Nandita Narain, former president of Delhi University of Teachers’ Association, explains the new reservation roster. She talks in detail about how harmful the new 13 point/department wise roster will be for the teachers. Nandita gives a picture about the history of reservation in Universities and how the current government is excluding backward castes from the learning space.

Courtesy: Newsclick.in

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New Delhi: A two-day Dalit Literature Festival will be organised at Delhi University’s Kirori Mal College on February 3 and will address ‘longstanding and overdue questions’ of Indian society’s marginalised society. The festival, reportedly the first of its kind, has been planned by a group of public intellectuals, university professors and social activists.
 
Focussing on marginalised sections, the festival will “celebrate their victories and culture”.
 
“This platform would establish a dialogue so that the pains and problems of Dalit communities can be brought to light, furthermore the cultural traditions and vibrancy of Dalit literature and art can be demonstrated,” the organisers told reporters.
 
“In the modern-day socio-political and cultural situation, there has to be a sense of representation of people’s voices. Dalit’ have been fast emerging as an umbrella term, not only for people who have been discriminated against on the basis of their birth in a particular community but also tribal groups and the LGBT community,” IGNOU professor Parmod Kumar said.
 
“The idea of Dalit has to be institutionalised. We are trying to say Dalit is not a particular peripheral section, it is the people at the grassroots at large — those facing discrimination, deprivation and exploitation. We will look at our institutional frameworks, we are trying to celebrate identities and unlearn the wrong things that have been propagated in the name of knowledge and aesthetics,” he added.
 
The festival will also witness a book fair, in which various publishers will participate and books of social relevance will be released.
 
Speakers like Marathi author-poet Sharan Kumar Limbale, Marathi novelist Laxman Gaikwad, academic Shantha Naik, writer Mohandas Namishrai, environment activist Medha Patkar, and writer Jai Prakash Kadam, among others, will mark their presence.
 
The festival has been organised by Ambedkarvadi Lekhak Sangh, Hindi department of Kirori Mal College, Rashmi Prakashan Lucknow, Ridam Patrika, National Alliance Of People’s Movement (NAPM), Delhi Solidarity Group (DSG), Alag Duniya, Mantvya Patrika, Akshar Publishers Delhi, and Forum For Democracy.
 
About the festival:
The organisers in their invitation said that this initiative is founded primarily on Ambedkarite thoughts and on other positive, change-oriented philosophies. “We have been observing that literature is being appropriated by various forces that are governed by caste and capitalist formations and a trend has been created of organising Literature-Culture Fests in regional languages at the State level in different parts of the country. These groups are deeply entrenched in Caste and Capital entitlement and oppression. Their tendency for appropriation is driven by the understanding that literature, culture, and art have continued to play a significant role in making people-community-society more creative, alert, sensitive and thought-oriented. Therefore, these groups want to establish control over the domain of literature, culture and art,” they said in their note.
 
They further observed that these groups have infiltrated their media, socio-cultural groups, political parties, and other change-oriented associations and begun to control and diminish their values of social justice and inclusivity.
 
“It is our responsibility to bring together various cultural and artistic minds who believe in social justice and change, to strengthen the people-oriented and change-centric positive stream of Dalits. Only this positive and change-oriented vision can bring about momentum towards the foundation of a better society and community in future,” they said.
 
“We strongly believe that the word ‘Dalit’ has taken the shape of struggle and resistance against injustice and inequality which acts as a flag for all the marginalised who face injustice, pain and deprivation on a regular basis. It has also constructed an umbrella under which various marginalised groups, classes assemble and will continue to do so in the future. We look at the word Dalit in its natural and larger comprehensive understanding and declare to include Dalits-tribals-women-eunuch groups, minorities (including Pasmanda and Dalit Christians) and all other deprived communities and marginalised identities. We also propose our understanding that we would use the term ‘Dalit’ prospectively to struggle for deprived communities, marginalised identities and the labour class. Needless to say, that the proletariat or labour class in India is Dalit, which has been defined above. This society is exploited by capitalism and equally by Brahminism. Dr Ambedkar also marked Brahminism and capitalism as India’s two enemies,” they observed.
 
