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On July 19, Indranil Bhattacharya, Dean (Films) of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) was suspended for “an anti-government Facebook post” and on disciplinary grounds. He was also issued three show-cause notices.

Bhattacharya wanted to apply  for a posting at the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) in New Delhi. His advocate Sunip Sen told the court that Bhattacharya’s application will be routed through the Director of FTII. Sen also alleged vindictive action on the part of the Centre because Bhattachatya had complained to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). 

In 2013, Indranil Bhattacharya had filed a complaint with the Central Information Commission (CIC) under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act), alleging serious omissions by FTII, Pune. “The complaint pertained to the public authority’s poor compliance to the RTI Act and its provisions and also a complete disregard for Section 4 of the RTI Act regarding suo motu disclosure.”

By the time the complaint was heard by the CIC in 2017, Bhattacharya further submitted that his only complaint was a lack of total compliance with Section 4 of the RTI, but that a large degree of improvement had been made in four years. The CIC concluded that it found no evidence of malfidelity. It also suggested that the Director, FTII hold workshops for officers and staff on the key feature of the RTI Act.

Slamming the behaviour of the Centre in the matter of the suspension of Bhattacharaya from his faculty position, Justices Gautam Patel and Satyaranjan Dharmadhikari of the Bombay HC reminded the respondents of the institution’s prestigious history. The court has directed FTII to forward his application to JMI.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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The statement has been signed by over 250 prominent women artists, theatre makers, actors, curators, dancers, singers and students of art from various parts of the country.

The statement said: “Since 2014, we have witnessed a complete failure of governance. While data for unemployment, agrarian poverty, caste based inequalities and injustice, has breached past lows, government PR machineries are working overtime and spending our money to conceal this information from the public eye. We are not fooled by the glitz of the advertisements of the supposedly pro-women policies and campaigns of the Government – Selfie with Daughter, Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao, Ujjwala Yojana, etc., while several Adivasi, Dalit, Muslim and Trans-women have been systematically violated and deprived of their basic needs.”

The statement drew attention to the grave and persistent threat that educational and cultural institutions are under. “Women students, writers, activist and teachers have been attacked, assaulted and even killed by the state supported saffron forces.” It also comments on the irony of the ‘chowkidaar’ campaign as streets still remain unsafe for women. “The empty rhetoric of this government’s slogans are wearing thin now. The unjust disenfranchisement of women voters and their absence from the voters list, as pointed out by the memorandum presented to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) by Women’s organisations, is not only deeply distressing but an outright assault on our democratic and equal rights as citizens of this country,” they said.

“Women in the arts have historically played a significant role in making and preserving the values of our constitution” and in “championing a society based on equity and inclusion”. They added that “we have fought for rights and stood in solidarity with the marginalised sections of society.” For many among them even “the very act of standing on stage, taking to the streets, singing and dancing is an act of protest, of claiming our rightful space in society. Today they perceive that this site and “the space to live, eat, pray, speak and express as we wish” is being threatened.

The statement calls upon women citizens to save at whatever cost “this shrinking space for dissent, for freedom, for existing/existence” and to “vote out the current right-wing regime and rebuild our country as the secular democratic republic that we have always envisioned”. It is open for endorsement until April 10, the day before the first phase of polling begins.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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On 6 April, the previews of the first two chapters from Anand Patwardhan’s documentary, “Vivek” (Reason) were released on YouTube by a handle which goes by the name of Vivek Reason. So far, four videos are available for public viewing. The 13-minute-long previews are part of a 240-minute-long documentary which has eight chapters. Together, they showcase “a chilling account of how murder and mind control are being applied to systematically dismantle secular democracy” in India. “Reason” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September last year, and also won the Best Feature-Length Documentary at the 31st International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam in November.

