On January 3, 1831, 176 years ago Savitribai Phule, arguably India’s first woman teacher and forgotten liberator was born. With the first school for girls from different castes that she set up in Bhidewada, Pune (the seat of Brahmanism) Krantijyoti Savitribai as she is reverentially known, by the Indian Bahujan movement, blazed a revolutionary trial. There have been consistent demands to observe January 3 as Teachers Day. Without her, Indian women would not have had the benefits of education.
 
To mark the memory of this remarkable woman we bring to you her letters to life partner Jyotiba. Jyotiba and Savitribai were Comrades in Arms in their struggle against the emancipation of India’s disenfranchised people.
 
Translated from the Original Marathi with an introduction Sunil Sardar Reproduced here are the English translation of three important Letters – (originally in Marathi and published in MG Mali’s edition of her collected works, Savitribai Phule Samagra Wangmaya) – that Savitribai wrote to her husband Jyotiba in a span of 20 years.

The letters are significant as they write of the wider concerns that drove this couple, the emancipation of the most deprived segments of society and the struggle to attain for them, full human dignity and freedom.

This vision for a new and liberated society – free from ignorance, bigotry, deprivation, and hunger – was the thread that bonded the couple, arching from the private to the personal.

Theirs was a relationship of deep and shared concerns, each providing strength to the other. When large sections of 19^th century Maharashtrian society was ranged against Phule’s reconstructive radicalism, it was the unfailing and shared vision and dedication of his life partner that needs have been emotionally sustaining.  In our tribute to this couple and the tradition of radical questioning that they harboured, we bring to our readers these letters.
 
1856. The first letter, written in 1856, speaks about the core issue: education and its transformative possibilities in a society where learning, had for centuries been the monopoly of the Brahmins; who, in turn, used this exclusive privilege to enclave, demoralize and oppress. Away at her parental home to recuperate from an illness, Savitri describes in the letter a conversation with her brother, who is uncomfortable with the couple’s radicalism.
 
October 1856
The Embodiment of Truth, My Lord Jyotiba,
Savitri salutes you!
 
After so many vicissitudes, now it seems my health has been fully restored. My brother worked so hard and nursed me so well through my sickness. His service and devotion shows how loving he really is! I will come to Pune as soon as I get perfectly well. Please do not worry about me. I know my absence causes Fatima so much trouble but I am sure she will understand and won’t grumble.
 
As we were talking one day, my brother said, “You and your husband have rightly been excommunicated because both of you serve the untouchables (Mahars and Mangs). The untouchables are fallen people and by helping them you are bringing a bad name to our family. That is why, I tell you to behave according to the customs of our caste and obey the dictates of the Brahmans.” Mother was so disturbed by this brash talk of my brother.
 
Though my brother is a good soul he is extremely narrow-minded and so he did not hesitate to bitterly criticize and reproach us. My mother did not reprimand him but tried instead to bring him to his senses, “God has given you a beautiful tongue but it is no good to misuse it so!” I defended our social work and tried to dispel his misgivings. I told him, “Brother, your mind is narrow, and the Brahmans’ teaching has made it worse. Animals like goats and cows are not untouchable for you, you lovingly touch them. You catch poisonous snakes on the day of the snake-festival and feed them milk. But you consider Mahars and Mangs, who are as human as you and I, untouchables. Can you give me any reason for this? When the Brahmans perform their religious duties in their holy clothes, they consider you also impure and untouchable, they are afraid that your touch will pollute them. They don’t treat you differently than the Mahars.” When my brother heard this, he turned red in the face, but then he asked me, “Why do you teach those Mahars and Mangs? People abuse you because you teach the untouchables. I cannot bear it when people abuse and create trouble for you for doing that. I cannot tolerate such insults.” I told him what the (teaching of) English had been doing for the people. I said, “The lack of learning is nothing but gross bestiality. It is through the acquisition of knowledge that (he) loses his lower status and achieves the higher one. My husband is a god-like man. He is beyond comparison in this world, nobody can equal him. He thinks the Untouchables must learn and attain freedom. He confronts the Brahmans and fights with them to ensure Teaching and Learning for the Untouchables because he believes that they are human beings like other and they should live as dignified humans. For this they must be educated. I also teach them for the same reason. What is wrong with that? Yes, we both teach girls, women, Mangs and Mahars. The Brahmans are upset because they believe this will create problems for them. That is why they oppose us and chant the mantra that it is against our religion. They revile and castigate us and poison the minds of even good people like you.

