Rising delivery defaults push demand for ready-to-move homes
By Vinod Behl,
Amid rising property prices, high loan rates and rising delivery defaults, home buyers are increasingly opting for ready-to-move properties to ensure safety of their investment.
JNU scholar complains about discrimination at campus
New Delhi: A week after having threatened to commit suicide over not getting his research grant extended, a Jawaharlal Nehru University scholar on Wednesday...
Muslim-Hindu Relations in Jammu Province – Part 1
By Yoginder Sikand, TwoCircles.net,
Full Series: Muslim-Hindu Relations in Jammu Province
BJP will see tough fights in Bihar’s final round
By Brajendra Nath Singh
Purnia (Bihar) Nov 2 (IANS) The BJP is bracing for a stiff challenge when Bihar's Seemanchal region, where it lost all...
Zainab Sayeed: UPSC cracker who wants more Muslim girls to be IAS
By Zaidul Haque, TwoCircles.net
Kolkata: She set a target, studied hard and achieved her goal. Now, she wants other Muslim women to make an attempt...
Sincere efforts can only address less pre primary education in Muslims
By Dr Kouser Fathima for TwoCircles.net,
The recently released “State of the World Children Report-2016” by UNICEF says 34% of Muslim children have no access...
Remembering scholar and activist Omar Khalidi
By Usama Khalidi for TwoCircles.net,
The death of anyone’s loved one is a private tragedy, but in Omar Khalidi’s passing away India lost a...
Can club stars become national heroes?
By Santosh Rao,
New Delhi : The FIFA World Cup has over the years has thrown up the planet's biggest stars just as it has...
Iraqi Israeli, Arab Jew or Mizrahi Jew?
By Vered Lee,
A violin wailed in one of the auditoriums on the Tel Aviv University campus. Violinist Yair Dalal was demonstrating the creative powers of Salah and Daoud al-Kuwaiti, two brothers considered to be among Iraq's greatest musicians. With immense skill and delicacy, Dalal mastered the notes, careful not to bring the emotional audience to tears.
From Famine Relief to Heritage Jewel: The Story of Lucknow’s Rumi Darwaza
Sidra Fatima and Syed Taqui Haider, TwoCircles.net
Lucknow: Nestled in the heart of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, the Rumi Darwaza stands as a breathtaking...
Yoga as part of the matrix which links India
By Saeed Naqvi
Ayurveda entered our lives as tiny, plastic vials of Amritdhara, three drops in a teaspoon of sugar, the panacea for all stomach...
Recalling the Babri Masjid movement
By Syed Shahabuddin,
Babri masjid was attached in 1949 and Hindus and Muslims were legally barred from offering prayers there. In 1986 doors to the gates were opened by a court order and regular puja started taking place. It was done on the demands of VHP that Babri Masjid was built on the birth place of Rama and it should be handed over to the Hindus.
In February 1986, on the petition of a local advocate, sessions judge at Faizabad without consulting or hearing the Muslims who were party to this case, passed an order opening the locks of the Babri Masjid.
It is time we raise our voice for Kashmiris, not India
By Sana Khan for TwoCircles.net,
Three years ago while working on my M.Phil dissertation on the violence of partition, I had decided to dedicate it...
From heartache to Afghanistan
By Beth Murphy, CGNews,
"Have you ever worn a burqa before?" asked the Amnesty International representative.
Discrimination against Dalits in higher education
By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net
The suicide of a Dalit research scholar in University of Hyderabad and the recent clash between different caste based groups in Dr. Ambedkar Law College in Chennai has brought the issue of discrimination against Dalits in the Higher education in to focus because according to the media reports the caste based discrimination against the Dalits was at the root of both the incidents.
Journalists should refresh knowledge: Speaker
By IANS,
New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar Thursday asked journalists to keep refreshing their knowledge to better disseminate facts including on parliamentary processes to the public.
Congress’ parting kick: K Rahman Khan humiliates upright officer
By The Milli Gazette,
In late January came the news that senior IPS officer Mohammad Wazir Ansari has been promoted as the new Chhattisgarh DGP. It was feared that Ansari would leave his current crucial assignment as Secretary of Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF). But he decided to stay with the Foundation.
AMU Old Boys Association or AMU Opportunist Boys Association
By Ehtasham Khan,
A few years back a friend asked me if I went to vote for the AMU Old Boys Association elections. The polling was very close to my house in Maharani Bagh in New Delhi. I was about to condemn myself for avoiding the democratic process. Worse still, I was not even a member of the association. And, hence, ineligible for voting. When all these thoughts were moving in my head, my friend added in the same breath: "Wahan goli bhi chali thi (there was a firing also)". Since then, I have kept my ineligibility intact.
