News for '-neeta-kolhatkar'

'Battling anti-Muslim agenda won't be easy'

'This chauvinistic attitude, what they call nationalism in the name of religion, is sad.' 'It is a tragic state that we are all in currently.'

'My greatest strength were prison inmates'

'You are with each other 24x7, so how can you ignore someone crying next to you?' 'How can you not share a piece of chicken with someone who is sitting next to you and watching you eat it?' 'Of course, you will share.' 'And you become friends with the kind of people you never thought you'd even know.'

'I got support in all jail authorities except Tihar'

'The IB and authorities knew I had given away all my property and had nothing in my name.' 'Even among police officers, they all respected me for this sacrifice which is rare these days.' 'They respected me from this point of view -- in this day and age few individuals live by ideals for the poor.'

Nawab Malik's Daughter Speaks Out!

'Once you are in their system, they finish you with the never-ending processes.' 'Once your family member is arrested, you are just running between lawyers, courts and the jail.' 'The process to prove that you are innocent drains you to such an extent that you are finished.'

'Where is this wave? Can you see it?'

'Gujarat is number one in public relations and marketing. Gujarat's PR is strong, it washes like a strong washing soap... The third phase is ours. It is our family and household elections, let him come there... Banaras and UP have taken on the challenge.' Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav tells Rediff.com contributor Neeta Kolhatkar how he plans to keep Narendra Modi at bay.

'Seven years have passed since the murder and the trial is yet to begin'

'One after the other, they have committed four murders (Dabholkar, Pansare, Kalburgi, Gauri Lankesh)...' 'They feel they will not have to face the consequences of their actions as it is a favourable time for them.'

'My time in jail scarred me forever'

'Your faith in the system, and in the fact that you are a citizen of this country and have rights, starts eroding.'

'The State snatched away my time with my daughter'

'It's little things like these -- sharing medicines, consoling each other after a mulaqat (meeting) or a tearful phone conversation with your loved ones or when we would return, dejected, when our bails were rejected -- that made our time in jail bearable.'

'Nawab Malik has been jailed to keep him quiet'

'After he had exposed the Narcotics Bureau's wrongdoings, he threatened to expose the Enforcement Directorate as well.' 'So they are trying to rake up an old legal deal, distorting information and using the PMLA which did not even exist at that time.'

An ode to my friend, Indigo

Indigo (April 30, 1999 - April 30, 2018) was much more than a restaurant, says its regular patron, Neeta Kolhatkar.

'I don't want to live, but I have no option'

'How will they give me permission to die when there are many others in conditions worse than mine?'

'Nobody in India will be saved'

'Nobody will be saved if you don't stop this ideological and political-strategic bulldozer.'

Did Rakesh Maria go soft on Peter Mukerjea?

Rakesh Maria's tough posture as Mumbai police chief, it seems, ruffled feathers in the Fadnavis government, says Neeta Kolhatkar.

'Fear was never an option for me'

'My father lived on minimum money and helped others.' 'What was he to gain personally? No name, fame like a politician who work for votes.' 'His sort believe all humans deserve better lives.'

'I was imprisoned in the phansi yard'

'I was told to go to the next room and strip -- that's when it really hits you for the first time... that you are a criminal and you are being treated like one.' 'It comes as a shock when, instead of your name, you hear, "Yeh naya Maowadi aaya hai (A new Maoist has arrived)".'

India needs a law to deal with fake babas: Prakash Karat

'There are many serious crimes in which powerful and fake babas have been involved in... The states where this is prevalent are Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and even Delhi,' CPI-M General Secretary Prakash Karat tells Neeta Kolhatkar.

'A fight for justice that has been dragging on for too long'

'Now, it feels like the darkness has descended again.'

Arrested this week, Nitesh Rane will contest polls, says father

'I am still someone who will open my mouth and speak if I find something is wrong or I dislike anything. Nothing can make me quiet,' Maharashtra Minister Narayan Rane, whose son Nitesh was arrested in Goa this week, tells Neeta Kolhatkar.

'Authorities Want Every Prisoner To Die Neglected'

'That is how our machinery operates and sees every prisoner.'

