Pro.Saibaba’s letter from Behind the Bars

Posted by admin on July 27th, 2017

 ‘Why does this gigantic state fear our hopes, our love,our dreams?’ Prof. Saibaba asks in an emotional letter to his wife
Wheel chair bound Prof. GN Saibaba, who was sentenced to life imprisonment by Maharashtra Court for alleged links to Maoists and for “waging war” against India, has written a letter to his wife A S Vasantha Kumari on the occasion of her birthday.
Saibaba, who is languishing in Yarwada jail in Pune, after the court found him guilty of abetting Maoist activities and incarcerated him for life imprisonment under various sections of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), asks her in the letter to not stop dreaming about an egalitarian and democratic society.

The letter, which was posted by Vasantha Kumari herself on her Facebook account, asks her to take a resolve to ‘face this adversity, this brutality inflicted on them, and violence perpetrated on them’.
Saibaba also urged Kumari to continue her hope and work for the rights of the people adding that his imprisonment should not discourage her.
“This case, this judgement and my incarceration in this prison are not a shame for us. These acts of the state are really a shame for the democracy. We dreamed for a better society, we hoped for the end to the inequalities, for human rights freedom, civil and democratic rights of the oppressed people, Dalits, Adivasis, women, the disabled the minorities. We continue to uphold these values and work for the betterment of the marginalised sections of the people to bring real democracy in our society”, said Saibaba.
He also said that the government can try to crush their hopes but it can not stop them from dreaming again.
”We are small people working for small people’s rights in small ways. Why does this gigantic state fear our hopes, our love, our dreams? Have we done anything wrong to anyone? Did we have to harm anyone? Why are our lives violated? Why are dreams criminalised.? Why are hopes crushed?  Can we live in our own world, in our little dreamy world on our own, dashing against brutal and inhuman violent attack on our dreams? What gives us strength at this hour to you and me?”
Prof. Saibaba
He, in the letter, also called her the lone fighter fighting for his freedom. “Now you are the lone fighter fighting for my freedom. Don’t get disheartened in these dark days we should not lose our hopes and dreams for the darkness can’t permanently overshadow the light. These are not empty words. These are not rhetorical phrases. The history proved several times over that our dreams are not empty ones. Our hopes are not idealistic nonsense. We will win”, he said.
Here read the full letter:
Dear Vasantha,
I wish you have a happy birthday to you. I hope this letter reaches the day of your birthday. Many happy returns of the day. I know how bad you feel without my presence on this day. The state has determined to separate us. It has even determined to destroy us. In 26 years of our married life, we have not looked forward to individual comforts and growths. 36 years of our companionship only hoped and worked for the society. In this context, I can only say you should continue hope and works for the rights of the people in my absence. My imprisonment and my absence should not discourage you. On your birthday today, you take a resolve to face this adversity, this brutality inflicted on us, this violence perpetrated on us.
This case, this judgement and my incarceration in this prison are not a shame for us. These acts of the state are really a shame for the democracy. We dreamed for a better society, we hoped for the end to the inequalities, for human rights freedom, civil and democratic rights of the oppressed people, Dalits, Adivasis, women, the disabled the minorities. We continue to uphold these values and work for the betterment of the marginalised sections of the people to bring real democracy in our society.
They can try and crush our hopes, our dreams, but they can’t stop us still dreaming, still nurturing hopes in our hearts. The false case, the fabricated judgement, and the dubious ways to keep me in prison should not discourage you, should not force you to lose hopes. For me, your birthday is always important, always brings cheers to me. You should feel happy on this day. We are small people working for small people’s rights in small ways. Why does this gigantic state fear our hopes, our love, our dreams? Have we done anything wrong to anyone? Did we have to harm anyone? Why are our lives violated? Why are dreams criminalised.? Why are hopes crushed?  Can we live in our own world, in our little dreamy world on our own, dashing against brutal and inhuman violent attack on our dreams? What gives us strength at this hour to you and me?
On the day of this birthday this year what can I give you? What do I have with me left? The same love. The same love that sprang between us when we met first during school days. You have given more love than I could ever extend to you in all our lives. I can still give you the same dreams that we shared since our adolescent love days.
Now you are the lone fighter fighting for my freedom. Don’t get disheartened in these dark days we should not lose our hopes and dreams for the darkness can’t permanently overshadow the light. These are not empty words. These are not rhetorical phrases. The history proved several times over that our dreams are not empty ones. Our hopes are not idealistic nonsense. We will win.
On your birthday this year from behind these bars, I rededicate myself to your love. I sustain my courage my hopes my dreams because of your love. Whatever I did in my life so far I could do it because you stood like a lighthouse showering love all along me.
WISH YOU MANY RETURNS OF THE DAY
Yours , With lot of love,
Sai
A district court in Gadchiroli last March sentenced Delhi University professor G N Saibaba and four others for aiding and abetting Naxal activities.
“Merely because Saibaba is 90 percent disabled is no ground to show him leniency… he is physically handicapped but he is mentally fit, a think tank and a high-profile leader of banned organisations”, the court had observed then.
Various human rights organisations have decried the judgement as insensitive and violation of earlier Supreme Court judgments.
Reports suggest that his health has deteriorated after the incarceration.
Recenlty, Kumari has posted an emotional appeal on Facebook, demanding intervention of the National Human Rights Commission in Saibaba’s case. She said that he may collapse in the jail any time and his life is in serious danger as the jail administration is not permitting him to take his medicines
Kumari told National Herald that he is inching towards death with every passing minute.
“We send medicines but it does not reach him. A couple of months ago, he wrote an emotional letter, expressing his helplessness. He cannot move his body. He cannot read or write. Most of the time, he, semi-consciously lies on the bed,” Kumari said.
In a Facebook post, she also said tha his ‘vital organs are now so severely getting damaged due to lack of proper medicines’.
”Apart from his physical disabilities, he is suffering from acute pancreatitis and impacted gall bladder-stones. He has been advised immediate surgery for gall bladder just one week before his conviction by an hospital in New Delhi. He was under pre-operative treatment when he was convicted and immediately incarcerated. Pancreatitis is a life- threatening and acutely painful condition. Instead of providing the necessary lifesaving treatment to Prof Saibaba, the jail staff have refused even to let him be attended by the jail doctor. Apart from pancreatitis, Prof. Saibaba has a serious heart condition.The Jail authorities are not providing any medical support. In addition, a false and dubious medical report is being under preparation. Even though his blood pressure (BP) records abnormal, in the jail medical records it was being reported as normal.”
AS Vasantha Kumari on Facebook
Following her letter, CPI leader D Raja has asked Home Minister Rajnath Singh to intervene and provide adequate medical treatment to ailing Dr G N Saibaba.
In a letter to Singh, Raja has said the health of Saibaba has “suffered an irretrievable breakdown”.
Source : http://en.southlive.in

Posted in Politics