The Wire
The song is about Naveen Kumar’s rocky journey from infection to recovery and the stigma that he and his family had to face.
All four members of Naveen Kumar’s family tested positive for COVID-19 a couple of months ago. He wrote a rap song about his rocky journey from infection to recovery.
A ‘Mumbai Mirror’ report notes that the hospital delayed in referring the case to the anti-ragging committee.
With Payal Tadvi’s suicide still fresh in collective memory, Mumbai Mirror has reported that a fresh case rife with charges of ragging and counter-ragging has risen out of the same hospital.
The report notes that while authorities at Mumbai’s BYL Nair Hospital are yet to determine ‘who is wrong’, there has been sufficient delay in the steps they should have taken when news first arrived of the alleged ragging.
A senior doctor, Reshma Bangar, reportedly locked herself up in her room on September 12 after having been accused of ragging by first-year post-graduate student doctor, Sadiya Shaikh Tadvi.
Reshma’s actions, reported the paper, sparked panic in the hospital, but she could eventually be convinced to come out. The head of the ENT department, to which both doctors belong, however, only referred to the hospital’s anti-ragging committee on September 17, a full five days later.
When Payal Tadvi’s mother Abeda had gone to collect her belongings from her quarters, late in September, The Wire‘s Sukanya Shantha had accompanied them and noted in her article the new presence of big posters across each floor, announcing that ragging is a punishable offence.
A senior doctor also told her that an anti-ragging committee met every month in the aftermath of Payal’s death. But Payal’s husband Salman had maintained that these changes were too little too late.
Anti-ragging posters in the hostels of BYL Nair hospital. Image credit: The Wire
In the latest case, Reshma reportedly complained to the anti-ragging committee that Sadiya had been “rude with her”. Sadiya, on the other hand, has alleged that Reshma overburdened her and often harassed her. It was when Sadiya told Reshma that she would be lodging a complaint with seniors about her “behaviour” that the latter locked herself up, reported Mirror.
he report also quoted hospital dean Ramesh Bharmal as noting that there have been an abundance of juniors-versus-seniors complaints in the aftermath of Payal’s death. Payal had named three of her seniors in her suicide note. All three were held but are out on bail now.
While Bharmal confirmed to the paper that it was indeed a fresh ragging case the hospital was looking into, he also said “it could even be a petty fight.”
Featured image credit: Unsplash
Delhi-based Gulistan News telecast lakhs of audio, video and text messages during the continued communication blockade.
Delhi-based Gulistan News is broadcasting more than just news to Kashmir. Since August 5, the channel has telecast lakhs of audio, video and text messages of people who have not been able to connect with their families and friends due to a communication shutdown in the state.
Featured image credit: Majid Maqbool
The statement also demanded the revocation of the order to close down academic activity and called upon the university to take all steps to ensure equitable access to education.
New Delhi: Days after the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Hyderabad administration imposed a sine die closure of all academic activity on campus, students, alumni and members from across academia and civil society groups released a statement condemning the decision to shut down the university.
In the statement, the members express “anger and dismay” at the sine die closure of Tata Institute of Social Sciences Hyderabad following week-long protests from students who had been protesting against the hike in hostel fees.
The members also demanded the revocation of the order to close down academic activity and called upon the university to take all necessary steps to ensure that students from marginalised communities are able to avail the facilities of the hostels and other amenities.
The hostel fee hike had compelled many to seek shelter outside the campus.
The members express disappointment over the administration’s decision to shut down the institute instead of promoting an atmosphere of diversity and inclusivity in academic spaces.
The statement also laments the institution’s abdication of its values of social justice and responsibility of providing equitable access to education.
The full statement has been reproduced below.
Also read: TISS Hyderabad Admin Suspends All Academic Activity
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We the undersigned would like to express our anger and dismay at the sine die closure of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Hyderabad following the week-long protests from students. These are the third round of protests on the question of access and availability of hostel facilities for Dalit and tribal students. It is worrying that instead of engaging with the burning question of diversity and inclusivity in academic spaces, the TISS administration has chosen to shut down the institute. This is despite the fact that the protests were democratic and peaceful in nature.
At a time when the state is withdrawing from higher education, it is appalling that an institute which has a long and cherished history of working towards social justice has chosen to absolve itself of the responsibility of providing equitable access to education.
We demand that TISS revoke the sine die immediately, and take all steps necessary to ensure that students from marginalised communities can avail of hostels and other amenities.
Prabhat Patnaik, Professor (Retd.) Jawaharlal Nehru University
Partha Chatterjee, Professor, Columbia University, New York
Radhika Vemula , Rohith Vemula’s Mother and Social Activist
Jayati Ghosh, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Lakshmi Lingam, Professor, TISS
Vijay Prashad, Editor, LeftWord Books
K Satyanarayana Professor, English and Foreign Languages University
Uma Chakravarti, Feminist historian
Maya Pandit, Professor (Retd.), English and Foreign Languages University
Tanika Sarkar, Professor (Retd.), Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sujata Patel, National Fellow, Indian Institute of Advanced Study
Ayesha Kidwai, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Dilip Menon, Professor, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Maitrayee Chaudhuri, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Purendra Prasad, Professor, Hyderabad Central University
Supratik Chakraborty, Professor, IIT Bombay Raja Vemula, Law Student and Social Activist
Sanjay Srivastava, Professor, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi
Vikas Rawal, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
G Arunima, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Probal Dasgupta, Professor (Retd.), Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata
Y. S. Alone, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Rajat Dutta, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Bhangya Bhukya, Professor, University of Hyderabad
Archana Prasad, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Yogendra Yadav, President, Swaraj India; Former Member, University Grants Commission
Devika J., Professor, Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram
Padmaja Shaw, Professor of Journalism (Retd.), Osmania University
Madhu Sahni, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sasheej Hegde, Professor, University of Hyderabad
Surajit Mazumdar, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sanjay Palshikar, Professor, University of Hyderabad
Siladitya Sanyal, Professor, Satyajit Ray Film & TV Institute, Kolkata
Vineeta Bal, Scientist, National Institute of Immunology
Saswati Ghosh, Professor, City College, Kolkata
Deeptha Achar, Professor, Dept. Of English, MS University
Resmy. T, Professor, Government Ayurveda College, Kochi
Bela Bhatia, Independent worker, Bastar
Uma V Chandru, Anthropologist; Director, IIACD, Bangalore
Meera Sanghamitra, National Alliance of People’s Movments (NAPM)
Chirashree Das Gupta, Associate Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Rohan D’Souza, Associate Professor, Kyoto University
C Lakshmanan, Associate Professor, Madras Institute of Development Studies
Kaustav Banerjee, Associate Professor, Ambedkar University, Delhi
Mitra Mukherjee-Parikh, Associate Professor (Retd.), SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai
Nandita Narain, Associate Professor, St Stephen’s College, Delhi University
Karen Coelho, Associate Professor, Madras Institute of Development Studies
Ashley Tellis, Independent Researcher
Shilpaa Anand, Associate Professor, BITS Pilani, Hyderabad
Kalyani Menon Sen, Independent Researcher
Sowmya Dechamma, Associate Professor, University of Hyderabad
Indranil Mukhopadhyay, Associate Professor, OP Jindal University
Rashmi Pant, Associate Professor, Indraprastha College, Delhi University
Moushumi Basu, Associate Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sailaja Krishnamurti, Associate Professor, Saint Mary’s University
Maroona Murmu, Associate Professor, Jadavpur University, West Bengal
Sadhna Arya, Associate Professor, Delhi University
Satyaki Roy, Associate Professor, ISID, Delhi
Sandeep Krishna, Associate professor, National Centre for Biological Sciences, TIFR, Bangalore
MP Ganesh, Associate Professor, IIT Hyderabad
Raka Dutta, Associate Professor, Satyajit Ray Film & TV Institute, Kolkata
Bharati Jagannathan, Associate Professor, Miranda House, Delhi University
T.Brahmanandam, Associate Professor, CMDR, Karnataka
Shyamalendu Majumdar, Associate Professor, Sivanath Sastri College, Kolkata
N Lakshmana Rao , Principal (Retd.) Government Degree College, AP
Jayasree Subramanian, Visiting Faculty, Homi Bhabha Center for Science Education, Mumbai
Rohit Azad, Assistant Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Bindu KC, Assistant Professor, Ambedkar University, Delhi
Maidul Islam, Assistant Professor, CSSS, Kolkata
Kimberly Walters, Assistant Professor, California State University, Long Beach
Chandan Bose, Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad
Neena Gupta Vij, Assistant Professor, Central University of Jammu
Siddik Rabiyath, Assistant Professor, University of Kerala
Ruchira Bhattacharya, Assistant Professor, NIRD, Hyderabad
G.Vijay, Assistant Professor, University of Hyderabad
Dhananjay Rai, Assistant Professor, Central University of Gujarat
Krishanu Karmakar, Assistant Professor, OP Jindal Global University
Surajit Das, Assistant Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jhuma Sen, Assistant Professor, O.P. Jindal Global University
Aswathy Raveendran, Assistant Professor, BITS Pilani, Hyderabad
Shams Imran, Assistant Professor, MANUU, Hyderabad
Anubhav Sengupta, Faculty, Manipal Centre for Humanities, Manipal, Karnataka
Kalpana Prasad, Assistant Professor, Kalimpong College
Debabrata Pal, Assistant Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Divya Kannan, Assistant Professor, Shiv Nadar University
Neha Chatterji, Faculty, Manipal Centre for Humanities, Manipal, Karnataka
Swati Sharma, Assistant Professor, Symbiosis Ashima Sood, Fellow, Indian School of Business
Taposik Banerjee, Assistant Professor, Ambedkar University, Delhi
Avinash Kumar, Assistant Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Lavanya Suresh, Assistant Professor, BITS Pilani, Hyderabad
Ch. Satish, Assistant Professor, CSSS, Kolkata
Sachin N, Assistant Professor, Dyal Singh College, Delhi University
Ruchira Sen, Assistant Professor, O.P.Jindal Global University
Paulomi Chakraborty, Assistant Professor, IIT- Bombay
Meghana Rao, Assistant Professor, Azim Premji University
Dipti Tamang, Assistant Professor, Darjeeling Government College
Aditya Kapoor, Assistant Professor, Central University of Punjab
Debabrata Roy, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, University of Kalyani, WB
Jafar K, Assistant Professor, Madras Institute of Development Studies
Khaliq Parkar, Assistant professor, NMIMS University, Mumbai
Chapparban Sajaudeen, Assistant Professor, Central University of Gujarat
Yogitha Shetty, Assistant Professor, University of Hyderabad
P.Varalakshmi, Lecturer, Madras Institute of Technology
Debolina Biswas, Assistant Professor, Jadavpur University
Achlesh, Assistant Professor, Doon University
Nikhil Narkar, Visiting Faculty, Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts
Sushmita Pati, Faculty, Azim Premji University, Bangalore
Shrimoy Roy Chaudhury, Assistant Professor, Shiv Nadar University
Sharmistha Saha, Assistant Professor, IIT Bombay
Pankaj Kumar Soni, Assistant professor, Banaras Hindu University
Ranjak Katara, Assistant professor, Ramjas College, Delhi University
Ananya Parikh, Visiting Faculty, Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts
Khalid Khan, Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Dalit Studies
Debajit Jha, Assistant Professor, Jindal School of Governance and Public Policy
Chander Prabha, Reader, Delhi University Imalata Shrinivas Kurapati, Professor
Dr Showkat Hussain, Lecturer
Dr Shoukat, Assistant professor
Iliyas, Associate Professor
Ram Mohan, Indian School of Business
Bizeth Banerjee, Associate Professor of Mass Communication (Retd.)
