Sushant Singh Rajput Death: ED Files PMLA Case Against Rhea, Family; Probe Takes Political Turn

Rhea Chakraborty has released a brief video statement through her lawyers in which she said she had immense faith in god and the judiciary.

New Delhi/Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday filed a money laundering case against actor Rhea Chakraborty and her family on the basis of a Bihar Police FIR in which Sushant Singh Rajput’s father has accused them of abetting the Bollywood actor’s reported suicide.

Chakraborty, 28, released a brief video statement through her lawyers in which she said she had immense faith in god and the judiciary.

A Bihar Police team which is in Mumbai to investigate the FIR registered in Patna against Chakraborty, recorded the statement of Rajput’s former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande, in which she is reported to have spoken on his mental health, a police official said.

The 34-year-old actor, who was in a relationship with Chakraborty, died in Mumbai’s Bandra area on June 14.

The ED had called for the Bihar police’s First Information Report (FIR) registered on Tuesday and after studying it, the probe agency decided to slap charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), officials said.

Also read: Sushant Singh Rajput’s Father Lodges FIR Against Actor Rhea Chakraborty, 6 Others

They said an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) has been filed against the accused named in the FIR that includes Chakraborty, her family and six others.

Chakraborty and some others are expected to be called for questioning soon, officials said.

The ED is understood to have taken up the case after it analysed the contents of the FIR filed on the basis of the complaint by Rajput’s father and gathered some independent information about the late actor’s income, bank accounts and companies.

More such details and another FIR filed by the Mumbai Police to probe Rajput’s death will be part of the ED’s probe, according to the officials.

Rajput’s father Krishna Kumar Singh (74), who resides in Patna, has also alleged that Chakraborty was aided by her family members, including parents, and they all were looking to purloin the assets of his son, worth crores of rupees.

The father also said he wanted a police investigation to ascertain where the Rs 15 crore deposited in a bank account held by Rajput had been transferred.

Officials said the ED will probe allegations of mishandling and purported diversion of Rajput’s money and operation of his bank accounts.

The agency will probe if anyone used Rajput’s income and his companies for money laundering and creating illegal assets, they said.

The ED also has the powers to attach properties of the accused under the PMLA.

Video statement

In her video statement released through her lawyers, Chakraborty said, “I have immense faith in god and the judiciary. I believe that I will get justice. Even though a lot of horrible things are being said about me on the electronic media, I refrain from commenting on the advice of my lawyers as the matter is sub-judice. Satyamev jayate, the truth shall prevail.

On July 16, Chakraborty had requested Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a CBI inquiry to understand what “pressures” prompted Rajput to take the extreme step.

The Maharashtra government filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, seeking a hearing before any order is passed on Chakraborty’s plea in the death case. The Bihar government and Rajput’s father on Thursday had filed caveats in the apex court in the petition by Chakraborty in which she has sought transfer of the FIR against her from Patna to Mumbai.

Caveat is a pre-emptive legal measure taken to ensure that a party does not get any favourable order without a notice or a hearing accorded to the other side.

The Bihar government said it will oppose Chakraborty’s petition challenging the jurisdiction of the Patna Police in lodging an FIR in connection with the death case.

Advocate General Lalit Kishore said the state will be represented before the apex court by former Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi.

“While we have made no prayer for being included as a party to the case filed by Chakraborty, we will oppose her petition since she has challenged the jurisdiction of the state of Bihar,” Kishore said.

He asserted that the matter fell very much within the jurisdiction of the state as the FIR was lodged on the basis of a complaint filed by Rajput’s father who resides in Patna.

He also scoffed at Chakraborty’s contention that all cases in the matter be shifted to Mumbai, and pointed out that the police in the western metropolis had not even lodged an FIR.

“It is the Patna Police which lodged the first FIR in the matter. I wonder how the Mumbai Police intends to investigate a matter without registering a proper case,” he said.

Political leaders chip in

The chorus for a probe by the CBI into Rajput’s death grew louder with Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan saying only the central agency can do justice in the matter amid what he called a “tussle” between the Bihar and Mumbai police.

Minister Paswan told PTI that there was a “lack of progress” in the case so far. He noted that Mumbai Police has not registered an FIR yet in the case.

“Only a central agency like the CBI can do justice to the actor’s family. The case should be transferred to it without any delay,” he said.

Union minister Prakash Javadekar has also said he expects a free and fair probe into the death case to ensure that truth comes out.

With the issue of Rajput’s death gaining significance in poll-bound Bihar, senior BJP leader Bhupender Yadav said people are together in getting his family justice.

“A spontaneous debate has begun in the society after the suicide of Sushant Singh Rajput, who made a name in the cine world after coming out of Bihar. Many questions, including the evils of nepotism, have been emerging from the society. We are all together in bringing justice to Sushant’s family,” Yadav, a BJP national general secretary, said in a tweet in Hindi. Yadav is the BJP’s in-charge for Bihar affairs.

Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said the ED should register an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in connection with the money laundering angle in the case.

There is a “huge public sentiment” about handing over the case to the CBI, but the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state has been reluctant to do so.

The demand for a CBI probe into the matter is being made by the people and not by the BJP, he added.

“Now a money laundering aspect too has come to the fore. It has been observed that money was siphoned off from his account. In such a case, the ED has a jurisdiction, so, I have demanded the ED should register an FIR and probe the matter,” he said.

Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh recently said the Mumbai Police is capable of handling the matter and that there was no need for a CBI probe.

If you know someone – friend or family member – at risk of suicide, please reach out to them. The Suicide Prevention India Foundation maintains a list of telephone numbers they can call to speak in confidence. You could also accompany them to the nearest hospital.

Before Telecasting Movie on Army, Advise Production Houses to Get NOC: Defence Ministry to CBFC

This is reportedly aimed to ‘curtail incidents which distort the image of defence forces and hurt sentiments of defence personnel.’

New Delhi: The Defence Ministry has written to the Central Board of Film Certification, urging that production houses be advised to obtain a “no objection certificate” from the ministry before telecasting any film, documentary or web series on an Army theme, sources said.

The Defence Ministry had received some complaints raising strong objections about the portrayal of Indian Army personnel and the military uniform in an “insulting manner,” they said.


The sources said that in web series streamed recently, the scenes related to the Army are far from reality and present a distorted image of the armed forces.

PTI sources added that the communication has also been sent to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for consideration.

The communication to Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has been done to curtail the incidents which distort the image of defence forces and hurt the sentiments of defence personnel and veterans, they said.

In the letter to the CBFC, the ministry said that it has been brought to its notice that some production houses making films on Army theme, are using contents which are distorting the image of the Indian Army, according to sources.

J&K Govt Extends Mehbooba Mufti’s Detention by 3 Months Under PSA

The current detention order of the former chief minister was expiring on August 5 this year.

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Friday extended the detention of People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti by three months under the Public Safety Act.

Mufti was among hundreds of people who were taken into preventive custody hours ahead of the Centre revoking the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and breaking the state into two Union territories on August 5 last year.

Her daughter Iltija Mufti, who has been operating her Twitter account, has noted that the petition challenging her detention has been pending since February.


