August 2024 Archives

Delhi Coaching Flood Row: How This Student’s Complaint Was Ignored

Kishore Singh Khushwa, a civil services exam aspirant, had filed complaints with the delhi government, warning of the dangers of the illegal basement.

A devastating tragedy unfolded in Delhi as three students died in a flooded basement at Rau’s IAS Study Circle, a coaching centre with several complaints about its illegal operations. Kishore Singh Khushwa, a civil services exam aspirant, had filed complaints with the government, warning of the dangers of the illegal basement. But his pleas were ignored. Another aspirant, Kanishka Tewari, had also complained about the persistent water logging and threat of electrocution just three days before the incident. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s inaction and complicity have come to light in this heart-wrenching story of government failure and negligence. Watch how the system failed these young lives and the desperate attempts of Kishore Singh Khushwa to save them.

In Numbers: What Is the Most Crucial Aspect of Democracy?

The most crucial aspect of democracy, according to 43% of the respondents, is free and fair elections.

In the fervent democracy that India is, the 2024 elections saw millions of citizens exercise their vote to elect a government for themselves for another five years. This event underlines the key democratic principle of people’s participation in forming a government of their choice. However, does voting mark the end of democratic engagement for the average Indian until the next election period? Certainly not. This is not the case for a significant portion of Indian citizens as they appear to invite a more robust notion of citizenship that goes beyond voting. Prominent examples can be cited where Indians have proactively participated in steering the direction of governance.

During the Chipko movement in the 1970s, villagers from Uttarakhand hugged trees to prevent deforestation. This ultimately led to a prohibition on deforestation and highlighted the protection of forests. A more recent example is the anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare in 2011, in which millions of Indians, spread across the country, gathered and rallied for a Jan Lokpal Bill to have an independent institutional framework against corruption. These movements demonstrate the significant impact of civic engagement on decision-making and the potential for driving positive change.

The Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) post-poll survey provides interesting insights into the subject of citizen participation. The most crucial aspect of democracy, according to 43% of respondents, is free and fair elections. Equal rights for everyone was identified as the essential characteristic of democracy by 35% of respondents. Although chosen by fewer respondents, two in ten Indians consider the freedom to criticise those in power as a notable aspect of democracy.

Instead of being passive recipients of government decisions, a majority of Indians believed that in a democracy, people should have the right to oppose decisions taken by their leaders. This suggests that the government needs to build greater consensus about its actions, or else it will lead to greater pushback. Similarly, 67% of respondents think that citizens should have the right to influence what leaders do, reflecting a strong desire for active engagement and accountability in governance.

Graph 4 shows a notable generational shift in the views on the right to influence leaders and the importance of active citizenship. A majority of Indians feel that citizens should have the right to influence leaders to take specific actions. The highest support of 71% stems from the youngest age group, of people up to 25 years of age, demonstrating their significant focus on active participation. It progressively decreases with age, reaching the lowest of 63% for people 56 years of age and beyond. This shows that younger generations are more likely than older generations to actively engage with civic issues. The latter is more sceptical about the impact of citizens on leadership.

Similarly, the data on caste groups reinforces this view, showing that a majority of individuals across all castes value the ability to bring about change in the government through free and fair elections, which is a key aspect of active citizenship. Among historically marginalised groups, like the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes, a significant emphasis is placed on electoral participation, with 38% and 46% respectively favouring the latter.

Graph 6 shows a clear positive correlation between educational qualifications and support for the right to oppose a leader’s decision. The percentage of Indians who support this increases with an increase in educational levels, ranging from 59% among non-literate individuals to 74% among those with college and above education. Additionally, resistance to these declines with higher education, falling from 23% at the primary level to 18% at the college level. This collective prioritisation of electoral democracy and civic rights across diverse demographics highlights that active citizenship is a core value for most Indians, transcending age, caste and educational distinctions.

The survey demonstrates the importance of accountability in leadership and its fundamental principle stemming from the will of the common people. It ensures that those in power make decisions that favour the common public good while maintaining integrity in line with morality.

The strength and endurance of a democratic system depend on the connection between engaged citizens and accountable leaders. The data findings show that most people support participatory governance and greater transparency to enhance ethical decision-making. By taking part in democratic processes and ensuring their leaders are responsible, citizens support democratic principles. Furthermore, this ensures that governance remains vigilant and transparent. Democracies can prosper and uphold liberty for everyone by embracing this vibrant link.

Deepa Thiyagarajan is a researcher at CSDS.

By Endorsing Anurag Thakur’s Caste Remarks about Rahul Gandhi, Modi has Demonstrated Self-Defeatism

Rahul Gandhi has understood the Congress folly of not realising the criticality of social justice earlier and constructed a new politics, using caste census as a potential instrument of social transformation.

Caste and insult have a disconcerting liaison. It is both historical and contemporary. People from the so-called upper castes have shamelessly used caste to humiliate those who are from the marginalised communities.

The Sangh Parivar believes in caste hierarchy; nobody has ever refuted RSS mentor MS Golwalkar’s proposition that the nation and the society will run on the basis of ‘Varna” system. Religious bigotry isn’t the only evil their philosophy legitimises and there is little evidence to suggest that their vision of Hindu Rashtra will be devoid of caste discrimination.

What Anurag Thakur said in the Lok Sabha about Rahul Gandhi should not be seen in isolation from the unseemly rants of the likes of former MP Ramesh Bidhuri who humiliated a Muslim parliamentarian on the floor of the House only because of his religious identity.

The juvenile contention that Rahul Gandhi also asks people about their caste and what’s wrong if somebody asked his caste betrays a poor understanding of the nature of controversy. Questions about caste or gender to highlight inequality and discrimination, and the demand for caste census to gather data for policy formulation cannot be equated with misuse of caste for humiliation and discrimination.

