May 1-15, 2023 Issue of The Unrest Magazine

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk.

Photo: UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

Dirty Politics

Congress Misleads About FIR on Amit Shah Indian Politics: Dystopian State Human Rights

Global Conflicts

Protect Rights of Kara-Murza in Russia Stories of Politics and Unrest in the World Corruption Cases

SGPC to Get Sikh Prisoners Released UN Human Rights Chief Türk Must Resign Crime in Politics

Corruption Complaint to Delhi Lokayukta Crime, Corruption, and Impunity in India

Law and Justice

Congress Exposes Faults in EVMs Kejriwal Wastes Money on Renovation

Sexual Harassment Case of BJP Leader Lethal Construction in Housing Societies

Congress Exposes Faults in Electronic Voting Machines EVMs

Since most politicians in opposition parties are illiterate, they cannot fully understand the manipulation that can be done with the EVMs.

Congress party said again that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) being used in Indian elections are full of faults. In a press conference held in Delhi on April 21, a Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera cited many EVM defects to claim that the EVMs are not safe even with the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) option.

Also, in a tweet posted on April 20, Congress said that in the 2019 Lok Sabha election 17.4 lakh VVPAT machines were used but the Election Commission of India (ECI) has reported that more than 6.5 lakh (or more than 37 percent) VVPAT machines were defective. Congress adds that according to rules, the ECI has to preserve the VVPAT slips for at least 12 months, but the VVPAT slips of 2019 Lok Sabha election were destroyed just within four months.

Opposition political parties holding a press conference on April 14, 2019 to raise the issue of election frauds on EVMs in India. (file photo)

And astonishingly prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were declared winners of the 2019 Lok Sabha election despite large-scale frauds related to EVMs and VVPAT machines.

The ECI has been ignoring the constant complaints of the opposition parties and research findings about the vulnerability of EVMs to persist with these insecure machines.

Rather, in December 2022, the ECI announced plans to expand the use of EVMs in Indian elections by introducing a new Multi-Constituency Remote Electronic Voting Machine (RVM).

The opposition parties complain that the BJP of PM Modi colludes with the ECI to manipulate EVMs and win elections deceptively. But the ECI – which is completely controlled by the Modi government – ignores the opposition complaints and holds elections on EVMs and mostly BJP wins. And the defeated opposition parties willy-nilly accept the election results and wait for the next elections.

As the doubts about the fraudulent use of EVMs have been increasing, ChatGPT (or Generative Pre-trained Transformer) – which is an artificial intelligence or AI-based online tool – confirms that there are several ways in which EVMs can be hacked and manipulated.

OPPOSITION COMPLAINTS

The opposition party Congress complained about the EVM frauds even in the recent elections. When Congress was defeated by the BJP in the Gujarat election in December 2022, a Congress leader Digvijay Singh blamed the fraudulent use of EVMs. But he did not reveal any plan to stop the EVM manipulation. Simultaneously, Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera held a comprehensive briefing to explain how

EVMs were manipulated by the BJP of PM Modi to win the Gujarat election. But he too did not discuss any specific strategy to combat the alleged EVM fraud by BJP in elections.

It is also observed that when EVMs malfunction, they vote only in favor of Modi’s BJP which runs with Lotus election symbol. Obviously, BJP will always oppose paper ballots and any investigation into the misuse of EVMs. And it goes without saying that the Election Commission – which is a toothless outfit – will always obey Modi.

However, top tech experts believe that it is very easy to tamper with EVMs in India and change the election results fraudulently in favor of certain candidates.

FRAUDULENT USE OF EVMs

In their study on EVMs in India, security researchers from India, the United States, and the Netherlands argue that “contrary to claims by Indian election authorities, these paperless electronic voting systems suffer from significant vulnerabilities.”

The researchers also have found that even brief access to the machines could allow dishonest election insiders or other criminals to alter election results. They have developed a video to demonstrate their claims.

Tech experts observe that besides other manipulations, the chip used in the EVMs is not of the OTP (One Time Programmable) category. That means, it can be programmed in each EVM to change the vote count in favor of a particular candidate.

