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To Free or Not to Free?

By DU Beat February 3, 2025

A distortion of democracy? A betrayal of a social contract? A passive receipt of benefits or an active political participation towards a welfare state?

The language of democratic exercise often employs, not merely as its endorsers but also its practitioners, various sweet shop owners who incentivize capital-based campaigning. The Delhi state elections are a display of such a state of war, which has as its highlights, the various monetary biddings made over very selective and political demographics.

It is not unknown that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), in its manifesto, has promised a sum of INR 2100 to women under the aegis of the ‘Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojna’. The certainty of this scheme is contingent on the party securing a majority. However, a serious delirium of such schemes is the incompetent and biased nature of such claims. While it is true that a welfare state works for its marginalized citizens, the composition of Delhi and its voters demands serious scrutiny. The marginalized of the capital are an extremely heterogeneous group, and certainly, when a distinction is made in the category of women by the state, the exclusion of migrant and transgender women disallows any serious engagement towards actual welfare.

Nitara, a transgender woman and a student of Delhi University told DU Beat:

There are about four to five thousand registered trans voters in Delhi, the official number of which I believe to be much higher. Women are promised INR 2100 in monetary assistance by AAP, following which the Congress and BJP have promised INR 2500. While it’s good they do it, why don’t trans women get similar aid? Don’t we deserve it? In fact, a trans woman is more vulnerable than a cis woman is. This is the bare minimum we can be provided with. We are not promised incentives because our numbers are low. Nobody wins elections with 2-3 thousand votes. Delhi Vidhan Sabha elections tell you that you’ll only be cared for if you are a big vote bank, else nobody is with you.”

Nitara’s statement underscores the transactional nature of electoral promises where welfare is not a matter of rights but of electoral arithmetic. The exclusion of transgender women from such schemes reveals the shallow inclusivity of political manifestos, which are tailored to appease large vote banks rather than address the systemic vulnerabilities of marginalized communities. This is not merely an oversight but a deliberate strategy to prioritize electoral gains over equitable welfare. The Delhi elections, in this regard, are a microcosm of a larger national trend where democracy is reduced to a marketplace of freebies, and voters are treated as consumers rather than citizens.

With the imposition of the Model Code of Conduct, a partial hiatus has been put to the mockery of democracy and development. However, desperate attempts to milk out this inconsistent idea have not stopped. AAP, for instance, has included a ‘Pujari-Granthi Samman Yojana’ for temple and gurudwara priests. Arvind Kejriwal, the National Convener of AAP explained the scheme in a Economic Times report,

Pujaris and granthis are an important part of our society, but they are often a neglected section. For the first time in the country, we are introducing a scheme to support them, under which they will receive a monthly allowance of INR 18,000.”

This circles back to questioning the intentionality of such a culture of voting. Lest it be taken as a pitting of one religion against the other, it is a certain fact that other religious minorities such as the Muslims and Christians undergo neglect and invisibility at much deeper scales but any affirming reality escapes them during election season. The culture of freebies, while seemingly beneficial on the surface, is a hollowing democratic practice that undermines the very essence of governance. Political parties, in their bid to outdo each other, have turned welfare into a competitive sport where the highest bidder wins. For instance, in the 2021 Tamil Nadu elections, the DMK and AIADMK engaged in a bidding war, promising everything from free laptops to cash transfers, with little regard for the fiscal sustainability of such schemes. Moreover, the freebie culture perpetuates a dependency syndrome among voters, where electoral choices are driven by immediate monetary gains rather than informed deliberation on policies and governance. This undermines the democratic ideal of an engaged and informed citizenry, reducing elections to a transactional exchange of votes for cash or goods.

The critique of freebie culture is not a dismissal of welfare schemes but a call for their rationalization and equitable implementation. Welfare measures must be designed to address structural inequalities and empower marginalized communities, rather than serve as tools for electoral manipulation. For instance, schemes like the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) have been lauded for their focus on creating sustainable livelihoods rather than doling out cash handouts. While the hollowing of democratic ideals is saddening, it is not very different from what we as participants are used to believing as development at all times. This makes one question if a democratic ideal is but a sweet shop economy?

Featured Image Credit: Sourav Rai for Indian Express

Bhavana Bhaskar

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Campus Central

DU Vice Chancellor faces heavy backlash following his endorsement of ‘Modi vs Khan Market Gang’

By DU Beat January 19, 2025

Delhi University Vice Chancellor, Yogesh Singh, faced heavy criticism from faculty members on 16 January, 2025, Thursday, after he endorsed Ashok Srivastava’s ‘Modi vs Khan Market Gang.’

On 16 January, 2025, Delhi University Vice Chancellor, Yogesh Singh, appeared to endorse the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the Delhi election scheduled for February. The endorsement came at a book launch held at the Convention Hall of the Vice Chancellor’s office, organised by the Council of Media and Public Policy and Research along with the Silence Foundation in collaboration with Delhi University. The book titled ‘Modi vs Khan Market Gang’ has been authored by Ashok Shrivastava, a news anchor for the state-sponsored public broadcaster, DD News.

