Modis’ Election Propaganda: Falsehoods and Sectarianism Galore | Ram Puniyani

Modis’ Election Propaganda: Falsehoods and Sectarianism Galore

 

Ram Puniyani

 

BJP has a strong electoral machine, well backed up by its parent organization, RSS. The core module of RSS-BJP is based on demonization of Muslims through distortions of the medieval period of history in particular and glorification of the past where caste and gender hierarchy prevailed. When it comes to elections, RSS progeny has resorted to various themes from time to time. The first major theme was destruction of Hindu temples by Muslim kings which was the hidden message of the Ram Temple campaign. In due course security (Pakistan as the enemy) was also brought in. Prior to the demolition of Babri, they used to talk of Indianization of Muslims among other anti Muslim themes.

In recent times, in 2014 it was Acche Din (Good Days) to take advantage of the anti Incumbency and the Jumlas (Mere phrases) like women’s security, 15 Lakhs per person, 2 Crore jobs every year along with the projection of Congress as a corrupt party. Thanks to the Anna movement promoted and supported by RSS wings, Congress is a corrupt party that was made to stick in people's minds for a long time. In 2019, National security, Pulwama-Balakot became the major propaganda for winning the elections. All through, anti-Muslim rhetoric formed the backdrop. Truth has been a major casualty in most of its propaganda.

This time euphoria around Ram Temple was anticipated to be the major fulcrum of its propaganda. Gyanwapi issue has also been racked up but with marginal effect. Its seems now there is sort of ‘fatigue’ around this issue and due to the dwindling social-economic conditions of the people, the grand Ram Temple-Gyanwapi may not give the results which they were expecting. That leaves it to fall back on its time tested divisive communal issue, the anti Muslim propaganda. This time around Mr. Modi has set the tone around anti Muslim dog whistles and linked it up with the Congress manifesto centered around Justice for weaker sections of society,( adivasis, dalits and religious minorities), women’s empowerment, and justice for youth (employment- internship) and students (Paper leaks).

So far justice for weaker sections of society has been the major point of opposition for RSS and its progeny. Its very foundation in 1925 was in the backdrop of dalits asserting their rights and women beginning to articulate their social presence. To dilute the caste based reservations they brought in reservations for economically backwards. In practice wherever possible they have been undermining affirmative action for dalit and OBC. Faced with the great appeal of Rahul Gandhi’s emphasis on reservation and affirmative action, BJP had to counter it without sounding that it is inherently opposed to reservations. In this direction the first step was falsehood from BJP patriarch Mohan Bhagwat that RSS has never been against reservations!

Modi in a clever and fake concoction has been saying that, “…they [Congress] wanted to grant reservation to one section of the society (i.e. Muslims, added) by cutting into the quotas meant for Dalits and backward classes, which is completely against the Constitution. The reservation rights that Dr Babasaheb gave to Dalits, backward classes, and tribals, the Congress and the INDI Alliance wanted to give them to specific minorities based on religion," 

Congress manifesto’s emphasis on caste census and giving the analogy of X Ray was picked up by Mr. Modi and linked with his anti Muslim narrative. Connecting the two, he peaked in the falsehood that Congress will do the X-Ray to find gold, money etc. and give it to those who have more children or who are infiltrators (Meaning Muslims as usual in their fake narrative). And to frighten the Hindus, Hindu women in particular, he stated “My mothers and sisters, they won't even leave your mangalsutras(Sacred necklace worn by married Hindu women)  . The Congress manifesto says that if they form a government, then a survey of property belonging to every person will be done. It will be checked how much gold our sisters own and how much money government employees have…They also said that gold owned by our sisters would be equally distributed. Does the government have the right to take your property? ' He cited Mangalsutra' as something which will be taken away and given to Muslims.

This is like killing many birds in one stone. One is, to criticize Congress Manifesto, two to target Muslims and three to frighten Hindu women. The limit of falsehood concocted by him is so obvious here. The arrogance that such falsehoods can be believed by a large number of people comes from the solid understanding that the committed volunteers of ‘RSS combine’ the IT cell and the corporate controlled TV channels and media will ensure that this falsehood will be taken seriously by large sections of people. The peak point of this exercise was to bring in poor buffalo, which had been left out so far in the ‘Cow as mother’ elaborations. ‘If you have two buffaloes one will be taken away by Congress!’ Post truth lies at its best!

How can Pakistan not be made part of the campaign by BJP-Modi? Modi brought in the P factor by stating that Pakistan wants a weak Government in India. One Fawad Chaudhary, an ex-minister of Pakistan, had stated that Rahul Gandhi has Socialism within him. Modi’s claim is that Pakistan is scared of Balakot type reaction so they want Rahul as PM. Modi must have forgotten that it was Congress-Indira Gandhi, which took the bold decision to help in liberation of BanglaDesh, and divide Pakistan into two countries, against the wishes of mighty Western powers!

To bring in Mughals, Modi used the tweet from Tejasvi Yadav, when he was having fish a day before Navratra (Hindu sacred period, when many Hindu do not consume non vegetarian food). Modi propagated that Tejeswai Yadav is consuming ‘non vegetarian’ food in Holy Navratra to insult the feelings of Hindus, the way Mughal kings used to humiliate Hindus by destroying Hindu temples. Connecting the opposition leader’s innocuous act with Mughals thereby reflecting on to present Muslims, showed that the BJP’s current ‘propaganda in chief’ can stretch any simple and harmless thing into a tool to demonize the Muslims and along with the political opposition to his power.

Remarkable is the prowess of Mr. Modi to concoct things to generate ‘Hate for Muslims’ and opposition parties for his electoral gains and social hegemony.   

 

India: Report in the Telegraph on 2024 election campaign speeches that use religious reference to divide society -- The Election commission should take action against Prime Minister Modi

https://www.telegraphindia.com/elections/lok-sabha-election-2024/narendra-modi-prejudice-flows-unchecked-prime-minister-fires-babri-lock-salvo-ec-silent/cid/2018347

India: Food, community and elections | Bharat Bhushan

 https://www.business-standard.com/opinion/columns/food-community-and-elections-124041500162_1.html

Food, community and elections

 

Bharat Bhushan

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused Opposition leaders of displaying a "Mughal mindset" when videos surfaced of Lalu Yadav, Tejashvi, and Rahul Gandhi bonding over cooking mutton. Not only did he accuse them of deviating from Hindu dharma in the auspicious month of Sawan, but he also alleged that the display of bonhomie was deliberate.

