Indian Subcontinent Watch Thread

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[caltrek]

Indian Opposition Leader to Avoid Prison During Appeal
April 3, 2023

Introduction:

NEW DELHI (AP via Courthouse News) — An Indian court on Monday suspended a two-year prison sentence for Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi as he appeals his criminal conviction for mocking the prime minister’s surname which resulted in his expulsion from Parliament, dealing a huge blow to his Congress party ahead of general elections next year.

Gandhi, a fierce critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his main challenger in the 2024 polls, was ousted after a court sentenced him to two years in prison for defamation for a comment made in a 2019 election speech.

The prosecution of Gandhi, the great-grandson of India's first prime minister and scion of the dynastic Congress party, was widely condemned by opponents of Modi as the latest assault against democracy and free speech by a government seeking to crush dissent. The speed of his removal from Parliament shocked Indian politics.

Gandhi appeared in a court in the western state of Gujarat on Monday to file an appeal and was granted bail for the duration of the appeal process. He was granted bail for 30 days to file an appeal when he was convicted last month. The court set the next hearing for April 13.

“In this struggle, truth is my weapon and truth is my support,” Gandhi tweeted after Monday's hearing. He waved to supporters and Congress party members who gathered outside the court.

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/indian- ... g-appeal/

[caltrek]

India Opts Against AI Regulation
by Manish Singh
April 5 , 2023

Introduction:

(TechCrunch) India does not plan to regulate the growth of AI within the South Asian market, identifying the sector as a “significant and strategic” area for the nation. This stance arrives at a time when numerous voices are calling for increased scrutiny of the rapidly advancing technology.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT said in a long written response on Wednesday that it has assessed the ethical concerns and risks of bias and discrimination associated with AI. The ministry said it’s implementing necessary policies and infrastructure measures to cultivate a robust AI sector in the country, but does not intend to introduce legislation to regulate its growth.

The expansion of AI will have a “kinetic effect” on entrepreneurship and business development in India, the ministry asserted. “AI is a kinetic enabler of the digital economy and innovation ecosystem. Government is harnessing the potential of AI to provide personalized and interactive citizen-centric services through digital public platforms.”

In spite of the burgeoning interest in artificial intelligence in the U.S. and many developed markets, India has seen a limited number of startups entering the field. A strategic initiative from New Delhi could potentially encourage talented individuals to explore opportunities.

Read more of the TechCrunch article here: https://techcrunch.com/2023/04/05/indi ... gulation/

For the response referred to from the Ministry of Electronics and IT : https://loksabha.nic.in/Questions/QRes ... &lsno=17

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India Opts Against AI Regulation
by Manish Singh
April 5 , 2023

Introduction:

(TechCrunch) India does not plan to regulate the growth of AI within the South Asian market, identifying the sector as a “significant and strategic” area for the nation. This stance arrives at a time when numerous voices are calling for increased scrutiny of the rapidly advancing technology.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT said in a long written response on Wednesday that it has assessed the ethical concerns and risks of bias and discrimination associated with AI. The ministry said it’s implementing necessary policies and infrastructure measures to cultivate a robust AI sector in the country, but does not intend to introduce legislation to regulate its growth.

The expansion of AI will have a “kinetic effect” on entrepreneurship and business development in India, the ministry asserted. “AI is a kinetic enabler of the digital economy and innovation ecosystem. Government is harnessing the potential of AI to provide personalized and interactive citizen-centric services through digital public platforms.”

In spite of the burgeoning interest in artificial intelligence in the U.S. and many developed markets, India has seen a limited number of startups entering the field. A strategic initiative from New Delhi could potentially encourage talented individuals to explore opportunities.

Read more of the TechCrunch article here: https://techcrunch.com/2023/04/05/indi ... gulation/

For the response referred to from the Ministry of Electronics and IT : https://loksabha.nic.in/Questions/QRes ... &lsno=17

Countries that invest and take leadership in A.i will be world powers with a great deal of power and advantages of nations that don't. That is reality.

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India's Population Surpasses China's, Shifting the World's 'Center of Gravity'
Source: Wall Street Journal

China’s population has reigned as the largest in the world for more than two centuries. Now India is taking its place, heralding a major shift in the global order.

