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Press Statement from civil society organisations to communal violence affected Atali village, Ballabhgarh, Haryana

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Faridabad-Riots

Visit of civil society organizations at Atali village, Ballabhgarh, Haryana, today (5th June 2015)

Today a team consisting of members of PUCL, NAPM, Khudai Khidmatgar and Socialist Party visited the Atali village in Ballabhgarh District (Haryana) led by Justice Rajinder Sachar (Retd). Team met the Muslim residents who were attacked on 25th May, 2015, whose houses were burnt, belongings looted or destroyed and who had to flee from the village to save their lives and had taken shelter in a police station at Ballabhgarh till 3rd June. The team was happy to see that elders of the majority community had approached them and assured them of their co-operation in protecting them and support in building the ‘mosque’ and on their assurance, as well assurance of the administration, they have returned to the village from 3rd June, 2015. However since their houses were burnt and their belongings totally destroyed or looted by the anti-social elements, they have to rebuild their lives from scratch. The interim compensation at the rate of Rs.5000/- per family given to the victims by the administration is totally insufficient.

Besides the Muslim residents, the team members met SDM Dr. Priyanka Soni, some police officials including two ACPs who were present at the spot as well as members of the majority community of the village. Though the administration and the elders of the majority community asserted that they are committed to the building of the mosque, still there are some mischievous elements who, inspite of the court verdict against them and inspite of the compromise, seem to be unsatisfied and have again gone to the court of CJM, Faridabad, in appeal claiming that the land of the mosque belongs to the Panchayat and got a notice issued to the Mosque committee as well as the Panchayat. Matter is fixed tomorrow for hearing. However the team is surprised to note that though there are more than eight temples, there is no properly constructed mosque in the village and the Muslim residents have been offering their prayers in a make-shift tinshed for more than a century.

The team urges upon the Haryana Govt. that (i) the task of building the mosque must be given top priority and urgency, and proper protection be given to the mosque committee for this purpose; (ii) Adequate compensation be given to the victims of violence so that they are able to rehabilitate themselves in a dignified manner; (iii) that those responsible for violence should be immediately arrested and prosecuted and (iv) that due protection be given to the Muslim families and their properties.

The team members were Justice Rajinder Sachar, N.D.Pancholi, Prof. V.K.Tripathi, Vimal Bhai, Faisal Khan, Rizwan Ahmad, Farah Sakib and Abdul Malik.

[released by] N.D.Pancholi, President, PUCL (Delhi)

The Times Group’s ideal college girl must be “smoking hot, with a killer bod”

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Cannot be size 10.(Facebook/Campus Princess)

Cannot be size 10. (Facebook/Campus Princess)

by Shelly Walia, QZ

The Times Group—India’s largest media conglomerate and the owner of The Times of India newspaper—has come out with a list of crazily-worded requirements for a college beauty pageant that it runs.

Sample these: “If you’re size ten, well you need a dietitian.” Or: “If you prefer books my dear, good luck with your career.” And if a woman does not meet some of their requirements, she can still be eligible for the contest if she is “smoking hot, with a killer bod.”

These criteria appeared on Campus Princess’ Facebook page, on May 16, as part of its ongoing multiple-city auditions. This specific call for entry preceded the auditions in Bangalore.

Started in 2013, Campus Princess hunts for potential beauty queens among college students. Typically, these women must be between 18 and 27 years to be eligible for the contest, and studying at a recognised educational institution. Though the status of the women must be compulsorily unmarried, the application form allows a candidate to fill in other statuses, including married, divorced and widow.

The pageant describes itself as a “breeding ground” for young women, helping them realise “their dream of becoming a beauty queen.” It takes place twice a year—and is a precursor to the Times Group’s other two prominent pageants: Miss India and Miss Diva.

Ironically, this is what a spokesperson for Campus Princess had to say: “It was supposed to be taken in good humour. We at the organisation don’t really believe in objectification of women or stereotyping beauty.”

