Chronicling the dismantling of the 'Idea of India'
The recent debate around ‘no confidence’ in the Lok Sabha (21st July 2018); brought to fore the policies of the Modi sarkar. Modi Sarkar has failed the country on most of the counts, control over corruption, bringing back black money hoarded in foreign banks, and failed the electoral promises like 15 lakhs in every body’s account, creation of employment for youth, controlling the rising prices, solving the agrarian crisis among others. The points raised by Rahul Gandhi leading the debate did hit the nail on the head. Some other issues, which also need to the highlighted relate to the increasing hate and violence in the society; increasing intimidation and marginalization of religious minorities in particular.
These are well outlined in a report, which has been ignored by major section of media. This refers to the report by civil society groups, brought out on the occasion of completion of four years of Modi Sarkar. Appropriately titled, ‘Dismantling India’, the book is edited by eminent activists, John Dayal, Leena Dabiru and Shabnam Hashmi. (Media House, https://www.amazon.in/Dismantling-India-4-year-Report/dp/9387298396/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1532308099&sr=8-2&keywords=dismantling+india ) The report is remarkable as it has essays by writers and activists engaged in issues related to national integration and communal harmony. Twenty two writers, who will be dubbed as 'Pseudo seculars' by the ruling party have recorded the policies of the Modi Government in a meticulous way.
This report draws a broad canvass of the happenings of last four years of Modi rule. The issue of concern, where foot soldiers-lynch mobs, have become very active and have created havoc has been well documented. These mobs look to be spontaneous but are well organized. They get activated by subtle and overt encouragement from the powers that rule. They take law into their hands as they know that they will get away with it. This report, well compiled by the editors focuses on this aspect of the Modi Sarkar, where the myths, biases stereotypes are being promoted; giving encouragement to people to take the law in their hands and to unleash the violence and intimidation against weaker sections of society.
In this report, in a very sensitive and in-depth manner, the authors collective, well known for their concern for preserving the ‘Idea of India’, take the stock of the status of civic rights, human rights and the increasing fearfulness in the society. The articles relate to all aspects of our social life, culture, promotion of divisive Hindutva politics, the culture which is promoting darkness, and opposing the very values which are the foundation of freedom movement of the country. Just to give few examples from the long list; John Dayal in a hard hitting, piece; ‘Lynching and other Consequences of Hate’ shows the mirror to the society on the issues of rising violence. Violence is not spontaneous, it is an outcome of spread of misconceptions and the consequent Hate imposed on the society. There are articles which tell us that during last four years how the Hate against religious minorities is being promoted and is creating an atmosphere where social space is getting communalized in a deeper manner leading to what Harsh Mander calls, ‘Republic of Hate’.
When our Prime Minister talked of plastic surgeon in ancient India, planting elephants’ head on a boy’s head, one could imagine that the ruling dispensation is out to promote blind faith and glorify the past, this glorification of past tells us about the presence of Pushpak Viman, Wi-Fi, TV and what have you. Writers duo Gauhar Raza and Dr. Surjit Singh list all these hilarious sounding pronouncement from our leaders, and tell us that the matter is not just about the statements, our science policy, our funding in matters of science research is diverted away from areas which will focus on the research on the issues related to people’s issues. Panchgavya (a mixture of cow’s dung, urine, milk, curd and ghee) is getting a major funding for research under a high level committee! The whole tradition of scientific Temper promoted by our first Prime minster Nehru and enshrined in our Constitution is being given a go by for such laughable policy of this government.
The education system is being communalized at a very rapid speed, the curriculum of education to promote an obscurantist view of society, to glorify Hindu kings, and to demonize the others’ is part of the agenda of Modi Sarkar. Keran Gabriel brings forth a lucid elaboration of the same. K. Satchidanandan disturbed by assault on our plural traditions emphasis on upholding the diversity of the country in his ‘The Idea of India: The case of Plurality.’ Goldy George draws out attention to the much neglected section of Adivasis in, ‘Adivaisi in Fascist regime.’, while Kavita Krishnan is highlighting the worsening of attacks on women, in her, ‘’Worst ever attacks on Women’s autonomy and rights.’ At the same time the policy related to media and judiciary and its impact of our national ethos makes a very disturbing read.
That’s not all. Editors have done the painstaking job of compiling the data on crucial issues of attacks on civil society and freedom of expression, attack on education, Hate and targeted violence against Muslims, violence against Christians, dalits, lynching’s in the name of Cow and attacks on women. This tabulation of incidents is an invaluable resource to understand the trends taking over our nation. In a way this report while it presents an in-depth picture of the political scenario of the day, brings forth the fact that BJP is a ‘party with a difference’, as it is guided by the politics of Hindu nationalism as enunciated by its parent organization, the RSS. BJP during last four years of its rule has done massive damage to the ‘Idea of India’, which needs all preservation and promotion. Surely this volume is a must read for all those engaged in preserving Human rights, preserving Indian Constitution and committed to the idea of secular democratic India.
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Texas halts H-1B visas at state universities, agencies; to affect Indians
Houston (US) (PTI): Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies and public universities to immediately halt new H-1B visa petitions, tightening hiring rules at taxpayer-funded institutions, a step likely to impact Indian professionals.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 2027.
The directive issued on Tuesday said that the state agencies and public universities must stop filing new petitions unless they receive written approval from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The governor's order, in a red state that is home to thousands of H-1B visa holders, comes as the Trump administration has initiated steps to reshape the visa programme.
“In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa programme, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that programme to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions as outlined in this letter,” Abbot said.
Institutions must also report on H-1B usage, including numbers, job roles, countries of origin, and visa expiry dates, the letter said.
US President Donald Trump on September 19 last year signed a proclamation ‘Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers’ that restricted the entry into the US of those workers whose H-1B petitions are not accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 1,00,000.
The H1-B visa fee of USD 1,00,000 would be applicable only to new applicants, i.e. all new H-1B visa petitions submitted after September 21, including those for the FY2026 lottery.
Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), with China in the second spot. The major fields include technology, engineering, medicine, and research.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the second-highest beneficiary with 5,505 approved H-1B visas in 2025, after Amazon (10,044 workers on H-1B visas), according to the USCIS. Other top beneficiaries include Microsoft (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Deloitte (2,353), Infosys (2,004), Wipro (1,523) and Tech Mahindra Americas (951).
Texas public universities employ hundreds of foreign faculty and researchers, many from India, across engineering, healthcare, and technology fields.
Date from Open Doors -- a comprehensive information resource on international students and scholars studying or teaching at higher education institutions in the US -- for 2022-2023 showed 2,70,000 students from India embarked on graduate and undergraduate degrees in US universities, accounting for 25 per cent of the international student population in the US and 1.5 per cent of the total student population.
Indian students infuse roughly USD 10 billion annually into universities and related businesses across the country through tuition and other expenses – while also creating around 93,000 jobs, according to the Open Doors data.
Analysts warn the freeze could slow recruitment of highly skilled professionals, affecting academic research and innovation.
Supporters say the directive protects local jobs, while critics caution it could weaken Texas’ competitiveness in higher education and research.
The order comes amid broader debate in the US over skilled immigration and state-level interventions in federal programmes.
H-1B visas allow US companies to hire technically-skilled professionals that are not easily available in America. Initially granted for three years, these can be extended for another three years.
In September 2025, Trump had also signed an executive order ‘The Gold Card’, aimed at setting up a new visa pathway for those committed to supporting the United States; with individuals who can pay USD 1 million to the US Treasury, or USD 2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, to get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card.
