All posts by Nivedita Menon

Government, Movements, Politics, Violence/Conflict

Kashmir – Cry my beloved country: Gautam Navlakha

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Guest Post by GAUTAM NAVLAKHA

burhan-wani-story_647_070916051953Image courtesy India Today

Burhan Muzaffar Wani and his comrades were born and died in the phase of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir that symbolizes the watershed in politics in J&K; pre and post ‘89-90. Unlike in the past, indigenous militants now neither travel to Pakistan for guns or for arms training. Armed resistance and its indigenous roots are etched on the faces of these young men.  Burhan’s killing on July 8 and following that, the turnout at his funeral as well as the protests that broke throughout the  state have rekindled memories of the early 90s, especially the death of Ashfaq Majid in 1990, which too had seen mass outpouring of rage.  Burhan and his comrades knew they would not survive for long; seven years is the average life span of a militant in Kashmir, as Burhan’s father poignantly stated long before his death.  Not because that was their own choice, but it was the only choice offered to a people by a ruthless military suppression by a state that has refused to recognize the popular demand for right of self determination.

Indians remain ignorant of the depth of the passion for ‘Azaadi’ from forced union with India, a union imposed in myriad ways. The policy of land grabbing to settle ex servicemen from outside the state (an old project of RSS); allowing non-state subjects unhindered access to land for industry, real estate, mining, for setting up fortified colonies for migrants; where control of the state government, especially Kashmir based ruling parties, over administration has always been circumscribed by New Delhi; and financial dependence  compounded by autonomy of the military from the purview of representative government – all of these point to the fact that the reins of government are held in New Delhi. Continue reading Kashmir – Cry my beloved country: Gautam Navlakha →

Politics, Right watch

Assam Election Results 2016 – Challenges to Pluralist Ethos: Ram Puniyani

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Guest post by RAM PUNIYANI

Assembly_2775927f

Once cut off from the electoral list, getting re-enrolled is a painful exercise for these migrants who work outside Assam. Fear of being struck off voters’ lists and branded Bangladeshis haunts them.

(Picture Credit – The Hindu)

This time around (2016 Elections) BJP has managed to come to power in Assam, though as a coalition with its allies. Its vote share this time came down to 29.5% from the earlier 36.5% (2014); still because of the strategically stitched alliances it beat the Congress in the number of seats won. BJP election appeal was centered on the divisive issue of Bangaldeshi immigrants. It took care to regard 3% native Muslims on the ground of ‘Native Assamese identity’ while the Bengali Muslims (32%) were singled out as immigrants; outsiders. The Bengali immigrant Hindus were projected as refugees. BJP’s propaganda was on the lines of Hindus versus Muslims. Cleverly it was presented as natives versus outsiders.

Elections 2016

Taking recourse to communal historiography the election was presented as the second battle of Saraighat, where Lachit Burfukan had defeated the Mughal army in 1671. As such the many commanders and soldiers of Lachit were Muslims also like Bagh Hazarika. Mughal army had many Hindu generals and soldiers. By spinning the tale directed against Mughals projected in the form of Badruddin Ajmal, who was the main target as he was presented as a symbol of Bengali Muslims. At electoral level the Muslims votes got split between Congress and Ajmal’s party. Now the new Government is planning to identify the Bangaldeshi immigrants and throw them out. As such Assam has been witnessing the harassment of Muslims and many of them have been denied voting right putting them in D Votercategory (D for doubtful). Continue reading Assam Election Results 2016 – Challenges to Pluralist Ethos: Ram Puniyani →

Government, Identities, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Hindutva Lands on Foreign Shores – A View from the Gallery: Rebecca de Souza

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Guest post by REBECCA DE SOUZA

Recently, I received the opportunity of a lifetime when I was invited to attend Indian Prime Minister (PM) Modi’s address to the joint session of US Congress on June 8th, 2016. When I got the call from Congressman Nolan’s office, I was surprised to say the least. I am not involved in politics, I did not know Rep. Nolan personally, and have not made any significant monetary contributions to politics in either country. My first reaction was to say no, because PM Modi and I could not be further apart on the political spectrum. But soon the significance of what had happened dawned on me. I, an Indian American, an academic, had just received an invitation from a US Congressman who knew about my work and had picked me to be his guest. As a minority in both countries, a Christian minority in India and an ethnic/ racial minority in the US, I was invited to a place of power which typically would be inaccessible to a person like me. Ironically, as an Indian-American I had more access to a transnational political arena than as an Indian living in India. I arrived in DC with eager anticipation not knowing what would unfold.

