Indian Interests

[devesh]

Devesh garu - I think you should delete your post. You are not the intended audience.

It was a sarcastic reference...dont see the point of deleting it.

[RamaY]

^ just kidding.

I was looking for some secular comments.

[Sushupti]

Looks like brown sepoys fighting existential battle against uncivilized natives.

UPSC’s new pattern threatens to kill rural IAS dream in Gujarat

It needs mention that there was a major angst among the students preparing for UPSC exams in Gujarat when the changes in the UPSC pattern were announced. The changed rules will close down linguistic concessions offered by the UPSC to all vernacular languages including Gujarati. The new pattern is also expected to reverse the trend in the overall selection process.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city ... 873017.cms

[RamaY]

Another India seller... (idiot) Shekar Gupta!

1. He doesn't mention about Indian civilizational history that is eternal but somehow knows that Sikhs are in Iran for eternity, Iranian civilization is 2000 yrs old etc.,

2. He thanks Iran's (Hafsanzani?) advise to Indian Muslims but somehow misses the fact that it is Muslims that destroyed Ram Janmabhumi temple and built Babri masjid.

3. He praises Iranians for their diplomatic and political skills but doesn't know Chanakya wrote Arthasastra >2500 years ago.

On the other hand the iranian deplomat reminds us that
1. Persian was the official language in India for 200 years (Mughal times)

2. Iran believes in unity of Muslims

3. That Muslims are peaceful towards other religionists.

Watch video: http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/walk-t ... ent/267980

[AbhiJ]

All India Muslim Mushawarat Meet

The meeting also discussed and passed the following resolutions:

Hindutva terror
AIMMM registers its displeasure at the retraction by the Union Home Minister Mr. Sushil Kumar Shinde of his 20 January 2013 statement at Jaipur about “Hindu terrorism” in the country and its terror camps run by the RSS and BJP. That statement was supported the very next day by the Union Home Secretary who published a list of ten Hindutva terrorists connected to the RSS. AIMMM notes that Mr. Shinde’s Jaipur statement was not something new as the previous Home Minister Mr. Chidambaram and Congress leader Mr Rahul Gandhi too had earlier made similar statements. The contours of the Hindutva terror are now fairly well-known after the Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare’s chargesheet in the Malegaon 2008 blasts case and Aseemanand’s confession. NIA’s extensive investigations into the Hindutva terror, especially in M.P.’s Malwa region, which recently led to a number of arrests of fugitive terrorists, are fairly in the public domain and also prove that the BJP-ruled M.P. state is a safe hideout of these terrorists. AIMMM registers its apprehension that the Home Minister’s retraction will hurt future investigations in terror cases as Police and investigation agencies will now hesitate to name Hindutva terrorists and this effect was seen by all in the recent Hyderabad blasts where, from day one, Police and security agencies tried to divert the investigations into a certain direction.

Crime
AIMMM condemns the slack security, slow moving wheels of justice and general apathy towards crimes committed against ordinary citizens – all this contributed to the ghastly crime committed against a hapless young student and her companion on a Delhi road on 16 December last year. After widespread protests, the government has shown some seriousness is tackling crime and has since introduced stricter punishments in cases of ghastly crimes. Despite these measures and media attention, crimes of all kinds are being committed as usual as reported by newspapers every single day. Recently a police officer (Ziaul Haq) was murdered while on duty by goons enjoying political patronage. People lodged in jails are also getting killed inside. All this places extra responsibility on the civil society, administration, Police and judiciary to show more seriousness in protecting the common man. AIMMM demands harsher punishments in cases of violent crimes.

Maslaki intolerance
The AIMMM registers its strong disapproval and displeasure at cases of maslaki intolerance where dead are not allowed to be buried in certain qabristans or marriages are opposed on account of difference of maslak or biradari and where marriages are claimed to have become “invalid” and where people are excommunicated by local maulvis for praying behind an Imam of a different maslak. These are signs of jihalat and intolerance which has no basis in Shariat or the law of the land . AIMMM appeals to the Muslim masses to reject such black sheep in our midst and resist efforts to divide the community. {AIMMM also demands Allah give 72 Ayeshas to Muslim Juvenile who exploited the Kuffar Woman in the Bus on 16th December.}

Riots
Communal riots are again routinely taking place in various parts of north India. U.P. alone has seen over 200 riots during the past year since the installation of the S.P. government including nine major riots. Out of these, Faizabad riots on 25 October last year spread to a large area of the district. Press Council of India report about Faizabad riots has confirmed that the violence was preplanned. In both Faizabad and Dhule (6 January 2013), Police played a partisan role and fired at Muslims unprovoked. State governments have to be extra vigilant in the run up to the general elections next year as communal forces donning saffron colour are hell-bent to polarise the society in order to get votes. AIMMM urges the Union government to pass the stalled Communal Violence (Prevention) Bill at the earliest.

Police reform
Police reform is an age-old demand of civil society in the country. Police still functions under the laws and rules laid down by the British colonial rulers. The Police is one of the most brutal and corrupt forces in the country. Torture, kidnapping, encounter, murder in custody and corruption have besmirched the face of this force. Very recently, a police officer in Mathura killed a Mewati driver (Shabbir) in cold blood and told people of Mewat not to come near Mathura or they too will meet a similar fate. He told community leaders from Mewat that government has given him “licence to kill”. The fast worsening situation demands a quick re-look at the problems of the Police and how to turn it into a force in service of the people. It is high time various past recommendations about recruitment of minorities in the police force and ensuring a composite representation in police stations is seriously implemented.

Babri / Ayodhya
Sangh Parivar and its political face, the BJP, are again raising the issue of the Ram Mandir at the site of the martyred Babri Mosque, while the issue is sub-judice. Though the issue has now lost its sentimental value, Sangh outfits hope to use it as a tool for polarisation of society. AIMMM reiterates that the Muslim community rejects any attempt to seek a solution by force or stealth and that only the courts are now entitled to say the last word in this unnecessary dispute raked and muddied by the Sangh outfits.

Kamal Maula Masjid / Bhojshala
Hindutva forces are opening a new front in Dhar by trying to occupy the Kamal Maula Masjid, or Dhar Jama Masjid, which they call “Bhojshala”. According to the status quo, both communities are allowed access to the premises at different times. This year at Basant Panchmi (15 February), which was also a Friday, Hindutva forces tried to deny Muslims the right to offer Friday prayers rejecting their entry into the premises even during 1-3 p.m. Hindutva activists gheraoed the area and attacked the police force mobilised there. There is apprehension that Hindutva forces may try to do a “Babri” there by demolishing the mosque and creating countrywide tension and riots. Since the monument is ASI-protected, the central government should come forward to protect the mosque and frustrate Hindutva designs {Pinglish?}. The ASI should rethink its earlier permission to Hindus to enter the monument on Tuesdays which they are misusing now and the whole issue should be reconsidered by a group of experts.

