Thursday, 31 October 2013

Book reveiw by V. Geetha: Atheists of Madras Edited by V. Arasu | Frontline

From: Frontline, Print edition : November 1, 2013

Books
Published: October 16, 2013 12:30 IST | Updated: October 18, 2013 11:46 IST

Atheists of Madras

Author: Edited by V. Arasu
Publisher: New Century Book House, 2012
Price: Rs. 3000 for the six volumes.

On a small band of freethinkers of the old Madras province who provoked anxiety and dread in missionary and religious circles.

India - Muzaffarnagar: The Riots are Over But the Protracted Battles Continue (Gulail Investigation) | Video


(A video on gulail.com - 23 September 2013)

The state took sides and ignored its own assessments to allow murders, creating deep enmity between jats and muslims

India: Debate over article 341 - Muslim and Christian Dalits are denied their dues (Anis Ansari) | gulail.com


Muslim and Christian Dalits are denied their dues

by Dr Anis Ansari

Constitution of India has been written with the intention of preserving secularism and human rights. All the people have been accorded the status of equality under its Article 14. Article 15 provides for guarantee of equal rights to all the citizens in educational institutions. Article 16 gives the guarantee of equal rights

India - Muzaffarnagar riots 2013 and aftermath: A list reports and statements by civil society groups, NGO's and womens groups (as on 31 Oct 2013)

1. Muzaffarnagar 2013: Violence by Political Design | Report of an independent fact finding group
[organised by CPA New Delhi, 17 September 2013)
http://sacw.net/article5612.html

2. The communal fire in Muzaffarnagar - An appeal from Aman Ekta Manch
(18 September 2013)
http://sacw.net/article5616.html

3. A Human Tragedy Unfolds: View from Muzaffarnagar Relief Camps
A Preliminary Citizens’

On Population Paranoia Among Hindutva Fundamentalists | Subhash Gatade

Time for a Group Marriage of Sangh Pracharaks ?
On Population Paranoia Among Hindutva Fundamentalists

by subhash gatade

This communalisation of demography has a fairly long history. As early as 1909, U N Mukherji, who would go on to co-found the Punjab Hindu Maha Sabha, wrote a book entitled 'Hindus: A Dying Race,' which influenced many subsequent publications by the Sabha, the parent

Wednesday, 30 October 2013

India: Hide and seek of the HinduRight | Anti-Sardar Patel book sold from RSS HQ in Gujarat

The Times of India

Anti-Sardar Patel book sold from RSS HQ in Gujarat
Ashish Vashi, TNN Aug 27, 2009, 12.17am IST

AHMEDABAD: Narendra Modi displayed great alacrity in banning Jaswant Singh's Jinnah book in Gujarat. But another such tome, authored by RSS ideologue H V Seshadri, which also slams Sardar Patel for precipitating Partition, has been in circulation for the last 27 years. And here's

India: Text of the resolution adopted at the Convention Against Communalism + News reports on the event

The Hindu, October 30, 2013

Resolution against communalism

Text of the resolution adopted at the Convention for People's Unity & Against Communalism

India is a country with various religions, languages, castes and cultures. But there is an underlying unity in the diversity. A unity, which is based on the unity of the people, which makes us all Indians.

This unity of the people and the country

The disputed legacy of Vallabhbhai Patel | Seema Chishti

Indian Express, 30 October 2013


How justified is the BJP in claiming Sardar Patel as their own? And the Congress in contesting the claim?

The Sangh's attempts to 'adopt' Patel are old. M S Golwalkar had tried to play Patel's anti-left instincts, urging him in letters to let the RSS help in battling the communist hold over the youth. The BJP, founded in 1980, seeks a past with a connect to the

Rahul Gandhi's remarks insult Mumbai's riot victims

Daily News and Analysis

Rahul Gandhi's remarks insult Mumbai's riot victims
Wednesday, Oct 30, 2013, 7:08 IST | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

Jyoti Punwani

If Rahul Gandhi’s remark about Pakistan being in touch with Muzaffarnagar’s Muslim victims has any relevance, it is in Mumbai. The March 12, 1993 serial blasts remain till date, the only Pakistan-backed act of vengeance proven to have been

Modi on Patel - Nehru


Modi’s-Abusing History for Political mileage Ram Puniyani The politics of Modi’s parent organization RSS is based on distortion of history, medieval history in particular. To begin with the projection of kings through the prism of religion, to demonize Muslim kings based on distortions and falsehoods of History, and then in turn spreading hatred against Muslims of today has been the foundation

Tuesday, 29 October 2013

Nitish Kumar draws Hitler parallel with Narendra Modi | Indian Express

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/nitish-kumar-draws-hitler-parallel-with-narendra-modi/1188781/0


Santosh Singh Tue Oct 29 2013

Patna : Two days after facing the brunt of the attack at BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s “Hunkar” rally, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar hit back on Tuesday, comparing Modi to Hitler and saying that his desperate dream to unfurl the national flag at

Open Letter to Omar Abdullah - Police Officers facilitating the sale of Temples & Asthapans

(via Dilip Simeon's Blog)

An open Letter

Shri. Omar Abdullah
Hon’ble Chief Minister,
State of Jammu and Kashmir,

Subject: Incentives / Perks be granted to the Administrators / Police Officers who facilitate the selling of Temples and Asthapans of Kashmiri Pandits in Kashmir Valley.

Hon’ble Sir,

With all humility in our command we (KPSS on behalf of Kashmiri Pandits living in Kashmir) express

India - Gujarat: Ahmedabad's Hindu neighbourhoods and Muslim ghettos

The Hindu, October 28, 2013

Worlds apart in a divided city

Darshan Desai

ACROSS THE ROAD: In contrast to their Hindu neighbourhoods, an increasing number of Muslim ghettos are stories that portray grave neglect and discrimination. Photo: Rajvi Desai



Muslims, who used to live across Ahmedabad, are now increasingly flocking to ghettos, mostly along the city’s fringes

Sajid Row Houses in

The Sexual Politics of Modi, the BJP and the Sangh Parivar - Leaflet by India Against Fascism



http://www.sacw.net/article6049.html

Justice For All (Campaign News - October 2013) [Postcards to PM for communal violence law]

(via Teesta setalvad)

Rahul Bose @RahulBose1 14h

We will send 5lakh postcards frm citizens to the PM to ask Prevention of Communal &Targeted Violence Bill #pctvbill be tabled in RajyaSabha.

