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Archives for March 2015

Negotiators suspend Iran nuclear talks

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Session in Swiss city interrupted to enable Iranian delegation to attend funeral of their president’s mother.

iran-nuclear-deal

by Al Jazeera

The US and Iran have suspended nuclear negotiations ahead of schedule, setting up new talks next week for a deal providing long-term assurance to the world that Iran cannot develop nuclear weapons.

The session in the Swiss city of Lausanne was interrupted on Friday – its sixth day – to enable members of the Iranian delegation to attend the funeral of their president’s mother.

Those departing included Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister; John Kerry, US secretary of state; and Hossein Fereydoon, a brother of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

The sides were close to an agreement, a senior Russian official said on Friday, when the talks between Kerry and the Iranian delegation were suspended.

US President Barack Obama also spoke with his French counterpart Francois Hollande on Friday to discuss the talks, the White House National Security Council said on Twitter.

The leaders also discussed the situation in Ukraine, the White House said.

Diplomats did not promise a breakthrough in the Lausanne talks, but tried to make as much progress as possible with a March 31 deadline for a framework accord looming.

Sergey Ryabkov, the top Russian negotiator, said that while some disputes remain, the US, Iran and five other world powers negotiating the deal are expected to “finish their main work” before the talks resume next week.

Iranian commitment

Ryabkov spoke shortly before Kerry’s last meeting with Zarif on Friday. This week’s discussions had been tentatively extended to go into Saturday.

Ryabkov’s comments were consistent with those of other officials who told the AP earlier that the US and Iran were drafting elements of a deal that commits the Iranians to a 40 percent cut in the number of machines they could use to make an atomic bomb.

In return, Iran would get quick relief from some crippling economic sanctions and a partial lift of a UN embargo on conventional arms.

The sides ultimately want to reach a full agreement by June 30.

But both the US and Iran face pressure to come up with the main contours of a deal by this month’s end, with US President Barack Obama and Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei having spoken against extending negotiations for the third time.

Iran says the programme’s aims are for energy, medical and research purposes, but the US and its allies in the Middle East, such as Israel, believe Iran harbours nuclear weapons ambitions.

Meetings in Brussels

In Brussels, French President Francois Hollande; David Cameron, UK prime minister; and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed the state of negotiations on Friday with Federica Mogherini, the EU’s top diplomat.

All three countries are negotiating with the US, as are Russia and China.

Marie Harf, State Department spokesperson, said Kerry would meet the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany in London on Saturday, before returning to Washington DC.

The US is determined to maintain unity among its partners. But France, which raised last-minute objections to an interim agreement reached with Iran in 2013, could threaten a deal again.

It is particularly opposed to providing Iran with quick relief from international sanctions and is trying to secure a longer timeframe for restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activity.

AAP govt hikes Delhi water tariff 10%, Congress, BJP furious

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Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s decision to hike water tariff by 10 per cent in Delhi came under attack from both Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress who accused the Arvind Kejriwal-led party of going back on its electoral promises.

While BJP state president Satish Upadhyay tersely observed that “conditions” to AAP’s promises are being revealed now, Congress chief Ajay Maken said the move would put “additional burden” on common people.

Upadhyay further termed the decision as a “stab on people’s back”.

“It is shocking that in today’s important meeting of Delhi Jal Board no proposal has come for laying new water supply line in any area of Delhi but instead the Board has come up with a proposal to buy 250 new tankers,” he said.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who Friday chaired the 121th Board Meeting of Delhi Jal Board, gave his nod to increase the water tariff with an immediate effect. However, people consuming water up to 20,000 litres will not be affected due to the DJB’s decision.

Maken said the government had “betrayed” the trust and confidence of the people of Delhi, who had believed in the “false promises” made by the AAP before the Delhi Assembly elections, “only to regret now”.

