On May 28, 2022, the Narendra Modi government completed eight years in power. This was also eight years of unprecedented social unrest and economic disasters, where the Indian economy plummeted and the dollar billionaires surged to capture the top positions in the Forbes list. It was also a period in which Indian polity and society has made disastrous shift towards a Hindutva fascist order in spite of a democratic, secular Constitution.

In fact, Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chose May 28 as the D-day because it on this day their ideological mentor and the proponent of India as a Hindu Rashtra, VD Savarkar took birth. It was a kind of Gurukanike, a tribute to their mentor.

Still, it was during this period that the average rate of consumption of ordinary citizens of this country fell to the level of colonial period, the unemployment rate rose to a four-decade high. It is duringthis period that India was classified as Electoral Autocracy by V-dem Institute of Sweden for the fourth consecutive year. It is duringthis period that India’s ranking in the press freedom index collapsed to an unprecedented 150th position.

In the last eight years, especially in the previous three years the possibility of a genocide in this country has increased say global watch dogs. Genocide Watch, a human rights group, has increased the caution related to India from Genocide watch to Genocide warning. Despite this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had the audacity to declare on the May 28, in his home state Gujarat, that his government has not taken any measures in these last eight years which made the Indians to bow their head in shame before the global community.

This article tries to recap only eight out of tens of such occasions where Indians had to bow their head in an utter shame before the global community.

1. Demonetisation Disaster: On the dreaded day of November 8, 2016, Modi gave a shock to the Indian people and also surprised the world bydemonetising 86% of the currency in circulation. This was followed by the pompous and theatrical justification as if it was an unprecedented and heroic attack on the black economy etc. In fact, this decision did not evolve out of serious consultation with experts, cabinet or even the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) which was kept in dark till a few hours before the announcement. The previous RBI governor had expressed complete disagreement with such shock and awe experiments on the already anaemic economy. The result was disastrous. Even though Modi declared that people may hang him in the public square if the hardship caused due to demonetisation is not mitigated within 50 days, the economic anarchy and decline set in by such a misadventure is still borne by the India’s informal economy where 92% of labour force work, and indirectly by the organised economy also. According to conservative estimates, India has lost 3% of its GDP due to this.

And what about gains? In the beginning Modi government claimed at least 25%(almost 4 lakh crores out of 16 lakh crore) of the demonetised currency will not return, and hence a solid one-time profit of that much for the economy. But by December itself 99.99% of the demonetisedcurrencies returned to the banks, which only showed instead of preventing black money, demonetisation has been used to launder the black money!

Then the goal post changed declaring demonetisation will promote digital transaction and reduce cash economy. But the recent RBI bulletin says that while at the time of demonetisation in 2016, 18 lakh crore currency were in circulation (C-i-C), now after 6 years of demonetisation instead of decrease in C-i-C, it has increased to 31 lakh crores. The other claims like decrease in terror funding etc. have fallen so flat, that the Modi government has stopped talking about it. India has resorted to demonetisation earlier too, in 1947 and 1977. But back then hardly 1% and 5% of C-i-C were withdrawn from the circulation. But Modi’s demonetisation withdrew 86% of C-i-C which was seen as a big economic disaster and misadventure by the global community. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and many credit rating agencies had not minced their words in criticising this act. Thus, India had to stand in shame before the global community for the sheer audacity and pomp of Mr. Modi and his coterie.

2. GST Debacle: Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Value Added Tax (VAT) are tools of neo-liberal economic order of regressive taxation where people are taxed on their expenditure and not based on their income. The GST elsewhere as such provide minimal tax slabs and maximum technological means to make the compliance easier. Thus, while the GST itself is exploitative tax order, the business prefers it because of the ease of compliance. Hence even the Indian ruling elite had consensus in shifting to GST and were preparing the economy for the same.

But the Modi government implemented the GST even without adequate administrative preparation or required awareness among the stake holders. Apart from this, Modi’s GST made the compliance most complex, since it introduced 8 to 10 tax slabs making it unique and the strangest GST system in the world. In fact, the economy which was already beaten badly by demonetisation, had to face another body-blow in this ill-prepared, regressive GST system hurriedly implemented by the Modi regime.

The main reason behind this urgency and the way parliament session was held in the midnight to pass GST amendment to the Constitution, seems to be Modi’s insatiable hunger for establishing himself as the sole game changer and as if Indian economy was having tryst with the destiny. The economist of all hues and many governments expressed their scepticism about the Modi government’s repeated theatrical acts which was proving detrimental to economy. India was shamed globally by these impetuous theatrics.