Unfortunately, a section of the media has fallen for this illogic. What Anurag Thakur, a former union minister, said was more perverse because it appeared to question Rahul Gandhi’s lineage, not only caste. Without naming the Congress leader, he said, “Jiski jaat ka pata nahin wo ganana ki baat karta hai (whose caste is not known is talking about caste census).”

While such comments are often used to question the parentage of an individual, and is considered abusive and undignified, Thakur was probably hinting at the inter-caste marriages of Rahul Gandhi’s grandmother Indira Gandhi and father Rajiv Gandhi to suggest that Rahul’s caste cannot be determined.

BR Ambedkar had suggested inter-caste marriages as an effective solution to the lack of empathy for the marginalised castes, gradually creating a situation when caste ceases to matter in society.

Ambedkar was so bitter and concerned about caste discrimination that he wrote: “No society has an official gradation laid down, fixed and permanent, with an ascending scale of reverence and a descending scale of contempt”. Ambedkar had finally quit Hinduism to embrace Buddhism.

The Sangh Parivar ecosystem has run a vicious propaganda about the Nehru clan’s religion for decades – spreading falsehood about their alleged Muslim origin. Though Nehru too was an agnostic, Rahul is a devout Hindu, a Shiva bhakt, unlike most Sangh Parivar icons – from VD Savarkar to L K Advani – who are self-proclaimed atheists.

Rahul’s obsession with Shiva is not merely political posturing; he is deeply attached to the deity and his pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar and Kedarnath temple were widely reported. Congress insiders reveal he loves to debate Hindu religion and philosophy in private conversations.

His decision to incorporate Shiva in his political discourse appears to be a compulsion, the last resort, because other attempts to contest the BJP propaganda about the Congress being anti-Hindu and a Muslim party had failed. The Congress had no option except demolishing the perception that the BJP was the sole custodian of Hindu interests.

But Rahul’s emphasis on caste is a serious political project. He has understood the Congress folly of not realising the criticality of social justice earlier and constructed a new politics, using caste census as a potential instrument of social transformation.

If the BJP thinks recalling what Rajiv Gandhi or others said about caste-based reservation will be enough to discredit Rahul, they are grossly mistaken. Rahul knows that the future of secular democracy rests on the debris of systemic caste discrimination and hence the old order has to be dismantled.

His constant and powerful articulation on the cause of social justice laid the ground for an ideological unity with regional forces and the opposition alliance now stands on a firmer platform than ever before. Rahul’s sincere commitment to social justice has dissipated the intrinsic antipathy towards the Congress among the other secular parties.

This ideological coalition demonstrated its potential in Uttar Pradesh during the Lok Sabha elections where the BJP was whittled down to half – even Ayodhya elected a Dalit MP despite the hype over the construction of the Ram temple. Ordinary people have begun to understand that merely being in the Hindu fold doesn’t guarantee equality of status. The Constitution, however, performs that magic.

Leaders such as Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav understand that the social justice plank has the potential to weaken the BJP’s mobilisation tactics in the name of Hinduism. Society cannot be left to muddle along on the virtues on tolerance and compassion alone.

Social harmony requires real equality which will come through empowerment and rights. If the opposition convinces a large section of society that it is sincere about addressing the vital questions of equitable distribution of resources and representation, the majority of Hindus will abandon the Hindutva bandwagon that has not given them anything except political titillation. Hindu unity is fragile because the RSS-BJP project has neither empowered the majority community, nor addressed questions of caste discrimination.

Every person from marginalised castes understands the purpose and effect of Anurag Thakur’s ‘Jati-ka-pata nahin’ jibe at Rahul Gandhi. The privileged sections of society which hasn’t suffered this humiliation will continue to obfuscate the true import of this taunt.

But both Rahul and Akhilesh responded instantly, conveying different messages to the people. While Rahul’s argument that anybody who fights for Dalits, Adivasis and OBCs is subjected to this kind of humiliation and he was prepared to face it, sent out a message of his personal commitment to social transformation, the sense of outrage demonstrated by Akhilesh appealed to the self-esteem of the oppressed sections of society.

The BJP tried to define the political contest in terms of Hindu-Muslim battle, explicitly articulating it as ‘80 versus 20’contest and Rahul-Akhilesh have now turned the tables on them. They too framed the discourse as an ‘80-20 contest’, a battle between the deprived sections of society and the elite – both privileged castes and the financially powerful.

While Akhilesh calls it PDA (Pichhda-Dalit-Alpsankhyak), Rahul has a similar canvas of OBCs, Dalits, tribal communities, minorities and the poor upper castes. Though the last Lok Sabha election witnessed glimpses of this change in political dynamics, the results will be far-reaching after the opposition parties succeed in making deeper inroads.

Reckless acts by BJP, as committed by Anurag Thakur in the Lok Sabha, will facilitate the opposition’s march. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a politically shrewd leader, demonstrated self-defeatism by endorsing his wayward MP instead of distancing himself from the controversy, like he did in the past in case of Pragya Singh Thakur. When chips are down, political acumen goes on leave.

Sanjay K. Jha is a political commentator.

Tamil Nadu Fisherman Dies in Collision between Indian Fishing Boat and Sri Lankan Vessel

There were a total of four fishermen aboard the Indian boat. Of the four, one went missing and two were rescued and brought ashore to Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka.

New Delhi: In a collision between an Indian fishing boat and a Sri Lankan vessel five nautical miles north of Katchatheevu Island on Thursday, August 1, an Indian fisherman from Tamil Nadu lost his life and another went missing, Indian external affairs ministry said.

There were a total of four fishermen aboard the Indian boat. Of the four, two of them were rescued and brought ashore to Kankesanthurai in Sri Lanka. A search operation is underway for the missing fisherman, a press statement from the external affairs ministry said.

“Indian Consulate Officials in Jaffna have been instructed to immediately rush to Kankesanthurai and extend all possible assistance to the fishermen and their families,” the press statement said.