'The State is attacking us with guns on our heads'

'The way the society functions, I don't know, they are more concerned about animals than humans.'

'It is a social and political murder'

'A message was sent to society that those who question dogmas and believe in scientific methods will be silenced.' Hamid Dabholkar tells Neeta Kolhatkar why he is disappointed that his father Narendra Dabholkar's killers have not been arrested yet.

'It is a social and political murder'

Kolhapur: Anti-road-toll tax campaigner Pansare, wife shot at

CPI leader says the attack is a conspiracy by communal forces to hush up those who have shown courage to stand up to them.

Parathas During The Shanghai Lockdown

'When a young Indian family who had recently moved into my locality found out that I live here, the lady volunteered to send food; she said that since she was going to cook for three people anyway, she had no problem cooking for me as well.' 'Thanks to her kindness, I get one home-cooked meal every day.'

'I will not keep quiet'

'If the person is silenced, then everyone else is terrorised and won't speak up.' 'See what happened to Kiran Mane, you will face the same fate.' 'They want to send this message to the world through my example.' 'We have to fight this and show that they cannot throttle everyone.'

Diplomat in visa row owns flat in scam-tainted Adarsh Society

This is not the first time IFS officer Devyani Khobragade has found herself under the scanner, says Neeta Kolhatkar.

A tragedy that was waiting to happen in Mumbai

The promptness with which the railways renames stations, that is missing when it comes to providing commuters with basic facilities, says Neeta Kolhatkar.

'It is my love for the people of this country'

'I can't help it if people don't love the minorities, the Dalits and Adivasis; they are as much of this country as any other Indian.' 'If I love them, it does not mean I do not love my country.' 'It is ironic and funny that they have laid such severe anti-national charges against me.'

The shocking state of Mumbai's firemen

Do you know firemen who risk their lives every day earn salaries equivalent to clerks?Last week's tragedy where three Mumbai firemen died fighting a fire must wake up the city's rulers, says Neeta Kolhatkar.

Fadnavis, the biggest loser in MNS-ADHM row

'Devendra Fadnavis' brokering the deal between the MNS and the makers of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil raises questions about the chief minister's effectiveness,' says Neeta Kolhatkar.

'We have to respect dissent'

'In a democracy, there is nothing like 'I am right'.' 'You can be wrong, so somebody has to point that out.'

'They should arrest the builder for failing to keep his promise'

'For 20 years, successive governments have failed to provide housing for the poor. Here, they were to get 400 sq ft flats for Rs 54,000,' says Prakash Ambedkar who was arrested by the Maharashtra government for getting thousands of people to submit forms for these apartments.

A requiem for the Girgaum I knew

Girgaum, once a thriving neighbourhood of Maharashtrians in south Mumbai, who loved their seafood and meat, has slowly been taken over by vegetarians, forcing eateries serving non-vegetarian food to shut down, says Neeta Kolhatkar

'In 30 years, 400 Indian languages will die'

'This government has made it compulsory to teach some languages that have died.' 'You can't keep languages alive by making them compulsory.'

Sheela Kini: A forgotten voice of Mumbai

Neeta Kolhatkar remembers the housewife who took on mighty Maharashtra politicians over her husband's murder.

Why can't our cops clean up their act?

'It is worrisome that religion, politics and strong regional biases have pervaded our police force.'

'The perpetrators are cowards'

'Only when they are in a group or in mobs, then they attack.'

Yakub Memon spilt beans on Dawood, Tiger

'Members of the legal fraternity say Yakub Memon cooperated more than what investigators could have ever hoped for, providing information about Dawood Ibrahim and Yakub's elder brother 'Tiger' Memon, the masterminds behind the planning and execution of the Mumbai serial blasts.'

We killed Aruna Shanbaug

We allowed her to rot daily. We simply did not care. Soon she will be forgotten and the stories of the nurses who cared for her will become Mumbai's urban legend, says Neeta Kolhatkar.

Why Maharashtra's toll policy isn't wrong

Raj Thackeray and the MNS protested against tolls in Maharashtra to demonstrate that it still has political clout, says Neeta Kolhatkar.