NATURAL DEATHS, UNNATURAL DEATHS - STONE PLANTING VEDIC SANSKAAR
and/or www.mantra.com/jai
Natural deaths, unnatural deaths: stone planting Vedic samskara
Sunday, March 7, 2010
http://sites.google.com/site/kalyan97/megaliths
Natural deaths, unnatural deaths: stone planting Vedic samskara
In normal deaths, the soul joins the departed ancestors after this
ceremony.
In unnatural deaths, the merger does not happen. The soul is directly
made to merge with Narayanam param devam through a ceremony called
Narayana Bali.
In unnatural deaths, no cremation takes place. The body is buried and
a stone is fixed on the site. As in the case of natural death
ceremony, the rationale is that the soul gets fixed in this stone.
But once the Narayana Bali ceremony is over, the stone (in which the
soul was tied) is left in the waters. From the commentary for Pura
nanuru verses 263 and 264, we come to know that Nadukal that we see
in many places is not the original stone that was used to trap the
departed soul for guiding it to leave for the other realm. That stone
is left in running water after the ceremony. Later a location is
chosen with a bed of small stones on the ground -- over which a stone
with the engraving of the image of the departed person and his name
is installed. Red flowers and peacock feathers are decorated to this
stone and regular poojas are done with incense and food. ..
In verse 260 also we find a clear mention that the soul has left for
Higher worlds. The stone that is installed where the person died is
used as a memorial. The Yajur Vedic mantras do describe the stone
culture whereby the soul is trapped and left in the waters by which
the transfer to the other realm is made. (1)
*A curious information is that this ceremony of the Nadukal is
restricted to Mullai lands of Tamil nadu (forest tracts). In his
commentary on sutra 5 of Tholkaapiyam Puraththinai, Nachinaarkiniyar
says that it is the custom of people of Mullai tracts to leave the
stone in the waters, followed by planting a stone (as a memorial).
(??? ????????? ?????? ????????? ??????? ?????????????? ??????
???????? ???????, ??? ??????? , ????? ????????, ????????? ??????
???????? ?????? ). This is written by him for explaining the
Tholkaapiya sutra 5 Puratththinai - ?????? ?????? ????????? ??????.
Kaal kol is the first level ceremony of establishing the stone. This
is followed by neer-padai by which the stone is left in the waters
(the ceremony of transferring the soul to the realm of departed soul)
This is followed by planting a stone as memorial. This memorial is
what we see as nadukal in many places in Tamil nadu.
* The curious feature is that Tholkaapiyam says that this custom is
prevalent in Mullai of Maayon. Similar stones are found in Saraswathy
Basin (Harappan) also. I have always theorized that the saraswathy
civilization is post Krishna civilization of the people who left
Dwaraka in the wake of the deluge...
Photo courtesy :- Dept of Archeology
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.tnarch.gov.in/images/epi-
Memorial for a hero who lost his life in a cattle ride, 6th Century
CE
Tiruvannamalai Dist
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_j7IwynrIhuk/S5QEZFiWIQI/AAAAAAAABGw/OrLA4c7OcoQ/s320/nadukal.bmp
Reference:-
(1)
(1) Dear friends! A river filled with stones is flowing, try to cross
it, stand up and strive to go beyond. Renounce all that which is
painful and accept all, that which gives happiness.
This world is alike a river and the human being has to cross it to
reach the paraloka(heaven) if the human being strives with
preservance and grit he can easily cross the river of material life.
(
http://www.aryabhatt.com/vedas/yajurveda5.htm
) YV 35/10.
ashmanvatI rIyate saM rabhadhvam uttiShThata pra taratA sakhAyaH |
atrA jahAma ye asann ashevAH shivAn vayam ut taremAbhi vAjAn || RV 10.53.8
ashmanvatI flows by. Hold tight together, keep your self erect and
cross [the river], friends. There let us leave that which is not
good, and we cross over to that which is auspicious. [This is the
single most important element of the sauchIka agni hymns in terms of
a date. It clearly mentions crossing of the river ashmanvatI to the
other side where the auspicious lies.
http://manasataramgini.wordpress.com/2006/11/26/the-crossing-of-ashmanvati
ashmanvatI rIyate saM rabhadhvamut tiSThata pra taratAsakhAyaH |\\
atrA jahAma ye asannashevAH shivAn vayamuttaremAbhi vAjAn
A river full of stones is flowing very fast. O friends! Get up with a
zeal and cross this river well.But there is a condition. Whatever
pains or restricts you, leave that here. We should cross this river
to attain a position of welfare and well-being.
10.53 (varga 14) verse 8a
ashmanvatI rIyate saM rabhadhvamut tiSThata pra taratAsakhAyaH |\\
10.53 (varga 14) verse 8c
atrA jahAma ye asannashevAH shivAn vayamuttaremAbhi vAjAn ||\\
See Aashvalaayana Grhya Mantra Vyaakhya, Chapter 4, p. 248.
(Source: Ram Gopal, 1983, The history and principles of vedic
interpretation, Concept Publishing Company, New Delhi, p.26)
http://jayasreesaranathan.blogspot.com/2010/03/stone-binds-energy.html
End of forwarded message from S. Kalyanaraman
Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti
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Dušan Vukotić
and/or www.mantra.com/jai
Dušan Vukotić
and/or www.mantra.com/jai
chhotemianinshallah
Dear Friends:
Hinduism is facing a great many challenges, both external and
internal. On the outside, ill-wishers are trying to malign and
dismantle it. Within, we have practitioners and leaders who are
insensitive to, or unaware of the social, political, and ethical
forces that are sweeping the world. Navya Shastra consists of a group
of Hindus who deeply love and care for our rich and ancient tradition.
We are also very concerned about its future.
We strongly feel that one major blemish in the Hindu world (within
India) is the pernicious aspect of the caste system which denies equal
spiritual rights to all Hindus, and imposes a conceptual hierarchy
that considers some Hindus to be superior/inferior to other Hindus on
the basis of their birth. We do not think that the dehumanization of
Hindus or of any other people is part of the Vedas, Sanskrit or
Tamil.
If some shastras tolerated or encouraged caste-based social
injustices, we reject them, and declare it is time to formulate a
system of values consistent with the age in which we live
(yugadharma). We are against caste hierarchy and caste injustices, not
only because they are not sanctioned in the Vedas, but also because
they are morally wrong, unacceptable, and anachronistic in the world
in which we live. We also need to rid Hindu society of its caste
constraints, because they undermine the future of the religion as a
viable system in the modern world. We are dreaming of a day when the
loftier Hindu visions in Sanatana Dharma will spread all over the
world. There will come a time when practitioners of other religious
systems will resonate with the universal values and visions that are
implicit in the roots of Hinduism.
We invite all our Hindu brothers and sisters to join us in raising
their voices against casteism, and for making Hinduism a greater
religion than what she has ever been.
Lobby all dharmacharyas to reflect on the fossilized iniquities in
Sanatana Dharma. We will actively strive to catalyze the Hindu
leadership into addressing the caste issue and other salient social
issues.
Engender a national debate on a Navya Shastra--one that would redress
the inequalities inherent in the caste system. While the spiritual
intuition of our sages is timeless and eternal, the social tenets
which govern Hindu society have never been static--our lawgivers have
reinterpreted them in different eras.
Conduct a respectful dialogue on reformulating the social tenets of
Sanatana Dharma, in which all members of our community are welcomed to
participate.
Track and promote the efforts of Hindu/Indian organizations and
charities who are working to eradicate caste discrimination in India.
_________________________________________________
Special Announcement: Listen to Jaishree Gopal, Chairman of Navya
Shastra on National Public Radio
NAVYA SHASTRA VISION STATEMENT
Most Hindus are shocked to know that, according to the ancient
Dharmashastras, over 80% of the Hindu population is forbidden to read
the Vedas. These law books were written by sages as procedural and
legal outlines for governing society, and they have remained de facto
authority on religious matters to this day. For example, some
traditional mathas still forbid Vedic instruction to anyone who is not
a ?dwija?--a male born into one of the three upper castes.
A recent Supreme Court of India decision held that non-brahmins are
now entitled to serve as temple priests, effectively opening up the
Vedas and Agamas to all seekers. While the ruling is laudable, we
wonder whether this judicial activism is sufficient to transfigure the
often miserable status of the so called lower castes. Most religious
leaders have remained conspicuously silent on the decision and,
whether out of indifference or disapproval, have not publicly
reflected on the potential consequences of the decision for Hindu
society. Until we have a convergence of sentiment towards a true
casteless society--one acknowledged by religious leaders, the
government and the Hindu community alike--all steps towards
improvement will be tentative gestures, at odds with recrudescent
casteist power structures that operate frightfully and efficiently in
rural India.
Rather than bemoaning, with the fatalists, the inexorably static
nature of society, or assuming, with the optimists, that change is a
natural process, we have decided to take matters into our own hands by
inciting a public debate on the caste issue and other salient social
issues. Would a Navya Shastra (or a comprehensive reinterpretation of
existing Dharmashastras), proposing a more egalitarian configuration
of Hindu society, be a beneficial template for affecting change? We
believe shastric and social reform is important for several reasons.
1. The caste system, as it is currently structured, spiritually
disenfranchises the vast majority of Hindus: Shudras, Dalits,
Adivasis, women and converts. No one, we believe, has studied the
negative psychological implications of such birth-based
classifications on the so called lower castes. A recent wave of Dalit
atrocities morbidly reveals that caste discrimination is still rampant
throughout India. This leaves many spiritually inclined Hindus feeling
that they are unwanted, peripheral stragglers, giving credence to
Hegel?s assertion that the caste system breeds ?spiritual serfdom?. A
Navya Shastra would open the Vedas (as they are traditionally taught)
to everyone, regardless of birth.
2. Until we have a Navya Shastra, the old Dharmashastras will remain,
by default, the governing authority on matters concerning the
religious status of Hindus. It would be rather absurd for the
government to comment on every religious controversy affecting Hindus.
After all, in a truly secular society, the government does not
interfere in religious matters. The will to change must come from the
Hindu leadership itself.
3. Non-Hindus who wish to convert to Hinduism cannot truly do so,
because the Dharmashastras make no place for them. This is very
unfortunate; arresting what was once a great enthusiasm for the Hindu
Dharma in the West.
4. Women are treated as second class citizens. A Navya Shastra would
also increase the status of women.
5. Though there are many reformist sects that have sought to redress
these inequalities, we feel it is crucially important for orthodoxy to
assent to this effort. Otherwise we will have a fractured Hinduism,
with different groups asserting that they alone represent the truth.
Please join our effort by participating in our community forum. We
welcome all sincere strategies for social change. We have an
unprecedented opportunity to make a difference together. Let?s not let
anyone else make it for us.
Truth and Tension in Science and Religion, authored by noted physicist
and religious scholar V. V Raman
Exploring the Connections and Controversies Between Science and
Religion, August 11, 2009
Article on Dalits in Leading Brazilian Newspaper in Special Edition on
India
by Mukunda Raghavan, August, 2009
Navya Shastra on Article 377
Supporters Hail Delhi’s Landmark Pro-Gay Ruling
from India West, July 09, 2009
The organization was particularly critical of the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad, which came out against Article 377. "Unable to find any
strong theological basis in Hinduism for opposing homosexuality, the
VHP relied on the old canard that the family structure would somehow
be threatened by the decision," said Sugrutha Ramaswamy, a Navya
Shastra activist. "This is an unscientific understanding of
homosexuality, which is not a lifestyle choice but rather an inherent
human condition," she added. ....
Other news coverage
Edge Boston, July 10, 2009
India Abroad on Caste in the US
Caste Adrift, May 22, 2009
Caste and US, May 22, 2009
60 seconds chief
Hindu Business Line, March 16, 2009
60 seconds chief Blog, March 16, 2009
Story of a Reformer by Jaishree Gopal, a chapter in the book
Reflections by IITians published by Ram Krishnaswamy
Excerpt from Reflections by IITians, Dec 2008
I want to change what people do and believe in Hindu society,
especially with regards to caste and gender discrimination.
Dr. Jaishree Gopal, IITM & IITD Alumna
Co Founder of Navya Shastra
Interview with D. Murali of Hindu Business Line
Future of Religious Practice
from The Hindu Business Line, Dec 22, 2008
The Hindu, Dec 21, 2008
Food for Thought, Dec 20, 2008
Navya Shastra on Proposition 8
Hindus Urged to Vote Against Prop. 8
from The Advoocate, Nov 1, 2008
Navya Shastra, the international Hindu reform organization based in
Troy, Mich., sent out a press release Friday urging California voters
to reject Proposition 8, which would eliminate the right of same-sex
couples to marry under California law. ....
Other news coverage
Chakra News, Nov 3, 2008
Go Magazine, Nov 3, 2008
Navya Shastra on "Love Guru", the Movie
Hindu reform group opposes Love Guru protests
from Hindustan Times, May 20, 2008
...Navya Shastra, the organisation based in Troy, Michigan, which
earlier spoke out against astrology, female foeticide and Dalit
discrimination, has argued that hyper-sensitivity over inaccurate or
distorted religious depictions in mass media erodes the tradition of
tolerance of criticism in the Hindu faith....
Other news coverage
Zee News, May 22, 2008
Times of India, May 21, 2008
LA Times, May 2008
Asia Arts, UCLA, May 30, 2008
Navya Shastra on Female Feticide
Navya Shastra concern over India's foeticide epidemic
from The Indian Star, May 07, 2008
...Navya Shastra also called on the Hindu community and its
organizations to allow daughters to impart final rites at the funerals
of their parents. "One religious reason why boys are favored among
Hindus is because of the anachronistic belief that only a son can
formally conduct this ceremony, so a girl is totally worthless in this
regard," said Dr. Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra Chairman....
Other news coverage
Pro-Life Blog, May 07, 2008
Also appeared in Print Edition of India West
Navya Shastra on Malaysia
Navya Shastra condemns the Government of Malaysia for anti-Hindu
discrimination
from Asian Tribune, November 27, 2007
...One Navya Shastra member who participated in the rally reported
anonymously: "We have changed the political equations at home and
inspired minorities everywhere. We walked the talk. We smelled the
tear gas and it swelled our chests. Like Rosa Parks we said, 'No!'" It
further added that Navya Shastra stands in complete solidarity with
the Hindu community and all other minorities in Malaysia who are the
victims of government persecution.... ....
Navya Shastra Award of Recognition
Navya Shastra Award to two students from Karnataka
from Manglorean.com, August 15, 2007
...These two young women have demonstrated that by challenging
outmoded institutions and customs in a personal way, one can have an
impact on society at large. To paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, it is
important for our youth to 'be the change' they want to see," said Dr.
Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra Chairman.... ....
Navya Shastra confers the title of Acharya Vidyasagar on Professor
V.V. Raman
Professor V.V. Raman receives title "Acharya Vidyasagar"
from Rochester Community Newsletter, May 28, 2007
...Navya Shastra of Troy, Michigan, the international Hindu reform
organization, honored Professor V.V. Raman by conferring on him the
title "Acharya Vidyasagar" in recognition of his many contributions to
Hinduism. Dr. Jaishree Gopal, Chairman of Navya Shastra, said “In
ancient India, an acharya was a teacher of profound truths, a guide on
the spiritual path, and someone an entire community looked up to....
Other news coverage
Metanexus Magazine, May 18, 2007
Navya Shastra on Temple Entry
Hindu reform organisation slams Jagannath temple priests
from Hindustan Times, March 5, 2007
..."We are appalled to know about the mindless throwing away of large
amounts of food by the Puri temple administration at the instigation
of pujaris (priests) with a medieval mindset at a time and place where
there are thousands of poor and hungry people," said the
organisation's chairman, Dr Jaishree Gopal. ....
Other news coverage
India's Tolerance Levels Tested as American Enters Forbidden
Sanctuary, March, 2007
Report from a Dalit village
Ghosts of the Past
from India Abroad, Feb 18, 2007
...It left me with the thought that true prosperity was impossible
until social advancement and a sense of equality became firmly
entrenched in our communities. ...
Navya Shastra on Manglik-related rituals of Aishwarya Rai
US Hindu reform group condemns rituals by Bachchan
from Daily News and Analysis, February 12, 2007
..."What concerns us is that millions of people may rationalise their
mistreatment of women based upon the Abhishek-Aishwarya example," said
Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra Chairman, in a press statement. ....
Other news coverage
Zee News, February 12, 2007
Malaysia Sun, February 12, 2007
Daily India, Fl, February 12, 2007
Philippine Times, February 13, 2007
Japan Herald, February 13, 2007
Yahoo India, Movies, February 12, 2007
The Telegraph, February 12, 2007
New Kerala, February 12, 2007
Navya Shastra Apology to Dalits
Navya Shastra Organization Apologizes for Untouchability
from Hinduism Today, hpi, December 20, 2006
We, at Navya Shastra, deeply regret and apologize for the atrocities
committed on the sons and daughters of the depressed communities of
India, including the tribals, the "untouchables" and all of the castes
deemed as low.... ....
An Unqualified Apology to Every Untouchable by Dr Bhaskar Dasgupta
from desicritic, February 2, 2006
...So here it is, I fully endorse and join Navya Shastra, in
apologising to the other castes, for what I and my forefathers may
have done and promise that I will raise my voice against this
disgusting practice, and hopefully help remove this by my words as
well as my behaviour.... . ...
Navya Shastra in Books
Opening the Doors of Wonder: Reflections on Religious Rites of Passage
by Arthur J. Magida
from Amazon, 2006
...thousand members of Navya Shastra and other reform groups are
seeking to go one step beyond Gandhi ....
Mending A Torn World: Women in Interreligious Dialogue (Faith Meets
Faith Series) by by Maura O'Neill (Paperback - Oct 31, 2007)
from Amazon, 2007
... Dr. Jaishree Gopal, a woman activist, commends the government of
India for working to end discrimination ..." ....
Navya Shastra on TV in Chennai
Temple inauguration in Dalit village, Idamani
Temple Inauguration, July 2006
...This event was aired on Chennai TV station, Thamizhan ....
California Textbook Controversy
Indian Groups Contest California Textbook Content
from New American Media, February 17, 2006
...They also say that it would serve the dalits' cause better if the
textbooks said that "untouchability is a living reality in India,"
instead of simply going by the Hindu groups' suggestion that the books
say that it is illegal to treat someone as an untouchable, Vikram
Masson, co-founder of Navya Shastra, a U.S.-based non-profit
organization that speaks out against caste-related issues, told India-
West. ....
Navya Shastra Organizations Calls for Fairer View in California
Textbooks
from HPI, February 2, 2006
...Navya Shastra is also dismayed that the school board is considering
redacting out any mention of Dalits. While the former untouchables of
India have been called or call themselves many things, including
Avarna and Harijan, the term Dalit is increasingly considered an
empowering symbol of unity among a section of the former untouchables,
including those who still retain their Hindu affiliation, and eliding
their identity must be viewed as an act of upper-caste hegemony. . ...
Hindu view on Papal Succession
Pope Vows to Pursue Outreach by Church
from Washington Post, Thursday, April 21, 2005; Page A18
..."A U.S.-based group of Hindu activists called Navya Shastra,
meanwhile, called on the pope to learn more about Hinduism. "Clearly
he is misinformed about the central practices and tenets which bind
the world's 800 million Hindus," said co-chairman Vikram Masson. ....
Other Faiths Recall Pope's Zeal as Faith Defender
from Reuters, April 20, 2005
...A U.S.-based group of world Hindu activists, Navya Shastra, hoped
the new Pope would learn more about its religion. "Ratzinger has
described Hindu meditative practices as 'auto-erotic' and has stated
that the Hindu doctrine of karma is 'morally cruel'," its co-chairman
Vikram Masson said. "Clearly he is misinformed about the central
practices and tenets which bind the world's 800 million Hindus....
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH'S VIEWS ON OTHER FAITH GROUPS, AND THEIR
REACTIONS
from Religious Tolerance
..."Dr. Jaishree Gopal, is co-chairperson of Navya Shastra. She wrote:
"What is needed now is ecumenism and mutual trust. We hope that the
new Pope comes to understand this, because religious difference and
competition is causing mounting global conflict." ....
US Hindu organisation accu
ses VHP of casteism
from Times of India, Mar 06, 2005
..."This is a bizarre act of conceptual dehumanisation," the statement
quoted Navya Shastra co-chairperson Jaishree Gopal as saying. The
statement urged all Hindu organisations involved in proselytising
activities to do away with attaching cast labels to new converts.
"Surely all modern Hindu reformers agree that there is no spiritual
merit attached to any caste affiliation," the statement added....
(This news item also appeared in various other publications: Hindustan
Times, Pluralism.org, Kerala News, Kerala Next, Express Newsline,
Yahoo India)
God's Wrath in India?
from Beliefnet, Jan 5, 2005
...Another Hindu group, the reformist Navya Shastra, issued a press
release condemning Hindu organizations that have bought into the act-
of-God view, comparing their remarks to those of Christian leaders
like Jerry Falwell. While acknowledging, like Vaishnav, that karma
could have played a role in the deaths, the group, made of Hindu
scholars, practitioners and priests outside India, suggested that it
was more important to focus on helping survivors than trying to
explain why the disaster happened. ....
Tsunami News Coverage
from Times of India, Dec 28, 2004
NEW YORK: With people relating tsunami to God's wrath, a Hindu group
is out to re-educate masses.
from Hindustan Times, Dec 28, 2004
A Michigan-based Hindu group has condemned labelling Sunday's tsunami
tragedy a "vengeful act of God" and asked the global Hindu community
to contribute generously to assist victims of the catastrophe....
from Express Newsline, Europe, Dec 28, 2004
Navya Shastra, a global organization of scholars, activists, priests
and lay people dedicated to fostering the spiritual equality of all
Hindus, has called upon the global Hindu community to contribute
generously to the victims of the December 26 earthquake-cum Tsunami
wave attack in South East Asia. ...
from Guardian UK, Dec 28, 2004
As the world grapples with the scale of the disaster of Indian Ocean
tidal wave, the Guardian's Martin Kettle poses a troubling question
for those who believe in God. ...But a Michigan-based Hindu group,
Navya Shastra, has condemned organisations in India for describing the
disaster as a "vengeful act of God" for the arrest of a Hindu seer, on
murder and other charges. ...
This news item also appeared in various other publications: Yahoo
India, MSN news, Bangladesh Sun, WebIndia, NetIndia, Manorama Online,
Kerala News, Kerala Next, ReligiousTolerance.org
Hindu American Foundation Files Amicus Brief with US Supreme Court in
Ten Commandments Case HPI
from hpi archives, Dec, 21, 2004
...The 34-page brief was signed by HAF, Arsha Vidya Pitham, Arya Samaj
of Michigan, Hindu International Council Against Defamation, Hindu
University of America, Navya Shastra, Saiva Siddhanta Church
(publisher through its teaching wing, Himalayan Academy, of Hinduism
Today and HPI), Federation of Jain Associations in North America,
Interfaith Freedom Foundation and prominent Buddhist scholar and
Director of Tibet House, Professor Robert Thurman....
Hindu group criticises Kanchi Shankaracharya
from Newindpress, Oct 15, 2004
...Navya Shastra research director Gautham Rao, said money for the
crown had come through donations and it could have been put to better
use. "Clearly at this time in Indian history, when the majority of
Indian citizens continue to live at or near poverty levels, we felt
the money should have been spent on social service," he
said.... ...Navya Shastra also questioned the participation of
(Christian) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in
the "opulent" (Hindu) ceremony.
(this news item also appeared in Yahoo India, MSN India, Indian angle,
123Bharat.com, New Kerala portals)
Hindu Temple Society of North America, et al. v. New York Supreme
Court, et al.
from Becketfund
...On September 2, 2004, ten organizations--representing various
religious denominations--submitted an amicus (friend of the court)
letter (PDF format, 66K) in support of The Becket Fund's motion for a
preliminary injunction against the defendants of the federal suit. The
Hindu American Foundation presented the letter on behalf of AGNI
Corporation, the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights, the
Hindu Human Rights Group, the Hindu International Council Against
Defamation, Hindu University of America, Ile Obatala Oya, Kanchi
Kamakoti Seva Foundation, Navya Shastra, and the Queens Federation of
Churches....
NRI group battles Hinduism's "inequalities
from India Abroad, June 18, 2004
...While the Indian government has encouraged such reforms to an
extent, the organization insists that Hindus themselves should take up
the cause while avoiding factionalism. At the same time, the group has
been critical of Dalits for highlighting caste discrimination without
actively working with Hindu leaders to resolve the problem.... ....
US body condemns discrimination against Dalit student
from Newindpress, June 06, 2004
A Hindu organisation in the US has condemned reported discrimination
against a Dalit student who was allegedly victimised for offering
prayers in a Hindu temple in India's Andhra Pradesh state....
(this news item also appeared in Yahoo India, NRI Worldwide, MSN
India, Kerala News, Kerala Next)
Local priest supports movement to reform Hindu customs
from India Herald, May 24, 2004
...Navya Shastra is a large group of believers of the Hindu Dharma
domicled in various countries. We believe that chariot of Hindu
society cannot move forward if any of the five horses lag behind. We
have therefore committed ourselves to the mission of facilitating
optimal spiritual development of all Hindus regardless of caste or
gender....
Bound by the same thread
from India Abroad, Teenspeak, Jan 23, 2004
...Let us start modifying our traditions as seen fit without
destroying the essence, beginning with allowing women and all Hindus
to take part in Upanyanam and feel equal in this manner.
Hindu Group Criticizes Dalit Representatives at World Social Forum
from HPI Archives, Jan 23, 2004
Navya Shastra, a US-based global Hindu organization of scholars,
activists, priests and laypeople, has criticized the Dalit
representatives and organizers of the World Social Forum for
highlighting the Hindu dimensions of discrimination against the Dalit
community while refusing to work with the Hindu leadership to bring
about religious reforms...
Solar Flares by Harsh Kabra
from Outlook, Dec 15, 2003
..."The Vedas and its chanting tradition form the fountainhead, the
very epicentre, of the religious beliefs of over 800 million people,"
Vikram Masson, co-chairman, NS, told Outlook from New Jersey. "Be it a
farmer in Tamil Nadu or a fisherman in Bengal, some part of his
spiritual worldview has been inspired by the utterances of the rishis.
By closeting the Vedas with other cultural expressions, UNESCO has
marginalised and diminished the most important scriptures in the Hindu
tradition."....
End caste discrimination, Hindu leaders urged
from IANS, Nov 28, 2003
...Here we have a historic opportunity to declare to the world that
Hinduism will reform itself for ever of caste discrimination," said
Vikram Masson, Navya Shastra co-chairman. "Hinduism, which is
thousands of years old, has never had a significant reformist
movement,"...
Don’t place Vedas in a cabinet of curios
from Deccan Herald, Nov 26, 2003
...Several noteworthy Hindu reformers and thinkers, including Swami
Dayanada Saraswati and Dr. Sarvapelli Radhakrishnan, have advocated
that the Vedic tradition be open to all. We should not ignore their
wisdom.
Hindu group protests clubbing Vedas with folk arts
from Hindustan Times, Nov 19 2003
A US-based Hindu organisation has protested to Unesco against its
decision to club Vedic chanting tradition as a folk art along with the
Belgian carnival of Binche and Indonesia's Wayang puppet theatre....
(this news item also appeared in Newindpress, Hinduism Today, India-
Tribune, India-West)
A New Year Resolution for Hinduism: Opening Temple Doors to All
A recent report of a study conducted across 1,655 villages in the
Indian state of Gujarat, representing 98,000 Dalits, revealed the
shocking fact that 97% of them feel that they are unwelcome at Hindu
temples, religious gatherings and public discourses on scripture.
Researchers did not find a single village that was free from the
practice of untouchability. (“No temple entry for dalits in Gujarat,”
Times of India, 7 December 2009). Such exclusion is neither infrequent
nor limited to Gujarat. The BBC News (“Fury over south India temple
ban,”15 October, 2009) reported an incident of stone throwing to
protest Dalits entering a temple near Vedaranyam in the state of Tamil
Nadu. Last month the High Court of Chennai issued an order, against
the wishes of temple trustees, that a temple procession pass through a
Dalit community in the Villipuram District. Dalit (oppressed) is the
name preferred by those who have been relegated to the lowest rungs of
the caste ladder and regarded as untouchable by members of upper
castes. Dalits constitute around 20% of the Indian population.
Although the exclusion of Dalits from places of Hindu worship ought to
be a matter of deep concern and distress, there is hardly a ripple of
protest in the sea of Hindu complacency. Shutting the doors of Hindu
temples to Dalits stands in bewildering contrast to the anxiety in
other religious traditions about dwindling numbers and the expenditure
of considerable resources to attract the faithful. It should not
surprise that those debarred from Hindu sanctums enter, in significant
numbers, the open and inviting doors of others. Those in India and
outside who are vociferous opponents of religious conversion must
understand and acknowledge the Dalit experience of the Hindu tradition
as oppressive and negating their dignity and self-worth. Conversion is
a challenge for Hindus to consider the relationship between religious
practice and systemic oppression. Exclusion from temples is only one
manifestation of such oppression.
It troubles deeply also that, with notable exceptions, the principal
voices of protest over exclusion are not those of Hindu leaders. In
the case of anti-Dalit violence in the town of Vedaranyam, referred to
above, the protests were led by supporters of the Communist Party of
India –Marxist. In other cases, secular-minded human rights activists
are at the forefront of the agitation on behalf of the Dalits. Earlier
this year, Navin Pillay, UN Commissioner for Human Rights, condemned
caste as negating the human rights principles of equality and non-
discrimination and called for a UN convention to outlaw discrimination
based on caste. The response of silence from Hindus may be interpreted
as support for barring Dalits from places of worship. Even more
importantly, indifference gives validation to the wrong impression
that the Hindu tradition has no theological ground or core for
challenging the human inequality that is at the root of the Dalit
ostracization and oppression.
The assumptions of human inequality that explain the continuing
persistence of untouchability need an urgent, vigorous and unambiguous
theological repudiation originating from the non-negotiable heart of
the Hindu tradition. Although Hinduism is admittedly diverse, its
major traditions are unanimous in affirming the equal existence of God
in every being. “God,” the Bhagavadgita proclaims, “ lives in the
heart of all beings.” This core theological teaching must become the
basis for the assertion of the equal dignity and worth of every human
being and the motivation for challenging and transforming the
oppressive structures of caste that, in reality, deny and violate the
luminous presence of God in all. Although every unjust expression of
caste needs to be denounced, the shutting of temple doors to persons
pleading for the opportunity to worship challenges, in a special way,
the meaning and legitimacy of Hinduism as a religious tradition. For
this reason, Hindus must commit themselves with tireless determination
to the work of welcoming Dalits into every Hindu place of worship.
Such work must be seen as fundamental to Hindu identity and the
meaning of belonging to the community of Hindus.
While we must commend and support Hindu leaders and movements working
already for the well being of Dalits and their equality and dignity,
we must recognize also that many Hindu leaders may not be at the
forefront of such a religiously inspired movement. They are the
beneficiaries of the privileges of caste and immune to the pain of
those who live at the margins. All Hindus who understand the
contradiction between teachings centered on God’s embodiment in every
human being and the exclusion of people from places of worship must
embrace this cause. Hindus settled outside of India who enjoy the
privileges of living in free societies and the protection of the law
against unequal and unjust treatment, have special obligations in this
matter. They need to lift their voices in protest against practices in
the name of Hinduism that denigrate human beings. They must ensure
that Hindu leaders, and especially those who travel often to the West
and who are the recipients of their donations and reverence, hear
their voices. They must make clear the unacceptability of religious
discrimination and demand that leaders renounce silence and
indifference and become active advocates for change. Every Hindu
leader must be challenged to take a stand in this matter.
The Constitution of India specifies, “The State shall not discriminate
against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of
birth.” Constitutional and legal measures, as necessary as these are,
have not and will not eliminate all forms of discrimination based on
caste inequality. Legal measures can never cause the joyous embrace of
all that follows from awakening to God’s presence in each heart.
Religious vision and wisdom can be the source of such transformed
relationships. Hinduism needs an unequivocal theological proclamation
that complements constitutional law by repudiating caste injustice and
that commits Hindus to the equal worth of all human beings. Opening
the doors of all Hindu temples to Dalits is an important step, an
urgent religious matter and an opportunity for the Hindu tradition, in
our time, to define itself. Let this be our collective Hindu
resolution in 2010.
Anantanand Rambachan
Professor and Chair
Religion Department
Saint Olaf College
1520 Saint Olaf Avenue
Northfield
MN 55057
E-mail: ramb...@stolaf.edu
http://shastras.org/rambachan.html
Exploring the Connections and Controversies Between Science and
Religion
New book provides overview and historical perspective on centuries-old
debate
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
by William Dube, Aug. 11, 2009 —
Follow William Dube on Twitter
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A new book seeks to enhance understanding of the interconnections
between science and religion and promote greater harmony in the long-
running debate between the empirical and spiritual schools of thought.
Truth and Tension in Science and Religion, authored by noted physicist
and religious scholar V. V Raman, provides a historical overview of
the development and spread of scientific inquiry and its interaction
with various religious schools of thought. It also seeks to present a
balanced review of the key tenants of both science and religion and
explore the similarities and areas for cooperation between them.
“While most people can name the many differences between scientific
inquiry and faith, there are as many similarities between the two
schools and, in fact, one has been influenced by the other for
centuries,” says Raman, professor emeritus of physics and humanities
at Rochester Institute of Technology. “Science and religion are much
more interconnected than we often realize and by examining this I hope
to reduce the tension between theologians and scientists and increase
collaboration.”
For example, Jaishree Gopal, director of Navya Shastra, the
international Hindu reform organization, notes that “even while
quoting the best of ethics from various religious traditions, Raman’s
book makes it clear that it is the modern world view, imbued with the
scientific perspective, that has led to our collective moral awakening
regarding practices such as racism, slavery and untouchability.”
Raman has spent nearly three decades studying the intersections
between philosophy, religion and science and currently serves as a
senior fellow of the Metanexus Institute on Science and Religion. He
is the author of 11 books and in 2006 was awarded the Raja Rao award
for outstanding contributions to South Asian literature.
http://www.rit.edu/news/?v=46939
Indian GLBTs the World Over Hail Sexual Decriminalization Ruling
by Kilian Melloy
Friday Jul 10, 2009
Indian GLBT equality proponent Manohar Elavarthi
The decriminalization of same-gender intimacy between consenting
adults in India is viewed by GLBT equality advocates as a major step
forward, but not a cure-all for the societal prejudices faced by
Indian gays.
As reported at New American Media on July 10, the section of the
Indian penal code, Article 377--a relic of the days when Britain
dominated the country under colonial rule--was struck down on Jyly 2
by the Delhi High Court, which found the law to be in violation of
constitutional protections.
The article carried a quoted from GLBT equality proponent Sandip Roy,
who said, "The community here has reacted ecstatically. Most people I
talked to said over and over again that they did not think it would
happen in their lifetime."
Celebrations took place all over the globe. Said Roy, "There were
impromptu celebrations in many cities. People went down to the
Stonewall Inn in New York where the modern gay rights movement began
in 1969.
"In San Francisco, friends distributed mithai at a bar in Castro.
"With Facebook and e-mail these days, the news was huge news as soon
as it broke," Roy noted.
The article cited a Berkeley, CA life coach, Krishnakali Chaudhuri, as
also hailing the ruling, though he tempered his remarks with the
observation that societal bias still remains.
"I think overall it’s a small step in the right direction," said
Chaudhuri, "but we have a long way to go."
One specific point of note, said Choudhury, was the distinction
between decriminalizing same-sex consensual intimacy between adults
and making it legal.
Said Chaudhury, "The international community of human rights is really
applauding the ruling but we have to understand that we have just
decriminalized homosexuality but we haven’t legalized it yet."
Added the GLBT equality advocate, "We need to legalize homosexuality
and then we can make changes to all the qualities of workplace,
marriage unions or health or everything else."
The article said that an American organization comprised of Indian
Americans had also hailed the court’s decision.
The Michigan-based Hindu organization Navya Shastra issued a statement
reading, "For over a century, the law has given license to the state
to persecute individuals based on their sexual orientation.
"Navya Shastra urges the Government of India not to challenge the
ruling or to be swayed by religious chauvinists of any persuasion who
would deny equality to all citizens based on ancient interpretations
of religious texts."
The group took exception to the opposition of a Hindu political party
in India, which spoke out against the repeal.
Stated Navya Shastra’s Sugrutha Ramaswamy, "Unable to find any strong
theological basis in Hinduism for opposing homosexuality, the VHP
relied on the old canard that the family structure would somehow be
threatened by the decision."
Added Ramaswamy, "This is an unscientific understanding of
homosexuality, which is not a lifestyle choice but rather an inherent
human condition."
Others in India also spoke out against the repeal, including a guru
whose claims concerning the health benefits of yoga extend to saying
that gays can be "cured" through the practice of yoga.
A Rediff News.com article from July 10 reported that guru Baba
Ramdev’s insistence that homosexuality is a pathological condition,
and that it can be alleviated through yogic practice, was panned not
only by health professionals but also by his fellow yoga proponents.
The article said that Ramdev took his claims to the Indian Supreme
Court, which had previously been approached by a prominent astrologer
with a petition to re-implement the anti-gay statute.
Said the astrologer, Sushil Kumar Kaushal, "...even animals don’t
indulge in such activities," going on to assert that higher rates of
HIV/AIDS would result from the decriminalization of adult consensual
relations between gays.
But health care professionals in the country have long lobbied for the
end of the statute, pointing out that gay Indians were less likely to
get tested and to practice safer sex as long as legal sanctions were
in place against consensual same-sex adult intimacy.
Under the anti-gay law, same-sex intimacy could be punished by jail
terms of up to ten years.
Moreover, scientists have noted same-sex courtship behavior and even
long-term partnering among some 4,000 animal species.
Ramdev’s claims were rebuffed by, among others, a physician named Dr.
Devdutt Pattanak, who said, "Is his statement based on scriptural
evidence or evidence-based medicine? It is neither."
Added Dr. Pattanak, "It is just a subjective remark."
Dr. Pattanak went on to point out that health professionals had
arrived at a quite different conclusion than had Ramdev.
"Thousands of hours of research have gone into the classification of
diseases, and neither the World Health Organization nor any
psychiatric or psychology journal recognizes homosexuality as a
disease," Dr. Pattanak noted.
"Do we believe scientific research or just an individual’s opinion,
which may simply be a marketing gimmick?"
Yoga practitioner Deepika Mehta, who found healing through yoga after
being paralyzed in an accident, also spoke out against Ramdev’s
claims, the article said.
Ms. Mehta took exception with Ramdev’s essential thesis that
homosexuality is a disease, suggesting rather that, as most medical
experts attest, it is innate and natural to gays.
Said Mehta, "Yoga is about acceptance and coming to terms with who you
really are, your purest core.
"It helps you shed the layers imposed by society.
"And in my experience, yoga has helped a lot of people come to terms
with their sexual orientation, rather than live in denial," added Ms.
Mehta.
Furthermore, Ramdev’s medical claims have no more basis in spiritual
teaching than in medical fact. Said Dr. Pattanak, "Not even the
scriptures recognize homosexuality as a disease."
The article quoted from an article Dr. Pattanak, who is also an expert
in Indian mythology, had written.
"An overview of temple imagery, sacred narratives and religious
scriptures does suggest that homosexual activities--in some form--did
exist in ancient India," observed Dr. Pattanak’s article.
"Though not part of the mainstream, its existence was acknowledged but
not approved," the article continued. "There was some degree of
tolerance when the act expressed itself in heterosexual terms--when
men ’became women’ in their desire for other men, as the hijra legacy
suggests.’"
Nitin Karani, of the GLBT equality group Humsafar Trust, noted, "While
we don’t know what leads to it yet... we do know that homosexuality is
innate.
"And it is not a Western phenomenon, as some people are trying to
label it," added Karani.
"Neither is it a disease."
Noted Karani, "A lot of gay people I know are into yoga and meditation
and are extremely spiritual, but it has not resulted in any overnight
conversions."
In a separate interview published July 10, Rediff.com News spoke with
Indian GLBT equality proponent Manohar Elavarthi, who told the
publication, "Now it is a question of social tolerance. Just because
the law has changed it does not mean that the attitude of the people
will change.
"However, I must add that the court verdict has opened things up for
all of us. I only hope that the Supreme Court upholds the verdict."
Added Elavarthi, "What we want is a complete repeal of the Section 377
of the Indian Penal Code.
"The IPC is guided by a feudal set up and it has not changed with the
times," Elavarthi went on. "About social acceptance, we need to work
towards it.
Elavarthi reposnded to concerns that repealing the entire Article,
which also addresses sexual assault and abuse, by saying, "...along
with this we need to ensure that laws regarding sexual abuse, be it
male or female or children related laws need to be strengthened."
Elavarthi noted that religious objections were not entirely grounded
in scriptural sources.
"In Hinduism there is nothing to show that it is anti-homosexuality."
Indeed, added Elavarthi, "There are instances to show that some of the
Gods have undergone a sex change.
"I don’t understand how Baba Ramdev and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad are
opposing this.
"Where Christianity is concerned," Elavartha continued, "the community
is divided in its opinion.
"There are gay churches and the Vatican too says that gays should not
be criminalized.
"Speaking of Islam, there are few who claim that the Quran says that
it is anti homosexuality.
"Shariat law speaks of punishment for men indulging in homosexuality.
However we don’t have this law in India and the laws in India does not
speak of any punishment."
Kilian Melloy reviews media, conducts interviews, and writes
commentary for EDGEBoston, where he also serves as Assistant Arts
Editor.
http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=93587
http://shastras.org/indiaabroad1
http://shastras.org/indiaabroad2
http://www.blonnet.com/mentor/2009/03/16/stories/0316.pdf
http://60secondschief.blogspot.com/
http://reflectionsbyiitians.blogspot.com/
Future religious practice
Jaishree Gopal, Co-Founder & Chairperson, Navya Shastra, US.
India is perhaps the only place in the world where people of different
religions have been interacting with one another for centuries. In the
West, however, this is the first time they are interacting with many
religions, including those from the East, as a result of modernisation
and globalisation.
Though traditionally religions have been dividing us all, we have
become more conscious of the differences as a result of increased
knowledge about other religions. However, eventually, people are going
to be learning from one another. For instance, yoga and meditation
practices from Hinduism are very common in the US. And some of the oft-
emulated messages of Christianity and Islam are charity and peace,
respectively.
Thus, even though you may continue to identify yourself to a
particular religion, you are going to be incorporating in your life
good elements from other people’s religion, while at the same time
discarding those aspects of your religion that don’t seem right to you
any more. As a result, compassion is going to increase for those whom
we call ‘others’. Definitely, the way we practise our religion is
going to change in the future, more and more.
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/mentor/2008/12/22/stories/2008122250421100.htm
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Jaishree Gopal
It is very important for all Indians to get involved in social reform
movement of all kinds, and especially think of caste and gender issues
in Hinduism without being defensive or apologetic, with an eye to
reform rather than justify the current exclusive practices.
Jaishree Gopal, A contributor to 'Reflections by IITians', Co-founder
of Navya Shastra (http://www.shastras.org/)
December 20, 9.15 am
The future of religious practice
Posted by Murali at 9:15 AM
AM I A HINDU? International Best Seller said...
Namasthe Jaishree: What you wrote is very true.
Every religion and every culture has the GOOD, the BAD and UGLY
aspects in it and dwell on the negative aspects do not make any sense.
At the same time, we have to do everything in our power to eradicate
BAD and UGLY aspects where ever we find them.
The very best aspect of Hinduism is
"ABOSULTE FREEDOM OF THOUGHTS AND ACTIONS."
Voltaire in Essay on Tolerance wrote: "I may disagree with what you
say, but I will defend to the death, your right to say it. "Hinduism
is the symbolic representation of what Voltaire wrote.
May 26, 2009 7:41 PM
http://muralilistening.blogspot.com/2008/12/jaishree-gopal.html
November 01, 2008
Hindus Urged to Vote Against Prop. 8
Navya Shastra, the international Hindu reform organization based in
Troy, Mich., sent out a press release Friday urging California voters
to reject Proposition 8, which would eliminate the right of same-sex
couples to marry under California law.
Navya Shastra, the international Hindu reform organization based in
Troy, Mich., sent out a press release Friday urging California voters
to reject Proposition 8, which would eliminate the right of same-sex
couples to marry under California law.
The organization notes that Hinduism has never classified
homosexuality as a sin. While some ancient law codes have been
critical of homosexual acts, the denomination has never called for the
persecution of gays. In fact, there is ample evidence that alternative
lifestyles have been accepted throughout Hindu history. Several modern
Hindu leaders have also spoken positively of gay rights; however, many
American Hindus remain uncomfortable with homosexuality.
“According to the Hindu contemplative tradition, we are all
manifestations of the one universal spirit, straight or gay, and
worthy of the same respect and rights” said Jaishree Gopal, chairman
of Navya Shastra, in the release. “We urge American Hindus in
California to remember this central insight of their faith when they
vote on November 4.” (The Advocate)
http://www.advocate.com/article.aspx?id=42352
US-based Hindu group slams Jagannath temple priests
New York, March 05, 2007
Published: 17:21 IST (5/3/2007)
A US-based Hindu reform organisation has criticised the destroying of
huge quantities of food at the Jagannath temple in Orissa by the
temple authorities because an American had entered the complex - an
act seen as defiling the 12th century Hindu-only premises.
The Navya Shastra, an international Hindu reform organisation, said
the act of the temple authorities had no vedic sanction.
"We are appalled to know about the mindless throwing away of large
amounts of food by the Puri temple administration at the instigation
of pujaris (priests) with a medieval mindset at a time and place where
there are thousands of poor and hungry people," said the
organisation's chairman, Dr Jaishree Gopal.
A 59-year-old American engineer from New York was thrown out of the
temple complex last Thursday, fined, taken to a local police station
and later released, despite his protestations that he was unaware of
the temple's restrictions.
The Michigan-based Navya Shastra was founded in the United States in
2002. According to its website, the organisation stands against
"...caste hierarchy and caste injustices, not only because they are
not sanctioned in the Vedas, but also because they are morally wrong,
unacceptable, and anachronistic in the world in which we live.
"Given the high levels of malnutrition among India's children, this
act (throwing away food), assuredly without vedic sanction, must be
deemed unacceptable," a press release by the organisation, said.
"The organisation is saddened and surprised that no Hindu leader of
any consequence has protested this unconscionable and anachronistic
behaviour. Instead of purifying the premises, the priests should seek
to purify their own hearts and minds, and, along with other leaders,
set a positive example for all devotees," said Dr Bala Aiyer, an
advisor of the organisation said.
Foreigners are not allowed to enter leading Hindu temples in Orissa,
including the Jagannath temple at Puri and the Lingaraj temple there.
An American Christian woman, Pamela K. Fleig, who converted to
Hinduism after marrying an Indian from Uttar Pradesh, was denied entry
into the 11th century Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar in 2005.
Thailand's Crown Princess Sirindhorn was also not given permission to
visit the Jagannath temple in the same year, as she was a foreigner
and Buddhist.
Even late prime minister Indira Gandhi - a born Hindu - was not
allowed to enter the temple when she was in power because she had
married a Parsi.
http://shastras.org/mukundabrazil
Hindu group opposes Love Guru protests
New York, May 22: A Hindu reform organisation in the US has opposed
the growing protests by Hindu groups against upcoming Hollywood film
The Love Guru , saying that calling for a ban on the comedy starring
Mike Myers would be going too far.
Navya Shastra, the organisation based in Troy, Michigan, which earlier
spoke out against astrology, female foeticide and Dalit
discrimination, has argued that hyper-sensitivity over inaccurate or
distorted religious depictions in mass media erodes the tradition of
tolerance of criticism in the Hindu faith.
"Hindus have a remarkable history of freedom of thought and
expression. Unfortunately, this is being eroded these days by
hypersensitive and misguided chauvinistic pressure groups, perhaps
taking their cue from more chauvinistic traditions," Gautham Rao,
Navya Shastra's research director, was quoted as saying in a press
release.
It said while it respects the right of the groups in the US and
elsewhere to protest against the film, it strongly believes that
calling for a ban on the comedy goes too far.
The reform organisation further notes that in the era of electronic
media, monitoring and controlling religious depictions and imagery is
a daunting, near impossible task.
"Hindus should set a spiritual example for others by combating social
ills and discrimination," said Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra
chairman.
The protests against the film, which opens June 20, have been
spearheaded by Rajan Zed, Hindu leader based in Reno, Nevada. On
watching the film's trailer some weeks ago, he started accusing the
film of lampooning Hinduism.
Bureau Report
http://international.zeenews.com/inner1.asp?aid=201859&sid=bus
Navya Shastra concern over India's foeticide epidemic
From the Community
Posted: Wednesday, May 07, 2008, 01:17 am EST
Troy, Michigan: Navya Shastra, the international Hindu reform
organization has voiced concern over the declining female-to male sex
ratio in India.
It calls Indian feminist leaders to address the causes for this
deplorable situation and to urge their government to take more
effective action to curb and put an end to this sad and disgraceful
situation in the country.
It is ironic that the epidemic continues to worsen, despite a
burgeoning economy and rising literacy levels.
The bias against girls has existed for a long time across the
socioeconomic spectrum. Navya Shastra notes that even in the
wealthiest areas of the nation's metros, abortions of the girl-child
based upon prenatal ultrasound technology continue to rise, though
there seems to be a growing awareness of the problem.
"Clearly a cultural preference for boys in Indian society is the
driving force behind the rise in female feticide," says Rahul Saxena,
a Navya Shastra member from Bareilly, UP , "technology in this case is
simply serving an ancient prejudice."
Navya Shastra also called on the Hindu community and its organizations
to allow daughters to impart final rites at the funerals of their
parents. "One religious reason why boys are favored among Hindus is
because of the anachronistic belief that only a son can formally
conduct this ceremony, so a girl is totally worthless in this regard,"
said Dr. Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra Chairman.
(Compiled from a press release)
From India Abroad February 16, 2007, Pg M11
Ghosts of the Past
Ramya Gopal visits an Indian village where time and tradition appear
to have stood still
The urban scene of India has become a dichotomy between prosperity and
poverty, modernity and tradition. Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore are
hungry for steel: tall skyscrapers, metro stations, and multistoried
shopping complexes. However, the morning warbles of the subjilawallas,
the colorful temptation of street clothing, and the barber under the
banyan tree have refused to disappear into wistful oblivion.
This modern story of India is one with which we have all become
familiar; the miracle India praised on the covers of magazines and
newspapers. Yet in its villages, this dichotomy is replaced by a one-
sided reliance on ancient tradition. When I visited a village near
Chennai this past summer, I saw for the first time the archaic India
described in the stories of the Mahabharatha and the Ramayana.
As we drove away from Chennai, the roads dwindled from paved to dirt
and then sand. The air of the coast was permeated by a pungent odor of
fish, but one that the people seemed to relish. The hot sand calloused
my feet but there was no litter for me to avoid as I had in the
cities. Women in colorful saris and men in dhotis were squatted on the
slimy floor sorting the fish. Repulsed, I strayed away from the stink,
but it nostalgically reminded me that fishing villages initiated the
story of the Mahabharata. Satyavati, the embodiment of mothers in the
epic, was the daughter of a fisherman, and it seemed as if these
fishermen were continuing the legacy. Interrupting my musing, my host
beckoned me to a row of small motorboats shuddering against the coast.
Boats were the only method of transportation across the lake and to
the village.
On the island, I walked, with seaweed in my toes, past small huts with
thatched roofs. The main attraction in the island was an ornate temple
surrounded by everyone in the village. A tent had been strung beyond
with seats lined in rows like a movie theatre. I stood awkwardly in
the sun, unsure of the village mores, until a few older girls beckoned
to me. They had pulled out a chair and formed a towering circle around
me. The girls had matching plaits and silver anklets.
A few were wearing simple cotton pavadais (petticoats), more
traditional to Tamil Nadu, although one was wearing a nightgown. We
gawked politely at each other; American suburban girl meets Indian
village girls. "Why do you have your hair like that? In a bun?" they
asked me in Tamil. Taken aback, I didn't have an adequate response, so
I steered the conversation away from me to them. I discovered that the
girls were between 18 and 20 but had only studied in school until 10th
grade. In between giggles, they added that one of them was engaged.
The girls were at the ripe age for marriage and their parents were
looking for grooms for them. However, they could not marry out of
their village because it was the only "untouchable" village in the
area. This social discrimination as a result of caste distinction
echoed again in their stories about the old temple.
One reason for my visit to Idamani--the place I was in-- was to
witness the opening ceremony of a new temple. The old temple had been
destroyed by the tsunami two years ago. As the girls began to open up
to me, I listened to their stories of backward practices associated
with the temple. One example was the men's inability to wear a poonal,
the sacred thread, because they were not "upper caste". Other families
would not even visit their homes because they were untouchables. Women
were not allowed in the temple when the men held their meetings. These
restrictive traditions had been eradicated in the cities and other
parts of the world but persisted in this village.
The inauguration ceremony of the temple was announced by the ringing
tones of the nadaswaram and the temple quickly became crowded. Some
women looked out coyly from their thatched huts. Young girls were made
up in magenta colored lipstick, designs around their eyes, and traces
of dried turmeric on their faces. In the center of the temple was a
large (homam )fire and shahstri (priest) sang bhajans with the
villagers repeating after him, clapping. Colorful flowers, rice, and
butter for prasadam on aged yellow banana leaves completed the
ceremony.Interestingly, while members of the "higher" caste had rarely
visited the old temple, the inauguration ceremony had been attended by
many outsiders. The new temple would, hopefully, become an emblem of
caste reform.
Even as economic development brings modernity to India's villages,
strong social divides still linger. In this village, for instance,
water purification infrastructure has been put into place yet women
still quit studying in favor of marriage. It was the most striking
difference between the city and the village; caste lines more sharply
divided and a central part of daily life. It left me with the thought
that true prosperity was impossible until social advancement and a
sense of equality became firmly entrenched in our communities.
http://shastras.org/Untouchability_IA.html
India's Tolerance Levels Tested as American Enters Forbidden Sanctuary
Deepak Mahaan
Correspondent
New Delhi (CNSNews.com) - An American tourist caused an uproar when he
wandered into a Hindu temple strictly closed to non-Hindus, in an
incident that highlighted the challenges India faces in presenting
itself as an enlightened democracy.
Detained for several hours by local police in India's Orissa state,
Paul Roediger, a 59-year-old engineer from New York, was later
released on condition he pay a token fine, after what authorities at
the Jagannath temple called an "act of desecration."
Roediger's inadvertent wandering into the shrine of Hindu deity Vishnu
triggered calls from some Hindus for severe punishment, but local
policemen managed to convince temple administrators and angry
adherents that he had trespassed in error.
Unaware of rules banning entry of non-Hindus, the American, who is
interested in temple architecture, walked into the temple's inner
"sanctum sanctorum."
Roediger expressed regret but also blamed temple authorities, noting
that no guard had prevented him from entering the area.
Police Inspector Alekh Pahi said Roediger and two Indian companions
had been released as "there is no provision in law to take any action
against for entering the temple."
Temple authorities afterwards "purified" the "defiled" premises by
washing with water and milk. Food worth nearly $5,000, meant for
distribution among Hindu devotees as part of religious ritual, was
deemed "polluted" and destroyed.
The decision upset a U.S.-based Hindu reform organization, which said
it was appalled by the waste.
The Navya Shastra organization said it reflected "a medieval mindset
at a time and place where there are thousands of poor and hungry
people."
The incident has focused renewed attention onto controversial
religious and cultural practices that survive in India despite its
stated commitment to secular, democratic principles.
"Low-caste" citizens and "untouchables" (dalits) are still denied
entry to various temples or forbidden to use water wells, in
contravention of constitutional guarantees.
Dr. Rashmi Patni, director of the Gandhian Studies Centre at the
University of Rajasthan, argues that such customs go against the
tenets of Mahatma Gandhi who he said stood for human dignity and
equality irrespective of caste, sex, creed or color and fought for
temple entry for dalits.
"Like in every society, social discrimination in India is born out of
centuries' old legacy," she said. "It is similar to the problem and
differences among blacks and whites in the U.S. and cannot be
eradicated merely by enactment of constitutional statutes."
Patni said, however, that the growing affluence of the middle class,
increasing literacy levels and the spread of information technology
was making issues of caste, gender and religion of little importance
to younger Indians.
Sawai Singh, an activist espousing Gandhi's ideas, said successive
Indian governments have failed to curb the menace of religious
intolerance, because politicians prefer to pander to their respective
constituencies.
"If punishments for social discrimination and depravation were to be
severe, many of these evils would get eradicated automatically," Singh
argued.
Ironically, the Jagannath temple is immensely popular among pilgrims,
because unlike some centers, it does not discriminate between higher-
and lower-caste Hindus.
Nonetheless, the temple does not allow entry to non-Hindus or
foreigners - with the exception of Western Hare Krishna devotees, who
throng to the temple each year in large numbers.
Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was once turned away from
the main gates of the shrine, as she was deemed to be non-Hindu,
having married outside of the religion.
Make media inquiries or request an interview about this article.
http://www.crosswalk.com/news/11531055/
An Unqualified Apology to Every Untouchable
December 19, 2006
Dr Bhaskar Dasgupta
http://desicritics.org/2006/12/19/103610.php
The untouchables of Hinduism are a wretched lot. For hundreds and
thousands of years, this group of people have been forced to inhabit
the bottom end of the Hindu totem pole.
While it is not at the level of genocide, it is an institutionalised
social
discrimination over a very long period of time. When I read a press
release from a Hindu reformist group apologising to the Untouchables
for the deep seated discrimination, it struck a chord in my mind and I
wanted to write about it, as well as share in this apology.
For example, only recently there was a big brouhaha when a temple in
India refused entry to dalits (who are also Hindu) simply because they
were of a lower caste. In this day and age! I was so furious and when
I complained bitterly that none of the mainstream Hindu organisations
or leaders in India did anything, I was accused of patronising them.
These so-called Hindu organisations are very quick off the mark when
absolutely silly things go on, but when there is clear cut painfully
evident confirmation that there needs to be reform, they are nowhere
to be found. This is absolutely ridiculous and a clear example of
intellectual incoherence at best and incompetence at worst. But I
digress.
Apologies are very strange and at the same time, very human. It is
extremely powerful and at the same time, looked upon with deep
cynicism. It is also extremely difficult to do so, while there is
nothing like this to draw the teeth out of any angst ridden situation.
Just ask me, I have to apologise regularly to my sister. But this
apology is one, which is valid on so many different levels and this is
an apology to the untouchables of Hinduism.
The basics of this religiously mandated behaviour are well known and I
will not spend too much time on going deeper into the intricacies of
this. Other than saying that the idea of difference and discrimination
was institutionalised despite a huge amount of debate on what this
differentiation meant. On one hand, there were statements effectively
saying that everybody is born the same, while on the other hand, there
are statements in religious books talking about how some are born from
the head and some from the foot. Irrespective of what the religious
justification is, one found that there are literally thousands of
groups who consider themselves different from other groups. This
groupism extended to bans on intermarriage, taking meals together and
even extended to group dedicated watering holes and wells.
Quite a lot of Hindu reformers ranging from Swami Vivekananda, Mahatma
Gandhi, Guru Rabindranath Tagore, Dayananda Saraswati, etc. kept a
strong pressure on changing this religious practise, but even when
India became independent, this was still present.
The then leader of the untouchables, Shri Bhimrao Ambedkar, a
brilliant lawyer, even incorporated caste based reservations into the
constitution, to provide them with the leg up.
As it so happens, this is something which I disagree with, because
this has institutionalised discrimination and is not leading anybody
anywhere towards the true equality in the eyes of the state and
citizens, but that's beside the point.
Discrimination was outlawed by the Indian constitution in 1936, but
little has changed for the 300-400 million people who belonged to the
Untouchable Castes of India. I am also conscious of the fact that
calling it 'the caste system' is dangerously simplifying it, as the
actual theological aspects behind the differentiation is much more
complex.
What is also beside the point is that all other religions and cultures
have had the same groupism and differentiation and were trying to
create a separate identity through religious or cultural factors.
Whether we are talking about the Japanese way of looking at the
difference between the samurai and peasants, the difference between
the faithful and the dhimmi, the difference between Catholics and
Protestants, the difference between white and black skin, the
difference between Christian and pagan, you name it, discrimination
has occurred all the time and everywhere. And yes, just because it
happened in other religious, regions and cultures, it just tells me
that it is pretty much human. This is, however, neither an excuse nor
a reason to stop trying to rip out this disgusting practise.
But what good is an apology? We have to address the cynics in our
midst as well, because I have seen this form of visceral reaction from
both sides.
The side of the Hindus, who totally refuse to accept that this
happened and go off into theological arguments and ignore the real
life actions around discrimination. The other side are the Dalits, who
would be happy to tear down the entire country to satisfy their rather
strange desire for revenge. Both extremely simplistic in the extreme
and frankly not worth talking to or about, but then, that's what
happens to fanatics. Their feet are planted firmly in the air!
But this is not for the fanatics, they won't listen anyway, it is for
the vast majority of Hindus, people who have a social conscience, care
about their culture and are conscious of a vast historical injustice
done to a whole group of other people. And it is not a simple binary
equation, high class Brahmins discriminating against lower class
dalits. It happens on every group intersection, so there is no point
in getting up on the high horse about just one group.
An apology is a very good means to bring things out in the open.
Hiding behind a religious tract or pointing at other instances does
not change the situation on the ground. Every Hindu has to be open
about this discrimination, and understand what this has done to us,
our culture, history and reputation. No longer! This apology means
that we understand and accept the fault. Not only that, but an apology
actually provides the impetus or the foundation to do something about
it.
This is the other good thing about an apology for the cynics out
there. Once one has gone through the cathartic process of apologising,
one can start to address this issue, if only by small measures. If a
friend says something demeaning about a lower caste person, even a
raised eyebrow is a small but significant step in telling people that
this form of behaviour is not appropriate.
One will definitely ask me the question if somebody might actually
accept the apology? I am afraid this is the wrong question. When Tony
Blair apologised for the British role in Slavery, he did not do it
because he was worried whether anybody might or might not accept it.
He did it because this was the right thing to do. Despite the fact
that I am personally not responsible for this reprehensible and
horrible historical fact, as a Hindu and as a human being, it is but
right to apologise. As a Hindu, I hold responsibility to my religion,
my nation, my society, my government, and indeed to my children as
well. An apology can, in a small way, lead towards making the world a
fairer place.
The Hindu Reformist group, Navya Shastra (http://www.shastras.org/),
who actually made the public apology, also invited a whole host of
other Hindu luminaries to join in this effort. I am not sure how far
this went but it should be remembered that this caste based
discrimination is not simply religiously mandated, but also socially
mandated. Hence besides religious figures, cultural and social figures
need to be brought into this as well. In many ways, an appeal by one
of the Bollywood actors may actually provide more push to changes in
behaviour, rather than very many Hindu religious leaders combined. But
still, more luminaries joining in to complain, apologise and push
Indians to remove this distressing social condition is good.
So here it is, I fully endorse and join Navya Shastra, in apologising
to the other castes, for what I and my forefathers may have done and
promise that I will raise my voice against this disgusting practice,
and hopefully help remove this by my words as well as my behaviour.
At the UN World Conference on Race (WCAR) held August 31-September 8
2001 in Durban, South Africa, President Thabo Mbeki said:"...there are
many in our common world who suffer indignity and humiliation because
they are not white ...These are a people who know what it means to be
the victim of rabid racism and racial discrimination. Nobody ever
chose to be a slave, to be colonised, to be racially oppressed. The
impulses of the time caused these crimes to be committed by human
beings against others."
And while there was quite a hullabaloo about whether 'casteism' is
appropriate in this race conference, this is quibbling over details.
Discrimination existed, it exists and it behoves us to address it. May
this apology be a first start to a better implementation of religion!
All this to be taken with a grain of salt!
Dr. Bhaskar Dasgupta works in the city of London in various capacities
in the financial sector. He has worked and travelled widely around the
world. The articles in here relate to his current studies and are
strictly his opinion and do not reflect the position of his past or
current employer(s). If you do want to blame somebody, then blame my
sister and editor, she is responsible for everything, the ideas, the
writing, the quotes, the drive, the israeli-palestinian crisis, global
warming, the ozone layer depletion and the argentinian debt crisis.
Indian Groups Contest California Textbook Content
India-West, News Report, Viji Sundaram, Posted: Feb 16, 2006
HAYWARD, Calif. – Even as the California Board of Education (CBE) is
trying to grapple with the contentious and loudly debated issue of
corrections requested from Hindu groups in proposed textbooks for
sixth-graders, another group is trying to make its voice heard over
the din.
Some dalits (widely thought of in India as an oppressed people) across
the U.S. are demanding that the term, dalit, used only in one of the
nine proposed textbooks currently being reviewed by the CBE, not be
elided (omitted), as the Hindu groups want, and that a photo of a
dalit cleaning a latrine be replaced with one of a dalit engaged in a
faith practice.
They also say that it would serve the dalits' cause better if the
textbooks said that "untouchability is a living reality in India,"
instead of simply going by the Hindu groups' suggestion that the books
say that it is illegal to treat someone as an untouchable, Vikram
Masson, co-founder of Navya Shastra, a U.S.-based non-profit
organization that speaks out against caste-related issues, told India-
West.
Acknowledging that "the Hinduism sections (in the textbooks) are
extremely poor to begin with" and need to be corrected, Masson, who is
himself not a dalit and is a parent of a school-going child in New
Jersey, observed: "It is curious (the Hindu groups) would want to
elide the word, dalit. We believe the heritage of Hinduism is positive
enough, and there is no need to cover up any inadequacies."
New Jersey resident Jebaroja Singh, whose dalit grandparents converted
to Christianity many years ago, seemed to echo those sentiments.
"When there has been a history of discrimination against dalits, why
should we paint a rosy picture in the textbooks?" asked Singh, who
teaches racism and sexism in the U.S. at William Patterson University
in Wayne, N.J. Masson is married to a Christian priest.
But others argue that since the textbooks primarily deal with ancient
India, a time when the word, dalit, was not even coined, to not remove
it would be inappropriate.
For over a year now, two U.S.-based Hindu groups - the Hindu Education
Foundation and the Vedic Foundation - as well as scores of Hindu
parents, have been pushing for corrections in the social studies and
history courses in the sixth-grade textbooks, saying that the books
not only do not accurately represent India's ancient culture and
history, they sometimes denigrate it. Every six years, textbook
publishers offer the CBE drafts of textbooks they plan to bring out
for the board's acceptance. Public hearings form an integral part of
the review process.
At those hearings last year, the Hindu groups asserted that the books
were historically inaccurate in saying such things as Hinduism evolved
in India from the Aryans who invaded the country in 1500 B.C.; that
Sanskrit was a dead language; that Hindi is written in Arabic script;
that the Aryan rulers had created a caste system, under which the
dalits were forced to perform menial tasks.
According to many scholars, prior to 600 A.D., the terms used in India
to describe a so-called untouchable were chandala and shudra, and only
about one percent of the population fell under that category.
Citing from the book, "The Wonder That Was India," by the late ancient
history scholar A.L. Basham, southern California resident and retired
UCLA ancient history professor Shiva Bajpai told India-West: "In fact,
it was not blood that made a group untouchable, but conduct."
"So a Brahmin could be viewed as a chandala if he behaved badly,"
Bajpai said.
Over the last several decades, the term dalit – a Marathi word that
means oppressed - has been gaining more currency in India, with the
rise of growing activism among the approximately 150 million people at
the bottom of the caste system, who accuse members of the upper caste
of pervasive discrimination for centuries.
The late Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution,
struggled to win dalits like himself equal rights. He renounced
Hinduism in the process, saying the religion perpetuated the caste
system. Mahatma Gandhi worked toward uplifting the dalits' status,
bestowing upon them the term, Harijan, which means "children of God."
However, many dalits and activists do not like to be called that.
"They say if you are born from God, your parentage is questionable,"
said Masson.
Even the group of historians and academics headed by Harvard
University Sanskrit professor Michael Witzel, who is opposing many of
the corrections the Hindu groups have suggested, accusing them of
attempting to whitewash Indian history, has accepted the Hindu groups'
suggestion to delete negative references to untouchability, said Santa
Rosa, Calif., resident Vishal Agarwal, who described himself as an
"independent scholar."
Related Stories:
Missing from Racism Summit Agenda - India's Caste System
America: Welcome to the Third World
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=41bc3d55ffe78d0686112ba99ae75766
US Hindu organisation accuses VHP of casteism
IANS[ SUNDAY, MARCH 06, 2005 07:27:31 PM ]
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MICHIGAN: A US-based Hindu organisation has accused the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad (VHP) of "casteist practices" at a mass conversion campaign
in Etah in Uttar Pradesh last month.
Navya Shastra, the organisation which boasts of scholars and priests
"dedicated to fostering the spiritual equality of all Hindus" among
its followers, said the VHP, which claimed to have converted 5,000
Christians to Hinduism at Etah, had classified them as Dalits in their
new religion.
"While we applaud all efforts to spread the Hindu religion through
peaceful and legitimate means, we are utterly baffled that the VHP
would insist that the new converts be labelled as untouchables," it
said in a statement here.
"This is a bizarre act of conceptual dehumanisation," the statement
quoted Navya Shastra co-chairperson Jaishree Gopal as saying.
The statement urged all Hindu organisations involved in proselytising
activities to do away with attaching cast labels to new converts.
"Surely all modern Hindu reformers agree that there is no spiritual
merit attached to any caste affiliation," the statement added.
Organisations like the VHP, which envisions a caste-free society,
should follow their own advice, it maintained.
God's Wrath in India?
Hindu resentment over Christian activity in India fuels religious
explanations of tsunami tragedy.
BY: Arun Venugopal
Resize - Minus Resize - Plus As the world attempts to tackle the
tragedy in South Asia, the focus for the vast majority of South Asians
has been on relief. But the tsunami has also magnified already-
existing tensions between Hindus, Christians and others in the
devastated region. In India--a country often seen as a spiritual
battleground, where religions fight over the souls of the poor and
dispossessed--some conservative Hindus have used the tsunami to
criticize both a Hindu leader's arrest and the presence of Christian
missionaries in India. Meanwhile, evangelical Christian groups may
proselytize as they help tsunami victims.
Last week, a column on the widely-read Indian news site Rediff.com
suggested that the tsunami was a sign of retribution against
Christians, whose activities are seen as betraying India's essentially
Hindu character. (Full disclosure: I work for a publication owned by
Rediff.com, and my articles occasionally appear on Rediff.) Columnist
Rajeev Srinivasan pointed to several religion-related factors he sees
as pertinent. Referring to the earthquake as the "Christmas quake," he
implied that the timing wasn't mere coincidence. He also noted that
the tsunami hit a church at Velankanni, one of the most significant
Christian pilgrimage points in South India, resulting in the death of
50 people. Finally, he connected the tragedy to what many see as the
recent mistreatment of a revered Hindu leader.
In November, a holy man known formally as Shankaracharya Jayendra
Saraswathi was
arrested in connection with the murder of a former official of his
religious order. Hindus around the world decried the arrest, even
organizing mass email petitions maintaining that the entire affair was
politically motivated and related to a longstanding fight with the
current head of the state government of Tamil Nadu, where the most
tsunami-related deaths later occurred. Before long, the
Shankaracharya's sympathizers had solidified their opinion that anti-
Hindu forces were to blame, with some going so far as to point fingers
at the Vatican.
For Srinivasan, the Shankaracharya's arrest seemed the most plausible
explanation for the subsequent disaster. "The devastation by the
tsunami in Tamil Nadu, could it be a caveat from Up There about the
atrocities being visited on the [Shankaracharya]?" he asked. "About
adharma"--evil--"gaining ground?" In summarizing, he wrote, "It is
said that the very elements can be affected by the mystical powers of
sages who have acquired superhuman powers through meditation and
sadhana. I think we should all tread carefully, for now we are
treading on things we do not know."
Srinivasan's comments may seem like isolated rants--and even many of
his longtime readers rejected them--but other groups have echoed his
feelings. The Kanchi Kamakoti Seva Foundation, which defends the
Shankaracharya, recently sent an email to its supporters linking the
tsunami to the holy man's arrest. The email says "God has given a
strong signal with this disaster when the injustice to Dharmic
followers have crossed the tolerance limit." It instructs readers to
pray that the tsunami will be "an eye-opener for the Tamil Nadu
Administration and for the media to stop abusing their powers and
bring out false charges against H.H. [His Holiness]."
Most Hindus find the "act of God" tsunami theories irrelevant, if not
offensive. "Such a controversy, if at all there is one, is a product
of some small minds," said Gaurang Vaishnav of the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad of America, one of many Hindu organizations in the United
States that has rallied to aid the victims.
"Hindus do not believe in a vindictive God. There are always actions
and reactions in accordance with the theory of karma. But to attribute
a wholesale destruction and death of thousands of innocent people to a
single act of a state government is ridiculous, insensitive and
insulting to human compassion that crosses the boundaries of religion
at times of natural disasters."
Another Hindu group, the reformist
Navya Shastra
, issued a press release condemning Hindu organizations that have
bought into the act-of-God view, comparing their remarks to those of
Christian leaders like Jerry Falwell. While acknowledging, like
Vaishnav, that karma could have played a role in the deaths, the
group, made of Hindu scholars, practitioners and priests outside
India, suggested that it was more important to focus on helping
survivors than trying to explain why the disaster happened.
Such act-of-God charges also tap into larger Hindu resentment over the
notion that traditional Hindu culture is giving way to forces such as
Western materialism or other faiths. Opposition to Christian
missionary work and the conversion of Dalits, or low-caste Hindus, is
not confined to Hindu nationalists. Many people react negatively to
the idea that some of India's tribal peoples may be exposed to the
Bible even as they are taught how to read, or may take on a Christian
name. The state of Tamil Nadu has special significance for many
Hindus. It was there that a controversial Anti-Conversion Bill was
passed in 2002, meant to prevent poor Hindus from being forcibly
converted to Christianity, especially via financial inducements.
Christian leaders have denied offering such inducements.
But some mission groups see tsunami relief efforts as an opportunity
to spread the gospel in South Asia. In an
article on the evangelical website Crosswalk.com
, Dr. Ajith Fernando of Youth for Christ was quoted as saying, "We
have prayed and wept for our nation for many years. The most urgent of
my prayers has always been that my people would turn to Jesus. I pray
that this terrible, terrible tragedy might be used by God to break
through into the lives of many of our people."
Another evangelist, Gospel for Asia's K.P. Yohannan, said, "In times
like these, we know that God opens the hearts of those who suffer, and
we pray that as our workers demonstrate God's love to them, many of
them will come to know for the first time that real security comes
only through Him."
The statements were immediately distributed to watchful Hindus through
the e-mail news digest Hindu Press International ("Christians See
Conversion Opportunities in Disaster Relief"), a service from the
publishers of the U.S. magazine Hinduism Today.
For some Hindus, the Christian call to evangelize was expected, and
served to favorably contrast Hinduism's non-proselytization with what
they consider the insidious nature of certain Christian groups. "You
will not find an RSS or VHP volunteer converting a non-Hindu to Hindu
Dharma after helping him in his time of need," said Gaurang Vaishnav.
"This is the true meaning of seva"--service in the spirit of
sacrifice--"to a Hindu."
However, these same Hindu aid groups are themselves under scrutiny. An
email distributed by the leftist group
Campaign to Stop Funding Hate
told Indians interested in donating to disaster victims to avoid Hindu
groups such as the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak (RSS), Seva International
and the VHP of America. These organizations, says CSFH, have a history
of using grassroots efforts to advance a militant Hindu political
agenda. According to Kaushik Ghosh, an anthropologist at the
University of Texas, they may create organizational bases, increase
membership, establish political legitimacy or fundraise.
"During [2001's] Gujarat earthquake, the amount of money that flew
into these organizations was unbelievable," said Ghosh. "The
accounting of such money is relatively murky ...NGOs and relief-
development work can become the source of money for a whole range of
'behind-the-camera' projects." For its part, the VHPA states, "funds
for relief work are distributed without consideration of province,
race or religion."
Despite the religious struggles in the press and among advocacy
groups, the interfaith situation appears to be more positive on the
ground, where aid groups and neighbors are working together to help
survivors. One Indian blogger, Amit Varma, reported a growing
friendship between local people of different faiths responding to the
devastation. While spending time in the village of Parangipettai, in
Tamil Nadu, Varma wrote, "A deep bond had been formed between the
villagers, who were all Hindus, and these Muslim men who rushed to
help their neighbours because they believed that to be the way of
their religion. ...Faith, that can be so divisive in times of peace,
can also bring communities together in times of strife."
http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Hinduism/2004/11/Gods-Wrath-In-India.aspx
Hindu group criticises Kanchi Shankaracharya
Friday October 15 2004 18:31 IST
IANS
NEW YORK: A US-based organisation has criticised India's leading Hindu
seer, Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati, for having been part
of a ceremony where a Rs.20 million ($425,000) diamond-studded crown
was placed on a deity, saying the money could have been spent on
social service instead.
The Navya Shastra, a Hindu organisation, said the seer was part of the
Oct 2 "kumbhabhishekam" ceremony in Andhra Pradesh state's Tirupati
temple where the deity, Lord Venkateswara, was adorned with the crown.
The crown, encrusted with two marble sized emeralds and rare Burmese
rubies besides diamonds, has been donated by the Goenka business
family of Kolkata, India.
Navya Shastra research director Gautham Rao, said money for the crown
had come through donations and it could have been put to better use.
"Clearly at this time in Indian history, when the majority of Indian
citizens continue to live at or near poverty levels, we felt the money
should have been spent on social service," he said.
"We had hoped the Acharya would use his considerable influence to
direct the funds for programmes for the betterment of struggling
Hindus and members of the lower castes, many of whom continue to live
on the peripheries of Hindu society," he added.
Navya Shastra also questioned the participation of Andhra Pradesh
Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy in the "opulent" ceremony.
http://shastras.org/Kanchinews.htm
NRI group battles Hinduism's "inequalities"
by Arun Venugopal
When Tukaram, a 19-year-old Dalit fresh from his exams, prayed at a
Hanuman temple in Andhra Pradesh earlier this month, he probably never
anticipated the outrage it would cause.
Upper caste villagers issued an injunction against his entire
community, before scrubbing down the entire temple with cow dung and
urine in a symbolic act of purification.
Ths situation might have remained another footnote to the ongoing
story of India's caste divisions, but for the efforts of a group of
reformist NRIs. The group, Navya Shastra, publicly condemned the
actions of the upper caste villagers and announced a Rs 10,000 (about
$200) scholarship for Tukaram.
This is just the latest in a series of actions the group has taken to
address what it feels are inequities in the religion. Unlike secular
groups that rail against caste and gender discrimination, however,
Navya Shastra comprises devout, temple-going Hindus.
These include a leading priest from Houston and a number of academics,
as well as converts to the religion. Among the advisers is Arun
Gandhi, founder of the MK Gandhi Center for Nonviolence, and O P
Gupta, India's ambassador to Finland.
According to Jaishree Gopal, the molecular biologist in Michigan who
founded Navya Shastra with New Jersey resident Vikram Masson, the
group formed after discussions on an online Hindu bulletin board two
years ago.
"There are lots of apologists writing on the Net these days." said
Gopal. "We saw some articles posted that there is no caste
discrimination in Hinduism (but we know) that Dalits are discriminated
against."
Its this inequality, the group contends on its website, which has lead
to an "epochal tide of conversions to religions thats supposedly
preach egalitarian values. There is compelling evidence that the
number of actual conversions in India is vastly understated by both
missionary organizations and the government."
Aside from access to temples for members of all castes, the group
promotes the right for anyone--man or woman--to receive the sacred
thread and/or become a priest.
While the Indian government has encouraged such reforms to an extent,
the organization insists that Hindus themselves should take up the
cause while avoiding factionalism. At the same time, the group has
been critical of Dalits for highlighting caste discrimination without
actively working with Hindu leaders to resolve the problem.
According to Gopal, it is not a coincidence that Navya Shastra is
based outside of India.
"As NRIs, we become more aware of our religious identity when you are
young, as opposed to India, where it just permeates the atmoshere",
she said. "We are used to answering questions about caste over here.
And we can't always justify the discriminatory aspects."
Another member, Sri Rajarathina Bhattar, agreed with this assessment
and cited the grip of "superstitous beliefs" on many Hindus in India.
The priest emeritus at Houston's Sri Meenakshi Temple, Bhattar has
been conducting a letter writing campaign to newspapers and orthodox
leaders in India, stressing the need for reform.
So far, he said, there continue to be a number of priests who insist
on maintaining the status quo.
"But priests who are well educated seem to agree with me." he said.
"The main reason most of them disagree is due to the fear that they
may lose certain rights as a priest."
This article appeared in June 18, 2004 issue of India Abroad
http://shastras.org/ArunVenugopal.html
US body condemns discrimination against Dalit student
Monday June 7 2004 12:52 IST
IANS
TROY (MICHIGAN): A Hindu organisation in the US has condemned reported
discrimination against a Dalit student who was allegedly victimised
for offering prayers in a Hindu temple in India's Andhra Pradesh
state.
Navya Shastra, which professes spiritual equality of all Hindus, has
also promised financial assistance to Tukaram, 19, to meet his
educational costs.
The boy scored a first class in his intermediate examinations and
visited the village temple of Hanuman to make the traditional coconut
offering in Allapur, Andhra Pradesh. When members of the upper caste
community discovered this they condemned the boy and extorted Rs.500
fine from his apologetic father, Tulsiram.
They also purified the temple by washing it with cow urine and dung so
as to efface the imprints of an "untouchable," according to Vikram
Masson, co-chairman of the organisation.
Such community-based discrimination continues in India despite a
constitutional ban and strict legal safeguards against community
discrimination. "Tukaram must know that others in the Hindu world
strongly condemn such actions," said Jaishree Gopal, the other co-
chairman of the organisation.
"Navya Shastra will award Tukaram a scholarship to help his family
with Tukaram's educational costs and sincerely hopes that the Indian
government and religious leaders will pay more attention to the
apartheid in our midst," said Gopal.
http://shastras.org/Newindpress.com
End caste discrimination, Hindu leaders urged
New York, Nov 28 (IANS) A global Hindu group has urged leaders of the
faith to end caste discrimination in their institutions. The group,
Navya Shastra, also said in a press note that the Vedic chanting
tradition should be opened to all instead of being restricted to upper
caste Brahmins. Jaishree Gopal, Navya Shastra co-chairperson, said:
"The only way to save the Vedic chanting tradition is to initiate
sincere members of all castes, ...
…resulting in a dwindling supply of Vedic experts. The organisation is
lobbying Hindu leaders to implement caste blind initiation policies at
an Acharya Sabha meet to be held in Chennai from Saturday.
… "Here we have a historic opportunity to declare to the world that
Hinduism will reform itself for ever of caste discrimination," said
Vikram Masson, Navya Shastra co-chairman.
"Hinduism, which is thousands of years old, has never had a
significant reformist movement," said Arun Gandhi, Navya Shastra
adviser and grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. "I believe the new millennium
now offers Hinduism an opportunity to change its ancient ...
http://news.eians.com/2003/11/28/28end.html , 27997 bytes
...and I am Sid Harth
Dušan Vukotić
Sid Harth
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Caste murder at AIIMS
05Mar10
Dr Singh reporting from AIIMS;
Dear friends,
It its very unfortunate to start with the incident happened at AIIMS
regarding the suicide of my junior Balmukund bharti a 2004 batch
student of MBBS at AIIMS on 3rd March 2010 but I see this as a very
alarming situation because every time such incident happens same line
of remarks come from Administration whether it is AIIMS , CSMMU
Lucknow or any other medical college;
1.The said student was not able to cope with the amount of pressure at
the institute , he was consistently failing in particular field , he
was depressed but in all their explanation for the cause of death
they miserably fail on explaining WHY???? this all is happening or
they are too smart to very conveniently escape the real issue, “What
instigated him to take such an extreme step?”
2.To talk about caste prejudices being one of the important cause of
such incident is not welcomed at any point and the irony is that if
you dare to speak about this angle first and foremost duty is to
explain your own colleague mostly from your own community and convince
them that this is a harsh truth though they all are aware of the fact
that how “THE CASTE” plays a crucial role in all these incident and
surprisingly majority of suicide in such big Institutions echelons of
knowledge the 80%-90%victims are from reserved category but yet to
speak about this thing is like sailing against the tide and all of
sudden the main issue of suicide is secondary and you find yourself in
the middle explaining each and everyone about your stand because,” in
this era of 21st century on papers caste discrimination is a thing of
past which was abolished long time back by the sincere efforts of the
Government of India” so all of sudden you are tagged a traitor who is
against the harmony and integrity of Nation and hellbent to defame the
institute you are studying in.
Friends this is not just an alarming but this is a helpless
situation,because one person is not responsible it is the System which
is to be blamed because whosoever become the part of the System forget
his moral responsibility and to save this system becomes his priority
and it seems like saving a boat having a hole in the bottom though the
hole is small but it takes all the time of the sailor and not allow
him to concentrate and to decide which route he has to take to reach
the destination.
Friends regarding the suicide committed by Balmukund bharti I have
following points to raise;
1. First and foremost it was not the first time as he tried a week ago
to end his life and was taken to casuality for the treatment Why was
he not admitted and kept under observation as suicidal tendency is in
itself indication for admission and observation. Why he was not seen
by the Psychiatric Consultant in Emergency ward these point if taken
care of in time would have stopped this untoward incident.
2. Again the point of he being failed in the said examination what
steps were taken to help him in this context and this is the similar
case that had happened to Sushil Chaudhary of CSMMU Lucknow. The Dean
of AIIMS should take moral responsibility and should be answerable.
3. Balmukund when came to AIIMS he was beaten up and abused by the
wingmates and finally he has to change his room.
4. One unique thing happened in this case Balmukund always wanted to
change his caste and for this he even abandoned his parents and
assumed a so called higher caste couple as his parents. In last two
years he changed his name twice rest of the details are not available
but eventually will come out but the point is that why he wanted to be
in a so called higher caste the reason is that may be the root cause
of the depression and other failure were attributed to his caste.
5. Balmukund is not just not one case but it is an epitome of caste
prejudice costing his life he tried his best to get rid of the
shackles of caste but miserably failed.
6. The whole incident clearly shows the, “Callous attitude” of inept
AIIMS administration by the very fact that they have not implemented
the ,”Thorat Committee Recommendations” in letter and spirit which was
commissioned by the present Prime Minister in 2006 and that was for
safeguarding the interest of underprivileged students, Residents at
AIIMS
Dear friends to me it is just the tip of the iceberg We are not just
loosing our talents but also those who could have become the pillars
to fight this haunting environment and to build strength for our
Community, then Society and then our Nation. I don’t know how many
Balmukund, Sushil chaudhary have to sacrifice and die in anonymity
but one thing is very clear that though I am disturbed but I am not
broken this is the need of hour ,”We need a committed struggle and
everyone should extend his helping hand in order to put an end to such
unfortunate events”
AIIMS,
New Delhi
One Response to “Caste murder at AIIMS”
1 UTTAMKUMAR SUKHADEVE on March 5, 2010 said:
Dear Singh, what is the use to publishised of the incident happened
with your friend. Everyday there are so many family/persons who belong
to the deprived classes facing the same problum/discriminiation.These
all happened due to our non-active politician/officers who occupied
the key post. They are not bothered about atrocity upon the scheduled
caste/tribe soiciety. I am one of the live example. I have filed a
case in Jan 08 in National Commission for scheduled caste, New Delhi
110 003 against my employer for unlawful compulsory retirement
punishment was imposed on me. Prof.NM Kamble Vice-Chairman of NCSC
delivered his decision in my favour on 30.9.08. But the commission
employee who is belong to upper caste Shri YK Bansal kept my file in a
cold storage and not took any effective action to implement the
decision of the Vice Chairman.During the period of eight monthsOct 08
to May 09 they have not taken any justifible action against my
employer. When i develop presssure by using RTI right, then Shri YK
Bansal ignored the deceision of Vice Chairman dated 30.9.08 even he
avoid to put up the file to the vice chairman and choose to putup the
case directly to the chairman Shri Buta Singh with a recomandation to
close the case without any reason and he succeded to obtained the
signature of the Chairman of the commission. Because his wrongful
action, they deprived my fandamental right which is guranteed by the
india constitution. Prof. NM Kamble and Shri Buta singh both are
belong to the scheduled caste, and they killed the future and right of
a scheduled caste officer and his family. I wrote many letters to them
but they didnot take any pain to reply. Now you tell me, what you will
geting to published the incident of your friend, you will not get any
justice from this ugly society. I do not have any faith in the indian
system of Justice. I am strugling till today for want of Justice since
last six years, whould you like to Join Me for fight. If yes then
please use your right and obtained the xerox copies of my case file
under RTI Act from the National Commission scheduled caste, New Delhi
and go throught it and please Judge and come to the conclusion. If you
find my mistake, I shall be gratefull if you intimate me. If you need
any information I can provide you. This is might be boring work for
you. if yes then please keep your friends memories in the shadow of
time dont publish it….
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/03/05/caste-murder-at-aiims/
Caste Cupola: Madha More Pictures
18Feb10
A team of Activists visited the spot Modha where 6 children and 2
Mothers were burnt alive, in order to consolidate the facts and rear
ahead the speed of justice. This has also given a helping hand and
moral support to the suffering Pawar family. Watch the Entire day-
long visit as below:
Pic 01: FIR-1 (Falsified*)
Pic 02: FIR-2 (Falsified*)
Pic 03: FIR-3(Falsified*)
Pic 04: FIR-4 (Falsified*)
Pic 05: FIR-5 (Falsified*)
Pic 06: Campaign for Human Rights (CHR) President visited place of
incidence along with Manisha Tokle, Sameer Taware, Motiram Bade, B.P
Survanshi, Bajrang Tate and Ramrao Gavali
Pic 07 Suresh Chatan Pawar who lost his family
Pic08: Ashok Chatan Pawar Who lost his 8 years old son
Pic 09: Sanjay Suresh Pawar who lost almost every one of his family
Pic 10: Pawar family who lost their six children and two women
Pic 11: This place where eight dead bodies were cremated
Pic 12: Died four children’s and one women in the Pawar Family
Pic 13: CHR fact finding team understand legal aspects of the case.
Team Members are Adv. Shidharth Shinde, Santosh Jadhav, Kailas Veer
and Rajsthan Kale
Pic 14: Victim family requesting to Adv. Eknath Awad ( CHR President )
to get justice
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/02/18/caste-cupola-madha-more-pictures/
Caste Cupola: 8 burnt alive, Solapur Pardhi Commune turned into ashes
15Feb10
In an incident that could potentialy put India ablaze, is clearly
under grips of Caste Mindset and it would avail no time for us to
blast the moral order of not only Caste India but also world…
At least eight people, including six children and two woman were
killed when their huts were allegedly set afire by unidentified people
at Nimgaon village in Madha taluka of the district early today.The
identity of the deceased is yet to be ascertained, police said.
Talking to UNI, Assistant Police Sub-Inspector of Madha police station
Harishchand More said the incident took place in the early hours but
it came to light only at around 0700 hrs. The fire was doused with the
help of the people. As per the preliminary investigation, the reason
behind the fire is reportedly stated to be an internal rivarly between
two families of a scheduled tribe.
He said police have detained three people including a woman, following
a complaint filed by one Suresh Pawar against them.”We are
investigating the case and detained three people, including a woman –
Zugarabai (40), for their alleged involvement in the case,” he said. A
panchanama has been prepared and a special squad of police has been
sent to Nimgaon Pardhe village to look into the matter, Mr More added.
Atrocitynews will get back to you with more details soon…
Caste Cupola: Implicating frivolously
17Feb10
The story of the Police as far as FIR goes is quite funny. The case is
fabricated in such a way that the Complainant puts blame on the Pardhi
neighborhood for burning of the huts. Seeing the brotherhood among
Pardhis, it was not that possible. However in the FIR the thick
possibility of Pardhi Panchayat being taken into confidence by the
uppercaste Land lord Mr Shantinath Patil is supressed.
Look at the pictures, huge devastation at Madha..
Readers are we staying calm and watching this Jungle Raj in India?
Before blood revolution to arrive that will blow up Indian democracy,
readers , lets unite and give answer to this dirty caste politics .
Please send your support to savitr...@gmail.com
An interview with Mr Ashok Tagade, an Activist is
One Response to “Caste Cupola: Implicating frivolously”
1 yuvaraj magdum on February 19, 2010 said:
hello sathi, i am a social worker and take education MSW post
graduation course in SIBER college,Kolhapur.i want work with your
orgnisation.pls send your reply now. my cell no is 9325723833 i am
working voluntary in MAVA – MAN AGANIST VOILENCE AND ABUSE.
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/02/17/caste-cupola-false-implications/
Caste Cupola: Reverse Swing by Upper caste
16Feb10
This is a tele that has been worst happening to Mankind. Pardhi Caste
atrocity is a systematic human design to cull the poor families who
ask for their rights. Herein the Upper caste designed a perfect
Reverse swing so as to give it a look of intra-community affair.
Shantinath Patil and his political support used the Pardhi community
people to destroy and kill the brethren for small penny.
Following is the narration of this Atrocity from the Village Madha.
From the spot Atrocitynews correspondent reports.
Watch Videos
This is a struggle that we, the civil society, need to fight
together. Lets support Sunita who took lead and become a moral support
to the affected father, Suresh..Lets Join hands with Sunita..
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/02/16/caste-cupola-reverse-swing-by-upper-caste/
Caste Cupola: Home Minister visits Madha, Solapur
15Feb10
A symbolic gesture can be even virulent if happens after the caste
vengeance. Exactly this is done by the Maharashtra Home Minister Mr R.
R. Patil. In his usual gait, Mr R. R. Patil tested the case as very
usual and caste seems not to be the case of this case.
Mr Shanti nath Patil who wanted to grab the land is thus assured he
would be protected due to Caste political clout of local M.P. Baban
Dada Shinde (Rastravadi Congress). Maharashtra Home Minister Mr R. R.
Patil comes from the same political party and not unnatural that he
would not protect the party men.
One Response to “Caste Cupola: Home Minister visits Madha, Solapur”
1 Rahul on February 16, 2010 said:
ALL media(Print,Online,TV) has reported that it is a case between 2
paradhi families.
Why no one has reported this angle of Caste atrocity ? I also read it
in newspaper that Police have detained members of other paradhi family
after Suresh Pawar filed/gave their name in this case ? If it is a
caste atrocity, why he gave such information ? I am awaiting the audio
tape.
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/02/15/caste-cupola-home-minister-visits-mdha-solapur/
Caste Cupola: Upper caste conspiracy in Madha, Solapur
15Feb10
Nights at the Outskirts of Madha village fear these days due to
powerful upper caste men. The caste goons mind the movements of lower
caste households whose mind gears up for rights to life with dignity
as fundamental right. Also historic mandate from Vedas, that lower
caste can be sacrificed to Hindu Gods ‘FIRE’ ( mentioned in Yajur and
Rig Veda) is also putting fire to caste insanity.
Pic o1: Bodies fused together in the last!
The story of Pardhi families (6 children and 2 women) burning to
ashes last Midnight is tearing down minds all over Solapur. The
painful act of terror is worst than the Jihadi terror inPune where
people were killed indiscriminately in a planted bomb-blast. But in
Madha the people were killed because they come from typical lower
caste background.
Soon it comes to Police and it is disfigured, disenchanted and
forgotten. The entire case takes political turn .
Rights for rights is the only thing that Dalits demand. In village
Madha, when the Pardhi family won over the rights over the land,
fearing worst humiliation all upper caste goons got together. They
were backed by caste public dictate (as seen in Khairlanji), exhibited
the muscle power and threatened the Pardhi outskirts to vacate the
land or face the consequences. Police heard the Pardhi complaints but
did nothing successively.
Mr Shanti nath Patil who was unlawfully owning this land before it was
warded to a Pardhi family, wanted to grab the land. He was assured and
protected by Caste and political clout of local M.P. Mr Baban Dada
Shinde (Rastravadi Congress). Maharashtra Home Minister Mr R. R. Patil
comes from the same political party and not unnatural that he would
not protect the party men.
So Main Villian of Humanity-1- Mr Shantinath Patil
second Main Villian of Humanity-2- Mr Baban Dada Shinde, MLA
Goons had backing of upper caste hatred. They who burnt huts and made
mockery of humanity are-
Supporting Villian of Humaniy- 1- Mr Zoombar Bhairu Kale (age 50)
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-2-Mr Netaji Bhairu Kale (age 25),
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-3-Mr. Jabbar Bhanu Shinde (age 35),
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-4-Mr Lala Baleshah Pawar (age 23),
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-5-Mr. Shivaji Aalappa Pawar (age 24,)
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-6-Mr. Chandi Alappa Pawar (age 22),
Supporting Villian of Humaniy-7-Mr. Kamya Harkun Kale (age 30),
See the utensils turned black in a Caste Cupola!
The pardhi family (Mr. Suresh Chgaan Pawar) derived subsistence from
that mere land . This land got awarded to them by the Govt in 2004.
The barren land got transformed into fertile fields with due efforts
from the family. Seeing this the upper caste fellows could not
tolerate this. They were burning with jealousy inside. The upper caste
goon made many attempts to extradited Suresh Pawar family from the
place. Suresh made his firm resolve not to vacate the place come what
may! WOmen and his kids dared to stand by him.
Mothers burnt ailve:
1. Mrs Manish Sanjay Pawar (Age-26)
2. Mrs Nitabai Raju Pawar ( age- 18)
Kids not spared:
3. Mangesh Sanjay Pawar (age 6)
4. Gyani Sanjay Pawar (age 6)
5. Mahesh Sanjay Pawar (age 1/2)
6. Raju SureshPawar (age 11)
7. Chabula Suresh Pawar (age 9)
8. Piraji Ashok Pawar( age
Pic 03: Police reached after 18 hours, did not arrest the main caste
goons, finding if they get any clue to hide caste angle !
And on the fateful night the Caste goons surrounded the Huts and put
them ablaze, they also made it sure the Kids and WOmen don’t run aways
from burning Huts. Kids and Women fearing worst of attacks outside
Huts prefered to die together. The bones of all the bodies in the
morning seen fused together. Such caste crime was leasyly washed out
from public cosnciousness by the local administration. They sided the
powerfull uppercaste political lobby. As usual the Home minister,
( AntiHero of Khailanji) Mr. R R Patil paid visit to the village and
made every effort to curb the caste atrocity look to the case. Even
another woman was falsely implicated that has given new turn to the
incident. People at the outskirts have learnt to keep silent by which
they could save lives. Such is a caste terror of India! People
prefer to witness their fellowmen getting burnt live than to say
anything against.
Readers Stay awake, we’ll come with AUDIO file detailing On-Spot tele…
in Marathi soon….
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/02/15/caste-cupola-upper-caste-conspiracy-in-madha-solapur/
Caste Cupola: 8 burnt alive, Solapur Pardhi Commune turned into ashes
15Feb10
In an incident that could potentialy put India ablaze, is clearly
under grips of Caste Mindset and it would avail no time for us to
blast the moral order of not only Caste India but also world…
At least eight people, including six children and two woman were
killed when their huts were allegedly set afire by unidentified people
at Nimgaon village in Madha taluka of the district early today.The
identity of the deceased is yet to be ascertained, police said.
Talking to UNI, Assistant Police Sub-Inspector of Madha police station
Harishchand More said the incident took place in the early hours but
it came to light only at around 0700 hrs. The fire was doused with the
help of the people. As per the preliminary investigation, the reason
behind the fire is reportedly stated to be an internal rivarly between
two families of a scheduled tribe.
Pic01: Upper caste cruelty: Burnt at Midnight nothing left except
Bones and ashes
He said police have detained three people including a woman, following
a complaint filed by one Suresh Pawar against them.”We are
investigating the case and detained three people, including a woman –
Zugarabai (40), for their alleged involvement in the case,” he said. A
panchanama has been prepared and a special squad of police has been
sent to Nimgaon Pardhe village to look into the matter, Mr More added.
Atrocitynews will get back to you with more details soon…
Caste Virus shocks Indian Prime Minister after 3G gap
08Sep09
After 3 generations of Congress rule in India, first time ever Prime
Minister of India felt pangs of caste atrocities. Over the years
naked dance of caste hatred among Indian societies widely exported
wherever Indians travel may it be Australia, USA, UK or South Korea
which has not come in the BOP (Balance of Payment). In order to
proliferate the’ Caste Tree’ , known strategy is to fund and to build
Community Based Temples (ISKON, SWAMINARAYAN ) , also invite
Gandhian politicians for inaugural sessions for celebrity-public
backing . The tradition of watering sapling that bears venomous
fruits is obvious in such caste-culture. The hate for lower caste
Indians in and around world seems consequential. Many forums we see
today among elite-castiest Indians standing up merely to protect self
interests and to oppose the affirmative actions on false grounds of
merit. Infosys Chairman Mr Narayan Murthi has too set a silent role
into this design. Caste based Hindu ideological sphere is
mushrooming . PM is not shocked at this, No Surprises!
What’s more shocking is Prime Minister’s political statement
regarding his early priority as cleansing Indian picture in the eyes
of External world and therefore subsiding caste Atrocities in the
Police station, instead of acting sharp on the societal ill
practices. Such an overt understanding mounts more sufferings to
Dalit communities in India who constitute 25% iNDIAN population. The
entire objective behind curbing the Caste Atrocities at national level
is taken as part of policy ‘development paradigm ‘ while it remains
long to be seen how the Top officials including PM put up priority
actions at strategic cultural level. They have not done in past (and
they will not do in future?) as most of their blood educates in high
Mansions of sophistry. How can they think of Enlightened India full of
dignity and hope ! For them Enlightened Indian is status Quo. For some
it is Gandhi’s Varnashrma, for some its KLUX KLAN, for some it is
RAMRAJYA where certain sections/castes enjoy privileges over rest
under the misnomer of KARMA. Till eternity sanctions from Vedic
shibboleths have prepared India indistinct from wild animal culture.
Unless constitutional ethics are emboldened in public life, no PM can
feel safe about India live aside the developmental (economy) goals.
In his speech, PM quoted Caste Atrocity convictions are little below
30% . This is a big lie. People of India thru this forum ask him from
where he quoted this figure? A year not passed, Crime Reports from
Central Govt Police Agencies submitted figure far below 5%. Why is
this jugglery going on?
PM might have shocked seeing (30% catapult?) convictions but if he
comes to know actual convictions, another cardiac arrest is waiting
at doors. Hold on ! This is not going to happen though, the ‘caste
pain’ does not touch thick skinned Gandhi/political clan!
Readers please go thru the NEws in Indian Express….
PM shocked over low conviction rate of cases under SC/ST Act
Expressing shock over less than 30 per cent conviction rate for cases
of atrocities against SCs and STs, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on
Monday asked state governments to give more attention to the issue and
said court cases related to such matters should be “pursued on
priority”.
“Reports of atrocities against SCs, STs and senior citizens continue
to appear with disturbing regularity. I have in fact written to the
Chief Ministers of all states recently to enforce the provisions of
the SCs and STs (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
It is shocking that conviction rate for cases of atrocities against
SCs and STs is less than 30 per cent against the average of 42 per
cent for all cognizable offences under IPC. The state governments need
to give more attention to this issue,” he said inaugurating a
conference of state ministers of welfare and social justice here.
Singh told them to conduct meetings of state and district level
vigilance committees on a regular basis and said that court cases
should be pursued on priority. Focussing on the need to change the
general mindset towards disadvantaged groups, the Prime Minister said
such people should be made equal partners in the developmental
processes.
“We propose to amend the Persons with Disabilities Act in consultation
with states so as to bring it in line with the UN Convention (on
Rights of Persons with Disabilities),” he said.
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/09/08/caste-virus-shocks-indian-prime-minister-after-3g-gap/
Chief Justice of India not left out of caste discrimination !11Jan10
In what could raise serious concerns over the working of the 60-year-
old reservation system to uplift the dalits is an appaling fact that
that Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan (the post he achived thru
his meritorious disposition) was no spared in his career time. In
India, Higher courts do not have affirmative policies in place.
Chief Justice of India, K G Balakrishnan on Sunday said caste
prejudices had not come down against the dalits. Reflecting on his
journey from a dalit boy to the post of CJI, Justice Balakrishnan said
it had not been an easy road for him. Asked whether in the present
day, a similarly placed dalit boy would have a smoother journey, the
CJI said, “It will still be difficult.”
Speaking to TOI, Justice Balakrishnan said, “The prejudices are on the
increase. It may not be visible on the surface, for the prejudices are
more sophisticate now.” This remark from the CJI puts in question the
efficacy of the current system of reservation for Scheduled Caste
population through the Presidential Order of 1950 to compensate them
for the centuries of oppression at the hands of upper castes.
But the CJI was not bitter as he looked back on the eve of completing
three years in the top post, just five months away from his
retirement. “I have suffered caste prejudices. But at the same time,
so many people have helped me irrespective of their caste,” he added.
In fact, the Supreme Court in April 2006 had issued notices to the
Centre and all states on a PIL filed by an NGO — ‘National Campaign on
Dalit Human Rights’ (NCDHR) — citing 20 common instances of
indifference of police and authorities that had rendered the SCs and
STs (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, a dead piece of legislation.
The PIL had sought as many as 28 different directions for the proper
implementation of the 17-year-old Act.
Source: TOI
One Response to “Chief Justice of India not left out of caste
discrimination !”
1 SANJIV SATYARTHI on January 12, 2010 said:
I congratulate to Justice Balakrishnan to speak truth in public. I
also feel the same discrimination still continue and it is very
difficult for Dalit to come forward and he faces lot of problem to
achieve his goal.
Understanding Untouchability: A report
29Jan10
A recent report ” Understanding Untouchability” (Click here to access)
is well-researched document prepared by Robert F. Kennedy Center for
Justice and Human Rights (RFK Center USA) and Navsarjan Trust, Gujrat.
http://atrocitynews.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/understanding-untouchability-rfk.pdf
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/01/29/understanding-untouchability-a-report/
No school entry to Dalits and Muslims: Caste in Indian Schools
002MH201016Jan10
In a shocking news, An education trust in Jintur, Parbhani district of
Maharastra has decided not to enroll Dalits and poor Muslims in their
schools.
Dated 1st July 2008, such amendment which can kill the democratic
nature of Indian social life was passed in a board meeting wherein Mr
Mukund Savji Kalamkar chaired the proceedings.
Other ill members who were party to a decision were-
1. Dr. N. J. Holani
2. Mr. Chandrakant Kade
3. Mr. Deepak Watthamwar
4. Mrs. Shailaja Kalamkar
5. Mr. A. V. Deshpande
6. Mr. D. V. Sontakke ( The Principal)
Most of the members are (well?) educated and are from higher caste
backgrounds. In the board meeting it was finalised that if any of the
students from these communities were entertained there would be
disciplinary action intiated against the Principal.
People from all backgrounds in nearby villages are shocked and are
registering a people-regret over ill decision of the school management
who are quite educated and resourceful. However being politically
heavy weight, its unthinkable that punitive action would be intiated
against the culprits of humanity.
Officer destroys Public Office; Caste virus 001MH2010
16Jan10
Mr.Avinash Kumar is an unusual Indian Police officer (IPS) in Wardha
region of Maharashtra. He has held with himself an office to mutilate
Dalit awareness and Buddhist activism. Besides few other official
responsibilities, he is preoccupied in beating youths who courage
socio-politic spirit.
A recent case that has come up, adores him a terror avtar. Owing to
his organising a social gathering, youth from a respected Buddhist
family, Mr Avinash Sawai was assumedly (false) implicated in a robbery
case of 1000 Rs (20 USD). Arrested in the early morning 4AM, Avinash
taken into Police Custody for six long days and physical torture
meeted out day and night which made the youth bleed profusely. Under
psudo medical testimony, the medical care was denied, courts were
fooled. The days following, victim was further beaten in front of his
mother first, then in public procession, caste vendetta seen in the
abuses while smashing private body parts by boots.
Victim runs an active educational movement in the region, but now it
is an affected office as no youth will come forward to join him. There
seems to be no-serious care-takers of public office in Wardha.
Thanks to terror from an Indian Police !
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/officer-destroys-public-office-caste-virus-001mh2010/
Nepal in the grips of caste-virus
11Jan10
Durpati Nepali hides her face in shame as she recalls how she was
forced to return to work as a prostitute after her husband was killed
during Nepal’s 10-year civil war.
The 35-year-old mother of five says she resorted to prostitution — an
occupation she first took up aged just 14 — in desperation after the
food stall she set up failed because customers were abusive and
refused to pay.Nepali was victimised because she is a Badi, a caste of
so-called “untouchables” living mainly in western Nepal whose women
have traditionally earned their living as sex workers.Once high-class
courtesans and musicians, the Badi are now among the poorest and most
downtrodden groups in Nepal, where discrimination on caste grounds
remains rife despite being outlawed more than four decades ago.Many
are disadvantaged from birth because they carry the surname Nepali,
often used on the birth certificates of children where paternity is
unclear, making them vulnerable to persecution.”When my husband died,
I had no option but to go back into prostitution to feed my family,”
said Nepali, whose husband died eight years ago, a victim of the civil
conflict that ended in 2006.”Even when I wasn’t working as a
prostitute, people treated me like one. But it has brought many
problems,” she told AFP in her tiny mud hut in the village of Bankhet
in mid-western Nepal.”Last month, more than 20 villagers came and
threatened to burn down our home if we did not leave the village.”
Activists say that a lack of education and continuing caste-based
prejudices in majority-Hindu Nepal often make it difficult for Badi
women to earn their living any other way, trapping them in a cycle of
poverty and social rejection.Nepali’s mother was a sex worker, and now
her two youngest daughters — one aged 14, one 16 — have followed her
into prostitution.”I had high hopes for my daughters, I wanted them to
marry into good families. But they say they want to look after me like
I looked after them when their father died,” she said.”I’m not happy
that they have become prostitutes. But if they had not, there would be
no food on the table.”Mahesh Nepali, director of the advocacy group
Social Awareness for Education (SAFE) Nepal and himself a Badi, said
the community faced discrimination even from other “untouchable”
castes, and were viewed as the “lowest of the low.”"Even among the
untouchables, Badis are seen as the most untouchable,” he said.”As a
result they have no sense of self worth. On top of that, they are very
weak economically, so it is almost impossible for them to change their
destiny without outside help.”
In 2007, hundreds of Badi women travelled to the capital Kathmandu
where they held a series of rowdy protests to demand government help,
some stripping off outside the parliament building.Some help is now
available in the form of government funding for the rehabilitation and
rehousing of vulnerable Badi women, although the implementation of
such programmes has been hampered by political instability.The Badi —
estimated to number around 40,000 across the Himalayan country — have
also benefited from a recent change in the law that for the first time
permitted fatherless children to obtain citizenship.But Sapana Pradhan
Malla, a renowned women’s rights lawyer who last year became a member
of Nepal’s parliament, said the government needed to do much more to
help the Badi people.”Because of the social stigma they have not been
a political priority,” she told AFP.”I urge the government to ensure
justice for these people. After all, they are our sisters and mothers.
How can we treat them differently?”A handful of women have managed to
change their destiny, among them Kalpana Nepali, 23, who grew up in a
hostel for the children of Badi sex workers.”My father died when I was
two and a half, forcing my mother to go into the sex trade,” said
Kalpana, who now runs a small cooperative bank for her community.”One
day my mother and some other women sold all their jewellery to fund a
hostel for the children because they did not want them to grow up in
that environment.”As a result, most of us managed to finish high
school. But if it had not been for the hostel, I’m sure we would also
be doing sex work.”But there are many more who have received no such
help, such as Durpati’s 14-year-old daughter Binita, who left school
aged just 12 and went into the sex trade.”I miss school. Sometimes I
wonder why I left,” she told AFP.”I dreamt of becoming a doctor or
doing some other honest job. But what can you do? We have no money so
I cannot fulfil those dreams.”
Source: AFP
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2010/01/11/nepal-in-the-grips-of-caste-virus/
2 Minor Girls raped, Caste terror unabated in Pune
29Dec09
Atrocitynews Correspondant from Pune district reports…
Two bright young girls from Loni-Kalbhor village in Haveli Taluka were
raped inhumanly last week in daylight. The caste terror continues
unabated in the Pune district. Police administration is again caught
sleeping. These girls belong to poor Buddhist and Matang family
respectively. Their families have been migrated from the Marathwada
region of Osmanabad district. Their families were staying at the
Missalwadi which is the extended part of the Loni kalbhor village. The
name Missalwadi is quite interesting name to be known about. Missal is
one of the Maharashtrian dishes (which is mixture of many fried
ingredients). Likewise Misalwadi is heterogeneous ghetto of mix caste-
community migrated labourers which is unusual to have due to ire from
rich Hindu caste Groups. As a result, THEY gave derogatory name to
this particular village as Missalwadi.
LEARNING more about the victims- Both the victims are below 18, so
their names can not be disclosed.
Victim no 1
The girl belongs to the Matang community is living here with family.
Her family consists of three members. Her father and mother both are
laborers in the fields of upper caste. They are from Osmanabad
district of Marathwada region. Victim is 12 year old girl and was
studying in the 6th standard in Kanya Prashala, vernacular Medium
school in Loni-Kalbhor.
Victim no 2
The second girl who belongs to the Buddhist family stays with her
mother and elder brother in this village since 2005. Ten years past
her father met with an accident and that’s how she lost her father.
Since then her mother raised her both children. She is 13 year old
girl. She used to study in the 8th standard in Kanya Prashala ,
Vernacular medium school in Loni-Kalbhor. Her family was also migrated
from the Marathwada region from the same district as mentioned above.
The incident
On December 15, 2009 as usual girls were returning from the school,
they were stopped at the Pandhari Road (which was the usual root for
the school) by the three accused namely
1.Shrikant Tulshiram Shelar(Lower caste),
2. Digambar Ranganath Machale(Upper caste),
3. Ganesh Dattatray Raskar(Upper caste).
They stopped them at around the 12:00 P.M and from there they took
them into the sugar cane field near the Pandari Road. Victims were
threatened with knife and were forcefully raped. Shrikant Shelar raped
the victim no. 2 and Digamber Machale raped the victim no 1
respectively. As they were threatened by using the articles like knife
and other way through using words like killing their parents if they
let know about it to anyone as a result they did tell to no one. The
girls were terrified by accused. However the very next day as the
girls were returning from the school again they were stopped at the
Ramdara by the same accused as mentioned above. They were been pulled
in the auto Rickshaw with the force. And from there they were taken on
the nearby mountain. (They were raped in the same fashion as they were
raped on the earlier day. Shrikant Shelar raped the victim no. 2 and
Digamber Machale raped the victim no 1 respectively. Their friend Mr.
Ganesh Dattatray Raskar kept watch on both the day)
At home, their parents were little worried as both the girls got late
to return to home, they went on to search children. Victim no. 1’s
mother went on her daughter search but she did not find any. Victim no
2’s brother called Mr. Gaalfade for his mother works at his place as
land laborer. He informed her that both the girls have not returned
from the school. Then from there she left for huge search task. Atlast
she found both the girls at Pandhari road in the evening at around
7:30 P.M. She saw them crying. She brought them at the home. And asked
to tell what happened with them. Then girls opened up and told
everything had happened with them. Girls also told earlier rape story
too, due to fear they did not open their mouth during that time.
Then the both the family did not understand what to do next. The whole
night they kept crying as they were in deep grief. However they
decided to launch a police complaint. Next morning they woke up and
went to the police station and asked for First Investigation
Report(FIR). The Loni Kalbhor police station took their complaint and
took them to the Sassoon hospital in Pune for Medical examination. Now
their medical has been done, medi-reports are awaited.
Manuski’s intervention and observation
Manuski members when learnt about the incidence, they went on to meet
the family on 22nd day of December, 2009. However victims’ family had
gone to do the medical examination . Manuski members (including
Atrocitynews correspondant) went to the Loni Kalbhor police station,
talked to police inspector Mr. Rasaal about the incidence. Police
provided the necessary information regarding the case and promised to
cooperate further.
23rd December team along with Ms. Vandana (NCDHR) went to meet victims
family. They met the family and got the copy of FIR. Members talked to
the victims and their parents and tried to understand the facts of the
atrocity. Team collected relevant legal information on atrocity.
Whenever Dalit woman been raped people always point the character of
the Dalit woman but not the accused. It seems that the Hindu caste
people been supportive to accused. They fail to see in them criminal
due to strong caste fraternity. It’s been the strategy of the caste
Hindu people to preserve fudalism. Pointing at character of a women is
old fashion Indian male trick to deplore the case.
Facts of the case seen below (includes Victim submission, FIR)
2 Minor Girls raped, Caste terror unabated in Pune
29Dec09
Atrocitynews Correspondant from Pune district reports…
Two bright young girls from Loni-Kalbhor village in Haveli Taluka were
raped inhumanly last week in daylight. The caste terror continues
unabated in the Pune district. Police administration is again caught
sleeping. These girls belong to poor Buddhist and Matang family
respectively. Their families have been migrated from the Marathwada
region of Osmanabad district. Their families were staying at the
Missalwadi which is the extended part of the Loni kalbhor village. The
name Missalwadi is quite interesting name to be known about. Missal is
one of the Maharashtrian dishes (which is mixture of many fried
ingredients). Likewise Misalwadi is heterogeneous ghetto of mix caste-
community migrated labourers which is unusual to have due to ire from
rich Hindu caste Groups. As a result, THEY gave derogatory name to
this particular village as Missalwadi.
LEARNING more about the victims- Both the victims are below 18, so
their names can not be disclosed.
Victim no 1
The girl belongs to the Matang community is living here with family.
Her family consists of three members. Her father and mother both are
laborers in the fields of upper caste. They are from Osmanabad
district of Marathwada region. Victim is 12 year old girl and was
studying in the 6th standard in Kanya Prashala, vernacular Medium
school in Loni-Kalbhor.
Victim no 2
The second girl who belongs to the Buddhist family stays with her
mother and elder brother in this village since 2005. Ten years past
her father met with an accident and that’s how she lost her father.
Since then her mother raised her both children. She is 13 year old
girl. She used to study in the 8th standard in Kanya Prashala ,
Vernacular medium school in Loni-Kalbhor. Her family was also migrated
from the Marathwada region from the same district as mentioned above.
The incident
On December 15, 2009 as usual girls were returning from the school,
they were stopped at the Pandhari Road (which was the usual root for
the school) by the three accused namely
1.Shrikant Tulshiram Shelar(Lower caste),
2. Digambar Ranganath Machale(Upper caste),
3. Ganesh Dattatray Raskar(Upper caste).
They stopped them at around the 12:00 P.M and from there they took
them into the sugar cane field near the Pandari Road. Victims were
threatened with knife and were forcefully raped. Shrikant Shelar raped
the victim no. 2 and Digamber Machale raped the victim no 1
respectively. As they were threatened by using the articles like knife
and other way through using words like killing their parents if they
let know about it to anyone as a result they did tell to no one. The
girls were terrified by accused. However the very next day as the
girls were returning from the school again they were stopped at the
Ramdara by the same accused as mentioned above. They were been pulled
in the auto Rickshaw with the force. And from there they were taken on
the nearby mountain. (They were raped in the same fashion as they were
raped on the earlier day. Shrikant Shelar raped the victim no. 2 and
Digamber Machale raped the victim no 1 respectively. Their friend Mr.
Ganesh Dattatray Raskar kept watch on both the day)
At home, their parents were little worried as both the girls got late
to return to home, they went on to search children. Victim no. 1’s
mother went on her daughter search but she did not find any. Victim no
2’s brother called Mr. Gaalfade for his mother works at his place as
land laborer. He informed her that both the girls have not returned
from the school. Then from there she left for huge search task. Atlast
she found both the girls at Pandhari road in the evening at around
7:30 P.M. She saw them crying. She brought them at the home. And asked
to tell what happened with them. Then girls opened up and told
everything had happened with them. Girls also told earlier rape story
too, due to fear they did not open their mouth during that time.
Then the both the family did not understand what to do next. The whole
night they kept crying as they were in deep grief. However they
decided to launch a police complaint. Next morning they woke up and
went to the police station and asked for First Investigation
Report(FIR). The Loni Kalbhor police station took their complaint and
took them to the Sassoon hospital in Pune for Medical examination. Now
their medical has been done, medi-reports are awaited.
Manuski’s intervention and observation
Manuski members when learnt about the incidence, they went on to meet
the family on 22nd day of December, 2009. However victims’ family had
gone to do the medical examination . Manuski members (including
Atrocitynews correspondant) went to the Loni Kalbhor police station,
talked to police inspector Mr. Rasaal about the incidence. Police
provided the necessary information regarding the case and promised to
cooperate further.
23rd December team along with Ms. Vandana (NCDHR) went to meet victims
family. They met the family and got the copy of FIR. Members talked to
the victims and their parents and tried to understand the facts of the
atrocity. Team collected relevant legal information on atrocity.
Whenever Dalit woman been raped people always point the character of
the Dalit woman but not the accused. It seems that the Hindu caste
people been supportive to accused. They fail to see in them criminal
due to strong caste fraternity. It’s been the strategy of the caste
Hindu people to preserve fudalism. Pointing at character of a women is
old fashion Indian male trick to deplore the case.
Facts of the case seen below (includes Victim submission, FIR)
4 Responses to “2 Minor Girls raped, Caste terror unabated in Pune”
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http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/12/29/2-minor-girls-raped-caste-terror-unabated-in-pune/
Slave Trade in India continues: Dalit family sold
14Dec09
A court in Rajasthan has asked the police to register a case against
an influential Rajput family in Ajmer district for allegedly selling
an entire Dalit family for Rs 2.75 lakh to a Tonk-based furnace
factory to work there as bonded labourers.
Mahaveer, his wife Sharda and their children Rakesh, Mukesh, Ghisalal,
Chitar and his wife Sajani were sold last year, but the incident came
to the fore when the family escaped from captivity. One year after the
alleged transaction, the seven members of the Dalit family escaped and
reached their native Sunariya village in Ajmer. They took refuge in a
jungle after they were brutally beaten allegedly by the Rajput family
members who also burned down their house. The court order came after
an Ajmer-based lawyer decided to take up their case.
On Friday, a court in Sarwar asked the police to register cases
against the alleged culprits, including Gopal, Bhupender, Prahalad and
Hanuman Bheel. ‘‘Last year Gopal, Bhupender and Prahalad took us to
Tonk on a jeep and left us at the furnace factory. We had to work
there for 15 to 16 hours daily,’’ recalled Mahaveer. He said factory
owner Mustakim Bajigar refused to pay any wages saying he had already
paid money. ‘‘We used to get very less to eat and were not allowed to
go out,’’ said Sharda.
Watch NDTV video here…
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/12/14/slave-trade-in-india-continues-dalit-family-sold/
Hindu Gujarat preserves ‘untouchability’
13Dec09
This is the taluka where Tata Motors has parked its small car project.
Nano has become a symbol of Gujarat’s pride and became a centre of
attraction at the last Vibrant Gujarat investment summit in January
2009.
But scratch the surface, and the scene is gloomy beneath this economic
boom in the state. Bhikhabhai Solanki, 50, a native of Lodariyal
village, has never shaken hands with non-Dalits in his life.
Bhikhabhai, an agricultural labourer, is Valmiki by caste – the lowest
of the socially downtrodden. “We are untouchables and nobody touches
us here,” he says. The farmer he works for keeps a tea-cup outside his
house. Whenever Bhikhabhai arrived for work in the morning or leaves
after finishing in the evening, tea is poured into the cup. Strangely,
this form of untouchability goes in the name of religion. These cups
are called ‘Ram patra’.
The practice thrives across Gujarat, without exception, and has been
documented extensively in a first-of-its-kind study on a large scale,
representing 98,000 Dalits across 1,655 villages in Gujarat. The study
has been carried out by Ahmedabad-based Navsarjan Trust with three US-
based organisations – the Kroc Institute for International Peace
Studies at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, Dartmouth College at
the University of Michigan and Robert F Kennedy Centre for Social
Justice and Human Rights, Washington, D.C.
“This has been going on for generations. The only change is that
earlier there used to be cups made of clay and now they are made of
steel,” says Bhikhabhai. He confesses that drinking the tea offered by
his master does hurt his dignity. But then, he does not want to lose
his daily wage because he has to feed five other members of his
family. His daughter-in-law, Ambha, agrees. She points out that she
carries her own utensils to work, but the person who serves the
afternoon meal at the farm drops the food into the plate without
touching it. In Lodariyal, Dalit women can’t touch vegetables at the
shop just to sample them. Only once they pay up, and the money is kept
on the side and not handed over, the vegetables are flung into the
hollow of their saree. The tea stall owner gives tea to Dalits only in
disposable plastic cups. Others get it in ceramic cups. According to
the study, 98 per cent of the respondents said that non-Dalits keep
separate utensils at home to serve them food or tea. The same
discrimination goes only slight down to 96 per cent on farms.
Dalit rights activist Martin Macwan of Navsarjan Trust says: “In every
step of untouchability, the same concept is being applied – that of
purity. Gujarat has only tried to dignify an indignity by calling
these separate utensils as ‘Ram patra’”.
Source: TOI
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/12/13/hindu-gujarat-preserves-untouchability/
Rotten Journalism: Swami Style damages Dignity
08Dec09
em>In a splendid reply to Pravin Swami’s article “Where style has
trumped substance”(dt.26 November,2009) Lalit Khandare attempts to put
cause before pervert journalism and dents question on today’e upper
caste writing style
Pic 01 Public Sanitation at the cost of Life
<
(Courtsey @ Sudharak Olwe from http://tinyurl.com/yz6opd5)
In an article "Where style has trumped substance" by Pravin Swami on
26 November,2009, the writer comes across as making an appeal that
salaries of Sanitation workers must not be increased at cost of
national security.
Pravin Swami says, "Working upwards of fourteen hours a day — not
counting the typically three hours spent commuting — constable Kamble
earns a basic pay of Rs. 5,200 a month. Sanitation workers employed by
the Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation are paid less — Rs. 4,440 a
month — but end up taking home similar wages, because of overtime.
Indeed, until the Sixth Pay Commission recently upgraded the
categorisation of police work as semi-skilled from skilled, sanitation
workers actually made more money. Little has been done to upgrade the
police’s living standards and training."
This article by Pravin Swami hints to question the “higher earnings”
of sanitation worker than that of security personnel.
Higher wages for sanitation worker can help them choose better
education and provide better health facilities for their children and
family. Although it is highly improbable, higher wages might encourage
people from other castes to also join these services. In reality the
working conditions and wages of sanitation workers in Mumbai is not
sufficient to protect their lives. Maharashtra police personnel have
comprehensive health insurance; however nothing exist of that sort for
sanitation worker who are equally or more vulnerable to health crisis
than police personnel. There are around 30,000 conservancy workers in
Mumbai. Most of them die cleaning this financial capital of our
Country. Merciless Caste-Hindus never paid attention to the issue of
untouchability that migrated to the urban sphere and its heinous
impacts. There had been proposition and efforts from social scientists
and policy makers to impose ESMA (Essential Services & Maintenance
Act) to curtail the right to strike of conservancy workers, and also
to privatize their services.
All low caste jobs while being degrading and non-dignifying in nature
help the majority of this country’s people absolve their
responsibility towards managing their own filth and garbage. It is
worth noting the comment of Jairam Ramesh, Environment and Forest
Minister who said, “Our cities are the dirtiest of the world. If there
is a Nobel Prize for dirt and filth, India will win it.” Socio-
culturally we have given this task of cleaning dirt in rural and urban
India predominantly to “untouchables” and few other most backward
castes. Can we say that “untouchables” failed to perform their merit
in cleaning Indian cities and now let other communities take up
responsibility to show their merit?
There are good number of research and documentaries (eg. “Lesser
Humans' by Stalin K) showing the different forms of untouchability
practices amongst conservancy workers in cities. Sudharak Olwe, a
National Geographic and many other awards winner had pointed out the
plight of conservancy workers in Mumbai. His photo story titled, ‘In
search of Dignity and Justice: The Untold Story of Mumbai's
Conservancy Workers’ puts the plight of the city’s conservancy workers
in sharp focus.
The first anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, which got the
undivided attention of the media and public, also took focus away from
another important event that fell on November 26 – the national
Constitution day. The very Constitution of India which gives liberty
and freedom of expression to media, which is the fourth pillar of
democracy. Without caring for their lives, Dalits martyrs led their
lives for the cause of people during 26/11, however no-one got due
attention. Dalits have always been at the forefront in protecting our
country (in-spite of being enslaved in their very own country for
centuries), historically they have proved their bravery, but are we
ready to address the gross inequality and injustice with Dalit
officers in defence and security forces. While comparing the devotion
and dedication of security personnel and conservancy workers, it must
be noted that few conservancy workers also lost their life while
cleaning the filth of victims of 26/11 (to name few -Thakur Waghela &
Bhagan Shinde). Talking about their contribution along with death of
two security guards, Mumbai Board chairman Amarjit Singh Manhas said
in Mumbai mirror March, 9, 2009, “The contribution of these people is
as important as that of all police personnel killed in the 26/11
terror attacks. This is our way of recognizing their contribution”.
The question is “are we safe, secure, just, and equal society?” or
“are we striving towards Constitutional ideals” before we talk about
“are we safe and secure nation.”
Mr. Pravin Swami and fellow citizens, are we ready to address these
gross violations of Dalit rights and treat them as equal dignified
human being in this 21st century?
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/12/08/rotten-journalism-swami-style-damages-dignity/
Fight just started; Breaking Caste dominance in Indian judiciary
28Sep09
Importantly, NCSC headed by Buta Singh has charged the Manmohan Singh
government of encouraging anti-Dinakaran protestors. It said,
“Unfortunately, the Union government is keeping silent which has given
sufficient room to the media to play upon the constitutional rights of
SCs as granted in the Constitution.” In a statement, NCSC said that
the campaign was motivated by caste bias against Dinakaran who is an
SC. It said the campaign was carried out by “anti-dalit and casteist
elements in Bar Council of India, Bars of states and judicial
activists who are known for having cateist attitude towards the
increasing strength of SC/STs in the judicial services of the
country”. The opposition to Justice Dinakaran’s elevation to Supreme
Court has turned into a full-blown confrontation, with political
outfits pitching in. The statement from NCSC adds to the caste
dimension. The NCSC said, “If the tirade against SCs in judiciary is
not stopped, the commission will be dutybound to take stock of the
situation which has arisen from the unabashed and continuous campaign
of vilification against CJI K G Balakrishnan and Justice Dinakaran.”
In another case of caste dimension in judicial appointments,
parliamentary forum of OBC MPs has written to law minister Veerappa
Moily against the appointment of four judges to Andhra Pradesh HC. In
a letter, OBC forum chairman Hanumantha Rao complained that none of
the four appointed judges were from OBC/SC/ST/woman categories even
though ten of them had applied.
2 Responses to “Fight just started; Breaking Caste dominance in Indian
judiciary”
1 UTTAMKUMAR SUKHADEVE on October 7, 2009 said:
Shri Buta Singh has no moral ground to pointout the finger on Prime
Minister. The real fact is this Shri Buta singh himself working
against the scheduled caste. I have the recent example. I have lodge a
complaint with the commission in January 2008, the case was dealt by
the vice chairman Prof NM Kamble and after scruitniging the case
completely given his lawful judgement on 30.9.08 “that the punishment
was harsh and not justified and the petioner was discriminited”. There
after the case is kept in a cold storage without any action and after
my pressurize on the commission . Shri Buta singh suddenly jump and by
passed the vice chairman and ignored his earlier decision dated
30.9.08 and closed the case intimating that their is no violation of
rules of reservation and any other violation of service safeguard.
Whereas my case is entire different and not for the promotion. My case
fall under article 338 clause 5 (B) ” Deprivation of right and service
safeguard of the scheduled caste. which commission is silent I wrote
two letter on 19.8.09 and 20.8.09 but the commission has not taken any
pain to reply to my letter till date. Shri Buta singh is not working
for the schedled caste welfare but he is working by killing the rights
of scheduled caste on the same line of the Nashik case. Shri Buta
singh has not given any justification how he reach the decision to
close my case. he has not given any lawful finding how he overruled
the earlier finding of vice chairman dt 30.9.08. Shri Buta Singh
should leave the seat in the interest of the scheduled caste.
2 kumarpushp on October 10, 2009 said:
Buta singh is a paid agent of congress same as Mr Jagjeevan
Ram,congress is using these hindu bumm lickers and time has come sc
chairman should be appointed by panel of three people with no
political affilation.
Indian Temples of Education: Dalits forced to eat excreta; Castevirus
002Tech200926Sep09
Following is the sample of worst caste-brutality surfacing out of
elite Indian educational system. This is part of ongoing inflictions
unceasingly practiced in Nehru’s temples of technology. Is India Inc.
listening?
A letter from a alumnus of IT BHU is placed for perusal..The nightmare
he faced due to his caste is just inhuman. Active Netizens…..Come
on ..Lets rise-up against such an obnoxious act..
From: Batch of 2002
Subject: Putting excreta in mouth and torturing an IIT-JEE selected
Dalit student in IT-BHU
Sir, I did my B.tech. from IT-BHU (2002-2007). But my course was not
of technology education but an extremely dirty and painful experience
for being a Schedule Caste student. I was attacked by my batchmates
mostly Brahmins. They tried to mentally paralyze me by torturing and
using most abusive words regularly. I was also tortured by the
teachers. When the case became extremely serious I complained to the
Vice Chancellor ,BHU. An enquiry committee was set up but not a single
action was ever taken.
The director of IT-BHU Mr. S.N.Upadhyay and the Dean , BHU Mr. V.K.
Kumra deliberately suppressed the matter and pressurised me not to
make any complaints further. My case is extremely serious but I have
become absolutely helpless and diappointed . I seek your legal help
and moral support to get justice- stern action against the culprits.
Regards,
R. Raman
One Response to “Indian Temples of Education: Dalits forced to eat
excreta; Castevirus 002Tech2009”
1 abin on October 27, 2009 said:
lets al hang our shame once again,its a pity dat such thngs repeat
time n again in our country evn aftr 60″”GLOROIUS”" yrs of
independence,2 prvnt sch thngs frm hapening again first lets al get
rid of d very prjudices we”ve in our minds . lets all get ourselves
rid of our own hypocrisy… one note 2 Mr.RAMAN,keep fighting man, u r
bound 2 succeed,dnt evr gv up cos dat “l again strenghtn the unholy
practise of casteism, mind u man, all dese people want is 2 keep us
ignorant so dat deir domination can remain 4 ever…
Raped and Burnt alive : Caste virus 003OR200902
Sep09
A 16-year-old dalit girl of Kapaleswar village in Kendrapada district
succumbed to her burn injuries on Tuesday evening. She was set on fire
because she protested against her offender.
Jhili Mallick was kidnapped last year and was being held against her
will at Kantia Mallick’s house. On Monday, when she protested, the
youth poured kerosene over her and reportedly set her on fire in the
presence of his parents.
The victim’s brother, Bhagawan Mallick, alleged that he had filed an
FIR against Kantia last year and informed police that Kantia had
kidnapped his sister and forcefully kept her in his house. But the
police did not take any step to arrest the culprit or rescue his
sister. “Police only registered a missing diary in her name,” he said,
adding that he had repeatedly urged the police to take action against
Kantia. “But they paid no heed to my pleas. Now my sister is dead,” he
said. tnn
Tension mounted at Kapaleswar after the victim’s body arrived at the
village. At least 200 villagers blocked the road on Wednesday,
demanding action against the police officials who earlier shielded the
accused and refused to resuce the girl.
Source: TOI
3 Responses to “Raped and Burnt alive : Caste virus 003OR2009”
1 Baliram Nade, Mumbai on September 2, 2009 said:
Jai bhim
This is very bad news and stigma to all human. I thin this time to
take strong decision, because in the current perioud many cases are
happening and the govt. and court is also taking bias of them. so we
reform our stron youth union on national level for prevention of
atrocity it will be make action plan, how to raise the issue and other
strategy will be develop.
2 paikrao on September 5, 2009 said:
Jay Bhim,
Whats going on this is in our country.
To avoid such a things in future Our people should get entered in
Politics and in police at high lavel.
Till that time no justice will be given to our caste people.
3 Kumarpushp on September 5, 2009 said:
India is a cow shits country ,Dr Ambedkar had given a interviw to Time
Magzine in 1936 where he said ,Hinduism is a not a religion but
disease.Dear Buddhist Bandhus and dalit ,how long we will be raped and
killed under hindu led government in India.
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/09/02/raped-and-burnt-alive-caste-virus-003or2009/
Gevrai: Hindu Priest Rapes Dalit Minor
30Aug09
Gang rape of a Dalit minor by a Hindu Priest and his accomplices is
worst incidence in line with the atrocities piling up in Beed
District. Kidnapping Victim from her home in Rajni village near
National highway and gang rape in adjacent farms to Ahemadanagar Road
– 8-10 km from Beed is a ghory summary. Again “Instead of justice
police outraged her modesty”
Name of Victims : Smita Pawar
Caste : Hindu untouchable caste- Mang
Type of crime : Kidnapping and Gang Rape
Date : 23/08/2009 to 24/08/2009
Name of accused :
1. Uttam Mane ( Upper Caste- Aarradhi Priest)
2. Babalu Turukmare
3. Three unknown persons masked their faces
F.I.R. : 376,328,109,366 ( IPC ) Police Station :
Tal – Gevrai Dist- Beed
Background of the case:
Smita Pawar (name changed) is 15 year old girl, occupation- landless
labour. She belongs to Mang caste (Schedule Caste). Her native place
is Rajnai village, Tal – Georai and Dist – Beed. Three months back she
got married and she was living with her husband.
Victim Smita and her husband came to her parent’s home for the
religious ceremony (Paradi programme) at 12 pm on Friday Dated 21 Aug
2009. On Friday night Uttam Mane came for this religious ceremony as
a priest (Arradhi). He resides in Beed town and another two priests
and one boy also accompanied him, namely Kondiram, Babasaheb and a boy
Babalu Turukmare.
After finishing religious ceremony (Paradi programme) Uttam Mane lived
in victim’s home for two days.
On Sunday 23rd Aug 2009, Uttam Mane told victim to visit Aaai (i.e.
Goddess) temple in the field to perform remaining rituals. Victim
believed and went with him. But when they came near Gadhi Phata of
National Highway of Beed, an auto rickshaw came near them and Babalu
got down from it. Uttam Mane asked Babalu to take her with him. When
she denied Uttam forced victim to sit in the rickshaw besides Bablu.
She feared and doubted their intention and refused to sit in Rickshaw
but Babalu took her scarf and put on her mouth and forcefully made her
to sit in the rickshaw.
Then Babalu took her to Beed Bus stand. Babalu called up his friends
and immediately three friends came and sat in Auto Riksha. Auto Riksha
took turn near Shivji Statute of the Beed and directly proceeded on
Nagar Road. They went approximately 8 – 10 Km away from the Beed. Auto
Riksha halted near secluded place in the farm near a Neem tree close
to a well. There was a hut in the field. The time was around 4.30 pm.
Babalu and masked friends (probably Uttam) forced victim to eat white
tablets. They told her this tablets is for avoiding pregnancy then
Babalu and his friends removed her Sari, and inner garments and they
also snatched away gold and silver ornaments. Initially Babalu
brutally raped her and afterward three others raped took the turn. She
fainted and went unconscious.
On 24th Aug 2009 around 7.30 am to 8.00 am when she regained her
consciousness she found herself in Auto Riksha again. Babalu and his
friends were also seating next to her. She also found that she was
wearing purple colour panjabi dress instead of her sari and also
carrying white – chocolate colour purse containing bangles, scent
bottle and vico cream.
They went to Gevrai in Auto Rikshs and left her on the Gevrai old bus
stand. She was under fear and tremendous stress. When she walked down
towards border of Gevrai, her brother Mr. Hanuman and village people
met her there. Her brother brought her to Shanta Bai’s house. Her
brother gave her water and meal. They went to Georai government
hospital. Then victim’s brother, mother, father and victim herself
went to Georai police station. They registered compliant. Again they
went to Georai government hospital but doctor advised to admit in Beed
civil hospital. They came in civil hospital and Victim admitted in the
civil hospital in Beed.
When police called victim and her father for writing statement, they
went to Georai police station . Instead of registering the complaint
PI (Police Inspector) beat and abused the victim.
Without the intervention from SPMM and CHR, the atrocious system
would easily been covered up similar to earlier Atrocities. They
helped the victim in many ways.
* Psychological support and counseling,
* Legal support, counseling and legal aid,
* Helped for the medical treatment of the victims.
* Put pressure on police and also government by Dharane Andolan and
Rasta Roko.
* Pressure on the political leader and police administration
* Advocacy of the present case at local, district and state level
through electronic and print media
* Networking and Collaboration of all Dalit organizations and
political parties (which supports Dalit cause) for this issue.
* Documentation and reporting
* Documentation and publication
Present situation:
* Police did not put clauses of POA in FIR
* Still main accused are not arrested by the police
* Instead of giving justice police has beaten and abused the victim on
28th Aug. 2009
Local Media:
Pic 01 : News in Sakal on Gang rape of a Sheduled caste woman by an
Uppercaste Priest
Pic 02 : News in Surajya- Gang rape of a Sheduled Caste by an
Uppercaste Priest
5 Responses to “Gevrai: Hindu Priest Rapes Dalit Minor”
1 discount garden furniture on August 30, 2009 said:
Love the new look, keep up the great work the number of visitors must
have increased?.
2 selvakumar on September 3, 2009 said:
Sir are they human being or any animal being?
Manu quoted in his Manusmriti that the outcaste people are not the
human being so the other caste people can use them as an animal. If
the Hindus are realy the animal being they can do this kind of things.
These Hindu fanatics found something special in the outcaste people
tha’s why they always taste the dalit women. they do not find anything
in their women.
Such a stupids they are.
3 STG on February 20, 2010 said:
You are totally misguided selvakumar…. In Manusmriti it is not said
anything like what you are saying. Manu has written a constitution for
that age. And dont mix religion and criminals. You are totally false
and misguided person.
4 Baliram Nade, Mumbai on September 3, 2009 said:
Jai bhim to all
In Beed district in this current situation no. of atrocities are
happed. For this the local police administration is responsible, and
govt.( not our) is also support to the accused. In this case the both
Pandit (MLA and ex. MLA) had intervention and support to accused.
For getting judge we can bring more pressure on govt. and admn. I and
My friends are making action plan of how we handle this case and race
the issue nation and internation level.
5 Surendra Rote on September 5, 2009 said:
Dear all,
Jaibhim.
Since long time we have been facing this humiliation and hostility
from the Caste Hindu people. We are protesting many times but
frequencie of Dalit atrocities has not been decreasing. It is really
disturbing for us. It is fortunate of India that India got Ambedkar.
Ambedkar given us Buddha. Therefore we are all following path of peace
and non-violence even while protesting against injustice.
Otherwise……..we would have been shown that to these Castiest minded
hindus what is brutality and how to kill the person. But it is
fortunate of India, India have Buddha and Ambedkar and both of with
us.
We will never loose our strentgh. We have to strongly protest on each
and every step collectively. We have to reinvent more strategies to
make socially economically and educationally strong to SCs, STs
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/08/30/gevrai-hindu-priest-rapes-dalit-minor/
Gevrai: Festive butchering of Dalits
25Aug09
In a Brahmin stronghold Tahsil of Gevrai in Beed District the
atrocities on Dalits are piling up as always. This time the festivals
of Bulls (POLA) brings death penalty to some. No doubt deaths are not
from upper-castes but from helpless poor Dalits at the hands of
former. Soon after the killings, Police stations are terrorized with
Political pressure.
In a Village named Malas-Pimpalgaon, a Dalit was summarily butchered
by Upper-caste men when he refused to obey the dictates . The Hindu
rule is that Matangs (Dalit caste) should not dare beat drums during
festivals. Minding his rights, Laxman Aher , a brave soldier wedged a
war against the caste dictates and beat the drums by which he only
invited the Caste ire . Later he was targetted and mercilessly beaten
to death by the upper castes crowd.
Pic 02: Caste Rules take life in India everyday
Such a Brahman populated area adorns more shame when a Matang minor
was raped by group of upper caste men in Rajni village close to Malas-
Pimpalgaon in the same Tahsil. Even the case was not registered by the
victims due to the fear from upper caste forces. Neither Police came
forward to take the stock of the situation fearing backlash.
Pic 03: Activism in first place; CHR president Ad. Eknath Awad and
Manisha Tokle encouraging victim relatives for registering case in the
police station
Also Police is silent which is the least they can offer to convince
their political dog heads.
However the civil society in the region does not sleep into silence,
having noticed the incidents CHR (Campaign for Human Rights) has
decided to protest thru People March on 30th August on Police station.
The March will be joined by Manisha Tokale, Subhash Nade, KAilas Veer,
Motiram Bade, Santosh JAdhav, Baburao Ghule, Kalyan Naktode, Alka
Naktde, Asha Pawar, Archana Waghmare, Meena Lokhande and others
One Response to “Gevrai: Festive butchering of Dalits”
1 Dickman on August 31, 2009 said:
Indians are a type of animal. All Indians!. These savages should be
shunned by all White countries.
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/2009/08/25/gevrai-festive-butchering-of-dalits/
http://atrocitynews.wordpress.com/category/dalit-atrocity/
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Produktinformation
Taschenbuch: 208 Seiten
Verlag: Vintage Books; Auflage: N.-A. (4. August 1997)
Sprache: Englisch
ISBN-10: 0749390697
ISBN-13: 978-0749390693
Größe und/oder Gewicht: 19,4 x 12,6 x 1,4 cm
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Produktbeschreibungen
Pressestimmen
"A witty documentary satire.... Mehta embraces an enormous variety of
life and death. Her style is light without being flip; her skepticism
never descends to cynicism. [Karma Cola is] a miracle of rationalism
and taste."
-- Time
Sometime in the 1960s, the West adopted India as its newest spiritual
resort. The next anyone knew, the Beatles were squatting at the feet
of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Expatriate hippies were turning on
entire villages to the pleasures of group sex and I.V. drug use. And
Indians who were accustomed to earning enlightenment the old-fashioned
way were finding that the visitors wanted their Nirvana now -- and
that plenty of native gurus were willing to deliver it.
No one has observed the West's invasion of India more astutely than
Gita Mehta. In Karma Cola the acclaimed novelist trains an unblinking
journalistic eye on jaded sadhus and beatific acid burnouts, the
Bhagwan and Allen Ginsberg, guilt-tripping English girls and a guru
who teaches gullible tourists how to view their previous incarnations.
Brilliantly irreverent, hilarious, sobering, and wise, Mehta's book is
the definitive epitaph for the era of spiritual tourism and all its
casualties -- both Eastern and Western.
"Evelyn Waugh would have rejoiced."
-- The New York Times Book Review
Kurzbeschreibung
Beginning in the late '60s, hundreds of thousands of Westerners
descended upon India, disciples of a cultural revolution that
proclaimed that the magic and mystery missing from their lives was to
be found in the East. An Indian writer who has also lived in England
and the United States, Gita Mehta was ideally placed to observe the
spectacle of European and American "pilgrims" interacting with their
hosts. When she finally recorded her razor sharp observations in Karma
Cola, the book became an instant classic for describing, in merciless
detail, what happens when the traditions of an ancient and longlived
society are turned into commodities and sold to those who don't
understand them.
In the dazzling prose that has become her trademark, Mehta skewers the
entire Spectrum of seekers: The Beatles, homeless students, Hollywood
rich kids in detox, British guilt-trippers, and more. In doing so, she
also reveals the devastating byproducts that the Westerners brought to
the villages of rural lndia -- high anxiety and drug addiction among
them.
Brilliantly irreverent, Karma Cola displays Gita Mehta's gift for
weaving old and new, common and bizarre, history and current events
into a seamless and colorful narrative that is at once witty,
shocking, and poignant.
Alle Produktbeschreibungen
http://www.amazon.de/Karma-Cola-Gita-Mehta/dp/0749390697
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Karma Cola
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Die hilfreichste positive Rezension Die hilfreichste kritische
Rezension
3 von 3 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Amazing
Ms. Mehta is undoubtedly the best Indian author alive!
I dothink the person who wrote the two sentence review probably does
not know the meaning of 'trash'. 'Trash' is the heaps and heaps of
books that get published every year in the US and somehow make it to
the NY Times best seller list just beacuse Oprah thinks it is a good
book or because it can be made into a tv...
Vollständige Rezension lesen ›
Veröffentlicht am 20. April 2000 von SL
› Weitere Rezensionen anzeigen: 5 Sterne, 4 Sterne
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Useful & entertaining
Humorous description of overseas visitors looking to India for
spiritual enlightenment twenty years ago. I read this while visiting
Pune, India, location of Bhagavan Shri Rajnish's ashram, which made it
even more appropriate. Very entertaining & perceptive.
The book is not about India--it is about Western misperception of
India.
Veröffentlicht am 29. Januar 2000 von J. G. Heiser
0 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Decent but nothing special, 21. Juni 2000
Von Meredith Billman Mani -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
While Ms. Metha is an extremely talented writer I find it distracting
to have to wade through her obvious attempts to describe every minute
detail to the reader. It gets to be too much. This is a nice book that
offers (too much) description and a very one sided view of India.
She's writing for an American audience and it's as though she wants
them to laugh at the customs and norms in India. This is not my
favorite book on india or even by the author. This is a middle of the
road book as far as I'm concerned. I don't hate it, but then again I
don't love it either.
0 von 2 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
This book is not good., 5. Mai 2000
Von Ein Kunde
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
This book mocks europeans and americans who have earnestly gone to
India to seek out "enlightenment" and an element of spirituality that
they think is lacking in their home cultures. Gita Mehta employs all
sorts of cliches and negative stereotypes to depict this class of
"foreigner" in India. This is not a very challenging literary task.
Her language is as slick and taught as advertising text. Sometimes
clever, but more often simply rank and mean, Mehta indulges in trite
pseudo subaltern "slamming" of hippies and spiritual seekers.
I wonder what Mehta's reaction would be if an American author started
penning stories of the immature, body-stenched, fashion impaired
Indian immigrants who flock to America to shop in outlet malls and
stuff their cheap luggage full of cheaper nick-nacks for the glass
bureaus back in Delhi and Dehra Dun...
Everyone is looking for something: Westerners look for something
spiritual in India / Indians look for something material in the West.
And you are looking for my opinion on this book: dont waste your time
with this one -- go buy a Rushdie novel you don't already have.
3 von 3 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Amazing, 20. April 2000
Von SL (OakPark, IL) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
Ms. Mehta is undoubtedly the best Indian author alive!
I dothink the person who wrote the two sentence review probably does
not know the meaning of 'trash'. 'Trash' is the heaps and heaps of
books that get published every year in the US and somehow make it to
the NY Times best seller list just beacuse Oprah thinks it is a good
book or because it can be made into a tv movie.
This book is a classic. Her use of the language is extra-ordinary. She
touches on the most 'Indian' of values with a great sense of humor and
almost trivialises them. She makes you really think about issues that
matter and drove(still drive) thousands of Westerners to India. She
has also done a great job of contrasting the Eastern and Western view
of life, death and everything spiritual.
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Useful & entertaining, 29. Januar 2000
Von J. G. Heiser (Sunninghill, Berks) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
Humorous description of overseas visitors looking to India for
spiritual enlightenment twenty years ago. I read this while visiting
Pune, India, location of Bhagavan Shri Rajnish's ashram, which made it
even more appropriate. Very entertaining & perceptive.
The book is not about India--it is about Western misperception of
India.
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
An Essential Book for Travelers to India, 29. Dezember 1999
Von Peter Theis (Minneapolis, USA) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
This book is a must-read for those travelers bound for India,
especially for those seeking enlightenment. I lived in Varanasi for a
year, and I met many travelers who believed that India was some sort
of textbook Hindu holy land. These people lived in their ideas,
creating a shield around them that kept real India out. Karma Cola
helps show that India isn't a book-ideal made up of gurus and yogis
performing divine-inspired miracles on every street corner. It shows
that India, like any other country, is made up of people: helpful
people and crooks, prude people and perverts. If you go to India,
don't go there to experience some sort of religious miracle. Go there
to see real India and meet real Indians, and read this book before you
go!
0 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
A 'scholarly' (not!) book, 3. August 1999
Von Ein Kunde
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
Nothing but trash! I can not believe that this stupid book is
recommended reading by Lonely Planet!
Witty at times, cynical at others, 30. Juli 1999
Von Michael Washbrooke (Sydney, Australia) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
Written so as to remind each of us that there's a sucker (or seeker)
born every minute, Mehta's book shows us how easy it is to fool
gullible Westerners looking for enlightenment, and that there's a big
difference between open-hearted curiosity and gullibility. Westerners
created a market for gurus, and India filled it. But somewhere among
the amusing anecdotes that Mehta relates in a clucking tongue there's
a tale that's really rather sad. On the whole, I enjoyed the book and
found it witty and amusing, but thought it was perhaps a little
satisfied at its own superiority. For anybody thinking about going to
India to "find themselves," it would be a good primer.
Another thought, 13. Juli 1998
Von bali...@aol.com (Washington, DC) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
In addition to what I've already written, let me also state that the
book is also a criticism of Indians who capitalize on westerners' need
for spiritual fulfillment. On a personal note about the Chapter in
which the illegal route from Pakistan to India is discovered and the
foreigners coming through that route by taking advantage of the
hospitality of the villagers, this is not uncommon even today. I've
had several people stay at my house who basically used me as a cheap
place to stay and without even thanking me for cooking for them or
providing them with a roof over their heads. The ability to take
unashamedly persists. Hospitality is one of the greatest things about
Indian/South Asian culture, but as Mehta demonstrates in the chapter,
it also exposes Indians to a great deal of abuse as anyone who's had
an ungracious house guest can testify.
Not the usual view of India, 7. Februar 1998
Von cat...@gnosys.co.nz (New Zealand) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
Karma Cola is definitely required reading for any westerner interested
in things Indian or perhaps contemplating hitting the Dharma trail.
Its recognition that misunderstanding goes both ways (eg. the
anecdotes about gurus treatment of their Western students) is a good
reality check for those of us whose spiritual search has taken us
there. Ms Mehta gently reminds us that trying to absorb 5000 years of
experience and living may take a little more than a few weeks of squat
loos, and some Om Mani Padme Hums.
This is the first time I've ever read a book about the move of Eastern
thought into the West which was not written by a Westerner. In some
ways sobering, it is also witty and at times poignant.
By the way, an earlier reviewer lambasted the author for attributing
the wrong language to clerks from Kerala. That mistake has been fixed
in the edition I have (Minerva 1997 paperback).
Sucks!!!, 15. Dezember 1997
Von veni...@zonker.ecs.umass.edu (Amherst, MA) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
Pardon me, but the author's ignorance is showing. The book has very
little to do with reality and panders to every fear and stereotype in
the mind of an Western audience. Here is an instance of the author's
ignorance, a quote from Chapter VI titled Behind the Urine Curtain,
Section 3 (pg 84 in the Vintage paper back edition)-she is talking
about the different people who use the local trains in Mumbai- "There
to the left is a clutch of stiletto-heeled and skirted Goan
secretaries, exchanging office gossip in Portuguese. Close behind them
are the Kerala clerks in white bush shirts and gray trousers,
conversing in (emphasis mine)*KANNADA*". Now anyone with an iota of
knowledge about India and its languages will know that the people of
Kerala speak Malayalam and not Kannada which is the language of the
neighboring Karnataka. Malayalam and Kannada are not obscure tongues
but are each spoken by atleast a few million people. Someone who
doesnt even know this should NOT set out writing a book about India.
Makes one wonder at the autheticity of the other anecdotes in the
book. Throwing in some high sounding philosophical jargon does not
make a book intellectual either (Chapter XIII- Om is Where the Heart
is). In all a very pathetic attempt to make a quick buck out of the
"mystic" of the East. She seems to be the one living up to her book's
title- Karma Cola- Marketing the Mystic East.
A look at the consequences of India's "spiritual draw"., 1. Dezember
1997
Von Ein Kunde
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
An interesting look at what draws "spiritually starved" westerners to
India and the consequential fallout. The author assumes a lot from the
reader, particularly a working knowledge of spoken French and a
rudimentary understanding of Hindu mythology. I'm lacking on both
accounts so a lot of the book went over my head. One particular
passage that sounds to me like it's important but I didn't fully
appreciate, was the one where she is talking about the meaning of
Karma and its perverted meaning by westerners. She relates the story,
from the Bhagavad Gita, of Arjuna asking Krishna why he needs to go to
war when understanding is superior to action in this case. Krishna
answers that one is bound by action and that only by acting can one be
free of the bondage of action. "That is exactly Karma" says the
author. Now, here is where I have a problem, probably because of my
limited understanding of Hinduism. *I* thought that Karma had to do
with the totallity of ones actions and is *the* factor determining
your next level of reincarnation. What the author seems to be implying
is that Karma is, instead, the bondage of action, i.e. fate. That is,
karma is the thing which predefines our actions rather than the
measure of our actions. I am confused ..... On the other hand, her
very pragmatic telling of the western approach to "instant nirvana"
and the "distressed westerner" abdicating to the nearest Guru is
actually quite refreshing and devoid of the mythical. :-) However,not
quite so overtly there is the implication that the invasion of
confused westerners has had a very destructive impact of the lives of
ordinary Indians. When relating the story of the westerners who
figured out a illegal route into India from Pakistan by taking
advantage of the hospitality of Indians, the protaganist of the story
is said to have said "One cannot make an omelet without breaking some
eggs". The author continues by saying, "and from where I stand the
ground is covered with broken egg shells". This I found quite sad ....
the narcissistic westerners completely lacking in self-restraint and
enough appreciation to understand that the path of "enlightenment"
requires endurance and cannot be delivered at will. Mind you that's
what Christianity preaches; just give your faith to god and you will
be saved. Where is the prerequisite toil and self-sacrifice?
An excellent book on the "other" perspective., 1. Dezember 1997
Von Ein Kunde
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola: Marketing the Mystic East
(Vintage International) (Taschenbuch)
This is an excellent book for those who want to know what "sensible"
South Asians think about the appropriation and manipulation of their
culture. I'm sure that it would seem rather acerbic to those who
control the discourse on culture and identity but every once in a
while a book comes along and gives voice to the perspective of the
"other." Those of us who have seen their karma, their food, their
noserings, their clothes and their cultural, religious and national
symbols reinvented, recycled and resignified will appreciate this book
as an attempt to point out the folly of such doings. For westerners,
this is like looking in a mirror that does not lie.
A rather cranky view of westerners in India., 16. August 1997
Von loo...@alaska.net (Girdwood, Alaska) -
Rezension übernommen von: Karma Cola (Taschenbuch)
The author has some fun describing the follies and adventures of
westerners in India, but falls into the "more Hindu than thou" mode a
bit. An interesting read.
Produktinformation
Taschenbuch: 944 Seiten
Verlag: St. Martin's Press; Auflage: Reprint (November 2005)
Sprache: Englisch
ISBN-10: 0312330537
ISBN-13: 978-0312330538
Größe und/oder Gewicht: 20,8 x 13,7 x 4,3 cm
Durchschnittliche Kundenbewertung: 4.4 von 5 Sternen Alle Rezensionen
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Amazon.com
Crime and punishment, passion and loyalty, betrayal and redemption are
only a few of the ingredients in Shantaram, a massive, over-the-top,
mostly autobiographical novel. Shantaram is the name given Mr.
Lindsay, or Linbaba, the larger-than-life hero. It means "man of God's
peace," which is what the Indian people know of Lin. What they do not
know is that prior to his arrival in Bombay he escaped from an
Australian prison where he had begun serving a 19-year sentence. He
served two years and leaped over the wall. He was imprisoned for a
string of armed robberies peformed to support his heroin addiction,
which started when his marriage fell apart and he lost custody of his
daughter. All of that is enough for several lifetimes, but for Greg
Roberts, that's only the beginning.
He arrives in Bombay with little money, an assumed name, false papers,
an untellable past, and no plans for the future. Fortunately, he meets
Prabaker right away, a sweet, smiling man who is a street guide. He
takes to Lin immediately, eventually introducing him to his home
village, where they end up living for six months. When they return to
Bombay, they take up residence in a sprawling illegal slum of 25,000
people and Linbaba becomes the resident "doctor." With a prison
knowledge of first aid and whatever medicines he can cadge from doing
trades with the local Mafia, he sets up a practice and is regarded as
heaven-sent by these poor people who have nothing but illness, rat
bites, dysentery, and anemia. He also meets Karla, an enigmatic Swiss-
American woman, with whom he falls in love. Theirs is a complicated
relationship, and Karla’s connections are murky from the outset.
Roberts is not reluctant to wax poetic; in fact, some of his prose is
downright embarrassing. Throughought the novel, however, all 944 pages
of it, every single sentence rings true. He is a tough guy with a
tender heart, one capable of what is judged criminal behavior, but a
basically decent, intelligent man who would never intentionally hurt
anyone, especially anyone he knew. He is a magnet for trouble, a
soldier of fortune, a picaresque hero: the rascal who lives by his
wits in a corrupt society. His story is irresistible. Stay tuned for
the prequel and the sequel. --Valerie Ryan -- Dieser Text bezieht sich
auf eine andere Ausgabe: Gebundene Ausgabe .
From Publishers Weekly
At the start of this massive, thrillingly undomesticated potboiler, a
young Australian man bearing a false New Zealand passport that gives
his name as "Lindsay" flies to Bombay some time in the early '80s. On
his first day there, Lindsay meets the two people who will largely
influence his fate in the city. One is a young tour guide, Prabaker,
whose gifts include a large smile and an unstoppably joyful heart.
Through Prabaker, Lindsay learns Marathi (a language not often spoken
by gora, or foreigners), gets to know village India and settles, for a
time, in a vast shantytown, operating an illicit free clinic. The
second person he meets is Karla, a beautiful Swiss-American woman with
sea-green eyes and a circle of expatriate friends. Lin's love for Karla
—and her mysterious inability to love in return—gives the book its
central tension. "Linbaba's" life in the slum abruptly ends when he is
arrested without charge and thrown into the hell of Arthur Road
Prison. Upon his release, he moves from the slum and begins laundering
money and forging passports for one of the heads of the Bombay mafia,
guru/sage Abdel Khader Khan. Eventually, he follows Khader as an
improbable guerrilla in the war against the Russians in Afghanistan.
There he learns about Karla's connection to Khader and discovers who
set him up for arrest. Roberts, who wrote the first drafts of the
novel in prison, has poured everything he knows into this book and it
shows. It has a heartfelt, cinemascope feel. If there are occasional
passages that would make the very angels of purple prose weep, there
are also images, plots, characters, philosophical dialogues and
mysteries that more than compensate for the novel's flaws. A
sensational read, it might well reproduce its bestselling success in
Australia here.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier
Inc. All rights reserved. -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine andere
Ausgabe: Gebundene Ausgabe .
From Booklist
A thousand pages is like a thousand pounds--it sounds like too much to
deal with. Nevertheless, Roberts' very long novel sails along at an
amazingly fast clip. Readers in the author's native Australia
apparently finished every page of it, for they handed it considerable
praise. Now U.S. readers can enjoy this rich saga based on Roberts'
own life: escape from a prison in Australia and a subsequent flight to
Bombay, which is exactly what happens to Lindsay, the main character
in the novel; once in Bombay, he joins the city's underground. Roberts
graphically, even beautifully, evokes that milieu--he is as effective
at imparting impressions as any good travel writer--in this complex
but cohesive story about freedom and the lack of it, about survival,
spiritual meaning, love, and sex; in other words, about life in what
has to be one of the most fascinating cities in the world. One's first
impression of this novel is that it is simply a good story, but one
soon comes to realize that Roberts is also a gifted creator of
characters--not only Lindsay but also Prabaker, who becomes Lindsay's
guide, caretaker, and entree into various elements of Bombay society.
Soon, too, one becomes aware and appreciative of Roberts' felicitous
writing style. In all, despite the novel's length, it is difficult not
to be ensnared by it. And, be forewarned, it will be popular. Brad
Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --
Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine andere Ausgabe: Gebundene Ausgabe .
Pressestimmen
"Shantaram is a novel of the first order, a work of extraordinary art,
a thing of exceptional beauty. If someone asked me what the book was
about, I would have to say everything, every thing in the world.
Gregory David Roberts does for Bombay what Lawrence Durrell did for
Alexandria, what Melville did for the South Seas, and what Thoreau did
for Walden Pond: He makes it an eternal player in the literature of
the world."
- Pat Conroy
"Shantaram has provided me with the richest reading experience to date
and I don't expect anybody to unseat its all-round performance for a
long time. It is seductive, powerful, complex, and blessed with a
perfect voice. Like a voodoo ghost snatcher, Gregory David Roberts has
captured the spirits of the likes of Henri Charrière, Rohinton Mistry,
Tom Wolfe, and Mario Vargas Llosa, fused them with his own unique
magic, and built the most gripping monument in print. The land of the
god Ganesh has unchained the elephant, and with the monster running
amok, I tremble for the brave soul dreaming of writing a novel about
India. Gregory David Roberts is a suitable giant, a dazzling guru, and
a genius in full."
- Moses Isegawa, author of Abyssinian Chronicles and Snakepit
"Shantaram is, quite simply, the 1001 Arabian Nights of the new
century. Anyone who loves to read has been looking for this book all
their reading life. Anyone who walks away from Shantaram untouched is
either heartless or dead or both. I haven't had such a wonderful time
in years."
- Jonathan Carroll, author of White Apples
"Shantaram is dazzling. More importantly, it offers a lesson...that
those we incarcerate are human beings. They deserve to be treated with
dignity. Some of them, after all, may be exceptional. Some may even
possess genius."
- Ayelet Waldman, author of Crossing the Park
“Utterly unique, absolutely audacious, and wonderfully wild, Shantaram
is sure to catch even the most fantastic of imaginations off guard.”
---Elle
“Shantaram had me hooked from the first sentence. [It] is thrilling,
touching, frightening...a glorious wallow of a novel.”
---Detroit Free Press
“[A] sprawling, intelligent novel…full of vibrant characters…the
exuberance of his prose is refreshing…Roberts brings us through
Bombay’s slums and opium houses, its prostitution dens and ex-pat
bars, saying, You come now. And we follow.”
---The Washington Post
"Inspired storytelling."
--People
“Vivid, entertaining. Its visceral, cinematic descriptive beauty truly
impresses.”
--USA Today
“Few stand out quite like Shantaram …nothing if not entertaining.
Sometimes a big story is its own best reward.”
--The New York Times
"...very good...vast of vision and breadth."
--Time Out
“This massive autobiographical novel draws heavily from Roberts’ vida
loca. Don’t let the size scare you away – Shantaram is one of the most
gripping tales of personal redemption you’ll ever read.”
--Giant Magazine
“This reviewer is amazed that Roberts is here to write anything.
Swallowed up by the abyss, somehow he crawled out intact….His love for
other people was his salvation…Powerful books can change our lives.
The potency of Shantaram is the joy of forgiveness. First we must
regret, then forgive. Forgiveness is a beacon in the blackness.”
--Dayton Daily News
" Shantaram is loads of colorful fun, [it] rises to something grand in
its evocations of the pungent chaos of Bombay. "
--Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Shantaram is a true epic. It is a huge, messy, over-the-top
irresistible shaggy-dog story.”
--The Seattle Times
Kurzbeschreibung
A stunning debut novel based on the author's dramatic and
extraordinary true story. After escaping from a maximum-security
prison, Roberts hid in Bombay, establishing a medical clinic, working
in Bollywood and joining the mafia. A gripping and superbly written
adventure story which will receive review and feature coverage. "A
masterpiece...sure to be a bestseller around the world" "The Age" --
Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine vergriffene oder nicht verfügbare
Ausgabe dieses Titels.
Über den Autor
Gregory David Roberts was born in Melbourne, Australia. Sentenced to
nineteen years in prison for a series of armed robberies, he escaped
and spent ten of his fugitive years in Bombay---where he established a
free medical clinic for slum-dwellers, and worked as a counterfeiter,
smuggler, gunrunner, and street soldier for a branch of the Bombay
mafia. Recaptured, he served out his sentence, and established a
successful multimedia company upon his release. Roberts is a now full-
time writer and lives in Bombay.
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21 von 21 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Shantaram
I grew up in Bombay in the fifties and early sixties, and have not
visited the city for the past odd 20 years. This amazing book has
basically summed up life in one of the most fascinating cities in the
world. Besides the adventure, which is unique in itself, the author
has managed a description of the city and its unbelievable vibrant
atmosphere and street life to pass...
Vollständige Rezension lesen ›
Veröffentlicht am 21. Januar 2005 von Simon Khosla
› Weitere Rezensionen anzeigen: 5 Sterne, 4 Sterne
8 von 8 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Weniger ist mehr
Shantaram - wärmstens empfohlen nicht nur von Amazon-Usern und deren
Rezensionen, sondern unter anderem auch aufgrund vieler positiver
Berichte in diversen Zeitschriften. Nachdem ich nun die 932 Seiten
"geschafft" habe zu lesen, wusste ich nicht recht ob ich zufrieden war
mit dem Buch oder ob ein wenig die Enttäuschung überwog.
Das Buch ist in 5 Teile...
Vollständige Rezension lesen ›
Vor 8 Monaten von Chevy veröffentlicht
21 von 21 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Shantaram, 21. Januar 2005
Von Simon Khosla (Schaffhausen, Switzerland) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram (Gebundene Ausgabe)
I grew up in Bombay in the fifties and early sixties, and have not
visited the city for the past odd 20 years. This amazing book has
basically summed up life in one of the most fascinating cities in the
world. Besides the adventure, which is unique in itself, the author
has managed a description of the city and its unbelievable vibrant
atmosphere and street life to pass like a film in front of ones eyes.
It is the best book I have ever read about the city.
8 von 8 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Weniger ist mehr, 1. Juli 2009
Von Chevy -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Shantaram - wärmstens empfohlen nicht nur von Amazon-Usern und deren
Rezensionen, sondern unter anderem auch aufgrund vieler positiver
Berichte in diversen Zeitschriften. Nachdem ich nun die 932 Seiten
"geschafft" habe zu lesen, wusste ich nicht recht ob ich zufrieden war
mit dem Buch oder ob ein wenig die Enttäuschung überwog.
Das Buch ist in 5 Teile untergliedert, zu insgesamt 43 Kapitel. Bis
zum Ende des 3. Teiles war ich schwer begeistert wie Roberts über
seine Flucht, sein Untertauchen, das indische Dorfleben, das Leben im
Slum oder aber auch über die Menschen die er trifft und liebt
schreibt, teilweise auch sehr humorvoll. Er malt viele der Szenen,
teilweise bis ins Detail beschrieben, sehr ausgiebig.
Allerdings hat der Autor ein großes Manko. Respekt davor was der Autor
erlebt haben möchte (da die Rahmengeschichte ja doch irgendwie der
Realität entspricht), allerdings scheint es, vor allem gegen Ende des
Romans, sehr oft, als Lobe sich der Autor selbst. Teilweise kämpft er
alle drei Seiten gegen einen neuen Gegner und beschreibt detailliert
wie er diese zumeist K.O. schlägt. Auch die Storyline nimmt mit den
letzten zwei Kapiteln, der Mafia und Aufghanistan stark ab, der Roman
wird zu sehr in die Länge gezogen. Dies ist natürlich sehr schade, da
es zu Beginn wie gesagt ein Buch war das ich den meisten Leuten blind
empfehlen würde. Philosophisch gesehen birgt der Roman Ansätze über
einen evtl Sinn des Lebens, allerdings motivieren diese aber nicht,
sich weiter damit auseinanderzusetzen.
Alles in allem kann ich das Buch als Urlaubsroman empfehlen, aber auch
nur denjenigen, denen Kampfszenen nichts ausmachen. Wirklich
empfehlenswert meinerseits sind daher eigentlich nur die ersten 3
Teile. Deshalb auch die 3 von 5 Sternen.
19 von 21 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Hail Shantaram!, 15. April 2005
Von "kojanko" -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
This book is simply amazing.
It is a classic adventure book first of all, filled with deep
realizations about life, love and death. It is beautifully crafted,
and Gregory Roberts writing style is gripping, colorful and profoundly
simple (in the best way). It always displays an honesty and
authenticity even in the most outragous moments of this tale - and
there are many of those. Shantaram is everything a reader could ever
want from a book - it is poetic, moving, philosophical and extremely
alive. You'll be very sorry when you get to the last of the 900+
pages.
Very sorry, indeed.
Read it.
11 von 12 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
An epic novel set in India, 21. Juni 2005
Von Philippe Horak (Zug, Switzerland) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram (Gebundene Ausgabe)
Mr Roberts's voluminous novel tells the story of one narrator who
escaped from prison in Australia and travelled to Bombay on a false
New Zealand passport. He doesn't devote much time talking about his
criminal activities in his home country apart from stating that he
used to rob banks and deal in drugs and then chose to abandon his wife
and children for the life of a fugitive. Upon his arrival in the
Indian capital, he met Prabaker Kharre, a loveable character who
showed him round the city, particularly the areas rarely visited by
mainstream tourists. At Leopold's, a bar where illegal business is
conducted by many Indians and a few foreigners, the narrator was
introduced to Karla Saaranen, a beautiful woman who is often the
object of his thoughts throughout the novel due to the difficulty she
has in feeling love for anyone.
As he settled down in Bombay, he learned to speak Marathi and Hindi
and during the adventurous years he spent in the city he became
acquainted with a whole array of characters and he became to be known
as Lin, Linbaba or Shantaram. The most impressive passages in the
novel are the narrator's visit to Prabaker's native village of Sunder,
his work in the zhopadpatti slum, his experience with the monsoon and
the cholera, his work for Abdel Khader Khan and the Bombay Mafia, his
stays at the Arthur Road Prison and the Colaba lock-up and finally his
fight for the mujaheddin cause in the mountains of Afghanistan.
Mr Roberts wonderfully shows both the generosity and the violence of
the Indian people's character. The spirit of Bombay is rendered in
splendid descriptions so that altogether this novel is thoroughly
enjoyable to read.
10 von 11 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Ein grossartiges Werk!, 13. Mai 2008
Von Don Paesano "retito" -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Ich konnte das Buch für volle vier Tage nicht aus den Händen legen.
Ich las immer und überall, während dem Essen, auf dem Klo, auf dem Weg
zum Klo, auf dem Rückweg vom Klo. Und schliesslich mit einer
Stirnlampe in der Hängematte. Das Buch nimmt einem mit auf eine Reise
mit David Roberts, die durch ein Indien führt wie ich es noch nie
beschrieben bekommen habe. Die Geschichte geht vorwärts wie ein
Güterzug. Seite für Seite etwas Neues, Aufregendes, Spannendes. Die
Sprache ist gut verständlich und wunderschön geschrieben. Ich
schliesse mich meinen Vorrednern nicht an, die die Philosophie zum
Teil als "cheesy" beschreiben. Ich war vielmehr beeindruckt vom Autor,
diesem unglaublichen Typen, der Dinge erlebt und so wunderbar
beschreibt, die weit weit über übliche "Reiseerfahrungen" hinweg
reichen.
Das Buch hat mich zum Lachen gebracht und mich zu Tränen gerührt. Es
war keine Seite (!) langweilig. Im Gegenteil. Fesseln, spannend,
intensiv, fordernd. Das Ende, wie viele Abschnitte zuvor, musste ich
gleich mehrmals lesen...Gänsehaut!
Habe das Buch bereits x-mal verschenkt - uneingeschränkter Lesetip!
3 von 3 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Biblische Geschichten, 31. Mai 2009
Von Helmut Janus -
Erschöpft bin ich nach 933 Seiten am Ende der englischen Ausgabe von
Shantaram angekommen. Das Buch ist durchgehend gut zu lesen. Es gibt
eine unglaubliche Fülle an spannenden Episoden, gut geschriebenen
Dialogen, interessanten Typen, Milieuschilderungen und
Hintergrundgeschichten. Das alles ist in der Inhaltsangabe schon
ausführlich beschrieben worden. Womit ich allerdings meine
Schwierigkeiten hatte, war das Ego des Autors und seine philosophisch-
religiöse Grundeinstellung. Die ganze abenteuerliche Lebensgeschichte
handelt vom Suchen nach dem Guten im Menschen, von immer neuen
Versuchungen, Fehlschlägen und schließlich doch dem Sieg des Guten,
Gerechten und Liebenden. Es sind nicht einzelne philosophische
Schwafeleien, die die Handlung unterbrechen, sondern alles, was
Roberts erzählt, ordnet sich diesem Muster unter. Wenn er in Kämpfe
verwickelt ist, streicht er seine Fähigkeiten als Messerstecher
heraus, aber im entscheidenden Augenblick sticht er ordentlich ins
Fleisch seines Gegners, bringt ihn aber nicht um. Wenn er nach Monaten
einer unfassbaren Tortur aus dem Gefängnis frei kommt, versäumt er es
nicht, noch ein paar Mitgefangene zu retten. Wenn er aus Verzweiflung
wieder Heroin nimmt, dann auch richtig, indem er drei Monate in einer
Opiumhöhle abtaucht und anschließend durch die Hölle des "cold turkey"
geht.
Es sind biblische Geschichten in modernem Gewand, die Roberts erzählt,
die Läuterung vom Saulus zum Paulus. Aus Neugier habe ich mir seine
Website angesehen, und hier entwickelt er auch seine Philosophie von
der "cosmosophy". Ich bin nicht in die Details eingestiegen und habe
dazu auch keine große Lust, weil ich Bücher lese, um mich unterhalten
und zum Nachdenken anregen zu lassen, nicht aber um mir den großen
Wurf einer Welterklärung anzutun. Shantaram lässt mich etwas ratlos
zurück. Vielleicht muss ein solcher Eifer sein, um ein so gigantisches
Werk zustande zu bringen.
7 von 9 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Amazing, 21. August 2006
Von danyboy "eternalflame2" (Brunnen, Schweiz) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
I have not yet finished reading this book but I already need to
comment on this masterpiece. Shantaram may not be a flawless work and
parts of the book and especially sometimes the imagery and phrases
used appear a bit cheesy. A few comparisons and philosophical thoughts
are either a bit far-fetched or very general and superficial.
This may sound like a book of which one can use the paper to lit a
fire with on a cold winter day. BUT, despite some (undisputable) flaws
I give the book 4 stars because it, nevertheless, has become one of my
favourite books. The amazing and outstanding qualities of the book let
you forget the (minor) flaws mentioned above.
The story is thrilling, funny and never boring. One starts to feel
that what this guy writes is what he really experienced (at least most
of it) and I prefer an honest, true, heart-breaking, interesting story
with a few stylistic flaws to over-intellectual, cold and too perfect
works by some acclaimed literary authors. This is the story of a man's
life, which is far from being a common, everyday one. Let me tell you
one thing: this man has got a lot to tell you. Buy the book, sit down,
make yourself comfortable and dive into the world of Greg David
Roberts. I bet you won't regret it...
4 von 5 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
One of the best books ever!!!, 1. Juni 2005
Von "natalie0208" -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Shantaram is one of the best books I ever read, and I read an awful
lot!!! The Author has a great gift of storytelling, the plot is
terrific, his descriptions of the places, the people, their culture is
absolutely gorgeous. So don't hesitate, read this book, it is worth
every cent and you'll not put it down till you reach the last page.
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
A definite MUST-READ!, 23. September 2009
Von S. Gould -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Others have already given this book the raving reviews it deserves. I
won't attempt to add to their comments, except to simply say that you
shouldn't be put-off by the size of this book - once you start reading
it you won't be able to put it down! (and will sadly be through it
faster than you wished!)
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
einfach nur klasse, 23. Juni 2009
Von bücher-wurm "leo3009" -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Ein faszinierendes Buch, das ich nur empfehlen kann. Die plastische
Darstellung des Autors läßt einen in eine komplett fremde Welt
versinken. Extrem gut geschrieben, spannend (zugegebenermaßen hast das
Buch zwischendurch ein paar Längen, die aber die Gesamtheit für mich
nicht beeinträchtigen) und manchmal auch sehr hart, so daß ich bewußt
das Buch zur Seite gelegt habe um die Passagen zu verdauen.
Prinzipiell langweilen mich Kriegsbeschreibungen, aber Gregory Roberts
hat es ausgezeichnet verstanden, auch solche Themen dem Leser nahe zu
bringen. Den Leser erwartet eine große Portion Philosophie, vielleicht
neuer Denkansätze, und das Buch entführt somit in eine (zumindest für
mich) absolut fremde Lebensweise. Wer einmal über den eigenen
Tellerrand hinauschauen möchte, ist genau richtig. Ob man die
Entscheidungen von "Lindsay" verstehen kann oder nicht, auf jeden Fall
ist großer Unterhaltungswert garantiert! Ich freue mich auf die
Verfilmung.
1 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
The Heart of India, 21. Mai 2009
Von R. Müller-Heinrich "Goldkalb" (Pulheim, Deutschland) -
I have read many books on India and spent time in Bombay and Delhi. No
book, no sojourn has brought me so close to and deeply into the Heart
of India. The simplicity of style, the at times almost brutal honesty
of Gregory Roberts, the expressions of love for the people he met, the
lessons he learned, remind me of Barack Obama's "Dreams from my
Father". Shantaram is an amazing book which lets you feel you are
there. You feel the humid heat of Bombay, you smell all the smells,
good or bad, you see the purple sunset, you are amongst his friends
and could almost touch them. You could find your way into the slum and
feel sure of a welcome, even as a stranger. I felt encompassed by
Prabaker's smile, felt the loyalty of Lin's friends as if they were
mine. I felt the struggles Lin went through to find his way in life,
as if they were my own. I never could condemn him for his "evil"
deeds, as he was giving all the love he had to give at the same time.
As someone already said, I was very sorry when I came to the last
page, because it meant coming back to my own world, like after a
holiday. And my world seems drab and poor, though I don't live in a
slum. And no news report has shown me the futility, the atrocity, the
heart-wrenching sadness of Afghans killing their Afghan brothers,
supported by profit-seeking Americans and Russians for their own
goals. Shantaram. (Abacus)
6 von 8 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Spitze, 26. Juli 2006
Von Frank Bittermann -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram (Gebundene Ausgabe)
Durch die Meldung von Querelen bei der Produktionsvorbereitung des
Films von und mit Jonny Depp bin ich auf diesen Roman aufmerksam
geworden. Auch muss ich zugeben, dass ich Indien immer noch für heiss,
schmutzig und völlig überbevölkert halte, aber dieses Buch hat mir die
Menschen dort näher gebracht. Ein von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite
spannender, lustige, trauriger und vor allem nachdenkenswerter
Schmöker. Ein durchweg gelungenes Erstlingswerk, bei dem ich auf einen
Nachfolger hoffe, denn der Autor hat offensichtlich soviele Abenteuer
erlebt, da kann man nur mit den Ohren schlackern...
Well-read mix of Bombay life, with mafia-cheese and self-
indulgence, 6. Februar 2010
Von Jakarta_expat (Indonesien) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram (Audio CD)
Shantaram No doubt about it, from the moment the story teller embarks
from the plane to sticky Bombay, the reader is hooked and will press
on to read about slum dwellers, their modes of survivals, boozy white
expats making a living in Bombay and other exciting stuff. The problem
is: The whole long book is mixed with a sense of self-indulgence by
the author lecturing us on life and philosophy. Which alone is not so
bad would he not to press on to tell the most boring love story ever
put into writing. the book is worth your time if you are interested in
India, slum life, street fighting and wanna-be philosophic
excursions.
I listened to the unabridged audio book, and enjoyed the speaker's
different voices. He catches the Bombay accents very well (as far as I
can tell). The female characters annoying me most in the book are read
with a certain ironic "flat" tone as if the audio book reader would
share my feeling of boredom with them as well. Nice touch.
Book: ***, Unabridged audio production: ****
The Precursor to Slumdog Millionaire, if you like, 27. Dezember
2009
Von Oliver Koehler (Berlin, Germany) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Not the best of stories [in terms of fairly imagery and love "scenes"]
but nevertheless so far a gritty tale of his descent into India's
underworld and his involvement in the Russian-Afghan war - with some
very vivid descriptions of the India that I have come to know and love
and hate over the past years! Nevertheless unputdownable... For a
quick fix if you've ever been to India and want to get past the colour
of the place, an eye-opener at times and a jaw-dropper too. What I did
like - although it has been a point of criticism in other reviews - is
the fact that it sometimes is very loosely constructed. After all, it
is suppoed to be an autobiography - or a memoir? Who knows?
Mind-blowing!, 28. November 2009
Von Stein Claudia Dr "Claudia Stein" (Genf, Schweiz) -
I have lived a couple of years in India in the 1990's (about 800 km
south of Bombay) and can only confirm that the ambience, the life, the
colours and smells of India truly come to life in this book. It is
honest and authentic but what makes this book an amazing piece of
literature is the fantastic story - because it is fantastically told.
I could hardly put the book down, although I would imagine that the
author may have taken some artistic licence in some of his
descriptions. This does not detract from the book which - no doubt -
will one day be a Holly/Bollywood movie. An absolute must-read.
Gripping from start to finish!, 1. Dezember 2008
Von Léonie M. "book fanatic" -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Shantaram is one of that kind of books that calls for a rainy or foggy
November day, for a cosy chair and a good, steaming Indian Darjeeling
cup of tea.
It is a strong and satisfying novel, with a taste that lingers the
memory.
I love it very much because of the first-person narrative and of a
wonderful, admirable writing style as well.
After escaping from an Australian most inhuman prison in the early
80s, Gregory David Roberts, an armed robber and heroin addict was
using the name Lindsay Ford from a false New Zealand passport for
smuggling himself to India to go underground in the slum of Bombay
(Mumbai). Since he escaped, he flew across the world because he was
the most wanted man of his country.
Here he tells his story about his first trip to India. Living in the
land where heart is the king, left everything behind, he was just
running on instinct and pushing his luck. Accordingly to his
experiences the simple and astonishing truth about India and Indian
people is that, when you go there and you deal with them, your heart
always guides you more wisely than your head. It was one of his best
decisions of his life as he trusted the Indian fellow on sight and he
got the chance to know and to love him as friend.
The luck led him to know a mysterious but beautiful woman, he has ever
seen, green-eyed Karla Saaranen, on his very first day on the street
of Bombay. She was reasonably good at being a friend, but at being an
enemy also. In his opinion Karla had that kind of power to make men
shine like the stars, or crash them to dust.
Lindsay learned some Indian languages Hindi, Marathi but himself
became to be well known by the nicknames Lin, Linbaba, Shantaram or
even The Bite of the Tiger.
Using his first-aid kit as the basis, he established in poverty of
Bombay illegal slum a little open-air health clinic. Just trying to do
the right thing, he found often a quantum of solace in his work and by
his friends like Prabaker Kishan Kharre or Abdullah Taheri.
Fate put him into the game of the Bombay mafia. Worked as a gunrunner,
as a smuggler and a counterfeiter. He found some honourable men. Of
course, it is strange and incongrous to hear how he describes
criminals, killers, and mafiosi as men of honour who were amongst
them. Nevertheles, he had some strange experiences and this is the
extremly gripping story of his life, told with all his heart. It was a
real blow to him to be buffeled by fate but he kept on his aim at
writing under the hardest circumstances.
Now, Gregory David Roberts is a fulltime writer. He lives in
Melbourne.
He created the atmosphere of the slum in the suburbs of Bombay and its
events in the richest details. His enthralling debut novel tells an
adventure about love, hate, fight, betrayal and conspiracy. You can
get lost into for days, not just hours.
It is really worth reading!
4 von 6 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
One of the best books I 've ever read, 9. Oktober 2005
Von Mama Orange -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
This book is hard to put out of Your hand - it is intense and
adventurous, it is excellently written and it is full of deep
insight.
1 von 2 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Packender Schmöker!, 5. September 2008
Von Tina "Reading Is Great" (Wien) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Toller, sehr gut zu lesender Roman!Lustig, gut geschrieben,
farbenreich. Wer in Indien war, wird vieles verstehen und
nachvollziehen können. Für Freunde von Schmökern, die nicht allzu tief
gehen und einfach aber extrem fesselnd zu lesen sind, ist dieses genau
und exakt das Richtige.LESEN!
1 von 2 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Always a new surprise, 4. Februar 2008
Von Hans-Curt Flemming "Amano" (Mülheim/Ruhr) -
This is a fascinating book which I could not leave alone - I had to
read it and was intrigued about what would come after the next corner.
And the next...
A completely new perspective of the Bombay slum and of the social
networks. Plus, the bittersweet love story. It is well written and
bears the touch of reality.
Absolutely worthy entertainment. I would be very much interested to
learn how he was captured finally and what he is doing now.
0 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Black Bombay, 9. Dezember 2009
Von N. I. Body -
Bei Shantaram handelt es sich unstrittig um eine der besten
Darstellungen von Bombay, bzw. Indien in den 80er Jahren des vorigen
Jahrhunderts. Es werden das Leben in den Slums, Kriminalität,
Korruption, Krankheiten und Brutalität in allen Details (944 Seiten)
geschildert.
Das Buch basiert mehr oder weniger auf dem bewegten Leben des Autors.
Wie er selbst angibt, hat er nicht alles, was er beschreibt erlebt,
sondern auch Teile der Geschichte frei erfunden. Stellenweise ist die
Story recht langatmig, es wird seitenlang über den Sinn des Lebens,
Sinn des Leidens, Vergebung, Liebe, Hass usw. diskutiert. Auch werden
belanglose Gespräche und Begegnungen der Hauptperson zum Teil wörtlich
wiedergegeben. Das führte dazu, dass ich manchmal die Seiten nur noch
überflog - bis die eigentliche Story wieder weiterging.
Was mich aber doch recht gestört hat, ist die Art, in der sich der
Autor, (zu 19 Jahren verurteilter Bankräuber; Ex-Junkie) selbst
darstellt. Seine Verbrechen rechtfertigt er mit seiner gescheiterten
Beziehung und seiner daraus resultierenden Heroinsucht. Nach seiner
Flucht aus dem Gefängnis (zu Beginn des Buches) wandelt er sich zu
weissem Ritter und Heiligen in einem. Den, ihn aufs übelste
folternden, indischen Gefängniswärtern "vergibt" er. Er ist offenbar
der "guteste Gutmensch" von ganz Bombay (so ekelhaft wie das klingt,
liest es sich stellenweise leider auch). Er hilft jedem - immerzu,
ohne Rücksicht auf sich selbst und ohne zu zögern. Dass er dabei aber
weiterhin kriminellen Machenschaften (Drogenhandel, Mafia, usw.)
nachgeht, ist für ihn offenbar ganz "normal". Diese Art der
Selbstdarstellung/-inszenierung beginnt mit der Zeit zu nerven.
In der unsympathischen Hauptfigur liegt zugleich auch das größte Manko
des Buches, neben der teilweise zu langatmigen Schilderung der
Ereignisse. Tip: Es lohnt sich, die "echte" Biografie des Autors im
Netz nachzulesen.
Anzumerken ist noch, dass in meinem Exemplar ca. 10-15 Seiten
unleserlich (zu Hell; Fehler beim Drucken) waren.
12 von 28 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Räucherstäbchen, 3. Juli 2007
Von agardenchair (Germany) -
Rezension übernommen von: Shantaram. (Abacus) (Taschenbuch)
Zugegeben, dies ist bestimmt ein ordentlich geschriebener
Abenteuerroman. Und er ist an manchen Stellen auch lustig. Sprachlich
bewegt er sich in etwa auf der Höhe eines Dan Brown, mit dem
Unterschied, daß Gregory D. Roberts eine Vorliebe für komplizierte
Adjektive hat. Sollte man eine weitere Vorliebe dieses Schriftstellers
angeben, so wäre man gezwungen, das Sammeln von Aphorismen anzuführen.
Mit dem Konvolut von unheimlich sinnreichen Sprüche, die in diesem
Buch angehäuft sind, könnte man ganze Abreißkalender ausstaffieren.
Beispiele: "Truth is a bully, you'd like to know", "Es war nicht die
Hölle, aber es gab keinen Himmel", etc. Wieso nicht einfach
weitermachen mit: "Manchmal ist das Leben nicht schwarz oder weiß,
sondern grau" oder "Es gibt Gutes und es gibt Schlechtes, aber
meistens bekommt man beides serviert", etc.?
An allen Ecken und Enden des Romans findet man diese sprachlichen
Räucherstäbchen, die Tiefe suggerieren wollen. Der Roman liest sich
stellenweise wie ein ausgesprochener Jugendroman. Hier wird der Sound
großer gleichnishafter Erzählungen im Stil von Hemingway oder Conrad
imitiert. Ein Nachfolger Hemingways oder Conrads ist der Autor deshalb
nicht.
12 von 28 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Räucherstäbchen, 3. Juli 2007
Von agardenchair
Zugegeben, dies ist bestimmt ein ordentlich geschriebener
Abenteuerroman. Und er ist an manchen Stellen auch lustig. Sprachlich
bewegt er sich in etwa auf der Höhe eines Dan Brown, mit dem
Unterschied, daß Gregory D. Roberts eine Vorliebe für komplizierte
Adjektive hat. Sollte man eine weitere Vorliebe dieses Schriftstellers
angeben, so wäre man gezwungen, das Sammeln von Aphorismen anzuführen.
Mit dem Konvolut von unheimlich sinnreichen Sprüche, die in diesem
Buch angehäuft sind, könnte man ganze Abreißkalender ausstaffieren.
Beispiele: "Truth is a bully, you'd like to know", "Es war nicht die
Hölle, aber es gab keinen Himmel", etc. Wieso nicht einfach
weitermachen mit: "Manchmal ist das Leben nicht schwarz oder weiß,
sondern grau" oder "Es gibt Gutes und es gibt Schlechtes, aber
meistens bekommt man beides serviert", etc.?
An allen Ecken und Enden des Romans findet man diese sprachlichen
Räucherstäbchen, die Tiefe suggerieren wollen. Der Roman liest sich
stellenweise wie ein ausgesprochener Jugendroman. Hier wird der Sound
großer gleichnishafter Erzählungen im Stil von Hemingway oder Conrad
imitiert. Ein Nachfolger Hemingways oder Conrads ist der Autor deshalb
nicht.
Shantaram. (Abacus) 0349117543 Gregory David Roberts Little, Brown
Book Group Shantaram. (Abacus) Alle Produkte Räucherstäbchen
Zugegeben, dies ist bestimmt ein ordentlich geschriebener
Abenteuerroman. Und er ist an manchen Stellen auch lustig. Sprachlich
bewegt er sich in etwa auf der Höhe eines Dan Brown, mit dem
Unterschied, daß Gregory D. Roberts eine Vorliebe für komplizierte
Adjektive hat. Sollte man eine weitere Vorliebe dieses Schriftstellers
angeben, so wäre man gezwungen, das Sammeln von Aphorismen anzuführen.
Mit dem Konvolut von unheimlich sinnreichen Sprüche, die in diesem
Buch angehäuft sind, könnte man ganze Abreißkalender ausstaffieren.
Beispiele: "Truth is a bully, you'd like to know", "Es war nicht die
Hölle, aber es gab keinen Himmel", etc. Wieso nicht einfach
weitermachen mit: "Manchmal ist das Leben nicht schwarz oder weiß,
sondern grau" oder "Es gibt Gutes und es gibt Schlechtes, aber
meistens bekommt man beides serviert", etc.?
An allen Ecken und Enden des Romans findet man diese sprachlichen
Räucherstäbchen, die Tiefe suggerieren wollen. Der Roman liest sich
stellenweise wie ein ausgesprochener Jugendroman. Hier wird der Sound
großer gleichnishafter Erzählungen im Stil von Hemingway oder Conrad
imitiert. Ein Nachfolger Hemingways oder Conrads ist der Autor deshalb
nicht. agardenchair 3. Juli 2007
Insgesamt: 5
Insgesamt: 5
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Diskussionsbeiträgen
Ersteintrag: 16. November 2008 00:10 CET
Edith Juratschski meint:
Warum schreiben Leute über Dinge, von denen sie keine Ahnung haben?
Beurteilungen eines arroganten 18jährigen brauche ich nicht. Das Kind
soll erstmal begreifen, dass es was zu lernen hat. Solange soll es
schweigen. Und erst rumtönen, wenn es jemanden interessiert.
Antwort auf den Eintrag von Edith Juratschski:
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Antwort auf einen früheren Beitrag vom 15. Dezember 2008 17:11 CET
Zuletzt vom Autor geändert am 16. Dezember 2008 22:37 CET
agardenchair meint:
Edith Juratschski braucht keine Beurteilungen eines arroganten
"18jährigen". Dafür weiß sie, was arrogante Achtzehnjährige brauchen -
klare Ansagen: Als Kinder haben sie zu schweigen. Und dürfen erst
rumtönen, wenn das Rumtönen jemanden interessiert. Wie gut, dass wir
nun wissen, wie es die Erwachsenen mit arroganten Kindern zu halten
haben. Danke, Frau J..
Antwort auf den Eintrag von agardenchair:
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Veröffentlicht am 14. Januar 2009 16:20 CET
Stephan Peischl meint:
[Vom Autor gelöscht am 13. Februar 2010 22:49 CET]
Veröffentlicht am 24. Mai 2009 10:18 MEST
Malenkow meint:
Dem kann ich uneingeschränkt zustimmen. Ich habe den Roman nach der
Hälfte nur noch quer gelesen.
Antwort auf den Eintrag von Malenkow:
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Holy Cow!: An Indian Adventure (Taschenbuch)
von Sarah Macdonald (Autor) "I have a dreadful long-term memory ..."
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Holy Cow!: An Indian Adventure
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Die hilfreichste positive Rezension Die hilfreichste kritische
Rezension
4 von 5 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Fantastic and funny
The author is writing about her experiences in the sub-continent in a
vey funny and humorous way. Especially for people like me, who are
living in India as a foreigner or planning a trip to India, the book
is recommendable. She is describing the every-day problems people with
a "wester culture" have to face with because of the cultural
differences between the...
Vollständige Rezension lesen ›
Veröffentlicht am 5. Juli 2004 von Amazon-Kunde
› Weitere Rezensionen anzeigen: 5 Sterne, 4 Sterne
A definite "OK" book
I just finished this book and am disappointed overall. There was too
much religion and personal soul-searching by the author. I wanted more
INDIA. Yet this book did feed my desire to go to India one day, so it
wasn't all that bad. I took some notes on festivals and villages I
would like to see, but I was expecting more after reading the other
reviews.
Veröffentlicht am 20. März 2007 von beegowhite
› Weitere Rezensionen anzeigen: 3 Sterne, 2 Sterne, 1 Sterne
Hilfreichste Bewertungen zuerst | Neueste Bewertungen zuerst
4 von 5 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Fantastic and funny, 5. Juli 2004
Von Amazon-Kunde "Amazon" (Düsseldorf) -
The author is writing about her experiences in the sub-continent in a
vey funny and humorous way. Especially for people like me, who are
living in India as a foreigner or planning a trip to India, the book
is recommendable. She is describing the every-day problems people with
a "wester culture" have to face with because of the cultural
differences between the "Wester world" and India.
I recommend the book for everyone who is planning a long-time or
travel-trip to the beautiful country of india. You can learn about the
indian culture and about "not-understandable" cultural differences in
a funny way...
Great book at all!!!
5 von 7 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Witzig, unterhaltsam und lehrreich!, 10. November 2004
Von Ein Kunde
Ich war 1999 für drei Monate in Indien und habe es geliebt und
gehasst. Sarah Macdonald ruft alle meine Erinnerungen wach und bringt
mich zum Lachen. Sie beschreibt alle Arten von Gefühlen und
Erfahrungen, die man als "western foreigner" in Indien durchlebt. Es
ist sehr empfehlenswert, auch für Leute, die eine Reise nach Indien
planen. Ich habe es sehr gern gelesen.
A definite "OK" book, 20. März 2007
Von beegowhite (Luxembourg) -
I just finished this book and am disappointed overall. There was too
much religion and personal soul-searching by the author. I wanted more
INDIA. Yet this book did feed my desire to go to India one day, so it
wasn't all that bad. I took some notes on festivals and villages I
would like to see, but I was expecting more after reading the other
reviews.
4 von 6 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
oberflächlich und mit Klischees behaftet, 1. Dezember 2006
Von Emma -
Sarah ist unglücklich zum zweiten Mal in Indien gelandet zu sein. Um
sich die Zeit zu vertreiben, begibt sie sich auf eine Art Hopping
durch die verschiedensten Glaubensrichtungen und spirituellen
Strömungen - von Amma bis zu den Sikhs. Leider schafft es die Autorin
in keiner Weise der Realität Indiens gerecht zu werden. Oberflächlich
blickt sie auf Kultur und Menschen und bedient dabei nur die typisch
westlichen Indienklischees.
Ich habe mehr Zeit in Indien verbracht als die Autorin und konnte das
Buch nur noch völlig entnervt zur Seite legen. Miss Mac Donald
interessiert sich nicht für Indien, weder für die Menschen, noch für
die Kultur und auch nicht besonders tiefgründig für die religiösen
Strömungen, die von ihr besucht wurden. Sie möchte lediglich
unterhalten (was ihr nicht sonderlich gut gelingt) und begreift das
Fremde, das ihr begegnet nicht als Chance etwas Neues zu lernen,
sondern beurteilt es mit arrogant westlichem Blick. Besonders
entnervend ist das Fazit, das die Autorin am Ende jedes Kapitels über
ihr Erlebtes zieht. Jedem, der sich wirklich mit Indien, der Kultur
und den Religionen des Landes auseinandersetzen möchte und nicht einen
pseudospirituellen "Fast Food Reisebericht" lesen möchte, kann ich nur
raten: Finger weg!
1 von 2 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
very interesting, 21. Juni 2006
Von Bücherwurm "sandrasemails" -
I've never been to India but will go there after I've finished my
studies.
The book takes you on a journey with Sarah MacDonald which is exciting
and funny and sad sometimes.
You can imagine the things she describes even if you've never been to
India. But it definitely will wake the wish in you to go there.
0 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Educating, entertaining and inspiring, 8. August 2007
Von Wombatsbooks -
"Holy Cow" was meant to be a beach read, but proved to be not only
entertaining, but also educating and inspiring:
Macdonald herself calls her second stint in India "a pilgrimage
through India's spiritualistic supermarket" and herself a "karma
chameleon". "Holy Cow" presents the diversity of India's manifold
religions, deals with their differences and similarities. Macdonald
spends several days in an ashram, attends the Kumbh Mela in Benares,
celebrates Pesach with a group of Israelis, visits a church in the
South of India, immerses herself into Bhuddism, Hinduism etc. She
meets lots of people, makes many a friend and addresses different
attitudes, styles, beliefs and traditions. But most of all she
portrays India as the fascinating land of contrasts that it is.
Reading this diary-like account is nearly like being in India: it
assaults all your senses and yet is very lovable. It is written in a
light-hearted yet sensitive manner and probably politically incorrect,
because Macondald speaks her mind;-). But that makes the read all the
more worthwhile!
Result: Not to be missed! In fact her style reminds me a bit of Bill
Bryson's books. So if you are a fan of Bill Bryson's you might like
this one as well!
0 von 1 Kunden fanden die folgende Rezension hilfreich:
Sehr gutes Buch über Indien, 12. Februar 2007
Von Marie Senoner "musikfan4" (Österreich) -
Das Buch fängt schon super an und steigert sich immer mehr. Es ist
wirklich empfehlenswert für alle die mehr über Indien, die Kultur und
die Menschen Indiens erfahren wollen. Manchmal muss man als Europäerin
schon den Kopf schütteln, aber so ist es Indien...
Unbedingt lesen!!!
Produktbeschreibungen
From Publishers Weekly
Australian radio correspondent Macdonald's rollicking memoir recounts
the two years she spent in India when her boyfriend, Jonathan, a TV
news correspondent, was assigned to New Delhi. Leaving behind her own
budding career, she spends her sabbatical traveling around the
country, sampling India's "spiritual smorgasbord": attending a silent
retreat for Vipassana meditation, seeking out a Sikh Ayurvedic
"miracle healer," bathing in the Ganges with Hindus, studying Buddhism
in Dharamsala, dabbling in Judaism with Israeli tourists, dipping into
Parsi practices in Mumbai, visiting an ashram in Kerala, attending a
Christian festival in Velangani and singing with Sufis. Paralleling
Macdonald's spiritual journey is her evolution as a writer; she trades
her sometimes glib remarks ("I've always thought it hilarious that
Indian people chose the most boring, domesticated, compliant and
stupidest animal on earth to adore") and 1980s song title references
(e.g., "Karma Chameleon") for a more sensitive tone and a sober
understanding that neither mocks nor romanticizes Indian culture and
the Western visitors who embrace it. The book ends on a serious note,
when September 11 shakes Macdonald's faith and Jonathan, now her
husband, is sent to cover the war in Afghanistan. Macdonald is less
compelling when writing about herself, her career and her relationship
than when she is describing spiritual centers, New Delhi nightclubs
and Bollywood cinema. Still, she brings a reporter's curiosity,
interviewing skills and eye for detail to everything she encounters,
and winningly captures "[t]he drama, the dharma, the innocent
exuberance of the festivals, the intensity of the living, the piety in
playfulness and the embrace of living day by day..--he drama, the
dharma, the innocent exuberance of the festivals, the intensity of the
living, the piety in playfulness and the embrace of living day by
day."
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier
Inc. All rights reserved. -- Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine andere
Ausgabe: Taschenbuch .
From Booklist
Australian MacDonald didn't fall in love with India her first time
there, at age 21. So when her boyfriend, Jonathan, a reporter for ABC,
is sent there for work, she reluctantly follows after a year of
separation. At first, life in India is as bad as she remembered it--
overcrowded, smoggy, disturbing. A serious bout of pneumonia puts her
in an Indian hospital, but as she recovers, she begins to make friends
in India and to understand the culture. She finds herself attending
lavish Indian weddings and trying to comfort her friend Padma, whose
mother commits suicide after Padma marries without her permission.
MacDonald makes an effort to understand the many diverse religions of
the area, including taking a 10-day sojourn in a Buddhist temple and
discussing religion with Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, and even a group of
visiting Israelis. With Jonathan, she takes a trip to war-torn
Kashmir, an area that is at once achingly beautiful and devastatingly
dangerous. A lively, snappy travelogue. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --
Dieser Text bezieht sich auf eine andere Ausgabe: Taschenbuch .
Kurzbeschreibung
“India is like Wonderland. In this other universe everyone seems mad
and everything is upside down, back to front and infuriatingly
bizarre . . .”In her twenties Sarah Macdonald backpacked around India
and came away with a lasting impression of heat, pollution, and
poverty. So when an airport beggar read her palm and told her she
would return to India -- and for love -- she screamed, “Never!” and
gave the country, and him, the finger.
But eleven years later, the prophecy comes true. When the love of
Macdonald’s life is posted to India, she quits her dream job to move
to the most polluted city on earth, New Delhi. For Macdonald this
seems like the ultimate sacrifice for love, and it almost kills her,
literally. Just settled, she falls dangerously ill with double
pneumonia, an experience that compels her to face some serious
questions about her own fragile mortality and inner spiritual void. “I
must find peace in the only place possible in India,” she concludes.
“Within.” Thus begins her journey of discovery through India in search
of the meaning of life and death. Holy Cow is Sarah Macdonald’s often
hilarious chronicle of her adventures in a land of chaos and
contradiction, of encounters with Hinduism, Islam and Jainism, Sufis,
Sikhs, Parsis, and Christians, and a kaleidoscope of yogis, swamis,
and Bollywood stars. From spiritual retreats and crumbling nirvanas to
war zones and New Delhi nightclubs, it is a journey that only a woman
on a mission to save her soul, her love life -- and her sanity -- can
survive.
Synopsis
After backpacking her way around India, 21-year-old Sarah Macdonald
decided that she hated this land of chaos and contradiction with a
passion, and when an airport beggar read her palm and insisted she
would come back one day - and for love - she vowed never to return.
But twelve years later the prophecy comes true when her partner, ABC's
South Asia correspondent, is posted to New Delhi, the most polluted
city on earth. Having given up a blossoming radio career in Sydney to
follow her new boyfriend to India, it seems like the ultimate
sacrifice and it almost kills Sarah - literally. After being cursed by
a sadhu smeared in human ashes, she nearly dies from double pheumonia.
It's enough to send a rapidly balding atheist on a wild rollercoaster
ride through India's many religions in search of the meaning of life
and death. From the 'brain enema' of a meditation retreat in
Dharamsala to the biggest Hindu festival on earth on the steps of the
Ganges in Varanasi, and with the help of the Dalai Lama, a goddess of
healing hugs and a couple of Bollywood stars - among many, many others
- Sarah discovers a hell of a lot more.
Über den Autor
Sarah Macdonald is a journalist and radio broadcaster who lives in
Sydney with her husband, ABC journalist Jonathan Harley, and their
baby daughter Georgina. HOLY COW! is her first book.
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APwa 12/15 1455 Rajneesh Conspiracy
By BRIAN S. AKRE Associated Press Writer
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- A lawyer for Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
claims the federal government poisoned the Indian guru in 1985 as
part of a conspiracy to force him out of the United States.
Swami Prem Niren, who served as Rajneesh's chief attorney
during the rise and fall of the Rajneeshpuram commune in central
Oregon, said Monday that Rajneesh believes he was poisoned in
late 1985 while he was in an Oklahoma City jail.
Rajneesh, 56, recently has been ill, and doctors concluded his
symptoms were consistent with thallium poisoning, Niren said in a
telephone interview. However, he said tests found no trace of
the rare, poisonous element in Rajneesh.
Veet Mano, director of the Rajneesh Press Services in Los
Angeles, charged in a news release received Monday by The
Associated Press that "the United States government conspired to
murder Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh." Niren said, however, there was
no evidence of that.
"That is an unfortunate phrase," he said. "It's one of those
things. PR people say things different than lawyers do."
Rajneesh now lives in Poona, India, where his movement was
based before he moved to a remote, 64,000-acre Oregon ranch in
1981. He was deported in November 1985 after he pleaded guilty
to immigration fraud in a plea agreement with federal
prosecutors.
Rajneesh has been suffering for the past two months from
nausea, fatigue, pain in his extremities and a lack of resistence
to infection, and was near death for a while, Niren said.
An Indian health official said recently that Rajneesh had
AIDS, but his disciples say a test proved the claim was false.
Rajneesh first experienced poisoning symptoms after a meal in
a jail in Oklahoma City, leading him to believe he was poisoned,
Niren said. Niren said he does not believe jailers in Oklahoma
City were responsible for the alleged poisoning. He speculated
the CIA was involved.
"Of course, years after the event I don't expect anyone in the
government or anywhere else to come forward and say, `I'm
responsible for it,"' Niren said.
Rajneesh, who was arrested in Charlotte, N.C., in October 1985
while allegedly trying to flee the United States, was held
overnight in Oklahoma City while being taken back to Oregon to
face criminal charges.
Niren, who said he is writing a book about his experiences
with the Rajneesh movement and the commune's legal battles, said
the government never had evidence linking Rajneesh to any crimes.
Niren said he recommended Rajneesh accept the plea bargain
that led to his deportation because of concerns over the guru's
health.
"Otherwise the government persecution would continue and he
couldn't take it," he said. "They intended to persecute him until
he left or was broken."
Charles H. Turner, the U.S. attorney who led the prosecution
of Rajneesh and several of his lieutenents, dismissed Niren's
allegations today.
"It's a total and complete fiction and you have to consider
the source," Turner said. "The man has no credibility."
Turner noted that a federal judge determined that Rajneesh had
committed crimes, and the guru was represented by "three
extremely skilled lawyers," including Niren. If Niren had
recommended Rajneesh plead guilty to a crime he did not commit,
the attorney could be disbarred, Turner said.
Rajneesh also had access to any medical care he needed while
he was in jail, Turner added.
"I stood next the man in court and there wasn't anything wrong
with him at all," he said.
The commune disbanded after Rajneesh's departure and the
property remains for sale.
Rajneesh, a self-described "rich man's guru," teaches
meditation as a means to enlightenment.
Niren, also known as Philip J. Toelkes, said he traveled after
the commune broke up and has been practicing law in San
Francisco.
http://www.skepticfiles.org/cultinfo/gurupois.htm
Osho, Bhagwan Rajneesh, and the Lost Truth
by Christopher Calder
When I first met Acharya Rajneesh at his Bombay apartment in December
of 1970, he was only 39 years old. With long beard and large dark
eyes, he looked like a painting of Lao-Tse come to life. Before
meeting Rajneesh I had spent time with a number of Eastern gurus
without being satisfied with their teachings. I wanted an enlightened
guide who could bridge the gap between East and West and reveal the
true esoteric secrets, without what I considered to be the excess
baggage of Indian, Tibetan, or Japanese culture. Rajneesh was the
answer to my quest for those deeper meanings. He described for me in
vivid detail everything I wanted to know about the inner worlds and he
had the power of immense being to back up his words. At 21 years old
I was naive about life and the nature of man and assumed that
everything he said must be true.
Rajneesh spoke on a high level of intelligence and his spiritual
presence emanated from his body like a soft light that healed all
wounds. While sitting close during a small gathering of friends,
Rajneesh took me on a rapidly vertical inner journey that almost
seemed to push me out of my physical body. His vast presence lifted
everyone around him higher without the slightest effort on their
part. The days I spent at his Bombay apartment were like days spent
in heaven. He had it all and he was giving it away for free!
Rajneesh possessed the astounding powers of telepathy and astral
projection, which he used nobly to bring comfort and inspiration to
his disciples. Many phony gurus have claimed to have these mysterious
abilities, but Rajneesh had them for real. The Acharya never bragged
about his powers. Those who came near soon learned of them through
direct contact with the miraculous.
Rajneesh, aka "Osho"
at his arrest in
October 1985
One or two amazing occult adventures was all it took to turn
doubting Western skepticism into awed admiration and devotion.
One year earlier I had meet another enlightened teacher, known
to the world as Jiddu Krishnamurti. Krishnamurti could barely give a
coherent lecture and constantly scolded his audience by referring to
their "shoddy little minds." I loved his frankness and his words were
true, but his subtly cantankerous nature was not very helpful in
transferring his knowledge to others.
Listening to Krishnamurti speak was like eating a sandwich made
of bread and sand. I found the best way to enjoy his talks was to
completely ignore his words and quietly absorb his presence. Using
that technique I would become so expanded after a lecture that I could
barely talk for hours afterwards. J. Krishnamurti, while fully
enlightened and uniquely lovable, will be recorded in history as a
teacher with very poor verbal communication skills. Unlike the highly
eloquent Rajneesh, however, Krishnamurti never committed any crime,
never pretended to be more than he was, and never used other human
beings selfishly.
"Ma Anand Sheela,"
Osho's Top Deputy,
at her arrest in 1985
Life is complex and multilayered and my naive illusions about the
phenomena of perfect enlightenment faded with the years. It became
clear to me that enlightened people are as fallible as anyone. They
are expanded human beings, not perfect human beings, and they live and
breathe with many of the same faults and vulnerabilities we ordinary
humans must endure.
Skeptics ask how I can claim that Rajneesh was enlightened given his
scandals and disastrous public image. I can only say that Rajneesh's
spiritual presence was identical to that of J. Krishnamurti, who was
recognized as enlightened by every high Tibetan Lama and revered Hindu
sage of the day. I do sympathize with the skeptics, however. If I
had not known Rajneesh personally, I would never believe it myself.
Rajneesh pushed the envelope of enlightenment in both positive and
negative directions. He was the best of the best and the worst of the
worst. He was a great teacher in his early years, with innovative
meditation techniques that worked with dramatic power (see explanation
and warning about Osho's Dynamic Meditation technique near the bottom
of the page). Rajneesh lifted thousands of seekers to higher levels
of consciousness and detailed Eastern religions and meditation
techniques with luminous clarity.
When former university professor Acharya Rajneesh suddenly
changed his name to Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, I was dismayed. The
famous enlightened sage Ramana Maharshi was called Bhagwan by his
disciples as a spontaneous term of endearment. Rajneesh simply
declared that everyone should start calling him Bhagwan, a title which
can mean anything from 'divine one' to God. Rajneesh became irritated
when I would politely correct his mispronunciations of English words
after his lectures, so I felt in no position to tell him that I
thought his new name was inappropriate and dishonest. That change in
name marked a turning point in Rajneesh's level of honesty and was the
first of many big lies to come.
One false move, one grand error.
Rajneesh lived in an ivory tower, rarely leaving his room unless to
give a lecture, his life experience cushioned by throngs of adoring
devotees. As most human beings who are treat as kings, Rajneesh lost
touch with the world of the common man. In his artificial and
insulated existence, Rajneesh made one fundamental error in judgment
which would destroy his teaching.
Rajneesh calculated that the majority of the earth's population
was on such a low level of consciousness that they could not
understand nor tolerate the real truths. He thus decided on a policy
of spreading seemingly useful lies to bring inspiration to his
disciples and, on occasion, to stress his students in unique
situations for their own personal growth. This was his downfall and
the prime reason he will be remembered by most historians as just
another phony guru, which he undoubtedly was not.
Originally Osho gave himself the lofty title "Sri Bhagavan Rajneesh"
Acharya, Bhagwan Shree, Osho...all the empowering names taken by
Rajneesh could not cover up the fact that he was still a human being.
He had ambitions and desires, sexual and material, just like everyone
else. All living enlightened humans have desires. All enlightened men
have had public lives that we know about and all have had private
lives that remained secret. The vast majority of enlightened men do
nothing but good for the world. Only Rajneesh, to my knowledge,
became a criminal in both the legal and ethical sense of the word.
Rajneesh never lost the ultimate existential truth of being. He
only lost the ordinary concept of truth that any normal adult can
easily understand. He rationalized his constant lying as "left-handed
Tantra," but that too was dishonest. Rajneesh lied to save face, to
avoid taking responsibility for his own mistakes, and to gain personal
power. Those lies had nothing to do with Tantra or any selfless acts
of kindness. What is real in this world is fact and Rajneesh
misrepresented fact on a daily basis. Rajneesh was no simple con-man
like so many others. Rajneesh knew everything that Buddha knew and he
was everything that Buddha was. It was his loss of respect for
ordinary truthfulness that destroyed his teaching.
Rajneesh's health collapsed in his early thirties. He suffered from
what Europeans call myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or what Americans
call Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). His classic symptoms included
the obvious fatigue, extreme sensitivity to smells and chemicals (now
called "multiple chemical sensitivity"), allergies, recurrent low
grade fevers, photophobia, and orthostatic intolerance (neurally
mediated hypotension). Rajneesh also had Type II diabetes, asthma,
and severe back pain.
Rajneesh was constantly sick and frail from the time I first met
him in 1970 until his death in 1990. He could not stand on his feet
for long periods of time without becoming lightheaded because he
suffered damage to his autonomic nervous system which controls blood
pressure. This neurally mediated hypotension (low blood pressure
while standing) causes chronic fatigue and can also lower IQ due to a
lack of sufficient blood and oxygen being pumped to the brain (brain
hypoxia). When he was most ill he would complain of becoming
lightheaded as soon as he stood up. He thought he was getting a
different cold or flu every week. In reality he suffered from a
singular chronic illness with flu like symptoms that can last for
decades.
In his last years Rajneesh used prescription drugs, mainly
Valium (diazepam), as an analgesic for his aches and pains. He took
the maximum recommended dose of 60 milligrams per day. He also
inhaled nitrous oxide (N2O) mixed with pure oxygen (O2) which helped
his asthma and brain hypoxia, but which did nothing for the quality of
his judgment. Naive about the powerful effects of Western medications
and overconfident about his own ability to fight off their potentially
negative effects, Rajneesh succumbed to addiction. His downfall and
humiliation followed swiftly.
Rajneesh was a physically ill man who became mentally corrupt.
His drug addiction was a problem of his own making, not a government
conspiracy. Rajneesh died in 1990, with heart failure listed as the
official cause of death. It is probable that the physical decline
Rajneesh experienced during his incarceration in American jails was
due to a combination of withdrawal symptoms from Valium and an
aggravation of his ME/CFS due to stress and exposure to allergens.
There was much speculation in the American media that Osho had
actually committed suicide by taking a drug overdose. As no one has
confessed to giving Osho a lethal injection, there is no hard evidence
to support the suicide theory. A compelling circumstantial case could
be made for such a scenario, however, with suicide provoked by Osho's
constant ill health and disheartenment over the loss of Vivek, his
greatest love. Vivek had taken a fatal overdose of sleeping pills in
a Bombay hotel one month before Osho's passing. Pointedly, Vivek
decided to kill herself just before Osho's final birthday
celebration. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh had threatened suicide at the
Oregon commune several times, hanging his death over the heads of his
disciples as a threat unless they obeyed his wishes. On his last day
on earth, Osho's is reported to have said "Let me go. My body has
become a hell for me."
The rumor that Osho was poisoned with thallium by operatives of
the United States Government is entirely fictional and contradicted by
undeniable fact. One of the obvious symptoms of thallium poisoning is
dramatic hair loss within seven days of exposure. Osho died with a
full beard and no exceptional baldness other than ordinary male
pattern baldness at the top of his head. Many of the symptoms which
may have led Osho's doctors to suspect thallium poisoning were in fact
common symptoms of dysautonomia (damage to the autonomic nervous
system) caused by ME/CFS. Those symptoms can include ataxia
(uncoordinated movements), numbness, standing tachycardia (rapid heart
rate upon standing), paresthesia (sensations of prickling and
itching), nausea, and irritable bowel syndrome, which causes
alternating between constipation and diarrhea.
The only proven cases of poisoning related to Osho were carried
out by Rajneesh sannyasins themselves (a sannyasin is an initiated
disciple, one who takes sannyas). The victims included totally
innocent people at an Oregon restaurant, two Wasco County
Commissioners, and members of Rajneesh's own staff who were poisoned
by Ma Anand Sheela, Rajneesh's personal secretary. Sheela had the
habit of poisoning people who either knew too much or who had simply
fallen out of her favor. Sheela spent two and a half years in a
federal medium security prison for her crimes while Rajneesh pled
guilty to immigration fraud and was given a ten year suspended
sentence, fined $400,000., and deported from the United States of
America.
Rajneesh felt that teaching ethics and morality was unnecessary
because the increased consciousness of meditation would automatically
lead to good behavior. Rajneesh's own actions and the behavior of his
disciples proves that theory to be untrue. There is no direct
connection between meditation and ethics and the dangers and
limitations of teaching ethics are far outweighed by the destructive
anarchy that a lack of teaching creates. Certainly students of
meditation should at least be reminded that lying, cheating, stealing,
and killing are not acceptable behavior. But Osho taught that you
should do as you please and many of his disciples and he himself
committed many ethical crimes. This lapse of judgment was largely due
to the arrogant and downright fascist attitude that one can become so
high and mighty that one is beyond the need for something as old
fashioned as polite and sane ethical behavior.
Those unfamiliar with the Rajneesh story can read the book
Bhagwan: The God That Failed, by Hugh Milne (Shivamurti), a close
disciple of Bhagwan during his Poona and Oregon years. Originally
published by Saint Martin's Press, the book can be found through
Amazon.Com and Amazon.Com.UK. I can verify many of the facts that Mr.
Milne states about the life of Rajneesh in Bombay and Poona though I
have no first hand knowledge of the tragic events at the Oregon
commune. My contacts with people who were there lead me to believe
that most of the facts Mr. Milne presents of the Oregon era are also
highly accurate. Hugh Milne is due great credit for a well written
and entertaining book which is a sincere effort at complete honesty.
On a few occasions, however, I differ from Mr. Milne's interpretations
of what the facts he presents actually mean.
Firstly, Rajneesh did not suffer from "hypochodria," as Mr.
Milne suggested. Rajneesh had a very real neurological disease,
probably inherited, which he mistook for frequent viral infections.
Rajneesh became unusually afraid of germs only due to his very
innocent and understandable medical ignorance. I fully agree with Mr.
Milne that Rajneesh suffered from "megalomania," however, and will add
that Rajneesh had a Napoleonic, obsessive and compulsive personality.
The Void has no ambition whatsoever, a fact which current Osho
disciples keep forgetting. Rajneesh could only speak for his own
personal animal mind, which is the case for all of us. The animal
mind may want its disciples to "take over the whole world," but the
Void does not care because it is beyond any motivation. The Void is
infinity and beyond human desire, so how can that which is beyond the
human mind have human ambitions? The phenomena we called Rajneesh,
Bhagwan, and Osho was only a temporary lens of cosmic energy, not the
full cosmos itself. Personality worship is not spiritual in any way
and self-indulgent attachment to guru is no better than obsessive
clinging to money, power, and social privilege. I am sure Mr. Milne
has learned that fact very well, but many fanatic Osho disciples have
missed the point entirely.
Mr. Milne also suggests that Rajneesh used "hypnosis" to
manipulate his disciples. Rajneesh had a wonderful, melodic, and
naturally hypnotic voice which would be a great asset to any public
speaker. However, in my personal opinion, Rajneesh's power came from
the intense energy field of the universal cosmic consciousness which
he channeled like a lens. Hindus call this universal energy phenomena
the Atman. As a Westerner, I prefer more scientific terms, and
describe the Atman as a highly evolved manifestation of time-energy-
space, the TES (see The TES Hypothesis).
Enlightenment is not something you own. It is something you channel.
Whatever term you use for the phenomena of enlightenment, it is
scientifically accurate to say that no human being has any power of
their own. Even the chemical energy of our metabolism is borrowed
from the sun, which beams light to the earth, which is then converted
by plants through photosynthesis into the food we eat. You may get
your bread from the supermarket but the caloric energy it contains
originated from thermonuclear reactions deep in the center of a nearby
star. Our physical bodies run on star power. Any spiritual energy we
channel also comes from far beyond, from all sides of the universe,
from the complete TES, from beyond the oceans of galaxies and onto
infinity. No human being owns the Atman and no one can speak for the
TES.
Rajneesh, as George Gurdjieff, often used the power of the Atman
for clearly personal gain. Both men used their cosmic consciousness
to overwhelm and seduce women, which was largely a harmless affair in
my opinion. Gurdjieff was ashamed of his own behavior in this regard
and vowed many times during his life to end this practice, which was a
combination of ordinary male sexual lust backed up by the potent
advantage of oceanic spiritual power. Rajneesh went even further and
used his channeled cosmic energy to manipulate masses of people to
gain a kind of quasi-political status and to aggrandize himself far
beyond what was honest or helpful to his disciples. In Oregon he even
declared to the media that "My religion is the only religion."
Diplomacy and modesty were not his strong points.
Gurdjieff, to my knowledge, never reached the extremes of self-
indulgence of Rajneesh and even warned his disciples not to have blind
faith in him. Gurdjieff wanted his students to be free and
independent with the combined abilities of clear mental reasoning and
meditation. Rajneesh, by contrast, seemed to believe that only his
thoughts and ideas were of value because only he was "enlightened."
This was a grand error in judgment and revealed a basic flaw in his
character.
Rajneesh earned his psychic abilities honestly through many
lifetimes of intense inner work. Unfortunately, when he finally
achieved the ability to fully channel the vastness of the Atman, he
failed to apply the needed wisdom of self-restraint. His human mind
so rebelled against Asian asceticism, which he claimed to have
practiced for many lifetimes, that he failed to ensure that his
borrowed power was only used for the good of others.
"Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac." Henry Kissinger
After leaving India, Rajneesh created his Oregon commune from
his own powerful mind. He made himself the ultimate dictator, his
picture placed everywhere as in an Orwellian bad dream. That
totalitarian atmosphere was just one of the many reasons I did not
stay at the Oregon commune beyond several brief visits. I was
interested in meditation, not in a big concentration camp where human
beings were treated like insects with no intelligence of their own.
Rajneesh put such a high emphasis on his disciples following orders
without question that they did just that when Ma Anand Sheela,
Rajneesh's personal secretary, gave absurd orders to commit crimes
which Rajneesh himself would have never approved of.
When you decapitate the intelligence of human beings you create
a situation that is highly dangerous and destructive to the human
spirit. You cannot save people from their egos by demanding "total
surrender." The anti-democratic technique of forcing blind obedience
did not work well for Hitler, Stalin, or for Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh.
Germany, Russia, and the Rajneesh Oregon commune were all destroyed
because of authoritarian imperial rule. A diversity of opinion is
always healthy because it acts as an effective counterbalance to the
myopic arrogance of those who would be king. Bhagwan never understood
this truth of history and referred to democracy scornfully as "mob-
ocracy." Rajneesh was an imperial aristocrat, never a generous and
open minded democrat, and he put his contempt for the democratic
process into highly visible action in Oregon.
In an attempt to subvert local Wasco County elections, Rajneesh
had his sannyasins bus in almost 2,000 homeless people from major
American cities in an effort to unfairly rig the voting process in his
favor. Some of the new voters were mentally ill and were given drug
laced beer to keep them manageable. Credible allegations have been
made that one or more of the imported street people died due to
overdosing on the beer-drug mixture, but to my knowledge that charge
has not been conclusively proven. Rajneesh's voting fraud scheme
failed and the once again homeless were returned to the streets after
the election was over, used and then abandoned. If Rajneesh
sannyasins had only held truth above all instead of obedience to guru
above all, then no crimes would have been committed and the commune
might still be in existence today.
Rajneesh used people, spoke out of both sides of his mouth, and
betrayed the trust of his own disciples. This betrayal caused Vivek,
his longtime girlfriend and companion, to commit suicide. Rajneesh
even lied about her death, slandering his greatest love in her grave
by falsely claiming that she was chronically depressed due to some
intrinsic emotional instability. Vivek was never depressed during the
years I knew her and she was the most radiant women I have ever
known.
Vivek was a highly advanced, literally glowing student of
meditation, but her only meditation method was being with Bhagwan and
absorbing his tremendous spiritual presence. When her one method and
one true love collapsed into insanity, she took her own life out of
overwhelming grief. Rajneesh drove her to suicide because she could
not understand nor tolerate his mental decline and collapse. Rajneesh
lied about her death simply to avoid taking responsibility for his own
bizarre behavior, which was the underlying cause of Vivek's despair.
The very same Western disciple who administered nitrous oxide to
Osho has been spreading negative rumors about Vivek, claiming that she
was not a meditative person (as himself) and that she committed
suicide because of a hormonal imbalance and also because she was
depressed about reaching the age of forty. This same sannyasin denied
to me emphatically that he gave Rajneesh irresponsible levels of
nitrous oxide, but later admitted to others that he gave Rajneesh one
to two hour nitrous oxide "treatments" every day for five months.
That level of exposure is clearly dangerous drug abuse with no
legitimate medical justification.
The young Acharya Rajneesh started his life as a teacher who
condemned false gurus and he ended his life as one of the most
deceitful gurus the world has ever known. The difficult fact to
comprehend is that he was enlightened when he was an anti-guru puritan
and he was still enlightened when he was the ultimate self-indulgent
guru himself. This seemingly irreconcilable contradiction is the real
reason I write this essay. I love to go into uncharted territory
where others fear to tread.
When you combine man's natural tendency for selfishness with an
ivory tower lifestyle, you have a situation where ethical behavior can
appear to be optional. Combine the unhealthy atmosphere of self-
deification with a debilitating progressive illness that lowers IQ,
and on top of that add drug abuse, then you have a cliff that even an
enlightened man could fall from. That fall could happen only if the
enlightened man makes one wrong choice, one false move, from both the
heart and from the mind.
Bhagwan's wrong choice was to disregard truthfulness in favor of
what he thought were useful lies. Once you make that wrong turn, away
from ordinary straightforward truth, you have lost your way. No human
being can disregard fact on a regular basis without finding himself in
a sea of turmoil because by discarding fact you discard the ground
beneath your feet. Little lies grow into big lies and the now hidden
truth becomes your enemy, not your friend and ally.
Rajneesh overestimated himself and underestimated his own
disciples. The real seekers of knowledge around him could have easily
handled the truth and were already motivated without the need for
propaganda. But Rajneesh had been a high guru for such a long time,
not just in this life but in previous lives as well, that he came to
see himself in grandiose terms. He was indeed an historic figure but
he was not the perfect superman he pretended to be. No one is! His
disciples deserved honesty but he fed them fairy tales "to give them
faith."
Jiddu Krishnamurti had been more honest than Rajneesh in
repeating relentlessly that "there is no authority" due to the
intrinsic nature of the cosmos. Ardent Rajneesh disciples didn't heed
Krishnamurti's warnings and put blind faith in a man who claimed to be
all-seeing, to have all the answers, and who once in 1975 brashly
proclaimed that he had never made a single mistake in his entire
life. Clearly Rajneesh made as many mistakes as any human being.
Just as obviously, his basic existential enlightenment was no
guarantee of functional pragmatic wisdom.
While Rajneesh was a brilliant philosopher, he was a lost babe
in the woods when it came to the world of science. Worried about
worldwide overpopulation, Rajneesh pressured his disciples to undergo
medical sterilization procedures. Unfortunately, he did not consider
the demographics of population growth. The current population
expansion is largely a phenomena of poor, third world nations, not a
problem originating in the USA, Canada, and Europe, where birth rates
are actually falling. North America and Europe are only experiencing
population increases due to legal and illegal immigration from third
world nations. Having his European and North American disciples
medically sever their reproductive capabilities only added to this
imbalance and many former disciples now regret they complied without
question to his thoughtless edicts.
Rajneesh also declared that the AIDS epidemic would soon kill
three quarters of the world's population and that a major nuclear war
was just around the corner. He thought he could escape nuclear
holocaust by building underground shelters and slow the spread of AIDS
by having his disciples wash their hands with alcohol before eating
meals. His more reasoned admonition was for his disciples to always
use condoms. To enforce his sexual rules, which also involved
elaborate instructions on the use of rubber gloves during sexual
encounters, Rajneesh encouraged his sannyasins to spy on each other,
reporting the names of those who failed to conform to his orders.
"When it comes to gurus, take the best and leave the rest." Ramamurti
Mishra
The disaster of Rajneesh appointing himself the singular great
brain of the universe was compounded by his lack of real world
reasoning skills, and this was the case even before he started taking
large amounts of Valium. Rajneesh could weave magnificent
philosophical dreams and addict his disciples to imagined worlds of
spiritual adventure, but those dreams did not have to stand any
empirical test of truth. In the world of science you have to prove
what you say is true through testing. In the world of philosophy and
religion you can say anything you desire and throw caution to the
wind. If your words sound good to the masses they will sell, whether
they are fact or fiction.
Rajneesh had no understanding of, or appreciation for, the
scientific method. If he thought something was true, in his own mind,
that made it true. His disciples had to obey his words or be banished
from the mini-nation he created in the Oregon desert. Rajneesh ruled
his empire as a warlord with his own private army and puppet
government. His visions and ideas, faulty or not, were taken without
question as the word of God. His disciples were judged by their
ability to surrender to his will and any opposing views were branded
as negativity and an unspiritual lack of faith.
Rajneesh's poor reasoning became even more apparent during and
after the Oregon commune scandal. After being jailed and then
deported from the USA, Rajneesh angrily declared Americans "subhuman,"
ignoring the fact that it was he, an Indian, who pled guilty to felony
immigration fraud and that it was Sheela, an Indian, who ordered the
most serious crimes which brought his empire to ruin. Even in his
fifties Rajneesh was still lying to get his own way, still demanding
to always be the center of attention, and by 1988, suffering from drug
and illness induced dementia, was pouting that his box of toys, his
expensive car collection and jewel encrusted watches, had been taken
away.
Rajneesh's disciples thought they were following a reliable and
authoritative "enlightened master." In reality they had been mislead
by a highly fallible enlightened human animal who was still a little
boy at heart. Rajneesh had not only misrepresented himself
personally, but he misrepresented the phenomena of enlightenment
itself. The idealized fantasy of perfect enlightenment does not exist
anywhere in the real world and it has never existed. The universe is
far too big and complex for anyone to be its master. We are all
subjects, not "masters," and those who pretend to be infallible and
all-knowing end up looking even more the fool in the end.
The famous sages of old seem perfect to us now only because they
have become larger than life myths. The long passage of time has
allowed their followers to effectively cover up their guru's flaws,
just as Rajneesh disciples are currently rewriting and censoring
history to cover up Rajneesh's great failings. Rajneesh was never
more infallible than any other human being. What we call
enlightenment is not a cure-all for faults and frailties that cling to
human animals even after they achieve maximum possible consciousness,
which is perhaps a more realistic definition of the term
"enlightenment."
The ultimate existential truth is silent and beyond all words.
Rajneesh embodied that truth up to the day he died. Visitors to his
ashram in Poona, India, who are open to meditation, will feel a giant
wave of consciousness there. That wave use to be connected to a human
body we called Rajneesh. The body has been turned to ashes but the
wave can still be felt. In the same way J. Krishnamurti's presence
can still be felt at Arya Vihara, his former home in Ojai,
California.
"What you tell them is true, but what I tell them (the useful lies) is
good for them." Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh 1975
The contradiction of corruption and enlightenment can occur
because the brain is never enlightened and enlightenment never says or
does anything. In a way no one ever really becomes enlightened.
Enlightenment happens at the place where you are standing but you
cannot own it or possess it. All the words of so-called enlightened
men come from the human mind and body which interprets the phenomena
of enlightenment like a translator. The words do not come froM the
enlightenment itself. By definition enlightenment cannot speak. It
is absolutely silent and beyond any need to speak.
There are many layers to our beings. Some traditions have
categorized those layers as seven bodies, the first being the physical
body and the seventh the nirvanic, the void from which all is born.
No matter how you count the layers they do exist and the purely mental
layer is always there if you have a physical body. That layer can be
affected by disease and chemical exposure.
Osho died addicted to Valium and he experienced all the negative
symptoms of drug addiction, which included slurred speech, paranoia,
poor judgment, and lowered intelligence. At one point his paranoia
and confusion were so great that he thought a group of German cultists
had cast an evil spell on him. His physical disabilities and drug
abuse were simply more than his mortal brain could take. His biggest
flaw, his disregard for the ordinary concept of truth, was his
ultimate downfall and for that crime he must be held fully responsible
with no excuses.
"Never give a sucker an even break." W.C. Fields
Bhagwan lied when he said he had enlightened disciples. He lied
when he said he never made a mistake. Later he was forced to admit he
was fallible as his list of bungles grew to monstrous proportions. He
lied by pretending that the therapy groups run by his disciples were
not mainly a money making device. Rajneesh broke immigration laws and
lied about it in court. He lied by saying that he was adopted in a
phony scheme to get permanent residence status. Bhagwan Rajneesh was
no murderer or bank robber, but he certainly was a very big liar. The
ridiculous thing is that all of his lies were totally unnecessary and
counterproductive. Honesty really is the best policy.
Sadly, Rajneesh lied when he claimed he was not responsible for
the horrors of the Oregon commune because he hand picked Ma Anand
Sheela and the people who committed the major crimes of conspiracy to
commit murder, poisoning, first-degree assault, burglary, arson, and
wiretapping. The fact that Rajneesh did not order or have pre-
knowledge of the most serious crimes does not mean he was not
ethically responsible for them. If a teacher puts a drunken sailor in
charge of driving a school bus and the children end up dead, then the
teacher is responsible for their deaths. Rajneesh knew what kind of
person Sheela was and he chose her because of her corruption and
arrogance, not in spite of it. In a cowardly attempt to evade his own
failings he changed his name from Bhagwan to Osho, as if a change in
name could wash away his sins.
Some may be horrified that an enlightened soul could become a
convicted felon, but that has not stopped me from seeking the ultimate
existential truth. Rajneesh's life is a lesson for us all to practice
what we preach. Bhagwan gave great advice but he could not heed his
own wise words. He is also a reminder not to take what people say
very seriously. It is better to observe how people live and put less
emphasis on what they speak. Talk is cheap. Actions are more costly
and telling.
Do enlightened men have egos? In my younger idealistic years I
would have said the answer is no. Rajneesh, Gurdjieff, and even J.
Krishnamurti prove to me that they do (see links near the bottom of
the page). I became convinced that Rajneesh had an ego when I saw him
on television in chains being transported from jail to an Oregon
courthouse. In response to a reporter's question he looked into the
television camera and spoke to his disciples saying "Don't worry.
I'll be back." It was not what he said but the look in his eyes that
was positive proof for me. I could see his ego in action, calculating
and manipulating. Once you see something that clearly no
rationalizations can cover up the basic truth. Rajneesh was
magnificently enlightened but he was also profoundly egotistical.
For ordinary humans the ego is the center of awareness and the
Void is perceived only at the periphery. People look at a picture
taken by the Hubble Space Telescope and they see the Void as an
outside object, not as a personal identity. When you become
enlightened, either temporarily in a satori or permanently as a
Buddha, the situation is reversed. Now the Void is your center of
awareness and the ego is at the periphery. Ego does not die, it just
no longer takes the center stage of our attention.
Enlightenment is a functional and desirable disassociation of
identity which is rooted in subtle body development and in physical
brain function. The human brain is a biologically created thinking
machine that has evolved for both personal self-preservation and the
survival of the human species. The ego, which is a selfish motivating
force, is needed to protect our colony of living cells, the physical
body, from danger and to keep our cells replenished with food and
water. If you did not have an ego you would not be able to think,
speak, or find food, shelter, and clothing. The ego function is so
vital for survival that the human brain evolved with two potential ego
mechanisms, one a centralized ego and the second a larger and more
diffuse backup system utilizing less central portions of the brain.
If the body and brain becomes physically ill with high fever and
the centralized ego center is damaged, the backup ego mechanism may
temporarily take over its function. This is ego displacement without
enlightenment. The backup self-maintenance system keeps sleep walkers
out of danger and helps enlightened human animals find food and the
basics of life so they do not physically die as a result of their own
deep meditation.
Enlightened humans do not feel their more diffuse ego and thus
they feel as free as space (the Void) itself. In actuality ego is
still present and working, just as our autonomic nervous system keeps
on working whether we are aware of its function or not. You do not
have to consciously tell your heart to beat 70 times a minute because
it will keep on beating regardless of your awareness. The brain
function that controls heart rate is automatic (autonomic) and does
not need our consciousness to make it work.
Nature has also provided human animals with a strong, virtually
unstoppable sex drive to ensure reproduction of the species. Because
of the overwhelming importance and power of sex, most gurus,
enlightened or not, have maintained active sex lives which are often
kept secret for purely political reasons. In his early years Rajneesh
lied about his strong sexuality, but to be fair this has to be
understood in the context of a rigidly anti-sexual, and highly
hypocritical, Indian social structure. Later on, after his position as
a guru had become solidified, Rajneesh publicly bragged about having
sex "with hundreds of women."
Rajneesh's sex life was of no interest to me and I do not find
any fault with him for having the same sexual desires that all men
have. I do find fault when he was dishonest and cruel for selfish
reasons. While living in Bombay, Rajneesh made one young woman
pregnant through an aggressive and unasked for seduction. The young
woman was highly upset and forced by circumstance to have an
abortion. Rajneesh, protecting his image as a great guru, lied about
his involvement and claimed that she had imagined the whole affair.
In her anger, the young woman told the American Embassy her story.
That incident marked the beginning of Rajneesh's troubles with the
United States Government. Most of Rajneesh's close disciples believed
the young woman, not the much older "enlightened" man. Similarly,
decades later many would believe a young White House intern, not a
much older Presiden Bill Clinton. Being President, or being
"enlightened," does not always ensure good behavior.
All human beings are animals, specifically mammals. It has been
proven that human DNA is at least 98% the same as chimpanzee DNA.
World history, Asian mythology, politics, and the world of alpha male
gurus makes allot more sense if you keep that unavoidable scientific
fact in mind. Our most primal subconscious motivating forces come
from the animal world, which we are still a part of.
Some enlightened human animals have become fooled by the
phenomena of ego displacement and thought they no longer had any
personal selfishness that could cause trouble. Meher Baba spent much
of his life bragging about how great he was yet at his center he felt
perfectly egoless. In truth he was very egoistic and should have
realized that even enlightenment is no excuse for bragging. The same
fundamental misjudgment plagued Acharya Rajneesh. He became fooled
into thinking that he was above arrogance but that was simply not the
case.
Even enlightened humans have to mind their manners and realize
that the Atman is the wondrous phenomena they should promote, not
their own fallible and temporary personalities. Ramana Maharshi had
the right approach in this regard and that is one reason he is still
beloved by all. Ramana Maharshi promoted the Atman, the universal
cosmic consciousness, but never his own mortal body and mind.
Everyone who experienced Acharya Rajneesh's oceanic energy still
loves him, myself included. It is only because I value the truth
above all that I write what I believe are needed criticisms. If we
cannot honestly analyze our mistakes then our suffering was a waste of
time. The ongoing cover-up of Bhagwan's frailties by his
establishment disciples will only destroy the possibility of learning
from his tragedy.
I miss Acharya Rajneesh, never Osho, because he was at his
finest when he had no manipulating political organization surrounding
him. When Acharya Rajneesh was just a man in an apartment with one
old Chevrolet, not dozens of Rolls Royces, he was more honest and
true. When he became his own political establishment things started
to go wrong and that is often the case with men of great power.
How can the ocean go into the drop if the drop has an ego in
it? My answer, as previously stated, is that the ego is an integral
part of the structure of the human brain. It is not simply
psychological but also neurological and hard wired into our neural
pathways (see neurological basis for a sense of 'self'). The self-
survival, self-defense mechanism we call 'ego' cannot be destroyed
unless the body dies.
Huston Smith, the well known author and professor of world
religions, believes that no man attached to this mortal coil can
achieve the ultimate transcendence. You first have to physically die
and when the last coil is broken you are totally free. I believe the
ego steps aside and becomes less of a problem for most enlightened
men, but it is never totally destroyed as long as you have a physical
body.
The Rajneesh scandal exposed the unconscious slavery of Bhakti
Yoga and the underlying fraudulence and corruption of "left-handed
Tantra." What is needed is an honest path, built on self-observation,
self-reliance, and respect for truth. The days of the know-it-all
guru are over. It is time to realize the source of all things
directly.
It would be wonderful to believe that enlightened men were
perfect in every way. That would make life simpler and sweeter, but
it would be fiction, not fact. In a way Bhagwan's tragedy has given
me more hope. If we have to become perfect human beings to become
enlightened then who among us will ever reach that goal? If we
realize that enlightenment is just a gradual progression of expansion
of consciousness then the goal is attainable by all of us, given
enough time. If we work for hundreds of years, through many births
and deaths, with a simple goal of just going a little deeper every
day, then with scientific certainty I believe those who seek
enlightenment will attain it in time. All of the enlightened men I
have known or have read about have made that statement in their own
words. I believe that is a fact that can be trusted.
Addendum - On letters I have received
Any thoughtful person can imagine the range of leters I have
received as a result of posting my Web essay on Acharya - Bhagwan -
Osho - Rajneesh. To date about half of the letters have been from
former Rajneesh disciples who generally agree with my comments and who
thank me for putting them on the Web. Those who agree tell me they
see "compassion for all involved" on my Web page and that I got it
"just about right."
The other letters I receive are from current disciples of the
now deceased Osho, many whom have never actually met the man in
person. Those letters range from death threats from several German
disciples to poorly written and often unsigned insults. The Ontario
Consultants on Religious Tolerance also gets lots of hate mail, but
from many different cults, not just from one. It is interesting to
see how most cults are alike in this regard. The us vs. them
mentality takes over and anyone who does not tow the party line of the
cult is deemed a villain.
Meditation has nothing to do with cults, organizations,
politics, or business, but for many meditation is a secondary issue.
For them it is all about hero worship and blind obedience to the
memory of a now dead guru, which is a silly waste of time in my
opinion. Why not go directly to the source of all gurus and religions
through your own meditation? There is an old Zen saying that "One
should not become attached to anything that can be lost in a
shipwreck." Certainly this admonition applies to gurus as well.
Several Rajneesh sannyasins have written me claiming to be
enlightened and I hear reports that many Rajneesh disciples now make
that claim. One man said that he was "the new Osho" and invited me to
visit his Web page. His page displayed a large heroic picture of
himself, much self-promotion, and an advertisement for prostitutes in
Russia who he claimed were practicing "Tantra." So for him
"enlightenment" and being "the new Osho" literally means to be a
pimp.
Another man, who had never met Osho in person, seemed to claim
that reading Osho's books helped him get over his "mental illness" and
now he was "enlightened" himself. He then forcefully instructed me to
rewrite my Web page to make it "less judgmental" and suggested that
Osho's hypocrisy was just a means to convey his enlightenment to
others. Well, he certainly conveyed his hypocrisy to others! One
young woman, who grew up on the Rajneesh Oregon commune, asked me how
she could make money out of teaching Osho's meditation techniques. I
replied that she should go to an employment agency and get an honest
job. Meditation and business do not mix and there are too many money
hungry gurus out there already.
It shocks me to find that many Osho disciples do not care about
the crimes that were committed and are not bothered by the lies and
hypocrisy of their own movement. They don't seem to comprehend that
as a result of the germ warfare attack committed by Rajneesh
sannyasins on a restaurant in Oregon that meditation groups have
gotten a very bad name around the world.
The unrelated but equally infamous Aum Shinrikyo (a Japanese
cult) nerve gas attack on a subway station in Tokyo worsened this
situation considerably. The attitude of many Osho sannyasins seems to
be that as long as they get their psychic kicks out of a cult that it
does not matter who was hurt or how unethical and disgraceful the
behavior was. In their minds everyone else in the world was
responsible for the Oregon debacle except them. As a result of this
careless attitude many Americans now feel that if a meditation group
starts an ashram nearby it is time to buy a gun and a gas mask.
The amount of historical revisionism and propaganda put out by
some Rajneesh disciples rivals the efforts of Maoists during the 1960s
and their state of mind is similar. If you want to believe in one
perfect man, a Pope of the universe, then anyone who criticizes that
Pope is deemed a devil. Thus all the subtleties of my essay are lost
on these disciples and all they claim to see on my Web page is "hate
and anger." Of course they do not see the hate in themselves directed
at anyone who does not share their own narrow beliefs.
One long time disciple of Rajneesh expressed to me how angry she
was at the Dalai Lama for only visiting the Rajneesh ashram in Poona
once. So for her the Dalai Lama is now a villain just because he did
not want to go back for a second visit. The level of intolerance and
narrow mindedness in the Rajneesh cult is mind boggling to me and I
cannot understand how so many seemingly intelligent people can live in
such a small mental space, barricaded against all those who do not
believe exactly as they do.
The last time I visited the Rajneesh ashram in Poona, India, was
in 1988. It was literally like a loud convention of German Brown
Shirts by that point. Osho was still very popular in Germany, due in
part to his comments in the German magazine Stern which were widely
interpreted to be pro-Hitler. I myself do not believe Osho was a
serious supporter of Adolf Hitler. It seemed to me that he was just
playing with people's minds, but he made his position ambiguous
enough, with enough expressed sympathy for the Axis cause, that many
young Germans were thrilled by his words. Those who lost loved ones
during World War II were justifiably shocked.
At one point Rajneesh stated that "I have fallen in love with
this man (Adolf Hitler). He was crazy, but I am crazier still." I do
not believe Rajneesh meant that statement literally. He was joking,
but he had lost the common sense to know that one does not joke about
loving a man who has killed millions of innocent people. Mel Brooks
can get away with it because he is Jewish and has relatives who were
killed by the Nazis. For a "spiritual" man who portrayed himself as
the world's smartest, highest, and greatest soul, such a remark was
proof that his drug taking was destroying the quality of his
judgment.
At the time of my visit Osho was in silence as he was angry at
his own disciples. He wanted his sannyasins to demonstrate in the
streets of Poona against some Indian officials who had spoken out
against him. Wisely, no one was interested in creating a new
confrontation. This spell of sanity among the flock irritated Osho
who canceled public talks as punishment. I was thus only able to see
him on video tape. On the taped lecture Osho was ranting emotionally,
and factually incorrectly, about how the police in the United States
had stolen his collection of jewel encrusted watches. He said that
they would never be able to wear them in public because his sannyasins
would see the watches on their wrists, at airports etc., and start
screaming out loud that "you stole Bhagwan's watch!" His words and
manner were so childishly irrational that he reminded me of Jim
Jones. This Osho was a far cry from the serene, dignified, and highly
eloquent man I had met years earlier.
Why did Osho own 90 Rolls Royces? Why does Saddam Hussein own
dozens of luxurious palaces? Those desires are products of the base
animal mind of two men who grew up in poverty. Enlightenment does not
care about symbols of power and potency. Looking for hidden esoteric
explanations for obsessive behavior is pointless. Is there an occult
reason that Elton John spends over $400,000. per month on flowers? Is
there a secret spiritual reason that Osho had a collection of dozens
of expensive ladies' watches? The universal cosmic consciousness is
completely neutral and without any need to possess, impress, or
dominate. It also cannot drive or tell time.
Shivamurti's book, Bhagwan: The God That Failed, could have
easily also been entitled The Man Who Became His Own Opposite, or The
Man Who Betrayed Himself. I often tell people that if they could go
back in time and kidnap the Acharya Rajneesh of 1970, then bring him
up through the years to meet the Osho of the late 1980s, that the two
men would be at war with each other. Acharya would have hated Osho's
pompous self-indulgence and Osho would have never tolerated the young
Acharya's brash criticisms. Acharya Rajneesh spoke of freedom and
compassion. Osho once said that he wished someone would
"shoot" (assassinate) former Soviet leader Mikael Gorbachev because he
was leading the Soviet Union to Western style capitalism instead of
his own imagined "spiritual communism." The change in his teaching
was remarkable, to say the least.
I would like to think that the early Acharya Rajneesh would have
approved of my essay, but who can say for sure. For those who suggest
I am not being loyal to Osho, I counter that I am honestly trying to
be loyal to Acharya Rajneesh, the man I took sannyas from, not Osho.
He was a man I still deeply love and respect. But that Acharya
Rajneesh died along time before Osho was even born and the two men
were as different as day and night.
My message to letter writers is to go ahead and write me. You
can vent anger or thank me, but neither will have much effect on me as
I have heard it all before, from both sides. I can only sigh and ask
myself how Acharya Rajneesh, who started out as an anti-guru
extraordinaire, ended up as he did with this current crop of
disciples. Perhaps it shows that power does corrupt and that the
means rarely justifies the ends.
In the end where is meditation in all of this? "Color
Puncture," "Tantric Tarot Readings," encounter groups, and every phony
crackpot scam in the book is being peddled by Osho disciples for large
sums of money. But what about meditation? Then I think back to the
day when the just turned 40 year old Acharya wisely instructed a
friendly Japanese woman, who was starting a new Rajneesh meditation
center in Tokyo, that "Meditation must not be made into a business."
The corrupt means have gotten so far out of hand that the original
intent of the ends, Acharya Rajneesh's original noble vision, has long
been forgotten by many, but not by me.
"No Saint comes to the world with a new teaching or philosophy; he
brings the same
ancient wisdom."
Maharaj Charan Singh, Sikh Guru
From "Divine Light," p. 144
"They [the sages] conduct themselves in the everyday life in
accordance with the time-hallowed rules of conduct..."
"He should be known as the killer of the Brahman, who is a renegade
beyond the pale of all recognized schools of thought."
The Jivan-Mukti-Viveka of Sri Vidyaranya
Translation of Pandit Subrahmanya Sastri, F.T.S., The Theosophical
Publishing House, p. 170, p. 218
"Rajneesh/Osho is the worst thing that ever happened to spirituality
in the west. He rode herd over a mob of naive, idealistic spiritual
seekers, but definitely lacked the traits of an enlightened master.
"Enlightened masters are not drug addicts. They do not turn Dharma on
its head -- like calling "sannyasins" those who adopt a path exactly
opposite of Indian sannyas. They generally don't get arrested and have
their mug shots taken, and ignomiously deported -- especially the
Indian saints. (Christ was one notable historical exception to this
rule.) A true saint, by his spiritual power, is never humiliated or
bested. He has sufficient merit to receive protection and his honored
in his lifetime.
"More to the core, an enlightened master does not encourage his
disciples to abandon time-honored moral norms -- especially the
dharma concerning sex restraint. Osho was basically a kind of pimp who
used the base desires of average people, along with their beautiful
hunger for real spirituality, to build a financial empire and a
following of worshippers who would do whatever he asked.
"When I think back about that 'baby boomer generation' of sincere
spiritual seekers -- all those intelligent, skilled young men and
women of European descent like me -- it makes me so sad. What a
harvest of potential saints that was! How much good might have arisen
if all those young, idealistic westerners could have fallen in with a
legitimate spiritual master -- say, a Vivekananda or a Ramakrishna. We
will never know! I look at them today, and their condition, and they
have missed the boat.
"Thousands of sincere western seekers were misled and harmed by the
novel teachings of Osho. I have seen many of them in the aftermath.
They always lack the satvic glow that comes from yogic sex restraint;
they look like spent rakes aged well beyond their actual years. Even
in their age -- when they might show some spiritual attainment -- many
still crave sex, and all the ordinary base things. Despite Osho's
"indulgence technique," they never got over sex addiction and lust.
"This was one of the Big Lies that Osho told: That by indulging your
sex desire you would transcend it. The great sages of Yoga spoke the
real and opposite truth: You get over sexual lust not by feeding it,
but by restraining it until you encounter the higher thrill of
meditative bliss. Meanwhile, it is only that renunciation -- the
storing of the sexual energy -- that enables one to contact the
transcendental bliss. This has been the message of the sages through
all time, including Lord Buddha, who was frequently ripped off by
"the Bhagwan." Osho's teachings, though sprinkled here and there with
mystical truths, were dead wrong in the most basic ways, and
ultimately spiritually destructive.
"The proof is in the pudding. Christ said that one can know a true
Master by the "fruit" that emerges from him. Through his disciples
Osho gave us moral and family breakdown, drug addiction, a disturbed
childhood for many, and crime -- even terrorism. Osho set Yoga back in
the west perhaps hundreds of years.
"The saddest thing is what happened to all those children of Osho
followers. Osho wanted them to grow up not knowing who their Fathers
were; raised by a mob, with no particular person as Parent. I can't
think of anything much more ignorant, or more cruel. Krishnamurti was
right:
Osho was a criminal."
-- Julian Lee
www.Celibacy.info
Osho/Rajneeshism
Concise summary and history of the Osho/Rajneesh mess
The Rise And Fall of Rajneeshpuram
Sympathetic account of the Osho mess, but with a good accounting of
their criminal activites
"It was later revealed in court testimony that Sheela’s [Rajneeshee
group] had attempted to poison two local communities by dumping
salmonella into salad bars of several local restaurants . . . This
episode has the unfortunate distinction of being the first instance of
modern bioterrorism in the U.S.
"Sheela’s group also allegedly fire-bombed a county records office in
The Dalles. One of the charges most heavily investigated was the
poisoning of Swami Deveraj (later Amrito), Bhagwan’s personal
physician. After the July 6 discourse, Ma Shanti Bhadra hugged
Deveraj and jabbed him with a needle. The syringe contained a still
unidentified poison concocted by Rajneeshpuram nurse Ma Puja. Deveraj
became gravely ill and almost died at the Madras hospital."
"My Life In Orange"
The child of an Osho disciple recounts his crazy life growing up under
the "Rajneesh." Find out how bad it was. Many letters here from other
grown Osho children, or those raised in similar situations.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
An Apologetics Index research resource
Rajneesh founded the Rajneesh Foundation International, and is one of
the most controversial of modern gurus. In 1981 he was deported from
Oregon under a bevy of serious criminal charges associated with his
ashram, or spiritual community. His recent death did little to stem
his influence in Europe or America.
