Category Archives: Government

Capitalism, Government

His Smile Matters Too: Vikas Bajpai

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Guest Post by VIKAS BAJPAI


Ram Teke Bhoi, rickshaw puller from Puri, Odisha

My search for Mr Bhoi, whose sketch I present above, had started on the 1st of January 2017. It culminated sometime around the middle of May 2017 in Puri while on my sojourn to the state of Odisha for conduct of Jawaharlal Nehru University’s entrance exam. Between these two points in time I shall try to weave a tiny story, albeit a true one, of the hundreds of millions of our country’s women and men who live by the sweat of their brow but are expected to remain content with the brow beatings they get in return. Mr Bhoi to me emerges as emblematic of this goings on.

In the last week of December 2016 our ‘twosome awesome’ daughters – Moozna and Amaira, my wife and I had been on a vacation to Meghalaya. On our return back home we decided to have a teat-a-tea with the rhinos at the Kaziranga National Park. Kaziranga in itself was a tame affair and is not relevant to the narrative I attempt to weave here. Rather your attention is solicited for something that transpired on our way back to Guwahati from Kaziranga.

Continue reading His Smile Matters Too: Vikas Bajpai →

Culture, Government, Identities, Movements, Politics, Right watch

A Revolution Called Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’ – the Republic on Trial

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देख ज़िन्दां के परे, रंग-ए-चमन, जोश-ए-बहार

रक्स करना है तो पॉंव की ज़ंजीर न देख – मजरूह सुल्तानपुरी

Look –  beyond the the prison walls, the brilliance of flowers, the vitality of spring

If you must dance, ignore the chains that bind your feet – Majrooh Sultanpuri

Today, the scared Republic that has imprisoned its young idealistic fighter son, Chandrashekhar, is on trial. The Republic, scared of its own offspring, stands in the dock. This Republic Day, we must all answer how it came to pass that a gang of adventurers and marauders simply took it over, submitted it to their command, while all the elderly, wise men and women, watched. Today, when the Republic bondage we must seek answers from all those who watched helplessly – or self-righteously – as marauders took it over.

It is official now. A radiogram from the Deputy Secretary, Home, Govt of Uttar Pradesh to the Superintendent, Saharanpur District Jail, dated 23 January 2018, confirms the slapping of charges under the National Security Act, on Bhim Army founder, Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’. Pradeep Narwal, Coordinator, Committee for the Defence of Bhim Army, who met Chandrashekhar in jail yesterday, underlined how the Karni Sena activists attacking school buses and vandalizing schools were being allowed the freedom to do so while Chandrashekhar, responsible for setting up and running of schools (see the video below), is being held in jail for months and has now been slapped with charges under NSA. “Karni Sena are apparently deshbhakts and Shekher bhai and Bhim Army are ‘terrorists’ in the perverted logic of this government,” he said.

 

In conversations with friends and sympathizers who have been meeting him over the past months, including Pradeep Narwal, Chandrashekhar ‘Ravan’ has been expressing a fear that many of us have also had, independently, for some time now: that the government wants to actually get rid of him – just as judge Loya was, it now transpires. Continue reading A Revolution Called Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’ – the Republic on Trial →

Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Images, Law, Left watch, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

The Gates of Vaikuntam?

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When Hadiya Shafin shouted to the crowd that she converted voluntarily, that Shafin was her chosen husband, and that she wished to spend her life with him, some leading rationalist liberal feminists in Kerala sniggered at her: be grateful for the Indian Constitution which allows you to make a choice. This statement hid a despicable insult to her choice of Islam, slyly implying that it would not permit her any choices.

Goodness knows where these puerile, vain, indurate minds live their everyday lives.  Maybe they are either still able to insulate themselves somehow from the onslaught of Hindutva violence, or find it useful to use the arms of this Hindutva hegemonised thuggish state to their narrow, shamefully narrow, ends.

