It was a state-sponsored attack on the Muslim community. Amit shah and Modi are ultimately responsible for the unrest in the country. This is just the beginning and it is going to get much worse. We are witnessing the rise of the Hindu Rashtra.
6
I wrote a piece in your paper couple of days back when I tried to analyse the anatomy of Modi’s inspiration and present actions. One of your staff wrote back to thank me for my “honesty”. This is really the problem in India today. Almost everyone is stifled into silence for the slightest sign of dissent, fearing being labelled anti-national, raids by Income Tax officials and from the enforcement directorate, to threats upon person and in recent months to murders of respected left wing intellectuals. In a situation such as this talks about brotherhood sound hollow and insulting especially if you consider the facts on the ground about the current violence and deaths. It is a fact that four leading legislators including a Minister in the Central Government had made hugely provocative statements against the Muslims, peacefully occupying an area in Delhi as a mark of protest against the new citizens act and no action had been taken against them,leading the Court to make savage criticisms of the police who were clearly waiting for “instructions”in the same way, as they and the concerned Minister took no action for three days to halt the murders. Can one really blame Muslims for thinking that this was a sponsored event by the Interior Minister who is facing opposition on the new citizens act engineered by him and Modi. If we savage minorities for opposing legislation in a peaceful manner we lose our pretence to be a secular democracy and should stop dreaming about a seat on the UN.
4
India is a country of 1.5 Billions that can not be understood in a simplistic manner. Modi or BJP is given too much credit for all the things in India. If Modi was really Superman he could have pressed a button and riots could have been stopped. Modi definitely didn't want the riot to happen during the visit of Donald Trump. Headlines about the riots completely over shadowed the feel good coverage of Donald Trump visit. Even worst critic of Modi will not blame modi of not being wary of adverse media headlines.
1
BJP and its leaders have repeatedly shown Indians their ugly side. Wherever they go, they bring divisive politics followed by violence. Delhi had no sectarian violence before BJP's local leaders started making inflammatory speeches. These leaders should be held responsible for the violence that ensued after their comments.
9
@mango if we want to combine two different things then many conjectures can be created.
1
Hindutva forces (BJP, RSS) love to make every issue about Hindu-Muslim. I wonder why? Definitely, they are not thinking about national unity, given 14% of Indian population is Muslim (2nd largest in the world). They have a regressive worldview and they want to implement it on entire India. Shortest path to that goal is by demonizing Muslims and Secular Indians. Hence CAA, NRC, etc is in play.
In their zeal to grab power they are bringing much shame to an ancient and secular civilization. They are creating stress and fear among Indians at a time when economy is distressed (thanks to their mismanagement). Indians need to stand up and claim their secular heritage with positive energy. Show the BJP that their divisive tactics will not work. People of Delhi sent that message loud and clear in recent elections. Now, it is time for rest of the India to do the same.
6
Muslims , who make 17-18% of population of India and Delhi, have been blockading traffic and restricting freedom of movement of Hindus for past 2-3 months.
The government has been too kind and tolerant of islamic blockade of roads in Delhi. In USA no city will allow such blockade for even an hour.
Hindus are rightfully demanding that muslims lift the blockade of streets and asking the government to force it.
5
@IdoltrousInfidel
In general, people of India exercise their democratic right to protest by blocking roads. Gandhi and other founders of India blocked roads and so did millions of other freedom fighters. Farmers across India do it on monthly basis. Religious processions and politicians do it on weekly basis. So do, opposition parties, students, women rights groups, dalits, tribals, union members, private and public employees and other minority groups. Isolating Muslim women for doing so and calling them out for something that every Indian does often is very interesting and revealing.
On another note, it is the responsibility of the democratic government to be kind and tolerant. They are not doing any favors, it is their job. I would say that kindness and openness to listening is probably the most important element of any functioning democracy. It would be much better if Modi and BJP start listening to people of India rather than enforcing their view on them.
9
It was when I was reading about the Gujarat massacre of 2002 that I learned what a goon Modi was. Events since, especially during his current term as PM, have only cemented that image. I find it really disturbing that his supporters among the general public, as well as those of Indian ancestry living abroad, can be so blind to his blatantly racist and authoritarian agenda.
10
@garibaldi When reading about the Gujarat massacre, did you also realize that it was a reaction to Muslims burning a train full of Hindu pilgrims, or did you just start with the reaction?
@Jason Though officially classified as a communalist riot, the events of 2002 have been described as a pogrom by many scholars, with some commentators alleging that the attacks had been planned, with the attack on the train was a "staged trigger" for what was actually premeditated violence. Other observers have stated that these events had met the "legal definition of genocide," or referred to them as state terrorism or ethnic cleansing.[ Instances of mass violence include the Naroda Patiya massacre that took place directly adjacent to a police training camp the Gulbarg Society massacre where Ehsan Jafri, a former parliamentarian, was among those killed; and several incidents in Vadodara city. Scholars studying the 2002 riots state that they were premeditated and constituted a form of ethnic cleansing, and that the state government and law enforcement were complicit in the violence that occurred
4
Does anyone know what happened to the man that was being attacked (he was Muslim) was he ok, did he survive? He was on his hands and knees and bloodied. I'm not Hindu but my husband & kids are. Was that man ok?