Anna’s anti-corruption campaign: Viewpoints of regional press
By Zaidul Haque, TwoCircles.net,
A man’s battle for women’s rights
Feeling lost amidst academics spewing jargon at a recent seminar on Muslim women, I was relieved to meet Nasiruddin Haider Khan, ...
If Owaisi can criticise every leader in UP, why does he spare Mayawati?
By Soroor Ahmed, Twocircles.net
The strategy of All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen in the poll-bound Uttar Pradesh is different from the one adopted during the campaign ahead...
Sonia in charge but her alliance is shaky
By Amulya Ganguli,
If Rahul Gandhi is in retreat in a Buddhist monastery in Myanmar, as rumours have it, then he can be said to be imitating, in part, the Sakya prince who left home and hearth 2,500 years ago to find out the meaning of life.
In the Congress' heir-apparent's case, however, his quest is seemingly for finding his own rightful place in the 130-year-old party.
Cordoba House, Ground Zero and overcoming the fear of Islam
By Mehnaz M. Afridi
On 6 June some organisations, such as Stop Islamization of America, Jihad Watch and the Tea Party movement, have planned a demonstration in New York to protest the building of a cultural and community centre called the Cordoba House, two blocks from the World Trade Center site. The founder of the centre, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, has said that one purpose of the Cordoba House is to "bridge and heal the divide between Muslims and other Americans."
TCN special: Misra Commission report excerpts- Part 17
By TwoCircles.net news desk
Misra Commission report excerpts- home page
Chapter 8
RESERVATION AS A WELFARE MEASURE
Will India and China fight a war again?
(First of 3-Part Series on 50 years after the War)
By Mohan Guruswamy,
Two resignations, many fallouts in climate geopolitics
By Joydeep Gupta, IANS,
Two big-ticket resignations last week will have far-reaching effects on climate geopolitics. The decision by India's top climate negotiator Shyam Saran to quit will make it easier for the US to push emerging economies to do more to combat climate change. So will the decision of UN climate panel chief Yvo de Boer to quit six months ahead of schedule.
India needs to act with Indonesia for Indo-Pacific security
By Saroj Mohanty,
"This is the time to return to Jalesveva Jayamahe (in the ocean we will triumph). For too long, we've neglected the seas, oceans, straits and bays... We must possess the soul of Cakrawarti Samudra (emperor of the sea)," Joko Widodo, the newly sworn-in president of Indonesia said in his inaugural address last month, outlining his vision of turning the archipelagic nation the world's "maritime axis".
In solidarity with Shehla Rashid
By Sana Khan for TwoCircles.net
So much has already been written, in support of her and against her, so much so that a few AMU...
Women’s voices from Atali
Dr. Sandhya Mhatre and Neha Dabhade
A fact finding team consisting of Adv. Irfan Engineer and these writers, visited the riot torn village of...
Shame on you hoodlums!
By Firoz Bakht Ahmed
----------------------------------------
I may disagree with what you have to say, but I shall defend, to death, your right to say it — Voltaire
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Going will get tougher for India
By Anand Philar, IANS,
It was not surprising that India stood exposed during their 2-5 rout against Australia in the men's Hockey World Cup Tuesday night. The lack of exposure against the top teams in the past year highlighted many inherent weaknesses in the Indian team that were covered up by their 4-1 success against a mediocre Pakistan on the opening night.
Divisive politics in India: Operation ‘Provoke Muslims & Christians’
Dr Syed Zafar Mahmood
During the last seventy one years since India became independent its sovereignty has been considerably strengthened, internal peace has been well...
Book review: Urdu Literature and Journalism: Critical Perspectives
By Mohammed Anas for TwoCircles.net,
After gifting us insightful glimpses into geniuses of Rabindranath Tagore, Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib, Raghupati Sahay Firaq Gorakhpuri, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and first Dalit Urdu poet Jayant Parmar, Professor Shafey Kidwai of Aligarh Muslim University has explored journalistic conquests of greats like Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Maulvi Mohammed Waqar, etc in his book masterfully written Urdu Literature and Journalism: Critical Perspectives.
Modi to deepen reforms; no fiscal deficit concern
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday vowed to move ahead with economic reforms, while Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said there was...
My Chosen Mission for Life after 90
By Jamal Khwaja
The ancient ethical Hindu doctrine of Four Stages of Human Life and their corresponding duties is well known. It appeals to me,...
