AAP's statewide protest agianst opposition to ‘Phule'
Lucknow: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday held a statewide protest against the opposition to the film 'Phule', based on the lives of social reformists Jyotiba Phule and his wife Savitribai Phule, which caused a delay in its release.
AAP's support for the film, especially in a state like Uttar Pradesh, outlines its focus on Dalit issues in UP, where the party will be trying its luck in the upcoming panchayat and then assembly polls in two years. It also seeks to challenge the BJP in UP, where the party has set itself the task of holding one protest a month on socially relevant issues in a bid to build up its presence in the state.
In Lucknow, party workers heading to protest were detained by the police, but in several other districts, workers held up placards and shouted slogans against the govt, challenging it on its stand on Dalits in the face of the opposition to the 'Phule' film, where the objection has been largely on the portrayal of caste.
AAP's visibility in UP dipped considerably over the past few months and to prepare for the upcoming elections in the state over the next few years, it has an uphill task to build itself again. As part of the strategy, all wings have been directed to hold two events each month: a protest on a socially relevant issue and a social service task.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Struggling with Investments? Try This Simple Approach
Equentis RnR
Subscribe
Undo
To begin with, the statewide protest was called on Monday to protest against the Censor Board's decision to hold back the release of 'Phule'. A few weeks earlier, the party held demonstrations on the sale of liquor in the state.
"This is a direct attack on freedom of expression. This decision attempts to suppress the legacy and struggle of these great social reformers who fought for equality and education in the country. It reveals the true mindset of the BJP. On one hand, they talk about the Constitution, Dr Ambedkar, and Dalit rights, while on the other, they halt films that talk about societal exploitation. This censorship is not just an attack on a film but on the entire Dalit movement and the values of social justice," Singh said, adding that while historical films like 'Phule' were stopped, govt promoted films like 'The Kashmir Files' and 'The Kerala Story', which spread hatred.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
6 minutes ago
- News18
'This Was An Opportunity To Capture PoK': Mamata's Message On Op Sindoor In Bengal Assembly
Last Updated: Launching an attack on the BJP, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said the government at the Centre should go as it failed to provide security to people of India West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday questioned why none of the terrorists responsible for the Pahalgam terror attack had been captured. She suggested that the military standoff with Pakistan had been an 'opportunity to take control of PoK (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir)". Mamata Banerjee was addressing members of the West Bengal Assembly during the adoption of a resolution lauding the valour of the armed forces during 'Operation Sindoor', although the term was never mentioned in the tabled resolution. 'There was a need to teach (terrorists) a lesson, we salute bravery of armed forces," Banerjee said in the Bengal assembly, hailing India's military action. The Indian military conducted strikes on terror targets in Pakistan and PoK under the operation, which was a retaliation to the deadly strike in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam that claimed 26 lives. The BJP questioned why the word 'sindoor' was missing from the resolution. Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari said the Pahalgam attack specifically targeted a religious community, which had not been mentioned in the resolution. Launching a blistering attack on the BJP, Banerjee said the government at the Centre should go as it failed to provide security to the people of India. 'The Pahalgam terror attack was a result of the Centre's callousness. Why were security personnel absent from the site of the terror attack in Pahalgam?" she asked. The chief minister accused the BJP of trying to politicise the valour of the armed forces with an eye on elections. 'PM Modi is only busy advertising about himself," she alleged. The House unanimously adopted the resolution condemning the Pahalgam attack and lauding the valour of the Indian armed forces for the anti-terror strikes. (With PTI inputs) First Published: June 10, 2025, 16:21 IST
India Today
7 minutes ago
- India Today
Is Newton Das Mamata's new Achilles heel on illegal Bangladeshis in Bengal?
