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Delhi Riots: ‘Dr Anwar Falsely Referred, Remove Name from Chargesheet’

“The naming of Dr. Anwar in the charge-sheet indicates the abuse of the law and its process at the hand of the police and appears to be communally motivated,” said the statement.
Delhi Riots: ‘Dr Anwar Falsely Referred, Remove Name from Chargesheet’

Image Courtesy: DNA India

Condemning the inclusion of Dr M A Anwar’s name in a chargesheet filed by the Delhi Police in connection with the Delhi riots, public health professionals, health networks, women’s groups and civil liberties alliances and networks, and academics among others released a statement on July 4.

Dr Anwar, who runs a clinic named Al Hind Hospital in New Mustafabad, had come to the rescue of several [over 600] injured persons during the riots that took place in Northeast Delhi, earlier this year, triggered by clashes between supporters and opposers of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. 

However, the Delhi Police have named him in a chargesheet dealing with the murder of a 20-year-old waiter, Dilbar Negi.

The statement, which has been endorsed by Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, Medico Friend Circle, All India Drug Action Network, Right to Food Campaign and People’s Union for Civil Liberties among others, read: “Dr. Anwar and Al Hind played a significant humanitarian role in saving the lives of people who were affected through provision of urgently needed medical services in a situation fraught with violence and fear. Al Hind was one of the few hospitals, which provided treatment for hundreds of patients who were injured, some with grievous bullet injuries and fractures, some traumatised by the violence, etc. and rendered to each person a full measure of service and devotion to humanity and human dignity.”

It added, “The naming of Dr. Anwar in the charge-sheet indicates the abuse of the law and its process at the hand of the police and appears to be communally motivated.  This is an absolute violation of the right to life and liberty, equality, freedom of speech and expression, and to dissent as a citizen.”   

Read the full text of the statement below:

STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF DR. M.A. ANWAR, AL HIND HOSPITAL

DEMANDING REMOVAL OF HIS NAME AND ALL FALSE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST HIM FROM THE CHARGESHEET (FIR 39/20)

We, undersigned medical professionals, public health professionals, health networks, women’s groups and civil liberties alliances and networks, academics, former health secretaries, bureaucrats, lawyers, writers, film makers, and other concerned organizations and concerned individuals strongly condemn the malicious naming of Dr. M. A. Anwar in the charge-sheet of FIR 39/20, Gokulpuri Police Station, dated 28 February 2020.  Dr. Anwar, the proprietor of Al Hind Hospital in New Mustafabad provided medical care to several people who were victims of the targeted violence in north east Delhi in late February 2020, which resulted in the death of more than 53 people, with hundreds of people injured. 

Dr. Anwar and Al Hind played a significant humanitarian role in saving the lives of people who were affected through provision of urgently needed medical services in a situation fraught with violence and fear. Al Hind was one of the few hospitals, which provided treatment for hundreds of patients who were injured, some with grievous bullet injuries and fractures, some traumatised by the violence, etc. and rendered to each person a full measure of service and devotion to humanity and human dignity.   

Dr. Anwar has been falsely mentioned in this charge-sheet alleging instigation of the local people against the government on the issue of CAA-NRC (Citizenship Amendment Act-National Register of Citizens) which led to violence in the area. 

We would like to assert that Dr. Anwar as a medical professional, followed the code of medical ethics, and treated every person who was injured in the riots and who approached his hospital with empathy and diligence. His prompt action to help injured people during the riots was praised by many persons, including the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi, and reports on the violence that recorded the role of Al Hind hospital and its owner, Dr. Anwar in helping victims of the  violence, irrespective of their religion or caste or class. Several medical teams working in the area during and in the aftermath of the violence, witnessed Dr. Anwar’s responsible, untiring response  as a medical professional,  providing healthcare in the most challenging circumstances in the midst of  targeted violence against the Muslim community  in that area at tremendous risk to his own life. Conscientious medical professionals in several parts of the world believe that resistance to oppression and violence go hand in hand with provision of ethical healthcare is irrespective of the context, caste, religion or the background of the patient. 

