The issue was the discrepancy in the rise of population in Northern and Southern states. Roughly in Northern states the TFR (Total Fertility rate) being higher than the one in Southern states, this delimitation exercise will give more weightage to Northern states, where the hold of Hindu nationalist BJP is higher. The southern states are wary of this and so came out in full strength to oppose it. BJP is crying hoarse that opposition parties are humiliating the women by opposing the amendment. This apparent support of BJP to Women’s representation is just a façade. The other steps in the empowerment of women have generally been taken up by the Indian National Congress in general. We see that right from the freedom movement when it was leading the national movement against colonial powers INC gradually ensured that women are not only part of the process of ‘India Nation in the making’ but also part of the movements opposing British rule.

It did encourage women’s being part of the various phenomena of national life. After the marathon efforts by Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule to give education to women, they did start coming to social space and played an important role in the struggle for independence. Chayanika Shah points out that INC had several women Presidents, then a woman Prime minister, woman Chief Minister, and woman President in its trajectory. Taking this process of empowerment at grass root level structures, Rajiv Gandhi was keen not only in Panchayati Raj but also for increased representation of women in these institutions.

Let us contrast all this with the hyperbole of Narendra Modi. There is no record of any affirmative action of women during the BJP (i.e. NDA) rule of Vajpayee years or Modi years. There seems to be an ideological connection between the BJP politics of Hindu Nationalism and their agenda of the role of women in politics. BJP is the political progeny of RSS, which is an exclusively male organization. When Laxmibai Kelkar (1936) requested the then RSS Chief Hedgewar to let women be part of RSS, she was advised to form a subordinate organization, Rashtra Sevika Samiti (Rss) and not permitted to join the RSS.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh stands for Volunteers, while Rashtra Sevika Samiti stands for servants. This tells us that the Swayam (being) of women is in control of men. This is in tune with the mandate of Manu smriti. This holy book was upheld by RSS all through and even now this RSS combine holds that Indian Constitution is based on Western values and so should be scrapped (Rajendra Singh, Rajju Bhaiyya’s statement) and be replaced by a Holy Indian book, i.e. Manu Smriti (as per Sudarshan, another Sarsanghchalak of RSS)

In BJP’s policies, this is also reflected in the awarding of Gandhi Peace Prize to the Gita Press, Gorakhpur a year ago. This was done by a jury headed by Narendra Modi. While giving the award Modi stated that “They have done commendable work over the last 100 years towards furthering social and cultural transformations among the people,”  Akshaya Mukul in his masterly study of Gita Press shows how Gita Press has played a major role in transforming the teachings of Manu Smriti into popular small booklets which are sold in lakhs of copies. These uphold husbands’ beating of wives, glorifying playing second fiddle to men and total subordinating to men in their lives, Father; Husband and Son in different phases of life. Reported ACADEMIA.

BJP’s own history is full of such humiliating statements from their office bearers, which uphold the abominable practices against women including Sati. In the context of the Roop Kawar incident, the then BJP Vice President Vijaya Raje Scindia took out a procession supporting the practice of Sati. The slogan of the procession was that committing sati is not only a glorious tradition of Hindu women, it is also their right!

Another leader Mridula Sinha, (BJP Mahila Morcha) who was Governor of Goa a few years back had given an interview to Savvy Magazine. (April 1994) In this she upholds the wife beating by husband and dowry system.

The 2021 data of the National Crime Records Bureau reveals that on average, eighty-six women were raped every day in India, while forty-nine cases of crimes against women were lodged every single hour. The overall number of crimes against women per one hundred thousand of the population increased from 56.3 in 2014 to 66.4 in 2022.

During the present regime how the cases of sexual violence and harassment have been handled become clear in the cases of women’s sexual harassment. Several of these cases found their way into the mainstream news, such as the gang rape of a minor girl by a BJP legislator in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, in 2017; the repeated gang rape and murder of an eight-year-old Muslim girl in Kathua, Kashmir, in 2018; and the gang rape of a Dalit girl in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, in 2020” Women wrestlers complaints against Braj Bhushan Sharan Singh were ignored in toto. The case of women’s plight in Manipur is beyond words. As per reports in the JACOBIN.

While women MPs of BJP and others are making a lot of noise over the fall of this amendment bill the issue is why link it with delimitation. Why no move that with present strength of MPs only; why it should not be implemented with 2023 bill? We need to raise our voice to delink delimitation from the Women’s reservation bill and to call for its implementation right away as per the 2023 bill.

Related:

Women’s Reservation – 13 Questions to Modi And His Associates in Government – Just Asking !!

Womens Reservation Bill 2026: Women’s Rights & the RSS

Procedure for tabling bills on women’s reservations & delimitation both opaque and non-consultative: Experts and Citizens

The post Amendment to Women’s Reservation Bill: BJP’s hyperbole on women appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Samrat Choudhary has been saying, on no less than half a dozen occasions that the Bihar government has struck of 22-lakh names off Bihar’s electoral rolls (a power only with the Election Commission!). He goes further to state that Aadhar and other benefits of these ‘22-lakh persons’ will also be snatched away.  Who are these 22-lakh persons anyway?

Three days after he was appointed as CM of the state on April 15, replacing the doyen of the Janata Dal United (JD-U), Nitish Kumar, Choudhary made this extraordinary claim as reported by The Indian Express. Prior to this appointment, since late February 2026, during campaign stints in West Bengal he had been boastful of this ‘achievement’ by the new Bihar government. “So far, we have struck off the names of 22-lakh people and stopped their ration as well in Bihar. We will cancel their driving licenses and other cards as well,” Choudhary has stated emphatically.”

