Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Chhattisgarh. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Chhattisgarh. Sort by date Show all posts

Monday, April 08, 2013

Chhattisgarh Agri Minister Laps Up 'A Fake Honour'

Chhattisgarh’s Agriculture and Labour Minister Chandrashekhar Sahu is on cloud nine. On Monday, he is flying all the way from Raipur to Bangalore to receive an honorary doctorate. 

Little does he know that the credentials of the “university,” which is giving him doctorate, are under a cloud of suspicion.

The Public Relations Department of the Government of Chhattisgarh has announced on its website that New International Christian University will confer “Doctor of Social Works” on Sahu.

The press note reads: “Chandrashekhar Sahu has been chosen for his serious and multi-dimensional works for the prosperity and development of farmers of Chhattisgarh, his foresightedness, leadership qualities and his long services in the social and public sphere.”

However, the Hampinagar-based university in the City which will give the honour has made it clear that the doctorate will not be given by it but by the Academy of Universal Global Peace (AUGP).

Dr R K Samuel, director of the “university,” clarifies: “The New International Christian University is only facilitating the felicitation while the honorary doctorate will be given by the AUGP.” 

From here, it gets only murkier. Samuel admits that neither his university nor the AUGP is affiliated to the University Grants Commission (UGC) or any Indian academic institution.

The university claims affiliations with the United Nations Global Compact, United Nations Academic Impact, European Commission, Power Ministries International and World Peace Organisation. Even these claims were not found to be true.

The university director insists his institution’s affiliation with the AUGP, headquartered in America.

Asked where in the US the headquarters is, he says it has now been shifted to Chennai. “The International Chairman of the AUGP, Dr Madhu Krishan, travels globally. Earlier he had spent some years in America but now he is settled in Chennai, so the headquarters is in Chennai now,” says Dr Samuel. 

But Champu Bhaiya, as Chandrashekhar Sahu is popularly known in Chhattisgarh, is elated and says he has already sent a team of four IAS and IPS officers from the state who have camped in Bangalore to verify the authenticity of the university. He says he had earlier roped in the government machinery to substantiate the claims made by the organisation, who gave a clean chit to it.

“Our investigation showed that International Christian University is a very old institution. Earlier it was restricted only to missionary activities but now they are devoted to social work. When the university sought my consent for the honorary degree, I verified its background and after I was satisfied, I gave my nod,” says Sahu.

He was reminded that the organisation which has chosen him for the honorary doctorate is not International Christian University, a private university based out of Japan, but ‘The New International Christian University’. Yet Sahu’s faith is unshakable. Curtly he replies: “Both are same.”

He might have missed the point that it is not the International Christian University or the New International Christian University but the Academy of Universal Global Peace (AUGP) that is giving him the doctorate.

Thursday, December 05, 2013

BJP Win In Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh; AAP Sweep Delhi, 30,000 Crore ‘Satta’ On 2013 Elections

By Sunaina Shah | INN Live

Exit polls have given BJP a big reason to smile after the assembly elections 2013 in five states. According to the exit polls, the BJP will sweep in the four of the five states—Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi—Congress may retain power in Mizoram.

Congress is projected to lose Delhi and Rajasthan while the BJP will continue to rule Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

In Rajasthan, with the halfway mark for the state assembly at 100 to form the government, the average of various exit polls show the BJP winning 138 seats and the Congress just 44. Some, however, show the BJP tally stopping at 110.

Monday, May 23, 2016

Exclusive: Sexual Violence Routinely Used As A Weapon In Conflict Zones Across South Asia

By MENAKA RAO | INNLIVE

In Kashmir and Balochistan, Chhattisgarh and Nepal, sexual violence is used with impunity to subjugate women, say researchers.

There is an exponential increase in the incidence of sexual violence – which is often used as a tool of punishment, for revenge and to teach other communities a lesson – in areas of conflict in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. These are the findings of a three-year long project exploring sexual violence and impunity in South Asia, which were discussed during a conference in New Delhi on Saturday.

Friday, April 03, 2015

If You're A Tribal, Maoist Sympathizer You'll Land In Jail

Chhattisgarh police, hogging limelight for controversial surrenders of alleged lower-rung Maoist cadre, have been keeping tribals behind bars framing them under the Arms Act and IPC Section 307 (attempt to murder). 

