Sunday, November 7, 2010

[ZESTCaste] Obama touched by Phule's tribute to anti-slavery movement

http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/article871146.ece

Published: November 7, 2010 02:48 IST | Updated: November 7, 2010
02:48 IST MUMBAI, November 7, 2010

Obama touched by Phule's tribute to anti-slavery movement
Mumbai Bureau

The Maharashtra government was incensed that the American authorities
asked for identity card details from senior ministers including the
Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, who almost threatened to boycott the
President's functions till an apology was made by U.S. Consul General
Paul Folmsbee.

While the Chief Minister received President Obama at the airport on
Saturday, he did not attend the 26/11 commemorative address at the
Taj. But he later made it to the business events. His deputy Chhagan
Bhujbal who raised the issue of identity cards being demanded from the
Ministers, throwing the U.S. authorities into a tizzy on Friday,
finally attended the Taj meeting and even presented the President with
the English translation of Jyotiba Phule's book Slavery.

The President was very touched by this, Mr. Bhujbal told The Hindu. "I
gave him Mahatma Phule's book which was written in 1873. It is
dedicated to the good people of the U.S. as a token of admiration for
their sublime disinterestedness and self-sacrifice in fighting for the
abolition of slavery. The book is dedicated to the anti-slavery
movement," he said.

"Mr. Obama was touched that somebody from that time had connected with
the anti-slavery movement. He said it was a great gift for him," Mr.
Bhujbal added.

The Chief Minister who received him at the airport too presented Mr.
Obama with a coffee table book on Maharashtra. Mr. Chavan told the
U.S. President that he hoped the book would be part of his library at
the White House and it would remind him of his trip to Mumbai and
Maharashtra. Mr Obama thanked him for the book.

The Chief Minister's Office earlier said that due to logistical
reasons, Mr. Chavan would be unable to attend the Taj meeting.
However, Union Minister Salman Khursheed who was at the airport
managed to make it to the Taj.

Earlier, the government had been upset about Mr. Obama giving the
police memorial a go-by. There was also much concern over the
expectation of U.S. officials to make "flexible" security checks of
the weapons flown in from the U.S. Explaining Mr. Chavan's absence at
the Taj address, his Public Relations Officer said it was logistically
not possible for the Chief Minister to make it to the Taj as he could
not fly. Mr. Chavan had to take the road to his official residence as
the air space had been blocked for Mr. Obama's chopper Marine One.

Maharashtra Chief Secretary J.P. Dange was the only other bureaucrat
who attended the Taj function and was quite happy he did. "The
President asked me how the State of Maharashtra is. I welcomed him to
our State. He appreciated Mumbai and he seemed to have a good
impression," Mr. Dange said.

Amid speculation that the Home department and the police force had
"boycotted" the function at the Taj, Additional Chief Secretary, Home,
Chandra Iyengar told The Hindu that there was no question of boycott.
"How can we boycott? The bureaucracy was represented by the Chief
Secretary and the government side was represented by the Deputy Chief
Minister. So there was full representation. As for me, I was
monitoring the security."

Mumbai police Force One chief Sadanand Date who was invited to the
event too stayed away. Asked if this was to express solidarity with
the police force, Mr. Date said, "We had to maintain a vigil and keep
alert. It was the call of duty [that kept me away]."

S.V. Bijoor, Joint Secretary and Joint Chief Protocol Officer
rubbished the speculation over the alleged breach of protocol fuelled
after Mr. Chavan greeted Mr. Obama before Union Minister Salman
Khursheed. "There is no breach of protocol. As the head of the home
State, Mr. Chavan preceded a Union Minister. Even the communication
from the Ministry of External Affair lists his name ahead of Mr.
Khursheed's," Mr. Bijoor said.


