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Kanhaiya Kumar can get the Congress some traction but what next?

Kanhaiya Kumar, former JNUSU president, can be an asset but why is the Congress busy collecting assets when it has no strategy to use them. Kanhaiya’s move from the CPI to the Congress indicates that Bihar’s Leningrad is getting bored with just slogans and wants more. Of what, even Kanhaiya won’t know.

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Kanhaiya Kumar

By Vikram Kilpady

With the Congress woefully short on motormouth Hindi speakers ahead of the Uttar Pradesh elections and the larger 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Kanhaiya Kumar looks like a gain for the Congress which he joined in the presence of Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday. Gujarat Vadgam MLA Jignesh Mewani, who was with Kanhaiya, voiced his support for the Congress agenda though he did not formally join it citing Assembly rules since he is an independent MLA. Kanhaiya is a good speaker and a livewire who can keep people entertained and hold his own against hectoring by either the centrists or by the right. That too with elan and good humour to bat away attacks. There are many good YouTube videos as evidence, one just needs to do a cursory search.

Kanhaiya can do all this in Hindi, and English, without missing a beat or a wink or being caught in unsure pauses that several Congress speakers resort to, Rahul Gandhi included, and are often parodied by the media for their inability to speak the language and what-not. If Rahul Gandhi is a load and shoot rifle, Kanhaiya is the KK-47 and therein lies the rub because like all assault rifles, can the Congress suffer the heat a speaker like Kanhaiya can generate?

As well-documented, Kanhaiya was a Communist Party of India member and had been president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union on the ticket of the CPI’s student wing. He had also contested the 2019 Lok Sabha election for the CPI from Begusarai, Bihar’s so-called Leningrad, and lost to Giriraj Singh of the BJP, the original go-to-Pakistan man. 

This is possibly where Kanhaiya realised that revolutionary slogans were fine to enthuse the youth, both rural and urban, and the poor, predominantly rural, but power was not for the taking so easily for the CPI (seen as a Bhumihar party) anymore. Unlike the CPI and its allies, the ultra-left CPIML Liberation won 5 seats in the Bihar elections. Possibly, the masses of Bihar didn’t trust their own boy, now a big Delhi man spouting slogans of aazadi for everyone, including Kashmiris.

This is what will weigh him down, and by extension, the Congress. The pre-spring 2016 sloganeering in JNU of aazadi is still the smallest thorn that can be used to prick the otherwise impregnable wall of rhetoric and common sense that Kanhaiya can raise in a debate. The BJP has had a measure of him in Bihar and he can be easily read by the party there. That’s the right-wing point against him.

The centrist remembers that Kanhaiya kept his distance when the dadis of Shaheen Bagh put out quilts and shamianas to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act-NRC-NPR. Unlike his comrades from JNU who came and kept a low-profile, Kanhaiya has almost no profile when Shaheen Bagh stood out as an example of citizens holding the State to account for being crass and despotic, even when the media sided against them. Further, Umar Khalid still continues to be in prison under the draconian UAPA but Kanhaiya has largely kept quiet.

The silence on his part is emblematic of the way the Left has of coming apart like the Titanic after hitting the iceberg of caste and privilege. The original Communist Party, the CPI, formed in 1925, had lost its spunk post-1950 after it toed the Soviet Union line not to disturb the Congress. What else could it do as the global fountainhead of Communism was not keen on antagonizing Nehru and his daughter?

Unhappy with this line, the alleged hotheads formed the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) as the differences between the Soviets under Khrushchev and China under Mao Zedong, who had the same big ideas as the now-dead Stalin, divided the communist world. The Marxists, meaning the CPM, as the Communists (i.e. the CPI) would derisively call the newer and more vibrant party, would see another split, leading to the birth of the ultra-left Marxist Leninists.

The CPIML would turn away from parliamentary democracy and take up arms, beginning in Naxalbari in 1967. The State, under Indira Gandhi, cracked down hard and destroyed that violent left turn with far more violent suppression of human rights. Many of those killed in pursuit of spring thunder were young men and women high on the ideas of revolution and low on the realities of the rural hinterland, policing and the generous use of extra-legal force. For a cinematic depiction, check this trailer.

So why is the Congress party bent upon getting Kanhaiya to join it. When his mere presence can become a huge negative? The Congress is stumbling from one crisis to another; just when the Punjab front was healing, Navjot Singh Sidhu ripped open a new fracture by quitting as PPCC chief.

The answer possibly lies in the fact that Kanhaiya is a champion at raising the esprit de corps among the Congress grassroots, which needs tending and protecting from the harsh lure of money and influence that the other side offers.

