With the 2022 FIFA World Cup taking place currently at Qatar, the rules and restrictions imposed on the players and spectators have raised few questions. The noisy, secular, “illiberal” liberal gangs of India, in this regard, have let down many (as usual) at a time when they were expected to step up and be the voice of the oppressed.
Firstly, many of the labourers involved in the construction of the stadiums were from Asian Countries like India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan etc; as they were cheap labour. More than 6500 of these migrant workers died during the construction of the stadiums. The liberals who are often traumatized by the human rights violations in India have nothing to say regarding this.
Restrictions very similar in nature to those controverises that India has witnessed such as Beef ban, prohibition of Hijab in classrooms, homosexuality etc have been imposed.
1) Pork products aren’t permitted inside the stadiums premises and alcohol consumption by general spectators too is restricted being available only to spectators in the stadiums’ high-end luxury suites.
2) Homosexuality is criminalized in Qatar and England’s Captain Harry Kane wasn’t allowed to wear the One Love armband during their match against Iran.
3) Irrespective of the scorching heat, fans are to limit the amount of skin they show and even otherwise Qatar has dress code regulations for both men and women in public places.
Certain groups often preaching secularism, liberalism and “progressiveness” in India have their mouths tightly zipped this time. This attitude and hypocrisy of theirs cannot be written off as mere anti-Modi/BJP hate.
The illogical views, double standards and ranting of many often translates into an anti-Indian thought process/agenda in the garb of fancy subjective terminologies like secularism, liberalism etc; An example for this would be the Farmers’ protests.
The protests which went on for almost a year with many people, both inside and outside India, endorsing the same. However later the Supreme Court appointed panel stated that 86% of the farmers were in favour of the farm laws.
This is just one of the many incidents which has caused chaos and huge economic losses to the country. Incidents like these have to be nipped at the bud keeping in mind the country’s prosperity.
The debate on “one nation, one code” is going on in the country amid discussions on many other issues. The narratives seen in newspaper columns, heard in drawing rooms, and bolstered by specific statements by political and religious leaders are indicators towards moves to put in place a uniform civil code. The subject is not new for Indian politics – it has been at the center and sidelines of political and legislative debates for more than a century and a half. It has long featured on the agenda of the BJP, now the ruling party, and found mention in its manifesto for last general election.
Recently the Gujarat government announced that it has decided to form a committee to implement the uniform civil code in the state. In May this year, Uttarakhand government appointed a Committee of Experts under chairpersonship of retired SC judge Ranjana P. Desai to draft and implement UCC. Some other state governments are also taking initiatives in this direction.
Assam and Himachal Pradesh, both ruled by the BJP, also have supported the idea of a UCC. Though several state governments and political leaders have backed the UCC saying that it will bring equality, some organizations such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board and All India United Democratic Front have termed it unconstitutional and an anti-minorities move. As a lawyer, I believe that the Muslim community should be at the forefront of supporting uniform civil code. The objective of one code is that it will end discrimination in religions.
While penal codes apply equally to everyone in the country, citizens belonging to different religions and denominations follow different personal laws in matters relating to marriage, divorce, maintenance, custody and guardianship of children, inheritance and succession, and adoption, which are not even codified at most places. It is certain that the UCC is going to have the most positive impact on the problems and issues related to women’s rights.
Although efforts have been made in past to make changes in the personal laws of all communities in the interest of women, with handful successes over time, but a lot still remains to be accomplished. In fact, personal laws are deep-rooted in the societies they are practiced, fundamentally based on old customs, beliefs, and patriarchal religious interpretations, and are not easy to abolish as they usually appear.
On the ground much of the situation is unclear about UCC – Muslims feel that it is interference in their religious affairs, whereas it talks about gender parity and equal rights for all. The code has nothing to do with any one religion, it speaks of uniformity. At a time when the country is highly polarized along religious lines, any reform is propelled to be envisaged an onslaught on Islam by a mass of Muslims. Detractors argue that it will rob the nation of its religious multiplicity and would be violative of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution. In fact, they deem that a state action to bring in the UCC is contrary to the quintessence of democracy.
Looking at the status of women in the society, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar had said that the progress of a community is measured by the degree of progress which women have achieved. If we want the upliftment of any society, then we have to work towards the empowerment of the women of that society. For this, there is a need for a robust legal system, which can protect women’s interests and provide them equal rights and justice. No doubt that the Muslim community is most in need of a uniform civil code. Keep in mind that in a community where women do not get equal rights legally, there can be no thought of social justice. If the Muslim community wants to give up its orthodox thinking and make a place in the mainstream and aspires to better the future of its children, then it must first give equal status to its women. A uniform civil code can be a great start.
There are numerous provisions under Muslim personal law that victimize women and do not give them the rights women of other religions enjoy.
Imagine polygamy, a misogynistic and patriarchal practice, under the disguise of religious practice in a secular country in the twenty-first century. It is abhorrent – morally, socially, and legally, and must be banned but the fact that it’s legitimized makes it problematic. Albeit triple-talaq is banned (in the context of the talaq-e-biddat), talaq-e-hasan is still valid. In other religions, marriage can be dissolved only through court of law.
Due to lack of accountability of the judiciary for the prevalent divorces among Muslims, women always have to live in an atmosphere of fear. In cases where women get divorced through ‘khula’ (the situation in which the wife initiates divorce proceedings) remain at a loss. Women were not entitled to maintenance after divorce under The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, although the court has given this right under sections 125–128 of the CrPC, 1973. Vile practices such as Nikah halala have not ended in the community yet.
Child marriage has been a part of Muslim personal law and the courts and administrations are handicapped in these cases. The age of majority is not fixed; girls are allowed to get married as long as they have attained puberty. Although right to freedom of religion or belief is a fundamental human right, it doesn’t permit violation of women’s rights and cannot be invoked to justify discrimination.
Legislatures require to ensure that violations of women’s rights resulting from child marriage are not legitimized through discriminatory personal laws. Governments have an immediate legal obligation to eliminate discriminatory provisions in personal laws and to harmonize all laws on child marriage with international human rights standards.
These issues are more related to human rights than religion and indicate that women are long-standing victims of prejudice in the community. Muslim women, however, face perhaps the greatest challenges due to multiple layers of discrimination rooted in religion, gender equality, and rule of law, yet even after 75 years of independence.
The matters related to inheritance and succession are also complex in Muslim personal law – there is a lot of discrimination between sons and daughters in ancestral property. The share of a female heir on property is half of that of the male heirs. There is no provision for the protection of rights of daughters after marriage in the ancestral property and the rights of the wife in the property acquired after marriage are undefined. Although, this law has been changed in some states in recent times.
These issues are more related to human rights than religion and indicate that women are long-standing victims of prejudice in the community. Muslim women, however, face perhaps the greatest challenges due to multiple layers of discrimination rooted in religion, gender equality, and rule of law, yet even after 75 years of independence.
Our Constitution makers had envisioned uniform civil code through Article 44, so that every citizen would have equal rights and the unity and integrity of the country would be strengthened, but it could not be achieved until this day due to pseudo-politics. If a uniform civil code can be enforced in Goa, then why it can’t be in the rest of the country?
By implementing a uniform civil code for all the citizens hundreds of religious- and customary-based laws in practice will be revoked, which is very essential for a progressive nation. At present, different laws applicable for different religions, regions, and communities and most of them are patriarchal, regressive, and against the interest of women in society.
A common law for dissolution of marriage through court would be applicable to all. Offspring, both male and female, will have equal rights in ancestral property, and discrimination based on religion, caste, region, and gender will end. In case of divorce, both the husband and wife will have equal rights in the property acquired post-marriage. There can be proper legal arrangement for a reasonable and fair provision and maintenance of woman who has not re-married and is not able to maintain herself after divorce.
In respect of bequests, donations, distribution, adoption, etc., the same law would apply to all Indians, regardless of their religion. This would enable a comprehensive and unified law at the national level and would be equally applicable to all citizens. The separatist mentality arising out of having separate laws on the basis of caste, religion, and region will culminate and societies will be able to move fast towards building a united nation. Having different laws leads to unnecessary litigation and engages valuable resources, infrastructures, and government machineries, which can be redirected to focus on other priority issues of the country.
