Reviving their demand for five per cent reservation in jobs, Gujjars in Rajasthan on Thursday launched an agitation, blocking railway tracks, even as the state government expressed readiness to have talks with them.
Activists Laxman Hake and Navnath Waghmare, who have been sitting on a hunger strike at Wadigodri village in Jalna district since June 13, did not allow doctors to check their health or administer intravenous fluids.
The government has to specify what it intends to do with caste census data. It will be closely tracked if the government would simultaneously move towards removing the present 50% bar on reservations using means which are permitted in law. If this is not done, the entire exercise will become meaningless and could boomerang on the BJP, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The Rajya Sabha, India's upper house of parliament, was adjourned on Monday without transacting any business due to a heated exchange between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Congress over the issue of reservations to Muslims in public contracts in Karnataka. The BJP accused Congress of seeking to amend the Constitution to provide reservations based on religion, while Congress asserted its commitment to protecting the Constitution. The debate centered around a statement by a senior Congress leader, who was reportedly advocating for changing the Constitution to provide reservations for Muslims.
One person was injured on Friday during the Rath Yatra procession in Ahmedabad, when a male elephant, agitated by excessive noise, broke a barricade and rushed into a narrow lane, officials said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said the all-party meeting held earlier in the day decided that reservation should be given to the Maratha community without tampering with the existing quotas of other communities in the state.
'Maharashtrians are facing a dual battle -- numerical battle with North Indians and financial battle with Gujaratis and Marwaris.' 'This has created anxiety about survival and ownership over Mumbai and Maharashtra.'
The solution to Manipur's problems lies in the government giving concessions to Meitis in jobs and education and to accept autonomy for the tribal dominated areas inhibited by the Kukis, suggests Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Opposition to the Karnataka government's proposed implementation of a caste census has intensified with dominant communities raising concerns about the survey's findings. The report, which has not been publicly released, is said to contradict traditional perceptions regarding the numerical strength of various castes, particularly Veerashaiva-Lingayats and Vokkaligas. These communities, along with political parties, including sections of the ruling Congress, have criticized the survey as "unscientific" and demanded a fresh assessment. The Vokkaligara Sangha and the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha have expressed strong opposition, alleging that the report misrepresents their populations and demanding a fresh survey. Meanwhile, Dalit and OBC groups have defended the survey and its recommendations, including an increase in reservation for OBCs to 51%. The controversy has fueled political tensions in Karnataka, with opposition parties accusing the Congress government of using the caste census for political gain.
Government employees in Bangladesh locked down the main gate of the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka, protesting a new service law that allows for easier dismissal of officials for misconduct. The protest, which lasted for about half an hour, disrupted government operations. The employees also threatened to continue their protests until the ordinance was scrapped. Meanwhile, the protest by employees of the Dhaka South City Corporation, demanding the installation of BNP leader Ishraque Hossain as its mayor, has brought administrative services to a halt. These protests, coupled with concerns raised by the business community and the military, highlight a growing sense of unease in Bangladesh over the policies of the interim government.
Only in the event of the RSS managing to force Modi into accepting a consensual candidate, will the party not continue to 'being' the 'next Congress', observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Violence erupted in central Nagpur on Monday with stones hurled at police amid rumours that the holy book of a community was burnt during an agitation by a right-wing body for the removal of Aurangzeb's tomb, officials said.
'Over the last 65 years the state has seen majority of Maratha chief ministers and cabinet ministers, even Union cabinet ministers.' 'The Marathas have always wielded disproportionately significant political, commercial and social influence in the state and yet they are asking for reservations today.'
Maratha activist Manoj Jarange ended his five-day indefinite fast after government representatives assured him that several of his demands, including the reactivation of the Shinde Committee, would be fulfilled. Jarange, who has been demanding reservation for the Maratha community in government jobs and education, warned that members of the community would march to Mumbai if the demands were not met. The government has assured that all cases against Maratha protesters would be withdrawn, while separate sections would be set up for issuing "Kunbi " certificates for the community members. The Economically Backward Section provisions for Marathas would also be implemented, while compensation would be released for those community members who lost their lives during the quota agitation.
Like with all great crashes, some had noticed the cracks. "... cash balances (of banks) seem, from the available indications, to be hopelessly inadequate; and it is hard to doubt that in the next bad times they will go down like ninepins. If such a catastrophe occurs, the damage inflicted on India will be far greater than the direct loss falling on the depositors," said John Maynard Keynes in his May 1913 work "Indian Currency and Finance", written before his path-breaking work in macroeconomics laid the foundation of dealing with global crises.