Patwardhan has been making hard-hitting documentaries for over four decades now. His films such as “Father, Son and Holy War” (1995), and “Jai Bhim Comrade”(2011) document the violent attacks by the authoritarian and casteist, right-wing forces in the country. “Reason” discusses burning issues such as the death of leading rationalists and thinkers, upper-caste resistance to dalit activism, the evils of manual scavenging incidents and methods of radical organisations – and links these with the right wing, in both its official and unofficial forms.

The first two chapters trace the reasons behind the death of rationalists, and intellectuals like Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and Gauri Lankesh. Dabholkar was gunned down during his morning walk in Pune in 2013. He had been at the forefront of a life-long campaign against superstition and was involved with the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti. The section on Pansare includes footage of his public speeches following Dabholkar’s killing. “Who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi? It is that very ideology that killed Dabholkar as well,” Pansare says, pointing to the involvement of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) and its affiliates.

The latter two chapters examine the recent killings of dalits and Muslims in the name of the cow. Since the BJP government came into power in 2014, lynching in the name of cow-protection has become the new normal. Mohammed Akhlaq, a 52-year-old man who lived in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, was lynched by a group of men for allegedly slaughtering his neighbour’s calf and consuming its meat on 28 September 2015. The police investigation later found no beef in his house. Since then, attacking minorities in the name of the cow has increased. Last month, Human Rights Watch, an advocacy group based in the United States revealed links between almost all cow vigilante groups in India and the Hindutva organisations in India. The report also maintained that the lynchers enjoy political and administrative patronage.

Last week over 100 members of the Indian film fraternity issued an appeal urging Indians not to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Anand Patwardhan was one amongst the signatories which included other well-known names like Vetri Maaran, Sanalkumar Sasidharan, Deepa Dhanraj, and editor, Bina Paul. Written as an appeal to “protect the democracy of the country”, the statement charged the right-wing government for “unleashing of polarisation and hate politics; cow vigilantism; marginalisation of dalits, Muslims and farmers and increasing censorship.” Patwardhan’s film, “Reason” packs a scathing investigation of all these issues.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum
 

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The revised textbooks will be out this month, before the new academic session begins.

One of the removed sections of the textbook discusses the Nadar (also called Channar) community of Travancore—an Indian kingdom from 1500-1949.  The Nadar community live in both present day Tamil Nadu and Kerela. Clothing played an essential role in defining status quo at that time and men and women of the Nadar community were forced to keep their upper bodies uncovered by the caste council of the Nair community of the state of Travancore in the early 1800s. If they chose to cover themselves, they were forced to pay mulakkaram or “breast tax”, which was assessed on the basis of the size of a woman’s breasts.  In 1822, the practice sparked violent agitations causing the Channar Revolt, where women from the Nadar and Ezhava communities demanded the right to wear the same clothing as “upper” caste women.

Knowing about the Nadar women’s revolt is important for students because the issue is about caste and dignity rather than feminine modesty. Talking about the decision to remove this section from textbooks, J Devika, a historian at the centre for development studies in Thiruvananthapuram, had said to The Wire, “it was women who challenged both British and local caste authorities: it was the culmination of an insistent discourse in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It is sad that they want to erase an instance of a community with dignity and agency, and construct one of servitude to Brahminical-Victorian morality.”

In these times when the government is altering and re-writing history for political gains and taking away the opportunity to learn objective history in classrooms, let us recall one of Orijit Sen’s work, based on a village tale, of a woman named Nangeli, who is believed to have cut off her breasts in an effort to protest the caste-based mulakkaram.

Graphic artist, cartoonist, muralist and designer Orijit Sen is author of the graphic novel River of Stories as well as many other works of graphic fiction and non-fiction. He is one of the founders of People Tree – a collaborative studio and store for artists, designers, and craftspeople. Sen is also Miranda Chair Visiting Professor at Goa University.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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In what seems to be yet another attack on education by the ruling government, the JNU administration has increased the entrance examination (JNUEE) fee by 300%.  According to a leaked prospectus on March 14, the fee has been increased from Rs 1200 for the general category for admission to three subjects to Rs 3600 for three subjects for general, Rs 2700 for OBC and Rs 1800 for SC, ST and others. They have also closed down lateral entry into the BA programme, reduced deprivation points for MPhil as well as PhD and delinked the integrated MPhil-PhD programme.