“You surely remember that the British Government had organised a function to honour my husband for his great work. His felicitation caused these vile people much heartburn. Let me tell you that my husband does not merely invoke God’s name and participate in pilgrimages like you. He is actually doing God’s own work. And I assist him in that. I enjoy doing this work. I get immeasurable joy by doing such service. Moreover, it also shows the heights and horizons to which a human being can reach out.”

Mother and brother were listening to me intently. My brother finally came around, repented for what he had said and asked for forgiveness. Mother said, “Savitri, your tongue must be speaking God’s own words. We are blessed by your words of wisdom.” Such appreciation from my mother and brother gladdened my heart. From this you can imagine that there are many idiots here, as in Pune, who poison people’s minds and spread canards against us. But why should we fear them and leave this noble cause that we have undertaken? It would be better to engage with the work instead. We shall overcome and success will be ours in the future. The future belongs to us.

What more could I write?

With humble regards,

Yours,

Savitri
 
The Poetess in Savitribai
 
The year 1854 was important as Savitribai published her collection of poems, called Kabya Phule (Poetry’s Blossoms).
Bavan Kashi Subodh Ratnakar (The Ocean of Pure Gems), another collection of what has come to be highly regarded in the world of Marathi poetry was published in 1891. (The Phules had developed a devastating critique of the Brahman interpretation of Marathi history in the ancient and medieval periods. He portrayed the Peshwa rulers, later overthrown by the British, as decadent and oppressive, and Savitribai reiterates those themes in her biography.)
Apart from these two collections, four of Jyotiba’s speeches on Indian History were edited for publication by Savitribai. A few of her own speeches were also published in 1892. Savitribai’s correspondence is also remarkable because they give us an insight into her own life and into the life and lived experiences of women of the time.
 
1868. The Second letter is about a great social taboo – a love affair between a Brahman boy and an Untouchable girl; the cruel behavior of the ‘enraged’ villagers and how Savitribai stepped in. This intervention saves the lives of the lovers and she sends them away to the safety and caring support of her husband, Jyotiba. With the malevolent reality of honour killings in the India of 2016 and the hate-driven propaganda around ‘love jehad’ this letter is ever so relevant today.

29 August 1868
Naigaon, Peta Khandala
Satara
The Embodiment of Truth, My Lord Jotiba,
Savitri salutes you!
I received your letter. We are fine here. I will come by the fifth of next month. Do not worry on this count. Meanwhile, a strange thing happened here. The story goes like this. One Ganesh, a Brahman, would go around villages, performing religious rites and telling people their fortunes. This was his bread and butter. Ganesh and a teenage girl named Sharja who is from the Mahar (untouchable) community fell in love. She was six months pregnant when people came to know about this affair. The enraged people caught them, and paraded them through the village, threatening to bump them off.
 
I came to know about their murderous plan. I rushed to the spot and scared them away, pointing out the grave consequences of killing the lovers under the British law. They changed their mind after listening to me.

Sadubhau angrily said that the wily Brahman boy and the untouchable girl should leave the village. Both the victims agreed to this. My intervention saved the couple who gratefully fell at my feet and started crying. Somehow I consoled and pacified them. Now I am sending both of them to you. What else to write?
Yours
Savitri
 
1877. The last letter, written in 1877, is a heart-rending account of a famine that devastated western Maharashtra. People and animals were dying. Savitri and other Satyashodhak volunteers were doing their best to help. The letter brings out an intrepid Savitri leading a team of dedicated Satyashodhaks striving to overcome a further exacerbation of the tragedy by moneylenders’ trying to benefit.  She meets the local District administration. The letter ends on a poignant note where Savitribai reiterates her total commitment to her the humanitarian work pioneered by the Phules.
 
20 April, 1877
Otur, Junner
The Embodiment of Truth, My Lord Jyotiba,
Savitri salutes you!
The year 1876 has gone, but the famine has not – it stays in most horrendous forms here. The people are dying. The animals are dying, falling on the ground. There is severe scarcity of food. No fodder for animals. The people are forced to leave their villages. Some are selling their children, their young girls, and leaving the villages. Rivers, brooks and tanks have completely dried up – no water to drink. Trees are dying – no leaves on trees. Barren land is cracked everywhere. The sun is scorching – blistering. The people crying for food and water are falling on the ground to die. Some are eating poisonous fruits, and drinking their own urine to quench their thirst. They cry for food and drink, and then they die.

Our Satyashodhak volunteers have formed committees to provide food and other life-saving material to the people in need. They have formed relief squads.
Brother Kondaj and his wife Umabai are taking good care of me. Otur’s Shastri, Ganapati Sakharan, Dumbare Patil, and others are planning to visit you. It would be better if you come from Satara to Otur and then go to Ahmednagar.

