by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Nagpur : As the country wonders what former President Pranab Mukherjee might say at Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters here on Thursday, his last speech as President in 2017 reflects the thoughts and concerns that had engaged him throughout his over five-decade-long political career.
Unlike his 2012 speech when he took over as President in which he made a passing reference, pluralism and tolerance dominated the 2017 address.
“I want to share with you some truths that I have internalized in this period. The soul of India resides in pluralism and tolerance. India is not just a geographical entity. It carries a history of ideas, philosophy, intellect, industrial genius, craft, innovation and experience. Plurality of our society has come about through assimilation of ideas over centuries.
“The multiplicity in culture, faith and language is what makes India special. We derive our strength from tolerance. It has been part of our collective consciousness for centuries. There are divergent strands in public discourse. We may argue, we may agree or we may not agree.
“But we cannot deny the essential prevalence of multiplicity of opinion. Otherwise, a fundamental character of our thought process will wither away,” said the lifelong Congressman on the last day of his career.
Mukherjee, who has been critical of the RSS, is set to address its activists in Nagpur on Thursday. This will be his first speech from the RSS platform.
Accepting an invitation from the Hindutva group has sparked controversy with some of his former Congress colleagues and Left leaders expressing their reservations over his participation in the RSS meeting.
However, what he is going to speak about at the Nagpur gathering remains a guess. He has said whatever he has to speak would be only known when he addresses the meeting.
In his last speech as the President, Mukherjee had expressd his concern about increasing violence and how darkness, fear and mistrust was at the heart of this violence. Power of non-violence has to be resurrected to build a caring society to ensure participation of all sections of the people, he said.
While pluralism along with environment and inclusion engaged Mukherjee last year as he readied to hang up his boots after a very successful career, his first speech as President in 2012 was markedly different and focussed mainly on poverty, terrorism and corruption. He talked on education both the times.
The first topic Mukherjee touched in his 2012 speech was poverty after making the same overarching statement on basic fundamentals for a modern nation – democracy, secularism and equality. Real development is when the poorest feel they are part of the narrative of rising India, he said.
“There is no humiliation more abusive than hunger. Trickle-down theories do not address the legitimate aspirations of the poor. We must lift those at the bottom so that poverty is erased from the dictionary of modern India.”
However, then, too, Mukherjee’s faith in secularism is reflected in the solitary line on the topic when he said: “Our social harmony is the sublime co-existence of temple, mosque, church, gurudwara and synagogue; they are symbols of our unity in diversity.”
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Aligarh : The Aligarh Muslim University administration has suspended its sports instructor Mazharul Qamar for felicitating a Hindutva group leader at a function in D.S. College here, an official said here on Monday.
The AMU suspended Mazharul Qamar, Instructor (Weight Lifting), University Games Committee, late on Sunday after his reply was found unsatisfactory.
The Hindutva group leader had been booked and jailed for his alleged involvement in the May 2 attack on the AMU. He is currently out on bail.
An official said Qamar would be given an opportunity to explain his position in a time-bound manner and an inquiry will be initiated.
The university took a serious view of the matter and asked for an explanation from Qamar within 24 hours.
The show-cause served to him stated: “You were aware that the person was part of the group of hooligans who shouted abuses and slurs against the university, students and staff on reaching Bab-e-Syed and you met him despite the situation in the campus.
“You have hurt the sentiments of the AMU fraternity, particularly students, who are sitting on a dharna demanding a probe in the matter.”
The notice said what Qamar did was not expected of a responsible university employee.
Qamar told IANS on Monday that he had been asked to keep shut and explain his conduct before the inquiry committee which he would do.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Opinions
By Amulya Ganguli,
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) owes much of its woes to the reluctance of its core constituency of urban, upper caste, conservative, anti-minority, middle class supporters to accept Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “sabka saath, sabka vikas” mantra of development for all.
They may have no objections to “vikas”, but the idea of including everyone in its fold is anathema to them. So, if they see a Dalit having fared well enough in life to own a horse and ride it, he has to be killed as in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district. Or, if a Dalit groom wants to take out a “baraat” (marriage procession) through his village in Uttar Pradesh, the upper caste residents will not allow it.
Killing is the usual option for the saffron rank and file to eliminate those whose conduct violates the Hindutva fads and fetishes.
Hence, anyone suspected of eating beef or who believes in inter-faith romance is either beaten up or done away with. Moreover, the Hindutva storm-troopers are so sure of the righteousness of their cause that they are not deterred by the presence of video cameras when they engage in their lawless acts.
In the 93 years since the formation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and 67 years of the Jan Sangh-BJP, Muslims were their sole targets. The Dalits were largely ignored because, till recently, they were not assertive enough to annoy the saffron brigade.
