South Asia Citizens Web

We the undersigned are deeply disturbed by the reported remarks of the Prime Ministerial candidate of the NDA at an election rally in West Bengal that “infiltrators” from Bangladesh belonging to a particular religious community must be sent back. Apart from the sheer inhumanity of the remark, we fear that in a country in which every citizen does not possess documentary proof of citizenship such a move would simply cause a general victimization of persons belonging to that particular religious community.

Heard the terrible news a few hours ago that the courageous Multan-based advocate Rashid Rehman Khan of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has been shot dead in Multan. Criminal cowards barged into his chamber and shot him dead, injuring two others. He had been under threat for some time for defending a blasphemy accused, but no protection was provided to him – although given the climate in Pakistan, any lawyer taking up a blasphemy case should be given 24-hour protection.
Gentle, brave, (…)

Singling out Hindu observances as one of the markers for deciding who can be an Indian is surely a red line Modi should not have crossed. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s manifesto for the 2014 election says it "believes in India being one country, one people and one nation... India constitutes of all its’ people, irrespective of caste, creed, religion or sex." Towards the end of the document, however, it reverses that formulation by asserting: "India shall remain a natural home for persecuted Hindus and they shall be welcome to seek refuge here."

A series of half an hour TV discussions on Rajya Sabha TV from six crucial states in India’s 2014 general election.

We, the undersigned, express our profound sense of grief and alarm over the gruesome massacre of Bengali-speaking Muslims on 2nd May. This most recent round of killings — in which 32 people, mostly women and children have lost their lives – is another link in the long and... bloody sequence of ethnic cleansing being carried out by tribal Bodo militant groups with impunity.