You may remember R.B. Krishnaji Pant and Laxman Shastri. They travelled with me to the affected area and gave some monetary help to the victims.

The moneylenders are viciously exploiting the situation. Bad things are taking place as a result of this famine. Riots are breaking out. The Collector heard of this and came to ease the situation. He deployed the white police officers, and tried to bring the situation under control. Fifty Satyasholdhaks were rounded up. The Collector invited me for a talk. I asked the Collector why the good volunteers had been framed with false charges and arrested without any rhyme or reason. I asked him to release them immediately. The Collector was quite decent and unbiased. He shouted at the white soldiers, “Do the Patil farmers rob? Set them free.” The Collector was moved by the people’s plights. He immediately sent four bullock cartloads of (jowar) food.

You have started the benevolent and welfare work for the poor and the needy. I also want to carry my share of the responsibility. I assure you I will always help you. I wish the godly work will be helped by more people.

I do not want to write more.
Yours,
Savitri
 
(These letters have been excerpted with grateful thanks from A Forgotten Liberator, The Life and Struggle of Savitrabai Phule, Edited by Braj Ranjan Mani, Pamela Sardar)
 

Bibliography:

Krantijyoti : Revolutionary flame
Brahmans: Priestly “upper” caste with a powerful hold on all fairs of society and state including access to education, resources and mobility (spelt interchangeably as Brahmins)
Mahars:The Mahar is an Indian Caste, found largely in the state of Maharashtra, where they compromise 10% of the population, and neighboring areas. Most of the Mahar community followed social reformer B. R. Ambedkar in converting to Buddhism in the middle of the 20th century.
Mangs: The Mang (or Matang -Minimadig in Gujarat and Rajasthan) community is an Indian caste historically associated with low-status or ritually impure professions such as village musicians, cattle castraters, leather curers, midwives, hangmen, undertakers. Today they are listed as a Scheduled Castes a term which has replaced the former the derogatory ‘Untouchable’
Satyashodhak Samaj:  A society established by Jyotirao Phule on September 24, 1873. This was started as a group whose main aim was to liberate the shudra and untouchable castes from exploitation and oppression
Shudra: The fourth caste under the rigid caste Hindu system; these were further made more rigid in the Manu Smruti
Ati Shudra: Most of the groups listed under this category come under the untouchables who were used for the most venal tasks in caste ridden Hindu society but not treated as part of the caste system.
Jowar: The Indian name for sorghum

How the Education for girls was pioneered

The Phule couple decided to start schools for girls, especially from the shudra and atishudra castes but also including others so that social cohesion of sorts could be attempted in the classroom. Bhidewada in Pune was the chosen site, a bank stands there today. There is a movement among Bahujans to reclaim this historic building. When the Phules faced stiff resistance and a boycott, a Pune-based businessman Usman Shaikh gave them shelter. Fatima Shaikh Usman’s sister was the first teacher colleague of Savitribai and the two trained teachers who ran the school. The school started with nine girl students in 1848.

Sadashiv Govande contributed books from Ahmednagar. It functioned for about six months and then had to be closed down. Another building was found and the school reopened a few months later. The young couple faced severe opposition from almost all sections. Savitribai was subject to intense harassment everyday as she walked to school. Stones, mud and dirt were flung at her as she passed. She was often abused by groups of men with orthodox beliefs who opposed the education for women. Filth including cow dung was flung on her. Phule gave her hope, love and encouragement. She went to school wearing an old sari, and carried an extra sari with her to change into after she reached the school. The sheer daring and doggedness of the couple and their comrades in arms broke the resistance. Finally, the pressure on her eased when she was compelled to slap one of her tormentors on the street!
 
Once the caste Hindu Brahmanical hierarchy who were the main opponents of female education realized that the Phule couple would not easily give in, they arm-twisted Jyotiba’s father. Intense pressure was brought by the Brahmins on Phule’s father, Govindrao, to convince him that his son was on the wrong track, that what he was doing was against the Dharma. Finally, things came to a head when Phule’s father told him to leave home in 1849. Savitri preferred to stay by her husband’s side, braving the opposition and difficulties, and encouraging Phule to continue their educational work.
 