Attending PM Modi’s address has provided me with unique insight into transnational politics and my own identity as an Indian-American and one who is “not a Hindu”. As I was sitting in the gallery with other Indian Americans, I realized that in a post-liberalization world where political contributions flow easily across borders, Indian Americans play a huge role in the political economy of India and the message of Hindutva has become the single most powerful way to unite this group.

The term Hindutva refers to a nearly hundred year socio-political project promoted by right wing Hindu nationalist groups, which redefines people living in India as “Hindu” based on geographic, racial, and cultural identity. The Hindutva project is centered on the “invention of archaic Vedic Hinduism” and Vedic Aryanism and the belief that “…it was in India that Aryans had either originated or achieved the pinnacle of their culture and civilization which they had then bestowed on the world”.  While Hinduism has been known for being a diverse religion, Hindutva’s project is to construct a homogeneous Hindu community through universalizing upper caste practices and values to all castes and classes. [1] Continue reading Hindutva Lands on Foreign Shores – A View from the Gallery: Rebecca de Souza →

Capitalism, Centre watch, Right watch

Of experts and politicians – The Raghuram Rajan Drama: C. P. Chandrasekhar

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Guest Post by C. P. CHANDRASEKHAR

The attack on Raghuram Rajan spearheaded by Sangh Parivar trouble-maker Subramanian Swamy has disturbed even those who otherwise support Prime Minister Modi’s government. The attack has received even more attention because it preceded Rajan’s surprise announcement of his departure from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), prior to the government’s decision on whether he should be given a second term. It is clear from his letter to the RBI’s staff announcing his decision to keep out of the race for the job as central bank chief, that Rajan would have liked to serve a second term. But sensing that he was not going to be offered the extension and could even rejected if he applied for it, Rajan chose to step down.

It would be giving Swamy too much credit to hold that his letters to the Prime Minister claiming that Raghuram Rajan was wrecking the economy, was not “nationalist” enough because of his American green card, and was a stooge of the Congress, were responsible for the latter’s decision to exit. Swamy is widely seen as a maverick, and Rajan is too smart not to know that if anything, it is the BJP MP’s credibility that has been affected. What must have irked him more is the failure of the government and the PM to stand up for him. That silence possibly explains the arrogant shift of Swamy’s target of attack to the Chief Economic Advisor, Arvind Subramanian, who is more vulnerable because of his advice in the past to the US government, calling for stronger action against India on intellectual property issues. Continue reading Of experts and politicians – The Raghuram Rajan Drama: C. P. Chandrasekhar →

Culture, Genders, Politics, Violence/Conflict

Of men, women, caste and cinema: Rita Kothari

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Guest post by RITA KOTHARI

 “Woh kam-jaat  ladka hai. Phir kaise uske saath bhag gayi?  Sochna tha na  pehle?”  (He is a low-caste boy, why did she elope with him then? Shouldn’t she have thought of this?”)

Vimala’s judgment was unequivocal. She was talking about Hansa, her neighbour  and my former ‘help.’  Hansa  is  a young girl , perhaps seventeen,  and she  recently eloped with a boy. I stopped myself from saying anything facile, as yet.

“Ab pyaar poochhke to hota nahin, “ I said to her.  Love seeks no permission.

“To bhugatna bhi padta phir.”  Then be ready to suffer, Vimala quipped.