The videos, the PM said, were reflective of the mindset of the "Mughal" invaders "who found perverse joy in the demolition of temples and defiling places of worship.

To dismiss this as election rhetoric would be to forget that creating controversies over meat-eating has been part of communal propaganda for over a century and a half in India.

Today's smear campaign is reminiscent of the strategy said to have been used against CM Stephen, who was contesting against Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1980 from the New Delhi Constituency-I. It was a close contest, and the right-wing organisations backing Vajpayee wanted to take no chances.

According to an apocryphal story, the cadre was deputed to join queues at polling booths and engage voters in conversation, alleging, "Aadmi achha hai par suna hai gau-maans khaata hai (He is a good man but we have heard he eats beef)." The whisper campaign is said to have cost Stephen the election -- losing by a mere 5,045 votes!

Today's political fight is nowhere as close as it was in 1980. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Modi said they are comfortably placed to win the upcoming Lok Sabha election. Then why are such cheap shots directed at the Opposition?

He had also earlier distorted Rahul Gandhi's remark about the Opposition pitted against the power (shakti) of the controversial Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs)—calling it "a well-thought-out attack against Hindu religion," where goddesses are worshipped as Shakti. He labelled those who did not attend the temple inauguration at Ayodhya sinners, exhorting voters, "Ram Navami is coming, remember those who committed this sin."

By drawing parallels between the Congress manifesto and the demands of the pre-Partition Muslim League, two organisations separate in time and context are made to appear similar, divisive and only representatives of sectional Muslim interest.

While such iterations of religious identity will keep the BJP's vote bank consolidated in Northern and Western India, it is even more crucial in states where the BJP is desperate to make inroads. Hindutva is the platform from which the BJP hopes to counter the strong regional sentiment and distinct political culture in these states. Its success has so far been uneven.

The BJP has made major inroads in West Bengal, where its Hindutva rhetoric seems to have struck a chord in a state that has witnessed two partitions on communal lines. The BJP is tapping into that deep and rich seam.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, it won 18 seats, and its vote share was only 3 per cent behind the ruling Trinamool Congress. In the state assembly in 2021, the BJP improved its tally from 3 to 77, becoming the main Opposition party. From Sandeshkhali to Ram Navami celebrations, all incidents and festivals are occasions to polarise the Hindu voters against the 30 per cent Muslim population of the state.

However, the BJP has not been successful in Tamil Nadu and Kerala so far. In Tamil Nadu, the BJP has aggressively argued that the Dravidian political parties and their allies are essentially anti-Hindu. 'Real' Tamil culture is postulated as having been part of a unified Hindu culture till Dravidian atheists hijacked it. This thesis was bolstered by the two Kashi-Tamil Sangamam organised by the Modi government in 2022 and 2023 and articulated in the Prime Minister's election campaign in Tamil Nadu.

The BJP's state president, K Annamalai, has also held forth about reclaiming Tamil culture from the Periyar-Dravida ideology, which he says is anti-Hindu and destroying 'true' Tamil culture and society.

In Kerala, too, the BJP faces a Hindu majority that is largely oriented towards Left and secular parties. The Hindu vote here is divided along caste lines. The marginalised and backward castes support the Communists, while the Congress has a proportion of the upper caste (Nair) Hindu vote and is seen as the party of the Muslim and Christian minorities. The Muslims are represented in North Kerala by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).

Kerala politics alternates between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) led by the Congress. The BJP aims to break this cycle by weaning away the Hindu vote.

It tried to woo the Dalit castes through the Kerala Pulaya Mahasabha and Kerala Peoples' Front, an organisation of 21 backward castes, but failed. Nor did its militant agitation against women's entry into Sabarimala Temple amount to much electorally. Now, a propaganda film, "The Kerala Story", is about a Hindu woman being converted to Islam and forced to join the Islamic State. The threat of 'love jihad' and 'narco-jihad' is also being propagated by the BJP to also mobilise the Christian minority.

Contrary to popular belief, the BJP is not bringing out its communal rhetoric because it is apprehensive about election results. It is an offensive strategy. Prime Minister Modi has learnt to successfully twist the meaning of his adversaries' statements and actions. The forms of distortion are sufficiently in tune with communal thinking so that his supporters can easily amplify them and influence voters. It also keeps the communal divide open against attempts by the Opposition to bridge it. 

Most importantly, it is used to increase the BJP's Lok Sabha seats. Like all good businessmen, who consider anything below the previous financial year's profits a 'loss', the BJP wants each election to bring in higher returns.

Prime Minister Modi needs this more than the party because that alone can sustain faith in his charisma. Anything less will be seen as the onset of weakness in his leadership.

Disclaimer: These are personal views of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of www.business-standard.com or the Business Standard newspaper

 

Savarkar Film: Falsehoods Galore | Ram Puniyani

Films building up Majoritarian Narratives: Swatantraveer Savarkar

Ram Puniyani

Films are a very powerful medium which create a social understanding in various ways. Till decades ago we had films which reflected social realities and promoted progressive values. The films like ‘Mother India’, ‘Do Bigha Jameen’ and ‘Naya Daur’ are just a few of these. Some biopic films have also contributed a lot in disseminating social common sense, which are close to reality and promote inclusive values. Attenborough’s Gandhi and Bhagat Singh were greatly inspiring. Many of these were based on immaculate research and brought out the true spirit of the people on whose life they were based.

With the ascendance of the majoritarian politics, identity politics related divisive issue and the ideology of Hindu nationalism, many in the film World have been coming out with films which promote a particular narrative, a divisive one, which is based on sectarian views of politics and history. The common theme among these is a tilting of truth and in most cases glorification of Hindu Nationalist icons. The clever undermining of truth and building up of ‘fiction as fact’ is the underlying theme of most of these films. One of these was heavily promoted by the likes of Prime Minister Modi and RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat; ‘Kashmir files’. The affluent BJP supporters bought the tickets of this film in bulk and distributed these in their areas to encourage people to watch this. The worthies who promoted these claimed that finally the truth of these events is being brought to fore.