The fee hike is not just limited to Indian nationals. Foreign students too are facing the brunt of administration’s arbitrary decision. There has been a 200% hike (from 600$ to 1200$ for Humanities and from 700$ to 1700$ for Sciences) in semester fees and a 400% hike (from 75$ to 300$) as indicated in the prospectus.

In a Facebook post, JNUSU General Secretary Aejaz Ahmad said, “Modi government’s policy to promote foreign exchanges and to open Indian education for foreign students turns out to be a Jumla (lie) as fees for foreign students is being increased at exponential form.”

The JNUEE will be held from May 27 to May 30 and the registration process is set to start from March 15. While many students are claiming that the prospectus was uploaded on the JNU website yesterday and later taken down, according to a report in Hindustan Times, JNU Public relation officer Poonam Kudusiya said, “no prospectus was uploaded and NTA will upload it by March 15.”

The administration has refused to recognise this year’s elected students union and has not allowed the Union to participate in the Academic Council meetings, where this decision was taken.

Infringing a democratic decision making process, the JNU VC Mamidala Jagdish Kumar unilaterally decided the admission policy which now reflects a 300% fee hike for Indian nationals and a 400% fee hike for foreign students. Apart from the massive fee hike, additional GST is also applicable on  the amount. A document on GST on Education Services states that: ““Education” is not defined in the CGST Act but as per Apex Court decision in “Loka Shikshana Trust v/s CIT”, education is process of training and developing knowledge, skill and character of students”.
“At a time when JNU is celebrating 50 years of its existence by cherishing its “Make the University Model”, VC Jagdish Kumar is celebrating it by a “Break the University” model”, said JNUSU president N Sai Balaji in a Facebook post.

The JNUSU has condemned the administration’s decision and called for a University strike today, warning the VC to hold back the anti-student prospectus.

Speaking to the Indian Cultural Forum, School of International Studies convenor Aishe Ghosh said, “The hike in the price of the forms is a clear indication of preventing the marginalised sections from coming into this university. Students from economically backward and marginalised sections could come and study in this university, but now they will not even be able to fill up the forms because the prices are too high. They are trying to make JNU like other private universities where we hardly see students from the economically backward classes. This is going to affect the character of JNU as an inclusive university and is part of the administration and the ruling government’s larger agenda of pushing JNU towards privatisation”.

The implementation of these decisions, taken undemocratically by Mamidala Jagdish Kumar-led JNU administration, is another step towards the privatisation of higher education in the country, putting an end to the freedom and inclusivity of the education system and making education for the economically weaker sections unapproachable.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum
 

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The “Artists Unite!” platform held a convention in Delhi on 2 & 3 March 2019, and simultaneously similar events nationwide on these dates to, “weigh in with a collective voice, and with a creative energy that asserts arts and literature as a means of resistance to the hate politics that is sweeping the country and to mitigate the challenges to democracy.”

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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According to Wilson, 11 sewer deaths were reported in India in 2019 alone. In 2018, the number went up to 105. Not even a word of condolence has ever been expressed by the Prime Minister or the Prime Ministers Office. No necessary steps to eradicate manual scavenging have been taken by the government, even though mechanised sewer cleaning technologies have been in existence for long now. At a protest at Jantar Mantar, women santiation workers burned their baskets which they use to carry human excreta on their heads, in protest against manual scavenging and demanding alternate livelihood. The Prime Minister doesn’t seem to realise that the sanitation workers don’t want his admiration of the work they do, they want freedom from manual scavenging without exception.