Since opposition parties have been raising the EVM vulnerability issues repeatedly, now it is believed that the BJP manipulates EVMs selectively in some crucial state elections and Lok Sabha elections in which Modi himself contests.

Since most politicians in opposition parties are illiterate, they cannot fully understand the manipulation that can be done with the EVMs. Therefore, after

some weak verbal protests, they accept EVM election results in which mostly BJP wins.

Now, with the introduction of new EVMs that the ECI has proposed, it will become extremely difficult for opposition parties to win elections and prove the vulnerability of the new machines.

If the opposition parties really want to stop the use of EVMs, they should hold street protests against the ECI in front of the ECI office and the state election commission offices.

As the ECI will again ignore the demands to discard EVMs and use paper ballots in elections, the opposition parties should boycott the future elections – including the Lok Sabha election 2024 – instead of complaining about EVMs after every election defeat.

Volker Türk Must Resign for His Failure to Protect Human Rights

Since Volker Türk has failed to provide relief to the persecuted communities, he has no right to hold the position of the UN Human Rights Chief.

The United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has explained his role at the UN Human Rights Office that he joined a few months ago. In a tweet posted on April 18, 2023, Türk said that during the past six months he has assessed the human rights situation in different parts of the world.

“I became UN Human Rights Chief six months ago. Since then, I have visited 11 countries and had countless difficult, yet inspiring, conversations with people worldwide. I am only more convinced that human rights is the answer to advance justice, equality, and dignity,” Türk said. But like his predecessors, Türk has failed miserably in his role to protect human rights of people across the world. Now surprisingly he is measuring his performance by the countries he visited.

“Türk fails to realize a simple fact that he is not a globetrotting tourist who has to waste his time on excursions. Rather, he is supposed to handle a serious task of protecting people’s rights which are being abused everywhere,” said Rakesh Raman, founder, RMN Foundation.

As Türk claims, he would have held conversations with people. But since he has failed to provide relief to the persecuted communities, he has no right to hold the position of the UN Human Rights Chief.

“If Türk has a little morality in his character, he should resign immediately because he has failed in his position as the head of the UN human rights organization,” said Rakesh Raman.

The UN human rights officials, including Türk, keep releasing meaningless condemnation statements or useless reports about human rights violations. But they cannot save the rights or lives of the victims of these violations and other

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. Photo: UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

crimes perpetrated by cruel authorities in different countries such as Belarus, China, India, Israel, Myanmar, Russia, Syria, and so on.

Since no key result area (KRA) has been defined for Türk and other officials in his office, they never release data of the people who get relief from their work. Actually, they are not doing any effective work except releasing statements in rigid templates.

As blatant human rights violations are happening, the autocratic authorities are arbitrarily incarcerating or killing human rights defenders and peaceful protesters who raise their voice against the state crimes in their countries.

The UN Human Rights Office under Türk has been issuing perfunctory statements, but it could not get jailed dissenters released. They include Alexei Navalny in Russia, Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiatski in Belarus, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar, and thousands of other peaceful protesters who are languishing in jails of different autocratic nations.

Since the UN Human Rights Office has lost its relevance, it must be shuttered immediately and the UN Human Rights Chief Türk should quit instead of sitting on his chair idly.

The bureaucrats at the UN Human Rights Office do not understand that the people whose rights are being violated want on-field support to protect themselves from the cruel authorities. These persecuted people do not want casual statements from the UN Human Rights officials.

“Since Türk, like other UN bureaucrats who are wasting public money for their amusement and leisure trips, does not have any plan to protect human rights of people in different parts of the world, he should step down from his position. If he does not, the world leaders should stop supporting the UN Human Rights Office and force Türk to resign,” said Rakesh Raman of RMN Foundation.

RMN Foundation is the humanitarian initiative of Raman Media Network (RMN) News Service. It runs various projects and campaigns in the areas of human rights, environment protection, school education, and corruption prevention.

Corruption Complaint to Lokayukta Against Delhi Govt Ministers and MLAs

I sent the following complaint to Delhi Lokayukta on April 18, 2023.

