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Friday, May 13, 2011

[ZESTCaste] Traders jam road after Dalit bandh call

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Traders-jam-road-after-Dalit-bandh-call/articleshow/8285354.cms

Traders jam road after Dalit bandh call
Bhaskar Mukherjee, TNN | May 13, 2011, 05.46am IST

SIRSA: Disorder prevailed here on Thursday, when members of Dalit
community gave a bandh call in the city on Thursday. They did so to
protest against the murder of a youth from the community. There were
incidents of looting and damage to shops. All that led to the affected
traders also blocking the national highway-10 for an hour.

The murder had taken place in Bani village on May 1.

Angry at the protesters` action, Heera Lal Sharma, president of
Haryana Vaypar Mandal said, "Why are we targeted every time? Even the
police kept mum when miscreants were damaging shops. We demand that
city SHO Maha Singh be transferred and proper compensation be given to
the affected shopkeepers." After the jam on NH-10, a situation of
traffic chaos emerged near the "Lal Batti Chowk" in 43 degrees celsius
temperature. Many people had to wait for an hour there.

Talking about action on the part of cops, DSP (headquarters) Puran
Chand Panwar said, "We have arrested four miscreants and impounded one
bike. Situation in the city is normal now and shopkeepers opened their
shops late in the evening. Heavy police force deployment in the city
to maintain law and order situation. We are in process of identifying
miscreants who were involved in looting and creating disturbance. We
will arrest them soon," he added.

In the May 1 incident, Mukh Ram, 28, was shot dead by members of a
group of youths due to an old enmity. The assailants also attacked him
with sharp weapons mercilessly. The deceased was going to the Surewala
village in his car.

Two days after the murder, vice-chairman of National Commission of SC
Cell, Dr Raj Kumar Verka, met the family of the deceased. He also gave
a seven-day ultimatum to the district administration as well as police
department to nab the accused.

Ellenabad DSP Ravinder Kumar, who is also investigating officer of the
Bani murder case, said they had already arrested five of the accused.
However, protesters said that two accused in the case were still at
large. The bandh was to continue from 9am to noon on Thursday. Dalit
leader Veer Shanti Swaroop said, "We give five days to police
department for arresting all the accused. If police fail to do that,
we will take the protest to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi."

On its part, the administration has announced Rs 12 lakh compensation
to the family of the deceased besides government job to a relative.

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[ZESTCaste] With Athavale's support, saffrons plan to capture Dalit vote bank

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/With-Athavales-support-saffrons-plan-to-capture-Dalit-vote-bank/articleshow/8280223.cms

With Athavale's support, saffrons plan to capture Dalit vote bank
Radheshyam Jadhav, TNN | May 13, 2011, 12.11am IST

PUNE: With the Athavale faction of the Republican Party of India (RPI)
inching towards an electoral poll pact with BJP-Shiv Sena for civic
general elections in Maharashtra, the saffron alliance hopes to
penetrate into the city's Dalit vote bank dominated by the Congress
and like-minded parties, including the NCP.

As a step towards formal electoral pact with BJP-Sena, RPI leader
Ramdas Athavale on Thursday announced a public rally on June 9 against
the Congress-NCP government. Athawale, Sena executive president Uddhav
Thackeray and senior BJP leader Gopinath Munde made the announcement
at a joint press conference in Mumbai.

"It's a welcome move which will bring strong forces together. In Pune,
both the BJP and Shiv Sena and RPI will get mutual benefits from the
alliance. This alliance will ensure that the NCP-Congress rule in Pune
ends and the new alliance will come to power after February 2012 civic
polls," said Sham Deshpande, leader of Shiv Sena in Pune Municipal
Corporation (PMC).

Supporting the sentiment, BJP's Vikas Mathkari said, "All three
parties have their separate mass base and this mass base is enough to
route out NCP-Congress from Pune politics. This is a positive step
towards the new beginning in the state and city politics."

BJP leaders admit that the party has failed to expand its base to
other communities other than the Brahmins in Pune. "It is fact that we
admit candidly. Efforts are being made at all levels to purge the
Brahminical face of the party and the alliance with Athavale will
provide the BJP a chance to penetrate into the traditional Dalit vote
bank which is manipulated by the Congress. The city BJP is also
putting hard efforts to expand the Maratha vote bank. If the party
succeeds to convert these efforts into votes, the BJP will emerge as
the single largest party in Pune and with the support of Shiv Sena
could easily get the majority number in the PMC," said a senior BJP
ideologue, who requested anonymity.