Khan Market Gang was notably a strategic attempt to take digs at the opposition in the lead-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It was in response to the opposition parading “Chowkidar Chor hai” at the incumbency at the time. Khan Market, a double-storey complex amidst bungalows that pay host to lawmakers and civil servants, is often considered the most expensive retail area in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who doesn’t shy away from letting people know about his humble beginnings, uses this as a political binary against the elites of the Indian socio-political system.

The main objective of the book, according to Srivastava, was to make people in academia aware of the fake narratives that have been thrown around during the incumbent’s tenure. As has been a recurring theme of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) attempts to deal with critics, Prime Minister Narendra Modi once again was talked about synonymously with India at the event. Those who weren’t uncritical of the government, both the journalists and notably institutes abroad, were called out and mocked subsequently.

Sweden, smaller than most Indian states, decided to establish V-Dem several years ago and deemed India undemocratic ahead of both the 2019 and the 2024 elections. A nation as small as that critiquing us makes sense when you look at the people funding it,”

said Yogesh Singh whilst talking about the various anecdotes Srivastava had used in his book to prove how the “Khan Market Gang” transcends borders and nationalities.

Singh didn’t shy away from his allegiances at a time when the model of conduct was placed in the state. He suggested that the Indians enjoy unprecedented freedom and that the global rankings and indexes are all part of a broader narrative against the prime minister and thus India. India curiously ranks 159 out of 189 countries in the latest edition of the Press Freedom Index. His statement comes at a time when central universities have never been more politicised. The changes brought forth by the National Education Policy (NEP), in the curriculums and the regular seminars and events in colleges that align with the ideological tilts of the government, reflect a growing trend of educational spaces turning into arenas for parroting the broader narrative set forth by the ruling party and a slow departure from the intelligentsia.

The event was attended by the members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad, the youth wing of the BJP, who have themselves been in hot water following the incident where they were seen assaulting students in Ramjas College. Several high-profile BJP leaders were also present at the event where Yogesh Singh was described as the “Chief Organiser” by Ashok Srivastava.

Several Delhi University faculty members condemned the book launch at a time when the model of conduct was in force in Delhi.

Abha Dev Habib, an assistant professor at Miranda House, deemed the event “a political misuse of a publicly funded university” in a conversation with The Print.

I am amazed to find that in a premier public-funded university, where scores of faculty members routinely publish their work on a myriad of issues, including publications in support of the current ruling regime’s policies or critical of the ruling establishment, the university administration has decided to privilege a publication like that of Mr. Ashok Shrivastav, who is an outsider to the university,”

said Maya John, an assistant professor at Jesus and Mary College, in an email to the vice-chancellor.

Prakash Singh, part of both the organisation team and DU’s South campus director, denied that the event was linked to DU and that DU had simply received a “request” for the use of its space for the event, despite Srivastava deeming Singh the “Chief Organiser” of the event.

Featured Images Credits: @UnivofDelhi on X

Yash Raj

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Features

Yeh Kya Hua, Kaise Hua: Dissecting the Congress’ Lapsus Regnī

By DU Beat October 16, 2024

Baffling exit polls and puncturing the Congress complacency, the BJP has battled anti-incumbency to secure its third term in Haryana. An inordinate number of dissidents, glaring portents for division within the party’s central leadership, a failure to foreground fresh faces and an unsubstantiated socialist rhetoric, inter alia, have come together to form, what seems to have been an insurmountable impediment for the Congress. Maharashtra and Jharkhand no longer appear as welcoming.

The Congress has thus far failed to diagnose the rot in its strategy. Its narratives involute upon themselves, constantly miscarrying with the public, and its parroting of the same old defeated stratagems now heads ad nauseam. The Haryana defeat carries with itself considerable ignominy for the Congress which has been smug in its prophecies of victory before and the natural course of the ensuing result has been invariably failure. While Congress president Kharge denies that the Maharashtra assembly elections shall be affected by the defeat, the BJP and its allies remain confident that the ruling Mahayuti in Maharashtra has been only further strengthened. It is implausible that the long-enduring, anti-incumbency temperament shall so suddenly flip, which leaves room to investigate what the BJP has done right during the campaigns and on-ground.

Primarily, a deluge of rebel candidates have fractured the Congress’ vote bank, drawing from it a generous amount it could have used against BJP. The INC lost 16 seats to rebels and independents, severely weakening it against the BJP’s far more structured and organisationally sound ticket management, particularly after UP in the Lok Sabha elections.