She went on to tell me about an incident she had witnessed in her village,  about 30 kilometers away from the big town of Dungarpur in Rajasthan. A Rajput girl and Sewak boy eloped. They settled down in some city, and ten years went by. Meanwhile the girl had a child and was carrying her second baby. Her family had managed to track her whereabouts and convinced that she would be welcome home. The couple returned to the village for a visit. One night the girl’s brother put out lights in the entire village. The young couple was killed.

“Poore gaanv ki bijli band kar di, aur maar dala dono ko. Humne dekha apni aankhon se,” Vimala said.

I stood transfixed. What was more accurate here, fiction or life?  I had just returned from watching the  Marathi film, Sairat.

Continue reading Of men, women, caste and cinema: Rita Kothari →

Bad ideas, Debates

A Case for Animals against Executive Culling: Arjun Joshi

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Guest post by ARJUN JOSHI

The issue with killing animals highlights an anomaly of sorts. These animals survive on the borders of our moral concepts; the consequence is that we sometimes find ourselves according them a divine moral status, while at other times denying them even basic moral status. Prakash Javadekar, the Union Minister of State for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, recently sanctioned the mass-killing of wild boar in Uttarakhand, nilgai in Bihar and rhesus monkey in Himachal Pradesh. More animals such as peacocks (Goa) and wild elephants (West Bengal) have been declared to be vermin by the state governments, paving the way for their culling too.

Javadekar’s defence is that his orders are premised on complaints his Ministry has received from multiple State governments claiming that the animals are damaging farm-lands.

Construing the actions of an individual, irrespective of their arbitrariness, risks confusing the symptom for the disease. Today, Mr. Javadekar’s actions are based on an ill-informed interpretation of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. The Act stipulates the protection of all wild species, barring vermin. By definition, vermin include common crows, fruit bats, mice and rats. A notable exception is made when there is a direct threat to human life by wild animals, and it requires immediate intervention. Apart from these, arguably, justified reasons, the Ministry is disallowed from ordering culling of any other animal. Unfortunately, Mr. Javadekar has bypassed the existing framework, by opting to declare an entire species as vermin – the convenient route out of planned and strategized animal management.

Continue reading A Case for Animals against Executive Culling: Arjun Joshi →

Education, Government, Politics

An Open Letter to the DU Teachers from a DU Student – I Stand with You: Fatma M. Khan

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Guest post by FATMA M. KHAN

Dear teachers,

After three years at the Delhi University, I have been disillusioned with a lot of things. But one thing which never ceases to surprise me is the tireless effort put in by a lot of you to create something better. It is often against the system, against the apathy of the students, against the examinations which reduce texts to regressive questions. This is for you.

This is for the teachers who hated the FYUP programme, but still tried hard to create meaningful project topics for the foundational courses out of the juvenile textbooks we had, not caring about the extra correction this created for themselves. This is for the teachers who went out of their way to conduct thought-provoking discussions on “Integrating Mind, Body and Heart”, a course which had no marking. Continue reading An Open Letter to the DU Teachers from a DU Student – I Stand with You: Fatma M. Khan →

Mirror Worlds, Right watch

Indian Feminists In Solidarity with Dr. Homa Hoodfar

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This statement was sent to the Iranian authorities and the Iranian Embassy in Delhi yesterday.

Here is a link to one of Prof Hoodfar’s most influential essays, “The veil in their minds and on our heads.”

homa_hoodfar

We, the undersigned, are in solidarity with Dr. Homa Hoodfar, a Canadian anthropologist of Iranian origin who has been imprisoned by the Iranian authorities on June 6, 2016. Dr. Hoodfar is a respected academic scholar and researcher on women and family in the Middle East and the Muslim world.  She travelled to Iran in March 2016 to visit family and for research on women’s participation in public life.

Prior to her arrest, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard interrogated Ms. Hoodfar repeatedly without the presence of a lawyer, searched and seized her belongings including passport, phone and laptop.  Ms. Hoodfar fully cooperated with the process and has been very respectful of the domestic Iranian judicial system.  Since her arrest however, her family, colleagues and supporters in Iran were left with no choice but to go public with the news of the arrest.