Rahul Bose @RahulBose1 14h

w/teesta setalvad at a press con calling for tabling of the Prevention of Communal &Targeted Violence Bill. pic.twitter.com/VwodPLDuv5


http://www.rediff.com/news/report/

One Million Post Card Campaign to the Prime Minister to table PCTV Bill ..Sign Online Petition

Please sign in AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

WE HAVE TO MEET THE ONE MILLION POST CARD TARGET


http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/End_Impunity_for_Mass_Crimes_Table_the_PCTV_Bill_in_the_Upper_House_of_Indian_Parliament_after_a_Million_Voices_speak/?copy

Spend 50 Paise Buy a Post Card and send it to

Dr. Manmohan Singh Hon’ble Prime Minister, Government of India
South Block, Raisina Hill, New Delhi -

Sunday, 27 October 2013

India - Karnataka: RSS activists' bid to enter Idgah stirs tension

Deccan Herald

RSS activists' bid to enter Idgah stirs tension
Bangalore: Oct 20, 2013 DHNS

RSS activists near the Idgah Maidan in Chamarajpet on Sunday. dh Photo

Tension prevailed in Chamarajpet here on Sunday morning when activists of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) attempted to enter the Idgah ground “without the necessary permission”, during their annual Vijayadashami pathasanchalana

Modi’s Hypocrisy: The Rahul Modi Spat on Riots Breeding Terrorists | Mukul Sinha

Mukul Sinha October 27, 2013

Due to the riots, those youths who are living in refugee camps you have leveled a serious allegation against them of Treason ? It is your responsibility to name names of those you think are involved with ISI. If you cant name names yet you make such allegations against one community then please give a public apology to those Indian Youth.
said Narendra Modi in

Jamiat Colony, 100-house colony in Khampur village in Muzaffarnagar being built for riot-hit ; paid for by Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind

Indian Express

Their homes lost, riot-hit victims unite to rebuild lives on their own
Apurva : Muzaffarnagar, Sun Oct 27 2013

MuzaffarnagarRiot victims who fled their homes work to build a new, 100-house colony in Khampur village in Muzaffarnagar. (IE Photo: Gajendra Yadav)


As the Congress and BJP continue to play their game of political football with the riot-hit people of Muzaffarnagar, the

The Noise Over National Security Risk in Aftermath of Muzaffarnagar Riots & Competitive Communalism During Election Campaigns | Editorial - The Hindu

The Hindu, October 28, 2013

Editorial:

Regrettable and irresponsible

The manner in which leaders of the principal political parties have traded allegations in the last few days over the tragedy of the Muzaffarnagar communal clashes reflects an increasing trend of competitive irresponsibility. This latest round started with the Congress vice-president, Rahul Gandhi’s reckless comments that some

India: Communal propaganda on demography continues - Hindu families should have at least three kids say RSS

From: The Times of India

Hindu families should have at least three kids: RSS
T Ramavarman, TNN | Oct 27, 2013, 08.34 AM IST

RSS has suggested that more children will help check the reported demographic shift that is happening in favour of minorities in certain parts of the country.

KOCHI: The RSS has suggested that the Hindus should revisit their practice of "blindly accepting" family planning

Modi Speaks a lie about Sardar Patel’s Funeral - statement from All India Secular Forum



Modi Speaks a lie about Sardar Patel’s Funeral

In an interview to Dainik Bhaskar in Ahmadabad Narendra Modi (26th Oct 2013) criticized country’s first PM Jawaharlal Nehru for not attending the funeral procession of the then home minister of India, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. One knows Modi has been resorting to the motivated propaganda about so many things to build up his image. Many of his

The Need For the Communal Violence Prevention Bill (Teesta Setalvad) vs Hindutva Rant Against the Bill (Sheshadri Chari) | Asian Age

From: Asian Age

Special: Anti-riots Bill, bill of contention

Oct 27, 2013

Sure remedy for biased institutions

[bu Teesta Setalvad]

Six days into 2013, about a 1,000 km away from the nation’s capital, in the faraway north Maharashtrian town of Dhule, a brutal police action, videographed in evidence, has documented the killing of six innocent Muslims by men in uniform. These deaths amounted to

India: A Broad Platform against Communalism (Prakash Karat)

People's Democracy, No. 43, October 27, 2013

A Broad Platform against Communalism

Prakash Karat

A CONVENTION is being held against communalism and for people’s unity in New Delhi on October 30. A number of leaders of the non-Congress secular parties and intellectuals and artists are going to attend the Convention. The holding of such a Convention has sparked off a lot of interest and

Saturday, 26 October 2013

India: Stop communal violence in Harda dist, in the state of Madhya Pradesh | Appeal AHRC

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-138-2013

25 October 2013
______________________________________________________
INDIA: Stop communal violence in the state of Madhya Pradesh

ISSUES: Freedom of religion; Police inaction; Poverty & adequate standard of living; Right to remedy; Right to education; Right to health

India: Secular forces must realize the growing threat to the country’s pluralism (Edit, Kashmir Times)

From Kashmir Times, 26 October 2013

Editorial

Communal fascist onslaught

Secular forces must realize the growing threat to the country’s pluralism

Union minister Jairam Ramesh’s statement that the next general elections in the country would see a fight between Congress and RSS, not BJP, thus clearly distinguishing BJP from the RSS, not only betrays ignorance but also shows lack of concern

Friday, 25 October 2013

Cowardly Majoritarianism - Verbatim of Public Speech by Narendra Modi at Gaurav Yatra 9.9.2002

via: Teesta Setalvad on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/notes/teesta-setalvad/cowardly-majoritarianism/10151769947269527

Cowardly Majoritarianism

October 25, 2013 at 10:57am

While the going was good forces of Hindutva, symbolised by Mosi gloated on this speech delivered by the He-Man at Becharaji on 9.9.2011. Now that the matter is in the Courts, U-Tubes of this speech have disappeared. NDTV

India: Former cop Kiran Bedi backs Modi

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/in-gujarat-kiran-bedi--heaps-praise-on-modi/1186604/

Gujarat EDN

IE 24OCT2013

In Gujarat, Kiran Bedi heaps praise on Modi

Express News Service : Ahmedabad, Wed Oct 23 2013, 04:40 hrs

Former IPS officer and flagbearer of the India Against Corruption movement Kiran Bedi on Wednesday endorsed Chief Minister Narendra Modi's nomination as NDA's PM candidate. "

India: Why does the BJP and the Sangh Parivar oppose the Communal Violence Bill (Javed Anand)

Asian Age, Oct 24, 2013

BJP’s bill of frights


Javed Anand

By its opposition to the Communal Violence Bill, the BJP and the Sangh Parivar expose themselves as the ideological allies of those whose hate-soaked politics is based on hounding minorities

Expect misogynist men to feel aggrieved by laws especially enacted for the protection of women against sexual violence. Expect upper-caste

India: Appeal to all citizens - defend democracy, shed communal hatred

Appeal to all citizens

Statement endorsed by participants in a meeting held at SPWD hall, New Delhi on 20th October 2013

A meeting of democratic activists took place in Delhi on October 20, 2013. it was part of a series of meetings conducted over the past six months and more in various centres across the country. The activists issued an appeal to all citizens to resist communal propaganda of

Thursday, 24 October 2013

Vicious Right Wing Hindutva Propaganda Video : Sadhwi Balika Saraswati

Laboratory of Fascism: Capital, Labour and Environment in Modi’s Gujarat | Rohit Prajapati and Trupti Shah

Laboratory of Fascism: Capital, Labour and Environment in Modi’s Gujarat

by Rohit Prajapati and Trupti Shah

We are caught in a false debate in which the reality is presented in an erroneous perception. Narendra Modi, the perpetrator of 2002 carnage is counter posed with Mr. Modi the “development leader”. We call it a false debate, since for us, who have lived and grown in Gujarat over the past

Shocked at the attitude of the UP govt towards the victims of Muzaffarnagar communal Carnage: stament by Shabnam Hashmi

Media Statement

Shocked at the attitude of the UP govt towards the victims of Muzaffarnagar communal Carnage.