India needs better fire protection services
By Prem P. Batra, IANS,
The massive oil depot fire that raged for days in Jaipur has dramatically but tragically illuminated the woefully inadequate fire service infrastructure in India. While conceding that the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) depot fire in Jaipur was colossal by any standard, the routine fire accidents that occur on a daily basis reveal the institutional flaws in the entire fire protection capacity at a national level.
Obituary: Syed Sibte Jafar Zaidi, Meer Anees of our time
By S Hasan Zia Rizvi, TwoCircles.net,
The BJP hype and the reality check
By Faraz Ahmad,
The media surveys have always troubled me with skepticism and disbelief, partly because I am not particularly good at arithmetic, which is why I had to give up studying science and turn to the study of English Literature. To this day numbers give me jitters what to talk of graphs and percentages and therefore I fail to comprehend the psephological analyses conducted on various TV channels with utmost confidence by erudite and articulate psephologists like Yogendra Yadav, Swapan Dasgupta or Arnab Goswami. Frankly I am not sure how much of this Arnab or Rajdeep Sardesai actually understand. I of course remember that my good friend Yashwant Deshmukh was doing his surveys sitting in The Pioneer Bureau room on his laptop for the 1996 elections for which a paper like The Pioneer, sinking fast, paid him substantially. That made me further lose any faith in the science of psephology. In a country like India which is so wide and varied where language, culture and food habits change every 50 kilometres, it is incomprehensible how any sample survey at best of a few thousand urban babus could reflect the true picture of the overall people’s mood.
Odyssey of a Karnataka journalist: He exposed wrongdoings and paid for it
By Bhamy V. Shenoy, IANS,
We assume, wrongly, that India has a free and vibrant press with unbridled freedom. We assume, wrongly again, that India's newspapers have the full and utter freedom to expose individual or institutional malfeasance, in politics, business and other spheres of public life.
Incredible but True
By Jayatilaka de Silva, Prensa Latina,
Five Cubans -Rene Gonzáles, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando Gonzáles, Gerardo Hernández and Ramón Labañino were arrested on September 12, 1998 by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
They have been languishing in US prisons under solitary confinement for exactly 10 years. Having kept them for long without trial, they were later tried by a "partial" Court in unfriendly Miami, Florida – the home of Cuban exiles and anti-Cuba mafia with links to the White House.
जेएनयू अध्यक्ष कन्हैया कुमार को सम्मानित करेगा रिहाई मंच
TwoCircles.net News Desk
लखनऊ : रिहाई मंच ने जवाहरलाल नेहरु विश्वविद्यालय के छात्र संघ अध्यक्ष कन्हैया कुमार को देशद्रोह के आरोप में गिरफ्तार किए...
From the diary of an anonymous Muslim
By Anonymous,
It is the time of hate. Everyone around is outraged by the inexplicable evil of the other. How could they walk in and...
Calamities in Japan and tsunami of absurd messages in India
By Soroor Ahmed, TwoCircles.net,
Shari’a in favour of minority rights in Egypt
By Sara Khorshid
Over the past decades, numerous polls have demonstrated that the majority of Egyptians want shari'a-or Islamic principles-applied to parts of their country's legal system. Egypt's constitution reflects this: Article 2 of the constitution states that shari'a is the principle source of legislation.
I lived on but many women can’t; so help me stop this: Acid attack...
By Vivek Singh Chauhan
New Delhi : On a hot summer day 11 years ago, 16-year-old Laxmi was passing by the Khan Market bus stand...
Why polygamy should not be encouraged?
Need to repeat and reassert that polygamy is only an option not a compulsion in Islam.
By Dr Kouser Fathima
First and foremost. Let it be...
Tinkering with school syllabus a bad move, doesn’t bode well for democracy
By Asad Mirza, TwoCircles.net
In a completely uncalled for move, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has revised its syllabus for students of Classes...
Has Rahul Gandhi shot himself in the foot?
By Amulya Ganguli,
Unlike the Biblical tale of a prodigal son, the return of a foot-loose family member may not be a cause of great joy to his relatives. In Rahul Gandhi's case, it can be a source of embarrassment and misgivings.
The embarrassment is likely to be caused by speculation about where the not-so-young prince was for nearly two months, what he learnt during the days away from the madding crowd, and whether his ruminations - he is supposed to have taken a course in meditations (vipasana) - have eased the tensions caused by the setbacks suffered by his party from 2013.
