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How media headlines are creating confusion about slaughterhouses being closed in UP

OpIndia Staff
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How media headlines are creating confusion about slaughterhouses being closed in UP

Yogi Adityanath has taken charge as the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and action has already started. He has taken various decisions, but the one that is making the most noise of late is closing down of slaughterhouses.

If one goes mostly by the headlines appearing in various media organisations, it appears as if Yogi wants to turn UP into a vegetarian state and all slaughter houses are being closed down. In most of the cases, the media maintained ambiguity about whether the slaughterhouses in question were the ones which were being illegally operated or whether the government’s action was against all slaughterhouses irrespective of permits.

Before we progress any further, let’s see what the BJP had promised in its manifesto for the UP assembly elections [pdf]:

The relevant part is the point number 2 in the above picture, which is from the part where the manifesto talks about animal husbandry. It says (emphasis added):

All illegal slaughterhouses would be closed with full force, and all mechanized slaughterhouses would have ban/restrictions imposed.

So as the point in manifesto clearly mentions, the illegal slaughterhouses have their days numbered (as they should have, because they are illegal) and the mechanized slaughterhouses would be banned or restricted (based on how you interpret the Hindi word ‘pratibandh‘).

Ideally, mechanized slaughterhouses should be banned or have restrictions imposed only if either they don’t have some required clearance or if they are found breaking some rules e.g. not stunning the animal before slaughter. The same was confirmed by the Uttar Pradesh government earlier:



So it is clear that the current clampdown on slaughterhouses is only on those that are illegal.

Now let us see how some media houses have reported the issue, starting with NDTV:

  • NDTV wrote a post titled, ‘Yogi Adityanath Orders Cops To Start Work On Banning Slaughterhouses‘
  • The Mint wrote a post titled, ‘Yogi Adityanath orders closure of slaughter houses in Uttar Pradesh‘
  • The New Indian Express wrote a post titled, ‘Uttar Pradesh slaughter houses on chopping block‘
  • Business Standard reported: ‘Adityanath orders closure of all slaughter houses in UP‘
  • Economic Times wrote: ‘Yogi Adityanath orders closure of slaughter houses, bans cow smuggling in UP‘. In fact, Economic Times goes on to quote some sources and writes “The sources, however, did not specify the type of slaughter houses which will be shut.“

So in most of the cases, the headlines plus a sizable part of the reports didn’t clarify, or rather created confusion over the fact that it is only the illegal slaughterhouses that are being closed down.

To be fair, Amit Shah in an election rally had mentioned that BJP intended to ban all slaughterhouses so that cows and buffaloes can be used to create “rivers of milk” in the state. This could have led to the confusion that all slaughterhouses will be banned.

However, the manifesto and the latest statements from the state ministers confirm that only the illegal ones are being targeted. In fact, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath himself clarified that only illegal slaughterhouses will be shut down.

Furthermore, as per this report published in 2016, only 1 out of 126 slaughterhouses in UP had a valid permit. So if it appears that every slaughterhouse is being targeted, it is because almost all of them didn’t have the required permissions. These were allowed to be run by the previous state governments without proper licenses or clearances. Therefore, even in absence of clarification, the media houses could have highlighted this fact, but they chose to keep it ambiguous.

Delhi govt accused of using public schemes and resources to promote AAP

Hemant Bijapurkar
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Delhi govt accused of using public schemes and resources to promote AAP

The AAP government in Delhi has received a rap on its knuckles after the Delhi state election commission directed authorities to remove the name ‘Aam’ from all the hoardings, billboards, nameplates and banners of Mohalla Clinics and from an express bus service the government had launched.

This comes in light of the model code of conduct in the National Capital Territory coming in force from 14th March for the the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections on 22nd April.

The AAP government had branded these two services as Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinics and Aam Aadmi Bypass Express service, which sound close to the political party’s name. It was dubbed as a violation of the model code of conduct as the ruling party is not allowed to use its official position to gain unfair advantage.

BJP leader Vijender Gupta, who is also the leader of opposition in the Delhi assembly, lodged an official complaint in this regard with the state election commission on 20th March:


The State Election Commission(SEC) in a letter dated 21st March directed the Chief Secretary, GNCTD (Delhi state government) and the three Commissioners of MCD to ensure appropriate action, and to submit a compliance report within 48 hrs.

