Dalit Bahujan Adivasi
Finally Dalit Christians in SC list, Valmikis as STs: YSR Jagan Reddy in Andhra
With these state government resolutions, Jagan pushes ahead with outreach to the marginalised; both groups backed the YSRCP to the hilt in the 2019 elections; Andhra CM also assures other tribal groups that inclusion of Valmikis won’t affect existing quotas.
Over a month after the Telangana Assembly passed a resolution on including the Boya or the Valmiki community in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list, the Andhra Pradesh government last week pushed through a similar resolution in the Assembly.
However Andhra Pradesh went further. The Andhra Stage Assembly on Friday, March 24 also passed a resolution urging that the Union Government include Dalit Christians in the Scheduled Castes (SC) list, with Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy saying that the social and economic status of people doesn’t change automatically just because they convert to another religion. The issue of granting SC status to Dalit Christians was discussed during the tenure of Jagan’s father Dr Y S Rajashekar Reddy. This is a long standing demand of the Dalit Christian community with the matter being challenged in the Supreme Court.
Earlier, the Congress government of undivided Andhra Pradesh had also urged the Centre to accept the recommendation. Though both the YSR Congress Party of the CM and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) jostled for their votes, in the last elections in May 2019 they shifted they backed the ruling party.
Currently, a committee headed by former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan is examining the issue of quotas for Dalit Muslims and Christians. The ideological fountainhead of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), however, has said recently that the current reservation system should not be tinkered with and quota should not be extended to Muslim and Christian Dalits since their religions claim to be egalitarian.
Meanwhile, after the Assembly passed the resolution on including Valmikis in the ST category, Reddy quickly reassured other tribal groups that the inclusion of the Boyas would not affect the existing quotas. In Andhra Pradesh, STs enjoy six per cent reservation. The CM said the resolution was introduced to fulfil a promise he had made to the community during a padayatra he undertook before coming to power in May 2019.
The CM allayed fears that including Valmiki community people from Kurnool, Kadapa, Anantapu
This inclusion of Boyas or Valmikis may only have a negligible impact on Group 1 jobs that come under the non-zoning category. It becomes negligible as only 386 Group 1 jobs have been notified in the last 10 years and the six per cent reservation only amounts to 21 or 22 posts.
The one-man Commission of retired IAS officer Samuel Anand Kumar who studied the social and economic conditions of the Boyas in the four districts and the ST Commission also agreed with this assessment, said the Chief Minister. State government jobs in the zoning system and districts constitute 99 per of the total jobs and the STs of the tribal agency areas would suffer no job loss because of the proposed inclusion of the group.
“The biggest fear of STs is a loss of jobs when other communities are added to the group. The zoning system may offset the inclusion of Boyas/Valmikis in the ST list, it remains to be seen what will happen in other sectors where there is no zoning system,” said ST leader V Ranga Rao.
The Boyas traditionally supported the Congress but as the grand old party’s electoral footprint shrank after the state’s bifurcation in 2014, they shifted to the YSRCP, backing it to the hilt in 2019. The TDP government had also proposed to include Boyas in the ST list. After losing power in 2019, when the demand for inclusion in the ST list was again raised by the community, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the matter, saying the community needs help, and requested the Centre to introduce a Bill in Parliament.
“The TDP tried to create divisions by proposing the resolution but not implementing it. We have passed the resolution and will implement it. Boya community is now fully with YSRCP,’’ said Tribal Welfare Minister P Rajanna Dora.
Consequently, on February 10 this year, the Telangana government passed a resolution in Assembly recommending to the Centre to include Valmiki Boyas in the ST list along with other caste groups such as the Pedda Boyas, Khaiti Lambadas, Mali Saha Bedars, Kiratakas, Nishadis, Bhat Mathuralus, Chamar Mathuras, Chunduwals, and Thalayaris.
CM K Chandrashekar Rao, who introduced the resolution, said the state government had accepted the recommendation of a Commission of Inquiry for Scheduled Tribes in 2016 for the inclusion of the Valmiki Boyas, Kirataka, and other groups and submitted the same to the Centre.
Since no response had been received from the Union government, the Assembly unanimously resolved to recommend to the Centre to include the communities in the ST list, said the CM, reading out the resolution. Besides, he also proposed that the Mali community living in the districts of Adilabad, Komram Bheem Asifabad and Mancherial be included in the ST list, given their socio-economic conditions.
A comprehensive report on this has been filed in The Indian Express.
Related:
Why Should Dalit Christians not get Reservations as Scheduled Castes, Notice to Centre: SC
Finally Dalit Christians in SC list, Valmikis as STs: YSR Jagan Reddy in Andhra
With these state government resolutions, Jagan pushes ahead with outreach to the marginalised; both groups backed the YSRCP to the hilt in the 2019 elections; Andhra CM also assures other tribal groups that inclusion of Valmikis won’t affect existing quotas.
Over a month after the Telangana Assembly passed a resolution on including the Boya or the Valmiki community in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list, the Andhra Pradesh government last week pushed through a similar resolution in the Assembly.
However Andhra Pradesh went further. The Andhra Stage Assembly on Friday, March 24 also passed a resolution urging that the Union Government include Dalit Christians in the Scheduled Castes (SC) list, with Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy saying that the social and economic status of people doesn’t change automatically just because they convert to another religion. The issue of granting SC status to Dalit Christians was discussed during the tenure of Jagan’s father Dr Y S Rajashekar Reddy. This is a long standing demand of the Dalit Christian community with the matter being challenged in the Supreme Court.
Earlier, the Congress government of undivided Andhra Pradesh had also urged the Centre to accept the recommendation. Though both the YSR Congress Party of the CM and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) jostled for their votes, in the last elections in May 2019 they shifted they backed the ruling party.
Currently, a committee headed by former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan is examining the issue of quotas for Dalit Muslims and Christians. The ideological fountainhead of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), however, has said recently that the current reservation system should not be tinkered with and quota should not be extended to Muslim and Christian Dalits since their religions claim to be egalitarian.
Meanwhile, after the Assembly passed the resolution on including Valmikis in the ST category, Reddy quickly reassured other tribal groups that the inclusion of the Boyas would not affect the existing quotas. In Andhra Pradesh, STs enjoy six per cent reservation. The CM said the resolution was introduced to fulfil a promise he had made to the community during a padayatra he undertook before coming to power in May 2019.
The CM allayed fears that including Valmiki community people from Kurnool, Kadapa, Anantapu
This inclusion of Boyas or Valmikis may only have a negligible impact on Group 1 jobs that come under the non-zoning category. It becomes negligible as only 386 Group 1 jobs have been notified in the last 10 years and the six per cent reservation only amounts to 21 or 22 posts.
The one-man Commission of retired IAS officer Samuel Anand Kumar who studied the social and economic conditions of the Boyas in the four districts and the ST Commission also agreed with this assessment, said the Chief Minister. State government jobs in the zoning system and districts constitute 99 per of the total jobs and the STs of the tribal agency areas would suffer no job loss because of the proposed inclusion of the group.
“The biggest fear of STs is a loss of jobs when other communities are added to the group. The zoning system may offset the inclusion of Boyas/Valmikis in the ST list, it remains to be seen what will happen in other sectors where there is no zoning system,” said ST leader V Ranga Rao.
The Boyas traditionally supported the Congress but as the grand old party’s electoral footprint shrank after the state’s bifurcation in 2014, they shifted to the YSRCP, backing it to the hilt in 2019. The TDP government had also proposed to include Boyas in the ST list. After losing power in 2019, when the demand for inclusion in the ST list was again raised by the community, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the matter, saying the community needs help, and requested the Centre to introduce a Bill in Parliament.
“The TDP tried to create divisions by proposing the resolution but not implementing it. We have passed the resolution and will implement it. Boya community is now fully with YSRCP,’’ said Tribal Welfare Minister P Rajanna Dora.
Consequently, on February 10 this year, the Telangana government passed a resolution in Assembly recommending to the Centre to include Valmiki Boyas in the ST list along with other caste groups such as the Pedda Boyas, Khaiti Lambadas, Mali Saha Bedars, Kiratakas, Nishadis, Bhat Mathuralus, Chamar Mathuras, Chunduwals, and Thalayaris.
CM K Chandrashekar Rao, who introduced the resolution, said the state government had accepted the recommendation of a Commission of Inquiry for Scheduled Tribes in 2016 for the inclusion of the Valmiki Boyas, Kirataka, and other groups and submitted the same to the Centre.
Since no response had been received from the Union government, the Assembly unanimously resolved to recommend to the Centre to include the communities in the ST list, said the CM, reading out the resolution. Besides, he also proposed that the Mali community living in the districts of Adilabad, Komram Bheem Asifabad and Mancherial be included in the ST list, given their socio-economic conditions.
A comprehensive report on this has been filed in The Indian Express.
Related:
Why Should Dalit Christians not get Reservations as Scheduled Castes, Notice to Centre: SC
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MP, UP: incidents of hate, intolerance and violence against Muslims reported from both states
Targeting of religious minorities continue, in one shocking incident the police reportedly beat up Muslim locals who had called them for help
Representation Image / AFP
An old video of seven Muslims offering Namaaz in the open ground of Sanskriti University is being circulated on social media by the extremist Hindutva organisation All India Hindu Mahasabha, in an attempt to stir up controversy by falsely claiming that its Kashmiri students offer Namaaz in the open on the campus every day. The Hindu Mahasabha used a month-old video of seven Muslims offering Namaaz as part of a demonstration at the district collector’s office on Saturday and handed a memorandum to officials alleging the university was facilitating "Namaaz on the campus."
It is worth noting that the Yogi Adityanath government banned all religious activities in public places in Uttar Pradesh in 2021. As was provided by the Telegraph, the Mahasabha treasurer Dinesh Sharma, who was also a part of the demonstration, claimed that there are 82 Kashmiri students at Sanskriti University and they offer Namaaz in the open on the campus every day. They then issued a warning that “We want the district administration to stop this immediately or we will proceed to recite the Hanuman Chalisa there as well as at the Idgah mosque in the city,” as reported by the Telegraph. Referring to the open offering of Namaaz as an alarming and criminal incident, the Hindu Mahasabha members also said that the Sabha will purify the grounds with gangajal.
The video can be viewed here:
This is from #Mathura, #UttarPradesh.#Muslim students offering prayers on #SanskritiUniversity’s campus have sparked outrage from #Hindutva groups, who are seeking action and threatening to recite the #HanumanChalisa in the university.#HateCrime pic.twitter.com/ImFCuaQMxI
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
As reported by the Telegraph, a senior administrative officer of the University provided that the Mahasabha are showing an old video in which seven students in the university uniform (white shirt and grey trousers) are seen offering Namaaz on an open ground on the campus. He added that “We are a reputable private university imparting education in engineering, medicine and the humanities in an excellent atmosphere. Some people are trying to derail our purely academic venture.”
Vivek Srivastava, another administrative officer of the Sanskriti University, said some students had indeed offered Namaaz in the open on the campus a month ago, as per the Telegraph. Pursuant to the incident, the administration had spoken to them and the issue was resolved amicably. The college administration had also informed the district administration about this through the local intelligence unit of the police at the time.
Vivek further said that “Some people are showing an old video and alleging that Namaaz is being offered here in the open every day. This is baseless and wrong.”
A separate incident of violence against Muslims was reported from the state of Madhya Pradesh, where an altercation between two groups of youth resulted in local Muslims being attacked and having stones thrown at them while praying in a mosque. A video of the incident, which occurred in Temikhurd, Khandwa, is making rounds on social media. In the video, a man is seen lying on a hospital bed with multiple injuries all over his body. The incident was described by a few people. According to them, some abusive messages were exchanged between the young members, as a result of which a crowd pelted stones at the Muslims while they were inside the mosque offering prayers. Some members were injured and taken to the hospital.
What's more shocking and concerning is that local Muslims claim that when police arrived, they lathi-charged them. According to the locals in the video, the Muslims called the police to protect them, but the police began lathi charging them without even listening to their complaint. Locals claimed that they broke down their doors, dragged young Muslims from their homes, and beat them up. Thus, in addition to the mob pelting stones at the Muslims offering Namaaz inside the mosque, the police also abused them violently.
The video can be viewed here:
This is from #Temikhurd, #Khandwa, #MadhyaPradesh.
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
Local #Muslims allege that they were attacked and stones pelted at them when offering prayers in a mosque. Some members were injured and hospitalized.#HateCrime #MPPolice pic.twitter.com/9DPiP6ftkQ
Another incident of physical abuse was reported from Uttar Pradesh was reported. In the said incident, Dalit youth were mistaken to be Muslims and beaten up by extremists over allegations of cow slaughter in Bargaon Village of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh. A video recording of the beating, shot by the goons themselves, was uploaded on social media, where a man can be seen beating another youth and saying “yogi ke raj mei yahi hoga musalmaano ka (this is exactly what will happen to Muslims while Yogi government is there)”
The same man then beats up three more young boys. The person recording the video can be heard instigating the abuser and saying that these Muslims should be beaten up more as they steal and slaughter cows.
The video can be viewed here:
Dalit youth mistaken to be #Muslim beaten by extremists over allegations of cow slaughter in #Bargaon Village of #Saharanpur district in #UttarPradesh.pic.twitter.com/xssode7JjC
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
Related:
Bilkis Bano gang rape convict shares stage with BJP MP, MLA: Gujarat
Family of Momeen, arrested for posting whatsapp status for Aurangzeb, forced to leave village
Rising Intolerance in Maharashtra: 2 Muslim boys arrested for putting a status on Aurangzeb
Maharashtra: Vitriolic speaker from Gujarat calls for economic boycott of Muslims in Mira-Bhayandar
MP, UP: incidents of hate, intolerance and violence against Muslims reported from both states
Targeting of religious minorities continue, in one shocking incident the police reportedly beat up Muslim locals who had called them for help
Representation Image / AFP
An old video of seven Muslims offering Namaaz in the open ground of Sanskriti University is being circulated on social media by the extremist Hindutva organisation All India Hindu Mahasabha, in an attempt to stir up controversy by falsely claiming that its Kashmiri students offer Namaaz in the open on the campus every day. The Hindu Mahasabha used a month-old video of seven Muslims offering Namaaz as part of a demonstration at the district collector’s office on Saturday and handed a memorandum to officials alleging the university was facilitating "Namaaz on the campus."