The following table illustrates the Congress’ losses to dissidents:

Kalka	Congress lost by a margin of 11k votes (Rebel got 32k votes)
Pundri	Congress came 3rd; Congress rebel got 40k votes and lost by 2k.
Rai	Lost by a margin of 4.5k votes (Rebel got 12k votes)
Gohana	Lost by a margin of 10k votes (Rebel got 15k votes)
Safidon	Lost by a margin of 4k votes (Rebel got 29k votes)
Dadri	Lost by a margin of 2k votes (Rebel got 6k votes)
Tigaon	Congress came 3rd; Congress rebel got 57k votes and lost by 37k votes.
Ambala Cantt.	Congress came 3rd; Congress rebel got 53k votes and lost by 7k votes.
Assandh	Lost by a margin of 2k votes (Rebel got 16k votes)
Uchana Kalan	Lost by 39 votes (Rebel got 32k votes)
Bhadra	Lost by a margin of 7.5k votes (Rebel got 27k votes)
Mahendragarh	Lost by a margin of 2k votes (Rebel got 21k votes)
Sohna	Lost by a margin of 11k votes (Rebel got 70k votes)
Ballabgarh	Congress came 4th; Congress rebel came 2nd, receiving 44k votes and lost by 17k votes.
Dabwali	Lost by a margin of 610 votes (Rebel got 2k votes)
Rania	Lost by a margin of 4k votes (Rebel got 36k votes)
Bahadurgarh	Congress rebel won the seat as an independent; Congress candidate came 3rd.

Further, the Congress made no attempts to restructure its leadership. The young faces—Selja in Haryana and Sachin Pilot in Rajasthan—were conceded to the older ones, of Hooda and Gehlot respectively. The pattern makes itself manifest with an octogenarian as the party president. The BJP, on the other hand, deployed 60 fresh faces to stand against the ancient heavyweights, albeit losing ones, of the Congress. The Congress renominated 17 of its stale candidacies that had lost in the past. The 2023 state election Telangana win for the Congress, supplanting the previously incumbent Bharatia Rashtra Samiti, came in only after they took a chance with a new face – Revanth Reddy’s.

Congress also almost consciously defined itself as a ‘one-caste party’. The Congress’ overdependence on the Jat population proved to be a fatal oversight. The BJP conquered the Congress’ meek share by consolidating the 75 percent of the non-Jat population. Congress’ implicit preference for Hooda to Selja handed to the BJP critical accusatory ammunition, allowing them to charge the Congress with anti-Dalit sentiments and a neglect for the non-Jat population. Even the Jat votes, that the Congress hoped to completely own, had to be shared with INLD, further increasing BJP’s uncontested share of the non-Jat votes.

Despite the Congress’ efforts to appeal to the OBC demographic, comprising 40 per cent of Haryana’s population, BJP’s Saini clearly won the affection of the masses. Ajay Singh Yadav, chairman of the AICC OBC Congress, himself confessed to the Congress’ disregard for the OBC belt in Haryana. The CSDS-Lokniti survey reports the strength of the OBC population in favour of the BJP. The OBC support flourished after Saini replaced Khattar as chief minister. The BJP managed to assimilate into its supporter base a “rainbow coalition” of Brahmins, Punjabi Khatris, non-Jatavs, Yadavs and SCs. The “Lakhpati Drone Ladies” project engendered a massively positive reception of the BJP’s attempts to “elevate the SCs to general status”, in the words of an ITI student from Ambala.

The Gandhi siblings campaigned with much pomp, but rather late. The BJP’s strategy had been to counter the anti-incumbency silently and aggressively. The Congress’ work assumed tangibility too late, and in that they have not defeated the image, one needing much redressal, of the relative passivity of the party and the unattractive languor in its reactions. RaGa’s flimsy socialist narrative did not help their case with the upwardly-mobile social classes as well as the urban votes.

Analysing Congress’ trends, juxtaposed with those of the BJP, it remains a matter of irrefutable truth that the ability of the BJP to counter is what keeps its power from waning. Given the BJP’s untarnished dominance, only in terms of its claims to power and occupation of office, it is peculiar that the Congress keeps succumbing to its flippant confidence in its, in all honesty, paltry chances to overthrow the Saffron Goliath. What blights this torpid David and wherefore does he hibernate? One cannot help but nod in terror as they ponder the truth of Modi’s tirades when he warns of the “chaos” that a Congress government shall bring.

Featured Image Credits: PTI

Aayudh Pramanik

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DUB Speak

Reclaiming Jurisdiction or Reinventing Control

By DU Beat September 12, 2023

Key bills were passed in the parliament and postponed to the winter session amid turmoil, disagreements, outrage regarding Manipur violence, walkouts, a failed no-confidence motion, and a flying kiss controversy. While numerous controversial bills have been approved or introduced under the banner of “decolonizing India’s judiciary,” many political analysts argue that these bills are nothing more than a means of gaining influence over the legislature and the law.

The Monsoon session of Parliament, which began on July 20, 2023, ended on August 11, 2023, amid chaos, debates, outrage over Manipur violence, and drama over a no-confidence motion. This monsoon session had the largest number of bills passed yet the lowest amount of productive hours. 14 of the 23 bills passed this session were approved in 22 hours of discussion. With certain bills adopted minutes into discussion, the legitimacy and democratic significance of the two houses come into doubt.