Letter by state election commission

The complain from the BJP claimed that the words Aam Aadmi were displayed prominently on the 150 Mohalla Clinics the state government operates in the state. On one of the clinics, Kejriwal’s photos were also affixed on the walls:

Mohalla Clinic Delhi

Mohalla Clinic Delhi

One Mohalla Clinic was also cheekily called Aap Ka Mohalla Clinic:

Mohalla Clinic Delhi

This isn’t the only time the AAP flagship Mohalla Clinic program has come under the scanner. Recently we had reported how the doctors in the Mohalla clinics were checking patients for as little as 27 seconds and also allegedly prescribing bogus medicines so that they could allegedly earn more.

The Aam Aadmi express bus service was launched by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) in October 2016. This Bus service supposedly runs from the Uttam Nagar bus terminal to Sarai Kale Khan ISBT, connecting three National Highways; NH-1, NH-10 and NH-24. Apart from the inexplicable use of Aam Aadmi for a bus service, the phrase ‘express’ is also dubious as the bus crews are directed to use slower slip roads instead of flyovers.

One can see the name ‘Aam Aadmi’ vividly displayed on one such bus:

AAP ka bus

These moves to name public offerings in a way that promotes the party is reminiscent of the Congress’ modus operandi of naming every scheme under sun after member of the Nehru-Gandhi family, so as to possibly ensure people associate the scheme with the Gandhi family and thus the Congress party.

Finally on a lighter note, if this move of the SEC is opposed by the AAP leaders, they shouldn’t object if and when the BJP government at center comes up with a public park and names it Bharatiya Janta Park (BJP).

Why the Uttar Pradesh mandate was for Yogi Adityanath

Gaurav Sansanwal
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Why the Uttar Pradesh mandate was for Yogi Adityanath

A leader is only as good as the electorate. And the electorate is only as good as the prevailing discourse. When the news studios in Noida were buzzing with Akhilesh Yadav’s “Kaam bolta hai” ads, a completely different ballgame was taking place in Uttar Pradesh:

For the last two decades, SP and BSP have ruled the state in tandem. They have used identity politics to their best advantage. SP has made Muslims its core consistency, while BSP has tried to use the community as a useful add-on.

The picture above does not represent even a fraction of the ‘Muslim politics’ that has been played by ‘Maulana’ Mulayam. And before you restrict the charge of spoiling the discourse to SP, it is important to know a little something about BSP.

Left-liberals love celebrating the political empowerment of the ‘bahujan’ samaaj. It is a commendable feat, no doubt. But even this came at the price of spoiling discourse (and dividing the ‘Hindu’ society). Chants of “Tilak (Brahmin), Taraju (Vaishya), aur Talwar (Kshatriya) – inko maaro joote chaar” used to resonate across the state. And still do.

When Mayawati realised that she can never get a clear majority without expanding her social base, she reached out to the Brahmins and the Muslim community. And the experiment worked. The famous slogan was “Haathi nahi, Ganesh hai, Brahma Vishnu Mahesh Hai!” In the run up to 2017 assembly elections, many BSP rallies used to start with recital of Quranic verses.

So here is a little something about identity politics: you cannot pick and choose. You cannot fault the ‘Hindu’ electorate for asserting its identity, after living through 20 years of ‘Muslim’ politics.

And while we are at it, what has worked for the BJP in UP is the purest version of Hindu consolidation. A non-Brahmin Yogi Adityanath (of the Thakur caste), from a Math which is always headed by a non-Brahmin, represents the consolidation.

This inclusion based Hindutva politics is not just limited to the OBCs. Since last few years, BJP has made every effort to win the confidence of the Dalit community, and the results can be seen across the states. Politics of Mandal has been left behind, and the Prime Minister has gone on record to state that even if Ambedkar was to come alive and demand a change, reservation policy will not be tweaked.

Students of University of Hyderabad, and their ideological compatriots across campuses may not be fully on board yet, but if you really want to understand the mandate, you have to see the sentiments in the actual battleground. The first (read: internal) battle of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas” has been largely won.

The effort here is not to justify Yogi’s elevation. It makes many of us here in cities like Delhi, uncomfortable. But rather, the effort is to analyse why it has happened.

