Anti-national is a pejorative label and political catchphrase that has been widely used during the premiership of Narendra Modi, especially in media discourse. [1] It is a connotation for anti-Indian sentiment in an Indian citizen, suggesting anti-government or seditious behavior (however outside of the sedition law Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code). In November 2021, a parliamentary panel sought a definition for "anti-national" from the union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. [2]
The Bharatiya Janata Party is a political party in India and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP is aligned with right-wing politics, and its policies adhere to Hindutva, a Hindu nationalist ideology. It has close ideological and organisational links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) volunteer paramilitary organisation. As of March 2023, it is the country's biggest political party in terms of representation in the Parliament of India as well as state legislatures.
Narendra Damodardas Modi is an Indian politician who has served as the 14th prime minister of India since May 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Varanasi. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a right-wing Hindu nationalist paramilitary volunteer organisation. He is the longest-serving prime minister from outside the Indian National Congress.
Jawaharlal Nehru University is a public major research university located in South West Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and research emphasis on social sciences and applied sciences.
Rajdeep Sardesai is an Indian news anchor, reporter, journalist and author. He is a consulting editor and an anchor of India Today Television. He was the Editor-in-Chief of Global Broadcast News, that included CNN-IBN, IBN7 and IBN-Lokmat, before resigning in July 2014.
Rajnath Singh is an Indian politician and lecturer who is serving as the 29th Defence Minister of India since 2019. He is currently the deputy Leader of the House, Lok Sabha since 2014. He was the 8th President of Bharatiya Janata Party from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2014. He is a veteran leader of the BJP who started his career as a RSS Swayamsevak.
The Caravan is an Indian English-language, long-form narrative journalism magazine covering politics and culture.
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is an Indian diplomat and politician serving as the Minister of External Affairs of the Government of India since 30 May 2019. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha since 5 July 2019. He previously served as the Foreign Secretary from January 2015 to January 2018. He became the second ever diplomat to be appointed as India's External Affairs minister, after Natwar Singh.
Swarajya is an Indian right-wing monthly print magazine and news portal. Dedicated to report favourably on the Bharatiya Janata Party, the publication has published misinformation on many occasions.
Kanhaiya Kumar is an Indian political activist who served as the president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union and leader of the All India Students Federation (AISF). He served as National Executive Council member of Communist Party of India. He joined Indian National Congress on 28 September 2021.
On 9 February 2016, some students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) held a protest on their campus against the capital punishment meted out to the 2001 Indian Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, and Kashmiri separatist Maqbool Bhat. The organizers of the event were former members of the Democratic Students' Union (DSU). The event was held despite the university administration withdrawing permission for the event shortly before it was due to begin, due to protests by members of the student union of ABVP. The event saw clashes between various student groups. A video was circulated by Indian news channel Zee news in which a small group of individuals, whom a later investigation described as outsiders to the university wearing masks, shouted "anti-India" slogans. The slogans were criticized by many individuals, including political leaders and students of JNU.
Shehla Rashid Shora is an Indian human rights activist who has pursued her Ph.D. at Jawaharlal Nehru University. She was vice-president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) in 2015–16 and was a member of the All India Students Association (AISA). She rose to prominence whilst leading the student agitation calling for the release for Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and others who were arrested on charges of sedition in February 2016 for participating and organizing sloganeering in JNU.
The premiership of Narendra Modi began on 26 May 2014 with his swearing-in as the Prime Minister of India at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. He became the 14th Prime Minister of India, succeeding Manmohan Singh of the Indian National Congress. Modi's first cabinet consisted of 45 ministers, 25 fewer than the previous United Progressive Alliance government. 21 ministers were added to the council of ministers on 9 November 2014.
Republic TV is an Indian right-wing conservative English-language news channel launched in May 2017. It was co-founded by Arnab Goswami and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, before the latter relinquished his stake in May 2019, leaving Goswami as the majority stakeholder. Chandrasekhar was an independent legislator from the National Democratic Alliance who later joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Goswami was the former editor-in-chief of Times Now. The venture was funded primarily by Chandrashekhar through his company Jupiter Capital Private Limited.
Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code lays down the punishment for sedition. The Indian Penal Code was enacted in 1860, under the British Raj. Section 124A forms part of Chapter VI of the Code which deals with offences against the state. Chapter VI comprises sections from 121 to 130, wherein section 121A and 124A were introduced in 1870. The then British government of India feared that the Khilafat movement on the Indian subcontinent would wage a war against them. Particularly after the successful suppression of Wahabi/Waliullah Movement, the need was felt for such a law. Throughout the Raj, the section was used to suppress political dissent in favour of independence, including Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi, both of whom were found guilty and imprisoned.
Tukde Tukde Gang is a pejorative political catchphrase used in India by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and accusing their critics for allegedly supporting sedition and secessionism. Whereas the words tukde-tukde refer to "breaking or cutting something into small fragments", the phrase "tukde tukde gang" can be translated as "a gang that wants to divide the country". The phrase is used by BJP leadership, and some news channels to stigmatize political opponents who have different political views.
Freedom of the press in India is legally protected by the Amendment to the constitution of India, while the sovereignty, national integrity, and moral principles are generally protected by the law of India to maintain a hybrid legal system for independent journalism. In India, media bias or misleading information is restricted under the certain constitutional amendments as described by the country's constitution. The media crime is covered by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which is applicable to all substantive aspects of criminal law.
The Indian agriculture acts of 2020, often termed the Farm Bills, were three acts initiated by the Parliament of India in September 2020. The Lok Sabha approved the bills on 17 September 2020 and the Rajya Sabha on 20 September 2020. The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, gave his assent on 27 September 2020.
The 2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest was a protest against three farm acts that were passed by the Parliament of India in September 2020. The acts, often called the Farm Bills, had been described as "anti-farmer laws" by many farmer unions, and politicians from the opposition who said that it would leave farmers at the "mercy of corporates". The protests were largely violent. The protests also demanded the creation of a minimum support price (MSP) bill, to ensure that corporates cannot control the prices. The Union Government, however, maintained that the laws would make it effortless for farmers to sell their produce directly to big buyers, and stated that the protests are based on misinformation. Related endemic legacy issues include farmer suicides and low farmer incomes. Despite India being largely self-sufficient in foodgrain production and having welfare schemes, hunger and nutrition remain serious issues, with India ranking as one of the worst countries in the world in food security parameters.
Godi media is a pejorative term coined and popularised by ex-NDTV journalist Ravish Kumar for the sensationalist and biased Indian print and TV news media, which supports the currently ruling NDA government. The term is a pun on the name of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has become a common way to refer to television and other media that are perceived as mouthpieces of the ruling party in India, the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Events in the year 2021 in India