It is worth noting that the Yogi Adityanath government banned all religious activities in public places in Uttar Pradesh in 2021. As was provided by the Telegraph, the Mahasabha treasurer Dinesh Sharma, who was also a part of the demonstration, claimed that there are 82 Kashmiri students at Sanskriti University and they offer Namaaz in the open on the campus every day. They then issued a warning that “We want the district administration to stop this immediately or we will proceed to recite the Hanuman Chalisa there as well as at the Idgah mosque in the city,” as reported by the Telegraph. Referring to the open offering of Namaaz as an alarming and criminal incident, the Hindu Mahasabha members also said that the Sabha will purify the grounds with gangajal.
The video can be viewed here:
This is from #Mathura, #UttarPradesh.#Muslim students offering prayers on #SanskritiUniversity’s campus have sparked outrage from #Hindutva groups, who are seeking action and threatening to recite the #HanumanChalisa in the university.#HateCrime pic.twitter.com/ImFCuaQMxI
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
As reported by the Telegraph, a senior administrative officer of the University provided that the Mahasabha are showing an old video in which seven students in the university uniform (white shirt and grey trousers) are seen offering Namaaz on an open ground on the campus. He added that “We are a reputable private university imparting education in engineering, medicine and the humanities in an excellent atmosphere. Some people are trying to derail our purely academic venture.”
Vivek Srivastava, another administrative officer of the Sanskriti University, said some students had indeed offered Namaaz in the open on the campus a month ago, as per the Telegraph. Pursuant to the incident, the administration had spoken to them and the issue was resolved amicably. The college administration had also informed the district administration about this through the local intelligence unit of the police at the time.
Vivek further said that “Some people are showing an old video and alleging that Namaaz is being offered here in the open every day. This is baseless and wrong.”
A separate incident of violence against Muslims was reported from the state of Madhya Pradesh, where an altercation between two groups of youth resulted in local Muslims being attacked and having stones thrown at them while praying in a mosque. A video of the incident, which occurred in Temikhurd, Khandwa, is making rounds on social media. In the video, a man is seen lying on a hospital bed with multiple injuries all over his body. The incident was described by a few people. According to them, some abusive messages were exchanged between the young members, as a result of which a crowd pelted stones at the Muslims while they were inside the mosque offering prayers. Some members were injured and taken to the hospital.
What's more shocking and concerning is that local Muslims claim that when police arrived, they lathi-charged them. According to the locals in the video, the Muslims called the police to protect them, but the police began lathi charging them without even listening to their complaint. Locals claimed that they broke down their doors, dragged young Muslims from their homes, and beat them up. Thus, in addition to the mob pelting stones at the Muslims offering Namaaz inside the mosque, the police also abused them violently.
The video can be viewed here:
This is from #Temikhurd, #Khandwa, #MadhyaPradesh.
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
Local #Muslims allege that they were attacked and stones pelted at them when offering prayers in a mosque. Some members were injured and hospitalized.#HateCrime #MPPolice pic.twitter.com/9DPiP6ftkQ
Another incident of physical abuse was reported from Uttar Pradesh was reported. In the said incident, Dalit youth were mistaken to be Muslims and beaten up by extremists over allegations of cow slaughter in Bargaon Village of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh. A video recording of the beating, shot by the goons themselves, was uploaded on social media, where a man can be seen beating another youth and saying “yogi ke raj mei yahi hoga musalmaano ka (this is exactly what will happen to Muslims while Yogi government is there)”
The same man then beats up three more young boys. The person recording the video can be heard instigating the abuser and saying that these Muslims should be beaten up more as they steal and slaughter cows.
The video can be viewed here:
Dalit youth mistaken to be #Muslim beaten by extremists over allegations of cow slaughter in #Bargaon Village of #Saharanpur district in #UttarPradesh.pic.twitter.com/xssode7JjC
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) March 26, 2023
Related:
Bilkis Bano gang rape convict shares stage with BJP MP, MLA: Gujarat
Family of Momeen, arrested for posting whatsapp status for Aurangzeb, forced to leave village
Rising Intolerance in Maharashtra: 2 Muslim boys arrested for putting a status on Aurangzeb
Maharashtra: Vitriolic speaker from Gujarat calls for economic boycott of Muslims in Mira-Bhayandar
Related Articles
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‘The Elephant Whisperers’ & the banality of Hindu American Foundation’s Attempt to co-opt Adivasis
The Hindutva protagonists’ fixation to designate indigenous tribes of India as “Hindus” goes back to the times of their founder, M.S. Golwalkar.
Suhag Shukla of the Hindu American Foundation had tweeted some time back that the fact that the Adivasi couple in the documentary "The Elephant Whisperers" were seen practicing Hindu customs proves the "inarguable indigeneity" of Hinduism. I wrote a rejoinder to that claim in the American Kahani, titled. "The Elephant Whisperers and the Disingenuity of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF)'s attempt to co-opt Adivasis" writes Raju Rajagopal in American Kahani.
In a recent tweet, Suhag Shukla of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) claimed that the portrayal of Bomman and Ellie in the documentary “The Elephant Whisperers” underscores Hinduism’s “inarguable indigeneity.”
She takes a giant leap of faith from an Adivasi couple who happen to follow Hindu practices to declaring that their forebears must have also been Hindus. Extensive scholarship on the tribes of the Nilgiris dating back 150 years shows no basis for such a simplistic and self-serving assertion.
Bomman & Bellie, couple featured in #ElephantWhisperers, are amazing exemplars of Hindu values. He is a Hindu priest & both personify Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam in communing with Raghu & Krishna. If they’re “Adivasi,” as we’re told, they underscore Hinduism’s inarguable indigeneity. pic.twitter.com/bWdehupewe
— Suhag A. Shukla (@SuhagAShukla) March 14, 2023
My wife and I have long been supporting tribal communities in the Nilgiris, where “The Elephant Whisperers” was filmed. Over the last 20 years, we have had many opportunities to spend time with community-based organizations that support them in education, healthcare, and land rights.
The fact is, despite all the pressures to assimilate with the larger communities, the primary self-identity of these indigenous communities is still their tribe: Kattunayakans (hunter-gatherers), Mullukurumbas (settled agriculturalists), Bettekurumbas (shifting agriculturists and now forest department workers), and Paniyas (bonded workers in the recent past, who’re now casual laborers or small tea growers).
Each tribe has its own distinct customs and languages: Bettakurumbas do identify as Hindu, and many of their traditional animistic spaces of worship have been taken over as mainstream Hindu temples. Most others practice their traditional faiths mixed with Hindu symbols. They are typically meat-eaters, but some are known to consume beef as well, which is not uncommon among many Adivasi tribes. Mullukurumbas and Kattunayakans have very little in common in their socio-economic status.
It was a huge disappointment to see the Hindu American Foundation elide over all the real issues faced by tribal communities and instead zero in on their supposed Hindu ancestry – a red herring, in my view.
Bomman, in “The Elephant Whisperers” is a kattunayakan (as he says at the start of the film), and Bellie is a Bettakurumba. The film was set in the mixed community of Thepakadu, inside the Mudumalai forest, where tribals and non-tribal forest department workers live together. So, their getting married didn’t fall into either of their tribe’s customs and was more Hinduized, as we saw in the documentary.
Some of the shared traits that distinguish the tribes of the Nilgiris from the people from the plains include a natural inclination towards gender equality, excellent female hygiene, and a relaxed attitude towards sex and marriage. On the health side, many tribal communities exhibit genetic abnormalities not seen in the plains, including sickle cell anemia — which they share with America’s indigenous and black communities.
Most of the tribes in the Gudalur area are members of the Adivasi Munnetra Sangam (AMS), which was set up in 1988 and has helped them defend and regain their rights to forest resources and to lands that had been promised to them, but were often encroached upon with impunity by corporate tea plantations.
The collective term “Adivasi” (which simply means original inhabitants) refers to hundreds of indigenous communities throughout India and is now in common usage. In contrast, the term “vanvasi” (forest dweller) is a term coined by Hindu nationalists, chosen consciously to deny their indigeneity. Most Adivasis reject that label.
Since AMS was established in 1988 under the umbrella of the NGO, ACCORD, the lives of 20,000 Adivasis in the Gudalur area have changed dramatically. They fought for and regained hundreds of acres of land. Tribals who used to stop on the streets to look away and avoid eye contact with non-tribals (who considered them inauspicious), walk with their heads held high today. Some of the Paniyas who were bonded to the land-owning Chettis, are now small tea plantation owners or casual laborers.
Communities that seldom saw doctors and hospitals in the 1990s, and used to leave their sick in their verandahs to recover or to die, now run a 50-bed modern hospital, under ASHWINI, with such superior care that even non-Adivasis in the area now prefer to go there. Thanks to ASHWINI, the infant mortality rate has fallen from 250 per 1,000 in 1987 to around 20 per 1,000 these days. Maternal deaths are also getting fewer each year.
A school started initially to educate the children of ACCORD, has blossomed into an Adivasi school VIDYODAYA, which emphasizes the preservation of tribal cultures and languages, while at the same time teaching the best of science, math, and the environment.
Given this backdrop, my hope after I saw “The Elephant Whisperers” was that the movie might stimulate discussions on issues such as the worldwide movement against elephants in captivity; the fragile co-existence of man and elephants and the proposal for an elephant corridor that would displace many Adivasis; imminent dangers to Adivasi communities by efforts to gut the 2006 Forest Rights Act; and challenges faced by the Nilgiris biosphere reserve by proposed projects like the underground lab for neutrino studies, which could displace thousands of people from their ancestral homes.
So, to me, it was a huge disappointment to see the Hindu American Foundation elide over all the real issues faced by tribal communities and instead zero in on their supposed Hindu ancestry – a red herring, in my view.
Suhag Shukla’s tweet exemplifies the shallow and monochromatic ideology of Hindutva, especially when it comes to issues that affect the daily lives of marginalized communities. But then, her tweet was merely a continuation of the decades-old effort by the RSS and its Parivar to co-opt Adivasis into Hinduism by whatever means necessary.
Back in 1951, in response to questions on how beef-eating tribals in the North East could be considered Hindus, Guruji Golwalkar had come up with this bizarre explanation:
“They have been basically Hindus all along, had been deprived of the benefit to proper Hindu religious enlightenment for a long time solely because of lack of communication and contacts with the rest of the society and its culture. As such it was no fault of theirs if they had remained alienated from our religious and cultural concepts such as devotion to cow. It was therefore our sacred duty to accept the janjatis as part of the Hindu society without any reservations.” (“Shri Guruji – Pioneer of a New Era” by C.P. Bhishikar, 1999, Sahitya Sindhu Prakashan)
What the Guruji had failed to mention was that the tribals of the Northeast weren’t exactly clamoring for and standing in line to be admitted into Hindu society.
But the fact that he was willing to bend the most sacred rule of Hindutva and countenance the idea of beef-eating Hindus demonstrated the length to which RSS was willing to go to co-opt Adivasis into the “Hindu fold.” It is ironic that today’s Hindu nationalists are unwilling to accept even beef-eating non-Hindus in their midst and are legislating beef bans in several states.
In her tweet, Suhag Shukla seems to question the very term ‘Adivasi.’ This is an affront to all indigenous communities who accept it as a collective reference to tribal communities, even if they prefer to be referred to by their tribal names. (This reminds me of HAF’s ill-fated attempts a few years back to purge the word Dalit from school textbooks in California.)
HAF’s ideological parents and their oligarchs in India are now trying to label millions of indigenous peoples as illegal squatters in the forests and are prepared to evict them to make way for mining interests to roll in with their giant bulldozers.
Will the HAF now start referring to tribals as “so-called Vanvasis” to help delegitimize their presence in the forests?
The author is co-founder of Hindus for Human Rights, USA
This article was first published on https://americankahani.com
Related:
‘The Elephant Whisperers’ & the banality of Hindu American Foundation’s Attempt to co-opt Adivasis
The Hindutva protagonists’ fixation to designate indigenous tribes of India as “Hindus” goes back to the times of their founder, M.S. Golwalkar.
Suhag Shukla of the Hindu American Foundation had tweeted some time back that the fact that the Adivasi couple in the documentary "The Elephant Whisperers" were seen practicing Hindu customs proves the "inarguable indigeneity" of Hinduism. I wrote a rejoinder to that claim in the American Kahani, titled. "The Elephant Whisperers and the Disingenuity of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF)'s attempt to co-opt Adivasis" writes Raju Rajagopal in American Kahani.
In a recent tweet, Suhag Shukla of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) claimed that the portrayal of Bomman and Ellie in the documentary “The Elephant Whisperers” underscores Hinduism’s “inarguable indigeneity.”
She takes a giant leap of faith from an Adivasi couple who happen to follow Hindu practices to declaring that their forebears must have also been Hindus. Extensive scholarship on the tribes of the Nilgiris dating back 150 years shows no basis for such a simplistic and self-serving assertion.
Bomman & Bellie, couple featured in #ElephantWhisperers, are amazing exemplars of Hindu values. He is a Hindu priest & both personify Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam in communing with Raghu & Krishna. If they’re “Adivasi,” as we’re told, they underscore Hinduism’s inarguable indigeneity. pic.twitter.com/bWdehupewe
— Suhag A. Shukla (@SuhagAShukla) March 14, 2023
My wife and I have long been supporting tribal communities in the Nilgiris, where “The Elephant Whisperers” was filmed. Over the last 20 years, we have had many opportunities to spend time with community-based organizations that support them in education, healthcare, and land rights.
The fact is, despite all the pressures to assimilate with the larger communities, the primary self-identity of these indigenous communities is still their tribe: Kattunayakans (hunter-gatherers), Mullukurumbas (settled agriculturalists), Bettekurumbas (shifting agriculturists and now forest department workers), and Paniyas (bonded workers in the recent past, who’re now casual laborers or small tea growers).
Each tribe has its own distinct customs and languages: Bettakurumbas do identify as Hindu, and many of their traditional animistic spaces of worship have been taken over as mainstream Hindu temples. Most others practice their traditional faiths mixed with Hindu symbols. They are typically meat-eaters, but some are known to consume beef as well, which is not uncommon among many Adivasi tribes. Mullukurumbas and Kattunayakans have very little in common in their socio-economic status.
It was a huge disappointment to see the Hindu American Foundation elide over all the real issues faced by tribal communities and instead zero in on their supposed Hindu ancestry – a red herring, in my view.
Bomman, in “The Elephant Whisperers” is a kattunayakan (as he says at the start of the film), and Bellie is a Bettakurumba. The film was set in the mixed community of Thepakadu, inside the Mudumalai forest, where tribals and non-tribal forest department workers live together. So, their getting married didn’t fall into either of their tribe’s customs and was more Hinduized, as we saw in the documentary.