3. The (allegedly) False Claims aboutBalakot Air Raid: The dreadful Phulwama terrorist attack on the CRPF convoy on Feb 14, 2019 changed the course of the last general elections in favour of BJP. The attack itself relegated all the socio-economic agendas that were debated in the electoral discourse. The BJP used this situation, and was successful in portraying the need of strong state and a strong leader. Following the same mood and sentiments nurtured in the country there after, Prime Minister Modi ordered an attack on a terrorist training camp across the border in Pakistan. On Feb 24 2019, Modi government declared that the India has successfully conducted air raid on a terrorist camp in Balakot, destroyed it by killing hundreds of militants.

Immediately after this declaration, different cabinet ministers in the Modi government and various BJP leaders were in competition in claiming the number of militants killed ranged from 100 to 600. A Cabinet Minister even went to the extent of claiming that a military officer of Pakistan has accepted that more than 300 militants are killed in the attack. Even though this helped in achieving spectacular electoral victory for Modi’s BJP, the claims of Modi government and BJP party about Balakot was reported to be completely false by the independent and western media.

The media and even the US espionage agencies released satellite images which showed the Indian missiles which fell at least three kilometers away from the terrorist training camps, causing no damage to even to the trees in the vicinity. A Fact-Check site also proved wrong the claims of the cabinet minister regarding the Pakistani official’s acceptance of the loss. Thus, the Modi governments claims were proved untrustworthy before the global community.

Apart from this, the Pulwama incidents itself is wrought with many unanswered questions like:

a) how was the RDX was smuggled into interiors of Kashmir valley

b)how did a car carrying RDX remain unnoticed when such a big CRPF convoy was moving

c) the role of Dy. SP Davinder Singh who was arrested a few months later when he was escorting three Hizb militants helping them to cross the border.

4. The Galvan Misadventure: One of the biggest shames that India had to face under the Modi regime of last eight years is the India’s misadventure and shifting claims in the Galvan stand-off with China. India lost its soldiers in the skirmish between Indian and Chinese soldiers at the Galvan valley. Though there were competing claims about the first transgression between India and China, Modi government has been unsuccessful in providing the global community with sufficient proof of its claims.

While the Modi government claimed that the skirmish itself was to stop Chinese inroads into Indian territories, in the final outcome, India was compelled to change its original guard posts and bring them further into the interior, thereby surrendering the post originally held. Of late, there are also reports that Chinese are building second bridge on Pangong lake and a permanent village and highway near Arunachal border. Though Modi government made lot of noise about Chinese incursion and even banned few Chinese gadgets, China remains to be the one of top two trading partner with India and Indian imports from China exceeds Indian exports by four times. Thus, India under Modi failed in establishing its stake as a morally rightful contender in the geo-politics of Asia and provided China another opportunity to prove its domination.

5. The Bhima-Koregaon and Pegasus spyware: The Bhima-Koregaon arrests, instead of providing the conspiracy of the accused has been proving the conspiracy of the Modi government against political dissenters. The institutional murder of Fr. Stan swamy, one of the elderly people accused, by refusing to even provide a straw to an 83-year-old man suffering from Parkinson, and accusing him of conspiracy to kill the prime minister has brought India a great shame before the world. Even the UNHRC, Amnesty International and many democratic governments have condemned the way Modi government is dealing with BK-16. All these went to new height when the media houses like The Wire, Forbidden Stories, institutions like Amnesty brought out their report based on their one-year long investigation about the unconstitutional use of military grade Israeli espionage software, Pegasus, against its own dissenting citizens, press, and the activists from BK 16.

The reluctance and virtual refusal of Modi government to give answer to a simple question asked by the Supreme Court, as to whether Indian Government purchased Pegasus and used it, has completely exposed the culpability of the Modi government before the world and has brought India a great shame.

6. CAA,abrogation of Art 370, and hardline Hindutva: The ‘second coming’ of Narendra Modi government in 2019 was on an exclusive agenda of a strong and security state and a strong leader ostensibly to protect India, that is Hindu India. Thus, the state under Modi has become a pro-active Hindutva state and has unleashed legislative, executive and also extra-constitutional arms to exclude, marginalise and exterminate Muslims as citizens, and destroy their political and cultural existence and identity. Unfortunately, judiciary is colluding in this anti-constitutional project either by its silence or by Judicial endorsement.