John Ankerberg and John Weldon, Encyclopedia of New Age Beliefs
Harvest House Publishers, Oregon, 1996.
[A]lso called OSHO AND ACHARYA RAJNEESH, original name CHANDRA MOHAN
JAIN, Indian spiritual leader who preached an eclectic doctrine of
Eastern mysticism, individual devotion, and sexual freedom while
amassing vast personal wealth.
In 1981 Rajneesh's cult purchased a dilapidated ranch in Oregon, U.S.,
which became the site of Rajneeshpuram, a community of several
thousand orange-robed disciples. Rajneesh was widely criticized by
outsiders for his private security force and his ostentatious display
of wealth. By 1985 many of his most trusted aides had abandoned the
movement, which was under investigation for multiple felonies
including arson, attempted murder, drug smuggling, and vote fraud in
the nearby town of Antelope. In 1985 Rajneesh pleaded guilty to
immigration fraud and was deported from the United States. He was
refused entry by 21 countries before returning to Pune, where his
ashram soon grew to 15,000 members. In later years he took the
Buddhist title Osho and altered his teaching on unrestricted sexual
activity because of his growing concern over AIDS.
Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree Encyclopedia Britannica
(...) the only known successful use of biological weapons in the
United States was by the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh cult in 1984. The
group contaminated salad bars in 10 restaurants in The Dalles, Ore.,
with Salmonella Typhimurium, causing several hundred people to become
ill.
Biological and Chemical Warfare Q and A, ABC News, Sep. 24, 2001
Hinduism is not by nature a proselytizing religion, however, in part
because of its inextricable roots in the social system and the land of
India. In recent years, many new gurus, such as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
and Satya Sai Baba, have been successful in making converts in Europe
and the United States. The very success of these gurus, however, has
produced material profits that many people regard as incompatible with
the ascetic attitude appropriate to a Hindu spiritual leader; in some
cases, the profits have led to notoriety and even legal prosecution.
Hinduism Outside India Encyclopedia Britannica
Name Change
In 1988 thirty years after taking the title, ''Bhagwan,'' (which means
''the embodiment of God'') Rajneesh admitted the title and his claim
to be God were a ''joke.'' ''I hate the word... I don't want to be
called Bhagwan (God) again. Enough is enough. The joke is over,''
stated Rajneesh saying he was really the reincarnation of Buddha and
claiming for himself the new title of ''Rajneesh Gautaman the
Buddha,'' (Star Telegram, Dec. 29, 1988; Sec.1, p. 3). Later he took
the title, ''Osho Rajneesh,'' a Buddhist term meaning ''on whom the
heavens shower flowers.'' (Ibid, 1/20/90).
Guru Rajneesh Dead at 58, Watchman Expositor, Vol. 7, No. 2, 1990
Guru Rajneesh Dead at 58, Watchman Expositor, Vol. 7, No. 2, 1990
Old Bhagwan, new bottles ''A 'new' spiritual guru turns out to have a
past that includes lavish spending, orgies and bacterial terrorism.'',
Salon.com, Oct. 20, 1999
Ever wonder what ever happened to the guy whose religious followers
were linked to the only episode of domestic mass bioterrorism in
America? Well, in the case of the late, notorious Bhagwan Shree
Rajneesh, old renegade sex gurus never die. He just ''left his body''
somewhere in India in 1990 and later emerged as a thriving, modern-day
publishing machine known as Osho.
Rajneesh's flock caught much of his meditative bon mots on tape, and
now incessantly recycle these ponderings as spiritual wisdom under the
author name of Osho.
Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree Entry in Encyclopedia Britannica
Rajneeshpuram: Another Tragedy in the Making? Statement by the
Christian Research Institute
The Story of a Truly Contaminated Election Columbia Journalism
Review, Jan/Feb 2000
The only proven incident of bioterrorism the United States has ever
experienced, we learned, was a bizarre plot by the Rajneeshees, a
religious cult, to steal a county election in Oregon in 1984. The
Rajneeshees, followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a self-proclaimed
guru exiled from India, had moved into a ranch in rural Wasco County,
taken political control of the small nearby town of Antelope, and
changed its name to Rajneesh. Next, the cult sought to run the whole
county by winning the local election in 1984.
The amazing story of the Wasco County election scandal was revealed to
the conference's riveted participants by Leslie L. Zaitz, an
investigative reporter for The Oregonian, and Dr. John Livengood, an
epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control. To win the county
election, the Rajneeshees planned to sicken a good portion of the
population in the town of The Dalles, where most Wasco County voters
live. Their weapon of choice to keep local residents from voting was
salmonella bacteria. Cult members decided to test the use of
salmonella and, if successful, to contaminate the entire water system
of The Dalles on Election Day. First, the Rajneeshees poisoned two
visiting Wasco County commissioners on a hot day by plying them with
refreshing drinks of cold water laced with salmonella. Then, on a
shopping trip to The Dalles, cult members sprinkled salmonella on
produce in grocery stores "just for fun." According to reporter Zaitz,
that experiment didn't get the results they wanted so the Rajneeshees
proceeded to clandestinely sprinkle salmonella at the town's
restaurant salad bars. Ten restaurants were hit and more than 700
people got sick.
Wasco County Sheriffs This history includes a recounting of the
Rajneeshees involvement in this Oregon community
More Information:
Apologetics Index (apologeticsindex.org) provides 40,870+ pages of
research resources on religious cults, sects, new religious movements,
alternative religions, apologetics-, anticult-, and countercult
organizations, doctrines, religious practices and world views. These
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http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1565071603/christianministr
also called Osho or Acharya Rajneesh, original name Chandra Mohan
Jain
born Dec. 11, 1931, India died Jan. 19, 1990, Pune, India
Indian spiritual leader who preached an eclectic doctrine of Eastern
mysticism, individual devotion, and sexual freedom, while amassing
vast personal wealth.
As a young intellectual, Rajneesh visited with and absorbed insights
from teachers of the various religious traditions active in India. He
studied philosophy at the University of Jabalpur, earning a B.A. in
1955; he began teaching there in 1957, after earning an M.A. from the
University of Saugar. At the age of 21 he had an intense spiritual
awakening, which inspired in him the belief that individual religious
experience is the central fact of spiritual life and that such
experiences cannot be organized into any single belief system.
In 1966 Rajneesh resigned from his university post and became a guru
(spiritual guide) and a teacher of meditation. In the early 1970s he
initiated people into the order of sannyasis, who traditionally
renounced the world and practiced asceticism. Reinterpreting the idea
of being a sannyasi in terms of detachment rather than asceticism,
Rajneesh taught his disciples to live fully in the world without being
attached to it.
The first Westerners came to Rajneesh in the early 1970s, and in 1974
the new headquarters of his movement was established in Pune. The
basic practice taught at the centre was called dynamic meditation, a
process designed to allow people to experience the divine. The centre
also developed a diversified program of New Age healing adopted from
the West. Rajneesh became well-known for his progressive approach to
sexuality, which contrasted with the renunciation of sex advocated by
many other Indian teachers.
Rajneesh moved to the United States in 1981 and, the following year,
incorporated Rajneeshpuram, a new city he planned to build on an
abandoned ranch near Antelope, Ore. During the next few years many of
his most trusted aides abandoned the movement, which came under
investigation for multiple felonies, including arson, attempted
murder, drug smuggling, and vote fraud in Antelope. In 1985 Rajneesh
pleaded guilty to immigration fraud and was deported from the United
States. He was refused entry to 21 countries before returning to Pune,
where his ashram soon grew to 15,000 members.
In 1989 Rajneesh adopted the Buddhist name Osho. After his death his
disciples, convinced that he had been the victim of government
intrigue, voiced their belief in his innocence and vowed to continue
the movement he started. In the early 21st century it had some 750
centres located in more than 60 countries.
John Gordon Melton
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/490155/Bhagwan-Shree-Rajneesh
Vol. 7, No. 2, 1990
Articles on the New Age
Guru Rajneesh Dead at 58
Controversial Indian Guru, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, "who turned a
central Oregon town into a tumultuous commune of free love, hedonism
and murder plots before being deported," died on Jan. 19th of heart
failure in Poona, India. (Ft. Worth Star Telegram, 1/20/90).
Rajneesh captured the nation's attention in 1981 when he moved his
ashram community and 93 Rolls-Royces to Antelope, Oregon and advocated
"enlightenment" through sexual promiscuity. Oregonians were concerned
when Rajneesh's followers, who outnumbered the permanent residents of
Antelope, took over the small town changing its name to "City of
Rajneesh." Critics charged that the Guru later tried to take over the
county by bussing in street people gathered from the nation's inner
cities to out-vote the regular citizens.
Ma Anand Sheela, the Rajneesh's personal secretary, later pled guilty
to a number of charges including, "plotting to kill Mr. Rajneesh's
physician with a poison-filled syringe and orchestrating a food
poisoning outbreak that sickened more than 750 people in The Dalles,
the county seat, as part of a plot to take control of the
county," (Ibid).
The Bhagwan was also arrested and deported on charges of immigration
fraud as part of a plea bargain arrangement with U.S. officials. He
returned to his native India after unsuccessfully attempting to
immigrate to several other countries.
Rajneesh's teachings included, "sex is fun, materialism is good and
Jesus was a madman," and the claim that he was "the world's greatest
lover." His "Bible" called, The Orange Book described a typical yoga
session, "Explode! Go totally mad.... Jump up and down shouting the
mantra `Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!' ...Each time you land on the flats of your
feet, let the sound hammer deep into the sex center," (Ibid).
In 1988 thirty years after taking the title, "Bhagwan," (which means
"the embodiment of God") Rajneesh admitted the title and his claim to
be God were a "joke." "I hate the word... I don't want to be called
Bhagwan (God) again. Enough is enough. The joke is over," stated
Rajneesh saying he was really the reincarnation of Buddha and claiming
for himself the new title of "Rajneesh Gautaman the Buddha," (Star
Telegram, Dec. 29, 1988; Sec.1, p. 3). Later he took the title, "Osho
Rajneesh," a Buddhist term meaning "on whom the heavens shower
flowers." (Ibid, 1/20/90).
Thousands of the Guru's followers welcomed his death as "a liberation
of the soul" and celebrations began in the Poona, India compound as
soon as his death was announced.
http://www.watchman.org/na/rajneesh.htm
WEDnesday, Oct 20, 1999 09:00 EDT
Old Bhagwan, new bottles
A "new" spiritual guru turns out to have a past that includes lavish
spending, orgies and bacterial terrorism.
By Dennis McCafferty
Ever wonder what ever happened to the guy whose religious followers
were linked to the only episode of domestic mass bioterrorism in
America? Well, in the case of the late, notorious Bhagwan Shree
Rajneesh, old renegade sex gurus never die. He just "left his body"
somewhere in India in 1990 and later emerged as a thriving, modern-day
publishing machine known as Osho.
Rajneesh's flock caught much of his meditative bon mots on tape, and
now incessantly recycle these ponderings as spiritual wisdom under the
author name of Osho. This Osho has now generated an impressively
diversified empire of books, video tapes, television shows, corporate
seminars (via Osho "trainees") and even a 34-acre luxury spa in Pune,
India. With more than a dozen titles published and still going strong,
his worldwide book and audio book sales now surpass $1 million
annually. Due out in mid-November from the ever-prolific (albeit,
technically dead) Osho: Three new titles from St. Martin's Griffin --
"Creativity," "Courage" and "Maturity," all priced at $11.95 -- to
mark the 10th anniversary of his death in January. And in May 2000, a
new "autobiography" with the working title "Osho: The Autobiography of
the Spiritually Incorrect Mystic."
To date, the published works of Osho have left readers with little
clues as to his former identity. So consumers may not know that
they're actually plunking down their cash for rehashed ramblings from
the late Rajneesh, the controversy-plagued spiritual leader kicked out
of the United States after his legal woes heated up in the mid-1980s.
Rajneesh made headlines with a lifestyle that included a convoy of
more than 90 Rolls-Royces, flashy jewelry and enough hedonistic
pursuits to earn him the title "world's most famous sex guru."
Rajneesh and his followers settled on a 65,000-acre ranch near
Antelope, Ore., wrestled political control from town office holders
and renamed Antelope "Rajneeshpuram." But they were essentially the
sect that couldn't shoot straight. During a conflict with Oregon
authorities, the followers were accused of arson and attempted murder.
In perhaps the most notorious incident, some members of the Rajneesh
crew were linked to a 1984 case in which salmonella bacteria was
sprinkled on the contents of local restaurant salad bars and sickened
750 people. Rajneesh was deported on immigration fraud charges and
died in Pune on Jan. 19, 1990.
However, Rajneesh lives on with an estimated 5,000 of his lectures now
marketed as Osho tapes and books. He'll answer e-mail questions on the
Web and make the occasional remark on current affairs. (Live! From the
Osho Commune International home base in Pune: "Clinton needs Tantra
Sutra, not Kama Sutra.")
The books are less than enlightening about Osho's time spent here on
Earth; their references to Rajneesh are rare and fuzzy. In the
current, uncorrected proofs of the three new St. Martin's titles, for
example, the brief "About the Author" section makes no mention at all
of Osho's prior identity.
Says Klaus Steeg, president of Osho International in New York: "He
changed his name. He was called Bhagwan. But the year before he died,
he dropped that. It's a complete deconstruction of his personality."
And perhaps more importantly, of all the bad P.R. that his former name
brings to mind.
Steeg promises that, while the "autobiography" will tie up some of
these loose connections, the wealth of Osho's heavily marketed inner-
self discourses do not because they're intended as guides. Michael
Denneny, the St. Martin's senior editor currently overseeing Osho
titles, says the publishing company, as is its policy, provides a
picture of Rajneesh in the books. Still, the photos identify him only
as Osho. "If he changed his name to Osho," Denneny reasons, "then it's
like Muhammad Ali and Cassius Clay." As far as how forthcoming the
autobiography will be, that remains to be seen. Osho "distinguishes
between what is true and what is fact," Denneny says. "He prefers the
truth." Jim Fitzgerald, who edited a 1998 St. Martin's-published work
from Osho called "The Book of Secrets," is more blunt: "I'd be
shooting myself in the foot to say that's the guy [whose people]
poisoned salad bars.''
Well, forgive and, most of all, forget, right? At least a few media
types have short memories. Last year, the New York Times featured a
puff piece on Osho International's Lexington Avenue office digs,
describing Osho as a now-deceased Indian mystic and making no
reference to Rajneesh. A 1998 travel piece in Yoga Journal describing
the Pune attraction as a "New Age Xanadu" did connect Osho to the
Rajneesh name, but blithely omitted mention of the salad bars or other
unsavory details.
http://www.salon.com/books/feature/1999/10/20/osho/
The Story of a Truly Contaminated Election
BY LAWRENCE K. GROSSMAN
On November 30, when Vice President Gore's vote challenge was making
Florida the epicenter of the universe, I happened to be in St.
Petersburg, Florida, moderating a conference on "Bioterrorism and the
Media." Terrible as the subject of the bioterrorism conference is, it
promised at least to offer a welcome respite from the endless but
irresistible election mess. As it turned out, I was wrong. The
centerpiece of the conference was, of all things, the case study of a
truly contaminated election.
The only proven incident of bioterrorism the United States has ever
experienced, we learned, was a bizarre plot by the Rajneeshees, a
religious cult, to steal a county election in Oregon in 1984. The
Rajneeshees, followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a self-proclaimed
guru exiled from India, had moved into a ranch in rural Wasco County,
taken political control of the small nearby town of Antelope, and
changed its name to Rajneesh. Next, the cult sought to run the whole
county by winning the local election in 1984.
The amazing story of the Wasco County election scandal was revealed to
the conference's riveted participants by Leslie L. Zaitz, an
investigative reporter for The Oregonian, and Dr. John Livengood, an
epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control. To win the county
election, the Rajneeshees planned to sicken a good portion of the
population in the town of The Dalles, where most Wasco County voters
live. Their weapon of choice to keep local residents from voting was
salmonella bacteria. Cult members decided to test the use of
salmonella and, if successful, to contaminate the entire water system
of The Dalles on Election Day. First, the Rajneeshees poisoned two
visiting Wasco County commissioners on a hot day by plying them with
refreshing drinks of cold water laced with salmonella. Then, on a
shopping trip to The Dalles, cult members sprinkled salmonella on
produce in grocery stores "just for fun." According to reporter Zaitz,
that experiment didn't get the results they wanted so the Rajneeshees
proceeded to clandestinely sprinkle salmonella at the town's
restaurant salad bars. Ten restaurants were hit and more than 700
people got sick.
"They apparently didn't expect it to be such a huge success," Zaitz
said. "The attention attracted by the salad bar escapade brought
hordes of health officials and investigators into The Dalles. It
dashed the cult's plan to do worse on Election Day." Health officials
soon pinned down salmonella as the cause of the sudden outbreak, but
put the blame on food handlers. In 1984, who could have imagined
bioterrorism?
The Rajneeshees also bused in homeless people by the hundreds from all
across the country to register in Wasco County so they could vote in
the '84 election. That plan failed when, alerted by the mass
registration of the homeless, the state threatened to conduct
administrative hearings on every new local voter. The cult's
conspiracy to contaminate the election failed and a year later, the
entire Rajneeshee commune collapsed under the weight of an internal
conflict. Cult informers confessed to numerous crimes, including plots
to kill the U.S. attorney, the state attorney general, and the guru's
doctor, as well as the plot to contaminate the election. Vials of
salmonella were found on the Rajneeshees' ranch.
Zaitz and his investigative reporting team produced a twenty-part
series on the Rajneeshees for The Oregonian starting in June 1985.
After the commune collapsed they went back and produced a follow-up
series. Among other things, they learned that the Rajneeshees had
secretly put together a top-ten hit list on which Zaitz's name
appeared as number three.
"If anything, the local news media were restrained and conservative in
their coverage of the salmonella episode," Zaitz told the conference.
"There was nothing alarmist, nothing to trigger a public panic. More
aggressive coverage perhaps would have heated up already tense
community relations with the commune. Yet the benign treatment also
gave the Rajneeshees comfort that they could get away with it . . . .
Fortunately, the commune collapsed before that could happen. But
consider this: If they knew reporters were watching closely, would
they have even tried?"
Something like that might be said of the presidential balloting mess.
If, in the days before the voting, reporters had focused on the
botched job the nation's election districts were doing with voting
procedures for the central political event of our democracy, the
election of a president, would the balloting and ballot-counting have
been quite so off-base?
For epidemiologist Livengood, however, who had been dispatched to
Wasco County to solve the cause of the mysterious outbreak, the story
had a different, simpler moral: "Don't eat at salad bars."
Lawrence K. Grossman, a former president of NBC News and PBS, is a
regular columnist for CJR.
http://web.archive.org/web/20020614093959/http://www.cjr.org/year/01/1/grossman.asp
Ernest D. Mosier followed Harold Sexton and was Sheriff of Wasco
County two different times. He first served from 1953 to September,
1963, when he resigned. He came back to spend six more years as
Sheriff from July 1971 to 1977 when he was appointed to replace the
resigning William L. Bell.
A native of The Dalles, Mosier graduated from The Dalles High School
and later attended Willamette University. Before joining the Sheriffs'
Office, Mosier was an office manager at a number of companies in The
Dalles area.
Sterling Arthur Trent was appointed to take Mosier's place when he
resigned. A native of Gorin, Missouri, Trent served as Sheriff of
Wasco County until June 1968, when he died in office. He moved to
Oregon in 1913 and was a Deputy Sheriff from July 1954 until he was
appointed Sheriff in September 1963.
A graduate of The Dalles High School, Trent worked in the construction
business for a time and also managed a tire shop and was a stock
rancher for a while. When Trent died, Grant Cyphers was appointed to
take his place, but Cyphers served only a month before it was dis-
covered he was of the wrong political party.
William L. Bell was appointed to take Cyphers' place and remained
Sheriff of Wasco County until July 1971, when he resigned to take a
job with the Board on Police Standards and Training. A native of Long
Beach, California, Bell moved to Oregon in 1947.
Bell graduated from Wheeler County High School in Fossil and attended
five terms at the University of Oregon and two terms at Oregon College
of Education. He signed on with The Dalles Police Department in 1957
as an officer but left for two years to serve in the United States
Army from 1958 to 1960. He remained with The Dalles Police Department
until 1968, when he was appointed to take the place of Cyphers.
Ernest Mosier came back to serve as Sheriff when he was appointed to
take Bell's place, remaining this time until 1977, when John B. Magill
was elected. Magill-- whose family was an old ranching family in Wasco
County -- served a four-year term before Robert G. "Bob" Brown was
elected in 1981.
Born in Council Bluff, Iowa, Brown moved to Oregon in 1963 from South
Dakota. He graduated from the University of Nebraska in Omaha in 1962
with degrees in business administration and engineering. He worked for
seven years as a superintendent and engineer for Peter Kiewet & Sons
in Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Washington and
Oregon. From 1967 until 1980, Brown worked for Tenneson Engineering in
The Dalles.
Art Labrousse won the 1984 election and was re-elected in 1988 to
become the first two-term Sheriff in Wasco County since 1968.
Big Muddy-ed Affair
In 1981, Wasco County school children learned a new word:
Rajneeshees. Even before the start of the school year, a few lessons
on this strange East Indian word and what it meant. Followers of the
nomadic Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh purchased the rambling,
64,229 acre Big Muddy Ranch in Wasco and Jefferson counties in July of
1981 as the central commune for the Bhagwan and his devoted
followers.
At first, the residents of nearby Antelope viewed the sudden
appearance of the red-clad Rajneesh disciples, known as Sannyasins but
more commonly referred to as Rashneeshees, as nothing more than a
curiosity. It wasn't long, however, before they realized the
seriousness and full intentions of the Rajneesh movement, or
"invasion,'' as some locals preferred to call it.
While the Bhagwan's chief aide Ma Anand Sheela was declaring the
movement's plan to operate a simple farming commune in the desert, his
other disciples were busy in the background developing grand plans for
a huge resort city for up to 100,000 Rajneeshees.
Within a matter of weeks, construction began on a number of buildings
within the newly-christened Rancho Rajneesh, including a shoppng mall,
restaurant, a resort-like motel and commune service offices. In many
cases, Bhagwan followers moved ahead without securing proper county
building permits.
In the meantime, new recruits continued pouring into the desert
commune -many of them wealthy European and American followers who were
more than willing and able to finance the Bhagwan's movement.
But the Rajneesh movement began to falter in October 1981 when two
months after arriving at Rancho Rajneesh, the Bhagwan applied to the
U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service for an extension of his
visa. Immigration officials began a full-scale investigation into the
activities of the religious sect, focusing on the guru's intent in
coming to the United States and a pattern of suspect marriages between
the U.S. citizen and foreign followers.
The investigation turned up information that the Bhagwan and his
followers left India in the spring of 1981 owing the Indian government
more than $6 million in unpaid taxes. An Indian tax court voided the
Rajneesh organization's tax-exempt status and assessed millions of
rupees (Indian currency) in back taxes.
But the movement forged ahead in the Oregon desert. In April 1982,
Rajneeshees, voting as a bloc, managed to secure enough votes to take
over the town of Antelope, which was renamed Rajneesh. They also voted
to incorporate Rancho Rajneesh -- the former Big Muddy Ranch as the
town of Rajneeshpuram.
With this newly-acquired power, Rajneesh leaders began making more
demands on county and state leaders. They demanded access to records
and reports by Wasco County officials pertaining to the commune and
its activities. They also demanded state basic school support for the
Rajneeshees' school, even though the state rejected the demand, saying
public tax dollars go to support public schools, not private ones like
the Rajneesh school.
But problems were just beginning for the movement. Over the next three
years, Rajneeshee leaders were accused of the salmonella poisonings of
hundreds of residents of The Dalles and some 500 persons filed suit
against the sect. Sheela, along with two other disciples, were accused
in a 1985 federal grand jury indictment of plotting the unsuccessful
murder of the Bhagwan's private physician.
And the Bhagwan himself broke his own vow of public silence in
September 1985 with a scathing attack on Sheela and a half dozen of
her allies, claiming they had betrayed him and his followers and that
they had stolen $55 million from the commune. An article in The
Oregonian on Sept. 17, 1985, quoted the Bhagwan as saying Sheela "and
her gang had turned my commune into a fascist concentration camp."
The Bhagwan's claims that militant Rajneeshees had been stockpiling
assault weapons and had been engaged in illegal wire-tapping at the
ranch touched off a multi-agency investigation into the alleged
criminal activity which proved to be the beginning of the end for
Rajneeshpuram.
On Oct. 23, 1985, a federal grand jury in Portland secretly indicted
the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Sheela and six other Sannyasins for
immigration crimes. Two days later, a Wasco County grand jury returned
indictments against Sheela and two others, charging them with the
attempted murder of Swami Devaraj, the Bhagwan's personal doctor.
By that time, Sheela and about 25 of her followers had already fled
the ranch to Germany.
But Rajneeshpuram was thrown into turmoil on Oct. 28, 1985 when the
Bhagwan' s loyal followers leared he had been arrested in Charlotte,
N.C., trying to flee immigration authorities on a privately-chartered
jet bound for Bermuda.
At about the same time, word arrived from Germany that Sheela and two
Rajneesh women had been arrested by West German police.
The Bhagwan was returned to Oregon to face a 35-count federal
indictment for immigration-related crimes, although he initially pled
innocent to all 35 counts. But as part of the plea-bargaining
agreement with federal prosecutors, the Bhagwan on Nov. 14, 1985,
agreed to plead guilty to two of the felony counts, to pay the court
costs and to leave the United States.
The Bhagwan returned to India and promptly told reporters gathered at
a New Delhi airport that the United States -the place he called a land
of religious freedom and opportunity four years earlier -- was "just a
wretched country."
Within a week of his departure, thousands of former followers were
leaving Rajneeshpuram in busloads. Within a month of their departure,
residents of the former Antelope reclaimed their town -and its
original name. But legal action against the Rajneeshees would continue
for many years.
Sheela and 20 other disciples later were indicted on federal wire-
tapping charges. Numerous civil suits were filed against the bankrupt
religious sect, some of which still have not been resolved.
On July 22, 1986, Sheela was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison and
ordered to pay a $400,000 fine after pleading guilty to state and
federal charges which included masterminding a massive electronic
eavesdropping system at Rancho Rajneesh, plotting the attempted murder
of the Bhagwan's physician and plotting the salmonella poisoning of
about 750 people in The Dalles.
For many Rajneeshees, the dream of carving a utopian Shangri-la out of
the barren, Central Oregon desert ended long before Jan. 18, 1990--
the day Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh died in Ashram in Pune, India, at the
age of 58.
For Wasco County Sheriff Art Labrousse, it was a rare learning
experience -- one he says he will never forget.
"They were well organized," Labrousse recalls. Or at least, better
prepared to take control of the tiny town of Antelope than local
officials were prepared to stop them. Labrousse and his 13-Deputy
force had their hands full trying to maintain law and order with the
sudden invasion of thousands of red-clad Rajneeshees into Wasco
County.
What made it so difficult, says Labreusse, was the cloak of secrecy
which seemed to engulf Rancho Rajneesh.
"Few people actually knew what was going on out there," he said.
Labrousse recalled the telephone call to his office on July 3, 1985,
from someone at the ranch reporting a possible drowning in a lake on
the ranch. Before he could summon the Wasco County medical examiner to
the scene, LaBrousse received another call, this time reporting that a
young man had been pulled from the lake and briefly revived. The man
was taken to the medical center in Jefferson County, but died,
Labrousse was told.
Since the attending physician, who was a Rajneeshee doctor, also was
the assistant medical examiner for Sherman County, Labrousse was told
by the state there was no need to call in the state medical examiner.
No body fluid or any other evidence was obtained by the assistant
medical examiner.
"They had a doctor who was an assistant medical examiner for Jefferson
County -- he ruled the man's death was accidental drowning," Labrousse
said.
Two days later, Labrousse was drinking coffee with an Oregon State
Police officer in Antelope. "We were talking about the Fourth of July
fire in The Dalles, caused by fireworks, when one of the Rajneesh
peace officers from Antelope said, 'Well, we had a great fireworks
show ourselves -- we cremated a boy who just died."
©1998 Roxann Gess Smith
All Rights Reserved
Visit Wasco Co. on The American Local History Network
http://gesswhoto.com/sheriff-wasco2.html
Labrousse cringed, not only because it was too late to do anything if
there had been a criminal deed, but because he had heard of similar
cremations occurring at Rancho Rajneesh in the past.
"We'll never know how many were cremated out there," he says. "But
every time they had a festival or celebration out at the ranch, there
was a death."
Labrousse said he sent a memorandum to the Wasco County Board of
Commissioners, suggesting the county not permit any future festivals
or celebrations at the ranch unless Rajneesh officials agreed in
advance that any deaths which occur during the event would be
investigated by the Wasco County medical examiner.
But the county never had to act on Labrousse's recommendation. Within
two weeks, the Bhagwan himself would expose Sheela and her gang and
Rajneeshpuram would begin to crumble.
The Missing Thumb Killer
Pictured Left: Levi Chrisman
Levi Chrisman was involved in dozens of puzzling murder and criminal
investigations during his 22-year tenure as Wasco County Sheriff. But
few were as complex as the shooting death of Jim Doran, a Bend lumber
mill worker, in early September, 1921.
The only clues to the killer's identity were a missing Dodge touring
car and a missing left thumb.
Doran's body had been found by a young couple, driving a lonely
country road two miles west of The Dalles, late one Saturday night.
Doran had been shot four times -- once in the head and at least three
times in the chest. The body was partially hidden behind some bushes
alongside the country road.
In their initial search of the victim's clothing for some type of
identification, investigators found an expensive gold pocket watch and
a few dollars in change. This led Chrisman and his Deputies to assume
robbery was not the motive behind the murder.
Chrisman's Chief Deputy Guy Elton noticed what appeared to be a trail
of blood leading away from the body into a grove of trees. The Sheriff
followed the trail and found a second gunshot victim with a bullet
wound in his shoulder. The man was rushed to a hospital in The
Dalles.
After undergoing successful surgery to remove the slug, the man agreed
to talk to Chrisman and Elton. He said his name was Bill Ducharme, and
he identified his slain companion as Jim Doran. Ducharme said he and
Doran had left Bend earlier that day with a third man, whose name he
could not recall.
Ducharme told the Sheriff that he and Doran had finished work at the
lumber mill and both were anxious to get to Doran's ranch at
McMinnville. But they didn't have transportation. The man, who
appeared to know Doran, offered to drive them in his car if they paid
his expenses. They agreed.
After having dinner in The Dalles that night, Ducharme said the
stranger offered to take them to a friend's place just outside of town
where they could spend the night. But a short way out of town,
Ducharme said the man pulled his car to a halt and told him they would
have to walk across a field to get to his friend's place.
Ducharme told Chrisman he had started out ahead of the other two when
he heard a shot. He turned and saw Doran tumble to the ground. Then,
Ducharme recalled, the stranger started firing at him so he began
running. One of the shots caught him in the shoulder, Ducharme said,
but he kept running until he collapsed in a grove of trees.
The wounded man could give only a general description of the gunman:
Approximately 40 years of age, medium build, black hair, gray eyes.
His description of the man's car was even more general: A large, black
touring car. He couldn't recall the make and didn't notice the license
number.
Chrisman put out the obligatory dispatches to all police officers and
agencies within a 100-mile radius, telling them to be on the lookout
for a large, black touring car with a dark-haired man in his early 40s
behind the wheel. He didn't hold out much hope, however.
When they received no response to the telegrams, Chrisman and Elton
went back to the murder scene the following morning. They found a
clear set of tire tracks in the soft, dirt shoulder of the road and
had the tracks photographed, hoping they could come up with a match
after searching The Dalles for the missing touring car and its tires.
But the hunch proved both time-consuming and futile.
Next, Chrisman and his men went to the lumber mill in Bend, where
Ducharme and Doran had worked, figuring the killer might also be
employed at the mill. None of the employees could remember seeing a
stranger with Ducharme and Doran at the mill the previous Friday when
the mill closed.
With their search for clues at a standstill, Chrisman suggested
investigators canvass gas stations and restaurants along the road the
three men were traveling Saturday, to see if anyone recalled seeing
the trio. The plan worked. A gas station owner reported three men
drove into his station Saturday afternoon in a nearly-new Dodge
touring car. The observant station owner said when the car's driver
paid for the gas, he noticed the man's left thumb was missing. The
station owner described the other two men in the car and they matched
the descriptions of Ducharme and Doran.
Encouraged at last by some useful leads, lawmen began compiling a list
of all new Dodge touring cars in the county and their owners. If one
of the owners had a left thumb missing and the car's tire tread marks
matched those of the tracks found near the murder scene, Chrisman felt
confident they would have their killer.
Unfortunately, Chrisman discovered, there were about 100 persons in
the county who owned newer Dodge touring cars. But with the help of
Deschutes County Sheriff S.E. Roberts and his Deputies, lawmen were
able to whittle the list of possible prospects to four. The first two
men on the list had two thumbs. The third was a man named Abe Evans,
who lived just outside of Bend.
They didn't find Evans at home, but his wife provided the information
they had been seeking: Her husband was missing his left thumb.
Mrs. Evans said her husband had gone to Salem looking for work. She
was able to provide officers with a license number for her husband's
car.
Lawmen put out an all-points bulletin on Abe Evans, along with the
license number of his car and a complete description of the vehicle.
After hearing the broadcast, Jefferson County Sheriff H.C. Topping and
his men began a wide-scale search of county gas stations, restaurants,
garages and motels for the wanted man and his car. They finally found
a motel owner in Metolius, not far from Madras, who informed them he
had rented a room to a man with a missing left thumb and a Dodge
touring car.
They found Evans, in an obvious state of intoxication, in one of the
motel rooms, trying to sleep off his miseries. They took Evans into
custody and transported him and his car to Deschutes County. Chrisman
checked the Dodge touring car's tire treads with his photographs. They
were a perfect match.
Evans denied shooting Ducharme and Doran, claimed he had left them at
a hotel in The Dalles, that he took off on his own, got drunk and
couldn't remember anything after that. But a search of the suspect
turned up $130 in cash. After two days of questioning, however, Evans
broke down and confessed.
He admitted knowing Doran for some time. He said he met Doran in
downtown Bend on Friday, the day before the shooting, and the two
walked to Doran's bank to cash his $150 paycheck from the mill. Doran
told Evans that he and a friend were going to McMinnville to spend the
winter, and Evans admitted that's where he got the idea to offer them
a ride as a way of getting them out into the country where he could
kill and rob them.
Evans told investigators he believed he had killed Ducharme, too. He
said he took Doran's billfold with most of the cash, but left the gold
watch and the change so it would not look like a robbery. He said he
threw the gun into some bushes, drove back to The Dalles to get some
whiskey, and drove south to the motel in Metolius.
A Wasco County Grand Jury indicted Evans of first-degree murder. Evans
pled not guilty by reason of insanity. A Wasco County Circuit Court
jury, however, convicted Evans of first-degree murder, with no
recommendation for mercy.
On Oct. 8, 1921, Evans was sentenced to hang for the killing of Jim
Doran. His attorney appealed the sentence to the Oregon Supreme Court.
But the high court, after numerous legal delays, upheld the sentence.
Evans never went to the gallows, however. On June 5, 1924 -- the day
before he was to be executed-- Gov. Walter M. Pierce commuted Evans'
sentence to life imprisonment.
http://gesswhoto.com/sheriff-wasco3.html
Apologetics Index News Archive - Search Results
Headline: Anand Sheela tends patients in Switzerland
Source: The Oregonian
Date: 1999/12/26
Description: Former Rajneeshee leader Anand Sheela -- once notorious
in Oregon as the spokeswoman for Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh -- now takes
care of frail and elderly patients in two private nursing homes in
Switzerland.
Headline: Indian guru follower Anand Sheela arrested after German TV
show
Source: The Oregonian
Date: 2000/01/22
Description: German police picked up Anand Sheela in a town near
Frankfort, Germany, last week after she appeared on a television show
to mark the 10th anniversary of the death of her former mentor, Indian
guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. Sheela was quickly released, however,
because the Interpol warrant for her arrest had been canceled.
Headline: Experts Assess Risk of 'New Terrorism' Threat
Source: Los Angeles Times
Date: 2000/02/07
Description: They called it the ''new terrorism:'' a virulent strain
of anti-American aggression in which enemies without scruples would
use germs and toxic gases, not guns and bombs, to kill tens of
thousands of civilians at a stroke.
Headline: Meditation protected by patent
Source: NZZ Daily Edition
Date: 2000/06/29
Description: Now a dispute has broken out over that in India which
has burst the scintillating soap bubble of the symbiosis of money and
spirit. Professor Jain still likes to talk so beautifully about
dissolving all restricting relationships and he plunders the world's
literature in doing so, but when it comes to bringing his insights of
''One World'' to the people, he pays very close attention to setting
up his own boundary posts in the form of trademarks, patents,
copyrights and license agreements. Even Dynamic Kundalini Meditation
has been reported as a trademark.
Headline: A Sign of Mammon
Source: taz (Germany)
Date: 2000/07/20
Description: Who would be surprised that, in the commune, a bitter
power struggle is raging for control of hundreds of meditation centers
around the world, for the marketing rights of 1,500 book titles, and
of sound cassettes and videotapes of lectures from the Master.
Headline: Expert: US Open To Bioterrorism
Source: AP
Date: 2000/08/22
Description: Advances in technology make the United States more
vulnerable to bioterrorism than to nuclear attack, a leading expert in
defending against biological weapons said Tuesday.
Headline: Former cult camp becomes playground for children
Source: AP
Date: 2000/08/27
Description: The middle schoolers go about their summer camp
activities, unaware that all around them, thousands of followers once
toiled in the service of their leader, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
Headline: FDA Designates Bioterrorism Antidote
Source: AP
Date: 2000/08/31
Description: If bioterrorists ever attack the United States with
anthrax, the antibiotic Cipro will be the first line of defense for
civilians who breathe the deadly bacteria, the government decided
Thursday.
Headline: The battle over bio-terror
Source: Salon
Date: 2000/09/12
Description: In short, ''We can conjure up a worse-case scenario,''
says John Parachini, chief of the Washington office of the Monterey
Institute's Center for Nonproliferation Studies. ''But we can also
conjure up a meteor hitting the Earth.''
Headline: Two Rajneeshee members plead guilty
Source: The Oregonian
Date: 2000/12/16
Description: Two high-ranking officials in Oregon's once notorious
Rajneeshee cult pleaded guilty Friday to 15-year-old federal
wiretapping charges, canceling international warrants that effectively
confined them to Great Britain.
Notes:
Headline: Biological weapons pose threat to Canada, U.S., scientist
says
Source: Edmonton Journal (Canada)
Date: 2001/03/11
Description: That's the view of U.S. scientist Dr. Ronald Atlas who
has been advising the U.S. government on the growing concern that
criminals will target food, water, air and individuals with viruses,
bacteria, fungi and toxins to further their cause.
Headline: Osho, Guru Extraordinaire, Is Long Gone -- But His Books
Live On
Source: Inside
Date: 2001/05/15
Description: Once known for his fleet of Rolls-Royces, the late
motivational thinker Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh is now being packaged as
Deepak Chopra minus the Ayurvedic medicine. His sales are in the
millions, and his returns a mere 4 percent.
Headline: Biological and Chemical Warfare Q and A
Source: ABC News
Date: 2001/09/24
Description: Now that terrorists have demonstrated they're capable of
carrying out unthinkable attacks of extreme devastation, some believe
the United States should be on higher alert for a biological or
chemical attack. ABCNEWS.com talked to several experts to learn about
these weapons, the preparedness of the United States for such attacks
and possible defenses against them,
Headline: America's First Bioterrorism Attack
Source: TIME
Date: 2001/10/08
Description: In the fall of 1984, members of the Rajneeshee, a
Buddhist cult devoted to beauty, love and guiltless sex, brewed a
"salsa" of salmonella and sprinkled it on fruits and veggies in the
salad bar at Shakey's Pizza in The Dalles, Ore. They put it in blue-
cheese dressing, table-top coffee creamers and potato salads at 10
local restaurants and a supermarket. They poured it into a glass of
water and handed it to a judge. They fed it to the district attorney,
the doctor, the dentist. Their plan: to seize control of the county
government by packing polling booths with imported homeless people
while making local residents too sick to vote.
Headline: Oregon town has never gotten over its 1984 bioterrorism
scare
Source: AP
Date: 2001/10/19
Description: In 1984, followers of the Indian guru Bhagwan Shree
Rajneesh spiked salad bars at 10 restaurants in town with salmonella
and sickened about 750 people.
Headline: Apocalyptic cult methods explain bin Laden
Source: USA Today
Date: 2001/11/05
Description: Hassan observes that many of the techniques that he
encountered with the Moonies are evident in bin Laden's camps: "social
isolation, controlling their sleep, showing them non-stop videos of
Muslims dying, being buddied up, so that they're never alone. ...
Destructive mind control strips away their ability to think for
themselves." The cult framework goes a little way to explaining the
dissonance between who these hijackers were and what they eventually
did on behalf of al-Qa'eda.
Headline: Microbes were mail-ordered : Lax controls let extremists
easily obtain anthrax
Source: Boston Globe
Date: 2001/11/06
Description: Harris's story illustrates some of the challenges US
officials face as they try to determine whether foreign or domestic
terrorists sent the anthrax-laced letters that have killed four
people.
Headline: Cults, terrorist groups share chilling similarities,
experts say
Source: The Oregonian
Date: 2001/11/13
Description: Oregonians were shocked to learn in 1985 that this
outpost of transplanted suburbanites was a launching pad for the first
large-scale biological attack in U.S. history: the poisoning of 751
people in The Dalles with restaurant food sprinkled with salmonella
germs grown in a commune laboratory. But cult psychology experts say
such incidents should come as no great surprise to anyone. They merely
underscore the fact that seemingly normal, well-educated people can be
persuaded to commit unthinkable crimes, including flying airliners
into skyscrapers.
Headline: FDA issues anti-terror food advice
Source: FDA
Date: 2002/01/10
Description: The only known terror attack on U.S. food occurred in
the 1980s, when a cult in Oregon contaminated salad bars with
salmonella bacteria. Experts say fresh produce may be the food most
vulnerable to tampering because it is often eaten raw and is subject
to little government inspection.
bademiyansubhanallah
(Adds more comments)
By Hideyuki Sano TOKYO,
March 10 (Reuters) -
Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan shot down the idea of a formal
policy pact with the Bank of
Japan as the government aims to strike a delicate balance
between pushing the central bank to ease policy further and
respecting its independence. The idea of a formal policy accord has
been floated in the
past by critics of the central bank who feel it could be doing
more to combat grinding deflation that has plagued the world's
second-largest economy for most of the past 15 years. But Kan, who has
also been calling on the BOJ to take
bolder action, said he saw no immediate need for such a pact,
echoing the view held by a majority of policy makers and
politicians wary of threatening the central bank's
independence. "I gather advocates of such a policy want an arrangement
where the government increases the deficits and the BOJ
cooperates by buying more government debt," said Izuru Kato,
chief economist at Totan Research. "They must be thinking central bank
independence allows the
BOJ to be too hesitant about buying government bonds and
therefore they should strip the BOJ of its independence," Kato
said. Kan steered clear of saying exactly what he wants the
central bank to do at its policy meeting next week, where
further easing is likely to be discussed. [ID:nTOE6230A7] BOJ board
member Miyako Suda, seen as hawkish on monetary
policy, said on Wednesday that the central bank will maintain a
very accommodative stance, but she added that the BOJ had
implemented an appropriate policy on prices. "Suda did not sound so
positive about taking more steps
blindly. It's not clear how strong the measures the BOJ takes
next week will be," said Naomi Hasegawa, senior strategist at
Mitsubishi UFJ Securities. With the government's room for further
fiscal stimulus
limited by a public debt that is already close to 200 percent
of GDP, the six-month old administration has put pressure on
the central bank to stem deflation. But the BOJ's options are limited
as long as the economic
outlook remains weak. Expectations of further price declines in future
could
persuade consumers and companies to delay spending and
investment even longer, adding more pressure on the economy.
Until demand picks up and more money flows into the system,
prices will struggle to recover. The BOJ has said prices will rise
eventually as the economy
mends. TOO MUCH INDEPENDENCE? Japan's central bank law guarantees the
BOJ independence in
its policy decisions, but it also requires the bank to
communicate with the government to ensure its policy is in line
with the government's economic policy. Few in the top circle of
Japanese policymakers see the need
for a change in those stipulations. "I am cautious about the framework
of an accord," Kan, also
deputy prime minister, told a parliamentary committee on
Wednesday in response to an opposition lawmaker's question. But some
politicians, mostly from the opposition, have said
the BOJ needs to be more accountable for its decisions, blaming
it for putting Japan in deflation for much of the past 15
years. The BOJ is likely to debate easing again at its March 16-17
board meeting, after introducing a new funding operation in
December amid a wave of government pressure as the yen climbed
versus the dollar. [ID:nTOE6230A7] "If they increase the cheap funding
operation to replace
the corporate support scheme that expires in March, that's
probably already priced in," said Hasegawa of Mitsubishi UFJ
Securities. The Bank of Japan's Suda dropped few hints, repeating the
BOJ's view that easy policy alone is no panacea for deflation.
"Although maintaining easy monetary policy is the top
priority, it is important for the Japanese economy to undergo
bold structural reform as much as it needs a recovery," she
said, referring to the need to fix Japan's pension system and
get public finances in order to reduce concerns about the
future. "If structural reform is delayed, it would undermine the
stimulative effect of monetary policy," she said. Japan's core
machinery orders fell slightly less than
expected in January from the previous month, data showed on
Wednesday, offering more evidence that capital expenditure will
keep growing slowly this year as manufacturers raise spending. Core
private-sector machinery orders, a highly volatile
series regarded as an indicator of capital spending, fell 3.7
percent in January, less than a median market forecast for a
4.1 percent decline, after a 20.1 percent jump in December.
[JPMORD=ECI] ECONJP But the data also showed non-manufacturers remain
wary on
capital spending, highlighting the weakness in domestic demand. Annual
wholesale price deflation eased to 1.5 percent in
February on a recent rise in commodity prices. But economists say
deflationary pressure is likely to
continue due to the big gap between supply and demand. Japan pulled
out of recession in April-June last year,
helped by a rebound in exports and industrial output as well as
a rise in consumption due to government subsidies. But
economists expect growth to slow early this year as the
government cuts public works and the impact of subsidies
fades.
(Additional reporting by Rie Ishiguro, Stanley White, Leika
Kihara and Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Kim Coghill)
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Yen holds firm, Aussie supported before China data
Mar 9, 2010
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Euro gives up gains, yen steadies after fall
Mar 8, 2010
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BF27F20100310?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a49:g43:r2:c0.111111:b31682724:z0
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTOE62901R20100310
March 10, 2010, 12:52 a.m.
WORLD FOREX: Euro Ticks Up Vs Yen On Japan Importer Buying
By Miho Nakauchi
TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The euro ticked up against the yen in Asia
Wednesday, as Japanese importers buying the single currency on a
regular settlement day set the tone of the market amid a lack of other
trading cues.
But further gains are far from certain, dealers said, with the euro's
near-term direction resting on developments in the euro-zone's fiscal
problem and upcoming economic data.
As of 0450 GMT, the euro stood at Y122.44, slightly up from Y122.36 in
New York late Tuesday. Against the dollar, the unit traded at $1.3602
from $1.3601.
"Overall currency moves were very limited" with share markets almost
unchanged and a lack of major economic data, meaning that Japanese
importers' buying flows became more dominant and set the trend, said
Yuzo Sakai, a foreign-exchange manager at Tokyo Forex & Ueda Harlow.
Japanese importers tend to buy the currency on regular settlement
days, which fall on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th and 25th of each month.
At 0450 GMT, the Nikkei 225 Stock Average index was down 0.08%.
Dealers said the European single currency could fall toward $1.3300
and Y119.00 over the next few weeks if any negative news emerges on
Europe's fiscal issues, adding to concerns over its economic outlook,
dealers said.
The focus is on European countries' huge levels of debt, said Hideaki
Inoue, a chief foreign-exchange manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and
Banking Corp. "Growing expectations for sovereign debt default could
prompt mid- and long-term players to sell" the euro, he said.
Although most players are bearish toward the euro, better-than-
expected economic data could help restore investor confidence,
possibly buoying the risk-sensitive euro toward $1.3700 and Y123.50,
some dealers said. Investors will monitor U.S. retail sales for
February and Reuters/University Of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Survey
for March, both due Friday, for any hints on the health of the global
economy.
Elsewhere, the dollar stood at Y90.00 as of 0450 GMT, almost unchanged
from its New York level of Y89.97 Tuesday. The ICE U.S. Dollar Index,
which tracks the greenback against a trade-weighted basket of
currencies, was at 80.576 from 80.580.
The U.S. unit may fall toward Y89.50 in coming weeks, traders said.
Japanese exporters may repatriate overseas assets as we move toward
Japan's fiscal year-end on Mar. 31, which could weigh on the U.S.
unit, dealers said.
1.China's trade surplus shrinks further in February
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/chinas-trade-surplus-shrinks-further-in-february-2010-03-09
2.The rise and certain fall of the American Empire
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-rise-and-certain-fall-of-the-american-empire-2010-03-09
Currencies
March 10, 2010, 3:46 a.m. EST · Recommend · Post:
Dollar rises vs. euro as German trade data disappointView all
Currencies ›
By MarketWatch
TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The dollar got a lift against the euro
Wednesday when trade data from Germany, a key euro-zone economy, came
in worse than expected.
News Hub: Economist Warns of More Volatility AheadAnirvan Banerji,
director of research at Economic Cycle Research, joins the News Hub to
discuss why he believes the U.S. economy will experience more frequent
recessions ahead.
Germany's exports increased by 0.2% and imports dropped by 1.4% in
January 2010 compared to the same month a year ago, the Federal
Statistical Office reported on Wednesday. Compared to December 2009,
exports fell by 6.3% in January and imports rose by 6.0%. Germany's
seasonally-adjusted foreign trade balance recorded a surplus of 8.7
billion euros in January, official data showed.
"This was the weakest reading since the March of 2009 when the global
economy was in the throes of its worst contraction in [the] post-war
period. The news was especially surprising given the decline in the
euro/U.S. dollar over the past several months," said Boris
Schlossberg, director of currency research at GFT.
He added that the trade balance data were "not helpful to the single
currency which has been battered by concerns over sovereign debt
problems of Greece, Portugal and Spain."
The euro slipped to $1.3551, from $1.3598 in late North American
trading Tuesday, and the British pound skidded to $1.4898, from
$1.4991.
The dollar index /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0 (DXY 80.67, +0.08,
+0.10%) , which measures the U.S. unit against a trade-weighted basket
of six major currencies, rose to 80.851, from 80.580 late Tuesday.
The greenback bought 89.96 yen, compared with 89.98 yen late Tuesday.
But the Australian dollar was up 0.1% against its U.S. counterpart, to
91.43 U.S. cents.
The Aussie "outperformed, with better than expected Chinese trade data
underpinning global recovery hopes in the region," said analysts at
Action Economics.
China's trade surplus narrowed further in February to $7.6 billion
from $14.2 billion in January. When compared with the same month last
year, both exports and imports grew at a higher-than-expected rate,
with the value of imports climbing 44.7%, reflecting growing domestic
consumption in mainland China. The value of outbound goods and
services surged 45.7% from February 2009 on a recovery in demand for
Chinese goods. Read more on China trade data.
On Tuesday, the U.S. dollar advanced versus the euro and British
pound, finding support amid ongoing worries about debt problems in the
euro zone after warnings of downgrades from Fitch Ratings and Moody's
Investors Service. See Tuesday's Currencies report.
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http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-slips-vs-rivals-in-asian-trading-2010-03-08
March 5, 2010 Dollar falls vs. euro as Greece fears subside
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-gains-on-yen-on-boj-easing-report-2010-03-05
March 4, 2010 Dollar up after U.S. data, Europe's rate news
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-yen-benefit-from-sagging-stocks-in-asia-2010-03-04
March 3, 2010 Dollar falls vs. euro on Greece debt-cut move
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-slips-against-most-rivals-in-asian-trading-2010-03-03
Raymond Richman - Jesse Richman - Howard
Richman
Richmans' Trade and Taxes Blog
The Obama Administration's Agenda to Balance Trade
Raymond Richman, 3/9/2010
On March 1, 2010, Ambassador Ron Kirk, United States Trade
Representative, disclosed “The President's 2010 Trade Policy Agenda”,
a suicide pill for the U.S. economy. For three decades, every
administration had more or less the same agenda. Ignore the trade
deficits or just accept them as the inevitable result of competitive
forces, which they are not. If China, Japan, Germany, and others want
to exchange their valuable goods for our money, why should we
complain? We can print more. It is hard to believe that that was and
continues to be the attitude of the vast majority of economists.
They’ve been brain-washed into believing that market forces must
inevitably restore a balance of trade. We pointed out in our book,
Trading Away Our Future (Ideal Taxes Assn, Jan., 2008) that free trade
was not justified by economic theory, that China, like Japan before
it, was deliberately pursuing the mercantilist policy of promoting a
surplus of exports over imports by erecting all sorts of barriers to
imports while subsidizing exports, keeping its currency artificially
undervalued to make its imports expensive and its exports cheap, by
buying U.S. financial assets to keep U.S.interest rates low to
American consumers, to discourage savings and encourage consumption.
Not until recently did an eminent economist like Prof. Paul Krugman
condemn China’s mercantilist practices and suggest U.S. counteraction.
Until then, he believed no country would find it in its interest to
accumulate financial assets rather than goods.
The slow-acting suicide pill suddenly accelerated in the mid-1990s.
The result was the loss of millions of U.S. industrial jobs. How many?
To balance trade at the level of imports in 2008, we would have to
create eight million industrial jobs. The defenders of U.S. trade
policy point to our achievement of full employment in 2007, neglecting
to mention that the competition of factory workers who lost their well-
paying jobs lowered workers’ earnings of all workers. As a result,
wages have stagnated over the past three decades, fewer workers enjoy
middle class incomes, income distribution has worsened, and the U.S.
is on the verge of becoming a second-rate industrial power if it has
not already achieved that distinction. ...
In an incredible display of sycophancy, the document asserts that the
administration’s goal is “Making Trade Work for America’s Working
Families.” America’s Working Families? They have been the big losers
as a result of our tolerance of our huge chronic trade deficits. The
document asserts that “President Obama’s economic strategy halted the
slide into a deep economic crisis and laid the foundation for renewed
American prosperity that is more sustainable, fairer for more of our
citizens, and more competitive globally.” That remains to be seen.
Since the President took office, the unemployment rate, including
those who lost their factory jobs as a result of the trade deficits,
has continued to grow and grow.
The Trade Representative gives lip service to the lip-service of the
G-20 nations who pledged in 2009 to work toward balancing trade. It
displays the same Pollyanna-ish reliance on market forces. All we have
to do is increase our exports by $800 billion. His report states that
the U.S. has reacted to unfair trade practices by imposing
countervailing duties on countries committing infractions of trade
rules like dumping (Chinese tires) and even getting China to further
open its market to “American wind energy products.” Just the other
day, there were protests in the Congress against imported wind
turbines, which, to add injury to injury, are heavily subsidized by
the U.S. government. The President has set a goal “of doubling U.S.
exports in the next five years” to create 2 million jobs. He created a
new bureaucracy called the Export Promotion Cabinet which will fund
export promotion programs, tools for small- and medium-sized
businesses, reduction in barriers to trade, and open new markets. It
joins hundred of federal agencies designed to do-good but end up doing-
nothing.
The report recites: “Effective trade policy helps increase exports
that yield well-paying jobs for Americans … studies show that firms
engaged in trade usually grow faster, hire more, and on average pay
better wages than those that do not. In recent years, exports of
manufactured goods have become an important source of employment,
supporting almost one in five of all manufacturing jobs.” No mention,
not a single mention of the jobs lost to imports, the amount of the
trade deficite, and the declining number of employees in industry,
month after month after month! There is this acknowledgment, “We have
to be frank in recognizing that some Americans lose jobs as markets
shift in response to trade.” So we have enacted a Trade Adjustment
Assistance Act to assist those who lose their jobs to adjust to their
new status. No new export jobs are created by the Act.
That is about all the response the loss of millions of American jobs
has occasioned. Nothing to balance trade except statements that we
need to be more competitive and the international community (the
G-20?) should increase their domestic consumption and imports as part
of a more balanced growth strategy! Don’t hold your breath.
It announces to the world that the United States is committed to the
multilateral trade rules of the WTO system, to trade liberalization
“through negotiation and a defense against protectionism”, the
strongest country in the world announcing that we will not take
unilateral action against the mercantilist practices of such “weak”
countries like China, Japan, Germany, and OPEC. They can continue
their practices, impose barriers to our exports, grant subsidies to
their exports until we petition the WTO for a remedy. The WTO rules
already authorize countries experiencing chronic trade deficits to
take unilateral action including the imposition of tariffs and other
barriers to imports. Why haven’t we done anything to protect our
industry and industrial workers from such destructive trade practices?
La-de-da, it would be so unbecoming a great nation. Our elitists want
to be loved by the world’s elite, who are by-and-large antii-American.
Attempting to counter the impression that it is doing nothing, the
report points to its action responding to “a harmful surge of Chinese
tire imports”, challenging restrictions on U.S. exports of
agricultural products, and filing suit over Chinese export quotas and
duties on raw materials needed by core U.S. industrial sectors from
steel and aluminum to chemicals. Good, those are useful actions but
the number of jobs created relative to the number of jobs lost to the
trade deficits is infinitesimal.
What the U.S. has been engaged in is talk, talk, talk. It needs to
concentrate on jobs, jobs, jobs. The government has engaged in
discussions, just talk, with China, India, Brazil, Russia. It
sponsored and entered into negotiations for a regional, Asia-Pacific
trade agreement, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
Agreement, with Australia, Brunei, Chile, NewZealand, Peru, Singapore,
and Vietnam. Not one industrial job has been created or ever will be.
Another initiative is the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
forum. The U.S. will host APEC in 2011. The report writes, “To this
end, we are coordinating with the 2010 host nation, Japan, on an
ambitious agenda that engages APEC’s broad membership on crucial trade
and investment topics for the region’s future. Initiatives in APEC are
a successfully demonstrated way of building a stronger and
constructive American role in the Asia-Pacific market.” Aside from
costing a lot of money and providing a free vacation to a lot of anti-
Americans, how many jobs producing goods for export will it create?
Not a single job.
The report recites that “Bilateral relationships are crucial. But as
we know, multi-faceted regional economic relationships are of major,
and even growing, importance for United States and for the world.”
Where is the evidence that it is important, let alone of increasing
importance, to the U.S. The administration is doing and plans to do a
lot of talking. In place of jobs, jobs, jobs, it is placing emphasis
on talk, talk, talk.
http://www.idealtaxes.com/post3074.shtml
UPDATE 1-Japan finmin wary of policy accord with BOJ
TOKYO, March 10 (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan said
he saw no immediate need to have a more formal policy pact with the
Bank of Japan as the government and the central bank already share a
common goal of beating deflation.
Kan, who took over at the Finance Ministry in January, has been
calling on the central bank to do more to end deflation, but has
steered clear of saying exactly what he wants the central bank to do.
Asked by an opposition lawmaker if he thought a formal agreement with
the central bank would help, Kan said: "It's questionable whether it's
good to have an explicit policy accord. The BOJ governor has already
said in public that the bank wants inflation from plus zero to plus 2
percent ...
"I am cautious about the framework of an accord," Kan, also deputy
prime minister, told a parliamentary committee.
With the government's room for further fiscal stimulus limited by a
public debt that is already close to 200 percent of GDP, the six-month
old administration has put pressure on the central bank to stem
deflation.
Japan's central bank law guarantees the BOJ independence in its policy
decisions, but it also requires the bank to communicate with the
government to ensure its policy is in line with the government's
economic policy.
The central bank is likely to debate easing its ultra-loose monetary
policy again at its board meeting on March 16-17, after introducing a
new funding operation in December under a previous wave of government
pressure as the yen climbed versus the dollar. [ID:nTOE6230A7]
One member of the bank's policy board, Miyako Suda, said on Wednesday
that the central bank will maintain a very accommodative monetary
policy stance to help the country escape deflation.
"The BOJ intends to continue making its contribution to help the
Japanese economy escape deflation and return to a sustained growth
path with price stability," Suda said at a roundtable conference
hosted by the Economist Group.
But Suda also repeated the BOJ's view that easy policy alone will not
be a panacea for deflation.
"Although maintaining easy monetary policy is the top priority, it is
important for the Japanese economy to undergo bold structural reform
as much as it needs recovery... If structural reform is delayed, it
would undermine the stimulative effect of monetary policy," she said.
BOJ officials have said further monetary policy easing will have
little impact on boosting prices, with interest rates already near
zero.
Suda added that the BOJ had taken appropriate steps on monetary policy
and that she didn't think aiming for a high inflation rate would
resolve the shock of the financial crisis. (Reporting by Hideyuki
Sano, Stanley White and Rie Ishiguro; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTOE62900K20100310?type=marketsNews
FOREX-Yen rises on Japan exporters; sterling falters
By Masayuki Kitano TOKYO, March 9 (Reuters) - The yen rose broadly on
Tuesday on
dollar and euro selling by Japanese exporters, while sterling
faltered on weak data and after Moody's said Britain faces a
dilemma over its support for the banking sector. The yen also climbed
with short-term traders taking cues from
a dip in Nikkei share average .N225 and U.S. stock index
futures SPc1, as demand for riskier assets ebbed. "Japanese exporters
are in the market and selling pretty
actively, including the euro against the yen," said Yuji
Matsuura, joint general manager at Aozora Bank's forex and
derivatives trading group. There could be more yen-buying by Japanese
exporters during
the week, and there might also be some flows in the last week of
March, just before they close their books at the end of Japan's
fiscal year, Matsuura said. Market players said, however, that gains
in the yen have been
limited by speculation that the Bank of Japan may take further
steps to ease monetary policy. The euro fell 0.4 percent to 122.59 yen
EURJPY=R, off a
two-week high of 123.90 yen struck on EBS on Monday. The euro also
dropped against the dollar, dipping 0.1 percent
to $1.3615 EUR= but was still well off last week's $1.3433, its
lowest in more than nine months. The euro struggled after Greek Prime
Minister George
Papandreou warned on Monday that if the Greek crisis worsened it
could lead to a new global financial meltdown. [ID:nLDE6271WD].
Sterling fell 0.3 percent to $1.5014 GBP=D4 and shed 0.7
percent to 135.08 yen GBPJPY=R. Data showing that British house prices
grew last month at
their slowest pace since August weighed on sterling.
[ID:nLAG006161] Another negative factor for sterling was a Moody's
Investors
Service report saying Britain faces a difficult balancing act in
deciding how and when to reduce support for the banking sector,
given growth in the UK's public debt burden. [ID:nLDE6271OB]
EYES ON BOJ MEETING The dollar fell 0.3 percent to 90.01 yen JPY=. The
greenback had rallied on the yen to a two-week high of
90.69 yen on EBS on Monday, after a better-than-expected U.S.
jobs report backed views that the U.S. Federal Reserve will lift
rates faster than the Bank of Japan. The report had also bolstered
demand for higher-yielding
currencies and riskier assets like stocks and commodities, on
improved economic prospects. The Australian dollar fell 0.3 percent
against the yen
AUDJPY=R and the New Zealand dollar shed 0.6 percent
NZDJPY=R. The dollar is likely to be supported at levels around 89.50
yen on speculation about more monetary easing steps from the BOJ,
possibly at its policy meeting next week, said a trader for a
Japanese trust bank. The BOJ meeting is in the spotlight after the
Nikkei
newspaper reported on Friday that the BOJ was examining easing
again and may decide on such a move when it meets on March 16-17.
Sources familiar with the matter said the BOJ is likely to
debate this month easing its ultra-loose monetary policy again.
[ID:nTOE6230A7] The most likely next step for the BOJ is to expand the
fund-supply operation it put in place in December, under which it
lends to banks at 0.1 percent, either by increasing the size from
10 trillion yen ($110.7 billion) or extending the duration of
loans from the current three months. Even if such steps are taken, the
market impact could be
limited given how low yen money market rates are already, said a
trader for a European bank. "Basically, the aim may be to achieve an
announcement effect
and the market has factored in a lot of that," the trader said,
adding that the dollar could fall against the yen if the BOJ
stands pat and unveils no new measures.
(Additional reporting by Anirban Nag in Sydney, Satomi Noguchi
and Kaori Kaneko in Tokyo; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
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US STOCKS-Telecoms lead Wall St rise a year after market bottom
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FOREX-Yen, dollar dip; euro up as Greece concerns ease
Mar 7, 2010
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE6270JL20100308?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a49:g43:r4:c0.250000:b31625032:z0
Analysis: Greece's crisis could presage America's
By TOM RAUM (AP) – 10 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Greece is a financial basket case, begging for
international help. Is America heading down that same road?
Many of the same risky financial practices that now imperil the Greeks
were at the center of the all-too-recent U.S. meltdown.
As with Greece, America's national debt has been growing by leaps and
bounds over the past decade, to the point where it threatens to swamp
overall economic output. And in the U.S., as in Greece, a large
portion of that debt is owed to foreign investors.
Not good, if these debt holders begin to wonder if they'll be paid
back. A foreign flight from U.S. Treasury securities could sow
financial chaos in the United States, as happened when many investors
lost faith in Greek bonds.
It's something that could affect all Americans. The U.S. has never
defaulted on a debt, and even the hint of such a possibility could
send interest rates soaring and choke off a fragile recovery.
How long can the United States remain the world's largest economy as
well as the world's largest debtor?
"Not indefinitely," suggests former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan
Greenspan. "History tells us that great powers when they've gotten
into very significant fiscal problems have ceased to be great powers."
After all, Spain dominated the 16th century world, France the 17th
century and Great Britain much of the 18th and 19th before the United
States rose to supremacy in the 20th century.
"Unless we do things dramatically different, including strengthening
our investments in research and education, the 21st century will
belong to China and India," suggests Norman Augustine, the former CEO
of Lockheed Martin who chaired a 2009 bipartisan commission studying
the nation's top challenges.
The Greek government has taken stiff austerity steps in an effort to
get a lifeline from the European Union, sparking strikes and violent
demonstrations.
Some of the same risky strategies used by U.S. hedge funds and other
professional investors in a failed effort to profit from subprime
mortgages in this country — and which led to the 2008 financial near-
collapse — are now being employed by those betting that Greece will
default on its debt.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, who met with President Barack
Obama at the White House on Tuesday, is calling for "decisive and
collective action" here and in Europe to crack down on such rampant
speculation and unregulated bets. He is also seeking more favorable
European interest rates for loans.
Speaking outside the White House, Papandreou welcomed support from
Obama and some European leaders for such efforts and for the austerity
measures taken by his own government. He said it shows the "labor and
sacrifices are not wasted. Of course, our struggle is not ended, it
continues."
Many economists say it's a stretch to compare the U.S. economy, by far
the world's largest, to Greece and other distressed small economies of
southern Europe. They say many of Greece's problems are unique to that
nation and aggravated by a monetary system that rigidly binds 16
nations to the same currency, the euro.
But others argue it may only be a matter of time before the U.S. faces
a similar, and potentially graver, crisis.
"Someday it will happen if we don't get our act together on spending,
our debt under control and our economy to grow faster," said Allen
Sinai, chief global economist for New York-based Decision Economics
Inc., which provides financial advice to corporations and governments.
With signs pointing to a weaker recovery than after other post-World
War II recessions, U.S. consumer spending is likely to remain
unimpressive and the jobless rate high for some time. Sinai said that
suggests there won't be enough growth to push down federal deficits by
much. "It's a political keg of dynamite," he said.
Greece's national debt now equals more than 100 percent of its gross
domestic product, the broadest measure of economic activity. U.S. debt
— now $12.5 trillion — is fast closing in on the same dubious
milestone.
Nearly all of Greek's debt is held by foreign governments and
investors. In the United States, roughly half is owned by global
investors, with China holding the largest stake.
By contrast, Japan's debt is proportionately even bigger — about twice
its GDP — but the impact is cushioned by the fact that most is held by
Japanese households.
"The more open you are to the rest of the world, the more likely
you're going to have a problem if you start running large deficits and
large debt loads," said Mark Zandi, founder of Moody's Economy.com,
and a frequent adviser to lawmakers of both parties.
Zandi does not see any major fallout from the Greek fiscal crisis in
the United States for now, other than a possible temporary hit on
potential European export markets.
However, he said, "global investors at some point are going to start
demanding a higher interest rate. And that's our moment of truth. If
we don't address it by cutting spending and raising taxes, some
combination of the two, then we're going to have a problem."
Polls show growing public anger over deficits and government spending.
The issue is a potent one for the upcoming midterm elections, and a
particular liability for majority-party Democrats.
Calls have sounded from both sides of the political aisle for deficit
reduction. And Obama last month set up a bipartisan deficit commission
to find ways to get the country's budget deficit, now adding more than
$1 trillion a year to the national debt, under control.
But the panel is a weak substitute for what Obama really wanted — a
commission created by Congress that could force lawmakers to vote on
remedies to reduce the debt.
EDITOR'S NOTE _ Tom Raum covers economics and politics for The
Associated Press.
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou walks away after talking to the
media in front of the West Wing of the White House in Washington,
Tuesday, March 9, 2010, following a meeting with President Barack
Obama. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i8fvUrHUOkJVfaq5UBxHCYV85s3wD9EBDPRO2
Fears of a Greek bank run
By Dody Tsiantar, contributorMarch 9, 2010: 3:33 PM ET
(Fortune) -- In the middle of the 2001 debt crisis, Argentines stormed
their nation's banks to get their money out. To stop the stampede, the
government imposed controls that allowed them to take out only $250 at
a time and limited withdrawals for overseas trips to $1,000.
Greece, in the middle of its own financial crisis, is teetering on the
brink of a default. Many of its wealthier citizens are also uneasy
about what lies ahead for their cash. According to estimates from
private bankers in Greece and Cyprus, as much as 10 billion euros have
left the country for Greek-owned bank subsidiaries in Switzerland and
Cyprus in the last couple of months.
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"Customers are coming...from Greece on a daily basis," says one
private banker who works for a Greek bank in Cyprus. "They fly here in
the morning, bring us a check and fly back to Athens in the
afternoon."
One banker in Athens reports that many of his clients have sent funds
out of the country in recent weeks, fearing that the government will
take a bigger bite of their money. "They're afraid they'll have to pay
tax on their cash," he says.
Countries in economic turmoil historically look for unpopular ways to
raise revenue, according to economists. So when things start to go
sour, "everyone becomes convinced that the stage is being set for
higher taxes," says former IMF economist Dev Kar, the lead economist
for Global Financial Integrity, an international policy research
center. "People with wealth then ship their money out, so government
does not come and get it when it all comes crashing down."
But growing concerns that Greece's financial crisis will spill over to
its banking system appear to be driving most of the outflow. The fear
isn't totally unfounded: Late last month, Fitch Ratings downgraded the
country's four major private-sector banks to two notches above junk
status on fears that demand for loans may plunge, denting their
potential profitability .
"I'm scared," says one 40-year-old Athenian woman, who's considering
taking her nest egg to Cyprus. "I want to take my money out of the
country before the banks run out of cash."
Not as bad as it seems
A run on the bank, a la Argentina, is not imminent, say banking and
government officials. They acknowledge that money is leaving the
country, but say that reports of massive capital outflows are "grossly
overstated."
"There is a trickle, but nothing like a real flight that would put the
system under pressure," says Anthimos Thomopoulos, chief financial
officer of the National Bank of Greece, which holds a third of
Greece's 250 billion euro total deposit pool.
The situation isn't overly worrisome right now, bank and government
officials say, because most of the money has flowed to those Greek-
owned banks abroad and should, in theory, be easier to repatriate.
What's happening, says Nikolaos Karamouzis, deputy CEO of Eurobank
EFG, a private bank in Greece with 84 billion euro in assets, is "not
materially significant, despite the fact that there is widespread
concern among our clients."
Exactly how much cash has left the country since the crisis exploded
in mid-December is hard to determine, however. According to the most
recent quarterly statistics available, the national deposit pool at
the end of December dropped by less than a half a percent. But
analysts point out those numbers do not reflect the full impact of the
crisis, which picked up momentum in January and February after the
government announced its belt-tightening measures.
A pesos to drachmas comparison
Unlike Greece today, Argentina's government had an arsenal of
financial tools in 2001 to deal with its crisis. It devalued the peso
and imposed capital controls. But as a member of the European Union,
Greece does not have those options; it can't devalue, and because the
Union has rules that call for a free movement of capital within its
boundaries, it can't stop citizens or businesses from moving cash from
one partner country to another.
"The only way Greece could impose capital controls would be to leave
the EU," says Michael Melvin, head of currency and fixed income
research at global asset management firm BlackRock. "And there's close
to zero probability of that."
A return to the drachma isn't likely any time soon either, but Greek
citizens do have good reason to believe that taxes are going to go up.
The socialist government of Prime Minister George Papandreou has
already announced a slew of tax hikes, including increases in the
value-added tax, new excise taxes on luxury goods, such as yachts and
cars, and up to a 20% tax on cigarettes, alcohol and fuel.
0:00 /1:24Greece: Another crisis looms
In addition, a key tenet of the socialist government's plan is to go
after tax cheats aggressively -- economists figure that nearly 30% of
the country's gross domestic product goes unreported to authorities.
For decades, Greece's shadow economy has thrived because many Greeks
-- doctors, plumbers, electricians and lawyers among them -- conduct
business entirely in cash. Much of that money has ended up in bank
accounts in other countries, say economists -- and a lot of it is not
reflected in national statistics.
"The outflow of cash from Greece is not a new phenomenon. If you could
calculate the outflow of the last 50 years, you'd get an astronomical
figure," says University of Maryland economics professor Theodore
Kariotis. "Greeks are a very sneaky people."
The government's new rules intend to change that. Last week it
announced new measures to encourage those who have transferred money
out of Greece to bring it back within six months, no questions asked.
They'll be taxed 5% on the total, however. Another option offered:
declare the money, leave it in foreign accounts -- and be subject to
an 8% tax. After that, foreign governments will cooperate with Greek
tax authorities to pursue lawbreakers, says a source in the finance
ministry.
Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou hopes the government's
new measures will produce results. "As the reform program unfolds, a
lot of this lost, or quasi-lost, liquidity will come back to the
system," he said in a mid-January interview. "It is an immediate
concern, of course, but it is reversible."
Maybe it is, but according to economists, money that leaves a country
rarely returns. "I'm not holding my breath," says Global Financial
Integrity's Kar. "Once [cash] leaves, it's hard to get it back."
The snag in Greece's salary solution
http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/04/news/international/greece_pay.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2010030403
Is your country the next Greece?
http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/08/news/international/next_greece.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2010030815
Greeks try to remember how to cut back
http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/26/news/international/greece_debt_crisis.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2010030109
http://money.cnn.com/2010/03/09/news/international/greece_money.fortune/?section=magazines_fortune
Tax hikes may still fail to fix Athen's debts crisis
Wednesday March 10 2010
GREEK tax increases, which have sparked widespread protests, may fail
to generate as much additional revenue as the government in Athens
estimates, a draft EU report says.
While the €4.8bn of additional austerity measures enacted by the Greek
parliament last week "appear sufficient to safeguard the 2010
budgetary targets", risks remain that increases in value-added tax and
fuel taxes may generate less than is projected, the report says.
The Greek government plans to cut the deficit to 8.7pc of gross
domestic product (GDP) this year from 12.7pc in 2009. The draft report
will be discussed by EU finance ministers in Brussels next week.
Demand
An increase in the main VAT rate by 2pc from 19pc will bring in €1.3bn
in added revenue this year, while higher excise duties on petrol and
diesel are expected to generate €450m more, according to the finance
ministry in Athens.
But "the implications on tax revenue of a contraction in demand should
not be underestimated", according to the European Commission.
On VAT, it said "changes in the tax base -- in relation to the
contraction of internal demand -- and tax evasion may result to lower-
than-expected gains".
Greece's overall government debt "remains on a steep upward path",
according to the commission. Greek debt is projected to swell to 125pc
of GDP this year, the highest in the 27-nation EU, it forecasts.
EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said yesterday
that the latest measures put Greece on "the path of fiscal adjustment
for 2012" -- the deadline to meet the EU's 3pc deficit limit.
(Bloomberg)
Irish Independent
S&P expert: Integrated eurozone fiscal policy key to sovereign debt
crisis
English.news.cn 2010-03-09 18:32:11
by Xinhua writer Wang Zongkai
BEIJING, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Integrated fiscal policy was essential
for the euro zone to get out of the consequences of Greek sovereign
debt crisis, according to an expert from Standard and Poor's (S&P).
"The Greek debt crisis can be the strongest challenge that the euro
zone has faced in the past 11 years, and the key to solve the problem
is whether eurozone-16 can sacrifice some of their fiscal
sovereignty," said David Beers, managing director of S&P sovereign and
international public finance ratings group, on Monday.
On Dec. 8, 2009, Fitch Ratings downgraded its rating on Greece
sovereign credit from A- to BBB+, and revised its outlook to negative,
which signaled the commence of Greece sovereign credit crisis.
Moreover, other eurozone members, including Portugal, Ireland, Italy
and Spain, also reported deficit problem recently. In a context of
weak recovery in European economies, some analysts said that the Greek
debt crisis might contaminate the whole Europe.
However, Beers believes that the Greek debt crisis will not cause a
new round of global crisis.
On the one hand, other eurozone members welcomed Greece's 4.8-billion-
euro (6.53-billion-U.S. dollar) austerity package, which has shown the
Greek government's willingness to submit some fiscal sovereignty to
the union for underpinning euros, he said.
On the other hand, the creditworthiness of all eurozone sovereign
states was currently at least adequate to meet their financial
commitments, and S&P did not assume any sovereign state leaving the
euro zone in the medium term, Beers added.
So far, the Greek debt crisis had been contained within the euro zone.
Meanwhile, the Greek government had actively taken measures, while the
euro zone was considering institutional reform such as the
establishment of a European Monetary Fund, which will function like
the International Monetary Fund.
Regarding Britain's estimates of its deficit in 2010 fiscal year to
amount 1.78 trillion pounds (2.67 trillion dollars), nearly 13 percent
of its gross domestic product, Beers said Britain's current fiscal
policy is sustainable.
"If party in office changed, S&P would keep a close look at deficit-
cutting measures of the new administration," he added.
Meanwhile, the other two largest economies in the world are also
facing the deficit problem. U.S. federal deficit in 2009 had amounted
to 1.41 trillion dollars, almost 10 percent of the GDP while Japan's
outstanding public debt reached a record high of 817.5 trillion yen (9
trillion dollars), and 6.83 million yen (7,560 dollars) per capita.
Nevertheless, Beers was more optimistic on U.S. and Japan thanks to
more flexibility and time in dealing with debt problem given that the
dollar and the yen are the two strongest reserve currencies right now.
Beers estimated that it would take one or two years to solve the Greek
debt crisis.
People in Greece and other eurozone countries need to have confidence
while their governments need action.
Editor: Xiong Tong
Related News
• Greece prefers European solution: PM
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-03/08/c_13201036.htm
• Protests against fiscal austerity measures in Greece
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/video/2010-03/06/c_13199746.htm
• Germany will not give Greece a cent: economy minister
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-03/05/c_13199043.htm
• Greek families to lose one-month salary yearly due to tax rise
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/business/2010-03/09/c_13203264.htm
• Greek PM calls on world to restrict speculative trading
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-03/09/c_13202576.htm
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-03/09/c_13203821.htm
Chrysanthemum or Samurai?
Posted By Dan Twining Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 12:20 PM
In a thoughtful essay in today's Financial Times, Gideon Rachman asks
whether Japan may now be tilting towards China after 60 years of
aligning itself with the United States. This question is interesting
on multiple dimensions -- including with regard to the future of U.S.
primacy in Asia, the impact of China's rise on its neighbors, the
nature of Japanese politics and identity, and our understanding of the
deep structure of international relations at a time of systemic power
shifts. Indeed, Japan is a critical case study for assessing how the
developed world will respond to the rise of dynamic new power centers
in Asia -- and what the implications will be for American leadership
in the international system.
The ascent of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) after nearly six
decades of unbroken rule by the conservative, U.S.-oriented Liberal
Democratic Party (LDP) has convulsed not only Japanese politics but
also its foreign policy. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has mused
about constructing a pan-Asian fraternal community based on
"solidarity" -- not with Tokyo's closest alliance partner across the
Pacific but with its near neighbors, led by China. What should have
been little more than a tactical skirmish about the terms of the
realignment of U.S. forces in Okinawa has become, through
mismanagement on both sides, a strategic headache for both Washington
and the inexperienced government in Tokyo, raising unnecessary
tensions within the alliance. DPJ leader Ichiro Ozawa, the power
behind the throne of the Hatoyama administration, recently led a
delegation of 143 parliamentarians and hundreds of businessmen to
Beijing, reviving in form if not substance the tributary delegations
from China's neighbors that, in pre-modern times, ritually visited the
Chinese court to acknowledge its suzerainty as Asia's "Middle
Kingdom."
These and other moves, unthinkable during the Cold War heyday of the
U.S.-Japan alliance, suggest a striking shift in Japan's geopolitical
alignment as the Pacific century dawns. Despite the fact that Japan
was never part of "the Chinese world order" in traditional Asia, some
analysts believe a Japanese tilt toward a resurgent China would be in
keeping with the country's foreign policy traditions. As Gideon
writes:
Some western observers in Tokyo muse that perhaps Japan is once again
following its historic policy of adapting to shifts in global politics
by aligning itself with great powers. Before the first world war the
country had a special relationship with Britain. In the inter-war
period Japan allied itself with Germany. Since 1945, it has stuck
closely to America. Perhaps the ground is being prepared for a new
"special relationship" with China?
In this reading of Japanese history since the Meiji restoration, the
country has repeatedly aligned itself with the international system's
preeminent power -- Britain in the early 20th century, Nazi Germany
until 1945, and the United States since then. If Japan really is
edging away from the United States to align itself with China today,
that is a compelling indicator that the future belongs to Beijing, and
that America's best days as the world's indispensable nation are
behind it.
Yet this judgment is, if anything, premature -- and may simply be
wrong. Imperial Britain, Nazi Germany, and America during the Cold War
were actual or aspiring hegemons from outside Asia; Japan's alliance
with each of them cemented its own role as Asia's dominant power.
Japan was not aligning with each of these powers to bandwagon with
them, subordinating its power and interests to theirs. It allied with
these Western states to facilitate its own pursuit of national power
and leadership in Asia.
This is true even of Japan's Cold War alliance with the United States,
when post-war leaders in Tokyo pursued a conscious strategy of
developing Japan's economic and technological dynamism within the
cocoon of American military protection. In a systematic and self-
interested manner, these leaders took advantage of the security
umbrella provided by the United States to modernize Japan's economy
and build strength with an eye on a long-term objective of moving
beyond the constraints imposed by the U.S. alliance as Japan grew into
a leading economic and technological power. The DPJ's new independence
vis-à-vis Washington reflects this evolution, and the only surprise is
that more Japan hands in the West didn't see it coming.
Historically, Japan has shown a striking ability to rapidly transform
itself in response to international conditions, as seen in the Meiji
break from isolation, the rise to great power in the twentieth
century, the descent into militarism, and renewal as a dynamic trading
state. Only a few years ago, excellent books and articles with titles
like Japan Rising: The Resurgence of Japanese Power and Purpose,
Securing Japan: Tokyo's Grand Strategy and the Future of East Asia,
and "Japan is Back: Why Tokyo's New Assertiveness is Good for
Washington" framed the country as a resurgent Asian great power. Since
2001, successive Japanese prime ministers have articulated
unprecedented ambitions for Japanese grand strategy. These have
included casting Japan as the "thought leader of Asia," forging new
bilateral alliances with India and Australia, cooperating with these
and other democratic powers in an "Arc of Freedom and Prosperity,"
formalizing security cooperation with NATO, constructing a Pacific
community around an "inland sea" centered on Japan as the hub of the
international economic and political order, and building a new East
Asian community with Japan at its center. These developments reflect
the churning domestic debate in Japan about its future as a world
power and model for its region, trends catalyzed by China's explosive
rise.
Japan's strategic future remains uncertain in light of the country's
churning domestic politics and troubling economic and demographic
trends. Yet there is no question that military modernization in China
and North Korea has spurred a new Japanese search for security and
identity that has moved Tokyo decisively beyond the constraints that
structured its foreign policy for fifty years following defeat in the
Pacific war. The ascent of the DPJ, with its calls for a more equal
U.S.-Japan alliance and greater Japanese autonomy in security and
diplomacy, is another step forward in Japan's transformation into what
DPJ leader Ichiro Ozawa famously called a "normal country." Enjoying a
normal relationship with China, as the DPJ intends to do, is part of
that process. But so will be a continuing partnership with the United
States.
Jason Lee-Pool/Getty Images
http://shadow.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/03/09/chrysanthemum_or_samurai
JGB futures edge down from 2-mth high as Nikkei jumps
By Rika Otsuka
TOKYO, March 8 (Reuters) - Japanese government bond futures slipped
further on Monday from a two-month peak hit last week, as growing
optimism about a global economic recovery prompted investors to move
money to stocks from government debt.
The five-year/20-year JGB yield spread matched its highest since
November 1999 as prospects of further central bank easing pinned down
yields on midterm maturities, which are more sensitive to shifts in
monetary policy outlook.
U.S. monthly employment data showed late last week that the world's
biggest economy lost 36,000 jobs in February, less than the 50,000 job
cuts expected by economists. [ID:nN04252324]
But bond losses were limited as the JGB market received support from
speculation that the Bank of Japan would further ease its monetary
policy in the coming months to help Japan's economy move out of
deflation.
"The rise in bond yields has been small as investors are willing to
pick up JGBs, with some speculating the BOJ could further relax its
policy at next week's board meeting," said Hidenori Suezawa, chief
strategist at Nikko Cordial Securities.
JGBs rose on Friday after the Nikkei newspaper said the central bank
will debate whether to ease monetary policy further by expanding the
fund-supply operation it introduced in December, under which it
extends loans to commercial banks at a policy rate of 0.1 percent.
[ID:nTOE6230A7]
"Demand is also strong as a large amount of government debt is
maturing this month," said Suezawa at Nikko Cordial Securities.
Analysts said some 10 trillion yen ($110.8 billion) of JGBs are being
redeemed in March. Government bonds with maturities of five years or
longer will mature in March, June, September and December.
Large amount of bonds maturing means that durations of popularly
followed bond indexes are usually extended to accommodate the
redemptions, generating demand for longer-dated paper from investors
following monthly changes to these indexes.
A 30-year JGB auction scheduled for Tuesday is expected to draw decent
demand as dealers will be looking to replenish their inventories, said
Makoto Noji, a senior market analyst at Mizuho Securities.
"Demand for superlong paper was unusually strong toward the end of
last month as investors bought to match bond indexes, depleting
dealers' inventories."
March 10-year JGB futures edged down 0.07 point to 140.12 2JGBv1,
slipping from 140.27, their highest since late December.
Outstanding loans held by Japanese banks fell 1.5 percent in February
from a year earlier, matching a decline in January that was the
biggest annual drop in four years, the BOJ said on Monday. [JPBNK=ECI]
[ID:nTFD006326]
The market showed a muted reaction to the data, although it somewhat
strengthened expectations that sluggish lending would prompt banks to
add more JGBs to their portfolios with the new financial year starting
on April 1.
The combination of sluggish lending and expectations towards further
BOJ easing has helped JGBs, especially the shorter-dated maturities,
which are supported by purchases from banks.
The five-year/20-year yield spread stood at 167 basis points on
Monday, matching its steepest in a decade, according to historical
data on Reuters EcoWin.
The five-year yield stood unchanged at 0.470 percent on Monday after
banks, the main players in the mid-term sector, aggressively bought
five-year notes late last week to push down the yield to a two-month
low of 0.460 percent JP5YTN=JBTC.
The benchmark 10-year yield inched up 1 basis point to 1.315 percent
JP10YTN=JBTC, staying near a two-month low of 1.290 percent first
reached in late February.
The 20-year yield was up 1.5 basis points at 2.140 percent
JP20YTN=JBTC and the 30-year yield edged up 0.5 basis point to 2.325
percent JP30YTN=JBTC.
Tokyo's Nikkei share average .N225 jumped 2.1 percent after the U.S.
jobs data, with exporters benefiting from a weaker yen. [.T] [FRX/]
($1=90.28 Yen)
(Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; Editing by Joseph
Radford)
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTOE62703620100308
March 8, 2010, 1:03 a.m. EST · Recommend · Post:
WORLD FOREX: Dollar At 2-Week High Vs Yen On Asia Stock RisesStory
By Takashi Mochizuki
TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The dollar rose to a two-week-high against the
yen Monday in Asia, as higher regional shares bolstered investors'
appetite for riskier, higher-yielding assets, and they dumped the safe-
haven Japanese unit for the U.S. currency.
The greenback rose as high as Y90.69, its highest since Feb. 23 as
Asian investors took cues from Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock
Average and China's Shanghai Composite Index.
As of 0450 GMT, the Nikkei was up 1.9% to 10,563.72 and the Shanghai
Composite was up 0.82% to 3,056.00.
Higher Asian share prices often push the yen lower, as Japanese
investors become more aggressive about investing in overseas assets
with higher yields.
The yen's decline, however, isn't likely to continue for long because
Japanese exporters still have a vigorous appetite for yen, analysts
said. Exporters need a hefty volume of yen ahead of the March 31
fiscal year-end when they close their books.
"We would caution against turning very bearish (about the yen) in the
short term," said Adarsh Sinha, a strategist at Barclays Capital.
There is also a risk that demand for yen will increase again if
upcoming U.S. economic data, such as Friday's retail sales, turn out
weaker than expected, analysts said.
"Markets need to wait for more data to assess the true trend of the
U.S. economy," said Tomoko Fujii, a strategist at Bank of America-
Merrill Lynch.
The U.S. government said Friday that non-farm payrolls decreased by
36,000 in February from the month before. This was much better than
the 75,000 decline economists had expected.
But Fujii said it was "premature to draw a conclusion" about the U.S.
economic outlook, as recent U.S. economic reports have contained some
negative surprises.
As of 0450 GMT, the dollar was at Y90.41 from Y90.33 Friday in New
York. The euro was at $1.3679 from $1.3620 and Y123.70 from Y123.04.
The euro may have entered a long-term upward trend, dealers said, on
the belief debt-laden Greece will be able to secure support from its
European partners.
"I'm now becoming certain that Greece won't fail. The clouds are
clearing for Greece's future," said Jun Kato, a senior dealer at
Shinkin Central Bank.
On Sunday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said a number of European
Union nations were preparing a support package for Greece. In Berlin,
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that E.U. members would
intervene to rescue Greece if its debt problems threaten to spiral out
of control.
The euro may rise above $1.38 in the days ahead if more positive news
for Greece comes out, OCBC Bank's currency research team said. The
currency last traded above $1.38 on Feb. 11.
The ICE U.S. Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a trade-
weighted basket of currencies, was at 80.168 from 80.451
...and I am Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/3bc67593a8a0ac5b#
chhotemianinshallah
posted at 12:52 pm on March 9, 2010 by Ed Morrissey
The White House promised a “hard pivot” to jobs and the economy almost
three months ago, attempting to put the ObamaCare debate on the back
burner after the holidays. They had belatedly discovered that the
electorate was much more concerned about the economic plunge than in
retooling a health-care system that works for most Americans now.
Instead of the hard pivot, Democrats have doubled down on ObamaCare —
and the latest Rasmussen survey shows that a strong majority believe
it to be the wrong direction on both issues:
Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters say the health care reform plan
now working its way through Congress will hurt the U.S. economy.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 25%
think the plan will help the economy. But only seven percent (7%) say
it will have no impact. Twelve percent (12%) aren’t sure.
Two-out-of-three voters (66%) also believe the health care plan
proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats is likely to
increase the federal deficit. That’s up six points from late November
and comparable to findings just after the contentious August
congressional recess. Ten percent (10%) say the plan is more likely to
reduce the deficit and 14% say it will have no impact on the deficit.
Underlying this concern is a lack of trust in the government numbers.
Eighty-one percent (81%) believe it is at least somewhat likely that
the health care reform plan will cost more than official estimates.
That number includes 66% who say it is very likely that the official
projections understate the true cost of the plan.
Only a plurality of Democrats believe that the bill will help the
economy (43%), while 89% of Republicans and 61% of independents think
it will damage it.
Politically, the Democrats have the worst of all worlds. Not only do
they look out of touch for spending all of their efforts on a plan
that is deeply unpopular with voters, they now are seen as actively
damaging the economy. The deficit spending alone would be enough to
send voters heading for the exits, but the increased costs are even
worse. Seventy-eight percent of all respondents believe that middle-
class tax increases will come as a result of ObamaCare, with almost
two-thirds (65%) believing that to be “very likely.” Fifty-eight
percent of Democrats expect middle-class tax increases, which shows
how effective Obama has been in selling this plan.
What’s the biggest problem with ObamaCare? Majorities of all
political affiliations agree: the cost. Hardly anyone believes the
cost estimates. When asked whether the bill would exceed its cost
estimates, 93% of Republicans, 70% of Democrats, and 80% of
independents thought it at least somewhat likely — with 88% of
Republicans and 73% of independents calling it “very likely.” Only
20% of Democrats thought it unlikely. Again, this looks like a big
failure of the Obama administration’s efforts to sell the package as a
cost containment program.
Democrats now face the prospect of using arcane parliamentary tricks
to pass a bill that has minimal support, one that most voters believe
will damage the economy, cost more than advertised, and prompt
sweeping tax increases, all while ignoring the issues of a damaged
economy while attempting to make it worse. If they think that’s a
winning strategy for the midterms, they need new leadership — and
after the electoral disaster coming, they’ll probably be forced to get
it.
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Comments
and lo, the Democrat party wandered aimlessly in the desert for 40
election years.
TN Mom on March 9, 2010 at 4:13 PM
Great pic!
mikeyboss on March 9, 2010 at 4:18 PM
From the rich being able to buy our representatives and lead our
culture by the nose, yes.
Dark-Star on March 9, 2010 at 4:00 PM
Boo hoo, the rich can do things that I can’t, therefore we have to
give govt control over everything so that the rich can be punished.
I’m still trying to figure out why you actually believe that everyone
who has more than you are is evil.
Is it because you are such a failure in life, that you can’t bear to
accept responsibility?
Lord knows, your given your demonstrated intellectual powers, it’s
hard to imagine you’ve ever been able to handle a job that doesn’t
involve the phrase “would you like fries with that”.
MarkTheGreat on March 9, 2010 at 4:25 PM
and lead our culture by the nose, yes.
Ohh, and people pay more attention to the rich than they do you. I bet
that stings.
MarkTheGreat on March 9, 2010 at 4:26 PM
They won’t get new leadership, because Pelosi will be the only one
left in the House after November.
joe_doufu on March 9, 2010 at 5:03 PM
If you believe the 57% figure, then you’ll love the fictitious 9%
unemployment.
This administration is so inaccurate they couldn’t hit the side of a
barn with a tennis racket.
Cybergeezer on March 9, 2010 at 5:23 PM
I’m waiting for Congress to offer shares of stock in the new Health
Care Industry they want to create.
Think China will buy any?
Cybergeezer on March 9, 2010 at 5:25 PM
This HealthScare legislation is another omnibus spending bill that
lets Congress spend like drunken sailors with unlimited credit cards.
Obama has already signed an omnibus spending bill last year, and he
can’t wait to sign another one.
Cybergeezer on March 9, 2010 at 5:30 PM
If we just get enough fed-up conservative-types to move to Costa Rica
we could remake that country into what the U.S. should be. The U.S. is
going to be a once-great nation in record time and I, for one, don’t
feel like being taxed to death as it goes through its all too rapid
fall.
Fatal on March 9, 2010 at 5:31 PM
Adding a new entitlement? revenue neutral? Look at the prescription
drug benefit enacted by President Bush. In less than 10 years the
unfunded liabilities of this new entitlement are nearly 19 trillion
(18.7 and climbing).
Congress:
Look at the debt clock. Health care reform, yes. ObamaCare, NO.
Angry Dumbo on March 9, 2010 at 6:50 PM
Democrats now face the prospect of using arcane parliamentary tricks
to pass a bill that has minimal support, one that most voters believe
will damage the economy, cost more than advertised, and prompt
sweeping tax increases, all while ignoring the issues of a damaged
economy while attempting to make it worse. If they think that’s a
winning strategy for the midterms, they need new leadership — and
after the electoral disaster coming, they’ll probably be forced to get
it.
This isn’t about winning in 2010.
It isn’t about the leadership.
This is about having the most left leaning leadership in Washington
since the early 30’s taking an opportunity to screw the country that
they thought they would never have!
We have a Marxist president who has already says he’d content with one
term if, BY HIS DEFINITION, he was a good president.
We have a Marxist wax statue House Speaker who comes from a district
where the majority probably feel Congress isn’t taking over enough of
the private sector on the way to their communist utopia.
We have an old, doesn’t-care-if-he’s-reelected Senate Leader who
thinks this is the culmination of his life’s work and that of his dead
friend Teddy!
These three jokers are betting that if they can get this passed,
rammed through, crammed down America’s throat, that in the future the
party can run on “Save Healthcare! Keep those filthy Republican hands
off of it!” “Oh, that evil Republican wants to repeal healthcare and
kill millions by taking away their coverage!”
Unfortunately, the chaos that’s going to ensue, sooner if they pass
healthcare, after we reach banana republic status in the next year,
could lead to numerous conclusions. It may be best if it leads to two
or more countries if this is the government we’re stuck with.
PastorJon on March 9, 2010 at 8:02 PM
Fifty-eight percent of Democrats expect middle-class tax increases,
which shows how effective Obama has been in selling this plan.
Whadda ya know! The Dems are as dumb as the Repubs.
Herb on March 9, 2010 at 8:36
http://hotair.com/archives/2010/03/09/rasmussen-57-think-obamacare-will-damage-economy/
NYC’s New Suicide Sculptures (metaphor for economic reality)
Posted by barrypopik (Profile)
Wednesday, March 10th at 5:24AM EST
No Comments
New York is full of brilliant ideas these days. Let’s look first at
the suicide sculpture metaphor, then the economic reality.
From Wednesday’s New York Times:
Statues Seem Ready to Leap, but Police Say They Won’t
By MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT
Published: March 9, 2010
They stand about six feet tall and look like naked human beings. Over
the next few days, 27 of them will be scattered across rooftops and
ledges of buildings in Midtown Manhattan — including the Empire State
Building — as part of a public art exhibition.
About the same time that the first figure was placed atop a four-story
building at 25th Street and Fifth Avenue on Tuesday, the Police
Department issued a statement reassuring New Yorkers that the figures
are not despondent people on the verge of leaping to their deaths.
Police officials said they were trying to prevent an overwhelming
number of emergency calls from concerned pedestrians or office
workers. Nevertheless, they said that all emergency calls about a
potential suicide would be taken seriously — even those from places
where one of the figures is located.
“We are going to respond no matter what because there could be a
jumper at the spot,” said Paul J. Browne, the department’s chief
spokesman.
The figures, which are anatomically correct, are modeled after the
body of the artist Antony Gormley, who created the exhibition, which
is being presented by the Madison Square Park Conservancy.
Gormley did the same thing in London in 2007.
Is anyone surprised that lots of people would call 911? Does anyone
think that clogging the 911 line is a good idea? In a nanny state
government that forbids toy guns, why is this OK? How much did this
guy earn for this “art”?
Stupidity all around, but that’s not surprising for New York.
Moving on to suicidal economic news, the New York Times loves the
proposed soda tax:
Editorial
Healthy Solution: Taxing Sodas
Published: March 8, 2010
Seldom does one idea help fix two important problems, but a proposal
to tax sugary soft drinks in New York State is just that sort of 2-
for-1 solution. The penny-per-ounce tax on sodas and other sweetened
drinks is a way to raise desperately needed money for the city and
state in a bad economy. It also could help lower obesity rates, which
have soared in recent years.
The Legislature in Albany should adopt this tax quickly.
Increasing New York taxes to support outrageously generous public
union pensions — bless your hearts, New York Times and Mayor
Bloomberg.
What is the other solution to New York’s fiscal crisis? Billions in
increased borrowing, of course:
Paterson’s No. 2 Sets Broad Plan on New York Fiscal Crisis
By DANNY HAKIM
Published: March 9, 2010
ALBANY — New York could borrow billions of dollars to address its
urgent budget shortfall and a financial review board would be
established to impose new discipline on future spending under a five-
year financial rescue plan that Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch will present
Wednesday.
(…)
Mr. Ravitch, who was asked by Gov. David A. Paterson to draw up the
blueprint, is seeking to curb the runaway spending that has helped
plunge New York into fiscal crisis. Despite the recession and talk of
fiscal austerity, state spending this year soared by 10 percent over
the previous year’s budget.
Keep on spending!
The state faces a $9 billion shortfall for the fiscal year that begins
April 1 and a $15 billion gap for the following year.
The plan, which requires legislative approval, seeks to address New
York’s immediate cash needs by permitting the state to sell bonds to
help cover operating expenses.
Keep on borrowing! Does anyone want to buy a bond from a bankrupt
state run by David Paterson?
If the Madison Square Park Conservancy wants to add some art, why not
ditch the suicide sculptures and have a replica of the Diana sculpture
that once graced Madison Square Garden? The Roman goddess Diana was an
emblem of chastity.
Suicide sculpture — an urban metaphor for these times? Why not move
them from Madison Square down to Wall Street?
Economists trim 2011 U.S. growth forecast
Posted 2010/03/10 at 12:40 am EST
WASHINGTON, Mar. 10, 2010 (Reuters) — U.S. economists raised their
forecast for economic growth in 2010 in March, the third straight
monthly rise, while trimming their growth forecast for 2011, according
to a survey released on Wednesday.
Economists surveyed earlier this month in the Blue Chip Economic
Indicators newsletter said the economy is expected to grow by 3.0
percent in 2011, which is 0.1 percentage point lower than estimates
made a month ago.
But economists raised their 2010 growth forecast for the third
consecutive month to 3.1 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from
February.
Still, the economists predicted the recovery would be mild given the
depth of the recession.
The consensus also expects inventories to continue adding to GDP over
the next several quarters but see the size of those contributions
become increasingly smaller.
"By Q1 2011, the contribution to GDP from business inventories is
expected to become trivial," the survey said.
The panelists said they also expect "a slower and less powerful than
is typical improvement in labor market conditions that will cap gains
in disposable personal income and personal consumption expenditures."
The panelists expressed concern that severe winter weather crimped
economic activity in February and that upcoming monthly data on
production, retail sales, housing starts and home sales could fall
short of earlier consensus expectations.
However, they also pointed out any weather-induced softness should be
recovered in the March data.
(Reporting by Nancy Waitz, Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Copyright Reuters 2008.
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre6290q0-us-usa-economy-bluechip/
US Chamber of Commerce getting into the game.
I almost titled this "US Chamber of Commerce starts recognizing its
class interests," but that kind of language bugs people on the Right,
for some reason.
Posted by Moe Lane (Profile)
Tuesday, March 9th at 11:48AM EST
5 Comments
Say hello to the US Chamber of Commerce. Or don’t; they’re coming to
sit down at the table any which way.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is building a large-scale grass-roots
political operation that has begun to rival those of the major
political parties, funded by record-setting amounts of money raised
from corporations and wealthy individuals.
[snip]
The new grass-roots program, the brainchild of chamber political
director Bill Miller, is concentrating on 22 states. Among them are
Colorado, where incumbent Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet is
vulnerable; Arkansas, where Democratic Sen. Blanche Lincoln faces an
uphill reelection battle; and Ohio, where the chamber sees
opportunities in numerous House races and an open Senate seat.
The network, called Friends of the U.S. Chamber, has been used to
generate more than a million letters and e-mails to members of
Congress, 700,000 of them in opposition to the Democratic healthcare
plan. That is an increase from 40,000 congressional contacts generated
in 2008.
The article goes on to note that the CoC’s grassroots planning
recently got a big boost from the recent Citizens’ United case, as
well as that this organization is increasingly publicly acknowledging
that ‘pro-business growth’ means ‘pro-Republican.’ And why would that
be? Probably because of Democratic assaults like this one:
A Democratic aide says a new provision in the health care bill will
require businesses to count part-time workers when calculating
penalties for failing to provide coverage.
Via Hot Air, and that particular sudden addition to the health care
bill should have the same effect on small business growth as would,
say, a load of buckshot to the face. Remember, folks: the current
ruling party of this country is largely led by people who have never
worked for a living in their lives - and by God, does it show
sometimes! Keep this in mind when opening your checkbooks, because
the business community certainly plans to…
Moe Lane
5 Comments
*HOW* can they do this? How is it Constitutional?
yoyo Tuesday, March 9th at 12:16PM EST
Isn’t the Senate Bill ALREADY voted for? How can they insert an
amendment into a bill that is already passed?
Wouldnt the inclusion of this amendment (or any other) require that
the whole she-bang go back to the Senate for another up/down vote? Or
at the very least, allow the Senate to Amend this to Death - FINALLY?
Without coming back to the Senate, the Bill would be unconstitutional,
yes?
Just Checking. Dan, can you help me out here? Rule check, please!
Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum
‘If you seek peace, prepare for war!’
The ‘yoyo’ replaced my cigarettes January 22, 2006….
http://www.twitter.com/rs_yoyo
That's what "reconcilliation" is all about.
The_Gadfly Tuesday, March 9th at 12:25PM EST
See, this is a cost cutting measure. Without it, they won’t have
enough money to cover the bills, so the reconcilliation rules apply,
and they only need 51 votes for that.
No, I don’t really believe that either, but you can better a year’s
salary that’s how they’ll sell it. Assuming of course you can find
someone dumb enough to take the wager.
We’ve been called racists enough now that it shouldn’t bother us any
more.
-AChance, http://www.redstate.com/moe_lane/2009/11/03/what-men-may-do-we-have-done/#comment-24463
If NY23 was a beat down for Conservatives, what do you call what
happened to Progressives in NJ and VA?
inspired by ColdWarrior,
http://www.redstate.com/hooah_mac/2009/11/04/ny-23-the-agony-of-defeat-not-so-much/#comment-156
"Cost Cutting?" Really? Smells of "Policy" to me.
yoyo Tuesday, March 9th at 12:33PM EST
But, I *do* have a head cold, so my sniffer may be broken.
OR, more likely, it just stinks.
I say they should start reconcilling the bill with the Constitution
and go forward from there.
But, I AM a little bit “old fashioned.” *Tradition and Patriotism* and
all that.
Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum
‘If you seek peace, prepare for war!’
Pukin’ Dogs - The Fighting 143
Sans Reproache
The ‘yoyo’ replaced my cigarettes January 22, 2006….
http://www.twitter.com/rs_yoyo
George Washington
hickorystick Tuesday, March 9th at 1:32PM EST
led the Rebellion, because England was infringing upon his interests.
George Washington wasn’t that political a guy. He did maintain his
‘interest’ very sharply. He was one of the wealthiest Colonials, and
he was constantly irritated with England imposing laws and
restrictions impinging on his ‘interest’. He chose his wife, Mary, not
for her looks, but because she had a lot of land. I get so frustrated
with politics because most of the time, especially media time, is
spent talking about nebulous things which we have no power or control
over. We would do well to frame every bill in terms of how it affects
‘interests’. You cannot walk into court and ask for something, unless
you can prove an ‘interest’ or ’standing’. We should do the same in
our political fights, sticking to our right to maintain property. That
is what we fought over in the revolution. Remember, we didn’t bother
to write a Constitution till some years after we had won the war. The
form of government that came most naturally after the victory, was a
Continental Congress. This form left most issues to the states, where
property could best be protected. If we want to effectively fight this
Redistibutor-in-Chief, We better start focusing on our own interest
and that of our states.
Wow...
tdpwells Tuesday, March 9th at 3:09PM EST
So let’s see, that’s most employees at fast food restaurants, grocery
stores, convenience stores, corner pharmacy stores like CVS and
Walgreens, etc etc etc…
Unemployment ought to be at a healthy 30% by the time they’re done.
Nice.
I do not believe that the power and duty of the General
Government ought to be extended to the relief of individual
suffering which is in no manner properly related to the
public service or benefit…to the end that the lesson should
be constantly enforced that though the people support the
Government, the Government should not support the people.
Grover Cleveland (16 February 1887)
http://www.redstate.com/moe_lane/2010/03/09/us-chamber-of-commerce-getting-into-the-game/
Bloomberg
Siegel Says U.S. Recovery Certain, Euro Region Faces Splinter
March 10, 2010, 5:39 AM EST
By Le-Min Lim
March 10 (Bloomberg) -- Jeremy Siegel, a finance professor at the
University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, says the worst is over
for the U.S. economy and the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates
by year’s end to cool growth.
Spending by companies on equipment and plants will outpace private
consumption as the main growth driver this year, he said in an
interview in Hong Kong. The jobless rate, at 9.7 percent last month,
will fall below 9 percent by the end of 2010, he said. That may force
the Fed to tighten policy and full-year economic growth may reach 4
percent, he said.
The Fed “will feel comfortable raising the rates as long as the
situation continues to improve, as I believe it will,” said Siegel, in
an interview in Hong Kong. Siegel, 64, is an adviser to U.S.-based
WisdomTree Investments Inc., which had $6.7 billion of assets under
management as of the end of last year.
The Fed and the Treasury are trying to withdraw the emergency measures
introduced during the financial crisis without triggering a relapse in
the economy. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said Feb. 24 the U.S. is in
a “nascent” recovery that still requires keeping interest rates near
zero “for an extended period” to spur demand once stimulus wanes.
In Europe, the European Central Bank will have little alternative
other than to keep interest rates low as euro region members such as
Greece struggle to convince investors they will cut soaring budget
deficits, he said. Its benchmark rate is currently at a record low of
1 percent.
Exports
The euro is making the exports of nations such as Spain and Greece so
uncompetitive that they may start talks as early as next year to leave
the 16-nation bloc, he said. That departure would be “painful and
difficult and drag down the region for a few years,” he said. One
weakness of the currency union is that it lacks a proper and orderly
exit strategy for members that can’t keep up, Siegel said.
“They should have signed prenups before they got married to the euro,”
said Siegel, referring to agreements that outline the terms of a
divorce.
A U.S. recovery and uncertainty in the eurozone mean the dollar will
remain a “viable” asset, said Siegel.
Later this year, China may start a managed appreciation of the yuan,
Siegel said. China wants to revert to export-driven economic growth,
so is more likely to try a staggered revaluation than a major, one-
time adjustment, he said.
--Editors: Dirk Beveridge, John Fraher
To contact the reporter on this story: Le-Min Lim in Hong Kong at
lm...@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Beech at
mbe...@bloomberg.net.
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Most Asian Stocks Fall as Oil, Shippers Drop; Telstra Advances
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http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-10/greek-crisis-is-over-former-ec-commission-chief-prodi-says.html
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http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-10/rand-may-breach-10-per-euro-for-first-time-in-2-years-rmb-says.html
High Conviction: Short the Yen
by: Alexander Tepper March 10, 2010
Alexander Tepper is Chief Economist at TKNG Capital, a global macro
hedge fund based in New York. Previously, Mr. Tepper was a senior
economic policy aide to U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg. He also has
experience at Oliver, Wyman & Company advising Fortune 500 financial
institutions on risk management and as an investment banking Associate
at Credit Suisse. He has a masters degree in Economics from Oxford
University, and a BA in Physics from Princeton University.
We recently had the opportunity to ask Alexander about the single
highest conviction position he currently holds in his fund.
What is your highest conviction position in your fund right now - long
or short?
We are short Japanese yen against the US Dollar. We have implemented
the trade by selling out-of-the-money calls to buy out-of-the-money
puts and taking in premium.
Why did you use options to structure the trade?
Call options on the yen are significantly more expensive than put
options. This “skew,” as it’s known, exists because the Japanese
investment community tends to be short yen, making it susceptible to
sharp rises during bouts of risk aversion.
Investors hedge this exposure by buying out-of-the-money yen calls.
But given the sharp adjustment that has already occurred in the crisis
and a government whose proclivities are far from fiscally
conservative, we view the risks as less asymmetric than implied by the
skew.
Structuring this trade with options is akin to playing with dice
loaded in our favor.
Tell us a bit about Japan right now, and why you're short its
currency.
Japan has traditionally been an export-oriented economy, but that’s
going to change as the population continues to age and retire. These
older citizens, who have saved their whole lives and are no longer
producing anything, will be a natural source of demand, first for
domestic Japanese goods and then for imports. A shrinking labor force
will mean other nations will need to pick up the slack in production.
Already, the savings rate in Japan has fallen into the low single-
digits and it should fall further.
Japan is also in serious fiscal trouble. Its net debt is more than
100% of GDP, and gross debt is nearing 200% of GDP. The Japanese
government and central bank do not seem particularly concerned. It is
only Japan’s strong balance of payments position, and a willful
suspension of disbelief by the markets, that differentiates it from
countries like Greece. But those, too, should ebb over time.
So why will the yen fall?
First, as the Japanese retire, the supply shock to the economy will
result in continuing declines in competitiveness. The yen will need to
fall to restore balance.
Second, less income and more retirees will mean that Japan will need
to fund more of its government’s borrowing from abroad. Making this
attractive will mean a lower exchange rate, higher interest rate, or
(most likely) both.
Third, the government’s fiscal position is the worst in the developed
world. The scale of the adjustments that are necessary to stabilize
the budget deficit would be unprecedented in a large developed nation,
requiring deep cuts to pensions, double-digit tax increases, and
severe spending restraint elsewhere. If sovereign worries persist,
Japan and its currency are obvious targets for speculators.
Finally, we think consumers in the US and UK are undergoing a lasting
shift in psychology that will cause them to save a larger share of
their incomes going forward. Over the long-term, the savings rate
needs to average around 10% in order for Americans to secure a
reasonable retirement. When Americans save more, they buy less,
especially imports. This lack of demand for imports means a stronger
dollar against US trading partners like Japan.
All this is on the assumption that the global economy will limp along
for a while. But if instead we have a return to robust growth that
looks broadly like the pre-crisis economy, the yen should weaken
towards 2007 levels as markets become more and more comfortable with
risk and interest rates rise in the rest of the developed world.
There are a lot of ways to win with this trade.
What would you say the current broad sentiment is on the yen?
The market has tended to view the yen as part of the “risk-on/risk-
off” trade, where the yen rises with worries about the global economy.
Japan’s fiscal issues are well-known, but the market has generally not
priced them, with yields on 10-year Japanese bonds below 1.5%.
Japanese CDS spreads, however, have doubled since late summer.
More broadly, the markets have believed that correction of global
imbalances requires a weaker dollar to encourage Americans and Asians
to change their consumption behavior. We think the financial crisis
and experience of house price declines will be the driving force that
restrains Americans’ profligacy, while Asians will consume more. The
result will be a stronger dollar.
Does Japanese economic policy play a role in your position?
The Japanese government has made fairly clear that it does not intend
to tolerate a markedly stronger yen because it hurts their exporters.
It also seems neither inclined nor able to do anything about the
fiscal situation in the near future.
What catalysts do you see that could move the currency, and the trade
in your favor?
The eurozone’s sovereign risk worries will soon resolve themselves one
way or another. When they do, Japan could easily become a target.
As economic data continue to strengthen over the next few months, a
return to normalcy will mean a weaker yen.
We are also prepared for a more gradual adjustment as markets adopt
our demographic view.
What could go wrong with this trade?
In the near term, Japanese companies repatriating income around the
fiscal year-end in March could potentially lead to a rise in the
currency. A sharp rise in risk aversion could have a similar effect.
We have been careful to choose the strike prices on our options to
minimize the damage if such a spike does occur.
Beyond that, deflation in Japan means that in a perfect economic
world, the yen would appreciate over time. There is also the risk that
the pundits over the past several years prove right and we see
fundamental weakening of the dollar with respect to all Asian
currencies.
Finally, if China were to revalue its currency, as many believe it
will, that could create space for the Japanese authorities also to
allow some appreciation. Again, however, we believe our options are
sufficiently out of the money to limit our downside in such a
scenario.
Thanks, Alexander.
Disclosure: TKNG Capital is short the Yen against the Dollar.
If you are a fund manager and interested in doing an interview with us
on your highest conviction stock holding, please email Rebecca
Barnett.
About the author: Alexander Tepper Alexander Tepper is Chief
Economist at TKNG Capital, a global macro hedge fund based in New
York. Previously, Mr. Tepper was a senior economic policy aide to U.S.
Senator Frank Lautenberg. He also has experience at Oliver, Wyman &
Company advising Fortune 500 financial institutions on risk... More
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The Coolpix L11 is clearly designed more for the frugal than the
fancy. The 6-megapixel camera sports a 37.5mm-to-112.5mm-equi... 3x
zoom lens and a relatively small 2.4-inch LCD screen. While its
hardware hardly impresses, however, the camera offers some
surprisingly useful features. The L11 includes Nikon's In-Camera Red-
Eye Fix and Face-Priority AF. In-Camera Red-Eye Fix supplements the
camera's red-eye reduction flash mode with a processing system that
removes red-eye after the photo is taken. Face-Priority AF detects and
tracks faces in photos, and adjusts focus to stay on those faces,
instead of just the closest subject. Both features come standard on
most Nikon Coolpix cameras, but are still handy for casual shooting.
www-nikon.com Mar 10 0
Carlos Lam is a deputy prosecuting attorney in a mid-sized county in a
midwestern state. An adherent in the Austrian School of economics, he
believes that to truly prosper as the republic envisioned by the
Founding Fathers, we must return to principles of sound money and
limited government. He... More Latest StockTalkWent long Canadian Oil
Sands Trust (COSWF.PK) as a way to hedge oil/gasoline price increases
& to diversify away from the USDSep 11, 2009Latest articles &
Instablog posts1.'Cash for Clunkers' Incentivizes Americans to Take On
More Debt2."Cash for Clunkers" Passes House: The Debt Merchants
Continue Their Efforts3.Will the Chrysler Deal Be Delayed?
Shorting the Yen could be an interesting play. Already the Japanese
savings rate has crashed from its lofty position to under 4%, so the
Japanese government will not be able to count on domestic savings to
finance its debt indefinitely.
Mar 10 06:25 AM
John Thomas graduated with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry with
honors and a minor in mathematics from the University of California at
Los Angeles (U.C.L.A.) in 1974. He moved to Tokyo, Japan where he was
employed by a medium-sized Japanese securities house. Thomas became
fluent in... More Company: The Mad Hedge Fund Trader bvgf I’m hearing
from my buddies in Japan that while things are already quite bad in
that enchanting country, they are about to get a whole lot worse, and
that it is time to start scaling into a major short in the yen.
Australia and China have already raised interest rates, to be followed
by the US, and eventually Europe. With its economy enfeebled, the
prospects of Japan raising rates substantially is close to nil,
meaning the yield spread between the yen and other currencies is about
to widen big time. That will generate hundreds of billions of dollars
worth of yen selling as hedge funds rush to pile on a giant carry
trade. Until now, the government has been able to finance ballooning
budget deficits caused by two lost decades, but those days are coming
to an end. Japan is quite literally running out of savers. The savings
rate has dropped from 20% during my time there, to a spendthrift 3%,
because real falling standards of living leave a lot less money for
the piggy bank. The national debt has rocketed to 190% of GDP, and
100% when you net out government agencies buying each other’s
securities. Japan has the world’s worst demographic outlook. Unfunded
pension liabilities are exploding. Other than once great cars and
video games, what does Japan really have to offer the world these
days, but a carry currency? Until now, the government has been able to
cover up these problems with tatami mats, because almost all of the
debt it issued has been sold to domestic institutions. Now that this
pool is drying up, there is nowhere else to go but foreign investors.
With Greece and the rest of the PIIGS at the forefront, and awareness
of sovereign risks heightening, this is going to be a much more
discerning lot to deal with. You could dip your toe in the water here
around ¥88.40. In a perfect world you could sell it as it double tops
at the 85 level. My initial downside target is ¥105, and after that
¥120. If you’re not set up to trade in the futures or the interbank
market like the big hedge funds, then take a look at the leveraged
short yen ETF, the (YCS). This is a home run if you can get in at the
right price.
Mar 10
http://seekingalpha.com/article/192864-high-conviction-short-the-yen
Fresh Trade Winds?
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 02:19
0 Comments and 4 Reactions
Investor's Business Daily
Editorial
Investor's Business Daily
Editorial
Economy: U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk came out swinging
Wednesday, warning Congress that it’s time to pass free trade. Is
something happening here? Is the Obama administration finally getting
serious about jobs?
After a year of inaction, Kirk told Democrats in remarks to the Senate
Finance Committee that passage of free-trade pacts must be “a
priority.”
Free trade “will stimulate export-driven growth and help the United
States meet the president’s goal to double U.S. exports in five
years,” he said, adding that 2 million jobs would be created.
That kind of talk from a leading Democrat directed at the
protectionists in his own party is a new — and welcome — development.
Over the last year, Obama administration officials have occasionally
talked up the benefits of free trade, but only with conservatives and
business groups, who already know about it.
Now some are spending political capital to push it.
Confronting a Congress that is holding up the creation of jobs doesn’t
come a moment too soon. U.S. joblessness stands at 9.7% and Europe is
grabbing U.S. markets abroad.
Congressional protectionists talk of free trade passage in terms of
years; their campaign financiers in Big Labor, such as the AFL-CIO,
say “never.”
Kirk rebuked that stance in his speech, telling labor it had a voice
but “not a veto” on trade and hinted that President Obama would put
the pacts through without them. He also gave labor leaders a deadline
to make demands on free-trade deals like the one with Colombia instead
of constantly moving the goal posts.
One shot.
It doesn’t come a moment too soon. Congress’ failure to enact the free-
trade pacts in front of them is costing the U.S. nearly 600,000 jobs,
according to a 2009 study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Contrary to
protectionist myth, free trade costs no net jobs in the U.S. economy
at all, as Fed chief Ben Bernanke noted in a 2007 speech citing years
of data. “Trade allows us to enjoy both a more productive economy and
higher living standards,” he said. Unemployment is killing the U.S.
economy and sinking the Obama presidency. Time is running out to open
markets that could help repair it. Just this week, Europe signed a
free-trade deal with Colombia and Peru and breezily announced it would
have a pact with fast-growing India ready by October.
U.S. international credibility right now is zero, given that
alreadynegotiated trade pacts with Colombia, Panama and South Korea
have languished in Congress for more than three years.
Who’d want to negotiate something new and have it put in congressional
limbo? That’s why the Obama administration’s proposed U.S. Trans-
Pacific Partnership to open new markets in Brunei, Australia, New
Zealand and Vietnam is going nowhere.
“This delay in implementing hurts U.S. credibility around the world —
not just economically, but geopolitically as well,” said Sen. Charles
Grassley, R-Iowa, at the Kirk hearing. Hello? Anyone out there? The
U.S. is losing ground in world markets and doing it at the cost of our
own citizens’ jobs. It’s exactly what U.S. labor unions such as the
Teamsters, United Steelworkers, United Autoworkers and various public
employee unions want.
And right now, like it or not, they rule Congress. It’s ironic,
because many lobbyists believe free trade can pass both congressional
Houses if the bills are put to a vote. Past presidents, including
Democrat Bill Clinton and Republican George W. Bush, knew that’s what
it took to get pacts through Congress. Both threw their all into
getting big treaties — like 1993’s North American Free Trade Agreement
and 2005’s Central American Free Trade Agreement — passed in Congress,
acts that took on people who would stop them to charge up the U.S.
economy. There’s still no sign of Obama out there working the Hill.
But Kirk’s statements, no doubt authorized by the president, may be
the beginning of a turnaround on trade.
http://www.truthabouttrade.org/news/latest-news/15680-fresh-trade-winds
A new finger on the pulse of economy
A new index co-developed by Ceridian uses diesel fuel sales to track
U.S. economic growth.
By NEAL ST. ANTHONY, Star Tribune
Last update: March 9, 2010 - 9:03 PM
Want to know which way the economy is headed? Find out how much diesel
fuel is being burned by the nation's over-the-road truckers.
That's the theory behind a new economic index developed by Bloomington-
based Ceridian Corp., a provider of electronic payments services, and
UCLA's Anderson School of Management.
Called the Pulse of Commerce Index, the survey, to be released
Wednesday, shows the U.S. economy was essentially flat over the first
two months of the year, with a snowbound February decline of 0.7
percent in output offsetting the modest January gain of 0.6 percent.
"February was disappointing, but the geographic pattern underlying the
index suggests this was due in large part to extreme snowfalls during
the month," said Edward Leamer, director of UCLA's Anderson Forecast
and chief economist for the Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index
(PCI). "We still need much stronger growth in the PCI to get Americans
back to work. To sustain at least a 4 percent GDP number for the first
quarter [on an annualized basis], the March PCI has to be ... over 1
percent growth. That number will be very important."
The new index is designed to get the jump on the Federal Reserve's
report on industrial production report for February, which comes out
next week.
The PCI uses real-time diesel fuel consumption data from over-the-road
truckers, which is tracked by Ceridian, a longtime payment services
provider to the trucking industry. The index is built by analyzing
Ceridian's electronic card payment data, which captures the location
and volume of diesel fuel being purchased. This provides a detailed
picture of the movement of products across the United States.
In an interview Tuesday, Leamer said that once the bad weather is
taken into account, February's numbers suggest that there is an
underlying power to industrial demand and he expects that a catch-up
surge in goods moved in March will indicate that the economy is
growing at about a 3 percent annualized rate during the first quarter.
"To be optimistic about jobs, we'll need at least that," Leamer said.
"In the fourth quarter, we had 5.9 percent growth, but 3.9 percent was
just inventory replacement. That leaves 2 percent. We need more than
that. And March will tell the quarter."
Leamer said the Ceridian diesel-consumption data, collected from about
7,000 service stations around the country, constitutes a
representative sample and provides a "real data, not surveys" about
the movement of goods, which is a manifestation of industrial
production and shipments.
The flow of commerce
"We're monitoring the flow of commerce at truck stops, and the
arteries for the commercial system are the interstate highways
carrying the products," he said. "It amplifies the swings in GDP and
also tells us early where the economy is going."
Industrial production only accounts for about one-third of the U.S.
economy. It is more volatile than the service sector, which fluctuates
less during economic cycles.
All economic eyes are on month-to-month changes in industrial output,
which is a guide to business spending, credit expansion and demand for
goods in the aftermath of the 2008-09 recession that has given way to
a fairly tepid economic recovery. Most labor economists believe that
the economy won't start adding jobs significantly unless industrial
output starts growing at a 3 to 5 percent annualized clip.
Back testing of the Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index indicates
that it is a reliable indicator of industrial output. For example, the
index rose in areas unaffected by February's snows, including 2.7
percent in the Upper Midwest and 2.1 percent in the Pacific region.
"Goods have to be transported for the economy to grow, so when
snowstorms bog down that flow, it is reflected in our index and in the
overall U.S. economy," said Craig Manson, senior vice president and
index analyst for Ceridian.
A new finger on the pulse of economy...
Wait! The economy has a pulse?
posted by DrZoidberg on Mar 9, 10 at 11:55 pm |
http://www.startribune.com/business/87180717.html?elr=KArks:DCiU1OiP:DiiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
Posted: Wed, Mar 10 2010. 9:00 AM IST
International News
US, Europe eye free-trade pacts with rising Asia
The talks will follow the launch of negotiations on a free-trade
agreement between Singapore and the European Union, which is also keen
on expanding trade ties with Southeast Asia
AFP
Singapore: The United States, fearful of being sidelined as China and
other fast-growing Asian economies speed up their integration, is
banking on a new trade pact to shore up its Pacific influence.
Talks opening Monday in Melbourne will focus on a proposed Trans-
Pacific Partnership agreement linking the US market with Australia,
Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
Officials hope the TPP will form the nucleus of a wider Asia-Pacific
trade zone that would eventually rope in China, Japan and South Korea
as well as key Southeast Asian nations.
The talks will follow the launch of negotiations on a free-trade
agreement between Singapore and the European Union, which is also keen
on expanding trade ties with Southeast Asia.
The United States and Europe have been shut out of a growing web of
Asia-centric trade pacts spurred by the region’s 1997 financial crisis
and by a lack of progress in the Doha round of global trade talks,
analysts said.
While the United States is “unquestionably” a Pacific power, it “lacks
a comprehensive Asia strategy”, said Ernest Bower, a Southeast Asia
expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in
Washington.
“The lack of consistent US focus in the region has enabled the
ascendance of Chinese power,” Bower said, adding that it could slowly
undermine US business interests and eventually degrade US security
capabilities.
The new trade attention from the West comes as Asian countries lead
the rest of the world in recovering from the global economic downturn.
“That the US and the EU are knocking on Asia’s doors is a recognition
that the centre of economic power is shifting, or has shifted, to our
region,” an Asian diplomat closely involved in trade issues told AFP.
“They know very well that ignoring Asia will be at their own peril.
China is already a major trade partner for many Asian countries and is
leading efforts toward regional economic integration,” he said on
condition of anonymity.
Deputy US trade representative Demetrios Marantis warned that
Washington “faces the daunting prospect of getting locked out” by Asia-
specific trade pacts.
A study by the US-based Peterson Institute for International Economics
showed that discriminatory policies under an East Asia free trade zone
could cost the US economy at least 25 billion dollars of annual
exports and lead to the loss of “about 200,000 high-paying jobs”.
The United States has free-trade accords with Australia and Singapore
and has also negotiated a trade pact with South Korea, but this has
yet to be implemented due to fierce disputes over cars and beef.
China has been more aggressive in wooing regional partners.
An agreement between China and the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) covering nearly two billion consumers went into effect
this year, creating the world’s biggest free-trade area in terms of
population.
There are also efforts to form a larger, all-Asian free-trade zone
spanning China, Japan, South Korea and the 10 ASEAN states.
C. Fred Bergsten and Jeffrey Schott of the Peterson Institute hailed
Washington’s decision to join the trans-Pacific talks in Australia.
“Deepening US engagement with countries in the Asia-Pacific region is
crucial for the advancement of both US economic and foreign policy
interests,” Bergsten and Schott said in a recent paper.
“Within the next few years, it is likely that the East Asian countries
will deepen their economic ties and conclude both a regional trade
agreement and a monetary agreement,” the authors said.
Such a bloc would “draw a line” in the middle of the Pacific Ocean by
discriminating against US exporters and investors, and excluding the
United States from major regional economic and security forums, they
said.
Marantis acknowledged that overcoming crisis-hit Americans’ opposition
to free-trade agreements is a key challenge.
Surveys suggest that only about one in 10 Americans think that trade
pacts create jobs, while more than half believe the accords lead to
job losses at home, he said.
http://www.livemint.com/2010/03/10090029/US-Europe-eye-freetrade-pact.html
...and I am Sid Harth
Sid Harth
> http://www.angelfire.com/oh/Monkeys2/images/NGMonkey.jpg
National Magazine | Aug 20, 2007
Irfan Hussain
Scandals
Sixty Years On, More Sinned Against...
The great political scams of the last 60 years reflect their times,
but also fit a timeless definition of corruption: abuse of public
power for private gain. A trip down murky memory lane.
Smita Gupta
Special Issue: India At 60
The great political scams of the last 60 years reflect their times,
but also fit a timeless definition of corruption: abuse of public
power for private gain. They rolled out decade after decade--the
Mundhra scandal, the Kairon embarrassment, the mysterious Nagarwala
case; in the 1980s, big defence scams kept pace with India's growing
defence needs. In the 1990s, as the economy liberalised, stockmarket
and hawala scams erupted. Ironically, while political reputations were
ruined and a government was brought down--in 1989, on the Bofors issue--
very few allegations have ever been proved. The recent scandals, like
the Taj Corridor case involving Mayawati, and the Telgi fake stamp
paper scam, are still fresh in the public mind. Here, we take you on a
trip down murky memory lane.
***
The Mundhra Scandal
The timing was disastrous. Less than a year after the government
nationalised life insurance in 1956--on the grounds that it was not
being managed well--the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) produced
independent India's first scam. Pressured by the Union finance
ministry, LIC bypassed its investment committee and purchased shares
worth Rs 124 lakh in six--mainly dud--companies belonging to Calcutta
industrialist Haridas Mundhra. Feroze Gandhi, Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru's son-in-law, dramatically disclosed the deal in
1958, leading to a nationwide furore, and an investigation. The guilty
were punished, and Union finance minister T.T. Krishnamachari had to
resign.
Kairon and Sons
For independent India, this was a first-of-a-kind scandal. Later, of
course, it was to become almost a cliche in political life: a chief
minister accused of aggrandising himself and his family at public
expense. The S.R. Das Commission, tasked to investigate these charges
against Punjab chief minister Pratap Singh Kairon, exonerated him in
1964, saying a father could not be held legally responsible for the
actions of his grown-up children. But a caveat--that a chief minister
could not escape moral responsibility for his children's' actions--was
indictment enough. Kairon quit.
"Man from Bangladesh"
The case, straight out of a political thriller, captured public
imagination and continues to raise unanswered questions. On May 24,
1971, former intelligence agent R.S. Nagarwala, posing as a "man from
Bangladesh", withdrew Rs 60 lakh from the Parliament Street branch of
New Delhi's State Bank of India, following a purported call from then
prime minister of India, Indira Gandhi, to the chief cashier.
Nagarwala had apparently "mimicked" Indira Gandhi's voice. In the
course of the probe that followed, investigating officer D.K. Kashyap
was killed in a mysterious car accident and Nagarwala died in prison.
The Janata Party, alleging that the money belonged to Indira Gandhi,
set up the Jaganmohan Reddy commission in 1977, but found insufficient
evidence to indict her.
"Rajiv Gandhi chor hai"
"Gali gali mein shor hai, Rajiv Gandhi chor hai!" As the scandal over
the Bofors gun deal became a symbol of corruption in high office, this
slogan was heard across the country. The alleged kickback involved was
Rs 60 crore, small change as such scandals go, but it helped V.P.
Singh's National Front trounce Rajiv's Congress in 1989. Since then,
the Delhi High Court has acquitted Rajiv Gandhi and the Hinduja
brothers. 'Middleman' Ottavio Quattrocchi's name has not yet been
cleared, but investigators have not come up with anything conclusive
either. Yet, 18 years later, the ghost of Bofors continues to haunt a
forever tainted Congress--and Rajiv Gandhi's widow, Sonia.
St Kitts Forgery Scandal
Chandraswami, a godman with greasy locks and mighty political
connections, was the central figure in the 1989 tit-for-tat "scam"
intended to tarnish V. P. Singh. He, along with then external affairs
minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao, and another minister, K.K. Tewary,
reportedly organised forged documents to show that VP's son Ajeya
Singh had deposited $21 million in the First Trust Corporation Bank in
the Caribbean island of St Kitts, with his father as beneficiary.
After Rao's term as PM ended in 1996, the CBI formally charged him for
the crime. But later, the court acquitted Rao for lack of evidence.
All the other accused were also eventually let off. However, the scam
punctured Chandraswami's colourful career. Politicians kept clear of
him from then on.
Sukh Ram Telecom Scam
He came to be known by the epithet, minister of tele-'phony'. In 2002,
a CBI special court sentenced former Union communications minister
Sukh Ram to three years RI, and fined him Rs 1 lakh for purchasing
poor quality radio system equipment from a company in 1991, causing
the public exchequer to suffer losses totalling Rs 1.68 crore. The
buzz was that Sukh Ram, under whose bed dhobi bundles of cash were
found, was involved in several other deals, but nothing was proved. A
senior telecom official, Runu Ghosh, and Hyderabad-based businessman
Pataru Rama Rao, were also sentenced to two and three years
imprisonment respectively. A tortuous legal battle continues.
Stockmarket Scam, 1992
He was toasted and celebrated by investors and the media alike. But
like the stockmarket, he too crashed, leading to one of the biggest
financial scandals in independent India. 'Big Bull' Harshad Mehta,
held to be largely responsible for the stockmarket crash of '92, was
arrested by the CBI in November that year for "misappropriating" more
than 27 lakh shares--worth Rs 250 crore--of about 90 companies,
including Sensex heavyweights like ACC and Hindalco, through forged
share transfer forms. Blacklisted in the stockmarket, he reportedly
caused a loss of more than Rs 4,000 crore to various entities and
eventually died in custody in December 2001, before all the legal
issues were sorted out. The stock scam reverberated through the
country, with several people committing suicide after losing their
life savings and going bankrupt overnight.
PV in a Pickle
Close on the heels of the stock scam came Harshad Mehta's sensational
allegation that he had paid Rs 1 crore in cash to the personal
secretary of then prime minister Narasimha Rao. He even displayed a
suitcase, offering a symbol for venality, but the allegation was never
proved. Rao was also embarrassed by the Lakhubhai Pathak cheating
scandal. Pickle king Pathak, a UK-based Indian businessman, alleged
that he had paid Chandraswami and his associate K.N. Aggarwal alias
Mamaji (who were close to Rao) $100,000 in return for a paper pulp
supply contract in India, a "promise" that was not kept. Rao and
Chandraswami were acquitted of the charges in 2003 due to lack of
evidence. Despite this, the case remained a blot on Rao.
Jain Hawala Scam
Some of the country's leading politicians were implicated in the Rs 64-
crore hawala scandal, involving payments allegedly received by
politicians through the Jain brothers, who were hawala brokers. The
media went into overdrive over a diary, which apparently contained the
names of top politicians. These included the BJP's L.K. Advani and
Congressmen Balram Jakhar, Madhavrao Scindia and Arjun Singh. However,
they were all cleared. Advani was let off in 1997, while Jakhar and
the Jain brothers were also let off in 1999 for want of credible
evidence. The CBI was severely criticised for its inefficient
investigation of the scandal.
Fodder Scam
In 1996, Bihar CM Laloo Prasad Yadav became the focus of the Rs 950-
crore fodder scam in the state's animal husbandry department,
notorious for financial irregularities involving powerful politicians
(across parties) and officials. In April 2000, Laloo was chargesheeted
in the case, with wife Rabri Devi as co-accused. In December '06, they
were acquitted, but the CBI and the Bihar government, now under the
JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar, opposed the decision in the Patna high court.
Till date, 250 persons have been convicted. But the scandal's severest
toll has been on Laloo's reputation.
Petrol Pump Scam
Shortly after the NDA came to power in '98, the BJP was quick to prove
it was not "a party with a difference". By '02, it was evident that
most petrol pump, LPG and kerosene allotments during the NDA regime
had favoured BJP functionaries, Sangh activists and selected governors
and bureaucrats. Then prime minister A.B. Vajpayee was forced to
cancel all 3,158 allotments, with effect from January 2000. However,
the SC quashed the order. In 2005, an apex court-appointed panel
recommended that 296 of the 409 allotments be cancelled.
Operation West End
Tehelka.com sent shockwaves throughout the country when it released
secret video footage of senior politicians, including then BJP
president Bangaru Laxman and Samata Party national president Jaya
Jaitly, bureaucrats and army officers accepting bribes for defence
deals. This was the first major sting operation in Indian journalism.
From then on, getting 'Bangarued' came to mean being caught with your
hand in the till. The scandal forced Bangaru and then defence minister
George Fernandes to resign. The CBI filed charges against Bangaru and
two of his aides in July '06 and against Jaitly in December '06.
Chargesheets were also filed in 2006 against some of the other accused
in the Union ministry of defence and the army. R.K. Jain, former
treasurer of the Samata Party, was finally arrested in 2006 on charges
of receiving huge payoffs in defence deals.
Bu Smita Gupta with Debarshi Dasgupta
Aug 17, 2007 12:00 AM
22 Gulam:>>" Who are "we" here?
All those involved in fighting the terrorists."
All those now involved in 'protecting/training' the terrorists should
also sincerely join the fight against terrorists and their
elimination. Otherwise, these may well be the first, though
unintended, casualties in the terrorist explosions. Perhaps, you may
be able make them realize this, before it is too late.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 17, 2007 12:00 AM
21 Seshadri,
>> Who are "we" here?
All those involved in fighting the terrorists.
Ghulam Y Faruki
New York, United States
Aug 17, 2007 12:00 AM
20 Ghulam:>>"We should kill them at a faster rate than they can train
their recruits."
Who are "we" here? The major OIC countries, especially Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, should help non-OIC terrorist-
targetted countries like, India, UK, US in detecting and exterminating
terrorists. Will they? Pakistan is sheltering the Bombay bomber and
Bin Laden and denying it all the time. God Allah will help these
moslems only if they help in eliminating islamic terrorists. Will
they ?
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 17, 2007 12:00 AM
19 "The expansion of the ummah and the killing of "kafirs" are both
ideas that do not cross the minds of the bulk of the Muslim
community."
Most of the muslims nourish ideas of ummah expansion and how it can be
brought about. Many of them express it shamelessly, in schools,
offices etc. One of the reasons why the rest of the Indians despise
Muslims in general.
chaitanya
chennai, India
Aug 17, 2007 12:00 AM
18 Seshadri,
>> It means 5 million can be killed or maimed, in due course, by these.
Not if we are killing them at the same time. We should kill them at a
faster rate than they can train their recruits. The terrorists have
done more harm to Muslims than to anyone else.
>> you will agree that all moslems consider non-moslem khafirs could justifiably be killed, if they come in the way of the expansion of the UMMA.
Not true. The expansion of the ummah and the killing of "kafirs" are
both ideas that do not cross the minds of the bulk of the Muslim
community. I have never heard of them from anyone I know. The only
time I hear them is from the sanghis, zionists and from rabid jehadis
who somehow or other have become the favorites of British TV crews.
Ghulam Y Faruki
New York, United States
Aug 16, 2007 12:00 AM
17 Ghulam:>>"The best estimate of American and British experts in the
field on the total number of terrorists in the world is less than
10,000."
I see it was Joseph who mentioned the number of jihadis as only a few
millions out 1.3 billion moslems in the world. I wrongly attributed it
to you, sorry. You say the ''trained' terrorist jihadis' are only
10,000; each has a potential for killing or disabling 500 persons,
with today's terrorism technology. It means 5 million can be killed or
maimed, in due course, by these.
More are being trained, in the mean time. IF the moslem states
cooperate with the non-moslem states, the menace can be contained.
Otherwise, the number of terrorist jihadis may grow exponentially with
time and become uncontainable, as it is becoming in Iraq.
>>"You were implying that all Muslims, that is 1.3 billion, were trained to kill non-believers. That is patently untrue."
I did not imply that all the moslems were "trained" to kill the other
non-believers. But, you will agree that all moslems consider non-
moslem khafirs could justifiably be killed, if they come in the way of
the expansion of the UMMA. Even this is against the basic human rights
of non-moslems also as humans, with a right to exist. If devout
moslems believe that only believers in Allah will go to heaven in
after-life, I have no objections to that.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 16, 2007 12:00 AM
16 Seshadri,
>> You have yourself stated earlier that the 'few' jihadis amount to a few millions.
What we were discussing was what percentage of Muslims may be
terrorists. The best estimate of American and British experts in the
field on the total number of terrorists in the world is less than
10,000. You were implying that all Muslims, that is 1.3 billion, were
trained to kill non-believers. That is patently untrue.
Ghulam Y Faruki
New York, United States
Aug 16, 2007 12:00 AM
15 Ghulam:>>"Not true, except perhaps for a few jehadis "
You have yourself stated earlier that the 'few' jihadis amount to a
few millions. If each suicide bomber can kill 100 and disable another
100, most of them moslems of slightly different sects, the few million
jihadis can finish off most of the billion-plus moslems in the moslem
world today. Is it desirable or permissible ?
Moslem govts should themselves monitor their madarsas, modernize their
education, reduce inter-sect hatreds, liberalize the moslems' world-
view and jail the die-hard jihadis in isolated islands, if reqd.
Mesa'potamia' is burning, George Bush on the 'Potamac' river in
Washington is not able to do much about it. Only Man Mohan Singh's
kind heart may be bleeding for the berieved, disabled, displaced and
refugees of Iraq, especially the children. I wonder why the OIC or the
moslem-welfare organization you have in US are not doing anything
about it. The OIC should itself organize a CIA type secret service to
identify hard-core suicidal jihadis among moslems and arrest them and
put them off.
The idea that 72 'virgins' are waiting to please martyrs in heaven
must be re-explained to the moslems in general and jihadis in
particular. What Narada {Gaapriya=Gasbriel] told Mohammed [Ravana]is
that there is a non-gravity region in Jupiter [St. Peter's 'heaven']
neighbourhood; soul-will in that neighbourhood can bring about the
'joining' of appropriate free elements of the periodic table, seen as
the 272 joiners or yoginees [spiritual virgins, in tantra saastra on
the sree chakra, wheel of creation] to form bodies to experience some
life and apples to eat and so on. 72 of the more significant elements
are indicated by Narada to Ravana. Bhagavat Geeta also talks about
swarga where souls can have some happiness before returning on a new
birth to the earth. If these things are explained and sexual
interpretation of the enjoyment of virgins etc is removed, jihadi
enthusiasm may come down; they may choose to have some good lives on
the earth itself.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 16, 2007 12:00 AM
14 Seshadri,
>> Moslems are brought up to consider all nonmoslems as khafirs fit for elimination only.
Not true, except perhaps for a few jehadis who miss the main thrust of
religious teaching and memorize just a few paragraphs out of context.
Ghulam Y Faruki
New York, United States
Aug 15, 2007 12:00 AM
13 >>" corruption: abuse of public power for private gain. They rolled
out decade after decade"
Corruption will continue to mar the nation's politics and
administration until politics ceases to be the first choice as 'money-
making profession' for scoundrels and scoundrel families. Perhaps, the
grandchildren of corpotate-succeess families now may loose the lure
for lucre and seek to enter politics for purely 'national service' and
not to make money, which they may have in abundance.
But, there is one aspect which popular will can enforce on corrupt
politicians/bureauocrats, even now, namely quick, early and proper
punishments when prima facie crime has been established. The Chinese
have recently given death sentence to a senior official found
responsible for non-enforcement of pharma-product qualities. We may
not go that for, but we may at least confiscate the properties of
politicians and bureauocrats found guilty by the first courts, on
fodder scam, stamp-paper scam etc; they could go in appeal to higher
courts, as per law, but leaving them in power and with ill-accumulated
wealth already declared illegal still with them only makes it easier
for them to employ the most expensive lawyers and win the appeals
somehow, or delay eventual sentences by decades. Karunanidhi now
questionably celebrates halfcentury in politics, only because the case
against some ex-judge who held his black money benami could not end
even before the said judge himself died ! If confiscation of property
pending appeals becomes the norm, such confiscated wealth could be
held in trust and the income proceedings from it can be used for
health and education of the poor in the country; trust can be closed
and wealth returned to appellant, if and when he wins the appeal at
the higher court.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 15, 2007 12:00 AM
12 Shenoy: Moslems are brought up to consider all nonmoslems as
khafirs fit for elimination only. But, practising christians like
Joseph could be expected to be even-handed between hindus and moslems,
but he is very partial to islam, favouring its growth and eventual
domination of world, to eliminate other cultures and civilizations
from the world, because of its basic intolerance. But he forgets that
such intolerant culures usually meet their nemesis, by internal feuds
and conflicts, besides acts of God like earthquakes and volcano
eruptions and tsunamis, since arrogance violates God's expectation
from mankind; the Roman civilization met with its end for such reasons
only.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 15, 2007 12:00 AM
11 Joseph:>>"So-called Islamic Fundamentalists or so-called Jehadis
total a few million people "
Today's news is that over 170 people died and over 200 injured in Iraq
in one or two suicide bombings. Thus, each jihadi claiming heaven's
vigins makes life extinct or impossible for over 200 people, most of
them moslems also. You say there are only a few million jihadi
moslems. But, 5 million jihadis are enough to kill or disable a
billion moslems, if my arithmatic is right, 7 million enough to take
care of all moslems. Are you happy with the situation? Perhaps, you
are happy about it, as a practising christian, so long as the people
killed are only moslems, jews, hindus, not christians. But moslems
must consider the fact jihadism is wiping out moslems at a rate faster
than procreationism is proliferating it. Moslems should learn to live
in harmony with other cultures all over the world, enlarging and
ennobling quranic laws into humanistic
welfare laws, by give-and-take adjustments with the laws of other
cultures also, which are also human.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 15, 2007 12:00 AM
10 Joseph:>>"the President and the Prime Minister of India will always
be Hindus."
Since you insist on proportionate representation for moslems, i.e,
increasing representation for them, as their population increases
disproportionately every decade, they will increase their political
power in all the legislatures and the parliament; chances of moslem
presidents and prime-ministers for India would only increase.
Recently, all 3 candidates for VP's post were moslems. Nothing wrong,
if they are like Zakir Hussein, Abdul Kalam or Ansari. The word,
moslem, sanskritized, stands for mukta-Sreemaan, liberated well-fare-
minded person. All moslems should live upto their names.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 15, 2007 12:00 AM
9 Joseph:>>"Secularism without Equity and proportionate representation
is, Mr. Seshadari, Sham-Secularism. I stand by my observations and
forecast that, henceforth, the President and the Prime Minister of
India will always be Hindus."
A secular democracy can only provide equality of 'opportunity' to all
creeds and castes in the country, people have to utilize them and come
up.
Pak and B-desh drove out nonmoslems. Earlier the moslems 'destroyed'
all persians in Iran and buddheists in Afghanistan, you seem to have
no regrets on that. They would have done the same in India, but the
hindu 'cast' system saved them from annihilation, as a bad blessing in
disguise; only the 'fighting caste' faught and died, 'traders' fled
and came back; priest-caste were either pushed into temples [those not
destroyed] or pushed out of villages as the new 'dalits', the
'workers' started working for the new masters, without change of
religion. Only the older dalits could be persuaded to become moslems.
Women, of all castes, if not too old and not married, were all taken
into harems of the sheiks; child-marriage of girls saved India's
ancient civilization for posterity.
Compared to this, free India's treatment of the non-hindu minorities
has been more humanistic and less demonaic; in fact the privileges
given in set-up, staffing, charging etc of minority institutions for
education in India have been such that, minority college-lords have
prospered fleecing the hindus on education; hindus are trying to get
minority college status on language basis; RKMutt is seeking minority
status for convenience, knowing Paramahamsa will not approve it ! My
late friend Varghese of HCE in Chennai was hoping his college wealth
will beat the Birlas! But now, lay christians in Kerala are raising
their voice against greedy churchian priests running colleges for
profit there. Commerce stands for 'kaama' and 'eershaa', desire and
jeaolousy; hence it leads to corporate behaviour, 'sarpa-reetih',
serpentine behaviour.
Sanskrit apart, you should admit that, opportunity-wise, minorities in
India have been treated more than fairly. Christians have benefitted
and prosperred, because they have left the bible behind and grown up
with science and technology for progress in this world, like their
counterparts in the west, other than the catholics of south America;
but moslems have used their educational priviliege only to deepen
quranic education and thinking in madarsa children. Result is that
moslem children shun science and technology, grow up to be either
traders or tailors or artisans or money-lenders, [perhaps they could
get into police/army, but they probably think defending India will be
quranic sin] They keep their women in coverage, concentrate more on
procreation than creativity, demand larger power in politics because
of increasing numbers in population. Post-1973 rise in oil prices gets
them more Arab dollars for madarsas, making them imagine that God is
for the UMMA to eventuyally take over the world. But, money can buy
things only if someone in the world 'produces' goods other than
children. If the whole world has only procreators, the increasing
population will die of hunger and overpopulate the heaven.
Friends of islam, like you, should advise modernisation of madarsa
education, instead of hate-hindu ideas. Then, moslems can take all
sorts of jobs and prosper in all fields. I have taught in an IIT and
elsewhere for over 50 yrs, had only very few moslem students in most
classes, but those who were there were very studious, courteous and
competant; given good education, they can equal and excel all other
cultures, and deserve the fact that Lord Skanda [same as Apollo/Jesus]
appeared as Sikandar for the moslems to save them from extinction by
the crusaders. God has only mercy and goodwill for all mankind. It is
for humans to utilize it.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
8 Secularism without Equity and proportionate representation is, Mr.
Seshadari, Sham-Secularism. I stand by my observations and forecast
that, henceforth, the President and the Prime Minister of India will
always be Hindus.
Going by the Caste situation in India, to an out side mind, it is
difficult to accept that Hindus will accept non-Hindus as equals when
Hindus themselves are discriminated against by fellow Hindus.
Joseph
Karachi, Pakistan
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
7 Dear Mr. B. V. Shenoy, I take serious umbrage at your addressing me,
a practicing Christian, as one who does not afford space for other
Religions and for alleging that I am steeped in Islamic
Fundamentalism, whatever that may mean.
Please allow me to recapulate my basic premises about Islam and
Muslims which are as Follows.
a. As Muslims number 1.37 billion which is about one-fifth of the
World's people, it will serve no useful purpose to browbeat them or
subjugate them as is being attempted in Afghanistan, Iraq and
Palestine and elsewhere to a lesser degree.
b. So-called Islamic Fundamentalists or so-called Jehadis total a few
million people out of a total 1,370 Million people.
c. The more the West adopts the present strategy, more number of
Muslims will become antagonistic to it.
d. Islam is growing while other Faiths are either static or losing
followers.
e. Muslims are far more ardent in following their precepts and
practices and as such are a far more dynamic whole.
f. It is better to 'live and let live'
g. From (f.) above must follow a just and equitable solution of the
socio-political issues relating to Muslims in the Philippines,
Thailand, Myanmar, Indian-Administered Jammu and Kashmir, the South-
West Regions of China and Palestine.
Iam quite clear in my mind that the continuinf presence of foreign
invading forces in Afghanistan and Iraq and the 'cruel approach' of
Israel to Lebanon and Palestine is only exacerbating the problems.
This appraisal is seconded by a House of Commons Committee as may be
seen below.
Let us not use exaggeration and negative observations against some
one, just because his or her views are unpalatable.
Joseph
Karachi, Pakistan
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
6 I have to thank you Mr. Pathasarathy for telling me what I always
knew that the Minorities in India are no better off than their
counterparts in Pakistan. As a matter of fact, in the political sphere
we are far better off in that we have Joint Electorate with Special
Reserved Seats as well.
Joseph
Karachi, Pakistan
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
5 Dear Sheshadri, you are wasting your admittedly deep knowledge about
the Hindu scriptures and holy books on people like Joseph who are
steeped in Islamic fundamentalism which refuses to acknowledge living
space for other religions. You may be a great savant or a pundit, but
for Joseph, you are only a kafir. Pl keep this in mind.
B.V.SHENOY
BANGALORE, India
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
4 Joseph:>>" India is a Hindu Country masquerading as a Secular One"
You are being unfair to hinduism and India and you know that.
Secularism, pluralism etc. are respectable words in India's politics,
only because the majority of population in India is still hindu,
despite higher-than-average proliferation rate of moslems and rapid
increases in churchians by open and crypto-convesions. Hunduism in
India still respects secular values for India, because the bhagavat
Gita, accepted by all sections of hinduism. requires that hindus
should respect all godheads faithully believed in by people anywherem,
since the formless and hence all-forms-possible Absolute will respond
to them in any form faithfully worshipped. Even the RSS/BJP/VHP are
fighting only for the survival of primordial hinduism in India, in
harmony with all other world religions, NOT for the removal of other
religionists from India, or the curtailment of their citizenship
rights in India's dynamic democracy, temporarily operating as if it is
a dynastic demonarchy.
v.seshadri
chennai, india
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
3 When will the U. P. A. Government fall, Miss. Chitra of Mangalore?.
Rather, more precisely, when will Sardar Manmohan Singh be asked to
resign?.
We are coming closer to the situation where the President and Prime
Minister will always be Hindu, which is how it should be as India is a
Hindu Country masquerading as a Secular One. Sixty years is, indeed,
to long to carry on with a myth.
By the way, were you at St. Agnes'?.
Joseph
Karachi, Pakistan
Aug 13, 2007 12:00 AM
2 Congress and secular brigades are known as mother of all scams and
scandals. Today india is fast moving to occupy the world's most
corrupt nation. Let us hope that we stand first at least in some area.
Shameless secular leaders are running in the government in the name of
secularism and showing ghost of the hindu nationalists. Our democracy
have failed to punish corrupt politicians. UPA government is full of
corrupts, anti-nationals and hardcore islamists.
Miss Chitra
Mangalore, India
Aug 12, 2007 12:00 AM
1 Man u guys are liar.. after investigation it was found only 7% of
petrol pump went to peopel with BJP support.. given BJp usually nets
around 26% popular vote if anything bjp suporter should cry foul that
they didn;t get their proper share..
Rahul
Delhi, India
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?235369
National Magazine | May 01, 1996
Focus
Settling A Score
Nina Pillai's mission is to defeat the Congress
Ajith Pillai
Focus
The Political Option
M'esco Managing Director Rita Singh hits the campaign trail
Bharat Ahluwalia
EVER since the gruesome death last July in Tihar jail of her biscuit
tycoon husband Rajan Pillai, Nina Pillai has been threatening to get
her back on "friendly" politicians who "deserted" her in her husband's
time of need. So it did not come as a surprise when she filed her
nomination as an independent candidate for the Lok Sabha from her
husband's hometown of Kollam, 70 km from Thiruvananthapuram.
Though she does not admit it, Nina's immediate mission seems to be not
to win herself but to ensure the defeat of Congress candidate and
Union Minister of State S. Krishna Kumar. "Krishna Kumar was supposed
to be our friend," she says. "But he refused to even come on the phone
when Rajan was dying." However, she is quick to add that it is not
Krishna Kumar she is fighting. "I am fighting his boss."
The 39-year-old former air hostess is also using her political status
to embarrass the Congress. Her revelation at a press conference in
Thiruvan-anthapuram on April 17 that her husband had been cheated by a
political nexus, with the controversial godman Chandraswami at its
core, will not help the Congress. She has alleged that about $2
million was paid to the godman between November '94 and February '95
by her husband. Chandraswami had promised to sort things out for Rajan
Pillai but finally failed him. Points out Nina: "The money was paid to
him because even senior Union ministers we approached told us that
Chandraswami was the man who could move things at the Prime Minister's
level".
She also sees sinister machinations in the troubles she has been
facing in claiming her shareholdings in various companies owned by her
late husband. She suspects the hand of a rival business group which
she alleges is acting with the blessings of Chandraswami. Says Nina:
"Rajan is gone. Now this friend of the Prime Minister wants to torture
a helpless widow." She says her husband fell out of favour with a
section of Congressmen after the '91 elections. It was then that her
husband, she claims, on the request of a senior Congress leader from
Maharashtra, approached K. Karunakaran and Satish Sharma, asking them
not to support Narasimha Rao as the candidate for prime minister-ship.
"Ever since this came to the notice of Chandraswami, we have been in
trouble," she says.
Though Nina Pillai is not likely to emerge even as a marginal leader,
local Congress leaders did their best to persuade her not to contest.
Among them: Chief Minister A.K. Antony, Union Industries Minister K.
Karunakaran and PCC President Vylar Ravi. The Pillais are influential
in Kerala and traditional Congress supporters.
The only cause for comfort in the Congress camp is that Nina is a
novice in politics and as an independent she lacks the backing of any
political organisation. The BJP has come forward to support her but
the party's infrastructure is not fully committed to campaign for her,
perhaps because Nina has made it clear that she will not join any
party. Says she: "Don't think I am part of the BJP. I am not. They
(BJP) came forward to help and I said fine. I want to be an
independent".
Her campaign involves meeting people directly rather than holding
meetings. However, Nina says she is trying to rope in Arjun Singh,
Kiran Bedi and friends in the film industry in Bombay to attend a
rally in Kollam. But despite such plans, her campaigning is patchy.
She is the first to admit that she is a reluctant politician. "I never
dreamt of getting into politics. I have literally been forced to fight
this election. I am fight-ing it for my survival and the survival of
my children".
Though her husband's family was opposed to her entering politics they
have now come around and her in-laws who command much respect in
Kollam have extended support. Early estimates put it that Nina will
corner enough votes to ensure Krishna Kumar's defeat. That, in a
sense, will be victory for her.
May 29, 1996
1 No Place for Revenge
It was saddening to learn that people enter the electoral fray revenge
(Settling a Score, 1). Nina Pillai has admitted that her husband Rajan
had tried to bribe himself of the mess he was mired presumably one of
his own creation, by offering Rs 2 crore Chandraswami. Business people
like them exploit and a corrupt system to further eir ends and, in the
rare instances when they don't succeed, cry themselves hoarse bout
corruption.
Nina Pillai contested the elections not to serve the electorate, but
to ensure the down- of Krishna Kumar, who (I be wrong) is one of the
Congress politicians who is clean and, what's more, who proved himself
an able administrator and an efficient minister. It is not that I
don't sympathise with Nina Pillai. she has suffered is traumatic. But
it is, to a large extent, the effect of the actions of her own ilk
that nurtured such a system. The only thing that can be said in her
favour is that she is honest and makes no bones about her intentions.
N.J. Thomas, Dehra Dun
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?201281
SC's Poser on Chandraswami's Role in Rajiv Assassination
New Delhi | May 26, 2009
The Supreme Court put a query why no proceedings were initiated
against controversial godman Chandraswami if the government really
suspected him of funding the assassination of former Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi by LTTE.
"If he has funded the assassination, then why did you not proceed
against him?" a vacation bench of Justices VS Sirpurkar and RM Lodha
asked ED's counsel Wasim Ahmed Qadri.
The bench made the passing reference after the ED opposed
Chandraswami's plea to travel abroad on the ground that he had several
criminal cases registered against him and is suspected of funding the
assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.
Senior counsel Mukul Rohtagi, appearing for the controversial godman,
however, told the court that Chandraswami was never an accused in the
case unlike the slain LTTE chief V Prabhakaran and others like the
organisation's intelligence wing chief Pottu Amman.
To another query from the bench, Quadri said it appears the case
against Prabahakaran might be closed in India in view of his killing
by the Sri Lankan Army.
Rohtagi earlier strongly pleaded that Chandraswami be permitted to
travel abroad as he had been acquitted of all the criminal cases
registered against him, except the nine-odd cases registered against
him by ED.
http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?660446
National / Politics / Interviews Magazine | Dec 08, 1997
Exclusive
"Chandraswami Was Sivarasan's Godfather"
J. Ranganath, who sheltered Sivarasan, Rajiv's assassin, speaks to
Outlook on One-eyed Jack's last few days
A.S. Panneerselvan Interviews J. Ranganath
Jayaram Ranganath, 40, is accused No. 26 in the Rajiv Gandhi
assassination case. A Kannadiga Tamil from Bangalore, he was married
to Mridula and owned a workshop in the garden city. An unwitting
player after Rajiv's assassins--kingpin Sivarasan alias one-eyed Jack,
and Shubha, part of the killer squad at Sriperumbudur, along with five
others--knocked on his backdoor and allegedly forced entry into his
house on August 6, 1991. The LTTE operatives stayed on till August 20
when the CBI raided the house and found them dead. The deaths, says
the police, was by suicide, although there are doubts about this
theory.
Ranganath was arrested on August 18, 1991, for sheltering Sivarasan
and Shubha. Ironically, it was Ranganath who informed the police about
the fugitives in his house and is the only witness to the CBI's break-
in operation. And he and his estranged wife are the only ones to have
heard Sivarasan and Shubha speak about the crime.
Ranganath's recent affidavit filed before the Jain Commission accuses
the CBI of deliberately hiding key facts and shielding several
culprits. His major contention is that his information that Sivarasan
and his team were promised a safe passage to the West by Chandraswami
and details pertaining to the god -man and some Congress leaders were
not recorded by the CBI. According to him, the CBI was determined not
to widen the net beyond the role of the LTTE in the plot to kill
Rajiv. "As the only living witness and the only one with no political
axe to grind, my words should be taken seriously," he declares.
As a key witness, the information he has is important, to say the
least. A.S. Panneerselvan sought an interview through Ranganath's
lawyers. The questions were sent to him at the high security
Poonamallee sub-jail located within the designated court complex where
the Rajiv assassination case is being heard in Chennai. Ranganath's
answers have been duly attested by the additional superintendent of
the jail. Excerpts:
Did Sivarasan and Shubha tell you about their connections with
Chandraswami and an AICC functionary?
They did speak about their connections with Chandraswami and also with
a Congress leader from Karnataka who was a member of Rajiv Gandhi's
cabinet. They used to say that it was through this leader that they
got the details of Rajiv Gandhi's election tour programme. They talked
about the AICC functionary as their close associate. During his stay
with me, Sivarasan also informed me that Chandraswami was his
godfather.
(In his affidavit submitted to the Jain Commission on November 4,
Ranganath speaks of Sivarasan and Shubha naming Aswath Narayan, a
local Congress leader, as one of their friends. Both Shubha and
Sivarasan pointed out that Narayan was close to the AICC functionary
in Delhi who helped them with Rajiv's tour programme.)
What was the safe passage promised to Sivarasan by Chandraswami?
Sivarasan wanted to go abroad directly from Bangalore. This was the
reason why he came to Bangalore. But he said that if he went to Jaffna
he could be killed and that the 'Jain Muni' (The godman's real name is
Nemichand Jain) would arrange for his safe passage to a foreign
country.
(In his affidavit to the commission, Ranganath declares that Sivarasan
told him the godman planned to first bring him to Delhi and then sneak
him out to a foreign destination.)
Did the CBI prevent you from telling the whole truth?
The CBI threatened me. Barring the LTTE, they did not want me to
mention the involvement of the others in the crime. Since they fixed
the LTTE as the only offenders, they wanted evidence to accuse it--and
not against those who commissioned the offence.
What are the truths the CBI refused to record or act upon?
Then CBI chief Karthikeyan warned me not to speak anything about the
AICC functionary or any other Congress people, and Chandraswami.
Karthikeyan seemed to know the facts about the assassination and also
the powers behind Rajiv's killing. He warned me of serious
consequences if I gave the information to a magistrate or others. From
what he told me it was clear that he was shielding Chandraswami and
some key Congress people. Even after my request, CBI (SIT) failed to
record my statement.
I took DCP Kempiah (Karnataka police) to the Bangalore hideout where
Sivarasan and Shubha were hiding. But his statement has not been
produced before the designated court.
How do you know that the CBI was reluctant to arrest Sivarasan and
Shubha?
On the morning of July 30, 1991, a person called Vicky was arrested at
Coimbatore. He gave specific information about Sivarasan's hideout in
Bangalore (this was before Sivarasan and the others forcibly entered
Ranganath's house on August 6). But for 24 hours, the CBI made no
effort to search the hideout. On August 2, 1991, the CBI questioned
one Jaganathan, who arranged four safehouses for the LTTE workers. He
gave details of the locations of these houses and the hospitals in
which the injured LTTE men were admitted. But the CBI did not make any
effort to arrest Sivarasan. Perhaps because if he were caught alive,
Sivarasan would squeal about those who conspired to kill Rajiv and
also of his (Sivarasan's) connections with Congressmen. This is
perhaps why even on August 18, 1991, the CBI did not allow the local
police to catch them.
If I get an opportunity to depose before the Jain Commission, then I
will prove the fact that there are other persons involved in Rajiv
Gandhi's assassination. I am the only one alive who stayed with
Sivarasan and Shubha (after the assassination) and heard what they had
to say about the killing.
Aug 25, 2009 04:04 PM
1 congress has involved in rajiv's killing it is the hidden fact
MATHI
Madurai, India
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?204696
National / Politics / Cover Stories Magazine | May 04, 1998
Cover Story
Enter Chandraswami
Rajesh Joshi
Also In This Story
Cover Story
The Life And Times Of Jayalalitha"
No one can get anything out of me or subdue me by threats, harsh
treatment; it only makes me more stubborn, inflexible, unbending,
determined. The only way anyone can get me to cooperate is to be nice
to me, pamper me, cajole me, talk to me kindly, softly." --Jayalalitha
in a March 1985 interview.Ajith Pillai, A.S. Panneerselvan
Cover Story
The Revenge Of Draupadi
Cover StoryThe Inner Circle
Cover StoryA Coalition In FettersThe BJP struggles to come up with a
strategy to deal with unpredictable allies like JayalalithaIshan
Joshi
Cover StoryAn Intriguing DualismThe Tamil psyche is a paradoxical mix
of a 2,000-year-old heritage, regional pride and modernitySagarika
Ghose
Cover Story72% Tamils Angry With Jaya's DemandsTo gauge the reaction
of the people of Tamil Nadu to AIADMK leader Jayalalitha demands on
the BJP government at the centre ,an option poll was conducted by
Outlook - Mode in the cities of Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and
adjoining areas. In all 5990 respondents in the age group 21 - 45 were
interviewed on April 21 - 23. Most of them do not approve of her
actions and move to destabilise the Vajpayee government.
CHANDRASWAMI is back in business. His services were sought recently by
friends in the BJP to defuse the on-going crisis provoked by the
friend Subramanian Swamy and J. Jayalalitha on one side, and Ram
Jethmalani on the other. Even though the BJP adopts an anti-
Chandraswami posture in public, senior leaders like Murli Manohar
Joshi and Bhairon Singh Shekhawat are known to be close to him.
So, while the prime minister appealed to the allies to observe
restraint, Shekhawat met the godman at Rajas-than Bhawan, apparently
to propitiate Swamy. However, Chandraswami's aide Vikram Singh
maintains they discussed "some work regarding his school in
Rajasthan".
Such interaction with the godman is not new. Sources say that after
the general elections when the BJP was still trying to garner support,
Chandraswami was approached by "top party leaders". Says a
Chandraswami aide: "Around 10 days before the formation of the
government, people from the BJP approached Swamiji to get Dr Swamy and
Jayalalitha around." And now with the BJP-Jayalalitha standoff
continuing, the Vajpayee government badly needs an effective
intermediary. Chandraswami, it is felt, is just the man. His hold on
Swamy can be gauged from the fact that he played an important role in
bringing two sworn enemies, Swamy and Jayalalitha, together.
But those close to Chandraswami concede that even he can't ask Swamy
to keep quiet. "How can you expect Swamy to keep quiet when he is not
getting anything? Why does one then get into politics?" asks Singh.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?205454
National / Politics Magazine | May 11, 1998
Focus
Swami's New Saviours
Will friends in the BJP coalition help Chandraswami wriggle out of the
cases against him?
Charu Lata Joshi
Also In This Story
Chandraswami Case-List
CONTROVERSIAL godman Chandraswami could well have been holidaying in
the south of France. But for a timely order on May 1 by CBI Special
Judge Ajit Bharioke who has been hearing the Lakhubhai Pathak cheating
case--and in whose court the swami had moved an application for
permission to travel to France and the US for 'medical treatment'.
Till then, Chandraswami's plans for a getaway had appeared to be
moving with clock-work precision.
Jethmalani feels the government is 'soft' on the Godman. AIADMK's R.
Kumar is believed to be behind the 'Save Swami' campaign.
Just a fortnight back, on April 17, the Directorate of Enforcement
(DOE)--which is trying him for five cases of foreign exchange
violations amounting to Rs 2,100 crore--had told the metropolitan
magistrate hearing the cases that it had no objection to his
travelling abroad. In a matter of days, the court gave Chandraswami
the green signal.
The two dichotomous moves have exposed a simmering controversy within
the government on the future of the godman. And has exposed the power
he continues to wield. This time round, Chandraswami derives his
strength, not only from his proximity to BJP leaders like Bhairon
Singh Shekhawat, but also from his closeness to Janata Party chief
Subramanian Swamy. And it is the Swamy-faction--represented by AIADMK
chief J. Jayalalitha and her minister of state for banking, R.K. Kumar--
who appear to be indirectly involved in soft-peddling the cases
against Chandraswami. Says Ram Jethmalani, minister for urban
development, who has had clashes with both the godman and Swamy: "The
attempts to go soft on Chandraswami seem quite obvious."
The stand adopted by the DOE--a letter from Kunal Singh, assistant
director of investigation, Delhi zone, had informed the court that it
had "no objection" to Chandraswami's travel plans--which literally gave
him permission to flee the country, has clouded the entire proceedings
with suspicion. The enforcement agency holds that since both
investigation and adjudication proceedings were completed in the four
cases, they had technically no reason to oppose his application.
However, legal experts argue that the move amounts to a major
concession towards Chandraswami by the department. The move seems
suspicious since investigation is still pending in one case--involving
foreign exchange transactions worth $200,000 with his then New York-
based disciple Bina Ramani in 1981--and there are apprehensions that if
he does travel abroad, he could tamper with witnesses and crucial
evidence.
The fact that the metropolitan magistrate had first asked for the
DOE's stand on the accused in writing and also demanded Chandraswami's
status in the CBI cases, possibly indicates the DOE's influ-ence over
the court's decision.
What made the DOE's stand even more dubious was the fact that yet
another sister agency, the CBI, which when confronted with a similar
move in the Pathak case--the agency is presently handling two cases
against the godman, the St Kitts Forgery case as well as the Lakhubhai
Pathak cheating case--had categorically opposed the godman's
application to travel abroad. According to sources, Cha-ndraswami is
likely to move the high court in appeal against the rejection of his
application by Bharioke.
THE godman's moves are getting desperate. And in the process, the
dichotomy in the government's stand is being further exposed. In a
spate of curious developments, even as the DOE appeared to be giving
Chandraswami a free rein, a definite lobby within the government,
headed by L.K. Advani in the home ministry, appears all set to nail
him. The main motive being to get at the BJP's principal foe,
Subramanian Swamy. Says Supreme Court senior counsel, Ashok Panda:
"What is required is a comprehensive approach by the government as a
whole and not diverse actions by individual agencies. "
Within a matter of days of the DOE move, the ministry of home affairs
(MHA) gave its approval to prosecute the god-man under the Foreign
Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA). The case had come to light when
the CBI, while inspecting the accounts of Chandraswami's Vishwa
Dharmayatan Trust, found that it had not intimated the MHA of its
foreign contributions ever since it was formed in 1985. The agency
subsequently filed a chargesheet and moved the MHA for sanction to
prosecute the godman
. Recently, an interim Income Tax report evaluated the total assets of
Chandraswami and the Trust at Rs 2,300 crore, a substantial amount of
which came from foreign donations. The report, which gives a detailed
break-up of foreign donations received by the Trust till June, 1996,
shows that, among others, NRI businessmen Somchai Chawla of Hong Kong,
Abdul Ismail from the UK, Adnan Khashoggi and Rakesh Khanna from
Canada, had made substantial contributions in dollars.
The income tax department's inquiry into the godman's living expenses
also shows that he had spent nearly Rs 200-300 crore on foreign trips
undertaken between 1985-95. The report also mentions Vikram Singh as
Chandraswami's closest confidant and states that he is the director of
five companies--Ambassador Construction Pvt Ltd., Neptune Estates Pvt
Ltd., Nav-Abhiyan Publication Pvt Ltd., Scorpion Finlease Pvt Ltd.,
and Genesis Financial Services Pvt Ltd.
But, despite all the probes into the god-man's murky financial affairs--
which followed after the public interest litigation was filed in
Supreme Court in December, 1996--what has emerged most clearly is that
the swami is neither down nor out. After nearly two years of heated
legal battles and after languishing for eight months in a dingy Tihar
cell, Chandraswami appears to have staged a dramatic comeback.
Political circles are abuzz with news of his having returned to his
favourite occupation: power-broking.
What has aroused even greater suspicion within certain sceptics in the
DOE circles is Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's recent
announcement to "introduce drastic changes" in foreign exchange
regulations by the next session of Parliament. Insiders fear that this
will spell a dilution in powers of arrest as well as major concessions
to FERA offenders. Realistically, this may imply that the charges
which Chandraswami presently faces may not constitute offences at all
by the time a new enactment on FERA is brought about.
Political pundits see a deeper conspiracy behind the recent moves to
go-slow on Chandraswami. The fact that both Chandraswami and
Subramanian Swamy have allegedly been named in Justice M.C. Jain's
final report on the larger conspiracy behind Rajiv Gandhi's
assassination, and that the government has a mere six months to place
it before Parliament along with an Action Taken Report is one of the
reasons for Chandraswami's desperation to flee the country. According
to sources, former cabinet secretary Zafar Saifullah had told Jain of
having personally read certain wireless intercepts of conversations
between the LTTE, Chandraswami and Israeli intelligence agency Mossad
in early 1991. And these had allegedly showed their involvement in the
wider international conspiracy.
With the underlying pressure to make the report public, the
speculation is that certain factions in the government are eager to
free Chandraswami and would prefer to turn the heat on the Janata
Party leader--who is, in any case, causing problems for the ruling
combine. Legally, too, experts argue that a case of embezzlement and
foreign exchange regulations is not as serious as the findings of the
Jain Commission report. For, once a special team is constituted to
further investigate the Jain Commission recommendations, it will lead
to a serious probe into an even murkier case of money laundering, and
involvement with foreign intelligence agencies in an assassination.
But given that Advani has constituted a team of home ministry
officials to recommend further action on the basis of Jain's
recommendations and an internal report is to be submitted to him
within a month, the heat on the godman seems back on. Yet, knowing
Chandraswami, he will do his bit to use every likely political contact
to wriggle out of a sticky situation.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?205496
National / Politics Magazine | May 15, 1996
Investigation
No Godfather Now
Chandraswami's fate will depend on the next government
Ranjit Bhushan , A.S. Panneerselvan
WILL Chandraswami ever be nailed? This week, finally, may provide an
answer as the godman was remanded to a day's judicial custody till May
4. But that answer hinges on another key question: is Narasimha Rao
losing his grip over the proceedings? That may be decided by May 10,
when the results of the elections are expected to be known. If Rao
returns as Prime Minister, the May 2 arrest of the well-chronicled and
controversial godman in a Madras hotel could turn out to be merely a
flash in the pan.
But in the event of the reins of power slipping from Rao's hands, the
investigating agencies may have a different role to play. "The charges
are serious. Depends on how they are framed," says an official
coordinating several charges against the self-styled guru--which range
from income-tax evasion to FERA violations to charges of bribery and
cheating.
Officials admit that the charge on which Chandraswami and close
associate Kailash Nath Agrawal (alias 'Mamaji') were picked up--of
cheating London-based NRI Lakhu Bhai Pathak to the tune of $100,000--is
a weak link in the chain of investigations launched against the
godman. But if Rao's downfall becomes inevitable, there is every
reason for Chandraswami's tryst with trouble to be long drawn out.
On May 2, Delhi's chief metropolitan magistrate Prem Kumar issued non-
bailable warrants against Chandraswami. Issuing the warrants, Kumar
directed the CBI that the godman be arrested and produced on or before
May 14. Such is the godman's clout that reporters trying to ascertain
the next course of action were informed that "he would have to be
traced", even though it seemed common knowledge that the god-man was
holed up in Madras.
A 10-member CBI team headed by Joint Director D. Mukerjee descended on
the Om Sindoori hotel in Madras the same evening. Interestingly, the
hotel owner is Apollo hospital's Dr Pratap Reddy, a Chandraswami
acolyte. Inside the hotel--which resembled a set out of a detective
movie, with CBI sleuths prowling around with their cellphones--the
godman was talking to Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy. The three-
hour meeting between the former Union commerce minister and the guru
was ostensibly meant to ward off the arrest. Swamy was reportedly
trying to use his friend and former attorney general G. Ramaswamy to
invoke immunity through a 1988 bail order in the same case.
The godman had already summoned a battery of doctors who were ready to
certify his "acute condition of cervical spondilitis". But the CBI
would have none of it. In a move reflecting freshly-found confi-dence,
Mukerjee said that if the godman needed treatment, he would have to
accompany the CBI men to a government hospital. After that,
Chandraswami got into the waiting CBI car without further ado and was
taken to the residence of additional sessions judge S. Sambandam,
where a transit warrant was to be obtained.
The CBI had registered the case against the godman on the basis of a
complaint filed by Lakhu Bhai Pathak in 1988. The agency had
chargesheeted the godman and 'Mamaji' for cheating Pathak through the
false promise of using their influence to secure him a newsprint and
paper pulp contract in India. Since then, nothing much had happened.
As judge Prem Kumar observed in his 17-page order, "investigations had
been going on for years without any tangible results."
Interestingly enough, the preliminary investigations conducted by a
CBI superintendent of police in the Pathak case found the "allegations
to be true". Subsequently, the case was transferred to the Enforcement
Directorate for initiating "necessary action". And the Directorate has
declined to reveal the further course of investigations, claiming
privilege because of the sensitive nature of the case. Now, perhaps,
it will be forced to reveal its hand. The real drama may have just
begun to unfold.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?201366
National / Politics Magazine | Apr 03, 1996
Focus
Godman Cornered?
A new PIL pitches Chandraswami in his toughest legal battle yet
Rajesh Joshi
WILL the jet-setting guru Chandraswami be able to wriggle out of this
one? Time seems to be running out for the godman, as the Supreme Court
this week hears a public interest litigation (PIL), originally filed
on September 20, 1995, seeking to appoint a special commission to look
into the charges against him.
The investigating agencies--under fire for allegedly protecting the
godman are hoping to prevent that eventuality.
The petition accuses the investigating agencies of having failed to
take action against the godman in spite of the presence of
overwhelming evidence.
The PIL, originally filed by advocate Anukul Chandra Pradhan, accuses
the agencies of "complete inaction" vis-a-vis the Chandraswami case,
because of his "influential connections". The petition primarily seeks
an expeditious inquiry into the charges against Chandraswami, to be
carried out by special commissioners under the direct supervision of
the court.
The PIL was filed only a few days after the then minister of state for
internal security, Rajesh Pilot, ordered the swami's arrest, following
disclosures by Dawood Ibrahim's hitman, Babloo Srivas-tava, linking
the godman to the Dubai-based don. Subsequently, a human rights
organisation, People's Union for Civil Rights, also sought the apex
court's intervention to book Chandraswami and others in the St Kitts
forgery case. The court directed that all complaints pertaining to
Chandraswami be clubbed together and appointed advocate Anil Divan as
amicus curae. It came down heavily on the CBI, directing it either to
"book or leave" him.
The amended petition highlights the Government's reluctance to take
action against Chandraswami. It says the probe must cover his alleged
FERA and tax violations, the St Kitts forgery case, the Lakhubhai
Pathak cheating case, Babloo Srivastava's allegations and the godman's
links with politicians. The investigating agencies have failed to take
action "in spite of overwhelming material", says the plea.
The fact that the court has taken cognisance of the petition should
set alarm bells ringing. Those said to be closely linked with the
godman are Prime Minister Narasimha Rao, Petroleum Minister Captain
Satish Sharma and former minister R.K. Dhawan. All three and former
Union minister K.K. Tewari are named in the FIR in the St Kitts case,
but have not been interrogated. Had the CBI acted vigilantly and
independently, it would have done so, the petition points out.
It goes on to explain how Chandraswami manages, each time, to get over
any crisis--referring to his close proximity to top politicians. To
establish the godman's high connections with politicians like Rao and
former prime minister Chandra Shekhar, the petition quotes from his
own admission before the Jain Commission.
Giving details of the St Kitts forgery case--allegedly plotted by V.P.
Singh's political opponents with the aid of Chandraswami and some
officials of the Directorate of Enforcement (DOE)--the petition pleads
for the confessional statement of the late A.K. Nandy, former DOE
deputy director and an accused to the CBI. The petition says, Nandy's
statement discloses the role played by politicians. It also describes
how the operation was planned by Chandraswami, his aide K.N. Aggarwal
alias Mamaji, Larry Kolb (son-in-law of arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi)
and the godman's disciple, Dev Kethu.
Quoting from the FIR lodged on May 25, 1990, the petition observes
that Rao, then external affairs minister, also had a role to play. The
FIR says that Rao called consul general R.K. Rai to his suite at the
United Nations Plaza hotel in New York on October 4, 1989, and told
him to personally attest the documents brought to him by Nandy.
The petition highlights the CBI's reluctance to follow the Babloo
Srivastava case. Contrary to practice, the CBI did not use
Srivastava's claim--that he had stayed at Chandraswami's ashram and
planted a bomb in journalist Rajinder Jain's car to falsely implicate
him at the behest of the godman--in the chargesheet filed in the L.D.
Arora murder case.
This omission by the CBI was intended to prevent the judge from taking
cognisance of it and directing the agency to investigate Chandraswami
for harbouring a criminal. More so, because TADA provisions are
drastic, the petition speculates. Had the statement been filed,
Chandraswami would have been implicated, it adds. In former Union
minister Kalpnath Rai's case, the CBI had filed the statement of
Bombay-based criminal Bhai Thakur, which finally led to the arrest of
Rai and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan.
Meanwhile, Chandraswami is maintaining a stoic silence and--perhaps in
the hope of propitiating the gods--observing the navratri fast.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?201123
National Magazine | Feb 21, 1996
Update
By The Grace Of God
The CBI fails to find 'clinching evidence' and recommends that the
case against Chandraswami be closed
Rajesh Joshi
Also In This Story
Update"The Swami Used To Give Us Money"THE various people accused in
the hawala and the Bombay blasts cases have made sensational
allegations against top politicians in the course of their
interrogation by the investi -gating agencies. Only a few of these
have been conclusively proved. But nevertheless, the charges can
provide vital leads. Outlook met Virendra Pant, a close associate of
Dawood's right-hand man Babloo Srivastav, and an accused in the murder
of the Delhi businessman, Lalit Suneja. Pant, who was arrested and
interrogated by the CBI and is currently in Tihar Jail, spoke about
Chandraswami's activities and the goings-on in his Delhi ashram.
Excerpts:
The preliminary inquiry (PE No. 2/S/95) registered last year against
controversial godman Chandraswami is being accorded a quiet burial by
the CentralBureau of Investigation (CBI). Last week, the CBI sent a
report to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) recommending that the
case against the godman be closed.
The orders to arrest the godman had been issued by the then minister
of state for internal security, Rajesh Pilot, in the wake of the
confessions made by Babloo Srivastav, a hired killer, about Chandra-
swami's links with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
While arrest warrants are being issued to top politicians, the godman
continues to play wheeler dealer from his ashram.
Following his extradition from Singapore for masterminding the murder
of L.D. Arora, a customs offi-cial, last year, Srivastav had disclosed
to the CBI that Chandraswami had kept him in his ashram in February
1992 when hewas wanted in connection with several criminal cases by
the Uttar Pradesh police. In his statement, Srivastav confessed to
having placed a bomb in the car of Delhi-based journalist Rajendra
Jain at the behest of Chandraswami, along with Virendra Pant and
Sanjay Khanna, members of Dawood's vast underworld network.
Pilot's directive had been precipitated by allegations from the
Opposition that Chan-draswami was not being investigated because he
enjoyed political patronage. The CBI looked into the revelations made
by Sriv-astav, and the godman and his aide Vikram Singh were
interrogated on four occasions. But ultimately, the CBI says it has
found "nothing clinching" against the swami.
However, based on Srivastav's revelations, CBI sleuths interrogated
Pant, Sriva-stav's accomplice in the Jain bomb case. Bureau sources
now confirm that Pant not only corroborated Srivastav's statement but
also gave further information about Chandraswami's activities. But,
for some mysterious reason, Pant's confession was not included in "the
official record". This, despite the fact that the investigating agency
had sought the permission of the Shahdara court to interrogate Pant.
What is even stranger is that after the three-day interrogation at
Delhi's Tihar Jail, the CBI said it was not in a position to pursue
the bomb case and, subsequently,Chandraswami's role in it. The reason:
since the case was originally registered with Delhi's Mandir Marg
Police Station, the agency could investigate the charges only if a
notification transferring the case to the CBI was issued by the MHA.
But the transfer never came. However, following adverse media reports,
the police had to reopen the Jain case and Pant was rearrested. As for
the other allegation against the godman of harbouring Srivastav,
officials now say that it will be very difficult to prove in court
that Chandraswami knowingly sheltered him. Going by the law, the
harbourer can be booked only if it is established that he had
knowledge of crimes committed by the person he was shielding.
Pilot had also ordered an inquiry into Chandraswami's alleged links
with Daw-ood Ibrahim. According to Srivastav, Arora was killed because
he had information about the Bombay blasts. Chandra-swami's harbouring
of Srivastav and former minister Arif Mohammed Khan's claims that he
had pictures of the god-man with Dawood's hitmen, hinted at definite
links. But concrete proof has remained elusive.
And now, Chandraswami, a master of crisis management skills, has
somehow managed to win over a one-time sworn adversary, Somchai
Chaisri Chawla, a Thailand-based NRI.Chawla had accused the godman of
cheating him of $250,000 in March 1995, and the Thailand police had
issued arrest warrants against Chandraswami and Vikram Singh. The NRI
had also complained to the Prime Minister then and had sought the
protection of the Delhi police on the grounds that he was being
harassed and threatened by "one Shri Vikram Singh, a close associate
of Shri Chandraswami.... I am being shadowed. As if Delhi is governed
by the rule of Chandraswami". Surprisingly, Chawla has reportedly done
a volte face and withdrawn all his charges against the godman. Sources
informed that Chawla had filed an affidavit with the Indian Government
last month "supporting Chandraswami." But he has been asked by the
Government to present himself and personally verify the contents of
the affidavit.
And so, at a time when arrest warrants are being issued against top
politicians like Kalp Nath Rai and H.K.L. Bhagat, and cabinet
ministers are compelled to resign on corruption charges, the
globetrotting godman continues to play the "wheeler-dealer" from his
sprawling south Delhi ashram.
Also In This Story
Update
"The Swami Used To Give Us Money"
THE various people accused in the hawala and the Bombay blasts cases
have made sensational allegations against top politicians in the
course of their interrogation by the investi -gating agencies. Only a
few of these have been conclusively proved. But nevertheless, the
charges can provide vital leads. Outlook met Virendra Pant, a close
associate of Dawood's right-hand man Babloo Srivastav, and an accused
in the murder of the Delhi businessman, Lalit Suneja. Pant, who was
arrested and interrogated by the CBI and is currently in Tihar Jail,
spoke about Chandraswami's activities and the goings-on in his Delhi
ashram. Excerpts:
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?200868
National / Politics Magazine | Oct 18, 1995
Spotlight
Spinning A Web Of Fraud
The Chandraswami saga heats up with a series of probes and arrest
warrants. But can the godman be nailed?
Ranjit Bhushan
EVER since the then minister of state for internal security, Rajesh
Pilot, ordered the arrest of Chandraswami, the question which is being
increasingly asked is whether this marks the end of the road for the
controversial godman. Senior officials in the Prime Minister's Office
say PV. Narasimha Rao has given the go-ahead for the law to take its
own course. But as investigating officials plod through the plethora
of charges against the globetrotting godman, it is becoming clear that
it will be extremely difficult to nail him.
For one, except for the charges emanating from the confession of
Babloo Srivastav, a hired killer recently extradited from Singapore,
almost all the charges against Chandraswami relate to alleged frauds
committed outside the country. Investigating officials admit that
frauds are difficult to prove in court. It is also not that easy to
conduct investigations in foreign countries.
In one country, however no real probe is needed to begin with. The
Thailand police have already issued a warrant of arrest against
Chandraswami for allegedly duping a businessman of that country,
Somachandra Chaisiri Chawla. Chawla had complained to the Indian Prime
Minister about the fraud perpetrated on him by Chandraswami way back
in March this year, and Pilot's arrest order was based primarily on
it. But even in this case there are doubts whether the arrest warrant
can be executed because India and Thailand do not have an extradition
treaty.
Along with his complaint to Rao, Chawla had also sought protection
from the Delhi Police. He wrote to Commissioner of Police Nikhil
Kumar: "I have been receiving threatening calls/messages from one Shri
Vikram Singh, who is a close associate of Shri Chandraswami...they
have been claiming that in case I do not succumb to their illegal
demands and do not pass on funds/donation to a political party, I
shall not be able to set up any project in India." He also claimed
that Singh threatened to implicate him in false criminal cases.
The Thai warrant was more specific. Issued against Chandraswami and
Vikram Singh, his Man Friday, it said that Rs 2.4 crore had been paid
to the duo for 'getting' work done on Chawla's Rs 1,000-crore ventures
with the Bangalore Development Authority and the Bangalore Water and
Sewage Board for promoting housing projects and water supply schemes
in Bangalore.
While ordering an inquiry into Chawla's complaint, Pilot asked the CBI
to delve into the entire gamut of cases against Chandraswami,
including his alleged links with the prime accused in the Bombay
blasts case, Dawood Ibrahim. The links had been disclosed during the
CBI's interrogation of Srivastav. But proof of any such link can be
extremely elusive. Though the CBI is reportedly examining his
passport, it does not rule out his having used several identities and
passports. The Foreign Registration and Recording Office in Delhi is
looking at all his photographs taken since 1982.
Former minister Arif Mohammed Khan, who first levelled charges against
Chandraswami when his premises were raided in connection with the Jain
hawala case, claims he has pictures of Chandraswami with Dawood
Ibrahim's hitmen at an American airport. But he says he will only
release these pictures at an appropriate time.
As for Srivastav's claim that he had stayed at Chandraswami's ashram
in February 1992, it should not ruffle the probing the cases against
Chandraswami.
Most of the cases abroad relate to frauds. Chandi Suryavali, a local
leader of Indian origin from Paramribo in Surinam, had registered a
case of alleged fraud against the godman in 1986. According to the
details of the Intimation of Unlawful Activities--the Surinamese
version of an FIR--Suryavali had paid him $1 million for setting up
business ventures in India under the aegis of the Surinam Non-Resident
Indian Association. But once he got the money, Chandraswami reportedly
did the vanishing act. The complaint was sent to the Ministry of
External Affairs n 1987 but did not evoke much response from the
Indian Government, except for a cursory "we are examining the issue".
But Pilot's offensive has certainly set the cat among the pigeons.
This round of dirt-digging exercises includes an investigation into
Chandraswami's apartment at Olympic Towers Officials say the apartment
may have been used to entertain influential guests from India, which
may explain the godman's political clout.
The CBI is also chasing up another old case of cheating, this time in
London. According to the details of the case, Chandraswami and his
secretary, K.N. Agrawal, known as Mamaji, cheated an NRI, Lakhu Bhai
Pathak, of $100,000 on the pretext that the accused would use his
influence to secure newsprint and paper pulp supply contracts from the
Government of India. "Even after long persuasion, there was no
response from the accused either to secure the contracts or to return
the money given by the complainant (Pathak)," the CBI document says,
admitting that any further progress would be very difficult. "It has
not been possible to complete this investigation due to the refusal of
foreign witnesses for examination and non-receipt of relevant
documents," it notes.
The catalogue of the thorns in the swami's side is growing. Babloo
Srivastav's lawyers, V.K. Ohri and H.A. Alvi, are especially keen to
see him implicated in a 1991 case of a fatal bomb attack on Delhi-
based Journalist Ravindra Jain. The Jain commission probing the Rajiv
Gandhi assassination decided to look into an Akali leader, Mahant Seva
Dass' claim that the godman was one of the main conspirators.
In the welter of charges that are now seeing the light of day, people
remain cynical as to what the CBI or any other agency can really do.
Especially if the St Kitts investigation is anything to go by. "This
man has known all prime ministers except V.P. Singh," says the Janata
Dal's Ram Vilas Paswan. Former prime minister Chandra Shekhar,
however, maintains there is not much behind the screaming headlines.
"The law takes its own course. It is not dictated by headlines," he
says.
The experience of former joint director of the CBI, N.K. Singh is
quite different though. Singh remembers how he was abruptly taken off
the case and transferred out of the agency when he started issuing
notices to Chandraswami in early 1991. In his special leave petition
before the Supreme Court, Singh recalls the number of times Chandra
Shekhar and the then law minister, Subramanian Swamy, personally
intervened to have the case scuttled. And that is exactly what
happened in the end.
Chandraswami's saviours, if a list is drawn, far outnumber those
gunning for him. So if liquor baron Vijay Mallya offers his personal
aircraft for the godman's use, Chief Election Commissioner T.N.
Seshan, despite Iris all-out war against corruption in high places,
thinks nothing of meeting him publicly.
Leading saffron lights Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and Vijayaraje Scindia
also, count among his ardent camp followers. And earlier this year the
Communist Party of India (M) publicly ridiculed its high profile MP,
Amal Dutta, for attending the godman's birthday bash; Dutta, who is
West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu' nephew, is unlikely to get a
party ticket in the next general elections. Chandraswami's relations
with arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi extended to the Iran-Contra deal,
details of which became public later once American involvement in it
was established.
As Vineet Narain, owner of a video-magazine and one of the first to
carry exposes on the godman, says: "it something still happens to
Chandraswami, all I can say is that the Prime Minister has given up on
him. But to see that happening is wishful at this stage."
A telling example of Chandraswami's clout is that the team of CBI
sleuths is 'interrogating' him at his ashram, and not at the CBI
headquarters. And at the doorsteps of the ashram, Janata Party
President Subramanian Swamy beams: "No charges can be proved. It is
all being engineered by the Congress(T)." If that confidence is
anything to go by, the godman seems to be oil a good wicket.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?200039
http://www.outlookindia.com/peoplefnl.aspx?pid=8886&author=Chandraswami
National / Politics / Interviews Magazine | Aug 07, 1996
Focus
'Sweeper Or PM, A Crime Is A Crime'
Lakhubhai Pathak the NRI businessman who has made allegations of fraud
against Narasimha Rao and Chandraswami, began an 'indefinite' fast on
July 25 in Bombay 'to force' the former prime minister to tell the
truth. He called it off the following morning, on the advice of his
newly discovered guide G.R. Khairnar--the recently sacked civic
official, who earlier ran a crusade against Sharad Pawar. Pathak spoke
to Lekha Rattanani after he called off his fast. Excerpts from the
interview
Lekha Rattanani Interviews Lakhubhai Pathak
Also In This Story
Focus
New Man, New Impetus?
With a Deve Gowda man the new CBI chief, the agency may change its
overt pro-Rao stance
Rajesh Joshi
According to Narasimha Rao, he was not present at the Haloram House
hotel in New York when you say you met him.
The meeting took place 13 years ago. I don't remember the exact date.
But that does not change the facts. It was sometime before Christmas.
I remember I went to El Paso after this meeting , and then to Mexico
for Christmas.
So when exactly was the meeting with Rao?
It happened a few days before Christmas--between the 18th and the 23rd.
Had I known how important the meeting would turn out to be, I would
have recorded it or called in a cameraman. Rao met me in
Chandraswami's room.
According to Rao's counsel, Kapil Sibal, there is no entry in the
former prime minister's passport to show he was in New York.
Was he (Rao) an ordinary traveller or was he travelling on a
diplomatic passport? It is not my job but the job of the investigating
agencies to find out if he was actually there. Passports can be messed
around with. Anything can happen in India. We can buy ministers like
we buy vegetables. They have fooled the country, now they are fooling
the court.
Some of the witnesses whom you said were present at the meeting--Muscat-
based businessman Umesh Khimji and Ashwin Patel, the businessman from
Leceister, have denied being there. So, were they actually present?
They were eight to ten people. I have already given their names to the
court. I had told the magistrate that I cannot reveal their names
without their permission. I didn't want to offend them or create any
problems for them. I was told by the magistrate that hiding anything
is equivalent to lying. Now they are denying they were present and I
don't have to force them to speak the truth.
One of the witnesses, Maharashtra minister Suresh Jain, said he didn't
know you then and that Rao was not present.
It is an absolute lie. Politicians are people who can change their
statements like other people change their clothes. They have no
conscience.
How did you enter into a contract to supply newsprint and paper pulp
when it isn't your line of business?
The contract was a trap. I was in the pickle line, in no way in
paper.
But what about the money you paid to Chandraswami? Wasn't that a
bribe?
A bribe taken is a crime. So is a bribe given. Let the court decide
whether this is a crime. I paid $100,000 in two cheques, drawn on the
Canadian Imperial Bank, to Chandraswami. I am prepared to face any
sentence if I am proved guilty. A crime is a crime whether it's
committed by a sweeper, king or prime minister.
Are you certain the man you met in the hotel was Rao?
I didn't know Rao till he came into Chandraswami's room. But he has a
face that can't be forgotten.
What exactly did Rao say to you?
Chandraswami brought Rao to his room. Suresh Jain and others were
present. All of us got up and greeted him. Chandraswami introduced me
to Rao saying: "Yeh hamare Pathakji hain. Yeh bahuth bada
industrialist hai." Rao turned to me and said: "Chandraswami has told
me everything. Your work will be done." I was thrilled because I was
the only one in the room who was introduced to him. Suresh Jain said I
was lucky to have managed an introduction. This is the whole truth.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray says that you are keen to join his
party.
I want to be a Shiv Sainik and be of service to the people. I know the
Shiv Sena from the time I had a pickle factory in Andheri in 1974-75.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?201873
National Magazine | Dec 22, 2003
Sanjoy Ghosh
haryana
'Godman Gave The Slit-Throat Sign...'
That's how Chandraswami threatened the IAS officer who blew the
whistle on Chautala's teacher scam
Chander Suta Dogra
A little after 7.30 pm on October 22, Chandraswami, Delhi's infamous
godman and political wheeler-dealer, had an unusual visitor. Ushered
into his presence was Sanjiv Kumar, the 1985 batch IAS officer and
whistle-blower-in-chief of the schoolteacher recruitment scam in
Haryana. It was on his petition that the Supreme Court on November 25
ordered a CBI inquiry into alleged attempts by Haryana CM Om Prakash
Chautala and his office to substitute genuine selection lists with
fake ones for appointment of primary teachers in 19 districts.
"Mr Chautala was built up as a ruthless man whom I should be very
frightened of."
The attempt was to effect 2,000 new appointments. Though there's no
official confirmation, it's alleged that Rs 1 lakh was demanded from
each candidate.
The October 22 meeting with Chandraswami was meant to force Kumar into
entering into a compromise and withdraw the demand for a CBI probe and
accept an inquiry by a divisional commissioner. The godman spoke to
him for about eight minutes. The contents of that conversation,
secretly recorded by Kumar and given to the Supreme Court for
safekeeping, is giving sleepless nights to many in Haryana, especially
Chautala.
The godman may be down and out in Delhi, but he's playing an active
role in neighbouring Haryana, threatening to get "the throat slit" of
people like Kumar. Recalls Kumar: "Two minutes into the conversation
with Chandraswami and I realised he was handing out threats on behalf
of chief minister Chautala who's one of the respondents in my
petition." Though the apex court has ordered a CBI inquiry into the
case and Kumar has been provided protection by the Delhi Police, he is
still a scared and harried man. Says he: "I'm worried that what
happened to Satyendra Dubey (the whistle-blower in the Golden
Quadrangle highway contracts scam who was murdered in Patna three
weeks ago) might also happen to me."
The officer spoke exclusively to Outlook about the meeting with
Chandraswami, which he recorded on the tape.
"The godman said I should think of what'll happen when police
protection is taken off."
"After a few preliminary remarks, Chandraswami said I should think of
what'll happen when police protection is taken off after a few months.
He then placed his hand on his throat and ran it like how a butcher
would. I asked him, 'Maar bhi sakte hain (You mean, get killed)?' and
he replied, 'Woh kuch bhi kar sakte hain (He can do anything)'."
According to Kumar, he was advised by the godman to be wary of
Chautala. "Mr Chautala was built up as a tough and ruthless man whom I
should be very frightened of. Chandraswami also reminded me of how
former PM Chandrashekhar was laid up in hospital with a heart ailment
after the treatment meted out to him by Chautala when the former's
Bhondsi farmhouse in Gurgaon district was taken back by the state
government."
The godman, according to Kumar, continued in a similar vein:
"Chandraswami said 'Chautala will institute more cases against you and
your career will be ruined'." He also apparently warned Kumar to keep
away from Karan Singh Dalal, RPI MLA from Palwal (a bitter critic of
Chautala), saying "he's a finished man". When Kumar asked whether he
(Kumar) too could be killed?, the godman reportedly said: "Main kya
keh sakta hoon (What can I say?)."
A couple of days later, Kumar was summoned again to Chandraswami's
ashram. This time two candidates, whose names are in the second list
(allegedly fake), were also present. In a separate petition to the
court, they had pleaded their selection was genuine. Their petition
gave damaging details of the place and time when an officer in the
CM's office called them to Delhi's Haryana Bhavan and demanded money
from them. Chandraswami was trying to get them to withdraw their
case.
As for Kumar, he was given another dose of Chandraswami's threats
which also he recorded. Recalls the IAS officer: "He repeatedly
threatened me with dire consequences if I did not heed his
warning.Eventually, I asked him, 'Swamiji what should I do?' and he
replied, 'Samjhauta kar lo (work out a compromise)'. I told him that I
would do so. The fact that I had agreed to a compromise was apparently
passed on by Chandraswami to the CM because at the next hearing of the
case on November 3, the Haryana government counsel offered to get the
matter inquired into by a divisional commissioner. They were quite
taken aback when I opposed this offer and stuck to my original plea
for a CBI investigation." The SC order directed the CBI to take charge
of the tapes as well as the two lists of selected teachers, which were
till then kept in the court's custody.
But why did Kumar agree to meet Chandraswami? Ever since it became
clear the apex court was likely to order an inquiry, he began getting
threats on his phone. Eventually, he told the anonymous caller that it
would be better if he came out in the open and talked. A few minutes
later, he got a call from a person claiming to be the swami's
secretary. He said, "Swamiji would like to meet urgently. It's
something of your interest." Says Kumar, "At that point I was quite
demoralised and virtually at my wits' end. I agreed. But I took the
precaution of telling my wife that if I did not return in an hour she
should inform the police," says Kumar.
Trouble began for Kumar in July 2000 when he was appointed director,
primary education, by the newly elected Chautala government. According
to the facts as stated in the October 25 apex court judgement,
applications for recruiting 3,206 teachers were invited in November
1999. And on the basis of interviews held in 19 districts, a list of
selected candidates was finalised. The outgoing director, Rajni Sekhri
Sibal, kept the lists in a cupboard and sealed it. The key to the
cupboard too was put in a sealed and signed envelope. When Kumar took
charge, he was "pressurised" into substituting another list in place
of the original list. He refused.
In September 2000, all members of the 19 district selection committees
were called to Panchkula and then to Haryana Bhavan in Delhi. Fresh
and false lists of candidates were prepared and the members were
forced to sign this list. On September 28, 2000, this list was handed
over to Kumar with a directive that it should immediately be
substituted for the original list. Instead, Kumar, on November 7,
2000, opened the sealed cupboard and released the original list. These
candidates were then appointed. And within a month of that he was
transferred.
But he took the precaution of taking the "fake" list with him. And
then the nightmare began. His flat in Sector 19, Chandigarh, was
broken into. He began receiving threats. He was denied promotion twice
and put under suspension. Soon after that the government registered
two corruption cases against him, which also come under the ambit of
the CBI investigation.
It's two years since he was suspended and he has been managing to keep
the home fires burning with the help of family and friends. "The
government has not given me even the subsistence allowance of 50 per
cent of my salary," Kumar says. Justice is still a long way off for
him because the CBI investigation into the case could drag on for some
time. But it takes courage to blow the whistle. And Kumar is
determined to keep up his dogged fight as long as he can.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?222426
National Magazine | Jul 20, 1998
Exclusive
Finally All Fingers Point To A Foreign Hand
The Jain Commission's final report focuses on a larger international
conspiracy, and the CIA-Mossad-LTTE link, in the Rajiv killing
Charu Lata Joshi
Also In This Story
Exclusive
Mossad Missives
Ex-Cabinet secretary Zafar Saifullah told Jain of the Israel link
Exclusive
Damning Intercepts
Wireless messages indicate the LTTE wasn't acting in isolation
Exclusive
The BCCI Channel
Jain says Chandraswami linked up with BCCI through Khashoggi
FOR seven rambling years, the Jain Commission of Inquiry--set up to
unravel the larger conspiracy behind Rajiv Gandhi's May 21, 1991,
assassination--has stumbled from one controversy to another. The
Commission's interim report, tabled in Parliament last year, led to
the fall of the United Front government--it had pointed fingers at its
coalition partner, the DMK, for harbouring the LTTE, thus creating
conditions which facilitated the assassination.
"The possibility of a foreign hand behind the LTTE in the Rajiv
assasination is trengthened."
It had also come down heavily on the V.P. Singh government for
ignoring the security threat to Rajiv.
The final report charts a markedly different course. Volume II,
covering chapters I to VI, widens the ambit beyond the immediate
circumstances to emphasise a larger, international plot. Foreign
intelligence agencies like the CIA and Mossad, and leaders of some
Sikh extremist organisations step in as the new dramatis personae. The
report says they actively collaborated with the LTTE and key Indian
individuals in the period immediately preceding the assassination. The
eight-volume set, 14 chapters in all--accessed by Outlook--was submitted
to the home ministry on March 7 this year.
Curiously, even as he lambasts the work of the CBI's Special
Investigation Team--devoting an entire volume to its investigational
lapses--Jain appears to have considerably toned down his earlier stand
on the complicity of the DMK and has instead concentrated on the
'foreign' angle. But there are specific recommendations for the
prosecution of certain members of the DMK, PMK, and DK, who were
earlier chargesheeted in the assassination of EPRLF chief K.
Padmanabha in Chennai in 1990.
The report is not without its Indian angle. Startling depositions and
intelligence intercepts included in the report indicate that Dr
Subramanian Swamy and former prime minister Chandra Shekhar, in
different ways, may have had prior knowledge of a threat to Rajiv but
did not react in a "timely manner".
"CIA seems to have a track record of destabilising governments while
indulging in assassination plots."
At the same time, Jain appears to have pulled his punches in
recommending any further probe into the charges against these two
politicians.
What emerges finally is a picture of a well-networked international
plot and certain key Indians, cast in varying degrees of complicity,
who had 'knowledge' of the plan. Whether Home Ministry officials, who
are studying the report, will be able to take any action on these
findings for presenting the Action Taken Report in Parliament during
this session remains in the realm of speculation. For now, the report,
with its explosive annexures and wild-card theories, has the potential
of stirring up yet another political maelstrom.
THE FOREIGN HAND: What is the foreign hand referred to in the final
report? The depositions and intelligence inputs from RAW and IB have
led Justice Jain to infer that the Tamil Tigers couldn't have operated
in isolation. In fact, he barely stops short of concluding that it was
just the hired executor--a point Jain had touched upon in his interim
report. Notes Jain: "The LTTE may be having its own financial
resources but to acquire such high-tech weaponry, financial help and
help in the form of shipment of arms, which are referred to in IB
reports, cannot be ruled out. The possibility of a foreign hand behind
the LTTE in the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi can't be ruled out,
rather it is strengthened." The wireless intercepts (see box) clinches
the fact that LTTE operatives like K.
"...there were moves to remove Rajiv and the hand of Chandraswami has
been established."
Padmanabha had links with the CIA and that the US intelligence agency
assisted the Tigers in arms procurement and other operations. The LTTE
was networked with international agencies and these could have helped
them in the plot to kill Rajiv.
To establish the foreign link, the report quotes telegram No. 24 (CCB)/
20537 of September 11, 1991--sent to the Ministry of External Affairs
by the Indian Ambassador in Tunis, containing a key tipoff he got from
PLO president Yasser Arafat. It was conveyed that "Yasser Arafat had
information that Rajiv's enemies would use the election period to get
rid of him. He got this information from inside Israel and his
European sources. These sources mentioned that the LTTE and Sikh
extremists would try to harm Rajiv Gandhi. Besides the above three,
hostile forces from outside India may also make an attempt."
A recorded note on the talk between the then foreign secretary
Muchkund Dubey and the Palestinian ambassador in India, dated June 6,
1991, included in the final report reads: "The Palestinian ambassador
told me that they had seen the movement of Mos-sad agents in India,
including towards Madras. He said that if one was looking for a link,
it was the CIA/Mossad/LTTE link. He further stated that the culprit
could have been one of the women related or associated with the five
LTTE leaders who had killed themselves after taking cyanide soon after
the commencement of the IPKF operation."
Justice Jain gives considerable import to the Arafat input.
"Swamy spoke of the possibility of Prabhakaran having been financed
for the job..."
"I find the information furnished by Yasser Arafat genuine and there
is no reason to disbelieve it.... From the note of Shri Muchkund Dubey
and the CCB telegram, it is amply borne out that there was an
international plot to assassinate Rajiv Gandhi and that it was a
Mossad/LTTE/CIA link."
Statements from Dubey's successor J.N. Dixit, Sonia Gandhi as well as
details gleaned from RAW and IB have been woven into the report to
shore up the information the PLO chief had passed on to Indian
authorities. Dixit's deposition finds prominence in the report:
"Arafat is right in stating that he had sources within Israel and well-
established sources in Europe. This information conveyed in the
telegram must have been cross-checked by the field units of RAW under
directives of their headquarters."
"There must have been operatives of the CIA and Mossad in India during
1990-91.... The likelihood of Rajiv coming back to power might have
been viewed with some reservations, not so much by the US government
itself but by segments of the US defence and Intelligence
establishment in the context of Rajiv Gandhi's opposition regarding
refuelling facilities provided by India for US Air Force planes during
the Gulf War," adds the ex-foreign secretary.
Similarly, in her statement to the Commission, Sonia Gandhi confirms
that "it is a fact that Arafat sent my husband messages through the
Palestinian mission in India saying that they had learnt of the
threats to his life. This was reconfirmed to me and my children
personally by Arafat when he met us soon after my husband's funeral.
There were several other occasions when he received similar
information."
RAW too provided the Commission with inputs, which it had shared with
IB, on the activities of Mossad and CIA in India in the year
immediately preceding the assassination. The final report mentions
Amos Radia and Giorce Betchar as agents operating for the Israelis in
India. As regards CIA activities in India, RAW had informed the IB
that two suspected US intelligence officers were in India in the
months preceding the killing.
A study of the post-Gulf war scenario in West Asia conducted by RAW,
which was communicated to the PMO, then cabinet secretary Naresh
Chandra, then foreign secretary Muchkund Dubey, IB, the Naval
Headquarters and then Air Force chief S.K. Mehra, clearly stated:
"International terrorism will get a fillip and we can expect terrorist
strikes against soft targets in India. Considerable vigil will have to
be exercised."
While Jain has gone to great lengths to establish the foreign hand,
he has also indicted intelligence agencies like RAW for not taking a
serious view of information that came its way. The report says: "RAW's
conclusion on Arafat's information requires deeper examination.
Nothing has been said about the possible involvement of the CIA which
may operate through Mossad in the light of Rajiv Gandhi's utterances
during the Gulf War opposing refuelling facilities to the US."
Further, Jain writes, "the CIA seems to have a track-record of covert
operations for desta-bilising governments while indulging in
assassination plots or otherwise as reported in the print media.... It
is in this background of the CIA's alleged track-record that Arafat's
utterances have to be evaluated."
THE report notes that, "Kumaran Padmanabha's (KP) account in BCCI,
Bombay branch, prima facie establishes links of the LTTE with the
bank. Unless material from the Senate subcommittee is gathered, it
will not be proper to conclude that the BCCI funds were not made
available in connection with the Rajiv Gandhi assassination.... The
material which has come before the Commission raises a very strong
possibility of such help from some individuals and agencies since it
is well established that KP was the LTTE's international arms
procurer."
Despite all the information pieced together, the report is short on
specifics and does little to flesh out the precise manner in which the
foreign hand purportedly worked. The veil of mystery that shrouds the
Rajiv killing remains. Jain indicates how the LTTE conspired with
foreign agents/agencies to carry out the assassination, but provides
only a vague delineation of possible motives. As things stand, it is
doubtful whether the MEA (which has been given charge of investigating
the international link) will be able to come up with anything.
THE INDIAN CONNECTION: Justice Jain has devoted separate chapters to
three key Indian players who are suspected, one way or the other, to
have had prior knowledge of the assassination. Nothing definitive or
conclusive here, but Jain has woven in intriguing loops of
circumstantial evidence--quoted and contained in the annexures--around
godman Chandraswami, Janata Party leader Dr Subramanian Swamy and
former PM Chandra Shekhar. The three are bracketed, prima facie, as
either having a link with those who allegedly conspired with the
assassins or at least having been privy to the fact of a plot.
The link between Chandra Shekhar and Subramanian Swamy has been taken
seriously by Jain in the light of Chandra-swami's deposition: "I know
Chandra Shekhar and Subramanian Swamy have been very thick for the
last 7-8 years. Dr Swamy told me that I (Chandraswami) may persuade
Rajiv Gandhi to make Chandra Shekhar the PM." Working within this
framework, the Commission has read much into the independent
testimonies of a host of witnesses--wherever they overlap--and arrived
at certain conclusions.
For instance, Justice Jain concludes that Akali leader Mahant Sewa
Dass's deposition stands corroborated by evidence provided by RAW.
Dass was sent as Chandra Shekhar's emissary to meet Khalistan
proponent Dr Jagjit Singh Chohan in London. He had deposed that at the
meeting a plot to eliminate Rajiv was being hatched jointly by Babbar
Khalsa militants and a representative of the LTTE (R.M. Pradi)--and
that the project was to be financed by Chandraswami. Jain says: "It is
fully established that Mahant Sewa Dass went to London, met Dr Chohan
in the presence of some persons, conveyed the message of Chandra
Shekhar and brought back a letter from Dr Chohan addressed to Shri
Chandra Shekhar."
The letter also finds a place in government records and reads:
"Dear Mr Chandra Shekharji,
Namaskar!
Mahantji discussed quite a few but very important things with me. I
very much appreciate your initiative in Punjab. I am sure it will help
to pacify the violence in Punjab. Mahantji will give you the details
of our discussion on various aspects. Talks are the only way to
resolve the problems.
More on hearing from you. Yours sincerely, Dr Jagjit Singh Chohan"
According to the report, "RAW confirms the meeting and that almost all
the active pro-Khalistan groups were represented in the meeting. It
also says that the main purpose of Mahant Sewa Dass's sojourn was to
find out the pro-Khalistani elements on a possible peace package
acceptable to them which could then be projected as an achievement of
the Government of India as a successful attempt to bring back the
Sikhs abroad into the national mainstream.... However, a contemporary
inquiry should have been made and the report should have been sent to
the PM."
The Commission also has on record a communication UO.No 3/5/88-VS,
dated July 21, 1988, in which RAW mentioned reports indicating that Dr
Chohan was trying to establish contact with the LTTE in the UK. Also,
"government records show that Mahant Sewa Dass was sent by the
government as an emissary of Chandra Shekhar to meet Dr Chohan. His
arrangements for travel were made by the government."
According to Jain, "From the perusal of various statements, it is
evident that the relations of Chandraswami did exist, not only with
Rao but also with Chandra Shekhar, Subrama-nian Swamy and O.P.
Chautala. However, no inference of complicity can be drawn, although
the surveillance at 10, Janpath and the statement of Saifullah may
give rise to some doubts."
As for Chandraswami, the circle of suspicion is wider. His links with
the LTTE as well as international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi (see
box) have been established. Notes Jain: "The evidence and material
does point an accusing finger at Chandraswami and circumstances which
have come before the Commission raise a doubt regarding his
involvement in the assassination. Taking the entire evidence, material
and circumstantial, brought on record, a serious doubt arises
regarding Chandraswami's complicity and involvement. So the matter
requires a further probe.... There is a plethora of evidence on record
in the form of testimony of Buta Singh, S.S. Mahapatra, B.G. Deshmukh
and others which proves that there were moves to remove Rajiv Gandhi
and the hand of Chandraswami in these moves has been clearly
established."
Many witnesses have attested to the godman's dubious links with
international agencies. Ramesh Dalal, BJP activist, deposed that he
knew "Shri Chandraswami has relations with the CIA, Mossad and the
LTTE. He took the help of these agencies in assassinating Rajiv
Gandhi.... In the core group of Chandraswami, Rajendra Jain, Babloo
Srivastava, K.N. Aggarwal, Subramanian Swamy, Chandra Shekhar, O.P.
Chautala and Pinaki Misra were there. The people of this core group
used to meet Chandraswami in his bedroom. Chandraswami told me he had
been financing the LTTE..."
The report says: "It is noteworthy that when he (Ramesh Dalal) had
expressed his doubts regarding the involvement of Chandraswami as
early as August 1991, investigations should have been conducted.
Outrightly rejecting his testimony would not be a proper course and a
thorough investigation is required to be made about the truth or
otherwise of his testimony. Some support is available...from the
deposition of Mahant Sewa Dass Singh."
As for Swamy, the Commission interweaves various independent
depositions and pieces of evidence to flesh out his links with the god-
man and international agencies as well as his role as an intermediary.
The report notes that Swamy had made a trip to London in 1995 with
Chandraswami--they both stayed at Halkin Hotel and the bill was picked
up by the godman.
Going back to the period before the killing, Jain cites the then
cabinet secretary Zafar Saifullah's statement that "there were some
intercepts emanating from Israel for information to Chandraswami and
Swamy for Jaffna. These intercepts have not come before the
Commission. If Saifullah's statement is correct, then the intercepts
would have thrown much more light on the question of complicity."
THE report adds: "A serious doubt has also been cast by E. Velusami
who has filed an affidavit before the Commission..." Velusami, then
general secretary of the Janata Party in Tamil Nadu, had deposed that
his party president had arrived "in the morning at Madras airport by a
flight from Delhi on Sunday, May 19, 1991." Elections in the state
were set for May 26. "Swamy's whereabouts became unknown on May 21
morning. He subsequently learnt he had spent May 21 morning in a hotel
called Trident near the airport and that he had met some persons
there....
It is not clear why he made this secret stay in Madras on May 21,
1991, that too, after suddenly cancelling his pre-settled programme of
going to Delhi from Madras and without any information to his
colleagues..." Swamy's itinerary was confirmed by the personal
secretary to the ex-minister, writes Jain. He gives credence to the
testimony of Aziz Haniffa, Washington bureau chief of India Abroad, in
which he states that "during an interview with Swamy, the latter
claimed it was he who was instrumental in introducing the LTTE to the
Israelis, which led to their training by Mossad."
Similarly, former Rajya Sabha MP Rajani Ranjan Sahu deposed that in
1994 Dr Swamy told him and two others at the Tamil Nadu governor's
house that the LTTE was hired for the job. He claimed Prabhakaran
ordered the assassination after entering into a Rs 100-crore deal. He
also revealed that "one W. Anderson, first secretary in the American
Embassy, was anti-Rajiv" and that intelligence officials had got wind
of the plot. Jain, at the same time, seems to suspend judgement on the
episode: "From the statements of Sahu, Jitendra Prasada and Rajiv
Shukla, it is borne out that they happened to meet Dr Swamy in the
drawing room of the Governor's house and that... Dr Swamy spoke of the
possibility of V. Prabhakaran having been financed for the job which
might have motivated him for the assassination.
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?205868
bademiyansubhanallah
gathered about Sathya Sai Baba.
Visit Sathya Sai Baba's Official Web Site
(Link takes you outside the Rick A. Ross Institute web site)
http://www.sathyasai.org/
Sathya Sai Baba, "God"
or "sexual predator"?
Atheist Karuna woos godman in TN
Times Now, India/May 9, 2007
By Dhanya Rajendran
He may be one of the country's best known atheists, but when it comes
to funding state projects, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi
does not mind the help of spiritual gurus. The Satya Sai trust has
agreed to fund a project which will provide drinking water to parched
Chennai. And Karunanidhi is only too happy to welcome the godman.
Till a few years ago, it was unthinkable that Karunanidhi would ever
share a dais with Satya Sai Baba, however at a public appearance with
the spiritual Guru in January this year, Karunanidhi asked Sai Baba's
help for developmental projects. Now Sri Satya Sai Trust has agreed to
upgrade the 25 km-long Kandaleru-Poondi canal, which will bring water
to Chennai.
Karunanidhi may not believe in God, but as analysts say, he has proved
to be a tactful politician.
"He is an atheist at a personal level, and when he shared a dais with
Sai Baba, he explained his stand saying the question was not whether
he believed in God, but whether he was worthy of God's trust. But at a
more practical level, I buy his point From whichever source the money
comes, and as long as it is not tainted, it is welcome," remarked S
Murari, a political analyst.
The chief minister has kept aside his radical beliefs for good reason;
With the states finances running dry due to the numerous sops given by
his government, Karunanidhi desperately needs funds. Now that the Baba
trust has entered into a partnership with the government, the big
question is whether they will undertake the Coovum river-cleaning
project.
"Cleaning the Coovum is my dream, but I will need your help. It has
been quoted as a Rs 1,000 crore project. I'm not asking for the whole
amount, but I will be happy if you donate the same," is M
Karunanidhi's request.
This is, definitely, an image makeover. But the chief minister's
tolerance towards religious matters are limited to accepting help to
develop his state. When it comes to clashes between believers and non-
believers within the state, Karunanidhi always sticks to his
ideologies.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba24.html
Spiritual guru criticised for opposing statehood for Telangana region
Gulf Times/January 23, 2007
Hyderabad -- People went on a rampage here yesterday in protest
against spiritual guru Satya Sai Baba who said he was against a
separate Telangana state.
His followers meanwhile called a shutdown in Puttaparthi town of
Anantapur district to condemn remarks on the guru.
Shouting slogans against him, dozens of students belonging to
Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) barged into a Sai Baba temple near
Osmania University here, pulled down huge cut-outs of the guru and
burnt them.
An effigy of Sai Baba, who termed moves to bifurcate the state
'mahapapam' (great sin), was also burnt.
Addressing a function in Chennai on Sunday, Sai Baba said there was no
demand for a separate Telangana state from the people of the region.
"Dividing the people or the country is not good. Bifurcating the state
is mahapapam," he said.
Sai Baba, who preaches love, understanding and universal brotherhood,
has thousands of followers in India and abroad including several heads
of state, politicians, military officials, judges, film stars and
sportsmen.
During the last few decades, he has built a vast empire worth billions
of rupees transforming the small village of Puttaparthi, his
birthplace, into a modern town with a state-of-the-art airport,
education and health facilities.
The reaction to his comments was sharp from the protagonists of
separate Telangana. TRS president K Chandrasekhara Rao asked Sai Baba
to confine himself to religion. "Is Sai Baba blind to the suicides by
farmers in Telangana region? Is he blind to the fact that the region
was subjected to exploitation?" asked Rao, who is leading the movement
for a separate state comprising 10 districts including Hyderabad.
Congress MP from Nizamabad Madhu Yaskhi Goud wondered what Sai Baba
knew of the problems of Telangana.
"He is from Rayalseema region and what does he know about the problem
of fluorosis (an abnormal condition caused by excessive intake of
fluorine), in Nalgonda? He is funding the water projects for
Rayalseema and Chennai," said Goud.
Revolutionary balladeer and Maoist sympathiser Gaddar, who is also
actively participating in the movement for separate Telangana,
criticised Sai Baba for opposing the demand.
Meanwhile, a shutdown was being observed in Puttaparthi town in
Anantapur district to condemn the remarks of Telangana leaders against
Sai Baba.
Shops and business establishment were shut and Sai Baba's disciples
set afire effigies of Chandrasekhara Rao, Madhu Yashki Goud and
Gaddar. The streets around Prashanti Nilayam, the abode of Baba, wore
a deserted look.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba23.html
Satya Sai Baba caught in British controversy
Indo-Asian News Service/December 22, 2006
Satya Sai Baba, one of India's best known spiritual leaders, has
triggered a fresh controversy in Britain after association with The
Duke of Edinburgh's Award charity involving young people.
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award is a London-headquartered charity whose
patron is Prince Philip.
It gives three kinds of awards (bronze, silver and gold) to anyone
aged between 14-25 for achievements in four categories: community
service, skills, physical recreation and expeditions. Each year it is
estimated that over 2,25,000 youngsters vie for the honour in Britain
alone.
This year, when the charity celebrates its 50th year, it has chosen to
send about 200 young volunteers to India to work with the Sri Satya
Sai Organisation.
However, the feat, pulled off by Sai Youth UK, a division of the
parent body, has created a furore. Several people, including some of
the Satya Sai Baba's former Western disciples, questioned the decision
in view of the mixed reputation the godman enjoys. Sai's devotees deny
the allegations.
The Guardian was the first to raise its voice saying the award scheme
had chosen as its accredited partner a spiritual group "whose 'living
god' founder has been accused of sexually abusing young boys".
Satya Sai Baba hit bad press in Britain two years ago when a BBC
programme, The Secret Swami, interviewed young Western disciples who
alleged that the godman had sexually coerced them.
The Guardian quoted Tom Sackville, a former Home Office minister and
chairman of Fair, a cult-watching and victim support group, as saying:
"It is appallingly naive for the award scheme to involve young people
and the royal family with an organisation whose leader is accused of
paedophilia. Parents who plan to send their children on this
pilgrimage... should be aware of the danger their children are being
exposed to."
The daily also said Michael Gave, a conservative MP, planned to write
to the charity to say it should monitor the organisations they chose
as partners more strictly.
"As a society we need a more determined effort to identify and expose
those religious cults and extremists that pose a direct threat to
people, so that they do not enjoy patronage that should be directed
elsewhere," he was quoted as saying.
In the 1990s, when Prince Charles visited India, he had expressed a
desire to visit the Sai Baba but was quietly dissuaded by the British
Embassy in New Delhi.
Since The Guardian's article, it was reported that there was mounting
pressure on the charity to distance itself from the Sai group.
However, charity spokesperson Shona Taylor did not answer repeated
queries as to whether the volunteers had left for India and how they
could be contacted.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba22.html
A holy furore rages in Britain
Daily News Analysis/November 5, 2006
By Ginnie Mahajan
Delhi: Old allegations of sexual abuse of boys by spiritual guru
Sathya Sai Baba have created a fresh furore in Britain.
The issue snowballed after the British press reported that 200 boys
would visit India on a month-long humanitarian pilgrimage starting
November 13, organised by the Sai Youth Movement, a division of the
Sri Sathya Sai Organisation.
These boys are to receive the Duke of Edinburgh award for their
humanitarian work. According to the Guardian, the British public is
irked by two issues — safety of the boys at Sathya Sai Baba’s ashram
at Puttaparthi in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh and the
involvement of royalty with the Sri Sathya Sai Organisation.
The newspaper quotes a former home office minister Tom Sackville, who
also runs a victim support group, as saying, “It is appallingly naive
for the award scheme to involve young people and the royal family with
an organisation whose leader is accused of paedophilia.”
Interestingly, the United States Department of State has a travel
advisory against the Sathya Sai Organisation: “US citizens should be
aware that there have been unconfirmed reports of inappropriate sexual
behaviour by a prominent local religious leader at an ashram or
religious retreat located in Andhra Pradesh.”
The Guardian says US state officials have confirmed that this is a
direct reference to Sathya Sai Baba. There have been rumours for years
that the spiritual guru, who calls himself an incarnation of god,
molested young devotees during interviews. Both Indian and foreign
visitors to the ashram have come on record to say how he has abused
them.
The public relations officer of Sathya Sai Baba’s ashram, however,
told DNA: “We do not care what the advisory says. People and
organisations can write whatever they want to believe. We have no more
to say on this issue. Yes, the boys are coming to India in about two
weeks’ time.”
The visit coincides with Sathya Sai Baba’s 80th birthday. He had
apparently given a ‘divine commandment’ to the Sai Youth Movement to
visit him on the occasion.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba21.html
The Indian living god, the paedophilia claims and the Duke of
Edinburgh awards
Sexual abuse accusations against group's leader--80th birthday
invitation to hundreds of youngsters
The Guardian, UK/November 4, 2006
By Paul Lewis
A spiritual group whose "living god" founder has been accused of
sexually abusing young boys has become an accredited partner of the
Duke of Edinburgh award scheme, the Guardian can reveal.
Last night pressure was mounting on the charity to break its links
with the group whose followers are devoted to the preachings of 79-
year-old holy man, Sai Baba.
About 200 young people will fly to India in two weeks' time on a
humanitarian pilgrimage run by Sai Youth UK, a division of the Sri
Sathya Sai Organisation. The teenagers and young men earn their Duke
of Edinburgh awards for humanitarian work, chiefly distributing
medical aid.
The trip coincides with Sai Baba's 80th birthday and has been
arranged, organisers say, after he gave a divine commandment for the
UK's Sai youth movement to visit him for the occasion.
For decades male former devotees have alleged that the guru molested
them during so-called "interviews". During the last youth pilgrimage,
in 2004, young people were granted group interviews with the guru
after administering medical aid to villages surrounding Sai Baba's
ashram in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh, although there was no evidence
of abuse.
Large numbers of young men have travelled from across the world to
study alongside and meet the guru. His supporters say their encounter
was spiritually enriching. Others, including participants in a BBC
programme, The Secret Swami, two years ago, accuse him of abuse,
claiming he massaged their testicles with oil and coerced them into
oral sex.
Sai Baba has never been charged over the sex abuse allegations.
However, the US State Department issued a travel warning after reports
of "inappropriate sexual behaviour by a prominent local religious
leader" which, officials later confirmed was a reference to Sai Baba.
Tom Sackville, a former Home Office minister and chairman of Fair, a
cult-watching and victim support group, said: "It is appallingly naive
for the award scheme to involve young people and the royal family with
an organisation whose leader is accused of paedophilia.
"Parents who plan to send their children on this month's
pilgrimage ... should be aware of the danger their children are being
exposed to."
But Peter Westgarth, chief executive of the charity, last night faced
down calls to terminate his organisation's relationship with the Sai
organisation. He said: "This is not the only religion accused of
paedophilia. Young people who are participating on these trips are
doing so because they choose to," he said. "The awards accredit the
good work they do for poor people in India. We make no judgment about
their religion. We would no sooner intervene here than we would the
Church Lads' and Girls' Brigade."
The Conservative MP Michael Gove said he would write to the charity
asking it to consider a stricter monitoring of the organisations they
they work with. "As a society we need a more determined effort to
identify and expose those religious cults and extremists that pose a
direct threat to people, so that they do not enjoy patronage that
should be directed elsewhere," he said.
Shitu Chudasama, Sai's UK national youth coordinator, defended the
trip, saying it was primarily a humanitarian mission to help
impoverished people, saying that the sex abuse claims were "totally
unfounded". He added: "We hope to have an interview with Sai Baba but
it's not guaranteed. If he wants to see us, he'll call us."
Sai Organisation's UK branch has also came into contact with royals
through the awards, something Buckingham Palace was made aware of in
September. In correspondence seen by the Guardian, Brigadier Sir Miles
Hunt-Davis, Prince Philip's private secretary, wrote: "[We] are very
keen to get this sorted out properly and finally." He said trustees of
the award would undertake legal advice before deciding how to
proceed.
In July the Sai Organisation received a certificate for their
"invaluable contribution" to the awards at a Buckingham Palace garden
party. A news story which appeared on a Sai Baba website after the
ceremony was removed after an intervention by Peter Westgarth, who
said the event had been misrepresented.
In the posting, Mr Chudasama recounted the moment he delivered a
speech to "various dignitaries, diplomats, ministers [and] famous
celebrities" at the palace. "I was the last speaker called up, and
suddenly a confidence, a joy, engulfed my being," he said. "I
attributed everything to our founder Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. As
I spoke I watched the sea of faces, they were hanging from my every
word and there was a look of excitement on their faces as if to say
'why have we not heard of this organisation before?'."
Mr Chudasama also attended a private audience with Prince Philip at St
James's Palace last year. "Prince Philip showed a very keen interest
in our youth and asked many questions," Mr Chudasama wrote in a Sai
newsletter. "I also had the opportunity to mention ... that we drew
our inspiration and motivation from our founder Sri Sathya Sai Baba;
he paused for a few seconds and then said: "Very good".
Backstory
Saytha Sai Baba, who has an estimated 30 million followers worldwide,
is possibly India's most controversial holy man. He gained a following
in his teens when he claimed to have divine powers and, later, said he
was an incarnation of God. His teachings are benign - his most famous
mantra is "Love All, Serve All" - and he encourages followers, which
include many of India's political elite, to undertake humanitarian
work. He purports to be able to miraculously conjure sacred ash and
expensive jewellery into the palm of his hand, as if out of thin air.
Opponents dismiss his miracles as party tricks. The Sai Organisation
claims to have more than 1,200 Saytha Sai Baba Centres in more than
100 countries.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba20.html
Guru who gives us no answers
The Scotsman/June 18, 2004
By Tom Adair
The Secret Swami might have veered towards the amusing - in an "Oh my
God, how gullible can you be?" kind of way - had it not been for the
repeated allegations of sex abuse.
Sai Baba, the swami in question, had started off looking like some old
bloke with an ego as big as his bank account. There he sat, in his
opulent ashram at Puttaparthi, near Bangalore, dressed in blinding
canary-yellow and sporting a head of what looked like jet-black pubic
hair - a mane of Leo Sayer proportions; as if he had poked his tongue
into a light socket. Count your blessings - he didn't sing.
Instead, he did tricks, producing trinkets from his fingers - gold
watches, bracelets, stuff with Ratners written all over it. Maybe he'd
read the Paul Daniels Trickster's Guide to Palming, and practised like
mad without the distraction of the lovely Debbie McGee (it later
transpired that Debbie would not have been a distraction). The swami's
followers adored his "miracles" and gasped.
Ten thousand worshippers formed a permanent camp inside the ashram,
believing Sai Baba to be an avatar - a god on Earth. He attracted
attention from burned out hippies, the ones with smoke still doping
their nostrils. Sometimes they smiled their faraway smiles; sometimes
they spoke. One guy believed he'd been in communion with Sai Baba for
21 years before he'd visited "god" in his pad. Sai Baba was quick to
spot white faces wearing dollar signs. As these dupes gawped up from
the crowd, he would single them out for special attention.
The documentary took a much less wide-eyed approach than Sai Baba's
flock, denouncing him from the start as a sham whose ashram resembled
a market place, not a shrine. Oh yes, he appeared to have done some
good - constructing a hospital in the district, providing free
medicare for the poor, and supplying clean water - however, the £40
million it cost was funded by wealthy acolytes, faithfully following
Sai Baba's earnest exhortation: "Wherever you see a sick person -
there is your field of service." And yet, Sai Baba's secret motto
turned out to be different, more like: "Wherever you see a gullible
young believer, (boys only apply) bingo! - sexual opportunity."
The programme gathered American former devotees who claimed that Sai
Baba had abused them, had exposed himself to them, indulged in oral
sex and then sworn them to secrecy. This sexual degradation had shaken
their faith. These victims included a father and a son who were
alleged to have been abused over many years. It was implied that many
Indian boys had also been taken advantage of but were too scared to
make public statements.
All this would matter if it affected just one child. What makes it
worse is that Sai Baba has a worldwide following of 160 million people
and is visited by heads of state. He is thus respectable, a notable
Indian figure.
The allegations went unanswered. When duly challenged, a twitchy
Indian government minister blew his top and accused the reporter of
impertinence. Meanwhile the US embassy's website has posted warnings
to potential visitors.
Whether or not it will shake the blind faith of the devotees remains
to be seen. However, the programme was an example of investigative
reporting all too rare these days - getting inside and under the
issue. It may have even stopped further innocents from falling prey to
the avatar's whim.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba19.html
Spiritual Depths
The Guardian (UK)/June 18, 2004
By Rupert Smith
It's difficult to write about religion without offending someone, but
mercifully we're reviewing a television programme here, and not the
mixture of wishful thinking and wilful credulity that leads people to
worship soi-disant gurus such as Swami Sai Baba. BBC2's This World
strand last night gave us The Secret Swami, an entertaining hour that
made a compelling case against Sai Baba, portraying him as a charlatan
and an abuser.
Young men who claimed to have been sexually abused by Sai Baba related
hair-raising stories of "private interviews" in which the not-so-holy
man pulled his skirt over his head and invited them to get down and
dirty. Hilariously, one Hindu scholar reminded us that this is a
practice sanctioned by neither scripture nor tradition. "Worship of
the linga does not include doing the blow-job."
What started out as a routine denunciation developed into something
more sinister. Sadly, the moment I see a man in a dress surrounded by
grinning worshippers, I'm looking for a catch - and it didn't take
much to prove that Sai Baba's "miracles" were nothing more than a bit
of old-fashioned sleight of hand. On that basis, we might all end up
worshipping David Blaine, which is a worry. But reporter Tanya Datta
did her job properly, and went far beneath the surface of magic tricks
and gaudy tat. She found that Sai Baba bought the eternal gratitude of
rural Indian villagers by paying for clean water supplies, and that he
caused a massive hospital to be built, funded by one of his followers,
Isaac Tigrett, who co-founded the Hard Rock Cafe chain. She discovered
also that the Indian government, rightly mindful of the rural vote,
has turned a blind eye to claims of wrongdoing in the Baba camp. A
government official got very shirty indeed with Ms Datta, shouting
denials before he'd even heard the allegations. In these cases, "no"
usually does mean "yes".
There was little room amid all the skulduggery for any real
examination of Sai Baba's theology; all we learned was that he is an
avatar, although of whom was not made clear, and that he conveniently
embraces all religions. Without any real exegesis of his ideas, it was
hard to know exactly what his followers believed in - it surely can't
just have been Baba's ability to produce fake Rolexes out of thin air,
or cough up eggs.
But even former disciples couldn't shed much light on what turned them
into such true believers. A nice family from Arkansas were so crazy
about Sai Baba that they encouraged their teenage son to spend as much
time with the guru as possible. Despite allegations of abuse at the
hands of Sai Baba, the son came out with the astonishing comment, "we
are all tools, and we all have to be around for Swami to use - if he
needs a screwdriver".
An hour wasn't enough to do the subject justice, and for once I was
left wanting more. This isn't something I'd say lightly about
television documentaries, which usually need to be edited by 50%. The
mystery of Sai Baba, of his apparent protection by the authorities, of
his canny manipulation of the rural poor and his inexplicable appeal
to rich westerners, only deepened. Astonishingly, Sai Baba has not yet
had the collar of his robe fingered by the long arm of the law.
Armand Leroi, the handsome biologist, turned his attention to the
tricky subject of racial difference in the final part of Human Mutants
(Channel 4). There was some fun stuff about excessive facial hair and
random skin pigmentation to pave the way to Leroi's central thesis,
that "we are all mutants - but some of us are more mutant than
others".
With this in mind, he gently introduced the idea of "a new race
genetics", which was nowhere near as sinister as it sounded. Genome
mapping enabled scientists to identify racial background according to
four main human groups - and, against this kind of science, "terms
like 'black' and 'white' don't describe anything that's real any
more".
This would have come as cold comfort to a Cape Town housewife who went
to bed as a white woman and woke up the next morning black. Shunned by
her family, she died in poverty, which suggests that Leroi's DNA
utopia is a way off just yet.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba18.html
Sai Baba: God-man or con man?
Basava Premanand is India's leading guru-buster
BBC News/June 17, 2004
By Tanya Datta
He believes that the country's biggest spiritual leader, Sri Satya Sai
Baba, is a charlatan and must be exposed.
Basava Premanand has been burgled... again.
It is the third time in just one month. But he is in no doubt of the
thieves' motives.
He suspects they were looking for evidence that he has collected for
over 30 years against India's leading spiritual guru, Sri Satya Sai
Baba.
Mr Premanand believes this evidence proves the self-proclaimed "God-
man", Sai Baba, is not just a fraud, but a dangerous sexual abuser.
"Sai Baba is nothing but a mafia man, conning the people and making
himself rich", he says of his bete noire.
As India's leading guru-buster, Basava Premanand is the scourge of all
miracle-makers.
He is the founder of the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations
and the editor of a monthly periodical called The Indian Sceptic.
He believes that it is his duty to dispel the "curse of gullibility
blighting his country in the form of myth and superstition", and
replace it instead with the "gospel of pure, scientific
understanding".
Since 1976, he has waged a bitter war against Sai Baba, a man who
commands a following of millions both in India and abroad. His
devotees believe him to be an Avatar, or incarnation of God in human
form.
But to Mr Premanand, this God is anything but holy.
Allegations
Rumours about Sai Baba sexually abusing young male devotees have been
circulating for years.
In 1976 a former American follower,Tal Brooke, wrote a book called
Avatar of the Night: The Hidden Side of Sai Baba. In it, he referred
to the guru's sexual exploits.
But Brooke's allegations were dismissed out of hand by the tightly
controlled Sai Baba Organisation.
Dr Michael Goldstein, chairman of the international Sai Baba
organisation, admitted he had heard rumours, but told us that he did
not believe them. He said: "My heart and my conscience tell me that it
is not possible."
But in the last four years, and with the growth of the internet, the
tide of claims against Sai Baba has become a groundswell.
Former devotees such as Alaya Rahm and Mark Roche, featured in the the
BBC film Secret Swami, are coming forward with increasingly graphic
stories of the guru's serious sexual exploitation.
Their own experiences bear an uncanny resemblance, yet span a time
frame of almost 30 years.
Both had been subjected to Sai Baba rubbing oil on their genitals.
"He took me aside", said Alaya Rahm, "put the oil on his hands, told
me to drop my pants and rubbed my genitals with the oil. I was really
taken aback."
All the allegations against Sai Baba so far have been made by
Westerners.
But Mr Premanand says that there are many Indians who also claim to
have been abused but are too afraid to speak out.
Well-connected
It is no surprise that Indian victims are scared of reprisals. Sai
Baba's influence among the power elite of India is impressive.
Prime ministers, presidents, judges and generals, have all come to the
ashram (religious retreat) in Puttaparthi in southern India, to pay
their respects.
The previous prime minister of India, Mr Atal Vajpayee, once issued a
letter on his official notepaper calling the attacks on Sai Baba
"wild, reckless and concocted."
Sai Baba also enjoys a close relationship with the state police. A
former head of police once acted as his personal chauffeur.
None of this, however, deters Mr Premanand who has doggedly pursued
Sai Baba over the years through the courts, the media and several
embarrassing books and exposures.
Little wonder that his campaign has enraged some of the holy man's
supporters.
To date, Basava Premanand has survived four murder attempts and bears
the scars from several savage beatings.
In 1986, he was arrested by the police for marching to Puttaparthi
with 500 volunteers for a well-publicised confrontation with Sai
Baba.
Later that year, he took Sai Baba to court for violating the Gold
Control Act by producing gold necklaces out of thin air without the
permission of a Gold Control Administrator.
When his case was dismissed, Mr Premanand appealed on the grounds that
spiritual power is not a defence recognised in law.
Break-in
In June 1993, the peace of the ashram was shattered when a gruesome
incident took place.
Four male devotees, who were close to Sai Baba, broke into their
guru's private quarters late at night armed with knives.
Their motives are unclear. Some say they were going to warn their guru
about corruption among the higher echelons of the ashram. Others say
they were going to kidnap or even kill Sai Baba.
They were stopped by Sai Baba's personal attendants and in the violent
struggle that ensued, two of the attendants were killed and two left
seriously wounded.
Sai Baba managed to escape through a secret flight of stairs and raise
the alarm.
Just before the police arrived, the four men escaped to Sai Baba's
bedroom. It was there, the police say, they shot the intruders out of
self defence.
Mr Premanand claimed a cover up and went to court.
He says: "The central government stopped the investigation, because if
the investigation takes place, a lot of things will come out like
economic offences and sex offences."
He was outraged that Sai Baba - one of the key witnesses to the events
of that night - had not been questioned.
Over the next three years, he took his case all the way to the Supreme
Court, before he was eventually defeated.
Today, this sprightly septuagenarian is as busy as ever, collecting
and collating more information. Mr Premanand is preparing for another
battle.
"This," he says mischievously, "is going to be the greatest fight of
my life."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba15.html
BBC2 uncovers secrets behind India's Secret Swami
Aim/June 14, 2004
The most popular of all Indian Godmen, Sai Baba has always been the
Teflon God, the untouchable, charismatic man worshipped by Indian
Prime Ministers, Presidents and peasants. His power over both the
influential and the downtrodden goes to the heart of Indian society
and raises serious questions about the social health of the world's
fastest emerging economy.
Sai Baba claims to be a living God and to millions, his word is truth;
his ability to bring clean water and healthcare to thousands, proof of
divinity.
In a programme that explores the nature of belief, This World travels
from India to California, where the generation whose devotion and
donations helped Sai Baba to power are unravelling at the seams. Hard
Rock Café owner Isaac Tigrett sent Sai Baba's message around the world
by making the Godman's Love All Serve All mantra the corporate slogan
of his multi-million empire. He now has to confront the fact that his
God may have been a sexual abuser.
This World features the story of a family who gave their entire lives
to a man they believed was God, only to discover he was exacting a
terrible price: the sexual innocence of their son. In an intimate and
powerful portrait a family talks openly about their betrayal and the
man who controlled their lives.
"The being which I called Sai Baba, the living God that I had taken
into my heart had been truly abusing my son, for so long. I felt
completely betrayed..." says Marissa, a former devotee. Another, Alaya
says: "I remember him saying, if you don't do what I say, your life
will be filled with pain and suffering."
This programme is the first to film inside Sai Baba's Ashram for a
number of years and aims to come closer to the true "face of God" than
ever before.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba16.html
Man Arrested With Gun at Sai Baba's Ashram
The Hindustan Times/January 18, 2002
Bangalore, India -- A 26-year-old man who allegedly tried to shoot Sai
Baba on Thursday with an air pistol at his ashram in Whitefield on the
outskirts of Bangalore, was overpowered by ashram volunteers. The air
pistol and some pellets were recovered from the man, Somasundaram, the
police said. Somasundaram was overpowered when he started running
towards Sai Baba who was emerging from a building to give darshan,
eyewitnesses said.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba13.html
British law against Sai Baba sought
Times of India/September 5, 2001
By Rashmee Z. Ahmed
London -- Campaigners against religious cults across western Europe
are trying to persuade the British government to follow the French and
legislate against movements such as Sai Baba and the Moonies.
Tom Sackville, a former British minister and current chairman of the
anti-cult organisation Family Action Information and Resource (FAIR),
told The Times of India, "the French legislation of two months ago has
enormously encouraged my 15-year battle against exploitative cults
such as that of Sai Baba."
The anti-cult campaign comes even as The Times, London, carried
extensive reportage of Sai Baba on Monday, questioning his role in the
"mysterious deaths of three British men", which campaigners admit are
hard to prove were directly caused by the guru.
The newspaper, which flagged its investigation as "exclusive", said
"Sai Baba's activities are being studied by the (British) Foreign
Office, which is considering issuing an unprecedented warning against
the guru to travellers."
It said one of the men had "complained of being repeatedly sexually
molested by Sai Baba at his ashram in Puttaparthi near Bangalore."
There is growing British press interest in the man they describe as
"Indian mystic and miracle worker" to the rich, famous and titled such
as the Duchess of York and an architect known to be close to Prince
Charles.
Commentators say this is largely because Sai Baba has a substantial
European fan following, alongside a growing number of hostile and
vocal former devotees who accuse him of physical, mental and monetary
abuse.
The Internet war launched by former devotees across western Europe,
including David Bailey, a Welsh concert pianist once considered to be
Sai Baba's right-hand man, has focussed unsavoury publicity on Sai
Baba.
However, Sai Baba's London headquarters continues to reject all the
allegations.
Several parliamentary questions in the last five years have drawn the
British government's attention to Sai Baba's alleged misconduct. But,
British MPs and anti-cult campaigners say the government has always
maintained that the number of British cases are too few to merit
action.
But now, a new area of concern has arisen according to The Times,
which says Sai Baba has infiltrated the British school system in a
dangerous catch 'em young policy.
The newspaper says more than 500 British schools are being taught
according to "Sai Baba-influenced educational programmes". It says the
programmes are promoted by two charities, the Sathya Sai Education in
Human Values Trust UK and the Human Values Foundation.
Former minister Sackville says the development is worrying because "it
is just like we wouldn't want or allow far-right groups such as the
British National Party (BNP) to be talking to our children in school."
Admitting the BNP was an extreme example, he said "the principle we
are keen to impress on the British government is that just like the
French, we have to make it a criminal offence to exploit people in
vulnerable situations."
Anti-cult campaigners say that their cause has been strengthened
because UNESCO pulled out of an educational conference at Puttaparthi
last year.
They say that if the French legislation is followed by other European
countries, it could eventually become European Union law and would
severely limit the activities of movements such as that of Sai Baba.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba12.html
Suicide, sex and the guru
The reputation of Sai Baba, a holy man to the rich and famous, has
been tarnished by mysterious deaths and allegations of sexual abuse
August 27, 2001
By Dominic Kennedy
In a world of pain and sorrow, a smiling little man in a saffron robe
who can cure misery by magic is a bewitching prospect.
To millions of followers around the world, Sai Baba is a benevolent
spiritual leader whose hospitals and schools work tirelessly for the
advancement of the poor. But an investigation by The Times today
discloses that three British men have apparently taken their own lives
after becoming followers of the miracle worker. Two of them were
encouraged to believe that he could cure their medical problems. One
of those also said that he had been touched intimately by the Sai
Baba.
This is the same Sai Baba who is adored and indulged by the
international jet set. The Duchess of York had the treat of watching
him produce a gold watch and cross from thin air when she visited his
ashram in India.
The Prince of Wales's architectural adviser, Keith Critchlow, designed
a vast, stunning hospital for Sai Baba, which has been compared to St
Peter's in Rome and a maharaja's palace. "The most influential holy
man in India today," is how the respected architect describes the
guru.
The hospital, mostly financed by Isaac Tigrett, the wealthy American
founder of the Hard Rock Café chain of restaurants, treats the humble
people of the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. So it was with
righteous indignation that Sai Baba, in a rare fit of public anger,
has turned on the band of disillusioned disciples who are now
tarnishing his name.
Jesus Christ, said Sai Baba to a large crowd of devotees, underwent
many hardships and was put on the cross because of jealousy. In those
days there was only one Judas to betray him, but now there are
thousands.
The holy man alleged that his detractors were being bribed to lie
about him because of fear of his growing popularity. "People are
trying to stop me but can do nothing," he said. "People love and
follow Sai because of the truth I stand for and the love that is my
basis."
Detractors are casting doubt on Sai Baba's miracles, suggesting that
he is little more than a conjuror with a limited repertoire of jaded
tricks. A financial row over the £13 million fortune of the British
film actor James Mason, whose widow became a Sai Baba devotee, is
smouldering. Most devastating is the suggestion that Sai Baba might
have been abusing his power over young male followers by indulging in
sexual activity with them.
Sai Baba was born Sathyanarayana Raju on November 23, 1926 in the tiny
village of Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh.When he was only 14, Sai Baba
- already magically producing candles and pencils for school friends -
surprised his family by announcing that he was the reincarnation of
Sai Baba of Shirdi, a miraculous old Indian sage who died in 1918.
Today Sai Baba's birthplace is home to an ashram that can accommodate
10,000 pilgrims. The obscure village has grown to cater for Sai Baba's
followers, of which there are more than 20 million worldwide. They
include some of India's most influential people. The legendary batsman
Sachin Tendulkar, who helps to organise cricket matches at Sai Baba's
stadium, says that he "worships" the guru.
The director-general of police in Andhra Pradesh, H. J. Dora, acts as
Sai Baba's chauffeur when the spiritual leader visits the state
capital, Hyderabad. Judges and top civil servants flock for audiences
with him. The Indian Prime Minister A. B. Vajpayee, another follower,
has opened a new Sai Baba hospital in Bangalore. In a lofty tribute,
the premier said that Sai Baba has shown humanity the path of
liberation which goes beyond freedom from worldly attachments.
However, the first cracks in faith in Sai Baba's magical powers came
about because of a visit by a previous prime minister, Narasimha Rao,
also a devotee.For this special occasion, Sai Baba appeared to
materialise a gold watch from nowhere. But when Indian state
television workers played back film of the incident in slow motion,
they saw that the miracle was a sleight-of-hand hoax. The clip was
never broadcast in India but has been widely circulated on videotape
there. Sai Baba's most common miracle is to produce "sacred ash" from
between his fingers.
Sometimes he pulls shiny, solid religious artefacts from his mouth.
But magicians who have analysed these wonders say they are nothing
more than old and simple tricks. Sai Baba is being challenged on
another more prosaic front. Questions are being asked about the
fundraising techniques employed by his followers. Some are accused of
targeting vulnerable rich people and claiming that the miracle worker
might be able to cure the afflictions of old age.
One of Sai Baba's most devout followers was Clarissa Mason, the second
wife of the film star James Mason. When Clarissa died of cancer in
1994, she willed a large part of her late husband's £13 million estate
to the cult, although, due to a dispute with Mason's children,
Portland and Morgan, who contend that the estate was not hers to will
in the first place, it will be some time before the cult can hope to
see any of the Mason millions.
Clarissa Mason believed utterly in the powers of Sai Baba, filling her
house near Lake Geneva with pictures of the "godman". Her legacy has
gone to a trust whose beneficiaries are believed by Mason's children
to include a follower of Sai Baba.
But more potentially damaging than claims about money are the sexual
allegations against Sai Baba. These were first publicised as long ago
as 1976, when Tal Brooke, a disenchanted American devotee, wrote
Avatar of Night. Over the years, the description by disillusioned
followers of intimate acts involving Sai Baba has persisted.
The suggestion is that Sai Baba grants one-to-one audiences to young
men, who believe they are in the presence of a living god. This may
entail a high level of intimacy and the men allowing their private
parts to be touched or fondled by the guru.
There have been no prosecutions. A complaint was lodged with India's
Central Bureau of Investigation on March 12, 2001 but there has been
no result. In the United States, though, anti-Sai Baba campaigners are
trying to persuade the authorities to open investigations into the
alleged molestation of American citizens who are minors. The co-
ordinator of this American campaign says that he has been interviewed
by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but no formal inquiry is under
way.
So has Sai Baba, the most worshipped sage of the Orient, really been
groping youthful followers. One innocent explanation is provided by
Stuart Jones, a member of Sai Baba's Bristol and Bath group. He points
out that there is a possible cultural misunderstanding at play. In
yoga, Jones explains, one of the energy points on the body is below
the testicles, an area sometimes stimulated by a teacher such as Sai
Baba.
"When I was out there, it happened to a couple of friends of mine, but
it was more like, how can I say, doctor's surgery. There was no
sexuality involved. One chap said that a tremendous amount of energy
was suddenly released in him and he felt wonderful afterwards. I don't
mean ejaculation. It was like suddenly feeling wonderful. Sometimes he
rubs the chest or the forehead where these other points are."
Talk of "energy points" does not endear Sai Baba to the Indian
Rationalists Association, an organisation of atheists and doubters
which seeks to debunk organised religion and disprove all miracles.
They denounce him as the biggest fraud of the "god industry". Joseph
Edamaruku, the association's president, says: "He has consistently
refused to subject himself to an independent examination. He raises
enormous amounts of money from India and around the world. We do not
believe claims that it is spent on hospitals and charitable works."
One charitable field where Sai Baba's followers do seem to be most
active is education. Sai Baba's teachings, however, are a collection
of banal truisms and platitudes. The most famous utterances he has
made in a six decade-long career as a living god are "Help ever, hurt
never" and "Love all, serve all". Few are likely to argue with such a
simplistic and universal moral code. He broadens his appeal further by
allowing devotees to continue practising their own religion while
paying homage to him.
Sai Baba's children's course, Education in Human Values, is taught in
schools in 100 countries. It promotes five qualities: truth (satya),
righteousness (dharma), peace (shanti), love (prema) and nonviolence
(ahimsa). Education in Human Values rejects rote learning, emphasising
Indian techniques such as "silent sitting", quotation, story-telling,
song and group activities.
