BJP silences critics, condemns attack on Dalits

BJP silences critics, condemns attack on Dalits

With the Lok Sabha all set to take up a discussion on the matter of atrocities on Dalits, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday rubbished assertions that it was behind the recent incidents and said it unequivocally condemns the attacks against the community.

BJP leader Nalin Kohli said it is extremely unfortunate that these kinds of incidents are happening in this country.

"We condemn them completely, unequivocally. At the same time, while the concern is there that these incidents should stop, law and order has to immediately act against them, where ever the culprits are.," Kohli added.

"To believe that this is a conspiracy and the BJP is behind it is equally condemnable," he added.

The Lok Sabha is scheduled to take up a discussion on the matter of atrocities on Dalitstoday. A decision to this effect was taken by the Business Advisory Committee of the House.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and other opposition leaders had earlier raised the issue and sought the chair's intervention to allow early debate.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar had earlier said there is no hesitation from the government's side to discuss this issue, adding the ruling dispensation has always been open for discussion.(more)

PMO stamp in Cabinet rejig

PMO stamp in Cabinet rejig

Among many political, administrative and ideological messages in the changes in the council of ministers that Prime Minister Narendra Modi carried out, the most important was the unambiguous stamp of his office.

The sweep of influence of the Prime Minister’s Office in Tuesday’s rejig was rarely witnessed in the past three decades.

In expanding this influence of the central government, the PM was assisted by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah.

The changes in the Cabinet worked at several levels.

They were definitely done with an eye on electoral compulsions — Dalits and Other Backward Classes found increased representation. New ministers were inducted from states that are either electorally crucial for the BJP (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat) or are going to polls in the near future (Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh).

Also, alliance building was kept in mind. Allies like Republican Party of India (A)’s Ramdas Athawale and Apna Dal’s Anupriya Patel were made ministers.

There was an effort for more efficient political management, not only to reach out to Opposition parties but other stakeholders, like the media, as well as assuage different camps within the BJP.

A straight-talking M Venkaiah Naidu was made in charge of the information and broadcasting ministry, while Arun Jaitley, seen as a liberal voice in the Sangh Parivar and the party, was divested of that portfolio. Read more.

Hyderabad Central University campus divided by caste

On the otherwise desolate campus of Telangana’s University of Hyderabad aka Hyderabad Central University (HCU), 40-odd students sit in front of a building, sharing the onus of ingenious slogans and calls for justice for a friend they have recently lost, Rohith Vemula. The guard sitting on the other side of the locked grill watches on wordlessly. He has lived this scene every day for close to two weeks now.

A little ahead there’s a makeshift platform covered in blankets and shawls. Like the batch of seven students before them, seven more sit on this platform now. After two straight days of fasting, they’re mostly quiet. A lone cardboard placard does the talking for them. “Hunger Strike,” it says.

68 years on, has nothing changed for Dalits?

Business Standard asked five eminent thinkers of Dalits issues whether anything had changed for the community in 68 years after independence. What is responsible for this change, or lack of it? Is it politics, economics or the society?

Social reform most important for amelioration of Dalits: K N Govindacharya

Ultimately, a democratic society should be considered responsible for the continuing alienation of the Dalits and the status quo of the mindset of theBharatiya elite. Read More.