INDIA SUMMARIZED

Sir Syed Ahmad Khan  is hailed as one of the most iconic Muslim intellectuals to have ever existed in the Indian subcontinent. The Muslims living in this part of the world lionize him as a reformer who fought a fierce battle against religious orthodoxy. Sir Syed was born in the year 1817 in Delhi which at that point in time was the capital of the Mughal Empire in India. Working as a jurist for the East India Company, Sir Syed established himself as a maverick scholar and philosopher. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan The appalling backwardness of the Muslim community in British India was a matter of great concern for Sir Syed. He opined that in order for Muslims to prosper economically, they required expertise in modern Western education so that they could compete with the Hindus who dominated jobs in the public and private sector.  In the year 1875, Sir Syed booked for himself a place in Indian history with the establishment of the Muhammedan Anglo-Oriental College which ha...

Did the BJP blow it all by immaturely targeting Mayawati ’s stand on foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retailing? The answer is yes and no. On the face of it, Sushma Swaraj’s charge that  Mayawati had been influenced by Congress’s misuse of the CBI seems to have triggered the Bahujan Samaj Party’s about-turn on the FDI vote. Swaraj also pointed out during the Lok Sabha debate that Mayawati had no problems approaching a “communal” BJP when it came to it seeking support for quotas in promotions for SCs/STs, but that when it came to returning the favour on the FDI vote, the same BJP became ‘communal’. The BSP tigress gave it back in spades during the Rajya Sabha debate when she dismissed Swaraj’s statements as  a case of “sour grapes” . She also counter-alleged that it was the NDA regime under BJP that first used the CBI against her in the Taj Corridor case. The slap she delivered to the BJP’s face is something the latter should cherish. It should see it ...