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An article in the Indian Express, written by the Vice-Chancellor of NALSAR University, Hyderabad, Faizan Mustafa states that the Indian minorities are too fed up of the facade of secularism.

Mustafa argues that if Indians are done with the Nehruvian model of secularism (without pointing out its flaws), they should declare the country a Hindu rashtra, giving Hinduism the status of the dominant spiritual heritage.

He is right in saying that the Hindu rashtra will not be entirely different from the current secular state, because it is not in Hinduisms character to do what Pakistan or other Islamic countries do to religious minorities.

We also agree with him that a Hindu rashtra must bring with it genuine liberalism.

However, there is a catch, and those who are not well-prepared, will be left bewildered by Mustafas proposal.

One, its an ultimatum to intellectuals to work hard to save the Left-Islamist marriage

The proposal is a warning to the Left compatriots that unless they get a grip of the narrative and strike the enemy harder, the regressive Left-Islamist marriage is in trouble.

It signals that the Muslims intellectuals are keeping the option open, instead, to negotiate with more benign right-wing elements.

Two, it is a veiled threat imperial forces are too powerful to be pushed out of the game

The message is that we can change things on paper as much as we want, but the functioning of the Christian and Islamic imperial structures in India will remain intact.

The reason simply is that they already function with minimal dependence on other communities or indigenous political, social and economic structures. In a globalised world, they hold an organisational, political and financial clout that the Hindus can hardly match.

It is important to recognise that these imperial forces have a utilitarian approach towards the Left.

Indian Left exists thanks to the the alliance with imperial forces, not the other way around.

Left is quite expendable for the imperialists. Its only utility comes from the hegemony in the intellectual ecosystem.

If that comes under threat, the imperial forces can also directly negotiate with the non-Left forces to come to a new arrangement where they are, as before, left alone to work, just, say, at a higher price.

Even the political parties vilified as saffron have shown eagerness to maintain a functioning partnership with the Christian and Islamic supremacist forces.

The tallest Christian cross coming up in Mizoram, illegal church construction on Sattra land in Majuli, Assam, the Tablighi Jamaat-Covid-19 fiasco, and the (lack of) reaction to the recent mob lynching of two saffron-clad sadhus in the Christian missionary hotbed Palghar, Maharashtra are but a few examples.

Given the ideological straitjacket, even in the case where the right wing becomes the new ally of the imperial forces, the Left can only push the narrative of "Hindu fascism as it does now.

In fact, a Hindu rashtra will offer an unprecedented convenience to imperial forces a complacent right-wing and an ineffective Left.

Three, it assumes right wing cant achieve anything beyond winning a few elections

Mustafa seems to be banking on the assumption that a lot of left-wing intellectuals have that the Indian right wing simply doesnt have a coherent constructive ideology or strategy beyond criticising Congress and the Left. It can change the name, but it has no alternative to Nehruvian secularism in practice.

The Left has always assumed that the emergence of a political Hindu is impossible due to the internal contradictions of the Hindu society.

Not that the Left cant see that there is real anger among Hindus based on genuine grievances, but it is sure that given the lack of intellectual leadership, it will never be channelised into anything concrete.

The Left-wing intellectuals themselves proudly proclaim that there are almost no right wing intellectuals in India. So the best the right-wing can do is win some elections, but in the intellectual domain, it will always remain on the fringe.

That means, while some ad hoc innocuous measures like CAA can crop up here and there, the right-wing wont ever have any real, long term productive power.

It also means that the right-wing movement will be limited to one political party all eggs in one basket; and right-wingers will never amount to anything more than IT cell and bhakts.

Fourth, the surety that a Hindu rashtra will fail and its failure will sound death the knell of the Hindu movement

The proposal also has an underlying sadism if India becomes a Hindu rashtra, it will only end up the way Nazi Germany did beaten, disgraced and untouchable.

The Germans were rescued by their fellow white men but the guilt of a failed Hindu rashtra would be so immense that the Hindus won't dare become political again, and retire to a permanent passiveness.