No ration has been sent to Jola (4500), Jogia Kheda ( 700 people), Loi ( approx 4000) , Malakpur (1200 familes)- - Kandala (2000)- for over 15 days. Same stories are coming in from all sides. Extreme pressure is being built on camp organisers and victims to close down camps. There are

India: A Snappy Guide to the Right Wing - Narendra Modi and his Backers

A pocket guide to India’s Right Wing
by Youth Against Fascism
http://sacw.net/article6011.html

Tuesday, 22 October 2013

Online petition to the Election Commission re Communaly Sensitive Posters in Indian Railways run Trains

It has been brought to our notice that hundreds, if not thousands of posters (Image Pasted with petition ) have suddenly been observed in all trains leaving Gujarat state. The contents of these posters with the provocative heading “Why is There a Conspiracy Against Sadhu Sants in Bharat?” is a clearcut effort to communalise the atmosphere ahead of the state elections in over five states and also

Monday, 21 October 2013

What to make of Maulana Mahmood Madani's advice re Modi ?

The Indian Express

The choice, the bottomline

Javed Anand : Sat Oct 19 2013

To the BJP's glee, Maulana Mahmood Madani has lashed out at the Congress for the second time in as many months. His latest lambasting is aimed at not only the all-India Congress, but all other "self-proclaimed" secular parties. While the Congress remains the prime target, he has challenged all of them to stop wooing

Saturday, 19 October 2013

India: Inflammatory Posters in Trains Leaving for Gujarat


Posters with Hindu saints, who have faced and are facing action for different crimes, appeared in different compartments of trains leaving for Gujarat. The saints shown in the poster are Shankaracharya (Shankar Raman murder case), Swami Nityanand (Sex scandals) Baba Ramdev (mixing bone powder in medicines), Asaram Bapu (rape molestation), Kripaluji Maharaj (Molestation). The text says that Hindu

UK based islamists mobilising against war crimes tribunal in Bangladesh: propaganda speech on youtube

http://youtu.be/wVTuEpf8--E

Gujarat: Asaram Poster by Hindutva Right in Trains - with quote from top right wing leader Subramanium Swamy

URGENT PLEASE ACT

The Deviousness of the Hindutva with the BJP Heading it has been Exposed with these posters that have SUDDENLY appeared in ALL TRAIN COMPARTMENTS leaving Gujarat TODAY. That it is a BJP and Modi backed move is clear from the fact Subramaniam Swamy - a favourite with television anchors-- is seen in the visual...

Will the BJP be held to account for this communalising of the

India: ISangh Parivar and Communal Riots by Irfan Engineer

http://www.sacw.net/article5955.html

India: No Mo, say students to Madras univ




No Mo, say students to Madras univ








The
protestors said the university should not have agreed to host a private
event involving a controversial politician like Narendra Modi. Photo:
K. Pichumani








http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/no-mo-say-students-to-madras-univ/article5244924.ece








Protest Gujarat CM’s scheduled visit to varsity to deliver lecture; security

CJP & Sabrang petition: SAY NO to Violence, YES to Justice and Peace

From: Teesta Setalvad, Citizens for Justice an Peace & Sabrang

SAY NO to Violence, YES to Justice and Peace


Table the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice &

Reparations) Bill in the Upper House (Rajya Sabha) of the Indian Parliament


Please join this campaign: http://chn.ge/H7Kn3L


Sign the Online Petition Above…..


To protect the Lives and Properties of

Friday, 18 October 2013

Conversions in Gujarat: Whom does Modi represent?

Kashmir Times, October 18, 2013


By Badri Raina

In the wake of his conflict with Gandhi over the caste/Dalit question, B.R.Ambedkar, later to be the chief architect of India's Constitution making, had determined, as early as 1935-the year the Government of India Act was passed-to leave the Hindu fold.

Upon a deeply considered evaluation of the social content of all major religious faiths,

India: Cartoonist Ninan on Modi as scarecrow


from the times of India of 17 Oct 2013

India- UP: 2,000 VHP, BJP and Hindutva nuts arrested

Over 2,000 VHP, BJP leaders, workers arrested

Atiq Khan

Security intensified in Ayodhya, SMS banned

Over 2,000 Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bharatiya Janata Party leaders and workers were arrested to foil their attempts to observe “sankalp divas” (for the construction of a Ram temple) and hold a “sankalp sabha” at Ayodhya on Friday.

Among those arrested were BJP MP from Gorakhpur Yogi Adityanath

Thursday, 17 October 2013

Love Jihad: From Illusory Slogan to Dangerous weapon: Ram Puniyani

Love Jihad: From Illusory Slogan to Potent Weapon

Ram Puniyani

The country is yet to recover from the aftermath of Muzaffranagar violence (October 2013). This violence was engineered over a period of time in the areas of Western UP, where Jats and Muslims had thick social interaction, despite belonging to different economic strata. Communal violence has been instigated, engineered earlier on

India: RSS plays on majority-as-victim card | Like the 80s, the theme of Muslim ‘appeasement’ will dominate Sangh narrative

The Hindu, Nagpur, October 18, 2013

RSS plays on majority-as-victim card

Prashant Jha








PTI
Volunteers at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh shakha in Bhopal. File photo



Like the 80s, the theme of Muslim ‘appeasement’ will dominate Sangh narrative


At the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Mahal, the
second floor is home to a museum. Images of past Sarsanghchalaks,

CJP Petition on Muzaffarnagar admitted by Supreme Court, Notice Issued

Citizens for Justice and
Peace (CJP)
http://www.cjponline.org/




October 17, 2013



CJP Petition on Muzaffarnagar admitted by Supreme Court,
Notice Issued



The Supreme Court bench hearing the Muzaffarnagar cases
issued notice on a writ petition filed by Mumbai-based Citizens for Justice and
Peace (CJP), victim survivors  praying for the appointment of a High
Powered Committee of Court

Wednesday, 16 October 2013

Akhil Bharatiya Gauseva Vigilante attacking people in India

The
scary trend is formation of vigilantes who are attacking anyone caught
carrying beef. (most of the beef meat in India is buffalo meat, but it
is impossible to prove that it is now a cow) 
check out these video uploaded by "Akhil Bharatiya Gauseva" http://youtu.be/vcsrBtedwd0
also watch this videohttp://youtu.be/l61EU2-wWighttp://m.indianexpress.com/news/

India: Suspected RSS men 'barge into' The Hindu office




Suspected RSS men 'barge into' The Hindu office

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Suspected-RSS-men-barge-into-The-Hindu-office/Article1-1135611.aspx



HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times  New Delhi, October 15, 2013


First Published: 22:17 IST(15/10/2013) | Last Updated: 22:56 IST(15/10/2013)






Alleged right wing activists
reportedly barged into the office of The Hindu

Who Runs the websites NarendraModi.in, GujaratRiots.com and SanghMarg.org?

source: http://www.truthofgujarat.com/runs-narendra-modis-website/



Who Runs Narendra Modi’s Website?

Pratik Sinha October 15, 2013 | 
Last week we exposed how Narendra Modi runs a website that justifies Gujarat Riots (GujaratRiots.com) thorugh his IT team led by Rajesh Jain, the founder of NitiDigital, and we also exposed how Rajesh Jain is the man behind all the NaMo related cyberspam

Creating Fear or realizing the threat? Madani and Modi - A comment

Creating Fear or realizing the threat?