The United Nations has said India’s population is projected to surpass China’s sometime this year. Many demographers estimate it could happen this month, if it hasn’t already. India’s population is expected to reach 1.429 billion by the end of the year, according to the U.N. China will fall to second place, with 1.426 billion people. Both dwarf the U.S. at a projected 340 million.

India’s rising population means it’s likely to keep its economy growing, buy more of the world’s goods and play a bigger role in global affairs, even as it grapples with poverty and a lack of jobs.

China’s demographic headwinds will make it harder for the country to achieve its economic ambitions, or to supplant the U.S. as the world’s biggest economy, despite its rising wealth and military power.

Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/india-chin ... y-9dd7bf27

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India cuts periodic table and evolution from school textbooks -- experts are baffled
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01770-y

In India, children under 16 returning to school this month at the start of the school year will no longer be taught about evolution, the periodic table of elements, or sources of energy.



The news that evolution would be cut from the curriculum for students aged 15–16 was widely reported last month, when thousands of people signed a petition in protest. But official guidance has revealed that a chapter on the periodic table will be cut, too, along with other foundational topics such as sources of energy and environmental sustainability. Younger learners will no longer be taught certain pollution- and climate-related topics, and there are cuts to biology, chemistry, geography, mathematics and physics subjects for older school students.

Mythili Ramchand, a science-teacher trainer at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai, India, says that “everything related to water, air pollution, resource management has been removed. “I don’t see how conservation of water, and air [pollution], is not relevant for us. It’s all the more so currently,” she adds. A chapter on different sources of energy — from fossil fuels to renewables — has also been removed. “That’s a bit strange, quite honestly, given the relevance in today’s world,” says Osborne. ...

Aditya Mukherjee, a historian at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Dehli, says that changes to the curriculum are being driven by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a mass-membership volunteer organization that has close ties to India’s governing Bharatiya Janata Party. The RSS feels that Hinduism is under threat from India’s other religions and cultures.

“There is a movement away from rational thinking, against the enlightenment and Western ideas” in India, adds Sucheta Mahajan, a historian at Jawaharlal Nehru University who collaborates with Mukherjee on studies of RSS influence on school texts. Evolution conflicts with creation stories, adds Mukherjee. History is the main target, but “science is one of the victims”, she adds.

wtf?

[Powers]

wtf?

Simplify the curriculum

[caltrek]

Modi’s U.S. Visit
by Rahul Singh; and Pravin Sawhney
July 9, 2023

Introduction:

(Janata Weekly) The architects of the joint statement of June 22, 2023 and of Prime Minister Modi’s address to the joint session of US Congress conveyed the message that India was not willing to deviate publicly from its path of friendship with Russia.

On China, there were blips visible in the labyrinths of the joint statement, despite India’s otherwise conciliatory approach. While significant arms transfers were agreed to, the repeated references in the joint statement to technology cooperation and transfer were more in the domain of optics than substance. The Biden administration agreed to work with Congress to loosen export controls on high performance computers.

Modi suffered a setback in his attempts to calm US concerns over his government’s commitments to democracy and human rights. The Biden administration succeeded in breaching Modi’s eight year resistance to face a press conference, even if he took just two questions. While economic cooperation was writ large in the joint statement which stated that bilateral trade had nearly doubled since 2014, the Biden administration did not yield on the crucial issue of recognising India as a Trade Agreement Act designated country.

Furore over human rights

The US media was angry at the red carpet being rolled out for Modi. Alyssa Ayres’s article in TIME magazine accused Modi of breaking ‘with India’s past, most notably in his emphasis on India’s Hindu, rather than syncretic and secular, cultural heritage’. Knox Thames accused Modi of ‘scapegoating religious minorities’. While the New York Times accused Biden of downsizing democracy concerns, an article in the Washington Post opined that Modi’s India ‘increasingly resembled an autocracy in which religious minorities are under attack’.

Not just the entire US media, Democratic Party heavyweights too attacked Modi’s human rights record. Just before Modi landed in the US, a letter by over 70 Congressmen, all Democrats, urged Biden to discuss with Modi the need to protect human rights and democratic values in India.

