[Reader-list] The Jamia Enounter: Looking for A Little Less Melodrama and A Lot more Forensics

Mon Sep 22 17:51:50 IST 2008

Hi Shivam,
Are Shuddhas points worth responding ? And what is your definition of
liberals ?

Pawan

On Mon, Sep 22, 2008 at 5:23 PM, Shivam Vij शिवम् विज्
<mail at shivamvij.com>wrote:

> Dear Rashneek,
>
> Instead of responding to the points raised by Shuddha, you proceed to
> attack liberals. Looking London, talking Tokyo?
>
> best
> shivam
>
> On Mon, Sep 22, 2008 at 12:13 PM, rashneek kher <rashneek at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > He must have killed himself in order to prove that terrorists were
> actually
> > hiding in Jamia Nagar,while there were none at all.In all this he would
> have
> > thought that at least after this the liberals will aceppt the encounter
> to
> > be true.But alas even in his death the liberals are not convinced....
> > Die mother India die soon.....
> > Cry my nation
> >
> > On Mon, Sep 22, 2008 at 11:32 AM, Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> > <shuddha at sarai.net>wrote:
> >
> > > A Little Less Melodrama and a Lot More Forensics.
> > > On Looking at a Photograph taken on the Margins of an 'Encounter'.
> > >
> > > (Apologies for Cross Posting on Kafila.org)
> > >
> > > Yesterday's Hindustan TImes published an interesting photograph of
> > > the late Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma of the Special Cell of the
> > > Delhi Police, who was killed, allegedly during the course of the
> > > recent 'encounter' at Jamia Nagar on the morning of Friday, the 19th
> > > of September.
> > >
> > > [ See 'Braveheart Falls', Page 3, Sunday Hindustan Times, 21
> > > September, 2008 ]
> > >
> > > < http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/
> > > ArticleImageEx.aspxarticle=21_09_2008_003_002_002&type=2&mode=1 >
> > >
> > > The page is headlined 'The Hunt for Terror' and while the other
> > > photographs on the page (of the deceased policeman's grieving
> > > relatives) are credited, this particular one is not.
> > >
> > > A number of disturbing questions about this 'encounter' are gradually
> > > beginning to make themselves known. I do not wish to repeat or
> > > reiterate them in this posting  (though I feel that they need to be
> > > carefully thought about). I just want to share my doubts about
> > > particular thing that I can't but help noticing while looking at the
> > > photograph.
> > >
> > > The photograph shows an injured Mohan Chand Sharma walking, helped by
> > > two men, presumably towards a vehicle that would be taking him to
> > > hospital.
> > >
> > > The man on his left is bulky, wears a black T Shirt with a red figure
> > > of 8 on it. One of Sharma's arms is slung around his shoulder. The
> > > man on his right is tall, balding, wears a blue patterned necktie and
> > > a white shirt  (he is also seen on the TV footage from Holy Family
> > > Hospital, where Sharma was taken). His shirt appears stained with
> > > fresh blood on his left arm and in the chest area. He wears a bag
> > > slung across his body.
> > >
> > > Sharma seems to have lost one shoe, appears to be in some pain, and
> > > clearly needs support as he walks. He is wearing an off white bush
> > > shirt, over a white vest and has what looks like some strong blood
> > > stains on his right arm (just below where the man on his right is
> > > holding him) and some faint stains, (which could be small quantities
> > > of blood, or could be stains from having brushed against a surface on
> > > which there is blood) on his right abdomen area.
> > >
> > > Since he is not on a stretcher of any kind, he appears to be in a
> > > position where it is plausible that he walked down the four floors
> > > from the site of the encounter at L-18 and is seen continuing to
> > > walk. He is in pain, but his injuries, at least in this photograph,
> > > do not appear to be life-threatening, at least not as yet.
> > >
> > > Crucially, there do not seem to be any visible signs of excessive
> > > blood loss. In serious bullet injuries, especially when they have
> > > occurred at close range, there is every chance of immediate and large