The Constitution lists the UCC among the Directive Principles of State Policy, which makes it a desirable objective, but it is not justiciable — that is, they are not subject to trial in a court of law. According to Article 37, “The provisions contained in this Part shall not be enforceable by any court, but the principles therein laid down are nevertheless fundamental in the governance of the country and it shall be the duty of the State to apply these principles in making laws.”
Article 44 is one of the DPSP, described in Part IV of the Constitution. Article 44 says, “The state shall endeavor to secure a uniform civil code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.” Just as the observance of the Constitution is the fundamental duty of all citizens, it is the moral duty of the government also to implement the Constitution one hundred percent.
In a secular country, there is no place for separate law on religious grounds, but we still have Hindu Marriage Act 1955, The Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872, Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act, 1936, and Special Marriage Act,1954 in force. There is a bazaar of family laws based on faiths showcased in our so-called secular country. The situation is worst in other areas of family matters such as child custody/support, paternity, succession and inheritance, and adoption/foster care. There can be no two opinions that a secular nation needs to have secular laws which are gender just. Until the time a uniform civil code is not implemented, it does not seem appropriate to call India secular.
Different laws based on religion, region, caste, and gender existing in India are like smoldering smoke in the extinguished fire of partition, which can explode and break the unity of the country at any time. It is necessary not only to maintain secularism, but also to keep the integrity of the country intact. The day a draft of the uniform civil code will be prepared and the public will know its benefits, no one will oppose it. This will help end fundamentalism, communalism, regionalism, and linguism.
Given that Hindu Code Bill has been amended almost to its full and women and men already have almost equal rights under this code, Hindu women may not get much benefit from uniform civil code. However, Muslim women will get the maximum benefit from it, considering gender-based inequality in practice in their community.
The court cannot ask the government to enact, amend, or repeal a law, but it can express its position and is doing the same at time and again. If the BJP-led government really wants to move towards a uniform civil code, then it will have to first win the trust of everyone and put forward a draft which can be discussed from home to Parliament.
In India, the main modes of transportation for moving people and goods into, around, and across the nation are the roads, railroads, airports, and waterways. In actuality, transportation is a crucial tool for connecting people and services in remote areas. Since a strong transportation infrastructure system symbolizes a vital part of the country’s rapid expansion, the focus of this piece is to shed some light on India’s transportation connectivity.
Strong transportation connections enable the quick and simple transfer of raw materials, machinery, completed items, etc., which has a substantial positive impact on manufacturing and other businesses. A strong transportation system can also expand the market for goods. It also provides access to manufacturing resources and distant locations. Transporting people and products is less expensive with wise transportation expenditures. In general, the output of goods and services per dollar of private and governmental investment can be calculated as an indicator of economic productivity.
Road Highways: Over the last two decades, India’s road infrastructure has grown significantly. With a total length of 6.4 million kilometres, India has the second-largest road network in the world (in terms of kilometres). In India, there are 599 national highways. India’s road network carries 80% of all passengers and accounts for 65% of all freight. According to reports, during India’s fiscal year 2019, road transportation moved over 2.7 trillion metric tonnes of freight per kilometre, while the country’s road transportation carried about 22.6 trillion passengers per kilometre.
Railways: As of the end of March 2022, India’s national railway network had a total length of 68,103 kilometres (42,317 miles), ranking it as the fourth largest in the world. Routes with two or more tracks are 36.83 per cent of all routes. Under one management, it is the second-biggest rail network in the world and the largest in Asia. Sikkim is the only state in India without a railroad station due to its challenging hilly topography.
In India, there are 7,325 stations served by the 13,169 passenger trains that run daily on both long-distance and local routes, according to the Indian Railway Year Book 2020–21.
Airways: India’s states are all connected by air. It has 137 operational airports, and there are seven domestic airlines in operation. The airline runs a non-stop service between Delhi and Port Blair, India’s longest domestic trip at 2,482 kilometres. In India, air connectivity has increased during the past ten years. During the financial year of 2021, all scheduled airlines in India carried a total cargo volume of nearly 470 thousand metric tonnes in the domestic sector.
In the fiscal year 2022, over 188 million people passed through Indian airports, with over 22 million of them being foreign visitors.
Waterways-Inland: According to the National Waterways Act of 2016, there are 111 officially notified inland national waterways (NWs) in India have been designated for inland water transportation. About 20,275.5 km are covered by the National Water Network (NWN). In 2020–21, 92,055,965 metric tonnes of cargo were transported on waterways, and inland water vessels carried roughly 3 million people.
Waterways-Maritime: According to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, marine transit accounts for around 95% of India’s trade by volume and 68% by value. In 2020, all domestic ports will have handled a combined total of 709.6 million passengers. By 2021, India will have 218 ports, with 13 large ports and 205 minor ports.
Improving transportation connectivity in rural India: In the past, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has estimated that USD 600 billion will be needed as a significant investment between 2011 and 31 to strengthen the country’s transportation network, with roughly 55% of that amount going toward urban highways and mass transit systems. For rural Indian populations, the transportation system is still a problem.
Local governments need to improve rural transportation services more than ever because they have challenges with funding, service frequency, wider travel zones, and access to services when compared to urban public transportation. Flexibility is crucial when it comes to improving transportation connectivity in rural areas and giving more people a simple, effective method to use public transit. In this sense, a demand-responsive transportation system offers a means of extending the geographic reach of conventional public transit service.
According to Himanshi Kapoor and Amit Bhatt, there are five possible ways to increase transportation connectivity in rural India, including the introduction of a multi-modal integration system (for example, Delhi has such a system), the use of technology, creative financing strategies, institutional improvement by removing fragmented governance, and user experience feedback.
Conclusion:
To reach the targets of a $5 trillion economy, swift economic growth, and luring foreign direct investment, this infrastructure needs to be created quickly. It is a known fact that during the last eight years of Narendra Modi’s rule, India has witnessed a marked increase in the scope, speed, and quality of transport connection construction. This is because the Modi era of postponing, dithering, and unnecessarily objecting to development projects is now over.
The availability of transportation options and connections has a big impact on people’s lives and helps the local economy by creating certain jobs. However, there is still more to be done in this regard. Given the vast amount of financial resources required to support its ambitious infrastructure plan, the Modi government should consider the viability of establishing a financial institution to handle transportation infrastructure funding requirements. A programme for investing in rural connections should also be launched because it would be closely linked to reducing poverty in rural India.
Prof. Dr. Prem Lal Joshi (Former NRI Professor of Accounting)
(Prof. G. Marathandan provided feedback on this article, which the author gratefully acknowledges)
The passing away of Queen Elizabeth II brought Royals or Monarchies under popular media attention which allows us to revisit their significance after ditching them for democracy! Did monarchy really die? Or did we trade it for something equally bad? Also, were all monarchs really bad and played no other role beyond mere politics?
The omnipresent Democracy is a relatively recent phenomenon, barely 200 years old. Democracy was a new political system forged as a result of the changing power dynamics post the Industrial Revolution. France and USA led this change as they set up the first modern democracies in the late 18th century.
Ideally, Democracy was meant to be a model of governance with a ‘collective leadership’ instead of a dictator, King, or select few. It was supposed to end the culture of a ‘one-man’ show, crony businessmen and loyalists, and instead encourage a culture of dissent and cynicism. Political leaders were supposed to be judged only on their actions and not optics or speeches. Democracy was supposed to allow room for all political ideologies and not just the domination of a few.
Let us take a world tour to see whether democracy lived up to its potential.
The Anglosphere (US, Canada, Australia, and the UK) has been reduced to 2 party states with no hope of a third party. The USA came close to a third party during the 1990s when Ross Perot formed the Reform Party and won 18% of the popular vote in the 1992 Presidential elections. The momentum carried forward for a few years but fizzled out.
European countries, who take democracy much more (way too much in my opinion) seriously, have struggled to take a single decision regarding all of their critical issues. Minority and Coalition governments in France and Germany have further exacerbated this indecision. EU’s linkage to America’s foreign policy and economic over-reliance on China paralyzes their decision-making further.
The EU’s obsession with a ‘collective leadership’ model has incapacitated their decision-making abilities. The UK opted out of the European Union by voting in favour of Brexit, less than 50 years after joining the EU. The recent victory of Euroskeptic Giorgia Meloni in Italy (labeled an extremist) further shows the extent of the crisis.
