Sanjay Singhvi - His indomitable Spirit of Activism lives on

Sanjay Singhvi is a founding member of CED. Centre for Education & Documentation in 1978.  Barely out of the Xaverian Union Agitation, where he finally went on a fast unto death for 13 days..  He spent hours on the typewriter and cyclostyling machine preparing handouts on the issues of the day.    It is too much to ask him to Rest. We therefore wish him "Amar Rahe"

Indira Jaisingh's tribute https://theleaflet.in/miscellaneous/an-ode-to-sanjay-singhvi-for-whom-life-was-an-unwavering-commitment-to-labour-justice  Sanjay, too, belonged to a disappearing class of labour lawyers who did not represent management for ideological reasons. Today it is fashionable to say: “I will take any case that comes my way.”  It is the cab rank rule but some of us make choices and he made his choices regarding which side of the line he wanted to be on. A friend, who is also a lawyer for management, told me, “He made life hell for employers, but that is what is needed. These people will never change when it comes to the rights of workers.“

“Par yaad rehti bas tareekh”- Gulfisha Fatima : A Saga of Arrest and Re-arrest

https://freespeechcollective.in/par-yaad-rehti-bas-tareekh-gulfisha-fatima-a-saga-of-arrest-and-re-arrest/  Gulfisha has also begun to write very powerful and heart-wrenching poetry to capture the experiences of her incarceration alongwith making beautiful paintings and writing letters to her friends. 
Some links to reports and Gulfisha’s prison poetry, art and letters:

‘These Walls Around Me’: Gulfisha Fatima’s Prison Poetry https://thewire.in/rights/these-walls-around-me-gulfisha-fatimas-prison-poetry 

‘Days Become Like A Ladder’: Gulfisha Fatima’s Letters from Prison https://thewire.in/rights/days-become-like-a-ladder-gulfisha-fatimas-letters-from-prison 

Right wing take over of Auroville

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/VLQlLH35dgk 

The full long version of this story is  behind a paywall. https://www.thenewsminute.com/long-form/rss-and-bjps-quiet-takeover-of-auroville

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/aurovilles-dream-turns-into-legal-chaos-land-encroachment-and-drug-allegations-surface/articleshow/113437250.cms ,,In September 1988, the Union govt took control, enacting the Auroville Foundation Act to resolve internal disputes between community power centres and representatives of the Sri Aurobindo Society. By January 1991, the Auroville Foundation was formally established. The Mother had laid out Auroville's vision in its charter, comprising four key tenets: "Auroville belongs to nobody in particular; it belongs to humanity as a whole. But to live in Auroville, one must be a willing servitor of the divine consciousness. Auroville will be a place of unending education, constant progress, and youth that never ages."..

The Union govt's recent involvement in Auroville's administr ..The lands are held by the Auroville Foundation under the Auroville Foundation Act of 1988. "These are not govt lands, and the GB and secretary's office alone do not constitute ‘the Foundation' to exchange lands without due process or consultation with the RA and IAC. It is troubling that, instead of addressing the issue, the education ministry has simply asked the Foundation's administration to investigate, essentially tasking those involved in the land mismanagement to investigate themselves. No honest outcome can be expected from such a process," they said.
The committee has urged the Union govt to appoint an impartial and independent inquiry panel to engage with all stakeholders, including committees recognised by the RA, and conduct an investigation.  ,, With the working committee alleging that since 2021, the new administration of the Auroville Foundation (AVF) has systematically undermined decades of progress through authoritarian measures and arbitrary actions, one can only wonder what lies ahead for Auroville, the "first and only internationally supported experiment in human unity". 

https://thesouthfirst.com/news/why-the-idyllic-auroville-township-is-split-down-the-middle-by-a-facelift-programme/ 

Auroville Under Existential Threat  https://auroville.media/crisis/  There has been a systematic takeover by the AVFO of all of Auroville’s major internal working groups and committees that manage the key areas of administration, media, and finances, resulting in the concentration of power in a handful of people who were not appointed by the residents and who do not represent the needs and aspirations of the majority... In June 2024, 98% of 945 residents voted to halt, review, and reverse land deals undertaken by the Secretary, yet these concerns were dismissed and more land exchanges were approved by the Governing Board in October 2024.

https://auroville.media/auroville-in-crisis-report/ 

Shillong Press Club Condemns Arrest of Journalist Dilawar

Shillong Press Club Condemns Arrest of Journalist Dilawar   https://assamtimes.org/node/23377 Mazumdar, the chief reporter of Crosscurrent Digital Media, was first arrested on the night of March 25. Although he was granted bail on March 26, he was rearrested on March 27 based on a complaint filed by the managing director of the Assam Cooperative Apex Bank. . SPC President D L Syiemlieh stated that the rearrest of Mazumdar shortly after being granted bail is deeply concerning and represents a shocking misuse of legal processes. He emphasized that this action constitutes a direct assault on the freedom of the press and the fundamental right to free expression

PCI Slams Assam CM for Questioning Journalist Authenticity in Re-Arrest Case https://assamtimes.org/node/23378 By AT News | Friday, Mar 28, 2025 

पत्रकार जेल में है, कॉमेडियन बेल पर है, ये कैसा भारत है, प्रधानमंत्री मोदी कहाँ हैं?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Blv9jiS3OE असम के पत्रकार सड़क पर उतर गए हैं। साथी पत्रकार की गिरफ्तारी के विरोध में। मुख्यमंत्री कहते हैं कि दिलवर हुसैन मज़ूमदार पत्रकार नहीं है। लेकिन कोर्ट के एक मामले में ज़मानत देते हुए कहा कि गिरफ्तारी के लिए कानून का दुरुपयोग हुआ है। सरकार को कहां पीछे हटना चाहिए था तो चोरी डकैती के आरोप में जेल में डाल दिया। आप ही बताइये। एक बैंक के बाहर प्रदर्शन हो रहा है। उसे कवर करने पत्रकार गया है। पुलिस केस करती है कि किसी का  जातिगत अपमान किया है। इस केस में बेल मिलती है तो चोरी के आरोप में जेल में डाल जाता है।  पहले चोरी का केस दर्ज होगा या अपमान का? क्या ये पुलिस की दादागीरी नहीं है?