New Delhi registered its strong protest by summoning the Sri Lankan Acting High Commissioner in India to the Ministry of External Affairs office. “We expressed our shock and anguish at the unfortunate loss of life. Our High Commissioner in Colombo will also be raising the matter with the Sri Lankan government later today,” the statement added.

This is the second such collision in recent times. In the previous incident, a Sri Lankan naval sailor was killed. Sri Lanka had registered its protests with India over the death of its sailor, adding that the sailor was killed during an operation to seize an Indian trawler allegedly engaged in illegal fishing in the island nation’s territorial waters. The Sri Lankan High Commissioner in Delhi at that time, Kshenuka Seneviratne, had conveyed the message to external affairs minister S. Jaishankar.

India has maintained that fishermen issues between the two countries should be dealt with in a “humane and humanitarian manner”. “Existing understandings between the two Governments in that regard must be strictly observed. Utmost efforts should be made to ensure that there is no recurrence or resort to the use of force,” the Indian government press note said.

“Government attaches the highest priority to the safety and security of Indian fishermen. Issues relating to Indian fishermen have been raised regularly at the highest levels with the Sri Lankan leadership,” the statement added.

Bangladesh: 50+ Years Later, Is the ‘Muktiyuddha Chetana’ on the Verge of Losing Its Relevance?

In the name of the Awami League’s so-called manifesto of the ‘Muktiyuddha Chetana’ (Liberation War spirit), large-scale corruption, looting and misdeeds have been carried out during Sheikh Hasina’s premiership.

The unity of students across Bangladesh in fighting against corruption and autocracy; a violent government crackdown causing bloodshed and the killing of protestors at a staggering rate; one Abu Sayed becoming the new generation’s ‘face of self-sacrifice’; a nationwide curfew and blockade of the internet; and a Supreme Court decision that eventually scaled back the conflict – this July in Bangladesh has witnessed one of the most significant mass uprisings of recent times.

When it started with peaceful protests in university campuses, few would have imagined the storm would last as long as it has.

In the wake of unscrupulous state brutality against protestors and Sheikh Hasina labelling the protestors ‘the grandchildren of razakars’ (it is a popular tactic of fascist political parties to mark the opposition as some historically blemished ‘other’ – pretty similar to the BJP’s labelling of the Indian opposition as ‘anti-national’), progressive intellectuals from the state of West Bengal, though in a very small number and among whom were mostly students, human rights activists, journalists and several authors, came forward and expressed their solidarity in support of the movement.

On 19 July, several leftist students’ unions and human rights organisations organised a protest march in Kolkata. On their way to the Bangladesh deputy high commission, a clash ensued between them and the city police, following which many of them were detained at the police headquarters at Lalbazar.

Social media activities such as the sharing of news from ground zero, the use of harsh words for the repressive measures of Sheikh Hasina’s government, and mourning over the unfortunate deaths of young students are also in full swing, quite naturally. Many people from my circle of friends and acquaintances have mentioned the role the intelligentsia of the two Bengali-speaking regions played at the time of the 1969 mass uprising as well as the 1971 Liberation War.

For instance, when 15-year-old Tahmid Tanim, a ninth grade student, was killed after being hit by rubber bullets on July 18 in central Bangladesh’s Narsingdi, journalist Arka Bhaduri posted a poem by eminent poet Al Mahmud penned in the memory of two student-martyrs of the 1969 uprising, Amanullah Asaduzzaman (known as only ‘Asad’) and Matiur Rahman Malik (16 years old at the time of his killing).

Another journalist and prose writer, Priyak Mitra, quoted a passage from Ekushey Padak awardee and novelist Akhtaruzzaman Elias’s epic period piece ‘Chilekothar Sepai’ (‘The Soldier in an Attic’) while criticising popular science-fiction author Muhammad Jafar Iqbal for his anti-student comments on the ‘Razakar controversy’, sparked by the honourable prime minister herself.

Also read: A Faux Pas by Bangladesh’s PM Has Morphed a Small Protest Into a Nationwide Movement

Tanmoy Bhattacharjee, a poet and researcher, recently wrote an interesting article about a pro-Bangladesh leaflet authored and published by Subimal Basak (a prominent face of the 1960s anti-establishment Bengali literary movement ‘Hungry Generation’) just before the start of the war in early 1971.

Senior journalist and documentary-maker Soumitra Dastidar, who is also an expert on socialist politician Maulana Bhashani, posted on July 15 the story of a follower of Bhashani to highlight the fact that the Liberation War was actually a mass struggle.

Some independent journalists have even criticised the ignorance shown by the current mainstream media of West Bengal, recalling how newspapers and radio had played their part at the time of the crisis – for instance, Akashvani newsreaders Debdulal Bandyopadhyay and Nilima Sanyal became almost household names at the time.

While there are many other types of posts, as mentioned already, these few, on the whole, depict the emotional attachment still felt by so many Bengalis in connection with the war.

Interestingly, all these are in support of a movement organised against the reinstatement of a 30% public sector quota for the children and grandchildren of Liberation War veterans.

To be very frank, the events that led to the war, and indeed the war itself, had a great impact on South Asian politics. The Indian state machinery provided wholehearted assistance and aid to the war effort. But more striking was the overwhelming participation of ordinary people, government officials and public figures.

West Bengal, being socially and culturally connected to its eastern neighbour, was on the forefront of displaying solidarity with the war effort. Calcutta not only became the capital-in-exile of the Provisional Government of Bangladesh but also gave shelter to a huge number of middle class refugees.

Besides political support, civil society efforts like the ‘Council for Promotion of Communal Harmony’, which was founded by progressive intellectuals in Calcutta, and religious organisations like ‘Missionaries of Charity’ and the ‘Ramakrishna Mission’, were actively involved in refugee rehabilitation and relief.

The involvement of the popular intelligentsia was spontaneous, and the ‘Black Night of March 25’ (the day on which the Pakistani army and local collaborators executed Bengali professors, journalists and physicians) added fuel to the fire.

Filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak, famously known for films made on the 1947 partition and the post-partition crisis, made a documentary entitled ‘Durbar Gati Padma’ (‘There Flows the Padma, the Mother River’), which IMDb describes as portraying “the determination of the common man of Bangladesh to stand up to tyranny”. Leading newspapers regularly published political cartoons by famous cartoonists in support of the cause for an independent Bangladesh.

In a nutshell, the Bangladesh Liberation War was not restricted to the political freedom struggle of a specific geographic region, but became a struggle for socio-cultural existence.

However, no matter how many people still feel about it, the realities of the time of the liberation struggle are now long gone – while the Awami League (AL) led the struggle then, it is the one orchestrating fascist rule in Bangladesh today. So it is simply unjust to use the sentiment of the war to justify its dictatorial regime.

Also read | Bruised, Battered, Targeted, Undaunted: Bangladesh’s Students Will Not Bow

In Bangladesh, the science fiction author Iqbal faced backlash from university student unions for his stand against students who responded to Hasina’s comments by shouting the slogan: “Who are you? Who am I? Razakar, razakar. Who said that? Who said that? Dictator, dictator!”

However, students found support among other celebrities like actors Ziaul Faruq Apurba and Mehazabien Chowdhury and singer-songwriter Farzana Wahid Shayan. In West Bengal, even though several artistes like author Amar Mitra, actress Swastika Mukherjee, singer Sahana Bajpaie, music director Indraadip Dasgupta and others had voiced their protest to the best of their capacities, the popular faces for the large part remained silent on the incident. Even the miserable deaths of teenagers were not enough for them (who also include some so-called progressives) to speak up.

This may be attributed to the complexity of Bangladesh’s current political mayhem and the strained nature of the relationship between the two countries. But at the same time, one has to admit that this ‘act of cowardice’ has become the ground reality, with the role of West Bengal’s public intellectuals in shaping public opinion having turned into a joke in recent years.

Global politics has completely changed in these five decades. A belittling ‘big brother’-type attitude on our part over the years only deteriorated the mutual admiration Bangladeshi people once had for their closest neighbours.

The ‘India Out’ sentiment, which has grown in the past decade in Bangladesh, gained momentum following allegations about Indian interference in the last general election. India is no longer seen as a friend, with thousands having celebrated the Indian cricket team’s defeat to Australia in the last World Cup final.

On the other hand, the Hasina-led AL, which is thought to be close to the Modi-led BJP government and has been in power for more than fifteen years now, has always used the 1971 war for the sake of its own interests. In the name of its so-called manifesto of ‘Muktiyuddha Chetana’ (Liberation War spirit), large-scale corruption, looting and misdeeds have been carried out during Hasina’s premiership.

Rigged elections, the imposition of state terror on the opposition, and the opposition boycotting elections – these have become common in ‘sonar Bangla’ (‘Golden Bengal’, as the region was once termed because of its rich cultivation). As Salman Siddiqui, the president of the Socialist Students’ Front has pointed out, the AL’s governance is the complete opposite to what the Liberation War was truly fought for – equity, human dignity and social justice.

Even though the central leadership was in the hands of the AL and the indomitable spirit of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (father of Sheikh Hasina and former leader of the AL, popularly known as ‘Bangabandhu’, or ‘friend of Bengal’) had indeed acted as a great source of motivation for the nation’s struggle against Pakistani oppression, the AL was not the only party to be at war with the enemy. The role played by leftist parties has often been deliberately omitted.

In fact, it was Maulana Bhasani who first protested against the central authorities of East Pakistan and advocated for autonomy in 1948. During the Liberation War, several leftist parties took part in the fighting, both inside and outside East Bengal, despite stiff hostility from the others associated with the war.

Thus, the Liberation War cannot be the property of one party; rather, it was a people’s war in the true sense, where several parties, in spite of their ideological differences, fought together against a common enemy.

Out of the just-scrapped 56% reservation for specially entitled classes in public sectors, 30% was allotted to the descendants of freedom fighters. Not only did many people avail the quota by faking their identity, but the AL has also been repeatedly alleged to have distributed the quotas exclusively among its own people.`

A man is injured during this year’s student protests in Bangladesh. Photo: Nazmul Islam.

This has only resulted in unemployment. According to an ILO report, the number of unemployed persons in Bangladesh was more than 3.6 million in 2021, which corresponded to an unemployment rate of 5.2%. The rate of unemployment among the youth was alarmingly high, at 14.7%.

There was a nationwide protest against the freedom fighter quota in 2018, too. Under severe pressure, the Hasina government was forced to announce the abolishment of all quotas, and it did introduce reforms when the protest resumed after three months of government inaction.

This time, the movement achieved a much bigger shape as the demand is to end the overall corruption that has intoxicated the whole system. Moreover, the protestors have also been agitating against the Chhatra League (the AL’s student wing), which has repeatedly violated human rights in academic spaces. Even though the AL government has played its old game of projecting the movement as a conspiracy orchestrated by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, its main political opposition, this did not have much of an effect on the spontaneity of the movement.

In the face of the current situation, perhaps that day is not too far when the Liberation War itself will lose its relevance to the upcoming generations. If that really happens, it will not only be an insult to those thousands of souls who made the supreme sacrifice, but also be an unfortunate effacing of history, and the ruling party and its ‘opium of nationalism’ will have to take the lion’s share of the blame.

Soham Das is a Kolkata-based independent researcher and bilingual author who takes special interest in history, politics and culture.

Central Hall | ‘A Budget Full of Trickery’: Kapil Sibal Asks Economists How to Make Sense of It

Economists Jayati Ghosh, Arun Kumar and Himanshu try to answer what’s good and bad about the budget.

Ten years since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power, the economy has undergone no significant improvement. After 2016, the decision to implement demonetisation destroyed the MSME sector. In 2019, the government tried to give benefits to the corporate sector by reducing tax rates. The corporate sector did not deliver and it used it as an opportunity to clean up their balance sheets. The agriculture sector is stuttering.