The BJP even toys with the idea of winning them over for use as vote banks. It is trying to do so by occasionally paying obeisance to the Dalit icon, B.R. Ambedkar, and choosing a Dalit as the President.
But much of this placatory signalling is probably regarded as tokenism by the Dalits while for the members of the Brahmin-Bania party, these gestures mean nothing where their caste bias is concerned.
Hence, the flogging of four Dalit youths by “gau rakshaks” (cow protectors) in Una, Gujarat, the hounding to death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad and the prolonged incarceration of the firebrand Dalit youth leader, Chandrashekhar Azad “Ravan”, by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
It is not surprising that against the background of the saffron targeting of Dalits, the recent Supreme Court judgment purportedly diluting the act relating to Atrocities against the Dalits and Adivasis acted as the spark that lit the fires of mob violence during a bandh called by Dalit outfits.
What is odd, however, is that the BJP (and the RSS) hadn’t kept this possibility of a sudden outburst in mind. It is no secret that these Hindutva organisations care little about the Muslims being alienated because they are aware that the minorities, whether Muslims or Christians, will not vote for the BJP except in very small numbers or when there is some kind of a wave as in 2014.
But antagonising the Dalits, who constitute 16.6 per cent of the population, is a politically self-defeating exercise, not least because if this percentage is added to 14.2 per cent of the Muslims, it will mean that the BJP is risking losing the support of nearly a third of the country’s population.
Taken together with the Christians (2.3 per cent) and the liberal Hindus as well as those who have been disenchanted by Modi’s inability to keep his promise on job creation, the number of those who are opposed to the BJP has to be substantial. The portents, therefore, for the party’s prospects in 2019 cannot be very bright.
The scene is made more complicated for the BJP by the occasional criticism of the policy of reservations by the RSS. The Brahminical motive for opposing the quota system is driven not so much by an urge for placing merit above caste as by the sense of outrage in Hindutva circles at the possibility of Dalits rising to high places in educational and bureaucratic institutions at the expense of the upper castes.
It is obvious that Modi had taken on a near-impossible task of selling his plan for all-round development irrespective of caste and creed to his party’s core elements, although as a former RSS “pracharak” (preacher), he must have been acutely aware of the resistance which they were likely to offer.
He probably hoped that success in his efforts will boost the economy and create enough euphoria among all sections to stymie any serious opposition. But the failure to usher in the promised “achhey din” (good days) has been his bane not only because it has emboldened the opposition, but even more so because a stagnating economy is ideal breeding ground for disaffection even among friends like the saffron activists.
Not surprisingly, the Hindutva militants lost no time to take revenge for the Dalit-sponsored bandh to burn down the houses of a Dalit MLA of the BJP and a former Congress MLA who is a Dalit in Rajasthan.
(Amulya Ganguli is a political analyst. The views expressed are personal. He can be reached at amulyaganguli@gmail.com)
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Mumbai : Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh President Prakash Ambedkar on Monday charged the BJP-led Maharashtra government of not arresting rightwing Hindutva leader Sambhaji Bhide alias ‘Guruji’ as he “enjoys the backing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
Addressing a huge gathering of Dalits and other parties’ activists who took part in the ‘Yalgar Morcha’ here this evening, Ambedkar – the grandson of the Architect of Indian Constitution B. R. Ambedkar – without mincing words, said “it is a well-known fact that Modi considers Bhide as his Guru.”
“We are not interested in fighting with Modi. However, if action is not initiated against Bhide by Maharashtra government, then we know how to deal with it at the appropriate time,” he warned.
Attacking the PM, Ambedkar compared him with Adolf Hitler who he said never listened to anybody.
“Hitler heeded nobody. He functioned according to his whims and ultimately committed suicide. Even Modi conducts himself like Hitler, treats all his cabinet colleagues as prisoners,” he said.
Ambedkar made it clear that everybody will have to bow before the wishes of the people and “we know how to make the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister (Devendra Fadnavis) bend before the masses, or we will expose them”.
“If the law is not implemented, and Bhide is not arrested within eight days, we shall chalk out our future strategy. Why should the law not be equal for everybody? If (another Hindutva leader) Milind Ekbote can be arrested, what has prevented Bhide’s arrest since he is the prima accused in the Bhima-Koregaon incidents,” he said.
Earlier, he led a delegation to Fadnavis reiterating his nearly three-month old demand for the arrest of Bhide.
“The CM says the state government cannot arrest him due to lack of evidence. I would like to inform him that there is ample proof against Bhide,” Ambedkar countered.
