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I accuse, I speak: Jarnail Singh
launches book in Punjab
WSN Network
 You
can accuse him of being hasty in throwing the show, but he has a
simple explanation. He took 25 years before hurling it. And he
hurled it at a system that deserved the shoe much much earlier. Add
just the pain plus a few moments of impulse and then Jarnail Singh
hurled a shoe at the home minister, P. Chidambaram.
Eight months
after the incident, he is out with his book, I Accuse, the title in
tandem with his action on 2nd April, 2009. So here, Jarnail talks
about time too, "Time at times fails to heal. Even after all these
years, when half of the witnesses have died and accused have been
almost forgotten and forgiven, there are many who still are
suffering and hoping for justice even after a quarter of a century
behind them."
Thus, the book
is an account of his agony-afflicted, people's untold stories and
the shoe-flinging incident.
But because we
are the global generation that is more bothered about issues like
female foeticide, drug menace and unemployment, it wasn't very easy
for us to relate to the issue of 1984 Anti-Sikh riots that he
strongly feels about. "It's not in a bid to take up a particular
community's issue but how human rights were compromised and are
still being, by not delivering justice. Human rights is the cause
common to all generations," says the journalist turned author as he
launched his book at Chandigarh's premier The Browser Library and
Book Store.
And gradually we
begin to agree as he further narrates the system's apathy towards
people, "Shanti Kaur, a riot victim lost her father and brother in
the riots, later her husband died and in February 2009, she lost her
son to the drug mafia. But the issue in these 25 years remains the
same: accountability."
It was two
months after the incident that he was approached by Penguin to write
the book, "I did extensive research by visiting widow colonies in
Delhi and other most affected areas. Also, I went through as much
news papers and magazines as I could of that time the incidents
happened to know the discrepancy between what was reported and the
facts."
Life has changed
a lot for Jarnail Singh in the last few months as everyone
recognises him now. People approach him for a debate on his
shoe-flinging act often and he candidly replies, "As a journalist, I
violated a model code of conduct, which I shouldn't have. I was also
fired from my job. Many lawyers showed their interest in taking up
the case but I didn't fight as I knew I wasn't right."
Then there's
another model code of conduct that has been made a mockery of and is
severe than his case. "The Sikh leadership failed the community just
as the government by not being able to control riots. The accused
were being given the Lok Sabha tickets even when Nanavati Commission
report held them responsible. Is this not violation of the model
code of conduct?" he asks.
His action
however, set off a chain reaction before elections, which he hadn't
expected. The issue was once again taken up in the Parliament and
people held protests in Delhi and Punjab. With his book, what he
still aims to accomplish is, "Justice and accountability. Also,
riots shouldn't be taken up as political issues. Riots in Punjab
should not be defended with the argument of riots in Godhra." Hope
aims are achieved in 'time'! (Adapted from a report in The Tribune)
9
December 2009
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