Puttaraju, Associate Professor
Prof.Mohan Rao, Independent Researcher, Bangalore
Cynthia Stephen, Independent journalist/social policy researcher
Akhileshwari Ramagoud, Journalist and Academic
Malini Chakravarty, Economist
Anmol Somanchi, IIM Ahmedabad
Maya K Rao, Theatre Artist
Samina Mishra, Independent Filmmaker, Writer and Teacher
Tanya Jha, Journalist, The Wire
Rajorshi Das, Researcher and poet
Kavitha Lankesh, Film Director
Nakul Singh Sawhney, Filmmaker
Pinjra Tod
Satyavrat KK, Writer
Seshu Korlapati, Poet
Abdul Rahman People’s Dispatch
Divya Kalathingal, PhD scholar, TISS, Mumbai
Sukriti Shukla, PhD
Indira KS, Doctor
N Sai Balaji, JNUSU President
Alokananda Bisoyi, Alumnus, TISS Hyderabad Thiemneihzo, Student
Lal, Ph.D
SABU KT, Research Scholar, IIT Bombay
Sita Mamidipudi, PhD Student, UCLA
Ambika Tandon, Researcher
Asika v m, Student
Supriya Varma, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sujatha Surepally, Satavahana University
Fahad Ahmad, PHD Scholar, former Genereal Secretary TISS Studnets Union
Jit Hazarika, President TISS SU 2018-19
Kawalpreet Kaur, Student leader, University of Delhi.
Zajano Z.zyanthan, TISS
Emmanuel
Karishma Shaik, Student
Azra
Pravalika Sabbavarapu, Student
Archanna Prasad, Student
Swali prakash, Student activist
Sathi, Student
Gautham, Student of TISS
Sahil Kureshi, DPhil, University of Oxford
Naveen Sridhar K, M.A.Development Studies 2015-17
Bhavya Kumar, Research Scholar
Shefali, PhD 2nd Year, TISS Mumbai
Afreen Ashraf, Student
Sruthi P K, Student
Aryaman Jain, NAPM
Arfa Anis, Research Fellow
Aditi Mishra, PhD Scholar, TISS Mumbai
Abid Faheem, M.Phil/PhD from JNU (2018-24), M.A Social Work, Tiss Mumbai 2015-17
Dr B Karthik Navayan, Advocate
Shubholaxmi, Student
Prachi Prabhu, PhD Scholar
Vivekanandhan, Student
Alpha Toppo, Alumni TISS
Mukesh Kulriya, PhD, University of California Los Angeles
Anantika Mehra, Consultant, CPS IIT Bombay Prabir KC, Doctor/ Independent
Komal Mohite, Jawaharlal Nehru University Prerna Mishra, Alumni tiss mumbai
Tashi Choedup, Human Rights activist
Surbhi Shrivastava, Independent Researcher
Chayanika Shah, Queer Feminist Teacher, Researcher, Activist
Anu Mahesh
Sharanya Koraput
Rida Sadaqat, TISS Mumbai student
Usha Rani Budumuru, Project Executive at Dr Reddys foundation
Aruna Santha Ravikumar, Entrepreneur
Afreen Fatima, President, Women’s College Students’ Union, Aligarh Muslim University, 2018-2019
Jagdish Patel
K. Sajaya, Independent journalist and social activist
Konkana Das, Student
Krishna Shree, Student
Mrigakshi Das, Student
Natasha S.K.
Sumpymoni Saikia, Student
Karuna Nath, Student
Tarique Alam, Student
Dikshita Baruah, Student
Ankita Baruah, Teacher
Abhinav Dutta, TISS Alumnus
Nausheen Ashraf, Student
Angshuman Saikia, Student
Mohd Junaid, MSW 2nd year
Najwa Abdul Rasheed, TISS, Mumbai
Jyotishmita Das, Teacher
Sanjukta Poddar, Phd Candidate, University of Chicago
Hannah Johns, Ph.D Research Scholar
S. Ashalatha, Social Activist, Hyderabad
Surendra Ram
Avadh Bihari, Research Scholar
Sajid, MSW student
Bhuvana R, TISS Mumbai Alumni
Shreya Dixit, MPhil PhD student, TISS Mumbai
Abha Jeurkar, TISS Hyderabad PhD student
Utpal Alumni
Niraj Lakra, Jaga Fellow
Sujata Madhok, Journalist, New Delhi
Smriti Sangam, Ex-Student, TISS Hyderabad
Baldev Parmar, Alumni
Shreya Sarkar, Program Associate
Maaz Razi, TISS Mumbai Social Work Student
Ramanek Kumar
Bhargavi
Supreeth Ravish Student, TISS Mumbai
Srimoyee Neogi, Student
Rituja Mandal, Alma Mater of TISS Hyderabad
Neel Madhav, Student
Abha, Women’s Rights activist
Chand,MA Development Studies 2017 – 19, TISS Mumbai
Amit Kumar, Member, National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) and, Alumnus of TISS, Guwahati
Noor Ameena, Research Fellow
Sonu, Alumni
Misba, Student
Priyadarshi Shrivastava, Consultant
Joel Thomas Mathews, Student, TISS Hyderabad
Mohammad Arfeen, Student-TISS
Prashastika, Independet scholar
Nivruti, Research scholar
Shani S S, TISS
Mohammad Arfeen, Student
Mrittika Biswas, Student
Ankit Pareek, Media and Cultural Studies (TISS Mumbai) Class of 2019
Radhika Desai, Gender and Development Scholar
Abhay Shukla, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan
Darshana, Member, People’s Union for Civil Liberties
Yamini, Alumni
Jyoti Prasad Bori, Alumni
Chinar Mehta
Abhilash, Alumni
Aroh Akunth, Cultural Secretary TISS SU 2018- 19
Dev Krishnan, SFI
Priyanka, Research Scholar
Rachel A Varghese, Research Officer, KCHR
Satarupa Chakraborty, Former General Secretary, JNUSU
Deeksha Pandey, Student, M.Phil (Public Health), 2018-20
Shivangi, Student
Debarati Choudhury, MA PPG 1st year
Trupti Pani, Student
Debjani Bhattacharyya, Drexel University
Hari Raghunath, MA social work(CODP -2017- 19)
Princy, Tiss mumbai alumnus
Vihaan, Social worker (TISS Alumina)
Eshan Fotedar, Research Associate
Aniket Alumni, MASW (2016-18)
Pradnya Pawaskar, Student
Yaniam Student
Shruti Chakravarty, TISS Mumbai
Pooja Nair, TISS, Mumbai
Laxmi Murthy, Alumnus, TISS Bombay
Abir Dasgupta, Journalist
Anjali Chauhan, Ex- TISS student
Urvashi Chudawala, Student, TISS Mumbai
Diana Thomas, TISS Mumbai, Batch of 2019
Prakash Piaprotar
Srushti MA PPG 1st Year
Ravi, Student
Abhishek kumar, Ex student 2013-15 dtsa
Dhananjay K, TISS Alumnus
Rahul Raja, Senior Research Assistant/PHFI Pradnya Dhote, TISS Alumnus
Karuna Dhote, TISS Alumnus
Vidur Shresth, Ex Student TISS Mumbai
Neha Gupta, Student
Rongsenben Longkumer, Alumnus TISS MUMBAI
Ambadi B, Student , Tata Institute of Social Sciences , Mumbai
Anuja Kadam, Student
Ashirwad Wakade, TISS Mumbai Alumni
Harleen kaur, Student
Manideep Kumar Myakala, MA(PPG)
Sheena, Student
Anirudh Agarwal, TISS MA Education Alumnus
Satyaki Ganguly, Alumnus
Mandakini, Advocate, Hyderabad
Bakkaiah
Soumya tiwari, Student – TISS Mumbai
Khan Sumaiya Ikramuddin, Student at Tiss Mumbai
Ayushi, Alumnus, TISS
Kunal, Alumnus
Sadique PK, PhD Scholar EFLU
Meghna, Student, TISS BA2
Shashi
Pabitra Saha, Former student of tiss, Mumbai Almas Saeed
Nani Mamung, Ma (HRM)
Elizabeth Alexander, TISS Hyderabad Alumnus
Saqib, TISS
Joe Thomas
Shreyash Kashyap, Student
Apurv Vivek, Student TISS Tuljapur
Divya GS, PhD Scholar, TISS, Mumbai
Tanushree Joshi, Student (M.A.)
Rossi DSouza, PhD Student, HBCSE-TIFR Vidyadhar Gadgil, Goa
Lakhindar Soren, student
Smriti Nevatia, Film Curator and Teacher ( freelance)
Satyam Singh, Alumni / Tuljapur Campus Vidya, Student
Mariette Correa, Ex- faculty, TISS Guwahati Sankar ganesh, BA-SS 1 YEAR TULJAPUR.