Mahmood Madani’s statement (16th Oct 2013) that fear is being created by Congress against Modi for winning Muslim votes seems to be part of Madani’s own political ambitions rather than a reality. What Modi has done during his tenure as the Gujarat Chief Minister speaks for what he stands for? The massacre of thousands of Muslims in Gujarat, aided and

India: RSS is devising new ways — youth outreach campaign, new media, IT milans — to connect with the new generation

The Hindu










Nagpur,

October 16, 2013

Sangh’s flexibility mantra to rope in youth
Prashant Jha








RSS volunteers at the Vijayadasami celebrations in Nagpur on Sunday. Photo: Sudarshan Sakharka



RSS is devising new ways — youth outreach campaign, new media, IT milans — to connect with the new generation


It takes a while for the old men — some with their walking sticks,
others

Tuesday, 15 October 2013

India: The lifting in 1949 of the ban on the RSS - the exchange between Vidya Subrahmaniam and S. Gurumurthy

The Hindu, October 16, 2013

Debate @ The Hindu

Lifting of ban on RSS was unconditional

S. Gurumurthy

In her article in The Hindu "The Forgotten Promise of 1949,”, Vidya Subrahmaniam asserts that Sardar Patel lifted the ban on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1949, because it had promised to be non-political, but it reneged on it in 2013. But publicly known facts recalled here

BJP suddenly changes party's chief ministerial candidate for the Delhi Assembly elections

India Today

The Bharatiya Janata Party has decided to project Dr Harshvardhan as the party's chief ministerial candidate for the Delhi Assembly elections. This decision comes after internal and external opinion polls showed the BJP on a sticky wicket in Delhi under the leadership of Vijay Goel.


Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/

India: All manner of propaganda being used by godman Asaram Bapu's team to defend him| report in India today

India Today  Legal options closing, Asaram Bapu tries charm on believers Akash Deep Ashok  New Delhi, October 15, 2013 | UPDATED 00:09 IST   With the long arm of the law around him and unwilling to relax, self-styled godman Asaram Bapu wants an appeal in what he calls the highest court: the court of the people.

On his official website, in a new section

How Modi Sanitises Untouchability !

by Subhash Gatade

Not very many people would have read about a study by an American scholar Stephanie Tam of the Roberta Buffett Center for International and Comparative Studies, Northwestern University, about the status of sewerage system in Ahmedabad. Titled "Coprology and Caste : : The Status of Sewerage in Ahmedabad, India”, it brings home a stark point that Ahmedabad may be one of the

On Pluralism | Sasheej Hegde

Antinomies of Pluralism: Modulating Conceptions of Politics and Agency in India by Sasheej Hegde
in: History and Sociology of South Asia July 2013 7: 109-132

Sasheej Hegde, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India Email: sasheej@gmail.com

Abstract

Conceptions of pluralism and identity exert a powerful influence both on the process of politics and on the study of politics. They

Monday, 14 October 2013

India: Hindutva vigilantes target Hindu-Muslim couples







http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/hindutva-vigilantes-target-hindumuslim-couples/article5231849.ece







Hindutva vigilantes target Hindu-Muslim couples



AMRUTA BYATNAL






The
cover of a booklet distributed by Hindutva vigilante squad Hindu
Rakshak Samiti urging people to ‘save Hindu girls from the terrorism of
Love Jihad’. Photo: Special Arrangement






India: BJP’s cow dung gems

http://m.indianexpress.com/news/bjp-s-cow-dung-gems-stops-csec-nradiation/897891/

BJP’s cow dung gems: stops C-sec, n-radiation
Milind Ghatwai : Bhopal | Tue Jan 10 2012, 11:24 hrs

* Only those inside houses coated with cow dung escaped the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy.

* There are only two ways to remain insulated from nuclear radiation, and one of them is application of cow dung.

* Using cow

India: Armed with sticks knicker walas march thru Gurgaon | RSS propganda chief wants to use social media

From: Indian Express
Now, RSS takes the social media route to reach out


Ravish Tiwari : New Delhi, Mon Oct 14 2013, 08:16 hrs   













RSS workers take part in an event in Gurgaon on Sunday. PTI

 

 Though not in as organised a manner as the Congress or the BJP, the RSS has also decided to use the social media to reach a larger audience.

Its propaganda chief Manmohan

Sunday, 13 October 2013

CPI pamphlet: Dhanwantri and PC Joshi on the 1947 Partition Killings and Communal Violence in Punjab

http://www.sacw.net/article5921.html

30 days and counting . . . - The aftermath of violence in Muzaffarnagar & Shamli Districts, Uttar Pradesh | report by Joint Citizens’ Initiative (JCI)

http://www.sacw.net/article5920.html

Explained Series: Books and Exhibition on Communalism, Terrorism - Ram Puniyani

Explained Series: Books and Exhibition on Communalism Explained and Terrorism Explained

Friends,

Violence under the garb of religion has been the major expression of the politics in current times. Sharad Sharma, and myself are working on ‘Explained Series’. The aim of the series is to present the phenomenon in the form of graphic presentations, Comic Books. Two books in this series are already

RSS's 'wake up voters' campaign | report in Business Standard

Business Standard,
Sanjay Jog | Mumbai
October 13, 2013

RSS steps up 'wake up voters' campaign across India

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is slowly but steadily reaching out to the cross sections across the country through its parivar emphasising the need to elect their representatives by performing mandatory democratic duty.

Top to grass root level leaders and pracharaks have already

Indian Express report on Amit Shah: Narendra Modi's right-hand man on his campaign effort for BJP in Uttar Pradesh

Indian Express
Amit Shah: Narendra Modi's right-hand man

Ravish Tiwari : Sun Oct 13 2013

The road to Delhi goes through Uttar Pradesh. This election though, it also stops at Gujarat, as is evident from both the Congress and the BJP choosing party leaders from the state to steer their campaigns. If Madhusudan Mistry is doing the job for the Congress, it's the choice of the other camp that

India: religious platforms cannot be used to induce voters | Aam Aadmi Party supporters at a Durga Puja

From: Indian ExpressEC on lookout, Ramlila & Puja samitis keep politicians away


D K RITURAJ : New Delhi, Sun Oct 13 2013, 01:49 hrs 















Aam
Aadmi Party supporters at a Durga Puja pandal in CR Park.
RAVI KANOJIA


The Election Commission's code of conduct came into effect on October 4,
and has diluted the

Saturday, 12 October 2013

India: on social media or TV, vigilantism rules | Bharat Bhushan

From Outlook Magazine | Oct 21, 2013

opinion
The 10 PM Soliloquies
At political fairgrounds, on social media or TV, vigilantism rules
by Bharat Bhushan

What is common between Ramdev, Anna Hazare, cyber warriors who attack any opinion different from theirs, retired Foreign Service officers and generals fulminating on security issues on television and the TV anchors who egg them on on behalf of

The BJP: Political Mobilization for Hindutva - Manini Chatterjee


The Communal Problem in India, Part I: Secularism and Communalism: Political Assessments, Theoretical Explorations:

Manini Chatterjee

The BJP: Political Mobilization for Hindutva Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East Spring 1994 14(1): 14-23; doi:10.1215/07323867-14-1-14

http://cssaame.dukejournals.org/content/14/1/14.full.pdf+html

India: BJP plays with Religious events for propaganda; Now 'Modified' Durga Puja Pandals in Bihar




Narendra Modi to be given God-like presence at Bihar puja pandals


Puja pandals and politics have been strange bedfellows in eastern India,
particularly in West Bengal. In the 1980s, images of the Bofors guns
were put up at puja pandals, a Bihar politician recalled.