Thus, equal citizenship, the founding principle of Indian Republic was undone by passing Citizenship Amendment Act and NRC. Muslims were targeted. The State, at all levels, behaved completely biased against Muslims during the protest against the same. Article 370, the bridge and not the wall, that was connecting Kashmiris with India was unceremoniously abrogated, Kashmir was brought under President rule, the political leadership was put behind bars and the internet was virtually banned for more than an year.

All these draconian and blatantly fascistic measures were condemned by even the US and Canadian governments and even European parliament. India under Modi was downgraded to an Electoral autocracy from an electoral democracy for the first time after India resolved to constitute itself as a secular democratic republic!

7. Tool kit fiasco, Covid mismanagement and Covid Death denials: During the Modi regime, India also had a great pride of historical farmers movement which is one of the most significant success stories of a wonderful people’s movement. It braved all the chicanery of Modi government, its draconian police repression, its attempts breed in feuds from within, its attempt to demonise the movement through its paid media etc.

In fact, it obtained thundering response from the global community including many western governments and civil society. International singers like Rihana, activists like Grata Thunberg and many more campaigned for the farmers. In one such attempts, Thunberg and her Indian associates created a tool kit of explanations about the reasons and goals of the farmers. Modi government tried to demonise these attempts as if the tool kit is anti-national, dreadful intended to violent overthrow of Indian government etc. Disha Ravi one of the activists associated with these efforts was arrested under sedition charges. All these draconian and autocratic measures of the Modi government made a greater damage to Indian image as democratic and responsible country.

The Covid mismanagement and the irrational and autocratic lockdowns and complete denials of the impact of the same by the Modi government also has spoiled Indian reputation. While Covid pandemic was unforeseen and the initial disorder, deaths and pains were inevitable, the countries which had strong and longstanding public health system and a responsive democratic governance could cope up in a short time and arrest further impact on their societies.

India which lacked both, had to further receive a beating by the irrational and autocratic lockdowns strictly implemented by the Modi government. Still Modi had the audacity to claim in WEF meeting in 2021, that India has emerged victorious in its battle against Covid and thereby saved not only India but also the whole world. But just two months after this pompous statement, the second wave of Covid engulfed the country. The impudent, myopic and the unscientific approach in dealing with the second wave of Covid, cost India more than 50 lakh lives. But the Modi government instead of mending their approach, is in a perpetual denial mode and is in verbal battle against the WHO and Lancet accusing them of exaggerating Covid deaths in India. This has once again brought India a great shame.

8. Ab Ki Bar Trump Sarkar: Probably the biggest disrespect Modi has shown to Indian sovereign Republic is when he campaigned in US for the Trump, giving slogans like “Ab ki bar TrumpSarkar”. By this Modi acted as a governor of one of the 50 provinces of USA and not as a head of an independent sovereign State. No prime minister from India or from any democratic sovereign country had overtly shown their state support to a political party in a country which is in the midst of electing its leader. This was widely condemned within the US and also all over the world and brought India the biggest ever embarrassment.

These are only eight examples of hundreds of episodes of international shame and disgrace the Modi government has brought to India in his brief eight years of misgovernance and pompous autocracy.

*Views expressed are the author’s own.The author is an activist and freelance journalist who was also a columnist for Gauri Lankesh’s publication.

Other pieces by Shiva Sundar:

How a state suffocated by Saffron got a new breath from Blue
Never Ever Forget

The post Modi’s eight years: Eight acts of shameful disgrace appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Since the release of The Kashmir Files on March 11, 2022 the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members including Union Ministers have widely endorsed the movie. The Indian National Congress that is portrayed as the political villain in the movie criticised the same for manipulating historical facts. However, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ha so far largely remained silent about the whole affair.

This changed on March 24, 2022 when AAP leader Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal openly slammed the movie and the BJP for its propaganda during Assembly proceedings.

Since the release of the movie, Union Ministers from Smriti Irani to State BJP leaders endorsed the movie despite its its exaggerated and often inaccurate narrative. The Ministers remained deaf to the criticisms from the Kashmiri Pandit community as eventually even Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the movie around March 15.

Worse still, states like Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh made the movie tax-free supposedly to allow more people to view the film. To all this and more, Kejriwal lashed out on Thursday asking BJP members, “Is this why you entered politics? What will you tell your children?”

He especially ridiculed the party for putting up posters of The Kashmir Files all over the country and condemned the party for falling at the feet of a film-maker.

“After eight years of running the Centre, if the Prime Minister of a country falls to the feet of Vivek Agnihotri then it means he has done nothing in these eight years,” said Kejriwal in the background of enthusiastic table-thumping and praises by other Assembly members.

