This week on NL Hafta, Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri, Raman Kirpal, Jayashree Arunachalam and Anand Vardhan are joined by author Tushar Gandhi. The conversation begins with Tushar recounting the police action against the silent march in Mumbai to commemorate the Quit India Movement, and the “insecurities” of the Maharashtra government. The panel divulges how a peaceful march is perceived as more dangerous by the state than one involving hate speech and people armed with weapons. The discussion stirs to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day speech, which Abhinandan views as “pale” and “a bit under confident” in comparison to his earlier speeches. “Even an Independence Day speech is not about the nation, it is about Modi’s electoral prospects,” says Tushar, while the panel highlights the significance of Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s absence from Independence Day celebrations at Red Fort as a mark of protest. Dwelling into the times of the independence movement, Tushar talks about his great grandfather Mahatma Gandhi’s relations with noble laureate Rabindranath Tagore. He also sheds light on how Maharashtrians view “Bapu” and the manoeuvres to show Gandhi and Ambedkar as adversaries. Jayshree asks Tushar about the fake news and hate campaigns against Gandhi. Abhinandan delves into how Indian history has suffered from a chronic ignorance of truth. Meanwhile, on the floods and the consequent devastation in Himachal Pradesh, Raman highlights the inadequacies of Modi’s Har Ghar Nal campaign, and the purported absence of scientific approach in the infrastructure projects in the sensitive Himalayan region. This and a lot more, tune in!

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Timecodes

00:05:15 - Headlines 

00:14:03 - PM Speech on Independence day

00:41:36 - Gandhi’s Legacy

01:10:45 - Himachal floods

01:21:47 - Subscriber letters

01:32:50 - Recommendations 

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Produced and recorded by Tehreem Roshan & Prashant Kumar, edited by Hassan Bilal. 

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