In light of the statement made by the PM, which only adds insult to injury, the Indian Cultural Forum takes a look at the injustice that is manual scavenging and brings to you, from the archives, the numerous struggles to eradicate manual scavenging.

Basket Burning by safai karmacharis at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi – a symbolic act of defiance to push the demand for elimination of manual scavenging. Photo Credit:
Safai Karmachari Andolan

12 Crore New Toilets, but Who Will Clean Them?
Bezwada Wilson talks about manual scavenging, the inhumane practice that it is and how it is forced upon the lower castes. With the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’s new aims of building more toilets across the country, the already burdened scavengers will be made to take on the additional job of cleaning the new toilets. Wilson remarks on the failure of the government to tackle this problem and the lack of technology advancements in this area, and how it continues to normalise the oppression of this particular class of people.

“On how many fronts can I fight?”
“If these machines had been brought in before, my children’s papa would not have left them. Now they are not of any use to me, but they will at least be useful for other women. Their men will not die in the sewers. No one should have to suffer the way I do.” So saying, a visibly distressed Rani Kumari became silent.

We must understand that ‘Caste’ is linked with ‘Scavenging’:

“I have been going into this hell for decades”
Mani is a Dalit, from the Chakkliar caste. He left school because his teachers and fellow students would call him thoti, a derogatory term for the scavenging caste in south India, and ask him to sit separately. “They would abuse me because I used to clean dead bodies and shit. Teachers would ask me to sit outside the classroom,” says Mani.  

Bezwada Wilson on Eradicating Manual Scavenging
Bezwada Wilson talks about the lack of political will when it comes to eradicating untouchability and manual scavenging.

Women break the walls of toilets in protest of Manual Scavenging:

The Long March to Eliminate Manual Scavenging
Why are the Indian government and even the media and civil society quiet about the death of more than a thousand of its citizens (Thomas, 2016)? People are being killed in sewer and septic tanks every day and yet, so far there has been no relevant discussion by policymakers, in state assemblies or the Parliament. By the time you are reading this essay, this number would have increased multifold. What could be the reason for this apathy and indifference? Is this because all who die in sewers and septic tanks are Dalits? Why is it that even amidst the rhetoric of development and progress in 2017, 1.3 million (FirstPost, 2016) Dalits in India, and mostly women, are forced to manually clean human excreta? Why does the country allocate a budget of INR 16,248 crore 1 for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan while it has only INR 5 crore to spare for rehabilitation of manual scavengers, as per the Union Budget for the fiscal year 2017–18? Why is India unable to invest in finding a technology to clean sewer septic tanks without endangering human life? These are serious questions that Indian democracy must answer.

“Minimum protective gear, maximum risk, no holidays, no pay, and ever-lurking disease and death”
Tens of thousands of Dalits still work as manual scavengers in India – unclogging sewers, emptying septic tanks, and more. They work with no protective gear, no holidays, irregular wages, and the constant threat of disease and death. All this along with deep social stigma – while the government speaks of a Swachh Bharat and of ‘open defecation free’ villages.

Bezwada Wilson: “We cannot address manual scavenging without addressing untouchability, without taking on inequality”:

“You do not want us to occupy your space because we smell?”
The sanitation workers are employed by the university on a contractual basis and receive no benefits from their employers. Narrating a personal experience, the spokesperson said that some time ago when he was hurt, he had incurred an expense of four lakh rupees from the hospital where he was being treated. Forget receiving monetary support from the university, “no one,” he remarked “from the university staff or administration had cared to even pay him a visit during his stay at the hospital. In spite of this, I am still here being the good worker that I am and I will be here tomorrow as well.”

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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On 26 January, 1950, the constitution of India came into effect. The Constitution, drafted by a committee led by Dr B R Ambedkar, provided every Indian citizen with six fundamental rights—the right to equality, right to freedom, right against exploitation, right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, and the right to constitutional remedies. Today, however, inequality and discrimination mark the state of our nation with the Modi government failing to let people exercise their basic fundamenal rights.