Budget for minorities
The AIMMM is dismayed at the meagre allocation for minorities in this year’s budget. Though higher than the previous year, it is still only 10 percent of the allocations for the SCs/STs. The AIMMM demands that since as per Sachar Report, Muslims are as backward on all indices as SCs/STs, their allocation too should be at par. Moreover, like the SCs/STs sub-plan, Muslims too should get a sub-plan so that allocations are strictly spent on the uplift of the community. Moreover, delivery system should be improved so that funds reach the intended community and are not diverted to other areas or projects. Minority Ministry should make it sure to utilise all funds judiciously and prevent the funds’ return unutilised.

Hyderabad blast
The AIMMM condemns the terrorist blast and its perpetrators which killed killing 18 people and injured more than 50 in Hyderabad’s Dilsukhnagar on 21 February. Whosever committed this and similar crimes must be nabbed and given exemplary and deterrent punishment. It is painful to observe that despite the shocking memories of Muslim youths framed in the Makkah Masjid blast, media relying on unnamed sources started blaming Muslims from the very first hour. {AMIII Demands bomb the media for Allah's sake.}Some boys acquitted in the Makkah Masjid case were re-arrested, teams were rushed to look for clues in so-called “terror hubs” in Azamgarh and Darbhanga etc. and people serving jail terms at the time of the blast were arrested in the case. Media, Police and security agencies should investigate all possible avenues and point fingers only once irrefutable evidence is unearthed.

U.P. Sunni Waqf Board
The unceremonial ouster of the CEO of the U.P. Sunni Waqf Board, who was studiously enquiring into corruption and usurped properties, sheds a bad light on the intentions of the U.P. state government. It is a sad commentary on the government which seemingly prefers to continue the loot and illegal exploitation of waqf properties while so many Muslim poor are leading a miserable life and could benefit immensely if waqfs are properly administered.

Situation in J&K
The Central government by hurriedly executing Afzal Guru has sent a bad signal to the Valley of Kashmir. It is beyond doubt that Afzal Guru did not get a fair trial, that he was not the mastermind or an actual participant in the terrorist attack on our Parliament. Allowing him a last appeal to the Supreme Court and letting him meet his family members for a last time was a legal as well as a moral and humanitarian requirement. {Under Shariat or Law of Land?} Our government failed on both counts. It failed also to take into account the umpteen warnings that the situation in J&K will only worsen as a result of his execution. As a result, the Valley has been under curfew most of the time since his fateful hanging on 9 February. The Indian government should now show some humanity and courtesy by returning his body to his family for a proper burial.

Police Bill in J&K
The J&K government has surreptitiously, while the Valley was under curfew, introduced a draconian Police Bill which is similar to AFPSA and gives enormous powers to the Police and envisages to create “Special Security Zones” where Police will be authorised to distribute guns to people in a re-creation of the discredited “Village Defence Committees” when persons in Hindu localities were issued fire-arms. If some provisions of AFPSA are removed or some areas are taken out of the purview of the AFPSA after the passage of this bill, it will hardly change the situation on the ground for the ordinary Kashmiri. AIMMM asks the J&K government to reconsider the bill and delete its controversial and anti-people provisions.

Bangladesh
Bangladesh government has saw it fit to re-open “war crimes” cases after a lapse of 41 years and has implicated people who were never accused before or did not even live in East Pakistan at the time of the events in question. The so-called “International Crimes Tribunal” is neither international nor an unbiased court of justice. Its judges and prosecutors are political appointees. Its chief judge was caught working in cahoots with a lawyer close to the ruling party. This judge has since resigned in disgrace. The sole aim of the “tribunal” is to liquidate Jamaate Islami Bangladesh which had been a poll ally of the current ruling party in 1996 but now allies with the opposition BNP. The Bangladesh government by initiating this act of vendetta against Jamaate Islami Bangladesh and BNP has vitiated the peace and harmony in the country and has paved the road to a protracted civil war. Already dozens of people have lost their lives in protests against these controversial verdicts. If Bangladesh government is really serious, it should approach the UN Security Council to arrange an “International Criminal Tribunal” on the lines of Rwanda and Bosnia in order to ensure a fair trial, although the South African model of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission will be a more humane and wise route to overcome the pain and agony of the events of 1971.

Syria
AIMMM reiterates its rejection of the Syrian Baathist regime’s games to prolong the conflict and give it a sectarian colour. The regime has already caused murder of over 70,000 Syrians and widespread destruction across Syria and forced nearly one million into exile. No system or government is more important than its people. {Does it apply to Masli?} The Syrian government must without any delay start sincere negotiations with the opposition to find a solution to stop blood-letting and destruction.
Moreover, the AIMMM rejects and forcefully condemns the efforts of the Syrian government to implicate Indian Muslims in the crisis caused by its own fascist policies. AIMMM notes the baseless insinuation made by a Syrian envoy to India recently that Indian Muslims are fighting alongwith the Syrian rebel forces. This is a baseless and concocted lie manufactured to secure the support of certain elements in the Indian government and media. According to our information, there is no iota of truth in this lie which is normal for the Baathist rulers in Damascus.

[Prem]

http://inhabitat.com/mumbais-namaste-to ... -together/

Mumbai's Namaste Tower Resembles Two Henna-Covered Hands Clasped Together

Namaste Tower is a new high-rise covered in intricate henna-esque designs that is currently under construction in Mumbai - and it promises to be one of the world's most unique new skyscrapers when it's completed in 2015. Designed by WS Atkins the high rise is inspired by the Indian greeting "Namaste," and it features two joined volumes that are meant to resemble two hands clasped together. The eco-friendly tower will feature large solar thermal collectors, which will heat some of the water used inside the building.
The tower is composed of two symmetrical masses that are joined together; the space between the two wings forms the corridors. At the end of each corridor, there will be an open atrium providing dramatic views of the city. Those atria will contain lush gardens, bringing some green inside the building. The building will be clad in white Alpolic and glass that will be fritted with large-scale graphics that are meant to resemble henna, creating visual depth to the facade. “The aim is to create a sense of transparency and depth to the building while at the same time, help maintain the thermal qualities required to meet the building’s envelope design,” explain the architects

[RamaY]

Babri / Ayodhya
Sangh Parivar and its political face, the BJP, are again raising the issue of the Ram Mandir at the site of the martyred Babri Mosque, while the issue is sub-judice. Though the issue has now lost its sentimental value, Sangh outfits hope to use it as a tool for polarisation of society. AIMMM reiterates that the Muslim community rejects any attempt to seek a solution by force or stealth and that only the courts are now entitled to say the last word in this unnecessary dispute raked and muddied by the Sangh outfits.

To whom Ram Janmabhumi Issue lost the sentimental value, Indian Muslims?

[Sushupti]

Hinduism finds no mention in tax-funded univ form

[member_19686]

New Pope named himself after Francis Xavier the criminal responsible for the Goa Inquisition & who instigated destruction of several Hindu shrines.

Francis Xavier in a letter describing how he instigated Christian children in Portuguese occupied Goa to destroy Hindu objects of worship:

As to the numbers who become Christians, you may understand them from this, that it often happens to me to be hardly able to use my hands from the fatigue of baptizing: often in a single day I have baptized whole villages. Sometimes I have lost my voice and strength altogether with repeating again and again the Credo and the other forms. The fruit that is reaped by the baptism of infants, as well as by the instruction of children and others, is quite incredible. These children, I trust heartily, by the grace of God, will be much better than their fathers. They show an ardent love for the Divine law, and an extraordinary zeal for learning our holy religion and imparting it to others. Their hatred for idolatry is marvellous. They get into feuds with the heathen about it, and whenever their own parents practise it, they reproach them and come off to tell me at once. Whenever I hear of any act of idolatrous worship, I go to the place with a large band of these children, who very soon load the devil with a greater amount of insult and abuse than he has lately received of honor and worship from their parents, relations, and acquaintances. The children run at the idols, upset them, dash them down, break them to pieces, spit on them, trample on them, kick them about, and in short heap on them every possible outrage.

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1543xavier1.asp

This criminal whom Catholics consider a "Saint" also reached Japan and began the process whereby Christians wreaked much havoc there for the next 100 years or so.

[Prem]

Paving the way for greater use of ancient Chinese and Ayurvedic medical knowledge

http://scienceblog.com/61107/paving-the ... oyVxelX.99

Scientists are reporting an advance toward overcoming a major barrier to tapping the potential of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and India’s Ayurvedic medicine in developing new and more effective modern drugs. Their report appears in ACS’ Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling.
Andreas Bender and colleagues explain that TCM has made key contributions to modern medicine. In the world’s largest international clinical trial, for instance, scientists concluded that Artesunate, a derivative of the Chinese herb qinghao, should replace quinine as a treatment for severe malaria in both adults and children worldwide. Traditional medicines have a track record in benefiting human health that spans thousands of years. However, gaps in knowledge about how these medicines work in the body, their “mode of action” (MOA) — limit their use today. Information about a drug’s MOA is important for better understanding of both the beneficial effects and side effects of treatments.
They describe an algorithm that can help explain how these substances work in the body, and use of it to help understand the MOA of traditional anti-inflammatory medicines. An algorithm is a step-by-step procedure to generally analyze data, which the scientists applied to predicting how the active chemical ingredients in traditional medicines affect biological processes. “By establishing the MOA of these compounds, the gap between Western and traditional medicine can be reduced,” the report concluded.

[member_19686]

X posting:

It could be Francis of Assisi?

Assisi was the founder of Franciscans.

In the immediate aftermath of the announcement that Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio had become the first pope to take the name Francis, it was assumed by many that his choice was meant to honor Francis of Assisi.

That might be off the mark.

Marquette University President Father Scott Pilarz, a Jesuit like the new pope, noted Wednesday that one of the greatest Jesuit saints was Francis Xavier. Pilarz said Francis Xavier was a friend of the Jesuit founder, Ignatius Loyola.

Pilarz said having a fellow Jesuit named pope "means an awful lot."

http://www.jsonline.com/features/religi ... 65021.html

[abhishek_sharma]

Views from the Right

Bangladesh protests

Both Sangh Parivar weeklies have carried reports that claim that the Hindus are the "scapegoats" in the clashes between "the patriots and the fundamentalists" in Bangladesh.

Organiser points to the declining Hindu minority population in Bangladesh since 1947 to highlight that "it is not the first time that the Hindus have been at the receiving end for no fault of their own", and argues that "atrocities by Jamaat-e-Islami activists" have created a 1971-like situation in 2013 as far as violence against minorities goes.

While appearing sympathetic towards the clamour for punishing Jamaat leaders, the reports describe the "volatile" situation in Bangladesh as "millions of freedom lovers pitching" to "free [Bangladesh] from all extremist and fundamentalist forces". Organiser suggests that India and Bangladesh shun the "cosmetic show of amity and friendship" and "join hands to ensure [the] safe stay of Hindus" there. Panchjanya has also described how "human rights activists" have reported the violence against minorities in Bangladesh to buttress its claim of atrocities committed against Hindus by the fanatic elements affiliated to Jamaat leaders there.

NATIONAL COUNCIL MEET

The recent BJP conclave in the capital was prominently covered with full-page reports in both journals. Informing its readers that the BJP has sounded the bugle against the Congress-led UPA government with its three-day conclave, Panchjanya called Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi rising stars, declaring how their achievements are outdoing anyone from the Congress camp.

Organiser, in contrast, dwelt on BJP president Rajnath Singh's "brainstorming speech" but described Modi's argument that the "nation is being sacrificed for one family" as the loudest message BJP ought to send to the country. The journals also highlighted the messages delivered by L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley during the meeting.

Steel Scam

While both weeklies allege a scam in the implementation of farm loan waiver scheme, Organiser's cover story — a "big expose" — claims that a "a Maharatna [was killed] by loot", asserting a Rs 25,000 crore loss to SAIL. According to the story, the current steel minister, Beni Prasad Verma, "has to explain", while his predecessors are also "in the dock".

Organiser alleges that a "massive syndicate" to generate "slush funds" still "flourishes under [the] new minister, Beni Prasad Verma", and accuses the minister of "siphoning off funds for Rahul Gandhi's high decibel poll campaign". It refers to one Kolkata-based businessman as the "principal operator" during Ram Vilas Paswan's regime, as well as today. In an accompanying report, Organiser asserts a "big scam" in Gua iron ore project. Both weeklies also claim that the "Congress feeds on farm suicides".

Compiled by Ravish Tiwari

[RamaY]

Given the fact that BD is going under see, would be a better strategy to invite all Hindu Banglaseshis into India and facilitate their legal/illegal migration?

There are said to be (9% of 150mil) ~13 million Hindus in Bangladesh. They can be absorbed by Neighboring NE and Bengal states, which have done stellar job in absorbing tens of millions of BD Muslims.

Of course this may make other to follow suit and invite other BDs into India. But that wouldn't have any negative impact because this has been happening since 1947 in a continuous flow.

Let us see if BD Muslims feel safe and secure after taking away the properties of 13 million hindus and exporting another 100 million Muslims.

If they cannot be happy and progressive even after that. We will have 100 million Banglaseshis with relatives in BD lands, who will act as our peace ambassadors same as the numerous Muslims families in India are contributing to our great nation by influencing their relatives in Pakistan to make piss with India.

Who knows this may help BJP win West Bengal state for once or twice before the state goes back to secularism?

[Yayavar]

Hinduism finds no mention in tax-funded univ form

Interesting..they dont seem to list an email id or online response. Can you ask them on why is it so? The VC is Bandopadhyaya

[RamaY]

Indian History lesson in 5 mins...

http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperial ... chron.html

INDIAN TIMELINE (1510-1947 A.D.)

1510: Portuguese Catholics conquer Goa to serve as capital of their Asian maritime empire, beginning conquest and exploitation of India by Europeans.

1526: Mughal conqueror Babur (1483-1530) defeats the Sultan of Delhi and captures the Koh-i-noor diamond. Occupying Delhi, by 1529 he founds the Indian Mughal Empire (1526-1761), consolidated by his grandson Akbar.

1542: Portuguese Jesuit priest Francis Xavier (1506-1552), most successful Catholic missionary, lands in Goa. First to train and employ native clergy in conversion efforts, he brings Christianity to India, Malay Archipelago and Japan.

1556: Akbar (1542-1605), grandson of Babur, becomes third Mughal Emperor at age 13. Disestablishes Islam as state religion and declares himself impartial ruler of Hindus and Muslims; encourages art, culture, religious tolerance.

1565: Muslim forces defeat and completely destroy the city of Vijayanagara. Empire's final collapse comes in 1646.

1569: Akbar captures fortress of Ranthambor, ending Rajput independence. Soon controls nearly all of Rajasthan.

1588: British ships defeat the Spanish Armada off the coast of Calais, France, to become rulers of the high seas.

1589: Akbar rules half of India, shows tolerance for all faiths.

1595: Construction is begun on Chidambaram Temple's Hall of a Thousand Pillars in South India, completed in 1685.

ca 1600: "Persian wheel" to lift water by oxen is adopted, one of few farming innovations since Indus Valley civilization.

1600: Royal Charter forms the East India Company, setting in motion a process that ultimately results in the subjugation of India under British rule.

1605: Akbar the Great dies at age 63. His son Jahangir succeeds him as fourth Mughal Emperor.

1613-14: British East India Company sets up trading post at Surat.

1615-18: Mughals grant Britain right to trade and establish factories in exchange for English navy's protection of the Mughal Empire, which faces Portuguese sea power.

1619: Jaffna kingdom is annexed and Sri Lanka's ruling dynasty deposed by Portuguese Catholics who, between 1505 and 1658, destroy most of the island's Hindu temples.

1627-80: Life of Sivaji, valiant general and tolerant founder of Hindu Maratha Empire (1674-1818). Emancipates large areas confiscated by Muslims, returning them to Hindu control. First Indian ruler to build a major naval force.

1630: Over the next two years, millions starve to death as Shah Jahan (1592-1666), fifth Mughal Emperor, empties the royal treasury to buy jewels for his "Peacock Throne."

1647: Shah Jahan completes Taj Mahal in Agra beside Yamuna River. Its construction has taken 20,000 laborers 15 years, at a total cost equivalence of US$25 million.

ca 1650: Robert de Nobili (1577-1656), Portuguese Jesuit missionary noted for fervor and intolerance, arrives in Madurai, declares himself a brahmin, dresses like a Hindu monk and composes Veda-like scripture extolling Jesus.

1658: Zealous Muslim Aurangzeb (1618-1707) becomes Mughal Emperor. His discriminatory policies toward Hindus, Marathas and the Deccan kingdoms contribute to the dissolution of the Mughal Empire by 1750.

1660: Frenchman Francois Bernier reports India's peasantry is living in misery under Mughal rule.

1675: Aurangzeb executes Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, beginning the Sikh-Muslim feud that continues to this day.

1679: Aurangzeb levies Jizya tax on non-believers, Hindus.

1688: Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb demolishes all temples in Mathura, said to number 1,000. (During their reign, Muslim rulers destroy roughly 60,000 Hindu temples throughout India, constructing mosques on 3,000 sites.)

ca 1725: Jesuit Father Hanxleden compiles first Sanskrit grammar in a European language.

1751: Robert Clive, age 26, seizes Arcot in modern Tamil Nadu as French and British fight for control of South India.

1761: Afghan army of Ahmad Shah Durrani routs Hindu Maratha forces at Panipat, ending Maratha hegemony in North India. As many as 200,000 Hindus are said to have died in the strategic eight-hour battle.

1764: British defeat the weak Mughal Emperor to become rulers of Bengal, richest province of India.

1769: Prithivi Narayan Shah, ruler of Gorkha principality, conquers Nepal Valley; moves capital to Kathmandu, establishing present-day Hindu nation of Nepal.

1773: British East India Company obtains monopoly on the production and sale of opium in Bengal.

1784: Judge and linguist Sir William Jones founds Calcutta's Royal Asiatic Society. First such scholastic institution.

1786: Sir William Jones uses the Rig Veda term Aryan ("noble") to name the parent language (now termed Indo-European) of Sanskrit, Greek, Latin and Germanic tongues.

1787-95: British Parliament impeaches Warren Hastings, Governor General of Bengal (1774-85) for misconduct.

1787: British Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade is formed, marking the beginning of the end of slavery.

1792: Britain's Cornwallis defeats Tipu Sahib, Sultan of Mysore and most powerful ruler in South India, main bulwark of resistance to British expansion in India.

1799: Sultan Tipu is killed in battle against 5,000 British soldiers who storm and raze his capital, Srirangapattinam.

1803: Second Anglo-Maratha war results in British Christian capture of Delhi and control of large parts of India. 1803: India's population is 200 million.

1809: British strike a bargain with Ranjit Singh for exclusive areas of influence.

1820: First Indian immigrants arrive in the US.

1825: First massive immigration of Indian workers from Madras is to Reunion and Mauritius. This immigrant Hindu community builds their first temple in 1854.