2
@Sonja
Yes the police took him to hospital and he survived. He was in good condition that he spoke to reporters.
1
Bye the way, let truth be told. The CAA law is not applicable to any citizen of India of any religion.
Its applicable to refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Iran fleeing islamic persecution. It offers a fast track to refugees of all religions from those islamic countries except muslims.
Its an exact copy of the Lautenberg act passed by US congress which discriminates among refugees by religion, as in case of refugees of iran.
3
This is not Gandhi's India or even Patel's or Nehru's. They have all been reduced to advertising commodities - Gandhi ashram, Patel statue etc. They would be embarrassed and ashamed of what their values have been corrupted into.
7
India does not belong to Gandhi and Nehru. If India should be idea of a single individual then what is wrong with Kim’ North Korea, Mao’s China, Lenin’s Russia and Castro’s Cuba.
The picture shown above of a poor person's burning house is not a just horrible scene to watch, It Is Horror Itself. This cannot be allowed to go on. It must not go on every so often. Apart from bringing the culprits to justice, we must also undertake to do something more worldly, more tangible to help the suffering humanity.
I propose all people of India origin residing and working in America and Canada pool together our resources to provide at least some semblance of money and material aid to those whose houses and businesses have been burned and family members killed, regardless of what community or neighborhood they belong to.
I suggest prominent Indians, like Nadella of Microsoft and other technology captains to take the lead and get together with a group of other well-to-do Indians whose credibility cannot be questioned. Perhaps they could get Mr Jung the former governor of Delhi to join in. Others who come to mind for this task are Mrs. Kiran Bedi, Lt Governor of Pondicherry, Wipro's Azim Premji, Nilekenni (?) of Microsoft, Ratan Tata, Mukesh Ambani, et al.
To paraphrase what a wise man said about bad things happening, again and again, is because the good folks stand by without getting involved.
P.S. If a media person happens to read this appeal, I request that they broadcast this message as far as their words can reach in India and elsewhere.
Arun K. Chhabra, Esquire, Washington, DC
3
Sure enough, some readers have managed to blame this on Trump (who I happen to despise) - but the fact is, the problem started when Muhammad bin Qasim invaded the territory we now call India, in 672 AD.
Let's not give Trump credit for the few bad things that he didn't do - that actually encourages his megalomania. After all, there are times when it's best, to just "let a stable genius lie".
2
I am dismayed by the sight of violence in India. But I am outraged by the one-sidedness with which NYT articles tell the story. Your articles and pictures seem to be intended to vilify only the Hindus. Although I deplore all kinds of violence, let me ask a simple question: Does anyone in the world think Muslims have had no role in stoking violence in India? I beg of you to be objective and tell both sides of the story while reporting!
5
@PA
It is not Hindus that are being violent. It is people who follow Hindutva which is an ideology propagated by BJP and RSS. It is divisive in nature as it considers themselves to be pure and rest all other groups as impure and inferior to them. They like to impose their viewpoint on everybody else and they deploy all kinds of coercive techniques (violence included) to get their way. What is happening in Delhi has happened in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh before. It could be a surprise for you but it is not a surprise for an average Indian.
To end, equating Hindutva and Hinduism will be wrong. Hindus have been living side by side with other minorities for ages without any issues. Problems arise, when Hindutva forces lead by BJP and RSS enter into the picture.
7
@PA : That is the main reason why I read NYT.
NYT's views are contrary to my views, mostly. This helps me to educate myself and see the contrary point of view.
Mostly I like NYTs articles but their views about Hindus or Modi is mind-blowing and fantastic, right from a fantasy novel , from where on earth they gather such views?
Anyway I love NYT - no doubt about it.
Rather than belatedly "appealing to his brothers and sisters of Delhi to maintain peace and brotherhood" after 27 killings, PM Modi should come down hard on his Hindu right wing supporters affiliated with this party who are engineering these riots.
These riots were instigated and organized by an elected legislator of Modi's BJP, a certain Mr. Kapil Mishra.
Sad that the 2002 Gujarat experiment of "teaching muslims a lesson" is being repeated in New Delhi. India cannot afford Modi's blood-soaked politics of communal conflagration and divisiveness.
8
The law muslims are violently protesting against is the identical copy of the Lautenberg Amendment passed by US congress
"The Lautenberg Amendment, first enacted in 1990 as part of the U.S. foreign operations budget to facilitate resettlement of Jews from the former Soviet Union, allowed HIAS to bring tens of thousands to safety. As the worldwide refugee situation changed, the Lautenberg Amendment was expanded to include persecuted religious minorities in other countries, such as Jews, Christians, and Baha’is from Iran."