Shiv Sena, on the other hand, is apprehensive about the exact
political benefit to the party. "We cannot judge the benefit at this
juncture. All these years, the Sena and RPI have literally locked
horns in politics and on street. We will have to wait and watch the
reaction of grassroots workers," said senior Sena leader from Pune.

Ramdas Athavale supporters in Pune are finding it hard to swallow the
fact. "As of now, Athavaleji has announced agitation against the
government. It is the public resentment that has brought all of us
together and the anti-government rally is organised by the opposition
parties," said RPI corporator and Athavale's supporter Siddharth
Dhende.

Meanwhile, NCP and Congress leaders in Pune are worried a lot though
they do not admit it on record. Especially, the Congress which banks
on Dalit vote bank is forced to plan a counter strategy to keep intact
its traditional vote bank. Congress leader in the PMC Aba Bagul
preferred to say that his party was watching the developments closely,
while NCP leaders kept mum on the development.Dalit politics stand to
lose with Athavale's political ploy

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit group upset with Jha, for casting Saif

http://www.mid-day.com/entertainment/2011/may/130511-Dalit-group-Prakash-Jha-Saif-Ali-Khan-Aarakshan.htm

Dalit group upset with Jha, for casting Saif
By: The Hitlist Team Date: 2011-05-13 Place: Mumbai

Dalit group in Patna is up in arms against Prakash Jha for casting
'royal' Saif Ali Khan as a member of the scheduled caste in
'Aarakshan'

A Dalit group in Patna is upset with Prakash Jha, for casting Saif Ali
Khan as a Dalit in his next film Aarakshan.

The movie that deals with reservation issue has Chhote Nawab playing
Deepak Kumar, a member of the schedule caste.

A certain Dalit Suraksha Samiti has sent Jha a letter of protest,
claiming that getting someone like Saif Ali Khan a blue blood to play
a Dalit, is an insult to their community.

The letter also threatens Jha of 'serious repercussions' if he doesn't
explain why has he cast Saif for the role. Jha says, "Yes, we have
received a letter.

My people are looking into it. We have not filed any complaint yet. It
does not seem to be a registered organisation."

Jha, who has always tried to bring to fore the plight of political and
developmental initiatives in Bihar through
his films says that he cannot fathom the organisation's problem.
"Dalit groups should be happy that we are making a film about
reservation.

I can't understand why anybody should be offended if Saif, being from
a royal family, is cast as a Dalit. As directors, we cast actors who
we think are suitable for the role. I thought Saif would be right for
the part, so I cast him," he says.

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[ZESTCaste] A docu that lays bare the real face of eastern Uttar Pradesh

http://tehelka.com/story_main49.asp?filename=Fw120511FilmReviewUP.asp

Posted on 12 May 2011
THE FINANCIAL WORLD
FILM REVIEW

A docu that lays bare the real face of eastern Uttar Pradesh
Saffron War
By Rajiv Yadav, Shahnawaz Alam and L Prashad
61 min | Rs. 95

With the rise of the Hindutva movement over the past three decades,
there has also been an attempt to understand this phenomenon through
essays, articles and films. These films have also served the purpose
of spreading awareness about the rising threat of communal politics,
and dangers to national integration due to the rising communal tide.
The Mumbai violence, Gujarat genocide and Kandhamal riots amongst
others have been objects of serious study and analysis. Saffron War: A
war against nation is the latest in a series of significant works.
This film is a combination of analysis of Hindutva ideology and its
cooption of Dalits into communal politics where they are made to
believe that the real problems of society are coming not from the
caste structure but from the Muslims.

This film is made in the backdrop of Gorakhpur, where Yogi Adityanath,
a BJP MP, has been spreading his tentacles aggressively. The film's
major contribution is to show how Gorakhnath Math has been gradually
shifted away from its struggle against caste oppression to hatred for
the minorities. Through interviews and visuals, the film shows the
spread of venom against minorities. The language used by the Yogi and
his followers comes under the category of 'hate speech'. The prejudice
and bias against minorities, Muslims in particular, is openly asserted
in public meetings where Muslims are presented in negative light and
violence is openly propagated and promoted. An imaginary fear of
minorities is projected and the propagation of violence is done in the
garb of defending the Hindu religion. The degree of aggression in
language is shocking. In many meetings when hate speeches are made,
the police stands as passive listeners, unmindful that such hate
speech should invite strong legal action.