Some of the shared traits that distinguish the tribes of the Nilgiris from the people from the plains include a natural inclination towards gender equality, excellent female hygiene, and a relaxed attitude towards sex and marriage. On the health side, many tribal communities exhibit genetic abnormalities not seen in the plains, including sickle cell anemia — which they share with America’s indigenous and black communities.
Most of the tribes in the Gudalur area are members of the Adivasi Munnetra Sangam (AMS), which was set up in 1988 and has helped them defend and regain their rights to forest resources and to lands that had been promised to them, but were often encroached upon with impunity by corporate tea plantations.
The collective term “Adivasi” (which simply means original inhabitants) refers to hundreds of indigenous communities throughout India and is now in common usage. In contrast, the term “vanvasi” (forest dweller) is a term coined by Hindu nationalists, chosen consciously to deny their indigeneity. Most Adivasis reject that label.
Since AMS was established in 1988 under the umbrella of the NGO, ACCORD, the lives of 20,000 Adivasis in the Gudalur area have changed dramatically. They fought for and regained hundreds of acres of land. Tribals who used to stop on the streets to look away and avoid eye contact with non-tribals (who considered them inauspicious), walk with their heads held high today. Some of the Paniyas who were bonded to the land-owning Chettis, are now small tea plantation owners or casual laborers.
Communities that seldom saw doctors and hospitals in the 1990s, and used to leave their sick in their verandahs to recover or to die, now run a 50-bed modern hospital, under ASHWINI, with such superior care that even non-Adivasis in the area now prefer to go there. Thanks to ASHWINI, the infant mortality rate has fallen from 250 per 1,000 in 1987 to around 20 per 1,000 these days. Maternal deaths are also getting fewer each year.
A school started initially to educate the children of ACCORD, has blossomed into an Adivasi school VIDYODAYA, which emphasizes the preservation of tribal cultures and languages, while at the same time teaching the best of science, math, and the environment.
Given this backdrop, my hope after I saw “The Elephant Whisperers” was that the movie might stimulate discussions on issues such as the worldwide movement against elephants in captivity; the fragile co-existence of man and elephants and the proposal for an elephant corridor that would displace many Adivasis; imminent dangers to Adivasi communities by efforts to gut the 2006 Forest Rights Act; and challenges faced by the Nilgiris biosphere reserve by proposed projects like the underground lab for neutrino studies, which could displace thousands of people from their ancestral homes.
So, to me, it was a huge disappointment to see the Hindu American Foundation elide over all the real issues faced by tribal communities and instead zero in on their supposed Hindu ancestry – a red herring, in my view.
Suhag Shukla’s tweet exemplifies the shallow and monochromatic ideology of Hindutva, especially when it comes to issues that affect the daily lives of marginalized communities. But then, her tweet was merely a continuation of the decades-old effort by the RSS and its Parivar to co-opt Adivasis into Hinduism by whatever means necessary.
Back in 1951, in response to questions on how beef-eating tribals in the North East could be considered Hindus, Guruji Golwalkar had come up with this bizarre explanation:
“They have been basically Hindus all along, had been deprived of the benefit to proper Hindu religious enlightenment for a long time solely because of lack of communication and contacts with the rest of the society and its culture. As such it was no fault of theirs if they had remained alienated from our religious and cultural concepts such as devotion to cow. It was therefore our sacred duty to accept the janjatis as part of the Hindu society without any reservations.” (“Shri Guruji – Pioneer of a New Era” by C.P. Bhishikar, 1999, Sahitya Sindhu Prakashan)
What the Guruji had failed to mention was that the tribals of the Northeast weren’t exactly clamoring for and standing in line to be admitted into Hindu society.
But the fact that he was willing to bend the most sacred rule of Hindutva and countenance the idea of beef-eating Hindus demonstrated the length to which RSS was willing to go to co-opt Adivasis into the “Hindu fold.” It is ironic that today’s Hindu nationalists are unwilling to accept even beef-eating non-Hindus in their midst and are legislating beef bans in several states.
In her tweet, Suhag Shukla seems to question the very term ‘Adivasi.’ This is an affront to all indigenous communities who accept it as a collective reference to tribal communities, even if they prefer to be referred to by their tribal names. (This reminds me of HAF’s ill-fated attempts a few years back to purge the word Dalit from school textbooks in California.)
HAF’s ideological parents and their oligarchs in India are now trying to label millions of indigenous peoples as illegal squatters in the forests and are prepared to evict them to make way for mining interests to roll in with their giant bulldozers.
Will the HAF now start referring to tribals as “so-called Vanvasis” to help delegitimize their presence in the forests?
The author is co-founder of Hindus for Human Rights, USA
This article was first published on https://americankahani.com
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File FIR against Head Counsellor, Ms Hima Anaredy under Atrocities Act: NCST to IIT Mumbai
The NCST pulls up IIT-Bombay for its insensitivity, absence of adequate mechanisms or response and also directs implementation of measures to tackle lack of accountability towards Dalit students
The National Commsision for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has warned the IIT Mumbai and directed that it needs to sensitise itself about discrimination against Scheduled Caste students (Dalits), ensure their representation in students organisations, faculty formations and among counsellors with immediate effect. Besides, IIT Mumbai that prides itself on being an “institute of excellence” has been pulled up for an absence of mental health programmes for students.
The NCST orders came on a complaint filed by the Ambedkar Periyar Phile Study Circle (APPSC) which is a student collective which responds to issues impacting students within and outside IITB.
Most significantly, the NCST has directed the filing of an FIR against Ms Hima Anaredy, Head Counsellor, under the under Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and also provide the Commission with the detailed investigation report of the suicide case of the 1st year
The Commission had deplored the apathy of IIT-B in its response to the complaint and the fact that it continued to allow Ms Hima Anaredy to hold responsible posts even after it had found her to be casteist and insensitive towards tribal and other students.
Anti caste discrimination and harrassment pamphlets made by @AppscIITb which were distributed to new students during the campus orientation sessions in 2017 and 2018. We hope others can also start distributing such pamphlets against caste discrimination in their campuses. pic.twitter.com/QdqVCRRqBa
— APPSC IIT Bombay (@AppscIITb) July 7, 2022
The hearing of the Commission took place on March 22, 2023 and a detailed Action Taken Report (ATR) has now been sent to the Institute for implementation and action within 15 days. The complaint had been filed by the student’s complaint on June 16, 2022. Since then, another tragic death by suicide of a student at IIT-B, Darshan Solanki, has taken place.
Directives of NCST to Director, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai in the ATR
i. To register an FIR against Ms Hima Anaredy under Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
ii. To ensure recruitment of expert counsellors with an ST background in Student Welfare Centre to encourage and repose the faith of ST students and to make mental healthcare facilities more approachable for them.
iii. To ensure that a faculty counsellor with an ST background is available on the campus for the ST students
iv. To appoint a Convener with an ST background in the SC/ST Cell in addition to the existing two conveners of SC and General background
v. To provide a detailed report with statistics pertaining to the composition of faculties, students and other staff members
vi. To provide a detailed report with statistics pertaining to the composition of the SWC and composition of complaints dealt with by SWC.
vii. To sensitise the campus on the issue of caste-related harassment and conduct conferences and workshops in the first 3-6 months of the commencement of every academic year
viii. To encourage the SC/ST/OBC students enrolled in Master's and Doctorate programmes to apply for teaching posts in the institute
ix. To provide a detailed investigation report of the suicide case of the 1st year student Darshan Solanki
According to the ATR that is available in the public domain, the NCST commission has held that
“The present case relates to apartheid, lack of proper counselling for the SC/ST students of IIT, Bombay. The petitioner allege that IIT Bombay has a Students Welfare Centre (SWC). However, it has no SC/ST Counsellor, the head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy is brazenly vocal about her casteist and anti-reservation views that make SC/ST students uncomfortable about approaching her and the alumni initiative for mental health services named “Bandhu” lacks caste based mental health services.
“The petitioners through their representation to the Commission demanded termination of head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy, recruitment of expert counsellors who are trained to handle caste-based issues, recruitment of professional counsellors with SC/ST/OBC background and organisation of compulsory caste sensitization programs and workshops for employees, faculties and students.
“Considering the violation of rights of the tribal students as grave and gigantic in nature, the Commission issued Notice dated November 11, 2022 to the Secretary, Ministry of Education, Government of India and notice dated January 30, 2023 to the Director, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai seeking reply from the concerned officials within 15 days.
“A reply dated February 1.2,2023 was received by the Commission from the Director, IIT
Bombay, Powai, Mumbai stating that the notice dated November 1, 2022 addressed to the Ministry of Education was forwarded to Director, IIT Bombay, wherein it was stated that a number of steps are being taken to help all students. Mandatory sensitization course on caste related issues (especially SC/ST) has been planned by SC/ST student cell, manpower has been recruited and course content is under preparation.
“The Bandhu self-help website, developed by SWC in collaboration with Tata Institute of Social Sciences does not deal with caste related issues. These issues are handled by SC/ST Cell. Relevant information will also be posted on Bandhu website. An interaction Session between SWC Counsellors and Mariwala Health Initiative (external agency) has already begun and is an ongoing process. Training of student mentors on affirmative counselling for marginalized communities including SC/ST Cell has been done by SC/ST Cell with support from Mariwala Health Initiative in July, 2022. The head Counsellor, Ms Hima Anaredy was asked to take down the casteist post on her social media page and warned against the posts in the future. It was submitted that she has been working in SC/ST cell since April 2022 on a joint survey on mental health.
“As a follow up to the letter of Ministry of Education dated December 2.12, 2022, it was submitted by IIT Bombay that the authorities are in the process of recruiting one SC and one ST Student Counsellor from the available roster.
“The Commission found the reply highly unsatisfactory and hence, the Commission issued Summons to the Director, IIT Bombay, Powai Mumbai to appear for a hearing before the Commission on February 22, 2023.
“During the course of hearing, the Commission asked the Petitioners who appeared in person and through video conferencing about the facts of the case as on date. They repeated and re-iterated their earlier submissions and submitted an additional document with supplementary information. They added that a representation was first sent to the Director, IIT Bombay on January 31, 2022. A survey was also conducted in May/June, 2022 by the petitioner to analyse the mental health status of SC/ST students. However, most SC/ST students refused to participate stating they have lost faith in the system, many students stated they were going through extreme stress due to caste based harassment and eight students stated that they felt suicidal. This information was also submitted to the authorities but no action was taken by them.
“It was also submitted that there is no proper System for grievance redressal and information about the same is not available to students. There is a mentorship programme in IIT Bombay but discrimination is also rampant therein. The authorities are flouting the reservation norms and not recruiting SC/ST candidates in the faculty. It all culminated in the suicide of a first year SC student Mr Darshan Solanki on February 12, 2023.
“In response, the authorities submitted that police investigation is under process in the tragic death of Mr Darshan Solanki and the report is awaited. It was submitted that a psychometric test is conducted at the beginning of each year to assess the mental well-being of the students. It was also submitted that another online platform namely "Your Dost” is available for students to address their mental health issues 24X7. They denied flouting reservation norms and stated that their faculty and students have ample representation from the SC/ST community.
“The authorities agreed that prima facie it appears from the social media post and the conduct of the head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy that she is anti-tribal. It was submitted that she continues to work in IIT Bombay however, she has been removed from SWC.
“The commission takes a very serious view of the reply which has been found to be incorrect during the course of the sitting. It has been categorically accepted by the Director that the averment made in the reply is incorrect so far as it is concerned with the involvement and research work of Ms Hima Anaredy in the SC/ST Cell.
It is to be seen now, how one of India’s premier and much applauded institutes of higher learning responds to this sharp rebuke from the NCST Commission and whether some measure of accountability will ensure the security, safety and well-being of all Indian students.
The NCST’s ATR to IITB may be read here:
Related:
IIT Mumbai report on Darshan Solanki death, crucial evidence overlooked
How many lives will it take before India acknowledges dominant caste hegemony in educational institutes?
Lessons Unlearned: Nine years after the Thorat Committee report
The Death of Merit: Dalit Suicides in institutes of higher learning
Systemic Prejudice, Absence of Grievance Redressal reasons for Dalit Suicides: Teacher Testimonies
A letter that should shake our world: Dalit scholar suicide triggers outrage
Rohith Vemula’s ‘institutional murder’: Five years on, family and friends still wait for justice
Why have India’s elite institutions sounded the death knell for Dalit Adivasi-Muslim scholars?
IITs unable to create safe spaces for students
MP: Dalit boy dies by suicide, blames teacher’s casteist remarks
REPLUG: Rohith Vemula, Your Sacrifice was Not in Vain
File FIR against Head Counsellor, Ms Hima Anaredy under Atrocities Act: NCST to IIT Mumbai
The NCST pulls up IIT-Bombay for its insensitivity, absence of adequate mechanisms or response and also directs implementation of measures to tackle lack of accountability towards Dalit students
The National Commsision for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has warned the IIT Mumbai and directed that it needs to sensitise itself about discrimination against Scheduled Caste students (Dalits), ensure their representation in students organisations, faculty formations and among counsellors with immediate effect. Besides, IIT Mumbai that prides itself on being an “institute of excellence” has been pulled up for an absence of mental health programmes for students.
The NCST orders came on a complaint filed by the Ambedkar Periyar Phile Study Circle (APPSC) which is a student collective which responds to issues impacting students within and outside IITB.
Most significantly, the NCST has directed the filing of an FIR against Ms Hima Anaredy, Head Counsellor, under the under Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and also provide the Commission with the detailed investigation report of the suicide case of the 1st year
The Commission had deplored the apathy of IIT-B in its response to the complaint and the fact that it continued to allow Ms Hima Anaredy to hold responsible posts even after it had found her to be casteist and insensitive towards tribal and other students.
Anti caste discrimination and harrassment pamphlets made by @AppscIITb which were distributed to new students during the campus orientation sessions in 2017 and 2018. We hope others can also start distributing such pamphlets against caste discrimination in their campuses. pic.twitter.com/QdqVCRRqBa
— APPSC IIT Bombay (@AppscIITb) July 7, 2022
The hearing of the Commission took place on March 22, 2023 and a detailed Action Taken Report (ATR) has now been sent to the Institute for implementation and action within 15 days. The complaint had been filed by the student’s complaint on June 16, 2022. Since then, another tragic death by suicide of a student at IIT-B, Darshan Solanki, has taken place.