Sai Baba's message reaches British schoolchildren through two
charities. The first is named in his honour, the Sathya Sai Education
in Human Values Trust UK, which claims to have had contact with 80
schools. Typical of its activities is a summer camp held at
Christchurch Primary School in Ilford, East London, several weeks ago
where 100 children painted, played games and sang. Courses have been
cleverly designed to fit into Key Stages 1 to 4 of the National
Curriculum, targeting children aged seven to 16.
The charity states that it does not promote any particular religion.
Carole Alderman, the founder, a former ChildLine volunteer, has no
teaching qualifications. She admits to using some of Sai Baba's
quotations but says: "We don't teach about Sai Baba at all."
She adds: "I have witnessed a lot of his miracles. I have seen people
going in with crutches or wheelchairs and come out walking. I have
seen him materialise things many times a day. He just knows
everything." Asked about the sexual allegations, she says: "It's
totally unfounded. Anybody who actually knows him, knows it is."
Another British charity, the Human Values Foundation, says it has
reached more than 500 schools. Its chairman, Dennis Eagan, said "The
foundation has nothing to do with Sai Baba."
But the Human Values Foundation's programme is also called "Education
for Human Values". It promotes Sai Baba's same five virtues, using
"silent sitting", activities, songs, quotations and stories. Its
president, June Auton, has been a regular visitor to Sai Baba's
ashram. She has been described by Barry Pittard, a former English
lecturer at Sai Baba's college in India, as "synonymous with Swami's
Human Values Programme."
Auton told The Times: "I'm not going to discuss anything about my
religion at all on the phone. My religion is my business." Pressed,
she would only say: "I do attend my local church." It is the recent
suicides, however, that may hurt Sai Baba the most in Britain.
Suicides and suspicious deaths have long marred his reputation. A
German man was found hanging from a rafter in Puttaparthi in the early
1980s. A father and daughter took fatal overdoses in Bangalore in 1999
after failing to get an audience with the guru.
In a puzzling incident in June 1993, Sai Baba was attacked by four
young male devotees armed with knives. Two of the guru's bodyguards
were stabbed to death. After the four youths, long-time followers of
Sai Baba, locked themselves in a room, they were all shot dead by
police. Challenging faith in a man of miracles can be painful. At Sai
Baba's Central London base in Clerkenwell, there is reluctance to
confront the allegations of sexual harassment, suicides and financial
maneuvering.
Dee Puri, at the London headquarters, denounces the suggestion that
Sai Baba takes money from the rich, pointing out that at his 28-year-
old London premises: "Entrance is free. There is no money going to
Baba at all.
As for the suggestions of sexual harassment, she told The Times: "I
don't want to talk about it because there is no such thing. I think
such conversations disturb me and my beliefs. The organisation is most
unhappy that you have tried to hurt us. Nobody will speak to you
unless you want to write something which is truth, which is not
controversial.
"As far as I am concerned, Baba is a great, great guru. Thirty years I
have been a devotee of Baba and millions and millions of people are,
so I would very respectfully ask you please not to put that sort of
question to me."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba11.html
Three die after putting faith in guru
The Times British News/August 27, 2001
By Dominic Kennedy
Three British men have died mysteriously after becoming followers of
an Indian mystic famed as a 'god man' and miracle worker. Sai Baba's
activities are being studied by the Foreign Office which is
considering issuing an unprecedented warning against the guru to
travellers.
The Times has learnt that three Britons have apparently taken their
lives after placing hope in India's most popular holy man.
One of them had complained of being repeatedly sexually molested by
Sai Baba at his ashram in Puttaparthi near Bangalore.
Michael Pender, an HIV-positive student, was found dead at a London
hostel after taking alcohol and painkillers. He had already tried to
commit suicide at the holy man's headquarters.
Aran Edwards hanged himself at home in Cardiff after joining a Sai
Baba support group and being encouraged to write to the guru to solve
his psychological problems.
Mr Edwards sent a flurry of anxious letters but was devastated after
receiving no replies and being told that the guru did not read his
mail.
Andrew Richardson, a South Africa-born British national, jumped off a
building in India shortly after visiting Sai Baba's ashram.
Among visitors who have paid respects to Sai Baba are the Duchess of
York, the Prince of Wales's architect Keith Critchlow, the cricketer
Sachin Tendulkar and the Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
Sai Baba's message is being preached in more than 500 British schools
through charities which claim to provide non-denominational education
in 'human values.'
Tom Sackville, a former Home Office Minister, last night urged the
Government to take decisive action to warn teachers and pilgrims of
the dangers of becoming involved with Sai Baba. The guru's reputation
is plummeting after the United Nations cancelled a conference at his
headquarters, issuing a condemnation of his alleged sex abuse of
youths and boys.
Unicef pulled out of a conference it was due to sponsor with the
guru's educational organisation in Puttaparthi last September.
The UN's cultural agency issued a trenchant statement: 'The
organisation is deeply concerned about widely reported allegations of
sexual abuse involving youths and children that have been levelled at
the leader of the movement in question, Sathya Sai Baba.
'Whilst it is not for Unesco to pronounce itself in this regard, the
organisation restates its firm moral and practical commitment to
combating the sexual exploitation of children, in application of the
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which requires states to
protect children from all forms of sexual exploitation and violence.'
In hundreds of British schools, Sai Baba-influenced educational
programmes on 'human values' are currently being promoted as part of
the National Curriculum.
The Charity Commission met the trustees of one of the educational
charities involved, the Sathya Sai Education in Human Values Trust UK,
last year and 'found no concerns,' a spokesman said.
Mr Sackville, chairman of the anti-cult organisation Fair (Family
Action Information and Resource), said that he had successfully
intervened to persuade a girls' school to reject a Sai Baba-inspired
course.
'Schools are not on their guard because at official level they are not
given any steer,' Mr Sackville said. 'Some other countries would have
had official warnings.'
He said that Whitehall was strongly opposed to letting the British
Government apply sanctions to cults, which civil servants describe
respectfully as 'new religious movements.'
As for the Charity Commission's clean bill of health to the Sai Baba
educational organisation, Mr Sackville said: 'There's a lot of very
naive people around in these government institutions.'
He called on the Foreign Office to issue a warning against Sai Baba
along the lines of recommendations to travellers to beware the dangers
of Aids and violence abroad. The Foreign Office is believed to be
considering putting out just such advice.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba10.html
'I sought peace and couldn't find it'
The Times British News/August 27, 2001
By Michael Dynes and Dominic Kennedy
Durban -- Michael Pender, a student, hoped that Sai Baba would be able
to cure him of HIV. Like thousands of devotees from around the world,
Mr Pender went on a pilgrimage to Sai Baba's ashram in Puttaparthi,
southern India, expecting to find magic and divinity. Instead Mr
Pender, known as "Mitch," was found dead after taking tablets in the
lonely bedroom of a hostel for the homeless in Highbury, North London.
He was 23.
Kathleen Ord, who first told him of Sai Baba's teachings, has since
destroyed her books and videos on the holy man. She said: "I blame
myself in many ways because, if I hadn't introduced them, Mitch would
probably be alive now. That's what he went to India for, thinking he'd
find a cure.
"He tried to commit suicide in the ashram. He had overdosed on drugs
more than once. He had some strange, very powerful experiences there.
There was something sexual that was frightening." Her son, Keith, has
given a detailed account of what Mr Pender said in his last weeks
about meeting Sai Baba. The guru flattered the British student by
describing him as "the reincarnation of St Michael." Mr Ord's
evidence, posted on the Internet, states: "He told me that the very
first private interview that he had with SB was a sexual encounter.
"At first he couldn't believe any of this was happening. It felt
unreal and frightening. But then after the first interview he thought
SB must have been showing him something about himself . . . that there
must have been some spiritual or 'divine' explanation behind the
swami's actions.
"But after the fourth interview, he became very despondent and
confused about the whole thing; each interview was a repetition of the
first . . . Baba 'materialised' an emerald ring on the fifth interview
and gave him money on the sixth.
"After telling me of his experiences, Michael became quite depressed."
On January 12, 1990, Mr Pender's body was found by the supervisor of
his hostel. Traces of paracetamol and alcohol were found in his blood,
but a pathologist found it impossible to determine if they were lethal
doses. An open verdict was recorded at an inquest in St Pancras.
Aran Edwards, a classical guitarist and postgraduate theology student
at the University of Wales in Newport, joined Sai Baba's Bath and
Bristol support group. David Bailey, a concert pianist from Conwy,
North Wales, who had become one of the guru's closest British aides,
met Aran with the group.
"He was sort of persuaded that Sai Baba looked after him, did
everything for him and that he should write to Sai Baba with his
problems," Mr Bailey said.
"He was quite an ill person, mentally unstable and needed orthodox
help. In the end, he wrote a couple of dozen or more letters to Sai
Baba. The group had told him this was what to do.
"He used to ring me from phone boxes pleading with me. There were 35
phone calls, I suppose . . . he was absolutely desperate that I should
talk to Sai Baba for him because he was in such a state and had
written all these letters which he had sent out and hadn't had a
reply. Could I please help because I was Sai Baba's right-hand man?
"At the end I said, 'Wake up. He doesn't even read these letters'. He
was so distraught about the situation, he decided to commit suicide."
Aran Edwards, a single man, was found hanged from a staircase at his
home in Cardiff, on April 19, 1999. He was 37. A suicide verdict was
recorded by the coroner.
Stuart Jones, of the Bath and Bristol group, said: "He was a very
fragile kind of person, very sensitive, very gentle in nature. If you
are thinking there is a link, I know for a fact there wasn't a link in
the sense of all the allegations going about Sai Baba. He was in
distress long before."
Aran never visited Sai Baba in India. But Andrew Richardson, a British
national born in South Africa, did. He made a pilgrimage to Sai Baba's
ashram, booking in for a week, but mysteriously leaving after only two
days.
On September 19, 1996, Mr Richardson travelled to Bangalore and hired
a taxi at the railway station to one of the city's tallest buildings,
the State Bank of Mysore. Mr Richardson flung banknotes and
travellers' cheques in the air, ran into the bank and up the stairs to
the eighth floor, where he smashed a window and leapt 84ft to the
ground, killing himself. He was 33.
Two letters were found on his body. One to Sai Baba outlined his quest
for spiritual enlightenment. The second was a suicide note saying he
was in a deep depression: "I came to India in search of peace but
could not find it." His mother, Deirdre, at her home near
Pietermaritzburg, said: "Andrew wanted to see Sai Baba, but was also
heading to Calcutta to see Mother Teresa . . . All he wanted to do was
work with the poor."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba9.html
Sex Scandal swirls around Sai Baba
Cult News Summary/December 2004
Sai Baba, a controversial Indian "holy man" presides over a spiritual
kingdom that includes one of the world's largest ashrams. He claims to
have millions of followers.
But the guru, who is approaching 80, has a history of sexual abuse
allegations that in recent years has made media headlines around the
world.
Former followers of the aging swami reportedly call him "a sexual
harasser, a fraud and even a pedophile."
One man says Sai Baba ordered him to drop his pants and allow the guru
to massage his penis. He later said, "Sai Baba was my God -- who dares
to refuse God? He was free to do whatever he wanted to do with me; he
had my trust, my faith, my love and my friendship; he had me in
totality."
Despite such revelations and the growing scandal that surrounds Sai
Baba he continues to be worshipped at his ashram. Twice a day he
parades about and makes appearances to the faithful, entertaining them
with what seems like little more than magic tricks.
Sai Baba's so-called "materializations" include making watches and
jewelry appear out of "thin air."
At functions his followers rock back and forth with "shining eyes"
seemingly in trance-like or hypnotic states. Perhaps in this condition
they are prepared to believe almost anything.
The guru holds court within lavishly appointed rooms decorated with
gold leaf and hanging chandeliers.
"Sometimes I think the ashram is a madhouse and Swami is the
director," said one recently devoted disciple. Does Sai Baba prey upon
the psychologically and emotionally vulnerable? "When you don't have
problems, you don't go to the ashram," says a disciple.
But there may be casualties amongst the true believers.
A Malaysian woman reportedly had a psychotic breakdown, attacked
ashram workers and was taken into police custody. She sat in a holding
area almost catatonic, mumbling "darshan, darshan, darshan"
repeatedly.
Sai Baba has accumulated substantial influence and prestige within
India. That influence includes some prominent leaders such as former
Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao. The Times of India reported in 1993
that the guru's followers include "governors, chief ministers,
assorted politicians, business tycoons, newspaper magnates, jurists,
sportsmen, academics and, yes, even scientists."
His popularity is easy to understand. Sai Baba has built a hospital
that offers free services, partly financed by a $20 million donation
from Isaac Tigrett, co-founder of the Hard Rock Café. Its pink façade
makes it look more like a palace than a hospital. And in the entrance
area there are images of Sai Baba.
Sai Baba's charities have reportedly been plagued though by "rumors of
chicanery and worse."
Nevertheless Illustrated Weekly of India stated, "God or a fraud, no
one doubts the good work done by the Sai organization."
But does the guru use his accumulated good will and "God-man" status
to get into people's pants?
The sex abuse claims are strikingly similar and seem to fit the same
pattern.
"During my 'private audiences' with Sai Baba, Sai Baba used to touch
my private parts and regularly massage my private parts, indicating
that this was for spiritual purposes," wrote one former devotee. "He
grabbed my head and pushed it into his groin area. He made moaning
sounds. As soon as he took the pressure off my head and I lifted my
head, Sai Baba lifted his dress and presented me a semi-erect member,
telling me that this was my good luck chance, and jousted his hips
towards my face," the man said.
When the devotee later talked about his sexual encounter he was thrown
out of the ashram.
"Each time I saw Baba, his hand would gradually make more prominent
connections to my groin," said another former follower.
All of the allegations reportedly involved mostly teenage boys and
young men in their 20s.
This story is hardly new. In 1970 a book by Tal Brooke titled "Lord of
the Air" later renamed "Avatar of Night," told the story of a devoted
disciple's disillusionment upon learning of Sai Baba's sexual
appetite.
More recently a document called "Findings" accumulated accounts of
alleged sexual exploitation and abuse from the guru's former
followers.
An excerpt from the document reads, "Whilst still at the ashram, the
worst thing for me -- as a mother of sons -- occurred when a young
man, a college student, came to our room, to plead with David, 'Please
Sir, do something to stop him sexually abusing us&These sons of
devotees, unable to bear their untenable position of being unwilling
participants in a pedophile situation any longer, yet unable to share
this with their parents because they would be disbelieved, placed
their trust in David; a trust which had built over his five years as a
visiting professor of music to the Sai college."
Since the release of "Findings" the Sai Baba sex scandal has grown and
gained momentum.
A California man named Glen Meloy, who spent 26 years as a devotee
wanted to launch a class-action lawsuit against the Sai Organization
in America. "You've got all these kids who are scared to death to do
anything that will do disrespect to their parents, in a room with
someone they believe to be the creator of the whole universe. This
isn't just any child abuse; this is God himself claiming to do this,"
Meloy said.
One former Indian ashram volunteer petitioned India's Supreme Court to
investigate Sai Baba. "I've spoken to 20 or 30 boys who have been
abused, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. There are 14-year-old
kids made to live in his room and made to think it's a blessing. In
most cases, their parents have been followers for 20 years and are not
going to believe them. American citizens have been knowing about this
abuse and taking American boys to Puttaparthi and feeding them to
him," he said.
UNESCO yanked its co-sponsorship of an education conference in India
linked to Sai Baba and stated it was "deeply concerned about widely
reported allegations of sexual abuse involving youths and children
that have been leveled at the leader of the movement in question,
Sathya Sai Baba."
After Conny Larsson, a Swedish actor went public about his coerced
sexual relations with the guru; the Sai Organization in Sweden was
shut down.
India Today ran a cover story about the scandal, as has England's
Daily Telegraph.
Labor MP Tony Colman raised the issue in Parliament.
Former British government minister, Tom Sackville said, "The
authorities have done little so far and that is regrettable."
But it seems that the guru's ardent followers can rationalize almost
anything.
One such disciple concluded in an essay published on the Internet,
"First of all, I believe that Sathya Sai Baba is an Avatar, a full
incarnation of God ... any sexual contact Baba has had with devotees
-- of whatever kind -- has actually been only a potent blessing, given
to awaken the spiritual power within those souls. Who can call that
'wrong'? Surely to call such contact 'molestation' is perversity
itself."
A "potent blessing"?
"When he does it, he has a purpose," concludes another still devoted
follower.
Other devotees have rejected reports about their guru's sexual abuse
completely regardless of how many of his alleged victims come forward
to tell their stories.
One said, "I think this is a projection of his devotees' problems. You
hear a lot of rumors&but for me it's not important. When you're happy,
why doubt it?"
Note: This news summary is based upon an article titled
"Untouchable" (note: dead link) by Michelle Goldberg, which appeared
in Salon Magazine, July 25, 2001
Holy man? Sex abuser? Both?
Vancouver Sun/February 27, 2001
By Douglas Todd
His followers say Sai Baba is a God on Earth, and they generously
support his multi-billion-dollar religious empire. But some former
adherents are coming forward with dark tales of the guru sexually
molesting young men.
Sri Sathya Sai Baba -- "The Protector," "The Infinite," "the Creator"
-- has only once left India, where he reigns as arguably the country's
most famous living swami. But Sai Baba is here tonight at this temple
in east Vancouver. Sai Baba is sitting in the ochre robe on the wooden
throne at the front altar, smelling the eye-stinging incense,
listening to the spine-tingling chants and watching the earnest,
multiracial followers bow to him. Sai Baba is omni-present.
So be-lieves B.C. Sai Baba president Nami Thiyagaratnam, who teaches
management studies at the University of Victoria. To devotees, Sai
Baba is an avatar, God on Earth, born of a virgin mother. Separated by
gender in the Vancouver temple, the scores of East Indians,
Caucasians, Japanese, blacks and Chinese followers who sit on the red
carpet revering Sai Baba believe he paranormally transports his
invisible soul throughout the globe.
They are convinced that at this moment he is gazing contentedly at
them and other adherents conducting similar rituals of worship around
the planet at 6,700 Sai Baba temples, charity hospitals and schools,
mostly in India, but including 500 centres in the U.S. and 70 in
Canada. Dr. Ray Ludwig, 60, a Vancouver physician, puts his awe for
the Indian avatar succinctly: "Sai Baba, to me, is like a thousand
Mother Teresas. It was the greatest day of my life when I met Sai Baba
15 years ago. He transforms people to an altruistic lifestyle."
But deep troubles are emerging in Sai Baba's wealthy, glorious
universe, where people of all religions, from Christianity to
Buddhism, are meant to come together, because, as Sai Baba teaches,
"all faiths are facets of the same truth."
Accusations are mounting that Sai Baba has been sexually molesting
comely young men for decades during private meetings at his giant
ashram in India, where thousands visit each week.
The round-faced "saint" with the Jimi Hendrix hairdo, who is known for
miraculously manifesting out of thin air everything from wristwatches
to sacred stones and ash, has never admitted to sexual assault. But
followers in Canada and elsewhere acknowledge they've taken part with
him in what they call "sexual healing."
As the number of disturbing accounts grow, followers around the world
and across Canada have been feeling betrayed. Greater Vancouver boasts
one of the bigger North American Sai Baba contingents, with several
thousand members, about 75 per cent of them from the city's large Indo-
Canadian community With the sex scandal rapidly being unveiled on
various Internet sites and in a few newspapers, Sai Baba has told his
adherents, whose numbers range from 10 million to 50 million,
depending on whom you talk to, not to sign on to the World Wide Web.
The abuse charges are producing a mix of confusion and sadness,
defensiveness and sublime indifference among those who remain
acolytes. Thiyagaratnam, speaking at the Sai Baba Centre at 1659 East
10th, says he's not surprised that people are trying to ruin the
reputation of such a wondrous man. After all, he says, people also
persecuted Jesus Christ and Buddha. "It's very acrimonious and we're
sad. But people are entitled to their opinion." The charges are taking
their toll, however.
UNESCO recently cancelled its co-sponsorship of a conference in Sai
Baba's hometown of Puttaparthi, in southern India, saying it was
"deeply concerned about widely reported allegations of sexual abuse
involving youth and children that have been levelled at the leader of
the movement."
The many celebrity admirers of 75-year-old Sai Baba -- including
Indian president Atal Bihari Vajpayee; Isaac Tigrett, co-founder of
the Hard Rock restaurant chain and House of Blues; Sarah Ferguson,
Prince Andrew's former wife, and dozens of prominent Indian
professionals -- have so far been silent. But graphic charges have
come from all over the world.
London's Sunday Telegraph newspaper and India Today magazine recently
reported the case of American Sam Young, a young man who said he was
repeatedly abused by Sai Baba in a private room while his unwitting
parents remained outside, feeling blissful that their son was getting
so much of the divine one's attention.
Former Sai Baba leaders such as Swedish psychotherapist and former
film star, Conny Larsson, who says the guru regularly performed oral
sex on him and asked for it in return. Sai Baba was said to have
claimed he was simply correcting Larsson's inner "kundalini" energy.
David Bailey, a Welshman who had risen high in Sai Baba's inner
circle, fell away after hearing numerous accounts of how young men's
sessions with Sai Baba, which started out as purported sexual healing,
eventually turned into molestation. Bailey has been compiling the
stories, called the Findings, on a Web site.
Californian Glen Meloy is one of many former adherents who are busily
"e-bombing" decision-makers, including the White House, U.S. Senators,
the FBI and Indian newspapers, with warnings to keep young males away
from Sai Baba.
Still, no criminal charges have ever been laid against Sai Baba,
although some speculate that's because of his exalted position and
charitable work in India, where he's opened numerous well-appointed
hospitals, schools, colleges and water-treatment facilities.
Dr. Michael Goldstein, the influential U.S. president of the Sai Baba
organization, this year dismissed all the accusations. He says they're
unbelievable and that Sai Baba remains divinely pure, filled only with
"selfless love." The answer for those who doubt, says Goldstein, is to
show more faith.
But Goldstein's attitude draws the disdain of people such as
Vancouver's Tony Cleary, who walked away last year from the group
after 15 years of high-level dedication. Cleary, a 57-year-old
businessman, said it's difficult to leave. "Sai Baba makes you feel so
important because he tells you he's chosen you."
In addition to the sex allegations catalogued by Bailey, a friend,
Cleary is concerned about what he estimates are the billions of
dollars that well-meaning devotees give to Sai Baba and his various
charities. "It's a huge enterprise," Cleary says. Sai Baba is said to
be the reincarnation of the revered Indian saint, Shirdi Sai Baba, who
died in 1918. But Cleary said Sai Baba's teachings are "pretty
standard stuff.
"It's basically Hinduism with an eclectic mix of Christianity and
Buddhism, so it will appeal to more people." Despite his anger, Cleary
still believes Sai Baba probably has miraculous powers, including the
ability to "astral travel," which allows his soul to traverse the
globe.
Cleary also believes Sai Baba, who has only physically travelled to
Africa many years ago, may transport himself to sleep in various
sacred beds that devotees keep for him around the world, including in
Vancouver. So far in Canada, two people have agreed to go public with
accounts of Sai Baba's practice of "sexual healing," sometimes known
as "genital oiling."
But they offer ambiguous interpretations of what happened. Marc-Andre
St. Jean said in an interview from Montreal that when he was 19 and
had a private session with Sai Baba, the guru pointed at his genitals
and said, "Something slow."
Although St. Jean didn't know what Sai Baba was talking about at the
time, he said the guru then "asked me to drop my pants. He made a
materializing motion with his hand and there was cream on it. He
applied it to my scrotum." St. Jean thought at the time the event was
not sexual -- but more like "going to the doctor" for what he found
out was a urinary infection -- but St. Jean has since quit the group
after hearing and believing the mounting allegations of molestation.
St. Jean, now 29, remains bemused. "The charisma of Sai Baba is
incredible," he says. "The love was flowing from him. All this still
bothers me a lot. It's scary." In Langley, by contrast, Sai Baba
leaders Ann and David Jevons remain defiantly loyal to their divine
master.
Although they witnessed Sai Baba conduct a "sexual healing" on their
son's genitals more than a decade ago, they say the guru did it
because their son had a lump on his testicles, probably caused by an
anti-miscarriage drug she had taken during pregnancy.
"I know Sai Baba has done sexual things," says Ann Jevons, 62. Ann and
David, 65, acknowledged in an article for their newsletter that Sai
Baba can show less interest in adults such as themselves and more
interest in children and young people in general -- showering them
with rings and watches that he mysteriously materializes out of
nowhere.
But Jevons thinks sexual healing is a good thing, because "there is a
kundalini point between the anus and the genitals, where human energy
starts." It is totally understandable, she says, that a saint would
want to help people by curing disruptions in the flow of such a
crucial life force.
"Sai Baba is faultless," Jevons says. "He just opened the largest
hospital in south India. He's done incredible service to the world.
His accusers are wrong. And we're no gullible believers."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba6.html
Guru shrugs off sex allegations
The Star/January 14, 2001
By Tom Harpur
`Do not get deluded because I talk, laugh, eat and walk like
you. . . . All my actions are always selfless, selfless, selfless.'-
Guru Sai Baba
IN THE Oct. 28 issue of the London Telegraph's Sunday magazine, a
major feature article described one of the greatest scandals to befall
a guru or religious leader in our time.
Titled "Divine Downfall," the six-page expos* by British investigative
journalist Mick Brown makes the case that the man millions around the
world hold to be God incarnate, a healer and "miracle worker" on a par
with Krishna or Christ, has systematically and for decades sexually
abused large numbers of teenage boys.
Sri Sathya Sai Baba - who has only once left his southern India ashram
in Puttaparthi, close to Bangalore (for a visit to Uganda), yet has
followers numbering anywhere from 10 million to 50 million, depending
on the source - is also accused of financial wrongs and "B-grade
conjuring tricks."
But those charges have been around for years. What is new is the huge
controversy now coming to a head over a document released on the
Internet, called "The Findings."
It was compiled over the last three years by David Bailey, a Welsh ex-
devotee, who had risen high in the guru's inner circle only to be
devastated by allegations made to him by several students at Sai
Baba's ashram college.
They claimed the guru had sexually abused them and said they couldn't
tell anyone because they were fearful of being disbelieved by their
parents and friends who were also devotees.
Shocked, Bailey quit the ashram and began building a record of
evidence gained from devotees around the globe.
The completed dossier includes scores of accounts of such abuse from
Holland, Australia, Germany, India and the United States.
Swedish movie actor Conny Larsson is one of those cited: "Not only did
Sai Baba make sexual advances towards him, but he had also been told
by young male disciples of advances the guru had made on them."
The Telegraph account told a particularly moving story of an American
husband and wife who suddenly found themselves being given special
treatment by the guru - out of all the thousands seeking to get near
him at his twice-daily public sessions.
Simultaneously, their teenage son, Sam, was being selected for even
closer ties. The Telegraph said he was given presents of all kinds,
including expensive watches, which the guru claimed to have
"materialized" out of thin air.
Over four years, Sam spent many hours alone with "God," just metres
from his parents outside.
The parents were stunned when their son finally alleged that Sai Baba
had steadily moved from fondling to demands for oral sex and,
eventually, attempted rape. Sam said he had feared that to tell anyone
would end his parents' happiness and incur the divine wrath of the
guru.
Significantly, the harrowing stories in "The Findings" produced a
flood of similar accounts from every corner of the Internet.
Gradually, the stage was set for one of the most amazing battles ever
spawned in cyberspace.
Browsing the Net recently, I found everything from Web sites with
specious, unconvincing arguments - for example, that the whole affair
was initiated by the omnipotent, omniscient guru as a kind of "divine
game" to test the disciples' faith - to a host of critical chatrooms,
columns and letters.
Sai Baba has been "India's most famous and powerful holy man" for
nearly 60 years.
His official biographer says in a four-volume work that the "saint"
was born sinless "of immaculate conception," like the Virgin Mary, in
Puttaparthi in 1926.
At 13, he announced he was the reincarnation of a revered southern
saint, Shirdi Sai Baba, who died in 1918. Even as a boy, the guru
displayed signs of allegedly miraculous powers by "materializing"
flowers and candies from "nowhere."
Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and other politicians are
included among his followers, as are members of India's judiciary,
academics, scientists and scores of high-profile members of the upper
middle class.
There are nine chapters of the Sai Baba organization in Toronto and
many others nationwide.
Nothing I have found yet on the Web or elsewhere directly meets the
current charges. Instead, the pro-Baba arguments seem to consist of
various ways of saying that God is God and doesn't really have to
explain. His ways are far beyond anything we mere humans can
understand.
Sai Baba is reported to have said recently to his devotees: "Never try
to understand me."
Perhaps he eventually will be cleared of the accusations levelled
against him. He may be a pure healer and a promoter of universal love.
But if this quote is accurate, he embodies the kind of guruship to be
avoided at all cost.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba5.html
The man believers think is God
Sai Baba, an Indian holy man, worshipped by many prominent Canadians,
is accused of being a sexual predator
The Ottawa Citizen/December 19, 2000
By Bob Harvey
Millions of devotees in Ottawa and in more than 100 countries around
the world recently celebrated the 75th birthday of Sai Baba, an Indian
spiritual leader they believe is God.
But a growing number of leaders of the movement in Canada, Sweden, the
U.S. and other countries have quit: they say Sai Baba is a sexual
predator.
UNESCO also recently cancelled its co-sponsorship of a conference in
Sai Baba's home town of Puttaparthi, India, saying it was "deeply
concerned about widely-reported allegations of sexual abuse involving
youth and children that have been levelled at the leader of the
movement."
Raj Midha, the president of Ottawa's brand new $2-million Sri Sathya
Sai Spiritual Centre on Hunt Club, is a believer. Like many devotees,
he wears a large ring given to him by the guru. "He materialized it
from thin air," Mr. Midha says.
Television documentaries produced in Australia, India and other
countries have used slow-motion to show that such "miracles" are
really just clever sleight-of-hand by Sai Baba. But Mr. Midha shrugs
off this and other allegations about Sai Baba. "With all big leaders,
there have always been people who didn't like them. Even Jesus was
crucified."
What Mr. Midha wants to do is tell how Sai Baba has changed his life
and others. He shows off the 156,000-square-foot centre with pride,
and points to Sai Baba teachings posted on the walls of the building.
He says those teachings can be summarized in eight words: "Love All,
Serve All", and "Help Ever, Hurt Never."
Mr. Midha, a telecommunications engineer, believes Sai Baba cured his
wife's cancer, and he credits his own work with the Shepherds of Good
Hope and other charities to Sai Baba's teachings. On the centre's
second floor, he is reverent as he enters Sai Baba's bedroom, which
comes complete with bathroom, and a balcony overlooking the worship
area on the ground floor.
Sai Baba has taken only one trip out of India, and that was to Uganda.
But Mr. Midha and other devotees firmly believe their leader can
transport himself around the world at will. Mr. Midha says they know
Sai Baba uses his Ottawa bedroom, because they leave a glass of water
on his bedside table, and often the glass has been half-drained. About
200 devotees regularly worship at the centre, and some report having
seen the holy man while they were praying.
Conny Larsson, a psychotherapist, and once a well-known actor and film
star in his native Sweden, has a very different view of Sai Baba. He
first met Sai Baba in 1978, built his own apartment near the guru's
headquarters in Puttaparthi, and remained a devotee until last year.
Mr. Larsson was the spiritual co-ordinator of the Sai Baba movement in
Sweden, and says he brought tens of thousands of people to India to
see Sai Baba by speaking at conferences, writing a book about Sai
Baba, and speaking on radio.
"Now I feel very guilty," he says. For the first five years he knew
Sai Baba, Mr. Larsson says the guru regularly practised oral sex on
him, and asked that Mr. Larsson do the same for him. The guru's
explanation, as it has been for many young men, is that he was
correcting Mr. Larsson's kundalini, or cosmic force.
"I was brainwashed," said Mr. Larsson in a telephone interview from
Sweden. "As a child I was severely molested, and when he did this to
me, he told me he was going to correct something. And in my mind, I
thought God was healing me of this tragedy. This is the reason he
could do what he liked. "Everyone told me I was very special. They
puffed me up. For a person so molested and hurt as a child, it was a
relief to be someone."
By 1986, Mr. Larsson had talked to many young male devotees, most of
them attractive blond westerners, who told him they too had had sex
with Sai Baba. He believes Sai Baba has had sex with many more
reluctant male followers. Why do they do it? He says it's because
"everyone believes he is divine. They want to believe because they
have nothing else," he said.
For more than 50 years, Sai Baba has been India's most famous holy
man. The number of his followers is estimated at somewhere between 10
million and 50 million, and they include India's Prime Minister Atal
Bihari Vaijpayee; Isaac Tigrett, the co-founder of the Hard Rock
Restaurant chain; Simon de Jong, a former New Democrat MP from
Saskatchewan; and Kris Singhal, founder of Ottawa's Richcraft Homes.
Birendra, the king of Nepal, Sarah Ferguson, Prince Andrew's former
wife; and many other celebrities have also made pilgrimages to see the
guru.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of people visit Sai Baba's ashram,
and what was once a small village now has an airstrip, a university, a
hospital and enough hotels and apartment blocks to accommodate tens of
thousands of people. "When you see all these important people moving
around there, kings and queens moving around as if they were common
people, you start to believe he (Sai Baba) has a divine plan for all
mankind," said Mr. Larsson.
Twice a day, Sai Baba strolls among the thousands of devotees seated
in the main temple and chooses people from the crowd for private
interviews. Often those chosen for private interviews are young men
like Mr. Larsson once was. What prompted him to quit the organization
and start speaking out was the abuse suffered by a young Swedish man
who asked for his help as a psychotherapist, after six interviews with
Sai Baba.
"He told me about the same things that happened to me. The swami
opened his trousers and started to masturbate him. He withdrew, but
the swami insisted." Mr. Larsson then brought the man to a meeting of
Swedish leaders of the Sai Baba movement, and told his own story as
well. The majority of the leaders resigned, and Mr. Larsson, like many
other ex-devotees, put his story on the Internet.
Mr. Larsson's story is one of many that appear in another Internet
posting, The Findings, a 42-page document amassed by David and Faye
Bailey, former devotees who once lived in Puttaparthi, and edited a
magazine to propagate Sai Baba's teachings. Mr. Bailey is a British
concert pianist and taught students at the Sathya Sai Baba College.
When some of his students complained to him about being sexually
molested by Sai Baba, he quit the organization and began documenting
the stories of abuse.
Glen Meloy, a retired management consultant in California, is another
former devotee who is using the Internet to warn others to keep their
sons away from Sai Baba. After 26 years of following Sai Baba, he quit
when he heard the story of a 15-year-old California boy who said he
had been abused on multiple occasions. Mr. Meloy said this boy and
others in families of devotees "were born with the idea that Baba is
God. So they submit because they're afraid to displease their parents,
let alone God himself, who's asking them to participate in these
acts."
Mr. Meloy is now bombarding politicians, the White House, Indian
newspapers, and the FBI with allegations of abuse by the Indian
spiritual leader. He says he gets 50 to 100 e-mails and phone calls a
day from former devotees, many of them looking for advice on what to
do about the tales of abuse they have heard.
To date, only one former Canadian devotee is willing to go public with
his story of being sexually touched. Marc-Andre St. Jean of Montreal
said that when he visited Puttaparthi in 1992, Sai Baba took him into
a private interview room, and asked him to drop his pants. Then he
touched Mr. St. Jean's genitals. He said he had a kidney problem and
at the time he thought Sai Baba was just trying to help him.
But Mr. St. Jean's story, and that of the son of a Quebec family of
devotees, helped persuade seven co-ordinators of the Sai Baba movement
in Quebec to hand in their resignations.
Alain Groven of Montreal's South Shore was the province's
representative on the national Sai Baba council. He said he and other
co-ordinators resigned after comparing the stories of Quebecers to
those of Mr. Larsson and others who suffered more severe abuse.
Mr. Groven said that last year, the Canadian organization gave Sai
Baba $90,000 as a birthday present, and the 70 centres across Canada
probably donated even more this year, for the 75th birthday.
[One woman said that] she and the other Montreal-area co-ordinators
who resigned wonder why so many others have remained devotees. "But
when you believe he is God, and you have invested yourself in a
spiritual community, it involves too much to suddenly decide he is not
God. Your whole spiritual world falls apart. It's too hard to bear,"
she said.
V.P. Singh of Windsor has been president of the Canadian Sai Baba
organization for the past 30 years. He said he does not care to read
the allegations against Sai Baba, and like most other devotees, he
obeys his guru's command not to use the Internet.
"I have known him for 30 years, and I have had a nice experience," he
said. Mr. Singh said the Canadian and other leaders who have resigned
from the organization around the world "can do whatever they want to
do; it's their business."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba4.html
Divine downfall
The Daily Telegraph Saturday Magazine/October 27, 2000
By Mick Brown
Driving into town from the small Midwest airport where Carrie Young
and her husband had met me off the plane, she pulled a large picture
from the back seat of the station wagon. Framed in gilded-gold, the
picture showed the couple and their three children posing with an
elderly, chubby-faced Indian man with an ostentatious Afro haircut,
dressed in a red robe. Staring out of the picture, it seemed the
Youngs were shining with happiness. "And to think," said Carrie, "this
is the man we used to think was God."
The Youngs were what Americans call "straight arrows": honest, decent
and truthful. A handsome, clean-cut couple in their mid-40s; both
worked in the computer industry. The past year, said Jeff, had been
difficult, what with all that had happened, but they were pulling
things together.
A year ago, their son Sam had come to them with a shocking assertion:
Sathya Sai Baba, he told them - the man the Youngs had revered as God
for more than 20 years - was, in fact, a sexual abuser. Over the
course of four years, in his ashram, while Sam's parents sat a few
metres away - thrilled that their son should be in such close
proximity to the divine, secure in their belief that the god-man was
ministering to their son's spiritual welfare - Sai Baba was actually
subjecting him to sustained and systematic sexual abuse. "You'll meet
Sam at the restaurant," said Carrie. "He's prepared to talk about
this. He thinks it's important too."
Sam was a tall, blue-eyed, dreadlocked boy with a look that could only
be described as angelic. For the next four hours, they told me the
story of how they had come to Sai Baba; of their spiritual
aspirations, the dreams, the visions, the miracles - and the nightmare
their lives had turned into. And always, throughout the conversation,
the same question repeated itself: how could it possibly have come to
this?
For more than 50 years, Sai Baba has been India's most famous and most
powerful holy man - a worker of miracles, it is said, an instrument of
the divine. His following extends not only to every corner of the
Indian sub-continent, but to Europe, America, Australia, South America
and throughout Asia. Estimates of the total number of Baba devotees
around the world vary between 10 and 50 million.
To even begin to appreciate the scale and intensity of his following,
it is necessary to have some understanding of what his devotees
believe him to be, and of the powers that are attributed to him. Among
his devotees, Sai Baba is believed to be an avatar: literally, an
incarnation of the divine, one of a rare body of divine beings - such
as Krishna or Christ - who, it is said, take human form to further
man's spiritual evolution.
According to the four-volume hagiography written by his late secretary
and disciple, Professor N. Kasturi, Sai Baba was born "of immaculate
conception" in the southern Indian village of Puttaparthi in 1926. As
a young boy, he displayed signs of miraculous abilities, including
"materialising" flowers and sweets from nowhere. At 13, he declared
himself to be the reincarnation of a revered southern Indian saint,
Shirdi Sai Baba, who died in 1918. Challenged to prove his identity,
Kasturi writes, he threw a clump of jasmine flowers on the floor,
which arranged themselves to spell out "Sai Baba" in Telugu.
In 1950, he established a small ashram, Prasanthi Nilayam (Abode of
Serenity) in his home village. This has now grown to the size of a
small town, accommodating up to 10,000 people, with tens of thousands
more housed in the numerous hotels and apartment blocks that have
sprung up around. There is a primary school, university, college, and
hospital in the ashram, and innumerable other institutions around
India bearing Sai Baba's name. In India, his devotees include the
former prime minister, PV Narasimha Rao, the present Prime Minister,
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and an assortment of senior judiciary,
academics, scientists and prominent politicians. Unlike other Indian
gurus who have travelled in the West, cultivating a following among
faith seekers and celebrities, Sai Baba has left India only once, in
the '70s, to visit Uganda. His reputation in the West spread largely
by word-of-mouth. His devotees tend to be drawn from the educated
middle-classes.
It is said that as an instrument of the divine, Sai Baba is
omniscient, capable of seeing the past, present and future of
everyone; his "miracles' include materialising various keepsakes for
devotees, including watches, rings and pendants, as well as vibhuti or
holy ash. Like Christ, he is said to have created food to feed
multitudes; to have "appeared" to disciples in times of crisis or
need. There are countless accounts of healings, and at least two of
his having raised people from the dead.
Sai Baba's teachings resemble a synthesis of all the great faiths,
with a particular emphasis on Christian charity, enshrined in his most
ubiquitous aphorism, "Love All, Serve All".
The principal event in Prasanthi Nilayam is darshan, in which Sai Baba
emerges twice daily from his quarters adjacent to the main temple and
walks among the thousands of devotees seated on the hard marble floor.
Hands reach forward to touch his feet or to pass him letters of
supplication. Occasionally he pauses, to offer a blessing or to
"materialise" vibhuti in an outstretched hand. It is during darshan
that Sai Baba, by some unseen criteria, chooses people from the crowd
for private interviews. Some devotees might wait for years.
Inevitably for such a potent figure, Sai Baba has, for years, been the
subject of rumbling allegations of fakery, fraud and worse. But he has
proved remarkably immune to controversy, the accusations doing little
to dent his growing following or the esteem in which he is held. But
all that, it appears, is about to change.
In recent months, a storm of allegations have appeared - spurred by a
document called The Findings, compiled by an English former devotee
named David Bailey - which threaten to shake the very foundations of
Sai Baba's holy empire. Sai Baba may represent an ancient tradition of
belief, but the instrument of accusation against him is an altogether
modern one. Originally published in document form, The Findings
quickly found its way on to the Internet, where it has become the
catalyst for a raging cyberspace debate about whether Sai Baba is
truly divine or, as one disenchanted former devotee describes him, "a
dangerous paedophile".
David Bailey became a devotee of Sai Baba in 1994, at the age of 40,
drawn by an interest in the guru's reputation as a spiritual healer.
"I couldn't see him as a God," says Bailey, "but I did think, this
could be a great holy man who has certain gifts."
An extrovert man, Bailey quickly became a ubiquitous and popular
figure among devotees. He travelled all over the world, speaking and
performing at meetings and would visit the ashram in India three or
four times a year. Over the course of four years Bailey claims to have
had more than 100 interviews with Baba. At Baba's instigation, Bailey
married a fellow devotee, and together they edited a magazine to
propagate Sai Baba's teachings. But the closer he came to Sai Baba,
Bailey told me, the more his doubts multiplied. The miracles, he
concluded, were B-grade conjuring tricks, the healings a myth, and
Baba's powers of being able to see into people's minds and lives
merely a clever use of information gleaned from others.
Bailey's dwindling faith was finally crushed when students from the
college came to him alleging that they had been sexually abused by the
guru. "They said, `Please sir, can you go back to England and help
us."' They were unable to tell their parents because they were afraid
of being disbelieved, and feared for their personal safety.'
Shocked by the allegations, Bailey severed his association with Sai
Baba and began to assemble a dossier of evidence from former devotees
around the world. The Findings is a chronicle of shattered illusions.
It contains allegations of fakery, con-trickery and financial
irregularities in the funding of the hospital and over a Sai Baba
project to supply water to villages around the ashram, which is
habitually trumpeted as evidence of his munificence.
Some of these allegations have been aired before. But the charges
contained in The Findings are of an altogether different magnitude.
They include verbatim accounts of abuse from devotees in Holland,
Australia, Germany and India. Conny Larsson, a well-known Swedish film
actor, says that not only did Sai Baba make homosexual advances
towards him, but he was also told by young male disciples of advances
the guru had made on them.
In April, Glen Meloy - a retired management consultant and a prominent
Californian devotee of some 26 years standing - received a letter from
an American woman who had read The Findings on the Internet. Her 15-
year-old son, she said, had also been abused. Included in the letter
was a four-page statement from the boy himself alleging multiple
sexual abuse.
Meloy launched his own Internet campaign to spread the allegations.
The effects of this have been enormous. There has been a rash of
defections from Sai Baba groups throughout the West. >From other
devotees, however, the response has been one of disbelief and denial.
"Sai Baba," says Bailey, "is a simple sex maniac who's on an ego trip,
after money, after power. He is a sheer conman." No, say others, "Sai
Baba is God."
The Young family are not among those listed in The Findings, but the
story of how they had come to Sai Baba was not atypical. In the early
'70s, Jeff had become interested in "the spiritual quest", initially
through psychedelics, then through yoga and meditation. He learned of
Sai Baba through a friend, and in 1974, at the age of 18, visited
India for the first time.
Three weeks later Jeff had a private interview with Sai Baba. "And I
remember feeling peace like I had never felt before; feeling loved
like I'd never been loved before." He returned to Los Angeles, where
he lived in a community with fellow Baba devotees. He met Carrie,
whose childhood had been characterised by parental abuse, and her
teenage years by drug abuse. She, too, became a devotee of Sai Baba.
They married, moved to the Midwest and started to raise a family. Over
the years, they visited Sai Baba from time to time. They founded a
community, home-schooled their children according to his teachings,
and strove to lead a life of purity and self-discipline.
Then, in 1995, things began to change. Their son, Sam, who was now 16,
visited the ashram with a family friend and was singled out for a
private interview with Sai Baba. Eighteen months later, the Youngs
returned to Puttaparthi; again Sai Baba singled out Sam and called him
and the family for an interview. "He made [a big fuss of] our group,"
said Jeff. "He materialised a ring for my son. He told everybody that
Sam had been a great Shirdi Sai devotee in a previous life - he just
poured it on." During the course of that visit, the Youngs were called
for seven interviews, while Sam had some 20 private meetings. The
family felt blissfully privileged. He materialised rings, watches,
bracelets, gave them robes and the silk lungi he wore next to his
skin.
The following year, the family returned to Puttaparthi three times. On
each occasion they would be gifted with two or three interviews. Sam
had twice as many. "We had no idea what was going on," said Jeff.
In 1995, Sam had come to his father. In a private interview, he said,
Sai Baba had "materialised" some oil in his hand, unbuttoned Sam's
trousers and rubbed his genitals. Jeff told his son he had had a
similar experience when he first met Sai Baba at 18. "I said to Sam,
what did you think about it? He said he didn't feel there was anything
sexual about it; it was like Sai Baba was doing his job. And I'd kind
of had that experience. A doctor gives a boy an exam. I'd taken it as
some kind of healing." Thereafter, Sam said nothing about his
experiences.
What had actually occurred was this: from anointing with oil, Sam told
me, Sai Baba's advances had grown progressively more abusive and
forceful. Sai Baba, he said, had kissed him, fondled him and attempted
to force him to perform oral sex, explaining that it was for
"purification". On almost every occasion Sai Baba had given him gifts
of watches, rings, trinkets and cash, in total around $10,000. He had
told him to say nothing to his parents. When Sam asked Baba why he was
doing this, he would tell him it was because Sam was "a special
devotee - that it was a great blessing". When Sam attempted to resist,
he said, Baba would threaten not to call his parents for any more
interviews. "I felt obligations, to my parents, our friends, all the
thousands of people sitting outside who all wanted to be in the
position I was in, not knowing what was really there.
"And then the big thing was the concept that he is God, from day one,
so when he says, don't tell anybody ..."
In fact, Sam did tell somebody. He confided what was happening to two
other American teenagers who were students at the Puttaparthi college.
They had had similar experiences. "They justified it as a divine
experience. But he was doing things to me that I didn't want to do,
and I was just letting it happen."
In 1998, according to Sam, Sai Baba attempted to rape him. The
following year, the day before the family were leaving for
Puttaparthi, he told his father he did not want to see Sai Baba alone,
without specifying why. Jeff sensed something was amiss. "I told him,
you must always be true to your conscience. The family don't care if
we never have another interview again." In Puttaparthi, Sam was again
called for a private interview. When Sai Baba attempted to get him to
perform oral sex, Sam walked out for the last time, although it would
be some months before he summoned the nerve to tell his parents. Jeff
said it took some weeks to "process" what they were hearing. "We knew
that Sam was telling the truth, but I still asked myself, what could
this mean?"
The Youngs contacted a leading figure in the American Sai Baba
organisation. "He said it must be some kind of test," said Jeff, "and
for a moment we felt better."
Then Dr Michael Goldstein, the man in charge of the entire Baba
organisation in America, flew in from California to meet them. "He
said, we've got to talk to Baba about this; words are not enough;
faith must be restored." Goldstein flew to India. He returned to tell
the Youngs that Sai Baba had told him "he is pure", and that Goldstein
accepted that. He asked Jeff if he thought his son might be
delusional. The Youngs no longer speak with Goldstein.
A senior devotee, a trustee for the Sathya Sai Baba Society of
America, Jerry Hague, told me that he and his wife had been devotees
for 25 years. He was deeply shocked at the allegations and could not
begin to understand them.
"All I know in my heart is that Swami is the purest of the purest, and
that everything he does is for the highest good of everybody." This
denial - Sai Baba is God, God doesn't do these things - was a theme
that was echoed by innumerable other devotees I spoke to in America
and Britain.
Among those people named in The Findings is Dr D Bhatia, the former
head of the blood bank at the Sathya Sai Super Speciality Hospital,
who, it is claimed, had a longstanding sexual relationship with Sai
Baba. Bhatia resigned from his post at the hospital in December 1999
and is now an administrator at a hospital in New Delhi.
Contacted by phone, Bhatia said that he had become a devotee of Sai
Baba in 1971, at the age of 20, and that he had had sexual relations
with Sai Baba for "15 or 16 years". In that time, he said, he was also
aware that Sai Baba had relations with "many, many" students from the
college and school, and with devotees from overseas.
One of the most remarkable facets of this controversy has been the
role of the Internet. Even 10 years ago, it is doubtful whether the
allegations against Sai Baba would have spread so far and so fast.
Conny Larsson has set up a support group for those claiming abuse by
Sai Baba, and says he receives some 20-30 e-mails a day from victims
"crying out for help. You cannot leave these people in the desert".
In America, the campaign organised by Glen Meloy has concentrated on
"e-bombing" copies of the allegations to senators, the White House,
the FBI and Indian newspapers. The most conspicuous success of the
campaign came in September when Unesco withdrew its co-sponsorship and
participation from an education conference at Puttaparthi, citing
"deep concern" over the allegations of sexual abuse.
For all the allegations laid against him over the years, Sai Baba has
never been charged with any crime, sexual or otherwise. And his
exalted position in India has until now kept him safely insulated from
any kind of public inquiry.
Among former devotees, there is a sense of shock, betrayal, anger - a
hunger, if not for revenge, then for accountability. "We know that
many victims have been physically molested," Glen Meloy told me, "but
in reality all the former devotees have been spiritually raped because
we chose to believe that this man was the highest. I certainly
considered him to be the God of gods, the creator of all creation, my
friend, my everything. The intense desire I have to expose him now is
directly proportionate to the amount of devotion I gave him."
Sitting in the restaurant in a small, homely Midwest town, Jeff Young
struggled to understand what had led him to believe that an Indian
guru could be God.
Looking back, he said, when Sam finally told him about the sexual
abuse, he didn't find it difficult to believe at all. "I realised, I'd
really known this for a long time but didn't really know it." Jeff
shook his head. " You ask yourself, how could millions of people be
wrong? How could millions of people be tricked? .. We'd spent 23 years
raising our family to believe in him, going upstream against a river.
You think, how could I have been so wrong?"
Whether he is divine, "a demonic force", as Glen Meloy describes him,
or simply an accomplished fakir and confidence trickster, Sai Baba has
said nothing publicly about the allegations. When contacted, K.
Chakravarthi, secretary of the Puttaparthi ashram, said, "We have no
time for these matters. I have nothing to say."
Sai Baba's principal English translator, Anil Kumar, said every great
religious teacher had faced criticism. Allegations had been made at
Sai Baba since childhood, "but with every criticism he becomes more
and more triumphant."
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba3.html
Scandal engulfs guru's empire
Divine Downfall
The Age (Australia)/November 12, 2000
By Padraic Murphy
For Hans de Kraker, a trip to India to see Sathya Sai Baba, a self-
proclaimed god with a following of up to 25 million devotees, was a
spiritual quest. But he said the pilgrimage ended when the 73-year-old
guru tried to force him to perform oral sex.
Mr de Kraker, who now lives in Sydney, has gone public to alert
devotees to a sex scandal that is threatening to undo Sai Baba, by far
the most popular of India's new-age gurus.
"It is devastating to realise the man you see as a spiritual master is
simply conning people for his own sexual gratification," Mr de Kraker,
32, said. "After a while you notice that the people chosen for private
interviews tend to be good-looking young males."
Mr de Kraker, who first visited Sai Baba's ashram in 1992, said the
guru would regularly rub oil on his genitals, claiming it was a
religious cleansing, and eventually tried to force him to perform oral
sex. He was kicked out of the ashram after alerting senior officials
in 1996.
Mr de Kraker's story is not an isolated one, and a growing list of
alleged victims is threatening to engulf the Sai Baba organisation,
which has an estimated worth of $6billion. Droves have left after
allegations of paedophilia and the rape of male followers.
Sai Baba's main ashram in Puttaparthi, India, is the largest in the
world and can sleep up to 10,000 people. That number of people
regularly turn out to "darshan", a twice-daily ritual in which Sai
Baba walks among devotees choosing people for private interviews.
It is in these private interviews that many of the alleged assaults
against males between the ages of seven and 30 take place. Former
devotees said the interviews usually involved family groups, but when
young males were involved they were ushered into a second room, behind
what has come to be known as the "curtain of shame".
The organisation has been shut down in Sweden after revelations that
Conny Larson, now a film star in that country, was molested by Sai
Baba. The FBI is looking into similar allegations made by American
children and there are investigations into the sect in France and
Germany.
Both UNESCO and Flinders University in South Australia and Flinders
University in South Australia pulled out of a conference organised by
Sai Baba in September because of concerns about the guru's sexual
conduct. In Australia, the sect is estimated to have up to 5000
followers. It runs schools in northern NSW and Western Australia, and
has meditation centres across the country.
Now Australian victims are preparing documents to present to federal
authorities about the guru's activities.
Terry Gallagher, a property developer from Kiama, in New South Wales,
regularly visited Sai Baba in the early 1990s and spent three years as
the coordinator of the group in Australia. He left the group in the
mid '90s after boys in Indian schools run by Sai Baba complained to
him of sexual abuse.
"Spiritually it is devastating. I'm concerned because of both the
sexual abuse of young boys, and the spiritual fraud Sai Baba
perpetrates," Mr Gallagher said.
Sri Ramanathan, a former Sri Lankan judge and head of the Sai Baba
Organisation in Australia and Papua New Guinea, refuses to warn
families taking children to Puttaparthi about the allegations.
"All god men have these kind of allegations levelled at them, why
should I warn people of these allegations, they are just allegations?"
he said. "He is a holy man. I know that (these allegations) cannot be
proved."
Raphael Aron, the director of Cult Counselling, said: "These
organisations are run by one individual and there are never any
complaint mechanisms. When these sorts of allegations come up, the
usual response is that it is some kind of test of faith and the whole
thing is denied."
Several former devotees who spoke to The Sunday Age said they had been
thrown out of Sai Baba's ashrams when they questioned leaders about
the charges.
The sexual exploits of the guru were exposed 30 years ago by Tal
Brooke, a former high-ranked devotee who now runs a cult-watch group
in the US. "It appears that now he is out of control. The problem is
that people have such faith that these allegations would kill them
spiritually," he said from his home in California.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba2.html
Screen Star James Mason Laid to Rest After 16 Years
Reuters/November 25, 2000
London - Hollywood screen legend James Mason has been finally laid to
rest -- 16 years after his death, the Daily Telegraph newspaper
reported on Saturday.
Mason's children buried his ashes in a Swiss cemetery on Friday after
an acrimonious legal battle over the British actor's estate with their
stepmother Clarissa Kaye, and later with the administrators of her
estate, the paper said.
The wrangle became so bitter that for many years Mason's children,
daughter Portland and son Morgan, had no idea of the whereabouts of
their father's ashes. Portland finally tracked them to a bank vault in
Geneva.
``It is like a dream,'' the Daily Telegraph quoted Portland Mason as
saying after the burial ceremony. ``Sometimes I thought it would never
happen. It has been so, so long,'' she said.
Mason, who died of a heart attack aged 75 in 1984, was the star of
such screen classics as ``A Star is Born,'' ``The Desert Fox,''
``Lolita'' and ``North by Northwest.''
The paper said that the actor felt his second wife Clarissa had
sacrificed a Hollywood career of her own when she agreed to move to
Lake Geneva with him in 1963. He wanted her to be able to live in
comfort after his death. The children believed he intended for them to
inherit his estimated 15 million pound fortune on Clarissa's death,
the paper said. But Clarissa, who died six years ago, bequeathed
everything to a trust with unknown benefactors.
The children believe the benefactors are devotees of Sathya Sai Baba,
an Indian religious sect, which Clarissa became close to in the last
years of her life. They are continuing litigation in the hope of
gaining control of at least part of their father's estate.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba8.html
Devotee 'Tricked Woman Into Sex'
The (London) Times/July 5, 2000
By Simon De Bruxelles
A Follower of an Indian guru tricked a woman into having sex with him
by promising that it would cure her "bad vibrations", a court was told
yesterday.
Priyakant Shah, 47, a shopkeeper from Plymouth, allegedly persuaded
the mother of three that he was a messenger from the Hindu mystic Sai
Baba and he had been ordered in a dream to have sex with her. His
alleged victim, who is also of Asian origin, told Plymouth Crown Court
that the relationship began after Mr Shah had "engineered" her divorce
from her husband, whom she subsequently remarried.
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she met Mr Shah
in the mid-1980s when he ran a temple in South London devoted to the
worship of the 73-year-old guru who claims 30 million followers
worldwide.
The woman, who was 37 or 38 at the time, said Mr Shah persuaded her to
leave her husband and take her daughters to live in a flat above his
shop in Plymouth.
She said: "I had been praying in the prayer room and Shah was asleep
on a bed in there. As I prayed, I heard him say 'No, Baba, no, Swami,
I cannot do that'.
"I asked him later what he meant and he told me that I would not
believe it, but Baba had said he had worked so hard with me but I was
still carrying bad vibrations and that he had to have physical contact
with me.
"I asked him what he meant and he said he had to have sexual
intercourse with me. It was the only way the bad vibrations would come
out. I said 'no way'."
She said she woke later to find Mr Shah naked by her bedside and he
had made her have sex with him.
Mr Shah denies two charges of procuring a woman to have sex by false
pretences and one of indecently assaulting one of her daughters, who
was 12 or 13 at the time.
http://www.rickross.com/reference/saibaba/saibaba1.html
Them are few things sadder than a good guru gone bad. The cynics among
us may object that a "good guru" is a contradiction in terms and
certainly the spectacle of corrupt and authoritarian cults in recent
years has cast a pall over the role of spiritual teachers.
Nevertheless I'm willing to maintain that a significant amount of
wisdom and compassionate works have proceeded from various gurus and
their followers, and I resist the impulse to write off the whole bunch
as charlatans and power-trippers
From all indication Swami Muktananda helped thousands of people in his
day - a fact that even disillusioned ex-devotees don't dispute.
However, the last few years of his life saw a proliferation of abuses
which are only now coming to light William Rodarmor; a former lawyer,
park ranger, wilderness trip leader and presently a graduate student
at the University of California at Berkeley journalism school has
spent months interviewing former and current followers of Muktananda
for this investigative article. CQ independently contacted his major
sources and confirmed the authenticity of their quotes and
allegations. -Jay Kinney
The Secret Life of Swami Muktananda
by William Rodarmor
Illustrated by Matthew Wuerker
"There is no deity superior to the Guru, no gain better than the
Guru's grace ... no state higher than meditation on the Guru." -
Muktananda
ON THE American consciousness circuit, Baba Muktananda was known as
the "guru’s guru," one of the most respected meditation masters ever
to come out of India. Respected, that is, until now.
When Baba Ram Dass introduced him to the U.S. in 1970. Muktananda was
still largely unknown. Thanks to Muktananda's spiritual power, his
Siddha meditation movement quickly took root in the fertile soil of
the American growth movement. By the time he died of heart failure in
October 1982, Muktananda's followers had built him 31 ashrams, or
meditation centers, around the world. When crowds saw Muktananda step
from a black limousine to a waiting Lear jet, it was clear that the
diminutive, orange-robed Indian was an American-style success.
At various times, Jerry Brown, Werner Erhard, John Denver, Marsha
Mason; James Taylor, Carry Simon, astronaut Edgar Mitchell, and Meg
Christian have all been interested in Muktananda's movement. The media
coordinator at the large Oakland, California, ashram is former Black
Panther leader Erika Huggins.
Baba Muktananda said he was a Siddha, the representative of a
centuries-old Hindu lineage. According to his official biography, he
wandered across India as a young man, going from teacher to teacher,
living the chaste, austere life of a monk. In Ganeshpuri, near Bombay,
he became the disciple of Nityananda, a Siddha guru of awesome yogic
powers. After years of meditation, Muktananda experienced
enlightenment. When Nityananda died in 1960, Muktananda said the guru
passed the Siddha mantle to him on his deathbed, though some of
Nityananda's followers in India dispute the claim. When Muktananda
himself died, a sympathetic press still saw him as a spiritual Mr.
Clean, and his two successors, a brother-sister team of swamis,
continue to draw thousands of people searching for higher
consciousness.
To most of his followers, Muktananda was a great master. But to
others, he was a man unable to live up to the high principles of his
own teachings. "When we first approach a Guru," Muktananda wrote, "we
should carefully examine his qualities and his actions. He should have
conquered desire and anger and banished infatuation from his heart."
For many, that was a warning that was understood too late.
Some of Muktananda's most important former followers now charge that
the guru repeatedly violated his vow of chastity, made millions of
dollars from his followers' labors: and allowed guns and violence in
his ashrams. The accusations have been denied by the swamis who took
over his movement after the master died.
In the course of preparing this story, I talked with 25 present and
former devotees; most of the interviews are on tape. Some people would
only talk to me if promised anonymity, and some are bitter at what
they feel was Muktananda's betrayal of their trust. All agree that
Muktananda was a man of unusual power. They differ over the ways he
used it.
"I don't have sex for the same reason you do: because it feels so
good." -Muktananda
IN HIS teachings Muktananda put a lot of emphasis on sex - most of it
negative. Curbing the sex drive released the kundalini energy that led
to enlightenment, he said. The swami himself claimed to be completely
celibate.
Members of the guru's inner circle, however, say Muktananda regularly
had sex with his female devotees. Michael Dinga, an Oakland contractor
who was head of construction for the ashram and a trustee of the
foundation, said the guru's sexual exploits were common knowledge in
the ashram. "It was supposed to be Muktananda's big secret," said
Dinga, "but since many of the girls were in their early to middle
teens, it was hard to keep it secret."
A young woman I am calling "Mary" said the guru seduced her at the
main American ashram at South Fallsburg, New York, in 1981. Mary was
in her early twenties at the time. Muktananda was 73.
At South Fallsburg, Muktananda used to stand behind a curtain in the
evening, watching the girls coming back to the dormitory. He asked
Mary to come to his bedroom several times, and gave her gifts of money
and jewelry. Finally, she did. When he then told her to undress, she
was shocked, but she obeyed.
"He had a special area which I assume he used for his sexual affairs.
It was similar to a gynecologist's table, but without the
stirrups." (To his later chagrin, Michael Dinga realized he had built
the table himself.) "He didn't have an erection," Mary said, "but he
inserted about as much as he could. He was standing up, and his eyes
were rolled up to the ceiling. He looked as if he was in some sort of
ecstasy." When the session was over, Muktananda ordered the girl to
come back the next day, and added, "Don't wear underwear."
On the first night, Muktananda had tried to convince Mary she was
being initiated into tantric yoga - the yoga of sex. The next night,
he didn't bother. "It was like ‘Okay, you're here, take off your
clothes. get on the table and let's do it.' Just very straight, hard,
cold sex."
Mary told two people about what had happened to her. Neither was
exactly surprised.
Michael's wife Chandra was disturbed. Chandra was probably the most
important American in the movement. As head of food services, she saw
Muktananda daily, and knew what was going on. "Whoever was in his
kitchen was in some way molested," she said. A girl I’ll call "Nina"
used to work for Chandra. One day, the guru remarked to her in Hindi,
"Sex with Nina is very good." Nina's mother was later made a swami.
Chandra said she had rationalized the guru's having sex in the past,
but was dismayed to learn it had happened to her young friend Mary.
Aware of Muktananda's power over people who were devoted to him, she
saw it as a form of rape.
The other person Mary confided in was Malti, Muktananda's longtime
translator.
Mary said Malti wasn't surprised when she told her about being seduced
by the aged guru. "She told me people had been coming to her with this
for years and years," Mary said. "She was caught in the middle." Malti
and her brother, who have taken the names Chidvilasananda and
Nityananda, are the movement's new leaders.
Another of Muktananda's victims was a woman I'll call "Jennifer." She
says Muktananda raped her at the main Indian ashram at Ganeshpuri in
the spring of 1978. He ordered Jennifer to come to his bedroom late
one night, and told her to take her clothes off. "I was in shock," she
said, "but over the years, I had learned you never say no to anything
that he asked you to do...."
Muktananda had intercourse with Jennifer for an hour, she said, and
was quite proud of the fact. "He kept saying, ‘Sixty minutes,’" she
said. "He claimed he was using the real Indian positions, not the
westernized ones used in America." While he had sex, the guru felt
like conversing, but Jennifer found she couldn't say a word. "The main
thing he wanted to know was how old I was when I first got my period.
I answered something, and he said, ‘That’s good, you're a pure girl.’"
Devastated by the event, Jennifer made plans to leave the ashram as
soon as possible, but Muktananda continued to be interested in her.
"He used to watch me getting undressed through the keyhole," she said.
She would open the door and see the guru outside "I became rather
scared of him, because he kept coming to my room at night."
Both women said the Ganeshpuri ashram was arranged to suit
Muktananda's convenience.
"He had a secret passageway from his house to the young girls'
dormitory," Mary said. "Whoever he was carrying on with, he had
switched to that dorm." The guru often visited the girls' dormitory
while they were undressing. "He would come up anytime he wanted to"
Jennifer said, "and we would just giggle. In the early days, I never
thought of him as having sexual desires. He was the guru..." Mary knew
otherwise: she talked with at least eight other young girls who had
sex with Muktananda. "I knew that he had girls marching in and out of
his bedroom all night long," she said.
While his followers were renovating a Miami hotel in 1979, Muktananda
slept on the women's floor, and ordered that the youngest be put in
the rooms closest to his, and the older ones down the hall.
"You always knew who he was carrying on with," said Chandra. "They
came down the next day with a new gold bracelet or a new pair of
earrings." Around the ashram, said Mary, people knew that "anyone who
had jewelry was going to his room a lot."
For a time, Muktananda's followers found ways to rationalize his
behavior. He wasn't really penetrating his victims, they said. Or he
wasn't ejaculating - an important distinction to some, since retaining
the semen was supposed to be a way of conserving the kundalini energy.
Ultimately, Chandra felt it didn't make any difference. "If you're
going to be celibate, and you're going to preach celibacy, you don't
put it in halfway, and then pull it out. You live what you preach..."
After years of repressing their growing doubts about Muktananda,
Michael and Chandra finally drew the line when they learned he was
molesting a 13-year-old girl. She had been entrusted to the ashram by
her parents, and was being cared for by Muktananda's laundress and
chauffeur. The laundress "told me Baba was doing things to her," said
Chandra. "I think he was probing around in her." The laundress
suggested it was only "Baba's way of loving her," but Chandra was
appalled.
Charges of sex against Muktananda continued. In 1981, one of
Muktananda's swamis, Stan Trout, wrote an open letter accusing his
guru of molesting Little girls on the pretext of checking their
virginity. The letter caused a stir, but word didn't go beyond the
ashram. In a "Memo from Baba," Muktananda merely answered that
"devotees should know the truth by their own experience, not by the
letters that they receive... You should be happy that I'm still alive
and healthy and that they haven't tried to hang me."
"Wretched is he who cannot observe discipline and restraint even in an
ashram." -Muktananda
I N THE first of his eight years with Muktananda, Yale dropout Richard
Grimes said he was "in a funny kind of grace period, where you're so
involved with the beginning of inner Life that you don't really notice
what is going on." But then he started seeing things that didn't jibe
with his idea of a meditation retreat.
"Muktananda had a ferocious temper," said Grimes, "and would scream or
yell at someone for no seeming reason." He saw the guru beating people
on many occasions. "In India, if peasants were caught stealing a
coconut from his ashram, Muktananda would often beat them," Grimes
said. The people in the ashram thought it was a great honor to be
beaten by the guru. No one asked the peasants' opinion.
Muktananda's ubiquitous valet, Noni Patel, was a regular target of his
master's wrath. While on tour in Denver, Noni came down to the kitchen
to be treated for a strange wound in his side. "At first, he wouldn't
say how he had gotten it," Grimes' wife Lotte recalled. "Later it came
out that Baba had stabbed him with a fork."
When ex-devotees talked about strong-arm tactics against devotees, the
names of two people close to Muktananda kept coming up. One was David
Lynn, known as Sripati, an ex-Marine Vietnam vet. The other was Joe
Don Looney, an ex-football player with a reputation for troublemaking
on the five NFL teams he played for, and a criminal record. They were
known as the "enforcers"; Muktananda used them to keep people in line.
On the guru's orders, Sripati once picked a public fight with then-
swami Stan Trout at the South Fallsburg ashram. He came down from
Boston, where Muktananda was staying, and punched Trout to the ground
without provocation. Long-time devotee Abed Simli saw the attack, but
figured Sripati had just flipped out. Michael Dinga knew otherwise.
Muktananda had phoned him the morning before the beating, and told him
Trout’s ego was getting too big, and that he was sending Sripati to
set him straight. Dinga, a big man, was instructed not to interfere.
In India, Dinga and a man called Peter Polivka witnessed Muktananda’s
valet Noni Patel give a particularly brutal beating to a young
follower: A German boy in his twenties, whom Dinga described as
"obviously in a disturbed state" had started flailing around during a
meditation intensive. The German was hauled outside, put under a cold
shower, stripped naked, and laid out on a concrete slab behind the
ashram. Dinga said the German just sat in a full lotus position, and
tried to steel himself against what happened next.
Noni Patel took a rubber hose, a foot-and-a-half long, and beat and
questioned the boy for thirty minutes while a large black man called
Hanuman held him. "They were full-strength blows," said Dinga, "and
they raised horrible welts on the boy's body."
There exists a long tradition in the East of masters beating their
students. Tibetan and Zen Buddhist stories are full of sharp blows
that stop the students rational minds long enough for them to become
enlightened. Couldn't that have been what Muktananda was doing?
"It could be seen that way," said Richard Grimes. "For years we
thought that every discrepancy was because he lived outside the laws
of morality He could do anything he wanted. That in itself is the
biggest danger of having a perfect master lead any kind of group -
there's no safeguard."
Chandra Dinga said that as Muktananda's power grew, he ignored normal
standards of behavior. "He felt he was above and beyond the law," she
said. "It went from roughing people up who didn't do what he wanted,
to eventually, at the end, having firearms."
Though the ashrams were meditation centers, a surprising number of
people in them had guns. Chandra saw Noni's gun, Muktananda's
successor Subash's gun, and the shotgun Muktananda kept in his
bedroom. Others saw guns in the hands of "enforcer" Sripati and ashram
manager Yogi Ram. The manager of the Indian ashram showed Richard
Grimes a pistol that had been smuggled into India for his use. One
devotee opened a paper bag in an ashram vehicle in Santa Monica, and
found ammunition in it.
A woman who ran the ashram bakery for many years said she knew some
people had guns, but that it never bothered her. The Santa Monica
ashram, for example, was in a very rough neighborhood, she said, and
the guns were strictly for protection.
"In an ashram, one should not fritter one's precious time in a
precious place on eating and drinking, sleeping, gossiping and talking
idly." -Muktananda
BY ALL accounts, devotees in the ashrams worked hard under trying
conditions. In India, they were isolated from their culture. Even in
the American ashrams, close friendships were frowned on, and
Muktananda strongly discouraged devotees from visiting their families.
A woman I'm calling "Sally" used to get up for work at 3:30 a.m. She
said her day was spent in work, chanting, meditation, and silence.
"Some days, you couldn't talk to anyone all day long. I would get very
lonely." Recorded chants were often played over loudspeakers. Even a
woman who is still close to the movement admitted that "the long hours
were a drag."
Though he was Muktananda's right-hand man for construction, Michael
Dinga worked "under incredible schedules with ridiculous budgets,"
putting in the same hours as his crew. In the six-and-a-half years he
was with the ashram, he said he had a total of two weeks off.
As time went on, Dinga came to be bothered by what he saw as
exploitation: "I saw the way people were manipulated, how they would
work in all sincerity and all devotion [with] no idea that they were
being laughed at and taken advantage of."
"Even a penny coming as a gift should be regarded as belonging to God
and religion." -Muktananda
MUKTANANDA'S movement was both a spiritual and a financial success.
Once Siddha meditation caught on, said Chandra Dinga, "money poured
into the ashram." Particularly lucrative were the two-day "meditation
intensives" given by Muktananda, and now by his successors. Today, an
intensive led by the two new gurus costs $200. (Money orders or
cashier's checks only, please. No credit cards or personal checks.) An
intensive given in Oakland in May 1983 drew 1200 participants, and
people had to be turned away. At $200 a head, Chidvilasananda and
Nityananda’s labors earned the ashram nearly a quarter of a million
dollars in a single weekend.
There was always a lot of secrecy around ashram affairs, Lotte Grimes
remarked. During Muktananda's lifetime, that secrecy applied to money
matters with a vengeance.
The number of people who came to intensives, for example, was a secret
even from the devotees. Simple multiplication would tell anyone how
much money was coming in. And when Richard Grimes set up a restaurant
at the Oakland ashram, he said Muktananda "had a fit" when he found
out that Grimes had been keeping his own records of the take.
Food services head Chandra Dinga said the restaurants in the various
ashrams were always big money-makers, where devotees worked long hours
for free. On tour during the summer, she said, they would feed over a
thousand people, and bring in three thousand dollars in cash a day.
Sally said that a breakfast that sold for two dollars actually cost
the ashram about three cents.
Donations further fattened the coffers. if somebody important was
coming to the ashram, Chandra’s job was to try and get them to give a
feast and to make a large donation. $1500 to $3000 was considered
appropriate. "There was just a constant flow of money into his
pockets," said Chandra, "it let him get whatever he wanted to get, and
let him buy people."
Muktananda himself was said to have been very attached to money. "For
years, he catered only to those who were wealthy," said Richard
Grimes. "He spent all the time outside of his public performances
seeing privately anyone who had a lot of money."
A parade of Mercedes-Benzes used to drive up to the Ganeshpuri ashram
with rich visitors, said Grimes. In Oakland, Lotte Grimes saw Malti
order a list drawn up of everybody in the ashram who had money, to
arrange private interviews with Muktananda, by his orders.
Devotees, on the other hand, had to get by on small stipends, if they
got anything. Chandra Dinga, despite her status as head of food
services, never got more than $100 a month. Devotees with less
prestige were completely dependent on the guru's generosity. Sally
once cried for two days when she broke her glasses, knowing she would
have to beg Muktananda for another pair.
How much money did Muktananda amass from his efforts? Even the
officers of the foundation that ostensibly ran Muktananda's affairs
never knew for sure.
Michael Dinga was a foundation trustee, and used to cosign for
deposits to the ashram’s Swiss bank accounts, but the amounts on the
papers were always left blank. In 1977, however, he got a hint. Ron
Friedland, the president of the foundation, told Dinga that Muktananda
had 1.3 million dollars in Switzerland. Three years later, Muktananda
told Chandra it was more like five million. "And then he laughed, and
said, ‘There’s more than that.’"
A woman called Amma, who was Muktananda's companion for more than
twenty years, told the Dingas that all the accounts were in the names
of Muktananda’s eventual successors, Chidvilasananda and Nityananda.
Michael and Chandra Dinga finally quit the ashram in December 1980.
They had served Muktananda for a combined total of sixteen-and-a-half
years, and had risen to positions of real importance. Both knew
exactly how the ashram operated.
Together, they went to Muktananda to tell him why they wanted to
leave. The guru wasn't pleased. To get the Dingas to stay, Muktananda
called on everything he thought would stir them. He offered them a
car, a house, and money. When that failed, he started to weep. "You're
my blood, my family," he said. Then Muktananda abruptly changed tack.
"You've come on an inauspicious day," he said. "I can't give you my
blessing." Next morning, he called Chandra on the public intercom and
said she could leave immediately.
After they left, the Dingas say they were denounced by the guru, and
their lives threatened.
"Muktananda claimed he had thrown us out because Chandra was a whore"
said Dinga, "that she was having sex with the young boys who worked in
the restaurant. Later he said I had a harem. In other words, he was
accusing us of all the things he was doing himself." Muktananda also
claimed that none of the buildings Michael had built were any good.
When one of Michael's crew stood up for him, he was threatened
physically.
Leaving all their friends behind in the ashram, the Dingas moved to
the San Francisco area, but Muktananda's enmity followed them. Their
doorbell and telephone started ringing at odd hours, and Michael saw
the "enforcers" running away from their door one night. A cruel hoax
was played on Chandra. Someone followed her when she took her cat to
the vet, then phoned the vet's office with a message that her husband
had been in a bad accident. Chandra waited frantically at Berkeley's
Alta Bates Hospital for three quarters of an hour, only to learn that
Michael was at work, unhurt.
Death threats started to reach the Dingas toward the end of April
1981, six months after they had left the ashram. On May 7, Sripati and
Joe Don Looney visited Lotte Grimes at her job in Emeryville with a
frightening piece of information: "Tell Chandra this is a message from
Baba: Chandra only has two months to live." Another ex-follower said
he got a similar message: If the Dingas didn't keep quiet, acid would
be thrown in Chandra's face; Michael would be castrated.
The Grimeses and the Dingas reported the threats to the police. The
Dingas hired a lawyer.
The threats stopped soon after Berkeley police officer Clarick Brown
called on the Oakland ashram, but Chandra was badly frightened. Some
ex-followers still are.
Michael and Chandra's departure sparked a small exodus from the
ashram. Some of the ex-followers began to meet and compare notes on
their experiences in the ashram. "We were amazed and rejuvenated,"
said Richard Grimes. "We got more energy from learning he was a con
man than we ever did thinking he was a real person."
Just the same, the devotees who left the ashram are still dealing with
the damage done to their lives. Michael and Chandra's marriage broke
up, as did Sally's. Michael is only now coming out of a period of
depression and emptiness. Richard and Lotte Grimes are bitter at
having wasted years of their lives in the ashram. Stan Trout still
considers Muktananda a great yogi, but a tragically flawed man.
Chandra Dinga has taken years to come to terms with her experience
with Muktananda; "Your whole frame of reference becomes askew," she
said. "What you would normally think to be right or wrong no longer
has any place. The underlying premise is that everything the guru does
is for your own good. The guru does no wrong. When I finally realized
that everything he did was not for our own good, I had to leave."
Muktananda’s two successors were at the Oakland ashram in May end I
asked Swami Chidvilasananda about the accusations against her guru.
To her knowledge, did Muktananda have sex with women in the ashram?
"Not as far as I saw," she said carefully. What about the charge that
Muktananda had sex with young girls? "Those girls never came to us,"
Chidvilasananda said. "And we never saw it, we only heard it when
Chandra talked to everybody else."
Chidvilasananda also denied that there was a bank account in
Switzerland. When asked about the ashram's finances, she said that all
income was put back into facilities. "We are a break-even
proposition," the new leader said.
As for the alleged beatings, she said that Americans had their own
ways of doing things. She said, "You can't blame the guru, because the
guru doesn't teach that."
Why then, I asked, do the other ex-devotees I talked with support the
Dingas in their charges?
Chidvilasananda replied, "I'm very glad they gave you a very nice
story to cover themselves up and I want to tell you I don't want to
get into this story because I know their story, too, and I do not want
to say anything about it." When I said, "You have a chance to tell us
whether or not you think these are accurate charges, falsehoods, or
delusions," Malti's answer was: "I’m not going to probe into people's
minds and try to find out what the truth is."
Two swamis and a number of present followers also said the charges
were not true. Others say they simply don't believe them.
On the subject of money, foundation chief Ed Oliver conceded in an
October 1, l983, interview with the Los Angeles Times that there is a
Swiss account with 1.5 million dollars in it. And when I repeated
Swami Chidvilasananda's denials about women complaining to her, Mary,
the woman who says the guru seduced her in South Fallsburg, said,
"Well, that's an out-and-out lie."
"The sins committed at any other place are destroyed at a holy centre,
but those committed at a holy centre stick tenaciously - it is
difficult to wash them away." -Muktananda
THIS IS a story of serious accusations made against a spiritual leader
who is still prayed to and revered by thousands. Even his detractors
say Muktananda gave them a great deal in the beginning. "He put out a
force field around him," said Michael Dinga. "You could palpably feel
the force coming off him. It gave me the feeling I had latched onto
something that would answer my questions." Former devotees say
Muktananda's eyes had a kind of light; when they first met the guru,
he radiated love and benevolence. He also had a way of making his
devotees feel special.
"I think he liked me so much because I wasn't taken by all the visions
and the sounds," said Chandra, "that I understood that having an
experience of God was something much more substantial and more
ordinary." Chandra still feels that spirituality is the most important
thing in her life. She says the gradual unfolding of the dark side of
her guru's personality chipped away at her love and respect. "When you
have a loved one you never dream that he might hurt you. At the end, I
was devastated." Yet despite the unsavory conclusion to her ten years
with the swami, Chandra still notes, "if I had it to do over again, I
still wouldn't trade the experience for anything in the world."
In a way, the sex, the violence, and the corruption aren't the real
point. Muktananda's personal shortcomings were bad enough, explained
Michael Dinga, but "the worst of it was that he wasn't who he said he
was."
A person can make spiritual progress under a corrupt master, just as
placebos can actually make you feel better. But how far can a person
really grow spiritually under a master who doesn't himself live the
truth? There was a tremendous split between what Muktananda preached
and what he did, and his hypocrisy only made it worse. His successors
are now in a dilemma: If they admit their guru's sins, Chidvilasananda
and Nityananda lose their god-figure, and weaken their claim to a
lineage of perfect masters. But if they don't, people who come to them
looking for truth are courting disappointment.
Stan Trout, formerly Swami Abhayananda, served Muktananda for ten
years as a teacher and ashram director. He left in 1981. "My summary
withdrawal from Muktananda’s organization was also a withdrawal from
what I had considered my fraternal family, my friends, and able all,
my life’s work," he wrote us. He sent this open letter after reading a
draft of "The Secret Life of Swami Muktananda," in which he is quoted.
- Art Kleiner
Letter From a Former Swami
by Stan Trout
I’d like to add this letter, if possible, as an appendix to the
article on Muktananda by William Rodarmor. It is a statement of my
thoughts and opinions of Muktananda after two years of deep
deliberation following my discovery of his ‘secret life’.
When I left Muktananda’s service, I did so because I had just learned
of the threatening action he had taken against some of his long-time
devotees who had recently left his service. He had sent two of his
body-guards to deliver threats to two young married women who had been
speaking to other women who had been speaking to others of
Muktananda’s sexual liaisons with a number of young girls in his
ashram. It was immediately clear to me that I could not represent a
guru who was not only taking sexual advantage of his female devotees
but was threatening with bodily harm those who revealed the truth
about him. However, after I had left Muktananda and had make the
reasons for my departure known to others still in his service, another
issue came to light for me, teaching me something not only about
Muktananda’s, but about the nature of the organization and all other
such organizations in which the leader is regarded as infallible by
his followers, and is therefore obeyed implicitly.
When Chandra and Michael Dinga and later myself realized the truth
about Muktananda and his secret sex life, there was absolutely no
means available to present the evidence for a fair hearing or
judgment. There was no recourse but to leave, for the guru was the
sole appeal, and he was as accustomed to lying as he was to breathing.
Yet his word was regarded by followers as so absolutely final that
when each of us left and were branded "demons" by him, not a single
soul among those who had been our brother and sister devotees for ten
years questioned or objected, but unamimouly rejected us outright as
the demented infidels he said we were. One has only to observe the way
each of us who discovered the guru’s secret life were treated by our
former comrades to understand the power for evil inherent in any
relationship based on the infallibility of the leader and the
unquestioned obedience of the subjects...
It is clear to me that not only had the girls with whom Muktananda
practiced his sexual diversions committed acts to which they had given
no moral or rational consent, but so had the men who were ordered to
threaten them with violence, and so had I myself when I had followed
Muktananda’s orders to express to others opinions which I did not
sincerely hold. It is a sad but perennial phenomenon: Out of a love
for truth and for those who teach it and appear to embody it, we
unwittingly set ourselves up for exploitation and betrayal. Our
mistake is to deify another being and attribute perfection to him.
From that point on everything is admissible.
I think the lesson to be learned is that we simply cannot afford to
relinquish our individual sovereignty - whether it be in a socio-
political setting or in a religious congregation. Those who willingly
put aside their own autonomy, their own moral judgment, to obey even a
Christ, a Buddha, or a Krishna, do so at risk of losing a great deal
more than they can hope to gain.
About Muktananda himself I have thought a great deal. There is no
doubt in my mind that he was an extraordinarily enlightened, learned,
and articulate man who possessed a singular power, a dynamic personal
radiance and charisma that drew people to him and inspired them to lay
their lives at his feet. Surely such a power is divine; yet there is
no way to justify the way in which he used this power. If God himself
were to behave in this way, we would have to find him guilty of
flagrant disregard for the law of love.
Some may say, ‘He did no worse than any of us have done, or would do
if we could.’ And I would answer, ‘No; he did worse than any of use
have done or would have done in his place. For, though he was only
human like the rest of us, he staged a deliberate campaign of deceit
to convince gentle souls that he had transcended the limitations of
mankind, that through realizing the eternal Self, he had attained holy
"perfection." He planted and nourished false, impossible dreams in the
hears of innocent, faithful souls and sacrificed them to his sport.
With malicious glee, he cunningly stole from hundreds of trusting
souls their hearts and wills, their self-trust, their very sanity,
their very lives. No ordinary, good person could do this, no matter
how he tried; his heart and conscience would not allow it.
Like all of us, Muktananda was only human. And, like all men who
worship power, he was inevitably corrupted and destroyed by it. His
power could not save him form the weakness of the flesh, nor from the
wickedness and depravity that servitude to it brings. He ended as a
feeble-minded sadistic tyrant, luring devout little girls to his bed
every night with promises of grace and self-realization.
Muktananda’s claim of "perfection" (Siddha-hood) was based on the
notion that a person who has become enlightened has thereby also
become "perfect" and absolutely free of human weakness. This is
nonsense; it is a myth perpetrated by dishonest men who wish to
receive the reverence and adoration due God alone. There is no
absolute assurance that enlightenment necessitates the moral virtue of
a person. There is no guarantee against the weakness of anger, lust,
and greed in the human soul. The enlightened are on an equal footing
with the ignorant in the struggle against their own evil - the only
difference being that the enlightened person knows the truth, and has
no excuse for betraying it.
Throughout history there have been many enlightened souls who have
been thought great, who, in the pride of their perfection and freedom,
have imagined themselves to be beyond the constraints of God’s laws,
and who have thus fallen from love and lost the glory the once had.
Those glorious Babes and Bhagwans, thinking to build their kingdom
here on earth upon the ruins of the young souls devoted to them, often
succeed for a time in fooling many and in gathering a large and
festive following, but their deeds also follow them and proclaim their
truth long after the paeans of praise have been sung and wafted away
on the air. "God is not mocked"; there is no freedom, no liberation,
from His law of love, nor from His inescapable justice. It is indeed
often those very persons who have thought themselves most perfect,
most free and ungoverned, who have fallen most grievously; and their
piteous fall is an occasion for great sadness, and should serve as a
clear reminder of caution to us all.
The Rick A. Ross Institute
email: in...@rickross.com URL: http://www.rickross.com
Copyright © 2001-2008 Rick Ross.
http://www.rickross.com/groups/saibaba.html
Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
> http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thre...
>
> ...and I am Sid Harth
Book Review
Perry Anderson on the Specter of China
Posted on Mar 19, 2010
By Perry Anderson
The following review originally appeared in the London Review of
Books, whose website is www.lrb.co.uk, and is reposted with
permission.
These days Orientalism has a bad name. Edward Said depicted it as a
deadly mixture of fantasy and hostility brewed in the West about
societies and cultures of the East. He based his portrait on Anglo-
French writing about the Near East, where Islam and Christendom
battled with each other for centuries before the region fell to
Western imperialism in modern times. But the Far East was always
another matter. Too far away to be a military or religious threat to
Europe, it generated tales not of fear or loathing, but wonder. Marco
Polo’s reports of China, now judged mostly hearsay, fixed fabulous
images that lasted down to Columbus setting sail for the marvels of
Cathay. But when real information about the country arrived in the
17th and 18th centuries, European attitudes towards China tended to
remain an awed admiration, rather than fear or condescension. From
Bayle and Leibniz to Voltaire and Quesnay, philosophers hailed it as
an empire more civilised than Europe itself: not only richer and more
populous, but more tolerant and peaceful, a land where there were no
priests to practise persecution and offices of the state were filled
according to merit, not birth. Even those sceptical of the more
extravagant claims for the Middle Kingdom – Montesquieu or Adam Smith
– remained puzzled and impressed by its wealth and order.
A drastic change of opinion came in the 19th century, when Western
predators became increasingly aware of the relative military weakness
and economic backwardness of the Qing empire. China was certainly
teeming, but it was also primitive, cruel and superstitious. Respect
gave way to contempt, mingled with racist alarm – Sinomania capsizing
into Sinophobia. By the early 20th century, after eight foreign forces
had stormed their way to Pekin to crush the Boxer Uprising, the
‘yellow peril’ was being widely bandied about among press and
politicians, as writers like Jack London or J.H. Hobson conjured up a
future Chinese takeover of the world. Within another few decades, the
pendulum swung back, as Pearl Buck and Madame Chiang won popular
sympathy for China’s gallant struggle against Japan. After 1948, in a
further rapid reversal, Red China became the focus of still greater
fear and anxiety, a totalitarian nightmare more sinister even than
Russia. Today, the high-speed growth of the People’s Republic is
transforming Western attitudes once again, attracting excitement and
enthusiasm in business and media alike, with a wave of fashion and
fascination recalling the chinoiserie of rococo Europe. Sinophobia has
by no means disappeared. But another round of Sinomania is in the
making.
The title of Martin Jacques’s When China Rules the World belongs to
the scare literature of the first. But its function is little more
than a commercial come-on, designed to clear the purchased display-
table and the airport stall. The book itself is a sweeping
contribution to the second. Its message consists of two parts. The
first is the now well-known projection that – at present growth rates
– the Chinese economy will be the largest in the world, overtaking the
American, within about 15 years. With four times the population of the
US, China already has the biggest foreign reserves, is the leading
exporter, posts the most spectacular stock-market gains, and contains
the largest car market on earth. So massive is the transformation its
rise to economic supremacy will bring that – so Jacques – history can
henceforward simply be divided into BC and AC: Before China and After
China. This part of the argument is a straightforward quantitative
extrapolation. Jacques hammers the impending figures home, without
adding a great deal to what anyone with a certain economic literacy
would know already.
Beyond altering international league tables, what will China’s
emergence as an economic superpower signify? The second part of
Jacques’s message is not about size, but difference. China is not like
other nations, indeed is not really a nation-state at all. It is
something vaster and deeper, a ‘civilisation-state’, inheritor of the
oldest continuous history in the world, whose underlying cultural
unity and self-confidence are without equal. Long before the West, its
rulers created the first modern bureaucracy, imbued with a Confucian
outlook at once authoritarian and democratic, controlling domestic
subjects more by moral education than force, and organising adjacent
regions into a consensual tributary system. By absorbing feudal
aristocrats into impersonal state service, they freed market forces
from customary constraints to develop a commercial society of
unparalleled dynamism and sophistication. Only the accident of more
readily available coal at home, and ruthless colonial pillage of
resources overseas, allowed 19th-century Europe to overtake this great
proto-modern economy, as industrialised in its way as the West, and
much larger. But this Western predominance will prove a brief
interval. Today, China is returning once more to its historic position
as the dynamic centre of the global economy.
What are going to be the consequences for the rest of the world?
Traumatically for the United States, China will fairly soon replace it
as hegemon, not only in traditional areas of Chinese influence in East
and South-East Asia, but across former Third and First Worlds alike.
The soft power of its sporting prowess, its martial arts, its costly
painters, its multitudinous language, its ancient medicine, and not
least the delights of its cuisine, will spread China’s radiance far
and wide, as Hollywood, English and McDonald’s do America’s today.
Above all, its spectacular economic success will not only inspire
imitation wherever poor nations strive for betterment. It will reorder
the entire international system, by holding out the prospect, not of
democracy within nation-states, which the West vainly seeks to
promote, but of ‘democracy between nation-states’. For we are entering
a time in which the political and ideological conflicts that marked
the Cold War are giving way to an ‘overarching cultural contest’, in
which ‘alternative modernities’ will end the dominance of the West. In
that emancipation a distinctively Chinese modernity, rooted in the
Confucian values of devotion to the family and respect for the state,
will lead the way.
How should this construction be judged? Enthusiasm, however well-
meaning, is no substitute for discrimination. Chinese antiquity
stretches back to 1500 BCE or beyond. But this no more makes today’s
People’s Republic a special genus of ‘civilisation-state’ than
comparable claims for la civilisation française make one of the Third
or Fourth Republic. Talk of ‘civilisations’ is notoriously self-
serving, and delimitations of them arbitrary: Samuel Huntington
arrived, rather desperately, at eight or nine – including an African,
Latin American and Eastern Orthodox civilisation. Nothing is gained by
affixing this embellishment to the PRC. Like France in the 1930s or
1950s, contemporary China is an integrist nation-state, cast in an
imperial mould, if with a much longer past and on a much larger scale.
Nor are inflated claims for the age-old economic centrality or social
wisdom of pre-modern China much help in understanding the present or
future of the country. If, up through the Song, China was
technologically and commercially far in advance of Europe, by the end
of the Ming its science lagged well behind, and even at the height of
Qing prosperity in the 18th century, agrarian productivity and average
wage levels, let alone intellectual progress in a broader sense, were
nowhere near vanguard developments in Europe. Nor are idyllic images
of sage concern for the welfare of the masses much closer to the
realities of rule by successive dynasties, which in the words of one
of China’s finest historians, He Bingdi, were always ‘ornamentally
Confucian and functionally Legalist’ – repression wrapped in
moralising rhetoric.
It would be unfair to judge any of this side of When China Rules the
World, a popular work, by scholarly standards. None of it matters very
much to the main thrust of the book, where it serves only as
preliminary folklore to adjust readers in advance to the idea of pre-
eminence to come. China could perfectly well be about to dominate the
world without having nearly always represented the summit of universal
development in the past. More serious is the incoherence of the book’s
central message. For the most part, When China Rules the World is an
unabashed exercise in boosterism, hailing the PRC not only as the
paramount power of the future, but as the liberating ice-breaker that
will, in the book’s American subtitle, bring about ‘The End of the
Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order’. Sightings of this
sort seem to have become a late British speciality: Jacques’s version
is only a little less absurd than Why Europe Will Run the 21st Century
by Mark Leonard, a fellow seer of the Demos think tank Jacques helped
to found. But there is another side to When China Rules the World at
odds with its generally upbeat story. Internationally, China has
‘embraced multilateralism’, attracts its neighbours and partners by
‘soft power’, and promotes ‘democracy between nations’. Yet we also
need to be aware that ‘the Chinese regard themselves as superior to
the rest of the human race,’ inheriting a Middle Kingdom mentality
that has always been more or less racist, and traditions of tributary
statecraft that may have been conducive to stability, but were always
based on hierarchy and inequality. Might this heritage compromise the
fair prospect of a democratic inter-state system? Not necessarily,
since while ‘the Western world is over, the new world, at least for
the next century, will not be Chinese in the way that the previous one
was Western’. The book, in other words, disowns its own title,
confected purely to increase sales. China is not going to rule the
world. All that is happening is that ‘we are entering an era of
competing modernity’ in which China will ‘increasingly be in the
ascendant and eventually dominant’.
But the idea of a distinctively ‘Chinese modernity’ winning a global
competition for hegemony is no more coherent than that of high-speed
Chinese growth ushering in ‘democracy between nation-states’. Its role
in the book is to be understood in the light of the author’s cursus
vitae. Once the editor of the Communist Party of Great Britain’s
monthly, Marxism Today, after his party and journal gave up the ghost
in the early 1990s Jacques moved into mainstream journalism, shedding
the language, if not altogether the reflexes, of his past. The Cold
War over and the Soviet Union gone, the opposition between socialism
and capitalism was now a back number. How then should the open-door
policies of the PRC – its welcome to the world market – be related to
it? This is not a matter on which When China Rules the World cares to
dwell. Such questions belong to a vocabulary the book goes out of its
way to avoid. Over five hundred pages, the word ‘capitalism’ scarcely
ever appears. But there is still a global contest, in which the more
sympathetic side can nonetheless win. Simply, it is now between not
the outdated political and ideological categories of socialism and
capitalism, but alternative ‘modernities’, as so many different
cultural ways of being up to the minute. The function of this change
of lexicon is not hard to see. What it offers is the chance of a
consolation prize for the left. Capitalism may have won worldwide, so
why bother to go on talking about it? Instead, why not look ahead to
the welcome prospect of a non-Western variant of what is now our
common destiny overtopping all others, in a country where the ruling
party at least still describes itself as Communist?
Alas, there is a logical difficulty in this wistful hope, which is
insuperable. Alternative modernities, so conceived, are cultural, not
structural: they differentiate not social systems, but sets of values
– typically, a distinctive combination of morality and sensibility,
making up a certain national ‘style’ of life. But just because this is
what is most specific to any given culture, it is typically what is
least transferable to any other – that is, impossible to universalise.
Other recent works highlighting cultural differences in a post-
ideological world – Huntington’s Clash of Civilisations or Fukuyama’s
Trust come to mind – have grasped this intransitivity, making no
claims that any one complex could tend towards predominance over all
others, in the way that a modal economic order can. Moreover,
projections of a Chinese modernity that will eventually become
hegemonic not only forget the inherently self-limiting character of
any strongly defined national culture, they further ignore the
especially intense Chinese insistence, familiar to anyone who has been
in the country, on the uniqueness of China. Few contemporary cultures,
save perhaps Japan, are so self-consciously resistant to international
comparison, so convinced of the inimitability of their own forms and
traditions. In his way, Jacques is aware of this, at times even
exaggerating it as an inveterate sense of superiority close to racism,
of which there is less evidence than he assumes. But he fails to see
how thoroughly the cult of Zhonghuaxing – ‘Chineseness’ – undoes his
own imaginings of a future Han modernity spreading triumphantly, as a
universal attractor, across the globe.
The rise of the PRC as a great economic, political and military power
is a central fact of the age. But it gains no illumination from a
vacant notion of modernity, which remains as nebulous at the end of
When China Rules the World as it was at the beginning. It would not be
too unfair to say that what the book at bottom represents is a belated
meeting of Yesterday’s Marxism with Asian Values. For beyond a general
insistence on the ethical continuities of Confucianism, of which
Chinese Communism is viewed as a lineal heir, it says remarkably
little about contemporary Chinese society itself. A few cursory lines
noting that inequality has been growing, but the government is now
acting to redress it; a bit more on the shortage of natural resources
and environmental problems; a clipped paragraph on the Party; some
prudent reflections on trouble in the border regions; and a firm
assurance that the country is not ready for democracy, so it would be
best if the CCP could rule undisturbed for another 30 years: this is
more or less all the reader curious to learn about the actual social
landscape of the PRC could gather from it. Certainly there is nothing
to upset the authorities in Beijing, where reception should be
excellent. In 1935, the Webbs entitled their book on the USSR Soviet
Communism: A New Civilisation?, dropping the question mark in
subsequent editions. Today’s ‘civilisation-state’ has been approached
in something of the same spirit.
Serious understanding of contemporary China lies elsewhere. Two works
of outstanding scholarship, from opposite ends of the political and
intellectual spectrum, can be taken as current benchmarks. From the
liberal right, Yasheng Huang’s Capitalism with Chinese
Characteristics is a tour de force of empirical inquiry, conceptual
clarity and independence of mind. Anyone wanting to know what kind of
economy, and what sort of growth, can be found in the PRC should now
start here. Huang’s premises could not be more rigidly neoclassical:
sound development is delivered by private ownership, secure property
rights, financial liberalisation and the systemic deregulation of
economic transactions – and these alone. His conclusions, however, are
a clear illustration of the truth of Carlo Ginzburg’s observation that
a misguided ideology can be a precondition of original research, as
well – perhaps as often – as an obstacle to it. By meticulous scrutiny
of primary evidence, above all a huge mass of bank documentation
tracking loans and their recipients, rather than simply relying on
aggregated second-hand statistics, Huang has cut through the clouds of
obscurity and confusion that have tended to surround the performance
of the Chinese economy in the Reform Era which followed the passing of
Mao.
His central finding is that the apparently unbroken rates of high-
speed growth have rested on two quite different models of development.
In the 1980s, a general liberalisation of financial policy allowed
private businesses to flourish in the countryside, many under the
misleading sobriquet of ‘township and village enterprises’, as credits
flowed to peasant start-ups and rural poverty fell dramatically. Then
came the shock of 1989. Thereafter, the state abruptly changed course,
choking off credits to rural entrepreneurs, switching loan capital
instead into large, rebuilt state-owned enterprises and urban
infrastructures, and – not least – granting massive advantages to
foreign capital drawn to the big cities. The social consequences of
this change, Huang argues, were dramatic. Inequality – not only
between village and city-dwellers, but within the urban population
itself – soared, as labour’s share of GDP fell, while peasants lost
land, rural healthcare and schooling were dismantled, and illiteracy
in the countryside actually grew. In a blistering chapter on Shanghai,
the showcase of Chinese ‘hyper-modernity’, Huang demonstrates how
little average households in the city benefited from its glittering
towers and streamlined infrastructures. Amid a ‘forest of grand
theft’, officials, developers and foreign executives prospered while
private firms were stunted and ordinary families struggled to get by,
in ‘the world’s most successful Potemkin metropolis’. Nationwide, in
20 years, officialdom – raking in four successive, double-digit
increases in its salaries between 1998 and 2001 alone – has more than
doubled in size.
Cautiously, Huang expresses some optimism about the direction of the
current Hu-Wen government, as a correction of the worst excesses of
the Jiang-Zhu regime of the 1990s, while remarking that its reforms
may prove too late to redress the ruin of peasant enterprise, in
villages now often emptied by labour migration. But he ends by
contrasting the sky-high Gini coefficient of today’s PRC with the
relative equity that marked the high-speed growth in the rest of East
Asia – Japan, South Korea and Taiwan – and the far greater role in
China of foreign and state enterprises, and the lesser weight of the
domestic private sector, in the country’s growth model. One
consequence, he maintains, is that productivity gains have been
declining since the mid-1990s. For Huang, the lesson is
straightforward: efficiency and equity always depend on free markets,
which in China remain half-strangled. Capitalism there certainly is,
but a variety deformed by a corrupt and self-aggrandising state, which
in denying its people liberty to manage their own economic affairs has
failed to create reasonable conditions of fairness or welfare. The
prescription is simplistic, as a glance at the United States could
have told any scholar at MIT like Huang. Since the 1980s, financial
liberalisation and cast-iron property rights have not delivered much
social equity to Americans. But the indictment, set out with exemplary
care and lucidity, is unnegotiable. So too is the anger behind it, at
callousness and injustice. Not many economists would think to dedicate
their work, as Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics does, to a
couple of imprisoned villagers and an executed housewife.
Huang’s central concern is with the fate of rural China, where, as he
rightly insists, the majority of the population still lives and dies.
The fate of urban labour is the subject of Ching Kwan Lee’s Against
the Law. Studies of the working class anywhere in the world, once a
staple of history and sociology, have declined along with labour
movements as a political force; in recent years, perhaps only in
France has writing of real distinction appeared. Lee’s book, written
from a standpoint on the radical left, transforms this scene. Although
quite different in mode and scale, in power nothing like it has
appeared since E.P. Thompson’s Making of the English Working Class.
In fact, it could well have been called The Unmaking and Remaking of
the Chinese Working Class. The product of seven years’ research and
interview work on the ground, it is an ethnographic and analytic
masterpiece.
The book is a diptych, one part devoted to the rustbelt of Manchuria,
the other to the sunbelt of Guangdong. Its first half is a study of
the destruction of the proletariat that built China’s principal
industrial base after Liberation, as the great state-owned enterprises
of the north-east were scrapped or sold off, leaving their workers
jobless and often near-penniless, while officials and profiteers lined
their pockets with what was left of all they had created. By
coincidence, we have an unforgettable fresco of the wreckage of this
old working class and its universe in Wang Bing’s nine-hour
documentary West of the Tracks (2003), a landmark of world cinema in
this century and a fitting pendant to Against the Law, made in
Shenyang while Lee was conducting her research in the same city. The
second part of Lee’s book explores the emergence of a new working
class of young migrant labourers from the countryside, about half of
them women, without collective identity or political memory, in the
coastal export zones of the south-east. They have low-wage jobs, but
no security, toiling up to 70 or 80 hours a week in often atrocious
working conditions, with widespread exposure to abuse and injury.
Dereliction in the rustbelt, super-exploitation in the sunbelt: the
treatment of labour is pitiless in either zone.
How do workers react to it? In a system where they have no freedom of
industrial or political organisation, and the social contract that
once gave them a modest security and dignity in exchange for
subordination has been jettisoned, the law – however authoritarian –
becomes the only resource to which they can appeal. Any direct action
risking police repression, protests typically find their way to the
courts, in the hope that blatant violations of legality by employers
or local officials will find some redress there – and in the belief
that the central government, if it knew its laws were being broken,
would take action to see them enforced. Such popular faith in the good
intentions of the Party leadership might be seen as a Chinese version
of the traditional Russian belief in the tsar as ‘Little Father’,
unaware of the misdeeds of his bureaucrats and landlords. The central
authorities naturally foster the illusion that they are not
responsible for illegalities lower down, giving them leeway to step in
with last minute concessions when protests look like getting out of
hand.
In fact, as Lee makes clear, the law can only function as an effective
system of control and mystification if the courts do not invariably
act as rubber stamps for criminality or oppression. In general, that
is just how they do behave. But in a minority of cases, labour
disputes are decided – more often partially than wholly – in favour of
workers, keeping alive the belief that the law remains a protection
even where it is being brazenly flouted by those with state power
behind them. In ways reminiscent of the 18th-century England depicted
by Thompson in Whigs and Hunters, notions of ‘the rule of law’ become
a battleground, in which the anger of those below seeks to wrest
verdicts from the cynicism of those on high, as the only potential
weapons of the weak to hand. The reason regular failure in this
unequal contest does not lead to more explosive forms of protest, Lee
shows, is material rather than ideological. In the rustbelt, workers
dispossessed of everything else typically retain their own housing,
privatised to them at low prices, as a safety net. In the sunbelt,
migrant labourers still have rights to a plot of earth back in their
villages, where land has not yet been privatised, as a fall-back. For
all the wretchedness of their respective lots, neither is quite
destitute: each has something to lose.
The sobriety and realism of these conclusions diminishes nothing of
the tragedy of betrayed hopes and ruined lives that fills the pages of
Against the Law. Lee’s capture of the voices of those caught in the
relentless industrial mechanisms of the Reform Era, in one poignant
interview after another, is among the finest accomplishments of her
book. The stories are often heartbreaking, but the accents with which
they are told speak of courage, indignation, stoicism, even humour, as
much as bitterness, resignation or despair. Few sociological studies
have combined structural and existential, objective and subjective
truths so memorably as this one. Without taking stock of it, no sense
of contemporary China is clear-eyed. In the 19th century, Europe
looked to America as the future, if one still quite some way off. In
the 21st century, the West looks towards China in something of the
same way. So far, certainly, no Tocqueville of the East has appeared.
Is what he once achieved repeatable? There is plenty of time yet. But
it is unlikely that Democracy in America will find its successor,
wherever else it might, in any Modernity in China.
Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics: Entrepreneurship and the
State
By Yasheng Huang
Cambridge University Press, 366 pages
http://www.amazon.com/Capitalism-Chinese-Characteristics-Entrepreneurship-State/dp/0521898102%3FSubscriptionId%3D1XWTFJ60BR6QZ1PW9FR2%26tag%3Dtruthdig-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0521898102
Against the Law: Labor Protests in China’s Rustbelt and Sunbelt
By Ching Kwan Lee
University of California Press, 340 pages
http://www.amazon.com/Against-Law-Protests-Rustbelt-Sunbelt/dp/0520250974%3FSubscriptionId%3D1XWTFJ60BR6QZ1PW9FR2%26tag%3Dtruthdig-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0520250974
http://www.truthdig.com/arts_culture/item/perry_anderson_on_the_specter_of_china_20100319/
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Submitted by wulan on Fri, 03/19/2010 - 06:31 Business & Economics
In the 12 years from 1978 to 1990, China‘s reform and opening up
achieved remarkable progress, with its GDP growing 9.0% annually and
trade volume growing at 15.4%. During this period, urban per capita
income grew 5.9% annually, but that of rural areas grew at a
spectacular rate of 9.9% annually (NBS, 2002 pp.17, 94,148). People‘s
living standards and incomes increased significantly and urban-rural
disparities fell.
The achievement of China‘s reform can be called a miracle in economic
history. However, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, international
economic research community did not understand much about China‘s
reform, and many economists were far from optimistic. Most economists
believed that a market economy should be based on private property, a
feature that the Chinese economy apparently lacked at that time.
China‘s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) were not privatized; a dual-
track resource allocation system was prevalent with state planning
still playing a very important role. They thought that although
China‘s economic transition was blessed with beneficial initial
conditions such as high proportions of cheap rural labor, low social
security subsidies, a large population of overseas Chinese, and a
relatively decentralized economy that helped to achieve some short-
term progress, the dual-track system would soon lead to efficiency
loss, rent-seeking, and institutionalized state-opportunism, which
constituted an inferior institutional arrangement. (Balcerowicz, 1994;
Woo, 1993; Sachs and Woo, 1994 and 1997; Qian and Xu, 1993.). Some
economists even claimed that China‘s transition would finally fail due
to incomplete reform (Murphy, Schleifer, and Vishny, 1992; Sachs, Woo,
and Yang, 2000).
At that time, most economists were optimistic about reform in the
Former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe (FSUEE hereafter) due to the
fact that these countries reformed their economies according to the
fundamental principles of neo-classical economics. The most
representative of these principles was the —shock therapy“ implemented
in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Russia, which consisted of three
main components: price liberalization, rapid privatization, and
macroeconomic stabilization by removing fiscal deficits. (Lipton and
Sachs, 1990; Blanchard, Dornbusch, Krugman, Layard, and Summers, 1991;
Boycko, Shleifer, and Vishiny, 1995.) These components are considered
the base of an efficient economic system in neoclassical economic
theory.
Economists recommending shock therapy also knew that it took time to
make the transition from one economic system to another and that it
was costly to cast aside previously vested interests. But they
optimistically assumed that the national economy would grow after six
months or a year following an initial downturn stemming from the
introduction of shock therapy (Brada and King, 1991; Kornai, 1990;
Lipton and Sachs, 1990; Wiles, 1995). According to their beliefs, the
FSUEE would overtake China through their reform, though the former
started their reforms much later, and China‘s difficulties would loom
larger due to inconsistencies inside the economic system brought about
by incomplete reforms.
Ten years have elapsed since the predictions of many renowned
economists were put forth in the early 1990s. Contrary to these
predictions, China‘s economy has grown in the past decade while those
countries that implemented the shock therapy experienced serious
inflation and economic decline. Russia‘s inflation reached 8414% in
1993, and that of Ukraine reached 10155%. In 1995, Russia‘s GDP was
only half of what it had been in 1990, and Ukraine‘s situation was
worse with a 60% decline during the same period. With significant
declines in per capita income and extreme exacerbation of income
disparities, all social indicators slid–male life expectancy in Russia
decreased from 64 years in 1990 to 58 in 1994 (Gregory and Stuart,
2001, p. 470). Overall, the countries that implemented shock therapy
experienced great difficulties in reform, in contrast to the
optimistic expectation of most economists. In eastern European
countries, Poland scored best in economic transition with only a 20%
decline in its GDP. Poland did not really implement reform based on
shock therapy, however. Although prices in Poland were liberalized,
most of its large SOEs have yet to be privatized (World Bank, 1996;
Dabrowski, 2001).
In the 1990s, the Chinese economy did suffer from a myriad of
problems. For example, the SOE reforms initiated in the early 1980s
have yet to be completed; inter-regional and urbanœrural disparities
have enlarged; and there are still many serious problems in financial
system awaiting solution. However, the national economy grew 10.1%
annually in the 1990s, 1.1% higher than that of the previous 12 years.
International trade grew also at a rate of 15.2% in the last decade
(NBS, 2002, pp. 17,94),. Moreover, people‘s living standards improved
rapidly, especially in urban areas. Economic development in China not
only promoted the welfare of the Chinese people, but also contributed
greatly to the world economy. During the Asian Financial Crisis, the
Chinese currency (RMB) did not depreciate, which played an important
role in Southeast Asian economies‘ quick recovery and growth.
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March 19, 2010 1:52 PM
Is China Building the Next Bubble?
Posted by MoneyWatch.com
This post by Carla Fried originally appeared on CBS' MoneyWatch.com.
Will the next pop you hear be the sound of the China bubble bursting?
A few of the world's savvier financial minds think so.
Jim Chanos has made a fortune betting against investments he believes
are ripe for a fall. Among his most illustrious short trades was
pegging high-flying Enron as a disaster in waiting. Today the hedge
fund manager is taking aim at China. "Without a modicum of doubt we
have a credit-driven property bubble right now," Chanos recently
declared in a talk he gave at the London School of Economics. That was
a toned-down version of his quip to the New York Times that China is
"Dubai times 1,000 -- or worse," a comment the manager of the $6
billion Kynikos fund now half-heartedly describes as tongue-in-cheek.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/08/business/global/08chanos.html
Chanos is adding his respected voice to a growing rumble that China's
economy is nearing 212°F. In a recent survey of investment pros who
subscribe to Bloomberg's news and data service, 62 percent said they
believed China is brewing a bubble. Also singing in the China bubble
chorus: Harvard economics professor Kenneth Rogoff, Gloom and Doom
report publisher Marc Faber, and, most recently, James Rickards, a
Virginia-based consultant who knows a thing or two about financial
calamity -- he was the general counsel for Long-Term Capital
Management. To be clear, the China bubble talk is mostly focused on
the country's real estate sector, where property sales jumped 76
percent in 2009 and prices in some markets have recently been rising 8
to 10 percent a month. But the fear is that a meltdown in the real
estate market could take down the rest of the Chinese economy with it,
as has happened in the U.S. and Japan. And with China expected to
account for about a third of global growth in 2010, the consequences
could well be global.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601010&sid=aNZe4JWeV1aw
The Mother of All Stimulus Projects
The roots of the problem lie in China's aggressive response to the
financial crisis. To make up for reduced exports, the government
ramped up domestic spending and what ensued was the "mother of all
stimulus projects," says Nicholas Lardy, a senior fellow at the
Peterson Institute for International Economics. The roughly $575
billion in direct stimulus doled out by China's central government
represented 15 percent of its GDP. (Consider that if the U.S. stimulus
program had clocked in at 15 percent of GDP we would be debating the
merits of a $2 trillion program, not the $787 billion Congress settled
on.)
China's banks also followed the stimulus script, doling out $1.4
trillion in loans last year, a 30 percent increase from 2008. All that
liquidity did the job. According to China's official data (which are
notorious for their lack of transparency) the domestic economy
expanded 12.6 percent in 2009, offsetting a three percentage point
decline in GDP from exports. Overall, China's economy grew 8.7 percent
in 2009, up from 2008's anemic -- at least by China's standards -- GDP
growth of 6.8 percent.
However, much of the stimulus spending and lending has found its way
into real estate, creating ominous imbalances and the potential for
huge amounts of bad loans that the Chinese government would then have
to cover. Commercial developers who were all too happy to take the
stimulus money and build on spec are now often hard-pressed to find
tenants; entire office buildings and shopping malls stand empty in
many large cities that have attracted the most development. In the
residential market, the problem is flipped: too much demand and not
enough supply. Homes are the default investment choice for an
increasingly flush populace that has limited access to other
investment vehicles. And the prevailing sentiment is that if you don't
buy today you are going to be priced out of the market tomorrow.
In response to concerns that it's inflating a bubble in real estate,
the central government has begun taking steps to cool things off, but
to date it's more talk than action. Bank reserve requirements and a
key lending rate have been increased only slightly, and official 2010
lending targets, while lower than last year, will still surpass credit
outlays from 2008.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/19/business/economy/19fed.html
Bubble Dynamics
A torrent of commercial development, a residential market convinced
that if you don't get in today you're toast, and a wan government
response to overheating ... Sound familiar? But there are several key
structural differences between our real estate mess and China's
situation, which suggest it is simplistic to assume China's bubble
must end in a U.S.-style meltdown.
1. Leverage is muted. About 25 percent of Chinese buy their homes
outright with cash. Among borrowers, a 50 percent down payment is
typical; you can't get a mortgage with less than 20 percent down and
if you are looking to buy a second (or third) property the down
payment is 40 percent. China also has yet to develop a HELOC market.
Lardy, of the PIIE, notes that China's household debt as a share of
household income runs about 40 percent. In 2007, U.S. household debt
to income was 130 percent. Nor has China fallen into the grasp of Wall
Street alchemists concocting toxic real estate derivatives.
2. It's not a blanket bubble. Beijing, Shenzhen, and Shanghai are
China's Florida, Nevada, and California: speculation and overbuilding
have clearly fed bubble valuations. But Nicholas Consonery, China
analyst at the Eurasia Group, a political risk consulting firm, says
there's still plenty of unmet demand in China's second-, third-, and
fourth-tier cities.
3. The ubiquitous demand argument. Consonery also articulates the most
oft-heard reason for why the bubble doesn't have to burst: China
actually needs more construction, not less, to accommodate the mass
migration of Chinese from their rural past to their urban future.
While China's real estate picture doesn't necessarily stack up as
Dubai times 1,000, or even the United States circa 2006, similarities
to Japan's property bubble could be more salient. Rather than a quick
burst, Japan is still working through a long slow deflation from its
epic property bubble that peaked in the late 1980s. Patrick Chovanec,
professor at Tsinghua University's School of Economics and Management
in Beijing, who has advised private equity funds on China investments,
says that's the danger facing China. "Never underestimate the ability
of the Chinese to brush things under the rug, rather than
acknowledging losses and poor investments," Chovanec cautions. "That
can create a long-term drag on the economy."
Koyo Ozeki, head of Pimco's Asian credit analysis team, acknowledges
the Japan corollary (his comparison of China, Japan, and U.S. real
estate bubbles is below), but he believes a crucial difference is that
China has the ability to grow its way out of trouble. His worst case
scenario is that there's a two- or three-year cooling off period for
property values, but not a meltdown. "I think that it [would be] a
'correction,' as opposed to a 'burst of a bubble' similar to those
seen in the developed countries, because of China's structural demand
for modern houses," says Ozeki.
Source: Pimco estimates
The 437,000 Renminbi Question
What does this mean for your portfolio? When you have sharp minds on
both sides of the argument that should be a tip that making a big bet
on either is probably unwise. Moreover, China presents a few extra
challenges. Despite its large footprint -- China is expected to take
over Japan as the second largest economy in 2010 -- keep in mind we're
still talking about an emerging market.
Volatility and surprises (both upside and downside) are the norm. Add
in the fact that China's financial system and data reporting aren't
exactly open source code and you have another layer of complexity. And
even the China bears are careful to point out that they have no clue
when the bubble will burst. "We are not calling for an impending
crash," Chanos reminded the LSE crowd. Rogoff, former chief economist
of the IMF and co-author of This Time is Different, which chronicles
the long history of global financial calamities, recently told
Business Week he believes the liquidity deluge in China will
eventually culminate in enough bad debt to cause China's economic
growth to slow to just 2 percent to 3 percent a year. But as for when,
well, Rogoff would only pin it down to some time in the next 10 years,
and added that the setback would be short-term, not a Japanese-style
slow bleed.
Given all that uncertainty, it seems wise to channel Pascal's Wager:
Acknowledge you might be wrong and adjust your portfolio accordingly.
In this instance, that's an argument for taking a look at what might
happen if in fact China's bubble blows so explosively that it sends
the economy into a severe downturn. Here's how your portfolio could be
affected:
Stocks: China is the third largest economy behind the U.S. and Japan,
and it is expected to push its way to number two this year. The IMF
forecasts that China will grow 10 percent, more than double the
overall world rate. If the bubble does in fact burst, growth will slow
and we could be in for round two of a global recession. That's an
argument for being cautious with equities and making sure your
emergency cash fund stays stuffed.
U.S. Treasuries: China holds about 10 percent of outstanding Treasury
debt; it jockeys with Japan from month-to-month for the top spot among
foreign investors. If China's economy hit the skids, one theory is
that it might choose to sell off Treasuries to raise capital for
spending back home. But dumping Treasuries is far from an easy call
for China, as it would depress the value of its Treasury portfolio and
cause the renminbi to rise in value (and the dollar to fall), which is
not ideal for its exports. Questions about how China will handle its
cache of U.S. Treasuries will likely keep the bond market on edge.
That's just another risk factor to add to why Treasuries aren't
exactly the safest investment right now.
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/retirement-planning/blog/financial-independence/would-you-lend-to-tim-geithner-on-these-terms/745/?tag=content;col1
Emerging market funds and ETFs: These are the most obvious losers if
China falters. It's not just that China represents 17 percent of the
MSCI Emerging Market Index -- the single largest country weight -- but
that so many of the other emerging markets, especially those rich in
resources such as Brazil and Russia, need China to remain a hungry
consumer. Overweighting emerging markets seems especially dicey right
now, despite the sector's recent strong performance. But even beyond
the implications of a China bubble, it's also wise to understand that
the fastest-growing economies don't always produce the highest
investment returns.
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/investing/blog/wise-investing/growth-in-china-india-and-brazil-might-not-mean-great-investment-returns/1002/?tag=content;col1
Bubble or not, one thing is clear: China is teeing itself up for
plenty of volatility in the coming years. And it will affect the whole
world. "Even with the strong long-term fundamentals, any market that
has experienced such rapid growth creates its own fragility," says
investment banker Euan Rellie, senior managing director of Business
Development Asia LLC. "That makes it certain there will be declines
and corrections."
More on MoneyWatch:
China's Growth Threatened by Inflation, Or Is It Deflation?
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/investing/blog/against-grain/chinas-growth-threatened-by-inflation-or-is-it-deflation/481/?tag=contentMain;contentBody
Video: Why You Should Worry About China
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/economic-news/video/why-you-should-worry-about-china/385526/?tag=contentMain;contentBody
The China Boom: A Sure Thing NOT to Bet on in 2010
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/retirement-planning/blog/financial-independence/china-the-sure-thing-not-to-bet-on-in-2010/677/?tag=content;col1
Video: Why You Need Emerging Markets in Your Portfolio
http://moneywatch.bnet.com/investing/video/investors-why-you-need-china-and-brazil/388541/?tag=contentMain;contentBody
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503983_162-20000790-503983.html
China : Shifting Concentration Of Real Wealth
By: Indranil Sen Gupta Friday, March 19, 2010 9:56 AM
In my last column I discussed about the immense potentiality of china
towards creation of wealthy citizens. I have tried to depict the true
picture of the Chinese government, which helps to increase and develop
the citizens of china. It clearly points out those Chinese economic
policies are helping to reduce the gap of rich and poor. The proof of
the pudding is that China ranks No 2 on Forbes billionaires list.
Moreover 27 of them have made into the list for the first time and
that also at a point of time when the world economy is fighting
enormously with the recession nights.
I ended the report with a prelude to this topic where I will again try
my level best to bring forth the policy behind making Chinese citizen
and economy so surprising to the world economy. But before that we all
need to have a quick look towards the covered up journey of China.
If we look into the historic position of Chinese economy it will very
hard for any one to believe about the turn around been formalized in
to shape of today's Chinese economy.
• China's industries developed and grew from 1927 to 1931. Though
badly hit by the Great Depression from 1931 to 1935 and Japan's
occupation of Manchuria in 1931, industrial output recovered by 1936.
• By 1936, industrial output had recovered and surpassed its previous
peak in 1931 prior to the Great Depression's effects on China.
• This is best shown by the trends in Chinese GDP. In 1932, China's
GDP peaked at 28.8 billion, before falling to 21.3 billion by 1934 and
recovering to 23.7 billion by 1935.
• In 1978, China was to witness one of the most rapid periods of
change in her 5,000 year history.
• 30 years later, China had developed from an economically desolate
and ideological-driven country into an industrial powerhouse, rapidly
overtaking developed western nations in recession.
• In the 1990s, many state enterprises were privatized and private
individuals were allowed to create companies. In 1990, the Shanghai
Stock Exchange was reopened after Mao first closed it 41 years
earlier.
• It also established a series of "special economic zones" in which
foreigners could invest in China taking advantage of lower labor
costs.
This investment helped the Chinese economy boom. In addition, the
Chinese government established a series of joint ventures with foreign
capital to establish companies in industries hitherto unknown in
China.
• By 2001, China became a member of the World Trade Organization,
which has boosted its overall trade in exports/imports—estimated at
$851 billion in 2003—by an additional $170 billion a year.
• In 2006, an estimated $699.5 billion of foreign investment was
present in China. A great deal of this investment came from Chinese-
speaking regions such as Hong Kong and Taiwan, who was the first to
invest in China. Japanese and Western investment followed.
So now its well clear to my readers about the encapsulated journey of
today's Chinese economy from the era of 1930.But all these were in the
initial days were only plans or policies. How did they materialize is
the point to be analyzed.
They have been materialized due to one single factor that is the
education. Education not only in schools and college levels, but also
to create the huge untapped potentiality of skilled and semi skilled
education and educated mass of population. We all know that china
posses one of the largest population. The world at times used to
critics this huge mounting population of china. But china and its
government's decades after decade have converted their biggest weak
point in to their biggest strength. Today china enjoys the huge
potentiality of its consumers and consumption.
It have created the largest pool of skilled and semi skilled workers
and employees .What we say in corporate term Blue Collard Jobs. China
has used its cheap commodity resources to create world best products
and cheap products. Educations particularly in science field have
helped china to become the supreme power of technology. China have
created the world finest products through its massive and continuous
never ending technological innovations. It have created scientist and
researchers equivalent to the western world. All these have been
created on the wheel of proper and improvised education system
provided by Chinese governments.
We have discussed many times a about the Chinese economic growth
models and the huge reserves and its stock gold piles. But among all
these the real growth model is the development of education system in
china. Its real wealthy citizens are the ones who gets education and
take the future responsibility of Chinese economy. China is making a
shift of its wealth. Its busy in shaping up the fortune of the
citizens of china.
If china have become the No.2 in Forbes billionaires list it ca be
clearly declared without any second thought that China deserves to be
crowned with No.2
Very recently china is going to bring a change in the education
system.
• China plans to revamp its university admissions system, allowing
students to take subject-specific tests.
• Currently access to university is entirely dependent on the score
students gets on a two-day test on a wide range of subjects.
• A little more than 10.2 million students take the exam each year,
and only about 25% of them get in. The vast majority of those who
don't make the cut go straight into the work force. China is trying to
bring change into its education system so that the vast majority can
reap the benefits of education. Moreover this will also increase the
talent pool of Chinese new generation. More White Collard Jobs will be
created resulting free dependence of the economy.
The schools and colleges have been asked to develop and promote
create thinking minds within the students. This will enable the future
growth of china. Just imagine when many countries in the west are busy
to resolve the post war situation and busy in exercising images of
super power, China is creating and shaping its future. China is
thinking way ahead of another 30years from now. Where as many
countries in the west who are busy to come out of the bad sins
committed through speculative economic and business growth modules
adopted by them.
China is thinking to develop the nation where ideas will be sold and
other economies will buy them paying hefty amount Products will be
replaced by ideas. A time might come when the Chinese economy will
increase the taxation for selling only innovative ideas. It might
sound funny but juts imagine the growth model and the future strategy
adopted and being implemented by china towards developing its economy.
It can be said that China is SHIFTING CONCENTRATION OF WEALTH. Western
economies will become 2nd rank economies and China will come under
developed economies rank.
Today after so many years US and other economies have identified that
the real growth of any economy lies in the hands of education system.
It can created speculative gains and growth for shorter time frame but
if its looks within the thin line of economic growth the results are
beyond speculation. Today the US government is buying in shaping up
the education system. It asks its citizens to create scientist doctors
and researchers. Since it feels very well that the in the coming
decade other economies will take over the super power crown.
Today US have realized the mistakes it have committed and now bringing
radical changes in the education system to shape up the future. Very
recently US is emphasizing to improve students and teachers instead of
punishing under performing schools. US have 33% under performing
schools. Unfortunately the list is increasing each day without
rewinding back. US is also going spend four-billion dollar more on
education system.
At the end I would like to conclude the series with this note that all
these analysis of the education system was not to criticize but to
bring forth the true portrait being painted by the world and China
alone in the coming decades. We must understand the growth of any
economy never lies in numbers. It lies among all of us who are juts
like you reading this article. It is we who will bring the economic
growth GDP to 20% in the next 3 decades from now. Its not the business
profit figures or the fiscal balance which will bring this growth.
Education is the foundation of economic growth of any nation on this
planet.
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A Slow Boat From China
Posted: March 19, 2010 at 5:08 am
China said it will send an envoy to Washington to discuss the friction
between the two countries over the value of the yuan. It will not
matter. Too many members of Congress, CEOs of major exporters, and
union presidents who use China’s trade practices as a target for their
plans to save millions of jobs need to get the yuan’s value to “float”
in the free market. That should, they reason, give America the chance
to compete with China’s exports based on price.
America can increase exports by two times what they are now, as the
President says will happen. China’s economy will be damaged because
the cost of its manufactured goods will rise. The day when China’s GDP
catches America’s will be pushed well beyond the horizon.
China’s leaders are clearly in the midst of trying to fashion some
compromise. The Emperor has had no clothes for too long. China has
protected its currency in an unseemly way, at least economically. The
world’s most populous nation can act on its own, or have the other
major world powers label it a currency manipulator. That will probably
lead to a series of large tariffs against Chinese goods which could
knock down its export traffic enough to put its economy into a funk.
China still has more leverage than the developed nations. They cannot
run their economies without cheap Chinese goods. It would hurt
consumer spending and damage the already hobbled retail industry.
China cannot be replaced as the “low-cost” provider of imports. It
does not need to mention that fact. It is easier for China to say it
cannot re-value the yuan because the action would ruin China’s cost
advantage and push Chinese workers out of jobs.
China’s envoy may seem to come to Washington hat in hand. He may
suggest some modest compromises on the yuan’s value. He will, however,
say in private and not in public, that the US would not want to see
Walmart go out of business because it cannot make a profit on goods
made in America.
Douglas A. McIntyre
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March 19, 2010, 3:23 a.m. EDT
Currency stress tests indicate Beijing 'readying' yuan move
SocGen says one-off 5%-10% appreciation coming in April or May
By Chris Oliver, MarketWatch
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Additional evidence that China is preparing
to allow its currency to appreciate is accumulating, with various
government bureaus reportedly conducting their own "stress tests" on
the effect a stronger currency would have on the nation's industry.
Chinese media reported earlier in the week that the Ministry of
Finance would send researchers to study the impact of currency gains
on exporters and processing manufacturers. Meanwhile, findings from a
similar study, conducted by the Ministry of Commerce, are due to be
released by April 27, according to a report Friday in China Business
News.
ViewPoints: China, the New Dominant Economy?
Managing Director of The Carlyle Group, David Rubenstein, predicts
that China will surpass the U.S. as the dominant economy by the year
2035, in a ViewPoints interview with Deputy Managing Editor Alan
Murray.
The Commerce Ministry is also readying a six-point study on measures
that would boost Chinese imports and foster more balanced foreign
trade, according to broker Société Générale.
"China is not abandoning plans for yuan appreciation/revaluation,
despite what many are interpreting as a political environment that is
growing hostile to such a development," wrote SocGen economist Glenn
Maguire in Hong Kong.
The developments, Maguire said, indicate China is preparing to shift
its policy stance in a manner that will be "more substantial" than a
mere gradual yuan appreciation.
Instead, SocGen is forecast a one-off revaluation of 5% to 10% in
either April or May.
"A move of this magnitude will negate the risk of the protectionist
card being played in the U.S. midterm elections," Maguire wrote.
However, Standard Chartered analysts said Friday markets were now
expecting a lower rate of annual yuan appreciation this week, likely
as a result of contradictory signals emanating from Beijing on its
currency.
The futures markets were pricing in 2.2% to 2.8% of annual yuan
appreciation against the dollar, down from the 3% rise indicated last
week.
Standard Chartered said it was advisable for companies that trade with
China to begin hedging currency risk.
State firms' profits up
In a related development Friday, the Finance Ministry said profit
among state-owned enterprises rose 89% in the first two months of the
year.
SocGen's Maguire said the finding was yet more evidence China's of a
coming move on the currency.
Profits were healthy, except among companies that would benefit from a
stronger yuan, Maguire said, adding that some state companies such as
power producers and steel makers would see input cost fall under a
revaluation scenario.
Steel mills in particular are likely to face price pressures, as major
iron-ore miners are seeking to raise prices significantly in this
year's contracts.
"The impressive increase in profits over the past year suggests a
greater ability of the Chinese industrial complex to withstand a yuan
appreciation than many analysts are crediting," Maguire said.
Chris Oliver is MarketWatch's Asia bureau chief, based in Hong Kong.
Comments (60)
Temporalist 6 hours ago+3 Votes (4 Up / 1 Dn)
Agreed Continent. The Chinese people will benefit from the increased
Yuan. They will start to buy their own goods and they will no longer
need to export as much.
This is just a red herring to distract people from the real problem
that most major countries around the world are broke and going more
broke; promising citizens more crazy entitlements and caving into
unions and labor forces while increasing debt and deficit spending to
all time highs.Reply Link Track Replies Report Abuse therosierside 3
hours ago+1 Vote (1 Up / 0 Dn) Request sentAgree and Disagree. China
on the whole cannot afford their own products, and export of the
manufacturing of goods is their primary resource. I say call their
bluff. When push comes to shove, pull. However, I do agree, this is a
'red herring'. The irony drips in your statement.
Go ahead threaten away on the rise of the yuan. Ha, it's funny though.
It's like the U.S.S.R. all over again, and China got a taste for
capitalism, and the wealth from manufacturing. Their people will riot
if this happens, and their government is more scared of their own
people than the US. Power to the people!
The U.S. and the U.K. can make out on this the most, if they team up,
and remember their roots. It's amazing though, how we can easily shoot
straight, but might shoot ourselves in the foot instead. Let's also
not forget our arabic AND israeli allies. Power to the people!Reply
Link Track Replies Report Abuse iewgnem 2 hours ago0 Votes Request
sentA strong currency will enable Chinese consumers to buy more, but
if the US is any indication, what they buy might not be their own
goods.Reply
1REAGAN 6 hours ago-1 Vote (4 Up / 5 Dn)
The dollar is in free fall. If China were to continue pegging the
yuan, the result would be catastrophic. China must float the yuan.
Maybe it will help Americans to see that hussein is ruining the
American economy.
heisamazing 5 hours ago+1 Vote (3 Up / 2 Dn)
Yeah, don't let facts get in the way of an opinion. The dollar is not
in a free fall.
See 2 year graph: http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/quickchart/quickchart.asp?symb=dxy&sid=0&o_symb=dxy&freq=1&time=9
Its obvious where your bias lies.
1REAGAN 5 hours ago+1 Vote (4 Up / 3 Dn)
The dollar lost 30% versus the euro in 2009. The Keynesian huessy
policies will continue to weaken the dollar. The dollar is in free
fall.
The pound is also weakening because of the Keynesian policies of the
"British Labour Party."
Countries who implement socialist, Keynesian policies will have
weakening currencies. Countries who move toward free enterprise will
have strengthening currencies.
tjbrew 5 hours ago-1 Vote (3 Up / 4 Dn)
With a screen name like "1REAGAN", it's not hard to see your bias.
Yes, Reagan, the originator of large fiscal deficits and Reagonomics,
the start of the vast transfer of wealth to a few elite with "trickle
down" economics. If we just cut corporate taxes to zero that would fix
everything!
And the guy you're call "hussein" who in your opinion is "ruining the
American economy" ... yeah, the guy before him left the economy in
such great shape it's really hard to see why it hasn't all been fixed
by now! Sheesh ...
LBX 6 hours ago-1 Vote (1 Up / 2 Dn) Req
The RMB is likely to be floated in April.
Once it is floated, it will immediately DROP about 3 to 5%.
AmeriWho 5 hours agoEven (2 Up / 2 Dn)
RMB?
aiiiyo 2 hours ago+1 Vote (1 Up / 0 Dn)
same as Yuan
bull 6 hours ago+3 Votes (5 Up / 2 Dn)
China will not let the Yuan move more than 5% vs. the dollar per year
- forget about anything else as it will kill their export machine and
their grander plans......They do not care about the well being of
their people......they are just cheap labor in the Govt's mind.....
NO-FOMC 2 hours ago0 Votes Request senttrue maybe 10 years ago, and
yes i know that for a fact...but the bottom line is which is the
better of two evils....@#$%&! your reserves away by buying worthless
US assets (treasury debt) or help your domestic economy?
China realizes they are soooo done with eating table scraps from the
floor ...
iewgnem 2 hours ago0 Votes
I think a lot of Americans right now will rather see their welbeing
improve from getting employed as "cheap labor" making things for
exports than being able to buy more stuff from abroad with
unemployment checks. But then the US government cares too much for its
own people to let that happen.
UPJONES 5 hours ago+3 Votes (4 Up / 1 Dn)
The profit of the enterprise working on export processing business is
razor thin, at just about 2-5%. They will file bankruptcy right after
a 5% appreciation, and millions of Dagong Mei/Zai (Hunting girl/boys)
will lose their jobs.
China is buying time to do three things:
1. Build its domestic consumer market by increasing incomes/salaries
2. Perfecting the social secuity networks-Pension, Medicare and
apartments(Mostly for homeless)
3. Industrial transformation from manufacturing to innovation and
value added (Look at the neo-energy, nano, Aero, and especially bullet
trains, very competitve given the gov incentives and lots of "Cheap
and Good" engineers)
LBX 5 hours ago-1 Vote (1 Up / 2 Dn)
Many of them are actually getting negative gross margins. not to
mention net.
rojt88 4 hours ago+2 Votes (2 Up / 0 Dn)
LBX
The differences between Chinese and American accounting is caused by
pay differentials between the two cultures. Historically and
culturally, even dating back centuries, Mandarin officials and Chinese
executive pay is always held low. Much of this is due to Confucian
ethics and morality that wealth is not an indicator of success in
life. This is much different from the western ideal. Chinese
traditionally always hide income while American flaunt it.
Chinese businesses whose bosses serve for decades, like Hong Kong's Li
and Tung dynasties, always hide profits and exaggerate losses vs the
Western fashion of hiding loses and boosting profits so that rotating
CEOs can get their annual bonuses.
I estimate that the Chinese have 10-15% of their assets in hidden
accounts...or US$500billion (for PRC, HK, Taiwan). A lot of Chinese
inflation has been due to the sudden repatriation of much of this
offshore moneys into China due to financial instability in the west.
In a recent Chinese survey of foreign funds pouring into China over
the past decade, Hong Kong ranked first, then some islands in the
Caribbean ranked second and third. USA and Europe were last on the
list.
NO-FOMC 4 hours ago+1 Vote (2 Up / 1 Dn)
Funny how at the start of the century and after depression, USA had
the same characteristics...so where would you see china in 20+ years?
and where would you see USA in 20 years? remember..the world was
pegged to dollar gold before nixon. So last 20 years, our growth was
real or inflated?
NO-FOMC 2 hours ago+1 Vote (1 Up / 0 Dn)
US is buying time to avoid three things:
1. Financing a ever growing trade and acct deficit by depreciating the
USD to avoid default
2. Insure our world dominance by going to war so we wont lose our
world reserve currency title
3. the failure to realize a over leverage and underfunded US economy
will not be sustainable
Bastiat 5 hours ago+2 Votes (4 Up / 2 Dn)
Obama wants to run China. He found out that he could't run the US so
now he wants to run China. Obama, your problem is the US$, not the
yuan. You kept Bernanke, now deal with the imbecile.
RayO 5 hours agoEven (1 Up / 1 Dn)
Look out Walmart here comes a big Wave.
iewgnem 34 minutes ago0 Votes Request sentWhat if they simply
increase prices to maintain their margins? Considering in some
industries China consists of >90% of global output, it will still cost
importers less to absorb the cost than to spend billions in new
capital investments and time for production to ramp up. At the same
time re-exporters will see their material prices come down which will
also help to balance their margins.
All the talk about higher exchange rate driving Chinese exporters out
of business are assuming they don't have the power to pass the cost to
consumers on the other side. I suspect part of the stress test is to
see just how much they can raise the costs without losing their
business.Reply Link Track Replies Report Abuse « « ‹ ‹
Temporalist 6 hours ago+3 Votes (4 Up / 1 Dn)
Agreed Continent. The Chinese people will benefit from the increased
Yuan. They will start to buy their own goods and they will no longer
need to export as much.
This is just a red herring to distract people from the real problem
that most major countries around the world are broke and going more
broke; promising citizens more crazy entitlements and caving into
unions and labor forces while increasing debt and deficit spending to
all time highs.
therosierside 3 hours ago+1 Vote (1 Up / 0 Dn)
Agree and Disagree. China on the whole cannot afford their own
products, and export of the manufacturing of goods is their primary
resource. I say call their bluff. When push comes to shove, pull.
However, I do agree, this is a 'red herring'. The irony drips in your
statement.
Go ahead threaten away on the rise of the yuan. Ha, it's funny though.
It's like the U.S.S.R. all over again, and China got a taste for
capitalism, and the wealth from manufacturing. Their people will riot
if this happens, and their government is more scared of their own
people than the US. Power to the people!
The U.S. and the U.K. can make out on this the most, if they team up,
and remember their roots. It's amazing though, how we can easily shoot
straight, but might shoot ourselves in the foot instead. Let's also
not forget our arabic AND israeli allies. Power to the people!
iewgnem 2 hours ago0 Votes
A strong currency will enable Chinese consumers to buy more, but if
the US is any indication, what they buy might not be their own goods.
1REAGAN 6 hours ago-1 Vote (4 Up / 5 Dn)
The dollar is in free fall. If China were to continue pegging the
yuan, the result would be catastrophic. China must float the yuan.
Maybe it will help Americans to see that hussein is ruining the
American economy.
heisamazing 5 hours ago+1 Vote (3 Up / 2 Dn)
Yeah, don't let facts get in the way of an opinion. The dollar is not
in a free fall.
See 2 year graph: http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com/quickchart/quickchart.asp?symb=dxy&sid=0&o_symb=dxy&freq=1&time=9
Its obvious where your bias lies.
1REAGAN 5 hours ago+1 Vote (4 Up / 3 Dn)
The dollar lost 30% versus the euro in 2009. The Keynesian huessy
policies will continue to weaken the dollar. The dollar is in free
fall.
The pound is also weakening because of the Keynesian policies of the
"British Labour Party."
Countries who implement socialist, Keynesian policies will have
weakening currencies. Countries who move toward free enterprise will
have strengthening currencies.Link Report Abuse tjbrew 5 hours ago-1
Vote (3 Up / 4 Dn) Request sentWith a screen name like "1REAGAN",
it's not hard to see your bias. Yes, Reagan, the originator of large
fiscal deficits and Reagonomics, the start of the vast transfer of
wealth to a few elite with "trickle down" economics. If we just cut
corporate taxes to zero that would fix everything!
And the guy you're call "hussein" who in your opinion is "ruining the
American economy" ... yeah, the guy before him left the economy in
such great shape it's really hard to see why it hasn't all been fixed
by now! Sheesh ...
LBX 6 hours ago-1 Vote (1 Up / 2 Dn)
The RMB is likely to be floated in April.
Once it is floated, it will immediately DROP about 3 to 5%.
AmeriWho 5 hours ago
Even (2 Up / 2 Dn)
aiiiyo 2 hours ago+1
same as Yuan
bullrunisbull 6 hours ago+3
China will not let the Yuan move more than 5% vs. the dollar per year
- forget about anything else as it will kill their export machine and
their grander plans......They do not care about the well being of
their people......they are just cheap labor in the Govt's mind.....
NO-FOMC 2 hours ago
true maybe 10 years ago, and yes i know that for a fact...but the
bottom line is which is the better of two evils....@#$%&! your
reserves away by buying worthless US assets (treasury debt) or help
your domestic economy?
China realizes they are soooo done with eating table scraps from the
floor ...R
I think a lot of Americans right now will rather see their welbeing
improve from getting employed as "cheap labor" making things for
exports than being able to buy more stuff from abroad with
unemployment checks. But then the US government cares too much for its
own people to let that happen.
UPJONES 5 hours ago+3 Votes (4 Up / 1 Dn)
The profit of the enterprise working on export processing business is
razor thin, at just about 2-5%. They will file bankruptcy right after
a 5% appreciation, and millions of Dagong Mei/Zai (Hunting girl/boys)
will lose their jobs.
China is buying time to do three things:
1. Build its domestic consumer market by increasing incomes/salaries
2. Perfecting the social secuity networks-Pension, Medicare and
apartments(Mostly for homeless)
3. Industrial transformation from manufacturing to innovation and
value added (Look at the neo-energy, nano, Aero, and especially bullet
trains, very competitve given the gov incentives and lots of "Cheap
and Good" engineers)
LBX 5 hours ago-1 Vote (1 Up / 2 Dn)
Many of them are actually getting negative gross margins. not to
mention net.
rojt88 4 hours ago+2 Votes (2 Up / 0 Dn)
LBX
The differences between Chinese and American accounting is caused by
pay differentials between the two cultures. Historically and
culturally, even dating back centuries, Mandarin officials and Chinese
executive pay is always held low. Much of this is due to Confucian
ethics and morality that wealth is not an indicator of success in
life. This is much different from the western ideal. Chinese
traditionally always hide income while American flaunt it.
Chinese businesses whose bosses serve for decades, like Hong Kong's Li
and Tung dynasties, always hide profits and exaggerate losses vs the
Western fashion of hiding loses and boosting profits so that rotating
CEOs can get their annual bonuses.
I estimate that the Chinese have 10-15% of their assets in hidden
accounts...or US$500billion (for PRC, HK, Taiwan). A lot of Chinese
inflation has been due to the sudden repatriation of much of this
offshore moneys into China due to financial instability in the west.
In a recent Chinese survey of foreign funds pouring into China over
the past decade, Hong Kong ranked first, then some islands in the
Caribbean ranked second and third. USA and Europe were last on the
list.
NO-FOMC 4 hours ago+1 Vote (2 Up / 1 Dn)
Funny how at the start of the century and after depression, USA had
the same characteristics...so where would you see china in 20+ years?
and where would you see USA in 20 years? remember..the world was
pegged to dollar gold before nixon. So last 20 years, our growth was
real or inflated?
NO-FOMC 2 hours ago+1 Vote (1 Up / 0 Dn)
US is buying time to avoid three things:
1. Financing a ever growing trade and acct deficit by depreciating the
USD to avoid default
2. Insure our world dominance by going to war so we wont lose our
world reserve currency title
3. the failure to realize a over leverage and underfunded US economy
will not be sustainable
Bastiat 5 hours ago+2 Votes (4 Up / 2 Dn)
Obama wants to run China. He found out that he could't run the US so
now he wants to run China. Obama, your problem is the US$, not the
yuan. You kept Bernanke, now deal with the imbecile.
RayO 5 hours agoEven (1 Up / 1 Dn) Re
Look out Walmart here comes a big Wave.
iewgnem 34 minutes ago
What if they simply increase prices to maintain their margins?
Considering in some industries China consists of >90% of global
output, it will still cost importers less to absorb the cost than to
spend billions in new capital investments and time for production to
ramp up. At the same time re-exporters will see their material prices
come down which will also help to balance their margins.
All the talk about higher exchange rate driving Chinese exporters out
of business are assuming they don't have the power to pass the cost to
consumers on the other side. I suspect part of the stress test is to
see just how much they can raise the costs without losing their
business.Reply Link Track Replies Report Abuse
March 19, 2010, 3:31 p.m. EDT
U.S. stocks break win streak on jitters over Greece, India, oil
By Donna Kardos Yesalavich, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- A retreat in energy stocks weighed on the
broader market Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average stalling
in its attempt to set its longest winning streak in more than 13
years.
The energy sector was the weakest category in a broad-based sell-off
as oil prices retreated near $80 a barrel. Worries about key overseas
economies also weighed on the market, which some said was due for a
pause after a solid run lately.
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55637
The Dow Jones Industrial Average /quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed
(INDU 10,742, -37.41, -0.35%) fell 47 points, or 0.4%, to 10,731.93,
on pace to snap an eight-day winning streak, the first such run since
late August. A nine-day gain, if the Dow can manage a late-day
rebound, would represent the Dow's longest rally since November 1996.
A dive in energy prices fueled by an uptick in the dollar has made
that rosy outcome seem less likely as the session has played out. Oil
futures were recently off $1.75 at $80.45 a barrel after retreating
near $79 earlier in the session at the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The Standard & Poor's 500 Index /quotes/comstock/21z!i1:in\x (SPX
1,160, -5.92, -0.51%) , which slipped Thursday, recently was off 0.6%,
led by a 1.2% decline in its energy sector. Baker Hughes /quotes/
comstock/13*!bhi/quotes/nls/bhi (BHI 47.53, -1.84, -3.73%) slid 3.6%,
while Consol Energy /quotes/comstock/13*!cnx/quotes/nls/cnx (CNX
45.59, +0.04, +0.10%) and Massey Energy /quotes/comstock/13*!mee/
quotes/nls/mee (MEE 49.91, -1.74, -3.37%) were off more than 2% each.
Exxon Mobil /quotes/comstock/13*!xom/quotes/nls/xom (XOM 66.56, -0.48,
-0.72%) fell 1%, and Chevron /quotes/comstock/13*!cvx/quotes/nls/cvx
(CVX 74.17, -0.81, -1.08%) was down 0.6%.
"The commodities, like other risky assets, are taking a little bit of
a breather," said Russ Koesterich, managing director of BlackRock's
scientific active equity business. But he said it was encouraging that
both stocks and raw materials weren't declining even more.
"The market has had a big run-up, it's continuing to defy some of the
pessimists, and this happened on a bunch of factors," including benign
inflation readings and a decision by the Federal Reserve to keep its
rate target near zero, said Koesterich. "This is helping to keep a
floor under stocks."
Other central banks around the world, however, have become more wary
of inflation. On Friday, investors were spooked by the Reserve Bank of
India's move to increase its key lending rate to 5% and its borrowing
rate to 3.5%.
Uncertainty over possible financial aid for Greece also lingered,
hurting the euro. The U.S. dollar index /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0
(DXY 80.75, +0.52, +0.65%) , which heavily weights the euro in a
basket of currencies versus the greenback, was recently up 0.6%. See
more in Currencies.
Indexes tracking higher-risk corners of the stock market fared worse
than the Dow and S&P. The Nasdaq Composite Index /quotes/comstock/10y!
i:comp (COMP 2,374, -16.87, -0.71%) was off 0.8%, while the Russell
2000 fell 1.2%.
Digits: Palm's Future in DoubtThe latest forecast and smart-phone
sales data from Palm is raising serious concerns about the company's
viability. Dow Jones Newswires' Roger Cheng joins Stacey Delo on
Digits to discuss. Plus, an unprecedented look at the finances behind
YouTube, the world's most successful video site, as well as the
growing number of vehicles offering a self-parking option.
The S&P's health-care sector was flat ahead of an expected weekend
vote on federal reforms.
"We've been significantly overweight in health care for many months
now with the expectation that when it passes -- good, bad or ugly --
that that certainty will allow the health-care stocks to breathe a
sigh of relief," said Harry Rady, chief executive and portfolio
manager of Rady Asset Management.
Among the sector's winners on Friday were UnitedHealth Group /quotes/
comstock/13*!unh/quotes/nls/unh (UNH 34.54, +0.15, +0.44%) and
WellPoint /quotes/comstock/13*!wlp/quotes/nls/wlp (WLP 65.19, +0.12,
+0.19%) , up more than 2% each. But Merck /quotes/comstock/13*!mrk/
quotes/nls/mrk (MRK 38.05, -0.01, -0.02%) slipped 1% after the Food
and Drug Administration warned about the increased risk of muscle
injury for patients taking an 80-milligram dose of its cholesterol
drug Zocor.
Among stocks to watch in other sectors, Boeing /quotes/comstock/13*!ba/
quotes/nls/ba (BA 71.34, +0.62, +0.87%) rose 0.9% after announcing
plans to increase production of its 777 and 747 aircraft earlier than
anticipated amid increasing demand. See more on Boeing.
Among stocks in focus, Palm /quotes/comstock/15*!palm/quotes/nls/palm
(PALM 4.02, +0.02, +0.44%) plunged 27%. The company reported a
narrower quarterly loss but warned of significantly lower revenue in
the current quarter amid disappointing sales of its latest
smartphones. Read more on Palm.
Trading volume was higher, with about 3.8 billion shares having
changed hands in New York Stock Exchange Composite volume recently,
compared with the recent full-day average of about 4.8 billion. The
increase came on so-called quadruple witching day, when contracts for
stock-index futures, stock-index options, stock options and single-
stock futures expire.
Treasury prices slipped. The 10-year note /quotes/comstock/31*!ust10y
(UST10Y 3.69, +0.01, +0.27%) fell 1/32 to yield 3.678%.
More Market Snapshot
March 18, 2010 U.S. stocks' uneven session extends Dow win streak
http://store.marketwatch.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/PremiumNewsletters_CampaignTheTechnicalIndicator?dist=IYMLMSB1T
March 17, 2010 Dow win streak longest since August 2009
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-post-gains-in-early-trading-2010-03-17
March 16, 2010 U.S. stocks finish higher in cheering Fed
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-hold-near-flat-ahead-of-fed-2010-03-16
March 15, 2010 U.S. stocks make late-day rise, helped by Wal-Mart
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-mostly-lower-google-dips-wal-mart-up-2010-03-15
March 13, 2010 U.S. stock investors to use data as a road map
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-investors-to-use-data-as-a-road-map-2010-03-13
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-open-higher-led-by-boeing-2010-03-19
bademiyansubhanallah
STAFF WRITER 15:59 HRS IST
Shimla, Mar 18 (PTI) Newly-appointed BJP general secretary Jagat
Prakash Nadda today resigned as cabinet minister in Himachal Pradesh
to take up his new assignment at the national level.
Nadda met Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal in assembly and submitted
his resignation which was accepted.
"Yes I have submitted by resignation to the chief minister," Nadda
told PTI.
"I have asked him (Nadda) to continue till the ongoing budget session
of the assembly," Dhumal said.
Nadda in his letter to the CM said that since he has been appointed as
national general secretary of the BJP he was resigning from HP cabinet
in accordance with the party's policy of 'one man one post'.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/570541_Nadda-resigns-as-HP-minister-to-take-up-natl-assignment
JP Nadda resigns as Himachal cabinet minister
Posted by Ravinder Makhaik on Mar 18th, 2010
Shimla: Forest minister Jagat Prakash Nadda on being appointed as BJP
general secretary today submitted his resignation as a cabinet
minister in the Prem Kumar Dhumal ministry to take up his new
assignment at the national level.
Nadda met Dhumal in assembly today and submitted his resignation which
has been accepted.
“I have submitted by resignation to the chief minister,” Nadda
confirmed to My Himachal News.
“I have asked the forest minister to continue till the ongoing budget
session,” said the chief minister.
Nadda in his letter to the CM cited that since he had been appointed
national general secretary of party he was resigning from HP cabinet
in accordance with the party’s declared policy of ‘one man one post’.
http://himachal.us/2010/03/18/jp-nadda-resigns-as-himachal-cabinet-minister/19150/news/ravinder
Day curfew lifted in Bareilly
STAFF WRITER 12:37 HRS IST
Bareilly, Mar 20 (PTI) With the situation improving in riot-hit areas,
day curfew has been lifted in the city.
"The situation is completely normal and day curfew in five police
areas - Prem Nagar, Qila, Baradari, Kotwali and Subhash Nagar - has
been lifted between 5 am to 10 pm," officials said.
The situation had become a bit tense yesterday after six statues were
allegedly stolen from the ancient Jagganath Puri temple in Bada Bazar
area.
Protesting against the theft, members of a community blocked road,
which was later lifted on the assurance that the guilty would be
arrested soon.
Curfew was clamped in four of the six police areas of the city on
March 2 in the wake of communal clashes over a barawafat procession.It
was later extended to one more police area after fresh violence on
March 11.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/573674_Day-curfew-lifted-in-Bareilly
BJP demands Raj Home Minister's resignation
STAFF WRITER 23:7 HRS IST
Jaipur, Mar 19 (PTI) Holding statewide protests, BJP today demanded
the resignation of Rajasthan Home Minister Shanti Dhariwal, alleging
he had threatened its MLAs in the legislative assembly.
"Besides Dhariwal's resignation, the Congress government should revoke
the suspension of two MLAs -- R S Rathore (whip) and Hanuman Beniwal
-- who were suspended in previous two sittings of the House," Arun
Chaturvedi, its state president, told a press conference here.
The Leader of the House and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has not been
present in the House for the last two days and should attempt to break
the deadlock, Chaturvedi said.
"If this is not done on March 22, the BJP will hold 'Jail Bharo' in
all district headquarters," he said.
Meanwhile, BJP general secretary Vasundhara Raje alleged the state
government's repressive tactics in the assembly were a reminder of the
British period.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/573450_BJP-demands-Raj-Home-Minister-s-resignation
Praveen Togadia held for trying to walk into Kandhamal
STAFF WRITER 0:22 HRS IST
Bhubaneswar, Mar 19 (PTI) Firebrand VHP leader Praveen Togadia was
tonight arrested alongwith his supporters by the Orissa Police as they
tried to enter riot-hit Kandhamal district, defying a ban on their
visit.
Togadia, who arrived at Charichowk in Boudh district, neighbouring
Kandhamal, was held under Section 151 of the CrPc when they tried to
walk into Kandhamal district despite a ban, police said.
After they were asked not to proceed to the district, they initially
held a sit-in protest at Charichowk.
The VHP leader is now lodged at the forest inspection bungalow at
Charichowk, Lambodar Buda, Inspector-in-charge of Boudh police
station, said.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/573518_Praveen-Togadia-held-for-trying-to-walk-into-Kandhamal
Togadia released by Orissa Police
STAFF WRITER 12:11 HRS IST
Phulbani (Orissa), Mar 20 (PTI) Fireband VHP leader Praveen Togadia,
who was arrested while trying to enter riot-hit Kandhamal district
despite prohibitory orders, was today released by Orissa Police.
"Togadia was released on a bond and he left for Bhanjanagar in Ganjam
district," Kandhamal SP Pravin Kumar said.
The VHP leader was arrested last night under Section 151 of the CrPC
when he tried to walk into Kandhamal, along with supporters.
Earlier the state government had put a ban on Togadia's visit in view
of the communally-fragile nature of the district, which had seen
largescale communal violence in the wake of killing of VHP leader
Lakhsmananda Saraswati in August 2008.
Meanwhile, the district VHP unit of Kandhamal organised a 12-hour
bandh protesting Togadia's arrest.
While all shops and business establishments were closed, educational
institutions and government offices functioned as usual, police said.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/573641_Togadia-released-by-Orissa-Police
Shahnawaz not to attend BJP spokespersons' meet
STAFF WRITER 14:12 HRS IST
New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain, who is
reportedly sulking after he was overlooked for the post of general
secretary by party president Nitin Gadkari, is likely to keep away
from a meeting of new spokespersons convened today by Leader of
Opposition Sushma Swaraj.
Swaraj is holding a meeting of the seven BJP spokespersons to decide
allocation of work and brief them about their new job.
Sources said the meeting was being held at the behest of Chief
Spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad who is keen on getting his new team
cracking without any delay.
Sources close to Hussain said he is likely to keep away from the
meeting but insisted that this is due to his ill-health.
"He is a disciplined soldier of the party and will go with whatever
the party decides.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/572096_Shahnawaz-not-to-attend-BJP-spokespersons--meet
Dissent in BJP over Gadkari\’s new team – IBNLive.com
Published by admin on March 19, 2010 filed under Asian News
Headlines · Comments (0) The Hindu Dissent in BJP over Gadkari’s
new team IBNLive.com BJP’s latest worries- party President Nitin
Gadkari’s honeymoon period is over. His first challange will be Bihar-
and state party leaders anger might cost the party dearly as Bihar
will be going to polls later this year. Shatrughan Sinha and CP Thakur
… Everyone can’t be satisfied: Gadkari about dissent over his team
Economic Times Shatrughan vents ire at not being included in Nitin
Gadkari’s team Daily News & Analysis Dissent in BJP over Gadkari’s new
team India Today NDTV.com
http://asia.getsomenews.com/2010/03/19/dissent-in-bjp-over-gadkaris-new-team-ibnlive-com/
Raise complaints with me, not media: Gadkari
on March 19th, 2010
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Nitin Gadkari Friday asked
party leaders to raise any complaints about his choice of a new team
with him and not with the media.
“Those who have complaints about the new team should speak to me, not
the media,” Gadkari told the NDTV news channel, a day after actor-
turned-party MP Shatrughan Sinha’s remarks on the composition of the
new team of office-bearers announced Tuesday.
Sinha Thursday recited the lyrics of an old Hindi film song in answer
to a question about the new team. “Uff na karenge, lab see lenge,
aansu pee lenge (I will not sigh, will seal my lips and swallow my
tears),” he said, expressing disappointment that leaders like Yashwant
Sinha had been left out and the team had not been able to give a
message of dynamism.
“It’s wrong to say that Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie were excluded
because they are Advani detractors… It’s not possible to include
everyone on the team,” Gadkari said.
The BJP president also justified the appointment of Nehru-Gandhi
family member Varun Gandhi as party secretary, saying: “Varun Gandhi
should be given a chance, why hold the past against him?”
The party had sought to distance itself from Varun Gandhi after he
allegedly made inflammatory remarks during the Lok Sabha election
campaign last year.
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http://way2online.com/?p=28794
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Aryan race
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with "Arianism" which was an early non-trinitarian
form of Christianity.
This article is about the racial theory. For the full range of
meanings of "Aryan", see Aryan. For Hindu, Buddhist, Zoroastrian and
Jain spiritual interpretations, see Arya. For other uses, see Aryan
(disambiguation).
The Aryan race is a concept historically influential in European
culture in the period of the late 19th century and early 20th century.
It derives from the idea that the original speakers of the Indo-
European languages and their descendants up to the present day
constitute a distinctive race or subrace of the larger Caucasian race.
[1]
While originally meant simply as a neutral ethnic classification, it
was later used for political racism in Nazi and neo-Nazi ideological
form. It became a concept of scientific racism, and hence also in
other currents such as occultism and white supremacism.
Belief in the existence of an Aryan race is sometimes referred to as
Aryanism.
Origin of the term
Main article: Aryan
See also: Arya
The earliest epigraphically-attested reference to the word arya occurs
in the 6th century Behistun inscription, which describes itself to
have been composed "in arya [language or script]" (§ 70). As is also
the case for all other Old Iranian language usage, the arya of the
inscription does not signify anything but "Iranian".[2]
The region Aria as depicted by Waldseemuller in 1507The term Aryan
originates from the Sanskrit word arya, attested in the ancient texts
of Hinduism such as the Rigveda. Arya in Sanskrit holds the meaning
civilized or simply referring to an individual of higher
consciousness.
In the 18th century, the most ancient known Indo-European languages
were those of the Indo-Iranians' ancestors. The word Aryan was adopted
to refer not only to the Indo-Iranian people, but also to native Indo-
European speakers as a whole, including the Albanians, Kurds,
Armenians, Greeks, Latins, and Germans. It was soon recognised that
Balts, Celts, and Slavs also belonged to the same group. It was argued
that all of these languages originated from a common root—now known as
Proto-Indo-European—spoken by an ancient people who must have been the
original ancestors of the European, Iranian, and Indo-Aryan peoples.
The ethnic group composed of the Proto-Indo-Europeans and their modern
descendants was termed the Aryans.
This usage was common in the late 19th and early 20th century. An
example of an influential best-selling book that reflects this usage
is the 1920 book The Outline of History by H. G. Wells.[3] In it he
wrote of the accomplishments of the Aryan people, stating how they
"learned methods of civilization" while "Sargon II and Sardanapalus
were ruling in Assyria and fighting with Babylonia and Syria and
Egypt". As such, Wells suggested that the Aryans had eventually
"subjugated the whole ancient world, Semitic, Aegean and Egyptian
alike".[4] In the 1944 edition of Rand McNally’s World Atlas, the
Aryan race is depicted as being one of the ten major racial groupings
of mankind.[5] The science fiction author Poul Anderson (1926–2001),
an anti-racist Libertarian of Scandinavian ancestry, in his many
novels, novellas, and short stories, consistently used the term Aryan
as a synonym for Indo-Europeans. He spoke of the Aryan bird of prey
which impelled those of the Aryan race to take the lead in developing
interstellar travel, colonize habitable planets in other planetary
systems and become leading business entrepreneurs on the newly
colonized planets.[6]
The use of "Aryan" as a synonym for "Indo-European" or to a lesser
extent for "Indo-Iranian", is regarded today by many as obsolete and
politically incorrect, but may still occasionally appear in material
based on older scholarship, or written by persons accustomed to older
usage, such as in a 1989 article in Scientific American by Colin
Renfrew in which he uses the word "Aryan" in its traditional meaning
as a synonym for "Indo-European".[7]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanskrit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arya
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rigveda
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-European_languages
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-Iranian_peoples
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Indo-European_language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_American
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Renfrew
19th-century physical anthropology
Main article: Caucasian race
See also: scientific racism
The 4th edition of Meyers Konversationslexikon (Leipzig, 1885-1890)
shows the Caucasian race (in blue) as comprising Aryans, Semites and
Hamites. Aryans are further subdivided into European Aryans and Indo-
Aryans (the latter corresponding to the group now designated Indo-
Iranians).In 19th century physical anthropology, represented by some
as being scientific racism, the "Aryan race" was considered a subgroup
of the Caucasian (or Europid) race, essentially corresponding to the
speakers of Indo-European languages native to Europe, Persia and the
Indo-Gangetic plain in South Asia.
The original 19th-century and early 20th-century use of the term Aryan
referred to "the early speakers of Proto-Indo European and their
descendents".[8][9] Max Müller is often identified as the first writer
to speak of an Aryan "race" in English. In his Lectures on the Science
of Language in 1861[10] he referred to Aryans as a "race of people".
At the time, the term race had the meaning of "a group of tribes or
peoples, an ethnic group".[11]
When Müller's statement was interpreted to imply a biologically
distinct sub-group of humanity, he soon clarified that he simply meant
a line of descent, insisting that it was very dangerous to mix
linguistics and anthropology. "The Science of Language and the Science
of Man cannot be kept too much asunder ... I must repeat what I have
said many times before, it would be wrong to speak of Aryan blood as
of dolichocephalic grammar".[12] He restated his opposition to this
method in 1888 in his essay Biographies of words and the home of the
Aryas.[10]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_M%C3%BCller
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cephalic_index
Müller was responding to the development of racial anthropology, and
the influence of the work of Arthur de Gobineau who argued that the
Indo-Europeans represented a superior branch of humanity. A number of
later writers, such as the French anthropologist Vacher de Lapouge in
his book L'Aryen, argued that this superior branch could be identified
biologically by using the cephalic index (a measure of head shape) and
other indicators. He argued that the long-headed "dolichocephalic-
blond" Europeans, characteristically found in northern Europe, were
natural leaders, destined to rule over more "brachiocephalic" (short
headed) peoples.[13].
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_de_Gobineau
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacher_de_Lapouge
The division of the Caucasian race into Aryans, Semites and Hamites is
in origin linguistic, not based on physical anthropology, the division
in physical anthropology being that into Nordic, Alpine and
Mediterranean. However, the linguistic classification of "Aryan"
became closely associated, and conflated, with the classification of
"Nordic".
This claim became increasingly important during the 19th century. In
the mid-19th century, it was commonly believed that the Aryans
originated in the southwestern steppes of present-day Russia. However,
by the late 19th century the steppe theory of Aryan origins was
challenged by the view that the Aryans originated in ancient Germany
or Scandinavia, or at least that in those countries the original Aryan
ethnicity had been preserved. The German origin of the Aryans was
especially promoted by the archaeologist Gustaf Kossinna, who claimed
that the Proto-Indo-European peoples were identical to the Corded Ware
culture of Neolithic Germany. This idea was widely circulated in both
intellectual and popular culture by the early twentieth century,[14]
and is reflected in the concept of "Corded-Nordics" in Carleton S.
Coon's 1939 The Races of Europe.
Other anthropologists contested such claims. In Germany, Rudolf
Virchow launched a study of craniometry, which prompted him to
denounce "Nordic mysticism" in the 1885 Anthropology Congress in
Karlsruhe, while Josef Kollmann, a collaborator of Virchow, stated in
the same congress that the people of Europe, be they English, German,
French, and Spaniard belonged to a "mixture of various races,"
furthermore declaring that the "results of craniology...[are] against
any theory concerning the superiority of this or that European race"
to others.[10]
Virchow's contribution to the debate sparked a controversy. Houston
Stewart Chamberlain, a strong supporter of the theory of a superior
Aryan race, attacked Josef Kollmann arguments in detail. While the
"Aryan race" theory remained popular, particularly in Germany, some
authors defended Virchow's perspective, in particular Otto Schrader,
Rudolph von Jhering and the ethnologist Robert Hartmann (1831–1893),
who proposed to ban the notion of "Aryan" from anthropology.[10]
Indo-Aryan migration
Main article: Indo-Aryan migration
See also: Out of India theory
Models of the Indo-Aryan migration discuss scenarios of prehistoric
migrations of the early Indo-Aryans to their historically attested
areas of settlement in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent and
from there further across all of North India. Claims of Indo-Aryan
migration are primarily drawn from linguistic[15] evidence but also
from a multitude of data stemming from genetics,[16] Vedic religion,
rituals, poetics as well as some aspects of social organization and
chariot technology.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vedic_period
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vedas
All discussion of historical Indo-Aryan migrations or Aryan and
Dravidian races remains highly controversial in India to this day, and
continues to affect political and religious debate. Some Dravidians,
and supporters of the Dalit movement, most commonly Tamils, claim that
the worship of Shiva is a distinct Dravidian religion going back to
the Indus Civilization,[17] to be distinguished from Brahminical
"Aryan" Hinduism. In contrast, the Indian nationalist Hindutva
movement argues that no Aryan invasion or migration ever occurred,
asserting that Vedic beliefs emerged from the Indus Valley
Civilisation,[18] which pre-dated the supposed advent of the Indo-
Aryans in India, and is identified as a likely candidate for a Proto-
Dravidian culture.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dravidian
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalitstan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamil_people
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilization
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahmin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindutva
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus_Valley_Civilisation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Dravidian
Some Indians were also influenced by the debate about the Aryan race
during the British Raj. The Indian nationalist V. D. Savarkar believed
in the theory that an "Aryan race" migrated to India,[19] but he
didn't find much value in a racialized interpretation of the "Aryan
race".[20] Some Indian nationalists supported the British version of
the theory because it gave them the prestige of common descent with
the ruling British class.[21]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._D._Savarkar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racialized
Genetic studies
A genetic study in the year 2000 in Andhra Pradesh state of India
found that the upper caste Hindus were closer relatives to Eastern-
Europeans than to Hindus from lower castes.[22] However, a study
conducted by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in 2009 (in
collaboration with Harvard Medical School, Harvard School of Public
Health and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT) analyzed half a
million genetic markers across the genomes of 132 individuals from 25
ethnic groups from 13 states in India across multiple caste groups.
[23] The study asserts, based on the impossibility of identifying any
genetic indicators across caste lines, that castes in South Asia grew
out of traditional tribal organizations during the formation of Indian
society, and was not the product of any Aryan invasion and
"subjugation" of Dravidian people.[24]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centre_for_Cellular_and_Molecular_Biology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_Medical_School
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_School_of_Public_Health
Occultism
Theosophy
Mme. Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott, a lawyer, agricultural expert,
and journalist who covered the Spiritualist phenomena.Main article:
Root race
These debates were addressed within the Theosophical movement founded
by Helena Blavatsky and Henry Olcott at the end of the nineteenth
century. This philosophy took inspiration from Indian culture, in this
case, perhaps, from the Hindu reform movement the Arya Samaj founded
by Swami Dayananda.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theosophy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madame_Blavatsky
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Steel_Olcott
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arya_Samaj
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swami_Dayananda
Blavatsky argued that humanity had descended from a series of "Root
Races", naming the fifth root race (out of seven) the Aryan Race. She
thought that the Aryans originally came from Atlantis and described
the Aryan races with the following words:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_Race
"The Aryan races, for instance, now varying from dark brown, almost
black, red-brown-yellow, down to the whitest creamy colour, are yet
all of one and the same stock -- the Fifth Root-Race -- and spring
from one single progenitor, (...) who is said to have lived over
18,000,000 years ago, and also 850,000 years ago -- at the time of the
sinking of the last remnants of the great continent of Atlantis."[25]
Blavatsky used "Root Race" as a technical term to describe human
evolution over the large time periods in her cosmology. However, she
also claimed that there were modern non-Aryan peoples who were
inferior to Aryans. She regularly contrasts "Aryan" with "Semitic"
culture, to the detriment of the latter, asserting that Semitic
peoples are an offshoot of Aryans who have become "degenerate in
spirituality and perfected in materiality."[26] She also states that
some peoples are "semi-animal creatures". These latter include "the
Tasmanians, a portion of the Australians and a mountain tribe in
China." There are also "considerable numbers of the mixed Lemuro-
Atlantean peoples produced by various crossings with such semi-human
stocks -- e.g., the wild men of Borneo, the Veddhas of Ceylon, classed
by Prof. Flower among Aryans (!), most of the remaining Australians,
Bushmen, Negritos, Andaman Islanders, etc."[27]
Despite this, Blavatsky's admirers claim that her thinking was not
connected to fascist or racialist ideas, asserting that she believed
in a Universal Brotherhood of humanity and wrote that "all men have
spiritually and physically the same origin" and that "mankind is
essentially of one and the same essence".[28] On the other hand, in
The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky states: "Verily mankind is 'of one
blood,' but not of the same essence."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Brotherhood
Blavatsky connects physical race with spiritual attributes constantly
throughout her works:
"Esoteric history teaches that idols and their worship died out with
the Fourth Race, until the survivors of the hybrid races of the latter
(Chinamen, African Negroes, &c.) gradually brought the worship back.
The Vedas countenance no idols; all the modern Hindu writings do".
[29]
"The intellectual difference between the Aryan and other civilized
nations and such savages as the South Sea Islanders, is inexplicable
on any other grounds. No amount of culture, nor generations of
training amid civilization, could raise such human specimens as the
Bushmen, the Veddhas of Ceylon, and some African tribes, to the same
intellectual level as the Aryans, the Semites, and the Turanians so
called. The 'sacred spark' is missing in them and it is they who are
the only inferior races on the globe, now happily -- owing to the wise
adjustment of nature which ever works in that direction -- fast dying
out. Verily mankind is 'of one blood,' but not of the same essence. We
are the hot-house, artificially quickened plants in nature, having in
us a spark, which in them is latent".[30]
According to Blavatsky, "the MONADS of the lowest specimens of
humanity (the "narrow-brained" savage South-Sea Islander, the African,
the Australian) had no Karma to work out when first born as men, as
their more favoured brethren in intelligence had".[31]
She also prophecies of the destruction of the racial "failures of
nature" as the future "higher race" ascends:
"Thus will mankind, race after race, perform its appointed cycle-
pilgrimage. Climates will, and have already begun, to change, each
tropical year after the other dropping one sub-race, but only to beget
another higher race on the ascending cycle; while a series of other
less favoured groups -- the failures of nature -- will, like some
individual men, vanish from the human family without even leaving a
trace behind".[32]
It is interesting to note that the second subrace of the Fifth or
Aryan root race, the Arabian, is regarded by Theosophists as one of
the Aryan subraces. It is believed by Theosophists that the Arabians,
although asserted in traditional Theosophy to be of Aryan (i.e., Indo-
European) ancestry, adopted the Semitic language of the people around
them who had migrated earlier from Atlantis (the fifth or (original)
Semite subrace of the Atlantean root race). Theosophists assert that
the Jews originated as an offshoot of the Arabian subrace in what is
now Yemen about 30,000 BC. They migrated first to Somalia and then
later to Egypt where they lived until the time of Moses. Thus,
according to the teachings of Theosophy, the Jews are part of the
Aryan race.[33]
Ariosophy
Main article: Ariosophy
Guido von List (and his followers such as Lanz von Liebenfels) later
took up some of Blavatsky's ideas, mixing her ideology with
nationalistic and fascist ideas; this system of thought became known
as Ariosophy. It was believed in Ariosophy that the Teutonics were
superior to all other peoples because according to Theosophy the
Teutonics or Nordics were the most recent subrace of the Aryan root
race to have evolved.[34] Such views also fed into the development of
Nazi ideology. Theosophical publications such as The Aryan Path were
strongly opposed to the Nazi usage, attacking racialism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guido_von_List
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanz_von_Liebenfels
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariosophy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_languages
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Aryan_Path
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racialism
The idea of the Northern origins of the Aryans was particularly
influential in Germany. It was widely believed that the "Vedic Aryans"
were ethnically identical to the Goths, Vandals and other ancient
Germanic peoples of the Völkerwanderung. This idea was often
intertwined with anti-Semitic ideas. The distinctions between the
"Aryan" and "Semitic" peoples were based on the aforementioned
linguistic and ethnic history.
Semitic peoples came to be seen as a foreign presence within Aryan
societies, and the Semitic peoples were often pointed to as the cause
of conversion and destruction of social order and values leading to
culture and civilization's downfall by proto-Nazi and Nazi theorists
such as Houston Stewart Chamberlain and Alfred Rosenberg.
According to the adherents to Ariosophy, the Aryan was a "master race"
that built a civilization that dominated the world from Atlantis about
ten thousand years ago. This alleged civilization declined when other
parts of the world were colonized after the 8,000 BC destruction of
Atlantis because the inferior races mixed with the Aryans but it left
traces of their civilization in Tibet (via Buddhism), and even in
Central America, South America, and Ancient Egypt. (The date of 8,000
BC for the destruction of Atlantis in Ariosophy is 2,000 years later
than the date of 10,000 BC given for this event in Theosophy.) These
theories affected the more esotericist strand of Nazism.
A complete, highly speculative theory of Aryan and anti-Semitic
history can be found in Alfred Rosenberg's major work, The Myth of the
Twentieth Century. Rosenberg's well-researched account of ancient
history, melded with his racial speculations, proved to be very
effective in spreading racialism among German intellectuals in the
early twentieth century, especially after the First World War.
These and other ideas evolved into the Nazi use of the term "Aryan
race" to refer to what they saw as being a master race of people of
northern European descent. They worked to maintain the purity of this
race through eugenics programs (including anti-miscegenation
legislation, compulsory sterilization of the mentally ill and the
mentally deficient, the execution of the institutionalized mentally
ill as part of a euthanasia program).
Heinrich Himmler (the Reichsführer of the SS), the person ordered by
Adolf Hitler to implement the final solution (Holocaust), told his
personal masseur Felix Kersten that he always carried with him a copy
of the ancient Aryan scripture, the Bhagavad Gita because it relieved
him of guilt about what he was doing — he felt that like the warrior
Arjuna, he was simply doing his duty without attachment to his actions.
[35]
Himmler was also interested in Buddhism and his institute Ahnenerbe
sought to mix some traditions from Hinduism and Buddhism.[36] Himmler
sent a 1939 German expedition to Tibet as part of his research into
Aryan origins.
Neo-Nazism
The Sun wheel is used as the symbol of the Aryan raceSince the
military defeat of Nazi Germany by the Allies in 1945, some neo-Nazis
have expanded their concept of the Aryan race, moving from the Nazi
concept that the purest Aryans were the Teutonics or Nordics of
Northern Europe to the idea that the true Aryans are everyone
descended from the Western or European branch of the Indo-European
peoples.[citation needed] "Moderate" "white nationalists" who embrace
what is called pan-Aryanism want to establish a democratically
governed Aryan Federation.[37] On the other hand, according to
Nicholas Goodrick-Clark, many neo-Nazis want to establish an
autocratic state modeled after Nazi Germany to be called the Western
Imperium.[38]
This proposed state would be led by a Führer-like figure called the
Vindex, and would include all areas inhabited by the Aryan race
(defined as non-Jews of European ancestry), i.e. Europe (includes all
of Russia), Anglo-America, South Africa (may include Rhodesia (now
called Zimbabwe)) with its white minority, Australia, New Zealand, and
southern South America (that is Chile, Argentina, eastern Bolivia,
southern Brazil, Uruguay, and possibly Paraguay.) Only those of the
Aryan race would be full citizens of the state. The Western Imperium
would embark on a vigorous and dynamic program of space exploration.
The concept of the Western Imperium as outlined in the previous three
sentences is based on the original concept of the Imperium as outlined
in the 1947 book Imperium: The Philosophy of History and Politics by
Francis Parker Yockey as further updated, extended and refined in the
early 1990s in pamphlets published by David Myatt. [39][40][41]
Various concepts of Aryanism and how they should be implemented are
debated on the Stormfront website.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Parker_Yockey
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Myatt
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stormfront_(website)
Tempelhofgesellschaft
A neo-Nazi esoteric Nazi Gnostic sect headquartered in Vienna, Austria
called the Tempelhofgesellschaft, founded in the early 1990s, teaches
a form of what it calls Marcionism. They distribute pamphlets claiming
that the Aryan race originally came to Atlantis from the star
Aldebaran.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-Nazi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esoteric_Nazism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnostic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-volkisch_movements#Tempelhofgesellschaft_.28Gnostic_sect.29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcionism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_race#The_civilization_of_Atlantis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldebaran
See also
Anatolian hypothesis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatolian_hypothesis
Aryan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryan
Germanic peoples
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_peoples
Indo-Aryan migrations
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-Aryan_migrations
Nordic theory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_theory
Nordic race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_race
Proto-Indo-Europeans
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Indo-Europeans
Indo-European language family
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-European_language_family
Kurgan hypothesis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurgan_hypothesis
Race Life of the Aryan Peoples
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_Life_of_the_Aryan_Peoples
Scandinavism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scandinavism
White nationalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_nationalism
White supremacy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_supremacy
Philosophical:
Esotericism in Germany and Austria
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esotericism_in_Germany_and_Austria
Thule Society
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thule_Society
Germanic Neopaganism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germanic_Neopaganism
Neo-völkisch movements
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-v%C3%B6lkisch_movements
Third Reich specific:
Aryanization
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryanization
Aryan paragraph
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryan_paragraph
Honorary Aryan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honorary_Aryan
Ahnenpass
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahnenpass
Aryan Games
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryan_Games
Contemporaneous concepts of race:
Alpine race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpine_race
Armenoid race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenoid_race
Dinaric race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinaric_race
East Baltic race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Baltic_race
Iranid race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranid_race
Mediterranean race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_race
References
Constructs such as ibid., op. cit. and loc. cit. are discouraged by
Wikipedia's style guide for footnotes as they are easily broken.
Please improve this article by replacing them with named references
(quick guide), or an abbreviated title.
^ Mish, Frederic C., Editor in Chief Webster's Tenth New Collegiate
Dictionary Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A.:1994--Merriam-Webster
See original definition (definition #1) of "Aryan" in English--Page
66
^ cf. Gershevitch, Ilya (1968), "Old Iranian Literature", Handbuch der
Orientalistik, Literatur I, Leiden: Brill, pp. 1–31 , p. 2.
^ Wells, H.G. The Outline of History New York:1920 Doubleday & Co.
Chapter 19 The Aryan Speaking Peoples in Pre-Historic Times Pages
271-285
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Outline_of_History
^ H.G. Wells describes the origin of the Aryans (Proto-Indo
Europeans):
http://www.bartleby.com/86/19.html
^ Rand McNally’s World Atlas International Edition Chicago:1944 Rand
McNally Map: "Races of Mankind" Pages 278–279--In the explanatory
section below the map, the Aryan race (the word “Aryan” being defined
in the description below the map as a synonym for “Indo-Europeans”) is
described as being one of the ten major racial groupings of mankind.
Each of the ten racial groupings is depicted in a different color on
the map and the estimated populations in 1944 of the larger racial
groups except the Dravidians are given (the Dravidian population in
1944 would have been about 70,000,000). The other nine groups are
depicted as being the Semitic race (the Aryans (850,000,000) and the
Semites (70,000,000) are described as being the two main branches of
the Caucasian race), the Dravidian race, the Mongolian race
(700,000,000), the Malayan race (Correct population given on page
413--64,000,000 including half of the Malay States, Micronesia, and
Polynesia), the American Indian race (10,000,000), the Negro race
(140,000,000), the Native Australians, the Papuans, and the Hottentots
and Bushmen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semitic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caucasian_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dravidian_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongoloid_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malayan_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_people_of_the_Americas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_people
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australoid_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australoid_race
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capoid_race
^ See, for example, the Poul Anderson short stories in the 1964
collection Time and Stars and the Polesotechnic League stories
featuring Nicholas van Rijn
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_and_Stars
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_van_Rijn
^ Renfrew, Colin. (1989). The Origins of Indo-European Languages. /
Scientific American/, 261(4), 82-90.
^ Mish, Frederic C., Editor in Chief Webster's Tenth New Collegiate
Dictionary Springfield, Massachuetts, U.S.A.:1994--Merriam-Webster
Page 66
^ Widney, Joseph P Race Life of the Aryan Peoples New York: Funk &
Wagnalls. 1907 In Two Volumes: Volume One--The Old World Volume Two--
The New World ISBN B000859S6O
http://books.google.com/books?id=s9UKAAAAIAAJ&printsec=titlepage#v=onepage&q=&f=false
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Pomeroy_Widney
^ a b c d Andrea Orsucci, "Ariani, indogermani, stirpi mediterranee:
aspetti del dibattito sulle razze europee (1870-1914)", in Cromohs,
1998 (Italian)
http://www.cromohs.unifi.it/3_98/orsucci.html
^ OED under race, n.6 I.1.c has "A group of several tribes or peoples,
regarded as forming a distinct ethnic set. Esp. used in 19th-cent.
anthropological classification, sometimes in conjunction with
linguistic groupings."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OED
^ Speech before the University of Stassbourg, 1872, Chaudhuri, Nirad,
Scholar Extraordinary: The Life of Professor the Rt. Hon. Freidrich
Max Muller, Chatto and Windus, 1974, p.313
^ Vacher de Lapouge (trans Clossen, C), Georges (1899). "Old and New
Aspects of the Aryan Question". The American Journal of Sociology 5
(3): 329–346. .
^ Arvidsson, Stefan (2006). Aryan Idols. USA: University of Chicago
Press, 143. ISBN 0-226-02860-7.
^ The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture: The Indo-Aryan Migration
Debate, Edwin Bryant, 2001
^ Trivedi, Bijal P (2001-05-14). [http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/
articles/05_01/Indo-European.shtml "Genetic evidence suggests European
migrants may have influenced the origins of India's caste system"].
Genome News Network (J. Craig Venter Institute).
http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articles/05_01/Indo-European.shtml.
Retrieved 2005-01-27.
^ It is claimed that the Pashupati seal represents Shiva. J. Marshall
1931: Vol. 1, 52-55. Mohenjo-Daro and the IVC. London: Arthur
Probsthain.
^ Although most pro-Aryan migration theory scholars also agree that a
part of the IVC culture has influenced Hinduism. Renfrew says: "it is
difficult to see what is particularly non-Aryan about the Indus Valley
Civilization. Renfrew 1988:188-190. Archaeology and Language. New
York: Cambridge University Press
^ Bryant 2001:271, Talageri 2000. The Rigveda.
^ After all there is throughout this world so far as man is concerned
but a single race - the human race, kept alive by one common blood,
the human blood. All other talk is at best provisional, a makeshift
and only relatively true. (...) Even as it is, not even the aborigines
of the Andamans are without some sprinkling of the so-called Aryan
blood in their veins and vice-versa. Truly speaking all that one can
claim is that one has the blood of all mankind in one’s veins. The
fundamental unity of man from pole to pole is true, all else only
relatively so. Savarkar: "Hindutva". Vinayak Damodar Savarkar,
Savarkar Samagra: Complete Works of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 10
volumes, ISBN 81-7315-331-0
^ Erdosy 1995:21, The Indo-Aryans of ancient South Asia.
^ http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=11381027
^ Indians are one people descended from two tribes
http://www.dnaindia.com/scitech/report_indians-are-one-people-descended-from-two-tribes_1292864
^ Aryan-Dravidian divide a myth: Study, Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news/india/Aryan-Dravidian-divide-a-myth-Study/articleshow/5053274.cms
^ The Secret Doctrine, the Synthesis of Science, Religion and
Philosophy, Vol.II, p.249
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_Doctrine
^ Ibid., p.200
^ Ibid., pp.195-6
^ The Key to Theosophy, Section 3
^ The Secret Doctrine, the Synthesis of Science, Religion and
Philosophy, Vol. II, p.723
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_Doctrine
^ Ibid., p 421
^ Ibid., p.168
^ Ibid., p.446
^ Powell, A.E. The Solar System: A Complete Outline of the
Theosophical Scheme of Evolution London:1930 The Theosophical
Publishing House Pages 298-299
^ Goodrick-Clarke, Nicholas The Occult Roots of Nazism: Secret Aryan
Cults and Their Influence on Nazi Ideology New York:1992 New York
University Press Chapter 13 "Herbert Reichstein and Ariosophy" Pages
164-176
^ Padfield, Peter Himmler New York:1990--Henry Holt Page 402
^ P.7, New Religions and the Nazis, By Karla Powne
^ Fundamentals of Pan-Aryanism:
http://forums.skadi.net/showthread.php?p=940600
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herrenvolk
^ Goodrick-Clarke, Nicholas (2003). Black Sun: Aryan Cults, Esoteric
Nazism and the Politics of Identity. New York: New York University
Press. pp. 221. ISBN 0-8147-3155-4.
^ Goodrick-Clarke, Nicholas Black Sun: Aryan Cults, Esoteric Nazism,
and The Politics of Identity New York: 2002--N.Y. University Press,
See Chapters 4 and 11 for extensive information about the proposed
"Western Imperium"
^ “Vindex—The Destiny of the West—Imperium of the West” by David
Myatt:
http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=423609919&blogId=497426085
^ [http://www.natvan.com/national-vanguard/130/index.html
"Space Exploration: An Expression of the Aryan Soul" by John Clarke
National Vanguard magazine Issue 130, January-February 2006:]
Further reading
The Arctic Home in the Vedas by Bal Gangadhar Tilak
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Arctic_Home_in_the_Vedas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bal_Gangadhar_Tilak
Arvidsson, Stefan. Aryan Idols. The Indo-European Mythology as Science
and Ideology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 2006 ISBN
0-226-02860-7
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stefan_Arvidsson
Poliakov, Leon. The Aryan Myth: A History of Racist and Nationalistic
Ideas In Europe New York: Barnes & Noble Books. 1996 ISBN
0-7607-0034-6
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Poliakov
Widney, Joseph P. Google Books edition of Race Life of the Aryan
Peoples Race Life of the Aryan Peoples New York: Funk & Wagnalls. 1907
In Two Volumes: Volume One--The Old World Volume Two--The New World
ISBN B000859S6O
http://books.google.com/books?id=s9UKAAAAIAAJ&printsec=titlepage#v=onepage&q=&f=false
External links
The Aryan race
http://www.wisdomworld.org/additional/ListOfCollatedArticles/TheAryanRace.html
Indo-European Languages
http://www.bookrags.com/Indo-European_languages
Aryan by Kim Pearson
http://kpearson.faculty.tcnj.edu/Dictionary/aryan.htm
Iranian Branch of the Indo-European Family
http://www.nvtc.gov/lotw/months/february/IranianBranch.html
Races and Ethnic Groups of Iran
http://www.farhangsara.com/races.htm
Forensic Anthropology
http://www.port.ac.uk/departments/academic/biology/research/forensicanthropology/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryan_race
...and I am Std Harth
chhotemianinshallah
Sharad Pawar is not new to verbal abuse. Before Bal Thackeray cosied
up to him in recent times, he was wont to call the Maratha warlord the
most colourful names. Among the more mentionable of them were
`maidyancha pota ’ (a sack of flour) and a dog (I would rather not
repeat the Marathi as that sounds worse).He also continuously poked
fun at Pawar’s ample girth, saying he might be getting stuck in his
commode each morning. To be noted: Thackeray himself preferred Indian
toilets. Hotels he stayed at in Maharashtra had to modify their rooms
for the purpose and when he thought he might be thrown into jail by
Chhagan Bhujbal his primary concern, ahead of other comforts, was if
he would get an Indian toilet in his cell — though Michael Jackson did
use a Western one when he came calling at Matoshree in 1997!
Pawar was so sickened by all such politically irrelevant comments that
he warned Thackeray about the consequences: “I am from the rural areas
and a rural rustic can get more colourful abuse out of his mouth than
someone like Thackeray, city born and bred can ever fathom. So don’t
tempt me.’’ That shut Thackeray up quite adequately because he could
not be sure about how insulting Pawar could get or even if he could
match the latter’s vocabulary, word for word.
I guess Thackeray had reason to run scared. Because he knew Pawar
could say the worst possible things about somebody and still keep the
language parliamentary. Like the time in the Eighties — I recall I
was shocked out of my wits when he referred to then opposition leader
Mrinal Gore as `Pootna Maushi’.
Gore was a well-known socialist and she was very adept at her job as
an opposition leader. She was one of the primary persons who had
exposed Pawar’s alleged involvement in what we then referred to as the
`dereservation scam’. Decoded, this was simply that soon after he
became Chief Minister in 1988, Pawar decided that more than 250 plots
in Bombay which had been reserved for schools, gardens, hospitals and
other public spaces would be, well, dereserved and handed over to
private builders for commercial constructions. Pawar had overruled the
objections of both bureaucrats and municipal authorities about the
advisability of turning Bombay into more of a concrete jungle thus.
Gore tabled the whole list of the plots, along with a minute by minute
account of how they were dereserved, in the Maharashtra Assembly —
leading Chhagan Bhujbal, then the Shiv Sena’s lone legislator in the
House, to stick another unforgettable tag on Pawa: Bhookhandanche
Shrikhand Khalle (he has eaten shrikhand out of plots of land).
But while Pawar could brush aside such labels, what he could not get
over was the complete exposure of his integrity (since then wherever
Pawar goes, land scams, true or not, follow).
Why I believe Pawar’s abuse of Gore was unforgivable was because of
the choice of his words — which were not unparliamentary by themselves
but the circumstances under which they were uttered were downright
vicious. Pootna was the rakshasi who had been assigned by Lord
Krishna’s maternal uncle Kansa to poison the baby God through her
milk. Everyone knows the legend: how Baby Krishna bit her breasts and
destroyed both her and her evil purpose.
Gore had, at the time, been recovering from breast cancer and I
thought it was particularly nasty, downright mean and very hurtful of
Sharad Pawar to allude to a worthy opponent in such unpleasant and
personally painful terms. I was little more than a rookie at the time
and I recall rushing to Gore’s party office at the Vidhan Bhavan soon
after Pawar’s volley – I wanted to sympathise more than get a reaction
out of her to that insult.
However, Gore spoke of everything else but that abuse. And when I
asked her for a reaction, she said she had not heard anything at all
and there was no point reacting to something she did not know about.
Since Gore had very much been present during Pawar’s outburst, I
realised that she was either very hurt or very forgiving. In either
case, her response was very dignified and, in the absence of
television channels in that era, the whole episode was put to rest
almost immediately.
So, if an eon later, Satyavrat Chaturvedi now calls Sharad Pawar
another colourful name, I am not surprised that the Maratha strongman
should not find it too hard to forget and forgive. For Chaturvedi’s
terms of reference were neither personal nor could be too hurtful
(except to the extent that he chose to abuse at all) – those are
terms used almost like punctuation in many North Indian tongues. But
while MCs and BCs might be lingua franca in the North, I agree with
Pawar that it was quite unparliamentary language to have been used at
all.
Perhaps Chaturvedi should have taken lessons from Pawar before he got
abusive: on how to be parliamentary and unpleasant at one and the
same time!
Comments
One Response to “Whose abuse is it anyway?”
Rajen Kaushal says:
March 20, 2010 at 7:10 am
By far, conclusion is that unparliamentary language has no place on
high seats like CM. Thackerays comments are given more weightage by
Media otherwise, going by their political stature, they do not deserve
much weightage.
After exorbitant rise in food prices and sugar, Sharad Pawar’s
response was poor but going by Congress rules after independendence,
Congress, a party of capitalist never contained inflation and many
fold increase in food prices after independence is evident. Moreover,
while appointing ministers, Govt. must ensure that a person does not
become minister for industry from his home state. Maharastra houses
major sugar mills and Sharad Pawar should not have been Agricultural
Minister. What better or clean administration Manmohan Singh,
projected and perceived as honest man by Indians, provide?
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/singly-political/2010/03/19/whose-abuse-is-it-anyway/
Beat men fair and square
IF THE BILL DOES BECOME LAW, THOUGH,
I AM SURE AT LEAST THE YADAVS, WHO
ARE NOW OPPOSING IT VOCIFEROUSLY,
WILL BE AMONG THE FIRST TO BRING OUT
THEIR WIVES AND DAUGHTERS-IN-LAW TO
OCCUPY HIGH POSITIONS
Ihave always been agnostic when it comes to women’s
reservation: I am not against it per se, but I am not for
it either. My reservations about, well, reservation for
women is based on observation of how it has played out
in Maharashtra, which was among the first states to introduce
a 33 per cent quota for women in local self-government
bodies.
When I travelled to the villages, I noticed that most of
the women sarpanchs were wives of powerful men of the
area. Though it is getting slightly better these days, most
of these women did not take decisions on their own —
and if they did, their husbands would still beat them up.
In the cities, it was only somewhat better — the men
might not beat up women but the latter were certainly
puppets in the hands of their husbands.
I recall one particular woman corporator who had a
fairly bad reputation for just being who she was: the conservative
wife of a local party boss. Her husband took to
threatening people in her name and her mother-in-law
set up a desk right at her front door to rake in the earnings
— she personally counted the cash all day long!
It drove even members of her own party crazy. One of
them told me wryly, “I am against women’s reservation
only for this. Give a man a ticket and only he is corrupt,
give a woman a ticket and her whole family becomes
extortionists.’’
Of course, I did not agree with that perception and
ticked him off quite soundly.
I notice, though, that at least the Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation (BMC) has got better over the
years. But several years ago former Chief Minister
Manohar Joshi had told us, after fielding women relatives
of Shiv Sainiks, quite unabashedly, “We are a purushi
(male) party. Electable women are very difficult to find.’’
However, when Bombay Mayor Shraddha Jadhav gave
away awards on International Women’s Day this year, all
top officials on the dais were women: Shailaja Girkar is
the Deputy Mayor, Mridula Joshi is the Municipal
Secretary and Manisha Mhaiskar is the Additional
Municipal Commissioner. One half was there on account
of the benefit of reservation; the other half had got there
on their own steam, perhaps pipping several worthy men
at the post.
So while I saluted all those women, my ambivalence
towards women’s quota continued, even as the UPA government
failed to have the Bill passed in Parliament on
Monday.
If the Bill does become law, though, I am sure at least
the Yadavs, who are now opposing it vociferously, will be
among the first to bring out their wives and daughtersin-
law to occupy high positions — yes, even the ‘par kati’
ones — remember Sharad Yadav’s obnoxious remark
about women with short hair? His wife has (or at least
had at the time he made that remark) short hair.
Next would be the girlfriends, as we have seen many politicians
promote their paramours even without the benefit
of reservations. I wonder how long it will be before the
common woman, without the benefit of a Godfather in
politics, gets an opportunity to enter a legislative body
on her own merit.
But if she did, I am not so sure it would be fair to restrict
women to constituencies for just five or ten years. Former
Speaker Somnath Chatterjee had represented his constituency
in the Lok Sabha for ten terms — if not 50 years,
given several mid-term polls, this meant at least 40 years
at a stretch. Why should women not have similar right
to continue for as long as the voters want them?
If I were into electoral politics, I certainly would be
highly resentful at the injustice and unfairness of it all.
Yet, there is really no other way out of the situation. Which
once again reinforces my ambivalence about a quota for
women.
So it is just as well that I am not a politician with parliamentary
ambitions. I prefer to best the men at their
own game and beat them in their own backyards. As
Pratibha Patil did. And as many other exemplary women
are doing. ■ sana...@hindustantimes.com
http://www.hindustantimes.com/images/HTPopups/120310/10_03_M_MTR_16.pdf
How does she do it?
I have said all I wanted to say about my reservations about the
women’s reservation bill in my column anandan on Wednesday this week.
Like I said in the column, I am agnostic about the bill – I neither
believe in it nor do I knock it. I simply doubt that it will help at
all (help the common woman, that is).
But whatever my reservations, I am amazed at how Sonia Gandhi managed
to have the bill passed in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, March 9. That
morning it looked as though not just the fate of the bill but also her
authority over her party was at risk. For, I know as a matter of fact
that many men in her party were as determined as Lalu and Mulayam
Yadav to ensure that it never became law and I thought they would
surreptitiously pitch in to scuttle the bill. But now I do not think
too many of them will dare voice their opposition.
I wonder what makes Sonia Gandhi take all the right calls and achieve
miracle after miracle in such quick succession. This particular bill
had been hanging in the balance for 14 years and when several more
stable governments could not manage to get it through, it really did
require a great deal of political will to push it at the risk of so
much endangerment of the UPA’s future.
I have heard people say quite often that we cannot find one single
Indian to rule this country and follow it up with the query: why
should Indians have to kowtow to the Italian bahu of Mrs Indira
Gandhi? In fact, I am looking to all those critics for an answer: yes,
really, why?
But I think I have a clue. And that came from a British diplomat to
quite another question. We were discussing how the Indian diaspora was
among the highest wage earners everywhere else in the world (and thus,
not surprisingly, they incurred the wrath of the locals in their
adopted countries for beating them to and keeping their jobs by sheer
dint of hard work). Yet, when it came to our own country, we were
among the poorest, most backward and taking too long getting anywhere.
The diplomat said, “Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that Indians
follow the rules to the `t’ wherever they live abroad. In India they
break the law all the time and so make it difficult for both
themselves and others to get along.’’
Then a Congress worker told me why he preferred Sonia Gandhi to her
husband, Rajiv. “She has a very European outlook on rules and honour.
She keeps her word and will not allow any violations. For example, if
the maximum age for a youth congress leader is 35, she will not allow
any one older to be elected to that post. No other considerations like
caste et al except what is stated in the rulebook. That is heartening
for the rest of us: we know we will eventually get there if we fit the
bill and no one can bring any untoward influence to bear upon her to
push us off the ladder. Even Rajivji was not so correct, he would
allow the occasional jugaad. ’’
That was a eulogy of his party president, of course, but I now wonder
if that is true. Perhaps she does bring a sense of honour and follows
the rules in everything she does and so succeeds more than others who
believe in, well, jugaad (manoeuvring people and situations to suit
their needs).
But on Tuesday, as she gave interviews to women journalists on
television, I was impressed by Sonia’s tone and pitch – happy but
thanking all the men for having made it possible. Gracious for their
support to both the Left parties and the BJP which have knocked her
endlessly over various issues but not gloating about it at all a la
the Yadavs, keeping a door open for the allies and, of course, very
self-effacing.
I say `self-effacing’ because when I first met her in Nasik several
years ago, after she first took over the party’s reigns in the middle
of an election in 1998 and miraculously helped a losing Congress win
45 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats from Maharashtra, she was quick to give
the credit to Sharad Pawar. And when we asked her about her role as
the Congress president, she said, “I am only the latest in a long
series of Congress presidents. Other Congress leaders have been around
longer than I have been and it is they who have done things for the
party, not me. I am still learning.’’
I guess she has learnt well by now and I remark upon another thing: in
the decade at the start of which even her own party men took her with
several fistfuls of salt to now, she seems to have muted the criticism
about her being a misfit in Indian politics and put their uncertainty
about her ability to deliver to rest.
The Congress is the most indisciplined, chaotic and irreverent party I
know. Yet they revere their party president more than the Shiv Sainiks
do Bal Thackeray or the BJP does its own succession of party chiefs.
Perhaps that is because she delivers to them nine times out of ten,
while others do not. But I continue to wonder: did Sonia Gandhi learn
it all at the feet of her mother-in-law or is she bringing a European
sense of commitment to her party that helps her defeat the might of
the BJP and its formidable allies in 2004 and return with an even
greater majority in 2009? And now give to Indian women what no man (or
even woman — most notably Indira Gandhi) has dared or cared to before?
(9 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
Posted by Sujata Anandan on Friday, March 12, 2010 at 9:05 pm
28 Responses to “How does she do it?”
vijai lugani says:
March 13, 2010 at 3:25 am
she leaenedrned the political process in india under the leader ship
of mrs. indra gandhi and of cousrse from rajiv gandhi. she knows upto
this time how to bring together different political shades under one
umberala when requied, she does not believe in cast and creed.she is
hard worker and of couse haverahul and pryanka and some faithful
polrical advisers. the author of this artical is absoultely right in
every aspect and more ever she is not power hungry. if she does not
like some people she can show them door to get out.
Nikhil Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 3:13 am
Vijay Lugani,
If I write about the good qualities of my dhobi they’re not too far
from the ones that you wrote – hardworking, honest, faithful,
relatively selfless and mostly fair. For that matter these qualities
are universal and necessary to succeed in any profession. What makes
Sonia different from us is she finds herself married in to the most
politically influential family in our country where political power is
hereditary and party members are expected to bow to the whips of party
leaders.
Ajay says:
March 13, 2010 at 5:16 am
Interesting thoughts… However, I think many Europeans may feel that
Italian background is bit different from that of Western European one…
Ed says:
March 13, 2010 at 5:53 am
Take a dig on this topic at
[ http://pages.rediff.com/we-evolve/21809#allfeeds ]
The bill is only useful when it break the poverty lines, dynasty lines
…
It should be 35% (poor women), 35%(poor men), 30% (talented)
70% should be representative of poor.
It should be 35% (poor women), 35%(poor men), 30% (talented –
scientist, economist, etc)
THE BIG QUESTION IS how do we qualify to be
1 )Identify 70% – Poor & most popular 10 candiate representing Poor
People from certain region (MP/MLA area) to whom the Election
commision will fund campaign money
2 )To keep tap on Rich person whose campaign funds/money has to be
capped by Election commision and made almost equal to 1).
3 )Criteria to identify 30% (talented people)
Ways to find the list 1) and 2) and 3) is something ruling party needs
to think and debate instead of wasting time.
To gauge 1), we need to count the strongest of the following points by
Election Commision and more can be added by debates
A) Years of work
B) Have an open debate at ONE or TWO cantenders preferred location
agreed by each contenders,
let contenders speak what they have done and want to do.
Make people/choser stand in different locations on the debate ground
to exibit their support.
The count done to choose the top 10.
C) Ensure rotation between Male and Female, thus women whose work and
popularity is on her own rather than backing of GOONDAS should be
preferred for qualifying 1)
People backed by money and goonda power cannot qualify for 1)
D) Every term, Election commision can choose certain region by Gender,
thus they can choose between the women & men that qualify for 1) or
term when both women & men qualify for 1)
Debate should be there to decide if 2)candiates should be allowed to
contest irrespective of gender.
Cap/restriction of number of time(2 times max) a candiate can stand
for elections in a sequence.
Debate on how election commsion will enforce 1) on all parties and in
all regions.
Debate on how to lessen the dynasty and family business and bring
democracy by Election Commission criteria in 1).
Nikhil Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 4:11 am
Ed,
Because you write of so many different, often contradictory,
qualifications for running for office may be you should be our next
Election Commission.
Vijay Saini says:
March 13, 2010 at 6:36 am
Meekly following Sonia Gandhi is the slave mentallity. Although India
is a free country now, it would take us a very long time to get over
the slave mindframe. I think we are ripe and ready for foreign rule by
proxy. Any country can capture us in reality.
AB says:
March 13, 2010 at 7:56 am
Funny article, then lets elect Silvio Berlusconi as president of
India.Problem solved
Jitendra says:
March 13, 2010 at 9:18 am
I have never read such a degrading article. It is a shame that we
still have white man’s lackey amongst us. It is achivement of Mcaulays
education aystem that country continues to create such people even
after 62 years. She can do it because congis are a party of chamchas
and nincompoops including PM. Not a single congi has any moral, ethics
and no one is ready to stand up for the good of country. They only
stand up to save their chair and that depends of congi president. This
article talks of European values and commitment. Is author trying to
say that India does not have people with values and commitments. We
have plenty of people but stupid system of election where masses of
Idiots vote on the basis of caste, religion and personal loyalties.
What a stupid assumption on the part of author that Eurpeons are
better then us. In western coutries it is the system that works but
people are no different from us.
This bill is wrong because it will create rabris. Every from of
reservation and quota should be removed if country has to make any
progress. Otherwise mediocres will continue to stuff this country and
we will reamin a third world country forever. Singapore, Japan and
Malayasia are better than us without importing any whity. Have you
ever thought why we are still joke of the world after 62 years.
Reservation is an indication of failures of Govt economic and social
policies, and majority of the time Congi traitors have been in rule.
Wake up and get rid of banana spine and start believing in yourself
and it is shame that congis have imposed a whity on us. It hurts my
self respect.
LAKSHMANAN says:
March 13, 2010 at 9:32 am
Any type of reservations, on a permanent basis, is a threat to
liberty, standard of life, freedom and finally to democracy. See what
is happening in government due to reservations, especially reservation
policy in promotions. Merit is sidelined and in the name of social
justice many people occupy posts which they would not have got but for
reservations. It is not their fault and no one is worried about the
declining standard of Administration which is directly affecting the
generl public.
The introduction of reservation for women may be an eye opener in the
years to come and after 10 or 15 years every all shall join together
to undo reservations of any kind, I hope.
Nikhil says:
March 13, 2010 at 10:11 am
Oh god! When will journos stop sucking toes of the Nehru-Gandhi
family? Perhaps, never.
Bhukkal Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 10:21 am
Thats the best summarisation of this article, Nikhil. Well the journos
are on fat pay packets….there is no responsible and honest journalism
left, they have to also buy flats in posh areas, salaries will cater
to their chai paani only… Shameless Creed, I wish there were Kiran
Bedis in Journalism as well.
Ekta B says:
March 13, 2010 at 11:07 am
Although an expat now, this is definitely the way I see things under
Sonia Gandhi in India, a very well written article indeed.
I have now lived overseas for the last 14 years and as someone who has
been given their fair share in an adopted and foreign land and made to
feel so at home, I must say it feels good to read that Sonia has
achieved in India (not from a political but recognition stand-point)
what we hope to achieve overseas as immigrant Indians.
I hope there are more people like her from different political
persuasions for it would make for a better and stronger India.
Nikhil Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 3:01 am
Ekta B,
To be where Sonia is in politics today, one has to first marry in to
the most politically influential family in a country where dynastic
politics reigns supreme. This privilege is found only in India and not
in the West. After looking at the success of political heirs in India,
I’m convinced humans are capable of being reasonably successful if
they’re thrown in any job.
As far as success of foreigners in India is concerned, we already do
it well in many different spheres.
Anil says:
March 13, 2010 at 2:29 pm
Basically I am against any kind of reservations. The historic bill
however was a necessity because of our historic suppression of the
female gender over thousands of centuries. The real necessity is the
empowerment to the women. The glaring example is in the way women are
treated in Army. The strangest thing is that people have totally
forgotten the most maligned PM Mr H D Devegowda (the humble farmer)
and his Law Minister Ram Das Khalap who tabled the bill for the first
time.
Anil Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 2:44 pm
One more point about our Constitution. India gave voting rights to
women since its independence. USA gave voting rights to women almost
80 years after the blacks got to vote in 1870 !
Gopi Thomas says:
March 13, 2010 at 6:30 pm
Although I do not care about congress party and its politics, I do
admire and respect Mrs Gandhi. Like many, I was questioning her
selection, her “foreign” status, her commitment etc. I have come 180
degrees around, she is an exemplary leader, good disciplinarian. I
firmly believe now, that she at the core, is 100% “Indian”, much much
more than many of her followers or other Indians. I do believe she
wants to create a better and new India on the foundation of our
ancient and rich heritage. Originally it was the call of her husband;
now I truly believe, to her, it is now the call of the country.
Atul8 says:
March 13, 2010 at 8:52 pm
In all my years of international travel, I learnt a valuable lesson
about myslef and my countrymen…. we lack accountability & discipline.
Of course, controlling the congress coffers does help, but Sonia’
foreign roots are really an advantage in this Jugaad ridden society
Most important, normally europeans are not given to visions of
grandeur when in power, unlike in our case where the lust for that red
light on the car is more important than perforing their gievn jobs.
It has to be the European sense of commitment….all the way!!
Nikhil Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 4:02 am
Atul8,
If you think Sonia’s european heritage makes her special in Indian
politics, too bad we let the British go, is it not?
The European sense of commitment and discipline were not achieved
overnight by passing bills for quotas in European governments. If
you’re suggesting to overcome lack of accountability and discipline in
India through more political quotas, perhaps, you should continue with
your international travel till you see clear.
Atul8 Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 10:19 am
Nikhil,
My response in one line -
Too bad we did not embrace and carry forward the sense of discipline &
accountability when we let the British go.
You need to do something about your aggression – it is colouring your
usual objectivity
Nikhil Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 4:44 pm
Atul8,
The sense of discipline & accountability is not a British – or should
I say Italian – USP. Such characteristics are universal and cultivated
in societies where merit and systems are valued more than quotas and
personalities. We could not develop that sense because of intellectual
lethargy and we let ’some’ leaders off the hook when they dilute
democractic processes.
What you may see as aggression, I see it as a natural response to the
perfidy of the mainstream media. Happy international traveling, for
you.
Atul8 Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 5:46 pm
Nikhil,
Whatever we are, we have done unto ourselves – good or bad.
But when a discussion veers away from the issue to personalities, then
it becomes a clear indication that objectivity is losing out.
Musnt let that happen in the interest of a healthy debate.
Nikhil Reply:
March 16th, 2010 at 1:14 am
Atul8,
Dear, the article revolves around hollow personality and not
substance. The comments will not be too far off, would they? I
fundamentally disagree with your point of view and I had to express it
in a sharp way.
Atul8 Reply:
March 18th, 2010 at 12:43 am
Nikhil,
You were not being sharp. You were being obtuse.
However, enough has been exchanged on this topic, and we should move
on.
Nikhil Reply:
March 18th, 2010 at 5:31 am
Atul8,
It provoked you, that’s all I wanted. Enough said!
Harish says:
March 15, 2010 at 3:31 pm
Is ambika soni ghost writing these articles
You did hit it out of the park with the European honour bit maam…
stupid and rash…but..takes guts..the right wing is sort of like the
australian team in the early part of last decade on the internet…and
they are still reeling in shock and have not attacked this piece in
earnest even after two days…
Rajeev says:
March 16, 2010 at 1:07 am
This article truly reflects dark skinned Indians’ mentality…eternal
slaves
Anil says:
March 16, 2010 at 2:17 am
The Congress is the most indisciplined, chaotic and irreverent party I
know. Yet they revere their party president more than the Shiv Sainiks
do Bal Thackeray or the BJP does its own succession of party chiefs.
The first sentence is unadultyerated lie.. i have never seen any
congress man being anythgin beyond yesman to the nehru family figure..
Somehow this is being presented as virtue which it is not.
BJP is nto family rule Shiv sena could be another matetr altogether
but to ask BJP men to be supine and fawning liek congressmen towards
their leader is negating the intra party democracy of BJP. Everyone is
free to express hsi/per opninon noone need fawn like congressmen do to
the later of 10 janpath.
Rajeev says:
March 16, 2010 at 9:53 pm
I get a feeling that Anandan may be dreaming for Congress ticket in
2014..Good going..Why don’t you start licking feet of Sonia like
Barkha did recently.
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/singly-political/2010/03/12/how-does-she-do-it/
Kill Bill, for men’s and women’s sake
Amid riotous scenes, India’s upper house passed a controversial
legislation to reserve a third of seats in federal and state
legislatures for women. The constitutional amendment “one that changes
the scope of India’s Constitution” is likely to scrape through the
powerful lower house, too. Despite overreaching itself, the government
of the day will probably survive.
In principle, empowering women is the way to go. Yet this triumph is a
zero-sum game. One participant’s gains can come only from another’s
equivalent losses. It seeks to pay Paul by robbing Peter.
This bill is deeply flawed because collateral damages have not been
addressed. Since it will be a zero-sum game, it will have a direct
bearing on representations of minority communities, backward castes
and marginalized women themselves. The Bill is anti-minority, anti-
backwards, and both anti-women and anti-men.
In a largely risk-averse political system, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi
can take the credit for pulling out a Bill that previous governments
“including those run by her own party” had abandoned, and for driving
it past dissenters whom she may in future need.
Imposing a 33 per cent quota seems momentous in a country where female
foetuses are aborted, wives spanked and women are paid less than a
third the male average in unorganized jobs. In reality, the quota can
add to the sort of disequilibrium current legislatures are made of.
Even setting aside the fact that some male MPs will naturally have to
step down for women, the proposed law fundamentally changes the basic
nature of India’s electoral representation.
With a 15-year shelf-life, 33 per cent of the seats will be blocked in
rotation and will be done in a way that a seat shall be reserved once
in three back-to-back elections. The revolving quota is the Bill’s
most serious flaw.
Two-thirds of candidates, men and women, will be unseated every time
and one-thirds will have no chance of being re-elected from the same
seat. This one-third will be left wondering if they will get to retain
their seats, depending on the outcome of the lottery.
On the whole, it will set off largescale churning “every single time”
that will make elections farcical. Electors will vote in, rather than
vote out incompetent representatives. With frequently changing
representatives, what would voters go by in deciding whom to elect?
The role of past performance in deciding a candidate’s fate will be
further lessened, thereby blunting the only weapon the common man has.
Constituencies will cease to matter for candidates. The veterans and
more guile among candidates will resettle themselves, pushing out less
iconic politicians.
Accountability will suffer because a candidate will less likely go to
the same voter every time. The voters’ powers to rate a candidate’s
performance will diminish, paving the way for a greater role of money
in deciding electoral outcomes.
A “sense of belonging” is part and parcel of Indian politics.
Constituencies are nursed by politicians who invest time, efforts and
money into the place they hope to get elected from.
Can we have compelling women leaders if they do not have strong
permanent political bases? The current Bill is paternalistic; it seeks
to make rolling-stone politicians of women, or “one-time players”, to
use women activist Madhu Kishwar’ words.
Several women’s rights organisations have highlighted these fault
lines. NGO Manushi advocates an alternative Bill, requiring political
parties to reserve nominations (tickets) for women, not seats.
Feminist fundamentalists, however, in their zeal, have failed to
appreciate the serious weaknesses hidden in the proposed amendment.
Though it will not exactly result in separate electorates, the women’s
reservation Bill, in spirit, moves towards that direction. But
proponents of the Bill deny such a possibility. Separate electorates,
theoretically, are those where electors and the elected belong to the
same community, sex or caste.
The Constituent Assembly “which served as India’s first Parliament
until it framed the Constitution” had overturned separate electorates
granted by the British government to minorities, especially Muslims
and Sikhs.,
Framers of the Constitution opted to keep the highest elected
institution free from preferential treatment, preferring the “first
past the post system”over proportional representation, save for time-
bound reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to enable
them to overcome disadvantages.
The Constituent Assembly initially included minority safeguards in its
Report on Minority Rights adopted in August 1947 and in the Draft
Constitution’s Part XIV. However, subsequent nationalist arguments
“situated in the immediate past history of Partition” paved the way
for a reversal of minority safeguards.
The principal arguments against it were that such rights were based on
caste and religion, and religion-based separate electorates had been
the immediate trigger for Partition. With the Muslim League and the
Sikh Panthic Party in disarray, Muslim and Sikh acquiescence on
reversing minority safeguards was ultimately secured.
The reversal was done by a close vote in the Constituent Assembly
Advisory Committee meeting, but key Muslim leaders, including Congress
leader Maulana Azad, abstained. (R. Retzlaff points out in “The
Problem of Communal Minorities in the Drafting of the Indian
Constitution” that the Constitution would have included political
safeguards for religious minorities had framing been completed during
the initial timetable fixed for it. Also see Rochana Bajpai’s Minority
Rights in Indian Constitution, Working Paper 30).
If the women’s Bill is passed in its current form, then a clear case
emerges for compensatory minority safeguards to be reactivated, not
separate electorates but reserved seats.
In fact, parties like Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Samajwadi Party and
Muslim organizations have demanded a quota-within-quota in women’s
reservation.
Muslim representation in the federal legislature is dwindling: from 48
in 1985, it is 29 at present. In all 15 Lok Sabha elections, only 14
Muslim women have been elected. Kerala has two Muslim federal
lawmakers, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have 1 each. States such as
Mahrashtra, Gujarat, Haryana and Rajasthan have none..
The women’s reservation Bill is based on the presumption of
homogeneity in the status of women. Homogeneity is a stupid idea when
applied to assess communities horizontally. Not all women, like
Muslims, are equally disadvantaged or privileged.
Since privileged groups are always in a better position to leverage
concessions, the proposed amendment will help privileged women gain at
the expense of less-privileged ones. Though ideally, the highest
elected forum should be able to be free from all reservations, a quota
that specifically addresses maginalised women would have been
pragmatic.
The Congress, at his stage, clearly has not thought of the jigsaw
puzzle that awaits it. It is simply basking in the glory of a
political stunt. The BJP has eyes set on inroads through upper-caste
women. The Left’s euphoria matches Abdullah’s in this Urdu
proverb: begaani shaadi me Abdullah diwana (Abdullah is rejoicing at
an uninvited wedding).
(10 votes, average: 2.7 out of 5)
Posted by Zia Haq on Sunday, March 14, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Filed under India · Tagged collateral damages, Congress chief Sonia
Gandhi, elections, India’s Constitution, legislation, Madhu Kishwar,
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes
36 Responses to “Kill Bill, for men’s and women’s sake”
Gopi Thomas says:
March 14, 2010 at 9:48 pm
Churning, short terms etc are good; and an increased representation
for women is even better. Democracy works through elected
representatives voting on changes and issues. I do hope Lok Sabha
votes for this; and if they do, I hope people like Zia will shut up.
These are the same people who want reservation for this group of
people and that group of people; what is wrong with having seats
reserved for women?
Panchayaths, municipality, and Corporation elections (and mayoral
slots) in Kerala have been reserved for women in the last 15 years,
and it ahs produced real grass roots level progress. A bigger
representation by women in Parliamenta nd aswemblies will only do
good.
Vijay Bhatia Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 2:53 am
Gopi, you are arguing in favor of increased representation of women in
Parliament and Assemblies. That of course is very much desirable. But
this bill, in its current form is a sure prescription of political
chaos.
What this bill means is that no male leader can represent same
constituency more than twice! And this will do no long term good for
women politicians either. Because, before they can gain ground and
experience, they will have to move on, since in next election cycle
the seat won’t be reserved!
Here is a very Rational take on this important issue (feel free to
comment):-
http://rationalopinion.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-good-womens-reservation-bill.html
[Reply]
Vijay Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 8:09 am
No one is arguing against a bigger representation by omen in
Parliament and assemblies will be good. The debate is about how to
achieve it.
The bill in its current form is sure recipe for political chaos.
Here is another rational opinion on this important issue:-
http://rationalopinion.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-good-womens-reservation-bill.html
Bell Bajao Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 8:17 pm
“Panchayaths, municipality, and Corporation elections (and mayoral
slots) in Kerala have been reserved for women in the last 15 years,
and it ahs produced real grass roots level progress. A bigger
representation by women in Parliamenta nd aswemblies will only do
good.”
Indeed! We’ve seen this happen in other parts of the company as well.
Reservation in panchayat has actually empowered women in villages and
has helped a lot in their upliftment.
VARUN SAXENA says:
March 15, 2010 at 1:53 am
Mr.Zia, the bill has certain Issues and to a certain the bill proposed
by Madhu Kishwar is in someways better.
But what I cannot understand is this. You said “The Bill is anti-
minority, anti-backward”. Can you pls explain How ?
How can women reservation bill be Anti Muslim ? How come just about
everything becomes Anti Muslim ?
I hope this bill passes with some modifications and not the
modifications which Mulayam and Laloo are suggesting but the ones
suggested by Learned People.
The only reason Mulayam and Laloo are against this Bill is that most
of the MPs’ of these 2 parties are big goons and only through these
goondaism of these goons alongwith folling Muslims and Lower Castes by
pitting them against Upper Castes do they win elections.
Now it can be safely said that more than 95% goons in INDIA would be
men. Henceforth with Women having 33% reservations the chances of
these parties winning Elections will be inversely affected
Ashish says:
March 15, 2010 at 2:21 am
I agree that while the objective is laudable, the bill as it stands
today is deeply flawed. I am not comfortable with the idea of having
no power over my MP (man or woman) who knows that he/ she will not
need my vote next time.
I liked the arguments put forward by Karan Thapar favouring changes to
the bill in his column earlier today.
Am I against reserving seats for women? No, I am not. But, this bill
in its present form; no, it does not appeal to me. MPs are not IAS
officers that they can serve one constituency (district) for 2 terms
and then move to another one for the next terms.
However, trust Zia to use the Women’s reservation bill to ask for
reservations for Muslims.
Way to go Zia; suck up to Mulayam now. Who knows, he might make you an
MLA/ MP from Delhi.
Vini says:
March 15, 2010 at 2:27 am
The headline of this post should be: Kill Bill, for men’s sake. After
all, all the rhetoric we have heard in recent days about the bill
being a threat to parliamentary democracy, equality… blah, blah,
blah…. including this blogpost… is simply a smokescreen to hide the
truth that no man wants to be caught admitting: That men, don’t want
to share power with women. Ever.
Yes the Bill has flaws, but those flaws can be addressed without
killing the Bill.
What I want to say here first is that I take extreme offense at the
use of the word ‘spanking’ to trivialize a serious issue like domestic
violence. Do you have any idea what domestic violence is? Perhaps not.
That’s why you treat it so flippantly.
As for the rest of the blog, it is all conjecture. You and all the
doomsayers don’t know if this bill will work till it is implemented.
It might just. And forget that old argument that it will be taken over
by elite women. So far it’s been elite men in charge.. so what’s wrong
with elite women having a go?
As for the problems of revolving quota that you bring up as the Bill’s
most serious flaw, I think you can argue the other way too. That is,
MPs from reserved constituencies will work extra hard in the reserved
constituency to ensure that they get a ticket when the seat is not
reserved any more because of the good work they would have hopefully
done.
Ashish Reply:
March 16th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
@Vini,
Mr Zia can’t just win, can he ?
For the first time, Zia tried arguing for the majority (men!). And,
still, he finds very few supporters!
Not speaking for Zia here; just speaking for myself.
I support the objectives behind the bill; as a man. I see in India a
huge need to balance the power structure which is so tilted in favour
of men. Also, as others have pointed out in comments, an increased
representation for women is inversely correlated (or so we hope) to
the criminality quotient of our legislatures.
I do not wish this bill to be killed. I do however wish this bill to
be amended to somehow handle the rotation issue. Like I had said,
Karan Thapar made some excellent suggestions. So did the legal cell
head of the Shiv Sena on TV.
Ma’am, most men on this blog are not against the bill; please do not
make the mistake of thinking men oppose the bill. Far from it.
Certainly not because we will lose a chance to be an MP/ MLA… I doubt
any of us commenting here have realistically ever thought of
contesting elections.
All men are not Laloo Yadav/ Sharad Yadav/ Mulayam Yadav.. luckily all
women are not Mayawati, Mamata or Jayalalitha either who promote
women even less than men do.
May I also mention that I have a vested interest? As one with two
daughters, at least one of whom is seriously disinclined to study
(admittedly early days, she is just 6), I love the new career options
this bill opens up for her.
Vijay Bhatia says:
March 15, 2010 at 2:55 am
“I am not comfortable with the idea of having no power over my MP (man
or woman) who knows that he/ she will not need my vote next time.”
Excellent point Ashish!
Here is my take on this important issue, if you like:-
http://rationalopinion.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-good-womens-reservation-bill.html
K says:
March 15, 2010 at 4:09 am
I dont understand what makes the women reservation bad but all those
other reservations (BC,SC,OBC etc.) good ? Both types are aimed at the
‘marginalized’ and both actually lower the quality of politicians we
elect and even more importantly, both a against the constitution which
lets the people decide who should represent them.
Quota has only helped influential sections of SC,BC,OBC. This is not
like a ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ where an unknown, marginalized dalit or
lady can make it to the parliament, no matter how much quota is
introduced.
As Sonia shockingly and sadly commented, people like Lalu will have
greater control over parliament and greater share of black money
because he has seven daughters and the power to field them in
elections.
peshori ahuja says:
March 15, 2010 at 5:41 am
Reservation itself means that the comunity, the religion, the class,
or any groupthat asks or gets reservation is not capable of attaining
the efficiency of the level that is attained by those for whom there
is no reservation.
Not only that but by asking or getting the reservation makes the
reserveds a second class citizens and it makes the clever politicians
more manipolative and powerful.
Vijay says:
March 15, 2010 at 8:14 am
For most parts I agree with Zia’s reasoning. This bill in it’s current
form is a sure recipe for political chaos. Political commitment by
parties is way to go.
Why political parties have to be coerced by laws? Where did the days
go, when parties used to organize “aandolans” for social cause? Why
not even congress want to field more women candidates, unless coerced
by the law?
This is anything but LEADERSHIP.
Here is another rational opinion on this important issue:-
http://rationalopinion.blogspot.com/2010/03/no-good-womens-reservation-bill.html
Joseph James says:
March 15, 2010 at 8:20 am
The writer bases his arguments against the women’s bill on the false
premise that the retention of a constituency by a sitting member is
the be-all and end-all of democracy. In an advanced stage of
democracy, every election will bring in new candidates as it is
happening in the southern states. In fact, a constituency must be
nursed by a party and not by individuals. At any rate, going by the
arguments of bill’s opponents like Zia, the candidates displaced by
the reservation are going to promote women from their families. This
will mean that, certain constituencies which were individual pocket
boroughs earlier will now become family pocket boroughs. Or ingenious
candidates will now start nursing two constituencies instead of one.
In short the electorate, now, stand to receive more attention from the
politicians, which isn’t a bad thing after all. Moreover, rotational
unseating is applicable only to men, not to women. So, performing
women members can continue to represent their constituencies even when
they become unreserved. This will push the female strength in the
parliament beyond the mandatory 33%. The argument that the bill
doesn’t address the grievances of marginalized women doesn’t hold
water either. As of today all women are marginalized. The quota within
quota can come in the second stage. After all this is a mere
beginning. Amendments can be introduced later to make it foolproof. It
must be given time to evolve like the anti-defection law. What’s most
worrying about the anti-bill movement is that it seems to be centred
around the Muslim interests. Even the socialist parties are
purportedly doing it please the Muslim minority. I do not think Islam
is as anti-women and anti-progress as it is usually made out to be.
Dr. P.K. Jha says:
March 15, 2010 at 8:43 am
Reservation in any form is bad, be it caste-based or gender-based or
religion-based. As Karan Thapar says, the whole issue of reservation
is an offense, for it leads to severe discrimination. The proposed
bill for women is no exception.
The women in favor of this bill are virtually projecting themselves as
handicapped. Strangely, they are the ones who also insist on gender
equality.
Every policy of reservation is initially deemed to end after a period
of ten to fifteen years, and this one is no exception. However, we
know from our experience that this kind of promise is basically a
hogwash.
There is still time for good sense to prevail. For heaven’s sake,
withdraw the bill.
sks says:
March 15, 2010 at 9:05 am
The fact is that a woman might actually do very well in 5 years to be
re-elected again. Why should anyone presume that they will not get
reelected! It might be the best strategy to break the current fiefdom
without performance!
By the way, which sane person uses the word spanked for abuse!
Shrinivas says:
March 15, 2010 at 9:22 am
Some of the objections to the bill are valid, but since for 60 years
the disparity, marginalization and backwardness of women is not
addressed by the the political system, only quota is the solution.
Though this is meant for 15 years, we can imagine this not going away
after that.
The people who suggest that let parties reserve % of candidacy to
women is not going to work, as we all know that just to satisfy the %
the parties will give tickets where they don’t stand a chance to win.
Now, about quota within quota, I believe being women, representing
women and fighting for women is a bigger cause than representing a
cast, community or a section of society. So let’s fight for the the
right cause first. These parties who are making hoopla about quota in
quota, did not bother to give tickets neither to women nor minorities
in the same %.
Sid says:
March 15, 2010 at 9:26 am
First of All welcome change from Zia Haq – atleast instead of calling
for Fatwa – he is trying to engage in a debate! However, it is NOT an
intellectual debate because:
1. For Muslims there are many forums & 80% our media is in FOREFRONT
to project their interests & represent their view points.
2. For OBC & SC, 63 years have gone by, except for their leaders
becoming Zillionaires, NO REAL improvements have been seen in their
lives. Many CMs ruled for long time (Laloo, Karunanadhi, Mulayam,
Mayawathi etc). Same is true of Muslims (all Bollywood big guns are
Muslims – do they donate any charity to good Muslim organizations?)
Money also comes from Gulf employed Muslims.
3. My wife should be writing this – but she is BUSY listening to
Bollywood songs, so SPIRITED men like me have to take up the cause of
WOMEN!
4. Most important – Laloo has commented – women’s bill OVER his dead
body – such GOLDEN oppertunity may NEVER again come in our life times,
so why NOT KILL TWO wonderful birds with one STONE. Don’t even THINK –
JUST go for the KILL by voting BLINDLY for women’s bill!
n s parameswaran says:
March 15, 2010 at 9:54 am
The people who call themselves secular, liberal and progressive are
the people who ask for communal reservation for Muslims under the garb
of ‘Monorities’. . When they practice ‘Communalism’ it is called
‘Progressive Politics’, and when Hindus object to it they are labelled
‘Communal’.
If muslims are backward then the reason is they want to be backward.
They never started or took admission in schools and colleges and
instead started “madarassa’, learnt Quaran by rote. Now how can they
get jobs which such ‘UN”Qualifications. Then they blackmail the
majority with cries of injustice and opression. Spineless parties like
Congress, Left and Opportunistic and unprincipled parties like RJD,
SP, DMK, AIADMK, JD(Secular), Left and the whole bandwagon of seculars
have fallen for this blackmail and ruined India.
MUSLIMS SHOULD NEVER EVER BE GIVEN RESERVATION UNDER ANY
CIRCUMSTANCES.
Tanuj says:
March 15, 2010 at 12:07 pm
The britishers used seperate electorate to divide & rule. By giving
reservation based on religion we would be doing the same. Who stops a
party to give a ticket to a muslim lady from one of the reserved
seats?
I think it is a landmark bill and should be supported by all.
Gurmeet says:
March 15, 2010 at 1:15 pm
I think this bill will prove to be a boon for all women, but
especially for Muslim women. Representation of Muslim women has so far
been very weak. When one-third of the seats are reserved for women, a
substantial number of muslim majority constituency will have to elect
a woman. There is an excellent chance that those constituencies shall
be represented by Muslim women. It is also likely that these women
will not be the burka or naquab clad women, who are oppressed by the
fundamentalists in the Muslim society, but would be more socially
progressive and liberated from the dogmas. This is likely because the
arduous task of reaching and engaging with the electorate will be so
much easier for the progressive Muslim women. These women will serve
as the role model of rest of the young women in Muslim society, which
will ultimately be a good thing both for the Muslims and therefore for
India.
Vini says:
March 15, 2010 at 2:57 pm
The headline of this post should be: Kill Bill, for men’s sake. After
all, all the rhetoric we have heard in recent days about the bill
being a threat to parliamentary democracy, equality… blah, blah,
blah…. including this blogpost… is simply a smokescreen to hide the
truth that no man wants to be caught admitting: That men, don’t want
to share power with women.
Yes the Bill has flaws, but those flaws can be addressed without
killing the Bill.
What I want to say here is that I take extreme offense at the use of
the word ‘spanking’ to trivialize a serious issue like domestic
violence. Do you have any idea what domestic violence is? Perhaps not.
That’s why you treat it so flippantly.
As for the rest of the blog, it is all conjecture. You and all the
doomsayers don’t know if this bill will work till it is implemented.
It might just. And forget that old argument that it will be taken over
by elite women. So far it’s been elite men in charge.. so what’s wrong
with elite women having a go?
As for the problems of revolving quota that you bring up as the Bill’s
most serious flaw, I think you can argue the other way too. That is,
MPs from reserved constituencies will work extra hard in the reserved
constituency to ensure that they get a ticket when the seat is not
reserved any more because of the good work they would have hopefully
done.
Ziauddin Shafi says:
March 15, 2010 at 6:59 pm
The simple fact is that, if you want to prevent a civil war in our
country, you will have to simply amend it and incorporate all the
demands that are being raised here. No, this is not a threat – nobody
can threaten a civil war damn it, this is just a forecast of shape of
things to come. Maoists on the rampage, Yadavs fully agitated, Muslims
further discriminated against and lesser represented in the power
share, Dalits more oppressed than before – and the high caste hindus
more getting more power in the process. This is a sure formula of
inciting a civil war – thank you congress, bjp and cpim – you are
about to do something which china, usa, europe & pakistan would have
loved to do – have a great civil war in india so that it receds back
to the middle ages – then it would be easier for the buccanneers of
the khyber to get in and set up shop. India had always suffered due to
the high caste hindus throughout its history – and alas would continue
to do so because of them.
S Singh Reply:
March 15th, 2010 at 8:45 pm
Ziauddin
Nice “hope”!
Believe me, your hope will not happen. India is beyond that.
Skirmishes will be there, appeasing politicians will continue to
appease, country will progress at a rate less than what it could have.
A growing India uplifts all; the huge spending govt does on
disadvantaged will only grow.
If 10% of so called high caste Hindus control the whole India, one
should congratulate them on their skills.
Have you tabulated the “classification” of the top 100 richest
Indians ? Do you know how many Brahmins are in the richest 100? It is
4.
sanjeev says:
March 15, 2010 at 7:06 pm
@ Zia
i could guess that Zia will ultimately turn to his muslim
reservation.
You need a serious therapy of “reverse brainwashing”
I f these skull caps and three quarter pyajama’s got reservation then
this will be step towards another Pakistan in the making. Remember the
process started this way in 1909…Morley Minto Reforms
SKS Mumbai says:
March 15, 2010 at 9:31 pm
‘The Bill is anti-minority, anti-backwards, and both anti-women and
anti-men’
If we exclude the women and men, it would read like a pre-partition
Muslim League’s pamphlet.
‘Framers of the Constitution — —- —– save for time-bound reservation
for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to enable them to overcome
disadvantages.’
Except for the rotation part (clearly a problem), how is current bill
different from above?
‘The principal arguments against it were that such rights were based
on caste and religion and religion-based separate electorates had been
the immediate trigger for Partition’
Just immediate trigger? Or the whole basis?
Zia sahab, are you suggesting that proportional representation was the
way to go? We thought that all those wanted proportional (actually
more than proportinal with a veto as well) representation crossed over
in 1947.
‘With the Muslim League and the Sikh Panthic Party in disarray, Muslim
and Sikh acquiescence on reversing minority safeguards was ultimately
secured’
Indeed, after Mr Jinnah and Muslim League left India in 1947, Muslims
of India had nobody to represent them, exactly as Mr Jinnah had
insisted all along. Our Hindu Communal Leaders foolishly questioned Mr
Jinnah’s premise. (For Mr Jinnah and ML, Hindu communalism was
represented by Gandhi, Nehru and congress, rarely did they talk of
Hindu Mahasabha)
‘In fact, parties like Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Samajwadi Party and
Muslim organizations have demanded a quota-within-quota in the women’s
reservation’
Yup, the ‘Strongest Argument’ against the bill.
Mr Zia’s Final Conclusions:
Congress acted dumb, Left dumber.
The Bill is a victory for Hindutva driven Bramhin-Bania combine!!
Do we need any other reason to oppose the Bill?
Rajeev says:
March 16, 2010 at 1:17 am
The best thing will be to merge India with pakistan and name is
Greater pakistan. Gives muslims like Zia 100% reservation with right
to kill or convert non-muslims especially hindus.
Anil says:
March 16, 2010 at 1:45 am
One participant’s gains can come only from another’s equivalent
losses. It seeks to pay Paul by robbing Peter
Do you have same sentiments in matters of reservation for muslims..
Hypocricy at its very best
Zia Haq Reply:
March 16th, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Unfortunately, of late, I haven’t been able to read up on the comments/
invectives that follow because of lack of time.
On your charge of hypocricy: What I said is up here for you to read
again. But Here’s what I didn’t say anywhere: that Muslims should get
separate electorates (something simply out of question) or political
reservation. On the contrary, I said: “Though ideally, the highest
elected forum should be able to be free from all reservations, a quota
that specifically addresses maginalised women would have been
pragmatic.” What does this tell you?
Even so, I am not against political reservation for women per se, but
not in the current form. I would much rather have political parties
give nomination to the extent of 33 per cent. Who or what stops them.
And please understand, I do not advcoate any quota on the basis of
homogeneity. I said so: “Homogeneity is a stupid idea when applied to
assess communities horizontally. Not all women, like Muslims, are
equally disadvantaged or privileged.” Therefore, I will never advocate
quota for all Muslims.
Understand that before I decide to write or take a position, I do
consider all relevant issues before arriving at an informed decision
and not simply think with a Muslim hat on. The Bill, in its current
form, suffers from inherent flaws. Its bearing on representations of
minority is one such flaw, among others. It is a given that Muslim
representation will be severely affected. And therefore it is a
legitimate concern. Moreover, blocking such a huge number of seats for
women in this way — I have argued — legitimises the demand for a quota
within quota for backward women, which will include Muslims, OBCs etc.
Nobody is even talking about Muslim political reservation. it’s not
required, not recommended and not demanded. The demand is for
political representation, not reservation.
Anil says:
March 16, 2010 at 1:48 am
NO muslim reservation in legislation.. we do not want start of another
pakistan movemenet.. this is how it all started in past..
Anil says:
March 16, 2010 at 2:08 am
See the thuggery of parties sekeing quota withitn quota.. these people
will make you belive as if they have bene emporing the women i within
their community caste only the general category women have faced
dicrmination. But fact is noone acroos the party caste creed lines
have bene empowering women. There is a common threat fo discrimantion
against women by their respective male folks.. Who stops these idiots
shouting for quota within quota from giving tickets to more and more
muslim and backward and sc/st and what nto women.
One fo the guy was saying woman; reseervation will dilute sc/st
reservation as if sc/st woman are nto sc/st.
These thuigs who support reservation when it’s conveneint to them are
suddenly parooting reservation pays peter by robbing paul..
Pahle ye akal nahin aai thi
ramesh says:
March 16, 2010 at 10:43 am
The mother of all the resavations is the resv. the muslims are allowed
tobe the resident non indians,
Rajeev Reply:
March 16th, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Good one. We have 150 million pakistanis living in India barring
handful.
SKS Mumbai says:
March 17, 2010 at 9:14 pm
@Zia
@Zia
‘I didn’t say anywhere: that Muslims should get separate electorates
(something simply out of question) or political reservation’
What you said was this: Constituent Assembly would have approved
separate electorates (is that same as Minority safeguards?) but for:
1. fresh memory of partition, which made the nationalist arguments;
particularly effective, and/or
2. a weakened Muslim League (I omit Sikh part here); and/or
3. abstention by key Muslim leaders.
Of course, that does not mean that you wanted ’separate electorates’
or ‘political reservation’ for Muslims?
Nor does your following statement mean so:
‘If the women’s Bill is passed in its current form, then a clear case
emerges for compensatory minority safeguards to be reactivated, not
’separate electorates’ but ‘reserved seats’
Am I missing something?
For e.g. the difference between ‘reserved seats’ and ‘political
reservation’?
Or the similarity between
‘compensatory’ and ‘only for marginalised’?
Ashish Reply:
March 18th, 2010 at 10:30 am
@SKS
It has been established before that Zia resorts to generalities when
specifics are called for.. at any rate, he has his own idioms and
syntaxes. Deliberately vague or vaguely deliberate, a compendium of
Zia-isms will be a best-seller.
As for your question: am I missing something? well, yes. You are. You
are missing the point of this blog. The sole function of this blog is
to generate controversy by ill-advised and poorly researched comments
and boost eyeballs.. the visit stats look good on account of Zia,
Vinod Sharma et al.. they are stars.
Rajeev says:
March 18, 2010 at 1:33 am
All the muslims who are asking for reservation on caste basis should
revert back to Hinduism.
The reservation for SC/ST/OBC was introduced to fight casteism in
HINDU society. It was for HINDUS who were at the bottom of their
SOCIETY. There were many who chose to become muslims/xtians to escape
HINDU casteism. Now if they want to come out of caste opression, they
need to revert back to hinduism.
In the word of Shri Kancha Illiah “islam and xtianity are democratic
religion” so there is no chance of casteism being part of muslim/xtian
socities.
Rajeev says:
March 18, 2010 at 9:24 pm
Simple solutions-
1. If you are muslim and want reservation on caste, come back to caste
system in Hinduism and avail the reservation.
2. If you are muslim and want reservation on caste but don’t want to
revert to Hinduism, please pack your bags and go back to pakistan
where you guys have 100% reservation.
Budgeting for minorities
Although historically aware of its disadvantaged sections and their
special needs, India has decisively switched from ‘appeasing’ Muslims
— its largest minority — to budgeting for them.
Two things in recent years have helped institutionalise minority
budgeting. One is the creation of a minority affairs ministry by the
Congress-led UPA government in 2004 and, as a result, yearly budgetary
allocations made to it.Two, a high-level government survey in November
2006 that proved disadvantages faced by Muslims, followed up with
another one that recommended reservations.
Till now, an unproductive Hajj subsidy worth Rs 390 crore — which goes
in bankrolling the pilgrimage through discounted airfare — had been
the flagship largesse.
Even though government-funded religious travel is not unique to
Muslims, the Hajj subsidy has often been singled out as unfair.
The Centre underwrites a part of the travel costs of the annual Hindu
pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet, the abode of the Hindu god
Shiva.
Karnataka’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government proposes
concessional Hindu pilgrimages to the temples of Udupi, Dharmasthala
and Saudatti in the southern Indian state.
In neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, the Congress party-led government
subsidises the cost of travel for Christians visiting Jerusalem in
Israel and Bethlehem in Palestinian Authority. A subsidy is also being
planned, according to media reports, for Manasarovar Yatra in China.
Why should government fund religious jaunts? Either because we are a
welfare state unlike any other or it is a game of votes. Perhaps,
both.
Deploying tax revenues for affordable healthcare, education and
employment may be good economics but in an ancient holy land,
spiritual well being seems to deserve importance too. But competing
populism has definitely crept into it.
Show me an economically underprivileged Hindu who will find fault with
government help to make a dip in the holy Ganges a reality? Or a
Muslim quibbling over a lifetime visit to Mecca, courtesy government
help?
However, there is a growing demand from Muslims themselves for the
Hajj subsidy to be scrapped. While it gives Air India 150,000 assured
passengers every year (that’s the total number of seats on all Indian
carriers criss-crossing the country on any given day), helping it keep
afloat, the grant has been turned into a stick to beat Muslims with.
No Muslim asked for it in the first place.
Muslims are now calling for global and national open bids: whoever
offers the cheapest tickets gets to fly away with 150,000 prize
passengers. Fair enough.
“If the Hajj subsidy is withdrawn, it won’t hurt us. If scholarship
are cut, that would,” Asaduddin Owaisi, Hyderabad MP from the All
India Majlis-eIttehadul Muslimeen party, told the Hindustan Times last
year.
There is a less obvious side to the Hajj subsidy. The subsidy itself
seems responsible for Muslim backwardness, given that it has enabled
governments to use it as a signature grant and avoid more basic
financial interventions.
However, the recognition that minorities can be predisposed to
experiencing disadvantages due to their numerical inferiority itself
has made planning and budgeting for them an integral part of most
developed countries.
Almost all of Europe and the US make special allocations of one type
or the other for their minorities.
Why do Indian Muslims need a helping hand?
The country’s Muslim population is 150 millions, making it the state
with the second-largest Muslim population, after Indonesia. Indian
Muslims experience serious disadvantages, low literacy and high
poverty rates.
Their literacy rates are well below the national average, while
poverty rates are only slightly higher than low-caste Hindus,
according to the November 2006 Sachar Committee report.
Muslims, mostly Sunnis, make up 13.4% of India’s population, yet hold
fewer than 5% of government posts and make up only 4% of
undergraduates in universities. The report also found that, despite
being self-employed at a far higher rate, Muslims trail other groups
in terms of access to credit.
Yet, they can influence elections, using their voting power to extract
concessions from parties who woo them.
Muslims are not uniformly disadvantaged. Those in south and west India
have been historically wealthier. In the north, Muslims were thrust
into abject poverty at once when their wealthier counterparts left for
Pakistan during the 1947 Partition.
Muslims in rural areas are less poor than in urban areas, where their
poverty rate of 38 percent is higher than any other population’s,
including low-caste Hindus.
Although no formal Muslim caste system exists, three groups of Indian
Muslims –ashraf, ajlaf, and arzal — indeed function as such. More
correctly, there is definitely a Muslim class system, if not a caste
system.
The ashrafs, thought to be of Arab ancestry, form the upper class
among Muslims, while the ajlafs are thought to be previously Hindus
who converted to Islam to escape the Hindu caste system. A third
group, the arzals, correlates to the lowest caste among Hindus.
The Sachar Report has provided exhaustive data on socio-economic
conditions of Muslims.
The Sachar report has been controversial, not just for highlighting
Muslim marginalisation but also because of its very mandate. Hindu
nationalists — led by the BJP — criticized the report, tainting it
with an old brush –- that of appeasement.
While it offers clear proof of Muslim marginalisation, there have been
debates about how to combat Muslim unemployment rates. The BJP is
averse to solutions focusing directly on Muslims but would prefer
general poverty alleviation.
All government outlays to pull a community out of backwardness can
look like appeasement, given the zeal for competing interests of
political leaders vying for power.
Has budgeting helped?
India’s 2010-11 budget has given 50% higher allocation to the minority
affairs ministry — up from Rs 1,740 crore to Rs 2,600 crore.
Cash flow to minorities — from bank loans to scholarships — peaked
during 2008-09, according to government data, as Muslims appeared to
be slowly overcoming a strong bias of banks in lending.
Public sector banks, which would turn down Muslim loan applicants
because they were considered “credit risk groups”, have disbursed a
staggering Rs 82,864 crore in loans to minorities during 2008-09.
Since the Reserve Bank has now turned its focus to 121 backward
minority districts with high Muslim population, as identified by the
minority affairs ministry, Muslims got a chunky pie of the credit
share.
Banks now have to compulsorily service Muslims in backward areas after
the Reserve Bank added minorities to its list of other priority
lending sectors, like agriculture and small-scale businesses in July
2007.
“We will be able to see the results shortly if not immediately,”
Planning Commission member Syeda Saiyidain Hameed, who heads the
minority sector, says.
Cash constraints are now easing, with banks achieving lending targets
set for minorities. In 2008-09, the Reserve Bank’s target was that 13%
of loans under priority sector lending should go to minorities and
banks were able to lend 12.4%. This was better than 2007-08, when the
target was 10.6% and actual sanctions 9.6%. Priority sector lending
accounts for 40 per cent of total loans, according to the federal
Reserve Bank of India norms.
Banks also opened 524 branches in minority concentration districts in
2009 and nearly 6-lakh minority students got scholarships. In 2008,
523 branches were set up.
The UPA government has earmarked a whopping Rs 7,000 crore for
minority welfare under the 11th Five Year Plan that concludes in 2012.
The government now plans to install national-level independent
monitors to track back how Rs 3,780 are being spent for minority
welfare under the “flagship multi-sectoral development programme”, in
which lawmakers will have a say for the first time.
The multi-sectoral programme, which helps set up anything from a
school to a water pump, applies to 90 districts countrywide where
minorities make up more than 25 per cent of the population and lag
behind significantly on crucial socio-economic parameters.
The government’s approach is such that creation of assets in these
districts should also benefit the majority communities as well. UP,
Assam and Bihar have the largest number of minority districts, with
21, 12 and 6 districts respectively.
These districts were selected on the basis of 10 indicators, ranging
from literacy to the number of inoculated children.
The government hopes evaluating schemes with a fine-toothed comb and
involving area MPs, an idea of minority affairs minister Salman
Khurshid, are moves that would customise the multi-sectoral scheme.
The government feels a quick appraisal is important to ensure rapid
implementation of schemes. “These national-level independent monitors
will report back two things: are schemes being implemented in the
right way and right place, according to Khrushid.
The scheme, in its second stage now, is also called being called a top-
up phase because money from the minority affairs will be now poured
into schemes of other ministries so that minorities benefit.
The Planning Commission is also evaluating massive spending on
minority welfare as it prepares for mid-term appraisal of the 11th
Five-Year Plan.
Planning Commission member Hameed is set to personally travel to five
regions for first-hand feedback from beneficiaries.
Lessons from Congressional Black Caucus
Some historic measures for minority welfare, including an exclusive
ministry, helped the Congress sail through the last general elections
for a second term in power.
However, Muslim lawmakers, whose numbers are dwindling over time, have
seldom used parliamentary mechanisms creatively to ensure Muslims get
a fair deal. A problem with Muslim leadership is that political
leadership has often overlapped with religious leadership.
Divided along sharp party lines, India’s Muslim lawmakers seldom get a
chance to work in unison. However, they could take a leaf out of the
Congressional Black Caucus.
The Caucus helped highlight the plight of US minorities with a two-
step process: by the congressional budget process called the Humphrey-
Hawkins debate and by moving alternate budget resolutions.
The struggle of minorities in the US helped them integrate into
society and as their clout grew, Congress became more responsive to
their needs. Geographical concentrations of some minorities in the US
have led to their greater representation, though it is far behind
their share of the population.
In the 2001-2003 Congress, for instance, African-Americans comprised
12 percent of the population, but just 8.3% of the House members;
Hispanics made up 13 % of the population and just 4.4 % of the House;
and women represented 51 % of the population but just 13.6% of the
House, and 13% of the Senate.
America’s annual budget project to thrash out budgetary solutions to
address backwardness of minorities is a lesson for both Indian
minority lawmakers and those opposed to minority-specific solutions,
like the BJP.
A beginning has been made but just a fraction achieved. After all,
every change for the better begins with a small minority.
(9 votes, average: 4.11 out of 5)
Posted by Zia Haq on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 11:09 pm
102 Responses to “Budgeting for minorities”
sanjeev says:
March 1, 2010 at 1:40 am
Mullah Zia
“The Centre underwrites a part of the travel costs of the annual Hindu
pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet, the abode of the Hindu god
Shiva ”
This is less of a pilgrimage and more of india’s strategic and
geopolitical game plan to counter the chinese arguments of Arunachal
being historically part of China. and more imporatantly a tradition
which has been part ofindian civilzation.
Further this is a trekking expedition and not any luxury trip by an
aeroplane.which your ilk makes at taxpayers money.
I hope brainwashed mullahs like you might be aware that govt of India
also promote trekking to high altitude areas…through Indian
Mountaineering Federation (IMF). I myself has been part of some IMF
funded trekking expeditions to himalayas.
So in that way its not any exclusive and out of turn activity.
Further this yatra is open to all Indian citizens cutting across
religious lines…but Haj is not.
So don’t show your ignorance…rather write something about islamophobia
Mitra Reply:
March 1st, 2010 at 11:10 am
Hey Sanjeev,
Whatever excuses and arguments you come up with, it is a fact that
Govt. of India subsidizes a Hindu pilgrimage just as it does for
Mulsims and Christians. Nowhere does the Govt. say they do it for
strategic reasons- and it is a rather absurd argument. So cool down
and try to control your hatred. Aren’t you guys always shouting about
how tolerant Hindus and Hinduism are? There is no way to infer that
from your churlish behavior! Learn to give respect to people and
debate like a civilized educated man- even when you keep making stupid
arguments. Jai Hind!
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 3:30 pm
How can you expect an uncivilized Hindu terrorist to react when
confronted with facts? All I’ve seen on this blog, is people preaching
hatred and violence bypassing all logic and sense. None of their
comments make sense and I repeat NONE. But rhetoric is what helps them
feel superior, else they are cowed down by the uneducated minority so
easily. Let them have the comfort of the rhetoric and shameless
ignorance. Ignorance is bliss ya know?
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
@Pandit sanjeev
“The Centre underwrites a part of the travel costs of the annual Hindu
pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet, the abode of the Hindu god
Shiva ” ~~~> FACT
“This is less of a pilgrimage and more of india’s strategic and
geopolitical game plan to counter the chinese arguments of Arunachal
being historically part of China” ~~~~>FICTION …
“…and more imporatantly a tradition which has been part ofindian
civilzation” ~~~> Is that all you think about your own culture and
religion? Hang your head in shame. I pity you.
“Further this is a trekking expedition and not any luxury trip by an
aeroplane.which your ilk makes at taxpayers money.”
Does that make it a FREE expedition? The Government employs choppers
for your “safety” in the mountains, massive policing arrangements for
the crowd and at times they even arrange for fake shivlings (LMAO)
when you “God” fails to appear Will you please tell me who funds
these costs? IMO It is the taxpayers money and that includes Muslims
of this country. If you are so averse to Muslims, why don’t you shun
government spending? Lets just take an example – India’s third largest
software exporter Wipro is held by a Muslim billionaire. Over a lakh
of people are employed by the company and they pay huge taxes to this
government every year. Why don’t you ask your Hindu brethren to stop
taking up jobs in Wipro and making a living out of it? The tax they
pay is also funded by that very same Muslim -held company. Do you need
more examples? OK have you heard of the companies – Cipla, Wockhardt ,
Himalaya heath Care are only to name a few of them. What about the
crores of taxes, the “Khans’ of Bollywood pay to this Government and
the revenue that their movies generate directly or indirectly ( though
people employed and associated with the movies) Why would you like to
go on a “holy” trip on Muslim money? Should’nt you shun the Government
subsidy?
