Everyday Life, Law, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

Academics for Democracy: Statement in Solidarity with Students of Hyderabad Central University

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The brutal police assault on students of the University of Hyderabad (UoH), which has clearly taken place with the blessings of University authorities, is an unprecedented attack on the student community in India. Starting with last years de-recognition of the APSC in IIT-Madras, to the events at FTII Pune, on to the suspension of students at the University of Madras for protesting against TASMAC, to the suspension of 5 Dalit research scholars belonging to UoH, to the arrests of students at JNU on charges of sedition, to this assault and arrest of students at UoH, clearly demonstrates the increasing intensity with which liberal and democratic spaces inside campuses are shrinking, due chiefly to Hindutva forces.

The students in question were peacefully protesting against the return of Vice Chancellor Appa Rao Podile who, according to the student community at UoH, was one of the key persons responsible for Rohith Vemula’s suicide, an event that since then been termed by some as an ‘institutional killing’. During this period, no action was taken against any University officials for Rohith’s death. The manner in which students and members of the faculty were assaulted — with female students being groped by male police personnel as well! — all the while facing accusations of being an “anti-national”, is probably a new low for the Hyderabad police force.

Recent events have made clear that dissent of any sort on campuses, especially the sort that questions structures of power and the Hindutva ideology, will be suppressed in the most brutal manner possible. We find it especially shocking that sections of the media have chosen to compromise on foundational principles of journalistic ethics and, as they did in the JNU case, have resorted to reporting unverified facts like “the protesters vandalized the Vice Chancellor’s office”. These unverified reports are intended, we assume, to some how justify the violent police action.

In addition to the assault on members of UoH, the attempt to turn the campus into a prison yard by blocking water and food supplies as well as the alleged blocking of debit cards is a worrisome development. It should serve as a warning to all students and members of faculty across the country: if they are to fight to preserve liberal democratic spaces on campuses, these are the challenges they will face.

Academics For Democracy condemns this whole episode in strongest possible terms and demands further that:

  1. All arrested protesters be released,
  2. Action is taken against the police personnel who assaulted the protesters in the campus as well as in police vans, and
  3. Appa Rao Podile be removed from his post as Vice Chancellor.

List of Signatories

V.S. Sunder, Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSC), Faculty

Arnab Priya Saha, IMSc, PhD student

Suratno Basu, Chennai Mathematical Institute (CMI), PhD student

Nirmalya Kajuri, IIT Chennai, Postdoctoral fellow

Continue reading Academics for Democracy: Statement in Solidarity with Students of Hyderabad Central University →

Everyday Life, Right watch

Statement in Solidarity with the ongoing movement at University of Hyderabad

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  1. We, the undersigned, unequivocally condemn police action in and around University of Hyderabad, from the 22 of March onwards. We criticize extreme police brutality, lathi charge, threats of rape and verbal abuse done to the students and faculty members of UoH.
  2. We demand to know the whereabouts of the faculty members and students who were made to disappear on the 22nd March. We condemn the false charges under which they are rumoured to have been booked. We condemn the police attack on students preparing food, the detaining of students for ‘cooking in a public space’ and the insinuation that they had to be taught a lesson because they might have been cooking beef!
  3. We condemn the UoH administration’s cutting off of water, electricity, internet and food to the campus residents. Nothing, no trumped up charge merits this kind of denial of basic necessities, and this action taken by the administration and aided by the police is CASTEISM, whereby the authorities feel justified to ‘teaching’ dissenting voices a lesson, in the manner of feudal upper caste landlords.
  4. We demand a response from the Telangana state government, which has supplied police to meet the nefarious demands of tainted and on-leave VC Appa Rao. A government which was formed on the demands of equality of the disadvantaged sections of society must hang its head in shame due to its complicity with the casteist UoH admin.
  5. VC Appa Rao Podile assumed office on the 22nd of March even though he has been booked under the SC ST Atrocities Act. Instead of arresting him, the police aided him in postponing the Academic Council meeting and shutting down university amenities. Appa Rao must go! The judicial probe and the MHRD probe against him be concluded impartially and at the earliest, and those responsible for Rohith Vemula’s institutional murder punished.
  6. We also condemn the national media’s silence over this state of emergency imposed on UoH, demand that the UoH community’s voice be heard and adequately represented, as the gravity of the situation merits. This media blackout reeks of casteism and complicity with Hindtutva forces, and must be resisted by all means.
  7. Casteism is the most deeply entrenched reality of modern India. Our public spaces, universities, and academia are as much a part of it, as our institutions of marriage, dining and religion. We urge the academic community in India and abroad to support UoH in its fight against casteism and fascism in the same manner in which it has supported elite institutions in the past.

Jai Bhim!