To April 18, 2023

Justice Harish Chandra

Delhi Lokayukta, Office of the Lokayukta

Government of NCT of Delhi

New Delhi

Kind Attention: Mr. Satya Prakash, Assistant Director, Office of the Lokayukta

The Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Delhi Anil Baijal administered the oath of office to Justice (Retd.) Harish Chandra Mishra as Lokayukta of Delhi at the swearing-in-ceremony held at Raj Niwas on March 23, 2022. Photo: LG Office (file photo)

Subject: Corruption Complaint Against Delhi Govt Ministers and MLAs.

Dear Sir,

This has reference to my telephonic conversation on April 17, 2023 with Mr. Satya Prakash on the above-stated subject. As he has advised, I am sending my complaint again to the Office of the Lokayukta in response to the letter dated 24.03.2023 reproduced below as Exhibit 2.

In this regard, this is also to inform you that my petition given below was also sent to the Office of the Lokayukta by the Department of Law, Justice & Legislative Affairs, Delhi Government with its letter dated 18.01.2023, reproduced below as Exhibit 3.

While the previous communications related to this case are given below, I must declare that I do not belong to or support any political party. As a journalist and anti-corruption activist, my only purpose of filing this complaint is to combat rampant bureaucratic and political corruption that is happening in Delhi.

In addition to the present complaint against Delhi politicians, I have also filed corruption complaints against some Delhi IAS officers. In response, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Government of India with its latest letter dated January 31, 2023 has directed the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India to investigate the cases. [ See Exhibit 4 given below. ]

I have also stated some of the facts related to corruption in Delhi in the “India Corruption Research Report 2022 (ICRR 2022)” that I have compiled and released recently. [ You can click here to download and study the report. ]

Although a couple of ministers in Delhi Government have been jailed for their alleged involvement in serious corruption scandals, that punishment is not enough for them. Therefore, I request you to open these cases as described below through

the Office of the Lokayukta immediately. Please do not delay this case because of bureaucratic hassles in your office.

Please study the detailed complaint given in the attached 16-page document.

Thank you

Rakesh Raman

World Leaders Fail to Protect Rights of Vladimir Kara-Murza in Putin’s Russia

No international mechanism is available to get justice for Kara-Murza and thousands of others who are being punished by dictator Putin.

As usual, the so-called world leaders have been issuing hollow statements in favour of Russian activist Vladimir Kara-Murza, but none of them have the courage to get him released from jail. A fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kara-Murza was sentenced on April 17 to 25 years in prison for his opposition to Putin and particularly Russia’s ruthless war against Ukraine.

Instead of putting military pressure on Putin to release his political opponents, the world leaders are releasing perfunctory statements which have no effect on Putin who is a merciless dictator.

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk, for example, said in his carelessly written statement that the 25-year prison sentence handed down by a Moscow court against opposition politician and journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza is another blow to the rule of law and civic space in the Russian Federation.

Instead of getting the Putin critic released from jail, Turk shamelessly said that he must be treated with humanity and respect in jail. Türk has repeatedly failed in his responsibility to protect human rights of people in all parts of the world.

Similarly, Marija Pejčinović Burić, Secretary General of the 46-nation Council of Europe (CoE) issued a casual statement, “I strongly condemn the sentencing of

Russian opposition leader, Vladimir Kara-Murza, to 25 years in prison following a sham trial. Mr Kara-Murza was imprisoned and prosecuted a year ago for speaking out on Russia’s brutal aggression against Ukraine.

“As he bravely stated in his final remarks to the court ‘This is the price of not remaining silent in Russia today.’ His case is another illustration of ongoing repression in the Russian Federation.”

“Despite Russia’s attempts to silence critics, their voices are being heard worldwide and will not be forgotten. The Council of Europe stands in full solidarity with Mr Kara-Murza and calls for his immediate release,” said Marija Pejčinović Burić.

But she could not elaborate how her meaningless words will persuade Putin to release Kara-Murza and protect his rights in the authoritarian regime. According to a BBC report, the UK Foreign Office announced sanctions against one judge and two investigators involved in Kara-Murza's trial. The sanctions will also impact two

Vladimir Kara-Murza.

Photo: CoE

Federal Security Service (FSB) agents suspected of links to his sudden, critical illness in 2015 and 2017 caused by a toxin that has never been identified.