Now let us have a look at Asia. Unlike the West, democracy is more of an exception than the norm in Asia. China only has one party – the Communist party. South Korea suffered from military coups and became a stable democracy only 35 years back. In the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan have struggled with regular military coups and political instability. Pakistan has, in 75 years of Independence, not had a single PM complete 5 years in office.
Only Japan and India stand out as democracies in Asia. Even these countries do not live up to the ideals of democracy. Japan has had the same ruling party – LDP – in power since 1955 barring a few years in the 1990s. Similarly, India also had single-party domination till 2014. Congress was the primary pole in Indian politics from India’s independence till 2014, except for ~10 years in between. The last decades (from 1989 to 2019) saw the BJP replace the Congress party as the primary pole of Indian politics.
The lofty ideals of democracy sound ridiculous given the political realities across countries. The 20th century proved Communism as a faulty and disastrous idea that killed millions of people. The Technological Revolution driven by the Internet and Artificial Intelligence will do the same to Democracy in the 21st century!
Hitler rising to power in a democracy should have set the alarm bells ringing anyway. Although, he abolished elections post his 1933 victory which means that Germany was not really a democracy post-1933. India too has been battling such extremist forces, just like the USA now claims to be, that want to overthrow India’s State using the democratic system itself.
All this begs one question, was democracy really a good idea?
All of the democracy’s lofty ideals have proved to be too idealistic, to the point of being irrelevant. These ideals have crippled politicians more than they have enabled them to do their job. Politicians need ‘yes-men’ in their party & government’s rank and file to get work done. They need to crush dissent as it’s more of a hindrance than an asset. Too many opinions lead to policy paralysis as evident in coalition governments across the world. People’s apathy to politics (seen from declining voter turnout with increasing prosperity) and the ground realities of winning increasingly expensive elections demand a secure line of funds. Thus, leaders need cronies or else many would have to rely on extortion or corruption, which many Indian regional parties have had to resort to.
All of this sounds immoral and unfair but this has been the common political practice since time immemorial.
The greatest empires as well as the greatest kings in history had yes men, cronies & loyalists, allowed negligible dissent or cynicism, and always focussed on consolidating power. Politics in the US, India, UK, Germany, Japan, or France cannot be imagined without the above characteristics but the leaders are forced to maintain a veneer of following democratic ideals.
The democratic ideals have proved to be in total contrast to the ruthless nature of politics. Countless wars have been fought for power, including the European territorial wars labeled as World Wars in the 20th century, and will happen again in the future.
European countries fought many bitter battles with each other as they competed to colonize different parts of the world during the 17th-19th century.
Democracies with all their tall claims of collective leadership are highly dependent on the leader. Policies and priorities might change with each leader or administration but the core interests remain the same and are handled by the country’s Deep State.
Countries in the Global South do not really have a deep state and thus, have suffered. Latin and Central America as well as Africa are good examples of countries suffering due to the absence of a Deep State. China suffered during its Communist Revolution but managed well as it remained a closed society and a Communist system ensured that its Deep State from the Manchu-led Qing dynasty continued. On the other hand, India’s 1000-year-long history of colonization prevented her from forming her own Deep State that would preserve India’s core interests. Under PM Modi, India is trying to carve out a Deep State more explicitly than what the Congress did with certain variations.
Economy and business are interlinked with politics, as explained by the great philosopher Kautilya (also known as Chakanya) in his Saptanga theory where he stresses the importance of kosha (treasury). It is vital that the state make indirect methods of expanding its influence while also consolidating its independence. This has been cleverly brushed down by Western intellectuals as a form of crony capitalism but fortunately, has come back into focus as the West starts decoupling with China.
In India, certain business houses reached the top under every political regime. Tata-Tagore via the Opium Trade under British rule, Birla-Bajaj under Congress, and now, Adani-Ambani under BJP. The biggest businesses in China are state companies. America facilitates its own businesses domestically as well as abroad, be it lobbying for Mastercard & Visa or Amazon & Walmart globally. British Petroleum in the Middle East, especially Iran before the Iranian Islamic Revolution, is another such example.
This, however, does not in any way disregard the business acumen, discipline, and hard work of the businessmen involved.
If one observed closely, democracies are overrated in terms of delivery. The Middle East prospered without a democracy while Africa struggles despite being a democracy. Korea industrialized and became a developing country with a mix of military rule and democracy. On the contrary, one can make an argument that upholding human rights and democratic values is actually detrimental to the development of poor and developing nations. Neither China nor Bangladesh would have been able to come out of extreme poverty had it not been for their sweatshops that are notorious for human rights violations and inhumane work conditions.
This means that democracy and prosperity are not interlinked and present obstacles for developing countries.
In hindsight, one can even argue that the destruction of the global order of monarchy gave way for the US to influence & control the political landscape of developing countries via its hegemony in media and setting the narrative globally. If America decides you’re bad then their ecosystem will make sure that everyone believes so. Social Media should have ideally provided a respite but in fact, allowed the USA to further strengthen its power as information dissemination becomes more centralized.
Now let us look at India more minutely. Indian society is the largest and the most unique in the world. Only China matches India in its scale. However, China is a homogenous society with one language and culture. India, on the other hand, has twice the diversity of Europe (language + caste) with an Anglo legal-political system meant only for a homogenous society. No wonder our legal system is jammed and struggling to resolve the mountain of pending cases.
This makes India a completely new terrain for democracy. Despite these constraints, India’s democracy has had an unblemished record till now. However, this experiment with democracy has led to India sustaining a lot of damage.
Among the many traditional societal institutions, the Royals (or Privy Purse) were an important one. India transitioned into a democracy in 1947 but retained the Royals as nominal heads like all European countries. This was done as leaders understood the role and value of Royals beyond politics. They knew that Royals meant much more to society and the institution of monarchy was not just political.
The decision of Indira Gandhi to destroy the institutions of Royals, or Privy Purse as it was called, led to total chaos. It marked the rise of caste politics in India. Indira Gandhi’s motive to abolish the privy purse was to crush the opposition gaining momentum against her. The other part of her plan was the nationalization of all banks and insurance companies, thus breaking the backbone for any opposition to take hold. But in the long run, it proved to be detrimental to Indian society as a whole.
It was said that the objective of abolishing the privy purse was to reduce the burden on government finances. It was a measly 400 crores in those days (1971) which is equivalent to a few thousand crores in today’s value. Governments spend much more than this on many trivial activities!
After India’s Independence, Royals were restricted to being nominal King/Queen but some did manage to succeed in politics. Rani Gayatri Devi was so popular that she would’ve gotten 90%+ votes without even campaigning. One of the BJP’s founding members was Rajmata of Gwalior, Vijaya Raje Scindhia. Wodeyar of the Mysore Kingdom did venture into politics but left it later. Hyderabad Nizam became irrelevant in a democracy where one man had only one vote. However, Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM has emerged as Nizam’s political successor.
Removing the Royals proved disastrous for India’s collective conscience as they played a major role in society.
Royals were the face of many communities. When they were empowered, it gave rise to a collective cultural/civilizational consciousness among the region’s people. Royals were the custodians of faith who shaped the ideals and customs of the people in that region.
Royals’ disenfranchisement gave a big boost to casteism and conversion. This could be observed in the regions of Northeast India and the Chhotanagpur plateau. The fall of the Nagavanshi dynasty of Chhotanagpur or the Jaintias gave a free hand to European missionaries to deconstruct the folklore of the tribals and appropriate their customs into a Christian form under the veneer of animist resurgence. Beef consumption rose in the hills of Manipur as the authority of the Royals decreased and the people became detached from them. Alongside the Christianisation of the hills, there have also been attempts to move Meiteis (the dominant group of Manipur) away from Hinduism citing fabricated tales of imposition.
Abolition of the privy purse destroyed local festivals, parampara (local traditions), and in some cases skills, art, and even kuldevi-kuldevta (ancestral deities). All of this has been replaced by a homogenous caricature with utter disregard for local customs. The Royal Families of many European countries still play a ceremonial and symbolic role in their society. The people look up to the royal family for guidance and custodians of their culture. The huge line to catch the last glimpse of Queen Elizabeth just reinforces this further.
Britain’s Royal Family’s website states that “ They act as a focus for national identity, unity, and pride, and give a sense of stability and continuity to its people.