Aamir Subhnai, Lawyer
Anjali P Student, TISS Tuljapur
Nisarga Student, Climate change and Sustainability studies, Mumbai
Dorothy mutemi, TISS Alumni
Pragya Solanki, Alumna, TISS Mumbai
Ashly
Subhajit, Student
Aleesha Sooraj, Alumni (B.A.S.S 2016-19) Ridhima Sharma, PhD Scholar, JNU, New Delhi
Sinu Bharadwaj
Vivek Dsouza, Student affiliated to the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) and the University of Mumbai
Paaritosh Nath, Research Fellow, APU
Deepak, Student
Areeb Rizvi, Independent Researcher
Janisar A M Sheikh, Research Associate / Earth Science, IIT Bombay
Gazala Parveen
SURBHI SRIVASTAVA, Alumni
Nikhila Alumni
Urmi Basu ( Alumnus 1986 ), Founder Trustee – New Light
Mihika Chanchani, Research Fellow, Karwan E Mohabbat
Tashi Mitra, Dream A Dream
Aparna Eswaran, Independent Researcher
Ekata Lahiri, TISS Hyderabad BASS alumna (2016-2019)
Preema John, Curator
Dr.Mahesh Kumar, Senior Consultant ortho Surgeon
Amol, Student
Harender Happy, Foundation For Ecological Security
Tarjani, Doctor
Sarika Moon, Phd scholar
Fathima TISS Alumi,Batch 2016-18
Mohit Kumar, Designation
Swapnil shambharkar, Management professional
Muhammmed Jahfer K, Tiss alumni
Pallavi Pratibha, Alumni, TISS, Hyderabad.
Bhavana Das, Alumni
Nitin Varghese, Alumni, TISS
Karishma Shaik, Student of MA DS 2
Jitu Nayak, BM, CARE BIHAR
Manjulata Hansdah, Education Specialist, Bangalore
Debarati Mondal, M.A. RDG 2nd Year
Pallavi Krishnappa, Researcher
Vidit, AUD
Abdul Basith, Student, MA NRG 2, TISS Hyd
Anomitra Biswas, Research Scholar, EFLU Hyderabad
Arunima Shandilya, M.A. 2nd Year, Natural Resources and Governance
abhinand, student
M Shimron Rao MA-NRG 2
Pithona Das, MA RDG (2nd Year)
Hasina khan, Researcher
ANAND KUMAR JAGDISH
Hasina khan, Women group
Kirti Koushika, TISS Hyderabad Alumni (BA in Social Sciences)
Hafis Mohammed, Alumni
Pallavi Kumari, B.A in Social work
Partik Kumar
Tamogni Das, PhD Scholar
Monika Pareek, Foreign Research Contractor – Florida State University
Raju Ranjan Chaudhary, B.A in social work
Deepika Shelar
Varsha Priyadarshini, Alumni B.A.S.S (2016-19)
ADITI, Alumnus
Surya R Alumni (TISS, Hyd)
Rakshita shri, Student
Kaveri Researcher, Bangalore
Vinathi, Alumni
Pooja Nair, Student
Sowmya Vinjamuri, TISS alumnus
Rajeswari, Student
Namrata Pal, TISS Alumnus
Arya Nagar, Student, University of Delhi Deeshna, Employee
Shaivi Kulshrestha, Master’s student at TISS, Mumbai
Santosh Sharma
Shruthi, Student
Shiva Prasad N, Student
Shivaraj
Rahul Wakode, Student Masters
Samiya, MSW
Diya, Student
Angel Maria, Student
Rishav Ranjan, Member National Cabinet, Youth For Swaraj
Sangeetha S, Student
Shinjinee Mishra, MAWS, 2016-2018
Vivek kumar, Activist
Razin, Alumni
Farhatullah Beig, Film maket/communication professional
Poulomi Sen, MA Social Work in Mental Health, 2nd Year, TISS-BALM (Chennai)
Sanghamitra Dixit, Student
Priyanka Vasudevan, Educational specialist
Joshibanta, Student (TISS Hyderabad)
Gena, Student
Shreya Banerjee, Alumni, TISS Hyderabad
Chinmay Patil, Alumni of TISS Hyderabad
Onkar Gharat, CM Rural development fellow, Maharashtra
Vaishali Kashyap
Pallavi R, Student of TISS BALM
Anjali, Student
Vijay jandiala, Research scholar
Naina, Former student (2019, ma ppg)
Blaze, Student
Shreya Rangarajan, Alumini, TISS Hyderabad
Lavanya Kaushal, Student, TISS-BALM
Laavanya Tamang, Student at Delhi School of Economics
Noyonika Gupta , Student, TISS-BALM
Shagun gupta, Student in tiss-balm
Pavan D Anil , Alumnus of Tiss Tuljapur
Nihal Ranjit
Sherin S Das, Researcher
Tanvi, Student, BALM Chennai
Sehrish, BALM-TISS
Paul George, Alumni
Bhanu rathore, Student
Rik Banerjee, Student
Shivanyaa Rawat
Ramitha Ramesh, Student at Balm Jasmin, TISS chennai
Akanksha Singh, M.A Applied psychology
Harshita Sakhamuri
Tanvi, MA in Social Work, TISS Mumbai
Kavya Ramchandran, Student
Vijay Ram S, Alumni TISS Hyderabad
Timothy Lalhnaihzela, Student, TISS Balm Anjali, Student
Raashi, Student
Abhishek Acharyya, TISS 2016 Alumni
Abhiranjan Kumar, Teacher
Ranjana C A, MA clinical PsychologyTiss BALM
Smriti Rashmi Parhi, Alumuni
Reethu Philomina, TISS hyderabad alumni, 2017 batch
Ankit Toshniwal, Nrg 2016- 2018
Anuradha Talwar, Ex TISSian, 1979-81 batch, Paschim Banga Khet Majoor Samity
Akanksha Nair, MA RDG 2016-18
Ankita Student, M.A. in Social Work in Dalit and Tribal Studies and Action, TISS, Mumbai
Abhijith N P, Alumni
Noor Malik, 2nd year student – TISS-BALM Ramkumar, PhD
Tanya Dhingra, Student
Anushka Nagpal, MA social work, second year
Niya Fathima, Tiss Chennai
Inayat Singh Kakar, Independent researcher Gitanjali, M.A. Social Work in Mental Health, TISS
Naziya, Student.BALM,TISS.
Natta Habravysh, SAC member, BA 3rd year, TISS Hyderabad
David solomon, Social worker
Kripa, Student
Sneha S Najeeb,BA 3rd year, TISS Hyderabad
Sanghamitra Malik, Singer/Activist
ANGAD KHOSLA, BM care india
Udita Singh, Tiss chennai campus MA first year clinical psychology
Niyas Ahamed, Research Scholar
Rashika, Student at University of Delhi
T.Bosu Babu, Advocate at Vizag District Bar Association
Anjana Ajith, Student
Irene, Student
K. Sivachandiran, Radical Students Forum Janine Almeida
Manish Meena, Student
Jai Vipra, Public policy professional
Tina Borah, Student. DU
Arkja, Student
Sanchita, Student
Ayan Pal, Software developer, Tech Mahindra
Neville Thomas, Student
Debika, TISS Alumni
Parvathy J, Alumnus, TISS Hyderabad
Nishtha, Student at TISS Chennai centre
Shaunak phadnis, Student
B Kinnera Murthy, independent Director Kamayani swami
Sumithra, Student/University of Delhi Himjyoti, Student
Aziz Minat, A concerned citizen
Nikhil, Student
Jothi SJ
Tejendra Kumar Meena
Kaushal Bhaav, Jaipur
Jothi SJ,West Bengal
Neema Thomas, Student
Jyoti Bania, PhD Student
Sidharth A, BA 5th Semester
Sanjana, BALM student of social work mental health
Nikhil, Student
Shivaang Upadhyay, Photojournalist
Tharun Bathini, Alumni (SPPG 2019)
Aninjit Pakhale, student, st xaviers college Mumbai
Aditya Naik, Freelance Android developer
Akash, MA Student
Ashoka Sabar, Project Coordinator
Shabas fathima, Student
Sonal, Tiss hyd alumna
Azam Khan, Business man
Alok Reon Baiju, BA 3rd Year student
Simrin Bains Chhachhi, Student, MSW Livelihoods and Social Entrepreneurship, TISS Mumbai
Shyam bahadur, Tiss alumni 2017 -19 Mumbai campus
MUHAMMAD ANSHAD V P, Student
Kunal kathuria, Student at tiss
Aanchal Chittalipi, MA Development Studies ’18
Aila Bandagi, Lamakaan
Avelin K. Abraham, student
Shamnah, Doctor, MHA
Apeksha Priyadarshini, Bhagat Singh Ambedkar Students Organization
Ekeko, T<
Reshmi nair, Student
Soumashree Sen, Student, Alumni BSW TISS Tuljapur
Xavier Dias, Former editor Khan Kaneej aur ADHIKAR
Azhagesan S, Student
Gitanjaly Sabu, Student
Jean Manners, MSW BALM-TISS
Sabu C T, Parent
Neha Mishra, Newsclick.in
Aditya, Policy Adviser to Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha.
