Ayodhya sends out message to those 'playing politics' in Lord Ram's name

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat*
The people of Ayodhya have sent a resounding message to those who played hate politics in its name. The people of Mujaffarnagar defeated the champion of divisive hate politics. The people of Hyderabad and Amaravati, too, defeated the divisive propagandists.

One needs to thank the people of Tamil Nadu for decisively throwing BJP out. It is also the result of political arithmetic, and MK Stalin needs kudos for his rainbow coalition. He is an example for all other political forces as how to run a coalition. The Congress needs to learn, particularly where it is the main power by giving space to smaller parties.

Maharashtra was supposed to give a big jolt to the BJP and the NDA, and people have done that. Unfortunately, Karnataka and Telangana could not sustain much for the Congress. The party needs to evaluate as why it is unable to hold on to its domain area even for a year. The Congress must understand how Bhupesh Baghel was over-hyped in Chhattishgarh. The party could win merely a seat of Korba.

Madhya Pradesh has remained in the grip of Hindutva for long and the Congress will have to work from ground level and look for committed cadres and leaders for that. Someone like Kamal Nath will not benefit the party and must be allowed only to the confines of Chhindwara.

The Congress party in Karnataka and Telangana must ponder over as what went wrong. Is the powerful Voklinga-Lingayat lobby still unable to digest Siddharamaiyya?
Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh remain in the tight grip of Brahmin-Bania-Rajput Hindutva politics. The absence of a powerful Ambedkarite or backward class movement or caste consciousness has resulted in Hindutva lobby gaining.
UP and Bihar have common factors largely unacknowledged by powerful parties. Lalu Prasad Yadav and RJD need to come out of family politics. Nitish Kumar, despite his diminishing aura, remained acceptable to Mahadalits.

While Akhilesh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh accommodated of non-Yadav OBCs and other Dalit communities, Lalu's resistance in accepting these cost RJD a lot. Kanhaiya Kumar would have made a big difference in Bihar than in East Delhi.

Be that as it may, the fact is, in Uttar Pradesh the Ambedkarite movement and awakening is much more powerful than in Bihar, and that makes a huge difference.

One cannot also forget the brave battle of the Punjab farmers, youth resistance and the anger among Muslims, who were blamed for every evil that India has today. There were efforts to divide the unity of Dalits and OBCs by invoking the Muslim reservation issue, but they remained calm and politically mature.
Long ago Kanshiram said that we don't need a mazboot (strong) government but a majbur (vulnerable) government in Delhi, as it works better for thepeople. With a majbur sarkar in the horizon, one hopes it gets into work and breathes in fresh air.

India remains indebted our Constitution, Baba Saheb Ambedkar, and of course Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehru remains an icon of India, our best address to the world when we speak about our prime ministers. Being Nehru means much more than merely winning elections.

People have said categorically that they need humble mortal leaders to lead, and not those who call themselves emissaries of God. They ask for an account of five years and don't want for a 1000 year 'vision'. One hopes the majbur sarkar will work better for the people of India, also respect and protect our Constitution and institutions.

---

*Human rights defender

Comments

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Two more "aadhaar-linked" Jharkhand deaths: 17 die of starvation since Sept 2017

Kaleshwar's sons Santosh and Mantosh Counterview Desk A fact-finding team of the Right to Feed Campaign, pointing towards the death of two more persons due to starvation in Jharkhand, has said that this has happened because of the absence of aadhaar, leading to “persistent lack of food at home and unavailability of any means of earning.” It has disputed the state government claims that these deaths are due to reasons other than starvation, adding, the authorities have “done nothing” to reduce the alarming state of food insecurity in the state.

What's behind Donald Trump's 'narco-state' accusation against Venezuela

By Manolo De Los Santos The US government has revived its campaign to label Venezuela a "narco-state", accusing its top leadership of drug trafficking and slapping hefty bounties on their heads for capture. This campaign, which only momentarily took a backseat, is a strategic fabrication, not a factual assessment. This accusation, particularly amplified under the Trump Administration, is a calculated smokescreen to justify a long-standing agenda: the overthrow of the Venezuelan government and the seizure of its vast oil and mineral resources. A closer examination of the facts reveals a country that has actively fought drug trafficking on its own terms and a US government with a clear and consistent history of destabilizing independent countries in Latin America.

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

Ground reality: Israel would a remain Jewish state, attempt to overthrow it will be futile

By NS Venkataraman* Now that truce has been arrived at between Israel and Hamas for a period of four days and with release of a few hostages from both sides, there is hope that truce would be further extended and the intensity of war would become significantly less. This likely “truce period” gives an opportunity for the sworn supporters and bitter opponents of Hamas as well as Israel and the observers around the world to introspect on the happenings and whether this war could have been avoided. There is prolonged debate for the last several decades as to whom the present region that has been provided to Jews after the World War II belong. View of some people is that Jews have been occupants earlier and therefore, the region should belong to Jews only. However, Christians and those belonging to Islam have also lived in this regions for long period. While Christians make no claim, the dispute is between Jews and those who claim themselves to be Palestinians. In any case...

Fate of Yamuna floodplain still hangs in "balance" despite National Green Tribunal rap on Sri Sri event

By Ashok Shrimali* While the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday reportedly pulled up the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for granting permission to hold spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's World Culture Festival on the banks of Yamuna, the chief petitioners against the high-profile event Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan has declared, the “fate of the floodplain still hangs in balance.”

Counterview

Search This Blog