‘The Intelligent Woman’s Guide to Socialism, Capitalism, Sovietism, and Fascism’ by Bernard Shaw, a renowned Irish playwright and a socialist, was first published in 1928. In this book, he addresses the perils of capitalism and defends socialism while outlining its principles. Dedicated to his sister-in-law Mary Stewart Cholmondeley, whom he referred to as ‘The intelligent woman’, the book is an answer to her question on “a few of [his] ideas of socialism”. His sister-in-law asked him what socialism entails and he responded by writing this book. British journalist and author Polly Toynbee, who writes a column for the newspaper “The Guardian,” wrote the preface to the book in 2012. Shaw’s sister-in-law, according to Toynbee, anticipated a succinct overview or a straightforward instruction manual on his political and ethical ideas. Instead, in 1928, she was given a wonderful speech that covered a wide range of topics, from marriage and raising children to managing a business. Honestly, if I were given an unnecessarily lengthy response like this, I probably would not have appreciated it much.
Influenced by Marxism, the central theme of the book is class and inequality in society and the author refuses to romanticize the poor. Rather, he advocates for the establishment of an equal pay society in which everyone gets and owns the same amount of money, regardless of skill, effort, age, gender, personality, IQ, inheritance, merit, or power. He has high hopes for humanity’s capability to advance morally but he contends that this is only realistic in a socialist society. However, in a world where everything is run by money, where even relationships are defined by money, the task of developing such a society is challenging. He addresses many intriguing questions such as why in a world full of misery, the poor do not rebel and how much is enough to have in an economy.
The book, which was initially published in 1912, is still relevant to many problems with global economies and growing fascism today. Socialism is the primary theme of the book, which covers 86 topics under a variety of sub-topics. Shaw emphasizes on reflecting how much we and our neighbors ought to have. He emphasizes the importance of having personal opinions that can influence public opinion on these issues of distribution of resources and income. His answer to how much should a person earn and buy, reminded me of perhaps a more relevant and interesting book on environmentalism by renowned Indian historian Ramchandra Guha titled ‘How Much Should a Person Consume’. I’ll reserve my opinions on that book for another time.
When describing socialism and communism, Shaw says that these are not plans for distributing wealth in one lady’s circle only, but for distributing wealth to everyone; and as the amount to be distributed each year is limited, he advises, “Conceive yourself as a national trustee with the entire income of the country placed in your hands to be distributed so as to produce the greatest social well-being for everybody in the country.”
Additionally, he asserts that large populations cannot effectively practice communism; rather, families with close-knit relationships and low levels of income corruption are better suited to do so. He also examines, using appropriate instances, the drawbacks of communism.
For instance, he claims that attempting to popularize anything that is not already being utilized or at the very least accepted by everyone will only lead to problems.
We all use roads and bridges, and we all agree that they are essential and useful things. However, we have strong disagreements on topics like religion, moderation, and going to the theater.
The book contains certain portions that are still relevant today, including the one on the decline in employment. In the modern era, we would refer to these large multiple stores as malls. He discusses how these stores are robbing tiny independent stores of their customers and ruining the business of the store owners that ran them.
As the title of the book contains ‘intelligent woman’, I was looking for his take on the impact of capitalism on women. He argues that Industrialization had a more negative effect on women than on men. Women who wanted industrial employment could only do so by offering to do it for less than males because no industrial employer would hire a woman if he could get a man for the same salary.
This was conceivable because even when the man’s salary was below the poverty line, it was the wage of a family, not just one individual.
The father had to use it to support his wife and kids, without whom the capitalist system would have ended quickly due to a lack of young employees to take the place of the elderly (p. 204).
Moreover, Shaw touches upon the unequal pay and the unpaid services of women and the property rights issues prevailing in society. The transfer of women’s money and property to their men is a common phenomenon even today. By law, everything a woman possessed became the property of her husband when she married: a state of things that led to such monstrous abuses that the propertied class set up an elaborate legal system of marriage settlements, the effect of which was to hand over the woman’s property to some person or persons yet unborn before her marriage; so that though she could have an income from the property during her life, it was no longer her property, and therefore her husband could not make ducks and drakes of it (p. 205).
Shaw posits that under a capitalist system, women found themselves worse off than men because, as Capitalism made a slave of the man, and then, by paying the woman through him, made her his slave, she became the slave of a slave, which is the worst sort of slavery. He further writes, “This suits certain employers very well because it enables them to sweat other employers without being found out. And this is how it is done. A labourer finds himself bringing up a family of daughters on a wage of twenty-nine shillings a week in the country (it was thirteen in the nineteenth century) or, in or near a city, of from thirty (formerly eighteen) to seventy, subject to deductions for spells of unemployment.”
Along with the issues of capitalism and labour market and how it made women’s conditions worse, he also comments on the marriage institution from a communist perspective. He discusses how marriage becomes a compulsion for a woman and how she has to do everything possible to become someone’s wife. One thing that I did not find convincing was his ambiguous argument that women are also forced to trick men into marriages and when the men realize this, it does not lead to a happy marriage. As if the men are like innocent helpless children who can be “tricked”? While his observation of prostitution stands convincing that women are forced to dance in street and sell themselves, not men, his statement that capitalism acts on women as a continual bribe to enter into sexual relations for money, whether in or out of marriage remains unconvincing.
To sum up, the book gives a good start to the discussion on the topics that were relevant at the time when the author wrote the book and many of the topics are relevant even today. Nevertheless, when the readers approach it further, the book may make them feel lost. It is as if the author wants to address every issue under the umbrella discipline of economics. As a result, these details make the book bulky. There are many topics that an ordinary reader would not understand or would not will to read them. In fact, to an extent, the problem does not lie with the author’s approach but with the time when we are reading it. Despite this, the book suggests that we need to cooperate with each other for a better society and a better system. His illustration of fascism is much relevant even today as he notes, “There is nothing new in Fascism except the circumstances in which it is now being tried.”
It is a compelling read for anybody interested in learning how capitalism operates, dominates, and exploits not only our bodies but also our minds. Thus, those who want to understand what socialism and communism have to offer to the masses should also give this book a try. There are a few observations of the author from the start of the twentieth century that stand true even today, for instance, how the conservatives and liberals fear the citizens and scare them for gaining votes.
It does not become clear until you finish half of the book why the title of the book starts with “An intelligent women’s guide…” and not “A guide to…”. It only gets clearer from his explanations of the proposed system that he cites the example of how a woman who is expected to run a household on a fixed income utilizes the defined income and manages the domestic affair. He clearly views many ideas from the viewpoint of a woman and contrasts them with the system. He underlines that intelligent women will opt for socialism as they are aware of the risks associated with a capitalist economy.
Sex is child’s play; but gender is a serious business.~Yoval Noah Harari
We are living in a biased society where all human beings are not treated as equals. Women are the worst sufferers of these biases. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a celebrated Nigerian novelist in her book “We Should Be All Feminists” argues that women are not inferior to men in any field and any stage of life. The book counters the existing norms of society which makes men dominant and women subordinate. Chimamanda shares her experience in “We Should Be All Feminists” as a woman. She looks in the life of women in general and Nigerian women in particular. She introduces the meaning of feminism in a mixture of fun and resentment and shows how the word ‘feminism’ could have a different meaning for different people.
Chimamanda firstly called herself a ‘feminist’; then someone advised her that women feminists are unhappy because they can not find husbands, then she began to call herself a ‘Happy Feminist’; then one Nigerian academic told her that feminism is un-African, then she began to call herself a ‘Happy African Feminist’; then one of her friends told that calling herself a feminist meant that she hates men, then she began to call herself a ‘Happy African Feminist Who Does Not Hate Men’.