However, their pioneering move had won some support. Necessities like books were supplied through well wishers; a bigger house, owned by a Muslim, was found for a second school which was started in 1851. Moro Vithal Walvekar and Deorao Thosar assisted the school. Major Candy, an educationalist of Pune, sent books. Jyotirao worked here without any salary and later Savitribai was put in charge. The school committee, in a report, noted, “The state of the school funds has compelled the committee to appoint teachers on small salaries, who soon give up when they find better appointment…Savitribai, the school headmistress, has nobly volunteered to devote herself to the improvement of female education without remuneration. We hope that as knowledge advances, the people of this country will be awakened to the advantages of female education and will cordially assist in all such plans calculated to improve the conditions of those girls.”
 
On November 16, 1852, the education department of the government organised a public felicitation of the Phule couple, where they were honoured with shawls.
On February 12, 1853, the school was publicly examined. The report of the event state: “The prejudice against teaching girls to read and write began to give way…the good conduct and honesty of the peons in conveying the girls to and from school and parental treatment and indulgent attention of the teachers made the girls love the schools and literally run to them with alacrity and joy.”
 
A Dalit student of Savitribai, Muktabai, wrote a remarkable essay which was published in the paper Dyanodaya, in the year 1855. In her essay, Muktabai poignantly describes the wretchedness of the so-called untouchables and severely criticizes the Brahmanical religion for degrading and dehumanizing her people.
 

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Popular American football championship Super Bowl featured a 30-second commercial on February 7, 2021 in favour of the on-going farmers struggle in India, calling the movement “the largest protest in history” said The Hindu.

The commercial began with a quote from Martin Luther King: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” This was followed by snapshots of the farmers’ tractor parade and their border camps overlaid with text alleging human rights violations against protesters. Punjabi music also played as the screen flashed the words “No Farmers, No Food, No Future.”

The airing of this advertisement during one of the most-watched sports events of America, was funded by a Sikh community in Fresno city of central California that enjoys a large Sikh population –  40,000 people as per local reports.

The video that was aired in parts of the US also included a message from Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer along with a mention of pop music icon Rihanna’s viral tweet regarding the protests.

“We want you to know, our brothers and sisters in India, that we stand with you,” said Dyer.

Later, the social media platform of the Kisan Ekta Morcha, the official voice of protesting farmers, thanked the Fresno community for putting up the advertisement. The 30-second spot for Super Bowl 2021 cost $5.5 million for a viewership that was around 100 million in 2020.

As per the video editor “Teji Video” Instagram update, the commercial was scheduled to air between 3 PM and 3.30 PM Fresno time, right before the Super Bowl game began on Sunday. The farmers movement against the three laws – the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act – has attracted international attention over the past two to three months.

Other than Rihana, climate activist Greta Thunberg, MPs from Britain and Canada, American vlogger Amanda Cerny, media personality Mia Khalifa and many others have voiced their solidarity with Indian farmers. Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs rebuked Rihanna and Thunberg in its official statement. Farmers’ organisations have in turn thanked the international expression of solidarity and asked for the release of detained farmers who were arrested after Republic Day events.

Related:

Allow peaceful protest by farmers: US Congress to India

Rihanna, Greta Thunberg support Indian farmers; MEA cries foul

British Parliament may consider debate on Indian farmers’ protests

India falls to 53rd rank in Global Democracy Index due to ‘democratic backsliding’

Farmers’ movement: How NIA summons triggered the ‘Khalistan’ conspiracy theory

Farmers’ Protest: International pressure mounts on India

It’s Modi vs Farmers: NRI children of Punjab’s farmers

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–A 5-judge constitution bench will decide if Sabarimala Temple can restrict women’s entry.

–Supreme Court had in July 2016 indicated that it could refer the matter to the bench.

–LDF govt in 2007 filed an affidavit, saying it favoured entry of women in the temple.

The Supreme Court today referred the matter pertaining to the ban on the entry of women into Kerala’s famous Sabrimala temple to a five-judge constitution bench. The apex court has framed several questions, including whether the temple can restrict women’s entry, which are to be confronted by the constitution bench.

The Supreme Court had in July 2016 indicated that it may refer the question – whether the constitutional right to equality of a woman could be raised to “interfere” with the religious beliefs and customs denying entry to women in Sabarimala temple – to its constitution bench.

The question was whether women’s right to equality before law guaranteed under Article 14 could be invoked in the face of the freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion guaranteed under Article 25 and Freedom to manage religious affairs guaranteed under Article 26 of the constitution. It was the The Indian Young Lawyers Association has petitioned for the opening of the temple gates to women in the age group of 10 to 50 years, while the Travancore Davaswom Board and others have opposed the plea.

The CPM-led Left Front government in 2007 had filed an affidavit, saying that it favoured the entry of women in the temple. But this position was reversed in another affidavit filed by the Congress-led UDF government in February 2016.
 