Directives of NCST to Director, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai in the ATR
i. To register an FIR against Ms Hima Anaredy under Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
ii. To ensure recruitment of expert counsellors with an ST background in Student Welfare Centre to encourage and repose the faith of ST students and to make mental healthcare facilities more approachable for them.
iii. To ensure that a faculty counsellor with an ST background is available on the campus for the ST students
iv. To appoint a Convener with an ST background in the SC/ST Cell in addition to the existing two conveners of SC and General background
v. To provide a detailed report with statistics pertaining to the composition of faculties, students and other staff members
vi. To provide a detailed report with statistics pertaining to the composition of the SWC and composition of complaints dealt with by SWC.
vii. To sensitise the campus on the issue of caste-related harassment and conduct conferences and workshops in the first 3-6 months of the commencement of every academic year
viii. To encourage the SC/ST/OBC students enrolled in Master's and Doctorate programmes to apply for teaching posts in the institute
ix. To provide a detailed investigation report of the suicide case of the 1st year student Darshan Solanki
According to the ATR that is available in the public domain, the NCST commission has held that
“The present case relates to apartheid, lack of proper counselling for the SC/ST students of IIT, Bombay. The petitioner allege that IIT Bombay has a Students Welfare Centre (SWC). However, it has no SC/ST Counsellor, the head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy is brazenly vocal about her casteist and anti-reservation views that make SC/ST students uncomfortable about approaching her and the alumni initiative for mental health services named “Bandhu” lacks caste based mental health services.
“The petitioners through their representation to the Commission demanded termination of head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy, recruitment of expert counsellors who are trained to handle caste-based issues, recruitment of professional counsellors with SC/ST/OBC background and organisation of compulsory caste sensitization programs and workshops for employees, faculties and students.
“Considering the violation of rights of the tribal students as grave and gigantic in nature, the Commission issued Notice dated November 11, 2022 to the Secretary, Ministry of Education, Government of India and notice dated January 30, 2023 to the Director, IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai seeking reply from the concerned officials within 15 days.
“A reply dated February 1.2,2023 was received by the Commission from the Director, IIT
Bombay, Powai, Mumbai stating that the notice dated November 1, 2022 addressed to the Ministry of Education was forwarded to Director, IIT Bombay, wherein it was stated that a number of steps are being taken to help all students. Mandatory sensitization course on caste related issues (especially SC/ST) has been planned by SC/ST student cell, manpower has been recruited and course content is under preparation.
“The Bandhu self-help website, developed by SWC in collaboration with Tata Institute of Social Sciences does not deal with caste related issues. These issues are handled by SC/ST Cell. Relevant information will also be posted on Bandhu website. An interaction Session between SWC Counsellors and Mariwala Health Initiative (external agency) has already begun and is an ongoing process. Training of student mentors on affirmative counselling for marginalized communities including SC/ST Cell has been done by SC/ST Cell with support from Mariwala Health Initiative in July, 2022. The head Counsellor, Ms Hima Anaredy was asked to take down the casteist post on her social media page and warned against the posts in the future. It was submitted that she has been working in SC/ST cell since April 2022 on a joint survey on mental health.
“As a follow up to the letter of Ministry of Education dated December 2.12, 2022, it was submitted by IIT Bombay that the authorities are in the process of recruiting one SC and one ST Student Counsellor from the available roster.
“The Commission found the reply highly unsatisfactory and hence, the Commission issued Summons to the Director, IIT Bombay, Powai Mumbai to appear for a hearing before the Commission on February 22, 2023.
“During the course of hearing, the Commission asked the Petitioners who appeared in person and through video conferencing about the facts of the case as on date. They repeated and re-iterated their earlier submissions and submitted an additional document with supplementary information. They added that a representation was first sent to the Director, IIT Bombay on January 31, 2022. A survey was also conducted in May/June, 2022 by the petitioner to analyse the mental health status of SC/ST students. However, most SC/ST students refused to participate stating they have lost faith in the system, many students stated they were going through extreme stress due to caste based harassment and eight students stated that they felt suicidal. This information was also submitted to the authorities but no action was taken by them.
“It was also submitted that there is no proper System for grievance redressal and information about the same is not available to students. There is a mentorship programme in IIT Bombay but discrimination is also rampant therein. The authorities are flouting the reservation norms and not recruiting SC/ST candidates in the faculty. It all culminated in the suicide of a first year SC student Mr Darshan Solanki on February 12, 2023.
“In response, the authorities submitted that police investigation is under process in the tragic death of Mr Darshan Solanki and the report is awaited. It was submitted that a psychometric test is conducted at the beginning of each year to assess the mental well-being of the students. It was also submitted that another online platform namely "Your Dost” is available for students to address their mental health issues 24X7. They denied flouting reservation norms and stated that their faculty and students have ample representation from the SC/ST community.
“The authorities agreed that prima facie it appears from the social media post and the conduct of the head counsellor Ms Hima Anaredy that she is anti-tribal. It was submitted that she continues to work in IIT Bombay however, she has been removed from SWC.
“The commission takes a very serious view of the reply which has been found to be incorrect during the course of the sitting. It has been categorically accepted by the Director that the averment made in the reply is incorrect so far as it is concerned with the involvement and research work of Ms Hima Anaredy in the SC/ST Cell.
It is to be seen now, how one of India’s premier and much applauded institutes of higher learning responds to this sharp rebuke from the NCST Commission and whether some measure of accountability will ensure the security, safety and well-being of all Indian students.
The NCST’s ATR to IITB may be read here:
Related:
IIT Mumbai report on Darshan Solanki death, crucial evidence overlooked
How many lives will it take before India acknowledges dominant caste hegemony in educational institutes?
Lessons Unlearned: Nine years after the Thorat Committee report
The Death of Merit: Dalit Suicides in institutes of higher learning
Systemic Prejudice, Absence of Grievance Redressal reasons for Dalit Suicides: Teacher Testimonies
A letter that should shake our world: Dalit scholar suicide triggers outrage
Rohith Vemula’s ‘institutional murder’: Five years on, family and friends still wait for justice
Why have India’s elite institutions sounded the death knell for Dalit Adivasi-Muslim scholars?
IITs unable to create safe spaces for students
MP: Dalit boy dies by suicide, blames teacher’s casteist remarks
REPLUG: Rohith Vemula, Your Sacrifice was Not in Vain
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Adivasi and other farmers under the AIKS bring Maharashtra govt to its feet
The sheer tenacity and resolve of the farmers who marched at short notice was a response to the acute crisis in falling onion prices; demands conceded are extensive from electricity and housing to actualising the recognition of rights under The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA, 2006)
The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) in Maharashtra began the third Kisan Long March from Dindori in Nashik district to Mumbai on March 12, 2023, on a 15-point charter of demands. It was withdrawn at Vasind in Thane district six days later on March 18, after the state government conceded many of the major demands in writing and the Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde, placed the agreement with the AIKS before the state assembly on March 17.
(See separate box for demands conceded by government.)
Three Kisan Long Marches
This was the third such Kisan Long March in Maharashtra led by the AIKS. The first and the most effective was the one from Nashik to Mumbai, which lasted full seven days from March 6-12, 2018. The second lasted only two days, from February 20-21, 2019 within Nashik tehsil, because three Ministers of the state government gave written assurances to the AIKS on the second day of the march. The third lasted six days from March 12-18, 2023, from Dindori to Vasind.
While there was a preparatory time of at least three weeks for the first two marches, the third began with less than a week’s preparation, because of the circumstances under which it was undertaken. Onion prices for farmers had plummeted suddenly; an immediate response was necessary; and the state assembly was due to end in the third week of March. The shortage of time naturally reflected in the strength of the march. While the first Kisan Long March of 2018 began at Nashik with 25,000 peasants and culminated in Mumbai with 50,000 peasants, the third Kisan Long March began at Dindori with 10,000 peasants and culminated at Vasind with 15,000 peasants. However, it still raised all the crucial issues affecting farmers at an appropriate moment time and also received good media coverage.
In all the three Long Marches, the lion’s share of the mobilisation was from among Adivasi farmers from Nashik district, followed by Adivasi farmers from Thane-Palghar and Ahmednagar districts. There was also representation of non-Adivasi peasants from the above four districts, as also plus from several districts of Vidarbha, Marathwada and Western Maharashtra regions, especially in the first two marches. In the third march, as mentioned above, time for preparation fell short. Adivasi peasant women and youth participated in large numbers in all three marches.
Coming of the red storm
By the night of March 12, 2023, the marchers from various tehsils of Nashik district, and from other districts of Maharashtra gathered at the Mhasrul Maidan just outside Nashik city. On the next morning, March 13, amidst great enthusiasm they marched into Nashik city. The march was replete with thousands of red caps, red placards, red flags, and red banners. Banner headlines in the Marathi newspapers hailed the coming of the “Laal Vaadal” (Red Storm). At the Dindori Chowk the marching farmers threw down onions, tomatoes, brinjals, potatoes and other vegetables on the road in anger at the falling prices of all these items. The media captured those memorable moments on camera.
On March 13 and 14, the Kisan Long March walked along the Agra-Nashik-Mumbai National Highway through Nashik district and reached the scenic spot of Ghatandevi near Igatpuri at night. After walking the whole day in the scorching sun, it was inspiring to see how Adivasi farmers, women and men still had the energy to sing and dance energetic collective tribal dances into the wee hours of the morning. Their anger against the government and the system could be seen with every step of the joyous anger of the dance.
On the morning of March 15, the Kisan Long March descended downwards along the famous serpentine Kasara Ghat, with high hills on one side and deep valleys on the other. The march by now had left Nashik district and entered the Thane district. Stunning photographs of the march were captured here by the electronic and print mainstream media and they soon reached all parts of the country. Sections of the social media did even better. By March 16, the marchers reached the Idgah Maidan at Vasind in Thane district, three days walk away from Mumbai.
Negotiations with the state government
Due to the past experience of the widespread popular and political support that the 2018 Kisan Long March had received, the Shinde-Fadnavis state government was naturally, nervous. On the night of March 12 itself, a senior state Minister Dada Bhuse held a preliminary meeting with an AIKS delegation at Nashik. CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis declared that they, along with concerned Ministers, will meet an AIKS delegation on March 14 at 3 pm in the State Assembly premises. On March 14, a state-wide strike of hundreds of thousands of state government employees and teachers began, for the old pension scheme and other related demands. The state government suddenly postponed the March 14 meeting with the AIKS to the next day, March 15.
The AIKS responded by marching on towards Mumbai, refusing to go for the March 15 talks, and demanding that now, state Ministers come to negotiate with the marchers. Eventually, two Ministers Dada Bhuse and Atul Save came to meet the marchers, held discussions and requested the AIKS leadership to come to the State Assembly premises on March 16 afternoon for full-fledged discussions with the CM, deputy CM, and other concerned Ministers and officials. While agreeing to go for the talks, the AIKS made it clear that the Kisan Long March will continue on its route to Mumbai until a satisfactory agreement has been reached.
On March 16, at the invitation of the CM Shinde and Deputy CM of Maharashtra, Phadnavis, a 16-member AIKS delegation held a two and a half hour discussion with the state government in the state assembly premises in Mumbai. For this discussion six other concerned Ministers, the Chief Secretary, and several Secretaries of related departments were present. Among those in the AIKS delegation that met representatives of the state government were J P Gavit, ex-MLA, Dr Ashok Dhawale, Dr Ajit Nawale, Dr Uday Narkar, Vinod Nikole, MLA, Dr D L Karad, Umesh Deshmukh, Subhash Choudhary, Irfan Shaikh, Arjun Adey, Kiran Gahala, Mohan Jadhav, Ramesh Choudhary, Indrajit Gavit, Hiraman Gavit and Manjula Bangal. The talks ended on a positive note, with the government acceding to most of the 15-point Charter of Demands of the farmers.
But the AIKS refused to withdraw the Kisan Long March and decided to continue their sit-in at Vasind, district Thane till such time as the Minutes of the decisions of this meeting were not placed on the table of the State Assembly and instructions about their implementation were not sent out to all district officials. In the face of such a resolute decision by the AIKS, the Chief Minister was forced on March 17 to announce all the decisions on the floor of the Legislative Assembly in a 15-minute address. On March 18, the AIKS received an official copy of the decisions and the Government also issued the same to all the district and lower authorities. In the wake of this significant victory, the third Kisan Long March was withdrawn on March 18, after six long days.
A tragic incident occurred on the second last day of the March. A farmer who had walked in the march right from the beginning, Pundalik Ambadas Jadhav, age 58, Village Mavdi, Tehsil Dindori, Dist Nashik, died of illness in a government hospital at Shahapur in Thane district, where he had been admitted. This was a great shock. J P Gavit immediately demanded compensation from the state government. The CM had to announce Rs 5 lakh as ex gratia payment to the family of the peasant martyr.
Congratulations from the AIKS leadership
The AIKS leadership congratulated the farmers of Maharashtra for the victorious third Kisan Long March. It concluded its statement by saying, “The AIKS-led Kisan Long March in 2018 had caught the imagination of the people and had instilled confidence in all democratic sections by forcing the then BJP-led State Government to accept almost all demands. In 2023, yet again the poor peasants, a large number of them Adivasis, with women leading from the front, have forced the SS-BJP to bow down and accept the demands. This victory will inspire militant struggles against the anti-people BJP Government and its pro-corporate policies. Coming just a fortnight before the Mazdoor Kisan Sangharsh Rally at Delhi, it will also inspire the working class and the peasantry to come out in bigger numbers in all forthcoming struggles.”
