Mainstream Weekly

BJP's Politics of Social Engineering in Bihar

Harish S. Wankhede — 2015-10-24T10:36:42Z

Kanshiram, the late Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo, had brought bahujan as a viable political constituency to forge a political alliance between the Dalits, Other Backward Castes and Religious Minorities. This social engineering was one of the most imaginative political construc-tions to counter the domination of the social elites in politics. (Teltumbde 2006) On many counts the BSP's social engineering attempts were unsuccessful; however, it created a dynamic social process that ensured (…)

- 2015

Dalit Representation in Bollywood

Harish S. Wankhede — 2013-05-04T18:31:01Z

The celebration of 100 years of Bollywood needs to be reviewed from a subaltern perspective. The general assumption that cinema is a normal mode to produce anecdotes to satisfy the entertainment quotient of the people should go through a critical scrutiny. Films as artistic expression cannot be devoid of their politico-ideological objectives. Hence, from a Dalit perspective when one enquires about their space during the past one century of the film world, only a handful of non-decrepit, (…)

- 2013

Between Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev: Understanding the Civil Society

Harish S. Wankhede — 2011-07-03T09:27:32Z

The current populist rejuvenation of civil society in India has offered many questions to the intelligentsia. It has invoked ‘quick' diagnoses for the current ills (corruption and black money) by organising a rendezvous of different antago-nists under the banner of ‘Civil Society'. One has to answer whether such heightened valorisation of civil society is in a real sense healthy for democracy or not. Further, the absence and disinterest of the ‘political Left' to mobilise and provide (…)

- 2011

Muslims and the Half-won Battle for Social Justice

Harish S. Wankhede — 2010-04-24T18:50:00Z

The recent Supreme Court judgment, which permitted the Andhra Pradesh Government to provide four per cent reservation quota for socially and economically backward groups among the Muslims in jobs and educational institutions, is a commendable development in the battle for social justice. The earlier interim order passed by a seven-judge Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court had struck down the same law for providing quota for the Muslims with a remark that “it violated the constitutional (…)

- 2010

Dalit Symbolism and the Democratisation of Secular Spaces

Harish S. Wankhede — 2010-03-19T07:49:32Z

Introduction
In the recent past, wider discussion and debate have been built over the issue of mega-construction works undertaken by the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Government. Intellectuals and social activists were worried that public money was being drained out in such a big way to build something which blatantly represents the political symbols of a particular political party. In the media also we have noticed severe criticism against these construction works by describing them as ecologically (…)

- 2010