Continue reading Statement in Solidarity with the ongoing movement at University of Hyderabad →

Education, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

JNUTA Condemns Repression in Hyderabad Central University

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The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers Association, which currently holds Secretary’s position in the Federation of Central University Teachers’ Associations (FEDCUTA), is disturbed by the repots of attacks on the autonomy and democratic life of Hyderabad Central University (HCU). JNUTA condemns in unequivocal terms the brutality unleashed by the Police on unarmed students and teachers in Central University of Hyderabad. JNUTA denounces the resuming of office by the Vice Chancellor of Hyderabad Central University when a Judicial Enquiry is pending against him for his alleged role in the tragic death of Rohit Vemula. It is a matter of concern that basic services including water supply and Internet connections are disrupted in HCU.

JNUTA expresses its concern over the arrest of faculty members and students in HCU and demands their immediate release. It urges upon all to maintain restrain and not to resort to violence of any kind. It appeals to the Administration of Hyderabad Central University to immediately restore the basic services in the residential units of students to ensure that their academic activities do not suffer.

Use of police and coercion is not going to help in the smooth functioning of a University, which is meant to protect justice and democracy and uphold the Constitution of India in letter and spirit.  The Hyderabad Central University VC and administration should bear this in mind before using mindless force against teachers and students.

Prof. Ajay Patnaik                                                Dr. Bikramaditya Choudhary

President, JNUTA                                                              Secretary, JNUTA

 

 

 

Education, Everyday Life, Government, Right watch

Statement from SC/ST Faculty Forum and Concerned Teachers, Univ of Hyderabad

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 The following is a Press Release from the SC/ST Faculty Forum and Concerned Teachers on the state of affairs in the University, especially since the peculiar, staged incidents, surrounding the return of the former Vice Chancellor

We express our extreme displeasure at Prof. Appa Rao resuming office without information given even to the incharge Vice-Chancellor. Prof. Appa Rao has returned to the office when he has not yet been exonerated either by the court or by the Judicial Enquiry instituted by the MHRD based on the two member committee report which took into cognizance the very serious concerns raised by the students and the teaching fraternity.

The time period of the judicial probe is not completed and the commission has until April 30th 2016 to submit its report. In order for a fair probe to be carried on, it was not expected that Prof. Appa Rao returns to the office till he was cleared of charges. We are shocked at the manner in which Prof. Appa Rao rejoined the office. From the documents available, it can be noted that a sequence of actions to be carried out by specific individuals that include some specific sections of students, teachers and non-teaching staff and also police personnel was prepared to be implemented. For example:

  1. “Receiving” Prof. Appa Rao near Gachibowli Stadium at 8am on 22nd March 2016.
  2. “Greeting” of Prof. Appa Rao by the Life Sciences Students at the VC’s lodge upon his arrival.
  3. “Request the support” of police

Continue reading Statement from SC/ST Faculty Forum and Concerned Teachers, Univ of Hyderabad →

Bad ideas, Culture, Debates, Education, Government, Law, Mirror Worlds, Movements, Politics, Violence/Conflict

Open Letter from Hyderabad University Alumni against Repression on HCU Campus and the Return of Appa Rao as VC

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Guest Post by UoH/HCU Alumni

UoH Alumni Open Letter against the institutional murder of Rohith Vemula, the return of Dr. Appa Rao as UoH’s VC, and the brutal display of state violence in campus.

As alumni of the University of Hyderabad, we observed with dismay the return of Dr. Appa Rao Podile as the Vice-Chancellor of University of Hyderabad (UoH) on March 22. We strongly condemn this provocation that led to the police brutality on campus. The shutdown of the university which has followed is unacceptable and unlawful.

A couple of days ago, a report ranked three departments of the University of Hyderabad among the top 500 university facilities in the world. The education we received at UoH helped us to not only shape our careers, but also to question, critique and analyse concepts such as equality, fraternity and social justice.  Upon entering a central university of this size, we were exposed to the sheer diversity of this country. UoH, like other central universities in India, is an amalgam of many languages, cultures, religions and regions.

However, much like the rest of the country, the university campus is a space where systematically oppressive caste structures operate and are institutionally legitimised. Recent events at UoH have left us dismayed and angered at the treatment meted out to peacefully protesting students at the hands of the administration and the police.

Continue reading Open Letter from Hyderabad University Alumni against Repression on HCU Campus and the Return of Appa Rao as VC →

Countryside, Culture, Debates, Ecology/Environment, Government, Identities, Movements, Politics, Violence/Conflict

“I used to feed fish to my widowed grandmother” by Buddhadeb Dasgupta: Soumashree Sarkar

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This is an English translation by SOUMASHREE SARKAR of a column by Buddhadeb Dasgupta which appeared in the Sunday special supplement, Rabibashoriyo, of the Bengali daily Anandabazar Patrika on March 20, 2016 and can be found in the original Bengali here.