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[ZESTCaste] Punia alleges political vendetta from Maya

http://expressbuzz.com/nation/punia-alleges-political-vendetta-from-maya/221029.html

Punia alleges political vendetta from Maya

Anand Raj Singh
Express News ServiceFirst Published : 07 Nov 2010 02:16:02 AM IST
Last Updated : 07 Nov 2010 09:56:53 AM IST

LUCKNOW: National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
chairman Panna Lal Punia, while on a pre-announced visit to the state
capital around Diwali and meeting with his supporters in the
neighbouring Barabanki district which he represents in the Lok Sabha
for the Congress, has accused the Mayawati Government of pursuing
political vendetta against him.


He has also said that though the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party clams to
represent and care for the Dalits, the truth is otherwise.

Punia, who fell out of Mayawati's favour over the Taj Corridor project
case after having worked as one of her top most bureaucrats during her
three previous stints as chief minister, said he had no personal proof
that Mayawati really cared for Dalits.

"I worked as Principal Secretary earlier. But I was never asked to
work out schemes for the welfare of the Dalits," Punia claimed.

Though he has been meeting NGOs and social organisations working for
the Dalit welfare, no government official has so far met him during
his ongoing visit to the state capital.

He said that during the meetings he gathered information about the
incidents of crime against the Dalits.

He also plans to attend two programmes to be organised in Lucknow by
the Baudh Maha Sabha on November 20 and 21 and the Akhil Bharatiya
Swachhkar Mahasabha on November 27 and 28.

He said he planned to visit every district not only in Uttar Pradesh
but across the nation. "There is lack of awareness among the Dalits
about the safeguards to protect them. They have no knowledge about the
Special Component Plan (SCP)."

Punia said the state government had written him five letters in the
last few days to postpone his meeting with state officials to review
issues related to Dalits.

"The same government that never sends replies to the commission's
queries on time sent five letters seeking postponement of my visit,"
he said. Punia said it is a set practice that the NCSC chairman holds
a meeting with the Chief Secretary and the DGP in every state to
review the issues such as crime against the Dalits, reservation for
them and expenditure incurred from the SCP. "The state government
pleaded that it needed time to collect information for the meeting,"
Punia said.

"They wanted the commission to postpone the meeting in view of
Diwali. Now they want a detailed meeting after December 6," he said.


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[ZESTCaste] Dalits, inspired by Obama, seek recognition during Asia tour

 

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/11/dalits-inspired-by-obama-seek.html

Dalits, inspired by Obama, seek recognition during Asia tour

By Emily Wax
On Saturday, President Obama spent the afternoon in the seaside
mega-city of Mumbai visiting the old-style house of Mohandas K.
Gandhi, whom the president hailed as "a hero not just to India, but to
the world."

Still, some social activists and business leaders in India are hoping
that Obama will honor a lesser-known freedom fighter, B.R. Ambedkar,
who hails from India's lowest social caste, once known as
untouchables.

While Gandhi was working for India's freedom, Ambedkar left his
impoverished village in India and received a scholarship to study at
Columbia University and later at the London School of Economics. He
then returned home, becoming the architect of an independent India's
new constitution and a symbol of empowerment for millions of
desperately poor Dalits.

At a time of widespread discrimination against his caste, Ambedkar
became one of the first untouchables, or Dalits as they are now known,
to earn a college education. Today, statues of Ambedkar dot thousands
of squares in Dalit villages, far more than busts of Gandhi. They are
also a symbol of Dalit aspirations and advances, especially as India's
economy continues to soar.

"Dalit" means "broken people," and they fall into India's lowest caste
in the ancient social order. But they make up nearly 200 million in
India's population of 1.2 billion.

Dalit leaders say they are not asking the American government to
rearrange Obama's schedule. They just requested a symbolic gesture or
even a mention of Ambedkar in a speech to show that Obama understands
civil rights history in India.

The Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce, for example, recently wrote a
letter to the U.S. Embassy in Mumbai requesting to meet with Obama.
They have not heard back. But they said they weren't upset. They
really just wanted thank the president for being a source of optimism.

