NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, DEC 30
Referring to the controversial anti-conversion ordinance brought by the UP government, as many as 104 former civil servants have written an open letter to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath saying that “UP has become the epicentre of the politics of hate, division and bigotry and that the institutions of governance are now steeped in communal poison”.
#Breaking | After 104 former IAS officers wrote a letter to UP CM @myogiadityanath against the anti-conversion conversion law, UP Minister RP Singh alleges that some of these bureaucrats are scared because they wrongly accumulated properties during service.
Amir with details. pic.twitter.com/8FOWBqq2xM
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) December 30, 2020
They have urged the UP government to withdraw the anti-conversion ordinance that tries to prevent interfaith marriages.
“Secret Police”
Comparing the UP police with the “secret police”, the letter said, “What is worse is that your law enforcement machinery, with the active backing of your government, is playing a role reminiscent of the secret police in authoritarian regimes”
Accusing the UP government of pitting one community against another, it said, “You can pose no greater threat to the nation than by turning its own citizens against one another, a conflict that can only serve the country’s enemies. As Chanakya taught us, a crafty politician must sow dissension amongst rivals. Here you are sowing dissensions among our own people”.
Victimising Muslims & Women
'Anti-conversion ordinance in your state is being used to victimize Muslims & women who dare to exercise their freedom of choice. Courts have ruled that choosing one's partner is a fundamental right', says the letter penned by over 100 bureaucrats to UP CM.
Details by Prashant. pic.twitter.com/dKFtCOi5eV
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) December 30, 2020
Stating that “the vigilantes are acting as a power unto themselves in intimidating innocent Indian citizens”, the former bureaucrats said that “the anti-conversion ordinance of your State is being used as a stick to victimise especially those Indian men who are Muslim and women who dare to exercise their freedom of choice”.
Pointing out that the various high courts, including the Allahabad High Court, have ruled that choosing one’s life partner is a fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution, the letter said that “the state of UP is blithely undermining that very Constitution”.
The letter mentioned an incident of Moradabad in which a young girl and boy having married lawfully were subjected to atrocities by vigilantes in connivance with the police. In fact, there have more than 35 incidents in which cases interfaith couples have been subjected to atrocities and cases booked against them.
Withdraw anti-conversion ordinance
Demanding withdrawal of the controversial ordinance, it demanded compensation for those who have suffered unconstitutional implementation of the ordinance.
“The policemen who were responsible for allowing this must be called to account under the law, suitably investigated at a senior level of the magistracy and if found to have facilitated the death of the unborn infant (in case of Moradabad’s Pinki), be put to trial under the Indian Penal Code.
Ask CM, other politicians to read Constitution
While demanding training for entire police force of UP in respecting the rights of citizens, the letter strong recommended that “the politicians of UP, including yourself (Chief Minister), need to re-educate about the provisions of the Constitution which you and other lawmakers have sworn to uphold”.
“While our past communications to you give us little reason to expect that your government will take corrective action to uphold the rule of law, we do hope this letter will contribute to mobilizing informed public opinion against these developments and that the courts will take notice and intervene to stem the rot”, stated the letter.
HERE IS THE FULL TEXT OF THE LETTER.
OPEN LETTER TO THE CHIEF MINISTER, UTTAR PRADESH: WITHDRAWAL OF ORDINANCE ON INTERFAITH MARRIAGE
29 December 2020
Mananiya Mukhya Mantriji,
It is with deep disapproval and concern that we, a group of former civil servants, seek to address your government on a matter of overriding importance for the continued unity of our nation.
We should like to clarify at the start that we, as a group, have no political affiliation but share a commitment to the idea of India as defined in our Constitution.
