27 October, 2009 | Voice of America

More than 2,000 years ago, Hindu priests, in what is now modern-day India, divided society into four distinct castes. The four original castes have now been subdivided into about 3,000 categories. Caste distinctions remain strong. Many lower-caste Indians – known as Dalits – say those distinctions reinforce discriminatory practices. Dalit activists recently sought to highlight the issue of caste at the United Nations-sponsored World Conference Against Racism. There are deep divisions in India about whether caste practices are racist or not.

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Caste Discrimination Endures in IndiaRead More »

21 Feb 2002 | Voice of America

In addition to Islamic extremism, India faces a host of pressures, including a militant Hindu revival, and separatist activity in some states.

In 1992, militant Hindus destroyed a 16th century mosque in the city of Ayodhya. Since then, they have been trying to build a Hindu temple on the ruins over the opposition of India’s Muslims. The controversy helped bring the BJP party to power as the leader of India’s current coalition government.

Hindu fundamentalism is a serious challenge to Indian democracy, says Ravi Nair, executive director of the South Asia Human Rights Documentation Center in New Delhi.

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India Faces Militant Hindu Revival, SeparatismRead More »

28 March 2009 | HindToday

New Delhi: 28 March (RINA): Torture of Muslims in police custody is commonplace. Although India is rising a world power and is under a spell of tremendous economic boon, however, on the other side of the coin there are gross human rights violations in the country. India fares badly in human rights records. In fact in the case custodial tortures it is placed fairly high on the international index. According to the Ravi Nair, Director of South Asian Human Rights Association, “In the Indian context it is custodial torture is a normal practice and is not looked down upon”.

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Torture Muslims In Police Custody Is A Commonplace In IndiaRead More »

Volume 28 – Issue 24 : Nov. 19-Dec. 02, 2011 | Frontline

A.G. NOORANI
The new Chairman of the Press Council of India, Markandey Katju, wants to make it an instrument of mediation in addition to adjudication.

THE appointment of Justice Markandey Katju, a former judge of the Supreme Court, as Chairman of the Press Council of India is about the best thing that has happened to that body in a long while. It is no exaggeration to say that the PCI commands little prestige today and less relevance. It is not representative of the press at all. What Justice Katju has done, in a few days after his appointment, is to infuse life into it and involve the press in its work. This is a good step towards making the media feel that it is their institution.

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Reforming the Press CouncilRead More »

28 August 2007 | Telegraph

Shocking pictures of a thief being beaten by a mob in Bhagalpur, Bihar are all over the Indian TV today.

Mob rule: a still from the video shows the stricken man

What has caught everyone’s attention is the involvement of the police who, far from protecting the thief from the mob, joined in with gusto, eventually tying the man to their motorbike and dragging him through the street until he was unconscious.

I have an Indian friend who gave me a very good piece of advice when I arrived here, which was ‘don’t mess’ with the police, they can do whatever they like. They really can ruin your life.

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Brutal police beating aired on Indian TVRead More »