1.  Unholy and Unconstitutional: the ban of women from Sabarimala

2.  Flip Flop Flip: Kerala Govt is Now for Women’s Entry into Sabarimala

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A bench of Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justice PC Pant however added that the state government’s scheme of paying ex-gratia of Rs 50,000 for damaged residential and commercial properties would apply to religious properties as well.

The apex court’s ruling came after hearing a petition filed by Gujarat government challenging the high court order directing it to pay compensation to more than 500 shrines damaged during the 2002 communal carnage. While ordering the compensation, the high court order had also passed severe strictures against the then chief minister Narendra Modi’s administration for its failure to contain the violence.

In its appeal before the Supreme Court the Gujarat government had expressed its willingness to pay the same ex-gratia compensation amount of Rs 50,000 which it had earlier paid in case of damage to residential or commercial premises.
Two days earlier, on Monday the bench had wondered if it would be proper in a secular state to order compensation for rebuilding places of worship.

 “Money is required for economic growth… individual injury is a different thing where compensation is granted under Article 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Constitution. Can it happen in a diversified country that a state is distributing public money to build religious places?” the bench had observed.

Appearing on behalf of the Gujarat government, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that Article 27 of the Constitution prohibits asking people “to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious denomination.”
 

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If this demand is not met by February 2018, the organisation has also threatened to launch an agitation in tea gardens, including a blockade of tea exports from the state.

The organisation took the decision at a recent meeting attended by intellectuals and leaders of the tea tribes.”Assam suffers from floods every year. Many people are rendered homeless. This year, the disaster caused huge damage. So providing compensation and relief is not the only solution. The Centre should declare the floods as a national problem and do their best to prevent it permanently,” the organisation’s chief convenor Israil Nanda said.

“If the Centre and the state do not take any initiative in this regard by February, we will stage protests in every tea garden. As part of the agitation, no worker will do any plucking. We will also block the export process,” he added.

There are more demands: the organisation also warned the government to take a decision on granting Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to six communities of Assam.

“We seek a clear stand of the state government on this issue. There are some restrictions for the tea tribes in Assam to get ST status. We will demand an autonomous council for the tea tribes. A study committee is working to prepare a proposal for the autonomous council,” Nanda said. The committee also alleged that workers under the Assam Tea Corporation are deprived of various facilities such as provident fund, bonus and other benefits. The organisation demanded release of Rs 5000-crore package for the tea workers.

“There is discrimination over daily wage among the tea workers of the Barak and the Brahmaputra valleys. After decades of service in the industry, many workers are deprived of bonus and other facilities. Under the Assam Tea Corporation, there are around 25,000 workers in 15 tea gardens in Assam. But those workers have not got a single paisa as provident fund and bonus over the past 15 years. They are also deprived of facilities provided as per the Minimum Wages Act, 1948,” Nanda said. The state government has released no funds to the Tea Workers’ Welfare Board, it alleged.

“The former state government used to provide a package of Rs 100 crore to the welfare board. But the present government has reduced it to Rs 53 crore and that, too, is yet to be released. The condition of the board is also pathetic. The Congress government had decided to collect Rs 2 each from the workers and Rs 4 from the owner of gardens against each worker as the fund for the board. The decision was withdrawn,” he said.

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Although the government has asked companies such as Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo to immediately take down any links leading to the deadly game it is unclear how these companies would make the game inaccessible. It is because this game is not publicly available and freely downloadable. It is a social media phenomenon where conversations about this take place secretively in closed social media groups.
More Needs to be Done, Here are Some Tips
 
The Blue Whale Challenge – What Parents Need to Know

FAQs
 
a) What is the Blue Whale Challenge and why should parents be concerned about this game?

1. The Blue Whale challenge is an online game. The game is named so because sometimes whales beach themselves intentionally and die. 

2. Inthisgame,an online administrator assigns tasks to its participants.The participants are given a period of 50 days to complete each task. The players are expected to take photos of them undertaking the challenge and upload them as proofs for the curator’s approval. The last challenge is to commit suicide. Players of this game cannot stop playing because they are blackmailed and cyber bullied into completing the game. 


This deadly game has spread all over the globe, and in India there have been reports (Report 1, Report2) of children harming themselves and in a few cases even committing suicides, which are allegedly linked to Blue Whale Challenge.

b) Where can children access this game?
Blue Whale is not a freely downloadable game, application or software. Children cannot access it on their smartphones through app stores or on social media platforms like Facebook. It is shared among secretive groups on social media networks. The creators seek out their players/victims and send them an invitation to join.

c) What kind of challenges do the players face in this game?
Some of the challenges in this game are listed below. It may not be a standard list of challenges and it is possible that curators of the game may come up with new ones.
 