Following calls for the removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's grave, authorities in Maharashtra, India, have increased security at the site. Visitors are now required to show identification before entering. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has staged protests and submitted memorandums demanding the grave's removal, citing Aurangzeb's history of conflict with the Marathas and his persecution of other religious groups. The caretaker of the grave has maintained that the situation is peaceful and that visitor numbers have declined since the controversy arose.
Maratha activist Manoj Jarange on Tuesday launched a fresh indefinite fast, his sixth in a span of over a year, to press for the demand for reservation to his community under the OBC category.
Unprecedented violence... Mobs determined to teach Delhi a lesson... An incompetent chief minister... Losses of over Rs 200 billion. Haryana's Jat agitation has a somber message for the nation.
'When the chief minister saw how Manoj Jarange Patil had successfully held the state government hostage to his whims, Eknath Shinde knew he had a very clear chance of enamouring himself to these Maratha agitators by accepting Patil's demands.'
Speaking at an event in Nagpur, he also said the 'Akhand Bharat' or undivided India will become a reality before today's youngsters become old, as those who separated from India in 1947 are now feeling that they made a mistake.
Jarange on Tuesday launched a fresh indefinite fast, sixth in a span of over a year, to press the demand of reservations for the Marathas under the Other Backward Classes category.
When he started his indefinite hunger strike in support of Maratha quota in a village in adjoining Jalna district on August 29, it largely went unnoticed, but everything changed on September 1 when violence broke out when local authorities tried to move him to hospital.
A day before her scheduled appearance before the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy case, Bharat Rashtra Samiti leader K Kavitha led a hunger strike here on Friday seeking the passage of the long-pending Women's Reservation Bill in this Budget session of Parliament.
Jarange has repeatedly targeted the BJP warning that the community would defeat its candidates in the assembly polls, which will be held on November 20.
If the DMK is able to sustain the momentum until the assembly polls, the AIADMK especially and the PMK and possibly the infant TVK too would find it hard to sign up with the BJP, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
He also sought framing of a law to identify Kunbis as Marathas, and warned of fielding candidates from all 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra in the upcoming state polls if his demands were not approved.
Chavan said the Mahayuti and BJP's policy was Viksit Bharat and Viksit Maharashtra, as spelt out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The movement for reservations for Patels of Gujarat is full of contradictions and paradoxes, says Urvish Kothari.
The call for the agitation was given by the Gurjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti. According to police, youths in large numbers blocked a rail track in Bharatpur's Bayana.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has reviewed the security situation in Manipur for the second consecutive day, directing officials to focus on restoring peace and order in the state. The situation has been volatile following protests and violence after the recovery of bodies of women and children. Shah also ordered the deployment of 5,000 paramilitary troops to assist the state government in handling the situation.
A third-year B-Tech student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Bhubaneswar, India, died by suicide in her hostel. Police are investigating a possible case of blackmail by a male student, who is currently in custody. The incident sparked protests from Nepali students on campus, leading to heightened security measures and the temporary relocation of some students.
OBC activist Laxman Hake was allegedly manhandled and verbally abused by members of the Maratha community in Pune, and a video of the incident surfaced on social media, the police said on Tuesday.
'The Dravidian movement was started for the Hindus who were rejected by the upper castes.'
Violent protests erupted in Parbhani, Maharashtra, India, for the second day over the vandalising of a replica of the Indian Constitution. Prohibitory orders were imposed in the city, banning gatherings of five or more people in public places. A mob indulged in arson and vandalised the district collector's office. Police arrested a man in connection with the incident, but protests continued. Protesters demanded a thorough investigation and blamed the government's lax approach.
A major Gurjar organisation on Thursday called off its agitation over reservation after reaching a consensus with the Rajasthan government, a community leader said.
Gaikwad, an MLA from Buldhana assembly seat in Vidarbha region, is no stranger to controversies.
Zirwal and the others were protesting against the inclusion of the Dhangar community in the quota for tribals.
The poll aspirants who feel threatened are seeking to garner sympathy from their voters by meeting influential leaders like Jarange in the Marathwada region
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat has demanded that the party be given the crucial home department in the new Maharashtra government, indicating fissures among the Mahayuti allies. He also alleged attempts to sideline caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who is reportedly upset with the BJP's decision to claim the chief minister's post.
The minister urged the doctors to rejoin work by respecting the Supreme Court's direction to them, but refrained from giving a direct reply on whether the state government would take any punitive action for violating the apex court's order.