Regarding the demands for tax-exemption, Kejriwal made a tongue-in-cheek comment to make the movie completely free by posting it on YouTube so that everyone can see it in a single day. Taking dig after dig at the ruling regime, Kejriwal compared those making such demands to the crowd of protesters in Bunty aur Babli movie who were unaware of what they wanted.

He even ridiculed Agnihotri for complaining to the Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar about a local BJP leader’s attempt to do a screening for free and calling it a “criminal offence”.

WARNING:
Showing #TheKashmirFiles like this in open and free is a CRIMINAL OFFENCE. Dear @mlkhattar ji, I’d request you to stop this. Political leaders must respect creative business and true Nationalism and Social service means buying tickets in a legal and peaceful manner. ? pic.twitter.com/b8yGqdrmUh

— Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) March 20, 2022

“In the name of Kashmiri Pandits, some people are earning in crores and you people have the job of putting up posters. Look at your state. Open your eyes,” said Kejriwal.

In the same speech he then cut into party politics and encouraged BJP members to switch sides. Comparing Modi to the German tyrant Adolf Hitler, the AAP leader said, “Even Hitler employed his lackeys. What did they [the BJP] give you? Did your children get jobs? Did they make arrangements for food and power?”

Claiming that his party ensured better healthcare, provided free electricity, gave jobs to 12 lakh youths and improved schools and hospitals in the national capital, he called upon people to leave the BJP and join the AAP. According to Kejriwal, he asked people to “stop this mindless following” and said that his party will not make people raise false slogans and put up posters

“We will work on nation-building together,” he said.

Naturally, his speech was well received on social media.

Vintage Kejriwal!

Disclaimer : Vivek Agnihotri and BJP people shouldn’t watch this video. pic.twitter.com/ablQfhdl9M

— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) March 24, 2022

Talking about a movie on genocide like this. Thank god he reminds us from time to time that he is Arvind Kejriwal. #TheKashmirFiles pic.twitter.com/hYlUQYtXE4

— Abhijit Majumder (@abhijitmajumder) March 24, 2022

In the same way, Indian Express reported how BJP MP Manoj Tiwari struck back at Kejriwal by alleging him to be a “Hindu Virodhi”. Wrongly accusing him of making fun of Hindus, he said that the Kashmir genocide happened because of people like him. During initial release, similar comments were made by him by enraged audiences promoting the movie in cinema halls.

On the other hand, BJP General Secretary Dushyant Gautam said Kejriwal insulted Kashmiri Pandits. Other critics like Tejaswi Surya said he will “pay heavy political price for this inhuman depravity”.

By not only denying but also mocking Hindu Genocide in Kashmir, Kejriwal has made it clear whose side he is on – that of the terrorists.

He will pay heavy political price for this inhuman depravity.

Whitewashing terror is as criminal as perpetrating terror. pic.twitter.com/lZG8hfSGwM

— Tejasvi Surya (@Tejasvi_Surya) March 25, 2022

Among the most contentious points in the movie, critics gave a thumbs-down to the movie for distorting facts like the rule of BJP-led leaders both at the Centre and state-level at the time and the exaggerated focus on Hindus during the insurgency. Many Kashmiri Pandits speaking to the BBC Hindi or voicing their opinion on social media, pointed out that Muslims and Sikhs also suffered at the time.

Related:

Kashmir Files hate project: Radicalising people, one show at a time?
Jharkhand: Youths attack Class 9 student for not chanting Jai Shri Ram!
Silence is not an option: Journalists to India’s Constitutional institutions
The Kashmir Files: Right-wing

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As per data available from the official website of the Election Commission of India (ECI), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won 20 seats by 7 P.M. It is also leading in 9 seats taking its total tally to 32, thus past the half-way mark in the 60 seat Assembly. The party has no close contenders with the Janata Dal (United) and the National People’s Party (NPP) tied at second place with 6 wins each.

Winners had been declared for 47 seats by 7 P.M. Meanwhile, the Naga People’s Front (NPF) has won 5 seats and Indian National Congress (INC) has been left in the dust with only 4 victories.

Incumbent Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh retained his Heingang constituency winning by a margin of 18,271 votes. Similarly, Opposition leader Congress candidate Okrom Ibobi Singh won the Thoubal seat with a margin of 2,543 votes. Although OI Singh formed the Manipur Progressive Secular Alliance with Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India -Marxist (CPI-M), All India Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party and the Janata Dal (Secular), BJP already owns the lion’s share with 37.6 percent vote share on its own.