(PTI)

Stiff jail term, 90% penalty for black money abroad

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BLACK-MONEY

New Delhi: The Modi government on Friday unveiled a set of stringent provisions, including a 90% penalty on those who have undisclosed foreign assets and income overseas as it introduced a Bill to deal with black money stashed abroad. This will be above the 30% levy on the value of assets or income that will be imposed.

But those who want to avoid the hefty penalty will be given the option to pay 30% penalty of the value of undisclosed assets and avoid prosecution, the Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha proposed. Although the government wants the law to be active from April 2016, it has not specified how long the one-time compliance window would be open. The Bill has also detailed safeguards to prevent any misuse of the stiff provisions by tax authorities.

Apart from penalty, the bill provides imprisonment of up to 10 years for concealment , non-disclosure, false declaration as well as abetment. The provision for abetment can put financial advisors and chartered accountants in the crosshairs of the law should they be deemed guilty of cooking the books.

“It’s not an amnesty scheme because under amnesty you only pay tax, and no penalty. Here the requirement is to pay tax at 30% and equivalent 30% as penalty. The intention of the government is not to give a soft landing facility to anyone. The one-time compliance opportunity is to enable such people who have hidden assets abroad to come clean and avail of the opportunity. It is not a revenue mobilization measure,” said revenue secretary Shaktikanta Das.

Asked about the time frame of the compliance window, Das said it would be notified after the passage of the bill.

The Bill, was announced by finance minister Arun Jaitley in his budget speech on February 28, as the BJP government moved to smother the criticism of going soft on black money, a key poll plank during the 2014 general elections. The Bill is the latest move to get money stashed overseas back into India, even as the tax department has also asked its officers to focus on illegal wealth within the country as well.

Apart from the penalty, the legislation also lists a 10-year jail term for “willful attempt to evade tax”. Anyone who possesses or controls documents or books of accounts with false entries or statement, willfully omits entries or statements in the papers, or takes steps that result in tax evasion will be treated as willful evader. “In the prosecution proceedings, the willful nature of the default shall be presumed and it shall be for the accused to prove the absence of the guilty state of mind,” the government said.

Further, the Bill has proposed imprisonment of six months to seven years for failure to provide details of foreign assets and income, or interest in a overseas entity, in tax returns as well as for making false statement. A similar term is proposed for those abetting making of false statement, a move that will impose a burden on chartered accountants and financial advisors who are often involved with overseas transactions. Second or subsequent offences would entail imprisonment of three to 10 years and fine of Rs 25 lakh to Rs 1 crore, the Bill proposed.

For companies, the Bill has proposed prosecution and penalty for directors, managers, officers or secretaries in-charge of the company or involved with the decision. Failure to disclose details in tax returns will also result in a penalty of Rs 10 lakh.

The government has, however, suggested that those with minor balances in foreign accounts, which may have been missed due to oversight, be exempted from the penalty or prosecution provisions. As a result, it has fixed Rs 5 lakh as the threshold.

The legislation has generated some anxiety over possible misuse by tax department officials. As a result, the Bill has suggested that prosecution should only be cleared by a commissioner-rank officer. Similarly, in case of penalties of over Rs 1 lakh, a joint commissioner of income tax officer has to approve it.

But those who have been served a notice for penalty need to deposit the amount before they contest the amount in a court. The Bill also empowers the government to enter into agreements with foreign countries for information exchange, tax recovery as well as to help individuals to avoid paying taxes twice.

(Agencies)

Mines Bill passed, auction likely in June

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Conversion Rajya Sabha

New Delhi: Paving the way for auction of iron ore and other mines, Parliament today cleared the Mines and Minerals Bill after days of high drama, as some Opposition parties broke ranks from Congress and Left in Rajya Sabha to support this key reform measure of the government.

States are likely to launch the auction process in June for allocation of mines, having iron ore and other minerals, following the passage of this Bill, which has incorporated amendments suggested by a parliamentary panel, would now replace an Ordinance promulgated in December last.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the new law would enable “computerised allocation” of the mines, while checking corruption and any discriminatory allocation systems, while Steel and Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said it would bring in a “revolutionary change” in the beleaguered sector.