As a result of poisoning, according to the BBC report, Kara-Murza has again been losing feeling in both his feet and his left hand. A prison doctor has diagnosed polyneuropathy, which affects the nerves.

It is being observed that Putin’s opponents are mostly killed, die in mysterious circumstances, poisoned, or jailed in harsh conditions, and some have fled the country to save themselves from Putin’s fury. They include oligarchs Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Boris Berezovsky, former FBK head Ivan Zhdanov, former FBK lawyer Lyubov Sobol, Leonid Volkov, Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, and others.

It is alleged that Russia was also involved in the nerve-agent attack in Salisbury. After the incident, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the attack in Salisbury was the first use of a nerve agent on NATO territory.

Another Putin critic and political opponent Alexei Navalny has been languishing in jail since 2021 after surviving a poisoning attack allegedly ordered by Putin.

He is not being provided proper medical treatment as Navalny continues to be sick in solitary confinement where he is kept by the Russian authorities. On 10 January 2023, over 400 doctors in Russia signed an open letter to President Putin demanding that prison authorities stop abusing Navalny. But Putin has no respect for such humanitarian appeals. Now, Kara-Murza is being similarly tortured while his trial for treason was held secretly and after the fake trial Putin’s court pronounced the punishment largely for Kara-Murza’s political speeches that he delivered in Russia and abroad. But no international mechanism is available to get justice for Kara-Murza and thousands of others who are being punished by dictator Putin. The useless condemnation statements by world leaders will never help persecuted communities in different parts of the world.

Short Stories of Politics and Unrest in the World

Rival factions of Sudan's military have agreed to renew a three-day ceasefire, shortly before it was due to expire. The extension - for another 72 hours - follows intensive diplomatic efforts by neighbouring countries, as well as the US, UK and UN. But there are continuing reports of heavy fighting in the capital Khartoum. The previous truce allowed thousands of people to attempt to flee to safety, while dozens of countries have tried to evacuate their citizens. Read More

US prosecutors said on April 27 that the national guardsman accused of leaking top secret documents from the Pentagon had a history of "violent" speech. Justice Department officials said that Jack T. posed "an ongoing risk" to US national security and asked for his continued detention until trial. The 21-year-old IT specialist of the US Air National Guard was arrested earlier in the month and has been accused of orchestrating the most damaging leak of US classified documents in a decade. Read More

Former Vice President Mike Pence testified on April 27 to a federal grand jury investigating the aftermath of the 2020 election and the actions of then-President Donald Trump and others, sources familiar with the matter told CNN. The testimony marks a momentous juncture in the criminal investigation and the first time in modern history a vice president has been compelled to testify about the president he served beside. Read More

As recently as February, generative AI did not feature prominently in EU lawmakers' plans for regulating artificial intelligence technologies such as ChatGPT. The bloc's 108-page proposal for the AI Act, published two years earlier, included only one mention of the word "chatbot." References to AI-generated content largely referred to deepfakes: images or audio designed to impersonate human beings. Read More

Masked Iranian navy commandos conducted a helicopter-borne raid to seize a U.S.-bound oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, footage aired by Iran’s state television showed on April 28. The capture of the Turkish-managed, Chinese-owned Advantage Sweet represents the latest seizure by Iran amid tensions with the U.S. over advancing the nuclear program. Read More

Case Report: Massive Corruption in Construction at

Delhi Housing Societies

In this case report, I have tried to explain the complicity of police and other government officials in this criminal act which is supported by the builders' mafia.

Thousands of people are suffering as a massive construction-cum-corruption racket led by builders’ mafia is happening in India’s capital New Delhi. The floor area ratio (FAR) scheme of the government allows Delhi’s cooperative group housing societies (CGHS) to carry out lethal construction in occupied housing societies.

The floor area ratio (FAR) construction in Delhi housing societies is spreading lethal dust pollution, noise pollution, and causing serious accidents in residential buildings.

This scandal is being run under the garb of widening the occupied houses where men, women (including senior citizens), and children are living. The expansion of existing houses is being imposed on residents to extort huge money from them.