Whatever, I could see no trace of the protective presence of the Indian Constitution when the Supreme Court heard Hadiya. I could see not the highest court of Justice of a vibrant democracy but I got a sense of how the Gates of Celestial Vaikuntam may look like:

Read more at : https://thewire.in/200701/hadiya-supreme-court-nia/

 

 

 

Culture, Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Hadiya’s Safety is the Kerala Government’s Responsibility: Rajathi Salma writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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[This is the text of the open letter to the Chief Minister of Kerala from the celebrated Tamil poet Rajathi Salma, a leading literary and activist voice from South India whose writing has often revealed the pain and poignancy of women’s unfreedoms and the denial of a creative life of choice to them. This is about the never-ending agony that the confinement of a young woman, Hadiya, by her father, has become. Hadiya is to be heard by the Supreme Court of India on 27 November 2017, but the Kerala government refuses to take responsibility for her safe travel to Delhi, after many many pleas from civil society] Continue reading Hadiya’s Safety is the Kerala Government’s Responsibility: Rajathi Salma writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala →

Government, Law, Politics, Right watch

Revoke NSA Charges against Chandrashekhar of Bhim Army: Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army

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The Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army has released the following statement against framing of Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’ under NSA

Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army

 

#StandWithChandrashekharAzad

 

PRESS RELEASE

4 November 2017

The Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army (CDBA) expresses it shock at the act of the Uttar Pradesh government and the Saharanpur district administration in slapping charges under the National Security Act on Bhim Army founder President Chandrashekhar.

It is telling that the NSA was slapped against Chandrashekhar after the Allahabad High Court gave him bail on 2 November after a long legal battle. The High Court had observed while granting bail to Chandrashekhar and three other Bhim Army activists that the charges were politically motivated.

It appears that the decision of the district administration to book Chandrashekhar under NSA was taken a long time back and the government and local administration were keeping their options open about when exactly to move in this direction. Around 6-7 September, Chandrashekhar had already written about this in a hand-written letter from prison, addressed to his comrades, friends and well wishers of the Bhim Army. He had mentioned that he had learnt from sources in the jail that the administration (and state government) did not want him to fight for his bail, and if he did, they would book him under NSA. This information and Chandrashekhar’s letter was shared by the CDBA in its press conference held in Press Club, in New Delhi on 12 September 2017.

The decision to invoke the NSA now, immediately after Chandrashekhar and others were granted bail by the High Court proves that the information put out by Chandrashekhar in early September was correct and that the decision is mala fide.

We consider that the UP government and the district administration is invoking the NSA to delay, if not actually circumvent the judicial process and thus keep Chandrashekhar in prison as long as possible – even though they know that these charges cannot be sustained in the court of law.

This step by the Yogi Adityanath government, we believe, is in keeping with its consistently anti-Dalit attitude and its attempts to keep its upper caste support intact. The increasing attacks on Dalits with complete impunity has, in fact, now become a hallmark of BJP governments everywhere in the country.

The Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army calls upon all democratic forces to raise their voice against this monstrous decision to frame Chandrashekhar. The attack on Bhim Army and Chandrashekhar and his comrades is an attack on the very principles of democracy and the rule of law and it is of utmost importance that voices across the board join in opposing this act of the UP government and its Saharanpur district administration.

 

Sanjeev Mathur                                Pradeep Narwal                    Praveen Verma

Coordinators, Committee for the Defense of Bhim Army

Bad ideas, Capitalism, Debates, Everyday Life, Government

Say NO to Aadhar – sign the petition

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Sign the petition here.

Text of the petition

I’m Saying NO to Aadhaar

We the undersigned wish to place on record our opposition to the Aadhaar scheme which is being aggressively pushed by the government in complete violation of norms, procedures and Supreme Court orders. 

Many of us have resisted enrolment. Many of us are already enrolled. But today, we stand together to say NO To Aadhaar. 

We oppose Aadhaar because it violates our Constitutional rights and freedoms as citizens. 

We oppose Aadhaar because it undermines the foundations of our democracy, disempowering us as citizens while giving government the means to control every aspect of our lives. 

The mess created by Aadhaar is not a matter of poor implementation or “teething troubles” as claimed by the government.  Aadhaar cannot be fixed with some tweaking and tinkering. It is fundamentally flawed and  must be scrapped.      

We say NO to Aadhaar because  Continue reading Say NO to Aadhar – sign the petition →

Bad ideas, Government, Politics, Religion, Right watch

Taj Mahal as Tej Mahal – Once again “There is a Bee in the Bonnet”

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It was probably late sixties or early seventies – when a gentleman called P N Oak started appearing in Marathi magazines peddling his weird theories about well known monuments in and outside India. An article which made lot of news then was centred around Taj Mahal where it was claimed that it was ‘Tejo Maha Aalay’ or hindu god Shiva’s abode. It tried to establish through various ‘explanations’ that a Shiva Temple was destroyed to build Taj Mahal and if we dig deep we can find ‘remnants’ of the earlier structure. Mr Vinay Katiyar’s latest advice to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath that he “should go into the Taj Mahal and see the Hindu signs inside it” reminded one of P N Oak. Continue reading Taj Mahal as Tej Mahal – Once again “There is a Bee in the Bonnet” →

Bad ideas, Culture, Debates, Government, Politics, Right watch

Deendayal Upadhyaya : BJP’s ‘Gandhi’ !