It was probably the month of November. Winter had set in firmly in a city that neighboured Kolkata. The quilts had come out even before that. Morning had not even broken and there was still a lot of sleep left to be slept when Ma yanked the quilt away from me and woke me up, “Don’t you remember who’s coming today? Get up and hurry, I’ve been calling you for the longest time, Khrushchev and Bulganin are coming, they might have reached already. My cooking’s almost done.” The words were pouring out of my mother’s mouth with frightening speed and excitement, all in the Dhaka’s native Bengali tongue.

Bathed in cold water, shivering through chattering teeth, and sufficiently clothes, we siblings went and stood in front of our mother. With a comb in hand, Ma sat on a chair, and neatly parted all our heads of hair.

I asked, “What does Khrushchev look like? What does Bulganin look like? The same rice-dal-fish curry that we eat – do they also eat that?”

Continue reading “I used to feed fish to my widowed grandmother” by Buddhadeb Dasgupta: Soumashree Sarkar →

Bad ideas

प्रिय बेला: महताब आलम

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अतिथि लेखक: महताब आलम

प्रिय बेला,

आपका ख़त (http://hindi.catchnews.com/india/i-will-not-leave-bastar-at-any-cost-1458658368.html)पढ़ा. पढ़कर बहुत ख़ुशी हुई और हिम्मत भी मिली। ख़ुशी इसलिए कि आप सही सलामत हैं और हिम्मत इसलिए क्योंकि जिस डर की हालत में बस्तर से मैं लौटा हूँ, उसमें आपका ख़त आशा की किरण है और यह सीख देता है कि हमें बिना डरे, हिम्मत के साथ अपना संघर्ष जारी रखना चाहिए।  संघर्ष हर प्रकार की हिंसा और उत्पीड़न के खिलाफ। संघर्ष शांति, न्याय और लोकतंत्र की स्थापना के लिए।

पिछले सप्ताह जब हम जगदलपुर में लगभग एक साल के बाद मिले थे तो आप कितनी खुश लग रही थीं! मुझे याद है और जैसा कि आपसे मैंने कहा था कि पिछली मुलाकात की बनिस्बत आप ज़्यादा तरोताज़ा और ऊर्जावान लग रही हैं जिसके जवाब में आपका कहना था कि, ” मैं बहुत ख़ुश हूँ क्योंकि वर्षों के संघर्ष बाद मैं वो कर पा रही हूँ जो करना चाहती थी।” आपने बताया था कि किस तरह  आप सिर्फ़ अकादमिक कामों से आगे बढ़कर, अपनी नागरिक ज़िम्मेदारी को निभाना चाहती थीं. यही आपने अपने पत्र में भी लिखा है:

“एक समय आया जब मुझे जरूरी लगने लगा कि मैं लोगों को अपने अधिकारों के लिए लड़ने में मदद करूं. मैं एक शोधकर्ता थी, और साथ में नागरिक भी. मैंने देश के अन्य राज्यों में भी जब-जब काम किया था, वहां भी यह जिम्मेदारी निभाई थी, तो बस्तर में क्यों नहीं? यह सोच कर मैंने आदिवासी लोगों के साथ उनके संवैधानिक हकों के लिए काम करना शुरू किया. मैं मानती हूं कि हमारे जैसे देश में जो लोग शिक्षित हैं उनकी समाज के प्रति जिम्मेदारी बढ़ जाती है.”

पर शायद बस्तर देश के दूसरे हिस्सों, खासतौर पर तथाकथित मेनलैंड की तरह नहीं है. बस्तर में अधिकार और संविधान जैसे शब्द  सिर्फ किताबों तक महदूद हैं. आपके ही शब्दों में कहूँ तो, “बस्तर में सरकार और माओवादियों के बीच युद्ध चल रहा है.” और ऐसी स्थिति में काम करना, ख़ासतौर पर जनता के संवैधानिक अधिकारों के लिए लड़ना,उसके बारे में लिखना और सच को उजागर करना और भी मुश्किल हो जाता है.और इसी मुश्किल काम को आप अंजाम दे रही हैं जो कि सराहनीय होने के साथ-साथ साहसिक भी है.  Continue reading प्रिय बेला: महताब आलम →

Bad ideas, Education, Law, Metropolis, Mirror Worlds, Movements, Politics, Violence/Conflict

Students Testify to Police Brutality on the HCU Campus in Hyderabad : Guest Post from HCU Students

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Guest Post by HCU students (Taken from Youtube Uploads and Facebook Status Updates)