The Narendra Modi government has now got a fillip in the form of Rs 2.1 lakh crores of dividends from the Reserve Bank of India. Former Union minister and advocate Kapil Sibal is joined by three experts – economists Jayati Ghosh, Arun Kumar and Himanshu – who try to answer what’s good and bad about the budget. One of these is more difficult to answer than the other.

How the Yogi Govt Let Off a Former BJP MLA Convicted for Killing SP Legislator

The entire Uttar Pradesh Assembly, which included chief minister Yogi Adityanath in attendance, listened in stunned silence as MLA Vijama Yadav spoke about her husband’s murder.

New Delhi: Vijama Yadav tried hard to contain her tears as she described the pain of having seen the convicted killer of her husband walk out of jail without serving a full term. The entire Uttar Pradesh Assembly, which included chief minister Yogi Adityanath in attendance, listened in stunned silence as Yadav poured out her grievance and cried for justice.

“AK-47 (Avtomat Kalashnikova rifle) was fired at my husband and the government has set him (the convict) free. Tomorrow, even I may get murdered. My family may be murdered. The government will be responsible for that,” said Yadav, a Samajwadi Party legislator from Prayagraj, in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Tuesday (July 30).

She recalled the protracted legal struggle for justice she had to bear for her deceased husband Jawahar Yadav alias Pandit, who was an SP MLA when he was murdered in 1996 in the posh Civil Lines area of Prayagraj, when it was still known by its more famous name Allahabad.

Having “run from pillar to post for 18 years”, she finally secured a conviction against the accused persons from court in 2019. But the Adityanath government recently ordered the premature release of one of the four convicts in the case, ex BJP MLA Uday Bhan Karwariya, an influential politician from Prayagraj.

Yadav concluded her speech by proposing that if a person convicted for her husband’s murder with a deadly weapon such as an AK-47 rifle could be set free, there were many other prisoners, serving time in less severe cases, who also deserved to be released.

A two-time former legislator, Karwariya had walked free in the Jawahar Yadav murder case last Thursday (July 25) after the Adityanath government controversially decided to cut short his life sentence. Vijama Yadav has vowed to challenge the decision in court, continuing her unending battle for justice.

BJP govt’s concerted efforts to set former MLA free

The decision to set Karwariya free, however, was not as abrupt as it seemed. Court proceedings and orders reviewed by The Wire show that before ordering Karwariya’s premature release from the Naini Central Jail through an executive order, the Adityanath government since coming to power in 2017 had made a concerted attempt to withdraw the murder case against the influential Brahmin politician.

These moves were made even though the state government’s own public prosecutor had opined that there was sufficient evidence against Karwariya to convict him, which eventually happened.

In 2019, a court in Prayagraj convicted Karwariya, his brothers Kapil Muni Karwariya (former BSP Member of Parliament 2009-14) and Suraj Bhan Karwariya (former MLC) and their relative Ram Chandra Tripathi, a former headmaster, for the murder of Jawahar Yadav.

They were sentenced to life imprisonment. Jawahar Yadav was murdered on August 13, 1996 in the busy Civil Lines market of Allahabad, when he was returning home from office. The accused persons overtook Yadav’s vehicle and intercepted it before forcing it to halt through a collision. They fired indiscriminately at Yadav’s vehicle, allegedly with sophisticated weapons. Yadav, his driver and a passer-by were killed, sending shockwaves across the state.

The matter sprung back to life on July 19 this year after the UP Prisons Administration and Reforms Services department, which falls under Adityanath, issued an order stating that Uday Bhan Karwariya could be released from jail if no other case was pending against him.

The government said that Karwariya had spent eight years, nine months and 11 days in jail till July 30, 2023. The reasons given for his release were: recommendation of the district police chief and district magistrate; his “good behaviour” in jail and the recommendation of the mercy petition committee.

The stage for letting off Karwariya had been set much earlier, soon after the BJP came to power in 2017. That year, Uday Bhan’s wife Neelam Karwariya contested election from the Meja Assembly seat in Prayagraj as a BJP candidate and won.

Five months after being elected an MLA, Neelam submitted an application to the state government on July 17, 2017 seeking the withdrawal of the case against the Karwariyas. Acting upon it, the special secretary to the state’s department of justice sought a report from the District Magistrate of Allahabad, who responded by saying that it would not be appropriate to withdraw the accused persons from the prosecution considering the “seriousness of the matter” and the “evidence available.”

On May 31, 2017, the DM conveyed this to the principal secretary of the department of justice.

The DM sought a detailed report from the special public prosecutor conducting the trial against the Karwariyas and the Senior Superintendent of Police Allahabad.

The public prosecutor submitted a report concluding that there was no merit to withdraw the accused persons from the prosecution. The public prosecutor’s report noted that the evidence on record were quite sufficient to convict the accused persons. This reasoning was accepted and adopted by the district police chief of Allahabad.

That’s not where it ended. The state government’s department of justice on January 16, 2018, directed the DM to remit a copy of the “medical report” of the accused. The department also sought the case diary related to the investigation, which were sent to it on September 20, 2018. The department made another demand, seeking copies of the statements recorded during the course of trial. This was also provided by the DM on September 28, 2018.

Armed with these documents, the state government sought the opinion of the state advocate general, who on October 24, 2018 submitted a written opinion saying that there was a valid reason to withdraw the case and that it could be done as per provisions of Section 321 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

Uday Bhan upon his release from jail. Source: Shared by social media pages run by his supporters.

The state government examined the matter following which the Governor granted sanction for presenting an application for withdrawing the accused persons from prosecution. The decision was communicated to the DM on November 1, 2018 through a government order and wasting no time, within 24 hours, the DM asked the public prosecutor to move an application for withdrawal from prosecution.

On November 3, 2018, the public prosecutor filed an application in court for withdrawal, arguing that it would serve public interest and interest of justice.