In February this year, just before her six-month ‘preventive custody’ period was ending, Mufti was booked under the stringent PSA, along with her maternal uncle Sartaj Madani, former CM Omar Abdullah, former minister Ali Mohammed Sagar, and former NC legislator Bashir Ahmed Veeri.

The current detention order of the former chief minister was expiring on August 5 this year.

According to an order issued by the Home Department, Mufti will continue to remain under detention for another three months at her official residence at Fairview Bungalow, which has been declared a subsidiary jail.

“The law enforcing agencies have recommended further extension in the period of detention and on examination, the same is considered to be necessary,” the order reads.

Several political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir have criticised the renewal of her detention order, including DMK chief Stalin and CPI(M)’s Yusuf Tarigami.


Extension of Mufti’s detention comes on the same day when Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Conference (JKPC) chairman Sajad Gani Lone was informed that he has been released after nearly a year-long detention. Reports have said that he has been asked to not leave his house until after August 5.

The government of the J&K Union territory is tackling heavy criticism for lying in the Supreme Court over the detention of senior Congress leader Saifuddin Soz. Soz scaled the boundary wall of his Srinagar house to “prove” that he was not a free man but that he had been kept under “illegal house detention” a day after the government said to the apex court, “He was never detained nor (is he) under house arrest.”

Among other mainstream leaders, National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah, have been released from custody.

(With PTI inputs)

Here’s Why You Can Rejoice Over the New NEP. And Why You Cannot

Although a lot of the new policy aims at making progressive changes in the Indian education system, a clear plan to implement these changes is missing.

New Delhi: The varied responses that the National Education Policy (NEP) has been generating from political parties and educationists alike is a fallout of the Union government’s decision to approve it without any discussion and debate. 

Given the long-term implications the NEP will have on the Indian education system, its unceremonious approval by the Union cabinet – squeezed as it was between the orchestrated excitement of the Ram Temple bhoomi pujan and the arrival of the first fleet of Rafale fighter jets – raised quite a few eyebrows, while at the same time indicated its somewhat lackadaisical attitude towards a matter as important as education.

The NEP 2020, which will replace the 1986 policy, was in the works since 2016, when the T.S.R. Subramanian Committee submitted its report to the Union government.

Later in June 2017, the government constituted the K. Kasturirangan committee which submitted its Draft NEP in 2019, based on the inputs provided by the Subramanian committee. The Draft NEP of around 484 pages was thrown open to the public for feedback after the Modi government was re-elected to power. 

Also read: What Do Those in the Education Sector Think of the Draft NEP?

The final NEP 2020 is a much shorter version that intends to overhaul the existing education system by making certain paradigmatic changes. While the new NEP intends to integrate the Indian education system with global patterns, do away with “rote-learning” and instil confidence and nationalistic pride among students, many educationists believe that the disproportionate thrust on vocationalisation of education at an early stage may come at the cost of more rounded, holistic learning. 

Representative image: Students wearing protective masks attend a class in a government-run school in Hyderabad, March 5, 2020. Photo: Reuters/Vinod Babu

The NEP lists the changes that the policy would bring about in school and higher education systems. It has also mentioned that the existing ministry of human resource development will be named subsequently as the ministry of education. 

School education 

The NEP 2020 lays emphasis on universal access to schools for all children in the next decade. It stresses on increasing the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) and putting a stop to the spiralling drop-out rate in India.

Two crore children will be brought back to the mainstream, it says. It has proposed to develop infrastructure, put in place innovative teaching centres, appoint only trained teachers and counsellors, create a conducive environment for open schools, and encourage adult literacy programmes to achieve this goal.   

Also read: ‘Taken for Granted and Ignored’, Anganwadi Workers Demand Better Pay, Conditions

At the same time, the NEP 2020 will replace the 10+2 system by a 5+3+3+4 curricular structure, which includes three years of pre-schooling in anganwadi centres for children between three to eight years of age, followed by another 12 years of formal schooling. This is the first time that an NEP has extended government outreach to pre-schooling, which will include nursery education and kindergarten levels. 

For this, the NCERT will be the nodal body to shape a National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education (NCPFECCE) for children up to the age of eight. The early childhood education will be a collaborative effort between the ministries of Education, Women and Child Development, Health and Family Welfare, and Tribal Affairs. 

Ksheera Bhagya, ICDS, MGNREGA, Karnataka, Bengaluru, anganwadi, anganwadi workers, anganwadi helpers, minimum wage, Karnataka State Anganwadi Workers' Association, Manamelkudi, Nagarhole National Park and Tiger Reserve, Jenu Kuruba, Yerwa, Mathrupoorna, National Family Health Survey, Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey, Integrated Child Development Services, Srusti, Ksheera Bhagya, LPG cylinders, midday meal scheme, midday meals, Tumakuru, Tukmur,

Sita B., a young Yerwa woman, works as an anganwadi worker and helper in Manamelkudi, a village inside the Nagarhole National Park and Tiger Reserve in Mysuru district, Karnataka. She takes care of 14 Jenu Kuruba children, aged three to six years, registered with the anganwadi. Photo: Nidhi Jamwal

Great focus has been laid on equipping the child with “21st century skills”. For this, new subjects like coding will be introduced from Class 6. At the same time, the student will now have greater flexibility in choosing her subjects as rigid demarcation between Arts and Sciences, curricular and extracurricular subjects, or vocational and academic streams will cease to exist.

A new course curriculum towards this goal will be developed by the NCERT. 

The NEP does away with annual examinations and has proposed board examinations in modular form in Grades 3, 5, and 8, 10 and 12, and  will be redesigned to test conceptual understanding of students. A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance Assessment, Review, and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development), too will be set up as to set standards of education. 

The policy also includes setting up of Gender Inclusion Fund and Special Education Zones to support socially and economically disadvantaged groups. Breakfast will also be added to the mid-day meal programme in government schools. 

Midday meal scheme in Rajasthan. Credit: Reuters

Schemes such as the mid-day meal, if implemented properly, can help tackle child malnourishment. Photo: Reuters

One of the most important features of the NEP 2020 is recruitment of teachers. The Indian school system has long suffered the problem of insufficient teachers and low recruitment of trained teachers.

Also read: Why India’s Approach to Primary Education is Flawed

The NEP seeks to do away with the problem, make teacher recruitment transparent, by setting up of a common National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST). The NPST will be developed by the National Council for Teacher Education by 2022, in consultation with NCERT, SCERT, and experts, and teachers’ organisations.

A School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Framework (SQAAF) will also be developed, according to the NEP 2020. 

Similarly, it is proposed that education upto Class 5, and preferably until Class 8, will be imparted in the mother tongues of students. Classical languages like Sanskrit, Pali, and Prakrit have also been proposed at all levels, while foreign languages will also be offered from the secondary school level. S

everal studies have spoken about the need for foundational and preparatory education in mother tongues for better comprehension and clarity. Educationists have welcomed the move but also remained unsure about how the government plans to implement such a system, especially in a diverse country like India.

The policy, however, says that “no language will be imposed on any student”.