More than six children across India in the age group of 12-19 years have taken their lives allegedly playing this game within a span of two weeks.

1. Carve with a razor “f57” on your hand, send a photo to the curator. 

2. Wake up at 4.20 a.m. and watch psychedelic and scary videos that curator sends you. 

3. Cut your arm with a razor along your veins, but not too deep, only 3 cuts, send a photo to 
the curator. 

4. Draw a whale on a sheet of paper, send a photo to curator. 

5. If you are ready to“becomea whale”, carve “YES”on your leg. If not–cut yourself many times (punish yourself) 

6. Task with a cipher. 

7. Carve “f40” on your hand, send a photo to curator. 

8. Type “#i_am_whale (rus. #я_кит) in your VKontakte status. 

9. You have to overcome your fear. 

10. Wake up at 4:20 a.m. and go to a roof (the higher the better) 

11. Carve a whale on your hand with a razor, send a photo to curator. 

12. Watch psychedelic and horror videos all day. 

13. Listen to music that “they” (curators) send you. 

14. Cut your lip 

15. Poke your hand with a needle many times 

16. Do something painful to yourself, make yourself sick 17. Go to the highest roof you can 
find, stand on the edge for some time. 

17. Go to a bridge, stand on the edge 

18. Climb up a crane or at least try to do it 

19. The curator checks if you are trustworthy 

20. Have a talk “with a whale” (with another player like you or with a curator) in Skype 

21. Go to a roof and sit on the edge with your legs dangling 

22. The curator tells you the date of your death and you have to accept it 

23. Wake up at 4:20 a.m. and go to rails (visit any railroad that you can find) 

24. Don’t talk to anyone all day 

25. Every day you wake up at 4:20 a.m. 

26. Watch horror videos 

27. Listen to music that “they” send you 


28. Make 1 cut on your body per day
29. Jump off a high building. Take your life.

d) The government has directed internet companies to ban the game. Should parents still be concerned?

1. Although the government has asked companies such as Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo to immediately take down any links leading to the deadly game it is unclear how these companies would make the game inaccessible. It is because this game is not publicly available and freely downloadable. It is a social media phenomenon where conversations about this take place secretively in closed social media groups. You can only be part of the game if an administrator contacts you and enlists you as a potential whale, or candidate. 

2. Also, it is now available under different names such as A Silent House, A Sea of Whales and Wake Me Up at 4:20 AM. 


Alternatively, there could be other similar games available as well.

e) Which age group is most prone to participating in this game?
Tweens and teens (i.e. 12-19 years) the most vulnerable group of Social Media, are most prone to Blue Whale Challenge.

f) What are the signs in teens that might indicate their inclination towards this game?
1. Most child psychologists say when a child tends to stay by himself/herself, stops interacting with family and friends, often talks about running away from home or even death, or changes eating and/or sleeping habits must be immediately given special attention. These are the basic symptoms of a child who may be inclined towards participating in this online game. Some relevant links to the signs and symptoms may be found here and here.

g) How can parents prevent their children from participating in such deadly online games or intervene?
Here are a few tips on how you can keep your child safe online

1. Make sure that your child has access to age appropriate online sites which do not promote 
unethical behavior or violence. 

2. Always ensure that your child accesses internet froma computer placed in the family space. 

3. Talk to your child more often. Explore the online world together and engage in interesting 
activities demonstrating ethical and safe online behavior. 

4. Use parental controls on all the devices used by your child. Monitor the screen time and 
keep an eye on his/her online activities. 

5. Be a role model to your child. Be conscious of your own online activities. 

6. Talk to other parents, share concerns if any and discuss best ways to help your children. 

7. Keep yourself updated with recent internet phenomena. 

8. Observe your child’s behavior closely. Be alert to any unusual changes like moodiness, less 
or no communication, lack of interest in studies and falling grades. If you notice any such changes, closely monitor his/her online activities, talk to school authorities or consult a child psychologist. 

9. If you find out that your child is already playing the Blue Whale Challenge, immediately stop him/her from using the internet from any devices. 

10. Inform your local police authority about what has happened and seek their advice on the next safety measures. 


h) How can teachers help?
                Teachers need to keep an eye on falling grades and social behavior of the students. 

                They need to monitor the behavior of each and every child. 
 Theyshouldlookforanti-socialbehavior,theyshouldpersonallytalktosuchchildren who don’t interact with the other children much or are aloof. 