Iranian authorities have given no reason for the arrest and the charges under which she has been held.  She has not been granted access to her family or legal counsel.  Dr. Hoodfar, aged 65, is not in good health and has already suffered from a mild stroke in 2015.  Her family is concerned about her health and fears she may not have access to the specialized care that she requires. Continue reading Indian Feminists In Solidarity with Dr. Homa Hoodfar →

Everyday Life, Feminism, Genders, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

India vigils in memory of Orlando shooting victims

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FROM ORINAM

The mass shooting in Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, US, on the night of June 11, resonates with those of us who have faced intolerance, hatred and violence simply for being who we are. The lesbian, gay, bi, trans*, intersex, queer, ally and other (LGBTIQA+) communities in India stand in solidarity with the families, biological and chosen, of the victims of this senseless crime.

LGBTIQA+ people have always been at the receiving end of bigots from all faiths, and we register our protest against initiatives by ideologues of all stripes to use this incident to advance political and personal agendas of xenophobia and Islamophobia. Bigotry is a form of violence against a community, and we stand firmly against all attempts to make this part of a global anti-Islam narrative, just as we resist the dastardly celebration of this incident by homophobic groups.

We condemn all forms of hatred and violence, whether based on sexuality, gender, religion, caste or ethnicity.

Protests and vigils are being planned in the following cities and towns.

FOR DETAILS SEE ORINAM.NET

Education, Politics, Right watch

This Is Not Just About Kanhaiya Kumar & Delhi University Teachers: Mukul Mangalik

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MUKUL MANGALIK in raiot.in

The Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) General Body Meeting (GBM) held on May 28, 2016 issued an appeal ‘to all students to support our struggle’ against the University Grants Commission (UGC) Notification 2016. The resolution passed by the DUTA GBM of June 2, 2016 ‘extends thanks to Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) for its support’ and to many other students’ organisations ‘which have expressed support for the ongoing struggle’. The DUTA Executive, in keeping with the letter and spirit of the sentiments expressed by successive GBMs invited representatives of teachers and students’ unions and organisations, including the JNUSU, to extend solidarity with the ‘khaali thaali’ (empty plates) dharna (sit-in) organized by the DUTA on 6th June outside the UGC compound. A section of Delhi University (DU) teachers did their best to prevent Kanhaiya Kumar, elected President of the JNUSU, from speaking on this occasion…

In trying to deny a student even a chance to speak, they have gone against everything that teaching should mean; in seeking to throttle words, speech and ideasinstead of countering them with other words, speech and ideas they, as university teachers have struck a blow against the freedom of expression that is the lifeblood of universities. They have gone against the idea of universities as potentially life-altering sites for students, places that encourage them to ask questions and speak freely; to read, write and think critically, analytically and with academic rigour, together and independently, in the endless pursuit of understanding and truth; to debate, disagree with, and discuss everything of consequence without fear of any forms of authority or power, but with respect for universal rights, ‘in the hope of creating a future in which liberty and human freedoms might be grounded in citizenship based on substantive equality’…

Let no one imagine that this moment of contestation in our history will spell political doom for the DU teachers’ movement. It shall not. If anything, we are likely to come out of this with an even stronger resolve, holding up a brighter flame of hope to all teachers and posing a more invulnerable front to Capital and State than has been the case thus far.

Read the whole article here.

Education, Right watch

Open Letter to JNU VC from a JNU Professor: Rajat Datta

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Guest Post by RAJAT DATTA

Dear Professor Jagadesh Kumar,

I read your long interview in the Pioneer of 6th June 2016 with great interest, particularly because of the way in which you’ve outlined your vision for JNU over the next five years. We’d been hearing a lot of whispers about your `vision’ all these months, and I’m happy that I’ve finally got to see it in print. Unfortunately, some of the issues you’ve raised have made me somewhat uncomfortable, and thus I feel constrained to write this open letter to you to share some of these concerns. Please don’t take it amiss, for what I have to say emerges from being a very senior faculty member of the university and from your assurance that you work in `consultation’ with senior faculty members.