Also read: National Education Policy Draft Amended to Address ‘Imposition’ of Hindi

Yet the decision assumes significance in the light of the controversy when the draft NEP has attempted to impose Hindi as a compulsory language for all schools. The proposal was withdrawn following stiff opposition by southern states. 

How is higher education envisioned in NEP?

NEP 2020 has set itself a tall task of increasing the GER in higher education from 26.3% (2018) to 50% by 2035.

Here too, emphasis has been on providing a flexible curriculum through an interdisciplinary approach, creating multiple exit points in what would be a four-year undergraduate programme. Single discipline universities, along with Multidisciplinary Education and Research Universities (MERUs) and a National Research Foundation will be set up, according to the policy. 

One of the paradigmatic shifts will be the setting up of Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) for entire higher education. HECI will function as the single overarching body for all higher education, excluding medical and legal studies, and replace all other regulatory bodies like the University Grants Commission or the All India Council for Technical Education.

Its four independent verticals will also be responsible for all grants, funding, standards and accreditation to make it one of the most centralised regulatory institutions. Many educationists believe that such high regulation by the government may impede the evolution of higher education in the long-run. 

In order to truly make undergraduate admissions a level playing field, a change in the procedure across universities and colleges throughout the country is necessary. Representative image. Credit: PTI/File

NEP 2020 has set itself a tall task of increasing the GER in higher education significantly. Representative image. Photo: PTI/File

Different Boards of Governors to oversee day-to-day functioning of different universities has also been proposed. However, many in the know of the system fear that these may lead to controversial appointments of people, and may hamper the functioning of higher education institutes, and entail greater politicisation of education. 

The NEP also talks about granting graded autonomy to colleges, in a move that will phase out affiliation of colleges to universities in the next 15 years. 

As far as teaching is concerned, a new National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education, NCFTE, will be framed by 2021.  The BEd degree is likely to become a four-year integrated course by 2030.  

Extreme emphasis has been given to digitalisation of higher education and open learning systems to boost the GER. 

Online courses, digital repositories, student services towards making this a reality will likely be developed. An autonomous body, the National Educational Technology Forum (NETF), will also be created to encourage the use of technology in college education.

Also read: As NIFT Sets Deadline Demanding Lakhs in Fees Amidst Crisis, ‘Social Media Policy’ Ensures Silence 

Is the NEP high on rhetoric?

Although a lot of the new policy aims at making progressive changes in the Indian education system, much of the stated vision, educationists say, had already been included in previous NEPs and other documents. A clear plan to implement the vision had always been missing.

The 2020 policy also suffers from the same lack of clarity as to how the plan will be implemented, they say. 

The NEP 2020 says that the central and state governments will strive to increase expenditure on education sector to reach 6% of the GDP. This has been the stated goal since the 1960s since the Kothari Commission’s report, but is yet to be achieved. Moreover, the Modi government has been cutting the fundings constantly. “It is just that since May 2014, our spend to GDP ratio has been falling. Six years ago, in 2012-13, education expenditure was 3.1% of the GDP. It fell in 2014-15 to 2.8% and registered a further drop to 2.4% in 2015-16,” says Peri Maheshwar of Careers 360

Anganwadi workers have now been tasked with early childhood education as well. Photo: Kavita Kuruganti

In fact, successive governments have attempted to increasingly open the doors of private investment in the education sector. The NEP 2020 is no different. While speaking about 6% funding, the Union government doesn’t mention whether it will release the funds from its own pocket or generate it from private enterprises. 

Also read: When a Nation’s Police Tear-Gases Its Libraries, What Use Is a New Education Policy?

“Talks about graded autonomy and HECI will open the doors for privatisation of public education. As a result, colleges will have no option but to increase their fees or take loans through HECI. When we talk about 6% expenditure on education, we talk about grants from the government, not 6% loan through the proposed HECI. Privatisation of education, along with multiple exit points, would lead to more drop-outs, which is exactly the opposite of the government’s stated claim. The NEP 2020 paves the way for an institutional decoupling of the state from education,” said Sachin Narayanan, professor of English at Delhi university.  

Moreover, he said while the government plans to introduce classical languages in school education, the big question is how would it implement it. “Even research scholars find it hard to crack the codes of languages like Pali and Prakrit. Before announcing such a step, the government did not even bother to see whether it can be implemented or not,” Narayanan said. 

Similarly, the proposed changes in school education have not taken into account many realities, those who work on the ground to improve public education say. 

The proposed changes in school education have not taken into account many realities. Photo: Reuters/Files

“The NEP 2020 has taken the soul of the Right to Education away from school education. Barring once, the RTE has not been mentioned even once. It reads more like a party manifesto, a document full of promises which are not time bound,” said Ambarish Rai of the RTE forum, an advocacy organisation. 

“The final policy talks about universalisation of school education from 3-18 years, without making it a legal right. Hence there is no mandatory mechanism for the union and state governments to make it a reality. Without the RTE Act, universalisation will be very difficult,” he said. 

He feared that the emphasis laid on digital education can lead to further segregation as India currently doesn’t have adequate infrastructure to support it.  “More than 70% children from marginalised backgrounds could be excluded, as evident from the COVID-19 pandemic, where many children are missing online classes due to the digital divide in the country,” he said. 

“The policy, in the name from philanthropic schools and PPP, is laying the roadmap for entry of private players in education, which will further commercialise education and the existing inequalities will be exacerbated,” he said, while adding that only a “Common School System” could remove the discrimination in the school education system and ensure uniform quality of education to all children. However, the NEP does not talk about the CSS at all. 

Also read: On Cuba’s National Rebellion Day, A Reminder that State-Generated Social Capital Matters

He said that the NEP should not act as the tool with which to supersede the RTE Act, which made education a legal right. “Among the 10 pointers that the RTE has laid down to improve school education, only 12.6% of the criteria were fulfilled in the last 10 years. This is our reality. From the problem of abysmal teacher-student ratio to extremely poor infrastructure in schools, our education system is crumbling at a different level. What was required of the NEP was to take baby steps to address those problems instead of announcing more grand plans and create another new framework,” Rai said. 

Lack of detailed thinking may affect the NEP’s vision. For instance, it has proposed a four-year undergraduate programme. A similar experiment in Delhi university failed miserably a few years ago. The then HRD minister Smriti Irani had to withdraw the four year course, which was implemented without proper thinking, leading to much confusion among students and teachers. 

Smriti Irani. Photo: PTI

The new changes in higher education has already started to face opposition from teachers’ bodies. The Federation of Central Universities Teachers’ Associations (FEDCUTA), in a press release, said:

“The empowerment of the Board of Governors hand in hand with redefined autonomy is in parallel with the neoliberal reforms that deregulated businesses. It amounts to converting/handing over education as a business to corporate houses. It is unwise to forget that the former HRD Minister, Shri Javadekar had minced no words in claiming that “the Government is striving to introduce a liberalised regime in the education sector.” 

While the NEP 2020 seeks to universalise education, and attempts to give access to students from all backgrounds, the teachers’ unions believe the proposed changes will serve only the interests of the rich. 

