Month: November 2013

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Documenting the politics of rape

In just a month’s time, it will be one year to the brutal gangrape of a 23-year-old girl in Delhi. The incidence that shook the collective conscience of the nation has inspired a documentary film, which was screened recently in the Capital.

In just a month’s time, it will be one year to the brutal gangrape of a 23-year-old girl in Delhi. The incidence that shook the collective conscience of the nation has inspired a documentary film, which was screened recently in the Capital. Continue reading “Documenting the politics of rape”

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A new courage, a new defiance: changing the status quo

Sexual harassment is an abuse of power, a betrayal of trust and one of India’s worst-kept secrets. But one thing has changed, and it is the refusal of an increasing number of women to remain silent.

You could say it’s just another week in the life of working women in India. A retired Supreme Court judge is probed for sexual harassment. A high profile editor faces charges of sexual assault. And revelations emerge of a massive surveillance effort on a working woman in Gujarat, allegedly by then home minister Amit Shah at the behest of an unnamed “saheb”.

Each instance involves powerful men in roles that demand public accountability. Two cases bring home the terrifying brutality of that violence, and the inordinate courage it takes to stand up against it.

Continue reading “A new courage, a new defiance: changing the status quo”

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Narendra Modi should make real promises, solve real issues

The BJP’s prime ministerial candidate should know that national pride lies in not wanting the world to look at India in admiration. It lies in making your country a better place for its citizens.

The man who hopes to be India’s next prime minister is talking about national pride. It will be built on the foundation of the world’s tallest statue, a statue of a man neglected by the Congress and now appropriated by its principal rival, the BJP.

When completed, the 182-metre high statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, built by melting iron pieces of used agricultural implements collected from farmers across seven lakh villages, will be twice the height of the Statue of Liberty and four times that of Christ the Redeemer in Rio.

Continue reading “Narendra Modi should make real promises, solve real issues”