According to PRS Legislative Research, despite the fact that parliament only met for half of its designated period, this session had a high level of legislative activity. 56% of the bills introduced in the session were passed by both houses. During the session, the Lok Sabha functioned for 43% of its scheduled time, while the Rajya Sabha functioned for 55%. Here is a tabular representation of a few bills passed in the session as per the report by PRS Legislative Research:

Bills passed	Lok Sabha		Rajya Sabha
Bills passed	Time spent on discussion	Members participated	Time spent on discussion	Members participated
The Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi(Amendment) Bill, 2023	4 hrs 54 mins	26	8 hrs 3 mins	32
The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023	56 mins	8	1 hr 9 mins	6
The Forest(Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023	38 mins	4	1 hr 41 mins	11
The Mines and Minerals(Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2023	19 mins	2	1 hr 34 mins	11
The Central Goods and Service Tax(Amendment) Bill, 2023	2 mins	0	3 mins	0
The Integrated Goods and Services Tax(Amendment) Bill, 2023	2 mins	0	3 mins	0

Here is a detailed analysis of some of the most controversial bills:

The Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023: On May 11, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Delhi government in Delhi Government vs. Centre, granting it power over most services in the capital city, excluding public order, land, and police problems. According to the Supreme Court, Article 239A establishes a legislative assembly for the National Capital Territory of Delhi. The Delhi electorate chooses the members of the legislative assembly. Art. 239A must be interpreted in order to further representative democracy.

If a democratically elected government is not given the power to control the officers, the principle of the triple chain of accountability will be redundant.”

– CJI DY Chandrachud

However, on May 19, the centre issued an ordinance to overturn the decision of the Supreme Court. To replace the ordinance, the Delhi Service Bill was introduced. The law gives the Central Government the authority to create regulations governing the affairs of the Delhi Government, including the functions, terms, and other conditions of service of officials and employees. The new measure also creates the National Capital Civil Services Authority (NCCSA), which would make recommendations to the LG on transfers, postings, and disciplinary issues. The bill also grants the LG (indirectly the central government) vast powers over the calling, promulgation, and dissolution of the Delhi Legislative Assembly, as well as the appointment of the Chief Minister and other ministries.

The bill was approved by both houses of parliament. After the bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, the opposition walked out. The opposition questioned the prime minister’s vow to grant Delhi full autonomy.

Repeatedly, the BJP has promised that it will give full statehood to Delhi. In 2014, Modi himself said that upon becoming Prime Minister, he would give full statehood to Delhi. But today, these people stabbed the people of Delhi in the back. Don’t believe anything about Modi ji from now on.”

– Arvind Kejriwal tweeted

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023: On August 11, the Home Minister, Amit Shah, proposed three bills to replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPc), and the Evidence Act. These bills were proposed as part of an effort to decolonize the Indian judiciary.

As many as 313 changes have been proposed in the three criminal laws, and the objective is to ensure that people who approach the courts get justice within three years. The laws that are being replaced were essentially aimed at safeguarding the continuation of the British administration, and their objective was to punish, not deliver justice. The new laws will safeguard constitutional rights and deliver justice. These laws will be imbibed with the Indian soul.”

– Amit Shah, Home Minister

The three bills were sent to the standing committee, which is instructed to deliver a report before the winter session begins. The administration intends to enact and execute these bills before the end of the year. The full evaluation of these three bills paints a quite different picture from the one painted by the home minister in the house. The Indian Express writes:

There is a disjunct between the manner in which these bills are being presented and their actual content. They are far from being an overhaul that will be the panacea for issues that plague India’s criminal justice system. Large parts of these three bills simply reproduce existing provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code, and the Indian Evidence Act.”

The lack of public participation, the complete repeal and revocation of certain sections, and the introduction of such comprehensive changes in a relatively short period of time are some of the major practical concerns about the sudden replacement of the legal system, which can lead to disruption in the legal system. According to political analysts, these bills represent an indirect legalisation of the regime’s violations of human rights. Here is a tabular depiction of some sections of the bills and their relationship to the ruling party’s current demonstration of human rights violations.

Extension of Detention Period	Extension of the detention period without any charges from the current duration to 90 days	Many news reports and declarations by human rights organisations expressed concern over the unlawful arrest and incarceration of many anti-CAA activists during the Delhi Riots of 2020. Various court statements addressed this serious issue. “These defenders, many of them students, appear to have been arrested simply because they exercised their right to denounce and protest against the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act), and their arrest seems clearly designed to send a chilling message to India’s vibrant civil society that criticism of government policies will not be tolerated.” : UN Experts
Discretionary Powers for Law Enforcement	Discretionary powers, such as the ‘right to handcuff,’ to law enforcement officers raise ethical and practical concerns.	According to The Swaddle’s 2022 report, at least 4484 people died in police custody in the last two years. From the attack on Jamia Millia Islamia students in Delhi to the use of pellet guns and smoke bombs on farmers, India has seen an increase in police violence. The new law gives police authority rather than control, raising fears about police violence and reducing the legal ability to demand accountability.
Gendered Provisions	New Rape law applies specifically to women	This law not only advocates heteronormativity but also toxic masculinity and makes it more difficult for male victims of sexual assault to come forward and report their abuse. The transgender population is one of the most vulnerable to such laws. The government’s queerphobic behaviour and implementation of the trans bill in 2019, despite enormous community protests, raises a larger concern about governments’ stance on trans issues.
Impact on minority rights	Provisions on “Love Jihad”	Several international and national human rights organisations have questioned the Love Jihad law and how it is being used against Muslims. With examples of Hindu vigilantes collaborating with police and mob lynchings of Muslims under the name of love jihad on the rise. Providing full legal status raises serious concerns about the safety of minorities in the country.

Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service, and Term of Office) Bill, 2023: On August 10, 2023, the BJP government introduced this bill in the Rajya Sabha in an effort to alter the current method of appointment of election commission officers. This bill will take power away from the CJI and give the ruling party enormous influence in appointing the EC. The Wire reports:

Section 7 of this new Bill seeks to set up a selection committee headed by the prime minister, which will have one Union minister, nominated by the prime minister, and the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) as its members. Neither the Chief Justice of India nor any eminent jurist will find a place on this committee. This means that the chief election commissioner (CEC) and other election commissioners (ECs) would be selected by the political executive belonging to the ruling party, with the LoP either ignored or overruled. What kind of ‘neutrality and independence’ can be expected from such appointees?”

This bill will give the ruling party enormous authority over the Election Commission, raising concerns about the transparency and credibility of the world’s largest democratic elections.

Some of the other bills include:

Forest Conservation(Amendment) Bill, 2023 which allows non-forest activities on forest lands and permits clearance of forest within 100kms of national border.
Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023 which will hold accountable private entities that are in the business of leveraging people’s data in order to further their agenda or make profit, though it also provides leeway for the government to work its way out despite large-scale surveillance.
The Mines and Minerals(Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2023 allows the private sector to mine 6 out of 12 atomic minerals. It also empowers the central government to exclusively auction mining leases and composite licences for certain critical minerals.

Many other bills were introduced and passed, including the Cinematography (Amendment) Bill, Pharmacy (Amendment) Bill, Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Bill, and others. To read a detailed overview of all bills passed, here is the detailed article by IndiaToday.

Every year, multiple bills are passed, introduced, and rejected throughout the three sessions of parliament. The most crucial aspect, however, is the procedure through which bills are passed. With more bills approved in such a short period of time, without enough debate, question rounds, proper involvement of the opposition, or ignoring questions by taking advantage of other issues, the legitimacy of legislative or judicial reforms comes into doubt. With the declining state of democracy and the regime’s increasing attacks on minorities through a translucent lens, the introduction of new bills raises the question of whether these bills are introduced to bring reform or fill gaps in the existing system, or are simply a way to gain control over the major democratic bodies with power, a path towards fascism in India?

Feature Image Credits: Newslaundry

Dhruv Bhati

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Arts & Culture

Bullied, Bought, and Berated: The State of Opposition on Popular Demand

By DU Beat May 17, 2020

The current status of opposition in our country is extremely feeble, and it’s not a healthy sign for a democracy.

If not Modi, then who? This rhetoric, which doesn’t even qualify being called a question, is suggestive of a weak state of opposition in our country, which makes people elect terror accused and hate mongers for the sake of one person. However, this question was asked after the strategies aimed to weaken the opposition were set in motion which were relatively easier, owing to their lack of competency in the first place. But what made them touch a new low and cease their existence as an alternative altogether?

With a heavy PR marketing and ever famous IT cell, the propaganda was diluted very subtly. With huge corporate backups and resources, the opposition fell short drastically. A lack of better leadership and money as compared to the ruling party sowed seeds for cynicism against opposition. Very strategically accountability was shifted to opposition, everything started to go back to Nehru and Gandhi, and lost in this never-ending process were actual public concerns. Things were such that allegations were ensued of buying of opposition leaders in Karnataka. It’s shameful that the representatives of dissidents are thrashed so blatantly that dissidents would not want to associate themselves with such an embarrassment.

People might think why a popularly elected government with a heavy majority is problematic? Why is the opposition displeased with the works of the government aimed at national interest? Why do people speak ill of the ruling party? Well to answer that, we have to understand that democracy is not confined to a majority opinion. It’s inclusive of all the opinions by all of the people. If there’s representation of just one kind of view, it’s not sufficient. In a democracy we need to have counter opinions, checks and balances, and so far the onus of this was on opposition which has failed us and also been constructed to fail us, that we are now sinking.

Such a bereftness led to students, activists, satirists, and artists composing a voice of dissent as opposition. Although their cause is helpful for maintaining some counter opinions thus saving us from a site of an all majoritarian crisis, unless it’s not on the political grounds as oppositions, it would do no good.