“I hope brainwashed mullahs like you might be aware that govt of India
also promote trekking to high altitude areas…through Indian
Mountaineering Federation (IMF). I myself has been part of some IMF
funded trekking expeditions to himalayas. So in that way its not any
exclusive and out f turn activity.”
So ? Doesn’t make sense honey! Try harder next time and come up with
some logic, not brain-dead arguments.
“Further this yatra is open to all Indian citizens cutting across
religious lines…but Haj is not.”
LMAO I pity you now!!
“So don’t show your ignorance…rather write something about
islamophobia”
Internet Hindus have time and again proudly proved their blissful
ignorance. I’m glad you are just another one of them!
raman says:
March 1, 2010 at 8:24 am
So, they need special budget for them , they need special care from
government otherwise they warn that some of them will turn into
terrorist or help them…..what kind of logic is this………
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
No one has argued that they will turn into terrorists if the
government doesn’t provide them with a separate budget. After all what
have all the subsequent governments done over all these years? They
have only pushed the minorities ( read Muslims ) to impoverishment and
under-representation without a voice. Anyone who dares speak for
Muslims is labeled a traitor or at best a supporter of Muslim League.
Anything that anyone even promises for Muslims ( let alone fulfill
them) is termed as Muslim Appeasement. How wonderfully naive.
Muslims have lived in ghettos with discrimination over the years in
this country and we don’t need any one to make nonsense announcements
for Muslims. We have lived with deprivation and can survive in our own
mumbling ways.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Oh BTW look what poverty has done to people in the rural areas. Will
you dare call the Maoists terrorists and traitors? The argument
against it is that they are our very own civilians although they can
murder people at will,kill innocents, behead people they hate and rape
and maim women. So what? after all they are Hindu civilians, they’ve
got every right to be protected in this country. A Muslim on the other
hand is picked up by the police at random without evidence or even
gunned down in cold blood is quickly labeled a terrorist by everyone.
Why make a distinction?
raman Reply:
March 8th, 2010 at 12:51 am
Did I say I sympathize with Maoists, do not assume things…..
RE Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 3:07 am
No, I never said that. I am only putting across my point.
Ashish Reply:
March 8th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
Dear RE,
the Maoists do not fight on religious grounds; the Indian state’s
“war” against them is also “secular”.
There is tremendous amount of blood-letting going on in the names of
protecting the rights of the economic underprivileged and the rights
of the state. I have not heard any Maoist (or any CPIML member) make
any invocation to religion.
I am not sure why you think the State treats the Maoists as “Hindu
civilians”. Care to explain?
SP Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 3:34 am
Maoists justify terror as a means of pursuing their goal of
overthrowing the Indian state just because they are poor and the
deprived citizens of this country? Common a very sizable population of
this country is below the poverty line. But the Government won’t fight
a war against them because these ‘Adivasis’ happen to be our ‘own’
people although they can engage the armed forces of this
coutry,massacre them at will, abduct ,kill and behead people at will.
A 20 something Muslim guy on the other hand is picked up at random/
even better shot in broad daylight, by the police and branded a
terrorist without even a shred of evidence The News channels hail the
police and the government and all we read is “20 something Islamic
Terrorist has been nabbed who has confessed to all the bombings that
ever happened in the country over the last 10 years”. How lame is
that!
Why is there such a discrimination in the treatment between the two? A
terrorist is a terrorist! Be it a Maoist or a certain Pragya Singh
Devi. Why does the mainstream political party come up in defense of
HINDU terror accused or label any muslim ACCUSED to be a terrorist?
The same goes with the Maoists – the Government won’t wage a war
against them just because they happen to be Hindus.
Anyone who challenges the state should be an enemy of the
state .Unfortunately that is not true for the Hindus of this country.
They can get away with mass orchestrated murders and live under state
protection. (‘92 ‘02 anyone?) And so is the case with the Maoists.
They are Hindus and by default saintly and hence cannot be treated as
terrorists.
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 12:46 pm
@SP
I will again quote from my post “there is a tremendous amount of
bloodletting going on in the names of protecting the rights of the
economic underprivileged and the rights of the state.” I think I make
it clear that Maoists are fighting only in the name of protecting the
rights of the underprivileged.
And, what gives you the idea that the Government is not fighting them?
We can differ on whether it is a “war” or not. But the human rights
activists will certainly not agree with you that the government is
going easy on the Maoists. Unless of course you say that the likes of
Arundhati Roy are basically Hindu zealots and speak for the Maoists
only because they are Hindus.
Let me quote from your reply:
“A 20 something Muslim guy on the other hand is picked up at random/
even better shot in broad daylight, by the police and branded a
terrorist without even a shred of evidence The News channels hail the
police and the government and all we read is “20 something Islamic
Terrorist has been nabbed who has confessed to all the bombings that
ever happened in the country over the last 10 years”. How lame is
that!”
You know, this seems to be straight from the alleged situation in the
North-East; where the “war” between the state and the ultras have
resulted in several cases of human rights abuses that should be the
concern of any civilized society. The state of Manipur is a case in
point. May I however point out that the affected populace is not
Muslim in Manipur.
The Indian state is not perfect; far from it. Nor is the Indian
society. But, it is a worthwhile experiment is creating a multi-hued
culture. Thanks to our founding fathers and thanks to the economic
progress unleashed in the last 20 years, the benefits of modern living
are reaching many. If you argue that Muslims face systematic and
systemic discrimination, then you must be prepared to look within and
ask why is it that no other religion in India, including the Sikhs
(even after 1984) have a problem sharing space and prospering in this
country.
Looking at everything through the religious prism makes for noisy
debates but, makes you hostage to “benefactors” like Mamata Banerjee
and Laloo Yadav.
Mitra says:
March 1, 2010 at 11:05 am
Very interesting and informative discussion! Hope you keep monitoring
how well the minority welfare schemes are progressing- this is really
important. It is good we have a decent, honest man Salman Khursheed as
the Minister- politicians like him are relatively rare in India.
sanjeev Reply:
March 1st, 2010 at 5:43 pm
@ Mitra
I can expect such sort of logic from naxal sympathisers like you….
Hope you forgot your bengali ilk got kicked by these so called
discriminated lots on 16 july 1946 (direct action day ).
Wait for some more decades another Pakistan will be demanded from your
home state. The demand will arise from your so called secular and left
ruled state.
Or else i can imagine you have admitted to dhimmi status or else burqa
clad.
Rajeev Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 8:05 am
This guy is muslim with hindu last name..just like Bhowmik (saba naqvi
bhaowmik).
sanjeev Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 1:54 pm
@ Rajeev
I M sure she is a girl and so brainwashed by so called leftist of
Students Federation of India (SFI).
She haven’t been able to come out of the vote bank politics of naxal
sypmathizers of JNU.
Mitra Reply:
March 4th, 2010 at 5:20 pm
I am Hindu and I am not a woman. I won’t give you my first name as I
teach in an university and I have a website- I am afraid Hindu
nationalist vandals will try to bother me. I am not a Naxal
sympathizer and thats not what we are discussing. The Naxals are left-
wing extremists and you guys are right-wing extremists- every
patriotic Indian should condemn both equally. The day you guys will
learn to make an actual argument instead of spewing vile hatred and
prejudice, I will be happy to have a discussion.
sanjeev Reply:
March 4th, 2010 at 5:36 pm
@ Mitra
It is you who started labelling someone as sangh parivar or bajrang
bal member
Its welcome that you want positive debate..
Btw other people like me also work for govt organizations.
Nobody has time to bother except those with whom you empathise…hope
you remember the recent karnataka episode over Taslima nasreen article
episode. who resorted to rioting ?
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:13 pm
@Sanjeev pandit.
1. I hope you are not a disgruntled shudra who is not even allowed to
enter the temple by The Brahmins or you did not marry in the same
gotra and were hounded by your own goons. You sound very irked and
disgruntled so can I assume that someone in your family decided to
kill a female child or maybe your wife does not want to put on a
ghoonghat? Is there any reason why you are so pissed off with life?
2. Regarding rioting in Karnataka :
Source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8544657.stm
“Police say Hindu groups joined the unrest in both places after
Muslims took to the streets. About 50 arrests have been made in
connection with the violence. ”
Muslims taking to streets to voice protest against something does not
mean they were rioting but as usual, people don’t have the guts to
accept the truth in this country. I am sure they did not pull you out
of you house and mob you down like the goons at RSS do under state
protection. Every citizen has the legitimate right to voice his/her
opinion but the fact of the matter is Hindu cowards started a riot.
Television images on “Times Now” , a clearly pro- hindutva ,pro- BJP ,
pro- right wing channel showed images of people with ORANGE flags with
“OM” inscribed on them. Now I can bet they were not Muslims. Secondly,
the Ram Sene called a bandh the very next day! WOW how did the entire
protest affect those cowards? Karnataka is BJP ruled so people have
the liberty to start a riot and get away with it just like Gujarat.
The Muslims are the ones who will be labeled terrorists any which way.
At least have the guts to accept the truth in public MORON
perpetual.dilettante says:
March 1, 2010 at 2:29 pm
Since you cite the government subsidies for the pilgrimage to Kailash
Mansorovar as a point to counter the annual Haj subsidies, numbers
around what the total outlay for the project is would have been
interesting for a fair comparison. Do not quite agree with your point
that the Muslims had not asked for the subsidies. The fact remains
that there were demands from certain quarters from within the
community for this step. Obviously the point whether or not they
represented the true sentiments of the community can well be debated.
However, your point around the government not subsidizing religious
pursuits is well taken. It needs to be applied irrespective of
religious affiliations of the vote banks, pressure groups, etc.
However, there is a bigger question here around the value of
affirmative action, specially in context of religious segments. That
is a point worth debating as well
Gopi Thomas says:
March 1, 2010 at 2:35 pm
If money would have solved Muslim “backwardness” , countries like KSA
would be producing qualified engineers and journalists and teachers
leave alone world class scientists. They recently opened a “world
class” university; minister E Ahmed represented India in the
inauguration ceremony – 80% of the student body was foreign students
whom they had ‘bought” with lucrative scholarships. A student from
Minnesota stated that he will have to spend $20,000 in a state Univ in
Minnesota; now he gets paid $20,000 affter all the expenses; he did
not know how long he could last there in KSA because the public
outside the walls of the Univ do not want a Univ there.
Why is Pakistan so backward with madrasites killing left and right,
with nosystem to speak of other than a rot corrupt military system,
if, as the author says “elite’ Muslims migrated to Pakistan.
Hyderabad (Telengana) was under Nizam rule for yearsa nd years. Why
are Muslims educationally so backward there?
Why iin Kerala they are still backward educationally (although they
are significantly better compared to all India Muslim average)? And a
smaller minority there, Christians, excelled in education,
industriousness, contributions..
The author talks about bank loans. Muslims are promoting “Islamic
Bank” as the right way of banking. I have seen Muslim students being
advised on some of their “exclusive” sites not to seek student loan,
and to take lower level job rather than pursuing higher studies with
student loans.
We have to bring all up to participate in a vibrant, growing India.
Money, if at all, is only a very small part of the equation. It is
attitudes, entrenched belief systems, uncompromising stickiness to a
set of rules formed in 650 when conditions were different, learning
Arabic (instead of English) etc etc. If these do not change, whatever
money is allocated, we will still have this dialogue of backwardness
fifty years from now, 100 years from now.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
Your arguments are best very naive and you obviously know that. If you
still need an explanation, I’m ready to debate
sanjeev says:
March 1, 2010 at 5:55 pm
@ Gopi
Govt should resort to following Measures for development of muslims
1. Sharia laws
2. Islamic banking
3 Education only through madrasa: this should include courses on
geography and hisory of saudi arabia, science based on quran, arabic
language
4. Compulsory pilgrimage for all muslims to Haj
5. Freedom to kill as many as infidels as they wish so that they can
achieve ultimate aim: jannat with hooris
I think then they can have proper development of their personality as
well as material progress
Ziauddin Shafi says:
March 1, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Muslims of Hyderabad were never backward during the Nizam’s rule.
Since the last 30 years or so, the criminal nexus between MIM and the
Congress, who treat the Hyderabadi Muslims as their vote bank, have
deliberately worked against the education of Muslims in the city. So
much so that government schols functioning there do not have teaching
staff, water, electricity and toilets – forcing poor students to drop
out. Government-funded Urdu medium schools are in the worst possible
conditions – unbelievable is the word. Despite all these Muslim
traitors and “secular congress” traitors, the Muslims of Hyderabad and
Telangana are struggling to find their feet. The northern Indian
Muslims are comparatively better off – they have leaders like Salman
Khursheed and Sayyida who are sincere, honest and hard-working. Hope
they also come down to Telangana & Hderabad to look into the affairs
here.
Shoeb K Reply:
March 1st, 2010 at 11:19 pm
@Shafi
Are you implying that there was a “conspiracy” to deprive Hyderabad
Muslim students of education? Are you saying that Muslims in Hyd were
highly educated during Nizam rule and 30 years after independence, and
then due to misadministration or stupidity or conspiracy of leaders,
the education started going down???
How do other people (including the so called most backward DAaits
among us) get educated? Sam Pitroda, the telecom architect of India,
came from a Dalit background. Modern india has lakhs of stories like
that.
You may be right that some Muslim eladers and congress leaders
coluded. At the end of the day, our community has to look into
ourselves — are we doing right? Are we giving emphasis to education,
like other communities are giving? Or, are we satisfied iwth menial
trading jobs? Do w e want our daughters get educated and working and
standing on their feet? Do we give emphasis to readinga nd writing (at
a basic level as well as at a literary level)? Arent most of our
people victims of mullahs and maulavis, this way or no way? Do many of
us really interact with otehr religious members in an intimate way?
Unless we sort out these, we will always be blaming some others and
not doing the right thing.
Ashish Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 3:50 pm
@ Shoeb K,
till today I did not know that Sam Pitroda came from a Dalit family; I
suspect very few others on this blog did either.
The great thing is, we don’t know and we don’t care. It is enough for
us that Sam Pitroda is what he is, a visionary with the gumption to
get things done.
Is Azim Premji a Muslim? Well, yes. Is he an example? Of course. Is he
an example only for Muslims?
” Modern india has lakhs of stories like that.” .. yes, and thank you
for making this simple statement.
Let’s worry about evolving a “post-religious” identity. We must.
The questions you raise are not limited to Muslims; I think the
Muslims as a community can benefit by making common cause with the
poor Hindus/ Jains/ Christians and demand that the government deliver
on education, women’s rights and childrens’ health and nutrition. Of
course, the community must play its part in ensuring that religion is
quoted as an argument to stymie those initiatives.
@Ziauddin Shafi I think you are not informed about the sorry state of
affairs in the northern part of the country. The lack of leadership
that you talk about, is even more pronounced in North and it shows up
in all the indices.
UI Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:37 pm
@Shoeb K Reply:
“Are you implying that there was a “conspiracy” to deprive Hyderabad
Muslim students of education? ”
Why only in Hyderabad, look at the vitriol everyone spewed when there
was a proposal to set up a branch of AMU in Murshidabad, West Bengal.
AMU may not be an Oxford but education surely will help the most
deprived and the backward. Do you think it was fair to unnecessarily
criticize the setting up of a branch of AMU? You know what, you need
to get out of you comfort zone to see what people have done to Muslims
in this country. I am an engineer and I’ve seen the nasty face of
educators at every stage of my school/university. I was always singled
out because I was the only Muslim in the class who topped exams year
after year. It is exactly things like these that make people cringe
and say that they do. Accept the fact that there has been a targetted
marginalization of Muslim in this country
“How do other people (including the so called most backward DAaits
among us) get educated? Sam Pitroda, the telecom architect of India,
came from a Dalit background. Modern india has lakhs of stories like
that.”
Have you ever heard of something called reservations? When the most un-
deserving candidates are given preferences in places that matter, what
do you expect in this country? Abolish all forms of reservations or
apply them equally for ALL economically backward sections of the
society. Only then you will get a clear idea of what the reality is.
“You may be right that some Muslim eladers and congress leaders
coluded. At the end of the day, our community has to look into
ourselves — are we doing right? Are we giving emphasis to education,
like other communities are giving? Or, are we satisfied iwth menial
trading jobs? Do w e want our daughters get educated and working and
standing on their feet? Do we give emphasis to readinga nd writing (at
a basic level as well as at a literary level)? Arent most of our
people victims of mullahs and maulavis, this way or no way? Do many of
us really interact with otehr religious members in an intimate way?
Unless we sort out these, we will always be blaming some others and
not doing the right thing.”
You must be kidding my dear! You seriously must be kidding me! Talking
about things from the comfort of your home with a laptop in front of
you is something different than the stark poverty and alienation that
Muslims face in this country. Get out of the 5-6 Urban cities for
God’s sake. You cannot expect anyone to get a decent education unless
he is lucky like me or you, when there is abject poverty , when people
can hardly make ends meet if at all. I’ve seen most Muslims living in
ghettos even in so called urban cities where there is hardly a decent
school in the vicinity and you talk about education? Have you ever
wondered why Muslims are discriminated when it comes to getting a
rented house in a Hindu locality?
You talk about the status of women in our society( are you seriously a
Muslim or just using a Muslim name? )
“Do w e want our daughters get educated and working and standing on
their feet?”
Seriously? Any and every educated family that I know of and some very
poor families insist on their daughters going to school to get an
education. Esp when it comes to urban areas, people are more open to
allowing women to work. You seriously must be kidding me or you are
very detached from the society !!
“Arent most of our people victims of mullahs and maulavis, this way or
no way?”
Again you are making sweeping generalizations.
“Do many of us really interact with otehr religious members in an
intimate way?”
What do you mean by an Intimate way? Of course where the majority are
people from other communities, you mingle with them , at school , at
work , in your neighborhood. Living in ghettos does not mean that you
never interact with anyone!
A Banerjee says:
March 1, 2010 at 8:50 pm
The biggest enemy of the muslim community is the muslim himself. There
is an intersting article comparing muslims and jews. Although jews
consist of only 0.02 % of the world’s population, they have won 130
Nobel Prizes. Muslims are 20% of the world’s population, but have won
only 7 Nobels. I think that Muslims must stop this tirade of being
‘minorities’ and start working for themselves.
What has number to do with progress? If that be so the case then how
doyou explain the parsis who are doing so well for themselves?
The trouble with Mr Zia and other ’secular’ people is that they waste
their time and energy (please see that I am not mentioning ‘brains’)
brooding over some conspiracy theory or some ’sachar’ report instead
of using their time productively. This imacts the minds of young and
gullible muslim youth who start thinking that the entire nation is
against them.
Their was a very nice ad campaign by Idea in which Abhishek Bachhan
says that their will be no community, only mobile numbers. That’s the
way it should be…..
UI Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:38 pm
BS
Anil Kumar says:
March 1, 2010 at 10:04 pm
All the religious pilgrimage subsisdy given to non-muslim you have
rehashed is the progeny of haz subsidy.> So muichy noise was made that
various state govts hand have bene forced..
No hindu no chrstian wnats thatsubsisdy only muslims are the one who
always need crutch for anything and everything..
They insisst that they will nto join mainstream education but they
must eb given job..
State of those hindus who confine themselves withitn the scriptute
study are not different we don;t see them cribbing..
If you want job start learnign physics chemistry math those Quran and
hadith reading is nto going to give you job..
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:39 pm
“No hindu no chrstian wnats thatsubsisdy only muslims are the one who
always need crutch for anything and everything..
They insisst that they will nto join mainstream education but they
must eb given job..”
BS
Raju Kurien says:
March 2, 2010 at 6:51 am
The problem with Muslims is that they do not have a proper perspective
or they refuse to accept the reality. For example, This Javed Naqvi, a
reporter for DAwn, (a Pakistani based newspaper) always writes about
how bad it is for Muslims in india; how the goovernment goes on
destroying Muslims.. This guy is a Pakistani, living in and enjoying
Delhi, and he is always venomous about India– May be it is jealousy………
Muslims acn be a “suppressed moinority” (as they think) or an
aggressive contributor to national progress; they have to make that
choice..Government can go on pouring tax payers’ money for the so-
called upliftment; but the desire for upliftment and work towards
upliftment has to come from muslims themselves,a nd not througha ny
government programs.
sanjeev Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 2:04 pm
@ Raju
This so called peace activist Javed Naqv is no less than Taliban. I
don’t know whether he is Indian national ?
Regarding the much admired masiha of muslims Justice Rajendra sachar’s
credentials…let me highlight one of high ideological fact : He is so
called human right and civil rights activists of Arundhati Roy gang.
We can seriously doubt his credentials as a judge of supreme court or
distinguished jurist. I thibk this sachar committee is all a game plan
of congress left combine.
Although i personally support the govt should do efforts to educate
and elevate living standard of all deprived citizens irrespective of
minority or majority.
But why only the special emphasis on muslims ?
Why can’t they start some programme for all poor people of india and
allocate separate budget targets for this group ?
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Now comes conspiracy theory LMAO
shiuli says:
March 2, 2010 at 2:47 pm
Budgeting for minorities is a much required factor, coz if the gov’t
does not we have big brain drain like MF Husain, escaping to Qatar,
taking Citizen-ship there. We have violent clashes over Taslima
Nasreen’s outcry; also The Great Khan who has already been awarded
Dato-ship in Malaysia, by calling Pakistan, Our Friendly Neighbour,
may condemn Indian Citizenship one fine day.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:41 pm
BS
ramesh says:
March 2, 2010 at 3:36 pm
What is holding back the muslims, is their literalism in
religion ,which is evident in all their aspects.Why arent the Parsees,
christians or sikh held back.Because they have opend their minds.
Muslims consider everyone else as jews only, their born enemy.They
should see the broader sense of the message.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:42 pm
Because all the hatred,vile and discrimination is directed towards the
Muslims , not towards the Parsees , Christians and Sikhs
S Singh Reply:
March 8th, 2010 at 11:41 pm
So, there is no animosity to anybody except Muslims.. Could it be that
something is wrong with Muslism?
Why do Muslims have problem everywhere? Be Philippines, thailand, US,
UK, germanty. denmark, Switzerland — why even in the so called Islamic
countries ((OIC)? Oh why!
SP Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 3:36 am
The Problem is that you have become so ignorant that you cannot
comprehend History or Geography or Geo-Politics OR probably you don’t
wish to. At least don’t sound such a moron on the internet.
Ashish Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 12:07 am
@RE
“Because all the hatred,vile and discrimination is directed towards
the Muslims , not towards the Parsees , Christians and Sikhs”
poor souls! Muslims! No one loves them! Boo, hoo, hoo!
Rajeev says:
March 2, 2010 at 10:35 pm
I think instead of budgeting for minority (read MUSLIMS, MUSLIMS and
MUSLIMS), why don’t we send them to their land which we allocated for
them in 1947. The pakistan was meant for muslims of south asia. If you
muslims think, you are not getting fair deal, migrate to the land that
was created for giving muslims fair deal.
Jinnah also demanded same kind of things before partition to safegaurd
the interests of muslims. The then-congress decided not to give in to
Jinnah’s loony demands and agreed for partition. Now after 62 years,
we are being forced to agree to Jinnah’s demand or face terror ending
into another partition of country. How long can this blackmail go on?
Pl. show me a single country in the world where muslim minority has
outperformed other communities…None… Are all these non-muslims country
guilty of this or is the in the muslims gene to stay and ghetto and be
backward? Do you want Sachar to go in all those countries and then
produce a report implying that muslims are denied opportunities.
There is something very wrong with muslim mindset. They are
themseleves to blame for their misery. Why is that Hindus, jews,
chinese are doing so well in USA? Why is that non-muslims do better
than muslims in almost every country?
These muslims have to come out to their eternal victimhood syndrome.
L Mirza Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 12:12 am
@Rajeev
Many things you mention are right. For our country to propel, we need
to bring all into the equation. Youa re absolutely right that the
backwardness of msulims can eb squarely attributed to teh community
itself -its religiosu leaders, political leaders etce tc. A
fundamental aspect of Islam as oppsoed to various other “movements” ,
is that the role of the individual or individuality is suppressed;
hence no major innovations, initiatives, pathbreaking inventions,
methosds etc etc.
Government money will do only little. The mindset has to eb changed;
it ahs to come from within; and lot of forces work against that. It is
a real problem; as Zia mentioned in an earlier blog, muslims have to
handle it themselves.. They should know that the world would not wait
for this, and they will be left further behind if they do not acvt.
The sorry situation is that whether we like it or not, we have to
somehow solve this…
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:43 pm
Why don’t you leave this country instead if you hate the people living
in this country? Or is is that you have no place on this earth to call
a Hindu State? haha India is NOT a Hindu country. If you cannot live
here, go and find a place for yourself
Rajeev says:
March 2, 2010 at 10:39 pm
The Sachar report is not an extensive survey but a SAMPLE survey. We
have all seen how surveys have been proved wrong time and again.
The need of the hour for muslims is to shun excessive religiousity,
waste less time curing non-muslims and concentrate on education
followed by search for jobs. You can not be employed on high position
(IPS, IAS, Army etc.) till you get proper education. Even a police
constable in maharashtra police is graduate.
sanjeev Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 6:00 pm
@ Rajeev
I seriously doubt credentials of Rajendra sachar. he is an
ideologically indoctrinated person and not neutral, unbiased
researcher.
Just google his name..he has association with People’s Union for Civil
Liberties (PUCL)
In the recently arrested Kobad ghandy case his organisation has been
mentioned by delhi police among the naxal sympathisers.
I have personally attended many of the debates and discussions
frequented by this gang of naxal sympathisers like Gautam Navlakha,
Achin Vinayak, DSU, etc. their views clealry state that they are
chinese protege and they aim to bring china type revolution in india.
I seriously doubt how can such a person was appointed chairman of such
a committee.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:44 pm
You need some money for education which they have been deprived of
over the years
Shoeb K Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 6:20 pm
RE
So you are saying that somehow government “deprived ” them of
education, and now have to give them money for education??
Do you believe that our people (I assume you are a muslim) give utmost
importance to education like other commun ities? Even Baniya children
grow up reciting “vidya dhan sarv dhanal pradhan”.. What is our
children taught in Madrasi??
RE Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 4:05 am
No one is begging for alms here. It’s only the Hindus who beg for
Money & Jobs and you will keep begging for your lives. Don’t worry the
Government won’t take away your reservations any soon. You can
obviously beg for even more.
If you are going to tell me that ^%$^% like Mulayam Shi% and people
like him demand BS for Muslims, I pity you and your ignorance of the
reality of this country.
Secondly, you must be naive to think that people think in terms of
community when it comes to education. You must be so out of this world
my HINDU brother! (Using a Muslim name does not make you one) The fact
of the matter is, yes people want education for their children and the
fact of the matter is that a majority of the Muslim population in
India is living foot-to-mouth. I have grown up in a poor Muslim
neighborhood and you can bet a very good number of children went to
proper schools. They may not have been the DPS’s of this country but
yes everyone valued education.Economics is the major concern my dear,
not community based ignorance. When you cannot even earn Rs20 a day,
you cannot possibly dream of sending your child to a regular school.
I come from a Naxal affected place so you very well imagine the state
of affairs and to add to that I grew up in a Muslim neighborhood with
a couple of Madarsas. I can tell you, even people who have studied in
these very madarsas completed their education and then took up
respectable and decent government jobs ,quite unlike your Hindu naxal
brothers just 40-50 kms away from my place. A few of us were lucky
ones who grew up in middle class families, who could study in English
medium schools and landed up with jobs with MNCs. Unfortunately most
are not so lucky. You know what, either you have never seen poverty in
and around you so it’s very comfortable to pass sweeping remarks or
you are just another prejudiced and ignorant Hindu on the internet. If
you are the former (n I doubt it ) all I would ask you is to leave the
comfort of your house to visit a Madarsa .If you are the later, I can
only pity you
sanjeev says:
March 3, 2010 at 5:51 pm
@ Rajeev
Here is an interesting article from Tavleen Singh (who i think can’t
be labelled as sangh parivar member as she happens to be a sikh and
married to muslim
http://www.indianexpress.com/storyOld.php?storyId=59288
I hope ignorant persons like mitra and other so called secularists
accept the true reality after going through this article or else they
will label Tavleen as sanghi.
sanjeev
Rajeev says:
March 4, 2010 at 2:45 am
Sanjeev,
Did you compare debate done on NDTV/CNN-IBN on MF Hussain and Taslima
Nasreen? It exposed the hypocrisy of Indian secualrism. I could not
control my laughter listening to arguements from Shabnam hashmi.
I have come to the conclusion that soft terrorist (ideological) from
muslim community are oxygen for all the terror activities in the
world. These are the people who should be arrested and may be
eliminated Isarael style.
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:45 pm
Yes people like you must be singled out Israeli style
[Reply]
sanjeev says:
March 4, 2010 at 5:43 pm
Here is another article exposing the hypocrisy of the so called
secular gang of india:
Its by Pratap Bhanu Mehta, from centre for policy research, new delhi
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/freedoms-our-defence/586662/
sanjeev says:
March 4, 2010 at 5:51 pm
@ Rajeev
sorry rajeev,
i have given up watching news on these sensationlist channels..i only
watch DD news or r news on FM gold radio.
i know this Indian secularism is a biggest joke in the world
Anything can happen in india in the name of secularism and freedom of
speech for the sake of minority (read muslim )
RE Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 4:46 pm
Two Losers in this country Pandit Rajeev and Pandit Sanjeev have got
HT Blog as the only place to vent their frustration. Is it something
else?
Ashish says:
March 6, 2010 at 11:24 am
After all these serious comments, I think we all need a comic break..
quoting from an email just received:
A public school teacher was arrested today at John F. Kennedy
International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in
possession of a ruler, a protractor, a compass, a slide-rule and a
calculator.
At a morning press conference, the Attorney General said he believes
the man is a member of the notorious Al-Gebra movement. He did not
identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying
weapons of maths instruction.
“Al-Gebra is a problem for us”, the Attorney General said. “They
derive solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on
tangents in search of absolute values. They use secret code names like
‘X’ and ‘Y’ and refer to themselves as ‘unknowns’, but we have
determined that they belong to a common denominator of the axis of
medieval with co-ordinates in every country.
As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, “There are 3 sides to
every triangle”.
When asked to comment on the arrest, President Obama said, “If God had
wanted us to have better weapons of maths instruction, he would have
given us more fingers and toes.’
White House aides told reporters they could not recall a more
intelligent or profound statement by the President. It is believed
that the Nobel Prize for Physics will follow.
Paritosh Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 12:03 pm
ha ha ha ha . nice!!!
sanjeev says:
March 6, 2010 at 11:56 am
hilarious !!!
SKS Mumbai says:
March 6, 2010 at 1:44 pm
Why Physics?
They don’t award nobles for Maths or Philosophy? Time they did
Gopi Thomas Reply:
March 6th, 2010 at 5:37 pm
@SKS
And these must be reserved for Muslims because of the historical
sidelining Westerners have done to them..
So far Muslims have not stated theat the nobels Jews received were
undeserving; so you have to give them credit!
Ashish says:
March 6, 2010 at 2:39 pm
when they run out of existing Nobels; one for each year Obama is in
office..
There is probably no rule against multiple Nobel awards for multiple
disciplines in the same year to the same person; while so far such a
rule would have been largely academic, I think with Obama, this rule
will soon be tested.
Literature Nobel is his for the taking .. with all the fiction in his
speeches (even if he has to share the Nobel with his speechwriters)..
Raju Kurien says:
March 6, 2010 at 10:02 pm
Mosab hasan Yousef, an ex Hamas leader, who later became a Mosad spy,
and converted to Christianity, has written a book titled “Son of
Hamas”. Wall Street journal interviewed him on his opinions,
perspectives….His father is also a leader of Hamas..
Do you consider your father as a fanatic? “he is not a fanatic; he is
a very moderate, logical person. What matters is not whether my father
is fanatic or not; he is doing the will of a fanatic God. It does not
mind whether he is a terrorist or a traditional muslim. At the end of
the day a traditional Muslim is doing the will of a fanatic,
fundamentalist, terrorist God. I know this is harsh to say. Most
governments avoid this subject..
“the problem is not in Muslims. the problem is with their God. They
need to be liberated from their God. He is the biggest enemy. It has
been 1400 years they have been lied to.
SKS Mumbai says:
March 7, 2010 at 10:08 am
So ‘Government funded religious travel’ (let’s call it GFRT) isn’t
‘Unique’ but only Haj subsidy has been targeted! So unfair!
Research does help, even if, of ‘directed’ kind, to pick facts, as
might be necessary for the ‘conclusion’ one has chosen to present. But
’secular’ journalism, at least here in India, is easier than that. For
facts aren’t needed nor is their careful selection and for those on
the cutting edge of secular journalism, fact invention is routine.
Certainly, by those standards, Mr Zia is struggling.
To come up with ‘govt funded religious travel’ or GFRT for questioning
the criticism of Haj subsidy, suggests that research was involved.
Instead of limiting himself to any one of either GFRT or subsidy, he
uses both and implied smartly, that only Haj subsidy is criticized,
without ever saying that both are/aren’t the same. But there may be
’small’ differences between the two:
Subsidy of course is subsidy.
GFRT does not seem to be a well defined concept, but Mr Zia must be
referring to the costs involved in provision of various facilities and
services provided by Govt. for the pilgrims. These costs include a
part for the services rendered in India and another for outside India.
For e.g. in case of Kailash Mansarovar, these are free medical
inspection, security, escort cover, insurance cover and communication
links and 4 days acco. provided by Govt of Delhi (at Delhi) etc, most
of these within India. Then there is also a Rs 3250/pilgrim payment
made by Govt to Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN) for arranging
boarding and lodging on the Indian side.
Indian side expenses for Haj, include cost of Haj houses, built in a
number of state capitals (including a capital cost for the facility,
often funded by the concerned state govt. There is a dedicated Haj
terminal at Delhi Airport (can’t say for others), again involving a
capital cost. I am not sure if medical tests, security etc is involved
or not. There is also a fully dedicated Haj department maintained by
Air India throughout the year.
For expenses outside India:
In case of Mansarovar, nothing much is known. Possibly, the escort,
security and medical facilities continue to be provided on the chinese
side as well. Interestingly, complaints regarding poor facilities on
Chinese side are brushed aside by MEA, saying Chinese want a revision
in the rates (last set in 1995) for better facilities.
Foreign component of Haj expenses: expenditure on a contingent of
seasonal local staff, supervisors, data entry operators, drivers and
messengers, appointed in SA, a contingent of more than 600 personnel
(incl. about 135 doctors, nurses and paramedics) on short-term
deputation to SA, hospital facilities (about 100 beds) at Makkah,
Madinah, medicines, ambulances, facilitation and coordination centres
at Jeddah, Makkah probably, Madinah also.
What is also interesting to note, is the kind of answers MEA gives for
questions raised in LS or RS:
1. Whenever there is a broad query (broad as in, about ’subsidy’ and
‘other facilities’) the answer, in case of Haj; includes a number for
subsidy and another for expenses, while for Mansarovar, it is only one
figure.
2. When there is a precise question such as: ‘ whether the Union
Government has been extending ’subsidy’ ( no mention of facilities)
for pilgrimage of Indians abroad’, the answer never goes beyond Haj
( e.g. LS Unstarred Question no 3086 http://meaindia.nic.in/parliament/ls/2006/08/23ls07.html)
3. When a specific question was asked : whether Govt
would also consider providing any subsidy on the lines of subsidy
being provided for Haj Pilgrimage, the smart state minister for MEA
repeats the same Rs 3250 story (of course never uses the word subsidy
for this) and concludes with : ‘Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and Haj are
essentially different so far as the number of pilgrims (not enough
devotees? ) , mode of travel and the nature of terrain are involved.
Therefore, there may not be a direct comparison between the two!
http://meaindia.nic.in/parliament/rs/2006/05/11rs27.htm
Thus for some ’strange’ reason, Govt. has consistently failed to apply
the word ‘Subsidy’ in case of Mansarovar costs. This could mean either
a ‘consistent error’ or most likely an accounting conspiracy designed
to discriminate against the poor minority, and worst of all, signed
off by CAG as well!
For the sharper but unfortunately oppressed beings, another ’small’
difference :
- the total amount paid for 2002, 03, 04 for Mansarovar was around Rs.
0.43 Crs (or Rs 43 lacs), while for HaJ 2007 and 2008, it was more
than Rs. 44.00 crs.
-Haj subsidy that Mr Zia shows at Rs 390 crs is over and above that.
Not just that, it seems that subsidy figures for Haj continue to be
presented as ‘provisional’ for last 4-5 years. (i.e. besides the
subsidy).
Mr Zia could have checked a bit of History as well, as he has so
carefully listed out the ‘proposed’ subsidy in Karnataka and the one
announced in AP a ‘couple’ of years ago.
Clearly then, there isn’t ANY VALID reason to target Haj subsidy
alone!! Except the Discriminatory approach, what say Zia?
SKS Mumbai says:
March 7, 2010 at 10:26 am
Can someone tell me whether, there is some difference between the
Kailash Mansarovar, Tibet (for which Govt ‘underwrites’ a part of the
cost, as indicated by Zia) and the Mansarovar, China (for which a
’subsidy’ is under consideration (as Zia says quoting media reports)
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 11:35 am
@SKS,
“Can someone tell me whether, there is some difference between the
Kailash Mansarovar, Tibet (for which Govt ‘underwrites’ a part of the
cost, as indicated by Zia) and the Mansarovar, China (for which a
’subsidy’ is under consideration (as Zia says quoting media reports)”
Only Zia can answer this.. but, on past performance, even if he deigns
to, it is likely to decry your tendency to split hairs..
SKS Mumbai Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 2:15 pm
@Ashish
You mean just tendency?
That is all we do, apart from full time hate mongering, that is
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 4:03 pm
aha.. but, Mr Zia is a gentleman, not given to invectives
SKS Mumbai says:
March 7, 2010 at 11:34 am
‘Show me an economically underprivileged Hindu who will find fault
with government help to make a dip in the holy Ganges a reality? Or a
Muslim quibbling over a lifetime visit to Mecca, courtesy government
help?’
Now that is a profound question. Perhaps Zia can show us an
‘economically privileged’ Hindu who will find fault with government
help to make a trip to switzerland a reality, or riding a chauffeur
driven BMW (all expense paid) for that matter?
First of all what difference does it make, whether you are talking
about an economically privileged or underprivileged person here,
unless that bounty is meant for reducing that economic gap?
(BTW, I am not sure if Haj susbsidy is only for underpriveleged ones,
and even if, it is, the validity of above question does not change)
Secondly, on what basis does a secular Government decide that my all-
expense trip to swiss alps, is spiritually less important than
someone’s dip in Ganges and more importantly, why should a secular
govt be even required to measure spirituality quotient?
Gopi Thomas Reply:
March 8th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
@SKS
I read somewhere that Haj subsidies were never requested by the
community. I believe it was instituted during the oil shock of early
1970s and institutionalized ever since. This may be one situation
where one smart politician created a permanent vote bank through this
master stroke.
ajay says:
March 8, 2010 at 10:10 am
those politicians who are using vote bank politics must be dealt with
severely.other people who easily get caugt by words of these soundrels
should apply there common sense
S Singh says:
March 8, 2010 at 5:29 pm
There is no dispute that everything possible should be done to uplift
ALL., to make all contributors to a great country and humanity.
Money should be spent wisely; it also should be spent on all who need,
not just Muslims.
Money is only one, and may be even a lesser part, as far as upliftment
of Muslims are concerned. Unlike Hindus, Christians, jews, budhists
etc they do not give much emphasis to education. It simply is not
their “core” belief. When Hindu and kids belonging to other religions
right from early ages are inculcated “Vidya dhan sarva dhanal
pradhan” , the focus of Muslim kids is memorizing Quran. After that,
they get into petty trades.
Unless education is considered as the most important factor and
embraced by the family and community, nothing will happen; complaints
will remain.
SKS Mumbai says:
March 8, 2010 at 8:20 pm
@Gopi
I don’t know, but it can’t be that simple.
SKS Mumbai says:
March 8, 2010 at 8:22 pm
Quote:
‘While it gives Air India 150,000 assured passengers every year
(that’s the total number of seats on all Indian carriers criss-
crossing the country on any given day), helping it KEEP AFLOAT, the
grant has been turned into a stick to beat Muslims with’
This is really all that it takes!
One article by a non-entity, (he/she could be anything, journalist,
activist, third rate self proclaimed intellectual, rabble rouser,
dancer, singer, whatever. Even if he wasn’t, that article alone will
make him a front ranking secular warrior), asserting that Haj subsidy
is really a subsidy for Air India.
Watch that dumb ‘assertion’ turn into a foundational truth for the
Indian secularrazzi, to be repeated so many times that, Hitler would
have them rather Goebbels.
It just does not matter that the fraudulent claim is immediately
thrashed to pieces by precise facts and irrefutable documentary
evidence, the ‘Truth’ once revealed, is the Divine Law for our secular
believers. To question the law is apostasy or a communal propaganda by
Hindutva forces, or as Mr Zia claims, a ’stick’ to beat poor Muslims
with.
For a moment, even if we accept that fraudulent claim, what changes
Mr. Zia? Muslims are still getting a subsidy, aren’t they? Or can you
book a return ticket for Patna-Delhi-Jeddah for Rs.12000 (or Rs 16000
for last year only)? Bulk discounts? Yes why not, we will see later
how much difference your direct chartering can make. Unfortunately
facts happen to be facts and if they are communal so be it (in the
meanwhile Mr Zia could check whether direct charter negotiations were
attempted at some point of time or not and what went wrong). Here are
the facts:
1. It isn’t 150,000 prize customers in the first place, the number for
2010 is more like 120,000 and that after annual increases of the order
of 10,000-15,000. approximately 50% of that is carried by Saudi
airlines.
2. Spare/standby aircrafts are a part of any commercial airlines
fleet, but they are primarily used when regular aircrafts are sent for
scheduled or unscheduled maintenance. Haj means 2-3 months of a steep
peak forcing most of the commercial airlines to opt for short term
leases, called wet lease. Being short-term, they are by definition
much more expensive than longer leases. It does not take an Einstein
to understand that the capital cost of the wet leased aircrafts will
have to be recovered from the passengers who fly during that peak
window. For e.g. If you look at the state electricity boards, their
normal procurement costs (for the pool) will rarely exceed Rs 4-5/
unit. But during peak months, the incremental power is often purchased
at Rs. 10-15/unit range. It matters, but little, that your requirement
for those few months constitutes a huge volume, the annual fixed cost
will still be recovered during those two months. Further, it seems
that many of the aircrafts have to undertake one trip without
passengers (i.e. no backhaul)
3. If AIR INDIA was really saving itself by grabbing the prized Haj
Service, why does it keep on requesting the Govt to allow other
airlines in the space? Isn’t that Monopolistic, Mr Zia ? Last publicly
known attempt was around 2008. http://www.financialexpress.com/news/haj-subsidy-has-air-india-fuming/360651/0
4. BTW Muslims anyway have the option of not going through Haj
committee and a large number of Muslims actually go through private
tour operators (~ 40,000 or so), so why are suffering the tyranny of
AI? Why? Especially when it also gives the so-unfair-stick to Hindutva
Guys ?
But all these are lies, a hindutva propaganda, sanghi hate mongering,
the only Truth and what we need to remember for ever is that, it is
not the ‘Poor Hajis’ but AI who is being subsidized. (soon we will
discover it wasn’t even AI, it were the vile Bramhins-Bania who were
fattening themselevs)
You know what, some 100 years down the line, secular historian will
cite these and assert Haj subsidy was a myth and contrary evidence
will be subjected to secular tools called contextualizing History and
presenting multiple perspectives and another 100 years Haj subsidy
won’t even be a subject.
S Singh Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
Muslims will go on itching, bitching, scratching…
The only solution is dictatorship (why do you think almost all Muslim
countries are dictatorships?) or someother way of controlling, because
they respect power; they just cannot operate independently in a
democracy. Time and again it ahs been demonstrated that they cannot
form, suatain a democracy.
India will remain a democracy, meaning the scratching and bitching
will be with us for a long time, unless a region is converted to
another Pakistan and round up ALL Muslims to that region.
Rajeev Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 9:06 pm
No all muslims should be packed up and sent to pakistan. No more
divisions for these ungrateful people.
Rajeev says:
March 8, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Is this RE another avatar of Soft-terrorits Bobby?
sanjeev Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 6:59 pm
@ Rajeev
Tonight i will get to meet biggest anti national..Javed Naqvi (dawn
reporter from delhi )
I want to ask him some tough questions ..
If any knowledge u can share about this nut ?
Rajeev Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
Ask him just one thing. Is he Indian or Pakistani?
If he is Indian and beleives in secularism, why is he with Pakistan on
Kashmir.
Secondly ask him what happened to 20% hindu population of pakistans.
How many guharat massacre took place in Pakistan?
SKS Mumbai says:
March 8, 2010 at 10:12 pm
Aah Rs 390 crs isn’t it.
Last statement by Dr Tharoor pegs it at some Rs 826 crs for 2009!and
still counting all these numbers continue to be Provisional.
Rajeev says:
March 9, 2010 at 1:30 am
I have always wondered if Hajj performed on khairat of infidel nation
(India) is haram or Halal.
I am pretty sure that all the muslims perforing Hajj on donations
doled out by hindu-dominated India are commiting shirk and their hajj
is invalid according to Islam.
I guess most of the muslims are destined for jahannum.
S Singh Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Does not matter, as long as it is free.
It is the government we should blame; and by that voters like us. what
the politicians have done is one more way of institutionalizing
“minority” , this time with huge allocation. Now the bar of spending
is set high, and every following year it will be higher than the prior
year.
Like any government spending schemes, only 10% will go to the purpose;
other 90% will go to the b ureaucracy and contractors!
sanjeev Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 6:50 pm
ha ha ha ha !
where else they can go ?
mulleh ki dor masjid tak
RE Reply:
March 20th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
arey pandit ki langot apni dhoti sambhalo yaar
SKS Mumbai says:
March 9, 2010 at 9:35 pm
@Ashish
In RE, you have one of the original ones. His views on Premjee’s
Billions and stuff are part of the original curriculum. Don’t be
surprised, when you are told:
1. It is Indian Muslims living in the gulf whose earnings drive the
larger part of Indian economy.
2. That Indira Gandhi used her charm to get cheap oil from the house
of Sauds and thus Hindus have been living off Muslim charity for ages.
3.That there is a conspiracy under which muslim intellectuals are
being murdered and this has gone for many decades now.
4. That “Urdu” was eliminated as a language to prevent muslim
advancement.
5. Some more that I came across recently: the conspiracy against
Muslims also include: introducing “gate-keeper” mentality-type service
commission exams and entrance exams for professional courses .That a
scientist was picked to become a Muslim President of India, to
diminish OR extinguish his contribution to science.
That (hold your breath) Shahrukh Khan and Amir Khan have Hindu wives,
because they are rich and famous – and their wives will inherit their
crores.
6. Of course we all know about 9/11, 26/11, Karkare, Batla and types.
Recent violence in Karnataka on Tasleema’s article was also a Hindutva
conspiracy.(Confirmed already as I see)
7. Upper caste Hindus joined hands with British in a conspiracy to
weaken Islamic Kings, freedom fight was mainly a Muslim venture, but
Gandhi and Nehru forged another conspiracy to divide India, so that
Muslims were weakened.
8. His views on how state is dealing with Maoists because they are
Hindus shouldn’t surprise anyone. The difference lies, not in
perceptions but in definitions itself.
Reasoned debate is useless and anyway impossible. Facts must adhere to
’secular’ requirement else they are conspiracies. When even fairly
well ensconced people, from the core of mainstream, do not hesitate in
asserting nonsense like Haj subsidy is for Air India, never miss the
opportunity to impress you with Quranic wisdom, or to offer Quranic
justification while urging Muslims to seek education or to not hate
the jews, we know it isn’t just another problem.
This combined with the values our politicians operate on, will ensure
that we just have to live with it the way it is and just hope it does
not get worse during our or our children’s lifetime.
Gopi Thomas Reply:
March 9th, 2010 at 10:45 pm
@SKS
There is more; especially with the advent of ex SIMI turned into PFI/
SDPI as a political party for the disadvantaged, “not just Muslims”:
1)Brahmins are colluding with USA/UK to make India a Jesustan
2)Reservations etc are farce; Brahmins control everything (i am still
looking for those powerful Brahmins!)
3) Muslims did well in the first 30 years of independence; then a
coordinated conspiracy started to marginalize them, to exterminate
their intellectuals
4)The elite Muslims migrated to Pakistan (we know how that has helped
PAkistan) and the real backward Muslims stayed back in India
5) Gandhiji was in collusion with Brahmins to marginalize Muslims
6)Lodhi and Gazni are not Muslims,a nd Somnath temple destruction
should not be attributed to Muslims
7)Babur loved all and did not destroy any places of worship
8)Auragazeb is maligned by Brahmins; he was a great king who cared for
all equally (and Akbar was not a great king)
9)Shivaji looted neighboring kingdoms, and have done more damage to
india than any Moghul or other foreign invaders have done
10)”Mapilla rebellion” in Kerala that happened with Khilafet was an
agrarian revolution and not one where muslims targeted and raped and
killed Hindus and destroyed their palces of worship
11) tipu Sultan was a benevolent king who did not destroy palces of
worship of Hindus and Christians (although history of Kerala clearly
traces his “patayottam” (rapid fight ) for the massive conversions in
Malabar area, including naming Calicut as Islamabad for a while
12)All the communal troubles are started by Brahmins to further
marginalize Muslims
List goes on
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 1:28 am
@SKS @Gopi Thomas
great compilations; SKS, great summary of the core arguments we have
heard on this blog over the last few months.
This blog has run out of ideas.. tired, tiresome and repetitive..
poorly researched and lately even without a central idea.
I can sense the next blog coming.. on why Ranganath Mishra
recommendations must be adopted. Stealing from a well known poster,
first seen in London, “Sachar spotted the cancer, Mishra has the
answer”.
Trying to remember some Muslim Maoist name; honestly can’t. By the
way, SP/RE/UI.. whoever/ whatever, I was in Lalbazar (Calcutta police
HQ) .. staying with a certain doctor employed with the police the day
Charu Mazumdar was brought in. I have heard enough stories of how
Naxals used to be handled by the Calcutta Police; suffice it to say
KPS Gill was really tame in comparison. Honestly speaking, I have
never ever thought about the religion of the Naxals; now that I do,
yes, you are right. All of these guys I heard of were Hindus-excepting
Jangal Santhal – even though I am sure they will be quite amused to be
called such. But, the brutality on both sides (Naxals and the state)
was totally secular. I hope I am not told next that Maoists and the
Government are in cahoots to rid the world of Muslims.
Hindus become Maoists because they just like to kill and are afforded
protection by the state; and Muslims do not- inspite of all the
discrimination, because they follow the religion of peace. Hmmm…..
Talking about KPS Gill; so, his forces killed Muslims and then dressed
them up as Khalistanis, correct? Just checking…
MMM’s (Much Maligned Modi) goons killed Muslims while his police shot
dead 400 Hindus .. inconvenient, but true.
Gopi, great item 4 on your list. Precisely..
SKS Mumbai Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
@Ashish
‘Honestly speaking, I have never ever thought about the religion of
the Naxals’
Hmm that shows your communal mindset, Bhai sahab.
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
@SKS
my communal mindset is well established on this blog.. garv se kaho…
RE Reply:
March 20th, 2010 at 2:52 pm
Arey bhai then stop living off Muslim money and Muslim oil. Dead
simple as that. You hate us like anything and yet want to live off our
money! hahaha great
RE Reply:
March 20th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
You didn’t answer my post cuz you DON”T have an answer . Stop being a
MORON for a change. You sound like a joker
SKS Mumbai says:
March 10, 2010 at 2:13 pm
Sorry guys, I underestimated the power of contextualisation and
perspectivasation and the time it might take to secularise the
history. It is faster.
See what India’s great son, Mr Kuldip Nair has to say about 26/11 and
Karkare:
Quote: More worrisome are the Hindu extremists rearing their head. The
murder of police officer Hemant Karkare, who was probing the Malegaon
blasts, was the doing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad or Bajrang Dal”
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/columnists/16-kuldip-nayar-politics-of-terrorism-hs-01
See how simple it is to present TRUTH. If you want first mover
advantage, it is time to write a Book :
November 26th 2008, Mumbai : Revolt of the oppressed against the vile
Hindu Elite.
You can try a Bharat Ratna for yourself and freedom fighter’s pension
for Mr Kasab
Ashish Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 4:01 pm
@SKS
for a few pieces of silver.. Mr Nayar can be made to say anything..
He does not find a publisher on this side of the border anymore; don’t
judge him too harshly.. he needs to earn a living somehow.
Gopi Thomas Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 6:12 pm
@Ashish
I will take Kuldip against Naqvi (who also writes for Dawn) anytime!
SKS Mumbai says:
March 10, 2010 at 4:11 pm
@Ashish
the latest seems to be “garv se kaho hum internet hindu hain”
Rajeev Reply:
March 10th, 2010 at 9:21 pm
Nice one…
Indian says:
March 11, 2010 at 9:59 am
Victim Swami Laxmanananda portrayed as a villain by biased media
Alarming 5 fold increase in Kandhamal Christian population from six
per cent in 1971 to 27 per cent in 2001 ,It began with the arrival of
Christian missionaries in the area who found the remote region very
conducive to conduct prosetylization amongst the poor tribals. The
conversions continued unhindered until the arrival of Swami
Laxmanananda who put strenuous efforts to stop conversions and help
reconversion to Hindouism as well. If not for his effort Kandhamal
would have been another Nagaland in the making where the separatist
movement has wrecked havoc in the state. The aggressive Christian
proselytization in Orissa today pitched previously peaceful tribals
into warring camps of Christians and non-Christian. This has has
vitiated the peace that has existed with various communities for
millenia. Next target is KARNATAKA and they are facing stiff
resistance from Hindus here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SKS Mumbai says:
March 12, 2010 at 10:25 pm
Another TRAIL BLAZING Research!!
Truth behind Sachin’s 200 runs Innings. Must Read
http://altnews.asia/content/2010/03/11/who-controls-fanatic-india-xi-dr-abdul-ruff-colachal-0
Author is one more feather in the crowded cap of our JN University of
Secular Research Sciences.
Ashish Reply:
March 12th, 2010 at 11:42 pm
@SKS,
does the JNU reserve seats for the mentally challenged?
sanjeev Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 7:54 pm
@ ashish
Infact it has become fashionable to criticize govt and hindus in JNU.
There is whole lot a generation mostly elite bengali who tretas it
fashionable to be politically correct and being anti national.
Unfortunately the leftist brigade have penetarted deeply in JNU
faculty where it has become fashionable to criticise anything indian,
Infact JNU has proved to be a factory of producing traitors in the
garb of liberal thinkers
sanjeev Reply:
March 14th, 2010 at 7:58 pm
@ Ashish
Yes there is reservation for such elements like Rauff in centres of
JNU in schools of languages and international relations. These centres
are for Urdu, Arabic, Persian, west asian studiess, etc.
In fact these centres are reserved exclusively of urdu-persian- arabi
speaking intellectuals.
Hence we used to call these departments as UPA
Gopi Thomas Reply:
March 13th, 2010 at 1:52 pm
It also shows people live in different planets. Also, it is like
Newton’s law. The more appeasement and more give aways, the more
demand for more and cries of discrimination. The person’s last name
sounds like a typical Kerala “house” name; and if he is from there, it
is an even “bigger” problem. Because whatever may be the issue in
other parts of India, they were part of the ruling coalition from
almost day 1; they got their district formed, they are one of the
richest groups etc etc.
SKS Mumbai says:
March 13, 2010 at 6:29 pm
@Ashish
Reservations for mentally challenged?
Interesting question , but for which levele admission or for faculty.
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/they-call-me-muslim/2010/02/28/budgeting-for-minorities/
My Name Is Bal Thackeray
In the middle of the Shiv Sena’s rampage against Shah Rukh Khan’s My
Name Is Khan in Bombay, came the delightful news that someone had
blackened Pramod Muthalik’s face in Bangalore just as he was preparing
to oppose Valentine’s Day celebrations on Sunday.
I think it is rich that he should describe the act as “undemocratic”
and against freedom of expression – as though such freedoms are the
prerogative of just the bigots of this country and the rest of us have
no democratic rights or freedom to do as we please, at all!
But that also brought to mind the fact that perhaps the Shiv Sena in
Bombay has been the biggest loser this Valentine season. They are the
original party poopers of Valentine’s Day celebrations – there was a
time when Bal Thackeray had become synonymous with the term. I recall
a friend in a raging fight with her husband who would not take her out
to dinner one Valentine’s day one year. When this musty and old-
fashioned gent started a spiel on Indian culture and traditions, my
friend walked off in a huff, muttering, “There is no fun in asking Bal
Thackeray out to dinner, anyway!”
Now the sainiks have no time to mount an attack as of yore on card and
gift companies who might want to make a killing as people celebrate
their love for each other. In any case, they have no reason. The Shiv
Sena is now in the hands of Thackeray’s son Uddhav and he has no love
lost for his divorced sister-in-law, Smita.
According to my information from inside Matoshree, the Sena only ever
took up the anti-Valentine’s Day cause purely for reasons of personal
pique. When they started the campaign sometime in the late Nineties,
Smita was very thick with her father-in-law Bal Thackeray. And
Thackeray Sr was pretty miffed one December when a very well-known
card and gift company –which puts up huge Valentines Day hearts and
arches all across urban India — refused to sponsor his daughter-in-
law’s Mukti Foundation event in the battle against AIDS.
I am told that they had burnt their fingers the previous year – they
were not paid their share of the dues even after several reminders and
appeals and so decided to cut their losses by determining never to
sponsor such an event ever again. None of Thackeray’s cajoling,
pleading or threatening would budge this company.
So when Valentine’s Day came around a few weeks later in February,
Thackeray decided to get even. For years after that the Sena
vandalised all card shops and gift outlets on Valentine’s Day – and
then, one year, it abruptly ceased. It must have been a coincidence
surely that by then the reins had been handed over to Uddhav and his
brother divorced that year. I believe Uddhav saw no point in opposing
something that had caught on like fire, particularly for someone he
considered no longer a member of the Thackeray household; indeed for
someone he felt had no claim to the Thackeray name any longer.
It is also significant that Raj Thackeray actually encouraged the
celebration of love soon after he formed his Maharashtra Navnirman
Sena –he put up posters encouraging youths to learn ball room dancing
(though that stopped after the first year when he received flak for
encouraging westernisation among Indian youth).
Today, the whole world has seen how Shah Rukh Khan has stood up to Bal
Thackeray and refused to pay up – yes, at the end of the day, that is
what, I believe, this was all about. The Sena targeted Shah Rukh only
because he had a film coming up and knew that producers and
distributors would rather buy off the trouble than risk vandalisation
and block crores of rupees riding on their films (that’s what Karan
Johar did after all vis-à-vis Wake Up, Sid and Raj Thackeray). I
salute Shah Rukh for keeping producers and distributors, too, from
giving in to such low blackmailing tactics.
However, very few people know that much before Shah Rukh, one card
company in India had silently determined not to give in to cheap arm-
twisting and risked – even suffered – vandalisation and monetary
losses for years before the Sena got off its back and the celebration
of love began to happen in Bombay in right earnest.
Of course, the individual for whom these obstructionist activities
were undertaken was herself organising highly expensive celebratory
dinners for couples at her various restaurants across the city much
before the vandalisation ceased, quite exposing the duplicity of the
Shiv Sena in its campaigns – a point that has now been underscored by
Raj Thackeray. For the first time I agree with Raj – if the Sena can
allow cultural exchanges between India and Pakistan to go forward
unfettered, then they have an ulterior motive in targeting Shah Rukh
Khan.
And that is not because he is Muslim or supported Pakistani cricket
players. It is because he had a film coming up which had nearly a
billion rupees riding on it. And opportunities like these are not
something to let go of — if Your Name Is Bal Thackeray.
(38 votes, average: 4.53 out of 5)
Posted by Sujata Anandan on Friday, February 12, 2010 at 4:58 pm
Filed under India · Tagged Bal Thackeray, Bangalore, blackened Pramod
Muthalik, Bombay, My Name Is Khan, rampage, Shahrukh Khan, Shiv Sena,
Valentine’s Day celebrations
102 Responses to “My Name Is Bal Thackeray”
Kushal says:
February 13, 2010 at 12:31 pm
Great piece, Sujata. But I’m with Manish – not only the Sena(s) but
ALL political parties have ulterior motives behind their causes.
Kushal Reply:
February 13th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
Btw, do you suppose the Sena will demand a cut of MNIK’s takings since
they have practically driven the whole nation to watch it, just to
take a stand?
Sujata Anandan Reply:
February 15th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Ha, ha, ha! Tht will take some gall!
Anurav Reply:
February 14th, 2010 at 10:55 am
True. ALL political parties have ulterior motives but only a handful
like Sena keeps the city as hostage.
Sujata Anandan Reply:
February 15th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Agree, Bunny. But like Anurav says all political parties have their
agenda but only ones like the Sena hold the city to ransom
Kushal Reply:
February 16th, 2010 at 6:17 pm
I’m no advocate for the Sena(s), Sujata and Anurav. But I wonder how a
government can allow things to reach such a state that a party CAN
hold a city to ransom.
What about THOSE ulterior motives?
Harry says:
February 13, 2010 at 1:22 pm
Hi sujata, why didn’t u publish my comment.
Sujata Anandan Reply:
February 15th, 2010 at 2:38 pm
Have no control over this , Harry
Anil says:
February 13, 2010 at 3:57 pm
Not much debate when Nilesh Rane a congress MP held Maharashtra to
ransom on the film Zhenda. He even managed to have the film release
postponed. Nice government sponsored promotion for MNIK. 24 hours
prime time coverage. Great going. Keep it up
Mohin says:
February 13, 2010 at 6:33 pm
Bal Thackare is a ordinary Man,is a not God,He is using ordinary
Peoples to him as Powerful
Certainly he fails.If i am CM of Maharastra Surely He will be
furnished.
Anil Kumar says:
February 13, 2010 at 10:13 pm
In the middle of the Shiv Sena’s rampage against Shah Rukh Khan’s My
Name Is Khan in Bombay, came the “delightful” news ..
See this is the problme with socalled educated class of India.. Here
this madam found that news delightful.
As much as I disapprove the nonsense of valentine’s day protest it’s
equally disturbing that people midn you educated one at that find this
vandalism when the recepient is their object of hate find it
delightful..
What is the difference between Muthalik’s army spreading nonsense and
these idiots who blackend his face that too in a panel debate..
Sane people shold be the last oen to endorse these behavious otherwise
you lose the right to complain when army of muthaliksfo the world go
on rampage
Rajeev says:
February 13, 2010 at 10:46 pm
I think it is SRK desperate attempt to equal 3 idiots collections by
any means…what a chichora khan!!!
Rajeev says:
February 14, 2010 at 12:20 am
This controversy started by SRK is just to promote MNIK so that his
movie can beat collections for 3 Idiot.
What a Chichora loser SRK is!!!
What fools we Indians are!!! This mediocre actor has taken this nation
for a ride with Congress in arms and media in his shoes.
By the way our Maharashtra police was so busy gaurding SRK’s movie
that they forgot to gaurd common people of pune (who have stood up to
Thackrey but forgot to stand up to terrorist sympathisers).
Rajeev says:
February 14, 2010 at 12:56 am
Let us see who gained and lost out of this controversy-
1. Congress – Gained political mileage in UP and Bihar by showing sham
sympathy towards north Indians in Mumbai. Gained political mileage
among muslim voters by supporting Shahrukh Khan and his pro-pakistani
stance (Pakistan is a great neighbor to have).
2. Rahul Gandhi – Has become a hero for UP and Bihar voters. By
supporting SRK, he has become hero of communal muslim voters and now
is going to Azamgarh to consolidate those gains.
3. Shiv Sena- After becoming irrelevant after MNS (Raj Thackrey)
hijacked its plank ably supported by congress led chavan govt., they
got an opportunity to get noticed. They miscalcuated big time because
they should know that India has moved on. We have now become immuned
to terrorism and are now more interested in making money. For us
escapist routes like movies are more important than lives of 200
Indians. As long as VIPs are not hurt, we don’t care and so does our
Media.
4. Media- Media got great TRP out of this controversy..loads of ads
and big money. The media under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi has also
started propaganda that rahul is next KING of India (Times of India).
This is the first time in the history of private television that
doordarshan stands ashamed in front of media’s pro-congress bias.
5. Aam Admi urf Ullu ka Pattha – Aam admi lost money on mediocre film
like MNIK, lost valuable time following useless pro-SRK and pro-Rahul
Baba story.
Nikhil says:
February 14, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Sujata,
UNHOLY NEXUS BETN BOLLYWOOD AND NEWS MEDIA IN INDIA:
Please read the article in Indian express today. They say it’s unique
in India where movie producers and stars own or have stake in the
content providers or business groups that own TV channels. This
furthers the deep suspicion in the MNIK controversy. SRK and Karan
Johar, most likely, are laughing their way to the bank. Shiv Sena
perhaps may’ve got a small share of it too. Who knows?
arvind says:
February 17, 2010 at 10:56 am
Thakray family jo khud mumbai ka nahi hai aur apne aap ko asli
mumbaikar batata hai , mumbai uski hai jo mumbai se sachha pyar karta
hai ,uske bare me sochta hai , ye logo ke bhawnao ko bhadkakar apne
roti ka intjam karte hai aur pure mumbai ke logo ke paise ko lutte
hai, pahle party banakar party fund ke paise se apna ghar chalate hai.
Agar thakray me himmat hai to north india jane wali kisi bhi train ke
genral compartment me baith kar dikhai, aur wo train non stopage ho to
shayad destintion tak pahunchte pahunchte wo history ke ek joker ban
kar rah jayenge . thakrey hosh me aao , nafrat ki aandhi mat failao ,
nahi to usi me mit jaoge .
Rajeev Reply:
February 17th, 2010 at 10:07 pm
It looks like a typical nautanki congressi speech.
shiuli says:
February 17, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Ms.Sujata, great insight. Enjoyed the subtle wit in your writing also
the way you put across your point, by not badgering it down the neck.
Ashish Kolarkar says:
February 17, 2010 at 2:10 pm
Thanks Sujata for revealing interesting secret motive of Thackeray’s
in public domain. I’m sure you have lot of such secrets to offer in
near future. Enjoyed your blog.
arvind says:
February 18, 2010 at 10:20 am
It’s real voice of truth indian , agar dam hai to thkray family ko
train me bitha kar dekh lo saath me tum bhi aa jana
AKshay_Marathi says:
February 21, 2010 at 6:39 pm
Hi..,
THIS IS REALLY DISAPPOINTING TO READ THAT , U ARE PORPOSEFULLY USIN
WORD BOMBAY.
U HATE THAKRE O.K. BUT WHY R U INSULTING WHOLE MARATHI BY REPEATNG
BOMBAY.
MAY BE ONE TO GET OUR LOST PRIDE AND TO SAVE FROM HUMILIATION FROM
INDIAN WE HAVE TO SUPPORT THAKRE.
PLZ. DO’T CALL IT BAMBAY IT IS MUMBAI.
Rajeev Reply:
February 23rd, 2010 at 10:47 pm
These jouranlist are extremist fascist who impose their ideologies on
others.
Arpit says:
February 24, 2010 at 1:36 am
Its was only the the publicity stunt by Bal Thackeray. He only wants a
topic every time to be in limelite, as he did when he was delivering
comments on north Indians in Mumbai……..nothing else…I think this type
of political party should be banned in India…I think they people wanna
run country as what they want………………
Earthling says:
March 11, 2010 at 7:28 pm
thakeray is a very bad boy…never will he do good in the face of
indians….corrupting mind sets of people and talking as if he is doing
all good for india…
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/singly-political/2010/02/12/my-name-is-bal-thackeray/#more-135
Happy Birthday, Netaji
As Bal Thackeray turns 83 on Saturday (January 23), I cannot help
recalling the politics of birthdays that I have witnessed over the
years.
The first political birthday party that I ever attended was that of S
B Chavan (father of Maharashtra’s Chief Minister Ashok Chavan),
sometime in the late Eighties.Sharad pawar had just merged his
Congress(S) with the Congress(I) and become Chief Minister the
previous year. And though Chavan Sr was inducted into the union
cabinet as Home Minister, I think he was mighty miffed at having been
summarily displaced to accommodate the Maratha warlord.
The move opened up a chasm between the so-called `loyalists’ in the
Congress and those who were Pawar’s acolytes. The bickering and
nitpicking went on for months, until Chavan’s birthday arrived on July
14 the next year. Without making any overt moves that might seem as a
campaign against the party high command (it was still Rajiv Gandhi
then), Congress loyalists thought they would use Chavan Sr’s birthday
to put Pawar in his place.
The party was held at a star hotel in South Bombay and a huge
chocolate cake was rolled in to stand under the chandelier in the main
ballroom of that hotel. The hosts had invited all and sundry,
including journalists, except for one very important person – Chief
Minister Sharad Pawar. They were full of glee as Chavan was
fashionably late at his own birthday party and crowed at how awful
Pawar might feel when he read about it in the papers the next day.
The birthday boy arrived an hour after he was scheduled to cut the
cake and we all gathered round him as he held the ribboned knife in
his hand and prepared to set the ball rolling. Even as those around
him clapped and sang the birthday tune, I turned round to see why
there was an unusual hush around the edges of that room.
Sharad Pawar was standing at the door and, even as Chavan cut a slice,
Pawar moved slowly towards the centre of the room. And before Chavan
could lift the slice and feed it to the person nearest him (I forget
who), Pawar was standing with an extended hand to greet Chavan a happy
birthday. A chagrined Chavan had to feed the cake to Pawar, instead;
they hugged and exchanged pleasantries even as many of the Congress
workers stood around in consternation..
Chavan graciously invited him to join the party but Pawar demurely
declined. He had another important meeting to attend, he said by way
of explanation, but had just dropped in as he was passing by the hotel
en route to this other function. He left in minutes but it took
several more for the others to regain their composure and continue
with the now subdued celebrations.
Next day, as I and another colleague nosed round Pawar’s office, we
were told in confidence by a close confidante that Pawar had heard
about the plan to cut him out of the party and was damned if he would
be defeated by a bunch of `upstarts’ or provide a lot of grist to the
mill of journalists who would have a blast the next morning. So he
decided to play party pooper-of-sorts (because that is what he had
turned out to be the previous night).
We were told that Pawar had arrived at the time given out for the cake-
cutting ceremony but sent a sniffer upstairs to find out how things
stood. He decided he would not be kept waiting for Chavan inside the
hotel and asked his cavalcade to circle round the locality of the
hotel several times until Chavan himself had rolled in (he had posted
some cops as lookouts). Pawar then timed his entry perfectly to
nonplus Chavan and his supporters with, “I heard you were having a
party for your birthday. So I decided to drop in myself and greet you
in person.’’
And then he went home. Satisfied that he had nipped any mischief in
the bud. Chavan never had another birthday party like that one again,
though his constituents would celebrate the day in his hometown off
and on over the years.
And as far as I remember, Pawar has only ever had one birthday party –
when he turned 60 nearly a decade ago. There was a five-star event
with the who’s who of India represented the previous evening. But it
was his public rally the next day that saddened me the most. For, even
then it was no secret that he was dying to be Prime Minister. Atal
Behari Vajpayee was in office at the time and Pawar was at pains to
explain to his supporters that it was still not too late for him. “In
this country no one becomes Prime Minister before they are 70,’’ he
said, though that was not strictly true – Indira and Rajiv Gandhi each
had been much younger. “Look at P V Narasimha Rao, he was half way
through his seventies before he became PM; even Vajpayee now is past
75. I am yet only 60. There is still plenty of time.’’
I wondered if his support base was shrinking and he needed to say that
to stop them from abandoning him altogether. Ten years later he is
still not PM and I wonder how much more time he would now need to get
to that high office.
But it is not just Congressmen who are fond of birthdays. Manohar
Joshi had had himself presented with a 60-diamond necklace on – what
else? – his 60th birthday in a very public ceremony in Bombay wherein
he laid claim to a flawless career stating proudly that no one could
find a breath of scandal against him. Bal Thackeray, then about to
turn 75, was at the time besieged with allegations that his nephew Raj
Thackeray had murdered middle-class professional Ramesh Kini and he
did not take that comment kindly. Joshi was out of office within weeks
and Thackeray barred anyone from going to town on his own birthday.
Joshi has never had another party again.
Nearly a decade later, Thackeray is still off a public celebration of
his birthday. Shiv Sainiks, though, have organised blood donation
camps, free distribution of grains et al to mark the event but the
Sena patriarch has decided to remain out of public view.
I think he is the wisest of them all. I am told he is superstitious –
kahin nazar naa lag jaye!
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
Posted by Sujata Anandan on Friday, January 22, 2010 at 7:45 pm
Filed under India · Tagged Bal Thackeray, Maratha warlord, political
birthday party, Rajiv Gandhi, S B Chavan, Sharad Pawar
6 Responses to “Happy Birthday, Netaji!”
Dev says:
January 22, 2010 at 11:03 pm
And we’ll never know what became of Netaji.
Anil says:
January 23, 2010 at 11:36 am
Wish Pawar had used the same cunningness to improve agriculture sector
and bring down prices. He is just incapable of thinking big for the
country. The only person who really knew how to celebrate birthday in
a manner beffiting his personality was Chach Nehru. He really spent
quality time with children. Others have just aped him.
Ashish Kolarkar says:
January 23, 2010 at 8:35 pm
Due to such shrewdness and intelligence Pawar is in the limelight for
such a long time. He is too ambitious and believes in playing long
innings. Who knows one day this Maratha Sardar would hoist flag from
Lal Kila?
But it seems that Pawar is losing his popularity for his foot in mouth
comments recently. He seems to have all the problems but no soultions
to Offer to common man. He is bent on taking his role too casually.
Good that Thackeray Sr has finally realised that birthday bashes are
meant for sycophancy only and don’t serve any good purpose.
vipin malik says:
January 24, 2010 at 12:03 am
you remeber for netaji all indian popel it was great man
vipin malik says:
January 24, 2010 at 12:10 am
i am a fan of Netaji
Anil Kumar says:
January 24, 2010 at 3:51 am
These leaders who set goal in terms of this or that chair make me
cringe..
All these leader needs a plenary session with Narendra Modi..
Everytime anyone asks him about chairs his reply is I never lust for
chair I lost for work to be done target to be achieved with or without
chair.. Chair is not the destination and that’s how it should be..
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/singly-political/2010/01/22/happy-birthday-netaji/#more-131
Jhenda ooncha rahe…
14 Comments
Ram Gopal Verma’s Sarkar and Sarkar Raj are broadly thought to be
based on the life of Bal Thackeray. In large portions, the theme might
be taken from episodes from the Sena tiger’s life but the intelligence
and dexterity of managing politics that has characterised Amitabh
Bachchan’s portrayal of Sarkar in the two films have never been Bal
Thackeray’s forte.
Thackeray is an instinctive politician whose reactions have always
been spontaneous rather than well-thought out. Moreover, he has
thrived not on his programmes or issues of his making but on the
mistakes of other parties (in large measure, the Congress). For
example, the one and only time that the Shiv Sena came to power in
Maharashtra in alliance with the BJP was in 1995, soon after the 1992
riots and the 1993 bomb blasts when people thought and believed that
the Congress was playing far too many games and still remembered the
protectionist campaign of Shiv Sainiks through those burning weeks.
If the Sena was unable to return in 1999, 2004 and 2009 again, it is
because in these years, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress
Party, in alliance in Maharashtra, have largely done little wrong and
Thackeray has found no gap in the fabric to tear it apart.
But the Shiv Sena’s massive defeat at both the Lok Sabha and the
Assembly elections can be largely attributed to art — or at least
politics posing as art. Just before the Lok Sabha polls, Raj Thackeray
had helped to produce a film titled Mee Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje
Bhosale Boltoy (I, Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosale, speak), with
Mahesh Manjrekar playing the title role, that was an indictment of the
complacence and laid-back attitudes of Maharastrians. It portrayed,
through film, the political point that Raj had been hammering at for
months: that the Maharashtrian is content with just a table, khurchi
ani pankha (a table, a chair and a fan). That he did not strive for
much more and allowed others to walk all over him. The film exhorted
Maharashtrians to become more combative in their own interest and,
like Oliver, never stop asking for more
It released in Maharashtra’s cinemas just before the producers-
multiplex imbroglio and so ran for weeks and weeks and had a great
hand in influencing a large number of Maharashtrian youth who went
right out and voted for Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
Now the Shiv Sena has come out with its counter to that film – benami
again, like Raj’s production of Chhatrapati, but with no kid gloves on
this time. It appears to be a real-life account of the war between the
two cousins – indeed, from the stills released so far, it is very
difficult to spot the differences between the actors who play Raj and
Uddhav and the original cousins.
Titled Jhenda (Flag), it seems to be a mixture of truth and
exaggeration and some of the alleged falsehoods have already compelled
the producer to make some cuts and changes and promise to re-release
the film without the offending portions.
But while everyone — from Narayan Rane’s son to sundry Sena leaders —
are objecting to their unfair portrayals, the one man it lampoons the
most – Raj Thackeray – is uncharacteristically silent.
I haven’t seen Jhenda yet but I am told that there is a scene where
Raj’s character dons a skullcap and attends an Iftaar party. I don’t
know how true that portrayal is, for in all my years I at least have
not seen Raj Thackeray in a skull cap at an Iftaar party. When Raj
launched his MNS he did mean to be all inclusive and there are many
Muslims in his party who are devoted to Bal Thackeray’s nephew. Yet
they have all taken a so-called `mature’ decision not to agitate or
protest.
It could be because Raj well realises that any protest will only help
the film at the box office and more people will end up seeing his
portrayal in an unflattering light than they would if he just gives it
the royal ignore. But, a little bird tells me, Raj has also been cut
down to size and is no longer sure what his protests will lead to.
At the constitution of the current Assembly in Maharashtra, he
protested against Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Asim Azmi taking his oath in
Hindi. That has led to another non-bailable warrant from a court in
Madhya Pradesh (in addition to cases pending against him in courts in
Bihar and Jharkhand, just transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court))
and suddenly he has no Godfathers.
It is largely believed that the previous Congress government egged him
on against the Shiv Sena but the Assembly elections proved that Raj
was eating into even the Congress and the NCP voter base. So they have
no reason to nurture a Frankenstein’s Monster. But it may also be
true, as I have heard, that the Congress is also squeezing his
business interests to gag him into submission. Moreover, he needs to
keep is silence, again, to buy freedom for those of his MLAs who were
suspended for four years from the Maharashtra Assembly for beating up
Azmi for taking his oath in Hindi.
When I asked a top functionary in the government why those MLAs were
not expelled outright, he said, “If we had done that, it would have
led to by-elections and Raj Thackeray might have come back with a bang
and got more arrogant. This is our version of suspended animation; he
cannot now afford to create more trouble out of fear that there might
be more action that will actually pinch.’’
Without the alleged protection offered by the previous government, I
think Raj is now truly feeling that pinch. And the Sena is not far
behind in hoisting him with his own petard and, in addition, hoisting
its own flag — both the party standard and the celluloid variety.
But, still, I believe Chhatrapati …. was a far more intelligent film –
for one, it needed no cuts, for another it touched a chord with
Maharashtra’s youth — than Jhenda could ever be.
(3 votes, average: 3.67 out of 5)
Posted by Sujata Anandan on Friday, January 8, 2010 at 6:33 pm
Filed under India · Tagged Amitabh Bachchan, Bal Thackeray, bjp,
Congress, Lok Sabha polls, Mahesh Manjrekar, Raj Thackeray, Raj
Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Ram Gopal Verma’s Sarkar,
sarkar raj, Shiv Sainiks
14 Responses to “Jhenda ooncha rahe…”
Ashish Kolarkar says:
January 8, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Thanks Sujata for telling us about “Chhatrapati….” and its impact in
recent elections. I think so much has come in print/visual media about
Thackeray family that people have started losing interest in it. With
the desertion of Smita Thackeray the things have become too
intriguing. How come daughter-in-law basking under the glory of father-
in-law could leave the later at this stage for greater political
aspiration?
I’ve read a research paper which said that there is great similarity
in genes of nephew and Uncle. I think the Raj and Bal Thackeray prove
the theory. Raj has got cartooning and same eccentric nature from his
uncle. He is too unpredictable. He is on the threshold of finding his
identity after initial euphoria. It is time for him to invent more
tricks to be in the market with due help from ruling party.
Sujata Anandan Reply:
January 11th, 2010 at 6:15 pm
Yes, there is great similarity — and even in terms of events history
is repeating itself vis-a-vis Rraj Thackeray. Will write about those
by and by
Anil Kumar says:
January 8, 2010 at 9:39 pm
Congress will keep him alive.> he need not woory.> Congress always
creates fransktein .
Punjab was gifted Bhindarwale in order to check Akali Dal. Congressi
have no scruples when it coems to snatchign power they care two hoot
about even national interest.
Maharashtra was first gifted Baal thackrey to check labour uninsit and
communist’s rise. now we haevRaj Thackrey to check Baal thackreey
Assam have ben figted crores of illegal bangaldeshi
List goes on and on.
Country can go to dogs as long as these gimmciks insure perpetuation
fo power of congress they are fair game for anythign and everything
Pankaj Reply:
January 9th, 2010 at 11:08 am
country is with dogs and *******!
Sujata Anandan Reply:
January 11th, 2010 at 6:16 pm
You are right on all counts
bobby says:
January 9, 2010 at 1:28 pm
Raj may be silent also because there are no elections round the
corner.
Sujata Anandan Reply:
January 11th, 2010 at 6:17 pm
Well, the municipal elections are due next year which are crucila to
him in terms of his business interests across Bombay
Anil says:
January 9, 2010 at 11:31 pm
Narayan Rane and his son are doing more goonda giri than the entire
Thackrey clan put together. There is absolutely no unfair portrayal of
the the former. They should not crib. Any portrayal of their character
will be a milder version of their true self. Ranes have been the most
unscrupulous turncoats in Maharashtra politics. No fan of Shiv Sena
but Congress have won in Maratha land becuase of the infighting in
Sena. Haven’t seen ‘Zhenda’ but ‘ Mee Chhatrapati Boltoye’ by Mahesh
Manjrekar is a classic Marathi film
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BmqdU0tpRk
Sujata Anandan Reply:
January 11th, 2010 at 6:19 pm
However, the producer of jhenda has given in and agreed to delete the
offending scenes — that’s muscle power for you!
Sujata Anandan says:
January 11, 2010 at 6:18 pm
Well, the municipal elections are due next year which are crucial to
him in terms of his business interests…
Joe Zachs says:
January 18, 2010 at 1:43 pm
After watching Sarkar, I admire Ram Gopal Verma for how he hoodwinked
the vested interest into believing that it is a film about “His life”
A real master move Varma.
Dev says:
January 22, 2010 at 11:08 pm
I am reminded of a dialogue in a popular Hindi movie – Jhanda jish
desh ke bhi ho, danda Indian hona chahiye.
Mob rules OK.
Praveen Saxena says:
January 28, 2010 at 12:05 pm
The fact of the matter is that Raj Thakeray is a creation of the
Congress Party and a beneficiary of the mad rush 24×7 news channels.
The Congress has played these tricks in all states Maharashtra,
Punjab, Assam etc. The Kashmir mess is a result of the negligence
shown by the Congress govt at a crucial time.
The country ends paying the price for the dirty politics of the
Congress Party
Ashwatthama says:
February 6, 2010 at 11:20 am
Well Jhenda is way far superior film than Mi Shivaji…
I found MSRBB very stereotype and melodramatic and on the other side
Jhenda is extremely realistic and brilliant.
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/singly-political/2010/01/08/jhenda-ooncha-rahe%e2%80%a6/#more-126
‘Wrong of Pawar to seek Sena nod’
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, March 20, 2010
First Published: 00:51 IST(20/3/2010)
Last Updated: 00:53 IST(20/3/2010)
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan has said it was wrong of people to go to
parties like the Shiv Sena to seek permission to screen a film or hold
cricket matches.
Chavan was referring to Union Agriculture Minister and NCP chief
Sharad Pawar’s meeting with Sena chief Bal Thackeray before the IPL
started to get an assurance from the Sena that the matches in Mumbai
pass peacefully.
This was soon after the Sena, protesting the attacks on Indians in
Australia, said it would not allow Australian cricketers to play in
the IPL.
“Yes, it is wrong,” Chavan said in an interview to Vir Sanghvi for
CNBC-TV18’s programme Off the Record with Vir Sanghvi.
Sanghvi had asked Chavan if he approved of people going to the likes
of Thackeray for permission for holding matches or screening movies.
“Sharad Pawarji is a senior leader. He is in the Union
government and they say he went to discuss the IPL matches and issues
like that….Yes, there were a lot of eyebrows raised and asking why did
he go?” Chavan said.
Chavan, in reply to another query, also said the Sena was losing
ground and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena will probably be the main
opposition.
Chavan also talked about the trouble he was having with alliance
partner NCP in handling the Mumbai police. “There have been political
problems,” he said. “I don’t deny that…”
The CM also admitted that there was “politicisation” of the police
force. “We have to select people with integrity…,” he said.
“Looking at the situation during 26/11, we have been cautious. We have
to put a stop to all this and see that proper people handle jobs of
equal importance and men of integrity and people with strength and
courage and the determination to fight, take charge.”
On factionalism in the Mumbai police, Chavan said there have been
differences but they have been sorted out.
Tune in to Off the Record with Vir Sanghvi on CNBC-TV18 at 8 pm on
Saturday and 9 pm on Sunday.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/mumbai/Wrong-of-Pawar-to-seek-Sena-nod/Article1-521102.aspx
Goondas, mind your own business
By Khushwant Singh
Did Shah Rukh Khan and the Maharashtra government score a decisive
victory over the Shiv Sena by showing ‘My Name Is Khan’ in Mumbai’s
cinemas?
Did liberal elements in Karnataka score over Rama Sene by blackening
the face of Pramod Muthalik? Many of us think so and hope both senas
have been dumped on the garbage heap. Unfortunately that is not so.
Shiv Sena’s balloon has no doubt been somewhat deflated but not burst.
It was the same when Rahul Gandhi travelled by suburban train, walking
down streets of Mumbai — a one time performance. And Muthalik has
wiped that soot off his face and is leading his storm troopers to
impose his will on people who do not agree with him.
My reasoning is simple: you cannot put down subversive elements
without having a strong government, which can effectively deal with
bullies. Their strength is their ability to damage property and rough
up people: No one wants to lose his property and get beaten up. The
most vulnerable are mill owners, cinema hall proprietors, eateries and
film people.
They will be eager to patch up with the Thackerays and the Muthaliks.
Take it from me that soon SRK will come to an understanding with the
Thackerays. It has been done before. Sunil Dutt and his daughter Priya
Dutt of the Congress sought Bal Thackeray’s blessings before the
elections. So did Pritish Nandi to become Sena’s nominee to the Rajya
Sabha.
Bal Thackeray is happy to receive important people at his residence,
Matoshree. They kowtow to him and touch his feet while he sits on his
throne draped in saffron robes and rudraksh malas, looking like a
patriarch of all he surveys. He aches to be loved to and is as liberal
in his blessings as he is in offering visitors chilled beer.
I have never met his recalcitrant nephew Raj Thackeray but his modus
operandi is much the same as his uncle’s. So I fear the present
euphoria generated by the release of ‘My Name Is Khan’ is going to be
short-lived. We have yet to build up a mass support of those who can
confront these senas’s goondas and teach them how to mind their own
business.
Bharatrihari
Almora-born Ramesh Chandra Shah was a professor of English in Hamidia
College, Bhopal, till 1997. However, he won acclaim as a Hindi poet
and novelist and was honoured with several awards. He stumbled on
Bharatrihari’s poems in Sanskrit and decided to learn the language; to
be able to translate them into English. I published some selections in
‘Yojana’ and ‘The Illustrated Weekly of India’. It is a privilege to
publish some more a third time. The translations are in rubai form and
read as well as Fitzgarald’s translations of Omar Khayyam.
‘Thus Spoke Bharatrihari’ is divided into three sections: Niti
(polity), Sringar (erotica) and Vairagya (asceticism). First I give
examples of Sringar:
You are so lucky if you can admire The lineaments of satisfied desire
In your young bride; suck at her honey’s mouth And let her languor in
your arms retire And:
The bookful blockheads preaching self-restraint Do not consider what’s
really at stake Love’s play on passionate breasts and thighs once
known Such amorous raptures who can ever forsake.
In the third verse he rues the futility of life spent in making love:
The joy companionship of women brings Ends in despair and
disillusionment
Self-knowledge is the only certain good Leading to calm of mind, all
passions spent.
Finally the search for salvation:
Blest are the saints who from all passions free Possess their souls
and live in ecstasy With boundless space as garment and a bowl Of rice
as food and woods as company.
And:
Drunk with delusion’s ever tempting wine We mortals fail to see the
spark Divine
Caught in the vicious whirls of nights and days Our soul ne’er stops
to think of its decline Dress Code
Henry Ford II, son of Henry Ford I, who felt that his father was
generally improperly dressed and did not adhere to the correct dress
code, had the following conversation with him:
Henry Ford II: Dad, you are the biggest manufacturer of cars and a
very renowned person in America. Then why do you dress so shabbily?
Henry Ford I: Yes. I dress the way I like, as everyone in America
knows me as Henry Ford.
Henry Ford II: But, when you go abroad, there also you dress in the
same way, even in poshest of places.
Henry Ford I: Yes, of course, abroad also I dress the same way,
because there no one knows me as Henry Ford.
(Contributed by Colonel Trilok Mehrotra, Noida)
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/58941/goondas-mind-your-own-business.html
Sid Harth
Following are various stats, facts and figures on crime in India and
judicial data , picked out of newspapers (mainly Hindustan Times),
magazines (mainly India Today), the BBC and various sources on the
web. These figures are not meant to be comprehensive lists, but rather
statistical trivia or factual snippets. For basic general facts and
figures about India as well as several Indian states, please see the
Quick Reference popups on the right hand side of this page, or go to
the main page of India statistics, facts and figures . For a full list
of links to our statistics pages, see the About India index or the
bottom of the right navigation bar on this page.
Lines marked with an asterisk (*) are recently added entries.
stats on court cases, murder and jails in India
- pending court cases country wide: more than 20 million (end of
2002)
- persons in jail waiting for trial: over 1 million (end of 2002)
- conviction rate of court cases: around 1 percent (according to Prem
Shankar Jha)
- number of murders in India between 1998 and 2000: 37,170
- murders committed in Uttar Pradesh: 7,200 to 7,500 per year [HT Jun
04]
- occupancy of Muzzafarnagar district jail in UP: 1,155 prisoners
(oct 03)
- capacity of Muzzafarnagar district jail in UP: 530 prisoners (oct
03)
- number of prisoners jailed in 60 prisons in Uttar Pradesh: 50,939
(oct 03)
various crime statistics and data
- people who died instantly in Bhopal on 2-3 Dec 1984 from the Union
Carbide gas
leak: 1,700 [HT May 04]
- people who have died since Dec 1984 from after effects from the
Union Carbide
gas leak in Bhopal: 22,000 [HT May 04]
- people who continue to suffer from varied diseases affecting
respiratory,
reproductive systems as a result of the 1984 Union Carbide gas leak
in Bhopal:
570,000 [HT May 04]
- * number of persons reported missing in Nithari (impoverished area
in Noida, Delhi): 41 within 2 years [REU Jan 07]
- * number of cases of kidnapping, murder and rape registered by the
CBI in
Noida relating to suspected serial killers Moninder Singh Pandher
and
Surendra Koli: 19 (CBI: (Central Bureau of Investigation) [REU Jan
07]
- * number of polythene bags containing body parts found in drains
near the
suspect: 40 [REU Jan 07]
- number of policemen in Delhi: 59,077 [HT Jun 04]
- number of finials missing at the Red Fort Delhi Gate: 10 (originals
could fetch each
about 33,600 Euro on black market)
- drop in crime in Delhi Nov 2003 (compared to Nov 2002): murder: -36
% --
robbery: -23 % -- extortion: -73 % -- rioting: -70 %
- number of crimes in the Chambal ravines (UP) within past 5 years:
approx 4,000
kidnappings & 180 murders (The UP government has proposed to combat
crimes and
bandits in the Chambal ravines by setting up a 371 acre lion safari
park with 5 lions to
attract tourists) [BBC, Aug 2005]
crime in Government / corruption
- candidates facing criminal charges in the Oct 2004 Maharashtra
election: 91 out
of 163 Shiv Sena party candidates -- 45 out of 111 BJP candidates
-- 31 out of 124
Nationalist Congress party candidates -- 30 out of 157 Congress
candidates [BBC Oct 04]
- number of UP candidates with a criminal record who made it to the
14th Lok
Sabha: at least 12 [HT May 04]
- number of Uttar Pradesh's MLAs who have been through processes of
the law
reserved for criminals: 205 (of a total of 403 MLAs - Member of the
Legislative
Assembly) [HT beginning 2004]
- amount of money taken by MPs in recent "cash for questions"
scandal:
232 - 10,000 US Dollars in bribes for asking questions in
parliament [BBC, Dec 2005]
- number of MPs suspended by India's main political parties for
taking bribes,
end 2005: 9 (Congress: 1 -- BJP: 5 -- BSP: 3) [BBC, Dec 2005]
some facts on laws, sentences & Court rules
- legal sentence for homosexuality: 10 years prison [BBC, Jan 2006]
- age of the colonial Indian Penal Code dealing with homosexuality:
145 years
[BBC, Jan 2006]
- year in which a petition for legalising homosexuality was dismissed
by the High
Court in Delhi: 2004 [BBC, Jan 2006]
- year in which the High Court in Delhi overturned the 1914
legislation and ruled
that women should be allowed to serve alcohol in public: 2005 [BBC,
Jan 2006]
"missing person" tourist stats
- number of registered "person gone missing" in the Kulu Valley (HP)
since 1992: 15
- estimated foreigners disappearance in the Kulu Valley (HP) for the
past decade: 50
(estimate by UK based pressure group Fair Trials Abroad)
- "mysterious" tourist deaths in Goa (jan 2003 - apr 2004): 59
data on crime against women
- official punishment for sex selection (i.e. abortion if child is
female): 3 years jail +
50,000 Rupees fine (equiv to 960 Euro)
- loss of female births within past 2 decades caused by abortion and
sex selection:
estimate of more than 10 million [BBC, Jan 2006]
- annual 'girl deficit' due to prenatal sex selection and selective
abortion: 500,000
according to researchers for the Lancet Journal [BBC, Jan 2006]
- rape cases pending in courts across the country: 56,000 [Oct 2003]
- * registered cases of rape in Delhi 2004: 550 [BBC, Aug 2005]
- rape cases in Delhi 2002: convicted: 98 -- acquitted: 344
- age of rape victims in Delhi: 75% are minors, and of those 25 % are
below 12 years
- registered cases of eve-teasing for Mar - Aug 2003 in Indian
metropoles: Delhi: 744
-- Mumbai:27 -- Kolkata:30 -- Chennai:143
- cases of rape for Mar - Aug 2003 in Indian metropoles: Delhi: 262
-- Mumbai: 40
-- Kolkata: 18 -- Chennai: 21
- officially recorded dowry deaths in major cities combined (Delhi,
Mumbai, Calcutta,
Chennai): 2002: 181 -- 2001: 121
- cases of crimes against women registered with the police in
Himachal Pradesh
2002: 920 (including 137 for rape, 138 for kidnap, 6 for dowry)
- Haryana cost of buffalo: 18,000 - 24,000 Rs (approx 345 - 460 Euro)
- Haryana cost of girl (human trafficking): 4000 Rs (approx 77 Euro)
some crime statistics of Himachal Pradesh
- number of cases of crime in HP from Apr 2003 to May 2004: 1,617
registered cases
- top on the Human Rights violators' list in Himachal Pradesh: Police
(HP Human
Rights Commission received 148 complaints involving police, that is
43 percent of the
complaints)
- cases registered under the NDPS Act in HP: 2002: 312 -- 2003:310
(NDPS: Narcotics, Drugs & Psychotropic Substances) [HT Mar 04]
- amount of drugs recovered by police in HP: 2002: 720 kg charas, 35
kg opium
-- 2003: 420 kg charas, 35 kg opium, 1.5 kg brown sugar
- number of police personnel involved in the annual "Destroy
Cannabis" operation
in the village of Malana in HP Sep 2004: team of 200 people from
Narcotics Control
Bureau, Kullu police and Home Guards [HT Sep 04]
stats on "Destroy Cannabis" operation in Malana Sep 2003 in HP
- cannabis growing area destroyed in Malana and surrounding: 1,100
bigha
(1 hectare = 12 bigha)
- duration of operation "Destroy Cannabis": 8 days (15 - 23
september)
- number of police or soldiers or helpers: 250 or more
- longest cannabis plant found: 15 feet 7 inches
- possible production from destroyed area: 300 kg charas
- area of destruction of cannabis fields in previous years: 1998: 939
bighas
-- 1999: 224 bighas -- 2000: 1,200 bighas -- 2002: 676 bighas (1
hectare = 12 bigha)
data sources & key:
AT: Asia Times, BBC: BBC online, BRIT: Britannica 2002, BSNL: BSNL
Telecom Trends, BSt: Business Standard, CIA: CIA Factbook India, CIN:
censusindia.net, CNEI: Chandigarh Newsline, c/net: c/net news, ConSu:
Content Sutra DI: Daily India, DNA: DNA India, EB: EquityBull, EI:
ExpressIndia, EW: EconomyWatch, FE: Financial Express, FL: Frontline,
GG: Gujarat Global, GTF: Global Technology Forum, GBoWR: Guinness Book
of World Records, HT: Hindustan Times, ID: IndiaDaily, IInfoLine:
India InfoLine IND: The Independent, ITo: India Today, NPBS: Nature
PBS, PhO: PhysOrg, RED: Rediff, REU: Reuters, Sify: Sify Broadband,
TH: The Hindu, TNJ: The News (Jang), ToI: Times of India, TT: The
Tribune,
http://www.neoncarrot.co.uk/h_aboutindia/india_crime_stats.html
Specimen Data Tables : Crime and Law
Cognizable Crimes Registered in India
(1995 to 2001)
Year Num.of Offences Ratio (IPC : SLL) Rate/100000 Inhab. Total
1995 1695696 4297476 1:2.53 5993172 -
1996 1709576 4586986 1:2.68 6296562 675.6
1997 1719820 4691439 1:2.73 6411259 671.2
1998 1778815 4403288 1:2.47 6182103 636.7
1999 1764629 3198902 1:1.78 4911730 497.8
2000 1771084 3396666 1:1.92 5167750 515.7
2001 1769308 3575230 1:02:02 5344538 520.4
Abbr.: IPC : Indian Penal Code.
SLL : Special and Local Laws.
Crime against Women
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) Andaman & Nicobar Islands |
Arunachal Pradesh | Assam | Chhattisgarh | Delhi | Goa | Himachal
Pradesh | Jharkhand | Kerala | Madhya Pradesh | Maharashtra | Manipur
| Orissa | Punjab | Rajasthan | Tamil Nadu | Tripura | Uttar Pradesh |
Uttaranchal | West Bengal |
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
Number of Cases Registered at National Commission for Women (NCW)
Related to Alleged Attacks on Women/Girl by Nature of Complaints in
India (01.11.2008 to 31.10.2009)
State/Age-Group-wise Victims of Total Rape Cases in India (2007)
Crime Head-wise Incidents of Crime Against Women in India (2001 to
2006)
Incidents of Custodial Rape in Police Custody in India (1995 to
2006)
Proportion of Crime Against Woman (Indian Penal Code) toward total
Indian Penal Code Crimes in India (1996 to 2006)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (Women and Children) under
Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 in India (2004 to 2006)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered for Atrocities against Women
and their Status in India (2006)
State-wise Number of Missing and Traced Men, Women and Children in
India (2006)
Number of Cases Detected and Persons Arrested in Flesh Trade in
India (2003 to 2005)
Selected City-wise Number of Crime Committed Against Women in India
(2005)
State/Selected City/Age-Group-wise Victims of Other (Rape) Cases in
India (2005)
State-wise Cases Registered and Case Charge Sheeted under Cruelty
by Husband and Relatives against Women in India (2001 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Cases of Procuration of Minor Girls, Selling/
Buying of Girls for Prostitution in India (2001 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered for Atrocities against Women
and their Status in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered of Harassment (Molestation)
and Sexual Harassment of Women in India (2002 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered Under Procuration of Minor
Girls in India (2003 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered under Rape, Molestation and
Sexual Harassment in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Complaints for Harassment of Women at Work
Place Received and Disposed by National Commission for Women in India
(2002 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Complaints for Harassment of Women at Work
Place Received and Disposed of by Department of Women and Child
Development in India (2002 to 2005)
State-wise Number of Dowry Deaths Reported in India (1999 to
2005)
State-wise Number of Missing and Traced Men, Women and Children in
India (2005)
Cases Filed Against Clinics/Doctors for Communication of Sex of
Foetus in Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Punjab (As on
31.3.2004)
Different Types of Crimes Committed Against Women in India (2001 to
2004)
Month-wise Number of Complaints Received by National Commission for
Women in India (April 2003 to March 2004)
Number of Complaints of Sexual Harassment Received in Prasar
Bharati in India (2001-2002 to 2003-2004)
State/Month-wise Atrocities Complaints Received Against Women by
National Commission for Women in India (2004)
State/Month-wise Atrocities Complaints Received Against Women by
National Commission for Women in India (2004)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered for Atrocities against Women
and their Status in India (2004)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered under Rape, Molestation and
Sexual Harassment in India (2002 to 2004)
State-wise Number of Complaints for Harassment of Women at Work
Place Received by National Commission for Women and Department of
Women and Child Development in India (2002 to 2004)
State-wise Number of Missing and Traced Men, Women and Children in
India (2004)
Number of Cases of Eve-Teasing and Rape Reported in Metropolitan
Cities of India (As on 1st March 2003 to 31st August, 2003)
Category/Month-wise Complaints Received in National Commission for
Women in India (2001-2002)
City-wise Number of Rapes and Rapes with Murders in India
(2000-2002)
Different Type of Crimes Committed Against Women in India (1998 to
2002)
Nature and Number of Complaints Received Against Women in India
(January 2000 to March 2002)
State-wise Cases Reported, Persons Arrested, Charge-Sheeted and
Convicted in Custodial Rape in India (2001 and 2002)
State-wise Number of Complaints Received regarding Crime against
Women in India (1997 to 2002)
State-wise Number of Missing Girls (14-18 Years) in India (2000 to
2002)
Category/Month-wise Complaints Received in National Commission of
Women in India (April, 2000 to March, 2001)
Missing Women Registered and Percentage of Women Recovered in Six
Metropolition Cities in India (1999 to 2001)
Number of Dowry Death Cases Reported in India (During 2000-2001)
State-wise Cases Disposal of Cruelty (Husband and Relatives) by
Police and Court in India (1999 to 2001)
State-wise Disposal of Dowry Prohibition Act Cases by Police and
Court in India (1999 to 2001)
State-wise Incidence of Incest Rape Cases Registered in India (1999
to 2001)
State-wise Incidence of Molestation and Percentage Variation Over
Previous Year in India (1999-2001)
State-wise Incidence of Procuration of Minor Girls, Selling/Buying
of Girls for Prostitution in India (During 2000 to 2001)
State-wise Incidence of Total Crime Committed Against Women in
India (1999 to 2001)
Crime Head-wise Incidents of Crime Against Women in India (1990 to
2000)
Different Types of Crimes Committed Against Women in India (1990 to
2000)
Disposal of Custodial Rape Cases by Courts in India (1995 to
2000)
Disposal of Custodial Rape Cases by Police in India (1995 to
2000)
State-wise Cases Reported, Persons Arrested, Charge-Sheeted and
Convicted in Custodial Rape in India (1998 to 2000)
State-wise Incidence of Rape (upto Available Month) in India (1998
to 2000)
State-wise Incidence of Sexual Harassment and Total Crime Committed
Against Women in India (1998 to 2000)
State-wise Number of Complaints handled by the National Commission
for Women in India (1998 to 2000)
State-wise Rape Cases Reported, Chargesheeted and Convicted in
India (During 1999-2000)
State-wise Trade of Girls for Prostitution in India (1999 and
2000)
Disposal of Crimes Against Women Cases by Courts in India (1997 to
1999)
Disposal of Crimes Against Women Cases by Police in India (1997 to
1999)
State-wise Incidence of Immoral Traffic Prevention Act, Indecent
Representation of Women (Pre.) Act, Dowry Prohibition Act Committed
Against Women in India (1999) - Part III
State-wise Incidence of Molestation, Sexual Harassment (Eve-
Teasing), Importing of Girls Committed Against Women in India (1999) -
Part II
State-wise Incidence of Procuration of Minor Girls, Selling/Buying
of Girls for Prostitution in India (During 1998 to 1999)
State-wise Incidence of Rape, Kidnapping and Abduction, Dowry
Deaths and Cruelty by Husband and Relatives Committed Against Women in
India (1999) - Part I
Percentage Distribution of Various Crimes against Women in India
(1998)
State/Cities-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide Not
Amounting to Murder (C.H.) in India (1998) - Part I
State/Cities-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide Not
Amounting to Murder (C.H.) in India (1998) - Part II
State-wise Incidence of Immoral Traffic (P) Act, Indecent Rep. Of
Women (P) Act, Dowry Proh. Act Committed Against Women in India (1998)
- Part III
State-wise Incidence of Molestation, Eve-Teasing, Importing of
Girls and Sati-Prevention Act Committed Against Women in India (1998)
- Part II
State-wise Incidence of Rape, Kidnapping and Abduction, Dowry
Deaths and Cruelty by Husband and Relatives Committed Against Women in
India (1998) - Part I
Incidence and Rate of Crime Committed Against Women
Offenders Relation and Proximity to Rape Victims
Victims of Rape under Different Age Group
Releted Links
Indicators on Other Attainment
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/crimeagainstwomen/17911/stats.aspx
Foetiside
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) Rajasthan |
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
Selected State-wise Number of Ultra-Sound Machines Sealed for Non-
Maintenance of Records/Non-Registration under Pre-Conception and Pre-
Natal Determination Techniques Act (PC & PNDT) in India (2005 and
2006)
State-wise Incidence of Female Foeticide in India (1994 to 2007)
State-wise Incidence of Female Infanticide in India (1999 to
2007)
State-wise Number of Bodies Registered, Court/Police Cases and
Machines Seized/Sealed under Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic
Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act 1994, in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Complaints Filed in Courts against Violators
of PC and PNDT Act/Rules in India (As on 31.7.2005)
State-wise Number of Bodies Registered, Court/Police Cases and
Machines Seized/Sealed under Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic
Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act 1994, in India (As on
31.3.2004)
State-wise Cases of Foeticide/Female Infanticide in India (2001 to
2003)
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/foetiside/207039/stats.aspx
State/City-wise Incidence and Rate of Crime Committed
Against Women in India
(2000)
1 State/City
2 Incidence
3 % of Contrib.to All-India Total
4 Est.Mid -Year Pop.(In Lakh)
5 Rate of Cognizable Crimes
6 Rank*
7 Rank**
Andhra Pradesh
1 2 3 4 5 6
14299 10.1 758.5 18.9 4 3
Arunachal Pradesh
143 0.1 12.0 11.9 16 21
Assam
3732 2.6 263.0 14.2 11 13
Bihar
6299 4.5 1005.6 6.3 25 8
Goa
100 0.1 16.1 6.2 26 24
Gujarat
6140 4.3 484.9 12.7 14 9
Haryana 2.3 199.3 16.6 7 14
Himachal Pradesh
842 0.6 67.4 12.5 15 18
Jammu & Kashmir
1634 1.2 99.9 16.4 8 17
Karnataka
5852 4.1 523.0 11.2 19 10
Kerala 3.5 323.5 15.4 9 11
Madhya Pradesh
17902 12.7 802.3 22.3 2 2
Maharashtra
13177 9.3 914.3 14.4 10 5
Manipur
74 0.1 25.4 2.9 29 25
Meghalya
69 0.0 24.5 2.8 30 26
Mizoram
133 0.1 9.6 13.9 12 22
Nagaland
22 0.0 17.0 1.3 32 28
Orissa
4717 3.3 359 6 13.1 13 12
Punjab
2156 1.5 236.2 9.1 21 16
Rajasthan
12942 9.2 538 7 24.0 1 6
Sikkim
21 0.0 5.6 3.7 28 29
Tamil Nadu
13732 9.7 619 3 22.2 3 4
Tripura
330 0.2 38.1 8.7 24 19
Uttar Pradesh
18920 13.4 1715.4 11.0 20 1
West Bengal
7043 5.0 793.3 8.9 22 7
Total States
138572 98.0 9852 4 14.1 - -
Total (All-India)
141373 100.0 10021.4 14.1 - -
Cities
Ahmedabad
510
3.0
42.8
11.9
18
10
Bangalore
1255
7.5
57.1
22.0
7
3
Bhopal
320
1.9
16.9
19.0
10
15
Chennai
4037
24.0
67.5
59.8
1
1
Coimbatore
283
1.7
13.0
21.8
8
17
Delhi (City)
2122
12.6
120.6
17.6
11
2
Hyderabad
1227
7.3
71.5
17.2
12
4
Indore
372
2.2
14.6
25.6
5
13
Jaipur
804
4.8
22.1
36.4
3
7
Kanpur
956
5.7
24.8
38.6
2
5
Kochi
125
0.7
18.3
6.8
21
23
Kolkata
558
3.3
130.6
4.3
23
9
Lucknow
683
4.1
26.7
25.5
6
8
Ludhiana
289
1.7
17.3
16.7
13
16
Madurai
380
2.3
12.8
29.6
4
12
Mumbai
888
5.3
187.1
4.7
22
6
Nagpur
443
2.6
20.9
21.2
9
11
Patna
212
1.3
13.0
16.3
14
21
Pune
352
2.1
35.9
9.8
20
14
Surat
243
1.4
24.4
10.0
19
19
Vadodara
240
1.4
16.6
14.5
17
20
Varanasi
206
1.2
13.1
15.7
16
22
Vishakhapatnam
282
1.7
17.8
15.8
15
18
Total (Cities)
16787
100.0
985.4
17.0
-
-
Note : * : Rank on the basis of rate of total cognizable crime.
** : Rank on the basis of Percentage share.
http://www.indiastat.com/6/specimen.aspx
Crime against SC/ST
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | Andhra
Pradesh | Arunachal Pradesh | Assam | Bihar | Chandigarh |
Chhattisgarh | Dadra & Nagar Haveli | Daman & Diu | Delhi | Goa |
Gujarat | Haryana | Himachal Pradesh | Jammu & Kashmir | Jharkhand |
Karnataka | Kerala | Lakshadweep | Madhya Pradesh | Maharashtra |
Manipur | Meghalaya | Mizoram | Nagaland | Orissa | Pondicherry |
Punjab | Rajasthan | Sikkim | Tamil Nadu | Tripura | Uttar Pradesh |
Uttaranchal | West Bengal |
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
Selected State-wise Central Assistance Released and Utilised under
Provision of Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989) in India
(2005-2006 to 2007-2008)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Scheduled Tribes by Court in India (2006)
State-wise Incidence (I), Rate (R) and Percentage Contribution (P)
of Crime Committed Against Scheduled Tribes in India (2006) - Part I
State-wise Number of Cases Ending Conviction under Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act. 1989) in India
(2004 to 2006)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered under Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India (1998
to 2006)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Scheduled Tribes by Court in India (2005)
State-wise Funds Released Under Protection of Civil Rights Act,
1955 and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of
Atrocities Act, 1989) in India (1997-1998 to 2004-2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Hurt of Scheduled
Castes (SC) (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities Act) and PCR
Act in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Hurt of Scheduled
Tribe (ST) (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities Act) and PCR
Act in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Kidnapping and
Abduction and Dacoity of Scheduled Tribe (ST) (In Conjunction with SC/
ST (P) of Atrocities Act) in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Murder and Rape of
Scheduled Tribe (ST) (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities Act)
in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Robbery and Arson of
Scheduled Castes (SC) (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities
Act) in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under Robbery and Arson of
Scheduled Tribe (ST) (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities Act)
in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under SC/ST (P) of
Atrocities Act Only and Other Crimes Against Scheduled Castes (SC) in
India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered (CR), Persons Arrested (PA),
Persons Chargesheeted (PC), Total Persons Tried (PT), Persons
Convicted (PV) and Persons Acquitted (PQ) under SC/ST (P) of
Atrocities Act Only and Other Crimes against Scheduled Tribe (ST) in
India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered , Persons Arrested , Persons
Chargesheeted , Total Persons Tried , Persons Convicted and Persons
Acquitted under Kidnapping and Abduction and Dacoity of SC (In
Conjunction with SC/ST (P) of Atrocities Act) in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered, Persons Arrested, Persons
Chargesheeted, Total Persons Tried, Persons Convicted and Persons
Acquitted under Murder and Rape of SC (In Conjunction with SC/ST (P)
of Atrocities Act) in India (2005)
State-wise Number of Murder Cases Registered Against Scheduled
Caste and Scheduled Tribe in India (2005)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Scheduled Tribes by Court in India (2004)
State-wise Number of Atrocities Cases Registered under Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in
India (2002 to 2004)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Scheduled Tribes by Court in India (2003)
Number of Cases Registered under SC/ST (POA Act 1989 and PCR Act,
1955) in India (1997 to 2003)
State-wise Cases under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
(Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in Regard to Disposal of Cases by
Courts, Cases Ending in Conviction and Cases Pending in Courts in
India (1999 to 2003)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered by Police, Charge Sheeted in
Courts and Cases Disposed Off by Courts under Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India
(2003)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Scheduled Tribes by Court in India (2002)
Selected State-wise Showing Disposal of Cases by Exclusive Special
Courts Booked Under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention
of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India (31.12.2002)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered by Police, Charge Sheeted in
Courts and Cases Disposed Off by Courts under Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India
(2002)
State-wise Police Atrocities Against Tribals in India (2000 to
2002)
State-wise Murder Committed Against SC/ST by Non-SC and ST in India
(2001 Upto available Months)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered by Police, Charge Sheeted in
the Courts and Cases Disposed off by Courts Under the Scheduled Castes
and the Secheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) in India Act,
1989 (2001)
Number of Crimes Against Scheduled Castes in India (1991 to 2000)
Percentage Share and Variation in IPC Crimes Against Scheduled
Castes in Total IPC Crimes in India (1992 to 2000)
State/UT with Maximum Percentage Contribution to Crimes against
Scheduled Caste in India (2000)
States with Maximum Percentage Contribution towards Various forms
of Crimes Committed against Scheduled Tribes (2000)
State-wise Number of Cases Acquital under Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India (During
1998 to 2000)
State-wise Number of Cases Chargesheeted in Courts under Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in
India (During 1998 to 2000)
State-wise Number of Cases Conviction under Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 in India (During
1998 to 2000)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered, Charge Sheeted in the Courts
and Cases Disposed off by Courts Under the Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) in India Act, 1989 in
India (2000)
State-wise Number of Cases Registered, Charge Sheeted in the Courts
and Cases Disposed off by Courts Under the Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) in India Act, 1989 (1999)
Cases Registered with Police under Different Crimes Head and
Atrocities on Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) in India
(1995 to 1997)
Disposal of Cases for Committed Crimes Against Scheduled Castes by
Courts/Police
Disposal of Cases for Committed Crimes Against Scheduled Tribes by
Courts/Police
Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes Against
Scheduled Castes by Courts/Police
Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes Against
Scheduled Tribes by Courts/Police
Incidence of Crimes Against Scheduled Castes
Incidence of Crimes Against Scheduled Tribes
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/crimeagainstscst/17913/stats.aspx
Juvenile Courts
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) Gujarat | Maharashtra | Meghalaya
|
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age-Group and Sex in India (2007)
Incidence and Rate of Juvenile Delinquency under IPC in India (1988
to 2007)
Juveniles Apprehended Under IPC and SLL Crimes By Age Groups in
India (1993 to 2007)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age Groups and Sex in India (2006)
Crime-wise Juvenile Delinquency IPC Cases in India (1995, 2000 to
2006)
Juvenile Delinquency (SLL) Under Different Crime Heads in India
(2000 to 2006)
Juveniles Apprehended by Age Group and Sex in India (1971, 1981,
1986, 1987, 1988 and 1991 to 2006)
State-wise Number of Juvenile Justice Boards and Homes Setup under
Provisions of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act,
2000 in India (2006)
State-wise Number of Juveniles Staying in Observation Homes Set up
under Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 in
India (August, 2006)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age Groups and Sex in India (2005)
Disposal of Juveniles Arrested under IPC and LSL Crimes in India
(1988 to 2005)
Juveniles Apprehended under Congnizable Crime in India (1971, 1981,
1986, 1987, 1988 and 1991 to 2005)
Juveniles Arrested under IPC Cognizable Crime and Offences under
Local and Special Laws in India (1968, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1988 and 1991
to 2005) - Part I
Juveniles Arrested under IPC Cognizable Crime and Offences under
Local and Special Laws in India (1968, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1988 and 1991
to 2005) - Part II
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age Groups and Sex in India (2004)
Juvenile Delinquency in India (1971 to 2004)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age Groups and Sex in India (2003)
Crime-wise Juveniles Apprehended by Age Group and Sex in India
(2003)
Juvenile Delinquency under Local and Special Laws (Cases Reported)
in India (1971, 1981, 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1991 to 2003)
State-wise Central Assistance Released under Programme for Juvenile
Justice in India (1997-1998 to 2002-2003)
Crime-wise Juveniles Apprehended by Age Group and Sex in India
(2001)
State-wise Number of Juvenile Courts and Junvenile Welfare Boards
in India (2000-2001)
Crime-wise Juvenile Delinquency IPC Cases in India (1991 to 2000)
Juveniles Apprehended by Age Group and Sex in India (2000)
State/City-wise Disposal of Juveniles Arrested under IPC and LSL
Crimes in India (2000)
State/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency IPC Cases in India (2000)
State/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Local and Special Laws
(Cases Reported) in India (2000)
State/City-wise Juveniles Delinquency Under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (2000) - Part I
State/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended Under Congnizable Crime in
India (2000)
State/City-wise Juveniles Arrested under IPC Cognizable Crime and
Offences under Local and Special Laws in India (2000) - Part I
State/City-wise Juveniles Arrested under IPC Cognizable Crime and
Offences Under Local and Special Laws in India (2000) - Part II
State/City-wise Juveniles Delinquency Under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (2000) - Part II
State/City-wise Juveniles Delinquency Under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (2000) - Part III
State/City-wise Juveniles Delinquency Under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (2000) - Part I
State/City-wise Juveniles Delinquency Under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (2000) - Part II
State-wise Juvenile Delinquency under IPC in India (During 1998 to
2000)
Juveniles Apprehended by Age Group and Sex in India (1999)
State/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part I
State/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part II
State/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part III
States/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part I
States/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part II
States/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Different Crime Heads
(IPC) in India (During 1999) - Part III
States/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (During 1999) - Part I
States/City-wise Juvenile Delinquency under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (During 1999) - Part II
States/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (During 1999) - Part I
States/City-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different Crime Heads
(SLL) in India (During 1999) - Part II
States/UTs/Citywise Classification of Juveniles Arrested under IPC
and SLL Crimes by Economic-Setup and Recidivism in India (During
1999)
States/UTs/Citywise Classification of Juveniles Arrested under IPC
and SLL Crimes by Education and Family Background in India (During
1999)
States/UTs/Citywise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC Crimes by Age
Group and Sex in India (1999)
States/UTs/Citywise Juveniles Apprehended under SLL Crimes by Age
Group and Sex in India (1999)
State-wise Disposal of Juveniles Arrested under IPC and SLL Crimes
and Sent to Courts in India (1999)
State-wise Number of Juvenile Homes/Observation Homes/Special Homes/
Aftercare Institutions in India (1997-1998)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended under IPC and SLL Crimes by
Age Groups and Sex in India (1996)
State-wise Juveniles Apprehended by Sex for Committing Crime under
IPC and SLL in India (During 1996)
State-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different SLL Crimes in
India (1996) - Part I
State-wise Juveniles Apprehended under Different SLL Crimes in
India (1996) - Part II
State-wise Juveniles Apprehended under SLL Crimes by Age Group and
Sex in India (1996)
Crime Head-wise Juveniles Apprehended by Age Groups and Sex in
India (1995)
Juveniles Arrested under IPC Cognizable Crime and Offences under
Local and Special Laws in India (1968, 1971, 1981, 1986, 1988, 1991 to
1995) - Part III
State-wise Institution under the Juvenile Justice Act in India
(1994-1995)
Crime-wise Juvenile Delinquency IPC Cases in India (1968, 1971,
1981, 1986 and 1988)
State-wise Institutions for Neglected and Delinquent Children under
the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 in India
State-wise Welfare Boards and Juvenile Courts under the Juvenile
Justice Act, 1986 in India
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/juvenilecourts/148/stats.aspx
Crime against Child
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) Andaman & Nicobar Islands | Andhra
Pradesh | Arunachal Pradesh | Assam | Bihar | Chandigarh |
Chhattisgarh | Dadra & Nagar Haveli | Daman & Diu | Delhi | Goa |
Gujarat | Haryana | Himachal Pradesh | Jammu & Kashmir | Jharkhand |
Karnataka | Kerala | Madhya Pradesh | Maharashtra | Manipur |
Meghalaya | Mizoram | Nagaland | Orissa | Pondicherry | Punjab |
Rajasthan | Sikkim | Tamil Nadu | Tripura | Uttar Pradesh |
Uttaranchal | West Bengal |
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
State/Sex-wise Number of Children Traced in India (2005 to 2007)
State-wise Number of Children Missing (upto Age of 0-18 Years) in
India (2004 to 2007)
State-wise Persons Arrested under Kidnapping and Abduction in India
(2007)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committed Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2006)
Number of Cases of Murder, Rape and Kidnapping of Abduction of
Children in (NCR Regions of Delhi) India (2004 to 2006)
State-wise Cases Registered Under Child Marriage Restraint Act in
India (March to June, 2006)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committed Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2005)
State-wise Cases Registered, Charged sheeted, Trial Completed,
Convicted and Person Convicted Under Child Marriage Restraint Act in
India (2003 to 2005)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committed Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2004)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2003)
State-wise Cases Registered, Charged sheeted, Trial Completed,
Convicted and Person Convicted Under Child Marriage Restraint Act in
India (2001 to 2003)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2002)
Victims of Child Rape in India (1992-2002)
Crime-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committed Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2001)
State-wise Child Rape Victims (upto 14 years) in India (2001)
State-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committing Crimes
Against Children by Court in India (2001)
State-wise Disposal of Persons Arrested for Crimes Committed
Against Children by Police in India (2001)
State-wise Number of Cases Reported under Child Marriage Restraint
Act, 1929 in India (1999 to 2001)
Disposal of Cases for Committed Crimes Against Children by Courts/
Police
Disposal of Persons Arrested for Committed Crimes Against Children
by Courts/Police
Incidence and Rate of Committed Crimes Against Children
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/crimeagainstchild/17912/stats.aspx
Violent Crimes
Figures at All-India / State level : (Currently showing India with
State Level consolidated figures) Delhi | Punjab | Tamil Nadu |
(Data table headings are shown Year-wise in descending order)
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder in India (2007) - Part I
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder in India (2007) - Part II
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Murder in India (2007) - Part I
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Murder in India (2007) - Part II
State/City-wise Number of Unidentified Dead Bodies Recovered and
Inquest Conducted in India (2000 to 2007)
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part I
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part II
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part III
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part IV
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part V
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2007) -
Part VI
State-wise Incidence and Rate of Violent Crimes in India (2007) -
Part I
State-wise Incidence and Rate of Violent Crimes in India (2007) -
Part II
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder (C. H.) in India (2007) - Part I
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder (C. H.) in India (2007) - Part II
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder (C. H.) in India (2007) - Part III
State-wise Number of Cases Registered /Disposed under Violation of
Human Rights in India (2004-2005 to 2006-2007)
State-wise Number of Victims Murdered by Use of Fire Arms in India
(2007)
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder in India (2006 ) - Part I
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to
Murder in India (2006 ) - Part II
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Murder in India (2006) - Part I
State/Age Group-wise Victims of Murder in India (2006) - Part II
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2006) -
Part I
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2006) -
Part II
State-wise Disposal of Violent Crimes by Courts in India (2006) -
Part III
State-wise Incidence and Rate of Violent Crimes in India (2006) -
Part I
State-wise Incidence and Rate of Violent Crimes in India (2006) -
Part II
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide not Amounting to
Murder (C.H.) in India (2006) - Part I
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide not Amounting to
Murder (C.H.) in India (2006) - Part II
State-wise Motives of Murder and Culpable Homicide not Amounting to
Murder (C.H.) in India (2006) - Part III
State-wise Number of Victims Murdered by Use of Fire Arms in India
(2006)
State-wise Number of Victims Murdered by Use of Fire Arms in India
(2003 to 2005)
Violent Crime (2004 and 2005)
Age Group/Gender-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide not Amounting to
Murder in India (2002 to 2004)
Age Group/Gender-wise Victims of Murder in India (2002 to 2004)
Age Group-wise Victims of Kidnapping and Abduction in India (2001
to 2004)
Crime Rate for Violent Crimes under IPC in India (1996 to 2004)
State/Age Group/Sex-wise Victims of Culpable Homicide Not Amounting
to Murder in India (2004) - Part I
State-wise Percentage Share of Violent Crimes to Total IPC Crimes
in India (2000 to 2004)
Victims of Murder by Fire-Arms in India (1999 to 2004)
Violent Crimes Reported in India (1996 to 2004)
State-wise Murder Cases Pending Investigation in India (1991 to
2003)
Violent Crime (2002 and 2003)
State-wise Number of Victims Murdered by Use of Fire Arms in India
(2001 and 2002)
Age/Gender-wise Profile of Victims of Murder in India (1999 to
2001)
Age/Gender-wise Victims of C.H. not amounting to Murder in India
(1999 to 2001)
State-wise Left Wing Extremist Violence in India (During 2000 and
2001)
Violent Crime (2000 and 2001)
Age-wise Victims of Kidnapping and Abduction in India ( 1999 and
2000)
Violent Crimes (1999)
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/violentcrimes/17910/stats.aspx
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/incidenceofcrime/130/stats.aspx
http://www.indiastat.com/crimeandlaw/6/stats.aspx
...and I am Sid harth
bademiyansubhanallah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Crime is present in various forms in India. Organized crime include
drug trafficking, gunrunning, money laundering, extortion, murder for
hire, fraud, human trafficking and poaching. Many criminal operations
engage in black marketeering, political violence, religiously
motivated violence, terrorism, and abduction. Other crimes are
homicide, robbery, assault etc. Property crimes include burglary,
theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. Corruption is a significant
problem.
Crimes against women
Main article: Women in India
Police records show high incidence of crimes against women in India.
The National Crime Records Bureau reported in 1998 that the growth
rate of crimes against women would be higher than the population
growth rate by 2010.[1] Earlier, many cases were not registered with
the police due to the social stigma attached to rape and molestation
cases. Official statistics show that there has been a dramatic
increase in the number of reported crimes against women.[1]
Sexual Harassment
Half of the total number of crimes against women reported in 1990
related to molestation and harassment at the workplace.[1] Eve teasing
is a euphemism used for sexual harassment or molestation of women by
men. Many activists blame the rising incidents of sexual harassment
against women on the influence of "Western culture". In 1987, The
Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act was passed[2] to
prohibit indecent representation of women through advertisements or in
publications, writings, paintings, figures or in any other manner.
In 1997, in a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court of India took a
strong stand against sexual harassment of women in the workplace. The
Court also laid down detailed guidelines for prevention and redressal
of grievances. The National Commission for Women subsequently
elaborated these guidelines into a Code of Conduct for employers.[1]
While public urination is not practised by men of all ages in India,
it is socially unacceptable for girls and women to publicly urinate
when restrooms are unavailable. In other countries such as Laos,
Cambodia, and Vietnam public urination is practised by women when
there are no toilets. This leads to harassment and UTI in women.
[3] [4] [5] [6]
Dowry
Main articles: Dowry and Dowry law in India
In 1961, the Government of India passed the Dowry Prohibition Act,[7]
making the dowry demands in wedding arrangements illegal. However,
many cases of dowry-related domestic violence, suicides and murders
have been reported. In the 1980s, numerous such cases were reported.
However, recent reports show that the number of these crimes have
reduced drastically.[8]
In 1985, the Dowry Prohibition (maintenance of lists of presents to
the bride and bridegroom) rules were framed.[9]
According to these rules, a signed list of presents given at the time
of the marriage to the bride and the bridegroom should be maintained.
The list should contain a brief description of each present, its
approximate value, the name of whoever has given the present and his/
her relationship to the person.
A 1997 report[10]
claimed that at least 5,000 women die each year because of dowry
deaths, and at least a dozen die each day in 'kitchen fires' thought
to be intentional. The term for this is "bride burning" and is
criticized within India itself. Amongst the urban educated, such dowry
abuse has reduced dramatically.
Child Marriage
Child marriage has been traditionally prevalent in India and continues
to this day. Young girls live with their parents until they reach
puberty. In the past, the child widows were condemned to a life of
great agony, shaving heads, living in isolation, and shunned by the
society.[11]
Although child marriage was outlawed in 1860, it is still a common
practice.[12]
According to UNICEF’s “State of the World’s Children-2009” report, 47%
of India's women aged 20–24 were married before the legal age of 18,
with 56% in rural areas.[13]
The report also showed that 40% of the world's child marriages occur
in India.[14]
Female infanticides and sex selective abortions
India has a highly masculine sex ratio, the chief reason being that
many women die before reaching adulthood.[1]
Tribal societies in India have a less masculine sex ratio than all
other caste groups. This, in spite of the fact that tribal communities
have far lower levels of income, literacy and health facilities.[1]
It is therefore suggested by many experts, that the highly masculine
sex ratio in India can be attributed to female infanticides and sex-
selective abortions.
All medical tests that can be used to determine the sex of the child
have been banned in India, due to incidents of these tests being used
to get rid of unwanted female children before birth. Female
infanticide (killing of girl infants) is still prevalent in some rural
areas.[1]
The abuse of the dowry tradition has been one of the main reasons for
sex-selective abortions and female infanticides in India.
Domestic violence
The incidents of domestive violence are higher among the lower Socio-
Economic Classes (SECs). There are various instances of an inebriated
husband beating up the wife often leading to severe injuries. Domestic
violence is also seen in the form of physical abuse. The Protection of
Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 came into force on October 26,
2006.
Trafficking
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act was passed in 1956.[15]
However many cases of trafficking of young girls and women have been
reported. These women are either forced into prostitution, domestic
work or child labor.
Illegal drug trade
India is located between two major illicit opium producing centres in
Asia - the Golden Crescent comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran
and the Golden Triangle comprising Burma, Thailand and Laos.[16]
Because of such geographical location, India experiences large amount
of drug trafficking through the borders.[17]
India is the world's largest producer of licit opium.[18]
But opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets.[18]
India is a transshipment point for heroin from Southwest Asian
countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan and from Southeast Asian
countries like Burma, Laos, and Thailand.[19]
Heroin is smuggled from Pakistan and Burma, with some quantities
transshipped through Nepal.[19]
Most heroin shipped from India are destined for Europe.[19]
There have been reports of heroin smuggled from Mumbai to Nigeria for
further export.[19]
In Maharashtra, Mumbai is an important centre for distribution of drug.
[20] The most commonly used drug in Mumbai is Indian heroin (called
desi mal by the local population).[20]
Both public transportation (road and rail transportation) and private
transportation are used for this drug trade.[20]
Drug trafficking affects the country in many ways.
Drug abuse: Cultivation of illicit narcotic substances and drug
trafficking affects the health of the individuals and destroy the
economic structure of the family and society.[21]
Organized crime: Drug trafficking results in growth of organized crime
which affects social security. Organised crime connects drug
trafficking with corruption and money laundering.[21]
Political instability: Drug trafficking also aggravate the political
instability in North-West and North-East India.[22]
A survey conducted in 2003-2004 by Narcotics Control Bureau found that
India has at least four million drug addicts.[23]
The most common drugs used in India are cannabis, hashish, opium and
heroin.[23]
In 2006 alone, India's law enforcing agencies recovered 230 kg heroin
and 203 kg of cocaine.[24]
In an annual government report in 2007, the United States named India
among 20 major hubs for trafficking of illegal drugs along with
Pakistan, Afghanistan and Burma. However, studies reveal that most of
the criminals caught in this crime are either Nigerian or US nationals.
[25]
Several measures have been taken by the Government of India to combat
drug trafficking in the country. India is a party of the Single
Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961), the Convention on Psychotropic
Substances (1971), the Protocol Amending the Single Convention on
Narcotic Drugs (1972) and the United Nations Convention Against
Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988).
[26]
An Indo-Pakistani committee was set up in 1986 to prevent trafficking
in narcotic drugs.[27]
India signed a convention with the United Arab Emirates in 1994 to
control drug trafficking.[27]
In 1995, India signed an agreement with Egypt for investigation of
drug cases and exchange of information and a Memorandum of
Understanding of the Prevention of Illicit Trafficking in Drugs with
Iran.[27]
Arms trafficking
According to a joint report published by Oxfam, Amnesty International
and the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) in 2006,
there are around 40 million illegal small arms in India out of
approximately 75 million in worldwide circulation.[28]
Majority of the illegal small arms make its way into the states of
Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Madhya
Pradesh.[28]
In India, a used AK-47 costs $3,800 in black market.[29]
Large amount of illegal small arms are manufactured in various illegal
arms factories in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and sold on the black market
for as little as $5.08.[28]
Chinese pistols are in demand in the illegal small arms market in
India because they are easily available and cheaper.[28]
This trend poses a significant problem for the states of Bihar, Uttar
Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Maharashtra, West Bengal,
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh which have influence of Naxalism.[28]
The porous Indo-Nepal border is an entry point for Chinese pistols,
AK-47 and M-16 rifles into India as these arms are used by the
Naxalites who have ties to Maoists in Nepal.[28]
In North-East India, there is a huge influx of small arms due to the
insurgent groups operating there.[30]
The small arms in North-East India come from insurgent groups in
Burma, black market in South-East Asian countries like Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, black market in Cambodia, the
People's Republic of China, insurgent groups like the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the
Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), Indian states like Uttar Pradesh
and pilferages from legal gun factories, criminal organizations
operating in India and South Asian countries and other international
markets like Romania, Germany etc.[30]
The small arms found in North-East India are M14 rifle, M16 rifle,
AK-47, AK-56, AK-74, light machine guns, Chinese hand grenades, mines,
rocket-propelled grenades, submachine guns etc.[30]
The Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs drafted
a joint proposal to the United Nations, seeking a global ban on small-
arms sales to non-state users.[28]
Poaching and wildlife trafficking
Illegal wildlife trade in India has increased.[31]
According to a report published by the Environmental Investigation
Agency (EIA) in 2004, India is the chief target for the traders of
wildlife skin.[32] Between 1994 and 2003, there have been 784 cases
where the skins of tiger, leopard or otter have been seized.[32]
Leopards, rhinoceros, reptiles, birds, insects, rare species of plants
are being smuggled into the countries in Southeast Asia and the
People's Republic of China.[31]
Between 1994 and 2003, poaching and seizure of 698 otters have been
documented in India.[32]
Kathmandu is a key staging point for illegal skins smuggled from India
bound for Tibet and PRC.[32]
The report by EIA noted there has been a lack of cross-border
cooperation between India, Nepal and the People's Republic of China to
coordinate enforcement operations and lack of political will to treat
wildlife crime effectively.[32]
The poaching of the elephants is a significant problem in Southern
India[33]
and in the North-Eastern states of Nagaland and Mizoram.[34]
The majority of tiger poaching happen in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar
Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.[35]
Following is a comparison of reported cases of tiger and leopard
poaching from 1998 to 2003:
Year 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Reported cases of tiger poaching[36] 14 38 39 35 47 8
Reported cases of leopard poaching[36] 28 80 201 69 87 15
Samir Sinha, head of TRAFFIC India, the wildlife trade monitoring arm
of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the World Conservation
Union (IUCN), told Reuters in an interview "The situation regarding
the illegal trade in wildlife parts in India is very grim. It is a
vast, a varied trade ranging from smuggling of rare medicinal plants
to butterflies to peafowls to tigers and it is difficult to predict
how big it is, but the threats and dimensions suggest that the trade
is increasing".[31]
Project Tiger, a wildlife conservation project, was initiated in 1972
and was launched by Indira Gandhi on April 1, 1973.[37]
With 23 tiger reserves, Project Tiger claimed to have succeeded.[37]
But according to critics like conservationist Billy Arjan Singh,
temporary increases in tiger population were caused by immigration due
to destruction of habitat in Nepal, not because of the widely
acclaimed success of wildlife policy in India.[37]
Cyber crime
Cases of spam, computer hacking, cyber stalking and email fraud are
rampant in India.[38]
The Information Technology Act 2000 was passed by the Parliament of
India in May 2000, aiming to curb cyber crimes and provide a legal
framework for e-commerce transactions.[39]
However Pavan Duggal, lawyer of Supreme Court of India and cyber law
expert, viewed "The IT Act, 2000, is primarily meant to be a
legislation to promote e-commerce. It is not very effective in dealing
with several emerging cyber crimes like cyber harassment, defamation,
stalking and so on".[38]
Although cyber crime cells have been set up in major cities, Duggal
noted the problem is that most cases remain unreported due to a lack
of awareness.[38]
In 2001, India and United States had set up an India-US cyber security
forum as part of a counter-terrorism dialogue.[40]
In 2006, India and the US agreed to enhance cooperation between law
enforcement agencies of the two countries in tackling cyber crimes as
part of counter-terrorism efforts.[40]
A joint US-India statement released in 2006 after talks between US
President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
stressed that in view of the importance of cyber security and cyber
forensic research, the two countries are also carrying out discussions
on a draft protocol on cyber security.[40]
Corruption and police misconduct
Main article: Corruption in India
Corruption is widespread in India. It is prevalent within every
section and every level of the society.[41]
Corruption has taken the role of a pervasive aspect of Indian politics.
[42]
In India, corruption takes the form of bribes, evasion of tax and
exchange controls, embezzlement, etc.
Despite state prohibitions against torture and custodial misconduct by
the police, torture is widespread in police custody, which is a major
reason behind deaths in custody.[43][44]
The police often torture innocent people until a 'confession' is
obtained to save influential and wealthy offenders.[45]
G.P. Joshi, the programme coordinator of the Indian branch of the
Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative in New Delhi comments that the
main issue at hand concerning police violence is a lack of
accountability of the police.[46]
In 2006, the Supreme Court of India in a judgment in the Prakash Singh
vs. Union of India case, ordered central and state governments with
seven directives to begin the process of police reform. The main
objectives of this set of directives was twofold, providing tenure to
and streamlining the appointment/transfer processes of policemen, and
increasing the accountability of the police.[47]
In 2006, seven policemen were charge sheeted and eleven were
convicted[48]
for custodial misconduct.
Crime over time
Incidence of cognizable crimes in India 1953-2007[49]
A report published by the National Crime Records Bureau compared crime
rate from 1953 to 2006. The report noted that burglary declined over a
period of 53 years by 38% (from 1,47,379 in 1953 to 91,666 in 2006),
whereas murder has increased by 231% (from 9,803 in 1953 to 32,481 in
2006).[50]
Kidnapping has increased by 356% (from 5,261 in 1953 to 23,991 in
2006), robbery by 120% (from 8,407 in 1953 to 18,456 in 2006) and
riots by 176% (from 20,529 in 1953 to 56,641 in 2006).[50]
In 2006, 51,02,460 cognizable crimes were committed including
18,78,293 Indian Penal Code (IPC) crimes and 32,24,167 Special & Local
Laws (SLL) crimes, with an increase of 1.5% over 2005 (50,26,337).
[48]
IPC crime rate in 2006 was 167.7 compared to 165.3 in 2005 showing an
increase of 1.5% in 2006 over 2005.[48]
SLL crime rate in 2006 was 287.9 compared to 290.5 in 2005 showing a
decline of 0.9% in 2006 over 2005.[48]
Year[50] Total cog. crimes under IPC Murder Kidnapping Robbery
Burglary Riots
1953 6, 01, 964 9,802 5,261 8,407 147,
379 20, 529
2006 18, 78, 293 32,481 23,991 18,456 91,
666 56, 641
% Change in 2006 over 1953
212.0 231.0 356.0
120.0 -38.0 176.0
SOURCE: National Crime Records Bureau[50]
Crime by locale
Location has a significant impact on crime in India. In 2006, the
highest crime rate was reported in Pondicherry (447.7%) for crimes
under Indian Penal Code which is 2.7 times the national crime rate of
167.7%.[48]
Kerala reported the highest crime rate at 312.5% among states.[48]
Kolkata (71.0%) and Madurai (206.2%) were the only two mega cities
which reported less crime rate than their domain states West Bengal
(79.0%) and Tamil Nadu (227.6%).[48] Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore have
accounted for 16.2%, 9.5% and 8.1% respectively of the total IPC
crimes reported from 35 mega cities.[48]
Indore reported the highest crime rate (769.1%) among the mega cities
in India followed by Bhopal (719.5%) and Jaipur (597.1%).[48]
Jammu & Kashmir (33.7%), Manipur (33.0%), Assam (30.4%) and Daman and
Diu and Pondicherry (29.4%) reported higher violent crime rate
compared to 18.4% at national level.[48]
Uttar Pradesh reported the highest incidence of violent crimes
accounting for 12.1% of total violent crimes in India (24,851 out of
2,05,656) followed by Bihar with 11.8% (24,271 out of 2,05,6556).[48]
Among 35 mega cities, Delhi reported 31.2% (533 out of 1,706) of total
rape cases.[48]
Madhya Pradesh has reported the highest number of rape cases (2,900)
accounting for 15.0% of total such cases reported in the country.[48]
Uttar Pradesh reported 16.9% (5,480 out of 32,481) of total murder
cases in the country and 18.4% (4,997 out of 27,230) total attempt to
murder cases.[48]
Crimes against foreigners in India
There are several instances of violent crime against foreigners in
India.[51]
Many of the crimes occur against foreigners only. Scams involving
export of jewels occur in India, which target foreign citizens.[51]
Political demonstrations are common in India. These demonstrations
often turn violent and routinely cause disruption of transportation
services, causing great inconvenience to foreign tourists in India.
Traveling alone in remote areas after dark is of particular risk to
foreigners.[52]
Because U.S. citizens' purchasing power is relatively large compared
to the general Indian population, they the preferred target for
robbery and other serious crime.[53]
In April 1999, Swaraj Damree, a tourist from Mauritius was befriended
by a group of Indians who later held him in 25 days of captivity. They
robbed him of cash amounting to US $1,500, took his travellers'
cheques, wrist watch, gold chain, bracelet, two bags and suitcase.
[54]
In 2000, two German trekkers were shot in Himachal Pradesh. A few
weeks later, two Spanish tourists were killed in Himachal Pradesh by
robbers.[55]
Many foreign tourists are victims of violent crime in Kolkata.[56]
In September 2006, criminals robbed the wallet of a British woman in
Kolkata.[56] The same month, a Japanese tourist was robbed on his way
to Sudder Street.[56] In October 2006, a foreigner was robbed in
daylight on Park Street.[56]
Petty crime
Petty crime, like pickpocketing, bag snatching etc. are widespread in
India. Theft of valuables of foreigners from luggage on trains and
buses is common. Travelers who are not in groups become easy victims
of pickpockets and purse snatchers. Purse snatchers work in crowded
areas.[57]
Passport theft
In India, stealing passports of foreigners from their luggage on
trains and buses is widespread.[51]
Theft of U.S. passports is very common, especially in major tourist
areas.[53][58]
Scam incidents
Many scams are perpetrated against foreign travelers, especially in
Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan.[53]
Scams usually target younger foreign tourists and suggest them that
money can be made by privately transporting gems or gold or by taking
delivery abroad of expensive carpets avoiding customs duties.[53]
Such incidents pull the traveler over the course of several days and
begin with a new scam artist who offers to show the foreign traveler
the sights. They also offer cheap lodgings and meals to foreign
travellers so that they can place the traveler in the physical custody
of the scam artist and can leave the foreigner with threats and
physical coercion. In the due process, the foreigner loses his
passport.[53]
Taxi scam
There are also taxi scams present in India, whereby a foreign
traveler, who is not aware of the locations around Indian airports, is
taken for a ride round the whole airport and charged for full-fare
taxi ride while the terminal is only few hundred yards away.[57]
Overseas Security Advisory Council in a report mentioned the process
about how to avoid taxi-scam.[57]
Rape and sexual assault against foreigners
Incidents of rape and sexual assault against foreign tourists at
popular tourist spots is increasing in India. Many of the alleged
perpetrators are children of senior government officials or
politicians.[59][60]
In September 1994, Gurkirat Singh, grandson of the then CM Beant
Singh, was accused of abducting and molesting a French tourist Katia
Darnand in Chandigarh[61][62].
In March 2006, Biti Mohanty, son of a senior police official in
Orissa, raped a German tourist in Alwar, Rajasthan.[63][64]
A Japanese woman was raped in Pushkar, Rajasthan on April 2, 2006.[65]
[66] In June 2007, a South Korean was raped near Manali.[63]
In September 2007, two Japanese women were gang-raped in Agra,[63]
a popular tourist-spot in India where the Taj Mahal is situated. The
Indian state of Rajasthan, which is a popular destination among
foreign tourists with one out of every three foreign travellers
visiting the state, have been rattled by rape cases of foreign
tourists.[67]
On December 5, 2009, a Russian woman was raped in Goa by a local
politician John Fernandes. In February 2008, Scarlett Keeling, a
British national aged 15 was raped and killed in Goa [68].
In January 2010, a Russian girl aged 9 was raped in Goa [69];
referring to this and earlier cases, Russia threatened to issue an
advisory asking its citizens not to travel to the coastal state [70].
The US Bureau of Consular Affairs has warned women not to travel alone
in India.[58]
However in contrast the British Foreign office only advise women to
take normal precautions.[71]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bureau_of_Consular_Affairs
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Foreign_office
See also
Caste-related violence in India
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste-related_violence_in_India
Corruption in India
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_India
Indian mafia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_mafia
Indian political scandals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_political_scandals
Law enforcement in India
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_enforcement_in_India
Mafia Raj
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mafia_Raj
Religious violence in India
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_violence_in_India
Kala Kaccha Gang
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kala_Kaccha_Gang
Notes
^ a b c d e f g Kalyani Menon-Sen, A. K. Shiva Kumar (2001). "Women in
India: How Free? How Equal?". United Nations. http://www.un.org.in/wii.htm.
Retrieved 2006-12-24.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._K._Shiva_Kumar http://www.un.org.in/wii.htm
^ "The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1987".
http://www.wcd.nic.in/dowryprohibitionrules.htm. Retrieved
2006-12-24.
^ http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/node/255611
^ http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Battambang/blog-325432.html
^ http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=149258&go=tasha
^ http://radicalchange.wordpress.com/2008/01/04/cambodia-a-wayfarers-journey/
^ "The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961".
http://www.wcd.nic.in/dowryprohibitionact.htm. Retrieved 2006-12-24.
^ (2006-12-19)"Women of India: Frequently Asked Questions".
2006-12-19.
http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/women/faq.htm. Retrieved 2006-12-24.
^ "The Dowry Prohibition (maintenance of lists of presents to the
bride and bridegroom) rules, 1985".
http://www.wcd.nic.in/dowryprohibitionrules.htm. Retrieved
2006-12-24.
^ Kitchen fires Kill Indian Brides with Inadequate Dowry, July 23,
1997, New Delhi, UPI
^ Jyotsna Kamat (2006-12-19). "Gandhi and Status of Women".
http://www.kamat.com/mmgandhi/gwomen.htm. Retrieved 2006-12-24.
^ BBC News | SOUTH ASIA | Child marriages targeted in India
^ http://www.unicef.org/sowc09/docs/SOWC09_Table_9.pdf
^ http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/18/stories/2009011855981100.htm
^ "The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956".
http://www.wcd.nic.in/act/itpa1956.htm. Retrieved 2006-12-24.
^ P. J. Alexander (2002). Policing India in the New Millennium. Allied
Publishers. pp. p658. ISBN 8177642073.
^ Caterina Gouvis Roman, Heather Ahn-Redding, Rita James Simon (2007).
Illicit Drug Policies, Trafficking, and Use the World Over. Lexington
Books. pp. p183. ISBN 0739120883.
^ a b "CIA World Factbook - India". CIA World Factbook.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html.
Retrieved 2007-12-01.
^ a b c d India
^ a b c "Drug trade dynamics in India".
http://laniel.free.fr/INDEXES/PapersIndex/INDIAMOLLY/DRUGSDYNAMICSININDIA.htm.
^ a b P. J. Alexander (2002). Policing India in the New Millennium.
Allied Publishers. pp. p659. ISBN 8177642073.
^ Alain Labrousse, Laurent Laniel (2002). The World Geopolitics of
Drugs, 1998/1999. Springer. pp. p53. ISBN 1402001401.
^ a b "Mechanism in States".
http://narcoticsindia.nic.in/Mechinstates.htm.
^ Airports get scanners to check drug trafficking
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1680312.cms
^ "US names India among 20 major hubs for drug trafficking".
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=5f7ed0c7-60a5-40fc-bbf1-7e9b4c070f59&&Headline=India+among+20+major+drug+hubs%3a+US.
^ Daniel J. Koenig (2001). International Police Cooperation: A World
Perspective. Lexington Books. pp. p172. ISBN 0739102265.
^ a b c Daniel J. Koenig (2001). International Police Cooperation: A
World Perspective. Lexington Books. pp. p173. ISBN 0739102265.
^ a b c d e f g India home to 40 million illegal small-arms
^ "Small Arms Trafficking".
http://www.havocscope.com/trafficking/smallarms.htm.
^ a b c A Narrative of Armed Ethnic Conflict, Narcotics and Small Arms
Trafficking in India's North East
^ a b c Illegal wildlife trade grows in India
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSDEL8332720070817?sp=true
^ a b c d e The Tiger Skin Trail
http://www.eia-international.org/files/reports85-1.pdf
^ R. Sukumar (1989). The Asian Elephant: Ecology and Management.
Cambridge University Press. pp. p210. ISBN 052143758X.
^ Charles Santiapillai, Peter Jackson (1990). The Asian Elephant: An
Action Plan for Its Conservation. pp. p30. ISBN 2880329973.
^ The situation in India
http://www.internatyearofthetiger.org/india.htm
^ a b Poaching & Seizure Cases
http://projecttiger.nic.in/poaching.asp#
^ a b c At least one tiger is killed by poachers every day
http://www.rediff.com/news/1998/oct/02tiger.htm
^ a b c Byte by Byte
http://www.rediff.com/netguide/2003/feb/18crime.htm
^ India cyber law comes into force
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/978231.stm
^ a b c India-US to counter cyber crime
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/978231.stm
^ Where will corruption take India? People's Union for Civil Liberties
http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Human-rights/2002/corruption.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Union_for_Civil_Liberties
^ Corruption in India
http://www.indianchild.com/corruption_in_india.htm
^ Torture main reason of death in police custody The Tribune
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070313/punjab1.htm#7
^ Custodial deaths in West Bengal and India's refusal to ratify the
Convention against Torture Asian Human Rights Commission 26 February
2004
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2004statement/146/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_Human_Rights_Commission
^ Custodial deaths and torture in India Asian Legal Resource Centre
http://www.alrc.net/pr/mainfile.php/2004pr/41/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_Legal_Resource_Centre
^ Police Accountability in India: Policing Contaminated by Politics
http://www.hrsolidarity.net/mainfile.php/2005vol15no05/2448/
^ The Supreme Court takes the lead on police reform: Prakash Singh vs.
Union of India, CHRI
http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/programs/aj/police/india/initiatives/writ_petition.htm
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Snapshots – 2006 National Crime Records
Bureau
^ "Incidence of cognizable crimes (IPC) under different crime heads
during 1953-2007". National Crime Records Bureau.
http://ncrb.nic.in/cii2007/cii-2007/1953-2007.pdf. Retrieved
2009-11-08.
^ a b c d Snapshots (1953—2006) National Crime Records Bureau
http://ncrb.nic.in/cii2006/cii-2006/Snapshots.pdf
^ a b c "TRAVEL REPORT India".
http://www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/report-en.asp?country=128000.
^ "India". http://www.canadiancontent.net/profiles/India.html.
^ a b c d e "India 2007 Crime & Safety Report: New Delhi".
https://www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=62883.
^ Foreign tourist drugged, robbed, tortured, released after 25 days
http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19990420/ige20118.html
^ India's valley of death
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/south_asia/909877.stm
^ a b c d "Shudder street".
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070218/asp/calcutta/story_7406290.asp.
The Telegraph
^ a b c "Crime & Safety Report: Chennai".
https://www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=62882.
^ a b "Consular Information Sheet: India".
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1139.html. Bureau of
Consular Affairs
^ Handle foreign tourists with care, DNA
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_handle-foreign-tourists-with-care_1124186
^ Crimes against tourists alarm tour operators, DNA
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_crimes-against-tourists-alarm-tour-operators_1123611
^ <http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?207483
^ http://www.indianexpress.com/oldStory/34517/
^ a b c "Main accused arrested in Agra tourist rape case".
http://in.news.yahoo.com/070924/211/6l4pp.html.
^ Biti Mohanty's father gets showcause notice, DNA
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_biti-mohanty-s-father-gets-showcause-notice_1075743
^ Another foreign tourist cries rape, The Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1497108.cms
^ Japanese tourist alleges rape, The Hindu
http://www.hindu.com/2006/04/20/stories/2006042006481000.htm
^ West India state troubled by rape case of foreign tourist
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/20/content_4451686.htm
^ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3529865.ece
^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/goa/Russian-rape-case-Goa-women-s-panel-to-seek-details/502950/H1-Article1-502942.aspx
^ http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100128/jsp/nation/story_12036988.jsp
^ (15 February 2010)"India travel advice". British Foreign Office. 15
February 2010. http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/asia-oceania/india.
Retrieved 22 February 2010.
References
New trends in drug trafficking
http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/19/stories/2008011956120300.htm
India becoming hot bed for drug trafficking: Expert
http://expressbuzz.com/edition/default.aspx
http://www.cyberlawsindia.net Cyber Crime in India
Mumbai mafia is using more sophisticated weapons then police
Further reading
Edwardes, S M (2007), Crime in India, READ BOOKS, ISBN 1406761265 .
Broadhurst, Roderic G.; Grabosky, Peter N. (2005), Cyber-Crime: The
Challenge in Asia, Hong Kong University Press, ISBN 9622097243 .
Menon, Vivek (1996), Under Siege: Poaching and Protection of Greater
One-Horned Rhinoceroses in India, TRAFFIC International, ISBN
1858501024 .
Vittal, N. (2003), Corruption in India: The Roadblock to National
Prosperity, Academic Foundation, ISBN 8171882870 .
Gupta, K. N. (2001), Corruption in India, Anmol Publications Pvt Ltd,
ISBN 8126109734 .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_in_India
chhotemianinshallah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Article 370 of the Indian constitution, which is of a temporary
nature, grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Text of Article 370
In view of its importance the text of the article 370 (Without
amendments) is reproduced below:
Article 370 of the Constitution of India (Temporary provisions with
respect of the State of Jammu and Kashmir)
1. Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution:
a. the provisions of article 238 shall not apply in relation to the
State of Jammu and Kashmir,
b. the power of Parliament to make laws for the said State shall be
limited to;
i. those matters in the Union List and the Concurrent List which, in
consultation with the Government of the State, are declared by the
President to correspond to matters specified in the Instrument of
Accession governing the accession of the State to the Dominion of
India as the matters with respect to which the Dominion Legislature
may make laws for that State; and
ii. such other matters in the said Lists, as, with the concurrence of
the Government of the State, the President may by order specify.
Explanation—For the purpose of this article, the Government of the
State means the person for the time being recognised by the President
as the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir acting on the advice of the
Council of Ministers for the time being in office under the Maharaja’s
Proclamation dated the fifth day of March, 1948;
c.the provisions of article 1 and of this article shall apply in
relation to this State;
d.such of the other provisions of this Constitution shall apply in
relation to that State subject to such exceptions and modifications as
the President may by order specify
i. Provided that no such order which relates to the matters specified
in the Instrument of Accession of the State referred to in paragraph
(i) of sub-clause (b) shall be issued except in consultation with the
Government of the State:
ii. Provided further that no such order which relates to matters other
than those referred to in the last preceding proviso shall be issued
except with the concurrence of the Government.
2. If the concurrence of the Government of the State referred to in
paragraph
(ii) of sub-clause (b) of clause
(1) or in second proviso to sub-clause
(d) of that clause be given before the Constituent Assembly for the
purpose of framing the Constitution of the State is convened, it shall
be placed before such Assembly for such decision as it may take
thereon.
3. Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of the
article, the President may, by public notification, declare that this
article shall cease to be operative or shall be operative only with
such exceptions and modifications and from such date as he may notify:
Provided that the recommendation of the Constituent Assembly of the
State referred to in clause (2) shall be necessary before the
President issues such a notification.
4. In exercise of the powers conferred by this article the President,
on the recommendation of the Constituent Assembly of the State of
Jammu and Kashmir, declared that, as from the 17th day of November,
1952, the said art. 370 shall be operative with the modification that
for the explanation in cl.(1) thereof the following Explanation is
substituted namely:
Explanation—For the purpose of this Article, the Government of the
State means the person for the time being recognised by the President
on the recommendation of the Legislative Assembly of the State as the
*Sadar-I-Riyasat of Jammu and Kashmir, acting on the advice of Council
of Ministers of the State for the time being in office.
Implications of Article 370
This article specifies that except for Defence, Foreign Affairs,
Finance and Communications,(matters specified in the instrument of
accession) the Indian Parliament needs the State Government's
concurrence for applying all other laws. Thus the state's residents
lived under a separate set of laws, including those related to
citizenship, ownership of property, and fundamental rights, as
compared to other Indians.
Similar protections for unique status exist in tribal areas of India
including those in Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland
however it is only for the state of Jammu and Kashmir that the
accession of the state to India is still a matter of dispute between
India and Pakistan still on the agenda of the U.N.Security Council and
where the Government of India vide 1974 Indira-Sheikh accord committed
itself to keeping the relationship between the Union and Jammu and
Kashmir State within the ambit of this article .
The 1974 Indira-Sheikh accord mentions that " The State of Jammu and
Kashmir which is a constituent unit of the Union of India, shall, in
its relation with the Union, continue to be governed by Article 370 of
the Constitution of India " .
Indian citizens from other states and Kashmiri women who marry men
from other states can not purchase land or property in Jammu & Kashmir.
[1]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1974_Indira-Sheikh_accord
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jammu_%26_Kashmir
See also
Article 356
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_356
PART XXI of Indian constitution
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PART_Twenty_One_of_the_Constitution_of_India
References
Full text of the articlePDF (387 KiB)
http://lawmin.nic.in/coi/PARTXXI.pdf
Article 370 text from wikisource
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India/Part_XXI
^ Vasudha Dhagamwar (May 04, 2004). "The price of a Bill".
http://www.indianexpress.com/oldStory/46240/. Retrieved 24 March
2009.
External links
Background of article 370
http://rashtraman.blogspot.com/2008/08/article-370.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_370
Indian Opinion
A real Indian view of current affairs
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Article 370
article 370 was introduced to abide by the terms of J&K's accession.
The accession of J&K was conditional.
India desperately wanted to prove 2-nation theory wrong and wanted a
muslim majority region under its fold, also the strategic significance
of Kashmir and willingness of Kashmiri leaders to have separate state
for themselves (under protection of India) were the main reasons why
India went ahead for accession of J&K.
When Instrument of Accession was signed, constitution of India was not
ready. As per clause 7 of the Instrument of Accession, J&K was not
committed to accept the future Constitution of India.
In 1949 november when all the princely state heads and provincial
heads of Indian dominion were supposed to issue proclaimations making
Constitution of India operative in their respective states and
provinces, J&K refused such proclaimation refering to the clause 7 of
Instrument of Accession. This is because the draft form of
constitution refused separate constitutions for the states and J&K
always wanted their own separate constitution.
There was a legal imbroglio in this situation, the accession issue was
already with united nations and in such situations India has to abide
by its promise. This lead to Article 306-A of the draft Constitution
of India (which became article 370 in the actaul constitution).
Considering the overall situation prevalent, Article 370 was a major
step forward at that time. The Article at least paved the way for the
Republic of India to make several laws and provisions of the
Constitution of India applicable to Jammu & Kashmir State beyond the
strait jacket of the Instrument of Accession. Besides, Article 370 was
conceived as a temporary arrangement, with hopes of a full integration
in time to come.
Posted by Shailendra at 1:25 AM
Labels: article 370, India, J K, kashmir
2 comments:
kavi deependra said...
thank you very much ..for such valuable information...
kavi deependra
December 25, 2009 10:26 AM
Acme Consultants said...
This information cannot be considered as full information. Please give
the actual reason
February 27, 2010 4:11 AM
Post a Comment
http://rashtraman.blogspot.com/2008/08/article-370.html
SP, RJD pipe down, Govt not in a hurry for Women's Bill in LS
PTI
New Delhi, March 10, 2010
UPA allies SP and RJD on Wednesday piped down on their threat to
withdraw support to the government and the ruling coalition appeared
not to be in a hurry to press ahead with the Women's reservation bill
in the Lok Sabha.
A day after the Rajya Sabha passed the historic legislation, Trinamool
Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, whose party boycotted the voting, on
Wednesday met Congress president Sonia Gandhi who reportedly addressed
her concerns and assured her all parties would be consulted before the
historic legislation is brought before the Lok Sabha.
However, Banerjee continued to sulk over Congress attitude when she
walked away from the Rajya Sabha during the discussion on the Railway
budget after a Congress leader made a veiled attack on her suggesting
she was not following "Cabinet discipline".
The timing of tabling the bill in the Lok Sabha was a matter of
speculation amid reports that the Government does not want to take any
chance with the crucial money bills to be voted before the House
adjourns for a recess on March 16.
However, Law Minister Veerappa Moily dismissed any fears of threat to
the government on the issue of financial business saying government
had the numbers and there was no deliberate strategy to delay the
Bill.
Parliamentary Affairs minister P K Bansal gave no indication of the
Bill being brought before March 16, saying "We want everyone on board.
We will certainly try for a congenial atmosphere."
On the other side, the Bill's strong opponents SP chief Mulayam Singh
Yadav and RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who had threatened to withdraw
support over its passage, did not execute their threat today.
Women's Bill to be in place in two years
It will be more than two years after the Women's Reservation Bill is
passed in Lok Sabha for it to be implemented because of the long
subsequent legislative and other processes associated with it.
"It will take a minimum of two years. Just like the delimitation
process...a commission or a committee it will take two to two-and-a-
half years from now. The process is such," Moily told PTI.
However, he expressed confidence that the reservation of seats and the
identification of 181 of the 543 seats for women in Lok Sabha will be
in place "definitely" before the next Lok Sabha elections due in 2014.
Apart from reserving seats in Lok Sabha, the Constitution Amendment
Bill, which was passed by Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, seeks to provide
reservation for women in 1,370 out of a total of 4,109 seats in 28
assemblies.
The principle of reservation of seats for women will also apply to
seats reserved for SC/ST candidates.
The Bill also provides for rotation of seats reserved for women every
Lok Sabha.
Explaining the process, Moily said once Lok Sabha passes the Bill and
the President signs it it will be sent to all the states for
ratification.
At least 14 of the 28 states will have to ratify the legislation for
it to become a law. This process, Moily said, may take about nine
months.
Women's bill in LS likely on March 15
The Women's Reservation Bill, which has been passed by Rajya Sabha,
may be tabled in Lok Sabha on March 15 or 16 but a final decision on
it will be taken by the Business Advisory Committee which meets on
Friday.
"The BAC is meeting on Friday. It will have to decide the date," Law
Minister M Veerappa Moily told reporters when asked when the
Constitution (108th Amendment) bill would be tabled in the Lower
House.
Replying to questions, Moily said the bill could be tabled on March 15
or March 16.
He expressed confidence that the bill that provides for 33 per cent
reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies would have a
smooth sailing in the Lower House of Parliament too.
The bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha yesterday with overwhelming
majority, with 191 voting in favour and only one against among those
present in the House.
Moily said the government has some other agenda like the Finance bill
and some legislations to replace ordinances that are needed to be
taken up urgently.
Asked whether there was any plan to revoke suspension of the seven
Rajya Sabha members considering demands for the same, the Law Minister
evaded a direct reply and merely said, "The Congress and UPA
government are not interested in keeping out members of either Lok
Sabha or Rajya Sabha. That is not our legacy. Our legacy is to involve
everybody.
No quotas within quota, no threat to Govt: Moily
Government ruled out providing 'quota within quota' for OBCs and
Muslims in the Women's Reservation Bill and said there was no
deliberate delay in bringing the measure to Lok Sabha on perceived
threat to its stability.
Unfazed by threats of withdrawl of support by allies like SP and RJD,
the Government is absolutely confident and has no worries about
numbers in Lok Sabha or about passage of the money bills in the lower
house.
"There is no provision for sub quota for OBCs or minorities under the
present scheme of things in Constitution and also because there is no
data available even today on communities and castes under the census,"
Moily said.
BPCC suspends Lalu's relative, Tytler says no
Congress in Bihar suspended RJD chief Lalu Prasad's relative Anirudh
Prasad alias Sadhu Yadav for reportedly speaking against Women's
Reservation Bill, but AICC general secretary in-charge of state
affairs, Jagdish Tytler, said no such measure was taken against him.
"He does not stand suspended as announced by BPCC president Anil
Sharma earlier in the day," Tytler told reporters in Patna.
Yadav had personally explained his position to him stating that he
believed in the policies and programmes of the Congress, Tytler said.
"Yadav has explained to me that he was not averse to the party line on
the Women's Reservation Bill. "I have asked Yadav to explain his
position in writing to which he has agreed," Tytler said.
Yadav, brother-in-law of Lalu, said, "I have not said anything on the
issue. Since the assembly elections are around the corner, some vested
interests in the party are playing dirty politics to malign me."
Earlier in the day, the BPCC chief said, "We have taken a serious note
of Yadav going to the extreme step of violating the party lines on the
bill and suspended him with immediate effect."
According to reports, Yadav had threatened to resign from the Congress
to protest against its stand on the Bill. He had switched over to
Congress following differences with Lalu on allotment of party ticket
before the last Lok Sabha election.
AP Cong demands Bharat Ratna for Sonia Gandhi
Hailing AICC president Sonia Gandhi for getting the Women's
Reservation Bill passed in the Rajya Sabha, women wing of the Andhra
Pradesh Congress demanded that she be awarded Bharat Ratna for her
valuable contribution for the empowerment of women in the country.
"We have faxed our demand to President Pratibha Patil already. We will
meet her soon and request her to confer Bharat Ratna on madam
Soniaji," state Mahila Congress president K Ganga Bhavani said in
Hyderabad.
She said a resolution has also been passed in this regard by the
Congress' women wing.
Gandhi Bhavan, the headquarters of the state Congress Committee, wore
a festive look with party members distributing sweets, bursting
crackers, lighting sparklers and dancing with joy over the passage of
the women's reservation bill in the Rajya Sabha.
The party members hit out at RJD chief Lalu Prasad, Samajwadi Party
supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and Janata Dal (U) president Sharad Yadav
for opposing the bill.
"The behaviour of MPs who tried to snatch away and tear the papers was
abominable. If Lalu has so much love for dalits, then why had he made
his wife (Rabri Devi) chief minister. He could had made a dalit leader
the chief minister," T Venkata Ratnam, a woman Congress leader, said.
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Govt firm on MPs' suspension
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'TC wanted all-party debate'
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/87457/Top%20Stories/We+wanted+all-party+debate:+Mamata.html
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ASK PRABHU
India Today ASK PRABHU Story If the Congress starts supporting Common
Civil Code, eliminates Article 370, terminates all the casts/religion-
based reservations, where would you be?
March 3, 2010
None of these changes would affect my life. I trust democracy and
nationalist secularism.
-Asked by Shivram Gopal Vaidya
vaidyas...@gmail.com
More stories from ASK PRABHU
Why do you avoid answering the question that might put Muslim
hooligans and Congressmen in tight spot? Are you afraid of them? Do
they hamper your channels' day-to-day work?
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89191/ASK%20PRABHU/Why+do+you+avoid+answering+the+question+that+might+put+Muslim+hooligans+and+Congressmen+in+tight+spot+Are+you+afraid+of+them+Do+they+hamper+your+channels'+day-to-day+work.html
Pakistan plays with our govt, like cat plays with a mouse, bleeding us
regularly. Yet our ministers run to defend tapori like pro-Pak
statements of some celebrities. What message does Pakistan get out of
this?
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89190/ASK%20PRABHU/Pakistan+plays+with+our+govt,+like+cat+plays+with+a+mouse,+bleeding+us+regularly.+Yet+our+ministers+run+to+defend+tapori+like+pro-Pak+statements+of+some+celebrities.+What+message+does+Pakistan+get+out+of+this.html
How to elect honest politician where elections are based on money
power?
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89189/ASK%20PRABHU/How+to+elect+honest+politician+where+elections+are+based+on+money+power.html
I take extra care of my children studying in convent as I see so many
improper tricks are applied to make them deviate religiously. Everyday
after school I force them into Quransharif. Am I communal to defend
our beliefs?
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89188/ASK%20PRABHU/I+take+extra+care+of+my+children+studying+in+convent+as+I+see+so+many+improper+tricks+are+applied+to+make+them+deviate+religiously.+Everyday+after+school+I+force+them+into+Quransharif.+Am+I+communal+to+defend+our+beliefs.html
Sir, recently, I heard that India was rebuffed and snubbed in Tehran
and in Istanbul. Is this true? Why were we treated like this
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89187/ASK%20PRABHU/Sir,+recently,+I+heard+that+India+was+rebuffed+and+snubbed+in+Tehran+and+in+Istanbul.+Is+this+true+Why+were+we+treated+like+this.html
ASK PRABHU
India Today ASK PRABHU Story Mumbai is a part of India. Any Indian
can settle there. What about Kashmir? Do you and your channel support
the scrapping of article 370?
February 20, 2010
Why don't you read the Constitution of India? Many of us can't buy
land in many states in North East and even in Himachal. Article 370 is
part of our Constitution and it can be changed only by the state
assembly.
AIMPLB begins a new journey from Lucknow
Farzand Ahmed
March 21, 2010
The 38-year-old All India Muslim Personal Law Board [AIMPLB] that
stands for the protection of Shariat and Muslim Personal Laws seemed
to be rewriting its own history on the banks of Gomti in Lucknow when
it elected when it elected four new female members to the 51-member
executive committee. With this number of elected members of Board
increased to five. [There were 25 nominated women members in the 201-
member general body].
The AIMPLB representing all Muslim sects and schools of thought is
currently in session for the first time in Lucknow which once
threatened its existence.
It was on the ground of gender bias within the Ulema-dominated
organisation and deliberate neglect of growing plight of women that a
parallel all-women All India Muslim Women Personal Board [AIMWPLB]
headed by Shaishta Ambar was set up in Lucknow some five years ago.
Later Hazrat Tauquir Raza Khan, the spiritual head of powerful Barelvi
school of Sunni Muslims split the Board and floated AIMPLB [Jadeed].
It was followed by third split in January 2005 in Lucknow when well-
known Shia cleric Khateeb e-Akbar Maulana Mirza Athar set up a
separate All India Shia Muslim Personal Law Board. The founders had
alleged that AIMPLB had been neglecting views of Shia community and
not doing much for the Indian Muslims as a whole.
Despite splits and criticism AIMPLB stood firmly. However, many
members viewed the direct election of four women members---Rukhsana
Lari, Safia Naseem [both from Lucknow], Noorjehan Shakeel [Kolkata)
and Asma Zehra [Hyderabad] was seen as sign of Board's acceptance of
the fact it could no longer ignore the growing pressure from Women.
Naseem Iqtidar Ali Khan was till now the sole woman member in the
executive committee. She continues to be on the panel.
Earlier in January this year AIMPLB Secretary Maulana Wali Rahmani had
held the first ever direct dialogue with women in Lucknow and faced
their anger over various issues including the issue of Talaq
[divorce].
Expands to NE States
Maulana Rabey Hasni Nadwi, head of the Dar-ul-Uloom Nadavat-ul-Ulema,
the Lucknow-based Islamic Seminary, was unanimously elected the
president of the Muslim Law Board for the third successive term.
According Board Spokesperson Zafaryab Jilani another significant
feature of elections was the Board's attempt to expand its
representation in the north-eastern States and Ladakh. The
representatives from these regions were elected as term members.
While, Maulana Bilal was elected from Meghalaya and Syed Ahmed from
Tripura, the Independent MP from Ladakh (Jammu and Kashmir), Ghulam
Hussain and Maulana Ata-ur- Rehman, AUDF (Assam United Democratic
Front ) MLA from Badarpur in Assam were elected term members from
Ladakh and Assam.
Announcing the results of the elections, the AIMPLB spokesperson,
Zafaryab Jilani said the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, K. Rahman
Khan and retired justice, Mohammad Qadri were made the life members of
the board. Jilani said these appointments were made against the eight
vacancies among the 102 founder members of the Law Board.
Kamal Farooqui, Qasim Rasool Ilyas, Saifullah Rahmani, Maulana Atiqur
Rehman Bastavi and Syed Athar Ali of Mumbai were the new faces elected
as term members. Besides, 10 members would be nominated by the Board
chairman.
History
All India Muslim Personal Law Board was established at a time when
"the then Government of India was trying to subvert Shariah law"
applicable to Indian Muslims through parallel legislation. Adoption
Bill had been tabled in the Parliament. Mr. H.R.Gokhle, then Union Law
Minister had termed this Bill as the first step towards Uniform Civil
Code. Ulema, leaders and various Muslim organisations convinced the
Indian Muslim community that the risk of losing applicability of
Shariah laws was real and concerted move by the community was needed
to defeat the conspiracy.
"It was a historic moment" claims Board adding "this was the first
time in the history of India after Khilafat Movement that people and
organisations of Indian Muslim community belonging to various schools
of thought came together on a common platform to defend Muslim
Personal Law.
First such meeting was convened at the famous Islamic Seminary at
Deoband on the initiative of Hazrat Maulana Syed Shah Minnatullah
Rahmani, Ameer Shariat, [Bihar & Orissa] and Hakeemul Islam Hazrat
Maulana Qari Mohammad Taiyab, Muhtamim, Darul Uloom, Deoband. The
meeting held a convention in Mumbai on December 27-28, 1972. "The
Convention was unprecedented. It showed unity, determination and
resolve of the Indian Muslim community to protect the Muslim Personal
Law".
All India Muslim Personal Law Board was born
The Board came into limelight for the first time when it intervened in
the Shah Bano case and pressured the Rajiv Gandhi government to blunt
the Supreme Court rule. The government had asked AIMPLB then headed by
highly revered Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Nadvi, then Chief of Darul Uloom
Nadvatul Ulema [Lucknow] to come out with the amendment in sections in
the Criminal Procedure Code [Cr PC] relating to the issue of alimony
[that was against Shariat]. And the law was changed which the Sangh
Parivar took up as an example of Muslim appeasement. Later Board
intervened in the Babri Masjid movement too. But so far the Board has
confined itself to the cause of Shariat. It also launched movement to
reform the Muslim Society in 1986 against misuse of Talaq, vulgar
display of wealth in functions like marriage, dowry, female foeticide,
illiteracy among women and also to spread the understanding of Shariat
[Quoranic laws] among men and women.
Its campaign includes revival and strengthening of Dar-ul-Qaza [the
court of Qazi] to deal with the disputes relating to Muslim Personal
laws.
Failure
Critics say that the male & cleric dominated organisation has
neglected the plight of women and failed to take any effective steps
to protect the women from the curse of Triple Talaq [uttering Talaq
thrice in one sitting verbally]. However, Senior Board member Zafaryab
Jilani [also Board's legal advisor] said though the Board was aware of
misuse of Triple Talaq, the question was how to abolish it. He said
different sects and schools have different practices but all the main
four Schools among Sunni sect were almost unanimous in favour of
Triple Talaq. Scholars, he said, also quote numerous Hadis [rulings
and sayings of the Prophet] on this.
Its role in the Imrana case was criticised everywhere. Imarana of
Muzaffarnagar was allegedly sexually assaulted by her father-in-law
but when the issue was highlighted a Fatwa had declared her husband as
her "son". This had led to hue and cry by women groups. The Board had
sent an investigation team but it tried to cover up the issue.
It also failed to bring out an effective Model Nikahnama that could be
acceptable to women groups too. Yet this time again it evaded the
Women Reservation Bill which was being projected by a section of
Muslim political leadership that it was against Muslim women. The
Lucknow session focused on Librehan Commission report stressing that
all the people found guilty of destroying the Babri Masjid should be
prosecuted and punished. It has also opposed the proposed Communal
Violence Bill. The Board was of the view that the proposed Communal
violence Bill was 'most harmful' for Muslims as it would not fix
responsibility of the police and administration. AIMPLB spokesperson
Mohammad Abdur Rahim Qureshi told mediapersons "Muslims have been the
sufferers be it riots in Bhiwandi, Meerut, Nalanda, Bhagalpur or
anywhere". Qureshi said the proposed legislation would be discussed in
detail. The Board has also opposed the setting up of a Central Madarsa
Board.
Having done this, scholars attending the 21st Session in Lucknow would
spell out the future plans at public meeting on Sunday evening.
Abolish 370, says Bhagwat, Advani
Arvind Chhabra
Madhopur (Pathankot), March 20, 2010
Different leaders including RSS chief Mohan Rao Bhagwat and former
deputy prime minister L.K. Advani today raised demand to abolish
Article 370 from the constitution as they paid glorious tributes to Dr
Shyama Prasad Mookherjee, described as the first martyr of independent
India, who laid down his life for the principle of one nation, one
flag and one constitution. Various leaders had splurged in Madhopur in
Pathankot on the occasion.
Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, BJP president Nitin
Gadkari and Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal were
among thousands who had gathered at the border point of Punjab-Jammu
and Kashmir (J&K) as it was here in 1953 he had started his campaign
to make J&K integral part of India and to make it possible for every
Indian citizen to visit J&K without permit. His life size statue was
unveiled and the place was named as Ekta Sathal.
Mohan Bhagwat gave a call to launch a second struggle to abolish
Article 370, the "last remaining symbol of disintegration." He also
demanded respectable rehabilitation of 3.5 lakh Kashmiri Hindu
migrants back in Valley, who are suffering in different parts of the
country.
Advani said that the struggle of Dr. Shayamal Prasad would be complete
only if Article 370 was repealed from the constitution. He said that
we became victim of British policy of disintegrating India even after
partition.
Gadkari, who also demanded repealing of Article 370 said that talks
with Pakistan would be futile till Pakistan continue to foment
terrorism from its soil.
More stories from North
'Thank God, we don't have a Thackeray'
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/86961/LATEST%20HEADLINES/Thackeray+targets+Maha+governor+over+'Mumbai+for+all'+remark.html
Bhilai: Principal sends lewd SMSes to students; thrashed
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89030/India/Bhilai:+Principal+sends+lewd+SMSes+to+students;+thrashed.html
India ok with life term for Headley: Govt
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89024/India/India+ok+with+life+sentence+for+David+Headley:+Govt.html
Getting official access to Headley will help India: BJP
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89000/India/Getting+official+access+to+Headley+will+help+India:+BJP.html
Batla autopsy: Police in the dock
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/88969/India/Damning+Batla+autopsy+findings.html
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89176/India/Abolish+370,+says+Bhagwat,+Advani.html
Courtesy: Mail Today
Damning Batla autopsy findings
Aman Sharma
New Delhi, March 19, 2010
Eighteen months after the controversial Batla House 'encounter'in the
aftermath of the Delhi serial blasts, the post-mortem reports of the
victims are out and are drilling gaping holes in the police version of
the incident.
The post-mortem reports reveal that both the slain suspected
terrorists, Atif Ameen and Mohd Sajid, had injuries inflicted by a
blunt object, other than the numerous gunshot wounds on their bodies.
Sajid's post-mortem report also confirms he was shot three times in
the head with the bullets travelling vertically downwards, which was
visible in the photographs of Sajid's body published by MAIL TODAY
earlier.
The report says these three bullets having their entry wounds in the
scalp led to cranio-cerebral damage to the brain, causing Sajid's
death.
One of these bullets fired in the head exited from the back of his
chest, another came out near his jaw and the third one exited from the
back of his right shoulder.
There was another bullet shot behind his head.
How the police managed to shoot Sajid from above during an encounter
remains unexplained.
The report also confirms that Sajid has another bullet entry wound on
his right shoulder, which went vertically down and lodged in his
chest.
There were two more injuries on Sajid's body, which are non-firearm
wounds. How these wounds could be inflicted when bullets were being
fired from both sides, according to the police version, remains
unanswered.
These are injury numbers 13 and 14 specified in the post-mortem report
- the former is a four by two cm abrasion over the midline on Sajid's
back while the latter is a muscle-deep laceration wound of 3.5 by two
cm on the right leg. It is unexplained how Sajid could have got such
wounds before his death in a shootout.
The post-mortem report of Atif reveals his body was riddled with 10
bullets in the chest, abdomen, thighs, shoulder, neck and lower back.
He also has a nonfirearm injury - specified as injury number seven
which is an abrasion on his right knee.
The post-mortem reports have been furnished by the National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC) in response to an application filed under the
Right to Information (RTI) Act by a Jamia Millia Islamia student Afroz
Alam.
The Delhi Police had persistently refused to share these reports over
the last 18 months. Even the NHRC had skirted the issue initially in
their report on the Batla House encounter though it went to great
lengths to explain the fire-arm injuries to Delhi Police inspector
Mohan Chand Sharma that caused his death.
The NHRC, in its report, had merely said that the post-mortem reports
of the two suspected terrorists mentioned injuries other than fire-arm
injuries but did not disclose more or investigate how injuries by a
blunt object could have been inflicted in a shootout. The autopsies of
Atif and Sajid were done three days after the encounter by a panel of
three AIIMS doctors of forensic medicine.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who had been fighting to get the post-
mortem reports made public, said the autopsy reports reveal what the
Delhi Police have been desperately trying to hide.
"Blunt injuries mentioned in the autopsy could not have been caused in
a shootout. Obviously, there was some scuffle or the two boys were
beaten up before they were shot.
How can anyone explain the top of the head bullet injuries or the one
in the top of his (Sajid) right shoulder - with all bullets going
vertically down in the body?" Bhushan asked.
He added: "Pictures of the bodies had exposed these injuries. The
police were hence desperately trying to hide these post-mortem
reports.
The non-firearm injuries on both the back and leg of Sajid cannot be
explained. That is why we have been demanding an independent
investigation into the alleged encounter." A senior doctor at AIIMS,
who was associated with the autopsies, said he could not explain the
nonfirearm injuries on Sajid's body.
"But the other three or four gunshot wounds on Sajid's head and
shoulder is possible in a shootout… for example, the terrorist may
have fallen after taking a bullet in his leg and could have been
firing at the police lying down. So, such a pattern of injuries is
possible in such a volley of fire," he said.
But Bhushan rubbished the explanation.
"If Sajid was lying down and firing, there should be a hail of police
bullet marks on the walls of the room. But there was none in the room
where the shootout happened," he said.
The Jamia Teachers Solidarity Association also reacted strongly to the
contents of the autopsies. "Almost all entry wounds on Atif's body are
in the region below the shoulders and at the back of the chest, which
point to the fact that he was repeatedly shot from behind. In Sajid's
case, the entry points of the gunshots and the fact that all but one
bullet travelled downward suggests he was held down by force (which
also explain the injuries on the back and leg), while he was shot in
the back and head," said Manisha Sethi of the association.
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/88969/India/Damning+Batla+autopsy+findings.html
Getting official access to Headley will help India: BJP
PTI
New Delhi, March 19, 2010
With extradition of Pakistani- American David Coleman Headley now
ruled out after he pleaded guilty to terror charges, BJP today said
this was a loss but official access to India to question him would
help prove to the world about Pakistan's involvement in the Mumbai
strikes.
"It (consequences of his pleading guilty before a US court) is a mixed
bag. As we cannot get extradition, it is a loss. But, at the same
time, we can get official access and can officially question him so
our dossiers (against Pakistan) will be more weighty," BJP
spokesperson Prakash Javadekar said.
He asserted that though Pakistan may ultimately dismiss Headley's
confessions as "mere papers" and not evidences, the involvement of the
neighbouring country in the 26/11 terror attacks would be established
more firmly and be "very clear" to the world community.
"Now the trial of Ajmal Kasab (lone surviving terrorist in the 26/11
case) is winding up. So, I think we can expect the result in that case
also," he said.
Javadekar took a dig at the UPA government for making a "unilateral
offer" of foreign secretary-level talks to Pakistan inspite of its
continued support to terror.
"The real test of India lies in how it deals with Pakistan because
Pakistan has not changed a bit. It has not done anything, not taken
any credible steps....Terror continues, infiltration is growing. Still
government did a sudden U-turn and unilaterally offered talks," he
said.
This move had emboldened the Pakistani establishment, especially the
ISI, to simultaneously do business with India and plot terror,
Javadekar alleged.
He said it was ISI's policy to inflict a thousand cuts and wound
India.
Bhilai: Principal sends lewd SMSes to students; thrashed
Raghunandan Panda & Sunil Namdeo
Bhilai/Raipur, March 19, 2010
Parents of a Bhilai school students beat up its principal after he
allegedly sent lewd messages on their mobiles.
K.S. Chhabra, principal of famous school Maharishi Vidya Mandir, a
well known school in Chhattisgarh's steel city Bhilai, has been
accused of making obscene phone calls and sending lewd short messages
(SMSes) on some of his students' mobiles.
Chhabra even called them to his office in the school and at home, the
parents alleged. A victim recorded her principal's sickening demands
on her mobile and reported to the parents.
Enraged over the principal's gesture, the parents beat him black and
blue. They alleged that Chhabra's disgusting behaviour was going on
for a few years. They thrashed him all the way to the police station
until the policemen rescued him.
The police have started an enquiry into the matter and have recorded
calls by Chhabra as proof.
Bahadur, one of the parents of such students, said, "The principal
used to say that your children are failing. If you want them to pass
you will have to do everything I say."
Thank God, we don't have a Thackeray here: Dikshit
PTI
New Delhi, March 20, 2010
"Thank God, we don't have a Bal Thackeray," said Chief Minister Sheila
Dikshit on Saturday while calling Delhi a unique city where people
from across the country can live comfortably.
"We have varied culture and true cosmopolitan people. People from
Kerala to Jammu and Kashmir and to those from the North-East can live
here comfortably.
"Everyone knows what is happening in Mumbai (anti-north Indian
campaign). It certainly does not happen here. Thank God, we don't have
a Bal Thackeray here," she said about the anti-North Indian campaign
by the Shiv Sena and MNS.
Dikshit was speaking at an interactive session at a summit organised
by CII and the Wall Street Journal.
The chief minister also spoke about the uniqueness of Delhi, where
everything including its weather, is imported and the number of
heritage structures it has.
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ASK PRABHU
India Today ASK PRABHU Story As per our Constitution, an Indian can
stay or live in any part of India except Jammu and Kashmir. But some
political leaders, for their political gains, are opposing this. Is it
correct? I think the electronic media is more powerful to spread this
message.
March 3, 2010
The state of J&K enjoys a special status under Article 370 of the
Constitution. It doesn't permit people from other parts of India to
buy property in J&K. The BJP has been agitating for scrapping Article
370 but all other parties are opposed to such a move unless it is
proposed by the state assembly itself.
-Asked by Anil Kumar
anilkuma...@gmail.com
BJP believes in one nation one constitution: Nitin Gadkari
PTI
Saturday, March 20, 2010 21:37 IST
Madhopur (Punjab): Asserting it stands for "one nation one
constitution", the BJP today said the party is firm in its resolve to
scrap article 370 of the Constitution providing special status to
Jammu and Kashmir.
"The party stands for one nation one constitution slogan given by
Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Shyama Prasad Mukherjee," BJP president
Nitin Gadkari said here on the occasion of unveiling of a statue of
the late leader.
He said the BJP will not dilute its stand on abrogation of Article 370
and there is a need to emulate Mukherjee, who "fought for scrapping of
permit system prevalent in those days which debarred people to enter
and move freely in Jammu and Kashmir".
Gadkari said his party is opposed to the Centre's policy on Kashmir,
which is mere appeasement to those who pose a threat to the nation,
and its mild approach to tackle Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.
Addressing the gathering, he said Pakistan continues to wage a proxy
war against India by sponsoring terrorism in J-K, while Naxalism is
posing an internal threat to the country.
The Centre has not yet come out with adequate measures to meet these
threats. The Government seems to be softening its stand on Pakistan
due to pressure of some foreign powers, Gadkari alleged.
"Kashmir is an integral issue and no talks with Pakistan can be
resumed unless it gives ample proof of striking hard on militants
operating from its soil.
"Pakistan should stop aiding and abetting terrorism in India," Gadkari
said.
Former deputy prime minister L K Advani in his address said while
Vallabh Bhai Patel and Mukherjee had a common resolve to see a strong
India, the British gave independence but with a rider that the rulers
of the erstwhile princely states could use their discretion on staying
with India.
Apparently referring to the "Mumbai for maharashtrians' issue, RSS
chief Mohan Bhagwat, who unveiled the statue, said Hindus were forced
to migrate from Jammu and Kashmir but the country belongs to all
Indians and regional chauvinism does not hold any place.
Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was also present
there, said Mukherjee's photographs would be put up in the gallery
here.
Himachal Pradesh chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, state BJP president
Shanta Kumar, Punjab industry and local bodies minister Manoranjan
Kalia, Amritsar BJP MP, Navjot Singh Sidhu
were among those present on the occasion.
The place where the life-size statue of Mukherjee was erected was
named as 'Ekta Sthal'.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
A possible deconvolution for the convoluted logic of RSS: What Mohan
Bhagwat could have said ....
In a recent blog entry the chief of RSS, Mr. Mohan Bhagwat (MB) was
criticised for saying: He who is an Indian is a Hindu and he who is
not a Hindu is not an Indian.
A long and winding debate ensued. It was desirable to retain the
informal notions related to the words Hindu and Indian, and yet
certain specificity was needed for precision, unambiguousness and
substantiveness.
Mr. Thammayya, in one of his comments, had asked: Hey, I have another
suggestion. What do you think, MB should have told? Interesting to
know this.
I have recently outlined an abstract version of Hindu-WOL (Hindu Way
of Life), terming it, for various reasons, Sanatana Dharma. In light
of this article, here is my take on what MB could have said:
One of the essential underpinnings of an open and free mind regarding
religious truths is: There can be points of view regarding the Truth
and the ways of attaining the Truth which are seemingly quite
different from the ones I uphold but are equally valid.
Hindus pursue and practice such openness and freedom.
A belief in exclusive monopoly regarding religious truths and/or
insistence on one's concrete details regarding the same, is
inconsistent with this notion of freedom.
India, in our view, is a home-nation for Hindus. Those who are not
Hindus are not legitimately Indian.
Remarks:
0. The term Hindu is not defined comprehensively here. And yet,
whatever is essential for for the political debate is captured in
terms of the concepts of openness and freedom.
For example:
a. The term Hindu is free from geographical, racial, linguistic,
regional connotations and overtones.
b. So there can be Hindus residing as citizens of other nations.
1. Similarly, India, although not defined comprehensively, is hinted
in the last sentence, to be the current geopolitical entity, whose
citizens we are. This suffices for the political debate.
For example:
a. The term India is free from racial, linguistic, and regional
connotations and overtones.
b. Those, who are currently residing in India as citizens but do not
honor this openness and freedom are termed illegitimate citizens.
This allows us to use the terms "Hindu" and "India" with specificity
necessary for the relevant aspects of political debate, while
retaining the same informal notions regarding these words, which most
of us may entertain.
Nonetheless, this is still a tentative version, and is open to be
improved upon. Readers' suggestions are welcome.
Interestingly, a Dutch Politician, Geert Wilders has said many things
which RSS could have, and should have articulated long long ago. Some
of these are, I have provided links obtained from the same wikipedia
page: "not tolerate the intolerant", "Ban Koran like Mein Kampf", and
"There might be moderate muslims, but there is no moderate Islam".
However, as I have repeatedly alleged, owing to intellectual lethargy,
among those who are supposed to provide India with political
leadership, these things have not happened here in India.
Posted by samAlochaka
http://medsyn.blogspot.com/2010/03/possible-deconvolution-for-convoluted.html
Sid Harth
from Delhi University
Religious conversion has become the subject of passionate debate in
contemporary India. From the early 20th century onwards, it has
surfaced again and again in the political realm, in the media and in
the courts. During the last few decades the dispute has attained a new
climax in the plethora of newspapers, journals, and books whose pages
have been devoted to the question of conversion. Apparently, a large
group of Indians considers this to be an issue of crucial import to
the future of their country.
Generally Speaking, Religion is s system of faith and worship of
supernatural force which ordains regulates and control the destiny of
human kinds.
The Merrian Webster Dictionary defined , Religion as an organized
system of faith and worship, a personal set of religious belief and
practice, a cause, principle or belief held to with faith and order.
The Oxford Dictionary defined, Religion the belief in a super human
controlling power, especially in personal God or Gods entitled to
obedience and worship.
Swami Vivekananda perceives religion as - it is based upon faith and
belief and in most cases consist only of different sect of theories
that is the reason why we find all religion quarreling with each other.
1
According to Sage Aurobindo, The quest of man for God is the
foundation for religion & its essential function is the search for God
and the finding of the God. 2
Hinduism in the view of Dr. Radhakrishan is The main aim of the Hindu
faith is to permit image worship as the means to the development of
the religious spirit to the recognition of the Supreme who has his
temples in all beings.3
We can conclude from the above discussion that no universally
acceptable definition as to what exactly "religion" is. There appears
to be near unanimity that religion, generally, is a belief or faith in
the existence of a Supernatural Being and the precepts which people
follow for attaining salvation.
Religion may be regarded as belief and patterns of behaviors by which
human try to deal with what they view as important problems that can
not be solved through the application of known technologies and
techniques of organization. To overcome these limitations people turn
to the manipulation of supernatural beings and powers.
Religion consist of various rituals, prayers, songs, dances, offerings
and sacrifices, through which people try to manipulate supernatural
beings and powers to their advantages. These being and power may
consist of Gods and Goddesses, ancestral and other spirits or
impersonal power either by themselves or in various combinations . In
all societies there are certain individuals especially skilled at
dealing with these beings and powers and who assist other members of
society in their ritual activities. A body of myths rationalizes or
explains the system in a manner consistent with peoples experience in
the world in which they live.
Every individual has a natural entitlement of religious faith and
freedom of conscience , a right to adopt or abandoned any faith of his
own choice. In this sense freedom of religion and freedom of
conscience is fundamental right both constitutionally and
conventionally.
The freedom of religion and freedom of conscience has been recognized
under the international law. The General Assembly of united nations
adopted without dissenting vote on 10th December,1948 the Universal
Declaration on Human Rights recognizing fact that the entire humanity
enjoys certain alienable rights which constitute the foundation of
freedom, justice and piece in the world.
In order to give effect to the Universal Declaration of human rights
the members of the united nations of also adopted the two conventions
in 1966 in this concern:-
1. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
2. International covenant on Civil and Political rights.
The Government of India by its declaration dated 10.4.1979 had
accepted Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two
international covenants with certain reservations which do not cover
the right to freedom of religion. Apart from this the Constitution of
India also enshrines the freedom of religion and freedom of conscience
as fundamental rights under Article 25,26,27,28,30.
Religious Conversion is multifaceted and multi dimensional phenomenon.
Indian society is a pluralist and heterogeneous society with
multiplicity of races, religious cultural, castes and languages etc.
Religious Conversion has always been a problematic issue in India.
Every incident of conversion causes lot of hue and cry in society;
especially it causes nostalgic feelings to Hindu organization because
of its inherent socio- political. Rigid and Stringent caste system
prevailing in Hindu Religion is one of the most significant factors
behind the religious conversion. This is because of this caste system
Dalits ( in most comprehensive and inclusive sense the word Dalit
includes Untouchables, Shudras and Adivasis) are the most susceptible
section of the society to religious conversion . The other causes of
conversion are
1. Polygamy which is prevailing in Islam
2. To get rid of unwanted matrimonial ties.
3. To get reservation benefits.
Polygamy is a system wherein a male person his authorized to keep more
than one wife/wives where all the other wife/wives are still alive, or
where a male person is authorized to solemnize more than one marriage.
Polygamy is just opposite to the system of monogamy. In the past
almost all the societies in the world have been either polygamous or
polyandrous. Monogamy was never a rule but an exception. Amongst all
the religions resourceful persons were allowed to keep as many wives
as he can afforded. But Islam has been exception to his general rule.
The Prophet Mohd. ( 571 AD-632 AD) the last messenger according to
Quaran laid down the principle for his followers that a person may
keep as many as four wives only and that too only in exceptional
circumstances prevailing in those days. The Prophet had allowed the
followers of Islam to keep four wives at one time because of the
contemporary reasons. During the life of Prophet the Arabian society
was the society of innumerable tribal communities and war was constant
phenomenon of those days in Islam. Hundreds of wars were fought
amongst those tribals can themselves, sometimes in the name of Jehad,
sometimes in the name of religion, sometimes for the sake of
established political hegemony. Only men were allowed to participate
in the wars and not the women. One of the obvious consequences of
these wars was that innumerable women became widows. One of the most
burning problem before the prophet was that how to manage the lives f
these destitute widows and the children. Nobody was there take care
for these helpless widows and children. So the prophet evolved out a
workable solution of the problem. He permitted the men that every man
would keep as many as four wives along with their children. So that no
widow or child would die out hunger starvation or illness. Through the
system every widow and her children were taken care of.
Here two important points are worth mentioning that:
1. The permission given by the prophet to keep more than one wives was
not a permanent prescription for all the times to come. But it was
only a temporary provision just to manage the cotemporary problems.
Along with the provision of keeping for wives the prophet imposed a
mandatory conditions upon the persons who might keep more that 1 wife
that if a person keeps more than one wife he must have an equal eye
upon all the wives. That is the principle of equality which was to be
observed and not to discriminate on any grounds whatsoever.
2. Keeping more than one wife was not prescribed as general rule. But
only an exception and that is only to deal with the above mention
contemporary problem. But after the life of the profit, the Muslim
leaders especially in India have misinterpreted the dictates of the
prophet in his concern and started receiving undue advantage of this
dictate of the prophet. Muslim religious leader and Ulemas have
maintained that the dictate of the prophet to keep four wives was not
a temporary provision rather it was a permanent dictate for all time
to come. This is how they have misconceived the dictates of the
prophet and justified and legitimized polygamy almost 1500 years after
the life of the prophet.
It is significant to mention that the practice of polygamy has been
abolished even in the constitutionally declared Islamic states long
ago but in India this practice is still valid under the Muslim
personal law. It is also pertinent to mention that the practice of
polygamy is anti feminist and it is discriminatory against Muslims
women because polygamy is a unilateral right provided only to Muslim
men. Therefore, it is suggested that the privilege of polygamy should
not be given Muslim community under their personal laws and uniform
civil code is the need of the hour.
The Impact Of Religious Conversion
The religious conversion into Islam by a person from non Islamic faith
is not valid if the conversion is done for the purpose of polygamy.
Neither Islam nor the law recognizing any such conversion in India. In
the case of Sarla Mudgal vs Union of India4 a married Hindu male
converted in to Islam for the sake of solemninising another marriage
as polygamy is permitted in Islam. The Hon’ble SC held that conversion
in to another faith Ipso-facto does not dissolve the first marriage
because no one is allowed to take the benefit of his own wrong.
Moreover the court held that the married person converting into Islam
is not entitle to marry another woman after conversion. It was held to
be an act of bigamy prohibited U/S 17 of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and
punishable U/S 494 of IPC and it was further observed that the second
marriage is void.
In Vilayat Raj vs Smt. Sunita 5 it was observed by the court that if
both the parties to the marriage were Hindu at the time of marriage ,
pre-nupital law i.e. Hindu Marriage Act applied even after conversion
in Islam.
In Lilly Thomas vs Union of India 6 it was observed that an apostate
husband is guilty of bigamy U/S 494 of IPC if he marriage another
woman after converting into Islam. It was observed that holding such
person guilty of bigamy is not violation of freedom of religion U/
Article 25 of the Constitution, hence, Section 17 of H.M.A. 1955 is
applicable.
From the above it is clear that after the pronouncement of the
aforesaid judicial verdicts, polygamy is no more a valued person for
religious conversion into Islam.
A person does not ceases to be Hindu nearly because he declares that
he has no faith in his religion. A person will not cease to be Hindu
even if he does not practice his religion till he does not renounces
his religion or starts living and behaving like an atheist or agnostic
or starts eating beef or insulting God or Goddesses. He does not
ceases to be member of the religion even if he starts expressing his
faith in any other religion , he continuous to be a Hindu Chandra
Shekharan vs Kulundurivalu7
If a person converts from Hindu religion to Sikh , Budhism or Jainism
he does not cease to be Hindu since all these religions do not fall
beyond the definition of ‘Hindu’ in the relevant section of Hindu
Marriage Act . He ceases to be Hindu if he converts into Islam
Christianity or Jews or Zoroastrain, conversion into these religion is
a ground for desolation of marriage for the other spouse and not for
the spouse who converts into any such religion ( U/S 13 H.M.A)
Under Section 80 of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956 if
the husband gets converted into Non-Hindu faith wife is entitled to
live Separately without forfeiting her right of maintenance but if she
herself also ceases to be Hindu, she looses her claim of maintenance
under the section, But she is entitled under section 24 of H.M.A in
1955 for pedente-lite and permanent alimony.
Special Marriage Act 1954 reflects the true sprit of Indian Secularism
as it is in consonance with India ‘s heterogeneity and multiplicity of
religious faith. Conversion does not make any effect on matrimonial
ties as the Act is the secular legislations and itself contemplate
inter caste and inter religious marriages.
The Indian Divorce Act, 1869- If the husband gets converted into non
Christian faith, wife is entitled for divorce but vice versa is not
possible. If wife gets converted into non Christian faith husband can
not apply for divorce. NANG vs LABYA8
Under Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, 1939 Section 4 says if a
wife renounces Islam, the marriage does not Ipso-facto dissolve unless
the circumstances warrant otherwise.
The picture is complete if we account for the fact that most of these
laws are aimed to keep the low caste Hindus within the fold of
Hinduism. And so while law prohibits conversion, 're-conversion' of
low caste Hindus is permissible. If a low caste Hindu who had
converted to another faith or any of his descendants reconverts to
Hinduism, he might get back his original caste In Kailash Sonkar. 9
Major Events Of Conversion
Major events of conversion are not reported unless they are
highlighted by media or a hue and cry is made by Hindu Organization.
Following are the major incidents of religious conversion in post
independence.
Nagpur:- The Ist and the biggest mass conversion which the country has
ever witnessed, took placed on the 14th day of October 1956. Place
Nagpur, Maharashtra, the city where the headquarter of Rastriya
Swayamsewak Sangh is situated. About a half a million Dalits said good
bye to Hinduism from their life and embraced Budhism under the
leadership of the greatest social reformer, the great visionary and
the prophet of Dalit emancipation Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
Meenakshipuram:- The significant event of religious conversion took
place on Feb 19th 1981 at Meenakshipuram of Kanyakumari District in
Tamil Nadu. Where 280 families got converted to Islam. All of these
280 families cited social reasons behind their conversion. These
reasons were persecution, ill treatment and humiliation they
constantly had to face at the hands of upper caste of Hindus which
made their lives miserable and worst than animals.
Dulina :- Another significant even t of religious conversion which
created a lot of hue and cry in the society took place at Gurgaon,
Haryana 2002. This all had happened after a very pathetic incident of
burning Five Dalits Alive by a mob of upper caste people in a police
station at Dulina in Jhajjar District in Haryana. Police remain silent
spectator. Now nothing was left for the families of these massacred
Dalits to remain in such a violent and hatred preaching system of
faith, where in Dalit have no place. All the five families of
massacred Dalits got converted in to Buddhism at Rabidas Mandir,
Gurgaon, Haryana on 28th October 2002 under the banner of All India
Confederation of SC/ST organization and the Lord Buddha club in the
presence of famous film director, All India Christian Council , Jamait
Ulma-I Hind and in the presence of Media Persons.
Another dimension of this event of conversion is that after these
event of conversion all the Saffron Hindu Organizations rushed to
these families and threatened them to face dire consequences on
account of the above said conversion. Due to assaults and threats and
under the pressure of these Hindu Organization, ultimately, these
sacred Dalit Families broke down and had to make a public statement
that we did not leave Hindu religion , we did not convert.
In July 2002 another incident of religious conversion took place
Guntur distt. Andhra Pardesh were 70 Dalits converted in to
Christianity.
Delhi:- In the year 2002 Udit Raj the Chairman of All India
Confederation of SC/ST Organizations and the Lord Buddha Club give a
national wide call for conversion. This conversion ceremony was
supposed to be performed at Ram Leela Maidan of Delhi . Around one
million Dalits were supposed to get convert into Buddhism.
The preparation regarding the conversion programme were on . This
nation wide call for the conversion got an unprecedented coverage in
national and international media. Dehydration to saffron Hindu
organization regarding such a massive programme of conversion, was
oblivious. These organization resorted all means to shut of the mouth
of media , so that this call may not reach the public at large. The
Ram Leela Maidan , where the programme was supposed to be organized ,
declared as prohibited area and Section 144 of Crpc was imposed in and
around the area, all borders of Delhi where from influx of Dalits, to
take Diksha, was possible were sealed. The Government was determined
to ensure by hook or by crook let the programme may not be organized.
Finally, the organizer had to change the spot for the proposed
programme . The Government could not succeed to curb the enthusiasm of
dalits and ultimately more than 10,000 Dalits succeeded to say good
bye to Hinduism and embraced Buddhism.
Right to freedom of faith is not a conferred right but a natural
entitlement of every human being. In fact law does not assign it but
it asserts, protect and insurers its entitlement. Indian Society has
nourished and nurtured almost all the established religion of the
world like Hinduism , Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism
etc. from it s time immemorial. Article 25 incorporates right to
practice, profess and propagation of faith not only this , the Article
guarantees the freedom of conscience. Right to possess adopt abandoned
faith is ascribed by a person since his birth. India is a
heterogeneous and pluralist society with multiplicity of faith and
cultures. India most fundamental code of governance. i.e. The
constitution of India also asserts, protects and ensures this right to
all individuals irrespective of their religions, under its various
provisions especially Art. 25.
Every human being has a natural entitlement of religious faith and
freedom of conscience and right to adopt or abandon any faith of his
own choice. This being so , the freedom of conscience has been
recognized as a basic human right both constitutionally and
conventionally.
The Constitution of India aims at securing freedom of religion and
freedom of conscience under Article 25 ,26,27,28,30 and at the same
time it seeks to create a harmony among all religions. Being suitable
to the pluralistic society and historical lineage . Such freedom needs
to continued. Any other policy will not be unconstitutional but also
extremely harmful and suffocative for the public. It. However, need to
be realized that an incessant process of transformation and change is
also going on as change is the rule of nature. The ideas , faith,
psyche, behavior and attitude of people have always been subject to
change, though, the factors of change are spatial and temporal. An
important aspect with respect to change of faith is the state of One’s
awareness and ignorance. More awareness and enlightenment does
definitely have an impact on the thought, belief and action of a
person, faith and elements of conscience. Thus as regards conscience ,
state of knowledge is itself under a constant process of change and
every human being is undergoing a metamorphosis of understanding with
continuing with continuing process of experience of life and
learning . Therefore , it is advisable to tie up someone to a
particular faith for all the times.
But in Indian perspective , an aspect of freedom of conscience which
has attained a problematic dimension , is the right to propagate
faith. The meaning of propagation is to promote , spread and publicize
one’s relating to his own faith for the edification of others. The
term propagation implies persuasion and exposition without any element
of fraud, coercion and allurement. The right to propagate one’s
religion does not give a right to convert any other person to one’s
own religious faith. It may be pointed out that the right to convert
other person to one’s own religion is distinct from and individual
right to get convert to any other religion on his own choice. The
later is undisputedly is in conformity with the freedom of religion
and freedom of conscience under Article 25 of the constitution while
the former is the subject of long prevailing controversy with
reference to propagation of faith.
Religious conversion has always been a very sensitive social issue not
only because of the reasons that it has psychological concerns of
religious faith but also because it has wider socio-legal and socio-
political implications. It has also been revealed by the recent
incident of conversion in Haryana, Madhya pardesh , Tamil Nadu,
Gujarat , Orissa and in Delhi ( in Delhi according to official sources
around 20,000 dalits got converted in to Buddhism in the year 2002
under the nation a wide call for conversion by Udit Raj , the leader
of Justice party). On the one hand due to these recent incidents of
conversion the Hindu Safforn Organizations like R.S.S., V.H.P., Shiv
Sena , Bajrang Dal. etc. have made a lot of hub-bub and not only this
Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the former prime minister call for a nation
wide debate on conversion
The legislative history relating to the issue of conversion in India
underscores the point that the authorities concerned were never
favorably disposed towards conversion. While British India had no anti-
conversion laws, many Princely States enacted anti-conversion
legislation: the Raigarh State Conversion Act 1936, the Patna Freedom
of Religion Act of 1942, the Sarguja State Apostasy Act 1945 and the
Udaipur State Anti-Conversion Act 1946. Similar laws were enacted in
Bikaner, Jodhpur, Kalahandi and Kota and many more were specifically
against conversion to Christianity. In the post-independence era,
Parliament took up for consideration in 1954 the Indian Conversion
(Regulation and Registration) Bill and later in 1960 the Backward
Communities (Religious Protection) Bill, both of which had to be
dropped for lack of support. The proposed Freedom of Religion Bill of
1979 was opposed by the Minorities Commission due to the Bill's
evident bias.
However, in 1967-68, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh enacted local laws
called the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act 1967 and the Madhya Pradesh
Dharma Swatantraya Adhiniyam 1968. Along similar lines, the Arunachal
Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act, 1978 was enacted to provide for
prohibition of conversion from one religious faith to any other by use
of force or inducement or by fraudulent means and for matters
connected therewith. The latest addition to this was the Tamil Nadu
Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Ordinance promulgated
by the Governor on October 5, 2002 and subsequently adopted by the
State Assembly. Each of these Acts provides definitions of
`Government', `conversion', `indigenous faith', `force', `fraud',
`inducement' (and in the case of Arunachal, that of `prescribed and
religious faith'). These laws made forced conversion a cognizable
offence under sections 295 A and 298 of the Indian Penal Code that
stipulate that malice and deliberate intention to hurt the sentiments
of others is a penal offence punishable by varying durations of
imprisonment and fines.
As early as 1967, it became evident that the concern was not just with
forced conversion, but with conversion to any religion other than
Hinduism and especially Christianity and Islam. In the Orissa and
Madhya Pradesh Acts, the punishment was to be doubled if the offence
had been committed in respect of a minor, a woman or a person
belonging to the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe community. 10
Moreover, Jayalalitha government in Tamil Nadu has gone to the extent
of enacting ant-conversion legislation (Tamil Nadu prohibition of
forcible conversion ordinance 2003) to put a check on the incidence of
religious conversion. In April 2006 The Rajasthan Dharma Swatantrata
(religious freedom) Bill, introduced by the BJP government, was passed
by a voice vote. The Chattisgarh Government passed an anti-conversion
bill in form of Chattisgarh Religion Freedom (Amendment) Act, 2006
providing for a three-year jail term and a fine of Rs.20,000 for those
indulging in religious conversion by force or allurement. The Madhya
Pradesh Government also passed a controversial bill to amend the
state's Freedom of Religion Act of 1968 to prevent religious
conversion by force or allurement.
The contention of the Hindu organization is that most of the minority
religious organization, especially, Christian Missionaries are
actively involved in the activities of mass religious conversion in
the name of social service. According to them the target groups of
these Christian missionaries are generally illiterate and poor Dalits
and Poor tribes.
On the other hand many dalit organizations and Dalit thinkers have
perceived these recurrent incidents of religious conversions as great
events of Dalit emancipation from the clutches of the vicious Hindu
Caste System which is and has been a constant stigma on the face of
Indian society. According to them, Hindu Caste System is founded on
rigid and the stringent Caste hierarchy . Due to this inhuman and hate
worthy Caste system Dalits and Shudras (Untouchables) have always been
treated inhumanly, they have been subjugated, oppressed and persecuted
by the so called upper caste Hindus or Manu vadis in the name of
caste. Dalit thinkers also allege that Hindu Soceity could not make a
adequate reforms in Hindu religion during last more than 3000 years ,
so that a lower caste Hindu could not live with human dignity in Hindu
religion. According to them majority of Dalits and shudras
(untouchable) are illiterate deplorably poverty stricken and living in
sub- human conditions. They have been denied basic human rights even
after 59 years of independence, Moreover, in day today life they often
to face atrocities and exploitation at the hands of upper caste Hindus
in the name of caste. Hindu religion does not treat its all follower
alike, Hinduism discriminates against one segment of its followers vis-
à-vis the other and does not treat all of them equally. It has failed
to provide social dignity to dalit and shudras. Therefore, they think
that it is better to kick our such an obnoxious and suffocating
religion from one’s life and to convert in a religious which does not
discriminate against them in the name of caste and which given them
equal treatment and dignified human life. That is why Dalits and other
progressive minds have supported the incidence of mass religious
conversion and consideration them to great events.
We can conclude from the above discussion that any protest against
religious conversion is always branded as persecution, because it is
maintained that people are not allowed to practice their religion,
that their religious freedom is curbed. The truth is entirely
different. The other person also has the freedom to practice his or
her religion without interference. That is his/her birthright.
Religious freedom does not extent (sic) to having a planned programme
of conversion. Such a programme is to be construed as aggression
against the religious freedom of others.
Finally, as far as Hinduism is concerned, besides it being vindicated
as a way of life, efforts must be made to augment its role as a form
of religion, that is, Hinduism must be practiced as a religion that
upholds the principles of personal freedom, self-dignity, social
equality and economic security. This will reduce the chances of
transgression by way of conversion in any manner. Scriptures like the
Vedas, Upanishads and the Gita should gather larger weight age and
reach the necessary quarters for sufficient lobbying to match the
access and emotional respect gained by the Bible and the Koran. The
image of a Hindu will go up not by blaming others for conversion but
by creating conditions that will make conversion by and large
unnecessary for the fellow members of his religion.
Foot Note:-
1. The Complete Words of Vivekananda, (1),P. 127
2. Shri Aurobindo-The Life Divine , P. 699
3. Dr. Radhakrishnan-Religion and Society, P. 103
4. AIR 1995 SC
5. AIR 1983 SC
6. AIR 2000 SC
7. AIR 1963 SC 185
8. AIR 1924 , Rangoon , 263
9. (1984) 2 SCC 91
10. http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/thscrip/print.pl?file=2002121700110200.htm&date=2002/12/17/&prd=op&
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Anti Superstition Law
Pritha Jha - IVth year law student - ILS law college, Pune
I
Introduction:
The history of the anti superstition bill began in 2003, when the
first draft of the anti superstition bill was tabled. It was called
the Jadu Tona Andhshradha Virodhi bill of 2003. This was the first
bill of its kind ever to be tabled anywhere across the country.
However, the bill was met with strong opposition by most parties as
the definition of superstition was considered too vast. What was
superstition and blind faith to one could possibly be belief and faith
to another. Amidst these arguments, the bill was finally passed with
some amendments. Although the bill was pending before the central
government for its approval for almost seven months, problems arose
when the elections began. The governor was of the view that since the
government was going to change, it would not be appropriate to put a
new law in place. Hence, as fate would have it, the bill did not come
into force. That however, was not the end of the journey and 2 years
later a new draft was tabled in March 2005 much like the one that was
tabled in 2003 with subtle differences and an amended version was
finally passed on the 16th of December 2005. This review examines both
the bills of 2005. The bill of 2003 was unavailable. Whereas the bill
of 2003 had been drafted by Mr. Narendra Dabholkar of the Andhashradha
Samiti, the bill of 2005 was drafted by Mr. Shyam Manav.
The Bills:
A first reading of both the bills gives one the feeling that the new
draft has included a lot more people in its purview and has also made
mild, some of the provisions of the older draft. The March draft uses
the words to protect the poor and ignorant people in the society
Against blind faith, ignorance and customs born out of blind faith in
the name of god...black magic by so called god’s men. The December
draft however uses the terminology of application to common people
customs thriving on ignorance and completely removes the usage of the
words blind faith...in the name of God and so called God’s men. It is
thus quite clear that the present bill recognizes the fact that it is
not just the poor and the ignorant who can be victims of tantriks and
babas but also the people of the upper classes that may be affected.
It also wishes to avoid opposition over the usage of the words God’s
men and in the name of God because practices and rituals practiced in
the name of God may be an expression of faith to some.
Short Title, Extent and Commencement:
The March draft of the bill was called the Maharashtra Eradication of
Black Magic and Evil Practices and Customs Act, 2005 whereas, the
final draft is called the Maharashtra Eradication of Black Magic and
Evil and aghori Practices Act, 2005.
The word Customs has been removed from the title and the word aghori
has been inserted possibly because of the difficulty in defining the
word Custom as would cater to the needs of this bill.
Definitions:
The definition clause has been severely shortened in the December
bill. The earlier bill included definitions of Black Magic. Magical
remedy. However, this has now all been covered in one clause. All the
words have the same meaning as they have been defined in The Drugs and
Magic Remedies (objectionable advertisements) Act, 1954 and the
criminal procedure code, unless, they have been expressly defined in
the bill. However, there are still certain terms such as Aghori, jaran-
maran, buvabaaji, devi mata or dev devaski which find no definition in
the Bill.
A rather large definition had been provided for in the March bill for
practice of Black Magic or blind faith. It included practice by a
person or through another by claiming to possess supernatural powers
or divine powers or power of the spirit for treatment or for curing or
for healing physical and mental ailments thereby causing material or
financial loss to a human being. This definition would have thus
included other varied practices such as Voodoo, Wicca and Reiki. This
however has completely been removed from the present bill. This is
probably one of the biggest reasons why the present bill was labeled
as anti-hindu, because it does not seem to cover the practices of
other religions such as Islam and Christianity.
A noticeable change is that of the inclusion of Doctors and medical
practitioners in the present bill. The earlier bill expressly excluded
this class of people. This would have given a license to doctors to
practice black magic; hence it has rightly been included.
Registered medical practitioner as defined under the Drugs and Magic
Remedies Act 1954, means any person, -
(i) who holds a qualification granted by an authority specified in, or
notified under Section 3 of the Indian Medical Degrees Act, 1916 (7 of
1916) specified in the Schedules to the Indian Medical Council Act
1956 (102 of 1956); or
(ii) who is entitled to be registered as a medical practitioner under
any law for the time being in force ;in any State to which this Act
extends relating to the registration of medical practitioner;
Prohibition of Black Magic:
Both the bills prohibit the promotion, propagation and the practice of
Black Magic. The December Bill also prohibits the promotion, practice
and propagation of aghori practices. This also included people who
abet or attempt to commit any act punishable under this Act.
The March Bill provided that any person who contravenes the provisions
of the Act would be punishable with a term extending to seven years or
with a fine extending to fifty thousand rupees or with both. The
revised version of the bill however provides a minimum sentence of six
months extending to seven months along with a fine, the minimum limit
of which is provided at fifty thousand rupees. Hence the amended bill
comprehensively necessitates the imposition of both imprisonment and
fine.
Jurisdiction to try offences:
Both bills declare the offences punishable under the Act as cognizable
and non-bailable. No court inferior to that of a Metropolitan
Magistrate or a Magistrate of the First Class is permitted to try any
offence under the Act.
Offences by companies:
Both bills provide that if any offence is committed by a company then
every person in charge of and responsible to the company at the time
of commission of the offence for the conduct of its business would be
deemed guilty. It however, expressly excludes people who did not have
knowledge of the commission or people who had exercised all diligence
to prevent its commission. It also provides that if such an act is
committed with the consent or due to the neglect of any director or
manager or secretary or any other officer of the company who is
responsible for the exercise of due care then such a person would also
be deemed to be guilty under the Act.
A separate definition has been provided for a company under both the
bills which includes firms, an association of persons or body of
individuals, whether incorporated or not. Where the March Bill
includes trusts in the definition of a company, the December bill does
not. The reason for the exclusion of the same is unclear.
Vigilance officer:
There is a slight difference in the manner of defining the vigilance
officer in both the bills. The March draft provided that the vigilance
officer, who would be one or more police officers of the rank of an
inspector of Police, would be appointed for the whole State or such
part of the State as may be specified. However, the December draft now
changes this to one or more police officers for one or more police
stations as may be specified. The December bill thus does away with
the ambiguity of appointed police officers for parts of the State.
Where the duties of the Vigilance officer are concerned, most of the
duties remain the same. The earlier bill however, empowered the
officer to detect and prevent the contravention of the Act and to
report cases to the nearest police station within his jurisdiction.
However, the present bill lays a greater duty on the vigilance officer
because it requires him to take quick and speedy action in case a
complaint is filed at the police station by a victim. It also requires
him to give necessary advice, guidance and help to the concerned
police station. The rest of the duties such as collection of evidence,
performance of other duties as notified from time to time remain the
same under both the bills.
The March bill however, provided that the Vigilance officer shall
associate himself with the members of recognized organizations within
the area of his jurisdiction and co-ordinate with such organizations.
It further goes on to state what these recognized organizations would
be and what their duties would be. The bill stated that any social
organization which had been established and registered for not less
than two years under the provisions of the Bombay trusts Act, 1950 or
the societies registration Act, 1860 may apply to the state government
for recognition. It further provided that the government may accord
such recognition after due enquiries. It appears that the
Andhasharadha Samiti, being an organization which would fit in this
category wanted to be at the forefront of such activities while
drafting the bill. Being a recognized organization, the Vigilance
officer would then be forced to work in co-ordination with the
organization by virtue of section 6(3). This provision has been
deleted from the December Bill.
Power of Entry, Search etc:
The Act will give tremendous powers to the Vigilance officer as he
will have the power to enter and search any premises in which he has
reason to believe that an offence has been or is being committed. He
will also have the power to seize any instruments or material or
advertisements which he has reason to believe were being used for the
commission of the crime. It also gives him the power to seize any
other objects which according to him would help prove the crime. The
provisions of the criminal procedure code would apply to any search or
seizure under the Act as would apply to any search or seizure made
under the authority of the warrant issued under section 94 of the
Criminal Procedure Code.
Protection of action taken in good faith:
Common to both bills
The provisions of section 159 and 160 of the Bombay Police Act, 1951
shall apply to acts done in good faith by the Vigilance Officer as if
he were a police officer within the meaning of that Act.
Application of the provisions of the Code:
Common to both bills
The provisions of the Code shall apply to the investigation and trial
of the offences under this Act. Both the bills also go on to state
that this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any
other law for the time being in force.
Publication of the fact of conviction:
Both bills make provisions for convicting courts to order the
publication of the name and the place of residence of the person
convicted in the local newspaper where the offence has been committed.
No such publication however, may be allowed until the appeal has
finally been disposed of.
Rules:
Both bills also make provisions for the making of rules to carry out
the purposes of the Act by notification in the official gazette. The
procedure for the making, modification and the annulment of such rules
has also been provided for under the Bill.
Power to remove difficulty:
This is an extremely ambiguous provision that had been put forth in
the bill of March which was removed in the new bill. It provides that
in case the State government encounters any difficulty in giving
effect to the provisions of the Act then the Government may take such
steps by notification in the official gazette as it may deem necessary
to remove such difficulty. Such an order, however, could not be given
before the passing of two years of the commencement of the Act.
Savings:
The bill of December 2005 provides for a provision which clarifies
that the Act would not apply to acts involving religious rites and
rituals which do not affect any person mentally or physically. This
has been done in order to avoid a religious uproar. It at the same
time however, also creates certain ambiguities as many acts can be
committed under the guise of being a religious act or a religious
ritual.
Schedules:
The schedule to the bill of March specified the acts which were
considered as offences. This has almost completely been changed in the
new bill and very little of the old bill has been retained. Whereas
the first bill listed out 27 practices, the new bill lists only 12.
The schedule to the March Bill included:
1) Under the pretext of expelling the ghost, assaulting by tying a
person with rope or chain, beating by stick or whip, to make the
person drink footwear soaked water, giving chili smoke, hanging a
person to the roof, fixing him with rope or by hair or plucking his
hair causing pain by way of touching heated object to organs or body
of a person, forcing a person to perform a sexual act in the open,
practicing aghori acts by chanting mantras, putting urine or human
excretion forcibly in the mouth of a person.
This clause has completely been retained. Only the words by chanting
mantras have been removed from the new bill in order to avoid
religious opposition. Chanting mantras need not necessarily be in
connection of aghori practices and is also used for religious
practices and to connect it with aghori would have caused religious
uproar.
2) Display of so called miracles by trying to create an impression of
existence of the things beyond or contrary to proven scientific rules
and to deceive, cheat or terrorize any person by propagation and
circulation of such practices. The wording of this section has
completely been changed and it now reads as follows:
Display of so called miracles by a person and thereby earning money
and to deceive, defraud and terrorize people by propagation and
circulation of so called miracles.
The intention of the legislators here appears to be that it is not the
belief of the people that should be attacked but only the people who
want to derive monetary gain out of display of miracles who should be
attacked. Even God is beyond scientific proof but the impression of
His existence cannot be challenged. Beliefs such as these cannot be
challenged under the guise of deception or terrorism. Another question
which arises is would magicians now be allowed to display their magic
for entertaining people? Although magic is not used always to
terrorize people, it does have that effect during the performance of
certain tricks.
3) Doing any inhuman act for search of precious things, bounty, water
resource in the form of karni, bhanmati and making or trying to make
human sacrifice by making jaran-maran, buvabaaji, devi mata or dev
devaski.
The following clause has been more appropriately drafted in the latest
bill and it now reads as follows: Doing any inhuman act in search of
precious things, bounty, water resource or for similar reasons in the
name of karni, bhanamati and making or trying to make human sacrifice
in the name of jaran-maran, or dev-devaski or to advice, instigate or
encourage committing of such inhuman acts.
The words buvabaaji and devi mata have been excluded and the other
words highlighted have been included. Thus not only the act itself but
also the instigation or the propagation of the act would comprise the
offence.
4) In case of dog bite, knowingly committing the act of giving
unscientific treatment of mantra tantra, gandadora and herbs, etc. to
a person infected with rabies instead of modern medical treatment or
preventing him from accepting the same.
Only a part of this clause has been retained and other bites such as
those of a scorpion and a snake have been included. A separate clause
had been put for snake bites in the earlier bill. This has now been
included in the same clause. Thus if a person is bitten by any of
these and such a person is treated by mantra tantra and ganda dora, it
would be an offence. The usage of herbs has been excluded. It is a
proven fact that herbs have medicinal value and hence its usage has
been allowed under the present bill unlike its prohibition in the
earlier one.
5) Piercing needle, and nails or other such objects in the arm,
tongue, chicks or any other part of the body, pricking pointed objects
in the body, whipping oneself, to bang oneself on the wall of temple
with intention of fulfilling the prayer made before God or commitment,
cutting oneself with a sharp instrument on one’s forehead and on any
other part of the body or to inflict self injury or committing any act
in public place which causes pain to normal human being in the name of
religious customs or traditions. This provision has completely been
removed from the present bill.
These acts need not be committed in religious faith. People pierce
their tongues even in the name of fashion. Again, a practice which may
not make sense to a person may make sense to another because he has
faith in it. Hence, such exhaustive provisions cannot be put into the
Bill.
6) Defrauding people, in the name of God and faith to have illicit
sexual relationship with women or men either natural or unnatural,
with or without consent of the person involved.
This provision has been deleted from the present bill because these
acts have already been declared to be illegal under the Indian Penal
Code and hence they are not necessary.
Instead, the following provisions have been included:
To create an impression that oneself is having special supernatural
powers, incarnation of another person or holy spirit, or that the
devotee was his wife, husband or paramour in past birth thereby
indulging in sexual activity with such person.
To keep sexual relations with a woman who is unable to conceive
assuring her of motherhood through supernatural powers.
7) Create or to propagate of inviting spirit of God or Goddess through
any person as a medium. This has been removed from the present bill
and the following has been included:
To create an impression by declaring that a divine spirit has
influenced one’s body or that a person has possessed such divine
spirit and thereby create fear in the mind of others or to threaten
others of evil consequences for not following the advice of such
person.
This provision makes clear that it is not merely the practice of
inviting a spirit that is causing harm but the fact that it is being
propagated in society causing fear in the minds of the people. This
needs to be stopped.
8) Assuring any woman to perform gopala santan ritual in the fourth
month of her pregnancy for birth of a male child, operating stomach by
fingers, diagnosing disease by placing stone, farshi (tile) on the
head, making use of improper and harmful methods to diagnose and treat
diseases and illness; claim to have divine remedies for abortion,
contraception, enhancement of physical satisfaction in the sexual act
for men and women, increasing their sexual powers, menstruation
problems, conceiving, etc.
In the disguise of offering motherhood by performing some divine act
or magical remedy keeping sexual relations with women who are unable
to conceive, deflowering them, keeping illicit sexual relations with
them.
This has now been removed and a short provision stating that claiming
to perform surgery by fingers or claiming to change the sex of a
foetus in the womb of a woman, has been put in place.
9) To spread threat amongst the people by way of invoking by mantras,
putting up a false show to make a person free from poisonous
infection, creating an impression that there is ghostly or divine
wrath causing physical injuries and stopping a person from taking
medical treatment and instead diverting him to practice aghori acts or
deeds.
The following provision in this regard has been included instead:
To create panic in the mind of public in general by way of invoking
ghosts by mantras, or threaten to invoke ghost, putting up a false
show to make a person free from poisonous infection by invoking
mantras or similar things, creating an impression that there is
ghostly or divine wrath causing physical injuries and preventing a
person from taking medical treatment and instead diverting him to
practice aghori acts or treatment, threatening a person with death or
causing physical pains or causing financial or psychological harm by
practicing or tend to practice mantra-tantra (chetuk), black magic or
aghori act.
10) In the name of jaran maran, karni or witchcraft (chetuk),
assaulting any person, parading him naked, excommunicating or
declaring any person as outcast or to expel a person from society or
put a ban on his activities, declaring such person as possessed by
evil spirit or incarnation.
To appear in the state of complete nakedness in the public place and
misbehaving with women by treating oneself as awaliya baba or baba
with divine power.
This has now been substituted by the following two acts:
By declaring that a particular person practices karni, black magic or
brings under the influence of ghost, or diminishes the milching
capacity of a cattle by mantra tantra, or create suspicion about such
person, or similarly accusing a particular person that he brings
misfortune to others or is responsible for spread of diseases and
thereby making the living of such person miserable, troublesome or
difficult, to declare a person as Satan or incarnation of Satan.
In the name of jaran maran, karni, or witchcraft assaulting any
person, parading him naked or put a ban on his daily activities.
11) To create an impression that insanity has been caused to a person
due to influence of ghost or divine power and to conduct mantra tantra
to cure him by way of sacrifice of hen or goat or any other animal.
Cheating people in the false hope of providing freedom from madness,
offering treatment to patients of serious or terminal illnesses by
offering stones with the powers of mantras, finger ring, bangle,
jogstick or thread, tait, ganda dora, etc, with such false hope.
This has now been replaced by: To create an impression that a mentally
retarded person is having super natural power and utilizing such
person for business or occupation.
The following provisions have also been removed:
Causing disturbance in society in general or creating panic or cause
intimidation by way of chanting Mantra or Tantrik action in the name
of exorcising a ghost or to free a person from the influence of ghost
or evil spirit.
By declaring that Devi, a spirit has influenced one’s body, create
disturbance by shouting and thereby spreading threat and disturbing
the general peace, declaring the names of the persons who has done
karni, etc, thereby making the living of such a person miserable of
difficult, to provide unscientific cure to psycho somatic conditions
such as giving angara, pendant, etc. to the people. Haunting a person
with an influence of ghost by practicing witchcraft which cannot be
proved with the help of modern science. Treating any disease with the
help of mantra tantra without authorized or recognized medical degree
under the law for the time being in force. Threatening a person with
death or causing physical pains or causing financial or psychological
harm by mantra tantra (witchcraft), Black Magic or by practicing
aghori treatment.
Trying to make believe burning of things, vanishing of things,
appearance of cross marks on the body, etc, as effect of bhanamati and
claiming treatment for the same. Claiming to perform miracle by
burying oneself in the ground. Under disguise of offering God’s
blessings, cheating people by way of accepting money or any other
belongings, by unlawful means. In the name of religion, Holy
Scriptures, God and Goddesses, display of false extraordinary powers,
indulgence in free sexual relations, adopting unethical and corrupt
means for cheating and duping people. Compelling women to enter into
prostitution and committing atrocities against them, by cheating them
under blind faith.
The following other provisions have been included:
With a view to receive blessings of super natural power to follow the
evil and aghori practices which cause danger to life or grievous hurt;
and to instigate, encourage or compel others to follow such practices.
Conclusion:
This is a noble effort of the legislators to put an end to the
atrocities being committed in the name of religion. Throwing people in
burning flames to cure people of Chicken Pocks, writing Ram on the
doors of the house to prevent the unholy ghost from entering the house
is becoming increasingly common these days. Although the intentions
are good, as has been seen in the past, not all legislations score
high marks where implementation is concerned. Some fail more so
because people refuse to follow them and because it appears to be
against the customs and traditions of the people. Literacy drives
would have been more appropriate for such a personal subject. No
committee has been put in place under this bill that would go around
educating people about the evil effects of these practices. Another
thing that comes across is that most of the acts named in the bill
would be offences in itself, the only difference is that their
commission under the guise of religious practice would henceforth also
be termed as an offence. Nevertheless, the success of the bill still
remains to be seen.
The author can be reached at :prit...@legalserviceindia.com
http://www.legalserviceindia.com/articles/statl.htm
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Written By : Deepika Bansal - Student Law
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of the land, which is
fundamental in the governance of India. The Constitution of India was
enacted on 26th November, 1949 and was adopted on 26th January, 1950.
The Draftsmen of the Indian Constitution took inspiration from
Constitutions all over the world and incorporated their attributes
into the Indian Constitution. For example Part III on Fundamental
Rights is partly derived from the American Constitution and Part 1V on
Directive Principles of State Policy from the Irish Constitution.
A Constitution should be a dynamic document. It should be able to
adapt itself to the changing needs of the society. Sometimes under the
impact of new powerful social and economic forces, the pattern of
government will require major changes. Keeping this factor in mind the
Draftsmen of the Indian Constitution incorporated Article 368 in the
Constitution which dealt with the procedure of amendment. Due to
Article 368 the Indian Constitution can neither be called rigid nor
flexible but in fact it is partly rigid and partly flexible. Articles
of the Indian Constitution can be amended by a simple majority in the
Parliament (Second Schedule, Article 100(3), 105, 11, 124, 135, 81,
137), or by special majority that is majority of the total membership
of each house and by majority of not less than two thirds of the
members of each house present and voting , or by Ratification by the
State Legislatures after special majority (Article 57, 73, 162,
Chapter 1V of Part V, Chapter V of P!
art V1, Seventh Schedule, representation of the State in Parliament
and provisions dealing with amendment of the Constitution).
During the 50 years of the Constitution, more than 80 amendments have
taken place. The founding fathers of the Indian constitution who
granted more rights to the people without balancing them with their
duties, perhaps did not foresee the emergence of present political
environment, wherein the political players of various segments in the
country are more interested in fulfilling their individual aspirations
than the aspirations of the people. There is an element of truth in
this
criticism. The fact is that the ease in the amending process of the
Indian Constitution is due to the one party dominance both at the
Centre and the State .Yet, on close examination it will be seen that
there were compelling circumstances which led to the constitutional
amendments. While some amendments were a natural product of the
eventual evolution of the new political system established under the
Constitution in 1950, there were others necessitated by practical
difficulties. The first amendment! took place in June, 1950.
The question whether Fundamental Rights can be amended under Article
368 came for consideration of the Supreme Court in Shankari Prasad v.
Union of India . It challenged the validity of the 1st amendent to the
Constitution. In this case it was held that a constitution amendment
will also be held valid even it abridges or takes away any of the
fundamental rights. A similar decision was given my the honble Supreme
Court in Sajjan Singh v. State of Rajasthan which challenged the
validity of the 17th amendent. In Golaknath v. State of Punjab , the
validity of the Constitution (17th Amendment) Act, 1964 was again
challenged, which inserted certain State Acts in Ninth Schedule. The
Supreme Court in its landmark decision overruled the decision given in
the Shankari Prasads and Sajjan Singhs case. It held that the
Parliament had no power from the date of this decision to amend Part
III of the Constitution so as to take away or abridge the Fundamental
rights. Eleven judges participated in this decision with the ratio
being 6 : 5. The judges were worried about the numerous amendments
made to abridge the fundamental rights since 1950. It apprehended that
if the courts were to hold that the Parliament had power to take away
fundamental rights, a time might come when these rights are completely
eroded. The Chief Justice applied the doctrine of Prospective
Overruling and held that this decision will have only prospective
operation and, therefore, the 1st, 4th and 17th amendment will conti!
nue to be valid.
It means that all cases decided before the Golaknaths case shall
remain valid. In order to remove difficulties created by Golaknaths
decision parliament enacted the 24th Amendment.
The amendment has made the following amendments :
(1) it added a new clause (4) to Article 13 which provides that
nothing in this Article shall apply to any amendment of this
constitution made under Article 368 .
(2) it submitted a new heading to Article 368 power of Parliament to
amend the Constitution and Procedure therefore. Instead of Procedure
for amendment of the Constitution.
(3) It inserted a new sub section (1) in Article 368 which provides
that notwithstanding anything in the Constitution, Parliament may, in
exercise of its constituent power may amend by way of addition,
variation, or repeal any provision of this Constitution in accordance
with the procedure laid down in the Article. Thus the 24th amendment
restored the amending power of the Parliament. The validity of the
24th amendment was challenged in the case of Keshavnand Bharati v.
State of Kerala . It challenged the validity of the Kerala Reforms
Act, 1963. but during the pendency of the petition the Kerala Act was
placed in the Ninth Schedule by the 29th Amendment. The question
involved was the extent of the amending power conferred by Article 368
of the Constitution. A Special bench of 13 judges was constituted to
hear the case. The Court by majority overruled the Golaknaths case
which denied Parliament the power to amend fundamental rights of
citizens. It held that the 24th amendment merely made explicit which
was implicit in the unamended Article 368. The Court held that under
the Article 368 Parliament is not empowered to amend the basic
structure or framework of the Constitution. After the decisions of the
Supreme Court in Keshavnand Bharati and Indira Gandhi cases the
Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act, 1976, was passed which added two
new clauses , namely, clauses (4) provided that no constitutional
amendment (including the provision of Part III) or purporting to have
been made under Article 368 whether before or after the commencement
of the Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act, 1976 shall be called in any
court on any ground. Clause (5) removed any doubts about the scope of
the amending power. It declared that there shall be no limitation
whatever on the constituent power of Parliament to amend by way of
addition ,variation or repeal of the provisions of the Constitution
under this Article. Thus by inserting this clause it was made clear
that the basic structure of the Constitution could be amended. In
Minerva Mills v. Union of India the Supreme Court by 4 to 1 majority
struck down clauses (4) and (5) of Article 368 inserted by the 42nd
amendment, on the ground that these clauses destroyed the essential
feature of the basic structure of the Constitution. Since these
clauses removed all limitations on the amending power and thereby!
conferred an unlimited amending power, it was destructive of the basic
structure of the Constitution. The judgment of the Supreme Court thus
makes it clear that the Constitution not the Parliament is supreme in
India. The Parliament owes its existence to the Constitution and it
cannot take priority over the Constitution. Therefore this landmark
decision ended the long controversy between the Courts and the
Executive.
The amendment process was incorporated in the Constitution by the
Draftsmen of the Constitution to help India adapt itself to the
changing circumstances. Society is never stagnant. It is ever-
changing. Therefore the amending procedure was made partly flexible so
as to make it easy for the Legislature. But the Parliament started
thinking that it has unlimited amending power. It assumed itself to be
the supreme law when the Constitution is the supreme law of the land.
The Parliament started making amendments which were destroying the
basic structure of the Indian Constitution. But after the landmark
decisions of Keshavnand Bharati and Minerva Mills the Court by its
power of judicial review has curtailed the amending power of the
Parliament. The amendments made by the Parliament can no more affect
the basic structure of the Constitution. But, looking at the ease with
amendments can take place depending on the whims and fancies of the
ruling government and the POLITICS IN THE POLITICS OF INDIA we cannot
say how long the rights of the citizens are safe and unobstructed.
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/articles/pol.htm
Written By : Sachin Mehta
On 26 March 2002, the controversial anti-terror law, the Prevention of
Terrorism Act (POTA) was passed with 425 votes for the Act and 296
against, after a 10-hour debate in the parliament. The intensity of
the effects of the bill could be seen very clearly by the rejection of
the bill by the upper house of the Indian Parliament leading to a
Joint Session of Parliament, a measure that had taken place only the
third time in the past. The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs justified
the initial Ordinance after the September 11,2001 terror attacks by
claiming an upsurge of terrorist activities, intensification of cross
border terrorism, and insurgent groups in different parts of the
country, despite the fact that the state of Jammu and Kashmir
witnessed a decrease in the terrorist incidents taking place in that
state.
POTA, though now has been repealed, lives as an example showing the
bold step taken by India in its fight against terrorism. The POTA had
during its days and even after its downfall, has made India a silent
spectator to serous ongoing debates between political parties, the
media, social activists and NGOs on certain provisions seen to be
draconian, within POTA.
Two years from the enactment of the POTA, a number of issues as to the
possibilities of misuse of the provisions of the anti terror law
including the targeting of minorities and using it against political
opponents had arisen. In Gujarat, all except one of the POTA detainees
are from the Muslim minority and in Tamil Nadu and UP too the
ostensible anti-terror law has been abused to book, without lucidity
and accountability, political opponents and underprivileged
communities respectively.
A decade long experience with a previous national anti-terror law, the
infamous Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention (TADA) that
was in force between 1985-1995 gives legitimacy to the fear that the
misuse of such laws evoke among human rights activists, political
dissenters and minorities. Under the TADA, the conviction rate was
less than 1%, despite the fact that the confessions made to the
police, even though being given under torture, were admissible as
evidence.
The developments after the enactment of the POTA, including the
responses received by the POTA review committee show that the POTA is
worse then TADA. POTA provides for criminal liability for mere
association or communication with suspected terrorists without the
possession of criminal intent (Section 3(5) of the POTA). Section 4 of
POTA is similar to Section 5 of TADA in laying out a legal presumption
that if a person is found in unauthorized possession of arms in a
notified area, he/she is automatically linked with terrorist activity.
Section 48(2) provides for the option of pre-trial police detention
for up to 180 days. As under the TADA, where 98% of the cases never
reached the trial stage, this Section 48(2) could also be misused by
the police by keeping an accused for long periods of detention without
charge or trial. Special courts for trials are established under POTA
which are given the discretion to hold trials in non-public places,
like prisons, and to withhold ! trial records from public scrutiny,
thus preventing the independent monitoring of special court sessions.
Section 32 provides that confessions made to police officers are to be
admissible in trial, which has increased the possibility of coercion
and torture in securing confessions.
The provisions contained under the POTA were mostly contained in
existing laws, except those, which were contained in the Criminal
Procedure Code, the Indian Penal Code, the Evidence Act or the
Constitution of India. The Act effectively undermines the fundamental
tenet of the criminal justice system by putting the burden of proof on
the accused. But the Act also had some provisions, which were not
attacked for being against human rights. These provisions stated that
Confessions must be recorded within 48 hours before a magistrate, who
will send the accused for a medical examination if there is a
complaint of torture. Further a legal representative of the accused
can be present for part of the interrogation. Moreover police officers
can be prosecuted for abusing their authority. The POTA also provided
that victims could be paid compensation.
But these provisions could not act as an effective shield to protect
the Act from the criticism it received for its other provisions
abusing human rights. Those opposed to POTA had argued that existing
laws were sufficient to deal with terrorism. Within a year POTA had
already built up a dubious record and in some states it was already
dreaded as its predecessor. State governments, including opposition-
ruled ones, had not hesitated to use POTA to fix political opponents.
At the Peoples Tribunal on POTA and Other Security Legislation at the
Press Club in New Delhi on July 16,2004 a 629-page report based on
depositions made before the Tribunal by victims and their families
from ten states in India, as well as expert depositions by lawyers and
activists, showed that such security legislations grant sweeping
powers to authorities, which has led to misuse of these powers and
severe restriction of basic rights. At the same time, such
legislations do not address the political, social and economic roots
of the problem.
The tribunal concluded that the review of victim and expert testimony
showed that the misuse of the Act is inseparable from its normal use.
The tribunal stated that the statute meant to terrorise not so much
the terrorists as ordinary civiliansand particularly the poor and
disadvantaged such as dalits, religious minorities, adivasis, and
working people. Thus the tribunal recommended that POTA be repealed
and that too in such a manner that the POTA charges are deleted from
all existing investigations and trials. But, if the state so desires,
these may continue under other laws and charges.
Finally on September 17, 2004 the Union Cabinet in keeping with the
UPA government's Common Minimum Programme, approved ordinances to
repeal the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002 (POTA) and
amend the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. Home Minister
Shivraj Patil said that the government would provide a sunset period
of one year during which all cases pertaining to POTA would be
reviewed by the Central POTA Review Committee. He added, There would
be no arrests made after the ordinance is promulgated. To fill the
lacuna that have been created due to the repeal of the Act, adequate
amendments were being brought to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Act, 1967 to define a terrorist act and provide for banning of
terrorist organisations and their support systems, including funding
of terrorism, attachment and forfeiture of proceeds of terrorism, etc.
All terrorist organisations banned under POTA would continue to remain
banned, under the Unlawful Activities Act, after the repeal of the
Act. Some of the clauses contained in POTA, which will be completely
dropped in the amended Unlawful Activities Act, are: the onus on the
accused to prove his innocence, compulsory denial of bail to accused
and admission as evidence in the court of law the confession made by
the accused before the police officer.
The BJP government has slammed the Cabinet decision to repeal POTA as
politically motivated and compromising of the essentials of national
security. BJP spokesperson and former Law Minister Arun Jaitley said
if the amendments brought out under the existing laws after the repeal
of POTA are found to be inadequate, the BJP-ruled states would be
asked to come out with their own legislations filling up the lacuna.
But till such a step is taken many innocent victims of the POTA can
take a sign of relief and thank their stars that the reign of terror
under the stringent anti terror law POTA has come to an end.
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/articles/pota.htm
Written By : Sandeep Pathak, III year B.B.A.LL.B. (Hons.) National Law
University, Jodhpur
Olga Tellis v. Bombay Municipal Corporation (herein after referred as
Olga Tellis) was decided in 1985 by the five Judges Bench of the
Supreme Court of India. The Hon'ble bench comprised of C.J., Y.V.
Chandrachud, J., A.V. Varadarajan, J., O. Chinnappa Reddy, J., S.
Murtaza Fazal Ali and J., V.D. Tulzapurkar. This case came before the
Supreme Court as a writ petition by persons who live on pavements and
in slums in the city of Bombay. It was prayed by the petitioners to
allow them to stay on the pavements against their order of eviction.
The majority judgment (concurring by all the five Judges) was
delivered by Hon'ble Chief Justice Y.V.Chandrachud.
Factual Score of Olga Tellis
The writ petitions were filed by the slum dwellers and pavement
dwellers before the Supreme Court of India. This class of people
constituted nearly half the population of the city of Bombay. The
respondents - State of Maharashtra and Bombay Municipal Corporation
took a decision that all pavement dwellers and the slum or bust
dwellers in the city of Bombay will be evicted forcibly and deported
to their respective places of origin or removed to places outside the
city of Bombay section 314 of the Bombay Municipal Corporation Act,
1888. Pursuant to that decision, the pavement dwellings of some of the
petitioners were in fact demolished by the Bombay Municipal
Corporation. The petitioners challenge the order of the Bombay
Municipal Corporation of eviction as being unreasonable and unjust
without providing with alternative living facility. The petitioners
claimed right to livelihood as a part of their right under Article 21
of the Constitution that is right to life under Article 32. Moreover,
petitioners contended that sections 312, 313 and 314 of the Bombay
Municipal Corporation Act are invalid as violating Articles 14, 19 and
21.
Issues Considered by the Apex Court
1. That the order for the eviction of the pavement is the infringement
of their right to livelihood and in turn the encroachment over their
right guaranteed under article 21 of the Constitution.
2. That the impugned action of the State Government and the Bombay
Municipal Corporation is violative of the provisions contained in
Article 19(1) (3), 19(1) (g) and 21 of the Constitution.
3. That the procedure prescribed by section 314 of the Bombay
Municipal Corporation Act, 1888 for the removal of encroachments from
pavements is arbitrary and unreasonable.
Decision of Supreme Court
The decision of the Supreme Court in this case was based on the
humanistic approach of the judges and the Apex Court stepped into the
activist role. The Hon'ble Supreme Court held that the slum dwellers
must get the alternative shelter if they are evicted from the
pavements.Although, the eviction orders were held to be valid under
article 14 and 19 of the Constitution. Infact, the right to life was
once again enlarged to engulf the right to livelihood as being a part
of liberty of an individual. The decision of the Court also focused on
the concept of the welfare state and reliance though not expressly but
impliedly was placed on the Directive Principles of the State Policies
under the Constitution.
Rationale, Reason and Jurisprudence of Olga Tellis
The decision of this case essentially falls back on the premise of the
positivism. The judgment delivered by C.J., YV.Chandrachud is solely
based on the concept of the analytical positivism of Britain. The
letter of law was considered to be paramount. The Supreme Court
focused on both the premises, that is, reformation and superiority of
the law. In Para 28, Justice Chandrachud took the approach propounded
by Hans Kelson, where he considers constitution as a highest norm or
the Grundnorm. According to Kelson, Grundnorm is the basic norm which
determines the content and gives validity to other norms derived from
it. On this basis, Justice Chandrachud, observes in Para 28 that,
There can be no estoppel against the Constitution. The Constitution is
not only the paramount law of the land but, it is the source and
sustenance of all laws. Its provisions are conceived in public
interest and are intended to serve public purpose.
Furthermore, it is the theory of the "Father of the English
Jurisprudence" - Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) that was reiterated by
the Apex Court in true sense. Bentham talked about the reform of the
substantive law by the way of reforming the structure of law.
1. Law in the Reformative Process
This case can be said to be a decision that leads to the reformation
of the substantive law. Bentham divided the jurisprudence into two
parts, that is, expositorial (what law is) and censorial (what law
ought to be) .Olga Tellis has shifted the focus from censorial
jurisprudence to the expositorial jurisprudence by enlarging the scope
of article 21 of the Constitution and including right to livelihood
and right to shelter as a part of right to life. Justice Chandrachud
in Para 32 of his judgment states,
An equally important facet of that right is the right to livelihood
because, no person can live without the means of living, that is, the
means of livelihood. If the right to livelihood is not treated as a
part of the constitutional right to life, the easiest way of depriving
a person of his right to life would be to deprive him of his means of
livelihood to the point of abrogation.
This view of the Hon'ble Court clearly indicates the follow up of the
Bentam's philosophy of reforming the law through its structure. The
law as defined by Bentham is, an assemblage of signs, declarative of
violation, conceived or adopted by the sovereign in a state,
concerning the conduct to be observed in a certain case by a certain
person or class of persons, who in the case in question are or are
supposed to be subject to his power .Therefore, this although focuses
on the aspect that law is certain and laid down that is, positum, but
at the same time this definition is flexible enough to be cover a set
of objectives so intimately allied and to which there would be such
continual occasion to apply the same proposition . Therefore in the
present case when Justice Chandrachud states that ,"no person can live
without means of living" ,he is applying the Bentamite jurisprudence
to reform the law laid down under article 21 and at the same time also
utilizing the flexibility of his definition of law to equate the
intimately allied occasions of life, liberty and livelihood.
2. Hedonist Utilitarianism
Olga Tellis brought the concept of Benthamite philosophy of the
Hedonist Utilitarianism. Justice Chandrachud in Para 1 states that the
petitioners form almost half the population of the city. The fact of
such a large number of pavement dwellers in question caused the
decision to fall in their favour.The principle of utility by Bentham
stated that, out of various possibilities in a given case, one must
choose that option that gives the greatest happiness to the greatest
number .
The Bombay Municipal Corporation Act, 1888 laid down the law relating
to the pavement dwellers under section 312-314. It stated many
prohibitions on the housing and depositions of various items on the
pavements by the dwellers. Justice Chandrachud while deciding this
case entirely followed the PRINCIPLE OF UTILITY as given by Bentham
and held that the end aim of the legislator should be HAPPINESS of the
people and the GENERAL UTILITY must be the guiding principle. Apex
Court by making a balance sheet between the happiness or the utility
of the slum dwellers with the aim and object of the particular
legislation came to a conclusion that justice must be done only by
giving the redressal to the poor and needy pavement dwellers. Justice
Chandarchud in Para 49 states that,
Hearing to be given to trespassers who have encroached on public
properties? To persons who commit crime? There is no doubt that the
petitioners are using pavements and other public properties for an
unauthorised purpose. But, their intention or object in doing so is
not to "commit an offence or intimidate, insult or annoy any person",
which is the gist of the offence of 'Criminal trespass' under Section
441 of the Penal Code. They manage to find a habitat in places which
are mostly filthy or marshy, out of sheet helplessness. It is not as
if they have a free choice to exercise as to whether to commit an
encroachment and if so, where. The encroachments committed by these
persons are involuntary acts in the sense that those acts are
compelled by inevitable circumstances and are not guided by choice.
Here, as elsewhere in the law of Torts, a balance has to be struck
between competing sets of values.....
Therefore, the Apex Court had drawn a balance sheet and analysed the
Happiness and utility of the petitioners and the respondents. The
Court relied upon the Pelican book in Para 56 and states,
Malnourished babies, wasted mothers, emaciated corpses in the streets
of Asia have definite and definable reasons for existing. Hunger may
have been the human race's constant companion, and 'the poor may
always be with us', but in the twentieth century, one cannot take this
fatalistic view of the destiny of millions of fellow creatures. Their
condition is not inevitable but is caused by identifiable forces
within the province of rational human control.
In the above-mentioned finding by the Hon'ble Supreme Court it is
evidently clear that the reliance was placed on the "destiny of
millions of fellow creatures". It signifies the application of the
Bentham principle of utility in the outcome of the judgment of Olga
Tellis.
Bentham's justification of his utilitarianism is founded upon four
propositions. These are as follows,
1. All agents (as agents) seek a personal good.
2. Ultimately, all self-conscious agents aim at the same goal
(irrespective of the particular context in which the particular action
is performed).
3. That same ultimate goal is always the maximization of personal
pleasure (and the avoidance of personal pain).
4. The proper role of the state is to promote the greatest aggregate
pleasure within its community.
The four commands of utility for civic society in the Bentham's
Utilitarianism, upon which the aggregate happiness depends are
security, subsistence, abundance and equality. Out of the above,
security was the most important. Subsistence, abundance and equality,
however, all depended, in Bentham's view, on the paramount directive
of security. The decision given by the Supreme Court heavily relies on
the entire four propositions given by Bentham (above-mentioned).
Justice Chandrachud in the Para 2 of the judgment lays down the
emphasis on the slum dwellers right to life and reside in any part of
the country with dignity as other citizens of the nation. He stated
that an individual can live without security but cannot live without
"subsistence" the Supreme Court in the instant case holding that the
Right to livelihood and shelter as being an important component of the
Right to Life again establishes a nexus between subsistence and right
to livelihood once again confirming the abidance of the Benthamite
principle of utility. Moreover when the court established that if the
petitioners were evicted from their dwellings, they would be deprived
of their livelihood.
The due recognition is given to the fact that the number of the
pavement dwellers was huge and it constituted almost half of the
city's population. Therefore, the test greatest aggregate happiness
for the greatest number is also fulfilled. According to Jullias
Stone , by happiness of the community Bentham meant simply the
aggregate of individual surpluses of pleasure over pain. The greatest
happiness of the greatest number states that the pleasure and the
pains of the society are to be weighed at same plane. In this case
also the pleasure of the society was upheld and also the pain of
another section of the society (slum dwellers) was brought down.
Then Bentham's principle of utility becomes the principle that we are
always to act in such a way as to give as many people as possible as
much as possible of whatever it is that they want. I think that the
interpretation in Olga Tellis preserves the essence of Bentham's
doctrine, and it has the advantage of making it independent of any
special psychological theory.
Conclusion
To conclude, the whole Benthamite principle applied by Justice
Chandrachud on behalf of all the brother Justices can be summarized in
one sentence stated in Para 46 of the judgment, Human compassion
(happiness) must soften the rough edges of justice in all situations.
Thus, it can be concluded the Supreme Court adopted the Utilitarian
Principle in terms of the pleasure and pain calculus or the hedonistic
calculus of Jermy Betham.
Authored by Sandeep Pathak and can be reached at :
pathaksa...@rediffmail.com
http://www.legalserviceindia.com/articles/case.htm
"Uniform Civil Code"
Written By : Gauri Kulkarni - Vth year law - Symbiosis Society's law
college, Pune
Introduction:
The mere three words and the nation breaks into hysterical jubilation
and frantic wailing. These three words are enough to divide the nation
into two categories - politically, socially and religiously.
Politically, the nation is divided as BJP, which propagates
implementation of the Uniform Civil Code (hereinafter referred to as
the UCC) and the non BJP including the Congress party, Samajwadi
party, who are against the implementation of the UCC. Socially, the
intelligentsia of the country, who analyse logically the pros and cons
of the UCC and the illiterate who have no opinion of their own and
succumb to the political pressure are at opposite poles. And,
religiously, there is a dangerous widening schism between the majority
Hindus and the minority community mostly the Muslims. Being a law
student, I would like to consider the legal implications of UCC.
I strongly support the crusade for the implementation of UCC and
homogenising the personal laws. I support it, not because of any bias,
but because it is the need of the hour. It is high time that India had
a uniform law dealing with marriage, divorce, succession, inheritance
and maintenance.
Indian case law:
Recently, the Supreme Court of India again called for a UCC. The
Supreme Court first directed the Parliament to frame a UCC in the year
1985 in the case of Mohammad Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum[1],
popularly known as the Shah Bano case. In this case, a penurious
Muslim woman claimed for maintenance from her husband under Section
125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure[2] after she was given triple
talaq from him. The Supreme Court held that the Muslim woman have a
right to get maintenance from her husband under Section 125. The Court
also held that Article 44[3] of the Constitution has remained a dead
letter. The then Chief Justice of India Y.V. Chandrachud observed
that,
"A common civil code will help the cause of national integration by
removing disparate loyalties to law which have conflicting ideologies"
After this decision, nationwide discussions, meetings, and agitation
were held. The then Rajiv Gandhi led Government overturned the Shah
Bano case decision by way of Muslim Women (Right to Protection on
Divorce) Act, 1986 which curtailed the right of a Muslim woman for
maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The
explanation given for implementing this Act was that the Supreme Court
had merely made an observation for enacting the UCC, not binding on
the government or the Parliament and that there should be no
interference with the personal laws unless the demand comes from
within.
