Dec 26: Day 1 of my fast, day 671 of our chain.
अंबाला में जिस चर्च में ईसा मसीह की मूर्ति तोड़ी गई गयी वो 173 साल पुराना है। 😔😔 शर्मनाक😔

173 साल से किसी को कोई खतरा महसूस नहीं हुआ। लेकिन 7 साल में पागलों की फौज तैयार कर दी जिन्हें 24 घण्टे हिन्दू खतरे में दिखता है…?

हमारे धर्म और मुल्क का क्या हाल कर दिया…!!! 😔😔

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Dec 27: Day 2 of my fast, day 672 of our chain.

अब मुलाक़ात में वो गर्मजोशी न रही,,

लगते वक़्त गले वो ख़ामोशी न रही,,

मतलबी रिश्तों ने छीन ली इंसानियत,,

आज के दौर में वो मोहब्बत न रही,,

यूँ तो हर दौर में होते है राम
बस आज राम के साथ वनवास पर निकलने वाली सीता न रही,,

आपाधापी की दौड़ तो अब भी ज़ारी हैं
थक कर सो जाए वो माँ की अब गोद न रही,,

भगवानो की रक्षा के लिए
अब हो जाते है क़त्ल यहाँ पर
इंसानियत को बचाने वाली अब वो भगवत्ता नहीं रही,,

बच गई है 5 इंच की खिड़की में झांखती निगाहे
आकाश की तरफ़ उठने वाली अब निगाह न रही। ~✍️ Shashank Sakha

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Dec 28: Day 3 of my fast, day 673 of our chain.

एक बार जरूर पढ़ें यह कहानी

एक बार दो बहुमंजिली इमारतों के बीच बंधी हुई एक तार पर लंबा सा बाँस पकड़े एक नट चल रहा था,
उसने अपने कन्धे पर अपना बेटा
बैठा रखा था।
सैंकड़ों, हज़ारों लोग दम साधे देख
रहे थे।
सधे कदमों से, तेज हवा से जूझते हुए अपनी और अपने बेटे की ज़िंदगी दाँव पर लगा उस कलाकार ने दूरी पूरी कर ली
भीड़ आह्लाद से उछल पड़ी, तालियाँ, सीटियाँ बजने लगी ।
लोग उस कलाकार की फोटो खींच रहे थे, उसके साथ सेल्फी ले रहे थे। उससे हाथ मिला रहे थे
और वो कलाकार माइक पर आया, भीड़ को बोला,
क्या आपको विश्वास है कि मैं यह दोबारा भी कर सकता हूँ l
भीड़ चिल्लाई हाँ हाँ, तुम कर सकते हो।
उसने पूछा, क्या आपको विश्वास है, भीड़ चिल्लाई हाँ पूरा विश्वास है,
हम तो शर्त भी लगा सकते हैं कि तुम सफलतापूर्वक इसे दोहरा भी सकते हो।
कलाकार बोला, पूरा पूरा विश्वास है ना l
भीड़ बोली, हाँ l
कलाकार बोला, ठीक है, कोई मुझे अपना बच्चा दे दे, मैं उसे अपने कंधे पर बैठा कर रस्सी पर चलूँगा।
खामोशी, शांति, चुप्पी फैल गयी l
कलाकार बोला, डर गए, अभी तो आपको विश्वास था कि मैं कर सकता हूँ।
इसी तरह दंगे करवाने वाले कभी अपने बच्चों को दंगो में नही भेजते,,
आपको उकसाते है, आपके बच्चों को मरने भेजते हैं।
सोचिए, उनके जोशीले नारो में आकर मरने मत जाइए।
जियो और जीने दो ।।

🙏💐🌹🙏🌹💐🙏

कश्मीरा शाह चतुर्वेदी

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Dec 29: Day 4 of my fast, day 674 of our chain.