It would sound the death knell of the Hindu culture and philosophy that survived centuries of persecution.

The same fear is visible in the older generation of the right-wing intellectuals who, as a result, restrained the movement tightly.

The likes of Arun Shourie did a great job exposing the left cabal but always maintained a suspicion of the right-wing politics.

All the four points discussed above pose substantial challenge for the right-wing, and must be taken seriously.

The movement definitely has a long way to go, be it organising and educating the masses in Indic politics, or having a voice loud-enough to penetrate the intellectual ivory towers.

However, at the same time, the recent trends suggest that the days of Hindu movement being defined by the Left are over.

One, a Hindu political being is already here

The Left banking on the internal contradictions of Hindu society for divide and rule hasnt noticed that pan-Hindu unity and a Hindu political being is already on the scene.

Research shows that contrary to the claims that it is an upper-caste party, the BJPs social base is now broad-based and mirrors the Hindu society.

The shift of the poor, rural and lower caste voters to BJP is ideological, and those who identify with BJP arent swayed by short-term considerations.

This shouldnt come as a surprise to intellectuals. It is a logical outcome of the path our political and intellectual leaders took and the choices they made after independence.

Also read: New Research, Old Findings: Rural, Poor And Lower Caste Voters Are Behind Phenomenal Rise Of BJP

Two, Intellectuals can exist outside the ecosystem

Imperialists-financed incentive structure means the Left dominates the knowledge ecosystem, and attracts more career-minded ambitious folks.

But the humanities and social sciences arent such specialised disciplines that the people not trained in them for years cannot penetrate.

.As much expertise the intellectuals like to credit to themselves, its not very hard to master the English language and explain things in it.

The Hindu movement does not have to depend on the mercy of the ecosystem for intellectual leadership.

Three, young right-wingers today are very different from the older generation

The Left incentive structure is controlled by a few oldies at the top. While this means better organisation, it also means lesser intelligence and flexibility to respond to changes on ground.

On the other hand, right-wing isnt as organised, but is filled with and driven by young minds.

These young people born post-liberalisation can imagine a life without a maai-baap state. They dont toe the line that the Left has set for them by marking no go zones with the labels of fascism, bhakt, troll, saffron etc.

The Left has so far managed Indians by fear and intimidation.

But young Indians today think for themselves, fiercely protect their autonomy and dont cow-down to moral shaming.

Unlike the older generation of right-wing intellectuals, they are neither reluctant nor ashamed to assert own existence with full force.

Sure, they are a little rough around the edges, but its a minor problem that can be solved by little guidance.

Four, Hindus arent clueless fanatics. They know what they are fighting, and what is it that they want

The Left threatens Indians into submitting to the imperial forces lest multiple identities regarding caste, language, region pull apart the nation.

Too bad it cannot see that hundreds of right-wing groups with young people from a variety of backgrounds are a continuing experiment of respectful co-existence which is neither marred by Lefts victimology-driven over-sensitivity, nor oppressive caste hierarchy or cowbelt dominance.

Mustafa says Hindutva fanatics will be hugely disappointed to know that the Hindu rashtra will not be entirely different from the current secular state.

Professor Mustafa will be disappointed to know that that the Hindus are no more fooled by a superficial change, like that of the Nehru surname to Gandhi.

What Hindus are demanding is a rigorous evaluation of the past crimes against them, the ideas that propelled it, and breaking the structures that continue to push the same ideas. Fight is not against certain groups, but certain ideas.

For the sake of brevity, we wont go in the details of what Indic thought is, and how the Indic movement is tackling the long-term challenges of caste discrimination, communalism, etc.

Suffice to say that both the diagnoses and solutions are more accurate and effective than the Lefts oppressor-oppressed binary.

Five, the current Hindu movement has same creative power as the Indian National Movement

In the real-world outside Leftist fantasies, the right-wing is not composed of just some street-level clueless fanatics. It is not an aberration of history, a high tide that is destined to go down.

The aberration in Indian history is the hegemony of Left in independent India that, in alliance with global capitalists and imperialists, made the legacy of the freedom movement stand on its head.