[Since there is a virtual media blackout of the situation in Hyderabad Central University we have decided to share video testimonies by students of the violence unleashed by CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) and the RAF (Rapid Action Force) which were called in at the behest of the Vice Chancellor Appa Rao – who is already under a cloud for having created the circumstances that led to Rohith Vemula’s suicide, which many students consider to be an ‘institutional murder’. When Appa Rao returned to the University, students were enraged, and they started a ‘sit-in’ outside the Vice Chancellor’s lodge. It was then that the central forces were called in. Later, electricity, water and internet facilities were cut off. The debit card used by the students, linked to the State Bank of India branch on the campus, were blocked. The non teaching staff was persuaded not to give food in university hostel canteens to students. Some students who started a community kitchen were taken away by the police. One of them, a research scholar called Uday Bhanu was so badly beaten up that he has been admitted to intensive care at a local hospital. His condition remains critical.

Courtest, 'University Community' & '#DalitLivesMatter'
Courtest, ‘University Community’ & ‘#DalitLivesMatter’

Hyderabad Central University, is now a virtual prison camp.

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According to reports, 36 students are still missing. Several are hospitalized and are being treated for injuries. At least one of the students is in a critical condition.12671963_1656941941246803_5210071450630800436_o Continue reading Students Testify to Police Brutality on the HCU Campus in Hyderabad : Guest Post from HCU Students →

Education, Right watch

Joint Action Committee for Social Justice condemns police brutality at University of Hyderabad

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The Joint Action Committee for Social Justice condemns in the strongest terms the brutal physical and sexual assaults unleashed by the police, Rapid Action Force (RAF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and security personnel, acting upon the orders of the Central and state government, upon students and teachers at the University of Hyderabad on 22nd March. While male personnel were hitting women students, men students, faculty they hurled abuses. During the lathi charge, the CRPF and RAF badly beat hundreds of protesting students in campus, abusing them as “anti-nationals” and yelled that they will file sedition charges on us. Students were beaten for even standing outside their departments, with the police telling them to “go sit inside and study”. Women students were beaten and grabbed by male police officers. After the forcible eviction from the lodge compound the police chased us for another 2 kilo meters, and grabbed and arrested students.Students suffered grievous injuries and were taken to hospitals. The phones of several students were confiscated while they video recorded the brutality. During the lathi charge the police singled out students and hit them even after the crowd had dispersed. Hostels were searched as police appeared to have a pre-determined list of students and faculty they were trying to pick up, which media have said was a list directly supplied by the Podile Apparao.

36 students including 3 professors were picked up yesterday around 5 pm, they were brutally beaten in a police van, and detained in unknown locations all night. We have some information now that they were detained in Miyapur and Narsing police stations; the police blatantly lied to people who went to Miyapur police station that they were not holding any people there.

Emergency like situation imposed on campus.

The moment Podile Apparao entered the campus, the first thing that happened was absolute internet shut down for students. Continue reading Joint Action Committee for Social Justice condemns police brutality at University of Hyderabad →

Bad ideas

Bhagat Singh: Bharat Bhakt or Inquilabi?

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For nearly 90 years, India has been living in nostalgia of an iconic youth – Bhagat Singh. A sense of loss informs our discourse on Bhagat Singh. We keep turning to him and Subhas Chandra Bose again and again as sources of deliverance from the ills that India has been suffering. It’s too heavy a burden on him considering that Singh was just 23 years old when he was hanged.

Bhagat Singh is seen as the ultimate militant nationalist. Nationalism cannot do without militancy. It is believed that Mahatma Gandhi and his heir, the effeminate Jawaharlal Nehru, emasculated us and also conspired to remove two “real men” from the scene in Bhagat Singh and then Subhas Chandra Bose.

It is quite a different matter that Bhagat Singh did not want youth to emulate Bose. In the young Singh’s eyes, Bose was an emotional nationalist with a parochial outlook. He considered Bose dangerous for the youth as his rhetoric could arouse nationalistic passions easily. Continue reading Bhagat Singh: Bharat Bhakt or Inquilabi? →

