Narendra Modi: 'Hero of the Masses' or 'Villain', as liberal English media have portrayed him for 17 years?

Sadhguru sounds a bit like Trump. He is an interesting man on many topics I think.
I think you mean to say that , his argument presentation looks similar to Trump. In fact, in Sales pitch, this type of argument repetition is common and considered effective . I also think human comparisons to mean to say the similarity of thousands of individual characteristics can create all sorts of weird associations.

I see news of protests violence continue. But, one can see the pattern of deliberate coordination in the protests. 8 died in 2 days of protests.


Today, there are protests in Meerut , 70 km from Delhi. Interestingly there is no protests in Delhi in the morning, but protests started in the night. Some serious coordination is going on . That's why govt. is shutting down the internet access in these areas.

Opposition Politicians hiding behind the student protests:


Who are these student protestors?

Initially, they were students in North East, Later they were peaceful students of muslim universities and other students of solidarity, Now these are hired, unemployed and clueless non-students, always aggressive and too quick to burn or pelt a stone. Here are some video's I came across ( translated by me as i couldn't find them on the youtube)




In fact, none of this surprising to Indians. As a growing up kid, I happen to live near a stadium which used to be center of the lot of political rallies. The perspective candidates of political parties, has to bring large crowds to show of their strength to visiting party bosses. So they tend to bring the poor naive villagers with one pretext or other and dump them there. these villagers tend to spill over to our neighborhood begging for money to go back. Sad reality, but it is true.

After seeing this, it looks to me, these are a professionally coordinated violence that is hijacked from the genuine concerns in North Eastern states.

And finally, these liberal gang of artists, poets ( like Arundhati Roy ) , liberal power brokers ( journalists and other Congress beneficiaries) and those who are professionally successful, but go bonkers with any thing positive of Modi. All of them waiting for first weakness after dismal failure in the election. That's how Indian democracy is.
 
I think you mean to say that , his argument presentation looks similar to Trump. In fact, in Sales pitch, this type of argument repetition is common and considered effective . I also think human comparisons to mean to say the similarity of thousands of individual characteristics can create all sorts of weird associations.

Yes, "similar" and only is as far as he sees nationalism as a natural way to frame boundaries. I find Sadhguru to be a likable fellow.

Comparing someone with Trump could be seen as an insult depending on your view of him I suppose. I meant no disrespect.
 
Here is a video of a Muslim Supreme court lawyer explaining the law. She goes into detail, different means one can apply for Indian Citizen irrespective of religion. The only provision is, religious minorities of 3 Muslim majority nations ( Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan) can apply for citizenship in 6 years of stay instead of 11 years for others. She goes in detail debunking the about the so-called Article violations, the opponents claim.

The opponents claim that they don't have faith in Modi and insecure. That is enough to oppose them and violence is only justify their stance.

It is becoming clear that some body coordinated the Muslim masses to bring the passions. 2 incidents that came to light after- Mulsims in Delhi and Hyderabad took to the streets aggressively against the police. If this crowd is really upset, they would have done this after Ayodhya verdict. So some body, seriously coordinating with social media and fed that Muslim lives are at stake, without the details. Here is a video from the Hyderabad, India yesterday.


The impression from social media, there is Hindu resentment is growing for the muslims buying into "vote bank politics". there is clear indications of manufactured violence. There has been Pro-bill rallies in many places and things can go wrong very very easily in this type of charged environment and precipitate to nationwide communal violence.

This will benefit LOT of people who are waiting for little blood of Modi ( so-called minority Activists , people who lost money in Modi's Anti-Corruption drive, those opposition parties and their power brokers in media, those dream of death by thousand cuts, political dissidents in BJP itself ). It does looks like it is volatile situation and Govt. will be watching like hawk about the communications going on ( lesson from Godhra incident).

If the communal violence does happen, All these Anti-Modi gang ( including western english media) will say "see, we said so, he is a fascist/Hitler" and they will completely ignore the basic facts of last 70 years of politics of division .
 
Modi addressed the 125,000 crowd in a pre-planned rally in Delhi and clarified that it is not against Indian Muslims and other points already mentioned in the thread. This rally was organized on the occasion of his successful effort to making many illegal colonies to legal that benefit 4 million Delhi residents from 1731 colonies with land ownership . There is assembly elections in Delhi in coming 2 months.

Interestingly, Modi reminded the audience that they made that power brokers of the congress govt who occupied 2000 bungalow's in Delhi for many decades . These are elite personalities of congress establishment, media, celebrities etc

He reminded the audience about some basic facts:
  • It is Gandhi and Congress that gave the promise of giving Indian citizenship for the religious minorities of Pakistan, if they chose to. Despite ruling the nation since then, Congress never bothered to make this happen. Same is asked by most of the congress and other leaders over the time, who now suddenly against it. This included West Bengal CM Mamata banerjee(who rose in political ranks demanding the same to the then ruling Communist Party) , Prime Minister of 10 years Manmohan Singh (video), Rajastan CM Ashok Gehlot, former 15 year CM of Assam Tarun Gagoi etc. But, overnight they became against it, because they lost the Muslim votes because of Abrogation of 370 in Kashmir, banning the Triple Talaq and other pro-muslim measures Modi Govt. took.
  • Accused congress for lying and spreading the fear of "concentration camps" among Indian muslims
  • To say Govt. is not against the muslims, he mentioned :
    • India's good relations with most of muslim nations and Saudi's giving more privileges for India's Haj pilgrimage etc.
    • Those supported Article 370
  • Rumors are spread among Dalits that his Govt. against them and they will be sent to jail
  • NRC (National Registrer for Citizen) is created under the directive of Supreme court is valid only for Assam. It is created as per the agreement between Rajiv Gandhi and agitating students in 80's. It's congress's promise
  • Asked people to respect 35,000 police who died in their duty. He asked people burn Modi effigy they are angry with him instead of public property ( interesting gesture though) - Hate Modi , Not India
  • they built 100,000' houses, millions of toilets etc. without asking for religion.

So why there is so much commotion that India hasn't seen for decades?

The two words that keeps coming up CAA and NRC

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA): That lays out procedure and guidelines for citizenship for illegal immigrants ( 20+ million). It gives citizenship to religious minorities of 3 muslim neighboring nations ( Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan) if they want to after due process. Some how, vested interests translated it as the bill as "Anti-Muslim" and spread the rumors that all the Indian muslims will be sent to concentration camps or kicked out of the country.

National register for Citizens (NRC) :
As of now, this NRC is valid for North Eastern state of Assam as per the Supreme court directive under Congress rule . It means, one has to show the papers and register it.

BJP talked about implementing it pan-India measure in future in phased manner. But, there is no clear idea of how they plan to do it and all that and it is all future part. Itlooks BJP hasn't thought about it and they plan to do it by 2024. This got translated as who ever doesn't have documentation will be deported or sent to concentration camps. During Last 5 years, Modi streamlined every thing with Aadhar Card, Bank accounts etc. for every body and govt. thinks every body has documentation. And there are provisions for people who doesn't have paper work. Aim is to prevent illegal economic immigration and cost that comes with it w.r.t employment, citizen benefits, political muscle and security issues etc. along with some benefits to

But the fundamental problem with the situation is No body knows how many illegal immigrants, but every body knows 90% are from Bangladesh. It was not clear how many are Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh that can become Indian citizens out of 20+ million estimates. They planned to use pan-India NRC process to identify. Mean while, Political parties switched sides overnight started saying "why should I show my papers", "We will go to United Nations", "Discrimination against Minorities" etc. Irony is CAA was first introduced in Modi 1.0 term in parliament, but they couldn't get it passed. No body even bothered to complain then.

There are gaps in the understanding of how this will be done. Probably, Govt. itself doesn't know, but they did hinted as they did it in so many cases like Kashmir, Mandir issue etc. Vested interests filled it whatever the horrors they can conjure up and jumped on the street and went out of control in a week.

Here is a video that muslim cleric arousing the emotions saying "They will not leave the country, as they lived for generations" etc. It was not clear where this understanding came from. Typical Rumor mill before violence erupts. Modi success with reducing Muslim Wakf boards influence in muslim life with Triple talaq and other schemes made lot of middle man angry. With this commotion, problem may rollback. With Pro-CAA reactions going on ( here, here , here ) which is not covered western MSM ,polarization seems to set in again.

I wont be surprised, if Modi comes out stronger( with Pro-CAA stuff going on), and Anti-Modi media will express surprise. Unfortunately this is the story more than a decade. It looks to me Anti-Modi gang is like Anti-Trump gang and they hold on to frivolous things and make so much fuss about it.

The sentiment about the illegal immigration is not new. But, it is local to few states neighboring Bangladesh - in North East and West Bengal. With this commotion, it spread like a wild fire and it will benefit Modi.

The general sentiment in India of majority on the illegal immigration is this:
Bangladeshi_out.jpeg

Here is a interesting take on protests:
Note: I don't have any opinion of this guy, but thought interesting.
 
Madness continues in India. Anti-CAA and pro-CAA rallies, arguments continues. Street roads and Social media became big battle ground to express what they think is correct.

Mean while more evidence came out that shows this is a manufactured violence at different layers. No amount of logic seems to get into these protesters.

  • Initially it started with state of Assam, where people don't want give citizenship to 1.3 million bangla hindus. Govt. said they won't implemente it there.
  • Then it spread to Jamia university. Even students and police complained about the violence from outside in Jamia, but some how it spread all across campuses and Opposition picked it up and ran with it.
  • It spread to UP, there are 18 people died , Police say most of the bullets are not theirs.
  • It spread to Mangalore in south where 2 people killed. To day, police released CCTV footage showing how the violence started by 50 or 60 protestors brought a truck of sacks of stones and used it attack police, put the barricades on the road (to prevent police reinforcement) before attacking a police station.

Even the most of parties who voted in favor of CAA are backtracking it. But, any way that is what the India democracy is. section of population bought the lie from opposition, their few Muslim leaders and their liberal teachers. Now it looks like a 'Civil War'.

Hard to imagine this situation just 2 weeks back. This reminds me of how 'people are fickle'.

Mind games of the Left : one kashmiri hindu take


simple visual explains the commotion: when govt. tries to explain , these liberals find themselves looking at the mirror. Let us see whether they can wake up. I am not hopeful.


I hope we won't see Godhra 2.0 but it is a very fragile situation. Normally, this is how buildup happens before a major communal violence erupts(most often deliberately created). Media and politicians pick up the pieces of destruction for their own agendas for future years.

Until now, Modi govt. handled decently to provocations. But, it can go out of control rather fast, that is exactly what Anti-Modi forces wants it. Create a communal violence and blame it on Modi ( Godhra incident happened in response live burning of 70 hindus in a train. subsequent violence killed 600 hindus and 1000 muslims. But the narration is only 1000 muslims died so he is nazi, fascist , Mao whatever they want ) . It took 17 years ( 4 chief minister elections and 2 prime minister election victories ) for them to acknowledge that it doesn't work . Like in 'Those doesn't kill you, makes you stronger', he became lot stronger than any other leader.

 
Interesting videos, seek10 (especially 'How to become a political leader in India', and 'Mind games of the Left'). The current dynamics in India are very similar to what Peterson highlighted happening to universities in the West, and with the media egging on 'forces of mayhem'. The second speaker hits the nail on the head I think:

"The Left is actually a parasite which feeds on emotions of people looking for a place to invest them in. In the absence of any meaning in life, these emotions of yours are not utilized and await an outlet to find expression. The Left finds you and dazzles you through the work of global alliances of artists and writers and filmmakers. They ultimately manipulate you to serve the agenda of creating mayhem. Why? Because they're also finding ways of distracting themselves from the lack of meaning in life. Don't be a victim of your pent-up rage. Find something greater than your puny existence to engage with. Choose excellence over outrage. Build a better society by transcending your fragile thought-bubbles. Discover your roots rathe rthan chopping off the branch you are sitting on."
 
Things seems to be slowly coming to normal. Some Media outlets and even Govt. said there is a U turn in the Anti-CAA protests. This is what I heard from few relatives i talked too.

- they have protests around 50 kids (mostly uneducated manual laborers) protested and these are fed with usual bribes (alcohol and biryani etc) and made to protest by local politicians who funds them and create scene. That means its transient. Other than it is not bad in his town. Interesting article named "Biryani, Banker, Burqa" to describe the logistics of organizing the protests. Interestingly, the "Biryani" word keep coming in all protests in Andhra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and every where
.

- Another one mentioned about his city, initially there were protests from muslims, but once Govt. came up with out reach campaign, most of the demonstrations turned to Pro-CAA

- Police seems to be keeping tracking of who is making violence by using cell phone to record it and made them pay (in the state of Uttar Pradesh). In UP, just in 2 days, they arrested the culprits and even talking of auctioned their property for the damages they made.

2 days after Yogi Adityanath's warning, UP seals assets of ‘rioters’ - Times of India ►

Mean while, they have arrested some people from muslim Student extremist organization that has links with ISIS for the violence in many states -UP,Assam and Karnataka and they seems have coordinated well before the issue came up.


Nadeem and Ashfaq incited people for the protest through WhatsApp and other platforms by sharing literature and video, Naithani said.

Official sources said the UP police had got intelligence inputs about PFI "planning unrest" Kairana and Kandhla towns of Shamli.

"Some of the PFI members who were detained had made trips to Kerala and met suspicious people there. Their link to violence in UP's Muzaffarnagar, Meerut and Firozabad, etc is under investigation," the sources told PTI.
 
Though CAA protests still in the MSM news, but the grassroot( or household minorities) level protests dramatically subsided and it looks govt. reach out program is working out. It is normal in a dense country like India, passions go up instantly and every body is at the throats of other in the name of "identity" and it takes few days for the madness to come down and to count the destruction.

