Prosecute Kanchi SP Premkumar, demands Murli Manohar Joshi

Addressing the “Hindu Awakening” conference organized by the VHP at Chennai, on Feb. 6, well attended by over 10,000 people from all walks of life, speakers warned that that the anti-Hindu forces in and outside the country are out to destroy Hindu society and culture. Condemning the arrest of the Acharyas, the speakers pointed out that Jayalalithaa’s actions against the Acharyas provided an opportunity for Hindus to emerge as one force.

The former Union Minister and BJP senior leader Murli Manohar Joshi strongly hit out against Kancheepuram SP Premkumar, who is handling the case and demanded his replacement. Premkumar was promoted as SP by Jayalalithaa’s Government despite facing charges. “It is the murder of law. We should demand that the officer be replaced and prosecuted” he said. (Full details about the charges against Premkumar are online:
“Equal before which law?” Dec. 16, 2004:
http://www.vigilonline.com/interact/discuss/discuss.asp

Lambasting the manner in which the Acharyas were treated, the BJP leader said it was an irony that while criminals were allowed to hold durbars in Bihar jails, the Acharyas were treated badly and humiliated. Such being the case, how could the CM Jayalalithaa argue that all were equal in the eye of law, and sermonize that she would uphold the majesty of law, he wanted to know. Recalling that he himself was treated with dignity and lodged in a guest house after being arrested in the Babri Masjid demolition case, Joshi said, “you know what happened to the Acharyas.” In his view, there was an international conspiracy behind the seers’ arrest. It was a continuation of a series of attacks on the Hindu society. “We must remain united. Those who have faith in Hindu philosophy and tradition must remain ever vigilant,” he said. If one did not react to this attack on a religious centre, such attacks would also take place against centres of other religions. “If you do not respond now, they will be emboldened,” he said. Joshi said the Congress leadership had a role in the arrest of Acharyas, and it would not have been possible for the Andhra Pradesh government to grant permission to the Tamil Nadu police to take the Acharya into custody without the knowledge of ‘someone’ (read ‘Sonia Gandhi’) at the Centre. Joshi said that the Acharyas had been targeted because they had been working to consolidate the Hindu society and alleviate the sufferings of the downtrodden. “If we do not protest against what is happening now, the anti-Hindu forces will be emboldened to act against other intuitions working for the welfare of the Hindus,” he said.

VHP senior vice-president Acharya Giriraj Kishore warned that a systematic attempt was on to intimidate Hindus by brining prestigious institutions into disrepute, and the Hindu community should crush the design of the anti-Hindu forces working against its interest.

Pejawar Math head Swami Visveswara Thirtha described the arrest of the Acharyas as a big blot on the history of independent India, which must be opposed by all Hindus.

Subramanian Swamy, president of the Janata Party, alleged that the Central Government too had a role in the actions against the Acharyas. The accounts of the Kanchi Math could not have been frozen without the approval of the union Finance Ministry. He criticized the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, for being in the company of the MDMK and the PMK despite their stand on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

L. Ganeshan, BJP national secretary, said that the people of Tamil Nadu should reject the two Dravidian parties, the DMK and the AIADMK, and opt for a national force in the Assembly election.

S. Vedantam, another rational vice-president of the VHP, said his organization had planned to hold similar meetings in every Assembly constituency of Tamil Nadu.

H. Raja, BJP State general secretary and Vishwanathan Kakkan also spoke.

In the morning (on Feb. 6), Murli Manohar Joshi, accompanied by Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader, Acharya Giriraj Kishore, VHP International vice-president Vedantam and BJP leader L. Ganeshan, spent nearly an hour with the Senior Acharya. The former minister had gone to Kalavai to seek the Acharya’s blessings and enquire about his health, after the latter came out on bail. The Acharya has been camping in Kalavai ever sine he came out on bail.

The Shankara Math in Kalavai, 55 kms off Kancheepuram, houses the samadhis of the 66th and 67th Acharyas Chandrasekarendra Saraswati and Madhavendra Saraswati.

Speaking to the media at Vellore, he said, “The BJP would continue to inform the people about how the Tamil Nadu government had inflicted great injuries on this great institution, Shankara Math in Kanchi and how the senior Acharyas were arrested, harassed and humiliated.” He was reacting to a question on what role the BJP would play with regard to the issue of the arrest of the Acharyas.

“Copies of the charge-sheet have to be given to the Acharyas. Only then we will know,” he said commenting on the progress of the case s against the Acharyas.

Trial by the media deprecated by the Supreme Court

In this context it may be recalled how clandestinely fed by Jayalalithaa’s police with all sorts of sensational news and cock and bull stories, about the Kanchi Math case, the media (in Tamil Nadu in particular, and elsewhere in general), both electronic and print, freely and merrily indulged in character assassination of the revered Acharyas, while the authorities in the State remained silent spectators to this trial by media. And, on the same day (Feb. 6), when Mr. Joshi was pointing out to the press reporters at Vellore how the Tamil Nadu Government had inflicted great injuries on this most revered Hindu institution, Shankara Math in Kanchi, and how the senior Acharyas were arrested, harassed and humiliated, comes significant news which points out the Supreme Court deprecating trial by media. According to the said reports, the Supreme Court has strongly deprecated the media for interfering with the administration of justice by publishing one-sided articles touching on merits of cases pending in the courts. A bench of Justice N. Santosh Hegde and Justice S. B. Sinha described the trial by media in pending cases as a disturbing factor in the administration of justice. The Bench said: “We deprecate this practice and caution the Publisher, Editor and the journalist who are irresponsible for the articles against indulging in such trial by media when the issue is subjudice. Others concerned in journalism would take note of this displeasure by us for interfering with the administration of justice.”

This timely warning of the apex court is equally applicable to all concerned in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere who freely indulged in such trial by media, in the context of the Kanchi Math case. It is hoped that better sense will prevail and in the light of above strictures from the apex court they will behave themselves, and mend their ways.