Also read: Indian Lefts Fall From Grace: Those Who Criticised Global Capitalism Are Now Taking Orders From Foreign Masters

Its time to bring out Gandhi, Bose, Tagore and others mummified and neatly arranged in the museum of Indian Left; breathe a new life into their ideas, and build upon the foundation laid by them.

The current Indic movement situates itself as a successor of the Indian national movement. Its a river that slowly but steadily cuts its way.

It is the continuation of the fight for the ideals of the freedom fighters, be it Tagores atmasakti; Ghoshs reawakening of Indias ancient spirit ; Vivekanandas idea of service, Ambedkars organise, Tilaks swaraj, Boses India is calling or Gandhis Ram Rajya.

Continue reading here:
Some Liberals Are Warming Up To The Idea Of Hindu Rashtra Over Nehruvian Secularism, Whats The Catch? - Swarajya

The Liberal governmentreached a tentative agreementwith the NDP and the Bloc Qubcois about the conditions under which Parliament could reconvene this week but the Conservatives' rejection of thatdeal could lead to MPsreturning to the Commons on Monday.

"One sitting each week is unacceptable, even if it is eventually supplemented by a virtual sitting for a handful of additional MPs," Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said during a news conference on Sunday. "Physical distancing means staying two metres apart, not staying away from Parliament."

The Official Opposition's insistence on meeting in the House of Commons three times a weekmeans negotiations between federal parties remain up in the air on the eve ofApril 20 thedateMPs were intendedto reconvene when Parliament adjourned five weeks ago.

The Liberal Party told its staff Sunday that if no deal is reached between all four parties before late Monday morning, the party will attend theHouse sittingin reduced numbersand with minimal staff present.

That would scenario would see the NDP and the Bloc each sending three MPs to the House. B.C. MP Paul Manly would attend on behalf of the Greens.

Scheer said the Conservatives are sending the same number of MPs as the last emergency sitting. The Liberals told CBC News they would do the same.

Scheer is scheduled to speak about Parliament's returnat 10:15 a.m. ET on Monday.

Earlier Sunday, Liberal House Leader Pablo Rodriguez shared on Twitter details of theagreement struck with the NDP and the Bloc, which includes a combination of in-person and virtual sittings each week.

"Under the agreement, the House of Commons will hold one day of in-person meetings per week, with a small group of MPsin the chamber. As well, there will be additional virtual sessions with a small number of MPs from across the country," the statement reads.

Rodriguez said the proposal will give MPs the same amount of time toquestion ministers and the prime minister as they would normally have under regular parliamentary circumstances.

During his Sunday COVID-19 briefing earlier in the day, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticizedthe Conservatives for their repeated calls to convene in the Commons' chamber.

"I'm looking forward to taking questions from opposition parties, but it has to be done in a responsible way and right now, the Conservatives are not taking a responsible approach," Trudeau said.

Late Saturday, CBC News learned that the Trudeau government had offered to compress five days of question period into two days a week.

The arrangement would have involvedvirtual sittings every Tuesday, with MPs across the country taking part in the equivalent of two question periods. On Wednesdays, a smaller number of MPs and the prime minister would sit in the House of Commons and face the equivalent of three question periods.

In contrast, the tentative deal between the Liberals, NDP and Blocstarts with a proposal for asingle in-person sitting beginning this Wednesday.

By next week, one session would be held virtually on Tuesday, followed by a sitting in the chamber on Wednesday.

The following week and all subsequent weeks would see MPs meeting virtually on Tuesdays and Thursdays and in-person on Wednesdays, for a total of three sessions per week.

The arrangement is similar to the NDP's initial recommendation, which called for the House to meet in-person once a week on top of two virtual sessions that would involve hearing from a larger contingent of MPs.

"I think the reality is the more we are meeting in person, the more that increasesthe risk. That's why the NDP proposal, I think, makes a lot of sense," said NDP House Leader Peter Julian.