Monarchs are especially important in multiethnic countries. Belgium, a tiny country with a population of 10 million (half the size of Delhi) cites monarchy as the uniting factor in the diverse (speak 3 different languages – Dutch, English, French and German, with each being hostile to the other. The shared loyalty to the Belgian monarch instead of to an ethnic identity keeps that nation together.
The Habsburg dynasty in Austria held together a large & prosperous country that quickly balkanized into almost a dozen states without it. Afghanistan has been thrown into a crisis ever since the erstwhile king of Afghanistan, Zahir Shah, widely respected by all Afghans, was overthrown. The country is now riddled with factionalism and rivalry between various warlords and tribal clans.
Without Royals, people were devoid of any collective consciousness thus, people organized around their other identity – caste or language or false theoretical (read: imaginary) ideas of nation/country.
Congress itself suffered greatly from this ill-thought-out decision of abolishing the privy purse. Each dominant caste moved away from the Congress went away to ally with the Muslim vote bank, if available, or other smaller caste groups to assume power. This model was repeated in each region or state by different regional parties to assume power. As a result, Congress lost power in each state one by one.
Caste politics form the main plank of all state parties with an additional touch of language or culture for some. Dominant caste groups control each party, be it TDP (Kammas), AIADMK (Thevar and Gounder), RLSP (Jat), BSP (Jatavs among Dalits), SP & RJD (Yadav among OBCs), JDU (Koeri-Kurmi among OBCs), JD(S) (Vokkaligas), NCP (Maratha), YSRCP (Reddy) & Ezhava and Nairs in Kerala. BJP also started off by attracting the dominant caste group but as the primary pole of Indian politics, it has managed to create a rainbow coalition of all castes – the formula of the previous dominant national party, Congress.
Political parties in the Indian subcontinent have been reduced to a family enterprise. Barring the BJP, no other party has managed to transition into the next generation outside the family. Shiv Sena tried a non-family transition with a coup by Eknath Shinde recently. But it will most likely cede space in the Mumbai region – home of its most prized jewel BMC – to the BJP after almost 40 years and become a declining force in the state as BJP grows further. CPI(M) was another candidate but it could never manage a transition, with the same old guard of the 70s ruling it till today. In Bengal and Tripura, once their leader passed away or lost, the party collapsed. Although, it has managed well in Kerela.
Other candidates for non-family political parties are BJD and JDU. Naveen Patnaik’s BJD in Odisha was built on top of his father – the legendary Biju Patnaik’s political legacy. Most likely, BJD will falter post-Naveen’s political sunset. On the other hand, Nitish Kumar’s JDU is a contender but will also not last. He has, very smartly, joined hands with the Lalu Yadav family’s political outfit – RJD – and JDU will eventually merge with the RJD post-Nitish’s political sunset.
Congress has been reduced to a dynasty with the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty ruling it since 1959 when Nehru appointed his daughter as Congress National President. Their transition into a dynasty contributed majorly to BJP’s rise as their alternative and the primary political pole in the country’s politics.
Dynastic politics is not unique to India as parties across the globe are not really democratic.
In the USA, George HW Bush became President and later his son George Bush became USA’s President. Former President Bill Clinton’s wife Hillary Clinton became a senior Minister under Obama and later unsuccessfully contested against Donald Trump in 2016. Michelle Obama, the wife of Barack Obama, might be looking at a political future too. She was the star speaker at the National Democratic Convention in 2020 just like her husband was at the 2004 National Democratic Convention before he made his bid to become the president in 2008.
The USA is not immune to dynastic politics
If politics had to reduce to a family i.e, essentially a monarchy, what was the need to abolish them in the first place? What did this experiment achieve?
The Greek philosopher Plato argued against the very concept of democracy itself. He viewed the system as problematic and its nature to be chaotic. He predicted that it would eventually give away to demagoguery, and people without the necessary knowledge and wisdom to make the right decisions were doomed to make foolish occurrences that benefit them in the short term without any thought about its long-term consequences.
He has been proven correct as the masses are predisposed to idolize leaders, which were earlier monarchs and royals. Today, only charisma and optics matter not policies. Canadian PM Justin Trudeau – son of former PM Pierre Trudeau – and Barack Obama are liked not for their policies but for their attractive looks and charisma respectively.
Monarchs were used to being idolized and not insecure about their position. They used the inherent stability of the political system to take tough decisions, even though hurtful in the short term but needed for long-term well-being. Leaders in a democracy have been reduced to behaving like celebrities, who cannot take tough decisions as that will hurt their likability.
Political leaders have to play to the galleries and indulge in optics and virtue signaling to increase their likability. Kings and Queens had a choice but likability is a necessity for the political leaders of the day.
The biggest signal that politicians have become like the despondent and over-indulgent Royals of the pre-democracy era is clear from the shenanigans of certain heads of state – the party girl PM of Finland.
Leaders are more focused on being liked to win elections rather than formulating policies and enacting tough much-needed decisions. Freebie culture and populist politics have become the norm everywhere. The demographic change in some European countries is one of the more serious consequences of this lack of action and desperation to be liked.
No leader under the constant threat of elections in the current democratic system is incentivized to take unpopular and tough decisions. All leaders kick the can on tough decisions for some future leaders. PM Modi stands out in this regard and is appreciated by the business community and global leaders for his monumental effort although he still has many challenges ahead of him.
So, in conclusion, the very benefit of democracy itself is in question. The ideals espoused in the name of democracy are largely ignored as a result of impracticality. The export of democratic values seems more to have been a tool for American expansion by keeping any potential rivals in a state of disorder. India has achieved little from these developments and instead lost her soul as it gave into the confusion that resulted from the change.
Democracy, as we know it, seems to be on its last legs. The only thing to watch out for is how quickly the transformation happens or maybe it is already underway. It’s visible to the keen!
A Hindu girl Hina Talreja of Allahabad married her Muslim boyfriendAdnan Khan in 2015. Later Adnan married another woman. The relationship between Hina and Adnan became sour. In 2017 Adnan let Hina to be gang raped by his two friends in front of him and then shot her dead.
In October 2018, a Hindu aspiring model girl Mansi Dixit from Mumbai was murdered by photographer Syed Muzammil as she refused sexual attempts from his side.
In 2019 one Shakib posed as Hindu boy and trapped a Hindu girlEkta Deshwal in love. Ekta stole ornament worth about rupees 25 lakhs from her house at the behest of Shakib and eloped with him. But when Shakib’s religious identity was revealed, Ekta refused to stay with him. Shakib then murdered Ekta in Meerut (UP).
In 2019 another Hindu aspiring model girl, Khushi Parihar, was brutally murdered by her Muslim boyfriend Ashraf Sheikh in Nagpur on suspension about her character.
In June 2020, a Dalit Hindu girl Shivani (a Tik Tok celebrity) from Haryana was murdered by her Muslim neighbor Arif for refusing his proposal for Niqah.
In October 2020 a twenty-year old Hindu girl Nikita Tomar of Faridabad was shot dead by a Muslim boy Tauseef for her refusal to convert to Islam and marry him.
In 2021 Diksha Mishra, a Hindu separated married woman, was murdered by her Muslim boyfriend Emraan in Nainital, UP. Emraan was known to Diksha as Rishabh Tiwari.
In another 2021 case, a Hindu girl Antima from Kota, Rajasthan was murdered in broad day light by her drunkard and abusive Muslim husband Imran who also sold her for prostitution in Goa sometime back, from where she escaped and returned home.
In May 2022 a Dalit Hindu girl Shraddha from Maharashtra was murdered by her live-in Muslim partner Aftab in Delhi. He then cut her dead body in 35 pieces and dispersed those over a period of next 18 days in the jungles of Mehruli. This gruesome murder came to light after six months on 10 November 2022.
In August 2022 a Hindu girl, Ankita Kumari, of Jharkhand was set ablaze by her Muslim neighbour Shahrukh Hussain for rejecting his advances. Ankita Kumari died after a few days.
On 20 November 2022, Mohammed Shariqmurdered 18 years old Hindu girl Mamta in Chandigarh. Shariq was a married person and from Bihar. But he wanted to establish relation with Mamta. When Mamta and her mother refused Shariq, he murdered Mamta.
The list goes on and on. This is a partial narrative of last few years only. There have all along been similar cases in India where Hindu girls lost their lives in violent manner under Love Jihad. The actual intensity and spread of problem are many folds more, as there remains a great number of such cases which are unreported, suppressed or locally settled.