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-10-10/news/42903164_1_puja-pandals-hunkar-rally-narendra-modi

India: google search lists a national commission of minorities hosted document that mispells the name of Asghar Ali Engineer

[while googling, I just found a PDF file listed as hosted on India's official National Commission of Minorities website with a wrongly spelt name for one of India's leading campaigners against communal politics. Hopefully google with correct this if the NCM blokes contact them -- see below]
[PDF] A Tribute to Afsar Ali Engineer. - National Commission for Minorities
http://ncm.nic.in/pdf/whats%

India should rehabilitate and support victims of sexual assault in Muzaffarnagar communal violence says Human Rights Watch

[Links to human rights watch statement on Muzaffarnagar communal violence; They also have a translation in heavily sankritised Hindi that many ordinary mortals hardly understand]

India: In Aftermath of Riots, Support Sexual Assault Victims
Victims Fear Reprisals; Authorities Need to Map Relief and Rehabilitation Plan
October 7, 2013 - Human rights Watch
http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/10/07/

India: Secular democratic forces must assert to prevent India going RSS way | Edit, Kashmir Times

Editorial, Kashmir Times, 5 October 2013

Editorial
Fighting out communal forces
Secular democratic forces must assert to prevent India going RSS way

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s call to the secular and democratic forces in the country to fight out communal forces, who have gained much ground during the past few decades, has come none too soon. That there is a grave threat from these forces,

Bangladesh: Communalism rooted in people’s minds, political parties

From: Dhaka Tribune, September 21, 2013 at 00:14
‘Communalism rooted in people’s minds, political parties’
Muktasree Chakma Sathi Law & Rights

Communal attack in Ramu did not take place only because of lack of communal harmony there was political reason behind the attack

Communalism in the present context cannot be eliminated from the society as it is very much rooted in people’s mind,

India: Plays on youth, communalism win [at Mohan Rakesh festival]

The Asian Age

Plays on youth, communalism win

Oct 04, 2013 - Kavita Nagpal

Sahitya Kala Parishad’s Mohan Rakesh festival marked the giving away of awards for the script writing competition organised each year, but the first prize was not awarded.

The second prize was given to Kath Ke Ghode written by Dr Gyan Singh Mann. It was directed by Sohaila Kapur. The play is about the younger

India: Former BJP hand who has the honour of umpteen criminal cases against him back in the UP govt

Controversial Kunda MLA Raghuraj Pratap Singh “Raja Bhaiya” was re-inducted in the Akhilesh Yadav Ministry on Friday after a gap of seven months. He resigned the next day after the murder of DSP Zia-ul-Haque’s at Balipur village in Pratapgarh district on March 2, 2013. The move to re-induct him is said to have been governed by political compulsions with the Samajwadi Party eyeing the Thakur or

India: The BJP sharpens its 2014 UP campaign plan with weapons that cleave | Prarthna Gahilote in outlook

outlook magazine,

Magazine | Oct 21, 2013


APVHP workers at its chaurasi kos yatra in Ayodhya
politics: bjp
This Way To Oudh
The BJP sharpens its 2014 UP campaign plan with weapons that cleave
Prarthna Gahilote

Four full years after he last set foot in Uttar Pradesh, Narendra Modi arrives in dusty Kanpur on October 19 to kickstart the the BJP’s 2014 poll campaign for the state. He won’t

Friday, 11 October 2013

Effective Act against Communal and Targeted Violence Needed - Dr John Dayal’s Statement at National Integration Council

[The following is the written statement delivered by Dr John Dayal, the Secretary-General of the All India Christian Council, at the National Integration Council meeting held in New Delhi on September 23, 2013.]
http://www.sacw.net/article5908.html

India - Karnataka: Lingayats renew demand for separate religion

From The Times of India

Lingayats renew demand for separate religion
Naheed Ataulla, TNN Oct 10, 2013, 05.00AM IST


BANGALORE: The All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha president and senior Karnataka minister Shamnur Shivashankarappa is lobbying at the Centre to seek 'religious minority' status for Lingayats by seeking a separate identity from Hinduism. But there don't seem to be many takers for this

Daljit Nagra: My Ramayana | The Guardian



Growing up near London Daljit Nagra was enthralled by the fantastical stories of Rama and Sita told by his mother and grandmother. He explains why he wanted to retell these tales for a western audience

by Daljit Nagra (The Guardian, Friday 11 October 2013)
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/oct/11/daljit-nagra-rereading-ramayana

India: Trailer of the upcoming film Shahid [based on the life of the human rights lawyer Shahid Azmi who was assasinated]



Shahid is based on the true story of slain human rights activist and lawyer Shahid Azmi, who was killed in 2010 by unidentified assailants in his office in Bomaby. Shahid traces the inspiring personal journey of a boy who became an unlikely messiah for human rights.

India: Police complaint against shooting for film P.K., thanks to the 'hurt religious sentiment' industry

Hindustan Times

FIR lodged against director, actors of Aamir Khan's P.K.
PTI
New Delhi, October 11, 2013

An FIR was lodged against Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, director Raj Kumar Hirani and other actors of the under-production film P.K. for allegedly hurting religious sentiments during the shooting of the film in Delhi's Chandni Chowk area.

The FIR was lodged after locals objected to a shooting

India: A teacher in Gujarat stands up against the govt dress code rules for teachers

From: Indian Express

Teacher stands up to Gujarat govt dress code, writes to Narendra Modi
Ritu Sharma : Ahmedabad, Thu Oct 10 2013, 21:50

ModiNarendra Modi had given the appointment letters to teaching assistants that had a code of conduct asking teachers to wear sarees.

A government girls primary school teacher in Chikhodra village of Anand district has written to Chief Minister Narendra

Kashmir court seeks action against those who invoke religious nationalism while campaiging for elections

The Hindu, Srinagar, October 11, 2013

HC frowns at religious nationalism

PTI

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the Centre and Chief Election Commissioner to act against politicians who seek people’s mandate in elections by invoking religious nationalism, to prevent them from subverting the Constitution of the country.

“In our constitutional philosophy, there is only one ‘ism that

Thursday, 10 October 2013

Muzaffarnagar Riots: Rape Accused Roam Freely As Victim Hides In Refugee Camp [Report in Tehelka]

Tehelka, Oct 6, 2013

by Deevakar Anand

Despite national outrage over India's deadliest communal violence in a decade that killed 52 and rendered about 50000 people homeless, even 13 days after the FIRs of gangrapes during the riots were filed, the accused are roaming free with the police making no effort to arrest them. Although investigators are yet to question any of the men named in the

Religion on JNU Campus: Photo of a banner announcing elaborate Hindu prayer chanting event called Bhagvati Jagaran





Dilip Simeon's blog: High Court of Jammu and Kashmir upholds Sanjay Tickoo's petition for protection of religious places and castigates communal versions of nationalism

"...In our constitutional scheme, a citizen of India is only an “INDIAN”. No person can claim himself to be a “Hindu nationalist,Muslim nationalist, Sikh nationalist, Buddhist nationalist or Christian nationalist.” The constitutional provisions, mention of some of which has been made in this order, does, in loud, clear and unambiguous terms, forbid using of such expression/s. A person, who

India: BJP's and Hindutva laden yoga guru Ramdev 2014 election campaign connection


photo of Ramdev's yoga camps in Delhi ad in The Hindu of 8 Oct 2013. Are these camps in part to draw people towards BJP ?

see reports in the media to allow you to see some background matter

Firstpost

EC allows Ramdev yoga camp in Delhi with riders

by Oct 10, 2013

New Delhi: The Election Commission has given its nod for a yoga camp to be conducted by Ramdev in the national capital from

Comment on the 2014 Election Campaign in India | Papri Sri Raman

From: truthout.org

Emerging Party in 2014 Election in India Led by Militant "Orator"