Further, experts commended the JD(U) on winning 6 seats in Manipur – a feat the party failed to achieve in 2017 elections. With this, the political equations in the state are likely to change.

Yet, the figures show a possible-end for the Congress party that won 28 seats in the 2017 elections, and 42 in 2012. The BJP-led government still prevailed when on March 15, 2017 the BJP formed an alliance with the NPP, the NPF and the Lok Janshakti Party. That was the first time the BJP formed a government in Manipur – and now it will continue as the ruling regime for another consecutive term. 

The majority mark to form a government in Manipur is 31 seats. If the BJP wins all the seats where it is leading, it will be able to retain power in the state without having to form alliances.

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Goa Assembly elections: BJP leads, INC trails, AAP wins 2 seats
A sweeping lead in Punjab is a dream coming true for AAP

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For the first time in 22 years, Uttarakhand voters are likely to retain the incumbent party with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) all set to form the next government in the state. Uttarakhand voted on February 14, and recorded a voter turnout of 59.51 per cent.

The trends from Uttarakhand, updated by the Election Commission at 5 P.M show, show that while the BJP has won 20 seats and the Congress has won 6. In a first in the state, the party seems to have overcome the anti-incumbency factor and was able to woo voters. The BJP is also leading in 27 more seats, taking it to a total of 47 seats so far, well past the halfway mark in the 70-seat Assembly. The Congress had won 6 seats and was leading in 13 at 5 P.M. 

According to news reports, for the BJP, its call for votes on “issues like national interest, national security, army welfare, and religious tourism” have paid off. Counting began at 8 A.M on Thursday. According to news reports, in 2017 the BJP won 57 seats and the Congress won 11. The state has since then had a virtual revolving door of Chief Ministers. The current CM Pushkar Singh Dhami is said to be in close contest with Congress candidate Bhuwan Chandra Kapri who is leading by over 6,500 votes in Khatima seat. Congress campaign leader and former CM Harish Rawat is reportedly trailing in the Lalkuan seat where BJP candidate Mohan Singh Bisht is ahead by over 16,000 votes.

In the Haridwar Rural seat, Harish Rawat’s daughter Anupama Rawat is leading by over 5,900 votes, over BJP’s Swami Yatishwaranand. The IE reported that Anukriti Gusain, daughter-in-law of former minister Harak Singh Rawat, is trailing behind sitting BJP MLA Daleep Singh Rawat by over 5,900 votes in the Lansdowne seat. Bollywood singer Jubin Nautiyal’s father and BJP candidate Ram Sharan Nautiyal was trailing behind Congress Legislative Party leader Pritam Singh. At about 4 P.M, BJP minister Dhan Singh Rawat had managed a slim lead of over 300 votes ahead of Congress state president Ganesh Godiyal at the Srinagar seat. However, a BJP defector Yashpal Arya, now with the Congress, was reportedly leading with over 1,000 votes on Bajpur seat, but his son Sanjeev Arya was trailing by over 5,000 votes, reported IE. 

Well known BJP candidate Satpal Maharaj was leading on Chaubattakhal seat with over 4,400 votes and BJP state president Madan Kaushik was also heading towards a victory on the Haridwar seat, reported IE.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had led the campaign in the state and other star campaigners including Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, party president JP Nadda, and Uttar Pradesh CM Adityanath, who has roots in the state. Religion has been a big election plank for the BJP, which the Opposition could neither appropriate nor demolish. 

Take for example Haridwar, where calls for genocide were given at a Dharm Sansad in December 2021. As per the election commission, by 5 PM on the day of polling, 67.58 percent of eligible voters had cast their votes in this region. High voter turnout was also recorded in two other places in Uttarakhand, namely – Udham Singh Nagar (65.13 percent) and Nainital (63.12 percent). The overall voter turnout in the state stood at 59.37 percent.

Uttarakhand’s incumbent Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had played his biggest pre-poll card just days before polling and had announced that if it is voted back to power, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government will implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state. Dhami said, “Soon after its swearing-in, the new BJP government will form a committee to prepare a draft of Uniform Civil Code in the state. This Uniform Civil Code will provide for the same laws regarding marriages, divorce, land-property and inheritance for all people, irrespective of their faith.”

It was under Dhami’s nose that the Hindutva conclave was held in Haridwar between December 17 and 19, 2021, where hate speech after hate speech was made by religious leaders, right-wing activists, hardline fundamentalist speakers and several calls were made for a Muslim genocide.