Court had said U-turn of public prosecutor was not in good faith

In a U-turn from his earlier report, this time the public prosecutor argued that there “appears no sufficient ground for punishment” and the Karwariyas appear to have been falsely implicated due to political rivalry. The Prayagraj additional sessions court on December 10, 2018, however, rejected this application, concluding that it was neither in public interest nor in good faith.

Uday Bhan filed an application from jail challenging the court’s order. The Adityanath government, too, filed a revision petition against the order. The Allahabad High court on July 19, 2019 rejected both the pleas and upheld the lower court’s order. This was a big setback for Uday Bhan as well as the Adityanath government.

In his judgment, then Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court Govind Mathur took note of the “hurried somersault in change of opinion” of the public prosecutor, who had in December 2017, after examining the evidence concluded that there was sufficient evidence to record conviction, but “changed his view immediately after receiving the instructions” from the government.

The CJ doubted if the public prosecutor had “acted in good faith.” The HC ruled that the government’s decision to withdraw the case was not in good faith and did not serve public interest or policy. The court also remarked that “political interference” in the withdrawal from prosecution could not be denied.

Three-and-a-half months after the HC’s decision, a special court convicted the Karwariyas on November 4, 2019. In May 2023, the Allahabad High Court rejected the bail pleas of the Karwariya brothers filed as criminal appeal. A Division Bench of Justices Salil Kumar Rai and Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal said their case was not fit for bail considering the “gravity of the offence” and “evidence on record.”

Jawahar Yadav was elected an MLA in 1993 from Jhusi in Allahabad. His murder three years later forced his widow Vijama Yadav, then only 26, to embrace electoral politics. She went on to be elected as an MLA four times, the recent being in 2022 when she won from Pratappur. Her legal battle to get the Karwariyas convicted was long and difficult.

A month after the murder, the investigation was transferred to the Crime Branch (CID) on the letter of Allahabad MP from BJP Murli Manohar Joshi.

Convicted former MLA receives rousing welcome upon premature release

Within three weeks, the investigation was transferred again, to the Crime Branch Varanasi and then to the Crime Branch Lucknow in June 2002. The CB Lucknow completed the investigation in January 2004, almost eight years after the murder. In 2008, when the Bahujan Samaj Party government was in power, Kapil Muni Karwariya filed an application in court for further investigation. The state government in November 2008 ordered for further investigation by CB Allahabad. This was completed by October, 2009.

Meanwhile, the accused persons had filed a petition in the HC in 2004 challenging the chargesheet filed in case. A single bench completed the hearing on August 16, 2005 but reserved the judgment. The bench also stayed further proceedings in the criminal case.

While rejecting Uday Bhan’s application in 2019, CJ Mathur noted that it was “unfortunate” that the judgment in the case was not delivered by the judge for a period of more than two years and that the judge ultimately demitted the office on attaining the age of superannuation on September 30, 2007 without delivering the judgment.

The interim order of August 16, 2005 remained applicable as the matter was not brought to the notice of the then Chief Justice and no progress took place in the matter.

“The entire case would have not seen dais of the Court,” if Vijama Yadav had not approached the Supreme Court through a writ petition in 2014, noted CJ Mathur. Her petition was disposed on January 5, 2015 with the SC requesting the Chief Justice of the HC to look into the matter and dispose of the case within three months. The trial could truly start only after this.

Upon his release, Uday Bhan received a roaring welcome from his supporters and speculation is already rife on what kind of a political impact his release would have. He was elected as BJP MLA twice from the Bara constituency, in 2002 and 2007. In 2012, he contested from Allahabad North but lost. In 2022, his wife Neelam lost her election. His brothers continue to be in jail, for now.

New Delhi Is Witnessing the Theatre of the Absurd

Buildings collapse at regular intervals, electric wires are hanging dangerously in most parts of old Delhi, encroachments in lanes make even walking impossible and young and old are often run over by two-wheelers in the national capital.

Act I, Scene 1: Students preparing for one of the most prestigious exams in India die of electrocution or drowning. Water floods into dungeons that function as libraries and have no escape outlet. Pumps to drain out water barely function, fire services seem helpless. Residents run around bewildered.

Scene 2: Students begin to protest; local politicians sit and plan their blame game. Each party must blame the other. It does not matter which party is in power today. Each of them has been in power over the years. It’s forgotten that a city of 40 lakh people, 50 years ago, has grown to around 3 crores people now. The objective is to embarrass the other party and take political advantage of the crises. After all, the local state assembly elections are just a year away. They must be won at any cost. Therefore, let’s plan protests, decide all. The ruling party will protest against the Lieutenant Governor (LG) who is a symbol of the Union government. The main opposition will protest against the apathy of the elected government. Its laziness, apathy, lack of control over officers must be exposed. As discussions end, the politicians retire to the comforts of their air-conditioned homes for a tough next day.

Scene 3: Senior civil servants go into a huddle. They need to prepare for harsh questioning by the LG, the press and politicians baying for their blood. Replies are quickly prepared, after all these officers are well trained to prepare replies to even the toughest of questions for Parliament and Assemblies. The standard reply to most parliament or assembly questions, “question does not arise”, will not work here. There is a need to show desilting work has been done diligently. Some sewers may have escaped attention and these are the ones that caused the back flow that impacted the whole of Delhi. To supplement replies, it is decided to suspend a few technical/supervisory staff. This will demonstrate the will to act. How does it matter, says one, that these chaps will be reinstated after a few months. It’s the perception that we mean business that matters.

Scene 4: A minister (Delhi does not know which minister is in charge of this situation) announces a committee to investigate the whole affair. It’s a different matter that just a few days back ministers were circulating videos of senior officers not amenable to their “humble request” to accompany them for inspecting some areas with complaints of water logging. But it’s the announcement that matters after all.