Read more here: https://janataweekly.org/modis-us-visi ... row-about

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The Khalistan Movement: Recent Activities and Indian Response
by Abhishek Verma
July 27, 2023

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) Khalistani separatist activities in Western countries have been on the rise. On 2 July 2023, the Indian Consulate in San Francisco was set on fire (causing minor damage) by a group of pro-Khalistani separatists. In another incident, ‘Sikhs for Justice’, a separatist organisation, put out posters instigating the radical elements to kill Indian top diplomats in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

The advertising poster of the rally featured a tagline ‘Kill India’. These posters were in response to the death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023 in British Columbia, Canada, with separatists charging Indian agencies as responsible for the killing. In addition to these two incidents, Khalistani supporters in Brampton, Canada carried out a 5-km long parade which displayed a float depicting the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by Khalistani militants.

Intensification of Khalistani Activities Overseas

Although such incidents have taken place intermittently in the last two decades, the Khalistani activities overseas have intensified in last couple of years. Besides the attacks on state symbols, the separatists’ activities across major Western countries broadly include attacks on temples and consulates, and coordinating referendums for a separate State of Khalistan in multiple countries.

Attacks on Religious Symbols

In October 2022, Khalistan separatists and Indian supporters, approx. 400–500 in numbers clashed in Mississauga, Ontario, on the eve of Diwali. While one group waved the Indian flag, the other carried the Khalistan flag and shouted anti-India slogans.

In January 2023, in a series of incidents, three Hindu temples (ISKCON, BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir and Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple) in Australia were defaced and anti-India slogans were sprayed on the walls. Similar incidents have been reported intermittently in Australia, with the most recent incident happening just before Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited that country in May 2023. Similarly, Canada has witnessed several incidents related to the defacement of Hindu temples, often with the slogan ‘Khalistan Zindabad, Hindustan Murdabad’ sprayed on the walls.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/27072023 ... nalysis/

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India’s Top Court Temporarily Halts Conviction of Opposition Leader for Mocking Modi’s Surname
by Ashok Sharma
August 4, 2023

Introduction:

NEW DELHI (AP via Courthouse News) — India’s top court on Friday temporarily halted the criminal defamation conviction of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi for mocking the prime minister’s surname. His party said it would now seek to have Gandhi reinstated as a member of parliament.

A fierce critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his main challenger in the 2024 polls, Gandhi was ousted from Parliament after his conviction by a magistrate’s court in March.

The Supreme Court stayed the conviction, which means it is temporarily halted while the court goes into Gandhi’s appeal in detail before issuing a final ruling.

Gandhi’s disqualification as a lawmaker also now remains in abeyance, said Live Law, an online portal for Indian legal news. Congress party leader K.C. Venugopal said the party would approach the Parliament speaker to restore his seat.

The court’s order also means that Gandhi will be able to contest next year’s general elections unless a final court decision goes against him.

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/indias- ... -surname/

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Gandhian Institute in Varanasi Taken Over, Residents Evicted, Bulldozer to Follow
July 30, 2023

Introduction:

(SabrangIndia via Janata Weekly) On July 22, another legacy of India’s history met with an unfortunate end, and soon, every evidence of its existence will be erased. On Saturday, the Sarva Seva Sangh (SSS), a well-known Gandhian institute that serves as the central office of its various branches all over India, was sealed by the Uttar Pradesh Administration. In an unexpected move, the district officials of Varanasi arrived at the centre around 7 in the morning with over 500 police men with guns, including Rapid Action Force. With the help of some 200 laborers, the police forcibly entered each house in the 12.5 acre campus and removed its residents’ belongings. Thousands of books published by the Sarvodaya publications have been thrown out by the police that now remain lying in the open air wet in the rain. People evicted, with whatever things they could carry, have moved out to their acquaintances.

The said Gandhian institute in Varanasi housed and ran the Kasturba Balvadi School, leaving over 100 poor school children aged 3 to 12 suddenly facing a threat to their education. The SSS conducts a kindergarten school giving free education for the poor children around. When the children arrived for the morning classes on July 22, they found their class room locked by the police.

The Varanasi unit has about 50 members, mostly elderly Gandhians who pay a membership fee and are associated with the Sangh’s work. Some of them taught at its school. The Sangh’s employees too were left jobless and homeless when the police asked them to immediately vacate the premises, where they had lived and worked for 10 to 30 years.

Saturday’s police action came after the railways pasted demolition notices on all the Sangh’s offices on June 27, days after the local administration declared that the land belonged to the railways. The Northern Railways served a notice to the people living in the Sarva Sewa Sangh and alleged that they had encroached upon the land of Northern Railways, adjacent to GT Road, at the northern end of Kashi railway station here.

