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Excerpts from Tribunal's order on lifting ban from VHP
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To: ALT-HINDU@cis.ohio-state.edu
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Subject: Excerpts from Tribunal's order on lifting ban from VHP
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From: Dinesh Agrawal <DXA4@PSUVM.PSU.EDU>
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Date: Fri, 21 Jul 1995 11:09:44 -0400 (EDT)
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From DXA4@PSUVM.PSU.EDU Fri Jul 21 10: 59:08 1995
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Newsgroups: alt.hindu
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Organization: Penn State University
The Tribunal which had heard the matter of the second ban on the VHP,
was presided over by Justice K. Ramamoorthy. After hearing the two sides
and examining what evidence was produced before him, he struck down the
ban order on June 20, 1995.
Justice Ramamoorthy examined a total of 11 witnesses - including
Mr.NC Padhi, joint director intelligence bureau and joint secretary,
home ministry - and he did not find any of them credible.
The learned judge found all these witnesses "wholly untrustworthy"
(p-46), " a total liar" (p-78) etc. Nor did he give much credence to
the evidence of Joint Director I.B. and Joint Secretary Home. Mr Padhi
invoked paucity of resources for not recording speeches he had found
objectionable and actionable. The learned Judge remarked: "All is not
well with Intelligence Bureau and the whole thing appears to be a
made up affair".
The joint Secretary Home admitted that none of the alleged objec-
tionable speeches had led to any tension or unpleasantness. He also
admitted that no State Govt had taken any action against any of these
speakers under any law of the land (p-100). It also emerged in the
course of the hearing that much of the "evidence" had been prepared
after the ban was re-imposed on VHP, and it had not been sent up to
the Home Ministry earlier.
Here are some more pertinent passages from the Tribunal's order:
I ask myself the question what is the need for notifications one
after another? If that is the intention of the Govt, there will be
no end to this process. WHo wants disharmony amongst the citizens?
As far as my little experience goes all the citizens of this country
are law-abiding and they try to do their best to contribute their
might for the progress of the country and but for the hard work and
dedication of the people it would not have been possible for us to
have the courage to enter the international arena for enterprise,
business and compete with other developed nations of the WOrld in
Science and Technology. It is not the politics framed by the govt that
works wonders, coming out as if, from a magic wand, but the conviction
and the faith of the people in the body polity and the will and the
determination to govern themselves with courage and fortitude. The
centrifugal force is the unity in diversity and the feeling of
oneness and the abiding faith in the innate goodness of men. (p-3-4).
But the question is who is behind the mischief creating difference of
opinion? The answer is not far to seek. The insatiable desire to be in
power makes persons to lose balance. That is the genesis of the prevailing
conditions in the country. Therefore, the people of this country have
to bring about the change in men in the corridors of powers and their
outlook and instill in them a sense of sacrifice and well-being
of all. We all know that we are at the cross-roads and unless determined
efforts are made we cannot maintain the democratic system and we
cannot achieve self-suffciency and we cannot compete in the global
markets to improve our economy. Time was when rex (government) was
lex (law). We now seek to say lex is rex. Government is neither lex
or rex, in a democratic country, it requires string moral fibre on
the part of the persons in power to resist the pressure seeping
from the electoral arena and they should try to withstand the
pressure and act in the interest of the country (p-13).
I am not able to resist the conclusion that public witness (PW) 7
is not the person who attended the meeting. The field report found in
the file is not the speech made by the speaker in the meeting, I
find PW 7 wholly untrustworthy. Therefore, I have no hesitation in
rejecting the evidence of PW 7. Therefore, my conclusion with
reference to the meeting dated 25.6.93 as mentioned in the paragraph
4(i) of the notification is, there is no proof of any such speech
and the field report is not at all acceptable. Therefore, the govt.
has not proved ground No.1 in paragraph 4 in the notification (p-46).
I am sure such records are maitained by the IB department and but
for reasons best known to it they are not forthcoming. This impression
is with reference to all witnesses examined by the Central Govt i.e.