There is no reason to believe that these are recent developments after Modi-led BJP came to power in India in 2014. Such heinous crime has been a part of Shantidoot society in India since AD 1206, when Delhi Sultanate was established. Sexual violation, forced conversion and murder of Kafir (Hindu) girls/women by Shantidoots are sanctified in their Asmani Kitab. Such deplorable crime can also guarantee their entry into Islamic Paradise after death. Stupid MK Gandhi, in twentieth century India, justified this crime by Shantidoots in Moplah riots.
After independence of India in 1947 all ruling parties, particularly Congress, started suppressing news of such incidences. It is only recently, because of revival of Hindu Civilizational Pride, that Hindus have come to know about such murderous Love Jihad through social media only. The main-stream media (print and electronic) of India are still un-willing to report such crimes of Shantidoots.
Ranita Indic, author at Trunicle observes (some editing is done by present author), “What is common in all these situations? It is always the Hindu girl who is murdered and it is always the Shantidoot boy who is the brutal and remorseless murderer.
What is the secret behind the Shantidoots encouraged aggression despite the example of arrests? He knows that arrest is temporary and he will be set free by the courts as System To Unka Hai. Money will also pour in from his community members to fight the court case. Further the leftist-Woke-Islamist ecosystem and media will paint him as the victim and Indian film will whitewash his crime by portraying the Hindu girl as evil, – all because System To Unka Hai.
However, if by a remote chance a Hindu were the tormentor, then the same ecosystem, using their fake activists and propaganda mills like the media and others, will bring the world to a standstill screaming of Hindu Terror against minority Muslims in India. The Indian Hindus are so helpless that they can’t even openly spread awareness on Love Jihad, because the courts won’t permit them to do so on the grounds of protecting the minority community.
This way more and more Abduls will keep on enticing more and more Hindu girls with their charm and our stupid Bong films of 2022 like Ghare Pherar Gaan and Bismillah will keep promoting Love Jihad so that naive Hindu girls will continue to fall head over heels for those Abduls, despite being aware (and sometimes unaware) of the bloodied record of their buddies.”
Pedo had made all Shantidoots of the world same. Kafir women remain sex objects to them only to be sexually and physically abused and murdered at any time, in any place and by any cruel means.
At international level, the cabal of The Washington Post, The New York Times, BBC, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Harvard University, Ford Foundation and the senile George Soros has been accusing Indian Hindus 24×7 for some imaginary persecution of Shantidoots. The cabal is so shameless that it refuses to see, inter alia, this specific type of violence on Hindu girls by Shantidoots in India, which reflects the general picture of the country.
In UK, the proportion of Shantidoots among all convicted criminals is 15 percent, while their population proportion is 5 percent only. The picture is same in all other European countries and USA. There is no reason to believe that in India the situation will be any different.
The ideology of the above-mentioned cabal is Wokeism. It is a psycho-socio-political colonialism of twenty-first-century West. Wokeism is defined as the behavior and attitudes of people who are sensitive to social and political injustice. But this sensitiveness is mostly imaginary in nature or biased. In a nut shell, Wokeism is anti-truth, anti-fact, anarchic, violent and disruptive in essence. Like Communism, it thrives on and flourishes with propaganda only.
India also has its share of the followers of Wokeism. Thus, in case of India, the situation of Love Jihad is more disturbing because of double trouble from the followers of Wokeism and Tukde Tukde Gang. These two complimentary gangs of India refuse to accept the religious identity and motivation, when the perpetrator of crime is a Shantidoot boy and victim is a Hindu girl. Even when a Dalit Hindu girl becomes victim of Love Jihad and murdered, all the so-called Dalit Activists of India go into hibernation. Indian Hindus must unite and beat these evil forces into pulp now.
The citizens of this country have often heard the courts proclaim that the judiciary in India is meant to be the protector of its people. The Judges of top courts often claim to be the last hope for the people of India.
In this blog, I want to examine this lofty claim by the milords.
This post is about rape, torture and murder of a 19 year old girl by three men in 2012.
The trial court sentenced the 3 guilty men to death in 2014. The sentence was upheld by the High Court but has now been cancelled by the apex court.
Why?
Because the Police didn’t do a good job and the trial and High courts held the three men guilty just on the basis of confession of the accused.
A video recording exists that shows the criminals helping the Police kind of recreating the crime scene.
The criminals in the video appear under no coercion or any kind of pressure when confessing to the ghastly crimes.
Two shortcomings pointed out by the apex court bench, headed by the recently retired CJI U.U. Lalit are as under:
1- That the DNA reports were NOT reliable as the method of sample collection, sealing etc was not as per the standard procedures
2- That the material witness examination and cross examination was not proper and many witnesses were not cross examined at all. Hence the identity of the accused couldn’t be established beyond doubt.
I want to ask former CJI UU Lalit if people were not pronounced guilty when DNA technique was not in vogue?
It is a fact that DNA testing came into play only in 1985 in court cases.
Why did the Bench of Retd CJI UU Lalit not order a reinvestigation? Did it not occur to the Lordships that someone must have carried out the heinous crime? If not the three accused, then who did it?
Is not confession of crime a strong basis for sending the accused at least to life terms in jail especially when the accused are on a video recording done at the scene of crime, telling how they tortured, raped and killed the victim?
The brutality of torture will make anyone recoil in horror.
A YouTube channel (The Lallantop) talks about the torture. It started with a group rape followed by pouring of acid on the victim’s eyes and then a broken beer bottle was inserted in private parts of the victim.
Is this the end of the humanity?
There is blood on the hands of many people here. Not just on the hands of the 3 accused who are now free.
The God above is watching the two men and one women who failed to deliver justice to a young victim .
Will her death go in vain?
The top court has a big bag of sin on its chest, even as it claims to have done justice.
Lordships, justice may have been done to the SOPs and the rule book, but humanity has been dented to a devastating effect. The least that I expected was an order for re-investigation or may be at least life terms for the 3 accused.
The Hinduphobic extremists are quick to point out how Savarkar was an atheist to deride the Hindus. The facts, however, overwhelmingly suggest otherwise. This article is aimed at a factual analysis of his poems to emphasize that this is not the case. In this article, we will analyze this aspect of Savarkar’s character through his words (his literature, his essays, and his speeches) and his actions.