24 September 2013 13:55 By Papri Sri Raman, Truthout | Op-Ed

India, like the United States, is one of the largest democracies in the world - and also home to 1.23 billion people. By April 2014, the country will elect a lower House of Parliament for the 16th time. These elections are being described by the

India: Hindutva Right wing peddles fake email attributed to Mark Tully | Gillian Wright says this mail is fake


Screen grab from Sanghparivar.org - 10 Oct 2013
Italian by Birth and Roman Catholic by Baptism: Article on Sonia by John Maclithon (Mark Tully)
John Maclithon (Mark Tully) on Indian Politics and why Hindu Dharma will survive
I was surprised when the Congress party gave me a Padma Shri – I am the only foreign journalist to ever get it. For, in my forty years of political reporting in India, I

Secularism in Arts Comes out in Full Glare: Report in People's Democracy on the seminar marking 25th anniversary of Sahmat

People's Democracy, October 13, 2013

SEMINAR ON 25TH SAHMAT ANNIVERSARY

Secularism in Arts Comes out in Full Glare

Amol Saghar

ON the occasion of its 25th anniversary, the Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (SAHMAT) organised a three day seminar on ‘Secularism and the Arts’ from September 26 to 28, 2013. This seminar, held in the Sahitya Akademi auditorium, took place at a time when

India: Photo of frontpage of Achhi Soch [Good Thoughts], the hindi broadsheet in defence of the sexist godman Asaram Bapu

Cover page of the propaganda broadsheet in Hindi being being distributed at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, the site of major public demonstrations. There is an ongoing public defence campaign being run at Jantar mantar for the this infamous godman who is under arrest on charges of sexual harassment.

UP’s riot-stricken Muzaffarnagar: Bloody Path of Political Agenda

Mainstream, VOL LI, No 42, October 5, 2013

Muzaffarnagar: Bloody Path of Political Agenda — Footprints of Evil Designs

by BHASHA SINGH

The following is a reportage by a senior journalist after a visit to UP’s riot-stricken Muzaffarnagar.

‘Nobody burnt those houses.’ In a very dim light and highly surcharged environment they accept only 100 houses were burnt, but they don’t know who turned

Move for Hindi-only policy turned down in India

From: Khaleej Times

Move for Hindi-only policy turned down in India

Mahesh Trivedi / 10 October 2013

Almost a month after the ‘Hindi Diwas’ (Hindi Day) was celebrated throughout the country to commemorate the declaration of Hindi as the national language of India on September 14, 1949, the Gujarat High Court has rejected a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking directions to the Centre to

India: Supreme Court refuses to lift stay on Gulbarg Society massacre case verdict

The Times of India
TNN | Oct 10, 2013, 03.24 AM IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Supreme-Court-refuses-to-lift-stay-on-Gulbarg-Society-massacre-case-verdict/articleshow/23842457.cms

Wednesday, 9 October 2013

India should investigate all crimes, including allegations of sexual assault and gang rape during Muzaffarnagar communal violence - HRW

New York, Oct 7: Indian authorities should properly investigate all crimes, including allegations of sexual assault and gang rape, during the communal violence in Uttar Pradesh, Human Rights Watch said Monday.
http://www.ianslive.in/index.php?param=news/Probe_sexual_violence_in_Muzaffarnagar_rights_group-399317/TopStory/30

Video: Religion, Caste and the Politics of Overlapping Consensus in India | Gopal Guru, Centre for Political Studies, JNU, Delhi

Religion, Political Identity and Public Goods in India - Apr 20, 2012 - Economics Seminar, Indian Statistical Institute, New Delhi

www.isid.ac.in/~pu/seminar/20_04_2012.pdf‎

An Afghan Church in Delhi - NYT story on Afghan refugees

[July 22, 2013, ] The New York Times, Neyaz Farooquee reports on Christian Afghans seeking refuge in Delhi from the strict Islamic law in their homeland. Converts to Christianity, who can be charged with apostasy and possibly executed for abandoning Islam in Afghanistan, regularly flee to India but still face persecution. Despite the hostility, Pastor Obaid Jan of the Afghan Church of New Delhi

India - Delhi: ‘Ramlila being used for political activities’

The Hindu, NEW DELHI, October 8, 2013
‘Ramlila being used for political activities’

Staff Reporter

In place of the customary joy, the festival season this year has brought with it trouble for residents of a particular block in North East Delhi’s Mansarovar Park who allege that a Ramlila Committee is using the festival for political activities and is also flouting the norms laid down by the

Himanshu Kumar's blog post from refugee camps - the aftermath of Muzaffarnagar communal violence

शहनाज़

मुज़फ्फर नगर में दंगा पीड़ित मुसलमानों के कैम्प में घूम रहा हूं .

कहा जा रहा है कि ये हिंदु मुस्लिम दंगे हैं , लेकिन सारे कैम्प सिर्फ मुसलमानों के ही क्यों हैं ?

एक भी हिंदु दंगा पीड़ित शिविर नहीं है .

ये बदमाशी ठीक नहीं है .

http://dantewadavani.blogspot.in/2013/10/blog-post_10.html

Brand Modi merchandising Indian politics - Sandip Roy

Firstpost

How brand Modi is merchandising Indian politics
by Sandip Roy Oct 9, 2013

We have failed to present Brand India in front of the world because of some self-created problems,” Narendra Modi told a market summit in Mumbai recently.

Modi himself clearly has no such problems. He is a text book case study of how to sell a brand. In this case, the brand being himself.

The Times of

Tuesday, 8 October 2013

India: citizens Memo to Govt. to introduce the communal violence bill

Date: October 8, 2013

Memorandum: UPA GOVERNMENT FULFILL YOUR PROMISE TO ENACT A LAW THAT PROTECTS ALL AGAINST COMMUNAL AND TARGETED VIOLENCE

The 2004 Common Minimum Programme of UPA 1, held out the promise of a ‘comprehensive legislation’ that would strengthen the hands of the citizens to secure justice (commonly referred to as the CV Bill).

One main thrust of such a legislation should be to

Monday, 7 October 2013

The RSS has gone back on the promise to keep off politics | Vidya Subrahmaniam


The Hindu, October 8, 2013

The forgotten promise of 1949

Vidya Subrahmaniam

The RSS wrote a non-political role for itself as part of an undertaking it gave Sardar Patel. The overt political role it has assumed in 2013 is a breach of that agreement and its own constitution

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s constitution explicitly states that it will stay clear of politics. The constitution

information concerning BJP delhi's samvad cell website


http://www.bjpsamvadcelldelhi.org/

Domain ID:D169865685-LROR
Domain Name:BJPSAMVADCELLDELHI.ORG
Created On:05-Oct-2013 17:16:57 UTC
Last Updated On:06-Oct-2013 03:58:50 UTC
Expiration Date:05-Oct-2014 17:16:57 UTC
Sponsoring Registrar:GoDaddy.com, LLC (R91-LROR)
Status:CLIENT DELETE PROHIBITED
Status:CLIENT RENEW PROHIBITED
Status:CLIENT TRANSFER PROHIBITED
Status:CLIENT UPDATE PROHIBITED

India: NY Times Blog report on cases of sexual violence against women during the rioting in Muzaffarnagar, UP

India Ink / September 30, 2013, 10:23
A Village in Muzaffarnagar Recounts Rapes and Murder
By PAMPOSH RAINA

A burned room inside a house in Lisarh village of Muzaffarnagar district, Uttar Pradesh.

