In an open letter, 67 retired civil servants have claimed that minorities are being targeted in the country. They sought action against the perpetrators behind acts of violence against people belonging to minority communities in India over the past few years.
They noted the lackadaisical response of the law enforcement machinery to these attack and pointed out that recent incidents undermine our constitutional values and weaken the rule of law to create a new normal in society.
They cited the killings of Mohammed Afrazul, Pehlu Khan, Zafar Khan, Junaid Khan, Umair Khan,
We, retired civil servants belonging to different services and batches, wish to register our deep concern at the continuing incidents of mindless violence in the country, especially those targeting the minorities, and the lackadaisical response of the law enforcement machinery to these attacks.
Mohammed Afrazul, Pehlu Khan, Zafar Khan, Junaid Khan, Anwar Hussain and Hafizul Sheikh, Umair Khan
The civil servants also expressed deep concern over the acceleration of a process of ghettoisation through organised resistance to the sale of properties to Muslims, or refusal by owners to have them as tenants. They also expressed worries over increasing targeting of Christians around the observation of Christmas.
They sought an immediate clear response from the Hon’ble Prime Minister and his government on these issues and demanded immediate and firm action against the perpetrators of such hate crimes against minorities in this country by the respective law enforcement authorities.
They appealed majority community to stand up, oppose and publicly condemn the communalisation of society and country.
S P Ambrose, Former Additional Secretary, Ministry of Shipping & Transport, GoI Ishrat Aziz , Former Ambassador to Brazil & Saudi Arabia Bhaskar Ghose Former Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, GoI, R. Govindarajan Former Chairman, Joint Intelligence Committee, Cabinet Secretariat (in the rank of Secretary to GoI) Wajahat Habibullah Former Secretary, GoI and Chief Information Commissioner. Harsh Mander Govt. of Madhya Pradesh Dalip Mehta Former Secretary to GoI & Dean, Foreign Service Institute, are among the 67 signatories of the open letter.