The second instance in which the Supreme Court again directed the
government of Article 44 was in the case of Sarla Mudgal v. Union of
India[4]. In this case, the question was whether a Hindu husband,
married under the Hindu law, by embracing Islam, can solemnise second
marriage The Court held that a Hindu marriage solemnised under the
Hindu law can only be dissolved on any of the grounds specified under
the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. Conversion to Islam and Marrying again
would not, by itself, dissolve the Hindu marriage under the Act. And,
thus, a second marriage solemnised after converting to Islam would be
an offence under Section 494[5] of the Indian Penal Code.
Justice Kuldip Singh also opined that Article 44 has to be retrieved
from the cold storage where it is lying since 1949. The Hon’ble
Justice referred to the codification of the Hindu personal law and
held,
"Where more then 80 percent of the citizens have already been brought
under the codified personal law there is no justification whatsoever
to keep in abeyance, any more, the introduction of the ‘uniform civil
code’ for all the citizens in the territory of India."
The Supreme Court’s latest reminder to the government of its
Constitutional obligations to enact a UCC came in July 2003[6] when a
Christian priest knocked the doors of the Court challenging the
Constitutional validity of Section 118[7] of the Indian Succession
Act. The priest from Kerala, John Vallamatton filed a writ petition in
the year 1997 stating that Section 118 of the said Act was
discriminatory against the Christians as it impose unreasonable
restrictions on their donation of property for religious or charitable
purpose by will. The bench comprising of Chief Justice of India V.N.
Khare, Justice S.B. Sinha and Justice A.R. Lakshamanan struck down the
Section declaring it to be unconstitutional. Chief Justice Khare
stated that,
"We would like to State that Article 44 provides that the State shall
endeavour to secure for all citizens a uniform civil code throughout
the territory of India It is a matter of great regrets that Article 44
of the Constitution has not been given effect to. Parliament is still
to step in for framing a common civil code in the country. A common
civil code will help the cause of national integration by removing the
contradictions based on ideologies."
Thus, as seen above, the apex court has on several instances directed
the government to realise the directive principle enshrined in our
Constitution and the urgency to do so can be inferred from the same.
Secularism v/s UCC:
The spine of controversy revolving around UCC has been secularism and
the freedom of religion enumerated in the Constitution of India. The
preamble of the Constitution states that India is a "secular
democratic republic" This means that there is no State religion. A
secular State shall not discriminate against anyone on the ground of
religion. A State is only concerned with the relation between man and
man. It is not concerned with the relation of man with God. It does
not mean allowing all religions to be practiced. It means that
religion should not interfere with the mundane life of an individual.
In S.R. Bommai v. Union of India[8], as per Justice Jeevan Reddy, it
was held that religion is the matter of individual faith and cannot be
mixed with secular activities. Secular activities can be regulated by
the State by enacting a law.
In India, there exist a concept of "positive secularism" as
distinguished from doctrine of secularism accepted by America and some
European states i.e. there is a wall of separation between religion
and State. In India, positive secularism separates spiritualism with
individual faith. The reason is that America and the European
countries went through the stages of renaissance, reformation and
enlightenment and thus they can enact a law stating that State shall
not interfere with religion. On the contrary, India has not gone
through these stages and thus the responsibility lies on the State to
interfere in the matters of religion so as to remove the impediments
in the governance of the State.
Articles 25[9] and 26[10] guarantee right to freedom of religion.
Article 25 guarantees to every person the freedom of conscience and
the right to profess, practice and propagate religion. But this right
is subject to public order, morality and health and to the other
provisions of Part III of the Constitution. Article 25 also empowers
the State to regulate or restrict any economic, financial, political
or other secular activity, which may be associated with religious
practice and also to provide for social welfare and reforms. The
protection of Articles 25 and 26 is not limited to matters of doctrine
of belief. It extends to acts done in pursuance of religion and,
therefore, contains a guarantee for ritual and observations,
ceremonies and modes of worship, which are the integral parts of
religion.[11]
UCC is not opposed to secularism or will not violate Article 25 and
26. Article 44 is based on the concept that there is no necessary
connection between religion and personal law in a civilised society.
Marriage, succession and like matters are of secular nature and,
therefore, law can regulate them. No religion permits deliberate
distortion[12]. The UCC will not and shall not result in interference
of one’s religious beliefs relating, mainly to maintenance, succession
and inheritance. This means that under the UCC a Hindu will not be
compelled to perform a nikah or a Muslim be forced to carry out
saptapadi. But in matters of inheritance, right to property,
maintenance and succession, there will be a common law.
Justice Khare, in the recent case[13], said,
"It is no matter of doubt that marriage, succession and the like
matters of secular character cannot be brought within the guarantee
enshrined under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution."
The Chief Justice also cautioned that any legislations which brought
succession and like matters of secular character within the ambit of
Articles 25 and 26 is a suspect legislation. Article 25 confers right
to practice and profess religion, while Article 44 divests religion
from social relations and personal law.
The whole debate can be summed up by the judgement given by Justice
R.M. Sahai. He said,
"Ours is a secular democratic republic. Freedom of religion is the
core of our culture. Even the slightest of deviation shakes the social
fibre. But religious practices, violative of human rights and dignity
and sacerdotal suffocation of essentially civil and material freedoms
are not autonomy but oppression. Therefore, a unified code is
imperative, both, for protection of the oppressed and for promotion of
national unity and solidarity."[14]
Codification:
The biggest obstacle in implementing the UCC, apart from obtaining a
consensus, is the drafting. Should UCC be a blend of all the personal
laws or should it be a new law adhering to the constitutional mandate?
There is a lot of literature churned out on UCC but there is no model
law drafted. Many think that under the guise of UCC, the Hindu law
will be imposed on all. The possibility of UCC being only a repackaged
Hindu law was ruled out by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee when he
said that there will be a new code based on gender equality and
comprising the best elements in all the personal laws.
The UCC should carve a balance between protection of fundamental
rights and religious dogmas of individuals. It should be a code, which
is just and proper according to a man of ordinary prudence, without
any bias with regards to religious or political considerations.
Here is an overview of the essentials of the UCC:
Marriage and divorce:
The personal laws of each religion contain different essentials of a
valid marriage. The new code should have the basic essentials of valid
marriage which shall include:
(i) The new code should impose monogamy banning multiple marriages
under any religion. Polygamy discriminates against the women and
violates their basic human rights. Thus, monogamy should be imposed,
not because it is the Hindu law, but because it adheres to Article 21
of the Constitution[15] and basic human values.
(ii) The minimum age limit for a male should be 21 years and for a
female should be 18 years. This would help in curbing child marriages.
Punishment should be prescribed for any person violating this
provision. Also, punishment for other persons involved in such an act,
like the relatives, should be prescribed which would have a deterrent
effect on the society.
(iii) Registration of marriage should be made compulsory. A valid
marriage will be said to have solemnised when the man and the woman
sign their declaration of eligibility before a registrar. This will do
away with all the confusion regarding the validity of the marriage.
(iv) The grounds and procedure for divorce should be specifically laid
down. The grounds enumerated in the code should be reasonable and the
procedure prescribed should be according to the principles of natural
justice. Also, there should be a provision for divorce by mutual
consent.
Succession and inheritance: This area throws up even more intractable
problems. In Hindu law, there is a distinction between a joint family
property and self acquired property which is not so under the Muslim
law. The Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), formed under the Hindu law, run
businesses and own agricultural lands. Under the UCC, this institution
of HUF, peculiar to the Hindus, has to be abolished. There are also
fetters imposed on the extent to which one can bequeath property by
will under the Muslim law. Considering all these, the UCC should
include:
(i) Equal shares to son and daughter from the property of the father,
whether self acquired or joint family property. There should be no
discrimination based on sex in the matters of inheritance. The
provisions of the Hindu Succession (Maharashtra Amendment) Act, 1994
can be taken as guiding principles wherein the daughter of a
coparcener shall by birth become the coparcener in her own right in
the same manner as a son and have the same rights in the coparcenary
property as she would have had if she had been a son, inclusive the
right to claim by survivorship and shall be subject to same
liabilities and disabilities as the son.
(ii) Provisions for inheritance of the property of mother, which she
has self acquired or acquired through her father or relatives.
(iii) The provisions relating to will should be in consonance with the
principles of equity. There should be no limitations imposed on the
extent to which the property can be bequeathed, the persons to whom
such property can be bequeath and the donation of the property by will
for religious and charitable purpose.
(iv) The essentials of valid will, the procedure for registration and
execution of the will should be provided for.
(v) Provisions for gifts should not contain any limitations, though
essential of valid gift and gift deed should be specified.
Maintenance: The maintenance laws for the Hindus and Muslims are very
different. Apart from personal laws, a non-Muslim woman can claim
maintenance under Section 125 of Code of Criminal Procedure. A Muslim
woman can claim maintenance under the Muslim Women (Right to
Protection on Divorce) Act, 1986. Apart from maintenance of wife,
there are also provisions for maintenance of mother, father, son and
unmarried daughter under the Hindu law. The UCC should contain the
following with regards to maintenance:
(i) A husband should maintain the wife during the marriage and also
after they have divorced till the wife remarries.
(ii) The amount of alimony should be decided on basis of the income of
the husband, the status and the lifestyle of the wife.
(iii) The son and daughter should be equally responsible to maintain
the parents. The reason for this being that if she claims equal share
of the property of her parents, she should share the duty to maintain
her parents equally.
(iv) The parents should maintain their children - son till he is
capable of earning on his own and daughter, till she gets married.
Thus based on these fundamental principles, an unbiased and fair UCC
can be framed which will be in consonance with the Constitution.
Working of UCC and the Indian scenario:
How foolproof will be the UCC? Will there be more abuse and less
obedience of UCC? Will UCC have negative effect on the society? Such
questions are bound to be raised after the implementation of the UCC.
All laws are formulated to be obeyed, but they are abused. This
doesnot mean that law should not be implemented. Similarly, there is a
great possibility of the UCC being abused, but this should not eschew
the Parliament from enacting the UCC; the social welfare and benefits
resulting from the implementation of UCC are far greater.
While explaining the reason for including Article 44 in the Directives
Principles, it was observed,
"When you want to consolidate a community, you have to take into
consideration the benefits which may accrue to the whole community and
not to the customs of a part of it. If you look at the countries in
Europe, which have a Civil Code, everyone who goes there forms a part
of the world and every minority has to submit to that Civil Code. It
is not felt to be tyrannical to the minorities."[16]
Some legal experts argue that progressive law is welcomed but a
suitable atmosphere must be created in which all sections feel secure
enough to sit together and cull out the most progressive of their
personal laws. But this can be answered by an example of Hindu law.
When the Hindu Code Bill, which covers Buddhist, Sikhs, Jains as well
as different religious denominations of Hindus, was notified, there
was a lot of protest. And the then Law Minister, Dr. Ambedkar, had
said that for India’s unity, the country needs a codified law. In a
similar fashion, the UCC can be implemented, which will cover all the
religions, whether major or minor, practiced in India and any person
who comes to India has to abide by the Code.
Not many know that a UCC exists in the small state of Goa accepted by
all communities. The Goa Civil Code collectively called Family Laws,
was framed and enforced by the Portuguese colonial rulers through
various legislations in the 19th and 20th centuries. After the
liberation of Goa in 1961, the Indian State scrapped all the colonial
laws and extended the central laws to the territory but made the
exception of retaining the Family Laws because all the communities in
Goa wanted it. The most significant provision in this law is the pre
nuptial Public Deed regarding the disposal of immovable and movable
property in the event of divorce or death. During matrimony, both
parents have a common right over the estate, but on dissolution, the
property has to be divided equally; son and daughters have the equal
right on the property. As the procedure involves compulsory
registration of marriage, this effectively checks child and bigamous
marriage.
The philosophy behind the Portuguese Civil Code was to strengthen the
family as the backbone of society by inculcating a spirit of tolerance
between husband and wife and providing for inbuilt safeguard against
injustice by one spouse against the other.
Commenting that the dream of a UCC in the country finds its
realisation in Goa, former Chief Justice of India Y.V. Chandrachud had
once expressed hope that it would one day "awaken the rest of bigoted
India."[17]
Conclusion:
The section of the nation against the implementation of UCC contends
that in ideal times, in an ideal State, a UCC would be an ideal
safeguard of citizens’ rights. But India has moved much further from
ideal than when the Constitution was written 50 years ago.
But to conclude, I would like to say that citizens belonging to
different religions and denominations follow different property and
matrimonial laws which is not only an affront to the nation’s unity,
but also makes one wonder whether we are a sovereign secular republic
or a loose confederation of feudal states, where people live at the
whims and fancies of mullahs, bishops and pundits.
[1] AIR 1985 SC 945
[2] "(1) If any person having a sufficient means neglects or refuses
to maintain- a) his wife, unable to maintain herself, or b) his
legitimate or illegitimate minor child, whether married or not, unable
to maintain itself, or c) His legitimate or illegitimate child (not
being a married daughter) who has attained majority, where such child
is, by reason of any physical or mental abnormality or injury unable
to maintain itself, or d) his father or mother, unable to maintain
himself or herself, a magistrate of the first class may, upon proof of
such neglect or refusal, order such person to make a monthly allowance
for the maintenance of his wife or such child, father or mother, at
such monthly rate not exceeding five hundred rupees in the whole, as
such Magistrate thinks fit, and to pay the same to such person as the
Magistrate mat from time to time direct: Provided that the Magistrate
may order the father of a minor female child refereed to in clause (b)
to make such allowance, until she attains her majority, if the
Magistrate is satisfied that the husband of such minor female child,
if married, is not possessed of sufficient means."
[3] "The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform
civil code throughout the territory of India."
[4] AIR 1995 SC 153
[5] "Whoever, having a husband or wife living, marries in any case in
which such marriage is void by reason of its taking place during the
life of such husband or wife, shall be punished with imprisonment of
either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and
shall also be liable to fine."
[6] John Vallamattom v. Union of India AIR 2003 SC 2902
[7] "No man having a nephew or a niece or any nearer relative shall
have power to bequeath any property to religious or charitable uses,
except by a Will executed not less than twelve months before his
death, and deposited within six months from its execution in some
place provided by law for sak\fe custody of the Will of living
persons."
[8] (1994)3 SCC 1
[9] "(1) Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other
provisions of this part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom
of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate
religion. (2) Nothing in this Article shall affect the operation of
any existing law or prevent the State from making any law - a)
regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other
secular activities which may be associated with religious practice; b)
providing for social welfare and reform or the throwing open of Hindu
religious institutions of a public character to all classes and
sections of Hindus."
[10] "Subject to public order, morality and health, every religious
denomination or any section thereof shall have a right- a) to
establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable
purposes; b) to manage its own affairs in matters of religion; c) to
own and acquire movable and immovable property; and d) to administer
such property in accordance with law."
[11] Acharya Jagdishwaranand Avadhut v. Commissioner of Police,
Calcutta (1984)4 SCC 522
[12] Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India AIR 1995 SC 1531
[13] John Vallamattom v. Union of India AIR 2003 SC 2902
[14] Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India AIR 1995 SC 1531
[15]"No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty
except according to procedure established by law"
[16] Constitutional Assembly Debates Volume VII pg. 547
[17] Mohammad Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum AIR 1985 SC 945
Authored by Gauri Kulkarni and can be reached at :
miss...@hotmail.com
http://www.legalserviceindia.com/articles/ucc.htm
chhotemianinshallah
By Kanchan Lakhani
A state-level function was organised here today to pay homage to Dr
Shyama Prasad Mookherjee. Addressing a mammoth gathering, former
deputy Prime Minister LK Advani said: “Dr Mookherjee laid down his
life for the unity and integrity of the nation. He not only opposed
the permit system introduced for the people from outside J&K, but also
defied the permit restriction by entering the state on May 11, 1953.
The system itself was instrumental in creating differences among the
citizens of independent India.”
Stating Article 370 as dangerous for the unity and integrity of India,
Mohan Bhagwat of the RSS said the Article should be scrapped at
earliest to ensure safety of the people of Jammu and Kashmir from the
evil designs of terrorist outfits functioning from across the border.
He also dedicated the samarak of Dr Shyama Prasad Mookherjee, named as
Ekta Sathal, at Madhopur bridge on the Punjab-J&K border, near here.
BJP national president Nitin Gadkari also rued the fact that India had
failed to settle the J&K issue even after 62 years of Independence. He
alleged that the appeasement policies of the UPA government were
encouraging terrorism in the country. Demanding immediate repealing of
Article 370, he said Dr Mookherjee’s sacrifice would not go in vein.
Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, in his brief address, said
martyrs belonged to the nation and not to any religion, cast or
region. Also present on the occasion were Himachal Pradesh CM PK
Dhumal, former CM Shanta Kumar, MP Navjot Sidhu, MP Avinash Rai
Khanna, BJP state chief Ashwani Sharma, BJP in charge (Punjab affairs)
Balbir Punj, and state ministers like Manoranjan Kalia, Master Mohan
Lal, Tikshan Sud, Luxmi Kanta Chawla and Swarna Ram.
via The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Main News.
http://amritsarmetro.com/2010/03/21/scrap-article-370-bjp-rss/
Researcher in new BJP vanguard
Poornima Joshi
New Delhi, March 21, 2010
BJP leaders aren't known to be "overqualified". But Nirmala
Seetharaman seems to have changed that image when she set foot in the
party headquarters on Saturday afternoon.
The saffron camp's media cell acquired a new profile with
Seetharaman's inclusion as spokesperson in BJP president Nitin
Gadkari's new team of officebearers.
An international trade expert with an MPhil from Jawaharlal Nehru
University's (JNU) Centre for Economic Studies and Planning,
Seetharaman was a researcher in the world's largest professional
services firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, in the UK.
Since she came back to India and settled in Hyderabad, the BJP's new
spokesperson has been engaged in research work in health, education
and rural employment. She is also part of running a model school
called Pranava in Hyderabad, and was a member of the National
Commission for Women. "I had finished PhD as well on textile trade
between India and Europe under the GATT regime, but could not submit
it," said Seetharaman.
So how did someone from JNU, known as the fourth bastion of the CPM
after West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura, end up in the BJP? "I was anti-
Left and part of the free thinkers in JNU. But I never joined any
political party. In fact, till 2006, I was engaged in research. But
when the chance came, I signed up with the BJP," she said.
At a time when Gadkari is facing criticism about sacrificing quality
in favour of the glamour quotient in his team, Seetharaman was propped
up by the party to parry queries in this regard. "What is wrong if
women from the film world or any other profession join politics?
It will only add fresh ideas so essential for the growth.
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/89207/India/Researcher+in+new+BJP+vanguard.html
Cong has defied Nehru in its RS nominations: BJP
22 Mar 2010, 0726 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: BJP on Sunday kept up its attack on Congress for nominating
two of its defeated Lok Sabha candidates — Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar and
Ram
Dayal Munda — to the Rajya Sabha. BJP said the action amounted to
defying Jawaharlal Nehru’s stand on the issue.
“Pandit Nehru, in his speech in the House of the People on May 13,
1953, had categorically stated that such nominees (to Rajya Sabha)
should not represent political parties. There should be a high water
mark of literature, art or culture,” BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap
Rudy said.
“By nominating two active party members, Congress has defied the stand
taken by their guiding leader,” he said. Both Mr Aiyar and Mr Munda
had lost the 2009 Lok Sabha polls while contesting from their
constituencies in Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, respectively.
“It seems the RS has become a refuge for defeated Congress candidates.
Congress is making a mockery of the nomination category,” he said. He
quoted Gopalswamy Iyengar, a Constituent Assembly member, to drive
home his party’s point. “Iyengar in his speech in the Constituent
Assembly on July 28, 1947, said that those seasoned people who may not
be in the thickest of political fray, but who might be willing to
participate from art and culture should be given an opportunity
through such nominations.”
IANS
BJP leader calls for Hindu state again in Nepal
2010-03-22 17:20:00
A little-known Hindu organisation's call for reinstatement of a Hindu
state in Nepal received an unexpected support here from a visiting top
leader of India's Bharatiya Janata Party.
Former BJP president Rajnath Singh, who had arrived in Nepal Sunday to
attend the last rites of former Nepali prime minister Girija Prasad
Koirala, who was also the architect of a secular Nepal, said at a
press conference in Kathmandu Monday that he supported a Hindu state
in the Himalayan republic.
'We used to feel proud that Nepal was the only Hindu kingdom in the
world,' Singh said. 'I will be happy when Nepal is a Hindu state
again.'
The Indian leader said that there were other theocratic countries in
the world - including in the European Union and in South Asia.
'But no one is opposed to them,' Singh said. 'No one is appealing to
(the Islamic states of) Pakistan and Bangladesh to become secular. But
it was done in Nepal.'
Singh, who met Nepal's Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and President
Ram Baran Yadav Monday prior to his departure, said Hinduism was a way
of life and tolerant of other religions.
'That is why India is secular,' he said. '(But) Pakistan separated
(from India) to become theocratic and look at the state of the country
today.'
Asked about the sectarian riots in western India's Gujarat state under
a BJP government, the BJP leader said his party condemned violence.
Singh also made a veiled attack against Nepal's former Maoist
guerrillas, who waged a 10-year war for a secular state and are now
the biggest party in Nepal following the election in 2008.
'Weapons belong to defenders of the state, not the masses,' he said,
obliquely referring to the allegation against the Maoists that they
have still retained weapons.
'In a healthy democracy, there shouldn't be arms in people's hands.'
The Indian leader said he had urged Nepal's leaders to implement the
new constitution on the basis of consensus within the May deadline.
Singh's remarks are likely to fuel a controversy in Nepal at a time
when several Hindu organisations are calling for a Hindu state.
A little-known group called the Vishwa Ekata Parishad set two buses
and a motorcycle on fire in Kailali district in farwestern Nepal
during a general strike called by them in western Nepal Monday.
The group is seeking to reinstate Hinduism as the state religion. An
anti-monarchy campaign led to parliament declaring the country secular
in 2006.
The new constitution is expected to consolidate the nature of the
secular republic.
However, ahead of the new constitution, Hindu groups have begun
raising demands for a Hindu state.
Last week, a National Religious Revival Campaign kicked off in
Kathmandu, attended by lawmakers and veteran politicians, making the
same demand.
There has also been a series of visits by Hindu preachers, including
controversial Indian Chandraswamy, who have been attending rituals
calling for a Hindu state.
The last of them, a nine-day ritual, was attended by three former
prime ministers of Nepal and deposed Hindu king Gyanendra himself.
Nepal's only openly royalist party, Rastriya Prajatantra Party
(Nepal), is demanding a Hindu kingdom.
Kamal Thapa, who was home minister in king Gyanendra's regime and
heads the royalist party, has warned of protests against the new
constitution unless the government holds a referendum ahead of it.
Thapa says people should be allowed to decide if they want a king and
a Hindu state through the referendum.
In the past, the party called a general strike in Kathmandu valley to
show its clout and also blockaded major ministries.
SEARCH http://sify.com/topics/Nepal.html
Advani blogs against Kashmir's autonomy
2010-03-22 15:20:00
Opposing autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir and restoration of the
pre-1953 status to the troubled state, senior Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) leader L.K. Advani has said the party won't allow the
constitutional clock to be turned back and vowed to get Article 370
completely abrogated.
'All that the country wants is to move forward to the complete
abrogation of Article 370,' Advani said, referring to the
constitutional provision that gives special status to Jammu and
Kashmir in India.
'The nation will not allow the constitutional clock to be turned back
in respect to the state's integration with India,' the veteran BJP
leader blogged.
Before 1953, Jammu and Kashmir had a separate head called prime
minister. The Supreme Court, the Election Commission of India, and the
comptroller and auditor general had no jurisdiction over the state.
Only three departments, defence, currency and foreign affairs were
controlled by the Indian government.
Any Indian citizen wanting to visit the state had to acquire a special
permit to enter Jammu and Kashmir.
However, the permit system was later abolished and gradually the
clauses, which Advani called 'separatist provisions', were changed and
the article diluted.
This, Advani wrote, 'brought (Jammu and Kashmir) at par with other
states in these matters'.
'When in the name of Kashmir's autonomy, it is nowadays said that the
dilution of Article 370 that took place post-1953 must be undone, it
is all these wholesome provisions of the Indian constitution which are
sought to be once again scrapped in their application to the state of
Jammu and Kashmir,' he said.
'The nation's clarion call to the powers-that-be is that India will
never forget Shyama Prasad Mookerji's sacrifice,' he said remembering
the Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder who entered Jammu and Kashmir in 1953
defying the permit system. Mookerji was taken to a prison where he
fell ill after a hunger strike. He later died.
http://sify.com/news/advani-blogs-against-kashmir-s-autonomy-news-national-kdwpubjefbh.html
BJP leader weighed in blood
NDTV Correspondent, Monday March 22, 2010, Ahmedabad
Weighing your leader in gold and silver is passé. How innovative can
your welcome be after Mayawati's money garland caught the eye of
everyone in the country?
A silver chair for Haryana Chief Minister Bhupendra Singh Hooda. A gun
salute for BJP general secretary Narendra Singh Tomar. Now try this.
The new state BJP chief in Gujarat, RC Faldu, was weighed in blood, 75
litres of it for his 75 kg of body weight. All that blood has been
kept in Vadodara for donation "to the needy".
The leader looked quite happy at the innovation as he sat on the giant
weighing scale. For the more conventional, he was also weighed in
coins.
Tomar, the BJP MP from Madhya Pradesh and general secretary, was
felicitated over the weekend with followers firing gunshots in the air
in Morena and a district-level office-bearer ended up injured.
Chief Minister Hooda said no to the silver throne and, it is reported,
a golden crown. But then Hooda belongs to the party that is taking its
austerity drive very seriously. In neighbouring UP, Chief Minister
Mayawati shall soon be accepting her third garland made of money.
Watch Video
http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/bjp-leader-weighed-in-blood-18227.php
BJP general secretary’s show of gun power injures partyman
22 Mar 2010, 1010 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: Even as BJP president Nitin Gadkari battles to contain the
fall-out of a fresh burst of dissidence within his party following
the
announcement of his team of office-bearers, one of his chosen few
decided to exhibit his clout by a brazen show of gun power and might
at Shivpuri in his home constituency.
Mr Narendra Singh Tomar’s first visit to his Lok Sabha constituency —
Morena in Madhya Pradesh — after being named a national general
secretary of BJP left at least one party activist injured during the
101-gun salute given by his followers. In a brazen show of strength
and muscle power, Mr Tomar, who’s also the outgoing state BJP
president, chose to exhibit his might by parading 101 gun-totting
supporters on the occasion. This act clearly violated the law, but no
could dare taking any action against him for the fear of inviting the
state government’s wrath. MP is ruled by BJP.
What is more shocking is that the incident took place in the very
presence of police and district officials who were there during the
controversial ceremony . Most of the arms used in the ceremony were
said to be illegal.
Mr Tomar’s action has added to the woes of the BJP president, who is
already facing a lot of flak for his non-application of mind in the
selection of his team of office-bearers and the members of national
executive. The process flew in the face of his opt-repeated assertion
that he would go strictly by performance-audit while naming persons to
head important organisational posts. It now turns out that allegiance
to party satraps played an important role in team-selection exercise .
Factors such as regional and castebalancing were completely
jettisoned.
With Mr Gadkari faltering in his first big test, doubts are already
being raised about his next major hurdle — that of appointing
presidents to head the party in politically crucial states of UP,
Bihar, MP and Maharashtra. With a rejuvenated Congress gearing up to
challenge BSP in Uttar Pradesh and the JD(U)- BJP combine in Bihar, it
remains to be seen whether Mr Gadkari goes purely by merit in
appointing leaders to head the party in these states, or falls victim
once again to the pulls and pressures being exerted by powerful
chieftains.
Madhya Pradesh: Gun salute goes wrong, BJP leader injured
Press Trust of India, Sunday March 21, 2010, Morena (Madhya Pradesh)
A BJP leader was seriously injured on Sunday after he was accidentally
hit by a bullet fired to welcome party's newly-appointed general
secretary Narendra Singh Tomar at a town near Morena in Madhya
Pradesh.
Tomar was being given a gun salute by party workers on his arrival at
Ambah town when one of the bullets accidentally hit BJP's divisional
unit vice president Subhash Sharma in the leg causing serious
injuries, police said.
Sharma was rushed to primary health centre and then to Morena district
hospital, which finally referred him to Gwalior Medical College
Hospital.
Watch Video
BJP dreams big for Bangalore
Express News Service
First Published : 22 Mar 2010 06:18:17 AM IST
Last Updated : 22 Mar 2010 08:58:03 AM IST
BANGALORE: There was confusion in the run -up to the BBMP elections.
Ticket distribution was chaotic and there were allegations that
candidate selection was not transparent.
There was no confusion. We had been discussing ticket distribution for
three months and finalised the candidates based on the suggestions of
the party workers. There may be minor differences but no major
problems.
Despite your promise of not letting it happen, people with criminal
background have gotten into the fray from the BJP.
There is no such instance. We have not given ticket to any such
elements.
What are the issues that the BJP feels could fetch votes? i) The
incomparable development work our party has done in Bangalore in the
last two years.
ii) The party is committed towards the development of Bangalore, well
reflected by the allocation of Rs 3,500 crore in the state budget.
iii) Our decisions have pleased Bangalore voters. For instance, take
our decision to bring in a legislation banning cow slaughter.
iv) People know that JD(S) and Congress have been playing a drama over
NICE, they have been shedding crocodile tears.
All international airports or important industries were all built by
acquiring land. Why oppose only NICE? BJP has been an urban party for
a long time, but you still have no single leader who can claim to
represent Bangalore.
Why such a void? There is no such void. We have many leaders. Such
problems exist in the Congress, which is why they had to go away from
Bangalore to decide on ticket distribution. We did it sitting in
Bangalore.
Mention five things you will do on a priority basis if you are voted
to power.
Ensuring drinking water in all the areas; laying underground
draianage, roads and necessary infrastructure in the newly-included
areas under the BBMP; developing and conserving lakes; making
rainwater harvesting compulsory; making Bangalore greener.
How many seats do you hope to bag? I am confident of getting a clear
majority.
What would the BJP do if it falls short of majority? Will it sit in
the opposition or engineer another ‘Operation lotus’? The first
question does not arise because we are confident of getting a clear
majority. If the Congress and the JD(S) make any political conspiracy
we are ready to counter them by manoeuvring the situation.
BJP, Bollywood Ishtyle13 Comments | Post Comment
Tavleen Singh
Posted: Sunday , Mar 21, 2010 at 0140 hrs
This has been a most depressing week when seen from the perspective of
a political columnist. The new president of our main Opposition party
announced his new ‘dream team’ to revive the BJP and his list would be
hugely funny if it were not so pathetic. There are three actresses, a
cricketer, a fashion designer, a sprinkling of ‘youth’ leaders and a
former chief minister who is a misfit among the actresses.
Vasundhara Raje is the BJP’s only leader in Rajasthan and instead of a
desk job in Delhi, should have been left as a formidable Opposition
leader in Jaipur. She lost the election by inches. But, it seems as if
the BJP has decided not to be a real Opposition party, only a
Bollywood version of one. It has to be said in Nitin Gadkari’s defence
that from day one, when he burst into song at that first convention in
Indore, he indicated that despite his ample girth, he is a
lightweight. Not a bad singer but pointless since we have enough real
musicians; what we need desperately is a real Opposition party.
If we had a real Opposition party, six million tonnes of food grain
would not be rotting in Punjab while Parliament is in session. In a
country in which nearly half our children are malnourished, it is
beyond sickening that the Government of India can get away with stupid
excuses like ‘not having enough warehouses’. Just put the wretched
grain in trucks and send it to organisations like Akshay Patra or just
give it free to village shops. Our TV channels did an excellent job
last week in emphasising that the grain is being eaten by rats while
children starve, but there is only so much the media can do. The rest
is in the hands of the Prime Minister and his Cabinet and why should
they do anything as long as there is no Opposition party to rub their
nose in the dirt?
If we had a real Opposition party, we would not be putting another Rs
30,000 crore of taxpayers money into ‘cleaning’ the Ganga and the
Yamuna until we know why twenty years of expensive effort failed to
clean our most sacred rivers. Before throwing more of our money down
the drain, should we not first be given some answers? One example. Why
was our money spent on building sewage treatment plants that do not
work when everyone knows that the only solution is to not allow any
sewage into these rivers in the first place?
But, what is the point in my depressing myself further with these
questions when I know that it is futile asking them until we have a
real Opposition party? If you need proof that we do not have one you
only need to have watched this last session of Parliament. In neither
the Lok Sabha nor the Rajya Sabha did we see the BJP raise any real
issues. Sushma Swaraj’s interventions have been heavy on elocution and
low on content. She ends up sounding like someone trying to win first
prize in a college debate. Arun Jaitley supported the Women’s
Reservation Bill as if his heart was really not in it. There is no
reason why it should have been. The Bill, as I pointed out in this
space last week, undermines the fundamental principles of Indian
democracy and should be strenuously opposed.
Even as I write those words, I slip further into gloom as the face of
Shri Lal Krishna Advani floats before my eyes. Not in the form of the
Hindutva hawk on that chariot to Ayodhya that left so much death and
hatred in its wake. But, as the tired, old man he now is. A tired, old
man who has nothing new to say, no future prospects, but who clings
shamelessly to the few crumbs of power that remain with him. In doing
so he destroys any chance the BJP has of renewal or even survival.
What was the point of him giving up his job as Leader of the
Opposition in the Lok Sabha if he refuses to give up control of the
parliamentary party?
The reality is that he has given up nothing. Mr Gadkari can take his
‘dream team’ of actresses and sportsmen and sing all the way back to
Mumbai and it would make no difference. There remains only one leader
in the BJP. He is a worn-out, jaded old man who appears determined to
destroy what remains of the party he once helped build. With only the
Commies on the Opposition benches, the Government can lapse safely
into complacent non-activity while we the people rely on our own
efforts to withstand a certain decline. Forgive me if I sound
seriously gloomy but it is a seriously gloomy time.
Follow Tavleen Singh on Twitter at tavleens
13 Comments |
Rotting Grain
By: K.C.Sharma | Monday , 22 Mar '10 16:51:07 PM
Rotting grain is really a shame when so many starvation deaths are
happening.But if the real figures can somehow, may be through RTI be
extracted from the Govt it will be found that so much money has been
spent on construction of go-downs and on the Food Corporation of India
that if the same money was spent by private traders there would be no
shortage of storage space.And grain would be available where required
through cash coupons distributed to the really needy. But the Govt
babu's and the socialistic politicians would have even then found a
way to pocket that money and the grain meant for the poor. You have
every right to rubbish the BJP but most of the blame lies at the door
of the socialistic dreams of our great leaders of fifties and sixties
who still control the mindset of our present leaders of the GOP.
Will BJP bounce back?
By: Neetu Banga | Monday , 22 Mar '10 12:16:43 PM
The party needs to stop talk on hard-line Hindutva and focus on
emerging as a true secular party.By inducting educated and positive
attitude people does not mean party will come back to power, it still
have long way to go to win the hearts of the people.
UNBALANCED CRITICISM
By: B.V.SHENOY | Monday , 22 Mar '10 11:56:56 AM
Tavleen Singh seems to have written this article with the editor
holding the secular gun to her head. The criticism of Gadkari and his
new team seems to be pointless and cheap. If Sunil Dutt can be a
politician, and the congress government can honour a dead actor
(M.G.Ramachandran) with Bharat Ratna (nothing less!), what is wrong
when Gadkari selects intelligent actors like Kiran kher for his
youthful team? Sidhu is a world reknown cricketer, a good human being,
a witty orator and a successful parliamentarian. Any party would feel
proud to have him in its national management team, But Tavleen has
nothing but derisive words for these young, politically savvy public
figures. By using vile language for Advani, you are only be exposing
your own lack of balance. Once in a way you may attempt writing about
the lady who runs the country from behind closed doors of 10 Janpath,
who doesn't know the A,B, C or D of Indian politics but lords over the
country. And please mind your language.
Corrupt Officers of FCI
By: Shiv M | Monday , 22 Mar '10 11:06:07 AM
FCI and its ministry has been making mockery of food storage System.
Dont they see how developed world store their grains in sylos and not
even a piece of grain goes waste and they can export same wheat to we
Indians with cheap prices with their so high labour cost. FCI
officials show these food grains as gone waste but at the same time
sell them to black market and pocket in 1000s of crores rs. this must
come to an end and no government agency should be allowed to buy and
misappropriate tha tax money of we common Indians. it's high time we
must stop these unchecked corruption or we and out chilren will die
out of malnutrition while these thugs and rats will get fatter and
fatter day after day.
TRUE OPPOSITION
By: NIRANJAN | Monday , 22 Mar '10 8:54:44 AM
OPPOSITION IN OUR COUNTRY IS ALWAYS TOO BUSY PULLING DOWN THE RULING
GOVT. BUT IT IS ALSO BUSY TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN THE RULING
GOVT. COMES DOWN THEY HAVE THE BIGGEST BOWL TO COLLECT THE FALLOUT! I
WISH THE PARLIAMENTARIANS WOULD LOOK AT SOME DECENT COUNTRY'S SYSTEM
AND TRY NOT EMULATE POORLY RULED DICTATORSHIP LIKE COUNTRIES! ATRUE
OPPOSITION WOULD THINK FIRST OF THE COUNTRY AND THEN OF THE PARTY AND
THEN FOR INDIVIDUALS. IN OUR COUNTRY THE ORDER IS REVERSED.
How
By: Neelima Choahan | Monday , 22 Mar '10 7:53:38 AM
Dear Ms Singh, I am a great a admirer of yours. I have read you since
I was a child. I think you are the byword in Indian politics
commentary but what I cannot understand is how is that you manage to
criticize BJP even when you are berating the Congress. Or is it the
other way around? I hope we get rid of this useless government and of
course that cannot be done without a strong Opposition.
Professor Emeritus
By: DR. D. Prithipaul | Monday , 22 Mar '10 5:40:51 AM
Mrs. Tavleen Singh does not seem to get it. With the Prime Minister's
office sponsoring a third rate Bollywood actor with a Padma, it is
proof that the Government acquires its understanding of social
realities from Bollywood fillums. This being so Mrs. Singh's laments
function like mere whispers in the wind - however much she may be
right, as she always is. Is there a debate on the nature of the
reasons, for example, which she marshals against the allotment of a
third of parliamentary seats to women? How will the rural electorate
field its women candidates and what will be the criteria for the
selection of the latter?
STANGE TRUTH
By: V.K.CHAWLA | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 23:11:43 PM
IF THE BJP TAKES A ISSUE & MAKE RUCKUS IN PARLIAMENT , THE SO CALLED
MEDIA CRTICISE IT . EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT UPA GOVT. IS NOT WORRIED &
THEIR LEADERS ARE SAYING IT OPENELY THAT THEY GIVE TWO HOOTS TO ALL
THOSE WHO ARE CRYING - MEHANGAI - PRICE RISE, BECAUSE THEY KNOW HOW
THE THE POOR PEOPLE ARE FORCED TO VOTE FOR THEM BY CLAIMING ONLY THEY
ARE SECULAR
Nitin Gadkari is not an outstanding leader at any stretch of
imagination.
By: Jay | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 20:15:55 PM
When the top level of any organization is occupied by mediocre people
they tend to choose mediocre or below people to work under him/her.
With more efficient and talented people they feel threatened. Nitin
Gadkari is not an outstanding leader at any stretch of imagination. He
is neither a good orator like Vajpayee-Advani nor have we read good
scholarly article from him unlike many other BJP leaders like Arun
Shourie. He may be a points man for RSS within BJP, but he can never
re-invent or re-energize the fast declining BJP party organization and
establish it as the main viable opposition.
Bashing BJP
By: R. Kapoor | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 19:15:41 PM
Only yesterday a Bollywood person, Shatrugan Sinha, a BJP stalwart and
a cabinet minister in NDA bashed Gadkari for neglecting some senior
members in the 'dream' team. Bollywood influence in BJP goes back many
years and is nothing new, however, recently it has become fashionable
for parties to exploit its presence. Didn't MNIK score one over the SS
and MNS in Maharashtra recently? We should not forget how SP tried to
enrope Sanjay Dutt, while already having Jaya Prada and Jaya Bahaduri
Bachachan being MPs. Why should we not forget Raj Babbar winning in
general elections as a Congress party candidate. Bollywood or in other
words the cinema world in India has been very prominent in politics,
especially in the South. So, it is wrong to criticise BJP vis-a-vis
Bollywood influence. I do agree with Tavleen, however, that BJP is in
'gloomy time.' Was Gadkari a racehorse that is expected to win the
Derby? With all the pessimism around BJP, can these dark clouds
disappear. I think they would.
bitter truth
By: savita | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 18:45:38 PM
very well said tavleenji
Nitin Gadkari is not an outstanding leader at any stretch of
imagination.
By: Jay | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 18:25:03 PM
When the top level of any organization is occupied by mediocre people
they tend to choose mediocre or below people to work under him/her.
With more efficient and talented people they feel threatened. Nitin
Gadkari is not an outstanding leader at any stretch of imagination. He
is neither a good orator like Vajpayee-Advani nor have we read good
scholarly article from him unlike many other BJP leaders like Arun
Shourie. He may be a points man for RSS within BJP, but he can never
re-invent or re-energize the fast declining BJP party organization and
establish it as the main viable opposition.
bitter truth
By: vikram | Sunday , 21 Mar '10 3:17:46 AM
Bitter truth. Tavleenji, you are great.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bjp-bollywood-ishtyle/593498/0
Not summoned by SIT on March 21: Modi
Agencies
Posted: Monday , Mar 22, 2010 at 1813 hrs
Gandhinagar:
Modi's letter came following reports that he had boycotted the SIT
summons.
In an open letter, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said
he shall respond to the SIT probing the 2002 Gujarat riots ‘fully
respecting’ the law, as he refuted reports that he had skipped
appearance before the panel on Sunday.
"SIT had not fixed March 21, 2010 for my appearance. To say that I was
summoned on March 21 is completely false. I shall respond to the SIT
fully respecting the law and keeping in view the dignity of a body
appointed by the Supreme Court," he said in an open letter.
Modi's letter came following reports that he had boycotted the SIT
summons. He said, "Truth cannot be suppressed. It is now my duty to
place before you the facts that brings out the importance of
understanding what the truth really is."
Elaborating his stand, he said, "After the 2002 Godhra incidents, I
had categorically said in the Vidhan Sabha and in public that no one
is above the Indian Constitution and the law, even if he happens to be
the chief minister of a state.
These are not mere words. My actions have reflected this statement in
its true spirit. I assure you that this would be my stand in the
future."
However, sources in the government said that Modi was seeking legal
help for which senior party leader and BJP MP in the Rajya Sabha from
Gujarat Arun Jaitley, who is a senior lawyer of the Supreme Court, has
arrived in the city.
BJP sources claimed that Jaitley would be looking into the summons
issued to Modi and give his legal opinion on what steps should be
taken. On Sunday, when Modi was summoned, SIT office was kept open
during the office hours from 1030 hrs to 1810 hrs.
In connection with Zakia's complaint, SIT has already recorded
statements of a number of persons named in her complaint which
include, former minister of state for Home Gordhan Zadafia, BJP leader
I K Jadeja, former BJP MLA from Lunawada Kalu Malivad and sitting MLA
from Mehsana Anil Patel, former IPS officer R B Sreekumar, social
activist Teesta Setalvad, IG Shivanand Jha, some other senior police
officers and political leaders.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/not-summoned-by-sit-on-march-21-modi/594116/0
'Marathi vs non-Marathi' narrow political agenda: Chavan
Agencies
Posted: Monday , Mar 22, 2010 at 1636 hrs
Mumbai:
Ashok Chavan reiterated that his govt was committed to the welfare of
all people who live in the state.
Describing the "Marathi versus non-Marathi" issue as the narrow
political agenda of few politicians, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok
Chavan on Monday said a placement agency owned by one such leader had
recruited 150 non-Maharashtrians.
"Their party's public stand says something and the leaders act
otherwise. I am not complaining," Chavan said without naming any party
during his reply to the motion of thanks to the Governor for his
address to the joint sitting of the state Legislature.
When the opposition benches asked Chavan to name the party and the
leader concerned, he said, "I would reveal the names at an appropriate
time."
Chavan said his government had an all-inclusive approach in its vision
for developing the state.
"Maharashtra belongs to all. My government is committed to the welfare
of all people who live here," he said.
Opposition members staged a walkout at the end of the Chief Minister's
speech criticising him for not spelling out the government's stand on
extension of statutory development boards whose term expires next
month.
He said his government was committed to the development of Marathi
language, art and culture.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/marathi-vs-nonmarathi-narrow-political-agenda-chavan/594098/
RSS feed: New BJP chief spikes journalists
21 March 2010
Coomi Kapoor in the Indian Express on the journalists’ contingent in
the new team of BJP office-bearers.
This entry was posted on 21 March 2010 at 10:07 am and is filed under
A bit of fun, Magazines, Newspapers, People, Television.
http://wearethebest.wordpress.com/2010/03/21/rss-feed-new-bjp-chief-spikes-journalists/
Sunday, September 13, 2009
BJP laments stab by ‘insider journalists’
PNS | New Delhi
It may still be trying to recover from the jolt dealt by insiders, but
the BJP believes that it has got another problem: ‘friendly
journalists’, who cannot remain ‘insider’ for too long.
An editorial in the latest issue of the party’s organ Kamal Sandesh
has dwelt on the issue. It says, “There are journalists who wish that
BJP should run as per their whims. Any person — journalist included —
has a right to offer advice and opinion but how can it be that a
political party should follow, without exception, the diktats of some
journalists. If that doesn’t happen, the political organisation turns
bad in their considered opinion.”
That is not the only complaint of the party. “A scenario in which
journalists should turn a tool in the hands of an individual
politician does not augur well for either of the two. Our effort
should be to create a healthy balance in which neither the journalist
is a weapon in the hands of a politician nor should the latter have to
act as a shield for journalists.”
Rajya Sabha MP Prabhat Jha, who is a former journalist and editor of
the party’s magazine, stops short of taking names. “This write-up is
not against an individual. This is what an aam karyakarta (normal
workers) of the BJP feels.”
The BJP has already made its displeasure widely known over some of the
articles and TV interviews by journalists and former journalists, who
had been closely associated with the party but later started behaving
like an ‘independent entity’.
Jha says, “Even while working in a political party, they (friendly
journalists) wish to maintain their separate identity, something
special and different from the rest of the lot. An impression also
gains ground among karyakartas that these people originally from
journalism are senior karyakartas.”
The BJP leaders would admit that this impression is not wrong too,
because they (friendly journalists) move about and communicate only
with higher echelons in the leadership and not with the lower rung of
political workers. “The respect and attention they get subject of envy
to others,” the editorial in Kamal Sandesh reads.
The same write-up adds, “It is true that it is their duty to report
but the questions remains: how, when and where. This is a matter that
these wielders of the pen should ponder over. They have to ensure that
in the process of the performance this onerous duty to present the
ideology to the nation, mutual confidence, faith and respect does not
fall a casualty.” And, the last word from the party organ: “We do
understand that journalism cannot be a synonym for bosom friendship
between a journalist and a politician. Yet, we have to stand firm at
our respective post of duty.”
http://dailypioneer.com/202162/BJP-laments-stab-by-‘insider-journalists’.html
Who are the journos ‘running & ruining’ the BJP?
25 August 2009
PRITAM SENGUPTA writes from New Delhi: Former Indian Express editor
Arun Shourie’s explosive interview with the paper’s current editor,
Shekhar Gupta, while revealing the deep schisms within India’s
principal oppostion party, the BJP, has also once again thrown light
on the less-than-professional role political journalists have been
playing.
For the second time in two months, Shourie targetted “The Gang of Six”—
a pack of half-of-dozen journalists who, says the Magsaysay Award
winning investigative journalist, have been used (abused? misused?) by
various different sections of the BJP.
On Gupta’s Walk the Talk interview for NDTV on Monday, Shourie said
his letter to the BJP president Rajnath Singh demanding accountability
in running the party had been dubbed as an act of indiscipline even
though that letter had remained confidential.
There were leaders, he says:
“…who had been planting stories against L.K. Advani, Rajnath Singh and
others through six journalists (and yet it’s not called
indiscipline)”.
At the BJP’s national executive meeting in mid-June, shortly after the
party suffered a “nasty jolt” in the general elections, Shourie had
gone so far as to say that “the BJP was being run by six journalists”
who were “damaging the party interest“.
On both occasions, Shourie hasn’t named “The Gang of Six”, but by
repeatedly talking about them has set tongues wagging.
However, the questions remain: is the BJP so feeble a party to be
felled by mere pen-pushers? If BJP leaders are using them to “plant”
stories against one another, are the journalists exceeding their brief
by allowing themselves to be used?
Is ex-editor Shourie sanctimoniously crying wolf or is this par for
the course in other parties too? Are editors and publishers of the
publications where the “Gang of Six” work aware of their journalists
being so used?
And if so, is it OK?
http://wearethebest.wordpress.com/2009/08/25/who-are-the-journos-running-ruining-the-bjp/
The sad and pathetic decline of Arun Shourie
16 February 2009
SHARANYA KANVILKAR writes from Bombay: Arun Shourie is one of the
strangest cases on the Indian intellectual landscape if not its most
disappointing. A living, walking, moving advertisement of how rabid
ideology can addle even the most riveting of minds, stripping it of
all its nuance and pretence; its very soul and humanity.
***
Once a fiery critic of Reliance Industries as editor of the Indian
Express, he was happy to deliver a eulogy at Dhirubhai Ambani’s first
death anniversary; even changing the law as minister to benefit
Reliance Industries, as alleged by the son of Girilal Jain, the former
Times of India editor who held shares in the company, no less.
Once a symbol of middle-class integrity and probity for various scams
unearthed his watch, his stint as disinvestment minister was
pockmarked with allegation after allegation (although an unattributed
Wikipedia entry claims he was ranked “the most outstanding minister of
the Atal Behari Vajpayee government” by 100 CEOs).
A slow, scholarly, Chaplinesque demeanour hides a cold, clinical mind
that piles the rhetoric and the stereotypes on the poor, the
marginalised and the disenfranchised while taking up high faluting
positions on terrorism, governance, internal security and such like,
through long, meandering essays whose opacity could put cub
journalists to shame.
And, as always, selectively twisting and turning the facts to fit his
preconceived conclusion, and hoping no one will notice.
To paraphrase Ramachandra Guha, Shourie has become the Arundhati Roy
of the right:
“The super-patriot and the anti-patriot use much the same methods.
Both think exclusively in black and white. Both choose to use a 100
words when 10 will do. Both arrogate to themselves the right to hand
out moral certificates. Those who criticise Shourie are characterised
as anti-national, those who dare take on Roy are made out to be agents
of the State. In either case, an excess of emotion and indignation
drowns out the facts.”
But what should disappoint even his most ardent fans, and there are
many young journalists, is how easily and effortlessly a pacifist
penman has regressed from “a concerned citizen employing his pen as an
effective adversary of corruption, inequality and injustice” (as his
Magsaysay Award citation read) to a hate-spewing ideological warrior
with fire blazing through his nostrils.
A son of a Gandhian who now openly advocates “two eyes for an eye and
a whole jaw for one tooth” with barely any qualms.
***
At a series of lectures in Ahmedabad on Saturday, Shourie bared his
fangs some more:
“India is still a passive country when it comes to taking a stand
against terrorism….
“It should, in fact, take an extremist stance and must prove that it
can also create a Kashmir-like situation in Pakistan.
“There are many places like Baluchistan, where a Kashmir-like
situation can be created but, “hum abhi bhi Panchsheel ke pujari hain
(We still worship the tenets of Panchsheel)”….
“Pakistan has been successfully carrying out destruction in India for
the last two decades and has still managed to escape problems, while
India on every occasion has failed to present a unified response to
terrorism and has suffered as a consequence….”
Really?
An eye for an eye? Two eyes for an eye? A jaw for a tooth?
In the name of Vivekananda, should India do unto Pakistan what
Pakistan has done to us? Is this a sign of vision on the part of a man
who some believe should be the next prime minister, or tunnel vision?
Is such barely disguised hatred and vengeance, hiding behind vedas and
upanishads, going to make the subcontinent a better place to live in?
Should the people of Pakistan, the poor, the marginalised, the
disenfranchised, pay the price for the sins of the generals?
Should a great, ancient civilisation become a cheap, third-rate,
neighbourhood bully?
Has Arun Shourie lost more than his soul and humanity?
Has Arun Shourie just lost it?
Photograph: courtesy The Hindu Business Line
http://wearethebest.wordpress.com/2009/02/16/the-sad-and-pathetic-decline-of-arun-shourie/
bademiyansubhanallah
Post by Sachhidanand on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:20pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news1_02.html
Trivedi must have been sanctioned by Didi
Post by Mahesh shah on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:21pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news2.html
Main points of disagreement
Post by Lets talk in open on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:21pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news4.html
Five areas of contention between Pankaj Trivedi and Didi.
According to Mahesh shah old Swadhyayee and good friend of Pankajbhai
there were five main areas of disagreement.
1. If Swadhyay claims to rebuild 40,000 houses, where are this houses.
Only 4-5,000 houses were rebuild.
2. Bhav Nirzar is a temple and should be accessible to any devotee.
3. Accounting of various trusts that hold funds from Swadhyay
activities. What is the purpose of accumulating wealth?
4. Dada had promised all the money received from Templeton Award to
use of Swadhyay activities, why it was diverted to family?
5. Love letters between Ashok Joshi and Didi - both were married at
the time of letters.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Archana on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:23pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news7.html
another foreign trip for Jayshree T ? Let us see if she goes to
Gujarat or runs away?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ranjeet on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:25pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news15.html
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Dear Vijaybhai on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:26pm
FYI ... The "BAHURUPIA" person who assumed more than half a dozen
names on YAHOO PUBLIC GROUPS for SWADHYAY is compalining about someone
else using his name...
Herambuster=Trueswadhyayi1=HIRDIP=MukundM=mptshah=Janmohammed2003 just
to name a few.
Nilesh, do you want me to post the threatening messages you had posted
on YAHOO PUBLIC GROUPS?
Review of last 50 posts have revealed that
Post # 384, 408, 413 posted under "Paying tribute to Pankajbhai'
Post # 389, 403, 407, 410 posted under Mukesh,
Post # 391 posted under "Indian Citizen"
Post # 385 posted under "Asheet
are likely to be one and the same person according to my webmaster.
Please refrain from posting under different names. I am sure others
are doing the same thing. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by The swadhyayee on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:28pm
Dear Brother A SWADHYAYEE(Brain Washed),
Still you want to say police will catch the culprits; police already
declared they caught hands and they are looking for Brains....Iam
sorry yours already washed out
next she want to face it calmly coz now she cant be able to give
threaten or what?
next you cant do whatever you want just see what's happening around.
Bahurupia..
Post by Roma on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:29pm
on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:26pm, Guest-Dear Vijaybhai wrote:FYI ... The
"BAHURUPIA" person who assumed more than half a dozen names on YAHOO
PUBLIC GROUPS for SWADHYAY is compalining about someone else using his
name...
Herambuster=Trueswadhyayi1=HIRDIP=MukundM=mptshah=Janmohammed2003 just
to name a few.
Nilesh, do you want me to post the threatening messages you had posted
on YAHOO PUBLIC GROUPS?
Please post those messages and let people know how nilesh has adopted
to swadhyay thoery in real life. Let people know how swadhyay
represntative talk to others.
You are also posting under Roma # 445, Ajay Doshi # 446; Rakesh # 447
and Rajesh Parikh # 448!
Why can't you post all that in one post?
- Vijay Mehta,
Jayshree's love letters were not a script
Post by Ajay Doshi on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:35pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news13.html
Bhagawanano Bhag used for helping criminals
Post by Rakesh on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:38pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news20.html
Swadhyay now fighting in court to save thier people. Kona baap ni
diwali? Who will pay to fight the case? They could not use the trust
funds for earthquake relief but now to protect Jayshree from going to
jail the Swadhyay is spending money like there is no to morrow.
Hitesh Chudasama goes underground
Post by Rajesh Parikh on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:42pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060707/guj/gujarat/news6.html
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 6th, 2006, 5:13pm
Dear Vijaybhai,
Why two of my last messges were deleted?
Sorry, I can not tell you out of many that were deleted what post urs
was. Please send to me at vija...@aol.com or post it again. Please
make sure to avoid name calling and discussing topics not related to
Pankajbhai. Remeber one man is dead and his family and friends do
visit this frequently. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 6th, 2006, 5:57pm
Is there any internet savvy person who can make sure that articles
published by Gujarati Newspapers on "Pankaj Trivedi Murder" comes in
search engines, Google, Yahoo, MSN.
There are lot of non-Gujaratis interested in these articles.
Link to Information In English:
http://www.swadhyayee.org/download/EnglishDocs/
http://www.gujaratglobal.com/nextSub.php?id=808&cattype=NEWS
http://www.gujaratglobal.com/nextSub.php?id=809&cattype=NEWS
http://www.gujaratglobal.com/nextSub.php?id=814&cattype=NEWS
http://www.gujaratglobal.com/nextSub.php?id=804&cattype=NEWS
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Swadhyayee on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:01pm
I
Re: Bahurupia..
Post by Swadhyayee on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:05pm
Vijaybhai - thanks for exposing these Bahrupia who has posted messages
under different names in your forum.
on Jul 6th, 2006, 4:29pm, Guest-Roma wrote:Please post those messages
and let people know how nilesh has adopted to swadhyay thoery in real
life. Let people know how swadhyay represntative talk to others.
You are also posting under Roma # 445, Ajay Doshi # 446; Rakesh # 447
and Rajesh Parikh # 448!
Why can't you post all that in one post?
- Vijay Mehta,
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Nilesh Sahita on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:12pm
Vijaybhai,
Yes - indeed it was a nice conversation that we had a while ago.
Yes, please send me IP addresses of messages that were posted under my
name (I will email you my email address separately).
I will arrange to speak with a US Attorney to see what action I can
and should take.
I appreciate your prompt and firm action with respect to this.
To all who are posting messages under my name:
We all live in post 9/11 era and do not think you can not be found
out. You have committed act of "Identity Theft" which is a crime and
you may have landed yourself into a legal mess without realizing it.
Just remember ignorance is not an excuse and Prison has no broadband
service
Regards,- Nilesh
on Jul 6th, 2006, 2:49pm, Guest-Nilesh Sahita wrote:Dear Vijaybhai,
Someone has been using my name to post article like below to defame
me.
As the owner of the forum I trust you will take necessary action to
act on it and remove from your forum immediately.
Regards,
- Nilesh
Dear Nileshbhai,
I have posted a clarifying message on that post. Obviously you feel
totally differently than the post under your name. If you need we may
be able to give you the IP address of that person using your name.
Thank you for nice conversation. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:39pm
Vijay...you have been doing a great job moderating this discussion
board..keep up the good work.
Nilesh, you're quite a tough guy. Threatening lawsuits sometimes works
just fine, but remember, the USA is the land of litigation. You're
going to contact and pay a US based lawyer to file suit against
somebody who posted a single message on an anonymous message board, a
message that was nowhere near dangerous? Good luck...
If you have something to say, then say it without making empty
threats....oh wait, you probably have already using one of your many
alias usernames, since I highly doubt you just started monitoring this
thread.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:50pm
Here are few illegal doing of one of the swadhyayi MOTABHAI Chandrashi
Jadeja involved in kiling of Pankaj Trivedi. Can some one translate
the into english Please?? Are all so called Motabhai in real
Khotabhai?? Where did they learn to snatch land from others? Is this
topic included into swadhyay Parivar 101 teachings, or are they doing
the same what KAVRAV did 5000 years ago!
As I understand back in June, 1992 There was a prime land in
Padadhari. There was 750 Sq ft of prime land. Panchayat voted for
15x10 size cabins. Chandrasinh Jadeja, a Motabhai and Swadhyayi (who
now in jail for Pankajbhai’s murder), applied under different names
and got the land for 11 months. Now many years later he owns a complex
valued at 40 Lakh Rupees!
Ravi Patel
ravi_pa...@yahoo.com
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Nilesh Sahita on Jul 6th, 2006, 7:50pm
Dear Unbelievable,
Identity Theft is a crime.
Whoever is committing this crime - stop it or be prepared to face the
music.
Let me repeat - post 9/11 - there is no such thing as 'anonymous'.
Every thing can be tracked.
My suggestion to Vijaybhai is - please do not allow anonymous posting
on this forum. Let people who are willing to write their name and who
are willing to stand by what they write participate in this forum.
It will make this forum truly useful and beneficial to everyone.
- Nilesh
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 6th, 2006, 8:11pm
Nilesh,
The only reason most people are posting anonymously is that they don't
want the same fate (for themselves and their families) as Pankaj
Trivedi or the 10 others.
If the threat of physical or emotional backlash towards my family was
not there, I would be the first to use my real name.
P.S Someone posting a message on an anonymous board using your name is
not identity theft. Who says there aren't other Nilesh Sahita's out
there?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 6th, 2006, 8:35pm
Can we list all trust that were and are operated under "swadyay
Parivar" those currently in operation and those closed after filing
bankruptcy (in this case the money or land was transfered to another
trust owned by the owners of swadhyay parivar main trust or sold for
profit). I want the location or the town name where the trust were
registered or were just run.
Thanks
Ravi Patel
ravi_pa...@yahoo.com
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Nilesh Sahita on Jul 6th, 2006, 8:46pm
Brother Unbelievable,
I will be more than happy if you can find another Nilesh Sahita in the
world
Seriously speaking - posting message on my name is a serious matter
and once again I request all indulging in such acts to think carefully
before what they do.
on Jul 6th, 2006, 8:11pm, Guest-Unbelievable wrote:Nilesh,
The only reason most people are posting anonymously is that they don't
want the same fate (for themselves and their families) as Pankaj
Trivedi or the 10 others.
If the threat of physical or emotional backlash towards my family was
not there, I would be the first to use my real name.
P.S Someone posting a message on an anonymous board using your name is
not identity theft. Who says there aren't other Nilesh Sahita's out
there?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 6th, 2006, 9:28pm
1.How about all the false cases filed against Pankajbhai which your so
called 'Parivar' lost and got a stricture from High Court Judge for
misusing the system? Any apology or slightest of remorse will show
that you have some 'swadhyay' quality left.
2. For moral matters-Dadaji has more standing than anyone else. You
are entitled to your opinion. However this is again a characteristic
of a typical cult memeber who does not want to see any evil of a
person for whom he has been brain-washed.
3.I have spoken to many villagers myself who go to swadhyay and they
speak good about everybody who go to them with any religious pretext.
That type of ignorance is what makes business of religion thrive in my
beloved Gujarat. I have also spoken to villagers who go to
Swaminarayan in Gujarat and they do not speak well about Swadhyay.
Today it will be your worth before you open your mouth and go to
villages in Gujarat and find out what villagers are talking about Didi
and her brand of Swadhyay.
I am only hoping that Gujarat Government does not succumb to greed(as
some media have reported that crores of rupees bribes are offered to
remove Didi's name from chargesheet) as I am sure that by now they
have realized that there is nothing to fear from Didi and her blind
faith follower like you.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 6th, 2006, 9:45pm
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Nilesh Sahita on Jul 6th, 2006, 9:59pm
1.How about all the false cases filed against Pankajbhai which your so
called 'Parivar' lost and got a stricture from High Court Judge for
misusing the system? Any apology or slightest of remorse will show
that you have some 'swadhyay' quality left.
Please refer to the statements issued by Swadhyay Parivar in this
matter.
2. For moral matters-Dadaji has more standing than anyone else. You
are entitled to your opinion. However this is again a characteristic
of a typical cult memeber who does not want to see any evil of a
person for whom he has been brain-washed.
As I said before you are entitled to your opinion and so are we.
3. I have spoken to many villagers myself who go to swadhyay and they
speak good about everybody who go to them with any religious pretext.
That type of ignorance is what makes business of religion thrive in my
beloved Gujarat. I have also spoken to villagers who go to
Swaminarayan in Gujarat and they do not speak well about Swadhyay.
I do not want to go in to Swadhyay v/s Swaminarayan war here. They do
what they think is best and we do what we think is best. This may not
be zero sum game - may be society needs both.
It is clear to me that you have never put a foot in any Gujarat
village in your lifetime. Let me tell you this - Swadhyay message has
reached each and every village in Gujarat. Obviously some part of the
population has picked it up and some part has not. For those people
who are part of Swadhyay Parivar - this latest crisis has not affected
them. For those who were not part of Parivar (for whatever reason and
we respect their choice) - obviously this has given them one more
reason to do so and that is fine with us.
4. Today it will be your worth before you open your mouth and go to
villages in Gujarat and find out what villagers are talking about Didi
and her brand of Swadhyay.
Do not give me Bull!$#@ of what villagers are talking about, OK?
Instead of relying on cheapo Gujju media, it will be worthwhile for
you to go to villages and check the situation yourself.
In any case - Swadhyay has never been afraid of what some section of
society is talking about.
I remember that even back in 80's also there were Swadhyay Critics and
there will always be sections of society which doesn't find Swadhyay
acceptable because Swadhyay doesn't allow them to fulfill their
personal ego. For e.g. if one goes to Swadhyay and do Swadhyay work
for 10/20 years - no where his/her name is mentioned on the stage but
even if someone give $1,000/- to local community, they are happy to
announce his/her name on the stage. To some people this (prestige)
gives more gratification than path that Dadaji has shown - and they
should follow the path according to their level of development/
understanding.
In Swadhyay one has to sublime their ego and work with everyone in the
Yagniya spirit which is not everyone's cup of tea.
5. I am only hoping that Gujarat Government does not succumb to
greed(as some media have reported that crores of rupees bribes are
offered to remove Didi's name from chargesheet) as I am sure that by
now they have realized that there is nothing to fear from Didi and her
blind faith follower like you.
Hmmm.... crores of rupees bribes offered to remove Didi's name from
chargesheet? Are you nuts? Do you think Indian state machinery and
judiciary is Timbuktu state?
You can call me blind faith follower and I can call you blind faith
critic and we can keep doing this namecalling until cows come home. I
suspect you have not met many people who are in Swadhyay and you like
to believe all of us in Swadhyay are because of blind faith follower.
Well... I leave it for your wisdom to decide and in any case I and our
Swadhyayees do not care about your certificate anyway.
I have said enough about what I wanted to stay and I am going to be
away for few days. If time permitting I may revisit this forum after
few days / weeks.
Thank you and May God bless us all.
Jay Yogeshwar.
PS - Vijaybhai once again thanks for your help. I have emailed you
separately.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 6th, 2006, 10:06pm
Nileshbhai,
How about all the false cases filed against Pankajbhai which your so
called 'Parivar' lost and got a stricture from High Court Judge for
misusing the system? Any apology or slightest of remorse will show
that you have some 'swadhyay' quality left.
Please refer to the statements issued by Swadhyay Parivar in this
matter.
Before you go away for few days/weeks, Pl. post these statements by
Swadhyay Parivar.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by OO7 on Jul 6th, 2006, 10:39pm
Does anyone know where is Jayshree Talwarkar? She was in Tamilnadu and
supoosed to go to Gujarat. Is she going? It is raining hard here so I
feel she may not come. I think she should make another foreign
trip
you Dont know anything
Post by Kamal on Jul 7th, 2006, 12:37am
dear Vijaybhai,
Just read below whatever you have posted......
Five areas of contention between Pankaj Trivedi and Didi.
According to Mahesh shah old Swadhyayee and good friend of Pankajbhai
there were five main areas of disagreement.
1. If Swadhyay claims to rebuild 40,000 houses, where are this houses.
Only 4-5,000 houses were rebuild.
2. Bhav Nirzar is a temple and should be accessible to any devotee.
3. Accounting of various trusts that hold funds from Swadhyay
activities. What is the purpose of accumulating wealth?
4. Dada had promised all the money received from Templeton Award to
use of Swadhyay activities, why it was diverted to family?
5. Love letters between Ashok Joshi and Didi - both were married at
the time of letters
This is the proof that you dont know about Swadhyay. Why are wasting
your time here. (see No.5)
Here, 99 % men (?) are against swadhyay. only 1% used to read you
'Bakvas' forum. and by your forum , 'Kai tuti sakvana nathi' (nothing
will break). We have no any effects by your 'bakvas' . Anybody can
understand You are all FAKE swadhyayee. Everybody from you tries to
draw out Ego.
Brothers, Just stop this 'bakvas' and go to Indian Village and see the
spirit of swadhyay, result of the swadhyay.
The aim of this forum is only to show Ego.
By your all post anybody can understand you are most egotistic.
You are only barking. and remember barking dog never hurt you.
Dear Kamal,
The five contention I have listed is from that article for those who
can not read Gujarati.
This is the forum to discuss the Murder of Pankajbhai and assult
(beating up) of more than 12 people. If you think this is Bakwas than
we hope you wont come here anymore.
This 'ego' line is getting old as is the 'asking the people from
village.' Ask the people from Padadhari who found out that one of the
murder has a 40 lacs complex on land obtained illegally and he was a
motabhai close to Didi.
Even if you have done everything you claim to do, that does not
justify killing of maiming anyone disagreeing with you.
Many years ago, there were more than 700 people killed by Jim Jones in
Guana, and few years ago 87 people burned to death in Waco. Texas. All
these followers had what they thought God leading them. Of course he
lead them to death. History is full of people who thought they had a
Godly leader only to find out the truth later on. Sometimes too late!
We are simply curious - just as any good God loving Swadhyayee would
be - what happened to 40,000 new houses that were to be built. Can
anyone give us the address?
Why with every passing day more and more motabhai in India are found
to be corrupt and using public land and money for their own purpose?
If the Swadhyay was as strong and pious as you guys claim why it did
not stop Motabhai's (Khotabhai) from committing fraud, theft, assult
and violence?
We are not interested in harming Swadhyayee movement but we are
interested in giving a voice to those who want to speak up. Apprently
speaking up in Swadhyay has dire consequenses.
'Kai Tuti Sakawana Nathi" line was used by Manishbhai who is enjoying
the hospitality of prison system for past two weeks, it was used by
these five goons who thought they had to commit murder to protect
Swadhyay. If the movement is good it does not need any Gujdagiri to
protect it. It should not need any Dhamaki and Dadagiri. It should not
be afraid to listen to dissenting voices. Unfortunately, so far anyone
speaking against party line has been threatened and punished.
Like it or not .. Pap no Dhado Futi Gayo Chhe. There comes a time when
your sin catches up with you.
Good Bye and go find another forum where you can sing virtues of Didi
and others - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by You Have Got to Be Kidding on Jul 7th, 2006, 03:38am
Kamal, are you serious?
The truth doesn't really matter anymore - ego would drive one to prove
that they are right. Do you really think it matters whether Pankaj
Trivedi was correct or whether Didi is guilty of conspiring to kill
him?
The damage is done. Over done.
Didi is hiding, Swadhyay is telling everyone around the world what to
say, people are relating the situation with other religious wars
likening Swadhyay to Krishna and Ram, the Pankaj Trivedi crowd is
saying everything negative about Didi and Dada that they can come up
with.
We are just going to sit around and whine that "you are a barking dog"
or that "you don't know the truth" or that "Didi must be innocent"
WHY? so that we can feel like we didn't waste our life by going to
Swadhyay?
Yes, Swadhyay has been a tremendous influence in villages. By
recognizing that the Swadhyay organization isn't perfect and that Didi
may have flaws in her ability to lead, we are not reducing the value
of Swadhyay.
This is not "all or nothing"
But the very fact that intelligent people are not willing to look at
facts that suggest how desperate Swadhyay is to be in control shows us
exactly how ridiculous Swadhyay is becoming.
Don't be a loyalist to the people, be a loyalist to the idea.
Respecting free speech is important, and the only 'bakvas' around here
are those who believe everything they hear from Swadhyay as something
that cannot be questioned.
I agree. If there is gangrene of the foot and you realize that foot is
beyond repair. You must amputate the foot to save the rest of the
body. Vast majority of Swadhyay is great. But if the gangrene is
allowed to spread the bacteria and poison to rest of the body the
whole body may suffer.
This forum is to encourage everyone who loves Swadhyay to
constructively think and speak as to what are the different option the
gangrene can be cured. What can be done so that few bad apples do not
use name, fame and power of Swadhyay for their selfish reason. The way
many of motabhai (khotabhai) have used their connection to Swadhyay
will open eyes of many. Only thru ope dialogue a new more powerful
movement will emerge. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 05:57am
True Believers or so called brain washed swadhyayi,
There is no way to educate true believers. They judge information by
whether it agrees with what they already believe. (And this of course
is by definition prejudice.) The right-wing of conservatism continues
to provide true believers, and Political Correctness has given us a
new generation of true believers. Islam is another prime example of
true believers.....
None of these people want anyone to know what prejudice is. This is
why prejudice is no longer talked about or taught to swadhyayee
although they hear ad nauseum about racism. And since students are
taught to reject the concept of evidence, and fooled in the name of
GOD.
I was born and raised in a small village in Gujarat, so I know the
psychology of poor and uneducated villagers. Most of them dont even
know the meaning of psychology, their brains are been hijacked by
mastermind Sadhu's and Dadaji's (grandfather's or big brother's) or
Bhai's. Even if we get rid of dadaji's(grandfather's or big brother's)
ideas off their mind there is another Didi(sister) or kaka(uncle)
ready to take his place.
Read the Paragraph below its from swadhyay.org
http://swadhyay.org/krishi.htm
"It is the practice of collective farming of a single field (normally
of three to five acres taken from poor villagers in the name of GOD
transfered the land into trusts name and sold later, most of the farms
used for "yogeshwar krishi" are sold, and poor villagers dont even
know where the money has gone to) in a village by the villagers who
each offer devotional labour, possibly for one or two days per
cropping season. The resulting crop belongs to no one except God."
Which GOD?? Who is GOD?? Where the money goes?? and above all you
canot ask questions to GOD, let him do whatever he wants to.
Ravi Patel
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 7th, 2006, 06:24am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 03:38am, Guest-You Have Got to Be Kidding
wrote:Kamal, are you serious?
Yes, Swadhyay has been a tremendous influence in villages. By
recognizing that the Swadhyay organization isn't perfect and that Didi
may have flaws in her ability to lead, we are not reducing the value
of Swadhyay.
This is not "all or nothing"
But the very fact that intelligent people are not willing to look at
facts that suggest how desperate Swadhyay is to be in control shows us
exactly how ridiculous Swadhyay is becoming.
Don't be a loyalist to the people, be a loyalist to the idea.
Wow...I cannot agree with you more..these paragraphs probably are the
best written and to the point of any other message that exists in this
thread. Again....Wow.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by RAVI PATEL on Jul 7th, 2006, 06:28am
GUYS I WANT YOU TO DISCUSS IT HERE TOO, LET THE WORLD KNOW THE SINS...
http://discussions.pbs.org/viewforum.pbs?f=152
RAVI PATEL
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 06:48am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 06:28am, Guest-RAVI PATEL wrote:GUYS I WANT YOU TO
DISCUSS IT HERE TOO, LET THE WORLD KNOW THE SINS...
http://discussions.pbs.org/viewforum.pbs?f=152
RAVI PATEL
I think you have what is termed an unhealthy fixation. Where you not
even good enough to become a krutishil ? was bhavpheri too daunting
for you ?
Its not even about pankajbhai for you is it ?
Its more to do with pushing your own personnel crusade. Its all to
abudnatley clear theres some thing missing in your life.
May you find peace if not in this life than the next.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by reality on Jul 7th, 2006, 07:11am
Hi,
It is not like that nobody know about Didi.
But, Lac of people still in Swadhyay. Why ?
They are not blind follower.
The reality is, Everybody from Swadhyay is Selffish.
Everybody sees their developement under swadhyay.
They dont care about your coments, they dont care about DIDI, they
want to remain in swadhyay.
We know what is the foundation of this quarral, Two love letter.
TJust a few minutes ago you posted as Kamal and thought this forum is
a Bakwas and now you can not keep away form it? Come and write here
again? Why dont you go back to your prayers?
No you do not see anything. Foundation of quarrel is that many people
dedicated their Tan Man and Dhan for a very long time thinking that
Dada & Didi were embodiment of virtues and knowledge and decent human
beings. They started suspecting otherwise, they started asking
questions. That lead to "How dare you ask any question."
So same Pankajbhai who was addressed as a captain by Dada lovingly
became a Rakshash.
Pankajbhai was not to be intimidated. He knew that there might be
danger pursueing truth. He kept questioning, kept wanting Bhav Nirzar
Mandir for all devotees. He must be getting close to the nerve center
so after five years few people decided to kill him. He became such a
big threat from nuisance.
Now that there is so much light on every aspect of Swadhyay, many of
facts are coming out such as the Hitesh had illegally seized prime
land in Padadhri and made a complex there worth 40 Lacs. You think his
position as Motabhai helped him get this?
I hope you would not waste your time with all this Bakwas and people
with ego!!!
Jai Yogeswar - Vijay Mehta
Then what ??????
Post by Kamal on Jul 7th, 2006, 07:29am
Yes, You are right and Didi may be wrong, then what ?
you u believe Didi is killer and must be arrested and send to jail.
Then what
Re: Then what ??????
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 07:34am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 07:29am, Guest-Kamal wrote:Yes, You are right and
Didi may be wrong, then what ?
you u believe Didi is killer and must be arrested and send to jail.
Then what
then the healing begins, by looking back at what is wrong on a
national and kendra level. What the key elements that worked and which
were good what they were and going back to them and refocusing on
them.
The only way forward now is for Mrs talwaker to resign and then let
people answer the finacial questions. Before moving forward. If that
happens the parviar will be in a much stronger place in years to come.
As long as Mrs Talwaker is the head, these matters will keep cropping
up and taking focus away from the actual good that the parivar does.
Didi must step down or come to terms that she is holding back the
parivar. Resign resign resign......
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:08am
Dear Nileshbhai,
Before you go away for few days/weeks, Pl. post these statements by
Swadhyay Parivar.
I believe your motabhai ( in a typical cult style) have asked you to
stay away for few weeks as from whatI read in Akila, Didi and her 27
cronies are in big trouble.
Honestly, I think, Nileshbhai you are a good person but like many
others still in Swadhyay you are too shocked at the turn of events on
Pankajbhai's killing and finding Parivar members involved in it.
Jayshree finds out being a 'Don' has downside
Post by Ramki on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:41am
Jayshree loses sleep.. Will she be spending time in big house? Would
government have guts to put noose around her neck?
DADA was a 'Don' too but no one knew it!
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:41am
Dada was a smart manipulator and he spared no effort to crash any
opposition during his life time. He had perfected the technique of
Sham - Dam -Dand - Bhed and anyone trying to question him was swiftly
given punishment that no one else would even dare repeat the mistake.
JAY YOGESHAR
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by GUEST on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:46am
We all should be focusing on the THE REAL ISSUES here.
Lets make sure that Late Pankajbhai's sacrifice does not go in vein.
I know that Swadhyayi people will not answer any questions in an
HONEST and STARIGH FORWARD manner but they always try to use tactics
such as "personal attacks", "character assasination", "lies",
"abusive language" etc to derail the discussion so these questions can
be avoided.
Can you prove it to me that 100% of the money collected in USA for
earthquake victims were sent to INDIA and used to BUILD houses?
Can you deny the FACT that the cash balance on DAY's books had been
consistently inceasing for over a decade? What is DAY's current cash
balance?
Can you tell us who gets the profits made by selling books, picture
frames, audio cassetts and CDs?
Can you deny the FACT that "SHRADHDHA" trust exists and only Athvale
family members are sole trustees in this trust?
Can you tell us how many different trusts Swadhyay has and who are the
trustees?
Can you tell us how many crores Swadhyay has accumulated in different
trusts?
Can you tell us the total value of land, including Bhav-Nirzar land
that Swadhyay acquired?
Can you deny the FACT that questions are not allowed in any meetings
and if someone dare to ask questions, he or she is intimidated to set
an examples so other people do not even dare to ask questions in
future?
Can you deny the FACT that brainwashing, manipulation and exploitation
have been going on for years?
Can you deny the FACT that fabricated stories are feed to the innocent
followers to potray Athvale as an "AVATAR"?
Can you deny the FACT that DAY's financial books were NEVER opened for
the followers for inspection?
Can you deny the FACT that if someone writes a letter to DAY asking
for the detailed information on earthquake donation issue, DAY's
attorney replies and denies the request for information?
Can you deny the FACT that Shibirs and camps are used mainly for
brainwashing and recruit more volunteers?
Can you deny the FACT that Dada's Putri-Moha is the same as
DRUTRASHTRA's Putra-Moha and Dada's act of GADI-PRATHA establishment
is fundamentally wrong and is betrayal of trust of unsuspecting
followers?
Who pays for Didi's frequent trips overseas every year in summer when
it is hot in INDIA?
Can you ADMIT that it is inappropriate that you use poor swadhyayis
for FREE MARKETING, I mean LAV-FERI and Didi spends charity money
collected as a result of hard work, dedication and bhav-samarpan of
poor fellow swadhyayees?
Has Dada ever worked in his life? How did he managed his finances?
Has Didi or her husnabd ever worked? How do they manage their finance?
What kind of business Didi's husband is in?
Can you prove it to us that the drama "TUMHARI-AMRITA" was ever played
by swadhyay?
Please answer these questions FIRST in CLEAR TERMS and a STRAIGHT
FORWARD manner before I ask many more questions.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by motabha on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:54am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:51am, Guest-the irish robin hood wrote:so whats
the point of asking ? . unless you happen to like the sound of your
own voice, like some sort of broken record.
Great reply. As per swadhyay policy, we do not answer real questions
but confuse people by telling rubbish.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by RAVI PATEL on Jul 7th, 2006, 08:59am
Can you deny the FACT that swadhyay Motabhai's in Gujarat and
Maharashtra were bain washed by Dada and Didi, who filed false cases
in court against Pankaj Trivedi and others trying to expose the Land/
Money making scandal Dadaji started in the name of GOD. Ultimately,
resulted into death of Mr. Pankaj Trivedi by few swadhyayi's who were
made to think they were doing God's deed. Whats different between
Islamic Jihad and swadhyayi Jihad??
If the killers of Mr. Pankaj Trivedi are compared to Mohmmad Atta (and
others) who flew into WTC in new York, Swadhyayi leaders are no less
then Osama Bin Ladin.
Ravi Patel
ravi_pa...@yahoo.com
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Hindustani on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:01am
I agree with you. I hope swadhyay leaders will get punished by law.
Lets see.
cover up to protect Bharat Bhatt
Post by RAVI PATELS DADA on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:02am
Murderers are hiding their whereabouts to protect big wigs in
Swadhyay. Now that they have already admitted to committing murder why
are they not telling the truth as to where exactly they all were in
hours preceding the murder. Police strongly suspect they are trying to
cover up big wigs in Swadhyay who apparently met them to give final
instructions.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:13am
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:15am
on Jul 6th, 2006, 2:25pm, Guest-Come ON Guys wrote:I am detecting lots
of messages from USA and also from India.
Where are the guys from UK
Have they worn 'BANGLES' & SAREES so that they are shy/frightened to
come out and express their anger/view/opinion??
Or they think what's happening is all fine as long as it does not
affect them.
Come on gyus..........at least ......be brave enough, to expree your
solidarity.....
Didi will not kill you by doing so.
Well if they are wearing bangals and sarees, they are alsready
expressing themselves you muppet
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:24am
Who are Yatin Oza and Reshmi jani? trying to defend the killers of Mr.
Pankaj Trivedi. Are they Brain wahed swadhyayi or mean lawyers wanting
more money? See what the killers have to say "we are innocent, we are
into police's trap only because of our negative image from the media"
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:30am
Yatin Oza is lawyer by profession and a politician by brain. I guess
he is trying to defend the killers in order to get voted from
swadhyayi's. He has already shown his way of politics by jumping from
BJP to Congress...
http://www.rediff.com/election/2002/nov/28guj.htm
Also he is known as "Giant Killer" How appropriate for a lawyer to be
known as Giant Killer and defend most famous murderers! - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:31am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:24am, Guest-Ravi Patel wrote:Who are Yatin Oza
and Reshmi jani? trying to defend the killers of Mr. Pankaj Trivedi.
Are they Brain wahed swadhyayi or mean lawyers wanting more money? See
what the killers have to say "we are innocent, we are into police's
trap only because of our negative image from the media"
[img]http://www.akilaindia.com/daily/news_img/main019.gif[/mg]
Well the police caving into solving a crime as quickly as they can due
to media pressure never ever happens. Well not in your world. As long
as the mob gets justice ..who cares about civil liberties....damn
human rights....just put someone in jail and make us feel safe in our
homes.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Hindustani on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:33am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:30am, Guest-Ravi Patel wrote:Yatin Oza is lawyer
by profession and a politician by brain. I guess he is trying to
defend the killers in order to get voted from swadhyayi's. He has
already shown his way of politics by jumping from BJP to Congress...
http://www.rediff.com/election/2002/nov/28guj.htm
I thought killers of Pankaj Trivedi already admitted crime. I saw it
on TV. Now what happened?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:39am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:33am, Guest-Hindustani wrote:I thought killers of
Pankaj Trivedi already admitted crime. I saw it on TV. Now what
happened?
they admitted to the crime under duress
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:40am
on Today at 09:30am, Guest-Ravi Patel wrote:Yatin Oza is lawyer by
profession and a politician by brain. I guess he is trying to defend
the killers in order to get voted from swadhyayi's. He has already
shown his way of politics by jumping from BJP to Congress...
http://www.rediff.com/election/2002/nov/28guj.htm
I thought killers of Pankaj Trivedi already admitted crime. I saw it
on TV. Now what happened?
May be the lawyer defend them did not see it!
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by ravi patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:49am
"they admitted to the crime under Pressure"
May be they Murdered Mr. Pankaj Trivedi under Pressure, they might
have not even knew that they were actually killing him.
Thanks
-Ravi
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Hindustani on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:52am
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by the irish robin hood on Jul 7th, 2006, 10:00am
on Jul 7th, 2006, 09:52am, Guest-Hindustani wrote:May be killers
realised mistake they made and now talking as lawyer told them. Lets
wait and watch now what happen next. I am sure Jayshree is keeping
close watch on this case.
Well lets see the next time your beaten into a making a confession,
lets see how strong your resolve is. The police through their own
incompetnace may have screwed up the case big time.
Dhongi ko Gujarat Bhalo
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 10:01am
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Chitralekha on Jul 7th, 2006, 10:07am
I read inChitralekha too about corruption and misuse of power in
swadhyay. Now atleast follwing media has written about swadhyay case
and exposed them
1> Aarpar
2> Gujarat Samachar
3> Akila
4> mumbai Samachar
5> sandesh
6> Times Of India
7> Divya Bhaskar
8> Zee TV
Lets see if swadhyay leaders decide to take any action against them.
Root cause of this evil was the greatman himself
Post by Chitralekha on Jul 7th, 2006, 10:13am
Chitralekha did an expose of Swadhyay back in July 2002. Documenting
as to what was going on behind the closed doors, how Dada transferred
millions of rupees to his adopted daughter and suddenly all those long
time dedicated Swadhyayees like Mahesh Shah and Rudhani etc became a
target of 'hate campaign' Even Chitralekha took a big risk of standing
up to the big bully. Link may not work, please see the images posted
http://www.chitralekha.com/content/Friday1.asp#3
http://www.chitralekha.com/content/Friday1.asp#4
http://www.chitralekha.com/content/Friday1.asp#1
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by An Observer on Jul 7th, 2006, 11:09am
1. People listed by Pankajbhai as potential killers are banned by
court, not to leave India. Is this true?
2. Manish Savsani is in Jail. Does anybody have his photo behind the
bars in Jail uniform?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Sunil on Jul 7th, 2006, 11:28am
Check all the preachings of DADA & analyse his acts you will find them
exactly opposite.So there are no opponents of DADA as he himself is
his biggest opponent.
All the procedures of funds collection are devised ,applied & followed
up by DADA why to blame DIDI only
Before this present crises in DADA's reggime people like Haribhai
Kothari,Dayhabhai Jani,Manibhai Amin etc. were tortured, threatened &
excommunicated.They were called asuras & were also beaten by the then
blind followers of DADA.
DADA is the mastermind behind all false stories like Japan
Conference,Invitation of Mr.Compton,Vinoba etc.
He had copied other's books (Hindunche Samajrachna Shastra,Gita Tatwa
Vimarsh,Geeta Purusharthprabhodini,Geeta Pravachans by Vinoba,Kuransar
etc.He copied it To To but never mentioned their Names (Krudanyata?)
but the blind swadhyayi is forced to say after the Chintanika that all
the thoughts are of DADA & nothing is mine.
So dear open your eyes, study the history, find out why all the old
vetrens have left Swadhyaya.
If you want to continue Swadhaya nobody can stop you because Swadhyaya
is Study of self & is not owened by greedy Athawales.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 12:28pm
Sunil says.. "DADA is the mastermind behind all false stories like
Japan Conference,Invitation of Mr.Compton,Vinoba etc."
I Truely agree with Sunil, not only that but some followers say that
his leg was 300 years old and he is Avtar of Krishna.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by You Have Got to Be Kidding on Jul 7th, 2006, 12:49pm
Let us all take a step back for a second and wonder what we are out to
do:
(1) Do we want Didi to admit to all of these things? Would that make
everything better?
(2) Do we want all of the Swadhyay leadership to resign? Is that
possible? All of these years we beamed about Swadhyay's structure-less
structure and now that we don't like the way it works we scream
treason?
(3) Do we want Swadhyay to disappear? Would that make us feel like we
succeeded in bringing something down that was making us feel down?
Trying to make everyone believe that Didi is awful and she has cronies
(who are intelligent people) is just as ignorant as what you fight.
Trying to make it seem like Pankaj Trivedi and crew are ideal martyrs
is also just as ignorant - they don't have a spotless record of
integrity in the language or methods they use.
Is it true that things in Swadhyay's operations and governance should
be better? Absolutely.
Whether directly responsible or not, is Didi responsible? If a good
leader, she should feel so (even if she has nothing to do with it).
Is all of Swadhyay a big hoax? Of course not. Use your own brain, you
weren't duped by going to Swadhyay - you just feel like it now.
It is our philosophy as much as it is Didis or anyone else. Step and
say something useful that we keep the best of Swadhyay intact and the
worst of Swadhyay less damaging.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by An Observer on Jul 7th, 2006, 12:51pm
Avtar Of Krishna?
I think people should know the facts re" Kusumbahen" and "Kum kum
Pagla"
Lord Krishna was known for paltonic love and not..
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by You Have Got To be Kidding on Jul 7th, 2006, 12:58pm
Irish Robin Hood:
All confessions in India come with a beating; police brutality is
tolerated and acceptable, it is not an excuse for a technicality to
make it seem like this was a conspiracy.
Would a technicality vindicate Swadhyay/Swadhyayees from being party
to the conflict with Pankaj Trivedi?
It doesn't matter whether they killed him or not. Say he was still
alive: Is it acceptable to you that Swadhyayees wanted him dead?
Is it acceptable to you that die hard Swadhyayees will do anything
(including deferring their own intellect) to prove Swadhyay's
innocence? Are we puppets?
The problem isn't his murder, it is the escalation and obsession with
this conflict that is ruining the essence of Swadhyay.
One more kendra is closed
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 1:53pm
Aaradhana School in Amadawad shuts down the Swadhyay at their
property. They had given permission to conduct Swadhyay meeting under
impression that it was for a good cause but after the arrest of
several of prominent leaders they have decided not to allow Swadhyay
meeting at their place. Article in Gujarati.
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060708/guj/gujarat/news3.html
Shocking report by auditors..
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 1:55pm
Suryakant Mehta Institute of Charter Accounting has revealed
sensational and damaging information.
They were auditors for project "Matsya Gandha" Basically there are
four trusts under this project - Arnav Mandir, Agasti Pujan, Ratnakar
Pujan, Arnan Pujan.
Matsya Gandha Project was started with a vision of upliftment of
fisherman community. Expert fisherman and women were to work on
fishing boat and the income generated was to be used for loan and
scholarship of fisherman community. It was said that there will be 100
boats for this purpose.
But the real fact is..
There is not a SINGLE fishing boat under the name of any of these
trusts. All fishing boats are under the name of one person (Swadhyay
leader) and he is using them as his personal property. Not a single
instance of loan or scholarship is evident in any of the four trusts.
All these fishing boats are being used as commercial properteis but
they have not paid any income tax.
They found no evidence of any prior audit of any of these trusts and
if it was audited there is no evidence of any publication of it.
On Feb 27, 2004 it was announced at Tatognan Vidyapith after the Aarti
that " We have 100 boats in Arabian sea in Gujarat and Maharashtra, in
one more year we shall have 100 more."
Not a single trust has shown any income from fishing.
Charity commissioner, tax authorities and general public are entitled
to know
Whose name are all these boats under?
What is the registration numbers?
Where is the office?
Who if anyone has audited accounts and where has it been filed?
Partial translation of sensation article in Gujarati. - Vijay Mehta
So it seems like poor fisherman thought they were helping community by
fishing to help scholarship for their community but they were helping
some Motabhai?
For full article in Gujarati go to:
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060708/guj/national/anu.html
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 3:56pm
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/c1.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/marinajare.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/c2.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/c3.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/c4.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/kankarichalo.pdf
http://www.aarpar.com/web%20246/pdf/newsium.pdf
Shrutiben's Interview
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 4:11pm
Pl. read Shrutiben's interview on Sandesh. When you are a victim of
Mafia, victims often choose to stay quiet rather than seek justice.
Same way Shrutiben and Himanshu did not have the courage to stand up
and ask for justice. How much fear they must have to control their
anger and frustration. This gives you some idea of what Swadhyay is as
seen by those who really know it.
Didi is the mastermind behind the murder - Shah
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 4:24pm
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Amit on Jul 7th, 2006, 6:05pm
Does any one have recorded interview of Didi which was aired on Star/
DirecTV? I was asked by one swadhyayi to record today but I don't have
STAR/DirecTV.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 6:47pm
Translation of Didi's ( with two D's) interview on Star TV as given on
Akila:
1. Me and Swadhyay Parivar is sorrowed by Pankaj Trivedi's death!
However as matter is in court she refused to say anything more!
It is a brutal murder and we all know you ordered it.
2. Love letters are part of drama script.
Sure! You must be a very relaxed person to write drama script than to
worry about how to instill 'sanskars' in millions of people.
3. Swadhyay Parivar have not lost its cool in spite of many incidents.
Sure! You never expected such a back-lash from Society and Media. It
is not coolness! You have become speechless.
4. All our accounts are audited and hence there is no financial
irregularities.
Sounds like audited accounts of 'Enron' to me!
5. I am not President of Parivar. I am part of it.
Sure. The same way Dawood is part of 'D' gang.
6. Swadhyayees are showing tremondous patience and unity.
They all are so shell -shocked. Because of her they are branded Goonda-
Parivar by Sacchidanand. What unity she is talking about? That
Swadhyayees are not talking against her? It is a false assumption.
The way she has spoken smells of 'understanding' between Gujarat
Government and her.
Well, she can escape Gujarat Government but she will not escape God's
anger for killing an innocent man.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 7th, 2006, 6:55pm
So true...karma's a b**ch, as they say...
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 7th, 2006, 7:52pm
The way she has spoken smells of 'understanding' between Gujarat
Government and her.
Well, she can escape Gujarat Government but she will not escape God's
anger for killing an innocent man.
Aagee agee deekho hota hain kya.....
I cheated on you,
YOU cheated on me
I can't believe we are still together,
how can this be?
I suppose to leave you,
you suppose to leave me.
But cheating on eachother didn't set us free.
Now we are here, screwing everybody.
No it doesn't hurt and we don't mind,
cuz that what they say, Beliving is blind.
So you honestly think this is true SWADHYAY or
just a MASS MOVEMENT? Beacause cheating on
eachother really proves alot.
-PUJYA DIDIJI
Heat is on!!!
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 7th, 2006, 8:02pm
27 Motabhai's have been served summons. They had filed identical
wrongful cases against Pankajbhai. Police is suspecting higher up in
Swadhyay behind the murder.
Amadawad: Ex Swadhyay member Bhupendra Patel has written a letter to
Chief High Court Judge and demanded justice. If not on Aug 1e has sent
a copy of this letter to President of India, The prime minister, Ch he
will start "fast until death" at Income Tax Circle.
Hief minister of Gujarat, Chief justice of supreme court of India and
Governer of Gujarat.
Based on the sensational information obtained from five people so far
arrested f
or Pankajbhai's murder Police commissioner and DCP has met with Home
Minister of Gujarat. On other hand rumors are flying that Didi might
be on verge of getting a notice. Didi was said to have given a speech
at Madhav Baugh in Mumbai on Friday July 7th.
27 Motabhai's in Gujarat have been told not to leave the country.
(partial translation)
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by RAVI PATEL on Jul 7th, 2006, 8:20pm
Mukhda Dekh Le DIDI jara darpan main..
http://www.musicindiaonline.com/p/x/pVm7Q6IxUt.As1NMvHdW/
The Greatest swadhyayi of all time.... Every swadhyayi musty listen
this.
God Bless Us all..
Ravi Patel
ravi_pa...@yahoo.com
To listen more songs from this great swadhyayi click this...
http://www.musicindiaonline.com/l/29/s/album.5581/
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 8:46pm
http://www.divyabhaskar.co.in/newsfromgujarat/newsfromahmedabad/ahmedabadnews_03.asp
Didi's show of Power. Will Gujarat Government be scared?
Didi said 'We need to continue Manushya Gaurav Work'.
Is she planning to make more people 'Krantikari' and 'Shahid' like
Pankajbhai?
When will Police take action?
US Based Swadhyayee speaks...
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 7th, 2006, 8:54pm
US based swadhyayi blasts Gujarat Global in defense of Parivar
2006-06-27 23:50:54
Gujarat Global News Network, Ahmedabad
For last couple of days we have been receiving number of e mails and
telephone calls about the activities of Swadhyay Parivar, both for and
against. A day before, we received a letter which shows the approach
of those who claim that there is nothing wrong with the Parivar and it
is being wrongly dragged into a controversy involving the murder of a
swadhyayi, Pankaj Trivedi.
We have nothing to say since the tone and tenor of the letter shows
prejudiced and parochial approach which is very characteristic of
followers of sects. What we have reported is already on our website.
But to claim that only loyalists know the truth is to give a go by
progressive and open minded outlook which is necessary for the healthy
growth of anyone whether an individual or an organization.
We would like to quote Osho to describe the situation of the followers
"In thousands of years we have made Gautam Buddha, the Buddha, Christ
a Christian, but we have remained same!" Deification of a person or
organization leads only to hypocrisy and all other associated evils.
Here is an e mail Shreyas Patel of Bank of America Charlotte NC USA
has sent to me the editor ofwww.gujaratglobal.com.
Since the death of Mr. Pankaj Trivedi you have published articles
blaming and defaming the entire Swadhyaya Parivaar. You have not tried
to verify your information or print it objectively. One would expect a
newspaper to print only facts and not unduly prejudge. You have not
taken into account a clean track record of Swadhyaya work and its
service to people. Your articles have hurt all the members of
Swadhyaya Parivaar and we are pained to understand the motive behind
this. I am submitting this response aimed at answering some of the
questions and clarifying facts.
Swadhyaya is a spiritual movement founded by Rev. Pandurang Shastri
Athavale, fondly known as "Dadaji", which means elder brother. Born in
1920, Dadaji took a resolve to uplift human life through the means of
self-introspection ('Swadhyaya'). He looked deeply into the problems
that plague humanity. He noted that these problems were the result of
alienation of man from his creator. His solution to these inherent
issues, therefore, included the concept that we are all sons and
daughters of the same god. Hence the Swadhyaya philosophy and work are
based upon the belief that god is present in each of us and we are, as
a result, related by this divine relationship. Dadaji has coined this
concept as "the brotherhood of man under the fatherhood of God"; hence
it is indeed a parivaar, a family, which now includes tens of
millions.
It strongly emphasizes dignity of all human beings. It transcends the
boundaries of caste, creed, and religion. It welcomes anyone to join
unconditionally, without any membership requirements, and it allows
any member the total freedom to leave at any time. It has brought
about a multifaceted revolution encompassing all aspects of human
life; these include spiritual, social, economical, emotional, and
political elements. Dadaji calls this the five-colored revolution.
This is a peaceful revolution that has been described by a prominent
educator as "a silent yet singing revolution". It does not support,
encourage or condone any violence. It has never solicited any money
nor has it accepted funds from anyone who is not an active member.
Dadaji and Didiji have always preached and practiced love and unity of
all. They have never sought any recognition, prestige or awards.
Swadhyaya work has been studied by many research scholars, economists,
politicians, and social thinkers. The United Nations (UN) has also
taken a keen interest in this work. Many laurels and awards have been
given to Dadaji and Didiji from around the globe, including the Sir
John Templeton Award for Progress in Religion, the Ramon Magsaysay
Award from the Phillipines, and the noteworthy Padma Vibhushan title
from the government of India.
Dadaji single-handedly started his work by visiting the entire Indian
subcontinent, along with many other areas of the world. It has
transformed countless lives in tens of thousands of villages in India.
Dadaji worked incessantly through his demise, which occurred in late
2003. During all these years of work, as Dadaji went from "heart-to-
heart" and "hut-to-hut" in thousands of villages of India, Mrs.
Dhanashree Talwalkar, Dadaji's daughter, was his constant companion.
With her own efforts, love, and dedication, she has become the heart
and soul of the "Swadhyaya parivaar". In his later years, Dadaji
delegated the full responsibility of his work to Mrs. Talwalkar,
affectionately known as "Didiji", which means "elder sister".
Unfortunately, when Dadaji delegated Didiji to take on the
responsibility of the massive Swadhyaya work, there were a few members
of the Swadhyaya family who did not accept this decision. Because of
their longstanding relationship with Dadaji, they felt a sense of
entitlement to this responsibility. Begrudged by the appointment of
Didiji to take the responsibility, they and a few of their cohorts
began a concerted effort to destroy Didiji's image and tarnish
Dadaji's life.
The main purpose of these people, the "anti-Swadhyayees", was to usurp
the control of the work. Once it was clear that this purpose would not
be served, persons like Mr. Pankaj Trivedi set out to destroy the
verywork they were once a part of.
Mr. Trivedi and a few others chose to engage in antagonistic activity
and false accusations against Didiji and the Swadhyaya parivaar. They
alleged that the Swadhyaya parivaar and Didiji asked for funds during
the 2001 earthquake in Gujarat (a state in India). This is an entirely
false statement. To begin with, Dadaji and Didiji have never solicited
funds from anyone, directly or indirectly. They have also instilled
this mentality in the entire Parivaar. In the aftermath of the
earthquake in 2001, a total of 5058 houses were built through the
efforts of 76 non-government organizations (NGOs). Of these, 4534
houses were built by the Swadhyaya Parivaar alone, according to a
report by the United Nations Development Board. In addition,
accusations that have been leveled at the management of trust funds of
Swadhyaya Parivaar are completely unfounded.
Further efforts to damage Swadhyaya work led a few anti-Swadhyayees to
allege to the home ministry of India's central government in 2002 that
"Swadhyaya is a terrorist activity". In response, the Indian
government's intelligence bureau conducted a thorough investigation in
Swadhyayee villages throughout India. This investigation revealed
absolutely no basis for the accusation. Other facet of anti-Swadhyaya
propaganda has included the repeatedfiling of police cases against
many devoted Swadhayees over the last five years. Police
investigations have found each and every one of these complaints to be
completely untrue and without merits.
The media has reported that Mr. Trivedi was a prominent Swadhyayee,
that he donated 1.5 crore (15 million) rupees, and that Pujya Dadaji
used to visit him at hishome often. All these reports are completely
untrue. At the current time, it is the media's responsibility to
report only the truth, instead of reporting and sensationalizing
completely baseless allegations in an attempt to tarnish the image of
Dadaji, Didiji, and Swadhyaya work. It is important to consider who
benefits by misleading the police and by harassing the Swadhyaya
Parivaar. In the end, it is society and devoted Swadhyayees who are
hurt when attempts are made to tarnish the image of holy work such as
Swadhyaya.
Link to lots of articles in English
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:03pm
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=swadhyay&btnG=Search+News
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:10pm
Aaj to Brahmin ki bhi hatya hoti hai........
Dur Kahin Kone mein Majhab Rota hain.............
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:19pm
Daes Liya (bite) Sare Desh Ko Jahrili Nagin (poisonous snake) Ne...
Ghar Ko laga di Aag Ghar Ke Chirago ne...
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:37pm
It is very important that future generations remember Pankajbhai's
sacrifice and learn a lesson of not falling in a trap of any organized
religion.
Please write to Government of Gujarat to dedicate a monumnet in the
memory of "Krantikari Pankajbhai".
May be rename Ellisbridge to "Pankajbhai Trivedi Bridge."
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:53pm
I believe Swadhyay should start " Krantikari Pankajbhai Trivedi"
Scholarship for needy students and open up a college and dedicate it
to " Krantikari Pankajbhai Trivedi".
I am sure that even after doing that, crores of rupees will be
available which can be used to build a charitabl hospital dedicated to
Pankajbhai.
Shri Satya Sai Baba had been doing noble humanatarian work for decades
and its time that Swadhyay learn some lessons on humanity and charity
from this organization.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:56pm
I think it will be a great disservice to soul of Pankajbhai if we go
the route of naming any bridge or other monument after him.
All we know is that he wanted Society to know true face of Didi's
brand of Swadhyay.
When Government of Gujarat does not listen to person of Swamiji's
stature, I doubt if they will ever pursue justice for Pankajbhai's
killer.
May be some investigative Journalist can find out real story behind
tall claims of Didi's brand of Swadhyay, and issues which Pankajbhai
have raised and reported elsewhere in this forum.
Only 'fourth Jagir (Press)' can take up this challenge and show the
true face of Didi's brand of Swadhyay to Society.
Didini Diary
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 7th, 2006, 9:57pm
Gunawant Shah on Pankajbhai's Sahidi
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 7th, 2006, 11:10pm
Renowned philosopher and writer Gunawantbhai Shah appeals public to
wake up. The degree of blind following in Swadhyay is a black mark
against Hinduism. Back in 1992 he wrote "Blind faith manufacturing
company unlimited is Swadhyay" Dada had put his image between Shiva
and yogeswar and everyone would offer Aarti to DADA. He was the one to
criticise this deification of Pandurang Athawale. How lacks of
Swadhyayees can not see the difference between God and Pandurang and
now Didi? No wonder this has given Didi an opportunity to do anything
she pleases.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Karan on Jul 8th, 2006, 05:25am
Aaj yeh shehar kaisee sanwar aayee hai,
Har taraf bikeree ek khaak nazar aayee hai!
rang lagee hai ye khoon-e-jiger (pankaj bhai)ki taaseer,
yaad jab aati hai to aankhe bhar aayee hai!!
ye aag har khafan ko jalaakar rakh karegi,
dhuvaan ek din teri galee(madhav bagh) me aayegi!
ek ek saans me yahaa behroopiya (khota bhai)mile hai,
ye sholey lipte rahee saneeha ka khabhar aayee hai!!
tumharee nakse-kadam ne sab ko gumraah kardiya,
kitna behtar ye kaary tha usko mitti me milaadiya!
kaise maafi milega bhagwan ko bhee parwaa na kiyaa,
sang-e-lehad pe tumne jhootee aansu bahaadiya!!
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by An Observer on Jul 8th, 2006, 06:54am
I hear that Gujrat Govt is in the process of changing the name of
A'bad to either Pandurang Sastri Nagar or Pandurang Sastri Dham (as in
Gnadhi Nagar / Gandhi Dham).
Is it true??
Prime reason given is that it is a tribute to DADA & its present
leader. They have worked tremendously hard to uplift the communities
of Gujarat and the whole state of Gujrat. and have succeeded in doing
so.
After Gandhiji, its now DADA, the only person who can be said to
deserve this tribute!
Although Gujrat has so many prominent Kathakars and is home to one of
the most famous religious sect - Swaminarayan, but so far they have
failed to match the sort of upliftment DADA gave to this state.
It is for this reason Ahmedabad will now have a new name.
Please share your hearsay here.
You have a great sense of humor or imagination! - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Unbelievable on Jul 8th, 2006, 07:43am
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Karan on Jul 8th, 2006, 08:14am
Sunil posted a nice msg
Swadhyaya is not just to follow some one blindly
Swadhyaya's literal meaning is study, self-study
But at the same time a Swadhyayee should be cautious
Instrumental Devotion means .... its not anybody can use him atleast
he should know that he is not getting victimised in an organised trap.
Now its the time to have a kind of transperancy in all trusts, The
governement should work on it atleast Gujarat government.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 8th, 2006, 08:44am
Gujarat Global News Network, Ahmedabad
Jayshree Talwalkar 'Didi' suddenly surfaced on Friday night in a TV
News Channel where she spoke about some controversies and Swadhyay
Parivar but refused to speak about the famous Pankaj Trivedi murder.
She said that she was pained by the murder but avoided questions on
the issue saying that the matter was sub-judicious.
Describing media reports as her character assassination she said that
people who are against her and wanted to remove her were indulging in
such activities. Didi who spoke for the first time 24 days after
murder of Trivedi said that she was not the head of Swadhyay Parivar
"I am a member of the Parivar. I, my family and the entire Swadhyay
Parivar is sad over Trivedi's murder and we protest the incident. No
individual has the power in Parivar but all the members work in co-
operation", she said.
About funds in Pariver she said that the accounts of Parivar are
audited regularly. People asking about Rs.2,000 crore should first ask
NRIs where they have sent this money, Didi said in an irritating
tone.
About her alleged love letters Didi said that they were letters about
a project and her opponents had misused them. "I have not written any
love letter to anyone", she said.
Furious over media reports Didi said that they are hammering
Swadhyayis. They are misleading people. She appealed Swadhyayis to be
tolerant and spread the message of peace. "Parivar members are
brothers and sisters and I am one of them. I am not a saint", Didi
reiterated
Parivar members are brothers and sisters and I am one of them. I am
not a saint", Didi reiterated.
'We all know you are not a saint but you are not even a good human
being'.
You shall be with 5 Parivar memebers in Jail for killing Pankajbhai.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 8th, 2006, 09:08am
"After Gandhiji, its now DADA, the only person who can be said to
deserve this tribute!"
If Gandhiji is BAPU is he was DADA (most of Gujarati's following him
blindly dont even know y he is called DADA) It means Big Brother in
Marathi, they think it ment Grandfather.... lol
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 8th, 2006, 09:16am
"Swadhyaya is not just to follow some one blindly
Swadhyaya's literal meaning is study, self-study"
If it means self study! selfstudy could be done in the corner of ur
room, bringing 10000 or 15000 people together for selfstudy!
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 8th, 2006, 09:23am
It is a known fact in Madhav Baug Pathshala since 2001 that people are
called from distance so when Didi gives her 'Bakwas' hall looks full.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by An Observer on Jul 8th, 2006, 09:47am
I think Ravibahi & Unbelivable have missed my point.
Gujrat Govt is considering changing name of A'BAD.
No other state Govt is even thinking of doing this & why should they?
On of the reasons given is that the mass upliftmnet has taken place in
Gujrat, not in Mumbai.
Therefore Guj Govt feels that this is the best tribute they can bestow
on DADA.
This is what I have heard and may not be true.
Maharashtra state has not seen the so caled upliftment in its state.
Its the Gujratis who have benefited from this movement and therefroe I
think modi govt (sarkar) may be correct in thinking on this changes.
May be DIDI has MADE some FINANCIAL (or otherwise (promised to use her
VOTE Bank) as part of POLITICAL deal to change the
name.............who knows!
This is wild speculations.
I am simply asking if anyone has heard about this.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 8th, 2006, 10:13am
WE ARE AL EQUAL IN SWADHYAY, DO I NEED EYE CHECKUP?
-Ravi Patel
ravi_pa...@yahoo.com
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Paying Tribute to Pankajbhai on Jul 8th, 2006, 10:18am
I think Didi is in the process of doing something like Sonia Gandhi,
Bal Thackeray etc.
Denounce that she is dictator of Parivar. Appoint group of cronies
till controversy dies down and control every thing from behind the
curtain.
These group of cronies will later day come out and tell that since
Dada have appointed you, you must take it over again!
This way she can fool her blind faith followers that she is Tyag ni
Murti.
I hope before she succeds in doing so, Gujarat Government does
something rather than renaming Ahemadabad as 'Andheri nagari' and CM
as 'Gandu Raja'.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 10:20am
I have heard that all khotabhais are considering changing their last
name to "Athvale".......
How many khotabhais call their REAL elder sister "Didi"?
How many khotabhais from US went to India for their parents "ASTHI-
VISARJAN"?
How many khotabhais helped their needy relatives in India?
How many khotabhais who worked for FREE at MADHAV KENDRA farm had
helped their relatives on their farms in India?
How many khotabhais went to see their relatives when they were in
Hospital?
How many khotabhais went to attend a Birthday Party of their relatives
in India?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 8th, 2006, 10:23am
DADAJI SAID
"BETI MAIN BHI INKA DADA HU, KAISA ULLU BANAYYA DEKH, KAHA DEKHNA AANA
WALLA HAIN YEAH GORA INDIA MAIN ......JO LEKHKER DIYA INHONA MAAN
LIYA"
DADA EK NUMBERI TO BETI DUS NUMBARI..
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 10:31am
Lies, Lies and more Lies...
Most of the khotabhais had been feeding lies and fabricated stories to
potray Athvale into an " AVATAR" for YEARS.
Some of the stories are so ridiculous that even any one with a half
brain can tell that it is an outright lie.
One person told me a story about the Murti of Yogeshwar. Read this
funny story.
Once, Yogeshwar Bhagavan appeared in Dada's dream and talked to him.
The way Yogeshwar Bhagvan was standing in Dad's dream is exactly the
same as the Murti of YOGESHWAR is made. Dada had called an expert
artist to make the MURTI and described the pose that he saw in his
dream.
While the artist was making the MURTI, Dada stopped him many times and
corrected his mistakes. After so many iterations and trials, the final
shape of the Murti was developed.
This person also claimed that no one in this world has an exact
imagination of Yogeshwar as Dada had as he had seen Yogeshwar Bhagvan
in his dream.
Propaganda is so powerful that any one can take an ordinary Pandu and
trnsform him into an "AVATAR".
Like Mirza Galib said,
"Murkhon kin Kami Nahi Galib,
Ek dhundho Hajar Milte Hein.........."
We shall rape you in front of ur Sasara - Swadhyay
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 8th, 2006, 11:59am
Jalgaon,
Retired professor S. K. Joshi shared terror on his family during a
visit with Gujarat Samachar.
S. K. Joshi had worked with Dada and Swadhyay for more than two
decades. Back in 1995 several tall and heavy men entered his house. In
front of everyone including women in the house they told my daughter
in law, "We shall rape you in front of your husband and your father in
law. Tell your father in law to keep his mouth shut about Swadhyay."
One time Mr. Joshi was travelling in his car with his son and suddenly
at one stop they found themselves surrounded by 8-10 men. Luckily his
son used his quick judgement and steered his car away from this
goons.
Article in Gujarati.
Jagruti - staunch Swadhyayee are wondering
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 8th, 2006, 12:17pm
Last night Didi finally gave an interview to media- setting was
interview by a private channel at an undisclosed location.
She said that there is a conspiracy against Swadhyay. She has nothing
to do with murder of Pankajbhai.
There is no financial irregularities in Swadhyay.
She is just another member of Swadhyay and everyone is equal in
Swadhyay.
She is saddened by the death of Pankajbhai but she can not talk about
it due to the legal process.
She appealed to all the Swadhyayees to stay focused.
Some of staunch Swadhyayees were totally disappointed that:
1. Interview was from an undisclosed location. Why?
2. If she is innocent, why she does not come out and say that she &
other members of Swadhayay are willing to co-operate with poilice
investigation in any way they can.
3. Why it took so long to come out and make a statement.
4. Why interview was given to a private channel.
It seems that many Swadhyayees are disappointed and now wondering as
to what is being hidden? There is a possibility that of current
members there will be two groups, one supporting current stratagy to
"keep quiet and it will go away" and the other group supporting "those
who do not have any thing to hide - hide nothing!"
Jagruti continues. Biggest challenge will come not from police and
outsiders but from true Swadhyayees within.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 12:31pm
http://www.gujaratglobal.com/nextSub.php?id=814&cattype=NEWS
Swadhyay parivar has become goonda parivar: Sacchidanand
2006-07-06 10:05:42
Gujarat Global News Network, Ahmedabad
At a meeting held in the city on "Religion Terrorism" number of
leading personalities launched a scathing attack on Swadhyay Parivar
and described its head, Didi, with a variety of adjectives like a
tigress donning the skin of cow. These persons were of the view that
the mafia of religious leaders was more dreadful than the underworld
of Dawood.
Referring to the murder of NRI swadhyayi Pankaj Trivedi, Swami
Sacchidanand said that Swadhyay Parivar had become goonda parivar. The
fear of terror created by it can never be tolerated, he added. Pankaj
Trivedi, a staunch critic of Didi , was murdered on June 15 and police
have arrested five swadhyayis in this connection.
He said that the fault of Trivedi was just that he had sought details
of account of the Parivar, a multi billion rupee voluntary
organization founded by Pandurang Shastri. He also blasted the Modi
government for not responding to the requests of Trivedi for
protection though he had feared attack from members of Swadhyay
parivar. He said people worshipped Didi as a holy cow, but in the skin
of cow she is a tigress.
Noted activist Prakash N Shah said that the activity of spreading
terror in the name of religion should be checked. He suggested that
there should be a social audit of such organizations. Writer Rajnikant
Joshi said Dada, founder of Parivar, was a good man but not a straight
man.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Karan on Jul 8th, 2006, 12:33pm
Dear Vijay Bhai
Jagruthi will be there, atleast some "Yuwan" will think and an in-side
revolt will be there. But what do you say this Khota Bhai will
realise?
They may be forgot The Virtues which (said) will acquires by Swadhyay
1) Gratitude (Kritaznata) : Told to appreciate saints but they are
busy in appreciating ****
2) Asmita (self-awareness): but unfortunatly they are not aware of
their own ability, it was told in last shibir that you are a
donkey ,who is carrying statue.
3)Brilliance (Tejaswita): He should not be a puppet but they feel
Chamchagiri is not puppetism.
4)Boundless love: in this situation we dont want to talk about any
Love!!!!
5)Samarpan(offering); yah its going on
so i think they wont change
Unlike you, I think there will be radical changes in Swadhyay. It may
come by design or default. Now that more and more stories come out,
true swadhyayee (majority of them) will suddenly wonder. This may
prompt them to do one of two things. 1. Move away from Parivar and
join some other group. 2. Be bold enough to address the irregularity
and make parivar stronger.
At least in USA Parivar I have found that this bond and sense of
common goal is extremely strong. How can one walk away from the
family? I shall venture to predict that most of them will be in group
2 here. Currently they are behaving as if nothing has happened. But in
their head and conscious the debate has started. Next, they will feel
comfortable with discussing their feeling to nearest Swadhyayee
friends followed by discussion with rest of them. Process will take
time but it shall happen.
Of course now after being duped before the flow of money will slow
down tremendously and when it start they shall demand voice in it.
For the Khotabhai's back home this was like Mafia. Too much power just
by having the title. They will have to be thrown out by others to save
the movement. I think process will take 1-2 years but it will bring
accountability and Samaj seva back in the focus.
Unlike India, I shall venture to predict that it is much less likely
that the Motabhai's abusing power here. With very small tight neat
community, people do know who you really are. There are lot more ways
for people to earn then to resort to deceit in this country.
I am sure other sampraday's are also looking at this and doing some
introspection as how they can avoid same fate. I think devotees of
other Sampraday's might develop courage to ask, what is being done
with the money.
Sahid Sri Pankajbhai has served Hinduism as very few people in recent
history has. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 12:58pm
I agree with Karan. The puppets WILL NOT CHANGE.
They choose to poke in their own eyes and became BLIND FOLLOWERS, they
are beyond repair.
If they were to wake up, they would have done so in past when
countless newspapers and magazines published countless articles on all
wrongdoings and when Justice B.J.Diwan resigned. But no, they THINK
know Athvale more than Justice Diwan and Pankajbhai Trivedi.
The funny thing is that most of the swadhyayis have not even spent
five minutes with Athvale, then how can they know him that well? The
false image of an AVATAR in their BHAVUK mind is the result of years
of Brainwashing, propaganda and manipulation.
We can only help people who are starting to develope "cataract" (Not
blind yet) and have their cataract surgically (thru open discussion).
It is much easier to be an Avatar by minimizing contact. Human being
has weakness. It is much easier to hype someone up by edited videos
and managed exposure to general public. Only the inner group knows
real person. And you can keep inner group quiet because they have a
vested interest in Avatar. I am impressed with how many staunch
Swadhyayees are now asking questions, not openly of course. I think
this is defininig moment in the life of Swadhyay. - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 1:06pm
Maheshbhai Shah consoling Shrutiben Trivedi. Maheshbhai is concerned
he might be next on the list.
How to tell a spiritual movement from cult?
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 8th, 2006, 1:38pm
Here is an issue of Aar Paar. This may offend you if you are not able
to handle the truth. Your motabhai may say 'they' are jealous of our
success - the fact is no one has to be jealous of your success, if
Swadhyay is indeed the movement of uplifting the human spirits we all
are beneficiary of it being one of you. The motabhai may tell you not
to pay attention to media - you need to wonder why all the media have
tried to expose the wrongdoings or more important you may tell your
motabhai -why not we publish our point by point rebuttal of all these
concerns. If we have built houses why not make a website with the
pictures of all those houses, roads, schools and hospitals. In this
day and age it is not too expensive to put your information on network
(and they have crores rupees sitting in several trust accounts) for
everyone to see and decide for your self. Remember, the way mind
control works is to avoid answering question and tell followers to
have faith or shradhha in Dada. That is your cue to run out of that
movement no matter how good it may feel you to belong to it at
present. -Vijay Mehta
http://vmehta.conforums3.com/index.cgi?board=Religions&action=print&num=1150555879
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Mailesh on Jul 8th, 2006, 1:46pm
Vijaybhai,
First off, you have done a commendable job of creating and moderating
this board.
This unfortunate event has exposed pariwar internals big time and am
optimistic that this WILL trigger a change
First thing that comes to mind is the fact that now media and public
in general know more and have more questions than the so called
motabhai's actually know
Due to their blind follower mentality, they have never questioned
their superiors and so on and now they will feel awkward facing
members and outsiders. Once this questioning starts, the ball starts
rolling
I doubt if someone in US can think, plan and pull off a criminal act
against someone who asks questions as easily as it may be possible in
India
Simple questions like
1. why the focus on 'others' and not 'me'
2. why the focus on numbers
3. why are some members more previlaged to inside information than
others
4. what happened t the norm of taking joint decisions
5. why huge gatherings for events
6. Does a local motabhai ever question their superiors?
7. Who makes those large sankalps? Sankalps should be from within -
when someone else tells me to achieve some number it is called target
not sankalp
8. how can I access local financial accounts?
Answers:
1. Focus on others and not me: If there is not much good about me, I
can distract you by talking bad about others like Pankajbhai, they are
out to destroy us etc. It keeps focus away from me.
2. For some of them it was all about the numbers. Problem is that more
they got more they wanted. Had they only taken out 10% of Bhagawanano
Bhag no one would have ever been able to prove anything.
3. Motabhai's have invested more and are williing to do more for
Swadhyay than Chhotabhai. They are willing to maime or kill anyone for
parivar. If you are not that loyal why should you have the same
privilege?
4. Joint decision: Trust me they are taking joint decision. But you
and I are not at that level to be part of decision making. Remember
humility is a virtue.
5. Large gatherings are good for morale and publicity. It impresses
people in thinking - if so many people believe in it ... it must be
great.
6. If you start questioning the superiors you are not right material
to be a Motabhai in first place. And if you do, we need to make Asura
out of you, You can not go back to Chhotabhai from Motabhai because
now you know too much. Many of victims of violence had to suffer
because they knew too much. Had they been ordinary Swadhyayee they
could have been easily ignored as common ashuras. Loyalty and ability
to understand without asking anyone is important qualifying
characteristics for Motabhai.
7. There are some chosen devine among us and they help us by making
Sankalps on our behalf. The mere fact that we joined the group without
ever asking or questioning shows that we are not capable to making
independent decision. They are just being helpful.
8. Forget asking for local accounts. They were simply forwarded to
head quarter. Once you offer coconut to God you do not inquire what
happens to it, do you?
I have a feeling that Swadhyayees from USA eventhough in numbers we
may be miniscule compared to those in India, will be instrumental in
providing leadership.
Living in this open society does change who we are. There is more
courage to ask questions. We have learnt that open society is
strength. We have witnessed Jim Jones and David Kuresh. We have seen
financial or sexual scandals destroying prominent churches. Hopefully
we have learned that you can not suppress disinformation too long once
it starts coming.
I think at this time asking financial account will be taken as you
being a traitor or Swadhyay destroyer (Ashura).
What you can do is to generate discussion as how in future we can
establish credibility? What checks and balance do we place to prevent
abuse by select few? At the end of the day, your future depends on
credibility among young Swadhyayees. With all the horror stories that
has come out and likely to come out let me tell you, your younger
generation is confused and concerned. Their loyalty to what we fed
them so far can only last so long.
Good luck. Keep us posted if you have any ideas or how your attempts
are received by others. Remember, the spirit should be one of "I love
Swadhyay there for I am willing to speak up" - Vijay Mehta
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 1:56pm
Now people have all kind of question...
look at this
I think now police have to open them eye..
I have heard this theory too and it may make sense.
Dadaji worked all his life to start his projects. People show a man
with ability to interpret Gita at the same time man with passion to
uplift the poor and backward communities. Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga
to gather is a strong combination. No acquisition of real estate in
terms of Mandir basically made the expense side of balance sheet very
small. Money grew, fame grew. He must have thought for a long time
that this all can be turned over to some one with same passion.
Then came the aging, failiing health and amputation left him in hands
of his daughter. She suddenly realizes the opportunity to step into
his chair. She has to remove all good Swadhyayees surrounding him. The
access to Dada is limited. Basically he is in "Nazar Ked" so only
message Dada can get is what is approved by Didi. Tai would also like
the power go to someone in family than outsider. Only the inner core
can see the change. Because for millions of them all they see is the
video that comes in mail.
Dada behaves in un-Dada like fashion and suddenly claims that
Swadhayay belongs to him. Now all loyal Swadhyayees needs to be thrown
out one by one. Some of them knew too much. So they became threat. One
by one they were disgraced and thrown out. If they kept posing threat,
they were threatened and to teach a lesson bones were broken.
Earthquake in Gujart proves to be a windfall. Large amount of
donations flowing from all over, no need to account for it. Everyone
at the top could get a piece of the pie as long as they keep the mouth
shut. Few trouble makers need to be silenced.
Arrogance lead to mistakes. We can get away with anything. Police or
Government and Media will think ten times before doing anything
against us. Few people with broken bones became a lesson for many
others who were thinking of speaking their mind. Well it all went well
until...
Until one fateful day.. Pankajbhai Trivedi was brutally murdered. And
suddenly 'Jan Prakop' is beyond anyone's expectation. Police was lucky
to find a strong clue by one cell phone, he opens his mouth and now
the amount of information that out is too much to cover it all up.
Daily headlines exposing more and more stories. Many Swadhyayees start
seeing a pattern. As much as they do not want to believe all these
they have to admit that there are some problems.
The question is how this moves on from this point...
-Vijay Mehta
Would Didi run to USA if noose comes closer?
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 2:01pm
Didi might have avoided being questioned or arrested for this crime
more than three years. But there is no statute of limitation on
murder. So all her life she will have to worry, what if some evidence
pops up? What if someone talks? There are many many crimes in history
books where years after the crime the law catches up with you. Let us
be patient and pray to God at the end justice may prevail and
sacrifice of Panjakbhai does not go in vein.
Na Muh Chhupake Jityo...
Post by Guest on Jul 8th, 2006, 2:04pm
Didi has paid a price for Pankajbhai murder. Now she avoids limelight
and media.
Na Muh Chhupake Jiyo
No Sar jhukake Jiyo
Jo paap kiye hai tumne
woh Karmoki Kimat chukake Jiyo..
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by sunil on Jul 8th, 2006, 2:16pm
Dear NRI Swadhyayees,
Please listen to what DIDItold to SAHARA SAMAY TV
She said we recd.Rs.1 crore & spent 1.5 crores for Kutch EQ relief.( I
have seen this twice)
Now isn't this a lie? They have collected alltogether 37 crores
+cash(only Yogeshwar knows the amount)
You still want to call her a Satyanishtha?
who siphoned the money?
Will you dare to ask your motabhais about this?
In an another reply on this forum today these blind fellows are still
saying that the pariwar constructed 4534 concrete houses in Kutch when
it is very clear to everybody (exceot their Blind counterparts in
India)
that the pariwar has not constructed even a single house is this
another example of Satyam Vada?
The Pariwar has become so proficient in lieing & so shameless that
even after the murder of Pankajbhai they published a nivedan is all
gujarati news papers on
19th June stating that they have constructed 5058 houses if this is
Swadhyay then why someone should join or if has joined stay?
Earthquake Relief by Swadhyay Gujarati Article
Post by Vijay Mehta on Jul 8th, 2006, 4:34pm
http://www.gujaratsamachar.com/gsa/20060625/guj/national/anu.html
How much money was collected by Swadhyay and how much was used for
actual house building in Kutch area has been the biggest point of
argument. Swadhyayees will point that they have built 4500 plus
houses. While others will say that there is not a single house by
Swadhyay! This Article looks at what could be the explanation.
Gujarati article.
Partial translation to follow;
According to the letter by Pankajbhai Trivedi to Chief Minister of
Gujarat DAY Trust, Chicago had deposited 2,4000,000 (2.4 Million
Dollars( between 1978 to 2000. Due to the Gujarat Earthquake 3,890,000
(3.89 Million Dollars were collected from Swadhyay in USA) While Vinoo
Sachania (Who was later beaten up) sent Two Crores from England.
On 6/24/2006 Dr. Rajesh Parikh said in response to a question that
"Swadhyay Parivar has built 4534 houses in Kutch, and there is no
doubt about it." When asked if he had seen personally this houses
being built he said he has not. Than based on what is he making this
statemet? In response Dr Parikh showed a report by UNDP and 2003
report by ILO (International Labor Organization), where it was
mentioned that Swadhyay Parivar had built 4534 houses. Dr. Parikh was
asked if Swadhayay has their report of all these houses? He responded
that Swadhyay Parivar has a report of work performed at 112 villages
and that report is in Mumbai and we are getting in Amadawad. But in
this report we do not have details of work performed, just which
village had how many houses is mentioned.
Sri Mansi Anand fron Navnirman office in Kutchchh, Bhuj explained that
ILO report has no value since it is a copy of UNDP report. He
explained that in June of 2001 when Prime Minister came to visit
Kutchchh we asked all the organization to report of relief work. We
put an ad in the paper asking everyone to supply the information.
Based on what they reported we published those figures. We DID NOT
CHECK ACCURACY OF ANY OF THESE FIGURES!
Based on the information received (that was never varified by anyone)
we published reports. Few months later we published updated report
again based on the information received. This way by 2003 we had
published five reports.
September 2001 report had 75 organizations reporting. All of them
combined reported 4272 houses while Swadhyay ALONE REPORTED 4534
HOUSES!
When questioned in this regard Bhav Sarjan Trust informed that they
merely provided 'MATERIAL FOR CONSTRUCTION"
Abhiyan felt that if only material was provided than how many houses
were built? were they earth quake proof? In contrast to all other
organization Bhav Sarjan trust did not have any M U (? Memorandum of
understanding) with GSDMA of Gujarat Government.
Based on all these facts mention of Bhav Sarjan Trusts was taken out
of alphabetical order and placed last. And it was noted that this
organization is working independently (polite way of saying that we
can not varify facts)
Kutchchh Navnirman Abhiyan had asked for detail report from all the
organization but Swadhyay did not provide this list. (I guess they
believe that when right hand donates left should not know!). They had
also asked them to provide with financial report of earth quake
related activities (how much received and how much spent) but that was
not provided.
Of note is the fact that In any Government report there is no mention
of a SINGLE HOUSE BUILT BY BHAV SARJAN! COLLECTOR AND MAMLATDAR IN
KUTCHCHH HAS REPORTED THAT BHAV SARJAN TRUST - SWADHYAY PARIVAR HAS
NOT BUILT A SINGLE HOME.
According to Dr. Ramesh Parikh after the earthquake all the
responsibility was managed by Sri Vasanbhai Aahir. According to
Kutchchh Nirman Abhiyan Mr Aahir has been supplying all the
information.
When Mr Aahir was asked on 6/24 he said all the Parivar had provided
all the roofing material, wood, cement etc and laborers came from
Maharashtra. When he was asked to give specifics he answered from
moral high ground When a brother helps another brother in times of
need, do we need to keep an account? When he was asked as to how come
Swadhyay was able to build more houses than all other 75 combined in
such a short period of time? He said "DADA" wanted us to build quickly
so we did!!!
Basically what he is saying is trust me, if we say we built than we
built. Of course we can not tell you which particular house we have
built.
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Fabricated Stoies about Dadaji on Jul 8th, 2006, 7:09pm
1)Dada had once gone to USA. Dada used shaving soap and brush to
shave. During this visit, Dada forgot to take along with him, his
shaving soap and brush. Dada was habituated to use shaving soap and
brush and so he was un-comfortable. He mentioned it to one of the
Motabhais of USA while they were driving on a trip to Ohio. They
started looking for shaving soap and brush. They tried about 15 stores
but could not find it. When they were passing through a small town,
Dada pointed to a store and asked to inquire there for shaving soap
and brush. Fortunately this time, it was available in the store.
The whole story seems like fabricated and this common incident was
glorified and told to all swadhyayees of USA as and when chance came
by one of this Motabhai. He used to tell, he did not believe in
miracles, but narrated the story driving the point that Dada was
Avatar - incarnation of Lord and hence he could tell where the shaving
soap and brush was available?
Question: when followers were trying to find the brush at different
places and if an AVATAR knew that they were not going to find it
there, why he didn’t stop them in first place? An AVATAR can not
adjust with the situation and use shaving cream instead?
2) The second incident is related to Anuts
I-VANDANA program in BHARUCH. One of the motabhai told fellow
swadhyayees in a meeting that we don’t believe in miracles but since
we are a FAMILY (What a Joke), he would like to share this incident.
At the end of the program, NARMADA Maata changed the flow direction,
the water level raised up to the stage where Dada was sitting, NARMADA
Matta touched Dada’s feet and then slowly water level came down. I am
sure you should have a video to prove this as you take video of every
little thing and won’t forget to capture this “miracle”, right?
(Swajan Re Juth Mat Bolo, Khuda Ke pas Jana Hein)
If you were an Avatar, would you choose failing health, amputation of
leg because it was not treated in time and your followers in disarry
after your death?
Re: Krantikari Pankajbhai pays ultimate price
Post by Ravi Patel on Jul 8th, 2006, 7:12pm
"Last night Didi finally gave an interview to media- setting was
interview by a private channel at an undisclosed location.
She said that there is a conspiracy against Swadhyay. She has nothing
to do with murder of Pankajbhai."
DADI HAS BEEN TELIN HER FOLLOWERS TO STAY AWAY FROM THE MEDIA BECAUSE
THEY LIE, IS SHE LYING TOO?
http://vmehta.conforums3.com/index.cgi?board=Religions&action=print&num=1150555879
This material presented is but one/tenth of what is presented in the
link above. Most is in Gujarati and some in Hindi. It is a sad saga of
Hindu morality breakdown under the very haughty noses of Gujarati,
Marathi Hindu hoodlums parading under a panoply of real and phony
nomenclatures. Hindutva brigade led by self styled protectors of
mytholoy based religion keeps a close score of who is an "Un-Indian,"
" A Traitor," "A Terrorist," "A Pseudo-Secular," "A Secular," and by
bunch of other pet-names these Hindu hound dogs give to anyone and
everyone who speaks, writes and expresses their opinions, truthfully
and with all the evidence under the sun, yours truly included.
These bastards don't want the truth to be told. Not privately, not in
words or actions.
"Viswa Hindu Parishad" and their paid and unpaid co-conspirators fish
out all the dirt that they can find on other religions and spill all
over the creation, especially, on the internet newsgroups such as this
one. These concerted efforts on the part of such idiots as Dr Jai
Maharaj, and especially him has put the free speech in jeopardy.
This low-level skunk, a slum-dog, takes words from Ashok Chowgule, an
industrialist from Goa. A very rich man and very vicious man indeed.
This man is a Vice-President of the "Vishwa Hindu Parishad." The
another is S. Kalyanraman. This hoodlum is portrayed as a former
director of the World Bank.
There are many who are either of high ranking "RSS" members or their
famous "Parivar." It is not necessary to make a list of who they
affiliate with. Their venom is deadly and dangerous. Why would Hindu
religion or the religious beliefs of almost eighty-three million
people be defended? If they are as good as they claim to be, why, all
the sane people of the world would want to be Hindu in a jiffy.
The lies these fake Hindus tell may become their coffins.
chhotemianinshallah
PTI, Mar 8, 2010, 06.55pm IST
Article Comments (14)
Sex video: Ashram defends NityanandaBANGALORE: Rejecting rape charge
and doubts raised over death of a foreign devotee of self-styled
godman Paramahamsa Nityananda, his ashram on Monday said he would make
a public appearance soon and answer all allegations.
The charges were part of a "conspiracy to malign the image of the
swami and impede ashram's social activities," the ashram spokesperson
Nitya Sachidananda told reporters at the Nityananda Ashram near
Bidadi, about 40 km from here.
A 23-year-old woman, an inmate of the Bidadi ashram, had alleged that
Nithyananda had raped and sexually harassed dozens of women in the
ashram.
Chennai police have registered a rape and cheating case against
Nityananda, days after video footage of his alleged sleazy acts were
telecast by TV channels.
Sachidananda also denied a charge that mystery shrouded the death of
foreign national Melvyan Boyd Diamond, a Yoga teacher in the ashram.
"Diamond had family history of cardiac problems and he died following
an accidental fall from the second floor of the building he lived in,"
he said, adding that the ashram had arranged for his cremation.
The operation to malign Nityananda had been done in "a surgical
precision" and "Swamiji himself will come and comment on all the
issues. As his "personal security" was at risk "we have advised him to
come after some days," the spokesperson said.
The ashram, which faced violent protests after telecast of the video,
has so far not lodged any police complaint.
Nityananda ashram rejects charge of rape
Article Comments 14
Bidadi ashram
Mohan USA 09 Mar, 2010 07:48 AM
All these guys disguised con people. Any basterd who still defends him
should be throiwn in jail as well. Why don't people check such idiots'
background before follow them. The laws should be strict so that such
crooks must ne hanged in public to make an example.revin malaysia 09
Mar, 2010 02:37 PM
Relax My dear friend..... if you dont know about him plz dont put such
commen. He teaching has transform many ppl life. thounds of ppl is
alive bcoz of his helling do u now haw many cancer patient has cured
and thy are alive 2day..... plz dont throw words will regret
ltr.Mansoor Dubai 09 Mar, 2010 01:53 PM
There are two type of godmenMark Canada 09 Mar, 2010 06:53 AM
Thank You Swami for all your help. You have been the greatest blessing
in my life. Mark.Arun Bangalore 09 Mar, 2010 04:44 AM
I find it curious that Sachitananda cites safety and security as being
the reason for Nithyananda's absence, while claiming that he is at the
Kumbha Mela. I would imagine an ashram with police protection is much
safer than mingling with lakhs of people in public.musing us 09 Mar,
2010 01:22 AM
The whole case against the swami seems manufactured. I would not be
surprised if the govt. is behind all this. At least the state govt. I
would also not be surprised if TOI takes perverse pleasure in
splashing this news all over their front pages for the next month. How
boring and predictable.Indian India 09 Mar, 2010 12:49 AM
India is fit only for Jihadi, Communists,Christian missionaries and
DMK Goons and their contribution for Indian Independence is NIL. Now
they are running the country by proxy for their foreign masters.aaa
bangalore 09 Mar, 2010 12:10 AM
As it is we live in a very cunning world.No one can believe anyone
henceforth.Natarajan Canada 08 Mar, 2010 08:30 PM
We need to monitor cases of sexual abuse at religious places. There
are several cases worse than this, involving children. Unfortunately
the cases involving children's sex abuse happen mostly at churches and
hence cannot be touched by our secular government.Shyam USA 08 Mar,
2010 08:19 PM
Is this framed by the Christian missions and the SUN TV who are PRO-
christians?Anand UAE 08 Mar, 2010 07:47 PM
If the swami could proove that the whole scandal is a conspiracy with
active connivance of some inmates like Lenin Karuppan, will the media
apologise to the public for the sensation created thru their column?
Medias should restrain from sensational journalism and should ensure
fair play.Jeevan Dubai 08 Mar, 2010 07:42 PM
Watch out.This fraud swami might use his power using the Politicial
parties and the top guys that he had in his list of followers.There is
no doubt that he is not involved in all the wrong things and he should
be given the severest of punishment so that the other fraud swami's
should learn a lesson.Daljit kuwait 08 Mar, 2010 07:26 PM
its our problem that we are treating these so called godman as
GOD .its time to show that they cannot play more with the sentiments
of people.Ashwani Hyderabad 10 Mar, 2010 05:03 PM
Like these ashrams/swamis, in many life saving institutions
(hospitals) these scandles do take place. Particularly super
speciality hospitals need to be monitored,
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/5659498.cms
Quepem man held for raping daughter
TNN, Mar 22, 2010, 12.49am IST
MARGAO: In a macabre incident, the Quepem police on Sunday arrested
one Agnelo Pedro D'Costa, 48, from Catemol, Quepem, on charges of
raping his 17-year-old daughter.
What makes the crime ghastlier is the fact that the accused had
recently fathered a child through incestuous relations with the same
victim-his eldest daughter. Police sources said that the accused had
raped his daughter in April 2009, after threatening her with dire
consequences, following which she became pregnant and delivered a male
child on January 6, 2010.
"The victim, along with her newborn baby, was staying at Mother Tereza
Ashram, Panaji. Her father, meanwhile, would coerce his wife into
inviting their daughter home," Quepem PI Sudesh Narvekar said.
She finally came home on Saturday, only to be raped again by her
father.
The accused's wife is learnt to be working as a domestic help in
another village. "On Sunday, ensuring that his wife had gone to work
and her daughter was home alone, the accused raped her," Narvekar
added.
Based on the complaint lodged by the victim, the Quepem police
arrested the accused. Both the accused and the victim have been sent
for a medical examination, police sources added.
Significantly, the accused is the father of three sons and three
daughters. The victim had not reported the matter to the police when
her father had raped her earlier, police sources added.
Give regard to rape victim's wish to marry rapist: CJI
IANS, Mar 7, 2010, 03.33pm IST
Article Comments (1)
NEW DELHI: In a radical suggestion, India's Chief Justice K G
Balakrishnan on Sunday said that judges, lawyers and social activists
should give "due regard" to the wishes of a rape victim if she chooses
to marry the rapist or have the baby conceived from the crime.
"Judges, lawyers and social activists should also ensure that they do
not take an overtly paternalistic approach when they have to make
decisions for the welfare of rape victims," he said at a seminar.
"Due regard must be given to their personal autonomy since in some
cases the victim may choose to marry the perpetrator or choose to give
birth to a child conceived through forced intercourse," he said.
He was speaking at the seminar on "Access to Justice, Relief and
Rehabilitation of Rape Victims" organised by the ministry of women and
child development.
Others who addressed it included Law Minister M. Veerappa Moily and
Minister of State for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath.
"We must also keep in mind that the interests of the victim are not
protected by punishing the offenders alone," said Balakrishnan,
referring to a law ministry move to enact a law to set up fast-track
courts to try sex-related offences.
"Adequate attention should also be drawn to suggestions for
compensatory remedies and the rehabilitation of rape victims through
the provision of shelter, counselling services, medical and legal
aid."
He also referred to the "secondary victimisation", which a rape victim
often has to suffer during the trial of the accused due to
inconvenient, probing and often indecent questions by the defence
counsel.
"There is a very real phenomenon described as ‘secondary
victimisation' wherein the victim of a crime faces additional
harassment and humiliation in the course of investigation and trial.
Especially when the perpetrators are in a position of power over the
victims, there is a strong distrust of the credibility of the
investigation itself," pointed out Balakrishnan.
"Some recent cases highlighted in the press have shown how the
investigative machinery can often be manipulated to protect
influential persons, howsoever reprehensible their crimes may be," he
said without naming the Ruchika Girhotra molestation and suicide case
involving former Haryana police chief S P S Rathore.
"The investigators, prosecutors and defence counsels must exhibit an
appropriate degree of sensitivity to the victims," he said.
"Especially during the trial proceedings, judges need to be proactive
in order to restrain the aggressive cross-examination of rape
victims."
The CJI also highlighted recent changes in law, which provides that
the past sexual history of victims must be ignored.
"The Indian Evidence Act was amended some years ago and a provision
was inserted to ensure that the past sexual history of a victim cannot
be given weightage in a trial for the offence of rape," pointed out
the CJI.
"What is needed now is for judges and lawyers to internalise the
principle that facts relating to the past sexual history of a victim
should not even be brought up in the first place, since the purpose of
a trial is to decide whether or not an offence took place as alleged,"
said Balakrishnan.
Rituparna’s marital rape trauma
TNN, Feb 28, 2010, 12.00am IST
Rituparna SenguptaRituparna Sengupta says that getting under the skin
of the character can sometimes cause a lot of trauma. That is
precisely what the light eyed actress realised recently, while
shooting for Karan Razdan’s Mittal Versus Mittal.
Playing a marital rape victim in the film, Rituparna got so involved
with her character that she felt it was really happening to her. After
shooting the marital rape sequence, she not only burst into cold
sweat, but continued to shiver for days after that. “It was
terrifying,” admits Rituparna and says, “I kept seeing the sequence
for days in my sleep and woke up startled.”
Such dedication is really impressive. Wonder after all this why
Rituparna hasn’t got very far in her career, here in Bollywood? Can
you tell us why please?
Girl set on fire for resisting rape attempt
TNN, Mar 18, 2010, 03.48am IST
Article Comments (37)
HYDERABAD: A 15-year-old girl was set on fire allegedly by three men
who attempted to rape her at a house in Sai Nagar near Kushaiguda on
Wednesday. The victim, a class VI dropout, suffered 60 per cent burns
and is battling for life at Gandhi Hospital.
Malkajgiri assistant commissioner of police (ACP) P V Padmaja said:
“As per the statement of the girl, three persons (all bachelors) tried
to rape her at a house in Sai Nagar and when she resisted their
attempt they set her ablaze. The incident took place around 11 am.”
Locals informed the Kushaiguda police about the incident and she was
shifted to Gandhi Hospital.
The victim stays at Padmaraonagar with her parents. Her father is an
auto driver, while her mother is a domestic help.
The girl and her friend used to frequent a tea joint near a three-
storied building in Padmaraonagar when two bachelors staying in the
building befriended them, the ACP said.
“On March 9, the victim left home without informing her parents. A
missing case was registered at the Chilkalguda police station by her
father on the same day. The girl said she had gone to Vijayawada on
March 9 along with three persons. The trio used to frequent their two
friends residing in the three-storied multi building at
Padmaraonagar.” the assistant commissioner of police said.
The victim refused to reveal information on when they returned to the
city and the whereabouts of the three persons. Special teams have been
pressed into service to arrest the culprits, the ACP said.
A case was registered under sections 307 (attempt to murder), 342
(wrongfully confining a person), 363 (kidnapping) and 376 (rape) r/w
511 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Kushaiguda inspector A Muthyam
Reddy said.
Girl set on fire for resisting rape attempt
Article Comments 37
girl set on fire
Ajay US 18 Mar, 2010 04:49 AM
I pray that this 3 culprit gets caught soon and get enough punishment.
Atleast for 15 years each.Kalpana Chennai 18 Mar, 2010 04:34 AMOh My
God!zenith coimbatore 18 Mar, 2010 03:54 PM
so sadkavita hyderabad 18 Mar, 2010 03:40 PM
why this girl has gone with that person its her mistake as well,
without telling her parents see what happen she is the only
sufferingsohail hyderabad 18 Mar, 2010 07:46 PM
she is just a childrox fiji 18 Mar, 2010 02:02 PMevery one want to
have sexMohan-US USA 18 Mar, 2010 05:59 PM
No wastage of money and time.... this should be closed in 15
minutes... drag them to a public place and get the crowd to throw one
stone each.... end of the story and a GREAT "case study"Anmol
Bangalore 18 Mar, 2010 05:29 PM
The punishment should be more seviour for rapists, and those who
attempt to rape.Kiran USA 18 Mar, 2010 05:29 PM
This is nothing new in India. Basically, a way of life. It's always
girls from the poor families get raped by the better offs. Rarely,
perpetrators of the crime get punished. Police are more than willing
to bungle the report for bribe. This is our great culture. I'm glad to
be out of jungle rajChandan Bangalore 19 Mar, 2010 02:11 PM
Pls don't comment if you can't resist/rectify. Kindly pls don't come
back to India again.sai bang 18 Mar, 2010 05:06 PM
there is no way of punishing just by killing the three guys infront of
all is the solution ...so next time no guy should repeat such kind of
attemptsfahad Pakistan 18 Mar, 2010 04:56 PM
They should be hanged till death in the middle of the townvishal pune
18 Mar, 2010 04:45 PM
where is the so called education of Indian Parents these days,gaurang
US 18 Mar, 2010 04:39 PM
i dont think there are chances of them not being caught,but i would
pray that they are brought to justice and given a life term for
attempt to rape and attempt to murder. i fear they may end up free
considering the fact that the victim comes from a poor family and our
legal system favors rich oneskavita hyderabad 18 Mar, 2010 03:50 PM
its a girls mistake as well y she has gone with that person without
telling her parents and now see who is suffering feels so sad for
her.Nadeem Amsterdam 18 Mar, 2010 03:46 PM
There should be an "Eye for an Eye"norbert ksa 18 Mar, 2010 03:23 PM
they must hangDeepak Vizag 18 Mar, 2010 03:21 PM
This again tells us that India is not safe for women. I pray that
justice is done to the girl though chances are bleak.Vishal Beijing 18
Mar, 2010 02:56 PM
Its absolutely horrible and shameful to hear such stories in today's
day and age. Who should we blame? Men, women, society, or the govt.?
anita bangalore 18 Mar, 2010 02:31 PM
going to vijayawada from hyderabad without informing her parents.
hm...this is how kids get into trouble. the people who put her on
flames needs to be punished.Ravi hyderabad 18 Mar, 2010 01:57 PM
Culprits should be punished severely.Aslam Dubai 18 Mar, 2010 01:35 PM
I pray to god that this 3 culprit, Get punishment for the Law as well
as from the God too..Prakash Bangalore 18 Mar, 2010 01:31 PM
Kill those people ........david singapore 18 Mar, 2010 01:29 PM
Really these 3 culprits should be hangedPrafull mumbai 18 Mar, 2010
01:19 PM
I wonder why the girl has,or by whom the names of the 3 have been
witheld.SURESH Mumbai 18 Mar, 2010 01:00 PM“On March 9, the
victim left home without informing her parentsjgkmfmb dutidfgjk 18
Mar, 2010 12:53 PM
give the culprits death sentence. Life for life - they should give
their life for taking the victim's life.jadeja India 18 Mar, 2010
12:38 PMthis only happens in india jay hindMurali-Devavrata Bengaluru
18 Mar, 2010 12:37 PM
While culprits should be brought to justice and given death penalty,
there is no doubt that our cultural values are being degraded due to
Western influence. Girls are taking too much liberty with their
freedom and are suffering. Freedom comes with a price. We should think
about this.nitu hyd 18 Mar, 2010 12:31 PM
what the hell is going on in hyd? law should be so strict dat such
cases would never repeat. god know why such people think of raping a
child(doesn't mean that they can have in view of adults)samuel london
18 Mar, 2010 12:30 PM
I hope the three idiots don't have any political connections nor are
they from influential families otherwise such cases are swept under
the carpet and police would call it an cooking stove accident or even
suicide attempt.Vincent Thailand 18 Mar, 2010 12:02 PM
Since the victims is surviving, the culprits will soon be caught and
here-in lies a chance for the guardians of law and order to set an
example. The three perpetrators should be castrated and their
photographs published in newspapers. Let us remove the blindfold over
the eyes of Statue of Law !Vikrant Melbourne 18 Mar, 2010 11:46 AM
Why girls born in India?Sana Mumbai 18 Mar, 2010 11:02 AM
It's sad that this happened but what amazes me the most is that its
still happening. If not in Hyderabad then probably in some other
city.rahul Pune 18 Mar, 2010 09:45 AM
castrate the culprits and parade them naked to be stoned...javeri
mumbai 18 Mar, 2010 09:28 AM
Our Indian legal system has not generated any fear in the minds of the
offenders. they can do anything they want and walk free. By the time
our law takes its cource they might die their natural death. Go back
to the law of the jungle.Tooth for a tooth and eye for an eye. No FIR,
No Report. Burn themhari india 18 Mar, 2010 09:09 AM
kill them
Rape Ruckus
Mar 9, 2010, 12.00am IST
Article Comments (3)
On the eve of International Women's Day, Chief Justice of India K G
Balakrishnan came up with a strange suggestion. Addressing a meet on
justice for rape victims, the CJI said that "due regard" must be given
to the wishes of a rape victim if she wants to marry the rapist or
give birth to a child conceived following the crime. The CJI's
statement sends out mixed signals. It almost makes it appear that
marriage is an alternative to punishment for perpetrators of rape.
Indeed, it could have the unfortunate effect of minimising the
seriousness of rape which is a fundamental violation of a woman's
body. Besides, it does not take into account that rapes can occur
within marriages too.
The courts or the state shouldn't have any say on the course of action
that a rape victim intends to take. It is paternalism - something that
the CJI has accused activists and lawyers of - to decide on behalf of
rape victims. What should be of utmost importance for law-enforcing
agencies is to ensure that rapists are convicted and handed the
maximum possible punishment. At present, rape figures in India tell a
sorry story. According to some statistics, only one in 69 rapes is
reported, and out of these the conviction rate is a pathetic 20 per
cent. Law enforcement agencies should be looking at ways to increase
the conviction rates as well and put in place conditions where victims
feel comfortable to report rapes. This is a big ask. Let's not deflect
from the real task at hand by suggesting marriage between a rape
victim and the perpetrator.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/opinion/edit-page/Rape-Ruckus/articleshow/5659944.cms
Uttar Pradesh tops list of child rape cases
PTI, Mar 4, 2010, 05.04pm IST
NEW DELHI: Uttar Pradesh tops the list of States and Union territories
with the highest number of 900 child rape cases in 2008 followed by
Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
According to the latest data by the Ministry of Home Affairs for three
years, cases of child rape continue to rise as a total of 4,721 cases
were registered during 2006, 5,045 in 2007 and 5,446 in 2008 across
the country.
Police have arrested 5,489 people in 2006 for their involvement in
such crimes, 5,756 in 2007 and 6,363 in 2008.
Madhya Pradesh registered 892 such cases, Maharashtra (690), Rajasthan
(420) and Andhra Pradesh (412) in 2008, the data said.
A total of 411 such cases were registered in Chhattisgarh, 301 in
Delhi, 215 in Kerala, 187 in Tamil Nadu, 129 in West Bengal, 106 in
Punjab and 104 in Tripura, it said.
Whereas, Gujarat has registered 99 cases, Karnataka 97, Bihar 91,
Haryana 70, Himachal Pradesh 68, Orissa 65 and Goa 18.
Teen girl, who alleges rape by Maoist, shot at
IANS, Mar 5, 2010, 12.04pm IST
Article Comments (21)
RANCHI: A teenage girl was shot by Maoist rebels in Jharkhand's
Latehar district for slapping rape charges on a Maoist leader, police
said Friday. The victim is struggling for life in a hospital here.
Maoist guerrillas shot three bullets into 17-year-old Anju Kumari on
Thursday. She was injured critically and has been admitted to the
Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Rajendra Institute of Medical Science
(RIMS).
"Anju sustained three bullets in her stomach. Her condition is
critical," a doctor said.
Anju was shot when she was riding her bicycle in an area close to
Latehar railway station. She was stopped by three motorcycle-borne
Maoist rebels including the Maoist commander Pappu Lohra, who
allegedly pumped three bullets into Anju's stomach and then fled,
police said.
According to police, Anju was shot because she was bold enough to
lodge a first information report (FIR) against Lohra for abducting and
raping her.
"Anju was shot because she dared to raise a voice against Maoists. She
had lodged an FIR against Pappu Lohra. Anju had accused Pappu of
raping her for two days in a jungle after abducting her," a police
official told IANS.
According to local journalists, Maoist rebels alleged it was the
handiwork of the police to lodge fake rape charges against Lohra.
Teen girl, who alleges rape by Maoist, shot at
Article Comments 21
rape maoist
Rajagopal Delhi 05 Mar, 2010 03:37 PM
Dont arrests maoists criminals just shot dead them immediately on
seeing. Thee is no sin doing so. The Government shold try aerial
survey of maoists and bombard their hide outs without hesitation to
prevent further strikes.R india 05 Mar, 2010 03:36 PM
If it was a fake charge, why did this goonda shoot the girl? Maoists
might have started off as rebels for a true cause, but now they are
nothing but terrorists. I hope these rapists and murderers get their
just desserts from the police and para military forces.Raj Mumbai 05
Mar, 2010 03:27 PM
But its a handiwork of Maoist Rebles to Kill a 17 Year
female...Doesn;t he feel anything kill a Teenage Girl..Aks USA 05 Mar,
2010 03:15 PM
Now a days there are far too many pseudo naxals and all are fake and
they intimidate the tribals into submission and loot the police and
others. They do not have ideologies but only money minded looters.She
was a stumbling block and fear of getting exposed made them to stop
the voice, so was shotBrijendra Russia 05 Mar, 2010 03:05 PM
What is going on in India? Is it a jungle raaj or some law exist
there.After reading this story u realy feel shame being an Indian. A
young girl shot three times by so called mesihah of poor and dalits
started raping their daughters and sisters.These same people will take
arms against them.vishnu satara 05 Mar, 2010 03:04 PM
No commnets here...... Indian are busy cursingNarendra Singapore 05
Mar, 2010 02:39 PM
Well this news shows without doubt that at the end maoist does not
follow any philosophy. In the beginning they like others are
pretending to protect and be voice of poors. Now they are aiming their
gun to them. It makes me wonder Pappu Lohra is, a coward who tried to
kill innocent girl.rkr459 rkr...@yahoo.com.au 05 Mar, 2010 01:43 PM
It is high time ,the national Government take military action to get
rid of this radical elements for once and all.P.R.S.Bhasker Hyderabad
05 Mar, 2010 07:18 PM
I fully agree with the comment of sri Rajagopal of Delhimlechha
timbuctoo 05 Mar, 2010 06:59 PM
... that PCAPA leader Lalmohan Tudu had led an attack on their camp @
Silda, with a Maoist dalam. Later, the police claimed there had been
no attack on Silda, that Tudu was most probably killed in a false
encounter. Ironically, Tudu was the person who had fought for
elections to be held in Lalgarh.Siva TN 05 Mar, 2010 06:03 PMI
s this maoism,Very sad,these group appear like terrorist and criminals
without any causeAnant Nigeria 05 Mar, 2010 06:02 PM
Maoists stand against oppression of the weak by others.faisal dhahran
05 Mar, 2010 05:49 PM
The maoista are nothing but criminals and hoodlums out killing and
stealing. They are thugs terrorising the local populations. They MUST
be destroyed without any mercy for they are only killers and murderers
of the worst kind.Nitin Belgium 05 Mar, 2010 05:46 PM
What is the goverment doing? They cant even ensure the security of a
victim from indian terrorists, how can anybody trust them with
security of the country???Vivek NY 05 Mar, 2010 09:28 PM
Now the so called human activisits will not utter a word. India should
extensively use army againsts these murderers and these hyppocrate
human activist in jail. With the army strenght we have shouldn't take
more than a week to clean up India from these people.aa del 05 Mar,
2010 10:01 PM
Jaago Bharat Jaago.jeff Australia 06 Mar, 2010 06:05 AM
This is shocking to the whole world when india is looked upon as
developing emerging economy gettinon par with the world. It is truly
shockingren bhopal 06 Mar, 2010 11:15 AM
shoot thiose murderers and rapists right at their head!!! no need for
enquiries to police....kill those bastards immediately!!!Anil Delhi 06
Mar, 2010 12:34 AM
I won't name names here but this has been going on around my village
since decade.. Maoist just to slight people's respect kidnap unmarried
girls do whatever they like with her and send them back to their
parents.sajan dub 06 Mar, 2010 12:20 AM
How you can tell the rape alligation is right. Now a days it is a
passion of women to make false complaint to molestation and rape also
IPc 498 for looting money from man.Anant Nigeria 05 Mar, 2010 11:36 PM
Maoists stand against oppression of weak by others.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/5645977.cms
Father, daughter gun down 2 over incest taint
Pervez Iqbal Siddiqui, TNN, Oct 6, 2009, 12.06am IST
LUCKNOW: For once, panchayat members of a western UP village were
thrown on the defensive. On Monday, a man and his daughter — cleared
of charges of having incestuous relationship — picked up a gun and
fired at the panchayat members, killing two persons, one of them being
the accuser.
According to the police, they did so to ‘‘punish the panchayat members
for their failure to act against the real culprits.’’
The drama was reported from the Kambhore village, Bijnor. The village
panchayat had earlier ordered ‘expulsion’ of the father-daughter duo
following charges of incest against the man, which reportedly turned
out to be baseless. Agitated that the panchayat did not give them a
chance to defend themselves, the two reportedly reached the panchayat
gathering and opened fire after the members refused to initiate action
against those who had levelled false charges against them.
According to reports reaching the police headquarters in Lucknow,
about a month back, Haseenuddin, a resident of Kambhore village under
Kotwali police station of Bijnor approached the village panchayat and
accused a local resident Akhtar of sexually abusing his daughter
Fatima alias Fato for the past several years. Haseen maintained that
he was an eye-witness to the crime along with another local resident,
Afzal.
The panchayat then summoned the duo and questioned them in public.
Though the two said they were innocent, the panchayat ordered them to
leave the village forever.
As a result, Akhtar sold off his house and shifted to a relative’s
place in an adjacent district. On September 23, Akhtar happened to
meet Afzal and enquired about the charges that he and Haseenuddin had
levelled. When Afzal denied that he was even aware of any such
accusations, the latter forcibly took him to the house of the
‘panchas’ to testify before them.
According to the police, on the request of Akhtar, a panchayat meeting
was convened on Friday last where he and his daughter were absolved of
the charges. However, when the panchayat members announced that there
was no need for action against Haseenuddin, Akhtar whipped out a gun
and fired indiscriminately.
Father, daughter gun down 2 over incest taint
Article Comments 19
Manoj India 06 Oct, 2009 12:37 AM
Think the whole article is quite confusing.Bobby Dayton 06 Oct, 2009
12:48 AM
very good. very great act. The panchs should have acted against
Haseenuddin, but if they did not, then Akhtar didnt do anything by
taking law in his hand. I hate all those preaching about not taking
law in ones hand, just because there would be no difference between
accuser and accusee. But if its once moral at stake, one should do
such things. Bravo.Sajid USA 06 Oct, 2009 12:50 AM
The man should not have taken the law in his hands. But there is great
need in India to do something about those who accuse others falsely.
Many times, police accuse someone and when that man is found innocent
after many years, the police officers who framed the charges are left
alone without any charges against them. There are serious errors in
Indian laws.Shalin Agrawal Ahmedabad 06 Oct, 2009 01:07 AM
I agree with what Akhtar did. If justice is denied then the person may
have the right to take such action if the allegations are of these
level. Panchayat members should take rational decision and law should
be equal for all. VD US 06 Oct, 2009 01:17 AM
This is eerily similar to 'A time to Kill' movie though victims are
different. The 2 should not charged with any crime and should be set
free. The Panchayats other members should be kept in prison. What
agony thefather and daughter must have gone thru when these charges
were leveled against them. Thankfully they were all muslims otherwise
who knows what would have happened on the name of religion.SVR Chennai
06 Oct, 2009 01:20 AM
I don't see anything wrong in it. Failure to give justice, will result
in these kind off actions. Pradeep Bangalore 06 Oct, 2009 01:23 AM
For once, the justice is done. Kudos to the father for taking the
action.Vivek Mumbai 06 Oct, 2009 01:53 AM
It is shocking that the Panchayat acted in a haste on such a sensitive
matter. The report can be true or false but if true then the panchayat
seems to have done a grave mistake by not correcting the 2nd
time,which needed punishment. The sad part is our law doesnot permit
normal humans to do justice and the law would not take action too. The
honest man is suffering today and a collusion of evil minds are
striving. A shock treatement is the only solution that can bring
balance to this crude world but at what cost is for us to judge.
Nilesh California, US 06 Oct, 2009 02:08 AM
Older "Panchayat" judiciary system should be abandoned and must be
taken over by court. It's very must needed as foolish, biased and non
democratic people make the decisions lives of innocent people.Rajendra
Boston 06 Oct, 2009 02:35 AM
Good job by Mr. Akhtar. These Panchayat people should learn to behave
more responsibly.Sanjana Blore 06 Oct, 2009 03:25 AM
Guess this is something our Judges need to be reading for not
supporting Justice rather being baiased.CoolStuff Delhi 06 Oct, 2009
04:30 AMGreat job! Same way we need punish dirty politicians as
well...Umesh USA 06 Oct, 2009 06:12 AM
That is what happens when you don't have redress to your grivences.
Indian government and politicians need to wake up - they are cheating
Indian people for so long and Indian people are running out of
patience. Before people take law in hand for speedy settlement and it
becomes wild west, Indian courts need to hand out speedy
justice.Sharad US 06 Oct, 2009 06:26 AM
The panchas deserved to die. Who gave them the right to punish a
family with an evidence thats so flaky and how come when time comes to
make the family get even by just some punishment to the perpetrators
they step back. This is just a clear case of victimising one family
and though killing in righteous civil society is bad, in this case, I
would say it was the best choice. The art of living in a community is
something we all think is leanrt naturally. We focus on learning
english, science, maths. Nagrik shartra and laws of living in the
society and rights in the society and duties of the society to its
members are things that need to be taught. In villages (and even in
cities) these kind of bitching keeps happening, any family needs to
lean on how to keep their weight and still be responsible. Well, that
would be a start towards creating a utopian soceity.Prashant Dhiman
USA 06 Oct, 2009 06:50 AM
What is wrong about picking a gun when nobody listens to the reason?
he did a great thing, I would have done the same in those
circumstances.shyamal Missouri, USA 06 Oct, 2009 07:23 AM
Well done. If you bring false charges, you deserve bullets. I also
think that if an innocent person is incarcerated and later the real
criminals are found, the innocent person must be compensated Rs 1
Crore for every year of incarceration from the state budget. This is a
penalty for the state government and the police authorities who got
him imprisoned. Today the person just gets a dry apology from the
state.Manoj Delhi 06 Oct, 2009 09:27 AM
I think he did the right thing to take the law on his own hands as the
panchayat's law was already denied for him. This man is innocent and
actions must be taken against 'so-called-panchs' in this case!vimal
noida 06 Oct, 2009 10:48 AM
Bravo, Kudos all words are small in front of there brave act. This is
the true definition of save owns pride. Hats of to you.Joseph Dubai 06
Oct, 2009 11:39 AM
Compliments to the Duo - Father and the daughter, when the Law does
not protect them what other choice you have ?..The panchyat system
does not function, so doesn't Indian Democracy. It is a Mafia System !
Sixty years have passed since our independence and aren't we still
convinced ? Our politicians in Delhi are sleeping and filling their
pockets ! They care a damn about you and me - the common poor guys.See
where China has gone in 60 years. They are the 3rd World Economy from
nothing. And we Indians ? We talk about 10% growth but where is it
reflected, for the Politicians and for the rich of course ? Children
are being raped and burnt (latest moda) and the culprits behind the
political heavyweights are walking free. Where is justice, where is
the law to protect you,me our defenceless children and where are the
bloody netas ? It is time we woke up Indians and do away with all
these useless systems and traitors of the country. We fought for
freedom from British and our leaders died in vain. At least we were
not that bad under the foreigh rule I guess ! India needs a Hitler -
one man one rule. If you don't deliver you perish. Even dictatorship
is bad, but at least we would have punished those bastards and brought
them to book. With this system at least 60 years hence, we will have
advanced much more. Otherwise with the present system of governance we
will see other nations passiing by us, injustice will prevail in walks
of life and our own government will walk on us as it is happening.
Will I say "jai ho" or "Jai no?"
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/5091724.cms
3 Indian-origin men in UK jailed for raping kin
PTI, Oct 18, 2009, 01.20am IST
Article Comments (3)
LONDON: Three Indian-origin men, residents of Cardiff, who repeatedly
raped a woman in their family for several years have been convicted
and sentenced to long years in prison.
The three persons sentenced by the Cardiff Crown Court are the 27-year-
old victim's step-father, step-uncle and brother-in-law. The step-
uncle and step-father are illegal immigrants, and will deported at the
end of their sentences.
The 55-year-old step-uncle, and 50-year-old step-father were jailed
with minimum recommended terms of 20 and 15 years respectively, while
her 27-year-old brother-in-law was jailed for 12 years.
The step-uncle admitted before the court that he was the father of the
child conceived when the victim was 14 years old. He was convicted of
seven counts of rape, three of indecency with a child, and one of
indecent assault.
During the hearing, the court was told that the victim's ordeal began
at the age of five when she was raped by her step-uncle. She became
pregnant at 14, but was locked in a wardrobe so that visitors would
not see her condition.
Prosecuting lawyer Marion Lewis told: "The girl was already seven
months pregnant when she first saw a doctor about her condition. When
the baby was born, the girl's parents told friends and neighbours it
was their own, before flying their daughter to India for an arranged
marriage."
Judge Patrick Curran told the step-uncle: "Not content with your own
sexual abuse on her, you encouraged the others to treat her like an
unpaid and unwilling prostitute. You all then involved yourselves in a
group rape on her."
The judge said the continued presence of the two older men in the UK
was "detrimental to public interest."
The prosecuting lawyer said the girl was frightened and also believed
her mother knew what was going on.
"When aged 14 and still a pupil at school, her stomach was expanding
and a scan revealed she was seven months pregnant," Lewis said.
"Her mother beat her all over her body apart from the face with a
curtain pole. She was hidden, sometimes in a wardrobe and visitors
were told she'd gone back to India."
The victim later told the jury that her mother beat her when it was
found out that she was seven months pregnant. She said her mother had
not believed her when she had tried to tell her that she was pregnant
by a member of her own family.
"When she went to the doctors, checked me out, she realised I was
seven months pregnant, she still didn't believe me. She hit me with a
rod and stuff like that so she never believed me".
"She always said to me 'they can't do that to you, they're your
family, they can't do it' but unfortunately they did," the victim
said.
The step-uncle admitted in court he was the father of her child, but
told the jury he had not found out until much later once DNA tests
were carried out.
After the sentence was pronounced yesterday, detective inspector Chris
Mullane of South Wales Police said the victim had been "extremely
courageous" in approaching the police.
Reader's opinions (3)
Praful R Shah Houston, Texas USA 20/10/2009 at 10:55 am
What type of animals are they. They should be hanged.
uma shankar vajpeyi london 20/10/2009 at 08:47 pm
SEND THEM FOR 27 YEARS PLUS IN JAIL AT LEAST ...THIS IS AFTER THE TORY
LEADER RECENTLY INDIANS IN UK ARE LEAST PRESENT IN JAILS
Pamela Weber Quinn England United Jingdom 20/10/2009 at 10:05 pm
Thank goodness this young lady had the courage and support from her
fellow Britains to report this dreadful crime. I think her mother
should have also received a custodial sentance, for beating her
daughter abusing her. The trauma this young lady has endured will be
with her for a very long time. I know she will recieve help and I wish
her all the best from hence forth.
NRI held for raping minor daughter in Punjab
IANS, Mar 28, 2009, 09.32pm IST
JALANDHAR: In a third shocking case of its kind in the country in the
last two weeks, an NRI father was arrested by the Punjab police on
Saturday for allegedly raping his 13-year-old daughter.
A medical examination has confirmed the rape of the minor who lives in
a village in Phillaur town, 40 km from here.
Surinder Singh, who works in Dubai and has three children, was
arrested following a complaint by the victim and her mother. The
victim, the eldest among her siblings, later recorded her statement
before a magistrate, accusing her father of raping her.
Police officials said the father raped his daughter on Thursday night
in an inebriated state. He had come to his village on annual leave.
Earlier this week, a 20-year-old girl from Ajnala town near Amritsar
complained to the police that her father, who is a Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) leader, had raped her for the last eight years.
The father, Ashok Taneja, was arrested by the police after registering
a rape case against him.
Last week, the Mumbai police arrested a 49-year-old businessman who
allegedly raped his daughter for over nine years on the advice of a
black magic practitioner to get "rich quickly".
Reader's opinions (1)
mohammed waseem uae 29/03/2009 at 01:47 pm
i have no words.no need to show in public this kind os cases.just take
them in silent place and encounter to all.
AMRITSAR: Emboldened by the story of the Mumbai sisters who went
public against their rapist father, a 21-year-old college student in
Amritsar has gone to the police with her own horror story about her
father, a local BJP leader, who she accused of raping her for eight
years.
The man, arrested on Wednesday night, was on Thursday sent to 14-day
judicial custody. Police booked the accused, also a well-off
businessman, under section 376 (rape) of IPC. Medical examination of
the girl confirmed sexual abuse.
A student of Guru Nanak Dev University, the ravaged girl drew courage
from the Mumbai victims and spoke of her trauma to relatives from her
mother's family. They then took her mother into confidence.
"I want this man to be put behind bars or shot," the girl said, crying
bitterly. "My father, for that's what I have to call him, has crossed
all limits of human behaviour. He started sexually abusing me since
childhood. Whenever I resisted or refused to bow down to his wishes,
he would threaten to burn me with acid or kerosene."
Wiping tears with her black dupatta wrapped around her face, she said,
"I told my mother that if they (Mumbai victims) can, so can I. All my
relatives have supported me in this. After all, it can't get more
sinful than this, can it?"
The traumatised mother said, "My husband would always find a pretext
to send me away so he could be alone with our daughter. He never
allowed both of us to leave home together. In fact, I am forced to say
that my husband had physical relations with other girls in the family
as well."
The accused, who complained of failing health and admitted himself to
a hospital, in his defence, labelled his daughter and wife
"degenerates with bad character.
"My daughter had good character till two years ago but ever since she
joined university she fell in bad company and got full support of my
wife. They just want me sorted out because they're after my property,"
he said, his face covered by the blanket on his hospital bed. "I am
hurt at the allegation. I would not have minded had they blamed me for
beating them but this is something I cannot do in my wildest dreams."
BJP spokesperson Som Dutt Sharma blamed the Congress for defaming them
"during election time."
"To make matters worse for the victim, the whole family, including her
younger brother, slept in the same room. Day in and day out the girl
would have her rapist by her side, she said. Can you imagine that?"
said a neighbour.
Another rapist dad exposed, this time in Amritsar
Article Comments 68
Praveen Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 10:52 AM
If the Girl is saying true then kill these kind of persons is the good
judgement for this case.Swapnil Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 10:59 AM
Party with difference. It certainly has different stance on
incest.Manoj Delhi 26 Mar, 2009 11:01 AM
Shame on you TOI. This is a pathetic attempt from you to please your
masters in Congress. Where did BJP figure in all this? Were his deeds
known to the world so that BJP could sense that this is what he was
doing to his daughter? He is a normal criminal and should be treated
as such. Somebody occupying a block level position in BJP is being
highlighted by you as if the whole BJP is involved in this crime.
Journalism at its worst... selective sensationalization is the worst
kind of yellow journalism that can be perpetuated. Seems, in this
election not only political parties, even media is going to scale new
depths of irresponsible journalism. Dare you to publish this
comment.shakti singh chundawat bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 11:06 AM
incest is in vogue! :-)Ram Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 11:08 AM
An individual person is doing rape and why is the news dragging his
party here. DO you want to communicate that BJP leaders are like this
raping their daughters? Please communicate responsibly as it is one of
the core principles of journalism. The title is misleading and
irresponsible.hashimi chennai 26 Mar, 2009 11:09 AM
india has become the incest capital of world... shame..!!San Delhi 26
Mar, 2009 11:18 AM
What is the cause for all these nuisances happening these days. We are
so detoriating that In some cases Father(s) are raping these own
daughters ??? Hell or worst than Hell... Who is to blame ??? Do not
you think TOI or so called Media, Films, TV Serials are not
responsibile for instigating or provoking our Lust... Whenever you
open any site (even News Sites like TOI), so many articles to boost
your SEX life or blah, blah... you find on screen. What is all these,
We want to know the news of world. Not how to enjoy our sex or boost
our sex. Are you (TOI) a sex boosting magzine or a nice newspaper.
Shame on you.. Kindly think judiciously and act accordingly. Do not
sell sex just to Be No 1. Peter Vaz Oman 26 Mar, 2009 11:24 AM
Shame after fame is disgusting and the sermons of these top leaders
must by exposed to a great lengths beyond borders by TOI.Are these
people barbarians or monsters of the stone age? SC must create a
stringent laws or life imprisonment or stoned to death by the public
for these cases. Nupur Pune 26 Mar, 2009 11:33 AM
Now is this Indian Culture?? Are these men out of their minds!! Dont
they have any conscience!! 8 years, 9 years...its disgusting!! We go
aorund telling the world that we are a culturally rich country...and
we have cases in Mangalore where men are hitting women..n now this!!
Totally horrifyingsabir bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 11:34 AM
Whats happening, what is moral policing doing now. Is this the
religion teaches. Come-on wake up. Come-on learn the basics of family.
a n k | t az, usa 26 Mar, 2009 11:35 AM
Its a DISGRACE, I am totally DISGUSTED!!!! We Indians speak highly of
our family and cultural values and this just goes to shows how
misinformed and clueless we are. Its a shame. bloreboy bangalore 26
Mar, 2009 11:40 AM
where was the mother all the while...she was a passive participant in
this crime & needs to get her share of the punishment.. also...these
stories if exploited for 8 years are coming up now...why not 8 years
back...the victim needs to provide proper details as to why they were
party to the game till nowRam Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 11:40 AM
The title needs to be changed immediately. Do not name the political
party the person is affiliated to. The political party is not
preaching the person to do rape his daughter. What is the neccessity
of this news in the front page. Please act responsible.Harshal India
26 Mar, 2009 11:45 AM
This can be congress conspiracy as its just Election time, Election
commisioner should take a note of this.Ram Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009
11:48 AM
Are the COngressmen raping their mothers ? WHy drag the party's name
when an Individual is doing a criminal act. IRRESPONSIBLE reporting.
STOP THIS NEWS channel first.Naresh Dhiman Kuwait 26 Mar, 2009 11:51
AM
He and other such fathers should be punished with extreme limits so
that this becomes a examplary punishment which will deter others from
commiting such crime.Sasi Muscat 26 Mar, 2009 11:54 AM
Its disparagement!!!!!!!!! The civic should be heedful. This is
utterly deplorable.Nirmal Jain Bhopal 26 Mar, 2009 11:55 AM
Shame on these people, who talk of sanskars to others claiming
themselves as the sole preserver of Indian Sanskriti (Culture), by
vandalising pubs and terrorising the lovers on Valentine's Day. Will
not be surprised if he is also supported as Varun Gandhi was for his
wrongdoings.Vishal D'Souza Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 11:58 AM
Each & every small incidents of BJP leaders are highlighted on
National Media, but it's a great achivement by the BJP to win
elections even after all media houses are writing against them. Really
BJP a great performer, shame on media which is tarnishing natinal
partiotic party BJP's image in each & every aspect. But BJP's
popularity growing day by day throughout the country.Vishal D'Souza
Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 12:00 PM
Each & every small incidents of BJP leaders are highlighted on
National Media, but it's a great achievement by the BJP to win
elections even after all media houses are writing against them. Really
BJP a great performer, shame on media which is tarnishing national
patriotic party BJP's image in each & every aspect. But BJP's
popularity growing day by day throughout the country.Vaibhav S Pune 26
Mar, 2009 12:00 PM
Sick....Anonym Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 12:01 PM
I do not think BJP endorses this too as part of their agenda like you
people say BJP endorses communal or whatever. This is a criminal case
and should not be related to any political party while referring. The
headline is quite flashy and diverged. Nikesh Kumar Shukla Delhi 26
Mar, 2009 12:02 PM
Yes!!! This is only possible in the BJP the party with the difference.
They are so called and self declared custodian of Indian culture and
the hinduism.Bindu Bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 12:07 PM
It is absolutely revolting to read these stories, which one gets to
read too often now a days. Where is the world headed to; why is it
that the daughters are not being spared by their own fathers; where
will they find comfort and safety if not their own homes? At least one
positive aspect is that the girl had the courage to come out in the
open - women/girls have to raise their voices...so much that the
judiciary takes some strict measures against such dastardly
crimes.Rammy Sydney, Australia 26 Mar, 2009 12:10 PM
Amazing what the other readers are saying: the girl has to prove why
she kept silent? Why bring up the political party the member is
associated with? Must be election ploy? Simply amazing! Its takes a
great amount of courage to report rape, let alone incest. That is even
more so in a country like India. What will happen to this girl? Who
will marry her? Despite all these she still had the courage to tell
her relatives and all we can give her is suspicion and disdain. Where
are our morals and compassion? We should be ashamed to treat this news
this way!Riz Sydney 26 Mar, 2009 12:11 PM
funny, TOI is pro-BJP ; pls dont be mislead..SRG Mumbai 26 Mar, 2009
12:12 PM
Can't expect better from a BJP leader! All of them are either rapist
or provoke rape and murder!KRRamesh Chennai 26 Mar, 2009 12:13 PM
All this cultural damage is happening in India after the Invaders
occupied Indian Land and dominating with the Political clout. Original
Indians are now suffering! The foreign elements to be thrown out of
Our Country!ckg bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 12:15 PM
If there is anything which can be called as National Shame then it is
such news which make us hang our head. Earlier we used to eulogise our
family culture and tradition and criticise the western about there
nuclear mind, when i read such stories i feel that we are no better in
our moral degradation than others. As far as naming a political party,
it is true that one single person can not be equated with the party as
a whole, but it is necessary for the party involved to immediately
initiate action and come clean. Indian USA 26 Mar, 2009 12:17 PM
Everybody has got something to do in their day to day life. Does that
mean whatever he/she will do in their personal life will be the
resposibility of the organization he/she i working for? I am a
congress supporter but ,where is BJP involved in this shameful
incident and what they are suppsed to do in this case? Sivaram S
Pondicherry 26 Mar, 2009 12:19 PM
In continuum to the comment from manoj, delhi :: Mr. Manoj - what do
you mean by he is a normal criminal ? and you seem more bothered about
the mentioning of the party than the degree of crime involved.
However, I agree that such articles should not be featured on the
first page as it would corrupt innocent minds (if any). Though am an
atheist, I hate it when such fellows (the accused) blame it on
astrology or religion.G S wagle bangalore 26 Mar, 2009 12:22 PM
It looks like there is a well knitted propaganda to show BJP in poor
light. No need to say that all in congresswallahs are "Mahatmas".
Poeple have not forgotten the infamous Tandoori Murder episode in the
heart of the capital of the country.All the electronic media now a
days showing nothing but BJP Hatred.Is there an end for this?I find
the journalism at its worst.meeran singh ahluwal Patiala 26 Mar, 2009
12:22 PM
why you are taking only one instance of BJP leader raping his own
daughter, almost 65% of BJP leaders and workers are regularly doing
this insane thing since years but so far no one of them has been
arrested why coz of politicalconnections as every body is aware
of..the govt and public should bring this to show the world thier
cheap and vulgar mentality and they claim to rule the nation.....ha !
ha ! aks USA 26 Mar, 2009 10:16 PM
Thats very sickening to say the least. If daughters are not protected
by their own fathers who else will. Where does it leave the poor girl?
Why is the mother quiet on this? Castrate all this people who cannot
control their urges..Rape is a beastly act and that too on their own
daughter..man this guy must be sick and insane and should be treated
and put behind bars and asked to work for social welfare organisation
or home for the aged but do not leave this man on the roads for God's
sake. As it is there are so many criminals in many disguises roaming
around and we can ill afford another.vishwas india 27 Mar, 2009 12:37
AM
this is nothing but a propaganda againstt BJP, earlier it was Ramsene,
then Varun and now this case which has nothing to do with BJP. voters
should not be misled with such news.Vishal Agrawal Mumbai 27 Mar, 2009
12:48 AM
It is really sad that girls are treated so badly in our country. More
girls should come out to these victims. India needs a women revolution
but of course not legally like reservation etc because that would only
empower them to do injustice. Something like misuse of dowry act by
girls. India is in a very interesting times.Salim usa 27 Mar, 2009
01:06 AM
Hang Him nowLucas Podolski Chennai 27 Mar, 2009 01:06 AMTOI has just
put a word mentioning BJP. Instead of talking about the main topic,
most of you are talking about TOI or politics. This only shows the
narrow mindedness of most of our people.Tally World 27 Mar, 2009 01:08
AM
Sad to see that people are more worried about BJP rather than the
girl. Are you all out of your minds ? A young girl has been physically
tortured by her own father for years. Think about what she must be
going through. These kind of crimes go beyond party lines, castes and
nationalities. Go look up human rights and dignity in a dictionary.Raj
Delhi 27 Mar, 2009 01:09 AM
The act is reprehensible and the man deserves a severe punishment.
However, I think the act is completely personal and BJP should not be
dragged into it. At the same time, if BJP were smart, it would
immediately issue their own condemnation of the act. That they have
not done so shows how poor the party's PR is. I am a Congress
supporter (simply because it seems to offer better leaders and it
doesn't invoke the Hindutva message again and again). But I am a
bigger believer in democracy and for any democracy to function, we
need more than one competitive party at the national level. BJP has
failed miserably in being that party (more so post Mahajan-Vajpayee
era). I sure hope they get their act together and offer us a thriving
alternative to the Congress. Somnath New York 27 Mar, 2009 01:17 AM
Why doesnot TOI ever print the Accused side of the story? TOI should
start making another section for Rapist dads, women's newspaper,
domestic abuse. The media, people, laws every one beleives women are
innocent in this world and men are the only culprits, in fact women
drive men to do the crime.Emanuel D. Samuel Toronto, On. Canada 27
Mar, 2009 01:29 AM
Child molestation is a common phenomenon all over the world. The weak
preyed on by the strong; betrayal of trust; misplaced affection. In my
experience, it is a sickness based on a deviant love and will not stop
regardless. The main reason is the closeness of the parties and the
high percentage probability it will never be exposed. It is not
considered wicked, immoral, rather rationalized by the existence of an
immense, albeit misplaced, love.Dinkar London 27 Mar, 2009 01:37 AM
what's wrong with this world? An Indian London 27 Mar, 2009 02:04 AM
My heart goes out to this young girl and the other victims in her
family . As a nation we should support her , applaud her incredible
courage for speaking out , give her and the other victims all the
support we can and make sure the monster who perpetrated these crimes
is brought to justice . Anyone who seeks to support this monster who
dares to call himself a '' father '' on this site or any other form of
media should be condemned by right minded viewers . This is a horific
crime that deserves punishment of the stiffest kind although no
punishment would ever be enough for what this man has done . Amit
California 27 Mar, 2009 02:04 AM
As sad as the story is, I am glad that women are finally speaking up
about the abuses that they have to live with. Bravo for getting this
matter out. I share the daughters sentiment that this rapist should be
either jailed or shot. Also, Dear Editor, it is laudable that you are
printing these stories, I would however be wary or partisan politics.
In my opinion, it was completely unnecessary to state the rapists
Party Allegiance - this will only help more with vote-bank
politics...just my 2 cents..Rajkumar Patil Toronto 27 Mar, 2009 02:05
AM
What the hell you guys are talking about? A monster father raped her
daughter for a decade, and instead of pressuring the govt for harsh
punishment for such crimes, you people are takling and playing
polytics here. If allowed and encouraged, many thousands of such
victims will come forward, who were pressured and threatened by their
own family members for years. Such criminals do not belong to any
religion, party or country. They do that hinious crime with all their
conscious and do it repeatedly, to those who are most weak and
vulnerable elements of the society:the children. I hate the so called
Sharia law, but when i read such stories, i really feel that these
criminlas should be treated and punished unhumanly;Jatin London 27
Mar, 2009 02:06 AM
I am shocked after this news in India we are finding new ones
everyday, our law should set very tight punishment for this kind of
crime so it can be a learning lesson for all Fritzl's growing in India
& anywhere in the world, Its shame we have got 2 of same kind in our
own country. Its a shame people are still talking this as Congree v/s
BJP war guys please grow up and is this what we are going to leave for
our future generations....Pls all should get together and do sumthing
about victims and help them in every way to restabilise thier life, if
they are not safe in their own houses then we can forget about
everything else..We need to first look at the core of the problems why
are people turning to their daughters as a sex object and I would say
their other family members are equally responsible for this crime who
knew about it.Jasbir Singh Sydney 27 Mar, 2009 02:10 AM
It is a normal Indian psyche, everything they do have link with
politics. Criminals can use any platform. Shankaracharia was charged,
many swamis went to jail, things happened in Aasa Ram's Ashram, Many
Mullahs or Granthis were also found engaging in immoral activities.
The real thing is getting corruption out of Police and court so that
people feel free to approach them. A website should be started where
anyone can list their problems and seek help. Pedophiles are using
everything in India including SMS, internet etc but they are going
undetected.Prasad Gowda London 27 Mar, 2009 02:17 AM
Dear editor, I am ashamed by the way your reporter has reported this
incident. There is no need to mention ones political inclination to
their personal life and the sins commited at a personal level. I am
sure a corrupt politician is as bad as this sinful man and surely you
can find many in every political party in the country!RK B'lore 27
Mar, 2009 02:27 AM
This is rediculos. There is not much to do with BJP in this case.
There are lots of MLA/MPs are horrible things including raping kids of
things. This is the part of thier culture. You go and investigate the
poltical leaders, you will find much more worst than these. There
stupid ppl here they just go on BJP. I would say, only BJP will do
better govt in the current situation for India. Rest all the parties
are hopelessinderjit U.S.A. 27 Mar, 2009 02:27 AM
Per story, the father is a FAMOUS LEADER, the obvious question will be
of what PARTY, so,the media was bound to name the party,same is with
VARUN GANDHI, he shot the lime light because of BJP, otherwise such
speeches of communal hatred are the ORDER OF THE DAY in India and WHO
CARES without the name of the party. This incident should be condemned
by all including sitting MP from Amritsar who belongs to BJP. Margo
Russia 27 Mar, 2009 02:43 AM
The burning question is MENTALITY and it has nothing to do with any
political party. Lack of openess leads to crime. In school teachers
should explain about child abuse and how kids should react. Education!
Education! Education!Thats sad .... Switzerland 27 Mar, 2009 03:04 AM
Small girls being raped by their fathers uncles or grandfathers. Its
happening since ages and its very hard to control. Small girls are
afraid to come out in public and make noise. Mothers wants to keep
their family name.. In India its happening more then we think. Shame
on you all.ae india 27 Mar, 2009 03:05 AM
It seems Indian culture died long back. What a pity thing happening in
our society. Where is human rights group? parents should see that no
tears in his /her daughter. It is very urgent for the govt to form
commission to take the task. where is relation, what relation. now
everything is dissappearing .It is difficult to express anything about
this ghastly incidents.Vikram Bangalore 27 Mar, 2009 03:23 AM
India should become the first country to award death sentence for
raping minors.Raghu Prabhu melbourne 27 Mar, 2009 03:25 AMKeep
politics out of it. Let the police do their job with out any
interference. If the man has done the worng thing, let him be tried in
the proper manner. Does not matter if he is BJP or
Congress.P.M.G.,pillai Mannar, AllaPUZHA KERALA 27 Mar, 2009 03:43 AM
Because no one care for any basic ethic principles.Male memebers in
home must maintain a distance between thefemale members to prevent
these unwanted relations being developed unknowningly.Code of
behaviour for homes also is very essential to maintain proper
relationship. Original Indian India 27 Mar, 2009 03:43 AM
This is no lies, as it were a lie this man would have not complained
of chest pains. Chest pain complaints are only made by the guilty who
know its imminent of them going to jail. This man is a monster and a
threat to public safety, imagine how could someone ever do this to a
minor and keep doing it. He will surely rot in hell but the big
question is will he rot in life or get away with it? This is indeed a
rarestr of rare cases and the punishment should be rare and extreme;
Gallows or bullet (his daughter or should I say victims wish).on the
fence canada 27 Mar, 2009 04:05 AM
Well I truly sympathize with the girl and accused should be hanged to
death if proven so....but we should also spare a thought that the
accused could well be a victim of conspiracy till it is not proved.
This girl and mother may not be getting along well with this
man....could be family dispute or whatever and they could have got a
perfect plot from Mumbai event to settle the score with him....in
India, we seem to take woman's word over man pretty easily....this
social attitude can easily be exploited by some. Just a thought. Umesh
Korea 27 Mar, 2009 04:08 AM
For last few times these type of news are becoming common in developed
cities like mumbai etc....But I heard same news earlier many times
from Punjab only.......Even in 1999 I heard such type of case first
time the place was Punjab & I was shocked even I did not believe for
sometime..but the truth...Ranjan Singh Noida 27 Mar, 2009 04:16 AM
I hope this is one of the rarest incident ever heard. I am also of the
opinion that it haas nothing to do with the party but then why every
time BJP leadres blames other's for such incidents.. Take on the
example of Mr Varun Gandhi..Who other than Varun would have courage
and guts to challenge that whatever that is being shown on news
channels have been docotred..Insane...the party stand by him. Isn't
that shows the kind of ideology these political parties have...I think
these incidents are coming in otice at the right time because you know
whom you are choosing for next 5 years...atleast you know the one you
have voted for is a rapist who raped his own daughter so atleast you
need to take extra care for your relatives..nick sharma melbourne 27
Mar, 2009 04:30 AM
Everyone over here is think from political aspect. And nearly 70%of
the messages are related to politics. what about that girl who has
been in great pain bcoz of this in human behaviors. Think like a human
being not like insane. J.S. North America 27 Mar, 2009 04:47 AM
Hold your breath mothers of India, there are more rapist fathers
hiding under a screen of pretense of being good fathers. There is a
need for mothers to talk and discuss confidential matters with their
daughters. Do not be afraid to ask if their Dads have made seductive
approaches or even rape them. Do not say it cannot happen to my
daughter and do not blame your daughter if such an incident happen. It
is all the fathers' fault and lack of disrespcet. India I believe, has
become the rape capital of the world. It is a shame to learn that
another father who should have known better raped his daughter for 8
years. There are a lot more incidents in India, which have not been
exposed because mothers and daughters depend on fathers to take care
of them. I storngly urge the government to set up shelters to take of
abused women and children. So much young lives are being destroyed and
so much of innocense and purity are being lost. People who commit such
crimes against the young should be severely punished. ABC Mumbai 27
Mar, 2009 07:28 AM
Related to this incident, I want to express one incident happened. To
one girl (my relative girl) after her marriage, her father in-law
asked her husband (ie his son) to go abroad soon after marriage. After
he (son) went abroad, one day (that time her mother-in law went to
market)that father-in-law asked her to obey for him. When she denied,
suddenly he removed her dress and touched her private part of the body
and told her that he arranged marriage for his son with her, only for
he liked her and loved her. she shouted and cried. Finally he left and
told her, "if you tell this to my son or to my wife, I will separate
you from my son. My son believe whatever I tell him". After that he
did not allow any of her relatives to talk with her in person (its
like house arrest). After one year, his son (that girls husband) came
from gulf country. The girl told all this incident to him. He was
shocked and he did not take any action. Just asked her a promise not
to tell this to anybody. Because all their property is in his fathers
name. If he go aganist his father, he may not give any property to
him. In India many girls are suffering like this. God only can save
the pity girls...... KS INDIA 27 Mar, 2009 08:23 AM
Now the man has become like an animal. Because of these few animal
men, the whole men will be looked with doubt. THEY SHOULD BE BOOKED,
TRIED IN A COURT OF LAW AND PUNISHED VERY FAST AND NOT TAKING EVEN FEW
MONTHS. What a shame to the country?A Ray Burdwan, WB 27 Mar, 2009
08:29 AM
Such incidents give us a glimpse as to how many other weak-willed
humans are hiding. And even worse, there are definitely some mothers,
too, who rape their sons and are under cover. The latter are very
rarely exposed because of the inability of the man to speak out. Men
can never be accepted in society as victims to women. Just imagine
their dolour.Abdullah Malaysia 27 Mar, 2009 09:10 AM
The role of mother is very crucial in preventing this kind of
incidents. After a certain age, mother should keep their daugthers
away from unwanted mingling with males.madhulika hyderabad 27 Mar,
2009 09:50 AM
This is the most heinous act did by a father.It is really shameful
that these types of father do exist in our society...............There
is not a single place on earth which is really safe for girls untill
unless they will come out on their own and onus the responsibility of
themselves and their siblings.This is the only possible solution of
this great ever existing problem..........So girls come out of your
limitations and bondages and be ready to make this world feel that
girls are really capable and competent enough to face all these
problems.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/4317364.cms
Businessman raped daughter for 9 years
Sandhya Nair , TNN, Mar 20, 2009, 02.34am IST
Article Comments (179)
MUMBAI: The sprawling township of Mira Road on the outskirts of the
metropolis woke up to the bizarre news of the arrest of a businessman
for allegedly raping his daughter over nine years, drawing macabre
parallels with Joseph Fritzl of Austria who raped his daughter over 24
years.
Ashok Chore (name changed), aged 60, was arrested by the Mira Road
police on Wednesday night from his apartment for sexually abusing his
daughter over nine years on the advice of a `tantrik' who promised
that doing so would make him prosperous.
Arrested along with Chore was the tantrik, Hasmukh Rathod (60), who
posed as an astrologer, and Chore's 47-year-old wife, who has been
charged with abetting the heinous crime. The three were remanded to
two-day police custody by the Thane sessions court on Thursday whereas
the cops had sought a 14-day remand.
The traumatised girl, now 21, had been silent about her ordeal all
these years but mustered the courage to approach the police after her
father, she alleged, attempted to rape her 15-year-old younger sister
on the advice of the same tantrik.
The elder sister, who works for a private firm in Mumbai, had become
the target of sexual abuse at the age of 12 'when Rathod had advised
Chore to have sex with her in order to prosper. Chore and Rathod were
neighbours in Vile Parle. The maternal uncle of the young girls, who
helped them lodge a complaint, said his sister had been brainwashed by
Rathod.
Chore first sexually abused his elder daughter in 2000 when his
interior designing business failed. According to police, Chore used to
undress his daughter in front of his wife and have sex with her.
The fact that his business did not flourish did not prevent Chore from
continuing with his depraved act. Rathod apparently had great
influence on the Chores. He had, in 2002, managed to get the couple's
consent for sex with the elder daughter.
Chore is believed to have borrowed large amounts of money for his
business. Last November, when Chore once again confided in Rathod
about his failing business, he was advised to have sex with his
younger daughter, a class 10th student. The couple is believed to have
even taken her to Rathod's Vile Parle home for sexual encounters to
avoid the elder daughter's wrath. But when the elder daughter learnt
about it last week, she told her maternal uncle. Both the girls are
currently with their maternal uncle and grandmother.
Chore's advocate Edgar Braganza alleged that his clients were being
framed by the two siblings. ``The elder of the two daughters has
complained that she was threatened and sexually exploited by her
parents and Rathod since 2000. This girl is 21 and till date there has
been no complaint or resistance by her. Is it possible for a father to
rape a daughter for nine years and live under the same roof? Where is
the question of medical examination of the accused since it's not a
recent incident?'' Braganza argued in the court.
The police told the court that they would require a 14-day remand as
there is a possibility that the accused may be connected to a gang
involved in prostitution. (With inputs from Nitin Yeshwantrao)
Dev Kumar Dutta Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 11:37 AM
Why're you hiding the bastard's name? Publish his picture and name
ASAP...we want to see him gaurav mubai 19 Mar, 2009 11:42 AM
This is psycho cause, people doing and thinking like this are mentally
ill. The main cause of this type scenario is arisen due to illegal
porn sites and movies which not make us mentally ill but also produce
adverse effect on our social life gaurav mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 11:43 AM
This is psycho cause, people doing and thinking like this are mentally
ill. The main cause of this type scenario is arisen due to illegal
porn sites and movies which not make us mentally ill but also produce
adverse effect on our social life vaidya pune 19 Mar, 2009 11:44 AM
kill them in public...sudhir Ahmedabad 19 Mar, 2009 11:44 AM
It would be of interest to see the opinion of the self appinted
protectors of Hinduism know about the Tantrik. Would they oppose it or
would their blind love for anything remotely hindu make them shy away
from even uttering a few words against such incidents.pramod nagpur 19
Mar, 2009 11:45 AM
aise father ko zinda rahne ka koi adhikar nahi hai aur jo 'tantrik'
aise suggestions deta ho use to beech churahe par zinda jala dena
chahiye.Mehrunnisa Farooq Qatar 19 Mar, 2009 11:48 AM
Is our Indian Culture Slowly dying ? Betiyan to baap ki Izzat thi, aab
baap hi izzat se khilwad kare. This is the worst of human crimes, on
daughters fathered by himself, the parents should be punished
severly.ilyas bharuch 19 Mar, 2009 11:49 AM
Just kill this bastered in publicS W Kamath Secunderabad 19 Mar, 2009
11:54 AM
These type of cases should not be considered as isolated ones
involving depraved individuals, if we really hope to think of India as
a modern nation in the 21st century. Why can't we have the will, at
least in such cases, for demanding the death penalty for the rapist.
Imagine if this is the scenario in Mumbai, one shudders to think of
what would be happening in rural areas. Mr.Rationality USA 19 Mar,
2009 11:55 AM
If the tantrik would have told the father to parade his daughters in
the nude, he would have done that too!. That is why I always say
"DON'T FOLLOW ANY GURUS" AS 99% OF THEM ARE FAKE!Aks USA 19 Mar, 2009
11:56 AM
Stupid belief. These may be an excuse for that fellow also, who knows.
Really some of the absurd stories are slowly coming out due to media
coverage etc. Put them all the accused behind the bars for lifetime
without parole or leninency including the 'tantrik'. Shruti Ggn 19
Mar, 2009 11:59 AM
What a shame!!! These people should be hanged.Mark India 19 Mar, 2009
12:02 PM
He should be hanged to death..this is devil's job,there could be
several such cases in India,but going undercover...due to fear of
shame and disjust.puvathi pukuvathi ksa 19 Mar, 2009 12:04 PM
send this bastard also to Austria,his very own elder brother
JosefFritzl it seems both has come out from the same tunnel, shoot
them from guns from point blank range so that thier parts get blown
out , send them to the gallows,they will spoil the younger
generation ...... or dont publish such reports please!!!!!!Anuj U.P 19
Mar, 2009 12:05 PM
what a shame.... these animals should be hanged to death in public ..
they defy all morals that any society is biult on... if girls aren't
safe in thier own homes.. where else will they be safe. ?J.Mukund
Hyderabad. 19 Mar, 2009 12:07 PMSuch type of persons should be given
capital punishment. Hang them untill death.naro delhi 19 Mar, 2009
12:09 PM
This extremely appalling behaviour is surely comparable to the hedious
josep fritzl crime,send them,both husband & wife to life
imprisonment.No sane person would have an incestuous relationship
wether at the advice of a 'tantrik'or not.It defies nature and only
extremely sick minded people would resort to this kind of behaviour.I
do hope that the courts will mete out the same punishment to both
husband/wife duo as she is equally gulity of abatting this heinous
crime against her daughters.Deb Kolkata 19 Mar, 2009 12:11 PM
This types of most hatred crimes are increasing every day and it can
break the social bonding and trust and thus can result in complete
failure of a state very soon. These filthy criminals should be
punished in a way that others do not dare to think about these in
future.harees dubai 19 Mar, 2009 12:12 PM
i wonder why didnt u guys put the names of the parents n the
tantrikAsh USA 19 Mar, 2009 12:22 PM
This so sick, as bad as it can get. How can a parent do this to his
own flesh and blood just for the sake of money. He should get life in
prison.RK India 19 Mar, 2009 12:22 PMPlease Plublicly trash this
bastard and kill him...Thameem Nairobi 19 Mar, 2009 12:23 PM
Why still we are believing the astrology? If you want to get rid off
your problems, work hard and pray to god. Not to individuals like Sai
Baba, these are thieves, we are living in 21st century, they are just
spiritual guys they can't do anything. can they live for ever? why we
need to trust them? Stop. Believe yourself. Jyoti Sunnyvale, CA 19
Mar, 2009 12:25 PM
How disgusting! We need to spread more awareness among young children
in schools about matters such as incest. Maybe each school can have a
special cell which helps students who face such problems in their own
homes and escalates the case to the police if necessary.Theresa Dubai
19 Mar, 2009 12:25 PM
I was traumatized this last few days hearing the details of incest
case in Austria. Hearing of a similar story in my own city really
makes me sad. I'm sure there are many more cases which are not
reported due to social stigma. I pray that reading about these stories
other kids will break their silence and expose these evil deeds of
their parentsCapt. Brian Fernandez Bandra, Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 12:29
PM
This is what happens when we make wealth and money the one and only
principle in our lives!RG Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 12:30 PM
Found guilty, hang this guy..this is really bad.Kamal Gurgaon 19 Mar,
2009 12:31 PM
Totally Disgusting, This old businessman of 60 years should be hanged
for this heinous crime. Zaheer Australia 19 Mar, 2009 12:33 PM
hard to swollow..some tantrik say something and this dumbhead spoils
the whole meaning of fatherhood. its a shame that todays women has no
burrow left to hide. whom do they trust now?shabana Bangalore 19 Mar,
2009 12:33 PM
It is even more revolting and diabolic than Josef Fritzl's case.
Fritzl is diagnosed as psychotic and a pervert and he did all that in
a secret way till he was caught. Unbelievable greed and perversion is
evident in this case than just superstition.Any adjective will fall
short to explain this heinous act. Both the parents are a classic
example of inhumanity and a shame for term "parent".we can only
imagine the mental state of the child in this case whose trust and
faith in her parent as well as life is so ruthlessly breached. There
is no punishment which is enough for such a crime...capital punishment
is perhaps the easiest way out for the accused shabana Bangalore 19
Mar, 2009 12:33 PM
It is even more revolting and diabolic than Josef Fritzl's case.
Fritzl is diagnosed as psychotic and a pervert and he did all that in
a secret way till he was caught. Unbelievable greed and perversion is
evident in this case than just superstition.Any adjective will fall
short to explain this heinous act. Both the parents are a classic
example of inhumanity and a shame for term "parent".we can only
imagine the mental state of the child in this case whose trust and
faith in her parent as well as life is so ruthlessly breached. There
is no punishment which is enough for such a crime...capital punishment
is perhaps the easiest way out for the accused vicky uae 19 Mar, 2009
12:34 PM
how come he raped his own daughter .this guys hast to punished with
sex torture to them.jalaluddin palekar. UAE. 19 Mar, 2009 12:37 PM
Have islamic Laws to protect the society from such Evil acts.
Jalaluddin Palekar. UAE.mmalbari Kochi 19 Mar, 2009 12:37 PM
When there is a question of Rape and Molestation, We Indians cannot be
behindPinaki Sengupta Rishra 19 Mar, 2009 12:37 PM
A law should now be framed and exemplary punishment to be given to all
the accused so nobody will even dare to do such a crime ever.santosh
sinha beijing 19 Mar, 2009 12:38 PM
It can happen only in mumbai in Indiasaj thomas dubai 19 Mar, 2009
12:39 PM
crime against women are increasing ,,,,and there is no one to voice
against it ,,,,,,,its the poor and the oppressed who are left to the
fate... no one.. is there to raise voice where are the moral police
who raised so many issues ....about culture ,,,, i have decided not to
vote ...anyone ...who are good for nothingGaurav Delhi 19 Mar, 2009
12:40 PM
Before any thing is done to the father i want that bloody, Tantrik to
be punished. And also the father must be given as harsh punishment as
any one could ever getKobita Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 12:44 PM
How disgusting can one get. Really pains me to note the extent one can
go to gain wealth. The culprits should be punished appropriately.Avi
Australia 19 Mar, 2009 12:45 PM
Highly obnoxious act. Shame on such dads.ajaz bangalore 19 Mar, 2009
12:47 PM
This is totally inhuman the father and the tantrik should be burnt
alive ...............it is totally inhuman JJJJJ Pak 19 Mar, 2009
12:48 PM
This is what you are indians..anne India 19 Mar, 2009 12:49 PMGive him
sever punishment so that in futher no father can do this. This is
really a shame. How can a father do this to his own flesh. I request
and appeal all the girls come forwards when this things start
happenning with them.dont keep quite, it is shame, but instead of
suffering, better to complain and get rid of this devil fathers. It is
big shame when mother who support her husband.We read this all
happening in foreign country, but this thing happening India. Now no
one will come to protect this types of issues which is against our
culture.Sabeera Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 12:53 PM
This rapist dad should be hanged along with his wife. Severe
punishment should be given to both. In Mumbai all this sort of things
happens. Even many daughter in-law's are suffering from issues like
this. I am one person from Mumbai faced by father in-law (but somehow
saved myself), but my husband did not believe. Many pity girls are
living in the world. dr.anupam rajasthan 19 Mar, 2009 12:57 PM
that tantrik and father must be hang on,how anybody can even think
just for moneydr.anupam rajasthan 19 Mar, 2009 12:57 PM
that tantrik and father must be hang on,how anybody can even think
just for moneydr.anupam rajasthan 19 Mar, 2009 12:57 PM
that tantrik and father must be hang on,how anybody can even think
just for moneyshoukat firfiray NRI 19 Mar, 2009 12:57 PM
both (culprit and tantrik should be given capital punishment (hang to
death in public) for lesson to masses. There should not be any lapses
in passing the verdict from judiciary. Rajehs Chennai 19 Mar, 2009
12:58 PM
He is not a human being.....I think may be an animal..Only animals do
see such a difference in sexfaisal dhahran 19 Mar, 2009 01:01 PM
What if this is NOT true? What if the girls wanted money or something
from their parents, like to marry someone they did not like, etc? Why
are people being areested just on the word of someone without any
evidence???? If this is another case of lying, like so many are in
India, then the parents should use every legal means to sue the
government and the police.Nikit Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 01:01 PM
This sought of people humiliates our society and even the man kind,
they should be sentenced to death and especially the tantrik in
public. These guys are humiliating all of us.dr.anupam rajasthan 19
Mar, 2009 01:01 PM
that tantrik and father must be hang on,how anybody can even think
just for moneydr.anupam rajasthan 19 Mar, 2009 01:01 PM
that tantrik and father must be hang on,how anybody can even think
just for moneyRaj Chennai 19 Mar, 2009 01:05 PM
Those men should be cut downAN INDIAN Abroad 19 Mar, 2009 01:05 PMT
his person his wife and the "TANTRIK" all are animals, they should be
punished severely. Shame on him for committing such a heinous crime.
No lawyer shoudl help these people and no police officer should
support them. Shame on them for bringing disgrace on India and Indian
people.s. wadhwa new delhi 19 Mar, 2009 01:06 PM
The laws in our country need to be flexible enough to warrant instant
punishment in such heinous cases.Ramanpreet Delhi, India 19 Mar, 2009
01:09 PM
such a shame full incident. it appears we indians have lost our
cultural values which is always being cherished by others. i am so
disappoited with this factRaj USA 19 Mar, 2009 01:11 PMSick.R.KUMAR
NCR 19 Mar, 2009 01:14 PM
photographs of such crimnals should be published prominantly in the
media and then the punishment should be --hanging them upside down in
a public place till they die and their dead bodies thrown to dogs &
vultures.DONALD ALMAS DUBAI 19 Mar, 2009 01:17 PM
THE FATHER AND THE TANTRIK SHOULD BE CASTRATED AND THE MOTHER
IMPRISONED FOR LIFE.IT SURE WOULD BE THE PUNISHMENT IF THIS WOULD
HAPPEN IN SAUDI ARABIA.NOW THAT THE FATHER IS A BUSINESS MAN HE WOULD
SQUASH THE MATTER PAYING MONEY.SHAME ON THE INDIAN LAW AND ORDER AND
THE CORRUPTION INVOLVED. H K Bhargava Bangkok Thailand 19 Mar, 2009
01:18 PM
Do not bring religion into this. The Girl's Father needs to be
executed as he actually performed the crime. Tantric comes next and
also needs a VERY HARSH punishment.S.L.J.Gallyot Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009
01:19 PM
No leniency should be shown to such a pervert. The crime is worse
because it has violated the safety and security that a father brings
to his family. the tantrik is equally guilty and should face the same
life imprisonment.We have perverts masquerading as tantrics and
swamis. The Parivar has been obstructing the introduction of the
Superstitious practices bill for obvious reasonsNitin Valecha Delhi 19
Mar, 2009 01:21 PM
The case presents the levels of superstition(s) that are still
embedded in our society and the influence of it on even the educated
masses. The culprit(s)(Father & Tantrik) should be given the severest
punishment as it defames and clobbers the "Parent-child" relationship
and falls inot the "rarest of rare" category.Dr. M M Tiwari Raipur 19
Mar, 2009 01:28 PM
No words to condemn the henious crime.How can one even think such
inhuman acts that too from literate persons.Where our society is
leading to?There may be many other cases which are not reported.This
is just superstition,no Tantrik can ever do anything except befooling
persons to make his money.Exemplary punishment must be given to
Father,Mother and the Tantrik. Qaari Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 01:29 PM
The problem here is two fold. Tantrik or occultist can not be banned
because many people have faith in them. These people may feel deprived
of the gain if there is ban on practices based on supernatural powers.
All the money spent on CHANDRAYAN project is waste if the BABAS can
bring moon on palm of your hand. But the BABAS can be watched for
criminal acts. Second problem is INCEST. This can be controlled simply
if the police support is guarunteed which is for what ever reason
absent in many cases. The victims in many cases may not have sense,
mental or physical strentgh to oppose the criminal act. Neighbours
surely become aware of such acts if it continues for long time. They
don't intervene for not buying trouble in case there is no
administrative support to them. To have sympathy for victim may cost
dear and that is the reason no one comes near. Kunal Pune 19 Mar, 2009
01:29 PM
Horrible! Put aside culture stuff, it just shows to what extent a
human mind can go for some selfish benefitssahil india 19 Mar, 2009
01:34 PM
please let us know the name of that criminalAlihusain Mira Road 19
Mar, 2009 01:34 PM
It is a shame for Mira road residents to have such type of acts. As a
resident of Mira Road I feel that these people should be punished in
public by the people. Abdul Azeez Ullal Mangalore, Karnataka 19 Mar,
2009 01:35 PMOnly animals can do like this. Hang this bitch as soon as
possibleamer hyd 19 Mar, 2009 01:36 PM
The case has to be interogated as soon as possible Courts should not
delay such a things for long periods. Which can give rise to such a
criminals as per the tantriks this are very foolish people spoiling
lifes of innocent people for their sake and livelibood if they found
guilty their heads must be cut in public. so that any body with
thoughts of gaining powers or wealth should not believe such a
tantriks who are ready to murder the humanity.Ghanav sydney 19 Mar,
2009 01:41 PM
its funny hw a freakkin antrik can mislead a father to rape his own
daughters... to hell with him n da couple. dese guys hav no right 2
livekasmur hyderabad 19 Mar, 2009 01:41 PM
he should be fired in front of the public.he is not a father he is a
mad dog and mad dogs should not be left kill himSanjit Bal Gurgaon 19
Mar, 2009 01:42 PM
Such a person does not deserve a trail or has any right to recourse of
law. This person deserves the death penalty for completely depraving
the image of a parent and runining the life of his own daughters.
Callous, self centered and depraved people like him and his wife have
no right to live in civilized society.Tauseef Ahmed Delhi 19 Mar, 2009
01:43 PM
Such a shameful incident like this not only put a dent in our culture
but also made mockery of father child relation. A person like him
should be hanged in public so that nobody else could even dare to
think about such henious thing.Rajesh Qatar 19 Mar, 2009 01:43 PM
These crimnals must be punished as per Islamic Law (Shariyah). stone
them and cut the head publically for the lesson of people like Saudi
Arabia. Saudi Arabia has the lowest crime (tend to zero) in the world
due to Islamic Law. Thanks to all om US 19 Mar, 2009 01:44 PMhow some
one can rape some one for 7 years....is this possibleAbhishek MEERUT
19 Mar, 2009 01:50 PM
Ofcourse such a man should be hanged to death if he has committed such
a heinous crime. But, addition to this, Common man has his/her mind
set to believe such incidence to be absolutely truth without any
proofs and evidences and at once get sympathesised with the victim.
Truth must be Explored first!!vinod pune 19 Mar, 2009 01:51 PM
the father should be shot at sight..Samad Khan Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009
01:53 PM
This is sick!! Rape your own child for greed of money. Indian society
was known for its modesty, principals and values.Somewhere along the
recent way, we Indians have lost it all and have become a very
greedy,insensitive and a shallow society. Why take the man to court??
Hang him at Ghandi chowk along with the tantrik.SMF Dubai,UAE 19 Mar,
2009 01:52 PM
India should adopt the Sharia law(Islamic law).This is the only answer
to such henious crimes.People will think twice even before they think
of such evil acts. Think about it India.It will make difference.This
is the true Law.Neel Gagan New Delhi 19 Mar, 2009 01:53 PM
This is just rubbish...they have not done it just becoz Tantrik has
told..or for money...root cause may be non-fullfillment of sexual
desires. It is shameful that Mother was knowing all about it....and
she did nothing to stop it... Bose Delhi 19 Mar, 2009 02:02 PM
If this comes out to be true ultimately, then the only punishment for
these beasts is a single shot at the back of their
head....PERIOD.....Its sickening to the stomach...SMF Dubai,UAE 19
Mar, 2009 01:52 PM
India should adopt the Sharia law(Islamic law).This is the only answer
to such henious crimes.People will think twice even before they think
of such evil acts. Think about it India.It will make difference.This
is the true Law.Neel Gagan New Delhi 19 Mar, 2009 01:53 PM
This is just rubbish...they have not done it just becoz Tantrik has
told..or for money...root cause may be non-fullfillment of sexual
desires. It is shameful that Mother was knowing all about it....and
she did nothing to stop it... lenna kanpur 19 Mar, 2009 01:55 PM
for everything..ranging from terrorism to lack of morality...we
Indians tend to blame the west...now this episode of a father raping
his daughters...let us blame western countries
again.....ha..ha........ha...zh7272 south africa 19 Mar, 2009 02:04 PM
Apply sharia law to correct these greedy and crook so that we can be a
good example to the whole world.neha india 19 Mar, 2009 02:05 PMdnt
knw hw a father can do this to his own daughters.. Amol Bangalore 19
Mar, 2009 02:09 PM
This is an example of what these tantriks are doing to our society.
Why not pass on a law to make this illegal, so these practices can not
be carried out. There are thousands of tantriks today in any city of
India. Also, another thing that happens is astrology, although not
this bad, but it definately influence people to take decisions based
on some stupid stars, we should come out and ban these things once and
forever from our country. People are openly allowed to offer advise
without any scientif support. This is stupid and if we tolerate this,
its going to make us look like real stupid society. I am sure there
are thousands of such cases in various forms hiding throughout India.
Time to pass a law to make this illegal.Peter Oman 19 Mar, 2009 02:10
PM
Signs of our times and deeds of these parents are difficult for us to
digest in reading this article.Life for those kids will be deplorable
and unthinkable.It's a crime before God and Humanity and TOI must
publish the photos of these culprits.Money is still God for many until
this day.How come are these fraudsters caught by the media during the
Global recession period?Nanoti S.K. Nasik 19 Mar, 2009 02:12 PM
It is really shamful that father is raping his own daughters.
Undoudtebly, only punishment for the father should be hanged to death.
In the same time, all sympathy should be extended to the victims, who
have suffered such a crime in their early childhood from their own
father.Rashmi Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 02:12 PM
This is a ridiculous thing , how one can even think of doing this. he
should be punished as hang till death that also in front of
public.Girish Delhi 19 Mar, 2009 02:13 PM
We should not let this guy die simply by hanging or shooting him. We
should first break his 2-3 bone here and there and then cut his flesh
at multiple places. Remember, do not let this guy. Keep breaking his
bones but keep him alive so that he beg for death.J D Barman India 19
Mar, 2009 02:13 PM
is he a father and most astonishing that is he a human being or a wild
animal. He and his associates should not be forgiven and should be
rewarded with an appropriate punishment.INDIAN INDIA 19 Mar, 2009
02:15 PM
GUYS PLS STOP DISCUSSING, N MAKE A SOLUTIONS.. WE HAV TO WAKE UP TO
WORK ON IT. ITS NOT THE FIRST TIME, IF U GO THROUGH VILLAGES U WILL
FIND SUCH SIMILAR CASES.. GOVRNMENT IS NOT GOING TO ACT ANY THING, END
OF THE DAY THEY WILL GET BAIL, THATS FOR SURE.. SO LETS TAKE EACH OF
US A RESPONSIBALITY TO SAVE OUR COUNTRY OUR CULTURE TO GET RID OF THIS
SMAMEFULL ACTS. isar mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 02:16 PM
Mulsim law is great on this count. India should adpot the mulsim law
against all such crimes for every such criminal irrespective of
religionR C SHAH MUMBAI 19 Mar, 2009 02:16 PM
HE SHALL BE HANGED UNTIL DEATHR C SHAH MUMBAI 19 Mar, 2009 02:16 PM
HE SHALL BE HANGED UNTIL DEATHRahul Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 02:16 PM
What a shame. Madhukar Bengaluru 19 Mar, 2009 02:17 PMBoth the father
as well as the mother should be hanged.Soumitra Noida 19 Mar, 2009
02:19 PM
burn his whole body with cigarette... give him antibiotics ... let
those wounds heal ... burn him again ... repeat it for the rest of his
life. Prakasam Bharat 19 Mar, 2009 02:21 PMHang that father, mother
and Tantrik, after whipping them for 90 days.sorry4victims Kolkata 19
Mar, 2009 02:24 PM
i m really sorry for the victims of such heinous crimes. Joseph Fritzl
in Austria can now at least hold his head high knowing that he is not
the only person committing such crimes. May God Help the world. May
Peace prevail.joson mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 02:27 PM
Only solution for Humanity .. An end to evil acts, an end to crime ,
and for a peace all over the world . , implement Islamic law.. Today
Saudi Arabia has the lowest crime rate .. owing to Islamic law
onlyIndian Dubai 19 Mar, 2009 02:29 PM
Sickening act. All the three deserve a killing by throwing stones at a
public place. No lawyer should take their case. TAHER EBRAHIM JEDDAH
19 Mar, 2009 02:29 PM
First collect hard evidence and proof him as he did this heinous crime
against his own daughters then only hang him along with his "TANTRIK".
Kumar UAE 19 Mar, 2009 02:31 PM
Why produce in court and creat tension in everybody. Please kill the
husband and wife.Indian Mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 02:33 PM
Error!!! this happened in Mumbai as says the headlines.. but the
article is begin with NEW DELHI: .. delhi is on tis reporter's mind
too much for such stuff?? Suman Kashyap Hong Kong 19 Mar, 2009 02:39
PM
To, those advocating Sharia law, as per Sharia they need four eye
witnesses to prove a rape, which is very difficult to get. Hence if
Sharia is applied the beats will be more encouraged as there will
almost never be 4 people watching a rape.Surendran Middle East 19 Mar,
2009 02:40 PM
Extremely shameful for every Indian. This men-shaped animal must be
hanged until death alongwith his wife and tantrik. Government must
concentrate on finding such tantrik working throughout the country
which badly damage a community altogether.seema chembur 19 Mar, 2009
02:40 PM
Its realy horrible incident to see Father raping his own daughters
with his better half help How can mother of 2 tell her husband to have
sex with their daughter They both father and mother of the sibling
should be hanged Thats the best punishmentRafeeq London 19 Mar, 2009
02:48 PM
How long will tantriks and religious extremistis hijack us? Its ironic
and pathetic that even the educated people get trapped by these
senseless people. Give them a punishment no one ever can dare to even
think of commiting such crimes. Tabi Dubai 19 Mar, 2009 02:52 PM
Father, Mother & all other persons involved in this crime, should be
hanged till death that too in some public area. This will give a great
message to the other criminals.....Vijay Hyderabad 19 Mar, 2009 02:56
PM
this kind of acts should be condemned and the culprits should be
punished. Our laws has to be changed so that people will not hide
behind the loopholes and escape from punishment. I request the
concerned authorities to wake up and take action againist them without
wasting much time.rene fernandez bahrain 19 Mar, 2009 02:58 PM
with reference to the rape of women in India, what has L.K.Advani/
Sonia Gandhi done to change the law ? Advani wanted to bring in
tougher punishments to the rapists. Why did he not push for life
imprisnment ? This issue must be raised in this elections and vote
ONLY for the candidates promise to support this legislation. We must
try to stop crimes against women/children AJAY BADIYAL NOIDA 19 Mar,
2009 03:09 PM
incedences like this will destroy relationship of father and
daughter.hussain mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 03:09 PM
three of them should be hanged till death....but other than this our
police should start strict action/investigation against such type of
tantrik ; there are lots in india...Ahmed Sharif Dubai 19 Mar, 2009
03:12 PM
These joseph fritzls must be awarded deaths. what kind of world we are
living in, ladies please beware of outsiders as well as insiders. THE
WORLD HAS CHANGED A LOT. In the name of faith it is an insult to
religion by these creepy TANTRICS.Shabu Dubai 19 Mar, 2009 03:13 PM
This is relly Shamefull for all indians and we are sorry for the
victims and we want immidiate actian agains this bastard no need to
put him in jail for years. he should kill by stones in front of people
and should be live telecast on all chanells then in future any body
even don't think like this . He want more money for whome ???? and
it's my requset to indian Govt give Authority to Victim Girls for
giving punishment to that bloody Tantrik .Shabu Dubai 19 Mar, 2009
03:14 PM
This is really Shamefull for all indians and we are sorry for the
victims and we want immidiate action against this bastard no need to
put him in jail for years. he should be killed by stones in front of
people and should be live telecast on all chanells then in future any
body even don't think like this . He want more money for whome? and
it's my requset to indian Govt give Authority to Victim Girls for
giving punishment to that bloody Tantrik .AH Syndey 19 Mar, 2009 03:14
PM
I too have been dreaming of becoming wealthy for a long time. Does
this Tantrik also offer his daughter (or wife, depending upon who can
take it) for such services? When will people give up superstition in
India?sadeq Duabi 19 Mar, 2009 03:24 PM
Now we need to stop this type of crimes in our society, only possible
by beheading these criminals in front of public to make society aware
what'll happen before committing this type crimesAnonymously_Yours
Europe 19 Mar, 2009 03:28 PM
It is stunning that everyone seems to comment on how the accused party
should be dealt with. People have suggested overtly sadist cruelties
too, providing an insight into the natural mindset of the human
community. Oddly, no one seems to have mentioned any sort of monetary
help, psychological counseling or shelter and future support
commitment for the victims, one of whom happens to be at a tender age
below 18. Once again, it's exciting to note how frustrated and
carnally active the society is, given a chance to vent our anger, most
of us would turn into savage beasts to punish the guilty...yet few or
none would stand to help the deceasedShyam Noida 19 Mar, 2009 03:32 PM
The tantrik stuff has been added just to save the man from his crime.
It seems to be a ploy by his lawyer. I a sure there was no outsider to
instigate the accused.GSM MUMBAI 19 Mar, 2009 03:32 PM
Kill this man and tantrik. There is no other punishment for guys like
these. DEEPAK GHOSH FARIDABAD 19 Mar, 2009 03:41 PM
ALL THE THREE, THE TANTRIK,BUSINESSMAN AND HIS WIFE BE LINED UP IN
PUBLIC AND MUST BE ORDERED TO A FIRING SQUAD TO SHOOT THEM IN ONE GO
OR MUST BE HANGED IN PUBLIC.THIS MUST BE THE LAW OF OUR COUNTRY NOW.
EVEN RAPIST MUST BE HANGED,SHOT OR THEIR PRIVATE PART SHOULD BE CUT
OFF. THIS MUST BE THE LAW NOW.Illur Iqbal Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 03:42
PM
Please do Insert a Burning Rod to the beloved Parents for doing this
CrimeRubi London 19 Mar, 2009 03:51 PM
What a shame!!I really feel sorry for the girl,this man should be
given such a punishment by law,that the whole world eyes will be open
and no one will dare to do this again after seeing the
punishment.sharda goregaon 19 Mar, 2009 03:56 PMcut his private part
completelyAnita Dsilva Dubai 19 Mar, 2009 04:06 PM
This is really a VERY SHAMEFUL act. Have we human beings lost our
moral values? to top it all, a Mother encouraging such an act gives me
goosebumps, a I am a mother of 2 girls myself but in my sane head I
would give up my life but save my children from such ordeal. This is
actually a SORRY state of today's world. GOD HELP US!!!SJ dubai 19
Mar, 2009 04:09 PM
I can only say that this is the result of getting in love with western
civilization...progress and modernization does not mean that we leave
our values & culture..incest is a normal thing in west as we all know
and sadly it is entering into our society just coz we feel that
whatever west does is good..we need soul searchingAmrit Lal Toppo
Ahmedabad 19 Mar, 2009 04:20 PM
This is absolutely shamful to the society,father is raping his own
daughters more than 3000 thousand time. he is not worthy to be called
father by his daughters. he should be punished. he has turned satan he
is no more human being. Amrit Lal Toppo Ahmedabad 19 Mar, 2009 04:20
PM
This is absolutely shamful to the society,father is raping his own
daughters more than 3000 thousand time. he is not worthy to be called
father by his daughters. he should be punished. he has turned satan he
is no more human being. rajeev gurgaon 19 Mar, 2009 04:43 PM
This kind of crimes should be dealt with only one kind of punishment.
Take them in full public view, cut the pvt part of this man and the
tantrik into pieces and offer it to the dogs!! Hang the lady! The
entire activity should be lively telecast to prevail deterrent for any
prospective criminal!!!Mohammed bombay 19 Mar, 2009 04:49 PM
Tantrik said and father raped his own daughter for 9 long years..WOW.
even hollywood can't make this kind of sense less Movie it could
happen only in indiaReader Pune 19 Mar, 2009 04:51
PMSHAMEFUL.........Asim Ali Khan Jeddah 19 Mar, 2009 04:54 PM
No need to produce them before the court. Straight hang them. Dont
give time to investigate. Both the parents should be hanged till
death.Clive Kuwait 19 Mar, 2009 05:02 PM
I agree that the faces of Such criminals have to be shown in the media
as soon as their crime is established. Even their names should be
shown in bold. And they should not be hanged immediately. They have to
be tortured for years so that they repent for their crimeSrikanth Bhat
Chennai 19 Mar, 2009 05:03 PM
Rape, molestation, child abuse and many such in-humane acts have been
hitting the headlines of late. The legal proceedings get dragged for
years owing to the loop holes in our legal system. Why doesn't our
judicial come out with a ruthless punishment as a reply to this
devilish act. Amputate hands, legs & organ and hang till death. Human
Rights may have their reservations on this, but HR is for Humans
(victims) and not for the devils (criminals).Srikanth Bhat Chennai 19
Mar, 2009 05:04 PM
Rape, molestation, child abuse and many such in-humane acts have been
hitting the headlines of late. The legal proceedings get dragged for
years owing to the loop holes in our legal system. Why doesn't our
judicial come out with a ruthless punishment as a reply to this
devilish act. Amputate hands, legs & organ and hang till death. Human
Rights may have their reservations on this, but HR is for Humans
(victims) and not for the devils (criminals).Blank India 19 Mar, 2009
05:15 PM
I am at loss of words...on how to condemn this ...this what...my mind
goes blank on hearing acts like this what's wrong man...where is this
going...even if one person is doing this, -what are the reasons, how
can someone stoop so low -Is there something that can be done
here...punishing/killing them is just a reaction..how can it solve the
problem - Are they mentally so sick?? Manasakanthi, Konanakunte,
Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 05:16 PM
Its disgraceful to the indian community and we feel sorry for the poor
girl who when thru this commotion all these years. People of strange
attitude are still in existence.Both the father and mother should be
punished and the punishment should be viewed in all the TV channels
(Breaking news). A new law should be framed for such people. There
might be still more People who are behaving similar to this and it
will teach them a lesson that they cant escape the law. Shaindil
bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 05:20 PM
The daughter and mother should have murdered this opportunistic and
dirty guy long back. If the tantric tells this guy to eat shit, will
he do that? This is the truth India 19 Mar, 2009 05:28 PM
Incest-raping your own kids- is rampant in India, rural and urban. It
has always been a 'family secret' where the mother actually provides
the daughter to her husband. Please do not blame the West, instead
praise them. They widely publicize any incest, whereas Indian
politicians and goons silence the victims. No one hears of their
cries, all pretend that everything is hunky dory in our nation. Wake
up, look around, there will always be examples right under your nose.
Why else to praise the West? because they teach our kids to have guts
to speak up. Ask any older gynecologist, they have been seeing this
for decades.GE Australia 19 Mar, 2009 05:56 PM
India is truly the rape capital of the world.sanjay dubai 19 Mar, 2009
06:01 PM
i am totally in favour of what rajeev from gurgaon has mentioned. it
will be a lesson for those cases which are not out in public
yet.jahangir houlader maldives 19 Mar, 2009 06:06 PM
I think the man should be handed over to the people and tell the mob o
do whatever they like to do.Muhammad MN 19 Mar, 2009 06:11 PM
This is shameful.Adnan Oman 19 Mar, 2009 06:35 PM
Isn't this unbelievable? The heinous act depicts the greed of an
mentally ill individual & to what extent he can fall for the sake of
his worldly desires. All three should be tortured to death for
resorting to one of the worst crime. They have not only ruined their
daughters life but also defamed the father - daughter relationship.
kumar mumbai 19 Mar, 2009 06:37 PM
Even the judiciary would shed tears for the innocent girls. The so
called business man and his wife have no place to live in the human
habituate and so is the tantrik. all this three should get the capital
punishment with no right to appeal. God knows how many people this
tantrik must have brain washed. The police should investigate this
angle too.GANI AHMED SHAIKH DUBAI 19 Mar, 2009 07:27 PM
this kind of people should be hanged in public, this so called
tantriks take people for a ride. COMMON FOLKS WE ARE IN MODERN WORLD
DON'T BELIEVE IN THIS THINGS.Sule Paritosh Plano 19 Mar, 2009 07:28 PM
please try to understand that Merely Beating a Single person wont stop
such activities from happening in future. A businessman has no
religion / ethics. His only intention is money. I also feel that his
Wife is equally responsible for the Crime. Please dont publish the
name of the culprit, as people can Backtrace to their daughters and
make their life miserable Agniyah Shaikh Sharjah 19 Mar, 2009 08:12 PM
International Women's Day was celebrated all over the world recently
with great pomp and show! In the heart of Mumbai these two girls
suffered meanwhile. And how many suffer daily in the same manner!
Girls must be given the courage to openly protest any wrong done to
them. The mother seem to be an impossible person- She should be given
the toughest sentence for her 'silence' and approval for this criminal
act.Abu Abdullah USA 19 Mar, 2009 08:35 PM
Absolutely appalling. What were these middle-aged "adults" thinking?
The Austrian "incest dad" was enough as a pervert in this
world.Tanveer London 19 Mar, 2009 08:37 PM
stupid comment from SJ, Dubai 'incest is a normal thing in west as we
all know and sadly it is entering into our society'. One must be an
idiot to thing incest is 'normal' in any society. In no society incest
is normal. Stop this hatred for west. By that logic, the 60 yr old and
the tantrik was influenced by the west to do such thing!!!!!! what a
laugh!!!! stop blaming the west. this things happens in any society
and we must admint that our indian society also has such incest,
though its not common. Most of the cases are suppressed because of
loss of family honor (the so-called izzat), reputation to the society/
comminuty/country etc.Somnath New York 19 Mar, 2009 09:02 PM
There is no real upliftment of women, such issues would have never
occurred if govt provided more jobs and education than making laws in
favour of women. The laws need to be gender neutral and govt should
promote more jobs and education for women and make them independent.
Govt's policies are just eye wash and at the ground level it never
reaches the general public.Raj Orlando, Florida 19 Mar, 2009 10:01 PM
Media is more active nowadays and due to which more cases will come
out like this incidence. There may be many more incidences like this
in India but victim do not come out. My suggestion : every school must
be visited by two to three psycratist, once in 3 months where all the
students are being checked for any personal problems. These problems
could be rape, bitting by parents, torture, children are having lack
of attention in class, poor health effecting their school activities.
Such psychartist prepare report on each student with all facts and
suggest right remedy or if necessary police complain. This kind of
routine check will encourage children to come out with the fact of any
kind of personal suffering or any kind of psychological problems
disturbing them. Prevention is better for children and for their
natural growth. Nitasha Chennai 19 Mar, 2009 10:33 PM
The lack of education causes people to behave in such a hienous
way.Can you imagine any sane,sensible family consulting a 'tantrik' &
not straight away delivering him to the nearest police station when he
comes up with this vile remedy?I salute the girl for having the
courage in going against her parents & protecting her
sister.Unfortunately,it will leave severe scars on her mind which no
punishment to the parents & the great tanrik can cure.Abhay Dang
Delhi, India 19 Mar, 2009 10:35 PM
Religion does destroy common sense.Abhay Dang Delhi, India 19 Mar,
2009 10:38 PM
One day a woman commits suicide because her daughter refused to study.
And now this. Really, Indians have lost their brains!!Manoj Gupta
Bangalore 19 Mar, 2009 10:52 PM
Oh My God!!! It has happened in India also!!!Shame shame.kg india 20
Mar, 2009 12:18 AM
Another Fritzel!!!kg india 20 Mar, 2009 12:20 AM
Another Fritzel!!!SUMIT DELHI 20 Mar, 2009 12:21 AMwell this is
disturbing thing but do not over highlight this story otherwise that
will give a big impact on father and daughter relationship
universal.amit california 20 Mar, 2009 12:23 AM
Incest laws in the west are more stringent that in the East. In the
west - marrying a first cousin in illegal, it happens in India all the
time. As far as this case - it is a shameful act. The government
should do something about this quick, hopefully they are able to get
the case to hearing before the girl dies of old age...pathetic..monika
glasgow 20 Mar, 2009 12:47 AM
The real culprits in cases like these are indian wives cum
mothers,they have only one mission in their lives which is to keep
evil husbands happy,he might be an addict,a convict,an abuser,but she
will always protect his image and think she will go to heaven if she
does his seva,such women can sacrifice anything even children ,and
because of them india now has a land of courageous abusers who take
pride in their sins, I am a women and I am ashamed of what happened
just because of a coward mother,perhaps time has come to teach all
wives,bhaus,daughters,the real meaning of seva and sacrifice.We have
to stop blaming literacy for everything, our values are corrupted, and
noone can change values,only parents can. So lets be honest with
eachother and be brave enough to stop men when they do wrong not
support them when they speak ,behave,act,wrong and abuse defenceless
children. Sandeep London 20 Mar, 2009 12:58 AM
I have no words...people are so greedy for money & sex that they dont
even see if that's outsider or their own daughter. Religion got
nothing to do with this nor education its an individual and not about
a country, city, religion nor eastern or western countries. People
like them should not be hanged coz that would be too easy...cut their
private part that's the best option & that should be enforced as
global law...shame what a sick human being.Raghunathan Sharjah, UAE 20
Mar, 2009 01:12 AM
I read all the comments. I have no words to say. I am feeling so
shameful and angered by the act of these three bastards. Even a
punishment of death will not solve this issue. This man (father)
should witness his wife being raped by the Tantric. Tantric should
witness his wife being raped by the businessman and the businessman
should pay him 1 Rupee as the cost of the action. Only this could be
the worst of unimaginable punishment to all the three. In India??????
which taught the value of Astrology and all the other remedial
measures to cure the problems by prayers?????????? Where is God?????
Where are these insane people???? All my friends and my family are
very upset and sad. What will happen to these girls? Will anyone marry
them? Can they live a moderate genuine life hereafter? God only can
answer and save their lives. I and my family and all my friends prayed
for them this evening. May God show them a better life from this
evening. Raghunathan, Sharjah.SALMAN RIYADH 20 Mar, 2009 02:15 AM
PRAY TO ONE GOD''ALLAH"WHO CREATE WORLD AND HUMAN NATURE.....ASK HELP
FROM ALLAHsaad uddin saudi arabia 20 Mar, 2009 02:15 AM
dear sir, through your esteemed daily i want to convey my feeling like
any other value loving indians. India is known for its cultural and
religious values across the world but the reality is,as the Mumbai
businessman's case shows that we are deviating very fast to an unknown
limit of moral devastation for which unbridled media is responsible to
a large extent.Sexual harassmment has become regular appearences in
the news papers.And I believe the cases behind the screen are
certainly larger than the noticed ones.So to give a halt or at least
to minimise this kind of heinious crimes the law making agencies
should amend the existing laws towards some tougher ones and convicts
are to be punished puclicly. yours smartindian US 20 Mar, 2009 02:51
AM
Parents and Tantrik must to be killed in public. Freddie Pereira
Sydney 20 Mar, 2009 04:41 AM
This is Insane, After Slum Dog's success all over the world...this
story is very shocking. What has happened to all the so called "Indain
Traditional Culture" which is always Portrayed as a Big Strength
compared to the rest of the world. I am ashamed to call myself an
Indian after this devestating act by the Indian Parents ! Kishore
California, USA 20 Mar, 2009 05:56 AM
The father, mother and Tantrik trio should be shot dead on the
spot. .Derek Canada 20 Mar, 2009 06:34 AM
Surprising none has written that it is the influence of western
culture that is the cause of this heinous crime. Are you guys
surprised that this happens in India too?Suhail USA 20 Mar, 2009 06:34
AM
what a narrow minded and stupid guy. No wonder his business failed,
thomson Abudhabi 20 Mar, 2009 07:19 AMshoot the both stupid husband
and stupid mother&tanric in the public.Crescentman Assam 20 Mar, 2009
09:37 AM
People believe in fast bucks rather than hard work. This mindset has
been taken advantage by jothids and tantriks which needs to be
arrested immediately. Behind everything, the economic considerations
are the root cause. I appeal to the Govt. to come up with
comprehensive, transparent and inclusive 33% reservations to women
immediately without any delay.pankaj khatwani china 20 Mar, 2009 09:37
AM
india police should be very hard with this type of tantrik!!!! and
this type of parents if they dont know meaning of children ,why were
they born , she is so great she geve birth to her doughter and felt
pain for 9 monthskiran pune 20 Mar, 2009 09:54 AM
Dear folk why dont u see whats going under your skin . recently there
was a news of a female australian teacher who torchered their male
student for having sex for marks ?? where r u staying ????archana
delhi 20 Mar, 2009 10:05 AM
It is shame on us ..such an incident is happening in India now.Shame
on such fathers and the co-supporters.He should be punished and
sentenced to death so that others learn.Vipin Chennai 20 Mar, 2009
11:01 AM
The only way to stop rape crimes in India is not by just bringing
those case into light and imprision them that to for how many years
4-6 max.They wont pay nor such crimes can ever be stopped. If the
government and judicial system is realy looking for an answer to stop
then Death sentence have to be imposed for this crime. I tell you
there will be more than 100 case which will fall under this but even
if it becomes 1000 justice must be served. DEATH CAN ONLY DEAL WITH
RAPE CHARGES. People fighting for human rights must understand for
what they are fighting for and most importantly for whom.I hope some
day the judical system of our country will pass with LAW without
debating in our parliment.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/4285650.cms
bademiyansubhanallah
Vikas Pathak, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, March 23, 2010
First Published: 00:47 IST(23/3/2010)
Last Updated: 00:48 IST(23/3/2010)
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue MG Vaidya hinted on Monday
that the BJP, which had been drifting away from Hindutva, was back on
track under Nitin Gadkari, the RSS choice for BJP president.
However, the gesture is being seen more as an approval for greater RSS
control over the BJP under Gadkari.
For Gadkari’s idea of a corporate or NGO-type BJP is not too different
from the hi-tech politics L.K. Advani and his aides espoused. However,
while Advani wanted an autonomous BJP, Gadkari, the RSS hopes, will be
more pliable.
Gadkari in turn pledged allegiance to Hindutva, the Sangh's favourite
theme. Welcoming 100 young professionals as BJP volunteers, he said
that while the "language" of each generation changed, Hindutva
remained "the soul" for the BJP.
Vaidya contrasted BJP under Gadkari with the party in 2009. “When
Sudheendra Kulkarni said the BJP should break with the RSS, I said
they should break with Hindutva, and the chord with the RSS will
automatically snap,” Vaidya said, referring to Advani's former aide.
"After 2009, they say Hindutva is their soul. The soul is invisible
but gives urja (energy). It's good that the same urja is being
remembered in 2010,” Vaidya added.
He said Hindutva was not religion but the essence of Indian values and
all those who upheld these were Hindus.
On the Babri mosque demolition, he said, "A sign of sampradyik
gundagardi (communal rowdy-ism) has been obliterated. There can be a
mosque nearby, but only a temple will come up at the spot."
Sangh young band swings to jazz
RADHIKA RAMASESHAN
THEN
NOW
(From top) Anuradha Paudwal, Anup Jalota, Louis Armstrong, Duke
Ellington
New Delhi, March 22: Anuradha Paudwal, Narendra Chanchal and Anup
Jalota are passe. The Sangh’s young guns would rather sway to Louis
Armstrong and Duke Ellington.
The bhajan singers are a generation removed from the jazz greats and
could, therefore, qualify as more “contemporary”. But someone in the
RSS or the BJP decided it was time to stack away the Jai Siya Ram and
Prabhu Tero Naam CDs and play What A Wonderful World and When The
Saints Go Marching In.
But Armstrong’s gravelly voice and Ellington’s ragtime blues for the
RSS-BJP?
The disconnect would seem unbridgeable if you imagined swayamsevaks in
over-sized khaki shorts swinging to jazz instead of intoning mantras
on patriotism.
But when 50-odd youths got together to pledge allegiance to the RSS
and the BJP in Delhi, they chose jazz as the background score.
The new band calls itself the United Volunteer Association, or UVA. Or
better still, Yuva.
Yes, it is the BJP’s answer to the Congress’s effort to foreground
Rahul Gandhi and his youth brigade.
Gone with the bhajans are the khaki shorts. The UVAs wear saffron T-
shirts and black trousers.
They are not 50-year-olds with paunches but young IT professionals,
entrepreneurs and students with less ample waistlines and a general
look of fitness.
Nitin Gadkari, the 52- year-old BJP president, whose girth is not
exactly an advertisement for health freaks, was the guest of honour at
the launch of UVA in New Delhi’s Mavlankar Hall today.
He played to the gallery, unmindful of the fact that on the dais with
him was M.G. Vaidya, an 80-year old RSS pracharak who often defies the
official line on policies and issues. “I belong to a new generation
that recognises the difference between the letter and spirit (of
Hindutva). Hindutva’s spirit will not change. But it cannot be an
agenda for any political party,” he said.
He invoked lines from a Supreme Court judgment that described Hindutva
as a “way of life of people in the sub-continent”.
Terrorists have no religion: Nitin Gadkari
By ANIMarch 23rd, 2010 NEW DELHI - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
president Nitin Gadkari has said that a terrorist has no religion and
can’t be classified as a Hindu or a Muslim.
“It is unfortunate that we identify people involved with certain
terrorist activities according to their religious affiliations,” said
Gadkari, adding that a terrorist has no caste, creed or religion.
Gadkari further said, “A god fearing Hindu will not kill an innocent
Muslim and similarly, a god fearing Muslim will not kill an innocent
Hindu, and if he is doing so, then he is a terrorist who does not
belong to any religion.”
The BJP president on Monday stressed on the need for a modern idiom to
articulate ‘Hindutva’ for the youth, adding that the Supreme Court’s
1995 description of Hindutva must be the standard.
“Hindutva cannot become any political party’s agenda. It was more a
way of life,” said Gadkari.
The Supreme Court of India in a judgement ruled that ‘no precise
meaning can be ascribed to the terms ‘Hindu’, ‘Hindutva’ and
‘Hinduism’; and no meaning in the abstract can confine it to the
narrow limits of religion alone, excluding the content of Indian
culture and heritage.
The Court also ruled that ‘Hindutva’ is understood as a way of life or
a state of mind and is not to be equated with or understood as
religious Hindu fundamentalism. (ANI)
http://blog.taragana.com/politics/2010/03/23/terrorists-have-no-religion-nitin-gadkari-24894/
Gadkari at the launch of UVA in Delhi. (PTI)
“No true Muslim can kill a Hindu, no true Hindu can kill a Muslim. Yet
the pseudo-secularists insist on identifying terrorists with religion.
The state should be secular, the government should be secular but an
individual cannot be secular,” Gadkari said. “Why then were Indira
Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi cremated according to Hindu rites?”
He emphasised how important it was to drive home the message that the
BJP was for “parliamentary democracy and not theocracy”.
“Youths should see Hindutva in a larger perspective, as a way of life
that is related to tolerance of all people,” Gadkari said.
But UVA convener Sanjay Kaul drove home the message of change. At the
end of his speech, the BJP activist who was part of the India Shining
ad campaign, simply said: “Hey guys, if you are interested, you know
who to call.”
A generation, it seemed, had been phased out.
A source said youth outreach would become possible only “when we start
looking, thinking and speaking like Kaul”.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100323/jsp/nation/story_12250823.jsp
Bihar BJP leaders flay Gadkari team
NALIN VERMA
Shahnawaz Hussein and Shatrughan Sinha have shown resentment against
Nitin Gadkari
Patna, March 21: Mere months before the state goes to Assembly polls,
resentment against BJP president Nitin Gadkari is rising fast among
party members, especially after some senior leaders from the region
were “ignored” in the national executive.
The leaders have also started pouring venom against the high command.
Former Union civil aviation minister Shahnawaz Hussein did not attend
a meeting called by the newly appointed BJP chief spokesman
Ravishankar Prasad on Friday and got admitted to a Delhi hospital
yesterday complaining of chest pain.
“I will go to Mecca and Medina to know my gunah (mistake) and pray
that Allah punishes me for the same,” the Bhagalpur MP said, sulking
for being “demoted” as a junior spokesman under Prasad.
“Our leader is more pained by the treatment from Gadkari than the
chest pain,” said an aide of Hussein.
Probably, God appears to have heard Shahnawaz’s prayers, as Gadkari
called him telling: “You should speak to me if you have complaints and
not to the media. I will try to address your issues if you keep
yourself confined to party forum.”
Apparently, sensing resentment among the election-bound Bihar leaders,
Gadkari has revised his list of office-bearers. Yesterday, he included
two more “sulking” leaders — state party chief Radhamohan Singh and
state health minister Nandkishore Yadav — in the list of the special
invitees to the national executive.
But Gadkari’s damage-control exercise seems futile, as many senior
leaders, including Shatrughan Sinha, C.P. Thakur and Yahswant Sinha,
are feeling ignored.
Many of these disgruntled leaders are openly speaking to the media for
ignoring the “meritorious party workers” from Bihar by Gadkari whom
they alleged even biased towards Maharashtra.
Thakur, before leaving for Geneva to attend a convention of the World
Health Organisation, said: “Senior leaders from Bihar have been
ignored. There is a dominance of Marathis in Gadkari’s team.” Thakur,
who represented the Patna Lok Sabha seat thrice and is currently Rajya
Sabha MP, went on saying: “My contribution to the party is no less
than anyone in the BJP.”
Shatrughan, who represents Patna Saheb in the Lok Sabha and billed to
be the star campaigner in the coming Assembly elections, said:
“Leaders like Thakur, Udai Singh and Yashwant have been ignored. I
have apprised the Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj about how Gadkari
has made mistakes in making his team.”
The disgruntled leaders said around 15 leaders from Bihar had found
places in Gadkari’s team against over 40 from Maharashtra. Gadkari is
yet to select the Bihar BJP president to replace Singh, who had
completed his tenure.
All these senior leaders, including Hussein, Thakur and Shatrughan,
are apparently opposed to the elevation of a relatively junior leader,
Prasad, as the party’s general secretary and chief spokesman at their
cost. “Experience and merit have not been taken into consideration,
while forming the team. The winners and mass leaders have been ignored
while those who have not won a single election have been promoted,”
said Shatrughan.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100322/jsp/nation/story_12244879.jsp
Nitish stamp in party panel
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Patna, March 24: Nitish Kumar’s mantra of “inclusive growth and
development” finds an echo in his party as well with the JD(U)
accommodating the dissidents besides a large number of women and
minorities in the jumbo executive committee of poll-bound Bihar.
While BJP chief Nitin Gadkari faces revolt in his party for leaving
out senior leaders from the region, dissident leaders like former
JD(U) state chief Rajiv Ranjan Singh, alias Lallan Singh, and
Prabhunath Singh have found place in the 262-member executive
committee.
State JD(U) chief Vijay Choudhary said: “We have given representation
to all with ignoring none.”
Choudhary said: “The executive committee has 42 vice-presidents, 87
general secretaries, 58 secretaries and 75 members with women and
party workers from the Muslim community given a very large
representation.”
“The executive committee has highest ever number of women this time,”
Choudhary said, indicating the panel’s support to Nitish, who has been
spearheading the women’s reservation bill against the wishes of JD(U)
chief Sharad Yadav, who along with Lalu Prasad and Mulayam Singh
Yadav, have been opposing it.
The women’s reservation bill has split the JD(U) with Nitish taking a
line quite opposed to Sharad Yadav. Nitish’s stand, however,
embarrassed Sharad Yadav for all the five MPs in the Rajya Sabha on
the day of voting supported in favour of the bill.
Hari Prasad Sah, Nitish’s close confidant, has been made chairman of
the state parliamentary board and former MLC Vinay Kumar Sinha its
treasurer.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100325/jsp/nation/story_12259063.jsp
Shatrughan finds vacuum at the top in the party
STAFF WRITER 17:28 HRS IST
Lucknow Mar 23 (PTI) Days after he vent his frustration over selection
of the new team of BJP office bearers, Shatrughan Sinha today said
that there is a vacuum at the top in the absence of Atal Bihari
Vajpayee coupled with certain other factors.
In an informal interaction with reporters here, Sinha said the BJP
leadership was weakened after the retirement of Vajpayee from active
politics.
He said there were also certain other factors but declined to
elaborate.
The BJP leader, however, sought to put a lid on the controversy
following his outburst against party President Nitin Gadkari that
deserving candidates had been ignored in the new team announced last
week.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/578197_Shatrughan-finds-vacuum-at-the-top-in-the-party
I'l quit if Gadkariji says so: Shatrughan
Rakesh Verma, Hindustan Times
Patna, March 21, 2010
First Published: 23:16 IST(21/3/2010)
Last Updated: 23:17 IST(21/3/2010)
Even as the BJP mulls disciplinary action against Patna Sahib MP
Shatrughan Sinha, the party veteran in Patna on Sunday was his usual
cool and confident self.
“Why threaten me with a show cause at all? All that my friend and
party chief needs to do is tell me to quit and I would gladly do so.
My image is hardly dependent on my being a BJP member. There are a
number of options that are far more rewarding, options with more
responsibility that I would be glad to fulfill,” Sinha said.
“Nevertheless, doing so will hardly put an end to the discontent that
Gadkariji’s handpicked team has inspired among certain party seniors
whose contributions the BJP can ill-afford to ignore.”
Senior leaders such as Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha, B.C. Khanduri,
C.P. Thakur, Uday Singh, Madan Lal Khurana have been left out, said
Sinha. And to rub salt on their wounds, leaders such as Radha Mohan
Singh and Nand Kishore Yadav, whose political stock Bihar’s people are
well aware of, have been inducted, he added.
“I am not upset because of my non-inclusion in Nitin Gadkari’s team.
What I am upset about is that leaders who could have played stellar
roles in the impending elections in Bihar and elsewhere have been
sidelined at the behest of self-seekers,” Sinha said.
I have never sought any position in party:Shatrughan
STAFF WRITER 13:34 HRS IST
New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) Actor-turned politician Shatrughan Sinha has
said he voiced his reservations over the selection of the new BJP team
because he wanted the welfare of the party and not because he was
hankering for any post.
"I never asked, never got and never sought any position for me. As far
as who got what, I can say I have got my 'Kad' (height), which
sometimes becomes a matter of concern for others," the 6-feet-2-inch
tall BJP leader said, evading a direct reply.
He was asked why he was cold shouldered by the BJP leadership in the
new team of party office-bearers announced by party chief Nitin
Gadkari on March 18.
Sinha was in the city last night to promote his son's debut film
'Sadiyaan', which stars Rekha, Rishi Kapoor and Hema Malini in the
lead.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/579299_I-have-never-sought-any-position-in-party-Shatrughan
'I am endorsing Gujarat's glory, not present govt'
STAFF WRITER 11:10 HRS IST
Mumbai, Mar 25 (PTI) Under attack for his role as brand ambassador of
Gujarat, megastar Amitabh Bachchan has hit out at his critics, saying
no politics is involved in his promoting tourism in the BJP-ruled
state.
Bachchan said as the brand ambassador, he would talk about the Somnath
Temple, the white sands of the Rann of Kutch, old civilisations of
Harrappa, the Gir lions and try to entice as many visitors as he could
to that glorious land.
"Where is the connect with the glorification of the present
Government?" he wrote on his blog yesterday, the day when some
Maharashtra Congressmen objected to his presence at a state government
function citing his strained ties with Gandhi family and his role as
Gujarat brand ambassador.
"You want to stop me from promoting tourism in a state because you
have reason to believe that there are political connotations to the
event.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/580329_-I-am-endorsing-Gujarat-s-glory--not-present-govt-
Invite to Amitabh, section of Mumbai Cong upset
STAFF WRITER 0:44 HRS IST
Mumbai/ New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) Resentment brewed tonight in a section
of Mumbai's Congress over the invite to megastar Amitabh Bachchan to a
function where Chief Minister Ashok Chavan innaugurated the second
phase of Worli-Bandra sealink.
Chavan himself indicated the unhappiness in PCC over the invite to
Bachchan, a friend-turned-foe of the party, and exclusion of some
Congress leaders from the function.
"The Mumbai Congress President (Kripashankar Singh) has given some
reaction in the evening about invitations not being given to
them....", Chavan told NDTV.
Congress' coalition partner NCP is heading the ministry concerned with
the sealnik.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/580206_Invite-to-Amitabh--section-of-Mumbai-Cong-upset
India second most spam originator worldwide: study
STAFF WRITER 8:16 HRS IST
Houston, Mar 25 (PTI) Indian is the second most spam originator
worldwide, with 10.98 per cent of spam being sent globally from Indian
IP addresses, according to a study.
