Several organisations in Delhi including the Jamat-e-Islami Hind, India Peace Organisation, Girls Islamic Organisation, Jamat Women’s Wing, Communist Ghadar Party of India, Lok Raj Sangathan and Purogami Mahila Sangathan participated in a dharna at Jantar Mantar on May 16, to protest against the killing of innocent women and men in fake “encounters” by the state security forces. The participants carried placards denouncing the custodial rape and murder of women, the “disappearances” of people in police custody, demanding an end to state terrorism and punishment of the guilty.

Dr, Fatima Shahnaz of the India Peace Organization conducted the program. She denounced the Modi government in Gujarat and its police forces under the command of DG. Vanzara and the Andhra Pradesh police for the rape and heinous murder of Kauser Bi and for the “encounter killing” of her husband Sohrabuddin Sheikh and the chief eye witness. She demanded that Narendra Modi should be hanged for his crimes. She then invited speakers from the participating organizations to address the dharna.

Commenting on the similarity between the “encounter killings” by the Gujarat police and the custodial rape and murder of Manorama Devi by the Assam Rifles in Manipur, the killing of innocents by the armed forces in the name of “encounters” in Kashmir, etc., Sucharita of Purogami Mahila Sangathan denounced the heinous crimes against women, men and children committed by the state security forces. She called for the severest punishment of the guilty and for a united people’s movement against state terrorism in all its forms.

Birju Nayak of the Communist Ghadar Party of India pointed out how, not just in Gujarat but in Kashmir, Manipur and other Northeastern states and elsewhere in the country, the ruling class is increasingly resorting to state terrorism to crush the struggles of the people against the economic reforms in favour of the biggest Indian and foreign monopoly capitalists. Only the rule of the workers and peasants can create an economic and political system where the toiling masses will control their own destiny and those guilty of crimes against the people will be severely punished, he added, amidst enthusiastic applause.

Speaking on behalf of the Lok Raj Sangathan, Prakash Rao gave a rousing call to unite and rise up against state terrorism, with which our rulers are trying to systematically divide the people, crush our struggle in defence of our livelihood and rights and marginalize the working and oppressed people from the political process. To put an end to state terrorism the guilty must be punished and Lok Raj must be established, in which people will be truly empowered to create the kind of political and economic system that can ensure livelihood, peace and security for all, he pointed out.

Leading activists of the Jamat-e-Islami Hind, Dr.N.K Afandi and Mujtaba Farooq condemned the attacks on muslims by the Modi government of Gujarat as also elsewhere in the country and demanded that the criminals in uniform should be hanged.

Swami Agnivesh of the Bandhua Mazdoor Mukti Morcha gave his full support to the movement to oppose state repression and terror.

Rakesh Rafiq of Yuva Bharat and Kavita Krishnan of CPI(ML-Liberation) denounced state terrorism and raised the demand that the guilty should be punished.

Many young school and college girls and boys took part in the protest action and raised slogans such as “Stop state terrorism!”, “Punish the criminals in uniform!”, “Down with the rape and killing of Kauser Bi!”, “We demand security for women!” and “Down with the murder of innocents in fake encounter killings!”.

The spirited protest action attracted many passers-by in the busy Jantar Mantar area, who stopped to hear the speakers and expressed their solidarity with the struggle against state terrorism.