Another one was Kerala Story, where the figures of those being converted to Islam and recruited for IS were exaggerated to the sky. Many other such fiction like films flopped at the box office like 72 Hoorain, which tried to present ‘Islamic Terrorism’, presenting the political problem as a religious one. This film suppressed the social understanding that similar allurements of Apsaras in Swarg and Fairies in Heaven are also there in the mythologies of other religions.

These films were mainly to promote Islamophobia. On another level, the film on Godse (2022) was an attempt to glorify Godse by putting together many falsehoods that Gandhi did not try to save Bhagat Singh from hanging and he opposed the Congress resolution mourning Bhagat Singh’s death. And now comes the film ‘Swatantaraveer Savarkar’ by Randeep Hooda. This one takes the fictions as truth at a higher level. It claims that Bhagat Singh went to meet Savarkar and told him that he wants to translate his book, ‘First War of Independence’ from Marathi to English!

What is the truth? Many revolutionaries read this book and appreciated it. The fact is the book was written in Marathi around 1908 or so and was translated into English a year later. Bhagat Singh was born in 1907 and as a matter of fact never met Savarkar in his life!

The film shows Savarkar stating that we shall win Independence by 1912 i.e. 35 years before we actually got Independence. The fact is that Savarkar was in Andmans from 1910 and had started writing mercy petitions and by 1912 had written three of them. In these petitions he had sought apology from the British for his earlier actions and committed to serve the British loyally if he is released. And that’s what he did after his release by the British. Our freedom struggle picked steam in 1920 when due to the Non Cooperation movement, most of the people started associating with the freedom struggle.

Film goes on to question why no Congressman was sent to Andmans and most of them were sent to Indian jails alone. This may not be factually true. As such after 1920 the anti British movement took the path of non violence led by Gandhi-INC. The sentences given to them were of different types like imprisonment in jails. Andman or hanging (Like for Bhagat Singh, Sukhdevand Rajguru) were for involvement in acts of violence. As non violence was the basic credo of the movement led by Gandhi they were neither sentenced to death nor sent to Andmans.

The film argues that the Country got Independence not through non Violence but through violence. The major revolutionaries operating in India belonged to the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association. After Bhagat Singh and his comrades were killed or hanged there was no major violent movement. Savarkar’s Abhinav Bharat had abandoned anti British stance with Savarkar’s mercy petitions. Subhash Bose, who formed Azad Hind Fauz, was killed in 1945 and the soldiers of Azad Hind Fauz were imprisoned and kept in Red Fort as prisoners. It was the INC which formed a committee to defend these soldiers. In this Nehru had taken the lead to form the committee for release of these prisoners of war.

There are claims in the film that it was Savarkar who advised Bose to form the army and to fight the British. This is totally in contrast to what are the real facts. Bose after leaving Congress had made up his mind to fight the British through armed might with the help of Germany and Japan, When Bose was fighting against British, Savarkar was urging Hindu Mahasabha to get the Hindus recruited to British army, to help British,

"Addressing the Mahasabha’s Calcutta session, Savarkar urged all universities, colleges and schools to 'secure entry into military forces for youths in any and every way'. When Gandhi had launched his individual satyagraha the following year, Savarkar, at the Mahasabha session held in December 1940 in Madura, encouraged Hindu men to enlist in 'various branches of British armed forces en masse'.”

 About Savarkar, Subhash Chandra Bose wrote: "Savarkar seemed to be oblivious of the international situation and was only thinking how Hindus could secure military training by entering Britain's army in India." Bose concluded that "...nothing could be expected from either the Muslim League or the Hindu Mahasabha."

Bose in an address to Indians via Azad Hind Radio said "I would request Mr. Jinnah, Mr. Savarkar & to all those who still think of a compromise with the British to realize once for all that in the world of tomorrow there will be no British Empire"

As far as associating Savarkar with Subhash Bose in the film, Chandra Kumar Bose, grand nephew of Netaji after seeing the trailer told Hooda, “Please refrain from linking Netaji with Savarkar. Netaji was an inclusive secular leader and patriot of patriots.”

The film is yet another one based on distorting the truth to strengthen the Hindu Nationalist politics, with an eye on the forthcoming elections. 

India: National School of Drama postpones performace of the play 'Tamas' by Bhisham Sahni follwoing a social media campaign by BJP leader

 

https://thewire.in/the-arts/national-school-of-drama-bhisham-sahni-tamas-bjp

India: Delhi High Court Orders RSS Weekly ‘Organizer’ To Remove Article Alleging Sexual Exploitation Of Nuns, Hindu Women By Principal Of Christian School

Delhi HC Orders RSS Weekly ‘Organizer’ To Remove Article Alleging Sexual Exploitation Of Nuns, Hindu Women By Principal Of Christian School https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/delhi-high-court/delhi-high-court-rss-weekly-magazine-organizer-remove-article-sexual-exploitation-nuns-hindu-women-principal-christian-school-235498

India: On how they fabricate this love jihad nonsense in Uttarakhand...

 https://t.co/EsLztlz6c3

India: Mockery of history, say Netaji, Khudiram kin after actor's tweet on Savarkar biopic (Subhro Niyogi & Sujoy Khanra - TOI)

The Times of India

Mockery of history, say Netaji, Khudiram kin after actor's tweet on Savarkar biopic
Subhro Niyogi & Sujoy Khanra / TNN / Updated: Jun 1, 2023, 01:43 IST

Family members of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Khudiram Bose have dismissed as "mockery of history" and "cheap publicity stunt" any suggestion that Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar had a role in inspiring the freedom fighters.
Their reaction follows a tweet by actor Randeep Hooda, who plays Savarkar in the biopic "Swatantrata Veer Savarkar". "The most wanted Indian by the British. The inspiration behind revolutionaries like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh and Khudiram Bose," Hooda had tweeted.
Netaji's daughter Anita Bose Pfaff said perhaps the only thing common between her father and Savarkar was their religion. "Netaji was a devout, religious man. One can also say that he was a devout Hindu. At the same time, he had great respect for all other religions," she told TOI. "Like Mahatma Gandhi, Netaji was opposed to the divisiveness based on religious differences. Let Sarvarkar's followers join Netaji in his vision for India and not hijack him for views that certainly were not his," Pfaff said

 [ . . . ]

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/mockery-of-history-say-netaji-khudiram-kin-after-actors-tweet-on-savarkar-biopic/articleshow/100659755.cms

India: How RSS Schools Create Hindutva Foot Soldiers | Astha Savyasachi

 The Wire

Communal Textbooks, Teachers Who Brought Down Babri: How RSS Schools Create Hindutva Foot Soldiers

Vidya Bharati schools across the country use false claims, cultural indoctrination and consistent anti-Muslim rhetoric to instil Hindutva ideology in young minds.