Read more here: https://janataweekly.org/up-gandhian-i ... o-follow/

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Modi’s Independence Day Speech Reveals His 2024 Election Strategy
by P. K. Balachandran
August 18, 2023

Introduction:

(Eurasia Review) Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort clearly indicated his ideological strategy to defeat the opposition combine “INDIA” helmed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the 2024 parliamentary elections.
Faced with the rising popular tide in favour of Rahul Gandhi, Modi is on a campaign to appropriate historical stalwarts of the Congress party other than Jawaharlal Nehru, Rahul’s great grandfather and the icon of the post-independence Congress Party.

Modi’s long oration made no mention of the contribution of Nehru and his dynasty to the building of post-independence India. But he made copious references to other historical personages such as Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, B.R.Ambedkar, Jaiprakash Narayan, Sri Aurobindo and Swami Vivekananda.

The strategy is to make a claim to the legacy of the Indian freedom movement without acknowledging the contribution of Nehru and his family. It was ironical that no mention was made of Nehru’s contribution to science and technology at a time when India’s moon probe Chandrayaan 3 was on its journey to the moon as the culmination of the space program Nehru initiated.

The erasure of Nehru was stark last Wednesday when the hallowed Nehru Memorial Museum and Library in New Delhi was renamed “Prime Ministers’ Memorial Museum and Library” on the specious plea that it should be a museum of all Prime Ministers and not just Nehru.

Read more here: https://www.eurasiareview.com/18082023 ... alysis/

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India Quarterly GDP Growth was 8.5% Up from 6.1% in Prior Quarter
August 23, 2023 by Brian Wang

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/08/i ... arter.html

ICRA Ratings reports India’s economic growth will accelerate to 8.5% in the April-June period of the current fiscal from the 6.1% growth rate witnessed in the preceding January-March quarter.

ICRA has projected the year-on-year (YoY) growth of the GDP to improve to 8.5% in Q1 FY2024 from 6.1% in Q4 FY2023, boosted by the supportive base of Q1 FY2023, which saw the Indian economy normalizing after the Covid19 pandemic. The GVA growth is seen at 8.1% in Q1 FY2024 (+6.5% in Q4 FY2023), driven by the recovery in the services sector (+9.7% vs. +6.9%), even as improved margins are likely to have shielded the industry (+7.3% vs. +6.3%) from weak external demand, with a relatively lower growth foreseen in agriculture (+4.0% vs. +5.5%).

ICRA projects the GFCF expansion (Gross Fixed Capital Formation is a measure of national investment) in Q1 FY2024 in double digits, based on the robust YoY growth performance of a majority of the investment-related indicators. For instance, the aggregate capital outlay and net lending of 23 state governments (except Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Manipur and Meghalaya), and the Government of India’s (GoI’s) gross capital expenditure expanded by a sharp 76% to Rs. 1.2 trillion and 59.1% to Rs. 2.8 trillion, respectively, in Q1 FY2024.

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Study Indicates Groundwater Depletion Rates in India Could Triple in Coming Decades as Climate Warms
September 1, 2023

Introduction:

(Eurekalert) ANN ARBOR—A new University of Michigan-led study finds that farmers in India have adapted to warming temperatures by intensifying the withdrawal of groundwater used for irrigation. If the trend continues, the rate of groundwater loss could triple by 2080, further threatening India's food and water security.

Reduced water availability in India due to groundwater depletion and climate change could threaten the livelihoods of more than one-third of the country's 1.4 billion residents and has global implications. India recently overtook China to become the world's most populous nation and is the second-largest global producer of common cereal grains including rice and wheat.

"We find that farmers are already increasing irrigation use in response to warming temperatures, an adaptation strategy that has not been accounted for in previous projections of groundwater depletion in India," said study senior author Meha Jain, assistant professor at U-M's School for Environment and Sustainability. "This is of concern, given that India is the world's largest consumer of groundwater and is a critical resource for the regional and global food supply."

The lead author is Nishan Bhattarai of the Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability at the University of Oklahoma, formerly a postdoctoral researcher in Jain's U-M lab.