KANDHLA and LISARH, Uttar Pradesh—More than three weeks after deadly sectarian violence broke out in the Muzaffarnagar district of the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, cases of sexual violence

Life in A Refugee Camp Near Muzaffarnagar | India Ink - NY Times Blog

by PAMPOSH RAINA [7 Oct 2013]

A month after the riots broke out, about 24,000 people continue to live in refugee camps in the districts of Shamli and Muzaffarnagar, according to the state administration officials.

READ MORE HERE

Photos of Aman Ekta Manch public discussion on Muzaffarnagar violence at May Day Bookstore Delhi, 6 October 2013

The Aman Ekta Manch held a meeting to discuss the Muzaffarnagar violence at the Jana Natya Manch space at the May Day Bookshop in Shadipur, Delhi, on 6 October 2013. All photos posted below were taken by Mukul Dube


Photos - Aman Ekta Manch public discussion 'Communal Violence Emerging Trends' (Jamia, sociology dept. - 1 Oct 2013)

The Aman Ekta Manch arranged talks and a discussion on the Muzaffarnagar violence at the Department of Sociology, Jamia Millia Islamia [in Delhi], on 1 October 2013. All the photos below were taken by Mukul Dube




See also a report on the meeting:
Dept. of Sociology Organizes a Lecture and Discussion on Muzaffarnagar Riots
http://jamiajournal.com/2013/10/04/

“Political Hinduism” & Material Culture in North India - Pika Ghosh's Review of In the Name of Krishna

From: Dissertation Reviews, May 28, 2013

“Political Hinduism” & Material Culture in North India

A review of In the Name of Krishna: The Cultural Landscape of a North Indian Pilgrimage Town, by Sugata Ray.

This study examines the consolidation of a ‘political Hinduism’ in British colonial India through the study of the material culture of the pilgrimage town of Brindaban (Vrindavan) in north

Temple, Toilet and Sangh Politics - Ram Puniyani

Temple, Toilet and Sangh Politics

Ram Puniyani

After a long campaign the RSS combine succeeded in demolishing Babri Mosque on 6th December 1992. While Advani was the lead person in the whole phenomenon, there were many RSS swayamsevaks who formed the foundation of this dastardly act, one of them being Narendra Modi, the BJP’s current Prime Ministerial candidate. The importance given to this

Sunday, 6 October 2013

Critics of The Satanic Verses lost the battle but are winning the war, warns Dennis Hayes

From: Times Higher Education

Rushdie fatwa, 25 years on: fear casts long shadow

26 September 2013

Critics of The Satanic Verses lost the battle but are winning the war, warns Dennis Hayes


The new authoritarian culture demands that academics adopt a sentimental vision of a world where everyone is inoffensive and no beliefs conflict

It is now 25 years since the publication of The Satanic

Yet another doctored riot - Harsh Mander

Communal organisations have perfected the art of manufacturing hatred
against the ‘other’ community by cynically deploying rumour, innuendo
and falsehood. The issue chosen to demonise the ‘other’ varies based on
what would resonate and enrage most. In Partition, pork was thrown into
mosques and beef into temples; later riots are spurred by rumours of cow
slaughter, support to terror, and

Congress is now playing the Hindutva card to counter a growing BJP influence in Assam


The Congress’ Hindutva hand

Tarun Gogoi wants special refugee status for the Bengali-Hindu migrants from Bangladesh. Ratnadip Choudhury explains why the CM is doing a BJP in Assam









Ratnadip Choudhury
 | @ratnadipc





2013-10-12 , Issue 41 Volume 10






Print & Email








For Vile Hindutva Propaganda Check Out This Rag from Bombay

A Hindu Charge-sheet against the UPA Govt.
P. Deivamuthu, Editor, Hindu Voice
http://tinyurl.com/lv494sn

o o o

Publication information:
Hindu Voice,
210 ABHINAV, Teen Dongri, Yeshwant Nagar,
Goregaon West, Mumbai 400104
Tel: 022-28764416, 28764460, 09324728153.
Email: hinduvoicemumbai@gmail.com

o o o

SEE ALSO:

Declare India as a Hindu Nation
Demands All India Hindu Convention (June 2012)

Book focuses on aspects behind communal violence in India

The Asian Age, September 25, 2013

Book focuses on aspects behind communal violence in India
by Javed Anand


Riot Politics: Hindu-Muslim Violence and the Indian State
By Ward Berenschot
Rs. 495

How does one understand or explain recurring, gruesome communal violence in India? Ward Berenschot, author of Riot Politics: Hindu-Muslim Violence and the Indian State, identifies six different

India: Mother of youth 'killed' by cops in '93 on hunger strike

Express News Service : Mumbai, Sun Oct 06 2013, 02:22 hrs

Over 20 years after Shahnawaz Waghle was allegedly shot in cold blood by the Mumbai Police, his 62-year-old mother on Saturday went on a hunger strike claiming state's inaction in lodging a complaint in the matter. Waghle alleged that Arif Naseem Khan, textiles and minorities development minister, who is also the General Secretary of the

Narendra Modi -- Shauch and Samajh: populism and toilets | Cartoons





The above is from the Times of India (4 Oct 2013) in public interest and is non commercial use : See URL http://tinyurl.com/o9mq5r7


o o o

Also see unnamed work : the below was received from A.R.

Random Pick: A photo of some bombay film stars who campaigned for BJP in the past

Photo of the Bombay films stars Vinod Khanna and Salman Khan campaigning for BJP. No date on the photo from AP

Saturday, 5 October 2013

Photo of Man dressed as Lord Hanuman in Amritsar for Navratri festival



From Outlook, Oct 05, 2013
A man dressed up like Lord Hanuman waits to participate in a religious procession of Navratri festival in Amritsar.
- AP Photo/ Sanjeev Syal

A capital test for Muslim candidate defying vote bank politics

The Aam Aadmi Party’s decision to field Shazia Ilmi in the Delhi elections from a constituency with insignificant numbers of Muslim voters is a rare instance of a party nominating a minority candidate for her gender rather than religion
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-capital-test-for-muslim-candidate-defying-vote-bank-politics/article5201866.ece

India: Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum Letter re Moral Policing at Mulki

Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike, D.K. Distict
(Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum)
B.H. Bangera Hall, Old Kent Road, Police lane, Mangalore 575001. Ph: 0824 2225652; 9964071782

Mangalore

October 5, 2013

To:
The Police Commissioner
Mangalore

Sub: Moral Policing at Mulki

Sir,
On October 2, another case of moral policing took place, this time at Bappanadu in Mulki close to the Dakshina

India - Karnataka: Far Right Srirama Sene activists assault students

The Hindu, Hassan, September 21, 2013

Moral policing in Hassan

Staff Correspondent

Srirama Sene activists assault students

In yet another instance of moral policing in Karnataka, members of a Hindutva outfit allegedly assaulted a student for talking to a girl from another religion near M. Krishna School for Blind in Hassan on Friday.

They took the boy and the girl to a police station and

India: A fict finding report on communal violence in Khikiya Tehsil, Harda dist, Madhya Pradesh

http://www.sacw.net/article5827.html

India: police complaint against a Hindutva outfit in Karnataka

From: The Hindu
Mangalore, September 25, 2013

Plaint against move to arm Hindu youth

Staff Correspondent

Federation of Associations for Peace, an umbrella organisation of like-minded groups, has filed a police complaint against a Hindutva outfit for allegedly “attempting to destroy communal harmony” by announcing that it would distribute arms to youth to “protect Hindu dharma”.