In another part of the stage the LG sets up another committee. It’s the officers themselves who will make the Terms of Reference (TOR). To them it is clear – the TOR shall be so framed that senior officers are protected. Let the blame go at the level of executive engineers or equivalent administrative staff. Suspend a few. Some heads must roll. Perceptions matter.

Scene 5: Delhi police cannot be left behind. But there is no crime, theft or murder. However, they must demonstrate action, say senior officers. They swing into action and arrest a driver who drove through the flooded street and claim his drive pushed the waters that broke the gates of the coaching centre that got flooded. The suggestion receives due applause from senior officers as the matter is taken to court. The judge takes a serious view and denies bail to the hassled driver. Neither the driver, his wife, nor his lawyer know the nature of this most unique crime of driving through a flooded street. No one thought that the whole of Delhi, including its VIP areas, were in a similar state and therefore all cars must stop moving till the waters recede.

Scene 6: The elected chief minister sits despondent in jail. His lawyers have struggled to get him bail. The investigating authorities, convinced of his involvement in corruption, fight tooth and nail to prevent bail. He is sick. His party men claim his condition is deteriorating. The jail doctors deny this. The chief minister insists on staying in his chair despite knowing that functionality from within jail is not possible. It’s now a battle of wits and stamina between him, the investigating agencies and the judges. All three sit in different parts of the stage and discuss this situation.

The curtains fall in a scene of laughter – all dramatis personae are happy! Enquiries have been ordered, politicians have demonstrated, police have pleased one and all by firing water cannons on protestors of all parties. After all, there is an abundance of water in Delhi. There is laughter and bonhomie.

The End

Here lies the crux of the problem. In the capital of India are a multiplicity of authorities – the LG’s office, the chief minister and his cabinet, and the three distinct municipal corporations. Article 239 of the Constitution deals with the Union territories. It makes clear that the administration of every Union territory shall be administered by the President acting through an administrator appointed by him. In Delhi, the responsibility for public order, police and land rests with the LG. All other subjects are with the elected government, except the management of civil services. The Supreme Court has referred the latter issue to a larger bench.

The arrangements worked reasonably well until chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, fresh from his “andolan”, challenged these established conventions. This piece is not on the disputes between his government and other agencies. The question is, how to address the maladministration and confusion that exists in administering Delhi.

The most salient issue is the question of rampant corruption in the municipal corporations. Firstly, they should never have been divided into three. Barring the South Municipal Corporation, neither of the other two – North and East – are financially viable. In the latter two, staff are irregularly paid. Centred around disgust at not being paid regularly, there is gross maladministration and massive corruption. No work is done without monies being passed to dealing staff. In view of this, it’s hardly surprising that sewers are not cleaned, storm drains cannot be reached, because there are encroachments on them, and staff are paid off for every illegal act that takes place.

The unregulated coaching industry is only a symbol of all that is around. Buildings collapse at regular intervals, electric wires are hanging dangerously in most parts of old Delhi, encroachments in lanes make even walking impossible and young and old are often run over by two-wheelers.

Delhi had its first LG in 1966. At the time, the population of Delhi was under 30 lakhs – one tenth of the population today. Since the 1970s, there has been debate whether Delhi should remain a Union territory or if it should be given the status of a full state. In 1989, the Balakrishnan Committee submitted its report that Delhi should continue as a Union territory but be provided by a Legislative Assembly with appropriate powers to deal with matters of concern to the common man. In 1990, the population of Delhi was under 1 crore. The administrative arrangements worked, with minor hiccups, till the Kejriwal phenomenon challenged the system and demanded greater powers for the elected government. Kejriwal left no stone unturned to prove that the existing system was not working and demanded change.

Thus, the question today is whether, given its complex administrative structure, rapidly growing population, and the expectations of its residents, it is not time to reassess the existing systems and Constitutional provisions. It is not my case to say that the system demands a change but one can certainly say that the system needs a relook.

New Delhi, as the capital, cannot be left to flounder under questions raised on the effectiveness of the existing systems. It is perhaps time for the Union government to once again set up a committee of seasoned experts and examine the matter holistically to suggest remedial measures.

Najeeb Jung is a former civil servant and LG of Delhi.

Wayanad Landslides: Death Toll Over 170, Expected to Increase as Search Efforts Progress

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has chaired an ‘all-party meeting’ in Wayanad to assess the situation.

New Delhi: The official death toll of the Wayanad landslides has increased to over 170 and is expected to rise further as the army finishes building a steel bridge that will speed up search and rescue efforts in the affected area, Reuters reported.

The news agency cited authorities as saying that 178 people were confirmed dead and that 190 were still missing as of Thursday (August 1) morning.

Mohsen Shahedi, a deputy inspector general in the National Disaster Response Force, told ANI on Thursday that over 200 people had died of the landslides and more than 200 others were injured.

Some unconfirmed figures say the death toll is well over 200.

Authorities told Reuters that nearly 1,600 people were rescued over the last two days, and PTI cites officials as saying that 221 people in total from the disaster-hit areas were admitted to hospital.

Heavy rain triggered a series of landslides in Kerala’s Wayanad district in the early hours of Tuesday, causing the devastation of places surrounding the Mundakkai area.

Following the landslides, homes were destroyed, roads collapsed and vehicles were swept away, with some being sighted hanging from tree trunks.

The army is building a ‘Bailey bridge’, a kind of prefabricated bridge used by military engineering units, to connect Mundakkai with the nearby area of Chooralmala.

A bridge under completion in the affected area. Photo: X/@IASouthern.

This bridge will be used to ferry heavy machinery to Mundakkai that will speed up rescue operations. Some reports indicate it has been completed as of the early afternoon on Thursday.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan chaired an ‘all-party meeting’ on Thursday in Wayanad to assess the situation.

Vijayan and Union home minister Amit Shah have disagreed over whether the Kerala government was warned in advance of the possibility that the landslides could occur.