My first area of unease is precisely this proclamation. I don’t recall a single instance where you tried to consult me, or any of the senior faculty members that I know (and believe me, I know most of them). You’ve not bothered to visit my Centre, the largest in the University in terms of the faculty and student numbers, to interact and `consult’ with us. If by `consultation’ you mean your meetings with Deans over policy issues, there is nothing new in what you’re doing. All Vice-Chancellors in JNU have done that, and more. Indeed, you have omitted Chairpersons entirely from these processes. If your consultation process is so pervasive, why did so many `senior’ and not so senior members of the JNU faculty sit on a relay hunger strike against your administration over eight days in May? I regret to say that the consultation process that you talk about so proudly is seen by many as a very closed coterie of people (whom you proudly refer to as your `team’). Is it because you haven’t been able to win the trust of the larger academic community of this university? On their own initiative, different groups of teachers have met you (when permitted to) and other members of your “team” when you have been unavailable to meet them, over various issues, and emerged from these meetings feeling that you do not listen to us. Continue reading Open Letter to JNU VC from a JNU Professor: Rajat Datta →

Government, Politics, Right watch

Statement Condemning the Persecution of Lawyers Collective and Indira Jaising and Anand Grover by Home Ministry, GoI

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We, the undersigned, unequivocally condemn the efforts of the Ministry of Home Affairs to persecute the Lawyers Collective (LC), Indira Jaising and Anand Grover in order to obstruct the legal and human rights work being carried out by them.

We condemn the suspension of the FCRA registration of LC, as well as the mala fide and motivated manner in which the Ministry of Home Affairs, in a blatant violation of law, leaked the suspension notice to the press even before providing LC with a copy of the same.

There has been a systematic campaign and abuse of the legal process by the Central Government to malign Indira Jaising and Anand Grover as well as LC over the past six months. The suspension of LC’s FCRA registration is nothing but an escalation of the Government’s campaign to crush dissent and criminalise any person or organisation that questions or opposes the violation of fundamental rights and human rights by the State and its agencies.

The motivated campaign and actions against LC fit neatly into the present Government’s concerted campaign against marginalised and oppressed sections of society and any person, whether students, activists, academics or individuals who question the policies, actions and the abuse of power by the government.

Senior Advocates Indira Jaising and Anand Grover have an exceptional profile of public service, probity and personal and professional integrity as lawyers and as human rights activists. Their work has received global recognition.

Ms. Indira Jaising, has made an unparalleled contribution to law and jurisprudence on gender discrimination, whether relating to women’s right to property, sexual harassment at the workplace, domestic violence etc. She has also been a member of the CEDAW Committee. Anand Grover held the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Right to Health between 2008 to 2014. He has made a tremendous contribution to the legal campaign against the criminalisation of homosexuality; rights of persons living with HIV; and access to medicine and healthcare. Ms. Jaising and Mr. Grover, through LC have and continue to advance the rights of the most vulnerable and marginalized sections of society, thereby upholding constitutional values. Instead of recognizing their invaluable contribution to the county and its people, the Government is making all efforts to obstruct their work.

Through the persecution and harassment of LC and Indira Jaising and Anand Grover, the present Government is sending a clear and chilling message to the citizens of this country that the inevitable consequence of questioning or criticising the present Government’s policies is repression and criminalisation.

LC has specifically and repeatedly countered and justified each of the bald allegations regarding misuse of funds that have been levelled by the MHA. However, the MHA has displayed an unusual vindictiveness by ignoring the official responses sent by LC and proceeding to suspend their FCRA registration. Continue reading Statement Condemning the Persecution of Lawyers Collective and Indira Jaising and Anand Grover by Home Ministry, GoI →

Law, Politics

The right time to decide on state funding of polls: Raghavan Srinivasan

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Guest Post by RAGHAVAN SRINIVASAN

The Election Commission proved itself to be totally unequal to the task of curbing money power in the recent state assembly elections in Tamil Nadu. State funding of the electoral process holds a lot of promise in ensuring a level playing field for all participants.