At a public

India: Charges framed against Aseemanand, six others of Hindutva terror network in Ajmer blast case

From: The Hindu

JAIPUR, September 26, 2013

Charges framed against Aseemanand, six others in Ajmer blast case

Special Correspondent

One of the accused says Congress leaders pressured him to implicate senior RSS functionaries

A special court for the National Investigation Agency (NIA) cases here has framed charges against seven persons accused of carrying out a blast in the Ajmer dargah in

India: While some unhesitatingly speak out against injustice, others prefer to look the other way

From: The Hindu
chennai, September 27, 2013

the write angle
The inconvenient truth

ZIYA US SALAM

While some unhesitatingly speak out against injustice, others prefer to look the other way

A seasoned Bollywood hero known for working in cinema rich in its socio-political texture was asked if he experienced any pangs of conscience supporting Narendra Modi, often criticised for the killing of

India: 'Democratisation' of communalism | Apoorvanand

Daily News and Analysis, September 23, 2013

'Democratisation' of communalism

by Apoorvanand

The emergence of caste identity politics has led to the demise of secular politics.

One needs to remember that the Sangh has never believed in a puritanical Hindutva. Its endeavour has always been to somehow be part of the power structure, even if it meant withdrawal of some of its key demands
One

Muzaffarnagar 2013: Meanings of Violence - Hilal Ahmed | EPW

The Economic and Political Weekly,Vol - XLVIII No. 40, October 05, 2013

Muzaffarnagar 2013: Meanings of Violence

by Hilal Ahmed

The issues of weak governance and the cynical communal politics of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Samajwadi Party have been noted in the recent spate of violence in western Uttar Pradesh. This article looks at the social dynamics of caste assertions, new media

India: With friends such as these, who needs enemies? | Jyoti Punwani

Daily News and Analysis

With friends such as these, who needs enemies?
Wednesday, Oct 2, 2013, 8:18 IST | Agency: DNA

Jyoti Punwani

It’s not easy being a Muslim in India at the best of times. But when elections draw near, it’s hell. Out to prove their concern for you, politicians say and do things that make you the target of shrill, drummed-up attacks, which may not be only verbal.

Photo of Modi being weighed in Silver paid for by Bombay Businessmen


Photo in The Telegraph, October 1 , 2013

RSS / BJP communal polarisation as the mainstay of their 2014 general election campaign | Editorial, PD Oct 6, 2013

People's Democracy, October 06, 2013

Editorial

BJP Seeks to Sharpen: Communal Polarisation

FINALLY, after many years, the union home minister has responded to the demand made by many secular forces in the country to undo the wrong of detaining innocent Muslim youth in connection with terror cases thereby depriving them of their fundamental right, enshrined in our constitution, to life and

Religion in Prolitics - Bangladesh History Congress | Report in Dhaka Tribune

Dhaka Tribune, October 5, 2013 at 00:35

Religion ‘centrepiece of politics’ in South Asia
Kamran Reza Chowdhury

'Secularism is not against religion. It is a way of life promoting fraternity and pluralism and accommodation of all belief-systems'

Speakers at an international conference in the capital said religion had become the “centrepiece of politics” not just in Bangladesh, but the entire

Secular democratic forces must assert to prevent India going RSS way

Editorial, Kashmir Times

Fighting out communal forces
Secular democratic forces must assert to prevent India going RSS way

ActIT Jammu, ASP.net Projects, Java, Vb.net, C# Training Jammu
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s call to the secular and democratic forces in the country to fight out communal forces, who have gained much ground during the past few decades, has come none too soon. That there

India: Report of National Commission of Minorities Visit to Muzaffarnagar - september 2013

NCM’s Visit to Muzaffarnagar (19th September, 2013)
http://ncm.nic.in/pdf/tour%20reports/Shri%20wajahat/NCM%27s%20visit%20to.pdf

India: six decades and more secularism has gradually been reduced to nothing more than a creed that is more professed than practiced

From: The Hindu
New Delhi, October 5, 2013

Heritage bartered

Sohail Hashmi

Can protected monuments be handed over to claimants? In Delhi, that is precisely what has been done

It is easy to inscribe secular on your constitution, it is easier to profess it and chant it ritually. But to adhere to the basics of secular conduct is no child’s play, more so in countries where the population is

Muzaffarnagar - A case of ’Institutionalised Riot Systems’ | Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta

If one goes through majority of the mainstream media reports on the Muzaffarnagar riots, which displaced nearly 40000 Muslims and killed at least 50, the most important discourse that emerges is one of ‘administrative failure.’ Most reports rallied behind the notion that the riots could have been prevented if not for the state government’s laxity and delay in deploying troops in and around the

India: Sadiq Naqvi's report on communal violence mass displacement in Muzaffarnagar

What is their Crime?

Meticulously planned and diabolically organised since a long time this year, the communal violence, killings, destruction and mass displacement in Muzaffarnagar and its neighbourhood villages clearly point to a sinister design to electorally polarize UP

Sadiq Naqvi Muzaffarnagar
- See more at: http://www.hardnewsmedia.com/2013/10/6069

Thursday, 3 October 2013

Debate over underage marriage among Muslims in Kerala

Underage marriage among Muslims has ignited a debate in Kerala, with the community's most influential organisation vowing to get legitimacy for the practice while political parties and women's groups have said it would be a setback when Muslim girls have been making strides in education.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/underage-marriage-among-muslims-in-kerala-ignites-debate/1177466/0

India: Lessons from Muzaffarnagar - Editorial EPW

From: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol - XLVIII No. 39, September 28, 2013

Lessons from Muzaffarnagar

Editorials

Communalism cannot be fought without acknowledging caste, class and patriarchal oppressions.

The communal violence in Muzaffarnagar and neighbouring areas is a warning of the days to come. Uttar Pradesh (UP) is crucial to the electoral fortunes of the Bharatiya Janata Party (

Gandhi, Patel versus Modi

Gandhi, Patel versus Modi

-subhash gatade


Narendra Modi (NaMo as he is popularly known) wants to usher in 'Congress free India'.

In his maiden speech after being elected as the Election Campaign Chief at the party's Goa conclave, he had clearly said it in no uncertain terms.

As one can recall this part of his speech came under severe criticism and it was underlined that it shows his

Wednesday, 2 October 2013

The Experiment

[To appear in Mainstream Weekly]

The Experiment

by Mukul Dube

One of the first things that came to mind when I read and heard about the recent violence in Muzaffarnagar was the many parallels with Gujarat in 2002. As I heard and read more, it became increasingly difficult to deny that history was repeating itself.

I was visited by a no longer young woman whom I had taught thirty-five years

Tuesday, 1 October 2013

Shinde's letter: Harassmant of Muslim youth

Formal versus Substantive Justice

Shinde’s Letter on Harassment of innocent Muslims

Ram Puniyani

In his letter to all the Chief Ministers Sushil Kumar Shinde’s Centre’s Home Minster (30, 09, 2013), wrote that Government has been receiving complaints of harassment of innocent Muslim youth by Law enforcement agencies. He asked the state authorities to ensure that no innocent Muslim youth should

Letter from Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum re attempts to whip up communal tension by Hindu Mahasabha distribution of swords

Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike, D.K. District (Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum)
B.H. Bangera Hall, Old Kent Road, Police lane, Mangalore 575001. Ph: 0824 2225652; 9964071782

Mangalore September 29, 2013

To:

The Honorable Union Home Minister

Government of India

Sub: Attempts to Promote Communal Disturbances in Dakshina Kannada District (Karnataka State) through Public Distribution of Swords