Their crime: carrying bada bartan (a big cooking utensil), umbrella, traditional bow and arrow, kitchen knife.. Some of these tribals have spent several years in jail, though their names never figured in the chargesheets or the witnesses never identified them as accused.

Friday, October 11, 2013

Why Kar'taka Idol Theft Is Impacting Chhat'garh Politics?

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

What does a case of idol theft in Karnataka, the main culprit of which was nabbed in Odisha, have to do with the politics of Chhattisgarh? The connection might look tenuous, but it is causing a ripple in Chhattisgarh as it heads for polls in a month’s time. 

The Jains, a numerically small but electorally influential community, are up in arms against the BJP-led state government for being apathetic to their demand for the recovery of the idols.

Monday, May 06, 2013

AN OPEN LETTER ON UNDERTRAILS OF INDIA

To, The Government of India, Members of the Judiciary, and All Citizens, 
    
One of the most disastrous consequences of the strife in the tribal areas of central India is that thousands of adivasi men and women remain imprisoned as under-trials, often many years after being arrested, accused of ‘Naxalite/ Maoist’ offences. 
    
The facts speak for themselves. 
    
In Chhattisgarh, over two thousand adivasis are currently in jail, charged with ‘Naxalite/ Maoist’ offences. Many have been imprisoned for over two years without trial.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

'Rape Cases We Forgot': Chhattisgarh's Prisoner Of Conscience

As the outrage over the brutal gangrape and subsequent death of the 23-year-old medical student has galvanised a nation with questionable gender parity, it is difficult to place the story of Soni Sori, the young tribal teacher from Chhattisgarh, in the ongoing introspection and legislation against sexual violence. 

If there is a growing national consensus against sexual violence, there is also the same consensus among most of the urban agitators at India Gate and other cities to rid the nation of the Naxal problem. And when the police and security forces, assigned the task of eliminating the Maoists from India's forests and hinterlands, adopt sexual violence as one of their tools, the discourse over rape and gender justice is muddled.

Sori, in police custody since October 2011 at the Raipur Central Jail, was arrested on charges of being a courier between Maoists and the Essar group. In custody, Sori was not only allegedly raped at the Dantewada police station, but tortured too with stones inserted into her private parts. Her health since the assault has been deteriorating and activists fear she may lose her life before her plea for bail is addressed by the courts. In her many letters, Soni has been complaining of bad health and being denied sustenance. "Giving electric shocks, stripping me naked, shoving stones inside me - is this going to solve the Naxal problem," she once asked in a letter to the Supreme Court.

Activists insist Sori was jailed for questioning human rights violations by police and security forces in the state. "Chhattisgarh has an unwritten set of rules about how an adivasi should behave. You don't organise, you don't agitate, you don't protest against human rights violations, you don't protest against the state, and you certainly don't protest against industrial houses that are in Bastar to usher in the industrial revolution," Himanshu Kumar, member of the Chhattisgarh chapter of the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), said. Sori has also been termed as a prisoner of conscience by the Amnesty International in 2012.

Kavita Krishnan, Secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association, slammed the recent National Commission for Women member Shamina Shafiq's visit to Soni Sori in a Raipur jail. The NCW member, after the meeting, said Sori is doing fine and that she only needs psychological counselling. Calling the statement 'outrageous', Krishnan demanded the immediate release of Sori since 'she continues to be in the captivity of her rapists'. The crucial hearing of her case in the Supreme Court, scheduled for Thursday, was deferred until Tuesday without citing any reason.

Meanwhile, a section of the anti-rape protesters in Delhi has included Sori's story in India's fight against sexual violence. On Wednesday, members of the All India Students' Association (AISA), along with several intellectuals and political leaders including Aam Aadmi Party's Prashant Bhushan and social activist Swami Agnivesh, staged a silent march, demanding Sori's release. "She has been repeatedly subjected to the most barbaric and repulsive sexual abuse in police custody - two separate medical reports has shown evidence of stones being shoved into her private parts. And yet, despite repeated protests, no action has been taken till now," a statement issued by AISA said.

The Delhi protesters also demanded punishment for Superintendent of Police Ankit Garg who allegedly ordered the sexual torture of Sori. Garg was awarded the president's medal in 2012 for professional excellence. In the continuing tragedy of Chhattisgarh, one of the worst hit by Maoist insurgency, Sori, despite the sexual violence and torture, remains just one amongst its many dramatis personae.