1828: Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833) founds Adi Brahmo Samaj in Calcutta, first movement to initiate religio-social reform. Influenced by Islam and Christianity, he denounces polytheism, idol worship; repudiates the Vedas, avataras, karma and reincarnation, caste and more.

1831: British Christians defeat Ranjit Singh's forces at Balakot, in Sikh attempt to establish a homeland in N.W. India.

1833: Slavery is abolished in British Commonwealth countries, giving impetus to abolitionists in United States.

1835: Civil service jobs in India are opened to Indians.

1835: Macaulay's Minute furthers Western education in India. English is made official government and court language.

1835: Mauritius receives 19,000 immigrant indentured laborers from India. Last ship carrying workers arrives in 1922.

1837: Britain formalizes emigration of Indian indentured laborers to supply cheap labor under a system more morally acceptable to British Christian society than slavery, illegal in the British Empire since 1833.

1837: Kali-worshiping Thugees are suppressed by British.

1838: British Guyana receives its first 250 Indian laborers.

1840: Joseph de Goubineau (1816-1882), French scholar, writes The Inequality of Human Races. Proclaims the "Aryan race" superior to other great strains and lays down the aristocratic class-doctrine of Aryanism that later provides the basis for Adolf Hitler's Aryan racism.

1843: British conquer the Sind region (present-day Pakistan). 1845: Trinidad receives its first 197 Indian immigrant laborers.

1846: British forcibly separate Kashmir from the Sikhs and sell it to the Maharaja of Jammu for pounds1,000,000.

1849: Sikh army is defeated by the British at Amritsar.

1850: First English translation of the Rig Veda by H.H. Wilson, first holder of Oxford's Boden Chair, founded "to promote the translation of the Scriptures into English, so as to enable his countrymen to proceed in the conversion of the natives of India to the Christian religion."

1851: Sir M. Monier-Williams (1819-99) publishes English-Sanskrit Dictionary. His completed Sanskrit-English Dictionary is released in 1899 after three decades of work.

1853: Max Muller (1823-1900), German Christian philologist and Orientalist, advocates the term Aryan to name a hypothetical primitive people of Central Asia, the common ancestors of Hindus, Persians and Greeks. Muller speculates that this "Aryan race" divided and marched west to Europe and east to India and China around 1500 bce. Their language, Muller contends, developed into Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, German, etc., and all ancient civilizations descended from this Aryan race.

1856: Catholic missionary Bishop Caldwell coins the term Dravidian to refer to South Indian Caucasian peoples.

1857: First Indian Revolution, called the Sepoy Mutiny, ends in a few months with the fall of Delhi and Lucknow. 1858: India has 200 miles of railroad track. By 1869 5,000 miles of steel track have been completed by British railroad companies. In 1900, total track is 25,000 miles, and by World War I, 35,000 miles. By 1970, at 62,136 miles, it has become the world's greatest train system. Unfortunately, this development depletes India's forest lands.

1860: S.S. Truro and S.S. Belvedere dock in Durban, S. Africa, carrying first indentured servants (from Madras and Calcutta) to work sugar plantations. With contracts of five years and up, thousands emigrate over next 51 years.

1869-1948: Lifetime of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Indian nationalist and Hindu political activist who develops the strategy of nonviolent disobedience that forces Christian Great Britain to grant independence to India (1947).

1876: British Queen Victoria (1819-1901), head of Church of England, is proclaimed Empress of India (1876-1901).

1876-1990: Max Muller, pioneer of comparative religion as a scholarly discipline, publishes 50-volume Sacred Books of the East, English translations of Indian-Oriental scriptures.

1877-1947: Lifetime of Sri Lanka's Ananda Coomaraswamy, foremost interpreter of Indian art and culture to the West.

1879: The "Leonidas," first emigrant ship to Fiji, adds 498 Indian indentured laborers to the nearly 340,000 already working in other British Empire colonies.

1885: A group of middle-class intellectuals in India, some of them British, found the Indian National Congress to be a voice of Indian opinion to the British government. This was the origin of the later Congress Party.

1888: Max Muller, revising his stance, writes, "Aryan, in scientific language, is utterly inapplicable to race. If I say Aryas, I mean neither blood nor bones, nor hair nor skull; I mean simply those who spoke the Aryan language."

1893: Swami Vivekananda represents Hinduism at Chicago's Parliament of the World's Religions, first ever interfaith gathering, dramatically enlightening Western opinion as to the profundity of Hindu philosophy and culture.

1894: Gandhi drafts first petition protesting the indentured servant system. Less than six months later, British announce the halt of indentured emigration from India.

1896: Nationalist leader, Marathi scholar Bal Bangadhar Tilak (1857-1920) initiates Ganesha Visarjana and Sivaji festivals to fan Indian nationalism. He is first to demand complete independence, Purna Svaraj, from Britain.

1900: India's tea exports to Britain reach 137 million pounds.

1905: Lord Curzon, arrogant British Viceroy of India, resigns.

1906: Muslim League political party is formed in India.

1906: Dutch Christians overtake Bali after Puputan massacres in which Hindu Balinese royal families are murdered.

1909: Gandhi and assistant Maganlal agitate for better working conditions and abolition of indentured servitude in S. Africa. Maganlal continues Gandhi's work in Fiji.

1912: Anti-Indian racial riots on the US West Coast expel large Hindu immigrant population.

1913: New law prohibits Indian immigration to S. Africa, primarily in answer to white colonists' alarm at competition of Indian merchants and expired labor contracts.

1914: US government excludes Indian citizens from immigration. Restriction stands until 1965.

1917: Last Hindu Indian indentured laborers are brought to British Christian colonies of Fiji and Trinidad.

1918: Spanish Influenza epidemic kills 12.5 million in India, 21.6 million worldwide.

1919: Brigadier Dyer orders Gurkha troops to shoot unarmed demonstrators in Amritsar, killing 379. Massacre convinces Gandhi that India must demand full independence from oppressive British Christian rule.

1920: Gandhi formulates the satyagraha, "firmness in truth," strategy of noncooperation and nonviolence against India's Christian British rulers. Later resolves to wear only dothi to preserve homespun cotton and simplicity.

1920: System of indentured servitude is abolished by India, following grassroots agitation by Mahatma Gandhi.

1923: US law excludes citizens of India from naturalization.

1924: Sir John Marshall (1876-1958) discovers relics of the Indus Valley Hindu civilization. Begins large-scale excavations.

1927 & 34: Indians permitted to sit as jurors and court magistrates.

1928: Hindu leader Jawaharlal Nehru drafts plan for a free India; becomes president of Congress Party in 1929.

1931: Dr. Karan Singh is born, son and heir apparent of Kashmir's last Maharaja; becomes parliamentarian, Indian ambassador to the US and global Hindu spokesman.

1939: Mohammed Ali Jinnah calls for a separate Muslim state.

1941: First US chair of Sanskrit and Indology established at Yale Univ.; American Oriental Society founded in 1942.

1942: At sites along the lost Sarasvati River in Rajasthan, archeologist Sir Aurel Stein finds shards with incised characters identical to those on Indus Valley seals.

1947: India gains independence from Britain August 15. Pakistan emerges as a separate Islamic nation, and 600,000 die in clashes during subsequent population exchange of 14 million people between the two new countries.

[abhishek_sharma]

From the Urdu Press

Bangladesh unrest

Urdu broadsheets have mostly adopted a conservative line on Bangladesh. The Jamaat-e-Islami Hind's biweekly, Daawat, in comment by its editor, Parvez Rehmani (March 10), writes: "The Muslims of Bangladesh are active Muslims. Despite their minds being poisoned with Bangla nationalism and atheistic secularism in 1971, their link to Islam could not be severed. There is no basis for the allegations being levelled against the supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami. They are motivated by political revenge... As far as efforts for the establishment of an Islamic life is concerned, the people there respect Jamaat-e-Islami... Therefore, our government should formulate its policy (about Bangladesh) keeping these facts in view. If a government is formed there based on Islamic principles, there is no cause for worry. Such a government would establish better relations with our country because of the presence of 20 crore Muslims in this country."

Delhi-based weekly Nai Duniya (March 10-17) writes: "The campaign of democrats in Shabagh is now on its way towards a civil war. Awarding death sentences to the Islamists has become the central tricky issue." It elaborates: "Even the supporters of the campaign for awarding death sentence to those who supported Pakistan during the liberation movement in 1971 are expressing the apprehension that if the democrats continue to demand punishment instead of justice, it could lead to a long-term confrontation."

Red Tripura

Commenting on the electoral victory of the CPM-led Left Front in Tripura, Siasat, in its editorial on March 2, writes: "A kind of anxiety was discerned in political circles regarding the result of the assembly elections in Tripura. This was because politicians wanted to see if the people of Tripura would vote against the communists, like in Kerala and West Bengal. But now it would not be correct to talk of a political oblivion of communists... Even if the results of the Tripura elections do not significantly affect the forthcoming general elections, it would have an impact on the coalitions and political alignments.... At a time when there is a wave against the UPA in the country and the opposition parties have failed to offer a viable alternative, the possibilities of change cannot be ruled out."

Daawat, in a commentary on March 7, writes: "If Modi can become a PM candidate because of the Gujarat verdict, so what position can be accorded to Manik Sarkar after the verdict of Tripura? The partisanship of the media can be discerned on this matter... Much is made of Modi's victory... On the other hand, the fifth consecutive victory of the Left Front in Tripura and the long rule of Manik Sarkar — that is much longer than the rule of Modi — did not make news."

Rashtriya Sahara, in its editorial on March 2, writes: "The country's media... did not emphasise the fact that Manik Sarkar is the most honest and spotless politician in the country." Sahafat, in its editorial on March 2, writes: "A special feature of elections in Tripura was a record 92 per cent polling. Sarkar is well known for his simplicity and it seems that, following the footsteps of Jyoti Basu, he is marching ahead with success."

VIVA CHAVEZ

Paying a glowing tribute, Rashtriya Sahara, in its editorial of March 7, writes: "Undoubtedly, being a socialist country in the neighbourhood of the greatest capitalist country, the US, was an achievement. And [Venezuela leader Hugo] Chavez fixed his country's economy using socialist economic policies, and that is why the people respected him. In India, only those sections that were sworn enemies of socialism were critical of him." Sahafat, in it editorial on March 9, writes: "Chavez used to look into the eyes of rulers of the US and never hesitated to speak the truth. This was the reason that the Venezuelan people came out to the streets mourning and crying bitterly after his death... Such popularity is gained by one's love for justice and assertion of truth. One wishes the leaders of our own country could learn a lesson from Chavez."

Compiled by Seema Chishti

[Pranav]

What's this going on about lowering age of consent for sex to 16?

IMHO it doesn't make sense for somebody to be allowed to have sex, get pregnant and have kids, but not be allowed to marry.

Choose any suitable age, but the age for consent for sex and marriage should be the same.

[shiv]

What's this going on about lowering age of consent for sex to 16?

IMHO it doesn't make sense for somebody to be allowed to have sex, get pregnant and have kids, but not be allowed to marry.

How to stop people from having sex before 18? In this case the law is an ass because anyone who has sex before 18 is a criminal and needs to be tried and convicted.

On the other hand the birth complications that occur as a result of pregnancy before 18 are very high, so allowing people to legally have children before 18 is unsafe.

Do you have any better ideas?

I think the move is very sensible, but needs to be combined with sex education and advice on contraception.

[RamaY]

^
Agree. I hope they reduce the legal age for consensual sex to 12 as some countries do.
Also helps if girls above 12 are given birth control pills in high schools.
India should not fall in this specific HDI at least.

[shiv]

Lowering age for sex will cause more rapes: Ramdev:

Sex outside marriage should be a crime; Govt. must withdraw move to lower consensual sex age limit: Jamaat-e-Islami Hind

[RamaY]

Terrorists have no religion. They are secular!

[prahaar]

Lowering age for sex will cause more rapes: Ramdev:

Sex outside marriage should be a crime; Govt. must withdraw move to lower consensual sex age limit: Jamaat-e-Islami Hind

Shivji, by linking these two links without any explanation is not right. You should give your view on these links, otherwise it is like running an experiment on forum members (without many of them realizing it, which IMHO is not fair). If you want to suggest any correlation or otherwise you should state your stand on it.

[shiv]

Lowering age for sex will cause more rapes: Ramdev:

Sex outside marriage should be a crime; Govt. must withdraw move to lower consensual sex age limit: Jamaat-e-Islami Hind

Shivji, by linking these two links without any explanation is not right. You should give your view on these links, otherwise it is like running an experiment on forum members (without many of them realizing it, which IMHO is not fair). If you want to suggest any correlation or otherwise you should state your stand on it.

Interesting thoughts. I think both Ramdev's comments and those from the Jamaat e Islami hind are exceedingly stupid.

