Jignesh Mevani’s rally in New Delhi brings fiery youth leaders on a single platform to mount a challenge to the BJP and fight against atrocities on Dalits and other marginalised sections of society.
ALTHOUGH PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA Modipretendsnot to hear anything nowadays, neither he nor the Bharatiya Janata Party could have missed the hunkar (loud roar) that went up on January 9 from Parliament Street in the heart of the national capital,close to the BJP headquarters on Asoka Road. Responding to a call by Jignesh Mevani, Dalit activist and newly elected Member of the Gujarat Assembly from Vadgam, for a Yuva Hunkar Rally (youths’ show of strength), hundreds of people gathered outside the Parliament Street police station defying prohibitory orders. Surrounded by water cannons and security personnel armed with tear-gas launchers, leader after leader raged against Modi’s anti-people policies. Typically, such rallies, which are held often in Delhi, are filled with students and activists and have minimal media presence. But this gathering was markedly different. Every media house was in attendance and remained there for the entire duration of the programme, which went on for several hours.
Mevani quipped that the next day’s headlines would show Umar Khalid, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student leader, offering a packet of chips to Jignesh Mevani onstage, followed by a debate that “the nation wants to know”why?!AsMevanimadehis exit, he was hounded by the media and had to literally make good his escape through the crowd.
Until a few months ago, Mevani used to participate freely in such gatherings and leave the scene without being mobbed. One could not have imagined such a situation. So what has changed?
Mevani’s electoral victory in Gujarat was a shot in the arm for the movement against fascism. He played a pivotal role in bringing leaders from across the country on to a single platform, and the January 9 rally was just the beginning, he said.
This story is from the February 2, 2018 edition of FRONTLINE.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the February 2, 2018 edition of FRONTLINE.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
How Not To Handle An Epidemic
The lockdowns were meant to buy time to put in place appropriate health measures and contain the coronavirus’ spread, but they have failed to achieve the objective and heaped immense misery on the marginalised sections of society. India is still in the exponential phase of the COVID-19 infection and community transmission is a reality that the government refuses to accept.
Tragedy on foot
As the COVID-19-induced lockdown cuts the ground beneath their feet in Tamil Nadu, thousands of migrant workers are trudging along the highway to the relative safety of their upcountry homes.
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Scapegoating China
As the COVID-19 death rate spikes and the economy tanks in the United States, Donald Trump and his advisers target China and the World Health Organisation with an eye to winning the forthcoming presidential election.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
No love lost for labour
Taking advantage of the lockdown and the inability of workers to organise protests, many State governments introduce sweeping changes to labour laws to the detriment of workers on the pretext of reviving production and boosting the economy.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Understanding migration
When governments and their plans are found to be blatantly wanting in addressing reverse migration, exercises such as the Ekta Parishad’s survey of migrant workers throughout India can be useful to work out creative long-lasting solutions.
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.