Yogi was the top-most campaigner of the party in these elections. And his victory has further been well received by most BJP voters in UP. If you think the voters have been ‘fooled’, you are wrong. For if that was the case, then there would be a set arithmetic to win elections. Reality is, some combinations work, and some don’t. Just about everyone in UP understands, and participates in politics. They knew what was being offered. And the fact that national media did not, goes on to demonstrate just how ‘national’ it really is. If anyone has been fooled, it is the spectators, who have been watching from the sidelines.

Any government which breaches the Constitution loses the right to be in office. Our judiciary, and media is as hostile as it can be, to the present dispensation. If you think a government will get away with exclusionary governance, you are only spreading fear. This plain and simple fact, and Yogi’s personal ambitions, will ensure that he remains a moderate figure, while in government. The moment he oversteps the line, he will be stopped. And if you have followed his latest statements, and decisions (over the course of last two days), you will be able to notice the change.

Representation, and governance are two separate issues in UP’s political discourse. Both Akhilesh and Modi contested on the plank of governance, but what set them apart was identity politics, and the fact that Modi’s governance was more trustworthy only made the choice easier. BJP has surely convinced a minute percentage of the population to surrender its identity, but UP results have proven that politics of identity (coupled with a veto, based on performance) is here to stay.

The hypothesis which Yogi Adityanath has to prove now, is that “Vikaas” (economic development), and “Hindutva” can co-exist. If he is successful in doing that, then the Bharatiya Janata Party  will remain undefeatable for many years to come.

Moving towards cashless economy – What if cash had an expiry date?

Shreyash
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Moving towards cashless economy – What if cash had an expiry date?

While the debates around demonetisation have appeared to have died down, the government appears to pursue one of the objectives of the demonetisation – move towards cashless or less-cash economy.

Yesterday, the government proposed to ban all cash transactions/deals worth more than 2 lakh rupees, which is a lakh less than what was proposed in the union budget earlier. The penalty proposed for people who violate this ban has been proposed to be equal to the amount of transaction. The aim is to make people use less cash.

In an earlier article, we had explored barriers to cashless-ness and motivations behind cash transactions. But cash or money is not the end in itself, it is merely a tool. Money is earned because it can fulfil your desires.

So to understand more about why cash is king, it is important to look how money can be used. Again I have tried to list a variety of transactions and list them into three simple buckets. Here is a quick table:

how cash is used

More or less, money is spent in the above 3 ways. This is applicable to white money as well as black money. So is there any difference between the two if both can be spent identically?

For #1 and #2 there is no real difference. But #1 and #2 have limitations. How many fruits and veggies will you buy? How many television sets will you buy? One is forced to go for #3.

But here is where the real difference comes in. White money can be easily saved in bank accounts, invested and retrieved at the appropriate time for bulk spending. But black money has to be stored in the form of cash and accumulated to be used when necessary.

Now for the purpose of illustration let me introduce some magic. Let’s say RBI comes up with a magical note which self-destructs itself one month after it is withdrawn from the bank or ATM. It has to return back to the bank before destruction. Now let us see what happens to above transactions.

Type #3 transactions are no longer possible for the cash hoarder.  He cannot wait for more than 1 month to spend his cash. In other words, he has to resort only to #1 and #2 which have limitations and that too within one month.

Moreover, the recipient of the note will also have to spend the note before it self-destructs. Towards the end of its life cycle, the note can only be used for a legal transaction where the recipient will have to deposit the note back into the bank. To summarize here is what happens:

  1. Velocity of cash increases, Idle cash is reduced
  2. Cash is deposited more frequently, there is a money trail which can be used for tracing and taxation purposes
  3. As cash itself becomes less attractive, people will be more willing to embrace non-cash modes of transaction. There will be reluctance from lower rungs of the money chain to accept cash thus putting more pressure on undisclosed income. That which was earlier a barrier has suddenly become a catalyst for cashless India.

But what exactly was done when we introduced some magic?

At a basic level, there are 2 patterns of spending – spend as you earn or save and spend; here we have plugged the savings route. It is important to note that savings are an integral part of the Indian way of life. India has one of the highest savings rate in the whole world (32% of GDP). If the ability to save is disrupted, our cash flow will be altered at a fundamental level.