               Iftheyobservesomethingthatmayseemsuspiciousoralarming,theyshouldinform the school authorities immediately. 

               Teachers should also ensure that children do not use any gadgets during school hours. 


•               They should ensurethat children are sensitized about the pros and cons of the internet 
from time to time. 


i) In case this information doesn’t help, who can you contact?
               NIMHANS 

               AASRA 

               SNEHA INDIA, CHENNAI 

               THE SAMARITANS MUMBAI 

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The Indore High Court granted bail to Medha Patkar 15 days after she was arrested. The hearing on bail plea of Vijay, Santu and Dhurji will take place tomorrow. In a significant development, Village Bajrikheda joins en mass resignation drive from BJP’s membership

 
Indore/Barwani | 23rd August, 2017:  Medha Patkar got bail from the Indore High Court today after she was was denied bail from the Sessions Court. Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) has hailed it as a victory against the repressive Madhya Pradesh government which came down heavily on the peaceful protest against forceful eviction and illegal unjust submergence.

Three other oustees, Vijay, Santu and Dhurji, who were jailed along with MedhaPatkar are facing serious charges of 307 and 308. The hearing on their bail application before Indore HC is scheduled for tomorrow. In a significant development that could have further political consequences, outraged with the callousness of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan run BJP government in Madhya Pradesh towards the Narmada oustees, the chief of village Bajrikheda along with other members resigned from the ruling BJP in large numbers. 

 MedhaPatkaris expected to be released tomorrow from Dhar jail where she has spent 15 days. Peaceful protestors along with MedhaPatkar are facing serious criminal charges which arehave been levelled in an arbitrary manner. This was alcearattempt of the government to divert the focus of the movement from the legitimate demands of complete and just rehabilitation of evacuees (as per the NWDT Award and MP Rehabilitation Policy) before the submergence.

The Badwani administration, it is alleged, has also been targeting key activists of NBA by filing cases with false charges against them. 

There is much speculation that the crude anti-people policy of the state of Madhya Pradesh has seriously alienated large villages. This realisation has significantly begun to shake the local support base of BJP which is in power in the state. After the village ofKhapadkheda, the chief of village Bajrikheda BJP along with other villagers resigned in large number from BJP’s membership. Both these village falls in Dhar district.

Hundreds of villagers of Kukshi, Badwani, Sondul Patti, and Villages of Manavar (Avalda, Pichhodi, Nisarpur, Gaangli, Ekalvaara, Perkhad, Bagud), one of the affected villages of SSP, gathered for public protest meetings in their villages and havewritten letter to Prime Minister and Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh demanding permanent rehabilitation and opposed temporary rehabilitation arrangements. These villagers had earlier also written missives demanding the elease of MedhaPatkar, Durji, Santu and Vijay bhai. 

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Indian Expess reports that 50  students fell unconscious after an ammonia gas cylinder explosion in Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh. The explosion took place in a cold storage located in the vicinity of schools in the district on Wednesday, August 23 According to district administration officials nearly 800 students were present on the school campus when the leak began in the cold storage. An inquiry into the leak has been ordered by District Collector JK Jain.(http://indianexpress.com/article/india/15-students-unconscious-after-ammonia-cylinder-explosion-in-chhindwara-4809639/)The students were hospitalised immediately following the leak after which the District Collector visited the spot. Accompanied by Superintendent of Police Gaurav Tiwari, Jain said, Fifty students were taken to the district hospital after they complained about uneasiness. They were sent home after medical check-up and being provided medication. We have evacuated the school.” Jain went on to add that they have ordered for an inquiry into the matter and the owner and workers of the cold storage will be questioned in this regard. The leakage intensified after it triggered an explosion in the storage.

The leakage in the cold storage happened around 10 am when students were assembled in the school campus for morning prayers when they complained of uneasiness.

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Image: Indian Express

The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, which has nearly 10 million members, held a meeting and issued an appeal against the instant triple talaq, citing a reason. “Muslims must, under all circumstances, avoid the practice of the instant triple talaq so that others cannot find ways to interfere in our religious matters,” said a statement by general secretary Maulana Mahmood Madani.

AIMPLB members belonging to the Bohra, Shia and other small sects want board president Maulana Rabey Nadvi to declare the instant triple talaq unlawful at the Bhopal meeting.They feel such an upfront stand will “enhance the prestige” of the board, send a positive message to Muslim women and project the outfit as a law-abiding, gender-sensitive body. In many Muslim sects, the instant triple talaq was already illegal.

