Today reveals the results for India’s general election which took place from 11 April to 19 May. With nearly 900 million eligible voters, more than 8000 candidates and almost 500 parties, it is reported to be the largest election in history. The immensity of the election for the Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) is… Continue reading “‘India Wins Yet Again!’ Radical Right Modi Set to Win Fresh Mandate”
The right-wing promise to protect “Hindu traditions” offers shelter to male constituencies troubled by the apparent threat of women’s professional and sexual independence in modern India. In his savage book, Capital: The Eruption of Delhi, on the nature of India’s capital’s transformation as a global metropolis, Rana Dasgupta describes the besieged forms of Indian patriarchy in the modern city… Continue reading “The Hindu Right’s War on Women”
It is possible for one to accept the scientific benefits of cow-dung as an alternative energy source in agricultural communities. But, when one hears a self-styled cow protector proudly say, ‘‘cow’s one gram ghee [clarified butter], if we were to light it in front of God [during a prayer], it would produce 100 kilograms of… Continue reading “Scientifically Protecting Cows: Hindutva’s Fascination With Cattle Science”