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Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Capital Chaos

The shocking violence that occurred during the protests led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which left 118 policemen injured in Delhi, raises an uncomfortable question: why does the national capital repeatedly become the stage for protest movements that cross the line from dissent into disorder? When a demonstration against educational reforms results in scores of injured policemen, the issue becomes a serious question of public order and accountability. The geography of this violence is...

Capital Chaos

The shocking violence that occurred during the protests led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which left 118 policemen injured in Delhi, raises an uncomfortable question: why does the national capital repeatedly become the stage for protest movements that cross the line from dissent into disorder? When a demonstration against educational reforms results in scores of injured policemen, the issue becomes a serious question of public order and accountability. The geography of this violence is hardly accidental. Delhi has long served as the grand amphitheatre for India’s political performative class - the ‘Cadillac left-liberals’ who despise Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with an intensity that outstrips their electoral relevance. In the capital, protests are not merely expressions of grievance but are status symbols. Supported by a sympathising ecosystem of urban intellectuals, activist-lawyers, and media enablers, these movements operate under an implicit guarantee of soft handling. Outrage that would draw harsh crackdowns in any state capital is treated in Delhi as a vibrant exercise in civil society. By dithering on firm legal action against key conspirators and their shadowy handlers and focusing instead on standard, low-level FIRs against the front-line stone-pelters, the government hands an ideological victory to the agitators. It broadcasts a message of vulnerability. The troubling question is why protests in Delhi repeatedly escalate into such clashes. The responsibility cannot end with statements of regret after violence has occurred. Those who organise, finance or encourage unlawful actions must face scrutiny under the law. The government’s response matters enormously here. If it appears hesitant to pursue those who may have planned, encouraged or financed unlawful actions, it creates the perception that political pressure can dilute legal consequences and that disorder in the capital can be an effective instrument of mobilisation. That perception is corrosive. A state that hesitates to enforce the law consistently eventually encourages those willing to test its limits. The police, meanwhile, cannot be treated as expendable symbols of state authority. The 118 personnel injured during the clashes were not faceless instruments of power. They were citizens carrying out one of the most difficult constitutional responsibilities of maintaining order amid political conflict. Assaulting them is an attack on the very institution responsible for protecting democratic freedoms. India’s democracy is robust enough to accommodate fierce disagreement. But democracy does not mean a permanent licence for street confrontation. Delhi has witnessed too many moments of such anarchist protests under the garb of liberality. The capital of the Indian Republic cannot become the capital of impunity. The rule of law must apply equally to politicians as well as ‘activists’ who break the law in seeking to garner public attention.

US Vice President JD Vance, his family arrive in Delhi

  • PTI
  • Apr 21, 2025
  • 2 min read


NEW DELHI: US Vice President J D Vance arrived here on Monday on a four-day visit to India against the backdrop of ongoing negotiations for a bilateral trade agreement between the two strategic partners to address a variety of issues, including tariff and market access.


Vance is accompanied by his Indian-origin wife Usha Chilukuri and their three children Ewan, Vivek, Mirabel and a delegation of senior US government officials.


The US Vice President and the Second Lady were received at the Palam air base by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.


The American leader was also accorded a ceremonial welcome on his arrival.

In the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a dinner for the Vances after holding wide-ranging talks with the US Vice President.


External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Indian ambassador to US Vinay Mohan Kwatra are expected to be part of the Indian team to be led by PM Modi at the talks.


The focus of the meeting is likely to be on early finalisation of the proposed bilateral trade pact as well as ways to boost overall trajectory of ties between the two countries.


Besides Delhi, Vance and his family will travel to Jaipur and Agra.

Vance's first visit to India comes weeks after US President Donald Trump imposed and then paused a sweeping tariff regime against around 60 countries, including India.


New Delhi and Washington are now holding negotiations to seal a bilateral trade agreement that is expected to address a variety of issues, including tariff and market access.


Vance and his family are scheduled to leave for Jaipur on Monday night.

In Delhi, the US Vice President and his family are staying at the ITC Maurya Sheraton hotel.


On April 22, the Vances will visit a number of historical sites in Jaipur, including the Amer Fort, also known as Amber Fort. The fort is a UNESCO world heritage site.


In the afternoon, the US Vice President is scheduled to address a gathering at the Rajasthan International Centre in Jaipur.


Vance is expected to delved into broader aspects of India-US relations under the Donald Trump administration during his speech that is expected to be attended by diplomats, foreign policy experts, Indian government officials and academia.


The US Vice President and his family will travel to Agra on the morning of April 23, people familiar with the matter said.


In Agra, they will visit the Taj Mahal and Shilpgram which is an open air emporium showcasing various Indian artefacts, they said.


After concluding their visit to Agra, the Vances will return to Jaipur on the second half of April 23.


The US Vice President and his family will depart for the US from Jaipur on April 24, according to the people cited above.

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