Some of the issues Vivek Agnihotri raises in The Bengal Files are valid, but today, the need of the hour is to find ways of negotiating peace not pouring oil over troubled waters, asserts Deepa Gahlot.
Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad Yadav on Tuesday said he was in favour of extending reservation benefits to Muslims but emphasised that it should be based on social backwardness and 'not on the basis of religion'.
The jama'ath of a mosque in Kerala has allegedly opposed the participation of people belonging to the lower strata of the Muslim community in their general meeting, drawing sharp criticism from progressive organisations in the society.
Two top Muslim organisations -- All India Milli Council and Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind (Mahmood Madni) -- on Tuesday backed National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Chairman Wajahat Habibullah's call for scheduled caste status to Muslim and Christian Dalits.
'Without our support Nitish Kumar wouldn't have become chief minister.' 'After the government was formed we became ministers, but our agenda remained the same: Amit Shah had promised reservation for Nishads.' 'He wouldn't listen, so we went to UP and contested 52 seats in the 2022 elections. He didn't like the idea of rebellion.' 'He saw that this man, coming from Bombay, is very sharp. He's made four MLAs now, tomorrow he'll make 40. A time will come when they will make it 125.' 'They bought our MLAs and ousted us from the government.'
This divergence is likely to intensify political dynamics both within the party and across the state, particularly as the opposition Mahagathbandhan -- comprising the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Congress, and Left parties -- has been aggressively protesting the SIR and demanding its immediate scrapping.
'Our politics is transparent -- it's about ensuring farmers don't die by suicide, about ensuring agriculture remains viable, about ensuring food security for the nation.' 'If that's politics, then yes, we do politics.'
'Nobody is speaking up for Muslims today.' 'Secular parties too have calmed down because they feel this will hurt the Hindu vote (bank).' 'In this scenario, where does a Muslim go?'
The 24 page manifesto promises 10 per cent job reservation to backward Muslims.
While the BJP backs Nitish Kumar as chief minister, Chirag isn't hiding his readiness for the role, reports Aditi Phadnis.
Several Muslim organisations have disfavoured the women's reservation bill in its present form and demanded that the government take up the measure only if it provides for a quota within quota to women belonging to Muslim, Dalit and Other Backward Class communities.
Paswan, supporting the 50 % reservation in Aligarh Muslim University, said those opposing it were out to weaken the country's integrity.
Now it's all jibes about his chameleon-like politics and fading grip on the administration. But there was a time Nitish had the BJP trembling in the state, points out Aditi Phadnis.
Justifying the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government's proposed move of providing a sub-quota for minorities, a Union minister on Saturday said that condition of poor Muslims and Buddhists in the county was "worse" than Dalits.
In the light of the efforts being made to forge electoral unity between scheduled castes and Muslims, Mohammad Sajjad examines what the architect of our Constitution, B R Ambedkar, had to say about the Muslim community.
Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari on Saturday asserted that his party was not anti-Muslim or anti-dalit but had been victim of "false propaganda", clearly carrying forward the campaign to reach out to sections which are seen as outside the party's vote bank.
The Kerala police were the most sensitised to the rights of those arrested while that of Jharkhand and Gujarat the least.
The SP MP said when the mentality is bad, then instead of telling about the achievements of the army, people start talking about their own achievements.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday attacked the Congress over party president Mallikarjun Kharge's recent remark on Lord Ram and Lord Shiva, and accused the opposition party of trying to divide Hindus for its appeasement politics.
Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com does a deep dive into four elections when Narendra Modi resorted to anti-Muslim fervour and points out that Hindu-Muslim politics does not necessarily mean victory for the BJP.
He said the then prime minister Manmohan Singh had given a speech in which he had said Muslims have the first right to the country's resources.
'The quality of justice is directly linked to the quality of judges -- if that suffers, justice delivery suffers.'
Muslims and Christians will jointly organise 'adhikar conference' (rights conference) in Patna on July 1 to press the Centre for acceptance of the recommendations of the Sacchar Committee and Ranganathan Committee.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday condemned the violence in West Bengal's Murshidabad district following the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, accusing the opposition of instigating the violence. He also criticized the opposition for their alleged silence over the persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh and emphasized the BJP's commitment to protecting Hindus.
'Arundhati Roy is like a ballerina performing on a high wire, cool, supremely at ease but conscious of all the adoring eyes on her,' notes P Vijaya Kumar.
The BJP, meanwhile, asked Kejriwal to learn "spirit of service" from the RSS leaving behind his "political moves" instead of writing to Bhagwat to draw "media attention".
Rohith Vemula's suicide exposes all of us as a nation, argues Syed Firdaus Ashraf.
'The tragedy with Indian Muslims is that they do politics from the heart, not from the head.'
'This is against the Constitution and we will oppose it tooth and nail.'
'Talking about boycotting polls is simply a move to galvanise party leaders, workers, and supporters for the big political fight.'
This is important because he is to be seen as a sure winner before criss-crossing the state to campaign for candidates of the party or an alliance, highlights N Sathiya Moorthy.
The first day of Congress president Sonia Gandhi's three-day visit to Rae Bareli, her parliamentary constituency, was devoted to Dalits and Muslims. She visited several villages on Monday and took stock of implementation of various centrally-sponsored schemes.
The government is thrusting new leaders to the fore and moving others aside to create a rift between the Maratha and OBC communities, he said, stressing that those protesting over their demand for non-dilution of the OBC quota are not at fault.
'In a world which is full of categories, hatred and ideologies, there was this basic decency.'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, accusing them of neglecting the welfare of backward sections, Dalits, tribals, and minorities. Gandhi promised a caste census in Delhi if the Congress forms the government, echoing his national call for removing the 50 percent cap on reservations. He also criticized Kejriwal's governance, drawing parallels with Modi's alleged reliance on propaganda and false promises. The Congress and AAP are part of the INDIA bloc, but are contesting the upcoming Delhi assembly polls separately. Gandhi's speech highlights the growing political tension ahead of the polls, where the Congress aims to regain its foothold in Delhi.
Modi alleged that the Congress government in Karnataka gave reservations in tenders based on religion, "snatching the rights of SCs, STs and OBCs." But Ambedkar had said there would not be reservation based on religion and there is a bar on giving reservation on the basis of religion in the Constitution, he stressed.
"I had said on the soil of Bahraich that glorification of foreign invaders should be stopped and that the national heroes must be honoured. And 1,000 years ago, such a tale of courage and bravery was written by Maharaja Suheldev on this very soil of Bahraich," Adityanath said.
While the BJP says it is confident Dalits will vote for it in the state assembly polls due this year-end, the Congress says it is paying attention to seats with 10 per cent or more Dalit population.
What is the effect of the report of a commission of inquiry that has been rejected or not accepted by the government, and whether the empirical data which formed the basis of the report can be looked at while determining a constitutional issue, the Supreme Court wondered on Wednesday while considering the question of quotas for Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians.
Owaisi said 324 farmers have died by suicide in "Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) division", but no one is talking about it.