Brazil, Vietnam, Korea and US are among the top five countries from
which most spam was sent during the first two months of 2010, said the
study by PandaLabs, Panda Security's malware analysis and detection
laboratory.
The five million emails analysed by PandaLabs came from nearly one
million different IP addresses, meaning that on average, each address
was responsible for five spam messages.
And, the cities from which spam was being sent, Seoul topped the list,
followed by Hanoi, New Delhi, Bogota, Sao Paulo and Bangkok.
The spam messages themselves are used primarily to distribute malware
or sell illicit products, such as videos or photos of Brazilian girls.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/580253_India-second-most-spam-originator-worldwide--study
'Row over presence at sea link event manufactured'
STAFF WRITER 10:10 HRS IST
Mumbai, Mar 25 (PTI) Megastar Amitabh Bachchan today said the
controversy over his presence at a function here for the inauguration
of the second phase of the Bandra-Worli sea link has been
"manufactured".
"A fresh controversy has been rapidly manufactured on my
involvement... The media has been hounding me since the event at the
sea link has got over, through incessant SMSes and the electronic
(media) has followed me even to the theatre where we were seeing
Arshad's film," Bachchan wrote in a midnight post on his blog. Actor
Arshad Warsi's film 'Hum Tum Aur Ghost' will be released this week.
Resentment brewed in a section of Mumbai Congress over the invite to
Bachchan to the function where Chief Minister Ashok Chavan inaugurated
the sea link yesterday.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/580296_-Row-over-presence-at-sea-link-event-manufactured-
Modi warms up for date with riot probe team
OUR BUREAU
Ahmedabad/Mumbai, March 24: Narendra Modi is set to make an appearance
before the Supreme Court-monitored special investigation team on the
Gujarat riots on March 27 or any other mutually acceptable date.
Senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, among the battery of legal eagles
advising Modi, today confirmed that the Gujarat chief minister was
willing to appear before the SIT on March 27 or any other day, but
prior to that he would like a clarification with regard to a related
case pending in the Supreme Court.
The SIT has asked Modi to appear before it in connection with the
Gulbarg Housing Society carnage of February 28, 2002, in which
Congress leader Ahsan Jafri was killed along with 68 others, many of
whose bodies were never recovered as they had been burnt beyond
recognition.
The SIT was asked by the Supreme Court to look into a complaint filed
by Zakia Jafri, widow of the leader, in which she named Modi as the
first accused in her husband’s murder.
The SIT has to report to the Supreme Court by April 30 on Zakia’s
complaint. Of the 63 people named, most have already been questioned
by the SIT.
On March 11, the SIT, headed by former CBI chief R.K. Raghavan, said
it had asked the chief minister to appear before it for questioning on
March 21, a date which Modi disputed, saying it was a “lie” planted by
“vested interests”.
The Telegraph has learnt that the SIT had asked Modi to appear before
it in the week beginning March 21.
Advocate Jethmalani today said Modi had written a letter to Raghavan,
pointing out that the Supreme Court was scheduled to hear a petition
seeking to recall its earlier order referring Zakia’s complaint to the
SIT. The plea is scheduled to be heard in the week beginning April 5.
The petition was filed by Kalubhai Maliwad, a former legislator of the
BJP who was named with Modi and 61 others in Zakia’s complaint.
“Moreover, Teesta Setalvad and other NGOs have also challenged the
composition of the SIT. Modi has said that propriety demands that
unless these pending matters are resolved, it may not be appropriate
to call him. He (Modi) said if the SIT still wants to go ahead, he is
willing to appear before it on March 27 or any other day it wishes
to,” Jethmalani said.
Asked if the SIT had responded to the letter, Jethmalani said: “No, it
hasn’t. The letter was sent either on Monday or Tuesday.”
Raghavan could not be reached for comment. He, however, told PTI that
“it (the missive) is a privilege communication between the SIT and the
witness (Modi)” and he could not comment on it.
The Gujarat government continued to be cautious. Home minister Amit
Shah said the “date and time” of Modi’s appearance had not been fixed
as yet.
Asked whether the chief minister would appear before March 27, a staff
member at the chief minister’s office said: “As of now, we have not
decided.”
Legal experts said Modi, who is also being advised by BJP leader and
legal luminary Arun Jaitley, cannot avoid appearing before the SIT
since it has all the powers of an investigative agency under the
Criminal Procedure Code of 1973.
The chief minister, sources said, is likely to comply with the summons
since he would prefer to be seen as a responsible, law-abiding citizen
who welcomes the investigation instead of running shy of it.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100325/jsp/nation/story_12259787.jsp
SIT summons: Modi gives a new twist but says will respond
STAFF WRITER 18:50 HRS IST
Gandhinagar, Mar 22 (PTI) Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today
said he shall respond to the SIT probing the 2002 Gujarat riots "fully
respecting" the law, as he refuted reports that he had skipped
appearance before the panel on Sunday.
"SIT had not fixed March 21, 2010 for my appearance.
To say that I was summoned on March 21 is completely false. I shall
respond to the SIT fully respecting the law and keeping in view the
dignity of a body appointed by the Supreme Court," he said in an open
letter.
Modi's letter came following reports that he had boycotted the SIT
summons.
He said, "Truth cannot be suppressed. It is now my duty to place
before you the facts that brings out the importance of understanding
what the truth really is.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/576786_SIT-summons--Modi-gives-a-new-twist-but-says-will-respond
Gujarat CM likely to appear before SIT on March 27
STAFF WRITER 9:35 HRS IST
Ahmedabad, Mar 24 (PTI) Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is likely
to be questioned by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation
Team, probing the 2002 riots, on March 27, SIT sources said today.
Confusion prevailed over the appearance of Modi before the SIT with
the panel chief saying he would appear on March 21. But Modi, in an
open letter, claimed he was not summoned on the date.
Sources today said he is likely to be questioned on March 27. However,
SIT Chief R K Raghavan refused to comment on the date.
"It is a privilege communication between the SIT and the witness and I
cannot comment on this," he said.
SIT has summoned Modi to depose in connection with a complaint of
Zakia Jaffery, widow of former Congress MP Eshan Jaffery who was
killed in Gulburg society riot case of 2002 along with 69 others.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/579097_Gujarat-CM-likely-to-appear-before-SIT-on-March-27
SIT up and take notice
Hindustan Times
March 15, 2010
First Published: 22:40 IST(15/3/2010)
Last Updated: 22:45 IST(15/3/2010)
The hysteria that normally accompanies any move to bring about
political accountability has been refreshingly absent following the
Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) summons to Gujarat Chief Minister
Narendra Modi to depose before it. This is the first time ever that
the CM of any state has been asked to appear before an SIT. The SIT
step is in response to charges against Mr Modi and his administration
by Zakia Jaffrey whose husband and former Congress MP Ehsan Jaffrey
was murdered in the Gulberg housing society during the cataclysmic
riots of 2002. Mr Modi has signalled his compliance and the new BJP
President Nitin Gadkari has taken the stand that the law must take its
course.
The law has indeed taken a tortuous course in the Gujarat case with
various rulings indicting the administration being overturned by lower
courts. Now that the action has moved to the Supreme Court, we are
hopefully moving closer to a conclusion. The SIT seems intent on
completing its task in a professional manner, heeding neither pressure
from the establishment nor from activists who have been at loggerheads
ever since those fateful events took place. In all the mudslinging, we
have still not fixed accountability for the violence in which over
1,500 people died. That there was complicity, at least from sections
of Mr Modi’s administration, is established. The SIT has made it clear
that it has prima facie cases against then minister Maya Kodnani and
various VHP leaders. It has also left no one in doubt that the events
were not a spontaneous reaction after the Godhra train arson, but very
much ordered to a pattern.
Mr Modi is in a difficult situation. If he professes ignorance of the
reasons for and perpetrators of the violence, his administration could
be held accountable for negligence. However, given the maturity with
which the situation has been handled so far, it must be hoped that the
SIT hearings will give Mr Modi a platform to answer many questions
which are still hanging in the air. The 2002 riots proved to be one of
the most divisive and painful in independent India and threatened the
very secular ethos of the country. So, unlike the investigations into
past riots, it becomes imperative that the issue is resolved in order
that both Gujarat and India can move forward. Mr Modi has crafted the
economic success story of Gujarat. Today everyone wants a stake in the
growth of the state. Mr Modi has eventual ambitions for a greater role
at the Centre. In this context, it makes sense to wipe the slate clean
and bring a closure to a painful chapter in our history.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/edits/SIT-up-and-take-notice/Article1-519421.aspx
Communal harmony marks Ram Navami in Ayodhya
STAFF WRITER 21:9 HRS IST
Ayodhya, Mar 24 (PTI) In an example of communal harmony in this
pilgrim town, members of the Muslim community today made arrangements
for Hindu pilgrims who arrived here in large numbers to celebrate Ram
Navami.
The festivities, which were celebrated without any perceptible terror
threat, saw about ten lakh devotees take a dip in the Saryu river,
with many of them offering prayers at different temples including
Kanak Bhawan, Hanumangarhi and Nageshwarnaath temples.
Senior Superintendent of Police R K S Rathore said, "There was no
extremist threat to the religious gathering of Ram Navami Mela, but we
made all possible arrangements to ensure the security of devotees.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/580071_Communal-harmony-marks-Ram-Navami-in-Ayodhya
Mulayam's remarks on women sexist, Talibani: Amar
STAFF WRITER 19:30 HRS IST
Raising the Batla House encounter issue, Amar said that when he had
demanded a judicial inquiry into it, everybody had distanced
themselves from him.
"I spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the then National
Security Advisor M K Narayanan on initiating a judicial inquiry into
the encounter at that time, but only Congress President Sonia Gandhi
supported my views. After two years, AICC general secretary Digvijay
Singh recently visited Azamgarh and while raising doubts on the
encounter demanded a judicial inquiry into it and then backtracked
from his statement," he said.
The former SP leader maintained that he did not play politics over the
issue and said what he felt was right.
Asked whether he was trying to send feelers to Congress while praising
Sonia Gandhi for supporting his views on the Batla House encounter
issue, Singh said, "I have only said the truth.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/579926_Mulayam-s-remarks-on-women-sexist--Talibani--Amar
Former Goa beach shack waiter sentenced for murder
STAFF WRITER 0:55 HRS IST
Panaji, March 23 (PTI) A former beach shack waiter was sentenced to
life imprisonment by a local court today for killing a British woman
in Margao town two years ago.
Additional district and sessions judge P V Sawaikar sentenced Anand
Kambli to life imprisonment and fined him Rs 25,000 for killing Denis
Higgins.
Higgins, 54, was brutally killed by Kambli by slitting open her throat
with a knife over a petty dispute in her rented apartment at Margao
town on April 27, 2007.
Incidently, Kambli?s wife and minor son were sleeping in the adjacent
room when the incident happened.
Higgins died on the spot and Kambli fled from the scene, only to be
arrested a couple of days later.
Police said the accused had made an acquaintance with British lady
through his friend, who had helped her in getting a rented apartment.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/579026_Former-Goa-beach-shack-waiter-sentenced-for-murder
Nityananda Swami files writ in Karnataka High Court
STAFF WRITER 0:50 HRS IST
Bangalore, Mar 22 (PTI) Self-styled godman Nityananda Swami, facing
allegations of involvement in sleazy activities, today filed a writ
petition before Karnataka High Court seeking quashing of cases filed
against him by the Ramanagar district police.
Nityananda, who is at large ever since the video clippings of his
alleged sleaze activities involving an actress were telecast by
private channels on May two, in his petition contended that he was
innocent.
The 32-year-old Nityananda, alias Rajasekharan, charged that one of
his former discipline and driver Kurup Lenin had conspired to defame
him and his Ashram by levelling such allegations.
The whereabouts of Nityananda remained a mystery so far.
However, the followers of Nityananda at his Ashram at Bidadi on the
city outskirts claim that he has been in Haridwar attending the Kumbh
Mela.
http://www.ptinews.com/news/577398_Nityananda-Swami-files-writ-in-Karnataka-High-Court
A temple where upper castes bow to Dalits
Asit Srivastava, Indo-Asian News Service
Lucknow, March 25, 2010
First Published: 11:15 IST(25/3/2010)
Last Updated: 11:16 IST(25/3/2010)
Stories of socially marginalised people not being allowed into places
of worship are common in India. In such a scenario, a Dalit family
presiding over an Uttar Pradesh temple for ages is nothing short of
exemplary.
It's only Dalits who have been priests of the Kali Mata temple,
dedicated to goddess Durga, in Lakhna town in Etawah, some 300 km from
Lucknow, ever since the shrine came up around 200 years ago.
"Caste divisions and discrimination may not have given Dalits a place
of respectability in society, but here as priests they are revered,"
Ram Dular Rajbhar, who owns a grocery store in the town, told IANS on
phone.
"Be it Brahmins, Thakurs or people from any of the other higher
castes, after coming inside the temple, all have to bow before the
Dalit priests and touch their feet. For others it may be surprising,
but it has become a custom for us," he added.
Situated along the banks of the Yamuna river, the temple is sought
after by the residents of Lakhna town for holding marriages,
'mundan' (tonsure ceremony of Hindu children) or other rituals
particularly performed by Brahmins or members of the upper caste.
"It's not just a temple. It's a place that is an example of social
equality," said Umesh Dixit, who owns several garment shops in Lakhna
town.
"People in Lakhna also approach the priests to name their babies as it
is believed that names given by Dalit priests would bring good luck
and prosperity to the children and their families," he added.
According to locals, there's a story behind the custom of Dalit
priests. They say King Jaipal Singh, who got the temple constructed,
made it mandatory that the priest of the temple would only be a Dalit.
"While the construction of the temple was under way, Jaipal Singh
noticed a Dalit labourer, Chhotelal, was being assaulted by a group of
upper caste people for touching the idol that was to be placed inside
the temple," said another resident Ram Raksha Pandey, who owns an
eating joint in Lakhna.
"Jaipalji soon intervened in the matter and said only Chhotelal and
his family would be taking care of the temple after its construction.
Since then, the practice has been alive," he added.
At present two brothers, Ashok Kumar, 43, and Akhilesh Kumar, 45, who
are fourth generation descendants of Chhotelal are the priests at the
temple.
Nitin Gadkari
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This biographical article needs additional citations for
verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious
material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must
be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful.
(October 2009)
Nitin Gadkari
Maharashtra Legislative Council
Incumbent
Assumed office
1989
Minister for PWD, Maharashtra
In office
27th May, 1995 – 1998
National President of Bharatiya Janata Party
Incumbent
Assumed office
25th December, 2009
Preceded by Rajnath Singh
Born May 27, 1957 (1957-05-27) (age 52)
Nagpur, India
Political party Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse(s) Kanchan Gadkari
Children Nikhil, Sarang and Ketki
Alma mater Nagpur University
Occupation Lawyer, Industrialist
Religion Hindu
Website nitingadkari.in
Nitin Jayaram Gadkari (Marathi: नितीन जयराम गडकरी) (born 27 May 1957)
is an Indian industrialist, agriculturist, politician and the current
President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).[1] He is best known for
the works during his tenure as a Public Works Department Minister in
the state of Maharashtra when he constructed a series of roads,
highways and flyovers across the state including the Mumbai–Pune
Expressway.[2]
Background, family and education
Nitin Gadkari was born in Nagpur, India to a middle class
Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu family hailing from Nagpur district.
During his teens, he worked for Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and
student union wing of ABVP.
He started his political career as a grass root worker who laid down
red carpets prior to party programmes.[3] He prefers to maintains a
low profile in the media. He did his M.Com, L.L.B., D.B.M. from
Maharashtra, India.
Gadkari was elected unanimously as the President of BJP by its
members. The induction ceremony was held on 19 December 2009 and
resumed work on 25 December 2009.
Nitin Gadkari is married to Kanchan Gadkari and they have three
children, Nikhil, Sarang and Ketki. He currently resides in Nagpur
close to the head office of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.[4]
Political career
Nitin Gadkari served as the Minister of Public Works Department of
Government of Maharashtra from 1995 to 1999 and restructured it from
top to bottom.[5].Though Gadkari did a decent job as a minister ,His
Party lost badly in assembly elections in Maharashtra for three
consecutive terms.
Up-gradation of PWD
He undertook the project to computerize all activities in the
department of PWD. He ordered complete replacement of furniture,
fixtures and office equipments with trendy ones and imposed MNC
similar codes for the department and its employees.[citation needed]
Support for privatization
He showed strong support for privatization when he campaigned for
investment in the infrastructure areas from private firms. He
addressed several meetings between private investors, contractors,
builders and various trade organizations and diverted large amounts of
budgeted projects towards privatization. He managed to convince the
state to allocate Rs. 700 Crores for rural connectivity. In the next
four years, 98% of the total population of Maharashtra achieved all-
weather road connectivity. It also helped to solve the malnutrition
problems prevailing in remote Melghat-Dharni area of Amravati district
which previously had no access to medical aid, ration or educational
facilities. The project aimed to connect 13736 remote villages which
remained unconnected since independence by road.
Establishment of MSRDC
Gadkari pushed for time bound completion of projects. He established
Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), a fully
government-owned company which undertook construction of 55 flyovers
in Mumbai alone costing 1500 crores. Mumbai-Pune Expressway was
another project constructed by MSRDC during his tenure.
For the first time MSRDC a Govt. owned company went to the capital
market and raised Rs. 1180 crores which was the largest collection in
the Capital Market history of India. CRISIL gave an AAA rating to
MSRDC.
He appointed a committee to help adopt and acquire technology and
tools of international standards in construction of buildings and
bridges and changed the existing bridge codes. The contractors thus
imported computerized machinery worth 400 Crores like Vibrating
rollers, electronic sensors, Paving machines, Pilling rigs, Pre-fab
technique, etc. which were commissioned to be used for the first time
in India.
Chairman of NRRDC
Union Government appointed him as Chairman of National Rural Road
Development Committee. After series of meetings and study, Shri
Gadkari submitted the report to central Govt. and gave the
presentation to Hon. Prime Minister of India. His report was accepted
and a new rural road connecting scheme now popularly known as Pradhan
Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana was launched. The ambitious scheme is of Rs.
60,000 Crores.
Other works during his tenure
He appointed a committee to study the accident-prone spots on the
roads of Maharashtra and implemented committee suggestions with the
budgetary provision of 20 crores.
Gadkari promised and completed the pledge of completing the Sagri Marg
which was a long awaited dream of the people of Konkan region in four
years of his regime.
Gadkari formulated the scientific methodology of BOT projects,
initiated traffic surveys, worked out IRR (Internal rate of return)
and made the govt. of maharashtra change the concession period of toll
policy.
During recession, he channeled 5000 crore into infrastructural
projects which strengthened the cement, steel and bitumen industry of
India.
Gadkari implemented self-employment scheme for civil Engineers which
enabled 18,000 Engineers to work independently.
He organized the great plantation drive in Nagpur which planted 40
lakh trees in 2 years. He aimed to make Nagpur the Greenest City in
India.
He has visited countries like Israel, Italy, France, Germany, United
Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia,
United States, Canada, Brazil and Srilanka as part of the Indian
Delegation for MSSIDC, MSRDC, Govt. of Maharashtra and Govt. of
India.
Positions served in the past and serving
Nitin Gadkari in NagpurEx Minister, Govt of Maharashtra
Chairman, Purti Group of Companies
President, Bharatiya Janata Party, Maharashtra State[6]
Ex-Leader of Opposition, Maharashtra Legislative Council
Former Minister for Public Works Department, Maharashtra State
Member of Legislative Council, Maharashtra State
Elected to the Maharashtra Govt. Legislative Council in 1989 from
graduates constituency, Nagpur Region.
Re-elected in 1990.
Re-elected in 1996 and elected unopposed in 2002.
Inducted in the Maharashtra State Government Cabinet as the Minister
for Public Works on May 27, 1995.
Ex-Member of the High Power Committee for Privatisation, Government of
Maharashtra.
Ex-Chairman, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, India.
Ex-Guardian Minister for Nagpur District, Govt. of Maharashtra.
Ex-Chairman, Mining policy Implementation Committee, Govt. of
Maharashtra.
Ex-Chairman, Metropolis Beautification Committee, Govt. of
Maharashtra.
Ex-Leader of Opposition, Maharashtra Legislative Council, Chairman
National Rural Road Development Committee
Chairman, Review Committee of CPWD, Govt. of India.
State President of Bhartiya Janata Party, Maharashtra.
After a successful stint as PWD Minister, Gadkari took over as
President of the Maharashtra State Unit of the BJP in 2004. In 2009,
when the BJP National President Rajnath Singh's term ended in
December, Gadkari succeeded him as the youngest ever President of BJP.
Industrial career
Nitin Gadkari is an industrialist first and then a politician.[7] He
is known to control these establishments in the following way.
Poly sack Industrial Society Ltd - Founder and Chairman. Nikhil
Furniture and Appliances Pvt. Ltd - Promoter and Director. Antyodaya
Trust - Founder and Member. Empress Employees Co-operative Paper Mills
Ltd - Founder and Chairman.
Gadkari is also an agriculturist. He has promoted and has interests in
the fields of water management, solar energy Projects and use of
modern tools in agriculture. Recently, he started exporting fruits to
various countries under the banner Ketaki overseas Trading Company.
Awards
He was honoured by Mumbai Bhushan Award and was felicitated by various
organizations in Mumbai.
References
^ Rajnath steps down, Gadkari takes over as BJP president
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Rajnath-steps-down-Gadkari-takes-over-as-BJP-president/articleshow/5356182.cms
^ BJP's new chief seen as moderniser http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/bjps_new_chief_seen_as_moderniser.php
^ Former carpet boy as new ‘carpetbagger’ - Indian Express
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/former-carpet-boy-as-new-carpetbagger/541881/0
^ http://www.nagpuronline.com/news/news.asp?nsr=42 Kanchan Gadkari,
wife of State President BJP Nitin Gadkari
^ Gadkari emerges as front-runner for post
^ BJP official site http://www.bjp.org/content/view/2613/463/
^ Gadkari views politics as an instrument of reforms to change the
lives of poor
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Rajnath-steps-down-Gadkari-takes-over-as-BJP-president/articleshow/5356182.cms
External links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitin_Gadkari
Former carpet boy as new ‘carpetbagger’
Vivek Deshpande
Posted: Monday , Nov 16, 2009 at 0236 hrs
Nagpur:
OpportunityDon’t Glorify NaxalismRole-Model MPs, MLAs!Vehicle called
Life In a deeply divided party, Nitin Gadkari stands out for his
relative youth, administrative and organisational skills, networking
abilities, non-controversial image and, most importantly, his
proximity to the RSS. As the likelihood of his taking over as BJP
president grows stronger, an introduction to the man who few, until
now, had known outside Maharashtra
Twenty-five years ago, a young man living a stone’s throw away from
the RSS headquarters in Nagpur’s old-fashioned Mahal locality would
ride his Lambretta scooter to the city’s newspaper offices, handing
over press statements and meeting journalist friends. He was among the
ordinary workers who would actually lay down carpets at what was then
the Jan Sangh party’s programmes.
Much water has flown down Nagpur’s Nag river since. Now 52, Nitin
Jairam Gadkari, MCom, LLB, has long ceased to courier press
statements. He issues them now. His journalist friends call on him at
his residence or office. And as it now appears more and more certain,
the man who once laid carpets at party functions could possibly find
himself walking the red carpet as the BJP’s new president next month.
Even as the BJP struggles to cope with its political downslide and
intra-party chaos, Gadkari’s sudden foray to the party’s top echelons
has surprised many. In fact, many in the party here had until two
months ago dismissed the reports as baseless. But as the weak
possibility has turned into a strong probability, party leaders have
started admitting that Gadkari’s ‘qualifications’ for the party post
are not to be scoffed at, including his age, administrative and
organisational skills, his non-controversial image and most
importantly his proximity to the RSS, which is intervening like never
before to revamp the crisis-ridden BJP.
“He fulfils all that and also has dynamism required for the top post,”
says Devendra Fadnavis, the party’s South-West Nagpur MLA and a highly
respected legislator. “Also, he is a good orator and is comfortable
with all three languages — Marathi, Hindi and English,” he adds.
Another senior party leader Madhav Bhandari echoes similar views. “He
has proved his organisational and administrative skills beyond doubt.
His performance as PWD minister during which he built 55 flyovers in
Mumbai and roads all over the state, as also his stint as chief of the
infrastructure committee appointed by then prime minister Atal Bihari
Vajpayee have made him known across the country,” Bhandari says.
Gadkari’s performance as PWD minister during the Sena-BJP’s 1995-99
regime won him plenty of kudos, with people as diverse as Amitabh
Bachchan and Ratan Tata showering lavish praise. As minister, Gadkari
was known to favour quick results rather than going strictly by the
book, often telling his officers to get cracking and not to cite rules
and regulations as excuses. One of the main architects of the Pradhan
Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana, he was also the first minister to initiate
PWD works on Build-Operate-Transfer basis — then criticised as a sell-
off to private contractors and later adopted by his own critics in the
Opposition as the ideal model of development.
Bhandari also lists his urban, middle-class appeal as one of his
strengths. “Today, more than 40 per cent of India is urban and more
than 50 per cent is middle-class. So, it is important to appeal to
them,” he adds.
The huge crowds Gadkari pulled across Vidarbha for his academic
presentations last year on Vidarbha’s development plans would even put
election rallies to shame. Over 50,000 people had turned up in Nagpur.
Gadkari’s organisational skills cut across various parties, something
Gadkari often praises NCP supremo Sharad Pawar for. No wonder then if
he has tried to model his political career on that of Pawar — building
on BJP workers’ networks, running a sugar mill and having friends in
every party.
He also befriended Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray,
looking at the possibility of MNS support being needed in the post-
election scenario in Maharashtra recently. But this is not frowned
upon by the RSS. “In fact, it’s good to be politically smart. We don’t
consider it as a bad thing,” said a senior RSS leader.
It was this quality that helped Gadkari to get some prominent
Republican Party leaders like Jogendra Kawade and Sulekha Kumbhare to
support BJP early this year. His political openness led him to attempt
a compromise between two Thackeray cousins — Raj and Uddhav —to avert
the electoral disaster and even develop ties with Raj Thackeray for
possible post-election support.
However, not everyone approves. “Friendships across parties often
impede his campaigns. Be it Telgi, wheat import or his diatribe
against Vilasrao Deshmukh for giving some contracts, many of his
campaigns have finally petered out,” said a party leader who spoke on
condition of anonymity.
Gadkari has often been accused of hobnobbing with Opposition leaders
during elections, particularly the Congress’s Satish Chaturvedi in
Central Nagpur, which houses the all-important RSS headquarters. The
saffron alliance never won a battle there before the 2009 Assembly
elections. But with the party’s lesser-known Krishna Khopde
registering a massive win over Chaturvedi, Gadkari stands vindicated.
His friendships have also helped cocoon Gadkari from possible crises.
In the ongoing Yogita Thakre case — the seven-year old girl found dead
in a car in the courtyard of Gadkari’s Gadkariwada residence here —
the entire Opposition has been surprisingly silent and has shied away
from taking political advantage. Even before anything could be proved
either way, then home minister Jayant Patil gave him a clean chit in
the Assembly.
His admirers may be calling him “non-controversial”, but Gadkari has
been through his share of sticky situations. His Purti Sugar
Industries was embroiled in a controversy for not selling power to the
state electricity board as is obligatory. Gadkari preferred selling it
to private companies.
Eyebrows were also raised a few years ago when his journalist-turned-
advisor friend Prakash Deshpande died mysteriously after falling from
a train compartment while on his way from Mumbai to Nagpur.
Speculation that linked the incident to the large amounts of party
funds Deshpande was allegedly carrying, subsided eventually.
And for all his effective networking, Gadkari has detractors within
the BJP too. His uncomfortable relationship with party general
secretary Gopinath Munde is no secret. How will Munde respond if and
when Gadkari dons the mantle of party leadership? “What choice does he
have than to fall in line? In politics, you can’t throw tantrums too
often,” said a senior Congress leader known for his understanding of
political undercurrents in Maharashtra.
But Gadkari has been compared unfavourably with Munde, particularly in
terms of mass appeal. “Today Gadkari is taking over as state party
president, but Munde is our mass leader and he will stage a comeback,”
late Pramod Mahajan had openly declared in Yavatmal three years ago
when Gadkari took over as state party chief from Munde, Mahajan’s
brother-in-law.
Today, Gadkari has not only stabilised as state chief but is now being
viewed as the top contender to head the party at the national level.
“He has proved the post-Mahajan fear that the BJP will be in tatters
in Maharashtra wrong. The BJP has gained an edge over Sena by winning
more seats in these elections,” Bhandari says.
Over the years, Gadkari has successfully put his Maharashtrian Brahmin
tag behind. The only election he has till date fought, and has always
won, is that of Nagpur Graduate constituency seat for Legislative
Council. It has led to sneers that he isn’t a mass leader who could
win direct elections. Gadkari always laughs it off.
For now, however, he is said to be the RSS’s chosen one for the top
BJP job. So, how will he deliver when he suddenly finds himself above
a battery of senior party leaders? For this Gadkari’s cryptic reply
is: “I am ready deliver whatever the party wants me to.”
Where Gadkari scores points
Is regarded as being an effective, politically astute performer in his
stint as the BJP’s state unit chief.
His performance as PWD minister during which he built 55 flyovers in
Mumbai and roads all over the state, as also his stint as chief of the
infrastructure committee appointed by the then prime minister Atal
Bihari Vajpayee cemented his reputation of having excellent
administrative and organisational skills.
Gadkari has the implicit support of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, whose
views he has echoed on a number of issues. His age, 52, is also in
keeping with the RSS sarsanghchalak’s call for younger leadership.
His urban, middle-class appeal is viewed as one of his major
strengths, as are his oratorical skills.
His ability to nurture friendships across party lines has worked to
his advantage, despite criticism from a section of the party’s
leaders.
Comments (3) |
Wrong choice?
By: Aditya | 20-Dec-2009
Nitin Gadkari might be a poor choice, what with the cloud of the
Yogita Thakre case over him. What will it mean for the BJP? A non
controversial candidate, who is respected by all should have been
chosen. Perhaps Advani should have been elevated to the post again.
carpet-ignorance
By: midas | 16-Nov-2009
Agree with Sumir Sharma. Both author and the editorial staff seem
unaware of the meaning of the word "carpetbeggar".
Carpetbaggers carry wrong connotation and historically not fits
here.
By: Sumir Sharma | 16-Nov-2009
I am sorry to say that the Carpetbagger reference if it is taken from
American History does not convey any relevance. Carpetbaggers during
the reconstruction period in post Civil War period in America were
from North States who shifted to South States to take the benefit of
the new right of franchise to black to again access to legislatures in
South States. I do not how Deshpande has found the relevance for
Gadkari. It is hostrically wrong use of a term. Carpetbaggers carries
negative connotation. The people who helped Carpetbaggers to run
elections in South and they were from South, were called Scalawags
which is another derogatory and abusive term. Carpetbaggers are
accused of increasing corruption. They represented Radicals as well as
Abolitionists. Therefore, the term carries negative connotation
whereas the article presents Gadkari in positive colour. Are to
praising him or decrying him ?
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/former-carpet-boy-as-new-carpetbagger/541881/0
chhotemianinshallah
WASHINGTON: An estimated 220,000 Indians have made the United States
their home illegally with a whopping 81% increase in their number in
last seven years, according to latest official figures.
The dramatic growth in the number of Indians has come about even as
immigration from Mexico continues to dominate the unauthorised
population growth, according to the Department of Homeland Security's
latest statistics on 'illegal immigrants'.
The estimated population of Indians living illegally in the United
States was 220,000 in 2007 compared to 120,000 in the year 2000, thus
recording one of the highest percentage increases.
An estimated 11.8 million unauthorised immigrants were living in
America in January 2007 compared to 8.5 million in 2000. The
unauthorised population increased by 3.3 million between 2000 and 2007
while the annual average increase during this period was 470,000.
Nearly 4.2 million (35%) of the total 11.8 million unauthorised
residents in 2007 had entered in 2000 or later. An estimated 7.0
million (59%) were from Mexico.
California remained the leading state of residence for the illegal
population in 2007 with 2.8 million, followed by Texas with 1.7
million and then Florida with nearly one million.
California's share of the national total declined from 30% in 2000 to
24% in 2007 as the greatest percentage increases of unauthorised
resident population occurred in Georgia (120%), Arizona (62%) and
Texas (57%).
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Illegal Immigration is a Crime
Under Title 8 Section 1325 of the U.S. Code, "Improper Entry by
Alien," any citizen of any country other than the United States who:
Enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place
other than as designated by immigration officers; or
Eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers; or
Attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully
false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a
material fact;
has committed a federal crime.
Violations are punishable by criminal fines and imprisonment for up to
six months. Repeat offenses can bring up to two years in prison.
Additional civil fines may be imposed at the discretion of immigration
judges, but civil fines do not negate the criminal sanctions or nature
of the offense.
See: Unlawful entry a crime since '29 - Rocky Mountain News -- June
11, 2006
Each year the Border Patrol is making more than a million
apprehensions of people who flagrantly violate our nation's laws by
unlawfully crossing U.S. borders to work and to receive publicly-
funded services, often with the aid of fraudulent documents. Such
entry is a misdemeanor and, if repeated, becomes punishable as a
felony. Over eight million illegal immigrants live in the United
States -- some estimate even more.
In addition to sneaking into the country in violation of the
immigration law that requires that aliens be documented for legal
entry (referred to as "entry without inspection -- EWI"), others enter
with legal documentation and then violate the terms on which they have
been admitted by taking jobs that are not authorized or overstaying
the authorized period of stay in the country. The INS estimated in
1996 that about 60 percent of the then estimated five million illegal
immigrants were EWI and 40 percent were overstayers. Both types of
illegal immigrants are deportable under Immigration and Nationality
Act Section 237 (a)(1)(B) which says:
"Any alien who is present in the United States in violation of this
Act or any other law of the United States is deportable."
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION IS NOT A VICTIMLESS CRIME
Apologists for illegal immigration like to paint it as a victimless
crime. But in fact, illegal immigration causes substantial harm to
American citizens and legal immigrants, particularly those in the most
vulnerable sectors of our population--the poor, minorities, and
children.
Illegal immigration causes an enormous drain on public funds. The
seminal study of the costs of immigration by the National Academy of
Sciences found that the taxes paid by immigrants do not cover the cost
of services received by them. We cannot provide high quality
education, health care, and retirement security for our own people if
we continue to bring in endless numbers of poor, unskilled
immigrants.
Additionally, job competition by waves of illegal immigrants willing
to work at substandard wages and working conditions depresses the
wages of American workers, hitting hardest at minority workers and
those without high school degrees. Ý
Illegal immigration also contributes to the dramatic population growth
overwhelming communities across America--crowding school classrooms,
consuming already limited affordable housing, and straining precious
natural resources like water, energy, and forestland.
BORDER PATROL: NECESSARY BUT NOT SUFFICIENT
The Border Patrol plays a crucial role in combatting illegal
immigration, but illegal immigration cannot be controlled solely at
the border. About half of the illegal alien population is comprised of
visa overstayers--people who entered the country legally, but became
illegal aliens by their failure to leave the U.S. upon expiration of
their visa. Once entry occurs, there is little chance of detection and
virtually no chance of deportation, except for convicted criminals.
WHAT CAN WE DO?
We need a comprehensive program to end illegal immigration; that means
ensuring that people who enter illegally or overstay their lawful
status will not be able to obtain employment, public assistance
benefits, public education, public housing, or any other taxpayer-
funded benefit without detection.
The three major components of immigration control--deterrence,
apprehension and removal--need to be strengthened by Congress and the
Executive Branch if effective control is ever to be reestablished.
Controlling illegal immigration requires a balanced approach with a
full range of enforcement improvements that go far beyond the border.
These include many procedural reforms, beefed up investigation
capacity, asylum reform, documents improvements, major improvements in
INS detention and deportation procedures, limitations on judicial
review, improved intelligence capacity, greatly improved state/federal
cooperation, and added resources. See How to Combat Illegal
Immigration.
WHAT ABOUT THE COSTS?
Effective control and management of the laws against illegal
immigration require adequate resources. But those costs will be more
than offset by savings to states, counties, communities, and school
districts across the nation.
FAIR, 3/03
http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/8/12/II/VIII/1325
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0%2C1299%2CDRMN_15_4762657%2C00.html
http://www.americanpatrol.com/REFERENCE/AidAbetUnlawfulSec8USC1324.html
http://www.americanpatrol.com/REFERENCE/isacrime.html
Rich illegal immigrants in U.S. hide in shadows
John Buchanan
ATLANTA
Wed Feb 6, 2008 4:23am EST
Mike Lozano, an immigrant from Mexico, marches during an immigrant
rights rally in Boston, Massachusetts in this May 1, 2006 file photo
as part of a nationwide ''A Day Without Immigrants'' protest staged by
immigrant rights advocates.
Credit: Reuters/Brian Snyder/Files
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Many illegal immigrants in the United States are
manual laborers on low wages. But there's another group that attracts
much less attention: entrepreneurs who have set up businesses, created
jobs and grown affluent.
U.S.
There are up to 20,000 illegal immigrants earning upward of $100,000 a
year as entrepreneurs, and their existence challenges the stereotype
that illegal immigrants are a drain on the U.S. economy, according to
immigration lawyers and academics.
Many say they are living the "American Dream," but almost none trumpet
their achievements because they fear deportation.
One example is a 38-year-old computer engineer who overstayed his visa
after arriving from Colombia in 1999. Not long after, he founded a Web
design firm in Miami that specializes in e-commerce.
Today it's a fast-growing, tax-paying company that recently developed
a Web platform for online radio and television that could be a
breakthrough technology.
"We are at a good point now, making money," said the man, who spoke on
condition of anonymity because of his immigration status. "We are
growing every month because our customers are happy. They are U.S.
companies making a lot of money from our Web sites."
But the man is near the end of a long administrative process that will
likely lead to his deportation. Then his company would close and
workers, including Americans, would be laid off.
"I have always tried to look at things in a positive way but now I am
disappointed," he said in a telephone interview.
Michael Bander, a Miami immigration lawyer who has represented the man
for six years, said his client's dilemma showed a larger flaw in the
immigration system.
SPECIAL STATUS?
It is not easy to determine the number of illegal immigrants who earn
six figure salaries, but there could be 20,000 of them and a
significant proportion earn up to $300,000 a year, said Jeff Passel,
lead demographer at the Pew Hispanic Center in Washington.
Advocates see the group as trailblazers for the more than 12 million
illegal immigrants estimated to be living in the United States, most
from Mexico or other Latin American countries.
"These people should be treated like heroes not criminals," said
Felipe Korzenny, professor of marketing and communications at Florida
State University. Wealthy illegal immigrants also came from India,
China, Taiwan, Israel and South Africa, he said.
Congress should address their unique situation, not least because they
have more to lose than others, said George Tzamaras, spokesman for the
American Immigration Lawyers Association.
The United States runs a Green Card residence permit program for
investors but it does not apply to those already in the country
illegally.
But opponents of illegal immigration said the United States should
grant no special status according to wealth for people who break the
law.
"They should be deported as existing law dictates. We'd like to see
their assets seized to compensate American taxpayers who are losing
billions of dollars due to rampant illegal immigration," said William
Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration.
"We need to send a strong message to people who would like to come to
the U.S. that disrespect for our laws will not lead to prosperity,"
said Gheen.
TEN-YEAR BAN
Under existing law, people who overstay their visas must return to
their home country, and cannot re-enter for 10 years. Visas waiving
this process are increasingly rare, immigration lawyers said.
More than half of Silicon Valley start-ups between 1995 and 2005 had
one or more immigrants as key founders, according to a study by the
University of California at Berkeley and Vivek Wadhwa, founder of
Relativity Technologies.
Immigrant entrepreneurs launched 25 percent of technology or
engineering companies in the same period, it said.
Some can be assumed to be illegal immigrants, said Wadhwa, a columnist
and professor whose company was rated by Fortune magazine as one of
the 25 coolest in the world.
"You have to figure out what to do with the 12 million illegal
immigrants that are unskilled," said Wadhwa, who was born in India.
"But what about the few hundred thousand that help us boost our
competitiveness?"
(Writing by Matthew Bigg; Editing by Michael Christie and Eddie Evans)
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2533661620080206
Guest Opinion/Commentary*
Illegal Immigration: India Invades America
By William H. Calhoun (12/18/06)
An ex-Army intelligence officer recently said, "We are under attack.
And it's not just Mexico. It's all Central and South American
countries. It's India. It's China. It's most of the non-European
world. And if we do not fight back soon, America will be third-world
sewer within 30 years!."
America is currently being invaded from all corners of the world.
Mexico. China. Africa. India. They all are invading and carving out
their enclaves. And you know what? They are backed by big business and
the American government.
A perfect case in point is India. The Indian Government and American
corporations have been lobbying the US for more H-1B visas to allow
Indians to move to the United States.
American companies use the H-1B to drive down American wages. An
associate of mine who works for a high-tech company in California
(whose name I cannot say for legal reasons) recently watched about 90%
of his fellow American employees be fired from his company. They were
replaced with H-1B imports from India, who were paid about one-third
of what the Americans were making.
GW Bush has largely supported this H-1B invasion, portraying it as
sound policy. He, however, and the mainstream media always fail to
mention that large companies are using the H-1B to drive down wages
whereby they fire American employees and replace them with low-paid
foreigners. They also fail to mention that India has the largest
Muslim population, the most terrorist cells, and now the most reported
cases of HIV in the world.
At my friend's high-tech company in California, within a few months of
the firings, two of the Indian employees had already spread HIV to
three Americans, three of the other Indians had known ties to
terrorist cells in India, and the Indians would openly speak of
"exterminating the European race." Was any of this reported in the
mainstream media? Of course not. Did any of these people serve jail
time? Of course not. In essence, because of H-1B provisions, they have
more rights than American citizens. Nor is this incident isolated.
As previously reported, I was at the airport recently in Los Angeles,
and I could overhear the conversation of some younger Indians waiting
for a flight from India. These youths were obviously raised in
America, as they did not have accents, unlike their parents sitting
next to them. The Indian youth, after debating their favorite rappers,
began to discuss how recent DNA studies show that Indians are closely
related to Sub-Saharan Africans. They then began to speak approvingly
of India invading California, and went on to say that they should
"wipe out all the whites." Now, the parents, seeing that I was
listening, lightly admonished the youth, not really because of what
they said, but only because others could hear.
This is the norm all across America. After previously publishing my
experience in the Los Angeles airport, I received many emails from
patriots saying they had experienced very similar situations.
And you know what? GW Bush and Condoleezza Rice just gave these people
more nuclear technology.
The same ex-intelligence Army officer said to me, "This policy of
giving nuclear technology to India is borderline treason. The
motivating factor was big business, not national security. All of our
intelligence has shown that now it is just a matter of when, not if,
an Indian detonates a backpack nuke within the United States or sells
one to a Mexican nationalist."
And Bush has sworn to uphold the US Constitution? perduellio est
communis!
If we don't immediately lose our country via a backpack nuke, then we
most certainly will lose our jobs and standard of living. Americans'
wages are dropping every year (adjusted for inflation) due to legal
and illegal immigration. We are being ambushed from every angle.
Patriotic Americas had better wake up! We are under attack. Be
vigilant and prepare! Stop the third-world invasion!
William H. Calhoun is a writer, paleoconservative, and a farmer who
lives on his ancestral estate.
http://www.americandaily.com/article/16838
Indian illegal immigrants in US up 64 percent last decade
IANS, Feb 10, 2010, 10.29am IST
WASHINGTON: In 2009, India accounted for the third highest increase in
the number of illegal immigrants in the US in ten years, according to
a new government report, though only two percent of all illegal
immigrants were Indians.
The number of illegal immigrants in the US fell by seven percent to
10.8 million last year.
A majority of them came from Latin America, according to the
department of homeland security (DHS) report, though India with
200,000 was the sixth biggest sender of illegal immigrants to the US.
In overall numbers, Indians accounted for only two percent of illegal
immigrants. Mexico (6.7 million) topped the list with 62 percent,
followed by those from El Salvador (530,000), Guatemala (480,000),
Honduras (320,000) and the Philippines (270,000).
Between 2000 and 2009, the Mexican-born unauthorised immigrants
increased by two million or 42 percent. But the greatest percentage
increases occurred among unauthorised immigrants from Honduras (95
percent), Guatemala (65 percent), and India (64 percent).
"The number of unauthorised residents declined by one million between
2007 and 2009, coincident with the US economic downturn," said the
report based on census data and extrapolations from the total foreign
population in the country.
Beside the US and global financial crisis, other reasons the report
adduces for the drop in the undocumented population include tougher
border enforcement and a national crackdown on illegal immigrants.
The overall annual average increase in the unauthorised population
during the 2000-09 period was 250,000 with ten leading countries of
origin representing 85 percent of the unauthorised immigrant
population in 2009.
Of the nearly 11 million undocumented people living in the US in
January 2009, 37 percent, or four million, arrived since January 2000,
44 percent since the 1990s and 19 percent since the 1980s, the DHS
said.
Between January 2008 and January 2009, the number of unauthorised
immigrants living in the US decreased seven percent from 11.6 million
to 10.8 million after growing from 8.5 million to 11.8 million between
2000 and 2007, DHS said.
An estimated 8.5 million of the 10.8 million unauthorised immigrants
living in the US in 2009 were from the North America region, including
Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America. The next leading
regions of origin were Asia (980,000) and South America (740,000).
California remained the leading state of residence of the illegal
immigrants in 2009, with 2.6 million, followed by Texas (1.7 million),
Florida (720,000), New York (550,000) and Illinois (540,000).
California's share of the national total was 24 percent in 2009
compared to 30 percent in 2000. The greatest percentage increase in
the illegal population between 2000 and 2009 occurred in Georgia (115
percent), Nevada (55 percent) and Texas (54 percent).
In 2009, 61 percent of unauthorised immigrants were aged 25 to 44
years, and 58 percent were male. Males accounted for 62 percent of the
illegal population in the 18 to 34 age group in 2009 while females
accounted for 52 percent of the 45 and older age groups.
New report says illegal immigration population plummeted last year
Researchers cite recession as cause for decline; other analysts say
many opt to
By Matt O'Brien
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 02/09/2010 03:56:30 PM PST
Updated: 02/10/2010 06:45:42 AM PST
The number of illegal immigrants living in the United States dropped
by 1 million in two years, according to new estimates by the
Department of Homeland Security.
The government thinks that 10.8 million illegal immigrants lived in
the country in January 2009, down from a peak of nearly 12 million in
2007.
If the official estimates are correct, not since 2005 has the
population of illegal immigrants been as low as it was last year.
Some private researchers, however, are questioning the magnitude of
the drop.
"It's very clear the undocumented population basically stopped growing
after 2006," said Jeffrey Passel, a demographer with the nonpartisan
Pew Hispanic Center. "It's plausible that the numbers have gotten
smaller. But the way that they're measuring it, if you compare this
estimate with the one two years ago, it overstates the degree of
decline."
Twice over the past two years, Passel said, the U.S. Census Bureau has
changed the way it measures immigration in its annual population
surveys.
Since nearly all estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population
rely on census survey numbers, these changes might have distorted the
results. The authors of the government estimates could not be reached
for comment Tuesday.
The report cautioned that changes made to the census survey could have
affected the results.
The report, produced annually since 2005, is the government's official
tabulation of immigrants living here illegally.
Most researchers agree that no matter the size of the population,
which is notoriously hard to measure, the rate of illegal immigration
dropped sharply during the recession.
They disagree, however, on the causes.
"The number of new undocumented immigrants coming in has plummeted,"
Passel said.
Other researchers conclude that the drop is not because fewer illegal
immigrants are coming in, but because more are leaving.
"The illegal population is falling significantly," said Steve Camarota
of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates reducing
immigration. "The only way for that to happen is for a lot more people
to be going home."
The government demographers reached the same exact estimate — 10.8
million illegal immigrants nationwide — that Camarota concluded in his
demographic study last year.
But while most researchers cite the recession as the cause for the
decline, Camarota said border enforcement plays an important part.
"The decline in the population begins before the economy turns down,"
he said. "That suggests that, at least initially, it's because of the
stepped-up enforcement that increased during the end of the Bush
administration."
Other analysts disagree, saying that slower migration flows are a
worldwide trend associated with the economic downturn.
"It's really driven by fewer people coming in," said Jeanne Batalova,
a researcher with the Migration Policy Institute based in Washington,
D.C.
"People are staying put wherever they are. They are less likely to
migrate, but if they're already in the country, the preferred
destination, they will do their best to stay and weather the storm.
That's particularly the case for undocumented immigrants."
There are no estimates of how the population of unauthorized
immigrants has changed in the first year of the Obama administration,
but demographers are likely to begin guessing later this year when the
Census Bureau releases new population estimates for 2009.
information
Top countries of origin for illegal immigrants in the U.S.:
Mexico: 6.65 million (up by 42 percent since 2000)
El Salvador: 530,000 (up by 25 percent)
Guatemala: 480,000 (up by 65 percent)
Honduras: 320,000 (up by 95 percent)
Philippines: 270,000 (up by 33 percent)
India: 200,000 (up by 64 percent)
South Korea: 200,000 (up by 14 percent)
States with the most illegal immigrants:
California: 2.6 million (up by 3 percent since 2000)
Texas: 1.68 million (up by 54 percent)
Florida: 720,000 (down by 10 percent)
New York: 550,000 (up by 1 percent)
Illinois: 540,000 (up by 24 percent)
Georgia: 480,000 (up by 115 percent)
Arizona: 460,000 (up by 42 percent)
Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Illegal immigrants from India on the rise
Experts say many come to U.S. legally, overstay visas
By JAMES PINKERTON Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle
Sept. 11, 2007, 12:47PM
.
Sharon Steinmann Chronicle
Surinder Singh, left, recently received his U.S. citizenship while his
sister-in-law, Ravinder Kour is struggling with the process.
Share Print Share Del.icio.usDiggTwitterYahoo!
BuzzFacebookStumbleUponThe fastest-growing group of illegal immigrants
in the United States doesn't speak Spanish. They typically aren't
found at day labor sites or streaming across the Southwest border into
the U.S.
Instead, they're here in America working in tech companies, small
businesses, as engineers or other highly skilled jobs. And they're
coming from India.
The profile of the illegal immigrant may need to take on a slightly
more South Asian persona since a recent federal report revealed that
India had the greatest percentage increase in unauthorized immigrants
in the U.S. since 2000.
Illegal immigrants from India grew to 270,000 in 2006 from 120,000 in
2000, a 125 percent increase, according to a report late last month
from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Undocumented Indians, however, remain a small segment of the total
estimated population of 11.6 million illegal immigrants in the U.S.
Mexico tops the list with 6.6 million — up from 4.7 million in 2000 —
followed by El Salvador and Guatemala, according to the Homeland
Security report.
Locally, this trend is especially relevant since Indians make up one
of the fastest-growing immigrant groups in Harris County, with 35,971
counted in the 2000 Census. They also represent a highly visible and
influential immigrant community. The Houston area has 6,629 businesses
owned by Indian-Americans, according to the most recent Census Bureau
data.
Experts say illegal Indian immigrants are coming here legally on visas
but are overextending their stays and subsequently slipping under the
radar screen of authorities.
'The system is broken'
Immigration lawyer Bruce Coane said Indians have replaced Mexicans as
the largest group of clients at his Houston practice. He estimates
that more than 1,000 Indians in the Houston area do not have legal
status to remain here.
''The numbers are large because there are just so many coming to the
United States, and almost all of them are coming legally," said Coane,
referring to the undocumented population. ''And over time, they fall
out of legal status."
The most recent government data showed that in fiscal year 2005,
Indians received 194,611 temporary work visas to come to the U.S., the
most of any nation. India eclipsed Mexico, which had 169,786 of its
workers admitted, and the United Kingdom with 156,635.
Coane and other immigration attorneys stressed that most Indian
immigrants come here legally to work, go to school, visit as tourists
or conduct business.
''In most cases, they're trying to do everything the right way, but
because the system is broken, they fall out of status," said Coane,
referring to lengthy waits to become a permanent resident.
More than half of Indian immigrants who came to the U.S. in fiscal
year 2005 — about 102,000 — arrived on the H-1B visa for the highly
skilled. So, typically, they aren't going to be busted by immigration
agents during raids at meat-processing plants such as those owned by
Swift & Co., the site of high-profile investigations last year.
''We have not come across many illegal Indian immigrants in Houston,"
said Robert Rutt, special agent in charge of the U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement office in Houston. ''Most are Mexicans, South and
Central Americans, and some Chinese."
Lax federal oversight cited
There is debate in the Indian community about why immigrants become
illegal, and just how many reside in Houston.
''My knowledge tells me that most of the Indians we interact with are
highly educated — doctors, engineers and business owners," said Jagdip
Ahluwalia, director of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce. ''I
personally have not run into any undocumented Indians here, and I've
lived here for many years."
Faisal Amin, board member of the South Asian Chamber of Commerce in
Houston, said lax oversight of the federal guest workers program is
one reason many Indians stay here when their visas expire.
''We see an increase simply because a lot of those workers are coming
in on H1-B visas," Amin said. "And, we don't have a good way to track
that these workers are, indeed, going back to their countries when
they're finished."
One U.S. Department of Homeland Security official, who asked not be be
identified, agreed there isn't a method to keep tabs on guest workers.
''Once they get in, there's no exit program in place yet — they're
talking about it," the official said.
A dozen years ago, India native Ravinder Kour came to Houston with her
husband on a tourist visa. They found opportunity and stayed after
their visas expired, which turned them into illegal residents.
Meanwhile, they were raising two children who were born here.
But now Kour, a 39-year-old housewife, and her husband are hoping to
regain their legal status with the help of an immigration attorney.
''There are no jobs" in India, said Kour. ''That's why so many Indian
people are coming here."
Bad advice, bad situation
After arriving in Houston the couple decided to try to remain legally.
They were advised by an immigration lawyer to make a claim for
political asylum, which was rejected, and the couple was ordered
deported after not attending a hearing, said attorney Gordon Quan.
''They weren't trying to cheat anyone; they got bad advice," Quan
said.
Kour is being assisted by her brother-in-law, Surinder Singh, 47, who
also came to Houston on a tourist visa. He lived the life of an
illegal immigrant until becoming a citizen in 2003.
''We can't fly, if you want to go somewhere, you have to go by car,"
Singh said. ''If you do something bad, and don't have papers, you will
be in trouble."
The Houston housewife said she constantly worries about immigration
problems.
"It's a big, big depression," Kour said.
Quan, her attorney, noted the federal government assigns a quota of
immigrant visas to each country, and with so many Indians here on
temporary work and other visas, the demand outstrips the supply.
''It's not first-come, first-serve," Quan said. ''A certain percentage
is given to each country. Since there are so many Indians that are
skilled, and being sponsored by employers, their backlog is longer
than other countries."
324 Comments 4 Recommend
(12)
mudkip wrote:
Well, send them back too! 9/11/2007 12:33:55 AM
Recommend: (14) (0)
(0)
areyoukidding wrote:
How can there not be jobs? We're outsourcing American jobs to India by
the thousands. Once again, deport. I'm an equal opportunity proponant
of deportation. 9/11/2007 2:02:02 AM
Recommend: (42) (0)
(12)
PeskyP wrote:
Yes, they see how easy it is for others to do so they don't think
anything of it. It's cause-and-effect. Unfortunately a lot of high-
tech companies are just as complicit as the agribusinesses are. They
take tremendous advantage of the H1-B regs. 9/11/2007 2:46:22 AM
Recommend: (25) (0)
(113)
EStreetShufflin wrote:
nativehoustonians55 worte: "I wonder what the Indians say about the
illegal Hispanics?"let me enlighten you. they love the illegal
"hispanics". they employ them as lawn help, nannies, day labor odd
jobs, etc. head on down to the enclaves in and around hillcroft and
see it for yourself. besides, they aren't in our country to cry and
whine about other illegal immigrants, they are here for the
opportunity STILL afforded them by big business, small business, and
cash-paying individuals who employ them so they don't have to pay all
the associated taxes, insurance, etc. the PROBLEM is HERE. it's not
the other way around! if the OPPORTUNITY did NOT abound, we'd have NO
illegal immigration. period. you think they just threw a dart on the
mercator world map? NO! the united states, particularly houston, is
still a treasure trove of opportunity for illegal immigrants and it is
afforded by the LEGAL CITIZENS doing that business with them. you
don't hold a bone out to a dog and expect him not to chomp at it. we
only have ourselves to blame. 9/11/2007 3:49:36 AM
Recommend: (37) (0)
(113)
EStreetShufflin wrote:
arantant worte: "I think we should concentrate on the hundreds of
thousands of illegal Mexican and Central American immigrants in
Houston who don't pay taxes and live off of our tax dollars."i've got
a better idea. why don't we concentrate on the HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS
of individuals and businesses who employ illegal immigrants so they
don't have to pay OUR TAX DOLLARS. 9/11/2007 3:52:41 AM
Recommend: (54) (0)
(0)
DireStraits wrote:
I wonder how many were hired by my company. My company was crying to a
US senator that they need more H1B visas to bring in more skilled
labor from India to work for 1/2 the wages that Americans will.
9/11/2007 4:44:47 AM
Recommend: (25) (0)
(3)
rayschmidt2004 wrote:
I'm not reading the story because it will upset me before going to
work. The headline makes me angry enough! 9/11/2007 5:14:07 AM
Recommend: (12) (0)
(0)
badgeren wrote:
Surprise! Another one sided article on immigration in the Chronicle.
No discussion of the negative consequences of unchecked immigration.
Just a bunch of spin from immigration attorneys who make all their
money off our immigration system. They get a few grand and we get
problems for decades! We must stop the madness. Tom Tancredo is the
only presidential candidate that wants to fix this problem....
9/11/2007 5:40:50 AM
Recommend: (20) (0)
(0)
TaoJones wrote:
We have enabled and emboldened the illegal immigrant population by our
incompetence, arrogance and greed. Now, providiing illegal immigrants
safe harbor is inconvenient. We boo hoo about health care, taxes and
some "illegal" immigrant stealing our jobs and want them all
prosecuted and thrown out. We all need to understand that by our own
actions for many years we have implied with a wink wink that
immigrants migrating here illegally was o.k. Estreet has a point, we
have no one to blame but ourselves. 9/11/2007 6:06:04 AM
Recommend: (11) (0)
(1)
silent357 wrote:
oh well, that's just how the world is today. At least they are working
and contributing to the economy. Some of you people have so much
xenophobia, who DO you wish to come over and be a productive, law-
abiding, hard-working citizen? The most of them come and over and go
through the process of trying to obtain citizenship and end up getting
shafted by the government. I really don't think the government knows
who is over here and who isn't. 9/11/2007 6:33:05 AM
Recommend: (12) (0)
river40894 wrote:
I can hear it now. Press 1 for English, 2 for Spanish, 3 for Indian.
English needs to be the official language of the United States.
9/11/2007 6:46:36 AM
Recommend: (14) (0)
(1)
LAZARUS1 wrote:
ILLEGAL IS ILLEGAL, IS ILLEGAL, IS ILLEGAL!! WE KNOW WHERE THESE FOLKS
ARE BUT WE WON'T MESS WITH THEM BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO MESS WITH
THOSE EMPLOYERS WHO HIRE THEM KNOWING THAT THEY ARE ILLEGALLY IN OUR
COUNTRY. DIVERSITY, IF NOT CONTROLLED, WILL BE OUR TROJAN HORSE AND
DOWNFALL OF THE USA AS WE KNOW IT!!WAKE UP FRIENDS 9/11/2007 6:55:00
AM
Recommend: (22) (0)
(0)
Govchance wrote:
Folks, the federal governments inability/refusal to deal with this
issue is quickly reaching the point of no return. This country, or any
country for that matter can only absorb so many immigrants before
negative consequences are felt. I would make the arguement that we are
there already. The very fabric of this country is changeing right
before our very eyes ansd we are inept in our ability to make changes
to correct the problem. Folks, if something is not done soon we will,
as citizens of this great country, lose it. And quite frankly, I'm
really not concerned about what other people and other countries think
about us. It is time for the USA to take care of its own.Govchance
9/11/2007 6:56:11 AM
Recommend: (19) (0)
(0)
RunRabbitRun wrote:
hey river - before too long it will be press 1 for spanish, 2 for
vietnamese, 3 for indian and 4 for english. Anglos are already the
official minority in Harris County. 9/11/2007 6:59:56 AM
Recommend: (4) (0)
(28)
Chrisinhouston wrote:
river40894 wrote:I can hear it now. Press 1 for English, 2 for
Spanish, 3 for Indian. English needs to be the official language of
the United States.Not true, the vast majority of people from India
read and write English. You can thank the British for that! 9/11/2007
7:02:43 AM
Recommend: (10) (0)
(22)
Hinkhogg wrote:
More great news from the immigration front, the war on the middle
class.These are the results you get from government when you underfund
and undermine an agency with incompetent leadership. Of course it's
not going to run properly, but that was then intent all along. IF YOU
VOTED REPUBLICAN FOR THE PAST 6 YEARS, REAP YOUR REWARD! 9/11/2007
7:05:05 AM
noknowledge wrote:
Why are illegal immigrants from India here. The same reason the
Hispanics are here. They provide a pool of 'inexpensive' labor in
comparison to the going rate in this country. Whether the job is
moving lawns or coding in Java or as nurses, they reduce the wages
that must be paid. If they work in your field they reduce your pay.
9/11/2007 7:26:14 AM
Recommend: (11) (0)
(1)
silent357 wrote:
minor_tiger:"Also, keep in mind that the democrats led the effort to
bestow amnesty upon those who came here illegally."I'm sorry, I
thought that was George Bush, on television, proposing amnesty for
immigrants. You keep saying Democrat this and that, but it looks like
the next president of the U.S. is going to be a Democrat. As far as
this "problem threatening us all", I don't see where you get that
because I'm not threatened by anything by someone who comes over here
and works and tries to obtain citizenship. I'm not worried about
competing for jobs in the lawn care business, or ringing up gas at the
Exxon store. Sorry that's not what I went to school for. 9/11/2007
7:28:58 AM
hybreedtroller wrote:
this is just another example of how the media sugar coats social
problems(or social outrages) in our country... we all know that our
biggest problems exist with our neighbors to the south. We need to
seal our borders ... throw out the illegals, fast track the work
visas, pay rewards for reporting illegals and fine the employers to
fund the reward system. 9/11/2007 8:09:05 AM
Recommend: (12) (0)
(0)
Maryl wrote:
I can't say I'm surprised by this story. I don't really care what
nationality they are, or if they're skilled. This is another example
of how America will fall from within, while our crummy gov does
nothing. 9/11/2007 8:12:35 AM
Recommend: (14) (0)
(0)
WoolyBugger wrote:
people overstay their visas, are here illegally, live under the radar,
then complain that they have to sneak around and are depressed? It was
your choice to be a fugitive. Just as it is your choice to pick up and
go home. 9/11/2007 8:12:41 AM
SashaSasha wrote:
These people are the ones taking the high paying jobs that some
Americans can't fill. What is it? Americans can't fill manual labor
jobs or high skilled jobs.... 9/11/2007 8:19:38 AM
Recommend: (7) (0)
(0)
equalone wrote:
I have to agree with hardworkVN, if you want it bad enough, work hard
for it. Don't whine and complain because things aren't handed to you.
Sure, an illegal is an illegal, no matter how you look at it....but if
you have someone who is a law-abiding citizen and PAYING taxes,
doesn't that constitute them as someone contributing to society? I
guess sitting at home, complaining the government isn't doing anything
for them, getting free rent and a FEMA card constitutes you as a model
citizen. 9/11/2007 8:25:03 AM
Recommend: (3) (0)
(4)
strangeone wrote:
Why don't we just close our borders for a few years until we can
figure out who is here legally and who is not. No student visas, no
work visas, no green cards, nothing. Clean up the system and get on
top of this immigration fiasco. Send the illegals back to their home
countries. It must be done by the next president either Democrat or
Republican. 9/11/2007 8:31:57 AM
Recommend: (14) (0)
(0)
fifeldidall wrote:
What really sucks is when that H1-B Visa represents a job loss for an
American worker. 9/11/2007 8:34:35 AM
Recommend: (15) (0)
panchovilla wrote:
what about the germans and russians here illegally? 9/11/2007 8:56:46
AM
Recommend: (4) (0)
(62)
Dizzy wrote:
People come here because there is work here. There is work here
because we (Americans) have priced ourselves out of our own job
market. Answer honestly, would you take a 30% cut in salary if it
meant 80% fewer "immigrants"? Or, you keep your current salary level.
Would you be willing to spend an additional 10% across the board on
EVERYTHING you buy? It's easy to toss rocks at others but we all have
to look in the mirror on this one. We want great pay and we want great
prices and we want it now. At what cost? 9/11/2007 8:58:41 AM
Recommend: (10) (0)
(0)
eric3456 wrote:
StrangeOne:Your concerns are very valid, and the answer to your
question as to why this is happening - Corporate Greed! A basic case
of the rich wanting more and more and more... It is not that Americans
are opting for "easy" degrees, it's plain, simple greed. Corporations
have been looking at cost cutting for years. We've now reached a point
where companies are looking to hire low paid workers, in any field -
IT, Oil & Gas, Medical, etc. etc. I've seen it many times where
American workers are asked to "train" these immigrants, only to loose
their job to same. I keep hearing how "eduacted" these people are.
Obviously they are not educated enough to read a H1B visa expiration
date! They know exactly when the visa expires, yet they overstay the
visa. The system is broke, becuase that's the way corporations want it
to be. it makes no difference if the lower wages are being paid to
field workers or white collar workers. the end result is the same:
MORE PROFITS for corporations. 9/11/2007 9:00:47 AM
Recommend: (7) (0)
(5)
Ceeddo wrote:
Minor-TigerGet your facts straight before posting , the Muslim
population in India is 150.000.000 and in the USA about
6.000.000 .Pancho VillaPuerto Ricans are US citizen. 9/11/2007 9:04:54
AM
panchovilla wrote:
Ceedo, You are the only one who caught that. 9/11/2007 9:22:07 AM
AmericaFirst wrote:
Geez, they should go home, thats where all our jobs are anyways.
9/11/2007 9:36:45 AM
Recommend: (3) (0)
(31)
freeandfair wrote:
Oh, so we don't like Indians now. Personally, I find that Indians are
among the most respectful and well-mannered people on this planet.But
back to the topic, there are more than 1 billion Indians and more than
1 billion Chinese in this world and they all want a better life, which
for many means leaving their home country.Unless the US is prepared to
institute its own version of an Iron Curtain with FBI actively chasing
and prosecuting every illegal immigrant there is nothing that can stop
immigrants coming to the US. I am originally from Russia and after
Soviet Union fell we got a lot of illegal immigrants in Russia from
China and Vietnam. There is no legal way for them to come, and you can
easily tell and Chinese from a Russian, so Russian police harasses and
abuses them mercilessly (which I find completely inhumane) and they
still stay. So, if even Russia is better fro them than China or
Vietnam, the US is the dream come true. There is nothing you can do to
stop the immigration, so my advice is to adapt. For one, the US people
need to get better education. Why the best students are usually Asian
or Indian, not white Americans? It is because immigrants and their
children have to work harder to survive and succeed, American kids
just don’t have the same drive and that is what bringing them down.
9/11/2007 9:42:04 AM
Recommend: (9) (0)
(0)
fifeldidall wrote:
I am confused. When I post "I", it continuously gets removed.
9/11/2007 9:42:55 AM
Recommend: (2) (0)
(113)
EStreetShufflin wrote:
Silent357, nice post. 9/11/2007 9:43:51 AM
Recommend: (0) (0)
(58)
phantomoftheopera wrote:
I am tired of the Chronicle censoring my posts ... I will cancel my
subscription to the newspaper if it is not stopped!!! I said nothing
in my post that was out of line ... period!Lets see how long this one
lasts ... 9/11/2007 9:48:24 AM
Recommend: (3) (0)
(0)
fifeldidall wrote:
"I'm not worried about competing for jobs in the lawn care business,
or ringing up gas at the Exxon store. Sorry that's not what I went to
school for." Very well said, Silent357.To reiterate a point, kalki,
the majority of educated posts here are not against immigrants and non-
whites. C-I-T-I-Z-E-N-S of all races and creeds are welcome to live in
harmony within our borders. It is when you place the 'illegal' in
front of immigrant that I have a problem with. So don't paint us with
the racist brush. Following laws is the cornerstone to ANY successful
civilization. 9/11/2007 9:49:48 AM
Recommend: (9) (0) [Report abuse]
(4)
strangeone wrote:
kalki,You need to wake up. This is not a color of skin issue. The
immigration issue is about the laws of this country. There is a legal
way to come into our country that all of our forefathers abided by at
the time of their entry. The situation is that noone, be they black,
brown or purple, should be allowed to enter and become a citizen any
other way. This is what our country was founded on. We are a proud
country of many ethnic backgrounds. English is our language. This is
AMERICA!!! 9/11/2007 9:51:48 AM
msdeputyclerk wrote:
I am telling you our country is going to go down with all these
illegals. Are (illegals-Mexican, Indian,etc.)they going to pick up
arms and go fight against our enemies? Are they going to support our
flag and respect it? Are they going to learn to speak English? If not,
get out. It's that simple, a no brainer. 9/11/2007 9:52:40 AM
Recommend: (4) (0)
(0)
Erni wrote:
If the government can tell the American people how many illegal
Indians or other illegals from other countries are here on expired
visas or just plain here illegally, and where, then how come that same
government can not find and deport these illegals? 9/11/2007 9:56:15
AM
http://www.chron.com/disp/discuss.mpl/chronicle/5124255.html
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/chronicle/5124255.html
Illegal immigrants from India rise alarmingly in US: Report
Rediff News Bureau | February 19, 2008 15:46 IST
Last Updated: February 19, 2008 16:02 IST
India may have taken giant strides in every possible sphere of life
across the world, but there are things that come as real blot to its
global image.
Quoting a US Department of Homeland Security report, mercurynews
reports that Indians are the fastest-growing group of illegal
immigrants in the United States.
The report says there are 2,70,000 unauthorized Indians in the United
States - a 125 percent jump since 2000, the largest percentage
increase of any nation with more than 100,000 illegal immigrants in
that country.
The report says though the number of Indian immigrants is low when
compared to people from Mexico, the Indian context is appalling as the
illegal immigrants mostly consist high-skilled workers. Illegal
immigrants from other countries are mostly low-skilled workers.
Mercurynews, in its report, also says if the trend continues India
will only trail only Mexico, El Salvador and Guatemala in illegal
immigration.
The report quoting experts says virtually all immigrants enter the US
legally and then violate the visa terms, thus becomimg illegal
immigrants.
"How do you get in? You come across the border, or you arrive here
with a visa," Lindsay Lowell, policy director for the Institute for
the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University told
Mercurynews.
"Indians aren't going to be walking across the border like Mexicans,"
he said.
Federal officials calculated the number of illegal immigrants by using
census estimates of the total number of immigrants from individual
countries, compiling the total number of legal immigrants using
federal immigration and naturalization records, and then subtracting
the number of legal residents from the total immigrant population to
determine the number of undocumented people, the report said.
Asked by Mercurynews about the number of illegal Indians in Silicon
Valley, Banjit Singh, an Indian-born taxi driver, said, "Here, there
is a little bit. But you go to another city or state, like Los Angeles
or New York, there are many illegal people."
Local immigration lawyers say that particularly among Indians, the ups
and downs of Silicon Valley's economy since 2001 are one reason why
Indians have fallen out of legal status.
"Most are bachelors; the way they get here is they have a job,"
Gabriel Jack, a San Jose immigration lawyer, said of many of his
Indian clients.
"They come here as professionals, most often in the H-1B program, and
given the fluctuations of Silicon Valley, the business climate, these
guys lose their jobs. They get laid off or they wager their hands on a
start-up coming in," Jack said.
"The problem with the H-1B program is, you can't have any significant
time between jobs" without falling out of legal status.
Indians made up 44 percent of H-1B applicants in the 2005-06 fiscal
year, five times the number from second-place China, the report says.
The report says another source is relatives from India who arrive for
a visit on a tourist visa and never go home.
"America is a very attractive country; everybody who comes here wants
to stay," said Shah Peerally, a Silicon Valley immigration lawyer. "I
can tell you right now, there are nearly 1 billion people in India, of
which maybe 800 million want to come here."
The United States deported close to 500 Indians a year in recent
years, another expert tells Mecurynews.
"Unless Congress reforms the immigration system we are going to see
this high-skilled, illegal workforce emerging," said Frank D. Bean,
director of the Immigration Research Center at the University of
California-Irvine.
http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/feb/19us.htm
Demographics of Unauthorized Immigrants in the US: Countries of
Origin, States of Residence, and Employment Data, 2000-2008
I. Introduction
Immigrant march in Los Angeles, CA, Aug. 25, 2007
Who are the unauthorized immigrants in the United States? Where do
they come from and where do they settle in the United States? After
entry, what socio-economic roles do they play in the US economy?
As of 2008, the unauthorized immigrant population in the United States
is estimated to be approximately 11.6 million. 61% of the unauthorized
immigrants in the country are from Mexico, and 25% of all unauthorized
immigrant workers reside in California. Unauthorized immigrants, as of
2008, represent 5% of the total civilian labor force in the United
States. 51% of these immigrants, compared to 21% of native workers,
hold occupations in the service (30%) and construction (21%)
industries. The following charts and tables delineate the demographic
and socio-economic background of unauthorized immigrants in the United
States.
II. Unauthorized Immigrant Population: Countries of Origin, 2000-2008
Top 10 Countries of Origin and Percent Change, 2000-2008
2000* Population 2005 Population 2006 Population 2008 Population %
change
from 2000**
All Countries 8,460,000 All Countries 10,500,000 All Countries
11,500,000 All Countries 11,600,000 37%
1. Mexico 4,680,000 Mexico 5,970,000 Mexico 6,570,000 Mexico 7,030,000
50%
2. El Salvador 430,000 El Salvador 470,000 El Salvador 510,000 El
Salvador 570,000 33%
3. Guatemala 290,000 Guatemala 370,000 Guatemala 430,000 Guatemala
430,000 48%
4. Philippines 200,000 India 280,000 Philippines 280,000 Philippines
300,000 50%
5. China 190,000 China 230,000 Honduras 280,000 Honduras 300,000 88%
6. Korea 180,000 Philippines 210,000 India 270,000 Korea 240,000 33%
7. Honduras 160,000 Korea 210,000 Korea 250,000 China 220,000 16%
8. India 120,000 Honduras 180,000 Brazil 210,000 Brazil 180,000 80%
9. Ecuador 110,000 Brazil 170,000 China 190,000 Ecuador 170,000 55%
10. Brazil 100,000 Vietnam 160,000 Vietnam 160,000 India 160,000 33%
Sources and notes:
Sources for Unauthorized Immigrant Population: Countries of origin,
2000-2008 from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS):
1. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2008" (PDF) 226KB Feb. 2009
2. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2006" (PDF) 577KB Aug. 2007
3. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2005" (PDF) 221KB Aug. 2006
Supplemental documents of unauthorized immigrant populations from
1990-2000, released by the Immigration and Naturalization Service
(INS):
4. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: 1990-2000" (PDF) 473KB Jan. 2003
5. "Illegal Alien Resident Population" (PDF) 24KB Updated Dec.
2001
Notes:
*Countries listed under 2000 were not necessarily the top ten of that
year. Countries for 2000 are listed to compare the population change
between 2000, 2005, 2006, and 2008.
**The population change between 2000 and 2008 is represented in the "%
change from 2000" column. The data in that column reflect the
percentage of change in population from 2000 and 2008 of each country
(not the percentage of population change between countries ranked in
the same positions of the chart).
III. Unauthorized Immigrant Population: States of Residence in the
United States, 2000-2008
Top 10 States of Residence and Percent Change, 2000-2008
2000* Population 2005 Population 2006 Population 2008 Population %
change
from
2000
All States 8,460,000 All States 10,500,000 All States 11,550,000 All
States 11,600,000 37%
1. California 2,510,000 California 2,770,000 California 2,830,000
California 2,850,000 14%
2. Texas 1,090,000 Texas 1,360,000 Texas 1.64 M Texas 1.68 M 54%
3. Florida 800,000 Florida 850,000 Florida 980,000 Florida 840,000 5%
4. New York 540,000 New York 560,000 Illinois 550,000 New York 640,000
19%
5. Illinois 440,000 Illinois 520,000 New York 540,000 Arizona 560,000
70%
6. New Jersey 350,000 New Jersey 480,000 Arizona 500,000 Illinois
550,000 25%
7. Arizona 330,000 Arizona 470,000 Georgia 490,000 Georgia 460,000
109%
8. North Carolina 260,000 North Carolina 380,000 New Jersey 430,000
New Jersey 400,000 14%
9. Georgia 220,000 Georgia 360,000 North Carolina 370,000 North
Carolina 380,000 46%
10. Nevada 170,000 Nevada 240,000 Washington 280,000 Nevada 280,000
65%
40 other states 1,750,000 40 other states 2,510,000 40 other states
2,950,000 40 other states 2,950,000 69%
Sources and notes:
Sources for Unauthorized Immigrant Population: States of residence in
the United States, 2000-2008 from the US Department of Homeland
Security (DHS):
1. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2008" (PDF) 226KB Feb. 2009
2. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2006" (PDF) 577KB Aug. 2007
3. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: January 2005" (PDF) 221KB Aug. 2006
Supplemental documents of unauthorized immigrant populations from
1990-2000, released by the Immigration and Naturalization Service
(INS):
4. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the
United States: 1990-2000" (PDF) 473KB Jan. 2003
5. "Illegal Alien Resident Population" (PDF) 24KB Updated Dec.
2001
Notes:
*States listed under 2000 were not necessarily the top ten of that
year. States for 2000 are listed to compare the population change
between 2000, 2005, 2006, and 2008.
IV. Distribution of Unauthorized Immigrant Workers Compared to US born
Workers by Major Occupation Group, 2008
Top 20 Occupations with High Shares of Unauthorized Immigrants, 2008
Top 20 Occupations* % of Unauthorized Immigrants in Total Work Force #
of Unauthorized Immigrant Workers Total # of All
Workers
1. Brickmasons, blockmasons and stonemasons 40% 131,000 325,000
2. Drywall installers, ceiling tile installers and tapers 37% 94,000
255,000
3. Roofers 31% 76,000 246,000
4. Miscellaneous agricultural workers 30% 269,000 910,000
5. Helpers, construction trades 28% 52,000 184,000
6. Dishwashers 28% 101,000 364,000
7. Construction laborers 27% 556,000 2,055,000
8. Maids and housekeeping cleaners 27% 417,000 1,555,000
9. Cement masons, concrete finishers and terazzo workers 27% 29,000
109,000
10. Packaging and filling machine operators and tenders 26% 96,000
369,000
11. Grounds maintenance workers 25% 356,000 1,413,000
12. Packers and packagers, hand 24% 119,000 504,000
13. Butchers, poultry and fish processing workers 23% 71,000 305,000
14. Carpet, floor, and tile installlers and finishers 22% 68,000
306,000
15. Painters, constuction and maintenance 22% 173,000 791,000
16. Parking lot attendants 21% 21,000 100,000
17. Chefs and head cooks 20% 75,000 377,000
18. Sewing machine operators 20% 49,000 248,000
19. Refuse and recyclable material collectors 19% 22,000 112,000
20. Cooks 19% 427,000 2,219,000
Other "unauthorized" occupations** 9% 3,120,000 34,979,000
All other occupations 2% 1,928,000 106,407,000
Total, Civilian Labor Force (with an occupation) 5% 8,258,000
154,135,000
Sources and notes:
Sources:
1. Apr. 14, 2009, D'Vera Cohn and Jeffrey S. Passel
"Pew Hispanic Center Research Report: A Portrait of Unauthorized
Immigrants in the United States" (PDF) 1.82MB
2. Mar. 7, 2006, Jeffrey S. Passel
"Pew Hispanic Center Research Report: The Size and Characteristics of
the Unauthorized Migrant Population in the U.S.: Estimates Based on
the March 2005 Current Population Survey" (PDF) 141KB
Notes:
*Occupations included in the Top 20 Occupations with High Shares of
Unauthorized Immigrants table have at least 100,000 workers nationally
and more than three times the national share of unauthorized immigrant
workers.
**"Unauthorized" occupations have a higher percentage of workers who
are unauthorized immigrants than the national average but do not
qualify for a separate listing.
According to the Congress of the United States Congressional Budget
Office's Nov. 2005 report "The Role of Immigrants in the U.S. Labor
Market":
"Considerable uncertainty is inherent in estimates of the number of
unauthorized immigrants that reside in the United States and the
number that are in the labor force. The decennial census, the Current
Population Survey (CPS), and similar sources of information about the
population and labor force do not ask foreign-born people about their
legal status in the United States aside from whether they are
naturalized citizens. Thus, the number of unauthorized immigrants must
be estimated by indirect methods that introduce the possibility of
significant errors. A recent analysis, based on survey data from the
CPS and administrative data from the Department of Homeland Security
and other federal agencies, indicated that in early 2004 about 10
million foreign-born people were living in the United States without
authorization and about 6.3 million of them were in the labor force."
Congress of the United States Congressional Budget Office: "The Role
of Immigrants in the U.S. Labor Market" (PDF) 350KB
Last updated on 4/14/2009 5:01:00 AM PST
http://immigration.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000845
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/37334fb34fbe6d7c#
bademiyansubhanallah
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http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Shatrughan-treads-cautiously-on-Gadkari-issue/595567
Shatrughan treads cautiously on Gadkari issue
Agencies
Posted: Thursday , Mar 25, 2010 at 1341 hrs
Indore:
After pointing a figure at the BJP President Nitin Gadkari over the
composition of his team, actor-turned-politician and party MP
Shatrughan Sinha has now chosen to tread cautiously over this issue.
The Bollywood Shotgun, in his typical thunderous voice, said "Khamosh"
but added that he calls a "spade a spade" when the scribes asked him a
question in connection with Gadkari here last night.
The Patna Saheb MP, who was here to promote his son Luv Sinha's film
`Sadiyaan', said self-confidence was the key to his success in films
and politics.
To a question on BJP, the 64-year-old former Union Minister said he
was talking to the media in capacity of a father not a politician.
On March 20, Sinha had said it was unfortunate that senior leaders
like C P Thakur and Yashwant Sinha have been left out of Gadkari's
team, and that all was not well in the BJP.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Shatrughan-treads-cautiously-on-Gadkari-issue/595567
Kishenji might be injured or even dead, say police
Kolkata, March 26, 2010
First Published: 08:34 IST(26/3/2010)
Last Updated: 08:37 IST(26/3/2010)
Kishenji, the elusive Maoist leader, might have been injured in a 12-
hour-long gunbattle between the rebels and the security forces near
Lalgarh, around 160 Km southwest of Kolkata.
Kishenji, the elusive Maoist leader, might have been injured in a 12-
hour-long gunbattle between the rebels and the security forces near
Lalgarh, around 160 Km southwest of Kolkata.
A senior police official of West Midnapore, not willing to be quoted,
informed that Koteswara Rao alias Kishenji, was likely to be seriously
injured in the exchange of fire that took place at the Hatishol forest
close to Lakhanpur village, around 8 Km east of Lalgarh, since 6 am on
Thursday.
"Our ground level sources at Lakhanpur have informed us that around 15
Maoists have died in the battle. While a section of informers said
Kishenji suffered a bullet injury to his leg, another group said he
might be dead. We can't be sure till we find the bodies," the officer
said.
The 51-year-old Rao, CPI (Maoist) Politburo and Central Military
Commission member, better known as Kishenji, is in charge of the
eastern regional bureau for the Maoists.
The gunbattle started after the security forces were tipped off that a
group of PLGA guerrillas and Maoist leaders had convened at the
Hatishol forest, adjacent to Lakhanpur.
"The security forces reached the spot around 6 am and the gun battle
started. It went on for nearly 12 hours," the senior cop said.
Lakhanpur, where the gunbattle took place on Thursday, was the place
where Kishenji was reportedly cornered on October 22, when the rebel
leader was to release Atindranath Dutta, the abducted Officer-in-
Charge of Sankrail police station. It was at the same Hatishol forest
where he met with media persons and formally released Dutta the same
day.
2 comments
S.N.Singh 27 minutes ago
If Kishenji is killed, it will be serious setback for naxalites.This
will considerably help security force in tackling this problem.The
shooting of naxalites on spot is only solution left with the govt.All
out offensive against them must continue till this problem is finished
since trial & error method adopted in past has caused heavy
casualities on security forces & wastage of public money. State &
Central govt. must take speedy development works in backward areas to
eradicate poverty & other problems faced by rural people.The
corruption in all walks of life must be curbed to achieve rapid
development otherwise the needy will remain poor. This is need of hour
and no laxity in any respect should be done.The stringent punishment
for corruption must be given to culprits specially to unscrupulous
politicians.
Ivan 3 hours ago
3 people liked this.
Another good riddance...let this moron rot in hell
http://karmicsoliloquy.blogspot.com
Whistling comment not a slip of tongue, says Mulayam
Lucknow, March 26, 2010
First Published: 00:53 IST(26/3/2010)
Last Updated: 00:55 IST(26/3/2010)
Far from expressing regrets, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav
on Thursday defended his sexist remark about the kind of women the Lok
Sabha would see as members if they enter it through a quota.
Yadav had recently been criticised by parties across the political
spectrum for saying that the quota would enable elite women coming
into Parliament – the kind who are "whistled at by youths".
At a meeting of party MPs, MLAs and office bearers in Lucknow, Yadav
said he had made the remark deliberately and it was no slip of the
tongue.
Yadav said his statement "achieved its purpose of triggering a
controversy and leading to a discussion on the subject".
He said he was ready to hold more discussions on the issue.
The Samajwadi Party chief also propounded a convoluted theory that if
the bill is enacted into law, there would be no men in the Lok Sabha
after 11 years.
Advocating reservation for women within political parties instead,
Yadav said it should be made mandatory for parties to give 15 to 20
per cent tickets to women to contest elections. A resolution to this
effect was passed at Thursday’s meeting.
Asking the gathering to begin preparations for the assembly elections
in Uttar Pradesh in 2012, Yadav said the Samajwadi Party has a list of
250 people engaging in anti-party activities. But he chose not to
expel them.
Mohan Singh, Samajwadi national general secretary said it was most
likely that Chief Minister Mayawati would recommend elections well
before her term ends.
"Don’t think elections are far away. The way Mayawati has begun
holding rallies and sit-ins indicate that she has begun preparing for
elections and will not wait for the full term," he said.
1 comments
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majorretdvirendrasharma 45 minutes ago
If not the "Slip of tongue", then more the reason for Mulayam to tell
the country did he want his daughter-in-law to be whistled at by
becoming a MP?
Indian scriptures bar pre-marital sex: former CJ
Bangalore, March 25, 2010
First Published: 22:01 IST(25/3/2010)
Last Updated: 22:31 IST(25/3/2010)
Former Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court and BJP MP Rama
Jois on Thursday said Indian scriptures bar premarital sex and Indian
society still consider pre-marital sexual relationship not good.
Jois, also a former Governor, in a statement said "the oral
observations made by one of the judges of the three-judge bench of the
Supreme Court in the context of male and female having sexual
intercourse prior to marraige and question posed by the learned judge
Who says it is bad? has given rise to counter question: who says it is
good".
Quoting from scriptures, he said one of the nine directives of dhrama
prescribed by Mahabharata was "Prajanseveshu dareshu" one should
procure children only under wedlock which by necessary implication
bars pre-marital sexual activity between man and woman, he said.
"The object and purpose of marriage as declared by the Dharmasastras
was not merely to satisfy the mutual carnal desire of man and a woman,
though it did constitute the basis of the desire for marriage", he
said.
Jois also refers to various Indian scriptures that upholds fidelity
between spouses, mutual trust and discourages the 'discarding
attitude' of a spouse to pursue other gains.
An unequal burden
Sitaram Yechury
March 25, 2010
First Published: 20:38 IST(25/3/2010)
Last Updated: 20:41 IST(25/3/2010)
The Delhi government has brazenly announced an across-the-board hike
in the prices of essential commodities including fuel and cooking gas.
The message is clear: the burden of financing this year’s Commonwealth
Games is to be borne by the aam aadmi. This comes on top of the
inflationary content of the Union Budget, attested by the finance
minister when he informed the Rajya Sabha, “I will not be surprised if
it (inflation) reaches double digits in March itself.” He then went on
to justify that India has lived with higher rates of inflation in the
past and, therefore, this was no big deal.
This is not only a reflection of the audacity that accompanies a
government in its first (honeymoon) year. This, in fact, reflects the
international pattern of neo-liberal prescriptions that seek to emerge
from the global recession by burdening the vast mass of the people and
benefiting the corporates and the rich with the hope that the latter
through their spending will rejuvenate the economy. This year’s Union
budget reflects this philosophy when it doled out concessions to the
rich and hiked indirect taxes for the poor.
While we in India are being asked to prepare for a fiscal
consolidation to reduce our 6.5 per cent deficit, the 2009 US budget
sent by President Obama to its Congress has a $1.75 trillion deficit
or 12.3 per cent of its GDP. This comes on top of the over $10
trillion of bailout packages that were given last year in the name of
recovering from the crisis. The consequence of such a global trend has
increased the number of billionaires in the world by over 200 and
their aggregate capital has expanded by over 50 per cent. Recently,
Forbes reported that as of late 2009 the number of billionaires soared
from 793 to 1,011 and their total fortunes from $2.4 trillion to $3.6
trillion.
Given the global recession such massive accumulation in the hands of
the wealthy can only be put to good use on stock and raw material
markets leading to the creation of new financial bubbles that neo-
liberalism hopes will trigger growth-based on speculation. The seeds
of fresh crises are being sown by replicating the process, which in
the first place, created the current crisis. It is not surprising,
therefore, that oil prices that had hit an all-time low of $47-a-
barrel in December 2008 now stands over $80. Global financial indices
are also climbing steadily. A classic case is that of Russia which saw
a GDP decline of 7.9 per cent in 2009 but had double the number of
billionaires as its stock market grew by over 100 per cent. The result
is that the very same financial giants which caused the present crisis
are now announcing super profits. JPMorgan Chase announced a record
$2.7 billion profit in the second quarter of 2009.
As the bankruptcy crisis in Greece shows, much of this largesse to
make the wealthy wealthier is being done at the expense of massive
cuts in social security expenditures. In late January, the Greek
government adopted an austerity package worth $6.8 billion. In March,
it announced an additional package of saving an additional $6.5
billion. This has been financed by raising taxes, slashing social
security expenditures, increasing the retirement age, cutting the pay
of civil servants etc. This has naturally led to four successful
general strikes in the space of one month.
Many raised an eyebrow at the rise in the sensex post-budget. As India
is following these very neo-liberal prescriptions, this is not
surprising. In addition to tax concessions announced this year, the
budget documents show that nearly Rs 80,000 crore was ‘uncollected’
from the corporates and Rs 4,000 crore from high-end income-tax payers
last year. Instead, if this was collected and utilised for hiking
public investments in building our much-needed infrastructure, it
would have generated high levels of employment. The consequent
expansion of domestic demand could have spiralled the cycle of
sustained growth. This latter course, however, would have denied the
rich from making further quick super-profits.
This process is already feeding speculation in India. The total value
of trade in agricultural commodities in the commodity exchanges during
the fortnight ending January 31 increased by a huge 64.14 per cent.
The cumulative value of trade in agricultural commodities during the
year from April 1, 2009 to January 31, 2010, grew by a whopping 102.59
per cent, in absolute terms valuing over Rs 10.13 crore. Now any
forward trading can make profits only when the prices of these
commodities are higher than what they were when the trading initially
took place.
The aam aadmi is, therefore, faced with a double whammy attack — rise
in prices through official hikes and speculation. Like the spate of
general strikes and protests across Europe, India is bound to see the
rise in popular actions demanding that the government reverse these
policies. The jail bharo call given by the Left parties on April 8
will only be the beginning.
Sitaram Yechury is CPI(M) Politburo member and Rajya Sabha MP
The views expressed by the author are personal
12-hr firefight in forest hunt for Kishenji: 2 dead, 3 held
Madhuparna Das
Posted: Friday , Mar 26, 2010 at 0327 hrs
Kolkata:
A CRPF commando was injured and two Maoists were believed killed in a
gunbattle that raged for over 12 hours today in a forest near
Lakkhanpur in West Midnapore where security forces suspect top Maoist
leader Kishenji was present. Three persons were detained from the spot
but identities were not disclosed.
A senior police officer said that intercepts of Maoist phone calls
suggested that Kishenji could have sustained injuries in the gunbattle
from 6 am to 7 pm.
As night fell, the CRPF personnel withdrew from the encounter site.
Maoist ideologue Varavara Rao called The Indian Express to check for
“news on Kishenji.”
CRPF Special Director General Vijay Raman said: “We had specific
intelligence input that Kishenji was present in the forest in
Lakkhanpur. Based on that input, our forces moved. A Maoist shelter
was spotted in the wee hours and we surrounded it. They started firing
and our forces retaliated. The intensity of the firing indicated that
a very senior leader was present at the spot who, as per the
intelligence input, could have been Kishenji.”
“We picked up three Maoists from the spot. We have handed them over to
police,” Raman said.
West Bengal DGP Bhupinder Singh, too, said a top Maoist leader was
present at Lakkhanpur.
“Based on the intensity of the firing, it can be presumed that a
leader of the stature of Kishenji was present there. We have arrested
some people from the spot,” he said.
Comments (2) |
Put Varavara Rao in jail
By: sunny | 26-Mar-2010
Varavara Rao is a animal not fit for our society. Its only in India
that he is allowed to roam free. He should be questioned deeply.
FIGHTING NAXALS
By: amitabh | 26-Mar-2010
THIS FIGHT ON BEHALF OF CORPORATE WORLD ONLY INTERESTED IN MILKING THE
POOR WOULD RESULT IN SOMETHING SO MESSY THAT INDIA WONT BE ABLE TO
COME OUT OF IT.AAM ADMI GOVT FIGHTING AAM ADMI. OR THESE CORPORATES
ARE AAM ADMI FOR CONG?
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/12hrfirefightinforesthuntforkishenji2dead-3held/595912/
Bachchan row exposes chink in ‘link’
Express news service
Posted: Friday , Mar 26, 2010 at 0305 hrs
New Delhi:
Maharashtra CM Ashok Chavan along with Amitabh Bachchan during the
commissioning ceremony sea link in Mumbai.
The Congress and its coalition partner, the NCP on Thursday took
different stands on the invite to Amitabh Bachchan to attend a
function to inaugurate the second phase of Bandra-Worli Sea Link on
Wednesday. While the Congress gave up its usual reticence to comment
on the actor and justified party leaders’ criticism of him, the NCP
saw nothing wrong in extending invitation to Bachchan.
CM Ashok Chavan, who has maintained that he was not aware of the
invitation to the actor, was learnt to have taken the same stance in
his clarification to the high command.
“The party is aware of what happened there. The CM has clarified the
situation. The question is not about Bachchan as a person or an actor.
There is resentment against him among party workers, but the reason is
not personal. Their anger is because of the fact that Bachchan is seen
standing by the side of Narendra Modi. In such a situation, Congress
workers have the moral right to do so (criticise),” said AICC media
cell head Janardan Dwivedi.
Senior NCP leader Tariq Anwar, however, justified the presence of
Bachchan at the function saying that even Opposition parties are
invited to official functions. “As far as Bachchan is concerned, he is
a celebrity. Such official functions are not of any political party.
Even the Shiv Sena and BJP are invited. Sachin Tendulkar was
contacted, but he was not available. It was not a Congress function.
There was no intention to create a controversy,” he said.
The controversy is being seen as having its roots in the groupism
within the Congress and the ambition of Mumbai Region Congress
Committee president Kripashankar Singh to become a minister in the
Chavan Cabinet. The invitation cards issued by the Maharashtra State
Road Development Corporation did not mention Bachchan as an invitee,
but advertisements mentioned him as a special invitee. NCP leaders
like Minister for Public Works Jaidutt Kshirsagar, who also heads
MSRDC, justified Bachchan being invited to the function on grounds
that he was a Mumbai icon. Singh, who did not attend the function,
said Congress leaders such as Vilasrao Deshmukh and Sushilkumar Shinde
should have been invited for the function, hosted by the MSRDC which
is controlled by the NCP.
Actor criticises manufactured rows
Express News Service
Thiruvananthapuram/ Mumbai
ENRAGED over the Kerala government’s decision to abandon the idea of
making him the state’s tourism ambassador, Amitabh Bachchan has
reacted sharply. The central leadership of the CPM had shot down the
state’s plan to rope in Bachchan, citing that the actor was doing the
same job for BJP-ruled Gujarat.
Bachchan also said the controversy over his presence at the
inauguration of the second phase of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link has been
“manufactured”. “A fresh controversy has been rapidly manufactured on
my involvement,” he wrote in a midnight post on his blog.
In response to Kerala decision, Bachchan wrote in his blog: “You want
to stop me from promoting tourism in a state because you have reason
to believe that there are political connotations to the event. This is
such rubbish. All I shall be doing will be working in a short film
that shall highlight the various places of interest in the state
(Gujarat) so that it encourages more tourists to visit the region. And
that is what I would precisely do when I would be asked to similar
acts in Kerala. It is a petty act of cheap convenience to prevent me
from doing that, and by pitting me against political connotations and
manoeuvres without paying any respect for the actual work that would
be done. Fair enough! I shall abide by the judgment of the state
government. I did not ask them for it, they came forward with the
invitation, I accepted. Now they want to decline it, fine. Not the
first time such incident has happened. Invitation to be the chief
guest at Goa International Film Festival and when I get there, they
decline it.”
Bachchan did not spare the media either. “It is a common Indian media
trait — finding fault at any cost to any act or event. Merit for the
moment and the work not interesting enough to sell and so de-merit the
moment. And in such matters if you could highlight a celebrity,
preferably from the film world, into the matter, you would have
discovered a way and means to keep the story rolling for a few weeks.
You take umbrage at my association with Gujarat, but never have the
guts or courage to stop a Ratan Tata, or an Ambani from investing in
the state and running successful factories and ventures there.
WITH PTI INPUTS
Comments (5) |
Amitabh Bachhan
By: Sharma | 26-Mar-2010
Dear Mr Bachhan: It is enough of you now. Please fade off and let
someone else come to centre stage. Since last half a centuary, there
is not a day when you were not mentioned in the News Papers. This had
made you very egoist and as if you are never going to go away. All you
should be doing now is social work and meditation. Instead, you have
become more hungry for praise and recognition, jealous of others being
popular.(like khans) Please do not ruin your own image.
The Bachhan heartburn
By: Kishore Karnad | 26-Mar-2010
How at all can Bachhan compare himself with Ratan Tata or Ambani? Both
have invested a lot of money and created hundreds of jobs bringing
properity to the State while Bachhan has only exploited the State and
pocketed a hefty fee for promoting tourism. And now he is upset at the
prospect of losing some money he could have made by selling Kerala.
This man will do anything for money. I pity India's rich- the
bachhankind!
Imaginary accusations..
By: Vikas | 26-Mar-2010
Kishore doesnt even know that Amitabh did not charge a paisa for being
the Brand Ambassador for Gujrat Tourism.This came out clealy in the
inteview by Pronoy Roy on NDTV. But Kishore has imagined Amitabh
"pocketing hefty money". Biased views can cause hallucinations.
BACHCHAN INVITED !
By: M S VAISHNAV M | 26-Mar-2010
THE ROW OVER INVITATION (and presence) OF AMITABH BACHCHAN AT 'SEA
LINK' FUNCTION SHOWS HOW POLITICS HAS HIT THE NADIR IN OUR COUNTRY !!
IT HAS BECOME A ROUTINE TO POLITICALISE EVERY EVENT/ISSUE WHETHER IT
IS PUBLIC FUNCTION, BOLLYWOOD SHOW OR A SPORTS EVENT !CLEARANCE FROM
POLITICAL MASTERS CONCERNED IS A MUST FOR THE SUCCESS OF EVENT !! THIS
HAPPENS ONLY IN MY COUNTRY. WE DO NOT READ ABOUT 'INAUGARATION
FUNCTIONS' /NAMING OF ANY PUBLIC PROJECT BY POLITICIANS/LEADERS IN ANY
OTHER COUNTRY !
Fuss rather than a furore....
By: Roy | 26-Mar-2010
over a has been trying ever so much to get into the limelight
again....yes we the right wing elements in these columns going all out
to justify an ICON status for this...a mere actor. The fact that he is
a so called brand ambassador for the extreme right wing polity in
Gujarat is why these elements want the nondescript individual in the
newz whilst sensible folks in Kerala....literate in every
sense...asked him to go to hell..rather be damned.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bachchanrowexposeschinkinlink/595899/0
Maya was buzzed, SPG won't let Rahul bee
Maulshree Seth
Posted: Friday , Mar 26, 2010 at 0320 hrs
Lucknow:
OpportunityDon’t Glorify NaxalismRole-Model MPs, MLAs!Vehicle called
Life The honeybees that swarmed Mayawati’s public meeting 10 days ago
created a buzz that seems to have affected the Special Protection
Group (SPG). Officers in charge of Rahul Gandhi’s security have asked
the Sultanpur district administration to remove beehives outside the
venue of a meeting the Congress general secretary is scheduled to
attend on Friday.
Several beehives outside Vikas Bhawan in Sultanpur were destroyed last
night. However, the bees returned during the day. A second operation
was planned for Thursday night.
Sultanpur District Magistrate S L Pande said SPG officers who came to
oversee security arrangements for Rahul’s visit asked for the removal
of the beehives.
District Chief Development Officer G Ram, who is supervising the work,
said, “Beehives are not new to any rural setup. There were four or
five beehives outside Vikas Bhawan; some have been removed. The
situation is being closely monitored along with the SPG. I cannot say
anything more.”
Amethi, Rahul’s Lok Sabha constituency, is part of Sultanpur district.
As local MP, Rahul presides over the meetings of the district
vigilance and monitoring committee which reviews development works.
Other MPs and MLAs from the district, and district-level officials are
members of the committee.
The meetings are held at Vikas Bhawan, a three-storey building which
is
the office of the Chief Development Officer. There are beehives on the
walls outside and on nearby trees.
Officials said the last meeting of the committee was held about a year
ago. “Then too there were beehives, but no one bothered,” said an
official. He said beehives on the building had been removed, but those
on the trees had not been disturbed.
A swarm of large honeybees invaded Mayawati’s rally in Lucknow’s
Ramabai Ambedkar ground on March 15. The BSP alleged a “conspiracy” by
Mayawati’s opponents, and the government ordered an inquiry. The
investigation, which was initially led by a DIG and DM of Lucknow, has
so far produced no results.
Maqsood Alam, Sultanpur district Congress president, said, “Like
others, we are concerned about the security of our leader, especially
after a big swarm hovered around the dais from where Mayawati was
addressing her rally. I went to Vikas Bhawan today and was happy to
see that the beehives were being cleared”.
Comments (1) |
Bee Hating
By: BG Subhash | 26-Mar-2010
It is a tragedy of Indian Democracy which gives opportunity to Bee
Hating Mayawati Aka Notewati Aka Malawati
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mayawasbuzzed-spgwontletrahulbee/595909/0
Bachchan a victim of 'fear' of Gandhi family in Cong: BJP
Agencies
Posted: Thursday , Mar 25, 2010 at 1346 hrs
New Delhi:
Maharashtra CM Ashok Chavan and Amitabh Bachchan interact during
inaugural ceremony of north carriage way of sea link.
In the wake of the controversy over the presence of Amitabh Bachchan
at the inauguration of Bandra-Worli sea-link, BJP on Thursday batted
for the filmstar saying he has become a victim of the "feud" in
Congress and "fear" of the Gandhi family in the party.
"The Bandra-Worli sea-link is a national property and certainly not a
property of the Congress party. Every Indian has a right to be there.
Undoubtedly, Amitabh Bachchan is the nation's pride and a
distinguished Mumbaikar who has full credentials to be the chief guest
there," BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
The Rajya Sabha MP criticised the Congress for "generating a
controversy" over invitation to Bachchan.
Resentment brewed in a section of Mumbai Congress over the invite to
Bachchan to the function where Chief Minister Ashok Chavan inaugurated
the sea link yesterday.
"It is beyond Indian tradition to invite and then insult. Bachchan
cannot be a victim of internal feud in Congress party, in particular
in Maharashtra and in general at the national level," Rudy said.
The BJP claimed that though the invitation to Bachchan had been sent
by the NCP minister in-charge of the department concerned, the "fear"
of the Gandhi family also played a role in the behaviour of the
Congress leaders.
"The fear of the Gandhi family and their likes and dislikes loom so
large that no sooner it would become a threat to democracy. This is
narrow-minded bigotry of the Congress party," Rudy alleged.
Bachchan, who is close to the Samajwadi Party, has not been on the
best of terms with the first family of Congress after Rajiv Gandhi's
death.
BJP also noted the reference made to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra
Modi in regard to the affair.
"Bachchan's mere association as brand ambassador of Gujarat is being
vilified by the Congress. A national icon is being derided for petty
political gains," Rudy said.
Comments (2) |
big B
By: KASIM | 26-Mar-2010
THIS EVER MONEY HIUNGRY BACCHHAN IS ALWAYS OVERACTING AND THIS TIME IT
IS TO HELP AMAR SINGH`S POLITICAL PROSPECTS,ISNT HE THE SAME BACHHAN
WHO WAS ACCUSED OF MAKING MONEY ON FILMS PASSING BY CENSORBOARD IN
INDIRA`S TIME,HE ALSO USED TO GO ON JAUNTS OF DYNASTY WITH PARAMOR
QUATTROCHHI,A MAN BECOMES SIMILAR TO THE COMPANY HE KEEPS,HE HAS
ALWAYS BECAUSE OF HIS PROFESSION BEEN WITH GREED AND MEDIA IS ALSO
REPAYING AMARSINGH THRU HIM,AS JOKERS AND MORONS LIKE AMAR AND LALLU
ARE GOOD FOR TV RATINGS.
True....
By: Roy | 26-Mar-2010
India nor Mumbai for that matter anywhere in India is just for any
political party but then your party...with its extreme right view
point...make Indians other than Hindus sans the poorer sections of
your community the right to be an Indian. This nondescript aging
individual gets mention & sympathy form the RSS controlle BJP simply
coz he chose to be the brand ambassador for the right
flag...ownership...of the state of Gujarat. Spread this canard amongst
your chaddiwallahs...the rest of India cares a damn about the
individual & the party you represent.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bachchanavictimoffearofgandhifamilyincongbjp/595569/0
Will take all steps to implement Muslim quota: Rosaiah
Agencies
Posted: Thursday , Mar 25, 2010 at 1409 hrs
Hyderabad:
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah has promised that his
government would take "all required legal steps" for implementing four
per cent reservation in jobs and education for backward class
Muslims.
"With all seriousness and sincerity, we shall take all required legal
steps to ensure that the benefit of reservation is extended to
Muslims.
Our ultimate goal is to protect the reservation for backward class
Muslims," Rosaiah assured the state Assembly even as the Special Leave
Petition filed by the state against the High Court judgment was being
heard in the Supreme Court today.
The Assembly discussed the issue at length today with all parties,
barring the lone BJP MLA, favouring the reservation. In fact, Leader
of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu and CPM MLA J Ranga Reddy wanted 10
per cent reservation for Muslims as per the recommendations made by
Sachar and Ranganath Misra committees.
"The government should lead an all-party delegation to the Prime
Minister to press for a Constitutional amendment for providing
reservation to backward class Muslims.
The state Assembly should also pass a resolution in this regard,"
Chandrababu said. Majlis Ittehadul-e-Muslimeen floor leader Akbaruddin
Owaisi too requested the same. Responding, the Chief Minister said the
government has no objection to this.
"Let me reassure you that we shall take required legal measures to
ensure four per cent reservation for Muslims by all means," Rosaiah
reiterated.
Earlier, replying to the debate on the issue, Minister for BC Welfare
M Mukesh Goud said 10,935 backward Muslim students availed of the
reservation benefits to pursue higher and professional education in
the last two years. Similarly, 83 candidates secured jobs in
government, he added.
10 Comments |
Muslim Reservation
By: A SINGHAM | Friday , 26 Mar '10 9:57:23 AM
DIVIDING THE PEOPLE ON RELIGION VERY SAD INDEED; BACKWARNESS CAN BE A
CRITERION IRRESPECTIVE OF FAITH, SO THAT UNDER PRIVILEGED CAN GET
CHANCE TO COME UP. THIS SHOULD NEVER BE TIED WITH RELIGION OR CASTES;
FOR YOU WILL FIND CREAMY LAYER TAKING ADVANTAGE OF IT, LEAVING THE
REALLY NEEDY BEHIND; AS IN CASE OF SC/CT, WITH FATHER IN IAS,
GRANDFATHER JUDGE, USING INFLUENCE SON GETS PRIORITY; RIDICULOUS AND
RETROGADE STEP, SURE. ALL PARTIES ARE OUT TO APPEASE MINORITY FOR VOTE
BANKS. MUST PUT FULL STOP TO THIS; MUSLIMS GOT A FULL COUNTRY BASED ON
(R)FIGHT, EH! AND ALL KNOW MUSLIM IN INDIA IS THE HAPPIEST PERSON,
COMPARED TO HIS OWN FATHERLAND NATIONS.
QUOTA TO MUSLIMS
By: M S VAISHNAV | Friday , 26 Mar '10 7:58:32 AM
EVERY RIGHT THINKING PERSON WILL AGREE THAT QUOTA SHOULD ONLY BE ON
BASIS OF ECONOMICAL POOR PEOPLE ANDNOT BASED ON RELIGION -THAT TOO NOT
FOR A'PARTICULAR' RELIGION ! IT SMELLS OF 'VOTEBANK' ORIENTED
GOVERNANCE !!
it should be there
By: krishna | Friday , 26 Mar '10 7:37:10 AM
Reservations have been a curse in our civilisations. We started with
100% reservations for brahmins for more than 2000 years and now we
have reservations for everybody with varying degrees
Muslim Quota-Damm the quotas
By: RAM | Friday , 26 Mar '10 6:56:04 AM
The Congress is all set to balkanise our country by pandering to this
quota . All right thinking citizens should unite to throw Congress out
of India.
Playing to the gallery
By: Shamefaced Indian | Friday , 26 Mar '10 6:06:16 AM
This is the worst kind of politics. Play upto all the backward classes
so that you can get votes. Such a shame!!
Stop robbing Peter
By: Deepa | Friday , 26 Mar '10 5:53:28 AM
When Ramvilas Paswan and Arjun Singh foisted a scheduled caste as
Chief Justice of India in the Supreme Court the eight bells began
tolling. So far only the Muslims seemed undivided, thanks to their
religious fervour. This was anathema to the Congress. With the help of
supreme court the Congress has successfully broken the Muslims to
divide and rule them. Only Nemesis has to wipe this evil Congress
Party which has become a curse for us.
Quota
By: manav | Thursday , 25 Mar '10 18:55:13 PM
What a shame.
Most Communal
By: Ram | Thursday , 25 Mar '10 16:36:43 PM
Using religion for votes, Congress is the most communal and of-course
they are trying to beat the Kolkatta CPI-M. If you have an idea to
uplift economically weaker sections, do that without checking which
God he prays to or which country he is affiliated to. Give
reservations to the economically weaker sections of the society
irrespective of caste, creed or religious faith. Even in Hinduism, the
castes were to perform one's duty and all the works are considered
equally important for the society, but this one was distorted by the
missionaries for their self interest.
Indian
By: Indian | Thursday , 25 Mar '10 16:36:15 PM
I think there should not be any quota on the basis of religion.
Initially the concept of reservation came for the Poor people. There
are many Rich people in Muslims also. How can a rich can get
reservation in Education Jobs etc... We need Reservation Review
By: Prabhjot Juneja | Thursday , 25 Mar '10 15:39:01 PM
He have reservation since 50 year. Its high time to look at loopholes
in the present system and also to review the benefits of present
reservation. It should be improved. Nobody denies that their is need
of reservation but at the same time nobody can deny the present system
is flawed and need to big time changes. It would be good to keep out
religion from all of this...histroy teached us the affect of religion
based reservations.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/willtakeallstepstoimplementmuslimquotarosaiah/595578/
BSP demo turns felicitation ceremony for bee-tamer Maya
Express News Service
Posted: Friday , Mar 26, 2010 at 0433 hrs
Lucknow:
Naseemuddin Siddiqui displays photographs of Sonia Gandhi with a
garland of currency notes at the party’s pardafaash protest in Lucknow
on Thursday.
OpportunityDon’t Glorify NaxalismRole-Model MPs, MLAs!Vehicle called
Life Sycophancy was the flavour of the day at the BSP demonstration
held in the state capital on Thursday to protest against the
“opposition conspiracies” against party chief and UP Chief Minister
Mayawati.
Successive speakers showered praise on Mayawati for her bravery in
carrying on with her speech in spite of the honeybees, which were
allegedly let loose to disrupt the March 15 rally.
A minister went so far as to proclaim that the bees did not sting
anyone because they accepted Mayawati’s supremacy. Another said the
Opposition conspiracy to cause a stampede at the rally fell flat when
the bees, instead of stinging anyone, simply welcomed Mayawati and
settled on the rooftop.
The other highpoint of the rally was PWD Minister Naseemuddin
Siddiqui’s display of photographs of Opposition leaders accepting
currency garlands and expensive items, purportedly downloaded from the
internet.
Among these was a photo of Sonia Gandhi purportedly wearing a garland
of 1,000-rupee currency notes, of L K Advani being offered a crown and
of Mulayam Singh Yadav being presented with a silver sword.
Mayawati had asked her partymen to organise protests across the state
on three issues — the sudden appearance of honeybees at the party
rally, the controversy over the currency garland and filing of two
PILs in the Allahabad High Court to stop the rally — as evidence of
the Opposition conspiracy to derail the celebration of 25 years of the
party’s foundation.
As the protests were held, she hopped into a helicopter for an aerial
view of the hotspots — including Lucknow, where all important party
leaders had gathered.
On the ground, meanwhile, Urban Development Minister Nakul Dube said
the honeybees accepted Mayawati’s supremacy and did not harm anyone at
the rally. The Opposition should also accept it and reconcile to the
fact that Mayawati is going to be the prime minister.
“People like you and me would have got scared after watching that huge
swarm arrive before us, but not Mayawati,” he said.
Likewise, party MLC Gopal Narayan Mishra blamed the “cheap tactics” of
the Opposition and praised Mayawati for keeping her composure in face
of the bees.
Rajya Sabha member Akhilesh Das exhorted the gathering to just think
of the consequences “had they (the opposition) succeeded in their
tactics” to cause a stampede.
The last word was left to Siddiqui, who said the conspiracy fell flat
when the honeybees “welcomed her (the CM)”. “They flew to the dais and
then took shelter on the roof,” he said.
Opposition bristles at Maya counter-sting
LUCKNOW: Opposition parties lashed out at the BSP for releasing
photographs of its leaders donning currency garlands and gold crowns,
describing it as a “futile bid” to justify the presentation of a multi-
crore garland to Mayawati at the party’s ‘maharally’ here. “Sonia
Gandhi does not require anyone’s certificate as all are aware that she
is in public life neither for power nor money,” said Congress leader
Akhilesh Pratap Singh. BJP
state unit president Hriday Narain Dixit said the two things (crown
for L K Advani and Mayawati’s currency garland) cannot be compared. SP
spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary said people know that through the
garland, BSP leaders had tried to convert their black money into
white. PTI
Comments (2) |
No more tainted leaders, please.
By: Adv.Alby Raymond Parackal | 26-Mar-2010
People of India need rulers to be Scot-free from corruption in all
forms.It is quite unfortunate to blame another political leader and
try to belittle the tainted act which currently a Chief Minister has
done.
DALIT KI BETI
By: NIRANJAN | 26-Mar-2010
AGREED. BUT SONIA GANDHI HAS NEVER PROFESSED TO BE A POOR, DALIT
PERSON. SHE DOES NOT CLAIM TO BE MESSIAH OF THE POOR AND DOWNTRODDEN
PEOPLE. SHE DOES NOT INAUGURATE HER OWN STATUES! SO, MAYAWATI, PLEASE
DON'T COMPARE YOURSELF WITH ANYBODY. THERE ARE NOT TOO MANY
POLITICIANS WHO STOOPED AS LOW AS YOU HAVE!
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bspdemoturnsfelicitationceremonyforbeetamermaya/595957/0
Living together a part of right to life, not an offence: SC
Krishnadas Rajagopal
Posted: Mar 24, 2010 at 0243 hrs IST
New Delhi The Supreme Court threw its weight behind live-in
relationships on Tuesday, observing that for a man and a woman in
love, to live together is part of the right to life, and not a
“criminal offence”.
“If two people, man and woman, want to live together, who can oppose
them? What is the offence they commit here? This happens because of
the cultural exchange between people,” a special three-judge bench of
Chief Justice of India (CJI) K G Balakrishnan and Justices Deepak
Verma and B S Chauhan observed.
The court was hearing a batch of petitions filed by actress Khusboo to
quash 22 FIRs filed against her by Tamil activist groups and forums
for her alleged comments on pre-marital sex in interviews five years
ago.
“If living together is an offence, then the first complaint should be
filed against the Supreme Court, because we have permitted living
together,” the court said. It was referring to a 2006 judgment in
which the Supreme Court directed the administration and police across
the country to protect runaway couples from harassment, and to
initiate action against those resorting to violence.
“It is part of right to life to go away with someone you love,” the
bench said. The Supreme Court had earlier stayed a Madras High Court
order of April 2008, which allowed criminal proceedings against the
actress.
Khusboo was alleged to have said there was nothing wrong in “sex
before marriage”, provided girls were careful about pregnancy and
sexually-transmitted diseases. Her detractors argued that the implied
advice to the educated male to not expect virginity from modern girls
was “offensive” and a source of “public nuisance”.
To an argument that Khusboo’s comments on pre-marital sex would
mislead gullible youths and minors, the court said: “The scenario is
highly unlikely in this age of the Internet where we do not know what
our children are doing or where they are going or what pornography
site they are watching.”
To this, the lawyer appearing for one of the complainants, Miniammal,
a lawyer in Tamil Nadu, responded that “there should be some morality
in the comments made by people of prominence like Khusboo, who has a
temple in Tamil Nadu where she is worshipped as a goddess”.
“And this is how you revere your goddess, by dragging her to court?”
retorted Justice Verma.
The bench made it clear that Khusboo’s comments could at best be
termed as “personal opinions”, and did not amount to a cognizable
offence.
But the lawyer persisted that Khusboo’s comments on pre-marital sex
would lead to the “spoiling of the entire institution of marriage.
Statements like this can result in chaos in the society.”
Even as the CJI at this moment responded that people were better off
listening to themselves than to others, Justice Verma asked the
counsel to point out how many marriages were “spoilt” or how many
instances of chaos happened in the past five years because of her
comments on pre-marital sex.
The court said it cannot stop anyone from expressing their opinions
before reserving the petitions for final verdict.
Besides, the court said, Khusboo (who was present during the day-long
hearing) had said “nothing new” about the concept of living together.
Justice Chauhan pointed out that even the “ceiling limit” for the
construction of temples for twin deities like Radha and Krishna or Ram
and Sita were calculated under the consideration that they were
“husband and wife”.
Comments - 34
Need of the hour
by Dr. Vidyacharan Shukla on 26 Mar 2010
Indian culture is changing dramatically but in different colors.
Intrinsically, we are plagued with double standard that manifests time
to time in the form of litigation, complaints and blames just to hide
our own lusts. Premarital relationship was prevailed in everywhere
around the globe but Indian society preferred to suppress the facts,
instead face the truth. Philosophically, even we dream about the
physical relationship before marriage or after marriage, both are
considered to be sin if we follow any religions. No religions stops
anyone not living together and law of nature supports Khusboo bold
stand. It is sad that Supreme court has to intervene in this case but
giving decision in the favor of Khusboo shows the faith on the
judiciary. Supreme court judge cited beautiful example of Lord Krishna
and Goddess Radha, but the best example could have been Kanyakumari
with Lord Shiva, Droupdi with 5 Pandavas, and many more who are our
Ideals in Indian society.
Reply | Forward
Unwarrented Comments
by Varun on 25 Mar 2010
That the esteemed judges of The S.C impulsively brought in the example
of Radha and Krishna is totally uncalled for.People at such high posts
are not expected to make statements on a subject on which they
themselves are not clear.Shrimati Radharani had a single pointed
devotion towards Lord Krishna, an example of unconditional love in its
purest form.To bring in such pure relationships to justify the modern
generation's uncontrolled infatuation and their total unconcern to
moral principles shows their ignorance about their own scriptures and
even lack of common sense.It is requested to the judges not to make
such irresponsible comments ,and certainly not relating to any
religion,while dealing in cases in future.Please maintain the high
values and the standards of the supreme court.
Reply | Forward
Bring in Appropriate Legislation
by K.Suresh on 25 Mar 2010
The comment -%u201CAnd this is how you revere your goddess, by
dragging her to court?%u201D - is inappropriate. The concerned lawyer
never submitted that Kushboo is HIS goddess. And there was no need to
bring in Rama,Sita, etc into the comments. The court could have simply
said that as per existing laws, living-in does not constitute an
offense. It is for the legislature to bring in appropriate
legislation. And such laws always are always rooted in the cultural
and moral values practiced in society at that point of time. I can not
quote my ancestors in caves to justify using a club (wooden or stone)
on a woman.
Reply | Forward
bravo
by chandidas mishra on 25 Mar 2010
love the statements of the justices. bravo supreme court.
Reply | Forward
It is against Indian cultural values
by MAHARASHTRA TOP NEWS on 25 Mar 2010
Sir, I am Masumkhan, Chief Editor..MAHARASHTRA TOP NEWS, LATUR. Pre-
marital sex is not accepted in Indian culture. Supreme court wants to
examine current social and cultural status of Indian family, male and
female. If supreme court gives us God krishnas example it is very
different situation ....this is kalyug sir.
immoral decision
by k.k.jaitley on 24 Mar 2010
SC decision may have adverse impact on the institution of
marriage.this is also very shoking to find that decision maker find no
other way but to cite the the example of living together of Lord
Krisna and Radha to justify their vedict.I don't know from where they
find out that Krisna and Radha used to live together separately. Both
man and woman living together separately are vunerable to each other
and their living together without marriage will break the social
fabric. limitation on the freedom is as imporant as the freedom is.
some day the woman may approach the court alleging rap by the person
with whom she has live in relationship on one or the other pretex i.e
false promise of marriage by the partner.
LIVING TOGETHER
by Jason on 24 Mar 2010
Diverse suggestions and comments. Well freedom of expression.Morality
is judged by the society.India lost her moral values long time ago.
Equality for men and women. No. The corrupt arrogant old aged
'man'still in the view that he is in the nomadic 18th century 'as the
king' and women and children treated as 'salable property' - denying
their human rights as an individual..Look at the practice of marriage.
Indians in general still believe - to have a girl is a curse and must
give 'dowry'to have er married and the 'groom' and his parents demand
huge amounts of cash,gold in lakhs/crores.. Shame. What happended to
what these corrupt system of soceity preaches. Please try to correct
the wrongs.While the courts are to uphold the rights for each
citizen,justice is not granted to the poor and the less educated by
creation of such a group by the'rich-upper class'.One father sold
everything to get her well educated engineering daughter to a school
teacher paying ranson to the groo's parents
DISGUSTING DECISSION OF SC
by AFTAB ARIZVI on 24 Mar 2010
I disagree with the decision of the Supreme Court. Morality should be
the guiding principles for governance. If you have no morality, what
is the difference between human beings and animals/birds. The Court
was asking for sections of statutes for imposing morality. If there
are no enabling dstatutes, the Court should have asked the Government
to bring in suitable legislation. If living together is acceptable,
why not prostitution. The body of a woman is her property and if she
decides to give it on rent for a small period (which is what
prostitution is), why should we object? Tomorrow, I might abuse my
neighbour saying that it is part of my right to live my life the way I
want, why should anybody object. Similarly, if my neighbour decides to
retaliate physically, again why should you object as he has a right to
react the way he wants as part of his right to life.
Degeneration of social values
by Swapan Lodh on 24 Mar 2010
Apex court`s verdict will certainly shatter the fabric of the society
which has so fondly been built by our ancestors to guard against
degeneration.Steps had been taken by elders time and need based
decisions which became rituals and later custom on which based concept
of laws.Radha-Krishna and Ram-Sita could perhaps should better not be
brought in this case as these are epics and poetic imagination played
more significantly than anecdotes.
Great descision
by Shrey on 24 Mar 2010
I totally disagree with the comments that are given above. I am
surprised by the mentality of "Indian Citizens" that have posted
comments against apex court in which these people relate live-in
relation with sex and prostitution. If a boy and a girl are living
together under a single roof, it does not mean that they have sexual
relationship. And even if they have that sex-relationship than what is
wrong in that if both are adult and agree. You can't relate this
situation with prostitution as it is completely different thing.
Prostitution is business and not the love. Above people are like those
who can't come out of the pit which they have dug and hence they pull
others in to the same. Supreme court has done a great moral thing
which should persist. They didn't even tried to insult indian god as
they illustrated pure love between radha and krishna!
Indian Traditional Culture affected by this judgement? Really?????
by Married Indian Woman on 24 Mar 2010
First of all, Kudos to the counsel for giving a sensible judgement.
For all those true Indian culture protectors out there, the counsel
did not say that all couples should live-in and not marry. They have
mentioned that living together and pre-marital sex is not an offence!
If you think about it,most couples who live-in together usually are
very independent and are capable of thinking clearly. Also, someone
has spoken about AIDS... Come-on, most victims are from the lowest
strata of society, mostly due to senseless extra marital affairs.
Whether or not to marry someone is someone's personal opinion, it is
not upto anyone to force it upon them. All you fathers who have
daughters, if you want to raise your voice against something, raise it
against female infanticide, dowry system, women empowerment and
corruption. Jai Hind!
another undesirable import
by sakthiman on 24 Mar 2010
Such useless thoughts fit only rich and filth. Not for common people
who die for their values. I don't think Supreme court judgement in any
way influences the common man except that the institution has fallen
from grace.
Larger Picture
by R.Ramachandran on 24 Mar 2010
The SC has posed the question %u201CIf two people, man and woman, want
to live together, who can oppose them? What is the offence they commit
here?" In fact this question though put to the Counsel for the
Complainants, is to be directed against the Trial Court / High Court
Judges who did not ask this question in the first place and have
created a situation where the accused has to travel all the way to the
Supreme Court! If this is the kind of justice system that we have, we
shudder to think the recent lament of the SC that "it has limited time
at its disposal and it cannot be expected to hear every kind of
dispute.%u201D The SC also has conveniently discontinued hearing
petitions under Art. 32 which is a fundamental right of every citizen,
and asking the citizen to first approach the HC and then to come to SC
under Art.136. Now the SC says that the discretionary jurisdiction
cannot be invoked by every individual! Actions of SC are clearly
violative of the Constitutional provisions.
Pious to Evil
by Iquebal Ahmed on 24 Mar 2010
One more import of western filth into our pious culture! One more
attack on our pious culture after legalization of gay marriage by our
own judicial system!!
Evil and Immoral----
by romesh.sharma on 24 Mar 2010
These few words from Mr Ahmed speak volumes that one can write and
say.This move is the worst kind of immoral act of judiciary which is
time and again meddling into the absolute private,cultural and
religious affairs of the people.This all may be of some help/interest
of the socalled High-Society which is already deeply dyed in the
western colours.This malady will soon spread and the most ancient
beautiful culture and its traditions will diminish for-ever.Moreover
most westerns are fed-up and tired of such unions and discarding fast.
Right or wrong ?
by Gaurav Kaushish on 24 Mar 2010
RIGHT OR WRONG?? TIME WILL TELL. NORMS ARE SET FOR SMOOTH FUNCTIONING
OF THE SOCIETY AT LARGE BY THE SOCIETY ITSELF. EACH AND EVERY CASE CAN
NOT BE BROUGHT UNDER THE GARB OF LEGAL PROVISIONS.OFFENCES KEEP TAKING
PLACE EVEN WHEN THEY ARE DEFINED, AS SUCH, IN THE LAW OF THE
LAND.ALLOWING SOMETHING AS A MATTER OF RIGHT DOES NOT GUARANTEE ITS
EXERCISE BY THE INDIVIDUALS. SIMILARLY IMPOSING RESTRICTIONS TOO IS NO
CALIBRE FOR STRICT COMPLIANCE THEREOF. MADHYAM MARG (PAH OF
MODERATION) MAY BE OF SOME GUIDANCE. THE DEBATE IS OPEN,,,,,
God save Incredible India
by Raaj on 24 Mar 2010
What a great verdict.Today the world looks at India as a country with
a great culture, Spiritual heritage and tradition in which people live
with great family values. We should be proud about it as we have
preserved our culture and tradition against various invasions. If our
kids were to live like the western kids ignoring the Indian values, as
per the Supreme Court Judgement, God save India.
Whether bigamy is legalised now ?
by R Krishnamurthy on 24 Mar 2010
If a married man has a live-in relationship with another woman is it
perfectly correct under law. Supreme Court judgement is pointing
towards that.
sc on relationship
by kamal on 24 Mar 2010
SC HAS HURT MANY RELIGIOUS SENTIMENTS BY QUOTING RAMA SITA KRISHNA AND
RADHA,THIS CERTAINLY IMPLIES THAT ONLY HINDUS HAVE OR FOLLOWERS OF
THESE DEITIES HAVE OBJECTIONS TO SUCH RELATIONSHIPS AND ANY OTHER
RELIGION DOES NOT OR WAS IT FEAR OF JEHADIS SO THAT NO ISLAMIC REVERED
ONES WERE MENTIONED IN THIS COURT CASE.SC JUDGES HAVE HURT THE
FEELINGS OF A RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY AND THERE ARE LAWS AGAINST SUCH
ACTION,ONLY THEY CAN SUGGEST HOW THEY WILL OVERCOME THIS BLUNDER AND
THAT ALSO DURING THE SITTING OF THE HIGHEST COURT OF THE LAND.ALSO FOR
SC INFO ALL HINDU SECTS DONT WORSHIP RADHA ND KRISHNA,WHY ALWAYS DRAG
ALL HINDU SECTS INTO THIS CASE LIKE MEDIA.
Live-in Relationship
by Vaid S C K on 24 Mar 2010
Legal sanction granted by Apex court shall now bring forth many
problems specially for police and others who always look for
exploitation. If man and woman have been living togather for few years
without marriage then woman one day lodges complaint with police for
having been sexually exploited for number of years, what courts are
going to decide?
SC remarks subjudice
by drabc on 24 Mar 2010
Blissfully unawares the SC might have shown a contempt of court should
any other of such cases are before a judge anywhere in India! To
comment recklessly a can of worms might be marching onto the Supreme
Court.This was a most unhelpful intervention from the SC in a Civil
court matter
SC remarks subjudice
by drabc on 24 Mar 2010
Blissfully unawares the SC might have shown a contempt of court should
any other of such cases are before a judge anywhere in India! To
comment recklessly a can of worms might be marching onto the Supreme
Court.This was a most unhelpful intervention from the SC in a Civil
court matter
Living Together As Part Of Right To Life
by C.R. Panicker on 24 Mar 2010
I disagree with the decision of the Supreme Court. Morality should be
the guiding principles for governance. If you have no morality, what
is the difference between human beings and animals/birds. The Court
was asking for sections of statutes for imposing morality. If there
are no enabling dstatutes, the Court should have asked the Government
to bring in suitable legislation. If living together is acceptable,
why not prostitution. The body of a woman is her property and if she
decides to give it on rent for a small period (which is what
prostitution is), why should we object? Tomorrow, I might abuse my
neighbour saying that it is part of my right to live my life the way I
want, why should anybody object. Similarly, if my neighbour decides to
retaliate physically, again why should you object as he has a right to
react the way he wants as part of his right to life.
Is the nation going bohemian way ?
by K.Suresh on 24 Mar 2010
This is a ridiculous argument from the judiciary. In that case, the
same argument can be used to justify adultery. illicit relations,
extra-marital relations etc. Then why have laws against pornography,
exhibitionism. immoral traffic ? Does the SC want the whole nation to
resemble Goan seaside? BTW, when such an arrangement ends, is the
female partner entitled to alimony/compensation?
the nation going bohemian way ?
by CTZWORLD on 24 Mar 2010
Mr. Suresh, Kindly get a copy of the Immoral traffic(Prevention) act
1956. Pornography, exhibitionism. immoral traffic etc.. you described
are something different than cohabitation. Cohabitation is allowed
between persons who do not have legal spouses and they earn no benifit
by way of money or something else
the nation going bohemian way ?
by CTZWORLD on 24 Mar 2010
Mr. Suresh, Kindly get a copy of the Immoral traffic(Prevention) act
1956. Pornography, exhibitionism. immoral traffic etc.. you described
are something different than cohabitation. Cohabitation is allowed
between persons who do not have legal spouses and they earn no benifit
by way of money or something else
Someone finally has some brains
by Madhav on 24 Mar 2010
Awesome judgement especially about Khusbhu's case. Instead of wasting
their time, why don't these lawyers fight for the common man instead
of pursuing useless cases.
LIVING TOGETHER
by KRISHNAN.S on 24 Mar 2010
Shocking observations by the Highest Court.What would have been the
answer of the Supreme Court if only the counsel had a daughter.The
counsel replied to the judges that he has no daughter.So in future if
a minister/chief minister has no problem then he need not address that
issue.Let Supreme Court rethink on morality and answer so as to
advance the society in the right direction.Already the politicians
especially down South have more than 2 wives.Now even marriages may
not be required.Already one popular Tamil actor who has international
fame is reported to have said that he does not believe in marriages.Le
God save this country.
Hypocricy
by Mathew on 24 Mar 2010
Though I do not support pre marital sex or sex outside marriage, I
support the supreme court statement. If young people is going to be
mis guided by a statement of one person then these people are fools.
God has given every ones brains and most educated people can think
what is right and what id wrong. There are many in or midst who wear
the mask of morality and behind the scene are np worse than the people
they despise. Its high time we put an end to this hypocrisy.
Living togethr as part of Right to Life
by ashok bhatnagar on 24 Mar 2010
If law says living together is a way of life & not an offence what was
the crime of Swami Nityanand. Why media made such a big story & police
lodged complaints in a matter that was between the Swami & his
disciples. I think both the print & electronic media should apologise
to Swami Nityanand.
Re: Nithyananda
by Vinod Kumar Pavanghat on 24 Mar 2010
In the case of Nithyananda, media exposed only a lie. If he had openly
propounded a living in relationship, no body would have had any
objection. Use your brain....
LIVING TOGETHER AS PART OF RIGHT TO LIFE
by ashok bhatnagar on 24 Mar 2010
If law allow says living together is a way of life & not an offence
what was the crime of Swami Nityanand. Why media made such a big story
& police lodged complaints in a matter that was between the Swami &
his disciples. I think media should apologise to Swami Nityanand.
An unnecessary link
March 25, 2010
First Published: 20:52 IST(25/3/2010)
Last Updated: 20:53 IST(25/3/2010)
Who owns the Bandra-Worli sealink in Mumbai? We know who constructed
it. We know who inaugurated the first phase. We know who it is named
after. But who owns it? Who can legitimately claim that this sea link
belongs to them? The guys who built it and collect toll? The
governmentwalas for clearing permissions? The labourers who built it?
Can we dare to say that this piece of architecture belongs to the
people of Mumbai, those who can afford to travel on it to save commute
time as well as to those who cannot; who have to be content to just
look?
Now that that question is out of the way, here’s the next one. Who
owns Amitabh Bachchan? Clearly, his immediate family has an interest.
Clearly his friends, political and otherwise, have an interest. But
could you stretch it and say he belongs to lakhs of his fans, not just
in Mumbai or Allahabad but all over the world?
When Raj Thackeray huffs and puffs and calls for a boycott of Amitabh
Bachchan films in response to Jaya Bachchan’s insistence at a film
function to speak in Hindi because she is from Uttar Pradesh, we
denounce him as a thug. Bachchan points out that the Indian
Constitution has granted him the right to live in whichever part of
the country he chooses to. But, he also clarifies, his wife meant no
disrespect at all.
Raj’s uncle, Bal Thackeray, writes in Saamna that Amitabh Bachchan
belongs to the entire nation. So, that should settle the question of
ownership. But then he moves his sights onto another national figure,
Shah Rukh Khan. Bachchan belongs to India. Shah Rukh is a ‘Dilliwala’
who should pack his bags and go home, decrees senior Thackeray. Let’s
just say that logic doesn’t run deep in the Thackeray genes.
But — question three — what does one make of Maharashtra Chief
Minister Ashok Chavan, who is fast turning out to be a doppelganger
for the Thackeray parivar?
First comes Chavan’s astounding statement that taxi- drivers
(routinely bashed up by Raj and his goons for coming from Bihar and
Uttar Pradesh) must speak in Marathi — a statement that he later tries
to clarify is a requirement of some law in some statute book.
Now, saying it was a mistake to invite Amitabh Bachchan, arguably
India’s biggest film star, to the opening of the Worli-Bandra sealink
is — what? — plain stupid.
Chavan who shared the dais with Bachchan at the inauguration says in
hindsight that it was a mistake to have invited Bachchan because he is
the ‘brand ambassador’ of Gujarat. Had he known that he would be
sharing the dais with Bachchan, he would have stayed home, he says.
Mumbai Congress president Kripashankar Singh, meanwhile, sparks off a
whodunit by saying he was not consulted about the invitation.
So, was it the NCP, the Congress party’s uneasy allies in the state?
Is there truth in the claim that the NCP wanted to inject a bit of
‘glamour’ into what would have undoubtedly been a dreary inauguration?
Sachin Tendulkar, another national icon who also happens to be a son
of the soil, was not available, so Amitabh Bachchan was sent a card.
What remains really now that the coconuts have been broken and the
sealink extension officially opened is the unedifying smallness of the
Maharashtra Congress. Bachchan is a national icon, he belongs to the
people who have a rightful claim to the sealink.
Inviting a man of the people, whoever invited him, was appropriate and
correct. Bickering about it after the event is ridiculous. Even more
ridiculous is Ashok Chavan’s attempts to claim the loony space so far
occupied by the Thackerays.
Namita Bhandare is a Delhi-based writer
The views expressed by the author are personal
Swati 1 hour ago
1 person liked this.
Maharashtra Congress and also the national Congress party is fast
losing credibility. I'm totally disgusted at the way they are treating
infrastructure development as their private property and insulting a
great icon, Amitabh Bachchan.
Sid 3 hours ago
It is HUGE conspiracy by Congress - they must have siphoned so much
money from the contractors of the project that they very well know
this Bridge may NOT stand long - as it is, it is built over the sea
and it has to face a furious Monsoon sea and very corrosive water all
other times! So, they asked Sonia to NOT attend the inaguration and
wanted NCP to get the blame. So conveniently they have found Amitabh's
shoulder to fire at NCP because Congres (Sonia & PM) are still
smarting under famous Pawar's meeting with Bal Thackery reagarding the
security of Australian players in IPL. Congres never forgets insults
suffered by it!
Sachin 4 hours ago
Sorry to say Namita , but you have not nalysed whole situation
clearly .
You have not viewed it from angle of Bachchan being Brand Ambassodar
of Gujarat. Is it not bad that some narrow minded politicians cites
reasons that some person should not be invited if he is brand
ambassador of a state whose CM is accused of riots. What baout
congress itself ? They are associated with Sajjan Kumar , Tytler.
So please analyse it from all angles and show your research work
instead of penning down emotions . HT columns were not that excellent
but now they are going off the track.
FlagLikeReplyReply
kush 6 hours ago
1 person liked this.
For inagurations of completed projects, we should stop inviting
politicians as they have no role in developments - it is rather that
despite of their best efforts to delay / scuttle the projects, we
still manage to complete the projects. Worli sea link took ten years
to complete - w/o political interference, it may have been completed
in 3-4 years - so what we need is no congressi neta or NCP - these are
all nincompoops we saw what happended in Mumbai on 26/11. Rather call
icon like Amitabh, Sridaran of Metro, Narayanmurthy of Infosys to be
present for ribbon cutings.
Ravin 6 hours ago
SHAME on Congress ! They have nothing better to do.
Get rid of them to save the country.
nachiket 8 hours ago
All Delhi based writers are talking about Mumbai & Maharashtra. They
talk little about Bihar/UP/MP and other states where real development
is stalled because of in-efficient politician. Raj Thackeray has done
fairly well in stopping 'HINDI-fication' of Maharashtra.
I am Pune Based IT-Professional
The views expressed by me are Public
RP 12 hours ago
Author claims that Chavan dictated that Taxi drivers in Mumbai must
SPEAK Marathi, not true, he said all the taxi drivers in Mumbai must
KNOW Marathi as Marathi is official language of Maharashtra and
Marathi is prerequisite as per Motor Vehicle Act 1989. But I guess we
should not be nit picking .....bash the Thakreys, lampoon the CM with
them and get away with any thing.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/An-unnecessary-link/H1-Article1-523248.aspx
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/f9b738e079fef9fb#
Sid Harth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or
discuss these issues on the talk page.
The Conversion of Saint Paul, a 1600 painting by Italian artist
Caravaggio (1571–1610).Part of a series on the
Religious conversion is the adoption of new religious beliefs that
differ from the convert's previous beliefs. It involves a new
religious identity, or a change from one religious identity to
another. Conversion requires internalization of the new belief system.
It implies a new reference point for one's self identity and is a
matter of belief and social structure—of both faith and affiliation.
[1] This typically entails the sincere avowal of a new belief system,
but may also present itself in other ways, such as adoption into an
identity group or spiritual lineage. Conversion refers to changes from
one religion to another, not to be confused with religious
reaffiliation which refers to changes from one denomination to another
within the same faith.[2] Examples of religious reaffiliation include
switching from being Southern Baptist to Methodist (within
Christianity) or from Sunni to Shiite (within Islam).
There are different types of religion conversion which include, active
conversion which is the free agency, volitional choice to acquire new
beliefs and religious identity,[3] marital conversion, Secondary
conversion, Deathbed conversion, and Forced conversion.
Proselytism is the act of attempting to convert another individual
from a specific religion or belief system. (See proselyte).
Apostate (n.) is a term with pejorative connotations used by members
of one church or religion to refer to someone who has left that church
or religion.
Christianity
Main articles: Conversion to Christianity and Christianization
Main article: List of converts to Christianity
Conversion to Christianity is the religious conversion of a previously
non-Christian person to some form of Christianity. The exact
understanding of what it means to attain salvation varies somewhat
among churches and denominations. It primarily involves confession and
repentance of sin and a decision to live a life that is holy and
acceptable to God through faith in Jesus Christ. Converts are almost
always expected to be baptized.
Baptism
Main article: Baptism
Catholics, Orthodox and many Protestant denominations encourage infant
baptism, welcoming children into the Christian faith before they are
aware of their status. Baptized children are expected to participate
in confirmation classes as pre-teens and affirm their faith by
personal choice.
The method of baptism varies among immersion, sprinkling (aspersion)
and pouring (affusion).[4] Baptism received by adults or younger
people who have reached the age of accountability where they can make
a personal religious decision is referred to as believer's baptism
among conservative or evangelical Protestant groups. It is intended as
a public confession of one's prior decision to become a believer in
and follower of Jesus Christ.[5] Some Christian groups such as
Catholics, Churches of Christ, and Christadelphians believe baptism is
essential to salvation.
[edit] Accepting Christ and renouncing sin
The Augsburg Confession divides repentance into two parts: "One is
contrition, that is, terrors smiting the conscience through the
knowledge of sin; the other is faith, which is born of the Gospel, or
of absolution, and believes that for Christ's sake, sins are forgiven,
comforts the conscience, and delivers it from terrors."[6]Conversion
involves more than a simple change in religious identity. It is a
change in nature (regeneration), evidenced by a change in values. In
fact, the Latin word conversio, translating the Greek metanoia,
literally means "going the other way" or "changing one's mind". A
convert, therefore, is one who renounces sin as worthless and
treasures instead the supreme worth of Jesus Christ. The convert sees
the worth of Christ in Jesus' sacrificial death and resurrection and
believes that sin is utterly unsatisfying and that Christ is
everything he or she needs.[7]
In contrast to other religions that seek God's acceptance through good
deeds and living a moral life, the Christian convert acknowledges that
his or her unrighteousness cannot be removed by good deeds and accepts
the death of Jesus Christ in his or her place as the grounds for the
forgiveness of sins and the righteousness of Jesus Christ as the basis
for God's acceptance and delight in the convert.[8] Because conversion
is a change in values that embraces God and rejects sin, it includes a
personal commitment to a life of righteousness as described by Paul of
Tarsus and exemplified by Jesus. In some Protestant traditions, this
is called "accepting Christ as one's Savior and following him as
Lord."[9]
In another variation, the 1910 Catholic Dictionary defines
"conversion" as "One who turns or changes from a state of sin to
repentance, from a lax to a more earnest and serious way of life, from
unbelief to faith, from heresy to the true faith."[10]
Responsibilities
According to most branches of Christianity, sharing the message or
good news of Jesus Christ and his gospel is a responsibility of all
followers of Jesus. According to the New Testament, Jesus commanded
his disciples to "go and make disciples of all nations," [Matthew
28:19] generally known as the Great Commission. Evangelism, or
"spreading the good news," has been a central part of the life of
Christians since that time.
Transfers
Transferring from one Christian denomination to another may consist of
a relatively simple transfer of membership, especially if moving from
one Trinitarian denomination to another, and if the person has
received water baptism in the name of the Trinity. If not, then the
person may need to be baptized or rebaptized to become incorporated
into the new church. Some denominations, such as those in the
Anabaptist tradition, require previously-baptized Christians to be re-
baptized before being accepted into their respective religious
community.
The process of conversion to Christianity varies somewhat among
Christian denominations. Most Protestants believe in conversion by
faith to attain salvation. According to this understanding, the person
professes faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. While an individual may
make such a decision privately, usually it entails being baptized and
becoming a member of a denomination or church. In these traditions,
one is considered to become a Christian by publicly acknowledging the
reality of the death, burial and resurrection Jesus for the remission
of sins, and thereby receiving Jesus as their personal Savior.
Comparison among Protestants
This table summarizes the classical views of three different
Protestant beliefs.[11]
Topic Lutheranism Calvinism Arminianism
Conversion Through the means of grace, resistible Without means,
irresistible Involves free will and is resistible
Hinduism
See also: List of converts to Hinduism
Labels of distinct religions would imply division of identity, which
is in contradiction to the Vedas and Upanishads, that conceives whole
world as a single family that deifies the one truth.[12][13] Revival
of faith in Hinduism began way back in the 8th century in the times of
Shankaracharya. In more recent times, due to the conversion of Hindus
to other religions, it was found necessary by some Hindu thinkers such
as Dayananda Saraswati to bring back people into the Hindu fold,
practices such as "Shuddhi" (purification) were introduced. This is
not to be confused with "Diksha" or initiation which was given to
serious seekers, as initiation into a yogic life (life of ascetism and
pranayama).
The modern view of conversions into Hinduism is influenced by the
demise of caste system combined with the persistence of age old ideas
of Sanatana Dharma. Hindus today continue to be influenced by
historical ideas of acceptability of conversion. Hence, many Hindus
continue to believe that Hinduism is an identity that can only be had
from birth, while many others continue to believe that anyone who
follows Hindu beliefs and practices is a Hindu, and many believe in
some form of both theories. However, as a reaction to the threat of
evangelization, proselytism, and conversion activities of other major
religions many modern Hindus are opposed to the idea of conversion
from their religion to (any) other.[14]
Reconversion among people who were formerly Hindus or whose ancestors
were formerly Hindus has picked up pace with the growth of Hindu
revivalist movements.[15] National organizations such as Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (India) and Parisada Hindu Dharma (Indonesia)
actively facilitate such reconversions. Reconversions, in general, are
well accepted within Hindu society since conversion out of Hinduism is
not considered valid in the first place. Conversion through marriage
is well accepted within Hinduism and often expected in order to enable
the non-Hindu partner to fully participate in their spiritual,
religious, and cultural roles within the larger Hindu family and
society.
Conversion by Hindus have taken place as well, in Southeast Asia the
merchant, sailor, and priestly class accounted for much of the spread
of the religion.[16] Many foreign groups including Gujjars, Ahoms, and
Hunas converted to Hinduism after generations of Sanskritization.[17]
In the 18th century, Manipur was evanglelized by Hindu priests. In
India and Indonesia today many groups still convert to Hinduism on a
large basis.[18]
American-born Hindu guru, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami wrote a book
entitled How to Become a Hindu - A Guide for Seekers and Born Hindus.
In it, Subramuniyaswami offers a systematical approach to, what he
calls, "ethical conversion to Hinduism," testimonials of converts to
Hinduism, ques and clues of Hinduism, definitions of Hindu authorities
on what a Hindu truly is, etc.
Islam
Further information: Spread of Islam, List of converts to Islam,
Hanif, and Islamic Missionary Activity
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verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting
only of original research may be removed. More details may be
available on the talk page. (September 2007)
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A newly-converted Muslim is called a Muallaf. There are five pillars,
or foundations, of Islam but the primary, and most important is by
believing that there is only one God and creator, referred to as Allah
(the word for the name of God in Arabic) and that the Islamic prophet,
Muhammad, is his messenger. A person is considered to have converted
to Islam from the moment he or she sincerely makes this declaration of
faith, called the shahadah.[19]
It is common belief among Muslims that everyone is Muslim at
birth[citation needed] [derived from a single source and brought into
being by the single entity] but sometimes chooses to take steps to
revert back to their origins. While conversion to Islam is among its
most supported tenets, conversion from Islam to another religion,
apostasy, is considered to be a sin.
According to Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar
at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Canada, it is highly recommended
that one's conversion be documented. New converts should obtain a
certificate of conversion from a reputable Islamic centre,
organization or mosque, which has been registered for this purpose.
Sheikh Kutty writes that such a certificate might be absolutely
necessary for the purposes of pilgrimage, marriage, etc.[citation
needed]
In Islam, circumcision is a Sunnah custom not mentioned in the Qur'an.
The primary opinion is that it is not obligatory and is not a
condition for entering into Islam. The Shafi`i and Hanbali schools
regard it as wajib or fard, while the Maliki and Hanafi schools regard
it as only recommended. However, it is not a precondition for the
acceptance of one's Islamic practices nor does one sin if choosing to
forego circumcision. It is neither one of the Five Pillars of Islam
nor the Six Fundamentals of Belief.
A new Muslim is expected to become familiar with the practices of
Islam. It is a personal process; acceptance of all of that is taken to
follow from the original statement, since all of Islam is considered
to derive from either divine inspiration, in the form of the Qur'an,
or for prophetic example, in the form of the hadith and sunnah of
Muhammad.[citation needed]
"Al Mu'allafun kulubuhum" means those whose hearts need company or
affection. So they receive a part of the zakat (due religious alms)
and friendship from already and well established Muslims. The aim was
to help these new converts to restart a new life as they were banned
from their families and tribes, not only in the early times of Islam,
but also in contemporary times.[citation needed]
Judaism
This section may contain original research. Please improve it by
verifying the claims made and adding references. Statements consisting
only of original research may be removed. More details may be
available on the talk page. (September 2007)
This section needs attention from an expert on the subject. See the
talk page for details. WikiProject Judaism or the Judaism Portal may
be able to help recruit an expert. (July 2007)
Main article: Conversion to Judaism
Procedure
Jewish law guidelines for accepting new converts to Judaism are called
"giyur." Potential converts should desire conversion to Judaism for
its own sake, and for no other motives. A male convert needs to
undergo a ritual circumcision conducted according to Jewish law (if
already circumcised, a needle is used to draw a symbolic drop of blood
while the appropriate blessings are said), and there has to be a
commitment to observe the 613 mitzvot and Jewish law. A convert must
join the Jewish community, and reject the previous theology he or she
had prior to the conversion. Ritual immersion in a small pool of water
known as a mikvah is required.
The Reform and Conservative movements are lenient in their acceptance
of converts[citation needed]. Many of their members are married to
gentiles and these movements make an effort to welcome spouses who
seek conversion[citation needed]. This issue is contentious in modern
Israel as many immigrants from the former Soviet Union are not
considered Jewish.
Orthodox Jews tend to discourage conversion,[citation needed] urging
the person to find their path to God through being a righteous Gentile
and observing the Noahide laws and living a life of kindness, but they
will accept conversion if they insist. Controversially, some Syrian
Jewish communities are reluctant to accept the validity of new
conversions.
History
Main article: List of converts to Judaism
In Hellenistic and Roman times, some Pharisees were eager
proselytizers, and had at least some success throughout the empire.
Some Jews are also descended from converts to Judaism outside the
Mediterranean world. It is known that some Khazars, Edomites, and
Ethiopians, as well as many Arabs, particularly in Yemen before,
converted to Judaism in the past; today people all over the world
convert to Judaism. In fact, there is a greater tradition of
conversion to Judaism than many people realize. The word "proselyte"
originally meant a Greek who had converted to Judaism. As late as the
6th century the Eastern Roman empire (i.e., the Byzantine empire) was
issuing decrees against conversion to Judaism, implying that
conversion to Judaism was still occurring.
In recent times, members of the Reform Judaism movement began a
program to convert to Judaism the non-Jewish spouses of its
intermarried members and non-Jews who have an interest in Judaism.
Their rationale is that so many Jews were lost during the Holocaust
that newcomers must be sought out and welcomed. This approach has been
repudiated by Orthodox and Conservative Jews as unrealistic and posing
a danger. They say that these efforts make Judaism seem an easy
religion to join and observe when in reality being Jewish entails many
difficulties and sacrifices.
Dharmic religions
Sikhism
Sikhism is not known to openly proselytize, but accepts converts.
Jainism
Jainism accepts anyone who wants to embrace the religion. Any person
who wants to convert to Jainism must be a strict vegetarian and accept
Arhats and Siddhas as their deities. According to Indian law one has
the right to become a follower of Jainism.
Buddhism
Buddhism rarely engages in proselytism. The current Dalai Lama
discourages conversion without ruling it out altogether.[20][21] New
Buddhists traditionally "take Refuge" (express faith in the Three
Jewels — Buddha, Dharma, Sangha) before a monk, nun, or similar
representative. Buddhists often hold multiple religious identities,
combining the religion with Shinto (in Japan) or Taoism and
Confucianism (in China; cf. Chinese traditional religion). Some
Himalayan groups are ambiguous as to their status as Hindus or
Buddhists.
According to Gampopa's Jewel Ornament of Liberation, taking refuge in
the Buddha precludes one from worshiping gods and nature spirits.
Other traditions take the position that a lay Buddhist can pay
respects to, and give gifts to, gods or spirits, but should not regard
them as a refuge. This position is generally practiced in the
Theravada Buddhist tradition.
Bahá'í Faith
Though it actively seeks converts, the Bahá'í Faith prohibits
proselytism and does not pursue "missionary" work. In sharing their
faith with others, Bahá'ís are cautioned to "obtain a hearing" –
meaning to make sure the person they're proposing to teach is open to
hearing what they have to say. "Bahá'í pioneers," rather than
attempting to supplant the cultural underpinnings of the people in
their adopted communities, are encouraged to integrate into the
society and apply Bahá'í principles in living and working with their
neighbors.
Bahá'ís recognize the divine origins of all revealed religion, and
believe that these religions occurred sequentially as part of a Divine
plan (see Progressive revelation), with each new revelation
superseding and fulfilling that of its predecessors. Bahá'ís regard
their own faith as the most recent (but not the last), and believe its
teachings – which are centered around the principle of the oneness of
humanity – are most suited to meeting the needs of a global community.
In most countries conversion is a simple matter of filling out a card
stating a declaration of belief. This includes acknowledgement of
Bahá'u'llah – the Founder of the Faith – as the Messenger of God for
this age, awareness and acceptance of His teachings, and intention to
be obedient to the institutions and laws He established.
Conversion to the Bahá'í Faith carries with it an explicit belief in
the common foundation of all revealed religion, a commitment to the
unity of mankind, and active service to the community at large,
especially in areas that will foster unity and concord. Since the
Bahá'í Faith has no clergy, converts to this Faith are encouraged to
be active in all aspects of community life. Indeed, even a recent
convert may be elected to serve on a Local Spiritual Assembly – the
guiding Bahá'í institution at the community level.[22][23]
Other religions and sects
Conversion to new religious movements (NRMs) is riddled with
controversies. The anti-cult movement sometimes uses the term thought
reform or even brainwashing. Often they will call certain NRMs cults.
There are many different definitions for the word cult. NRMs are very
diverse and it is not clear whether conversion to NRMs differs from
conversion to mainstream religions. See also Brainwashing controversy
in new religious movements
Research both in the USA and the Netherlands has shown there is a
positive correlation between lack of involvement in mainstream
churches in certain areas and provinces and the percentage of people
who are a member of a new religious movement. This applies also for
the presence of New Age centres.[24][25] The Dutch research included
Jehovah's Witnesses(Though most JW's were previously Religious
including a number of former Ministers,Deacons,Priests and Nuns) and
the Latter Day Saint movement/Mormonism to the NRMs ( Which was more
indicative of the research).
The Church of Scientology attempts to gain converts by offering "free
stress tests" (see picture at auditing). In contrast to other
religions, which ask everyone to sign a card or membership book (e.g.
Unitarian Universalism) or be baptised (e.g. Roman Catholic Church),
Scientology requires converts to sign contracts before attending
church.
On the other end of the scale are religions that do not accept any
converts, or do so only very rarely. Often these are relatively small,
closely-knit minority religions, like the Yazidis, Druze, and
Mandaeans.
Chinese traditional religion lacks clear criteria for membership, and
hence for conversion. Several ethnic religions — including the
Yazidis, Druze, and Mandaeans — appear to refuse all applicants for
conversion. The Shakers and some Indian eunuch brotherhoods do not
allow procreation, so that every member is a convert.
International law
The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines
religious conversion as a human right: "Everyone has the right to
freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes
freedom to change his religion or belief...." (Article 18). Though
this is controversial because some groups either forbid or restrict
religious conversion (see below).
Based on the declaration the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
(UNCHR) drafted the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, a legally binding treaty. It states that "Everyone shall have
the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right
shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his
choice..." (Article 18.1). "No one shall be subject to coercion which
would impair his freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of
his choice" (Article 18.2).
The UNCHR issued a General Comment on this Article in 1993: "The
Committee observes that the freedom to 'have or to adopt' a religion
or belief necessarily entails the freedom to choose a religion or
belief, including the right to replace one's current religion or
belief with another or to adopt atheistic views [...] Article 18.2
bars coercion that would impair the right to have or adopt a religion
or belief, including the use of threat of physical force or penal
sanctions to compel believers or non-believers to adhere to their
religious beliefs and congregations, to recant their religion or
belief or to convert." (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.4, General Comment No.
22.; emphasis added)
Some countries distinguish voluntary, motivated conversion from
organized proselytism, attempting to restrict the latter. The boundary
between them is not easily defined. What one person considers
legitimate evangelizing, or witness bearing, another may consider
intrusive and improper. Illustrating the problems that can arise from
such subjective viewpoints is this extract from an article by Dr. C.
Davis, published in Cleveland State University's 'Journal of Law and
Health': "According to the Union of American Hebrew Congregations,
Jews for Jesus and Hebrew Christians constitute two of the most
dangerous cults, and its members are appropriate candidates for
deprogramming. Anti-cult evangelicals ... protest that 'aggressiveness
and proselytizing ... are basic to authentic Christianity,' and that
Jews for Jesus and Campus Crusade for Christ are not to be labeled as
cults. Furthermore, certain Hassidic groups who physically attacked a
meeting of the Hebrew Christian 'cult' have themselves been labeled a
'cult' and equated with the followers of Reverend Moon, by none other
than the President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis."[26]
Views on the propriety of proselytism, or even evangelism, differ
radically. Some feel that freedom of speech should have no limits and
that virtually anyone, anywhere should have the right to talk about
anything they see fit. Others see all sorts of evangelism as a
nuisance and an intrusion and would like to see them proscribed. Thus,
Natan Lerner observes that the issue is one of a clash of rights — the
right of a person to express his views versus the right of a person
not to be exposed to views that he does not wish to hear.
From a legal standpoint, certain criteria are often mentioned in
distinguishing legitimate evangelization from illicit proselytism:
All humans have the right to have religious beliefs, and to change
these beliefs, even repeatedly, if they so wish. (Freedom of
Religion)
They have the right to form religious organizations for the purpose of
worship, as well as for promoting their cause (Freedom of
Association)
They have the right to speak to others about their convictions, with
the purpose of influencing the others. (Freedom of Speech).
By the same token, these very rights exercise a limiting influence on
the freedoms of others. For instance, the right to have one's
religious beliefs presumably includes the right not to be coerced into
changing these beliefs by threats, discrimination, or similar
inducements.
Hence a category of improper proselytizing can be discerned:
It would not be proper to use coercion, threats, the weight of
authority of the educational system, access to health care or similar
facilities in order to induce people to change their religion.
It would be improper to try to impose one's beliefs on a 'captive
audience', where the listeners have no choice but to be present. This
would presumably require restraint in the exercise of their right to
free speech, by teachers in the classroom, army officers to their
inferiors, prison officers in prison, medical staff in hospitals, so
as to avoid impinging on the rights of others.
It would not be proper to offer money, work, housing or other material
inducements as a means of persuading people to adopt another religion.
Since the collapse of the former Soviet Union and the rise of
democracy in the Eastern Bloc, the Russian Orthodox Church has enjoyed
a revival. However, it takes exception to what it considers
illegitimate proselytizing by the Roman Catholic Church, the Salvation
Army, Jehovah's Witnesses and other religious movements[27] in what it
refers to as its canonical territory.
Greece has a long history of conflict, mostly with Jehovah's Witnesses
but also with some Pentecostals over its laws on proselytism. This
situation stems from a law passed in the 1930s by the dictator Ioannis
Metaxas. A Jehovah's Witness, Minos Kokkinakis, won the equivalent of
US $14,400 in damages from the Greek state after being arrested for
trying to preach his faith from door to door. In another case,
Larissis vs. Greece, a member of the Pentecostal church also won a
case in the European Court of Human Rights.
Some Islamic countries with Islamic law outlaw and carry strict
sentences for proselytizing. Several Islamic countries under Islamic
law, Saudi Arabia,[28][29] Yemen,[30] Afghanistan and Pakistan,[31]
Egypt,[32] Iran,[33][34] and Maldives[35] outlaw apostasy and carry
imprisonment or the death penalty for those leaving Islam and those
enticing Muslims to leave Islam.
See also
Apostasy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostasy
Deathbed conversion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deathbed_conversion
Forced conversion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_conversion
Safavid conversion of Iran from Sunnism to Shiism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safavid_conversion_of_Iran_from_Sunnism_to_Shiism
List of converts to Christianity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_converts_to_Christianity
List of converts to Hinduism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_converts_to_Hinduism
List of converts to Judaism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_converts_to_Judaism
Missionary
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missionary
Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rite_of_Christian_Initiation_for_Adults
Secondary conversion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secondary_conversion
Islam:
Conversion to Islam in prisons
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_to_Islam_in_prisons
Islamic Missionary Activity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_Missionary_Activity
List of converts to Islam
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_converts_to_Islam
Love Jihad
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Jihad
References
^ Hefner, Robert W. Conversion to Christianity."
University of California Press, 1993. ISBN 0520078365
^ Stark, Rodney and Roger Finke. "Acts of Faith: Explaning the Human
Side of Religion." University of California Press, 2000. ISBN
9780520222021
^ Falkenberg, Steve. "Psychological Explanations of Religious
Socialization." Religious Conversion. Eastern Kentucky University.
August 31, 2009.
^ Bromiley, Geoffrey W. "Baptism." The International Standard Bible
Encyclopedia: A-D (p. 419). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1995. ISBN
0802837816
^ "The Purpose of Baptism." http://gospelway.com/salvation/baptism_purpose.php
^ Augsburg Confession, Article XII: Of Repentance
^ Conversion to Christ: The Making of a Christian Hedonist[unreliable
source?]
^ What is the GOSPEL Journey?[unreliable source?]
^ BibleGateway.com- Commentaries » Matthew 16 » The Cost of the
Kingdom
^ New Catholic Dictionary: conversion
http://saints.sqpn.com/conversion/
^ Table drawn from, though not copied, from Lange, Lyle W. God So
Loved the Word: A Study of Christian Doctrine. Milwaukee: Northwestern
Publishing House, 2006. p. 448.
^ (Rigveda 1:164:46) “Ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti” - Truth is one;
sages call it many names
^ (Maha Upanishad: Chapter 6, Verse 72) "Vasudhaiva kutumbakam" - The
entire world is a one big family
^ Omar, Rashid (August 2006) (PDF). The Right to Religious Conversion:
Between Apostasy and Proselytization. Kroc Institute, University of
Notre Dame. pp. 3. http://kroc.nd.edu/ocpapers/op_27_1.pdf.
http://kroc.nd.edu/ocpapers/op_27_1.pdf
^ Java's Hinduism Revivial.
http://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=1308
^ Curtin 101
^ Rawat 106
^ Ramstedt 275
^ Converts to Islam
http://www.convertstoislam.org/
^ http://www.tibet.ca/en/wtnarchive/2001/1/26_2.html
^ Dalai Lama opposed to practice of conversion
http://www.cephas-library.com/na/buddhism_dalai_lama_against_prosylitizing.html
^ Smith, P. (1999). A Concise Encyclopedia of the Bahá'í Faith.
Oxford, UK: Oneworld Publications. ISBN 1851681841.
^ Momen, M. (1997). A Short Introduction to the Bahá'í Faith. Oxford,
UK: One World Publications. ISBN 1851682090.
http://bahai-library.com/?file=momen_short_introduction_bahais.
^ Schepens, T. (Dutch) Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland volume 29,
Sekten Ontkerkelijking en religieuze vitaliteit: nieuwe religieuze
bewegingen en New Age-centra in Nederland (1994) VU uitgeverij ISBN 90–
5383–341–2
^ Stark, R & W.S. Bainbridge The future of religion: secularization,
revival and cult formation (1985) Berkeley/Los Angeles/London:
University of California press
^ Joining a Cult: Religious Choice or Psychological Aberration?
http://www.religioustolerance.org/cult_art.htm
^ http://www.russian-orthodox-church.org.ru:83/ne207011.htm
^ Saudi Arabia-Christian Persecution in Saudi Arabia
http://www.persecution.org/suffering//countryinfodetail.php?countrycode=23
^ Currently undergoing maintenance Amnesty International
^ Yemen: Torture/prisoner of conscience/death penalty: Mohamed Omar
Haji Amnesty International
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE31/005/2000
^ Document Information Amnesty International
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA33/008/1994
^ Document Information Amnesty International
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE12/009/1997
^ http://www.mcjonline.com/news/04a/20040811b.shtml/
^ http://usinfo.state.gov/dhr/Archive/2005/Dec/27–622911.html/
^ http://www.leaderu.com/common/maldives.html/
Further reading
Barker, Eileen The Making of a Moonie: Choice or Brainwashing? (1984)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Making_of_a_Moonie:_Choice_or_Brainwashing%3F
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eileen_Barker
Barrett, D. V. The New Believers — A survey of sects, cults and
alternative religions (2001) UK, Cassell & Co ISBN 0-304-35592-5
Cooper, Richard S. "The Assessment and Collection of Kharaj Tax in
Medieval Egypt" (Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 96,
No. 3. (Jul – Sep., 1976), pp. 365–382.
Curtin, Phillip D. Cross-Cultural Trade in World History. Cambridge
University Press, 1984.
Hoiberg, Dale, and Indu Ramachandran. Students' Britannica India.
Popular Prakashan, 2000.
Ramstedt, Martin. Hinduism in Modern Indonesia: A Minority Religion
Between Local, National, and Global Interests. Routledge, 2004.
Rawat, Ajay S. StudentMan and Forests: The Khatta and Gujjar
Settlements of Sub-Himalayan Tarai. Indus Publishing, 1993.
External links
Testimony of a Hindu Convert to Christianity - Br. Ram Babu
http://www.loudio.com/Podcasts/Society/Religion/Br-Ram-Babu---Testimony-of-a-Hindu-Convert-to-Christianity.388591
Islamic Information Centre: Site aimed at those interested in Islam or
converting to Islam.
http://www15.redstation.co.uk/masj174242/iic/index.asp
Religious Conversions in India – Right or Wrong
http://sniffindia.com/religious-conversions-in-india-right-or-wrong/
Online Book on conversion to Hinduism
http://www.himalayanacademy.com/resources/books/hbh/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_conversion
Volume 4 Number 2 : July - Dec 2001
Contents
Carlos Barros The Humanization of Nature in the Middle Age
Mischa Meier Perceptions and Interpretations of Natural Disasters
during the Transition from the East Roman to the Byzantine Empire
Monica Juneja On the Margins of Utopia - One more Look at Mughal
Painting
Stephen Morillo Cultures of Death: Warrior Suicide in Medieval Europe
and Japan
Paul Freedman Georges Duby and the Medieval Peasantry
Book Reviews
Andr Vauchez (ed.) Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages, by Harald
Kleinschmidt
Shama Mitra Chenoy Shahjabanabad.- A City of Delhi, 1638 - 1857, by
Urvashi Dalal
Rattan Lai Hangloo The State in Medieval Kashmir, by Mohamad Ishaq
Khan
Denis Renevey and Christiania Whitehead (eds) Writing Religious Women:
Female Spiritual and Textual Practices in Late Medieval England, by
E. Ann Matter
Muzaffar Alam, Francolse 'Nalini' Delvoye, Marc Gaborieau (eds) The
Making of Indo-Persian Culture - Indian and French Studies, by Meena
Bhargava
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol4no2.html
Volume 4 Number 1 : Jan - June 2001
Contents
Gabrielle M. Spiegel Foucault and the Problem of Genealogy
Maurizio Peleggi Shifting Alterity :The Mongol in the Visual and
Litterary Culture of the Late Middle ages
Noburu Karashima The Family of Mallapa Nayaka:Transferalability of
vijayanagar Nayakas in Tamil Nadu
Ruby Lal The Domestic world of Peripatetic Kings : Babur and Humayun,
c 1494-1556
Heike Uffmann Inside and Outside the Convent Walls The Norms and
Practice of Enclosure in the Reformed Nunneries of Late Medieval
Germany
Edward Peters Omnia permixta sunt: Where's the Border?
Book Reviews
Richard H Davis Lives of Indian Images by Monica Juneja
Romila Thapar Sakuntala: Texts, Readings, Histories by Philippe
Benot
D N Marshall Mughals in India: A Bibliographical Survey
Mansura Haidar Mukatabat-i-Allami by Harbans Mukhia
Rajat Datta Society, Economy and the Market by Richard M Eaton
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol4no1.html
Volume 2 Number 2 : July - December 1999
Contents
Ross Bazaretti Theodelinda: 'Most Glorious Queen' Gender and Power in
Lombard Italy
Simona Slanicka Male Markings: Uniforms in the Parisian Civil War as a
Blurring of the Gender Order (A.D.1410- 1420)
Mohamad Tarvakoli Targhi Contested Memories of Pre-Islamic Iran
Urvashi Dalal Women's Time in the Havelis of North India
Najaf Haider The Quantity Theory and Mughal Monetary History
André Vauchez
Between Virginity and Spiritual Espousals: Models of Feminine
Sainthood in the Christian West in the Middle Ages
Eugenia Vanina Russian Studies in Medieval Indian History and
Society: an Insiders View
Discussion
Peter O'Brien
Islamic Civilisation's role in the Waning of the European Middle
Ages
Book Reviews
Susan W Friedman Marc Bloch, Sociology and Geography: Encountering
Changing Disciplines by Jacques Le Goff
Dina Rizk Khoury
State and Provincial Society in the Ottoman Empire : Mosul 1540-1834
by Sunil Kumar
Francois Piponnier and Perrine Mane Dress in the Middle Ages by Thomas
Lttenberg
Anirudha Ray Adventurers, Landowners and Rebels, Bengal. 1575 c 1775
by Rajat Datta
K.K. Trivedi Agra: Economic and Political Profile of a Mughal Suba,
1580-1707 by Stephen P. Blake
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol2no2.html
Muslim History : Reflections on Preordination and Categorisation
Iris Grtecke Representing the Last Judgement: Social Hierarchy,Gender
and Sin
Yogesh Sharma A Life of Many Parts : Kasi Viranna A Seventeenth
Century South Indian Merchant Magnate
Ivo Smits Poets in Their Place: Reflections on Poetic Salons in
Early Medieval Japan
Guy Bois
On the Crisis of the Late Middle Ages
Book Reviews
Marius B. Jansen (ed.)
Warrior Rule in Japan by Brij Tanaka
Shaun Marmon
Enunuchs and Sacred Boundaries in Islamic Society, by Meenakshi
Khanna
Vijaya Ramaswamy
Walking Naked: Woman Society, Spiritualty in South India Ranu
Bhattacharya
Bhairabi Prasad Sahu (ed)
Land System and Rural Society in Early India by Meena Bhargava
Gary Michael Tartakov The Durga Temple at Aihole ; A Historigraphical
Study by Nayanjot Lahiri
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol1no2.html
Volume 11 Number 1 : January-June 2008
Contents
• Introduction •
António João Cruz and Luís Urbano Afonso On the Date and Contents of a
Portugese Medieval Technical Book on Illumination: O livro de como se
fazem as cores 1
Samira Sheikh Alliance, Genealogy and Political Power: The Cudasamas
of Junagadh and the Sultans of Gujarat Page 29
R.L. Hangloo Agricuitural Technology in Kashmir (A.D. 1600 to 1900)
Page 63
Chun-chieh Huang On the Relationship between Interpretations of the
Confucian Classics and Political Power in East Asia: An Inquiry
Focusing upon the Analects and Mencius
Page 101
• Book Reviews •
Ronald Inden Text and Practice, Essays on South Asian History, by
Romila Thapar
Page 123
Scott C. Levi (ed.) India and Central Asia: Commerce and Culture,
1500-1800, by G.D. Gulati
Page 128
Pashaura Singh Life and Work of Guru Arjan: History, Memory and
Biography in the Sikh Tradition, by Himadri BaneIjee
Page 138
William Jackson Vijayanagara Visions: Religious Experience and
Cultural Creativity in a South Indian Empire, by Vijaya Ramaswamy
Page 141
R.S. Sangwan Jodhpur and the Later Mughals, AD 1707-1752, by Nandita
Prasad Sahai
Page 146
J.B. Owens 'By My Absolute Royal Authority', Justice and the Castilian
Commonwealth at the Beginnings of the First Global Age, by Rila
Mukherjee
Page 150
Vijaya Ramaswamy Textiles and Weavers in South India, 2nd Edn., by
Eugenia Vanina Page 153
A.R. Kulkarni Explorations in Deccan History, by Sumit Guha Page 158
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol11no1.html
Aims and Scope
The Medieval History Journal was launched at the turn of the twenty-
first century when the world of history was in a ferment, radically
seeking a redefinition of the discipline. The MHJ derives its
distinctive profile from encompassing the entire medieval world in
scope and its multi-disciplinary foci. For the MHJ, 'Medieval History'
signifies open chronological and thematic boundaries to honour
historical plurality. Its frequent special issue investigating a
particular theme across regions have provided a space for comparative
and transcultural conversations within scholarship
Publishing frequency: Bi-annual: April, October © Medieval History
Society, New Delhi
Published By Sage Publications Pvt. Ltd
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol12no2.html
Volume 11 Number 2 : July-December 2008
Contents
• Introduction •
Anne Gerritsen The Tale of Lady Tan: Negotiating Place between Central
and Local in Song-Yuan-Ming China Page 161
B. Arunachalam Technology of Indian Sea Navigation (c. 1200—c. 1800)
Page 187
Ranabir Chakravarti Agricultural Technology in Early Medieval India
(c. A.D. 500—1300) Page 189
Sabine Müller Asceticism, Gallantry, or Polygamy? Alexander’s
Relationship with Women as a Topos in Medieval Romance Traditions
Page 259
• Book Reviews •
Michael C. Brose Subjects and Masters: Uygurs
in the Mongol Empire, by D.O. Morgan
Page 289
Tansen Sen Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade:
The Realignment of Sino—Indian Relations,
600—1400, by Ranabir Chakravarti
Page 292
Maria Hayward Dress at the Court of Henry VIII,
by Ulinka Rublack
Page 298
Raziuddin Aquil Sufism, Culture, and Politics: Afghans
and Islam in Medieval North India, by Najaf Haider
Page 300
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol11no2.html
Introduction
Monica Juneja
Karl Jaspers Centre for Advanced Transcultural Studies, University of
Heidelberg, Germany. E-mail: jun...@asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de
Kim Siebenhüner
Historisches Seminar, University of Basel, Switzerland. E-mail:
kim.sieb...@unibas.ch
Research on religious conversion has grown into an extraordinarily
dynamic field in the course of the past decade. While the subject was
never absent from the agenda of an earlier historiography, the
mid-1990s witnessed a fresh resurgence of interest across the world in
the phenomenon of conversion. The explanation for this might lie in
the fact that recent approaches to conversion intersect with the
concerns of a culturally-oriented historiography, thereby affording
fresh perspectives and modes of coming to grips with the centrality of
religion as an analytical category of pre-modern history. Religious
faith is indeed an important constitutive factor that shapes our
understanding of pre-modern societies within and beyond Europe.
Investigating the process of a change of faith can provide new entry
points into the domain of religious transformation and can help map
the shifting boundaries of religious communities and identities. Such
identities are a site of contention in most modern multi-cultural
societies, where a dominant community wields overwhelming power.
Historiography in young post-colonial nations tends to either project
present-day conflicts on to a pre-colonial past or else, seeks
resolution of these tangled issues through suggesting an overweening
cultural commonality that transcends religious difference.
Historicising the study of religious conversion then becomes an
important exercise that might help to find a way of accommodating
conflict and rupture within the process of negotiating religious
plurality.
The Medieval History Journal, Vol. 12, No. 2, 169-189 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/097194580901200201
http://intl-mhj.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/2/169
Shrines, Cultivators, and Muslim ‘Conversion’ in Punjab and Bengal,
1300–1700
Richard M. Eaton
Department of History, University of Arizona, Tucson. E-mail:
rea...@u.arizoona.edu
This article discusses the growth of predominantly Muslim populations
in two regions of South Asia—western Punjab and eastern Bengal. No
evidence supports conventional understandings that Islamisation in
these areas resulted from a desire for social liberation on the part
of the lower orders of the Hindu caste system. Nor should Islamisation
in these regions be characterised as instances of ‘conversion’, a term
embedded in the nineteenth century Protestant missionary movement and
thus, inappropriate for reconstructing religious processes in medieval
Bengal and Punjab. Rather, transformations of religious identity in
these two regions appear to have been gradual and unselfconscious in
nature. They also appear to have been part of larger socio-political
and economic changes that were occurring in the regions, in particular
the diffusion of settled peasant agriculture.
The Medieval History Journal, Vol. 12, No. 2, 191-220 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/097194580901200202
http://intl-mhj.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/2/191
Conversion Historiography in South Asia
Alternative Indian Christian Counter-histories in Eighteenth Century
Goa
Ines G. upanov
CNRS/CEIAS, 54 Boulevard Raspail, Paris, France. E-mail:
zup...@ehess.fr
Conversion as a historical process is discussed in South Asian post-
independence historiography mostly following the demands of the
political present. In the present article, I first try to trace a
fragmentary and in-complete history of what I will call conversion
historiography in and about South Asia, referring mostly to conversion
to Christianity from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries. Then, I
discuss a particular case of religious and cultural conversion, in
which the descendants of the early converts to Christianity in Goa re-
appropriated conversion histories as an analytical and
historiographical tool in order to reconfigure their relation with the
past and the present and thus, shore up their cultural authority. In
the process, they created their own communal history and
historiography that fed directly into Portuguese and Catholic
Orientalism. This particular historical example should help us see to
what extent the act of conversion is a self-transforming work in
progress, a communicational project without teleological guarantees,
capable of empowering alternative historical readings.
The Medieval History Journal, Vol. 12, No. 2, 303-325 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/097194580901200206
http://mhj.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/2/303?rss=1
Volume 5 Number 1 : Jan - Jun 2002
Contents
Peter Raedts Representations of the Middle Ages in Enlightenment
Historiography
Manuel Alejandro Rodrguez de la Pena Rex scholaribus impendebant.- The
King's Image as Patron of Learning in Thirteenth Century French and
Spanish Chronicles : A Comparative Approach
Devika Rangachari Kalhana's Rjataragin : A Gender Perspective
Nandita Prasad Sahai Collaboration and Conflict : Artisanal Jati
Panchayats and the Eighteenth Century Jodhpur State
Stphane Mund Travel Accounts as Early Sources of Knowledge about
Russia in Medieval Western Europe from the mid - thirteeenth to the
early Fifteenth Centuries
Shalini Shah In the Business of Kama : Prostitution in Classical
Sanskrit Literature from the Seventh to the Thirteenth Centuries
Book Reviews
R.S. Sharma Early Medieval Indian Society. A Study in Feudalisation,
by Hermann Kulke
D.N. Jha (ed.) The Feudal Order - State, Society and Ideology
in Early Medieval India, by Ranabir Chakravarti
Catherine Weinberger-Thomas Ashes of lmmortality ; Widow-Burning in
India, by Monika Horstmann
Hugh Kennedy The Armies of the Caliphs. Military and Society in the
Early Islamic State, by Aziz Al-Azmeh
Ebba Koch Mughal Art and Imperial Ideology - Collected Essays, by
Catherine Asher
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol5no1.html
Volume 7 Number 1: Jan - June 2004
Contents
Sally K. Church The Giraffe of Bengal: A Medieval Encounter in Ming
China
Bernd Roeck The Enchantment of the Alien: Metaphysics and Marginality
in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe
N.R. Farooqi Diplomacy and Diplomatic Procedure under the Mughals
Ramya Sreenivasan The 'Marriage' of 'Hindu' and 'Turak': Medieval
Rajput Histories of Jalor
Sarah Khan Ave Eva-- Views of Women: Social and Gendered Instruction
in Medieval and Early Modern European Preaching
Book Review
Aziz Al-Azmeh Ibn Khaldun: An Essay in Reinterpretation, by Paul M.
Cobb
Arvind Sinha The Politics of Trade: Anglo-French Commerce on the
Coromandel Coast 1763-1793, by Prasannan Parthasarathi
Christian W. Troll (ed.) Muslim Shrines in India, by Denis Matringe
Indira Viswanathan Peterson Design and Rhetoric in a Sanskrit Court
Epic: The Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi, by Kumkum Roy
Jean-Marie Lafont Indika: Essays in Indo-French Relations 1630-1976,
by Yogesh Sharma
Syed Ejaz Hussain The Bengal Sultanate: Politics, Economy and Coins
(AD 1205-1576), by Aniruddha Ray
Satish Chandra Essays on Medieval Indian History, by Michael H.
Fisher
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol7no1.html
Volume 8 Number 2: July - December 2005
Contents
Jörn Rüsen A Comment on Professor Chun-chieh Huang's 'Salient Features
of Chinese Historical Thinking' Page 267
Enrique Rodríguez-Picavea The Frontier and Royal Power in Medieval
Spain: A Developmental Hypothesis Page 273
Reva Berman Brown and Sean McCartney The Exchequer of the Jews
Revisited: The Operation and Effect of the Scaccarium Judeorum Page
303
Mehrdad Shokoohy and Natalie H. Shokoohy A History of Bayana Part II:
From the Rise of the Auhadis to the Early Mughal Period (Fifteenth -
Seventeenth Centuries) Page 323
Book Reviews
Rodney H. Hilton Bond Men Made Free: Medieval Peasant Movements and
the English Rising of 1381, by Guy Bois Page 401
Sarah Ferber Demonic Possession and Exorcism in Early Modern France,
by Thomas A. Fudge Page 404
Iqtidar Husain Siddiqui (ed.) and Thomas William Beale An Eighteenth
Century History of North India: An Account of the Rise and Fall of the
Rohilla Chiefs in Janbhasha, by Rustam Ali Bijnori, and Thomas William
Beale, An Oriental Biographical Dictionary, by Shaukatullah Khan Page
410
Madhu Tandon Sethia Rajput Polity: Warriors, Peasants and Merchants
(1700-1800), by Dirk H.A. Kolff Page 414
Eugenia Vanina Ideas and Society. India between the Sixteenth and
Eighteenth Centuries, by Najaf Haider Page 416
Guy Halsall Warfare and Society in the Barbarian West, 450-900, by
Peter Hoppenbrouwers Page 420
Conor McCarthy (ed.) Love, sex and Marriage in the Middle Ages. A
Sourcebook, by Perter Hoppenbrouwers Page 426
Laura Napran and Elizabeth van Houts (eds) Exile in the Middle Ages -
Selected Proceedings from the International Medieval Congress,
University of Leeds, 8-11 July 2002, by Reva Berman Brown Page429
Pashaura Singh The Bhagats of the Guru Granth Sahib: Sikh Self -
Definition and the Bhagat Bani, by Himadri Banerjee Page 433
http://www.medievalhistory.org.in/vol8no2.html
Horseplay in Harappa: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/f9b738e079fef9fb/29e89ff9c3ac525d
Troubled Tribal: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/e728acc31e0d52d7#
Indian Morality Meltdown: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/ec479835613abd41#
Hindus'Tantrum: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/8a1efe054a3bf157#
I Write, Therefore I am: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/4cb1ce65c9d8f4c5#
Indian Morality Meltdown: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/37334fb34fbe6d7c#
Sex and CD Scandal: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/3f5e2a3be4798e7d#
Not Required Indian, NRI: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/672c3ae8cc9b567c#
Why 'Marathi'?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/4be9d2a2e20ab43f#
Telangana Tempest: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/b7da74ebd932a5fa#
Of States and Statesmanship: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/73c89074ecfe9966#
Sa for Sanskrit Pop: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/9f6d369c7793990f#
Black Money Monster: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/109aa8a66442ca6d#
Superpower Syndrome: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/85f8a222fd275c15#
Indian Power-Pow-Wow, Wow!: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/54cba427083f4e4f#
26/11 Saga Continues: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/20d42cd9546b852b#
Superpower Syndrome: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/008ed3e81dbcd9cc#
Of Justice and Injustice: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/dc3ba7935f641e60#
Sangh Parivar Pageant: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/a91a817395e54639#
Stop this terroristic activities of Shiv Sena
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/93908482518b9228#
BJP RIP: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/20def0d930fc511f#
Superpower Syndrome: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/b6aa5a8a1b675046#
Sangh Parivar Pageant: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/9c4ff65e38c4b924#
Sudharma, Sanskrit Newspaper: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/51f22c78acbc72b1#
Hindu Worldview: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/c8a515cc34f18a5a#
Shimla Shenanigans: Sid Harth
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.indian.marathi/browse_thread/thread/64bddaf4fb04bac5#
bademiyansubhanallah
Friday, March 26, 2010, 11:57 [IST]
By: Joginder Tuteja, Bollywood Hungama
He's known as King Khan of Bollywood and is one of India's hottest
actors and producers. Shahrukh Khan, the global superstar explains why
the time has come for developing nations like India to assert
themselves internationally, discusses the furore surrounding the
premiere of his film My Name is Khan and talks about his hopes for his
Kolkata Knight Riders team in this season's Indian Premier League.
up!It's fantastic to have you on the show, you are easily Bollywood's
biggest star these days. For those watching it might have seemed easy.
You are so big they call you King Khan. Is this the way you saw you
life panning when you started off as an actor?
Not at all, I still don't believe it. I still think it's like a dream.
But when I started off, I never thought I would do anything else but
wake up in the morning and work. But the only thing that's added to
it, and I tell this to everyone, is that I still wake up in the
morning and work but the only odd thing my kids find is that I'm a man
and I wear make-up.
We're doing this interview at your house and there are often throngs
of fans waiting outside trying to get a glimpse of you. As they wait
to see what crumb you might throw them, is that kind of a weird
feeling - the immense scrutiny that you get.
I feel very embarrassed and odd. I don't even call them fans. I think
they are people who appreciate what I do. My wife tells me on the
weekends, especially because there's a crowd - a thousand people
outside. So I go for five minutes and wave, then the cops get very
angry because the traffic stops so they shout at me. So I'm really
embarrassed. I feel really odd but I think when people come to visit
me at house then I should be sort of kind to them and say hello to
them. The scrutiny part, there was a time, I have a sense of humour
and my family feels I should stop it because it's gets me into
trouble. I say things and maybe people don't understand it or they
give me more importance than to think, I am flippant. I should not be
flippant. I should be more serious. But I feel I've never been like
that and I just want to have fun and say things that are easy going
but many a time, it's not taken like this and everything is
scrutinized.
One of things that got you a lot of headlines recently was that as
Muslims it was shame that the IPL hadn't picked up any Pakistani
players for this season and you own an IPL team, The Kolkata Knight
Riders. Your comments caused an absolute firestorm particularly with
Hindu Nationalists, did you anticipate the furore those words would
cause.
You know I did say in the interview, you know I do hope I don't get
into trouble for saying this before I said that. But I didn't think it
would go to this extent. It became strange. Strange things were said.
And I said "the bottom line in my country is that, there is a certain
amount of freedom of speech which we also restrain unto. We are not
completely outspoken, we don't do strange things - at least I don't
and most of the people I know, don't. So there's freedom of speech.
This was my point of view.
They were burning effigies of you in the streets, some people I mean,
people are absolutely going nuts about you.
Some guy had a slipper in his hands and was hitting poster. I want to
find him. I want to meet up with him. He should try it when I'm
standing in front. Not on a piece of paper.
The main Hindu Nationalist party, Shiv Sena, obviously took what you
had to say extremely badly, they were the ones who campaigned against
at this time and threatened to disrupt the premiere of your movie My
Name Is Khan. Were you worried at all about the safety of yourself and
you family and your fans?
I'll be honest. I know Balasaheb Thackeray very well. He's also been
very gracious to me. I know Uddhav Thackeray, he's been very helpful.
I know them very well. We've never had ... and I've said this many
times...
The top level of the Shiv Sena...
They meet me, I go over to their house, they're really gracious and
wonderful with me, and we've never had ideological discussions, maybe
they have a different ideology for the party that they run, but I'm
not a political person so we've never sat down and "so, why is it
like..", so we've never had this discussion. If there was genuinely a
misunderstanding about what I said, which is quite possible, pick up
the phone and I'd explain it, it would have been "oh, okay, that's
what you meant? Sorry. We thought you meant this. You don't mean
that." That's the way it should have been but I just think it became
bigger than the personal relationship we share.
Your team the Kolkata Knight Riders hasn't had a terrible successful
track record in the past couple of years, what do you think are the
prospects for it to do better this time around?
The thing that I say, you've been very kind when you say they haven't
been doing very well. The first thing - and I'm a little philosophical
about this - is that I have to accept and the team has to accept, the
truth is we haven't done well at all. We've accepted that. The second
part is, it's very easy to do better when you're in the eighth
position with only eight teams you can't go worse than this. So we are
going to do better. I think what we tried to do is get the Indian part
of the team stronger. I think the senior guys like Ishant and Ganguly,
they just need to get into the groove. I think the main thing the
coach and Dada have brought in this time is the fact we training the
young guys just to make them enjoy themselves. 20/20 needs to be
enjoyed, when you see a Matthew Hayden play, he's enjoying himself. I
sense that. You have to enjoy it. You can't just have the test match
pressure on your head. Or the one-day pressure on your head. You need
to go and enjoy yourself. Have a good time. So yesterday when the team
was leaving, somebody turned around, one of the managers and said we
have to win only seven or eight and if we only lose five. And I said
we can't lose anymore. We've lost too many. We've lost for the next
four years. So I think we'll do better. I think we will do much better
this year.
Let's discuss movies now, and specifically My Name Is Khan in which
you play an autistic Muslim in America post 9/11. The film's done
great and particularly well in Islamic countries, is that your
intention. Were you trying to appeal to most of the Muslim audience?
The fact that, you said it so well and it was a convoluted plot, an
autistic Muslim man in America post 9/11, when you put it so simply it
sounds so complicated. No, you make a film, normally for a universal
audience, the kind of films that I do especially I would like everyone
to see them. Within them, I'll try to put in something different that
appeals maybe, if you do hockey, maybe the hockey guys and girls will
like it more. You do it about a bad guy recently, so when you do that
thing and the youngsters like all the bad stuff, cool stuff. So, they
like it. But the intention was never like that. I do remember the
wonderful distributor Fox, they were going to say we'll release in
UAE, and we'll release it in Morocco like this, and Indonesia and
Malaysia and I said "why are they doing it so specifically". Maybe
they understood the spot much better than we did because yes, it's
record breaking in the Muslim countries, I never thought it would have
been like that. I really thought the film was about humanity.
Yeah, this was the latest collaboration between you and director Karan
Johar, you've worked together on countless movies but you're also best
mates away from the set. What is it do you think that some sort of
magic formula you have seems that helps you two work together so well?
I think the first thing is that's trust. I gave him a book the
"Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night" and I said you should make
a film with a little kid who's autistic and a story of a father and a
son. Obviously assuming if you took me as a father and a little child
who's autistic. And then he came up with the script with me as
autistic with this whole plot. And I'm like "this is a little strange"
because when you make a film with me, as far as Karan and me are
concerned, we normally make a little more commercially viable films.
But he said no, this is what I want to do. So I trust him, I trust him
completely.
One of the things that got a lot of publicity for the movie was when
you were detained by US immigration which in a way which mirrors a
scene in My Name Is Khan when you say "my name is Khan and I'm not a
terrorist" to have it play out like that in real life, there was a lot
of press on it, what was it like from your standpoint?
It happens to me every month, whenever I travel to the western world
because of the name. But it's not only me. There are another 75 people
in that line. It happens to my kids. And I say this again and again. I
have no issue. I have no issue with it personally because this is the
world that we have created. This is how it is. I think what happened
that day was that it took a little longer. This was at the immigration
for the first time - normally it happens at the security. I think the
processes just went wrong and it took a couple of hours. I had to call
the Indian Consulate because I had a meeting in Atlantic City, if I
got caught up here, there was no point me going all the way to
America. So I asked "can you get me out of here", so I think it just
went out to the press and we have reached a stage in India and I think
rightly so, when a developing nation is on the threshold on coming out
and Inshallah taking over the whole world - in terms of economics, in
terms of politics, in terms of business, I think certainly we have a
voice. We've been pushed, all developing nations, I'm not just saying
India and suddenly we have a voice in the world which matters and
sometimes that voice is a little louder than it should be. So anytime
anything goes wrong with Indians anywhere in the world, you notice all
Indians get up. Not on the outside. It happened when the Shiv Sena
thing happened - all the Indians came and said "no, this is wrong".
I'm really glad we have a voice like that, and that's what happened
"they stopped Shah Rukh, how dare they" and I was joking about it
until about half a day actually, and I even joked that when the
American Hollywood actresses come that I should be given the right to
frisk them in India. I want to be the first guy. It's only fair.
You did say you wanted My Name is Khan to be a global hit like Slumdog
Millionaire. You could have been in Slumdog Millionaire. You got
offered the role of the quiz show host but you turned it down and Anil
Kapoor got it. Do you beat yourself over that decision?
No, I really wanted that film to be made. I'd read the Indian novel.
I'd bought it. I wanted to make it myself but an Indian film. When I
read the script, I knew they'd made a much better film than I could
ever.
Why didn't you want part of that fantastic film then?
One, I'm not offered many great films; honestly, I don't have an agent
for stuff in the west. Also, I'd hosted "Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire". Here the host was a bit of a fixer. I only fixed "Who
Wants to be a Millionaire" in a way that I felt bad for the people and
I'll like "listen why don't you retire now, don't don't, this looks
like a difficult question. So you've got half a million dollars, go
back relax" then they say "no we want to play" and I'm like "can we go
for a break". I used to feel really bad and I'm not allowed to say
anything but I know this question's a little difficult young man. So,
I just felt that I had so much fun doing it personally that I didn't
want to be on the side where I take the guy into the loo and say "I
can fix this for you". I didn't want to be the bad guy because I won't
do it like that.
http://entertainment.oneindia.in/bollywood/interviews/2010/shahrukh-khan-interview-260310.html
C paves way for Muslim quota
25/03/2010 12:15:02 Pioneer News Service | New Delhi
Upholds 4% reservation in AP, for now
Constitution Bench to take final call
Paving the way for religion-based reservation, the Supreme Court on
Thursday upheld a decision by the Andhra Pradesh Government giving
four per cent reservation in jobs and educational institutions to 14
Muslim groups coming under socially and educationally backward
classes.
The legislation under challenge — the Andhra Pradesh Reservation — in
favour of Socially and Educationally Backward Classes of Muslims Act,
2007, was struck down by the AP High Court on February 8 this year
following which the State Government had rushed to the apex court for
stay of the order.
In the first 14 categories, names of specific Muslim groups were added
as beneficiaries under the Act but the last item on the list for
reservation included “Other Muslim Groups” excluding Saiyed, Mughal,
Pathans, Irani, Arab, Bohara, Shia Imami Ismaili, Khoja, Cutchi-Memon,
Jamayat, and Navayat.
Suggesting a middle path, the Bench of Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan,
Justices JM Panchal and BS Chauhan allowed the Act to continue with
regard to 14 groups while withdrawing benefit to the last category
comprising “any other” Muslim groups. The Bench posted the State’s
appeal along with related petitions for further hearing in August
before a Constitution Bench. In providing this interim concession, the
Bench maintained that the creamy layer among the 14 groups would be
excluded.
For the State Government, the decision has come as a partial relief.
Attorney General Goolam E Vahanvati, who appeared for the AP
Government, had sought stay of the high court order in whole to ensure
the Act was implemented with regard to all 15 categories. Vahanvati
sought to clear the apprehension that only Muslims would be benefited
since the Act specifically excluded 10 categories of Muslims from the
ambit of reservation. At the same time, he pointed out the example of
Kerala and Karnataka where Muslim community as a whole was considered
as a backward class.
Senior advocate K Parasaran, also appearing for the State Government,
stated that just because the groups belong to the Muslim community,
they do not cease to be backward. For 60 years, he added, the benefits
of reservation did not reach them and it was time to correct the
situation now, or keep them in the same backward state for years to
come.
Prior to passing the legislation in 2007, the Government constituted
an independent commission headed by retired IAS officer PS Krishnan on
whose recommendations the 14 categories of Muslims were identified as
socially and educationally backward.
But senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the petitioners,
submitted that the legislation was nothing but a “thinly disguised
form of religion-based reservation.” He wondered the need for the
State to include “any other Muslims” as a separate category when 14
categories were found eligible as backward classes.
The Bench, impressed by Salve’s contentions, said, “There is no
denying that backwards are not there among Muslims. If we allow this
to continue they will be denied of benefits due to them.” Passing its
order, the Bench noted that in the meantime the State Backwards
Commission could continue their exercise of identification.
Salve, however, reminded the court that on previous occasions, the
Supreme Court and High Court had consistently maintained the stand to
deny reservation to Muslims. The first occasion was in the year 2004
when the State Government issued a Government Order dated July 12,
2004 providing five per cent reservation to the entire Muslim
community in the State. It was struck down by a larger Bench of the AP
High Court in the absence of any criteria laid down for ascertaining
backwardness. The Supreme Court upheld the High Court order.
Almost a year later, the State Government brought out an ordinance
providing five per cent reservation to the entire Muslim community
treating them as a backward class. A five-judge Bench of the AP High
Court struck down the law as unconstitutional since the same was
treated to benefit the Muslim community as a whole, without there
being any identification by the Backward Classes Commission. The apex
court is still seized of the appeal challenging this order, when the
AP Government chose to enact the 2007 legislation presently under
challenge.
Sunil
26/03/2010 12:22:43 It is very sad !!.
why is the opposition BJP sitting quite..??i just saw one small
statement by BJP spokeperson after the verdict was announced....where
is the RSS and VHP and other Hindu organisation..??are they
sleeping..??why are they not protesting..??why are they not asking for
reservation for MINORITY Hindus in Kashmir..??If we dont react
now...very soon we'll be in minority in rest of the states as
well..next in the list will be Kerala, Assam,and other north eastern
states...we should be very much aware of things that is happening
around us..for eg..how many of us know that in Kerala 12% of jobs are
reserved for Muslims..??(talking abt the youger generation who doesn
know what all are happening)...now we take it so lightly...once the
muslims become a majority does anyone think that they will return the
favour..???Does anyone think that muslims will give reservation to
Hindus..??If anyone thinks like that..they are absolutely wrong...I'm
sure many Hindu brothers will be thinking like that...why wait for
that..??Dont you all think Prevention is better than cure..??So lets
attack it now..else later it will attack us..
skg
26/03/2010 11:39:27 It is very sad !!.
It is very sad and depressing to see the judgement of the Supreme
court. First of all, the ruling by Supreme court has ignored major
facts. How can they just find ground facts in just 3 hours of
discussion ?. Why was there a haste in allowing 4% reservations ?. Who
will lead the constitutional bench ?. Will take into consideration all
the facts before giving the final verdit ?. Why are these 14 groups
not added to the BC commission ?. Who suppressed the voice of BC
commission ?.
Suresh Iyer
26/03/2010 10:13:57 Shortlived euphoria
Just two weeks back, HK readers rejoiced over the AP HC decision to
overturn the communal reservation.Now the same bogus constitution is
interpreted differently by a higher court.It reminds one of the
various interpretation of Koran.Court verdicts are becoming a lottery
for the public.This is antoher proof of this country being a banana
republic.Generally our courts are famous for delays in giving
verdicts.But just the see the speed at which the SC gave a hearing for
this case. It clearly shows the hidden hands.
M.N.S.Nampoothiripad
26/03/2010 04:36:06 Communal Bench decides before the Constitution
Bench is constituted
This is ridiculous. The pertinent issues involved are to be decided by
the constitution bench. Then why should a communal bench hurry to
declare the Andhra Act valid? In another case relating to M.F.Hussain,
the chief justice remarked that Hussain is free to come to India at
any time and nobody can prevent him. Hussain is Qatari citizen now and
he needs a valid India visa to visit this country. K.G. Balakrishnan
is fooling millions of law abiding citizens of this nation by
rendering such perverted remarks and judgements.
Abhilash Nambiar
26/03/2010 02:02:03 Lost respect
Today I have lost respect for the Supreme Court of India.
Ram
25/03/2010 21:50:18 Self imposed backwardness
If the Muslims let their womenfolk go for higher education, then it
would be good for the country. It will help good new generation of
Muslim children who have a balanced view of the world. The
backwardness of Muslims is mostly "self imposed". For the women
reservation bill, the opposition came from the orthodox muslims as
they want to continue the saudi arabian system of preventing women
from knowing worldly things. Education alone can remove the
fundamentalist mindset of Muslims, who don't encourage rational
questions and accept whatever that is imposed on them.
Narendran
25/03/2010 21:47:35 Clever Ploy?
This case was argued by:
1.Adv. Vhanavati- Solicitor Genereal for AP Govt
2. Adv. K Parasaran- For a party suppporting the reservation
3. Adv. Harish Salve- Lawyer for those opposed the reservation.
There is a clear ploy in this case. This is a ground work for
extending resevations for the so callled Dalit Christians. It is clear
strategy to make India a Christian majority by 2050. It will be
impossible for India to remain as a united country by 2030. With the
current religious strife, there is every chance that the country will
be split into many independent nations unless it get an impartial
leader to govern.
Vijayalakshmi
25/03/2010 21:01:54 SCpaves way for muslim quota.
Whatever may be the arguments, religion and caste-based reservations
are discriminatory against the rest of the Indians, and will encourage
conversions.We need better lawyers to argue our case effectively. Only
economic criterion and merit should be considered for
reservation.Otherwise India will disintegrate.This is the agenda of
the anti-national mafia which is pressing for such discriminatory
reservations.
Karthik
25/03/2010 20:26:22 Akhand Pakistan dream becoming true ?
In making this Akhand Pakistan dream of Muslims come true, traitors
with Hindu names are playing an important role. Retd. IAS officer PS
Krishnan , Goolam E Vahanvati, K Parasaran etc. are all Pakistanis and
not Hidustanis anymore. Let patriotic Hindus identify such traitors
within the Hindu community. Francois Gautier is right when he says
'The greatest enemy of a Hindu is a Hindu'. Hey Alert Hindus, please
stop giving alms to Muslim beggars. Sachar and Ranganath Mishra will
take care of them. Reservations on the basis of the religion is
unconstitutional and the Supreme Court has acted unconstitutionally by
upholding 4% reservations for Muslims. Whats wrong if the common Hindu
unconstitutionally practices untouchability towards the Muslim
community ? Afterall Muslims are doing the same to Hindus by calling
them Kafirs, right? So one of my Hindu friend gave me a chocolate made
in Dubai. After he left I threw that into Dustbin!
mgd
25/03/2010 20:40:56 every Hindu caste is a minority
This kind of thing will go on forever. The definition of minority
should include every hindu caste which is a minority vis-a-vis the
entire Hindu religion.
Ganesh
25/03/2010 20:21:24 free for all laws
The mention of 14'groups' is a euphemism for castes in the muslim
community.It is now clear that muslims in india were converts and are
carrying the caste tag even now. This system is against the very
tenets of islam.Can any Islamic cleric or leader define what this
'group 'means?.All those utopian idea of casteless relegion is a
farce.I think the khangress must have offered some relief from
declaration of assets by the SC judges in return for this minority
appeasement verdict.I only hope that there is now a thin streak of
light at the end of the tunnel.The hindus must try and cause
infighting between muslims who are granted reservation and those who
are outside it.
vinu
25/03/2010 19:58:58 ppl who deserves never gets, others always gets
ppl who deserves never gets reservation.crores of ppl below the
poverty line still dont have access to basic needs, ruling authorities
make sure that they remain like that.The affluent vote bank based
communities get all that is needed in the name of vote bank. Happens
only in our country..!!
skg
25/03/2010 17:58:34 Congress party will misuse these reservations !!.
God knows how the backwardness is identified in the Muslim community.
Clearly there is no transparency on how they identified the
Backwardness in the Mulsim community. Also, no body know why other
Muslim category was present in the Bill. Intelligent Hindus and
attorneys dig into this bill and expose Congress government and bring
to attention to the supreme court of the consequences of extending
resrervations to Muslim community. Don't know why Dr.Ambedkar had
excluded them from reservations . There must be a reason why Ambedkar
must have excluded them. It is pathetic that sufficient arguments and
awareness is missing about this in the Hindu community.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10711&SKIN=B
Anti Hindu Hate Groups in America
12/12/2008 12:57:33
Dr. BABU SUSEELAN
Opposition to Hindus is nothing new in America. For several years
Hindus were denied immigration by American law. Despite the obstacles
posed by Christian Missionaries, Hindus were able to immigrate to
America during the presidency of Kennedy and Johnson. Hindu
organizations sprang up across the continent and slowly took root in
American society. It is significant that Hindu immigrants have worked
tirelessly and convinced American thinkers that spirituality is
essential for peace, freedom, harmony and coexistence.
Hindu Contribution to science, technology, economics, life sciences,
spirituality and freedom are innumerable. Devout Hindus have
strengthened the theories of pluralism, yoga, meditation, and the
management of human affairs in several ways. It represents a systemic
perspective against the naturally limited, historically conditioned
efforts of dogmatic ideology to conceive one model of living.
Hindu values keep Indians strong by binding us together. By committing
and
recommitting ourselves to our Dharma, we have forged a common Hindu
identity. It is what makes a Pluribus Unum “out of one"
possible?
Now several Hindu hate groups have appeared in different parts of
America
in new forms and with different disguises. India has never suffered
from a shortage of enemies in America. Recently, Fundamentalist
Evangelist groups, Indian Converted Christian Organizations, Fanatic
Indian Islamo Fascists, Indian Marxists anarchists posing as liberals,
and pseudo secular bigots have made an unholy alliance against India
and Hindus in America.
They have joined with anti Hindu fundamentalist groups to wage a
psychological warfare against peace loving, tolerant, spiritual,
pluralistic Hindus. Several anti Hindu fanatic groups such as American
Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI), Association of Indian
Muslims of America (AIM), Campaign to Stop Funding Hate (CSFH),
Coalition Against Communalism (CAC), Federation of Indian American
Christian Organization of North America (FIACONA), Forum of Inquilabi
Leftists (FOIL), Indian Christian Forum (ICF), Indian Muslim
Educational Foundation of North America (IMEFNA), Indian Muslim
Council-USA (IMC-USA), Indian Muslim Relief and Charities (IMRC),
Muslim Youth Awareness Alliance (MYAA), South Asian
Collectives (SAC), South Asia Forum (SAF), and Supporters of Human
Rights in India (SHRI) are busy vulgarizing Hinduism. (The List is not
exhaustive).
These hate groups’ goal is unmistakably been Hindu bashing. They are
not honest critics working toward peace and positive values for
America. They are peddling lies,
half-truths, and false accusations in the guise of secularism.
What is going on? Why are Indian Converted Christians, fanatic Indian
Muslims and Communists betraying India? Instead of creating a positive
image, educating
Americans, promoting pluralistic, all inclusive Indian values, why are
they turning against Hindus and India? These converted Indian
Christians, Indian Muslims and Marxists have surrendered themselves to
rigid, non-compromising, reductionist, divisive, fundamentalist anti
Hindu ideology.
These sloppy anti-Hindu bigots suffer from thinking errors and take no
responsibility for their nefarious and erroneous actions. They behave
without moral conscience, guilt or remorse and they don’t want the
consequences of their action
known, and if it becomes known, they don’t want to take
responsibility.
They are well trained to do what they are told.
These Hindu bashers’ language, values, culture, and thinking have been
polluted through a denial of traditional Indian culture. In the mad
dash to escape from their all inclusive, open ended, universal
spiritual philosophy and freedom, that make up Indian heritage, these
converted Christians, Muslims and Marxists scoff at Indian cultural
values and ethics and become paranoid and psychotic in their attempt
to deal with their roots.
These anti Indian groups simply do not understand the result of their
own actions and do not stick around long enough to bear consequences.
These mischief mongers and miscreants in our midst seldom advocate
pluralism, tolerance, universalism or harmony or trying to move the
American society in that direction because they are slaves to
tyrannical, fundamentalist and conflicting ideologies.
It seems that a slow poison is running the veins of these people and
the anti-Hindu crap is just a small part of it. These Hindu bashers
are always seemed ready with excuses for Islamic terrorists,
missionary culture vultures and Marxist anarchists.
Every positive Social service by Hindu organizations is horrifying in
their eyes, a sign of bad conduct, and moral decay. It is as if Hindu
bashers of Indian origin have arrived at a kind of intellectual truth
with Islamic terrorists and the conversion gangs. It is as if they
have made accommodation with them.
Hindu bashers actually welcome news that makes Hindus and India bad.
They find pleasure and delight in vilifying India and Hindus. There
is no outrage from these Hindu bashers about Jihadi terrorism,
missionary mischief or Marxist violence.
While hiding behind tyrannical ideologies, these Hindu bashers in
America are playing with betrayal, denial, diversion, falsehood and
sophistry.
Are they aware of the social and political damage they have already
inflicted on India? Their actions against India and Hindus have no
moral sense, logic or common sense. Their recent letter to President
elect Obama exposes the fallacious and demeaning logic.
The unprecedented and recklessness of their letter is an alarmist
tactics of intimidation.
How did they get this way? Mindless missionaries have used deceptive
strategies to lure low
class, uneducated and poor Indians and freed them from their spiritual
tradition and enslaved them in rigid, fundamentalist and parochial
Christian dogma. Christian schools have indoctrinated them with closed
channel thinking and hostility towards Hindu pluralism, tolerance and
transcendental philosophy. They were brought to this country to serve
their slave masters. Islamo fascists and Marxists and the anti Hindu
pseudo secularists have made an unholy alliance against tolerant
Hindus and sacred Indian heritage.
These closed channel Hindu hate groups have a goal to insult, ridicule
and subvert American religious freedom. These Hindu hate groups are
mired in hostility and tyrannical ideologies. They will always see
India as immoral and dishonorable.
No matter how much Hindus and India do today, these hate groups prey
on American insecurities, ignorance and the gaps in their knowledge.
These Indian born maroons exploit American hopes and fears. In short,
these anti Hindu hate groups represent the ultimate in vanity and
betrayal.
true hindu
20/11/2009 02:50:10 put a blanket ban
Congrats to Dr Babu Suseelan for his excellent article. Let me tell
you that first of all Americans are excellent, kind , peace loving and
tolerant people . That is the reason , they allow all people across
the globe allowing to migrate and settle on their land. Be they from
Iraq, iran , Bangla desh .Pakistan ,Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan .
First of all why these hate mongers and pseudo secular bigots are
allowed to US or UK? .
One fellow here wrote that Islam is fastest spreading religion in USA.
Why is US Govt sleeping?. If Islam is allowed to take over in USA, I
think 2012 dooms day as said will happen to USA in nearest time. Why
are these mulsims not able to live in their own country ? Why are they
after US Visa and like to settle in US? Because they are
kicked ,caned , hanged , stoned like animals in their country as per
sharia law.
They are forbidden drinks, sex , free dom etc.,.In USA , you can do
any thing. But what these people are doing in a democratic country
like US? Building mosques , preaching hate religion, dividing people,
converting all innocent US citizens to islam and still doing all dirty
things which are forbidden in their religion. They are not faithful to
their host country.
Enjoying all facilities in london or Newyork, planning how to bomb or
kill kaffirs.India is also facing the same problem from centuries with
these cunning guys.Now Indian converted christians and muslims are
real culprits to malign our peace loving religion and India.USA must
put blanket ban on giving VISAs to Indian converted christians and
Muslims .
Raghavan V Nair
13/12/2008 09:29:37 ARE WE DESTINED TO BE LIKE THIS ?
Dear Dr.Babu Suseelan, You have brought forward yet another matter of
greater concern to Hindus. It is not surprising that the commies have
joined hands with Christian and Muslim groups in the US to malign the
Hindus. After over 61 years also, they could not be of any
significance in the country except the 4.5 years they lavished by
courtesy of Madam Gandhi. The situation in Gulf countries is in fact
the worst. In countries like Saudi Arabia, most jobs are reserved for
Muslims alone giving absolute leverage to them. On top of that, they
try their best to keep us aside and put in all efforts to project the
Hindus as enemies and Pakistanis as brothers. Babri Masjid demolition
and events in Gujarat they magnified and presented there in most
damaging way to project Hindus as brutes.
Undoutedly, the glaring examples of Hindu tolerance has been that even
after being subjected to such humiliation in Gulf, we are destined to
live with them in this country and accept that as fate and remain
content. But what are they doing? Earlier we suffered in the hands of
Muslim invaders who ruled this country until the British came in and
now they come in as terrorists. Earlier they divided this country in
the name of religion, and now they wish to further divide it into
pieces. Who is to be blamed for all these ? Only we!!
Sujit
13/12/2008 01:20:53 Plan positive actions to counter negativities
Dear Dr. Babu, You have inventoried the negative energies at play
against Hinduism. It is good to be aware of who are the ones working
against Hinduism. However, what is required is a set of positive
communication and social education strategies, coordinated by
different Hindu organisations, to counter these negativities. These
should include identifying (non-ethnic Indian) scholars of Hinduism,
Yoga, Ayurveda etc., to become spokespersons, dispelling
misconceptions about Hinduism, briefings about the essence of Hindu
view of life etc. Unless positive and non-competitive energies are
displayed, Hindus will not be able to gain the social/theological
acceptance of non-Hindus; particularly in a nation such as the US,
where very little about the outside world is known to the common
American.
Mohan
12/12/2008 23:16:07 Hindu haiter
Respected Babuji, I go through ur article from this site along with
various article posted by you on www.faithfreedom.org/com. No doubt
you are excellent writer like Francis Guitar of Frnace. It u are
absolutely right that, these fantic chrstians and muslim they never
treat this nation belongs to them. They always indulge all sort of
anti hindu bashing in every forum. Now a days it becames a trend under
this UPA govt. all most all important position held by the chrstians
and muslim. Take the example of Mrs.Ambica Soni( Chrstian), Jamir
(Chrstian), Samuel Reddy (CM of AP- 7th day avendist chrstian, Mr.Ajit
Jogi (Converted Chrstian), Ms.Jaya Prada, Jaya Sudha (Chrstians), I
dont have any idea about Mr.Amra Sing (he may be christian). Eminet
hindu haiter Sakel Ahemad (Home minister-State charges), Jai Prakash
Jaiswal-Hindu haiter from kanpur, Mr.Ahemad-IUML from Kerala, enire
Communist thugs. Apart from these hindus haiter our so clled beloved
CNN-IBN, NDTV, Star News and other english chenel. There must be total
ban on these english chennel. U see there reporting about mumbai
incident, now they are telling terroriesm have no relegion. But it has
relegion that is ISlam. Firther I would like to request Respected
Suselanji kindly expose Dr.Zakir Naik, torch bearer of Quran in every
forum. Since you are regular writer in the faithfreedom. Bande
Mataram.
Sakthi
12/12/2008 15:06:34 We all can help Please use this website..
Make Barack Obama aware of these things.. we dont have to wait for any
organisation each Hindu rather Indian visiting this website. Please
write their opinion at this website which directly accessed by The
President-elect..Next President of United States Sri Barack Obama!
Please do it immediately.
Register and have your views heard.. especially click on Join the
discussion.
http://change.gov/
and another website is
http://www.barackobama.com/index.php
menon
12/12/2008 11:30:45 Well explained
Awesome article. This is 100% treu. This is quite visible in America
these days. When the converted christians think west is their home
land, muslims think gulf is their home land.
Especially in USA according to an American web site, there are around
1 million Hindus and another 2 million is waiting to embrace Hindu.
This is alarmingly frustrating for the pseudo secularists.
When India is mentioned, Hindu is the first thing an American think. I
personally know americans who literally hate the converted christians
from India. There are many churches in USA which wouldn't even let
them come in. The christian groups were always have this feeling that
india's problems are not their problems.
Very unfortunate. But there seems to be a HIndu unity in USA and lots
of people working on this too.
Vijayan
12/12/2008 08:26:05 hindu hate groups
Excellent observations by Dr. Babu Suseelan.
If the hate groups can make it to actions, the Hindus have to react
too. Pleuralism has been the strength and the same time, made Hindus
less fanatic !!!!
Why cant the Hindus react and do the " fact finding" and " truth
exposing" missions ? If the hate groups are trying to influence the
administration in disguise, the Hindus should try to expose the truth
in open.
If we cannot do that, then we deserve all the humiliation and the
consequences
vijay
SeaLion
12/12/2008 05:04:23 These same evil
Vile, tyrannical, savage and barbaric inhuman Xian fascistic death
cult asuras, the worst of the evil , ARE NOW IN CAHOOTS IN INDIA WITH
OTHER EVILEST VILE FORCES LIKE THE ASURIC ISLAMOFASCISM AND COMMUNIST
DEMON BASTARDS, UNDER DEMENTED, NERO REGIME OF THE FOREIGN XIAN
MINDLESS. LOWLY IMPOSTER FROM ITALY AND HER XIAN BED....
IF IT IS CLOSELY OBSERVED THESE HATE GROUPS, SPECIALLY THE JIHADI AND
XIAN BARBARIAN ANIMALS ARE BEING FINANCED BY HINDU TAX MONEY OR LOOTER
XIAN MNC BUSINESSES, WITH TACIT SUPPORT OF EVIL MAINO XIAN BARBARIANS
ARE KNOWN DEMENTED DEBAUCHERS, THEY DO THE SAME TO ALL WHETHER JEWS,
RED INDIANS, MAORIS, ETC, BECAUSE OF THE EVIL BEAST, CMD OF MURDER INC
SITTING IN VATICAN.
WE "HAVE TO" HAVE TO" HAVE TO" REACT LIKE MUSLIMS, THESE XIANS AND
PSEUDOS DESRVE NO MERCY, WE HAVE TO TELL THEM INDIA IS FOR HINDUS AND
FOR THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE A NICE, GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS MOST EVIL,
DEMENTED CHURCHOCRAZY MAFIA OF THE ITALIAN
"The devotee who forgoes the life-experiences of marriage and family,
and exchanges the problems of a small household and limited activities
for the larger responsibilities of service to society in general, is
undertaking a task which is often accompanied by persecution from a
misunderstanding world, but also by a divine inner contentment."
Paramahansa Yogananda
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/hkpage.aspx?PageID=7782&SKIN=W
Gomata protection gains momentum
26/03/2010 19:41:57 HARAN B R - Daily Pioneer
If success in banning cow slaughter is the litmus test of any BJP
regime’s commitment to Hindutva, the Yeddyurappa dispensation in
Karnataka has done well — but what would be its effect on the BJP’s
national image?
In its session, which ended last week, the Karnataka Assembly passed
the “Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Bill
2010” by voice vote amidst chaotic protests by the Opposition. It may
be recalled that the BJP government withdrew the already existing
“Karnataka Prevention of Cow Slaughter and Cattle Preservation Act
1964” days before introducing this new Bill. Though the government
didn’t cite any reasons for its withdrawal at the time, the Opposition
objected to in the anticipation that a new Bill would be introduced
with changes making it more stringent.
Under the new Bill, cow slaughter and transportation would attract
imprisonment ranging from one year to seven years and fine from Rs
25,000 to Rs 1,00,000, depending on the nature of the offence. Under
the previous Act of 1964, the slaughter of bulls, bullocks and adult
buffaloes was permitted on the basis of ‘fit-for-slaughter’
certificates, which were given only when the animals were over 12
years of age or permanently incapacitated for breeding, draught or
milk due to injury, deformity or other causes. Transportation for
slaughter outside the state was not permitted and sale, purchase or
disposal of cow or calf for slaughter was also banned. The offence was
considered cognizable and the penal provision was imprisonment up to
maximum of 6 months or fine of up to Rs 1,000 or both.
Karnataka has been ruled by the Congress and the Janata Dal for years
and their failure to prevent slaughter of cattle despite the 1964 Act
shows the ineffectiveness of the Bill as well as the incompetence of
those governments. In an era of corruption and inefficiency, it
becomes imperative to deal with offenders and criminals in a more
stringent manner to bring down the rate of crime and maintain law and
order.
The problem with the present Congress leadership is that it
deliberately disregards its own predecessors’ opinions. This aspect
was pointed out by chief minister Yeddyurappa, who recalled that
Indira Gandhi had written to the chief ministers in 1982 asking them
to ban cow slaughter and that
Jawaharlal Nehru had also advocated a ban on cow slaughter. Gandhiji,
in whose name the Congress does its political business, venerated,
worshipped and defended the cow calling it the
‘Mother of millions of mankind’. Gandhi termed cow protection as the
central fact of Hinduism.
Moreover, Article 48 (Organisation of Agriculture and Animal
Husbandry) of the Constitution says: “The State shall endeavour to
organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific
lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and
improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and other
milch and draught cattle.”
Even as recently as October 2005, the Supreme Court upheld the
Constitutional validity of a Gujarat law imposing a complete ban on
slaughtering of bulls and bullocks, often misused to get around the
ban on slaughter of cows. Hence, the Bill introduced by the BJP
government and passed by the Assembly is constitutionally valid and
the Congress party’s comment that it is ‘unconstitutional’ is at the
most self-deception.
There is a tendency among ‘secular’ political parties and a section of
the mainstream media to project this issue as BJP’s ‘hidden’ and
‘communal’ agenda, while in fact this law is prevailing in almost all
the states except Kerala, West Bengal, Meghalaya and Nagaland. The
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 also plays a significant
role in this issue and the amendment brought in by Central Act 26 of
1982 has paved the way for the establishment of the ‘Animal Welfare
Board of India’, which does a decent job despite corruption, nepotism
and political interference.
The Congress has also harped on other phony issues saying that the act
will render thousands jobless, affect leather trade, etc. But, the
Congress failed to understand that the preservation of cattle will
improve agriculture, animal husbandry, dairy farms, and ecology and
socio-religious affairs. Cow protection as a policy would go a long
way in agricultural development, resulting in a flourishing village
economy. As India’s economy revolves around agriculture, cattle
welfare is fundamental to it. Cow-dung and cow-urine have medicinal
properties and they also act as manure helping the growth of crops as
well as preserving the richness of soil. It can also be used in the
production of electricity through gobar gas.
The protection of cow as a ‘Movement’ has been there for years and the
movement gained momentum during the time of Swami Dayananda Saraswati,
founder of Arya Samaj and took roots across the country. Most of the
freedom fighters wanted the cow slaughter banned. That is why the
Constituent Assembly made a separate Article (48) for this while
framing the Constitution.
Recently, the “Vishwa Mangal Gau Gram Yatra”, organised by the RSS and
affiliated organisations, toured the whole country in 108 days and
over 10,000 upyatras exhorted each and every village, city and street
of the country. Along with Hindus, Christians and Muslims too have
extended their support to the cause of cow protection. Thousands of
social organisations of the country participated in various functions
of the yatra. The signature campaign conducted during the yatra proved
the biggest signature campaign ever conducted in the world. Crores of
people extended their support to the cause of cow protection through
this campaign. The success of the yatra and the signature campaign
underline the necessity of a blanket ban on cow slaughter throughout
the country.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10723&SKIN=B
India Vision Nitish Kumar strikes again
26/03/2010 19:36:49 HK
Nikesh Kumar, head of Islamic TV channel India Vision once again
strikes against Hindu society. Today, the issue was one of the Police
officer Anju Gupta’s statement against L.K. Advani. While the whole
channel in Kerala chooses this story in their 5th or 6th position,
anti Hindu Nikesh Kumar selected this story first in his News Night
and conducted a big discussion something like a ‘hot story’. Few
comments about his discussion in News Night today.
· He invited few selected people to discuss this matter, as usual no
strong Hindutva supported leaders were invited for this discussion
purposely. But he lost his mental balance when few of them responded
positively towards Advani.
· Nikesh very eagerly asked his first question to one Shri. Unni, a
political analyst, “Shri. Unni you are among one presented during
Babri Masjid was demolished, please tell us something about that day”.
Shri. Unni replied simply “I was not presented at Ayodhya on 6th
December”.
Nikesh got angry because he called Shri. Unni for this discussion
thinking he was presented on 6th December and will say something hot
against Advani & BJP.
· Then he asked question to well known Jihadi and right hand of
terrorist Madani – Abdul Aziz. As usual he blasted Advani and Hindu
society. So no comments.
· The next question to a well known Lawyer Adv. Govinda Bharathan.
Nikesh lost his mental balance while discussing with him, he thought
Adv. Govinda Bharatan will appreciate the statement of Anju Gupta and
some strong criticism against BJP and Hindu society. Adv. Govinda
Bharatan replied “Advani is a dynamic and strong leader in India and
he proofed his professionalism in politics in many times. Tell me to
whom people of India would trust – a retired Police officer’s
statement or a professional political leader in India. If I am a judge
I will trust Mr. Advani only”. It was really a shock to Nikesh and he
suddenly tried to divert his question in different style but Adv.
Govinda Bharatan’s reply was very firm and clear.
During the whole discussion Nikesh was worried and was in tense while
discussing that Advani was encouraging to demolish the Masjid, he
looks very happy and after the Masjid was demolished Advani and other
leaders were distributing sweets.
Nikesh even said Advani is lying and blasted RSS & Sangh Parivar many
times.
Whatever Nitish Kumar said was true, it was Lal Krishna Advaniji who
encouraged to demolish a Babri building which was build by the Islamic
invaders after demolishing a temple. L.K. Advaniji was the mastermind
behind the agitation. He was presented just 100 meters away from the
Babri building while it was demolished, he looks really happy after
the complete Babri building was demolished, then he was distributed
sweets to others leaders who was presented the site. Now
Nikesh can do whatever he want along with his Jihadi friends in India
Vision. But please remind your father Shri. M.V. Raghavan that , don’t
beg RSS vote (Karsevaks) through backdoor, which your father & other
CMP leaders are doing for the last many years.
We appeal to all BJP & other nationalist leaders in Kerala not to
participate any discussion with India Vision as long as anti Hindu
Nikesh Kumar exist in this channel. In case of any leaders are
participating, they should be prepared well to handle Nikesh
skg
26/03/2010 13:21:12 let us not be afraid of truth and run away !!.
It is now time to embrace the truth and die like a Martyr instead of
showing the back and hiding against the truth. I pledge to the Hindu
community to be not ashamed of the Babri Masjid demolition. It is an
alien structure constructed by an alien invader Babur. Indians need to
understand this thoroughly.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10722&SKIN=M
Government cannot withdraw criminal cases against M Hussein - SC
26/03/2010 11:39:54
Husain can't be compelled to return:SC
PTI | New Delhi
Self-exiled painter MF Husain, who has taken up Qatar citizenship,
cannot be compelled to return to India by the courts or the Prime
Minister, the Supreme Court observed on Thursday refusing to direct
dropping of criminal cases against him.
"What can the Prime Minister do if a person decides to live in Doha
(capital of Qatar). They are international citizens they can live
anywhere in the world," the apex court observed while refusing to
entertain a public interest litigation filed by Bhim Singh, chief of
the J&K Panthers Party and senior advocate.
Singh, in his petition, said he has written a letter to Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh urging him to take steps to bring 95-year old Husain
back to India and sought the apex court's direction to the PM for
ensuring his return.
He has given up his Indian passport and accepted Qatar citizenship in
February this year. He has been living in self-exile for nearly four
years following a spate of cases in India over his controversial
paintings of Hindu goddesses in the nude.
A bench of Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan-- Justices J M Panchal and
Deepak Verma also refused direction to the Union Government to
withdraw the 95-odd criminal cases registered against him for alleged
obscene paintings as they were all lodged by private individuals.
"How can the Union of India be directed to withdraw the cases when
they are all private complaints, If he is in Doha, what is the
problem ?" the apex court observed, asking Singh to withdraw the
petition failing which it would be dismissed.
Sensing the court's mood, Singh withdrew the PIL.
The bench also pointed out that it had already transferred all the
cases registered against Husain in different parts of the country for
adjudication in Delhi.
Singh, a former MP, had claimed that Husain's fundamental rights stood
violated as he was unable to return to India due to the cases slapped
against him for his alleged blasphemous paintings.
The PIL referred to an earlier Supreme Court observation in connection
with one of the cases against Husain that no exception should be taken
to artistic expressions.
Singh later said he would file another writ petition before the apex
court on the ground that Husain was forced to surrender his Indian
passport and obtain Qatar citizenship out of "coercion" and fear of
being victimised by a series of criminal cases.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10721&SKIN=B
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/Annadanam.pdf
Jihadi riot in Thodupuzha, Srikrishna Swamy Temple attacked
26/03/2010 11:45:02 HK
Thodupuzha: Idukki district’s trade centre Thodupuzha plunged into
tension on Friday following the violent protests of Muslim
organizations over the mention in a question paper that allegedly
humiliated the Prophet and Allah issued at Newman’s College in the
town. Several police personnel and media workers suffered injuries in
stone-pelting by the protestors and the District Administration was
forced to impose prohibitory orders in the college area.
Jihadis destroyed the Stone Lamp infront of Thodupuzha Srikrishna
Swamy temple.
Thousands of Jihadis rioted in Thodupuzha and destroyed public
properties in response to their protest against a College over a
controversial question in their question paper. The protest marches
were taken out alleging that the Malayalam question paper for B.Com
examination had insulting references to the Prophet and God.
Many vehicles and shops were destroyed by the Jihadis. Buses were
blocked and passengers including ladies and students going for SSLC
Examination were left alone in between this rioting crowd.
Jihadis attacked journalists and cameramen, Special instructions were
aired through Microphones to attack the media perssonels who came to
cover the Jihadi riot. Even Medical colleges and Hospitals in the area
were not spared by the violent mob.
Police registered criminal case against the professor T J Joseph who
prepared the question paper. He was also suspended but other teachers
said he alone could not be held responsible for the mistake. “Joseph
could have prepared the question paper but it had been passed by
others after scrutiny. What has happened is that he has been made a
scapegoat,” said a teacher.
Ganesh
26/03/2010 13:23:55 Dirty beard pays
I happened to see the video footage of the police lathi charge to
disperse the miscreants.One striking feature was that all the dirty
Dhadiwallas were exempted from caning while the others were running
for cover. It was the dhadiwallas who were leading the packs.Who says
Dhadi is bad?
R.Sajan
26/03/2010 13:20:36 Publish the disputed section of the Question
paper.
Please obtain and publish the disputed sections of the Question Paper
here.
How wonderful that the University has cancelled all the examinations!
How can this be allowed or done?
I hail Prof. P. J. Joseph who prepared the Paper.
sanjeevuae
26/03/2010 12:44:12 vanaprastam
what mr.arun said is correct.the christian organisations constantly on
the look out for opportunity to pit hindus against muslims.So hindus
should not fall in their trap.See what congrss is trying to do?if the
SC ruling is favorite ,they are trying to bring reservation for all
religions which is not justifyiable under the constitution.
Sunil
26/03/2010 12:01:03 Hindu temple attacked
Death to Jihadis...Death to muslims...Death to Islam...
when will we react..??what are the Hindus in Thodupuzha waiting for..??
kill those terrorists...before they wound us...
Arun C K
26/03/2010 11:31:05 Let's be careful this time!
Newman College was established in 1964 by the Diocese of
Kothamangalam, and named after Cardinal Newman. Todays issue is
between Christians and Muslims. The issue was brought up by a
Christian tecaher. However as usual, there is a clever ploy to convert
this to an issue between Hindu and Muslim by some vested interests
(read church and some UDF parties). Hindu organisation in Kerala
should be extremely careful not to be a party to this dispute. Like in
Love Jihad issue, Christians will fled the scene after converting this
as an issue between Hindus and Muslim or between State Government and
Muslim.
Standards of moral judgement have increasingly tended to become
universal, and no statement of faith can escape scrutiny simply
because it is made in a book hailed as holy by some people.
Sita Ram Goel
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10720&SKIN=K
Jinnah decorates PFI Terrorists procession in Chennai
26/03/2010 11:12:22 Aron
Dinamalar malar reports 26/3/2010-
A procession was lead by the leader of Popular Front of India in
chennai, demanding communal representation recommended by Ranganathan
Misra commission. A big photo was published, and a small
crowd.Shockingly,the leader's name is given Mohamad Ali Jinnah.
It was muslim League that began its steps towards Pakistan with
Communal Representation that was opposed by Gandhi and Congress in the
beginning.
We have come in full circle, that a motley band of communal muslims
openly put up Mr Mohamad Ali Jinnah for the same demand, and it gets
reported without a word added in criticism.
The secualrists are nourishing tendencies and edging on Muslims
towards that direction and Muslims too seem to have no scruples in
picking up the clue.
Note that Jinnah is not a Muslim name but a Hindu surname of a caste
in Gujarat, from which Jinnah's grandfather converted to Islam.
For a muslim to bear that name can only mean an admiration for the
idea of Pakistan, the methodology of 'Direct Action Day' of
terrorizing through a Hindu Muslim bloodbath, and unabashed display of
hostility and high treason.
Objecting to Amitabh for his association with Modi and encouragement
to Neo-Jinnahs to lead his crowd to the streets, is what is secularism
is.
It is hard to understand the hate of this 'People's "Front"-when India
had given them so much and the Mujahirs who went there to Pakistan
behind the real Jinnah have a sorry tale to tell of discrimination,
human rights violation and constant bombings in Karachi.
Yet, they wants to call himself Mohamad Ali Jinnah and restart on the
Muslim League original program of communal representation.
Our media finds it very normal and natural that this should
happen.India is surely sliding towards another demand for Pakistan,
before repetition of all the horrors which would compel us to concede.
The secularists are pitching for jihadis and preparing us
psychologically for that.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10719&SKIN=B
NSS to go ahead with legal action against the Devaswom Bill
26/03/2010 00:27:28 HK Correspondent
Changanachery : NSS made it very clear that they would pursue legal
action against the Devaswom bill that the government has placed in the
assembly and passed to the subject committee to seek the President’s
approval. NSS reiterated that the government should have held prior
discussion with all Hindu organizations before presenting the bill in
the assembly. In a press release the NSS Leaders asserted that only
the High Court has the powers to control the Devaswom board in
accordance with the Hindu Religious Institutions Act 1950. Thereby,
the LDF Government’s move to hurriedly present such a bill without
even having any consultation with various Hindu organization affected
by the contents of the bill is not at all acceptable. It has been
interesting notice that some of the Christian and Muslim leaders also
opinioned that the government should not have presented such a bill.
Interestingly, SNDP General Secretary Vellappally Natesan supported
the bill and went to the extent of telling that SNDP would stage
Dharna at the gates of those MLAs opposing the bill in the assembly.
Meanwhile Hindu Aykyavedi is holding a meeting on 27 March at
Trivandrum to chart out the action plan by various Hindu
organizations. The meeting will be inaugurated by Travancore Maharaja
Uthradam Thirunal Marthanda Verma. It is understood that Mr.Subramanya
Swami also will attend the meeting.
Sunil
26/03/2010 12:11:58 Petition to President
The Petition by overseas Indians against Wendy Doniger's book last
month became a huge success thanks to thousands of faithful Hindus all
around the world..we can make this also a gr8 success only if we stand
together...lets all unite for a common cause..lets all understand 1
thing..."What right do the people who call themself Atheists have in
controlling a religious place"..they cant answer this..and if we cant
save our temples from these people..even God cant save us..so this is
our last oppurtunity...I wish Hindu aykyavedi and other Hindu
organisation take a very strong action so that the govt takes back the
bill..give your support to Hindu aykyavedi and RSS..I hope these
organisation start some kind of campaign so that we all can contribute
for this cause...as suggested by Mr Raghav Rao we can start a massive
signature campaign n force to withdraw the bill..
Ganesh
26/03/2010 10:35:21 Reading vedas to the charging bull
I think democratic means like mass petition to president etc rarely
work in this banana republic.This is not USA Or EU,where true
democracy exists.What one learns from our minorities ,is that being
street smart is the only language our leadership respects.One live
example is the Hussain issue, another is the Bareily riots.Virtually
all newspaper blogs are full of adverse reactions from the readers
against MFH and yet the media does not seem to understand the public
mood.They may argue that bloggers are not representative of the public
mood. But it is only the bloggers who read the crap that they publish
in the name of news.General public neither know who MFH is nor the
newspaper itself.
satheesh
26/03/2010 10:23:35 vellapally
what this guy vellapally is doing.I think he is an agent of
christians.In none of the issues he is cooperating,recently in Hindu
parliment.
Dr Vijaya Rajiva
26/03/2010 09:05:47 To Mr.Rao
Good idea ! But it requires careful monitoring and someone to be in
charge.
Recently there was a Petition by overseas Indians against Wendy
Doniger's book. Some 10,000 signatures were gathered in a few days,
maybe many more now.
Here it will be an all Kerala effort and the numbers hopefully will be
much larger.
And legally speaking you will be in the right.
Raghav Rao
26/03/2010 03:06:59
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10717&SKIN=K
Yet another Rebuttal to 'Secular Hypocrite' Jug Suraiya
25/03/2010 22:05:27
Response to Jug Suraiya(second Opinion)
Times of India - 24 mar 2010
Jug Suriaya has baptized MF Husain as ‘Hindu’ Husain?’(TOI 24th
march).
It fails my comprehension why the ‘secularists’ are laboring to prove
the point that Husain is secular and had no evil design to denigrate
Hindu gods and Goddesses. The author picks up a new line of defense
for
the artist. ‘The basis of Hinduism of what has been labeled as
Hinduism
is the opposite of zero tolerance: it is infinite tolerance. There are
almost as many Hinduisms as there are Hindus; it is a designer
religion..’ So we are reminded that in its infinite tolerance Husain
can and must be allowed to express his perverted sexual expressions
using Gods and Goddesses that is the litmus test of infinite tolerance
according to Jug Suriya. MF Husain’s parampara is one Book, one faith,
one path, one congregation, one god and Islam forbids any pictorial
depiction of the Prophet . So the parampara of Husain does not believe
in artists and their freedom or for that matter any kind of personal
freedom. Does that mean that he needs to operate the freedoms denied
to
him by his own religion on the ‘designer religion’ –Hinduism thus
qualifying to becoming Hindu Husian? Simply because Hinduism is a
travesty of a myriad threaded fabric woven and rewoven for thousands
of
years by the waft and the woof of rites and rituals of conventions and
norms, of cults and god experiences of thousands of rishis it can be
stretched to accommodate Husain’s vulgarization of what is held holy
and sacred by the Hindus of all the Hinduisms? A person from zero
tolerance faith and belief -one will expect to have some restraint in
beholding this fabric so artistical and religiously and patiently
woven
for centuries. Can he so carelessly and ruthlessly tear it asunder?
What is blasphemy according to his religion becomes infinite tolerance
and hence valid namely to caricature and paint Hindu gods and
goddesses. The Freedom gagged and denied to him by his own religion
which he religiously abides by does not stop him from painting God and
Goddesses in the nude but leads him with his brush to vulgarization
and denigrate them. No matter what Jug Suraiya accedes to as
‘strength’
of Hinduism –the designer religion will not and cannot accommodate
such
perversity.
Jug Suraiya very artfully tries to tell us that the ‘strength’ in
Hinduism is its infinite tolerance and by protesting Hinduism becomes
weak. There are two aspects to this:-He wants us to accommodate
Husain’s perversion under the ‘infinitely tolerant religion of
Hinduism-.Husain the firm believer of zero tolerance cannot function
to
give full expression to his artistic freedom in his religion. The
restraints of which he abides by to make him a good Muslim. Here there
is no written restraints-Hinduism does not go by the Book rules but
calls upon each individual to a self imposed discipline does not mean
there is no discipline. Freedom to perceive and experience god in
one’s
own way is entirely different kind of infinite tolerance. One does not
have to look to god though another’s eyes-nor does one’s experience be
limited to another’s god experience. This is the infinite tolerance of
Hinduism-the many paths that lead to the Ultimate. Such an infinite
tolerance is on a different plane. It is not operational in allowing
freedom to maine, brutalize and denigrate the Hindu gods and
goddesses.
For example the UK has no written Constitution, does it mean there are
no rights and no Parliamentary democracy-when compared to those which
have written constitutions I would say that UK’s parliamentary
democracy is more disciplined and vibrant.
Similarly, Jug Suraiya cannot use the absence of a Book-of written
rules and regulations as to what amounts to blasphemy as a license for
unrestraint freedom of expression-freedom to hurt the religious
sentiments of the Hindus. And all the secularists brand this
infinitely
tolerant Hindus as bigots, and Husain has an array of ‘secular’
apologists who are vociferously, through the media-both electronic and
print, holding out the view that it is almost the duty of this
infinitely tolerant Hinduisms to allow Husain to brandish his brush
and
disfigure that tapestry of a myriad threads woven beautifully
depicting
the facets of the One omni presence as Gods and Goddesses-of this
‘designer religion.
And to allow such jihadi by brush under the Right to Freedom of
Expression.. Jug Suraiya goes one step further-he wants the travesty
of
a myriad threads fabric to be shredded and torn apart when he warns
that a militant Hinduism will rob Hinduism of its breath of tolerance.
So what? If militant religions like Islam and Christianity can
flourish
be appreciated as ‘secular’and pampered to I do not see the need to
continue this infinitely tolerant Hinduism in the face of zero
tolerance and be branded as bigotry and communal. If the Kashmiri
pandits were killed and driven out of their homes till date not
rehabilitated what is the use of this infinite tolerance. Using this
infinite tolerance to block and blotch human rights and community
rights is no way of making a case to uphold this breath of Hinduism
–tolerance. When zero tolerance cannot allow infinitely tolerant
Hindus
of Hinduisms their own homes and hearths? So Jug Suraiya’s premise to
test the strength of Hinduism by allowing anything and anyone to do
anything and everything under the garb of its infinite tolerance is a
bad case. It cannot co-exist.
And the brief for Husain does not end here-Jug Suriaya has elevated
his
client as an example-his testimony to the capacity of tolerance of
Hinduism-that in it there can be no scandalous liberties to be
censored-MF Husain becomes a Hindu and a good one too-by his adherence
to the zero tolerance of his own religion Islam he becomes a good
Muslim also. Eat the cake and have it too-policy. Do to others what
you
expect others to do to you-is also a Book faith diktat is conveniently
overlooked. How very succinctly Jug Suraiya has led us down the path
with such carrots.. and full praise for ‘Hinduisms’ and its strength.
In its strength lies the message not to fight-not to face the
challenge-look the other way no matter what is done to you and your
gods and goddesses. No matter the insults and the injuries your
strength is to allow such things. This is a strange advice and message
to uphold Freedoms. It is an aberration of Freedom. Too long this
infinite tolerance has been exploited and too long the Hindus have
thought that ‘strength’ means to look the way. It is time to stem the
rot and it is time to face the challenge and expect everyone, artist
or
no artist to abide by the law of the land-irrespective of religion and
age. We are a secular society and religious rules must be subsumed in
civil law and civil liberties. You cannot use one’s religious laws for
some and civil laws for others, All Indian citizens must and should
fall under one law and thus will Justice and Truth be upheld.
Dr Mrs Hilda Raja,
Vadodara
skg
26/03/2010 16:44:52 Hindus are hurting Hinduism !!.
It is Hindus like Jug Suraiya who are responsible for the abuse of
Hinduism by Pseudo-secular Media. They are giving enough material for
Islamists and evangelists to attack Hinduism. Hindus should teach
these rascals/Pseudo-Hindus a lesson .
Archpagan
26/03/2010 08:59:56 Practise what you preach.
Jug Suraiya should get her own mother's nude picture drawn by 'Hindu
Hussain' before making such pontification.
seadog4227
26/03/2010 06:58:31 MFH
Again--why bother with a known commie?
Numerous Slimes writers have shown their colours before. Bachi
Karkaria talked about the "boyish good looks" of Abu Salem when he
faced trial. From an economist, Swaminathan Iyer has now become a
avowed "secularist" Jug Suraiya has talked nonsense under the guise of
humour on several occasions. Dileep Padgoankar is mostly a fence
sitter. As for Gautam Adhikari, the less said the better. Ditch
them!
Ram
26/03/2010 04:28:10 Vatican RC in deep trouble
God is punishing the church establishment. See the link below :
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100325/ap_on_re_eu/church_abuse_wisconsin#mwpphu-container
Please publish this article. More than 2400 comments on this
particular article. US and Europe are dropping RC.
Sam
26/03/2010 02:36:38 Hinduism is changing because of pseudo secular
media
Hinduism has seen many 'holocausts' duing barbaric Islamic invations
and continued for 1100 years.According to Francois Gautier "The
massacres perpetuated by Muslims in India are unparalleled in history,
bigger than the Holocaust of the Jews by the Nazis; or the massacre of
the Armenians by the Turks; more extensive even than the slaughter of
the South American native populations by the invading Spanish and
Portuguese."
Hinduism still survived. But the current situation is very dangerous.
The anti-hindu media (funded by outside agents of West, Saudi and
China) is insulting hinduism and supporting conversion to other
religions. The UPA government run by Sonia (Christian) and her puppet
PM (Sikh) and coterie (christians with Hindu names) are misusing tax
payers money for minority appeasement and trying to distory hinduism.
Communists, DMK, Yadav parties, Muslim and Christian political parties
are working together to make sure that Hindu temples will be taken
over by government use the temple income against hindu interests.
Devaswam Boards are under non-believing communists so that the income
from temples will never be used for the benefit of hindu relion. Vaqaf
Board use the income for Muslim student loan without interest. While
Devaswam income is never used for hindus. Hindu students pay 10%
interest for student loans. Billions or dollars are flowing to India
every year for conversion and money is effectively used for harvest of
souls or training anti-indian jihadies through Saudi funded Madrasas.
Unreported secret convesion has already made hindus minority in many
parts of India. The converts keep their hindu name and schedule caste
status. Hatred of new converts who got rich with newly earned money to
hindu neighbouts mame stuggle for survivla. While Missionaries pay
Maoists to kill anybody work against conversion like in Kadhmal
(Orisssa). Since they have media and political support nothing get
reported. Probably 2% Hindus know about all these.
Rajaraman
26/03/2010 02:53:11 Two questions only from a 'Sanathana Dharmi'
1. Can I produce a movie in which Prophet Muhamamd, Sonia Gandhi,
Jesus Christ depicted as nude....?
2.why did u ban NEHRU-EDWINA MOVIE?
M Balachandran
26/03/2010 02:35:33 Supporters of Hussain also can go to Qatar
Because of expressing his "ART" ,our pseudo secular friends beloved MF
Hussain required to settle in Qatar, due to Court cases by "fanatic"
Hindus of Hindusthan. In the near future these supporters also require
to face the trials by such Hindu "fanatics" since their strength &
knowledge are getting increased day by day. It will be better for them
to try for Qatar Nationality immly which is the Paradise for Hussain.
I dont think 99.999...% of Indian citizens will miss anything if these
pseudos get out of Hindusthan
Ramamurhty.N
25/03/2010 23:28:59 Jug Suraiya true pesudo secular
This refers to second opinion coloumn "Hindu Husain " by Jug Suraiya
Times of India dt 24th March, 2010.The author cleaverly and
selectively quoted , to her convenience, Islamic religious ditict,
libaralism/ tolarence of Hiduism, and the freedom of expression
gauranteeded in our secular constitution to justify Mr.Husain's action
and confirmed she belongs to same pesudo secularit group.While
Mr.Husain painted nude the dictator Hitler but dare not do the same
with other dictators namely Sadam Husan, Idi amin and Yahyah Khan a
few muslim dictators who massacared their own people of differnt
enthinity. Ms.Jug Suriya like Mr.Husain whom she tried to defend,
confirm what Islam says " Religion is the first and last for Muslims"
other things matter little.
Dear Sir,
This refers to second opinion (the word second aptly printed in
reverse) coloumn "Hindu Husain " by Jug Suraiya Times of India dt 24th
March, 2010.The author cleaverly and selectively quoted , to her
convenience, Islamic religious ditict, libaralism/ tolarence of
Hiduism, and the freedom of expression gauranteeded in our secular
constitution to justify Mr.Husain's action and confirmed she belongs
to same pesudo secularit group.While Mr.Husain painted nude the
dictator Hitler but dare not do the sama with other dictators namely
Sdam Husan, Idi amin and Yahyah Khan a few muslim dictators who
massacared their own people of differnt enthinity. Ms.Jug Suriya like
Mr.Husain whom she tried to defend, confirm what Islam says " Religion
is the first and last for Muslims" other things matter little.
N.Ramamurthy,
A1 Alankar aptsmaste all,
I am glad to forward my letter addressed to the Edito Times Of India
on Jug Suraiy's coloumn "Hindu Husain"
Regards,
N.Rama
Vijayalakshmi
25/03/2010 22:16:51
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10716&SKIN=M
Murder of RSS Seva Pramukh - Life Term to Four CPM thugs
25/03/2010 22:00:16
Four CPM men get life term
www.expressbuzz.com
KOLLAM: Kollam Second Additional Sessions Court sentenced four CPM
workers to life term rigorous imprisonment in the case of murdering
RSS worker Santhosh.
Additional Sessions Judge K.K. Balakrishnan also ordered the four to
pay a fine of Rs 45,000 each, failing which they have to undergo
imprisonment for a further period.
Sajeev (40) of Ayathil , Anthikannan alias Anil (30) of
Kochammannada, Gopi (38) of Kottamkara and Pramod (32) of Ayathil
were those have been convicted in the case. Two other accused Sajeev
of Pattathanam and Jayaprakash are still absconding. The fourth
accused Santhosh died during the trial of the case.
Noushad and Anilkumar who were CPM members of Vadakkevila grama
panchayat had been excluded from the list of the accused.
The murder was committed on November 24, 1997. Santhosh, who was the
mandal seva pramukh of the RSS, was returning on a cycle after
attending a meet of the RSS.
The accused, who were travelling in a car, hit his cycle and then
hacked Santhosh to death.
Vijayakumar, who was riding pillion on the cycle, was also injured and
he informed the police about the murder. The accused have been
sentenced under Sections 302,143,147,148 and 324 of the IPC. Public
Prosecutor Ratnakaran appeared for the prosecution.
satheesh
26/03/2010 10:16:25 Shame for Hindus
All those got convicted are Hindus.we are facing problems within our
religion itself.when will these guys understand the real problems.we
should stop fighting within ourself.
Prasad Pandit
26/03/2010 04:17:44 CPM Thugs
It is sad to note that all the sentenced are having hindu names. The
CPM with its anti-hindu ideology uses its thugs to murder Sangh
workers.
Vijayalakshmi
25/03/2010 22:19:57 Murder of RSS Seva Pramukh
It is very heartening news-this conviction of the murderers by the
honourable Court!So many of our disciplined sevaks have fallen prey to
the murderous politics of the marxist party.Something concrete has to
be done against this trend.But atleast we have some good,
conscientious judges in Kerala! Thank God for that!
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10715&SKIN=K
Big B blasts Reds, media over Kerala row
25/03/2010 12:18:46 PNS | Kochi
Amitabh Bachchan has termed “as petty act of cheap convenience” the
CPI(M) decision not to allow the Kerala Government to appoint him as
God’s Own Country’s tourism brand ambassador because of his
connections with Gujarat and its Chief Minister Narendra Modi. In his
701st entry in the bigadda blog, the star said he would abide by the
judgement of the Kerala Government in whatever decision it would take.
“You want to stop me from promoting tourism in a State, because you
have reason to believe that there are political connotations to the
event. This is such rubbish,” he wrote in the blog obviously in
reference to the CPI(M) decision to disallow Kerala to make him brand
ambassador. He also criticized the media in connection with the
development saying that finding fault at any cost to any act or event
was a common Indian media trait.
Big B’s criticism of the CPI(M) intolerance coincided with the
decision of the CPI(M) Politbureau, meeting in Delhi, not to revoke
the central party leadership’s earlier decision to disallow the Kerala
Government to make the star its brand ambassador. Politbureau member
had on March 19 told the media that the Kerala Government would not
make Bachchan the State’s tourism ambassador.
Yechuri’s statement came after Bachchan wrote to Kerala Tourism
Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, himself a PB member, accepting his
invitation to represent Kerala Tourism. Kodiyeri’s act of inviting
Bachchan without consulting the party and the ruling coalition and the
central CPI(M) leadership’s act of unilaterally shooting down a
decision taken by the State Government have already created dissent in
the LDF.
Bachchan wrote in his blog: “All I shall be doing (as brand
ambassador) will be working in a short film that shall highlight the
various places of interest in the State…. And that is what I would
precisely do when I would be asked to similar acts in Kerala… It (the
objection) is a petty act of cheap convenience to prevent me from
doing that.”
He said he did not ask for the position but the Kerala Government had
invited him. “I shall abide by the judgement of the State Government.
I did not ask them for it, they came forward with the invitation, I
accepted, now they want to decline it, fine. Not the first time such
incidents have happened,” he wrote in the blog, referring to the
incident that took place in Goa during the International Film
Festival.
He also criticized his critics for projecting him as an untouchable
for his relations with the State of Gujarat, which had made him its
brand ambassador. “You take umbrage at my association with Gujarat,
but never have the guts or courage to stop a Ratan Tata or an Ambani
from investing in the state…. Would you have the guts to tell them to
not associate with the State, to pull out all their investment and man
power they build through years and years of their ‘association’? I
guess not,” he writes in the blog.
Responding to questions in connection with Bachchan’s blog, Minister
Kodiyeri said he had nothing more to say about the matter than what he
had said in the State Assembly the other day. He had told the Kerala
Assembly that some sections had raised some objections to making
Bachchan Kerala’s brand ambassador. He said the Government had not
taken any formal decision to make him brand ambassador but had only
extended an informal invitation.
Ganesh
26/03/2010 10:27:19 opportunities
Most of the PB members are unfit to even win a panchayat election.The
commies do not miss any opportunity to lick the minority a**se.Recall
how Somnath chatterji refused to preside over the LS when George BUsh
was to address the joint session.Shaking hands with Ariel SHaron was
held against K.V.Thomas to impress Jihadis.Then the Abdulla Kutty
episode.Saddam Hussain's death mourning bandh .I pity the so called
Hindu communities of this Allah's own country.
shiv
26/03/2010 03:22:40 Pathetic BJP/sangh leadership
Big B knows that he has counter allegations or reply to detractors.
But BJP and sangh parivar leaders dont even bother to counter/attack
the allegations/maligning like this.
They end up giving statements.
Pathetic./
Balasundar S
26/03/2010 01:10:32 Why Big B for Kodiyeri, Black "P" is OK !
Joining Issue with the Yechuri faction of CPM, I suggest the PB of
Communists make Black "P"(Part Secy,) from their ranks as Brand
Ambassador and help siphon off some funds to His account from Tourism
Ministry of Kodiyeri!
Balasundar S
26/03/2010 01:10:32 Why Big B for Kodiyeri, Black "P" is OK !
Joining Issue with the Yechuri faction of CPM, I suggest the PB of
Communists make Black "P"(Part Secy,) from their ranks as Brand
Ambassador and help siphon off some funds to His account from Tourism
Ministry of Kodiyeri!
manoj
25/03/2010 23:51:20 The reason why CPM objects Bachan
Dear friends
Did anybody knows why cpm opposit to promote kerala tourism?? Suppose
Bachan became the brand ambassider of kerala, definitely kerala
tourism will boost. It would be benift for the state as forign money
will pump to our state, this will benifit for the Kerala people(a
large number among them are cpm supporters), once they start earning
money their life style will change, they will built good house, buy
car, will provide higher eduction to their childen ... then...
then...one day cpm will ask these people to come for a secretrate
march or a some other protest march.. none of them will go becuase
they prefer more importance to their family and taking care of their
children and finally they will prefer to leave this party.. so dear
friends,...its not because of modi or Bachan but the cpm dont want any
kind of progress in the state to keep their poor commerds in their
platform always
Nishant
25/03/2010 19:45:02 THE DON
The Don finally delivered what was due!
Amit bhadhuri,Ex-Officer,CISF
25/03/2010 17:25:33 Show Courage Mr B
Amitabh has by now realized what the congress and CPI(M) are like, as
their only gmae is to please Musslamans at any cost of the nation.
Amitabh is a mega-wealthy person and what he has to loose at 67? He
should overcome his search for more wealth and should reject congress
and communists boldly and openly declare his appreciations for Gujrat
and Narendra Modi. By doing so he will come out as a real hero not
just a plastic hero what he has been so far.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10714&SKIN=B
Al Badr hand in Kerala blasts revealed
25/03/2010 12:17:35 VR Jayaraj | Kozhikode - Daily Pioneer
The international terror links of the March 3, 2006 twin blasts at
Kozhikode, in which South India’s LeT commander Thadiyantavide Nazeer
is the prime accused, has become more obvious with the revelation that
he had got training under Pakistani national and Al Badr coordinator
Muhammad Fahad (30). Fahad, arrested from Mysore on October 17, 2006
as he was preparing for an attack on Vidhan Soudha, the Karantaka
Legislative Assembly building in Bangalore, was in Kozhikode when the
blasts took place.