"The Dalit group wanting to see the president has no demands," said
Chandra Bhan Prasad, an author and activist. " It's about showing
gratitude that U.S. society is more forthcoming in addressing social
racial contradiction than any society in the universe. The parallels
between the Dalits and the African Americans in the U.S. are striking.
Like millions of my fellow Dalits, I, too, take inspiration from the
exemplary strides that the African Americans have made during the past
four decades."

By Emily Wax | November 6, 2010; 10:55 AM ET

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[ZESTCaste] Chauhan objects to army houses near Ambedkar memorial

 

http://sify.com/news/chauhan-objects-to-army-houses-near-ambedkar-memorial-news-national-klgwagfigcf.html

IANS
Chauhan objects to army houses near Ambedkar memorial

2010-11-06 22:00:00

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Bhopal, Nov 6 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh
Chauhan has asked union Defence Minister A.K. Anthony to stop
construction of army houses on a land near a memorial to Dalit icon
B.R. Ambedkar at Mhow in Indore district, an official statement said
Saturday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader wrote in a letter to Anthony that
the birth place of Ambedkar at Mhow witnessed a huge public gathering
to celebrate his birthday April 14 every year.

There was no suitable space within a radius of over three km of the
memorial for making boarding and lodging arrangements for visitors
during celebrations, he said.

The chief minister said that the land, which belonged to the defence
ministry, was traditionally used for boarding and lodging people
coming to the memorial to attend the functions.

Chauhan informed Antony that the construction of army houses would
create logistical problem on occasions of public functions at the
memorial.

The chief minister said that construction work should be stopped and
the houses should be built on an alternative site.

He said that the state government would make suitable alternative land
available to the ministry for building the houses.

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[ZESTCaste] UP: Dalit Family Beaten Up by Election Candidate

 

http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?700149

UP: Dalit Family Beaten Up by Election Candidate
Muzaffarnagar | Nov 05, 2010

Five members of a dalit family, including a woman, were allegedly
beaten up by the gram pradhan and his relatives, on charges of casting
vote to a rival in the panchayat elections, police said here.

The incident took place yesterday at Silajuddi village when
Ramswaroop, his wife Prakashi and their three sons - Rakesh, Shivam
and Sandeep - were beaten up by Ram Singh and his family members for
casting votes to another candidate, they said.

Filed On: Nov 05, 2010 15:50 IST , Edited On: Nov 05

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[ZESTCaste] Caste enumeration to start in June 2011 in Tamil Nadu

 

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_caste-enumeration-to-start-in-june-2011-in-tamil-nadu_1463053

Caste enumeration to start in June 2011 in Tamil Nadu
Published: Saturday, Nov 6, 2010, 17:14 IST
Place: Chennai | Agency: PTI

The Centre has informed Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi that
caste enumeration would start in June next and completed in a phased
manner by September 2011.

"The enumeration of all castes will start from June 2011 and will be
completed in a phased manner by September 2011 keeping in view the
schedule of the general elections to be held in four states including
Tamil Nadu," Union home minister P Chidambaram has said.

In a letter to Karunanidhi dated October 29, which was released to the
media today, Chidambaram has said the Union cabinet on September 9 had
approved the group of ministers' recommendation on carrying out a
caste census.

Chidambaram was responding to a letter written by Karunanidhi to Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh in August, seeking to incorporate caste
details in the ongoing census process.

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[ZESTCaste] Life term for Badanavalu convicts

http://mangalorean.com/news.php?newstype=local&newsid=206222

Life term for Badanavalu convicts

Mysore, Nov 4: Twenty men convicted of killing three dalits during the
Badanavalu caste clashes in 1993 were sentenced to life imprisonment,
17 years after the tragic event, by L F Malavalli, judge of the Sixth
Additional District and Sessions Court here on Thursday.

The 20 men and three who died during the trial were convicted of
killing B R Narayanswamy, his son Madhukar and their neighbour
Nataraj.

