On October 14, 1956, Dr B R Ambedkar, fulfilling his long-held vow to renounce Hinduism, embraced Buddhism along with over 500,000 followers at Nagpur's Deekshabhoomi, marking a new era of social and spiritual liberation for India's Dalits.
In his social media post in Hindi, Gautam had written, "For women, it is better to read the Constitution of India and the Hindu Code Bill instead of fasting for nine days during Navratra. Their lives will be free from fear and slavery. Jai Bheem."
Women politicians bring to politics and policy a sensitivity that most of their male counterparts, at least until a generation back, lacked.
'UCC should be across India and legally applicable to every Indian citizen.'
As the posters suddenly sprang up in Kumbakonam, the VCK members staged an agitation demanding stringent action on the Indu Makkal Katchi for their affront on Ambedkar.
In a view that may not go well with Bharatiya Janata Party's ally Akali Dal, the Sangh says it sees a 'problem' if minorities assume a 'political' character.
'If the civil code has to be put on hold, what card can the BJP play if it finds the going tough in the run-up to the general election of 2024?' asks Amulya Ganguli.
'Nehru's inability to take religion seriously as a category led to serious errors of judgement in his dealings with the Muslim League, and later, also with the Hindu right.'
'Although Narendra Modi had no direct participation in the Ayodhya agitation, he would not have been in the dominant position he is now had it not been for the Ram Janambhoomi agitation.'
'The BJP, or the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, are celebrating their biggest ideological and philosophical victory in some time,' says Shekhar Gupta.
'It is only because of the Congress that we became a secular republic.' 'As we enter a period where another political force has became dominant, it will be interesting to see if this legacy of Nehru and the Congress is sustained or we are taken in a new direction,' says Aakar Patel.
The party plans elaborate year-long celebrations to commemorate his 125th birth anniversary next year. Kavita Chowdhury reports
Making it clear that there will be no change in the reservation policy for Dalits, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday asserted that nobody can snatch their right even as he accused his opponents of spreading "untruths" on the issue.
'I hope he will continue to be what he is. And doing so, he won't be much different from those whose example he is being given right now,' says Utkarsh Mishra.
Awful religious practices need to be abolished. But through social and political reformers, not by courts, argues Shekhar Gupta.
'It is a reassertion of their lost martial stride, of a history that is papered over by turning it into a memory largely of the upper castes.'
'Is Ansari flagging a genuine concern? Is a rectification called for?' 'And finally: Do minorities matter?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
Mohammad Sajjad profiles Professor Riazur Rahman Sherwani, 94, versatile mind, intrepid intellectual.
Right actions might help reduce this trust deficit. But what we have today is over- enthusiastic vigilante groups targeting minorities over beef or 'love jihad', against whom the government does little apart from meek condemnation, says Utkarsh Misgra.
'Who is the government to decide about my religion?' 'We are governed by the Constitution. The Constitution has given me the independence to follow my religion.'
MUST READ: The speech Nayantara Sahgal was not allowed to give.
'If you prove that a mandir was demolished and a mosque was constructed there, we will leave the place.'
To mark his 50th death anniversary, rediff.com has launched a special series to evaluate Jawaharlal Nehru's legacy.
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