There are other problems too. Stress on vocational training from the preparatory stage, many  fear, would lead to students from marginalised backgrounds dropping out early to take up jobs. This may also impede a more holistic learning.

Similarly, while education in the mother tongue could be a good step, how is the Union government planning to convince the state governments to do so. State governments will have an equal stake in implementing the NEP as education is on the concurrent list. For instance, the Jagan Reddy-led Andhra Pradesh government recently made English as the compulsory medium for all government schools. 

Also read: The Catch 22 of Jagan Reddy’s English Policy

Given the diversity of languages and dialects in India, and growing internal migration, it will be very difficult to implement a mother tongue-based learning, and may hegemonise Brahmanical systems of learning in India. Given how centralised the education system will become after the new policy is put in place, it will become increasingly difficult to factor in varied needs of diverse Indian people.

Much of these issues could have been debated in the Parliament. However, that did not happen, leading to many opposition parties like the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Congress, and Aam Aadmi Party criticising the unilateral nature of the NEP’s approval.

However, it has also found support from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, which believes that the NEP will help “Indianise” education. “The policy refers to the need to instil a deep-rooted pride in being Indian, not only in thought, but also in spirit, intellect, and deeds, which is what we have been stressing on,” a RSS functionary told HT.

At the same time, leaders of privately-funded universities and schools have also welcomed the NEP, which they feel will make them active participants in charting out the course of education in India. 

While the Sangh parivar affiliates and industry experts feel that most of its recommendations have been accommodated in the new policy, educationists and stakeholders in public education feel differently. There lies the NEP’s biggest drawback.

ECI Knew of Appointment of Social Media Agencies Linked to BJP: RTI Activist Saket Gokhale

Questioning the ECI’s independence, Gokhale put out a series of tweets linking TSD Corporation to both the Modi government and the poll panel.

New Delhi: Transparency activist Saket Gokhale, who last week had alleged that an advertising and social media company owned by a BJP office-bearer was hired by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Maharashtra to issue election-related online ads during the 2019 assembly polls, has now also claimed that the Election Commission of India itself authorised government bodies to appoint the social media agency for the Lok Sabha 2019 elections.

In fact, in two days, Gokhale has tweeted about two different social media agencies which worked both for the BJP and the Election Commission of India.

After Gokhale’s tweets last week, the Maharashtra CEO claimed that it was “misleading and incorrect” to suggest that his office had engaged any agency on political considerations. He claimed that the selection was done by the state Directorate General of Information and Public Relations (DGIPR). The DGIPR, he said, “follows rules in force and a laid-down procedure for selecting an appropriate agency for public awareness”.

The CEO had also stated that “an interim reply of facts has been sent to the Election Commission of India (ECI),” in view of the allegations levelled by Gokhale.

Also read: EC Orders Probe Against Maharashtra CEO for Hiring BJP Activist to Handle Its Social Media

In two days, activist tweets about two agencies that were common to ECI and BJP

On Thursday, July 30, Gokhale followed up on the matter saying, “After the nexus between BJP & Electoral Officer Maharashtra, things have gotten quite bigger.” He added through a tweet that “It’s now clear that the Election Commission of India itself authorised Modi-govt bodies to appoint its social media agency for the Lok Sabha 2019 Elections.”

Elaborating on the issue, the activist wrote: “In 2019, the @SpokespersonECI appointed an agency called TSD Corporation for handling their social media for the Lok Sabha Elections 2019. The agency was hired by ECI through the govt-run NFDC Ltd. & NOT independently.”

Also read: Who Will Break Down the Election Commission’s Iron Opposition to the RTI?

He then tweeted a screenshot of the official handle of TSD Corporation showing a commendation letter it received from ECI.

Seeking to establish a link between the social media agency and BJP, Gokhale further wrote that TSD Corporations client roster is a whos-who list of BJP and government leaders.

He added that this agency had also handled digital media for several ministers of the Modi government and other BJP leaders.

Agency ECI picked, also handled Modi’s Digital India campaign

“In 2016,” Gokhale said, “TSD Corporation was the official agency which was handed over the entire work for Modi’s “Digital India” campaign.”

In view of this, Gokhale posed a direct query to the ECI spokesperson asking: “Why is @SpokespersonECI & other Electoral Officers in states allowing BJP govts to appoint their agencies?  Why aren’t agencies being appointed independently by ECI? Why is a constitutionally neutral body like ECI working on directions of BJP govts?”

Also read: The Legacy of a Different CEC: When J.M. Lyngdoh Stood up to Modi

Finally, he wrote: “This is just a small instalment of the investigation. There’s more intricate webs tying up the ECI &  BJP which I’ll reveal one-by-one.” He signed off on Thursday while urging the ECI spokesperson to “clarify why they allow BJP govt to appoint their agencies & why isn’t the process done independently?”

Also read: EC Hands out Fourth ‘Clean Chit’ to Modi, but Uploads No Details on Website

Why is ECI hiring agencies that handle BJP accounts?

Stating that, “this is how deeply BJP proxies have infiltrated the Election Commission of India”, Gokhale asked, “Why is the ECI hiring agencies that handle BJP accounts & election campaigning?” He also demanded to know, “Where is the proof that no data is being leaked?”

And then tagging the ECI spokesperson, he asked: “Will @SpokespersonECI answer?”

Note: This article was edited on May 17, 2023 in response to a potential legal challenge.

As NIFT Sets Deadline Demanding Lakhs in Fees Amidst Crisis, ‘Social Media Policy’ Ensures Silence

Neither the college nor the Ministry of Textiles has replied to or acknowledged mails sent by hundreds of students, asking for waivers.

The National Institute of Fashion Technology is considered to be one of the best institutes for studying fashion in the country. According to its official website, NIFT was the first institute in India to award its own degrees in the field of fashion education. It has a total of 11,514 students – spread across 16 campuses across India including in Kolkata, Mumbai, Shillong, Gandhi Nagar, Chennai, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Delhi, Gandhinagar, Jodhpur, Kannaur, Patna, Raebareli and Srinagar.

But for a fourth-year student of Bachelors in Fashion Communication at NIFT Kangra in Himachal Pradesh, life has not been the same since March. Originally from Uttar Pradesh, Ajay* had come all the way to Kangra four years ago to study fashion. This was his dream – and we went against his family’s wishes to pursue it.

“I took an education loan of about Rs five lakh from Canara Bank for my fees, initially. My father said that he will contribute some amount to each semester’s fees so the full amount can be taken care of,” says Ajay.

Also read: Educational Institutions Pressure Teachers to Demand Fees, Admit New Students

Ajay’s father is a 50-year-old mechanic who repairs heavy vehicles. The sole earning member of a family of three, he has not been getting much work done since the lockdown. “For the first three months, he didn’t have any work at all, and hence no money. Ever since the lockdown was lifted, he has had minimal work. Even the workshop where he works is rented. Very few people know this, but I have faced this financial crisis at home because of the lockdown. It is very difficult for me to arrange for fees now,” says Ajay.

Ajay says fashion is not perceived as a serious choice for men in India, and this is among many other things one of the chief reasons why he decided to dig his heels in and fight his parents to pursue his dreams, in spite of the loan.

