A new paper by the World Inequality Lab shows that the richest 10 per cent of rural households own 44 per cent of India's total land. Furthermore, recent legislative changes in Gujarat have reignited the debate over ownership in areas considered sensitive to communal tensions, raising fears of further social exclusion.
A journalistic investigation has revealed two deaths and dozens of cases of illness among the Dalit artisans brought in from Rajasthan to build the spires of Swaminarayan Akshardham in Robbinsville, the largest Hindu temple in the West. The allegations: wages of less than .20 an hour and inadequate safety measures. The organisation that runs the sacred site defends itself by describing them as “volunteers engaged in religious service”.
The case of Jeyaraj and his son Benniks – killed in 2020 during the Covid emergency over a (false) breach of the lockdown – has become a symbol of the arbitrary violence suffered by people in police custody in India. Fr Devasagaya told AsiaNews: “We are opposed to the death penalty, but it is important that a court has found the officers guilty. Now guidelines are needed to protect the accused.”
About 174 million voters will cast their ballot in the coming weeks in Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Pondicherry. The results will be announced together on 4 May. These elections are crucial for the national balance of power, as these areas tend to be less favourable to Modi’s ruling party. In Kerala Mamata Banerjee is seeking a fourth term, reaching out to secure the Christian vote.
In the Philippines, more than six million people joined the Alay Lakad, the nighttime pilgrimage in Antipolo, while in Quezon province, a group of farmers interrelated the stories of the Passion with their own struggle to defend their lands. In Arunachal Pradesh, young people are celebrating the Easter Triduum by praying for religious harmony in India. The World Council of Churches in South Korea called for conversion and shared a prayer dedicated to the painful division between North and South.
After a battle lasting several years, the community of Ambala Cantonment has secured justice for an incident of desecration and vandalism that took place on Christmas Eve 2021. The resilience of the local community and the solidarity shown by other religious groups proved decisive. ‘May this ruling reaffirm the value of mutual respect between different communities.’