They added that this Dalit literature festival will initiate a parallel change-oriented literary discourse and establish a solid platform in which Dalits, tribals, denotified tribes, women, minorities and Pasmanda communities will be included.
 
To know more about the festival, visit their Facebook page.
 

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With an aim to overcome the negative feedback after Delhi had a series of violent attacks on African nationals in March this year, the Delhi University has undertaken a slew of measures to encourage more enrolment. These measures include an extension of online registration for foreign nationals till May 31 and answering their queries on email.

The Foreign Students Registry (FSR) of the varsity has received over 300 applications from African nationals, the varsity said in a statement. The FSR office will also answer queries from African students on fsr@du.ac.in and fsr_du@yahoo.com and respond to phone calls on 91-11-27666756. "To increase the number, the varsity will be extending online registration deadline for foreign nationals from 20 April to May 31," it said. "The varsity is committed to reaching out to international students which will result in strengthening social, cultural and political ties between the two countries," the varsitys registrar said in the statement.

The spate of attacks in Delhi's prestigious Vasant Kunj area and the Greater Noida areas had drawn some condemnation when they happened. A serious diplomatic crisis had been caused with the diplomats of all African nations demanding accountability from India.

Representatives of 44 African countries had, at the time, accused the Indian government of failing to do enough to stop racist attacks on their nationals following a series of brutal assaults targeting Nigerians.Around a dozen people were injured, some seriously, when a mob angered by the death of a local teenager went on the rampage in a satellite city of New Delhi o March 30.The violence erupted after a group of Nigerian students who were detained in connection with the teen's death were released without charge, with police saying there was no evidence against them. The vicious assault was captured on camera and shared widely on social media, triggering concern over a rise in racist violence against Africans in India. Not even a year had passed since Congolese resident M.K. Oliver was murdered in Delhi that reprehensible attacks on African students in India have resurfaced. In 2016 there were brute attacks even in the city of Bengalaru.

What had compounded the grave human rights violations that had errupted into a diplomatic crisis was the fact that BJP MP Tarun Vijay had stated, "If we were racist, why would we have the entire south (India)… which is you know, completely Tamil, you know Kerala, you know Karnataka and Andhra. Why do we live with them …We have blacks, black people around us. You are denying your own nation, you are denying your ancestry, you are denying your culture." Mr Vijay who had made these remarks while participating in a TV debate on racism in India in the context of last week's attacks on Nigerians in Delhi suburb Greater Noida had thereafter 'apologised.'

Within two months of the brutal attacks when India faced the Universal Periodic Review for its human rights record at the United Nations however, no African country made reference to the brutal assaults though they had caused  diplomatic crisis at the time. Only Haiti, in its remarks had brought up the string of racial attacks on African students.
Economics is also a driving factor given that these enrolments by foreign students add substantial amounts to the university's exchequer. The Association of African Students in India had called on the government of India to take concrete steps to protest the lives and properties of all African students in India, and especially in Uttar Pradesh following the recent false allegations laid on five Nigerian students.

They had demanded that :
1. Failure to secure the lives of African students and to ensure maximum security in areas were African students live, we will write to African Union to cut all bi-lateral trade with India.
2. We will ensure that all the local media houses in our respective countries get details of the growing racism which African students are facing in India.
3. We will ensure that a detailed report on the barbaric racism African students are facing in India is sent to the high levels of all African governments and heads of state.
4. We will ask African students in our respective countries to stop making India their study destination with immediate effect.
5. We will call for a nationwide protest inviting all international media houses.