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( This article would appear in the coming issue of ‘Think India Quarterly’)

(Photo Courtesy : jansatta)

 

 ..Kovind acknowledged that “the key to India’s success is its diversity” and “our diversity is the core that makes us so unique” and ended his speech with a call to build an egalitarian society as “envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi and Deendayal Upadhyayaji”… The Congress took umbrage at the way Kovind mentioned Upadhyaya in the same breath as the Mahatma. “The President should remember that he is not a BJP candidate any more. He is the President of India. He has to… rise above and think beyond party politics,” Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad said.

(https://www.telegraphindia.com/1170726/jsp/frontpage/story_163934.jsp)

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In Search of an Icon

Fighters for Hindu Rashtra who have reached topmost echleons of power in this part of South Asia and are expected to extend and deepen their influence in coming times – if secular and democratic and left forces do not act together now – find themselves in a typical quandary. Continue reading Deendayal Upadhyaya : BJP’s ‘Gandhi’ ! →

Government, Refugee crisis, Violence/Conflict

The Bharatiya Janta Party has issues with Rohingyas – Indians don’t: Nabanipa Bhattacharjee

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Guest post by Nabanipa Bhattacharjee

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Image by Dan Kitwood / Getty

On 13 September 2017 the Union Home Ministry, following the 2015 order of the Supreme Court, decided to grant citizenship to Chakma and Hajong refugees. Victims of religious persecution in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh, the predominantly Buddhist Chakmas and Hindu Hajongs began immigrating to the north eastern region of India 1960s onwards. The then central government, eventually, moved a large number of these refugees to Arunachal Pradesh; while Arunachal Pradesh is their zone of concentration, a considerable number of Chakmas and Hajongs live in Mizoram and Meghalaya too. The decision of the Home Ministry, however, did not go down well with the indigenous tribal population of Arunachal Pradesh; the All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union protested against the move citing threats to life and livelihood of the native inhabitants of the state. On 14 September 2017 the Union government assured the protesters that a middle-ground – between honouring the law and commitment towards protecting the rights of the people of Arunachal Pradesh – would be found.

Continue reading The Bharatiya Janta Party has issues with Rohingyas – Indians don’t: Nabanipa Bhattacharjee →

Bad ideas, Culture, Debates, Government, Politics, Right watch

एक  नायक की तलाश में भाजपा 

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दीनदयाल उपाध्याय: भाजपा के ‘गांधी’

Image result for deendayal upadhyaya

( Photo Courtesy : thewire.in)

एक पेड़विहीन देश में एक एरंड भी बड़ा पेड़ कहलाता है – एक  संस्कृत सुभाषित का रूपांतरण

/In a treeless country even castor counts for a big tree/

/संदर्भ: http://www.epw.in/journal/2006/12/

 

राष्ट्रपति कोविन्द ने इस बात को स्वीकारा कि ‘‘भारत की कामयाबी की कंुजी उसकी विविधता में है’’ और ‘‘हमारी विविधता ही वह केन्द्र है जो हमें इतना अनोखा बनाती है’’। अपने भाषण का अन्त उन्होंने समतामूलक समाज बनाने के आवाहन के साथ किया जैसी ‘‘कल्पना महात्मा गांधी और दीनदयाल उपाध्यायजी’’ ने की थी।… महात्मा गांधी के साथ दीनदयाल उपाध्याय का नाम लेने पर कांग्रेस ने एतराज जाहिर किया। कांग्रेस के नेता गुलाम नबी आज़ाद ने कहा कि ‘‘राष्टपति को यह याद रखना चाहिए कि वह अब भाजपा के प्रत्याशी नहीं हैं। वह भारत के राष्ट्रपति हैं। उन्होंने दलीय राजनीति से ऊपर  उठना चाहिए।’’

(https://www.telegraphindia.com/1170726/jsp/frontpage/story_163934.jsp मूल अंग्रेजी से अनूदित )