Now imagine, muslims in USA , violently protesting and blocking roads for months, the Lautenberg act, demanding that the preferences being offered to Jews, Christians, and Baha’is from Iran, be offered to the 99% majority muslims of Iran too.!
That's what the muslims of India are demanding.
5
@IdoltrousInfidel
Similarly CAA gives preferencs to Refugees who are Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists and Hindus fleeing persecution by muslims in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afganistan.
Muslims in India are demanding that the preference be extended to the muslim community too from those islamic countries.
The absurdity of the demand is stunning.
1
@IdoltrousInfidel
Misinformation and distraction is not going to work this time. Anti CAA protests are being undertaken by large sections of Indian society. Just a month ago, it was university students that undertook protest and were beaten brutally by police. Protest are also underway in multiple states and cities across India.
Lets not bury our heads in sand. CAA and NRC is anti India and what it means to be Indian. It is unconstitutional because it discriminates against Muslims and it is also a security concern. Diverse people of India are demanding CAA and NRC to be rolled back with immediate effect.
7
Since when has Donald Trump ever brought about peace and harmony in any situation? He literally bragged about pitting his Trump Org employees against each other and he would stand back and watch. Chaos is what him happy, as well as promoting hatred and racism.
5
Part of the problem is that the bill is incorrectly named, leading to confusion that those with destructive agendas have taken advantage of.
It is called the "Citizenship Amendment Act". That makes it sound like it seeks to revoke the citizenship status of Muslims.
What it actually is - and how it should have been named - is the "Illegal Immigration Prevention Act".
The bill does NOT seek to deprive Indian Muslims of their citizenship. It seeks to curb illegal immigration, and to extend citizenship to persecuted minorities of Pakistan and Bangladesh who seek asylum in India.
The bill only excludes Muslims from Pakistan and Bangladesh from seeking asylum as persecuted minorities in India, because Muslims are not a minority in those countries, and are the people actually doing the persecuting.
5
@Jason
First, name is not the problem. Problem is in details. No group can be excluded just because they are not being perceived as persecuted. Case in point, muslims are a diverse group of people and some smaller groups are indeed persecuted in countries mentioned in the law.
Second, CAA is a national security concern. How can anybody confirm which religion refugees belong to? There is a possibility that terrorists or drug smugglers who want to harm Indians can infiltrate by claiming themselves to be non-practising Buddhist or Jain.
Third, you are only looking at CAA but when combined with National Register of Citizen (NRC), it becomes a potent tool for BJP to discriminate against any group of people they perceive as their enemies. Muslims could be first, but it will not stop there. They will move to target other groups soon after that.
4
@Jason Ahamadis are being targeted for killings and Sufi shrines are destroyed in Pakistan - don't tell me that they are not being persecuted in a Muslim country and therefore undeserving of asylum! So much CAA propaganda cannot change the facts.
4
@Max duPont Is that what the rioting is about, protection for the Ahmadis of Pakistan? No. It is about trying to show Modi is bad for civil order by disrupting civil order.
PM Modi's call for calm is alright as far as it goes. But more needs to be said and done.
Those who want to raise a temple in honor of Hindu deity Rama should take a moment to reflect upon what Rama, as the king of Ayudhya would have done, in such riotous situations? Would he look the other way when a powerful group went around burning the houses and businesses of a less powerful group? Would he discriminate against anyone on the basis of his caste or religion?
If Rama did any of that stuff, history and Hindu civilization would not have been celebrating RamRajya for millennia. And, for sure, there would have been no Diwali, the festival of lights celebrating the victory of good over evil.
You can't honor Rama by doing things that carry the slightest hint of bringing dishonor to His memory. For God's sake, for Rama's sake, follow His deeds and examples. I'm sure you remember that Rama cut short his brother Lakshman from saying stuff in derogation of his foe, Ravana. If we followed those examples, we would be honoring Rama in a more fitting manner than by building an edifice of brick and mortar - even a grand, beautiful edifice.
Arun K. Chhabra, Attoreny-at-law, Washignton, DC
2
As of now, the midnight of 26th feb, the judge mentioned in this article who questioned the police, Justice S. Muralidhar has been transferred to another state for taking action against the Modi’s minister.
8
Trump is spreading his brand of sunshine around the world. Sad.
9
@caseyjay Modi came up with this all on his own, this isn't some new American led concept. Trump didn't invent hindu nationalism. Do you even know why Pakistan exists?
2
NYT fails to note that several Hindus have also been killed in this violence. In fact the first death was that of a policeman killed by stones pelted by anti-CAA protesters. Later another Intelligence Bureau agent was killed whose body was found was found in a ditch in the locality. Both were Hindus, besides several other Hindus also killed. If Hindus were doing all the attacks then how does NYT explain killing of the policemen and Hindus? How does it make sense for pro-CAA supporters to instigate the violence just when world attention is on India due to Trump visit?