Astha Savyasachi

22/May/2023

New Delhi: It was time. Everything was ready for the biggest function in the school – a grand stage, a hall decorated with magnificent lighting, jam packed audience seats, and high-profile chief guests: Union minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, Puducherry governor Kiran Bedi and several ministers from Karnataka.

[ . . .]

https://thewire.in/communalism/communal-textbooks-teachers-who-brought-down-babri-how-rss-schools-create-hindutva-foot-soldiers

Hindutva creates a selective mythology - defies history of co-mingling of religions, languages, rituals in the subcontinent | Mrinal Pande

https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/hindutva-peddlers-hinduism-mrinal-pande-8331016/

India: Nupur Sharma etc ...BJP's aAggressive right-wing politics has costs | Edit, The Times of India

 

FROM TOI PRINT EDITION

Nupur, Naveen & us – Please note: Aggressive right-wing politics can also cost those who benefit from it most

June 6, 2022

TOI Edit

That it took diplomatic censure from strategically and economically important Gulf countries for BJP to take action against two spokespersons, whose appalling comments on TV and Twitter have been known for days, says everything about how much political discourse has coarsened in this country. That the MEA chose to describe these well-known BJP figures as fringe elements adds an element of farce that’s nonetheless instructive, because it shows the bind GoI finds itself in. You cannot distance yourself from a mess by stretching the truth. And it’s a mess that didn’t just happen over one fervid news TV debate or one unacceptable tweet. It’s a mess that’s been building for some time.

Dangerously divisive rhetoric and state/police actions and responses that would have been rare even a few years ago have become so frequent as to almost lose their power to shock. Shrill identity politics of all variety is not new in India. What is new is the relentless aggressiveness of the Hindu Right – and what has been absent is any critique from central BJP or government leadership, even when some of this aggression turned particularly nasty. That lack of intervention has been the oxygen for right-wing rhetorical fire, as well as an implicit greenlight for various official agencies to lose even the pretence of neutrality.

Bulldozing houses, slapping sedition charges on history professors and university students, evicting hawkers selling non-vegetarian food, creating controversies out of halal meat and namaz venues, not to mention strange lower court receptions to this-mosque-is-a-temple petitions – all of these institutional responses have been encouraging signs for TV and Twitter right-wing loudmouths. Nupur Sharma’s and Naveen Jindal’s comments are products of this ecosystem. Therefore, if BJP and its government are serious about course correcting, just actions against these two won’t suffice. There will have to be firm signals from the top, and firm and quick actions if those signals are ignored by overzealous leaders and associated figures.

Cynics will point out that pushing this particular envelope is a vote-winning strategy and, therefore, BJP won’t seriously push back. There are two counterpoints. First, BJP’s electoral successes owe at least as much, if not more, to clever caste politics and very left-wing welfare politics. Where caste politics doesn’t quite work and a rival is good at welfare messaging, BJP has failed – Bengal being an example. Second, if BJP wants to be the party of governance, there’s a limit to how much rabble-rousing it can engender or wink at. Costs can outweigh benefits – both domestically and internationally. Cold calculations, if not good sense, should force a BJP rethink.

Film on Godse's Murder of Gandhi: Falsehoods Galore | Ram Puniyani

https://www.southasiamonitor.org/perspective/film-godses-killing-gandhi-falsehoods-galore: 

 

Film on Godse’s Killing of Gandhi: Falsehoods Galore

Ram Puniyani

 

The film has “Why I killed Gandhi” was recently released. It is an attempt to glorify Nathuram Godse the killer of Mahatma Gandhi. One of its clip, the one related to Godse’s Testimony in Punjab High court is doing rounds in the social media.

In the long clip Godse unabashedly falsifies the events and gives them a communal slant. It has already been popularized that Gandhi did nothing to save the life of revolutionary Bhagat Singh. This has been planted in the minds of large sections despite the farewell speech of Viceroy Lord Irwin. He corroborates Gandhi’s statements that he earnestly pleaded for commutation of the sentences. Irwin (26^th March 1931) states, “…As I listened the other day to Mr. Gandhi putting the case for commutation forcibly before me, I reflected first of what significance it surely was that the apostle of non-violence should so earnestly be pleading the cause of the devotees of a creed so fundamentally opposite to his own, but I should regard it as wholly wrong to allow my judgment on these matters to be influenced or deflected by purely political considerations. I could imagine no case in which under the law penalty had been more directly deserved."   

Now Godse in his deposition states that Gandhi was writing against revolutionaries and despite his opposition Congress convention passed the resolution praising the sacrifice and patriotism of Bhagat Singh. The truth is that the resolution praising Bhagat Singh was drafted by Gandhi himself, “This Congress, while dissociating itself from and disapproving of political violence in any shape or form, places on record its admiration of the bravery and sacrifice of the late Sardar Bhagat Singh and his comrades Sukhdev and Rajguru, and mourns with the bereaved families the loss of these lives. The Congress is of opinion that this triple execution is an act of wanton vengeance and is a deliberate flouting of the unanimous demand of the nation for commutation.”

In an attempt to create a binary between revolutionaries and Gandhi, Godse also forgets the attempts by Gandhi to get Savarkar Brothers released. In Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi Volume 20, pages 369-371 we can read an article in which he argues that Savarkar brothers should be released and be allowed to participate in the political life of the country in non violent way.  