All the 23 accused were on bail, but three of them, Suresh, Basappa
and Chandrashekar alias Shekar, died during the prolonged trial.

Those convicted are Suresh, Basappa (dead), Chandrashekar alias Shekar
(dead), Dayanand, Mahesh (dead), Nanjundaswamy, Mahadevappa,
Shivananjappa, Revanna, Shivanna, Prabhuswamy, Srikantamurthy, S
Nagaraj, B R Umesh, Basavanna, Kariyappa, Swamy, Shivakumar,
Rajashekar, Shivanandaswamy, Krupashankar, Shivarudra and another
Revanna.

Further, the court sentenced them to three years' rigorous
imprisonment for causing grievous hurt under Section 326 (A) of the
Indian Penal Code (IPC) and one year for triggering hatred among the
two communities under Section 153 (A) of the IPC.
Judge Malavalli also imposed a fine of Rs 15,000 on each of the
convicts and ordered payment of Rs 50,000 to the families of
Narayanswamy, Madhukar and Nataraj, and Rs 20,000 each to the two men
seriously injured — B G Swamy and Krishnamurthy — from the fine
amount.

Defence counsel C M Jagadeesh said the order would be appealed in the
high court.
On March 25, 1993, an armed mob hacked to death Narayanswamy, Madhukar
and Nataraj at Badanavalu in Nanjangud taluk, to avenge the dalits
winning a battle to enter the Siddeshwara temple in the village.

The victims were returning home after playing a cricket match. Two
other dalits, B G Swamy and Krishnamurthy sustained serious injuries
in the attack.

DHNS


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[ZESTCaste] Dalits, inspired by Obama, seek recognition during Asia tour

http://news.irt.net/120747/dalits-inspired-by-obama-seek-recognition-during-asia-tour-2.html

Dalits, inspired by Obama, seek recognition during Asia tour

Published By admin on November 06, 2010
Tags: afternoon, asia tour, Freedom, hero, independent india, london
school of economics, Mohandas, mohandas gandhi, president, social
activists
On Saturday, President Obama spent the afternoon in the seaside
mega-city of Mumbai visiting the old-style house of the father of
Mohandas Gandhi, whom the president hailed as "a hero not just to
India, but to the world." Still, some social activists and business
leaders in India are hoping that Obama will honor a lesser-known
freedom fighter, B.R. Ambedkar, who hails from India's lowest social
caste, once known as untouchables. While Gandhi was working for
India's freedom, Ambedkar left his impoverished village in India and
received a scholarship to study at Columbia University and later at
the London School of Economics. He then returned home, becoming the
architect of an independent India's new constitution and a symbol of
empowerment for millions of desperately poor Dalits. At a time of
widespread discrimination against his caste, Ambedkar became one of
the first untouchables, or Dalits as they are now known, to earn


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[ZESTCaste] Dalits Turn to the Goddess of English

 

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53476

INDIA
Dalits Turn to the Goddess of English
By Ranjit Devraj

The Goddess of English appears as a new deity.

Credit:Chandra Bhan Prasad/IPS

NEW DELHI, Nov 6, 2010 (IPS) - India's Dalits are turning to the
''Goddess of English'' for deliverance from centuries of
religiously-sanctioned caste oppression.

Dalits, meaning literally the broken people, have begun erecting a
temple to their new muse in the Lakhimpur Kheri district of northern
Uttar Pradesh, a sprawling state of 190 million people, regarded as
the heartland of orthodox Hinduism.

The inspiration for the idol of the goddess is unmistakable for the
close resemblance it bears to the Statue of Liberty in New York. But,
instead of the flaming torch, the goddess holds aloft a pen with her
right hand and cradles a book in the crook of her left arm.

Also, where Hindu deities are usually portrayed standing on a lotus
flower pedestal, the Goddess of English stands on a computer console,
signifying the technological age that the Dalits hope to enter. It
also represents a break with the traditional past that has been so
cruel to Dalits, once regarded as untouchables and forced to do menial
work.

