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Superstition: a Rational Discourse
Superstition: A Rational Discourse Yadnyeshwar Nigale (Translated by Ms Suman Oak) Lokbhumi Prakashan Panaji (Goa) Credits Superstition: A Rational Discourse Author Yadnyeshwar Nigale (Translated by Ms Suman Oak) © Yadnyeshwar Nigale Articles may be reproduced freely acknowledging the source and a copy forwarded to Publisher. First Edition: June 2012 Layout & Production Milind Joshi, Anupam Creations, 2/14, Marwa, Anupam Park Kothrud, Pune 411029 Published & Printed by Ramesh Kolwalkar Lokbhumi Prakashan, Roshan Manzil, Near Cine National, Panaji (Goa) 403001 (Contact: 9763817239/(0832) 2251358) Cover Design Sham Bhalekar, Pune Rs : 150/- 2 Superstition: A Rational Discourse This book is respectfully dedicated to the memory of Comrade Narayan Desai (1920- 2007) a renowned thinker, philosopher & guide and wrote profusely and also was an activist in the progressive and rationalist movements Superstition: A Rational Discourse 3 The Author's Perception The Indian Society as a whole is beset with innumerable slovenly and unscientific concepts like-fatalism, fate or luck, the cycle of birth and death, Karmasiddhanta (present suffering or good fortune is the fruit of deeds in the previous births), astrology, destiny, miracles, concept of being auspicious or inauspicious, vows, observances and what not. To match with this innumerable orthodox senseless traditions and rituals are blindly followed by most of the Indians. In fact, the whole edifice of the Indian society and its culture is founded on these constructs. The psyche of the people does not allow them to examine any custom or tradition or happening and verify its utility, validity and legitimacy. For them, the age old customs, rituals and traditions, started by their wise forefathers are sacrosanct and beyond any criticism, leave alone any change. -
Exodus from Telangana Congress Likely Soon
Follow us on: RNI No. TELENG/2018/76469 @TheDailyPioneer facebook.com/dailypioneer Established 1864 Published From OPINION 6 MONEY 8 SPORTS 12 HYDERABAD DELHI LUCKNOW POLICING WIPRO SAYS SERVICES CONTRACT SOUTHERN STARS WIN BHOPAL RAIPUR CHANDIGARH THE MEDIA NOT RENEWED AFTER OCT 2019 TRI-SERIES FINAL BHUBANESWAR RANCHI DEHRADUN VIJAYAWADA *LATE CITY VOL. 2 ISSUE 124 HYDERABAD, THURSDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2020; PAGES 12 `3 *Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable NANI PLAYS AN EX-ARMY MAN IN V { Page 11 } www.dailypioneer.com NON-SUBSIDISED LPG RATE HIKED CASE AGAINST SHAHBAZ KHAN AIRPORT-LIKE USER CHARGE ON ‘5 TO 7 MILLION FROM AIRPORT TO BY RS 144.5-149 IN METROS FOR ALLEGEDLY MOLESTING GIRL NEWLY REDEVELOPED RAIL STATIONS STADIUM’: TRUMP ON INDIA VISIT on-subsidised LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) or cooking gas prices case has been filed against actor Shahbaz ailways will levy an airport-like fee on passengers who use its S President Donald Trump has said that he is looking forward to his Nwere increased from Wednesday. That marked a sixth straight raise AKhan for allegedly molesting a girl in Rredeveloped stations which will result in a hike in fares, a senior Ufirst visit to India later this month and indicated that the two in the prices of cooking gas. In Delhi and Mumbai, the hike was to the Mumbai, police said on Thursday. An FIR has official said on Wednesday. User Development Fee countries may sign a trade deal. At the invitation of Prime Minister tune of Rs 144.5 and Rs 145 per cylinder respectively, according to been registered at Oshiwara Police Station (UDF) is a part of the taxes that are paid by an air Narendra Modi, Donald Trump is slated to travel to India Indian Oil Corporation, which supplies under Indian Penal Code Section 354 (assault passenger. -
Majoritarian Radicalisation and Social Media in India
AUGUST 2018 Digital Hatred, Real Violence: Majoritarian Radicalisation and Social Media in India MAYA MIRCHANDANI Digital Hatred, Real Violence: Majoritarian Radicalisation and Social Media in India MAYA MIRCHANDANI ABOUT THE AUTHOR Maya Mirchandani is a Senior Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation and teaches Media Studies at Ashoka University. For nearly three decades, she was a practicing journalist with NDTV, reporting on Indian foreign policy, conflict, and national politics. Maya has recently been involved in research on 'Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism' (P/CVE) that looks for ways to build counter narratives to prevent radicalisation and extremist violence through dialogue and community intervention. The analysis of hate speech and the impact of counter-speech messaging on social media is also a core focus of her research. Maya has won the prestigious Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism twice, the Red Ink Award for reporting on human rights, as well as the Exchange for Media Broadcast Journalism Award for best international affairs reporting. ISBN : 978-93-88262-27-9 © 2018 Observer Research Foundation. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission in writing from ORF. Digital Hatred, Real Violence: Majoritarian Radicalisation and Social Media in India ABSTRACT Social media's impact on mainstream media, and the way people communicate with one another and disseminate information, has become a subject of serious study for journalists, academics and policymakers alike. While it has been a significant equaliser as a vehicle by which the fundamental right to freedom of expression is guaranteed everyone irrespective of class, creed or geography, these very same platforms are also becoming spaces where—in the garb of free speech—misinformation and hate are able to flourish. -