The construction for expansion of houses - which runs for years - is spreading lethal dust pollution, noise pollution, and causing serious accidents in residential

buildings. The repeated complaints to authorities by the aggrieved residents are falling on deaf ears.

The crime under FAR construction is termed as Widehouse Corruption Scandal. You can click here to study a detailed report that I have compiled on the Widehouse Corruption Scandal in Delhi.

Although a number of departments and officials are involved in this citywide scandal, the criminal management committee (MC) members of housing societies mainly collude with the corrupt officials of Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Registrar Cooperative Societies (RCS) office of Delhi Government, Delhi Fire Service (DFS), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), and Delhi Police to commit this crime.

As a journalist and environmental activist, I have been fighting against this environmentally hazardous crime for the past few years. In this case report, I have tried to explain the complicity of police and other government officials in this criminal act which is supported by the builders' mafia.

Even when deaths are taking place because of FAR construction in housing societies, the police officials file sketchy inquiry reports to brush the case under the carpet unscrupulously. In this particular case, the police sent me an inquiry report under directions from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India. This police inquiry report is full of flaws and misleading details while the police have not taken any action against the real culprits and the harmful construction continues.

[ You can click here to watch a video report on this lethal construction. ]

On April 25, 2023, I sent a 37-page letter including documentary evidence to the Police Commissioner of Delhi and other authorities to take action against the culprits involved in this crime and stop construction so that people could live in a corruption-free and pollution-free environment.

You can click here to read my letter sent to the Police Commissioner of Delhi.

Thank you

Rakesh Raman

Modi-Clone Kejriwal Wastes Crores of Rupees on His House Renovation

In fact, Kejriwal is a blind follower of Modi, although both belong to different political outfits.

Delhi chief minister (CM) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwalaccording to reports - has splurged a whopping Rs. 45 crore on the renovation of his house.

But in defense of this wastage of public money, shameless AAP politicians are arguing that if prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi can spend Rs. 500 crore on his new home, why Kejriwal cannot spend Rs. 45 crore. Kejriwal who behaves as a genetically deformed clone of Modi tries to repeat Modi’s idiosyncrasies. For

Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister, Delhi

example, recently Modi asked people to take 5 pledges to make India a developed nation. After that, in a video, Kejriwal offered 5 clichéd suggestions such as education, healthcare, etc. while announcing his plan to Make India No. 1.

In fact, Kejriwal is a blind follower of Modi, although both belong to different political outfits. If Modi visits Ram temple, Kejriwal goes to Ram devotee Hanuman temple. If Modi participates in a Hindu yatra (procession), Kejriwal leads a Tiranga yatra (Indian flag procession). If Modi lies that he is facing death threats, Kejriwal does not waste any time to claim that he is also under threats.

Thus, both have a very dangerous commonality: both are looting public money without any scruples. Modi travels in expensive aircraft, owns luxurious cars, wears colorful costumes to show his richness, and lives in a palace-like house.

Kejriwal emulates Modi model of ostentation, as he too travels with an army of security men, presumably owns cofferes full of money as his AAP colleagues are jailed for massive corruption, and spends crores of rupees just on his house renovation.

In a country where millions of people do not have a shelter and sleep on open roads - and many of them die on the roads in extreme winters and summers - Modi and Kejriwal are mocking those poor people with the ostentatious display of their richness. Both are shameless creatures.

Now with the evil aim to occupy Modi’s position as PM of India, Kejriwal has been attacking Modi’s ability to run the country. Kejriwal says that Modi is the most corrupt and illiterate PM that India has seen after its independence in 1947.

But as a matter of fact Modi and Kejriwal share the same megalomaniac traits. In their mad scramble to grab power by hook or by crook, they are treating people like slaves.

Today, in their autocratic rule, people are suffering under extreme corruption, inflation, unemployment, injustice, and religious animosity. But they are hoodwinking people by splurging huge public money on fake advertisements to falsely show their work.

With their eyes on the 2024 Lok Sabha election, Modi and Kejriwal have started delivering deceptive speeches to deceive the voters. Both of them are trying to promote fake nationalism, which is similar to the German nationalism practiced by the Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler.

Instead of respecting democratic principles, Modi and Kejriwal are gaining undue political advantage by dividing people on religious and fake patriotic lines.

