'Cracking down on serial-offender and terror accused MP Pragya Thakur, who hailed Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse as a ‘patriot’ in the Lok Sabha, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday barred her from attending its parliamentary party meeting in the ongoing session and removed her from the consultative committee on defence. BJP working president J.P. Nadda announced the disciplinary action against her and condemned the controversial Hindutva leader’s remarks in a bid to defuse the political crisis triggered by her remarks in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday...'
'BJP leader Pragya Singh Thakur has once again stirred up a controversy with her remarks on Nathuram Godse in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. She termed Nathuram Godse, the one who killed Mahatma Gandhi, a 'deshbhakth'. Her comment drew crticism from various quarters and the Congress left no stone unturned to take on the BJP. "Repeatedly referring to Nathuram Godse as a "deshbhakt" is a perfect representation of BJP's deplorable hate politics. Will PM Modi condemn Pragya Thakur's remarks or continue to stay silent?" the Congress tweeted...'
'The February 2002 Sabarmati train fire, which killed 59 kar sevaks and triggered large-scale riots, was part of a "conspiracy" hatched by Congress's elected members from Godhra, according to a reference book on political history of Gujarat published by a state board... The book, titled ''Gujarat Ni Rajkiya Gatha'' (Political Saga of Gujarat) and published in December 2018, is edited by Bhavnaben Dave, a former BJP MP and current vice-chairperson of the board... "To destabilise a stable government, a conspiracy was hatched on February 27, 2002.
'Malegoan blast-accused and Member of Parliament from Bhopal constituency, Pragya Singh Thakur, yet again raked up a controversy by claiming that Nathuram Godse, assassin of M K Gandhi, was a patriot. When asked why she was missing from the 42-day long ‘Gandhi Sankalp Yatra’ organised by her own party (Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP) to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Thakur said on Wednesday that she believed in following the path shown by Gandhi ‘instead of publicising it’...'
'Eminent historian Dwijendra Narayan Jha pioneered studies on material culture in early Indian history. In his academic career spanning more than 35 years, he undertook extensive research on society and the economy in ancient India, and probed different dimensions of feudalism in early medieval India. As a professional historian, he actively intervened in contemporary political debates that derived their relevance from historical studies.
'“It was not my intention to hurt their sentiments” begins the ‘clarification’ that yet another Indian academician has been forced to issue on one of her well-researched writings. Vinodini Madasu, senior assistant professor of Telugu at the Yogi Vemana University in Andhra Pradesh, is the latest addition to the long and growing list of academics under attack from conservative elements... She is considered a powerful Dalit-feminist voice in literary circles and among activists. Her interventions are based on rigorous research and her lived experience...
'B S Yeddyurappa, the Chief Minister of Karnataka, on October 30, 2019, made a public announcement that Karnataka will be taking steps to remove Tipu Sultan from school textbooks. According to an Economic Times report, Yeddyurappa, in response to a question at a press meet said, “Yes. 100%. We are not going to allow anything about Tipu in textbooks.” Tipu Sultan, an 18th century ruler of Mysuru, has been at the centre of heated debates in Karnataka for the last five years.
'The process of manufacturing post facto approval for the momentous changes that the Central government made to the status of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) in August 2019, with parliament’s nod, is in full swing. Apart from the chest-thumping at the recent election rallies in Maharashtra and Haryana, and the latest round of military operations launched across the northwestern border, educational institutions are being pressed to organise debates on this issue.
'Maharashtra BJP unit on Tuesday said it will ask the party-led NDA government at the Centre to confer Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, on Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. In its election manifesto, released by BJP working president J.P. Nadda along with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, state party president Chandrakant Patil and Mumbai unit head Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the state unit also sought the honour for social reformers Jyotiba Phule and Savitribai Phule, a party leader told PTI...'
'On October 7, Times Now channel’s “India Upfront” programme claimed that the Congress was attempting to present a “counter-narrative to the RSS view of history” by circulating a 128-page booklet among its members. Few should have any objection to the idea of pushing back against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s majoritarian view of history, which, in many instances, involves grave misrepresentations of fact, deliberate distortions and, on occasion, complete fabrications.