🙏🙏🙏
गधे ने बाघ से कहा, ‘घास नीली है।’ बाघ ने कहा, ‘घास हरी है।’
फिर दोनों के बीच चर्चा तेज हो गई। दोनों ही अपने-अपने शब्दों में दृढ़ हैं। इस विवाद को समाप्त करने के लिए, दोनों जंगल के राजा शेर के पास गए।

पशु साम्राज्य के बीच में, सिंहासन पर बैठा एक शेर था। बाघ के कुछ कहने से पहले ही गधा चिल्लाने लगा। “महाराज, घास नीला है ना?” शेर ने कहा, ‘हाँ! घास नीली है। ‘

गधा, ‘ये बाघ नहीं मान रहा। उसे ठीक से सजा दी जाए। ‘राजा ने घोषणा की,’ बाघ को एक साल की जेल होगी। राजा का फैसला गधे ने सुना और वह पूरे जंगल में खुशी से झूम रहा था। बाघ को एक साल की जेल की सजा सुनाई गई। ‘

बाघ शेर के पास गया और पूछा, ‘क्यों महाराज! घास हरी है, क्या यह सही नहीं है? ‘शेर ने कहा,’ हाँ! घास हरी है। ‘बाघ ने कहा,’ … तो मुझे जेल की सजा क्यों दी गई है? ‘

सिंह ने कहा, “आपको घास नीले या हरे रंग के लिए सजा नहीं मिली। आपको उस मूर्ख गधे के साथ बहस करने के लिए दंडित किया गया है। आप जैसे बहादुर और बुद्धिमान जीव ने गधे से बहस की और निर्णय लेने के लिए मेरे पास आये।”

कहानी का सार …. ….
2022 में अपना वोट सर्वश्रेष्ठ उम्मीदवार को दें …. बस गधों से बहस न करें अन्यथा आपको अगले 5 साल तक की सजा हो जाएगी।

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Dec 30: TBA

Dec 20, 2021:

Today, day 1 of his fast, day 665 of our chain, Christian Frankenberg posts:

Day 1 of my fast, day 665 of our chain.

A reminder for those who don’t understand what the purpose of this chain is:

https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/11/28/modi-india-democracy-hindu-nationalism-ethnic-jaffrelot-review/

“With some notable exceptions, books about Modi and his government have tended toward hagiography. Jaffrelot, a noted scholar of contemporary Indian politics, departs from these accounts. In the process, he argues that unless current trends are checked, India may become an ethnic democracy—a majoritarian state with scant regard for the rights of religious minorities, especially Muslims.”

The book discussed in Foreign Policy:
Modi’s India: Hindu Nationalism and the Rise of Ethnic Democracy, Christophe Jaffrelot, Princeton University Press, August 2021.

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Dec 18: Day 1 of my fast, day 663 of our chain.

Read an interesting post today referring to the 1971 battle and saying that the names of the army officers clearly showed how inclusive we have, as Indians, been of all communities and all faiths.
As the daughter of an army officer (long gone) one never really registered names as descriptors of religion … as far as a child (which I was then) could see, the army was a large collective family. And the sense prevailed, as I grew up, through all the annual army reunions I attended with my mother.

Inclusivity is, I believe, an article of faith we hold as Indians. It makes us, uniquely, who we are. And to this we shall return, come what may.

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Dec 17: Day 1 of my fast, day 662 of our chain.

We have won our first victory with the farm laws being repealed

We’ve learned a huge lesson from our indomitable farmers

We need to be very strong and very determined to make an impact

Here’s hoping for a more just , equitable and sensitive society.

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Dec 16: Day 1 of my fast, day 661 of our chain.

I’m fasting to protest the rampant spread of Hindu-Muslim hatred (using distorted and false explanation of Aurangzeb and Shivaji) to ordinary gullible citizens and entice people to forget about utter mismanagement of the burning issues of unemployment, inflation, deterioration of healthcare, education,……

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Dec 6: Day 1 of my fast, day 651 of our chain.

Today, Dec 6, marks 29 years since the farcical demolition of the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya, by mobs led by key RSS/BJP/VHP leaders. It was the day we lost the aspirations of a progressive, secular nation to political jingoism, hate and violence.

Of course, we can only reap what we sow. Nobel economist Abhijit Banerjee had the following words for the Indian economy today: “The stories you hear about, you know, all the aspirations that have been a little bit dashed are very real. Small aspirations which became smaller now. I think we are in a moment of great pain. The economy is still well below what it was in 2019. We don’t know how much below, but it is substantially below.”
https://asiatimes.com/2021/12/indians-are-in-extreme-pain-says-nobel-laureate/

In other news today, a Mumbai bench of the insolvency court initiated a resolution process against Reliance Capital Ltd (RCL), the financial services holding company promoted by the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group, under the bankruptcy law. The same guy, whose zero-experience Reliance Defence Limited was personally chosen by Modi over oour top-class state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to enter into a contract with Dassault Aviation for the procurement of Rafale aircraft. https://www.vccircle.com/muthoot-microfin-raises-50-mn-from-pe-firm-greater-pacific-capital