Although Kejriwal has completely destroyed Delhi, he often tells lies across the country about schools and hospitals in Delhi. Actually, the people of Delhi are suffering under rampant corruption, lethal pollution, rotten education systems, and crumbling healthcare infrastructure. But Kejriwal spends huge public money on advertisements to hide his administrative failures and deceive the public.

Meanwhile, Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is demanding Kejriwal’s resignation for spending money on his house renovation. But these dishonest BJP leaders never ask for Modi’s resignation as both Kejriwal and Modi are equally notorious politicians.

Congress Misleads People About Police FIR on Amit Shah

As a complainant Congress can only submit a complaint to the police which can decide whether or not an FIR is to be registered on the submitted complaint.

The Congress party claimed on April 27 that it has given a first information report (FIR) against Union Home Minister Amit Shah for his obnoxious statements against Congress in Karnataka where state election will take place next month. Congress

leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said publicly that Amit Shah is spreading religious hatred and making false statements during his Karnataka election campaign.

“We have given an FIR against Union HM Shri Amit Shah to be lodged and action to be taken against him for spreading hatred among classes and religions, disrupting the harmony of the peaceful state of Karnataka, committing corrupt practices, knowingly making false statements and attempting to malign the INC (Congress),” Surjewala tweeted.

In his confusing statement, Surjewala said that Congress has given the FIR. However, the FIR can only be registered by police. As a complainant Congress can only submit a complaint to the police which can decide whether or not an FIR is to be registered on the submitted complaint.

Congress fails to understand that Amit Shah is the Home Minister who controls police and other law-enforcement agencies of the country. No police officer can dare to register an FIR against Amit Shah. Congress - which is a defunct outfit -

Amit Shah. Photo: BJP (file photo)

alleges in its complaint given in Bengaluru's High Grounds Police Station that Amit Shah said there will be communal riots in Karnataka if Congress wins the election.

The traditional party claims that it has also approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take action against Amit Shah who has tried to influence the Karnataka voters with his provocative statements. But ECI again is a toothless outfit which does not have courage to act against the ruler Amit Shah.

Congress filed its complaint against Amit Shah under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Representation of People Act. But no action against the Home Minister is expected.

In contrast, when Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made an innocuous statement in his 2019 election speech in Karnataka about the “Modi” surname of prime minister Narendra Modi, the law-enforcement agencies and courts moved swiftly to punish the Congress leader.

Now, as a result of the court decision against Rahul Gandhi in the “Modi” defamation case, he has been disqualified from parliament and it is possible that he might be jailed for two years.

So, George Orwell rightly said in 'Animal Farm': All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.

Dystopian State

It is not possible to survive and thrive in Indian politics if you are not corrupt. You can leapfrog in the dirty political arena if you are a history-sheeter with a solid criminal record which must include dacoity, vandalism, murders, rapes, and robbery. Today, the majority of the successful Indian politicians have such a distinguished criminal record.

While ordinary citizens are suffering under their atrocities, the Indian bureaucrats, court judges, police, and security forces behave as the slaves of the criminal politicians and never try to protect citizens and their rights. ~ Rakesh Raman

Crime, Corruption, and Impunity in India

Politicians, bureaucrats, police, and judges have formed a criminal gang in India. The following cases depict how they collude with criminals and commit crimes and corruption with impunity while the ordinary citizens are suffering. Click the following links for details.

UN Petition on Punjab Unrest RCS-EOW Case

Cabinet Secretariat Case

Prime Minister Office (PMO) Case

Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Case

Delhi Lokayukta Case

DoPT Case CBI Case

Economic Offences Wing (EOW) Case Supreme Court Case

Delhi Govt Case Delhi Petitions Committee / CVC Case

NHRC Case Petition on School Education

Environmental Crime Case

Judicial Corruption Case

Lokpal Removal Case

RCS Corruption Case

Lokayukta Delhi Corruption Case Widehouse Scandal

NHRC Case at UN HRC IAS Group Corruption Case

CPGRAMS Cases PGMS Cases

IAS Corruption Record

UNCAC Petition

Delhi Police Case DoPT Processes

RCS RTI Violations

DDA Corruption Case

Petitions and Representations by Rakesh Raman. Up to April 2023

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SGPC Completes Signature Campaign to Get Sikh Prisoners Released

In the case of Punjab, there is hardly any attempt by the SGPC or any other Sikh organization to approach the international forums to get Sikh prisoners released.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has intensified its campaign to get Sikh political prisoners released from jails.