Ironically, antithetical to these hysterical claims are the facts from the ground. Bihar was the first state, pre-assembly poll to conduct a hurried and unchecked Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of its electoral rolls in 2025, an exercise that came under sharp criticism and much scrutiny. During this controversial process, while approximately 65-lakh deletions took place without sufficient time for independent adjudication of the action, the 22-lakh figure only corresponded to “deletions.” Now deletions are usually on account of duplicate enrolment, shifting of voters or the fact that they may be deceased. The media had widely reported between June-November 2025 that no largescale existence of “illegal immigrants” was identified or noticed by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

One issue of crucial concern therefore then is ‘where has the figure of 22-lakhs being projected by the Bihar CM come from?” Second, what about the adjudication process for the entire 65-lakh exclusions in the state? Third, the  moot question of whether or not an elected government in secular, democratic India is empowered to simply deny the right to an Aadhar card, or government scheme benefits to any person previously accessing these benefits without application of mind or independent judgement?

Before, during and after the SIR exercise in Bihar the Election Commission of India (ECI) under CEC Gyanesh Kumar has been squarely accused of partisan conduct, conduct unbefitting a Constitutional body since its actions aligned squarely with the ruling dispensation.

Ironically, but not coincidentally, the first week of April 2026, also saw a spate of “news reports” from Bihar around union home minister, Amit Shah’s visit to the Seemanchal areas of the state. As reported by ETV Bharat, Shah’s visit to the Seemanchal region during which he reviewed border security, the issue of illicit foreign settlers, law and order and other security-related situations in Kishanganj, Araria, Purnea, Katihar and other adjoining districts.

In line with this development, the news channel quoted a senior official of the state’s home department, additional chief secretary, Arvind Kumar Chaudhary stating that a ‘fresh letter had been written to all districts to identify suspected foreigners in their jurisdiction and if such persons are not living with valid documents, ‘their process of deportation would begin!’  Bihar government officials also ‘revealed that biometric data of those identified would be collected and uploaded to a central database maintained by the Union Home Ministry to streamline identification and prevent their re-entry.’

Where does the 22-lakh figure come from?

In early 2026, Vote for Democracy’s report on the Bihar polls, “An Audit of the Stolen Mandate” Bihar 2025 VFD Report Findings had recorded details of what the report termed “Mass disenfranchisement by design.” These stated that, according to official ECI data, the numerical impact of a hastily conducted SIR was staggering:

• On June 24, 2025, Bihar had 7.89 crore registered electors.
• By the Draft Roll of August 1, 2025, this fell to 7.24 crore, reflecting 65.69 lakh deletions.
• The Final Roll of September 30, 2025 stood at approximately 7.42 crore electors.

Yet, the report found that only 3.66 lakh voters were actually confirmed as ineligible. The scale of deletions was therefore grossly disproportionate, pointing not to routine correction but to electoral roll engineering.

Between July 21 and 25 alone, over 21.27 lakh voters were deleted in just three days—an implausible figure by any administrative standard. During this period, 5.44 lakh voters were marked ‘dead’, while 14.24 lakh were labelled ‘permanently shifted’. The number of voters marked ‘untraceable’ rose by 809% overnight, while not a single “foreigner” was identified—despite this being cited as a key justification for the revision.

Opaque ‘rectification’ and mathematical impossibilities

The report further exposed deep inconsistencies in the ECI’s claims of rectification. While the Commission stated that approximately 17 lakh objections or applications were received, the actual changes reflected in the rolls affected around 22-lakh entries. Even after accounting for corrections, the final voter count should have mathematically stood at approximately 7.38 crore, yet the ECI declared 7.42 crore electors, leaving an unexplained excess of 3.24 lakh voters.

No independent audit, reconciliation statement, or transparent explanation has been provided for this discrepancy.

Pre-poll manipulation after election notification

Electoral norms require that voter rolls be effectively frozen once elections are notified. However, the report documents that even after notification:

• On October 6, 2025, Bihar had 7.43 crore electors.
• By poll day, this had increased to 7.46 crore.

This means 3.34 lakh voters were added in just ten days, including a sudden and unexplained spike in youth voters—raising serious questions about roll sanctity during the election period.

1.3 The “Rectification” Fraud

• Discrepancy in Objections: ECI claimed only 17,00,000 (16,56,886+ 36,475 = 16,93,361)
• Applications were received by the September 1 deadline. However, actual changes were
• Performed on as many as 22-lakh entries.

The Calculation Anomaly:

• ECI reported additions of 16,56,886 (Form 6) + 36,475 (Claims) and exclusions of

2,17,0493.

• Net Addition Calculation: Should have been 14,76,312 added to the 7.24 Crore

base, totalling 7.38 Crore.

• Actual Figure (Sept 30): ECI declared 7.42 Crore (No. ECI/PN/313/2025)—a

hike of 3.24 Lakh over the calculated figure without explanation.

Multiple petitions were filed before the Supreme Court in July 2025 challenging the SIR process. These were moved by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), RJD MP Manoj Jha, TMC MP Mahua Moitra, and Social Activist Yogendra Yadav among several others. These petitions alleged that the SIR lacked statutory backing

under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Registration of Electors Rules,

1960, imposed onerous documentation requirements, and risked large-scale

disenfranchisement, particularly of migrants, the poor and marginalised communities.

Petitioners had also argued that the SIR effectively resembled a citizenship-style verification exercise

Unfortunately, while the irregularities in the Bengal SIR continue to be scrutinised by the Supreme Court of India due to an assertive role played by the Trinamool Congress ruling that state, Bihar’s excluded voters –whatever the actual number—remain abandoned and forgotten. By both the political Opposition and the Institutions of Democratic Governance. Even as the new CM makes boastful claims of ‘disenfranchising’ a staggering 22-lakh persons!

Related:

Bihar’s SIR process reveals an exercise of illegitimate powers, ECI forcing district machinery to resort to unethical practices: CCG’s Open Letter

Bihar SIR: 65 Lakh electors flagged for deletion, SC said “if there is mass exclusion, we will immediately step in”

ECI to SC: Voter ID insufficient for Bihar roll, defends citizenship verification power

Punjab University’s former dean writes to CJI: Bihar SIR threatens democracy, alleges ECI overreach & voter disenfranchisement

Non-Electors Within Electors: ECI reports over 61 lakh potential exclusions

The post Bihar “Infiltrator” Hysteria: Samrat Choudhary’s claims of disenfranchising 22-lakh people corresponds to ECI’s “deceased voters” figure appeared first on SabrangIndia.

