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A Public Relations Exercise
By A Staff Writer
Mumbai
Muslims in Mumbai are not impressed by the Police Chief’s Letter.
Sharply criticised by the media and community leaders for harassing innocent Muslims during investigations into the July 11, local train blasts, police commissioner, A. N Roy has written a letter to more than 400 Muslim community leaders, assuring them of an ‘impartial’ and ‘unbiased’ investigation. Community leaders, however say that the letter is a “mere public relations exercise’’. Instances of slum-dwellers being rounded up in the middle of the night by policemen, Muslims flying to and from India being extensively interrogated, was causing fear in the minds of innocent Muslims. This had led even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi to send out the message that Muslims should not be harassed during investigations.
“It is clear that terrorism has no religion,’’ Roy says in a letter dated September 2, written in Urdu and Hindi. The police chief says that the task of investigation is extremely difficult, especially since well-trained terrorists did the job with complete planning. “During the investigation, we have arrested several persons on the basis of evidence collected in the case. Many people have also been called in for questioning. I assure you that there is no partiality or religious bias in our investigations,’’ the letter says. “I appeal to all responsible members of the minority community to immediately inform me or senior officers if you come across any such partiality or if you have any complaint with any investigating agency,’’ Roy adds, promising action against anyone found guilty.
Most community leaders say that the letter has not solved anything. “There has definitely been partiality. People have been picked up simply because of the Urdu books they have or because they were members of SIMI 15 years ago, when it was not even banned,’’ says Maulana Mehmood Dariyabadi, general secretary of the Ulema Council. “This is only a public relations exercise. There are certain presumptions among police officers, such as any Muslim with a cap and beard must be a terrorist,’’ says Muslim scholar and peace activist Asghar Ali Engineer.
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