Bad ideas, Debates, Movements, Politics

भगतसिंह, सुखदेव और राजगुरू की शहादत पर डा अम्बेडकर

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(Dr. Ambedkar’s editorial on Bhagat Singh-Rajguru-Sukhdev execution on 13th April 1931-available in English here – http://www.bhagatsinghstudy.blogspot.in/2016/03/dr-ambedkars-editorial-on-bhagat-singh.html)
समसामयिक विचार
(जनता, 13 अप्रैल 1931)
भगतसिंह, सुखदेव और राजगुरू इन तीनों को अन्ततः फांसी पर लटका दिया गया। इन तीनों पर यह आरोप लगाया गया कि उन्होंने सान्डर्स नामक अंग्रेजी अफसर और चमनसिंह नामक सिख पुलिस अधिकारी की लाहौर में हत्या की। इसके अलावा बनारस में किसी पुलिस अधिकारी की हत्या का आरोप, असेम्ब्ली में बम फेंकने का आरोप और मौलमिया नामक गांव में एक मकान पर डकैती डाल कर वहां लूटपाट एवं मकानमालिक की हत्या करने जैसे तीन चार आरोप भी उन पर लगे। इनमें से असेम्ब्ली में बम फेंकने का आरोप भगतसिंह ने खुद कबूल किया था और इसके लिए उसे और बटुकेश्वर दत्त नामक उनके एक सहायक दोस्त को उमर कैद के तौर पर काला पानी की सज़ा सुनायी गयी। सांडर्स की हत्या भगतसिंह जैसे क्रांतिकारियों ने की ऐसी स्वीकारोक्ति जयगोपाल नामक भगतसिंह के दूसरे सहयोगी ने भी की थी और उसी बुनियाद पर सरकार ने भगतसिंह के खिलाफ मुकदमा कायम किया था। इस मुकदमें में तीनों ने भाग नहीं लिया था। हाईकोर्ट के तीन न्यायाधीशों के स्पेशल ट्रीब्युनल का गठन करके  उनके सामने यह मुकदमा चला और उन तीनों ने इन्हें दोषी घोषित किया और उन्हें फांसी की सज़ा सुना दी। इस सज़ा पर अमल न हो और फांसी के बजाय उन्हें अधिक से अधिक काला पानी की सज़ा सुनायी जाए ऐसी गुजारिश के साथ भगतसिंह के पिता ने राजा और वायसराय के यहां दरखास्त भी दी । अनेक बड़े बड़े नेताओं ने और तमाम अन्य लोगों ने भगतसिंह को इस तरह सज़ा न दी जाए इसे लेकर सरकार से अपील भी की। गांधीजी और लॉर्ड इरविन के बीच चली आपसी चर्चाओं में भी भगतसिंह की फांसी की सज़ा का मसला अवश्य उठा होगा और लार्ड इरविन ने भले ही मैं भगतसिंह की जान बचाउंगा ऐसा ठोस वायदा गांधीजी से न किया हो, मगर लार्ड इरविन इस सन्दर्भ में पूरी कोशिश करेंगे और अपने अधिकारों के दायरे में इन तीनों की जान बचाएंगे ऐसी उम्मीद गांधीजी के भाषण से पैदा हुई थी। मगर यह सभी उम्मीदें, अनुमान और गुजारिशें गलत साबित हुई और बीते 23 मार्च को शाम 7 बजे इन तीनांे को लाहौर सेन्ट्रल  जेल में फांसी दी गयी। ‘ हमारी जान बकश दें’ ऐसी दया की अपील इन तीनों में से किसी ने भी नहीं की थी; हां, फांसी की सूली पर चढ़ाने के बजाए हमें गोलियों से उड़ा दिया जाए ऐसी इच्छा भगतसिंह ने प्रगट की थी, ऐसी ख़बरें अवश्य आयी हैं। मगर उनकी इस आखरी इच्छा का भी सम्मान नहीं किया गया। न्यायाधीश के आदेश पर हुबहू अमल किया गया ! ‘अंतिम सांस तक फांसी पर लटका दें’ यही निर्णय जज ने सुनाया था। अगर गोलियों से उड़ा दिया जाता तो इस निर्णय पर शाब्दिक अमल नहीं माना जाता। न्यायदेवता के निर्णय पर बिल्कुल शाब्दिक अर्थों में हुबहू अमल किया गया और उसके कथनानुसार ही इन तीनों को शिकार बनाया गया।

Continue reading भगतसिंह, सुखदेव और राजगुरू की शहादत पर डा अम्बेडकर →

Debates, Education, Politics, Right watch

Medical professionals challenge Indian Medical Association (IMA)

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STATEMENT BY MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS RAISING QUESTIONS TO IMA

The National President and Honorary Secretary General of Indian Medical Association (IMA), on behalf of its 2.6 lakh members, have written a letter to Home Minister Shri Raj Nath Singh condemning the ‘anti-national’ incident that had taken place recently at JNU. The office bearers have appealed to the government to take strict and necessary action against any persons or organizations or group carrying out any ‘anti-national’ protests, speeches, debates or writings in the country. They have also appealed to the government that investigations should be fair and free and the culprits be punished as early as possible as per the law so that in future no one can dare to do ‘anti-national’ activities in the country. The office-bearers have extended their whole-hearted support to the government in this matter, again, on behalf of it 2.6 lakh members. As per the statement of IMA’s Honorary Secretary General published in The Hindu on 24th February 2016, this letter is also an intervention to tell medical students, nursing students etc. that ‘anti-national’ activities will not be tolerated and that such ‘anti-national’ incidents should be curbed and not debated upon.