> > > scale blood loss. If he came down the stairs as he must have, we
> > > would have seen a lot of blood on the stairs, had there been a lot of
> > > bleeding. Having watched the video footage of the staircase
> > > repeatedly and carefully on the day of the 'encounter' I clearly
> > > recall that while the staircase was indeed 'spotted' with small
> > > patches, skid marks and spots of what looked like blood, the amount
> > > of blood did not suggest that a person who was bleeding heavily had
> > > walked down, (or even had been carried down) four flights of stairs.
> > >
> > > Reports of the autopsy conducted on Mohan Chand Sharma's body
> > > indicate that he sustained two injuries -  in his right arm and in
> > > his adbomen.
> > >
> > > [ See - Autopsy Suggests Sharma died of 'excessive bleeding'
> > > by Teena Thacker
> > > Indian Express, Posted Online, September 21, 2008 at 0017 hours ]
> > >
> > > < http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/autopsy-suggests-sharma-
> > > died-of-excessive-bleeding/363891/ >
> > >
> > > But no bullets were found, either in X Ray or during the autopsy.
> > > Suggesting that the bullets would have exited the body. This occurs
> > > when a high velocity firearm is used at close range, such that the
> > > force of the impact tears right through the body, causing the bullet
> > > to be ejected out of the body through an 'exit wound'. If there are
> > > exit wounds, they tend to be larger than entrance wounds, and they
> > > are accompanied by profuse bleeding.
> > >
> > > [ For a discussion of how bullet injuries impact on soft tissue in
> > > human bodies see -
> > > "How a high speed bullet damages an organ'" - from 'Gun Shot
> > > Wounds" (CRC Press, 1985) by Dr. Vincent J.M. DiMaio, Chief Medical
> > > Examiner and Director of the Regional Crime Laboratory, County of
> > > Vexar, San Antonio, Texas ]
> > >
> > > < http://karws.gso.uri.edu/jfk/scientific_topics/wound_ballistics/
> > > How_a_high-speed.html >
> > >
> > > Sharma died of excessive bleeding. The excessive bleeding seems not
> > > to have begun at least till the time that this photograph was taken.
> > > The photograph in the Hindustan Times is consistent with the
> > > possibility of an injured arm, and the blood stains on his escorts
> > > shirt also seem to be in consonance with what would happen if you
> > > were helping a person who has been injured on his arm (or if the
> > > blood has sprayed on to your shirt at close range from another
> > > injured person).
> > >
> > > The ground which the three figures are walking on is clearly visible
> > > in the photograph, again, here too, we do not see the kind of marks
> > > that should be visible if a severely injured and bleeding person were
> > > to be walking.
> > >
> > > If this is so, then some rather disturbing questions seem to begin to
> > > raise their heads.
> > >
> > > Was Sharma shot (at least one more time) after this photograph was
> > > taken, and before he reached hospital? If so, who shot him?
> > >
> > > The only people who can be said to be with him as he travelled from
> > > the site of the encounter to the hospital were his other security
> > > personnel. There were no armed 'terrorists' with him, around him, or
> > > facing him, at this time.
> > >
> > > While Mohan Chand Sharma's career may have been illuminated by
> > > several decorations, there is no doubt that not unlike his deceased
> > > mentor and colleauge, Rajbir Singh, he had, of late come under a bit
> > > of a cloud. The decision to transfer him out of the Special Cell of
> > > the Delhi Police to the Police Training College at Jharoda Kalan
> > > (which has been interpreted as a punishment posting by some) is well
> > > known. He was asked to stay on, or perhaps himself asked to stay on,
> > > for this particular operation. It could have been a last attempt at
> > > another touch of glory in a career that was beginning to lose its
> shine.
> > >
> > > We may do well to remember that Mohan Chand Sharma's erstwhile mentor
> > > and colleague,the late Rajbir Singh, too died in somewhat mysterious
