'A family was evicted by fellow patrons at a cinema hall here on November 29 for allegedly not standing up when the national anthem was played. As per a State government order passed in 2003, cinema halls in Maharashtra are required to play the national anthem before the start of each movie. The incident came to light when a moviegoer in the same theatre (PVR Cinemas in the suburb of Kurla in central Mumbai) filmed the altercation and posted it on Twitter and Facebook, leading to an online uproar...
'An old 1870 law that a democratic state should have struck down seems to have become the weapon to muzzle dissent, used by politicians in power at the state and centre with increasing frequency, and without valid justification. The British used this law against Gandhi and other freedom fighters, and the modern Indian state in recent years and even more so in the past year, used it against artists, actors, writers, cartoonists, political opponents making arrests, and in many cases imprisoning the ‘offenders.’
The plan: Vasudev Devnani, Raje's RSS minister, is rewriting textbooks; In: More of Vedic aircraft, ancient scholars, Hindu warlords; Out: Akbar, Mandela; works of Newton, WWE Ross, Wordsworth... The aim: To rid the textbooks of 'misplaced emphasis on foreigners'; To instil patriotism and value in the young minds; The new books will be introduced from the next session...
"What causes anyone who offers a critique of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the functioning of his government to be attacked by his supporters as anti-Indian and anti-Hindu? Worse, as terrorists whose efforts have been orchestrated by—take your pick—the security agencies of the United States, the Christian Church, or unnamed colonial masters?
"Very few in mainland India are aware at the moment that a process of citizens’ registration on the basis of racial profiling is under way on the eastern fringe of the country. The national media — both print and electronic — has not cared even to report the ongoing preparation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC), leave alone analysing the legal nuances involved in the action and the possible plight of the ‘denizens’...
"After yoga, Narendra Modi has turned his soft power focus to Sanskrit. The Indian government is enthusiastically participating in the 16th World Sanskrit Conference in Bangkok. Not only is it sending 250 Sanskrit scholars and partly funding the event, the conference will see the participation of two senior cabinet ministers: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who inaugurated the conference on Sunday, and Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani, who will attend its closing ceremony on July 2.
'Of the various forms of media which run into trouble with censorship, either through formal or informal power centres, documentary films and biographies, which lie at the intersection of serious journalism and entertainment, suffer the most... In the case of Indian documentary film makers, they have to deal with the added problem of a whimsical Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), better known as the Censor Board.
'Indian media’s alleged insensitive and biased coverage of Nepal earthquake has come in for severe criticism, with #GoHomeIndianMedia hashtag trending on Twitter through Sunday. India was the first country to rush aid to Nepal after a 7.9-magnitude quake on April 25 left more than 7,200 people dead and a trail of destruction... People in Nepal took to social media in droves to complain about what they described as the Indian media’s “insensitive” reportage on the April 25 temblor that killed more than 7,000, devastated infrastructure across the country and left tens of thousands displaced.
'An exhibition to promote trade between India and Pakistan was vandalized, allegedly by Bajrang Dal activists, on GT Road here on Friday over the release of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack main accused Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi from a Pakistan jail. An FIR was lodged but no arrest made. Police said the activists stormed the venue, where a large number of people had gathered for shopping. They went on a rampage and razed the gates erected near the entrance of a hotel where the exhibition was inaugurated by a senior district official.
"The Sangh Parivar’s project of cultural nationalism in India has always rested on the premise of a revival of the “glorious ancient Hindu past” of the country. This envisages a “modern” India which is based on the identity and symbolism of Hindu nationalism. That is why, despite the Parivar’s political wing positioning itself as an agent of “development and economic growth”, these core beliefs continue to be expressed and asserted repeatedly.