“Sabak sikhaana chahiye. Jaise Israel sikhaaya Gaza mein. Uss tareeke se. Hamaare Bharat ke 100 crore Hindu; desh ka Hindu hitt mein chal raha hai sarkar. Sabak sikhaana chahiye. Jaise Operation Sindoor mein Pakistan ko hum logon ne sabak sikhaaya (A lesson should be taught. Like Israel taught in Gaza. Our country’s 100 crore Hindus; the government is being run in the interest of Hindus. A lesson should be taught. Like we taught Pakistan during Operation Sindoor),” he said.

The comment has drawn widespread criticism from the opposition. The Trinamool Congress wrote on X, “BJP has perfected hate and intolerance into an art form. Their venomous loudmouth, Suvendu Adhikari, just bared his fascist fangs again, spewing genocidal bile by proclaiming that India must teach Muslims a lesson like Israel taught Gaza.” “This naked hate speech, a bloodthirsty call for mass murder and ethnic cleansing”. “No FIR. No arrest. No prosecution. No UAPA slapped on this Hitler-in-the-making. Remember THIS statement when he dangles Humayun Kabir as a carrot for Muslim votes. Remember THIS statement! Remember THIS face! “

.@BJP4India has perfected HATE and INTOLERANCE into an artform.

Their venomous loudmouth, @SuvenduWB, just bared his fascist fangs again, spewing genocidal bile by proclaiming that India must teach Muslims a lesson like Israel taught Gaza.

This is naked hate speech, a… pic.twitter.com/kNnG2IqOjl

— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) December 27, 2025

Senior counsel in the Supreme Court of India and former Congress leader Kapil Sibal also highlighted that Adhikari’s comments had led to “no FIR, no arrest, no prosecution, no UAPA”.

Suvendra Adhikari (26/12/2025)

NDTV 9pm said :

India must teach Muslims a lesson similar to the lesson Israel taught the people of Gaza

No FIR
No arrest
No prosecution

No UAPA !

— Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) December 27, 2025

Trinamool Congress MP and the party’s deputy leader in Rajya Sabha, Sagarika Ghose, posted on X, “BJP’s Bengal ‘face’ wants a Gaza-like operation against Bangladesh. Dog whistles that the Narendra Modi government is for ‘Hindus’ only. Dirty politics of divide and rule won’t work in Bengal.”

The @BJP4India’s Bengal ‘face’ wants a Gaza like operation against Bangladesh. Dog whistles that the @narendramodi government is for ‘Hindus’ only. Do you concur with this @narendramodi @DrSJaishankar ? Dirty politics of Divide and Rule won’t work in Bengal, @SuvenduWB pic.twitter.com/vLWm9b3AXb

— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) December 27, 2025

Related:

WB LoP Suvendu Adhikari’s open call for Muslim-free assembly from the Assembly must be met with action, not silence

Battleground Bengal: ECI finally takes action against Suvendu Ahikari for communal speech

How the Hindutva propaganda machine turns citizens into ‘infiltrators’

The post Hate & Intimidation: Teach Bangladesh a lesson akin to what Israel taught Gaza, says BJP Bengal leader Suvendu Adhikari appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The post Kerala Local Body Election Results Ring Alarm Bells in the Left’s Last Bastion appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The timeline of suspicion

The timing remains the primary indictment against the transparency of the process. With the Bihar Assembly polls scheduled for November 6 and 11, 2025, the departure of these trains on November 3 was not a random administrative decision. It suggests a meticulously timed arrival, allowing thousands of passengers just enough leeway to disperse into specific constituencies before the crucial “silent period” (campaigning ban) came into force.

According to the RTI responses, the special trains operated on a synchronised schedule departing on November 3, 2025, from origins in Karnal and Gurugram, Haryana. These unannounced services were routed via Patna (PNBE) to terminate at strategic locations in Bihar, specifically Bhagalpur and Barauni, thereby creating a direct corridor between the two states mere days before the critical voting phase.

The RTI stonewall: “rush clearance” or cover-up?

The RTI responses from the Commercial Department of the Delhi Division are notable not for what they reveal, but for what they conceal. When the RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose demanded specifics regarding who booked the trains, the total fare paid, the security deposits, and the exact passenger count, the Railway authorities deflected.

The official reply cited vague “Press Releases” and the generic excuse of “Rush Clearance.” However, the Coach Composition details betrayed the scale of the operation that Configuration A – “12 GS + 2 GSCN + 2 SLR” and Configuration B – “9 GS + 9 GSCN + 2 SLR.”

This composition is heavily skewed towards General Seating (GS), capable of ferrying thousands of individuals in high density. The refusal to disclose the financial trail—specifically who footed the bill—has led critics to argue that the “Rush Clearance” narrative is a bureaucratic veil. As noted in the appeal by activists, the stonewalling on the question of payment “Smells like a cover-up!”

Why were they run specifically from Haryana when they could not run such trains during Chhath?: Kapil Sibal

On November 9, during a joint press briefing, Rajya Sabha MP and legal luminary Kapil Sibal dismantled this defense with a simple question of logic that “Why were they run specifically from Haryana when they could not run such trains during Chhath?”

Sibal’s argument highlights a critical anomaly. Migrant workers return to Bihar from across India—Delhi, Mumbai, Surat, Punjab. Yet, the concentration of these specific, unannounced trains originated from Haryana, a state ruled by the BJP, heading into a state where the BJP was a key contender. If this were purely for Chhath, why were similar “emergency” trains not reported from non-NDA ruled states with equal urgency?

The “professional voter” theory: a modern booth capture?