Thus, it is shocking that a person, who has saved the lives of many through his prompt and timely actions, has now been falsely referred to in the charge-sheet alleging instigation! 

Apart from a violation of his Constitutional and democratic rights as a citizen of this country, the fallacious references to Dr. Anwar in the charge-sheet is a frontal attack on a doctor, an emerging pattern evident from the attacks on other doctors committed to the cause of the people during the ongoing COVID pandemic, which has become the wont of the State. We strongly condemn the targeting and harassment of Dr. Anwar and this is undoubtedly a vindictive attempt at targeting a medical professional despite his incontrovertible humanitarian work.  The naming of Dr. Anwar in the charge-sheet indicates the abuse of the law and its process at the hand of the police and appears to be communally motivated.  This is an absolute violation of the right to life and liberty, equality, freedom of speech and expression, and to dissent as a citizen. 

The state authorities must instead acknowledge the evidence of the large-scale physical and psychological trauma caused to residents as a consequence of the targeted violence and the  care and support extended by the hospital and the commitment of Dr. Anwar.

We urge the police to immediately remove Dr. Anwar’s name from the charge-sheet of FIR (39/20), Gokulpur Police Station, dated 28 February 2020, as these allegations are unwarranted, fallacious and defamatory. We demand that the police desist from harassment and intimidation and that no arrest be made on the basis of prejudiced and unwarranted allegations and investigation. 

Endorsed by:

  1. Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA)

  2. Medico Friend Circle (MFC)

  3. All India Drug Action Network (AIDAN)

  4. Right to Food Campaign (RTFC)

  5. National Alliance of People's Movement (NAPM)

  6. New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI)

  7. National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW)

  8. People’s Union For Civil Liberties (PUCL)

  9. Majdoor Kissan Shakti Sanghatan (MKSS)

  10. National Alliance for Maternal Health and Human Rights (NAMHHR)

  11. K. Sujatha Rao, IAS (Retd.) Former Union Health Secretary. 

  12. Sundar Burra, IAS (Retd.), Former Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, Member, Constitutional Conduct Group

  13. Keshav Desiraju, IAS (Retd.), former Secretary to Government of India, Dept. of Health & Family Welfare, Dept. of Consumer Affairs.

  14. N. C. Saxena, IAS (Retd), Former Secretary, Planning Commission

  15. Kamal Kant Jaswal, IAS (Retd.), Former Secretary to the Govt. of India,  Department of Information Technology , Constitutional Conduct Group. 

  16. Julio Ribeiro, IPS (Retd.), Former Adviser to Governor of Punjab & former Ambassador to Romania

  17. Sharad Behar, IAS (Retd.), Former Chief Secretary, Madhya Pradesh

  18. Niranjan Pant, (Retd.)  Dy Comptroller and Auditor General of India

  19. Amitabha Pande, IAS (Retd.), Former Secretary Inter State Council, Government of India.

  20. Deb Mukharji (Retd.) Indian Foreign Service. Former ambassador to Nepal.

  21. Salahuddin Ahmad, IAS (Retd.), Former Chief  Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan

  22. Shafi Alam, IPS (Retd.), Former Director General, National Crime Records Bureau, GoI

  23. G. Balachandhran, IAS (Retd.), Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal

  24. Nitin Desai, IES (Retd.), Former Secretary and Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of  Finance, GoI

  25. Gopalan Balagopal, IAS (Retd.), Former Special Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal

  26. Rachel Chatterjee, IAS (Retd.), Former Special Chief Secretary, Agriculture, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh

  27. K. P. Fabian, IFS (Retd.), Former Ambassador to Italy

  28. Gourisankar Ghosh, IAS (Retd.), Former Mission Director, National Drinking Water Mission, GoI

  29. Suresh K. Goel, IFS (Retd.), Former Director General, Indian Council of Cultural Relations, GoI

  30. S.K. Guha, IAS (Retd.), Former Joint Secretary, Department of Women & Child Development, GoI

  31. Rahul Khullar, IAS (Retd.), Former Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

  32. Arun Kumar, IAS (Retd.), Former Chairman, National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority, GoI

  33. P.K. Lahiri, IAS (Retd.), Former Executive Director, Asian Development Bank

  34. Sonalini Mirchandani, IFS (Resigned), GoI

  35. Shiv Shankar Mukherjee, IFS (Retd.), Former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom

  36. Avinash Mohananey, IPS (Retd.), Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Sikkim

  37. Alok Perti, IAS (Retd.), Former Secretary, Ministry of Coal, GoI

    1. Selvaraj, IRS (Retd.), Former Chief Commissioner, Income Tax, Chennai, GoI

  38. Navrekha Sharma, IFS (Retd.), Former Ambassador to Indonesia

  39. Vappala Balachandran, IPS (Retd.), Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, Author and Columnist

  40. Sushil Dubey, Former Ambassador to Sweden

  41. Vibha Puri Das, (Retd.),  Secretary, GOI, Ministry of Tribal Affairs

  42. G. Sankaran, Former President, Customs, Excise and Gold (control) Appellate Tribunal

  43. C. Balakrishnan, (Retd.) Secretary, Coal, Govt of India.

  44. K. John Koshy, IAS (Retd.), Former Chief Information Commissioner, West Bengal 

  45. N. Nagalsamy  IA&AS (Retd.), Former Principal Accountant General of Tamil Nadu and Kerala

  46. P. R. Dasgupta, IAS, (Retd.), Former Chairman, FCI and member of Constitutional Conduct Group. 

  47. Sudhir Kumar, IAS (Retd.), Former Member, Central Administrative Tribunal

  48. Hindal Tyabji, IAS Retd.), Chairman of the J&K Public Service Commission 1998-2003 

  49. Siraj Hussain, IAS (Retd.), Ex Union Secretary, Agriculture, Govt of India, New Delhi.

  50. Madhu Bhaduri

  51. Kalyani Chaudhuri, (Retd.), Additional Chief Secretary, Govt of West Bengal, Member of Constitutional Conduct Group

  52. Ashok Kumar Sharma, IFS (Retd.)

  53. Meena Gupta, IAS (Retd.), Formerly Secretary to GOI in the Ministry of Environment and Forests 

  54. Dr. Raju Sharma,  IAS, (Retd.)

  55. V. P. Raja, IAS. Retd Former Chairman, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) Member

  56. Devasahayam MG

  57. Aruna Roy, MKSS

  58. Prateep Lahiri

  59. Sumantra Guha

  60. N. K. Raghupathy, Constitutional Conduct Group

  61. Wajahat Habibullah, Former Chairman National Commission for Minorities 

  62. Harsh Mander, Aman Biradari

  63. Dr. T. Sundararaman, Peoples Health Movement

  64. Dr. Mira Shiva (Public Health Physician) 

  65. Dr. Yogesh Jain, Chhattisgarh

  66. Amar Jesani, Indian Journal for Medical Ethics

  67. Dr. Syeda Hameed, Delhi

  68. Sarojini N, Public Health Practitioner, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan

  69. Deepa V, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, Delhi

  70. Veena Johari, Mumbai

  71. Inayat Kakar, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, Punjab

  72. Dr. Vandana Prasad, Public Health Professional

  73. Dr. Anant Phadke, Pune

  74. S. Srinivasan, LOCOST

  75. Dr. Veena Shatrugna, Medical Scientist (Retd.)

  76. Dr. Priyadarsh Ture, Co-Convenor, Medico Friend Circle

  77. Dr. Ravi Narayan, Bangalore

  78. Dr. Nidhin Cyril, Co-Convenor, Medico Friend Circle

  79. Dr. Vikas Bajpai, Centre for Social Medicine and Community Health, JNU

  80. Dr. Narendra Gupta

  81. Dr. Shakeel, CHARM, Patna

  82. Dr. Sunita Baskar Abraham, Public Health Physician, Bangalore

  83. Dr. Aparna Hegde, Founder, ARMMAN; Assoc Prof (Hon), Urogynecology, Cama Hospital, Mumbai and Founder, Center for Urogynecology and Pelvic Health, New Delhi