For anybody who may be unaware of the ‘anti-national’ incident at JNU being referred to in the above-mentioned letter, here is a description: Continue reading Medical professionals challenge Indian Medical Association (IMA) →

Education, Right watch

‘Danger to Constitutional Values’: Statement by retired civil servants

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Full text of the appeal sent to the President of India and the PMO,  issued by 17 retired civil servants belonging to different All India and Central Services.

We, the persons listed below, a group of retired civil servants belonging to different All India and Central Services who have worked in the Government of India (GoI), State Governments and a wide range of governmental and other institutions would urge all Constitutional institutions in India, the media and the general public to reflect upon the deeply disquieting trends visible in the public sphere and in our polity today. These developments are causing deep anguish to us as they question some of the fundamental Constitutional principles and legal safeguards we have long taken for granted. Some of these are mentioned below:

1) The discrimination against Scheduled Caste students and an attempt to clamp down upon Ambedkar study groups as found in IIT, Chennai, and in the University of Hyderabad. The tragic suicide of Rohith Vemula has highlighted the unwarranted interference of the GoI in the University of Hyderabad and its targeting a group of students, who did not subscribe to a narrow concept of nationalism.

Continue reading ‘Danger to Constitutional Values’: Statement by retired civil servants →

Bad ideas, Government, Identities, Media politics, Politics, Right watch

Nation and its Violences: Sanjay Kumar

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Guest Post by Sanjay Kumar

Violent thoughts and deeds are increasingly getting justified in the name of Indian nation. A mob of lawyers has attacked students, teachers and journalists, right in the middle of a court complex in the national capital. Leaders of these patriotic lawyers were later caught bragging on camera about how they will next time throw bombs on anti-nationals. A young woman in Delhi has received emails and face book posts threatening her with acid attack and sexual assault, because she happens to be a sister of Umar Khalid, one of the organisers of the JNU programme, during which according to police anti-India slogans were raised. The mere being of this woman, and her defence of her brother, is enough of a provocation for many men and women of the country to justify the threat of ultimate male violence against women. Another man, Mr Adarsh Sharma put posters in the central district of the capital announcing an award of Rs 11 lakh for anyone who kills Mr Kanhaiya Kumar, the president of  the JNUSU, charged with sedition. Mr Sharma claims that his ‘blood boiled’ when he saw Mr Kumar’s much publicised speech after his release on bail. The popular movie Pyasa (1957) of Gurudutt had a song ‘Jinhen Naz hai Hind par vo kahaan hain’, which used the reality of social degradation to question celebrations of the nation. Sahir’s poem worked because it asked Indians to look at themselves in the mirror of public morality of the recently independent India. That mirror has been cracked for long. With the brazenly violent now claiming that their violence and threat to violence should really be the pride of the nation, we are now witnessing the final shattering of that mirror. Continue reading Nation and its Violences: Sanjay Kumar →

Culture, Debates, Identities, Law, Right watch, Violence/Conflict

निर्गुण देशप्रेम बनाम सगुण संघी राष्ट्रभक्ति

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भारतीय जनता पार्टी की राष्ट्रीय कार्यकारिणी ने कल अपनी बैठक में एक फ़रमान जारी किया है जिसके मुताबिक ‘भारत माता की जय’ न कहना संविधान के प्रति असम्मान दिखाना है. इस कार्यकारिणी की बैठक में ‘राष्ट्रवाद’ का ढोल नगाड़ा तो खूब पीटा गया मगर कम-अज़-कम अख़बारों की खबरों से तो नहीं लगता की आंसू की एक बूद भी – घड़ियाली ही सही – किसी भी नेता की आँख से इस ‘राष्ट्रवाद’ के नाम पर चल रहे तांडव में मारे जा रहे लोगों के लिए बही हो. न ही ‘राष्ट्रवादी शोहदों द्वारा की जा रही क्रूर, घिनौनी और हिंसात्मक बयानबाज़ी पर ही कार्यकारिणी के पास कुछ कहने को था.

संघी राष्ट्रवाद का असली चेहरा. image courtesy, Mir Suhail
संघी राष्ट्रवाद का असली चेहरा. image courtesy, Mir Suhail

Continue reading निर्गुण देशप्रेम बनाम सगुण संघी राष्ट्रभक्ति →

Bad ideas, Capitalism, Government, Politics

Petition to Demand Release of Anti-Mining Activist , Writer, Film-maker Debaranjan Sarangi

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Guest Post by Kamayani Bali Mahabal

Release Anti-Mining Activist , writer, film-maker - Debaranjan Sarangi

Debanjan Sarangi , , documentary film maker, writer and human rights activist  has been arrested in the early hours around 6.30 AM on March 18, 2016, by the Odisha police in Kuchaipad village in Kashipur block of Raygada district of Odisha. The defender has been arrested with the help of local police on the basis of a non-bailable warrant issued against him in a previous case of the year of 2005.