Local residents and Malayalee farmers in Coorg, Karnataka, identified
Fahad from a photograph shown to them by the officials of the
Intelligence wing of the Kerala Police the other day as the one who
was with Nazeer when he was running a camp there. With this, the
investigations into the LeT terror operations in the State have
reached a crucial turning point, officials say.
Local residents told the Intelligence officials headed by P Raju,
Superintendent of Police (Intelligence), Thrissur Range, when they
reached Coorg as part of the probe, that they had seen Fahad with
Nazeer on several occasions. Fahad, whose father Abdullakoya was a
Malayalee who had migrated to Pakistan decades ago, had given training
to Nazeer and other LeT operatives from Kerala for several days at the
Coorg camp.
The Kerala Police Intelligence team has already handed over the
information regarding Nazeer’s connections with Fahad and the training
camp at Coorg to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) which is
investigating the terror-related cases in Kerala. According to
sources, the new revelations are a surprise even to the NIA
considering the magnitude of the Kerala terror network’s Pak
connections.
The Intelligence wing has learned that Fahad had held several night-
long training sessions and classes for Nazeer and the LeT recruits in
Coorg towards the end of 2005. They assume that his visit to Kozhikode
in February, 2006 was part of the continued operations. He had left
Kozhikode on March 18. Sources said that Fahad, a Master’s degree-
holder in Chemistry, could have assisted Nazeer and his group in
carrying out the first live blasts of their terror career in
Kozhikode. This meant that Fahad was in Kozhikode when the twin blasts
were carried out in the city.
When he was arrested from Mysore in October, 2006, the police had
seized from him and his associate weapons including AK-47 rifles and
components of highly improvised explosives. The police had earlier
learned that Fahad was a member of terror outfit Al Badr which was
getting training from the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence. In
this context, the Intelligence officials think that the LeT operations
in Kerala under Nazeer were being directly controlled from Pakistan.
Al Badr coordinator Fahad, son of Abdullakoya who had left Iringalloor
in Kozhikode district for Pakistan decades ago, used to frequently
visit his relatives in Kerala. He was a regular visitor at the homes
of Abdullakoya’s first wife at Kappad and his sister at Peruvayal,
both in Kozhikode district. After his arrest in 2006, the police had
leaned that Fahad’s mission here was to spread the terror network in
the region using his family connections.
It was amidst his efforts to get a passport using the Kerala address
from the Regional Passport Office in Kozhikode that Fahad and his
associate Muhammad Ali Hussein were arrested from Mysore. Though Fahad
was arrested by the Karnataka Police, the Kerala Police had enquired
about his bid to get a passport from Kozhikode. Unfortunately, the
police had not then thought of extending its probe beyond the passport
case.
Vivek
26/03/2010 01:52:27 CNR
When will the Hindus in Kerala learn from these lessons.
No wonder BJP is yet to get a single seat in Kerala. Things will never
change unless some one like N. Modi is born in Kerala.
http://www.haindavakeralam.com/HKPage.aspx?PageID=10713&SKIN=K
chhotemianinshallah
On Monday, the notorious Best Bakery case nudged closer to a trial
date.
.By Scott Baldauf, Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor /
July 23, 2004
MUMBAI, INDIA
When a Hindu mob stormed a bakery and killed 14, including two Muslims
burnt alive in ovens, the gruesome crime became the symbol of
religious violence that gripped India two years ago and left nearly
1,000 dead.
Now, in what appears to be a second chance for justice, the Best
Bakery case moved this week one step toward retrial.
The first trial, held in May 2003 in the state of Gujarat, where the
massacre took place, ended in the acquittal of all 21 of the accused
rioters after the victims changed their testimony. The Indian Supreme
Court last April ordered a retrial out of state, calling state
officials "modern-day Neros" for ignoring the complaints of witnesses
that they had been politically harassed and pressured to change their
testimony by police and state officials.
The opportunity for another trial in this cornerstone case is seen
here as an important chance to resolve a major irritant in Hindu-
Muslim relations and a chance to chip away at the pervasive problem of
witness tampering in the Indian justice system.
"This case has been a kind of systematic failure of the Indian legal
system," says Teesta Setalwad, a human rights activist who led the
effort to get the case a second hearing. "This has been a symbol,
hopefully, to revive the criminal justice system in India."
In a country where prosecutors win violent criminal cases only 4
percent of the time, some dramatic reforms are required, Ms. Setalwad
says. "In India, we have failed (in providing justice.) Trials take 10
years to finish. Witnesses turn hostile and change their testimony.
The whole system needs to change."
The trouble in Gujarat began at a train station in Godhra on Feb. 27,
2002, when a train car full of Hindu activists was torched, killing 68
passengers. For more than two months, Hindu rioters took their revenge
on Muslim neighbors, killing nearly 1,000 citizens. Police claimed
they were unable to contain the rioters, but later, senior officials
admitted to human rights activists that they had been directed by
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to allow the "anticipated Hindu
reaction" to run its course.
Mr. Modi, a member of the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party,
has claimed that his state apparatus had done everything it could to
keep the peace, but has also called the riots a "natural reaction" to
the Godhra attack.
The Best Bakery case was once seen as the best chance to bring the
rioters to justice, some of whom included police officials and
activists of the BJP and other Hindu nationalist groups. The star
witness, Zahira Shaikh, named 21 of the rioters directly involved in
the murders of 11 members of her Muslim family as well as their 3
Hindu employees. But on May 17, 2003, she changed her testimony.
Later, Ms. Shaikh told reporters that she had been threatened by a BJP
state legislator, Madhu Srivastava, who had escorted her to the
courthouse.
"He told me, 'Think about what you have to do. If you don't, you will
suffer,'" Ms. Shaikh later told India Today magazine. "I knew I had
two options: to get justice for dead family members, or save those who
were living."
Mr. Srivastava denies having threatened Shaikh, but admits that he did
escort Shaikh to court to protect her from the crowd. "She was
receiving threats," he told reporters at the time.
On Monday, a judge in Mumbai gave the case one more nudge toward a
trial date, ordering Gujarat to issue warrants against 10 of the 21
accused rioters who had not been apprehended.
Even with a second chance to give testimony, free of coercion, the
Best Bakery case will not be an easy conviction. The Shaikh family has
given two versions of the story and estranged members of the family
tell an entirely different story.
Yet whatever the outcome of the Best Bakery case, the very fact that
it got a retrial at all - and that, out of Gujarat - may have
reverberations. On Aug. 3, the Indian Supreme Court is scheduled to
hear arguments from six other heinous cases similar to Best Bakery,
which are also pushing to be tried outside Gujarat.
The largest of these, the massacre of 89 Muslims in the district of
Naroda-Patiya, occurred the day after the Godhra tragedy. Police
waited nearly a year to investigate this case or to press charges.
While some activists say Best Bakery will bring legal reforms that
will guarantee more professionalism and less political interference in
future cases, others like Mr. Jethmalani says a deeper reform within
human character is needed.
"Either out of communal motives [of promoting hatred toward the Muslim
community] or out of some political motives by the state leaders, the
investigation was totally unequal to their task," says Mr. Jethmalani.
Yet the problems seen in the case go far beyond Gujarat.
"I must compliment the people of India for setting their face against
such fundamentalism, when they voted against the BJP in the last
elections," he says. But the decline in human character and the rise
of fundamentalism "is getting worse," he adds, and not "just in India
but in the West as well."
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0723/p07s01-wosc.html
http://hrwf.net/uploads/Hindu%20extremist%20movements.doc
Academic study of Ganesh called hate crime
Never hurts to be reminded that Fundamentalist Christians aren't the
only people who expect special protection for their nutty theology.
WASHINGTON - Eighteen years after publishing a study of the Hindu god
Ganesha, a US university professor is under fire from believers who
brand sexual references in the book as an insidious 'hate crime'.
Hindu student activists are demanding that Ganesa, Lord of Obstacles,
Lord of Beginnings be taken out of circulation until author Paul
Courtright from Emory University in Atlanta removes 'offensive'
passages and makes an unequivocal apology to Hindus.
AFP: Hindus take offence at US don's book on deity
T.R. Rao, Loflin chair and professor of computer science at the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette, said he appreciates academic
freedom but questions its relevance in relation to Courtright’s book.
“Academic freedom is that if I make a mistake in my job, I am
protected,” he said. “But do I have the freedom to inflict pain on
millions of people?”
Courtright said academic freedom allows him to write freely.
“Do I have to ask 800 million Hindus to get permission to say
something?” he asked.
Deepa Patel, The Emory Wheel: Academic freedom debated in wake of
recent petition
People who believe that animal-headed deities run the universe are
silly. It’s a completely trivial belief. I can’t think of anything
crazier than combining theology with zoology, although I guess
throwing botany into the mix might do the trick. …
The Raving Atheist: Theozoology
Richard Evans Lee • November 14, 2003 • Reader, what do you think?
Prior: My spiritual autobiography (II) • Next: In the Devil's Snare
Y! MyWeb · del.icio.us · Furl
1 · Posted by: FreeIndian on April 10, 2004 07:54 PM
Is there any exhaustive lists of items that may hurt religious
feelings? I am a Hindu and I am not offended by such wriringd. After
all we Hindus' believe in the insident/events in Lord Ganesha's life.
If the interpretations is different , should we feel hurt? Can the
prof changes his interpretation. simply because , a few Hindus feel
hurt or keep the interpretation same , becuase many Hindus like me do
not feel hurt .
2 · Posted by: JohnSmith on April 24, 2004 07:06 PM
“Courtright said academic freedom allows him to write freely.”.
Does that mean that one can call Thomas Jefferson a scoundrel? And
that I cannot be bothered to consult 300 million Americans, who may
protest?
3 · Posted by: Paper Magic on October 12, 2004 06:36 PM
“Does that mean that one can call Thomas Jefferson a scoundrel? And
that I cannot be bothered to consult 300 million Americans, who may
protest?”
Yes, John, that's precisely what it means.
4 · Posted by: a d on November 25, 2004 10:04 AM
i am an indian hindu and though i am not offended by the actual
writing (haven't read it) - i am offended by the fact that courtright
thinks that what hindus think doesn't count when writing about
hinduism - especially when he knows that given the power/knowledge
equation, his version may end up being authoritative.
this is not only about religion, its about accountability. and
academic freedom is not about irresponsibility.
Comments:
Feel free to share your feelings about Academic study of Ganesh called
hate crime. Please stick to the theme of the entry. Disagreement is
fine. Homophobia, racism, and kindred expressions of hatred will be
deleted.
This site is one of my hobbies. I genuinely enjoy hearing from people
and hate moderating or killing comments. Forthright disagreement is
fine as long as it is civil.
My thanks,
Richard
http://www.metropolis2008.org/pdf/20081030/workshops/w089-30_austin-lawrence.pdf
Hindu Students Call Emory Professor's Book a "Hate Crime" (Washington)
Nov 14, 2003
By Staff Writer
The Straits Times
On November 14, 2003 The Straits Times reported that "eighteen years
after publishing a study of the Hindu god Ganesha, a US university
professor is under fire from believers who brand sexual references in
the book as an insidious 'hate crime'. Hindu student activists are
demanding that Ganesa, Lord of Obstacles, Lord of Beginnings be taken
out of circulation until author Paul Courtright from Emory University
in Atlanta removes 'offensive' passages and makes an unequivocal
apology to Hindus. But Prof Courtright accuses his critics of quoting
isolated passages from his book out of context, and suggests they may
be trying to stifle academic freedoms. Outraged by sexual inferences
in his book and portrayal of a nude Ganesha on the cover of one
edition, 4,500 people signed an online petition drawn up by the Hindu
Students Council at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette."
http://www.pluralism.org/news/view/6181
India: Hindu extremist states have most Anti-Dalit hate crimes
Posted on June 8, 2008 by The Editor
Hinduvta states commit the most crimes against the poor penury
stricken Dalits. The states with the highest concentration of Brahmins
and Hindu extremists have the highest level of discrimination against
the impoverished Dalits. However the other states which do not have
Hindu extremeists face other sorts of abuse. There are many sates
where there is a live and vibrant insurrection going on.
http://rupeenews.com/2008/05/29/amnesty-int-2008-report-excoriates-horrid-india/
http://rupeenews.com/2008/05/15/dalit-slaves-in-india/
The map shows the security dangers as identified by the intelligence
agencies of India.
The Human Rights Commission has reported severe human rights abuses in
many states like Gujarat and Jharkhand
Bharat faces a huge insurgency in a swath of territory which extends
from Nepal to Andhra Pradesh
This map of Bharat shows the concetration of Hindu extremists or
“Hinduvta” as they are called in the conglomeration of states called
“India”. According to the study conducted by the Center for the
Developing societies the correlation of the extremists Hindus is
directly related to the number of hate crimes against the minorites–
mainly the 170-250 million Dalits (Untouchables). The map shows the
highest number of Brahmin Hinduvtas in Jammu, Himadhal Pradesh
(bifurcated from East Punjab) and Uttar Pradesh (conglomeration of
Awadh and other states which was called United Provices by the
British)
Uttar Pradesh which has the distinction of giving the country its
first Dalit woman Chief Minister, also tops the list of states with
highest number of cases of crime against Scheduled Castes. With a
staggering 4,960 cases of crime committed against people of Scheduled
Castes, Uttar Pradesh tops the list in 2006, according to a Ministry
of Home Affairs’ data.
The state is closely followed by Madhya Pradesh with 4,214 such cases
being registered the same year.
Among states of South India, Andhra Pradesh, where 3,891 such cases
were registered in 2006 ranks the highest.
Taken together, the three states – Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and
Andhra Pradesh – constituted more than 51 per cent of crimes committed
against SCs in the country in 2006.
Analysis of data shows that number of crimes against Scheduled Castes
have increased in the country.
While 26,127 cases of crime against SCs were registered in 2005, the
subsequent year, saw 27,070 cases being registered. The data for 2007
is yet to be compiled.
As per the data available for for the year 2004-2006, UP has seen a
increase in crime against SCs.
While 2004 saw 3,785 such cases being registered, 4,397 cases were
recorded in 2005.
AP, where 3,117 cases of crime against SCs were reported in 2005, has
also seen an increase in the number.
On the other hand, MP has seen a decline in such cases.
While data for 2006 showed 4,214 cases were registered in the state
for crime against SCs, in 2005 the number was 4,222. The year 2004
witnessed the highest number with 4,699 cases being registered.
Among the seven Union Territories, the capital has recorded 21 such
cases, which is the highest number.
According to the figures available, the number of persons convicted
for crime against SCs under SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989,
including all IPC crime, in 2005 were 12,468, which increased to
13,449 in 2006.
Dalits are one of the minorities that is repressed in India. The 150
million Muslims are killed at will in Kashmir and harassed in other
areas
http://rupeenews.com/2008/06/07/indian-hegemony-plans-kashmir-pakistan-in-the-way/
http://rupeenews.com/2008/06/08/india-hindu-extremist-states-have-most-anti-dalit-hate-crimes/
On Faith: Proselytizing as Cultural Imperialism
Washington, D.C. (March 5, 2010) -
As a guest blogger on the Washington Post/Newsweek's "On Faith" blog,
Professor Ramesh Rao, coordinator of HAF's humans right report and
professor at Longwood University, has the opportunity to provide a
Hindu viewpoint on various issues. Below is Prof. Rao's latest blog.
Please post your comments directly on the "On Faith" site by clicking
here.
Like many hundreds of millions of other Hindus, I also made sense of
our world as we visited temples and pilgrimage centers, and through
the rituals and rites performed and observed in our homes - from the
"annaprastha" ceremony (the feeding of the first solid food) for a
child to the "Brahmopadesham" ceremony (supreme teaching) for a young
boy, and the "vivaaha" ceremony (marriage) for a young man and woman,
to the "shraaddha" ceremony (ritual that one performs to pay homage to
one's ancestors, and especially to one's dead parents). As a young boy
my connectedness to the world, and my sense of place and belonging
were shaped by the rhythms of devotional songs heard early in the
morning as my grandfathers perambulated in front of the Gods, lit
lamps, and sang beseeching God's grace and protection.
That is how I learned about my religion and accepted my religious
identity, and in some similar manner that is how the rest of the world
does too. This identity shaping contributes to one's self-esteem, and
a healthy self-esteem is essential for us to prosper and live our
lives productively. It is reported that loss of faith can lead to
anger, resentment, emptiness, despair, sadness, and isolation, and the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) identifies
loss of faith as a religious problem. And there are studies that show
that immigrants, in a new country, and unmoored from their religious
and cultural context, suffer from anxiety, stress, and depression.
Enter left, the proselytizer, thumping a book, decrying "false" Gods,
promising heaven if you accepted the "one, true, Lord and savior".
Over the past two thousand years, proselytizers have roamed the world,
converting people by hook or by crook, making unverifiable claims,
robbing people of their cultures and their Gods, sowing conflict and
dissent in once cohesive tribes and communities, and most damagingly,
inflicting a heavy loss on the self-esteem of souls harvested for the
"Lord". As professor Regina Schwartz has argued, the "... Bible has
left us a legacy of intolerant thinking about other peoples, and it
has authorized such intolerance as the will of God. That is how it has
had effects on religious, racial, and ethnic conflicts around the
globe." The world's two most "powerful" religions - Christianity and
Islam - are monotheistic creeds that seek of their followers
allegiance to one God, and seek to convert others to believing in the
one, true God - theirs. As Schwartz notes, "the injunction 'Thou shalt
have no other gods before me' turns into intolerance for other people
who may have other gods, or principles, or beliefs."
And while we now live in a different world where the old bloody sword
and scimitar cannot be used to "persuade" people to change their
religious identity, we now get the Bible thumpers and the Qur'an
dispensers who, in the guise of "freedom of religion," spread
intolerance, sow dissent, and rob the identities of the mostly poor,
illiterate, and innocent masses through a variety of wiles, not
excluding bribes, false promises, "love jihads," and so on. The poor
in India and Sri Lanka reeling from the loss of loved ones and their
livelihoods after the 2004 tsunami, and the millions of Haitians
struggling after the earthquake in January, saw a flood of young men
and women with Bible in one hand and a loaf of bread in the other,
promising liberation, heaven, and the good life, if they accepted the
Bible along with the bread. Hundreds of millions of dollars are pumped
into India by evangelical groups that have found in the new converts
in that country willing abettors to "identity theft".
One day, shopping at a Best Buy in Richmond, I was accosted by an
Indian who wanted some advice on buying video cameras. While the sales
people had tried to help, he found in me someone whom he could trust,
because my skin color matched his. I was glad to help, told him about
the cameras, and pointed out that some of the models were more
expensive but they came with certain features not available in the
less expensive ones. "Money is not a problem," he grinned, and that is
when I noticed that he was trailed by three or four rather sheepish
White companions. "I am from Andhra Pradesh, and I have come to meet
with some of my church supporters here," he told me. The south Indian
state of Andhra Pradesh, rife with caste conflicts, and home to many
tribal groups, is one of the largest recipients of foreign money
donated by church organizations. I saw first hand the result of the
quid pro quo between evangelical groups and their abettors and fellow
conspirators in India.
Much has been written about proselytism, and its rewards, wages, and
sins. What is not carefully studied are the effects of conversion on
individuals, families, tribes and communities. Some of my good and
very dear friends here who say they are against forced or coerced
conversion speak of the importance of "bearing witness" and how
exchanging one's beliefs is important for understanding each other,
and how such exchanges would enlighten us all. But I tell them that
they are not playing on a level field. What if they were poor and
Hindus came to them with rice in one hand and the Bhagavad Gita in the
other?
I have no problems if an old couple come knocking on my door on a
Sunday morning and hand me a booklet with the most hideous
descriptions of Hindu Gods and Goddesses. I smile and send them their
merry, uninformed way. I can pick 20 holes in each of Pat Robertson's
assertions. And I laugh myself silly watching the sweaty perorations
of bejeweled "reverends" on television channels. I am not poor or
needy, nor am I ignorant about the history of the world. However,
there are hundreds of millions in the country of my birth and
elsewhere who are indeed materially poor and who are indeed ignorant
of the bloody history of religious proselytism, and the effects of
religious conversion. The only wealth they have is their cultural and
religious identities. To rob them of that is indeed a crime, I tell my
friends.
Since everyone invokes Mahatma Gandhi these days, let me do so too.
What did he think of missionaries? He wrote, "If I had the power and
could legislate, I would stop all proselytizing. In Hindu households
the advent of a missionary has meant the disruption of the family
coming in the wake of change of dress, manners, language, food and
drink," (Collected Works, Vol 61, page 46-47). He had a lot more to
say about this conversion business, but I will end with this one: "I
hold that proselytization under the cloak of humanitarian work is
unhealthy to say the least. It is most resented by people here.
Religion after all is a deeply personal thing. It touches the
heart.... Why should I change my religion because the doctor who
professes Christianity as his religion has cured me of some disease,
or why should the doctor expect me to change whilst I am under his
influence?" (Young India: April 23, 1931)
The views expressed here are the personal views of Ramesh Rao, and do
not necessarily represent those of Longwood University or the Hindu
American Foundation.
On Faith: The Violence of Conversion
Minneapolis, MN (March 3, 2010) -
As a regularly featured blogger on the Washington Post/Newsweek's "On
Faith" blog, Dr. Aseem Shukla, member of HAF's Board of Directors, has
the opportunity to provide a Hindu viewpoint on various issues. Below
is Dr. Shukla's latest blog. Please post your comments directly on the
"On Faith" site by clicking here.
Q: Is there a problem with proselytism overseas by U.S. religious
groups? Isn't sharing one's faith part of religious freedom? When does
it cross the line into manipulation and coercion?
It is impossible for me to reconcile myself to the idea of conversion
after the style that goes on in India and elsewhere today. It is an
error which is perhaps the greatest impediment to the world's progress
toward peace. Why should a Christian want to convert a Hindu to
Christianity? Why should he not be satisfied if the Hindu is a good or
godly man? -- Mahatma Gandhi (Harijan: January 30, 1937)
If I had some good news--really good news that would help others--I
would eagerly want to share that news. Spread the word, pass it on,
share the joy. As Thomas Farr of the Berkely Center at Georgetown
wrote, "For those who believe they have access to such a Truth, the
desire to offer it to others is both natural and rational."
The problem, of course, is that we are dealing with matters of faith
and the experiential, rather than the empirical and rational. And we
are wrestling with not only the benign connotations of evangelism and
charity, but also with the incendiary vocabulary of hegemony,
religious imperialism, asymmetry and conversion.
The Georgetown meeting will only include Christians and Muslims--
sadly, none of the millions of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and indigenous
traditions that are the targets of proselytism globally are included--
but it is also apropos. For only Christians and Muslims have a history
of displaying an often violent urge to share good news. Whether you
want to hear it or not never much mattered!
The Crusades or the Conquests, the Inquisition or the sword, the
results were the same: millions were forced to turn their backs on
their own faith and embrace another. Only the name of the God
changed.
Today, that same urge to persuade, convince and even coerce the good
news upon others remains; the methodology insidiously different, but
the result is the same.
Groups ranging from the overtly evangelical World Vision to quasi-
government entities such as the U.S. Commission on International
Religious Freedom (USCIRF), and many others even within our
government, firmly subscribe to the view that religious freedom
protects--rather mandates--unhindered access globally to carry out the
work of proselytism. Religious freedom is tantamount to freedom to
proselytize and convert.
Article 18 of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UNDHR), is often held up as the rationale--the green light for
proselytization. That every individual "has the right to freedom of
thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to
change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in
community with others and in public or private, to manifest his
religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance."
But adherents of the pluralist religions--Dharma religions, paganism
and native religious traditions--have long argued that there is a very
basic asymmetry at play rendering the Declaration deeply flawed.
Abrahamic religions--the non-pluralist traditions--claim exclusivity
in their belief system's legitimacy as the only religious and
spiritual path and demand absolute adherence. In contrast, pluralist
religious traditions subscribe to a more expansive ethos--that one's
religion may not be the exclusive source of Truth and which
acknowledge the potential of multiple legitimate religious and
spiritual paths. Most pluralist religious traditions allow for the
assimilation of beliefs and traditions of another religion without
demanding repudiation of one's own religion or conversion to the
other.
This fundamental difference--that a pluralist accepts the injunction
of the ancient Rig Veda that, "Truth is One, but sages call it by
various names" while the non-pluralist demands that there is only One
Truth and all others are false and dangerous--renders the pluralist
vulnerable to the asymmetric force of the proselytizer. The pluralist
would find seeking converts or evangelizing others anathema--the
concept of conversion does not even exist--while the non-pluralist
seeks converts as a God given mandate.
Compound this asymmetry with the reality that the most prolific
proselytizers today comprise a multi-billion dollar megachurch
industry, and the previously colonized developing world is open ground
for this latest avatar of colonization. Witnesses from the hot spots
for global proselytism abound with testimony of access to education,
medical care, employment and other necessities being traded--often
subtle, and often not--on the marketplace of religious affiliation.
Most sinister, of course, is the overt bargaining of disaster supplies
or better hospital beds after tsunamis and earthquakes for those
willing to convert.
The pluralists protest, also, against the tactics of the
proselytizers. Christian missionaries in India appropriate Hindu modes
of worship, reconfigure traditional prayer rituals into Holy
Sacraments and sing hymns that are Hindu bhajans (prayer songs) with
words replaced sung to identical tunes.
The violence of conversion is very real. The religious conversion is
too often a conversion to intolerance. A convert is asked to repudiate
his sangha (community), reject the customs and traditions of his
family passed down for generations, and refuse to attend religious
ceremonies that are the very basis of daily life in much of the world.
A person's conversion begins a cascade of upheaval that tears apart
families, communities and societies creating a political and
demographic tinderbox that too often explodes.
Spreading hate against native religions is perhaps the most vile
tactic too often employed. And even the Catholic Church, with its
centuries old presence in India, has blasted the tactics of the new
proselytizers plying their trade today. In our own country, consumer
protection laws ensure that advertisers and retailers abide by truth-
in-marketing laws. There is no parallel protection in the rabid sales
in religious identity that the proselytizer markets overseas, and the
consumers are the victims.
And finally, there is the fact that the evangelical community can only
"pick on" the pluralist societies. India, Nepal, Cambodia, Taiwan and
much of Africa where indigenous traditions still hold sway, are among
the targets today for the next "harvest." The "Muslim world" rewards
conversion away from Islam with death, and in China, Russia Burma and
others, autocracy, the Orthodox Church or military junta proscribe
missionary work.
And so, the very democracy and openness of pluralistic societies
becomes their vulnerability--a poison pill as they face the onslaught
of the proselytizers. Today, the Native Americans of the U.S. and
Canada, the indigenous progeny of Latin America and Mexico, the
Aborigines in Australia are silent witness to lost religions and
decimated traditions that fell historically to earlier iterations of
these onslaughts.
It is in this spirit that many human rights activists and academics
today argue for an overdue amending of the UNDHR. The Hindu American
Foundation proposed in a letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights, on the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, that Article 18 be amended as follows (emphasis added):
§1 Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and
religion. This right shall include freedom tohave, retain or to adopt
a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually
or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his
religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.
§2 No one shall be subject to force, fraud and/or coercion, including
but not limited to harassment, intimidation or exploitation, including
but not limited to the conditioning of humanitarian aid or economic,
educational, medical or social assistance upon conversion and/or overt
denigration of other religions to intentionally promote religious
hatred and bigotry (hate speech) and violence, which would impair his
freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
The right to have and retain one's path to salvation is and must be as
important as the right to find or adopt a new way. It is time to
change the vocabulary in our engagement with religious freedom.
Religious freedom must mean a commitment to the true spirit of
pluralism, and not a license to those "bearing witness" and forcing
judgment.
Views expressed here are the personal views of Dr. Aseem Shukla, and
do not necessarily represent those of the University of Minnesota or
Hindu American Foundation.
http://www.hafsite.org/ViolenceofConversion
HAF Expresses Concern Over Penguin Group's Fact-Checking Process
New York, NY (February 23, 2010) -
The Hindu American Foundation sent the following letter to Penguin
Group's President, Susan Peterson Kennedy, in an effort to understand
the publisher's fact-checking process and standards for non-fiction
pieces, such as Wendy Doniger's The Hindus: An Alternative History. A
pdf of the letter can be downloaded by clicking here.
Dear Ms. Peterson Kennedy,
On behalf of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), an advocacy
organization serving the Hindu American community, I am seeking an
understanding of the editorial and fact-checking standards that
Penguin Group (USA) applies to its pieces of non-fiction.
Specifically, it has come to the attention of HAF that The Hindus: An
Alternative History written by Professor Wendy Doniger and published
by Penguin Group (USA) contains a number of factual and historical
inaccuracies.
For brevity’s sake, I will refer to only a handful of factual errors
and mistranslations in this letter. A more comprehensive list can be
made available upon request.
Page, Paragraph
Error in The Hindus
Correction
67, 1
“But from about 2300 BCE the first urbanization took place, as great
cities arose in the valley of the Indus River…”
1. Archaeologists date the beginning of urbanization as early as 3200
BCE; 2. Evidence of the beginning of urbanization is not restricted to
the valley of the Indus River. Excavation in the Ghaggar Basin has too
revealed evidence of urbanization at the same time if not earlier than
in Harappa.
107, 3
“All the poems of the Rig Veda are ritual hymns in some sense. Since
all were sung as part of the Vedic ceremony.”
A considerable portion of the Rig Veda is not employed in ritual. See
Jan Gonda, 1978, Hymns of the Rgveda Not Employed in the Solemn
Ritual. (Amsterdam).
112, 2
“…but another [verse] says that a cow must be slaughtered on the
occasion of marriage (10.85.13)…”
A correct translation of the Sanskrit in Rigveda 10.85.13 is not that
the “cows are slaughtered”, but that the “cows are driven along”.
124, 2
“More substantial is the early evidence in this poem of a form of
rape that came to be regarded as a bad, but legitimate, form of
marriage: having sex with a sleeping or drugged woman.”
A correct translation and interpretation of the Sanskrit in Rigveda
10.162.5 that Doniger cites is a conversation between an evil spirit
assuming the form of her husband, brother or assuming the form of her
lover to come close to a pregnant woman to destroy her fetus. There
is no terminology in the mantra of sex with a sleeping or drugged
woman. The woman in the mantra is already pregnant and the entire hymn
contains imprecations against evil spirits who can cause her abortion.
130, 2
“Agni is the Brahmin, Varuna the Brahminical sovereign, Indra the
warrior, and the Ashvins the Vaishyas. There are no Shudra gods in the
Vedas.”
It is anachronistic to talk of castes of Deities in the context of
Rigveda.
Still, in Shatapatha Brahmana 11.2.7.16; 6.4.4.13, the devatas are
also divided into four castes. According to that text, Varuna is a
Kshatriya (not Brahmin). And Pushan is a Shudra Deity, contrary to
Doniger’s claim.
Jaiminiya Brahmana 1.68-69 associates Sudras with the Deity Vesmapati.
Sometimes, the Vishvedevas are also associated with the Shudras.
In light of the number of errors in The Hindus: An Alternative
History, HAF and its constituency are particularly concerned about
Penguin’s fact-checking process prior to the publication. We urge
Penguin to reexamine its fact-checking process for non-fiction pieces,
particularly for those, such as The Hindus: An Alternative History,
which present Hindu philosophy inaccurately and have the potential of
being highly offensive to a religious minority in the U.S.
Moreover, the Foundation suggests that Penguin, at minimum, respond to
the individual errors brought to your attention above and consult an
academic outside of the University of Chicago whose expertise is also
in the area of Hinduism and Ancient Indian history to cross-check
historical facts and translations, prior to any reprinting of this
book. HAF has regularly attended the American Academy of Religion
conferences to stay abreast of the latest research in the field of
Hindu studies and, as such, is familiar with the many academics, such
as Prof. Vasudha Narayanan of the University of Florida and Prof.
Arvind Sharma of McGill University, whose knowledge of Sanskrit,
Hinduism and ancient India is well respected not only in the field,
but by the Hindu community at large. I, along with our Board and
staff, will be more than happy to provide additional recommendations
to this end.
I look forward to your prompt response to this matter and sharing it
with Foundation’s members.
Thank you,
The Hindu American Foundation
http://www.hafsite.org/PenguinGroup
Open Letter: Ignoring Caste-Based Discrimination is not the Solution
Namaste,
I cannot begin to express my dismay at recently reading a piece by a
prominent leader of an international Hindu organization founded by
some of the most progressive Hindu leaders. The unfortunate piece
highlights a serious need for the Hindu community to awaken to the
realities of caste-based discrimination as it exists today.
To state that, "Untouchability is a bygone problem in our country
[India]. It is only the Church which has been harping on this
signature tune of their proselytisation agenda," ignores a very real
social evil that affects not only Hindus suffering under the archaic
practices, but Hindus worldwide, who must live with the knowledge that
our ancient Hindu teachings of tolerance, equality, love, compassion
and dignity are at odds with our society's actions. The reality is
that untouchability is a major problem in India, one in which
countless Hindus, including those from every major religious and
spiritual organization, have dedicated their lives to uplifting. The
problem of untouchability did not end with Swami Vivekananda's calls
for its elimination, Swami Dayananda Saraswati's casteless ideology of
Arya Samaj, Mahatma Gandhi's call for its eradication, nor the
enactment of the Indian constitution.
Claiming that it is no longer an issue makes a mockery of Hindus who
have dedicated their lives to its removal, working in every corner of
India, in slums and villages, in mountain towns to desert encampments,
from Mumbai to Calcutta, from Delhi to Chennai. It also ignores the
fact that every major Hindu religious leader, including Swami
Avdeshananda Giri, Swami Dayananda Saraswati and his AIM for Seva
movement, Swami Bodhinatha Veylanswami, Mata Amritanandamayi, Sri Sri
Ravi Sankar, Swami Tejomayananda, Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the
Shankaracharya of Kanchi, Swami Chidananda Saraswati and Dada Vaswani,
has called for the end of untouchability and in fact, suggests a gross
ignorance of these highly respected religious and spiritual leaders of
India and Hinduism.
Brushing aside the current caste problem in India with broad sweeps of
history, ignores the fact that not just Hindus, but huge numbers of
Indians, still face some level of caste discrimination on a daily
basis. Today, Hindus have the ability and capability to collectively
rid India of caste discrimination and untouchability. Accepting Hindu
society's current responsibility to do more for the caste problem does
not mean Hindus have to ignore the role of Islamic invaders, British
opportunists, Christian missionaries or Indian politicians in
furthering caste discrimination or the fact that caste discrimination
is a very gross reality in other religious and ethnic communities in
India and worldwide. Yet we still have leaders who, by refusing to
look at numerous studies on caste discrimination at face value and by
refusing to listen to the masses, prevent the strengthening of Hindu
society by their indifference. In many ways, these leaders actually
hinder Hindus from uniting. Thus, we urge Hindu leaders to look at the
situation with objective eyes, rather than through lenses clouded with
enmity from past invaders and current political machinations.
My own experiences, along with those of others at the Hindu American
Foundation (HAF), have been shaped by direct contact with villagers,
who despite being proud Hindus and who can recite the
Ramcharitamanas by heart, still are not allowed to enter there village
temples or socialize freely without others constantly reminding them
of their so-called low caste status. And similar experiences have been
shared by many others, spanning all social, religious, cultural,
linguistic, political and professional strata. These direct
experiences cannot be ignored or minimized. I hope that others will
speak out, as speaking out does not mean disrespect, but instead puts
our conscience and hearts for the future of Hindus worldwide and Hindu
dharma above blind respect for any particular leader.
HAF has also been working on its own report on caste discrimination,
to not only highlight the reality of the problem, but also to show
that while Hinduism is not the cause of the problem, it can be the
solution to the problem. This report will be released in several
months, and includes statements by prominent Hindu spiritual and
religious leaders who acknowledge this problem and clarify how
Hinduism can help resolve the social problem of caste discrimination.
Ignoring the problem will not resolve it. And so I urge the author of
that unfortunate piece to reexamine the realities of India,
acknowledge the social evil and use his leadership and prominence to
aid in eradicating caste-based discrimination.
Sincerely,
Mihir Meghani, M.D.
President and Co-Founder, Hindu American Foundation
http://www.hafsite.org/OpenLetter
Avatar Does Not "Raise Any Hackles" of Hindus
Upon the release of James Cameron's latest film, Avatar, the Chronicle
reached out to HAF's Houston coordinator, Rishi Bhutada, to hear his
thoughts on the reaction of the Hindu community.
New Movie Avatar Shines Light on Hindu Word
By Arlene Nisson Lasson for the Chronicle
Houston, TX (December 29, 2009) - In James Cameron's new film, Avatar,
the Titanic director creates a world where humans take on the form of
avatars to exist on a planet called Pandora. The humans that belong to
these avatars control them through technology, but some use their
powerful avatarbodies for evil as they try to ruin the resources of
the planet.
The term “avatar” might already be familiar to those who play virtual
reality games where avatars are movable images representing real
people.
Avatar's origins, however, come from the Sanskrit language in sacred
Hindu texts, and it's a term for divine beings sent to restore
goodness to Earth.
Hinduism, the third-largest religion in the world with about 1 billion
adherents, began many centuries ago on the Indian subcontinent, and a
majority of the world's Hindus reside in India.
Those who practice Hinduism recognize three main deities. Lord Brahma
is considered the creator of the universe; Lord Vishnu is considered
the sustainer of the universe, to right things when needed; and Lord
Shiva is the redeemer of the universe.
It is believed that these deities sent avatars — incarnations of
themselves in human form — to perform “dharma,” or righteous duty, to
right wrongs or to restore peace and goodness.
Hindu theology names 10 numbered avatars. Two of the most important
from Hindu scripture are Lord Rama, the seventh avatar of Lord Vishnu
and written about in the poem Ramayana; and Lord Krishna, written
about in the mythological poem Mahabharata.
The Mahabharata, the world's longest epic poem at more than 90,000
verses and one of the most important Hindu texts, tells of a battle
between bad forces and the Pandava family. The avatar Lord Krishna
appears to assist Arjuna, one of the five Pandava family brothers,
reveals his divinity to him and encourages him that it is his duty to
fight for right.
Illustrations of these Hindu avatars, which are magnificently detailed
and reflect an aura of divinity, are in stark contrast to Cameron's
alien-meets-robot-warrior look in the film.
Despite the very different avatar interpretations, local Hindus'
reverence for specific avatars from their scripture does not conflict
with how they are seeing the modern usage of the term.
“The way the term is now being used is not a distortion of my
beliefs,” said Anil Dandona, a practicing Hindu. “It is just a term.
We believe the Supreme Being sent humans to create righteousness.
These messengers of God take a human form, but they have godlike
qualities, and they are delegates sent to do a task.”
Rishi Bhutada, Houston coordinator of the Hindu American Foundation,
agreed with Dandona. He said that while Hindus use the term to mean an
alternative representation of the divine, using it to mean some other
representation does not “raise any hackles.”
“There are certain sacred terms that would offend Hindus if used
improperly, but avatar is not one of them,” Bhutada said.
Local filmmaker Ashok Rao, who has made four full-length feature
films, is looking forward to Cameron's film, and he feels that as long
as filmmakers do not insult the sensitivities of a particular
religion, then artistic license can be used.
“The film's use of avatar is a close relationship to the original
meaning. It is a word meaning reincarnation and isn't meant to always
mean a representative of God on Earth. It simply means one being in
another form.”
“In literature, moviemaking, poetry and other forms of art, something
is taken and stretched in meaning. That is art,” said Rao.
http://www.hafsite.org/AvatarMovie
Foundation Demands FX Network Apology: "The League" Episode Offensive
After receiving a litany of complaints from the Hindu American
community about a FX Network's "The League" episode entitled "The
Shiva Bowl," the Hindu American Foundation wrote a letter to the
President of FX Networks demanding an apology and greater sensitivity
for such gross transgressions on such deeply religious sentiments.
December 23, 2009
FX Networks, LLC
President - General Manager, Mr. John Landgraf
Senior VP Original Programming FX and EVP, FX Production, Mr. Eric
Schrier
10201 W. Pico Blvd., Bldg. 103
Los Angeles, CA 90035
Arvind Chandrakantan, MD
Executive Council, Hindu American Foundation
5268G Nicholson Lane # 164
Kensington, MD 20895
Dear Mr.Landgraf and Mr. Shrier,
The recent season finale of The League, The Shiva Bowl, which used
Nataraja, a sacred icon representing Lord Shiva in dancing form, as a
trophy was deeply offensive, disrespectful and profane towards
Hinduism. In an intensely crude scene, a woman's undergarments were
thrown on the image of Nataraja in the very beginning of the episode--
an unnecessarily provocative insult.
Hindus generally worship their murthis (images or icons of the Divine)
with flowers, incense, fruits and milk. While we understood the
transposition of Lord Shiva with Shiva, the girl who was the focus of
the episode, we believe that the subtlety of the transposition, and
purely unnecessary misuse of Hindu iconography perpetuates
misunderstandings about Hinduism. In the wake of global events and
escalating attacks on minority faiths, we believe misrepresentations
such as this are the seeds of ignorance which lead to untoward acts of
violence and persecution globally.
Just as viewers or producers would not blithely film a scene where a
woman's undergarments are hurled upon on a Star of David, an image of
Jesus Christ or the Virgin Mary, or any other faiths' symbols for the
sake of a cheap laugh, a similar respect should be accorded to two
million American Hindus.
We request a written apology and explanation that we may disseminate
to our membership to explicate the filming of this episode that has
led to numerous calls of indignation to our offices. Additionally,
may we request that you avoid gross transgressions on such deeply
religious sentiments in the
future?
Yours Sincerely,
Arvind Chandrakantan,
MD
Executive Council, Hindu American Foundation
http://www.hafsite.org/node/453
"Promoting Understanding, Tolerance and Pluralism."
Balancing the "Righting" of History -
Hindu Americans Represent in Texas
Austin, TX (March 17, 2010) -
The Texas State Board of Education garnered new notoriety last week as
the influential body, comprised of non historians, advocated a sharp
right wing tilt in history textbooks published for state schools. And
the Board's widely condemned party line vote occurred even after
hearing spirited testimony and considering amendments from numerous
Texans including Hindu American Foundation (HAF) Texas Coordinator,
Rishi Bhutada, at the raucous meeting.
In his extensive testimony before the Board here, Bhutada sought to
ensure that Hinduism is portrayed as one of the oldest living world
religions and pressed for an amendment to remove a separate discussion
on the development of monotheism in the exclusive context of Judaism -
an addition made during one of the many rounds of the curriculum's
current drafting. Over 800 HAF supporters, mostly from Texas, sent
emails to the Board endorsing HAF's amendments aimed at clarity,
consistency and accuracy in the textbook process.
"The TEKS (Texas Education and Knowledge Skills) for all the major
world religions already included discussion of their origins and
central ideas, which would arguably cover development of monotheism
not only in the Judeo-Christian context but these other religions,"
stated Bhutada. "Special focus on monotheism could also paint a
misleading picture that monotheism is exclusive to Abrahamic religions
when Hinduism, which encompasses a complexity of theologies ranging
from panentheism to monotheism, would be left utterly misunderstood."
HAF also supported the Sikh Coalition in its push for the inclusion of
Sikhism in the new World History TEKS. The Sikh Coalition successfully
lobbied for the inclusion of Sikhism in sixth grade social studies and
world geography TEKS drafts last summer, but the world history
curriculum did not conform to these changes.
The 15-member board debated high school U.S. and world history over
the course of three days and in a 10 to 5 partisan vote, Republicans
on the Board prevailed in approving a draft of social studies
curriculum which stressed conservative views on American capitalism
and questioned the Founding Fathers’ commitment to the separation of
church and state.
"Unfortunately politics and propaganda have reigned supreme in the
TEKS process," said Suhag Shukla, HAF's Legal Counsel and Managing
Director. "Texas students will now learn a version of history,
especially relating to the crucial issue of the separation of church
and state, that is not supported by American jurisprudence or
history."
The final version of the Texas Education and Knowledge Skills will not
be approved until May of this year and whether the amendments proposed
by HAF and others were adopted is uncertain. To date, the latest
approved proposed curriculum had yet to be made public.
Bhutada and Shukla bemoaned the potential fallout of this latest vote
by the Texas School Board.
"If this brand of politics continue into adoption of science
curriculum as it has in states like Kentucky and Louisiana, we'll face
9th graders in India and China learning calculus and advanced
chemistry while American students question evolution," Bhutada added.
"And the impact could be devastating not only for Texas school
children, but the future of America as a competitor in the global
market."
"Promoting Understanding, Tolerance and Pluralism."
HAF Extends Support to New Jersey Hindu Family Targeted in Hate Crime
Washington D.C. (June 15, 2006) - The Hindu American Foundation
expressed dismay and shock at the hate attack on a Hindu family in
Wayne, New Jersey on June 1, 2006. The home of the family of five was
defaced with anti-Hindu and anti-Indian epithets spray-painted across
their driveway and house. Earlier in January, the family had been
targeted with hate mail as well as graffiti on their garage door.
New Jersey was witness to racially and religiously motivated attacks
against Indian-Americans and Hindu-Americans during the 1980’s. Young
men, identifying themselves as the “Dotbusters,” targeted Hindus
because Hindu women wore “dots” or “bindi” on their forehead – a
traditional mark that has both spiritual symbolism and aesthetic
appeal. The series of attacks ended in the murder of Indian-American
Navroze Mody.
New Jersey state records indicate that hate crimes have risen by 32
percent from 2003 to 2004. Fourteen of the victims were targeted
because of their Indian-American identity, while three were attacked
because of their Hindu faith.
"Hate crimes are reprehensible violations that must not be tolerated
in any community. I am confident that the Wayne Police Department will
actively work to bring the vandal or vandals to justice and end these
cowardly acts,” said Congressman Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), an official
representing Wayne in the U.S. Congress, in support of HAF’s
condemnation of the attacks. “No matter who the victim, hate crimes
are committed with the intention to divide communities. I join my
friends in Wayne as we stand in unity with the family that has been
victimized."
“It’s vital that Hindu and Indian-Americans join in support of this
family,” said Ishani Chowdhury, Executive Director of the Hindu
American Foundation. “We call upon law enforcement officials to
provide safety for the local Hindu American community, and to
apprehend the perpetrators.”
http://www.hafsite.org/?q=media/pr/haf-extends-support-nj-hindu-family-targeted-hate-crime
Press Release Hate Crimes
ADL Condemns Hate Crime Against Hindu
Boston, MA, June 25, 2003 .. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today
condemned the attack of an Indian graduate student in a deplorable
hate crime. While working in a part-time job delivering pizzas,
Saurabh Bhalerao, 24, was robbed, beaten, burned with cigarettes,
stuffed in a trunk and stabbed twice before being dumped along a road
in an attack that police and community leaders described as a hate
crime. The suspects in the attack mistook the Hindu man for a Muslim.
Allegedly while assaulting him, the suspects were berating him with
comments like, “go back to Iraq.”
Robert Leikind, ADL New England Regional Director, issued the
following statement:
This week, our community was shaken by a deplorable crime -- the
attack on Saurabh Bhalerao in New Bedford on Sunday. This act -- this
hate crime -- is evidence of a tragic reality. Hate remains a force in
our communities and it must be fought. In our diverse society, it
matters not whether the victim is Hindu, Muslim, Jewish or Christian.
People of all backgrounds need to work together to build a future that
we can be proud to pass on to our children and grandchildren.
The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading
organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that
counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.
http://www.adl.org/presrele/hatcr_51/4277_51.asp
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Sid Harth
Sunday, October 21, 2001 Books
The rise and stagnation of Marathas
Review by Harbans Singh
Baji Rao: The Warrior Peshwa
by E. Jaiwant Paul. Roli Books, New Delhi. Pages 184. Rs 275.
JAIWANT PAUL's "Baji Rao: The Warrior Peshwa" is not just an account
of the life of a general of the Marathas; it goes much beyond the
biographical loyalty of an author for, it vividly recreates an era
which saw the juxtaposition of the decadent forces of the Mughals and
the daring and innovative ways of the Marathas. It deals with an age
when competent and willing warriors were scarce in the Mughal army,
while they were abundant among the Marathas.
"It is a book about Hindustan whose emperor cannot think beyond the
skirts of his concubines and (whose) blood is sluggish with opium,"
and a people whose leaders dared to dream of planting the Maratha flag
on the banks of the Indus. It is amazing to note that the ambition and
the struggle launched by Shivaji had such an irresistible force that
the adversities that befell the Marathas could not stop three
generations from spreading the power of the descendants of Shivaji and
also the Maratha people.
The book ostensibly is the story of Baji Rao, the Peshwa of Shahuji,
but in truth it is a chronicle of the times when in a burst of
creative energy the Marathas established their authority over what was
Mughal India. Credit must be given not only to the Maratha king who
had the wisdom to choose the right persons but also to Baji Rao who in
a short span of life created outstanding generals out of ordinary men
and soldiers. It speaks volumes of the leadership qualities he must
have possessed, since it is no mean task in a caste-ridden society to
recognise and encourage the talent of a cowherd Holkar and Ranoji
Scindia who took care of the slippers of the Peshwa. And, in between
he had time enough to weave a near tragic romance with Mastani as
well!
The rise of the Marathas is as much due to individual leaders as the
collective will of the people, and this is evident from the fact that
there are the most unlikely heroes at different times. If Ranoji Angre
was emerging as the menace to be contended with at seas, then Balaji,
a Chitpavan Brahmin, was successfully implementing a system which was
aimed at strengthening the Maratha power. At no point of time did
Angre dream of establishing an independent kingdom. His loyalty was
firmly first for Sambhaji, the younger branch of Shivaji, and then
inalienably for Shahuji, Balaji Rao had correctly assessed that
Shahuji did not have the vigour of his grandfather to run an
autocracy, and therefore it would be different for him to run an army
whose officers were salaried. He introduced the system of offering
land to the officers instead of a salary. Thus sowing the seeds of the
Maratha confederacy at an early stage of their history.
Balaji and then his illustrious son Baji Rao had also accurately
analysed that the traditional armies of the Mughals and those who were
associated with the Mughal court, could be easily outwitted and
defeated if confronted with fast moving soldiers and unorthodox
tactics. Steeped in convention and devoid of imagination, the Mughals
were easily baffled and beaten by the fast moving and ingenuous
Marathas. Baji Rao also ensured that there was no complacency in the
discipline of his soldiers, and two incidents mentioned in the book
speak volumes of their fighting qualities. When asked to draw a
picture of Baji Rao by the Mughal emperor, the painter drew a soldier
on a horseback in the dress of a trooper with reins loose on the
horse's neck and the lance resting on his shoulder. But as he rode he
rubbed both hands on the ear of the corn which he ate after removing
the husk. Aghast at the sight, Emperor Mohammad Shah exclaimed in
great alarm, "The man must be the very devil himself!"
On another occasion, outwitting and outmarching Sadat Khan and Khan
Dauran, Baji Rao reached Delhi to the utter disbelief of the Mughal
emperor who sent a spy disguised as a beggar to confirm the entry.
When the spy returned and appeared before the emperor, he produced the
alms he had received, some grain, dry gram, pieces of baked bread and
pods of red pepper, which confirmed the presence of the Maratha
forces. It is instructive to compare these forces of Baji Rao with the
Mughal paraphernalia some two decades after this incident at the
battle of Panipat!
Though the author has not gone into detail, two aspects of the Maratha
rise are also mentioned by him, one fascinating in its scope and the
other a matter of regret. Throughout history, the Marathas had waged a
ceaseless war against the Mughals, treating them as aliens in this
land. And yet, they had a strange sense of loyalty which forbade them
from annihilating the Mughals or even allowing others to do the same.
Twice during his lifetime. Baji Rao had the opportunity of destroying
the most potent symbol of the Mughals, the Nizam, first at Palkhed and
then at Bhopal. The presence of the Nizam in close proximity to the
Marathas could only bode ill, and yet on both occasions he was spared.
It is said that this was done because the Maratha king Shahuji, who
was brought up in Mughal captivity, had a soft corner for them to
deliver the coup de grace.
Similarly, Baji Rao had Delhi at his mercy. In fact he had gone there
with the explicit intention of destroying it, and yet he spared it.
On another occasion, when he was in a position to clear the western
coast of the Portugese presence, he gave up the task when the news
broke of a grave threat to Hindustan from the northern frontiers in
the form of Nadir Shah. He lost no time in getting in touch with other
princes to meet the challenge, and in fact according to the author, he
even forged a new alliance wherein the Maharana of Mewar was to be
crowned the Emperor of Hindustan.
While his obsession and fascination with Delhi can perhaps be
attributed to many factors, the inability of the Marathas to assess
the long-term threat that the British colonialists posed is
regrettable indeed. The native wisdom that no stranger should be
allowed to settle down in your courtyard was inexplicably forgotten
when they failed to clear the vicinity of the obsequious traders. In
their obsession with Delhi, the Marathas failed to see the progress
the British were making in the east of the country. The truth is that
when the Marathas were making inroads into Malwa and Agra, the British
were tightening their stranglehold on the Bengal suba of the Mughals,
and yet they were not perceived as a threat. This oversight would
remain not only a regret but also a blot on an otherwise brilliant and
systematic rise of the Marathas in general and Baji Rao in particular.
The reader will also notice that the interlude of the Mastani episode
is based on folklore and hearsay than on documentay evidence. This is
strange since the events belong to an era when much of it is
documented. In fact the historians are not even sure if Masatni was
the daughter of the redoubtable Chhatrasal or the wily Nizam!
Fortunately everyone agrees that she was a Muslim, but again one
cannot be certain if she died on the funeral pyre away from Pune or
committed suicide in Pune on hearing the news of Baji Rao's death and
where her tomb is said to be. What, however, is acknowledged is that
her and Baji Rao's son had to be brought up as a Muslim because the
Brahmins exerted pressure on Baji Rao and his family.
It is a refreshing book, coming as it does from a person whose
perspective and style is not bound by the formal approach of an
academician. Easy to read, it is a fast paced story of an astonishing
era of Indian history. The canvas is wide, yet the author has
skillfully kept the focus on the life and works of his subject.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2001/20011021/spectrum/book2.htm
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Maratha Empire at its peak in 1760The Peshwa (Marathi: पेशवे) were
Brahmin Prime Ministers to the Maratha Chattrapatis (Kings), who began
commanding Maratha armies and later became the hereditary rulers of
the Maratha empire of central India from 1749 to 1818. During their
rein, the Maratha empire reached its zenith ruling most of the Indian
Subcontinent. Prior to 1700 one Peshwa received the status of king for
eight or nine years. They oversaw the greatest expansion of the
Maratha Empire around 1760 with the help of Sardars (Generals) like
Holkar, Shinde, Bhosale, Pantprainidhi, Gaekwad, Panse, Vinchurkar,
Pethe, Raste, Phadke, Patwardhan, Pawar, Pandit and Purandare, and
also its eventual annexation by the British East India Company in
1818.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathi_language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahmin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Ministers
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maratha
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_East_India_Company
Title
The word Peshwa may have originated in Persian, meaning "foremost",
and was introduced in Deccan by the Muslim rulers. After his
coronation as a Maratha Chhatrapati in 1674, the founder of the
Maratha Empire, Shivaji appointed Moropant Trimbak Pingle as the first
Peshwa. However, the first Peshwa was Sonopant Dabir, appointed by
Shahaji to assist Shivaji. Duties and authorities of a Peshwa were
equal to that of a Prime Minister. Shivaji renamed this designation as
"Pantpradhan" in 1674 but this name was less frequently used.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deccan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shivaji
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moropant_Peshwe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonopant_Dabir
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahaji
Moropant Pingle
Moropant Trimbak Pingle was the first Peshwa (Prime Minister) in the
court of Shivaji, the founder king of the Maratha empire in western
India. He joined the service of Shivaji in 1647. He was one of the
warriors in the famous 1659 war against Afzal Khan. Later he also won
the battle of Trimbakeshwar fort, and assisted Netaji Palkar in the
battle of Wani-Dindori against Mughals and in Surat's war of 1665.
He can be credited for appropriate revenue administration techniques.
He also played a role in planning the fort's resources.
When Shivaji died in 1680, he was busy at development activity Salher-
Mulher in Baglan-Nashik District. He died in 1683.
Ramchandra Pant Amatya (Bawadekar)
Ramchandra Amatya received King status from Chatrapti Rajaram as
"Hukumatpanha" during 1689-1699. He was a basically good administrator
who rose from the level of Local Kulkarni to the ranks of Ashtapradhan
due to guidance and support from Shivaji Maharaj, one of the prominent
Peshwas earlier from 1700.
He recaptured many forts from Moguls during 1690-1694. Some forts he
captured personally using guerilla war techniques. When Chatrapati
Rajaram fled to Jinji in 1689 then before leaving from Maharastra, he
gave "Hukumat panha" (King Status) to Pant. Ramchandra Pant managed
the entire state under many challenges like influx of Moguls, betrayal
of Vatandars, and scarcity of food. With the help of Pantpratindhi,
Sachiv kept the economic condition of Maratha State in a proper way.
He got tremendous military help from Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji
Jadhav the great Maratha warriors. Many times he directly participated
in war, especially during 1689-1695; he personally re-captured many
forts in south Maharastra from the Moguls and played a role of shadow
king in the absence of Chatrapati Rajaram.
In 1698, he happily stepped down from the post of "Hukumatpanha" and
Rajaram offered this post to his wife Tarabai. Tarabai gave an
important position to Pant in senior administration of Maratha State.
He wrote a book called Adnyapatra मराठी: आज्ञापत्र which explained
different techniques of war, maintenance of forts and administration
etc.
The concepts in Adnyapatra and the wisdom and leadership of Tararani
(Tarabai) greatly helped the Maratha empire in building the foundation
of state. As he was more loyal to Tararani than Shahu, he was
sidelined after the arrival of Shahu. Later the Peshwa post was given
to Balaji Vishwanath in 1713. Ramchandra Pant died in 1716 on Panhala
fort.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kulkarni
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santaji_Ghorpade
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhanaji_Jadhav
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarabai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adnyapatra
Bhat Family
The position moved to the Bhat family of Shrivardhan in the Konkan
region, upon appointment of Balaji Vishwanath Bhat as Peshwa by the
fourth Chattrapati Shahu in 1713. The appointment of his son, Baji Rao
I as Peshwa in 1719 by Shahu made the position hereditary in the Bhat
family, and also led to a rebellion by General Trimbak Rao Dabhade,
the senapati (commander in chief), over Chauthai (revenue collection)
of Gujarat. The followers of Baji and Trimbak clashed at the Battle of
Bilhapur on April 1, 1731, and Trimbak was killed, giving the peshwas
and the Bhat family unchallenged control over Maratha.[1] Shahu, who
also appointed Baji Rao's son as Peshwa in 1740, gave considerable
authority to the Peshwas to command the Maratha armies, and they
responded well during his reigns.
At the time of his death in 1749, Shahu made the Peshwas his
successors under such conditions. Shivaji's descendants, who remained
as the titular Raja of Satara, were called Swami (Marathi for The real
Owner) by the Peshwas who reported to them, and they were to seek
guidance from the Raja. However, the Peshwa also became a ceremonial
head of state after the battle of Panipat and the death of Madhavrao.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrivardhan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konkan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balaji_Vishwanath
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahuji
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madhavrao_II_Ballal
Legacy
Maratha Emperors (1674-1818)
Shivaji (1674 - 1680)
Sambhaji (1680 - 1689)
Rajaram (1689 - 1700)
Queen Tarabai (1700 - 1707)
Shahu (1707 - 1749)
Ramaraja (1749 - 1777)
Peshwas (Prime Ministers) (1712-1818)
Balaji Vishwanath
(1712-1719)
Bajirao
(1719-1740)
Balaji Bajirao
(1740-1761)
Madhavrao Ballal
(1761-1772)
Narayanrao
(1772-1773)
Raghunathrao
(1773-1774)
Sawai Madhavrao
(1774-1795)
Bajirao II
(1795-1851)
Nana Sahib
(1851-1857)
The first Peshwa to receive the status of a king was Ramchandra Pant
Amatya Bawdekar in 1689 by Chatrapati Rajaram.The first Bhat family
Peshwa was Balaji Vishwanath Bhat, a chitpavan Brahmin. He was
succeeded as Peshwa by his son Baji Rao I, who never lost a battle.
Baji Rao and his son, Balaji Baji Rao, oversaw the period of greatest
Maratha expansion (see map at right), brought to an end by the
Maratha's defeat by an Afghan army at the Third Battle of Panipat in
1761. The last Peshwa, Baji Rao II, was defeated by the British East
India Company in the Battle of Khadki which was a part of Third Anglo-
Maratha War (1817–1818). The Peshwa's territory in central Maharashtra
was annexed to the British East India Company's Bombay province, and
he was pensioned off.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitpavan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baji_Rao_I
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Battle_of_Panipat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baji_Rao_II
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_East_India_Company
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Khadki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Anglo-Maratha_War
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombay_state
Peshwas
Sonopant Dabir Period 1640-1652
Shyampant Kulkarni-Ranzekar Period 1652-1657
Moropant Peshwe(Pingale) Period 1657-1683
Moreshwar Pingale 1683-1689 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moropant_Peshwe
RamchandraPant Amatya 1689-1708
Bahiroji Pingale 1708-1711
Parshuram Tribak Kulkarni 1711-1713
Balaji Vishwanath (1713 - 2 April 1720) (b.1660, d. 2 April 1720)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balaji_Vishwanath
Peshwa Bajirao I (17 April 1720 - 28 April 1740) (b.18 August 1700, d.
28 April 1740)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bajirao
From 1749 ,after death of Shahu, Peshawa became head of Maratha
empire, reporting to Chatrapati.
Balaji Bajirao (4 July 1740 - 23 June 1761) (b.8 December 1721, d. 23
June 1761)
Madhavrao Peshwa (1761 - 18 November 1772) (b.16 February 1745, d. 18
November 1772)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madhavrao_Peshwa
Hereafter they remained titular
Narayanrao Bajirao (13 December4 1772 - 30 August 1773) (b.10 August
1755, d. 30 August 1773)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narayanrao_Bajirao
Raghunathrao (5 December 1773 - 1774) (b.18 August 1734, d. 11
December 1783) self -claimed not accepted by Chatrapati
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raghunathrao
Sawai Madhava Rao II Narayan (1774 - 27 October 1795) (b.18 April
1774, d. 27 October 1795)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sawai_Madhava_Rao_II_Narayan
Chimnajee Madhavarao (26 May 1796 - 3 Dec 1796) (brother of Bajirao
II, adopted by Madhavrao II's wife)
Baji Rao II (4 December 1796-3 June 1818) (d. 28 January 1851)
Amritrao (brother of Bajirao II), Peshwa for a short period during
Yashwantrao Holkar's siege of Pune. Bajirao was later reinstated by
the British.
Nana Sahib (1 July 1857 - 1858) (b.19 May 1825, d. 24 September 1859)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanasaheb_Peshwa
Generals and diplomats of Peshwas (1720 to 1795)
Ranoji Scindia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranoji_Scindia
Malharrao Holkar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malharrao_Holkar
Udaji Pawar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pawar
Govind Pant Bundele
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Govind_Pant_Bundele
Pilaji Jadhav
Pilaji Gaekwad
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilaji_Gaekwad
Visaji Krushna Biniwale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visaji_Krushna_Biniwale
Nana Phadnis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nana_Phadnis
Mahadji Shinde
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahadji_Shinde
See also
Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article
Peshwa.
Nana Phadnawis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nana_Fadnavis
Kharda
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kharda
References
^ Encyclopædia Britannica, Micropædia Vol. II, p17
from theEncyclopædia Britannicathe office of chief minister among the
Maratha people of India. The peshwa, also known as the mukhya pradhan,
originally headed the advisory council of the raja Shivaji (reigned c.
1659–80). After Shivaji’s death the council broke up and the office
lost its primacy, but it was revived when Shivaji’s grandson Shahu
appointed Balaji Vishvanath Bhat, a Chitpavan Brahman, as peshwa in
1714. Balaji’s son Baji Rao I secured the hereditary succession to the
peshwa-ship.
From Shahu’s death, in 1749, the peshwa Balaji Baji Rao was the
virtual ruler of Maharashtra. He hoped to succeed the Mughals in
Delhi, but, after a disastrous defeat of his army at Panipat (1761),
he became the head of a confederacy comprising himself and four
northern chiefs. Succession disputes from 1772 weakened the peshwa’s
authority. Defeat by Holkars—the Maratha rulers of Indore—led Baji Rao
II to seek British protection by the Treaty of Bassein (1802). Baji
Rao was deposed after attacking the British in 1818; he died in 1853.
Related Articles
Aspects of the topic peshwa are discussed in the following places at
Britannica.
Assorted References
British colonial policy (in India: Relations with the Marathas and
Mysore; in India: The government of Lord Hastings )
place in Ashta Pradhan (in Ashta Pradhan (Marathi council))
history of India (in India: Rise of the peshwas)
Maratha confederacy (in Maratha confederacy (Indian history))
Other
The following is a selection of items (artistic styles or groups,
constructions, events, fictional characters, organizations,
publications) associated with "peshwa"
office (government)
Citations
MLA Style:
"peshwa." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica
Online. 27 Mar. 2010 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/453390/
peshwa>.
APA Style:
peshwa. (2010). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved March 27, 2010,
from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/453390/peshwa
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/453390/peshwa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshwa
Selections from the Peshwa Daftar.
Related Subjects
Maratha (Indic people) — History — Sources
Selections from the Peshwa Daftar FormatBook
Publication Date1930
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 S4 1930 (13 volumes)
Title:
2.Illustrative Modi documents AuthorMaharashtra (India). Dept. of
Archives
FormatBook
Publication Date1978
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 M33 1978
Title:
3.Source book of Maratha history AuthorPatwardhan, R. P.
FormatBook
Publication Date1978
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 P38 1978
Title:
4.An account of the last Battle of Panipat : and of the events leading
to it : written in Persian AuthorKasi Rai
FormatBook
Publication Date1926
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS461.8.K3813
Title:
5.Records of the Shivaji period FormatBook
Publication Date1974
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M34 R4
Title:
6.Revival of Maratha power, 1761-1772 AuthorJoshi, P. M., 1904-
FormatBook
Publication Date1962
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS432.M2 J62
Title:
7.French records, relating to the history of the Marathas FormatBook
Publication Date1980
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 F74 1980 V.7, V.8
Title:
8.Source book of Maratha history AuthorRawlinson, H. G. (Hugh George),
1880- ed
FormatBook
Publication Date1929
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS461.R3
Title:
9.Vaidya-daptarāntūna nivaḍalele kāgada AuthorVaidya, Shankar
Lakshman, comp
FormatBook
Publication Daten/a
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS461.8.V3
Title:
10.Aitihāsika patrabodha AuthorSardesai, Govind Sakharam, 1865-1959
ed
FormatBook
Publication Date1963
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS403.S2
Title:
11.The Decade of Panipat, 1751-61 FormatBook
Publication Date1984
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 D43 1984
Title:
12.Marāṭhākālīna aitihāsika dastāveja : Baneṛā saṅgraha
1805-1818 Ī. FormatBook
Publication Date1989
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.U3 M38 1989
Title:
13.The Marathas on the west coast of India AuthorMaharashtra (India).
Dept. of Archives
FormatBook
Publication Date1990
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 M33 1990
Title:
14.A forgotten literature : foundations of Marathi chronicles
AuthorHerwadkar, Raghunath Vinayak, 1915-
FormatBook
Publication Date1994
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 H46 1994
Title:
15.Trade, politics, and plunder : the Marathas at Cambay, c.AD
1725-1825 AuthorRay, Aniruddha
FormatBook
Publication Date2006
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.C2 R39 2006
Title:
16.Records of the Shivaji period FormatOnline; eBook; Book
Publication Date1974
LocationInternet materials
Online Versions Access online
Title:
17.Letters from a Mahratta camp during the year 1809 : descriptive of
the character, manners, domestic habits, and religious ceremonies of
the Mahrattas AuthorBroughton, Thomas Duer, 1778-1835
FormatBook
Publication Date1977
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 B76 1977
Maharashtra (India) — History — Sources
Related Name(s)
Sardesai, Govind Sakharam, 1865-1959.
Aitihāsika patrabodha AuthorSardesai, Govind Sakharam, 1865-1959 ed
FormatBook
Publication Date1963
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS403.S2
Title:
2.Aitihāsika gharāṇyā %neyā vāśāvalī AuthorSardesai, Govind
Sakharam, 1865-1959
FormatBook
Publication Date1957
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberCS1203.S26
Title:
3.The main currents of Maratha history : originally Patna University
readership lectures 1926, now greatly enlarged, rewritten, and brought
up to date AuthorSardesai, Govind Sakharam, rao bahadur, 1865-1959
FormatBook
Publication Date1949
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS432.M2 S37 1949
Title:
4.New history of the Marathas AuthorSardesai, Govind Sakharam, rao
bahadur, 1865-1959
FormatBook
Publication Date1948
LocationAlderman Library Stacks
Call NumberDS432.M2 S38 1948 V.1, V.2, V.3
Title:
5.On historiography : a study of methods of historical research and
narration of J. N. Sarkar, G. S. Sardesai and P. K. Gode
AuthorTikekar, Shripad Ramchandra, 1900-1979
FormatBook
Publication Date1964
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS435.5.T5 1964
Title:
6.Selections from the Peshwa Daftar FormatBook
Publication Date1930
LocationIvy Stacks
Call NumberDS485.M349 S4 1930 (13 volumes)
http://blacklight.betech.virginia.edu/catalog?q=Sardesai%2C+Govind+Sakharam%2C+1865-1959.
Balaji Vishwanath
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Balaji Vishwanath Bhat (1680 – April 2, 1719), better known as Peshwa
Balaji Vishwanath, was the first of a series of hereditary Peshwas
(Marathi for Prime Minister) hailing from the Brahmin family who
gained effective control of the Maratha Empire during the eighteenth
century. Balaji Vishwanath assisted a young Shahu to consolidate his
grip on an empire that had been racked by civil war and persistent
attack by the Mughals under Aurangzeb.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maratha_Empire
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mughal_Empire
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurangzeb
Biography
Balaji Vishwanath Rao was born into a Marathi Smartha Brahmin family
belonging to the Chitpavan subcaste. The community hailed from the
coastal shrivardhan Konkan region of present-day Maharashtra. He was
named "Balaji," which is another name for Venkateshwara, a
manifestation of Vishnu. His family was of modest means, and Balaji
began his career as an accountant for the Maratha general, Dhanaji
Jadhav, at Chiplun. Between 1699 and 1703, he served as the Sar-
subhedar or head-administrator at Pune. By the time Dhanaji died,
Balaji had proven himself as an honest and able officer. Chhatrapati
Shahu, ruler of the Marathas, took note of his abilities and appointed
Balaji as his assistant (c.1708).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smartha
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitpavan
Ascent to Peshwa
In the next few years, Balaji by his tactful negotiations became a
prominent personality. He is recorded as having participated in the
invasion (1708) of the then Mughal city of Ahmedabad[1] Again, during
the Maratha civil war (1707-13) which followed the release of Shahu
from Mughal captivity, the maratha general Chandrasen Jadhav, a
prominent partisan of the Tarabai faction, (opposed to Shahu), ravaged
the southern districts of the state. He was defeated by Balaji after a
prolonged engagement. In 1713, Shahu faced personal danger when he was
attacked at Khed near Satara by forces loyal to Tarabai. At this
critical juncture, Shahuji turned to Balaji, appointed him Senakarta
(army commander) and gave him full authority to wage the battle that
had become unavoidable.
This increased the confidence that Shahu had in him. Balaji was
appointed as Shahu's plenipotentiary to negotiate with Kanhoji Angre,
admiral of the Maratha navy, who was allied with Tarabai. Before
Balaji took up this assignment,[citation needed] he requested Shahu to
appoint him Peshwa or prime minister. Shahu conceded this request, and
on November 16, 1713, Balaji became the Shahu's first Peshwa. Kanhoji
agreed to become the Sarkhel (admiral) of Shahu's navy.
Attack on the Mughal empire
There existed a power vacuum in the Mughal empire, caused by the death
of Aurangzeb in 1707, subsequent intenecine conflict within the
imperial family and civil war. Farrukhsiyar came to the throne in 1713
with the help of the Sayyid brothers, who had turned king-makers in
the anarchy following the death of Aurangzeb. Differences soon arose
between them and the Emperor.
In 1716, Shahuji's army chief Dabhaji Thorat arrested Balaji. The
reason for this two-year imprisonment is unknown. After his release as
directed by Shahu, in 1718 Balaji negotiated a treaty with the Sayyid
brothers, which the Mughal emperor later refused to ratify. With the
help of Maratha troops commanded by the gallant Parsoji Bhosale,
Husain Ali (one of the Sayyid brothers) marched on Delhi, dethroned
Farrukhsiyar, and substituted in his place a more pliable puppet, Rafi-
ul-darjat in February 1719. The Marathas also supplied a 15,000 strong
army to enforce the Mughal Empire's authority in the Deccan. In
exchange for the help thus rendered to Husain Ali, Balaji extracted a
formal recognition of the autonomy of the Marathas in the territories
held by them and the right to collect chauth (literally: "one-fourth,"
a basic tax) in the six Deccan provinces.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farrukhsiyar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafi_Ul-Darjat
Personal life
Balaji married Radhabai (1700 – 1752) and had two sons, Bajirao and
Chimnaji Appa.He had two daughters. Balaji's health suffered
considerably as a result of the campaign against the mughals, and he
died on April 2, 1719. He was succeeded by his elder son, the
celebrated Balaji Bajirao I, who was anointed Peshwa by Chattrapati
Shahu.A statue of Balaji Vishwanath stands at his ancestral village of
Shrivardhan near Raigad in coastal Maharashtra.
Preceded by
Bahiroji Pingale Peshwa
1714 - 1719 Succeeded by
Baji Rao I
Notes
^ Invasion of Ahmedabad
http://www.cityofahmedabad.com/milestone1.htm
References
Imperial Gazeteer of India, v.2, Pg 441
http://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/pager.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V02_476.gif
Cox, Linda. The Chitpavans, Illustrated Weekly of India, February 22,
1970
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balaji_Vishwanath
bademiyansubhanallah
The importance of Hindutva in the context of nationhood is yet to be
understood by many and remains unexplained to the youth. This needs to
change.
At a recent programme we had organised to induct youth volunteers as
supporters of the BJP, veteran RSS ideologue M.G. Vaidya and BJP
National President Nitin Gadkari presented their view of the specially
chosen topic for the day, ‘Hindutva and Politics’. In bringing up a
third dimension, I attempted to present the dilemma that is poised
before the younger members when they are confronted with the term
‘Hindutva’.
What emerged was that there is agreement on the need for
transliterating Hindutva for the younger set, if not all, although it
would seem that there is ample scope for including many more segments
within the reference.
My opening argument was about the conflict and complexity caused
around the term Hindutva and how the youth, particularly the more
modern in their outlook, were turning diffident about the concept
itself under the weight of popular public discourse. The President of
the BJP – and a lot of people thought he would duck the issue – made
short shrift of any illusions people had of any duality in his mind
about the subject declaring with clarity that the spirit of the BJP
was an embodiment of the spirit of Hindutva and it was not up for
debate. Having got that out of the way, his most remarkable
achievement on the day, seen from the viewpoint of the youth present,
was to project an integrated vision of the meaning of the term and its
relevance in the context of the political outlook of the BJP. His
brief remarks came before the redoubtable M.G. Vaidya and yet it did
not come as practiced or played to the gallery but with an easy
conviction and unpretentious verbiage. The outcome was deservedly
calming, as he con
cluded that understanding Hindutva in the context of an anti-muslim
mindset had to be eroded and the quintessential element of Hindutva –
of vasudhaiva kutumbakam – be reinforced within that mind space.
M.G. Vaidya evoked the essential nature of Hindutva as a ‘joiner’ and
reiterated the aspects that make nationhood synonymous with the
integral concepts of Hindutva – as derived from the way of life of the
people within the geography of what was called ‘Hindustan’. He
emphasized the seminal difference between nation and state and his
arguments buttressed that a commonality of views necessary on certain
issues of critical importance to the nation must not be confused with
or be given a communal twist.
The cumulative impact of the views from three polarities was an
interesting exercise in that all of us, almost serendipitously, felt
the lacuna in engagement on the issue, and at the same time hit upon
the importance of extending these dialogues as its very solution. Both
M.G. Vaidya and Nitin Gadkari emphasized the need to carry on this
series on the subject.
The moot point remains that the entire horizon of discourse on
Hindutva and its relationship with politics in public discourse for
very long has been slave to big media and the pseudo-liberal cartel.
Equally, that it will take a long term effort to engage the new youth
and reintroduce the subject with an eye on the realities of the time
to have some success. Consequently there is now a growing realization
among many people within and out of the party that Hindutva must be re-
interpreted in the context of the contemporary and that the symbiotic
relationship between Hindutva and the BJP must be explained in more
rational terms to an increasingly discerning youth.
The political ramifications of the unprecedented growth of the BJP
and its conjoined relationship with Hindutva remain one of the most
tenuous arguments of our time. But my early conclusion remains that
Hindutva needs to be owned more fully rather than less by the BJP.
This would help to speed up the process of denouement that would de-
mystify the term, the concept and the comprehensive meaning of the
word, and extend to explaining its rationale in political terms.
Hindutva is the life force of our civilization. It defines us as
distinct from the rest of the world – not better or worse, just
distinct. This sense of identity is necessary, both for reasons of the
concept of nation hood and also as an ideal we give our self. It does
not dismiss anyone’s personal faith: it merely posits a practical
reality of the general tenor of this land, its philosophical moorings,
its largest, most visible and expansive palette of beliefs and belief
systems.
The common weakness, to see Hindutva as an assertion of Hindu
dominance is mistaken not because it is patently irrelevant, but
because it is a regular feature of newly created nations to struggle
with a self image, much like an adolescent. Consequently, what is
erroneously called and reviled as Hindu pride is merely a growing
political consciousness of a people, as the ideas associated with
nationhood leach into the idea of statehood. It is not only a natural
process of growth, but actually invaluable in the management, and
protection, of the state.
One of the crucial realities of our times is the fact that national
integration is still a work in progress. This is hardly ever attended
to but the frequent conflagration of regional and linguistic or
geographical demands of identity are only symptomatic of the problem.
That allows us only two options as we struggle for an effective means
of integration : either a more federal structure that allows
increasing freedoms to states, or finding newer points of aggregation.
Hindutva is merely the latter until the state figures out what to do
with itself on the former.
But more than just an interim arrangement, as the earlier statement
might suggest, investing in the most common denominator of commonality
would sound to most reasonable people to be a logical step to take to
knit up the tapestry of diversity that we call our country. It stands
to reason that a common refrain like traditionally inherited
scriptures, or a cultural continuity of mythical beliefs is a sensible
palette to try and integrate otherwise distinct people. Hindutva
provides just that medium and barring the difficulties that we have in
a few states, this applies across the board. It takes a lot longer to
make a man in a remote village in Orissa or Jharkhand to understand
the idea of India and it takes no time to make him recognize his
common Hindu heritage. Hindutva is thus an overarching natural
strategy to unite, using the largest common denominator of cultural
affinities, that comes out of the lay of the land, not out of any
figment of imagined Hindu supremacy.
But half a decade of cocky secularism and the damage it has done is
only now beginning to heal while the essence of Hindutva has begun to
take root. It is both, a miracle and a testament to the indigenous
religious logic of the common beliefs of the people at large of India
that the country has not splintered. Those who would like to place the
credit for this feat at the door of a Nehruvian vision or Gandhian
thought would do better to remember that both streams intrinsically
emanated from the fount of Hindutva as well.
This blog post has appeared as an article in The Daily Pioneer of the
27th March 2010
~ by sanjaykaul on March 27, 2010.
http://sanjaykaul.wordpress.com/2010/03/27/hindutva-and-politics-time-for-a-three-dimensional-view/
Hindsight, Happenstance and Hindutva – Part 2
The evolution of Hindutva as a political instrument is a work in
progress.
While its opponents go berserk deriding Hindutva, they might be losing
sight of a critical development taking place before their eyes.
Put coarsely, the origins of the BJP’s growth, all through the muddled
years of the Hindu Mahasabha, the Jana Sangh and the Janata Party, can
be traced back to a sense of outrage at the successive political
regimes that sought to undermine the brilliance of India’s indigenous
culture at the altar of electoral advantage, in the guise of a well
crafted concept that has been variously referred to as secularism, or
more recently, as pseudo-secularism.
Secularism, in the Indian context, turned out a strange concoction of
tolerance based around a rejection of religion in political space – a
muddled version of gross Gandhianism bred with spotty western
liberalism and which for various reasons became an anthem for most of
the newbies of post independence India. Later it manifested itself as
a side-effect of the faux socialism of the Nehruvian age, through an
imposed sense of egalitarianism in a country unprepared for such
largesse when it had still to deal with immense inequities of almost
every conceivable parameter, particularly social and political.
Somewhere down the line, secularism degraded into a negation of the
implicit commonality of the identity of India with Hindu thought and
culture and became an armour to ward off any threat to the Congress’
hegemony of political space, using, most ironically, religion as its
most potent instrument when applied to minorities, particularly
Muslims.
While it can be argued that this was a natural corollary to Congress’
near total control of legitimate political space in post independence
India, it was, in fact, a typical abnormality of post-emancipation
political processes that left India without any alternate party for
governance after independence. Every nation that has had such a long
struggle for freedom and has negotiated with an occupying foreign
entity has roughly had the same experience, where the reactionary
forces which were more amenable to the occupants, slipped into post-
freedom slots of governance or political prominence. In effect, the
more fundamentalist the opposition to the foreigners, the lesser the
chances of such groups having a shy at political legitimacy, which in
most cases went to more middle of the road, ambivalent, malleable
combination of forces that made the evading foreign power’s loss look
more respectable.
Without going into the reasons for such phenomenon, for that is an
involved subject on its own, it was clear that an unorganized group
such as the pro-Hindutva votaries with such a strong streak of socio-
cultural nationalism, was always going to struggle for large scale
legitimacy when the engine of the freedom movement was all but
monopolized by better organised structures like the Congress and led
by pan-India leaders like Gandhi, later Nehru and others who secured
cross voter support due to an ambivalent approach to the issue of
nationalism, its meaning and its forms in a country still coming to
grips with the concept of pan-Indian aggregation.
Progressively, this feeling among Hindus of being marginalized in the
country of their origin – not socially, but politically – by using
almost every trick in the book of the British – emphasizing diversity
instead of commonality, underlining the divisions rather than the
overlapping cultures – began subtly, but in ensuing years, with
successive Congress governments more or less using the old Nehruvian
model for electoral profit, resulted in a consolidation of the sense
of cultural compromise – where to seem fair to a one legged man,
others were expected to limp too. The Congress’ avowed and much
vaunted secularism therefore has had less to do with a genuine
ideological belief in non-partisan religio-cultural expression and
more to do with electoral expediency, year after election year.
But the continuous corrosion of this theory, and its masterful re-use
and revitalization under Indira Gandhi until it became an alternate
dharma, caused much of what is seen as Hindu revivalism. In that
sense, the BJP is really a byproduct of the Congress – even as it is
its nemesis, and the rise and rise of this party over the last two
decades is truly spectacular in a historical perspective.
Whatever the debate suggests and however one may look at it, the
undeniable and interesting fact is that it took a modern time like the
twentieth century to see the Hindutva theme take centre stage. What
explains that? If democracy has only seeped in more penetratingly into
our socio-political system, if education has produced more aware,
liberal and rights-conscious people, if we have integrated even more
into a global system of liberal values, how do we explain the rise of
a party that is so often cornered by intellectuals and left wingers
and centrists as being a neophyte Hindu, rightist party with a lunatic
fringe and now even an extremist wing!
The question need not be whether the rise of the BJP is good or bad,
right or wrong: the question is, what explains the growing legitimacy
of the Hindutva theme, if it’s so bad for the polity and so dangerous
for democracy ?
~ by sanjaykaul on July 28, 2009.
3 Responses to “Hindsight, Happenstance and Hindutva – Part 2”
sanjaykaul said this on January 12, 2010 at 10:35 pm
I am not able to find Part 1 of your article. I want to read all 3
parts before I post my views.
Suresh Gupta said this on January 10, 2010 at 7:51 pm
Dear Sanjay,
I thought that I need to communicate with you on your blog because it
seems to me that whatever things I mailed to you could not be
understood. Let me be a little harsh to make you realize that as far
as I know, people in your organisation do not seem to be worth making
an impact on AAM AADMI’S mind. I heard that the BJP is looking to
transform it’s leadership by inducting the young brigade in the party.
But where are the youngsters in your party who could mitigate the
charisma of Mr. Rahul Gandhi, a leader blessed with royality, glamour,
goodwill and more.There are countless curses your party is facing at
the moment. Frankly speaking just like Congress (I), even your
Organisation comprises a bunch of selfish and greedy foxes. Mind it if
you do not transform your party and it’s agendas, beliefs, vision and
the people then it will be impossible for your Organisation to even
survive in the present context because the Italian Mother and her
Indian Son are growing stronger day by day. It is important that you
include the youth in your top creed. But caution! The young brigade
needs to be visionary who should spread the aroma of magnatic values,
integrity and farsightedness. Just like leaders of other political
parties, most of you are in politics to attain power, money and
influence, more precisely personal welfare and not the welfare of
people and generations to come.
Now only one agenda remains for you in the next elections which is
GOVERNANCE WITH A DIFFERENCE or BETTER GOVERNANCE because it is very
difficult now to prove the ruling pary bad as their leadership is in
clever hands. So think for the future once you get free from your
internal disputes.
Mann said this on August 13, 2009 at 12:08 pm
Heart Life
February 11, 2010
Why are liberals so condescending?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/04/AR2010020403698_pf.html
Gerard Alexander: Why are liberals so condescending?
By Gerard Alexander
Sunday, February 7, 2010; B01
Every political community includes some members who insist that their
side has all the answers and that their adversaries are idiots. But
American liberals, to a degree far surpassing conservatives, appear
committed to the proposition that their views are correct, self-
evident, and based on fact and reason, while conservative positions
are not just wrong but illegitimate, ideological and unworthy of
serious consideration. Indeed, all the appeals to bipartisanship
notwithstanding, President Obama and other leading liberal voices have
joined in a chorus of intellectual condescension.
It’s an odd time for liberals to feel smug. But even with Democratic
fortunes on the wane, leading liberals insist that they have almost
nothing to learn from conservatives. Many Democrats describe their
troubles simply as a PR challenge, a combination of conservative
misinformation — as when Obama charges that critics of health-care
reform are peddling fake fears of a “Bolshevik plot” — and the
country’s failure to grasp great liberal accomplishments. “We were so
busy just getting stuff done . . . that I think we lost some of that
sense of speaking directly to the American people about what their
core values are,” the president told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos in a
recent interview. The benighted public is either uncomprehending or
deliberately misinformed (by conservatives).
This condescension is part of a liberal tradition that for generations
has impoverished American debates over the economy, society and the
functions of government — and threatens to do so again today, when
dialogue would be more valuable than ever.
Liberals have dismissed conservative thinking for decades, a tendency
encapsulated by Lionel Trilling’s 1950 remark that conservatives do
not “express themselves in ideas but only in action or in irritable
mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas.” During the 1950s and
’60s, liberals trivialized the nascent conservative movement.
Prominent studies and journalistic accounts of right-wing politics at
the time stressed paranoia, intolerance and insecurity, rendering
conservative thought more a psychiatric disorder than a rival. In
1962, Richard Hofstadter referred to “the Manichaean style of thought,
the apocalyptic tendencies, the love of mystification, the intolerance
of compromise that are observable in the right-wing mind.”
This sense of liberal intellectual superiority dropped off during the
economic woes of the 1970s and the Reagan boom of the 1980s. (Jimmy
Carter’s presidency, buffeted by economic and national security
challenges, generated perhaps the clearest episode of liberal self-
doubt.) But these days, liberal confidence and its companion disdain
for conservative thinking are back with a vengeance, finding energetic
expression in politicians’ speeches, top-selling books, historical
works and the blogosphere. This attitude comes in the form of four
major narratives about who conservatives are and how they think and
function.
The first is the “vast right-wing conspiracy,” a narrative made famous
by Hillary Rodham Clinton but hardly limited to her. This vision
maintains that conservatives win elections and policy debates not
because they triumph in the open battle of ideas but because they
deploy brilliant and sinister campaign tactics. A dense network of
professional political strategists such as Karl Rove, think tanks such
as the Heritage Foundation and industry groups allegedly manipulate
information and mislead the public. Democratic strategist Rob Stein
crafted a celebrated PowerPoint presentation during George W. Bush’s
presidency that traced conservative success to such organizational
factors.
This liberal vision emphasizes the dissemination of ideologically
driven views from sympathetic media such as the Fox News Channel. For
example, Chris Mooney’s book “The Republican War on Science” argues
that policy debates in the scientific arena are distorted by
conservatives who disregard evidence and reflect the biases of
industry-backed Republican politicians or of evangelicals aimlessly
shielding the world from modernity. In this interpretation,
conservative arguments are invariably false and deployed only
cynically. Evidence of the costs of cap-and-trade carbon rationing is
waved away as corporate propaganda; arguments against health-care
reform are written off as hype orchestrated by insurance companies.
This worldview was on display in the popular liberal reaction to the
Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election
Commission. Rather than engage in a discussion about the complexities
of free speech in politics, liberals have largely argued that the
decision will “open the floodgates for special interests” to influence
American elections, as the president warned in his State of the Union
address. In other words, it was all part of the conspiracy to support
conservative candidates for their nefarious, self-serving ends.
It follows that the thinkers, politicians and citizens who advance
conservative ideas must be dupes, quacks or hired guns selling stories
they know to be a sham. In this spirit, New York Times columnist Paul
Krugman regularly dismisses conservative arguments not simply as
incorrect, but as lies. Writing last summer, Krugman pondered the
duplicity he found evident in 35 years’ worth of Wall Street Journal
editorial writers: “What do these people really believe? I mean,
they’re not stupid — life would be a lot easier if they were. So they
know they’re not telling the truth. But they obviously believe that
their dishonesty serves a higher truth. . . . The question is, what is
that higher truth?”
In Krugman’s world, there is no need to take seriously the arguments
of “these people” — only to plumb the depths of their errors and
imagine hidden motives.
But, if conservative leaders are crass manipulators, then the rank-and-
file Americans who support them must be manipulated at best, or stupid
at worst. This is the second variety of liberal condescension,
exemplified in Thomas Frank’s best-selling 2004 book, “What’s the
Matter With Kansas?” Frank argued that working-class voters were so
distracted by issues such as abortion that they were induced into
voting against their own economic interests. Then-Vermont Gov. Howard
Dean, later chairman of the Democratic National Committee, echoed that
theme in his 2004 presidential run, when he said Republicans had
succeeded in getting Southern whites to focus on “guns, God and gays”
instead of economic redistribution.
And speaking to a roomful of Democratic donors in 2008, then-
presidential candidate Obama offered a similar (and infamous) analysis
when he suggested that residents of Rust Belt towns “cling to guns or
religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant
sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their
frustrations” about job losses. When his comments became public, Obama
backed away from their tenor but insisted that “I said something that
everybody knows is true.”
In this view, we should pay attention to conservative voters’
underlying problems but disregard the policy demands they voice; these
are illusory, devoid of reason or evidence. This form of liberal
condescension implies that conservative masses are in the grip of
false consciousness. When they express their views at town hall
meetings or “tea party” gatherings, it might be politically prudent
for liberals to hear them out, but there is no reason to actually
listen.
The third version of liberal condescension points to something more
sinister. In his 2008 book, “Nixonland,” progressive writer Rick
Perlstein argued that Richard Nixon created an enduring Republican
strategy of mobilizing the ethnic and other resentments of some
Americans against others. Similarly, in their 1992 book, “Chain
Reaction,” Thomas Byrne Edsall and Mary D. Edsall argued that Nixon
and Reagan talked up crime control, low taxes and welfare reform to
cloak racial animus and help make it mainstream. It is now an article
of faith among many liberals that Republicans win elections because
they tap into white prejudice against blacks and immigrants.
Race doubtless played a significant role in the shift of Deep South
whites to the Republican Party during and after the 1960s. But the
liberal narrative has gone essentially unchanged since then — recall
former president Carter’s recent assertion that opposition to Obama
reflects racism — even though survey research has shown a dramatic
decline in prejudiced attitudes among white Americans in the
intervening decades. Moreover, the candidates and agendas of both
parties demonstrate an unfortunate willingness to play on prejudices,
whether based on race, region, class, income, or other factors.
Finally, liberals condescend to the rest of us when they say
conservatives are driven purely by emotion and anxiety — including
fear of change — whereas liberals have the harder task of appealing to
evidence and logic. Former vice president Al Gore made this case in
his 2007 book, “The Assault on Reason,” in which he expressed fear
that American politics was under siege from a coalition of religious
fundamentalists, foreign policy extremists and industry groups opposed
to “any reasoning process that threatens their economic goals.” This
right-wing politics involves a gradual “abandonment of concern for
reason or evidence” and relies on propaganda to maintain public
support, he wrote.
Prominent liberal academics also propagate these beliefs. George
Lakoff, a linguist at the University of California at Berkeley and a
consultant to Democratic candidates, says flatly that liberals, unlike
conservatives, “still believe in Enlightenment reason,” while Drew
Westen, an Emory University psychologist and Democratic consultant,
argues that the GOP has done a better job of mastering the emotional
side of campaigns because Democrats, alas, are just too intellectual.
“They like to read and think,” Westen wrote. “They thrive on policy
debates, arguments, statistics, and getting the facts right.”
Markos Moulitsas, publisher of the influential progressive Web site
Daily Kos, commissioned a poll, which he released this month, designed
to show how many rank-and-file Republicans hold odd or conspiratorial
beliefs — including 23 percent who purportedly believe that their
states should secede from the Union. Moulitsas concluded that
Republicans are “divorced from reality” and that the results show why
“it is impossible for elected Republicans to work with Democrats to
improve our country.” His condescension is superlative: Of the
respondents who favored secession, he wonders, “Can we cram them all
into the Texas Panhandle, create the state of Dumb-[expletive]-istan,
and build a wall around them to keep them from coming into America
illegally?”
I doubt it would take long to design a survey questionnaire that
revealed strange, ill-informed and paranoid beliefs among average
Democrats. Or does Moulitsas think Jay Leno talked only to
conservatives for his “Jaywalking” interviews?
These four liberal narratives not only justify the dismissal of
conservative thinking as biased or irrelevant — they insist on it. By
no means do all liberals adhere to them, but they are mainstream in
left-of-center thinking. Indeed, when the president met with House
Republicans in Baltimore recently, he assured them that he considers
their ideas, but he then rejected their motives in virtually the same
breath.
“There may be other ideas that you guys have,” Obama said. “I am happy
to look at them, and I’m happy to embrace them. . . . But the question
I think we’re going to have to ask ourselves is, as we move forward,
are we going to be examining each of these issues based on what’s good
for the country, what the evidence tells us, or are we going to be
trying to position ourselves so that come November, we’re able to say,
‘The other party, it’s their fault’?”
Of course, plenty of conservatives are hardly above feeling superior.
But the closest they come to portraying liberals as systematically
mistaken in their worldview is when they try to identify ideological
dogmatism in a narrow slice of the left (say, among Ivy League faculty
members), in a particular moment (during the health-care debate, for
instance) or in specific individuals (such as Obama or House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi, whom some conservatives accuse of being stealth
ideologues). A few conservative voices may say that all liberals are
always wrong, but these tend to be relatively marginal figures or
media gadflies such as Glenn Beck.
In contrast, an extraordinary range of liberal writers, commentators
and leaders — from Jon Stewart’s “Daily Show” to Obama’s White House,
with many stops in between — have developed or articulated narratives
that apply to virtually all conservatives at all times.
To many liberals, this worldview may be appealing, but it severely
limits our national conversation on critical policy issues. Perhaps
most painfully, liberal condescension has distorted debates over
American poverty for nearly two generations.
Starting in the 1960s, the original neoconservative critics such as
Daniel Patrick Moynihan expressed distress about the breakdown of
inner-city families, only to be maligned as racist and ignored for
decades — until appalling statistics forced critics to recognize their
views as relevant. Long-standing conservative concerns over the perils
of long-term welfare dependency were similarly villainized as
insincere and mean-spirited — until public opinion insisted they be
addressed by a Democratic president and a Republican Congress in the
1996 welfare reform law. But in the meantime, welfare policies that
discouraged work, marriage and the development of skills remained in
place, with devastating effects.
Ignoring conservative cautions and insights is no less costly today.
Some observers have decried an anti-intellectual strain in
contemporary conservatism, detected in George W. Bush’s aw-shucks
style, Sarah Palin’s college-hopping and the occasional conservative
campaigns against egghead intellectuals. But alongside that, the fact
is that conservative-leaning scholars, economists, jurists and legal
theorists have never produced as much detailed analysis and commentary
on American life and policy as they do today.
Perhaps the most important conservative insight being depreciated is
the durable warning from free-marketeers that government programs
often fail to yield what their architects intend. Democrats have been
busy expanding, enacting or proposing major state interventions in
financial markets, energy and health care. Supporters of such efforts
want to ensure that key decisions will be made in the public interest
and be informed, for example, by sound science, the best new medical
research or prudent standards of private-sector competition. But
public-choice economists have long warned that when decisions are made
in large, centralized government programs, political priorities almost
always trump other goals.
Even liberals should think twice about the prospect of decisions on
innovative surgeries, light bulbs and carbon quotas being directed by
legislators grandstanding for the cameras. Of course, thinking twice
would be easier if more of them were listening to conservatives at
all.
Gerard Alexander is an associate professor of politics at the
University of Virginia. He will be online to chat with readers on
Monday, February 8, at 11 a.m. Submit your questions and comments
before or during the discussion. On Monday, he will also deliver the
American Enterprise Institute’s Bradley Lecture, “Do Liberals Know
Best? Intellectual Self-Confidence and the Claim to a Monopoly on
Knowledge.”
© 2010 The Washington Post Company
FD HIDDEN DIV
http://climber.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/why-are-liberals-so-condescending/
March 1, 2009...9:11 PM
What’s the Difference Between a Liberal and a Conservative?
We hear this question often in our lives, if we are a political person
ourselves.
I recently heard a response to this question that I disagree with but
I still believe desires to be heard. I am afraid I cannot offer it as
anything but anecdote.
Response: “Think in terms of kind and unkind.”
While this sentiment starts to address the huge gap between these
ideologies it only touches the most bare and stereotypical edges of
the matter.
It is hard to identify one single clear ‘line in the sand’ on this
issue to illustrate and thus it becomes a little troublesome to answer
simply.
The truth of the matter is more that historically both liberals and
conservatives morph and relocate themselves throughout the political
spectrum in all nations. Only certain key values and standards define
each group and it is easier to grab one specific location and
timeframe than to just say all liberals or conservatives are so.
Modern American liberals are clearly defined against modern American
conservatives in terms of their views of separation of church and
state.
Modern American liberals are clearly defined against modern American
conservatives in terms of their views of the use of military budgets
and international policies.
These kind of statements are the only real response to this question
and it is obviously verbose to try to answer this question with what
sounds like reading a textbook at someone.
It is said sometimes that these groups are defined by the members they
attract. I believe this only partly defines the ideology and the
group. The common views and desires are the true backbone of every
movement.
Some claim the liberal movements to attract the more ‘fringe’ elements
of society while conservative attracts a more ‘common’ element of
society.
That may have been true in days past but in our world, right now, the
conservative movement has attracted the truly fringe elements of our
society in the past national campaign and to this day on talk radio
and certain websites. Unquestionable willful destruction of non-
partisan debate is expressly un-American.
I think my answer to this question is more like an answer one might
get from Yoda or some wandering mystic.
“Ask me again when you know which one you are.”
I think if someone is even asking they are just fresh into politics
and all political types, even myself, must claw backwards into our
memories to a time when we were apolitical and remember that nobody
comes out of the womb with a position on taxation rates.
We form all these things we call ‘opinions’ as we go. So cut a break
to people who were spacing out on their nation when we needed them the
most because we still need them now that they are paying attention.
http://ericlightborn.wordpress.com/2009/03/01/difference-between-a-liberal-and-a-conservative/
Focus TV_22.03.2010
Watch Video: (Hindi)
http://vodpod.com/watch/3296074-focus-tv22-03-2010?pod=sanjaykaul
P7 News_23.03.2010
Watch Video: (Hindi)
http://vodpod.com/watch/3296073-p7-news23-03-2010?pod=sanjaykaul
Left is Right. Right is Wrong.
How leftists and pseudo-liberals have crowded out debate in public
discourse in an attempt to muzzle the right by their obdurate head
butting. But things are changing.
These two pithy statements are actually modern aphorisms, and as
attractively poised in their contradiction as they may look, there is
a seminal synonymity between them if we were to go by the modern
version of liberalism – a stark polarization where, without much
evidence, leave alone logic, conservative is taken to mean retrograde
and liberal, progressive.
The liberal occupies centre stage in public discourse not because he
or she represents the larger, more popular or truer view of things but
because he or she has claimed to occupy – from the time of Moses, it
might seem – what is called the moral high ground. And since
occupation is nine tenth of the law, dislodging them has not been
easy. To that extent it is also anomalously interpreted that there can
be only one moral high ground, viz., the ground beneath their feet,
which in a reasonably diverse environment of views and counterviews
would seem absurd because it contradicts itself – morality is not an
absolute idea – one man’s….you know, all that.
But idealism is a fine art, and the liberals excel at it. Ah!, the
glorious irresponsibility of articulating an unattainable objective,
of painting a surreal picture, citing an impossibility. As a matter of
strategy, liberals always deal in larger issues, macro positions and
paint landscapes that arch from biblical rhetoric to genteel fussiness
but the arguments posited by them almost always fail in real time, in
the context of real life values. The rightist, on the other hand,
deals with the actual – his views are more realistic – the behaviour
of man in his relationship with others – the physiological, the
psychological or the spiritual dimensions of what affects him and his
life directly, socially, politically and which shapes his operating
opinions, not subjective views.
The constant lecturing by the liberals, the centrists and left of
centrists, sooner or later transforms into a symphony of agreed,
standardized, boxed and labeled views that have the potential of
paralyzing the body politic by their sheer sonority. Then there are
trained liberals who have spent years spinning on the wheel of western
value judgements until their rules apply to all. In the Indian context
particularly, most of what we know as liberalism is an acquired taste
– remnants of a political regime that was constantly at odds with its
self image and tried to impose a new reality on the consciousness of
the people even though it militates against the grain of the people.
It was part of the new servitude to a new culture, an imported,
contrived philosophy that got its respectability from the west but
only after cauterizing the flavour of the celebrated liberalism of the
Hindus.
The brotherhood of liberals is as much a multinational burger chain as
anything, for it is sustained by a commonality of view that breaches
borders irrespective of applicability and indeed, raison d’etre. A
conservative [rightist] in the context of the west – say the US or UK
– is epitomized by highly polarized views on specific issues –
taxation, abortion, security, immigration, religion – and an equal
intolerance for the opposite. India never had a tradition of such
intolerance due to the syncretic nature of Hinduism and to that extent
it could be argued that peddling liberalism in India has actually
served only to push people into more rightist positions than were
necessary, had a natural course been followed. For evidence I present
to you the rise of Hindutva, the celebrated term ‘pseudo-secular’ and
the attendant political diffusion that had since given rise to the
forces supporting the BJP.
But the liberal is not singly powerful. They hunt in packs. They act
in concert, being a cartel as I have argued, paralyse debate with
their pre-programmed, regurgitated content that is inbuilt with a
machinery of psychological keys, subtle inflexions and caustic
innuendos designed to shock and awe, but mostly to hawk and shove,
being peddlers essentially.
As is always the case with equal and opposing forces, Liberals too are
nothing more than an international cartel, intolerant of any view
other than their own and in a democratic milieu they exhibit
illustratively anti-democratic, even phobic behaviour. Liberals, it is
said, argue for freedom and choice – they actually subvert it, for
while their motive scould be assigned to a childish love of variety,
with their extremist commitment to the idea of freedom they are
eventually beholden to encourage splinter groups, even separatists and
insurgents, rendering the state susceptible to balkanization,
weakening it and endangering the very freedom that comes with secure
boundaries and which they love so much to uphold. It is suggested that
liberals represent openness to change and new ideas – I propose that
it is in fact the exact opposite. Liberals refuse to see change except
from where they stand, in which case it is not a predilection for
change at all – more a resistance to it unless it conforms to their
pre-existing views and stand point.
It is also not as if all of this were harmless banter. The liberal
with his lack of realism, insensitivity to time and effort, muddled
understanding of intent and subject often debauches the dialogue to
the detriment of entire nations, not to speak of people. This
intractable linkage predicts that the liberal will trade tomorrow’s
disaster for today’s relative peace. Remember he does not deal in
solutions, but in positions; not in time but in relativity, not in
qualifiable transactions, but in genial intransigence – anything, in
other words, to not disturb the status quo, even if it means sleeping
through a crisis, with the gumption of calling a more concerned fellow
citizen alarmist should he raise a cry.
History is replete with examples of how much damage this can do – we
don’t have to look far – our most prominent military and foreign
affairs failures have stemmed from this weakness. Now the spectre of
tangoing with Pakistan at the Foreign Secretary talks even as they
blow up bakeries in town is yet another shining example of the
paralysis of independent thinking that liberals induce. To the
argument, so should we stop talking to Pakistan is the answer: at
least have the same self respect that the US reserves for itself. Our
law and order and internal security apparatus is also moribund for the
simple reason that the stranglehold of the liberal lobby won’t allow
progress. Look at the priorities of the liberals who sweated blood at
the thought of a recent movie screening being blocked, against the
backdrop of the blood that spilled in Pune merely because once again,
the liberals forced the government to take its eye off the target.
Guarding cinema hall premiers became a greater testament to our
nationhood than guarding our cities.
It would be naive to suggest that the rise of the liberals is merely
due to the junta or the sheer brilliance of their methods or the depth
of their cadres. The right too, in India has for long served their
interest in as much as not speaking up, not speaking up enough, or not
speaking up in a language that would challenge their methods. They
have been in thrall of the liberals for some time now and some are
finding it difficult to maintain the balance and poise required to
counter their subtle tactics while some are still hesitating to come
out of the closet, or having come out, have frequent bouts of
withdrawal and keep rethinking positions worrying about their approval
ratings – in a strange quirk – among the very liberals they decry! –
the same dodgy professors in moth eaten tweed jackets and scruffy
jhola wallahas who revel in their penury of new ideas.
Leftist, and left of centre demagogues have wreaked havoc on the
intellectual temperament of the Indian people for close to half a
century, where the state’s writ, composed by them, has run riot with a
people’s conscience, their sense of self and identity – the vein and
sap of personality.
The earlier success of the liberals and the left liberals in crowding
our text books with their version of Indian social history is also a
classic reason for this: most of my generation had to lose thirty
years of conditioning to even emerge from the chrysalis and find in
the kernel of Hindu thought the real tone, tenor and import of
liberalism. It took that much time to also realize that we don’t need
to be at odds with who we are and how we think and that we can’t be
judged or judge on the basis of western thought and philosophy.
Besides it could be said with some certainty that a large body of
western liberal philosophical theory is beholden to the tenets of
Hindu thought for the very version they come back to sell back to us
through their re-sellers. Consequently, it is a fact that it takes a
longer growth curve to find oneself before being lumped as a rightist:
the liberal has merely to walk the course set by his predecessor
masters: the rightist has to take a u-turn after all is said and done
and come back to his roots and almost start again.
The Hindu’s traditional aversion for conflict, a quality not many
cultures can claim, is also part of the misconception that his views
are in subtle consonance with the liberals as they preen around in our
country in borrowed clothes. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
It is intrinsic in the make of our people to be able to revel in
dichotomy: what looks like a contradiction to a westerner is often
merely two sides of the coin to an Indian. Remember the Hindu can
handle two kinds of truths; and at the same time too! To people with
one God, the idea of many Gods is abhorrent. And there starts the
trend of intolerance that is spawned by undercover fascism,
masquerading as liberalism.
The marginalization of pseudo-liberals in India is a given not because
of rising rightism, but because it was never a really original product
and its moorings were always suspect. It is for just that reason that
the scope of such liberals has constantly reduced and now their most
celebrated festivals are things like valentine’s day, a Gujarat riot
court hearing, a shahrukh khan flick or some cute indo-pak music
festival.
But this trend is changing and a new breed of ‘write-ists’ must
emerge, who will redefine liberalism vis-à-vis conservativeness, left
from right, and right from wrong. They must underline that in the
Indian context, the right is more centre than the liberal. They must
shift the fulcrum of the equation and lay down the new fundamentals of
bipolar debate in the context of India, where moderation must now be
tempered with a bias for self preservation, where centuries of socio-
political erosion must be stemmed with a new apparatus of definitions,
where indigenous political awakening must sear through the mask of
pseudo-liberalism and give birth to a more realistic version of active
liberalism, more commonly called the middle path, more commonly known
as our gift to the world.
This piece has also appeared in an edited version under a different
headline in The Daily Pioneer of 20th Febryary, 2010
~ by sanjaykaul on February 20, 2010.
One Response to “Left is Right. Right is Wrong.”
Absolutely brilliant!
A piece of advice, though unsolicited,the entire media [print and
electronic] is not only anti-BJP but also anti-Hindu. Therefore I wish
BJP projects articulate people on TV and rebutts all the trash written
in the print media.
R SUNDERARAJAN said this on March 20, 2010 at 11:00 am
http://sanjaykaul.wordpress.com/2010/02/20/left-is-right-right-is-wrong/comment-page-1/#comment-62
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‘Modi has said nobody is above law and he has kept his word’
Express news service
Posted: Sunday , Mar 28, 2010 at 0253 hrs
New Delhi:
After Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s questioning for over five
hours by the SIT on Saturday, the BJP said Modi, by his action, had
proved that he believed in supremacy of law of the land, even as the
main opposition party made a strong case for “autonomous functioning
of institutions in the country”.
Modi has twice been mentioned as prime ministerial material by BJP
president Nitin Gadkari, and at the recent party conclave, Modi’s name
(along with a couple of other leaders) were described by the BJP
president as party’s “future prospects”.
After Modi’s appearance before the SIT, two divergent currents were
seen in the central BJP on Saturday.
BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy spoke more in terms of Modi’s
personality. Rudy said Modi (through his appearance before SIT) “had
demolished mischievous speculation about him” and that his “graceful
action vindicated BJP’s position” and that it appeared that “SIT team
is tired, Modi is not”.
Another spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman, who was officially fielded by
the party to address the media after Modi’s deposition, talked in
terms of “supremacy of institutions”. “Modi has said that nobody is
above the law and he has kept his word,” Sitharaman said. “The SIT was
formed by the Supreme Court. We should allow the courts to function
and learn to respect institutions,” she said, adding that Modi was
assisting SIT in the probe and that he had not been summoned by it.
She also reminded the Congress about its track record on “respecting
institutions” in the country.
She also slammed Union Law Minister M Veerappa Moily for reportedly
suggesting that Modi should co-operate with SIT, implying that one
institution must not interfere in the functioning of another
institution. She also reminded the Congress that “there were hardly
any convictions in the 1984 riots” whereas “several people have
already been convicted in the 2002 riots in Gujarat”. The main
opposition also accused the media of being driven by activists
pursuing the 2002 riots case.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/modihassaidnobodyisabovelawandhehaskepthisword/596606/0
Babri demolition: Cong reacts cautiously to testimony of IPS officer1
ANI
Posted: Saturday , Mar 27, 2010 at 1211 hrs
New Delhi:
An IPS officer incharge of Advani's security during the Babri
demolition has said that the leader gave inflamatory speeches.
The Congress party has reacted with caution to the deposition of
senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Anju Gupta, who was L K
Advani's security officer during the demolition of the Babri Masjid on
December 6, 1992.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said Gupta's statement
before a court in Rae Bareilly is crucial in convicting the guilty.
"This (Anju's deposition) is the first official, direct eyewitness
testimony in legal and technical sense in this (Babri mosque
demolition case) matter. We must exercise restrain and respect the
process of law," said Singhvi.
"But, it is extremely serious and, it is extremely important and
provisions (of law) involved are extremely serious," he added.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) refused to comment saying the matter
is subjudice.
"This kind of issue (eyewitness account) has also come before the
Liberhan Commission. We would not like comment on the judicial process
and her (Anju's) testimony in the court," said Ramnath Kovind, a
spokesperson of the BJP.
Earlier on Friday, Anju Gupta told a Rae Bareilly Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) court that Advani delivered incendiary speeches on
December 6, 1992, asserting that the temple would be built at the same
place.
"She (Anju) has told in the court in detail all the happenings of that
day (December 6, 1992). I have completed my (process of witness)
examination. I think nearly 60 questions were asked which have been
replied. Now, the argument has begun. The honourable court has fixed
23 April for further hearing," said Public Prosecutor P K Chaubey.
Immediately after the riots in 1993, Gupta had told the Central Bureau
of Investigation (CBI) how Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti and
the rest had expressed delight over the demolition of the mosque.
CBI Director Ashwani Kumar had reportedly written to Cabinet Secretary
K Chandrashekhar urging him to release Gupta for the important hearing
on the Babri Mosque demolition case.
A special Ayodhya court in Rae Bareilly had earlier discharged Advani
on the plea that charges against him were based on mere suspicion. The
CBI dropped the charge of criminal conspiracy - Section 120 B of the
Indian Penal Code (IPC) - in its revised charge sheet submitted before
the Rae Bareilly court on the directives of the Allahabad High Court.
The revised chargesheet contained relatively milder sections under the
Indian Penal Code - Sections 153-A, 153-B (propagating communal
violence), 147, 149 (rioting) and 505 (spreading ill-will). This was
believed to be the result of CBI''''s failure to press the charges
strongly.
4 Comments |
congress is staging this drama
By: MT | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 21:05:43 PM
congress is staging this drama to divert peoples attention from
inflation and nuclear liability bill
Why 18 long years ?
By: Gopal | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 20:43:17 PM
Why did this IPS officer wait for such a long time to tell the court,
when the case has been going on for years. If she really stands by
law, she should have deposed long back.Was she under pressure then or
is she now, is a mute question. In any case, 1984 is much prior to
1992.
Anju Gupta Rizvi
By: desi nerd | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 19:55:00 PM
Why dont they publish the full name of the IPS officer and the fact
that her husband Rizvi is the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) of P
Chidambaram.
Court decision is all and above
By: Ravishkumar | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:11:22 PM
Court decision should be all and above,however as the matter is under
subjudice,so one should avoid oneself from making any public comment
about it.As it has become customary in our country that everyone try
to take political benefit anyhow.But it should be avoided as far as a
serious matter is under consideration.So,just don't think only about
your political benefit,go deep inside the seriousness of the subject
matter.
Iron Man Advani
By: V.Narayanaswamy | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:50:43 PM
Advani is in politics for his self interest. When Babri Masjid was
demolished he had shed crocadile tears is evident from the testimony
of the IPS officer. As Home Minister he was not aware that Jaswant
Singh was to accompany the terrorists to Kandahar. In the Jinnah
episode he wanted a good Character certificate from Pakistan to be
trumpted in India. When Mohan Bhagwat appointed Sushma Swaraj as the
Leader of the Opposition in place of Advani, it was widely believed
that he would hang up his boots. The Rath Yatri Advani has accepted
the superfluous post of Chairman of the Parliamentary Party. He is
BJP's Bhishma Pitamah. He truely deserves a Bharat Ratna. If tomorrow
Sushma Swaraj becomes Prime Minister, he may accept of Param Mukhya
Pradhan Mantri.
Advani is Patriot
By: Pankaj | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:28:41 PM
Mr Advani is true patriot. He lived his life for the country. I wish
people of this country acknoledge his service to this country and give
respect he desrves. Hai Hind!
Fake Secularism
By: Nishit Desai | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:18:01 PM
How has the Congress started blaming the BJP despite the fact that it
itself was in power at the Centre in 1992. In that case, PV Narsimha
Rao and the entire Congress cabinet are all equally responsible which
also includes the present Prime Minister. If they were so much
concerned about security, they could have very well taken over the
entire city of Ayodhya. But they did not since it was in their own
interest not only to get the mosque demolished and pave way for a
temple thereby supporting Hindus but at the same time to discredit the
BJP.Poor secular Congress.
Is Anju a Gupta?
By: Ajit | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:06:44 PM
Anju Gupta is no longer so, she is married to a muslim and converted
to islam obviously she will not hesitate in denigrating BJP and Hindu
faith. What about over 100 temples demolished in Kashmir after 1985
and over 1000 demolished in Pakistan after 1947. Is secularism only
for Hindus?
BJP bashing?
By: srinivas prasad | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:59:31 PM
the media goes tom toming when it comes to babrimasjid and Gujrath.why
does not attack 1984 riots with the same vigor?
what about the 1984 anti-Sikh riots?
By: Nariman Mistry | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:57:21 PM
If demolishing an abandoned structure is so bad, what about the
genocide of 5000 Sikhs in 1984? Barring one (that too after 25 years),
how many Congressmen have been prosecuted?
What about what?
By: Shatruj Jain | Sunday , 28 Mar '10 1:06:14 AM
It has now become a pet habit of Sangh Parivar to hark about Sikh
Riots whenever Babri Masjid issue comes in press, while conveniently
reminding us to forget and live on the Gujrat Massacres.
Babri Demolition
By: Shanti Patel | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 19:29:15 PM
Advani went on to become Deputy PM. Sadhvi Uma Bharti and Ritambhara
who were bosom partners at the time are believed to be rivals now and
do not talk to each other. Uma has been junked by her own party.
Ritambhara being the crafty and conniving type used the Ram Janmabhumi
Andolan as a stepping stone to create a throne for herself, cleverly
transformed her image from a hate spewing monger into an image of
motherly love (Vatsalya)- fake of course. Today she is milking crores
of Rupees from gullible Hindus and leading a life of unfathomable
luxury. She goes on cruises and travels the world by first class and
being worshipp[ed as a "Saint". It is believed that she wields great
power within BJP's inner circle. What a travesty of justice in India!
Baberi Demolition
By: Varind | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:13:16 PM
As the case is in court hence it is inappropriate to comment so much
but certainly Congress has no right to comment on this issue who
itself is involved in attack on Golden Temple. The memory of the
Indian people is not so weak as Congress thnks. Nevertheless if
demolition of Baberi Mosque was violation of constitution so is the
attack on Golden Temple.
Hide outs in holy places
By: karunakar | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 22:25:06 PM
If criminlas hide in temples,gurudwaras or mosques , the goverment has
the constitutional right to flush them out
1984 riots case accused seeks transfer to another court
Agencies
Posted: Saturday , Mar 27, 2010 at 1233 hrs
New Delhi:
A co-accused of Congress leader Sajjan Kumar in the 1984 anti-Sikh
riots cases on Saturday pleaded before a Delhi Court to transfer the
matters to a judge having territorial jurisdiction to try them.
Special CBI Judge P S Teji reserved the order on the application of
accused Khushal Singh in the riots cases.
In a plea, Singh submitted that Karkardooma court did not have
jurisdiction to try the cases as the offences were alleged to have
been committed at Sultanpuri and Delhi Cantonment.
"Karkardooma court where the matters are being heard are not the
competent court as per the law with regard to territorial
jurisdiction," Singh's counsel submitted.
He further said that Delhi has been divided into nine judicial
districts and the matter should be heard by a court either at Rohini
or at Tees Hazari district courts.
"The very purpose of dividing Delhi into nine judicial district was to
make justice available at the doorsteps of the public and to ensure
convenience," he said seeking transfer of the cases.
He also referred to section 177 of the CrPC, stating that any criminal
matter should be heard by a competent local court having territorial
jurisdiction.
CBI prosecutor Y K Saxena, on the other hand, opposed his plea stating
that there was no question of territorial impropriety.
"No prejudice is caused to the accused whether the matter is tried at
Tees Hazari or Karkardooma. This is the only designated court of the
CBI," he said.
He also said that the probe into riots cases was transferred to CBI
from the Delhi Police.
Sajjan Kumar and others, who have been chargesheeted by the CBI in two
riots cases, were present before the court to which the matter has
been transferred to initiate the proceedings related to trial.
On March 20, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate had declined to
take on record an application of Kumar seeking certain documents
related to the chargesheet filed against him in riot cases, saying it
was aimed at causing hindrance in the progress of the case.
The ACMM had sent the case against Kumar and others before a Special
CBI Court.
CBI had filed two chargesheets on January 13 in the riots cases
registered on the recommendation of Justice G T Nanavati Commission
which had inquired into the sequence of events leading to the riots in
the aftermath of the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi.
Comments (2) |
Indian Judicial System
By: Anant | 27-Mar-2010
Judicial system in India is non-existant for the general public. Kumar
will try to shift courts where his friends are. It will take another
26 years before the courts decide where the case should be heard. Long
live politicians in India and two fingers for the sufferes of
injustices.
Long Live Congress!
By: Loyal Congress | 27-Mar-2010
Hope Sajjan Kumar gets acquitted soon and this witch hunt stops! Let
the terror be defeated. Let's hope the nation never again witnesses
the like of tragic assassination of one our greatest leaders Mataji
Indira Gandhi!
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/1984riotscaseaccusedseekstransfertoanothercourt/596404/0
Guj riots: Modi questioned by SIT for over 9 hours
Agencies
Posted: Saturday , Mar 27, 2010 at 0926 hrs
Gandhinagar:
SIT summoned Modi to depose in connection with a complaint of Zakia
Jaffery, widow of Eshan Jaffery, who was killed in the riot.
For the first time since the riots in Gujarat eight years ago, state
Chief Minister Narendra Modi today subjected himself to marathon
questioning by the Supreme Court-appointed SIT in two sessions lasting
for more than nine hours.
The controversial BJP leader, who faces allegations of omission and
commission with regard to the mob attack on a housing society in which
a former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri and 68 others were killed, drove to
the SIT office in the heart of Gandhinagar where he was questioned by
a team of officers headed by A K Malhotra, a former CBI DIG.
After a marathon session lasting over five hours from 12 noon to 5 PM
Modi left the SIT office telling reporters that he would come back in
the evening.
Modi, 59, returned to the SIT office at 9 PM and faced a second round
of questioning for four hours ending at 1 AM because he was keen that
the entire exercise be completed today itself.
Emerging from the second round of quizzing at the SIT office at the
old secretariat building, the Chief Minister told mediapersons that
the investigators told him that his question was over.
"I have been told by SIT that your work is over", Modi said.
Though there was no official word on the questioning, Modi is said to
have replied to 62 of the 68 questions put to him in the first
session.
This was the first time that Modi was probed since the carnage eight
years back.
"This was the first time in eight years that someone wanted to speak
to me on the issue and I attended that", Modi said.
Taking a dig at his critics, he said "God give good sense to those who
said I have not spoken for eight years".
"I hope that today's incident will give good sense to those who are
keen to spread misinformation and those who spread lies", the Chief
Minister said.
Modi claimed he had anwsered all questions put by the SIT and that he
recalled to the extent possible the sequence of events that had taken
place eight years ago.
The Chief Minister said his statement was recorded by the SIT
investigators after which he signed it.
Asked what sort of questions he was asked, Modi said "I cannot share
that with you because the SIT has to submit its report to the Supreme
Court.
When pointed out that he had been in the dock for the last eight years
over the riots, a smilig Modi said "you have still kept me in the
dock".
"Vistaar se batcheet ki (we spoke in detail)," he said adding "under
the Indian constitution, law is supreme. As a common man, CM, I am
bound by the Indian constitution and law. No one can be above the
law."
After the first round of questioning, a smiling Modi emerged from the
SIT office at the old secretariat building and told mediapersons that
"I am taking a break from questioning".
SIT Chief R K Raghavan was not present in his office when Modi
appeared in the first session in response to the panel's summons.
Modi became the first chief minister of any state to be questioned in
a criminal complaint of mass murder after he and his administration
were accused of aiding and abetting riots in one area in Ahmedabad.
Ending the suspense as to where and when he would appear after he was
summoned for questioning in connection with a complaint of Zakia
Jafry, widow of Eshan Jafry, Modi reached the SIT office at around
noon.
The complaint filed by Zakia among other things alleged there was a
wider conspiracy by Modi and his administration and that he had
instructed officers not to take action.
"My appearance here is a "karara jawab" (fitting reply) to my
detractors. I have given a resounding reply to those who doubted my
intentions. I hope such talks by vested interests will stop," Modi
said.
Asked if the questions put to him related to Gulburg Society riot
case, Modi said "questions ranged from February 27 till the
elections".
To a question about number of questions asked by SIT, he said "I have
not counted them".
Asked if he was satisfied with the SIT investigations, Modi said "the
Supreme Court has to be satisfied."
The Chief Minister repeatedly said the SIT was appointed by the apex
court and it did not have a single officer from Gujarat.
"I have fulfilled my words given to the people of the country. Nobody
is above the Indian constitution and law", he said,
Modi said "we should create a conducive atmosphere to work within the
ambit of law and so that law can take its own course".
54 Comments |
Congress should learn
By: abhijit | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 22:17:42 PM
I congratulate Mr Modi for his conduct..and hope that he will come
clean after this.. congress and congress supported Media should
learn.. this media doesn't talk about mr. Sajjan Kumar.. doesn't talk
to SIkh riots but always ready to portray Modi as a villan.. in the
process not giving him for any credit for his work.. keep it up Modi..
we support you
Sajjan and Modi
By: anil bharali | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 22:14:30 PM
Both Modi and Sajjan are wrong doer in the eyes of law.There is no
pint justifying someone at this point of time.Let the law takes its
own course.
Exemplary Conduct
By: Patali | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 21:34:09 PM
Great, Modiji for upholding the law of the land and for showing by
exemplary conduct how people's representative should behave. He has
again demonstrated how he is different from the despicable lot that we
have as politicians and political leaders. Jai Hind!
MODI-SIT
By: N.ASTI | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 21:13:42 PM
Whatever may be our differences with Mr.Modi,we should appreciate his
meeting with SIT which was without finding any excuse in the matter.He
has not acted like Mr.Sajjan of Congress who went underground to get
bail and save himself from the procedure.Indians should remember that
unlike Mr.Rajiv Gandhi who tried to justify Sikh massacre of 84 which
took place under the guidance of his party leaders(In one way
indirectly state-sponsored atrocities),Mr.Modi never tried to justify
Gujarat riots but also expressed grieved about the riots.Hence Modi's
today's step is a good thing for our law-abiding society.
Rajiv Gandhi's Role In 1984 Riots
By: Arun | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 20:47:03 PM
Hope the SIT now probes Rajiv Gandhi's, Tytler's & Narasimha Rao's
role in the 1984 Sikh Riots and the role of the Congress Party in the
Bhagalpur riots and also the Maharashtra government's role is abetting
the Mumbai riots.
Modi will be safe
By: Raj Bhatti | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 19:11:32 PM
Nothig is going to happen to Modi. Remember, Advani tricked this
Supreme Court and the nation very wisely and got the mosque
demolished. Nothing happened to him. So, our Modi also will be safe
too as we have have majority in this Hindu nation.
Jai Indian Judiciary
By: Dr.Sanamdxb | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 19:06:56 PM
This once again proven the no one is above law. As well, it is very
disappointing that a CM could have become reaching such situation for
massacre case. It would have more glitters if peoples court could have
thrown him out from the power and politics. Gujrat has missed such
chance number of times. We all decide the one who come to rule us
should clean politicially and personally. Then India will be shine
much and fly its flag in very height. Let us all pray for it.
Nobody is above the law - finally modi had to bow down to law for his
deeds
By: Dinesh Patel | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:54:43 PM
narendra modi has been compelled to be present in front of SIT for
being questioned for his involvement in Gujarat riots. This has
happened for the first time that Gujarat Chief Minister had to appear
for criminal involvement. It is a shame for Gujarat State and
"Deshvasion". It has been the tradition in Indian and Gujarat politics
to resign first and then to support legal matters. He also tried to
play gimmicks few days before regarding receiving summons to appear
and he had blamed the media. Ultimately, media reports proved to be
correct about the SUMMONS to modi.
Good for BJP
By: Rajesh | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:54:28 PM
It is a good disicion from Modi. its means the law of INDIA is equal
to everybody.This disicion will give good political career for modi
and also BJP.
Modi
By: Mahendra | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:51:23 PM
The Msulim congress party has nothing better to do than target Hindu
people. Hindus should boycott Congress Party else you culture, people
and wealth will not exist. Indian Govt is controlled by Nehru's
Pakistani Muslim relatives.
Atatck on Democracy
By: DILIP/FRANCE | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:45:16 PM
Modi is being demonised and de legitimised by the immoral media and
their commmunal lackeys.This nonsence will not wash,so back off.
to enginner shareef
By: HOTSPICY | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:45:05 PM
so mr so called shareef what we should do with people who has done
mumbai attack and blastsevery where in INDIA I will give vote to MODI
again in election and want to see him as pm if he promise to do it at
national level bahot ho gaya desh dhrohiyo ko khilana
No vilification
By: Gus | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:41:43 PM
Modi, do not cower in front of these vicious communal idiots.Fight
fire with fire,days of turning the other cheek is bygone.We are ready
to bank roll, with loads,loads of bucks.You are being framed by the
ferals and the communal deliquents.
Long Live Shri Narendra Modi
By: Muhammed | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:38:08 PM
Shri Narendra Modi is incarnation of Lord Shri Ram. Opponents of Shri
Narendra Modi are Ravans. Manmohan Singh, Sonia Maino, ChidamUlla, M
Oily all shall get slayed and we will celebrate Deepawali! Jai Shri
Narendra Modi, Jai Shree Ram.
Prosecute all
By: cb | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 18:30:16 PM
All polititions involved in rioting should be relentlessly prosecuted.
Only then will they think twice before indulging in it. Its a matter
of country's survival.
manager
By: patel dharmendra | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 17:59:27 PM
Modiji is a second chanakya and india need and got after long long
time such person to set the india againg for another golden period of
the another era. In indian history only chankya settle governance has
called a golden period of indian history and second side chanakya has
done lots of things no one can agree but goel was clear and was only
united hindustan only.so so call this media or and journalisam can say
anything but in the real world modiji is real hero which india needed
long ago.No one can stop him to be a prime minister of india and time
will prove my words which had said 3 years ago. D Patel
Indian Judiciary
By: Anant | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 17:03:51 PM
Indian judiciary is so irrelavant that any politician can commit any
crime, even in the presence of these judges, will get away free. These
rogue politicians will always find their own judge in their own state
who will give them bail and eventually, after 30 years, find them not
guilty. It is the people of India who are at fault by letting these
undesirables to exploit peoples prejudices and divide the communities.
Not a single Hindu Gujarati will ever think that Modi has done
something wrong. Gujaratis feel that it is okay if the Muslim
community suffers. It is no different than the 1984 sufferings of
Sikhs by Hindus. Nothing has happened to those politicians and you can
bet nothing will happen to Modi. All these dramas are for the foreign
countries to show that India is better than Pakistan.
Narendra Modi proved far greater than Rajiv Gandhi.
By: Hemant ; Hyderabad. | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:44:54 PM
Narendra Modi proved greater than Rajiv Gandhi.Rajiv Gandhi always
hide from facing any even; smallest enquiry about Delhi Riots{in which
He was far more villinous than Modi} and Bofors{in He was far more
villininous than Advani in Babri}Rajiv always hide. Her Highness
Sonia , pretending great sacrifice in refusing any post. No. Real
reason is She does not have any courage to reply or justify any work;
any decision , any act. To her great fortune She got puppets like
Moily & Chavans; who shamelessly ready to do anything. Now shall real
thing come out that - Victim Jaffery has made many more calls to Sonia
to save his life. She just ignored and refused to take her calls.
clueless
By: premila | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:34:36 PM
the erstwhile media channels are clueless and have no sense of
direction. The way CNN IBN clarified that they were the only news
channel to mention the correct version for the appearance of Modiji
for inquiry shows that they want to make a cake and eat it too. They
are going to chew more than they can swallow. If a fallen tree can
shake the earth so also the burning of humans can shake the earth!
Modiji, the best administrator
By: Vishak | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:26:44 PM
The media at large blames present Chief Minister of Gujrat for all the
happenings in the year 2002. Shri Narendra Modi is the elected
representative with majority in the Gujarat state. Why nobody is
referreing to the pre-era of Modiji when almost every day the cities
of Gujarat were under communal riots created by vested interests. That
situation has been changed and people of Gujarat experience peace at
large including mintority communities for the last nine years because
of Mr Modi. Why nobdoy appraise the good work done by the C.M. of
Gujarat? Nobdoy will blame Modiji for all the communal riots took
place in the country since 1947. The C.M. of Gujarat is the best
political figure available in the country.
Ichha Dhari and BJP leaders
By: Dr.Jhanki Prasad | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:04:40 PM
RSS Baba Ichha Dhari types have been running India and one one side
they were chanting Ram Ram and on other burping tax payers money.RSS
Baba Ichha Dhari is a mirror image of BJP.RSS Baba Ichha Dhari and BJP
leaders are like two sides of one coin.
Ichha Dhari Baba likes ran India under BJP
By: Gulvinder | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:01:14 PM
The justice system of India seems to run on the feeling of the
politicians or else why were those who were caught red handed in
different scams were not taken to task? Jaswant Singh had provided so
many informations to the media about Advani and rset of Ku Kux Klan
like Sanghparivar, but no one has taken anyone to task. Madan Lal
Khurana openly accused Advani and Sushma Swaraj for having connections
with Dawood Ibrahim, but no one has investigated this serious matter
which has concerns to the security threats to India if this
information is correct.
NGOs and Media tirade against Modi
By: Mukesh Goud | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:55:10 PM
Not all media are funded by Evangelists but certainly many of the
leading Media houses in India has a clear christian Evangelical agenda
and they are in particular are after the blood of Modi. Now they will
come up with some crooked and cooked up stories to malign Narendra
Modi. He is one of the very few politicians in India who has the
courage to lead India and Indians.
Modi Vs SIT Vs Media
By: Girish Adhiya | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:52:44 PM
Media has given too much hype to this issue. Under the freedom
umbrella, media is playing villain role sometimes. Modi is superstar
of Gujarat & India. Since Congress is worried about rise of Modi, they
are doing all these things thro' NGO etc to keep this issue alive and
brand themselves as non-communal. This is very dirty and bad politics
of Congress. Hindus have major weakness that they are not united and
hence evil forces takes benefit of this. Hindus are not united bcoz
they are fighting within themself for God, Devi-Devta, caste, creed,
language, region etc. I pray to Lord to give good sense to Hindu so
they can unite and fight against evil forces. Muslims and Christian
are united and hence nobody will speak against them. Even media is
afraid of their "Fatwa" so all will keep quiet.
As a head of state ut was his responsibility to protect all
gujaratis.....
By: kranti | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:52:11 PM
Whatever happened in godhrakand was very bad and culprits should be
punish harshly but whatever happened aftermath of Godhrakand was worst
as gujarat government failed to control law and order.As a head of
state modi should take responsibility.
Modi the New Sardar
By: Indian | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:41:14 PM
This Naqvi,Shareef apni jaat bata rahe hain...Gujrat has shown its
Muslims the right way back in 2002...this bloody Congress and
secularist shit are conveniently ignoring what they did to the Sikhs
back in 1984...Modi is a TRUE Indian...those who cannot accept truth
may please migrate to UP or Delhi or other Congress ruled
states...Congress has screwed India by protecting people like
M>F>Husain..
Float a new party.
By: Dr.Jhanki Prasad | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:07:42 PM
A new political party is needed, because Bharatiya Jansangh Party is a
failure. We Hindus and everyone else from all religions and castes
should form a party to stop political corruption and serve the
children of India with just. This partys agenda must be to provide
roti, kapda, makaan and good education to every child of India.The new
party should wipe out types of terrorists and fascists.Jai Hind
MODI MUST BE HANGED FOR KILLING INNOCENTS.RSS/VHP/BJP MEN HAVE
CONFESSED ON TEHELKA THAT THEY WERE BACKED BY "BUTHCER MODI"
By: Engineer | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:52:24 PM
GUJARATH KA KASSAI NEEDS TO BE PUNISHED.HE DESERTED WIFE AND HAS NO
CHILDREN THAT'S WHY HAS NO FAMILY OR HUMAN VALUES AND CONSPIRED TO
RAPE AND KILL MANY INNOCENTS. IS THIS THE FACE OF HINDUTVA? THOSE
SUPPORTING RAPES AND KILLINGS ARE PSEUDO HINDUTVADIS.
A Step Forward In Right Direction For Mr Modi
By: anupam | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:47:22 PM
although little late but finally our law delivers the truth, also hope
Mr Modi will cooperate in making it more effective. politically or non
politically it is a right step for Mr. Modi
Modi appears before SIT
By: VOX INDICA | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:45:11 PM
One does not understand all the media hoopla about it. To quote two
examples that easily come to mind, President V.V.Giri appeared before
a High Court and Indira Gandhi appeared before the Shah Commission.
Modi at SIT
By: M.K.B.Nambiar | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:35:36 PM
Mr Narendra Modi appearing before the SIT to give his testimony is
prrof enough that the Gujarat CM respects the law and does not try to
circumvent the summons as politicians generally do.The Congress
sayying that he haslowered the prestigee of the high office of the CM
is laughable as their Primiister Mr Narasimha Rao had appeared before
the Supreme court as an accused in a bribery case.
Mr Modi and the media
By: RP Mehrotra | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:03:53 PM
Mr Modi has exhibited that he is a man of principles and belongs to a
political party of proven ideologies. He has shown that he is a law-
abiding citizen and open to scrutiny (unlike Congress' absconding
stars in garb of Sajjan Kumars and Tytlers). Media which has been
unnecessarily hounding Mr Modi must show restraint.
Irresponsible
By: Umakant Kapoor | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 17:15:07 PM
Thanks Mr. Mehrotra for calling a spade a spade, unlike many other
victims of the Congress propaganda machine.English media lives in a
world of its own and has been corrupted by the Corporates.
gujarat chief minister appearance to SIT
By: K Balakrishnan | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:55:38 PM
law should take it course and nothing wrong in his appearance to SIT.
What should be avoided the media trial by the TV channels. Souces of
these channels and so called human justice organisations NGO funded by
vested politicall parties should be enquired by SIT also.
NaMOji n SIT
By: Ananth Seth | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:53:09 PM
Ho gaya! I wonder what the media will do now. They have been robbed of
a spicy topic by this polite n appreciable act of Modiji. Please note
that Modiji, unlike Sajjan Kumar of "oh so secular, non-corrupt, and
law abiding" congress, who chose to go underworl...oops underground!
has chosen to cooperate with the judiciary. HAts off ModiJI!
Mr.
By: Aravind | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:29:24 PM
The the murder of innocent Sikhs on the incdence of Indira Ghandhi's
murder should also be dealt with; Would Teesta also take the same
interest and make the same comment? None one justify provocative
actions leading to heinous crime. But everyone should believe in
equality and should not expect a preference due to being a particular
community.
MODI and Sit
By: paresh joshi | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 22:15:59 PM
No teesta does not care about any Indians. For her only muslims are
the victims. Rest of the Indians does not matter to her. This is the
typical hypocracy of the leftists and the pseudo-seculars. PKJ
MODI/BLATHACKERY/ADVANI AND TOGADIA MUST BE TREATED ON PAR WITH
TERRORISTS
By: Engineer Shareef | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:13:05 PM
IF INDIAN JUDICIARY IS NON-BIASED IT SHOULD PUNISH, WITHPUT FURTHER
DELAY, ALL THOSE RESPONSIBLE OF MASS MURDERS AND DEMOLITIONS.
we stupid
By: dbhatt | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 23:20:48 PM
so if modi get panish then indian judiciary is non biased and if he
will not punish then it is biase. so what do you want to say
Treating all terrorism alike
By: ramkesav | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 21:00:58 PM
How will you explain the non-execution of Afsal Guru despite SC order.
Who issleeping on the file? Mr Engineer Shereef, why you are silent on
Afsal Guru 's non execution. Why the 26/11 terrorists are not yet
convicted? why they are give five star food etc. You may have
forgotten that the Imam of Delhi Majid Abdulla Bukari is still facing
a trail in Kerala HC for giving host to covicts from Arab countries
who came to Delhi on fake passports and visa. This case dates back to
the seventies and not Teesta or Pranab will care about this case as
the case relates to a muslim leader.
engineer who ru
By: CHANDRA SHEKARA REDDY NAGARA | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:51:41 PM
first of all muslim clerics who instigate riots against the hindus
should be hanged in public
Reply to fake engineer
By: Ananth Seth | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:50:41 PM
Shareef, now this is what is called wishful thinking, hallucinating,
day dreaming and what not. Anyways, sochtay raho coz thinking duznt
cost anything.
Narendra Modi : A True Nationalist
By: Aravinda Rao | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:01:40 PM
Narendra Modi is a true nationalist and a Hindu Champion. If he has
advised his officials to remain in-house and not do anything to stop
the Godhra riots, there is nothing wrong in it. Notice that nobody is
crying for the Hindus who were burnt prior to the Godhra riots. What
is wrong if the Hindus vent out their anger against the muslims. Where
was Teesta Setalvad and what has she done for the cause of the Hindus.
This Nation belongs to the Hindus (2 Nation theory). The muslims got
what they wanted. Whoever stayed back are second class citizens. That
is why they have never reconciled to the idea of being Indians. They
harbour/shelter terrorists, provide logistic support etc. and allow
them to strike mahyem on our soil. Media is to blame for this, 'cause
they provide wide coverage to people like Teesta. The Tax dept. and
the enforcement should verify the source of her funds. But as long as
the congress is at the centre, not possible, 'cause Teesta and Sonia
are both Christians.
Appalling
By: Satish Haldankar | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 17:14:08 PM
You are justifying violence. Everything is wrong if one section of the
society vent out their anger on another. Here is some food for
thought. If you had a differences with someone and God forbid he/she
chooses to use violence your family to settle scores, would that OK
with you? No one is allowed to take law into his/her own hands. Next,
you can fight for the cause of the 'Hindus', why do you want Teesta
and others to do so? No, this nation does not belong to the Hindus
alone, it belongs to all the citizens of the country, irrespective of
their religion and caste.
your mind is corrupt
By: indian | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:33:42 PM
you are inhuman. Had you been in the chair of chief minister, you
would have murdered more innocents. This country is devided because of
idiots like you. start treating human as human. Those who burnt the
train and human in it must be punished and modi must also be punished
for intentionally not taking anu action. his hand and face is coloured
with blood of thousand sof innocent muslims murder.
Arvinda Rao, you will feel the pain if your family suffers rapes,
killings and burning alive.
By: Indian Engineer | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:46:27 PM
The so called Pseudo Hindutvadis, are justifying the killings, Rapes,
and burning alive of human beings in the name of Hindutva. The PAK
sponsored terrorists too have the similar reasoning for their terror
acts, then where is the difference between External and internal
terrorists? Just forget India belongs to Bc's/Sc's/ST's and
minorites.The so called RSS and Manuwadi theory is no more
applicable.Those who do not want to live in secular India they must
leave to Nepal.
The Hindu has always been the victim of Islam
By: Sunil Sharma | Sunday , 28 Mar '10 0:55:25 AM
Hey let us look into our Indian history and see how many thopusands of
Hindu Temples were demolished by the Mughals and how many were
forcibly converted into Islam. And the Muslims are still crying for
the demolishing of the Invader Babar's mosque? Is their loyalty with
an invader or with Indians? Let the Islamic world acknowledge all the
atrocities inflicted on the Hindus through centuries of repression
before they expect any sympathy from the Hindus!
Love him ,Hate him .cannot Ignore him
By: Shaym Kishore | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 12:08:35 PM
Congress is treating all Gujratis as untouchable . This is a serious
concern . Narendra Modi is the elected representative and choice of
millions of Gurjarhis . Under his leadership Gujrath has flurished and
become example to other states of India . Attitude like this are the
cause of seperatism in the country . You can love or hate Modi . You
cannot Ignore him . He is an Icon of gujrathi pride
Modi is not doing any favor
By: Naim Naqvi | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 11:42:23 AM
The media is projecting as if Narendra Modi is doing any favor for the
country by appearing before SIT. He is an accused and that is the
beginning and that is the end. He should be treated like an accused.
He has been given a long rope by Weak Central government till date and
needless to say - he is sitting at the top of Gujarat administration.
You can't expect an accused to do justice to himself. Till today it
was something like one Urdu poet had said: Khud hi qatil, khud hi
muqbir, khud he munsif theray, Aqraba kis pe karen qatl ka dawa
merey ? I'm still not very sure that justice will finally be given to
Modi. However, at least the misdeed of inept and prejudiced
administration which is headed by Modi is exposed to the world. From
this juncture any failure to bring Modi to the book would be the
failure of fair-play of the country, a mockry of justice and the
victory of brazen power of wealth. Modi had always been a non-entity.
It is putrid idelogy behind him which is to be dealt with.
modi is not.......
By: indian national | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 19:24:38 PM
pls read about what aurangazeb did to Hindus, then compare it with
modi. Your poet's words will fit for A'zeb only. So be happy in India
or take next flight..OK?
You ae right but you are also biased
By: Shaukat Aziz | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 17:19:56 PM
You are right, Naqvi sahib, but he is proving many like you to be
wrong. He has shown respect for the constitutional institutions,
unlike many Congressmen.
Modi is not an accused
By: M.N.S.Nampoothiripad | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:39:06 PM
Modi is not an accused in any case. The ATS is just examining if there
is any substance in the allegation against Sri Modi filed by Mrs.
Jafri as per the direction of the supre court. But the question is
will an ATS be set up to question Sonia in the umpteen scams in which
she is directly involved.
Modi is not doing any favor
By: Haria | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:49:15 PM
Modi is definitely not doing a favour by appearing before SIT, but
like a responsible citizen of this country, obeying the prevelent
laws. How about those congressmen who are involved in mass murders of
Sikhs, and all the muslim terrorists in India who have scant respect
for the laws.
Good Gesture
By: DRJ | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 10:11:03 AM
It is good gesture on the part of Modi to appear before SIT
irrespective of the political advantages/disadvantages. Prima facie,
it appears the law enforcing bodies are selective in making charges.
Similar actions on other persons should also be carried out
irrespective of political affiliations. I feel such issues cannot be
brought within the rule book of judiciary. Issues date back to
historical blunders and plunders. It should be left to the judgement
of people of Gujarat and India.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/gujriotsmodiquestionedbysitforover9hours/596382/0
BJP hails Modi's appearance before SIT as political victory
Agencies
Posted: Saturday , Mar 27, 2010 at 1427 hrs
New Delhi:
Congress may not regard Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's
appearance before SIT probing the 2002 riots as anything extraordinary
but BJP leadership on Saturday stood strongly behind him, hailing this
as a political victory and one deserving the highest commendation.
As many as three BJP spokespersons saluted Modi's much- awaited
deposition before the Supreme Court appointed Special Investigation
Team (SIT).
"By appearing before SIT, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has
demolished all mischievous speculations and scored a political
victory. BJP has great faith in the chief minister of Gujarat. This
graceful action vindicates the BJP stand that the chief minister of
Gujarat has the highest respect for law of the land," party spokesman
Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
"The dignified action deserves the highest commendation and millions
of BJP workers repose highest faith in his leadership," he added.
Another BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar blamed the media for
speculating on Modi's non-appearance before the SIT.
"It was the media that created an impression that he (Modi) was not
keen on appearing before the SIT. Modi respects the judiciary. He
abides by the law as also the institutions set up by the Supreme
Court," Javadekar said.
Newly-appointed spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman denied suggestions
that Modi's appearance before the probe panel was an embarrassment for
the party.
"I don't think it is any embarrassment to the party. The chief
minister had said in the Gujarat Assembly and also in his public
letter last week that nobody was above law, including the chief
minister," she said. Sitharaman also pointed out that no FIR was
registered against the Gujarat Chief Minister.
However, Congress was not impressed with Modi's appearance and
maintained that he should be brought to justice.
"In public perception, Modi has been held guilty. I don't think he has
done anything extraordinary by appearing before the Special
Investigation Team probing the Gujarat riots. He should be brought to
justice," Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan said here.
communal riots
By: BABU PATEL | 27-Mar-2010
Y People are making Ghodhra as a big issue.Is any one can tell us how
many communal riots has been investigated so far and identified the
culprits.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bjphailsmodisappearancebeforesitaspoliticalvictory/596413/0
Thackeray defends Amitabh in Sea link row
Agencies
Posted: Saturday , Mar 27, 2010 at 1223 hrs
Mumbai:
Amitabh hasn't committed a crime by attending the event: Thackeray
Coming out in defence of old friend Amitabh Bachchan, Shiv Sena chief
Bal Thackeray on Saturday said the actor has done nothing wrong by
attending the inauguration of the second phase of the Bandra-Worli Sea
Link.
"Amitabh hasn't committed a crime by attending the event," Thackeray
said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.
Lambasting Congress for "treating the actor as an untouchable",
Thackeray said "Shah Rukh Khan, who took cudgels on behalf of
Pakistanis, will do for Congress, which is allergic to Amitabh."
"Amitabh attending the function only added to the prestige of the
event," Thackeray said on the actor sharing the dias with Congress
leaders at the sealink function. Bachchan is not a thief, dacoit or a
terrorist, Thackeray said.
The presence of Bachchan at the inauguration of second phase of the
Sea Link a couple of days back had sparked a controversy with Congress
leaders from Mumbai taking objection to Chief Minister Ashok Chavan
sharing platform with the actor who is a brand ambassador for BJP-
ruled Gujarat.
"Amitabh is targeted because he is brand ambassador of Gujarat. Ambani
and Tata who live in Mumbai have invested heavily in Gujarat. Will
anyone from Congress ask them why were they investing in Narendra
Modi's Gujarat," Thackeray said.
The actor belongs to the nation and will remain so, he said.
9 Comments |
Amitabh
By: ASHOK PRADHAN | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 21:13:00 PM
I'm sure the Shiv Sena and all others know pretty well that the
handicap of not being able to speak marathi or not acting in Marathi
movies has'nt come in the Actor's way to generate Crores of rupees
inflow to the Maharashtra. Let each individual be allowed to do what
he or she could do most productively. Contributions come in different
ways, cannot just beguaged by the ability to speak a particular
language.
Amitabh at sea link.
By: Singh S.L | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:11:59 PM
Divisive attitude of congress is not acceptable at all.They have
divided nation in the name of cast,religion for political gains.To
congress Amitabh is untouchable.By this action they have insulted
nation since Amitabh is national ikon.His presence makes the place
glorified.There is no match to Amitabh in Congress party.Today they
are in power, tommarow they can be thrown out but Amitabh remains
same. He is national hero. Congress should learn some thing from Amit.
should not support him
By: CHANDRA SHEKARA REDDY NAGARA | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 16:01:58 PM
balasahebji is making mistake in supporting amithab a up wala they don
not know value of morality except to dance for getting some bucks,
where was amithab when dirty sharukh called paki's good neibhours,
amithab ate marathi salt but did not imbibe our pride, let him be lame
duck up walas who have no courage to stand against jihadis
Why this?
By: Giri | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:34:40 PM
People ask why this defence of Bacchan by Thackeray Sr! it is because
the so-called Big B goes and falls at the feet of this mafia boss
Thackeray at every opportunity and is scared to his core and has no
self respect and pride whatsoever. All this suits the Thackeray clan
mafias who only want to line their pockets with extorted money.
Politics does not come into this, only money and more of it!
big B controversy
By: PREMCHAND JAIN | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:21:47 PM
are we so intolerant to any social functions, where people of all view
and crew come. do we have no social sense that to make big uss of
small things. P.M. meets Modi, Bhattacharji in so many functions, that
time there no talk and why so much fuss on Big B..
Thackeray defends
By: s s iyer | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 15:12:23 PM
Compared to the Ministers of Maharashtra Amitabh Bachchan is a self
made man without using any props to come up in life to the present
position.Actually it is below his dignity to join with the ministers
in the sea way opening ceremony, who have done nothing for the people
of Maharashtra.
What more....
By: Roy | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 14:12:24 PM
does this has been of an ICON to the extreme right wing need...he is
now accepted as one of them & now goes out of the window
socialism..Ram Manohar Lohia & in comes the Bhagwat's, Thackeray's.
Togadia's et al....with open arms comes along with baggage to the
already blighted BJP an Amar Singh...Jaya Bachan. Have been &
wannabe's are welcome into the BJP..incl the Kalyan's & the
Uma's...from where to where.
Balasahib can talk sense some times..
By: Johnson Kuriakose | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:27:57 PM
atlast some thing which makes sense has come from Balasahib whom i
respect a lot....
Loss for Marathi Manoos
By: Vikas Sethi | Saturday , 27 Mar '10 13:14:50 PM
To answer Why Tata & Ambani shifting to Gujarat, Thackerays - Raj,
Uddhav & Bal must look inward & answer honestly. It is their narrow
divisive thinking on Marathi Manoos that has compelled these and many
more industrialists to shift to Gujarat. Both Gujarat & Maharashtra
offered same scopes. infact Maharashtra was a touch better for Tat's
Nano. But the shutdowns and goondagardi on Marathi Manoos has actually
hurt the Marathi cause and so many jobs have now gone to Gujarat. But
how does all this matter to the Thackerays? They are concerned only of
their own politics. Maharashtra's loss is Gujarat's gain. The one to
loose out is the Marathi Manoos.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/thackeraydefendsamitabhinsealinkrow/596402/
May I know why Amitji should say sorry? Asks Jaya Bachchan1
ANI
Posted: Friday , Mar 26, 2010 at 1622 hrs
New Delhi:
Bollywood actor and Rajya Sabha member Jaya Bachchan on Friday said it
is wrong to ask for an apology from Amitabh Bachchan with regard to
the Sea Link controversy surrounding the superstar.
“Why should Amitji say sorry?” she said.
Jaya Bachchan, who was addressing the media at the Women”s Press Club,
said, “I am not here to speak for Amitabh Bachchan. He can speak for
himself.” “In a democracy anyone can go anywhere,” she added.
Miffed over resentment in the Congress about his presence in a
government function, Amitabh Bachchan on Thursday night hit out at his
detractors, saying he was invited and that the whole controversy was
manufactured.
The megastar also said there were half-page advertisements in the
media that he will be taking part in the function, an apparent dig at
Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, who said he would not have
attended the function if he had known that Bachchan would be present.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mayiknowwhyamitjishouldsaysorryasksjayabachchan/596091/
Madhya Pradesh in Gadkari’s team
Posted by: N D Sharma on: March 27, 2010
At least in the case of Madhya Pradesh, Nitin Gadkari’s star-studded
team does not reflect the dynamism the BJP president had promised to
inject into the organisation at the Indore conclave of the party’s
national council. The new executive does not even give representation
to all the regions of the State.
The only striking feature of Gadkari’s exercise is his subtle attempt
to put a check on the chief minister’s influence, which was unhindered
so far.
That the State BJP president, Narendra Singh Tomar, was going to be
made general secretary at the national level was in the air for quite
some time. But Gadkari has somewhat diminished Tomar’s stature by re-
inducting Thavarchand Gehlot as another general secretary. Madhya
Pradesh is thus the only State to have two general secretaries of the
BJP at the national level. To add to Shivraj Singh Chauhan’s
discomfiture, Gehlot has been made a member of the Parliamentary
Board, the party’s highest decision-making body.
Tomar, a staunch pro-Thakur leader in the BJP, is virtually Chauhan’s
alter ego; the two have been together in all major operations, not
necessarily aimed at helping the lot of the poor and the deprived
classes. Gehlot is a Dalit leader who could never aspire to be
admitted to the chief minister’s inner circle. Chauhan’s
administration has been anything but pro-Dalit or pro-tribal, the
chief minister’s loud screeds to the contrary notwithstanding. The
dalits and the tribals, who had reposed faith in the BJP and helped it
to drive out the Congress government of Digvijay Singh in 2003, have
gradually been getting disenchanted with the BJP.
In the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had won in all the four
Scheduled Caste constituencies and in four of the five Scheduled
Tribes constituencies — and had left only four seats for the Congress
out of a total of 29 in the State. In 2009, the BJP could retain only
two of the four SC constituencies and only two of the six ST
constituencies (increased from five to six during the delimitation).
The Congress had increased its overall tally from four to 12, in spite
of the party being in utter disarray.
Gehlot was among the defeated SC candidates of the BJP. Satyanarayan
Jatiya, another defeated SC leader has been included among the
permanent invitees. Nirmala Bhuria, daughter of Dilip Singh Bhuria (a
former MP as well as a former chairman of the SC/ST Commission), has
been made a member of the party’s national executive. She had lost the
Assembly election from Petlawad (ST) in Jhabua district in 2008. She
owes her politics more to her father’s standing than to her own
“grassroots” level work (at which Gadkari had repeatedly harped at the
Indore conclave).
With all that, the representation of Madhya Pradesh in the national
executive is heavily, almost entirely, tilted towards the Madhya
Bharat region. Tomar, Gehlot, Sushma Swaraj (MP from Vidisha, though
she belongs to Haryana), Sumitra Mahajan, Kaptan Singh Solanki,
Chaitanya Kashyap, Tanveer Ahmed (a minorities leader from Ujjain),
Satyanarayan Jatiya, Maya Singh, the three former chief ministers
(Kailash Joshi, Sunderlal Patwa and Babulal Gaur) along with chief
minister Chauhan are all from the Madhya Bharat region. The sole
representative of the Mahakoshal region is Faggan Singh Kulaste, a
tribal leader of Mandla, who had lost the last Lok Sabha election. The
Bundelkhand region also has only a nominal presence in Virendra Kumar
Khatik, an SC member of Lok Sabha. The Vindhya region stands
altogether ignored.
Now all eyes are on who takes the place of Narendra Singh Tomar as the
State BJP president. Two are in the forefront, going by the media
reports. Prabhat Jha is lobbying hard. Originally hailing from Bihar,
he worked at the BJP office in Bhopal when Patwa was the chief
minister, more as Patwa’s spy than the spokesman of the party. He was
taken to Delhi to look after the party’s publications when the things
in Bhopal became hot for him after the Patwa-Lakhiram Agrawal hegemony
over the organisation came to an end. In Delhi he ingratiated himself
with Lal Krishna Advani who got him into Rajya Sabha from Madhya
Pradesh. He was also made a secretary of the BJP. Gadkari has not re-
inducted him, giving rise to the speculation in the media in Bhopal
(where he has many friends) that it has been done to make him the
State party president.
Another strong contender for the post is Anil Madhav Dave, also member
of Rajya Sabha. Chauhan’s government had been a bit too much liberal
in doling out the public money for his Janabhiyan Parishad, an NGO,
and for his Narmada Parikramas. The government had almost allotted to
him hundreds of acres of fertile land on the bank of the river
Narmada, which the government had fraudulently acquired from the
unsuspecting farmers. The game was scuttled by Akhand Pratap Singh,
then a minister in the Chauhan government, by creating a big ruckus at
the cabinet meeting which was to formally allot the land to Dave.
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http://ndsharma.wordpress.com/2010/03/02/chauhans-panic-reaction-to-corruption/
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http://ndsharma.wordpress.com/2010/03/27/madhya-pradesh-in-gadkaris-team/
RSS backs temple entry for all, inter-caste marriages
Express news service
Posted: Sunday , Mar 28, 2010 at 0255 hrs
New Delhi:
The RSS has said that border security, infiltration, terrorism and
Naxalism are the key challenges being faced by India at present.
At its Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha meet at Kurukshetra, the RSS
stressed on inter-caste marriages and temple entry for all, to address
some of the challenges being faced by the country.
The RSS, in its yearly report, also stressed on the expansion of its
shakhas (the basic building block of the organisation). The number of
RSS shakhas has seen a sharp decline (by around 4,000) in the last one
year, to a figure of 39,823.
After the Sangh, under the leadership of Mohan Bhagwat, said some
weeks ago that Mumbai and (Maharashtra) belonged to everyone, its
report again underlined the fact that “people speaking various
languages live in Mumbai”.
The report also said that after Jammu and Kashmir, “Hindus were being
forced to flee another state - Manipur”. About J&K, the report said
that after a period of relative calm, “anti-India forces were again
getting active in the region”. The Sangh also warned against the
“expansionist designs” of China.
On the domestic front, the RSS warned against the “growing
regionalism” in national politics. It stressed on a “village-centric
developmental model” and “agro-based industries”. It drew satisfaction
from its recent Gau Gram Yatra, in which Swami Ramdev’s Patanjali
Yogpeeth also actively participated.
Among its recent activities, the Sangh argued that its volunteers
actively participated in cleaning the Shipra river.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/RSS-backs-temple-entry-for-all--inter-caste-marriages/596607
bademiyansubhanallah
Archaeological theory in the light of contemporary computing
(sponsored by L-P Archaeology)
communitycomputing
multivocality
ontologies
representation
semantics
visualisation
www Gareth Beale (University of Southampton; gcb...@soton.ac.uk) and
Leif Isaksen (University of Southampton; lei...@googlemail.com)
Though once peripheral to standard archaeological practise, computers
have begun to reshape both our discipline and the way we think about
it. Not only is their deployment ubiquitous in academia and the
private sector, in less than a decade the internet has become the
dominant medium of communication and dissemination. This forces us to
reconsider the manner in which both archaeologists and the public
engage with information and to discuss the opportunities and dangers
which arise from digital archaeologies.
One of our chief goals will be to challenge the degree to which
digital archaeology is synonymous with quantitative methods and their
empiricist overtones. This is not intended as a criticism of either,
but rather as an opportunity to reappraise the relationship between
digital approaches and archaeological methodologies.
The session is intended to contribute toward an archaeological
response to a rapidly changing and increasingly complex digital world.
It will conclude with a panel discussion.
Semantics and the nature of data
Archaeological discourses are constrained by the semantics of our
world-views in a variety of ways. Developments in computer science
have increasingly enabled us to model the terms, categories and
relationships that form these ontologies but open questions still
remain. We would like to address such issues as
•The limits to (internal) representation and/or simulation of
archaeological entities
•The challenges of explicitly modelling ontologies
•Theoretical implications of combining information from different
discourses
Representation
Representations of archaeology tell us as much about our attitudes to
our discipline and the world around us as they do about our
interpretations of the past. Developments in computation have led to
an expansion in the scope and prevalence of virtual representations of
archaeology. In light of these changes we would like to address the
following issues:
•Visual conventions in the age of Moore’s law: embracing change
without sacrificing meaning
•Conceptualising an interface between a perceptual present and a
virtual past
•Ways in which we categorise virtual representations of archaeology
(e.g. GIS, Virtual Reality, charts and graphs, etc.)
Open & community access
Communication technology, and in particular the World Wide Web, has
had an enormous impact on social dynamics in the developed world and
its influence is increasingly felt in developing nations as well. We
wish to discuss themes such as:
•The Web as a reinforcing and disruptive mechanism in heritage power
structures
•Open Access rights to public and developer-funded research
•Multivocality and ‘trust’ in archaeological sources
http://www.tagconference.org/content/tag-20-archaeological-theory-light-contemporary-computing
Historical divide: archaeology and literature
Indology grew out of attempts to interpret Indian sources from
European perspective. Its legacy is archaeology without literature for
the Harappans and a literature without archaeology for the Vedic
Aryans. Any rewriting of history must begin by bridging this unnatural
gulf.
INDOLOGY, WHICH prominently includes history of the Vedic Age, is the
result of a historical accident. In 1784, Sir William Jones, an
English jurist in the employ of the British East India Company, began
a study of Sanskrit to better understand the legal and political
traditions of the Indian subjects. As a classical scholar, he was
struck by the extraordinary similarities between Sanskrit and European
languages, especially Latin and Greek. He went on to observe: "... the
Sanscrit language, whatever be its antiquity, is of wonderful
structure, more perfect than Greek, more copious than Latin, and more
exquisitely refined than either, yet bearing to both of them a
stronger affinity, both in the roots of the verbs and in the forms of
grammar, than could possibly have been produced by accident; so strong
indeed, that no philologer could examine them all three without
believing them to have sprung from the same source."
Though he was not the first European to recognise this connection —
that honour belongs probably to Filippo Sassetti, a Florentine
merchant living in Goa two centuries earlier — Jones was the first to
express it in scholarly terms. With this dramatic announcement Jones
launched two new fields — Indology and comparative linguistics,
notably Indo-European linguistics. To account for this similarity,
some scholars postulated that the ancestors of Indians and Europeans
must at one time have lived in the same region and spoken the same
language. They called this the Aryan language and their common
homeland the Aryan homeland. Following the Nazi misuse of the word
Aryan as a race, and the atrocities that accompanied it, the term has
fallen into disfavour. The preferred term today is Indo-European.
According to this theory, the ancestors of the Indians who used Vedic
Sanskrit to compose the Vedas and other related literature hailed from
a land outside India. Their original homeland has been placed in
locations from Germany to Chinese Turkestan, that is, everywhere
except India where the Vedic language and its literature have found
the fullest expression and endured the longest.
This is the background to the famous Aryan Invasion Theory (AIT) that
has dominated Indian history books for over a century. Based on
various arguments, but strongly influenced by biblical beliefs,
scholars like F. Max Mueller assigned a date of 1500 BC for the Aryan
invasion and 1200 BC for the composition of the Rigveda, the oldest
member of the Vedic corpus. The Bible is said to assign the date
October 23, 4004 BC for the Creation and 2448 BC for the Flood. This
was in the background when he gave 1500 BC as the date of the Aryan
invasion. Max Mueller himself in a letter to the Duke of Argyle, then
acting Secretary of State for India, asserted: "I regard the account
in the Genesis (of the Bible) to be simply historical." In his
defence, it must be recognised that he was by no means dogmatic about
his theories. Towards the end of his life, in response to some
critics, Max Mueller wrote: "Whether the Vedic hymns were written in
1000, 1500 or 2000 or 3000 BC, no power on earth will ever
determine."
Mismatch
What is remarkable in all this is the fact that the foundations of
ancient Indian history were being laid by scholars who were not
historians but linguists. In keeping with the political conditions of
the age — the heyday of European colonialism — it was inevitable that
colonial and Christian missionary interests should have intruded on
their work. Even Max Mueller, during the first half of his career, saw
it his duty to advance the interests of Christian missionaries,
though, towards the end of his life, he became a convert to Vedanta.
In addition, most of them had no scientific background — witness their
belief in the Biblical Creation Theory. There was also no archaeology
to guide them.
All these were soon to change. Beginning about 1921, Indian and
British archaeologists working under Sir John Marshall revealed the
existence of the ancient cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro in the
Punjab and Sindh. Further excavation showed that they were part of a
vast civilisation spread over most of North India and even beyond.
This is now famous as the Indus Valley or the Harappan civilisation.
They were flourishing in the period from c. 3100 BC to 1900 BC, or
more than a thousand years before the postulated Aryan invasion.
Scholars from a wide range of disciplines including literature,
archaeology, architecture and even mathematics, began to study the
archaeological remains for clues to the identity and nature of the
civilisation.
At first sight, the discovery of the Harappan civilisation, spread
over the same geographical region as described in the Vedic
literature, seemed to invalidate the Aryan Invasion Theory. The
natural conclusion seemed to be that Harappan archaeology represented
the material remains of the culture described in the Vedic literature.
But for reasons that are too complex to detail here, prominent
historians soon rejected the idea of the Vedic identity of the
Harappan civilisation. They insisted that the Harappans were a pre-
Vedic (and non-Vedic) people who were defeated by the invading Aryans
and forced to migrate en masse to South India, later to be known as
Dravidians, speaking languages that are supposedly unrelated to
Sanskrit. Through this device, historians sought to preserve the Aryan
Invasion Theory and reconcile it with the existence of a much older
civilisation in the Vedic heartland. In this exercise it should be
noted that a theory postulated by linguists in the previous century
prevailed over archaeological evidence.
No evidence of invasion
This soon ran into contradictions. Archaeologists found no evidence of
any invasion or warfare severe enough to account for the uprooting of
such a vast civilisation. On the other hand, the decline of the
Harappan civilisation could be attributed to natural causes — in
particular, ecological degradation due to the drying up of vital river
systems and also floods. It is now known that a major contributor was
a severe 300-year drought (2200 — 1900 BC) that struck in an immense
belt from the Aegean to China. Recent research has shown that the
rainfall in some areas diminished by as much as 20 per cent. The
Harappan was one of several ancient civilisations to feel the impact
of this ecological catastrophe; others similarly affected were Ancient
Egypt and Mesopotamia to the west and China to the east.
The theory of Harappans as Dravidians has also proved to be far from
satisfactory. The Harappans, who were supposed to be the original
Dravidian speakers, were a literate people. There are some four
thousand examples of their writing from sites like Harappa, Mohenjo-
Daro, Lothal, Kalibangan and others, as well as dozens in West Asia.
Yet, the earliest examples of South Indian (or Dravidian) writing use
a version of the Brahmi script, which originated in North India. This
leaves us in the extraordinary situation where the migrating Harappans
took their language but not the script that they had themselves
invented. And they waited more than a thousand years to begin their
writing, borrowing from a North Indian script for the purpose.
In the light of all this, the situation regarding the primary sources
of ancient India may be summarised as follows: no satisfactory
explanation has been found to account for the separate existence of
Harappan archaeology and the Vedic literature, both of which
flourished in the same geographical region. On the one hand, there is
Harappan archaeology, the most extensive anywhere in the world, but no
Harappan literature. On the other, there is the Vedic literature,
which exceeds in volume all other ancient literature in the world
combined several times over, but no Vedic archaeological remains. So
we have archaeology without literature for the Harappans and
literature without archaeology for the Vedic Aryans. This is all the
more puzzling considering that the Harappans were a literate people
while we are told that the Vedic Aryans knew no writing but used
memory for preserving their immense literature. This means only the
literature of the illiterates has survived.
In the light of this incongruity, one may say that as long as this
gulf between archaeology and literature remains unbridged, there can
be no such thing as history. Neither the Harappans nor the Vedic
Aryans have a historical context, but only archaeological and literary
sources hanging as loose ends. So the first step in any writing (or
rewriting) of ancient history should be a systematic programme to
rationally connect Harappan archaeology and the Vedic literature.
These are the primary sources; the theories that are now in textbooks
are secondary, based on the perceptions of scholars of the colonial
era. More seriously, they contradict the archaeological evidence.
Vedic-Harappan connection
Fortunately some progress is being made in accounting for both
Harappan archaeology and the Vedic literature, though, to a large
extent, it owes to the work of outsiders. Some Vedic scholars have
noted that Harappan remains are replete with sacred Vedic symbols like
the swastika sign, the `OM' sign and the sacred ashvattha leaf (Ficus
Religiosa). No less dramatic is the discovery of the American
mathematician and historian of science, A. Seidenberg, tracing the
origins of Egyptian and Old Babylonian mathematics to Vedic
mathematical texts known as the Sulbasutras. As Seidenberg observed:
" ... the elements of ancient geometry found in Egypt (before 2100 BC)
and Babylonia (c. 1900 — 1750 BC) stem from a ritual system of the
kind observed in the Sulbasutras." This means that the mathematics of
the Sulbasutras, which are Vedic texts, must have existed long before
2000 BC, i.e., during the Harappan period. This is clear also from a
technical examination of Harappan archaeology, which displays skill in
town planning and geometric design, showing that Harappans must have
had access to the Sulbasutras. This gives a scientific link between
Vedic literature (Sulbasutras) and Harappan archaeology. (The
Sulbasutras should not be confused with popular books on Vedic
mathematics. These are modern works that have little to do with the
Vedas).
All this shows that progress can be made in explaining Harappan
archaeology and the Vedic literature if one is prepared to follow a
multidisciplinary, scientifically rigorous approach. The present
incongruous situation — of mismatch between archaeology and literature
— is attributable to two factors. First, an attempt to preserve a
theory created on the basis of insufficient evidence before any
archaeological data became available. Next, the fact that even this
theory and the foundation that it rests on were created by linguists
and other scholars whose understanding of science and the scientific
method left much to be desired.
Correcting past errors
Several historians have rightly expressed concern that history may
soon be written by individuals who lack the necessary knowledge of the
historical method. But far more serious is the fact that what is found
in textbooks today is based on theories created by men and women who
had no qualifications to write about them. They are based not on the
primary sources, but explanations that seek to fit the data to a
particular Nineteenth century worldview — the Eurocolonial. The
immediate task before Indian historians is to get back to the
fundamentals, ignoring the authority of scholars from the past, no
matter how great their reputations. Sri Aurobindo suggested that the
problem lies in the failure of Indian scholars to develop independent
schools of thought. In his words: "That Indian scholars have not been
able to form themselves into a great and independent school of
learning is due to two causes: the miserable scantiness of the mastery
in Sanskrit provided by our universities, crippling to all but born
scholars, and our lack of sturdy independence which makes us over-
ready to defer to European (and Western) authority."
This is not to suggest that we should either deny or reject the
findings of Western scholarship. Only we should not accept them
uncritically as authority figures. They were products of their time
and environment and the resulting weaknesses should be recognised.
Their contributions remain substantial, but cannot be treated as
primary knowledge. No less a person than Swami Vivekananda once said:
"Study Sanskrit, but along with it study Western sciences as well.
Learn accuracy, ... study and labour so that the time will come when
you can put our history on a scientific basis... How can foreigners,
who understand very little of our manners and customs, or our religion
and philosophy, write faithful and unbiased histories of India? ...
Nevertheless they have shown us how to proceed making researches into
our ancient history. Now it is for us to strike out an independent
path of historical research for ourselves, ... It is for Indians to
write Indian history."
His advice holds as good today as it did a century ago when he gave it
to a group of students. The recovery of history must begin with a
thorough study of the primary sources. The first step is to close the
unnatural gap between archaeology and literature.
N.S. RAJARAM
(The writer is the author with David Frawley of the book Vedic Aryans
and the Origins of Civilisation)
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/op/2002/01/22/stories/2002012200020100.htm
Theoretical issues in Indian Archaeology
Colonial ArchaeologyIndiaIndian archaeologyIndologyNew Archaeologypost-
processual
Ajay Pratap (Banaras Hindu University; aprata...@yahoo.com)
The purpose of this session is to take stock of theoretical issues in
Indian archaeology. Indian archaeology has come a long-way, since the
18th century, when those such as William Jones, James Prinsep and
Charles Wilkins, initiated the Asiatic Society of Bengal. It was the
founding of this society that spurred greatly the discovery of the
past of a nascently colonized nation. Many studies now exist about
this period (Singh, 2004) apart from the literature actually emanating
from this Society's Journal - The Journal of The Asiatic Society of
Bengal. In addition, The Journal of Royal Asiatic Society, Asiatic
Researches, The Journal of The Royal Society and The Calcutta Annual
Register are some of the Journals that contain the Oriental
Scholarship relevant to Ancient India and its archaeology. We would
invite contributions that critically examine the growth of archaeology
through this early period and the first formulations in India of the
surveys, findings, and methods of excavation closer to the decades
preceding independence. We also invite contributions that would look
critically at the growth of archaeological method and theory in India
in the post-Independence era. These would include theories of culture,
contact-diffusion models used widely to explain similarity and
differences in archaeological cultures, the establishment of the New
Archaeological method, as the most dominant method, in modern
archaeology, in India,for nearly half a century now. We also wish to
include a discussion of the impact of postprocessual archaeology on
Indian archaeology.
http://www.tagconference.org/content/theoretical-issues-indian-archaeology
Looking through the Lens of Archival Records: Archaeological Site
Formation in the Middle Ajay Basin, West Bengal, India
Archival RecordsIndiaMiddle Ajay BasinSite formationWest Bengal
Madhulika Samanta (University College London, UK)
Archaeological sites are regularly modified by different environmental
and cultural agencies and carry signatures of very recent activities.
Impacts of these activities are often over emphasized or completely
neglected in archaeological investigations. The present study area is
famous for its chalcolithic settlements and a part of the nuclear zone
of such settlements in Eastern India. Scholars of independent India
have carried out important excavations here and emphasized the
influence of recent floods on formation processes in the Ajay basin.
It has been argued that a significant number of these sites are in
secondary context which influenced the author to assess the nature of
archaeological sites situated in the Middle Ajay Basin. This area with
archaeological sites like Pandu Rajar Dhibi, experiences floods
regularly. Fortunately, the region boosts of a rich source of archival
records for the last two hundred years. These records contain general,
topographical and cadastral maps, reports of flood occurrences and
very recent data on highest annual gauge, maximum discharge of river
water, etc. The paper analyses sixteen maps of the region prepared in
the last two hundred years and twenty seven major flood events. These
maps are compared with each other to follow landscape changes after
floods with archaeological sites in the perspective. The settlements
deserted in the last two hundred years were also considered for
analyses. Recent changes in the landscape have been documented with
the help of maps published by the Survey of India and images produced
by Google Earth. Flood occurrences were documented from different
reports and analyses by meteorologists. The data on maximum discharge,
highest annual gauge of the recent years etc. - collected form the
Water Investigation and Development department of the province - aid
in understanding the nature of these events.
The paper suggests a majority of high energy floods in the last two
hundred years, were created by artificial embankments. Sites of the
pre embankment period were less affected by these floods than those of
the post embankment era. The river creates coarse grained deposits
(influenced by embankments) mainly along its banks and formed levees.
Therefore, it will be erroneous to consider sediment record of a site
as the only proxy for reconstructing paleofloods in this region. Later
floods are eroding these sediments rather than disturbing buried
archaeological deposits. Basically these are single event floods of
short duration, not powerful enough to leave lasting impression on the
sites. The phenomenon of river shifting, causing major impact on
archaeological site formation, is absent here. The deposits of these
sites are not in secondary context.
Promoting Cultural Heritage Awareness through Museums: Problems and
perspectives (West Bengal, India)
Sayan Bhattacharya (Centre for Archaeological Studies and Training,
Eastern India, India)
The preservation of our cultural heritage is one of the major social
responsibilities of our time. What our ancestors have created over a
long period depicts historical development, on which we build and draw
in order to frame our future.
This present paper deals with how we can manage the material cultural
heritage through museums (archaeological and historical) in West
Bengal with specific reference to Kolkata and case studies drawn from
the State Archaeological Museum, Kolkata. Kolkata (Calcutta), the city
of joy, was established in 1686 as a result of the expansion plans of
the British Raj, it is now the capital of West Bengal. The city has a
number of heritage buildings, monuments and museums (Indian Museum,
Victoria Memorial Hall, Asiatic Society, State Archaeological Museum,
Gurusaday Museum, etc). But unfortunately, like other metropolitan
cities in Indian, museums are still a ‘jadugarh’ (magical house) for
common people.
The State Archaeological Museum, West Bengal, houses an array of
antiquities. Presently this museum has five galleries (West Bengal
Sites and Sights, Paintings of Bengal, Sculptures of Bengal,
Excavation at Jagjivanpur and West Bengal Early Historic Period). This
museum also controls the district museums under the state government
of West Bengal and many local level museums representing their own
history and identity exist in the area. There is a lack of
communication and co-ordination between these museums and they are not
being run in accordance with the emerging trends in museum management.
As a result, these museums are lagging behind and are not so much
capable in attracting visitors regularly. The State Archaeological
Museum, as a nuclear museum, will be used to exemplify the various
issues of other museums in this state.
The main objectives of this paper is to explore how museums can assist
in ‘preserving the past, defining the present and educating for the
future’ as well as introduce fruitful interaction between participants
and researchers to assist in solving the various neglected aspects of
museum studies and cultural heritage management in West Bengal. The
discussion will explore the types of problems that are being faced at
the State Archaeological Museum and will ask: What kind of facilities
we are providing for the tourists? What are the probable solutions?
What kind of multidisciplinary approaches can we introduce for
maintaining a dynamic relationships between the tourists/students/
researchers and the Museums for promoting the cultural heritage of a
country like India?
The challenge of heritage
heritageinterpretationpost-processualpreservation
Nick James (University of Cambridge, UK)
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) describes its mission as
research, protection and regulation. It also maintains museums and a
programme of presenting monuments and publication. Research,
management and presentation complement each other but the respective
implications of these functions diverge somewhat. Contemporary social
and cultural developments in India expose the divergence between
research and presentation more clearly than before.
The function of research is the one most familiar to archeologists.
Although, in India, most of the research concerns the past, it
directly entails the Survey's functions of protection and regulation:
for discoveries to be made about the past, it is necessary actively to
protect the remains. Presentation and publication, equally, are
concerned, in the first place, with the archeological assets as
contemporary features, valued for education, tourism or other purposes
that are distinguished today as 'heritage'.
Now development and encroachment threaten archeological assets ever
more in India. Tourism is expanding rapidly and the number of visitors
to the principal monuments is rising. The implications affect the work
of most archeologists. They can be illustrated by the case of
Bhubaneswar. Bhubaneswar is well known for its many Medieval Hindu
temples and, near by, the earlier monuments at Dhauli and Sisupulgarh
and Khandagiri & Udaigiri. From some 10,000 residents in 1947, the
town has grown now to 1,000,000. The number of visitors to the
principal monuments more than doubled from 1990 to 2006. The increase
reflects a boom in domestic leisure and tourism and expansion of the
affluent and literate middle class. In effect, the monuments of
Bhubaneswar are being treated more now as heritage than as assets for
either worship or research. This can be seen not only in visitors'
behaviour but also in recent work by the ASI, the State Archaeology
service, the Municipal Corporation, the Indian National Trust for Art
& Cultural Heritage and public and private tourism organizations.
Archeologists must recognize the shifting balance of priorities in
their cultural environment. The function of public dissemination or
outreach must be enhanced. There are two principal problems. Without
sympathetic public awareness of archeology, the assets will quickly be
wasted. On the other hand, the sociological and economic processes of
diversification and integration tend to expose diverse points of view.
There is, among Indian archeologists, widespread reluctance to
acknowledge unconventional interpretations. If, then, archeological
research is not to be conflated, in popular opinion, with heritage –
the past with the present - the ASI, State services and non-government
organizations alike must not only protect and describe archeological
assets but also make more of a priority of explaining the nature of
both the evidence as such and the reasons for and the methods of
archeological management and research. This solution - to focus, like
the concern with heritage! On contemporary activity, in the first
place, rather than on the scientific deduction of the past - may work
not only for India but also in Europe, where debate about
archeological resources has grown for reasons similar to those arising
in India.
http://www.tagconference.org/content/challenge-heritage
The emergence of Prehistory: Looking at early initiatives in late
nineteenth-early twentieth century Bengal
Bengalemergenceethnologyprehistory
Basak Bishnupriya (University of Calcutta, India)
In recent years there has been a renewed interest in looking at the
emergence of archaeology as a discipline and its role in the
construction of the sub-continent’s past in the nineteenth-early
twentieth century. Yet, one strand of ‘academic inquiry’ remains
largely outside the purview of these works and which this paper wishes
to address. Discoveries of ‘chipped/polished stone’ or ‘rude stone
monuments’ belonging to remote antiquity, which started appearing in
accounts left behind by geologists employed by the Geological Survey
of India, civil servants, military officials and individuals variously
engaged in different professions in the colony, gave shape to a
different inquiry in the past in the second half of the nineteenth-
early twentieth century, bringing forth questions of human evolution,
race and the progress of civilization The germs of prehistoric
archaeology in the sub-continent may be sought in these early
writings, where the boundaries between prehistory, ethnology and
ethnography were often fuzzy. There has been substantial research on
the history of Victorian anthropological thought. Of late there has
also grown a voluminous literature on ethnological surveys and
ethnographic documentations in the sub-continent. Discoveries of stone
tools or stone monuments need to be situated in the backdrop of these
developments. In trying to understand the beginnings of prehistoric
research I am restricting myself to eastern and north eastern India
where one comes across a profusion of such writings, many published as
notes in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. These writings
are many-layered, in which typological descriptions of the artifacts
are interspersed with rich anecdotes, myths and legends of existing
indigenous communities.
The ongoing debate between processual and post-processual methods in
archaeology, in the context of Jharkhand, India
Ajay Pratap Reader (Banaras Hindu University, India)
This paper intends to elucidate the ongoing debate between processual
and post-processual methods in archaeology, in the context of
Jharkhand, India. This it does, by taking a fresh look at both
processualism and post-processualism in 2008, both of which, have a
significant place in theory and practice of Indian archaeology as on
date. This paper also intends to add that there are existing
indigenously developed tropes of archaeology within Indian archaeology
such as iconography, numismatics, epigraphy and so on, by the simple
argument that Indian archaeology and has had its inception through
oriental studies, in the 18th century, when doyens such as William
Jones, James Prinsep and Charles Wilkins, of the Asiatic Society of
Bengal, first started their researches (see Singh: 2004). Moreover,
the journals of Indian archaeology, such as Journal of Bihar and
Orissa Research Society, Journal of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research
Institute, Man in India, The Eastern Anthropologist, Purattatva,
Purakala, Man and Environment, to name just a few, along with numerous
text-books on the subject explicate the history, methods and theory,
in employ in Indian archaeology, sufficiently, for any reader of this
field, to acquaint themselves with developments in Indian archaeology.
In this context, therefore, in 2008, it is opportune, to discuss and
evaluate the relative merits and demerits of the impact of two alien
imports the “New Archaeology” and the “Post-processual archaeology”.
In this paper, we undertake such an analysis, using our own fieldarea,
The Rajmahal Hills, Dist. Santhal Parganas, Jharkhand, India, as a
case-study, through an ethnoarchaeological perspective, to evaluate
the relative merits and demerits of these two modern inputs into
Indian archaeology.
SEMINAR & WORKSHOP
We have been continuously holding weekly seminars in the Department
for the benefit of students, especially research scholars. In these
seminars, both the faculty members as well as research scholars
presented their research papers, which provided exposures & training
to young upcoming scholars. In addition to the weekly seminars, the
faculty members of the department have organised following Seminars:
The Middle Ganga Plains Through the Ages: Understanding Cultures
Through Archaeology, organised by Professor Vidula Jayaswal jointly
with Jnana Pravaha, Varanasi.
Recent Developments in Indian Archaeometallurgy organised by
Professor Vibha Tripathi jointly with Jnana Pravaha, Varanasi.
Recent Researches in AIHC & Archaeology organised by Professor
Vibha Tripathi, BHU, Varanasi.
NATIONAL SEMINAR ON THE GAGES CIVILIZATION : THE SHIFTING PARADIGM
Recently the Department has organised the above Seminar under the
Convener ship of Prof.Vibha Tripathi on 10-12, February, 2006. The
Seminar was sponsored by the UGC through its programmes SAP & ASIHSS
of the Department. The well attended seminar with nearly 150
participants from different parts of the country. The young
researchers were given equal opportunity to present their papers and
participate in the deliberations during the seminar. The academic
deliberations will be resulting in the publication of its Proceedings
very shortly.
RECENT SPECIAL LECTURES
In order to enrich the quality of research and also to expose our
senior students to the latest development in A.I.H.C. & Archaeology
with the collaboration of other academic institution, the Department
organised special Lectures by the eminent scholars of India and abroad
from time to time. Following special lectures and visits of scholars
were organised:
Prof. V.C. Srivastava, former Director, IIAS, Shimla delivered a
lecture on 'Recent Advances in the Field of AIHC & Archaeology' on 8th
January 2007.
Prof. Devendra Handa, Panjab University Chandigarh delivered a lecture
on 'Antiquity of Ancient Indian Coins on 21 March, 2007.
Dr. B.M.Pande, Archaeological Survey of India, New Delhi delivered a
lecture on 'Thanesar Excavations on 23 July, 2007.
A Chinese Delegation led by Prof Hua visited the Department on 20
November, 2007.
Dr. Cameron Petrei, University of Cambridge delivered a lecture on
'the Decline of Harappans and the Climat on 10 January, 2008.
RECENT SEMINAR
Contribution of Environment in shaping personality of individuals,
groups and nations is well established both by the studies of physical
and social scientists. There can hardly be a second opinion regarding
the significance of natural surroundings to the growth of social and
culture make up of ancient inhabitants of Indian sub-continent, on one
hand, and cultural environments influencing one and other regions,
from time to time, on the other. History of individual regions and
chronological levels, when viewed against the background of physical
and cultural environments would certainly be meaningful and holistic,
which is the theme of the proposed seminar. It may also bring forth
such ancient indigenous practices which revolved around preserving and
conserving natural surroundings, a major concern of the modern
society. Evaluation of concerns and destructions of physical and
cultural environments of ancient times is not only an exercise of the
restricted academic value, but may have wider implication stretching
up to the present times.
The long painstaking researches on ancient India, has fortunately,
brought to light various facets of past societies. But, often the
contribution of environment has escaped attention of the scholars. A
number of bio-diversities though are found in the historical
reconstructions, their full implications are not discussed. It is
proposed to give a platform to experts from various disciplines, the
Geology, Palaeo-botany, Archaeology, Indology, who can sit together
and evaluate the theme in a true scientific spirit, which will help
understanding makeup of cultures, and adaptation of biodiversities by
human groups of ancient India, from around 10, 000 BP to the early
medieval times.
It is proposed to divide the seminar into four main sections - Early
Holocene Climate & Cultural Adaptation, Palaeo-environment & Cultures
of 3rd to 1st Century BCE, Environment & Emergence of States & Cities
in the Ganga Plain and Environment as revealed from Art, Literature,
Numismatics & Epigraphy. Each of the sections will be addressed by one
or two scientists, who shall dwell upon the physical environments. The
other contributors of these sessions would assess archaeological and
literary evidence as to evaluate the culture adaptation to the various
palaeo-ecological niches. Besides presentations by the senior
scholars, the young researchers shall participate as discussants and
the post graduate students shall attend the deliberations as to get
exposure to the theme.
In addition to the Seminar, a Workshop on �Metals & Technology of
Early Indian Coins� is also being organized on this occasion for the
benefit of the students, research scholars and the faculty members
associated with teaching of the Numismatics. The workshop will deals
with the technology for minting coins and medals. The technology is
based on the utilization of metal blanks with similar diameters, one
being very thin, joined together by mechanical means during the
impartion of the surface details by the minting dies. The technology
requires the design and manufacture of a special geometry in the edge
of the thicker disk in order to make possible assembly of the metal
blanks. The proposed technology is based on a multi-stage
manufacturing process consisting of three cold metal forming
operations (preforming, rimming and coining) and one intermediate
annealing treatment. The annealing treatment is to be performed before
the coining operation. The goal is to restore the initial ductility of
the disk prior to the final coining stage. The workshop will also
focus on punching, die and casting techniques of ancient coins.
National Seminar on Environments of Ancient India Archaeological &
Leterary Critique
And Workshop on Metals & Technology of Early Indian Coins
(March 8-10, 2008)
(UGC Sponsored Programme under SAP & ASIHSS Schemes
SOUVENIR
VARANASI, A HERITAGE CITY & THE CULTURE CAPITAL OF INDIA Rana P.B.
Singh, Professor of Cultural Geography, BHU
DHANVANTARI, A GREAT SCION OF VARANASI
P.K. Agrawala, Dept. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ABSTRACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL CONSCIOUSNESS AS REFLECTED IN THE VEDIC LITERATURE :
Pranabananda Jash, Department of AIHC & Archaeology, Visva Bharati :
Santiniketan
CONTRIBUTION OF ASOKA TO ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS: Sayamtara Jash,
Department of AIHC & Archaeology, Visva Bharati : Santiniketan
ENVIRONMENT OF THE EARLY HOLOCENE OF THE MIDDLE GANGA PLAIN AS
REVEALED FROM THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS : V.D. Misra and J.N.
Pal, University of Allahabad
QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY OF THE GANGA : R.P. Pandey, Department of AIHC
and Archaeology, Jiwaji University, Gwalior (M.P.)
URBAN ENVIRONMENT, CULTURE AND FORMATION OF EARLY MEDIEVAL ORISSAN
STATE : L.N.Raut, Behrampur University, Behrampur
THE ANCIENT INDIAN CONCEPT & KNOWLEDGE OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ITS
UNIQUE REALISTIC UTILIZATION FOR THE WELL-BEING OF INDIVIDUAL : Sunil
Kumar Dubey, Varanasi
ENVIRONMENT AND SETTLMENT PATTERN IN THE SARAYUPAR REGION : Mohd.
Naseem & Indrajeet Singh, Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ASHOKA AS A PROTAGONIST OF ENVIRONMENT : Arpita Chatterjee, Deptt. of
AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
NATURE, ENVIRONMENT AND COSMIC INTEGRITY IN ANCIENT INDIAN THOUGHT :
Rana P.B. Singh, Professor of Cultural Geography, Banaras Hindu
University
SACRED LANDSCAPES OF SIKKIM AND ITS ECOLOGICAL VALUE : G.K.LAMA,
Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ENVIRONMENT AND NBPW CULTURE IN THE MIDDLE GANGA PLAIN: AN
ARCHAEOLOGICAL CRITICS : Priyanka Chandra & Devendra Kumar Singh
Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
A BUDDHIST APPROACH TO ECOLOGY : Mukesh Kumar Singh and Sanjay Singh
Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ECOLOGICAL BACKGROUND AND RISE OF CULTURES IN THE MIDDLE GANGA PLAIN :
Umesh Kumar Singh, Department of Ancient History, Archaeology &
Culture, Udai Pratap College, Varanasi
ENVIRONMENT AND CHOICE IN DWELLING HOUSES AND SETTLEMENT PATTERN IN
MIDDLE GANGA PLAIN : Santosh Kumar Singh, Department of AIHC and
Archaeology, Devendra P.G. College Belthara Road, Ballia
ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING OF EARLY TAMIL LITERATURE AND CULTURE : Archana
Sharma, Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ENVIRONMENTAL CONSCIOUSNESS AS REFLECTED IN ARTHASHASTRA : A STUDY :
Dinesh Kumar Ojha & Alok Kumar Pandey, Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology,
BHU
ENVIRONMENT AND HUMAN ADAPTATION IN EARLY HOLOCENE PERIOD IN BELAN
VALLEY: AN EVIDENCE OF ROCK ART : A.K.Dubey, Member, UP Higher
Education, Allahabad
THE ROLE OF STATE IN CONSERVING ENVIRONMENT IN ANCIENT INDIA : Anshul
Bajpai, Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology BHU
A STUDY OF THE NATURAL SYMBOLS ON THE OLD INDIAN COINS: WITH SPECIAL
REFERENCE TO ENVIRONMENT : O.N. Singh, Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology,
BHU
BLACK COTTON SOIL : ENVIRONMENT & CULTURE : Pushp Lata Singh, Deptt.
of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ROLE OF CLIMATE AND THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE GROWTH OF SETTLEMENT OF THE
MIDDLE GANGA PLAIN:AN ARCHAEOLOGIACAL STUDY : Ashok Kumar Singh,
Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ENVIRONMENT IN ANCIENT INDIA: PEACE PERSPECTIVE : Pradeep Dhakal,
Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
HOW DID INDIANS MAINTAIN THEIR ENVIRONMENT : Harihar Singh , Deptt. of
AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
WATER IN VEDAS : Suman Jain , Deptt. of AIHC & Archaeology, BHU
ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS IN ANCIENT INDIA : Anuradha Singh , Deptt. of
History , BHU
HARAPPAN CIVILISATION AND PALAEOCOLOGY OF SOUTH ASIA : AN APPROACH :
Raj K. Sharma , Dept. of Mining Engineering BHU & D. P. Singh, Deptt.
of AIHC & Archaeology,BHU
http://www.bhu.ac.in/aihc/seminar.htm
DEPARTMENTAL PublicationS
Since long the Department has scheme of publishing researches of
eminent scholars from India and abroad. So far more than five dozens
volumes have been brought out. It has been regular in publishing its
journal Bharati and Monograph series. Bharati, Vol. 32 is now under
Publication.
BHARATI
(Bulletin of the Dept of A.I.H.C. & Archaeology)
No. 1, 1956-57, Eds. Sri D.C. Guha & Sri M.N. Singh.
No. 2, 1957-58, Eds. Prof. R.B. Pandey & Dr. V.S. Pathak.
No. 3, 1959-68, Eds. Prof. R.B. Pandey & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 4, 1960-61, Eds. Prof. Surya Kanta & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 5, 1961-62, Eds. Prof. Surya Kanta & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 6, 1962-63, Eds. Prof. V.S. Agrawala & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 7, 1963-64, Eds. Prof. A.K. Narain & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 8, 1964-65, Eds. Prof. A.K. Narain & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 9, 1965-66, Eds. Prof. A.K. Narain & Sri L.K. Tripathi.
No. 10-11 (combined), 1966-68, Central Asia Number Eds. Prof. A.K.
Narain.
No. 12-14, (combined),1969-71, Prof. V.S. Agrawala, Prof Vol. Eds.
A.K. Narain & Sri P.K. Agrawala.
No. 1, New Series, 1983-84, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 2, New Series, 1984-85, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 3, New Series, 1985-86, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 15, 1971-85, Prof. R.B. Pandey Volume Eds. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
No. 16, 1985-87, Prof. R.C. Majumdar Volume, Ed. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
No. 17, 1987-88, Ed. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
No. 18, 1988-89, Ed. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
No. 19, 1989-90, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 20, 1990-91, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 21, 1991-92, Ed. Prof. V.C. Srivastava
No. 22, 1992-93, Ed. Prof. V.C. Srivastava
No. 23, 1994-96, Ed. Prof. Prof. V.C. Srivastava
No. 24, 1996-97, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 25, 1998-99, Ed. Prof. P. Singh
No. 26, 2000-2002, Ed. Prof. V. Jayaswal
No. 27, 2002-2003, Ed. Prof. V. Tripathi
No. 28, 2003-2004, Ed. Prof. V. Tripathi
No. 29, 2004-2005, Ed. Prof. V. Tripathi
No. 30, 2005-2006, Ed. Prof. P. N. Singh
No. 31, 2006-2007, Ed. Prof. P. N. Singh
No. 32, 2007-2008, Ed. Prof. P. N. Singh (under publication)
MONOGRAPHS
1. From Alexandar to Kaniska by Prof. A.K. Narain.
2. Excavations at Sravasti-1959 by Dr. K.K. Sinha.
3. Skanda-Karttikeya : A Study in Origin and Evolution by Dr. P.K.
Agrawala.
4. Ramji Pandey, Kal Sahinta 2003.
5. The Excavations at Prahladpur by Prof. A.K. Narain & Dr. T.N. Roy.
6. Inscriptions of the Early Gupta Kings and their successors
(Supplement to Fleet's C.I.I., Vol. III),
1888,Part (Bibliography), by Shri R.S. Mishra.
7. Aspects of Early Jainism by Dr. Jai Prakash Singh.
8. The Disintegration of the Kushan Empire by Prof. B.N. Mukherjee.
9. History and Coinage of Skandagupta Kramaditya by Dr. J.P. Singh.
10. The Guru-Samhita : An Ancient Text on Weather Forecasting, by
Prof. Lallanji Gopal.
11. A Catalogue of the Greek and Indo-Greek Coins in the Department
by Dr. T.P. Verma.
12. Archaeology of Population, by Dr. Makkhan Lal.
13. The Aryans, the Veda and the Kaliyuga Era of 3102 B.C., by Shri
Kailash Chandra Varma.
14. Archaeology as Historical Science by Mr. Bruce Trigger.
15. An Approach to Indian Culture and Civilization by Prof. G.C.
Pande.
16. Models, Paradigms and the New Archaeology by Dr. Shivaji Singh.
17. Osteo-archaeological remains from Rajghat by Dr. Bhupendra Pal
Singh.
MEMOIRS
1. Seminar Papers on the Chronology of the Punch-Marked Coins, Eds.
Prof. A.K. Narain and Dr.
Lallanji Gopal.
2. Seminar Papers on the Local Coins of Northern India (c. 300 B.C. to
c. 300 A.D.) Eds. Prof.A.K. Narain,
Dr. J.P. Singh and Dr. Nisar Ahmad.
3. Seminar Papers on the Problem of Megaliths in India Eds. Prof. A.K.
Narain, Dr. Purushottam Singh.
4. Seminar Papers on the Tribal Coins of Ancient India (c. 200 B.C. to
400 A.D.) Eds. Prof. Lallanji Gopal.
Dr. J. P. Singh and Dr. N. Ahmad.
5. D.D. Kosambi Commemoration Volume Ed. Prof. Lallanji Gopal.
6. Position and Status of Women in Ancient India, Vol. I, Ed. Prof.
L.K. Tripathi.
7. Position and Status of Women in Ancient India, Vol. II, Ed. Prof.
L.K. Tripathi.
8. Buddhist Stupa in India and South-East Asia, Ed. Prof. L.K.
Tripathi.
9. Sati in Ancient India, Ed. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
10. Untouchabilty in Ancient India, Ed. Prof. L.K. Tripathi.
EXCAVATION REPORTS
1. Excavations at Sravasti - 1959 by Dr. K.K. Sinha
2. The Excavations at Prahladpur by Prof. A.K. Narain & Dr.
T.N. Roy
3. Excavations at Rajghat, Ed. Prof. A.K. Narain
Part I : The Cuttings, Stratification and Structures by
Dr. T.N. Roy.
Part II : The Pottery, by Dr. T.N. Roy.
Part III : Small Finds, by Dr. P. Singh.
Part IV : Terracotta Human Figurines by Dr. P.K. Agrawala.
A : - Text
B : - Plates
4. Paisara-A Stone Age Settlement of Bihar, 1991 by Prof. P.C.
Pant & Dr. Vidula Jayaswal.
5. Excavations at Narhan by Prof. P. Singh (1994)
HINDI PUBLICATIONS
Prachin Bhartiya Abhilekh - Sangrah, Edited by - Dr. Avadh Kishor
Narayan and Mani Sankar Shukla, Part-1 and Part-2
Saraswati By Sushila Khare
Puran Vishyanukramni (Vidhi and Aachar) vol -1 edited by Prof. Lalan
ji Gopal
Puran Vishyanukramni (Vidhi and Aachar) vol -2 edited by Prof. Lalan
ji Gopal
Kaal Sanhita by Dr. Ramji Pandey
http://www.bhu.ac.in/aihc/publication.htm
The Battle For Ancient India (An Essay in the Sociopolitics of Indian
Archaeology)
IDK201
by Dilip K. Chakrabarti
Hardcover (Edition: 2008)
Aryan Books International
ISBN 9788173053412
Size: 9.0" X 5.8"
Pages: 183
Our Price: $30.00
Preface
This volume is rooted in my Colonial Indology: Sociopolitics of the
Ancient Indian Past (1997) and demonstrates in the context of Indian
archaeology how the grip of "colonial Indology" is still an
intellectual force cutting across the national boundaries. Among the
archaeologists at least this trend of thought has been more visible in
the post-1947 period than in period preceding it. This book also shows
how the various current debates regarding Indian archaeology and
ancient history end up by being an issue of "progress versus reaction"
or "secularism versus communalism" and how such assertions are only a
reflection of the political expediency of the concerned scholars.
In its quest to underline the various sociopolitical subtexts of
opinions in the field of modern Indian archaeology, the book clearly
focuses on how these opinions have taken birth and evolved and what
exactly is their academic basis. Unless we are aware of the socio-
political ramifications of our archaeological opinions, it is unlikely
that we shall be able to form our own conclusions about them.
This book was written in September-December of 2006, and I am deeply
thankful to Dr. Rakesh Tewari and Professor Nayanjot Lahiri for kindly
going through the manuscript and offering suggestions. The
responsibility of all shortcomings rests with me. I am especially
indebted to my colleague Dr. Cameron Petrie who kindly procured for me
a copy of S.K. Chatterji's Modern Review article. It is dedicated to
my wife and daughter, both of whom have always striven hard to make my
academic life smooth and even. My daughter also took upon herself the
duty of taking down my field dictations and doing photography in the
field.
From the Jacket
A number of issues regarding the study of ancient India have recently
emerged in the public domain. The most important of them are the
Sarasvati Project, Aryan invasion theory, the textbook controversy in
India and California and the language of the Indus civilization. The
intensity of debate on each of these issues is reminiscent of
religious clashes. Much of this debate is also not limited to
professional historians and archaeologists. The mass of data and
opinions, which are currently available on the internet and have
frequently been published in the media, can no longer be ignored by
anybody interested in ancient India. Some professional analysis of
this development has long been called for. This book is in response to
this need. It first states the author's position on each of these
issues, but more importantly, critically examines their rationale. By
studying the socio-political implications of some of the current
assumption of Indian archaeology and by noting their associations with
different scholars and scholarly groups, it demonstrates that even the
apparently remote conclusions about India's prehistoric, protohistoric
and early historic past have sub-texts of various kinds and that these
sub-texts have different socio-political implications and agendas.
Dilip K. Chakrabarti is Professor of South Asian Archaeology in the
Department of Archaeology of Cambridge University. He has been awarded
D.Litt. (Honoris Causa) by M.J.P. Rohilkhand University, Bareilly,
where he delivered the University's Convocation Address in 2006. The
Asiatic Society (Calcutta) awarded him its S.C. Chakrabarti Memorial
Medal in 2007.
Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements vii
1 Introduction 1
I. The Theme 1
II. The Author's Own Approach and Beliefs 3
III. The Idea of India as a Colonized Land throughout History 9
2 'Sunrise' in the West: Different Strands of Indian Prehistoric and
Proto-historic Studies 35
I. The General Background 35
II. The Theme of 'Sunrise in the West' 39
III. Comments on Certain General Trends of Publications in Indian
Prehistory and Protohistory 42
3. The Sociopolitics of the Indus Civilization Studies 51
I. The Framework of the Ancient Indian 51
Past before the Discovery
II. The Discovery and the Early Hypotheses of the Excavators0 54
III. The Period between the Discovery and Associated 57
Reports, and the Publication of Marshall's
Mohenjodaro Report in 1931: R.P. Chanda
IV. The Formulation of the Dravidian Hypothesis: Suniti Kumar
Chatterji 64
V. Observations on Chanda and Chatterji 67
VI. John Marshall's "Mohenjodaro and the Indus Civilization" (1931)
68
VII. The Basic History of the Idea of Harappa-Vedic Relationship:
B.N. Datta to P.V. Kane and Others 69
VIII. More on the Dravidian Premise or the Question 83
of the Dravidian Authorship of the Indus Civilization
IX. The Current Politics of the Indus Civilization Studies 90
4 The Sociopolitics of Some Debates in Early Historic Archaeology 103
I. The Literature on the NBP 103
II. The Beginning of Writing 106
III. The Role of Iron in the Second Urbanisation 112
5 Summary and Discussion 117
Appendix 153
Bibliography 159
Index 167
http://www.exoticindiaart.com/book/details/IDK201/
HARAPPAN HORSE: POLEMICS AND PROPAGANDA
Editorial Comment
As the Aryan invasion version of history has begun to crumble, there
are parties in Indian and Western academic circles that have a special
interest in preserving it. It is unnecessary to go into reasons behind
this beyond noting that considerations of politics and careers have
much to do with it. This is not unusual in any field: whenever there
is a paradigm shift, as is now the case with the Vedic-Harappan
convergence today, the old order suddenly finds the ground shifting
under its feet. A debate, at times acrimonious is natural and
inevitable in the circumstances. But what was unusual in this case was
the tactics adopted by a few of the participants, notably Michael
Witzel, the Prince of Wales Professor of Sanskrit at Harvard. He went
beyond criticizing the work of N. Jha and N.S. Rajaram, to charging
that they, in their book The Deciphered Indus Script had fabricated
the image of a horse in order to show that the Harappan civilization
was Vedic.
In all this, Witzel's central claim was that the horse was unknown in
ancient India prior to the coming of the Aryan invaders who brought it
with them. Thus, the Harappans had no horses. Further, the spoke-wheel
was also unknown to the Harappans. But Witzel went further: he
insisted that any data that suggested otherwise must perforce be a
fabrication. This was the charge he leveled against N. Jha and N.S.
Rajaram in the summer of 2000 when the book The Deciphered Indus
Script reached the United States. He chose to ignore however that
comments on the 'Harappan Horse' was limited to two partial footnotes
in their book, which was about the decipherment and in no way
dependent on the Harappan horse. Jha and Rajaram chose to ignore these
charges other than issuing a press release that refuted Witzel's
charge with the help of photographs. (Witzel was assisted in his work
by one Steve Farmer with no credentials in the field other than making
extravagant claims. He seems to have disappeared from the scene.)
The situation reached a climax when Rajaram, in an article that
appeared in the national daily The Hindu (February 19, 2002) produced
evidence from well-known sources showing that horse remains had been
identified at Harappan sites going back several decades; he also
highlighted other important evidence like the Vedic river Sarasvati
that connect the Vedic and Harappan civilizations. This seemed to put
Witzel in an awkward situation. First, it showed that his claim of "No
Harappan horse," had no basis in fact. More seriously, it cast a cloud
on his tactics, suggesting that he was indulging in suppression of
evidence while simultaneously launching a personal attack on those who
disagreed with him. In all this the assumption seemed to be that his
position as an academic at a well-known university combined with
aggressive propaganda carried out at a high decibel level was enough
to override facts and logic. This predicament that Witzel found
himself in--the collapse of his scholarly reputation together with the
exposure of his unsavory tactics--may explain the ferocious tone of
his article given in this section. This was noted by the distinguished
archaeologist R. Nagaswamy who went on to systematically refute
Witzel's claims and method--calling the latter an example of reductio
ad absurdum.
While the Aryan invasion is dead, and the Vedic-Harappan connection
all but a reality, the series of articles that appeared in The Hindu
gives an idea of the 'debate' that is likely to be the last ditch
effort to save the Aryan invasion. We begin with Rajaram's article
that set the cat among the pigeons, followed by Witzel's response,
culminating in Nagaswamy's refutation of Witzel's claims and methods.
THEORY AND EVIDENCE
A historical theory must account for all the evidence and not
selectively accept and ignore data. Further, a man-made theory cannot
substitute for primary data.
N.S. Rajaram
Albert Einstein once said: "A theory must not contradict empirical
facts." He was speaking in the context of science, especially how
historians of science often lacked proper understanding of the
scientific process. As he saw it the problem was: "Nearly all
historians of science are philologists [linguists] and do not
comprehend what physicists were aiming at, how they thought and
wrestled with these problems." When such is the situation in physics
where problems are clear-cut, it is not surprising to see issues in a
subject like history being much more contentious. This is particularly
the case when trying to understand the records of people far removed
from us in time like the creators of the Vedic and Harappan
civilizations. As a result of some recent historical developments like
European colonization and Western interest in Sanskrit language and
linguistics, several myths and conjectures, through the force of
repetition, have come to acquire the status of historical facts. It is
time to re-evaluate these in the light of new evidence and more
scientific approaches.
When we come to these myths, none is more persistent than the one
about "No horse at Harappa." This has now been supplemented by another
claim that the spoke-wheel was unknown to the Harappans. The point of
these claims is that without the horse and the spoke-wheel the
Harappans were militarily vulnerable to the invading Aryan hordes who
moved on speedy, horse-drawn chariots with spoke-wheels. This claim is
not supported by facts: an examination of the evidence shows that both
the spoke-wheel and the horse were widely used by the Harappans.
(The idea seems to be borrowed from the destruction of Native American
civilizations by the Spanish and Portuguese 'Conquistadors'. The
Conquistadors though never used chariots.)
As far as the spoke-wheel is concerned, B.B. Lal, former Director
General of the Archaeological Survey of India records finding
terracotta wheels at various Harappan sites. In his words: "The
painted lines [spokes] converge at the central hub, and thus leave no
doubt about their representing the spokes of the wheel. ...another
example is reproduced from Kalibangan, a well-known Harappan site in
Rajasthan, in which too the painted lines converge at the hub. ...two
examples from Banawali [another Harappan site], in which the spokes
are not painted but are shown in low relief." ( The Sarasvati Keeps
Flowing, Aryan Books, Delhi, pages 72-3). It is also worth noting that
the depiction of the spoke-wheel is quite common on Harappan seals.
Horse and Vedic symbolism
The horse and the cow are mentioned often in the Rigveda, though they
commonly carry symbolic rather than physical meaning. There is
widespread misconception that the absence of the horse at Harappan
sites shows that horses were unknown in India until the invading
Aryans brought them. Such 'argument by absence' is hazardous at best.
To take an example, the bull is quite common on the seals, but the cow
is never represented. We cannot from this conclude that the Harappans
raised bulls but were ignorant of the cow. In any event, depictions of
the horse are known at Harappan sites, though rare. It is possible
that there was some kind of religious taboo that prevented the
Harappans from using cows and horses in their art. More fundamentally,
it is incorrect to say that horses were unknown to the Harappans. The
recently released encyclopedia The Dawn of Indian Civilization, Volume
1, Part 1 observes (pages 344 - 5): "... the horse was widely
domesticated and used in India during the third millennium BCE over
most of the area covered by the Indus-Sarasvati [or Harappan]
Civilization. Archaeologically this is most significant since the
evidence is widespread and not isolated."
This is not the full story. Sir John Marshall, Director General of the
Archaeological Survey when Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were being
excavated, recorded the presence of what he called the 'Mohenjo-daro
horse'. Giving salient measurements, comparing it to other known
specimens, he wrote: "It will be seen that there is a considerable
degree of similarity between these various examples, and it is
probable the Anau horse, the Mohenjo-daro horse, and the example of
Equus caballus of the Zoological Survey of India, are all of the type
of the 'Indian country bred', a small breed of horse, the Anau horse
being slightly smaller than the others." ( Mohenjo-Daro and the Indus
Civilization, volume II, page 654.) It is important to recognize that
this is much stronger evidence than mere artifacts, which are artists'
reproductions and not anatomical specimens that can be subjected to
scientific examination.
Actually, the Harappans not only knew the horse, the whole issue of
the 'Harappan horse' is irrelevant. In order to prove that the Vedas
are of foreign origin, (and the horse came from Central Asia) one must
produce positive evidence: it should be possible to show that the
horse described in the Rigveda was brought from Central Asia. This is
contradicted by the Rigveda itself. In verse I.162.18, the Rigveda
describes the horse as having 34 ribs (17 pairs), while the Central
Asian horse has 18 pairs (36) of ribs. We find a similar description
in the Yajurveda also.
This means that the horse described in the Vedas is the native Indian
breed (with 34 ribs) and not the Central Asian variety. Fossil remains
of Equus Sivalensis (the 'Siwalik horse') show that the 34-ribbed
horse has been known in India going back tens of thousands of years.
This makes the whole argument based on "No horse at Harappa"
irrelevant. The Vedic horse is a native Indian breed and not the
Central Asian horse. As a result, far from supporting any Aryan
invasion, the horse evidence furnishes one of its strongest
refutations.
Man-made theories
All this suggests that man-made theories (like "No Harappan horse")
and those in linguistics cannot be used to override primary evidence
like the Vedic Sarasvati (described below) and the dominant oceanic
symbolism found in the Vedas. To see this we may note that South
Indian languages like Kannada and Tamil have indigenous ( desi ) word
for the horse-- kudurai-- suggesting that the horse has long been
native to the region. The same is true of the tiger ( puli and huli )
and the elephant ( aaney ). Contrast this with the word for the lion--
simha and singam --that are borrowed from Sanskrit, indicating that
the lion was not native to the South. A man-made theory in
linguistics, because it is not bound by laws of nature, can be made to
cut both ways. It cannot take the place of evidence.
In any field it is important to take into account all the evidence,
especially evidence of a fundamental nature. This can be illustrated
with the help of what we now know about the Vedic river known as the
Sarasvati. The Rigveda describes the Sarasvati as the greatest and the
holiest of rivers-- as ambitame, naditame, devitame (best of mothers,
best of rivers, best goddess). Satellite photographs as well as field
explorations by archaeologists, notably the great expedition led by
the late V.S. Wakankar, have shown that a great river answering to the
description of the Sarasvati in the Rigveda (flowing 'from the
mountains to the sea') did indeed exist thousands of years ago. After
many vicissitudes due to tectonic and other changes, it dried up
completely by 1900 BCE. This raises a fundamental question: how could
the Aryans who are supposed to have arrived in India only in 1500 BCE,
and composed their Vedic hymns c. 1200 BCE, have described and
extolled a river that had disappeared five hundred years earlier? In
addition, numerous Harappan sites have been found along the course of
the now dry Sarasvati, which further strengthens the Vedic-Harappan
connection. As a result, the Indus (or Harappan) civilization is more
properly called the Indus-Sarasvati civilization.
The basic point of all this: we cannot construct a theory focusing on
a few relatively minor details like the spoke-wheel while ignoring
important, even monumental evidence like the Sarasvati River and the
oceanic symbolism that dominates the Rigveda. (This shows that the
Vedic people could not have come from a land-locked region like
Afghanistan or Central Asia.) A historical theory, no less than a
scientific theory, must take into account all available evidence. No
less important, a man-made theory cannot take the place of primary
evidence like the Sarasvati River or the oceanic descriptions in the
Rigveda. This brings us back to Einstein-- "A theory must not
contradict empirical facts." Nor can it ignore primary evidence.
[This article, which supplied evidence that demolished Witzel's claims
once and for all, drew the following response from Witzel. It is not
hard to see that Witzel was concerned mainly with negating all
evidence--from equine data to the Sarasvati River! He also failed to
note that the possible presence of the 'Siwalik horse' for millions of
years is further evidence against his thesis of the horse as a late
arrival in India. Further, contrary to his claim, the 34 ribs of
Indian, Southeast Asian and some Arab horses is a genetically
inherited trait that cannot be wished away. Also, it is not just the
Rigveda that mentions the 34-ribbed horse, but the Yajurveda as well.
Editor]
HARAPPAN HORSE MYTHS AND THE SCIENCES
The horses found in the early excavations at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa
do not come from secure levels and such `horse' bones, in most cases,
found their way into deposits through erosional cutting and refilling,
disturbing the archaeological layers.
Michael Witzel
In the Open Page of February 19, N.S. Rajaram posits a truism "A
theory must not contradict empirical facts," but he then does not
deliver on the `empirical facts.' As a scientist, he must suffer to be
corrected, bluntly this time, by a mere philologist and Indologist.
Philology, incidentally, is not the same as linguistics, as he says,
but the study of a civilisation based on its texts. In order to
understand such texts, one must acquire the necessary knowledge in all
relevant fields, from astronomy to zoology. It is precisely a proper
background in zoology, particularly in palaeontology, that is badly
lacking in Rajaram's, the scientist's, account. Instead, it is he, and
not his favorite straw man, the Indologist, who has created some new
"myths and conjectures ... through the force of repetition." Let us
deconstruct them one by one.
Harappan horses?
To begin with, he claims that "both the spoke-wheel and the horse were
widely used by the Harappans." He quotes S.P. Gupta, without naming
him, from a recent book ( The Dawn of Indian Civilisation , ed. by
G.C. Pande, 1999). According to Gupta the horse (Equus caballus) "was
widely domesticated and used in India during the third millennium BCE
over most of the area covered by the Indus-Sarasvati (or Harappan)
Civilisation. Archaeologically this is most significant since the
evidence is widespread and not isolated." Nothing in this assertion is
correct, even if -- or rather because -- it comes from an
archaeologist and inventive rewriter of history, S.P. Gupta. For
example, the horses found in the early excavations at Mohenjo-Daro and
Harappa do not come from secure levels and such `horse' bones, in most
cases, found their way into deposits through erosional cutting and
refilling, disturbing the archaeological layers.
Indeed, not one clear example of horse bones exists in the Indus
excavations and elsewhere in North India before c. 1800 BCE (R. Meadow
and A. Patel 1997, Meadow 1996: 405, 1998). Such `horse' skeletons
have not been properly reported from distinct and secure
archaeological layers, and worse, they have not been compared with
relevant collections of ancient skeletons and modern horses (Meadow
1996: 392). Instead, well recorded and stratified finds of horse
figures and later on, of horse bones (along with the imported camel
and donkey), first occur in the Kachi plain on the border of Sindh/E.
Baluchistan (c. 1800-1500 BCE), when the mature Indus Civilisation had
already disintegrated.
Even more importantly, the only true native equid of South Asia is the
untamable khur (Equus hemionus, onager/half-ass) that still tenuously
survives in the Rann of Kutch. Both share a common ancestor which is
now put at ca. 1.72 million years ago (while the first Equus specimen
is attested already 3.7 mya.). The differences between a half-ass
skeleton and that of a horse are so small that one needs a trained
specialist plus the lucky find of the lower forelegs of a horse/onager
to determine which is which, for "bones of a larger khur will overlap
in size with those of a small horse, and bones of a small khur will
overlap in size with those of a donkey." (Meadow 1996: 406).
To merely compare sizes, as Rajaram does following the dubious decades
old Harappan data of Marshall, and then to connect the long gone
"Equus Sivalensis" with the so-called "Anau horse", resulting in the
"Indian country" type, is just another blunder, but Rajaram, the
scientist, is not aware of it.
Proper judgment is not possible as long as none of the above
precautions are taken, and when -- as is often done -- just incomplete
skeletons or teeth are compared, all of which is done without the
benefit of a suitable collection of standard sets of onager, donkey
and horse skeletons. Rajaram and his fellow rewriters of history thus
are free to turn any local half-ass into a Harappan horse, just as he
has already done (see Frontline , Oct./Nov. 2000) with his half-bull.
Further, the archaeologists claiming to have found horses in Indus
sites are not trained zoologists or palaeontologists. When I need to
get my teeth fixed I do not go to a veterinarian or a beauty salon.
Typically, S.P. Gupta (1999) does not add any new evidence, and just
repeats palaeontologically unsubstantiated claims that are, to quote
Rajaram, "myths and conjectures... through the force of repetition."
The Siwalik equid
In addition, Rajaram conjures up another phantom, the Siwalik horse:
"fossil remains of Equus Sivalensis (the `Siwalik horse') show that
the 34-ribbed horse has been known in India going back tens of
thousands of years." Standard palaeontology handbooks (B.J. MacFadden,
Fossil Horses, 1992) would have told him that the Siwalik horse, first
found in the northern hills of Pakistan, is not just "going back tens
of thousands of years" but is in fact 2.6 million years old. However,
it has long died out during the last Ice Age, as part of the late
Pleistocene megafaunal extinction of about 10,000 years ago (i.e. at
the end of the Late Upper Pleistocene, 75-10,000 y.a.: it is
reportedly found in middle to late Pleistocene locations in the
Siwaliks and in Tamil Nadu, and recently, as a "Great Indian horse" in
Andhra, 75,000 y.a.). But there is, to my knowledge, no account of a
Siwalik horse that even remotely approaches the date of the Indus
Civilisation -- nor does Rajaram quote any authority to this effect.
Nevertheless, in order to bolster his claim for the antiquity of the
"Vedic horse (as) a native Indian breed", he connects this dead horse
with the Rigvedic one, which is described as having 34 ribs (Rigveda
1.162.18). But, while horses (Equus caballus) generally have 18 ribs
on each side, this can individually vary with 17 on just one or on
both sides. This is not a genetically inherited trait. Such is also
the case with the equally variable (5 instead of 6) lumbar vertebrae,
as found in some early domestic horses in Egypt (2nd. mill. BCE) and
in the closely related modern Central Asian Przewalski horse (which
shares the same ancestor, 620-320,000 years ago, with the domestic
horse/Equus ferus).
As for the number 34, numeral symbolism may play a role in this
Rigveda passage dealing with a horse sacrificed for the gods. The
number of gods in the Rigveda is 33 or 33+1, which obviously
corresponds to the 34 ribs of the horse, that in turn is speculatively
brought into connection with all the gods, many of whom are mentioned
by name (Rigveda 1.162-3). But this is mere philology, not worthy of
"scientific" study...
In sum, even S. Bokonyi, the palaeontologist who sought to identify a
horse skeleton at the Surkotada site of the Indus Civilisation, stated
that "horses reached the Indian subcontinent in an already
domesticated form coming from the Inner Asiatic horse domestication
centers" -- just as they were imported into the ancient Near East
about 2000 BCE. Any zoological handbook would have told the scientist
Rajaram the same (MacFadden 1992).
In addition, the identification the Surkotada equid as horse by S.
Bokonyi is disputed by R. Meadow and A. Patel (1997). Even if this
were indeed the only archaeologically and palaeontologically secure
Indus horse available so far, it would not turn the Indus Civilisation
into one teeming with horses (as the Rigveda indeed is, a few hundred
years later). A tiger skeleton in the Roman Colosseum does not make
this Asian predator a natural inhabitant of Italy. In short, to state
that the "Vedic horse is a native Indian breed and not the Central
Asian horse" is just another fantasy of the current rewriters of
Indian history.
Nevertheless, Rajaram even repeats some of his own "myths and
conjectures, (which) through the force of repetition, have come to
acquire the status of historical facts," namely the old canard that
"depictions of the horse are known at Harappan sites, though rare" --
a case of fraud and fantasy that has been exploded more than a year
ago in Frontline (Oct./Nov. 2000). Apparently, he thinks, along with
other politicians, that repeating an untruth long enough will turn it
into a fact.
Spoke-wheeled chariots
Rajaram, in dire need of `Rigvedic' horse-drawn chariots for the
Harappan period, then introduces spoked wheels into the Indus
Civilisation: "terracotta wheels at various Harappan sites. ... The
painted lines (spokes) converge at the central hub, and thus leave no
doubt about their representing the spokes of the wheel."
The handful existing specimens of such terracotta disks may indeed
look, even to a trained archaeologist, like a spoked wheel --
especially when he wants to find Aryan chariots, just like Aryan fire
altars, all over the Indus area. But, they may just as well have been
simple spindle whorls, used in spinning very real yarn, not wild Aryan
tales. Further, "spoked wheel patterns" occur in cultures that never
had the wheel, such as pre-Columbian North American civilisations. In
other words, all of this proves nothing as long as we do not find a
pair of these "spoked wheels" in situ, along with a Harappan toy cart.
Normally, the wheels of such toy carts are of the heavy, full wheel
type (that is made of three interlocked wood blocks).
Rajaram then asserts, for good measure, that the "depiction of the
spoke-wheel is quite common on Harappan seals." This refers to the
wheel-like signs in Harappan script. Unfortunately, these "wheels" can
easily be explained as unrelated artistic designs (like in the N.
American case). Worse, they mostly are oblong ovals, not circles. A
Harappan businessman using a cart with such wheels would have gotten
seasick pretty soon. They are unfit for travel -- and for the
discerning reader's consumption.
Instead, the rich Rigvedic materials dealing with the horse-drawn
chariot and chariot races do not fit at all with Indus dates
(2600-1900 BCE) and rather put this text and its chariots well after
c. 2000 BCE, the archaeologically accepted timeframe of the invention
of the spoke-wheeled chariot in the northern steppes and in the Near
East. Again, Rajaram's fantasised "Late Vedic" Indus people have
scored a "first": they invented the chariot long before archaeologists
can find it anywhere on the planet!
"Aryan" chariots
There is no need to go deeply into his building up the straw man of
Aryan invasions (i.e. immigration of speakers of Indo-Aryan),
involving a need to "prove that the Vedas are of foreign origin." No
one today maintains such a theory anyhow. Instead, the Rigveda is a
text of the Greater Punjab, indicating a lot of local acculturation
but using a language and poetics that go back to the earlier Indo-
Iranian period in Central Asia (c. 2000 BCE).
Equally misleading is his caricature: "without the horse and the spoke-
wheel the Harappans were militarily vulnerable to the invading Aryan
hordes who moved on speedy, horse-drawn chariots with spoke-wheels."
As has been mentioned here a few weeks ago, nobody today claims that
the Indo-Aryan speakers arrived on the scene when the mature Indus
Civilisation still was flourishing and destroyed it, it in whatever
fashion. Instead, there is a gap of some centuries between the two
cultures, as the descriptions of ruins and simple mud wall/palisade
forts (pur) in the Rigveda indicate. Vedic texts tell us that the
pastoralist Indo-Aryan nobility fought from chariots, and the
commoners on horseback and on foot, with the local people ( dasyu ) of
the small, post-Harappan settlements who, like the Kikata, are said
not even to understand "the use of cows." Next to warfare there also
was peaceful acculturation of the various peoples in the Greater
Punjab, as is shown by the Rigveda itself.
As for a chariot use, a brief study of ancient Near Eastern warfare
would have done the `historian' Rajaram some good. It is clear to even
a superficial reader that after c. 1600 BCE the Hyksos, Hittites,
etc., used such chariots, not just for show and sport but also in
battle, such as in the famous battle of Kadesh between the Hittites
and Egyptians in 1300 BCE. Chariots were in fact used as late as in
Alexander's battle with Poros (Paurava) in the Punjab, or by the
contemporary Magadha army with its 3,000 elephants and 2,000 chariots.
Why then all this diatribe about the "Aryan" use of chariots in
favorable, flat terrain? (Not, of course, while "thundering down the
Khyber Pass"!)
Foray into linguistics
Mercifully, Rajaram has spared us, this time, his usual assaults on
the "pseudo-science" of linguistics, and instead tries his own hand at
it, and teaches us some Dravidian: kudirai `horse,' which should prove
that the horse has been native to South India forever. However, his
foray into linguistics is incomplete and misleading.
First, Tamil kutirai, Kannada kudire, Telugu kudira, etc. have been
compared by linguists, decades ago, with ancient Near Eastern words:
Elamite kutira `bearer', kuti `to bear.' The Drav. words Brahui
(h)ullii `horse' and Tam. ivuLi are derived from `half-ass,
hemion' (T. Burrow in 1972). Both words, far from being `native South
Indian', thus were coming in from the northwest.
Second, other Indian language families have such `foreign' words as
seen in Munda (Koraput) kurtag, (Korku) gurgi, kurki, (Sabara/Sora)
kurtaa, (Gadaba) krutaa, which are all derived from Tibeto-Burmese,
for example Tsangla (Bhutan) kurtaa, Tib. rta. We know that Himalayan
ponies have always been brought southwards by salt traders and with
them, of course, their names. There also is the independent and
isolated Burushaski (in N. Pakistan) with ha-ghur, cf. Drav. gur- in
Telugu guRRamu, Gondi gurram, etc., and the Austro-Asiatic Khasi (in
Shillong) kulai, Amwi kurwa', etc., -- all of which again point to a
northern origin. (For details see: EJVS 5-1, Aug. 1999,
http://users.primushost.com/india/ejvs, or: International Journal of
Dravidian Linguistics , 2001).
Far from magically proving, with one Dravidian word, that the "native
Indian horse" has been found in the South since times immemorial, the
"man made theory" of linguistics --just as the hard facts of
palaeontological science -- rather indicate that the words for `horse'
were imported, along with the animal, from the (north)western
(Iranian) and northern (Tibetan) areas. Genetics now add another
facet. The domesticated horse seems to have several (steppe) maternal
DNA lines (Science 291, 2001, 474-477; Science 291, 2001, 412; cf.
Conservation Genetics 1, 2000, 341-355), which fits in very well with
the several northern Eurasian words for it mentioned above. The
Eastern Central Asian words must be added; they all probably derive
from Proto-Altaic *mori (as in Mongolian morin, Chinese ma, Japanese
uma, and as surprisingly also found in Irish marc, English mare).
The Harappan Sarasvati
The case of the Vedic Sarasvati river (the modern Sarsuti-Ghagghar-
Hakra) is complex and cannot be dealt with in detail (see, rather,
EJVS 7-3, section 25). It must be pointed out, however, that the
Rigvedic Sarasvati is a river on earth, a `river' in the sky (Milky
Way), and a goddess, and as such Sarasvati is described in superlative
terms, once as flowing `from the mountains to the sea' ( samudra ).
However, this word has several meanings that must be kept apart:
`confluence, lake, mythical ocean surrounding the earth'; the sky,
too, is called a `pond'! To commingle all of this as samudra `Indian
Ocean' is bad philology.
In addition, far from emptying into the Rann of Kutch then, the
Harappan Sarasvati (`having lakes'), disappears as Hakra in the dunes
around and beyond Ft. Derawar in Bahawalpur, after showing signs of a
delta (playa) and of terminal lakes, just like its Iranian namesake in
the Afghani desert, the Haraxvaiti (Helmand) with its Hamun lakes.
Further, simple satellite photographs also do not show when a river
dried up, as the Ghagghar-Hakra has indeed done several times in its
different sections in recent millennia. This was shown in detail for
the Indus and Vedic periods by the former director of Pakistani
archaeology, Rafique Mughal, in his book Ancient Cholistan (1997).
Rajaram again is simply wrong as a scientist in asserting that the
river conveniently "dried up completely by 1900 BCE." Reality is much
more complex.
Actually, much of this has been known since Oldham and Raverty (1886,
1892). (Thus, I myself have printed a Sarasvati map, based on a
lecture of 1983, before the overquoted satellite photos of Yash Pal et
al. were published in 1984). However, we need many more close
observations such as Mughal's, with archaeologically vouched dates for
the individual settlements along the various sections and several
courses of the river.
Finally, the "oceanic descriptions" of the Rigveda imagined by Rajaram
and many other rewriters of history (such as S.P. Gupta, Bh. Singh, D.
Frawley) are based, again, on bad philology: their "data" are taken
from Vedic mythology, floating in the night time sky, and the like! Or
was Bhujyu abducted on another first, a Vedic airship?
[Witzel's article drew the following response from Nagaswamy, former
Director of Archaeology in Tamil Nadu. It appeared in The Hindu, March
12, 2002. Particular attention is to be paid to the section 'Problems
are Complex' where Mr. Nagaswamy dissects Witzel's methodology of
trying to negate evidence, and shifting arguments. Editor]
HARAPPAN HORSE
There is an urgent need to jettison from our textbooks the unproved
statements on Indian civilisation and consign them to academic
polemics, and keep the power mongering self-seeking Taliban
politicians out of educational field.
R. Nagaswamy
THE READERS have been following closely the debate on Harappan
civilisation, published in The Hindu in its Open Page. The latest
article by Michael Witzel (March 5) seems to be taking a partisan
view. Archaeologists have found certain artefacts and scholars are
trying to infer the meaning of the findings and in the process express
divergent views. Such debates are welcome to advance our knowledge
academically, no matter where it comes from. Unfortunately, Witzel's
present article reads personal rather than an academic presentation.
For example, he ridicules the other writer N.S. Rajaram personally by
repeating his name time and again, with personal digs in every
mention. Witzel is not free from the same fault that he attributes to
Rajaram, as in the example of horse in Harappan sites. He states the
horse bones found in the early excavations at Mohenjodaro and Harappa
do not come from secure levels, and such horse bones "found their way
into deposits through erosion cutting and refilling, disturbing the
archaeological layers." Neither does he say how he arrived at this
conclusion nor has he cited any report in support of his view.
Whatever the case may be, it only shows that horse bones were actually
found in the excavations at Harappan sites. In order to justify his
stand he writes that Marshal's Harappan data are "dubious and decades
old." One cannot throw away the data presented by Marshal as it is the
earliest available archaeological report and it is not possible at
this point of time to say suddenly that Marshal has not reported that
layers that were eroded and disturbed in places where horse bones have
been found. One may ask Witzel to state on what basis he says that the
layers that yielded horse bones in more than one site as at
Mohenjodaro and Harappa were eroded and disturbed and the bones got
mixed up? Does he want us to believe that in both the sites, the same
layers yielding horse bones got mixed up in eroded layers? There are
three major excavations conducted at Mohenjodaro and Harappa namely by
Marshal, Mackey and Mortimer Wheeler.
Reports of excavations
George F Dales, who was the last in the series to investigate the
sites, published his findings "Some unpublished, forgotten or
misinterpreted features on Mohenjodaro" in the book Harappan
Civilisation , published by the American Institute of Indian Studies,
1982. He has stated that the reports of all the three great
excavations including that of Wheeler are "incomplete and suffer from
serious losses." Dales states that there is "no end to speculation
that these claims have aroused but it is impossible to reach objective
conclusions with the published details." It is not at all possible to
assess that the layers were disturbed unless other factual evidences
are shown to approve the disturbed conditions.
Michael Witzel also states that conclusions cannot be arrived at with
incomplete bones. Yes. However there cannot be two sets of standards
in dealing with the matter. For example, he questions the views of
Rajaram, but does not show whether R. Meadow, whose conclusions he
supports, based his views on "a full skeleton or full sets of onager,
donkey, or horse skeletons." Further it is known that there are very
rare examples where the full skeletons of animals have been found in
excavations. Are we not aware that most of the reconstructions of
dinosaurs are based not on full skeletons? Archaeologists reconstruct
several cultures with broken pottery. At one place he admits that
clear examples of horse bones are found in Harappan civilisation after
1800 BCE, which still falls in the late Harappan period. Witzel has a
dig at archaeologists that they are not zoologists or palaeontologists
to comment on animal bones. This would apply equally to Witzel who is
not a trained archaeologist to comment on this science. No
archaeologist is expert in all fields but certainly consults experts
before expressing his comments on which he has no expertise.
Problems are complex
To sum up Witzel's arguments proceed on the following lines: (1) No
horse bone has been found in Harappan sites. (2) When pointed out that
they are found in some instances, it is said they are only fragments
and not full skeletons. (3) When pointed out they were found in more
than one site it is said the layers in which they were found ought to
have been eroded ones or disturbed. (4) When pointed out that the
reports of horse bones were not by present day archaeologists but by
the early pioneers it is said that those are dubious and decades old.
(5) When pointed out they were reported by archaeological excavators
then comes the argument that archaeologists are not trained zoologists
and palaeontologists to comment on horse bones (though by the same
argument no credence can be placed on Witzel's opinion as he is
neither an archaeologist nor a palaeontologist). Such arguments are
brought under reductio ad absurdum by logicians. More examples of
willful rejections of points can be cited throughout the article but
suffice to say that for an unbiased reader, the whole article reads
purely a personal attack on an individual writer and exhibits certain
amount of impatience to listen to other view. This does not mean that
I agree with either of the views on the Aryan problem except stating
that we are yet not in a position to go with either of the views for
lack of evidence and would prefer to wait for further discoveries.
The debate has undoubtedly focused on one aspect of Harappan
civilisation: the problems are complex and the data available are
inadequate to come to any conclusion. The vital question that is not
in the debate by the general reader is that in the past 50 years of
India's independence, the unproved inferential views of these
scholars, some of which have been proved totally wrong as in the case
of "the total massacre of the Harappans by the invading barbaric
Aryans", are fully incorporated in our school textbooks, right from
the third or fourth standards. Wheeler dramatised this theory
vehemently that invading Aryans destroyed the Harappan civilisation
and within ten years he was proved totally wrong by new finds of
several Harappan sites spread in space and time. And yet millions of
children of India have been indoctrinated and brainwashed with these
views for the past five decades, and that has caused immense damage to
scientific knowledge. Is there any one party in India today which will
repent for this incalculable damage? Are we justified in continuing to
brainwash our generations of children? Is it not time that we remove
these from school books and confine such debates to post-graduate
community of the country and our children are told only the factual
history. A perusal of the books would show enormous imbalances in
representing regional and dynastic histories. It may be seen, for
example, that South Indian history receives inadequate representation.
The rule of the Pallavas, Cholas or Chalukyas that lasted for over
four hundred years each and had glorious achievements in all fields
gets summary representation, when compared with Mughal rule and the
Colonial rule that did not last even half that period. South India has
witnessed exemplary democratic institutions at the village level for
several centuries in the medieval period that is yet to be brought to
the notice of the children. Surely there is no proportionate
representation.
While the Western history gets exalted position in all fields, the
history of South East Asia like Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos,
Vietnam and even China does not even get a cursory mention. There is
clearly an urgent need to jettison from the books the unproved
statements on Indian civilisation and consign them to academic
polemics, keep the power-mongering self-seeking Taliban politicians
out of educational field, and seek a proportionate place for Indian
civilisation in our textbooks. In fact Witzel has agreed to the need
to revise Indian history in his earlier article, which should be
entrusted to a body of unbiased and balanced academic body free from
racial, religious or political bias.
[ What Witzel has to do with this is unclear. His record so far does
not inspire confidence in his unbaisedness. His scholarly contribution
is also negligible-- he is known more for his personal attacks on
Indian scholars, especially Rajaram than any substantial contribution.
Also, are there not enough Indian scholars capable of writing Indian
history? Is it necessary to go to someone who struggling to save what
is left of his reputation, both as a scholar and as a human being?
Editor]
http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/harappan-horse.html
The Indus-Sarasvati Civilization and its Bearing on the Aryan
Question
Text of a lecture given on 29 September 1999 at Chennai’s Indian
Institute of Technology (IIT-Madras), at the invitation of the
students’ Vivekananda Study Circle. The talk was accompanied by a
slide-show illustrating various aspects of the life of the Indus
Valley civilization.
We in India often take pride in Indian civilization, in its
ancientness and great cultural traditions that go back to the dawn of
ages. This is a legitimate feeling, if you consider that Americans or
Australians, for instance, often take even greater pride in their
countries though they are about two centuries old ; of course, their
pride has to be mostly in their material achievements, since they have
had little to show by way of culture, especially nowadays. India, by
contrast, always laid stress on a deep culture before anything else,
and yet, contrary to a common misconception, she never neglected
material life either, except in recent centuries.
I would like to offer tonight some glimpses of the earliest
civilization on the Indian subcontinent, and to show that its high
practicality, and what we may call in our modern language its
“technological” accomplishments, deserve our admiration, as does the
cultural backdrop that made these accomplishments possible. I will
also take a brief look at its relationship with later Indian
civilization, and that will lead us to what is commonly known as the
“Aryan problem.” In doing so, we will be guided by an objective
scientific spirit, taking into account the most recent findings from
archaeology and other fields.
Advance of Archaeology
But first, let me note a strange fact. If you open any good book on
the great civilizations of the ancient world, aimed not at scholars
but at a wider readership, you will almost invariably find that
Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt are given pride of place ; then come, in
mixed order, ancient China, Greece, Central and South America, and the
Indus Valley civilization, also called the Harappan civilization.
Everyone agrees that this early civilization of the Indian
subcontinent was one of the largest in extent, that it made great
advances in crafts and technology, in trade and agriculture, and that
its social organization appears to have been one of the most
efficient, methodical and trouble-free ever ; still, in the end, it
will rarely be given more than a few pages where dozens will be
devoted to Mesopotamia or Egypt, and today, more than seventy years
after its discovery, its existence and accomplishments remain largely
unknown to the general public outside the subcontinent — and inside,
too.
In fact, almost everything about the Harappan civilization appears
mysterious at first sight : Who were its inhabitants ? What language
did they speak ? What beliefs and culture did they have ? What type of
government was able to hold it together ? What caused its decline ?
Why were its great cities abandoned ? Did great natural calamities
take place, or should we blame wars or invoke some invasions ? And
also : What connection is there between this ancient civilization and
those that followed on Indian soil, in the plains of the Ganga, for
example ? Is there a complete break between the two, as some Western
scholars assert, or can what we call Indian civilization be traced all
the way back to the Indus valley ?
Archaeologists, historians and experts from other fields have been
largely unable to agree on these fundamental questions. One reason for
this is the persisting lack of unanimity on the various decipherments
proposed for the Indus script, found on thousands of seals and pottery
pieces excavated from Harappan towns and cities. So their inhabitants
remain dumb to us, their thoughts and culture unfathomable — we are
left to admire their material skills, while scholars indulge in
“educated guesses” on the significance of the statues unearthed, the
figures engraved on the seals, the modes of burial, of government, and
virtually every aspect of Harappan life. Another reason is the very
small number of sites excavated, one to two per cent of all sites
identified as Harappan ; this means we have barely scratched the
surface, and many major findings are awaiting us a few metres
underground. To give just two examples, the site of Ganweriwala, in
the Cholistan region of Pakistan, is estimated to cover eighty
hectares, while that of Lakhmirwala, in India’s Punjab, is thought by
the Indian archaeologist J.P. Joshi to exceed 225 hectares — but
neither has been excavated. A third reason has been the nineteenth-
century hypothesis of an Aryan invasion into India, which insisted on
placing the origins of Indian civilization somewhere in Central Asia,
and therefore left the discovery in the 1920s of the Indus Valley
civilization wrapped in a cloud of confusion.
As a result, till a few years ago, the Harappan world was mostly
presented as anonymous and rather disembodied, with little to excite
our imagination in the way Egypt’s pyramids do. As one of those
general books I mentioned puts it, “The birth, life and death of the
Indus civilization remain three enigmas.”[1] Not very encouraging. But
the scene is fast changing : a lot of path-breaking excavations have
taken place in recent years, for example at Mehrgarh and Harappa, both
now in Pakistan, and in India at Dholavira and Rakhigarhri. Also, in
the last three years or so, a number of excellent new studies have
appeared on the Indus Valley civilization, written by Indian, American
and British archaeologists.[2]Scholars from other disciplines[3] have
joined them — sometimes also challenged them — some old misconceptions
are giving way, and a clearer picture is slowly emerging. In a few
years from now, we can expect this civilization to take its rightful
place as one of the greatest of the ancient world, with most of its
“enigmas” dispelled. Today, let us just try to take stock.
Some of the main sites of the Harappan civilization.
Note the concentration along the dry bed of the Sarasvati.
Physical Data
The most physical data about the Harappan civilization are clear
enough : As of last year, it was said to comprise more than 1,500
settlements, most of them small villages or towns, with only a few
large cities. Some of the “villages” covered more than twenty
hectares ; the cities, in comparison, often extended over some eighty
hectares — Mohenjo-daro up to 250 hectares, about the size of the
entire I.I.T. campus where we are gathered tonight. However, new sites
are added every week or month, and the U.S. archaeologist Gregory L.
Possehl, in a just published monumental study,[4] gives a detailed
list of 2,600 Harappan sites ! What the final figure will be is
anyone’s guess.
The total area encompassed was huge : over one million square
kilometres — more than ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia put together, or,
if you prefer, eight times the size of Tamil Nadu. The southern limit
was between the Tapti and the Godavari rivers, while the northern
limit was some 1,400 kilometres away in Kashmir (at Manda) — though
one site, Shortughai, is found still farther up, in Afghanistan ; as
of now, the easternmost settlement stands at Alamgirpur in Western
Uttar Pradesh, and the western limits were the Arabian sea and the
whole Makran coast, almost all the way to the present Pakistan-Iran
border.
If this civilization was named after the Indus, it is because the
first major settlements, Mohenjo-daro and Harappa, were found along
that river and its tributary, the Ravi. However, in recent decades,
exploration on both sides of the Indo-Pakistan border has brought to
light hundreds of sites along the dry bed of a huge river in the
Ghaggar-Hakra valley.[5] This lost river is now widely recognized to
have been the legendary Sarasvati praised in the Rig-Veda (which also
mentioned the Indus, or “Sindhu,” and all other major rivers of
Punjab). The course of the Sarasvati, south of and broadly parallel to
that of the Indus, has been studied and plotted in some detail not
only by geological exploration, but also by satellite photography and
recently by radioisotope dating of the water still found under the
river’s dry bed in the Rajasthan desert.[6] Since the sites found
along the Sarasvati far outnumber those in the Indus basin, some
scholars have made the point that the Harappan civilization would be
better named the “Indus-Sarasvati civilization.” For instance, the
giant sites of Ganweriwala and Lakhmirwala which I mentioned earlier
are located on the course of the Sarasvati, as are the better known
settlements of Kalibangan and Banawali. Of course, the name “Indus-
Sarasvati civilization” still leaves out a number of sites in Gujarat,
such as Lothal, but it stresses the importance of the Sarasvati river
as the major lifeline of this civilization, the Indus coming a close
second.
Whatever its name, when we speak of this civilization, we usually mean
its “mature phase” (also called “integration era”), during which the
great cities such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Ganweriwala, Rakhigahri,
Dholavira and others flourished. That phase is now usually dated
2600-1900 BC. But it was of course not born in a day : it was preceded
by a long phase called “early Harappan” or “regionalization era,”
during which villages kept developing and started interacting, and
also many technologies (pottery, metallurgy, farming etc.) were
perfected ; that early phase is now dated by Jonathan Mark Kenoyer, a
U.S. archaeologist who has worked on many Indus sites, 5000-2600 BC.
It was itself the result of a long evolution between 7000 and 5000 BC,
which saw the emergence of the first village farming communities and
pastoral camps (as in many other regions of the world) : Mehrgarh, at
the foot of the Bolan Pass in the Kachi plain of Baluchistan, is the
best known example ; according to its excavator, the French
archaeologist Jean-François Jarrige, “The site covers an area of about
500 acres [200 hectares] with only pre-Harappan remains” and shows
“evidence of continuous occupation for more than three millennia prior
to the Harappan civilization.”[7]
The end of the mature phase is usually dated 1900 BC, when most of the
cities were gradually abandoned ; their remarkable civic organization
broke down, forcing people to go back to the villages. The most
probable cause was a series of natural catastrophes — earthquakes,
drastic changes in river courses, consequent depletion of the
Sarasvati, floods, but also a long drought over the whole region
(including West Asia), all of which ravaged agriculture, and perhaps
also excessive deforestation to supply wood to kilns and furnaces.
Another likely factor is a sharp reduction in external trade,
especially with Mesopotamia. But, while earlier generations of
scholars spoke of a total break in Indian civilization as a result of
this decline, archaeologists now agree that another phase, called post-
Harappan, post-urban or also “localization era,” and dated about
1900-1300 BC, followed, and went on to provide a smooth transition to
the first historical states in the Ganga region.
The Cities
What impressed the first discoverers of Harappan cities most was their
sophistication, which displayed town-planning of a level that would be
found only 2000 years later in Europe. Geometrically designed, the
towns had fortifications (for protection against both intruders and
floods), several distinct quarters, assembly halls, and manufacturing
units of various types ; some bigger cities had furnaces for the
production of copper tools, weapons or ornaments ; public baths
(probably often part of temples), private baths for most inhabitants,
sewerage through underground drains built with precisely laid bricks,
and an efficient water management with numerous reservoirs and wells
show that the ordinary inhabitant was well taken care of. Mohenjo-
daro, for instance, is thought to have had over 700 wells, some of
them fifteen metres deep, built with special trapezoid bricks (to
prevent collapse by the pressure of the surrounding soil), and
maintained for several centuries. Quite a few of those wells were
found in private houses. Dholavira had separate drains to collect rain
water and six or seven dams built across nearby rivers. “The fact that
even smaller towns and villages had impressive drainage systems,”
remarks Kenoyer, “indicates that removing polluted water and sewage
was an important part of the daily concerns of the Indus people.”[8] I
am sure that many of our villages in today’s rural India would be
quite happy with such an infrastructure — maybe the candidates at
present roaming our dusty roads in search of votes should study
Harappan public amenities !
Drains from individual houses
empty into a covered collective drain in Mohenjo-daro.
The well-known Indian archaeologist, B. B. Lal, writes in a recent
comprehensive study of this civilization :
Well-regulated streets [were] oriented almost invariably along with
the cardinal directions, thus forming a grid-iron pattern. [At
Kalibangan] even the widths of these streets were in a set ratio, i.e.
if the narrowest lane was one unit in width, the other streets were
twice, thrice and so on. [...] Such a town-planning was unknown in
contemporary West Asia.[9]
The houses were almost always built with mud bricks (sometimes fired
in kilns), which followed a standard ratio of 4 :2 :1, though the
actual sizes varied : bricks for houses, for instance, might be 28 x
14 x 7 cm, while for fortification walls they could be 36 x 18 x 9 cm
or even bigger. Walls were on average seventy centimetres thick (which
I suppose would be nearly three times the thickness of your hostel
walls), and many houses were at least two storeys high. A few houses,
perhaps those of rulers or wealthy traders, were particularly large,
with up to seven rooms, but they might be found right next to a
craftsman’s modest house. A number of big buildings, such as that
around Mohenjo-daro’s “Great Bath,” seem to have served a community
purpose, sometimes perhaps that of temples. Dholavira, in Kutch, even
boasts a huge maidan. It also has massive fortification walls, some of
them as thick as eleven metres, built in the earliest stage of the
city ; apart from standardized bricks, stones were also used there on
a large scale, undressed as well as dressed (note that stones were
perfectly dressed with just copper tools : iron was not yet known).
Map of one area of Mohenjo-daro (“HR area”),
as an example of complex town-planning 4,500 years ago.
Arts and Crafts
The Harappans were expert craftsmen. They made beads of carnelian,
agate, amethyst, turquoise, lapis lazuli, etc. ; they manufactured
bangles out of shells, glazed faience and terracotta ; they carved
ivory and worked shells into ornaments, bowls and ladles ; they cast
copper (which they mined themselves in Baluchistan and Rajasthan) and
bronze for weapons, all types of tools, domestic objects and statues
(such as the famous “dancing girl”) ; they also worked silver and gold
with great skill, specially for ornaments. Of course, they baked
pottery in large quantity — to the delight of archaeologists, since
the different shapes, styles, and painted motifs are among the best
guides in the evolution of any civilization (let us remember that most
objects made of cloth, wood, reed, palm leaves etc., usually vanish
without a trace, especially in hot climates). We also know that the
Harappans excelled at stone-carving, complex weaving and carpet-
making, inlaid woodwork and decorative architecture. And, of course,
they engraved with remarkable artistry their famous seals, mostly in
steatite (or soapstone) ; those seals, over 3,000 of which have been
found, seem to have served various purposes : some commercial, to
identify consignments to be shipped, and some ritual or spiritual, to
invoke deities.
Dancing, painting, sculpture, and music (there is evidence of drums
and of stringed instruments) were all part of their culture. Possibly
drama and puppet shows too, judging from a number of masks. Statues
are not abundant, but refined, whether in stone, bronze or terracotta.
An ancestor of the game of chess has been unearthed at Lothal.
Children too were not forgotten, judging from the exquisite care with
which toys were fashioned.
A probable ancestor of the game of chess (in terracotta, from Lothal).
Trade, Shipping, Agriculture & Technology
In addition to a considerable internal trade in metals, stones and all
kinds of goods, the Harappans had a flourishing overseas trade with
Oman, Bahrain, and Sumer ; exchanges with the Sumerians went on for at
least seven centuries, and merchant colonies were established in
Bahrain and the Euphrates-Tigris valley. Of course, none of this would
have been possible without high skills in ship-making and sailing, and
several representations of ships have been found on seals, while many
massive stone anchors have come up at Lothal and other sites of
Saurashtra. For navigation, compasses carved out of conch shells
appear to have been used to measure angles between stars. A voyage
from Lothal to Mesopotamia to sell the prized Harappan carnelian
beads, which the kings and queens of Ur were so fond of, meant at
least 2,500 kilometres of seafaring ; of course there would have been
halts along the shore on the way, but still, 4,500 years ago this must
have ranked among the best sailing abilities.
The other, perhaps the chief mainstay of Harappan prosperity was
agriculture. It was practised on a wide scale, with hundreds of rural
settlements and extensive networks of canals for irrigation ; wheat,
barley, rice, a number of vegetables, and cotton were some of the
common crops. Mehrgarh, for instance, shows “a veritable agricultural
economy solidly established as early as 6000 BC.”[10] Kalibangan even
yielded a field ploughed with two perpendicular networks of furrows,
in which higher crops (such as mustard) were grown in the spaced-out
north-south furrows, thus casting shorter shadows, while shorter crops
(such as gram) filled the contiguous east-west furrows. As B. B. Lal
has shown, this is a technique still used today in the same region.
Any society capable of town-planning, shipping, refined arts and
crafts, writing, sustained trading, necessarily has to master a good
deal of technology. This was also the case here. Craftsmen often used
standardized tools and techniques, especially for the more complex
productions. A highly standardized system of stone weights, unique in
the ancient world, was found not only throughout the Harappan
settlements, but also two thousand years later in the first kingdoms
of the Ganga plains. (The weights were mostly cubes, but sometimes
also truncated spheres.) The first seven weights in the system
followed a geometrical progression, with ratios of 1 : 2 : 4 : 8 : 16
(by which time the weight had reached 13.7g) : 32 : 64, after which
the increments switched to a decimal system and went 160, 200, 320,
640, 1600, 3200, 6400, 8000 and 12,800. The largest weight found in
Mohenjo-daro is 10,865 grams. Now, if you divide its corresponding
ratio of 12,800 by the ratio 16, you get 800 ; multiply this figure by
the weight of 13.7 g found for the 16th ratio, and you get a
theoretical weight of 10,960g — a difference of only 95g with the
actual weight, or less than 0.9% ! I don’t think the weights used
today in our markets reach such precision, not to speak of those
traders who get their weights tailor-made !
In fact, the Harappans very much seem to be the inventors of the first
decimal system for measurement. Their town-planning, which makes much
use of geometry, partly relied on this decimal system. Let me quote
from S. R. Rao, an Indian archaeologist famous for his excavations at
Lothal and his undersea discoveries at Dwaraka and Poompuhar ; he
comments here on an ivory scale found at Lothal, engraved with nearly
thirty divisions regularly spaced every 1.704 mm :
It is the smallest division ever recorded on a scale of the Bronze
Age. The width of the wall of the Lothal dock is 1.78 m [i.e. 1,000
such divisions ... and] the length of the east-west wall of the dock
is twenty times its width. Obviously the Harappan engineers followed
the decimal division of measurement for all practical purposes...[11]
I should point out that apart from the continuance of the Indus weight
system or agricultural methods into the historic period,
archaeologists have often highlighted how traditional craftsmen today
in Sindh, Punjab, Rajasthan or Gujarat still use techniques — in bead-
making or shell-working, for instance — very similar to those evolved
in Harappan times more than 4,500 years ago. Even some buildings
techniques are still in use, as B. B. Lal has pointed out.
But however impressive those technological achievements may be (and
there are many others), we should remember that they were not separate
activities, but always blended with the cultural life of the Harappan
world. As Kenoyer remarks,
Symbols of Indus religion and culture were incorporated into pottery,
ornaments and everyday tools in a way that helped to unite people
within the urban centers and link them with distant rural communities.
[12]
Government and Social Evolution
What we have seen so far, and very briefly, is only the most visible
features of the Indus-Sarasvati civilization. The internal and
external mechanics of such a society are infinitely complex, and will
no doubt keep archaeologists racking their brains for some more time.
For example, while a few of them see the Harappan political
organization as an empire, with Mohenjo-daro as the seat of the
emperor and a number of “governors” in the regional capitals, others
are in favour of regional states, in view of the difficulty posed by a
single central authority over such vast distances without our modern
communications. Those regional states would have had identities of
their own (as evidenced from regional variations in arts and crafts),
but they would all have been united by a common culture, and also by a
common language (regardless of possible regional dialects). B. B. Lal,
for instance, brings a parallel between the Harappan society and the
Sixteen States or Mahajanapadas of later Buddhist times. This
hypothesis is strengthened by the lack of any glorification or even
representation of rulers on the seals ; even the few sculptures of
human figures found at Mohenjo-daro cannot be said to represent rulers
with any great certainty.
Whatever the truth may be, a few clear points stand out and meet with
general agreement :
First, a remarkable civic organization, which allowed streets in big
cities to be free from any encroachment for centuries together (can
our present Indian cities claim the same for just a few weeks ?). And
let us remember that Mohenjo-daro is thought to have sheltered at
least 50,000 inhabitants — almost a megalopolis for those times.
Secondly, a complete absence of any evidence of armies or warfare or
slaughter or man-made destruction in any settlement and at any point
of time, even as regards the early phase. Not a single seal depicts a
battle or a captive or a victor. True, there were fortifications and
weapons (the latter rather few), but those were probably to guard
against local tribes or marauders rather than against people from
other cities and villages. Fortifications were also often protections
against floods, and weapons must have been used mostly for hunting. So
far as the archaeological record shows, major disruptions in the
cities’ life were caused by natural calamities. In no other ancient
civilization is warfare so absent, and over such a long period of
time ; by contrast, other civilizations of the time consistently
recorded and glorified war feats. And our own modern “civilization,” I
need not remind you, is the bloodiest ever : a few days ago, a United
Nations report lamented the existence of more than 500 million small
arms in circulation — that means one gun or semi-automatic weapon for
every ten of us....