As someone said on social media, the Congress POV on the Ram Mandir doesn’t leave it much to hope for in terms of regaining Muslim votes, but Kanhaiya’s avowed aazadi stance could help swing a few of them, not to speak of Dalit votes pan-India, for among the many things the aazadi slogan seeks liberation from is Manu-wad.

It is significant that both Kanhaiya and Jignesh Mevani are turning away from the CPI and the CPM, respectively. The waning of the Communist-Marxist parties across the Hindi heartland, with the RSS-led BMS snatching away even its trade union constituency, the sign of the times is dispiriting for the mainstream Left. 

Read Also: Amid Punjab Congress turmoil, Kapil Sibal revives leadership questions

It would be amusing to see Kanhaiya Kumar and Congress leaders like P. Chidambaram share a table at a discussion. The hope that verbal flourish can give the Congress a fighting chance for more seats in the Lok Sabha is worth a gamble with avowed leftists, to overcome the charge of soft Hindutva.  

The Congress, it has been said so many times, encompasses both the left and the right. But can the centre hold? Especially when dissent is eating it away from the inside.

Then, there’s always the Trinamool Congress for Kanhaiya

India News

Manoj Kumar dies at 87: Bollywood remembers Bharat Kumar with heartfelt tributes

Bollywood veterans including Akshay Kumar and Aamir Khan remembered Manoj Kumar’s indelible contribution to patriotic cinema after the actor passed away at 87.

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Manoj Kumar death

Veteran actor Manoj Kumar, fondly known as Bharat Kumar for his patriotic films, passed away at the age of 87. The Indian film fraternity is grieving the loss of one of its most iconic figures, Manoj Kumar, who passed away at 87. Known for his memorable contributions to patriotic cinema, Manoj Kumar carved a unique space in Bollywood with his storytelling and powerful screen presence. His death has led to an outpouring of tributes from the Indian film industry.

Akshay Kumar, recalling Manoj Kumar’s influence on his career, said, “I grew up learning from him that there’s no emotion like love and pride for our country. Such a fine person, and one of the biggest assets of our fraternity. RIP Manoj Sir.”

Aamir Khan, also mourning the loss, noted how Manoj Kumar was more than just an actor. In his words, “He was an institution. His films were often based on important social themes which brought him really close to the common man.”

Remembered for his patriotic soul and cinematic vision

Tributes flooded social media, including from political figure and actor Khushbu Sundar, who wrote, “He will eternally be remembered as Mr. Bharat for reminding us about roti, kapada aur kisaan… our culture and our roots.”

Filmmaker Vivek described Kumar as “India’s first truly original and committed Indic filmmaker,” appreciating how he infused nationalism into cinema with grace and depth.

Director Madhur Bhandarkar, reminiscing their interactions, praised the legendary artist’s storytelling and song picturisation that “inspired national pride and will resonate for generations.”

Filmmaker Sudhir Mishra highlighted Kumar’s unmatched skill in song visualization, sharing a tribute link to the classic “Ek Pyar Ka Naghma Hai” and stating, “Very few people knew the art of song picturisation better than him.”

A life steeped in cinema and nationhood

Born in 1937 as Harikrishnan Giri Goswami in Abbottabad (now in Pakistan), Manoj Kumar’s family moved to Delhi during the Partition. He made his film debut with Fashion in 1957, but it was Kanchi Ki Gudiya that marked his breakthrough.

His patriotic filmography, including titles like Purab Aur Paschim, Kranti, and Roti, Kapada Aur Makaan, earned him the nickname ‘Bharat Kumar’. His works reflected deep nationalistic spirit, often portraying common man’s struggles with dignity and pride.

Manoj Kumar was the recipient of the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, a National Film Award, and seven Filmfare Awards — all testaments to his significant contributions to Indian cinema.

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Bharat Shiksha Summit 2025: Supreme Court judge JK Maheshwari calls upon NLUs to improve quality of faculty to uplift legal education

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Supreme Court judge JK Maheshwari said on Thursday that the level of faculty in the national law universities should be improved to uplift the state of legal education in the country along with their standards.

Speaking at the Bharat Shiksha Summit 2025’s session on Legal Education and Training: Bridging Theory and Practice, Justice Maheshwari said practical legal training should also be improved upon and revitalised. In this context, he noted that moot court competitions are held regularly and should focus on real-world cases that land up in India’s courts instead of a corporate law case as is often the case with moot courts.

Referring to the ongoing debate on Artificial Intelligence, Justice Maheshwari said artificial intelligence is just that: artificial intelligence. Intelligence is natural and AI is man-made, he underlined. Speaking on the necessity of inculcating ethics, he said ethical training in legal education is its soul. While people cannot be trained in ethics since it comes with birth and basic nurturing, a sound moral base is required to be ethical, he said. Brushing away the abstract nature of the word ethics, he said it is a very real lived experience and needs to be built into legal professionals if they do not have it.