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एक प्रतीक की खोज़

हिन्दु राष्ट्र के निर्माण के लिए प्रयासरत जमातें – जो फिलवक्त़ दक्षिण एशिया के इस हिस्से में हुकूमत के सबसे उंचे मुक़ाम पर पहुंची है – वह अपने आप को एक विचित्र दुविधा में फंसी पाती है। Continue reading एक  नायक की तलाश में भाजपा  →

Bad ideas, Capitalism, Government

Modi mocks ‘pessimists’, but RBI says a whole lot of Indians are pretty pessimistic about the economy

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Last week, Prime Minister Modi gave an hour long speech denouncing ‘pessimists’ who refused to see the bright side of demonetisation and other transformations that his government’s able management had visited upon the economy.

We at Kafila, did a quick fact-check offering many reasons for pessimism, but as they say in Delhi – humari kya aukaat hai?

Now, a set of surveys by the Reserve Bank of India have concluded that 65% of the 5100 metropolitan households polled feel the economic situation has either worsened or stayed the same. It’s a small sample, but the results are revealing.  To quote :

Households’ current perceptions on the general economic situation remained in the pessimistic zone for four successive quarters, with the outlook worsening — RBI

For those you wondering – “four successive quarters” is a full year.

I would urge most readers to read the report in full, but here are some key takeaways:

Continue reading Modi mocks ‘pessimists’, but RBI says a whole lot of Indians are pretty pessimistic about the economy →

Culture, Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Defend the tradition of fighting for the oppressed: Sohail Hashmi writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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(This is the text of the open letter written by the eminent left cultural activist Sohail Hashmi to Com. Pinarayi Vijayan on the Hadiya case)

Continue reading Defend the tradition of fighting for the oppressed: Sohail Hashmi writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala →

Centre watch, Government

Modi says the economy isn’t so bad; He’s right – it’s worse

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by Samarth Bansal and Aman Sethi

On October 4, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered a robust defence of his government’s management of the economy, shortly after the Reserve Bank of India lowered its Gross Value Added (GVA) growth estimates for the current fiscal year from 7.3% to 6.7%.

Since then, the ruling party has been pains to push a positive narrative on the economy,  extent of emailing clips of the speech to journalists who write about the economy.

So, what is the current state of the economy? Here’s a reality check.

How many jobs has the economy created?

Modi said: “Upto March 2014, the subscriber base of the Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) stood at 3.26 crore. Over the last three years, the numbers increased to 4.8 crore. Some people forget that this number can’t increased without a corresponding increase in employment.”

Reality Check: EPFO numbers have increased, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that total employment has increased. In July this year, this jump in EPFO subscribers was attributed to a government amnesty scheme which allowed firms to come clean on their actual staff strength without being penalized. In a detailed note, Mahesh Vyas, Managing Director and CEO of the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), explained why using EPFO data as a proxy for job creation is “fraught with danger.”

Referring to the jump in the subscriber base, Vyas wrote: “This is not new employment. It is merely enrollment of employed persons into EPFO.”

Continue reading Modi says the economy isn’t so bad; He’s right – it’s worse →

Centre watch, Culture, Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Politics, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Preserve Kerala as the Shining Example of Democracy for India : Prof. Satish Deshpande writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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(This is the text of the open letter from Prof. Satish Deshpande to the Chief Minister of Kerala on the Hadiya issue. Satish’s work Contemporary India, translated as Samakalika India, has been hugely influential in shaping the progressive understanding of Hindutva nationalism and communal hatred in Kerala.)

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The Honourable Chief Minister of Kerala

Shri Pinarayi Vijayan

6th October, 2017

Respected Sir,

Ever since I first came to Kerala in 1981 to study at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) at Thiruvanathapuram, I have been a committed supporter of everything that the left tradition of your great state has achieved by way of democratic innovations in governance and social practice. Even today, I believe that Kerala continues to be a shining example in many spheres where the rest of India lags far behind.

I was therefore shocked to read about the Hadiya case and the tacit and explicit state support that underwrite her virtual house arrest today. I am told that the man that Hadiya has chosen to marry and the organisation with which he is associated may have a questionable past. Whatever be the truth of this matter, the fact is that an adult citizen’s personal choices in matters like marriage cannot be undone by the state no matter how ill-considered that choice may appear to others. Moreover, in the current climate, it is surely not irrelevant that the religion in question is Islam – it is highly unlikely that this case would have attracted any attention if Hadiya had chosen to convert to some other religion.