If one were to add up the cash-for-votes given to voters during the recent TN assembly elections, as reported in the press, then the cost per vote would easily be the highest among all Indian States. Money paid to cadres during election campaigns, fees paid to advertising agencies, and direct cash transfers to voters – all provide a temporary euphoria in the economy. Everyone is happy since apparently there is no one who is left out. But the money for these huge expenditures have to come from somewhere and that is invariably, the people’s pockets.

The massive monitoring force deployed by the  Election Commission of India (ECI) consisting of  a battalion of general observers, police observers, expenditure observers, assistant expenditure observers, video surveillance teams, and others seized more than Rs. 105 crores of cash. Though a considerable sum, this was just the tip of the iceberg. Surely the observers would have recorded considerable evidence on other surreptitious methods of transferring cash-for-votes. In response to petitions against this blatant violation of electoral rules, the Commission first postponed elections in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur constituencies and issued notices to two political parties on freebies in their election manifestos. The ECI did not exercise the plenary powers conferred to it under the Constitution to countermand/cancel these elections at that point.

However, in a first in India’s electoral history, the Election Commission decided on May 28 to rescind the notification and conduct polls afresh “in due course of time” to these two Tamil Nadu Assembly seats following evidence of use of money to influence voters. The Election Commission said it took the decision after considering reports of observers, special teams of central observers, report of the special team of observers of Aravakurichi and Thanjavur constituencies and representations of contesting candidates.

This is unfortunately, only the tip of the iceberg.

Continue reading The right time to decide on state funding of polls: Raghavan Srinivasan →

Debates, Education, Right watch

Who will Educate the Educators? Reflections on JNU today: Janaki Nair

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Guest Post by JANAKI NAIR

 In an interview to the journal Frontline on February 16, 2016, just 11 days before he took over one of India’s most prestigious universities, Prof Jagadesh Kumar had this to say:

I am a defender of free expression of thought in a democratic set-up and students are free to question me or challenge my views. I believe in constructive criticism, and as long as it is done peacefully and within the boundaries of the law, there is no problem.

Declaring his  two top priorities, of which one was the redressal of  infrastructural shortcomings, he desired

to improve the learning environment by making it more student-centric. Some of the faculty are great researchers, but they do not have much understanding of teaching. What I want to do requires cooperation from faculty members.

These words, which Prof Kumar has thus far not refuted or denied, should be recalled today, more than three months after his takeover, the  most tumultous months the University has ever known.  It is too early to judge the VC on his infrastructure  promise, as some of us continue to make  bone rattling journeys on cycles over  the most rutted roads on the campus.  Continue reading Who will Educate the Educators? Reflections on JNU today: Janaki Nair →

Education, Right watch

#FightBackJNU through the lens of Fayaz Ahmad

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Photo Essay by FAYAZ AHMAD, JNU student on indefinite hunger strike

Untitled

March against the biased and unjust HLEC Report, culminating in hunger strike

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Continue reading #FightBackJNU through the lens of Fayaz Ahmad →

Culture, Debates, Right watch

Where are we heading? A Bangladeshi feminist’s reflections: Khushi Kabir

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Guest Post by KHUSHI KABIR

Very soon after Professor Rezaul Karim Siddque of Rajshahi Univeristy was hacked to death in the morning of April 23, 2016, I wrote my feelings, my frustrations, my concerns and my fears. From all the information we received, Professor Karim appeared to be a quiet man, a man who was of a peaceful nature, a lover of music and a committed teacher.  As is the case with most Bangalis, he loved music.  Cultural activities were in his bloodstream.  He tried to, or did set up a cultural hub in his home, where he lived, not too far from the University where he taught.  He was not a declared atheist, nor a blogger, not even an armchair or facebook activist.  Not one of the usual argumentative Bangalis, the usual picture of the intellectual.  Not one of those who were in the frontlines of activism, not a talk show star, not one who wrote long opinions and editorials about the state of affairs of the country.  Why would he be killed?