So what if RBI issues notes which have an expiry date? Notes which should be deposited in the bank before the expiry date, after which they are no longer legal tender. How does this affect the cash chain? Let me illustrate with an info graphic depicting various outflows for cash:

Flow of cash

  1. Route B will no longer be an option as explained above
  2. Route C is not an option for Black money hoarders as it can be tracked. It can be further discouraged by taxing deposits thus making it un-economical as opposed to digital payments.
  3. The only remaining route is A. But this is not a 100% exit route. Unless one is able to break down cash via this route before it expires, it is lost. High value cash transactions are already banned, thus plugging some leakages on this route. Since there is no outlet, the cash pipe is bound to get choked. There will be tremendous pressure within Route A which in turn will result in more people transacting digitally.

But neither a solution nor a problem is permanent. For every problem, there is a solution and every solution will subsequently give rise to other problems. Such a move will come with the cost of cash replacement. There will have to be processes in place to absorb and replace expired cash (within and outside India). Plus we will have the status quoists giving their usual dose of doomsday predictions. But if this reduces overall cash in the economy, the short term losses might be worth it.

Had you asked anyone on 7th Nov as to what they think about withdrawing 500 and 100 rupee notes they would have termed it as irrational and scoffed at you. Today no one will say so. An idea sounds outrageous and fictional only because we have not experienced it first-hand. Don’t we deal with coupon codes which expire, have we not used sodexo?

Government of India has taken a bold step by demonetisation but without taking this war to its logical end, the problem of black money will creep in again – sooner than later. It is important to reduce the buying power of a note one way or the other, one of the effective ways will be by attacking cash savings. It is time we think long term and take concrete steps to move towards a cleaner economy even if it seems radical to start with.

A politician said something outrageous? Follow this guide before outraging

Amit Kelkar
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A politician said something outrageous? Follow this guide before outraging

If you are an Indian political animal and are on OutragR, the dying social media network sometimes also known as Twitter, you have definitely used terms like bhakt, AAPtard, Khangress, Sanghi, and presstitutes. If you didn’t, Twitter would have definitely suspended your account for negatively affecting its already low monthly active user (MAU) count.

Politicians work hard for the only job they know – i.e. win elections. To get to that goal, sometimes they say things which may have no real meaning. Sometimes they don’t believe in what they are saying but the subject could be important to voters. But let’s face it – they are mostly sticking to their core purpose of attracting voters and creating a certain image in voters’ mind.

Most of us have listened to our corporate bosses in offsite events or all hands’ meets. We know they are lying through their teeth. But we don’t take to Twitter to shame them for every line they say, do we?

So why is our Twitter timeline full of quote tweets, where the added value on media quoting a politician tweet is three winking emojis? Sometimes it is just LOL or lulz. And of course, there is the “is it true” format of shaming and abusing.

In every case, the Twitter user never accounts for the possibility that her or she, not the politician being mocked, may be wrong. Twitter users should set high standards for outrage, given how invested they are in this core feature of Twitter.

Here’s a simple guide to check if an outrage quote tweet is actually justified or not.

Step 1: Did the politician actually say what the media said?

This sounds counter-intuitive – why will media report something that was not said. But media is mostly a 20 something just-graduate from Delhi or Mumbai who can’t make out a Panchkula from a Panvel, tweeting under pressure real time. It is certainly possible that such a person hears pineapple, but keys in coconut. The base assumption should actually be that every media tweet is potentially incorrect.

Step 2: Is the language of the tweet and the language of the politician same?

If languages were assets, India would be Ayesha Takia. Politicians are inherently rustic. Except for the ones living in Lutyens – and very few have that experience given that only party has ruled 54 of the 70 years and the other 16 are divided between several parties – most actually don’t speak good English. Media tweets are almost always in English.

When a politician says “oh maa, khet mein neelgai”, a media reporter may translate that as “OMG, neelgai in the fields”. The politician is worried for the crop damage; the reporter is taking a cute selfie.

Step 3: Do you actually understand the language of the politician?

Every language has several words to say the same thing. While we have all read Roget’s Thesaurus to prepare for GRE or GMAT, we haven’t read anything in any other language since completing class X, when we were forced to read a second language. A nuanced word spoken in a language half-alien to the regional reporter, translated on the spot to English and fitted in 140 characters – a game of Chinese whispers has a better probability conveying the message without distortion to the last person of a long chain.

Step 4: Is there a video?

Nothing that is being quoted is probably correct, unless there is a video. If you haven’t watched the video yourself, hold your outrage horses.

Step 5: Is the video from that specific date as claimed?