And speaking of defence, mum is the word. Our rulers seem too busy with internal communal aggressions and the unrestrained use of force against religious and ethnic minorities, almost as if this were our new national policy. Underlining this, 13 civilians were killed today in Nagaland by Indian Security forces in a botched ambush, deepening the destructive spiral of fear, hate and retribution within the country. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-59531445

Have we seen enough destruction yet to whet our collective national appetite for revenge? Or have we degenerated as a society to rabid animals who will stop at nothing in our all-consuming madness?

If we don’t find a way to change course, time and pain will make us…

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Dec 7: Day 2 of my fast, day 652 of our chain.

I wish for everyone to be born to parents who are capable of loving without restraint, nurturing without expectations, who (to quote a popular African proverb) provide strong roots to their growing children, and strong wings to fly away on when they are grown.

I wish for everyone to have neighbors who make them feel safe and cherished through friendship and an extended sense of familiar connectedness.

I wish for every youngster to have teachers who can enrich and empower young and growing minds by tapping into their own unique strengths and talents, who equip the young to navigate the vagaries of life with the calm confidence that stems from being able to distinguish what truly matters from momentary distractions.

I wish for experts who can express their ideas humbly, honestly and clearly, without pressure to embellish their truth, and without fear of offending angry mobs or irate bearers of power.

I wish for public servants who know their job is to serve, and not to rule. Who educate themselves constantly to deal satisfactorily with complexities of their times. Who are competent enough to serve without resorting to tyranny.

I wish for a society made up of individuals who try to make the most of this brief adventure we call life, while making sure their actions do not obstruct others’ right to do the same.

I wish for a world that pauses every now and then to appreciate the profoundness of nature and the bounty of our Earth, and that we are all here to love and understand her, not fight and destroy her.

I wish for us to recognize that even though most of the above may not have been true for us, we still have it in us to forgive those who fell short. And to strive to find within us the fount that lets us do better for those that follow us. Because the magical act of giving makes a rich person out of one who received nothing.

I wish for us to learn to forgive, so that we can unchain ourselves from our oppressors, see them for the hapless, needy souls they really are, and embark on a wholesome journey of healing and growth.

I wish for all of us, the oppressed and the oppressors alike, the strength and courage to forgive, love, forgive, trust, forgive, and grow together – in spite of the madness and chaos that makes us want not to. Because that is probably the most and only effective counter to all the madness and chaos that surrounds us. That, to me, would be the ultimate resistance to the tyranny of evil.

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Dec 8: Day 3 of my fast, day 653 of our chain.

The last few decades have been a time to stay alert and take due note of vested interests subverting our civic system, especially the religious subversion that took an unprecedented scale since the BJP came to power in 1980.

The last 7 years since Modi came to power have been a time to take notice and speak out, not only for ourselves but also for the multitudes rendered voiceless by the BJP’s evil machinations: Muslims, the poor, oppressed castes, Christians, members of the opposition, dissidents, scholars – the list is long.

Now, however, may be the time not only to speak out in wanton rage, but to smarten up to see through their tricks, call them out where it hurts, and expose their culpability. Because there is no doubt about their culpability anymore.

My thoughts today were partly provoked by the death of Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff of the Indian Armed Forces, today. How does one react to tragedy befalling a person who has wilfully steered India on a tragic course? Things happening in India today tear at one’s soul, rip apart one’s sense of balance, leave one gasping for some semblance of normalcy.

Bipin Rawat said as recently as November this year that it was “a very positive sign” that Kashmiris were offering to “lynch terrorists themselves,” while offering to “make arrangements that they get lynched.” Ajit Doval, while addressing IPS probationers at a graduation parade of the Police Academy in Hyderabad on November 11, reportedly said that “the new frontier of war was civil society”, equating it with “fourth generation warfare” (Sources: https://thewire.in/government/constitutional-rights-ajit-doval-bipin-rawat-arun-mishra, https://scroll.in/article/1010798/bipin-rawats-comments-about-lynching-terrorists-in-kashmir-go-against-the-rule-of-law, https://theprint.in/india/civil-society-is-new-frontier-of-war-can-be-subverted-to-harm-nation-ajit-doval-says/765748/).