  84. Dr. Sonali Vaid, Public Health Doctor, New Delhi

  85. Dr. Priyank Jain

  86. Prabir KC, Public Health Consultant, Kolkata

  87. Dr. Vasundhara Rangaswamy, Physician and microbiologist, Independent

  88. Nandini Sundar, Sociologist

  89. Farah Naqvi, Writer & Activist, Delhi

  90. Kavita Srivastava, Rajasthan State President, PUCL

  91. Annie Raja, NFIW

  92. Suroor Mander, Karwan e Mohabbat

  93. Ravi Kiran Jain, President, PUCL

  94. V. Suresh, General Secretary, PUCL

  95. Brinelle Dsouza, TISS, JSA-MUMBAI, Justice Coalition of Religious - Maharashtra &  Goa

  96. Prof. Mohan Rao, Former Professor, JNU

  97. Nandita Narain, Delhi University

  98. Shabnam Hashmi, Social Activist, Delhi

  99. Kalyani Menon-Sen, Feminist Learning Partnerships

  100. Navsharan Singh, Aman Biradari

  101. Natasha Badhwar, Karwan e Mohabbat

  102. Sandeep Pandey, Socialist Party (India)

  103. Dr. John Dayal, Member, National Integration Council [2004-2014], President, All India Catholic Union [2004-2008]

  104. Dr. Sagari Ramdas, Food Sovereignty Alliance

  105. Asha Kilaru, Bangalore Birth Network

  106. Vineeta Bal, Pune

  107. Dr. Hafiz Muhammed K 

  108. Dr. Saima Furqan, Independent Doctor

  109. Rita Manchanda, Delhi

  110. Chayanika Shah, Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai

  111. Dr. T. K. Sundari Ravindran, Retired Professor, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology

  112. Jashodhara Dasgupta, Independent Researcher, New Delhi

  113. Pamela Philipose, Journalist, New Delhi

  114. Sheba Chhachhi, New Delhi

  115. Vani Subramanian, Independent Film Maker, Delhi

  116. Devika Singh, Child Rights Worker 

  117. Dr. Sylvia Karpagam, Public health doctor 

  118. R. Srivats

  119. Nikhil Dey, MKSS

  120. Dr. Mohit P. Gandhi, Ph.D. Student, JNU

  121. Dr. Satendra Singh (Individual Capacity), University College of Medical Sciences & GTB Hospital, Delhi

  122. Ramani Atkuri, Public Health professional, Bhopal

  123. Arundhati Dhuru, NAPM

  124. Bittu K. R., Associate Professor of Biology and Psychology, Ashoka University; Transfeminist, WSS 

  125. Akhila Vasan, Karnataka Janaarogya Chaluvali 

  126. Dipta Bhog, Women's right Activist

  127. Sneha Rajaram, Writer, Bangalore Lata Singh, JNU

  128. Manisha Gupte, Gender and Health Rights Activist

  129. Ravi Duggal, Independent Researcher and Activist

  130. Suhas Kolhekar, National Alliance of People's Movement (NAPM)

  131. Sulakshana Nandi, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, Chhattisgarh

  132. Dr. Sunil Kaul

  133. Mishika Singh, Lawyers for Detainees

  134. Lawyers For Detainees

  135. Dr. Karishma Thariani

  136. Karan Seth, Lawyers for Detainees

  137. Karen Gabriel, St Stephen's College, Delhi University

  138. Kiran Kumbhar, Harvard University

  139. Malini Ghose, New Delhi

  140. Meera Sanghamitra, NAPM

  141. Mr. Shadan Farasat, Advocate, Supreme Court of India

  142. Kai Friese, Journalist

  143. Shankar Singh, MKSS

  144. Avijit Dutt, Actor

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