The study, scheduled for online publication Sept. 1 in the journal Science Advances, analyzed historical data on groundwater levels, climate and crop water stress to look for recent changes in withdrawal rates due to warming. The researchers also used temperature and precipitation projections from 10 climate models to estimate future rates of groundwater loss across India.

Read more of the Eurekalert article here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/999997

For the presentation of the study results as published in Science Advances: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adi1401

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Government to bring resolution to rename India as Bharat in Parliament Special Session, say sources

Sept 5, 2023 2:57:24 PM IST (Updated)

India is likely to be renamed Bharat. Buzz on the country's name change gained ground after images of the official invite to the G20 Heads of State and ministers for a dinner being hosted by President Droupadi Murmu came to the fore. The invite shows the invite was from "the President of Bharat".

Soon, sources confirmed to CNBC-TV18 that a resolution is likely to be taken up in the Special Session of Parliament. The move is being seen as a response to a recent bloc of Opposition alliance calling itself INDIA.

[...]

BJP MP Harnath Singh Yadav told news agency ANI, "The entire country is demanding that we should use the word 'Bharat' instead of 'India'...The word 'India' is an abuse given to us by the British whereas the word 'Bharat' is a symbol of our culture...I want there should be a change in our Constitution and the word 'Bharat' should be added to it..."

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh hit out at the Modi government calling the move an assault on the Constitution.

"Mr. Modi can continue to distort history and divide India, that is Bharat, that is a Union of States. But we will not be deterred. After all, what is the objective of INDIA parties? It is BHARAT—Bring Harmony, Amity, Reconciliation And Trust. Judega BHARAT, Jeetega INDIA!" Ramesh said on X.

https://www.cnbctv18.com/politics/india ... 719781.htm

[caltrek]

Terrorising Journalism
October 4, 2023

Introduction:

(The Wire) The arrest of Newsclick editor Prabir Purkayastha and the head of the portal’s HR department, Amit Chakravarty on terrorism charges has pushed the Modi government’s attack on independent journalism on to an entirely new plane.

The arrests came on the evening of October 3, after dramatic swoop downs and ‘raids’ on homes early in the morning. Electronic devices – laptops and telephones – of dozens of journalists were seized by the police. Those targeted included some who have just had fleeting contact with the news portal as occasional contributors. Authors, journalists, satirists, historians and scientists associated with Newsclick were all raided in a clear attempt to show them where unbridled power lay. No proper seizure memos or hash values for the devices were given. It was a brute exercise of power. The intent appeared to be to assert authority and control, and finally a lock was placed at the news portal’s office. A total of 46 persons were questioned by Delhi Police’s special cell.

It has been a dark year in India for those who stand for a free press. The World Press Freedom Index ranks India at 161, in the bottom twenty of the 180 countries whose status it assesses. The fall has been immense and sharp since 2015. India is also the global internet shutdown capital, with by far the highest number of internet closures per year amongst all democracies. India has displayed record democratic backsliding, and the state of the press is a vital component of the deterioration. Unless he means it ironically, Prime Minister Narendra Modi still never fails to talk about ‘Mother of Democracy’ with a straight face.

Read more here: https://thewire.in/media/terrorising- ... ditorial

[caltrek]

On the Biggest Crackdown on the Indian Press by the Indian State – Articles and Statements of Condemnation
by Ajoy Ashirwad Mahaprashasta. et. al.
October 8, 2023

Introduction:

(Janata Weekly) October 3, 2023 will go down in history for the biggest crackdown on Indian journalism by the Indian state. Homes of 46 journalists, including nine women, who are said to be directly and indirectly associated with the news portal NewsClick were raided by the Delhi police’s special cell that usually probes cases of terrorism in the wee hours of Tuesday.

For many of us scribes, the day unfolded like a typical thriller. Our messenger apps, WhatsApp or Signal, didn’t stop buzzing. First, we heard that raids were ongoing in the homes of over 100 journalists. We didn’t know why as the Delhi Police officials refused to divulge any details. Then, one by one, names of those whose houses were being searched started coming in.

“Urmilesh’s house!” I wondered. Urmilesh is one of the most respected senior journalists of the national capital who has been at the forefront of highlighting the failures of state establishments over the last 40 years. Over the last 10 years, he had been particularly critical of the alleged authoritarian policies and measures of the Narendra Modi government.

