Being just a year away from the noteworthy 2019 Lok Sabha polls, BJP government is acting really very active in order to silence the opposing voices — be it social activists, oppositions party workers or former IPS officer, nobody is safe from the wrath of the ruling power while the government is very careful about keeping their own fraudster party workers or supporters safe from the web of laws. After the arrest of the activists and they were named as the Urban Naxals, following directives from the Gujarat High Court, Gujarat CID took former Gujarat IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt into custody in connection with a 1998 case to falsely framing a lawyer in a criminal case.
During his tenure as the DCP of Banaskantha in 1998, Bhatt was accused of trying to frame a lawyer in a fake narcotics case. After initial questioning, along with Bhatt, CID has also taken six more people into the custody, including two former police officers.
Bhatt was never in the good books of Bharatiya Janata party; since 2002 Gujarat riots, his name was always on the BJP hit list. In the past few years, he has been an extremely vocal critic of the BJP government at the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social platforms. Although his despair on the administration under the BJP government is not anything new! He was dismissed from the Indian Police Services in 2015 for taking on the then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi’s administration for 2002 Gujarat riots. In 2011, Sanjiv Bhatt had filed an affidavit in SC accusing Narendra Modi of being conniving in 2002 riots. He has also met Patidar leader Hardik Patel who’s on an indefinite fast demanding reservation for his community and farm loan waiver.
Social activist Anjali Damania expressed, “Whoever opposes Modi and Shah, is being targeted. Former IPS Sanjiv Bhat is writing and fighting against BJP’s misrule for a long time and therefore, his arrest is very much expected and not a surprising one. It is just the start before we reach the 2019 polls. Many major criminal cases are pending for long and yet to receive a verdict. Does the government think that people are unaware of its intention?”
The major general election due in the next year and a big list of flops have put an immense pressure on the incumbent central government. While the Modi wave helped BJP riding into the power in 2014, just a few years later, the situation seems to be what can’t be called ‘Modi wave’. While the unemployed youth are agitating for their rights, farmers are committing suicide almost every day. And the ones, who are pointing finger at these flaws and unexecuted promises, are being targeted — either for their alleged Maoist link or for an age-old court case. However, accused involved in Gujarat riots or Malegaon blasts are either granted bail or far away from getting nabbed.
Congress Spokesperson Dr. Raju Waghmare said, “Whichever voice is rising against BJP, the party wants to crush it down at any cost. BJP is acting shamelessly by targeting its opponents. BJP’s main agenda is to shut the mouth of the citizens and especially Congress. The Narendra Modi-led party is running its dictatorship in the country. BJP is putting writers, intellectuals, and many dignitaries behind the bar just because they are opposing the policies of the ruling government. Lois Sofia’s arrest is the most recent example. PM Modi is the second Hitler on our soil.”
The arrested former IPS officer Bhatt was the superintendent of Banaskantha district in 1996. During that time, the Banaskantha police arrested Sumersingh Rajpurohit, an advocate, on charges of possessing nearly a kilogram of drugs. The police claimed that the drugs were detained in a hotel room where Rajpurohit was residing in Palanpur town. But, later the Rajasthan police’s probe revealed that cases against Rajpurohit were allegedly falsely inculpated. As per reports, all these were just to compel him to transfer a disputed property at Pali in Rajasthan. Following that, I B Vyas, former police inspector of Banaskantha moved the Gujarat High Court for a thorough inquiry into the case and the case was handed over to CID this year.
BJP Spokesperson Madhu Chavan asserted, “Police actions are taken following legal procedures; all these are opposition’s propaganda against the government. Targeting the government has become a fashion in the country nowadays. The arrest of Sanjiv Bhatt can’t be lined up with Malegaon bomb blasts and other pending cases.”
While major criminal cases like Gujarat riots or Malegaon blasts are far away from getting justice and the accused, who are apparently close to the ruler gang, are getting all support to stay outside the bars. Riots following the Godhra train burning case on February 28, 2002, claimed more than 1000 innocent lives while 223 went missing and 2,500 were injured. The similar situation prevails in the 2008 Maharashtra’s Malegaon blast case that killed seven and injured more than 100. While Sadhvi Pragya, accused of plotting the blast, was granted bail, another accused retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay is all set to contest 2019 polls from West Bengal’s Jadavpur constituency on Hindu Mahasabha ticket while others are still resting free from the claws of law.
Justice (Retired) BG Kolse-Patil stated, “The incumbent government just can’t digest any criticism from other political parties, activists, social workers or by any common man. BJP is all prepared to smash its opposition before the 2019 polls as both Modi and Shah are not in any mood to tolerate the opposition. So, all the activists should be prepared to be arrested one fine day! Police were stopping everyone from meeting Patidar leader Hardik Patel and I was stopped too. It is nothing but an undeclared Emergency.”