16
@Observer "Doctors said that most of the people killed had died from gunshot wounds. Witnesses said that the firing came from the direction of police officers. The dead included both Muslims and Hindus"
3
@Observer As was stated in the article, "The dead included both Muslims and Hindus."
1
@David My comments was based on earlier version of this article that failed to mention Hindu victims. Only in the latest version they mentioned of the Hindu victims, although yet to see a mention of the two Hindu police officers being killed by anti-CAA protesters. HLM too!!
1
Modi, Amit Shah, BJP and RSS have a game plan to divide India by sowing hate in the hearts of Hindu majority. Wherever they go, violence against so called enemies (students, minorities, etc.) follows. First, it was Gujarat. Then it was Uttar Pradesh and now it is Delhi. They will not stop until Indians stand up and say enough is enough. Otherwise, we should prepare ourselves for the horrors that we have not seen in a long time. International community should not let its guard down. We have to call out the perpetrators of violence and have to hold them accountable for their actions.
16
Another division of India into secular, muslim, and hindu nations. Credit Mudi.
3
Stephen Miller et.al. have been paying careful attention to how India’s Citizen Amendment Act is working. If Trump is re-elected, & especially if the republicans also take the house & senate, they will declare anyone without proper ID to be an illegal immigrant. However individuals from certain groups & countries will be able to obtain new proper ID & others will not.
6
You’re completely off base in your understanding of the Indian law and what Republicans will be able to do here.
Indian law allows for alternate forms of providing proof of residency. It impacts Indian citizens of all religions equally. There are just as many, if not more, poor Hindus as there are Muslims. Poverty and access to resources cuts across religious lines.
India is a complicated country; Hinduism has not been a united religion and in this context the liberal leanings of Nehru and Congress party worked. What we are seeing is a unifying call from the BJP, breaking down caste barriers. Modi himself belongs to the backward masses that suffered the most under foreign rule for a millennium. Modi and Trump are alike; they are not students of history, and are not benevolent leaders. They are street fighters that appeal to the masses and get the job done.
11
Get what ‘job done’? Polarize the country.
2
Everytime India has tried to universalize a civil code, marriage code or anything like that, it has run into problems. This stems from the fact that it has not been able to educate the masses and provide a buy in for a brighter future. This is what happens when you are occupied for a millenium and start very late with few resources.
6
@AKA
The mindset which divided the country before is alive and kicking. Imagine a secular state providing millions of dollars to fund Islamic madrassas to perpetuate a hate narrative.
2
‘Occupied’ for a millennium? The Mughals were rather benign occupiers, and the Brits allowed sectarian practices to continue. Why the move to ‘standardize’ such diverse community. Make some laws universal, let the rest be sectarian.
2
@Tamza Have you heard of Aurangzeb? He was one of the most brutal rulers of all time and crushed non-Muslims like ants. What is happening today is horrific but don't use it as a pretext to label tyrants "benign occupiers".
In any case, "benign occupiers" is quite an oxymoron in itself.
3
heartbreaking. please let us know if there is a fund set up to help the affected families
3
Sit in to block the whole highway for over a week, calling one billion Hindus in India coward and immoral, threatening them with mortal consequences and declaring that 150 million “will take care of 1 billion” will incite very profound hostility. And it did. In my town of Ahmedabad where I have my winter home I was shocked to see Pakistani flags on the street during the protest by the Muslim brothers and sisters. Thank god in my town the common sense prevailed.
12
Modi repeating his Ahmedabad performance (or non-performance, sitting back, watching his Hindu gangs inflame and attack Muslims) but on the national stage. Some leader!
10
@Max duPont
In Ahmedabad after several hundred Hindu women and children were burnt alive, the riots killed 900 Muslims and 780 Hindus. Did Modi played active role? Yes he did ..... you know how?..... he built a city which is number one in India for racial, religious and gender harmony. It’s town which is number one choice for Muslims to live and has the least amount of crime.
6
@CTBlue Where exactly are you getting your numbers? Of course, every single death is regrettable, but that does not mean you can make up any number you like. There were 59 people on the Godhra train. The riots that ensued killed far more Muslims than Hindus. But this is not about counting. It is about ordering the police to stand by as Modi is said to have done in Gujarat, and doing the same now in Delhi, as mob violence rages and an unconscionable number of innocent people are killed, injured, or displaced from their homes and livelihood. This is on Modi, who controls the Delhi police, as it was in Ahmedabad.
6
Modi is as disasterous as any conservative religious figure can be, and they all are. Other than on a day of worship, I’d be happy to never hear the shrill hateful nonsense they foist upon us .
7
Modi: Stop protesting or there will be bloodshed.
Modi: Why can't we all just get along?
13
Chaos and destruction follows Trump wherever he goes.