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What the Kisan Long March of 2023 achieved We give below in brief the demands won by the AIKS as a result of this Kisan Long March. This is based on the official Minutes of the meeting between the state government and the AIKS on March 16, 2023, which were placed on the table of the state assembly by the Chief Minister on March 17. One very significant aspect of this Kisan Long March was that, while taking up the burning demands of the peasantry and agricultural workers, it also took up some crucial demands of workers, employees, and unorganised scheme workers, and won some of them. This was a significant step in the direction of worker-peasant unity, which was widely noted. 1. Onion Prices: Due to collapse in onion prices, the state government agreed to give a subsidy of Rs 350 per quintal for onions. A state level onion price advisory committee will be constituted. Since fluctuation of onion prices is a regular phenomenon that is connected with central government policies, a state delegation will soon meet central ministers to discuss a long-term solution to the problem. 2. Forest Rights Act (FRA) Implementation: Several problems still remain in FRA implementation under the 2006 Act. These are as follows: thousands of claims remaining pending, less area than that under cultivation granted in the claims, not getting benefit of government schemes, and so on. For settling all these problems, a committee of concerned ministers will be set up, which will include J P Gavit, ex-MLA, and Vinod Nikole, MLA, and it will submit its report within one month. On the basis of this report, immediate action will be taken for vesting land in the names of Adivasi peasants. 3. Temple (Devasthan) and Waqf Board Lands: The government will enact a law to vest temple lands in the name of the cultivating peasants, and this will be placed soon before the Cabinet. The decision of the Supreme Court as regards Waqf Board lands will be studied and it will be sent to all district collectors for clarification. Both these types involve lakhs of acres of land throughout the state, which are cultivated by peasants, but have not been vested in their names for generations. 4. Provide Electricity Supply for 12 hours constantly and waive the pending electricity bills of farmers: Under the CM Solar Agricultural Scheme, electricity projects will be started on a priority basis in the Adivasi areas. A 120 KV sub-centre at Kanashi in Kalwan tehsil will be set up with adequate funds. 5. Loan Waiver: In the case of over 88,000 peasants in Adivasi areas who have not received the benefit of the two earlier loan waiver schemes, named after Chhatrapati Shivaji and Mahatma Phule respectively, they will be given a loan waiver. 6. Old Pension Scheme: A committee has been set up to make a comparative study of the old pension scheme and the national pension scheme. It will discuss with all the stake-holders and submit its report within three months. On the basis of this report appropriate action will be taken. 7. Increase in PM Housing Scheme Subsidy from Rs 1.40 lakh to Rs 5.00 lakh due to price rise, a re-survey of poor beneficiaries and their inclusion in the ‘D’ lists: Discussion will be held with the Employment Guarantee Department so that extra fund with MNREGA can be made available for this housing subsidy. The eligible beneficiaries who do not find a place in the ‘D’ list of the Centre will be accommodated in the housing scheme of the state government. Under the Shabari, Pardhi and Aadim Awaas schemes, 1 lakh new houses will be built. For building houses for workers, more subsidy will be given from the Workers’ Welfare Fund. 8. Declaring all Scheme Workers as Government Employees with Government Pay Scales: The monthly honorarium for scheme workers has been increased as follows: Anganwadi worker – Rs 8,325 to Rs 10,000; Mini Anganwadi worker – Rs 5,975 to Rs 7,200; Anganwadi helper – Rs 4,425 to Rs 5,500. Also, 20,000 vacant posts of Anganwadi workers and helpers will be filled. Asha workers and block facilitators will be given a raise from the state government of Rs 1500 per month. Thus, a block facilitator will now receive Rs 14,975 instead of Rs 13,475 earlier. And an Asha worker will now receive Rs 6,500 instead of Rs 5,000 earlier. As regards pension and gratuity for Anganwadi workers and helpers, the Law and Justice Department will study all the Court decisions and will ensure their proper implementation. Arrangements will be made to send the wages of contract workers directly into their bank accounts, instead of them being arbitrarily cut by the contractors. Vacant posts in various workers welfare boards and tripartite committees will be filled and they will function with their full strength. 9. Compensation by NDRF for Crop Loss due to Unseasonal Rains and Stop of Loot of Farmers by Crop Insurance Companies: At present compensation is paid to farmers in case of unseasonal rains. For constant rain, criteria for compensation are being decided. To get the Crop Insurance compensation in Beed district for 2020, the state government will send a proposal to the central government. 10. State Government should begin purchase of the Bal Hirda crop at Rs 250 per Kg. Adequate compensation be given for the destruction of the Bal Hirda crop due to cyclone in 2020: The Maharashtra Adivasi Development Corporation used to purchase Bal Hirda earlier, but it stopped doing so in 2017 due to losses. The issue will be reopened and studied again, and an appropriate decision will be taken. The professional training centres were being run by the Adivasi Development Department through the Central Government-sponsored scheme. Now this scheme has stopped. An effort will be made to re-start these centres through the skill development department of the state government. 11. Cancel the River Linking Scheme and divert excess water flowing to the west into the Arabian Sea, to the east of drought-prone areas of Nashik district, Khandesh and Marathwada: This scheme has already been announced in the latest budget of the State Government. Irrigation schemes in Surgana and Kalwan tehsils were accepted and work on them was directed to begin. 12. Thousands of bogus Adivasis have wrongly cornered ST reserved jobs by producing false caste certificates. Remove them from their jobs, replace them with genuine Adivasis, and fill all ST/SC vacant posts: All such cases of bogus Adivasis have been dealt with, they have been removed and the posts made vacant. These posts will be properly filled by genuine Adivasis within the next three months. 13. Increase in Old Age and other Pensions: The sum for the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Scheme and the Shravan Bal Scheme has been increased from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 per month. 14. Along with the free grain given on ration cards, re-start the grain that was earlier available for sale: A request to this effect will be made to the central government. Instructions will be given to all districts about giving yellow ration cards to families who have divided their cards. There are have been problems on this score for many years. 15. An independent machinery should be erected to examine the milkometres and weight scales, with appointment of milkometre inspectors. Implement the policy of FRP and Revenue Sharing for milk: To stop the loot experienced by farmers involved in dairy (milk), standard milkometres will be insisted upon and priority will be given to appoint independent inspectors to examine milkometres. In the present situation, the state government has no control over private milk bodies. A meeting will be held with those concerned and an appropriate decision will be taken to establish such control of the state government over the private milk sector.
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Related:
AIKS Congratulates Kisans of Maharashtra for the Victory of the Long March
With a 17-point demand charter, AIKS-led 10,000-strong Kisan Long March starts in Nashik
Adivasi and other farmers under the AIKS bring Maharashtra govt to its feet
The sheer tenacity and resolve of the farmers who marched at short notice was a response to the acute crisis in falling onion prices; demands conceded are extensive from electricity and housing to actualising the recognition of rights under The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA, 2006)
The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) in Maharashtra began the third Kisan Long March from Dindori in Nashik district to Mumbai on March 12, 2023, on a 15-point charter of demands. It was withdrawn at Vasind in Thane district six days later on March 18, after the state government conceded many of the major demands in writing and the Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde, placed the agreement with the AIKS before the state assembly on March 17.
(See separate box for demands conceded by government.)
Three Kisan Long Marches
This was the third such Kisan Long March in Maharashtra led by the AIKS. The first and the most effective was the one from Nashik to Mumbai, which lasted full seven days from March 6-12, 2018. The second lasted only two days, from February 20-21, 2019 within Nashik tehsil, because three Ministers of the state government gave written assurances to the AIKS on the second day of the march. The third lasted six days from March 12-18, 2023, from Dindori to Vasind.
While there was a preparatory time of at least three weeks for the first two marches, the third began with less than a week’s preparation, because of the circumstances under which it was undertaken. Onion prices for farmers had plummeted suddenly; an immediate response was necessary; and the state assembly was due to end in the third week of March. The shortage of time naturally reflected in the strength of the march. While the first Kisan Long March of 2018 began at Nashik with 25,000 peasants and culminated in Mumbai with 50,000 peasants, the third Kisan Long March began at Dindori with 10,000 peasants and culminated at Vasind with 15,000 peasants. However, it still raised all the crucial issues affecting farmers at an appropriate moment time and also received good media coverage.
In all the three Long Marches, the lion’s share of the mobilisation was from among Adivasi farmers from Nashik district, followed by Adivasi farmers from Thane-Palghar and Ahmednagar districts. There was also representation of non-Adivasi peasants from the above four districts, as also plus from several districts of Vidarbha, Marathwada and Western Maharashtra regions, especially in the first two marches. In the third march, as mentioned above, time for preparation fell short. Adivasi peasant women and youth participated in large numbers in all three marches.
Coming of the red storm
By the night of March 12, 2023, the marchers from various tehsils of Nashik district, and from other districts of Maharashtra gathered at the Mhasrul Maidan just outside Nashik city. On the next morning, March 13, amidst great enthusiasm they marched into Nashik city. The march was replete with thousands of red caps, red placards, red flags, and red banners. Banner headlines in the Marathi newspapers hailed the coming of the “Laal Vaadal” (Red Storm). At the Dindori Chowk the marching farmers threw down onions, tomatoes, brinjals, potatoes and other vegetables on the road in anger at the falling prices of all these items. The media captured those memorable moments on camera.
On March 13 and 14, the Kisan Long March walked along the Agra-Nashik-Mumbai National Highway through Nashik district and reached the scenic spot of Ghatandevi near Igatpuri at night. After walking the whole day in the scorching sun, it was inspiring to see how Adivasi farmers, women and men still had the energy to sing and dance energetic collective tribal dances into the wee hours of the morning. Their anger against the government and the system could be seen with every step of the joyous anger of the dance.
On the morning of March 15, the Kisan Long March descended downwards along the famous serpentine Kasara Ghat, with high hills on one side and deep valleys on the other. The march by now had left Nashik district and entered the Thane district. Stunning photographs of the march were captured here by the electronic and print mainstream media and they soon reached all parts of the country. Sections of the social media did even better. By March 16, the marchers reached the Idgah Maidan at Vasind in Thane district, three days walk away from Mumbai.
Negotiations with the state government
Due to the past experience of the widespread popular and political support that the 2018 Kisan Long March had received, the Shinde-Fadnavis state government was naturally, nervous. On the night of March 12 itself, a senior state Minister Dada Bhuse held a preliminary meeting with an AIKS delegation at Nashik. CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis declared that they, along with concerned Ministers, will meet an AIKS delegation on March 14 at 3 pm in the State Assembly premises. On March 14, a state-wide strike of hundreds of thousands of state government employees and teachers began, for the old pension scheme and other related demands. The state government suddenly postponed the March 14 meeting with the AIKS to the next day, March 15.
The AIKS responded by marching on towards Mumbai, refusing to go for the March 15 talks, and demanding that now, state Ministers come to negotiate with the marchers. Eventually, two Ministers Dada Bhuse and Atul Save came to meet the marchers, held discussions and requested the AIKS leadership to come to the State Assembly premises on March 16 afternoon for full-fledged discussions with the CM, deputy CM, and other concerned Ministers and officials. While agreeing to go for the talks, the AIKS made it clear that the Kisan Long March will continue on its route to Mumbai until a satisfactory agreement has been reached.
On March 16, at the invitation of the CM Shinde and Deputy CM of Maharashtra, Phadnavis, a 16-member AIKS delegation held a two and a half hour discussion with the state government in the state assembly premises in Mumbai. For this discussion six other concerned Ministers, the Chief Secretary, and several Secretaries of related departments were present. Among those in the AIKS delegation that met representatives of the state government were J P Gavit, ex-MLA, Dr Ashok Dhawale, Dr Ajit Nawale, Dr Uday Narkar, Vinod Nikole, MLA, Dr D L Karad, Umesh Deshmukh, Subhash Choudhary, Irfan Shaikh, Arjun Adey, Kiran Gahala, Mohan Jadhav, Ramesh Choudhary, Indrajit Gavit, Hiraman Gavit and Manjula Bangal. The talks ended on a positive note, with the government acceding to most of the 15-point Charter of Demands of the farmers.
But the AIKS refused to withdraw the Kisan Long March and decided to continue their sit-in at Vasind, district Thane till such time as the Minutes of the decisions of this meeting were not placed on the table of the State Assembly and instructions about their implementation were not sent out to all district officials. In the face of such a resolute decision by the AIKS, the Chief Minister was forced on March 17 to announce all the decisions on the floor of the Legislative Assembly in a 15-minute address. On March 18, the AIKS received an official copy of the decisions and the Government also issued the same to all the district and lower authorities. In the wake of this significant victory, the third Kisan Long March was withdrawn on March 18, after six long days.
A tragic incident occurred on the second last day of the March. A farmer who had walked in the march right from the beginning, Pundalik Ambadas Jadhav, age 58, Village Mavdi, Tehsil Dindori, Dist Nashik, died of illness in a government hospital at Shahapur in Thane district, where he had been admitted. This was a great shock. J P Gavit immediately demanded compensation from the state government. The CM had to announce Rs 5 lakh as ex gratia payment to the family of the peasant martyr.
Congratulations from the AIKS leadership
The AIKS leadership congratulated the farmers of Maharashtra for the victorious third Kisan Long March. It concluded its statement by saying, “The AIKS-led Kisan Long March in 2018 had caught the imagination of the people and had instilled confidence in all democratic sections by forcing the then BJP-led State Government to accept almost all demands. In 2023, yet again the poor peasants, a large number of them Adivasis, with women leading from the front, have forced the SS-BJP to bow down and accept the demands. This victory will inspire militant struggles against the anti-people BJP Government and its pro-corporate policies. Coming just a fortnight before the Mazdoor Kisan Sangharsh Rally at Delhi, it will also inspire the working class and the peasantry to come out in bigger numbers in all forthcoming struggles.”