Now Godse in this clip pitches Gandhi against Bose. It is true that Gandhi and Bose had differed on many issues but both were committed to get Independence for India. Gandhi did oppose his President ship in 1939. Bose was arguing that we should ally with Germany and Japan to fight against British. Gandhi was arguing for struggle against British to get Independence. Most of the Central Committee of Congress was with Gandhi. Still Gandhi and Bose had highest respect for each other. Bose was happy to know about launch of Quit India movement. Bose also sought Bapu’s blessings for success of Azad Hind Fauz (AHF). As a mark of respect he coined “Father of the nation’ for Gandhi and also named a battalion in AHF as Gandhi battalion.

Gandhi’s respect for Bose was not diminished a bit, as he called him “Prince among Patriots”, and went to meet the AHF prisoners in jail.

As a part of the RSS-Hindu Mahasabha propaganda Godse accuses Gandhi as being pro Muslim- Anti Hindu and holds him responsible for partition of the country. We know the complex process of partition,  British policy of ‘divide and rule’ and this being assisted by Muslim and Hindu Communalists. Godse’s praise for Subhash Bose is like shedding Crocodile tears. When Bose was fighting against British, his party Hindu Mahasabha was actively aiding British by recruiting the people for British army. Godse’s paper Agrani carried a cartoon depicting Mahatma Gandhi as Ravan, one of the ten heads being Bose, being slayed by Savarkar. And if he was really convinced by revolutionaries’ path what stopped him to join AHF?

He accuses Gandhi of forcing the Government for giving 55 Crores to Pakistan. This 55 Crores belonged to the share of Pakistan from the joint treasury. And Gandhi did not go to fast for that, he opined that if we back out from such commitments, how the World will look at us?

Godse is scathing on Gandhi for putting one of the conditions in his fast being vacating the mosques and other properties of Muslims occupied by Hindus. As the tragedy of partition unfolded communal violence started gripping the nation and with the help of communal forces Hindus occupied the properties of Muslims, including mosques. Godse dares Gandhi to take similar steps against Pakistan and Muslims. He deliberately undermines the fact that one of the major steps taken by Gandhi at that time was to quell the riots in Noakhali, where Hindus were major victims. He had similar appeal for Pakistan. Gandhi believed that if the safety of the Muslims was assured in India, he would be able to go to Pakistan and do a great deal for Hindus-Sikhs there.

His emphasis for peace was a clear act of morality, “If we are able to accomplish this in Delhi I assure you that our way will become absolutely clear in Pakistan. And with that will commence a new life. When I go to Pakistan I will not let them off easily. I will die for the Hindus and Sikhs there.”

The lie of lies in this Court statement is that it was Godse alone who planned the murer. Initially Sardar Patel stated that Gandhi murder was a part of Hindu Mahsabha plot and later Jeevan Lal Kapoor Commission observed, "All these facts taken together were destructive of any theory other than the conspiracy to murder by Savarkar and his group."

The real motive of murdering Gandhi was that Gandhi was for inclusive Nationalism, the dream of revolutionaries; Bhagat Singh-Bose included; and for Gandhi’s attempts to work against untouchability and caste inequality. Godse’s Hindu nationalism was opposed to both. The falsehoods being dished out are a cover for his deeper agenda.

 

Uttarakhand’s BJP govt making claims of spurt in population of a certain 'community' - Prithviraj Singh in the The Print

Uttarakhand’s BJP govt accused of targeting Muslims as it flags ‘rising numbers of a community’ Last month, BJP govt in Uttarakhand asked local authorities to identify areas allegedly witnessing a spurt in population of a certain 'community'. Congress dubs it a poll ploy. Prithviraj Singh 5 October, 2021 [ . . . ] https://theprint.in/india/governance/uttarakhands-bjp-govt-accused-of-targeting-muslims-as-it-flags-rising-numbers-of-a-community/744835/

Why fears over rising Muslim population share, immigration unfounded | Swaminathan Aiyar in Times of India +

Why fears over rising Muslim population share, immigration unfounded October 2, 2021, 9:49 PM IST SA Aiyar in Swaminomics, India, TOI The rise of communal tension in recent years owes much to the BJP’s stress on two themes. One is high Muslim fertility that supposedly threatens the majority status of Hindus. The second is the threat to India from Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh, who have been called “termites” by Home Minister Amit Shah. Both themes have been torpedoed by recent analysis of India’s own data by the Pew Research Centre, a non-partisan US think tank. [ . . . ] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/Swaminomics/why-fears-over-rising-muslim-population-share-immigration-unfounded/

Despite Spurious claims by the BJP, on demographic imbalance; also no proof of undocumented migrants flooding India - Editorial, The Telegraph, 24 Sep 2021

The Telegraph, 24 September 2021 Editorial: Clinching proof Pew study finds that religious conversion has had no impact on the composition of India’s population The Editorial Board | Published 24.09.21, 03:29 AM Sudden demographic imbalances among religious communities in a heterogeneous society can lead to social and political tensions. The conclusion of a report by the Pew Research Center that the populations of India’s principal religious groups have remained stable since Partition must, therefore, come as a source of relief for planners and conscientious citizens. The study — it drew its data from the decennial census and the National Family Health Survey — found that there has been a marked decline, as well as near-convergence, in the fertility rates of Hindus and Muslims. The latter — the community may have had the highest fertility rate but — had experienced the sharpest drop; between 1992 and 2015, their fertility rate dropped to 2.6 from 4.4. The corresponding figure for Hindus was a decline from 3.3 to 2.1. Two other, equally significant, inferences have been drawn by the study. First, it found that religious conversion has had no impact on the composition of India’s population. Second, it argues that there is no concrete evidence of undocumented migrants flooding India because of the absence of signs of outmigration from neighbouring nations. The report, which complements an earlier study published in June, would be useful to demographers and policymakers to frame future interventions. This is because India’s average fertility rate — at 2.2 — remains higher than those of advanced economies. The obvious thrusts should be on literacy and public awareness. The 2011 census had revealed that the literacy rate among Muslims was a little lower than 70 per cent. Investments must be made to raise this and improve standards of education among minority communities. That would facilitate greater awareness about the perils of the burden of having a large family and give women greater autonomy in decision-making. Another important takeaway is the dismantling of the false rhetoric concerning the surge in Muslim population or, say, the influx of migrants into India. The data demonstrate that the toxic narratives concerning India’s largest minority community have been created by the ruling party without any real empirical evidence. Yet, the Bharatiya Janata Party has succeeded in disseminating such spurious information precisely because of the ineptitude — unwillingness — of the Opposition to challenge this narrative with facts and findings from credible institutions and agencies. Data, experts have opined, are very much the new oil. Why, then, should they not be used as fuel by political parties to battle the demonization of minorities?