US policy not a scapegoat for extremists
By Daniel Yankelovich, CGNews,
As the competition for the US presidency heats up, the threat of Muslim extremism is bound to become a major issue in the campaign. The reason is its link to the war in Iraq. Public polling shows that Iraq is the top foreign policy issue for most Americans, with many seeing the war as increasing the risk of future terrorism against the United States and its allies. The presumptive Republican nominee John McCain has called the threat of Muslim extremism "the transcendent challenge of our times."
More Muslims in Bihar will vote for JD-U this time: Muslim intellectuals
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
With 40 Lok Sabha seats, Bihar has always, particularly in the ongoing coalition era, played a key role in making and running the central government. After this election also, first in Bihar with BJP and its ally JD-U ruling the state, the most backward state will be among a few to determine who will be the next PM.
Ibn Taymiyyah and his fatwa on terrorism
By Asghar Ali Engineer,
Terrorism has become a worldwide disease which is swallowing the lives of thousands of innocent people in certain intensive conflict areas like Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kashmir, North East India, certain other parts of India, South Thailand and so on. There are different reasons for terrorist violence in different conflict areas which vary from political to socio-economic injustices.
Pluralism and Communalism
By K. G. Kannabiran,
A few years back I raised the question “whether a Political Party not subscribing to the Constitutional value system so clearly spelt out by the Preamble and the other provisions in the Constitution, have its party registered to contest and participate in the country’s election?
Children play pivotal role in making Chhattisgarh villages open-defecation free
By Ashish Mishra
Raipur : Arti Rawte, an 11-year-old tribal girl from Dhobni village of Maoist-hit Rajanandgaon district in Chhattisgarh, used to wake up at...
Excellent relations with Bangladesh demand tolerant societies
By Saeed Naqvi
We have grown accustomed to receiving greeting cards at the end of the year.
That is why BJP stalwart Murli Manohar Joshi’s beautifully...
The many lives of Amitabh Bachchan
By Amulya Ganguli, IANS,
In the film "Dev" Amitabh Bachchan plays the role of an upright police officer who is horrified by the collusion between ruling politicians and a section of the police during a communal outbreak. The film provides a mirror image of the scene in Gujarat at the time of the 2002 riots. While it was being made, Amitabh might not have thought that he would become the state's brand ambassador after a few years.
Upper castes too voted for Nitish, Lalu and Congress in Bihar
By Imran Khan
Patna: Not just the Dalits, OBCs and Muslims, the upper castes too supported the Nitish-Lalu combine, with a majority of the upper...
India pledges steadfast support, ‘special consideration’ for poorer nations
United Nations : India has pledged its steadfast support to poorer countries on issues that matters to them and said it would give them...
Syed Ross Masood – Pursuit of excellence in higher education
By Naved Masood for TwoCircles.net,
Muslim girls in J&K to be trained under Central Govt’s ‘Nai Manzil’ initiative
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter
Jammu: In a significant move, the NDA led central government launched a skill development programme for Muslims girls...
Nagabanda massacre and the other side of Assamese intelligentsia
By Abdul Kalam Azad,
Morigaon, Assam: Nagabanda High School is one of the oldest educational institutes of Morigaon district of Assam. The school is situated near the Nagabanda Bazar, about 15 KMs from the district headquarter. The healthy rural market, the nicely planted trees at Nagabanda Junior College, huge playground with pavilion and the green agricultural fields surrounding the area make it scenic and beautiful. But who knows Nagabanda is carrying a huge amount of pain and agony?
Bihar government jobs bringing happiness but with pain
By Abdul Wahid Azad,
During the last few years some positive changes took place in the Indian province of Bihar which was earlier dubbed as BIMARU state of India. The changes on the development front brought by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of JD-U are being appreciated within and outside the state. But chronic corruption continues to plague the state machinery despite change of guard.
Nitish govt vs. Lalu-Rabri regime
गाय से डरना मना है, यह हमारी भी अपनी है…
तरन्नुम सिद्दीक़ी
आज कल कोई भी न्यूज़ पेपर हो या कोई न्यूज़ चैनल… ऐसा लगता है कि जैसे हर तरफ़ एक अजीब सा खौफ़ का...
Review: Aamir, a movie on modern day terrorism
an analysis of its message
By Feroze Mithiborwala,
Going by the positive reviews that 'AAMIR' has elicited in the secular press, my friend Kishore Jagtap and myself decided to see the movie, for the reason that it dealt with the modern scourge of terrorism.