She further writes that feminism is so heavy with baggage, the negative baggage: you hate men, you hate bras, you hate African culture, you think women always be in charge and so on. In this short book, Chimamanda portraits the vicious and tempest norms of society against women. Women howl but no one listens because everyone thinks all is well. Not only men but also women believe that the existing culture is unquestionable. And it is supposed that all the members of society should accept cultural and social norms.
Once the society creates the boundary of gender roles then it is supposed that no one should cross this boundary of gender, especially women. It is obligatory to question the eternal cultural norms to make a just society for just means. Chimamanda shares that a hundred years ago, Igbo culture considered the birth of twins as an evil omen. Today that practice is unimaginable to all Igbo people. Cultures and traditions should be challenged to bring justice to every member of society. As Karl Marx said that the traditions of the dead generations weigh like a nightmare upon the living.
If the cultures and traditions violate the freedom of someone then it is better to change it. Chimamanda gives a certain example that how women are facing discrimination in day to day life and even this discrimination do not consider discrimination. Once she went to a restaurant with her male friend and she gave money as a tip to a man. That man took the money and said ‘thank you’ to her male friend. Why did not he thank her? Because he thought that whatever money she had, ultimately came from a man.
Literally, men rule the world at present and men also ruled the world one thousand years ago. But one thousand years ago a physically stronger person was supposed to lead. At present, this is the age of artificial intelligence and technology. She argues that the most knowledgeable, creative and intelligent person is qualified to lead not the more physically stronger person, both men and women can be knowledgeable, creative and intelligent.
But even today, more responsible positions are given to the men and sometimes it very unimaginable for the society that how a woman can hold a particular position. The best example of it is the author’s own experience- her teacher announced that whoever will score highest in the test will become the class monitor. Chimamanda scored the highest mark but her teacher announced that the monitor had to be a boy. A boy became the monitor despite his disinterest to become the monitor. This is how our society works.
Regarding this notion of manliness, she fits her argument- “we have evolved. But our ideas of gender have not evolved very much.” She clears another question on why not human rights? Why feminism? She answers that feminism is part of human rights and it deals with specific and particular problems of gender which are not wholly covered in the ambit of human rights.
In recent decades professionally renowned publication houses have brought out rigorous scholarly studies on Bihar. Political stuff on Bihar is devoured by the Biharis— its diaspora as well as the non-Bihari intelligentsia and literati, included. Bihari electorates—educated or not—are supposed to be quite alert and informed about discussing politics, notwithstanding its economic and educational backwardness. Thus knowledge production on Bihar has got a good consumer and market.
Professor Sanjay Kumar of the CSDS-Lokniti is by now a better known name not only among the academics, journalists, other literati and the politicos, but also far beyond these segments, because of his regular interventions in TV and print media and web-portals.
Equipped with huge data on election studies collected by the CSDS-Lokniti, Sanjay and his colleagues are better placed to dish out such stuff. With growing and deepening regionalization of Indian politics (particularly since the 1990s, when this trend spread beyond the southern provinces), studies on changing electoral and political dynamics in India’s provinces is indeed a welcome step by the Sage. That Bihar happens to be the first province to have drawn the attention of the series is really heartening. Famous journalist and academic, Arvind Narayan Das (1948-2000) never tired of repeating John Houlton’s remark about Bihar being the heart of India.
In this book under review, an 18 page long introductory essay puts the study in perspective. Equally helpful is the concluding chapter on the question of development or identity in the elections of 2014 (Lok Sabha) and 2015 (Assembly). The second chapter focussing on the social and economic history and the third one encapsulating electoral history, political processes and emergence of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) familiarise us with the centrality of caste-based graded hierarchy in politics.
So far as the political processes of post-independence Bihar is concerned, finest of the academic studies are by Francine R. Frankel’s essay in an anthology (1989) co-edited by her (Dominance and State Power in India: Decline of a Social Order), Harry W. Blair (whose essays remain scattered largely in academic journals and anthologies, which are much needed to be compiled in a single volume), Arvind N. Das and Atul Kohli’s chapter, “Breakdown in a backward State: Bihar”, in his book, Democracy and Discontent: India’s Growing Crisis of Governability (1991). In fact, some essays of Blair and a chapter of Kohli provides a better understanding and empirical/statistical details about the mis-governance and de-development—ruin of Bihar—in the decades preceding immediately before the advent of Lalu in 1990. Lalu’s anti-middle class politics, arrogantly dismissing the issues of roads, electricity, law and order, etc., needed a better elaboration. Parts of Arun Sinha’s biography (2011) of Nitish Kumar deals with it.
On the rise of the upper OBCs and Dalits, meticulous studies by Prasanna Kumar Chaudhury and Shrikant in Hindi language are equally much significant. Let a caveat be added here that motivated Lalu-baiters need to be persuaded to go through those reading lists, if they really wish to clear the haze and mist they remain enveloped with. They tend to misbelieve and also propagate that before Lalu, Bihar was not as badly governed as it did in the 1990s under Lalu-Rabri.
Sanjay Kumar seems to have made relatively much lesser use of abovementioned studies to explain the pre-1990 state of political, administrative and economic affairs in Bihar. These decades saw much stronger hold of the upper castes in Bihar. Sanjay Kumar however does admit it, though quite passingly: “In pre-1990 Bihar, the upper castes (Brahmins, Bhumihars, Rajputs and Kayasthas) dominated not only the social and political space but also the bureaucracy and the judiciary … who dominated the institutions of Bihar and subverted the land reforms … that would have been advantageous to the backward castes and the SC populations” (p. 5). Sanjay leaves out the media.
He does not elaborate upon the fact that the Bihar’s upper caste hegemons went on to ignore public investments and developments in agriculture, irrigation, industry, power production, governance, education, research, infrastructure, etc. They reduced Bihar into an “internal colony”[1]. Sanjay shirks away from giving adequately explicit and elaborate details about the fact that Lalu-Rabri underperformance on governance and development did not compare as much unfavourably with his predecessors, as it is made out to be.
The volume under review concentrates on the 25 years of Bihar politics during 1990-2015, when the fulcrum of the political power rested with the Yadavas (11%) and later Kurmis (7%), with other groups playing largely a second fiddle. He however does not provide a comparative detail pertaining to the economic and educational profiles of the two communities (Yadavas and Kurmis) of OBCs in order to spell out electoral rivalries between the two which manifested in merely about four years of Lalu’s rule. There is merely a short footnote, without citing any evidence (p. 75).
The sub-regional classification of Bihar, by the CSDS in election studies as also in this volume, is a little problematic. These sub-regions are Magadh, Mithila, Tirhut, Bhojpur, Seemanchal. It excludes the regions now (after 2000) comprising Jharkhand. What CSDS and the author miss here is the fact that Champaran and Saran speak Bhojpuri just as the Shahabad (Bhojpur, Arrah, Buxar) region. Similarly, only four districts are identified as Seemanchal. These are, Purnea, Ararai, Kishanganj and Katihar, whereas the CSDS would include Supaul, Saharsa and Madhepura also in Seemanchal.
Sanjay identifies Ashraf segment of Muslims to be of foreign origin (p. 12). He ignores the fact that a vast segment of Shaikhs and Pathans, were also the converts from upper caste Hindus as well as many Ajlaf segments of Muslims, more particularly in the census of 1901, entered themselves as Sheikhs. This was something which was noticed by the ethnographers and census bureaucrats such as Henry M. Eliot, W. G. Lacey, and taken up even by B. R. Ambedkar in his book, Pakistan or Partition of India. He took “cultivating Sheikhs” as Ajlaf Muslims, though more in the case of Bengal[2].