India: Hate factory - Inside Kapil Mishra’s ‘Hindu Ecosystem’ | Meghnad S & Shambhavi Thakur (newslaundry.com - 15 Feb, 2021)

Hate factory: Inside Kapil Mishra’s ‘Hindu Ecosystem’

We infiltrated the Telegram groups of the BJP leader’s online network to see what they do and how they operate.

By Meghnad S & Shambhavi Thakur 15 Feb, 2021

 

If the ever-growing reality of Hindu Rashtra were one big Christmas, Kapil Mishra would be Santa Claus, and the members of his “Hindu Ecosystem” hardworking elves delivering the gift of religious hatred and bigotry, packaged in the seductive wrapping of Hindutva, to the masses, secretly but methodically.

On November 16 last year, Mishra, a former Aam Aadmi Party minister who is now with the BJP and has been accused of inciting the February 2020 Delhi carnage by the victims and activists, posted a tweet asking whoever was interested to fill in a form and join what he described as the “Hindu Ecosystem” team.

 [ . . . ]

 https://www.newslaundry.com/2021/02/15/we-infiltrated-the-telegram-groups-of-the-bjp-leaders-online-network-to-see-what-they-do

India: A Hate spewing TV network in news for its show on so-called 'penetration of minority community in the administration'; the newtork sponsors include AMUL and the Yogi led UP govtt

Bloodlust TV

Powered by Amul and UP government, Suresh Chavhanke asks if 40 crore Muslims got scared of a 30-sec promo

Sudarshan News aired a show about how they were stopped from airing a show, with the usual ‘Hindu good, Muslim bad’, nudge nudge, wink wink messaging.

By Meghnad S

Published on :

Aug 29, 2020

Read the news report here : https://www.newslaundry.com/2020/08/29/powered-by-amul-and-up-government-suresh-chavhanke-asks-if-40-crore-muslims-got-scared-of-a-30-sec-promo

India: RSS Indoctrination of adivasi young boys and adults in Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh - Report by Neha Dixit on newslaundry.com

Reproduced from: https://www.newslaundry.com | May 9, 2019

Meet the boys, young adults and old men of RSS preparing for 2019 elections in Jhabua

Battling Christianity and Islam is a top priority.

By Neha Dixit


In January 2018, Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, said all are “children of Adivasis”. Addressing a rally in Raipur, Bhagwat said: “When we say Adivasi, then that is our core identity. We are their children. Even though we see different pictures, our forefathers were the same … from 40,000 years ago."
According to the 2011 census, 21 per cent of the total population of Madhya Pradesh is Scheduled Tribe, known as Adivasi. The Malwa-Nimar region comprising the districts of Jhabua, Dhar, Badwani, Khargone, Khandwa, Dewas, and Ratlam has 22 out of the 47 seats reserved for STs in Madhya Pradesh. The area, of extreme political consequence, has been part of the RSS's pet project to draw the tribals into a pan-Hindu world through RSS-affiliated outfits like the Sewa Bharti, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram and Vidya Bharti, among others.
Despite that, since the first Lok Sabha elections in 1952 up till 2015—a span of 17 elections—the RSS's political body, the Bharatiya Janata Party, has only won this seat once, in 2014.
The Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat is set for polls in the last phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections on May 19. Newslaundry meets members of different age groups and outfits of the RSS to find out about their work, areas of focus, and preparations for the upcoming elections.

The RSS: old men and 'ghar wapsi'
“As of now, religious conversions of tribals by Christians is at an all-time high in Jhabua. Thirty-five per cent of the district is now Christian," says Ashok Verma, sitting in the verandah of his house in Antervelia village. Verma is in charge of the RSS unit of Antervelia in Meghnagar town in Jhabua district. A small-built man in his mid-50s, he runs a tent house and a local grocery shop, even as he’s otherwise employed in “spreading Hindutva”.
Verma attended a “Hindu Sangam” in 2008 in Jhabua and joined the RSS soon after. The Hindu Sangam is a platform to bring members, supporters of the RSS and its affiliate organisations—over 40 of them—together to exchange thoughts on building a Hindu nation. The RSS has been holding these Sangams, a congregation of Hindus in the tribal-dominated areas of Jhabua, for over three decades.

Ashok Verma, who is in charge of the RSS unit in Antervelia.

