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India RTI Activist Who Exposed Corruption In Maharashtra Found Dead

Jan 1, 2010
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MUMBAI: A Right to Information (RTI) activist who was in the forefront in exposing corruption in PDS, foodgrain and fuel distribution in the Marathwada region has been found dead in Nanded.

The circumstances behind how 43-year-old Ramdas Ghadegavkar, a local Shiv Sena leader, died are shrouded in mystery. The death of Ramdas, who used the RTI Act, adds another name in the victim list of whistleblowers in the country.

The Shivajinagar police in Nanded, about 650 km from here, have registered a case of "sudden death", after Ramdas' body was discovered late Friday night in Mondha area, police said on Sunday.

Preliminary post mortem report revealed excess alcohol in his body, police said. His brother has informed police that the RTI activist had left home at around 8 am on Friday.

Ramdas's death comes just weeks after the murder of RTI activist Amit Jethwa from Gujarat who was killed for exposing illegal mining in the Gir forest region.

Jethwa was shot dead from a close range near the Gujarat high court on July 20 after he filed a public interest litigation (PIL) against illegal mining.

Ramdas was active in uncovering corruption in PDS, foodgrain and fuel distribution by using RTI Act. He was a local Shiv Sena leader in Nanded and the head of the district Milk Sellers Association.

He had exposed the thriving sand mafia in the region through the RTI Act. His complaint had led the district administration to initiate action on the issue.

Meanwhile, Sena district president Hemant Patil met senior police officials and demanded a CBI inquiry into the mysterious death of Ramdas.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...aharashtra-found-dead/articleshow/6456957.cms

 

Mai Harinder Kaur

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Oct 5, 2006
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The courage of these Indian activists makes me almost embarrassed to call myself an activist. Here I sit in my comfortable computer chair at my cluttered computer desk with my fancy computer and my DSL connection writing whatever pops into my head while they are being murdered for simply trying to get information.

I don't think I've done anything really risky as an activist since I sat down on the railroad tracks to stop a troop train during the Vietnam War. (I was a foreign outside activist, probably a communist.)

My experience with the Punjab police in Amritsar and then fighting in Delhi (1984), while dangerous, do not count as activism because they were thrust upon me and my participation was not voluntary.

I wonder if there is anything we can do to help these brave people who are standing up to the corrupt steamroller called the Government of India. The only thing I know for those of us not in India is to join the Facebook group,
"Need for Whistleblower and Activist Protection." That is the least that we armchair activists can do.

Working to clean up corruption is a dangerous business, open only to those with courage and termination. Let us give them any encouragement that we can!



 
Last edited:
Sep 27, 2008
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England
Mai Harinder Kaur Ji Guru Fateh,
i can understand what you are saying and in certain aspects your are bang on right. Those activists risked their lives for the truth and they certainly need commending. Having said that i would not put yourself down too much although it goes with your humble personality. I for one have a lot of respect for you after what you have been through and am still here with us fighting for good causes. I have seen your blog and i feel like a wimp after what you have been through. I cannot say i know how you feel for i would be lying, we all have our own ways of looking at people. Some people keep looking at history forgetting about the bravery and courage of some amongst us right here even on this forum. It is a honour having you here amongst us and a activist you will always be.
 

Mai Harinder Kaur

Mentor
Writer
SPNer
Oct 5, 2006
1,755
2,735
72
British Columbia, Canada
Mai Harinder Kaur Ji Guru Fateh,
i can understand what you are saying and in certain aspects your are bang on right. Those activists risked their lives for the truth and they certainly need commending. Having said that i would not put yourself down too much although it goes with your humble personality. I for one have a lot of respect for you after what you have been through and am still here with us fighting for good causes. I have seen your blog and i feel like a wimp after what you have been through. I cannot say i know how you feel for i would be lying, we all have our own ways of looking at people. Some people keep looking at history forgetting about the bravery and courage of some amongst us right here even on this forum. It is a honour having you here amongst us and a activist you will always be.

ugsbay ji,

You are most kind.

The truth is that none of us knows how we will react until we are actually in the situation. I am fortunate in that I know how I would react from experience. I think most Amritdhari Sikhs (Khalsa) would react in much the same way, if they were trained and prepared as we were.

LOL, I am not particularly humble, just occasionally realistic. I do admit that I miss being out in the middle of the action. Physically disability annoys me no end. I am a fighter, just not cut out to be an armchair warrior. I still do what I can online. I hope I encourage someone to take my place out there.

When asked, my advice is always the same: Learn to defend yourself both unarmed and armed. Gatka is the first choice for a Sikh, of course, but if it isn't available, most any of the martial arts systems would be OK. If you have the proper self-control, carry a sharp kirpan and know how to use it. Note: this is especially important for the Kaurs. Aside from being able to defend yourself, a trained fighting woman really throws the enemy off. He thinks he is going to rape you and instead finds his throat out. Do I sound terrible if I say, "Sweet"?

We are all living in a history book of the future. In Delhi, we were well aware that we were participants in an event that would be remembered as long as there is a single Sikh left alive. That was a big help in encouraging us to do our very best.
 
Sep 27, 2008
142
234
England
Mai Ji sorry i have just checked my post and it does look like i am saying 84 is history. That is not what i meant at all lol. You and i are still here, in fact you were right there in the middle of it. When i said history i meant what we were taught at school for instance The Battle Of Hastings etc. To be very honest with you i am going way of topic now but i will squeeze a few lines in before i get told. 84 to me affected me and my whole family in such a way we have not recovered, my dad died a broken man so for me it is as if it was yesterday and it will never be my history, it will be part of my life.
 

Mai Harinder Kaur

Mentor
Writer
SPNer
Oct 5, 2006
1,755
2,735
72
British Columbia, Canada
Mai Ji sorry i have just checked my post and it does look like i am saying 84 is history. That is not what i meant at all lol. You and i are still here, in fact you were right there in the middle of it. When i said history i meant what we were taught at school for instance The Battle Of Hastings etc. To be very honest with you i am going way of topic now but i will squeeze a few lines in before i get told. 84 to me affected me and my whole family in such a way we have not recovered, my dad died a broken man so for me it is as if it was yesterday and it will never be my history, it will be part of my life.

84 is history, recent history, but history nonetheless. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging that. We are still feeling the immediate impact, of course, and that must be dealt with. I hope that very soon our 1984 shaheeds will get the same respect as those in our more distant history.

I am sorry to hear about your dad. Perhaps you can honour his memory by reclaiming the chardi kala that he lost. If it's not too painful and/or too personal, I would love for you to write about how these events affected - and are still affecting - you and your family. I'm sure we could all learn from your feelings and experience.

Now, let us return to these valiant RTI fighters who are being killed even as we write. Please go join Need for Whistleblower and Activist Protection. It's the least we can do.

 
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