We read from the reports that we get from all the different forms of media that exists, that he was what I often describe as the typical example of a citizen of this land, the kind of people I grew up with, secular in his thinking by encouraging culture, music, playing his favourite sitar, reading books, yet sensitive and responsive to the practice of religion of the people he lived amongst, his family perhaps, certainly his neighbours.  We heard of his large donations to the building of the local mosque as a proof of this perception.  His daughter has been very vehement in stating that he was a believer.  I find it very telling on our current state of affairs that we have to insist that we are all believers.  Why should it matter?  A murder is a murder and a gruesome murder has to be taken in all seriousness no matter what one’s beliefs are or where one stands.  We all grew up learning to sing, dance, play an instrument, and write poetry, recite etc.  Where else do we find that recitation is considered a part of cultural practice, a part of the performing arts?  Was his fault that he embodied this very nature of the Bangali? Was he murdered so brutally simply to be used as an example of what not to be?  Was he simply targeted because he embodied the very spirit of 1952, of 1971 in the quiet nature of his being?

Continue reading Where are we heading? A Bangladeshi feminist’s reflections: Khushi Kabir →

Education, Right watch

The JNU administration now faces a crisis of credibility: Ayesha Kidwai

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AYESHA KIDWAI in scroll.in

students on hunger strike

The indefinite hunger strike by 17 Jawaharlal Nehru University students has been continuing since April 28, with university teachers and students also showing their solidarity by joining as relay hunger strikers.

Despite the searing heat and failing health of many – including Chintu Kumari, Umar Khalid and Kanhaiya Kumar – the declaration by the Vice Chancellor of JNU that a hunger strike is an “unlawful activity” has only fuelled the strikers’ determination. Although over a hundred teachers met the Vice Chancellor and his team (as he likes to call them) in a bid to break the deadlock, no progress has been made because the JNU administration seems to believe that the fight here is one about the quantum of punishment.

Such is the chasm that separates the current JNU administration’s understanding of what the law is and what justice actually demands that the law has become something of a fugitive in JNU these past few months. The extremely obstinate, vengeful and motivated enquiry proceedings anddisciplinary action over the February 9 event have so perverted university procedures and institutions that the entire JNU administration now faces a crisis of credibility.

Continue reading The JNU administration now faces a crisis of credibility: Ayesha Kidwai →

Debates, Feminism, Law, Sex

What is wrong with setting up a Sex Offenders’ Registry? Shweta Goswami

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Guest Post by SHWETA GOSWAMI

The NDA government seems to have started pushing forward the regressive proposal of the previous UPA government to set up a sex offenders’ registry in the country, on the lines of those maintained in some western countries including the U.S. and the U.K.

According to the proposal the details of sex offenders even below 18 years of age would be included in the database, which will be put up on the website of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).The government plans to publicize their photographs, addresses, PAN card details, Aadhaar card number, fingerprints and DNA samples through this registry.

The information on offenders to be collected for the Registry include those related to their jobs, professional licenses, information of schools, colleges, institutions with which they have been associated, vehicle information, date of birth and criminal history.

The details would be put up only after they have been convicted and completed their sentence in jail. The details will not be included if the cases are under trial and are in appeal in a higher court.

Failed logic of deterrence

Considered to be a handy tool for the law enforcement agencies, the offenders’ registry is being envisaged as a deterrence by the ministers in the government since it will instill fear in the minds of repeat sexual offenders and the public would benefit from it. My concern is, whom does the government want to deter? Individual offenders or men in general? (I say men, because I understand sexual violence as male violence and women offenders as an anomaly). If it is the individual offender, only a couple of offenders would make it to the list given the low conviction rate and the snail-paced judicial processes. Given the inconsistency between the rate of crime committed and the rate of conviction, I doubt if the registry would be of any help for the public to stay vigilant against sex offenders. Continue reading What is wrong with setting up a Sex Offenders’ Registry? Shweta Goswami →

Culture, Debates, Feminism, Genders, Violence/Conflict

‘The queer fight is against Western hegemony, not by its side’: Queer activists of Bangladesh

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Received through Meena Seshu

Anindya Hajra, a friend and Queer activist in Kolkata posted this on FB.