Thirdly, archaeologists now agree that the origins of the Indus-
Sarasvati civilization are to be found on the subcontinent itself. It
no doubt had extensive cultural and commercial contacts with other
civilizations, but its identity was distinct. In the words of Jim G.
Shaffer, a U.S. archaeologist who has worked on many Indus sites :
It is time to view the archaeological data for what it is, and not
what one thinks it is. Recent studies are just beginning to indicate
the real importance of Harappan studies, showing that in South Asia, a
unique experiment in the development of urban, literate culture, was
under way. Such a culture was highly attuned to local conditions and
not a mirror of Mesopotamia’s urban experiment....[13]
The Indus-Sarasvati civilization thus represented a long indigenous
evolution, spanning almost 6,000 years, and with no visible break or
disruption from outside. By any standard, this is a unique achievement
in human history.
But let us not forget that no society can survive long without a
culture to cement its members together and make their lives
meaningful. The very fact that the Indus-Valley civilization was able
to hold together for three millennia (if we include its early phase),
over an immense stretch of land, and with all the signs of social
harmony and stability, shows that it must have had a deep and strong
culture as its foundation. Let us now try to catch a glimpse of it.
The Aryan Problem
The relationship of the Indus-Saraswati civilization with the later
Indian civilization remains a subject of debate. Most of you probably
learned at school that the Harappan towns were destroyed by semi-
barbarian Aryans rushing down from Central Asia on their horse
chariots, and that the survivors among their inhabitants, assumed to
have been Dravidians, were driven to South India by the invaders.
Passages from the Rig-Veda were twisted and sometimes mistranslated to
show a record of such a physical and cultural clash. In many respects,
this is still the “official” theory, although, since the 1960s, when
the U.S. archaeologist G. F. Dales demolished all supposed evidence of
such attacks and slaughter, the theory has limited itself to saying
that the supposed Aryans, or Indo-Aryans or Indo-Europeans, to use the
present terminology, entered North India after the collapse of the
Harappan civilization.
But you may be surprised to learn that most archaeologists now reject
this invasion or migration theory, as they cannot find the slightest
trace of it on the ground, and it is unthinkable that the supposed
Aryans could have conquered most of India and imposed on it their
Vedic culture without leaving any physical evidence of any sort. Even
respected archaeologists of the old school of thought, such as Raymond
and Bridget Allchin, now admit that the arrival of Indo-Aryans in
Northwest India is “scarcely attested in the archaeological record,
presumably because their material culture and life-style were already
virtually indistinguishable from those of the existing
population.”[14] We are very far from the bloody invasion and cultural
war envisaged by Max Müller and other nineteenth-century scholars.
But even this tempered view is no longer acceptable to the “new
school,” whose foundation can be said to have been laid in 1984 by Jim
Shaffer. He wrote :
Current archaeological data do not support the existence of an Indo-
Aryan or European invasion into South Asia any time in the pre- or
protohistoric periods. Instead, it is possible to document
archaeologically a series of cultural changes reflecting indigenous
cultural developments from prehistoric to historic periods.[15]
Kenoyer, whom I quoted earlier, concludes in his recent beautiful
book :
Many scholars have tried to correct this absurd theory [of an Aryan
invasion], by pointing out misinterpreted basic facts, inappropriate
models and an uncritical reading of Vedic texts. However, until
recently, these scientific and well-reasoned arguments were
unsuccessful in rooting out the misinterpretations entrenched in the
popular literature.
[...] But there is no archaeological or biological evidence for
invasions or mass migrations into the Indus Valley between the end of
the Harappan Phase, about 1900 BC and the beginning of the Early
Historic period around 600 BC.[16]
I could quote similar opinions from many respected Indian
archaeologists such as B. B. Lal, S. R. Rao, S. P. Gupta, Dilip K.
Chakrabarty, K. M. Srivastava, M. K. Dhavalikar, R. S. Bisht and
others. The point is that the theory of an Aryan invasion or even
migration into India finds no evidence on the ground and has no
scientific basis whatsoever.
The biological evidence Kenoyer refers to relies on the detailed
examination of skeletons found in Harappan settlements. Kenneth A. R.
Kennedy, a U.S. expert who has extensively studied such skeletal
remains, observes :
Biological anthropologists remain unable to lend support to any of the
theories concerning an Aryan biological or demographic entity [...].
What the biological data demonstrate is that no exotic races are
apparent from laboratory studies of human remains excavated from any
archaeological sites [...]. All prehistoric human remains recovered
thus far from the Indian subcontinent are phenotypically identifiable
as ancient South Asians. [...] In short, there is no evidence of
demographic disruptions in the north-western sector of the
subcontinent during and immediately after the decline of the Harappan
culture.[17]
I hope you understand the implication : No invasion or migration
caused or followed the collapse of the urban phase of the Indus-
Sarasvati civilization around 1900 BC. What is still taught in our
textbooks about so-called Aryans is no more than imagination. The
Harappans were just Northwestern Indians of the time and continued to
live there even after the end of the urban phase (with some of them
migrating towards the Ganga plains in search of greener pastures). In
fact, archaeologists and anthropologists now reject the old notion of
race altogether. To quote from Possehl’s recent book which I mentioned
earlier :
Race as it was used in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
has been totally discredited as a useful concept in human biology.
[...] There is no reason to believe today that there ever was an Aryan
race that spoke Indo-European languages and was possessed with a
coherent and well-defined set of Aryan or Indo-European cultural
features.[18]
In simple terms, this means that, for science, there is no such thing
as an Aryan race, or a Dravidian race for that matter. Nor is there
for Indian tradition, in which the word “Arya” never meant a race, but
a quality of true nobility, culture and refinement. And so, if no
Aryan people invaded or entered into India, it stands to reason that
the Vedic culture was also native to the subcontinent, and not an
import. In fact, quite a few scholars and archaeologists today see a
number of clear Vedic traits in the Harappan culture. To cite a few :
the presence of fire-altars, an essential element of Vedic rituals ;
the symbol of a bull engraved on hundreds of seals, a Vedic symbol par
excellence ; the cult of a mother-goddess, of a Shiva-like deity, the
depiction of yogic postures, and of yogis or sages (judging from his
deeply contemplative appearance, the so-called “priest-king” was more
likely a yogi or a rishi than a priest). The famous Unicorn and the
three-headed creature, both depicted on many Indus seals, are
mentioned in the Mahabharata as aspects of Krishna, as N. Jha, an
Indian epigraphist, has shown. Indeed, quite a few symbols used in
later Indian culture, such as the trishul or the swastika, the pipal
tree or the endless-knot design, are found in the Indus-Saraswati
cities. Even its town-planning with three main distinct areas is
consistent with Rig-Vedic descriptions, as the Indian archaeologist R.
S. Bisht has argued.[19] So are trade and shipping, also extensively
mentioned in the Rig-Veda.
(Clockwise from top left :) A terracotta figurine from Harappa, in a
yoga posture;
seals depicting a Shiva-like deity, a unicorn, and a bull.
Moreover, let us remember the hundreds of settlements along the
Sarasvati, a river praised in the Rig-Veda, which confirms again the
identification between Harappans and Vedic people.
The decipherment of the Indus script would of course be the ultimate
test. I will just mention here that while attempts to read some proto-
Dravidian language into it have failed and are now abandoned, there
has been progress among those who see the language thus written to be
related to Sanskrit. N. Jha’s decipherment, proposed recently, appears
to be the most promising, simple and consistent, and once a major
study of it is published shortly,[20] we can expect a lively debate
among scholars to decide its value.
I am not touching here on a number of related issues, such as the
linguistic problem posed by a deep similarity between Sanskrit and
most European languages, since the verdict of archaeological evidence
is, to my mind, quite sufficient. Let me recommend to those interested
a brilliant study by a young Belgian scholar and expert on India,
Koenraad Elst, just published in India under the title Update on the
Aryan Invasion Debate. In it, he discusses most of those issues
threadbare and shows in particular that this linguistic affinity can
very well be explained without any sort of Aryan invasion.
One more remark before I conclude : Archaeological evidence in no way
contradicts Indian tradition, rather it broadly agrees with it (except
for its chronology). Whether from North or South India, tradition
never mentioned anything remotely resembling an Aryan invasion into
India. Sanskrit scriptures make it clear that they regard the Vedic
homeland to be the Saptasindhu, which is precisely the core of the
Harappan territory. As for the Sangam tradition, it is equally silent
about any northern origin of the Tamil people ; its only reference is
to a now submerged island to the south of India, Kumari Kandam, and
initial findings at Poompuhar show that, without our having to accept
this legend literally, we may indeed find a few submerged cities along
Tamil Nadu’s coast ; only more systematic explorations, especially at
Poompuhar and Kanyakumari, where fishermen have long reported
submerged structures, can throw more light on this tradition.
Not only Indian tradition, but a number of Indians with a far better
understanding of Vedic texts than that of Western scholars, for
example Swami Vivekananda, Swami Dayananda Saraswati, Sri Aurobindo,
B. R. Ambedkar and many others, have vigorously dismissed the Aryan
invasion as a groundless conjecture intended to divide Indians for
colonial motives. They have correctly argued that the Indian people
have no memory or record of any such outside origin, and archaeology
is now increasingly confirming their insights.
Conclusion
I will end where I began. Would it be “chauvinistic” (to use a word
our modern Indian intellectuals are so fond of) to attribute the
greatness of the Indus-Sarasvati civilization to the Indian genius ? I
do not think so. Apart from its striking cultural continuity with
subsequent developments of Indian civilization, which makes up a total
thread of 9,000 years, it exhibits traits typical of the Indian
temperament : a bold enterprising spirit, a remarkable adaptability to
changing conditions, a cultural and spiritual content in the smallest
everyday activities, and, most importantly, a capacity for a broader
view, without which this huge area could not have had such a cultural
homogeneity free from major conflicts. Even its remarkable civic
sense, so lacking in today’s India, is yet part of the Indian
character ; I have observed that Indians are quite capable of it, but
contrary to well-disciplined Western peoples (the British or the
Germans, for instance), Indians will accept collective discipline only
once their hearts have been conquered ; mere authority and rules
cannot get it out of them.
All said and done, the people of the Indian subcontinent can
justifiably claim this ancient civilization as a central and inspiring
part of their heritage. But they should not forget to learn from it
the great lesson of the cycles of birth, life, decay, and rebirth of
Indian civilization, a lesson we need to keep in our minds especially
at the present moment.
Bibliography & Suggested Further Reading
(This list includes only books published this decade and accessible to
a general public with an interest in the Harappan civilization and the
Aryan question ; more technical or scholarly studies have not been
listed here.)
Allchin, Raymond & Bridget, Origins of a Civilization — The Prehistory
and Early Archaeology of South Asia (New Delhi : Viking, 1997)
Danino, Michel & Nahar, Sujata, The Invasion That Never Was (New
Delhi : The Mother’s Institute of Research & Mysore : Mira Aditi, 2nd
ed., 2000)
Deo, S.B., & Kamath, Suryanath, The Aryan Problem (Pune : Bharatiya
Itihasa Sankalana Samiti, 1993)
Elst, Koenraad, Update on the Aryan Invasion Debate (New Delhi :
Aditya Prakashan, 1999)
Feuerstein, Georg, Kak, Subhash & Frawley, David, In Search of the
Cradle of Civilization (Wheaton, U.S.A. : Quest Books, 1995 & Delhi :
Motilal Banarsidass, 1999)
Frawley, David, Gods, Sages and Kings — Vedic Secrets of Ancient
Civilization (Delhi : Motilal Banarsidass, 1993)
——, The Myth of the Aryan Invasion of India (New Delhi : Voice of
India, 1994)
Gupta, S. P., The Indus-Sarasvati Civilization — Origins, Problems and
Issues (Delhi : Pratibha Prakashan, 1996)
Kenoyer, Jonathan Mark, Ancient Cities of the Indus Valley
Civilization (Karachi & Islamabad : Oxford University Press & American
Institute of Pakistan Studies, 1998)
Jha, N., Vedic Glossary on Indus Seals (Vanarasi : Ganga Kaveri
Publishing House, 1996)
Jha, N. & Rajaram, N. S., The Deciphered Indus Script — Methodology,
Readings, Interpretations (New Delhi : Aditya Prakashan, 2000)
Lal, B. B., The Earliest Civilization of South Asia (New Delhi : Aryan
Books International, 1997)
——, India 1947-1997 : New Light on the Indus Civilization (New Delhi :
Aryan Books International, 1998)
Mughal, Mohammad Rafique, Ancient Cholistan — Archaeology and
Architecture (Lahore : Ferozsons, 1997)
Possehl, Gregory L., The Indus Age : The Writing System (New Delhi :
Oxford & IBH, 1996)
——, The Indus Age : The Beginnings (New Delhi : Oxford & IBH, 1999)
Radhakrishnan, B. P., & Merh, S. S., eds., Vedic Sarasvati —
Evolutionary History of a Lost River of Northwestern India
(Bangalore : Geological Society of India, 1999)
Rajaram, N. S., Politics of History — Aryan Invasion Theory and the
Subversion of Scholarship (New Delhi : Voice of India, 1995)
Rajaram, N. S. & Frawley, David, Vedic Aryans and the Origins of
Civilization — A Literary and Scientific Perspective (New Delhi :
Voice of India, 1997)
Rao, S. R., Dawn and Devolution of the Indus Civilization (New Delhi :
Aditya Prakashan, 1991)
Singh, Bhagwan, The Vedic Harappans (New Delhi : Aditya Prakashan,
1995)
Talageri, Shrikant G., The Rigveda : A historical Analysis (New
Delhi : Aditya Prakashan, 2000)
References
[1]Ruth Whitehouse & John Wilkins, L’Aube des Civilisations (“Dawn of
Civilization”, Paris : Bordas, 1987), p. 69.
[2] See in the Bibliography titles under Allchin, Gupta, Kenoyer, Lal,
Mughal, Possehl, Radhakrishnan and Rao.
[3] See in the Bibliography titles under Elst, Feuerstein, Frawley,
Jha and Rajaram.
[4] See Bibliography under Possehl, 1999.
[5] See Bibliography under Mughal.
[6] See detailed study in S. M. Rao and K. M. Kulkarni, “Isotope
hydrology studies on water resources in Western Rajasthan,” Current
Science, 10 January 1997.
[7] Jean-François Jarrige, “Excavations at Mehrgarh” in Harappan
Civilization, ed. Gregory L. Possehl (New Delhi : Oxford & IBH, 1993),
p. 79 ff.
[8] Kenoyer, 1998, p. 61.
[9] Lal, 1997, p. 95.
[10] Jean-François Jarrige, “De l’Euphrate à l’Indus,” Dossiers
Histoire et Archéologie (Dijon : December 1987), p. 84.
[11] Rao, 1991, p. 17.
[12] Kenoyer, 1998, p. 162.
[13] Jim G. Shaffer, “Harappan Culture : A Reconsideration,” in
Harappan Civilization, ed. Gregory L. Possehl (New Delhi : Oxford &
IBH, 1993), p. 49.
[14] Allchin, 1997, p. 222.
[15] Jim G. Shaffer, “The Indo-Aryan Invasions : Cultural Myth and
Archaeological Reality,” in J. R. Lukak’s People of South Asia (New
York : Plenum, 1984), p. 88 (emphasis mine).
[16] Kenoyer, 1998, p. 174 (emphasis mine).
[[17] Kenneth A. R. Kennedy, “Have Aryans been identified in the
prehistoric skeletal record from South Asia ?” in The Indo-Aryans of
Ancient South Asia, ed. George Erdosy (Berlin & New York : Walter de
Gruyter, 1995), p. 60 & 54 (emphasis mine).
[18] Possehl, 1999, p. 42.
[19 R. S. Bisht : “Dholavira Excavations : 1990-94” in Facets of
Indian Civilization — Essays in Honour of Prof. B. B. Lal, ed. J. P.
Joshi (New Delhi : Aryan Books International, 1997), vol. I, p.
111-112.
[20] Their book has since been published. See Bibliography under Jha &
Rajaram.
extracts
The Harappans were expert craftsmen. They made beads of carnelian,
agate, amethyst, turquoise, lapis lazuli, etc. ; they manufactured
bangles out of shells, glazed faience and terracotta ; they carved
ivory and worked shells into ornaments, bowls and ladles ; they cast
copper (which they mined themselves in Baluchistan and Rajasthan) and
bronze for weapons, all types of tools, domestic objects and statues
(such as the famous “dancing girl”) ; they also worked silver and gold
with great skill, specially for ornaments.
Michel Danino - A profile
Born in 1956 at Honfleur (France) into a Jewish family recently
emigrated from Morocco, from the age of fifteen Michel Danino was
drawn to India, some of her great yogis, and soon to Sri Aurobindo and
Mother and their view of evolution which gives a new meaning to our
existence on this earth. In 1977, dissatisfied after four years of
higher scientific studies, he left France for India, where he has
since been living.
Michel Danino participated in the English translation and publication
of Mother’s Agenda (13 volumes, Mother’s record of her yoga in the
depths of the body consciousness) and several books by Satprem
(Mother’s confidant and recipient of Mother’s Agenda). Michel Danino
also edited, among other titles, India’s Rebirth (a selection from Sri
Aurobindo’s works about India, available online ; first published in
1993, now in its 3rd edition, translated into nine Indian languages)
and India the Mother (a selection from Mother’s words, 1998).
Studying India’s culture and ancient history in the light of both Sri
Aurobindo’s pioneering work and archaeological research, in 1996
Michel Danino authored The Invasion That Never Was, a brief study of
the Aryan invasion theory. Intended primarily for the educated non-
specialist Indian public, the book has also been well received in
scholarly circles. A second, extensively revised and enlarged edition
was brought out in 2000; a third is scheduled for late 2003.
Over the last few years, Michel Danino has given lectures at various
official, academic and cultural forums on issues confronting Indian
culture and civilization in today’s world ; some of them have been
published under the titles Sri Aurobindo and Indian Civilization
(1999), The Indian Mind Then and Now (2000), Is Indian Culture
Obsolete ? (2000), and Kali Yuga or the Age of Confusion (2001).
Delving into the roots of Indian civilization, Michel Danino has
argued that its essential values remain indispensable in today’s India
— and in fact for all humanity in this critical phase of global
deculturization and dehumanization. Many of those lectures and a few
new ones are available on this homepage.
Michel Danino’s other fields of activity include Nature conservation;
his action for the preservation of an important pocket of native
tropical rainforest in the Nilgiris led to the creation of Tamil
Nadu’s first “watchdog” committee in which concerned citizens actively
collaborated with both the Forest Department and local villagers in
conservation work, also involving local teachers and hundreds of
students.
In 2001, Michel Danino convened the International Forum for India's
Heritage (IFIH) with over 160 eminent founder members, whose mission
is to promote the essential values of India's heritage in every field
of life.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/index.html
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/indus.html
http://archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/aryan-invasions.html
The Deciphered Indus Script :
Methodology, Readings, Interpretations
By N. Jha & N. S. Rajaram(Aditya Prakashan, New Delhi, 2000 269 pp.,
bibl., index, Rs. 950/-)
This book review by Michel Danino was published in The Organiser of 12
November 2000
One of the most unyielding riddles of Indian prehistory has been the
one presented by the Indus script—the mysterious symbols delicately
engraved on thousands of small steatite seals found in ancient cities
of the Indus or Harappan civilization. Those cities—the best-known of
them Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Lothal, Dholavira—date back nearly 4500
years, which makes the Indus script one of the oldest in the world,
contemporary with Mesopotamian cuneiform scripts or Egyptian
hieroglyphics, for instance. Most of those other ancient scripts, also
the Maya, the Linear B of ancient Crete, have been unravelled by
decades of scholarly labour, debate, even controversy, often also by
strokes of genius. Yet the Indus script has proved a hard nut to crack
and has resisted generations of savants of all kinds since it came to
light in the 1920s. So much so that whoever finally succeeds is
assured of going down to posterity ! So far, more than a hundred
solutions have been proposed by Western and Indian archaeologists,
epigraphists and other experts : some (such as Father Heras or Asko
Parpola) have read a Dravidian language, others (such as the well-
known archaeologist Dr. S. R. Rao) have found a type of Sanskrit, yet
others numeric codes or various symbol systems. But the fact remains
that no interpretation has met with general or even widespread
acceptance, and some scholars have even despaired of the script being
ever understood. As a result, any new claim of a solution—and they
keep coming up regularly—is met with scepticism, if not weariness,
rather than excitement.
There are good reasons for this pessimism. First, the lack of
agreement on the type of language underlying the script, as the
cultural background of the Harappan civilization remains itself a
matter of debate. Second, none of the inscribed seals, pieces of
pottery etc. found so far bears a bilingual text : were a text,
however short, to be found written in another script alongside the
Indus (as was the case with the famous Rosetta stone which gave
Champollion the clue to the hieroglyphics), we would get some definite
clues. Third, most of the inscriptions found so far are strikingly
short, usually under ten or fifteen characters, leaving much room to
conjecture and not enough to independent verification. Fourth,
scholars from different schools of thought have tended to work in
isolation rather than in collaboration, and that of course has done
nothing to hasten towards a solution.
One decipherment that has received some publicity in recent years is
that of N. Jha, an epigraphist and Vedic scholar, first proposed in
his brief book, Vedic Glossary on Indus Seals published in 1996. Soon
afterwards, N. S. Rajaram, a multifaceted scholar with several books
on ancient India to his credit, endorsed Jha’s work, and joined him in
further research on the script. Together they have published the book
under review, which offers a more thorough exposition of Jha’s
methodology and findings. The very fact that the book includes
readings for nearly 600 Indus inscriptions—something very few other
proposed decipherments have provided—should be enough to arrest the
attention of any objective student of the Indus civilization.
The book’s first chapters offers a background to the Indus Valley
civilization and the whole problem of a supposed Aryan invasion of
India at or just after the end of that civilization. Although the
“Aryan Invasion theory,” the child of nineteenth-century European
Indologists, continues to figure in Indian history textbooks, most
archaeologists—whether Indian or Western—have now rejected it, for the
simple reason that there is not a shred of evidence for it on the
ground, and it is inconceivable that such a massive disruption in the
history of the subcontinent would have left no physical trace of any
sort. On the contrary, the one fact that emerges from recent
archaeological investigations is the striking continuity of the Indian
civilization from pre- to post-Harappan times, and in the absence of
any sign of warfare or man-made destruction in the Indus cities, large-
scale natural calamities remain the best explanation for the slow
disintegration of the Harappan urban structure. Rajaram, the author of
most of the book’s writing, is forthright in his conviction that with
the Aryan invasion now out of the way, we need look no farther than
the Indus cities to find the Vedic Aryans : “The vast body of primary
literature from the Vedic period has been completely divorced from
Harappan archaeology. This has meant that this great literature and
its creators have no archaeological existence. In our view, the
correct approach to breaking this deadlock is by a combination of likes
—a study of primary data from archaeology alongside the primary
literature from ancient periods.”
There lies in fact the originality of Jha’s approach to the Indus
script. Struck by a verse in the Mahabharata (Shanti Parva, 342.73)
which records Yaska’s effort to compile ancient Vedic glossaries “lost
buried in the depths”, Jha wondered if there could be a connection
between Yaska’s Nighantu and the seals. That insight led him to
develop his method, and many of the words he reads on the seals are
indeed listed in the Nighantu. That in itself would prove nothing,
since many before Jha have read on the seals just what they were
expecting to find, but the elaborate consonantal system described in
the core of the book certainly presents at first sight a consistent
picture. According to Jha, the Indus script contained almost no
vowels, a feature too of several other scripts, such as ancient
Hebrew. Most of the signs are therefore consonants or composite
consonants. One notable exception is the famous U-shaped letter which
has caused so much ink to flow in the scholarly world : Jha sees in it
a “generic vowel” used to denote words beginning with any vowel. As
regards the large number of distinct signs used in the Indus script
(well over 400), many are accounted for as composite signs, some of
them showing an embryonic vowel stroke system, and the rest as
variants, not an unreasonable hypothesis as the Indus script covered a
very wide geographical area and at least a millennium. A number of
tables expound the values for the signs, and even a layman can note
that Jha and Rajaram do not depart from the attributed values.
In addition, Jha links the mysterious unicorn and the three-headed
creature often depicted on the seals to passages in the Mahabharata
describing just such symbols. This is a novel observation which,
script apart, deserves the attention of archaeologists.
So then, what do the seals tell us according to the authors ? They
yield Sanskrit words written in the pithy Sutra style. Some
inscriptions do contain names of gods, as was to be expected, for
example “Indra” next to the representation of a bull, a symbol often
associated with this god in the Rig-Veda. Agni, Rudra, Rama and Sita
and other deities also find mention.
The inscription on the famous Pasupati seal, reads isadyatta mara,
which is listed in the Nighantu (2.22) and means “evil forces subdued
by Isha,” Isha being another name of Shiva. But apart from such divine
invocations, more mundane messages are engraved, from “a kitchen” or
“mosquito” to “people are working by fire at night to stop the flow of
flooding waters.” If the readings are accepted, they provide a
surprisingly vivid picture of Harappan society.
Well-produced, wide in scope, written in a lucid and racy style, the
book is however not free of defects. The text tends to be repetitive,
especially in the first chapters, at times going round in circles. The
reproductions of the seals are generally poor, especially the one
supposed to represent a horse, which looks more like a line-drawing ;
in view of its importance (conventional archaeology asserts that the
true horse is never represented on the seals), the reader is left
wishing for a good photograph. Also, the pictorial motifs found on the
seals are sometimes questionably described (for instance those on the
seal called “Seven goddesses”). In fact, the interpretation of such
motifs often seems rather forced. Finally, the parallels with the
geometrical formulas found in the Sulba-Sutras are not sufficiently
worked out to be convincing.
All those limitations, however, are incidental, for the central
question is whether the script has finally been cracked or not. One
legitimate objection would be that the almost total absence of vowel
signs allows too much freedom of interpretation ; only a fuller
publication covering all known 3,500 seals, or else the discovery of a
longer text, could remove such a doubt. Expectedly, Jha’s decipherment
has been fiercely attacked by a few conventional scholars, who will
not bear to hear anything in the shape of a Harappan-Vedic equation—an
equation which yet makes a lot of sense from archaeological and
cultural standpoints. Expectedly too, none of those detractors has so
far bothered to offer a reasoned and detailed critique of Jha’s
methodology and its technical aspects—perhaps even to study them at
all. What is needed is an objective scrutiny by experts in an open-
minded scientific spirit, something rarer in the scholarly world than
one would expect. We may have to wait for a few years for the dust to
settle and a sober verdict to emerge.
If Jha’s and Rajaram’s work fails to stand the test of time, it will
only go to swell the long list of ingenious but discarded hypotheses
on the most ancient script of the subcontinent. If, on the other hand,
it has finally solved the riddle—or even taken a few real steps
towards doing so—then we shall hear about it again, and the
consequences for our understanding of the roots of Indian civilization
will be momentous.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/jha_rajaram.html
A review of ANTAIOS
(June 1996 issue)
This article, published in The Observer of Business and Politics of 5
April 1997, is a review of the Belgian magazine of Paganism, Antaios.
In our age of pervasive frivolity on the one hand and pseudo-
intellectuality on the other, it is a pleasant surprise to see an
outstanding magazine such as Antaios. Named after the giant wrestler
of Greek mythology who was invincible as long as he was in contact
with the earth, his mother Gaia, this biannual magazine comes to us
from Belgium and is published in French by a “European circle of
reflection on Paganism.” The word “Pagan” is a heavily loaded one in
the West, where it tends to call up anything from the crudest savage
to pictures of drunken satyrs dancing around a fire under the moon.
But here is something both more sober and deeper: people dissatisfied
with the Christian civilization and its one-track thought, its
primitive idea of conquering the world for a “one and only God, a one
and only Party or a one and only Market.” For a few decades now, such
movements have been multiplying in the West, in search of pre-
Christian roots and a richer ancient heritage whose surface has as yet
barely been scratched.
Not unnaturally, some of these movements have discovered a profound
kinship with Hinduism, the only living tradition with unbroken
continuity to the remotest past, and a culture which never tried to
lock up God and man within a rigid set of dogmas revealed for all time
to come. That kinship is central to the present 216-page issue of
Antaios, which focuses on the theme of Hindutva. The editorial sets
the tone with this apt quotation from Alain Daniélou, who did much to
open the West and more particularly France to the Indian world-view:
“I have tried to give a glimpse of the profound values of this
prestigious civilization, the only one to have survived among the
great civilizations of the ancient world, and whose contribution, if
it were better known, could bring about deep changes in the thought of
the modern world, and prompt a new Renaissance.” The editorial adds:
“India calls on us to rediscover the vision of archaic man so as to
better confront the challenges of the next millennium, which will at
once be post-Christian and post-rationalist. Everybody knows, without
having really read it, Malraux's often truncated sentence: ‘In the
face of the most terrible threat mankind has known, the task of the
next century will be to reintegrate the gods in man.’ As a matter of
fact, India has never broken her contract with her gods, this pax
deorum which is the foundation of any traditional society.... Hindutva
is a way of freeing ourselves from the deadly grip of Western
ideology.... With our Hindu brothers, our duty is to resist all
cultural genocides which our dying modernity is still ridden with.”
There follow several enriching interviews with thinkers in different
fields: historians, archaeologists, ethnologists, philosophers,
sociologists, who all share their vision of a world wider than the
Judeo-Christian mould would have it. Two interviews stand out in this
issue devoted to India: those of Ram Swarup and Sita Ram Goel; they
are the two pillars of Voice of India, the publishing house which has
given us deep studies on the history and foundations of Christianity
and Islam and their impact on Indian society. Ram Swarup contrasts
these two Semitic religions with Hinduism, concluding: “The Hindu
tradition differs completely [from these conceptions]. In this
tradition, God resides in man's heart, and He is accessible to all who
seek Him in sincerity, truth and faith.... God reveals Himself
directly to the seeker and needs no specially authorized saviour, no
go-betweens.” When asked whether India can play a role in the present
“Pagan renaissance,” Ram Swarup replies: “I believe that Hinduism has
a very important role to play in the religious self-discovery of
humanity, particularly of Europe. The reason is simple. Hinduism
represents the most ancient tradition which is also still alive. It
has preserved in its bosom a whole spiritual past of humanity.” Sita
Ram Goel vigorously exposes the fatal narrowness of the so-called
monotheistic religions, and gives the hackneyed critics of the caste
system a very interesting rejoinder evidently based on his wide
scholarship: “The Western intelligentsia criticizes a caste system
that never existed in India, which the fruit of the imagination of
Indianists.... In India's literary and epigraphic sources, which are
more than abundant, we never meet Aryan invaders or this caste system
[they are supposed to have created], or also those shrewd Brahmins.
What we see is thousands of communities spread over the whole
territory and fulfilling all sorts of functions, economical, social,
cultural, administrative, political, spiritual and philosophical. The
genius of Hinduism consisted in allowing every one of these
communities to enjoy a maximum of autonomy within a wide cultural
consensus.... This concrete reality of India, of which indisputable
traces exist, has been totally ignored by Western research.” Sita Ram
Goel then traces the genesis of Voice of India, pointing out how
despite the seriousness of its publications, it has had to bear
official harassment and a complete blackout on the part of the
national press in India. “But no member of this tribe has ever
answered our criticisms of Christianity and Islam,” he adds.
The magazine's editor, Christopher Gérard, comments: “For Europeans
Pagans, these two writers are models. The link with our Paganism is
moreover clearly claimed, since they exhort us to rediscover our pre-
Christian heritage. Reading them, one seems at times to hear the voice
of Pagan Resistance fighters sprung from the past who recall us to our
sacred duty of memory.”
The following pages in this issue are dedicated to Alain Daniélou, who
spent many years in India; they include some little-known articles of
his, dealing in particular with the questions of caste, Hindu society,
the Hindu woman... Daniélou certainly penetrated deep into the Hindu
psyche, and sought to erase ingrained Western prejudices: “With rare
exceptions,” he writes in Castes, Egalitarianism and Cultural
Genocides, “we are witnessing under the steamroller of a so-called
Western egalitarianism the progressive disappearance of fine arts,
dance, music, traditional sciences and even languages of Africa and
other continents. Until the middle of the twentieth century, the
superiority of the white race, its civilization and religion, was
regarded in Europe as an indisputable fact. It took the excesses of
Nazism to call it somewhat into question. It is this conviction of the
superiority of Europeans and Christianity that served as an excuse for
colonial expansion. Christianity is theoretically antiracist, provided
everyone becomes a Christian and obeys the Church's arbitrary dogmas.
Islam too is antiracist if you become Muslim. Marxism is antiracist if
you accept its principles, its morality and class racism. One shudders
with horror when one sees the highest prelate of the Catholic Church
celebrate in 1984 the arrival in America of the Spanish, carrying the
‘Christian message,’ and when one thinks of the genocide this message
concealed and of the present state of Indians in so-called ‘Latin’
America. Those are the three ideologies that have endeavoured to
create in India religious and social conflicts....” Despite these and
many other remarkable insights, one may voice a word of caution
regarding certain notions (such as the Aryan invasion of India, the
phallic nature of the lingam, etc.) which Daniélou uses or develops,
perhaps little realizing that they are entirely the creation of a
nineteenth-century European scholarship imbued with precisely the
Christian prejudices he sets out to denounce.
This issue of Antaios will certainly generate genuine interest about
India in the French-speaking world, and we must wish this deserving
magazine and movement a rich and long pagan life.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/antaios.html
English: Lectures and Articles
Note : All articles / lectures below are copyrighted, but may be
reproduced in magazines / periodicals anywhere without further
authorization, provided : (1) the text is not edited in any way and is
reproduced integrally (it may however be split into several parts over
successive issues); (2) the article’s / lecture’s title and brief
introductory note are left unchange ; (3) the copyright shall remain
with the author; (4) upon publication, a complete copy of the issue of
the magazine / periodical containing the article / lecture is mailed
to Michel Danino (please contact over email for a postal address).
INDIAN CULTURE
Sri Aurobindo’s View of Indian Culture
Sri Aurobindo’s vision for his country has remained largely unknown in
India. A brief presentation.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/indianculture.html
Sri Aurobindo and the Gita
Sri Aurobindo’s view of some essential questions raised by the Gita :
peace vs. war, ahimsa vs. force and violence.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/gitalecture.html
The Gita and Integral Yoga
The relationship between Sri Aurobindo’s yoga and the yoga of the
Gita.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/integralyoga.html
The Gita in Today’s World
The Gita and the problem of action : Is the Scripture guilty of
warmongering?
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/gitain_todaysworld.html
ISSUES CONFRONTING INDIA
Effects of Colonization on Indian Thought
Why the Indian mind remains colonized, unable to view India’s heritage
from an Indian perspective.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/colonization.html
Is Indian Culture Obsolete?
Is India’s degraded condition due to her culture, or to a failure to
rejuvenate it?
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/cultureobsolete.html
Nature and Indian Tradition
Contrasts attitudes toward Nature in Western and Indian traditions.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/natureandindtradition.html
Kali Yuga or the Age of Confusion
How ill-defined concepts such as “God,” “religion,” “secularism” or
“tolerance” cause serious confusion in the Indian context.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/kaliyuga.html
INSIGHTS INTO ANCIENT INDIA
The Riddle of India’s Past
An overview of the Aryan problem.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/riddle.html
The Indus Valley Civilization and its Bearing on the Aryan Question
A glance at the material and cultural backdrop of the earliest
civilization of the Indian subcontinent.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/indus.html
Vedic Roots of Early Tamil Culture
Highlights underemphasized cultural roots of the earliest urban
developments in Tamil Nadu.
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/tamilculture.html
Reply to Frontline’s Cover Story of 13 October 2000
A reply to Frontline’s cover story by
http://micheldanino.voiceofdharma.com/frontline.html
chhotemianinshallah
@ the Complete Review
A Literary Salon & Site Review
Volume V, Issue 1 -- February, 2004
James Laine’s Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
and the attack on the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
Background - Chronology - Reactions
Volume V, Issue 1 -- February, 2004
James Laine’s Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
and the attack on the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
Background - Chronology - Reactions
For more information, please also see in this issue of the crQ:
James Laine’s Controversial Book by Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan and
Amodini Bagwe
Attacking Myths and Institutions: James Laine’s Shivaji and BORI
- the Editors, the complete review
Introduction
On 5 January 2004 a group calling itself the Sambhaji Brigade
attacked the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) in Pune, in
the state of Maharashtra, India. There was considerable damage done to
the holdings of this significant cultural repository, including to
irreplaceable and unique objects of historical and literary
importance. While not on the same scale, it was a catastrophe
comparable to the recent destruction and looting of libraries in
Sarajevo and Iraq, or the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas in
Afghanistan, a devastating blow to contemporary civilization and to
the preservation of what remains of previous ones.
The attack was the preliminary culmination in a series of
increasingly disturbing and destructive events that were triggered by
the publication of James W. Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic
India (Oxford University Press, 2003). Laine's book sparked
controversy in India, leading Oxford University Press India to
withdraw it from the local market in November 2003. This did not
sufficiently appease those upset by the book. American professor Laine
had done some of the research for his book at BORI, and he thanked the
institute and some scholars affiliated with it in his
acknowledgements; the institute and its members were then targeted by
those angered by the book. In December 2003 one of those thanked by
Laine, historian Shrikant Bahulkar, was assaulted, his face blackened
by Shiv Sena activists. Then, in January, came the attack on the
institute itself.
While the attack was widely condemned, and over 70 of the
participants were arrested, Laine and his undertaking continue to be
denounced. Shivaji has now been banned, and Laine has been charged by
the authorities and appears to be subject to arrest if he returns to
India. Laine and his book -- and BORI -- continue to be used in what
appears to be an increasingly politicised debate.
These events are particularly disturbing because, unlike most
other recent incidents of large-scale cultural vandalism, they
occurred in a country at peace, and in a democracy -- a system that
depends on a tolerance for a plurality of opinions and on free
expression to properly function. Also striking -- and worrisome -- is
that the conflict has been framed as one centred around questions of
historical (in)accuracy and and (ir)responsibile scholarship, but
there has been little interest from many of those challenging Laine's
book to debate these questions, as they have answered them with mob-
rule and violence instead of counter-argument.
There has been much discussion about these events in India,
but, despite the supranational issues at stake, as well as the roles
played by an American professor and the world's largest -- and one of
the most respected -- university presses, international press coverage
has been very limited. The conflict is a complex one, and it is both
politically and religiously highly charged, centred around an
historical figure -- Shivaji -- who is not well known outside India.
In this introductory overview we try to present the necessary
background information to allow some understanding of the events that
have taken place. Other pieces in this edition of the complete review
Quarterly devoted to the subject are Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan and
Amodini Bagwe 's essay on James Laine’s Controversial Book and our
commentary, Attacking Myths and Institutions: James Laine’s Shivaji
and BORI
A guide to what's at issue
Shivaji
Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj (also known simply as Shivaji or
Sivaji) lived 1627/1630 to 1680. A Maratha leader, he was fiercely
opposed to the Mughals that at that time controlled much of what is
now India, and was instrumental in establishing Marathi independence.
Crowned the first Maratha king in 1674, he is a founding-father figure
who is still highly revered in India, especially in the state of
Maharashtra (major cities: Mumbai (Bombay) and Pune); see, for example
the official Maharashtra state site, where a page is devoted to
Shivaji: the Maker of the Maratha Nation
Shivaji is also perceived as a specifically Hindu hero, having
established a Hindu empire in opposition to the Mughals (who were
Muslim, and foreign). While widely revered in India, Hindu-nationalist
groups have been particularly vociferous in allowing no criticism of
the man, his accomplishments, and the legends around him.
His name, of great symbolic value, is often invoked, especially
in recent years as a Hindu-focussed nationalism (and political
polarization) in India has been resurgent. So, for example, Mumbai
(formerly Bombay) airport has apparently been re-named: Chhatrapati
Shivaji International Airport.
For additional information, see:
Chhatrapati Shivaji - The Legend
http://www.chhatrapati-shivaji.com/
Shivaji at Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shivaji
Shivaji at Freeindia.org
http://www.freeindia.org/biographies/greatlkings/shivaji/
The Complexities of Shivaji by Vijay Prashad, at Proxsa (also at
HVK.org, where -- scroll down -- there is a response from
Bhalchandrarao C. Patwardhan)
http://www.foil.org/history/shivaji.html
James W. Laine
James W. Laine is the Arnold H. Lowe Professor and Chair of
Religious Studies at Macalester College; see his faculty page. He got
his B.A. from Texas Tech, and his M.T.S. and Th.D. from Harvard. See
also his Curriculum vitae.
James Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
James Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India was
published by Oxford University Press. It apparently appeared in the US
and the UK in early 2003, and was then published in India in the
summer of 2003.
In describing the book Oxford University Press writes:
The legends of his life have become an epic story that everyone in
western India knows, and an important part of the Hindu nationalists'
ideology. To read Shivaji's legend today is to find expression of
deeply held convictions about what Hinduism means and how it is
opposed to Islam.
They also suggest:
Different sub-groups, representing a range of religious persuasions,
found it in their advantage to accentuate or diminish the importance
of Hindu and Muslim identity and the ideologies that supported the
construction of such identities. By studying the evolution of the
Shivaji legend, Laine demonstrates, we can trace the development of
such constructions in both pre-British and post-colonial periods.
It appears that Laine's focus on a shifting legend -- rather a
fixed-in-stone image of the man some groups insist upon -- and the
notion that the legend has been adapted for other purposes is among
the aspects of the book that has proved most controversial.
(Ironically, reactions by some groups that tolerate only their current
notion of the legend would appear to support at least Laine's
underlying thesis.)
The statement in the book that appears to have provoked the
greatest outrage is the mention that it has been suggested that
Shivaji's father was not Shahaji, Laine writing: "Maharashtrians tell
jokes naughtily that Shivaji’s biological father was Dadoji Kondeo
Kulkarni" (quoted, for example, in The Telegraph, 18 January). This
statement -- indeed, even the mere suggestion -- is apparently
considered an outrageous insult and defamation of Shivaji, Shahaji,
and Shivaji's mother, Jijabai (all highly revered). The claim is also
widely considered unfounded and gratuitous; apparently this particular
'naughty joke' is not familiar to most Maharashtrians (or at least
none appear to have come forward acknowledging that they've heard this
sort of banter).
In his acknowledgements Laine thanked numerous people, writing
also:
In India, my scholarly home has been the Bhandarkar Oriental Research
Institute in Pune, and there I profited from the advice and assistance
of the senior librarian, V. L. Manjul. I read texts and learned
informally a great deal about Marathi literature and Maharashtrian
culture from S. S. Bahulkar, Sucheta Paranjpe, Y. B. Damle, Rekha
Damle, Bhaskar Chandavarkar, and Meena Chandavarkar. Thanks to the
American Institute of Indian Studies and Madhav Bhandare, I was able
to spend three productive periods of research in Pune.
Laine's thanks were apparently interpreted as a declaration of
scholarly complicity, and those named were among those targeted by the
groups opposed to Laine's work -- despite the fact that several
scholars attached to BORI distanced themselves from the book and were
among those demanding that OUP India withdraw the book.
Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India has not been
widely reviewed (in part likely because it is a scholarly work of the
sort generally mainly reviewed in academic journals, many of which
take longer to review titles than the mass media does). Among the few
reviews is V.N. Datta's in The Sunday Tribune (7 December), An image
that might be disturbing
For additional information see:
The OUP-USA publicity page ((Updated - 29 March): The book is no
longer listed in the OUP-USA catalogue)
http://www.us.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/ReligionTheology/Hinduism/?view=usa&ci=0195141261
The OUP publicity page ((Updated - 29 March): The book is barely
listed in the OUP catalogue)
To purchase Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
from Amazon.com
from Amazon.co.uk
Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute
The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute is located in Pune. It was
founded in 1917 and is a leading repository of Indological manuscripts
and a renowned centre for scholarship.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040119/asp/frontpage/story_2802420.asp
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031207/spectrum/book4.htm
For additional information see:
http://dannyreviews.com/h/Shivaji.html
BORI at virtualpune.com
A learning house with a world-wide appeal, at the Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/407198.cms
Sambhaji Brigade
A small, previously little known group affiliated with the
Hindu-nationalist organisation, Maratha Seva Sangh
Chronology
(Based on Ketaki Ghoge's chronology in his article, Rape of
culture leaves city in shock (Indian Express, 5 January), and other
mentioned sources. See also Anupama Katakam's article, Politics of
vandalism in Frontline (issue of 17-30 January) for a good overview
(and pictures).)
June, 2003: James Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
published in India by Oxford University Press India.
November, 2003: Scholars affiliated with the Bhandarkar Oriental
Research Institute (BORI), historians (including Jaysinhrao Pawar,
Babasaheb Purandare, Ninad Bedekar, and Gajanan Mehendale), and others
(including city MP Pradeep Rawat) called for the withdrawal of the
book. (See Scholar destroys own work on Shivaji, Manjiri Damle, Times
of India, 27 December)
http://www.flonnet.com/fl2102/stories/20040130003802800.htm
21 November 2003: Oxford University Press India apologised and
withdrew the book from the Indian market. (The book continued to be
listed in the OUP India catalogue until mid-January, but has since
been removed. The book remains in print and available outside India.)
22 December 2003: Shiv Sena activists confronted and attacked scholars
attached to BORI over their role in assisting Laine with his book.
Sanskrit scholar Shrikant Bahulkar was physically assaulted and his
face blackened (an act meant to shame him). (See Scholar destroys own
work on Shivaji)
25 December 2003: Gajanan Mehendale, who had previously called for the
withdrawal of Laine's book, went to the Shiv Sena offices to demand an
apology for the assault on Bahulkar. When none was forthcoming he
destroyed several hundred manuscript pages of his own unpublished
biographical study of Shivaji. (See Scholar destroys own work on
Shivaji)
28 December 2003: Shiv Sena leader Raj Thackeray personally apologised
to Bahulkar. The Times of India reported (29 December) that:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/388216.cms
Raj assured Bahulkar that such incidents would not be repeated and
that Sena activists would have to get a "clearance" from the toprung
leaders before embarking on such "aggressive campaigns" in the
future.
late December, 2003: James Laine faxed a statement apologising to some
Pune scholars. The Times of India reported Laine says sorry for
hurting sentiments (30 December), quoting:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/394299.cms
"It was never my intention to defame the great Maharashtrian hero. I
had no desire to upset those for whom he is an emblem of regional and
national pride, and I apologise for inadvertently doing so," he said
in a faxed message to some city scholars. "I foolishly misread the
situation in India and figured the book would receive scholarly
criticism, not censorship and condemnation. Again I apologise," the
American author said.
5 January, 2004: Over 150 activists from the Sambhaji Brigade attacked
BORI, ransacking the building, defacing books and artworks, and
destroying property. The extent of the damage is not clear at this
time -- especially regarding the irreplaceable manuscripts and
historical artefacts -- but appears to be considerable . Seventy-two
of the hooligans were arrested. (See also: 'Maratha' activists
vandalise Bhandarkar (Times of India), Helping Laine: Books, powada,
poem (Express News Service), and Mob ransacks Pune's Bhandarkar
Institute (Rupa Chapalgaonkar, Mid-Day))
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/407226.cms
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=72609
http://www.indianexpress.com/storyOld.php?storyId=38796
6 January: Mid-Day published Pune institute's desecration shocks
author, in which Laine comments on events and explains, inter alia:
My goal was not to establish my version of the true history of
Shivaji, but to examine the forces that shaped the commonly held
views. In so doing, I suggest that there might be other ways of
reading the historical evidence, but in making such a suggestion, I
have elicited a storm of criticism. I am astonished.
7 January: In the Indian Express Shailesh Gaikwad reports MSS chief’s
clout keeps govt away. Illustrating the government's disturbing
priorities (and a continued interest in appeasing populist elements)
State Home Minister R.R. Patil is quoted as saying:
We condemn the attack and also distorting of the history of
Chhatrapati Shivaji. The government is seeking legal opinion to
ascertain if any action can be taken against the author and also
whether the book can be banned.
9 January: At a press conference Sambhaji Brigade spokesman Shrimant
Kokate is reported (in the Times of India) to have expressed
pleasantries such as:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/416173.cms
"In fact, scholars should be happy that Bori is still intact," he
remarked. Kokate said that the brigade was "most unhappy" that
scholars who had helped Laine were "still alive" and demanded that
they face an inquiry or be handed over to the Brigade. Kokate
expressed his displeasure about the fact that the media had labelled
them as goons. "We will deal with the media later," he threatened.
In another report (Express News Service) he is quoted as saying:
http://www.indianexpress.com/storyOld.php?storyId=38950
Those who fed him [Laine] with the offensive information should be
hanged by the government. If the government is unable to do so they
should be handed over to us.
Kokate was apparently not arrested for these inflammatory remarks.
Instead:
9 January: Charges were filed against James Laine and OUP India by the
Deccan Gymkhana police. The charges are registered under Sections 153
and 153(A) of the Indian Penal Code. (As A.G. Noorani notes in
Chhatrapati or bust (Hindustan Times, 27 January), Section 153A has
frequently -- but selectively -- been invoked over the past decade and
more, writing: "Section 153A is not invoked to suppress the VHP or the
Shiv Sena’s hate campaign but to suppress scholarly books unacceptable
to them.".) These sections read:
153. Wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot (...)
153A. Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of
religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing
acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony
(See also Case against Laine, OUP (Express News Service)
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=72977
and Pune police book American writer Laine (Times of India))
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/417192.cms
12 January: James Laine published a commentary piece, In India, 'the
Unthinkable' Is Printed at One's Peril in The Los Angeles Times; it
is, unfortunately, not freely accessible on the Internet. In it he
describes his interest in Shivaji, his book, early reactions to it,
and then the events that unfolded. He relates how, initially, the book
"even ranked up with Hillary Rodham Clinton's in the local list of
English-language bestsellers in Pune", and mentions:
Back in Pune this summer, I saw a couple of bland but positive reviews
in the Indian papers. I thought, "As long as they don't get to the
last chapter."
He concludes the piece:
The vast majority of Indians are appalled at what happened in Pune.
And yet no one has stepped forward to defend my book and no one has
called for it to be distributed again. Few will read it for
themselves. Instead, many will live with the knowledge that India is a
country where many thoughts are unthinkable or, if thought, best kept
quiet.
13 January: Mid-Day reports -- in an article with a very understated
headline -- OUP asked to shut Pune office. As the article explains:
Maratha organsisations supporting Sambhaji Brigade have now forced the
Oxford University Press showroom in Pune to down shutters. (...) They
told the employees there that (...) they should down their shutters or
else face consequences.
No arrests were reported.
http://www.mid-day.com/404.htm
14 January: Despite the fact that OUP had already withdrawn Laine's
book from the Indian market two months earlier, the Maharashtra
government moved -- eventually successfully -- to have Laine's book
banned, again citing Sections 153 and 153A of the Indian Penal Code.
(See reports from the Times of India (14 January) and Reuters (16
January).)
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/421394.cms
http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=27624
16 January: Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee admirably spoke
out against the book-ban. The Times of India reported PM shoots from
the hip, upsets Shiv Sena, NCP, and quotes the Prime Minister as
sensibly stating:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/428426.cms
He said the "right way" to express disagreement was through
discussion. "Countering the views in a particular book by another good
book is understandable," Mr Vajpayee said, adding that he did not
approve of the ban on Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India by American
writer James Laine.
The Express New Service report, PM flags off Mumbai campaign, opposes
ban on Shivaji book, had it a bit differently, quoting the PM as
saying:
http://www.indianexpress.com/storyOld.php?storyId=39370
"If you do not like anything in a particular book, then sit and
discuss it. Banning a book is not a solution, we have to tackle it
ideologically ... If differences of opinion remain after a issue is
discussed, the best way would be to come out with another good book on
the subject"
As the Times of India report also notes: "Ironically, the PM made this
observation at a function to unveil a majestic statue of Chhatrapati
Shivaji in the Sahar airport precincts."
Vajpayee's comments were immediately denounced, including by groups
allied with the PM's party. Indifferent to principles, at least one
person shifted the focus to what is really at issue:
"He should have kept mum, especially since elections are round the
corner," a senior Sena leader present at the function told TNN.
(See also PM not happy with ban on book on Shivaji in Mid-Day)
(Updated - 29 March): Unfortunately, once election time rolled
around, Vajpayee began singing a different tune; see entry of 20
March.
January 18: Politicians continued to seek to outdo one another in
their defence of Shivaji. Express News Service reports Antulay calls
for legal action against Laine (17 January), as senior Congress leader
A.R.Antulay attacked Laine, "urging the government to take all
necessary legal steps to punish him." He is also quoted as saying:
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=73576
"How can a dialogue be held if somebody is abusing your father and
mother ?" Antulay asked. (...) He said Shivaji was the pride of India
and Indians should not tolerate any humiliation of their heroes.
Meanwhile, The Hindu reported (18 January) that Chief Minister
Sushilkumar Shinde: "said it was 'not fair' to write such 'bad things'
about Shivaji."
http://www1.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/434030.cms
19 January: The Times of India reported (20 January) that MSS
threatens more attacks on BORI: apparently the Maratha Sewa Sangh
warned that: "the ‘Sambhaji Brigade’, would resort to more attacks if
students were made to collect money for rebuilding Bori." Despite such
threats, no arrests were reported.
21 January: The Times of India reported that Maratha group flays
Sambhaji brigade, describing a newly-formed group, Maratha Yuvak
Parishad (MYP), opposed to the use of Shivaji by activists "to further
their own political ends".
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/437087.cms
22 January: The Times of India reported that Maratha outfit files
petititon against BORI. Maratha Vikas Sangh has apparently set its
sights even higher, having:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/439070.cms
filed a petition in the Bombay high court demanding that all documents
at BORI be seized by the union government. Refusing the let the James
Laine controversy die down, MVS has also demanded censorship on all
books that would be written on historical figures.
(This demand for a quasi-Soviet approach to ensure that the historical
record is kept ... straight apparently has not been widely embraced;
nevertheless, despite suggesting such a thing, the MVS is, amazingly,
still taken seriously.)
28 January: The Times of India reports 'Silent’ majority lodges
protest at BORI:
On Republic Day, inspired by a chain e-mail circulated over the last
two weeks, citizens made a beeline for the institute to register a
silent protest against the vandalism. This, despite a police warning
against gathering at the institute on R-Day. Every protestor dropped a
rupee coin in specially placed urns, as a token contribution towards
the restoration of the institute.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/448086.cms
March: Oxford University Press apparently withdraws all references to
Laine's book from all its online catalogues (previously information
had been available both at OUP-USA and the main OUP site). It is
unclear whether this is a move to remove the book from the market
entirely (including the US and the UK), or merely a defensive legal
maneuver (to preclude any liability claims).
16 March: Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani bravely maintained: "that
he was against banning any controversial publication". (See Advani
against banning controversial books (The Hindu, 16 March) and Advani
against ban on Laine's book on Shivaji (at NDTV).) This, of course,
led to:
http://www.ndtv.com/news/error.php
17 March: The Times of India reported of the Uproar in house as DF
defends ‘Shivaji’ ban:
Proceedings in both houses of the state legislature were stalled for
over two hours on Wednesday after the opposition Shiv Sena-BJP members
objected to the ruling coalition members’ suggestion that Prime
Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Deputy Prime Minister K Advani
should apologise for disapproving of the state’s ban on the
controversial book Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India, penned by
American scholar James Laine.
20 March: The pressure -- and election politics -- finally got to
Prime Minister Vajpayee as he kicked off the BJP election campaign in
Maharahstra, as he suddenly decided the government ban on Laine's book
was a pretty darn good idea after all. Not only that: he also felt it
necessary to assure his listeners: "We are prepared to take action
against the foreign author", and that this was "a warning to all
foreign authors that they do not play with our national pride".
See reports in Mid-Day (Shivaji is my ideal, says Vajpayee) and
Newindpress.com (Vajpayee kickstarts campaign with warning to foreign
authors).
late March: Seeing how well the fervent pro-Shivaji attitude played to
the crowds, and seeking to outdo all those who were satisfied with
merely bashing James Laine, state BJP president Gopinath Munde decided
he could profit by going after bigger fish closer to home and:
demanded a ban on Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s classic Discovery of India
on the ground that a 1986 edition of the book contains remarks highly
derogatory of the Maratha king.
(See Ban Nehru's Discovery of India: State BJP, The Times of India, 19
March).
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/568894.cms
Unfortunately, the overeager Munde apparently never looked at the book
in question: as The Times of India reported (21 March), Nehru's book:
"contains no such derogatory remark."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/572510.cms
A few days later even Munde had to admit as much -- excusing his zeal
on the grounds that: "I am a politician and not a scholar". But, just
so nobody would think he was going soft, he added: "there is no change
in my party’s stand -- it will not tolerate any insult to national
heroes like Shivaji". (See: Munde wriggles out of Nehru gaffe, The
Times of India, 25 March).
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/580909.cms
late March: Another crowd-pleasing, debate-stifling stunt: Pune police
commissioner D.N.Jadhav:
told reporters today that he was writing to Laine to summon him to
India for questioning. If Laine refuses the "request," the police
chief plans to move court. And if Laine ignores the summons, the
police will seek the help of CBI and Interpol, Jadhav said.
(See Day after showing off liberal face, Cong hounds US professor, The
Indian Express, 23 March.)
This at least got some international attention -- see the BBC's
report, India seeks to arrest US scholar -- and again seems to have
played very well in India, where everybody seemed to get really
excited about possibly involving Interpol (despite the fact that
Laine's whereabouts are well-known); see, for example, State to seek
extradition of Shivaji author (The Times of India, 23 March)
Unfortunately, as Vijay Singh noted at Rediff (27 March): Bringing
Laine back: Easier said than done. (In fact, it is clear that Laine
has not been charged with any extraditable offense.)
As usual, there was far more bluster than action: by 25 March the
headline was: No letter to Laine as yet (Indian Express, 25 March), as
(sensibly):
Police Commissioner D N Jadhav today said the police will not be
sending a letter to James Laine, the author of Shivaji: Hindu King in
Islamic India asking him to come to India till April 5 since a
petition has been filed in the Bombay High Court.
See also: Criminal action stayed against Laine (Mid-Day, 27 March).
http://www.indianexpress.com/storyOld.php?storyId=43617
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3561499.stm
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/576118.cms
http://us.rediff.com/news/2004/mar/27laine.htm
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=79907
Reactions
Almost no attention has been paid to the controversy
surrounding Laine's book or the attack on BORI outside of India.
Laine's opinion piece, In India, 'the Unthinkable' Is Printed at One's
Peril, in the 12 January issue of The Los Angeles Times, and an
article by Martha Ann Overland ("Vandals Attack Research Center in
India in Retaliation for Help It Gave to American Scholar") in the
Chronicle of Higher Education (issue of 23 January), neither of which
is freely available on the Internet, and a Star Tribune article by
Mary Jane Smetanka, Macalester professor's book incites a riot a world
away ((Updated - 29 March): now only available at WCCO), were among
the very few mentions in the American press.
((Updated - 29 March): With the calls for Laine's arrest at the
end of March there has again been some international coverage, most
notably Scott Baldauf's article, How a US historian sparked calls for
his arrest - in India, in the Christian Science Monitor (29 March).
See also Sara Rajan's A Study in Conflict (Time (Asia), 5 April).)
What reactions there have been in the academic community do not
appear to have made any impact or found any resonance outside those
limited circles. There also appear to have been no calls to withdraw
Laine's book, or ban it, anywhere outside India.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0329/p01s04-wosc.html
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,501040405-605550,00.html
In India , the attack on BORI has been widely (though far from
universally) condemned. The destruction of property, especially that
which is unique and of historical significance, and the threats
against scholars have been denounced in the press and in public. Prime
Minister Vajpee's approach, as reported in the Times of India, seems
to be the preferred one: "He said the "right way" to express
disagreement was through discussion" -- though even some of his
political allies denounced him for these statements and his opposition
to the book-ban.
Disturbingly, a significant minority has been willing to excuse
even the attacks on BORI as justifiable under the circumstances, and
while 72 of those responsible were arrested and charged, there have
been continued threats (both legal and physical) against BORI,
scholars associated with it, and against author James Laine.
As Laine noted in his 12 January piece in The Los Angeles
Times:
The vast majority of Indians are appalled at what happened in Pune.
And yet no one has stepped forward to defend my book and no one has
called for it to be distributed again.
Indeed, most of these events took place after Laine's book had
officially been withdrawn from the Indian market, i.e. essentially no
longer existed. The banning of the book and the attacks on BORI and
various scholars were thus clearly aimed not only at this specific
case, but at the whole enterprise of scholarship, and of freedom of
expression. Concerns about this have been raised in the media, but
Laine's book has received little support: there still appear to have
been almost no calls for it to be made available in India again.
Surprisingly, there has also been almost no criticism of Oxford
University Press' self-censorship and withdrawal of the book from the
Indian market. A rare mention can found is in the "Weekly Organ of the
Communist Party of India (Marxist)", People's Democracy, who properly
note (25 January):
The media have criticised the Shiv Sainiks’ pranks but not the
hastiness of the Oxford University Press in withdrawing the book even
before the matter became public or the government for banning the book
even before the matter was discussed in public fora.
There have been numerous opinion pieces regarding these
incidents. Among the disturbing trends they make note of is the uneven
use of Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code to limit expression, and
the politicising of what should be academic debates.
Among the opinion pieces are:
Dileep Padgaonkar on Myth against history (Times of India, 25
January), who finds these events: "drive home the point yet again that
in this country it is myth, not history, that ignites popular
imagination."
A.G. Noorani's Chhatrapati or bust (Hindustan Times, 27 January),
where he writes of what happened: "It was not an aberration. It is
part of a practice, connived at and condoned, during the past decade
and more."
Ananya Vajpeyi's Everything Foul and Unfair (The Telegraph, 19
January), where he suggests the most critical question is: "(A)re we
prepared to defend acts of violence perpetrated in the name of our
identity, our beliefs and finally, our sentiments ?"
An editorial in The Indian Express (7 January), in which the authors
argue: "We cannot have the mob write our history for us. Every time we
compromise on this principle, every time a publishing house allows
itself to recall a book, every time the authorities fail to punish the
vandals, every time politicians seize such issues for narrow political
gains, every time the barbarian at the gate is accommodated, we fail
not just our academics but our historical legacy of open
scholarship."
Rajeev Dhavan's Burn, Burn, Destroy (available at the Outlook India
site, 23 January), where he notes: "In the last decade or so, new
emerging patterns of social censorship seem to have eclipsed the
framework of legal censorship that has been bequeathed to India by the
British."
Nalini Taneja on Politics of Rightwing Sectarianism (People's
Democracy, 25 January), arguing: "In what has been happening today by
way of policing and censorship of culture, and to history teaching and
research, by way of verbal and physical attacks on democratic
expression, our state and media have a very definite role to play."
Sandhya Jain on Demeaning Shivaji, denigrating dharma (The Pioneer, 27
January, published here at HVK.org), who finds: "Having purchased and
read James Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India only after it
was officially withdrawn by the publishers, I cannot view the events
at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) as totally
unjustified."
Swapan Dasgupta on Reclaiming the Hindu Gods (The Telegraph, 30
January), who reports that: "Beginning sometime last year, American
Hindus have mounted a spirited attack on the bastions of Indology in
the North American universities" and believes: "The battle to reassess
Indian heritage in keeping with the achievements of Indians involves a
long haul. It will not be won by bans on offensive texts or McCarthy-
ite purges of the infuriatingly perverse. It has to be fought with
civility, argument, rigour and a sense of strategy."
Manu Dash, wondering: Feel-shame factor, anyone ? (The Statesman),
noting: "Our country has time and again failed to stay true to its
credential of tolerance."
Vaishnavi K. Sekhar finding: Historians rue attack on freedom of
expression (The Times of India, 24 March), noting that: "The casualty
of cultural censorship may be scholarship".
(Note that in considering reactions in India we are limited to
English-language material that is freely accessible via the Internet.
It should be clear that this material may well not be representative
of broader opinion, or even of media opinion. The Hindu and Marathi
language press may well have responded entirely differently.)
Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan and Amodini Bagwe's piece, James
Laine’s Controversial Book, published in this issue of the complete
review Quarterly, offers a somewhat different perspective, focussing
on what exactly it is about Laine's book that many find so upsetting.
There has also been some coverage of these events on weblogs,
most notably at Kitabkhana and Ryan's Lair (as well as at the Literary
Saloon).
http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol5/issue1/laine0.htm
Volume V, Issue 1 -- February, 2004
Attacking Myths and Institutions
James Laine’s Shivaji and BORI
commentary at the complete review
On 5 January 2004 a leading research institute in India, the
Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI), was attacked (see here
for details). The mob that ransacked it ostensibly acted in reaction
to a book allegedly insulting one of India's great historical figures,
a 17th century leader named Shivaji (despite the fact that the book --
James W. Laine's Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India -- had been
withdrawn from the market by its publisher almost two months earlier).
In researching his book, Laine had worked at BORI years earlier, and
he thanked the institute and a number of scholars associated with it
in his acknowledgements -- reason enough for the Sambhaji brigadeers
to physically threaten and attack these men, and to destroy important
bits of Indian history.
What has happened with Laine's book and BORI is a terrifying
glimpse of intolerance and mob rule. It is particularly worrying
because it has happened not in a theocracy like the Taliban's
Afghanistan or a revisionist dictatorship such as Turkmenistan or
North Korea, but in a culturally diverse democracy.
It is some comfort that these events are being freely and
openly debated in India, and that the attack on BORI has been widely
(though, unfortunately, far from universally) condemned. Nevertheless,
events both before and after 5 January suggest that open debate and
tolerance for alternative viewpoints and opinions are far from welcome
by all.
It does all come back to Laine's book. It's title alone -- the
suggestion that there was ever an "Islamic India" -- has outraged many
(see Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan and Amodini Bagwe's James Laine’s
Controversial Book for this and other objections to the book). The
subject matter is one of India's revered historical figures, a 17th-
century king who managed to assert independence from the Mughals. In a
contemporary India that is again increasingly polarised by religion he
has become a particularly potent symbolic figure among some Hindus
groups. (India is subject to many possible divisions, including along
caste and linguistic lines, but the most prominent remains religion;
while a large majority of Indians are Hindu, it must be remembered
that the Muslim population in India exceeds that in any Arab or Middle
Eastern nation.)
In a commentary piece, In India, 'the Unthinkable' Is Printed
at One's Peril, published in The Los Angeles Times (12 January), Laine
describes his book as one about the: "narrative process, an account of
three centuries of storytelling that produced a tale that lived in the
minds of people celebrating Shivaji's legacy today". In the last
chapter he also: "entertained what I called 'unthinkable thoughts' --
questioning 'cracks' in the Shivaji narrative". It is these
unthinkable thoughts -- these different possible readings of Shivaji,
or rather the Shivaji-legend -- that were found so objectionable.
Blind, fanatical devotion to a set narrative is not unheard of,
though it is generally reserved for stories about religious figures.
In some circles, to hypothesise about Mohammed or Jesus, -- even when
one relies on sound historical evidence -- is still impossible (and
has led to similar book bans and physical assaults). Laine's alleged
blasphemy is more complex, because Shivaji is simply an historical
figure. While such figures are often also revered to an extent that
blinds some to their faults (there are those who are outraged by
discussion of the womanising ways of, say, Thomas Jefferson and Martin
Luther King junior), it is generally accepted that speculation about
such figures is permissible or even laudable. Indeed, if set
narratives weren't constantly questioned, if they were considered
inviolable, history -- written by those in power -- would be both
useless and, generally, grossly inaccurate.
Of course, Shivaji isn't 'simply' an historical figure, his
story having also been appropriated by Hindu-nationalist elements
using it for their own purposes. To question the legend as they would
see it is to question their entire cause. And, like flag-wavers
elsewhere, politicians have found that the Shivaji-name can
effectively be used in rallying the masses who pay attention only to
the glorious name and don't consider all the implications behind the
words. So deeply does the cry of 'Shivaji' resonate with a large
segment of the population (specifically in the state of Maharashtra,
but also elsewhere in India) that almost everything except the most
uncritical stance has been attacked.
Laine describes the initial reception of his book in India, in
the summer of 2003, as unremarkable. The book "ranked up with Hillary
Rodham Clinton's in the local list of English-language bestsellers in
Pune" and there were "a couple of bland but positive reviews in the
Indian papers". Eventually, controversy erupted -- but Laine's sins
had clearly not been self-evident: it took someone to point out the
implications of what he had written (i.e. to offer a particular
reading of his reading) to upset people. (As is often the case in such
situations, it also appears that most of those who were upset did not
actually read the entire text.)
What happened then is also disturbing: numerous people,
including scholars attached to BORI (and some who were thanked in the
acknowledgements) not only distanced themselves from the text but
called for it to be withdrawn from the market. Amazingly, Oxford
University Press India obliged, withdrawing the book in November.
Too little has been made of this self-censorship. While
publishers often practice some sort of self-censorship in not
publishing certain books in certain markets, it is usually in response
to clear, legal prohibitions: art books depicting nudes are
inappropriate for the Saudi market, Nazi propaganda for the German
one, etc. But in most such cases there are clear guidelines and
outright legal bans, meaning that any attempted publication would be
met with legal action by government authorities. Nothing about Laine's
book suggested it contravened any local laws, or public standards of
decency or morality. The fact that for several months it sold
reasonably well locally and received some review attention without
causing much uproar or even complaint reinforces this notion.
Laine's Shivaji was, ultimately (months after the book had been
withdrawn from the market), banned, the author and the publisher
charged under Sections 153 ("Wantonly giving provocation with intent
to cause riot") and 153A ("Promoting enmity between different groups
on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language,
etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony ") of the
Indian Penal Code. Yet the charges can only be made because groups
have chosen to use the book to promote enmity. This case -- and, as
commentators have shown, it is not a unique case of the application of
153 and 153A -- is, among many other things, one of political
correctness run amok. By engaging in criminal violence, but claiming
to have been provoked by someone else's pronouncements -- regardless
of how these were meant -- it seems any statement can become a
criminal one, with the determination whether it is or isn't resting
solely with the allegedly aggrieved.
Such an interpretation of the law does not foster dialogue or
harmony, but rather is an actual incentive for violence and discord.
Dislike what someone says ? Just go out and riot and then blame it on
the other's words. This is patently what happened in the case of
Laine's book.
The attacks on scholars and then on BORI, and then the banning
of the book, would have been disturbing under any circumstances, but
they are particularly so given that the book had been withdrawn from
the market and was no longer readily accessible. Oxford University
Press India backed down in the face of some pressure and withdrew the
book in November, 2003, not because it had been ordered to do so or
was legally required to do so, but because public sentiment (or at
least vociferous elements) seemed to oppose allowing the book to
remain available.
This gesture of appeasement (or rather wholesale abandonment of
Laine's book) did not have the (presumably) intended effect. Surrender
to irrational forces rarely does (odd that that's a lesson that people
just don't seem to learn). OUP India might have merely wanted to keep
the peace, and sincerely believed that withdrawing the book from the
market was the best way of doing so. Indeed, events might have
escalated had they not done so. Still, it is troubling that a leading
academic publisher was willing to be intimidated by a mob (prominent
and respected though some of those among it were) and not stand up for
freedom of expression. (Interestingly, there appears to have been no
effort to make any legal determination as to the permissibility of
this publication -- i.e. no one suggested at the time that, for
example, the book promoted legally actionable enmity, etc. Funny how
that only became a viable option after groups decided to riot.) In any
case, far from resolving the issue, OUP India's withdrawal of the book
appears to have pleased absolutely no one, dismissed on the one hand
as a token gesture that came far too late, on the other as an obscene
abridgement of academic freedom.
Physical attacks followed: first scholar Shrikant Bahulkar was
assaulted, then, two weeks later, came the attack on BORI. What
appears to have upset the factions involved in these acts is not
merely the dissemination of the ideas found in Laine's book (which had
been practically stopped with the withdrawal of the book) but the very
existence of such thoughts. The targets include some who had actually
distanced themselves from the book and argued for its withdrawal; in
the case of those who had been thanked in Laine's acknowledgements
even such repentance wasn't enough to protect them from being
attacked.
The attack on BORI was an assault on the whole scholarly
enterprise, suggesting that inquiry and speculation are inappropriate
or even unacceptable, and that instead only a single account and
interpretation of history (one, apparently, decided on by today's mob)
is permissible. From those academics that called for the withdrawal of
Laine's book, to OUP India doing just that, to the attack on BORI and
the continuing actions against Laine and his book, everything has been
done to stifle and suppress dialogue, when it is just the opposite
that is needed. Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee admirably said that the
proper way to counter objectionable ideas in a book was with other
books and open debate. The local government -- and the local thugs --
have instead closed off debate wherever possible.
The United States is an exception when it comes to freedom of
expression, and most countries have far stricter limits. It might seem
entirely reasonable that, much as Nazi literature is banned in
Germany, writing which might incite readers to violence (directly or
in response thereto) is suppressed or banned. At the very least,
however, the general approach (and the specific application of the
law) in India regarding freedom of expression over the past decade or
more is of concern.
It is clear that expression that actually exhorts to violence
is far more objectionable than expression which causes offence which
causes violence. In other words, Nazi tracts calling for the killing
of Jews are far worse than Jewish tracts which upset Nazis (by, say,
claiming that their ideas are foolish and based on unfounded premises)
and lead them to attack Jews. Laine's book proved upsetting (arguably
even: justifiably so) to a significant segment of the population, and
action was taken against it (first voluntarily, then physically, and
finally legally). Those responsible for the physical attacks were, at
least, charged with crimes, but the newspapers continue to be filled
with quotes from often prominent politicans and public figures with
what are clearly threats (against persons and property) -- expression
that is blatantly far more dangerous than anything Laine wrote and yet
that has gone largely unchallenged. This double standard is completely
unacceptable -- and very dangerous.
To outsiders the case for why Laine's book should be read,
discussed, and debated likely seems self-evident. Arguments that India
or its citizens are somehow too immature to consider Laine's
statements, or that the issue itself is simply too inflammatory, are
unconvincing. People do no need to to be protected from challenging,
foreign, or even unsupportable ideas; they do need protection from
those who answer any statements they find unpleasant or objectionable
with violence.
Events as they have unfolded teach all the wrong lessons:
rather than showing how difficult texts and ideas might be approached
and dealt with (admittedly not always an easy task), they suggest that
complete denial and obliteration (and the use of force to achieve
these) are acceptable. The result can only be intellectual and social
stagnation and decline. Threats and brute force, encouraged by self-
serving politicians (looking only towards the next election) and
political groups, can easily win the day -- they have here--, but the
long-term costs could be devastating to India.
http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol5/issue1/laine2.htm
Volume V, Issue 1 -- February, 2004
James Laine’s Controversial Book
Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
(New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2nd ed., 2003)
by
Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan & Amodini Bagwe
Please note that the views expressed herein are those of the
authors and not of the complete review.
While condemning the attacks on the BORI Archives in Pune and
on Prof. Bahulkar in the strongest possible terms, we wish to share
our views about Laine's casual scholarship on Shivaji as presented in
his latest book.
Some of his remarks suggest willful, calculated sensationalism
than honest scholarship. Despite his apology issued last month after
the OUP quietly withdrew the book from the Indian market (LINK), which
he has practically withdrawn as of now (LINK), there are many issues
that need both examination and comment. As Laine himself admits in the
book, he has cavalierly presented gossip and innuendo without an iota
of documentary substantiation, and then on that basis, proceeded to
construct his flawed argument. Naturally, we must question his motives
in undertaking such an exercise. This is important since next to
nothing has appeared in the media by way of comment on the actual
contents of the book.
It must be asserted that at no time in history has India been
Islamic. Indeed, how could it have been so, when it has always had a
majority of non-Muslims in its population ? True, following the waves
of Islamic invasions that began in right earnest around the 12th
century CE, certain parts of the country did have Muslim rulers who
imposed Islamic law on the entire populace they governed, but that
does not make India Islamic, since a non-Muslim majority continued to
follow their own religious tenets, come what may.
As for Hindu regimes, unlike Christian or Islamic ones, the
king could have no religion according to time-honoured mores. As an
individual, like any one of his subjects, he was free to profess and
practise his version of any one of myriad indigenous doctrines that
together constitute Hinduism; but as king, he necessarily had to be
secular, regarding all forms of religious expression with due
impartiality. Even a cursory study of Indian history clearly shows how
indigenous States encouraged even antipodal doctrines to flourish.
Therefore, with no king (including Shivaji) who was Hindu, and an
India that was never Islamic, the astonishing title -- ‘Hindu King in
Islamic India’ -- leaves one wondering about the extent of Laine’s
understanding of the subject he addresses with such authority !
Moreover, Laine himself must be aware that various Muslim
dynasties in India, whether Mughal, Bahamani, Adilshahi, Nizamshahi,
or many of the fragmented Sultanates, were then ruled by alien
invaders from Central and Middle Eastern Asia, analogous to Islamic
invasions of Europe. A major portion of the invading armies
constituted mercenaries with extra-territorial loyalties, including
Mongols, Turks, Arabs, Persians, Afghans, and Siddis from Ethiopia.
Viewing the book title from this perspective, the effort seems to be
more of a hasty hatchet job with questionable historical validity,
seeking to cash in on the post-9/11 global upsurge of interest in
Islam.
Coming to the most incendiary part of the book, leading to the
recent turmoil in Maharashtra, Laine reports outright hearsay on p.93:
"Maharashtrians tell jokes naughtily suggesting that his guardian
Dadaji Konddev was his biological father" ! The reader may well wonder
whether such seemingly casual inclusion of injurious gossip related to
one's chief protagonist is a convention in serious cross-cultural
scholarship ! As a matter of fact, love and adoration of Shivaji is
the bottomline truth in the state, and we have never come across such
a motivated rumour until Laine’s book was published ! Outsiders fail
to understand that while Shivaji’s rugged forts stand testimony to his
great heroism in an all-too-brief tenure of forty years as a warrior
and strategist of epic proportions, it is upon the very hearts and
minds of the common populace that these nearly four centuries old
magical legends are etched to eternity: a testimony to the greatness
of a culture that has survived untold depredations and chicanery. In
fact, this is what makes the "Shivaji story" immune to fabrication to
suit contemporary designs of a handful of elite scholars and their
political instigators.
From the scholarly perspective, the wholly unsubstantiated
insinuation that Shahaji was not Shivaji’s "biological father" is
implausible, incredible and outrageous ! Unlike lax norms of familial
or marital propriety that characterize ‘civilized’ Western societies,
loose speculation about someone’s ancestry is a very serious matter
indeed even in contemporary Indian ethos, not to speak of conditions
almost four centuries ago. At that time, societal sanctions were
immensely more rigid and the consequences of their transgression, all
too tragic. A scandalous event like that implied by Laine would
scarcely escape immediate detection, judgment and censure. Anybody
indulging in such conduct would have courted severe social stigma,
especially someone like Jijabai who both hailed from and was married
into aristocracy. The progeny of an allegedly adulterous relationship
would never be accepted as king by a tradition-bound people who looked
up to the monarch as an incarnation of Divinity !
It must be asserted that Shahaji, who is superciliously alluded
to by Laine as an "absentee father", was forced to lodge his expecting
wife and yet-to-be-born child in the safe haven of the Shivneri fort
because of untold political uncertainty prevailing around the time
Shivaji was born -- and not, it must be mentioned, on account of any
estrangement between husband and wife. (Laine is in grave error when
he attempts to rewrite one of the most significant chapters in Indian
history, essaying an inappropriate imposition of a contemporary
Western paradigm upon the medieval Indian scenario).
Shahaji, who was practically ruling the Nizamshahi as Regent on
behalf of the minor Murtaza Nizamshah, was actively engaged in fending
off threats from both Shah Jehan and Adilshah, being constantly on the
run as a direct result. He was accompanied by his first son, Sambhaji,
who was killed at a young age in the Battle of Kanakgiri. After the
dissolution of the Nizamshahi in 1636, Shahaji’s subsequent service in
the Adilshahi took him to Bangalore, but he continued holding and
administering his old land titles in the Pune region through his
trusted Brahmin aide, Dadoji Konddev. Obviously, Shahaji was unable to
cover all the distance to Pune on a regular basis in those uncertain
times and the additional responsibility of bringing up the young
Shivaji devolved upon Dadoji. Shahaji took another wife in Bangalore,
as was customary in those days. From this second marriage, he sired
Vyankoji, the founder of the Thanjavur Bhosale dynasty, distinguished
by its patronage of both Tamil and Marathi culture and arts.
Shahajiraje thus bequeathed to India two distinct dynasties of
visionary rulers. All these facts are well documented and should
suffice to prevent irresponsible speculation on account of his absence
from the Pune region.
On page 91, Laine asks with an unnecessary soupçon of
dramatization,
Can one imagine a narrative of Shivaji’s life in which, for example:
Shivaji had an unhappy family life ? Shivaji had a harem ? Shivaji was
uninterested in the religion of bhakti saints ? Shivaji’s personal
ambition was to build a kingdom, not liberate a nation ? Shivaji lived
in a cosmopolitan Islamicate world and did little to change that
fact ?
Had Laine really read and gleaned anything from the references
listed at the end of the book, such perturbing questions would not
have arisen. For instance, it was practically de rigeur for men of
status in Shivaji’s time to have more than one wife. To go even
further back in history, let us recall that Lord Rama’s father too had
several queens. The custom had nothing whatsoever to do with practices
prevailing in a "cosmopolitan Islamicate world". However, isn’t having
several legally wedded wives very different from keeping a harem,
which latter may even include several official and unofficial
concubines ? Surely, Laine appreciates the essential difference !
Also, as revealed by numerous treasured documents of the era,
including correspondence between Ramdas and Shivaji, the latter was
spiritually surrendered to the former, of which fact Laine feigns such
complete ignorance ! With adequate answers to each one of Laine's
questions easily obtainable in his references, is his pretence
indicative of a deeper, sinister motive to compromise, restrain and
perhaps even destroy the extraordinary reverence in which Shivaji is
held ?
For a presumably accomplished scholar (LINK), who has spent
several decades in close contact with Maharashtra, it is amazing --
even distressing -- that Laine has understood almost nothing about the
veneration Shivaji commands in ‘native’ consciousness. In that sense,
his scholarship may well have been wasted ! For him to say now that he
had "foolishly misread the situation in India and figured the book
would receive scholarly criticism, not censorship and condemnation" is
appalling, at the very least. You can hardly foolishly misread a
situation that has existed for nearly four centuries, the study of
which is the declared intention of your scholarship, not to mention
the "love of the Shivaji story" you avowedly evince !
A similar exercise, as confessed by Laine in the case of a
Jesus Christ or a Thomas Jefferson (LINK), is entirely incapable of
provoking as vehement a reaction because these exalted personages do
not command the kind of supreme reverence in their specific locales
that Shivaji does in his.
No doubt Laine is aware how Christ’s popularity in the West has
been steadily on the decline, what with Church attendances falling
alarmingly, and the paucity of preachers needing imports from ‘third
world’ countries to supplant the dwindling numbers of octogenarian
White clergymen ! This observation is further supported by demographic
statistics indicating the exponential growth of the followers of
alternative philosophies, which cannot be attributed to new immigrants
alone.
As for Jefferson, in an exercise very reminiscent of the
present one, his greatness as a rationalist, especially his radically
piercing views on Christianity and its Church, (for example: "The
Christian God is a being of terrific character -- cruel, vindictive,
capricious, and unjust."), was sought by disadvantaged parties to be
compromised by the exposition of some tenuous incident in the
statesman’s life. But it is necessary to ascertain whether such
detractors, who authored the "widely varying accounts" about Jefferson
and Christ that Laine claims to have "seen", could be considered
persons of established scholarly reputation. Since serious scholars
would hardly ever countenance rumour or gossip as evidence, it was
more than likely that such criticism was penned by critics who had no
compunctions about relying on tittle-tattle to score a point.
Because Laine has indirectly questioned Shivaji’s paternity
without a shred of documentary evidence, he sadly gets categorized in
the latter class and his claim to a "love for the Shivaji story" falls
to pieces ! Incidentally, there are certain to be "other ways of
reading the historical evidence", but only if historical evidence, and
not malicious fabrication, is offered in the first place.
Laine ought to have grasped the reality that there just can be
no comparison between Shivaji and the likes of Christ and Jefferson
from the Indian, especially Maharashtrian, point of view ! The learned
author, in spite of his protracted contact with the region since 1977,
failed to realise that the "Shivaji story", as narrated in every
Maharashtrian home, has far more significance and enjoys immensely
greater credibility than all history taught in academia. And, by his
own admission, was it not the development of this "Shivaji story" that
he had set out to study ? Moreover, the growth in recent years of a
strong and eminently justifiable public perception that a vast
majority of academics have been indulging in wanton politicization of
scholarship at the expense of truth bolsters this awareness.
Furthermore, Shivaji is not merely a "Maharashtrian" hero, as
Laine not so subtly avers in his facetious apology. Shivaji was the
first Indian leader in relatively recent history to contemplate
political self-determination and successfully put it into practice at
a time when all others were blissfully unaware of both the existence
and possibility of such a thing ! This visionary quality elevates
Shivaji to a pioneering ‘national’ stature, head and shoulders above
all his peers and contemporaries. His exploits had obviously become
the stuff of legends in the course of his lifetime. Bhooshan, hailing
from the environs of the Mughal capital wrote epic poetry about him,
while Chhatrasal who traveled from Bundelkhand to seek employment with
him was bade to return to his territories and there establish his own
independence. The slant in Laine’s apology to localize and thus limit
Shivaji’s influence is not as innocuous as it appears, and is not
likely to be overlooked by discerning readers !
Indeed, since it takes the ‘authority’ of a White man to
convince us of the greatness of things indigenous, it would be
pertinent to quote historian Bamber Gascoigne:
"He (Shivaji) taught the modern Hindus to rise to the full stature of
their growth. So, when viewed with hindsight through twentieth century
glasses, Aurangzeb on the one side and Shivaji on the other come to be
seen as key figures in the development of India. What Shivaji began
Gandhi could complete …… and what Aurangzeb stood for would lead to
the establishment of the separate state of Pakistan." (The Great
Moghuls, London: Constable), (emphasis ours).
It is sad to see how all the years Laine spent in India were so
utterly in vain, if he has failed to note and appreciate this, the
most distinguishing and vital aspect of the "Shivaji story" !
There seems to be more to the book than mere scholarship. One
is reminded of what Thomas Paine wrote, in a slightly different
context perhaps, in the opening lines of his The Rights of Man about
Edmund Burke’s unwarranted interest in French affairs. It amply
illustrates a tendency to dabble that Laine evidently shares with
Burke:
"Among the incivilities by which nations or individuals provoke and
irritate each other, Mr. Burke’s pamphlet on the French Revolution is
an extraordinary instance. Neither the people of France, nor the
National Assembly, were troubling themselves about the affairs of
England, or the English Parliament; and why Mr. Burke should commence
an unprovoked attack upon them, both in Parliament and in public, is a
conduct that cannot be pardoned on the score of manners, nor justified
on that of policy." (London: J.M.Dent, 1993, p. 7).
With suitable substitutions, the sentiments expressed by Paine
could apply rather well to Laine’s avoidable blundering foray into
Indian culture and history. If, "as an American and a Christian",
Laine had, for instance, devoted more time to finding out why
enthusiasm for Christ is petering out so rapidly in his home country,
he might have been spared the pain of living through "the saddest day"
in his career ! But, prudent apprehension of censorship by the Moral
Majority and cessation of grants by funding bodies might perhaps have
served as an important deterrent in the case of similar misadventures
closer home !
It is the "Shivaji story" that transcends every conceivable
faction of Maharashtrian society and has always served as an
efficacious uniting factor, the demolition of which can be perceived
to serve powerful interests in present times. India in general and its
Maharashtrian Hindu population in particular have traditionally been
ultra-soft targets for a sundry assortment of deluded Indophiles
anyway, and the once-correct belief that one can get away with almost
murder has motivated several similar ‘research’ exercises in the
past.
Constituents of the more impulsive but perhaps less
sophisticated majority in Maharashtra are more likely than not to
smell in Laine’s dissertation the same intellectual chicanery
attempted through the purchase by British colonial masters (for a
princely sum of £ 3000, paid in easy installments, may it be noted !)
of Friedrich Max Muller’s erudition a century ago with the studied
intention of demoralizing a whole nation by denigration of its
antiquity, pre-eminence, culture, religion and history. It might be
perceived by the populace that one of its greatest cultural heroes is
being put under an iniquitous microscope with precisely that same
objective. Such heinous strategies may have worked beautifully under
colonial rule, but are less than likely to work now -- a reality Laine
appears to have dangerously overlooked. A significantly large
proportion of the Indian polity has begun ‘thinking independently’,
albeit to the detriment of brokers of international geopolitical
stakes. In this sense, the book might well qualify as yet another
attempt at fragmentation of the steadily developing strength of a
society that is waking up to a realization of the many historical
frauds perpetrated on itself for centuries.
If, unfortunately, promoting social discord was indeed a
purpose of the book, the attempt may have partially succeeded with
what happened at the Bhandarkar Institute; the first salvo has been
fired by pitting Maratha (whom Laine gratuitously refers to as being
from Shivaji’s own community) against Brahmin. Unless we desire lumpen
elements to take undue advantage of the fallout of the regrettable
BORI incident, concerted and well informed public opinion needs to be
nurtured to arrest and neutralize machinations of a wildly
proliferating class of pliable political paid pipers and their cohorts
in an amenable media ! Because Laine has blatantly used, in the matter
of Shivaji’s parentage at least, sources that cannot pass the test of
reliability even by a long shot, it is necessary for scholars to
scrutinize the entire work for its truthfulness, especially the
development of communalised identities upon which he dwells at great
length. All frivolous ‘scholarship’ needs to be unequivocally
discredited and disowned by intellectuals in the interests of veracity
and probity in academia.
While undeniably condemning the attack on the Bhandarkar
Institute archives with the plea that the guilty should not go
unpunished, should we not also examine the role of the so-called
'thinkers' who might perhaps unwittingly have assisted if not actually
set up Laine's mischief in the first place ? Laine mentions in his
Acknowledgments (p. viii) that his "scholarly home has been the
Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute in Pune" where he "profited
from advice and assistance". Once the BORI administration realised the
explosive nature of the book's contents, and how they were sitting on
a time bomb for all these months, it might have been appropriate for
them to issue a strong public denial and condemnation of the author,
in no uncertain terms, for his highly objectionable effort to convert
innuendo and gossip into a matter of documentary record.
It is up to Laine to inform his readers as to how and where he
dug up this disgusting rumour casting aspersions upon the character of
Shivaji’s mother, herself a figure of great veneration to all. She was
a single mother of great character and substance, the very
fountainhead of inspiration for Shivaji’s life’s work.
Needless to state, all this only applies if the real intention
behind the book was more than what Laine declares. But from even its
very title, the book comes through more like an exercise in
skullduggery, which is unfortunate !
If scholarly research funded through institutional grants is
undertaken with the altruistic aim of benefiting humanity, one wonders
how the present book can achieve that end! Scholars ought not to
forget that all institutions supporting them are rooted in their
particular indigenous ethos to which they must be accountable,
especially when the results are sought to be commercially exploited
through book sales.
The body fabric of a resurgent India, and particularly that of
a progressive state like Maharashtra, can well do without such vicious
‘scholarship’. We hope saner counsel will prevail in the currently
disturbed scenario, as a fitting tribute to its chief architect,
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
- Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan & Amodini Bagwe
Note: an earlier version of this text was also posted at Hindu Vivek
Kendra.
About the authors:
Bhalchandrarao C. Patvardhan is a metallurgist and chartered
engineer; he can be reached at: kuru...@eth.net.
Amodini Bagwe is a research scholar and student of Yoga.
http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol5/issue1/laine1.htm
The Complexities of Shivaji
Our modern consciousness harbors within itself rather peculiar ideas.
We pride ourselves on our tremendous advances from a pre-modern In
1668, Shivaji's repeated petitions to Aurangzeb won him the title
'Raja' and Chakan fort. After the Mughal treasury refused to reimburse
him for a trip he took to Agra, he took up arms again. With Aurangzeb
the battle was over power and resources, rather than on religious
grounds.
past which we almost universally see as depraved (at the very least in
economic and political terms). On the other hand, we turn to the past
for our heroes: and these heroes are absorbed without criticism (in
fact, criticism is tantamount to heresy in some circles). Thus,
America lauds its Founding Fathers (Jefferon, Madison, Hamilton,
Washington) even though these gentlemen practiced a form of slavery
which does not square with their genteel image. The Indian Republic
has immortalized Gandhi, which is one of the tragedies of our
contemporary world: Gandhi, the mischievous radical, is reduced to
being a statue rather than a living presence in our corrupt and
battered body politic. The Pakistani state has hallowed Jinnah, whose
virulent criticisms of theocracy are now not allowed to inform the
citizens of a state wracked by avarice and hypocrisy. The Rashtriya
Sevak Sangh and its American kin, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS),
have taken Shivaji as their icon (India West, 21 June 1996): that
adoption needs to be criticised for what it does to the historical
record.
At their 16 June Hindu Sangathan Diwas, the HSS hosted Shripati
Shastry (RSS) who recounted the life of Shivaji who (as India West
reports) "fought Mughal emperor Aurangzeb." "Hindu civilization,"
Shastry said, "had been battered by the constant brutal assaults of
foreigners. Shivaji challenged that attack." HSS also presented a play
by Bal Bihar students entitled 'Shivaji and Afzal Khan.' Reading this
story, I was startled by the ease with which our media allows such
presentations to pass by without comment. At the very least, the
historical record should be scoured to check if Shivaji indeed did
fight Aurangzeb to constitute 'Hindu civilization' and if he made it
his purpose to cleanse the subcontinent of 'foreigners.'
(1) Shivaji and Aurangzeb.
Shivaji Bhonsla (1627-1680) came from a family of Maratha aristocrats
and military bureaucrats. The first half of his career (until 1660) as
a fief-holder was consumed by his battle with the rather powerless
Sultanate of Bijapur. He was able to extend his power by making
alliances with Maratha hill chiefs and by ensuring that the Mughal
overlord was given a wide berth: Shivaji was not interested in taking
Delhi, only in forming a fiefdom in Aurangabad and Bijapur. In
November 1656, Aurangzeb and his amir, Mir Jumla, went ahead with an
old plan to take Bijapur at the death of the Sultan, Muhammad Adil
Shah. Shivaji was not a factor in the equation (for he was only one of
many factious nobles and zamindars). Shivaji was able to rout the
Bijapur army and Afzal Khan, commander of a Mughal force. of 10, 000.
In Shivaji's second phase (1660-1674), he extended his holding,
notably by destroying Baharji Borah who was reputed to be the world's
richest merchant. At Purander in 1665, Shivaji capitulated to Jai
Singh and Aurangzeb. In 1668, Shivaji's repeated petitions to
Aurangzeb won him the title 'Raja' and Chakan fort. After the Mughal
treasury refused to reimburse him for a trip he took to Agra, he took
up arms again. With Aurangzeb the battle was over power and resources,
rather than on religious grounds. Shivaji very comfortably petitioned
Aurangzeb to recognize him as a 'Raja,' a feat which would not sit
well with the HSS rendition of the man as a fighter for Hinduism.
(2) Shivaji and 'Hindu civilization'
In June 1674, Shivaji was crowned as a Hindu monarch. Since he came
from Shudra stock, the chief sent for Gagga Bhatta (the notable
Brahmin from Benares) to declare that Shivaji's ancestor's were truly
Kshatriyas who descended from the solar line of the Ranas of Mewar. He
was invested with the janeau, with the Vedas and was bathed in an
abisheka. A Shudra became a Rajput, but the bulk of the other dalits
remained in their misbegotten position at the bottom of society.
Shivaji's investiture was a political move which allowed him to exert
his power over hill chiefs who were not under his military control.
One would imagine that Shivaji would now eschew alliances with
Muslims, however, the first major alliance made by the monarch was
with Abul Hasan, the Qutb Shah Sultan. They began a campaign against
the Bijapur Karanatak, including the monarch's own half-brother,
Vyankoji Bhonsla. The Mughal r‰gime was left untouched by this 'Hindu'
king. The later Shivaji did not consolidate 'Hindus' to fight
'Muslims,' but he continued his trajectory of securing power in the
Konkan region. One might add that Shambhaji, Shivaji's son, raped a
Brahmin woman in December 1678: such facts often get lost in the blind
valorization of historical figures.
I have offered all these details for the simple reason that one must
not allow our contemporary politicians (and the HSS/RSS are
politicians) to define our historical record. There is a tendency to
simplify, which is tantamount to distortion. Shivaji claimed to be a
'Hindu' king when it suited him, but he acted (most of the time) as a
rebellious zamindar and hill-chief. History must remain more than
propaganda. The tragedy of the communalization of history is that
those who write these false histories are less interested in the past
and more interested in organizing people into bigoted groups.
Vijay Prashad
Vijay Prashad
Assistant Professor, International Studies
214 McCook Academic Building
Trinity College, Hartford, CT. 06106.
Ph: 860-297-2518.
http://www.foil.org/history/shivaji.html
Bonfire of cupboard of history
- Pune institute continues to count the losses from attack by Sambhaji
Brigade
ANAND SOONDAS
Satish Sangle among the ruins
Pune, Jan. 18: A bonfire crackles to life as the winter night descends
on the cheerless group of policemen guarding the ravaged library at
the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. Drawn by the sudden
flicker, a firefly rushes in.
“That was sad,” says the institute’s Man Friday, Ganesh Bagade, who
calls himself assistant pressman, watching the insect perish.
“They tried to snuff out the institute’s life, too,” Bagade says,
recalling the Sambhaji Brigade’s attack on January 5.
Marauders belonging to the group, which champions the Maratha cause
like the Shiv Sena but was started to counter Bal Thackeray’s outfit,
ransacked the library in protest against American historian James
Laine’s book, Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India.
They believed Laine had indirectly questioned Shivaji’s parenthood in
a passage. The institute was targeted because the author had
acknowledged the assistance of some historians working there.
The damage to books and furniture has been estimated at Rs 1.5 to 2
crore, but scholars at the institute say each day’s search yields
realisation of further loss.
“It will take us about two years just to catalogue and piece together
the old books,” says Satish Sangle, the librarian.
“Each of us here cried that day. We felt so violated and abused,” says
Bagade as a policeman replenishes the fire with parts of a library
cupboard, breaking it with kicks at the joints.
Sanskrit and Pali texts — some of them 500 years old — were stored in
that cupboard.
On a visit to Mumbai on Friday, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
condemned the attack and the ban on the book announced by the Congress-
led coalition of Maharashtra.
Pune cried as one after the attack. Schoolchildren marched and writers
called it the darkest day for a city known for its scholarship and
liberalism. A group of ragpickers, mostly children, collected Rs 165
and gave it to the institute.
Their 15-year-old leader said: “We were not privileged to get an
education but we know the worth of books.”
The Sambhaji Brigade has shown no remorse. “It is a Brahmin conspiracy
to malign Marathas and Shivaji,” says Pravin Gaikwad, the Pune unit
president of the Akhil Bharatiya Maratha Mahasangh, the brigade’s
parent organisation.
Gaikwad and his organisation are not done yet. Yesterday, he handed
over a four-point charter of demands to chief minister Sushil Kumar
Shinde.
It’s a “Brahmin conspiracy” because the so-called offending passage
says: “Maharashtrians tell jokes naughtily that Shivaji’s biological
father was Dadoji Kondeo Kulkarni.”
Kulkarni, Shivaji’s limbless servant, was a Brahmin. The publishers
withdrew the book in November, the author sent an apology, but these
were not enough to stop the pillaging.
“We will not tolerate it when an American says that Shivaji’s
parentage is questionable and that because he was intelligent he
couldn’t have been a Maratha and was a Brahmin,” Gaikwad fumes.
Monetary estimates of loss leave the librarian distraught. “How do you
calculate the worth of a rare 6th century BC idol of the headless
Ganesha. Or the miniature silver photo album gifted by the Nizam of
Hyderabad. Or, for that matter, a 1648 AD treatise on the Bhagwad
Gita?” Sangle asks.
The institute specialises in ancient history, ancient Indian thought
and philosophy. It produced a Bharat Ratna in P.V. Kane who wrote
seven volumes of the Dharmashastra. After 50 years of labour, the
institute completed the first critical edition of the Mahabharata,
with its scholars poring over more than 1,000 manuscripts in different
languages.
“We never wrote anything on Shivaji or medieval history,” says M.G.
Dhadphade, a former honorary secretary at the institute.
The explanation cuts no ice with the brigade. “We want those who
helped Laine to be hanged and a CBI inquiry into the role of
organisations and individuals who passed blasphemous information on
Shivaji,” Gaikwad says.
The organisation now plans to take out a Shivaji rath yatra across
Maharashtra in February, threatening the institute with more
“punishment” if its demands are not met.
Apart from the “hanging” and the inquiry, it is demanding the freedom
of the 72 activists of the brigade rounded up after the incident.
“The fault is with us,” says Dhadphade. “We have lost our culture’s
most precious jewel — pluralism. Unknown to us, the Taliban had been
festering in our midst.”
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040119/asp/frontpage/story_2802420.asp
Sunday, December 7, 2003
Off The Shelf
An image that might be disturbing
V.N. Datta
Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
by James W. Laine. Oxford University Press, New Delhi. Rs 295. Pages
127.
THE reputation of leaders rises and falls like share prices. Heroes of
yesterday become the villains of today and vice-versa and so it is
with Shivaji, who is being subjected now to fierce controversies by
politicians and academicians in this country. To his admirers, Shivaji
was a nation-builder, a constructive genius and a brilliant military
general, who had crumbled the Mughal Empire in the most trying
circumstances weighted against him.
He is also credited with inspiring his countrymen with a fiery spirit
of patriotism and religious tolerance, but to his enemies, Shivaji
remains a "mountain rat", a guerrilla of the hills and a narrow-minded
fanatic Hindu rebel who, animated by vaulting ambitions and animus,
had indulged recklessly in plunder for the gratification of his
vanity.
The net result of his nefarious activities, his critics argue, was
anarchy and disintegration of the country, and paving the way for the
British colonial rule. James W. Laine addresses himself to answering
these two opposing views. Lane has two objects-to understand the 17th
century Shivaji, the kind of hero he was in the context of the
Maharashtrian culture, and to examine critically the growth of his
legend as it relates to narratives of the Maharashtrian, Hindu and
Indian cultures.
The author focuses himself primarily on the second object of
reconstructing the Shivaji legend on the basis of various types of
evidence such as ballads, poems, fiction, and some historical works.
In other words, this work is of historigraphical nature, which
examines the legend of Shivaji that has grown during the last 300
years.
The book is divided into five chapters with an appendix and notes.
Laine begins his story by showing how Shivaji after his defeat against
the Mughal army led by Mirza Raja Jai Singh became a Mughal vassal and
went to the Agra fort to enroll his son, Sambhaji, in the Imperial
service. Due to his own tactical skills, he escaped from the Agra
fort. Three years after the death of Jai Singh, he took the fort of
Simhagarh.
The author questions the general view that Shivaji's Maratha Hindu
nationalism was at war with the Muslims in the 17th century India.
According to Laine, Shivaji had employed pan-Indian symbols, not the
regional ones; and further, identities were fluid then and not
crystallised as separate. Sufis and Hindu saints walked a common
ground, and there was not a distance between the Hindus and the
Muslims.
Only some Muslim rulers did create ethnic trouble. The author asserts
that pre-modern Marathas did not understand identities and allegiances
in terms of Hinduism and Islam. Hence, Laine concludes, that to regard
Shivaji as an Indian is absolutely wrong and that myths woven round
him give a distorted picture of the reality.
The 17th century Maratha ballad writers based the heroic legend of
Shivaji as a heroic Chhatrapati of an independent Hindu kingdom on his
escape from the Agra fort, his killing of Afzal Khan, his encounter
with Shaista Khan, his conquest of Simhagarh, his coronation in 1674
and his dedication to his patron Goddess, Bhivani. Laine argues that
the ballad writers had deliberately skipped Shivaji's military service
under Adil Shah, his defeat against the Mughals, his loss of Poona,
his surrender to Aurangzeb, his readiness to become a Mughal vassal
with the aspiration of being designated Viceroy of the Deccan and
enlisting his son in the Mughal army. These omissions give a false
image of Shivaji, the author maintains.
Shivaji's image of an epic hero is further buttressed by another
Ballad writer, Permanand, who by tracing some genealogical evidence,
projects him a kshatriya of the Sisodia clan of the Rajputs. Laine
shows how the chronicles, the Bhakars, relate Shivaji's commitment to
Vaishnavism to Hinduism and his close association with the 17th
century saints, Tukaram and Ramdas. On the contrary, the author thinks
that the role of Maharashtra saints was more significant in the 18th
rather than the 17th century and that Ramdas was never Shivaji's
spiritual guide.
Despite Jotirao Phule's emphasis on Shivaji's low-caste heritage, the
ballads composed between 1869-2001 put Shivaji in a different
category. Except Grant Duff, who in his History of the Mahratta,
described Shivaji a plunderer and a freebooter, most Indian historians
and writers, including justice M.I. Ranade and B.G. Tikak, laud him as
the father of Indian nationalism and a liberationist. Ranade portrays
Shivaji as the architect of Maratha independence, who promoted
religious tolerance and the egalitarian status of women.
In justification of Shivaji's actions, Tilak cites Arjuna's example
from The Mahabharata. Tilak comments that great men are exempted from
following the strict standard of conventional morality. Indian leaders
such as Lala Lajpat Rai, Tilak, Annie Besant, Aurobindo Ghosh and poet
Tagore have paid eloquent tributes to Shivaji as a great national
leader and the builder of the country. The author treats such views as
flippant.
In the last chapter, the author acknowledges that there are different
ways of reading and writing the biography of Shivaji. History writing
is not a one-point programme; it is an interim report. Nor is it wise
to be a debunker. Laine maintains that there is no standard biography
of Shivaji. Rightly, the author asserts that the primordial view that
the Hindus and the Muslims were pitted against each other and ever
fighting is false.
It is regretted that despite inner inconsistencies, the narratives of
Shivaji' s life represent him in the BJP regime as a grand nationalist
Hindu symbol and ideology. Regrettably, the line between fact and
fiction is blurred. The fact is that Shivaji had lived in a
cosmopolitan Islamic world where identity formations were in the
making but not crystallised. This intellectually stimulating and
neatly textured book is disturbing. It questions the commonly held
views and opens a new ground for fresh thinking and research.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20031207/spectrum/book4.htm
learning house with a world-wide appeal
TNN, Jan 6, 2004, 03.36am IST
PUNE: The renowned Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (Bori) is a
veritable treasure trove for scholars, researchers and students of
Indology and Orientology, which attracts scholars not only from India
but also from France, Germany, Korea and Japan.
The institute has over 1.5 lakh books in its library, 80,000 rare
manuscripts and the personal book collection of Ramkrishna Gopal
Bhandarkar, in whose memory the institute was founded. The institute
building is also a grade I heritage structure, listed for protection.
Although the state government gives an annual grant to the institute,
it has to depend on donations and earning from its publications to
make both ends meet.
At present, the state government owes Rs 28 lakh to the institute, the
annual expenditure of which is Rs 40 lakh and income, Rs 35 lakh.
At a meeting of people interested in Orientology on July 6, 1915, it
was decided to build an institute in commemoration of Bhandarkar's
outstanding work in the field.
He can be justifiably regarded as the foremost pioneer of scientific
Orientology in the country. The institute was finally founded on July
6, 1917. The event was intended to synchronise with his eightieth
birth anniversary.
The institute is a public organisation registered under Act XXI of
1860 and is administered by a regulating council.
It is partially supported by annual earmarked grants from the state
government, which nominates five representatives on the regulating
council and two on the executive board.
The institute has also received grants from the Centre and the
University Grants Commission for specific research projects.
The institute normally works through its four main departments —
Mahabharata and research unit, manuscripts, publication and
postgraduate teaching and research.
In 1919, the institute undertook a project to prepare and publish a
critical edition of the Mahabharata.
This enormous literary project (19 volumes containing 13,000 demi
quarto pages) was completed in 1966, and this historic event was
formally announced by the then president, S. Radhakrishnan, at a
special function held at the Mahabharata Institute on September 22,
1966.
Subsequently, the institute also prepared and published a critical
edition of the Harivamsa (two volumes containing 1,711 pages).
This was followed by the Pratika-Index (six volumes containing 4,805
pages) and the critically constituted text of the Great Epic, and the
Harivamsa (five volumes containing 3,150 pages).
The institute is now occupied with the last item in the great project
of the Critical Edition, namely, the Epilogue. The institute is also
preparing an exhaustive cultural index of the Mahabharata.
When the institute was founded in 1917, the then government of Bombay
handed over its entire collection of manuscripts (nearly 20,000) to
the institute.
The institute has, all these years, been looking after the
preservation, lending out and cataloguing of these manuscripts, and,
as government reports would testify, the work of the institute in this
connection has been most exemplary.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/407198.cms
Volume 21 - Issue 02, January 17 - 30, 2004
India's National Magazine
from the publishers of THE HINDU
THE STATES
Politics of vandalism
ANUPAMA KATAKAM
in Pune
Invaluable books and artefacts have been destroyed in an attack on the
Bhandarkar Institute in Pune by members of the `Sambhaji Brigade'.
PHOTOGRAPHS: ANUPAMA KATAKAM
The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute.
ON January 5, the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) in
Pune became the target of a horrific act of vandalism. A 150-strong
mob protesting against the institute's alleged involvement in
maligning the name of the Maratha king Shivaji barged into its
premises, ransacked the library, destroyed thousands of rare books,
ancient manuscripts, old photographs and priceless artefacts, and took
away some invaluable historical texts. The institute, one of the
country's premier research centres for Orientology, has become a
victim of what is now known as cultural terrorism and also the
politics of a caste feud in Maharashtra.
The attackers were reacting to a derogatory remark on Shivaji's
parentage, made by the American author James Laine in his book
Shivaji: A Hindu King in an Islamic Kingdom. In a biographical account
on the Maratha warrior, Laine writes that "the repressed awareness
that Shivaji had an absentee father is also revealed by the fact that
Maharashtrians tell jokes naughtily suggesting that his guardian
Dadoji Konddev was his biological father... ."
Apparently, unable to tolerate such a statement, the attackers - owing
allegiance to the "Sambhaji Brigade", a splinter group of the Maratha
Seva Sangh, an organisation active in "promoting the cause of the
Marathas" - targeted the BORI because one of the institute's research
scholars, Shreekant Bahulkar, is acknowledged in Laine's book. They
held him responsible for Laine's comment.
The controversy over Laine's book began in November 2003, when a group
of historians led by Dadasaheb Purandare, well known for his biography
of Shivaji, asked the publishers, Oxford University Press (OUP), to
withdraw the book. Their letter to OUP states: "Though we do believe
in freedom of expression, we cannot subscribe to the practice of
maligning the life and character of any person, especially of one who
commands the love, respect and admiration of crores of people and is a
source of inspiration to them, by casting baseless aspersions."
According to another historian of the group, "Laine's remark on
Shivaji' parentage is factually incorrect and there is not a shred of
evidence to support it." He told Frontline that if Laine were a
responsible historian, he would have realised that such a statement
without substantive evidence backing it would have serious
ramifications.
Furniture destroyed by the mob.
The OUP withdrew the book immediately and issued an apology. The
matter seemingly ended there. However, the historians reportedly held
a meeting to condemn the book and celebrate their victory in having
the book taken off the shelves. Shiv Sena activists, quick to react to
any disparaging remark on Shivaji, stormed into the BORI building and
blackened the face of Bahulkar.
Later Shiv Sena leader Raj Thackeray apologised to Bahulkar and the
Sainiks have since been trying their best to disassociate themselves
from the controversy. Laine too faxed an apology to the Sainiks and
the media, stating that neither Bahulkar nor the BORI was responsible
for the text in his book. On his part, Bahulkar explained that while
Laine was at the BORI 15 years ago, he had helped him translate some
Sanskrit and Marathi texts but had nothing to do with Laine's
conclusions.
"The Sambhaji Brigade came out of nowhere," says Bahulkar. "Obviously
there are some anti-social elements who wanted to create trouble and
they used the controversy as a tool to further their cause." The
attack appeared to have been planned meticulously. The attackers
barged into the premises, cut the telephone lines, broke up into small
groups of 10 and 15 and finished their task in half an hour. "This was
not a spontaneous reaction to a derogatory remark," he told Frontline.
But why did they react so late? It is hardly likely that any of these
people would have read the book. Who backed them or who organised
them?
THE Maratha Seva Sangh, which has claimed responsibility for the
attack, is an organisation that is extremely anti-Brahmin, says Ajit
Abhyankar, a member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Its
members wait for any opportunity to strike at the Brahmin community.
Many of them believe that the scholars of the State belong to this
community.
The battle between Brahmins and Marathas is very much part of
Maharashtra's history, and it now dominates its politics. Pune has
traditionally been a hotbed of such caste politics. It is alleged that
using the anti-Brahmin slogan, the Sangh instigates unemployed youth
to undertake anti-social acts such as the attack on the BORI.
In spite of the acceptance of blame, the police are yet to pick up any
key member of the Maratha Seva Sangh. Informed sources in Pune say the
Sangh's leader Purushottam Khedekar, a Public Works Department
engineer, is close to several Ministers in the ruling Democratic Front
government and, therefore, is unlikely to be touched. Khedekar
allegedly wields so much clout that his career in the government
remains on course though he has been arrested on corruption charges.
His wife Rekha Khedekar is a Bharatiya Janata Party Member of the
Legislative Assembly from Buldana district.
For the past six or seven years, says the source, Khedekar has been
working on the "Maratha cause". He and his band of followers went to
the various forts of Shivaji in the Sahyadris and placed Maratha Seva
Sangh signboards and flags - probably indicating some sort of
proprietorship over the area, says the source. Until the attack on the
BORI, Khedekar remained relatively unknown. Although there has been a
backlash, with several groups, political and non-political, condemning
the attack, Khedekar has managed to make some gains from the
publicity. The incident has given the Sangh an identity.
Volunteers help clean up the institute.
IRONICALLY, the Sambhaji Brigade destroyed a huge collection of books
on Shivaji and damaged a portrait of him, which the BORI had received
from the British Museum. "Is this any way to revere a king?" asks a
visibly shaken Saroja Bhate, honorary secretary of the BORI. Also
irreparably lost are: a 15th century, 10-inch idol of mundkata
Ganapati and Syrian clay tablet dated to 600 B.C. found in
Maharashtra. A version of the Mahabharata from Kashmir dated to A.D.
1000, is damaged partly.
The outpouring of help to the institute has been overwhelming.
Donations have poured in and students from all over have volunteered
to reorganise the library and clean up the mess. The much-needed funds
will be spent on buying furniture and computers, which were also not
spared by the attackers. "We are going to rise from the ashes," says
Bhate.
In 1917, R.G. Bhandarkar, a historian, founded the BORI as a
charitable institution with the aim of collecting rare and ancient
historical books and preserving manuscripts to help in research. The
then Government of Bombay handed over 20,000 manuscripts to the
institution, which it preserved and catalogued. Many of these were
destroyed in the attack. In 1919, the institute undertook an exercise
to publish a critical edition of the Mahabharata. The final outcome of
the project was a 19-volume, 13,000 demi quarto page publication,
which was completed in 1966. President S. Radhakrishnan formally
launched the publication that year.
The BORI attracts scholars from across the world seeking to research
topics in Indology and Orientology. It is unfortunate that such an
institution is caught in a controversy over what is apparently a non-
issue.
http://www.flonnet.com/fl2102/stories/20040130003802800.htm
Shivaji
Hindu King in Islamic India
James W. Laine
ISBN13: 9780195141269
ISBN10: 0195141261
Hardback, 144 pages
Jan 2003,
In Stock Price:$65.00 (06)
Shivaji is a well-known hero in western India. He defied Mughal power
in the seventeenth century, established an independent kingdom, and
had himself crowned in an orthodox Hindu ceremony. The legends of his
life have become an epic story that everyone in western India knows,
and an important part of the Hindu nationalists' ideology. To read
Shivaji's legend today is to find expression of deeply held
convictions about what Hinduism means and how it is opposed to Islam.
James Laine traces the origin and development if the Shivaji legend
from the earliest sources to the contemporary accounts of the tale.
His primary concern is to discover the meaning of Shivaji's life for
those who have composed-and those who have read-the legendary accounts
of his military victories, his daring escapes, his relationships with
saints. In the process, he paints a new and more complex picture of
Hindu-Muslim relations from the seventeenth century to the present. He
argues that this relationship involved a variety of compromises and
strategies, from conflict to accommodation to nuanced collaboration.
Neither Muslims nor Hindus formed clearly defined communities, says
Laine, and they did not relate to each other as opposed monolithic
groups. Different sub-groups, representing a range of religious
persuasions, found it in their advantage to accentuate or diminish the
importance of Hindu and Muslim identity and the ideologies that
supported the construction of such identities. By studying the
evolution of the Shivaji legend, Laine demonstrates, we can trace the
development of such constructions in both pre-British and post-
colonial periods.
Reviews
"A succinct, cogent study that is admirably well organized and
consistently insightful. Though brief, it makes a significant
contribution to the study of Indian history and religious studies."--
Journal of the American Academy of Relgion
"Shivaji is a succinct, cogent study that is admirably well organized
and consistently insightful. Though brief, it makes a significant
contribution to the study of Indian history and religious studies. In
one of the first studies to trace the longitudinal developments in the
biography of a major precolonial figure of India, Laine employs an
innovative approach that could well be adapted to other figures. In
addition, Laine makes valuable observations about the precolonial
history of 'Hinduism'"-- Journal of the American Academy of Religion
Product Details
144 pages; 5-1/2 x 8-1/4; ISBN13: 978-0-19-514126-9
ISBN10: 0-19-514126-1
About the Author(s)
James W. Laine is a Professor of Religious Studies at Macalester
College.
http://www.us.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/ReligionTheology/Hinduism/?view=usa&ci=0195141261
Danny Yee's Book Reviews
Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India
James W. Laine
Oxford University Press 2003
A book review by Danny Yee © 2004 http://dannyreviews.com/
In the second half of the 17th century, Shivaji rose from a minor
chieftain to an independent king, founding the Maratha kingdom. In
this study Laine looks not at Shivaji directly, but at the stories
that have been told about him and their development over the last
three and a half centuries. These have become entwined with the
construction of Maharahstrian, Hindu, and Indian identities, and Laine
begins with these, and with the risks of attributing anachronistic
self-identifications to Shivaji.
The earliest stories of Shivaji's life, from the 17th century, present
him as an epic hero. Along with stories of his birth and boyhood, key
episodes include the killing of Afzal Khan, the encounter with Shaista
Khan, the escape from Agra, and his coronation.
"when [Shivaji] could, he attempted to rule as an independent Hindu
monarch, to be a patron of his religious traditions, and to challenge
the hegemony of the Islamicate world around him. His predecessors and
successors were more accommodationist, less heroic, and less well
remembered. Moreover, the stories of their bravery were nowhere near
as good."
In the 18th century Shivaji became linked with the saints Ramdas and
Tukaram, though "stories of the saints' role in Shivaji's life have
more to do with eighteenth-century concerns than with actual events
from a century before". The complex intertwining of the religious and
political in the present encouraged the construction of a simpler
past, as "part of a general tendency to oppose a single universalistic
Hinduism to a single monolithic Islam".
In the last hundred and fifty years, biographies of Shivaji have
expressed "a host of different political and cultural interests".
Jatirao Phule used Shivaji's story as "a way of advancing an
antibrahmin reading of Maratha history", emphasising his low-caste
status, but "virtually every Maharashtrian writer after Phule saw
Shivaji as the father of a nation, a liberationist". K.A. Keluskar
downplayed his connection with the saints and emphasized his appeal to
followers of every caste, Lokmanya Tilak used him to support
opposition to British rule, and M.G. Ranade wedded his story to bhakti
("devotion"). Laine also looks at the presentation of Shivaji in
school texts, in the fictional works of Babasaheb Purandare, and on
web sites.
Looking at "cracks in the narrative", Laine explores the things left
out of traditional stories — and what these absences show about the
concerns of those who produced them. Shivaji came from a "broken
family", with separated parents, he probably had a harem, he showed no
interest in the bhakti saints, his ambition was to build a kingdom,
not liberate a nation, and he did little to change the "cosmopolitan
Islamicate world" he lived in.
The Shivaji stories have played a key role in the construction of
"Islam" and "Hinduism" in Maharashtra.
"The narrative of Shivaji's life, already reshaped by bhakti writers
by 1800, was thoroughly overtaken by the nationalist narrative in 1900
and has been sustained as a grand narrative of Hindu nationalist
identity, despite all the inner inconsistencies, anachronisms, and
communalism that imaginative enterprise has entailed."
It is hard to approach Shivaji without being influenced by the
political furor the book has inspired. It has been withdrawn from the
Indian market and banned in Maharashtra, while a scholar was assaulted
and the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute in Pune ransacked just
because of mentions in Laine's acknowledgements. This thuggery is a
depressing illustration of the extent of communalism in Indian
politics, but also demonstrates the continuing significance of the
Shivaji stories — and the need to understand their evolution and
history.
Laine's openness may explain some of the animosity: his introduction,
for example, explicitly states his hope to "rescue [Shivaji's]
biography from the grasp of those who see India as a Hindu nation at
war with its Muslim neighbors". Shivaji is undeniably a scholarly
work, however, and few of Laine's critics have engaged with its actual
content. Though too slender to be entirely self-contained, it includes
enough background to be accessible to anyone with a basic knowledge of
modern Indian history.
March 2004
External links:
- buy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0195141261/ref=nosim/dannyyeesbook-20
Related reviews:
- books about India + Indian history
http://dannyreviews.com/s/India.html
- more historiography
http://dannyreviews.com/s/historiography.html
- more history
http://dannyreviews.com/s/history.html
- books published by Oxford University Press
http://dannyreviews.com/p/Oxford_University_Press.html
Books at Amazon.com (more, Amazon.co.uk)
- Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India - James W. Laine
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0195141261/ref=nosim/dannyyeesbook5-20
- The Life of Shivaji Maharaj, Founder of the Maratha Empire -
Nilkanth Sadashiv Takakhav
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1151535478/ref=nosim/dannyyeesbook5-20
- The Life of Shivaji Maharaj: Founder of the Maratha Empire -
Nilakantha Sadasiva Takakhav
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0030A0CI2/ref=nosim/dannyyeesbook5-20
- Shivaji and Facets of Maratha Culture - Saryu., ed. Doshi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0022TPFMK/ref=nosim/dannyyeesbook5-20
http://dannyreviews.com/h/Shivaji.html
chhotemianinshallah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thuggee (or tuggee, ठग्गी ṭhagī) (from Hindi ठग ṭhag ‘thief’, from
Sanskrit स्थग sthaga ‘cunning’, ‘sly’, ‘fraudulent’, ‘dishonest’,
‘scoundrel’, from स्थगति sthagati ‘he conceals’)[1] is the term for a
particular kind of murder and robbery of travellers in India.
Thuggery
The English word "thug" comes from the Hindi word "thag", meaning
"conman". It is one of many Indian words borrowed into English during
the British colonial period. The English connotation of 'thug' is
synonymous with terms like hoodlum and hooligan, indicating a person
(who may or may not be anti-social) who harasses others, usually for
hire.[citation needed] People regarded as thugs might commit assault
(or 'menace'), battery, even robbery and grievous bodily harm, but
they usually stop short of murder. Additionally, "thugs" usually
travel in pairs, though they can work alone or in groups of four to
six members, and are typically open about their presence (except to
law enforcement officials); while "Thuggee" were covert and operated
as members of a group, often called a "Thuggee cult" by the British.
Hence, the word "Thuggee" is capitalised while the word "thug" usually
is not; which enables distinction of a "Thug" (here, a short form of
"Thuggee") from a "thug".
In the heyday of Thuggee activity, travellers were typically part of a
travelling group, so the term Thuggee typically referred to killing of
a large number of people in a single operation. This aspect
distinguishes Thuggee from similar concept of dacoity, which means
simple armed robbery.
Dacoity has similarities with the terms brigand and bandit from
European and Latin American experience, but there appear to be no
exact Western parallels for Thuggee. Perhaps the closest concepts
would be the format of piracy, though this is solely maritime robbery
(usually with murder), and the earlier, but similar, format of raids
on coastal settlements by Viking seafarers. Some aspects, however, are
reminiscent of the Mafia group of organisations.
Between them, these classes of criminal activity illustrate some of
the mystique that attached to the Thugs and the complex mixture of
fear and dread of these murderous men that was felt by the ordinary
people who might well be their victims.
There is some question as to the extent of the religious dimension of
Thuggee. Most contemporary sources described Thuggee as being a
religious cult, but some modern sources feel it was merely a
specialized form of organized crime or paramilitary activity, with no
particular religious dimension beyond the normal piety of the
villagers from whom its members were recruited.
Time period
The concept of Thuggee is known from the 17th century, though the term
and/or activity possibly dates back as early as the 13th century.
Thuggee was actively practiced at least through the end of the 19th
century. If remnants of the Thuggee tradition survived into the 20th
and 21st centuries, they did so very covertly. The film Indiana Jones
and the Temple of Doom is based on the premise that Thuggee cults
survived covertly into the early 20th century.
Stern suppression by the British was important in reducing Thuggee
activity but more significant was the introduction of modern methods
of travel, in particular the displacement of travelling on foot or by
horse in groups by the railway, which effectively rendered Thuggee
obsolete.
The nature
The particular groups, as well as the general concept, were often
equally durable and would outlive the 'careers' of individual members
to develop into a crime family lasting generations. These groups
progressed from being simple gangs into becoming 'fraternities' or
even 'cults', featuring the initiation of new members, either through
the heredity of a criminal underclass, or through an apprenticeship,
such as normally associated with skilled or learned professions or the
training programs of elite military units. Other sources describe the
Thugs as a criminal 'tribe' or caste. Over the course of generations,
the secrets must be kept within the 'family'. The marriage of
offspring within the group both safeguards the secret knowledge,
allowing it to be imparted steadily to the children without the risk
of uninitiated neighbours overhearing, and reinforces the exclusive
and selective nature of the organisation. This preserves the mystique,
which is in itself part of the formula of success, and creates an
elite aura around it. At the moment of attack, the sudden revelation
of the identity of the assailants produces a shock that disables
defensive manoeuvres, at least for a few, vital moments, while the
reputation for invincibility engenders a defeatism that results in a
fait accompli.
The practice
Thugs were active all over the Bengal region of the Indian
subcontinent. Maps showing the possessions of the British East India
Company in 1765 and 1805Thuggee is described as a cult of people
engaged in the multiple murder and robbery of travelers. At the time,
most travelers in India would travel in caravan for mutual support and
security, since travel meant the crossing of difficult terrain before
the coming of metalled roads, the passing among different races,
religions and castes, at a period before police forces were formed. In
order to attempt the massacre of an entire caravan, the Thugs needed
to be numerous and well-coordinated. They also needed to be
sufficiently stealthy, at least in the early stages, to begin their
slaughter without rousing all at once. This required a high degree of
planning, organization – including props and patter – timing, teamwork
and discipline. With anything less than complete success a survivor
could escape to raise a hue and cry. These horrendous but
sophisticated operations lay somewhere between organized crime and
paramilitary activity and were far removed from the ordinary criminal
in the audacity, magnitude, and ruthlessness of the enterprise.
The modus operandi was to join a caravan and become accepted as bona-
fide travelers themselves. The Thugs would need to delay any attack
until their fellow travelers had dropped the initial wariness of the
newcomers and had been lulled into a false sense of security. The
Thugs first needed to befriend the travelers and win their trust. Once
the travelers had allowed the Thugs to join them and disperse amongst
them (a task which might sometimes, depending on the size of the
target group, require accompaniment for hundreds of miles), the Thugs
would wait for a suitable place and time before killing and robbing
them.
There were obviously variations on a theme. When tackling a large
group, a Thuggee band might disperse along a route and join a group in
stages, concealing their acquaintanceship, such that they could come
to outnumber their intended victims by small, non-threatening
increments. If the travelers had doubts about any one party, they
might confide their worries to another party of the same Thuggee band.
The trusted band would thus be the best placed to deal with these
members of the caravan at the appropriate time, but might also be able
to advise their colleagues to 'back off' or otherwise modify their
behavior, to allay suspicion.
The killing place would need to be remote from local observers and
suitable to prevent escape (e.g., backed against a river). Thugs
tended to develop favored places of execution, called beles. They knew
the geography of these places well—better than their victims. They
needed to, if they were to anticipate the likely escape routes and
hiding-places of the quicker-witted and more determined of the
travelers.
The timing might be at night or during a rest-break, when the
travelers would be busy with chores and when the background cries and
noise would mask any sounds of alarm. A quick and quiet method, which
left no stains and required no special weapons, was strangulation.
This method is particularly associated with Thuggee and led to the
Thugs also being referred to as the Phansigars, or "noose-operators",
and simply as "stranglers" by British troops. Usually two or three
Thugs would strangle one traveller. The Thugs would then need to
dispose of the bodies: they might bury them or might throw them into a
nearby well.[2].
The leader of a gang was called the 'jemadar': this is an ordinary
Indian word and is now used as the rank of an Army officer
(Lieutenant), who would command a similar number of men to a Thuggee
gang-leader. An English equivalent term might be 'the Boss' or 'the
Guv'nor' (Governor).
As with modern criminal gangs, each member of the group had his own
function: the equivalent of the 'hit-man,' 'the lookout,' and the
'getaway driver' would be those Thugs tasked with luring travelers
with charming words or acting as guardian to prevent escape of victims
while the killing took place.
They usually killed their victims in darkness while the thugs made
music or noise to escape discovery. If burying bodies close to a well-
traveled trade-route, they would need to disguise the 'earthworks' of
their graveyard as a camp-site, tamping down the covering mounds and
leaving some items of rubbish or remnants of a fire to 'explain' the
disturbances and obscure the burials.
One reason given for the Thuggee success in avoiding detection and
capture so often and over such long periods of time is a self-
discipline and restraint in avoiding groups of travelers on shorter
journeys, even if they seemed laden with suitable plunder. Choosing
only travelers far from home gave more time until the alarm was raised
and the distance made it less likely that colleagues would follow on
to investigate the disappearances. Another reason given is the high
degree of teamwork and co-ordination both during the infiltration
phase and at the moment of attack. This was a sophisticated criminal
elite that knew its business well and approached each 'operation' like
a military mission.
Use of garotte
The garotte is often depicted as the common weapon of the Thuggee. It
is sometimes described as a rumal (head covering or kerchief), or
translated as "yellow scarf". "Yellow" in this case may refer to a
natural cream or khaki colour rather than bright yellow. Most Indian
males in Central India or Hindustan would have a puggaree or head-
scarf, worn either as a turban or worn around a kullah and draped to
protect the back of the neck. Types of scarves were also worn as
cummerbunds, in place of a belt. Any of these items could have served
as strangling ligatures.
Religion and Thuggee
Thuggee groups might be Hindu, Sikh or Muslim, but Thuggee is
particularly associated with followers of the Hindu Goddess Kali (or
Durga), whom they often called Bhavani.[3][4][5] It was noted, even at
the time, that only a very small minority of the followers of Kali
were Thuggees. Many Thuggees worshipped Kali but most supporters of
Kali did not practise Thuggee.
Some Thuggee groups claimed descent from seven Muslim tribes[citation
needed], but the majority of Hindu followers only seem to be related
during the early periods of Islamic development through their
religious creed and staunch worship of Kali, one of the Hindu Tantric
Goddesses. At a time of political unrest, with changes from Hindu
Rajput rulers to Muslim Moghul emperors and viceroys, and possibly
back again, a wise group would display allegiance to both creeds, but
its ultimate loyalty was probably only to itself.
"There seem to have been very few Sikh Thugs. But Sahib Khan, the
Deccan strangler, 'knew Ram Sing Siek: he was a noted Thug leader - a
very shrewd man,' who also served with the Pindaris for a while and
was responsible for the assassination of the notorious Pindari leader
Sheikh Dulloo." Sleeman, Ramaseeana I, 239-40.
Some sources view the Thugs as a cult or sect. Given the extent of the
problem, in geographical scale and in the duration of time, it is
likely that many groups would wish to keep their secrets from betrayal
from within and from intrusion by outsiders and would have evolved
into secret criminal fraternities. It also follows that if they were
repeatedly successful, then they must have 'divine blessing' and would
wish to give thanks to, and worship, the deity to whom they ascribed
their support. In the West, as well, criminality and religious
observance are not always mutually incompatible.
Origin and recruitment
A group of thugs, ca. 1863The earliest recorded mention of the Thugs
as a special band or fraternity, rather than as ordinary thieves, is
found in the following passage of Ziau-d din Barni's History of Firoz
Shah (written about 1356):
In the reign of that sultan (about 1290), some Thugs were taken in
Delhi, and a man belonging to that fraternity was the means of about a
thousand being captured. But not one of these did the sultan have
killed. He gave orders for them to be put into boats and to be
conveyed into the lower country, to the neighbourhood of Lakhnauti,
where they were to be set free. The Thugs would thus have to dwell
about Lakhnauti and would not trouble the neighbourhood of Delhi any
more." (Sir HM Elliot's History of India, iii. 141).
Membership was sometimes passed from father to son, in what would now
be termed a criminal underclass. The leaders of long-established Thug
groups tended to come from these hereditary lines, as the gang
developed into a criminal 'tribe'. Other men would get to know a Thug
band and would hope to be recruited, in the way that one might aspire
to join an elite regiment or university: they were the best operators
in "the business" and, like a regiment or college fraternity, once in
the group, there was a camaraderie of numbers and shared experience.
The robbery became less a question of solving problems of poverty and
more a profession, like soldiering.
Sometimes the young children of the travelers would be spared and
groomed to become Thugs themselves, as the presence of children would
help allay suspicion. A fourth way of becoming a Thug was by training
with a guru, similar to an apprenticeship for a guild or profession,
during which the candidate could be assessed for reliability, courage,
discretion and discipline.[2]
The magnitude of the problem
Estimates of the total number of victims vary widely, depending on the
author's idea of the length of existence of the Thugs (for which there
are no reliable sources). According to the Guinness Book of Records
the Thuggee cult was responsible for approximately 2,000,000 deaths,
while British historian Dr. Mike Dash estimates that they killed
50,000 persons in total, based on his assumption that they only
started to exist 150 years before their eradication in the 1830s.
Yearly figures for the early 19th century are better documented, but
even they are inaccurate estimates. For example, gang leader Behram
has often been considered the world's most prolific serial killer,
blamed for 931 killings between 1790 and 1830. Reference to
contemporary manuscript sources, however, shows that Behram actually
gave inconsistent statements regarding the number of murders he had
committed. While he did state that he had "been present at" 931
killings committed by his gang of 25 to 50 men, elsewhere he admitted
that he had personally strangled "only" around 125 people. Having
turned King's Evidence and agreed to inform on his former companions,
furthermore, Behram never stood trial for any of the killings
attributed to him, the total of which must thus remain a matter of
dispute.[6]
Suppression
The Thuggee cult was suppressed by the British rulers of India in the
1830s.[2] The arrival of the British and their development of a
methodology to tackle crime meant the techniques of the Thugs had met
their match. Suddenly, the mysterious disappearances were mysteries no
longer and it became clear how even large caravans could be
infiltrated by apparently small groups, that were in fact acting in
concert. Once the techniques were known to all travellers, the element
of surprise was gone and the attacks became botched, until the hunters
became the hunted.
Civil servant William Henry Sleeman, superintendent, 'Thuggee and
Dacoity Dept.' in 1835, and later its Commissioner in 1839.Reasons for
British success included:
the dissemination of reports regarding Thuggee developments across
territorial borders, so that each administrator was made aware of new
techniques as soon as they were put in practice, so that travellers
could be warned and advised on possible counter-measures.
the use of King's evidence programmes gave an incentive for gang
members to inform on their peers to save their own lives. This
undermined the code of silence that protected members.
at a time when, even in Britain, policing was in its infancy, the
British set up a dedicated police force, the Thuggee Department, and
special tribunals that prevented local influence from affecting
criminal proceedings.
the police force applied the new detective methodologies to record the
locations of attacks, the time of day or circumstances of the attack,
the size of group, the approach to the victims and the behaviours
after the attacks. In this way, a single informant, belonging to one
gang in one region, might yield details that would be applicable to
most, or all, gangs in a region or indeed across all India.
The initiative of suppression was due largely to the efforts of the
civil servant William Sleeman, who started an extensive campaign
involving profiling and intelligence. A police organisation known as
the 'Thuggee and Dacoity Department' was established within the
Government of India, with William Sleeman appointed Superintendent of
the department in 1835. Thousands of men were either put in prison,
executed, or expelled from British India.[2] The campaign was heavily
based on informants recruited from captured thugs who were offered
protection on the condition that they told everything that they knew.
By the 1870s, the Thug cult was extinct, but it led to the
promulgation of the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871. Although it was
repealed upon independence of India, the concept of 'criminal tribes'
and 'criminal castes' is still prevalent in India.[7][8] The
Department remained in existence until 1904, when it was replaced by
the Central Criminal Intelligence Department (CID).
Possible misinterpretation by the British and scepticism about the
existence
In her book The Strangled Traveler: Colonial Imaginings and the Thugs
of India (2002), Martine van Woerkens suggests that evidence for the
existence of a Thuggee cult in the 19th century was in part the
product of "colonial imaginings" — British fear of the little-known
interior of India and limited understanding of the religious and
social practices of its inhabitants. For a comparison, see Juggernaut
and the Black Hole of Calcutta.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juggernaut
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Hole_of_Calcutta
Krishna Dutta, while reviewing the book Thug: the true story of
India's murderous cult by the British historian Dr. Mike Dash in The
Independent, argues:[9]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Independent
"In recent years, the revisionist view that thuggee was a British
invention, a means to tighten their hold in the country, has been
given credence in India, France and the US, but this well-researched
book objectively questions that assertion."
In his book, Dash rejects scepticism about the existence of a secret
network of groups with a modus operandi that was different from
highwaymen, such as dacoits. To prove his point Dash refers to the
excavated corpses in graves, of which the hidden locations were
revealed to Sleeman's team by thug informants. In addition, Dash
treats the extensive and thorough documentation that Sleeman made.
Dash rejects the colonial emphasis on the religious motivation for
robbing, but instead asserts that monetary gain was the main
motivation for Thuggee and that men sometimes became Thugs due to
extreme poverty. He further asserts that the Thugs were highly
superstitious and that they worshipped the Hindu goddess Kali, but
that their faith was not very different from their contemporary non-
thugs. He admits, though, that the thugs had certain group-specific
superstitions and rituals.
Aftermath
The discovery of the thuggee was one of the main reason why the
Criminal Tribes Act was created.
In popular culture
This "In popular culture" section may contain minor or trivial
references. Please reorganize this content to explain the subject's
impact on popular culture rather than simply listing appearances, and
remove trivial references. (November 2009)
In literature
The story of Thuggee was popularised by books such as Philip Meadows
Taylor's novel Confessions of a Thug, 1839, leading to the word "thug"
entering the English language. Ameer Ali, the protagonist of
Confessions of a Thug was said to be based on a real Thug called Syeed
Amir Ali.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Meadows_Taylor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessions_of_a_Thug_(novel)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protagonist
John Masters' novel The Deceivers also deals with the subject. A more
recent book is George Bruce's The Stranglers: The cult of Thuggee and
its overthrow in British India (1968). Dan Simmons's Song of Kali,
1985, features a Thuggee cult.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Masters
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Simmons
The 19th century American writer Mark Twain discusses the Thuggee
fairly extensively in chapters 9 and 10 of "Following the Equator:
Volume II", 1897, THE ECCO PRESS, ISBN 0-88001-519-5.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Twain
Christopher Moore's novel, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff,
Christ's Childhood Pal, describes a Thuggee ritual.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamb:_The_Gospel_According_to_Biff,_Christ%27s_Childhood_Pal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Moore_(author)
The 1976 science fiction novel Strangler's Moon by E.E. "Doc" Smith
and Stephen Goldin is based on the Thuggee (book #2 in the Family
D'Alembert series).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strangler%27s_Moon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._E._Smith
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Goldin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_D%27Alembert
Sci-Fi/Fantasy author Glen Cook uses an India-like setting and Thuggee
as a plot vehicle in his books Shadow Games (June 1989), and Dreams of
Steel (April 1990). The books and later ones that continue the
storyline form part of Cook's Black Company series.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glen_Cook
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_Games
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreams_of_Steel
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Company
The Serpent's Shadow by Mercedes Lackey has a Hindu villain, whose
minions are Thuggee, almost without exception.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes_Lackey
Author William T. Vollmann draws upon Sleeman in his story The Yellow
Sugar, which is one of two tales in his collection The Rainbow Stories
dealing with the colour yellow.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_T._Vollmann
In the pre-Holmes short story "The Mystery of Uncle Jeremy's
Household" (1887), Arthur Conan Doyle centres the narrative on a
beautiful female Thuggee in England who has "occasional fits of
fanaticism" and "horrible conceptions of religion".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Conan_Doyle
Italian writer Emilio Salgari (1862–1911) wrote about thugs in I
Misteri della Jungla Nera (1895) and Le Due Tigri (1904) and other
short stories.
George Macdonald Fraser's novel Flashman in the Great Game (1975)
makes references to the "cult" of Thuggee, while the phrase: "pass the
tobacco" is used as a verbal signal for the killing to begin.
The DC Comics character Ravan is a Thuggee assassin who kills to delay
the return of Kali. He is the enemy of Kobra who seeks to bring about
her return.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Comics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravan_(comics)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobra_(comics)
In the novel The Thirteenth Manifestation: the Song of Kali Ma (2006)
by Josephine Dunne, thuggees appear as assassins who operate from an
ancient subterranean Kali temple under the mountains between the
Pakistan and Indian line of control in Kashmir.
In film
The two most popular depictions of the cult in film are the 1939 film,
Gunga Din, and the 1984 film, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
The Indiana Jones movie is notable for Amrish Puri's villain, who is
shown chanting lines such as "maaro maaro sooar ko, chamdi nocho pee
lo khoon" - literally "Kill, Kill the pig, flay his skin, drink his
blood". Temple of Doom was temporarily banned in India for an
allegedly racist portrayal of Indians. Both films have the heroes
fighting secret revivals of the cult to prevent them from resuming
their reigns of terror, although Temple of Doom included features that
were never part of the Thuggee, such as cardiectomy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana_Jones_and_the_Temple_of_Doom
In the 1956 film Around the World in Eighty Days, starring David
Niven, Passepartout rescues a princess captured by the Thuggee and
sentenced to burn to death in the funeral pyre with her deceased
husband. (In the original Jules Verne novel, Thuggee are mentioned
only briefly, and not directly in connection with this princess.)[10]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Around_the_World_in_Eighty_Days_(1956_film)
In 1960 British horror studio Hammer Film Productions released The
Stranglers of Bombay. In the film, Guy Rolfe portrays an heroic
British officer battling institutional mismanagement by the British
East India Company, as well as Thuggee infiltration of Indian society,
in an attempt to bring the cultists to justice.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_East_India_Company
The 1968 Bollywood film Sangharsh, based on a story by Jnanpith Award
winner, Mahasweta Devi, presented a fictionalised account of vendetta
within a Thuggee cult in the holy Indian town of Varanasi.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunghursh_(1968_film)
The 1988 film version of The Deceivers, produced by Ismail Merchant
and starring Pierce Brosnan, is a fictionalised account of the initial
discovery and infiltration of the Thuggee sect by an imperial British
administrator.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Deceivers
The 1954 film I Misteri della Giungla Nera directed by Gian Paolo
Callegari and starring Lex Barker, where a group of religious fanatics
in India, the Thugs, prey upon European and natives alike by capturing
and offering them up in sacrifice to their frightful goddess, Kali
(from imdb.) Adapted from Emilio Salgari's book by the same name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilio_Salgari
The 1965 film Help! directed by Richard Lester and featuring The
Beatles parodies the thuggee as the cult that tries to steal Ringo's
sacrificial ring.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help!_(film)
In television
In an episode of Highlander: The Series, "The Wrath of Kali", Duncan
MacLeod deals with immortal Kamir (played by Indian actor Kabir Bedi),
last of the Thuggee.
The fifth episode of the short-lived Clerks: The Animated Series
featured a plot twist where the Little League World Champions were
kidnapped by the Thuggee, where they were forced to chip rock away
from walls (much like the Thuggee in Temple of Doom).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_League
In the episode "The Yellow Scarf Affair" of the series The Man from
U.N.C.L.E., Agent Napoleon Solo uncovers a revival of the Thuggee cult
while investigating a plane crash in India.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_from_U.N.C.L.E.
On It Ain't Half Hot Mum series 2, episode 8, "The Night of the
Thugs", the concert party take refuge from a rainstorm in a ruined
Thuggee temple. NB - Rare unscripted "giggle" from Captain Ashwood
when Colonel Reynolds discuss stealing the ruby from the statue
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Episodes_of_Highlander_(season_4)#The_Wrath_of_Kali
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Ain%27t_Half_Hot_Mum
See also
Highwayman http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highwayman
Notes and references
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica,
Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
http://www.1902encyclopedia.com/T/THU/thugs.html
^ Thugs 1902 Encyclopædia Britannica'.Pali-sthag.
^ a b c d Dash, Mike Thug: the true story of India's murderous cult
ISBN 1-86207-604-9, 2005
^ Dash, pp. 284-286 in the Dutch translation of the book
^ Dash, pp. 247 in the Dutch translation of the book
^ Dash, page 329 of the UK edition - notes to Chapter 16
^ James Paton, 'Collections on Thuggee and Dacoitee', British Library
Add. Mss. 41300
^ "Thugs Traditional View" (shtml). BBC.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/hinduism/history/thugs.shtml.
Retrieved 2007-09-17.
^ Sinister sects: Thug, Mike Dash's investigation into the gangs who
preyed on travellers in 19th-century India by Kevin Rushby, The
Guardian, Saturday, June 11, 2005.
^ Dutta, Krishna (2005) The sacred slaughterers. Book review of Thug:
the true story of India's murderous cult by Mike Dash. In the
Independent (Published: 8 July 2005)text
^ Verne, Jules (August 18, 2005). Around The World in Eighty Days.
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=34998. See
page 38, where the Thuggee chief is mentioned, and page 46, where the
bride is referred to as a suttee.
Bibliography
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica,
Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica_Eleventh_Edition
Dash, Mike Thug: the true story of India's murderous cult ISBN
1-86207-604-9, 2005
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Dash
Dutta, Krishna (2005) The sacred slaughterers. Book review of Thug:
the true story of India's murderous cult by Mike Dash. In The
Independent (Published: 8 July 2005) text
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/thug-the-true-story-of-indias-murderous-cult-by-mike-dash-497902.html
Paton, James 'Collections on Thuggee and Dacoitee', British Library
Add. Mss. 41300
Woerkens, Martine van The Strangled Traveler: Colonial Imaginings and
the Thugs of India (2002),
External links
Acting in the "Theatre of Anarchy": 'The Anti-Thug Campaign' and
Elaborations of Colonial Rule in Early-Nineteenth Century India by Tom
Lloyd (2006) in PDF file format
http://www.csas.ed.ac.uk/fichiers/LLOYD.pdf
Parama Roy: Discovering India, Imagining Thuggee. In: idem, Indian
Traffic. Identities in Question in Colonial and Postcolonial India.
University of California Press 1998. (in html format)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuggee"
Discovering India, Imagining Thuggee
Acknowledgments
This book owes a great deal to the critical perspicacity and
generosity of friends, colleagues, mentors, and institutions, whom I
am grateful to be able to name and thank. These pages would have been
impossible to bring to fruition without the encouragement and
intellectual support of Sandhya Shetty and Carole-Anne Tyler, who
consistently asked the difficult questions and who taught me through
the inspiration of their own scholarship. I am also grateful to
Lalitha Gopalan, who so often told me what I was thinking before I
knew it myself. I am grateful too to the many other friends and
colleagues who read the manuscript, either in full or in part, or who
responded to my work at conferences: Katherine Kinney, Joe Childers,
R. Radhakrishnan, Inderpal Grewal, Vincent Cheng, Daniel Boyarin, Kim
Devlin, Kalpana Seshadri-Crooks, Bette London, Ron Inden, Robert
Goldman, Aditya Behl, Gayatri Spivak, Jennifer Brody, George Haggerty,
Lawrence Cohen, Sue-Ellen Case, Philip Brett, and Susan Foster. I am
indebted to the readers for the University of California Press,
especially Caren Kaplan and Sangeeta Ray, for their meticulous,
constructive, and sympathetic evaluation of the project. My editor,
Doris Kretschmer, has been unfailingly helpful and patient. I am also
grateful to Dore Brown and Diane Jagusiak of the University of
California Press, and to Sarah Myers, for their scrupulous editing. I
am indebted above all to my parents, Amalendu and Ramola Roy, as well
as to Bharat Trehan for (among other things) his recall of a youth
productively spent watching Bombay films.
This project has been funded by a University of California President’s
Research Fellowship in the Humanities in 1991–1992, a fellowship in
the University of California, Riverside’s Center for Ideas and Society
in the spring of 1994, and by two pretenure faculty-development awards
from the University of California, Riverside. I am grateful for this
support.
2. Discovering India, Imagining Thuggee
I am a Thug, my father and grandfather were Thugs, and I have thugged
with many. Let the government employ me and I will do its work.
He had met hundreds of other Deceivers, and the notes were a complete
tale of all he had seen and heard and done; of all the Deceivers who
had engaged in any action, with their descriptions, habits, and homes;
of each murder, and how it had gone, and how it might have been
prevented—or improved upon. The words could be read for either
purpose, according to the spirit of the reader.
At the time that Burton was impersonating Mirza Abdullah in the
bazaars of Sind, another important narrative of disguise,
surveillance, and racial crossing was being written in the
subcontinent, this one under the auspices of the Thuggee and Dacoity
Department of the East India Company’s government. This was the
narrative of the exposure and extirpation of a form of hereditary
criminality called thuggee; it was to form a significant constitutive
component of the authoritarian and interventionary reform of the 1830s
and 1840s and to contribute to the still-emerging project of
“discovering India.” “It was with the flourish of mystery unveiled and
mastered,” writes a contemporary historian, “that a group of officers
of the Political Department had lobbied for special operations against
[a] ‘murderous fraternity’ and for special laws to deal with it.” [1]
It is that tale of thuggee that this chapter will take up, at least in
part as a counterpoint to the Burtonian record of the Englishman as
native. It examines the phenomenon designated thuggee by colonial
authority in nineteenth-century India, a phenomenon whose emergence,
codification, and overthrow was to become perhaps the founding moment
for the study of indigenous criminality, as a problem of
impersonation, visibility, and the transactions of reading. I use the
example of thuggee to explore one of the various and often mutually
discontinuous kinds of identities that were created, fixed, or
rendered ambivalent for Indian colonial subjects. In approaching the
problematic of thuggee in the colonial context through the optic of
identity formation and subjection, I broach a nexus of concerns that
cohere around the epistemes of representation and knowledge: the
problematic of the formation of colonial knowledge, the contested,
changing, and uneven definitions of law, order, criminality, and
reform in early-nineteenth-century India, the theorization of colonial
identities (Indian and British), and the discursive problems
associated with generating the moral subject of the civilizing mission
of British colonialism.
This chapter has three sections, with significant amounts of overlap.
The first examines the official records of the Thuggee and Dacoity
Department (first established in the 1830s), a cluster of documents
that I have perhaps rather arbitrarily designated the thuggee archive.
This includes first and foremost the files on thuggee and dacoity in
the India Office Library and the National Archives of India. Also
incorporated in this thuggee archive are the works (Ramaseeana, or a
Vocabulary of the Peculiar Language Used by the Thugs [1836]; Report
on Budhuk Alias Bagree Dacoits and Other Gang Robbers by Hereditary
Profession [1849]; Report on the Depredations Committed by the Thug
Gangs [1840]) of William Henry Sleeman of thuggee fame, as well as of
other officials associated directly or indirectly with the antithug
campaign: James Sleeman, Thug, or A Million Murders (1920); Charles
Hervey, Some Records of Crime (1892); Edward Thornton, Illustrations
of the History and Practices of the Thugs (1837); and the anonymously
authored The Thugs or Phansigars of India (1839), an abridged version
of the Ramaseeana for an American audience. This inventory of thuggee
materials also includes a number of biographies, fictionalizations,
and nonofficial accounts of the “discovery” of the phenomenon and its
eradication: James Hutton, A Popular Account of the Thugs and Dacoits,
the Hereditary Garroters and Gang-Robbers of India (1857); A. J.
Wightman, No Friend for Travellers (1959); George Bruce, The
Stranglers: The Cult of Thuggee and Its Overthrow in British India
(1968); Francis Tuker, The Yellow Scarf (1961); and Philip Meadows
Taylor, Confessions of a Thug (1839). These are collectively
designated the archive in this chapter, despite the incommensurability
in their generic status; this has been done because there appears to
be very little significant difference between one text and another in
this collection. Each seems to repeat the others in an uncanny
fashion; each narrates the same incidents in almost exactly the same
rhetorical mode; and each looks to W. H. Sleeman’s productions as the
founding texts of the thuggee narrative. (Meadows Taylor’s novel
differs from these only in its focus on a single thug and its
accumulation of additional [fictional] detail.)
The second section focuses on the special juridical procedures that
had to be instituted in order to deal with some of the most
intractable problems associated with a bizarre and enigmatic variety
of criminality. The final section provides a reading of the 1952 work
on the thugs by John Masters, The Deceivers, a novel that was
popularized in the 1980s in a film of that name by Merchant Ivory.
What sets this novel apart from the rest of the archive is the turn it
gives to the always already familiar narrative of thuggee through its
focus on the tensions of the investigating subject and its interest in
the English impersonation of Indianness and Englishness. It allows us
a way of (re)visiting and (re)inflecting the thuggee archive through
its stress on the colonizing male’s desires and identifications, and
thus forms an apposite corollary to the accent on Indian impersonation
that informs the discourse of criminal law.
At this point I should add a note about the limits of the enterprise
undertaken in this chapter. In the first place, I do not wish to
furnish another account of thuggee or to enter the traffic in
competing narratives of what might have constituted a material thug
organization or practice. Nor am I interested in reinscribing the
practices of the thugs in the register of subaltern insurgency,
though, given that subalternity is most properly construed as a
relational rather than an essential category,[2] I am not unwilling to
grant the thugs’ subaltern status. I am certainly sympathetic to
Ranajit Guha’s model of reading subaltern insurgency (as a “turning
things upside down”) through the texts of counterinsurgency.[3] But,
given the exclusions listed earlier in this paragraph, for me to read
thuggee as resistive, anticolonial, protonationalist, or even
antistate may be philosophically not discontinuous with the reading
practices that produced the thug as a demonized and completely
irrational entity. My object here is not to recuperate a subaltern
consciousness, even one that is acknowledged to be ineluctably
discursive, “a theoretical fiction to entitle the project of
reading,” [4] though I concede that the question of “subaltern
consciousness” cannot be completely bypassed.
I shall confine myself instead to examining the performative
subjectivity of the thug, as it is constructed in the discourse of
thuggee, as a way of teasing out, extending, and transforming some of
the implications of representation, mimicry, and visibility in the
colonial context. What I will engage are the models of reading that
are provided by the thuggee archives—how they are formed,
consolidated, or (partially) interrupted. And what I do argue is that
the reading of the uncovering of thuggee as an enabling moment for the
colonial state in its quest for the consolidation of judicial power
needs to be, if not displaced, at least complicated, by the
acknowledgment that thuggee forms an especially intransigent moment
within the colonial construction of criminality; it is a moment that
confounds and unsettles the received wisdom about identity formation,
truth production, and meliorative possibilities in early-nineteenth-
century India. What I also argue is that the discourse on and around
thuggee can be instrumental in opening up our present understanding of
the theorization of colonial identity, especially as it engages
questions of familiarity, visibility, and reproducibility. The text of
thuggee provides, for instance, a point of entry into a wider range of
mimic desires, identifications, and positions than someone like Bhabha
explicitly engages[5]—for instance, the colonizer’s fascination with
going native, the English miming of Englishness, or the indigenous
miming of indigenous subject positions—as well as foregrounding
questions of class, gender, and sexuality.
• • •
The Thug
The first thugs were not arrested by the British until 1799, after the
defeat at Seringapatam of Tipu Sultan, one of the most potent threats
to the expansionist ambitions of the East India Company; it was not
evident to the British at the time, though, that the stranglers were
thugs or hereditary killers. The first mention of the law-and-order
problem posed by thugs occurs in 1810, in the commander-in-chief’s
instructions to sepoys proceeding on leave about the dangers of
traveling at night and carrying large sums of cash instead of bills of
exchange;[6] but thuggee as a significant social arrangement or
discursive formation does not feature in this caution to the sepoys.
Thornton reproduces some correspondence between British magistrates
and police officials of the Western Provinces in the years 1814–1816
on the subject of thugs; at this point knowledge about them appears
very fragmentary, with no reference to shared religious rituals or
language or an idiosyncratic form of murder. It appears that the
notion of thuggee as a system rather than a disarticulated set of
violent acts was first broached in 1816 by Dr. Richard Sherwood, who
wrote an essay detailing its genealogy, organization, and argot for
the Madras Literary Gazette.[7] It proved, however, enormously
difficult to compel belief in the existence of such a fraternity (this
was to remain a problem in the decades to come), even among British
political officers, magistrates, and law-enforcement officials.
Meadows Taylor describes the capture of large numbers of thugs in
Bundelkhand and Malwa in the 1820s, an event that failed to “[excite]
more than a passing share of public attention.” [8] It was not until
Captain W. H. Sleeman undertook the exercise of decoding and exposing
thuggee in 1830, after the unexpected confession of the captured
bandit Feringheea, that a grand narrative of thuggee began to emerge.
Despite this relatively recent discovery, however, thuggee as praxis
and as identity was always represented as being of almost
inconceivable antiquity, conceived in the precolonial past and
sanctioned by long duration and popular Hindu mythology, if not
textual doctrine. A. J. Wightman, echoing his nineteenth-century
predecessors, asserts that though evidence of the existence of thuggee
is first found in records of the late thirteenth century, “it is
obvious that they must have been well-established at a much earlier
date.” [9] Some writers, like Sherwood, traced its origins to the
Arab, Afghan, and Mughal conquests of India of several centuries
earlier; James Sleeman and others traced the thugs back to the times
of Herodotus. The thug Feringheea is said to have claimed that the
sculptures at Ellora, which included representations of all the
professions on earth, featured a depiction of a thug plying his deadly
trade.[10] All the reports without exception demonstrate a tenacious
need to generate a creation myth, to locate not just a point of
discovery but a point of origin, and to establish a precolonial
genealogy. But at the beginning, as Geoff Bennington has said about
national histories, is also the myth of a beginning; and the origins
of thuggee keep receding into a more and more distant historical/
mythological point of inauguration.[11] In fact, several of the
accounts end up locating its beginning in a Hindu myth of creation.
The thugs, as they are represented in nineteenth- and twentieth-
century colonial representations, were a cult of professional
stranglers who preyed on travelers—though never on Englishmen—as an
act of worship to the popular Hindu goddess Kali. They were
represented as hereditary killers drawn from all regions, religions,
classes, and castes, united by their devotion to Kali and the act of
strangulation, which was, in this reading, quite literally sacralized.
The thugs were bound to their calling—and to each other—by shared
signifying systems: a language, a belief in the divine origin of the
practice, and a dizzying array of minutely observed rituals,
prohibitions, and superstitions. The thuggee system functioned as a
quasi-religious fraternity that, paradoxically, would accommodate just
about every Indian. It was defined as a compelling and
characteristically Indian form of social (ir)rationality, and the
practice was represented as resting upon an interlocking network of
constitutive contradictions.
Though the thugs robbed their victims and the confessions usually
demonstrate a very lucid recall of the division of the plunder,
thuggee was not conceived as having any economic base, particularly
because those involved in it appeared to have fixed abodes, peaceful
occupations, and a respectable place in the social and caste
hierarchies during those times when they were not engaged in killing
and plunder. While Sherwood does speculate, albeit briefly and
unevenly, on the proximate material causes of thuggee, the question
becomes progressively leached out of subsequent, and more hegemonic,
exegeses of thuggee. All the writers on the subject are insistent, to
greater or lesser degrees, that the thugs must not be regarded as
exigent, dispossessed, or rebellious subjects; they are unlike the
bandits of folk myth in being devious, unmartial (“cowardly” is the
adjective most often used), and almost obscenely respectable.[12] They
are characterized instead as hereditary killers whose “joyous
occupation” was, paradoxically, not only a matter of caste duty and
therefore ontological necessity but also a prime instance of
unalienated labor. By the time we come to James Sleeman’s hagiographic
account of his grandfather’s exploits, the act of strangulation has
not only been uncoupled from the usual motives for murder but has
acquired a quasi-libidinal charge: “The taking of human life for the
sheer lust of killing was the Thugs’ main object: the plunder, however
pleasant, being a secondary consideration.…Here was no body of amateur
assassins, driven to crime by force of circumstance, but men of
seeming respectability and high intelligence, often occupying
positions of importance and responsibility in their normal lives,
secretly trained from boyhood to the highest degree of skill in
strangulation.” [13] Sleeman is not alone in this reading of the
combined erotic and religious investment in murder. Taylor, in
Confessions of a Thug, hints at the homoerotic subtext of a thug’s
murder of a handsome lad; and George MacMunn explicitly couples the
left-hand Tantrism (including exorbitant and unauthorized sexual acts)
of Kali worshipers with behaviors like thuggee and nationalist
violence:
The murder trials that have followed on the sedition and secret murder
cult in Bengal, and indeed throughout India, show in their records how
the Hindu student depraved and often injured by too early eroticism,
turns to the suggestiveness of the murder-monger, and worships the
nitro-glycerine bomb as the apotheosis of his goddess [Kali].…The
student and the assistant editor of the rag, that but exists to
inflame students and pays its way by advertising the potent
aphrodisiacs among them, are the nidus of the bomb-cult.[14]
Katherine Mayo also locates the worship of Kali, premature and
excessive sexual activity, and acts of anticolonial terrorism within a
single perceptual grid.[15] This confluence of violence, illegitimacy,
and homoerotic desire is to resurface in The Deceivers.
Some twentieth-century scholars of colonial history have sought to
posit alternative, materialist histories of the phenomenon called
thuggee. Hiralal Gupta traces the development of thuggee or banditry
in the early nineteenth century to the success of the East India
Company’s expansionist policy, speculating that a significant number
of people captured as thugs by the Thuggee and Dacoity Department in
the 1830s and 1840s were erstwhile soldiers or officials in the employ
of rulers whose states had recently come under British control. These
people were among those who had lost their employment or fallen from
favor as a result of the annexation or reconfiguration of the Indian
princely states.[16] Sandria Freitag on the other hand points to the
displacement of peripatetic groups as a result of the ousting of local
settled rulers who had traditionally provided some protection to such
groups and to the establishment of the land-revenue-based state as a
possible explanation for the instances of collective acts of violence.
She also glosses the violence of dacoits—as of similar groups—as bids
for power and upward social mobility that would have been acknowledged
as such and accommodated by precolonial Indian state formations.[17]
Stewart Gordon argues that the large number of marauding groups that
were jockeying for political power in Malwa (where most of the thugs
seemed to be based) in the late eighteenth century posed a threat to
the stable sources of revenue in the region and necessitated the
creation of external sources of revenue. Those designated thugs were
“locally recruited, locally based” marauders hired to plunder outside
the neighborhood, as it were, in order to make up for revenue that
might have been lost to larger marauding groups.[18]
As I have already mentioned, Englishmen were never targeted by the
thugs; a few of the written accounts attribute the unsolved murder of
a Lieutenant Maunsell (or Monsell) in 1812 to thugs (as does the film
version of The Deceivers [1987], which opens with that killing), but
most of the thuggee texts point to the fact that the British had no
personal investment in the problem. Almost unfailingly these accounts
point to the antithug campaigns as exemplary instances of the active
benevolence of British rule, so often unjustly maligned or compared
unfavorably with indigenous rule. James Sleeman, who is particularly
apoplectic on this issue, argues that twentieth-century Indian demands
for independence were in effect a call for a return to the days of
thuggee: “Had this small handful of British officials, scattered like
poppies in a corn-field, shown the slightest timidity in grappling
with this gigantic task, they would surely have fallen victims to the
Thugs at the outset, in which case millions of Indians alive to-day
would never have been born, including possibly those who now agitate
for a restoration of the conditions under which Thuggee thrived and
battened.” [19]
Colonial accounts thus represent thuggee as outside a realm of
political and economic rationality (since it is religiously
sanctioned, grounded in caste, and linked to exorbitant pleasures).
Nonetheless, as the obsessive invocations of the Mutiny of 1857 and of
the Bengal revolutionaries of the twentieth century indicate, thuggee
was simultaneously addressed (even if not overtly acknowledged) as a
peculiarly potent threat to the authority and benevolence of the
empire in India. “To the colonial regime,” writes David Arnold, “crime
and politics were almost inseparable: serious crime was an implicit
defiance of state authority and a possible prelude to rebellion;
political resistance was either a ‘crime’ or the likely occasion for
it.” [20] Freitag points to the departures of British police action
from those of their Mughal predecessors; while the Mughals delegated
responsibility for containing collective crime to local functionaries,
the British felt such corporate criminal behaviors were nothing other
than a defiance of the state itself.[21] She points to the fundamental
distinctions, in terms of both the allocation of resources and the
formulation of legal procedures, that the Raj made between crimes
committed by individuals (“ordinary crime”) and those committed by
collectivities (“extraordinary crime”):
Elaboration of legal codes and police establishments to deal with
individual crime conveyed the impression that “the rule of law” had
been introduced into British India; yet the annual compilation of
crime and police statistics makes clear the minimal state resources
committed to policing individual crime. Unless such crime grew
alarmingly in a short period, or its policing fell significantly short
of what came to be seen as the norms of efficiency (for an inefficient
force), the state did not reckon individual crime to be of great
importance. By contrast, however, the British perceived collectively
criminal actions to be either directed against, or weakening, the
authority of the state. As a consequence, the British repeatedly felt
the need to launch centralized police forces against “extraordinary”
crime and viewed their inefficacy as a measure of the Raj’s impotence.
[22]
The thuggee records (including the confessions of thug approvers)
endeavor to provide—through the dominant tropes of ritualized,
religiously ratified, and libidinally charged slaughter—a tightly
knit, seamless, and self-validating account of an exceptional Indian
criminal practice. Yet, even as the record invokes the unvarying
trademarks of thug practice, it inescapably registers the
provisionality of its own categorization. The thug’s signature—murder
by strangulation, using a (silk) handkerchief—does not appear in every
act labeled thuggee; swords and poison feature as agents of
destruction quite as much as the talismanic rumal (handkerchief). Such
wide variations along a continuum of criminal activity were to lead,
after the 1830s, to an expansion of the provenance of thuggee: the
term came to include all kinds of organized and corporate criminal
activity (including poisoning and the kidnapping of children) that was
understood to be hereditary and/or itinerant. The confessions also
seem to demonstrate that at least some thugs were initiated into
professional practice not in adolescence or early manhood by older
male family members but later in life, most typically in response to a
situation of financial exigency.
Not only was it difficult to isolate certain crimes as the acts of
thugs, it was never easy either to establish the exceptional and
profoundly aberrant character of thuggee. The common complaint in all
the thuggee accounts without exception is that the activity of the
thugs seemed to mesh with exasperating ease into existing indigenous
networks of wealth and power, since they were supported by zamindars
(landowners), Indian princes, law-enforcement officials, merchants,
and even ordinary people. As Freitag suggests, “among organized
criminals the thags may have been the group most thoroughly embedded
in local society.” [23] The worship of Kali (also called Devi, or
Bhawani) could not easily be coded as an eccentric religious practice
either. Though some narratives do interpret the thugs’ invocation of
the goddess on the scaffold as proof positive of guilt (“Their
invocation of Bhawani at the drop was a confession of their guilt, for
no one in such a situation invokes Bhawani but a Thug, and he invokes
no other deity in any situation, whatever may be his religion or sect”)
[24], they also point to the widespread adoration of Kali across
regions and religions, among those identified as law-abiding as well
as those constituted as criminal.[25] Finally, while Thug beliefs and
rituals, especially those enacted at the start of an expedition, were
elaborately detailed, it was also asserted that in India expeditions
in quest of plunder were qualitatively no different from expeditions
undertaken for territorial aggrandizement; rulers and robbers alike
took the auspices after the Dasehra festival, before setting out on
their badshashi kam (kingly work).
Hence at least two contesting readings emerge: one defines the thugs
as a community apart, existing in enmity against law-abiding,
scrutable, and locally anchored subjects; the other identifies them as
natural to indigenous society, aided and abetted by all, and mirroring
and reproducing that society’s values. The uneasy fit between the
contextualizing move and the essentializing one was productive of an
aporia, which could only be resolved by invoking that most powerful of
all Indological epistemes—that of caste.[26] All the contradictions
and the seemingly endless heterogeneity of the subject category of the
thug are subsumed within that category, which is reified as coherent
and inflexible and emptied of any possibility of subjective freedom.
Once thuggee as social alliance was taxonomized as homologous to, if
not identical with (and the slippage from homology to identity occurs
without any apparent discursive strain), a caste, the thug could
simultaneously inhabit what had earlier been discrepant subject
positions: he could simultaneously be an exceptional criminal and a
representative Hindu, or Indian, since in the colonial imaginary the
territory of Hinduism is often coextensive with that of India.[27]
Even this reconciliation was not without its tensions, of course,
since thuggee as a philosophical system and a social formation seemed
to work strongly against the grain of the received colonial view of
India as irrevocably fractured along the fault lines of caste and
religion.
Nor was the caste explanation completely adequate to the great and, as
it seemed, illogical hybridity of thuggee. As a socioreligious
formation thuggee seemed to colonial investigators to be aligned with
popular, indeed demotic, forms of Hinduism in its reverence for Kali,
except that it attracted a large number of Muslim adherents, who
seemed to pay homage quite unproblematically both to the goddess and
to the strictures of the Koran. Here it is important to point to the
varied, contingent, and often irreconcilable constructions of Hindu
tradition in colonial discourse; the representation of Hinduism in the
discourse of thuggee is, for instance, quite discontinuous with that
which is operative in the discourse on sati, which was formulated in a
roughly contemporaneous moment. In the case of sati, as Lata Mani has
argued, colonial officials made energetic and systematic attempts to
establish Hinduism as a religion of the book; and Brahmanical readings
and textual authorities were privileged over custom and local
religious and social practice.[28] But in the instance of thuggee,
Hinduism is defined entirely as and by custom. Moreover, at the
popular or subaltern level, Hindu and Muslim forms of worship and
systems of belief may well have been less distinct than they were to
become (especially for more elevated castes and classes) later in the
century. The whole question in fact of Hindu doctrine and praxis and
its relation to thug identity is notoriously murky and ill defined.
Further complicating this discursive construction of thuggee was the
fact that professional thugs cultivated the appearance of the most
civic-minded of citizens and were conscientious about the discharge of
familial, social, and religious obligations. The very characteristics
that made them successful con men—their polish, their social and
rhetorical skills, their extraordinary capacity for duplicating
identities—also ensured their immense respectability in civil society.
But what rendered thuggee particularly elusive and frustrating to
British observers was its relative invisibility, its skill at
camouflage, and the difficulty of establishing it as a pervasive yet
eccentric form of lawlessness. Thug murders were typically performed
without shedding blood and without using identifiable offensive
weapons of any kind: they were performed far from the victims’ homes,
and the bodies were carefully buried. Because of the care exercised in
the killing and the disposal of the corpses (victims were buried with
great dispatch, and their graves were filled with rocks to keep out
any marauding animals) and the hazards attendant upon travel in
nineteenth-century India, these murders generally failed to register
as murders. Local landowners, rulers, and policemen connived at these
murders for their own benefit, or because they were prompted, it was
argued, by the heavy demands of superstition; and the peasantry, we
are told, simply ignored the bodies that occasionally appeared in
fields and wells. This raised the question of how far the circuit of
criminality actually extended: if local officials and the police
tolerated and even encouraged thuggee and ordinary folk made no
complaint about it, who could be said to remain unimplicated in it?
Under the circumstances, everything and everyone was liable to
suspicion, since the system of thuggee was both remarkably inclusive
and remarkably discreet in its operations. Hence British thuggee
inspectors were in the discomfiting position of focusing on crimes
that no one else acknowledged, certainly not (from the evidence of
these writers) most Indian princes or zamindars or even common folk
and generally not even the majority of the British magistracy or the
civil service. British scholars of thuggee were thus involved in a
detective project hobbled by an almost-fatal lack of empirical detail.
All natives were potentially thugs, since the system of thuggee was
remarkably inclusive; and the most seemingly innocent objects, like
handkerchiefs or gur (unrefined sugar, ritually consumed at the
commencement of an expedition), could participate in a diabolical
signifying system. And while British ignorance of thuggee (at least
until the 1830s) might contrast favorably with Indian knowledge—and
therefore complicity—it was susceptible of more objectionable
interpretations; in Masters’s novel, there is the danger that British
“ignorance” of thuggee can be read by the natives in a particularly
unflattering light: “In the nine years of the English Company’s rule
nothing had been done against the Deceivers. But William realized now
that most Indians knew at least of the existence of the Deceivers;
and, knowing, they could not believe the English did not also know;
therefore the English officials too were sharing in the spoils; so
what was the use of informing?” [29] (In the film version, the Indians
have good reason to be suspicious: George Angelsmith, the exemplary
servant of the East India Company, has full knowledge of the
activities of the thugs and profits from it.) Here it is not simply
the natives who are the object of investigation, codification, and
supervision; an alternative modality of interpretation is imaginable,
in which colonial authority is itself open to variant readings,
including those it has not authorized.
All these factors made the retrieval of information and the policing
of thuggee particularly vexing. And creating an archive and
standardizing reader response was not easy either. Though each thuggee
expedition and each act of thuggee was performed by the book, attended
by minutely detailed rituals and scrupulously observed omens, and was
immediately identifiable as such to those who could read the signs, it
was not immediately visible as such to those who could not or did not
see thuggee as a semiosis. Even in the 1860s, when knowledge about
thuggee had been codified, circulated, and reproduced and was
underwritten by wide-ranging institutional and legal support, Charles
Hervey complained that his subordinates were yet imperfect readers of
the complex and mysterious text of thuggee,
some correctly recognizing Thuggee in instances which were palpably
the deed of experts, although death should not have taken place;
others only doing so where death had resulted; some classing certain
murders as cases of “Thuggee” without reference to the means resorted
to in the perpetration thereof; others who wholly pass by cases of
poisoning whether followed by death or not, although they bore
evidence of being the acts of class criminals; some who restrict their
notice to selected cases only of its occurrence, passing by other
similar instances; some who endeavour to distinguish between different
degrees of poisoning, some calling “murder by poison” Thugee [sic],
others not doing so[;]…others who lump all such kindred offences under
round numbers without any narration of the attendant circumstances,
contented only with quoting against them the sections of the Penal
Code under which they were triable or were tried.[30]
With all the discrepant valences of this discourse, one factor
remained crucial in the determination of thuggee: the idea of
hereditary criminality. This was not a particularly novel reading of
corporate criminal activity in colonial India; as far back as 1772,
the dacoits of Bengal were strenuously and repeatedly characterized
not as individual or collective subjects responding to socioeconomic
transformations engendered by the sudden ascendancy of the East India
Company or indeed to any other material circumstance, or even to
chance, but as fulfilling a hereditary calling, if not a genetic
predisposition.[31] And, as Sanjay Nigam has convincingly
demonstrated, the colonial reification of caste as coherent and
inflexible, combined with the received notion of hereditary
criminality (most fully exemplified in the instance of thuggee), was
to have a long and ominous history in colonial and postcolonial India;
the Criminal Tribes and Castes Act of 1872 was to designate (without
any possibility of appeal) a number of vagrant and impoverished
“communities” as “criminal by birth” and thus subject to surveillance,
control, and attempted rehabilitation.[32] I am struck here by the
considerable (though not complete) overlap of this discourse with
Michel Foucault’s description of the emergence of the homosexual as a
distinct ontological category in the nineteenth century:
The nineteenth-century homosexual became a personage, a past, a case
history, and a childhood, in addition to being a type of life, a life
form, and a morphology, with an indiscreet anatomy and a mysterious
physiology. Nothing that went into his total composition was
unaffected by his sexuality. It was everywhere present in him: at the
root of all his actions because it was their insidious and
indefinitely active principle; written immodestly on his face and body
because it was a secret that always gave itself away. It was
cosubstantial with him, less as a habitual sin than as a singular
nature.…The sodomite had been a temporary aberration; the homosexual
was now a species.[33]
Because thuggee was such a slippery issue, a kind of legal,
disciplinary, and discursive apparatus was brought to bear on it that
did not occur in the case for instance of sati, another retrograde and
horrific practice apparently authorized by Hinduism. This is not of
course to assert that sati as a discursive formation was unproblematic
for colonial administrators and reformers; Lata Mani has pointed that
the abolition of sati in colonial India was preceded by its
legalization and has drawn attention to the valorization of the
“voluntary” sati in colonial and nationalist discourses. But thuggee
was not so much spectacular—as sati was (at least until 1829)—as
invisible. As a result it was much more difficult to discursively
track its trajectory and to determine the success of the pacification.
Sati was abolished in 1829, and there are no official records after
that date of the practice; it was presumed that it had simply been
legislated out of existence. But in the instance of thuggee, such
faith in the efficacy of legislative sanction is much more uncertain.
In the juridical domain, thuggee was defined as an “exceptional case”
in the name of a colonial contingency, since thuggee by definition was
exorbitant to standard law-and-order discourse and marked at all
points by immoderation.[34] This enabled the establishment of a
discursive and juridical system that was entirely self-referential and
self-validating, in which it was sufficient to be identified as a thug
or “hereditary criminal” through an approver’s testimony, without
actually being convicted of a specific crime, to be liable to arrest,
trial, and, almost inevitably, conviction. I will return to this
shortly.
Knowledge of thuggee as an essence then had to be constructed,
crucially, around an absence; and all the confessions, all the subject
effects produced by the testimony of approvers, were a strenuous
effort to recover a “consciousness,” a consciousness that would
provide the foundation for the revelations that ratified the antithug
campaign. But if thuggee was as far-reaching and as subtle as W. H.
Sleeman and his associates insisted, and if thug ontology and practice
was determined by birth, how could an Englishman ever hope to know the
whole truth and nothing but the truth? How could one verify the
confessions of the approvers and establish checks over their control
of the official record? Thornton registers exasperation at the
contaminated nature of the confessions: “Few things are more difficult
to a native of India than to tell the truth, under any circumstances;
and the confessions of criminals, in all countries, may be expected to
contain a mixture of truth and falsehood. The deposition of Moklal is
not consistent with the rest; nor even with another statement made by
himself, made in conversation with Captain Sleeman.” [35] He also
cites (as do other accounts of thuggee) the instance of an approver
who functioned as a double agent, beguiling his English employer into
believing him committed to the capture of thugs while providing
information and English passes [documents authorizing unimpeded travel
within, and between, designated territories] to his criminal comrades.
[36]
While James Sleeman claims that W. H. Sleeman and his colleagues, in
the 1830s, “resolved that this trade of Thuggee should no longer be
any more a mystery than tailoring or carpentering, began to initiate
themselves into all the secrets of the craft, and were soon, in their
knowledge of the theory of the profession, little behind the
professors themselves,” [37] the “secrecy” of thuggee never
disappeared as a threat. W. H. Sleeman—speaking of course with the
superior wisdom of his newfound knowledge—records a state preceding
revelation with combined horror and incredulity:
While I was in the Civil charge of the district of Nursingpore…no
ordinary robbery or theft could be committed without my being
acquainted with it; nor was there a robber or a thief of the ordinary
kind in the district, with whose character I had not become acquainted
in the discharge of my duty as magistrate; and if any man had then
told me, that a gang of assassins by profession resided in the village
of Kandelee, not four hundred yards from my court, and that [in the]
extensive groves of the village of Mandesur, only one stage from me…
was one of the largest Beles, or places of murder in all India; and
that large gangs from Hindustan and the Deccan used to rendezvous in
these groves, remain in them for many days altogether every year, and
carry their dreadful trade along all the lines of road that pass by
and branch off them, with the knowledge and connivance of the two
landholders by whose ancestors these groves had been planted, I should
have thought him a fool or a mad man; and yet nothing could have been
more true.[38]
Indeed, the entire discourse of thuggee is troped by figures of
darkness, mystery, inscrutability, unpredictability, and unexpected
menace, even as W. H. Sleeman and his assistants are inserted into a
heroic narrative of battle against evil. “Secrecy is indispensable”
for thug ceremonies, and “[a]n impenetrable veil of darkness is thrown
over their atrocities”;[39] “danger was everywhere, unseen and
unexpected” [40] for the Englishmen involved in the anti-thuggee
enterprise (even though Englishmen were known never to be attacked by
thugs); they were like “men isolated in the midst of a dangerous,
trackless and gloomy jungle, without map or compass”;[41] and “[the]
old Thug Associations, which have been now effectually put down in all
parts of India,…would assuredly rise up again, and flourish under the
assurance of religious sanction,…were the strength of the special
police, employed in the suppression, hastily reduced, or its vigilance
relaxed.” [42] Once again, Foucault on the discourse of sex and
sexuality is apropos: “What is peculiar to modern societies, in fact,
is not that they consigned sex to a shadow existence, but that they
dedicated themselves to speaking of it ad infinitum, while exploiting
it as the secret.” [43]
This very obscurity, this elusiveness that characterizes the thug as
discursive object, could and did function as an enabling moment for
the colonial law-and-order machine. Since it could never be decisively
established—given the terms of the discourse—that thuggee had been
extirpated, the need for endless vigilance was ratified. The moral
viability of the civilizing mission, indeed the very ground of its
possibility, is the never-satisfied, endlessly proliferating need for
reform. In the case of thuggee, colonial officials were confirmed in
their belief that the work of civilizing is never done. Thus many
writers warn repeatedly of the dangers of celebrating the demise of
thuggee prematurely; in 1893, Charles Hervey, successor to Colonel W.
H. Sleeman of thuggee fame, was still chasing after thugs. These
officers point not only to the hypnotic lure of thuggee for its
practitioners but also to the fact that native policemen and landlords
are only too anxious to conceal evidence of thug crimes from credulous
British officials overeager to congratulate themselves on the
cessation of this practice and overoptimistic about the all-
encompassing vigilance of colonial power. Thuggee never really goes
away as a present problem as sati might be said to do; it may almost
be said to function as a trope for all that is uncontrollable in the
law-and-order situation. In fact, the construction of hereditary,
pervasive, and socially or religiously sanctioned criminality
inaugurated in the discourse on thuggee reappears throughout the
nineteenth century in the discourse on dacoits, buddhuks, dhatoora
poisoners (all of whom came to occupy the same criminal category as
the thug), and specifically designated criminal tribes and castes.
How else might we understand this absence or unknowability that tropes
the discourse of thuggee? Certainly this simultaneous fear of and
pleasure in the duplicity and omnipresence of the thug deserves some
consideration, especially in light of the questions it raises about
the status of knowledge, subject positions, and representation in the
colonial state. Bhabha’s model of the emergence of shifty civil
subject of the colonial polity through mimicry can be extended here,
it seems to me, to some of the other possibilities of mimicry in the
colonial theater.[44] The situation of the thug is analogous to but
certainly not identical to that of the not quite/not white native—the
thug after all is not mimicking colonial ontology—though his capacity
for traffic in identities and positions is staggering. The instance of
thuggee intimates, I think, that the colonized subject’s mimicry need
not necessarily have the colonizer as its focus in order to function
as menace; mimicry, even if it is mimicry of indigenous subject
positions, frustrates the colonial desire for homogenized, duplicable,
and knowable native subjects in whom subalternity is sought to be
reproduced through the authorized version of mimicry. If there is one
thing that characterizes the thug of the archives, it is the
multiplicity and unpredictability of his manifestations. As we have
seen, it was what was perceived as this faculty for disguise and
invisibility that had to be criminalized by the laws designed to
convict thugs; theoretically there was no such entity as an honest
thug, and many so-called thugs were convicted who were, according to
the official records, engaged in “honest labour.” There is an ongoing
and strenuous endeavor in the discourse of thuggee to interpellate the
thug as an essence, a move which attests to the anxiety of rupture
that subtends the totalizing epistemologies of colonialism. Yet the
thug as discursive object is strikingly resistant to such fixity; he
is all things to all people. If native identity can be staged, can be
plural, then what are the implications for colonial authority and
colonialism’s project of information retrieval? Thuggee, I would
suggest, introduces a disturbance in the paradigm of information
retrieval that often seems dominant in texts like Kim and A Personal
Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Meccah, as well as the
notion of native authenticity and ontological purity that is a
governing trope of colonial discourse. The thug, through his capacity
for disguise and impersonation and his skill at negotiating multiple
and competing identities, usurps the colonizer’s privilege of complex
subjectivity and of movement between subject positions and thus can be
read to assume some control over both the construction and flow of
colonial knowledge. So he never becomes fully naturalized as the
disciplinary subject or, in other words, the knowable subject, of the
colonial polity. And thuggee, later rewritten as dacoity, continues to
function within the law-and-order context in the colonial and
postcolonial state formations as a trope for the unruly and
unreformable energies that cannot easily be accommodated to the needs
of the civilizing mission.[45]
• • •
The Law
The writings and reports of W. H. Sleeman, which form the core texts
around which the tale of thuggee is orchestrated, represent a
concerted and monumental effort to illuminate and classify the
obscurity of thuggee. Sleeman emerges, in both nineteenth- and
twentieth-century accounts of thuggee, as the hero of his own story.
Even those works, like George Bruce’s The Stranglers and James
Sleeman’s Thug, or A Million Murders, that purport to be histories of
the thugs rather than biographies, present the account of thuggee as
coextensive with the life of Sleeman. Sleeman emerges from these texts
(and his own, of course) as an exemplary figure in nineteenth-century
criminal and judicial procedures, who undertakes a self-appointed
messianic task of uncovering and reading. Nothing in his story happens
by chance. The discovery of the scope of thuggee as a result of
Feringheea’s confession is (re)written as an inevitability in the task
of reconstructing thuggee, and Sleeman’s anti-thuggee efforts traced
back to the moment of his arrival in India in 1809. All of Sleeman’s
life and work before 1830 is thus written as a prelude to the
climactic scenes of thug hunting and as a preparation for reading the
mysteries of this esoteric Indian cult. Sleeman above all is
transformed in this telling into an almost Saidean figure of
knowledge; he is the shikari (hunter) who, with his gift of languages,
long residence in India without being “Orientalized,” and experience
in war and in settling newly conquered territories, can present an
ideal model of the exegete. Though a crime like thuggee is quite
literally inconceivable to those “living under an efficient
government,” Sleeman is no Inspector Clouseau, no naive Englishman who
stumbles unaware upon a vast organized conspiracy. He knows what he is
looking for; indeed, Tuker’s biography imagines Sleeman becoming the
butt of his colleagues’ jokes during his early years in India because
of his eagerness to “discover” thuggee.[46] In this telling, thuggee
predates Sleeman; indeed, it is as old as India itself. Yet the text
of thuggee remains unread until Sleeman, the reader-as-savior,
provides the hermeneutic key to the mystery. He establishes the
exceptional quality of thuggee, distinguishing it from outlawry,
banditry, and other illegalities necessitated by privation; he
establishes the story of thuggee as a moral narrative and embeds it in
the culture of an Orientalist India.
The man whose ideal was, like that of a Sherlock Holmes, “to be
everywhere, and to see everything,” [47] proved phenomenally successful
—in his own terms—at cracking the code of thuggee. He showed a
remarkable capacity—far greater than that of Sherwood or even that of
the few officers who had harassed the thugs in the early decades of
the century—to globalize and codify discrete accounts of crimes in
different times and places into a metanarrative of hereditary crime.
On the evidence of approvers, he created gigantic and detailed “family
trees” of captured and uncaptured thugs that provided copious details
of each man’s crimes, place of origin, place in the caste hierarchy,
and personal and professional antecedents; he also mapped out all the
bhils (places of slaughter and burial) in central India. Every thug
could then be located on Sleeman’s gigantic grid, and information and
operations were centralized. The local knowledge of the approvers now
became part of a giant signifying chain. For the thug, there was no
escape: his history and his nature were always already known to the
all-seeing eyes of the colonial bureaucracy and criminal-justice
system; his experience formed a narrative even before he made his
confession and was in no way dependent on it. As Ameer Ali says in
Confessions of a Thug, “The man unfolded a roll of paper written in
Persian, and read a catalogue of crime, of murders, every one of which
I knew to be true; a faithful record it was of my past life, with but
few omissions.” [48] Sleeman also prepared a dictionary of Ramasee,
the secret language of the criminal fraternity, with a vocabulary made
up entirely of descriptions of criminal actions. This linguistic,
geographic, and genealogical grid left out little that was germane to
the needs of criminal justice in colonial India:
I have, I believe, entered in this vocabulary every thing to which
Thugs in any part of India have thought it necessary to assign a
peculiar term; and every term peculiar to their associations with
which I have yet become acquainted. I am satisfied that there is no
term, no rite, no ceremony, no opinion, no omen or usage that they
have intentionally concealed from me; and if any have been
accidentally omitted after the numerous narratives that I have had to
record, and cases to investigate, they can be but comparatively very
few and unimportant.[49]
The doctrine of thuggee was not simply a novel yet apposite way of
reading Indian criminality at a moment when the pressures to reform
the East India Company by reforming India were particularly marked.
The consequences of the discovery of thuggee were, in other words, not
simply a philosophical reconstellation of Indian criminality. Thuggee
also gave rise to a veritable cottage industry of policing and
surveillance techniques, as well as ethnographic documentation. Like
the system it purported to study, the discourse on thuggee was
totalizing in its scope. In the juridical domain, thuggee was defined
as an “exceptional case”; this enabled the establishment of a
radically new machinery of arrest, conviction, and punishment in thug
trials. The production of penal truth in thug trials proved, as we
have seen, notoriously difficult. Since thugs were peripatetic
operatives, who always committed their crimes far from home and
disposed of their plunder quickly, evidence was not only destroyed but
questions were raised about jurisdictional authority. Local
functionaries were not just uncooperative; many were allegedly bound
by a utilitarian calculus to thug gangs. In addition, the relatives of
the putative victims displayed no zeal in the punishment of crime or
the redress of wrongs; the vast majority refused to identify those
missing as murdered at all. This uncooperative behavior was attributed
to their fatalistic acceptance of all disasters (including,
apparently, cholera, poisonous snakes, and sudden death). Even when
thugs were captured, convicting them was rendered even more
troublesome by the fact that Muslim criminal law disallowed the
testimony of approvers.
The lack of independent witnesses, the unavailability in many cases of
both bodies and booty—the sheer paucity of positivist evidence, in
other words—could only be resolved in one way. The most important
criminal conspiracy of the century (of all time, some of the authors
claimed) could be adequately engaged only by a new conception of law.
Many of the tactics adopted by those spearheading the antithug drive
were not novel but had been pioneered earlier in Bengal; however, it
was the Thuggee and Dacoity Department’s use of these tactics that
proved not only successful but replicable.[50] Since the law as
currently defined made the complicity of individuals in particular
crimes almost impossible to establish, specific criminal acts were no
longer punishable as such. Instead, it was a subject position, or
rather, an ontology, that was criminalized. It was enough to be a
thug, without actually being convicted of a specific act of thuggee,
to be liable to the exorbitant measures of the Thuggee and Dacoity
Department. As Radhika Singha wrote, “The strangest feature of this
enactment was the use of a cant term ‘Thugs’ without explaining what
precisely the offence of ‘Thuggee’ was. That such a term was
acceptable at a time when a penal code upholding precision and
exactness was on the agenda is an indication of the success of a
publicist campaign in official circles.” [51] Act XXX of 1836 directed
that any person who was convicted of “having belonged to a gang of
Thugs, [was] liable to the penalty of imprisonment for life; and
[that] any person, accused of the offence, made punishable by the Act,
[was] liable to be tried by any Court, which would have been competent
to try him, if his offence had been committed within the district
where that Court sits.” [52] (Act XXIV of 1843 extended the punitive
sanctions of the thuggee laws to those found guilty of belonging to
dacoit gangs.) Act XXX also dispensed with the last vestiges of Muslim
criminal law (which is said to have provided greater protections for
the accused and greater clemency for the convicted than the Thuggee
and Dacoity Department thought advisable for those standing trial as
thugs) by doing away with the necessity for the fatwa (formal legal
opinion) of the Muslim law officer. It applied with retrospective
effect, and it established special courts for the trial of thugs—
including those captured outside company territory, within the
kingdoms of the Indian princes—often with special magistrates
appointed by the governor-general. It permitted the arrest of entire
families, including women and children, as legitimate means of
entrapping active (male) thugs; since thuggee was supposed to be a
family affair anyway, transmitted in the genes and passed on from
father to son, wives and children were also fit targets for the
colonial state’s punitive and corrective measures. The act admitted
the testimony of approvers in lieu of the testimony of independent
witnesses (which had been disallowed under Islamic law), a move which
created a remarkable mechanics of truth production and conviction.
(Act XIX of 1837, under the direction of Macaulay, did away with this
“dual standard of evidence” in criminal law by making the testimony of
approvers admissible in all courts of law, not just those prosecuting
cases of thuggee.)[53] Yet it is by no means to be assumed that
empiricism and observation were peripheral to the process, though it
was observation of a very carefully demarcated kind; there is in the
colonial archive an overwhelming weight given to the experiential
dimension of the knowledge of such canonical figures as Sleeman. All
disagreements encountered on the British side are attributed to
inexperience, to the lack of a proper interpretive framework within
which to place certain kinds of discoveries, or to a willful
ingenuousness about the success of British rule.
The definition of thuggee as a form of hereditary, corporate, and
religiously sanctioned identity allowed for no appeal by a thug
convicted under its special decrees; in theory—and in practice—there
was no such entity as an innocent thug. All those identified as thugs
by approvers’ testimony were automatically guilty, even if no specific
crimes could be proved against them and even if there was no (other)
evidence of their ever having associated with other thugs. Once the
thug hunts began, criminal activity was not always necessary for
arrest and conviction; even those “thugs” engaged in “honest
labour” (a theoretical impossibility, given the terms of the
discourse) were rounded up, tried, convicted, and imprisoned since the
compelling, hereditary lure of thuggee was always latent in the thug.
An overwhelmingly high proportion of those arrested were convicted, a
fact which validated, the Thuggee and Dacoity Department believed, the
thoroughness of its efforts and the justice of its cause.
Confessions were key to the discursive constitution of thuggee; not so
much at the actual thug trials as in the manifold accounts of thuggee
that were produced in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Meadows
Taylor’s novel, as far as structural organization is concerned, reads
not very differently from the nonfictional official accounts of
thuggee: a brief introduction followed by hundreds of pages of
confession, interspersed more and more intermittently by the
narrator’s moral commentary. The confessional mode lent itself nicely
to the narrative conventions and imperatives of the nineteenth-century
English novel, which encompassed both the Newgate novel and the
spiritual autobiography.
One of the best approvers, Bukhtawar, provided a confession (which I
quoted at the beginning of this chapter) that was a model for all thug
confessions: “I am a Thug, my father and grandfather were Thugs, and I
have thugged with many. Let the government employ me and I will do its
work.” [54] The confessions serve not to elicit what is not already
known but to authenticate and authorize official knowledge of thuggee
in general and specific crimes in particular, as well as to produce
the thug as (colonial) criminal subject. For Foucault, the confession
“transcend[s] all other evidence; an element in the calculation of the
truth, it [is] also the act by which the accused accept[s] the charge
and recognize[s] its truth; it transform[s] an investigation carried
out without him into a voluntary affirmation. Through the confession,
the accused himself [takes] part in the ritual of producing penal
truth.” [55] In the eyes of the Thuggee and Dacoity Department, a
failure to confess was evidence less of innocence than of hardihood
and an acquaintance with the byzantine ramifications of Indian
criminal law.
And yet these confessions that dominate and drive all accounts of
thuggee are not confessions as such, but approver’s testimonies; the
two, as Shahid Amin so appositely reminds us, are not identical. For
while the confession proper seeks to dilute the guilt of the
confessing subject, the approver’s testimony, to be fully credible in
the eyes of the law, must implicate its speaker as fully as possible
in the illegality being described.[56]
The fact that approvers’ testimony was “tainted” and that they might
either wittingly or unwittingly implicate the innocent was undeniably
an issue, though anxiety on the score was aired only to be promptly
shown up as unfounded. The thuggee records continually stress the ways
in which the truth of each approver’s testimony was tested against all
the others. But even in these official accounts, it does not escape
remark that the approvers’ testimony regarding dates and other details
do not always match,[57] though all discursive contradictions are
always sought to be smoothed away. Bruce, who is the only one to raise
overtly the possibility of the conviction of the innocent, blames not
the system but its most visible instruments, the approvers: “Were
innocent men convicted upon the evidence of revengeful informers?.…
Those Thugs who were no longer free to strangle on the roads may have
conspired together to send victims to the gallows instead, for by
killing in this way they could at once show Kali their continued
devotion and save their own lives.” [58] These testimonies were not
required, under Act XXX, to be matched against the reports of
independent witnesses or against the weight of circumstantial
evidence; and none of the accused had the benefit of counsel, so the
approvers were never cross-examined by anyone other than the officers
of the Thuggee and Dacoity Department.
Even though the approvers were indispensable for forming the text of
thuggee and for prosecuting thugs, their own status remained somewhat
nebulous. On making “a full and ingenuous confession,” an approver
would be eligible to have his sentence of hanging or transportation
commuted. But an approver could never be released, since the lure of
the rumal made him irreclaimable for honest society. It was also
necessary that all approvers be convicted (not just arrested) thugs,
since it was contrary to the nature of British justice to hold its
subjects indefinitely without trial. How, though, could the government
convict approvers when it had no evidence except for what they
provided? The solution was to advise approvers to plead guilty to the
general charge of being thugs, under the provisions of Act XXX, rather
than to plead guilty to the charge of committing specific capital
crimes (which could result in the death penalty); this would ensure
their conviction, and then they could be held for life without
questioning the authority that held them.[59] It was easier and more
useful to hold approvers than to hang them; and they needed to be held
forever in order to ensure the uninterrupted production of truths
about thuggee. The above proceeding did away with the necessity of a
regular trial (that is to say, one conducted under the special courts
established by Act XXX) by having one whose outcome was known in
advance; and it guaranteed that there would be no escape from the
government’s mercy.
Truth production and conviction was only part of the job of the
Thuggee and Dacoity Department. Rehabilitation was also part of the
program, though the official wisdom on rehabilitation was marked by
considerable ambivalence. To be a part of a moral narrative, the
antithug campaign could not be purely punitive in nature, especially
in the instance of those prisoners who had not been convicted of
particular capital crimes. At the same time, if thugs were hereditary
murderers who found the call to blood irresistible, they were not
reformable subjects. The government’s response to the problem of
identity and rehabilitation was, even in its own terms, a markedly
uneven and patently hierarchized one. Some of the most distinguished
among the thugs were recruited into the police force. Some others were
rewarded by W. H. Sleeman by being allowed to live near him with their
families and followers in his compound, an arrangement about which
Freitag observes: “The similarity between the spatial and
psychological configurations of his compound and those of thag-
landlord relations in a village is not coincidental.” [60] Other thug
approvers and prisoners and their families were settled in colonies
and put to manual labor; from being dishonest and itinerant, they were
compelled to be poor and settled. The focus of reform was the children
of the thugs: they were taught various skills, though not taught to
read and write (because it would make them dissatisfied with their
condition). The sexuality of the sons of the thugs was strictly
regulated; they were not allowed to marry and breed a new generation
of thugs. (A female thug was a rarity and was, presumably, a less
potent conduit of the genetic material of hereditary criminality than
was a male.)
Mature thugs, however, were less easily assimilable into a regime of
morality and normalcy. Even captured thugs and informers emerge in the
reports as notoriously impervious to all efforts at moral
transformation. They repudiate repentance and reform, ascribing their
cooperation entirely to pragmatic motives and describing their
activities in professional terms, without the obligatory change of
heart normally central to the confessional narrative. Not only that,
they understand their present circumstances in terms of their failure
to observe omens and follow proscriptions and to be fully professional
about their work; the official success against themselves is simply
the result of the East India Company’s iqbal (good fortune), not its
moral or religious superiority or even its greater strategic skill.
They seem to refuse in other words to be drawn into the moral
narrative of the civilizing mission (though it must always be
remembered that the production of the thug as unreformable subject was
not necessarily contrary to the aims of the discourse on thuggee). The
following is a typical exchange; the questioner is presumably W. H.
Sleeman, the respondents thug informers:
Q:
If Davey’s displeasure visits all who punish Thugs, how is it that you
all escape so well?
Moradun:
Davey’s anger visited us when we were seized. That was the effect of
her resentment; she cast us off then and takes no notice of us now.
Q:
And if you were to return to Thuggee, she would still guide and
protect you?
Moradun:
Yes, but what gang would now receive us?
Q:
And are you not afraid to assist in suppressing Thuggee?
Moradun:
No; we see God is assisting you, and that Davey has withdrawn her
protection on account of our transgressions. We have sadly neglected
her worship. God knows in what it will all end.
Q:
True, God only knows; but we hope it will end in the entire
suppression of this wicked and foolish system; and in the conviction
on your part that Davey has really nothing to do with it.
Nasir:
That Davey instituted Thuggee, and supported it as long as we attended
to her omens, and observed the rules framed by the wisdom of our
ancestors, nothing in the world can ever make us doubt.[61]
• • •
The Englishman
This section, on The Deceivers, John Masters’s novel about thuggee,
serves as a (deconstructive) supplement to the official narrative of
the thug, in taking up some of the questions and figures that occupy a
recessive status in that account. Here we see that if the thug of the
archive provides one (admittedly slippery and fixed at the same time)
model of staging identities, there is another model that is crucial
for a comprehension of the thug-English engagement. This model is the
obverse of the process that generates the mimic man of colonial
discourse; it is the lure of going native. The term here both
resonates with and fails to correspond to the mimetic model provided
by Burton in the last chapter.[62] The will to mimicry governs
(Indian) thug and Englishman alike, as we shall see in The Deceivers,
where the plot is driven—as is the thug archive—by a fascination with
the absent and never fully recuperable thug. In engaging this
scenario, the novel also recasts the paradigmatic narrative of
mimicry, in which the native may mimic the colonizer but without any
access to essential Englishness, while the colonizer can trade
identities freely, with no strings attached, without actually being
interpellated as a colonized subject. The Deceivers makes manifest the
precariousness of such self-possession.
The dialectical dependence of the fantasy of complete knowledge on the
paranoid fear of native inscrutability is staged in this novel, where
there is a suturing of the ostensibly antithetical figures of the
English policeman and the thug approver. This novel allows for an
examination of the tension between the received wisdom about thuggee
and some of the marginal issues located at the pressure points of the
official discourse. This novel tells the story of William Savage, a
mediocre and distinctly unheroic English magistrate. Wracked by sexual
and professional anxieties, an alienated subject of the British
colonial machine in India, and sneakingly sympathetic to such Indian
customs as sati, he transforms himself into the exemplary colonial
officer by taking on—albeit temporarily—the calling of the thug. At
the urging of his young wife, Mary, he initially takes on the persona
of the absent Gopal the weaver in order to save Gopal’s wife from
sati; he, however, meets the renegade thug Hussein and decides to
continue as Gopal in order to track down the thugs. Once he assumes
the role, he finds himself powerfully drawn to the practice and goes
on to become a noted thug leader. He does not continue as a thug, of
course—even though at one point Hussein suggests to Savage that the
East India Company become a sponsor of thugs, like the other rulers of
the land; with a little help from his newly (re)constructed
Englishness and his friends, he returns to propriety at the end. (The
Merchant Ivory film production is even more skeptical than the novel
is of the progressivist teleology of the civilizing mission, as well
as of its “success”: in the film, George Angelsmith is led off in
chains, but Savage, estranged from his wife and his Christian god and
unable to prevent the sati that he has actually made possible, is
destined to be perpetually haunted by Kali.)
The Deceivers considers the unspoken and unspeakable possibility that
subtends so much of colonial discourse: what if identity can be
unhinged from race and national origin? And if (racial/national)
identity is unstable and subject to negotiation with each crossing of
a frontier, then in the name of what telos or destiny does Englishness
speak? What if, as R. Radhakrishnan so compellingly asks, on the
subject of diasporic, transnational culture, “identities and
ethnicities are not a matter of fixed and stable selves but rather the
results and products of fortuitous travels and recontextualizations?…
Is ethnicity nothing but, to use the familiar formula, what ethnicity
does?” [63] In the more lurid enactments of this alternative history,
a Kurtz, representing the loftiest intellectual and ethical
possibilities of the Enlightenment, can “go native” in the Dark
Continent. But, closer to “home,” there were, as Arnold has revealed,
more troubling English subjects—those poor white orphans and vagrants
(who were to have their own moment of glory in Kim) who lived lives
not often distinguishable from those of lower-class Indians.[64]
William Savage, the protagonist of The Deceivers, is located somewhere
between these two subject positions.
Despite the putative restoration to wholeness, Englishness, and
legality of William Savage at the close of the story, the narrative
nonetheless opens up a space for investigating the “double and split
subject” of the colonial enunciation, for what Bhabha calls—in the
context of the nation’s fissured enunciation—“dissemi-nation”: “a
space that is internally marked by cultural difference and the
heterogeneous histories of contending peoples, antagonistic
authorities, and tense cultural locations.” [65] As in the case of so
many other Englishmen, Savage will have to turn to Indianness in order
to return to or consolidate or improve his English self; in doing so,
he will come back as a new and more English Englishman, but he will
also, temporarily at least, be transformed into a border subject,
changed by his experience of Indianness, surrendering illusions of
full autonomy and Englishness in the crossing of boundaries. Here I
invoke Burton again as a point of reference. Burton had an
occasionally vexed relationship with national identity: his ancestry
was partly Irish and Welsh, and he grew up on the Continent, only
coming to live in England in his late teens. Yet for him identity,
whatever guises it might assume and however far it might roam, is
usually more persuasively anchored than is that of Masters’s
protagonist in an imperial Englishness. Burton can be, at different
times, a West Asian merchant or a Muslim hajji, but his identities are
clearly hierarchized and more manipulable than Savage’s. While the
success of his passing is always, in a sense, conditional upon his
being a man from elsewhere/nowhere, he can also claim nativeness as
his own production, wrenching an (imaginary) autonomy from the
dominion of necessity. Savage passes through Indianness en route to
Englishness, but, unlike Burton, he cannot pass in and out without
constraint. Indianness, while indispensable to Englishness, must also
be violently cast out if Englishness is to be secure(d). In The
Deceivers, identity is the locus of strain and contradiction. For
Savage, identity cannot be expansive, assimilationist, and pluralist;
each new identity competes with and displaces the last. That is why
Savage can at the end afford to take no prisoners or recruit any
approvers from among his erstwhile comrades; the thugs whom he has led
and who are now pursuing him must be wiped out in an act of punitive
and frenzied brutality that not only precludes the need for approvers
but also does away with any witnesses against, and rem(a)inders of,
his own thug self.
The Deceivers stages, indeed foregrounds, the positionality and
politics of that ordinarily self-effacing hero of thug narration, the
investigator, and the plurality of determinations that produces him.
In this context, Gayatri Spivak’s cautionary reminders about the
urgent necessity of disallowing the neutrality of the intellectual or
investigator should be borne in mind. In “Can the Subaltern Speak?”
she proffers a critique of the sanctioned myopia of the Foucault and
Deleuze of “Intellectuals and Power,” who are unable or unwilling to
acknowledge the complicity of the intellectual in the mechanisms that
produce representations of subaltern subjects and groups and who fail
to recognize that subaltern subjects are constrained to fashion
themselves in terms of already scripted epistemologies.[66] Her
introduction to Mahasweta Devi’s “Draupadi” resonates with, and
provides another useful point of entry into, this problematic of
reading and engagement; the usefulness of deconstruction, she tells
us, lies in “the recognition,…of provisional and intractable starting
points in any investigative effort; its disclosure of complicities
where a will to knowledge would create oppositions; its insistence
that in disclosing complicities the critic-as-subject is herself
complicit with the object of her critique; its emphasis upon ‘history’
and upon the ethico-political as the ‘trace’ of that complicity—the
proof that we do not inhabit a clearly defined critical space free of
such traces.” [67] Where in the archives the English scribe was
progressively effaced from the scene of the crime as well as the scene
of writing, no such modesty is permitted the protagonist of Masters’s
novel. The novel accents above all his position of enunciation. He
cannot be, as in the normative thug account, the neutral conduit of
something clearly identified as a thug consciousness: the thug’s voice
cannot but inscribe Savage as both subject and object of his own
discourse.
The central aspect of Savage’s mission is not merely to bear witness;
he must above all produce a record, transform that irreducible
obscurity, that absence that is Indian corporate criminal activity,
into what Spivak terms an “interpretable text.” This of course was the
primary gift of Sleeman and his associates to the criminal justice
system in colonial India—to synthesize various and discrepant
occurrences as a semiosis under centralized control; against thuggee—
conceived of as a vast, well-articulated, and centralized conspiracy—
could be opposed the concentrated power/knowledge of the state. What
is required is a text and a model of reading that is reproducible in
the different temporalities and contexts of the colonial polity in
India. However, the novel intimates the limitations and complexities
of authorial intention. Savage produces his account in a condition of
profound subjective instability, opening his text up to multiple and
mutually contentious readings: “He had met hundreds of other
Deceivers, and the notes were a complete tale of all he had seen and
heard and done; of all the Deceivers who had engaged in any action,
with their descriptions, habits, and homes; of each murder, and how it
had gone, and how it might have been prevented—or improved upon. The
words could be read for either purpose, according to the spirit of the
reader” (p. 223). Above all, Savage’s account draws attention to the
transactional nature of reading. What ought to be a classic of
information retrieval and a master text on thuggee for colonial
authority is also a text for other thugs, a manual for reproducing
thug practice. Savage’s text (within the text of the Masters novel),
even though cast in the model of strict representational realism, is
susceptible of an Other reading; its meanings are ambushed, deflected,
and augmented en route to a destination it can never reach. The
Thuggee and Dacoity Department strove to produce, in its extensive
records on thug affiliation and activity, a text without nuances or
fissures, something that was not susceptible of any misreadings or
contesting interpretations. It sought, in its meticulous record
keeping and its attempts to square all the approvers’ testimonies with
each other and make them speak with one voice, to produce a record
that would have what was presumed to be the authority of material
fact. But for Savage, at least, it is impossible to engage in such an
enterprise without also inscribing his own complicity in his
testimonial. In this respect, he does approximate the classic approver
of the Thuggee and Dacoity Department, who cannot bear witness against
others without simultaneously bearing witness against himself.
While the novel insists that only impersonation can yield the truth,
it also illuminates the heterodox desires that underlie the exercise
of going native. Moreover, this impersonation is quite detached from
any agency on the part of William Savage and from any sense of
originary identity. Forced into the disguise of the Indian weaver
Gopal (by the patel [village headman] Chandra Sen) in an unwilling and
ultimately fruitless attempt to save a would-be sati, he is recognized
as an impostor by Hussein. Hussein is ideal material for an approver:
he has brains, courage, and resourcefulness, and he is remarkably
eager to undo the institution of thuggee, but his testimony alone is
not enough to compel belief in the practice. So he recruits an
Englishman to the anti-thuggee cause, knowing that only he can be
fully convincing as a figure of knowledge. And this knowledge can only
be acquired experientially, and by going outside the law as currently
constituted, as Savage learns when he follows the more conventional
methods of information retrieval. As Hussein says,
Several times some English official or other has got hold of
information about us. Then he has chased us out of his district, and
reported, I suppose. But they’ve never worked together, and it always
blew over. They’ll never destroy us until one of them finds out
everything, and forces the Lat Sahib [the governor-general] to believe
everything, and plans a campaign to cover all India. And that one who
finds out must fear Kali, or he will not understand her. But he must
not love her. (p. 208)
Unable to ignore the thugs as the other English functionaries are
ready to do, eager to discard the Englishness he so uncomfortably
inhabits, and pressured by Hussein and Mary, Savage decides to
continue as Gopal the weaver, who, as it turns out, is also Gopal the
thug. For an unsuccessful and insecure man like Savage, wracked by
anxieties about (heterosexual) masculinity and Englishness, it is the
very abdication of authority involved in playing a thug that is
peculiarly attractive; inhabiting the subject position of the most
criminalized and most scrutinized indigenous subject holds out the
promise of psychic satisfactions not ordinarily available to colonial
authority.
The novel dallies with the idea (as many crime fictions often do,
though less explicitly) of the fragility of the barriers that separate
the custodian of law and morality from the criminal. It actually makes
available the proposition (though it has to drop it at the end) that
Savage is at heart a thug and that his initiation into thuggee by
Hussein is no accident. He takes naturally to the trade, is attended
by good omens, and enjoys a facility of thought, speech, and action
that is alien to his English self. The idea of mimicry itself is
transformed in his performance of it and begins to assume to assume
the contours of possession, if not those of originary identity. There
is no difference for him between the mimicry of an identity and the
identity itself.
In order to pass for an Indian or a thug (ultimately these two
categories are collapsed, as we have seen in the other narratives of
thuggee) Savage must slough off certain normative aspects of
Englishness in the tropics—the militant Christianity, the revulsion
against disease and cruelty, the reforming impulse. He must instead
embrace what is described as the nondualistic moral economy of
Hinduism that sees both creation and destruction as suffused with the
divine. Needless to say, the psychic territory of “India” is always
coextensive with Hinduism, despite the fact that Muslims as well as
other religious groups are shown to practice thuggee as much as do
Hindus; and this Hinduism is consistently and exclusively fetishized
as blood lust and hyperbolic sexuality. As an Indian, and Hindu, and
thug, Savage must participate in a series of paradoxes. He must be
Indian, and thug, to return more securely to Englishness, and
legitimacy; he must allow evil to be done in order to do good; and,
since the contexts of legality are always shifting and are
particularly in need of redefinition in India, he must go outside the
law in order to uphold the law. Always relatively indifferent to the
finer points of legal procedure and defendants’ rights (here written
as an inaptitude for “paperwork”), the antithug drive allows him to
rethink the concepts of justice and legality in the colonial context,
where it is notoriously difficult to punish crime anyway:
“What does justice mean?”…“Fair trial, the rules of evidence, no
double hazard, no hearsay, and so on and so on? Or protection against
injustice, against violence? The means, or the end?.…Oh, I know we
have no evidence about them yet. That’s just what I mean. I tell you,
sir, they cannot be run down within our rule of law. Indians aren’t
English. “No man dies by the hand of man,” they think, so they won’t
give evidence because they are not angry with the murderers. They
think men who kill are driven by God to kill. And there are too many
jurisdictions, too far to go to give evidence, too long to wait. We’ve
got to go outside the law to catch them, to prevent more
murders.” (pp. 128–29)
Caught between a colonial government and an Indian populace unwilling,
for different reasons, to do what is necessary to end thuggee and
pressured, moreover, by Hussein, Savage becomes Gopal again, only more
completely in earnest this time. In his new role Savage discovers that
passing for a thug involves a radical (re)contextualization of his
once and future Englishness. Moreover, as Gopal he has to inhabit a
role and a history that is already in place. Impersonation involves
not freedom but strict adherence to a scripted identity; he cannot
start afresh, or make himself up as he goes along. He discovers that
as Gopal, he is already an expert strangler and strategist, destined
to be “the greatest the Deceivers have ever known” (p. 218). And once
he participates in the sacramental ritual of gur-sharing and tastes
the transubstantiated body of the goddess, his allegiance and destiny
are fixed. Savage is born to thuggee, as his comfort in his role of
thug demonstrates; indeed, his story undoes the usual weighting of
“self” and “role” in the Englishman’s subjectivity, since he is more
convincing (to himself, and apparently to Indians and Englishmen
alike) and comfortable as Indian and thug than as Englishman and
Christian. Hussein, who is more percipient than he about the
complexities of subject formation, reminds him that “free will” is an
adjunct (or an illusion) of Englishness alone. Savage must find out
that intentions guarantee nothing; not even the Englishman, once he
has decided to play the Indian, can escape the formulaic constraints
of Indian/thug ontology: “You are a Deceiver, from this dawn on for
ever. A strangler. Only stranglers may stand on the blanket: you stood
on it. Only stranglers may take the consecrated sugar of communion:
you took it. It doesn’t matter what a man thinks he is. When he eats
consecrated sugar, on the blanket, in front of the pick-axe, he is a
strangler, because Kali enters into him.” (p. 182)
Such a script also demands of course that he confront his double, the
original Gopal. In order to protect himself and in order to wrest some
autonomy for himself, Savage strangles Gopal and thus becomes Gopal
himself. But strangling the “real Gopal” only makes him more fully
Gopal, for he can now develop into his predestined role. From this
point on, all paradoxes are held in abeyance. From being complicit in
murder through inaction Savage proceeds to strangulation himself and
becomes, in an extraordinary take on the man-who-would-be-king vision
that tropes so much colonial discourse, a noted leader of thugs. Like
Burton the Muslim, Savage the thug is characterized not simply by
mastery but by an extraordinary surplus of subject effects. (Unlike
Burton, though, he is tempted, and he is corrupted—although not
irredeemably.)
The desire for Gopal, which is closely articulated with the desire to
be Gopal, is mediated, interestingly enough, through the figure of the
sati who frames the novel and who foregrounds the question of gender
that has been bypassed or placed under erasure in the thuggee
archives. I find the entry into thuggee through sati to be a
particularly productive conjuncture for the problematic of mimicry,
identity, and the colonizer’s desire. The sati, most obviously,
provides an occasion for access to Gopal. The sati has to be set up in
the beginning so that Savage can play Gopal; and then it has to be
deferred so that he can continue to play Gopal and go in search of
Gopal. Her presence in the novel displaces homoerotic desire and
returns Savage to heterosexuality. It also ensures his successful
miming of Indianness and Englishness. But the consolidation of
heterosexuality, masculinity, and Englishness demands not simply her
presence but her death. She is insistently narrativized as a voluntary
sati; she is a romanticized figure, whose sacrifice Savage has no
desire to thwart. He desires her, and his desire for her takes the
form of wanting her to die for him, which he ensures by killing Gopal.
In this way, he can enjoy the satisfactions of Indian as well as
English masculinity. As an Indian, he can have the woman die for him
(and deliver him of his sexual anxieties); but being fully Indian also
means that he himself must die, for the sati requires a dead husband.
As an Englishman, therefore, he can distance himself from the violent
implications of Indianness. The sati’s death releases him from the
exigent identity of the Indianness into which he had temporarily
descended and frees him to enact the rituals of Englishness with
greater plausibility. The most convincing Englishman—as indeed the
most expert thug—turns out to be the mimic man after all.
• • •
Afterword
Masters’s novel serves in many ways as the most apt of epilogues to
the colonial accounts of thuggee, given its excavation of the erotic/
affective and metaphysical seductions of that institution—and of the
thug—for English masculinity in the tropics and given its suggestion
that the lure of the thug for the Englishman may be as compelling as
that of thuggee for the (Indian) thug. It charges the project of
unveiling and chastisement with a profusion of guilty, even delirious,
appetites and obsessions that call for continual incitement and
consummation. It does not, of course, fail to play upon the received
colonial narrative of thuggee as timeless Indian duplicity; but it
also reconfigures it as an erotic tale of the fraternal, closeted, and
homicidal desire that drives Indian and English impersonation. Perhaps
most remarkably, it showcases the seamless self-referentiality of the
discourse on thuggee (as evidenced in an archive composed of
biographies, histories, novels, legal records, and rumors) by
collapsing the thug and the thug hunter into a single figure; with a
literalism quite unprecedented in any of the other texts it confirms
that wherever there is an Englishman there is a thug.
Notes
1. Radhika Singha, “‘Providential’ Circumstances: The Thuggee Campaign
of the 1830s and Legal Innovation,” Modern Asian Studies 27 (February
1993): 83.
2. Guha, “Historiography of Colonial India.”
3. Ranajit Guha, “The Prose of Counter-Insurgency,” in Subaltern
Studies II: Writings on South Asian History and Society, ed. Ranajit
Guha (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1983). Also see Ranajit
Guha, Elementary Aspects of Peasant Insurgency in Colonial India
(Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1983).
4. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, “Deconstructing Historiography,” in In
Other Worlds: Essays in Cultural Politics (New York and London:
Routledge, 1987), 204.
5. This is not to suggest that Bhabha forecloses on any of these other
possibilities.
6. James Hutton, A Popular Account of the Thugs and Dacoits, the
Hereditary Garroters and Gang-Robbers of India (London: W. H. Allen,
1857), 90–91.
7. Reproduced in George Bruce, The Stranglers: The Cult of Thuggee and
Its Overthrow in British India (New York: Harcourt, Brace & World,
1968), 13–26.
8. Philip Meadows Taylor, “Introduction,” in Confessions of a Thug
(London: Richard Bentley, 1858 [1839]), 5.
9. A. J. Wightman, No Friend for Travellers (London: Robert Hale,
1959), 15.
10. See Francis C. Tuker, The Yellow Scarf: The Story of the Life of
Thuggee Sleeman (London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1961), 197–98.
11. Geoff Bennington, “Postal Politics and the Institution of the
Nation,” in Nation and Narration, ed. Homi K. Bhabha (London and New
York: Routledge, 1990).
12. Sandria Freitag argues that thugs were—in contrast to members of
criminal castes and tribes—regarded as “admirable and awesome
opponents.” See her “Crime in the Social Order of Colonial North
India,” Modern Asian Studies 25, no. 2 (1991): 227–61. While some of
this horrified admiration does inform Wightman and Meadows Taylor’s
representations, such admiration is more usually carefully repressed;
there is, in fact, an interesting tension between the awe-inspiring
(if damnable) thug of these texts and the contemptible figure that the
other texts strenuously accentuate.
13. James Sleeman, Thug, or A Million Murders (London: Sampson Low,
Marston, 1933 [1920]), 5.
14. Sir George MacMunn, The Religions and Hidden Cults of India
(London: Sampson Low, Marston, 1931), 172–73. See, too, Meadows
Taylor, “Introduction,” i:
At the present time it [the novel] may deserve a more attentive study;
recent events will have too well prepared the Reader’s mind for
implicit belief in all the systematic atrocities narrated.…It will
scarcely fail to be remarked, with what consummate art such numerous
bodies of men were organized, and for a long time kept absolutely
unknown, while committing acts of cruelty and rapine hardly
conceivable;…Captain Taylor’s Introduction…may…furnish some clue to
the successful concealment of a rebellion, in the existence of which
many of our oldest and most experienced officers, and men high in
authority, absolutely withheld belief, till too late and too cruelly
convinced of their fatal error.
15. Katherine Mayo, Mother India (New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1927).
16. Hiralal Gupta, “A Critical Study of the Thugs and Their
Activities,” Journal of Indian History, 37, part 2 (August 1959),
serial no. 110: 169–77.
17. Sandria B. Freitag, “Collective Crime and Authority in North
India,” in Crime and Criminality in British India, ed. Anand Yang
(Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1985), 158–61.
18. Stewart N. Gordon, “Scarf and Sword: Thugs, Marauders, and State-
Formation in 18th Century Malwa,” Indian Economic and Social History
Review 6 (December 1969): 403–29. It should be noted that Gordon does
not ascribe the activities of the marauding groups to “Oriental
anarchy” or oppose “marauders” to “states,” arguing that both entities
had the same ends in view and were using the same methods of
legitimation, though with differing degrees of success.
19. J. Sleeman, Thug, 108.
20. David Arnold, Police Power and Colonial Rule: Madras 1859–1947
(Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1986), 3. He notes the transformation
of the Thuggee and Dacoity Department into the Central Intelligence
Department in 1904; this body shifted its initial focus on wandering
gangs and criminals to “the collation of political intelligence,
relaying information about political leaders and organizations to the
various provinces concerned” (p. 187).
21. Freitag, “Collective Crime and Authority,” 142.
22. Freitag, “Crime in the Social Order,” 230.
23. Ibid., 234.
24. Fanny Parks, Wanderings of a Pilgrim in Search of the Picturesque
(Karachi and London: Oxford University Press, 1975 [1850]), 1: 153.
25. Kali became a figure of increasing respectability in the
nineteenth century; before this she was a deity adored (in Bengal at
least) largely though not exclusively by tribal and other subaltern
subjects, including thugs and dacoits. It is not clear if Kali was
identical with other female deities addressed as Devi or Bhawani.
26. See, for instance, Nicholas B. Dirks, “Castes of Mind,”
Representations 37 (Winter 1992): 59: “It is increasingly clear that
colonialism in India produced new forms of society that have been
taken to be traditional, and that caste itself as we now know it is
not a residual survival of ancient India but a specifically colonial
form of civil society. As such it both justifies and maintains the
colonial vision of an India where religion transcends politics,
society resists change, and the state awaits its virgin birth in the
postcolonial era.”
27. This had not, of course, been entirely true for Burton, perhaps
because of his sojourn in Sind or his early studies in Arabic. As
might be expected, the particular discourse being engaged would
determine the Hinduness, or otherwise, of the territory designated
“India.”
28. Lata Mani, “Contentious Traditions,” in The Nature and Context of
Minority Discourse, ed. Abdul JanMohamed and David Lloyd (New York:
Oxford University Press, 1990).
29. John Masters, The Deceivers (New York: Carroll and Graf, 1952),
240. All further references to this novel will be incorporated
parenthetically into the text.
30. Charles Hervey, Some Records of Crime (Being the Diary of a Year,
Official and Particular, of an Officer of the Thuggee and Dacoitie
Police) (London: Sampson Low, Marston, 1892), 1: 50–51.
31. Ranjit Sen, Social Banditry in Bengal: A Study in Primary
Resistance, 1757–1793 (Calcutta: Ratna Prakashan, 1988), 2–3.
32. Sanjay Nigam, “Disciplining and Policing the ‘Criminals by
Birth,’” Indian Economic and Social History Review 27, no. 2 (1990):
131–64; 27, no. 3 (1990): 259–87.
33. Michel Foucault, The History of Sexuality, trans. Robert Hurley
(New York: Vintage Books, 1978), 1: 43.
34. Radhika Singha argues that “the introduction of laws dealing with
ill-defined ‘criminal communities’ introduced certain fissures into
the ideology of the equal, abstract and universal legal
subject” (“‘Providential’ Circumstances,” 86, n. 10).
35. Edward Thornton, Illustrations of the History and Practices of the
Thugs (London: W. H. Allen, 1837), 145–46. This frankness is
relatively rare in the writings on thuggee; the issue of the
genuineness of the confessions, though, is an issue in all, judging
from the unfailing vehemence with which the method of conviction
through approvers’ testimony is defended as just, if not
unexceptionable.
36. Ibid., 374.
37. J. Sleeman, Thug, 120.
38. William H. Sleeman, Ramaseeana, or a Vocabulary of the Peculiar
Language Used by the Thugs (Calcutta: G. H. Huttmann, Military Orphan
Press, 1836), 32–33.
39. Thornton, Illustrations, 70, 11.
40. Wightman, No Friend for Travellers, 112.
41. J. Sleeman, Thug, 106.
42. William H. Sleeman, Report on Budhuk Alias Bagree Dacoits and
Other Gang Robbers by Hereditary Profession (Calcutta: J. C. Sherriff,
Bengal Military Orphan Press, 1849), 2–3.
43. Foucault, History of Sexuality, 1: 35.
44. Homi Bhabha, “Sly Civility” and “Of Mimicry and Man,” in The
Location of Culture.
45. See Mala Sen, India’s Bandit Queen: The True Story of Phoolan Devi
(New Delhi: Indus/HarperCollins, 1991) for an example of the way in
which the colonial discourse of thuggee (in this instance, Tukar’s
Yellow Scarf) continues, in contemporary India, to frame the way in
which certain forms of collective violence are understood by the law-
and-order machinery of the state.
46. Tuker, Yellow Scarf, 38.
47. William H. Sleeman, Rambles and Recollections of an Indian
Official, ed. Vincent A. Smith (London: Humphrey Milford, Oxford
University Press, 1915), 555.
48. Taylor, Confessions of a Thug, 330.
49. W. H. Sleeman, Ramaseeana, 3.
50. Freitag, “Collective Crime and Authority,” 146.
51. Singha, “‘Providential’ Circumstances,” 84.
52. W. H. Sleeman, Report on Budhuk, 173. The thuggee act had the
following provisions:
1.Whoever shall be proved to have belonged, either before or after the
passing of this Act, to any gang of Thugs, either within or without
the Territories of the East India Company, shall be punished with
imprisonment for life, with hard labour.
2.And…every person accused of the offence…may be tried by any court,
which would have been competent to try him, if his offence had been
committed within the Zillah where that Court sits, any thing to the
contrary, in any Regulation contained, notwithstanding.
3.And…no Court shall, on a trial of any person accused of the offence…
require any Futwa from any Law Officer.
53. Singha, “‘Providential’ Circumstances,” 136–37.
54. J. Sleeman, Thug, 117.
55. Michel Foucault, Discipline and Punish, trans. Alan Sheridan (New
York: Vintage Books, 1979), 38.
56. Shahid Amin, “Approver’s Testimony, Judicial Discourse: The Case
of Chauri Chaura,” in Subaltern Studies V: Writings on South Asian
History and Society, ed. Ranajit Guha (Delhi: Oxford University Press,
1987).
57. William H. Sleeman, Report on the Depredations Committed by the
Thug Gangs of Upper and Central India (Calcutta: G. H. Huttmann,
Bengal Military Orphan Press, 1840). [BACK]
58. Bruce, Stranglers, 154.
59. W. H. Sleeman, Report on Budhuk, 303–5.
60. Freitag, “Crime in the Social Order,” 236. It is said that thugs
had routinely existed in a symbiotic relationship with landlords,
providing military protection and supplying booty from expeditions in
return for land and respectability. [BACK]
61. W. H. Sleeman, Ramaseeana, 186–87.
62. I should add here that the phrase going native is vested in my
paper with a multiplicity of valences; for instance, it encompasses
both the colonialist desire to “pass for” the native and the condition
that signifies racial regression.
63. R. Radhakrishnan, “Ethnicity in an Age of Diaspora,” Transition 54
(1991): 106.
64. David Arnold, “European Orphans and Vagrants in India in the
Nineteenth Century,” Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History 7,
no. 2 (1979): 104–27.
65. Homi K. Bhabha, “DissemiNation: Time, Narrative, and the Margins
of the Modern Nations,” in Nation and Narration, 299.
66. Spivak, “Can the Subaltern Speak?” See Michel Foucault,
“Intellectuals and Power: A Conversation between Michel Foucault and
Gilles Deleuze,” in Language, Counter-Memory, Practice: Selected
Essays and Interviews, by Michel Foucault, trans. Donald F. Bouchard
and Sherry Simon (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977), 205–
17.
67. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, “Translator’s Foreword to ‘Draupadi,’
by Mahasweta Devi,” in In Other Worlds: Essays in Cultural Politics
(New York and London: Routledge, 1987), 180.
http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft8s20097j&chunk.id=ch2
turn of the century, is a highly unusual diary of one disciple’s
encounters with his guru and with other disciples over the last four
years (1882–1886) of Ramakrishna’s life. In this text, which is
written in Bengali, Ramakrishna is referred to as thakur, which is
both a common way of designating a Brahman as well as a word meaning
god; “M,” who was a schoolteacher, is called “master” in this work. In
the English translation of 1942 by Swami Nikhilananda, The Gospel of
Sri Ramakrishna (New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1973
[1942]), “the Master” is the standard appellation for Ramakrishna;
this usage may have been popularized by Vivekananda.
3. Partha Chatterjee, “A Religion of Urban Domesticity: Sri
Ramakrishna and the Calcutta Middle Class,” Subaltern Studies VII:
Writings on South Asian History and Society, ed. Partha Chatterjee and
Gyanendra Pandey (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1992), 65.
4. Tapan Raychaudhuri, Europe Reconsidered: Perceptions of the West in
Nineteenth Century Bengal (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1988),
219.
5. Quoted in ibid., 231. For further details, see Swami Saradananda,
Sri Ramakrishna: The Great Master, trans. Swami Jagadananda, 2 vols.
(Madras: Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1978 [1952]).
6. There were many references to the Paramhansa in Keshab’s journal,
the New Dispensation, and in the late 1870s Keshab published
Paramhanser Ukti, a ten-page Bengali booklet of Ramakrishna’s sayings.
7. Christopher Isherwood, Ramakrishna and His Disciples (London:
Methuen, 1965), 141. [BACK]
8. Quoted in ibid., 124.
9. Cited in Brian K. Smith, “How Not to Be a Hindu: The Case of the
Ramakrishna Mission,” in Religion and Law in Independent India, ed.
Robert P. Baird (New Delhi: Manohar, 1993), 343–44.
10. Sumit Sarkar, “The Kathamrita as Text: Towards an Understanding of
Ramakrishna Paramhamsa,” Occasional Paper 22 (New Delhi: Nehru
Memorial Museum and Library, 1985), 21 and passim. Also, see Sumit
Sarkar, “‘Kaliyuga,’ ‘Chakri’ and ‘Bhakti’: Ramakrishna and His
Times,” Economic and Political Weekly, 18 July 1992, 1543–66.
Ramakrishna’s disciples claimed that he had gone through his “Muslim”
and “Christian” phases before he met Keshab; please note that all the
dates in Ramakrishna’s life are culled from accounts by devotees and
admirers.
11. The term heterosexuality is here used catachrestically, since
Ramakrishna seems to be obviously outside the formations within which
we would situate “modern” Indian subjects, including Vivekananda. The
very terms homosexuality/heterosexuality (and, indeed, transsexuality,
which may also be said to resonate for Ramakrishna) are too western
and modern to be completely adequate to the task of analysis. I use
them very provisionally, in the absence of another vocabulary and
epistemology that might enable me to understand premodern, Indian/
Hindu conceptualizations of sexuality. In this context, I am reminded
of Diana Fuss’s generous and sensitive reading of Fanon’s claim (in
Black Skin, White Masks) that there is no (male) homosexuality in the
Antilles (“Interior Colonies,” 33):
Fanon’s insistence that there is no homosexuality in the Antilles may
convey a more trenchant meaning than the one he in fact intended: if
by ‘homosexuality’ one understands the culturally specific social
formations of same-sex desire as they are articulated in the West,
then they are indeed foreign to the Antilles.…Can one generalize from
the particular forms sexuality takes under Western capitalism to
sexuality as such? What kinds of colonizations do such discursive
translations perform on ‘other’ traditions of sexual differences?
Such a caution must be borne in mind, even as one cannot but deploy,
however hesitantly, the idioms of modern western sexualities. See
Jeffrey Kripal, Kali’s Child: The Mystical and the Erotic in the Life
and Teachings of Ramakrishna (Chicago and London: University of
Chicago Press, 1995) for a careful and fascinating reading of the
relationship of Ramakrishna’s “homosexuality” to his mysticism. I
regret that I have not been able to make fuller use of the Kripal
text, which was published after this chapter was written.
12. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity”, 60–61.
13. S. Sarkar, “Kathamrita as Text,” 50–71.
14. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity”, 45. Sumit Sarkar
claims, moreover, that the period of Ramakrishna’s popularity
coincided with a “kind of hiatus in bhadralok history,” when dreams of
social reform had been frustrated, official racism was marked, and
liberation through the overthrow of British rule not really
conceivable (“‘Kaliyuga,’ ‘Chakri’ and ‘Bhakti,’” 1547).
15. It is interesting to note that the disciples of Ramakrishna,
notably Vivekananda, preferred the term kamkanchan, “lust-and-gold,”
over the Master’s kaminikanchan and went to great lengths to explain
that the sage’s “symbolic” use of the term did not imply any
misogyny.
16. Nikhilananda, Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, 701. All subsequent
references will be incorporated parenthetically into the text.
17. This insight derives in a general way from Carole-Anne Tyler’s
reading of the ambivalent politics of gay drag (“Boys Will Be Girls:
The Politics of Gay Drag,” in Inside/Out: Lesbian Theories, Gay
Theories, ed. Diana Fuss [New York: Routledge, 1990]) as well from
Kaja Silverman’s account of the mastery permitted by T. E. Lawrence’s
reflexive masochism (“White Skin, Brown Masks”). In The Inner World: A
Psychoanalytic Study of Childhood and Society in India (Delhi: Oxford
University Press, 1978), 103, Sudhir Kakar characterizes Hindu
transvestism thus: “Rituals such as these represent not only the boy’s
attempt to identify with his mother but also the man’s effort to free
himself from her domination. By trying to be like women—wearing their
clothes, acquiring their organs, giving birth—these men are also
saying that they do not need women (mothers) any longer.” For a
sympathetic psychoanalytic reading of Ramakrishna’s assumption of
femininity, see Kakar, “Ramakrishna and the Mystical Experience,” in
The Analyst and the Mystic: Psychoanalytic Reflections on Religion and
Mysticism (New Delhi: Viking, 1991), 1–40.
18. Cited in S. Sarkar, “Kathamrita as Text,” 9.
19. D. S. Sarma, Studies in the Renaissance of Hinduism in the
Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries (Benares: Benares Hindu University,
1944), 237.
20. I am grateful to Gayatri Spivak for pointing out to me the
numerous, and discontinuous, ways in which the English term woman
translates into Bengali (and/or Sanskrit). Even so, it is interesting
to note how often other forms of femininity threaten for Ramakrishna
to collapse into the figure of the kamini. Hence his warning to one of
his young male disciples to beware of women who claim to be actuated
by maternal feelings towards him.
21. Isherwood, Ramakrishna and His Disciples, 113.
22. I put this term in quotation marks to indicate that is placed
under erasure. One cannot assume that transvestism was inflected in
the same way for a nineteenth-century (straight?) Hindu male as it
might be for, say, a contemporary straight North American male. One
has to concede that his masculinity might have been constituted
differently, and in a different relationship to femininity, than might
be the case for our hypothetical North American male.
23. I am thinking here of N. T. Rama Rao’s assumption of feminine
attire, makeup, and jewelry, on one-half of his body in the days of
his chief ministership of Andhra Pradesh, apparently in a bid to
consolidate his political/spiritual power. Philip Spratt also provides
detailed anthropological evidence of religious transvestic ceremonies
all over India (Hindu Culture and Personality [Bombay: Manaktalas,
1966]). See, too, Kathryn Hansen’s splendid essay, “Making Women
Visible: Female Impersonators and Actresses on the Parsi Stage and in
Silent Cinema” (unpublished manuscript).
24. Ashis Nandy, At the Edge of Psychology: Essays in Politics and
Culture (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1990), 38.
25. Wendy Doniger, Women, Androgynes, and Other Mythical Beasts
(Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1980), 319.
26. Ibid., 331.
27. Women could, on occasion, function as gurus; the Bhairavi
Brahmani, for instance, was Ramakrishna’s first guru. Other historical
and contemporary figures like Andal, Mahadeviakka, Mirabai, and
Anandamoyi Ma come to mind as well. Sharada Devi (Ramakrishna’s wife)
herself had several (female and male) disciples. I do not think,
however, that this militates against my understanding of the guru-
disciple relationship as functioning for the most part for and among
males nor against my reading of its gendered significance in early
nationalism.
28. I am obliged to Sandhya Shetty for pointing this out to me. The
gurudakshina (the gift to the guru) is situated outside (economic)
exchange and functions in a symbolic capacity only. The instance of
Drona the archer and his low-caste disciple Eklavya, who had to
sacrifice his thumb to ensure the superiority of the guru’s favorite
pupil Arjuna, only demonstrates that in the guru-shishya configuration
what is offered by the disciple is incommensurable with what is given
by the guru.
29. Life of Sri Ramakrishna, Compiled from Various Authentic Sources
(Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1964), 296.
30. Swami Vivekananda. Vivekananda: The Yogas and Other Works, ed.
Swami Nikhilananda (New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1953),
13.
31. There is no “secular,” critical biography of Ramakrishna except
that by Max Mueller, Ramakrishna: His Life and Sayings (New York:
Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1899). While this inveighs against the
miraculizing tendencies of Ramakrishna’s disciples, not excepting
Vivekananda, and refuses to take Ramakrishna’s avatarhood seriously,
it is nonetheless entirely reverential about the man himself.
32. Life of Sri Ramakrishna, 117.
33. Ibid., 144–45.
34. Ibid., 294.
35. Swami Chetanananda, ed. Ramakrishna as We Saw Him (St. Louis, Mo.:
Vedanta Society of St. Louis, 1990), 110.
36. Sumit Sarkar notes: “Girish Ghosh confessed that seeing
Ramakrishna ‘playing’ with a young disciple made him recall a
‘terrible canard’ that he had once heard about the saint” (“Kathamrita
as Text,” 103).
37. Sister Nivedita [Margaret E. Noble], The Master as I Saw Him
(Calcutta: Udbodhan Office, 1910), 64.
38. Isherwood, Ramakrishna and His Disciples, 204.
39. This is not, of course, to assert that the conflicts were unique
to Naren; as we have seen, in terms of class position and intellectual
training he appears to have been no different from the majority of the
disciples. The others, however, appear to have been less outspoken in
their skepticism than he was. I hardly need add that the memory and
the narrative of these conflicts is overdetermined; if Naren had not
become Vivekananda, we would probably have heard far less of his
interactions with his guru. As it is, in The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
his iconoclasticism is not as evident as that of, say, Bankim or Dr.
Mahendralal Sarkar (neither of whom was a disciple). Nonetheless, he
does seem to have been the unequivocal favorite of Ramakrishna. And it
also seems clear that he was accorded a degree of freedom of speech
and behavior not permitted most of the other disciples. (Girish Ghosh,
who was notorious for his drinking, patronage of prostitutes, and
occasional foul-mouthed invectives against the guru, was one of the
very few others who was granted such a license.)
40. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity.” Sumit Sarkar
emphasizes the saint’s determined pursuit of bhadralok disciples as
well as his reticence about religious practices (of the Baul,
Kartabhaja, and vamachari Tantric varieties) that might have offended
their sensibilities (“The Kathamrita as Text,” 36).
41. Chetanananda, Ramakrishna as We Saw Him, 385–90.
42. My thanks to Inderpal Grewal for suggesting this possibility to
me.
43. Hervey De Witt Griswold, Insights into Modern Hinduism (New York:
Henry Holt, 1934), 58.
44. Nationalism’s dependence on colonialism has been extensively
documented, to some degree by Nandy, Intimate Enemy, but most notably
by Chatterjee, Nationalist Thought. Certainly nationalism-and-
colonialism seems to function as one category for Vivekananda.
45. Not all Brahmos were as skeptical as Shibnath Shastri, who, much
though he admired Ramakrishna, believed that the saint’s austerities
at the beginning of his spiritual career had had deleterious effects
on his mental state; Keshab for one seems to have been less
incredulous of the spiritual nature of the saint’s trances. Sumit
Sarkar points out, interestingly, that while Ramakrishna’s family and
neighbors in Kamarpukur and Dakshineshwar attributed the trances to
madness or “possession,” his bhadralok disciples and admirers
described them as the samadhi state extolled by high Hindu doctrine.
46. Ramakrishna himself made conflicting assertions about his own
avatarhood; at points he dismissed the possibility derisively, while
at other times he claimed to be an avatar of Krishna, Chaitanya, and/
or Kali.
47. Swami Nikhilananda, Vivekananda: A Biography (New York:
Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1953), 42.
48. It is not possible to establish whether any of the swami’s
supporters were simply admirers or actually disciples. It is not
inconceivable that they may have become disciples retroactively,
following Vivekananda’s success in the west.
49. Sankari Prasad Basu and Sunil Bihari Ghosh, eds., Vivekananda in
Indian Newspapers 1893–1902 (Calcutta: Dineshchandra Basu
Bhattacharya, 1969), 9.
50. It should be noted that the swami’s Indian reputation was—to some
degree, at least—induced by himself, as a defensive measure no doubt
against the criticisms he encountered not only from Christian
ministers in the United States but also from members of the Brahmo
Samaj and perhaps the Theosophical Society as well. His early letters
to his disciples in Madras were full of exhortations to them to hold a
meeting in his honor and to proclaim him to the west as a true
spokesperson of Hinduism. He was also careful to keep them informed
about favorable reviews in the U.S. press.
51. Rakhal Chandra Nath, The New Hindu Movement 1886–1911 (Calcutta:
Minerva, 1982), 126.
52. Ibid., 129.
53. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity.”
54. Nath, New Hindu Movement, 115.
55. Vivekananda was rarely consistent in this view; this was typical
of him. At times he deployed the rhetoric of free trade to imply
mutual and equal advantage to east and west; at other times he
insisted that Indians were superior to the west in their indifference
to material things and that in fact the west called out for spiritual
conquest by an “aggressive Hinduism.” In this vacillation Vivekananda
was not untypical of the bourgeois neo-Hindu nationalists of his time.
[BACK]
56. He also enjoined his brother monks in India not to insist on the
acceptance of Ramakrishna’s avatarhood in would-be devotees and
disciples of the new order.
57. Harold W. French, The Swan’s Wide Waters: Ramakrishna and Western
Culture (Port Washington, N.Y.: Kennikat Press, 1974), 58.
58. Raychaudhuri, Europe Reconsidered, 230.
59. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity.”
60. Nath, New Hindu Movement, 114.
61. Ibid., 17. Note that Bankim’s novel was undoubtedly the product of
a distinctly westward-looking nationalism. Nath describes Aurobindo’s
“Bhawani Mandir” as derived from Anandmath (and remarkably similar to
Vivekananda’s own cult of the warlike monk) in its emphasis on
manliness and in its devotion to Kali. [BACK]
62. Chatterjee, “Religion of Urban Domesticity,” 61.
63. Vivekananda, Vivekananda: The Yogas and Other Works, 151.
64. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s cult of physical fitness and
martial arts training has a great deal in common with Vivekananda’s
endorsement of “beef, biceps, and Bhagavad-Gita.”
65. Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda, by His Eastern and Western
Admirers (Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1964 [1961]), 347.
66. At this point in Indian history, bourgeois and Hindu nationalisms—
the first represented by “moderates” in the Congress Party calling for
secular and constitutional reforms, the latter by Tilak, Bankim, and
others—have assumed the status of two distinct categories, though
quite often they function as one. I bear in mind also Sudipta
Kaviraj’s important caveat against the conflation of distinct
nationalisms (his own concern is with “early” and “mature”
nationalisms), which must be seen as disjunct rather than articulated
phenomena in Indian history; see Sudipta Kaviraj, “The Imaginary
Institution of India,” in Subaltern Studies VII: Writings on South
Asian History and Society, ed. Partha Chatterjee and Gyanendra Pandey
(New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1991).
67. Basu and Ghosh, Vivekananda in Indian Newspapers, 27.
68. Nivedita, The Master as I Saw Him, 231.
69. Ibid., 388 (emphases in the original). [
70. Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda, 252. The speaker in this
instance was a woman, Constance Towne.
71. Marie Louise Burke, Swami Vivekananda in America: New Discoveries
(Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1958), 16.
72. Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda, 14.
73. Swami Vivekananda and His Guru (London and Madras: Christian
Literature Society for India, 1897), iv.
74. There is, to the uninstructed viewer, little if anything of the
disarrangement of limbs or clothing that normally marked the sage’s
experience of samadhi.
75. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, “A Literary Representation of the
Subaltern,” in In Other Worlds (London and New York: Routledge, 1987),
264.
76. Nivedita functions here as a type of the western female disciple.
77. Mary Ann Doane, “Dark Continents: Epistemologies of Racial and
Sexual Difference in Psychoanalysis and the Cinema,” in Femmes
Fatales: Feminism, Film Theory, Psychoanalysis (New York and London:
Routledge, 1991), 244.
78. Marie Louise Burke, Swami Vivekananda: His Second Visit to the
West; New Discoveries (Calcutta: Advaita Ashram, 1973).
79. Kakar, Inner World, 160.
80. See, for instance, Romila Thapar: “[The ascetic] is celibate and
yet, at the same time, the most virile of men. The ascetic’s
demonstration of sexual prowess is not a contradiction in terms: it is
in fact a demonstration of his complete control over body functions,
since ideally the emission of semen is prohibited to
him” (“Renunciation: The Making of a Counter-Culture?” in Ancient
Indian Social History: Some Interpretations [Delhi: n.p., 1978], 94).
Also see Joseph Alter: “The whole purpose of brahmacharya [celibacy]
is to build up a resilient store of semen so that the body—in a
holistic, psychosomatic sense—radiates an aura of vitality and
strength” (“Celibacy, Sexuality, and the Transformation of Gender into
Nationalism in North India,” Journal of Asian Studies 53, no. 1
[1994]: 51).
81. Steve Neale, “Masculinity as Spectacle,” in The Sexual Subject: A
Screen Reader in Sexuality (London and New York: Routledge, 1992), 277–
87.
82. Ibid., 286.
83. Swami Vivekananda, “The Future of India,” in Lectures from Colombo
to Almora (Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1956), 267.
84. Reminiscences of Swami Vivekananda, 196. Sister Christine
(Christine Greenstidel) goes on to remark on the companionship of
Sadananda and Vivekananda on their North Indian pilgrimage: “Both were
artistic, both were poets by nature, both were attractive in
appearance. Artists raved about them.”
Nivedita also confesses, though far more discreetly, that she was
drawn to the swami by his “personality” rather his philosophy, which
she initially found unoriginal. Her “biography” of him, The Master as
I Saw Him, is remarkable for its reticence about his corporeality.
85. That such a construction of femininity was not necessarily
exclusive to Hindu reformers/revivalists is borne out by Faisal
Fatehali Devji: “[Muslim] reformist literature replaces the aggressive
sexual woman with the pathetic or suffering woman-as-mother” (“Gender
and the Politics of Space: The Movement for Women’s Reform in Muslim
India, 1857–1900,” South Asia, 14, no. 1 [1991], 151).
86. Partha Chatterjee, “The Nationalist Resolution of the Women’s
Question,” in Recasting Women: Essays in Indian Colonial History, ed.
Kumkum Sangari and Sudesh Vaid (New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers
University Press, 1990), 237.
87. Sister Nivedita, The Web of Indian Life (London: William
Heinemann, 1904), 32–45.
88. See, among others, Lata Mani, “Contentious Traditions: The Debate
on Sati in Colonial India,” in The Nature and Context of Minority
Discourse, ed. Abdul JanMohamed and David Lloyd (Oxford and New York:
Oxford University Press, 1990); Kumkum Sangari and Sudesh Vaid, eds.,
Recasting Women: Essays in Indian Colonial History (New Brunswick,
N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1990); Chatterjee, Nation and Its
Fragments; and Madhu Kishwar, “Gandhi on Women,” Economic and
Political Weekly, 5 October 1985, 1691–1702.
89. Monier Monier-Williams, Religious Thought and Life in India (New
Delhi: Oriental Books Reprint Corporation, 1974 [1883]), 184–85. Also
see David R. Kinsley, “Kali: Blood and Death Out of Place,” in Devi:
Goddesses of India, ed. John S. Hawley and Donna M. Wulff (Berkeley
and London: University of California Press, 1996); and Ajit Mookerjee,
Kali: The Feminine Force (New York: Destiny Books, 1988).
90. Sumanta Banerjee, “Marginalization of Women’s Popular Culture in
Nineteenth Century Bengal,” in Recasting Women: Essays in Indian
Colonial History, ed. Kumkum Sangari and Sudesh Vaid (New Brunswick,
N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1990), 158.
91. Ramakrishna was married at the age of twenty-three to Sharadamoni
Debi, a child-bride of five. According to custom, she remained in her
natal home, while Ramakrishna continued his spiritual disciplines at
Dakshineshwar, forgetful of her existence. At eighteen she sought him
out at Dakshineshwar and acceded to his request that their marriage
remain unconsummated. Over the remaining decade and a half of
Ramakrishna’s life, she spent extended periods at Dakshineshwar, doing
his housekeeping and cooking and (usually) living in a separate
building in the temple complex. [BACK]
92. Nivedita, The Master as I Saw Him, 65.
93. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, “A Literary Representation of the
Subaltern,” in In Other Worlds: Essays in Cultural Politics (New York
and London: Routledge, 1987), 244. [BACK]
94. Nivedita, The Master as I Saw Him, 83.
95. Raychaudhuri, Europe Reconsidered, 242.
96. Swami Vivekananda, Letters of Swami Vivekananda (Calcutta: Advaita
Ashrama, 1964), 167–68.
97. Pandita Ramabai Saraswati (1858–1922) was a notable scholar and a
Hindu widow who converted to Christianity during a visit to England
and dedicated her life to the uplift of young Hindu widows. Her book,
The High-Caste Hindu Woman (London: George Bell and Sons, 1888), as
well as her travels in England and the United States, gained her
sympathy from feminists as well as Christian missionaries abroad and
censure from Hindu conservatives at home. Her shelter for widows, the
Sharda Sadan in Pune, was supported in large part by funds raised by
Ramabai Circles in the United States and England. Her travels in the
United States in the 1880s received extensive coverage in the U.S.
press.
98. Basu and Ghosh, Vivekananda in Indian Newspapers, 421–68.
99. This is necessarily a simplification of Vivekananda’s very
complicated responses to the issues of (gender and other) reform,
nationalism, and colonialism. The split was not simply between
“home” (where reform had to endorsed) and abroad (where Hinduism had
to be defended); even at “home” he had decidedly mixed responses to
reform and (religious and social) orthodoxy.
100. The phrase is Nivedita’s (The Master as I Saw Him, 124). In an
interesting departure from the hagiographical tradition in which
accounts of Ramakrishna and Vivekananda are produced (and in which
tradition Nivedita’s own work uneasily belongs), she emphasizes not
the continuity of their respective “gospels” but their distinctness
from each other. She does this, besides, in a fashion that highlights
the swami’s struggles and doubts: “Sri Ramakrishna had been, as the
Swami himself said once of him, ‘like a flower,’ living apart in the
garden of a temple, simple, half-naked, orthodox, the ideal of the old
time in India, suddenly burst into bloom, in a world that had thought
to dismiss its very memory. It was at one the greatness and the
tragedy of my own Master’s life that he was not of this type. His was
the modern mind in its completeness.…His hope could not pass by
unheeded,…the hope of men of the nineteenth century” (The Master as I
Saw Him, 124–25).
101. Chatterjee, “Nationalist Resolution,” 237–38.
102. She was not, however, recognizably a nineteenth-century British
feminist—at least from the evidence of her early writings—even though
much has been made in the biographies of her feminism and other
“excesses.” Apparently Vivekananda himself made fun of her putative
feminism.
103. Quoted in Barbara Foxe, Long Journey Home: A Biography of
Margaret Noble (Nivedita) (London: Rider, 1975), 32–33.
104. Quoted in Vron Ware, Beyond the Pale: White Women, Racism and
History (London and New York: Verso, 1992), 121.
105. Sharada Devi seems to have been a figure who was not
unequivocally reverenced by the followers of Ramakrishna. Many
devotees visited her at Jayrambati and Kamarpukur, and she initiated
several people into discipleship. She was sometimes spoken of as an
avatar—like her husband—and the heiress to his spiritual kingdom. But
she was also often accused of being excessively worldly. Ramakrishna’s
most prominent disciples visited her only rarely; Swami Nikhilananda
says that this was because they hesitated to “[make] a display of
their spiritual fervour.” See his Holy Mother: Being the Life of Sri
Sarada Devi, Wife of Sri Ramakrishna and Helpmate in His Mission
(London: George Allen & Unwin, 1962). Spivak speaks of the way in
which her official biographer, Swami Gambhirananda, staged her as “a
counter-echo to what he perceived as the strong voice of the Western
Narcissus” (“Asked to Talk about Myself…,” Third Text 19 [Summer
1992]: 17). I would argue that this could only happen retrospectively,
and at a later moment from the one that Vivekananda inhabits.
106. See, for instance, Meredith Borthwick, The Changing Role of Women
in Bengal, 1849–1905 (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press,
1984), esp. chaps. 8 and 9; Ghulam Murshid, Reluctant Debutante:
Response of Bengali Women to Modernization, 1849–1905 (Rajshashi,
Bangladesh: Sahitya Samsad, 1983); and Kumar, History of Doing, esp.
chaps. 2 and 3.
107. The Indian woman was, obviously, recast in the nationalist moment—
as was the Indian man; but recast and fixed, with little room for
negotiation after the recasting had been effected. For an analysis of
a nationalist woman’s struggles with gendered identities in
nationalism, see chapter 5.
108. Romain Rolland, The Life of Vivekananda and the Universal Gospel,
trans. E. F. Malcolm-Smith (Mayavati, India: Advaita Ashrama, 1947),
152, n. 2.
109. Nivedita, The Master as I Saw Him, 136–37.
110. Quoted in Pravrajika Atmaprana, Sister Nivedita of Ramakrishna-
Vivekananda (Calcutta: Sister Nivedita Girls’ School, 1961), 30.
111. Foxe, Long Journey Home, 128.
112. Rakhal Nath maintains that the Ramakrishna Mission was the only
non-political body to come out of the “New Hindu” or Hindu revivalist
movement (Nath, New Hindu Movement). [BACK]
113. Foxe, Long Journey Home, 136.
114. Ibid., 150–51.
115. Barbara N. Ramusack, “Cultural Missionaries, Maternal
Imperialists, Feminist Allies: British Women Activists in India, 1865–
1945,” in Western Women and Imperialism: Complicity and Resistance,
ed. Nupur Chaudhuri and Margaret Strobel (Bloomington and
Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1992), 130.
116. S. B. Mookherjee, “Nivedita and Indian Womanhood,” in Nivedita
Commemoration Volume, ed. Amiya Kumar Majumdar (Calcutta: Dhiraj Basu,
1968), 244.
117. She met Gandhi briefly in Calcutta, in the early years of the
century. Gandhi (who in so many ways would grow to resemble the figure
of Ramakrishna) admired her Hindu partisanship but was unable to agree
with her on nationalist politics. The Congress Party under Gandhi had
a profoundly uneasy relationship with militant nationalist women like
Nivedita and the Rani of Jhansi.
118. Lizelle Reymond’s The Dedicated: A Biography of Nivedita (New
York: John Day, 1953) also helped disseminate this image, though its
factual claims have since been contested. Kumari Jayawardena’s chapter
on Nivedita (“Irish Rebellion and ‘Muscular Hinduism,’” in White
Woman’s Other Burden) describes the contradictory ways in which the
disciple of Vivekananda is remembered.
119. My thanks to Carole-Anne Tyler for sensitizing me to this
possibility. [BACK]
120. Foxe’s biography, Long Journey Home, is particularly derisive in
this regard. What had been admirable “manliness” in Vivekananda was
forwardness in the female disciple. [BACK]
121. Ibid., 205. [BACK]
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