August 15th is India’s Independence Day. This year the most significant of Independence Day celebrations will take place in Una, Gujarat.
Una was the town that recently witnessed this cruel and inhuman public flogging of Dalits for allegedly killing cows.
On July 31st more than ten thousand Dalits converged for a mega meeting at Ahmedbad in protest against Dalit atrocities taking place all over the country.
Irom Sharmila, 44, the Iron Lady of Manipur,a small state in north-east India, has ended her sixteen years old fast.
She started her fast unto death as a protest against the draconian Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) after troops of the Assam Rifles gunned down 10 civilians at Malom near Imphal airport on November 2, 2000.
The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 (AFSPA) is considered to be one of the most draconian legislations that the Indian Parliament has ever passed. Under this Act, all security forces are given unrestricted and unaccounted power to carry out their operations, once an area is declared disturbed. Even a non-commissioned officer is granted the right to shoot to kill based on mere suspicion that it is necessary to do so in order to “maintain the public order”.
The AFSPA gives the armed forces wide powers to shoot, arrest and search, all in the name of “aiding civil power.” It was first applied to the North Eastern states of Assam and Manipur and was amended in 1972 to extend to all the seven states in the north- eastern region of India. They are Assam, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland, also known as the “seven sisters”. The enforcement of the AFSPA has resulted in innumerable incidents of arbitrary detention, torture, rape, and looting by security personnel. This legislation is sought to be justified by the Government of India, on the plea that it is required to stop the North East states from seceding from the Indian Union. The law gives troops sweeping powers to kill even on suspicion and have immunity from prosecution.
Irom Sharmila breaking fast -Image credit Indian Express
I have heard several stories about how difficult it is to get out the clutches of church for a nun. Here is a new one from Kerala, India.
Sr Mary Sebastian, 45 years, has been serving the Catholic Church for last 25 years. Due to repeated mental and even physical abuses and frequent transfer of posting she became fed up with her job.
My town Palakkad saw on this Sunday a protest meeting. It was against the cruel attack, presumably carried out by Islamist fundamentalist group on an upcoming writer Jimshar that took place near here on July 24th. His “crime” was giving a name to his book that did not please the Islamists.
The meeting was organised by the local chapter of Yukthivadi Sangham, the rationalist organisation. It was inaugurated by member of Indian Parliament (MP) and Communist Party of India leader M B Rajesh. The local member of Kerala legislative assembly (MLA) Shafi Parambil belonging to the Congress party also participated. Jimshar could not come due to his injuries.
M B Rajesh inaugurating the meet.
Image credit : Malayala Manorama
When he was just out of school he was appalled and disgusted to see workers doing manual scavenging of human excreta from dry latrines. When he conveyed his disgust to his parents they revealed that they were also doing the same job. It was shocking for him to know that he belonged to a”thotti” (manual scavenger) family. He contemplated suicide, but somehow decided to live on.
That day in 1986 changed his life, and saw the beginning of a movement that will liberate lakhs of manual scavengers all over India. It will also result in him, Bezwada Wilson, getting the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award for 2016.
Those living here are the most impoverished, under nourished and illiterate among the population of my state of Kerala. Most of them inhabit areas in and around forests. They live by gathering food from the forests or by crude cultivation in small patches of land adjacent to forests.They used to hunt wild animals before. But with strict anti hunting laws adopted to preserve wild life they are not allowed to do that now.
Due to acute malnutrition in the region, premature births and infant deaths have become a routine in Attappady. Photo shows children at South Kadampara tribal hamlet in Sholayur gram panchayat, Attappady. Photo: Thulasi Kakkat, The Hindu.
I am talking about tribal people living in Attappady region of my district. More than 90 % of them are below India’s officially recognised poverty line. Most of them never get two square meals a day. Deaths due to under nutrition are common here. This comparative graph on Human Development index tells you the abysmal state.
Dalits mercilessly beaten by Hindutva groups in Una, Gujarat for allegedly killing a cow- from Indian express
In protest Dalits who usually take care of cows dead due to natural causes, refuses to do such work. From Truth of Gujarat FB page
Most Hindus are very superstitious, especially the business class. So when they invest in shares or a project they usually give a part of it to temples as donations believing foolishly that it will bring them luck. Until now they were giving such donations as cash. Now the most famous Hindu temple in India’s commercial capital Mumbai is having something new to offer. Instead of cash they have started accepting equity shares of companies as donations. The temple authorities hope to cash in on the superstition of Indian investors and there by get several blue chip shares.
Dalit Organisations have called for state wide protest shut down on Wednesday in Gujarat, India. They have decided not to take it lying down anymore.
The inhumane violence on them, clearly depicted by a video which had gone viral in which a group of upper caste Hindutva goons were seen thrashing Dalit youths mercilessly in full public view in the town of Una was perhaps the breaking point.
Image credit – NDTV