The estimated revenue proceeds could not be immediately ascertained for the auction, for which states have so far identified over 100 mines, containing as many as 10 minerals like iron ore, bauxite and others, for the first phase. In all, 199 mines have been identified so far.

The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015, was passed by the Rajya Sabha earlier in the day with 117 members voting in favour and 69 against it. Later it was approved by the Lok Sabha within 20 minutes.

Industry bodies, including CII, FICCI and Assocham said the new law will bring transparency in auctioning of mines, boost investor sentiment and kick-start industrial growth.

The Bill envisages spending a fixed percentage of revenue generated from mining on the development of the local area.

As per its provisions, there will be no renewal of any mining concession, unlike the original act of 1957. Also, the licence will be for 50 years, as against 30 now, after which there will be no renewal but compulsory auction.

The bill was cleared by the Lok Sabha earlier also but was referred to a Select Committee in Rajya Sabha by a united Opposition. After a day of high drama yesterday, the Bill was cleared by the upper house today as the government agreed to the amendments recommended by Select Committee on March 18.

These amendments provide for existing lease holders to pay 100 per cent of royalty towards district mineral foundation (DMF) while those who will get mines after the new legislation will have to pay up to one-third of the royalty.

“The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015, will bring in a revolutionary change in the sector. It will attract more investment, enhance expertise and income of those employed with the sector,” Steel and Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told PTI.

While hailing the passage of the Bill, industry body FIMI said higher payment for development for the project affected persons mandated in the Bill would inflate cost of production which would be felt by end-users and the general public alike.

(PTI)

Police case against Renuka Choudhary under SC/ST Act

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renuka-chowdhury

Hyderabad: Police in Khammam district of Telangana has registered a case under the SC/ST Atrocities Act against former Union Minister Renuka Choudhary following a complaint that she allegedly took Rs.1.10 crore by promising an Assembly ticket to a local leader ahead of elections last year and abused his wife when she sought return of the money.

The case was registered following an order by High Court in Hyderabad on the complaint by B Kalavati who alleged that Choudhary took the money from her husband Ramji for getting the party ticket to contest from Wyra Assembly constituency in Khammam district, according to Khammam circle inspector Sridhar. Ramji has since died.

The complainant alleged that Choudhary abused her by her caste when the money was sought to be returned, he said.

The case was registered after the court sought to know what action has been taken, Sridhar said, adding that charges of cheating were also there.

The matter would be investigated now following the registration of the case, he said.

“This is totally baseless, unsubstantiated and politically motivated. I have never met this woman in my life. I can swear by that. Such unfortunate things happen in politics,” Chaudhary said when contacted.

(PTI)

Pakistan releases 57 Indian fishing boats

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FISHING-Boats

Islamabad: As a goodwill gesture, Pakistan today released 57 Indian fishing boats that were in its custody.

In a statement, Foreign Office (FO) said the decision to release the vessels was taken in May last year.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited India at that time to attend the oath-ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

An eight-member Indian delegation visited Karachi from March 9 to finalise modalities for the repatriation of boats with officials of the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA), the statement said.

“While the PMSA had kept the boats in good condition, it extended full support to the visiting team in making the boats seaworthy after minor repairs. Subsequently, the boats were towed to the maritime boundary today, where these were physically taken over by the Indian side,” it said.

Indian fishermen and boats are often apprehended by PMSA authorities when they violate Pakistan territorial waters.

Usually the boats are not in seaworthy condition and are not returned.

However, following instructions from the Prime Minister to return these boats, special efforts were undertaken by the PMSA to ensure that the boats are returned to their owners, the statement added.

Pakistan and India frequently arrest rival fishermen for violating the sea waters.

(PTI)

Martin Guptill hits highest World Cup score in New Zealand victory

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Martin Guptill

by Stephan Shemilt, BBC Sport

New Zealand’s Martin Guptill smashed the highest score in World Cup history with 237 not out against West Indies to send his team into the semi-finals.