I am Sorry, Ankita - from Colin Gonsalves

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Ankita_Bhandari  

https://cdn.countercurrents.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/A-Fact-Finding-Report-on-the-Murder-of-Ankita-Bhandari.pdf 

(Open Letter of Supreme Court Advocate Colin Gonsalves On Supreme Court's Refusal to Entertain Petition for CBI Enquiry into murder of Ankita, a young girl who was killed while employed in a hotel run by a BJP leader's close relative in Dehradun.)

I’m sorry, Ankita that your case in the Supreme Court seeking a CBI investigation into your murder was disposed of and we have not yet managed to catch the main culprit. I’m sorry Ashutosh, fearless journalist and Petitioner before the Court that you have had to suffer victimisation for investigating this case and had FIRs filed against you and also suffered the victimisation of your wife by way of her transfer. I’m sorry Soni Devi, for the death of your darling daughter by a VIP who asked for “special services” from Ankita, a young girl working in the hotel. Her refusal led to her murder. 

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90% of population--have no money to spend on non-essential items

100 crore Indians--90% of population--have no money to spend on non-essential items; 10% are consuming class: Report https://www.livemint.com/news/india/100-crore-indians-have-no-money-to-spend-on-non-essential-items-report-11740593010860.html a study by venture capital firm Blume Ventures..describes aspirant consumers as "heavy consumers and reluctant payers". It highlights that industries like OTT/media, gaming, edtech, and lending are particularly relevant to this segment. The introduction of UPI and AutoPay has facilitated small-ticket transactions, encouraging greater participation from this group in the economy... wealth is becoming more concentrated. Companies are increasingly focusing on premiumisation, a strategy that emphasises high-end, expensive products tailored for wealthier consumers. This trend is evident in the booming sales of luxury homes and premium smartphones, even as budget-friendly options struggle...The report concludes that India’s GDP remains heavily dependent on consumer spending. However, unless income distribution improves, businesses may increasingly cater only to high-income groups, further marginalising a significant portion of the population.

full report: https://docsend.com/view/pyxuqunkm9ejw38q#

Reduced to a Non-Functional Entity': Press Council

Reduced to a Non-Functional Entity': Mumbai Press Club on Delay in Constitution of New Council of PCI f
The Wire Staff  https://thewire.in/media/reduced-to-a-non-functional-entity-mumbai-press-club-on-delay-in-constitution-of-new-council-of-pci the Mumbai Press Club (MPC) and the Editors Guild of India (EGI). "are well known and are active in upholding the rights of the Fourth Estate. It is also significant that it was these two organisations that had taken the lead in the previous Press Council on issues such as the wrongful detention of journalists, the suppression of press persons in Jammu and Kashmir and the mass retrenchments of media personnel during the Covid-19 pandemic. Perhaps this was not appreciated in certain quarters,” said the MPC statement.

Zakia Jafri Amar Rahe

Zakia Jafri Leaves Behind a Legacy of Resilience and Quiet Dignity https://thewire.in/rights/zakia-jafri-leaves-behind-a-legacy-of-resilience-and-quiet-dignity Teesta Setalvad Eighty-six years, the day before yesterday, when she left us, Zakia appa was 63 in 2002, no age to hear the cries she did, no age to witness what her eyes could not turn away from. .. 

Though there had been nothing peaceful about Jafri’spassing. The utterly stoic and adamant refusal of the Jafris to let go of their belief in the India that Ahsan sahab lived and died for, is special and rare.

Zakia appa and the Jafris turned their back on any bitterness born out of the realisation that even their neighbours had joined the mob on February 28. This is what made Zakia appa stand out with her children, as the stellar human rights defender she was...  in tribute to Zakia appa, the day before yesterday, “You graced the courts, our homes and hearts. You did so with unwavering fortitude. Theirs is the loss who could not recognise the scale and magnitude of the loss for just what it was.”

Gandhi and the meaning of dharma and violence

Gandhi and the meaning of dharma and violence - https://www.hindustantimes.com/opinion/gandhi-and-the-meaning-of-dharma-and-violence-101738163065788.html   The real Kurukshetra is inside our own mind and heart. This is why, for Gandhi, swaraj primarily meant command over our own impulses and emotions. Being free of British rule was to be a side effect of this inner-self-control, this conquest of our own anger and fears...when  violence is justified on the basis of identity, of us versus them, there is a huge risk of violating the fundamentals of dharma-as-righteousness, most notably karuna/compassion and rudimentary decency.... when rage and anger generated by the frustrations of everyday life struggles, are mobilised , large numbers of people  in the heat of the moment, unable to distinguish which violence is dharmic and which is adharmic. 

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