Obituary: Viqar Ahmad Letters to Editor Viqar Ahmad, the most outstanding broadcaster and an authoritative voice of the BBC Urdu Service for many decades, passed away on 13 March, 2019, after a prolonged illness in a London hospital. He was 90. Viqar Ahmad was born in Sitapur in Awadh in 1929 in undivided India to…
Islamophobia, Theirs and Ours The massacre at Christchurch in New Zealand has forced European countries into deep introspection. New Zealanders are bewildered as to how and why such a horror could visit their country. In Australia, the birthplace of the accused, people are being asked to look at the reality of increasing malice and hatred…
Aurat March Still Faces Never-Ending Backlash and Threats of Violence in Pakistan Aurat March 2019 was held on March 8 as part of International Women’s Day celebrations in different cities including Lahore, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Peshawar, Karachi, Hyderabad and Larkana. People from diverse backgrounds came out on the roads in large numbers to express solidarity with…
What can Karl Marx Offer to the 21st Century? Eric Hobsbawm, the well-known historian, recalls how George Soros once asked him about what Hobsbawm thought of Karl Marx. This was at the turn of the 21st century. Surprised, and also aware that there was hardly any meeting ground between the billionaire hedge-funds wizard and…
Venezuela is Extremely Important Because it is the Battle of this Century In February 2019, an International People’s Assembly was held in Caracas, capital of Venezuela, in solidarity with the people and government of Venezuela represented by Nicolás Maduro. Almost 500 delegates from 90 countries of the world attended the event, and one of the…
108 Economists Slam Modi Govt For Tweaking Data A group of 108 economists and social scientists have sounded a pre- election alarm over the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party government’s move to revise or withhold the release of unfavourable or “uncomfortable” economic data. In an open letter, 108 economists and social scientists have said…
‘Patriotism’ Made Easy in Times of ‘WhatsApp Elections’ There was a time when ‘Good Morning’ messages were causing much “pain” to internet giants? It was the beginning of last year when the obsession of Indians with starting their day with a deluge of ‘Good Morning’ messages flooded WhatsApp, and generated a lot of chuckle….
Why India Must Take Seriously the Right to Dissent (Complete text of the First Ram Manohar Lohia Memorial lecture delivered by Vice President Hamid Ansari at Gwalior on September 23, 2015.) I deem it a privilege to be invited to deliver the First Ram Manohar Lohia Lecture. I am also happy for this opportunity…
Macron to Deploy French Army Against “Yellow Vest” Protests After a meeting of the council of ministers on March 20, French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux announced that President Emmanuel Macron would activate army units during this weekend’s “yellow vest” protests. This is the first time since the 1954–1962 war in Algeria that the army is…
The Christchurch Shooting and the Normalisation of Anti-Muslim Terrorism What is without question the worst mass shooting in New Zealand’s history took place on Friday when shooters, 28-year-old Australian Brenton Tarrant among them, opened fire at two Christchurch mosques. Four, including Tarrant, have been arrested for the heinous act, which claimed at least 49 innocent…
दिल्लीत सुरु असलेल्या शेतकरी आंदोलनाच्या पार्श्वभूमीवर या लहान पुस्तिकेचे प्रकाशन लोकायत मार्फत करण्यात आले आहे. शेतकरी आंदोलन आणि त्यातल्या मागण्या या केवळ शेतकऱ्यांपुरत्याच नसून विविध अंगांनी सर्व सामान्य जनतेच्या हिताच्या आहेत, याबाबत मांडणी करणारी ही पुस्तिका!