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A sweeping lead in Punjab is a dream coming true for AAP
Goa Assembly Elections: BJP leading after 5 rounds of counting
SC refuses urgent hearing on plea for enhanced VVPAT verification
Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami’s UCC talk, a sign of pre-poll jitters?
Who’s afraid of the exit polls, anyway?

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Farmer unions on February 10, 2022 condemned the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) plan citing financial presuures that such farmers would have to bear, especially given increased fertiliser prices.

All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha (AIKMS) General Secretary Ashish Mittal said that the ZBNF will serve as a ploy to further increase fertiliser prices and wind up its subsidy. This in turn will ruin small and middle farmers’ crop yields and returns that will go down by over 30 percent.

“As announced in the budget and in the poll campaign by the BJP, it plans to allow only natural farming upto 5 km on 2,500 km along both sides of River Ganga. This is to promote bio fertilizers which are costlier and less effective on High Yield Variety seeds,” said Mittal.

He warned that peasants along the Ganga belt will suffer if this plan is enforced by the police. However, the BJP leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi have already voiced enthusiasm for this plan in parts of UP, Punjab and Gujarat.Meanwhile, farmer unions like the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and Sanyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) have already talked about doubling fertiliser costs. Mittal said that peasants also suffered heavily from black marketing.

“This year’s budget allocation for fertiliser subsidy is ₹1.05 lakh cr as against ₹ 1.55 lakh cr spent last year. The government is promoting ZBNF to reduce its support to farmers,” said Mittal.

Experts from the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences did not find a scientific validation of ZBNF, although Sikkim, India’s first organic state, reported a decline in yields.

According to Down To Earth, the non-profit Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) visited 16 farms spread over the four districts of the state in November 2016 and found that farmers’ experiences of organic farming was far from satisfactory. Accordingly, many farmers reverted back to conventional farming.

Fertilizer subsidy is calculated based on three bags of urea, one bag of DAP and half a bag of MOP which is expected to be used per acre. Maximum retail price of this comes to ₹ 2,437 while the subsidy is also ₹ 2,418 per acre. The AIKMS said that with the implementation of ZBNF, small and marginal farmers will have to give up their farms and livelihood, contrary to Modi’s assurances.

“The BJP is fooling the farmers that their input expenditure on fertilizers will come down to zero in natural farming,” said Mittal.

As such, farmer unions appealed to farmers to oppose ZBNF plans that do not provide financial compensation. Instead, it asked farmers to demand a reduction in fertiliser prices. The SKM reminded farmers that the government is yet to provide a legal guarantee to Minimum Support Price (MSP), withdraw FIRs against farmers, compensate families of martyred farmers, reduce raised electricity charges and sack Union Minister Ajay Mishra, who allegedly played an essential role in the Lakhimpur Kheri massacre.

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Lakhimpur Kheri case: Ashish Mishra gets bail!
SKM denounces BJP manifesto
UP’s Dy CM’s “Brahmin a superior way of living life” a sign of poll panic?
Punish BJP! SKM’s resolve for Mission UP

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Uttar Pradesh Police have arrested three persons and booked cases against  four more as investigations begin to probe the murder of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Brijesh Singh. According to Amar Ujala, protestors blocked the Gorakhpur-Maharajganj road for one hour in protest against the incident, and dispersed only after assurances from the police. 

Brijesh Singh, 52, the BJP candidate for Narayanpur village panchayat chief, was murdered in Chief Minister Adityanath’s home district of Gorakhpur. According to a report in The Telegraph, Singh was shot dead on the Uttar Pradesh highway late on Friday night. Singh was returning home to Moglaha on his motorcycle after campaigning for the panchayat polls when he was shot in the head and chest stated media reports. His supporters, who the Telegraph stated were following about half a kilometre behind, took him to the BRD Medical College, where he was declared dead on arrival.

Brijesh, a former panchayat chief of Narayanpur, was standing for elections once again as the formerly reserved seat had been re-earmarked as a general seat this time. Singh was supposed to file his nomination papers on Saturday, the BJP Gorakhpur district chief Yudhishtir Singh told the media and hailed Singh as an “active party leader.” His murder is the latest of similar attacks on politicians and others affiliated with the Sangh parivar, in a state ruled by Adityanath, who is also a religious leader and often hailed by the right wing as one of the most influential BJP Cheif Ministers. 