Today we wish to share our anguish at the infamous Moradabad incident, and several similar incidents that have occurred at about the same time in your state. In the Moradabad incident, 22-year-old Rashid and his 25-year-old brother, Saleem, were arrested, to be released only two weeks later when Rashid’s wife, Pinki, gave testimony that she had married him willingly, without any compulsion. Rashid and Pinki, who married in July, 2020, well before the promulgation of any ordinance on the issue of interfaith marriage, were on their way to have their marriage registered on December 5 when they were accosted by alleged Bajrang Dal men, who accused Rashid of “love jihad”, and took them to the police. Saleem was with them at the time. While Rashid and Saleem were arrested, Pinki was sent to a shelter home. Pinki repeatedly told the media, the police and the court right then that she had married Rashid willingly and wanted to live with her husband’s family. The vigilantes who had accosted them brought Pinki’s family to the police station. What is inexcusable is that the police remained mute as the vigilantes harassed and interrogated the innocent couple. Pinki suffered a miscarriage, possibly as a result of the harassment. Rashid is reported to have said,“I told the Bajrang Dal men my wife is pregnant, but they hurled abuses at us. They dragged us to a police station and called my in-laws. We were then locked up and sent to a quarantine centre. I wasn’t able to meet my wife.” (Rehman & Sinha, The Indian Express, December 20,2020)
Does this not amount to effective murder of an unborn child and is the police force of your State, by their inaction, not complicit in this?
Regrettably this is only one of a series of heinous atrocities committed by your administration against young Indians across Uttar Pradesh (UP), Indians who are simply seeking to live their lives as free citizens of a free country. These atrocities, regardless of the indignation of all Indians devoted to the rule of law, continue unabated. The anti-conversion ordinance of your State is being used as a stick to victimise especially those Indian men who are Muslim and women who dare to exercise their freedom of choice. While the various High Courts, including the Allahabad High Court, have ruled unequivocally that choosing one’s life partner is a fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution, the state of UP is blithely undermining that very Constitution. The vigilantes are acting as a power unto themselves in intimidating innocent Indian citizens. It has become painfully evident that, in recent years, UP state, once known as the cradle of the Ganga-Jamuna civilisation, has become the epicentre of the politics of hate, division and bigotry and that the institutions of governance are now steeped in communal poison. What is worse is that your law enforcement machinery, with the active backing of your government, is playing a role reminiscent of the secret police in authoritarian regimes. You can pose no greater threat to the nation than by turning its own citizens against one another, a conflict that can only serve the country’s enemies. As Chanakya taught us, a crafty politician must sow dissension amongst rivals. Here you are sowing dissensions among our own people.
We, therefore, demand that the illegal ordinance be withdrawn forthwith and those Indians that have suffered from its unconstitutional enforcement be suitably compensated. The policemen who were responsible for allowing this must be called to account under the law, suitably investigated at a senior level of the magistracy and if found to have facilitated the death of the unborn infant, be put to trial under the IPC. Moreover, the entire police force of Uttar Pradesh needs to be trained without delay in respecting the rights of all citizens; and the politicians of UP, including yourself, need to re-educate yourselves about the provisions of the Constitution which you and other lawmakers have sworn to uphold. While our past communications to you give us little reason to expect that your government will take corrective action to uphold the rule of law, we do hope this letter will contribute to mobilizing informed public opinion against these developments and that the courts will take notice and intervene to stem the rot.
