Photo by [Telegraph India]
Salman Khan, the Founder and Chairperson of the South Africa Kashmiri Action Group (SAKAG), has told Salaamedia that they, together with the Muslim Lawyers Association (MLA), intend to take up the matter of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s alleged war crimes and human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir with the International Criminal Court. This statement comes as a reaction to the recent joint complaint renewal submitted to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the South African Police Service (SAPS).
“The same way that the ICC has brought a case of a war crime against Putin, and we [will] also pursue that [with] the ICC. [We will be] asking them the question -that there is another war crime criminal- to put the same pressure on the South African government to arrest Putin and why not to him?”
The SAKAG and the MLA have submitted a comprehensive 600-page document to the NPA, which includes witness testimonies and reports presenting evidence of various appalling acts such as “abductions, torture, rape, extrajudicial killings, arson attacks, and unlawful arrests of political leaders and innocent civilians”.
In their submission, the two organisations have urged the NPA and SAPS to conduct a thorough investigation, apprehend Prime Minister Modi, and, if feasible, initiate legal proceedings against him during his participation in the BRICS summit scheduled for August.
Previously Failed Attempts to Apprehend the India Prime Minister
The current application made to the NPA serves as a renewed version of a previous submission made to the South African government. The earlier application had been acknowledged and accepted by the NPA in 2018, leading to an announcement of an investigation into Prime Minister Modi’s alleged involvement in human rights violations and war crimes in the Jammu and Kashmir regions.
Khan explained, during the 2018 BRICS summit, there were expectations of apprehending Prime Minister Modi under similar circumstances. However, the investigation stopped due to being granted Presidential immunity as the Prime Minister did not return to the country.
“In July 2018, he was given presidential immunity, and he cut down his visit for two weeks down to two to three days. After the investigation authority in South Africa applied for visas to further their investigation of allegations in Jammu and Kashmir, which is Indian -illegal- occupied Kashmir, their visas were denied … So since then, the investigation has been hampered, and of course, Modi never returned to South Africa.”
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South Africa Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Although the South African government has granted diplomatic immunity to all leaders attending the upcoming BRICS summit in August, there is prevailing anticipation that the government will fulfil its obligations regarding the ICC arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa has mentioned that the matter is still being discussed, and he will ultimately make the final decision.
The pursuit of the case against Prime Minister Modi at the ICC is expected to exert additional pressure on the South African government to take prompt action against the accused. This pressure stems from the possibility of apprehending not just one but two heads of state and members of BRICS. Due to this heightened pressure, Khan anticipates significant changes to the format of the BRICS summit.
“If the ICC brings another arrest warrant, that is, and then, of course, South Africa will be looking for a neutral venue, or maybe [it will be] virtual or maybe Modi will not even come to South Africa [for the summit].”