> > > circumstances,  apparently to do with his somewhat unsavoury sideline
> > > as an extortionist and part of a real estate mafia racket (after
> > > having a distinguished list of 'encounters' and 'investigations',
> > > including the 13 December case, to his name).
> > >
> > > WIth Rajbir Singh's and now Mohan Chand Sharma's deaths, two more
> > > people who possibly knew a lot about say, the 13 December case are no
> > > longer in the reckoning, and with a steady chorus mounting for the
> > > execution of Afzal Guru, the day may not be far when no footsoldier
> > > will be left alive to bear witness to what exactly happened on and
> > > around the 13th of December, 2001 and several other less than
> > > transparent episodes in the recent history of what passes as 'anti-
> > > terrorist operations'.
> > >
> > > While today, Mohan Chand Sharma may be commemorated as a 'hero', as
> > > 'braveheart', as a 'martyr' a dispassionate look at his rise may
> > > actually reveal different shades. The possibility, that for many
> > > people within the deep structures of the security establishment, his
> > > 'neutralization' may not be an altogether inconvenient thing, cannot
> > > be ruled out.
> > >
> > > Incidentally, Mohan Chand Sharma's funeral was attended amongst
> > > others by Sachin Vaze and Pradeep Sharma, both top encounter killings
> > > of the Mumbai police, M.C. Sharma's friends, and both currently
> > > undergoing suspension, Vaze because of a case of custodiald death
> > > involving him, and Pradeep Sharma, because of suspected links to the
> > > Mumbai underworld.
> > >
> > > [ See Tarnished Cops Seek Meaning in Sharma's Death by Vikas
> > > Shrivastav and Vivek Sinha, Mumbai Mirror, Posted on September 21,
> > > 2008 ]
> > >
> > > < http://www.mumbaimirror.com/net/mmpaper.aspx?
> > > page=article&sectid=15&contentid=20080921200809210351171019ca733b6 >
> > >
> > > Mohan Chand Sharma may have died a violent death, and every violent
> > > death (including possibly many of those that he may himself have
> > > authored in his career) is tragic and must be mourned. However, much
> > > of what he did, or was made to do, or became habituated to doing, and
> > > all that he represented, still needs to be accounted for. His last
> > > few hours need accounting for. The 'Jamia Encounter' and its link to
> > > the Delhi, Gujarat, Jaipur, Bangalore and Varanasi bomb blasts
> > > doesn't quite look like the open and shut case it is being made out
> > > to be on prime time television. By Sunday evening, a channel called
> > > India TV, (famous for predicting apocalypse on a daily basis) ran a
> > > dramatized 'reconstruction' with the theme of a 13 headed monster
> > > terrorist cell, within two days of Friday's events. Times Now,
> > > another channel, kept saying that they had 'Exclusive' Photographs of
> > > the so called 'Terrorists' at the sites in which they had planted the
> > > bombs. What they showed us were black and white close ups of smiling
> > > young men. The photographs did not in any way indicate 'where' these
> > > men happened to be located.
> > >
> > > Perhaps we need a little less melodrama, and a lot more forensics.
> > > That could help us understand what exactly happened at Jamia Nagar
> > > last Friday, and what is actually going on in the name of the 'war on
> > > terror' in this country today.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > In a
> > >
> > > Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> > > The Sarai Programme at CSDS
> > > Raqs Media Collective
> > > shuddha at sarai.net
> > > www.sarai.net
> > > www.raqsmediacollective.net
> > >
> > >
> > > _________________________________________
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> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Rashneek Kher
> > Wandhama Massacre-The Forgotten Human Tragedy
> > http://www.kashmiris-in-exile.blogspot.com
> > http://www.nietzschereborn.blogspot.com
> > _________________________________________
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>
> --
> National Highway - http://shivamvij.com/
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