The People's Alliance for Democracy and Seculatism (PADS) had addressed a strong statement to the African Media and Civil Society Information Networks and identified the following reasons or tendencies behind the attacks:
 

• First, discriminatory, restrictive and narrow-minded attitudes towards many of  those who are seen by some of us as being different from  ourselves whether in terms of colour, origin, opinions, mannerisms, lifestyle or in the degree of power, resources and influence they may or may not command,  have  strengthened over the years.
• Second, not only some foreigners but also some of our own people have in recent times been targeted as a consequence of the growth of a  mob mentality among sections of our people  in recent years.
• Third, there is an increasing tendency on the part of a section of our people to arrive at conclusions on the basis of unverified assumptions and, under cover of these, to take law into their own hands.

Calling for an urgent halt to such brutality and  to bring the miscreants responsible for such criminal conduct to book, the organisation had earnestly hoped that there would be exemplary punishment to  the perpetrators on behalf of the law enforcement authorities and that the Indian government would meet all costs for treatment as also provide adequate protection.
 
 
 
 
 

The post We Want More African Students: DU Launches Special Enrolment Drive appeared first on SabrangIndia.

I have nothing to do with any political organization, as a student of University Of Delhi, I was at #Ramjas to attend the seminar as we were to discuss Bastar , Kashmir and North East there. ABVP attacked us. I witnessed their hooliganism and even recorded it with my phone.
I was appalled at how these handful of goons were assaulting the students, abusing us and making indecent gestures. I was right there when ABVP goon threw a stone at the conference hall, breaking the window panes. Even caught them Justifying the violence saying, “gundagardi aur bhagwakaran hi chalega, bilkul chalega!” on camera.
The next day a march was called against their hooliganism. I went class to class to tell students about this march. There was anger amongst common students, no one wants violence in campus.
Police was present when we gathered outside Ramjas with our placards. There were students from DU, JNU, JMI, AUD. There were teachers & journalists present.
Suddenly ABVP attacked us, AGAIN. They manhandled us, punched & abused us like anything. They were pelting stones at the protest march. Many of my friends got seriously injured. Even teachers were not spared. Journalists too were attacked and their cameras were broken. It all happened in the presence of Delhi Police.
Then ABVP , with the help of BJP IT cell came up with false accusations. I was present there & I had video clippings that I posted on social media. But being just a common student activist, I never had an army of trolls OR an IT Cell for back up.
I’m being harassed since three consecutive days by trolls. Being accused of being a Naxali, a paid propagandist and what not. Today I noticed random anonymous accounts threatening me of Violence. (See Screenshots)
As a girl living all alone in this city, I feel unsafe to step out. They’re everywhere, roaming around on their bikes with saffron bands.
But ABVP, I AM NOT SCARED. I’ve NEVER been a fan of your ideology or your politics but today I say you disgust me. You talk about defending your motherland by harassing students & activists? I spit on your nationalism.
I WILL NOT SHUT UP and let this go. I’m going to fight back. This is about my University and I’m not taking any step back.
#StudentsAgainstABVP

(Courtesy: https://www.facebook.com/Ratnpriya.m)
 

The post ‘I am Trolled & Threatened for Exposing ABVP’s Violence in DU’: Horror Continues.. appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The ABVP were joined by some members of Delhi Police, which reports to the Centre’s BJP government, in thrashing the protesting AISA students and members of media present on the campus to cover the event.

The genesis of the clash was an invite to JNU students Umar Khalid, facing sedition charge, and Shehla Rashid to address a seminar on ‘Culture of Protests’ which was withdrawn by the college authorities following opposition by the ABVP.

Almost a dozen students and four journalists were injured in the clashes. Journalists who were victims of the violence unleashed by the ABVP members included Catch News’s Aditya Menon and Vishakh Unnikrishnan, Heena Kausar of Hindustan Times and Taruni Kumar of The Quint.

ABVP members were, however, kind to their ‘own’ journalists as they reportedly welcomed the arrivals of Zee News’s crew. Aditya said that there was a sense of excitement as soon as the reporter from Zee News arrived at the spot.