“Paranjoy, too,” one of my colleagues informed, even as most of us were slowly waking up to the scale of the raids. Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, in the last 40 years, has consistently exposed crony practices of Indian governments. Most recently, he worked on a series of stories about the Adani group’s alleged financial frauds.

By 9 am, it was clear that the police were searching the homes of journalists who were related in some fashion with Newsclick, a portal which has been accused of taking funds from a pro-China lobbyist in the US, Neville Roy Singham. But then, we soon learnt that police had registered a fresh case against under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a stringent law that should be sparingly used against terrorists.

Read more here: https://janataweekly.org/on-the-bigges ... emnation/

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Bangladesh's opposition supporters clash with police as tensions run high ahead of general election

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Police in Bangladesh’s capital fired tear gas to disperse supporters of the main opposition party who threw stones at security forces during a massive rally demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the transfer of power to a non-partisan caretaker government to oversee general elections next year.

At least one policeman died and dozens of others were injured, alongside scores of opposition supporters, police and witnesses said.

Dhaka police spokesman Faruk Hossain told The Associated Press that violence late Saturday raged in at least 10 spots in Dhaka, where security forces confronted opposition activists who attacked them, vandalized vehicles and torched vehicles.

An opposition spokesman, Zahiruddin Swapan, said more than 1 million activists joined their rally, but Hossain put the number at about 200,000.

https://apnews.com/article/bangladesh-e ... 886c2922ae

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Bangladesh sets parliamentary election for Jan 7 amid violent protests

DHAKA, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Bangladesh said it will hold a parliamentary election on Jan. 7 in which the country's longest serving prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, will seek a fifth term, as deadly protests by opposition parties demand her resignation to make way for a caretaker government.

At least four people, including a policeman, were killed and hundreds injured in violent protests across the country in the past two weeks.

The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), whose top leadership is either jailed or in exile, has already said it will boycott the next national election if Hasina does not resign and allow in a caretaker government, two party leaders told Reuters earlier this month.

Boycotting the election will de-legitimise any win for her, they said. The BNP also boycotted the 2014 election but participated in 2018.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-paci ... 023-11-15/

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Israel’s Brutality Is Stoking the Imagination of India's Far Right
Adrana Gopalani
November 28, 2023

Introduction:

(In These Times) On October 12, as Israeli airstrikes were pummeling Gaza, Israel’s ambassador to India, Naor Gilon, told Asian News International that he had received such an outpouring of support from people in India that he could fill another Israeli army just with Indian volunteers. “Everyone is telling me, ‘I want to volunteer, I want to fight for Israel,’” he said.

Gilon’s remarks came five days after Hamas militants’ attack on Israel claimed 1,200 lives (a number Israel revised down from the initial 1,400); Israel’s response has been an ongoing, genocidal bombing campaign, which killed more than 10,000 Palestinians in Gaza in its first month. Within hours of the Hamas attack, Narendra Modi, India’s far-right prime minister, expressed solidarity with Israel, and ministers throughout his party echoed him, many proclaiming that India and Israel share a common struggle against “terrorism.” Meanwhile, Indian media has inundated hundreds of millions of viewers with relentless pro-Israel coverage, and India’s social media users have created such a flood of anti-Palestinian fake news that the cofounder of an Indian fact-checking nonprofit declared India “the disinformation capital of the world.”

This fever pitch of pro-Israel sentiment among right-wing Indians has deep historical roots. As journalist Azad Essa explains in his new book, Hostile Homelands, the movement to establish India as a Hindu-supremacist homeland — known as Hindutva — has long seen Israeli Zionism as a kindred struggle. Both ethno-nationalist movements draw inspiration from 20th-century European fascism, as well as each other. In a 1923 tract, Hindutva cofounder Vinayak Savarkar wrote, “if the Zionists’ dreams are ever realized — if Palestine becomes a Jewish state — it will gladden us almost as much as our Jewish friends.”

For most of the 20th century, the Hindutva movement struggled to gain a following and its fervor for Israel did not influence Indian politics. Instead, India officially sided with Palestinians. In 1938, Mohandas Gandhi wrote that the Zionist displacement of Palestinian Arabs “cannot be justified by any moral code of conduct.”

In the past four decades, however, Hindu nationalism has become the dominant political ideology in India, and the country’s support for Zionism has risen in tandem.

Read more here: https://inthesetimes.com/article/india ... ar-right