A very basic definition of democracy taught us that it is of the people, by the people, and for the people. It’s time we see who these people are. Can you see yourself or can you see only yourself getting a representation?

Featured image credits: News 18

Umaima Khanam

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Arts & Culture

Manipulation of Historical Facts in the Political Realm

By DU Beat March 29, 2020

Looking at recent election campaigns, and the political climate of the country in general, several things come to light, one of them being the twisting of historical facts.

In his novel 1984, Orwell says, “Who controls the past, controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.”

Speaking at the Banaras Hindu University, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, “Putting together our history, embellishing it and rewriting it is the responsibility of the country, its people and historians.”

Of course, efforts to do this have been underway for a few years now-during its first tenure, the culture ministry under the BJP Government set up a fourteen-member committee to present a report that will help the government rewrite certain aspects of Indian History, to prove that Hindu scriptures are not myths and that today’s Hindus descend directly from India’s first inhabitants from thousands of years ago.

India, unfortunately, is no stranger to such practices. Read Indian school textbooks, and you’ll see omissions of history from the dark days of Indira Gandhi’s tenure as Prime Minister. In textbooks from Rajasthan, you’ll see a watered-down version of Ambedkar’s fight against the oppressive caste system, where instead of representing him accurately as a vehement opponent of the caste system ingrained into the then prevalent structure of Hinduism, he is portrayed as a “Hindu Social Reformer” akin to the likes of Dayanand Saraswati and K B Hedgewar, the founder of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Nehru said that Mahmud Ghazni was a lover of art (the same Mahmud Ghazni who destroyed idols and temples in India). Gandhi is praised and hailed as a reformer and father of the nation but nowhere do we mention his obsession with the caste system

This cherry-picking of facts is incredibly problematic. It is the job of historians to present facts as they are, good or bad. However, politics is a different game altogether, and when contentions in History come into the political realm, things get ugly. Integrity is a crucial part of historical method, except no compulsion is there on politicians to be morally prudent.

When politicians are allowed to twist facts in order to pursue a particular narrative, they not only change what people think happened in the past. The key to the future lies in revisiting history, thus, history becomes an incredibly powerful tool to influence people’s emotions and actions.

Coming back to the status quo, that is exactly what the current government is doing. Historian Romila Thapar says “if the Hindus are to have primacy as citizens in a Hindu Rashtra (kingdom), their foundational religion cannot be an imported one.” It aims to revisit history in a manner where it establishes the current Hindu majority as indigenous. That, of course, comes at a cost, which here are the core values that make India what it is. That is precisely why it’s best to ensure that History is left outside of the political realm. It is far too dangerous a tool to be left in the hands of people like politicians, who’re guided by principles that primarily benefit themselves.
Image Credits: India TV

Khush Vardhan Dembla

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DUB News

NSUI Protest Against Violence in Delhi

By DUBeat February 27, 2020

Members of National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) Delhi protested against the violence instigated in Delhi outside Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s residence.

On Tuesday, 25th February 2020, members of National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) Delhi protested against the violence instigated outside Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s residence. Also, NSUI members raised slogans against Delhi violence at Lieutenant Governor’s residence in the wee hours of morning, around 1:30 a.m. Following this, NSUI members were detained by Delhi Police, as per the Press Release released by them on the same day.

NSUI activists organised a peace march to protest against Delhi violence from Delhi University Student Union (DUSU) office at Faculty of Arts, North Campus. Delhi University students joined NSUI activists and participated in the peace march by holding the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in hand.

Ashish Lamba , Secretary of Delhi University Student Union (DUSU) from NSUI said, “The NSUI activists protested at Lieutenant Governor’s house in Civil Lines regarding the violence which took place in Delhi and the Lieutenant Governor still did not respond and kept himself as a mute spectator. We were detained at Civil Lines Police Station. In the evening NSUI led DUSU also took out a Shanti candle march from DUSU office to Arts Faculty in order to appeal for peace.”

NSUI members stated, “It is a pre-planned conspiracy by BJP leaders. This violence and atrocities against minorities and Dalits has been raised and now we can see the riots on minorities and Dalits. NSUI will keep its fight against such violence and will spread Mahatma Gandhi ‘s Ahimsa Marg among the people of India.” NSUI demanded Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation and asked him to step down from the ministry.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat

Paridhi Puri

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Delhi Assembly Elections

The New Delhi Constituency: Standing Against the Current Chief Minister

By DU Beat February 8, 2020

With the Delhi Assembly elections today, let’s take a look at the candidates competing against incumbent Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Chief Ministerial candidate- Arvind Kejriwal.

Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s Incumbent Chief Minister, is once again the chief ministerial candidate from Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) contesting from the New Delhi constituency. The New Delhi constituency was created by the delimitation commission in 2008. Historically, it has always been the constituency, which has been held by the Chief Ministers, as Sheila Dixit represented the constituency in the 2008 Elections before Kejriwal. The New Delhi Constituency has a sizeable population of Government employees and falls in the posh localities of Delhi.