Major mobilisation is done in the name of Adityanath and the majority
of people who are mobilised are Dalits and OBCs. They begin with
Savarkar's definition of Hindutva and make the concept of a Hindu
Rashtra as the basis for other hate propaganda. Adityanath's
propaganda says the voting rights of Muslims should be taken away.
Gorakhpur and surrounding areas must be one of the few places where
Savarkar is quoted so blatantly. The emphasis on making Uttar Pradesh
like Gujarat comes up regularly. On the lines of Bajrang Dal, there is
the Arya Veer Sena and the Hindu Yuva Vahini training the youth in the
use of arms, with Har Har Mahadev as the war cry.

The film brings out clearly how the earlier Bharat Milap processions
in the area symbolised Hindu-Muslim brotherhood, but now anti-Muslim
sentiments are invoked. This has seriously intimidated the minorities
in the area. The role of these forces in the Mau riots of 2005 is well
brought out in this film. But it should have connected more with the
national phenomenon. The film does need technical improvisation.

Ram Puniyani is a former professor at IIT Mumbai & recipient of
National Communal Harmony Award.
ram.puniyani@gmail.com

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Re: [ZESTCaste] Stress on holistic approach to Dalit liberation

in total agreement of the position. i think we should be back to pedagogy of oppressed . why should international thesoophical institute, chennai by led by elite. how many position holders are dlaits, adivasis, and oppressed groups of different counties?. let us start an altrenative movement of such kind where the oppressed are leaders, and people like me the back seat

Ranjani
--- On Wed, 4/5/11, Siddhartha Kumar <mailsiddhartha.k@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Siddhartha Kumar <mailsiddhartha.k@gmail.com>
Subject: [ZESTCaste] Stress on holistic approach to Dalit liberation
To: "zestcaste" <zestcaste@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Wednesday, 4 May, 2011, 4:36 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2011/05/02/stories/2011050253160300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Vellore

Stress on holistic approach to Dalit liberation

Special Correspondent

VELLORE: South India has the largest number of oppressed people in the
world, according to A.M. Chinnappa, Archbishop of Chennai and
president of the Tamil Nadu Catholic Bishops' Council (TNBC).

Releasing the Dalit Bible Commentaries (DBC) at a function organised
in connection with the 10th anniversary celebrations of the Centre for
Dalit/Subaltern Studies (CDS) at the Bishop's House here on Saturday,
Rev. Chinnappa said that in no other part of the world there are so
many oppressed persons as in South India. Tamil Nadu is the State
where casteism is most prevalent in India, followed by Andhra Pradesh.
The attempt of the Dalit Bible Commentaries, namely Deuteronomy and 1
& 2 Samuel Commentaries, is to lead the people from darkness that
casteism symbolises, into light. The Archbishop said that the Dalits
constitute the root of theology, and therefore, the task of liberation
of Dalits should be taken up after integrating the different
theologies. Any attempt at Dalit liberation should not only involve
the oppressed people but also the oppressors, to have a holistic
approach towards the goal of Dalit liberation, he said.

Rev. Chinnappa honoured James Massey, Director, CDS and author of 1 &
2 Samuel Commentaries, and Monodeep Daniel, author of Deuteronomy. I.
John Mohan Razu introduced the commentaries. The guests received
copies of the commentaries from the Archbishop.

Rev. Y. William, Church of South India Bishop of Vellore, released the
Leviticus and Numbers Commentaries.

Rev. P. Soundararaju, Catholic Bishop of Vellore and Chairman of TNBC
Commission for Youth, welcomed the gathering.

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Friday, May 13, 2011

[ZESTCaste] Traders jam road after Dalit bandh call

[ZESTCaste] With Athavale's support, saffrons plan to capture Dalit vote bank

[ZESTCaste] Dalit group upset with Jha, for casting Saif

[ZESTCaste] A docu that lays bare the real face of eastern Uttar Pradesh

Re: [ZESTCaste] Stress on holistic approach to Dalit liberation

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