Trudeau said during his morning remarksthat convening all 338 MPsand their staff in the House of Commons would amount to an "irresponsible" move due to public health guidance urging Canadians to practisephysical distancing.

Scheer fired back at the prime minister for suggesting that any parties were advocating for afull roster of MPs to return to the Commons on Monday.

"That is completely false, and it's disingenuous to try to put that forward before Canadians as if that was a real scenario," Scheer said.

The outgoing leader also said that his proposal which includes two hours per session to question ministers is in line with theprotocols legislators followed during the government's last two emergency sittings.

"Thirty-twoMPs attended representing all parties," Scheer said. "This allowed us to follow public health advice and still carry out our duties."

While the Green Party of Canada does not hold recognized party status, former leader Elizabeth May saidshesupports sitting in the Commons only if there is a compelling reason to do so, such as passing legislation.

Commenting on Scheer's insistence thatvirtual sittings do not allow for proper parliamentary scrutiny and oversight, May said she believes remote platforms do just fine when it comes to holding politicians to account.

"We've already seen standing committees meet by Zoom," May said in an interview with CBC News. "I've seen [Conservative MP] Pierre Poilievre go at Bill Morneau. It wasn't any different in quality than question period. His opportunities were exactly the same."

More here:
Conservatives reject Liberals' tentative agreement with NDP, Bloc on Parliament's return - CBC.ca

The media are outraged that President Trump is talking about re-opening the country, following their previous position that he sure was taking his sweet time at opening up the country.

Fortunately, the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions death forecasts from the Wuhan coronavirus have shrunk from 1.7 million Americans in mid-March; to 100,000 to 200,000 two weeks ago, provided there were massive suppression efforts; to most recently 60,000.

Every week, it seems, were another two weeks away from the apex.

According to a model recently published in The New York Times, if Trump had issued social distancing guidelines just two weeks earlier on March 2, rather than March 16 instead of 60,000 Americans dying from the Chinese coronavirus (projected!), only 6,000 would have died.

If thats what a two-week quarantine would have done, then how about a four-week quarantine?

By the end of the month, 90% of the country will have been shut down, quarantined and socially distancing for FOUR WEEKS. A majority of Americans have already been under these self-isolation rules for three weeks. (And most of the rest live in rural communities 16 miles from one another.)

Two weeks is the magic number. Test positive for the Wuhan: self-quarantine for two weeks. Come into contact with someone who has it: self-quarantine for two weeks. Traveling from New York, New Jersey or Connecticut: self-quarantine for two weeks.

With cold and flu viruses, people develop symptoms after just five days. But to be extra safe, were assuming the Wuhan virus can be transmitted for a full two weeks after contact.

After two weeks, youre either sick or the infection has passed through you with no symptoms.

Again: Its been three. Does social distancing work or doesnt it?

After four weeks of self-isolation, wont 90% of the country be Wuhan-free? Or are we in a sci-fi movie with a virus that can live forever without a host?

For the tiny percentage of the country not in self-isolation for the past three weeks, either because they are essential workers or because they are screw-offs, lets add them to the vulnerable list. Everyone take special precautions around doctors, nurses, grocery store employees and people who dont follow orders just as we do around the elderly and immunocompromised.

By May 1, even most of the slackers will have worked through the Wuhan. There havent been any large gatherings for them to attend, and almost everyone else has been staying 6 feet away from them. Theyve had a month to infect one another and either live or die.

In any event, unless all the claims about social distancing are nonsense, then a ONE-MONTH nationwide quarantine should have killed off the Wuhan in 90% of us, allowing a return to mostly normal life. (It goes without saying that Trumps travel bans will have to remain in place.)

I notice that the same people telling Americans they must remain at home indefinitely were indignant about closing bathhouses in response to the AIDS epidemic. Back then, the media and all gays except Randy Shilts said: How dare you ask us to shut down the bathhouses! Theyre part of gay culture. It would be like asking Catholics to stop visiting the Sistine Chapel!

But putting the entire country under stay-at-home orders? No problem.

Another liberal about-face since the AIDS era gives me an idea for how to re-open the country.

