The Wire Wrap

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SIR Deletions and Chest-Thumping on GDP | The Wire Wrap

The latest draft voter rolls released after the third phase of the Election Commission's special intensive revision have brought the scale of deletions back in focus. And while the Modi government is celebrating 7.8% quarterly GDP growth figures, this number has come under scrutiny. Jahnavi Sen is joined by former Union agriculture secretary Siraj Hussain, Associate Professor of Economics at Zakir Husain College Shirin Akhter and journalist and data analyst Aparna Bhattacharya to discuss these issues.

Students' Rise, Modi-Shah Sit Out Parliament | The Wire Wrap

While the union government sought to enter the monsoon session armed with a series of defections and a possible delimitation plan, the session ended with prime minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah sitting out the entire session without delivering any statement on the police action on protesters on July 20. The government was also not able to pass any of its contentious bills including delimitation, while the FCRA Bill, 2026 too was sent to a joint parliamentary committee (JPC). While the opposition has claimed victory succeeding in putting the government on the backfoot, students' anger has risen in Jharkhand's Ranchi against irregularities in exams with protests continuing for over 20 days. Meanwhile the union government has notified the questionnaire for the 2027 household census which includes a question on details of caste. The Wire's senior political correspondent is in conversation with Seema Chishti, editor, The Wire and Amit Baruah, senior journalist. Watch: Links to read https://thewire.in/government/minister-forced-to-resign-delimitation-plan-foiled-youth-protests-opposition-push-modi-shah-on-back-foot https://thewire.in/politics/what-is-the-point-of-going-inside-says-amit-shah-after-missing-parliament-since-july-20 https://thewire.in/politics/modi-govt-has-previously-used-terms-firing-bullets-for-pellet-gun-use https://m.thewire.in/article/politics/as-thousands-march-to-assembly-over-paper-leaks-jharkhand-arrests-public-service-commission-chief/amp https://thewire.in/government/govt-notifies-questionnaire-for-household-schedule-of-census-2027

Post Jantar Mantar: Women face doxxing, police intimidation and harassment

In the weeks following the recent student protests, the demonstrations may have faded from the headlines, but for many of the women who participated, the consequences have not. During the protests, images and videos of women protesters being forcefully detained and handled by the police circulated widely, prompting questions about the treatment of women demonstrators and the use of force against them. In the days that followed, several protesters also alleged online abuse, doxxing, intimidation and, in some cases, harassment of their families. At the same time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks about "forgiving daughters" have sparked a wider debate about how women who dissent are viewed in India today. What does it mean to be a woman protester in India? Do women face a different kind of policing, scrutiny and retaliation for exercising their democratic right to dissent? To discuss these questions, I'm joined by Gurmehar Kaur of the Indian Youth Congress and Danish Ali, Joint Secretary, JNUSU, who was a part of the protest and whose family says it faced harassment following her participation in the protests.

Modi's Reels and More Tech Won't Fix the Education Crisis | The Wire Wrap

Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan was forced to resign under sustained public pressure, but BJP leaders continue to celebrate his tenure rather than grapple with the serious concerns raised during the youth movement. The Wire's Jahnavi Sen is joined by Saroj Giri, Associate Professor of Political Science at Delhi University, and Surajit Mazumdar, Professor of Economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, to talk about what really ails the education system, what should be done, and why students' voices can't be suppressed.

Manipur Violence, No Questions for Modi and More Changes to SIR | The Wire Wrap

Violence continues in Manipur, with at least 26 people being killed in the last four months. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s refusal to take questions from journalists is under scrutiny again. And the Election Commission appears to have quietly changed the rules for new voters trying to enrol. The Wire's Managing Editor is joined by transparency rights activist Amrita Johri and journalists Vrinda Gopinath, Greeshma Kuthar and Helle Lyng. Read more about these issues on The Wire's website: https://thewire.in/politics/rs-250-petrol-rs-5000-lpg-cylinders-kangpokpi-pays-the-price-of-manipurs-latest-blockade https://thewire.in/media/no-press-conference-narendra-modi-australia-new-zealand-rule https://thewire.in/rights/three-phases-of-sir-how-ec-has-applied-varying-rules-for-the-nationwide-voter-roll-revision

Modi's Silence on Ram Mandir Theft and Govt's Failed Silencing of Satluj | The Wire Wrap

The special investigation team put together by the UP government to probe the theft and embezzlement taking place at the Ayodhya has submitted its interim report, which comes with some answers and many questions. Meanwhile Honey Trehan’s film Satluj, earlier named Punjab95, was released on Zee5 only to be pulled down less that 48 hours later. The Wire's Managing Editor Jahnavi Sen is joined by senior journalists Saba Naqvi and Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, The Wire’s special correspondent Akanksha Kumar and film critic Tatsam Mukherjee to discuss all of this.

Ram Mandir 'Loot' and Proving Indian Citizenship

The passport is the latest document that the government of India has said is not a proof of citizenship even though it is being used to verify voters' citizenship under the SIR of electoral rolls. Over a fortnight after allegations first surfaced, an FIR has been lodged against alleged misappropriation and embezzlement of donations at the Ram mandir in Ayodhya while Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav too is facing the heat of corruption in connection with land deals secured for him and his family. The Wire's Sravasti Dasgupta is joined by M.K. Venu, founding editor, The Wire and Maya Mirchandani, senior journalist.

BJP's Defection Game, Cold Reality Behind Warm Modi-Trump Meet

It is the season of political defections in India. While a faction of TMC MPs have announced their merger with little known regional party Nationalist Citizens Party of India; 6 Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs are ready to jump ship having missed a parliamentary party meeting on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met US President Donald Trump in his first face to face meeting in 16 months, raising questions about the cold realities behind the warm meeting. And 110 Days After US-Israel Attacked Iran, Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian have signed initial peace deal, mediated by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Is the BJP engineering defects to manufacture a majority? Will the peace deal hold? The Wire's Sravasti Dasgupta is joined by Siddharth Varadarajan, founding editor, The Wire and Zoya Hasan, professor emerita, Centre for Political Studies, JNU.

Modi's Two Faces: Mum on Sailor Deaths, Swift on Opposition Mukt Bharat

India has been directly affected by the US’s attacks on maritime vessels in West Asia this week, with three Indian sailors being killed. The Trinamool Congress has seen multiple splits over the last two weeks. The BJP has won all three Rajya Sabha seats from Madhya Pradesh unopposed after the Congress candidate was disqualified. The Cockroach Janata Party has moved its protest to various cities across the country. And the Delhi high court has quashed the police’s foreign investment case and the ED’s proceedings against Newsclick. Jahnavi Sen is joined by Senior Deputy Editor at The Hindu Sobhana Nair and consulting editor at The Caravan and lecturer at Yale University Sushant Singh to discuss all of this.

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