Some ABVP workers were heard saying, “Hamaray waalay aa gaye (Our own journalists have arrived now).”

The incident caused a huge public outcry as civil society members and political leaders began to condemn the violence unleashed by the ABVP workers.

Leading the condemnation was Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who termed the incident ‘shameful.’

He tweeted, “Shameful. Look at how Modi police treating women. I warn Modi ji- students se panga mat lo, ye khade ho gaye to apko barbad kar denge.”

On Thursday, an embarrassed Delhi Police had no option but to be seen as taking action against three of its personnel, who were placed under suspension.

Undeterred by public condemnation and widespread outrage, the RSS’s students’ body registered its presence in Khalsa college a day later by forcing the administration to cancel street programme, scheduled there.

Now the anger against the BVP is fast spreading across India with the students’ wing being termed as viciously violent outfit, hellbent on crushing free voice by using the help of friendly police.

Students up and down the country and now changing the display images of their social media pages by holding placards that say, ‘I’m not afraid of ABVP.’

Here are some of the images;

Courtesy: Janta Ka Reporter
 

The post Anger against Ramjas college violence spreads across India, students declare ‘I am not afraid of ABVP’ appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The Commission has now directed the School of Open Learning (SoL) to produce before it all the records related to educational details of Irani, Union Textile Minister.
 

A fresh show cause notice has been issued to the Central Public Information Officer of DU for having failed to produce the records before the Commission as directed.

Irani’s degrees have been caught in a row after a petitioner alleged she had given contradictory information in her affidavits filed before contesting elections in 2004, 2011 and 2014.

In her affidavit for April, 2004 Lok Sabha polls, Irani had said she completed her BA in 1996 from DU (School of Correspondence as SoL was then called), whereas in another affidavit of July 11, 2011 to contest Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat, she said her highest educational qualification was B.Com Part I, a petitioner had alleged in a city court.

The matter was dismissed by the court on the ground that considerable time had lapsed in filing the complaint.

The issue is, however, still alive before the Central Information Commission where an applicant had filed an appeal, saying he was not given information about Irani’s educational qualification by the SoL.

During a hearing, SoL’s Central Public Information Officer O P Tanwar said considering that it was a third party information he had consulted Irani about the disclosure.

“In her response (she) raised objection against (sic) disclosure and requested the public authority not to reveal her educational qualification. The CPIO pleaded that information sought was given by the former HRD Minister in fiduciary capacity and hence could not be divulged as per Section 8(1)(e),” Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said in his order.

Courtesy: Janta Ka Reporter
 

The post “Smriti Irani told DU not to reveal her educational qualification” appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The Central Information Commisison has ruled that Delhi University will have to provide a copy of the records of all students who completed their BA degree in 1978 — the year when the university said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had cleared the examination.

Last year, the university had denied these records to an RTI applicant, saying that it was the “personal information of the students concerned, the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest”.

In another ruling on a related case, the CIC fined the university’s Public Information Officer Rs 25,000 for denying information under RTI on the Prime Minister’s degree on the grounds that the mandatory postal order of Rs 10 was not addressed to the correct authority.

The Central Information Commission (CIC) has slapped a fine of Rs 25,000 on Delhi University's Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) for rejecting an RTI application seeking Prime Minister Narendra Modi's graduation degree.

The authenticity of Prime Minister Modi’s BA degree was questioned by Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal last May. He had claimed that Modi’s degrees were fake. Defending Modi, his party, the BJP, had produced copies of what they said were the Prime Minister’s degrees.

The commission did not find any merit or justification in her argument, stating that the fee was not a material factor to throw out an RTI request.

The Chief Information Commission, M. Sridhar Acharyulu, in a recent order, pulled up CPIO Meenakshi Sahay of Delhi University and said the rejections reminded him of the saying “penny wise, pound foolish”.  In another order dated December 21, the CIC has clearly reasoned how the degrees of those in public authority fall under the public domain. The Commission has clearly said that matters relating to the education of a student — current or former — fall under the category of public information. Several judgements were cited in the 13 page order of the CIC that may be read here.