“That post basically spoke about the eligibility criteria which is in place, and as every contest has certain rules and regulations, even we have certain criteria in place,” he told Quartz. “These criteria are not something that we decide upon. These are international criteria, and decided by say a Miss World Organisation or a Miss Universe Organisation.”

The post was removed from Facebook on June 03 after Buzzfeed posted this article, criticising Campus Princess and its eligibility requirements.

“The reason we used that kind of language was because we deal with college students, and we were trying to stay in tandem with the kind of lingo that college kids typically use,” the spokesperson said. “So that was the reason why that kind of creative expression was used. But it didn’t go well. And we took it down right away.”

Tragic Explosion in Ghana Kills at Least 200

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This was the worst disaster in over a decade since the 2001 stampede at a stadium that left 120 people dead. | Photo: Reuters

This was the worst disaster in over a decade since the 2001 stampede at a stadium that left 120 people dead. | Photo: Reuters

by teleSUR

Hundreds sought shelter at a gas station that later exploded due to a fuel leak consequence of torrential rains that caused massive floods.  The death toll due to a massive explosion that occured Wednesday in Ghana’s capital Accra has risen to over 200, the Interior Ministry reported Friday.

Torrential rains caused huge floods, which in turn provoked a spillage at a gas station with the consequent explosion and flames, from which hundreds of people attempted to flee. Some drowned and many more died from causes directly related to the blast, officials told news media.

The fuel leak at the station caused also destroyed nearby buildings, local officials said.

President John Mahama told journalist Thursday the West African country would observe three days of mourning with flags flying at half-staff. He also pledged US12 million for rescue operations and for repairs of damaged infrastructure.

The U.S. news agency AP said that TV footage showed corpses being piled into the back of a pickup truck and other charred bodies trapped amid the debris. Floodwaters around the site hampered rescue and recovery efforts.

This was the worst disaster to strike the nation in more than a decade. In May 2001, 120 people died in a stampede at the national stadium during a football match.

Most of the victims had sought shelter from the floods at the state state-owned GOIL gas station, located near a busy downtown intersection. Hours later, people were engulfed in flames, while others died in the blast, authorities said.

The rains have left thousands homeless, while exposing the weaknesses of Accra’s infrastructure, as the government has failed to keep pace with the growing population and years of rapid economic expansion.

Witnesses said low-wage workers struggling home through the seasonal storm with roads closed and minivan buses not running were victims of the blast, the force of which gave few a chance to escape, according to Reuters.

“It was an explosive fire and so the people sheltering at the filling station did not have an opportunity to escape,” fire brigade spokesman Prince Billy Anaglate told reporters. Some victims were burned beyond recognition. Many were trapped and incinerated in the wreckage of cars and minivans on the station’s forecourt.

Four million US government workers hit by cyber breach

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FBI investigating cyberattack that is believed to have compromised data of current and former federal employees.

Since the intrusion, OPM said it had implemented additional security precautions for its networks [Reuters]

Since the intrusion, OPM said it had implemented additional security precautions for its networks [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

The US government agency that collects personnel information for federal employees has said that a cybersecurity breach had compromised the data of up to four million people.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said on Thursday that it has launched a probe and would hold the culprits accountable, Reuters reported.

“The FBI is working with our interagency partners to investigate this matter,” the bureau said in a statement.

“We take all potential threats to public and private sector systems seriously, and will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who pose a threat in cyberspace.”

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) detected new malicious activity affecting its information systems in April and the Department of Homeland Security said it concluded at the beginning of May that the agency’s data had been compromised. The office handles employee records and security clearances.

“This would likely be the largest theft of US government data in the history of the United States,” Patty Culhane, Al Jazeera’s White House correspondent reporting from Washington, said.

“Basically, OPM is like the human resources department of the entire federal government. They also get security background checks for people who want to get security clearances,” she said.

“The big question remains exactly what information was stolen? Was it social security number, your federal ID or was it salary information. Right now OPM is not saying.”

A US law enforcement source told Reuters a “foreign entity or government” was believed to be behind the cyberattack. Authorities were looking into a possible Chinese connection, a source close to the matter said.