PW 1 to PW 9. In the absence of this record from the IB, I have not
been able to persuade myself to accept that PW 1 attended the meeting
on 8.9.93 at Ahmedabad. Consequently, there is absolutely no material
that the speech, as alleged in paragraph 4(ii) of the notification,
was made by Shri Ashok Singhal. Therefore, this ground is not proved
(p-48-49).
Therefore, I am not able to believe the evidence of PW 2. Central
govt has miserably failed to establish that Shri Ram Chandra Paramhans
and Shri Nirtya Gopal Dass made such speeches, mentioned in notifica-
tion in paragraph 4(iii) and (iv). (p-51)
The evidence of PW 3 is not at all trustworthy and I have no hesitation
in rejecting the same. Therefore, I am of the view the Govt has not
proved that Acharya Dharmendra made such a speech, as referred to in
paragraph 4(v) of the notification. (p 55-56)
Therefore, I am not able to believe the evidence of PW 4 and the
Central Government has miserably failed to prove that Shri Ram Vilas
Vedanti made the speech, referred to in paragraph 4(vi) of the
notification. (p-62)
I am very clear in mind that PW 9 is a total liar and no credence can
be given to his evidence. I perused the filed relating to the
alleged speech and, to my mind, all is not well with IB and whole
thing appears to be made up affairs. (p-78)
I saw the files. The Joint Assistant Director has signed the alleged
report and he has not been examined. The file does not appear, to
my mind, to have come into existence in the usual course of the
business of the department. Therefore, I have no hesitation to
hold that PW 8 is not speaking the truth and he has been a puppet in
the hands of interested persons. (p-84)
What remains is the evidence of PW 10 and 11. PW 10 Mr NC Padhi is
stated to be Joint Director, IB. I had been watching his demeanour
right from the beginning to the end of his examination. I had been
able to see that he had been anxious to sustain the notification
and he had been trying to be true to his salt. He has projected
himself an officer having immense faith in what is being done in
his department, whether what is done is in accordance with law or
not and whether he can commend that procedure before a court of law.
(p-84)
He contradicts himself. His evidence in my view is oxymoronic
and therefore, cannot be accepted at all. I am not able to resist
my impression on a consideration of the evidence of this witness
that Govt for extraneous reasons had made him to give evidence
to sustain the notification. In our body politic, high officials
of the Government are to act to the distates of the political
bosses and in my view if the purity of the administration is to
be maintained these high officers of the Department should be
really independent and should be insulated from the onslaught
of the political bosses and harassment, in the event of the
officers not agreeing to unreasonable attitude of the political
bosses. pPart from this, I do not want to comment on the evidence
of this witness. (p-85)
In my own humble way, I tried to analyse the evidence of all
these witnesses and I have no hesitation in coming to the
conclusion that the Government has not at all proved that the
speeches, mentioned in the notification in paragraph 4 to 8,
were made by the individuals, mentioned therein, and, therefore,
there was no material available to the Government to make the
declaration and, therefore, I am bound to cancel the notifica-
tion and the said notification stands cancelled. (p-105-106)
The notification has been issued, in my view, for collateral
purposes and not for the purpose of maintaining peace and
tranquility in the society. The Government has taken into
consideration, matters which it ought not have taken into
consideration..(P 114-115)
No judgement of a court, no order of a Minister, can be allowed
to stand if it has been obtained by fraud. Fraud unravels
everything. (p-119)
I have been cudgeling my brains to find out whether all this
exercise by the Government was necessary but in the ultimate
analysis I resigned myself to the position that man in power
is apt to act in his bid to save himself. But I am sure the
citizens of this country deserve a better deal from the powers
that be. I fervently hope that all citizens of this country would
strive hard to make it prominent and powerful in the comity of
nations. I would like to remind ourselves the famous words of
Sri Aurbindo to the then younger generation of India, which is
more relevant today: "I would like to see some of you becoming
great, great not for your own sake but to make India great. Work
that she might prosper. Suffer what she might rejoice so that
she might stand erect amongst the free Nations of the world".