The dimensional part of this story was introduced by RJD MP A.D. Singh, who moved the allegation from logistical support to criminal conspiracy. Singh suggested that the passengers were not merely home-bound migrants, but a mercenary force of “professional voters”—individuals moved across state lines to vote in multiple constituencies or impersonate absent voters.

“The passengers would be ‘professional voters’ who vote from constituency to constituency on a particular date. They must be having fake EPIC cards for which the EC has been helping them.” — A.D. Singh

Singh further alleged a direct nexus, claiming he received information that railway officials were instructed to coordinate these movements directly with Haryana BJP chief Mohan Lal Badoli and other party functionaries. He issued a direct challenge that remains unmet:

“The payment has been made by the BJP. Let the rail minister say who paid the money for these trains.”

The “festival alibi” vs. geographic logic

The Railway Ministry responded quickly, arguing that the situation was due to the overlap with Chhath Puja and Diwali. Their statement said, “This festival season, the railways is running 12,000 special trains; 10,700 special trains are scheduled and about 2000 trains are unscheduled. We are operating war rooms at three levels, divisional, zonal, and Railway board level.” “Whenever there is a sudden rush of passengers at any station, we immediately put into service unscheduled special trains” as per a report in The Print.

Caught on camera: the ‘free ticket’ confession

Apart from the RTI revelations, video evidence has now surfaced that seemingly confirms the precise mechanics of this alleged “voter smuggling” operation. While the Railway Ministry maintained the bureaucratic defence of “rush clearance,” ground reports from Sonipat and Karnal tell a radically different story that the trains were the hardware, but the ruling party provided the software—specifically, free tickets and food.

Special trains by Railways and Free tickets by BJP.
Proof:
1. https://t.co/1adtpz4spe
2. https://t.co/FCkmOxbR2X
3. https://t.co/ebyuWJzRpK

— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) November 9, 2025

Investigative footage from SNA News and Swarnpatr captures a brazen display of electoral mobilisation where the distinction between state infrastructure and party machinery completely collapsed.

This was from Karnal pic.twitter.com/ck2OngR8yG

— Ashish Bagchi (@BagchiAsh) November 28, 2025

In the exposed footage, the denial of “sponsored travel” unravels through the testimonies of the passengers themselves. When asked who paid for their journey, multiple laborers are seen on camera admitting, “Ticket BJP ne diya hai” (BJP gave the ticket) and “Modi sarkar ne paisa diya” (The Modi government paid). Even more incriminating is the on-record admission by local BJP functionaries present at the station. In one instance, a party worker explicitly states, “Ticket BJP arrange kara ke de rahi hai… bilkul nishulk” (The BJP is arranging the tickets… absolutely free), justifying the expenditure as a necessary service to help poor laborers participate in the “festival of democracy.”

This visual proof directly contradicts the “festival rush” narrative; these were not passengers buying tickets to go home for Chhath, but voters being ferried free of cost with the specific instruction to “cast their vote” (“Vot girane ja rahe hai”), a fact corroborated by video documentation where local leaders admit to the free distribution of tickets  and passengers confirm they did not pay a single rupee for the journey.

MCC and “corrupt practice” under RP Act, 1951

Even with the elections concluded, the legal ramifications of these allegations persist. If proven, they point to a structural rot in the electoral process involving two key frameworks:

First, violation of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RP Act) The core allegation triggers Section 123(5) of the RP Act, which deals with “Corrupt Practices.”

Section 123(5): The hiring or procuring, whether on payment or otherwise, of any vehicle or vessel by a candidate or his agent… for the free conveyance of any elector… to or from any polling station…

While the text specifies “to or from a polling station,” judicial interpretation of “corrupt practice” often extends to the entire election apparatus. If a political party paid for trains to transport voters from Haryana to Bihar for the explicit purpose of voting, it violates the spirit of this prohibition. The RTI’s failure to disclose the “party or person who booked” the trains effectively suppresses evidence of a potential federal crime.

Secondly, misuse of official machinery under the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) The MCC is unequivocal, the party in power at the Centre must not use its official position for campaigning.

Para VII of MCC: The party in power whether at the Centre or in the State… shall ensure that no cause is given for any complaint that it has used its official position for the purposes of its election campaign.

The Indian Railways is a central ministry. If “unscheduled” trains were allocated based on backchannel requests from political functionaries to aid a specific party’s mobilisation, it constitutes a gross misuse of state machinery, shattering the “level playing field” the ECI is sworn to protect.

Institutional failure: the ECI’s abdication

The most troubling part of the “Phantom Trains” episode is the inaction of the regulator. The ECI, which is empowered by Article 324 of the Constitution to supervise and control elections, has remained silent.

The Bihar 2025 Assembly elections may be over, but the alleged “Trains for Votes” incident should not be brushed aside. The RTI documents clearly show an irregularity that needs an institutional response. If the Indian Railways—the country’s main transport network—can be used in a way that shifts voters on polling day as alleged, then the idea of a free and fair election is at risk.

The unanswered question of who paid for these trains raises serious doubts. Until the Election Commission conducts a transparent audit of these “Phantom Trains,” the election process will continue to face suspicion that government machinery was used to influence the outcome.

Related

The Indian Railways Need to be Saved

‘Designed to Exclude’: The ongoing enumeration phase of the SIR

Bihar’s SIR process reveals an exercise of illegitimate powers, ECI forcing district machinery to resort to unethical practices: CCG’s Open Letter

The post Bihar Elections: Trains for votes? The unanswered mystery of the ‘phantom’ specials from Haryana to Bihar appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The incident reportedly occurredd in the BMC office premises when the official, Additional Commissioner Ratnakar Sahoo, was in the midst of conducting a grievance redressal meeting at his chamber. According to a subsequent police complaint that Sahoo filed, six-seven unknown individuals entered his chambers and aggressively asked whether he had spoken to Jagannath Pradhan, a BJP leader from Bhubaneswar. Sahoo said he responded that he had a telephonic conversation with Pradhan earlier in the day. The group then allegedly started assaulting him without any provocation and demanded that he apologise to Pradhan. Why they wanted him to apologise was not made clear.