Overall, the Ashraf-Ajlaf and Intra-Ajlaf divides (mainly Ansari versus the rest), or absence of it, in Bihar’s electoral politics remains largely ignored or un(der)explored by Sanjay. For the parts of Bihar now comprising Jharkhand, this volume does not offer much details and insights pertaining to the stratifications among the Tribals and other social groups pertaining to their electoral behaviour.
Sanjay touches upon the educational development since independence in Bihar (only in two pages, 21-23). But he ignores the pertinent fact that landed elites cum politicians-legislators opened up high schools and colleges and recruited almost 100% from the respective dominant castes. These employees/clients acted as the vote-catchers cum booth managers or cadres for their patrons. The schools and colleges were then taken over by the government and they became permanently salaried employees of the state. In the name of meritocracy, these very beneficiaries emerged as the fiercest opponents of the reservation for the OBCs in accordance with the recommendations of the Mungerilal Report and B. P. Mandal Report.
Based on the 2006-07 data of the District Information System for Education (DISE), Sanjay Kumar touches upon certain aspects of primary education. Apparently and implicitly appreciating Nitish Kumar, he says:
“[R]ecent policy initiatives and improvements in primary and school enrolment show that Bihar is making progress in improving its education levels. These policies have focussed on lowering the cost of schooling through subsidizing or providing textbooks, uniforms, bicycles and cash transfers for attendance. While these have reduced the costs of schooling in Bihar, much remains to be done to boost schooling infrastructure and improve conditions for both students and teachers” (p. 23).
This remark is based upon a journalistic reporting. A deeper academic scrutiny and field study is required to explore as to the decay of the government funded primary education in the 1990s gave way to sudden rise of the RSS school networks (Shishu Mandirs) in rural and urban Bihar and Jharkhand. This must have contributed to the communalization of Bihar’s social space in a more decisive way. This eventually may have helped the BJP in expanding its support-base. A comprehensive field study by the resource equipped agencies like the CSDS on this aspect is still awaited.
This inadequacy of the volume under review is more starkly visible in the last chapter which deals with the question of development or identity during the elections of 2014-2015. Ever since June 2013 when Nitish Kumar broke away with the BJP, there was a sudden spurt in communal clashes across rural and urban Bihar and a very deep communalization of socio-cultural spaces became much more apparent[3]. There were emergence of organizations such as Gau Pushtikaran Sangathan, and activities such as Shiv Charcha, Kalash Yatra, to reach out to the subaltern women. Visits of the leaders such as Pravin Togadia, Yogi Adityanath in various parts of Bihar became frequent, particularly during 2013-2015. In some of the communal clashes in north Bihar, the Mallah were accused to be aggressors. Across north Bihar, majoritarian right wing organizations such as the Bajrang Dal mushroomed, with significant Mallah presence in these.
In parts of Mallah settlements in north Bihar, there was sudden rise in construction of Hanuman temples. Latent and manifest communal tension and clashes became more resurgent particularly in those localities where Muslim affluence, particularly through the remittance economy from the West Asian Gulf countries had become more visible. In the rural markets, Muslim traders emerged, particularly the kith and kin of those who were/are employed in the Gulf countries, to give a trade competition to the pre-existing Hindu traders.
The elections for the rural and urban local bodies (which came to be held from 2001 onwards) saw a rise in Muslim representation. In 2001, the share of Muslim mukhiyas (elected headmen, Panchayat chiefs) was over 16%[4]. This is almost proportionate with the Muslim population in Bihar. From 2006 onwards, reservation for lower backwards (Ati Pichhrhas) in these local bodies, witnessed the rise of subaltern groups. A majority of Muslims listed as E/MBCs, understandably added to their representations. All these caused discomfitures and scorn among Hindus, initially of the upper castes, but latter it also antagonised/communalised the subaltern Hindus.
In many cases, the Panchayat representatives are/were local toughs/hoodlums/lumpens. Though it was not a Muslim specific case, but it strangely came to be seen as ‘Muslim resurgence’. In some cases, these representatives happened to be kith and kin of Gulf based bread-winners. All these factors began to provide a strange credence to the majoritarian stereotyping against Muslim minorities. This ‘resurgence’ came to be propagated as ‘Muslim menace’ outdoing Hindus.
Neo-rich Muslims asserted their identity through constructing long aspires and domes of huge mosques, and public display of certain pompous religious rituals such as Julus-e-Muhammadi, much expensive Milad on loudspeakers, etc. These displays of identity, most often enactment of competitive intra-Muslim maslaki (sub-sectarian) identities between the Barelvis and Deobandis came to be seen by sections of Hindus as Muslim minority assertion against Hindu majority. Cumulative effect of all these gave way to anti-Muslim hatred and Hindu consolidation in favour of the BJP[5].
A comprehensive study of this phenomenon explaining the communalization of Bihar’s social space is needed to be undertaken by the professionally competent and resource equipped research centres like the CSDS. One is not sure if CSDS-Lokniti survey-questionnaire really factors in the growing anti-Muslim hatred. A keen Bihar-watcher and a hihly professional academic like Sanjay Kumar should not have ignored these.
The component on profile of the major political parties (pp. 24-28) glosses over a crucial aspect. It does not spell out caste-wise support base of each of these major parties. The treatment of the fall of the traditional left (CPI, CPIM, SUCI, etc.) and “rise” of the “revolutionary” Left such as IPF-CPIML (Liberation), and the CPI (Maoist) is also very inadequate[6]. While dealing with the LJP of Ramvilas Paswan, the educational and economic profile of the dominant castes of Dalits— Dusadhs and Chamars—are missing in this volume. Such a profile of Musahars and Dhobis could also be quite helpful.
Sanjay Kumar claims to have developed his research interest in Bihar elections from the 1995 elections onwards. Importantly, that was the election when Samata Party in alliance with the CPIML (Liberation) had jumped into the fray. The Samata Party came into existence after Lalu’s nominee had lost the Vaishali Lok Sabha bye-election in 1994. This saw an electoral alliance between the two competitive and rival upper castes, Bhumihars and Rajputs. While during the 1970s-1980s, Muzaffarpur remained hostage to gangster-politicians; during 1992-98 a fiercely bloody war between upper and lower caste gangster-politicians continued killing Hemant Shahi (1992), the Shukla brothers (1994) and Brij Bihari (1998). The later symbolised an OBC assertion against upper caste gangster-politicians in Muzaffarpur, after 1990[7].
The Vaishali Lok Sabha bye-election (1994) also witnessed a genesis of the political rise of the Mallah (fishermen) community, now listed as lower OBC (Ati Pichhrha)[8]. Captain Jai Narain Nishad (1930-2018) had secured around 40000 votes as an Independent. Lalu took note of it, and in 1996, Nishad contested as Janata Dal nominee from the Muzaffarpur Lok Sabha and was elected. Subsequently he switched over to the BJP. Ever since then, Muzaffarpur, otherwise said to be a “cultural and economic capital” of the Bhumihars, came to be “politically dominated” by the Mallahs. The 2014 elections in Bihar saw a rise of Mukesh Sahni, the self-styled ‘Son of Mallah’ who eventually aligned with the BJP. Though, his leadership remained contested by many leaders from within the caste[9]. Sanjay Kumar’s account, otherwise so very rich in data, does not explain the arguable case of the political rise of Mallah. Earlier, Karpuri Thakur (1924-88) in his last days of life had tried to mobilize the Mallah.
Owing to the abovementioned limitations, the volume otherwise immensely rich in data, in some way, fails to give a better idea to help prognosticate about the future trends of electoral politics to be unfolding Bihar.