Debaranjan Sarangi along with others went to Kuchaipad village in Kashipur block of Raygada district of Odisha to participate in the FUNERAL  of activist late Mr. Laxman Majhi on March 16, 2016, evening. The rituals were completed on March 17, 2016. While other persons accompanied the defender returned on the same evening,

Debaranjan decided to stay back in the village for another day. In the early morning on March 18, 2016, he went out to a nearby riverside and while he was coming back, he saw two police men in civil clothes who came to him and took him. They did not allow him to change his clothes and forced him to go along with them in his lungi to the nearest police station at about 6.30 AM. Continue reading Petition to Demand Release of Anti-Mining Activist , Writer, Film-maker Debaranjan Sarangi →

Bad ideas

दुश्मन कौन है? : एक चिट्ठी विक्रम सिंह चौहान के नाम

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अतिथि लेखक:सरोज गिरी और कमल नयन चौबे

प्रिय विक्रम सिंह चौहान जी,

हमने समाचार माध्यमों में आपके बारे में काफी पढ़ा है. आज के दौर में सब अपने बारे में सोचते हैं, लेकिन ऐसा लगता है कि  आप इन सब से ऊपर उठकर देश के बारे में सोच रहे हैं. आपने जो कुछ भी किया, अपने लिए नहीं किया। शायद आपको यह लग रहा है कि  हमारे देश और समाज में ऐसा बहुत कुछ हो रहा है जो नहीं होना चाहिए। आपके गुस्से में हम सिर्फ गुस्सा नहीं देखते हैं बल्कि ऐसा लग रहा है कि आप बहुत छटपटाहट में हैं, आप बेचैन हैं।जो हो रहा है वो आपको बिलकुल मंजूर नहीं है. जब टीवी पत्रकार आपसे पूछ रहे थे कि क्या आपने कन्हैया की पिटाई की है तो आपने इस बिलकुल ही इंकार नहीं किया। आपने और ओपी शर्मा दोनों ने यह कहा कि अगर आप लोगों को दुबारा ऐसा करना पड़े तो आप फिर से ऐसा करेंगे।

ऐसा लगता है कि आप जो कर रहे हैं उसमें आपका दृढ़ विश्वास है. शायद आप यह भी महसूस करते हैं कि  देश में बहुत दिवालियापन है,भ्रष्टाचार है और राजनीति में नेहरू-गांधी परिवार का वंशवाद हावी है. आपको यह भी लगता होगा कि  देश में ऐसा बहुत सा काम हो रहा है जो देश के खिलाफ है; और यहाँ जो अंग्रेजी बोलने वाले और सूट बूट पहनने वाले लोग हैं वे  सिर्फ अपने स्वार्थ की बात करते हैं. शायद आपको यह लगता है कि  ये लोग अपने ही देश के विरुद्ध हैं. अधिकांश लोग आपके द्वारा की गई हिंसा को गैरकानूनी मानते हुए इसकी निंदा कर रहे हैं , लेकिन हम सिर्फ इस आधार पर आपकी कार्रवाई को गलत नहीं मानते। इंसान कानून को बनता है न कि कानून इंसान को. इसलिए कानून का उल्लंघन किया जा सकता है. हम इंसानियत के नाते आपसे चंद बातें कहना चाहते हैं. Continue reading दुश्मन कौन है? : एक चिट्ठी विक्रम सिंह चौहान के नाम →

Debates, Feminism, Right watch

Many faces of the mother – Four voices on Bharat Mata and a quiz

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Articles by SHACHI SETH, SADAN JHA, OM THANVI AND SHOAIB DANIYAL

Bharat-Mata-by-Dr.-Lal-Ratnakar-300x271

Bharat Mata by Dr Lal Ratnakar

This image is from a post by Shachi Seth on India Resists:

Are demands for ‘azadi’ from blind state worship, systems of power and exploitation, such an impediment in the identity of Bharat Mata? Is the idea of Bharat Mata not ironic, given the depth to which the roots of patriarchy infiltrate our society? Is it not ironic that the Gau Maata and Bharat Maata which must mandatorily be respected and protected are bound by ideas of selfless giving and motherhood? Is the maata really not okay with being called by other names? Does the maata get to retaliate when her rights are violated, or is she an eternal symbol of sacrifice and docility? Where does the maata go when her resources are stripped to bring about development and when other females are stripped of their dignity on a daily basis? Is this benevolent, great mother in such great need of patronizing protection from the same men that threaten it when it isn’t dressed in a tri color sari? Will the mother ask me to go to the neighbors’ place if I happen to get in an argument with her? Am I not patriotic if I criticize my nation for knowingly or unknowingly allowing exploitation of its people?