On 70th Republic Day, the Indian Cultural Forum brings back from it archives, times the current government has failed to uphold the Constitution of India.

Right to Equality

Sabarimala
The Article (15) of the Indian constitution prohibits discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Yet, the nation witnessed a significant social and political churning on the question of temple entry at the Sabarimala shrine in Kerala. The verdict of the five-judge constitution bench on 28^th September 2018, granting women between the ages of ten and fifty the right to enter the shrine, has set the stage for a direct confrontation between contrary worldviews and social currents. Ranged on one side are defenders of the status quo who see the entry of women of menstrual age into Sabarimala as an assault on their traditions and religion. These champions of orthodoxy include the high priests of the temple, the erstwhile Pandalam royal family, upper caste organisations like the Nair Service Society, and hardline outfits like the Ayyappa Dharma Sena which have the direct backing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Opposed to these forces are a range of progressive organisations and movements which view the Sabarimala issue as a question of gender justice. They seek to use the Supreme Court judgment to advance the struggle against social prejudice and patriarchal mindsets. In this they have received the active support of the Left-led state government. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his speech in Kerala, referred the Kerala government’s effort to implement the SC judgement as “Kerala government’s conduct on Sabarimala issue is the most shameful.” So far, after relentless effort only two women succeeded in entering the temple premise, although the Kerala government claims fifty one women of menstruating age entered the temple after the Supreme Court verdict. 

 
Right to Freedom

Writers and Film-makers return their Award
Soon after the Modi government came into power in 2014, the first attack was on freedom of speech. The attack on curbing of freedom of expression began with the murder of Govind Pansare (2015), MM Kalburgi (2015) and Gauri Lankesh (2017). Even today, the “unknown assailants” of Narendra Dhabolkar and other three rationalists walk freely and the Indian government has failed to identify and arrest the perpetrators of these crimes.

In 2015, several writers returned their awards and resigned from their positions at the Sahitya Akademi; and issued statements of protest about the encouragement to intolerance between castes and communities. Later, around 25 filmmakers and film professionals, including Saeed Mirza, Kundan Shah, Arundhati Roy, Ranjan Palit, Sanjay Kak, and Pradeep Kishen returned their National Awards at the Press Club in Mumbai in protest of state sponsored violence and aggressive interference in academic and cultural institutions.
 
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Story
Sedition is an archaic and outdated law dating back to the British Raj. The law was enforced to keep in check people partaking in the freedom struggle and who were outspoken against the imperial rule. Countless freedomfighters, including MK Gandhi, were jailed under the law. 
On 2016, February 9, some students from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) organised a cultural evening of poetry reading and poster presentation called “The Country Without a Post Office”, inside the university premises, to protest against “extra judicial killing.” The meeting was organised by a group of ten students including Umar Khalid and Anirban Battacharya. The event, however, was disrupted by members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The ABVP termed the event, and the students participating in the event, as “anti-national.” There were clashes between the students, which led to police intervention on campus. On 10 February, Kanhaiya Kumar, the JNUSU  President at that time, who was not present at the event, came out in support of the organisers, asserting that they had a right to express dissent within a university space.  On 12 February 2016, Kumar was arrested on charges of sedition from the campus without any warning. The JNU students and teachers received a wide support from all over the world came that defended the right to freedom of expression.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill
Akhil Gogoi, leader of Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti of Assam, was arrested on 13 September 2017 under sedition charges by the BJP government of the state. A total of 122 cases against him were clubbed together under the National Security Act, foreclosing any possibility of judicial redress. The NSA advisory panel of the state approved his detention on 19 November, thereby sealing his incarceration for 12 months at least. Akhil Gogoi has been a vocal critic of the BJP government and was arrested for his address at a meeting against amendments to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 which aims to legalise preferential treatment of citizenship applicants on the basis of religion, and which many people in Assam believe is specifically designed to help Bengali speaking Hindus of the state to legally obtain citizenship, while denying it to Muslims.

