The Norm of the Patriarch

March 4, 2012

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During middle of February 2012, BJP ruled Karnatka’s two ministers, Laxman Savadi and C C Patil were watching the porn clip on the mobile belonging to another minister Krishna Palemar. All three had to resign the job and BJP huddled in to a Chintan baithak (Meeting for Introspection) to do the damage control. Whether these BJP ministers are also RSS trained swayamsevaks, like most top functionaries of BJP are, is not known. But surely these porn watching ministers do come under the broad umbrella of RSS combine, popularly known as Sangh Parviar.

There are many other incidents about those in the ambit of RSS combine, in incidents which involve gender related issues. By now the aggression of Pramod Mutalik’s Sri Ram Sene attacking and humiliating the girls in a pub is too well known. Mutalik is a RSS trained person. He joined RSS in 1975 and became convener Bajrang Dal for South India in 2004. He also helped BJP’s election campaigns. Later he joined Shiv Sena before forming his own Sri Ram Sene. The attacks on those celebrating Valentine day, by Shiv Sena, Sri Ram Sene and other groups who are fellow travelers of RSS politics is a sort of annual ritual.

Many of these elements have been attacking Muslim boys who were found conversing with Hindu girls. In Gujarat, Babu Bajrangi, who was very active in Gujarat anti-Muslim pogrom, who was caught in the Tehelka sting operation boasting about playing the ‘One day match’, killing the Muslims, was also the leader of a squad which was intimidating the couples in the parks. The most systematic attempt to combine gender issues, patriarchal norms with anti Muslim tirade manifested in the form of the propaganda about ‘Love Jihad’, a hoax deliberately floated to browbeat Muslim youth has been seen in many a places particularly in Kerala. As per this propaganda Muslim youth are being given money and training to lure way Hindu girls with the aim of increasing Muslim population.

The pathological dislike for the girls trying to get autonomy in choosing their life partners is being opposed in many a ways. The couples meeting the in the public places are advised to abhor love marriage and to go for the partners selected by their parents. As a counter to Valentine day celebration, Asaram Bapu suggested the celebration of Matri Pitru day (Parents Day) on that day (14th February, the Valentine Day) and the BJP ruled Chhattisgarh Government has implemented this wish of Asaram Bapu and Matri Pitru day was observed in Chattisgarh this year. To cap it all the norms, morality and values followed by RSS combine were most in display in response to the statement of the Hyderabad police Chief Dinesh Reddy’s statement. Mr. Reddy (Dec 2011) linked the rape cases with the dress of women. Not the first time any police person or many others have said a similar thing. The difference this time was that when Mr. Reddy was being criticized for his crass statement, he received support from the un-expected or rather expected quarter of one women’s organization. This women’s organization happens to be Rashtra Sevika Samiti, an organization subordinate to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). While most of the incitements which have been observed are a manifestation of perverted sense of morality, a medieval mind set, the Rashtra Sevika Samiti’s support to Mr. Reddy in linking up women’s dress with rape, in turn holding them responsible for the crimes done against them, is very revealing.

The likes of Babu Bajrangi, Promod Mutalik may be dismissed as fringe elements, despite their association with RSS or its affiliates, and the porn clip watching BJP ministers may not be an exception in doing such a thing. But in the case of Rashtra Sevika Samiti’s action the attitude of RSS ideology toward women becomes more than explicit. RSS is an exclusively male organization. In 1936 Laxmibai Kelkar, a woman related to RSS members’ family, approached the then Sarsanghchalsk and asked permission to join the RSS. She was declined the membership on the ground that RSS is only for men. She was advised to start Rashtra Sevika Samiti instead. The nomenclature of the two organizations is very interesting. The dominating male organization has the word Swayam (self), while in the name of women’s organization the word Swayam (self) is missing, showing their subordinate position.

This deep adherence to patriarchy dictated by RSS keeps coming to surface time and over again. In the decade of 1980s the then BJP’s Vice President Vijaya Raje Schindia had supported the women committing Sati (self immolation by woman after husbands’ death), in response to the Roopaknwar Sati case. She asserted that Sati is a great glorious Hindu tradition. She also said that to commit sati, is the right of Hindu women. Somehow she herself never exercised this right herself!

Another major leader of BJP, Mridula Sinha, belonging to BJP Mahila Morcha (BJP Women’s Wing) had in an interview given to the Savvy Magazine in 1994 defended the wife beating and dowry. She said that women should not work outside unless there is a dire financial crisis’ in the family. The major ideologues of Sangh combine have talked gloriously about Manu Smiriti, the tome which ordains the caste system and subordinate position of women. The open preaching of patriarchal values is a core agenda of most of the communal organizations, irrespective of to whichever religion they belong to. RSS combine exemplifies it to the hilt, starting from its nomenclature to the ideology and practices undertaken by this multi headed hydra. In these matters the attitude of other fundamentalist organizations, deriving their legitimacy from Islam or Christianity may not be much different and they may hold hands together on such issues, the way they stood together on the issue of same sex relationships.