Evidence 1: अनंताची आरती (Anantācī Āratī) The title translates to a prayer to be sung during the performance of a Hindu ritual. In this poem, the poet Savarkar prays to the निरंजन देव श्री अनंत (Nirañjana Deva Śrī Ananta):
निरंजनासी निरांजनाचा देवा दीप तुला
दाविती, देवा दीप तुला ॥ ध्रु. ॥
आकाशाच्या अंगणांत तव
सूर्यसहस्त्रीं जो दीपोत्सव
पाजळिती हे पणती अपुली त्यास करूं साजरा
दाविती, देवा दीप तुला
सूर्यसहस्त्रीही जो उरला
पणतीने तो जाई स्फुरला
नयनी ऐसा अंधकारलव आहे तोचि भला
दाविती, देवा दीप तुला ॥२॥
आईच्याची बागेमधुनी
ताजी ताजी वेंचुनि वेंचुनि
मुली गुंफिती आईच्याची वेणींतून फुलां
दाविती, देवा दीप तुला ॥ ३ ॥
Evidence 2:श्री पतीतपावनाचा धावा or Prayer to the sanctifier of the fallen: श्री विष्णू (Śrī Patīt-pāvanācā Dhāvā; Śrī Viṣṇū) It was also composed as a prayer. In this, he prayed to श्री पतीत पावन विष्णू. He prays for the salvation of the whole Hindu race. He asks for पापक्षालन (pāpa-kṣālan) i.e. repentance/forgiveness of the sins of Hindus. Here is first stanza of the said prayer:
उद्धरिसी गा हिंदुजातिसी केव्हा हे हिंदुजातिच्या देवा ॥ धृ. ॥ आब्राह्मण चंडाल पतितची आम्हीं तुम्हि पातितपावन स्वामी निजशीर्ष विटाळेल म्हणुनि कापाया चुकलो न आपुल्या पाया आणि पायांनी राखु शुद्धता साची छाटिलें पावलांनाची ऐकू न पडो आपुलिया कानातें मुख कथिन म्हणुनि ज्ञानातें निज सव्यकरें वामकरा जिंकाया विक्रीयली शत्रुला काया करु, बंधूसी बंद करू दारा, जे चोर ते घराचे राजे हें पाप भयंकर झालें । रे पेरिलें फळाला आलें रे हृदिं असह सलसि ते भाले । रे उद्धार अता ! मृत्युदंड की देवा हे हिंदुजातिच्या देवा! अनुताप परी जाळितसे या पापा दे तरी आजि उः शापा
Evidence 3: पिंडिका (piṇḍikā)
In the poem ‘Gomāntak’, when the white Portuguese officer laughs at Liṅga Pūjā, the protagonist replies to the officer entailing an explanation of the meaning and reason of Liṅga Pūjā:
महद्बह्मयोनींत महेश्वरवीर्य धरी चंडिका। जगाची जननी ही पिंडिका ! गर्भवतीचें दिगुदर दाही दिशा फुगेल्या पला। लागल्या काळाच्याहि कळा ।। ब्रह्मांडाचा पिंड तेधवां प्रसवे हा ती अजा । सर्वही भगवंताची प्रजा।। मूर्ति कृमीपासूनि कार्तिकापर्यंतहि ज्या ज्या । सर्व त्या भगवंताच्या प्रजा ॥
Evidence 4: हे सदया गणया तार (he sadayā gaṇayā tāra)
This poem is a prayer to गणाधीश गणपती (gaṇādhīśa gaṇapatī). Here, Savarkar is calling विघ्नहर्ता गणपती (vighnahartā gaṇapatī) for the help of Hindus as the only refuge:
हे सदया गणया तार । तुझ्यावरि भार तूं मायबाप आधार । तुझ्यावरि भार
किति देश-शत्रु भूतलीं हृच्छत्रु सहाही परी शापें वा सुशरें जाळी तो ब्राह्मण आतां खाओ परक्या लाथांचा बा मार -१
देशावरि हल्ला आला पुरुष तो लढोनी मेला स्त्री गिळी अग्निकाष्ठाला रजपूत परी त्या परवशतेचें भूत पछाडी, तार -२
अटकेला झेंडा नेला रिपु-कटका फटका दिधला दिल्लीचा स्वामी झाला तो शूर मराठा पाहिं तयाचे खाइ न कुत्रे हाल -३
As evident in the title itself, the great procession and festival has been described. In this, Lord Jagannātha has been questioned about where Jagannātha is going. Graphic description includes the Lord moving through the unbroken passage of time, sitting in the celestial chariot with the horses of the Gati:
Savarkar describes स्वातंत्र्यलक्ष्मी as परब्रह्म, and भगवती.
Evidence 8: अनादि मी अनंत मी (anādi mī ananta mī)
अनादि मी अनंत मी, अवध्य मी भला मारिल रिपु जगतिं असा कवण जन्मला
Without beginning nor end am I, inviolable am I.
Vanquish me? In this world no such enemy is born!
Does this sound familiar? To me, it sounds something like Bhagwad Geeta 2:23.
Evidence 9: छिन्नमुंडा (chinnamuṇdā)
Devī Chinnamuṇdā has been the theme of the poem by Savarkar in his poem मूर्ती दुजी ती.
Evidence10: माळ गुंफिताना
In this beautiful poem, he describes different divine pairs and the love between them through a simple act of garlanding like जगदंबा-महादेव, सत्यभामा-श्रीहरी.
Evidence 11: मला देवाचं दर्शन घेऊ द्या (Let me take blessings of my God)
The poem he wrote conveys the longing of the untouchables towards god.
Evidence 12: He was only against the common tendency of expecting results just because one has prayed, or worse, falling short in your effort because you’ve prayed. In his opinion, the Hindu scriptures do not ask one to do so. Rather, the BG is strongly against the act of expecting results other than that of the effort. This does not mean that he expected people to give up faith.
Evidence 13:
Here is an instance of him praying to the goddess Bhavānī. He writes:
Evidence 14:
Now let me list few actions he took,
He established a Temple of पतितपावन श्री विष्णू (sanctifier of the fallen). In this temple, Hindus of all castes were allowed.
Evidence 15: In his Autobiographical book माझी जन्मठेप, he mentions how he used to offer oblations to the Sun God every day. Later in the day, he used to have a walk while reciting योग सुत्र (Yoga Sutra).
In light of these evidences, I would like to argue that Savarkar was not an atheist. This atheist argument is mainly brought up by liberals to deride the followers of Savarkar.
In February 2017, The Washington Post added a new phrase beneath its online masthead — “Democracy Dies in Darkness” — which while good, and warranted for the newspaper that had Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi as a journalist, and took down President Nixon with legendary journalists Woodward and Bernstein, it’s only valid if they shed light on their own staff with proper oversight with Ombudsman or similar roles, to remove fraudulent journalists.
According to Columbia Journalism Review, Hamilton Nolan, “All I know is that there is only one way the press maintains its power in society: by metaphorically putting the heads of powerful people on pikes. If the Post and all the other respectable media outlets lose their ability to do that, powerful people will, by extension, stop caring what the well-informed segment of the public thinks. Democracy dies in dumbness.”
Well I would extend that, “Democracy Dies with Dumbness and Journalistic Fraud!”
We know in the 1930’s the NY Times Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Walter Duranty, is now questioned for his biased reporting of Stalin, and ironically Duranty defended Stalin’s murder of millions in the Ukraine. Times correspondents and others have since largely discredited his coverage, but that’s not enough as it’s widely held that his reporting from the USSR was a key factor in U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1933 decision to grant official recognition to the Soviet Union.
So one lying journalist could have contributed to the death of millions!
Unfortunately, Blatant Lies Matter!
As a media/telecom analyst, ex-Gartner, quoted in CNN, the WSJ, here in OpIndia, on geo-political topics to cybersecurity, I first learnt about Rana Ayyub and her writings at the Washington Post, and found it questionable. So I did what anyone else in the media/analyst world would do, and I filed a complaint with their Ombudsman.
On Feb. 10th 2022, I emailed Tracy Grant at the Washington Post,
Source: Akshay Sharma
I had reached out to the Ombudsmen at WAPO be it Tracy Grant, or recently Liz Seymour, along with Sally Buzbee, and got no replies except now invalid emails bouncing back from Tracy Grant who I believe has left WAPO. Ironically, some of my emails also occurred where I cc’d OpIndia editorial staff, since I referenced OpIndia in many of my emails.
Source: Akshay Sharma
I then messaged Josh Rogin, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, on FB Messenger, with no replies!
Source: Akshay Sharma
And now in early November, 2022, as the source for Ayyub’s Jan. 18th anti- PM Modi article, in The Wire, regarding TekFog, is retracted by Bloomberg and other leading journals, I asked the Washington Post leadership, and Hamilton Nolan at the Columbia Journalism Review, why hasn’t the Washington Post retracted Ayyub’s article from Jan. 18th, 2022 which precipitated my questioning of the Washington Post!
Source: Akshay Sharma
Other Fraudulent Journalists at the Washington Post!
So the analyst in me thought, maybe there’s no Ombudsman and reviews at the Washington Post with legendary journalists present, and perhaps no fraudulent journalists have worked there! And then I discovered the former journalist, Janet Leslie Cooke, who initially received a Pulitzer Prize in 1981 for an article written for The Washington Post, based on a story that was later discovered to have been fabricated and Cooke returned the Pulitzer, after admitting she had fabricated stories.
Well one could argue that was decades ago, what about the present?
And then there’s Felicia Sonmez, a fired Washington Post journalist, who began her career as a foreign correspondent in Beijing, and in 2010, joined The Washington Post as a political reporter, until she made false sexual harassment allegations including weird social media posts regarding deceased basketball legend Kobe Bryant. She is known for her social media activity, for which she was fired from the Post in June 2022.
What’s Needed Next?
We need proper Media Governance!
Media CEOs who are faced with non-existent or ineffective governance capabilities must follow the four recommended steps below to implement future proof governance:
Assess the effectiveness of your governance systems to support the quality control metrics, business outcomes, agility or autonomy based results.
Address the five governance levers (rules, processes, roles, structures and culture) and their associated mechanisms to redesign and raise the effectiveness of media governance.