In June, he, along with most of his batchmates, sent a mail to the Ministry of Textiles (under which the institute functions) and the director of NIFT, asking for them to reduce the fees, considering the situation. “Our sixth semester fee of over Rs 1 lakh had been paid in advance but due to the lockdown we mostly attended online classes. So, for the upcoming semester, we suggested that our fees be reduced,” he says. 

Textiles minister Smriti Irani at a NIFT Delhi convocation. Photo: https://www.nift.ac.in/delhi/

Marked to textiles minister Smriti Irani, as well as to the NIFT director general, the letter demanded that the institute consider the students’ situation.

“It feels unfair that we pay for things [facilities] that we are not using. First, we humbly request fee transparency [in the form of a fee breakup] and secondly to reduce the amount of fees for all years and departments of National Institute of Fashion Technology,” the letter said. 

Sent by more than a hundred students at NIFT Kangra, as well as hundreds from other campuses, the letter did not elicit any response.

The facilities for which the university is charging the fees are inaccessible for the students currently, says Ajay. These include Wi-Fi charges, medical fees, hostel charges, library charges, electricity charges, water charges as well as lab charges. 

New social media policy

Students like Ajay are keen to protect their identities thanks to a new social media policy.

The NIFT Social Media Policy, 2020, released in June of this year specifies:

“Every bona fide student of NIFT should be mindful that information shared on social media becomes public information and hence should not use social media in any way that may compromise your reputation or professional practice at a later stage. Any adverse content that goes against the rules of NIFT, the Constitution of India and does not promote general harmony could be brought to the attention of the Institute, future employers and/or professional bodies and may be detrimental to studies and / or future career.” 

Elsewhere, it also says:

“Any content maligning NIFT, its policies and employees will be viewed adversely inviting disciplinary action and inter alia, penalties, debarment from sitting the examination, campus placements etc.”

Under the heading ‘Online Etiquette,’ it says:

“Think twice about how you post content if you’re feeling angry about something and consider the effect that this might have on the situation.”

NIFT Social Media 13-7-2020 by The Wire on Scribd


This is not all. A message doing its rounds in NIFT class groups on WhatsApp, addressed to NIFT Delhi students, reads:

“This is for all the students of NIFT DELHI Campus: It’s been kindly advised from our CAC to refrain from entering groups and telegram chatrooms (for the discussion of Fee Protest).” 

A student of NIFT Delhi, who is protesting the hefty fee along with others across the country, calls this “the curbing of dissent and the effort to control the narrative by not allowing students the freedom to talk about their issues openly.” 

Students have still taken to Twitter against this. Anushka, a Twitter user and a student of NIFT wrote:

“We all are dealing with this pandemic situation, when college is going through some problem….we students understand and cooperate with the college…but now it’s time for them to understand the situation and problem, not all are capable of paying such a huge amount.”

Another user, Vanishka Mathur writes:

“Asking for full fee is not acceptable. We are not using any facility. Tuition fee is fine but, library and other fees are not valid. Our parents already have too much pressure because of the pandemic. Parents have to use their savings to fulfil the routine expenses.”

Simranjeet Kaur, another NIFT student and Twitter user writes:

“People are scared to raise their voice but enough is enough. If our parents have to suffer and take loans to give our fees and have to be in a bad situation because of us to us degree ka hum kya kare. (‘Then what should we do with such a degree?’) And not just me, many of my classmates are suffering a lot.”

‘Our things have been misplaced’

The NIFT Kangra student says that another issue has furthered their resolve to carry on the fight. “The girl’s hostel on campus was used as a quarantine centre and their belongings were thrown in some other room without their permission. Among those were important documents and things. They are now taking full hostel fees from the girls, even after having done something like this to their belongings. They are also charging medical fees, Wi-Fi fees, etc.,” he says.

Also read: COVID-19: A Summer of Struggle and Innovation for Educators

According to him, the institute has organised celebrity lectures in an attempt to justify the heavy fees. “They think organising these lectures and giving us access to some magazine websites will justify our fees of over a lakh. This is just for show, in reality, these guest lectures are not even for our main papers,” he says.

Students have demanded a 50% waiver of the total fees.

Internet expenses

The NIFT Delhi students says that students are also expected to write assignments, complete homework and also attend 4-5 hours of daily classes online. “All our data is exhausted. We have to pay for a monthly package as well as daily internet packs because our daily limit of internet is finished almost every day,” he notes.

His classmates in Bihar don’t have access to internet any more because of the recent floods. “Not only that, many of their houses have been affected severely due to the floods. It is extremely insensitive to ask them to pay such hefty fees at such a time,” he adds.

Fee structure

A final year student of Bachelors of Fashion Technology at NIFT Hyderabad says, “My father works in Telangana state government, and half of his salary has been cut since the lockdown. They are asking us to pay over Rs 1 lakh within a month. And if we fail to do so, we will have to pay a hefty fine also.”

The sole earning member of the house, his father has to pay for the education of two sons. “My elder brother studies in Amity University, which is also quite expensive.”

He, along with other classmates, had mailed the department, asking them to consider reducing the coming semester’s fees. He says, “We had already paid full fees for the past semester, even though classes were only online. But they neglected our mails and now say they’ll take legal action against students who say anything against the institute.” 

Also read: The Draft NEP 2020 and What the Future Could Look Like for Indian Youth

In a circular that was put up on Tuesday, the NIFT administration has asked the students to submit their fees till September 7, 2020 after which they will be allowed to pay a late fee with a fine of Rs 100 per day till February 19, 2021. 

In case the students fail to submit their fees, the name of the student will be struck from the institute without any further notice. 

Fee for Academic Year 2020-21 i.e. SessionsJuly-December 2020 and January-June, 2021 by The Wire on Scribd


The tuition fee for the final year students for their 7th semester is Rs 1,31,600. It is Rs 1,13,200 for the 8th semester. The library fees, medicine and student development fee, exam fee and the Alumni Association Membership fee for the 7th semester are Rs 7,500, Rs 3,700, Rs 3,750 and Rs 3,500 respectively. The total fee for the final year is Rs 2,44,800.

The total fee of students in semesters 5 and 6 is Rs 2,52,300 and fee for final year students in the NRI (Non-Residential Indian) quota is a total of Rs 9,48,400. 

Most students are confused, not knowing what to expect from the college now. “But one thing is clear, we are not okay with paying such a heavy fee during such difficult times, and especially when we are not even availing ourselves of the facilities that we are being charged for,” one of them says.

The Wire is awaiting a response from the NIFT administration. This will be added as and when it is received.

*Name changed on request.

Why the Hindutva Right Is Better at Propaganda Than its Opponents

Behind the fog of noise, the Sangh establishment is swiftly moving towards its ultimate goal.

Sometime in the late 1980s, a slogan emerged: “Garv se kaho hum Hindu hain (Say with pride, we are Hindus).” It was the beginning of the rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party, after a miserable electoral performance in 1984 when the party won just two seats in parliament.