Can't blame Trump for this? Maybe not, but he supports the less than democratic ruling party of India and verbally attacks Muslims habitually. He went there to give support to the ruling party and while he was there, they start burning the homes of Muslims
That is too much of a coincidence for me.
10
Something like two million people are born in India every day.
Life finds a way.
@Willt26 Not sure how that relates to yesterday's violence, but it's a little over 2 million births per month - not per day.
5
VERY low value on human life. THAT is what the birth rate have to do. Killing a cow is a more serious offense than killing a human
Communal riots are indeed common in India and this is absolutely nothing new. Problem did not start with Kapil but with Waris Pathan who declared 15 crores muslims will take care of 100 crore Hindus. Then came in AAP and Kapil into the picture with more incendiary remarks. Communal riot and now everything bak under control. India up & running as always. 95% population is fine, with whatever religion. 5% always creates trouble. CAA is a very good deal, will not affect any Indian muslim, but west & left have purposely created drama. FYI, Modi gave maximum benefits to minorities, economic and financial aid. He is definitely not anti-muslim but purposely picture portrayed like that. Coming to Gujarat, don't forget he was given a clean chit after 10 years of enquiry by Supreme Court that too when opposition was in power and pulled all triggers to get him jailed. Also FYI, RSS schools have tons of muslims and christians and in fact if you look at their records, they are increasing in number. That should tell us something. Multiple external factors trying to destabilize India. India was, is, and will remain secular. Nobody needs to worry. Jai Ma Bharti.
16
@dweepa
Sir/Madam, this is not Whatsapp. Some nuance and evidence, for all the assertions, talking points and sweeping claims, please.
8
@dweepa says: "CAA is a very good deal, will not affect any Indian muslim, but west & left have purposely created drama."
Not true, ALL muslims in India face grave risks!
Half of the Indians don't even know their birthday, forget about documentation to citizenship. In Assam, 2 million were denied citizenship including many Hindus.
So, many many Indians will be denied citizenship just like in Assam.
All non-Muslims who are "denied" citizenship through NRC, will be able to stay thanks to CAA who allows everyone except Muslims to stay.
Muslims who are denied citizenship will have 3 terrible options:
1) Be sent to detention camps
2) Leave the country (where?)
3) Become a Hindu
I cannot believe someone living in America enjoying all the personal liberty and protection will be insensitive to real fears of 200 million indians.
14
I would like to inform you that the judge mentioned in his article has been transferred to another state. But yes, please continue posting your good and happy image of Modi while India burns.
8
Trump's anti-Muslim campaign in the US surely is the catalyst for extremist Hindi attacking and burning Muslim homes and shops.
Trump speaks of selling more weapons as if that's what India really needs.
I admit I detest this President.
10
@Richard
Reports also say Pakistan’s notorious spy agency – Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) – is conspiring to trigger communal riots and create unrest across the country.
According to the sources in the intelligence agencies, the recent violence in the northeast districts of Delhi is being seen as the handiwork of the ISI. Intelligence sources claimed that the sleeper cells of underworld and ISI agents in India are funding few Indian social media handles and websites to promote fake news to bring instability in the country.
ISI is inciting irate Muslims to attack security forces, police with stones in the national capital, which was evident in the recent violence here.
4
@Albela Shaitan "Reports say" sounds truly Trumpian. I'm hearing... people are saying etc.
2
This violent clash in India between Hindus and Muslims serves as one more example of how organized religion, human constructs derived from the minds of primitive men in ancient eras, has continued on into the 21st century and a new millennium to oppress and terrorize humanity. Working counter to the concept of human enlightenment as an ongoing process.
6
Media play a very important role in inciting people too. "Majority is targeting the minorities" - this is definitely going to get you maximum viewership. If you are mentioning Kapil Mishra (who is 100% wrong) then why not mention Waaris Pathan who openly threatened to eliminate Hindus https://in.news.yahoo.com/fir-against-aimim-leader-waris-040830614.html
9
@Bharat
My questions to you:
How come wherever Modi, Amit Shah, BJP, RSS, Bajrang Dal goes, violence follows? First Gujarat, then Uttar Pradesh and now Delhi. Is there a trend here that you are missing? or choosing to miss?
On Feb 14 (valentine's day), same group of people were seen beating young couples across multiple cities. What is going on?
Before that, they were violently protesting about a Bollywood movie. What is up with that?
3
What a joke! Modi appealing
for peace via Twitter. Not a single
rioters probably has Twitter account
He should have visited the area, appealed directly to the
people for peace. He didn't. He just
went through the motion of keying in
few sentences on Twitter. His job is
done. Police is spectator everywhere
and perpetrator of violence on Muslims
like beating up students of Muslim
institution of Jama Milia and Aligarh
university, He has taken no action
against his party members like Mishra
or Thakur who provoked his audience
to shoot the protesters against the
citizenship act. He can easily stop
the protests by assuring that people
of all religions including Muslims will be considered for the citizenship. He won't,
because it will be contrary to his goal
of marginalizing Muslims and pushing
them to second class citizen status.
