The Latest: Top stories of the day
1. The Congress will take disciplinary action against two of its party workers for the attack on Scroll.in’s contributor in Chhattisgarh.
2. The Islamic seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband has backed the appointment of women qazis (judges).
3. Twenty alumni from The Energy and Resources Institute have refused to accept their degrees from RK Pachauri, accused of sexual harassment, at the upcoming convocation.
4. 2002 hit-and-run: Victim’s family moves to the Supreme Court against Salman Khan’s acquittal.
5. Twitter introduces a new timeline that ranks tweets by quality.
6. Pakistan bans Indian Hindi-language film Neerja for showing the country in poor light.
The Big Story: Women in chains
The sexual harassment charges against RK Pachauri are grave. Yet, the response of The Energy and Resources Institute to it have been almost cavalier – on Monday, the organisation actually promoted Pachauri as its executive chairman, vesting all executive powers in him. In response, the woman who pressed charges against Pachauri wrote that his promotion makes her “flesh crawl”.
Now a second woman has come up and levelled similar allegations of sexual harassment against Pachauri. Claiming that sexual harassment by Pachauri is an “open secret” at TERI. Pachauri harassed her until she was forced to quit, she alleged. She also claimed that the police had turned a deaf ear to her complaints.
In Muzzafarnagar, yet another case from the 2013 anti-Muslim riots has resulted in an acquittal. Four men, accused of gang-raping a woman during the riots, were acquitted on January 21 by a fast track court. The victim and key witnesses, including her husband, mother-in-law and a neighbour turned hostile and did not support the prosecution during the trial.
The Indian Express reported that the family had changed its position under pressure. “People on behalf of the accused would approach us, even threaten us with dire consequences,” the victim’s husband said.
This is the second major acquittal in the 2013 riots, where chances of justice look bleak.
The cases at TERI and at Muzzafarnagar might look quite different to begin with. But both are examples of the shocking, constant abuse of women by men in positions of power, even in the full glare of the nation’s media. In TERI, despite the media reporting every turn, Pachauri managed to get promoted after the being charged with sexual harassment. In Muzaffarnagar, the compulsions of political power ensure that the many Muslim women raped in the riots will not get justice.
The Nirbhaya gangrape in Delhi was supposed to be a turning point in how India saw crimes against women. But three years later, on the almost nothing has changed.
The Big Scroll on the big story of the day
Pachauri’s continued presence at TERI is a breach of the law, say senior lawyers. Nakul Singh Sawhney’s documentary is like an inquiry commission into the 2013 Muzzfarnagar riots, which paved the way for the famous BJP victory of 2014.
Politicking and policying
1. Arunachal President’s rule: Was it discretion or a mere whim, Supreme Court, asks Governor who dismisses elected government.
2. For the Bharatiya Janata Party’s disgruntled allies, Amit Shah will act as the gateway to Prime Minster Modi.
3. In Assam, Amit Shah’s election pitch is about making the state free of Bangladeshi infiltrators.
4. 26/11 case: India may ask Pakistan to seek Headley’s deposition in its courts.
5. Congress and Communist Party of India (Marxist) leaders share a stage in Bengal as the two parties look at ally against the Trinamool.
Punditry
1. Identity politics forms the basis of Indian democracy today, corroding economic and political rights, argues TK Arun in the Economic Times.
2. Salil Tripathi writing in the Mint has a firm “no” to Facebook as the gatekeeper of the Internet.
3. The National Herald case against the Gandhis has all the makings of a farce, argues Prem Shankar Jha in the Hindustan Times.
Don’t Miss
John Dayal on why the Christian community should steer clear of the RSS “hand of friendship”.
The tonsuring of pastors who are put on asses and paraded, cases of ghar wapsi in North and Central India, and routine violence against churches – some 250 or so recorded incidents take place in an average year – provide the backdrop of the proposal to set up a Rashtriya Isai Manch with the help of the Christian community in India.
Should Christians or any other community even seek bilateral treaties with various groups in India? This suggestion is fraught with serious consequences for the unity of the country. All communities have to live together, and this can happen only if they swear common allegiance to the Constitution and the rule of law. We shudder to think of a situation when two or more communities gang up against a third. This has happened in some nations which have been rent asunder by civil strife.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!