SATYAMEVA JAYATE
The list of the signatories to the letter:
1.Anita Agnihotri IAS (Retd.) Former Secretary, Department of Social Justice Empowerment, GoI
2.Salahuddin Ahmad IAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan
3.Shafi AlamIPS (Retd.)Former Director General, National Crime RecordsBureau, GoI
4. K. Saleem AliIPS (Retd.)Former Special Director, CBI, GoI
5. S.P. Ambrose IAS (Retd.)Former Additional Secretary, Ministry of Shipping &Transport, GoI
6.Anand ArniR&AW(Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI
7.VappalaBalachandranIPS (Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI
8.GopalanBalagopalIAS (Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
9.Chandrashekhar BalakrishnanIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Coal, GoI
10.Rana BanerjiIAS (Retd.)Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat (R&AW),GoI
11.T.K. BanerjiIAS (Retd.)Former Member, Union Public Service Commission
12.Sharad BeharIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh
13.AurobindoBeheraIAS (Retd.)Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Odisha
14.Madhu BhaduriIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Portugal
15.PradipBhattacharyaIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Development &Planning and Administrative Training Institute, Govt. ofWest Bengal
16.Meeran CBorwankarIPS (Retd.)Former DGP, Bureau of Police Research andDevelopment, GoI
17.Ravi BudhirajaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, GoI
18.Sundar Burra IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra
19.RachelChatterjeeIAS (Retd.)Former Special Chief Secretary, Agriculture, Govt. ofAndhra Pradesh
20.KalyaniChaudhuriIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
21.Anna Dani IAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra
22.P.R. DasguptaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Food Corporation of India, GoI
23.NareshwarDayalIFS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs andformer High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
24.Pradeep K. DebIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Deptt. Of Sports, GoI
25.Nitin DesaiIES (Retd.)Former Secretary and Chief Economic Adviser, Ministryof Finance, GoI
26.KeshavDesirajuIAS (Retd.)Former Health Secretary, GoI
27.M.G.DevasahayamIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Govt. of Haryana
28.Sushil Dubey IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Sweden
29.A.S. DulatIPS (Retd.)Former OSD on Kashmir, Prime Minister’s Office, GoI
30.K.P. Fabian IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Italy
31.Prabhu GhateIAS (Retd.)Former Addl. Director General, Department of Tourism,GoI
32.Arif GhauriIRS (Retd.)Former Governance Adviser, DFID, Govt. of the UnitedKingdom (on deputation)
33.Gourisankar IAS (Retd.)Former Mission Director, National Drinking Water Mission, GoI
34.Suresh K. GoelIFS (Retd.)Former Director General, Indian Council of Cultural Relations, GoI
35.S.K. GuhaIAS (Retd.)Former Joint Secretary, Department of Women & ChildDevelopment, GoI
36.H.S. GujralIFoS (Retd.)Former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Govt. of Punjab
37.Meena GuptaIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests,GoI
38.Ravi ViraGuptaIAS (Retd.)Former Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India
39.WajahatHabibullahIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, GoI and Chief InformationCommissioner 40.Deepa Hari IRS(Resigned)
41.Sajjad Hassan IAS (Retd.)Former Commissioner (Planning), Govt. of Manipur
42.Rahul KhullarIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority ofIndia
43.Ajai Kumar IFoS(Retd.)Former Director, Ministry of Agriculture, GoI
44.Arun Kumar IAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, National Pharmaceutical PricingAuthority, GoI
45.Brijesh Kumar IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Department of InformationTechnology, GoI
46.Sudhir KumarIAS (Retd.)Former Member, Central Administrative Tribunal
47.P.K. LahiriIAS (Retd.)Former ED, Asian Development Bank & FormerRevenue Secretary, GoI
48.Aloke B. LalIPS (Retd.)Former Director General (Prosecution), Govt. ofUttarakhand
49.Subodh LalIPoS(Resigned)Former Deputy Director General, Ministry ofCommunications, GoI
50.B.B. MahajanIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Deptt. of Food, GoI
51.P.M.S. Malik IFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Myanmar & Special Secretary,MEA, GoI