15
@s.khan
It takes two to tango. Instead of parroting the conspiracy theories about Muslim marginalization check out the following links:
https://www.opindia.com/2020/02/maulana-speech-viral-video-protests-streets-cripple-economy/
https://www.opindia.com/2019/10/aiudf-chief-badruddin-ajmal-assam-two-child-policy-muslims-will-conitnue-to-produce-children/
https://www.opindia.com/2020/02/sharjeel-imam-met-badruddin-ajmal-himanta-biswa-sarma/
2
India has never had any identity cards or citizenship articles. Thanks to IT the process has slowly settled in. The CAA would be normal course in the US; but in India it would be hard to explain to the masses and it is easier to incite them. In a similar situation, China would have banned free press and nobody would know what is happening. In the US the debate would be a little more civilized, but the approach and outcome would still be the same.
10
@AKA
"The CAA would be normal course in the US; but in India it would be hard to explain to the masses and it is easier to incite them."
No, a CAA type rule would never happen in the USA because the USA constitution does not allow the government to treat people differently on the basis of religion.
The reason for the protests is the religious-based citizenship for people that do not have proper identification. Please tell me why is there a religious test in the law? Why does it *need* to exclude Muslims?
5
@AKA
First, CAA will never happen in US because it discriminates on basis of religion and US constitution provides equal protection. And NRC is beyond unthinkable. It is just horrendous and has no justification. That is the reason most state governments, international agencies and human rights groups are against it.
Second, India has had all the identity cards and citizenship articles necessary to run the country for last 70 years without any major issues. BJP is making it a issue now because their game plan is to strip millions of minorities (mostly tribal, muslims) of their citizenship and render them stateless. There is no other use than create human suffering.
2
@AN
Don't be so sure; these issues are carefully screened at the refugee status doors.
The CAA issue is with regards to foreigners without papers and does not touch existing Indians.
Modi is akin to the arsonist, who plays at being the volunteer fireman.
Matches & Fuel courtesy of dTrump.
38
This is Gandhi: PEACE
This is Modi: WAR
Do you see the difference?
23
@Paul C. McGlasson
Modi is the wolf in sheep’s clothing.
2
@Paul C. McGlasson Gandhi was able to persuade the British to leave non-violently, but was unable to stand up to Muslim demands for partition. That failure, and the ongoing terrorism directly from the Islamic state of Pakistan, has fanned the flames of religious hatred in India. There will be peace when Pakistan wants peace. Until then, India will defend itself.
5
The terrorism is not ‘from’ Pakistan. It may be ‘via’ Pakistan - involving people who see Kashmir as their cause. Treat Kashmir fairly - ‘terrorism’ will stop.
1
Democracy for Liberals in US is taking a policy or Moral stand first. India is a developing democracy, its institutions are not that strong yet.
Congress strategy of creating a ‘forward bloc’, that would create a bridgehead for creating policies has produced a stable secular democracy but not brought forth mass transformation of China kind; plus it created abject dependence on one family.
Think BJP polity is not ‘trickle down’ but ‘ground up’. To use a Hindi phrase, leadership shall not stretch legs beyond the length of the sheet. The inner democracy that works has led to demonization by secular left and distrusting West; but it is working to bring real change.
First phase was cleaning welfare administration. Second one is completing unfinished agenda of post-partition building of Indian Republic. Kashmir and now CAA were original Congress agenda.
The Bihar legislative unanimous vote on NRC is a first unambiguous signal of moving towards centrality from political hard-right stand. The strident-Hindu elements shall now get gradually pacified and civic trust prevail among communities. Policing along cannot bear this burden yet. As secular trust strengthens, ground gets created for reforms to depoliticize and strengthening policing institutions.
It is necessary to comprehend the complexity, appreciate Pragya-Niti of Indian political leadership.
8
I am in Mumbai where luckily things have not gotten out of hand.
I am no fan of this prime minister.
But as readers will recall of what I have been saying – this is more a manifestation of economic stagnation brought about by this prime minister thru his ill conceived policies
Unlike in America, here the government plays a crucial role in local economies _ down to villages.
And the economy is indeed bad – in my opinion, almost ground to a halt.
And these sectarian violence is frustrations of Indians with the economy.
This so called citizenship law– if passed in good economy – no one would care.
But these are dire times – and it is bringing put the worst in people.
I hope it all calms down.
8
Modi’s hypocrisy is open when he urges people for peace. Such riots cannot go on for three days without sanctions from the top and police asked to look the other way.
19
"Mr. Mishra threatened to mobilize a mob to clear out protesters" and "But Mr. Mishra warned the police that as soon as Mr. Trump left India on Tuesday, his followers would take action against the protesters, who were mostly Muslim women, if the police did not."
A fine way to govern. Has he been removed from office yet?
