Indian Mandala

The Indian government has adopted infrastructure development policies for the country’s north-eastern state to increase connections with Bangladesh, but political and religious tensions now risk complicating the situation. Despite calls for diplomacy in New Delhi and Dhaka, Tripura hotels and hospitals say they do not want Bangladeshis.

Local councils forced about a hundred Christians to leave or renounce their faith. The police did not intervene immediately and at least 40 people were forced to take refuge in churches after their property was destroyed. According to some oraganizations, there has been an increase in violence against the Christian community in this Indian State this year.

According to the US Attorney for New York’s eastern district, the businessman close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi lied about investigations into his activities and the transparency of his companies in order to secure US investments. The case highlights the shortcomings of the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the country’s regulatory body for securities and commodity markets.

In India's current local election round, votes are also being cast in the state of which Ranchi is the capital. Prime Minister Modi's Hindu nationalists aim to win back the government by promising ‘equal rights’. But local ethnic groups fear that their identity and traditions will be erased.

The wound in the northeastern Indian state is still open. Some houses were set on fire last night. The mainly Christian Kuki community reports continued incursions by Meitei extremists. Fears are growing that hitherto neutral ethnic Nagas might be caught up in the violence. Talks proposed by the Union Home Affairs Ministry have gone nowhere.

Politicians, activists and scholars have documented the origins and development of the language, spoken mostly by tribal people, while the state government has shut down schools using Assamese. Since colonial times, the language has struggled to establish itself due to competition from Bengali, an issue that still worries Assam nationalists.

While India reached an agreement with China on border patrols, activist Sonam Wangchuk, 58, ended one of his many hunger strikes. Local herders, whose activities have been limited due to military tensions (unlikely to decrease, experts say), fear the construction of power plants.

Baba Siddique was killed on 12 October as he left his son’s office; the latter is a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra, where voters will go to the polls on 20 November. The investigation suggests that behind the killing is the Bishnoi gang, which has been accused by Canada of killing Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on behalf of the Indian government. The group has a track record of threatening Bollywood stars for killing blackbucks, sacred to their community.

Since 9 September, about a thousand workers have been asking for higher salaries and their own union. The southern Indian state has been an important industrial hub for hi-tech production since the 1990s; unlike other states where economic growth dominates, it has seen social progress as well, due especially to policies that do not take into account caste or religion.

The two candidates favoured in the polls hold opposite positions towards Sri Lanka’s Indian neighbour, sometimes seen as a cumbersome presence in the island nation’s domestic politics. India is worried instead about China’s growing influence, but, given the current environment in South Asia, it will likely work with whoever comes to power.

After the acquisition of the Dar es Salaam Port in Tanzania, the group controlled by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani is in talks with the Kenyan government to lease the capital’s airport for 30 years. Fearing job redundancies, workers are opposed to the move. Meanwhile, the Indian conglomerate is getting involved Kenya’s energy sector. Back in India, an inquiry into its alleged share price manipulation is still ongoing.

For almost a month, Kolkata has been shaken by protests and rallies, initially organised by feminist groups. In recent weeks, however, the Bharatiya Janata Party has taken advantage of widespread dissatisfaction to call for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s resignation.