“They beat me brutally in full public view with an attempt to murder, in the presence of public representatives, i.e. corporators of the BMC, BMC officers, staff, and citizens. While I was trying to shield myself and plead for mercy, they threatened me and attempted to forcibly drag me into a vehicle, saying that I must come to Jagannath Pradhan and apologise,” Sahoo said in the complaint.

The assailants also allegedly snatched his mobile phone and uploaded scandalous content as his WhatsApp status, he said.

The incident has sparked state-wide outrage, with BMC officials staging a cease-work protest blocking a major road outside the BMC office. They demanded the immediate arrest of the miscreants. There was heavy police deployment within the BMC premises following the incident.

Police sources said they have registered a case and arrested three persons, including BMC corporator Jeevan Rout, in connection with the attack. Police said they were investigating the involvement of other persons.

Pradhan the BJP leader thereafter described the incident as unfortunate and said that he knew two people allegedly involved in the attack. He also said the BJP government would not shield anyone and would take action against all those involved in the assault.

The issue has also triggered a political row, with the Leader of Opposition and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik calling the attack “appalling”. He demanded “immediate and exemplary” action in the matter.

His post on “X” states:

I am utterly shocked seeing this video. “If a senior officer is not safe in his own office, then what law and order will ordinary citizens expect from the government?” Patnaik asked in a post on X.

Demanding immediate action to restore faith in his government, Patnaik said the government shouldn’t allow heinous acts to go unpunished. “The people of #Odisha will not forgive this,” he said.

Today, Shri Ratnakar Sahoo, OAS Additional Commissioner, BMC, a senior officer of the rank of Additional Secretary was dragged from his office and brutally kicked and assaulted in front of a BJP Corporator, allegedly linked to a defeated BJP MLA Candidate.

What is more appalling is that this happened in broad daylight, in the heart of the capital city-#Bhubaneswar to a senior officer while he was in his office, hearing grievances of people.

I ask @MohanMOdisha

Ji to take immediate and exemplary action against not only those who perpetrated but more importantly the political leaders who orchestrated and conspired this shameful attack. The people named by the officer in his FIR have behaved like criminals. If a senior officer is not safe in his own office, then what law and order will ordinary citizens expect from the Government

I only hope that Shri Majhi directs immediate action to be taken to restore faith in his government and not allow this heinous act to go unpunished like the assault on an officer by the ex-Governor’s son. The people of #Odisha will not forgive this.

I am utterly shocked seeing this video.

Today, Shri Ratnakar Sahoo, OAS Additional Commissioner, BMC, a senior officer of the rank of Additional Secretary was dragged from his office and brutally kicked and assaulted in front of a BJP Corporator, allegedly linked to a defeated… pic.twitter.com/yf7M3dLt9C

— Naveen Patnaik (@Naveen_Odisha) June 30, 2025

The post Odisha: senior Bhubaneswar municipal official assaulted on duty, told to “apologise” to BJP leader appeared first on SabrangIndia.

“The ED dragged Sanjay Raut in a case wherein he was not at all involved. This book is a great account of how power is being misused. It shows how the agencies function now,” said NCP(SP) Supremo Sharad Pawar.

Book stirs controversy

Earlier, speaking about his book, Raut said that while he wrote 80 percent of his book in the prison, he took another two years after getting out of the prison to complete the rest of the book.

“This book is political. Those who want to work while in the opposition must read this book. This book is not for those who only seek power,” Raut said.

Along with Thackeray and Pawar, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale, renowned writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar and several leaders from the Maha Vikas Aghadi including NCP (SP)’s Jayant Pawar, Anil Deshmukh, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Aditya Thackeray, Anil Parab, were present at the event.

Raut’s book, which has made several explosive allegations, has come under fire from the ruling party. In his book, Raut has claimed that Sharad Pawar helped PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah avoid legal action after the 2002 Gujarat riots. He also said that Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray helped Amit Shah when his arrest was imminent in the same case. He has also written a chapter about the arrest of Jharkhand’s independent journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh, who has been jailed since July 2022 under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The book has been met with jibes and criticism from BJP leaders over its explosive content. However, while speaking at the book launch, Pawar questioned how did the people in power know what’s in the book without even reading it.

Raut as well as the other dignitaries also mentioned several other opposition leaders like Saket Gokhale, Anil Deshmukh, AAP’s Sanjay Singh, who faced action under PMLA.

The use of PMLA

Pawar was part of India’s Union Government when the PMLA was enacted. Speaking at the book launch, Pawar shared that he had tried to warn the then UPA-led government of the potential dangers of this Act.

“It was P Chimdambaram who had proposed to the cabinet an amendment to the PMLA. I had informed the then prime minister Manmohan Singh that this proposal is very dangerous, we shouldn’t do that. If we lose power, it might be used against us. And then, we lost power and the first person who was arrested using PMLA was P Chidambaram himself,” Pawar said.

He was speaking of a provision under the PMLA, which puts the onus of proving innocence on the accused in order to even get bail, instead of the investigating agency having to prove his crime. The Supreme Court, last year, took note of this provision multiple times, criticising it.

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale, who was also arrested under the PMLA in Gujarat, was present at the book launch. He also drew attention to this provision of the Act.

“This law used to break parties, people. ED is being used for that. Our judiciary has failed completely, that’s why this is happening. The judiciary is responsible for overseeing that the government functions properly. But when your cases don’t see the light of the day, the government does not fear anyone. It’s people like Sanjay Raut who instill that fear back in the government,” Gokhale said.

Pawar also pointed out how the UPA and the NDA governments used this law. He said that while the UPA government had evoked this law for a probe against nine people, there were no arrests made. However, he said that the NDA government has used this act against 19 leaders from different opposition parties and arrested most of them.

Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief and former CM Uddhav Thackeray also alleged that the Centre has been using agencies to intimidate the state governments.