In 1989, in a deft political manoeuvre, the party had tied up with V.P. Singh and begun to focus on Hindutva as a political strategy. Soon after came the Mandal announcement by Singh, and the BJP under L.K. Advani responded with a country wide Rath Yatra that whipped up a frenzy and resulted in mayhem and violence. This slogan was part of that campaign, to rouse the Hindu in Indians.

In response to the slogan, stickers appeared in Bombay’s suburban trains which said, “Prem se kaho hum insaan hain (Say with love, we are human beings).” It was a pithy riposte, and appealed to the heart, but those who had come up with it – secularists, for want of a better word – did not have either the wherewithal nor the reach, to say nothing of the funds, to spread their message all over the country. This slogan just tapered off.

As we know, the BJP juggernaut continued to roll on, and we also know the result. More than mere election wins, the BJP and its many sister organisations managed to plant the seed of ‘Hindu’ consciousness, which is now firmly embedded in millions of Indians who would have qualified as secular and liberal then. Today they are ready to rise to defend their culture and their Hinduness, in whatever vague terms they see it.

And those opposed to Hindutva – left, liberal, secularists, fill in the blanks – are a rapidly sinking minority, at least where the public arena is concerned. (It is difficult to come up with an omnibus term for the Hindutva right’s opponents, which by itself should indicate the lack of a cohesive force to take on this mighty beast.)

The Hindutva right, with its vast army of storm troopers, is on every platform, creating a din that just drowns out any other point of view. But it is not just that noise – the opponents really have little to say that is new, and worse, whatever they do say it in a way that is predictable, jaded and has zero resonance in the present times.

Also read: A Sad Day When a Public Servant Smears One of India’s Tallest Figures of Religious Unity

It is not as though those committed to secular values and opposed to dangerous Hindutva do not exist – they do, and perhaps in significant numbers. Not just that, they also occupy influential perches in academia, media and in other branches of public life; additionally, there is a large number of people, especially among the young, who are worried about rising communalism. Seen through the spectrum of electoral politics, their numbers may not count for enough, certainly not enough to sway results. But the opposition to Hindutva, on the ground, if not politically, does exist.

Then why doesn’t their voice carry and compete with the Hindutva voice? There are of course structural and systemic reasons for it – the mainstream media is under the government’s thumb, either through application of pressure or because journalists and media owners genuinely are supporters of Narendra Modi and his ideology.

Then there are the others – the neutrals, always chasing balance and objectivity, and simply not getting the point that this approach always favours the status quo. Unwittingly, they turn into useful idiots, and often call the opposition more to account than the government. In any case, none of them have loudly and firmly asserted their opposition to Hindutva or, indeed, their robust support of the Constitution.

A hoarding of PM Narendra Modi and other leaders put up beside a statue of Lord Hanuman, ahead of the foundation laying ceremony of Ram Temple, in Ayodhya, Thursday, July 30, 2020. Photo: PTI

But some fault must lie with the hardcore, ideological opponents of Hindutva, who, despite their earnestness and commitment, fail miserably in coming up with a robust counter. And the main reason for that is poor communication. In a world of truncated attention spans, the Left and the secularists have little in their arsenal which can, both sharply and succinctly, demolish the Right’s claims and come up with an alternate vision. The ideas are there – the tools to present them are not.

Like it or not, with the mainstream media hostile and the political opposition ineffectual or compromised, social media and grassroots work is where the battles take place. In both, the Right dominates the discourse.

Maurice Cornforth, the British Marxist, once said that capitalists speak in such an articulate way, that even their lies sound like truth while Leftists speak in such a way that even truth seems untrue.

Also read: When Your Inner Voice Starts Hating the Outer You, or Why I Resigned From ABVP

A little harsh, perhaps, but let us consider a small, every day example. (Here, we need to substitute capitalists and leftists, though the point  remains the same). A BJP minister, or a troll, will say something like, “Muslims are traitors to India.” It is a shocking statement, but it is clearly designed to reach not just supporters, but also fence sitters and to provoke opponents. It also is part of the BJP’s continuous campaign against Muslims in order to demoralise them.

Instantly, there will be responses to condemn this, but these will probably on the lines of “The BJP is othering an entire community” or this is the “BJP’s hate campaign” etc. Of course it is, and stating the obvious will not change a thing, and nor will pointing out that this is “othering”. It just doesn’t have the punch of the Hindutva statement.

Or, if another worthy says, “A woman’s place is at home, they should not go out and work”, responding with “This is a typical example of patriarchy” is not going to cut it. Here the point is not what was said, but the intent behind it. And more often than not, that intent is achieved.

Sadhvi Pragya, MP, recently said that reciting the Hanuman Chalisa will cure COVID-19; another, Jeuskar Meena, has assured the nation that once construction of the Ram temple begins the virus will disappear, another party man said eating papads was the best cure. Cries of outrage all around, the television channels present panel discussions with a lot of shouting and a few jokey tweets to make fun of them – it is all fun but it is all too predictable.

Did those politicians mean what they said? Probably. Did even their followers agree with those claims? A few may have, but there must be even hardcore Hindutva supporters who would have ignored it. But it provoked an outcry among the party’s critics and kept them busy with this diversion for a day or so.

The many comments that have no basis in science or history may anger rational Indians, but the followers of Modi or the Sangh in general are not interested in learning about either subject from their leaders. They simply shrug it off and move on, leaving their opponents to fume.

We also see finger pointing and name calling within the secular ranks. Comradeship and common purpose doesn’t stop vigilantes from keeping an eye out for any tiny infraction in terminology with someone’s expression, call them out and dance whoops of joy at making their point, even though that someone may be a comrade in the cause. Much time is spent on nitpicking the ‘correct’ way to say something, in the end wasting attention on minutiae rather than on the main objective, that of the serious damage being done to the Indian fabric.

Academia is even more obtuse in dealing with critical issues of the day, when it does. This is not to suggest that all academics are against the right or on the left, but a large number of them do fall into the progressive camp. They are the ones who are armed with the analytical tools, the research and the voice, thus making them natural allies – but often, their expression is so disconnected from quotidian arguments and public conversations that they just remain within their ivory tower. Which is a pity, because many strong points of view are simply lost.

Meanwhile, behind the fog of distraction, created by the Pragya Thakurs and the Meenas, this government pushes ahead with its larger agenda – changing text books, enacting repressive laws, helping crony capitalists and arresting dissidents. The Sanghi Right is moving, swiftly and in plain sight, towards its destination.

Also read: As the Gujarat Model Goes National, Hindutva Hunts for the ‘Enemy in Our Midst’

The government does not care about the petty arguments and comments of the usual outragists on social media – it goes after dissidents who matter. An Anand Teltumbde, a Sudha Bharadwaj and an 80-year-old Varavara Rao really worry the government and the entire Hindutva ecosystem. A poet, a writer, a scholar, a journalist, even a comedian are more dangerous than a politician or a someone who has predictable things to say on Twitter.

To this dispensation, ideas are more dangerous than hand-wringing. The media, the judiciary, the institutions and the political opposition are no longer a bother for this establishment – the maverick rebels, who do real work and will not be bought over, are. Is it surprising they have all have been imprisoned?