A Chinese embassy spokesman in Washington said hypothetical accusations were irresponsible and counterproductive.

“Jumping to conclusions and making [a] hypothetical accusation is not responsible,” and is “counterproductive”, Chinese embassy spokesman Zhu Haiquan said in emailed comments.

Security precautions

The OPM had previously been the victim of a cyberattack, as have various federal government computer systems at the state department, the US Postal Service and the White House.

Since the intrusion, OPM said it had implemented additional security precautions for its networks. It said it would notify the 4 million people affected and offer credit monitoring and identity theft services to the people affected.

“The last few months have seen a series of massive data breaches that have affected millions of Americans,” US Representative Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said in a statement.

But he called the latest intrusion “among the most shocking because Americans may expect that federal computer networks are maintained with state of the art defences”.

It is thought that the ramifications of the data breach could potentially affect every federal agency.

Rahul Gandhi backs Greenpeace, meets activist Priya Pillai and others

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Rahul-Gandhi

New Delhi: Opening another front against the Narendra Modi Government, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday met members of civil society including Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai, who had a running feud with NDA dispensation and expressed solidarity with their struggle.

Opening another front against theNarendra Modi Government, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday met members of civil society including Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai, who had a running feud withNDA dispensation and expressed solidarity with their struggle.

“Rahul Gandhi expressed full solidarity with the people’s struggle to safeguard hard-won Constitutional freedoms.

“A wide cross-section of Civil Society Leaders met Rahul Gandhi on the issue of BJP Govt’s continuing attack on Freedom of Speech & Dissent,” the twitter handle of Rahul’s office said on the microblogging site after the meeting.

Pillai, a Greenpeace senior campaigner was “offloaded” at Delhi airport on January 11 from a flight to London where she was scheduled to make a presentation before British MPs regarding alleged human rights violation at Mahan in Madhya Pradesh.

The incident had happened a few months after the blocking of funds to Greenpeace by the Home Ministry. The issue had led to a huge controversy.

A joint press release by the members of the civil society said that they met Gandhi and expressed concern about “attack” by the government on their freedom and autonomy and right to dissent.

Besides Pillai, RTI activist Nikhil Dey from MKSS, Ravi Nair, South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre, Tapan Bose, South Asia Forum For Human Rights, M J Vijayan, General Secretary, Programme for Social Action (PSA), Rajendra Ravi, National Alliance of People’s Movements and Jarjum Ete, President of All India Union of Forest Working People(AIUFWP) met the Congress Vice President.

In the interactive session, Gandhi assured the members of civil society that the Congress Party would be in the vanguard of defending and enhancing all the fundamental fights and directive principles enshrined in the Indian Constitution.

“He said that he shared the concerns raised by the delegation on democracy and dissent being curbed,” the release said.

Their meeting with Rahul is the first in a series of meetings with all political parties “not in alliance with the BJP-led NDA” and seeks to explore commonalities of how civil society across India can encourage a broad anti-authoritarian, pro-poor, pro-environment platform, the activists said.

The civil society members, many of whom alleged that from “draconian” changes in the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act and its authoritative misuse, to attack on Human rights defender and environmental activists, the

Modi led NDA regime is involved in “stifling” democratic dissent and subversion of constitutional rights.

They demanded that all Intelligence agencies should be brought under the purview of Parliament and the Comptroller and Auditor General.

The activists said that their meeting with the Congress Vice President addressed the urgent need to put the brakes on the rise of “Hindutva authoritarianism as exemplified by the BJP-RSS combine”.

The civil society members alleged that in the past one year, the NDA government has “targeted” the country’s robust civil society organisations.

“With an authoritarian government in place and a shrinking space for dissent, the members of civil organisations have called upon all political parties that are not a part of the BJP-led NDA to support them reclaim the space they deserve in a democracy,” they said.