“When I was the CM, Maharashtra’s Director General of Police (DG) and Chief Secretary (CS) were called by the CBI. Mamata Banerjee [West Bengal CM] also faced the same thing, her CS then resigned. If these people hold the strings of people using government agencies, how are we supposed to rule?” Thackeray questioned.

He also demanded that the states should also be allowed to force acts like PMLA. “Our country is a union of states. The states have just as much rights as the Centre, as they should. The states should also be allowed to use the ED, the Income Tax department, the CBI, the PMLA. Let’s put those found accused in the Central Government behind bars and ask them to prove that they are innocent,” Thackeray said.

Courtesy: Indie Journal

The post Sanjay Raut’s Prison Memoir Stirs Political Storm appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Signatories like Mrs Lalitha Ramdas, wife of Admiral Ramdas (retired), former Chief of the Indian Navy, Vishnu Bhagwat (retired), former Chief of the Indian Navy, Lt. General (Retd) Vijay Oberoi, Vice Admiral (Retd) Sanjay Misra, Major M G Devasahayam IAS (Retd), and EAS Sarma IAS (Retd) among several others have stated that such derogatory statements made by these two Ministers can “adversely affect the morale of the serving personnel of our Armed Forces resulting in the weakening of national security and territorial integrity.” Hence the signatories have demanded that both the Centre and the State should therefore initiate decisive action against the two Ministers for making such derogatory statements under the relevant provisions of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita.  The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh should remove forthwith the two Ministers from the State Cabinet. The central leadership of the concerned party should publicly condemn the derogatory statements made by the two Ministers and initiate action against them.

The signatories, in their open letter, dated May 17, 2025, have added that, because of the stringent Rules and discipline in the Armed Forces its members are unable to respond to these derogatory statements and humiliation. Therefore, as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces they have urged President of India, Draupadi Murmu to defend the honour and self-respect of the brave Indian Armed Forces by directing appropriate action against those indulging in such denigration and preventing the same in the future.

It may be recalled that statements made by deputy chief minister, Madhya Pradesh, Jagdish Devda and minister Vijay Shah came in for sharp criticism some weeks ag during the recent Indo-Pak conflict. First, Madhya Pradesh Minister Vijay Shah made a public statement referring to Col Sofia Qureshi, the official spokesperson for the defence forces as the “(terrorists) wiped the sindoor of our sisters and daughters (in the context of the recent Pahalgaon attack by terrorists), and we sent their own sister to give it back to them in kind ” openly betraying his gender-insensitive, non-secular, divisive state of mind, a statement that tends to deprecate women in general, incite communal fissures and insult the defence forces.

Second, Deputy CM Jagdish Devda, speaking at a training session for civil defence volunteers in Jabalpur on Friday, controversially told the audience, “Pradhanmantri ji ko bhi dhanyawad dena chahenge, aur pura desh, desh ki wo sena, wo sainik, unke charno mein natmastak hain. Unke charno mein pura desh natmastak hai. Unhone jo jawab diya hai (We would also like to thank the Prime Minister; the entire country, the country’s Army, its soldiers are bowing at his feet. The entire country is bowing at his feet. For the response he gave).”

The open communication also recalls and records that earlier, Shri Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of UP made a similar derogatory statement against the defence forces by calling the armed forces, “Modiji ki sena” in April 2019. Through all of these remarks that affect the dignity and morale of the forces the Government has chosen to remain silent in the matter leading to the repetition of the humiliation of the Armed Forces!

Besides, Shri Adityanath’s earlier statement and Shri Devda’s latest statement showed their outright disrespect for the letter and spirit of Article 53 of the Constitution, which defines executive power of the Union as follows:

“(1) The executive power of the Union  shall be vested in the President and shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution.

 (2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, the supreme command of the Defence Forces of the Union shall be vested in the President and the exercise thereof shall be regulated by law.

 (3) Nothing in this article shall—

 (a) be deemed to transfer to the President any functions conferred by any existing law on the Government of any State or other authority;” In other words, under Article 52(2) of the Constitution, the supreme command of the Defence Forces of the Union shall vest in the President of India and no other authority.

Finally, the letter records that it is unfortunate that, instead of questioning and condemning these “despicable acts” senior leaders of BJP at the national level and their handlers are supporting them. In conclusion, the signatories have stated that while expressing solidarity with Col Sofia Qureshi and the Defence Forces in general for their unwavering commitment to safeguarding national security, we unequivocally condemn the statements made by the two Ministers.

Signatories:

1. Mrs Lalita Ramdas, Wife of Admiral (Retd) L. Ramdas, Former Chief of the Naval Staff
2. Admiral (Retd) Vishnu Bhagwat, Former Chief of the Naval Staff
3. General (Retd) Vijay Oberoi
4. Vice Admiral (Retd) Sanjay Misra
5. Major M G Devasahayam IAS (Retd)
6. EAS Sarma IAS (Retd)
7. Surendra Nath IAS (Retd)
8. Prof (Retd) Sebastian Morris (IIM, Ahmedabad)
9. Thomas Franco (People First)
10. Joe Athialy (Centre for Financial Accountability)
11. Dinesh Abrol (Delhi Science Forum)
12. Soumya Dutta (MAUSAM, Environmental Activist)
13. V Sridhar (Journalist, Bengaluru)
14. Prasad Chacko (People’s Union for Civil Liberties )
15. Vijayakumar (Indian School of Social Sciences)
16. Smita Ramanathan (Social Activist)
17. R. Sankari (TNGPA)
18. Teesta Setalvad (Human Rights Activist)
19. Vivekanandan (Retd Professor, MUTA)
20. K Ashok Rao (Patron All India Power Engineers Frederation)
21. Kaushik Majumdar (Social Activist)
22. Vivekaanandhan (TANRECTA)
23. Praveer Peter (Sajha Kadam (for Peace & Harmony))
24. Venkatesh Athreya (Retd Professor, Economist)
25. Nityanand Jayaraman (Chennai Solidarity Group)
26. Amanulla Khan (All India Insurance Employees’ Association)
27. Tara Rao (Eddelu Karnataka)
28. Uma Shankari (Social Activist)
29. Meera Sanghamitra, Social Activist (NAPM), Telangana
30. Madhu Bhaduri, Delhi
31. Malathi N Thomas, Karnataka
32. Prabhat Patnaik, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
33. Arun Kumar, Haryana
34. Cedric Prakash, Gujarat
35. Arun Kumar
36. VIVEKANANDAN TD, Tamil Nadu
37. Ambassador K P Fabian, Delhi
38. Ashok Sharma IFS (Retd), UP
39. Elizabeth D’Souza , Mumbai
40. A. NATHAN – PRESIDENT – NEW LIFE PEOPLE’S PARTY, TAMILNADU
41. Sushil, Karnataka
42. Beena Choksi, Maharashtra
43. Sathish Kumar, Tamil Nadu
44. Sabina Basha, Karnataka
45. Biraj Mehta, Maharashtra
46. Rahul George, Karnataka
47. Sabala, Maharashtra
48. John Dayal, Delhi
49. Chellappa, Tamil Nadu
50. Maj Sharat Chandra Singh (DGM BOI Retd) Uttar Pradesh
51. H S Gujral Punjab
52. SHARAD BEHAR, IAS Retired       Madhya Pradesh
53. Armaity Irani, Maharashtra
54. Mariadasa, Tamilnadu
55. Prabhat Sharan (Senior Journalist), Maharashtra
56. Ravi Budhiraja IAS(Retd), Maharashtra
57. Ashish Kajla, Delhi
58. Aruna Rodrigues, Madhya Pradesh
59. AlokPerti, Delhi
60. Calvin Dsouza, Goa
61. Madhu Bhaduri, Delhi
62. Peter, Tamilnadu
63. Bob Monteiro, Karnataka
64. Mariadasan, Tamilnadu
65. Amanulla Khan, Karnataka
66. MOHAMED IMRAN, TAMILNADU
67. S M Sebastian, Tamilnadu
68. Pranjali Tripathi, Delhi
69. Kirity Roy, MASUM, West Bengal
70. Aditya Mukherjee, Delhi
71. Narendra Panjwani, Maharashtra
72. M.Fidelis , Tamil Nadu
73. Ramesh Dixit, Uttar Pradesh
74. Koshi Philip, Tamilnadu
75. Neera Burra, New Delhi
76. Antony Ravi J, Tamil Nadu
77. Maya Krishna Rao, Karnataka
78. ivy lobo karnayaka
79. S Om Prakash, Karnataka
80. Kripa Noronha, Karnataka
81. Mridula Mukherjee, Delhi
82. Hilarius , Tamilnadu
83. Justice D. Hariparanthaman (Retd)
84. Sarbendu Guha, West Bengal
85. T.R. Colaso, Karnataka
86. Samrat, Delhi
87. Captain Subbarao Prabhala IN Retd, Karnataka
88. Naveen Yadav, Delhi
89. Nagalsamy , Tamilnadu
90. Varsha, Telangana
91. Gleetus, Tamil Nadu
92. Anjali Bhardwaj, Delhi
93. Amrita Johri, Delhi

The post Save the honour and self-respect of India’s Armed forces: Former army naval personnel & citizens appeared first on SabrangIndia.

This post was captioned “LOL Salam, Comrade” – a take on communists’ use of ‘lal selam’ or ‘red salute’. It was posted as a response to a press statement by the CPI(ML) condemning ‘Operation Kagar’ – a joint operation by the paramilitary, state police, and various security forces in the dense and hilly forests of Telangana and Chhattisgarh, in which officials said 27 ‘Maoists’ were killed.

The CPI (ML) had condemned the “cold-blooded extra-judicial killing of Maoist activists and Adivasis in Narayanpur-Bijapur.”

The party statement also said that Shah’s celebratory post reflected that the “state is spearheading Operation Kagar as an extra-judicial extermination campaign and taking credit for killing citizens and suppressing Adivasi protests against corporate plunder and militarisation in the name of combating Maoism.”

The connotations of a cauliflower 

While the Union government’s response has indeed been celebratory, it was, in fact, the presence of a cauliflower in BJP Karnataka’s X post that stunned online commentators.

The use of the cauliflower has become a de-facto stand-in for a call to Muslim genocide.

Capable of circumventing hate speech laws online, it was most recently widely shared by pro-BJP political commentators following the communal clashes in Nagpur.

The imagery is understood to refer to the 1989 Bhagalpur anti-Muslim riots in which over 900 people were killed. In the village of Logain, 110 Muslims were killed and buried in a farm. It is well known that cauliflower saplings were planted over their dead bodies.

In recent years, this reference has been revived by alt-right groups, particularly the trads. Some of its less disguised versions in the past have portrayed hijabi women as cauliflowers.

In their social media bios, many Hindutva ‘trads’ refer to themselves as “cauliflower farmers.”

Trads constitute the extreme end of the Hindutva universe, and comprise youth who want to serve as self-styled civilisational warriors online. Trads view other right-wingers as too liberal and call them ‘raitas’. They also consider PM Narendra Modi too weak to further the real Hindutva agenda due to his alleged appeasement of Dalits and inability to deal with the Muslims with an iron hand.

In 2022, The Wire had reported on these trads following the ‘Sulli Deals’ case in which a hundred Muslim women were ‘auctioned’ on an app.

The Wire had reported how trad iconography is usually designed to ‘trigger’ minority communities with shockingly violent ‘humour’. They include memes depicting the beheading of Muslims, caricatures of Muslims being mowed under their cars, Dalits depicted as “cockroaches” being gassed, or rape victims (who are either Muslims or Dalits) being urinated upon by a saffronised ‘Pepe the Frog.’

The report had said how this dependence on iconography draws directly from Western neo-Nazi creators and in some cases imitates the content of alt-right 4chan activists. References like the cauliflower meme or the invocation of the Ranveer Sena, a banned anti-Dalit militia accused of massacres in Bihar, are local additions.