 According to the news report, Brijesh’s supporters also sat on a dharna at the gate of the medical college, questioning the law-and-order situation in the state. One of them, Rajesh Singh, told the media that “the killers are so confident that they are committing murders in the chief minister’s home district,” adding that Brijesh was a powerful leader who had campaigned for party candidates in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, “Unfortunately, he wasn’t safe under our own party’s rule.” 

 According to media reports, Singh’s brother Bholanath Singh, had in his police complaint stated that a land dispute was the motive behind the murder. Police identified the accused as Sunil Srivastava, Pawan Srivastava, Vinay Srivastava and Ram Samuj Nishad, a  case was registered under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 147 (rioting). The Amar Ujala reported that  Brijesh’s brother Bholanath told the police that his brother Brijesh Singh had allegedly been threatened by the accused in the past as well. 

As reported by the Telegraph, “over a dozen Sangh parivar leaders have been murdered in the state during Adityanath’s four-year-old rule.” However, the police have denied any political angle and suggested land disputes or illicit love affairs as the motive in most cases.

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Surely BJP’s intentions have to be understood and his apology is purely strategic. BJP as a party has to work within the confines of Constitution as it has to swear by it legally. Still, when BJP led NDA Government came to power in 1998, it did appoint Venkatchaliah Commission to review the Constitution; probably that was the first open and subtle ‘statement of purpose’ from its side. It’s another matter that seeing the total opposition to its move of reviewing Constitution from large sections of society, the Commission report was dumped.

After Modi led NDA Government came to power (2014), on the occasion of Republic day 2015, it issued an advertisement with the preamble of Constitution in which words Secular and Socialist were missing. In November 2017 Yogi Adityanath stated that the word secularism is the biggest lie in India.

The BJP will not reveal its deeper agenda so easily at present. Still, it can be understood that BJP is not comfortable with the present Constitution and laws be it the one related to Article 370 (Kashmir), Article 25 (freedom of religion), article 30 (about minorities setting up educational institutions). As BJP is a part of RSS combine, one has to look at what RSS ideologues state, what its associates like VHP and others say on the issue. These organisations have times and again articulated their opposition to Indian Constitution and their goal of making the one based on Holy Indian scriptures.

As such the whole attempt of Hindu nationalist political formations is to try to pave the way for Hindu nationalism by using the democratic secular space which the present Constitution gives.RSS ideologue Golwalkar in his writings like ‘Bunch Of Thoughts’ argues that territorial nationalism, which is the basis of Indian Constitution, is a barbarism, since according to him a nation is ‘not a mere bundle of political and economic rights’ but an embodiment of national culture —in India, ‘ancient and sublime’ Hinduism. It sneers at democracy, which Golwalkar sees as alien to Hindu culture, and lavishes praise on the Code of Manu, whom Golwalkar salutes as ‘the first, the greatest, and the wisest lawgiver of mankind’.

When the Constituent Assembly of India passed the Constitution of India on November 26, 1949, RSS was not happy. Its organ, Organiser in an editorial on November 30, 1949, complained: “But in our Constitution, there is no mention of the unique constitutional development in ancient Bharat. Manu’s Laws were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To this day his laws as enunciated in the Manusmriti excite the admiration of the world and elicit spontaneous obedience and conformity. But to our constitutional pundits, that means nothing.”

VD Savarkar has been the major ideologue from whom most of the Hindu nationalists draw their inspiration. He argued: “Manusmriti is that scripture which is most worship-able after Vedas for our Hindu Nation and which from ancient times has become the basis of our culture-customs, thought and practice. This book for centuries has codified the spiritual and divine march of our nation. Even today the rules which are followed by crores of Hindus in their lives and practice are based on Manusmriti. Today Manusmriti is Hindu Law.”

Deendayal Upadhyay has been another major ideologue of RSS combine. He was part of Bharatiya Janasangh, previous avatar of BJP. He says that India had written a Constitution imitative of the West, divorced from any real connection to our mode of life and from authentically Indian ideas about the relationship between the individual and society.

Like previous ideologues Upadhyay also felt that the Constitution should embody a Hindu political philosophy befitting an ancient nation like Bharat, that of reducing the Indian national idea to a territory and the people on it was fallacious. According to him the nationalist movement, from the Khilafat agitation onwards, has turned towards a policy of appeasement of the Muslim community, a policy, in turn, sought to be justified by the need to forge a united front against the British.