Politicians say the same thing multiple times – actually we all do. Except that we aren’t saying these things on camera. It is critical to ascertain that the politician actually said what she said in the context of the current outrage. If you don’t understand this, you are probably watching a “Sattais saal UP behaal” khaat sabha while you should be watching a “UP ko ye saath pasand hai” jingle.

Step 6: Is the video from that specific place as claimed?

Nigerian scammers to Syrian child protectors to Amdavad amphibian bus video makers have one thing in common – they are able to create their content in their studio or pick random content from elsewhere, labeling it Nigeria or Syria or Amdavad. Politicians attend multiple rallies. They all look the same – the SPG commando standing skill, the lectern covered with white cloth, the pick headgear of the politician, and the 35 people sitting on a stage which has a capacity to seat 15. Never confuse occasions or then the basis of outrage gets nullified.

Step 7: There is a video, but is it the only video?

Remember the bright, innocent, energized, passionate Delhi students who have devoted 35 years of their life learning how to divide the country into pieces? There were multiple alleged videos from allegedly different dates allegedly carrying morphed sounds allegedly not dividing the country. The police took a full year to remove all instances of allegedly from the hypothesis.

Of course, no one on Twitter can wait a year to outrage, but better to watch various versions of any video clip before outraging.

Step 8: Is this the complete video?

OK so you did find multiple videos and you are sure a politician said what you thought he said. But is this the complete video? It is not difficult to edit a 60 second video addressing reservations on the basis of religion to a 30 second video addressing reservations without any qualifier – media achieved this in Jaipur LitFest just this year. It is also not difficult for reporters to cry wolf about being assaulted in faraway New York until someone produces the six preceding seconds of footage showing the boxer version of the reporter.

Step 9: Was the politician sarcastic?

So you have a complete video from the right date and place, in a language that you understand yourself. But hang on – do you actually understand sarcasm? The famous Twitter celebrity @gabbbarsingh once said – “Sarcasm is like electricity, half of India is yet to get it”. Piyush Goyal has since made the tweet irrelevant more or less, but as they say on Twitter – bhavnao ko samjho.

Politicians say a lot of things in a sarcastic manner. Media can hear “Shehanshah of Delhi” in a speech and paste the picture of Crown Prince morphed with Hrithik Roshan, attired as Akbar on the front page of the newspaper. Not everything is literal.

Step 10: Did you understand the body language?

When a politician stands up in a legislative setting and pumps his hand up and down, that’s because – well – he is pumped up making his point. Don’t take the action literally. Body language is important. Is the politician winking? Or is he smiling? While most Twitter users do not have a real life, it should still be remembered that what’s being said can actually be negated by or amplified by body language. This sounds complex human psychology, but real life, unlike Twitter, is indeed complex.

***

So now, have you ticked all boxes? Congratulations! You may go ahead and outrage. And don’t forget to tag your tweet to @coolfunnytshirt and @rahulroushan – their RT is the safest bet to reach 100 RTs.

99% Hindus are not like Yogi Adityanath: Javed Akhtar

OpIndia Staff
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99% Hindus are not like Yogi Adityanath: Javed Akhtar

Bollywood lyricist and poet Javed Akhtar has hit out at Yogi Adityanath, the new Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, by indirectly painting him as a “fringe” element within the Hindu society.

Speaking at an event titled Young Gujarat that was held yesterday at Baroda Medical College in Vadodara, Akhtar said, “Personally I think that he (Yogi Adityanath) issues strong statements, which is not right. But if the party thinks that he is the right person to implement their agenda, it’s the party’s prerogative to choose him.”

Echoing statements like “growing intolerance”, Akhtar is reported to have claimed that aggression against minorities in India has appeared to increase in recent times, however he added that things were not that bad as he didn’t consider 99% of the Hindus as Adityanath Yogi, thus painting the new Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh as a fringe element who can make minorities feel uncomfortable.

The event was also attended by former union minister and NCP leader Praful Patel, where both of them talked about the current situation in the country.

Javed Akhtar also opined about the fatwa against Nahid Afreen and explained that any statement by many mullah didn’t become fatwa, and even otherwise some fatwas were bought for 15-20000 rupees. He also said that it’s unfortunate that the government had to step in to remove triple talaq, as it was something that the Muslim Personal Law Board should have done by themselves.

