capture the people, village by village, using their party Local Committees (LCs). Those who opposed the party LC Secretary were bullied down by the party using all their might. During their tenure West Bengal also implemented land reforms in the state, putting a partial end to conventional feudal landlords.

However for the ordinary person, the tenants, who got land titles, their titles were kept at the LC offices and the party even extracted levies from the people. In short for the tenant, the old feudal is replaced by CPI-M led party feudal who rules the state village to village. It is at this juncture the state government decided to occupy some land in Nandigram for setting up a special economic zone. The CPI-M led government had little concern to the ordinary people in Nandigram when they were ordered to be evicted against which the people protested.

The people’s protest was also exploited by the other political parties in the state as a tool to fight against the CPI-M led state government. The space and confusion created by the people’s protest was also exploited by the extremist groups like the Naxalites and also some underground Muslim fundamentalist groups who rallied behind the people to fight against the government.

While the opposition political parties made use of Nandigram as an opportunity to protest against the practices of the state government and the party that leads it, the CPI-M, the Muslim fundamentalist groups found the turmoil as an opportunity to fish out for religious sentiments to establish their domain. The central government in Delhi has also given up the ordinary people in Nandigram by using the opportunity to find a new truce with the CPI-M leaders to push ahead the government of India’s aspirations for a nuclear deal with the US. Earlier the CPI-M, an ally of the central government was opposing the government of India’s nuclear deal. The result is an armed fight between the CPI-M and its now unified opposition fighting against each other in Nandigram. Even though nobody has won this battle those who definitely lost it are the ordinary people in Nandigram.

Reports that came out from Nandigram during the first few days after the latest incident early this month, has identified at least five persons who were killed in the incident. Among those who were confirmed to be killed are Mr. Sheikh Rezaul, aged 35 years, a resident of Bojabari village, Ms. Shyamali Manna, aged 40 years, a housewife from Gokulnagar. According to the government version, three persons were killed and 14 were injured during the incident.  The persons killed according to the state administration’s records are Rabin Das, Tushar Sahoo and Nirapada Ghata. Rezaul and Manna were killed on the spot when the CPI-M carders fired indiscriminately at a rally of protestors. The CPI-M carders even fired at ambulances that were ferrying the injured from the scene to the hospitals. While all this happened, the local police stationed at Nandigram Police Station did nothing to prevent the incidents. The AHRC has unconfirmed reports that there are several others who were killed or injured in the incident.

For previous urgent appeals and statements on Nandigram please see:

UP-152-2007: INDIA: CPI-M cadres’ blunt attack resumed against villagers in Nandigram with inaction and connivance of the West Bengal state government

UP-039-2007: INDIA: List of several missing and injured persons of the Nandigram massacre

UA-083-2007: INDIA: 11 villagers killed and more than 50 persons injured when police fired at villagers protesting against proposed land acquisition in Nandigram

UP-038-2007: INDIA: Please urge the National Human Rights Commission of India to immediately send its fact-finding team to inquire about Nandigram massacre

AS-051-2007: INDIA: Nandigram, the latest outcome of a failing justice system

AHRC-PL-012-2007: INDIA: AHRC calls for international protest over massacre, questions Indian “democracy”

While university groomed and mostly Delhi based intellectuals and nationally known rights activists often visited Nandigram, what they have failed to do so far is to prevent the government or the opposing political forces taking innocent people’s life and livelihood in Nandigram and surrounding villages. The question, before and now, is what will happen to those who lost their relatives and property in a fight overwhelmingly taken over from the ordinary people in Nandigram and when will the true perpetrators be identified and will they ever be prosecuted?

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities mentioned below expressing your concern about the three cases mentioned above and urging the authorities in India to provide immediate assistance to both the victims. Please also urge the authorities to conduct inquires in Nandigram to identify those who have suffered in the incident. The authorities instead of treating the civil society organisations with animosity must cooperate with them in this process.

Immediate assistance must be provided for those who lost their relatives and suffered injuries in the attacks in Nandigram. Normalcy must be returned to Nandigram and the people allowed returning to their houses from temporary camps that have been setup in the area. People who lost their properties or destroyed must be compensated.

The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing calling for an intervention in this case.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER