(People’s Alliance for Democracy and Secularism) Press Release 05.06.2019

Dr Payal Tadvi, an Adivasi Muslim from one of the most backward tribes of India committed suicide on 22 May in her hostel room in a Mumbai hospital. She was a  post-graduate resident doctor in the hospital. Many times before her suicide her mother and husband had given written representations to the  hospital authorities about the harassment she had been facing from three of her seniors. According to these complaints her harassers were using casteist abuses and publicly humiliating her. However, the hospital took no administrative actions. After her death the hospital’s anti-ragging committee has reportedly found evidence of harassment, and according to some newspaper report the police have found evidence of derogatory casteist remarks.

Dr Payal Tadvi’s suicide immediately brings to mind the suicide by Rohith Vemula in 2015, a PhD scholar at the Hyderabad Central University. Rohith was a student activist.His organisation had been protesting against the HCU administration for months before his suicide. Even ministers of the BJP central government had enquiredif his organisation had been adequately punished by the university administration after it was involved in a physical brawl with activists of the ABVP, the student organisation allied with the ruling party. If the context of Rohith’s suicide was institutional victimisation of radical dalit youth, Payal’s suicide throws  open a window to the intimate cruelties suffered by the people of deprived backgrounds every day. According to her mother when Payal moved in the hospital hostel, the only cot in the room was already taken by one of her alleged harassers. Her room-mate, also a doctor would wipe her feet on the mattress on which Payal slept.Payal was a trained doctor. She had worked in a primary health center for a year. Yet her modern professional status could not shield her from what she had to go through.She narrated incidences of her humiliation only to her immediate family members. They complained to authorities when they felt she was under serious stress. She died alone, without leaving any suicide note.

Even seventy years after independence, and a constitution that promises a life of dignity to every citizen, Dalits, adivasis, and minorities in India continue to suffer multiple humiliations in their everyday lives. Appropriate legal provisions are in place. Institutional motivation to implement these provisions is woefully lacking, as shown in  Payal’s case. However, even if institutional mechanisms were in place, these can play a role  only after a dalit or an Adivasi has been humiliated, or suffered an assault. Indians need to identify and root out the conditions which make many of them abusers and haters of  people from deprived backgrounds.

Indian society remains  a deeply hierarchical and divided society. Its public sphere, in which people are supposed to be able to interact with each other without distinctions, is also stamped with hierarchy, so that there is little respect for a human being for just being a person. The normalcy of this public is dominated by people from privileged backgrounds. People from deprived backgrounds always feel marked in this sphere. Numerous writings by Dalit and Adivasi authors bring it out in painful detail.  In educational institutions and work environments they are permanently stamped  with the ‘reservation’ category tag. Most of them are first generation learners from poor families. They  get to join these institutions and places of work after numerous hurdles, but their individual talents are little recognised. Increasingly, Muslims of our country are also being made to feel the same way.

Institutions of higher learning and government offices reek of a nefarious discourse on ‘merit’ of the ‘general’ category. This ‘merit’ is supposed to be measured by marks in entrance exams. But how does one compare the abilities of a dalit young woman from a rural landless family, who spent half her time on family chores, went to a dilapidated village school, and still got admission to an institution of higher learning, with another person whose upper middle class urban  parents gave him/her education in expensive private schools, provided comfortable learning environment at home, and paid for extra tuitions and coaching? Why should only one of them be considered ‘meritorious’? Why cannot they interact freely in an environment of  mutual respect?

The policy of reservation in jobs and educational institutions is often cited as the chief culprit, as if without this policy these places will be republics of merit.The drafting committee of India’s constitution under the leadership of Dr Ambedkar adopted reservations as a policy of affirmative action after serious debate. Reservations have been continued and extended by democratically elected governments. Citizens have a right to criticize any government policy, or law. However, no one has a right to humiliate and abuse anyone, and any effort to show these as ‘reactions’ to a state policy is pure hypocrisy. These are  acts of aggression and violence against people who are vulnerable due to their deprived backgrounds. 

PADS calls upon the people of India to seriously question why so many of them are haters and abusers of people from deprived backgrounds. Why do people who abuse and commit hate crimes  think they can get away with it? It is evident that the anti-caste movements have only partially succeeded in democratising India. The main reason is that the task of making India a democratic society has never been undertaken by the overwhelming majority of Indians. Until this happens India will continue to humiliate and harass people from deprived backgrounds, and destroy bright and sensitive men and women like Rohith and Payal.   

Released by:
Battini Rao, Convenor, PADS (95339 75195) battini.rao@gmail.com 

In spite of terrible leaders we can still hope for a better world. Here’s why.

Acceptance speech by Pervez Hoodbhoy, delivered upon receiving the honorary doctorate of law from University of British Columbia, Vancouver, 29 May 2019.

I thank UBC for conferring upon me the honorary degree of Doctor of Law and congratulate all students who will receive their degrees today. In these few minutes, let me argue why you and I must actively hope for – and work toward – a better world. That’s particularly important because there’s much despondency around these days. Donald Trump, Narendra Modi, Imran Khan, Tayyep Erdogan and others make thinking people very fearful of the future even as they rouse the cheers of the simple-minded. . Sigmund Freud warned in 1915 that the “primitive, savage and evil impulses of mankind have not vanished in any individual”. It’s really bad news that self-possessed, egotistical and often maniacal individuals can become leaders. If allowed to act freely and promote their ideology of selfishness, technology makes it possible for them to destroy entire countries and perhaps the planet as well.

The good news is that as a species we humans tend to resist what’s wrong and are more altruistic than selfish. We can transcend and overpower the worst that’s etched into our genes – those narcissistic, selfish super-molecules that Richard Dawkins argues have self-propagation as their raison d’etre.

My friend John Avery, distinguished professor of chemistry, has written extensively on how cooperation within homo sapiens has, on average, trumped competition between them. Else today’s complex, interdependent civilization would be impossible. That means you and I are almost bound to seek ways of changing the world for the better by acting upon our beliefs and ideals, and that we have no choice but to fight against what’s wrong even if this incurs a cost. I therefore claim no credit whatsoever in having followed my instincts when challenges came my way.

Perhaps the first and most obvious challenge for me as a nuclear physicist was to fight for nuclear sanity. Even as I studied the inner workings of the atomic nucleus during my doctoral work at MIT in the mid 1970’s, I hadn’t the slightest doubt that the bomb was a monstrous abomination and an instrument of mass murder. To warn against it, and to work for Pakistan-India peace, remains of utmost importance to me. The fierce skirmishes earlier this year showed just how closely the two countries dance on the nuclear brink. That’s why activism for eliminating nuclear weapons must continue on both sides of the border.

As a practicing physicist I remain in awe of the power of equations and abstract mathematics. These produced not just the modern age but also made this infinitely varied world comprehensible via laws welded together in intricate ways. To explain physical complexity in simple terms via television, video, and public talks has been my little contribution to the youth of my country.

For me science is a wonderful Trojan horse. You all know of the giant, wooden horse with a hollow belly that the ancient Greeks built and smuggled inside the city walls of Troy. Science too is marvelously deceptive with an attractive exterior that brings us the comforts of the modern age. But hidden within this Trojan’s belly is a sharp knife that cuts through irrationality as though it were butter.

I have lived my life, and continue to work, in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. My country was born because its founding fathers assumed that Muslims and Hindus could never live together. They also assumed that Muslims could always live peacefully with other Muslims. These were hideously false assumptions with catastrophic consequences. We saw this in the tragedy of 1971 when East Pakistan bloodily separated from West Pakistan and became Bangladesh. We saw it again in the decade 2005-2015 when, by official count, 60,000 Pakistani lives were lost in a war fought by those Muslims who believe in imposing their particular version of Islam upon all others. That war is not yet over.

I am sad to see that India now seeks to emulate Pakistan and wishes to become a Hindu religious state. Just a few decades ago enlightened Pakistanis had looked wistfully across the border seeing in India a state that valued religious diversity and secularism. That is now no longer the case. The struggle to make both countries free of religious, ethnic, and class prejudices is a monumental task that coming generations of Pakistanis and Indians must take upon themselves. For us in Pakistan to escape the praetorian shadow is an

UBC honorary award lecture Vancouver, 29 May 2019 2
additional challenge. I have been fortunate in having escaped the worst but many have not. Some have fled the country while thousands of others have been “disappeared” by the authorities.

For all of you who graduate today, the message is that wherever you choose to live and whichever demons you choose to confront – whether they are war mongers, cruelly oppressive political systems, those who heedlessly add to global warming and a dirty planet, or whatever – the battle will be long and hard. I shall conclude by quoting Professor Howard Zinn of Boston University whose teach-ins I would never miss in the early 1970’s during student protests against the Vietnam War.

To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places–and there are so many–where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.

You and I do have agency – free will – and are endowed with rationality by virtue of our evolutionary past. Science and scientific humanism offer us a path away from our childhood indoctrination into saluting a flag and flattening ourselves before the right god. I am confident that in the long run we shall create a universal earth-based civilization built upon reason and compassion. Until then may patience be on our side. And a steely will to fight on for as long as needed.

Admiral L Ramdas (retd) LARA-­‐ RAMU FARM
PVSM AVSM VrC VSM Village Bhaimala
Former Chief of the Naval Staff P.O.Kamarle. Alibag,
Maharashtra Gaurav Puruskar PIN 402201
Magsaysay Awardee for Peace Tel 02141-­‐248711/ 248733
Mob 9860170960/ 9422383930 lramdas@gmail.com
20 February 2019

The Honorable President
Rashtrapati Bhavan
New Delhi-­‐110011

Dear Shri Kovind ji,

This is Admiral Ramdas -­‐ former Chief of the Naval Staff, writing to you yet again – this time on the tragic deaths of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Jawans in the IED attack on their convoy in Pulwama on Feb 14th 2019 and subsequent events.

Over forty precious lives, belonging to the CRPF were lost in the service of the Nation on Feb 14, 2019. This was indeed a despicable act, and a tragic event, and those guilty must be punished.

While the event has understandably evoked strong and angry reactions from every corner of the country and all sections of the people, it is also clear that such an event should never have happened on such an important strategic highway, especially in view of some reports that speak of there having been some intelligence reports to this effect in possession of the police and Intelligence agencies.

It is reported that this attack was planned and executed by the Jaish e Mohammed [JEM]. There are questions as to how and why a lone vehicle packed with RDX was able to penetrate a convoy and wreak such havoc, these and many more questions will no doubt be the subject of internal inquiries both by the CRPF and other agencies of the State.

As a former head of the Navy and Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, and also someone who, after retirement in 1993 has devoted most of his time in the pursuit of peace with Pakistan by pushing for a people to people dialogue, my concerns, are listed below.

1. We must resolve the Kashmir problem through dialogue which must involve all three partners to the dispute – namely, the people of J&K, India and Pakistan. This is a position I have advocated for several decades now – after having studied the intractable nature of what is popularly called the K word, but which has continued to extract a heavy toll on both countries and above all on the suffering of the unfortunate people of Jammu and Kashmir. We continue to proclaim that they are an integral part of India. If indeed that is so, then they must be treated as such, as equal citizens -­‐ be they in Jammu, the Valley or in Ladakh . Had we done that we would have been less likely to see the levels of alienation, especially of young people.
2. If both countries are willing to engage each other on the Kartarpora corridor – then why not on the LOC, and other core concerns around Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). The sooner we make it known that we are open to dialogue with all stakeholders and begin this process in all seriousness and sincerity, the more likely we are to make some headway with the people in J&K.

3. If a young Adil can blow himself up in the cause of freedom, Aazadi or the long promised autonomy for Kashmir, it is the strongest indicator yet of the levels of anger and alienation that the youth of the state are experiencing today. No amount of force as part of the avowedly “muscular” Kashmir policy can quell this. We must act now and sit across the table and have an honest dialogue with all parties concerned. It might already be too late.
4. The most serious fallout of this attack on our jawans in Awantipora has been the unprecedented outbreak of harassment, mob violence, attacks, insults and abuse levelled at many Kashmiris across the country. Soon this might spill over to Muslims across India. We CANNOT allow this to continue and spread with dire consequences which are hard to assess.
5. The only solution is political and not military. And a political solution must involve a genuine and continuous dialogue with the people of Kashmir – including dissidents and separatists ; the Govt of Pakistan and the Govt of India.
WHAT CAN BE DONE – IMMEDIATELY

In your capacity as the Head of State and our Supreme Commander, and the oath you have taken to uphold the Constitution, I urge you to take steps as outlined below, which is entirely within your command, and a part of your duty and responsibility:-­‐

a. It is imperative that the situation should not be allowed to escalate into greater hostilities which it might not always be possible to contain. As the Supreme Commander, you must caution our own leaders about the very real dangers of the present standoff escalating into a war situation – and quickly going beyond a conventional engagement – given that both India and Pakistan are two nuclear armed countries.
b. The decisions on next steps must be taken with due diligence, and weighing all the options and their implications . We cannot allow the hysterical media anchors and social media anger to influence or pressurise decisions at the highest level. The atmosphere at present is by no means conducive to decisions being taken in a calm and considered manner – with emotions and reactions being inflamed and incited in an often deliberate and irresponsible manner.
c. Let India take the high moral ground by declaring an unconditional Hold Fire – pending detailed enquiries into the attack on the convoy in Pulwama . This way we will ensure that the facts are investigated, and the truth behind the attack be established without delay. I am sure that this will have a salutary effect and ensure seamless actions further ahead.
d. We must immediately put a halt to the terrible media war being waged on innocent
Kashmiris who are going about their business quietly in towns and cities across the country . This message must come from the highest level – and the Honorable Prime Minister must be advised that he can halt this current backlash in minutes if he so chooses, by issuing stern and clear warnings against any violence and threats and harassment against citizens – be they Kashmiri or indeed Muslim citizens. , through every channel, cadre and social media. To avoid aggravating the present situation of fear and insecurity and preventing further bloodshed, action on this must be taken with utmost speed.
e. Enable an impartial and independent Judicial Enquiry . This group should comprise serving judges of the Supreme court.

The Nation as a whole seems to be going through a lot of uncertainties especially about the threats of retaliation. Such posturing, especially between two nuclear armed states, is highly risky. This time around we may not be able to contain this to the conventional type of warfare. The situation is even more delicate given the impending elections, communal disturbances and fears of breakdown of law and order.

We must not allow any of the above to happen. We have a lot of strategic and human interests in (J&K) and the country as a whole and we must protect both these. This can only happen by winning the hearts and minds of the people , especially of Jammu & Kashmir.

Let us remember that Military Force can never erase an “IDEA”. We need to do some serious reflection of our own policies and conduct these past 70 years.

With regards

Yours sincerely

L.Ramdas