PEN International Impact and Learning Report 2015 to 2019
PEN INTERNATIONAL IMPACT AND LEARNING REPORT 2015 - 2019 On the Frontline Defending Freedom of Expression and Promoting Literature Cover image: During PEN International Congress in Pune, India in 2018, delegates joined local students on a public wari travelling three kilometres over three hours in celebration of global languages. PEN is grateful to its many Overview 1 individual supporters and volunteers who make its 2015 to 2019 work possible including Swedish International 13 Development Cooperation Supporting Agency (Sida), PEN Writers at Risk Publishers, Writers and Readers Circles, International Cities of Refuge Network Challenging 29 (ICORN), the Norwegian Structural Threats Ministry of Foreign Affairs, United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), Clifford Strengthening 40 Chance, Fritt Ord and Evan Civil Society Cornish Foundation 55 PEN International Looking forward: Unit A - Koops Mill Mews 162-164 Abbey Street London SE1 2AN PEN International United Kingdom PEN International promotes literature and freedom of 2020 to 2023 expression and is governedby the PEN Charter and the principles it embodies: unhampered transmission of thought within each nation and between all nations. Founded in 1921, PEN International connects an international community of writers from its Secretariat in London. It is a forum where writers meet freely to discuss their work; it is also a voice speaking out for writers silenced in their own countries. Through Centres in over 100 countries, PEN operates on five continents. PEN International is a non-political organisation which holds Special Consultative Status at the UN and Associate Status at UNESCO. International PEN is a registered charity in England and Wales with registration number 1117088. -
NCH Annual Report 2020
Network of Concerned Historians NCH Annual Report 2020 http://www.concernedhistorians.org INTRODUCTION This twenty-sixth Annual Report of the Network of Concerned Historians (NCH) contains news about the domain where history and human rights intersect, in particular about the censorship of history and the persecution of historians, archivists, and archaeologists around the globe, as reported by various human rights organizations and other sources. It mainly covers events and developments of 2019 and 2020. Disclaimer. The fact that the NCH presents this news does not imply that it shares the views and beliefs of the historians and others mentioned in it. Download this report at: http://www.concernedhistorians.org/ar/20.pdf Cite this report as: Network of Concerned Historians, Annual Report 2020 (http://www.concernedhistorians.org/ar/20.pdf). For the complete set of NCH Annual Reports, see: http://www.concernedhistorians.org/content/ar.html Or click: 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 All Annual Reports (1995–2020) were compiled by Antoon De Baets. This year’s report was co-edited by Ruben Zeeman. Please send any comments to [email protected] Network of Concerned Historians, Annual Report 2020 (2020) 2 ____________________________________________________________ AFGHANISTAN Previous Annual Report entries: 2000–2016, 2018. See Iran, United States. ALBANIA Previous Annual Report entries: 1996, 2012, 2015−2019. In mid-July 2019, ten members of parliament from the ruling Socialist Party (PS/PPSh) wanted to prevent the Institute for the Study of the Crimes of Communism (ISKK), created in 2010 to probe Communist-era crimes in Albania, from studying incidents that happened during World War II. -
The Dilemmas and Challenges Faced by the Rationalist Indian
ISSN (Online) - 2349-8846 The Dilemmas and Challenges faced by the Rationalist Indian T V VENKATESWARAN Vol. 48, Issue No. 36, 07 Sep, 2013 The murder of the anti-superstition crusader Narendra Dabholkar points to the society’s intolerance of criticism against religious beliefs and practices. The rampant misuse of Section 295A of the Indian penal code, which penalises “deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings”, needs to be curbed. Unless space is provided for constructive and rational criticism, social reforms to stamp out regressive and evil practices cannot be undertaken. The murder of renowned rationalist Narendra Dabholkar on the streets of Pune on 20 August, 2013, was a wake-up call for the nation. While out on his morning walk, two unidentified assailants on a motorcycle fired at him from close range near the Omkareshwar bridge. As the news of his gruesome murder spread, spontaneous demonstrations took place across Maharashtra. In his home town Satara, thousands came out to pay tribute to this leading light of the anti-superstition movement who had taken on many a self-appointed godmen. The all-party bandh called the next day was near complete with willing participants closing their businesses and shops. The chilling effect of the premeditated murder reverberated throughout the state. Witnessing the public outrage, the state cabinet hastily promulgated an anti-superstition ordinance based on the “Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman Evil Practices and Black Magic Bill”. Dhabolkar had been relentlessly campaigning for the adoption of this bill, which has been languishing in the assembly for many years. -
