India Tomorrow
NEW DELHI—Former assistant professor of paediatrics in UP’s BRD Medical College Dr Kafeel Khan, who was recently absolved of the charges under the National Security Act (NSA), has thanked the United Nations Human Rights Commission(UNHRC) for “urging the Indian government to immediately release human rights defenders who have been arrested for peacefully protesting against changes in the nation’s citizenship laws and an upcoming national register of citizens”.
UN experts in a letter to the Government of India on June 26 this year had appealed India to “immediately release human rights defenders who have been arrested for protesting against changes to the nation’s citizenship laws”.
In his letter to the UNHRC, Dr. Kafeel has said that the “Government did not listen to the appeal and many others are still incarcerated behind bars amid the Covid-19 pandemic creating havoc inside congested prisons all over India”.
“Authorities are continuing invoking counter-terrorism and national security legislation using procedural police powers against these human rights defenders for raising issues which would affect India’s poorest and most marginalized community, violating international human rights standards”, Dr. Kafeel wrote to the world human rights body.
“Departmental inquiry done by Principal Secretary also absolved me on charges of medical negligence and corruption”, he further wrote.
“I was tortured physically, mentally in prison”
Pointing out how he was treated by the authorities while in jail, he wrote, “I was tortured mentally as well as physically, denied food and water for many days, and treated inhumanly during my 7 months of incarceration in a congested, overcrowded Mathura prison”.
Stating that he was fortunate to get the charges under NSA quashed, he said that the Allahabad High Court called NSA and the “whole process illegal”.
Informing the world body that while dropping NSA charges against him, the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court observed that Dr. Kafeel Khan’s speech at Aligarh Muslim University at Aligarh in India “does not promote hatred or violence”.
“It (Dr. Kafeel’s speech) also nowhere threatens the peace and tranquility of the city of Aligarh. The address givens a call for national integrity and unity among the citizens. The speech also deprecates any kind of violence”, Dr. Kafeel wrote to the UNHRC, quoting from the court order.
He also quoted portions of the high court order with regard to dropping charges under NSA against him and extension of his period of detention.
He also brought to the notice of the world body about the UP government penalizing him in BRD oxygen tragedy on August 10, 2017 without any fault on his part. He said that a severe shortage of liquid oxygen in the BRD hospital had resulted in death of several children. Dr. Kafeel said in the letter that reason for shortage of liquid oxygen supply was the non-payment of dues to the supplier.
“To hide Government failure, I was made scapegoat and imprisoned for nine months, though I left no stone unturned in saving the lives of kids on that day”, he wrote in the letter. Meanwhile, Dr. Kafeel continues to be suspended from job in the BRD college.
He said that the Allahabad High Court on April 25, 2018, categorically stated that “there is no evidence of medical negligence against me and I was nowhere involved with oxygen tender”. The high court in its judgement on April 30, 2018, also observed that the shortage of oxygen happened due to non-payment of dues to the supplier.
He also said in his letter that an attempt to kill his brother was made near the residence of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath when two unidentified assailants shot at him on June 16, 2018.
“I wish both incidents should be investigated by CBI to rule out any complicity of state officials in these incidents”, he wrote to the UNHRC.
He also alleged that his entire family was being victimized.
“No, my concern is that government-sponsored victimization of the whole family is continued while I am struggling to survive since my suspension has not been revoked. Since the last three years I am under suspension despite eight different inquiry conducted by the Up government cleared my name of any wrongdoing. Creating administrative hurdles when I was trying to serve voluntarily is another stumbling block by the administration”, Dr. Kafeel said in the letter.
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