They said that certain provisions of laws governing voluntary organisations (VOs) like the Societies Registration Act of 1860, the Indian Trusts Act (1882), the Charitable and Religious Trust Act (1920), Section 25 of the Indian Companies Act (1950), Foreign Contribution Regulation Act of 1976 (FCRA) and similar legislation need to be redrafted.

(Agencies)

Tamil Nadu to get Rs 5-crore bill from Karnataka for Jayalalithaa case

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Jayalalithaa

Bengaluru: The Karnataka government is sending over a bill of more than Rs. 5.11 crore to neighbour Tamil Nadu soon. That is what it has spent on conducting the trial of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and three others in a corruption case over the last 12 years.

“We will claim Rs. 5.11 crore plus money from Tamil Nadu government which was spent on handling the case in Bengaluru,” Law Minister TB Jayachandra of the Congress told reporters in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Mr Jayachandra said the state government would also bill Tamil Nadu for expenditure incurred on matters related to the Home department, including security cover for Ms Jayalalithaa, who returned as Tamil Nadu chief minister two weeks ago after the Karnataka High Court acquitted her, quashing her conviction by a Bangalore trial court in September last year.

“The home ministry is working on calculating expenses incurred on providing security to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister,” Mr Jayachandra said.

Four days ago, the Karnataka government said it will file an appeal in the Supreme Court against the acquittal of Ms Jayalalithaa.

The Supreme Court had transferred the case to Bengaluru on November 18, 2003, after K Anbazhagan, a politician from the DMK, Ms Jayalalithaa’s arch rival, contended that a fair trial was not possible in Tamil Nadu with her Chief Minister.

In September last year, the trial court held Ms Jayalalithaa guilty of amassing wealth beyond her income. She was jailed for three weeks before being granted bail. The conviction forced the chief of Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK to resign as chief minister.

She appealed in the Karnataka High Court, which acquitted Ms Jayalalithaa on May 11 in the 19-year-old case.

(Agencies)

BJP MP Vinay Katiyar rakes up Ayodhya issue

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Vinay Katiyar

Ayodhya: Raking up the Ram temple issue, BJP MP Vinay Katiyar who was the face of the Ayodhya movement of 1990s, on Wednesday said the Modi government should “move to resolve” the matter without waiting for the Supreme Court verdict.

He said the government should address the issue either through legislation or talks, fulfilling the BJP’s promise.

“Without waiting for the verdict of Supreme Court, the government should make a move to resolve the issue either through talks or by bringing a legislation,” Katiyar told PTI.

“The Ram Janmabhoomi issue is a burning issue and no government can ignore it, be it in a majority or not. It is a big issue, not only for ‘Ram Bhakts’. It is not a difficult task for the government to resolve it and if it wants, it can start negotiations and it will become easier,” he said.

Katiyar, now Rajya Sabha member, earlier represented Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency, under which Ayodhya falls.

He said that earlier there was no court verdict in “favour” of the Ram Janmabhoomi issue and now that it is there and hence it will be easier.

On the stand taken by the NDA, which cites lack of majority in Rajya Sabha for not going ahead, Katiyar said, “Let it be brought in Lok Sabha where the government has thumping majority and then place it in Rajya Sabha and people be apprised of what all the government has been doing to keep its promise of Ram Temple.

“This will clear doubts from the minds of the people about our intentions and also expose those who are indulging in propaganda that we are not serious over the issue,” he said.

The BJP leader, however, stressed that all problems can be resolved through dialogue, which he said should continue for the decades old dispute.

(PTI)

WikiLeaks strikes again: Leaked TISA docs expose corporate plan for reshaping global economy

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Leaked Docs reveal that little-known corporate treaty poised to privatize and deregulate public services across globe

"It’s a dark day for democracy when we are dependent on leaks like this for the general public to be informed of the radical restructuring of regulatory frameworks that our governments are proposing," said Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now. (Image created by Common Dreams)

“It’s a dark day for democracy when we are dependent on leaks like this for the general public to be informed of the radical restructuring of regulatory frameworks that our governments are proposing,” said Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now. (Image created by Common Dreams)

by Sarah Lazare, Common Dreams

An enormous corporate-friendly treaty that many people haven’t heard of was thrust into the public limelight Wednesday when famed publisher of government and corporate secrets, WikiLeaks, released 17 documents from closed-door negotiations between countries that together comprise two-thirds of the word’s economy.