To this onslaught on constitutional values, liberalism and democratic traditions by using legal tools, the Left has no answer. There is protest, but it is feeble. It certainly does not get amplified, because the mainstream media is not interested. Barring a few exceptions, most media houses and journalists are busy being praise singers.

US President Donald Trump too has a core support which buys his outrageous claims, but the big media is sharply critical of him and fact-checks him regularly.

Like Black Lives Matter, which has shaken Trump more than the media or mainstream Democratic critics, opposition to the Modi dispensation has come from the citizens. It was the campus and anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests that proved to be the first big challenge to the Modi government after its re-election in 2019. Women, young and old, sat in protest against the pernicious Act, and they were unaligned with any political party or ideology. Theirs was not posed outrage – they were fighting for dignity and their rightful place in the Indian Republic. The media pilloried them, Hindutva forces tried to provoke them and police was openly hostile, but nothing could shake their resolve. Predictably, the Delhi police, under the control of home minister Amit Shah, went after some of them soon aftr the lockdown was declared, such as Safoora Zargar. Al the while, the ecosystem of the Sangh continues to raise a din to keep the public busy.

As we move ahead, the Sangh establishment and the BJP government will be relentless in their onslaught on constitutional values and on dissenters. At the same time, its propaganda machine will continue to push out lies and tall claims. This will call for an equally sustained campaign of resistance in whichever way possible. But the key skill that the Left, secularists and liberals need to learn is how to communicate their point of view to the people at large. Otherwise, the battle is as good as lost.

DGCA Extends International Flight Bans Till August 31

Flights specifically approved by DGCA will be exempted from this ban.

New Delhi: Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday said the suspension of scheduled international flights to and from the country has been extended till August 31.

Earlier, overseas flights were suspended till July 31.

“The government has decided to extend the suspension on the scheduled international commercial passenger services to/ from India up to 2359 hours IST of 31st August,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in statement.

This restriction will not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by the DGCA.

Delhi Riots: LG’s Order on Appointment of Prosecutors Smacks of Bad Faith, Immorality

The Delhi government reasoning of separating the investigations from prosecution not only seems justified, but is also warranted.

The wounds of the Delhi riots are still open. Not only the murderous mobs who killed and injured innocent people are in the dock, the Delhi Police is itself a suspect. By first failing miserably in preventing the riots and now by carrying out one-sided investigations, the police have lost the trust of large sections of the people of Delhi. Unfortunately, the Lieutenant-Governor, who is to expected to act with constitutional objectivity keeping in view the high degree of constitutional trust reposed in him, has used his special powers to pass a blatantly unreasonable and prejudiced order. The Delhi government must challenge its legality in higher courts.

A constitution bench of the Supreme Court had ruled that the “LG need not, in a mechanical manner, refer every decision of his Ministers to the President. He has to be guided by the concept of constitutional morality”. The court had further said that the LG “must bear in mind the constitutional objectivity, the needed advice and the realities”.

In this case, the advice of the Delhi government is clear and reasonable. On more than one occasion the courts have questioned the fairness of the police investigations. Recently Justice Suresh Kumar Kait of the Delhi high court, while dismissing a petition filed by Delhi police in a riot case, said that the police was “misusing the judicial system” and taking the “system for a ride”. In early July, Justice Vibhu Bakhru had reprimanded the Delhi police for making “unwarranted” allegations in its affidavit against a Jawaharlal Nehru University student, who is accused by the police of instigating the riots. On May 28, a sessions court hearing the riot cases remarked that the investigation was targeting one community and “rival factions” were not being investigated properly.

While on one hand the police have not registered a case against the Bharatiya Janata Party leaders who incited the mobs, ad nauseum, through inflammatory speeches and communal sloganeering, it has arrested student leaders and activists leading the ant-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests on charges of conspiracy. Therefore the Delhi government reasoning of separating the investigations from prosecution not only seems justified, but is also warranted.

Also read: Delhi Riots: HC Restrains Police From Tarnishing Pinjra Tod Activist Before Conclusion of Trial

At a time when both Hindus and Muslims need the soothing balm of truth and justice, the LG by approving the Delhi police’s choice of prosecutors has shown a cynical disregard to constitutional propriety. The LG’s powers under Article Article 239A(4) are circumscribed by the highest constitutional standards of transparency and democratic norms. The Supreme Court couldn’t have been clearer when it ruled that “the difference of opinion must meet the standards of constitutional trust and morality, the principle of collaborative federalism and constitutional balance, the concept of constitutional governance and objectivity and the nurtured and the cultivated idea of respect for a representative government.” Unfortunately, the LG’s order fails every test of public trust, sound reasoning and objectivity that the five-judge constitutional bench of the apex court had laid down in its nearly-thousand-page judgment.

One can’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu.

“The modern-day Neros were looking elsewhere when Best Bakery and innocent children and helpless women were burning and were probably deliberating how the perpetrators of the crime can be saved or protected. When fences start to swallow the crops, no scope will be left for survival of law and order or truth and justice.” With these scathing comments, the Supreme Court on April 12, 2004 had observed with anguish that “when the investigating agency helps the accused, the witnesses are threatened to depose falsely and prosecutor acts in a manner as if he was defending the accused, and the Court was acting merely as an onlooker and there is no fair trial at all, justice becomes the victim.”

In the Best Bakery case, the then public prosecutor Raghuvir Pandya had deliberately dropped key prosecution witnesses during the trial, had exhibited the wrong document as FIR, did not take any steps to protect the star eyewitnesses, didn’t ask for an in-camera trial even as a majority of prosecution witnesses turned hostile, and those key witnesses who did not turn hostile he didn’t examine them. Of the 120 witnesses listed by the prosecution, more than one third didn’t depose. Of the 73 who did depose, 41 turned hostile. Among the hostile witnesses were Zahira Shaikh and her family and other survivors of the carnage. Pandya’s name became synonymous to a deceitful and dishonest prosecution.

But Pandya was not an exception.

Also read: Delhi Riots: Police Arrest 5 Based on One Confession, Register 4 Identical FIRs on One Incident

The story of tainted evidence, tailored investigation, terrorised witnesses, unprincipled and compromised prosecution and perfunctory trial, repeated in case after case of Gujarat riots. At every stage the victims and human rights activists like Teesta Setalvad and Harsh Mander had to knock on the doors of the Supreme Court, seeking an honest investigation, a credible prosecution and a fair trial.

Chetan Shah, a senior Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader, Dilip Trivedi, the Gujarat VHP state president, Piyush Gandhi, an ABVP and VHP leader, were some of the most notable questionable appointments of prosecutors in Gujarat riot cases. It was only the doggedness of the activists like Teesta Setalvad and the indefatigable courage of victims like Zakia Jafri, the 80-year-old widow of Ehsan Jafri, that some of these prosecutors were replaced. Some cases like Best Bakery and Biklis Bano were transferred out of Gujarat to Mumbai, others were reinvestigated by the special investigations team and constantly supervised by the apex court before some justice was done.

Who will bell the cat in the Delhi riots cases?