In this order, the CIC says, “Commission directs the respondent authority, Delhi University, to facilitate inspection of relevant register where complete information about result of all students who passed in Bachelor of Arts, in year 1978 along with roll number, names of the students, father’s name and marks obtained as available with the University and provide certified copy of the extract of relevant pages from the register, free of cost, before 30.12.2016.”

While a copy of the order has been posted on CIC website, the RTI applicant, Neeraj Sharma, said he was yet to receive the records from the university. “I will write to them or go there and inspect the records if that is needed,” said Sharma.

In the case where a fine was imposed on DU's CPIO, the commission was hearing a plea filed by Delhi-based lawyer Mohammad Irsad, whose RTI query seeking inspection of Modi’s degree was rejected on the ground that the Indian Postal Order (IPO) was not marked in favour of the Registrar of the university.

The commission, directing the “public authority” to recover an amount of Rs 25,000 from the salary payable to Sahay, said that after hearing the story that thousands of rupees had been spent in a legal battle for a postal order of Rs 10, “the proverb ‘penny wise, pound foolish’ has to be rewritten as ‘rupee wise and thousand foolish’ “.

Sahay in her defence argued that there was no malice in rejecting the RTI application and that she had to follow the policies laid down by the university. The commission did not find any merit or justification in her argument, stating that the fee was not a material factor to throw out an RTI request.

It said it was “vexed with non response” from the CPIO to a number of its notices and thus found it a fit case to impose penalty.

Calling the CPIO’s action “pathetic”, the commissioner said in the order that “such a simple request for information has been dragged to the level of second appeal, building heaps of documents with multiple files”.

The commission also slammed Delhi University for “spending huge amounts of money and consuming precious time of public servants”, including the commission.

It also asked the “public authority”, without defining it, to facilitate sufficient training to the entire staff, including the CPIO, in the matter of RTI law so that they do not reject applications in a routine manner without application of mind.

The commission recommended that officials be provided with the latest books on the RTI Act as well as classic text books on administrative law. It suggested they should also be given the books “Right to Know” by late professor S.P. Sathe and “Five-point Someone: What Not To Do At IIT” by Chetan Bhagat.

BJP leaders had stated last year that Modi had completed his BA in political science from the distance learning programme of the university in 1978. This was later corroborated by the Delhi University registrar, Tarun Das.

The post CIC Rap: DU official fined Rs 25K for rejecting RTI query on PM Narendra Modi’s degree appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Sitting in her home at a village around 400 km from Raipur, Shamnath Baghel's wife Vimla told NDTV that she didn't name Nandini Sundar or anyone at all, even the killers.

Vimla says the family was sleeping on November 4, when the Maoists knocked on their door.

"When I did not open the door, they broke it down. They barged in and dragged my husband out of the house. They had guns, swords…They pointed a gun at me and asked me to stay inside. There were 15-20 men… I did not know any of them. I could not see them properly as they flashed a torch at me. They did not say a word. They took him and killed him on the road," said Vimla.

Did they take the name of Nandini Sundar? "No," she said, adding that she gave no names to the police.
 
The entire story may be read here
 
Meanwhile, the Chhatisgarh government assured the Supreme Court today that it will not arrest Delhi University professor Nandini Sundar, who was named as an accused in the alleged murder of a tribal person in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.The assurance came as the bench of Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel indicated that they may put on hold the FIR in which Sundar and other civil society activists have been named as accused in the November 4 murder of Shamnath Baghel by Maoists.
 
 
Related Articles:
Police term accused Professors Naxals, ‘Attack on Activism’ says booked Professor
Online Petition demands Withdrawal of Charges against Sundar, Prasad and Others

The post Never Named Anyone, Says Wife Of Murdered Tribal On Professor Nandini Sundar – NDTV appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Prof Nandini Sundar

The petition, uploaded by Prof Aparna Sundar addressed to the president, prime minister and home minister of the country, alleges that the charges have been fabricated by police.