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@AN
Please also refer to speeches by Sharjeel Imam, Akabarudding Owaisi and Waris Pathan that spoke of dismembering India and killing Hindus.
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@AN, He will be promoted in party
hierarchy.
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@Albela Shaitan
That was not in the article and I do not know who they are. If they incite violence and hold political positions, they too should be removed from office. That goes for anyone in office who incites violence. We good?
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Its becoming clear to most that the Hindu-nationalist government by Modi is behind much of regressive and violent policy against minorities and progressives in India. That Trump would enable it by giving credibility to Modi is also not a surprise. And most informed Americans get it.
The question now is: When is America begin to hold the wealthy and well connected Hindu-Americans who are supporting Modi - financially, politically and morally. These Americans enjoy all the freedom and liberty in America while supporting a modern day fascist in India. Shameful!!
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@AM yes, they support Modi’s goal of turning India into a Hindu state - but from the safety of their homes in the West.
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Could someone clarify for me what the paragraphs below mean, in case you have extra information from some other source.
Is the judge horrified by the content of the video, and wants everyone to see it and to be equally horrified, including the police? Or is he in approval of the video?
"At a court hearing on Wednesday, a judge pressed police officials about why they had not watched the videos of Mr. Mishra’s speech, in which he gave the police the ultimatum to take action. The speech has been widely viewed on social media.
“This is really concerning,” Justice S. Muralidhar said, according to LiveLaw, a legal news website. “There are so many TVs in your office, how can a police officer say that he hasn’t watched the videos? I’m really appalled by the state of affairs of Delhi Police.”
Justice Muralidhar then ordered Mr. Mishra’s speech to be played in court and said: “Let all of you watch it.’”
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The judge basically rounded up Police officials asking them about their role. The police officials said in court that they have not watched the video, the video was about a guy from ruling party of Modi giving a time limit to police to take action against anti caa protestors or they will do it themselves when trump is gone. That speech was given on the road, in front of the police. Judge was surprised that how can police say they haven’t watched the video when it was all around social media. Therefore, the judge said he will play it for them and asked police to file an FIR against that guy. It was after that speech only that the violence has started on this large scale, before that protests were almost peaceful for 2 months. Delhi police also lied that they did not enter the library of university, but a week ago videos came up showing them beating students in library, destroying cctv cameras everywhere they went.
Yes, video is very inappropriate and basically asks for action against certain community. It acted as a catalyst to whatever is going through. The guy hasn’t been arrested yet.
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@Jim Greenwood Mr. Kapil Mishra's incendiary speech was the context and content of the video, inciting violence against anyone opposed to the CAA. The judge has asked Delhi police if they have seen the video and the replies have been largely evasive. Even though the territory of Delhi is ruled by a party in opposition to Mr. Modi's BJP, being the national capital region, Delhi police reports into the Union Home Minister, Mr. Amit Shah, the co-author of the violence against Muslims in Gujarat earlier, and for every piece of unconstitutional legislation in the past 6 months.
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@Jim Greenwood Mr. Muralidhar is a respected Federal Judge from a part of India that's known for amicable coexistence between Hindus and Muslims.. From other reporting my reading is that he's - sceptical about the claims from the police officers on the Delhi Police Force that they haven't seen Mishra's speech calling for violence against Muslims.
Police officers are said to have acted in concert with Hindu mobs in attacks against Muslims just as they often did in the Gujarat riots when now Prime Minister Modi was Chief Minister of the state.
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“Sectarian violence has convulsed” and “Modi appealed for calm” is a more than curious way to describe anti-Muslim violence intents and purposes ordered by Modi’s party.
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A terrible tragedy that so much of the world is consumed by religious madness and ruled by small minded insecure people, who don’t hesitate to set brother upon brother to win an election. This surely won’t end well for India (where all institutions - press, judiciary, election commission, RBI, have totally collapsed and knelt before the Supreme Leader, unlike the US where institutions are still holding on).
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The current situation in Delhi is eerily reminiscent of the large scale massacres of Sikhs in Delhi in 1984 and in Gujarat in 2002, both at the hands of Hindu terrorists. The current curfew in Delhi prohibiting more than 4 people from gathering applies only to Muslims and others opposing the CAA, and not to Hindu mobs who walk around freely with the support of Delhi police. A local BJP leader is emboldened to state that he would lead Hindu mobs against anyone opposing CAA while, in Kashmir, local leaders have been imprisoned indefinitely on the simple grounds that they may be able to influence the people! And then Kashmir itself - a land that had over a 90% Muslim population in 1947 led by an absentee token Hindu king. He was found more in the pleasure spots of Europe than in running the affairs of the state. And he agreed to annexation of Kashmir by India over the wishes of the people. Kashmir should have gone to Pakistan and not become a part of India. It is not an internal matter but one that needs global resolution. Add to that the CAA that was specifically written with an anti-Muslim bias, ignoring the only group to whom it would really apply - Sri Lankan Tamils who were massacred in the thousands by government forces there. Refugees who fled to India still live in refugee camps in total limbo. Unfortunately President Trump has just endorsed everything Modi does, much the way Chamberlain visited Berlin and endorsed Hitler and his actions.