52.Harsh Mander IAS (Retd.)Govt. of Madhya Pradesh
53.AmitabhMathur IPS (Retd.)Former Director, Aviation Research Centre and FormerSpecial Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI
54.Aditi MehtaIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan
55.Shivshankar Menon IFS (Retd.)Former Foreign Secretary and Former National Security
Adviser
56. Sonalini Mirchandani IFS (Resigned)GoI
57.NoorMohammadIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, National Disaster ManagementAuthority, Govt. of India
58.AvinashMohananeyIPS (Retd.)Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Sikkim
59.Deb Mukharji IFS (Retd.)Former High Commissioner to Bangladesh and formerAmbassador to Nepal
60.Shiv ShankarMukherjeeIFS (Retd.)Former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
61.Pranab S.MukhopadhyayIAS (Retd.)Former Director, Institute of Port Management, GoI
62.Nagalsamy IA&AS Former Principal Accountant General, Tamil Nadu &
(Retd.)Kerala
63.T.K.A. NairIAS (Retd.)Former Adviser to Prime Minister of India
64.P.G.J. NampoothiriIPS (Retd.)Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Gujarat
65.P. Joy OommenIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Chhattisgarh
66.AmitabhaPandeIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Inter-State Council, GoI
67.Alok Perti IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Coal, GoI
68.R.PoornalingamIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, GoI
69.Rajesh PrasadIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to the Netherlands
70.R.M.Premkumar IAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra
71.T.R.RaghunandanIAS (Retd.)Former Joint Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, GoI
72.N.K.RaghupathyIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Staff Selection Commission, GoI
73.V.P. RajaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairman, Maharashtra Electricity RegulatoryCommission
74.C. Babu RajeevIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, GoI
75.P.V. RameshIAS (Retd.)Former Addl. Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister ofAndhra Pradesh
76.K. Sujatha RaoIAS (Retd.)Former Health Secretary, GoI
77.M.Y. Rao IAS (Retd.)
78.NirupamaMenon RaoIFS (Retd.)Former Foreign Secretary, GoI
79.Vijaya LathaReddyIFS (Retd.)Former Deputy National Security Adviser, GoI
80.Julio Ribeiro IPS (Retd.)Former Adviser to Governor of Punjab & formerAmbassador to Romania
81.Aruna Roy IAS(Resigned)
82.Manabendra N.RoyIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
83.Deepak SananIAS (Retd.)Former Principal Adviser (AR) to Chief Minister, Govt.of Himachal Pradesh
84.S. SatyabhamaIAS (Retd.)Former Chairperson, National Seeds Corporation, GoI
85.N.C. Saxena IAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Planning Commission, GoI
86.A. Selvaraj IRS (Retd.)Former Chief Commissioner, Income Tax, Chennai, GoI
87.Ardhendu Sen IAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal
88.AbhijitSenguptaIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GoI
89.Aftab Seth IFS (Retd.) Former Ambassador to Japan
90.Ashok KumarSharmaIFoS (Retd.)Former MD, State Forest Development Corporation,Govt. of Gujarat
91.Ashok KumarSharmaIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Finland and Estonia
92.NavrekhaSharmaIFS (Retd.)Former Ambassador to Indonesia
93.Pravesh SharmaIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of MadhyaPradesh
94.Raju Sharma IAS (Retd.)Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh
95.Rashmi ShuklaSharmaIAS (Retd.)Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of MadhyaPradesh
96.Ramesh InderSinghIAS (Retd.)Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Punjab and formerChief Information Commissioner, Punjab
97.Tirlochan SinghIAS (Retd.)Former Secretary, National Commission for Minorities,GoI
98.Jawhar Sircar IAS (Retd.) Former Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GoI, & formerCEO, Prasar Bharati
99.A.K. SrivastavaIAS (Retd.) Former Administrative Member, Madhya PradeshAdministrative Tribunal
100.P.S.S. ThomasIAS (Retd.) Former Secretary General, National Human RightsCommission
101.Geetha ThoopalIRAS (Retd.) Former General Manager, Metro Railway, Kolkata
102.Hindal TyabjiIAS (Retd.) Former Chief Secretary rank, Govt. of Jammu & Kashmir
103.Ashok VajpeyiIAS (Retd.) Former Chairman, Lalit Kala Akademi
104.RamaniVenkatesanIAS (Retd.) Former Director General, YASHADA, Govt. of Maharashtra