With neither Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), nor the Indian National Congress (INC), releasing the names of their chief ministerial candidates, let’s take a look at the candidates competing from the New Delhi Constituency.

Sunil Yadav (BJP)

Sunil Yadav is an advocate by profession. Yadav started his political career as a Party’s Yuva Morcha. He currently holds the President’s Office of Yuva Morcha, Bharatiya Janata Party, Delhi (BJYM Delhi). He is the former Secretary of the Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party. While it was rumoured for him to get a ticket in the 2013 and 2015 Elections, this is Yadav’s first time contesting as a candidate.

Talking about the focus on national issues in the BJP manifesto over local issues, Sunil Yadav, said to theIndian Express, that he was fighting the election on local agenda. “I am talking about people living in clusters in my constituency. I am talking about their water and electricity bills.” He also claims, he is confident of a victory with a margin of 25,000 votes.

Romesh Sabharwal (INC)

Romesh Sabharwal is a former Student Leader, who has been associated with the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), and the Youth Congress three decades back. He was the President of NSUI Delhi State. This is Sabharwal’s first time contesting as a candidate.

He also claims that he is confident to beat Arvind Kejriwal. “He may be the CM of Delhi, but I am a local, as a Government servant and an honest taxpayer who understands the needs of the residents of the constituency,” Romesh Sabharwal told India Today.

Arvind Kejriwal (AAP)

Arvind Kejriwal joined politics formally in 2012, when he launched the Aam Aadmi Party. Before joining politics, Kejriwal worked in the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) as a Joint Commissioner, Income Tax in New Delhi. He is a graduate in Mechanical Engineering, from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur.

In 2006, Kejriwal was awarded with the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in recognition of his involvement in the grassroots level movement Parivartan, using Right to Information legislation, in a campaign against corruption, post which he resigned from the Government Service. He has also been monumental in leading the Jan Lokpal Anti- Corruption movement, along with Anna Hazare and Kiran Bedi, in 2011.

Following the 2013 Delhi Assembly Elections, Arvind Kejriwal first took office as the Chief Minister of Delhi, in December 2013. However, in February 2014, he resigned due to his minority Government’s inability to pass his proposed anti-corruption legislation pertaining to lack of support from other political parties. In the 2015 Delhi Assembly Elections, the Aam Aadmi Party won 67 out of the 70 seats in Delhi, securing Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Ministerial Office again.

Both BJP and INC have pitched first- time candidates against Kejriwal in these elections.

Feature Image Credits: Outlook

Satviki Sanjay

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Delhi Assembly Elections

Money-Ball: Economic Impact of Delhi Assembly Elections

By DUBeat February 8, 2020

With the Delhi Assembly Elections today, we take a look at elections from an economic point of view, focusing on the money spent by candidates on political campaigning.

“For fifty years, we have been trained to believe that elections are a matter of life and death,” sternly opined Asaduddin Owaisi, a veteran Lok Sabha Legislator, in an informal interview with ScoopWhoop Unscripted, a month before the National Elections last year.

Though Mr Owaisi might have taken a few hyperbolic liberties while making this particular statement, one cannot deny the fact that elections are extremely significant moments in time in the history of any democracy, impacting the Nationwide dynamic and Government policies for the next few years, as well as fulfilling the political aspirations of successful candidates, and collapsing those of unsuccessful ones.

Every election sees the birth of a future leader or the rise of an existing one. Once in a while, more so in recent years, it also sees the fall of a stalwart. With such a prominent amount of reputation and power at stake, candidates standing in elections leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the majority of voters press their symbol on the ballot, spending enormous amounts of time and funds on election campaigning.

India’s Lok Sabha Elections in 2019 were deemed to be one of the world’s most expensive elections with an estimate of over INR 50,000 crores spent on electoral campaigning by parties and candidates across the Country. According to a study by the Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies (CMS), India’s election expenditure has risen six times since 1998, with the majority of the amount being spent on publicity campaigns. Costs include money spent on roadshows, billboard advertisements, television advertisements, social media campaigns, constituency tours, rallies, and music videos to name a few.

In fact, in the run-up to the 2020 Delhi Assembly Elections, the AAP Government introduced numerous freebies in the form of subsidies in electricity charges, free bus rides for women and removal of development fees for new water connections. The opposition leaders in the State questioned the economic viability of these recent freebies.

Besides these costs, parties also resort to illegitimate means of attracting votes, with reports of candidates distributing cash, clothes, land, smartphones and sometimes even alcohol to voters. The CMS study reports that around INR 15,000 crores in cash were distributed among voters in the 2019 National Elections.

This leads us to one question. Is all the money worth it?

It is no rocket science that, what matters is the appeal and reputation of the candidate, not the amount of money spent by the candidate and that on an average, a candidate with a favourable image shall garner a significant amount of votes regardless of the money spent by him/her.

The answer to this question exists in contrast. While the kindness of the world would have us believe that money does not matter, yet experience says otherwise.