India is now ruled by a Hindu nationalist government. Those who were in power in Gujarat in 2002 are now in power at the Centre. They will do well to remember the words of Benedict Anderson: “No one can be a true nationalist who is incapable of feeling ashamed if her (or his) state or government commits crimes, including those against their fellow citizens.”

Ashish Khetan is a former chairperson of the Dialogue and Development Commission of the Delhi government.

Macaulay Is Very Relevant Today and Helps Dalits, OBCs Join the Global Economy

The new education policy’s proposal to reduce the importance of English in schools will hinder progress.

Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-1859) lived in India just for four years, from 1834 to 1838. Yet he left unerasable footprints on Indian soil. During his time in India, he decided to introduce English into the education of Indians by deploying government resources in schools and colleges. He argued that Sanskrit and Persian, which were the medium of instruction under the East India Company before the British Crown took over the Indian administration, should be done away with from schools.

Today, many English-educated Indians deride Macaulay, perhaps for giving that language to them and what they also call the ‘un-Indian’ English culture. Only very few who are also English-educated admire him occasionally. Those who criticise Macaulay come from all schools of thought: extreme right, extreme left and centrist liberals.

But vast numbers of Indians who are outside the English-speaking milieu – food producers, such as the Shudra, Dalits and Adivasis, who work in the fields – do not think about Macaulay. For them, their local languages – Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi, Gujarathi or tribal languages and so on – are the medium of instruction in schools and colleges. The English language, with its global accessibility, is too far away from them. Yet, Macaulay also has admirers among Dalits and OBCs who feel that English is a language of liberation and have taken to it as a way of progressing in life and in their careers.

Now, with the new National Education Policy somewhat demoting the status of English by giving a priority to Indian languages for the first few years of school education, the issue becomes pertinent. Are Macaulay and his ideas irrelevant and un-Indian? Is Macaulay’s presence fine in private English medium schools but not good for government-run schools, where the poor children study?

Quite consciously, from the days of Jawaharlal Nehru, the so-called ‘anti-national Macaulay’ English education has been confined to expensive private schools, where only very rich Dwijas could afford to educate their children. Even rich Shudra landed gentry did not send their children to good English medium schools. Many Dwijas, in fact, preferred to send their children to Christian missionary schools.

Both Macaulay’s detractors and admirers are able to speak and write in the English language; they were educated either in Indian English medium schools, colleges, universities or institutions like IITs and IIMs or foreign universities.

Six months into its tenure, the Kamal Nath government has held agriculture above all else. It now needs to focus on health and education. Representative image of schoolchildren. Credit: PTI

Representative Image. Photo: PTI

What was the state of education before Macaulay?

There was hardly any modern college that used Sanskrit and Persian as the medium of education until 1834. Anyway, education in Sanskrit and Persian was meant for the Hindu Dwijas (Brahmin, Bania, Ksatriya, Kayastha and Khatris) and Muslim feudal lords, who perhaps were either Pathans or Arabs or Dwijas who converted.

Unlike the Christians, Muslims never allowed the non-Muslim Shudras and Dalits into their schools. Some Dwijas – mainly Brahmins – managed the system of education in Persian, in collaboration with rich Muslims. But that did not help them with employment, even when it was the official language, because the bureaucracy and legal systems were dominated by Brahmins.

School education in these languages was not available to Shudras, Dalits and Adivasis of India, who were the main food producers then, as they are now.

Actually the earliest missionary teaching of the English language to Dwija children was started in 1817, as a private affair, by William Carey (1761-1834) in association with Rajarammohan Roy in Culcutta. He came to India in 1793 and died here in 1834, the year in which Macaulay arrived. Carey established the Serampore College in 1818, the region’s first degree college in the English language. Which caste and class of youth were able to access this college? Would it have been Bengali Shudras and Namashudras? No way.

Also Read: Language Policy: Education in English Must Not Be the Prerogative of Only the Elites

What Macaulay proposed to the British administration was to make English part of the state education policy to replace Sanskrit and Persian. While Indian Muslim feudal lords refused to send their children to English medium schools at the cost of their Persian and Urdu education, the Brahmins of Bengal and Kerala had no such inhibitions. They were among the earliest to do so, setting aside Sanskrit education.

Dwija Hindus wanted to become pleaders, officials and clerks in the government offices as ‘middlemen’ (not many women were allowed to hold these positions then) between the British colonial rulers and the Indian Shudra-Atishudra masses.

The term Shudra-Atishudra was first used by Mahatma Jotirao Phule, the first Shudra person to be educated in the English language. In the Bengal region, whether any Shudra or Namashudra was allowed to go to school – leave alone one with English as the medium – is not known. In Maharastra, where Phule and Dr B.R. Ambedkar came from Marathi and English education, which was accessible to some Shudra and Dalit social forces in subsequent years. But in Bengal, it still remains a Bhadralok preserve. From Rajarammohan Roy to Jyothi Basu to Mamata Banerjee, English and thus power, are in their hands only.

Busts of Mahatma and Jyotiba Phule.

Why is Macaulay important?

Why is Macaulay dear to the Shudras, Dalits and Adivasis now? The Indian state and civil society have to move towards a mode of education that imparts global and Indian knowledge – even within the framework of competing nationalisms – to all children in the English language.

It is also important to remember that the ideological attack on Macaulay did not lead to a total divorce from the English language. Among the ruling classes, whatever is their ideological and political position, their children are educated in English medium schools.

But quite consciously, this language has been kept away from the rural agrarian, productive masses. This has led to the creation of two nations—English-speaking India and mother tongue-speaking Bharat. A small number of English-educated Indians, in this globalised world, have taken the lead in every sphere of life. The rural masses cannot catch up with the globalised, English-educated Indian ruling and business classes unless they too acquire that language, right from their time in school.

From tribal areas to our metropolitan urban centres, Indian school and college education has to be in one common language, with the same content and course levels. Unless all children do not read and write one national and international language – English – the creation of a national, advanced intellectual discourse will not be possible. Even the production of new scientific knowledge is linked to a globally communicable language. Teaching children science in their mother tongue is not going to help.

‘Will alienate people from Indian culture’

The common argument that English medium education will alienate people from Indian culture has proved to be deceptive propaganda. The Shudras, Dalits and Adivasis have had a very bad experience with the ‘divine distancing’ of Sanskrit, which was the ‘national language’ in ancient and medieval times, from their lives. The agrarian masses have been deceived on the issue of language for quite a long time. Now these same forces are trying to deceive these productive masses by keeping their children away from English, by labelling it Macaulay’s “colonial conspiracy”.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has broken the myth that Macaulay’s English is anti-national or un-Indian. He has decided to introduce English as the medium of instruction in all government schools. When the same Macaulayputras tried to oppose it, the rural productive masses responded by saying, “You hypocrites, send your children to Sanskrit medium schools, but our children need to study in English.”

The diabolical nature of Hindutva is all around us. A time has come to abolish the two-language nation – one English speaking and the other in their mother tongue – and see that all Indians speak and write only in English. Regional languages can be used for local purposes. Macaulay and his ideas have to be re-evaluated in light of the modern world.

Kancha Ilaiah Shepherd is a political theorist, social activist and author.