Mamata renaming Center’s schemes because her govt has to pay a bit more for its implementation

OpIndia Staff
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Mamata renaming Center’s schemes because her govt has to pay a bit more for its implementation

Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of Bengal now seems to have found another way to settle scores with the Modi government. She has embarked upon a drive to rechristen the Center’s welfare schemes with Bengali names.

For example, the Mamata Government now wants to drop “Pradhan Mantri” from the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana scheme. She has already renamed Swacha Bharat Abhiyan to Nirmal Bangla, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Antyodaya Yojana as Anandadhara, Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana as Bangla Griha Prakalpa and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana as Sabar Ghare Alo which translates to lights in everyone’s home.

The reason Mamata has provided for her decision is that the state now has to bear 40% of the total cost of implementing the scheme, which some years ago was just 10%. According to her, if the state has to pay more than 40% of the cost, it is well within ts rights to change the name of the scheme.

This 60:40 cost distribution between the center and the state was recommended [pdf link] by the Niti Aayog in a notice dated 28th October 2015. The recommendation stated that for 18 Central schemes, the funding between the center and states would be shared in the aforesaid manner. Though it would continue to remain 90:10 for the 8 North-Eastern and 3 Himalayan States.

Following is the list of schemes which come under the 60:40 rule:

This recommendation was implemented in the 2016-17 budget [pdf link]

One of the other reasons for this ‘name changing’ decision was given by Mamata’s bureaucrats who contended that the names of the center’s schemes do not appear familiar to the local people because of a language barrier, so such a name change ensures more connection of the scheme with the locals.

Justifying their renaming decision, the state government cites examples such as the NDA government changed the JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) scheme to AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation). However, the cases are different as the central government was replaced in 2014, while the here only the arrangement of execution has changed.

The move is clearly aimed at reaping political benefits, rather denying political benefits to BJP. It remains to be seemed how the center or the state unit of BJP tackles this move by Mamata Banerjee.

Muslim mob attacks police station demanding ‘blasphemer’ handed over to them

OpIndia Staff
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Muslim mob attacks police station demanding ‘blasphemer’ handed over to them

In an incident reminiscent of the Kamlesh Tiwari controversy, a mob of Muslim protesters demanded that a person accused of committing blasphemy be given public punishment according to their whims and fancies. The incident happened in the Trombay area of Mumbai’s eastern suburbs on the midnight of Saturday.

The alleged act of blasphemy happened on Facebook, where a 21-year-old man is reported to have uploaded an image that was disrespectful to a Muslim place of worship. The young man apparently deleted the post after as it attracted online outrage and after some local people took their outrage offline to his doorstep.

Seeing tensions rise, police arrived and detained the young man, who also apologised to All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) corporator Shahnawaz Shaikh, who was among the protesting mob. However, police claims that instead of accepting the apology and calming the mob down, Shaikh went on to instigate them.

As a result, a mob of around 150-200 angry Muslims gathered around the Trombay police station and demanded that the young man be handed over to them to be “brought to justice”.

“The mob was instigated by the corporator and they had planned to attack the police station if we did not hand over the accused to them. When we refused their demand the first time, they went back. But we learnt later that another section of the mob was waiting at a spot near the police station, preparing to attack,” senior inspector Annasaheb Sonur of Trombay police station is quoted as saying by Mumbai Mirror.

Muslim mob goes on rampage over Facebook post
The mob put police vans on fire (source)

Even after repeated demands when the police did not hand over the man – who could have been publicly killed for blasphemy – the mob started attacking the police station and police property. The mob was reportedly armed with petrol bombs, lathis, stones and kerosene. They could put two police vans on fire before the police restarted to tear gas and rubber bullets to control the violence.

This entire incident happened in a locality that has Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and armament depot of the Western Command of the Indian Navy in the vicinity. Police officers concede that they failed to anticipate such an attack by the locals over a Facebook post.

Police have now arrested 17 people including the AIMIM leader for rioting and attempt to murder. It has now come to light that the AIMIM corporator was earlier booked for rioting twice in 2014. The alleged blasphemer remains in police custody, arrested under the section 295(A) of the IPC for hurting religious sentiments and under various sections of the IT law.