Inject (new) ways of working into those governance mechanisms to maintain their effectiveness within the established or target operating model. Have Peer-reviews, and external auditors like the CRJ.org
Look for customer feedback scores, per journalist, beyond DPVs’ (document page views) to newer requirements, of peer review scores, client feedback, and Ombudsman reviews that could invoke a change in decision-making capabilities and, therefore, governance mechanisms.
According to Gartner, an Adaptive Governance System can occur with different “dials” for controls as follows:
Source: Gartner, “Fix Your Governance Mechanisms for Greater Agility”
According to Gartner, they recommend an “Adaptive Governance Mechanism” where C-level execs can adjust a governance mechanism, with varying ways of doing business, by turning one or more of the “ways-of-working” dials as shown above. Turning the dials will adapt the governance mechanism to meet the decision-making demands. For example, more agile, more adaptive or more automated, where different levels of governance can occur “just-in-time” as needed, based on content being produced. From the above diagram we have different ways of working: Orchestrated, Iterative, Automated, Agile, Distributed, Differentiated, Continual, and Collaborative.
Orchestration and coordination drive connected decision making by sequencing the right governance mechanisms which may entail SME’s subject matter experts as needed. Technology, Science and Engineering related topics often will require SME’s.
Iterative Governance Mechanisms adopt an iterative way of working when the Governance team is more frequently engaged, being aligned to the different life cycle stages and cadence of content development and delivery. This is for content that may launched initially and iteratively adapted with newer content flows, based on newer updates. Reporting of a battle, may be iteratively updated as it becomes a conflagration, to a regional war, to national war, to a world war.
Automated Governance Mechanisms will occur from support decision making tools that work in real-time. Tools to search the internet for plagiarism can be applied here, as well as web-crawling technologies. Soon more AI-based platforms will occur here leveraging AI for Governance.
Agile-based Governance means that certain governance and review mechanisms will favor “good enough” outputs or outcomes over absolute precision. Here, the track record of the journalist can be used to favor those that have “earned” legendary status with speed of the review process shortened, in order to launch the “scoop” fastest.
Distributed Governance is in contrast with decision making that is more centralized. Examples can include peer-reviews, SME reviews.
Differentiated Governance is where the Governance Board can apply it’s decision making for both the traditional, like traditional newspaper, traditional TV/Radio as well as the digital, web-based, mobile-based journalism.
Continual Governance is required for areas that need a certain degree of continuous, near-real-time decision-making support, or in support of governance mechanisms that are always on. Continual news reports, as an example include political polling results, that are continually updated, and may need to assessed for correctness, sample size, and ensuring no tampering is occurring.
Collaborative Governance is when collaboration between the Governance Board members occurs with the the rest of the firm. For example, a Media Governance Board with the executives of the firm requires high levels of collaboration for the board to be effective in directing, evaluating and monitoring, with not only peer reviews, management reviews, editorial reviews, and Media Governance/Ombudsman reviews, to Customer Review Boards, and Shareholder Review Boards. Governance can be collaborative with external entities like watchdog firms, journalism professors, and Government regulatory bodies.
It is time the media connect the dots, inwardly assess itself, and get quality journalism back to where it belongs!Let’s Make it Happen!
Thanks…
Akshay Sharma (Author’s Bio): Akshay Sharma is a Computer Engineer, tech analyst, ex-Gartner, having authored 280+ research notes, on emerging technologies like Cybersecurity, 5G, and IoT. He has worked for Canada’s Dept of Defense, advised and deployed solutions with DISA: Defense Information Security Agency, at Nortel and Siemens, and advised various 3-letter agencies in the US. A frequent speaker at tech events, he is often quoted in leading institutions like CNN, Wall St. Journal, and CIO.com. He is a former CTO of one of the first video/WiFi smartphone firms and an entrepreneur in the tech sector, having worked for firms that are now part of leading firms like Intel, IBM, Nokia, and Ericsson. He advised the UK’s Ofcom, the US’s Dept. of Homeland Security, and was quoted in the Wall Street Journal banning Huawei in 2012, and stated in the Huffington Post, the Chinese hacking of Nortel is a “wakeup call”. Sharma contributed to the Flight Control protocol ARINC 629 Databus used in commercial avionics and military fighter jets for “fly-by-wire” systems, including the newer Boeing 777X. Additionally he is a Cybersecurity analyst, and CTO for Kovair.com with clients like the World Bank, India’s DRDO and US Defense sector clients.
From the last week of May 2022, media (print and electronic) and social media in South Asia, Middle-East Asia and the West were emitting venom on a factual remark on the prophet of Islam made by Nupur Sharma, spokesperson of BJP, in a TV debate show. But all those venom emitting entities remained deadly silent on the uncouth anti-Hindu statement made by a Muslim cleric in the said TV show, where Nupur Sharma made the remark as a reaction.
Following that incident, dozens of FIRs were registered against Nupur Sharma in different parts of India by the Islamists. Congress and Left-Liberal-Lutyens cabal came forward to condemn Nupur Sharma in an one-sided way. Nupur Sharma moved the Indian Supreme Court for clubbing of all FIRs in one place, that is Delhi. While rejecting her appeal on 1st July 2022, two Milords of the Indian Supreme Court made abusive and personalized verbal observations against her which were not the parts of the verdict.
Three days before that Supreme Court hearing, one Hindu tailor Kanhaiya Lal, who supported Nupur Sharma in social media, was murdered by two Muslims by slitting of throat on 28 June 2022 in Udaipur (Rajasthan, India). The said two Milords of Indian Supreme Court verbally held Nupur Sharma responsible for murder of Kanhaiya Lal. This was a weird observation on the part of the two Milords.
The Milords of the Indian Supreme Court had no idea that the un-civilized Islamic laws (Sharia) allowed any Muslim to murder the critic of the prophet of Islam. The Milords of Indian Supreme Court did not have the basic understanding of Islam and Sharia, least to talk of the Quran and Sahih Hadith. They were too keen to please the Left-Liberal-Islamist cabal and probably to serve the cause of jihad in India.
The two Milords of Supreme Court of India did not know that in the tens of thousands of Madrasas across India, it was taught that Islam was the only true religion and rest all other religions were false. Inculcating hatred in the minds of Muslim children towards idolators was a specific part of Madrasa education. The two Milords of Supreme Court also had not heard of dozens of Islamic terrorist groups and sleeper cells present in India.
By observing that Nupur Sharma was solely responsible for the murder of Kanhaiya Lal, the two Milords had morally absolved those two Muslim murderers from the crime. Through their legally unwise tongue, Milords had also accepted Sharia in India in place of Indian Constitution.
The two Milords had also shamed the whole nation for Nupur Sharma’s criticism of the prophet of Islam and asked her to solicit forgiveness from the nation. What a joke? What nation had to do with the remark of Nupur Sharma, which she actually quoted from Islamic scripture of Sahih hadith? The oral tonic given by the two Milords to the Indian Islamic terrorists would make Pakistan, ISI, ISIS, Al Qaeda, PFI, and SIMI etc. very happy.
If Nupur Sharma had said something disrespectful about the prophet of Islam, Indian laws were there to address the issue. But Milords’ verbal justification of the inhuman Sharia-compliant murder of Hindu Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur, by solely blaming Nupur Sharma and negating Indian laws, was beyond any sane comprehension. Milords also made such biased observations by overstepping the boundary of the case they were hearing.
After the said TV show, Nupur Sharma was officially removed from the post of spokesperson by BJP. Of all Muslim countries, strongest pressure on India came from Qatar. Al Jazeera, the international news network of Qatar was banned in India for five days in 1915 for tampering with India’s map. It was the same Qatar which gave asylum and citizenship to Indian artist M F Husain after he left India voluntarily following the controversy of painting a naked Hindu Goddess. Muhammed Zubair, a jihadi journalist of India spearheaded the anti-Nupur Sharma propaganda among Muslims across the world.
However, for the said 1st July verdict and observations on Nupur Sharma case, the two Milords and Indian Judiciary faced a very strong backlash from common Indians in social media. The Chief Justice of India and all Milords were shaken out of their judicial slumber.
People of India, for the first time, reminded Milords that they were not at all as omnipotent as they might have thought so far. Thus, the same case was again heard by the same two Milords of the supreme Court on 10th August 2022 and Nupur Sharma was granted the appeal she originally made. The two Milords could never explain how their legal minds changed 180 degrees within one month and ten days?