Liberals are furious with Trump for expressing optimism about the experimental drug hydroxychloroquine. When it came to AIDS, the gay communitys successful campaign to compel the FDA to allow compassionate use of unapproved drugs was a civil rights milestone on the order of Selma.

In a 1990 editorial, for example, The New York Times praised the educated and articulate gay spokesmen for bringing about changes in the traditional methods of testing drugs, adding that the new procedures were a compassionate response to AIDS sufferers.

By contrast, today the media are absolutely ghoulish in their hope for hydroxychloroquine to fail. The drug is approved for malaria patients, so its safe; its simply not approved specifically to treat the Chinese virus.

The reason for the medias hostility to hydroxychloroquine is obvious: Trump expressed enthusiasm for the treatment, so liberals are required to take the opposite position.

Its just like the Democrats recent infatuation with open borders. Until Trump, nearly every Democrat was for or claimed to be for border security, deporting criminal aliens and ending the anchor baby scam.

But as the Times Frank Bruni said, Democrats are defining themselves as antonyms to Trump. Why else, he wondered, would Democrats push policies like open borders, which wont go down well with many of the voters the party needs?

Perhaps we could use this liberal neurosis to our advantage. To re-open the country, we need Trump to come out against it.

Ann Coulter is the writer of 12 best-selling books, including In Trump We Trust.

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ANN COULTER: Liberalism, like the Wuhan virus, will never die - MDJOnline.com

Seasonal workers who have exhausted their regular EI benefits and whose seasonal work has been disrupted by the outbreak will also qualify.

The changes will be retroactive to March 15.

For those doing jobs deemed essential and making less than $2,500 a month, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government will top up their pay to encourage them to keep going into work during the health and economic crisis.

The payment will come through a transfer to the provinces to boost pay for front-line workers in hospitals, long-term care facilities and food services, a government backgrounder said.

Quebec and B.C. already implemented wage support for low-income essential workers.

He says the government is still weeks away from seriously considering loosening public health restrictions to reopen the domestic economy, something that will be done in phases with some regions and industries starting sooner than others.

The changes begin to address key concerns about who qualifies for the $2,000-a-month benefit, which was quickly put in place earlier this month to deal with the pandemics economic fallout.

In the last month, the national economy has contracted sharply as businesses have been ordered closed and Canadians told to stay home.

Preliminary data from Statistics Canada on Wednesday showed economic activity collapsed in March, suggesting the drop could be a record 9%.

Some six million people have applied for the help since the middle of March when businesses were ordered closed and workers to stay at home as a public health precaution.

Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough said it was too early to say how many people will apply for the help, or how much it will add to the cost of the $24-billion program.

She said much will rest on how many companies use an upcoming $73 billion wage subsidy program, which will cover up to 75% of employee salaries. The government is expecting companies to take advantage of the program to keep workers tied to an employer, meaning fewer of them would be in receipt of the CERB.

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Liberals ease access to emergency benefit, plan to top up wages - Investment Executive

What did Dr. Ambedkar want? The title of his most famous book makes it quite clear. TheAnnihilation of Caste. He was not a man who would mince his words.

Today as the nation remembers Dr. Ambedkar on his 129th birth anniversary, let us go beyond the token tributes and ask the really important questions. Who in contemporary India really stands against casteism? And who stands to gain the most when Hindus are divided on caste lines?

The answer is fairly obvious. In 2019, the opposition to Modi had no clear leader and no coherent agenda.The opposition had only one backup plan: casteism.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BSP and the SP had been poles apart for decades. But the arch rivals decided to fight the 2019 election in a Gathbandhan. Not only the two parties themselves, there was also intense pressure from within the liberal ecosystem for the two parties to come together. Nobody wanted to ask what two regional parties, with a total footprint of around 80 seats, had to offer in terms of a national agenda. Instead they added up the share in population of Yadavs and Dalits and decided that, along with Muslims, this was a winning formula.

In other words, Uttar Pradesh was presented with a clear choice. Modi vs caste.