Analysts warn that preliminary review shows that the pact, known as the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA), is aimed at further privatizing and deregulating vital services, from transportation to healthcare, with a potentially devastating impact for people of the countries involved in the deal, and the world more broadly.

“This TISA text again favors privatization over public services, limits governmental action on issues ranging from safety to the environment using trade as a smokescreen to limit citizen rights,” said Larry Cohen, president of Communications Workers of America, in a statement released Wednesday.

Under secret negotiation by 50 countries for roughly two years, the pact includes the United States, European Union, and 23 other countries—including Israel, Turkey, and Colombia. Notably, the BRICS countries—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—are excluded from the talks.

Along with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations, which are also currently being negotiated, TISA is part of  what WikiLeaks calls the “T-treaty trinity.” Like the TTP and TTIP, it would fall “under consideration for collective ‘Fast-Track’ authority in Congress this month,” WikiLeaks noted in a statement issued Wednesday.

However, TISA stands out from this trio as being the most secretive and least understood of all, with its negotiating sessions not even announced to the public.

Wednesday’s leak provides the largest window yet into TISA and comes on the heels of two other leaks about the accord last year, the first from WikiLeaks and the other from the Associated Whistleblowing Press, a non-profit organization with local platforms in Iceland and Spain.

While analysts are still poring over the contents of the new revelations, civil society organizations released some preliminary analysis of the accord’s potential implications for transportation, communication, democratic controls, and non-participating nations:

  • Telecommunications: “The leaked telecommunications annex, among others, demonstrate potentially grave impacts for deregulation of state owned enterprises like their national telephone company,” wrote the global network Our World Is Not for Sale (OWINFS) in a statement issued Wednesday.
  • Transportation: The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), comprised of roughly 700 unions from more than 150 countries, warned on Wednesday that the just-published documents “foresee consolidated power for big transport industry players and threaten the public interest, jobs and a voice for workers.” ITF president Paddy Crumlin said: “This text would supercharge the most powerful companies in the transport industry, giving them preferential treatment. What’s missing from this equation is any value at all for workers and citizens.”
  • Bypassing democratic regulations: “Preliminary analysis notes that the goal of domestic regulation texts is to remove domestic policies, laws and regulations that make it harder for transnational corporations to sell their services in other countries (actually or virtually), to dominate their local suppliers, and to maximize their profits and withdraw their investment, services and profits at will,” writes OWINFS. “Since this requires restricting the right of governments to regulate in the public interest, the corporate lobby is using TISA to bypass elected officials in order to apply a set of across-the-board rules that would never be approved on their own by democratic governments.”
  • Broad impact: “The documents show that the TISA will impact even non-participating countries,” wrote OWINFS. “The TISA is exposed as a developed countries’ corporate wish lists for services which seeks to bypass resistance from the global South to this agenda inside the WTO, and to secure and agreement on servcies without confronting the continued inequities on agriculture, intellectual property, cotton subsidies, and many other issues.”

The warnings follow concerns, based on previous leaks, that TISA poses a threat to net neutrality, internet freedoms, and privacy.

Moreover, global social movements charge that the deal poses a threat to democracy itself.

In a letter released in September 2013, 241 civil society groups from around the world aired concerns about the TISA deal: “Democracy is eroded when decision-making about important sectors– such as financial services (including banking, securities trading, accounting, insurance, etc.), energy, education, healthcare, retail, shipping, telecommunications, legal services, transportation, and tourism– is transferred from citizens, local oversight boards, and local or provincial/state jurisdiction to unaccountable trade’ negotiators who have shown a clear proclivity for curtailing regulation and prioritizing corporate profits.”