Verma's anti-conversion Hindutva rhetoric against Christians in Jhabua dates back to the 1990s. It first started when Sister Rani, a nun at a local church, was killed in the neighbouring district of Indore in 1995.  When Uma Bharti, the hardline BJP leader who came into prominence for her role in the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992, was appointed as the Madhya Pradesh chief minister from 2003 to 2004, slogans like “Pehle Kasai, Phir Isai (First the Muslims, then Christians)” became commonplace in this tribal belt. These are the two communities that are perceived enemies in the Hindutva project of RSS.
In 2005, there was a spate of attacks on churches in Jhabua when a minor girl was raped inside a Christian missionary school. Since then, almost every year, anti-Christian violence picks up during the month of December. As a result, NDTV reports, in 2017, in parts of Madhya Pradesh, Christians chose to “forego Sunday prayers, carol singing and displaying crosses and rosaries through the year, fearing they will be accused of converting locals and persecuted”. In January 2018, two boys performing a "Christmas dance" in a primary school in Meghnagar were stopped by RSS members.
According to Verma, there are 400 “illegal” churches in Jhabua built to convert tribals to Christianity and to occupy government land. He estimates that at least 7,000 people have converted to Christianity in the last three years in the district. This year, on February 3, a statue of the Virgin Mary was set on fire in Ishgar village in Jhabua. He says: “They lure them with biscuits, cakes, money, non-vegetarian food. First, they get them to start lighting incense sticks in front of a picture of Jesus Christ on a weekly basis, and then get them to baptize. Are we going to be mute spectators?"
He says his local RSS unit has managed to do “ghar wapsi” of over 100 families over the past year in Jhabua.
“Ghar wapsi” is a series of “reconversion” activities initiated by the Vishva Hindu Parishad and the RSS to “facilitate” the conversion of non-Hindus to Hinduism. In December 2014, VHP leader Pravin Togadia had said the world was once inhabited only by Hindus, and that the VHP would ensure the Hindu population in India increased from its current 82 per cent to 100 per cent.
The reconversion process involves a hawan, a Hindu ritual of burning offerings to “purge” the converts, and a pledge to follow the tenets of Hinduism.
Verma believes there is a larger conspiracy behind the religious conversions done by the local churches. "The Indian Constitution guarantees reservation to STs in the government sector. By converting tribals to Christianity, they want to take over positions of power in the Indian administration and rule the Hindus."
His son Rohendra Verma, 24, nods at his father's statement. Currently unemployed, Rohendra believes that only “kattar” or “staunch” Hindus can save India. When asked if he knows of any cases of tribals converting to Christianity, he replies, "I have heard of them but don't know any in my own circles. They are taking away our jobs. We either save Hindus now or get rid of Muslims and Christians later. There are only two choices." He is yet to officially join the RSS.  
The 2011 census data negates the paranoia peddled by the RSS. According to these figures, 0.3 per cent of Madhya Pradesh's population of 77 million were registered as Christians and around 90 per cent were Hindus. The same census figures state that the Christian population in Jhabua is 3.75 per cent, 10 times less than the RSS’s figures. In fact, instead of an increase, the overall population of Christians in India has been on a decline in the past five decades: 2.60 per cent in 1971, 2.44 per cent in 1981, 2.34 per cent in 1991, 2.30 per cent in 2001 and 2.30 per cent in 2011.
Verma says the census data is “flawed”.
Apart from “saving” the tribal population from Christians, Verma also actively works towards propagating the Hindu religion among them. This includes distributing statues of Hanuman to all households, teaching them how to celebrate Raksha Bandhan, and how to conduct Hindu weddings. He says, “They didn't even know how to take seven rounds around the fire. We had to teach them."
In her book In The Belly Of The River, sociologist Amita Baviskar had written: “Adivasi religious life is built around animism and ancestor worship and evolved quite distinctly from the Hindu tradition. Their myths and rituals are located in their closeness to and reverence for nature.” Verma’s task is to appropriate these practices as Hinduism. “The kind of round stone the Bhil community worships as Bada Dev is actually like Shiv. Similarly, the foliage and the trees are part of the 'Mata Ka Van (Forest of the Goddess)’. We tell them their practices are all Hindu. They just don't know that.”
Another task is to repudiate local tribal practices and replace them with “upper-caste” Hindu rituals. The RSS started a drive here to stop the sacrifice of kadaknath—a rare breed of fowl available only in this belt—among tribals on Diwali and replaced it with the ritual worship of Ganapati and Goddess Lakshmi. Similarly, the tribal communities participate in a pre-Holi celebration called Bhagoria: a “festival of love” called pranayapurva where young women choose their life partners by applying gulal on the faces of the young men. Verma says this behaviour is a “blot on the character” of Indian women. “We have worked to stop this perversion.”
In this area, the RSS has a comprehensive network that follows a five-tiered structure of villages, mandals, khands, sankuls and jilas (divisions, segments, complexes and districts) parallel to the two-tiered government model. When asked what is the larger goal of Hindutva, Verma says, "I didn't think about it ever. I just want to see a society purged of Christianity. I hope Modiji will help us in his second term."
In the upcoming 2019 elections in the state, the BJP has fielded their local MLA Guman Singh Damor. Verma says, “We worked very hard to get Damor elected from the Jhabua Assembly seat. For the upcoming elections, our booth agents have been shortlisted. The booth tolis with 20 RSS members each are ready. Our slogan will be 'Hindu Jago, Kristi bhago (Hindus wake up, Christians go away)'."
The young men: battling Muslims and ‘deviant’ Hindu girls
Meanwhile, the Bajrang Dal is also hard at work to save Hinduism in the area.
"We try very hard to work for Hindu unity. Our special focus is on ‘love jihad’ cases," says Devraj Singh Rathore, a 21-year-old member of the outfit. Tall, lean and well-built, he wears a freshly-applied red tilak on his forehead. Rathore is an undergraduate student of commerce at a local college. His area of concern, "love jihad", is a Hindu Right-wing theory that Muslim men “lure” Hindu women to marry them and convert them to Islam. Many police investigations have conceded in court that there is no evidence to prove the existence of this practice.
The Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of the VHP, formed in 1984 in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, when the VHP was organising a “Ram-Janki rath yatra” in the town. Ayodhya is believed to be the birthplace of Lord Ram and the tense communal atmosphere at the time led the government to refuse the VHP permission to carry out the procession, citing security reasons. As a result, senior leaders of the VHP had called upon the Hindu youth to protect the procession—and Hinduism—from its enemies, resulting in the formation of the Bajrang Dal.
The group organises akhadas, training camps to teach martial arts, wrestling and Hindutva ideology. Like a lot of young men, Rathore was interested in bodybuilding and wrestling, and hence started attending the local akhada in the area three years ago. “I was initially just having fun. I really got interested in Bajrang Dal activities when Deepak Makwana, the RSS pracharak from Thandla tehsil, addressed us. He said that we should think of how Muslims are united all over the world. Then why not Hindus? That really struck a chord with me."

Devraj Singh Rathore and Gaurav Vikram, both members of the Bajrang Dal.