In a repeat of the events, the Assam government slapped on Hiren Gohain and others in 2019. Eighty years into his life of scholarly pursuit Professor Gohain, and journalist-activist Manjit Mahanta, were slapped with sedition cases by the Assam government for being present at a protest meeting against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. They have been given bail by the Guwahati High Court for now.

Sedition on Artists
On April 29 2018, Chhattisgarh Police booked senior journalist and activist Kamal Shukla on sedition charges under Section 124 (A) of the Indian Penal Code. The matter pertains to a cartoon about the Judge Loya case, criticizing the government and judiciary that Shukla shared from his Facebook wall few days ago.

Crackdown on Activists
Last year August, witnessed a crackdown on five human-rights activists including Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Varavara Rao,and Arun Ferreria  by the Pune police. The arrests are part of a clear design to lock down on democratic dissent, undermine free speech and create a climate of fear. Their arrests, as well as the raids on the homes of a total of nine persons in Delhi, Ranchi, Bombay and Hyderabad, plainly intended to persecute dissenters and those critiquing rights violations by governments.

Right against Exploitation

Manual Scavenging
Though the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 prohibits the engagement or employment of persons for manually carrying human excreta and further prohibits the construction or maintenance of dry latrines, manual scavenging still persists in various forms today. This Act also seeks rehabilitation of manual scavengers by providing them with alternative employment. Yet the government today deny even the existence of the profession in toto. In September 2018 eleven manual scavengers death were reported from across the country. These include five deaths which took place on a single day in the National Capital Region of Delhi. These deaths resulted in massive protests led by the Safai Karamchari Andolan. Every day one manual scavenger dies in our country. Still their deaths goes “unnoticed” and “undiscussed” by the Modi government.
 
Farmers March across the Country
No one can forget the recent image of the farmer who committed suicide next to the harvested, rotten onions. Yes, this is the reality of the people who feed us. As the Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads the most anti-farmer and pro-corporate government since India gained independence, the farmers of the country decided to unite their hands for the promises. The country witnessed a series of farmers protest all across including Mahapadav, Kisan Long March, Mazdoor-Kisan Rally and Kisan Mukti March. Starting from Sikar in Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Haryana, then to the national capital, the agitated farmers marched for what they have been promised off. As the farmer suicide number tolls each day, yet, the Modi government choose to turn their face off from these issues.
Read More: Kisan Mukti March | In Photos
 
Right to Freedom of Religion

Hadiya’s trial
Hadiya alias Akhila Asokan, a “girl” aged 24 years was called as “weak and vulnerable, capable of being exploited in many ways’ because she chose her faith in another god. A young Hadiya was put under media trial for over a year for marrying a Muslim man, Shafin Jahan. The Kerala High Court annulled her marriage with Jahan, and directed her under “protective” custody of her parents. She was put under house arrest for six months. Several questions on her conversion were raised. Widely known as Hadiya Case, was probed by National Investigation Agency (NIA). The centre chose to keep once again silent on this case. However, the Supreme Court gave a landmark judgement in favour of the Hadiya, stating, “Right to change of faith is part of fundamental right of choice”. But that doesn’t cover up for the crucification that the young woman had to go through.
 
The lynching of 15 year old Junaid
On 22 June, 2017, Junaid Khan was lynched while he was travelling in a train. The incident took place in the evening and the train was running somewhere between Okhla and Asoti , both in the state of Haryana. The incident was reminiscent of the death of Mohammed Akhlaq, who was killed in 2015. Poet Keki Daruwalla responds to these incidents by saying “…the names of Akhlaq Ahmed and Junaid will go down in history as black marks against the current establishment.” Junaid was murdered in broad day light because he was a of his religion, a Muslim. Over the past four years, the country has witnessed number of lynching in the name of cow, religion. And while these murderers roam around freely, the government shields them.