His 163-ball innings in Wellington featured 11 sixes and 24 fours and beatthe 215 made by West Indies’ Chris Gayle earlier in the tournament.

Guptill, 28, hit 137 from his last 52 balls to help his side post 393-6.

Trent Boult then took four early wickets as New Zealand bowled out the Windies for 250 to seal a 143-run win.

Gayle’s 33-ball 61, featuring eight sixes, entertained the crowd as the Caribbean side scored at a furious pace.

But they continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and were bowled out in 30.3 overs to spark jubilant scenes in the capital.

New Zealand, semi-finalists for the seventh time, will now face South Africa in Auckland on Tuesday, with both seeking a first World Cup final appearance.

Guptill’s score was the second best in one-day international history behind Rohit Sharma’s 264 and propelled the Black Caps to the highest total in a World Cup knockout match.

Having ended a run of 21 innings without a century in New Zealand’s previous match against Bangladesh, he became the fifth player to make an ODI double hundred.

He joined Indians Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, and Gayle in the exclusive club.

His effort was also the fourth highest score in all List A cricket – limited-overs games that are not Twenty20s.

Opener Guptill, who was dropped on four by Marlon Samuels, already held the record for the best ODI score by a New Zealander, having madean unbeaten 189 against England in 2013.

But this effort, played out in front of a raucous Wellington crowd in a home quarter-final, ensured his place in World Cup and New Zealand cricket history.

The right-hander, who began by driving the first ball of the innings for four, heaved six after six over the leg side boundary after reaching his century.

The 10th of his sixes went out of the ground and landed on the roof of the “Cake Tin” stadium.

He shared a partnerships of 143 with Ross Taylor, whose patient 42 was the second highest score in the Kiwi innings.

Guptill, who made his second hundred from only 41 balls, beat the previous best World Cup knockout score of 149 made by Australia’s Adam Gilchrist.

He became the first New Zealander to score hundreds in consecutive World Cup innings and the first of his countrymen to bat through the full 50 overs three times in ODIs.

Gayle became the first man to make a World Cup double hundred against Zimbabwe in Canberra on 24 February.

But his record lasted only 25 days, with Gayle congratulating Guptill on the field when the New Zealander surpassed his score.

"I want to be an actress to be reckoned with": Chitrashi Rawat

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chitrashi-rawat

Chitrashi Rawat of ‘Chak De India’ fame happens to be the 1st ever actress of the Bollywoodian Tinsel Town to have got rid of the shackles of the so called glam girls in the conventional mould. So meet Chitrashi Rawat, an unconventional actress, who is no doubt an actress par excellence. She has indeed proved time & again, right from her debut film CHAK DE INDIA to her latest release BLACK HOME, that she can tackle varied roles and further prove her mettle in the histrionics arena. At heart Chitrashi is a sports loving person, having already proved her proficiency in hockey. And now it is her dream to do as many sports films as possible. Present herewith is a telephonic conversation with a very bubbly & an enthusiastic persona known as Chitrashi Rawat.

Pencil in your background in a nutshell.

I hail born from the beautiful city of Dehradun. I have been a hockey player from the very early stage of my life and also represented my state Uttrakhand at the National level. And by a sheer chance of luck I had bagged CHAK DE INDIA.

And then?

In fact CHAK DE INDIA had happened to me almost a decade ago. Since then I have done films like FASHION, LUCK, TERE NAAL LOVE HO GAYA et al on the celluloid silver screen. That apart in the small screen arena too I have ended up taking part in the most popular shows like COMEDY CIRCUS & ISS JUNGLE SE MUJHE BACHAO on Sony TV and a leading role in FIR on Sab TV. Not only this I have also ended up doing the longest running theater plays like BAAP KA BAAP in Hindi & HONEY HAI TOH MONEY HAI in English.

Ok Now give us a brief insight into your latest release BLACK HOME?