Rathore’s friend, 22-year-old Gaurav Vikram, sits next to him. He’s also a member of the Bajrang Dal. “There are one crore Bangladeshi Muslims and 11 lakh Rohingya Muslims in India,” Vikram says. “They run terrorist training camps inside madrassas. There’s an organisation by the name of Jaish even in Jhabua. This needs to stop or they will take over.”
However, he is unable to explain how an organisation called “Jaish” is necessarily a terrorist outfit. He says, "I will find out and tell you."
Vikram has been running a mobile shop for the last three years. He was unable to enroll for higher education because of financial constraints at home. “They are taking over jobs, our country and our women. For the last three years, I have actively done the Hindu religion's promotion to fight the Islamic threat," he says.  
On May 19, Rathore and Vikram will vote for the first time in a Lok Sabha election. Rathore says, “We want a government at the Centre that listens to us. The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh under Shivraj Singh was here for 15 years. Even their administration rarely listened to us when we protested against Muslims taking out Muharram processions and against 'love jihad' cases. Now, with the Congress government in power, there is even less scope.”
Both young men firmly believe that they “show the direction to those who get lost or deviate from the Hindu way of life”. They regularly conduct vigils in Meghnagar town, especially on Fridays and during Ramzan because that is the time “Muslim shop owners in town get together to plan anti-Hindu activities”, according to them. This has often led to many reported skirmishes between the two communities.
Rathore says, "Two years back, we had a major breakthrough. We managed to separate at least five Hindu women from their Muslim husbands in town. It was a big achievement for us. But now, our Hindu girls are deviating from our traditions at a lightning fast speed."
To prevent “love jihad”, the local Bajrang Dal unit actively collaborates with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the RSS, to keep tabs on every single girl in college to track whom they’re interacting with. “If we see them talking to boys, especially Muslim boys, we inform their families,” Vikram says. The girls are then stopped from coming to college regularly and only come to sit for the exams. That is one way of saving girls from ‘love jihad’ kind of situations.”
However, this tactic hasn’t been as effective as they’d hoped over the last year. When Rathore spotted the daughter of a well-known Hindu family in Meghnagar roaming around with her Muslim boyfriend, her family was informed. However, they paid no heed. When nothing worked, they tried to “explain” to the young woman that she should end the relationship immediately. Rathore says: “She was my college senior. She said, 'there is nothing illegal in having a Muslim boyfriend'. She even threatened us with a police complaint. Imagine! We want the central government to change this law in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections."
The boys: protecting the Hindu way of life
A few kilometres inside Khacchartodi village of Meghnagar in Jhabua, in the backdrop of hillocks, stands a building under construction in a huge compound. The plaque on the building identifies it as the  “Vanvasi Sashaktikaran Kendra/Forest Dwellers' Empowerment Centre” run by the Padma Keshav Trust.

The Sewa Bharti building.

The centre currently serves as a hostel for 26 boys in the age group of 5-17 monitored by Sewa Bharti, the welfare organisation of the RSS. "We have children from many tribal communities including Damoh, Bhil, Bhilala, and Katara. It takes up to three years to make a Bhil-speaking child learn Hindi. How will they learn Indian values and build a Hindu Rashtra if they don't learn Hindi?" asks Kailash Ameliya, the hostel’s coordinator. He is lean and wears a pigtail on his head—a tradition observed by upper caste Brahmins—and a pointy moustache. Ameliya has been associated with the organisation for the last 15 years.
Most of the boys are students of Class 2 to Class 11 in several local government-run (shasakiya) schools, Ameliya says. They are selected on the basis of a test that involves IQ, general knowledge and course-related questions. "Most of their parents are migrant labourers in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, so we get them here. The children of single parents are given priority."
Once they complete their school education, the students are made to stay at the hostel for four more years to, as Ameliya says, integrate them into the “mainstream” way of life and “serve Bharat Mata”.
At the hostel, the students wake up at 5 am. The shakha, an RSS assembly ritual, commences at 6 am. Mango Singh Katariya, the manager of this Sewa Bharti branch, says, “We teach them how to play Indian games like kabaddi and kho-kho. We have also come up with a game called Tank War to instill feelings of nationalism in the young boys so that they can protect Bharat Mata.” Tank War is a game where each group tries to make a chain and encircle the other group to capture it. The groups are often named “India” and “Pakistan”.

Mango Singh Katariya, the manager of this Sewa Bharti branch, and Verma.

As we talk, Satyanarayan Chakradhari, a member of Vidya Bharti, the educational wing of the RSS, steps in. He announces that he was just passing by. On his arrival, both Ameliya and Katariya stop answering further questions from this reporter. Instead, Chakradhari intervenes in the conversation.
“Our aim is to protect Indian culture and values, and we can only do that by catching the children young,” he says. According to him, there are 16 Christian schools in Jhabua which convert tribal children to Christianity. Chakradhari echoes what Ashok Verma had said earlier: “5,000 people were converted to Christianity last year.”
He laments, “Can’t you see the Christian influence? Children want to celebrate birthdays by cutting cake instead of going to temples. They want to study in an English medium school. And the girls! The Western clothes, such forthrightness instead of being docile. We believe in teaching them Indian values and culture from childhood itself so that they don’t lose their way when they grow up.”
When I ask to take a photograph, Chakradhari refuses. “We don’t engage with the media. You can take pictures of the boys.”

The boys who stay in this hostel.

The 26 boys are lined up in a huge hall in the backdrop of a large Bharat Mata poster. They’re all dressed in half-sleeved shirts and pants. I’m not allowed to speak to them. They greet me in chaste Hindi and begin with a war song followed by a hymn in praise of Bharat Mata.
In the upcoming elections, this Sewa Bharti branch plans to carry out a mass drive among the hostel children to “write pamphlets on Bharat Mata and the Hindu way of life” for distribution among the local population. "So that they vote for the sons of Bharat Mata and not the Kristis," adds Chakradhari.

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 The above report from https://www.newslaundry.com is reproduced here for educational and non commercial use

India 2019 Elections: Misogynist, casteist & communal leaflet & Video by supporters of a cricketer & now BJP parliamentary candidate Gambhir in East Delhi

Here is the mysoginist, communalist leaflet [in Delhi's Parliamentary elections of 2019] from supporters of a BJP parliamentary candidate, that reached thousands of people in their mail boxes and insented into the pages of their morning news papers targetting a woman candidate fighting the elections

o o o

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Hello @GautamGambhir, irrespective of whether you are behind the pamphlet targeting @AtishiAAP
or not, the least you could've done was tweeted a condemnation. Or at least condemn your party colleagues for this video which doesn't need any verification. No?pic.twitter.com/LkkJWOeets

— Pratik Sinha (@free_thinker) May 9, 2019

self-proclaimed reps of dominant majorities increasingly propagate the idea of majorities as imperilled minorities

‘Overrun,’ ‘Outbred,’ ‘Replaced’: Why Ethnic Majorities Lash Out Over False Fears

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/30/world/asia/sri-lanka-populism-ethnic-tensions.html?action=click&module=News&pgtype=Homepage