The linking of the two comments is because I saw the Jamaat e Islami news as TV text scroll yesterday and Googled for it and got Ramdev and JeI Hind together in the search results. One is definitely an Islamic viewpoint. The other is not a "Hindu viewpoint" but with "Baba Ramdev" saying it who can deny that it is not a Hindu viewpoint? Is Baba Ramdev a secular leader? You and I may reach the (IMO accurate) judgement that Ramdev's comment is a personal viewpoint and not a Hindu demand. But that is not going to stop anyone who wants to use that opinion from pointing out how backward and idiotic Hindus are. Whenever it is necessary for Ramdev to be declared a Hindu leader, it will be done by whichever party finds it convenient. After that Ramdev's views will be declared as Hindu views.

By linking only one I can make it look like opposition to lowering the age is a Hindu problem or an Islamic demand depending on which news I choose to link. By putting both together people are welcome to reach whatever judgement they wish.

[Pranav]

What's this going on about lowering age of consent for sex to 16?

IMHO it doesn't make sense for somebody to be allowed to have sex, get pregnant and have kids, but not be allowed to marry.

How to stop people from having sex before 18? In this case the law is an ass because anyone who has sex before 18 is a criminal and needs to be tried and convicted.

On the other hand the birth complications that occur as a result of pregnancy before 18 are very high, so allowing people to legally have children before 18 is unsafe.

Do you have any better ideas?

I think the move is very sensible, but needs to be combined with sex education and advice on contraception.

You can't stop people from doing lots of illegal things, but that doesn't mean that they have to be legalized.

You can't separate sex from pregnancy and childbirth. If you are getting pregnant and having kids why should you not be allowed to marry.

[prahaar]

Lowering age for sex will cause more rapes: Ramdev:

Sex outside marriage should be a crime; Govt. must withdraw move to lower consensual sex age limit: Jamaat-e-Islami Hind

Shivji, by linking these two links without any explanation is not right. You should give your view on these links, otherwise it is like running an experiment on forum members (without many of them realizing it, which IMHO is not fair). If you want to suggest any correlation or otherwise you should state your stand on it.

Interesting thoughts. I think both Ramdev's comments and those from the Jamaat e Islami hind are exceedingly stupid.

The linking of the two comments is because I saw the Jamaat e Islami news as TV text scroll yesterday and Googled for it and got Ramdev and JeI Hind together in the search results. One is definitely an Islamic viewpoint. The other is not a "Hindu viewpoint" but with "Baba Ramdev" saying it who can deny that it is not a Hindu viewpoint? Is Baba Ramdev a secular leader? You and I may reach the (IMO accurate) judgement that Ramdev's comment is a personal viewpoint and not a Hindu demand. But that is not going to stop anyone who wants to use that opinion from pointing out how backward and idiotic Hindus are. Whenever it is necessary for Ramdev to be declared a Hindu leader, it will be done by whichever party finds it convenient. After that Ramdev's views will be declared as Hindu views.

By linking only one I can make it look like opposition to lowering the age is a Hindu problem or an Islamic demand depending on which news I choose to link. By putting both together people are welcome to reach whatever judgement they wish.

Shivji, thanks a lot for the explanation. I agree that both the links can be used in isolation or as a couple in different ways (depending on what color one wants to give). In my opinion, the content of BR's comments and those of JI are very different, but they can be used to generate moral equivalence between the viewpoints.

The funny thing is that those who are fighting against the old systems(child marriage/etc) also have a section in them which is supporting a lifestyle that can result in increase of teenage single mothers. I am saying this based on the societal trends in parts of the world with top-3 HDI.

[Sanku]

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/outra ... /1088566/0

Outraged MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, others blast UPSC for being anti-rural India

Tying USPC to English.

A not so subtle attempt to create more Macualy putra's and SLIME and also keep the power in the hands of such.

[rohitvats]

^
Agree. I hope they reduce the legal age for consensual sex to 12 as some countries do.
Also helps if girls above 12 are given birth control pills in high schools.
India should not fall in this specific HDI at least.

Somethings never change.

[rohitvats]

You can't stop people from doing lots of illegal things, but that doesn't mean that they have to be legalized. You can't separate sex from pregnancy and childbirth. If you are getting pregnant and having kids why should you not be allowed to marry.

Do you realize the sheer contradiction in your own thoughts and the post above?

Whether you like it or not, children today are far more aware of their sexuality and other sex related issues. Sex in various forms is bombarded into each and every home under various names. P@rn is just a small percentage of it - and even that is available at a flick of a mouse on your home computer or in internet cafes.

Sexual liaison (of varying degree) between school going children in the 12-18 age bracket is a given phenomenon. And which IMO reaches its peaks when kids are in Class 10-Class 12 bracket. That is when the hormones start kicking in and with free availability of information and awareness leads to a situation where sexual liaison becomes a given fact - which might not necessarily be in form of intercourse. But it nevertheless is there. You only need to look into the (in)famous 'DPS MMS Scandal' to see what Class 11 students are aware of and capable of doing - and this was in 2004.

Last thing I want is for kids to be hauled up to jails for such things...where a consensual act will perforce be treated as Rape.

[alexis]

You can't stop people from doing lots of illegal things, but that doesn't mean that they have to be legalized.

You can't separate sex from pregnancy and childbirth. If you are getting pregnant and having kids why should you not be allowed to marry.

Sorry. i disagree. Sex is separate from pregnancy and childbirth. That is why people use condoms

On a serious note, as long as use of contraceptives and abortion are legal, you cant equate sex with childbirth or pregnancy.

[rohitvats]

<SNIP>The funny thing is that those who are fighting against the old systems(child marriage/etc) also have a section in them which is supporting a lifestyle that can result in increase of teenage single mothers. I am saying this based on the societal trends in parts of the world with top-3 HDI.

How will making age of consent for Sex as 18 years remove the problem of single mothers? Or, is the problem only of 'teenage' single mothers?

[RamaY]

Somethings never change.

Unfortunately they won't.

Some women really need to be covered up - Says Shiv of BRF

What about the youth who is 15 Yrs 9 months?

You see, the same Constitution, Courts, Law making Parliament did not feel it is important to treat a 17 Yrs 6+ months old Delhi Rapist as an adult and change the law accordingly. He is still being treated as a juvenile.

The objective of the law must be to punish the guilty, even if required to go to any length.

The concept of "It is ok to let go even 1000 rapists but one should not punish even 1 innocent youth" is what makes the society full of rapists, especially when the law takes a minimum of 5-6 years to solve a case.

If you have any doubts, pls check how many rapes are reported since that Delhi rape incident. In Telugu papers alone, I am reading about at least 3-4 rapes in AP alone.

More over I am comparing with other nations and suggesting what is normal in many countries.

Is teen sex a new thing? If not, how could the society live without this law for decades and centuries? If it is a new thing, how long before it will become normal for 12-13yr olds to have consensual sex like in many asian, african, middle-eastern and European nations?