Climate engineering to reverse global warming may impact biodiversity: Experts
By Mohammed Shafeeq, IANS,
Muslims underrepresented in West Bengal municipal elections 2010
By Zaidul Haque for TwoCircles.net,
Kolkata: They treat each other as enemy when elections come, be it national or local. But one point on which the political parties have unwritten silent agreement is: not to give Muslims tickets proportionate to their population. Fewer candidates from the community which is one-fourth of West Bengal population have been able to get tickets for the municipal elections to be held in the state on May 30.
Women and understanding of Quran
By Asghar Ali Engineer
Until recently it was monopoly of man to understand and interpret scripture and make laws according to their own understanding and man’s understanding was very much colored by patriarchal culture. Now it has been well-established fact that patriarchy has played very important role in understanding of scriptures. What was considered as ‘divine’ was also as much male-oriented. It appeared as if God spoke through man only and women were, at best secondary in divine scheme of things.
Voted to power with their support, Muslims have high expectations from Congress
By Abdul Hameed, TwoCircles.net,
As the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has emerged victorious in the Lok Sabha elections, with thumping support of Muslims among others, the largest religious minority has high – and genuine expectations – from the central government. Some, however, are not pinning much hope.
One Year of Modi Sarkar: Hate Speech Galore
By Ram Puniyani,
The coming to power of Narendra Modi in a way gave an open license to all the affiliates of RSS combine to indulge in open hate speech against the religious minorities. The current agenda behind the hate speech is to consolidate the communal polarisation of the society along lines of religion. The well-known case of MIM’s Akarbar-uddudin Owaisis’ hate speech has been despicable and very rightly Akbarudin Owaisi had to be in jail for some time. The case against him should be pursued and the legal course of action must be followed. At the same time, what about the hate speeches indulged in by the likes of Pravin Togadia, Subramaniam Swami, Giriraj Singh, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Sadhvi Prachi, Sakshi Mahraraj, Yogi Adityanth, Sanjay Raut and company?
Why do Muslims sacrifice animals on Eid?
Every year on the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha, Muslims across the world sacrifice animals to mark the sacrifice made by Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH). The article...
The concept of jihad in Islam
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
(Translated from Urdu by Yoginder Sikand)*
The word 'jihad' is derived from the root juhd, which means 'to strive' or 'to struggle'. It denotes the exertion of oneself to the utmost, to the limits of one's capacity, in some activity or for some purpose. This is how the word is understood in Arabic grammar.
Kashmir assembly: Dice loaded in favour of Valley
By Vijay Kranti,
Probably the Jammu and Kashmir assembly in India is the only elected house in the world which keeps 24 of its seats vacant in the name of one of its erstwhile regions that is now disputed territory -- what is known as Pakistan-occupied Kashmir or PoK. That is why voters in the state elect only 87 representatives in a house of 111 legislators.
Peace Be Upon Him
By Ilma Afroz for TwoCircles.net,
The attack on Charlie Hebdo’s office in Paris is heinous. It’s gruesome. It’s murderous. It’s cowardly. It’s all of these. United Nations – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed his rage at the shooting. He referred to it as "despicable", "horrendous, unjustifiable and cold-blooded crime.” And there is much more to it.
India needs economists to manage economic affairs
By Syed Zahid Ahmad,
It is better to see Dr. C. Rangarajan resigning as chief of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (EAC). He might be eying a bright career as consultant for new growing business of financial inclusion. This way he might have escaped from facing the utter failure of UPA government on economic front.
Stop defaming Bihar, deputy CM tells opposition
Patna : Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav on Sunday asked the BJP-led opposition to stop its political propaganda to defame the state on...
Adams’ Bridge- Faith Verses National Interest
By Syed Ali Mujtaba, TwoCircles.net
The case of "Adams' Bridge", a mythical barrier situated south-east of Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu, India, connecting Talaimanar coast of Sri Lanka has snowballed into a faith verses national interest controversy. The Supreme Court of India is hearing a public interest litigation petition on the multi core Sethusamundram canal project that involves dredging of a sea channel cutting across the Adams' Bridge across the Gulf of Mannar.
The case of "Adams' Bridge", a mythical barrier situated south-east of Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu, India, connecting Talaimanar coast of Sri Lanka has snowballed into a faith verses national interest controversy. The Supreme Court of India is hearing a public interest litigation petition on the multi core Sethusamundram canal project that involves dredging of a sea channel cutting across the Adams' Bridge across the Gulf of Mannar.