Incidentally, the Congress stayed out of the alliance, seemingly for strategic reasons. It was expected that the Congress would put up upper caste candidates, thereby cutting into the BJPs votes. That way, the Congress could be more useful outside the alliance than inside it.

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Caste, caste, caste they had nothing else to offer.

Read: Why are Muslims, including the Tablighi Jamaat indulging in violence and defying lockdown: The answer lies in what Babasaheb Ambedkar said

In Maharashtra, Indias second most populous state, the strategy was quite similar. All through the 2014 to 2019 period, there were a number of attempts to provoke the Marathas against so called Brahmin rule, a direct reference to the caste of then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. When that didnt work, the ultra left set up flash points like Koregaon-Bhima. Memories of a 200 year old war with Maratha soldiers on one side and Dalit soldiers on the other were used to provoke violence in January 2018.

In the caste conflict planned by the left, the winners would neither have been Marathas nor Dalits. The winners would have been Lutyens liberals who had been writhing in pain since losing the 2014 election. Just like the Battle of Koregaon in 1818, where the real winner was the British East India Company.

Like the British, the secular opposition bats on the side of a different caste group in each state. In Haryana, they are all about consolidating the Jats against a Chief Minister who happens to be a Khatri from Punjab. But doesnt the Congress also have huge stakes in Punjab? Who cares? Different states, different demographic combinations, but the same policy of Divide and Rule.

Read:10 things Ambedkar said that Indian secularists wouldnt bear to hear

It gets better. Sometimes, the caste strategy of the secular opposition can reverse itself between two successive elections in the same state. In PM Modis home state of Gujarat, the strategy was to stop the BJP using Hardik Patel. Incidentally, there are two subgroups among Patels : Kadva Patels and Leuva Patels. Now, Hardik happens to be a Kadva Patel. This means that the Congress 2017 Assembly election strategy was built around courting Kadva Patels, projecting Modi as pro-Leuva Patels. This is ironic, because the 2012 Assembly election strategy of Congress was all about courting Leuva Patels using the newly formed Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) and projecting Modi as pro-Kadva Patels.

This may seem funny, but it really isnt. Because this is the kind of pathetic politics that has kept India from becoming a superpower.

The creativity of casteist politics does not end here. In Karnataka, the Congress is up against B S Yediyurappa, who happens to be a Lingayat. So in 2014, the ruling Congress in Karnataka decided to bring a bill that would allow them to take over religious mutts, the obvious targets being the Lingayat mutts all across the state. But the bill was met with fierce protests and it fell through.

With Plan A failing, the Congress did a perfect U-turn on caste politics in Karnataka. Plan B was to stop fighting the Lingayats and instead project the party as their savior. Just before the 2018 Assembly elections, the party announced hastily that Lingayats were now a separate religion and thus entitled to benefits of being a minority!

When Plan B didnt deliver good enough results, the Congress came up with Plan C. Ally with the JDS and secure the votes of the Vokkaliga caste!

If only all this creativity had gone into nation building instead of playing one caste against another.

Read: Babasaheb Ambedkar: A scholar, a Nationalist and a visionary wrongly appropriated by the Left

I could go on and on about other states, how the secular opposition plays caste politics in Bihar, in Andhra Pradesh and so on. But you get the point.

Caste is a system of hereditary privilege. When we examine any system of privilege, we have to ask : who benefits?

With all its talk of social justice, the Congress got away with over six decades of submission to a single upper caste family from the Hindi heartland. Incidentally, the Congress did have a Dalit President for a while in Sitaram Kesri. Reportedly, he was locked in the toilet to make way for you know who. By the way, dont miss the symbolism of the toilet here.

Today, even the most loyal Congress supporter in the world would not bet on Rahul Gandhi, except perhaps to show off his janeudhari status. No! The politics of Indias secular opposition runs on casteism.

In 2019, India rejected the politics of caste. That was one step towards fulfilling Dr. Ambedkars dream.

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Read more from the original source:
Ambedkar Jayanti: In 2019, casteism was the only hope of liberals to stop Modi - OpIndia