It analyses the electoral impact of the Fodder Scam but leaves out the details pertaining to the Srijan Scam. Yet, he does spell out the loss of credibility of Nitish in no uncertain terms. The concluding lines of the book pronounce, “Nitish Kumar may have been able to save the chief minister’s chair [in 2017] and may even have ensured its continuation beyond the 2020 election, but the premium he paid for the insurance … was very big”.
There are some minor faults on the part of the proof-checkers. Typo-errors such as ‘wary’ being typed as ‘vary’, and Farzand Ahmad being cited as “Farz &”; and the date of Champaran Satyagraha of 1917 being typed as 1817 in the opening paragraph of the introductory chapter should have not crept into it.
Notwithstanding some limitations, which may also be there because of the overall limitations of election studies in the Indian academia, particularly the aspects like wider and deeper economic and social processes, this volume is immensely useful. It may be hoped that the forthcoming Sage series on other provinces would be more comprehensive than this one. It may also be hoped that a revised and enlarged edition of this volume on Bihar would overcome these omissions.
Sanjay Kumar, Post-Mandal Politics in Bihar: Changing Electoral Patterns. Sage, New Delhi, 2018. Pages 252 +xxviii. Price INR 995/-ISBN 978-93-528-0585-3.
Sage Series on Politics in Indian States, volume 1, Series Editors: Suhas Palshikar, Rajeshwari Deshpande.
[1] Sachidanand Sinha (1973), Internal Colony: A Study in Regional Exploitation. Sindhu Publication, Delhi.
[2] For details, see my, Muslim Politics in Bihar: Changing Contours (Routledge, 2014), pp. 292-294.
[3] See three detailed reports by Appu Esthose Suresh in The Indian Express, August 22, 2015.
[4] Shaibal Gupta (2001), “Bihar: New Panchayats and Subaltern Resurgence”, Economic and Political Weekly (EPW), 36, 20, July 21. For Uttar Pradesh, see A. K. Verma, “Muslim Resurgence in Urban Local Bodies of Urttar Pradesh, EPW, 47, 40, October 6, 2012.
[5] See some of my writings: “Muslims between the Communal-Secular Divide”, Seminar (678), February 2016; “Why Are Bihar Muslims Frightened”, Parts I & II, Rediff.Com, July 21, 2017;
[6] Walter Hauser, “Violence, Agrarian Radicalism and Electoral Politics: Reflections on the Indian People’s Front”, Journal of Peasant Studies (JPS), 21, 1, 1993, pp. 085-126.
[7] See my “Underscoring Political-Criminal Nexus: Communal Violence in Agarpur”, EPW, September 10, 2016. Also see, Kunal Verma’s six part detailed Hindi blog “Muzaffarpur Underworld Ki Inside Story. http://musafir-kunal.blogspot.com/2018/09/6.html.
[8] See my “Caste, Community and Crime: Explaining the Violence in Muzaffarpur”, EPW, January 31, 2015; for historical details, see, Smita Tewari Jassal, “Caste and the Colonial State: Mallahs in the Census”, Contributions to Indian Sociology, 35, 3, 2001, pp. 319-354
[9]Amit Bhelari, (2015) “Fishermen Junk ST Quota”, The Telegraph, Patna, September 8, 2015. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1150908/jsp/bihar/story_41270.jsp#.VllFxnYrLIU. [Consequently, Mukesh Sahni was ignored by the BJP for his inability to transfer Mallah votes; he ended up launching his Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP) in late 2018 and aligned with the RJD in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, only to face drubbing].
Mary Wollstonecraft can be seen as the first feminist whose book, ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Woman’ has been recognised as a contribution to liberal feminism. The most fascinating fact is that she wrote it in the 18th Century, at a time when women were considered as subordinate beings and not the part of human species.
Wollstonecraft dedicated this book to M Talleyrand Perigord, the late bishop of Autun. Charles M de Talleyrand Perigord submitted his report (1791) to the French National Assembly which was mainly based on the idea of national education. This report stated that boys should receive free education and women should only receive a domestic education. The book consists of thirteen long chapters which present the detailed study of every aspect of the life of a woman and man.
She has encountered some of the great philosophers in this book such as J J Rousseau, Dr Gregory, Dr Fordyce, and Madame Genlis etc. But she is highly critical of Rousseau’s views on women which treats women as merely a means to men’s pleasure.
Wollstonecraft beautifully observed the problems and injustices prevailed in French society. She deals with a big question like ‘has nature shaped the differences between the two sexes or the civilisation is responsible for this?’ She criticises Rousseau and Gregory for advising women to sit at home and considering them not as human beings but subordinating beings.
Education is the best remedy for social evils
She considers education as the most important phenomenon for the betterment of society. She strongly argues that a society can develop only with education and all the evils can be removed with the help of education but the condition is, women should also be educated in the way men are being educated. Here, it is important to note that she does not pitch women against men, neither does she want competition with men. Her concern is to make both the sexes complimentary to each other. This is why she criticises the kind of education boys were receiving in French society.
To her, French National education was a faulty system. She holds that customs of religion and Churches are reduced to only showing off and not for attempting to the development of morality through hearts and minds. One of the finest critiques of the education system she makes is that ‘masters teach only French to the boys and feel proud of it’. She states that eventually these boys are neither domesticated not do they become responsible citizens. Therefore, they must be taught other vital subjects.
Reason must be cultivated in both the sexes
She criticises the view that women are driven by emotions, not reason. She argues that Rousseau, when judges women as childish because of their good conduct, in reality, behaves unphilosophically. According to her, these philosophers including Dr Gregory who look at women as useless to society, weak and artificial, are irrational. On the basis of her experiences and reflections, she wants to counter-argue them ‘rationally’. She says that if women are controlled by emotions and sentiments than reason, this is because they are being taught and trained in such a way through a faulty educational and societal system.
Women are not a means to men’s pleasure
She succinctly criticises Rousseau’s views on women. She states that he thinks women are so weak and inferior that they can only be treated as a means to men’s pleasure. She complains that if women are weak and irrational at all, this is because they are always taught to please men, they have never been taught to be independent. Wollstonecraft bravely criticises Rousseau’s thoughts by arguing that he promotes evil by looking down upon women by considering them inferior to men, appreciating them for their beauty, declaring women sufficient for men’s pleasure whenever they want to relax. She argues that Rousseau’s character of ‘Sophia’ is an insult to women and their capability because it insists that women are subject to men. Her anguish towards Rousseau seems justified when she says that he is a great advocate of equality but he does not follow what he advocates. She accuses him of following double standards.
Through this book, Wollstonecraft attacked double standards of the society in general and male philosophers in particular. She also disputed with the Biblical idea that Eve was responsible for the ‘Original Sin’
The book is structured and written in a very well and organised manner which along with pointing out the problem, also suggests remedies at the same time. All the feminists favouring equality of sexes must read the book as this work is a part of gender history.
The book, ‘Of Saffron Flags and Skullcaps: Hindutva, Muslim Identity and the Idea of India’ provides insight into the origins of Hindutva, what has been happening in the last couple of years in India and its threat to the secular fabric of India. Hemakes us smile, laugh, tense and most importantly, the curiousness never dies throughout the book.
We have just seen how the name of a station was changed from ‘Mughal Sarai’ to ‘Deen Dayal Upadhyay Station’, and how many places and roads are being renamed. Ziya Us Salam had already dealt with such moves and he called it ‘reinventing the history’. People who wonder what is the problem with Deen Dayal Upadhyay’s name can also have a look at this book because he deals with the thoughts of people like Deen Dayal Upadhyay and many more. The author argues that he was a man who “quite never accepted our Constitution” and a man who was an early practitioner of ‘we’ and ‘they’ philosophy. “within the Hindu fold, he was a votary of the caste system as an essential tool for social cohesion”, the author argues. Now, his point is clear, Upadhyay’s views do not fit with the Constitution of India.