चौपट संस्कृति में तीन फ़िल्में
सिद्धांत मोहन, TwoCircles.net
यह बहस बड़ी है कि असम और अरुणाचल प्रदेश के बाद का समूचा पूर्वोत्तर भारत ‘भारत’ है भी या नहीं? लेकिन इसे...
Why Google finally saw red in China
By Prasanto K. Roy, IANS,
There's no polite way to put this. China is a rogue nation, a military dictatorship masquerading as a people's government. It's an apparent economic success in the short term, but its aspiration to become an economic superpower is not compatible with its political model.
Master, Queen and Slave
By Mubasshir Mushtaq,
Is the Congress only party which works on the basis of master-servant relationship? Sonia Maino Gandhi has challenged that assumption by breaking the sound of silence. All these years, her long and stoic silence was being considered as a sign of acquiescence. Sonia has proved that she is indeed the daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi, who dealt her opponents with an iron fist.
India’s spiritual wealth is a sign of her strength
By M. Rajaque Rahman, IANS
As India turns 60, an open invitation to shape a new global order is awaiting India's affirmative response. One only has to go by reports of how the world is lapping up Indian spirituality to find that elusive magic formula for peace.
The popularity abroad of the formula of yoga, pranayama and meditation confirms that paranoia about Indian spirituality is gradually giving way to a sense of appreciation and acceptance. At least, outside India!
Update on the fire In Petrol Pump Basti, Vasant Kunj, Delhi
Current Situation And Information Regarding Help From Civil Society And Concerned Citizens
SOME FACTS ABOUT THE INCIDENT
· The fire started at around 7.30 in the morning and only stopped at around 11.30, after the whole basti leaving 3-4 houses had been destroyed.
Faces of Terrorism in India
By M. Burhanuddin Qasmi,
The media and and law inforcement agencies' onslaught with assumptions and deliberate repetitions of Muslim names after each terror attack in India made a penetration into common hearts and it ultimately implies that terrorism is a Muslim specialty in the country.
Muslims in/of India: surrogate oppressors or colonizers?
A Muslim woman deconstructs how dominant majoritarian narratives reconstruct Indian Muslim women as the perpetual Other.
Misria Shaik Ali | TwoCircles.net
This is an article, an...
The Gaza blockade and the flotilla: fighting violence with non-violence
By Michael N. Nagler
When organisers from the International Solidarity Movement, which aims to support and strengthen Palestinian popular resistance to the Israeli occupation, consulted us at the California-based Metta Center for Nonviolence about attempting to break the naval blockade of Gaza in 2007, its first year, we advised them not to bring both humanitarian aid and people whom Israel had declared persona non grata on the same voyage.
Notwithstanding murmurs, dim chances of grand alliance in UP
By Mohit Dubey
Lucknow: After the impressive electoral victory of the Grand Alliance or "Mahagathbandhan" in neighbouring Bihar, murmurs for a similar political arrangement ahead...
Misconceptions about Hyderabad state and Nizam
By Kaneez Fathima,
When the Telangana state bill for the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh came in the Assembly for discussion Andhra MLAs and the chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy did not allow the house to have discussion on the bifurcation bill. In the House, there were remarks on the Nizam of Hyderabad, his rule and about his development to the state by TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu, P. Keshav, Narender and Legislative Affairs Minister, Shailajanath.
BJP’s fringe: Tail wagging the dog?
By Amulya Ganguli
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has spent much of its time in recent weeks telling its members to behave.
When party president...
Is Indian electrol democracy deceptive?
By Syed Ali Mujtaba,
The recently concluded 16 Lok Sabha election has thrown up many harsh realities of Indian democracy and its time for introspection and chalk out possible correction methods from the lessons learned, if we may like worship the ideals of democratic governance.
देश में सूखा: मरते इंसान, बेबस सरकार
मोहम्मद आसिफ़ इक़बाल
मराठवाड़ा के बीड़ इलाके के साबलखेड़ गांव में रविवार को एक बच्ची की पानी भरने के दौरान मौत हो गई. रविवार होने...
And the Kite flew, with the strings holding it tight…
By Najiya O, TwoCircles.net,
For those who wonder what is there in ‘Kite Strings’, Basheer has got the perfect answer:
Challenges facing Narendra Modi
By Parthasarathy Chaganty,
"No power on earth can stop an idea whose time has come" is a favourite quote of the outgoing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. If ideas can come in the form of men, Narendra Modi, set to be sworn in as India's new prime minister, is one such manifestation.