Narendrayash Das, Lead Operations – Varitra Foundation
Ravi Oza, ALUMNI TISS TULJAPUR
Parvathy P, Student
Peter Jones, Student
Mahathi, Policy associate
G Peter Jones, Student
Galliapally Srishailam, P.hD Research scholar
Amrapali Mondal, MA in Social Work (2013- 2015)
Gayatri,Alumni
Amit kumar mahto, Project executive
Aparna, Student
Leanne Jacob, Student
Adhiraj Nayar, Student – Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Divya Kiran, Graduate, EFLU
Parvathy V Nair
Liya Thomas
kabi s, PUCL
Jova Rachel Joseph, MA in social work (TISS- BALM)
Ashay Kapse, Student
Debdatta, ISB
Afseena V, Student
Aditi Roy Choudhury, Student; BALM TISS
Asmita, Student
Nabeel Thalakkatt, Student
Rajaneesh R B
Lydia Elizabeth Mathews, Student
Sivasankari, Bsc
Haimanti Mukhoti, Student
Naseeba, Student
Vishal U, Alumni tiss hyderabad 2013-18
Surabhi Rathore, MA Applied Counselling Psychology Student at TISS Chennai
Leos hasapurty
Basant Hetamsaria, NAPM Jharkhand
Shradha Jain, Student
Sharon Susan Koshy, Research scholar, IIT Madras
Shivangi Anand, TISS Hyd Alumna (RDG 2019)
Gaurav Dey, A concerned citizen
Sushma Gajula, masters in public policy and governance
Chiatanya, Student, HCU
Ashok Danavath, Tiss alumni
Mattewada Apoorva Siri, Btech Graduate Jerin tom, Student
Shaik nafaaz, Student
Kiran
Rajat Shinde, Student
Chandu B Prasad
Gowry M, Student (2012-2017)
Bhavya Verma, Student
Rahul kandola, MA SW CODP
Arindam Roy, Research Scholar, IIT Kharagpur
Juwairia Mehkri, Former student
Soumya Pandey, Student
Amitrajeet Mukherjee, MPhil student, Delhi University
Manshi Kumari, Student
Sarayu
Lakshmi k, School teacher
Ananya Sharma, Student
Nenavath Shobha
Nabaneeta, MA development studies 2nd year
Kareena Bordoloi, Student
Ravi Ankush, DS 2
Vinay, Student
Regina Gurung, MA DS-II
Adrija Ghosh, Student of RDG, batch 2015-17
Anand S Pillay, Student
Sukruta Alluri, CSSSC
Shraddha P., Student, TISS Mumbai
Arjun P,Student
Asya Dilsha, M. A women studies
Kashmiri
Nita Shirali
Neeta Hardikar Activist
Anussha, Student
Pritha, student
Rohan Thomas, Student
Anjali, TISS Alumni
Deepa Kumari, Alumnus
Sriparna Tamhane
Noel Coutinho, TISS 1999-2001
Rasha Lala, DS 2016
Michael Islary, PhD Research Scholar, ISEC Bangalore
Shruti Prasad, Student 2015-17 batch
Megha, Concerned Citizen
Ankita Ghosh, Development Studies, Batch 2016 Angel tyagi
Pratim Ghosal, CPS/JNU
Nikita Purty
Anindita Chakrabarty, PhD student, TISS, Mumbai
Tinu Baby, Student
Indivar Jonnalagadda, PhD Candidate, University of Pennsylvania
Madhuwanti Mitro, Tiss Alumni
Prerna Gupta, Tiss Alumna
Arjita, Student
Rahul PM, BA (H) English EFL University
Harikrishna Kolimi, Tiss Hyderabad alumini
Aoinla Pongen, Project Associate
Nithya Narayanan
Tanniya Sankhyan, Alumnus
Sania, Phd Student, IITD
Priti Sridhar, Chief Development Officer, Mariwala Health Initiative
Radhika Chakraborty, Research scholar
Sudharsan, IT Professional
Kajal, Student
Najm Mehdi, Teacher at Public School
Shrikant Gondane
Irawati SA, Urban Fellow, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS)
Apoorva, Palestine Solidarity India
Arundhati Dhuru, NAPM; former TISSIAN
Ahalya Alumna,TISSHyderabad
Moirangthem Ajoy Singh, Student (MA in PPG Batch of 2017-19)
Swarnima Bolke, PPG batch 2017-2019
Krishna, Teacher, Chennai
Devi VM, Alumnus
Supratheesh, Student at Azim Premji University
Richa Gupta, PhD scholar, CSSSC
Ronaldo Laishram, Student
Aratrika Ghosh, YP at SERP, AP
Saibal Jana, Medical officer, shaheed hospital Dallirajhara
Poorvi, Graduate Student at the University of York, UK
Akash Gusain, Student
Shreya Pandey
Juhi Arya, Alumni of TISS Hyderabad
Narayana, Student BASS -2
T Kabi Joseph, Student
Sagar Krishna
Kunjulekshmi
Pratiksha, Student
Ashwin R , Student
Pranathi Dholla, Alumini
Manish, PhD Scholar, JNU
Kripal Singh Mandloi, Khudai Khidmatgar Arjumand Ara, Student
Rohan R, Student
Piyush, Rajiv Gandhi Institute for contemporary studies
Spriha Shukla, MPhil student
Amita Arya, WCD uttar pradesh
Ankita Srivastava, Student
Ishwar Priyadarshi, Student, Delhi School of Social Work
Abhishek Kumar, Student/ Delhi School Of Social Work
Subbiah Nagappan
Abinash Dash Choudhury, Student, Jadavpur University
CJ Kuncheria, JNU
Vanshika Saigal,Student of TISS CHENNAI (BALM)
Mithun, Social worker
Priyadarshini Bhagey, M.A Social Work student,DSSW
Jansher Khan, TISS Hyderabad Alumni
Maitri Gopalakrishna, TISS Mumbai Alumna
Srabastee De Bhaumik, Social Worker
Anamitra Roy, Engineer/ LTI
Tharanjali, Student of TISS HYD
Abhinav Singh, ALS, NOIDA
Lateef Mohammed Khan, Civil liberties monitoring committee
Vaishnavi S, Student, Tiss Chennai
Pooja Narayan, Bachelor in Social Sciences – 3rd year.
Anwesha , JNU
Prem Kumar, PhD, University of Delhi
Sejal Dand, Alumnus 1989
Vaishali Janarthanan, Social worker/ TISS Alumni
Ameer Ali, MA in education
Jahnvi, Student
Lalhmangaih Hauzel, MHA 2009 – 11 batch, TISS Mumbai
Valentina Kharbuli, Student – TISS Mumbai
Arunank Latha, Advocate
Naresh Kumar Sufi, Poet, Freelance Journalist
Muhammed Suhail TC, Alumni, Development Studies 2016-18, TISS Hyderabad
Ashwani Gautam, M.A. (Social Work in Mental Health) 2nd Year
Bittu K R, Ashoka University
Varsha Poddar, Student
Simrat Sinsinwar, TISS Mumbai, Student
Amita Pitre, Independent Consultant, Public Health and Gender Justice
Sonu S Pappachan, Former students’ council executive member (2017-18) Central University of Kerala
Kritika khandelwal, 2nd year student department of social work
Smruthy V Sasidharan, TISS TULJAPUR ALUMNI
Pratyush, Research Scholar
Sanjeet, Research Scholar
Shiva, Grad Student
Shiva, Student
Jayashree Joshi Eashwar
Prachi Kardam, PhD student
Manidipa Singha, PhD Fellow, Comparative Literature, Jadavpur University
Gayathri. B, Student at TISS HYD
Siddharth, Student
Aditi Premkumar, Student
Swatija Manorama, FAOW
Meghana Reddy Chagari, Hyderabad Tiger Conservation Society
Krishan Kumar, MA Linguistics
Prabakaran A K, Student Saigopal
Vasudevan Durga N
Ajay
C Mamata, Teacher
Sriram Natarajan, Graduate Student/ Boston College
Bidisha Dasgupta, Teacher
Shamsi
Sunanda Nehru Ganju, Trustee SAHAJ, Vadodara
Naveen, Teacher
Akbar, Research Scholar, University of Hyderabad
Sai Devi S, Student
Uday
Rigobertha Prabhatha, Content writer
K.B. Shabarish, Student
Priyanka Rawat, Alumnus
Sumi Krishna, Bengaluru
S. Smrithi, Alumni, B.A. Batch of 2013-16
Mridu Kamal
Anagh, Student
Kshiraja-Rukmini, Researcher
Lara Jesani, Advocate, Bombay
Vidya Dinker, President, INSAF
Nalini Sahay, Student (M.A in Education)
Dharmendra Singh, MA. RDG 2017-19
Abhinav Kapoor, Research Scholar
Harshita Yalamarty, York University, Canada
Nupur Basu, Journalist / documentary filmmaker
Manju Shaji, Student
Sagari Ramdas, Veterinary Scientist
Nishita Toppo
Dr. Sylvia Karpagam, Public health doctor and researcher
Asha Gopinathan, Innovation Hub, KSST Museum, Trivandrum, Kerala
Soumyaparna Samanta, MA in Public Policy and Governance(2016-2018)
Christymol Philip, Student of BALM TISS
Afseena V, MA Rural Development and Governance
Sneha Annavarapu, Doctoral Candidate, university of Chicago
Alankrita, Student, IPCW
Vineetha Venugopal, TISS Alumnus 2015-17
Deepu Mahesh
Bivitha, Student
Anandi Sharan, Researcher, Bangalore
N.Arvind Karthick, Student
Manisha Joseph, Student
Duleep Menon, Footballer
Ajay Ivan, Student, EFLU
Ramsi, Student
Shalini Agarwal, IAWRT Member
T.Gokul Bharathi, Student
T.Hari Bharathi, Student
Mary Jugunu, M.A, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
Anantha narayanan, BA 1st year TISS Hyderabad
Revathy Narayan, Student, BA 2nd year
Vivekanandhan, Student
Andrew Jefferson, Consultant
Mrinalini, Legal Researcher
Veer Draveen, Alumnus, TISS Hyd
Kiran Segal
Meghana Marathe, Consultant
Gilbert Sebastian, PhD Kasaragod
Deepika Joshi, Researcher
Anusha Kaman, Student
Deepak Kumar, Program Coordinator
Aysha, Right to Food Campaign
Sweta Dash, Student, AUD
Aparna Sharma, Alumnus, TISS Hyderabad
Sarandha Jain, Doctoral Fellow, Columbia University, ex-TISS Mumbai student.
