Triple Talaq: Patriarchy not just a 'women's issue', marriage no holy cow

From academic jargon, the word 'patriarchy' has come a long way in the Indian public sphere. But it has a long way to go yet

Contrary to the impression one gets from the popular social media usage these days patriarchy is not simply a system of male-dominance over women. According to bell hooks, “Patriarchy has no gender”. Elsewhere she says, “Patriarchy is political-social system that insists that males are inherently dominating, superior to everything and everyone deemed weak, especially females, and endowed with the right to dominate and rule over the weak.”

Patriarchy is not just ‘women’s issues’

It is an entangled problem of power. It is a problem for all those that are deemed weak.

It is regrettable that many women’s right activists who critique patriarchy and root for gender justice among Muslims ignore the social and cultural impact of economic exclusion and exploitation of Muslims. While intersectionality of identities is important it is also equally, if not more, important to see the interlinkages of political and economic conditions. Advocates of women’s rights who also have a commitment to secularism face a dilemma – as do Muslim women who do not wish to align with Hindutva elements – lest they forfeit the security and right to dignity of the entire community.

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Ishrat Jahan case: CBI unable to prosecute ex-cops for lack of permissions

Upon being asked by the judge how long the government would take to respond, special public prosecutor R.C. Kodekar said the agency wouldn't know as it would be decided by "higher-level officers"

During a hearing at a special court on Saturday in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case, the CBI told special judge J.K. Pandya that the time limit to sanction the prosecution of accused retired police officers in the case is not its hands.

The police officers accused in the case include D.G. Vanzara and N.K. Amin.

As the Indian Express reported, the CBI also repeated its stand on how it has sought permission from the government to move against the retire officers only after the special court ordered it.

“Our stand has been very clear since the beginning (of the trial) that there is no need to seek permission (from the Gujarat government) for the prosecution (of former police officers). We moved (a plea) before the state (government) only after this court ordered us to do so,” special public prosecutor R.C. Kodekar, appearing for the CBI, told judge Pandya.

According to the Indian Express, Kodekar, upon being asked by the judge how long the government would take to respond, he said the agency wouldn’t know as it would be decided by “higher-level officers”. Read More

 

Why Rajinikanth's plan to form a political party is still far from reality

Supporters claim the actor has been saving his energies for the 2021 state assembly elections, but many others see Rajinikanth as being a non-starter as a politician

Released last week, the trailer of Petta – Rajinikanth ’s next film in the offing – offers the quintessential Rajini fan a sense of deja vu. This was the Rajinikanth that many grew up slavering over. Forty-three years ago, in 1975, Rajinikanth threw open iron gates in a small scene in Apoorva Raagangal – which had Kamal Haasan as the hero – to walk into the Tamil socio-cultural space. Petta, in the trailer of which he opens a similar iron gate with the same swagger, is a reminder of how the phenomenon called Rajinikanth has grown over four decades to cast a lasting influence on Tamil cinema.

It was also a reminder of how Rajinikanth was a natural actor, though still a reluctant politician.

On December 31, 2017, Rajinikanth announced his intention to form a political party. That put to an end over two-decade-long ‘will-he, won’t-he’ suspense.

In 1996, Rajinikanth made his political aspirations apparent when he threw his weight behind the DMK-TMC (Tamil Maanila Congress – a breakaway group of Congress led by G.K. Moopanar) alliance and gave what later came to be famously known as the ‘Rajini voice’ against J. Jayalalithaa. Riding fresh on the phenomenal success of his 1995 film Baasha – where he reluctantly turns a don to avenge the murder of his friend and to save innocent people from ‘villainous’ dons – Rajinikanth raised hopes among his fans of doing a real-life Baasha.

Since then, for over two decades, Rajinikanth has evaded that existential question, often telling his fans and media how he hadn’t yet got the ‘signal from God’ to take the plunge. Read More

 

IRCTC scam: RJD chief Lalu Prasad gets interim bail till Jan 19 from court

Special Judge Arun Bharadwaj granted relief to Prasad after he was produced before the court through video conference from a Ranchi jail

A Delhi court Thursday granted interim bail till January 19 to RJD chief Lalu Prasad in two Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation IRCTC scamcases filed by the CBI and the ED.

Special Judge Arun Bharadwaj granted relief to Prasad after he was produced before the court through video conference from a Ranchi jail, where he is lodged in another case, as he was unable to come due to health reasons.

The court directed both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to file their replies to Prasad's application seeking regular bail in both the cases.

The cases relate to alleged irregularities in granting operational contract of two IRCTC hotels to a private firm.

The court had earlier granted regular bail to Prasad's wife Rabri Devi and son Tejashwi Yadav in the CBI case, while they are on interim bail in the ED matter, which was extended till January 19, the next date of hearing.

 

AgustaWestland scam: Christian Michel's bail plea order reserved for Dec 22

Christian Michel was in CBI custody for 15 days

A Delhi court Wednesday reserved for December 22 its order on bail plea of Christian Michel , alleged middleman charge-sheeted and arrested in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper case.

The 57-year-old British national told the court that he was not required for custodial interrogation and no purpose will be served by keeping him further custody.

Michel was in CBI custody for 15 days.

He was arrested in the UAE and extradited to India on December 4. The next day, he was produced in the court, which allowed his five-day custodial interrogation by the CBI which was later extended by five more days.

Michel is among the three alleged middlemen being probed in the case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The others are Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa.

