Editorial

Shielding the Corrupt

CONTRARY to the strident statements against black money and corruption, the Modi government and the BJP are, in practice, taking step after step to shield corruption and to allow the rich to launder black money.  Three such instances have occurred in the recent period.In the first case, the Modi government has raised the upper limit for buying jewellery without submitting PAN-Aadhar details to Rs 2 lakh per transaction.  Earlier, in August this year, the government had amended the Prevention of Money Laundering Act to make PAN and Aadhar mandatory for jewellery purchases above Rs 50,000 per

Taj Mahal: Perverted Vision

THE BJP rulers of Uttar Pradesh have a medieval communal mindset. Nothing exemplifies this attitude more than their attempt to denigrate the Taj Mahal which is considered as one of the most beautiful buildings in the world.The vilification of the Taj Mahal was begun by the Chief Minister Adityanath himself. In June this year, he called the Taj Mahal and similar Mughal monuments as not reflecting Indian culture. This was followed by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism department omitting the Taj Mahal from the places of tourist interest of the state in a booklet that it brought out.

A Bold Step: Dalit Priests in Kerala

WHEN 22 year-old Yedu Krishnan began his priestly functions at the sanctum sanctorum of the Shiva temple at Valanjavattom in Pathanamthitta district in Kerala, it was a historic first – a dalit priest at a major temple in Kerala.The Travancore Devaswom Recruitment Board (TDRB) decided to appoint six dalits as priests along with 30 other non-Brahmin priests.  The Board, which manages more than 1200 temples, functions under the supervision of the state government.  The reservation for backward classes and dalits was instituted for the first time.This is a major step taken to ensure that brahm

Is the BJP President’s Son above Scrutiny?

BJP president Amit Shah’s son, Jay Shah, has become the centre of a case of crony capitalism and questions are being raised about business malfeasance. According to a well-researched report in “The Wire”, an online news portal, Jay Shah owned a private limited company, Temple Enterprise Pvt Ltd, which had a revenue of only Rs 50,000 in 2014-15 but which rose to a turnover of Rs 80.5 crore in 2015-16, which is a 16,000 fold rise.  The company had unsecured loans of Rs 16.78 crore from a financial services firm.  However, in October 2016, the company abruptly wound up its business.An

Amit Shah’s Lumpen Politics

THE BJP president, Amit Shah, has embarked on a dangerous course of inciting violence against the CPI(M) by leveling false charges and accusations against the Party.Amit Shah has launched a `yatra’ of the BJP in Kerala, starting from Payyannur in Kannur district.  In his speech at the inauguration of the yatra, Shah made the shop-worn allegations about “red terror”, but what was new was his attributing the “killings of BJP-RSS workers” to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.The RSS violence against the CPI(M) in Kerala has occurred not only during the tenure of the present LDF

Cut Petrol and Diesel Prices

THE retail prices of petrol and diesel have reached a new high in the past few days.  The price of petrol per litre is ranging from Rs 70 to 79 in various cities, making it an average of Rs 74 per litre.  The price of diesel is around Rs 61-62 per litre.  Ever since the daily price revision was introduced, the price of petrol has gone up by over Rs 6.17 per litre since July 1.As is well-known, India has to import 85 per cent of its oil requirements.  So the international price of crude oil has a direct bearing on the price of petrol and diesel at home.  The international price of crude oil

Who is Responsible for the Economic Mess?

THE news about the economy has been continuously dismal in the past few days. All the data coming in shows that the economic slowdown has accelerated after demonetisation and the country is headed for a recession.First came Volume II of the Economic Survey which presented a gloomy picture of the overall economy. The growth rate of real Gross Value Added was 6.6 per cent for 2016-17 compared to 7.9 per cent for the year 2015-16.

BJP Nexus with Godmen

THE conviction of the godman Gurmeet Singh on charges of rape and the violence unleashed by his supporters in Panchkula and other places has exposed the political nexus between the BJP and such dubious peddlers of spiritual salvation.The Dera Sacha Sauda head had called upon his followers to vote for the BJP in the October 2014 assembly elections. The BJP was suitably grateful and lavished patronage on Gurmeet Singh and the Dera. 19 of the 47 BJP MLAs called on him to convey their gratitude for his support.

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