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Debates, Education, Right watch

ABVP Attack on Prof Chaman Lal at event on Bhagat Singh: Vidhya

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Guest Post by VIDHYA

On the 18th of March, Bhagat Singh Chhatra Ekta Manch – a student organization in Delhi University and Aahwan: Ek Janwadi Sanskritik Muhim – a cultural organization, organized a talk and discussion with Prof. Chaman Lal on ‘The Life and Writings of Bhagat Singh’. Dr. Vikas Gupta of the History Department in DU introduced it and facilitated the discussion. This event was organized in the Main Gate of the Arts Faculty of DU after several attempts to book a venue inside Arts Faculty failed. We had hoped to organize a discussion on the life of a revolutionary and the relevance of his message today to the students of the university.

The talk was scheduled to begin at 12 pm. At the same time, another cultural organization, namely Sangwari, came to the area outside the Main Gate to perform a play (nukkad-natak) on the JNU issue. Though this play disrupted our talk, since they were not permitted to perform in the Law Faculty, we agreed and asked our speaker and discussant to wait till the end of the performance. Minutes into the play, the ABVP goons disrupted the performance. At first, it wasn’t clear if the fracas was part of the play or not. But as soon as we realized that 15 or so members of ABVP had taken over, all those who had gathered there intervened to stop the hooliganism of these goons. It is important to state here that during the entire time, around 60 to 70 police officers and constables were mute spectators. These ABVP goons started sloganeering and those performing the play dispersed when they realized that they would not be able to perform. Meanwhile, we were waiting to resume the talk by Prof. Chaman Lal.

Continue reading ABVP Attack on Prof Chaman Lal at event on Bhagat Singh: Vidhya →

Bad ideas, Debates, Education, Identities, Language

An Open Letter to Prof. Amita Singh from Kashmiri Students in JNU: Concerned Kashmiri Students in JNU

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Guest Post by Some Kashmiri Students in JNU – See the End of the Post for Names

“Jab kendra main sarkar kamzor ya undecided hogayi to aap ko pata hai ki akhri dinoon main Manmohan Singh ji kuch ni kar rahe thei. State agencies koi kaam ni kar rahi thei. … Usi period main ye sab ghusein hain, jo Kashmiri militants hain aur ye saare hain. Ye usi period main in tatvoon ka yahan par entry hogaya hai. Varna JNU ki history main kabhi bhi is qism ki naare-baazi nahin hui. … anti-national matlab aisi naare-baazi jo desh ki akhandta  aur samprabuta  kei upar prashan chin uthayey. Aise kabhi naare-baazi nahin hui thi.”

When the government at the centre was weak and undecided, as you recall was the case in the last days of Manmohan Singh’s rule, no state agencies were doing their work…it was at that time that all these Kashmiri militants found their way in here (to JNU). It was in that period that these elements made their entry. Otherwise, at no time in JNU’s history have we heard this kind of sloganeering – of the anti-national type, meaning the kind of sloganeering that brings the akhandta, the inviolate integrity and samprabhuta/sovereignty of the country into question. This kind of sloganeering never happened before

(An excerpt from Prof. Amita Singh’s interview to the Uttar Pradesh Patrika newspaper, transcribed from its youtube upload) 

Dear Prof. Amita Singh,

The above quote is to remind you about the prejudiced, baseless, and ill-founded allegations against Kashmiri students made by you. In your clarification (through media), you claimed that “the interview was an informal one” and that you were not aware of it being put on a website.

Continue reading An Open Letter to Prof. Amita Singh from Kashmiri Students in JNU: Concerned Kashmiri Students in JNU →

Bad ideas, Debates, Feminism, Media politics

Sri Lankan Academics and Activists Condemn Vicious Campaign Against Nivedita Menon

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VICIOUS CAMPAIGN AGAINST FEMINIST SCHOLAR

We, the undersigned, wish to express our shock and indignation at the vicious right wing media campaign conducted over the past few days against well-known feminist scholar and Jawaharlal Nehru University professor Nivedita Menon. This media campaign mischievously decontextualizes her lecture at the public teach-in programme in JNU with the use of selective clips and inflammatory commentary. The television channel Zee has led the main campaign by branding Professor Menon as ‘anti-national’ and instigating viewers to take action. Such branding is tantamount to a television channel acting as both judge and jury, and directly placing an individual’s rights and safety under threat. Continue reading Sri Lankan Academics and Activists Condemn Vicious Campaign Against Nivedita Menon →

DISSENT, DEBATE, CREATE