Ziya criticises the move of RSS and BJP at attempting to appropriate Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, Sardar Patel, and Ambedkar. ‘A choose and pick policy is applied to fill the gap in their own narratives.’, Ziya argues. When they want to put down Nehru, they try to glorify Ambedkar. The author reminds that Ambedkar had drawn a parallel between Savarkar and Jinnah.Here the journalist Ziya reminds the Rohith Vemula case and sharply remarks, had they been a follower of Ambedkar, Rohith would have been alive.
The book deals with the debate over Savarkar’s take on the cow being ‘Holy’. He gives reference of his essay, ‘Care For Cows, Do Not Worship Them’ to argue that those who are involved in mob lynchings claim to love Swami Vivekanand and V.D. Savarkar do not have an idea of what they stood for. Ziya Us Salam reminds that Vivekananda wanted people to take recourse of beaf and the Bhagavad Gita and; Savarkar had ridiculed the idea of cow dung and urine used to purify the impure. He quotes Jyotirmaya Sharma who has written that for Savarkar, worshiping cow is like an insult to humankind.
Almost every Muslim’s heart has the same story to tell about the stereotyping he goes through but only a few have thatcapability of powerful expression, as Ziya Us Salam, who has honestly and perfectly brought those stories with loaded logics and references. After describing his personal experiences of how people stereotyped him on his Muslim Identity, he wonders, “Why can’t I live my life like a little stream that joins the mainstream yet manages to retain its identity?” Here, the book does not attempt at opening the wounds of Muslims by recalling the memories when they were accused of supporting Pakistan in an India-Pakistan match, but gives sensible answers to those accusations with the use of humour.
He has also discussed the ‘The Myth of Holy Cow’, a book by D.N. Jha which provides a detailed discussion over the myth of Cow being a sacred animal. He reads Vedas and Bhagvad Gita on the position of beef eating and traces the evidences which show how beef eating and serving was a normal thing and not just human beings but deities ate meat.His argument is simple; the cow was never a sacred animal, the idea of not slaughtering the cow was not religious one but an economic one. The decision of not killing the cows was because of our agrarian economy. So, ”Economic need became religious Creed” (p.71)
The book sharply criticises any discussion about the Muslim appeasement. All the three parts of the book provide a lot of references to make his point valid and countable. His arguments are derived from historians to social scientists and Intellectuals to enlighten us on the discussed themes. The book illuminates, guides and above all, enlightens us.
With a huge discussion about the proponents of Hindutva and their critique, one might get an impression that he is putting everything into a bowl but he has done it smartly and arranges them all perfectly.
one of the unique things about the book being he has not held Modi responsible for ‘Othering’ of Muslims and the rise of Hindutva but argues that ever since independence, even before that, the process had been started. In fact, Being a ‘Secular’ Muslim in India has never remained an easy affair.
He expresses his anguish against Modi regime for the reason that for the first time in the History of India the murder accused got awarded, at worse for the first timea murder accused was wrapped in the national flag on his last journey.
On one hand where the advocates of Hindutva are indulging in hate speeches and spreading hatred, in a contrast, there emerged an Imam, Rashid who makes us feel proud. Despite of his son being killed in a communal violence, he appealed people not to indulge in any kind of violence because he did not want any revenge and says that the Quran is his inspiration.
The author clarify the misconceptions regarding Islam with quoting the verses of Qur’an itself rather than taking position of Western scholars as many people of academic background tend to do. This book is clearly not an academic research but it might help those interested in the relevant debates about Hindutva, Muslim Identity and the idea of India.
He has smartly drew a distinction between the works of RSS and its history in dividing the nation, with the role of Jamiat Ulama E Hind and its contribution in independence movement and uniting the people for a common cause. However, a certain section of Muslims have a problem with the way Jamiat works today and this is the angle which is missing in the book. He does criticise the Clerics within Muslim Community for not engaging with the Qur’an intellectually and not welcoming the ‘questions in religion’, this proves that he wants reform within the community as well.
The age old issue of Dalit conversion has been given space in the book with sincerity and the author honestly accepts the fact that egalitarian principle of Islam is not the reason behind their acceptance of Islam but the alienation within the Hindu society forces them to do so. He describes conversion as a weapon of protest. “In our country, a person can leave his religion, adopt another faith but his caste follows him.”, His remark draw the attention towards the ongoing menaces of caste system in India. He discusses the problems of caste in India but ignored the role of caste in making the idea of India which might disappoint some readers but overallthe book is very promising for the readers looking for a relevant book dealing with the current problems in India. The book has humour,beautiful presentation, connectivity in arguments and above all optimism.
Unlike the other writers, he does not leave us with a depressing ending, rather he offers optimism.Remember how the tricolour wristband unites all the Muslim pilgrims during Haj. He emphasises to engage with each other’s culture and religion. ‘a thousand years ago, we had Al Beruni who studied Vedanta like none else. Then we had flowering inter-religion dialogue during the Mughals…’, he adds.
His comment on the spirit of India “Much like life which defeats death every day to see a new sunshine, India too shall rise from the ashes of hate violence, bigotry and exclusion. After all, inclusive India has always won against the forces of exclusion.” (p.238), beautifully captures the hoperegarding the changes in the socio political scenario in India.
Book title: Of Saffron Flags and Skullcaps: Hindutva, Muslim Identity and the Idea of India
The Betrayal of India, Pharos, New Delhi 2017, 905 pp.
Perhaps the FBI needs guys like Elias Davidsson to solve the circumstances of the 9/11 attacks. Could he have been successful within such an organization? Usually, the FBI investigators can only go so far as their superiors want them to go. That’s why a highly qualified researcher such as Davidsson would have gone nowhere within the FBI.
In the 9/11 community, Davidsson is no blank sheet. He has published books on 9/11 and the follow-up terrorist attacks that set the world on fire. “Hijacking America’s Mind on 9/11”[1], followed by “Psychological Warfare and Social Denial: The Legend of 9/11 and the Fiction of Terrorism” (Psychologische Kriegsführung und Gesellschaftliche Leugnung: Die Legende des 9/11 und die Fiktion der Terrorbedrohung)[2] presented a different narrative. An English translation of a condensed version would be very informative and highly useful for the English speaking public.
The elucidation of a terrorist offense suffers from the fact that governments clean up only as much as it benefits them politically. Such an approach also holds true for the Mumbai attacks. The impression given by the Indian government that all facts were on the table, is, according to Davidsson, false. As with the “9/11 Commission Report”, which pretends to present the real events and the backgrounds, the same holds true for the processing of this heinous crime of 26/11, 2008. In both cases, statements of witnesses, which didn’t support the official narrative were glossed over or brushed aside.
That’s why Davidsson’s book is so important. In 25 chapters he unravels not only the motivations and the cover-up of the Indian government but also the multifaceted interests of international actors such as Pakistan, the U.S., and possibly Great Britain, Germany, Israel, Iran, Russia, China, and even Australia.
“The book is about the betrayal of the Indian nation by a corrupt, greedy and ruthless elite for whom the lives of ordinary Indians are expendable when power and profit are at stake,” writes the author. From day one, a particular part of the official account was questioned, namely, the circumstances surrounding the deaths of three senior police officials and their assistants. Many Indians voiced their suspicion that the authorities were covering-up facts and called for an independent and impartial investigation of the events.