Starting the signature campaign for release of Sikh prisoners at Sri Amritsar on December 1, 2022, SGPC President Harjinder Singh Dhami and members Photo: SGPC

In a statement tweeted on April 22, 2023, SGPC said that nearly 25 lakh people participated in its signature campaign for the release of Bandi Singhs (Sikh prisoners) lodged in different Indian jails even after completing their sentences.

The statement added that the proformas filled under this campaign will be handed over to the Governor of Punjab Banwari Lal Purohit on April 27. While the SGPC did not include the list of Sikh prisoners in its statement, a tentative list of 85 Sikh

political prisoners is available on the internet. These prisoners were jailed for committing various crimes as part of their political activities and some of them are in jails for more than 25 years.

According to reports, various Sikh groups have been protesting on the Chandigarh-Punjab border since January 2023 to get Sikh prisoners released from jails.

As authoritarianism is spreading in all parts of the world, the authoritarian regimes in countries such as Belarus, China, India, Iran, Myanmar, Nicaragua, North Korea, and Russia have imprisoned thousands of their political opponents.

Despite international pressure, the despotic governments do not release political prisoners. In December 2022, for example, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) passed a resolution for the release of prisoners in Myanmar. But they were not released.

In the case of Punjab, there is hardly any attempt by the SGPC or any other Sikh organization to approach the international forums to get Sikh prisoners released.

SGPC secretary Partap Singh said in the statement that a four-member delegation led by SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami will meet the Governor Banwari Lal Purohit. The other three members of the SGPC delegation include SGPC senior vice-president Baldev Singh Qaimpur, junior vice-president Avtar Singh Raya, and general secretary Bhai Gurcharan Singh Grewal.

The SGPC secretary said that before proceeding to the Governor house, a Panthic (community) gathering will be held to offer Ardas (Sikh prayer) at Sri Akal Takht Sahib at 7 am. In this Panthic meeting, Jathedar of Sri Akal Takht Sahib Giani

Harpreet Singh, Jathedar of Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib Giani Raghbir Singh, head granthi of Sachkhand Sri Harmandar Sahib Giani Jagtar Singh, SGPC president

Harjinder Singh Dhami and heads of various Sikh organizations including all SGPC office-bearers and members were expected to participate.

Will Wrestlers Get Justice in Sexual Harassment Case Against BJP Leader?

You can safely conclude that the wrestlers’ protest will go futile and they should be prepared to face more injustice in today’s India.

Top Indian wrestlers have refused to pause their protest against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh who is facing multiple allegations of sexual harassment involving women wrestlers.

Will Wrestlers Get Justice in Sexual Harassment Case Against BJP Leader?

Brij Bhushan - who belongs to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of prime minister Narendra Modi - is alleged to be a wild predator who has tried his dirty hands on most female athletes including minors. He denies allegations. As Modi and BJP were trying to protect Brij Bhushan, the police were not filing a case against him. While wrestlers have been protesting for the past few days in Delhi, they also approached the Supreme Court to get Brij Bhushan punished.

After the Supreme Court intervention, Delhi Police - which works like a mercenary private militia of the Modi regime - agreed on April 28 to file an FIR (first information report) against the accused Brij Bhushan.

However, Delhi Police’s reputation is so bad that the wrestlers said they have no trust in this police and decided to continue their protest until Brij Bhushan is arrested and removed from his position at the WFI.

But the wrestlers should know that even a jail term for Brij Bhushan will not be sufficient. These days, top politicians enjoy all luxuries - including full-body massage in jails - and keep moving out of jails at their will.

According to reports, Brij Bhushan has 40 criminal cases filed against him. Therefore, it will not be easy to keep him in jail and Modi’s BJP - which has special liking for people with criminal records - is not expected to remove him from any position.