Can we come through this unofficial war on us as Indians by those who rule us without getting smart, sober and serious about what we’re really up against? Can we afford to be good people with bad thinking anymore?

I don’t think smart resistance can be powered by the raw emotional power of anger and indignation alone. We need to study our adversary without becoming their disciples. Respect their arguments without compromising on ours. Understand them well enough to call out their tricks without falling prey to those tricks. Be grounded enough to lead by example even when we hold no power and they do. And dedicated enough to not give up on the darkest days.

A few parallels spring to my mind:

• We cannot give up on the connections provided by social media like Facebook just because Zuckerberg made mistakes – we are each stakeholders who have it in us to affect meaningful change in the way such media function.
• We cannot give up on life saving medications and vaccines, just because big pharma is infiltrated by the corrupt. We need to install oversight procedures to weed out the corrupt effectively without destroying the collective legacy of thousands of dedicated doctors and scientists.
• We cannot lose hope in the idea of India, just because it is going through the growing pains almost every advanced nation has been prey to. We are – relatively speaking – a young, newly independent, newly self-reliant nation that makes up 18% of the world’s population, and that 18% of humanity has to pass through the convulsions of adolescence before it reaches maturity! But we are also an ancient syncretic civilization that knows better than to allow greed and selfishness to destroy our basic human decency.

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Dec 9: Day 4 of my fast, day 654 of our chain.

It is so heartening to see this picture of Sudha Bharadwaj finally out of jail, and reunited with her daughter. I was – naively – hoping she’d receive an apology for baselessly having been kept imprisoned for three years, but instead had to find the following terms of her release:

1. She shall reside within the jurisdiction of the Mumbai court and shall not leave without the court’s permission.
2. She shall inform the court and the NIA immediately about her place of residence within Mumbai and her contact numbers. Bhardwaj would also have to give the contact numbers of her relatives residing with her.
3. She shall submit a list of at least three blood relatives with their detailed residential and work addresses, with documentary proof.
4. She must inform the NIA and the court if there is any change of her residential address while she is on bail.
5. She has been directed to submit copies of at least two identity proofs —passport, Aadhar card, PAN card, ration card, electricity bill, voter identity card.
6. After these documents are submitted, the NIA shall conduct physical or virtual verification of her residential address and place a report before the court.
7. She shall attend the proceedings of trial and shall see that the trial is not protracted due to her absence.
8. She shall report to the nearest police station through WhatsApp video call fortnightly.
9. She shall not make any statement regarding the proceedings pending before the court before any form of media — print, electronic or social.
10. She shall not indulge in any activity similar to the activities on the basis of which the present FIR was registered against her for offences under the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
11. She shall not try to establish communication with co-accused or any other person involved directly or indirectly in similar activities or make any international call to any person indulging in similar activities.
12. She shall not undertake any action which is prejudicial to the proceedings pending before the court.
13. She shall not personally, or through anyone, make any attempt to influence prosecution witnesses or tamper with the evidence.
14. There shall not be any gathering of visitors, other than near relatives, where the accused shall reside within the jurisdiction of the court.
15. She shall surrender her passport and not misuse the liberty.

(Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/sudha-bhardwaj-mumbai-byculla-jail-bail-conditions-7663810/)

Isn’t this New India a truly dystopian upside down world? With the best qualified humanitarian workers treated so shabbily, while true criminals roam free and enjoy perks of power.

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Dec 10: Day 5 of my fast, day 655 of our chain.

I started my fast this time with the Oting massacre in Nagaland, and I’ll end with it. The BJP’s own ally in Nagaland has has to call out Amit Shah for twisting the facts, making up a story about villagers straying into (an actually nonexistent) security checkpoint. He claimed they were fleeing from security forces, when actually there are bullet marks on the windshield of the vehicle that brought them (innocent mine workers) home. (Source: https://scroll.in/latest/1012489/nagaland-killings-amit-shah-twisted-facts-civilians-were-not-trying-to-flee-says-bjp-ally?fbclid=IwAR3EEPG6qnjnaCgE74Pp95HDKmf61DhP7elehGU7QAv2H_nARGEPsFcgHmg)

Did anyone expect a different outcome from allowing a certified killer to be our home minister? When killers are rulers, good people protecting others go to jail and innocent people die like cannon fodder.

How much longer before we stop expecting these serial killers to be our saviors?

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