To understand 26/11, the reader must not work one’s way through the whole book sequentially because the author has attempted to render individual chapters independent of each other. All chapters close with a summary or conclusions. Davidsson’s book is always very well documented by many footnotes. Additionally, all sources used are accessible using the following URL; http://aldeilis.net/mumbai/
The author presents three definite conclusions; firstly, India’s major institutions are suppressing the truth on 26/11; secondly, India’s judiciary has failed its duty to seek truth and render justice; thirdly, Business, political and military circles profited from 26/11. Furthermore, entities in the U. S. and Israel also gained from the attack. The author could not find any benefits for the Pakistani government, military or businesses. The main profiteer seems the Hindu nationalist constituencies by the “elimination” of Hemant Karkare, “who was on the verge of exposing Hindutva terrorist networks.
Davidsson calls on the Indian Civil society to ask for the establishment of a National Truth Commission on 26/11 mandated to establish the facts on the attacks of 26 November 2008. The Civil society itself should demand the creation of an International Commission of Inquiry on the previous terrorist attacks under the authority of Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, including those committed in the U. S. on 11 September 2001.
With this study, the Indian Civil society has a document at its disposal to challenge the official narrative. The overall objective of the author, however, is the exposure of all the key terror attacks, especially 9/11, which lacks to this day any evidence that 19 Muslims were the perpetrators.
This very compact but exciting book should contribute to the solving of the 26/11 crime. A must read for everybody interested in the truth.
Avnish – Member of Media Studies Group and Assistant editor of magazines ‘Jan Media’ and ‘Mass Media’.
Krishn Pratap Singh-Senior Journalist and Writer.
Anil Chamdia– Chairman Media Studies Group. Editor of magazines ‘Jan Media’ and ‘Mass Media’.
Amir Ali Azani– Social worker and Editor of magazine ‘Navnirmiti’.
Sharad Jaiswal– Assistant Professor in Mahatma Gandhi International Hindi University.
Ursla Rao– Senior Lecturer of Sociology and Anthropology in University of new South Wales
Mukul– Associated with Amnesty International Human Rights Organization.
Charu– Associate Professor of History Dept. in Delhi University
It is the era in which Media is dominated in whole world. And no doubt it creates lot of effect on us. The book is an inside look of this effect. It is a compilation more than a book and whole study is condensed in a book. This is an effort to show the involvement of media before and after communal incidents. Author tries to convey that dependence on media to decide our social issues must be controlled otherwise it is a sign of danger for future. Research shown in the book tells how should be media’s role in conveying news but how media is paying its obligations. For this, Author has focused some severe riots happened and showed media’s inclination. Author does not have sympathy with any community and author does not support for any community just attempts are made to expose media’s role that it is playing. Many of astonishing facts came across while going through book. Some of the cases focused are- Muzaffar nagar riots, Faizabad violence, Akot riots, Water movie controversy and media, Ayodhya (Babri Masjid Demolition).
Authors have chosen content analysis method for study about role of Media in Muzaffarnagar violence. The subject of study is news published in newspapers related to riots. Paper cuttings of these newspapers Dainik Jagran, Amar Ujala, Awam-e-Hind and Dainik Prabhat are collected. Dainik Jagran, Amar Ujala and Hindustan are most read hindi newspapers. These contents are analyzed for various facets of news published in newspapers. “2010 edition of Norms of journalistic conduct” issued by the press council of India is considered basis of content analysis criteria. This Norms serves as the interpretation guidelines for reporting in environment of community struggles. This study can be called as the study of key characteristics of mainstream media during riots. Eye- opening facts are revealed after study. Though the systems provides guidelines for media but it is revealed how media ignores and successfully achieves its communal intentions. How smartly media controls people’s thoughts in the way it wants. This action can be good but most of times it proved harmful.
Discussing about the role of Media in Faizabad riots, author mentions some of incidents regarding media people, also some of famous words are mentioned that are often used to make news communally sound. In this case also media hides truth and goes against guidelines creating more tensed environment that involves publishing of rumors also. It clearly appears how much sensational contents are important for media rather than news. No truth is found in Media’s published facts after investigation. Even media blames administration and police without giving proofs.
Some study done on atrocities happened in Akot (Akola) also reveals involvement of media in fueling tension. It is very rationally explained media’s escalation on one side and that it follows its self-will. Contents of Hindi, English, Marathi and Urdu newspapers about Akot communal violence are studied and analyzed. Analysis gives straightforward conclusion that Media speaks language of one community rather than publishing news and doing its job of providing what is happening.
Potential of media can be experienced from the way it created turbulent environment before release of water movie. Whatever media spread to create a big issue it was a totally different experience for those who saw incidents from their eyes. Media’s approach of exaggerating issues can turn the stone to hill and a hill to stone. Statements given on Water movie of several personalities were mentioned. Most of them uses media as their way to get prominence and comes into limelight. Media is major cause behind it that reality of issue stays apart.Also Businesses and journalists seek to benefit from the Media for monetary reasons.
Ayodhya incident was rationally explained through Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry that how it was completely controlled. Organisers of Ayodhya incidents identified media in a form which presents matter in a distorted manner and gains economic benefit by creating sensation and excitement among people. It is taken into consideration because many of times media goes out of control and attempts to control media also prove to be weakening many times. Later studies in book are on media contents regarding Ram birth place- Babri Masjid controversy. Count of media’s coverage on communal riots shows their interest in picking up news to publish. Main newspapers focussed are Indian Express, Jansatta, Navbharat Times, Veer Arjun (All Delhi edition). Reporting in newspapers, titles of news and editorial contents are analysed separately. Authors approach is rational. Author first gives background of controversy and effect of media in eighth decade then analyses newspapers’ contents which exposes media’s ignorance in properly investigating critical issue that stands matter of big turbulence. Anyone can conclude with this authentic analysis that media disregarded real history and considered stories and imaginations for reporting. Study also proves that media keeps apart all basic principles and follows its self-will in dangerous way which is a must read. It reveals that media can cross any limit.
Considering the outrageous behaviour of Media a memorandum is submitted to press council along with the report of Times of India, India Express, Jansatta, Navbharat Times, Dainik Jagran, Aaj, Swatantra Bharat, UNI, PTI. A short study presented on pictures cartoons in newspapers pointing certain issue.
A comparison of different newspapers regarding certain issue is discussed. Newspaper speaks language of some political party. Media interrupts propagation of thoughts and refrain its readers from their right of knowing basic and true information. Some mind boggling facts are mentioned in this regard.
People who blindly accepts every sayings of media, this book explains how much harmful this approach is. To know about discrimination and selfish approach of Media with authentic proofs it is worth reading for all. Indeed a real eye opening compilation that exposes true face of media. A need to keep eyes and ears open regarding media is expressed also efforts should be taken for secular and democratic media.
Book: Rainbows in the Desert and Other Stories by Archna Pant
ISBN: 978-93-82536-14-7
Publisher: LiFi Publication
Rating: 3/5
She sits on the stage where her book is now about to get launched and she curiously looks into the audience, as if searching for something. From a distance, someone enters the audience and takes a seat. The very sight of him brings her courage and a bright smile on her face. The man is her husband Mr. Harish Pant.
Why I mention this before we begin reading our review for ‘Rainbows in the Desert and Other Short Stories’ (by Archna Pant) is that: I have had a chance to know the author and while we interacted, I could keenly notice that she is sensitive, rather highly sensitive and much attached to her relationships.
And when we talk about the book, the very introduction of it, tells about characters who cannot get rid of their sensitivity and accommodate in their relationships with a lot of pain and suffering. And my belief is that one, who can live the character, can write it most beautifully.
