American society is a such a bundle of contradictions and fake contradictions that if you don’t have an adequate sense of humour, you will definitely collapse”

The Mumbai Police arrested Republic TV Chief Arnab Goswami on Wednesday. Since his arrest, Delhi’s BJP leaders are crying hoarse over infringement of ‘freedom of expression.’

The only ray of hope for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s supporters is the claim that the world is looking at India because of Modi. The moment allegations such as the collapse of India’s economy, increase in unemployment, and reduction in GDP growth rate are levelled, BJP leaders try to push things under the carpet by claiming that ‘even then, the world’s focus is on India.’

Amidst an economic crisis engulfing the entire country, the Legislative Assembly elections in Bihar are attracting a lot of attention. Expectations that Chirag Paswan, the son of deceased Bihar strongman Ram Vilas Paswan, would fill the shoes of his father have fallen flat. By showing that he is more loyal to the service of Prime Minister Narendra Modi than his father, he has found his identity in the state Assembly elections. Trying to bank on the sympathy wave, Chirag is trying to gain the support of voters by becoming a Modi bhakth instead of trying to fight the elections as a representative of the Dalit community. Even to raise his voice against the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who heads the JD(U)-BJP coalition Government, Chirag is using Modi’s name. It appears that Chirag does not have faith in his father’s political charisma.

This is not the first time that hunger has become newsworthy in India. In post-independent India, though all governments launched a war against hunger, each time hunger won the war. 

In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, the world is not as much dismayed at the deaths due to the infection as much as it is at the deaths due to hunger. 

The brutal case of rape and murder that took place in Hatharas, Uttar Pradesh, is being compared to the ‘Nirbhaya’ incident in Delhi. But the Hathras incident appears more terrible and barbaric than the Nirbhaya case. The latter at least did not have any social or political dimensions and no attempt was made to shield the accused.

“Does your wife work?” “No, she stays at home.” Such conversations are common in India. Women’s management of the home and household chores is not accorded ‘the status of a job.’ Only if a woman ventures out to work in an office, she is regarded as employed. If she manages her home, raises children, cooks, and manages the household, she is regarded as unemployed.