The high priest of the temple, Chandra Bhan Prasad, a leading Dalit
intellectual, told IPS that the Brahmins (members of the highest caste
in the Hindu social hierarchy, entrusted with learning and priestly
duties) of Uttar Pradesh made the mistake of repudiating the English
language.

''Nationalist politics based around the Hindi language appear to have
turned even the Brahmins of Uttar Pradesh into a backward caste and
the Dalits are determined to avoid that mistake,'' said Prasad. ''As
India globalises the only way anyone, not just Dalits, can avoid being
left behind is by learning English.''

Indian provinces which made the study of the English language optional
in schools have fallen behind states that maintained the language as
compulsory through the secondary education level.

''This is why Bangalore (capital of southern Karnataka state) has
become an international hub for information technology and not Lucknow
(capital of Uttar Pradesh),'' Prasad argued.

Prasad readily admits to borrowing his ideas from Thomas Babington
Macaulay, a British colonial who introduced English as a medium of
instruction in India in 1854 with the objective of raising ''a class
of persons Indian in blood and colour, but English in tastes, in
opinions, in morals and in intellect.''

Macaulay's policies made him a natural target for Hindu nationalists.
"No Hindu who has received an English education ever remains sincerely
attached to his religion,'' he argued. "It is my firm belief that if
our plans of education are followed up, there will not be a single
idolater among the respected classes 30 years hence."

Prasad said Macaulay's policy set in motion the liberation of the
Dalits by dismantling the traditional system of learning based on
Sanskrit, the use of which was denied to the lower castes.

''When the British opened English-medium schools, Dalits were
prevented from entering them by upper caste people, forcing the
colonial government to issue orders that no one could be denied
admissions on the basis of caste, creed, gender or religion,'' Prasad
said.

''Lord Macaulay was a social revolutionary who, by drawing up the
Indian Penal Code, made all Indians equal before the law,'' said
Prasad, who dutifully celebrates the colonial's birthday each year
Oct. 25.

In contrast to Prasad's views, Hindu nationalists pejoratively call
Indians who are less than proud of their own traditions and heritage
''Macaulay's Children''.

Among the tallest of Macaulay's Children was Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar
(born 1891) who overcame the handicaps of being born a Dalit to
acquire degrees from Columbia University and the London School of
Economics.

Ambedkar, who left a progressive stamp on the Indian republic as the
architect of its 1949 constitution, was among the first to exhort his
caste fellows to learn and use the English language as a means of
emancipation. ''English is the milk of the lioness,'' he told them.

Ambedkar's constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, outlaws
all forms of discrimination and includes a system of positive
discrimination reserving jobs in the government and seats in
educational institutions for Dalits.

Prasad said that despite such constitutional provisions Dalits, who
form 16 percent of India's 1.2 billion people, have continued to
suffer discrimination or worse. ''In many parts of India we are not
allowed to enter Hindu temples, so we now plan to set up our own
temples dedicated to the Goddess of English...others are welcome to
join us.''

''With the Goddess of English, Prasad has hit upon an idea that rests
upon the flexibility and accommodation of the Indian tradition,'' said
Yogendra Singh, one of India's leading experts on the sociology of
culture, and emeritus professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

''Prasad displays a great sense of history and a remarkable
understanding of the Indian ethos that has an infinite capacity to
locate the present in the past,'' said Singh, author of the seminal
work, 'Modernisation of Indian Tradition'.

Much the same could be said for the Dalit chief minister of Uttar
Pradesh, Mayawati (one name), who has ignored criticism to squander
public funds to set up statues of herself around the state. The
statues invariably depict her carrying a handbag - a symbol of female
modernity and power for most Indians.

Singh told IPS that even if Prasad's plan to set up temples to the
Goddess of English across the country fizzles out the message that
there is value in learning the English language would have gone home.
(END)

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