Why this half-nakedness?

[Pranav]

You can't stop people from doing lots of illegal things, but that doesn't mean that they have to be legalized. You can't separate sex from pregnancy and childbirth. If you are getting pregnant and having kids why should you not be allowed to marry.

Do you realize the sheer contradiction in your own thoughts and the post above?

Whether you like it or not, children today are far more aware of their sexuality and other sex related issues. Sex in various forms is bombarded into each and every home under various names. P@rn is just a small percentage of it - and even that is available at a flick of a mouse on your home computer or in internet cafes.

Sexual liaison (of varying degree) between school going children in the 12-18 age bracket is a given phenomenon. And which IMO reaches its peaks when kids are in Class 10-Class 12 bracket. That is when the hormones start kicking in and with free availability of information and awareness leads to a situation where sexual liaison becomes a given fact - which might not necessarily be in form of intercourse. But it nevertheless is there. You only need to look into the (in)famous 'DPS MMS Scandal' to see what Class 11 students are aware of and capable of doing - and this was in 2004.

Last thing I want is for kids to be hauled up to jails for such things...where a consensual act will perforce be treated as Rape.

Hello you mentioned a "contradiction". Nothing you said shows any contradiction in what I wrote. You are free to explain yourself.

[Pranav]

Sorry. i disagree. Sex is separate from pregnancy and childbirth. That is why people use condoms

On a serious note, as long as use of contraceptives and abortion are legal, you cant equate sex with childbirth or pregnancy.

Can you say sex is legal but pregnancy is illegal?

Can you say pregnancy is legal but childbirth is illegal?

Can you say childbirth is legal but marriage is illegal?

Only "yes" or "no" answers please.

[rohitvats]

Unfortunately they won't.

Don't worry, I'm quite reconciled to the fact.

What about the youth who is 15 Yrs 9 months?

Splitting hair is your specialty, not mine.

BTW, would you qualify to vote if your age was 17 years and 11 months and 29 days and 11 hours?

You see, the same Constitution, Courts, Law making Parliament did not feel it is important to treat a 17 Yrs 6+ months old Delhi Rapist as an adult and change the law accordingly. He is still being treated as a juvenile.

Two wrongs don't make right. If there is a problem and contradiction between age for consensual sex and juvenile law, it does not mean the first one is also wrong.

The objective of the law must be to punish the guilty, even if required to go to any length.

What is the guilty part with having sex at an age of 16 years? This is the reality of the society and times we live. No amount of lectures on morality can and will change this.

The concept of "It is ok to let go even 1000 rapists but one should not punish even 1 innocent youth" is what makes the society full of rapists, especially when the law takes a minimum of 5-6 years to solve a case.If you have any doubts, pls check how many rapes are reported since that Delhi rape incident. In Telugu papers alone, I am reading about at least 3-4 rapes in AP alone

What is the link between rape and lowering the age of consensual sex? Or are you saying that there is going to be a spurt in rapes of girls in 16-18 age bracket because of this law? Is the law any deterrent to those who rape irrespective of age of the victim? The rapes are going to happen - the age of consent not withstanding. And given the state of Indian law enforcement and general apathy towards rape, I would rather ensure that innocent don't get caught in this quagmire.

Is teen sex a new thing? If not, how could the society live without this law for decades and centuries? If it is a new thing, how long before it will become normal for 12-13yr olds to have consensual sex like in many asian, african, middle-eastern and European nations?

In which world are you living?Teens having sex is not a function of the law of the land. They would not stop because of the law or would not start having it more because law allows them to. It is more a function of social fabric of the society. Teens having sex or single mothers being a taboo in a society is not same has been criminals or law offenders.

[RamaY]

Rohitvats garu,

Why do you need a law for consensual sex, to begin with?

When sex is a natural phenomenon, and only physically suitable people can have sex why do you need age limit for consensual sex, whether it is 2 or 72?

Key words are "consensual" and "sex". Neither of them need law.

Only dhimmi slaves need laws to tell them to do things they naturally do, because they lost the ability to think for themselves.

Added Later: The justification given to lower the age was that many 16-18yr olds were sitting in juvenile jails because parents of girl/boy are putting rape charges on the other. I think you should have known this fact.

[RajeshA]

The problem is not the minimum age for consensual sex, the problem is the age difference between those who have "consensual" sex. More explanation here.

[RamaY]

^ I agree.

All this means is that the GoI, its Law-minster and his advisers were thinking thru their bottoms when they made this stupid law and the NGOs and some posters on the forum are up close to those bottoms to see the world beyond those bottoms.

For example it is illegal for a 18+yr old to have sex with <18yr old in USA. Yes this applies to 17.11.30.23.59 seconds.

[ramana]

Bji,

I think the first battle of Panipat in 1526 was as significant as the Battle of Bosworth Field that ended the Plantagenet rule in England and ushered in the journey to the modern age.

Panipat ended Delhi SUltanate rule and ushered in the trajectory to modern India. A mere four centuries later Independent India rose from the ashes of that battle.

Yet the Indian historians lament the first Battle of Panipat where the sultanate was defeated as a sad and sorry episode. And glorify the Sultanatte rule as if its was praiseworthy.

From Second battle of Terrain(1192) to Battle of Panipat(1526) it was mass rape of India that got halted. Waves of invaders from Turkomans, Afghans, Mongols, Mughals repeatedly came and ravaged the country. After the Mughals expect for Nadir Shah and Ahmed Shah Abdali there were no other raids.

This instability of Indian history causes massive cognitive dissonance.

[shiv]

You can't separate sex from pregnancy and childbirth

Yes you can.

[shiv]

Why do you need a law for consensual sex, to begin with?

When sex is a natural phenomenon, and only physically suitable people can have sex why do you need age limit for consensual sex, whether it is 2 or 72?

RamaY garu. Your typing fingers type before you finish thinking this through.

The age limit is not for sex. It is regarding consent for sex. Does the law agree that a 9 year old girl or a 12 year old girl is mature enough to give consent for sex.

The sex is supposed to come after the consent. There are cases in the world where sex has been had with a 9 year old girl. Did that girl give consent? Would all 9 year olds be equally mature? Not everyone is in agreement with the idea that a 9 year old (or a 12 year old as you yourself suggested) would be mature enough to give consent. Some cultures find it OK for a 9 year old girl to have sex. You have said 12 years is fine. But not everyone agrees with that. Of course some of the greatest people the world has seen are on the side of sex with girls as young as 9. Maybe you could rethink whether you agree with that?