Out of the humongous INR 50,000 crores spent in the Lok Sabha Elections last year, almost half of the costs were incurred by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who won by a comprehensive margin. But would a less expensive campaign have given them a less favourable result? We shall not know as long as there is not a detailed analysis of Indian elections and voting practices. But what we know is that as long as the voters of this country do not fall prey to political gimmicks and publicity campaigns, and instead decide to press a particular symbol on a ballot based on a thorough review of the candidate’s performance in the last five years, the essence of democracy and integrity shall remain intact.

Delhi Assembly Elections 2020, will be a test of heavy campaigning versus ideology. It will also answer many questions regarding the future discourse of Delhi and the political discourse of the Country. The current Chief Minister (CM), Arvind Kejriwal, won a ravishing majority in the past elections despite heavy campaigning by BJP. However, a new wave of social media campaigning, tremendous on- ground marketing had engulfed the Lok Sabha Elections. This wave might drown the Delhi Elections as well.

Feature Image Credits: The Statesman

Araba Kongbam

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DUB Speak

5 Reasons Why Manoj Tiwari Will Be Delhi’s ‘Best’ CM

By DU Beat January 31, 2020

Delhi’s Legislative Assembly Elections are around the corner and Manoj Tiwari seems like the Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate for the post of Chief Minister (if not Dr. Harshvardhan).

Of course, this is some great news as the talented, mature, responsible, all-rounder called Manoj Tiwari. A Member of Parliament (MP) from North-east Delhi, he is the epitome of the leadership which this City demands.

Here are 5 reasons why you should cast your vote for Rinkiya’s daddy.

1) He’s versatile

Manoj Tiwari was primarily a singer of Bhojpuri songs. While his musical capacity can be judged, one can’t deny the fact that Tiwari brought a resurgence in Bhojpuri music making it more accessible and mainstream for audiences in the northern mainland.

And then, he did a bit of acting. He was clearly robbed from the Filmfare award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, with his role of “Kalia” in Deshdrohi (a movie directed, written, produced by, and starring the visionary KRK aka Kamal Rashid Khan). Tiwari gives a committed performance as an intimidating hitman with dialogues like “Mera naam Kalia hai aur Kalia ka matlab tumhari maut” (My name is Kalia, and Kalia means “your death’)

Then, he was even willing to put himself under house arrest, being detained at Bigg Boss’s house for a few months. And we all know, great leaders of the world have gone to prison at some time or the other.

2) He gets what he wants

Manoj Tiwari is a determined individual. If he wants something, he’ll go through heaven and hell and Dolly Bindra to get it. When he avoided the temptations of chicken tikkas on the table, he just wanted to make an “amlate” of two eggs.

But Dolly Bindra (who metaphorically represents the opposition party) was clearly bothered by this and attacked Manoj with the power of a 120-decibel voice. Manoj was unaverred by this and walked on to get his hand on some eggs. While he couldn’t make an omelette in the end, it’s still his effort of dissent which counts.

Good leaders, and primary school kids, they need to be stubborn. And in an age of annoying political ‘boomers’, Manoj Tiwari is the kid who needs our votes.

3) He knows how to party

Manoj Tiwari is no less of a Pitbull. Just take his songs. Each of them is a banger, giving us a glimpse of his mind. In Baby “Bear” Peeke Naache (that’s the actual spelling in the video), Manoj plays a creepy bartender who makes a girl drink some bizarre kind of beer, which makes her do some bizarre dance, and then eventually get close to Manoj to give him a bizarre kiss.

He has had more such songs on spreading love and harmony to some fast-paced beats. Goriya Chand Ke Anjoriya and Upar Wali Ke Chakkar Mei are some other classic music videos by him that you need to check out right now.

Imagine him winning the elections, and embarking on a pan-NCR concert to celebrate it! Enough reason to vote for him.

4) He’s friends with Khali

Manoj’s networking includes several people, including his fellow Bigg Boss detainee, The Great Khali. By the way, you need to check out Khali’s Instagram for its wholesome, pure content. His Instagram is one thing which will unite this entire country apart from Manoj Tiwari’s songs.

Coming back to the point, Khali made his friendship evident in a recent video where Manoj is driving his car. Manoj smiles at the camera and says “Hum dono dost hai” (We both are friends). Now, if something happens in our city, CM Tiwari can be the Nick Fury to Great Khali’s Hulk instructing him to beat up threats to our society like “student goons”.

5) His party has progressive plans for Delhi

While Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is just campaigning on the basis of education and healthcare, BJP campaigners seem to be going to various colonies of Delhi are shouting slogans of Bharat Mata ki Jai and handling short-term problems like the traffic jam caused by the Shaheen Bagh protest. Obviously, the nation’s “honour” and “integrity” come first and then the city’s development. This means that probably Manoj Tiwari’s MLAs think they’re MPs. So that’s the final reason why we should vote for Mr Tiwari cause, of course, the entity called Bharat Mata needs to be taken care of first and then the citizens of this city.

Featured Image Credits- Big Brother (YouTube)

Shaurya Singh Thapa

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