|
What the Kisan Long March of 2023 achieved We give below in brief the demands won by the AIKS as a result of this Kisan Long March. This is based on the official Minutes of the meeting between the state government and the AIKS on March 16, 2023, which were placed on the table of the state assembly by the Chief Minister on March 17. One very significant aspect of this Kisan Long March was that, while taking up the burning demands of the peasantry and agricultural workers, it also took up some crucial demands of workers, employees, and unorganised scheme workers, and won some of them. This was a significant step in the direction of worker-peasant unity, which was widely noted. 1. Onion Prices: Due to collapse in onion prices, the state government agreed to give a subsidy of Rs 350 per quintal for onions. A state level onion price advisory committee will be constituted. Since fluctuation of onion prices is a regular phenomenon that is connected with central government policies, a state delegation will soon meet central ministers to discuss a long-term solution to the problem. 2. Forest Rights Act (FRA) Implementation: Several problems still remain in FRA implementation under the 2006 Act. These are as follows: thousands of claims remaining pending, less area than that under cultivation granted in the claims, not getting benefit of government schemes, and so on. For settling all these problems, a committee of concerned ministers will be set up, which will include J P Gavit, ex-MLA, and Vinod Nikole, MLA, and it will submit its report within one month. On the basis of this report, immediate action will be taken for vesting land in the names of Adivasi peasants. 3. Temple (Devasthan) and Waqf Board Lands: The government will enact a law to vest temple lands in the name of the cultivating peasants, and this will be placed soon before the Cabinet. The decision of the Supreme Court as regards Waqf Board lands will be studied and it will be sent to all district collectors for clarification. Both these types involve lakhs of acres of land throughout the state, which are cultivated by peasants, but have not been vested in their names for generations. 4. Provide Electricity Supply for 12 hours constantly and waive the pending electricity bills of farmers: Under the CM Solar Agricultural Scheme, electricity projects will be started on a priority basis in the Adivasi areas. A 120 KV sub-centre at Kanashi in Kalwan tehsil will be set up with adequate funds. 5. Loan Waiver: In the case of over 88,000 peasants in Adivasi areas who have not received the benefit of the two earlier loan waiver schemes, named after Chhatrapati Shivaji and Mahatma Phule respectively, they will be given a loan waiver. 6. Old Pension Scheme: A committee has been set up to make a comparative study of the old pension scheme and the national pension scheme. It will discuss with all the stake-holders and submit its report within three months. On the basis of this report appropriate action will be taken. 7. Increase in PM Housing Scheme Subsidy from Rs 1.40 lakh to Rs 5.00 lakh due to price rise, a re-survey of poor beneficiaries and their inclusion in the ‘D’ lists: Discussion will be held with the Employment Guarantee Department so that extra fund with MNREGA can be made available for this housing subsidy. The eligible beneficiaries who do not find a place in the ‘D’ list of the Centre will be accommodated in the housing scheme of the state government. Under the Shabari, Pardhi and Aadim Awaas schemes, 1 lakh new houses will be built. For building houses for workers, more subsidy will be given from the Workers’ Welfare Fund. 8. Declaring all Scheme Workers as Government Employees with Government Pay Scales: The monthly honorarium for scheme workers has been increased as follows: Anganwadi worker – Rs 8,325 to Rs 10,000; Mini Anganwadi worker – Rs 5,975 to Rs 7,200; Anganwadi helper – Rs 4,425 to Rs 5,500. Also, 20,000 vacant posts of Anganwadi workers and helpers will be filled. Asha workers and block facilitators will be given a raise from the state government of Rs 1500 per month. Thus, a block facilitator will now receive Rs 14,975 instead of Rs 13,475 earlier. And an Asha worker will now receive Rs 6,500 instead of Rs 5,000 earlier. As regards pension and gratuity for Anganwadi workers and helpers, the Law and Justice Department will study all the Court decisions and will ensure their proper implementation. Arrangements will be made to send the wages of contract workers directly into their bank accounts, instead of them being arbitrarily cut by the contractors. Vacant posts in various workers welfare boards and tripartite committees will be filled and they will function with their full strength. 9. Compensation by NDRF for Crop Loss due to Unseasonal Rains and Stop of Loot of Farmers by Crop Insurance Companies: At present compensation is paid to farmers in case of unseasonal rains. For constant rain, criteria for compensation are being decided. To get the Crop Insurance compensation in Beed district for 2020, the state government will send a proposal to the central government. 10. State Government should begin purchase of the Bal Hirda crop at Rs 250 per Kg. Adequate compensation be given for the destruction of the Bal Hirda crop due to cyclone in 2020: The Maharashtra Adivasi Development Corporation used to purchase Bal Hirda earlier, but it stopped doing so in 2017 due to losses. The issue will be reopened and studied again, and an appropriate decision will be taken. The professional training centres were being run by the Adivasi Development Department through the Central Government-sponsored scheme. Now this scheme has stopped. An effort will be made to re-start these centres through the skill development department of the state government. 11. Cancel the River Linking Scheme and divert excess water flowing to the west into the Arabian Sea, to the east of drought-prone areas of Nashik district, Khandesh and Marathwada: This scheme has already been announced in the latest budget of the State Government. Irrigation schemes in Surgana and Kalwan tehsils were accepted and work on them was directed to begin. 12. Thousands of bogus Adivasis have wrongly cornered ST reserved jobs by producing false caste certificates. Remove them from their jobs, replace them with genuine Adivasis, and fill all ST/SC vacant posts: All such cases of bogus Adivasis have been dealt with, they have been removed and the posts made vacant. These posts will be properly filled by genuine Adivasis within the next three months. 13. Increase in Old Age and other Pensions: The sum for the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Scheme and the Shravan Bal Scheme has been increased from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 per month. 14. Along with the free grain given on ration cards, re-start the grain that was earlier available for sale: A request to this effect will be made to the central government. Instructions will be given to all districts about giving yellow ration cards to families who have divided their cards. There are have been problems on this score for many years. 15. An independent machinery should be erected to examine the milkometres and weight scales, with appointment of milkometre inspectors. Implement the policy of FRP and Revenue Sharing for milk: To stop the loot experienced by farmers involved in dairy (milk), standard milkometres will be insisted upon and priority will be given to appoint independent inspectors to examine milkometres. In the present situation, the state government has no control over private milk bodies. A meeting will be held with those concerned and an appropriate decision will be taken to establish such control of the state government over the private milk sector.
|
Related:
AIKS Congratulates Kisans of Maharashtra for the Victory of the Long March
With a 17-point demand charter, AIKS-led 10,000-strong Kisan Long March starts in Nashik
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Actor Chetan’s Second Arrest: First as Warning, Second as Strategy?
UPDATE March 24, 2023: Chetan Kumar gets a bail
Actor and activist Chetan Kumar, who was arrested for his offensive tweet has been granted bail on Thursday, March 23.A local court in Bengaluru released him on a surety of two persons and a Rs 25,000 bond. He was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days after he was arrested by Seshadripuram police.
Soon after attaining his freedom, Chetan who has been fighting for equality, while speaking to media said, sticking to his stand once again reiterated that, “Hindutva is built on lies.” Sharing his thoughts on Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda who allegedly killed Tipu Sultan, he added, “It is a cooked-up story to create disharmony between Vokkaligas and Muslim communities. Even historian have confirmed that Tipu Sultan was not killed by the duo. He was a great freedom fighter. We need to adopt his principles to create an egalitarian society. ”
The actor has also stated that he will continue fight for the betterment of the society. This is not the first time the actor was arrested following his offensive tweet. He was also earlier arrested in February last year for a tweet against Karnataka High Court Justice Krishna Dixit. He was later released on bail.
Kannada film actor, Ambedkarite Activist Mr. Chetan Kumar has been arrested by the Bommai led BJP government for the second time in the last one year. The previous arrest was made in February 2022, for a tweet criticising, Justice Krishna Dixit , a high court judge , over his misogynist remarks in an order allowing a bail plea of a rape accused. The same judge was part of the bench of three judges that heard the Hijab case in the Karnataka High Court. Chetan had expressed his serious reservations about the outcome of the proceedings due to the Judge’s prejudice against the women as expressed in the bail order. In fact, on the advice of the chief justice, those controversial remarks were later expunged from the order also.
Nevertheless, Chetan had to spend a few days in judicial custody before he got bail. There was an outrage in Karnataka civil society over the arrest which was considered as an attempt to suppress a dissident Ambedkarite Voice.
Chetan has proved his commitment to the causes he pursued even after his arrest. He was outspoken and unapologetic about his views on how even the judiciary is a replica of Indian casteist and male chauvinist society. He continued his unadulterated critique of all the political parties based on an Ambedkarite and Periyarist ideology. His strong views has resulted in the consolidation of some of his support base but has also alienated some others. His views continue to be debated in the mainstream media, very often not doing justice to his nuanced understanding.
This time around, the tweet for which Chetan has been arrested for the second time has touched the very electoral and ideological fault line of the RSS-BJP combine. In the impugned tweet Chetan had said that:
Hindutva is built on lies. Savarkar's theory that Hindu Rashtra was inaugurated from the times when Rama killed Ravana and brought back Sita is a lie. That there was a Ram Mandir beneath Babri-Masjid was a lie. And that Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, two concocted Vokkaliga warriors (were responsible for the) killing of Tipu is also a lie. Hence Hindutva is built on lies. Only truth can defeat these lies; and Equality is the Truth.
While the first two statements have been made by scores of people all of the time, what has truly perturbed and rattled the BJP’s machinery in Karnataka is the last one about Uri Gowda and Naje Gowda.
To understand the import of this statement one needs to understand the predicament of the BJP in the poll bound state of Karnataka.
The BJP government which is today wrecked with charges of corruption, scandals, factional fights, administrative failures etc., is solely banking on the time-tested electoral strategy of communal polarisation in the state. To this end it has been trying to rake up communal issues and also create a wedge between the dominant Vokkaliga community and the Muslims in the Mysore region where Tipu and Hyder Ali ruled for decades. The BJP is constantly attempting this by demonising Tippu Sultan and building statues for Kempe Gowda, the Vokkaliga chieftain of the area.
Of late the Gobblesian false factory of RSS-BJP has discovered two Vokkaliga warriors, namely Uri Gowda and Dodda Nanje Gowda and spun the story that they are responsible for killing Tipu Sultan in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War on May 4, 1799 in Srirangapattana, as a revenge against his “rule of religious bigotry”. A minister of the Bommai cabinet has even volunteered to produce a movie titled “Urigowda and Nanje Gowda”.
But all that propaganda did not gain traction, albeit temporarily, because a majority of the Vokkaliga community took offense to this misadventure of the Sangh Parivar and even the seer of the community prevailed upon the minister to retract and himself gave a firm caution against this false campaign. This is only because Tipu is considered even today as a great patriotic ruler who fought against the British with bravery and lost his life in the battlefield defending the country. Hence those who are responsible for the death of Tipu, like Mir Sadiq, the commander who betrayed Tipu in the final war, are considered traitors. Now the BJPs campaign which make two Vokkaligas “take credit” for the killing of Tipu is taken as a huge offense against the community.
However, even though, the momentum around “Urigowda” propaganda has decreased, staunch Vokkaliga politicians with an RSS background, like CT Ravi and Shobha Karandlaje have indirectly challenged the caution given by the seer and hinted that they would pursue the false campaign. Thus the Urigowda campaign might get postponed until the election but may resume with more fervour because it is the part of the larger strategy of the Sangh Parivar to re write the history by inventing Hindutva soldiers and Freedom Fighters while demonising all Muslim rulers with the same brush of invasion and bigotry.
It is in this background that Chetan tweeted this seemingly most innocuous tweet reiterating a truism stated by different people umpteen times in the public sphere.
For example, scholars like Ambedkar have exposed the Savarkarite myth of Hindu Rashtra and Ramayana in most of his works. Allam Prabhu, one of the great teachers of the Lingayat Community which is the main social base of the BJP in Karnataka, has declared in one of his couplets, in most unambiguous terms that “Puranas are nothing but a time pass of Ruffians and Vedas are worthless coir”.
In fact Chetan’s tweet can hardly be more “offending” than this .
That there was no Rama mandir beneath Babri Masjid is acknowledged by no less than the Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court.
And, Niramalanda Swamiji, the seer of the Vokkaliga community has officially declared that the Urigowda and Nanjegowda “warriors” are figment of fiction. The seer is also on record saying that “through imagination(s) one can write novels but not History.”
Not only that, if this new “discovery” was true, the Britishers who wanted to portray Tipu’s egalitarian rule as bigotry to justify their conquest, would have made maximum use of Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda in their campaign against Tipu immediately after his death.
Neither do “The Journey From Madras Through the Country of Mysore, Canara and Malabar” a documentation of Society and People of Mysore province by Francis Buchanan, immediately after the death of Tipu or the Historical account of the last Anglo-Mysore war documented by Alexander Beatson, or James Salmond or the locals like Ramchandra Rao Punganuri or the more recent one documented by British Officer C. Hayavadana Rao in 1946, even contain a bare documentation of mention these characters.
All the official, credible accounts of 1799, May 4 document that:
Mir Sadiq, the commander -in-chief of Tipu Sultan, betrayed Tipu and colluded with the British. He facilitated the march of the British Army into Srirangapattana after breaching the unguarded fort at about lunch time. Tipu Sultan, after learning that his confident commander Gafur had been martyred in the fight, rushes to the battleground with some of his confidence. But it was late and the city of Srirangapattana was being ransacked and plundered by British soldiers. Still Tipu puts up a brave fight killing many British soldiers in his wake. But in no time his beloved horse got killed and Tippu himself was hit by Musket balls and collapsed from the mount. Few British soldiers who were on the rampage, approached Tipu to seize from him the diamond studded sword. Tipu kills the soldier with the drawn sword. The other British soldiers kill him immediately by shooting without even knowing whom they are killing.
Even the local ballads in the folklore of Mysore, which are generally considered as an unadulterated account of truth in history, praise Tipu as a hero who died a martyr in safeguarding the country and in the quest of liberating the peasants. If Tipu was a tyrant and the Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda were liberators, the local ballads would have depicted the same. In fact there is not a single ballad even mentioning these imaginary Sanghi warriors or portraying Tipu as a tyrant.
Hence, the agrarian communities in the region have a great regard for Tipu and the Vokkaligas in general have taken offense to BJPs campaign which is bringing bad repute to their community.
Chetan has only aired this sentiment. Chetan is charged with creating disharmony between the communities over a complaint filed by a Bajrang Dal activist. That there was no need of arrest in such cases and that there has been no arrests of Right Wingers on more vicious statements says a lot about the current state of affairs.
Chetan may get the bail in a day or two. But the Hinduva bigots will continue with their crusade against Tipu and continue this agenda since it strengthens a crucial pillar of their Hindu Rashtra. The secular combat against this needs to be carried out relentlessly and with caution.
Related:
Arrest of Actor-Activist Chetan: Is Judiciary also contemptuous about dissent?
Who is lobbying to get activist actor Chetan Kumar deported to the US?
Actor Chetan’s Second Arrest: First as Warning, Second as Strategy?
UPDATE March 24, 2023: Chetan Kumar gets a bail
Actor and activist Chetan Kumar, who was arrested for his offensive tweet has been granted bail on Thursday, March 23.A local court in Bengaluru released him on a surety of two persons and a Rs 25,000 bond. He was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days after he was arrested by Seshadripuram police.
Soon after attaining his freedom, Chetan who has been fighting for equality, while speaking to media said, sticking to his stand once again reiterated that, “Hindutva is built on lies.” Sharing his thoughts on Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda who allegedly killed Tipu Sultan, he added, “It is a cooked-up story to create disharmony between Vokkaligas and Muslim communities. Even historian have confirmed that Tipu Sultan was not killed by the duo. He was a great freedom fighter. We need to adopt his principles to create an egalitarian society. ”
The actor has also stated that he will continue fight for the betterment of the society. This is not the first time the actor was arrested following his offensive tweet. He was also earlier arrested in February last year for a tweet against Karnataka High Court Justice Krishna Dixit. He was later released on bail.
Kannada film actor, Ambedkarite Activist Mr. Chetan Kumar has been arrested by the Bommai led BJP government for the second time in the last one year. The previous arrest was made in February 2022, for a tweet criticising, Justice Krishna Dixit , a high court judge , over his misogynist remarks in an order allowing a bail plea of a rape accused. The same judge was part of the bench of three judges that heard the Hijab case in the Karnataka High Court. Chetan had expressed his serious reservations about the outcome of the proceedings due to the Judge’s prejudice against the women as expressed in the bail order. In fact, on the advice of the chief justice, those controversial remarks were later expunged from the order also.
