India
oi-PTI
TMC MP Mahua Moitra has written to the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues alleging that senior Muslim IAS and IPS officers in West Bengal were excluded from official events linked to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visits to the state on account of their religion.
Moitra had flagged the issue in a social media post a few days back alleging that Muslim IAS and IPS officers were kept away from events attended by Shah in north Bengal. She had named Siliguri Police Commissioner Waquar Raza, West Bengal Police’s Special Task Force chief Jawed Shamim and IAS officer Khalil Ahmed.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra alleged Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s July-August visits to West Bengal involved the exclusion of Muslim officers, including Waquar Raza and Jawed Shamim, from official events attended by him.
A complaint was later filed against the TMC MP in Diamond Harbour over the post, following which the cybercrime police summoned her for questioning. In her letter to Prof Nicolas Levrat, Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Moitra alleged that the three senior officers were either asked to leave or told not to attend official events on three occasions during Shah’s visits to West Bengal in July and August.
The UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues is an independent human rights expert appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to raise global awareness, identify obstacles, and protect the rights of national, ethnic, religious, and linguistic minorities. Moitra alleged that the officers were excluded while their counterparts belonging to other faiths were allowed to participate in the events. “The one factor these three officers share, and the one factor that sets them apart from the colleagues who were permitted to remain, is their religion,” she alleged in the letter.
The TMC MP claimed that the alleged exclusion involved officers whose presence was connected to official protocol and the conduct of government business during the Union Home Minister’s visits. Moitra had earlier alleged that Waquar Raza was barred from the welcome lineup when Shah was present, while Jawed Shamim was not invited to events attended by the Union minister. She had also alleged that Khalil Ahmed was made to leave a meeting. The allegations made by Moitra could not be independently verified by PTI.
In her letter, Moitra described the alleged incidents as a pattern of “deliberate exclusion” and said such conduct could have wider implications for the confidence of minority communities in the police and security establishment. She cited provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, alleging that the reported conduct was discriminatory. Moitra also argued that the alleged exclusion was particularly significant because Shah heads the Union Home Ministry, which oversees several central police, border and intelligence agencies.
The TMC MP urged the Special Rapporteur to seek information from the Government of India on the reasons for the alleged exclusion of the officers and the authority under which any such instructions were issued. She also requested the Special Rapporteur to urge the government to ensure that no officer is excluded from official functions on the basis of religion and that police and security agencies discharge their duties towards minority communities without discrimination. Moitra also sought preservation of CCTV footage, tour diaries and other records relating to Shah’s visits, and requested the Special Rapporteur to take any other action considered appropriate under his mandate.
