To,
Dr. Manmohan Singh
The Prime Minister,
Government of India.
Shri Jairam Ramesh
Minister for Environment & Forests
Government of India.
The Chief Minister,
State of Chhattisgarh, Raipur.
The Chairman,
National Human Rights Commission,
New Delhi.
We at LIBRA India, refer and seek your kind attention to the matter of Shri Ramesh Agarwal and Dr. Harihar Patel, the environmental activists who have been receiving the wrath of administrative machinery as a consequence to their concerned and noble efforts directed towards protection and safeguard of environment.
Before we move to the main issue, we humbly seek your response on the following burning issues:
- Whether Democracy and Socialism have become a myth in India?
- Whether the rights available to any citizen in a democratic state are still available to citizens of India?
- Whether the right to free speech and expression as enshrined under the Constitution of India are actually guaranteed to the citizens of this country?
- Whether the capitalist attitude and eagerness to become a world power has completely swallowed the socialistic ideals of our country?
- Whether the third pillar of the basic structure – Judiciary, is still independent and free from the clutches of administrative power and pressure?
- Whether the statutory rights available under the Right to Information Act, 2005 are real rights or illusory rights?
- Whether the Administration and Judiciary are ready for the revolution brought about by right to information and the public action taken thereafter ?
The aforementioned crucial questions crop up in the mind of any prudent Indian who has witnessed or heard about the unfortunate treatment meted out to one of the prominent RTI and Environmental Activist, Shri Ramesh Agarwal.
Shri Ramesh Agarwal has been made to suffer the consequences and fury of both the state machinery and judicial system for having exercised the rights guaranteed to him under the Constitution of India. The painful sight of Shri Ramesh Agarwal being handcuffed and ill-treated forces us to enquire that
§ Whether this will be an accepted fate of each citizen of the country who intends to exercise the Right to Information or raises voice for protection of environment?
§ Whether humanity has crossed and surpassed all levels of brutality in the rat race of attaining economic liberation and power ?
§ Whether the basic human rights can be compromised by a democratic state like India at the cost and expense of marching ahead on the road of economic and monetary development ?
Handcuffing and chaining a human being and more so, an activist fighting for the cause of environment protection has brought shame to the Indian Democracy. The statutory provisions under the environmental laws in India have been dumped in the waste bins for favouring the interests of the wealthy industrialists to facilitate the smooth functioning of their ambitious business expansion projects. And, it has been proved once again that the Public hearings are for the influential industrialists and not for the general public.
The series of torturous deaths of RTI activists or the incessant efforts of mighty corporates to put the whistle-blowers for environment protection behind the bars is a writing on the wall that all citizens will have to necessarily toe the line of the corporate desires and be a part of their wealth building exercise at the cost of flagrant violation of the environment and constitutional rights of a citizen of India.
Keeping any person in judicial custody for the offences under sections 501, 502, 503, 504, 504 of Indian Penal Code even after preliminary investigation is over, is surely nothing but a pre-trial conviction, which is against the basic criminal jurisprudence and also the Law Commission Reports.
The inhuman treatment meted out to Shri Ramesh Agarwal is a classic, though disgraceful, example of exercise of administrative muscle power in even stigmatising the judicial independence and the most unfortunate event that has happened in the Indian democratic history.
LIBRA India, calls upon and requests your kind intervention for taking immediate and necessary action against the people involved in this crime of afflicting torture on Shri Ramesh Agarwal and ensure his immediate release from judicial custody by upholding the constitutional spirit.
In anticipation of an expeditious action for saving further disgrace to democracy,
through Its Managing Trustee,
Adv. Sanjeet Purohit,
716, Sector 18, Chopasani Housing Board,
Jodhpur. 342008. Raj. (India)
+91 291 2718816 +91 9414131630.
Jodhpur. 342008. Raj. (India)
+91 291 2718816 +91 9414131630.
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