While the BJP had so far steered away from this extreme discourse and gory trad imagery, the recent caricature is testament to its growing tolerance.

In the past year, trad iconography has become more acceptable in mainstream Hindutva lexicon, especially while addressing Muslims. In the many caricatures the BJP have posted since January 2024, especially during their 2024 Lok Sabha campaign, they adopted some of this imagery and symbols – like Pepe the Frog, a depiction of PM Modi dressed in saffron and taking on the Muslims in green, and an animation of Muslims taking away property and the belongings of the Dalits.

In 2022, in a post on X captioned Satyamev Jayate (truth alone prevails) a caricature was shared by the official handle of the Gujarat BJP featuring a dozen skull-capped and bearded men in white kurtas being hanged. Social media users and commentators drew comparison with Nazi caricatures and the tweet was taken down by Twitter. But the party said that they were not targeting any particular religion and that the cartoon was based on real incidents – a Gujarat court convicting terrorists for the 2006 Ahmedabad blasts.

Courtesy: The Wire

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While paying lip service to Ambedkar, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat equated him to RSS Founder K.B. Hedgewar, “Both dedicated their lives to social progress and held a common aspiration for nation’s growth”. Now what is common between Ambedkar’s dream of social equality, democratic, federalism, abolition of caste and RSS founder’s vision of a Hindu nation, based on the ancient holy books upholding caste system and patriarchy? These are polar opposites. But as paying tribute to Babasaheb has become mandatory for all for electoral compulsions, Bhagwat has to stretch things to pull Babasaheb in the ambit of list of their icons.

Not to be left behind, Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India went on to criticise the Indian National Congress “Congress has become the destroyer of Constitutions. Dr Ambedkar wanted to bring in equality… Babasaheb wanted every poor, every backward to be able to live with dignity and with their heads held high, to have dreams and complete them…Congress has always treated SCs, STs, and OBCs as second-class citizens.”

In a way Narendra Modi is distorting the facts. It is true that Ambedkar was critical of Congress and Gandhi at various occasions; still it was Congress and Gandhi with whom he interacted maximally to achieve his goal of social equality in particular. Gandhi is much criticized for betraying the cause of Dalits. ‘Poona Pact’ has come under severe criticism, but all said and done this was the most practical step towards affirmative action for Dalits. Gandhi was so touched by Ambedkar’s positions that he understood the ills of caste in a deeper way and made eradication of untouchability as his major mission for the next two years. Going from village to village, ensuring that Dalits are permitted entry into the temples and are able to draw water from the village wells. This also became the mission for many Congress workers.

This is the time when BJP ideology founders were singing praises for the values of the caste system and arguing that it is this system which has given stability to Hindu society! Ambedkars yeoman service to the nation was recognized by the national leaders and they were keen that Ambedkar should be part of the Constituent Assembly, In her biography ‘BABASAHEB: My Life with Dr. Ambedkar’, Savita Ambedkar quotes correspondence between Dr. Rajendra Prasad, President of Constituent Assembly, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister-elect, Sardar Patel, the Home Minister, G. Mavalankar, Speaker and BG Kher, the CM of Bombay state to stress how all the top Congress leaders were extremely keen to have her husband elected to the Constituent Assembly unopposed. For instance Patel wrote to Mavalankar on July 5, 1947: ‘Dr Ambedkar’s nomination has been sent to PM. I hope there would be no contest and he would be returned unopposed so that he could come here on the 14th.’ “

Congress ensured that Babasaheb won the seat for Constituent Assembly and made its Chairman. The participation and Contribution of Babasaheb, well supported by Congress, yielded the fruit in the form of the Indian Constitution. On the contrary Organiser, the mouthpiece of RSS, the father organization of BJP, came out heavily saying that this Constitution has nothing Indian about it. The ideological mentor cum fellow traveller of RSS, Savakar was against it saying the “Manusmriti is the Constitution for India.”

Same way Ambedkar handled the responsibility of drafting the Hindu Code Bill, with Nehru standing behind him. The Code was opposed by some elements within but mainly by the ideologues of Hindu Nationalism, who went on to burn the effigy of Ambedkar on 12 December 1949. While RSS-BJP are upholding the Brahmanical version of Hinduism Babasaheb had already declared that I was born a Hindu but I will not die a Hindu.

Similarly as RSS was talking of Hindu Rashtra, Babasaheb in revised edition of the book on Pakistan, opposed it on the ground that this may pave the way for Hindu Raj which will be the biggest tragedy for us. BJP’s Hindu nationalist ideology is deeply opposed to Babasaheb’s dream of Annihilation of caste and has been deeply opposed by Modi’s ideology. Modi’s parent organization RSS has floated Samajik Samrasta Manch, which talks about harmony among caste rather than its annihilation.

Currently some ideologues are arguing that since annihilation is not easy, so let us resort to strengthening sub caste identities to get them more privileges! This will be a disaster for the values of our Fraternity, the core principle of Indian Constitution. RSS is also trying to wean sections of Dalits by co-option and social engineering. RSS organizations are also inventing icons of sub communities among Dalits and giving them values of patriarchy, and caste hierarchy along with Anti Muslim slant.

One could see the response of BJP to implementation of Mandal Commission, which was a major step towards social justice. In response, BJP did not oppose it for electoral calculations but instead intensified their Ram Temple campaign. The way BJP is floating the identity issues and derailing the path of social justice is highly despicable. At the same time through various manoeuvres it has also succeeded in turning a section of deprived youth as its foot soldiers who dance in front of mosques with naked swords.

On the top of that it is Rahul Gandhi of Congress who brought to fore the implementation of the Constitution as the major path for social and economic justice. Putting the blame on the plight of Dalits/OBC and neglect of Babasaheb by Congress is like putting the truth on its head! At the same time it is putting the blame of one’s own doings on others.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the author’s personal views, and do not necessarily represent the views of Sabrangindia.

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