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Telangana poll result: KCR takes oath as chief minister for 2nd term

Rao was unanimously elected leader of the TRS Legislature Party by the newly-elected MLAs

TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao , who led his party to a resounding victory in the assembly elections, was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Telangana for a second straight term Thursday.

The swearing-in ceremony was held at the Raj Bhavan.

On Tuesday, Rao was unanimously elected leader of the TRS Legislature Party by the newly-elected MLAs.

In the December 7 elections, the TRS won 88 seats in the 119-member assembly, trouncing the Congress-led People's Front, which ended up with a tally of 21.

The police department Wednesday issued a traffic advisory asking the public to avoid the Raj Bhavan road between 12 pm and 3 pm in view of the swearing-in of Rao, and take alternative routes to their destinations.

The gazette notification by the Election Commission constituting the new assembly was issued during on Wednesday.

Today KCR along with TRS MPs, will plan party's strategy for the ongoing Parliament session. According to sources, a meeting of the party's state executive would be held in the party headquarters, Telangana Bhavan, on Friday.

 

India vs Australia 2nd Test: Ashwin, Rohit ruled out, Kohli mulls options

Ashwin's unavailability is a big loss as he had taken a six-wicket haul at Adelaide to help India record their first win in a series opener in Australia

India's premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and batsman Rohit Sharma have been ruled out of the second Test starting on Friday, dealing a double blow to the visitors at a time when opener Prithvi Shaw is yet to recover from an ankle injury.

With the trio unavailable for selection, India included Hanuma Vihari, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in a 13-man squad announced on eve of the second Test.

While Shaw injured his ankle while fielding in the sole warmup game before the series opener, Ashwin suffered an abdominal strain and Rohit hurt his back during the first Test which India won by 31 runs.

"Prithvi Shaw is recovering well from his left ankle injury but still undergoing treatment. R Ashwin has a left-sided abdominal strain. He is receiving treatment at the moment. Rohit Sharma jarred his lower back while fielding in the 1st Test at Adelaide. He is undergoing treatment. He too is ruled out of the second Test," read a statement from the BCCI.

"The team management is closely monitoring these players and a call on their availability for the third Test will be taken at an appropriate time," it added.

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500,000 patients received treatment under Ayushman Bharat: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also stated that India is much ahead of the Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030

At the Partner's Forum on maternal and child health held in the capital on Wednesday, prime minister Narendra Modi said 500,000 patients had received treatment under the Ayushman Bharat scheme in the first ten weeks after the launch. The government has approved claims worth Rs 7 billion, the prime minister said. The Ayushman Bharat scheme was launched in September to provide cashless treatment for 500 million citizens.

Modi added, "Officers have been asked to identify 117 'aspirational districts'. Each such district has been entrusted to a team that works across sectors like education, water and sanitation, rural development with top-most priority to health and nutrition." The government's vaccination programme has reached 32.8 million children and 8.4 million pregnant women in the last three years. Vaccines for 12 life-threatening diseases like pneumonia and diarrhoea are provided under the Mission Indradhanush vaccination programme.

It was also stated that India is much ahead of the Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030. 12.6 million accounts under the 'Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana' have been opened.

 

Google has 'no plans' to launch Chinese search engine: CEO Sundar Pichai

Pichai told the committee he would be 'fully transparent' with policymakers if the company brings search products to China

Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai told a US congressional panel on Tuesday that the Alphabet Inc unit currently has "no plans" to launch a search engine in China but did not rule out a future launch.

Pichai, who testified before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, had told U.S. lawmakers in a letter in August that providing such a search engine would give "broad benefits" to China but that it was unclear whether Google could launch the service there.

Pichai told the committee he would be "fully transparent" with policymakers if the company brings search products to China.

"Right now, there are no plans to launch search in China," Pichai testified. "Getting access to information is an important human right, so we always are compelled across the world to try hard to provide that information."

Lawmakers and hundreds of Google employees have raised concerns that Google would comply with China's internet censorship and surveillance policies if it re-enters the Chinese search engine market.

 

Babri demolition anniversary: Hindu outfits to hold programmes in Ayodhya

VHP will observe 'Shaurya Diwas' on December 6 to be followed by Gita Jayanti celebrations on December 18

As the crucial 2019 Lok Sabha elections near, the temple town of Ayodhya has become the cynosure of all eyes with the December 6 Babri Masjid demolition anniversary likely to act as a political potboiler.

Days after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) organised 'Dharam Sabha' in Ayodhya to seek support for construction of a grand Ram temple, the ring-wing outfit will observe 'Shaurya Diwas' on December 6 to be followed by Gita Jayanti celebrations on December 18.

Gita Jayanti marks the advent of Bhagavad Gita, the sacred text of Hindus.

"Shaurya Diwas (which marks the demolition of Babri Masjid) will be traditionally celebrated. In Ayodhya, VHP along with various Hindu organisations are likely to hold a number of religious programme, including 'hawan', so that a grand temple of Lord Ram is built in Ayodhya," VHP spokesperson in Ayodhya, Sharad Sharma told PTI.

2018 marks the completion of 26 years of demolition of Babri Masjid.

"Special prayers will be offered to Goddess Saraswati so that she can help the people, especially politicians, in removing any obstruction in the path of construction of Ram temple," Sharma said.

"Sarva baadha mukti hawans (hawans seeking to get rid of all obstructions) will be held. Tributes will also be paid to the 'karsewaks' who faced the bullets," he said.

Elaborating further, the VHP leader said similar Dharam Sabha was scheduled to be held in Delhi on December 9 in which over 5 lakh people are likely to participate. Read More