Ecologist Madhav Gadgil told The Hindu that the disaster in was ‘man-made’ and faulted the Kerala government for disregarding the recommendations of an official ecological committee’s report that had designated the affected areas as highly sensitive.

“No development should have taken place in these highly sensitive areas,” Gadgil was quoted as saying.

Former Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi is in Kerala and is scheduled to visit relief camps in the district on Thursday, Congress party sources told PTI.

He is accompanied by his sister Priyanka Gandhi, who will contest the by-election in Wayanad necessitated by Rahul Gandhi’s decision to represent his family bastion of Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh instead of Wayanad following the general election.

Food for Thought: In the Era of Biryani, UP’s Name Plate Diktat More Discriminatory Against Scheduled Castes

Sadly, what Adityanath perhaps forgot is that Uttar Pradesh has a 21.3% Scheduled Caste population, with whom many Hindus belonging to other castes still do not share food, especially during religious occasions.

The non-vegetarian-vegetarian ratio of approximately 80%:20% may not sound pleasant to the ears of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath, yet according to the National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-2021) 83.4% Indian men and 70.6% women in the age group of 15 and 49 eat non-veg food daily, weekly or occasionally.

During the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, Adityanath publicly proclaimed that the electoral battle in his state was between 80% versus 20%, hinting at 19.3% Muslim population who may not vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) while the rest about 80% are Hindus who will definitely throw their lot behind the saffron outfit.

Sadly, what he perhaps forgot is that Uttar Pradesh has a 21.3% Scheduled Caste population, with whom many Hindus belonging to other castes still do not share food, especially during religious occasions.

Counter-productive move

If food habit of Hindus is the reason behind Uttar Pradesh government’s diktat to shopkeepers to put up name plates during the Kanwar Yatra, the latest NFHS data exposed the ground reality about vegetarianism in India. Since about 80% of the total population of India is non-vegetarian the Uttar Pradesh government’s order on name plates outside eateries, restaurants, dhabas and even fruit and vegetable stalls or ‘thelas’ is not going to work — actually it may prove counter-productive.

So, apart from a few days of the monsoon month of Sawan an overwhelming percentage of these Kanwariyas are non-vegetarian on regular days. The order to put up name-plates — now withdrawn after the Supreme Court’s interim order — will in a way work as an advertisement for the Muslim-owned restaurants or shops. Surprisingly, mechanics and barbers too have been asked to display their names.

Also read: Satvik vs Halal: Exclusion Served with a Side of Communal Politics

As most of the biryani, kabab and chicken outlets as well as poultry and mutton shops are usually owned by Muslims, now the Hindu customers, who love to eat or buy them, would not face much difficulty in identifying the business establishment owned by the minority community.

There is a general trend among Hindus — even those living in cow-belt states — of preferring Muslim-owned joints if they want to eat non-vegetarian food. It is widely known that male members enjoy more freedom in this regard.

The champions of vegetarianism must first examine why the percentage of non-vegetarians is rising even in the BJP stronghold of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. At an all India level, the proportion of men aged 15-49 years who have never consumed non-vegetarian food decreased from 21.6% in 2015-16 (pervious round of the survey, NFHS-4) to 16.6% in 2019-21, a 5-percentage-point drop. The non-veg eaters in Gujarat increased by at least seven percentage points, the survey data suggest.

Male members of even those social groups who had in the past never taken non-vegetarian food are now taking them.

Mid-day meal

In some states, for example Jharkhand recently, child right activists had launched movement demanding that eggs be given to school children in the mid-day meals. Their argument is that since children of economically weaker sections of the society go to these schools and are not healthy, they should be given eggs.

In contrast, several BJP ruled states had earlier stopped this practice. A few years back Gujarat had even regulated the display of non-vegetarian food items in shops and outlets.

The Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh as well as other BJP governments in Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh appear to be cut off from the ground reality. They need to do thorough soul-searching before undertaking such an unpopular and discriminatory step.

Biryani revolution

Whatever may be the motive of the Adityanath government’s directive, traders from Uttar Pradesh are spreading non-vegetarian culture far and wide. As Moradabadi biryani is popular in Delhi, in particular, and north India, in general, a Muslim businessman from Tanda near Moradabad in Adityanath’s Uttar Pradesh came all the way to establish a biryani restaurant in an up-scale market in Patna. Ironically, Muslims do not form even 5% of the population in one km radius of this biryani shop.

Another owner of a biryani restaurant told this correspondent that though his shop is situated in a mixed populated locality yet an overwhelming number of customers are Hindus. They not only turn up to eat in the restaurant but order home delivery.

Also read: Holy Water, Unholy Segregation: Uttar Pradesh’s Kanwar Yatra Controversy

Biryani business has increased manifold in the last one decade or so, especially in the Hindi belt where the BJP is in power. In comparison to other fast foods, it is relatively cheap, so customers, cutting across religious lines take it for lunch too. Now, many Hindus are opening biryani joints, even in Uttar Pradesh.

Hyderabadi Biryani in South India and Kolkata Biryani in the East have long been popular among Hindus, reflecting the higher percentage of non-vegetarians in these regions compared to the Hindi heartland. Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu also have their own distinct biryani styles, catering to the diverse tastes of their non-vegetarian populations.

Similarly, the demand of Champaran Mutton is spreading fast. Most of the owners of the outlets serving this dish are Hindus. As it is cooked in earthen ‘handa’ and has its origin in Champaran in Bihar it is named so. It is also a well-known fact that many Muslims enjoy consuming vegetarian food and sweet items from Hindu restaurants and shops.

In general, while Hindus and Muslims do not hesitate buying food items from each others’ shops or outlets, what is of concern is that many customers who are considered upper caste Hindus and even some who belong to the backward caste communities are still reluctant to buy and eat food made by Dalits, or restaurant run by any individual belonging to the Scheduled Caste community. This wall is collapsing, but very slowly in the rural hinterland, especially of North and West India.

Soroor Ahmed is a Patna-based freelance journalist.