On Sunday, Chhattisgarh police booked Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Professor Archana Prasad, Delhi University (DU) professor Nandini Sundar, Vineet Tiwari of Joshi Adhikar Sansthan, Delhi, Chhattisgarh CPI(M) state secretary Sanjay Parate, Mangalram Karma, and Manju Kawasi, CPI activist and Sarpanch of Guphidi in Sukma district for the alleged murder of a tribal villager Shamnath Baghel on November 4. Baghel had earlier this year complained to the police that Prof Sundar and others are inciting tribals against the government.

SabrangIndia had earlier reported that the Chhattisgarh police had called all the accused academicians and activists ‘Naxals’, and had booked them under sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 and 149 of IPC.

However, talking to SabrangIndia, Prof Prasad and Parate had called the allegations ‘bogus’ and had termed it as an attack on activism. Several academicians have since stepped forward showing their support, including JNU Teachers’ Association and the said petitioner.

The petition, which has received support from 404 people so far, elaborates on work done by those named in the FIR in the insurgency-afflicted area and their repeated attempts at achieving peace in Bastar. It has also blamed Chhattisgarh police for fabricating the charges in order to intimidate the activists. It has been endorsed by many users who claim to be belonging to several other countries.

Read the full text of the petition below:

We, the undersigned, are outraged by recent charges of murder that have been laid against Delhi University professor Nandini Sundar, JNU professor Archana Prasad, Vineet Tiwari (of Joshi Adhikar Sansthan, Delhi), Chhattisgarh CPI(M) state secretary, Sanjay Parate, Mangalram Karma, and Manju Kawasi, CPI activist and Sarpanch of Guphidi in Sukma district, by the Chhattisgarh police in the killing of Shamnath Baghel.
 
The charges are patently fabricated, and follow a pattern of intimidation by the Chhattisgarh police every time evidence is released of their lawless prosecution of the war against the Maoists. Earlier this year, Sundar, Prasad, Tiwari and Parate were part of a fact-finding team that looked at the impact of Maoist violence and state excesses on ordinary villagers in Bastar, finding that they were victims of fake encounters, rapes, arrests, beatings, IED blasts, and killing of informers, implicating Maoists, police, and security forces. The residents of Bastar were also found to be facing the renewal of attacks by civilian militias armed by the state. At that time too, the district administration of Bastar had tried to implicate the fact-finding team on fake charges on the basis of a contrived complaint. More recently, when the police were charge-sheeted on the basis of evidence gathered by Sundar and others for carrying out arson in an operation in 2011, they retaliated by burning effigies of her and other activists and journalists in order to intimidate and incite violence against them.
 
Sundar and others have put on record their unequivocal condemnation of the killing of Shamnath Baghel. Their writing and interventions on the ongoing war in Bastar have consistently condemned all forms of violence, whether by the state or by the Maoists.
 
We are saddened by the climate of silencing of dissent that is becoming widespread in India and concerned that the work of researchers, journalists, lawyers and activists is being monitored and controlled to quell critical scrutiny of governmental actions. We believe such silencing of opposing views poses a grave danger to the democratic values of India.
 
We condemn the police tactics of intimidating and harassing of journalists, lawyers, researchers, political leaders and human rights activists who have been documenting and speaking out against the violence and brutality unleashed by the police, paramilitary, and civilian militias against the local population of Bastar in the war against the Maoists. We demand that the Government of India unconditionally withdraw all charges against all the six persons who have been falsely accused by Chhattisgarh police. We further demand that an inquiry be set up to interrogate the manner in which the police is interfering with law and taking the liberty to frame researchers and activists to create an atmosphere of terror.

The post Online Petition demands Withdrawal of Charges against Sundar, Prasad and Others appeared first on SabrangIndia.