Divya S Sarathy, Social Worker
Shruti
Adrita Roy, YP
Vaishnavi, Batch of 2017-19
Renu, PhD Scholar, AUD
Pruthvee, Student
Sudeepa das, Consultant, Alumnus
Sanghmitra Chaudhary, Student, Ambedkar University Delhi
Atif Jung, Ph.D. Scholar, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Ipsita Sahu, PhD student JNU
Dr. Anant Phadke, Co-convenor, Jan and Aarogya Abhiyaan
Upasana Goswami, Alumnus
Gheshna, Program manager, Alumnus Kaniska, Student
Arjun Banerjee
Thiruppathi P
Vinay Kumar Jha, Social Worker
Bhavya, Research Scholar, TISS Mumbai
Shilpa Krishna, Research Scholar, University Of Hyderabad
Bhanu Priya, Research scholar
Sathia Chakrapani, Researcher, Alumnus, TISS HYD Class of 2018
Baindla Ravikanth, Student
O. Amrita, Student
Baljeet Kaur, Alumnus, TISS Mumbai
Meenal Rawat, Student, SPPG, Batch 2019
Vinay C. Pillai, Alumnus 2019 batch (MAPPG)
Therese Abraham, Alumnus
Anjali Noronha
Aprajita Verma, Alumna
Angira Dutta, Swachh Bharat Urban, Documentation Offs
Swapnil Thool, MA PPG 2017-19
Garima, Ambedkar University Delhi
Bahadursingh Jadav, Marketing excutive
Nikhil Meshram, Program Leader
Saakshi Sarpotdar, Student
Amar Singh, TISS mumbai
Biju chetry, Ex-student TISS Tuljapur
Shemziya Siddheeque, Post graduate in clinical psychology
Abraham Noel, Alumnus of TISS -2017-19 Neelanjana
Sarah Niazi, Doctoral Researcher, University of Westminister
Naren Bedide, Round Table
India Laxman,Social activist.
Amrita De, Social activist, Mumbai
Sundaram Sharma, Student
Beena
Sreya panda, Student
Raj Sardar, Senior Consultant EY
Vanita Leah Falcao, Policy researcher
Amar Jesani, Independent Consultant – Researcher & teacher
Poorti, TISS HYD Alumnus
Jayantilal Bagda,Alumnus
Amrita laha, Wildlife Institute of India
P. Raghavendra
Saptak Sarkar, Student
Vedant, Student
Avinash Malviya, Swaraj India member
Arjun S Unnikrishnan, Student
Rohit Patidar, Film student
Juhi, TISS Alumni
T. Sundara Vardhan, Independent Researcher, Hyderabad
Subhash Manthri, Software Test Engineer
Arshad Ahmad Khan, Student
Pratik Mishra, King’s College London
Shraddha Chickerur, PhD candidate, University of Hyderabad
Aneesa Mushtaq, Guest Faculty Govt Women’s college Baramulla
Ismail Khajabhai Gorikhan
Masrook A Dar, University of Hyderabad
Ranjita Biswas, Activist researcher
Avali, Post Graduate Student
Gopikalakshmi VP, MA Applied psychology
Adil Akram, MA Development studies 1st year
Mohmad Iqbal, PhD (Social Work), MANUU, Hyderabad
Col Kabir Singh (Retd.), Swaraj India, Delhi
Nikhita Singh, M.A. in Media & Cultural Studies (2016-18), TISS Mumbai
Riddhi Modi, Student
Meemansa, Lawyer, Student
Pranjal Shrirange, SRFTI student
Rahul Yadav, Advocate
Khairunnisa Nakathorige, MANUU, Hyderabad
Vandita Jain, Freelance Cinematographer, ex- FTII student
Bhuvi Gupta, Digital marketer, Socioh
Kapil Agarwal, Lawyer, Student
Jenin
Abhilash Sam, 2nd MA
Shayequa Z Ali, Consultant, NCAER
Christopher Nag, Student TISS, Mumbai
Radhika Ganesh, Activist (Convener Young People for Politics & Founder Member Ek Potlee Ret Ki)
Shiladitya Ray, Alumnus
Maithreyi MR, Consultant editor
Remya Rajeec, Student
Vrinda Sharma
Suman Damera
RM Mishra
Sutapa Majumdar
Shantanu Ghosh
Juhi Hasan, Research Associate
Aparna Mahiyaria, PhD scholar, National Institute of Advanced Studies and University of Exeter
Rachna, Researcher
Aditya Lakshmi, MA Rural Development and Development, TISS
Afrin Shairaj, University of Oxford (TISS Hyderabad alum 2018)
Udit Khanduri, Alumnus (MA in Rural Development & Governance- 2015)
Anantha Narayanan, BA social sciences tiss Hyderabad 2nd year
Munawar Khasim E K
Rituja Mandal, Alumnus of TISS Hyderabad (2017-2019)
Karishma Shaik , Student of Developmetal studies
Ipe, hyderabad
Sreeraj
Shaik nafaaz, Student
Rakhma Hema Shrikant, Second Year student of M.A. in Education at TISS,Mumbai
Ishan Santra, PhD Research Scholar
Neha Anvar, Student of BA 2
Sridhar A, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Shivangi, Student
Anirudh Shastri, Student
Tulasi Korwar , Student
Lopamudra Nayak, Student
Asmyta Tiwari, Alumnus, TISS, Hyderabad
Shailendra, Engineer
Aleena Mavely, Student, University of Delhi
Palepu Madhavi, Student
Sandra S Prakash, Alumnus
Akram Khan
Navaneeth R
Nidhin Donald , Research Scholar, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Navaneeth R, Student
Srinikesh, Student
Sridivya
Urmi, Student
Soorya UR, BA social sciences 3rd year
Immanuel Kale, Student – School of Education Vidyabharathi, TISS tuljapur alumnus
Chakradhar C, Doctor
Annu, Student
Balu N V, Student MA development studies TISS
Bodhika Darokar, Alumnus of TISS Tuljapur
Fathima Umer, Student at tiss tuljapur
Mitra Swayamdeep, TISS Tuljapur Alumni Trisha, Student
Navean Hari, BA student at TISS HYDERABAD
Arjun Mukherjee, DS, Hyderabad (2017-19) Vikas
Harinandana S, Student
Arpita Chakraborty, Ireland India Institute, Dublin City University
Harshita Sakhamuri, MA Development Studies (2018)
Dilan Thomas, Student of Tata Institute of Social Sciences Tuljapur
Aniket Yadav
Harikrishnan. S, TISS Mumbai (2011-13)
Pooja Reddy, Student
Mitaja, Research Scholar, HCU
Haleema Sadaf, MPhil student, IIFM
Gayathri Nair, Alumnus
Sonakshi Bansal, Student
Shaheen, Student
Agnes Kurian
Sumeet Sharma
Manik, Research Associate , NIRD, Hyderabad
Aniket Yadav, Student
Shweta Kakkar, Former student
Anandita Mitro
Ashwin Karthik, TISS Student
Aniket Yadav, Student
Akshay Sakat, Former student of TISS, Tuljapur.
Sahith, Medical student
Bhawani Singh
Ramkumar Wariyar
Roger binita, Student
Navya Mehta, Student, TISS Hyderabad Manisha Gupte, MASUM, Pune
Srinikesh, Graduated from IIT Delhi in mathematics and computing
RishabhStudent MA, Mumbai Campus
Radhika , Student
Kanak, Student
Rahil Chatterjee, TISS 2015
Bibin Sam Thomas, Student, TISS Hyderabad
Aditi Vasudevan, BA 3 YEAR
Tanya Agarwal
Humaira, MPhil Scholar
Darsana J Varier , BASS 2, TISS Hyderabad
Aakash Nathani, Student at NIPER HYDERABAD
Anagha Suresh Babu, Student
AnkitS TISS,Alumni
Rugmini Devi M, Alumni
Rahul Baishnab, MSW 2nd year student of TISS Guwahati (GBM represents)
Praneeth, Student of TISS HYD
Mariyam Maqbool , Student
Sanjana
KP Singh, Swaraj India
Ambedkar Pindiga, Tricontinental Institute for Social Research
Mohammed Ameen Arimbra, TISS BA batch 2015-18(Alumni)
Hridesh Chandra
Dr Ajay Verma, Doctor at AIIMS , NEW DELHI
Sanjay Kumar, JNU
Varalakshmi, Doctor
Jyotsna Singh, Health Activist
Charudutt Malhara, MA SIE, TISS TULJAPUR Emili Law, Student
Riya
Sidharth A, BA 5th Semester
Avani Binish, Student
Palani Rajan A, Student, BA 3, TISS Hyderabad
Jishnu Abhijith Balu, Student
Rajnish Das, Student
Varsha Thomas, Senior Account Executive Jayasuriya J, Student
Ajith TP, Young Professional, Pr and dw dept, Govt of Odisha
Sanyukta
Sandesh Kamble, Student
Shourya Patel, Swastha Bharat Prerak – District Lead, Ministry of Women and Child Development
Valay, Journalist
Subhankar Roy, Phd
Lekshmi, Alumni
Malavika, Student
Amratha Lekshmi A J, Student, BA 3rd year
Aparajita, Student
Karthik Raveendran, Chief Product Officer, Attinad Software
Ayushya , PhD Jamia Milia Islamia
Megha Malakar, Student at TISS, B.A 3rd Year
Hyndhavi, Student
Dr Ravi Shukla, Individual
Ashish Kajla, Researcher
Akshit Goyal, National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bangalore
Namewar Prakash, Tiss Alumnus
Sneha Kanabar, Parent of TISS student
Rohan Joshi, M.A. Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship ,TISS, School of Rural Development, Tuljapur, Maharashtra.
Emmanuel, Student
Goutham Raj KJ, Student
Aswathy M P, Alumnus
Samyobrata Mukherjee, PhD Student, ICFO, Barcelona
Monika, Student
Anurudh Reddy, Student
Steve, Research Fellow
Shivangi Puri, Tiss Alumni
Baindla Vamshi Krishna, Student
Arjun
Kunai, BASW student, TISS Tuljapur
Rupakshi S. Mathur, Alumni
Pavan Siddharth, Student
Spoorti, Student
K. Krishna Dhakshin, Student
Suchandra
Raihana Mariyam , Student
Ram, Student
Vikram
Tara, Ashoka University
Sneha S, Student
Nagulan s, B.tech
Hari, Student
Shakthidharshini.AR, Student
Kritika, Lawyer
Subin Dennis, Tricontinental Institute for Social Research
Jayakumar A V, Retired PSU Officer
Vimal Navapariya, Youth for Swaraj Gujarat
Rahul Vaidya, Anveshan
Vikas Pathe, Central University of Gujarat, Gandhinagar
Sooraj Vignesh, Student
Rishi kumar, Student
Vimala Devi, Student Amrita, Student
Lakshmee Susrutha, Student Madhushree, Student
Rithika, Student
Saranya, Student
Shivani
Logesh,Student
Logu, Student
Kavya, Alumnus, student, MA JNU
Sanjit Ragav, Student
E.Kiruba Sankar
Tsrak Majumdar Venkatesh, Student
Saran Kumar, Student Shravya, Student
Geethika Nadakuditi, BA 3 Gouri CP
Kabilan
Yashwanth, Student
Visali, Student
Athulya, Student
Adarsh R K, Student
Rohan Deo
Raveena, Student
Shivani.V, Student
Kesiya Ann Babu, Student TISS, Hyderabad
Aditya Bansode, Student TISS Tuljapur
Vaibhav Raaj, Researcher
Naveen
Sriram. A, Training manager, Kudumbashree
Ajeet Kumar, Student
Rajavignesh
Chakri, Samalochana
Preeti , Advocate, High Court
Sreethu, Doctor in pharmacy
Amit Kumar, NALSAR
Rishwan Prasanna T, Student
Atul Suresh, BA 2
Lalana, Student
Komal Vaishnav , Ex student
Srujana Bej, Lawyer
Nilav Banerjee, Lawyer
Rohith, Student
K Vaishnavi, Alumna TISS Mumbai
Dhruva Narayan, Independent researcher and activist
Ajey, Lawyer
Rajesh Lakum, Gujarat University
Roshini Ramkumar, HR professional; TISS Hyderabad Alumnus.