Tuesday, December 02, 2014

Chhattisgarh Naxal Attack: Did CRPF Walk Into A Trap?

Yet another Maoist attack on security forces in the Sukma district of Chhattisgarh underlines the glaring truth that security forces are waging a battle already lost in the Maoist heartland, where the latter repeatedly emphasize their supremacy by killing jawans in big numbers.

In the latest ambush in the forest of Elamgunda in the Chintagufa area in Sukma district (South Bastar), more than 400 kms from the state capital Raipur, as many as 14 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, including two key officials - deputy commandant DC Verma and assistant commandant Rajeev Kapuria – have been killed. How many more jawans will have to die before the government realises that its efforts don’t measure up to the challenge posed by the Maoists?

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

When 'Telangana' Separated With Andhra Pradesh State?

By M H Ahssan | INNLIVE

ANALYSIS Fifty-eight years after the unification of Telangana and Andhra region, the Lok Sabha separated them by dividing the state of Andhra Pradesh. After blacking out the live coverage of the Telangana debate on Lok Sabha TV, the Hower House voted for Telangana state in a controversial voice vote. Interestingly, both Congress and BJP joined hands to divide Andhra Pradesh. Only the TMC and JDU staged a walkout calling it a murder of democracy.

According to experts the Congress which is staring at a rout in most parts of the country is likely to win big in Telangana which has 17 Lok Sabha and 119 Assembly seats. The Congress is expected to be decimated in Seemandhra region.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

NAXAL 'SRINIVAS', KINGPIN OF CHHATTISGARH ATTACK?

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

He’s never once mentioned them, even in passing, in all the interviews he’s given: the brother called Parshuraman, who was killed in a firefight with the Andhra Pradesh police back in 1994; the sister called Kanukamma, whose body was torn apart by bullets while fighting by his side.

He never once mentioned the son born that year, who went to school in Sukma wondering if one the things he’d learn that day was that his father and mother were dead. He’s spoken only of ‘The Cause’, the man who ordered the massacre of 29 in Chhattisgarh last week.

“The language of war is killing”, said 9/11 perpetrator Khalid Sheikh Muhammad. Ravula Srinivas, secretary of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) Dandakaranya Special Zonal Committee, has long known this. His story tells us what happens when people cease to matter and only a cause remains.

Sunday, June 09, 2013

Exclusive: 'Walking With The Reds In Chhattisgarh Forests'

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

Days after the attack on the Congress convoy in Chhattisgarh that killed senior party leaders, the Maoists were already planning their next strike. Here is the story from inside aMaoist camp, 100 km from Raipur, where an area commander talks of ahitlist and rings alarm bells louder than ever.

Deep Inside the forests, at the Maoist camps in Gariaband about 100km from Chhattisgarh’s capital Raipur, there were celebrations over the successful attack on Congress leaders. This was after May 25. The party cadres, some them new recruits, shouted ‘ Long Live Mao!’ in full- throated unison. The excitement was palpable.

But the fight against the ‘ enemy’ was far from over. Plans were already being made for future strikes. Surrounded by the forest and secured his cadres, commander of the zonal committee Jaani Salaam was thinking ahead on the execution of the plans and a hit list.

Monday, September 07, 2015

Chhattisgarh's Experiment With Modi's 'Cash Transfers' For 'Food Rations' Has Been Turned Aa A Sheer Disaster!

By MITHILESH MISHRA | INNLIVE

During a pilot project in direct benefits transfers, a fifth of the beneficiary households never received any money, and among those who did 70% got it after much delay.

Chhattisgarh has been lauded for the reforms initiated in 2004 in the public distribution system to ensure that subsidised foodgrains meant for the poor actually reached them. Over the last decade, the state’s network of food ration shops expanded to reach 85% of the population. It became the first state to implement a food security law in 2012 and was highlighted in numerous studies as a model state for the public distribution system.

Monday, May 27, 2013

WHY SONIA GANDHI'S FUMES OVER THE CHT'GARH ATTACK?

