https://countercurrents.org/2022/06/bulldozing-the-constitution/
A recent full front page of the advertisement by a Bhartiya Janata Party government declares, ‘House is not just a word. It is a place where power to dream comes and aspirations are fulfilled. Home is much about dignity and security than it is about shelter.’ It further goes on to quote Narendra Modi, ‘It is my dream that every Indian has a pucca house by 2022.’ The occasion was dedication of houses built by a private builder Balaji to the poor. Having witnessed over the past few days the now iconic picture of a bulldozer running down the Prayagraj house of parents of female Muslim student and activist Afreen Fatima, who participated in the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens protests, one is almost tempted to look for a fine print at the bottom of the page to the effect that the promise of house is subject to the condition that one doesn’t participate in any anti-government protest otherwise there is a danger of bulldozers coming over. A house built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana by Hasina Fakhroo was demolished by administration following clashes during a Ram Navami procession in Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh in April earlier this year.
by Naveen Tewari and Sandeep Pandey
26/06/2022
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