MCOCA and Malegaon bomb blast accused
By Mubasshir Mushtaq,
The ongoing twist-and-turn in the investigation of the Malegaon bomb blast of September 29 is stranger than a John Grisham novel. At this point of time, it may be difficult to say with certainty in which direction the investigation will lead to, but there are enough inputs and indicators to make an assessment.
Members of Hindu Rashtriya Sena protest outside a Nasik court where the accused were produced on November 15
Members of Hindu Rashtriya Sena protest outside a Nasik court where the accused were produced on November 15
Arctic Ocean: Strategic implications for India and the region
By Commander (Retd) Neil Gadihoke, IANS,
Transforming police crucial to counter-terrorism
By Ajay Sahni, IANS,
The tragedy of the Jaipur blasts - as with virtually every major terrorist outrage in India -is infinitely compounded by the utter obtuseness, the manifest incomprehension and the pervasive disorder and confusion that attend official responses.
Despite an experience with terrorism that has extended over decades, it is evident that the state and its agencies are yet to establish even the most basic protocols of response - at least minimally for the securing of the incident location and the ordered and humane transport of the injured and dead.
Is Islamic banking the boiled ice-cream?
By Dr. Shariq Nisar
On January 5, 2010, in response to a PIL filed by Dr. Subramanium Swamy, the High Court of Kerala put a stay on the activities of the proposed Islamic Non-Banking Finance Company, Albarakah Financial Services Ltd. The Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) in question has been co-promoted by the state owned business entity Kerala State Industrial Corporation (KSIDC) and some business men belonging to different religious communities including Hindus and Christians.
Press freedom is a compromised reality in India
By Amit Kapoor
According to the World Press Freedom Index, which measures the level of freedom of information in 180 countries, ranks India at...
Modi Wins 2014 Elections: Victory of Development or Divisiveness
By Ram Puniyani,
The results of Parliamentary Elections are very interesting. With 31% vote share BJP-Modi won 282 Parliament seats, Congress with 19% vote share got 44 seats, BSP polled 4.1 percent of votes and drew a total blank, the Trinamool Congress won 3.8 percent of vote share with 34 seats, Samajwadi Party won 3.4 percent with five MPs, AIADMK with 3.3 got 37 seats, Mamta with 3.8% of vote share got 32 seats while CPIM with 3.3 percent of vote share got nine seats. We should note that this time around Congress’s 19.3% votes translated into 44 seats while during last general elections of 2009 BJP's 18.5% had fetched it 116 seats. That’s a tale by itself, the crying need for electoral reforms which has been pending despite such glaring disparities which weaken the representative character of our Parliament. Many social activists have been asking for these reforms but in vain.
Who will ostracise ghosts of the Sept. 6, 2014 Kashmir floods?
By Sheikh Qayoom
Srinagar : Few Kashmiris can forget the night of September 6, 2014 and the horror that continued for nearly a month after...
CPI leader Bardhan critical
New Delhi : Veteran Communist Party of India (CPI) leader A.B. Bardhan was in critical condition after suffering a paralytic stroke here on Monday,...
Falling cotton prices: Need to combine ‘Tech with Mech’
By Vivian Fernandes,
Kanhaiyyalal Patel, 52, cannot hide his disappointment as he contemplates a cheque for Rs.76,154 given to him by Saksham Industries for 1,800 kg of cotton. A farmer of Tunda village, in Mehsana's Unjha taluk in Gujarat, renowned for the wholesale market for cumin, flaxseed and fennel, Patel's cheer at getting a better rate at another mandi a stone's throw away, is clouded by a feeling of relative deprivation.
The untold story behind the Sabarmati riverfront
By Vanya Mehta, TwoCircles.net,
The Sabarmati riverfront, for Ahmedabad residents, is a welcomed respite of clean walkways and greenery. Young middle class teenagers safely venture out with their friends in the evening to enjoy the pleasant views of the river, watching the riverfront light up. The elderly take their morning walks nearby adolescent trees, before the heat settles in for the day. Gujarati tourism, boasted by Chief Minister and BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, is given a further facelift by the presence of this cultural landmark that stretches 11 kilometers across the length of the Sabarmati River.
How ISI engineers Pakistan elections
By K. Subrahmanyam, IANS
A 38-page dossier prepared by the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) on a detailed plan by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) which was to have been released by Benazir Bhutto Dec 27, 2007, the day she was killed has been leaked by her followers in London. The objective of the plan was to cripple the opponent by slow and gradual measures, in a manner that was not connected plausibly with the subsequent elections.
आखिर क्यों है ख़तरे में सूचना का अधिकार…?