By Mithilesh Misra / Raipur

“There is no balance on my cell connection and I don’t have any money. Can you please call me back?” This was Gudsa Usendi, Maoist spokesperson of the Dandakaranya Special Zone Committee, calling my office, apparently from somewhere in Chhattisgarh. It sounded amusing that this man representing the biggest internal security threat to the country, presumably flush with funds from extortion and other criminal activities, should be short of cash to top up his Sim card.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

DEVJI CHETAN, MASTERMIND OF CHHATTISGARH AMBUSH?

By Ramesh Reddy / Hyderabad

According to informed sources, the central military commission naxalites leader Devji chetan is the man behind the Chhattisgarh ambush. The CPI Maoist militia network, the backbone of the Naxalites, as well as their intelligence wing played a crucial role in the Darbha Valley ambush in Sukuma district of Chhattisgarh in which 28 politicians, including Salwa Judum founder Mahendra Karma, Chhattisgarh PCC president Nandkumar Patel and his son Dinesh were killed.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

'Chhattisgarh Mandate Makes A Clear Message For India'

By Mithilesh Mishra | Raipur

Chhattisgarh's turnout, in the shadow of the Maoist threat, has a heartening message for India. As Chhattisgarh wound up the first phase of polling, across 18 constituencies of Bastar and Rajnandgaon, the affirmation rang loud and clear: even in a Maoist-created climate of intimidation, most people deeply value their vote. 

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Raman Eyes Third Term, Cong Plans Surge Despite Naxals

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

It’s again a two horse race too close to call in Chhattisgarh as the ruling BJP and Congress seem to be heading for a nail biting contest in the mid-November 2013 assembly polls. 
    
As 90 assembly constituencies vote on November 11 and 19, BJP is trying to ward off anti-incumbency to score a third straight win under CM Raman Singh. Initially, the Congress got bogged down with infighting but it has now put its house in order and gearing up to fight BJP. 
    
Since Chhattisgarh was formed in November 2000, there has been a shift in election dynamics of the region — a Congress stronghold till it was part of MP. A new trend of razor-sharp contests emerged in the state’s maiden 2003 poll. Electoral fights became closer in 2008. 

Monday, May 20, 2013

AJIT JOGI DEMANDS RESURGENT CONGRESS IN CHATT'GARH

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

Once struggling to find someone among its legislators who could be chief minister, the Congress is suddenly caught in the problem of plenty in Chhattisgarh. Preparing for a hard battle to wrest the state from the BJP in the assembly elections scheduled for later this year, this is not a happy situation for the party. To make matters more complicated, there’s Ajit Jogi.

Chhattisgarh—eastern Madhya Pradesh till it was carved into a new state—had been the traditional power base of the Congress for long. Not long ago, the BJP was considered an usurper here.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

SALWA JUDUM'S CRIME LIST: 99 RAPES, NOT A SINGLE 'FIR'

By Pallavi Polanki (Guest Writer)

When the Supreme Court in 2011 banned the Salwa Judum, a state-sponsored tribal militia propped up to counter Maoists in Chhattisgarh, it ordered the state government to investigate and register FIRs against all alleged criminal activities of the Salwa Judum.

In addition to allegations of murder (500 cases) and arson (103 cases), 99 affidavits were submitted to the Supreme Court accusing the tribal militia of rape.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Maoists Appear Divided Over Tactics During Elections 2014

By Chandan Rai (Guest Writer)

The outlawed CPI (Maoist) appears, which has given a call for boycotting the 16 th Lok Sabha polls, appear to be divided regarding their tactics vis-à-vis the largest democratic exercise worldwide.

If the recent activities of the banned Left Wing Extremist outfit CPI (Maoist) are any indications, they seem to be split over their modus operandi during the 16th Lok Sabha elections. While they have given a poll boycott call in a number of their pocket areas in Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh, the Red rebels have decided to urge the people to opt for the NOTA (none of the above) option in various areas.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Will BJP-Cong War In Chhattisgarh Run Into A Cliffhanger?

By Mithilesh Mishra / Raipur

The state Congress top brass may have been wiped out in a daring Maoist attack in May but that gives no reason for Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh to take it easy as a survey has shown that Singh and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party are in for a tough contest in the November Assembly elections. 

The BJP is likely to get 46 seats while opposition Congress is just behind with 42 seats, according to a survey conducted by Samay-Hub Pulse. This math is minus four for the BJP as it had won 50 seats in 2008.