All the characters in the book (mostly women) have lived inside or very near to the author. There is fiction but the root does deep into autobiography. And the seeds the way they have been planted will make you believe in the stories for none of them leave their axis in real life.
‘Rainbows in the Desert and Other Stories’ is a book and an author who believe that goodness runs the world. With every passing page, every passing sentence when the characters finish their course, we are left with impact. Here the impact is beautiful. Characters are emotional and with firm belief in goodness and sometimes unconditional love.
The vividness of stories and variety of characters range from a young girl pursuing her management course, to a village boy Vishnu who leaves his beautiful valley of Kumayun to chase an elusive dream to an old woman who sits on a chair of forgiveness and lets every relative exploit her, loves forgiving her son and keeps the most dreamy smile on her face.
The story of Janaki, an ayah, who is beaten and then murdered by her husband leaves the reader to consider the darkest corners of life, we never dare to peep in. And the title story is of Malati an innocent lively girl married off to a much older man and yet manages to create rainbows in the desert.
The stories go smooth and gripping, details could have been worked upon, we give the author concession over language as with such wide range, more experiments could have been done but as it is her debut novel and yet she reaches the mark so well and the binds the reader, we pat her back for bringing to us some of the most beautiful stories ever shared over a bonfire. And we welcome a fresh new storyteller into our streets of literature.
And when you start reading the book: look for character Vishnu (Lessons of Life) for the reviewer felt closest to him and shared a part of his identity. Contact the reviewer at reachingpushkar@gmail.com.
The armed insurgency has brought in its wake a host of human catastrophes, the saga of pain and unending miseries. Scores of new social issues and problems have cropped up because of the conflict. The ever-growing crop of widows and half-widows is an addition to the list of victims of the conflict. An entire generation of youth and men were wiped out by the Indian Army on the pretext of a fighting insurgency, which rendered thousands of women as widows and lakhs of children as orphans. Half widows are a unique breed of victims complacent to the Kashmir conflict. They are those helpless souls who don’t know about the fate of their husbands who got disappeared at the hands of the security forces, and they have been living since then every moment between hope and despair.
The present book under review by versatile and now seasoned young journalist Afsana Rashid is a story of many such voiceless souls who continue to suffer in oblivion. This is not only the story of half widows but widows and women who happen to be on the opposite side of the state establishment. Afsana in her preface about the book states that “the work has been done to provide a broader perspective of the problem that is yet to be recognized as grave even by the Kashmiri society itself.” This apathy towards the victims and pathetic attitude of society as a whole is evident on every page and every single word of the book.
The book is divided into 25 chapters, and the first few chapters deal with the historical background of the Kashmir conflict, the backdrop of armed insurgency initiated soon after the rigging of the 1987 elections and one of the reasons why youth resorted to gun culture was that India never did allow the democracy to function smoothly in Kashmir. Soon after the insurgency started, India took no time to respond with an Iron Fist policy to suppress the secessionist movement and began to opt for the genocide of Kashmiri youth. Thousands got disappeared at the hands of the Army and security agencies, which prompted the mothers of the disappeared persons to form the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP), which was later joined by the wives of disappeared people.
The concerned agency that had apprehended or arrested the victims would, first of all, declare their ignorance about the arrest and if pressed harder would declare either that he ran away from their custody or ask the family that he must have crossed the Line of Control (LOC). The police also hesitate to file First Information Report (FIR) against Army personnel and security agencies, and the victims family is threatened by the establishment to give up their fight for justice or be ready to face dire consequences. Many cases of killing, maiming of the members of victims family are related in the book.
The worst sufferers are the families of the disappeared souls, who run from pillar to post to ascertain the whereabouts of their kith and kin and in this process, a lot of money gets drained and they are rendered as paupers. The half widows cannot remarry as there is no consensus among the scholars of various schools of thoughts as to when a half-widow can be declared as widow although the government has declared seven years as the stipulated time, but still widow remarriage rarely takes place as it is alien to the Kashmiri society as well as fear of maltreatment of their children by stepfather holds many widows back from remarriage. As soon as the woman becomes a half-widow, her status in the family is reduced to a maid and in most cases, she is forced to leave the in-laws home. In many cases, the wives were deserted and divorced by their husbands for pursuing the cases of their disappeared brothers or fathers. Many members of the victims’s family have lost their mental balance, developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and even some have opted for suicide as a way of escapism from the perpetual agony.
To add insult to injury politicians always give contradictory statements regarding the number of disappearances and before elections, they always promise to provide justice to the victims. And as soon as they are in power, they forget and break the promises. The victims are aghast when the National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party’s leaders are invited to attend international seminars on human rights because it was during their regimes when hundreds of disappearances took place and one renegade Papa Kishtwari who allegedly played role in the disappearances and killings of scores of men in Pampore area only, held a seat of councillor during the National Conference regime. The Indian civil society, which never gets tired of repeating the state dictum of Kashmir being crown of India are in deep slumber regarding the disappearances of thousands of souls, which is one of the biggest catastrophes of this century.
The police in collaboration with the Army is indulging in fake encounters for the sake of gallantry awards and securing promotions are burying the innocent victims in unmarked graves and declaring them as militants. Various torture centres existed in Kashmir, notorious among them were Hari Niwas and Papa Two, where hundreds of people got killed during inhuman torture and scores got disappeared. The victims have been pressing for turning these places as museums in the name of the thousands of people killed there.
The victims are fed up with the justice system. One victim Masooda Parveen whose husband was killed unjustly by the Army and renegades went on to seek justice even to the Supreme Court, but she returned dumbfounded and angry as the court believed the Army version. Now many victims don’t even file cases because they don’t believe in the justice system of the state.
The women of Kashmir are an epitome of selflessness and sea of sacrifice, who because of conflict came to acquire new roles of bread earners and decision makers. The old patriarch in the family has even assumed the overburdened charge of supporting his son’s progeny and daughter in law. The women are fighting legal battle as well as keeping the pot of family boiling too in their new extended roles. Hajra bano is one such example who lost her four sons to the conflict, but she still regularly attends the monthly sit-ins organized by the APDP at a local park in the heart of Srinagar. Due to the killing of the male earning member of the family, women and children are the worst sufferers as there has been an increase in the labour force of women as well as the child labour plus the school drop out rates. The juvenile delinquency is increasing day by day against which the society is ill-equipped to deal with. Faith healers are being consulted regularly to deal with the psychological problems, the society has failed to come forward to help the families of disappeared souls and they are left to fend for themselves, which escalates their agony and struggle.
The book ends with documentation of different plans, which have been envisioned for the solution of the Kashmir issue and the steps that must be undertaken to curb the inhuman practice of disappearance.
Overall the book is a welcome addition to the literature of human rights violations in Kashmir and what problems baffle the families of victims on various fronts.
Author: Afsana Rashid
Publisher: Pharos Media, New Delhi, India.
Year of Publication: 2011
Pages: 190
Price: Rs 200
ISBN-13: 978-81-7221-048-9
(Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander is writer-activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir, and can be reached at sikandarmushtaq@gmail.com)
Kashmir Mey Khawateen Ki Behurmati (Rape of Kashmiri Women)
Author: Shabnum Qayoom
Publisher: Waqar Publications, Srinagar, Kashmir
Year of Publication: 2010
Price: Rs 300, Pages: 320
Rape as a weapon of war has always been used by the occupational forces to demean, debase and finally destroy the social rubric of the enemy. In case of the secessionist tendency, the defiant population is tried to inculcate spirit of submissiveness and unconditional obedience by using various strategic tactics, and Rape is one of them. In every conflict rape has been used against the womenfolk of the other or enemy, in order to make them understand how weak and vulnerable they are and make a living testimony of their helplessness before the mighty institutions and a constant reminder not to side with the ‘other’ as the punishment awaits them in the form of rape of their womenfolk.