Analysts note that the leak underscores the intense secretiveness of the talks, whose texts are supposed to be kept completely secret for five years following the reaching of a deal or abandonment of the process.

“That the negotiating texts say they are supposed to stay secret for five years is quite shocking, and therefore it is really important that the text is made public,” Melinda St. Louis, international campaigns director for Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, toldCommon Dreams.

“It’s a dark day for democracy when we are dependent on leaks like this for the general public to be informed of the radical restructuring of regulatory frameworks that our governments are proposing,” said Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now, in a statement released Wednesday.


Sunni sheikhs pledge allegiance to ISIL in Iraq's Anbar

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Several sheikhs and tribal heads say only way to achieve peace in province is to join ISIL after meeting in Fallujah.

ISIL-Anbar

by Al Jazeera

A number of Sunni tribal sheikhs and tribes in Iraq’s Anbar province have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group.

The sheikhs and tribal leaders made the pledge in a statement read out by influential Sheikh Ahmed Dara al-Jumaili, after meeting in Fallujah on Wednesday.

Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan, reporting from Baghdad, said it was not yet clear if the tribes had been forced to pledge allegiance by ISIL fighters, who control Fallujah and most of Anbar province.

“If this is a willing move then that is very worrying for the Iraqi government,” Khan said.

“The statement they issued was very strong – it condemned the government.

“It said the only way that peace would come to Anbar province is if the tribes joined ISIL.”

Influential tribe 

Khan said the inclusion of the al-Jumaili tribe in the pledge was of particular concern for Iraqi authorities, given the tribe’s influence in Anbar province.

“The al-Jumailis command a number of fighters and they have a large amount of influence over other tribes [in Anbar],” he said.

The pledge comes after a number of Sunni leaders in Anbar province publicly criticised the involvement of Shia militias in the fight to retake areas of the province from ISIL, including the provincial capital Ramadi which fell last month.

While a number of Sunni tribes have joined with government forces and Shia militias, Khan reported that a number of tribal leaders have asked for government support to fight the armed group.

“They said ‘if you arm us, if you allow us to fight as Sunnis, we will be able to get rid of ISIL quite quickly’,” he said.

“The fact that a number of these tribes have come together … and pledged allegiance to ISIL shows the level of anger the Sunni tribes feel towards the government in Baghdad.”

One year of Modi: Perception Over Reality!

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modi-hate

by George Abraham

One year ago there was a tsunami of promises and dreams by the BJP before the elections. But once the BJP came to power it forgot everything. Since then there has been a complete reversal of the promised policies and programmes,’’said Anand Sharma, former minister and spokesperson for the Congress party.

On the other side of the political spectrum, Arun Jaitley, the Finance Minister claimed that “Modi restored the dignity of the Prime Minister which had disappeared during the previous regime and he has convinced the countryman that authority of the Prime Minister is supreme in every decision-making”.

One year into the NDA rule led by BJP, a non-partisan group also argued that that BJP rule was not a disaster as some had predicted or a resounding success as their party faithful proclaims. The truth may lie somewhere between.

During a recent interview, one of the esteemed anchors of an Indian TV network operating in the U.S. asked me whether I was impressed with the ‘Jan DhanYojana’ program the Prime Minister has initiated, which has already created a whopping14 Crore new accounts. Of course, it is impressive statistics; however, the trouble with that simple assumption is that it is just half of the story. As many as 24 Crore people had already had signed up for the ‘Zero frills bank account’ prior to the present government which renamed the existing program as ‘Jan DhanYojana’.

It is said that imitation is the best form of flattery and for the Congress leaders, it must be redemption time as the Modi Government continues with many of their initiated plans, only under a different banner. Giving a little credit to the UPA would have gone a long way towards creating unity and purpose across the aisle.The larger question one needs to ponder here is whether the whole campaign about “achche din aa gaya” is mere sloganeering or based on facts and figures.