“The board maintained silence on the issue on the pretext that it’s under the Shariat law but the top court has outlawed it. What had to be done by the Muslim community has now been done by the Supreme Court. The board members should have been realistic and taken the issue seriously but they did not. If they fail to address other issues concerning the community and fail to bring about reforms even after this verdict, the board will not only become redundant but its very existence will be at stake,” it said.The editorial said the sooner the Muslim leadership embark on the journey of initiating reforms, the sooner they can advance.Jadid Khabar said the ruling party raised the triple talaq for political gains and to ensure that Muslims remained entangled in their problems and did not prosper. It accused the government of sowing seeds of hatred in the country and raising insignificant issues rather than maintaining peace and harmony.

Terming the top court’s judgment “historic”, Hamara Samaj justified the celebration among women who had fought for their rights.
 

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Indira Jaising/ Image courtesy The Indian Express

Sivangi Misra (SM): What are your views on the Triple Talaq judgment? Will the verdict open the doors to challenging personal laws in future?
Indira Jaising (IJ): I do think so because, as I’ve been saying, the Court has held, in the past, introducing constitutional law into family law is like introducing a bull in a china shop. But for the first time in over thirty years in the Indian constitutional history, two judges of the Supreme Court have said that this practice is unconstitutional, and that it violates Article 14 of the Constitution of India.
 

The moment you concede that a law dealing with family matters can be declared unconstitutional for violating any provision of the Constitution, there is nothing to stop the Court from declaring any other provision of any other family law as unconstitutional on the ground that it violates Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution. So, in that sense it’s a breakthrough.
 

SM: Do you think the judgment is a big step in the direction of gender equality in personal laws?
IJ: Well, I would be happier if the Judges had struck it (triple talaq) down on the ground that it violates the right to non-discrimination on the basis of sex. However, what they (the Court) have done instead is that they have struck it down on the ground that it is “manifestly arbitrary”.

SM: So according to you, this an incomplete judgment? There was scope for the judges to give reasons beyond “manifestly arbitrary”?
IJ: Every judgment leaves you with a feeling that something more could have been done. But the real question is, I believe as you yourself asked me earlier, will it advance gender equality?
Yes, it has the potential to advance gender justice, and I think its now up to the future generation of feminist lawyers to argue.
 

Several provisions of Hindu law, Muslim law, Christian law or Parsi law are unconstitutional. There are several writ petitions pending before the Court, which states that temple entry must be permitted to women in Sabarimalai. Obviously, the same question will arise then.

There are also petitions pending in Court in relation to Parsi law. This judgment will also apply there, where the provisions which are said to be protected are no longer protected. It makes a whole lot of provisions and practices which different religious communities have been following, unconstitutional.

Justice Khehar has said, in this judgment that religious consciousness binds people together into a community. It is true, I do agree, that religious consciousness binds people together as a community, but it doesn’t answer if any part of the consciousness or practise being followed out of that consciousness that violates the Constitution will still be protected or not.

So it’s not enough to say that religious consciousness binds you, yes that is an important part of your identity. But the critical issue is where you separate – what is the legitimate domain of religion and what is the legitimate domain of the secular.

For me, the importance of this case was that I was trying to draw those lines between the religious and the secular. The Court has drawn attention to it and as Justice Nariman says that Muslim personal law of marriage is modern. What he means is that a Muslim marriage does not require any religious ceremony. A contract is sufficient to constitute the marriage. A contract of course can be broken but a contract cannot be broken unilaterally, without consequences.
 

So, in answer to your question, I would say that what I would look forward to seeing is a law which says marriage is a constractious civil union for all religious communities, and not just for Muslim women. If this country is willing to accept a Muslim marriage as contractual marriage, I don’t understand why it is  unwilling to accept a Hindu marriage as a contractual marriage? So, in that sense there has to be a common basis for gender just laws.

SM: So you’re saying that we can still have personal laws, but they should all pass the test of constitutionality?
IJ: I am saying that we must learn to separate the secular from the religious. I am saying is that religion has a role to play in our lives, but you cannot allow that role spill over into secular matters. As far as I’m concerned, marriage is a secular constitution.

SM: What do you have to say about the Court being divided on the issue today, particularly the minority judgment?
IJ: It’s true that the Court was divided, but we are concerned with the majority judgment because the minority judgment is never the law of the land. As far as the majority judgment is concerned, they have held the triple talaq to be unlawful, unconstitutional, and therefore that will govern triple talaq in the future.

Indira Jaising is an advocate at the Spureme Court of India.

Shivangi Misra is a Delhi based lawyer working with Indira Jaising and Lawyers Collective.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

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