Ahead of Justice Maheshwari, Attorney General of India R. Venkataramani handled the questions put forward by National Law Institute University, Bhopal Vice-Chancellor Prof. (Dr.) S. Surya Prakash on the standardization of legal education by the Bar Council of India with disarming grace. The AG said law students should first of all understand where they intend to go in the social order that prevails in the country.

Venkataramani said law is a part of the social order and its students, throughout their lives, have to keep in mind the many divisions that exist in society including the economic ones. The Supreme Court of India is a mirror to Indian society and solves many of its problems that find their way to the courtroom.

He exhorted law students to ask themselves every minute if they and their work will make any difference to the world and of what kind, and continue to practice the self-questioning well into their careers.

Earlier, Prof. (Dr.) S. Surya Prakash had said legal education in India was coming up in three streams of law colleges, state law universities and national law universities. All three differ in terms of standards, quality, facilities and cost, he said. Thus, education has itself become a divisive force, he noted.

With such varying standards, Prof Surya Prakash appealed to the Bar Council of India to be strict and set standards since it equates the LLB degree given by all three streams at par.

National Law University Delhi Vice-Chancellor Prof GS Bajpai said the ball is in the BCI’s court to fix quality issues plaguing legal education. He made an earnest appeal to all universities to be liberal spaces that would allow students to exchange ideas, however frivolous they are, so that the campus is free from the rigor mortis of academic drudgery.

He said NLU Delhi has introduced a no-detention policy as an example of free-flow of ideas, and it is being examined for implementing in other NLUs. Prof Bajpai asked students to be active as citizens, especially in legal education.

Senior Advocate Pradeep Rai said English has played the role of a connecting language in India over time and said Hindi has not achieved that status because it has not made room for words from other languages. He said people over the last many decades have not used Hindi as an assimilatory language. On legal education, he said efforts should be made consciously to evolve and improve legal education despite the many roadblocks.

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Kiren Rijiju defends Waqf Amendment bill, says no non-Muslim can interfere in board’s affairs

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has stated that only Muslims can manage and benefit from the Waqf Board, as he defended the 2025 amendment bill ensuring more accountability and transparency.

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Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday strongly defended the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, amid ongoing debate in the Rajya Sabha. He dismissed apprehensions that the bill might negatively impact Muslim interests and emphasized that the Waqf Board’s operations, management, and benefits will remain exclusive to the Muslim community.

Rijiju rejects allegations, outlines purpose of amendment

Addressing criticism, Rijiju categorically denied that the bill undermines constitutional rights or religious autonomy. “Non-Muslims cannot interfere in Waqf Board affairs. Its creation, management and beneficiaries are confined to Muslims,” he stated. He added that any Muslim can still manage property under a trust without hindrance.

Explaining the role of the Waqf Board, Rijiju likened it to a Charity Commissioner, responsible for ensuring proper management of religious endowments. The proposed amendments aim to boost transparency, enforce accountability, and enhance the Board’s capacity.

Ownership proof made mandatory to avoid misuse

A significant provision in the amendment mandates documented proof of ownership before designating any property as Waqf. This move seeks to correct past practices where claims by the Waqf Board could automatically label properties as Waqf without verifying ownership.

Extensive consultations and public feedback

Rijiju highlighted the bill’s extensive pre-legislative process. According to him, over one crore suggestions were received from the public, and a Parliamentary Committee carried out consultations across ten major cities, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Hyderabad.

He traced earlier reform attempts, citing the 1976 Congress-era inquiry and the 2006 Sachar Committee Report, both of which emphasized the need for digitisation and strengthening of the Waqf Board. The number of Waqf properties has increased from 4.9 lakh to 8.72 lakh, with their income potential now significantly higher than the Rs 163 crore annual income reported earlier.

Implementing long-pending recommendations

Rijiju mentioned findings from the earlier Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) led by K. Rehman Khan, which pointed to poor infrastructure, lack of skilled manpower, and insufficient funds. The JPC had recommended establishing a centralized data bank and implementing structured leasing policies.

He accused previous governments of inaction, stating, “Committees were set up during the Congress and UPA rule, yet they failed to act. The Modi government is implementing reforms that they did not dare to.”

Contrasting the present and past efforts, he highlighted that while the UPA-led JPC in 2013 involved 13 members and consulted 14 states, the current JPC had 31 members, held 36 meetings, and consulted stakeholders across 25 states.

Rijiju asserted that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, is a step toward ensuring efficiency, transparency, and better utilisation of Waqf properties, all while safeguarding the interests and autonomy of the Muslim community.

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