Nevertheless, Chetan had to spend a few days in judicial custody before he got bail. There was an outrage in Karnataka civil society over the arrest which was considered as an attempt to suppress a dissident Ambedkarite Voice.
Chetan has proved his commitment to the causes he pursued even after his arrest. He was outspoken and unapologetic about his views on how even the judiciary is a replica of Indian casteist and male chauvinist society. He continued his unadulterated critique of all the political parties based on an Ambedkarite and Periyarist ideology. His strong views has resulted in the consolidation of some of his support base but has also alienated some others. His views continue to be debated in the mainstream media, very often not doing justice to his nuanced understanding.
This time around, the tweet for which Chetan has been arrested for the second time has touched the very electoral and ideological fault line of the RSS-BJP combine. In the impugned tweet Chetan had said that:
Hindutva is built on lies. Savarkar's theory that Hindu Rashtra was inaugurated from the times when Rama killed Ravana and brought back Sita is a lie. That there was a Ram Mandir beneath Babri-Masjid was a lie. And that Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, two concocted Vokkaliga warriors (were responsible for the) killing of Tipu is also a lie. Hence Hindutva is built on lies. Only truth can defeat these lies; and Equality is the Truth.
While the first two statements have been made by scores of people all of the time, what has truly perturbed and rattled the BJP’s machinery in Karnataka is the last one about Uri Gowda and Naje Gowda.
To understand the import of this statement one needs to understand the predicament of the BJP in the poll bound state of Karnataka.
The BJP government which is today wrecked with charges of corruption, scandals, factional fights, administrative failures etc., is solely banking on the time-tested electoral strategy of communal polarisation in the state. To this end it has been trying to rake up communal issues and also create a wedge between the dominant Vokkaliga community and the Muslims in the Mysore region where Tipu and Hyder Ali ruled for decades. The BJP is constantly attempting this by demonising Tippu Sultan and building statues for Kempe Gowda, the Vokkaliga chieftain of the area.
Of late the Gobblesian false factory of RSS-BJP has discovered two Vokkaliga warriors, namely Uri Gowda and Dodda Nanje Gowda and spun the story that they are responsible for killing Tipu Sultan in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War on May 4, 1799 in Srirangapattana, as a revenge against his “rule of religious bigotry”. A minister of the Bommai cabinet has even volunteered to produce a movie titled “Urigowda and Nanje Gowda”.
But all that propaganda did not gain traction, albeit temporarily, because a majority of the Vokkaliga community took offense to this misadventure of the Sangh Parivar and even the seer of the community prevailed upon the minister to retract and himself gave a firm caution against this false campaign. This is only because Tipu is considered even today as a great patriotic ruler who fought against the British with bravery and lost his life in the battlefield defending the country. Hence those who are responsible for the death of Tipu, like Mir Sadiq, the commander who betrayed Tipu in the final war, are considered traitors. Now the BJPs campaign which make two Vokkaligas “take credit” for the killing of Tipu is taken as a huge offense against the community.
However, even though, the momentum around “Urigowda” propaganda has decreased, staunch Vokkaliga politicians with an RSS background, like CT Ravi and Shobha Karandlaje have indirectly challenged the caution given by the seer and hinted that they would pursue the false campaign. Thus the Urigowda campaign might get postponed until the election but may resume with more fervour because it is the part of the larger strategy of the Sangh Parivar to re write the history by inventing Hindutva soldiers and Freedom Fighters while demonising all Muslim rulers with the same brush of invasion and bigotry.
It is in this background that Chetan tweeted this seemingly most innocuous tweet reiterating a truism stated by different people umpteen times in the public sphere.
For example, scholars like Ambedkar have exposed the Savarkarite myth of Hindu Rashtra and Ramayana in most of his works. Allam Prabhu, one of the great teachers of the Lingayat Community which is the main social base of the BJP in Karnataka, has declared in one of his couplets, in most unambiguous terms that “Puranas are nothing but a time pass of Ruffians and Vedas are worthless coir”.
In fact Chetan’s tweet can hardly be more “offending” than this .
That there was no Rama mandir beneath Babri Masjid is acknowledged by no less than the Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court.
And, Niramalanda Swamiji, the seer of the Vokkaliga community has officially declared that the Urigowda and Nanjegowda “warriors” are figment of fiction. The seer is also on record saying that “through imagination(s) one can write novels but not History.”
Not only that, if this new “discovery” was true, the Britishers who wanted to portray Tipu’s egalitarian rule as bigotry to justify their conquest, would have made maximum use of Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda in their campaign against Tipu immediately after his death.
Neither do “The Journey From Madras Through the Country of Mysore, Canara and Malabar” a documentation of Society and People of Mysore province by Francis Buchanan, immediately after the death of Tipu or the Historical account of the last Anglo-Mysore war documented by Alexander Beatson, or James Salmond or the locals like Ramchandra Rao Punganuri or the more recent one documented by British Officer C. Hayavadana Rao in 1946, even contain a bare documentation of mention these characters.
All the official, credible accounts of 1799, May 4 document that:
Mir Sadiq, the commander -in-chief of Tipu Sultan, betrayed Tipu and colluded with the British. He facilitated the march of the British Army into Srirangapattana after breaching the unguarded fort at about lunch time. Tipu Sultan, after learning that his confident commander Gafur had been martyred in the fight, rushes to the battleground with some of his confidence. But it was late and the city of Srirangapattana was being ransacked and plundered by British soldiers. Still Tipu puts up a brave fight killing many British soldiers in his wake. But in no time his beloved horse got killed and Tippu himself was hit by Musket balls and collapsed from the mount. Few British soldiers who were on the rampage, approached Tipu to seize from him the diamond studded sword. Tipu kills the soldier with the drawn sword. The other British soldiers kill him immediately by shooting without even knowing whom they are killing.
Even the local ballads in the folklore of Mysore, which are generally considered as an unadulterated account of truth in history, praise Tipu as a hero who died a martyr in safeguarding the country and in the quest of liberating the peasants. If Tipu was a tyrant and the Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda were liberators, the local ballads would have depicted the same. In fact there is not a single ballad even mentioning these imaginary Sanghi warriors or portraying Tipu as a tyrant.
Hence, the agrarian communities in the region have a great regard for Tipu and the Vokkaligas in general have taken offense to BJPs campaign which is bringing bad repute to their community.
Chetan has only aired this sentiment. Chetan is charged with creating disharmony between the communities over a complaint filed by a Bajrang Dal activist. That there was no need of arrest in such cases and that there has been no arrests of Right Wingers on more vicious statements says a lot about the current state of affairs.
Chetan may get the bail in a day or two. But the Hinduva bigots will continue with their crusade against Tipu and continue this agenda since it strengthens a crucial pillar of their Hindu Rashtra. The secular combat against this needs to be carried out relentlessly and with caution.
Related:
Arrest of Actor-Activist Chetan: Is Judiciary also contemptuous about dissent?
Who is lobbying to get activist actor Chetan Kumar deported to the US?
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Remembering Bhagat Singh, Reclaiming the Right to be A Free Thinker
It is quite a striking experience when, in Europe – including in France which is the historical birthplace of secularism –, one gets automatically told, for example, "Oh, you are a Hindu!" if one says one is Indian, or "Oh, you are a Muslim! if one says one is Algerian.
First publihsed on: 27 Apr 2017
One witnesses a forceful return of religions’ political hold, which corners our diasporas into a mix of ethnic-cultural-religious syncretic identity, and traps us, as if we were under ‘house arrest’, into our presumed religion or culture. In fact, this is an ahistorical fantasy, which denies us any access to freedom of thought and universal rights.
In these dire circumstances, we welcome the translation into French, the publication and the wide distribution of Bhagat Singh’s 1930 pamphlet "Why I am an atheist" as particularly timely.
As feminists, we already faced the identity sledgehammer argument in our countries of origin: "Feminism is Western; you are traitors to your own country, to your culture, to your origins; you have sold out to the West, to capitalism, to Western imperialism" etc…
However, a research undertaken by feminist activists in the ’90s in so-called Muslim countries shows that women, since the inception of Islam, already demanded the right to education, to freedom of movement, to political representation, to financial autonomy, to celibacy or to the right to chose one’s partner after thorough agreements had been designed in order to draft a contract which was satisfactory to both parties, etc…
From that time onwards, women took action to guarantee all these rights (1) We had to fight hard to get back the ownership of our long lived feminist history, by challenging the Sirens’ song of reactionary identity politics – and as well, one must emphasise here, the Sirens’ song of patriarchy happily covering up in the midst of our Left forces, in our countries.
As revolutionaries as well, we had to confront the identity argument: "Marxism is a Western way of thinking, alien to our culture; you are traitors to the nation; sold out to the West, etc…"
And now once more, we must reclaim and own back our revolutionary history, by bringing together the stories and analysis of the many agnostics, atheists and secularists in our countries. For, as Bhagat Singh says, "All religions, faiths, theological philosophies, and religious creeds and all other such institutions in the long run become supporters of the tyrannical and exploiting institutions, men and classes. Rebellion against any king has always been a sin in every religion. "
In order to reclaim our historical right to atheism, to ground ourselves into our long secular tradition, we must today confront on the ground the Hindutva as well as Daesh (ISIS) and many other – intolerant Buddhists, orthodox Jews, Opus Dei, etc... religious extreme-rights, which, when they are in power, claim their gods granted them the right and duty to physically eliminate all the Untermensch. "Divine Repression", as Bhagat Singh would say… Be it in India, in Bangladesh, in Pakistan, in Algeria, in Nigeria, or … in Paris and Brussels, many lost their lives, including recently, for having claimed this universal right: to live as a freethinker and to mock the official representatives of established creeds.
Let us pay tribute here to the Bangladeshi and Saudi bloggers, to the Indian writers, to the Pakistani activists struggling against the Blasphemy Law, to the French cartoonists, etc … who fought for our freedom.
Clearly, it is an illusion to hope that the West will be spared by the rise of religious extreme-rights and that their sphere of influence will be limited to the African and Asian countries we came from. In Europe and North America, societies are increasingly dividing themselves along the lines of ethnic or religious antagonistic ‘communities’ which want to be ruled by their own religious laws ("Do not say that it is His law!", exclaims Bhagat Singh) and their own customs. In the process, they get rid of democracy and universal rights, in the name of an ‘identity’ which only keeps from the past the most conservatives elements – especially regarding women’s rights.
Even in France, the very principle of secularism is now under threat – whether because it is gradually abandoned by political forces, formerly on the Left, who made secularism happen, or whether it is sidetracked by political forces, on the extreme-right.
In these troubled times, translating and publishing in the French language this book by Bhagat Singh reminds all those who, right here, deny us our libertarian history – in the name of an identity they believe is necessarily grounded in religion – and who grant a growing political power to religions’ official representatives, that "The morbid alliance between religious preachers and possessors of power" constitutes a mortal danger.
The writer is Algerian sociologist, founder and former international coordinator of the Women Living Under Muslim Laws international solidarity network (wluml.org), founder and present international coordinator of the international network, Secularism Is A Women’s Issue (siawi.org).
This article was published in French by Editions de l’Asymétrie, as a forward to Bhagat Singh’s "Why I am an atheist". The author has translated it into English.
Remembering Bhagat Singh, Reclaiming the Right to be A Free Thinker
It is quite a striking experience when, in Europe – including in France which is the historical birthplace of secularism –, one gets automatically told, for example, "Oh, you are a Hindu!" if one says one is Indian, or "Oh, you are a Muslim! if one says one is Algerian.
First publihsed on: 27 Apr 2017
One witnesses a forceful return of religions’ political hold, which corners our diasporas into a mix of ethnic-cultural-religious syncretic identity, and traps us, as if we were under ‘house arrest’, into our presumed religion or culture. In fact, this is an ahistorical fantasy, which denies us any access to freedom of thought and universal rights.
In these dire circumstances, we welcome the translation into French, the publication and the wide distribution of Bhagat Singh’s 1930 pamphlet "Why I am an atheist" as particularly timely.
As feminists, we already faced the identity sledgehammer argument in our countries of origin: "Feminism is Western; you are traitors to your own country, to your culture, to your origins; you have sold out to the West, to capitalism, to Western imperialism" etc…
However, a research undertaken by feminist activists in the ’90s in so-called Muslim countries shows that women, since the inception of Islam, already demanded the right to education, to freedom of movement, to political representation, to financial autonomy, to celibacy or to the right to chose one’s partner after thorough agreements had been designed in order to draft a contract which was satisfactory to both parties, etc…
From that time onwards, women took action to guarantee all these rights (1) We had to fight hard to get back the ownership of our long lived feminist history, by challenging the Sirens’ song of reactionary identity politics – and as well, one must emphasise here, the Sirens’ song of patriarchy happily covering up in the midst of our Left forces, in our countries.
As revolutionaries as well, we had to confront the identity argument: "Marxism is a Western way of thinking, alien to our culture; you are traitors to the nation; sold out to the West, etc…"
And now once more, we must reclaim and own back our revolutionary history, by bringing together the stories and analysis of the many agnostics, atheists and secularists in our countries. For, as Bhagat Singh says, "All religions, faiths, theological philosophies, and religious creeds and all other such institutions in the long run become supporters of the tyrannical and exploiting institutions, men and classes. Rebellion against any king has always been a sin in every religion. "
In order to reclaim our historical right to atheism, to ground ourselves into our long secular tradition, we must today confront on the ground the Hindutva as well as Daesh (ISIS) and many other – intolerant Buddhists, orthodox Jews, Opus Dei, etc... religious extreme-rights, which, when they are in power, claim their gods granted them the right and duty to physically eliminate all the Untermensch. "Divine Repression", as Bhagat Singh would say… Be it in India, in Bangladesh, in Pakistan, in Algeria, in Nigeria, or … in Paris and Brussels, many lost their lives, including recently, for having claimed this universal right: to live as a freethinker and to mock the official representatives of established creeds.
Let us pay tribute here to the Bangladeshi and Saudi bloggers, to the Indian writers, to the Pakistani activists struggling against the Blasphemy Law, to the French cartoonists, etc … who fought for our freedom.
Clearly, it is an illusion to hope that the West will be spared by the rise of religious extreme-rights and that their sphere of influence will be limited to the African and Asian countries we came from. In Europe and North America, societies are increasingly dividing themselves along the lines of ethnic or religious antagonistic ‘communities’ which want to be ruled by their own religious laws ("Do not say that it is His law!", exclaims Bhagat Singh) and their own customs. In the process, they get rid of democracy and universal rights, in the name of an ‘identity’ which only keeps from the past the most conservatives elements – especially regarding women’s rights.
