Mukul Sinha

Mukul Sinha (1951–2014) was a human rights activist and a lawyer at the Gujarat High Court at Ahmedabad, India. He was an active trade union leader and a trained physicist. He legally represented the families of the individuals who were killed in "fake encounters" in Gujarat following the 2002 riots and in Manipur, in which he secured convictions of the politicians and police officers involved.[1][2] Along with his wife Nirjhari Sinha, he founded and served as the president of Jan Sangharsh Manch (trans. People's Struggle Forum), an independent civil rights organization with the aim of addressing issues of labour and workers rights. He was also a vocal critic of erstwhile Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.[3][4][5]

Mukul Sinha
Born(1951-02-10)10 February 1951
Kolkata
Died12 May 2014(2014-05-12) (aged 63)
Ahmedabad
NationalityIndian
Alma materIIT Kanpur
Occupation
  • physicist
  • human rights lawyer
  • civil rights lawyer
Spouse(s)Nirjhari Sinha
ChildrenPratik Sinha

Early life and education

Mukul Sinha was born in Kolkata on 10 February 1951.[5] After completing his undergraduate studies at Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh,[5] he studied at IIT Kanpur where he received a master's degree in physics.[6]

Career

Sinha joined the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad in 1973 for doctoral research.

He became involved with social activism after the expulsion of workers at PRL in 1978. He organized the workers to fight for their rights, founding the Federation of Employees of Autonomous Research and Development, Education and Technical Institutes (FEARDETI),[7] although this cost him his job in 1979.

Subsequently, he obtained a degree in law in 1988 and joined the Gujarat High Court as an advocate in 1989. He co-founded Jan Sangharsh Manch in 1990 under the aegis of the New Socialist Movement and organized a group of lawyers and individuals from different professions to work pro-bono on various issues of the general public ranging from trade-unions, housing, environment, natural calamities, and civil rights.[8][9] His recommendations made after the 2001 Bhuj earthquake, entitled "Kutch Quake Profile"[10] resulted in an injunction from the court to incorporate earthquake resistant structures in the state of Gujarat.

2002 Gujarat Riots

Gujarat experienced large scale communal violence and riots in 2002.[11] With Jan Sangharsh Manch, he participated in the Nanavati-Mehta Commission appointed by the Government of Gujarat to seek justice for the victims.[12] As a party to the law suit, he managed to obtain mobile phone 'call data records' (CDR) submitted by Indian Police Service officer Rahul Sharma. A thorough analysis of these records enabled lawyers, activists and victims to cite the CDRs as evidence, implicating a number of political leaders and police officers. The CDRs of Maya Kodnani and Babu Bajrangi were crucial evidence in corroborating the testimonies of Naroda Patiya massacre victims. Finally, the special court convicted them for their role in the riots.[13]

Electoral Politics

Mukul Sinha contested elections for the Gujarat Legislative Assembly in 2007 as a candidate from his own political party, the New Socialist Movement,[14] and in 2012 as an independent candidate. He contested the 2007 elections from Shahpur, a constituency where Muslims formed the majority of the population, and the 2012 elections from Sabarmati in Ahmedabad. He lost both elections, securing only a few votes.[15][16]

Death and Legacy

Sinha died of lung cancer on 12 May 2014.[17] He is survived by his wife Nirjhari Sinha and their son Pratik Sinha, who runs the fact-checking portal AltNews.in.[18] According to his wishes, his body was donated to Ahmedabad Civil Hospital for cancer research.[19][7]

Journalist Rana Ayyub wrote an obituary for Mukul Sinha, remembering her personal loss and his legacy.[20] He was posthumously awarded the second Bhagirath Human Rights Award (BHRA) by the Bhagirath Memorial Fund Committee set up at the Centre for Social Studies (CSS), Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, Surat.[21] Activist Jignesh Mevani worked under Sinha's mentorship before becoming MLA from Vadgam, Gujarat.[22][23]

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References
  1. Langa, Mahesh (8 July 2013). "Gujarat fake encounters are similar: Mukul Sinha". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  2. Alam, Mahtab (21 June 2014). "Remembering Advocate Mukul Sinha". Mainstream Weekly. Archived from the original on 25 June 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  3. Katakam, Anupama (13 June 2014). "On the side of victims". Frontline. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  4. "India election: what kind of PM will Narendra Modi be?". The Week. 16 May 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  5. Janmohamed, Zahir (13 May 2014). "Mukul Sinha, self-effacing Modi opponent and labour organiser who disliked being called a leader". Scroll. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  6. "Noted Activist and Lawyer Mukul Sinha Dies". New Delhi Television Limited. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  7. "Mukul Sinha, who fought for 2002 riot victims, succumbs to cancer". The Indian Express. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  8. Janmohamed, Zahir (15 May 2014). "At a Memorial, Hundreds Pay Tribute to a Gujarat Human Rights Champion". New York Times. Archived from the original on 12 September 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  9. "Young 'hero' behind new Dalit movement". The Telegraph. 7 August 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  10. "IMD admits error in calculating quake epicentre". The Express Tribune. 5 May 2009. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2016.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  11. Burman, J. J. Roy (2005). Gujarat Unknown: Hindu-Muslim Syncretism and Humanistic Forays. Mittal Publications. p. 186. ISBN 9788183240529.
  12. "Irreparable loss, Noted lawyer and activist Mukul Sinha passes away". Milli Gazete. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  13. Bhattacharya, D P (12 August 2011). "Gujarat riots: How IPS officer Rahul Sharma exposed rioters". India Today. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  14. "The Man Who Keeps Knocking". Outlook. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  15. "Final Election Result, Shahpur constituency" (PDF). Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  16. "Final Election Result, Sabarmati constituency" (PDF). Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  17. Kumar, Devesh (13 May 2014). "Noted Activist and Lawyer Mukul Sinha Dies". NDTV. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  18. "Gujarat riots activist Mukul Sinha dies at 63". Mint. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  19. "Lawyer, social activist Mukul Sinha passes away". Telheka.com. 12 May 2014. Archived from the original on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  20. Ayyub, Rana (14 May 2014). "My Baba, the revolutionary - Mukul Sinha". DNA India. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  21. Mehta, Yagnesh Bharat (15 February 2017). "Late Mukul Sinha to get Bhagirath Human Rights Award". Times of India. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  22. Raza, Danish (20 January 2018). "From Dalit activist to Gujarat MLA: Tracking Jignesh Mevani's journey". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  23. Dabhi, Parimal A (26 December 2017). "Ex-journalist, lawyer, aspiring politician: Meet Jignesh Mevani, face of the Gujarat Dalit agitation". Indian Express. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
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