Earlier, despite a massive protest by farmers, Modi did not remove another BJP leader Ajay Mishra, a Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India. Ajay Mishra is accused of a conspiracy to murder a few protesting farmers in 2021 at Lakhimpur Kheri in the Uttar Pradesh (UP) state.

And even if Brij Bhushan is jailed, the Modi government will soon release him as it had released last year the Bilkis Bano case convicts who were jailed for the rape and murder of innocent people.

So, the protesting wrestlers - including Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat, and Bajrang

Punia - should not expect any justice in the current regime. Rather, all sports persons should never hobnob with politicians when they win laurels for the country because most politicians are crooks. If these aggrieved wrestlers have any doubt

and want to know more about the extreme lawlessness in India, they should watch the recent BBC documentary: India: The Modi Question.

So, you can safely conclude that the wrestlers’ protest will go futile and they should be prepared to face more injustice in today’s India.

About the Editor

The editor of The Unrest news magazine Rakesh Raman is a national award-winning journalist and founder of the humanitarian organization RMN Foundation. Besides working at senior editorial positions with leading media companies, he was writing an exclusive edit-page column regularly for The Financial Express (a daily business newspaper of The Indian Express Group).

Nowadays, for the past 12 years, he has been running his own global news services on multiple news sites. He runs various environment protection, education awareness, and anti-corruption campaigns, and publishes digital magazines and research reports on different subjects. Earlier, he had been associated with the United Nations (UN) through the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) as a digital media expert to help businesses use technology for brand marketing and business development.

Donate: You can click here to donate to RMN News Service.

At present, Rakesh is associated with the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project as a Country Expert for India to provide expert research inputs on multiple topics pertaining to democracy and governance. The V-Dem Project is managed by V-Dem Institute under the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

In order to inform the Indian citizens and the global community about the extent of corruption in India, he compiled and released in October 2022 a comprehensive report on corruption in the country. Under the title “India Corruption Research

Report 2022 (ICRR 2022),” the research report covers diverse aspects of corruption in India. He has also been publishing The Integrity Bulletin news magazine since 2018 to cover local and international corruption issues to engage with different stakeholders who are trying to combat corruption in the world. He has also announced the new project for 2023 to compile the India Corruption Research Report 2023 (ICRR 2023). You can click here to know about the project and support it financially with your donations.

He has launched a nationwide campaign to introduce social democracy in India in order to build an egalitarian society in which all citizens could enjoy equal rights, opportunities, freedoms, and access to justice. He is running an editorial section / microsite “Power Play: Lok Sabha Election 2024 in India” to cover the election news, events, and political campaigns.

He is also running a nationwide campaign to save school students of India from directionless education so that students could acquire modern skills that can help them in the job market. In his anti-corruption activities, he participated in a global petition led by Germany-based international organization Transparency International to call for the UN General Assembly Special Session against Corruption, UNGASS 2021, to direct all countries to set up central, public registers of beneficial ownership.

He runs a community-driven anti-corruption social service “Clean House” to help the residents of Delhi raise their voice against the growing corruption and injustice in housing societies where millions of people suffer because of rampant corruption and lawlessness. He has also formed an environment protection group called Green Group in New Delhi, which is the most polluted national capital in the world.

As Rakesh has been facing constant threats including death threats for his editorial and anti-corruption work, the Paris-based international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) that defends freedom of journalists has urged the Indian

government to save him from threats and persecution. You can click here to read his full profile.

Collaboration with the Project

THE UNREST news magazine is being published by RMN Foundation, which is the humanitarian initiative of RMN News Service. It is being circulated among different UN agencies, government departments, leading global politicians, international political organizations, colleges / universities, law-enforcement agencies, civil society organizations, social activists, and others in India and abroad.

As the founder of RMN Foundation and editor of RMN News Service, I am managing this project independently without any financial or other support. RMN News Service is looking for sponsors and collaborators across the world who can help it expand the content creation activity around this editorial initiative.

Contact

Rakesh Raman Founder

RMN Foundation

463, DPS Apts., Plot No. 16, Sector 4 Dwarka, Phase I, New Delhi 110 078, INDIA Call: 9810319059 | Contact by email