Afzal Guru’s case

Hi Everyone,

No this is not one of the posts arguing that Afzal is innocent and should be acquitted – for I am too ordinary a person to know the factual details. This is neither a stupid argument from some of the politicians who claim that Afzal has to be pardoned because he is a Kashmiri – for I believe that would be a grave injustice. This is neither a piece which claims that if his death sentence is not commuted, India will burn. 

However, I am doing this only after I have seen the kind of theories and counter-theories that are going around. Some in favour and ofcourse, majority against the accused. At the same point of time some of the comments made on one of the blogs that I recently browsed are very thought provoking. Infact, this post of mine is almost a reproduction of my own effort on that blog.

The comments appearing in most of the blogs support one or the other side and as I have already mentioned I am not to criticise any one for no reason at all. I just thought of giving a back drop of the phenomenon called Afzal ko Bachao or Afzal ko phaansi do - depending on which side of divide you are from.

I clearly remember when the trial started for the Parliament attack very few in Kashmir were interested in knowing actually what is happening. At that time we never thought of who is innocent and who is guilty. We knew, regardless of what the actual circumstances were and who ultimately conspired and perpetrated the act, ultimately Kashmiris will have to lose in a big way.

Though I never kept track of the trial; but it was obvious that Indian Gov’t needed to undertake a speedy trial for an attack on the highest institution of democracy was tantamount to committing the biggest crime in the nation. But more than the people, it were the political parties eager to cash in from whatever emerged out of the trial.

When a blanket death sentence was awarded to all including S A R Geelani that is when the people realised that may be there is more to it than meets the eye. Details about how Mr. Geelani was “implicated” started emerging and it was widely believed thereafter that not-all-was right.

Many NGOs and students from the professor’s university thereafter campaigned for him and finally he was acquitted. I think only after that some of the Kashmiri leaders felt that they have let their own people down by not having some concrete plans to secure the acquittal of the professor.

Even after that details about Afzal’s actual role were never available to public leave aside his trial… When I say were not available to public means the media was not interested in looking at the other side of the coin. They simply went ahead with the popular perception that Afzal is guilty and should get the death penalty.

Then Supreme Court upheld the death sentence (even after observing that the proper procedures have not been followed) and they surely must have had some reasons to feel the crime merits the capital punishment. And that is when protests started in Kashmir finally echoing in Delhi, mumbai and else where courtesy 24X7 news channels.

Famous Indian thinkers like Nandita Haksar, Arundhati Roy and others also joined the chorus for the clemency (They may / may not believe that Afzal is guilty). Suddenly you have politicians from either side of the divide joining the debate… A news channel running a one-hour special titled “Afzal ko Phaansi do” and next day trying to restore its credibility among Kashmiris by bringing in a separatist to debate with a BJP leader – again for one hour.

I personally do not know if Afzal is innocent or not; but if you have senior lawyers like Ram Jethmalani on CNN-IBN saying the trial was not fair, it is surely going to raise doubts.

Those who think that Kashmiris want clemency to be granted just because he is a Kashmiri are living in a fools paradise. These are the same people who don’t battle an eye-lid when a “security personnel” guns down a handicapped musician just because he mistook him for a militant. May I ask what punishment should be given to him? Just because it was loss of a Kashmiri life does the crime become less heinous. I can quote countless number of similar instances but it won’t make any effect on those who have blindly accepted the fact – Every Kashmiri is a terrorist.

May this provide some food for thought for those who still believe that the ordinary Kashmiri is a cannibal who likes to see people being mercilessly killed.

Juz A Kashmiri