Ambedkar has also sought the arrest of Maharashtra BJP chief Raosaheb Patil-Danve for his social media comments on the Bhima-Koregaon caste riots.
In a retaliatory development, Bhide’s supporting groups plan to take out processions all over Maharashtra including Mumbai on Wednesday (March 28) to oppose the campaign against him by Dalit groups.
Launching a counter-attack last week, Bhide had blamed Ambedkar and others like Gujarat Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani, JNU leader Umar Khalid and retired Bombay High Court judge Justice B. G. Kolse-Patil for the Bhima-Koregaon incidents.
On March 19, the Shri Shiv Pratishthan leader had demanded their arrests, alleging they had “incited people to indulge in violence and rioting” at their public meeting in Pune on December 31.
In the ongoing season of protests, Mumbai witnessed another huge congregation of Dalits and other parties, spearheaded by BBM which paralysed parts of south Mumbai, to seek Bhide’s arrests for his role in the January 1 caste riots in Bhima-Koregaon.
Monday’s protest was the second major one to hit Mumbai after the Long March from Nashik by over 35,000 farmers and tribals to the city on March 12.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : The Congress on Saturday said that the very basis of the polity is threatened by the ideology of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) and their affiliates which have created an environment of distrust, fear and intimidation threatening to tear apart the country’s social unity and harmony.
It also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government of being of being “intolerant” of any criticism and remaining in “arrogant denial”.
“In pursuit of its insidious and divisive agenda, they have inflamed communal passions and hyper nationalism,” said the political resolution adopted at the party’s two-day Plenary here.
“The RSS-BJP is misrepresenting, distorting and misusing religion to exploit the sentiments of the people and capture political power,” it said adding, “The toxic mix of religion and politics, poses a challenge to our pluralistic society and inclusive democracy.”
Slamming the RSS, it said, “RSS, which claims to be a social and cultural organisation, masquerades as sole representative of the Hindus.”
The resolution also claimed that the Indian tradition and the essence of Hinduism has been all encompassing, upholder of humane values and our composite culture. “It is distinct and must not be confused with Hindutva, which is essentially a political ideology.”
Attacking the BJP and the RSS for not participating in the national freedom struggle, the resolution said “The RSS and BJP, claim to be custodians of nationalism and patriotism. It is ironical since they are ideological descendants of the non participants of the freedom struggle,” it said.
“Congress – a Party, which led the freedom struggle with its leaders and workers making great sacrifices, therefore, needs no lessons from the RSS-BJP on nationalism and patriotism,” it said.
The Congress also called upon the people of the country to defend and uphold the spirit of ‘Sarva Dharma Sambhav’ and India’s ancient wisdom as encapsulated in ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’.
The Congress resolution emphasised that forces of communalism and violence have no place in a civilized society.
“No cause can justify terror and violence against innocent civilians and no religion gives that sanction. Congress condemns communalism and terrorism in all its manifestations and reaffirms its resolve to fight such forces,” it said.
The Congress Plenary, unequivocally commits to defend the fabric of social unity, secularism and constitutional democracy.
The party accused BJP and RSS of misrepresenting and misusing religion to exploit the sentiments of the people and capture political power and said that it needs no lessons from them on “nationalism and patriotism”.
The political resolution expressed concern over the assault on foundation principles of the Constitution.
“India is confronted today by a systematic assault on the foundational principles of our Constitution and the values of Indian republic, by the outfits and organisations affiliated to the ruling RSS-BJP combine,” the resolution said.
It also said that the lifeline of Indian democracy is “inclusion and secularism”.
The Congress also charged the government with undermining established norms of governance and subversion of educational, cultural and historical institutions, facilitating their capture by BJP’s ideological affiliates.
“RSS infiltration of every Institution, administration and the universities, poses a threat to pluralism and Indian Democracy. The centralisation of authority, arbitrary and partisan decision making, has cast a dark shadow on Parliamentary democracy,” it said.
Accusing BJP of misusing the constitutional offices to acquire power, it said, “The BJP government, has brazenly misused the constitutional office of Governors and resorted to unethical means to destabilise elected Governments, hijack popular mandates and foisting governments by manufacturing majority.
“The BJP government is insensitive and disrespectful of the above. This calls for strong condemnation,” it said.
The Congress also condemned the BJP for brazen abuse of power and misuse of Central government agencies for targeted political vendetta to harass, humiliate and persecute its political opponents.
“The BJP governments in the states have unleashed persecution and atrocities against the Congress workers.
“The Congress Party warns the BJP and its government, that its undemocratic methods and acts to curtail liberty, freedom of expression and violation of fundamental rights of the citizens as enshrined in the Constitution will be strongly resisted,” it added.
—IANS
