Temple desecration sparks communal tensions in Maharashtra’s Jalna despite arrest of Hindu accused
Jalna: A village in Maharashtra’s Jalna district has become a flashpoint of communal tension following the desecration of a 12th-century Mahadev temple on September 19. Police investigations, however, revealed that the accused was not from the Muslim community but a Hindu man, a fact that has done little to calm the unrest.
According to police, CCTV footage confirmed the involvement of 38-year-old Nandkishor Suresh Wadgaonkar, a resident of Anwa village in Bhokardan tehsil. Wadgaonkar, who lived near the temple, allegedly threw meat pieces inside the premises after being denied permission to build a house close to the shrine. Officers suspect personal grievances fueled his actions.
Despite his arrest, right-wing groups rejected the police findings and launched protests, alleging a cover-up. Agitations quickly escalated, with inflammatory speeches targeting Muslims and abusive slogans raised during a bandh. Fear spread through the community, forcing many Muslim families to flee. Students from minority-run BHMS and ITI colleges also vacated their hostels and returned home.
On Friday, thousands gathered at Chhatrapati Shivaji Chowk in Bhokardan under the banner of a “Hindu Jan Akrosh Morcha,” demanding a Special Investigation Team (SIT). Leaders such as Ratnagiri Maharaj, activist Sangram Bhandare, Ahilyanagar MLA Sangram Jagtap (NCP–Ajit Pawar faction), and Ambadas Ambhore addressed the rally, delivering speeches laced with communal rhetoric.
The incident has revived memories of past violence in the region. On March 23, 2023, Imam Zakir Sayyad Khaja of Anwa village was attacked in a mosque by unidentified assailants who forced him to chant “Jai Shri Ram.” When he refused, they slashed his beard with a blade.
In the wake of the current unrest, Muslim residents petitioned Additional Superintendent of Police Ayush Nopany, demanding legal action against right-wing activists who, they alleged, “abused Muslims and vitiated the atmosphere.” Former MP Imtiyaz Jaleel also condemned the hate-filled speeches, urging police not to bow to political pressure and to act firmly against those inciting communal discord.
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Indian-origin translator Padma Viswanathan shortlisted for International Booker Prize 2026
New Delhi (PTI): Padma Viswanathan, a Canadian-American writer of Indian-origin, has made it to the 2026 International Booker Prize shortlist as the English translator of a Portuguese language novella.
"On Earth As It Is Beneath" by Brazilian author Ana Paula Maia, described by judges as a "brutal, haunting and hypnotic novella set in a remote Brazilian penal colony, where the boundaries between justice and cruelty collapse", is among the six worldwide contenders for the coveted literary honour.
The annual prize worth GBP 50,000, divided equally between the author and translator, was won last year by Kannada writer-activist Banu Mushtaq and translator Deepa Bhasthi for the short story collection "Heart Lamp". Each shortlisted title guarantees a prize of GBP 5,000 -- also split 50-50 between the book’s author and English translator.
"What struck us most is how spare, unflinching, uncompromising and relentless it is. Maia builds an entire moral universe out of very little: a remote prison, a handful of men, and the rituals of punishment that govern their lives.
"The novel reads almost like a dark fable about power, where brutality is ordinary and civilisation feels frighteningly thin," the judging panel, which also include award-winning Indian novelist and columnist Nilanjana S. Roy, said of the work translated by US-based Viswanathan.
The 58-year-old professor of creative writing at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville is an accomplished playwright and author, whose novels have been published in eight countries.
The list, announced on Tuesday, is dominated by women, with five of the six authors and four of the six translators being female. The authors and translators represent eight countries -- Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, France, Germany, Taiwan, the UK and the United States.
"With narratives that capture moments from across the past century, these books reverberate with history. While there’s heartbreak, brutality and isolation among these stories, their lasting effect is energising," said author Natasha Brown, chair of this year’s judging panel.
The other books include "The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran" by Shida Bazyar and translated from German by Ruth Martin; "She Who Remains" by Rene Karabash and translated from Bulgarian by Izidora Angel; "The Director" by Daniel Kehlmann and translated from German by Ross Benjamin; "Taiwan Travelogue" by Yáng Shuāng-zi and translated from Taiwanese by Lin King; and "The Witch" by Marie Ndiaye and translated from French by Jordan Stump.
The announcement of the winning book will take place on May 19 at a ceremony at Tate Modern in London.
The International Booker Prize is awarded annually for a single work of fiction -- either a novel or a collection of short stories -- written in another language, translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland.
According to the organisers, the 2025 winner "Heart Lamp" –- the first collection of short stories to win the prize and the first translated from Kannada –- rapidly sold out in the UK in the subsequent days, with the UK publisher, And Other Stories, immediately reprinting 40,000 copies.