As West Bengal gears up for a high-stakes electoral showdown next year, the BJP seems poised to make political capital out of a brewing controversy involving a youth with alleged dual nationalities. At the centre of the storm is Newton Das, a 32-year-old who has appeared as both a protester in Bangladesh's anti-quota agitation and a registered voter in West Bengal's Kakdwip in South 24 images that set off the furore show Newton wielding a stick and waving a flag during the July 2024 students-led agitation in Dhaka, which led to the downfall of the Sheikh Hasina government. So, the Opposition BJP in Bengal is asking: how could a man in the midst of a political movement in Bangladesh also hold voting rights in India?advertisementAccording to electoral records, Newton is a voter in Kakdwip, which falls under Mathurapur Lok Sabha constituency. His presence on the rolls dates back to 2014, and he claims to have exercised his franchise in the 2016 assembly elections in favour of Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate Manturam Pakhira, who currently represents the Kakdwip assembly claimed that after misplacing his voter ID in 2017, local TMC leaders helped him get a duplicate card. The BJP is crying foul. Party leaders say Newton's participation in the protests in Dhaka was living proof of the systemic rot in voter enrollment in Bengal. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari has raised the issue with the Election Commission (EC) as part of a broader complaint about Bangladeshi nationals allegedly finding a place in Indian electoral rolls using forged has dismissed the controversy as a case of mistaken interpretation, claiming the viral footage was doctored and that he had been to Bangladesh to resolve property inheritance. In a video message, he said: 'Yes, I was in Bangladesh but only due to inheritance matters. I had no intention of joining the protests. It was all circumstantial.'But his elder brother, Tapas Das, has confirmed that Newton was born in Bangladesh and had studied in Namkhana in Bengal during his teenage years after arriving in India. Tapas candidly added that their parents weren't Indian citizens and that Newton 'must be a voter in Bangladesh' as fuel to the fire, Newton's social media history shows active links with TMC leaders. He is seen celebrating birthdays and cutting cakes alongside Debasish Das, a prominent youth wing leader in the Kakdwip has acknowledged their acquaintance, saying they were schoolmates who reconnected in 2021, but denied any knowledge of Newton's activities across the BJP, predictably, is going all guns blazing. The party's state president Sukanta Majumdar lashed out at the Mamata Banerjee government, alleging a full-fledged 'infiltration industry' under TMC patronage. 'This is not just about one Newton,' Majumdar said on social media. 'There are thousands like him—Bangladeshi nationals with Indian documents, voting in our elections and shielding the TMC's crumbling edifice.'advertisementMajumdar accused Mamata of using infiltrators as a vote-bank. 'The failed chief minister has made infiltration a part of her appeasement politics. With such 'voters' and lathi-wielders backing her, she is not governing West Bengal—she is drafting the blueprint of a Greater Bangladesh,' he controversy draws uncomfortable parallels with a past episode involving Alo Rani Sarkar, a TMC candidate who contested the 2021 assembly elections and was later found to be a Bangladeshi Kakdwip, panchayat members confirmed Newton appears in the voter list but professed ignorance about his Bangladeshi roots. While local officials in South 24 Parganas were tightlipped, an official source said no formal complaint had been lodged against Newton even as the BJP continued to drum up public attention on the issue. 'Unless we receive something officially, there's little to act upon,' the source timing of the flashpoint could not be more crucial. With assembly polls scheduled in 2026, the BJP has a fresh arrow in its quiver against the TMC. And as the party pushes its narrative of national security, cross-border infiltration and identity threat in Bengal, it is likely that Newton Das, once an obscure political foot-soldier, will find himself at the epicentre of a huge to India Today Magazine
Time of India
11 minutes ago
- Time of India
Famine risk stalks south of Khartoum
A Sudanese mother holds her malnourished child amidst a parched landscape. A distant aid station offers a glimmer of hope. Areas around the south of the Sudanese capital Khartoum are at high risk of famine, the World Food Programme warned Tuesday, calling for an immediate international response. Laurent Bukera, WFP's Sudan representative and country director, said the UN agency had found "severe" levels of hunger in Jabal Awliya, a town around 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of Khartoum. Bukera was speaking after returning from Khartoum State, where WFP opened a new office in Omdurman, a part of greater Khartoum. "The needs are immense," he told a press briefing in Geneva, speaking from Port Sudan. "We saw widespread destruction, limited access to water, healthcare and electricity, and a cholera outbreak. In parts of the city, life is returning -- but many neighbourhoods remain abandoned, like a ghost city. "Several areas in the south of the city are at high risk of famine," he said. "The international community must act now -- by stepping up funding to stop famine in the hardest-hit areas and to invest in Sudan's recovery." Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in a battle for power since April 2023. The RSF lost control of Khartoum in March. Now that WFP has access to the area and is able to make regular aid deliveries, the agency said it was doing everything it could to bring the local population back from the brink of famine. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 올 봄 패션 트렌드는? "이 반지로 준비 끝이에요" 굿네이버스 더 알아보기 Undo Bukera said "the level of hunger, destitution and desperation" found in Jabal Awliya was "severe, and basically confirmed the risk of famine". The war has killed tens of thousands of people and created the world's largest hunger and displacement crises. Bukera said that with people expected to return to heavily damaged areas like Khartoum, the pressure on already over-stretched resources would intensify. "WFP is deeply concerned, and meeting basic needs -- especially food -- is critical and urgent," he said. Famine has been declared in five areas across Sudan, including three displacement camps near El-Fasher in the southwest. It has been all but confirmed in El-Fasher itself, where aid agencies say a lack of access to data has prevented an official famine declaration. Across the country, nearly 25 million people are suffering dire food insecurity.