Actually speaking BLACK HOME happens to be a very realistic film belonging to a dark genre, its an eye opener that sets you thinking. It is based on the theme of Juvenile Delinquency. And I have a very strong, powerful & an author backed female oriented role. In fact I am one of the main protagonists in the film. And again frankly speaking the Juvenile Act is implied for the betterment of children’s future. But unfortunately the reality is absolutely unimaginable & unthinkable. The child, who comes to the remand home, is not always & really a criminal. But the real fact is that most of the time an unwanted child of the house belongs to a very poor family. The parents are so poor that they find it very difficult to make the 2 ends meet, so to raise this child becomes like a mission impossible. Hence in reality BLACK HOME is a sincere effort to reveal the reality of these remand home girls in front of the society and make the society aware of the facts that these children lead a life worst than hell. We are a part of this society, where we live a very secure life but the other side of the society is very dark, like a BLACK HOME.

Please continue.

So to reveal the plot in a nutshell, Rajawadi Remand Home is in embroiled in a lot of controversy because of many illegal activities. DK, a news channel bureau chief is all over it again and wants to bring the facts out albeit he is surrounded all around with the usual electronic media politics. DK then uses a non – performing female journalist Anjali to expose the racket and the dark side of the society and show its real & ugly face. It unfolds so many cruel realities of the crime & the politics, which we conveniently ignore. Even otherwise it is not so easy to expose the age old system. So I would say that BLACK HOME is fully researched base film with lot of lots of information gathered from media, news papers and real life interviews of remand mome girls to understand the intensity of the subject. Sincerely speaking BLACK HOME is inspired by true events & information. And I am happy that in BLACK HOME I got a chance to work with veteran & extremely talented actors like Ashutosh Rana, Mohan Joshi, Murli Sharma, Achint Kaur, Vishwajeet Pradhan, Sharad Ponkshe, Santosh Juvekar, Raju Kher, Neelu Kohli, Simran Sehmi, Ajay Suryawanshi, Akhanksha Gade, Priya Gamre et al. BLACK HOME also corroborates the truth that India stands 3rd in the world for rape. Every 20 minutes a girl is raped in India. And out of the 12 million girls born in India, 1 million girls do not see their real homes so most of these girls end up in BLACK HOME. Period!

So how would you describe your filmic journey from CHAK DE INDIA to BLACK HOME en route your varied stopovers in the small screen as well as theatrical arena?

All in all I would say that my journey in all the arenas was smooth sailing albeit my path was strewn with many ups & downs, trials & tribulations and sometimes the interim phase was laced with an unseen sign board of “No Vacancy” and then again I would bounce back with renewed energy without any visible signs of fatigue or depression.

And now name your wish list of both the Bollywoodian as well as the Hollywoodian arena.

The Bollywoodian directors on my wish list are Shekhar Kapoor, Vishal Bhardwaj, Anand Gandhi Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Kiran Rao et al and the Hollywoodian directors on my wish list are Majid Majidi, Woody Allen, Quentin Tarantino, Deepa Mehta, Mira Nair et al.

Any dream role?

No I won’t say that I would like to perform any yesteryear’s or the current heroines more popular roles. All I aspire to do is as many as and all kinds of sports oriented roles. And of course I would love to work in Hollywood films, Indie films, art house films, festival films & so on and so forth.

Your parting shot?

I want to be an actress to be reckoned with one who will leave behind a mark in remembrance in the annals of the golden pages of the filmic history.

DK Ravi's death: Sonia Gandhi requests CM Siddaramaiah for CBI probe

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Photo: Raveendran/AFP

Photo: Raveendran/AFP

New Delhi: Congress chief Sonia Gandhi has written a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah urging him to recommend CBI probe into the mysterious death of IAS office DK Ravi.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh has also reportedly spoken to Siddaramaiah advising that the state should opt for a CBI inquiry.

According to media reports the state government has decided to change its stand on this issue and it may now agree to handover the probe to CBI.

Today, the Opposition members once again created uproar in the Karnataka Assembly demanding a CBI probe in the incident. Following this, the Assembly was adjourned till Monday 11 am.