At the outset, the BJP’s charges about Congress obstructing its legislative agenda is laughable, as the BJP has opposed everything from Indo-US Civil Nuclear Treaty to Insurance Bill and FDI in multi-brand retail to name a few..They have so vehemently raised all the roadblocks in their power to derail the previous administration’s efforts. Since they have succeeded now in passing 50 some Bills in its first year, Congress cannot pose as large an obstruction as the BJP touts.

If one examines the economic indicators, Modi’s economy was sluggish to say the least in spite of having the good fortune of low crude oil prices. Growth in 8 core industrial sectors was mere 3.5%, and exports contracted by 11.19% to 23.88 billion compared to 26.89 billion in the same month of 2014. Although Modi promised 10 crore jobs in 5 years, if the April-June job growth of 1.17 lakhs is correct, that dream is quite far-fetched. If the inflation is contained as it is claimed, it is largely due to the decline in oil prices. Yet, food items such as Milk and pulses show a steady increase in prices while no savings from the oil have been passed on to the consumers.

While the economic conditions largely remain intact for ordinary citizens, Modi’s government has slashed social spending by Rs. 1,75,122 crores in one year alone, undermining the very concept of inclusive and equitable development. All sectors including Agriculture, Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Panchayat Raj, Women and Child development and Education suffered cuts including UPA’s flagship program for the rural poor called MGNREGA.

After soaring through the political landscape by accusing the Congress of corruption at high places, BJP has done very little to allay the concerns of the ordinary citizens on this count. 30 per cent of the Council of Ministers have criminal charges pending against them. These include attempted murder, accusations of rape, inciting communal disharmony and electoral violations.

What happened to the promise of transparency and clean governance? “Whenever the PM sees an institution that is constitutional, that people have faith in, he wants to end it as he wants all power with himself and corporates” said Mrs. Gandhi, President of Congress party in a rare intervention in a parliament session. She was indeed referring to the power grab by the PMO and alleged undermining of popular institution such as RTI (Right to Information Act)’ by keeping the leading position (CIC) vacant.

Former Defence Minister A. K. Antony, who is known for his integrity, has accused the NDA government of “neglecting national security, ignoring security lapses and ultimately compromised national security”. He questioned the wisdom of surrendering Rs. 29000 crores from the current budget cycle while slashing the manpower by half of the “Mountain Strike Corps” which was created to face increased Chinese buildup. He also faulted the Modi government of dragging its feet on the One-Rank – One pension scheme that should have been effective from April 2014.

Prime Minister Modi has been widely acclaimed for his successful foreign travels. Previous Prime Ministers have done the same without this much pomp and ceremony. At the end of the day, one would have to ask ‘where is the beef’? The purchase of Rafael jets from France is surrounded by hypocrisy and double talk! The ‘Make in India’ slogan was given away to make in France, eliminating the public sector HAL probably for the sake of a future tie-up with preferred corporations!

On his visit to Korea, the Prime Minister declared that Indians were ashamed of their nationality until he became prime minister! I do not know about you; as for me, I was always proud of my motherland yet willing to see its problems and shortcomings from a resolution perspective. The efforts of Non-Resident Indians over last three decades have contributed so much to the transformation of the world in the field of Technology, Science and Medicine, earning the respect for mother India, particularly from the people from the west. It is sad to see any politician taking away the fruits of their hard labor!

Finally, is what we see with this government is perception or reality? About five years ago, the campaign of the ‘Gujarat Model’ has surfaced building up the image of Modi who is said to have transformed Gujarat into a modern miracle. Today, the Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) report, which was published recently, tore apart the tall claims of the state government led by former the Chief Minister Narendra Modi, particularly in terms of agricultural growth, social indicators, as well as public spending on social infrastructure, fiscal discipline, right to education, and law and order. Gujarat is ranked 12 among states for its Human Development Index, and has a permanent underclass mainly consisting of minorities. Unless the citizen on the street is vigilant, he may be once again swallowed up by the ongoing hoopla of an imaginary world! When it comes to ‘achche din’ let reality be real!

George Abraham is a former Chief Technology Officer of the United Nations and Chairman of the Indian National Overseas Congress, USA.

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