Why Yogi Adityanath doesn’t fit into traditional binaries of secular or communal

OpIndia Staff
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Why Yogi Adityanath doesn’t fit into traditional binaries of secular or communal

Since a few days a large bunch of the eminent leftist Lutyens mediapersons and politicians are busy painting Yogi Adityanath as some monstrous beast whose only purpose is to devour the whole of Uttar Pradesh in some sort of a communal fireball. We already busted a lie which was being spread by these people to create fear among the minorities in the country.

Having said that, it would be wrong to suggest that all of Yogi Adityanath’s controversial statements have been invented by his detractors. Though there’s nothing wrong with it, his wearing saffron robes also contributes a lot towards him getting associated with Hindutva. Media reports suggest that there are quite a few such statements he has uttered like:

  • His desire to turn the whole of UP and India into a Hindu Rashtra
  • His proclamation on Love Jihad that if 1 Hindu Girl is converted 100 Muslim girls would be converted in return
  • Those who wish to avoid Yoga and Lord Shankar can leave Hindustan
  • I think there is no difference between the language of Shah Rukh Khan

So if one only considers the above statements or others which we didn’t include, Yogi Adityanath can easily be cast into the communal mould of being a hardcore Hindutva leader and that would be the end of the story.

Well there’s a twist. Here are a few instances, if taken exclusively would portray Yogi in a completely different light:

  • If one ventures into the Gorkhanath Math in Gorakhpur where Yogi is the head priest, a completely different picture emerges. The man who has supervised all the construction work inside the temple for 35 years is a Muslim named Yasin Ansari. He spoke about how he freely enters Yogi’s living quarters and also shares meals with him. He also mentioned how Yogi had always participated in all of his family functions. Some of the shops in the temple precinct are also run by Muslims and one of the owners outright stated that he has never faced any discrimination.
  • The cow shelter in the Math has about 500 cows and one of the volunteers who takes care of it is Man Mohammed. Now 30, he has served in the Gaushala since he was 10 years old. He speaks about the love and respect he has received from Yogi and stated that Yogi stood for everyone irrespective of their religious identity. Man also mentioned how all the medical bills of his ailing father are also borne by Yogi.
  • Once Yogi had even solved a dispute which had arisen when people had encroached upon a land belonging to a mosque said one Chaudhary Kaiful Waraq.

On social media, Tanvir Salim, a columnist and resident of Gorakhpur, too portrayed a very “secular” image of Yogi Adityanath:


So is Yogi just one of those politicians who make “communal” statements and act “secular”? If that was true then one of the first decisions of his government would not have been to close illegal slaughterhouses.

So what’s the story? Who exactly is Yogi. As Yasin Ansari put it, ‘Yogi isn’t against Muslims, he is against those who praise another country and live here’. And as this report stated Yogi’s followers claim that he is actually opposed to Wahabi Islam one of the most hard-line sects of Islam which is believe to be behind the rise of global terrorism.

The chief lesson which emerges from this story is that Yogi or anyone else cannot be stereotyped into singular binary perceptions which unfairly simplify someone’s character or motives. Maybe Yogi is just an ordinary human being with a bundle of contradictions like everyone else.

Just as every aspect has another story to it, in Yogi Adityanath’s case there are plenty…

The ‘action-reaction’ phenomenon and societal churn in Uttar Pradesh

Gaurav
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The ‘action-reaction’ phenomenon and societal churn in Uttar Pradesh

Left-liberal media has been aghast for the past few days, at the sight of a saffron-clad “Yogi” rising to a constitutional post like being the Chief Minister of the state which is the largest in terms of voters and electoral significance.

A shallow analysis based on the projections and leanings of left-liberal media would lead a common man to believe that this is the rise of radical Hinduism and India is moving on a dark path. One cannot blame the common man for believing this (as mainstream media still shapes the narrative) but to understand this phenomenon from the narrow, biased prism of left liberal media is doing disservice to what a large section of the populace has experienced.

Before we come to Uttar Pradesh, let us see what happened in the US recently. Surely Hindus or Modi have no impact there. In the USA, we saw the rise of an obviously flawed leader who became the head of state, again to the agony of left-liberal media. Self-avowed left-winger and Trump critic Michael Moore had predicted a Trump victory. He gave reasons for his prediction, and the top 2 reasons, broadly referred to:

  1. Anger of the middle class stemming from loss/lack of jobs.
  2. A sense among the majority (in the US, referring to the whites), that they have let things slip too far out of their hands.