Even in France, the very principle of secularism is now under threat – whether because it is gradually abandoned by political forces, formerly on the Left, who made secularism happen, or whether it is sidetracked by political forces, on the extreme-right.
In these troubled times, translating and publishing in the French language this book by Bhagat Singh reminds all those who, right here, deny us our libertarian history – in the name of an identity they believe is necessarily grounded in religion – and who grant a growing political power to religions’ official representatives, that "The morbid alliance between religious preachers and possessors of power" constitutes a mortal danger.
The writer is Algerian sociologist, founder and former international coordinator of the Women Living Under Muslim Laws international solidarity network (wluml.org), founder and present international coordinator of the international network, Secularism Is A Women’s Issue (siawi.org).
This article was published in French by Editions de l’Asymétrie, as a forward to Bhagat Singh’s "Why I am an atheist". The author has translated it into English.
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Dalit student bruised and beaten for drinking water from bucket in school: UP
On the day that 96 years ago, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar tried to establish and proclaim the norms of equality breaking the taboo of Dalits’ right to drinking water; in UP today, the Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch has reported the violent assault on a young Ankush simply because he drank water for a common bucket in the schoolmon March 18, as reported by Mooknayak
Image: Courtesy Mooknayak
It was the Bundelkhand adhikaar Manch helped the parents of the child to send letters to higher authorities and highlight the issue
Student beaten up severely shows stark untouchability prevalent
The police report states that Rajni the mother of the victim Ankush alleged that on March 18th, her son complained of stomach ache, prompting her to give him some tablets to be taken with water. Later that day, when Ankush felt pain in his stomach, he drank water from a bucket. This was when, a teacher named Shashi Yadav reportedly saw him and proceeded to lock him inside a room and physically assaulted him so severely that his nose began to bleed profusely. Upon learning of the incident from his classmate, Ankush's mother rushed to the school.
Ankush's mother also alleged in the police report that the teacher's actions were driven by her casteist mindset. When she confronted the teacher about this issue, the latter remained defiant and even threatened to ruin Ankush's future by striking his name off the school rolls.
Case reported to higher authorities
The Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch, a social organization actively engaged in the region, dispatched a fact-finding team led by Vimal Kumar Baudh and Rajkumar Jatav to meet with the family of the victim, and they have since taken the matter up to higher authorities. Kuldeep Kumar Baudh, a prominent social activist from the organization, conveyed to The Mooknayak, "Our team interacted with the victim's family and submitted a memorandum of demands to the District Magistrate and District Basic Education Officer. In addition, we have communicated our concerns to the SC/ST Commission at both the state and national levels, the Government of Uttar Pradesh, the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, the Basic Education Secretary of Uttar Pradesh, and the Chief Minister, while seeking appropriate action." Furthermore, Kuldeep mentioned that the Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch is currently conducting a survey throughout Uttar Pradesh to gather data on schools that practice untouchability.
Related:
Trolling, harassment of Dalit writer and activist, Shalin Maria Lawrence condemned: NWMI
MP: Dalit family brutally assaulted by Thakurs, former had gone to take possession of their farmland
Dalits & OBCs denied last rites by BSF: MASUM
TN: Over 200 Dalits Enter Village Temple in Tiruvannamalai Amid Protests From Dominant Castes
Dalit student bruised and beaten for drinking water from bucket in school: UP
On the day that 96 years ago, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar tried to establish and proclaim the norms of equality breaking the taboo of Dalits’ right to drinking water; in UP today, the Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch has reported the violent assault on a young Ankush simply because he drank water for a common bucket in the schoolmon March 18, as reported by Mooknayak
Image: Courtesy Mooknayak
It was the Bundelkhand adhikaar Manch helped the parents of the child to send letters to higher authorities and highlight the issue
Student beaten up severely shows stark untouchability prevalent
The police report states that Rajni the mother of the victim Ankush alleged that on March 18th, her son complained of stomach ache, prompting her to give him some tablets to be taken with water. Later that day, when Ankush felt pain in his stomach, he drank water from a bucket. This was when, a teacher named Shashi Yadav reportedly saw him and proceeded to lock him inside a room and physically assaulted him so severely that his nose began to bleed profusely. Upon learning of the incident from his classmate, Ankush's mother rushed to the school.
Ankush's mother also alleged in the police report that the teacher's actions were driven by her casteist mindset. When she confronted the teacher about this issue, the latter remained defiant and even threatened to ruin Ankush's future by striking his name off the school rolls.
Case reported to higher authorities
The Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch, a social organization actively engaged in the region, dispatched a fact-finding team led by Vimal Kumar Baudh and Rajkumar Jatav to meet with the family of the victim, and they have since taken the matter up to higher authorities. Kuldeep Kumar Baudh, a prominent social activist from the organization, conveyed to The Mooknayak, "Our team interacted with the victim's family and submitted a memorandum of demands to the District Magistrate and District Basic Education Officer. In addition, we have communicated our concerns to the SC/ST Commission at both the state and national levels, the Government of Uttar Pradesh, the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, the Basic Education Secretary of Uttar Pradesh, and the Chief Minister, while seeking appropriate action." Furthermore, Kuldeep mentioned that the Bundelkhand Dalit Adhikar Manch is currently conducting a survey throughout Uttar Pradesh to gather data on schools that practice untouchability.
Related:
Trolling, harassment of Dalit writer and activist, Shalin Maria Lawrence condemned: NWMI
MP: Dalit family brutally assaulted by Thakurs, former had gone to take possession of their farmland
Dalits & OBCs denied last rites by BSF: MASUM
TN: Over 200 Dalits Enter Village Temple in Tiruvannamalai Amid Protests From Dominant Castes
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67 suicides in central institutes of higher learning despite 80 % claiming SC/ST cells for "assistance"
While 87/108 such institutes, that is a high 80 %, have SC/ST cells for assistance according to a reply by the ministry of education in Parliament, the rates of suicides (67 over five years) is high, suggesting structural flaws, both in their construct and functioning
The data speaks clearly. According to the figures produced by the Union Education Ministry, 23 IITs (Institutes of Technology), 25 IIITs, 7 IISERs (Institutes of Science and Research, Technology), 20 IIMs (Institutes of Management), 32 NITs (Institutes of Technology)and 1 IISc (Institutes of Science). Out of these as many as 19 IITs, 14 IIITs, 7 IISER, 1 IISc, 20 IIMs and 26 NITs have SC/ST students’ cells. This accounts for 80 percent of all institutes. Yet a high 67 suicides were recorded in these institutes over the past years.
Dr Subhas Sarkar, the Minister of State for Education told the Lok Sabha on March 20 that out of the 108 Central Institutions of Higher Education, 87 have SC/ST Cells for assistance of students belonging to these communities. The remaining institutes, the Ministry states, have set up mechanisms such as Equal Opportunity Cell, Student Grievance Cell, Student Grievance Committee, Student Social Club, Liaison officers, Liaison Committee etc.
The question was put by S Venkatesan [CPI (Marxist)] who questioned about the reported suicides of students belonging to Scheduled Castes (SCs)/Scheduled Tribes (STs) in Central Institutions of Higher education and how many of these institutes have SC/ST Cells.
Of the total deaths by suicide, during the last five years, 33 suicide cases from IITs, 24 cases from NITs and 4 cases from IIMs have been reported from student belonging to the SC/ST community, said the Ministry.
According to the testimony given by the Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC) of IIT Bombay, it was a long struggle to get the IIT institutes to establish a SC/ST cell in the IITs. A struggle which had begun in September 2014, after Aniket Ambhore, a 22 year old fourth year B. Tech student of IIT Bombay, died from falling from a hostel building on the campus at IIT Bombay [13]. As per their narrative, it was due to their consistent struggles that a special cell was established in IITs. It took them 7 years to set up the SC/ST Cell on the campus. These SC/ST Students Cell are supposed to addresses academic and non-academic issues and complaints received from students belonging to the SC and ST birth categories, which could be scholarship issues, opportunity issues or any other guidance.
That there is a structural bias in operation appears more than clear.
In 2022, the APPSC had complained to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) that the head counsellor at the Student Wellness Centre (SWC) on the Mumbai campus had signed a public petition to end caste-based reservation and posted about it on social media. The Ministry told the House that the Head Counsellor was removed, and a new In-Charge for Student Wellness Centre has been appointed. “The institute has initiated the recruitment of one counsellor each from the SC and ST communities, so that students can approach them for their grievance,” the Ministry said.
The complete answer may be read here:
Related:
IS CASTE NAME CALLING NOT AN OFFENCE UNDER THE SC/ST ACT?
IIT MUMBAI REPORT ON DARSHAN SOLANKI DEATH, CRUCIAL EVIDENCE OVERLOOKED
67 suicides in central institutes of higher learning despite 80 % claiming SC/ST cells for "assistance"
While 87/108 such institutes, that is a high 80 %, have SC/ST cells for assistance according to a reply by the ministry of education in Parliament, the rates of suicides (67 over five years) is high, suggesting structural flaws, both in their construct and functioning
The data speaks clearly. According to the figures produced by the Union Education Ministry, 23 IITs (Institutes of Technology), 25 IIITs, 7 IISERs (Institutes of Science and Research, Technology), 20 IIMs (Institutes of Management), 32 NITs (Institutes of Technology)and 1 IISc (Institutes of Science). Out of these as many as 19 IITs, 14 IIITs, 7 IISER, 1 IISc, 20 IIMs and 26 NITs have SC/ST students’ cells. This accounts for 80 percent of all institutes. Yet a high 67 suicides were recorded in these institutes over the past years.
Dr Subhas Sarkar, the Minister of State for Education told the Lok Sabha on March 20 that out of the 108 Central Institutions of Higher Education, 87 have SC/ST Cells for assistance of students belonging to these communities. The remaining institutes, the Ministry states, have set up mechanisms such as Equal Opportunity Cell, Student Grievance Cell, Student Grievance Committee, Student Social Club, Liaison officers, Liaison Committee etc.
The question was put by S Venkatesan [CPI (Marxist)] who questioned about the reported suicides of students belonging to Scheduled Castes (SCs)/Scheduled Tribes (STs) in Central Institutions of Higher education and how many of these institutes have SC/ST Cells.
Of the total deaths by suicide, during the last five years, 33 suicide cases from IITs, 24 cases from NITs and 4 cases from IIMs have been reported from student belonging to the SC/ST community, said the Ministry.
According to the testimony given by the Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC) of IIT Bombay, it was a long struggle to get the IIT institutes to establish a SC/ST cell in the IITs. A struggle which had begun in September 2014, after Aniket Ambhore, a 22 year old fourth year B. Tech student of IIT Bombay, died from falling from a hostel building on the campus at IIT Bombay [13]. As per their narrative, it was due to their consistent struggles that a special cell was established in IITs. It took them 7 years to set up the SC/ST Cell on the campus. These SC/ST Students Cell are supposed to addresses academic and non-academic issues and complaints received from students belonging to the SC and ST birth categories, which could be scholarship issues, opportunity issues or any other guidance.
That there is a structural bias in operation appears more than clear.
In 2022, the APPSC had complained to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) that the head counsellor at the Student Wellness Centre (SWC) on the Mumbai campus had signed a public petition to end caste-based reservation and posted about it on social media. The Ministry told the House that the Head Counsellor was removed, and a new In-Charge for Student Wellness Centre has been appointed. “The institute has initiated the recruitment of one counsellor each from the SC and ST communities, so that students can approach them for their grievance,” the Ministry said.
The complete answer may be read here:
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Trolling, harassment of Dalit writer and activist, Shalin Maria Lawrence condemned: NWMI
The Network of Women in Media, India, strongly condemns the continuous and ongoing harassment of Chennai-based Dalit writer and activist Shalin Maria Lawrence on social media sites.
This statement by a collective of women journalists has condemned the targeted harassment of TN Dalit writer Shalin Maria Lawrence, March 20, 2023.
Shalin, who is a columnist for various English and Tamil publications, has been facing high-volume targeted harassment on Twitter as well as Facebook over the past year, specifically from handles associated with the DMK, ruling party in Tamil Nadu and the BJP, ruling party in Union. Shalin has used social media to raise awareness of caste-related atrocities in Tamil Nadu, especially those that might not find a mention in regional media, said NWMI. This, according to NWMI, has drawn the ire of both right-wing groups as well as persons associated with the DMK.
“However, rather than engaging in introspection or at least combating her with facts, figures, or ideas, they have taken to coordinated attacks, bombarding her with demeaning language including casteist slurs, body shaming her, slurs based on her religion, and making scurrilous charges against her character and integrity.
They have also targeted her close family members,” read NWMI’s statement. “Shalin’s refusal to be silenced comes at a great cost to her physical and mental health. Nevertheless, she persists to speak and write on caste and women because she believes these are important issues that must find a place in public discourse,” it said.
In conclusion, the network concluded stating that the DMK and BJP should send a strong message to their supporters that the harassment of women writers, journalists, and activists cannot be tolerated, let alone permitted, the women journalists’ collective has urged.
Trolling, harassment of Dalit writer and activist, Shalin Maria Lawrence condemned: NWMI
The Network of Women in Media, India, strongly condemns the continuous and ongoing harassment of Chennai-based Dalit writer and activist Shalin Maria Lawrence on social media sites.
This statement by a collective of women journalists has condemned the targeted harassment of TN Dalit writer Shalin Maria Lawrence, March 20, 2023.
Shalin, who is a columnist for various English and Tamil publications, has been facing high-volume targeted harassment on Twitter as well as Facebook over the past year, specifically from handles associated with the DMK, ruling party in Tamil Nadu and the BJP, ruling party in Union. Shalin has used social media to raise awareness of caste-related atrocities in Tamil Nadu, especially those that might not find a mention in regional media, said NWMI. This, according to NWMI, has drawn the ire of both right-wing groups as well as persons associated with the DMK.
“However, rather than engaging in introspection or at least combating her with facts, figures, or ideas, they have taken to coordinated attacks, bombarding her with demeaning language including casteist slurs, body shaming her, slurs based on her religion, and making scurrilous charges against her character and integrity.
They have also targeted her close family members,” read NWMI’s statement. “Shalin’s refusal to be silenced comes at a great cost to her physical and mental health. Nevertheless, she persists to speak and write on caste and women because she believes these are important issues that must find a place in public discourse,” it said.
In conclusion, the network concluded stating that the DMK and BJP should send a strong message to their supporters that the harassment of women writers, journalists, and activists cannot be tolerated, let alone permitted, the women journalists’ collective has urged.