The following letter was sent to me very early this morning over WhatsApp by a queer activist friend from Bangladesh with who I have been trying to establish contact over the past few days (and was successful only yesterday) and who wanted this to be shared as widely as possible. They said this letter was a joint one written by many persons, specifically ‘their comrades’. I have kept the original spellings. On asking them as to what this letter should be called if anything at all, they said, “Naam naai” (There is no name). Hence that is how I am sharing this letter – Anindya

“…while the West has hand-picked extremist Islam as its enemy (with the banner of ISIS) – speaking out against the violence of labor practices and money-making in third world nations is not high on their agenda.”

Dear all,

I am writing to you from a rather desperate place in the hope that you will heed my plea. I am sure that this is reaching you because you have posted something or the other about the two murders of the gay activists in Bangladesh. We are all outraged,shaken and deeply saddened by their untimely brutal deaths. Having said that please read this carefully. Let us honor the dead but not forget the living. Please stop circulating any content containing the following, especially if you are from the North America, Europe:

Xulhaz Mannan as the face of the entire LGBT movement

Roopbaan, or any other organization associated with the term “LGBT”

Bangladesh as an islamic fundamentalist country unsafe for secular bloggers, free thinkers or gender deviants.

“Freedom, diversity and tolerance are Bangladeshi values”.

You see, when you sit on powerful land and demand justice from a government, whether you are well-intentioned radical queers or people of color or marginalized activists who want to demand justice alongside us, sharing these contents, or making this news viral will not help right now. Putting pressure on your local/national governments will not help either. However, what will happen is that this will create a false image of an “islamic” fundamentalist country out to kill queers demanding that international wellwishers (read: Europe and USA) come and save them from the brown men. The deviants and queers are hiding but the international call for justice is making it difficult to avoid being visible. Continue reading ‘The queer fight is against Western hegemony, not by its side’: Queer activists of Bangladesh →

Education, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Statement of solidarity for HCU from students and faculty of University of Texas at Austin

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Countryside, Feminism, Movements, Politics

An Ode To Women’s Struggle In Matoi: Shailza Sharma

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Guest Post by SHAILZA SHARMA

In the remote corners of Sangrur district of Punjab, 20-something year old women got together during a village celebration of Ravidas Jayanti. These girls from Matoi village had one purpose that day, to declare the formation of their Ekta Club, a club formed with the objective of fighting for equal status, equal opportunities and most importantly, claiming a share in the village land by participating in the annual auction of Shamilat land.

Upon making this valiant declaration, they were bombarded with insults and mocked for demanding their rights. “Who are you to claim rights over land, you are just a bunch of Dalit girls! What will you even get out of owning a piece of land?”, people questioned. To this, the women replied, “It is a matter of legal right and our demands are legitimate claims for what belongs to us. In claiming our legal rights, we seek equal status, satisfaction and self respect”.

Out of this group of ten women were two sisters leading the struggle, Gurmeet Kaur and Sandeep Kaur. They had been at the forefront of formation of the Ekta Club and the fight for claiming Shamilat land.

The Punjab Village Common Lands Regulation Act, 1961 (the Punjab Act)

This was the scene in 2014, a day on which a few Dalit families led by this group of young women, stood up against the upper caste families and farmers of Matoi, to claim their share in the Shamilat land.

Under the Punjab Act, Shamilat land has been defined as inter alia the land used or reserved for the benefit of the village and community. Such land may be utilised for various purposes including constructing schools, drinking wells, roads etc. 30% of the Shamilat land is reserved for families from the Scheduled Castes, 10% for families from the Backward Classes and further 10% for dependants of army personnel killed in war after the independence of India (Reserved Land). Continue reading An Ode To Women’s Struggle In Matoi: Shailza Sharma →

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