The debate here is not whether these abstract feelings are valid or not; the point is, they exist.

Coming to India, in 2014, we saw another “polarising” figure rise to the top of the country, amassing unprecedented public support. There were many agendas which Modi, the PM candidate, pushed, but two of them were certainly these:

  1. Jobs, development, growth, “vikas”, and along with that,
  2. His image of being a proud Hindu, a nationalist, who believes in “sab ka saath, sab ka vikas” without pseudo-secularism and also someone who does not feel shy of flaunting his religion.

The first part is common to most political aspirants. The second point is what flummoxed most.

It did not fit into the age-old Nehruvian definition of secularism, hence it was branded as “Hindutva” or “Hindu Nationalism”. But this redefined secularism, that of “Sab ka saath sab ka vikas”, found resonance with the populace which was fed up of minority appeasing politics symbolised by this one line of former PM Manmohan Singh: “minorities, particularly the Muslim minority must have the first claim on resources”.

The underlying factor here too remains the same as what was felt in the US; the sense amongst the majority that the politics of minority appeasement had pushed the so-called privileged majority too far down the list of priorities.

More recently in India, we saw similar sentiments rise amongst the “Hindus” themselves. We saw what can be called the “Intermediary Caste unrest“:  Marathas protested in Maharashtra demanding reservation and repeal of Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (SC/ST Act). Similar demands were made by relatively affluent castes like the Patels, the Gujjars, the Jats. Politically driven or not, the strain was similar: A section felt alienated due to the perceived over-reach of the social re-engineering process called reservation.

They felt that reservation was now no longer confined to specific communities that had suffered historical atrocities. Reservation had become less about deprivation and more about political resource. Worse, reservation benefits had not been evenly dispersed and had created creamy layers within the OBCs/Dalits. This left the poorer sections or even the richer portions of the intermediary or upper caste feeling left out and ignored. Again, this is not about validity of the arguments, but existence of these sentiments.

Uttar Pradesh was no different. “Vikas” was no doubt the main plank, but “vikas” for whom, was the burning question. Uttar Pradesh had been witness to over a decade of “secular politics” at the hands of BSP and SP. The Prime Minister in his speeches just touched on this issue, when he raised the Smashans vs Kabrasthan point.

An analysis revealed that the per-capita budgetary allocation for Kabrasthans was 8.69 times the per capita allotment to Smashans. Similarly, his argument about religious discrimination when it comes to electricity supply too was vindicated. This was the accepted trend of “secularism” and “development” in Uttar Pradesh, and was at loggerheads with the “sab ka saath” model of secularism and “sab ka vikas” model of development.

Owing to such sentiments, Uttar Pradesh saw a reverse polarisation of Hindus. As noted by former politician from UP, Arif Mohammad Khan, a communal polarisation helped BJP, but he laid the blame squarely at the feet of so-called “secular” parties. As per Arif Mohammad Khan, the moment Congress and Samajwadi Party came together, it was a signal of Muslim vote consolidation – for there is nothing else common between the supporters of the two parties except Muslim votes – and this in turn caused Hindu consolidation. A consolidation, backed by the deep need for development, and sense of being left behind by appeasement politics.

But this dual need, perfectly encapsulated in “sab ka saath sab ka vikas”, led to the rise of Yogi Adityanath. Polls showed that he was the second most popular CM candidate for the BJP in UP, only behind Home Minister and former CM Rajnath Singh. How did the need of the masses to ensure equitable growth for all sections, lead to the rise of a “hardliner” like Yogi Adityanath?

Societal churning can be akin to the progression of a Sine Wave. There are crests, and there are troughs, the higher the crests the deeper the troughs. Uttar Pradesh was going through a deep trough, where a warped sense of minority appeasement masquerading as secularism had affected the lives of the majority. The response to the deep trough was a polar opposite in the form of Yogi Adityanath.

In an ideal world, both the crests and troughs should be minimised. To correctly quote the much mauled words of the then Gujarat CM: “A chain of action and reaction is going on. We neither want action nor reaction”.

We neither want an India were minority appeasement is practised in the name of secularism, nor do we want an India where the majority sect is allowed to mistreat minorities. We want an India of “sab ka saath, sab ka vikas”, but we are not yet ready for it. India has seen a trough, it will see a crest and once the two subside, India must ensure that we stay as close to the equilibrium as possible.

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