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@Owyhee Canyon I have heard this weak argument of the Indian governments over the decades - Pakistani forces, or insurgents as the case be, had as much rights as Indian forces sent into Kashmir to safeguard a puppet king. The formula for partition was clear - along religious lines. The Radcliffe Line drawn up by the British drew the boundary from the Arabian Sea all the way to Punjab, and not beyond into Kashmir as they knew it was a grey area of a Muslim majority state ruled by a Hindu king. And the Hindu king's consent to India's annexation had as much validity as say King George VI mortgaging all of pre-Independence India over to some other country to pay for war debts.
The real reason India never held a plebiscite is simple - it would have lost. I had traveled to Kashmir a few times in the seventies - nobody there wanted to be a part of India. Kashmir always needed a different approach, a subtlety which Mr. Modi and co. conveniently sidestepped.
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@Owyhee Canyon :
Your Kashmir analysis is spot on. The Maharaja Hari Singh signed the document of accession just like 500 other small Kings and Nawabs.
Many a times in the recent past ( 2000 ) when Mr AB Vajpayee was in the government, the then MP from Assam, former PM Manmohan Singh (Congress party) requested the then PM Vajpayee to grant citizenship to persecuted minority ( Hindus and Sikhs ) from Pakistan. That letter is on record. CAA is doing the same, giving citizenship to the persecuted minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh. So how can this be discriminatory?
Even Gandhi promised citizenship to the persecuted Hindus and Sikhs from Pakistan, who were stuck during partition. CAA is doing the same thing. So how is this discriminatory?
@Varadha : During 1940s there was no such thing as Plebiscite. Was Pakistan created out of plebiscite? Do you want plebiscite in Baluchistan?
The only valid document was the 'Instrument of Accession' that was signed by the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir in presence of Lord Mountbatten, just like the 500 or so Kings and Nawabs of small regions.
In similar fasion as many other articles in the times, neither the headline nor the dek suggest that the subject of the article, Prime Minister Modi, is in any way involved in the issue in question. Mr. Modi has a cleear history of insiciting sectarian divisions in his country, and is now given the oppertunity by the New York Times to “Urge Calm” without mention of his previous and ongoing actions to achieve the exact opposite. This seems to be a systematic problem with the way the actions and words of our leaders are reported, and facilitates autoritarian power.
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@Peter
I've been saying the same thing for years. They think that there are always exactly two sides to any issue, and that they are always morally equivalent. They feel like their job is to let powerful people speak for themselves, but that's not journalism at all. It's just… exhibitionism.
Kundera said that the power of journalism is in its right to demand an answer, not its right to ask a question. The Times, along with so many other American media outlets, doesn't understand that.
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Gujarat Model of 2002 introduced in Delhi in 2020
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@John 1. Gujarat Riots were preceded by Godhara Killing. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godhra_train_burning
2. Kapil Mishra - 100% wrong. Need to also mention Waaris Pathan who gave more threatening speech before the riots
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/waris-pathan-muslims-hindus-remark-fir-registered-kalaburagi-police-6280686/
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With the outbreak of religion-on-religion attacks and violence during his visit, Trump is probably only worried that the true mission of the trip choked: trying to improve sagging sales at the various Trump towers that have sprung up across India.
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@Brian
Maybe you can look beyond this country’s border and realize India have their own thing going and not just a set piece for US politics.
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At least once a decade or so communal violence erupts in India in one or two major cities. All major political parties in India maintain a loose affiliation with gangs of street thugs to carry out their dirty deeds with plausible deniability. As long as there’s power balance things stay calm. As soon as one side perceives weakness on the other side, violence erupts.
This story presents just one side and makes no mention of the violence incited by the protesters and the political parties trying to exploit them.
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@GV
Not just in India, in most dysfunctional democratic countries: Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the US, France, Germany all have party affiliated thugs that’s used to intimidate opposition party supporters, organize riots, etc.
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In recent years the problem in India or in Europe or to a lesser extent in the US, is that the democratic institutions have failed to address public concerns. When that happens, people seek to address them through non-democratic means.
In case of Delhi riots, the protesters have resorted to destroying property in the name of protests. The police can’t respond because they’ll be accused of using force against them. The political parties providing cover for violent protesters are just looking for opportunities to cause unrest and blame it on their opposition.
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In a weird way, this was the week of the long knives. Mr. Mishra should be tried for inciting violence. But that would have happened in what India was before this current government was elected.
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@Gangulee If you are mentioning Kapil Mishra then why not mention Waaris Pathan who openly threatened to eliminate Hindus https://in.news.yahoo.com/fir-against-aimim-leader-waris-040830614.html