New Delhi, Feb. 24: Concerned citizens, diplomats, legal experts and politicians gathered at a public meeting organised by Indians for Palestine here Friday to assert ceasefire demand and urge the Indian government to refrain from complicity with Israel.
While expressing concern over the legal terminology used by the ICJ, former diplomat KP Fabian wondered why the ICJ failed to call a spade a spade. “Well, the short answer is that ICJ did not give the verdict without fear or favour.”
Anand Grover, senior Supreme Court lawyer said, “South Africa had the courage and we have to salute them. That is sadly lacking in our country. And I must also salute the South African president who left it to the legal team to decide what the composition was and I happen to know quite a few of them and they have a brilliant team. It puts our legal fraternity to shame by the quality of arguments and the preparations of South African team.”
Adnan Abu Al Haija, Palestinian Ambassador to India, asked the international community to put pressure on Israel and all those who are supporting Israel for immediate ceasefire.
Founding editor of The Wire, Siddharth Varadarajan said, “We have to find ways to make our voices heard, find ways to speak, find ways to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine and we insist that even if the government of India does not have the moral courage to call a spade a spade,… but have no right to facilitate the genocide through the same weaponry and by sending Indian labour as a kind of a new form of indenture into a conflict zone and making it easier for Israel to further marginalise and victimise the people of Palestine.”
Senior Congress leader Salman Khursheed said, “It is almost like a laboratory of hate and laboratory of violence and a laboratory of genocide that we see in Palestine. The least one can ask for now is the immediate ceasefire and we demand ceasefire here now.”
“Unlike many other countries in the Global South that are re-assessing their relations with Israel, India continues its close collaboration with it, particularly in the defence and surveillance sectors. It is deeply disturbing, for instance, to learn from recent media reports that amid Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, twenty Hermes-900 military drones produced jointly by Adani-Elbit Advanced Systems India Ltd. have been sent to Israel for possible deployment in Gaza. Many other Indian companies are also involved in subsidized joint ventures with Israeli weapons manufacturers,” said the organisers in a statement.
“The Indian government is also facilitating the recruitment of Indian workers in replacement of Palestinian workers whose work permits are now suspended. This move is objectionable not just in its support of Israel’s decision against Palestinian workers but also in its indifference to the possible dangers facing Indian workers being sent to Israel. The Indian government has further played into the hands of Israel by suppressing all attempts to protest against the unfolding genocide in Gaza,” the statement said.
A resolution was adopted unanimously, calling upon the Indian government to publicly endorse the latest ruling of the ICJ, stand against all violations of the human rights of Palestinians in Gaza and refrain from any sort of complicity with Israel.