He was all through critical of Indian Constitution, as he argued his case for the Hindu nation. His ideology seems to be one of the major inspirations for present leadership of BJP. BJP’s discomfort with articles 25, 30 and 370 etc. is mainly as these articles aim at affirmative action in a plural diverse society. These draw from the basic notion of Equality inherent in the Indian constitution. Most of the ideologues, the source of BJP ideology uphold Manusmririti, no wonder this was the precise book which architect of Indian Constitution, Babasaheb Ambedkar consigned to the flames!
 

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हालाँकि गाजियाबाद के इंदिरापुरम में जब पुलिस ने स्विफ्ट कार में ये तीन करोड़ रुपए पाए तो ड्राइवर और गाड़ी में सवार लोग न तो ये बता पाए कि ये पैसे किसके थे और कहाँ ले जाए जा रहे थे।

जिस स्विफ्ट कार में ये तीन करोड़ रुपए ले जाए जा रहे थे, उसका नंबर HR 26 AR 9662 है और वह अजीत मिश्र के नाम पर रजिस्टर्ड है। उसमें बैठे लोगों के नाम अनूप अग्रवाल और सिद्धार्थ शुक्ला हैं।

जब पुलिस ने कार को रोकने का प्रयास किया तो कार चालक बैरीकेटिंग तोड़कर गाड़ी को लेकर भागने की कोशिश करने लगा लेकिन पुलिस ने पीछा करके कार को रुकवाने में सफलता पाई और कार में बैठे दोनों लोगों को हिरासत में ले लिया।
पुलिस जाँच के बाद आयकर विभाग के अधिकारियों को भी मौके पर बुलाया गया। इसके बाद पता चला कि ये भारतीय जनता पार्टी के फंड का पैसा है जो दिल्ली से लखनऊ भेजा जा रहा था। इसी दौरान बीजेपी के कुछ कार्यकर्ता भी इंदिरापुरम थाने पहुँचे। इस संबंध में उन्होंने पार्टी का लेटर हेड भी दिखाया और कहा कि यह पैसा पार्टी के विकास के लिए लखनऊ ले जाया जा रहा है। इसकी लिखित जानकारी भी पार्टी ने पुलिस को दे दी है। जाँच के बाद ये रकम वापस भाजपा के मुख्यालय दिल्ली भेज दी गई।

भाजपा नेताओं ने कहा कि रुपया लीगल है और पुलिस को पेपर दिखा दिए गए हैं। इतना ही नहीं भाजपा नेताओं ने रकम छोड़ने के बदले दस लाख माँगने का भी आरोप लगाया और कहा कि रिश्वत देने की शर्त पर पुलिस कार को जाने देने के लिए तैयार थी।

The post कार में ले जाए जा रहे 3 करोड़ रुपए भाजपा के निकले appeared first on SabrangIndia.

शुक्रिया कहिए गुजरात के शूरवीर आंबेडकरवादियों का. एक ही वार में गौ-राजनीति की हवा ढीली कर दी. गाय माता का नाम तक नहीं ले रहे हैं.

मेरे ख्याल से ब्राह्मणवादी मीडिया को गुजरात मामला दबाने के लिए इस बार का जेएनयू मिल गया है. वह है – लंपट दयाशंकर की पतिभक्त पत्नी

संपादकों, एंकरों,
आप बहुत धूर्त और शातिर हैं. लेकिन आपकी मुश्किल यह है कि एक सामान्य भारतीय नागरिक भी आपकी ब्राह्मणवादी चाल को समझने लगा है.
सोनू सिंह पासी ने 18 घंटे पहले ही लिख दिया था कि आप दयाशंकर को आगे करके गुजरात के शानदार दलित प्रतिरोध की खबर को दबाने की कोशिश करोगे.

गुजरात में दलितों के साथ आतंकवाद की भयानक घटना 11 जुलाई को होती है…. और भारत का एक भी अखबार 20 जुलाई तक इस पर संपादकीय नहीं लिखता. ज्यादातर जगह पहली बार यह खबर 21 जुलाई को पहली बार नजर आती है. संसद में हंगामे के बाद.
लेकिन दयाशंकर के परिवार को किसी कार्यकर्ता द्वारा दी गई "गाली" पर उसी मीडिया की तेजी देखिए. आधे घंटे में सारे चैनल लाइव दिखाने लगे. आज रात सब जगह डिस्कशन होगा.
यह आपका मीडिया है ही नहीं.

जिनका मीडिया, उनकी बात.

जामनगर, गुजरात की तस्वीर.

The post ब्राह्मणवादी मीडिया को गुजरात मामला दबाने के लिए इस बार का जेएनयू मिल गया है appeared first on SabrangIndia.