Tag: censorship

Igor Ilyash: How Lukashenka declared war on Belarusian journalists

Independent media outlets in Belarus have been through a lot during the past 27 years of Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s dictatorship. Newspapers have been closed down and websites blocked, while journalists have faced civil and criminal prosecution, beatings. Several have even been murdered. Yet Lukashenka’s relationship with the country’s media has varied over time. Frosty periods have been… Read More Igor Ilyash: How Lukashenka declared war on Belarusian journalists

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Ashoka University: Correspondence on Professor P. B. Mehta’s Resignation (2021)

First posted March 22, 2021 NB: Appended below are documents which appeared in the public domain between March 17 and March 21. (The Joint Statement is curious for bearing the signatures of the two departing scholars, who apparently refer to themselves in the third person). The contrast between the content of the first three letters… Read More Ashoka University: Correspondence on Professor P. B. Mehta’s Resignation (2021)

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Ashoka students call for class boycott next week, demand university reinstate Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Arvind Subramanian // Over 150 international academicians come out in support of PB Mehta

NB: These are democratic and justifiable demands. The founders must relinquish direct control of the University’s academic affairs. Ashoka University is an educational institution, not a private limited company. DS    The student government at Ashoka University has called for a two-day boycott of classes starting Monday to protest the resignation of their teachers, Pratap… Read More Ashoka students call for class boycott next week, demand university reinstate Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Arvind Subramanian // Over 150 international academicians come out in support of PB Mehta

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Founders made clear I was political liability for Ashoka University: Pratap Bhanu Mehta

“My public writing in support of a politics that tries to honour constitutional values of freedom and equal respect for all citizens, is perceived to carry risks for the university… It is clear it is time for me to leave Ashoka. A liberal university will need a liberal political and social context to flourish. I… Read More Founders made clear I was political liability for Ashoka University: Pratap Bhanu Mehta

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STATEMENT BY ASHOKA UNIVERSITY FACULTY – March 18, 2021

To, Professor Malabika Sarkar, Vice Chancellor  Mr. Ashish Dhawan, Chairman of Board of Trustees Ashoka University. The resignation of Professor Pratap Bhanu Mehta from Ashoka University on Tuesday, March 16, 2021 is a matter of great anguish for the university faculty. It is not just an occasion for sorrow over the departure of a deeply… Read More STATEMENT BY ASHOKA UNIVERSITY FACULTY – March 18, 2021

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We Can't Treat Pratap Bhanu Mehta's Resignation from Ashoka as a 'Personal Decision'// Arvind Subramanian resigns from Ashoka University in protest

NB: Ideology is a form of silence; the enforcement of ideology is the enforcement of silence. DS   Pratap Bhanu Mehta’s resignation from the Ashoka University must not be treated as a decision taken for personal reasons. It should be a matter of public concern, even though he was teaching at a private university. We need not explain why.… Read More We Can't Treat Pratap Bhanu Mehta's Resignation from Ashoka as a 'Personal Decision'// Arvind Subramanian resigns from Ashoka University in protest

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Bharat Bhushan: Nervous government explores ways to 'manage' media

The leaking of the alleged Report of Group of Ministers (GoM) on Government Communications is an exceptional event for a government that prides itself in being successfully opaque. Reminiscent of McCarthyism, the report suggests “neutralising” journalists who write against the government and spread “false narratives”. An incredible proposal from an establishment journalist suggests that journalists… Read More Bharat Bhushan: Nervous government explores ways to 'manage' media

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Jessica Ní Mhainín: Fighting the laws that are silencing journalists

Slapps – or strategic lawsuits against public participation – are a type of legal action undertaken not to be won but to intimidate defendants into silence or inaction. A report by Index on Censorship calls for measures, including an anti-Slapp directive, to be put in place to protect journalists from vexatious legal threats and actions.… Read More Jessica Ní Mhainín: Fighting the laws that are silencing journalists

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Martand Kaushik, Ahan Penkar: Reporting is not a crime. So why has India’s government charged our magazine?

On 26 January, India celebrated the anniversary of its constitution, which 74 years ago promised citizens a secular, democratic state and justice, equality and liberty for all. But as the traditional Republic Day parade took place in New Delhi’s centre, across the city those very values were being violated in the most egregious manner. Hundreds… Read More Martand Kaushik, Ahan Penkar: Reporting is not a crime. So why has India’s government charged our magazine?

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‘No defence for jokes’ — Kunal Kamra offers no apology to SC in reply to contempt notice

‘Should powerful people and institutions show an inability to tolerate rebuke or criticism, we would be reduced to a country of incarcerated artists and flourishing lapdogs’… About his tweets against the apex court, Kamra felt the suggestion that they could shake the foundations of the most powerful court in the world is an “over-estimation of… Read More ‘No defence for jokes’ — Kunal Kamra offers no apology to SC in reply to contempt notice

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