File photo of protest in Kashmir
Women especially in the conservative, traditional, orthodox and Eastern societies are considered to be the repositories of honor; hence to humiliate, deflower, and dishonor them through rape is to humiliate the collective honor, masculinity and strength of the society. Even in the Western countries where the sexual freedom has landed the societies into sexual anarchy, rape is considered as a grave crime, and when its use as a weapon to humiliate an ethnic group, population, a nation or a society is the order of the day, it is considered as a crime against humanity, whose perpetuators must be dealt with a serious punishment.
The present book under review by the seasoned journalist and historian Shabnum Qayoom deals with the Rapes of Kashmiri women by the Indian army since the inception of armed struggle in the early 1990s though no survey has been carried out to determine the exact number of rapes committed. The book was previously published from Pakistan in 1991 and after a span of two decades has again been published with important additions from Srinagar. The reverend author initiates the saga of agonies since the day Jagmohan a fascist and communal minded person was pronounced as the Governor of the Valley. He was the governor when the armed insurgency initiated and National Front coalition was ruling at the centre. Jagmohan first of all drove a wedge between the Pandit minority and Muslim majority of the State by rendering Pandits as refugees, and befooled them that their migration to Jammu was temporary, when the State of affairs would return to normal they would be rehabilitated again in the Valley, but they still are living as refugees in various migrant camps of Jammu. In this book the sinister designs of communal Pandit leaders have been unveiled by a Pandit himself and how the State had vowed to undertake genocide of youth by mass killings and change the demography of the Valley.
Pandits are now realizing their mistake, but now it is too late and they have even burned their boats, as most of them have even disposed off their properties, hence very bleak are their chances of return. RSS, BJP, Shiv Sena and many other Hindutva fascist communal organizations encouraged the exodus of Pandits and genocide of Muslims, and Jagmohan was removed after the massacre at the funeral of Mirwaiz Muhammad Farooq on 21st may, 1990 and replaced by Ex Chief Research and Analysis Wing(RAW) Girish Chander Saxena, who promulgated Disturbed Areas Act(DAA) on 5th July 1990, and in the coming months many more acts like AFSPA,TADA, PSA too were invoked to punish the defiant population.
These Acts gave forces unbridled powers to loot, arson, kill, maim, and rape under the guise of fighting terrorism and secessionism with impunity. Rape was a favorite weapon which these forces used to ‘discipline’ and ‘punish’ the population. This book documents a trail of agony and despair spanning from the initial rapes in the area of Chanapora during a search operation in 1990s to the 2009 Shopian double murder and rape case. Qayoom with his strong documentation and brutally honest analysis lays bare the fact that though India is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Geneva Convention, International Humanitarian Law and scores of other treaties and conventions but in practice Indian State has never bothered even an iota to uphold the strictures of them, while dealing with Kashmir. Amnesty International and Red Cross were denied permission to enter the Valley, in order to keep them in oblivion about the human rights violations taking place in the Valley at the hands of army with impunity and even now they can’t report about them.
Drawing on scores of cases documented in the book, the reader comes to know how girls were kidnapped, then held hostage in army camps and repeatedly raped, when released they would become crippled or mad or opted for suicide. The age, social status and public standing held no bar for soldiers, who even raped girl childern and pregnant women too.
Various tactics were used by the soldiers to rape women, who on the excuse of searching militants or arms would barge into a house and rape women, during crackdowns a whole area would be sealed with men assembled at a community ground and women and girls left behind in the houses would be gang raped, during nocturnal raids women were raped, women were intimidated that if they wouldn’t comply and resist the gang rape their sons and husbands would be killed, revenge rapes were also perpetuated on innocent victims when an army man would be killed in the militant assault the army would rape women by barging into their homes, in some cases the male members of the family were first killed and then the women were raped.
The free license to raid, search any premise gave army an upperhand to rape, who would even resort to loot, robbery, arson and even rape during the search operations. They would render eatables defunct by mixing them with oil, kerosene in order to starve the household. In many cases the victims reported that the soldiers said that they were given the orders of enjoyment and can’t take any second chances as the Kashmiri girls are too beautiful to resist.
Qayoom doesn’t only hold the army responsible for rapes, but even some criminals within the ranks of militants did resort to the same but they were instantly killed, but Qayoom is aghast at the rapes which were committed by the renegades and they are even involved in the supply of girls to high Police officials, bureaucrats, politicians as was depicted by the exposure of 2006 VIP Sex Scandal, in which scores of girls were sexploited by the officials of State under the pretext of providing them government jobs. Qayoom is of the opinion that under a well planned conspiracy the sexploitation of girls is undertaken by the State in order to suppress the Freedom Struggle in Kashmir and the exploited girls are then used as spies by various security and intelligence agencies. Qayoom holds the Gun Culture responsible for the sexploitation and anarchy.
Qayoom lambasts Indian State which never tires of preaching the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi like Ahimsa which has completely failed in Kashmir, he upholds that India is taking a revenge from Kashmiris for upholding the right of self determination which was promised by India to Kashmiris and the crimes of Indian State against Kashmiris have even put Chengiz Khan, Halaku and Hitler to shame, as the State has made the renegades even to supply their household womenfolk to the officials too and even those girls and women are raped who come to meet their incarcerated brothers, husbands, sons or fathers to army camps, torture centers and transit camps. Indian army even raped some foreign tourists as well as Pandit women. The family members if try to save the chastity and honor of their beloved ones are instantly killed and even some girls committed suicides while saving their chastity.
The aftermath of rape is most agonizing for the victim, and most of the victims suffer from depression and psychological trauma and many victims have even committed suicides. According to a survey conducted by Medicans San Frontiers(Doctors Without Borders) an International NGO in 2006 on “Kashmir: Violence and Health”, 11.6 percent of interviewees said they had been victims of sexual violence since 1989. Almost two thirds of the people interviewed (63.9 percent) by MSF had heard about cases of rape during the same period. The study revealed that Kashmiri women were among the worst sufferers of sexual violence in the world. The figure is much higher than that of Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Chechnya and Ingushetia. Many teenage girls are now going for counseling in order to cope the rising psychological impact of the atrocities on women perpetuated by army and police.
The Justice System in Kashmir is in shambles, as Kashmir has become a Police State, where the State tries every tactic to save the culprits of the heinous crimes who happen to be its soldiers. The various acts provide impunity to the army personnel to be tried in civil courts, and even the Police and State machinery is hesitant to file cases against the army as it will affect their morale. Hence not a single soldier has been brought to book and victims are still awaiting Justice which will elude them till eternity, be it the victims of Kunanposhpora or recent Shopian double murder and rape case, plus the police enquiry has never helped the victims who now even don’t bother to report the same.
What will be the effect of illusive Justice System is depicted by the story of one Dilawar Khan reported in the book, who took gun at the age of fifteen and killed scores of army men and renegades to avenge the rape of his sister by the army. The State doesn’t want to resort Peace and normality to Kashmir by establishing a Justice System, hence it will fuel resentment, anger and violence for the days to come.
The book is a saga of a nation which is paying a heavy price for their right of self determination and freedom. “This book is enough to declare India as a Terrorist nation”(P-309-310). Reading this book is destined to make you sad and the tears will trickle more than once from your eyes,
Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander is Writer-Activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir and can be reached atsikandarmushtaq@gmail.com