Asfia, Development professional
Karishmaa.S, Student
Alpana
Hardik Parmar, Student of social work Sushmita Kumari, MA in Development Studies Mrinalini, Mphil Researcher, TISS (Mumbai) Yangchen, Student
Mendke Shubham Bharatrao, Student Visakha Dutta, Alumnus
Harrish Kannan.S, Student
Lhaden Vibhuti, NGO volunteer
Siddhant, PDYF
Rashmi Priyem Saravanan, Student
Sandip K. Dasverma, Coalition for a Pluralist & Egalitarian India
Visvesh
Rahul
Dev Yadav, Student
Anuradha, Researcher
Gautam Mehra
Sukanya Basu
Anjali, Student
Karubakee , Student
Anuja Prasad, Student
Isha Shandilya, TISS Mumbai batch 2016-18
Renu singh Student
Devika Dutt, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Kokila Bhattacharya, Artist Activist, TISS alumnus
Sneha Chowdhury, Student, JNU
Shraddha Chatterjee, York University
Ravindra Kadam , Advisor , CERC
Souradeep Roy, Research scholar, SAA, JNU Devika, Student
Lhaden Bhutia, Government service Vijnan Mandal, Infosys Limited Sushant, Eklavya Foundation Shruthy, Student
Dr. Himangi Bhardwaj, Senior Health Adviser
Shreya Kulkarni, Student/TISS-BALM, Chennai
Bhavneet Kaur, PhD student, Department of Sociology, University of Delhi
Harilal, Parent of a TISS student
Suja Sasidharan Banker, TISS student parent
Naveena, Solution Advisor
Gautam Kumar, Research scholar (CSRD, JNU) Sahiba
Karubakee ,Student
Shaily Bhadauria, Consultant, CEIA, TISS, MUMBAI
Divya, Student
Anupama Karthik, Parent of a TISS student
Arvind Kumar Tekam, Student
Deep Narayan Chatterjee, Ph.D, JNU
Hari Bharathi T, Student, Loyola college, Chennai
Geetha , Field Coordinator
Rounak Kothari, Student
Amritha V, BASS 3 Yr.
Sanskar Gupta, Student
Salma Salim, Student – TISS Hyd
Sahil Lalani, Student
Kalpam Nayak, Student
Khushboo Kimtes, Student
Tushaar Giria, Student
Sameer Jain, Student
Hrithik Bhandari, Student
Kushang Gupta, Student
Akshaya
Avani Patel, Student
Muskaan Bhansali, Student
Mrigank Tulsian, Student
Sumit Sihotia, Student
Naman Jain, Student
Mohammed Osman Moinudin, Student
Gaurav Agarwal, Student
Tanush Jain, Student
Vishesh Agarwal, Student
Ishika Sethiya, Student
Nitya Toshniwal, Student
Khushaali Seth, Student
Jivesh Jain, Student
Rushik patel, Student
Alfhaiery Spencer
Faamitha N Nahar, Student
Swetha , Student
Sridhar, Student
Krithik Sharan S A, Student at SSNCE, Chennai
Rishi Vardhan, Student
P C Satheesh, Employed in MNC
Harishkumaar S., Student
Rohith S, BE Mechanical Engineering
Sumanth, Student
Malaika.S, MBBS student
Suchithra, Alumni RGNIYD
Namanjaya Khobragade, Student TISS Mumbai
Hasna Ghulam Veronica Xavier, Rights and You
Fowzia, Filmmaker
Sheetal singh, Student
Sai
Sneha Mani, Student/University of Pennsylvania
Rahul Sinha Roy, PhD Research Scholar Sharmi.R, B.E CSE
Himanshu , Student
Hari Haran
Santhosh Babu, MBBS student
Abishek
Dr V Rukmini Rao, Education Activist
Raviteja Vajja
Manager, CRY – Child
Shruti Kalyanaraman , York University Fall 2019 candidate and a proud alumnus of TISS Hyderabad
S K Hari Kheshav, Student
Shraddha Chickerur, PhD candidate
Sukriti Abhaya, Student
Vishnu.K, Student
Jeena, MSW student
Priya, Student from Chennai
Balu, Bangalore Dalit Forum
Raju, President, Common Cause Forum
Krishna Murthy V
Rasheed Basha B, Student at MSSW
Santhosh Sattur
Mugil, Madras Christian College, Social Work Department
Akalya, Student
Anju Biju, Student of st.xaviers college Mumbai
Vyshu, Student
Subhash Jha, SRFTI
Anil Varghese, Delhi Solidarity Group
Sherin S Das, Alumnus
Rahul Paul Abraham, Student of MIT ADT University, Pune
Jyotsna Siddharth, Actor, Activist, Writer and TISS Alumni, Delhi
Pallavi Rao, PhD Candidate, Indiana University Bloomington
Pranav Rajula, Student
Anushka Sen, PhD Student
Ketaki Chowkhani , Manipal Centre for Humanities
Imrana Khan
Gayathri P, Student
Sumedh Jiwane
Divya, Student
Esvi Anbu Kothazham, Independent writer, TISS mumbai (2013 alumnus)
Rohit Ramachandran, Student, B Des 2, IIT Guwahati
Lakshmi R, Student,Manipal university
Sourabh Rai
Siddharth Nashine
Vishnu T U, Manager- Unnat Bharat Abhiyan Ninan.
P. Thomas, Alumnus
Tridib Mukherjee, Ex-student, TISS, Guwahati
Niyati, Doctor
The women formed the 620km-long chain to oppose the protest against women’s entry to Sabarimala temple
In a first, over 35 lakh women stood shoulder-to-shoulder across national highways in Kerala, creating a 620 km-long human ‘wall’ from the northern end of Kasaragod to the southern tip in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday, as part of a state-sponsored initiative to uphold gender equality.
The event comes days after thousands of devotees lit ‘Ayyappa Jyothis’ and lined up from Hosangadi in Kasaragod to Kanyakumari, vowing to protect the ‘customs and traditions’ of Sabarimala.
On Tuesday, women from various walks of life – writers, athletes, actors, politicians and techies, government officials and homemakers – stood across the highways crisscrossing through the 14 districts in the state as the event commenced at 4 pm.
Expressing solidarity, thousands of men also lined up, forming a parallel human ‘wall’.
The ‘Women’s wall’ was conceived in the backdrop of frenzied protests witnessed in the hill shrine of Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala after the CPI(M)-led LDF government decided to implement the Supreme Court verdict, allowing all women to pray at the Ayyappa shrine.
Also read: The Sabrimala Judgment Shows Us a Way to Make Religion More Inclusive
Representatives of Universal Record Forum (URF), which records amazing feats across the globe declared the human wall as the “longest women’s wall in the world” with participation of over 35 lakh women. CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan claimed 55 lakh women lined up for the ‘wall’.
CPI(M) polit bureau member Brinda Karat, who was the last member of the human wall at Thiruvananthapuram, said women in Kerala have scripted history by erecting a “human wall of resistance” against the dark forces.
She also lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying it was using women for its “toxic, divisive, anti-women political goal” and asked women not to be the pawns in the hands of those who have no thoughts about the future of women.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his cabinet colleagues and Communist veteran V.S. Achuthanandan were among those who were present at the public meeting after the formation of the wall.
Vijayan garlanded the statue of Ayyankali, a social reformer, before the start of the event.
The wall has become a movement against gender discrimination faced by women and to protect their constitutional rights, he said.
Also read: Sabarimala Issue Underscores How the Alt-Right Uses Limits of Liberty to Its Advantage
The initiative also witnessed a group of the Jacobite faction of the Christian community lining up in support of the wall along with members of the Muslim community.
Former firebrand communist leader and Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy supremo, 100-year-old K.R. Gowriamma, also took part in the event near her home at Alappuzha.
Congress expressed its ire against the wall and said, “Kerala society has dismissed the government’s much-hyped event.”
The BJP state leadership dubbed the wall a “total failure” and waste of government funds and machinery.
Participants were reportedly attacked at Chettukund in Kasaragod district, allegedly by some BJP-RSS workers. They hurled stones at the women and policemen, injuring three personnel, police said, adding that they had to fire in the air and burst teargas shells to disperse the attackers.
Media personnel of two television channels were also attacked and reportedly forced to delete the visuals of the incident.
A group of women in New Delhi on Tuesday also expressed solidarity with their counterparts in Kerala by holding a demonstration outside Kerala House at the national capital’s Jantar Mantar road, where members of National Federation of Indian Women held placards saying, “Equality and Justice is Women’s Constitutional Right”.
The ‘Women’s wall’ was suggested at a meeting called by the Kerala government, following massive protests by right-wing parties and a section of devotees over the government’s decision to implement the September 28 apex court order, allowing women of all ages to offer prayers at Sabarimala.
All photos by Edward Anderson.
This year, the library budget has allegedly been slashed to Rs 1.7 crore.
New Delhi: In the last financial year, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) – an academic institution – spent Rs 17.38 crore on security. Ironically, it spent only about a fourth as much on its library – Rs. 4.18 crore, as per the university’s annual report.
In 2016-2017 as well, the proportion was similar with JNU spending Rs 3.1 crore on journals and publications as opposed to Rs 9.52 crore on security.