The latest development came after CM Siddaramaiah’s earlier decision to refuse demand of CBI probe. He had said, “This is not a case to be handed over to CBI.”

35-year-old Ravi, a popular bureaucrat for being honest and gutsy in taking on the sand and land mafia and tax evaders, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his room in a flat here on Monday evening.

On Thursday, IAS officers from state had signed an online petition to Narendra Modi to press for their demand of CBI probe.

The case is currently with the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

(Agencies)

Documenting hate and communal violence under the Modi regime

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Photos: Gufran Khan

Photos: Gufran Khan

by John Dayal

The rape of a 70 year old Nun in West Bengal in an attack on a convent and school in February 2015 sent shock waves throughout India, and the world. “Protect not just Cows, but human beings also,” said Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, President of the Catholic Bishops Conference. At least 43 deaths in over 600 cases of violence, 149 targeting Christians and the rest Muslims, have taken place in 2014 in India till March this year, marking 300 days of the National Development Alliance government of Mr. Narendra Modi. The number of dead is other than the 108 killed in Assam in attacks by armed tribal political groups on Muslims. Desecration and destruction of churches, assault on pastors, illegal police detention of church workers, and denial of Constitutional rights of Freedom of Faith aggravate the coercion and terror unleashed in campaigns of Ghar Wapsi and cries of Love Jihad. Since May 2014, there has been a marked shift in public discourse. There has been a relentless foregrounding of communal identities, a ceaseless attempt to create a divide between ‘us’ and ‘them’. The BJP leaders guaranteed to abuse, ridicule and threaten minorities. Hate statements by Union and state ministers, threats by Members of Parliament, state politicians, and cadres in saffron caps or Khaki shorts resonate through the landscape. But most cases go unreported, unrecorded by police.

The Prime Minister refuses to reprimand his Cabinet colleagues, restrain the members of his party members or silence the Sangh Parivar which claims to have propelled him to power in New Delhi. Mr. Modi calls for a ten-year moratorium on communal and caste violence. His government soon declares Christmas to be a “Good Governance Day” in honour of the BJP leader and former Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee. There are fears at a severe whittling down of the 15 Point Programme for Minorities, a lifeline for many severely economic backward communities, and specially their youth seeking higher education and professional training. Anyway, Mr. Modi’s “assurance” to religious minorities is challenged and countered by Mr. Mohan Bhagwat, the head of the powerful Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, who asserts, repeatedly, that every Indian is a Hindu, and minorities will have to learn their place in
the country.Speaking at the 50th Anniversary of foundation of its religious wing, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Mr. Mohan Bhagwat, the RSS Sarsanghchalak bluntly stated that “Hindutva is the identity of India and it has the capacity to swallow other identities. We just need to restore those capacities.” In Cuttack, he asserted that India is a Hindu state and “citizens of Hindustan should be known as Hindus”. Sadhvi Prachi, a central minister, Members of Parliament Sakshi Maharaj and Adityanath are among those urging measures to check Muslims, including encouraging Hindu women to have from four to ten children each. In Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and other states, the terror, physical violence and social ostracizing of Dalit and Tribal Christians, in particular, continues.

The 300 days have also seen an assault on democratic structures, the education and knowledge system, Human Rights organizations and Rights Defenders and coercive action using the Intelligence Bureau and the systems if the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act and the Passport laws to crack down on NGOs working in areas of empowerment of the marginalized sections of society, including Dalits, Tribals, Fishermen and women, and issues of environment, climate, forests, land and water rights. This report is focused on issues of communally targeted violence and the politics of hate and divisiveness that emanates from a thesis of religious nationalism.

PDF - 1.6 Mb300 DAYS Documenting Hate and Communal Violence under the Modi Regime
(With inputs from Kiren Shaheen, Liris Thomas, Mansi Sharma, Shabnam Hashmi, Shahnaz Husain, Tehmina Arora, and Vijayesh Lal)

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