The root cause of such uncalled-for development in Indian Judiciary happened as it did not have any accountability and check. The disciplinary proceeding against an Indian Judge, for giving any faulty or wrong or unwise observation/judgment, was probably non-existent and never heard of in independent India. When a higher court turned down the verdict of any lower court, the Judge of lower court was never asked to explain how he reached his verdict which was bad in law.
In India, the Judges of higher Indian Judiciary (High Courts and Supreme Court) are appointed and transferred by a panel of five senior-most Judges of the Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice of India. This penal is called Collegium. The Collegium system was adopted in 1993 by an order of the Supreme Court and not by any Act of Indian Parliament or provision of Indian Constitution.
The members of the other two Pillars of Democracy, which are Executive and Legislative, have to go to people directly or indirectly after 5-6 years to seek approval from people to come to the position. But, the Judges of Indian Judiciary remain perpetually sacrosanct without any evaluation, periodic or otherwise.
Structurally, culturally and behaviorally, Indian Judiciary is an extension of British-Indian Judiciary, which was designed to rule over India and its people. The wisdom of the Judges of British-ruled India was beyond any question for imperialistic reasons. India carried the same legacy even today which allowed two Milords of the Supreme Court to make irresponsible observations against Nupur Sharma in a strange manner.
It is high time for thorough Judicial Reform in India, including rejection of British hangovers in Indian Judiciary. Appointment and periodic evaluation of Judges by an independently empowered Constitutional body should be in place through some Act of Parliament. All existing Indian laws formulated prior to 1950 also need to be examined and modified/discarded to suit India’s requirements as a nation.
The bottom line is nobody goes to the Supreme Court, or for that matter to any Court, to hear any personal, abusive and whimsical comments from any Milord. All the Indian Milords should restrict their duty in giving verdicts only in light of the laws of land and on the basis of evidence and witnesses. Milord’s verbal observations may only revolve around those aspects to explain how he has reached the verdict. Milords should stop making loose and personal remarks to justify Sharia-compliant murder of any Hindu in the country.
As on date Nupur Sharma is hiding in some undisclosed place for continued threat to her life. But all the Indian Muslims, who made abusive remarks on Hinduism before and after Nupur Sharma’s factual observation on prophet of Islam, are freely moving around. Indian jihadi political party AIMIM and one Muslim man, each from Ajmer and Mewat, offered huge bounty to any Muslim who would behead Nupur Sharma. The Indian Judiciary has to decide, once for all, if it has to defend the Indian Constitution or Sharia.
Qatar, the Middle-Eastern Islamic country which raised strongest protest against Nupur Sharma, has now invited the Jihadi preacher Zakir Naik to FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar. Interestingly Zakir Naik had told the same thing about prophet of Islam publicly what Nupur Sharma said later. And the Islamic Nautanki goes on.
The character portrayed Lord Krishna as a philanderer, readily engaging in sensual pursuits with countless girls.
Chippa- Netflix streaming film Chippa was written and directed by Safdar Rahman. The film was first released at the Edinburgh International film festival, United Kingdom on June 25, 2019, and later at the South Asian Film Festival, India on June 01, 2020.
A scene in the film shows an old man narrating a tale about his great-grandmother to a child, where she supposedly slapped one Hanuman who snatched away a coconut from her hand and after that, the Hanuman fled away.
Pataal Lok- Amazon prime Video, Pataal Lok starring Jaideep Ahlawat, produced by Anushka Sharma released on May 15, 2020, portrays Sanatana Dharma and Hindu culture in a negative light. A scene shows Hindu Maharaj cooking meat while a Hindu politician eating it in front of Goddess Durga.
Another scene features a female dog named “Savitri” from the story Savitri and Satyavan- about a faithful loyal wife who, through the power of her purity, brought her husband back to life. One scene shows a large caricature depicting Lord Shiva on the walls of a prison showing Lord Shiva as the God of criminals. Another scene shows a most wanted criminal meditating in front of Lord Shiva’s idol. All the Villains perform Puja before committing any heinous crime.
Leila- Based on a novel by Prayaag Akbar, Netflix series by Deepa Mehta released on June 14, 2019, portrays the Hindus in a negative light. ‘Jai Aryavart’ is a dystopian Hindu state’s slogan where people are discriminated on the basis of their religion.
People are divided based on caste, and huge walls are built to separate one community from another. Only those who belongs to upper caste were allowed the accessibility of clean water, food, and even freedom. Those who don’t follow the rules of this caste hierarchy were forcefully caged in Purity Centers and Labour Camps for remorse. The story’s villains were projected donning Hindu symbols.
Asur- The Voot web series directed by Oni Sen shows psycho killers reading Hindu scriptures. Creating an impression that reading Hindu scripture destroys the inner self and buds negativity in the reader.
Hindu Dharma is portrayed as an evil cult in the name of artistic freedom in Web series on OTT Platforms The list of such movies, serials & web series is endless. Indian filmmakers have always been using subtle propaganda in their films to drive their own narrative showing Hindus as caste- obsessed, Hindu priests or godmen as greedy and lustful.
Over-the-top streaming platforms have grown rapidly over the past few years. Audience uses different technologies to watch documentaries, films, and web series on their smartphones and laptops like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Voot, Zee5, and many more. OTT platforms have revolutionized the entertainment industry globally.
Dr Devender Bhardwaj/ New Delhi, India
Over-the-top streaming platforms have grown rapidly over the past few years. Audience uses different technologies to watch documentaries, films, and web series on their smartphones and laptops like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Voot, Zee5, and many more. OTT platforms have revolutionized the entertainment industry globally.
However, the artistic freedom and creative content which attracts the audience also led to a soft bigotry towards Hindus. Anti-Hindu content has become a tool of creativity for OTT platforms. Mocking Hindu gods and goddesses has become a trend among filmmakers. Demonising Hindu Dharma in the name of entertainment has now become a norm in web content.
Here are a few case studies of Web series and Films promoting Hindu hatred over OTT platforms.
Kaali- On July 02, 2022, Filmmaker Leena Manimekalai launched a poster of her upcoming documentary at the Aga Khan Museum as a part of Rhythms of Canada. The poster denigrated Hindu goddess Kali, it portrays goddess Kali smoking a cigarette, and along with her usual accoutrements of Trishul and sickle, she is holding an LGBT community pride flag.
Even after facing criticism and backlash on social media, Leena Manimekalai brazenly denied to remove the poster and tweeted in Tamil defending her purposeful portrayal, “The film revolves around the events that take place one evening when Kali appears and strolls the streets of Toronto. If you see the picture, don’t put the hashtag “arrest Leena Manimekalai” and put the hashtag “love you, Leena Manimekalai.”
The Indian high commissioner in Canada issued a statement on July 4, 2022, and urged the Canadian authorities and the event organizers to withdraw all such provocative material.
Tandav- Ali Abbas Zafar’s political drama series Tandav released on January 15, 2021, at Amazon Prime Video disgraced Hindu God Shiva. The series’ first episode featured Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub playing the role of Lord Shiva while holding Trishul in one hand at a college theatre festival. Mohammed Zeeshan barbed Lord Ram’s social media followers (linking it to Ram Mandir Row) and how one can post tweets or upload photos to increase his followers.
In another scene, it was shown that if a woman from upper caste gets sexually abused by someone belonging to a lower caste, it was only because the person is venting his anger over years of oppression and it’s not wrong.
Ludo- Anurag Basu’s film Ludo released on November 12, 2020, shows Hindu hate or Hindu culture targeting in almost every scene. A cow is depicted as a symbol to gain votes. Men dressed up as Hindu gods acted as clowns, Girl in a sex tape while cheating with another man gets a call from her mother who asks her where she is and the Girl replies ‘Mandir’. In the Ramleela scene, people abuse and beat the guy playing Shri Ram’s character.
Krishna and his Leela- Netflix has consistently displayed a tendency to cater to anti-Hindu narratives. Netflix’s new Telugu film ‘Krishna and his Leela’, directed by Ravikanth Perepu released on June 25, 2020, denigrated Hindu God and Goddess Radha Krishna. The film showed a male character named Krishna having sexual affairs with many women, and one of them is named Radha.
Dr Devender Bhardwaj/ New Delhi, India : (Dr Devender Bhardwaj is an Assistant Professor of Journalism at University of Delhi)
