20090419123 | Editorial: Exposed Setalvad Maintaining Studied Silence | Editorial

By The Editorial Team, on 19-04-2009 19:53

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The recent SIT findings submitted to Supreme Court exposes the evil designs of certain ‘secularist’ NGOs, self styled human rights activists in collusion with a section of media. The SIT, headed by former CBI Director, RK Raghavan along with former DGP CB Satpathy and three senior IPS officers Geetha Johri, Shivanad Jha and Ashish Bhatia was assigned to enquire into post-Godhra riots in Gujarat by the Supreme Court. The SIT report has categorically indicted Teesta Setalvad, a self styled human rights activists running an NGO Citizen for Justice and Peace of tutoring the witnesses, cooking up the macabre tales of wanton killings and slapping false charges against police officials and certain other people alike. The SIT also found the following incidents which were much hyped in the media at the behest of the likes of Teesta Setalvad as false and baseless:

A pregnant Muslim woman Kausar Banu was gangraped by a mob, who then gouged out the foetus with sharp weapons
Dumping of dead bodies into a well by rioters at Naroda Patiya
Police botching up investigation into the killing of British nationals who were on a visit to Gujarat and unfortunately got caught in the riots.

This is not the first time that the likes of Teesta Setalvad have been exposed. Earlier also a section of media carried out the news of the daughters of Ehsan Jafri, an Ex Congress MP being killed in the riots which was later denied by the supposed victims themselves. The attempt to rationalize Godhra incident in which around 57 Ramsevaks were burnt alive inside Sabarmati Express got replicated in baseless stories and rumours about post Godhra riots. One of such act was the farce that was enacted by Mukhrjee Committee instituted by Railway Ministry to enquire the burning of Sabarmati Express. The kind of cheap tactics and double standard that is displayed by these NGOs, self styled human rights activists like Teesta Setalvad, a section of media is what the flawed notion of ‘secularism’ demands. In face to face with any uncomfortable questioning, these ‘secularists’ resort to their oft repeated tactics of withdrawing to the cocoon of what can be termed as ‘strategic silence’. Now that Setalvad has been completely exposed there is little or no discussion over SIT findings in the mainstream media which has been hitherto watching keenly the proceedings in the Supreme Court. Now it seems convenient to them to sweep the SIT report under the din of election news but the fact remains that had the findings been contrary to what has come out, this section of media would have well taken up the story in full gear conveniently linking it with the elections. But the truth does not now favour the likes of Setalvad who now prefer to maintain a studied silence.