E Sangh Parivar
Shadow Armies Fringe Organizations and Foot Soldiers of Hindutva Dhirendra K. Jha JUGGERNAUT BOOKS KS House, 118 Shahpur Jat, New Delhi 110049, India First published in hardback by Juggernaut Books 2017 Published in paperback 2019 Copyright © Dhirendra K. Jha 2017 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in a retrieval system in any form or by any means without the written permission of the publisher. e views and opinions expressed in this book are the author’s own. e facts contained herein were reported to be true as on the date of publication by the author to the publishers of the book, and the publishers are not in any way liable for their accuracy or veracity. ISBN 9789353450199 Typeset in Adobe Caslon Pro by R. Ajith Kumar, New Delhi Printed at Manipal Technologies Ltd, India Contents Introduction 1. Sanatan Sanstha 2. Hindu Yuva Vahini 3. Bajrang Dal 4. Sri Ram Sene 5. Hindu Aikya Vedi 6. Abhinav Bharat 7. Bhonsala Military School 8. Rashtriya Sikh Sangat Notes Acknowledgements A Note on the Author Introduction India has seen astonishing growth in the politics of Hindutva over the last three decades. Several strands of this brand of politics – not just the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but also those working for it in the shadows – have shot into prominence. ey are all fuelled by a single motive: to ensure that one particular community, the Hindus, has the exclusive right to define our national identity. e Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a pan-Indian organization comprising chauvinistic Hindu men, is the vanguard of this politics. -
Democracy and Maoism
18 Democracy and Maoism prathama banerjee u his essay is not so much about Maoism as a distinct political phenomenon as it is about rethinking the concept of democracy from perspective of Indian Maoism. One usually Tthinks of democracy in terms of a hierarchy of three political forms—Parliament, Party and Movement. These three political forms are in turn seen to embody three distinct political principles, i.e. representation, vanguardism and participation. We label different political entities differently depending on whether they are defined predominantly by mass mobilization or electoral strategy or vanguardist action. One understands mass movement to be as close to direct democracy as possible, the supreme form of people’s power as it were; representational activities to be a somewhat diluted but practicable democratic form for large populations; and vanguardist action to be necessarily ideology-driven, and for that reason almost always anti-democratic and didactic, sometimes even violent and coercive in its relationship with the masses. Maoism, once placed in this framework, appears to be on the side of ideology and vanguardism, tilting towards the anti-democratic end of the political spectrum. Most discussions around Maoism and democracy, therefore, tend to become discussions around violence. Detractors see Maoists as violent by ideological choice. Sympathizers see Maoists as being compelled to espouse violence because they are pushed to the corner by the pernicious alliance of the State and capitalist corporations. In either case, Maoism’s relationship with democracy comes to be democracy and maoism 375 thematized in the following terms: should Maoism be seen as part of democratic India or as outside of it as a permanent war-zone where the everyday civic and democratic life of the nation remains suspended. -
Maoist Information Bulletin - 38
Maoist Information Bulletin - 38 January - June 2019 Editorial ..... 2 Homage to Martyrs ..... 4 CC Message on the 14th Party Formation Day ..... 6 CMC Message on the 18th Anniversary of the PLGA ..... 15 News from the Battlefield ..... 22 Voices against War on People ..... 25 People’s Struggles ..... 34 News from Behind the Bars ..... 42 News from the Counter-revolutionary Camp ..... 49 Pages from International Communist Movement ..... 55 Statements of CPI(Maoist) ..... 59 Central Committee Communist Party of India (Maoist) Editorial Unite to beat back and defeat the fresh wave of Brahmanical Hindu-fascist offensive The intensity of the Brahmanical Hindu- middle bourgeoisie – who are being squeezed fascist offensive against the people and their more and more with every passing day through democratic movements has grown in the anti-people legislations and government second half of 2018. Narendra Modi-led NDA decisions in the interest of imperialists, government at the centre and the BJP-ruled comprador bureaucratic capitalists and feudal state governments are unleashing a fresh wave forces. of state and saffron terror throughout the A glimpse of this fascist onslaught on the length and breadth of the country. This is an masses in the last six months could be seen in all-round attack of Hindutva-fascism the form of attempted dilution of the SC/ST encompassing the political, economic, social (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the persecution and cultural spheres with Modi-Shah-Bhagwat of Adivasis involved in Patthalgarhi ruling clique as its -
Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses
Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses www.rsis.edu.sg ISSN 2382-6444 | Volume 11, Issue 1 | January 2019 A JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR POLITICAL VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM RESEARCH (ICPVTR) Annual Threat Assessment Global Threat Forecast Southeast Asia Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Singapore South Asia Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka Central Asia Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan Uyghur Violence and Jihadism in China and Beyond Evolving Jihadist Landscape in the Middle East Islamic State’s Online Social Movement Lifecycle: From Emergence to Repression in Southeast Asia Assessment of Islamic State’s Ideological Threat Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses Volume 9, Issue 4 | April 2017 1 Building a Global Network for Security ADVISORY BOARD Dr. Jolene Jerard Dr. Stephen Sloan Research Fellow, Deputy Head of Professor Emeritus, International Centre for Political The Universty of Oklahoma Violence and Terrorism Research, Lawrence J. Chastang, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Distinguished Professor, Terrorism Studies, The University of Central Florida Dr. Rohan Gunaratna Professor of Security Studies Dr. Fernando Reinares S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Director, Program on Global Terrorism, Elcano Royal Institute Professor of Security Dr. Kumar Ramakrishna Studies, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Associate Professor Madrid, Spain Head of Policy Studies & Coordinator of National Security Studies Programme, Dr. John Harrison S. Rajaratnam -
E Sanatanbandi Magnilavirodha E
II Jayatu Jayatu Hindurashtram II Date : .10.2015 To, Shri. Rajnath Singh Honourable Home Minister of Bharat North Block, Central Secretariat New Delhi – 110001 Subject - Regarding instructing the Police agencies investigating the case of the killing of Comrade Govind Pansare to carry out their investigation without falling prey to any pressure, and taking firm role against the imposition of likely ban on the patriotic organisation Sanatan Sanstha Respected Sir, The Police arrested a seeker of Sanatan Sanstha Mr. Sameer Gaikwad at Kolhapur as a suspect in the case of the killing of Comrade Govind Pansare. On that occasion, the Police have clarified during the press conference “Sanatan's seeker may not be involved in the killing'. The Police are still investigating the case. However, those indulging in media trial, progressive elements and political parties are clamouring for imposing a ban on Sanatan Sanstha much before the Police investigation and delivering judgement in the Court of law. This goes to show their lack of confidence on the judiciary and political immaturity. If the decision to impose a ban was taken without taking into consideration the mission of Sanatan Sanstha, objectives for its establishment and its activities, it would prove to be great injustice meted out to Sanatan Sanstha, an organisation devoted to the social service. Therefore, to demand that the Police agencies should be instructed to investigate the case of the killing of Comrade Govind Pansare without falling prey to any pressure, and the Government should take firm role against the imposition of likely ban on the patriotic organisation Sanatan Sanstha, the National Hindu Movement held agitation on …...................... -
Article Reference
Article Indian Populism GUICHARD, Sylvie Reference GUICHARD, Sylvie. Indian Populism. Books and Ideas, 2017, no. 10 April Available at: http://archive-ouverte.unige.ch/unige:97614 Disclaimer: layout of this document may differ from the published version. 1 / 1 Indian Populism By Sylvie Guichard Since Narenda Modi, the strongman of Hindu nationalism, was elected prime minister, discrimination against minorities has increased in India and freedom of expression no longer seems guaranteed. Can Indian democracy resist the rise of an authoritarian and xenophobic right? While the political parties that express Hindu nationalist ideology – the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) from 1951 to 1977 and the Bharatiya Janata Party (Indian People’s Party – BJP) since 1980 – have tended to waver between phases of extremism and moderation1, the election of Narendra Modi as prime minister in 2014 has undoubtedly caused the BJP to shift into a new radical phase. What does this mean? How is this extremism manifesting itself in the political debate and, more broadly, in the public sphere? The French philosopher Pierre-André Taguieff proposes defining extremism by its “authoritarianism in the sphere of ideology (doctrine and programme) and the use of violence in the sphere of action. [...] Around this hard core (which the extreme right shares with the non-libertarian extreme left), one intially encounters dogmatic intransigence and the dream of a mass revolutionary cleansing, followed by the desire to establish a ‘new order’” 2. These elements appear consistently, albeit sometimes in slightly different terms, in the discourse and actions of the Hindu nationalist movement as a whole, also known as the Sangh Parivar.