रईस अहमदी
“#MeToo” के शोर ओ गुल में भारत दुनियाभर के 119 देशों के भुखमरी दूर करने वाले सर्वे में 55वें पायदान से गिरकर 103वें...
Why BJP lost? No anti Gandhi anger to harvest
By Saeed Naqvi ,
Recent by-election reverses for the BJP are early intimations of mortality for the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah duet. As a senior BJP...
Armed with pictures that tell a thousand words: The protestors of Srinagar’s Pratap Park
In the first part of a three-part series on the missing people of Jammu and Kashmir, Raqib Hameed Naik looks at the courageous work...
Kejriwal seeks fresh MCD election amid staff protests
New Delhi : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday sought fresh elections to the city's largest civic body amid protests by employees demanding...
No space for two Brahmin parties
By Faraz Ahmad
If on May 16, the results of India’s general elections turn out to be as portrayed in the Exit Polls, it will...
The categorical revolution: Democratic uprising in the Middle East
By Irfan Ahmad,
Why “The Categorical Revolution”?
More to Saudi women than the niqab
By Maha Akeel
Perhaps one of the most misunderstood and stereotyped countries in the world is Saudi Arabia, particularly when it comes to its women.
Minorityism of the majority rule
By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net
A new regime is in town and there is a rush to pledge allegiance to the new power. The power brokers that...
Ramu Gandhi: A solitary thinker in smug, noisy times
By Manish Chand
Not many get to choose the place they die in, but knowing Ramchandra Gandhi, one gets an eerie feeling that this peripatetic thinker would have wanted to breathe his last moments in a place that was his home and yet not his home for so many years, symbolising the eternal homelessness of the modern intellectual.
The catastrophe finally arrived in Kashmir
By Abdul MajidZargar,
Kashmir has been devastated by raging floods. While the human toll is yet to be ascertained, the over-all loss to property, infrastructure & business is estimated to be one lakh crores of rupees. Our ruling class has lost no time in urging New-Delhi to declare the tragedy a national calamity, but their tribe andadministration cannot escape the blame of inviting this fury and in that respect it can legitimately be called a man-made calamity.Two MLAs are fast emerging as facilitators, if not architects, of the whole tragedy.
I waited…
By Irfanullah Farooqi,
Like a laborer’s hungry child
waiting for her parent at the doorstep
when the day steps out with reluctance
and night enters with a sense of shame
with tears, I waited for tears in your eyes
for I knew no being is barren in the eyes of love
So, with moist eyes, I waited for those moist eyes
I had heard crime itself punished the doer
I was told guilt was inescapably human
So, with few drops, I waited for those few drops
Nuclear negligence: Heads must roll
By Narayanan Suresh, IANS,
With a population of nearly 1.2 billion, human life has never been a premium in India. Thousands die every year due to easily avoidable causes such as stampedes at temples, wilful flouting of road safety rules particularly by state-run buses, people touching live electric wires left loose by government utilities and drowning in open manholes of sewage pipelines.
Babri Masjid demolition and Liberhan Commission report
By Asghar Ali Engineer,
Justice Liberhan submitted its report to the Government of India. The Commission was set up 10 days after the demolition of Babri Masjid and it took 17 long years and 48 extensions before it submitted the report on June 30th of this year (2009). However, the report has still not been tabled in the Parliament and is expected to be tabled during this winter session. But parts of the Report have been published in Indian Express
One cannot pursue political ambition at cost of one’s life, says Shweta Bhatt
By Sayema Sahar for TwoCircles.net,
Gordimer to ‘Post’: Israel must talk to its enemies
By Tom Hope and Steve Linde,
As bitter, disheartening and entangled the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is, Nadine Gordimer's message is emphatic: Don't give up. It can be solved, but only by realising one thing: Talking to your worst enemies is the only way out.
Kawish, an effort to empower through guidance and counseling
A Year-long Series on Education, Sponsored by The Aligarh Forum : - A Mirror on our Efforts, our Successes & our Shortcomings ; Stories...
4 years of Najeeb’s disappearance and the lore of systematic betrayal
By Ahmad Khan, TwoCircles.net
The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.
The formidable sentence that author Milan Kundera wrote more...
Kulsum Sayani: A ‘Rahber’ of Hindustani
By Danish Khan,
We all have heard of Ameen Sayani, the golden voice of radio, recognised and loved by lakhs of listeners. Sayani's voice has touched the lives of many which makes people nostalgic of the good old days of the radio. History buffs might know that his grandfather Rahimtulla Sayani was elected the president of Congress in 1896 and was a well known lawyer in Bombay.