  • Some Muslim leaders who have asked their public to protest apologized it and vowed not to repeat it again. This is rare case of confession by religious leaders and it seemed to calm down dramatically.
  • With grass root level subsided, Opposition started banging the govt. for lack of "Communication".( standard routine). All the political parties who switched to "Anti-CAA" side overnight will have to wait for some election defeats to change their stance. Delhi Assembly going for election in a month, the incumbent AAP party ( fierce Anti-Modi) seems to have good development track record, may win. If last year results is of any indication, despite BJP winning massively, where ever opposition parties done decent job on "development programs", they won there. But, we have to see whether this polarization over Anti/Pro CAA will change the dynamics.
    • If BJP wins in Delhi or at least decent seats, all the political parties who created doom and gloom over CAA,NPR ( these bills were created and boasted by Congress before, BJP modified little more) will suddenly make u turn and forget about it. :headbash:
    • Before_After_CAA.jpeg
  • Govt. plan to reach out to 30 million houses as a part of their door-to-door campaign to educate the public, while opposition does their noise in MSM. BJP can Thank opposition for it, now they can reach out to 30 million houses in person at govt. expense which they can't do it for normally
  • Party level conflicts became the conflict of student level branches of their parties at the Universities. Latest (which started 5 days back) is JNU ( Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi), which tend to be focal point of lot of left controversies became a focal point with some masked men beating the folks. It was not clear, who started it, but both BJP and Congress 's student branches blamed each other.
    • To cut the chase of who did what and when, Leftists students ransacked server room ( to shutdown CCTV) and attacked right wing students on Jan 3rd. In retaliation, few in numbers ABVP(BJP student wing) called outside help to attack back. AIS ( student wing of Communist party) confessed to it. Unknown ABVP student leader confessed to retaliate by bringing outside masked men and police even seems to have helped in it. There are viral video's of JNU Student association leader (who was member of SFI (student wing of communist party) chasing people with masked people with sticks rods.
    • What happened in JNU between Jan 3 and Jan 5: A timeline
How many students we are talking here: ABVP in JNU claims they have 100 and probably communist party may have 1000's. India has 200 Million students, out of which may 20,000 from mainly 20 university protesting over it.
Any body who studied in Indian education system knows that College student body elections often turn violent influencing the results( forcing candidates to drop, election outcomes, control of discussion etc.) . Some times, local political parties get involved as each political party has their own student wings. This is pretty common thing. But some how, it got politicised in this environment, It became international media ( New york times) citing it as a sign of creeping fascism.​

As usual, opposition which complained that "Police came early" before(as if they are to blame for it) , blaming now "Police came late" now, while the JNU management is saying Police came when they called, Police said they responded professionally( whatever that mean).

AS this is not enough, famous Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone who just produced, acted and released a movie, who has congress sympathies decided to visit JNU to add fuel to the fire, forcing some folks to call to boycott her film, other to complain of discrimination.


Deepika Padukone, Bollywood superstar and India’s highest-paid female actor, became a trending Twitter topic this week, after a strategic visit to Jawaharlal Nehru University – a center of ongoing anti-government protests.
In India’s volatile political climate where a huge debate ensued, and protests are raging over a new ‘anti-Muslim’ citizenship law, Padukone added fuel to fire by stepping into the premises of the university in New Delhi, which has become a “symbol of resistance” against an allegedly “fascist government,” to express solidarity with the protesting students. Padukone, whose latest film is released on Friday, knew exactly what she was doing.

The Left is politically irrelevant in India but its hold over educational institutions such as the JNU, or JU (Jadavpur University) make it possible to fight pitched battles from fortresses where disaffected students serve as tools for the ‘larger cause.’ In an era where news is a spectacle, the creation of unrest becomes a way for the Left to stay politically relevant. The fact that impressionable minds are pressed to the cause gives the Left’s political fight a moral veneer.

...

In attending the public meeting called by Leftist students and a section of teachers protesting against Sunday night’s incidents (when rival student groups clashed and allegations of mob violence inside University premises surfaced), and in appearing alongside a student leader who was injured in the violence, Padukone earned plaudits from the millennial woke crowd, critics of the government and political opposition. That’s a useful ally to have when one’s movie is about to get released.

But here's where the situation becomes a little complicated. While the Left-affiliated students and some teachers have claimed victimhood in the violence and have blamed Bharatiya Janata Party’s student wing ABVP for it, the rival group too has leveled charges of violence against the Left. The student leader, whom Padukone greeted, has been named in two FIRs (First Information Reports, usually the first stage of a police investigation) by the Delhi Police for causing vandalism on campus and associating with "masked goons."

Violence is condemnable regardless of political affiliation. But in showing solidarity with the 'right kind' of victims (and thereby endorsing one violence over another), Deepika's apparently 'apolitical' move was a deeply political act, and she earned instant liberal approval for it.

The BBC wondered if 'Bollywood has found a political voice,' apparently enthused by the fact that a superstar in a movie-crazy India has sided against its pet peeve – a 'right-wing Hindu nationalist government.' Some in Indian media called her the "face of a new, braver Bollywood" while some of her peers, also staunch critics of the government, have expressed "mad respect" for her.


Padukone's astute move was a 'win-win' proposition. On the one hand, she became a woke champion by merely lending her brief presence in a polarized polity, on the other she triggered a wave of frenzy and counter frenzy where competing Twitter trends either called for a boycott of her upcoming film, or a show of resolve to fill the stands in support – strictly along partisan lines. In both cases the efforts were being driven by youth – the prime moviegoers in India.

Padukone, a megastar and a consummate professional, understands the game of public relations. She knew the potential of her 'guest appearance.' Her 'cost-benefit' analysis of the outrage and support would have resulted in a realization that it is 'net benefit' for publicity. She has apparently added 40,000 new followers on Twitter in the few days her twitter handle and hashtags like #BlockDeepika have been trending.

The controversy over the new citizenship legislation has been raging for nearly a month. The student agitation, too, is not a new phenomenon. It is curious that Padukone chose to visit JNU only during her movie’s release week. Her well-timed appearance at JNU has achieved what no amount of campaigning could have done. Since she is also the producer of the film, it was indeed a smart move. Any publicity, after all, is good publicity. There is, of course, nothing wrong with Padukone's promotional tactics before release, but it is a bit rich to claim a moral high ground over a cynical attempt at boosting sales of her movie.

Interestingly, another Bollywood celebrity making highlights for different reason on CAA. BJP asked people who support CAA call a number and home minister boasted 5.3 million called the number. But, some trolls on twitter used the same number to ger "Free NetFlix subscription", "Free Sex" muddying the waters. Suddenly twitter is flooded with supporting CAA means some body likes Sex with Sunny Leone ( She is a Canadian porn star of Indian origin became bollywood star with her romantic songs). BJP used similar "missed call" tactic to increase their party membership before (with some verification later). This time it backfired. Twitter flooded with accusing BJP using dirty tricks of ( "free netlix, "free sex" whatever one can conjure up)for CAA support.


Amidst a wave of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act that show no signs of slowing out, the Union government has been attempting to drum up support for the Act — from reaching out to Bollywood stars, endorsing Jaggi Vasudev’s view, and the BJP even asked people to give a missed call to 8866288662.

This number which was launched by the party on January 2, 2020, has been widely shared by BJP leaders for support. People are supposed to give a missed call on the number and pledge support to CAA.

However, in what appears to be a bizarre trick to make the number go viral, many Twitter users made enticing offers and attached the same toll-free number.

Of course, it did not take long for this to descend to trying to pretend to sell sex and make women the bait, in an apparent effort to get more missed calls.

A cursory glance on Twitter shows that this number has been used with all sorts of things — people pretending to be a lonely woman looking for company, asking for dates, or simply, because they are bored. Each message concealed what the actual utility of the number was.


“Hey TweetHearts Save my number & Call me 8866288662,” one reads.

“Too bored today, so ready to share my number with all my followers,” reads another.

The number was shared in all ways that exploited people’s worst weaknesses — call and play a quiz to win Rs 10 lakh, call for “guaranteed” employment opportunities, for company (call on the number, and drinks and food would be on the tweeter), and even the Rs 15 lakh that PM Modi had promised to deposit the bank accounts of citizens prior to his election in 2014.

  • BJP got a unexpected help from the other side of the border which is embarrassing for the Anti-CAA gang. There were enough documented reports of Hindu's, Sikhs and Christians in Pakistan who migrate to India narrating their horrors- female child abductions, forced religious conversion, forced marriages and abandonment etc. These discrimination exist for many decades and it is a common knowledge. This one of the reason for BJP giving fast track processing for religious minorities of Pakistan,Bangladesh and Afghanistan. This is the reason why Congress started the bill in the first place and supported until Modi made it passed in the Parliament. Now it looks as a "communal" and "Anti-Muslims" for them.
    • Few days back, the same thing happened to Sikh girl in Pakistan, child was abducted, force converted and got it married. The Sikh family protest resulted in counter attack by muslim mob to Sikh shrine which was the founding place of religion founder Guru Nanak. To compound it, another Sikh was killed in an unrelated incident, making it more acute. After this, Opposition seems to be some what on defensive.
JNU was in spot light in the recent past for many reasons. Here is one.
  • few months back over 6 fold increase in hostel rents. It looks outrageous until one sees what the rent is. Before they have Rs.100 (US $1.41/month) to Rs.600( $8.40/month) while a movie show costs Rs. 200- Rs. 300 ( $2.80 - $4.2). These are highly subsidized rents in a city of mega city of New Delhi with 19 million population. Over this, protests went on for weeks accusing management of not listening to them( management says they already sent notifications), accused police of excesses and resignation of Vice Chancellor. As usual, some irritated guy will say "What the f* going on " that becomes intolerance and another example of "Modi is fascist", he is creating "Hindu State" which is Hitler's "Nazi state", because some body is insecure. Snow flake logic of emotional thinking(feels good means good, feels bad means bad) goes on without common sense thinking or proportionality.
 
JNU was in spot light in the recent past for many reasons. Here is one.
  • few months back over 6 fold increase in hostel rents. It looks outrageous until one sees what the rent is. Before they have Rs.100 (US $1.41/month) to Rs.600( $8.40/month) while a movie show costs Rs. 200- Rs. 300 ( $2.80 - $4.2). These are highly subsidized rents in a city of mega city of New Delhi with 19 million population. Over this, protests went on for weeks accusing management of not listening to them( management says they already sent notifications), accused police of excesses and resignation of Vice Chancellor. As usual, some irritated guy will say "What the f* going on " that becomes intolerance and another example of "Modi is fascist", he is creating "Hindu State" which is Hitler's "Nazi state", because some body is insecure. Snow flake logic of emotional thinking(feels good means good, feels bad means bad) goes on without common sense thinking or proportionality.
Some body sent this video which reminded me of JBP confronting the students over gender non sense moment. I don't mean to compare this professor ( prof. Anand Ranganathan ) to JBP, but to the irrational lefty students. This video is not from the current CAA , but from the 1.5 months before when JNU lefties went on strike, violence over nominal increase in the hostel fee for more than 3 weeks.

This professor trying to enter to his JNU lab, was prevented by lefty student in protest against nominal hostel fee hike. At one point this professor asked a student how much stipend he gets . He says he gets Rs 35,000( $490) then professor asks them "you are trying to protest for increasing hostel fee from Rs10( 14 cents ) to Rs 300( $4.2)/ per month". One can hear students shouting " How can you say this, Who the hell you think you are to say". Professor can be heard shouting "irrational and illogical people, even humanities students can do better than this". After futility of trying to convince them with logic and subsequent anger, professor seen trying to convince them to "Not to take law into their hands" and allow him to enter his lab.

It this these type of leftie student voice and antics commanded the solidarity of students groups from other parts, over which all opposition political parties( and even Modi coalition allies) are betting their future in opposing CAA. Ridiculous it may seem, it looks it these students who hijacked the entire narration.

Here are some comments of same professor during CAA.
“The protesting students have been collecting within the main building against the High Court order, but it is not fascism. Most JNU centres remain forcibly closed to professors, but it is not fascism. The admin block and Vivekananda statue have been brutally vandalised but it is not fascism”.

“Protesting students are threatening students to not take exam, physically preventing new students from registering but it is not fascism, they have cut off Wifi in campus by vandalising the server room but it is not fascism. For these students the right to protest is the right to prevent and they call others fascists”.

Ranganathan concluded his argument by quoting the mentor of these protesters Joseph Goebbels who famously said, “the first rule of propaganda is you accuse others of what you are guilty of”.


 
JNU was in spot light in the recent past for many reasons. Here is one.
  • few months back over 6 fold increase in hostel rents. It looks outrageous until one sees what the rent is. Before they have Rs.100 (US $1.41/month) to Rs.600( $8.40/month) while a movie show costs Rs. 200- Rs. 300 ( $2.80 - $4.2). These are highly subsidized rents in a city of mega city of New Delhi with 19 million population. Over this, protests went on for weeks accusing management of not listening to them( management says they already sent notifications), accused police of excesses and resignation of Vice Chancellor. As usual, some irritated guy will say "What the f* going on " that becomes intolerance and another example of "Modi is fascist", he is creating "Hindu State" which is Hitler's "Nazi state", because some body is insecure. Snow flake logic of emotional thinking(feels good means good, feels bad means bad) goes on without common sense thinking or proportionality.
Since I posted last time, lot of thing happened in JNU. Conflicting student bodies fought with each other , blamed each other, media went with their usual one side of story as per their agenda and the noise lasted for 2 weeks and suddenly disappeared . Police sent notices to both sides as per the data they have. There are some accusations that police might have helped one party.

While JNU thing getting disappearing, the attention shifted to "Shaheen Bagh" area (small suburb in south delhi) occupied by protesters who were blocking a major highway for last 45 days atleast with a impact to 200,000 to 300,000 motorists who end up spending 2 to 3 hours for 20 min's commute. All else little here and there, but not much.

The same left gang moved to Davo's where World economic forum is going on. They made their usual noise. Here is one video where Sadghuru pointing out the obvious media irresponsibility and sensationalism.

There were some viral video's of one JNU Phd student Sharjeel Imam going around the country, giving hate speeches like "Divide North Eastern states from India" , Muslims to fight back as Govt. decide to arrest muslims ( because Triple Talaq is banned officially) and all will be sent to "concentration camps". He was arrested after 2 or 3 days of search and Anti-Modi media started saying his arrest is a setup and some media personalities started saying his speeches of "Dividing the nation" is not even anti-national. It's same story over and over again. Any way long ago common sense.

What is interesting is, those who looked at the sequence of events and social media posts of Sharjeel Imam says these "Shaheen bagh protests are protest are Sharjeel Imam brain child and they tracked where he went and what he said. The message is simple hate , asking people to turn against the nation with scaring people people will be sent jail ( he won't say triple talaq) , sent to "concentration camp" etc. What is interesting is where ever the protests or too much media coverage, he was there. He is IIT ( Indian Institute of Technology) Bombay computer science graduate and worked in IIT Bangalore and Copenhagen and doing Phd at JNU in Indian History. IIT's is a prestigious college in India, taken on merit and it is a dream come true for most of the Students to get admission. There were protests in IIT's too and Media also this argument for the "Validity of the protest". Well, no body can say IIT

It is highly unlikely he is doing all this by himself, some sophisticated network coordinating and feeding into Media and Opposition politicians.

Some days back, one organization called PFI (Popular Front of India) was accused of transferring 120 crore ( $17 Million) to the protesters in Uttar Pradesh where 20 people where killed and state govt. says very few from their bullets. This Kerala ( South Indian state ) organization was on radar for years for their militant activities. Last month UP govt. arrested PFI members.

Those who were watching speeches at Shaheen Bag say, Islamists hijacked the leftist movement. Islamists like Sharjeel Imam goes out gives speeches of Anti-National, Anti-Hindu speeches , leftie Media people like NDTV folks, Burkha Dut goes out cover up saying " They don't mean it, What they mean is so and so" and they start singing national songs. This flip , flop of India, Anti-India making people wonder Islamists hijacked the movement.

with Delhi elections are in 10 days, the entire situation is very charged and no body knows who is blaming whom of what.

As per the opinion polls, Modi and Modi's ministers like Home minister Amit Shah or Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman popularity is not changed much. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is the best chief Minister in India. So it does looks like most of the people feel Muslims feeling insecure is natural because of what had been communicated. Who communicated? - Govt. or vested interests is not clear.

Will these results influence opposition to go soft on their Anti-CAA stance, leaving the Islamists to be who they are. There are some signs in that direction, but it is too early to say.

What I find it irritating is the media Noise surrounding this issue. Generally, I don't look at the Pro-Modi outlets as they tend to be in Hindi and they can be little blind nationalistic. But, some viral video picks my curiosity and google it some information. As usual Google gives most leftist sources. When I think, there is nothing else to look for, you tube suddenly throws some video at me, that will let me go different channels to validate it. This you tube recommendation algorithm is looks to me like Casino or video games dopamine drops logic. I found my self asking Why did I not got those video recommendations before and now hogging my time to go over the search again which is frustrating.
 
There were some development on the story of CAA.

Jan 28th: BJP candidate in Delhi Assembly elections Anurag Thakur made a inciting stating saying "Shoot the Anti-Nationals". Election commission immediately banned him and another for campaigning for few days.

Jan. 29th: A Muslim local contractor man called Mohammad Luqman entered the protesting area in Shaheen Bagh with a pistol saying “clear the road or people will die.” Local subdued him and police arrested him. These protesters blocked the busy roads for 2 months in this area and Supreme court asked them to allow the traffic, 2 days back. Let's see how they manage it.

In another incident on the same day, in West Bengal, Ruling TMC party Muslim leader killed 2 Anti-CAA protestors in what looked like a internal fight.
people

But, None of this news is the topics of media discussion until next day.

Jan 30th: One teenager named RamBhakt Gopal with country made pistol entered "Shaheen Bagh" threatened to shoot and asked to vacate the location. He did injured one person in the confrontation. Police arrested him and the seller of the gun too.

But the moment this incident happened , Media up in arms "Hindutva Terrorism" , "Democracy to Mobocracy" with some dramatic visuals for few days until the next interesting incident.

Feb 1st: Another person called Kapil Gujjar who entered the "shaheen Bagh" and asked the people to vacate. As usual, left media went with validation of their belief that this is hindutva terrorism. After twists and turns of news of affiliation of this person and his father, matter settled that this person is Delhi ruling AAP party that was going for elections on Feb 7th, 2020.

Mean while, there was one more incident, 2 or 3 people came to Shaheen Bagh area in the night and shot some bullets in the area, no body could trace them back.

The person who was credited for being master mind behind Shaheen Bagh protests, sharjeel Imam was arrested before for hate speech, his phone was captured for forensic analysis, Govt. announced 1 Lakh rupees for the details of this person's activities and taken into police custody for interrogation.

So left media dropped the Anti-CAA news all together by Feb 4th. Incumbent AAP CM created some news saying he is "Hanuman Bhakt" before the elections. After election results came, he thanked "Hanuman" (Hindu Gods) forgetting his Anit-CAA stance or his muslim sympathies.

Feb 7th: Delhi went to its Assembly elections and exit polls were pretty much saying what every body was expecting whether Anti-CAA protests exist or not. Ruling AAP party to win based on free education, door delivery, free medicine platform. The results of exit polls were interesting about the impact of these protests. Feb 11th, actual results are coming, which are more or less confirmation of India Today's poll. Delhi election Exit poll is second one that pretty much say, Anti-CAA impact on people are minimum or None on broad sprectrum ofthe population.
  • 50% of Delhi residents doesn't even know where "Shaheen Bagh" is. It is interesting to note that, Delhi is ruled by Muslims for centruies and they have large muslim population. Voters are only interested in "bread and butter" issues, though these cosmopolitan voters are active in social media debate of CAA/Anti-CAA controversy.
  • BJP didn't lose the voters either from 2015, it is expected more than in 2015, it is just Congress (Which spearheaded Anti-CAA protests) vote got transferred to AAP. The theory is AAP has better chance of the defeating the BJP, so people switched( Hard to say, media can come up with any theory they want). BJP made a clean sweep in May 2019 elections in Delhi. There were clear indication that Voters became discreet about their preferences based on what type of election it is ( local, state or Federal).
    Between 2019 Lok Sabha and 2020 Delhi assembly polls, BJP lost almost 10 per cent votes across all professions. Congress, on the other hand, lost 24.5 per cent (across all categories), while AAP gained 37.5 per cent. This means a massive chunk of AAP’s supporters come from Congress.
    Similarly, across all educational qualifications, BJP lost hardly 6 per cent votes on an average and Congress 25 per cent, while AAP’s average gain was 33 per cent.
Feb 10th: Mean while Supreme Court said on Feb 10th.
The Supreme Court on Monday said protesters cannot “inconvenience” people with indefinite demonstrations at public places but refused to pass any interim order to evict those who have been on a sit-in at the capital’s Shaheen Bagh for nearly two months now.

Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and K.M. Joseph, however, issued notices asking the Centre to respond to two petitions to clear out the anti-citizenship-act protesters from the neighbourhood.

The court said people were “entitled” to protest but only at designated sites. “You cannot block the public roads. There cannot be indefinite period of protest in such an area. If you want to protest, it has to be in an area identified for protest,” the bench said.

“You cannot create inconvenience for the people,” the bench added.

But it refused to pass any interim directive to evict the protesters, saying it would like to hear the Centre’s view.
It's clear that Govt. is not in hurry to clear the roads, as they will be branded as Anti-Muslim and they want Supreme court to say that.

4 month old kid of protesting Mother died in Shaheen Bagh ( with cold and congestion) and , Mother seems to have said, she is ready to sacrifice other kids too. This evoked a response from the Supreme Court saying " 4 month old doesn't make decisions".


Shaheen Bagh - India's Maidan?

What is interesting is despite the calm down ( political party noise will be there ) among the citizens elsewhere , it is only one place citizen involvement is serious. It is this delhi suburb, few heard before. This is making one wonder, whether some body wants this to be India's Miadan?
 
After Delhi election results on Feb 11th, things were some what calm on the Anti-CAA front. Interestingly, winning AAP party used bag of freebies for each community by increasing monthly remuneration to Muslim boards and using Hindu God Hanuman with political affiliation ( Hanuman Bhakt). Ultimately, they have some development to show in free education, electricity etc. BJP blamed itself for the defeat for inflaming statement "shoot the anti-nationals", though the opinion polls before CAA thing erupted is in favor of AAP. Even other parties made gestures of Hindu temple visits, Hindu God references etc. after the election.

The protests at Shaheen bagh continued, Govt. agreed to talk to them, though nothing came out of it. But, for the last 2 days, violence erupted again between the shaheen bagh protestors who were blocking the major roads vs the people who wants to open the road. 10 people were killed, (as of now) including police person and around 200 injured. Again it looks like some outsiders crossing into Delhi instigated it and asking to close the Delhi borders.
Delhi violence due to outsiders?

Allegations have been flying thick and fast in Delhi, hit by violence at various places due to clashes primarily between groups opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and those supporting the law. At some places, the protesters have clashed with Delhi police personnel as well. Each group has pinned the blame for clashes and loss of human lives on the other. Political parties and activists too have done the same.

To assess the situation, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal -- fresh from thumping electoral victory in the Delhi Assembly polls -- convened a meeting of all parties this morning. At the end of it, he gave a new perspective of the ongoing blame-game: outsiders are behind the violence in Delhi.

News agency quoted Kejriwal as saying this: "In the meeting, the MLAs of the border areas have said that people are coming from outside. There is a need to seal the borders and do preventive arrests."

This statement absolves the Delhi voters of the "sin" of violence. Both pro-CAA and anti-CAA protesters of Delhi, it implies, are peaceful protesters. And, those coming apparently from Uttar Pradesh -- a state ruled by the BJP and under Yogi Adityanath -- are creating troubles in Delhi and thereby "defaming" the national capital when US President Donald Trump is in the city.

Mean while, the attention is on Trump's 2 day visit and as usual, he is flip flopping his opinions on may things like CAA protests, Kashmir, Trade etc. Any way, he was hoping for agreement with Taliban by end of the month with the help of pakistan as a preparation for this reelection campaign. So, one can guess what will come out of his mouth.
 
Back
Top Bottom