It is highly embarrassing – to the say the least – that a government led by a party that can claim to have played a major role in transforming Kerala society for the better is today seen to be siding with the reactionary forces.

I appeal to you to use the power vested in you by the people of Kerala to end this travesty of justice and ensure that Hadiya is left free to live her life as she chooses.

With best wishes,

Satish Deshpande

(Professor of Sociology, Delhi University)

Culture, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Politics, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

End the isolation and imprisonment of Hadiya: Feminists write to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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[A version of this letter has also been sent to Com. MC Josephine, Chairperson, Kerala State Women’s Commission] Continue reading End the isolation and imprisonment of Hadiya: Feminists write to the Chief Minister of Kerala →

Culture, Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Let us rise to the defense of the Indian Constitution: Letter to the Kerala Chief Minister from Prof. Amit Bhaduri

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[This is the text of the open letter written by eminent economist and leading development activist Prof. Amit Bhaduri, to Com. Pinarayi Vijayan] Continue reading Let us rise to the defense of the Indian Constitution: Letter to the Kerala Chief Minister from Prof. Amit Bhaduri →

Centre watch, Countryside, Culture, Debates, Government, Identities, Law, Movements, Politics, Violence/Conflict

The Gravity of Newton : Rituparna Sengupta

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This is a guest post by RITUPARNA SENGUPTA

 

Amit V Masurkar’s recently-released film Newton explores facets of Indian democracy at its most vulnerable. For these times of ‘nationalist’ bravado, this is a courageous topic.  The film is so named because it adopts for the most part, the point of view of its protagonist, Newton (Nutan) Kumar (Rajkummar Rao, thank you once again!) who resists corruption and hypocrisy at home and work. Continue reading The Gravity of Newton : Rituparna Sengupta →

Culture, Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Help us resist the Hindutva thought-machine: K Satchidanandan writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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[This is the text of the open letter written by the eminent poet and public intellectual K Satchidanandan to Com. Pinarayi Vijayan] Continue reading Help us resist the Hindutva thought-machine: K Satchidanandan writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala →

Culture, Feminism, Genders, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Movements, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Restore Hadiya’s Dignity as an Adult: Prof. Samita Sen to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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(This is the text of the open letter from leading women’s studies scholar and renowned feminist intellectual, Prof. Samita Sen, to the Chief Minister of Kerala on the Hadiya case) Continue reading Restore Hadiya’s Dignity as an Adult: Prof. Samita Sen to the Chief Minister of Kerala →

Culture, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Check Hindutva Patriarchy: Prof. Akeel Bilgrami writes to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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 (This is the text of the open letter written by the eminent philosopher Prof. Bilgrami, who was honoured by the Government of Kerala a few years back, to Com. Pinarayi Vijayan, on the Hadiya case)
Dear Mr. Vijayan,

You may not remember me from a couple of years ago when you and Prof. Pannikar were kind enough to award me the Social Science Research Prize and attend my lecture on that occasion in Trivandrum. I write out of the blue now —an impertinent liberty— to urge you to intervene in the case of Hadiya where an important constitutional right to choose one’s religion is being violated since, as is well-known, there was absolutely no force exercised upon her in her conversion.   Both Hindutva mischief and patriarchal attitudes are at play in her plight and they need to be strongly resisted.  Moreover it seems to me that the NIA’s being allowed to play a role in this matter is a deplorable interference in the the state of Kerala’s autonomy in the federal system of governance to which our country is committed, and should also be resisted.
  Won’t you please lead the way on this  —your voice, speaking out on all these issues and your support of Hadiya from your position of authority as Chief Minister, will make all the difference.
With my very best wishes,
Akeel Bilgrami
Akeel Bilgrami
Sidney Morgenbesser Professor of Philosophy,
Professor, Committee on Global Thought,
Columbia University,
Tel: 212 316 3458
Fax 212 854 4986
Debates, Feminism, Government, Identities, Law, Left watch, Politics, Religion, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

The Left Must Fight for Human Rights: AIPWA to the Chief Minister of Kerala

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This is the text of the open letter to Com. Pinarayi Vijayan from Kavita Krishnan, Secretary, All-India Progressive Women’s Association]

Continue reading The Left Must Fight for Human Rights: AIPWA to the Chief Minister of Kerala →