According to The Telegraph, this year, the varsity has made a major cut in its expenses – but on books. The library budget for the current financial year, teachers and students allege, has been reduced to Rs 1.7 crore, a nearly 60% reduction when compared to the year before. It’s budget for security – on guards, CCTV cameras, video-recording of protests and the like – however, is not clear yet.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers Association said on Wednesday that as per the university’s annual reports, from a budget of about Rs 6 crore per year between 2012 and 2018, the library was given Rs 1.7 crore in the current financial year.
Also read: Future of JNU Could Be at Stake as Teachers, VC Headed for a Battle
According to The Hindu, the teachers’ body said: “The increase in the absolute amount spent extra on security is Rs 6,33,99,965 on an average in the last [few] years, which is 6.7 times more than the amount reduced for library books and e-journals.”
Last week, when the news of cuts in library budget came to light, the students’ body said: “In an extraordinary and surprising move, JNU administration has provided a detailed chart for privatisation of Dr B.R. Ambedkar Library through massive fund cuts.”
The JNUTA has Wednesday warned that substantial cuts in academic spending would hurt the quality of research and put the university’s standing at risk.
Teachers’ association president, Atul Sood told the daily that in the last two years, “the average academic expenditure as a proportion of total expenditure was down to 6.65% from 8.5%” between 2012-13 and 2015-16. And the way the budget currently stands, he feared that “most journal subscriptions will have to be discontinued.”
Finance officer Heeraman Tiwari, however, brushed aside claims that the annual budget of the library was being slashed, saying that the varsity has been allotting Rs 1.7 crore for books and journals from the grant received annually from the University Grants Commission.
“A one-time bulk grant was given by the UGC in 2012 under its 12th plan for the next five years. Now that the plan has ended, the library is running with its regular annual grant. However, JNU has made a request to the UGC to release additional funds to meet the increasing requirements of the library,” Tiwari was quoted by The Hindu as saying.
The university is in the midst of a battle with teachers and students holding a hunger strike on November 26 against the alleged “autocratic” handling of academic matters. The strike was meant to be the first in a series of such protests.
Over the last few years, the JNUTA has alleged that the VC’s undemocratic functioning is ruining the “teaching-learning practices” that had made JNU a top-performing university both nationally and globally.
However, as The Wire previously reported, on the eve of the strike, most faculty members received a letter by the administration asking them to desist from any such action with the administration saying it believed that it could resolve problems through a “mutual dialogue”.
“This is puzzling, as to what this means and why do we get this letter now? The newly-elected JNUTA had made a request to the vice-chancellor for a meeting to introduce the elected representatives to the administration over a cup of tea, but this has not even been acknowledged till date,” JNUTA said in its response.
The union has also been protesting against arbitrary seat cuts in the university, compulsory attendance rule for teachers and students brought in by the VC in research-based modules, proposed rescheduling of the academic calendar and many such directives by the administration. The JNUTA also alleges that the VC has deliberately been denying promotions to senior professors who have taken objection to such undemocratic functioning of the university.
Sood told The Telegraph that circulars this month had made “seminar participation, conference travel, project meetings and prestigious fellowships contingent on faculty members’ compliance with the diktats of the university administration”.
“Currently, faculty are being denied leave to go out even to a seminar in Delhi, let alone take up their research collaborations in India and abroad, as are any students associated with their work.”
This article originally appeared on The Wire.
Featured image credit: Kiran Jonnalagadda/Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0
The teachers’ association has alleged that the VC’s undemocratic functioning is ruining the “teaching-learning practices” that made JNU a top-performing university.
New Delhi: The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers Association (JNUTA) and university administration are headed for a long-drawn fight in the days to come. A letter by the administration, faculty members say, indirectly warned them against participating in a hunger strike that JNUTA had planned for November 26.
The JNUTA, on 19 November, in its general body meeting had decided to sit on a one-day hunger strike to protest against alleged “autocratic” handling of academic matters.
The teachers’ union says that the decision to protest was taken after the vice-chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar turned down multiple requests to meet JNUTA’s elected members. The teachers’ association has been seeking to raise concerns over a series of procedural violations under the VC’s tenure.
The violations, faculty members say, have compromised JNU’s academic autonomy and integrity and have been the primary reason for a worsening relationship between the academic community and the administration over the last few years.
The panel raising such issues was elected with almost an absolute majority in the recent JNUTA elections.
In its last week’s GBM, the JNUTA drew an action plan against the administration. The hunger strike was supposed to be the first in a series of such protests. However, on the eve of the strike, most faculty members received a letter by the administration asking them to desist from any such action. The letter also said that the administration believed that it could resolve problems through a “mutual dialogue”.
“This is puzzling, as to what this means and why do we get this letter now? The newly-elected JNUTA had made a request to the vice-chancellor for a meeting to introduce the elected representatives to the administration over a cup of tea, but this has not even been acknowledged till date,” the JNUTA says in its response to the university registrar.
“Now, today suddenly on the eve of the JNUTA action plan, which was decided in the JNUTA GBM on November 19, 2018, the administration is expressing its interest in mutual dialogue on the one hand and also threatening teachers of punitive actions on the other,” it added.
Over the last few years, the JNUTA has alleged that the VC’s undemocratic functioning is ruining the “teaching-learning practices” that had made JNU a top-performing university both nationally and globally.
The union has also been protesting against arbitrary seats cuts in the university, compulsory attendance rule for teachers and students brought in by the VC in research-based modules, proposed rescheduling of the academic calendar, and many such directives by the administration. The JNUTA also alleges that the VC has deliberately been denying promotions to senior professors who have taken objection to such undemocratic functioning of the university.
In the past, many teachers were issued show-cause notices by the university for either participating in a strike or taking a public position against VC’s alleged high-handedness. Such professors have also been denied permission to accept prestigious fellowships and take up research assignments abroad.
Yet another such university circular on November 13, the JNUTA says, has denied the teachers permission to organise and participate in national and international academic conferences, all of which fall during vacations.
“We had appealed to the JNU Executive Council to address these issues in its meeting held on November 20, 2018; but the JNU administration once again ignored it completely. There seems to be a total institutional breakdown,” the JNUTA claims.
With the university now writing yet another letter to teachers asking them to stay away from JNUTA action plan, the already-strained relationship between the two may worsen. The teachers association took a defiant position and called all teachers to assemble at the protest venue today and showed no signs of withdrawing the proposed hunger strike.
“A large number of teachers will sit on hunger strike for 24 hours, and many more will sit in solidarity with those on hunger strike,” the JNUTA informed the registrar.
JNUTA also demanded that “in order to demonstrate its earnestness to start a dialogue, (the VC) must immediately withdraw arbitrary circulars regarding the rescheduling of academic calendar and compliance of faculty attendance”.
JNU was the centre of attention in 2016 when the police arrested its student leaders on charges of sedition. With differences between JNUTA and administration only likely to escalate in the coming days, the prestigious university could be staring at yet another crisis.
An eyewitness told ANI that the bullet was fired by a man in a white shirt and narrowly missed Khalid.
New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru University student leader Umar Khalid was shot at outside the Constitution Club today, with eyewitnesses saying that one bullet was fired. Nobody was injured in the incident.
Khalid was at Constitution Club to speak at an event called ‘Freedom From Fear’, which was also going to be addressed by Radhika Vemula, family members of lynching victims, The Wire journalist Arfa Khanum Sherwani, Hapur lynching survivor Samaydin and others.
A bullet was fired at him just as he was about to enter the Constitution Club premises.
The programme for the event.
Constitution Club is in central Delhi, an area that has been designated a high-security zone in the run-up to Independence Day.
“It’s ironic (the attack, given the nature of the event), but it’s not surprising,” Khalid told The Quint. “Just five minutes ago, there was an attempt to kill me. A person came with a gun, tried to overpower me, tried to shoot me down. Thankfully, my friends were there with me, who tried to overpower him in return. He ran away and he fired from across the road.”
“What has happened in the last two years is that there has been such a disinformation, hateful, propaganda campaign that has been spread by some media houses, by troll armies of the ruling party, where anyone who opposes the present government, who questions the present government, they are branded anti-nationals, they are branded all kinds of things, and then anything can be done to them. I was very scared in that moment when he pointed the gun at me. In that moment I was being reminded of what happened to Gauri Lankesh, and I thought that moment has arrived. I’m really thankful to my friends who were present there that they could overpower him and I survived.”
An eyewitness told ANI that the bullet was fired by a man in a white shirt and narrowly missed Khalid. When people tried to catch him, the pistol slipped from his hand and he fled, the eyewitness said.
There was an event, Umar Khalid accompanied us. We were at a tea stall when a man in white shirt came,pushed&opened fire at him. Khalid lost his balance,fell down&bullet missed him. We tried to catch the man. He fired aerial shots,pistol slipped off his hands,he fled: Eyewitness pic.twitter.com/oqRcfgRPcY
— ANI (@ANI) August 13, 2018
Others also said the man in question had long hair.
The police at Constitution Club. Credit: The Wire
A large number of students, leaders and others condemned the attack on social media.
Vilification in the media and online abuse can lead to real violence. This should alarm all of us. https://t.co/AXwMOieBuy
— Audrey Truschke (@AudreyTruschke) August 13, 2018
Shocking and highly condemnable: a guy attacked Umar Khalid from behind and tried to shoot him in Delhi. This is the direct result of hatred whipped up by Republic TV & other hate media. I spoke to Umar. He’s okay, but we should be very very worried about his safety.
— Shehla Rashid (@Shehla_Rashid) August 13, 2018
My reaction on Umar Khalid pic.twitter.com/wkjOLFyip3
— Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) August 13, 2018
If this doesn’t chill your spine what will? If you choose silence now when will you speak?
If this is not wrong, what is wrong?In Solidarity.
https://t.co/mu6LG55RNW— Kunal Kamra (@kunalkamra88) August 13, 2018
Khalid was one of the JNU students charged with sedition and arrested in February last year after an event on Afzal Guru. The government and police were widely criticised for slapping sedition charges on the students.
This story originally appeared on The Wire.
Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi at his first appearance hearing on 30 September 2015 at the International Criminal Court in The Hague ©ICC-CPI
On September 26, 2015 Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, an alleged member of the Ansar Eddine militia group, was transferred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to stand trial for the “war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against historic monuments and buildings dedicated to religion” in Timbuktu, Mali in 2012. This marks the first attempt by the ICC to prosecute an individual for the war crime of destroying cultural heritage.
Sadly, the wanton destruction witnessed in Timbuktu is far from being the first or even the most egregious example of a “crime against culture” – a phrase used to describe the destruction of the legendary Afghan Bamiyan statues in 2001. Other infamous examples of cultural destruction in the context of armed conflict include the actions of ISIS in Palmyra and other places, blowing up of the spiral minaret of Samara in Iraq in 2005 as well as the shelling of the Krak des Chevaliers castle in Syria on multiple occasions.
The city of Timbuktu is a UNESCO World Heritage site and UNESCO has been actively involved in rebuilding the destroyed sites as a “symbol of the international community’s continued commitment to rebuilding the region as a whole”. However, the situation in Timbuktu also raises larger questions about the extent to which destroyed cultural sites should be reconstructed.
Culture matters
Why does the destruction of cultural heritage cause so much concern? One answer to that question was given by the Jamaican politician Marcus Garvey: “A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” Echoing this belief, the ICC prosecutor has said that the demolition of historical buildings was a “callous assault on the dignity and identity of entire populations and their religious and historic roots”.
The destruction of the world’s cultural heritage has been a tragic accompaniment to the relentless march of history. Equally, the preservation of our heritage as an expression of humanity’s shared culture is a relatively new innovation – thus far, cultural sites have mostly survived in spite of human intervention rather than because of it.
The protection of cultural property during armed conflicts indirectly evolved in certain international law treaties framed during the first half of the last century and then substantially developed into the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. The 1954 Convention and subsequent Protocols aimed at protecting cultural property of immeasurable value because of its inherent importance to humanity and obliged the warring parties to respect and safeguard cultural properties. The importance accorded to cultural heritage heightened when the 2002 Rome Statute – which established the International Criminal Court – declared that the destruction of cultural heritage would be considered a war crime.
Other measures by the international community to protect cultural heritage include UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention of 1972 (which designates places of universal value as the UNESCO World Heritage sites), UNESCO’s #Unite4Heritage campaign to protect heritage in areas suffering from violence and the recent UN General Assembly initiative to launch a Task Force to address the destruction and theft of cultural heritage.
International criminal law and cultural heritage
Residents of Timbuktu pass by the Djingareyber Mosque. The mosque is one of the historical architectural structures (along with Sankore Mosque, Sidi Yahia Mosque and sixteen mausoleums and holy public places) which together earned Timbuktu the designation of World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Credit: UN Photo/Marco Dormino
The Timbuktu destruction was referred to the ICC by Mali, a state party to the Rome Statute and Al Faqi will be tried for his alleged offences under its provisions. In keeping with the nature of international criminal law, there is thus a strong presumption that the destruction of Timbuktu’s heritage has an “international or transnational element” and has risen “to a level where it constitutes an offence to the world community”.
As the ICC preamble states, the court has jurisdiction over the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole and it is likely to be of significance that the sites destroyed in Timbuktu were UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Interestingly enough, Al Faqi’s trial isn’t entirely unprecedented. Ten years ago, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia convicted a general of the Yugoslav People’s Army for destruction and wilful damage of cultural property (the Old Square in Dubrovnik) and sentenced him to seven and a half years in prison. The tribunal in that instance too, relied upon the provisions concerning protection of cultural property specified in the statute establishing the tribunal. Moreover, the trial’s significance is heightened in the background of UNESCO’s serious condemnation of armed attacks against cultural property in Yemen and Syria this year. The destruction of cultural heritage, whether deliberately or as “collateral damage” is regrettably common and while the trial might not prevent such attacks it is hoped that it might play a role in deterring such wanton destruction in the future.
To reconstruct or not, that is the question
Video grab from AFP’s report on YouTube shows the damage caused to some of Sanaa’s historic homes by Saudi bombing.
When it comes cultural sites, the international community has repeatedly stressed the importance of rebuilding the site in an attempt to wipe out the consequences of the damages and re-establishing the situation that existed prior to the site’s destruction. While UNESCO rebuilt the sites destroyed in Timbuktu with the support of local communities, there are larger questions that remain to be asked about the manner in which reconstruction aims to turn back the clock.
Both the creation and destruction of cultural sites are parts of an organic historical process and are an important testament to the historical record. For example, the gaping holes where the Bamiyan statues once stood are both a poignant reminder of their destruction as well as the ideologies and actions that led to such an event. Would reconstructed statues have the same visceral impact?
On the other hand, rebuilding symbolises a powerful commitment to right wrongs and is a visible symbol of fighting back against hatred and intolerance. Additionally, on a more pragmatic level, cultural heritage sites are often critical for sustaining local livelihood by generating much needed tourist revenue.
While there are no easy answers on the manner in which reconstruction should take place, strong consultation with local communities is critical for any reconstruction effort. Without active local participation and ownership of these sites, any intervention by global bodies, no matter how well intentioned, will remain unwelcome. We also need to consider creative ways of reconstructing these cultural sites in order to highlight their status as symbols of humanity’s potential to both create and destroy.
Al Faqi’s prosecution under international criminal law and the UNESCO reconstruction are both parts of a single process, which asserts the value of our cultural heritage – proving once again that our shared cultural heritage is both global as well as intensely local.
As mentioned previously, in the context of Timbuktu, UNESCO has already rebuilt many of the destroyed buildings with the support and involvement of the local community. For Mali, the reconstruction efforts are seen as an answer to extremists and as a re-assertion of ownership over their country’s rich cultural heritage. Mali’s Minister of Culture put it best when he described the reconstruction in stirring terms – “what matters most is not never fall, but to rise again and this is exactly what this reconstruction represents”.
Shalini Iyengar is a lawyer and Research Associate at the International University College, Turin
Sukrit Rajesh Kapoor is a lawyer and a Consultant at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
With non-state actors becoming frequent targets of military action, and drones and cyber technology beginning to take centre-stage in military operations, the boundaries of the modern day battlefield have dramatically changed.
The Indian Army’s recent operations against militant camps in Myanmar are not the first of their kind in the world or even in the region. Amidst the ongoing debate over the potential shift in India’s military strategy this represents, and the questions surrounding the operation’s extraterritoriality, there has been little discussion on the status and regulation of such armed operations under international law.
The United Nations Charter authorises one state to use force in another state’s territory only in self-defence or with the approval of the UN Security Council. In addition to self-defence, the International Law Commission’s Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts permit the extraterritorial use of force by a state if it is executed under certain circumstances, such as (1) with the other state’s consent, (2) out of distress, (3) out of necessity, (4) as a countermeasure, or (5) in response to situations which are beyond the state’s reasonable control (force majeure).
Given the element of subjectivity, it is hardly surprising that almost every instance of the use of force generates debate and there is often little consensus among various international stakeholders. Traditionally, these debates have been the sharpest when the target consists of non-state armed groups, as in this case. However, in light of state practice and certain Security Council resolutions – particularly the ones adopted in response to the 9/11 attacks – the use of force against militant groups in self-defence is increasingly considered an accepted norm. But that doesn’t mean conditions don’t apply.
The Caroline test
The 1837 Caroline Case concerned an attack carried out by a British force against Canadian rebels on United States’ territory. The British had destroyed a US owned ship named the Caroline, which had been supplying armed insurgents with materiél against British rule in Canada. The Anglo-American settlement in the case created two standards that must be met in order to justify such an attack.
First, the use of force must be necessary because of both the imminent nature of the threat and the absence of peaceful alternatives; and second, the response to the threat must be proportionate. These principles have since evolved as the doctrines of necessity and proportionality, and have been subjected to varying interpretations over the course of time.
Daniel Webster, who was the US Secretary of State at the time, described ‘imminent threat’ as being instant, overwhelming, and leaving no choice of means and no moment for deliberation. The case is relevant today in more ways than one. Judge Christopher Greenwood at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) wrote in 2003 that the threat in Caroline “came from a non-State group of the kind most would probably call terrorist today.” The modern day concept of a pre-emptive strike is based on the Caroline test.
Threat of ‘imminent attack’
Indeed, in UN Security Council debates, arguments against the pre-emptive use of force hinge less on the doctrine itself and more on whether the Caroline test’s requirements have been met, especially the notion of an imminent attack and whether the use of force occasioned by this apprehension was proportionate to the threat posed.
Interestingly, the Indian Army’s official statement issued after its operations “along the Indo-Myanmar border” says that these were conducted as an immediate and necessary response to the imminent threat of planned assaults. It further states that the operations consequently averted “threats to our civilian population and security forces” by certain groups, which had in the preceding week attacked Indian security personnel.
One of the fiercest debates over pre-emptive strikes arose from the US justification for invading Iraq. in 2003 In essence, the US stance was that the doctrine of necessity needed adaptation in light of advanced weapons capabilities – a position that creates a dangerous slippery slope. Relaxing the requirement of an imminent attack raises a essential question – given the destructiveness of modern military technology and the speed at which it can be deployed, at what point of the anticipated threat is a pre-emptive strike justified? At what stage or under what circumstances can a state invoke the argument of using force in its self-defence?
Israel, for example, asserts that it has the right to attack Iran because it is allegedly aspiring to develop or acquire nuclear weapons, which can potentially threaten Israeli security. But many countries, including those that share its concerns about Tehran, would disagree.
With technological advances including drones and cyber technology beginning to take centre-stage in military operations, and non-state actors becoming frequent targets of military action, the boundaries of the modern day battlefield have dramatically changed. It thus becomes increasingly difficult for the law to keep up. Lawyers must continually scramble to interpret existing law to regulate the changing scenarios. These only add to the challenges in establishing consensus on the principles that might answer the whens, wheres, whats, whys, and whos of pre-emptive armed attacks.
International law doesn’t always provide concrete answers and when it does attempt to do so, not many approve. But it is essential that it must attempt to address global issues by constantly evolving from lex lata – law as it is – to lex ferenda – law as it ought to be. As information continues to trickle in about the Indian Army’s actions in Myanmar, these are some important questions to consider.
Shalini Iyengar is a lawyer and Research Associate at the International University College, Turin
Sukrit Rajesh Kapoor is a lawyer and International Advocacy Consultant at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