Cultural and Educational Rights

Rohit Vemula
Rohith Vemula, a young Dalit scholar at the Hyderabad Central University committed suicide on January 17, 2016. His death shook the conscience of the entire nation and led to massive protests, setting off a chain of events that continue to be relevant for the Dalit movement in the country even today.

Reservation for Minorities
In the history of reservations in India, reservations have been given to the SCs, STs and OBCs based only on their “social backwardness”. Today, reservation is being scuttled in higher education, is very dangerous for social justice and the fight for equality in our society. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced 10 percent reservation for economically weaker upper class. The BJP, especially, Modi’s, boast of executing this masterstroke reservation for economically weaker sections is without tinkering with the quotas of the SCs, STs and OBCs.

Right to Constitutional Remedies

Zakiya Jafri case
The stories and images of 2002 Godhra, Gujarat, still echoes in our ear. A targeted communal violence that took many lives during then Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s government. The violence was unleashed by the then ruling Hindu fundamentalist groups. The 78 year old survivor of 2002, widow of the late Ahsan Jafri, and surviour of the communal violence approached the court seeking justice for her family and the community. Modi, then Chief Minister of Gujarat was one of the accused in this violence. But multiple times the court has failed the give Jafri justice, by giving a “clean-chit” to the accused.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum
 

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Image Courtesy: Public Focus TV

Referring to himself as an “anti-national”, Visvanathan pointed out that the country is obsessed with the nation-state. Visvanathan objected to the idea of “nationalism” and asserted that there is an immense need to revisit the larger idea of nationalism that can be equated with civilizational character. “There is a need for developing the practice of asking questions in a democratic manner,” added the speaker.

Controversy ensued when Visvanathan critiqued the incapability of the government and referred to the incidents of rape in Manipur and other states by the Army personnel, along with raising the question of Kashmir. Before he could conclude the lecture, a group of people interrupted his speech and started questioning him loudly, followed by an attack, as can be seen in the video below.

Linguist and one of the founding members of Dakshinayan, G N Devy, who was also present at the event, concluded the session by saying, “We thank Visvanathan for sharing his perspective with us. It is a question of ideas and ideas need to be liberated with other ideas.”

The 3^rd day of the seminar yet again witnessed another protest when a group of students from the BJP Yuva Morcha barged into the hall and disrupted the ongoing proceedings, demanding an apology from Visvanathan. Even though the organisers informed them that Shiv Visvanathan had left Dharward that morning, the protesters refused to return. Instead, they demanded an apology from the organisers of the event for Visvanathan’s speech. A parallel protest was also called by a group of retired Army personnel gathered outside the event who condemned Visvanathans’ speech and threatened to take legal action against him.

Speaking to Indian Cultural Forum and responding to the growing intolerance in the state, G N Devy said, “Dharwad is the land of Kalburgi. He was murdered for his thoughts. Dharwad, in the recent years, has witnessed strong reaction to such thoughts. It is a place which was known for its literature and music in the past, but in the present, its complexion has changed.”

Every year, the Dharwad Sahitya Sambrama invites eminent personalities from across the country. However, this is the first time that the event has witnessed vandalism during a session. Basavaraj Sulibhavi of Ladai Prakashana, Karnataka, told the Indian Cultural Forum, “It’s surprising how some men were able to enter into one of the sessions and disrupt the lecture. None of the attackers had a name tag with them as everyone else did. Instead of filing a complaint, the organisers tried to diffuse the situation by tending an apology.”

Even though the session was interrupted, there were many in the audience who were in agreement with Visvanathan’s speech. “Such solidarity proves that the present regime is losing its hold”, G N Devy concluded.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum
 

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On his third death anniversary, the Indian Cultural Forum looks back at the discrimination faced by Rohith Vemula and the events that followed his death.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum
 

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