Our society during the period of 1950-1970s saw the strengthening of the process of caste and gender transformation. The period from 1980s has been a sort of reversal of the healthy elements of the process of social change. This reversal of the process of social transformation is an accompaniment of the rise of politics in the name of religion, the politics of RSS in India. While porn watching BJP ministers may not be the only ones’ in doing what they did, there is a need to look at the attitude to gender which is on display due to the politics of RSS, the Hindutva.

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News Network
June 4,2020

New Delhi, Jun 4: India on Thursday witnessed a record single-day spike of 9,304 coronavirus cases taking the country's tally to 2,16,919, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The ministry informed that 260 more deaths due to coronavirus were reported in the last 24 hours.

The total number of cases in the country now stands at 2,16,919 including 1,06,737 active cases, 1,04,107 cured/discharged/migrated and 6,075 deaths.

Maharashtra has so far reported 74,860 cases, more than any other state in the country.

In Tamil Nadu, 25,872 cases have been detected so far while Delhi has reported 23,645 coronavirus cases.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 1,39,485 samples were tested in the last 24 hours whereas 42,42,718 samples have been tested till date.

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Agencies
May 22,2020

New Delhi, May 22: The number of COVID-19 cases averted due to the lockdown is in the range of 14-29 lakh, while the number of lives saved is between 37,000 and 78,000, the government said on Friday citing various studies, and asserted that the unprecedented shutdown has paid “rich dividends” in the fight against the pandemic.

The lockdown in India has been a timely, graded, proactive and pre-emptive public health measure to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and has been part and parcel of the government’s overall strategy, Dr V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, and Chairman, Empowered Group 1, said at a media briefing on the COVID-19 situation.

The government imposed the nationwide lockdown from March 25 to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and it is currently in its fourth phase.

Like the number of cases, the growth rate of number of COVID-19 deaths too has fallen significantly due to the lockdown, marking a notable difference between pre-lockdown and post-lockdown situations, he said.

At the briefing, Pravin Srivastava, Secretary, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation gave model-based estimates on COVID-19 cases and deaths which have been prevented due to the lockdown.

As per Boston Consulting Group's model, the lockdown saved between 1.2 lakh and 2.1 lakh lives, while the number of COVID-19 cases averted is between 36 lakh and 70 lakh, he said.

According to Public Health Foundation of India, nearly 78,000 lives have been saved due to the lockdown, Srivastava said.

Citing a model by two independent economists, he said that around 23 lakh COVID-19 cases and 68,000 deaths have been averted due to the lockdown.

Some independent experts, including retired scientists, have calculated that around 15.9 lakh cases and 51,000 deaths have been averted due to the lockdown, Srivastava said.

A joint study by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation and the Indian Statistical Institute found that around 20 lakh COVID-19 cases and 54,000 deaths were averted due to lockdown, he said.

The number of COVID-19 cases averted due to the lockdown is in the range of 14-29 lakh, while the number of lives saved is between 37,000 and 78,000, the official said.

“We are fully confident that the lockdown, with full public cooperation, has reaped rich dividends,” Srivastava said.

The strong defence of the lockdown, comes a day after the health ministry said the period of lockdown has been gainfully utilized to ramp up the health infrastructure, with around 3,027 dedicated COVID-19 hospitals and 7,013 care centres being readied across the country to fight the disease.

The announcement on Thursday came after some media reports questioned the country's preparedness to deal with the highly infectious disease.

"There are reports in a section of the media about some decisions of the government regarding the lockdown implementation and response to COVID-19 management. The period of the lockdown has been gainfully utilised to ramp up the health infrastructure in the country," the ministry had said.

Addressing the press briefing on Friday, joint secretary in the health ministry Lav Agarwal said 48,534 COVID-19 patients, which is about 41 per cent of the total cases, have recovered so far. As many as 3,234 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours, he said’

The COVID-19 mortality rate has dropped from 3.13 per cent on May 19 to 3.02 per cent as focus was on containment measures andclinical management of cases, Agarwal said.

An ICMR official said 27,55,714 tests for COVID-19 have been conducted till 1 pm Friday with 1,03,829 tests done in one day. Over 1 lakh tests for COVID-19 have been done each day for the last four days, the official said.

The growth rate of novel coronavirus cases witnessed a steep decline from Apr 4 when lockdown put a brake on the speed of increase of cases, V K Paul said.

The number of COVID-19 cases would have risen exponentially had the lockdown not been implemented, he said, adding that the doubling rate of cases was 3.4 days when the lockdown started and it is 13.3 days at present.

The COVID-19 outbreak in India has remained confined to limited areas with 80 per cent of active cases in just five states, Paul said

He said around 80 pc of COVID-19 deaths have been in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi. 

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Agencies
August 7,2020

New Delhi, Aug 7 : Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday slammed the Central government as India crossed the 20 lakh COVID-19 positive cases.

Taking to Twitter, the Congress leader reiterated his earlier tweet, sent out on July 17, which stated "The 10,00,000-mark has been crossed.

With the rapid spread of COVID-19, by August 10, more than 20,00,000 will be infected in the country. 

The government must take concrete, planned steps to stop the epidemic."
"20 lakh-mark has been crossed, Modi government is missing," the Congress leader tweeted today.

The Union Health Ministry has said active cases as a percentage of total cases have seen a significant drop from 34.17 per cent on July 24 to 30.31 per cent.

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