South Central

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In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by political scientist and scholar Professor Christophe Jaffrelot for an extended conversation on the RSS, the BJP, the rise of Hindutva and the changing nature of Indian democracy. Audio timecodes: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:01:36 - Headlines 00:08:20 - The BJP, RSS and the spread of Hindutva 01:10:34 - Recommendat...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna examine the legal questions surrounding the detention of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, the use of peace bonds and the limits of the state’s power to prevent protests. They are joined by Apar Gupta, advocate and founder-director of the Internet Freedom Foundation, to discuss the role of executive magistrates, preventive detent...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Anisha Sheth examine what happens when journalists covering protests are detained by the police, and what it means for press freedom and the right to dissent in India. They are joined by Siddharth Varadarajan, founding editor of The Wire, and Abhinandan Sekhri of Newslaundry, to discuss allegations of police violence, the targeting of journa...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Anisha Sheth are joined by activist Shivasundar to discuss the nationwide protests against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the demand for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's removal. In the second part of the discussion, they are joined by lawyer and legal scholar Alok Prasanna, co-founder of the V...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Pooja Prasanna and Anisha Sheth are joined by political economist and author Dr Parakala Prabhakar for an extended conversation on the Election Commission of India (ECI), the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the deletion of voters and the larger questions these developments raise about India’s electoral democracy. Audio timecodes: 00:00:00 -...

This week’s South Central examines the questions surrounding the Veeramani case in Tamil Nadu, allegations of police inaction and a culture of silence. Hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by TNM’s Chennai Bureau Chief Shabbir Ahmed. The episode also discusses the police raid on the Reporter TV newsroom and the wider debate over press freedom and media ownership, with senior journa...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna explore whether AI could pose an existential threat to humanity, and what regulation and the debate over whether AI development needs to slow down. They are joined by Sarayu Natarajan, founder of Aapti Institute and Visiting Associate Professor at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Deepthi Bathini, AI Policy and...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by former Supreme Court Justice Madan Lokur to discuss a wide range of issues - from the cancellation of law school convocations following student protests against the CJI to mass voter roll discrepancies and the judiciary's hesitation to intervene. In the second part of the discussion, the hosts are joined by Divya...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss controversial remarks by Muslim religious leader Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar on women’s participation in public religious events. They are joined by Shahina KK, Founder and Editor of Offbeat Concerns, and Sunaina Shahida Ikbal, Writer, Psychologist and Academician. In the second part of the episode, the conversa...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to scrap the Parandur airport project. They are joined by aviation safety consultant Captain Mohan Ranganathan and K E Raghunathan, national chairman of the Association of Indian Entrepreneurs. In the second part of the episode, the hosts discuss the recent anti-reservation mov...

In this week’s episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss raids and inspections across the country at restaurants and the prevalence of contaminated food even at top-end eateries. They are joined by food influencer and author Krish Ashok and TNM reporter Shivani Kava. In the second part of the discussion, the hosts discuss the BJP’s big political reshuffle. T...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Pooja Prasanna and Anisha Sheth first discuss the problem of exotic animals across the world being taken into private custody. They are joined by independent journalists Siddharth Prabhakar and M Rajshekhar. In the second half, the hosts discuss the Tamil Nadu Speaker JCD Prabhakar attending and leading an anti-abortion rally in Chennai. He made an anti-abortion...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Anisha Sheth discuss the arrest of Udhayanidhi Stalin and the Union government's social media crackdown following the CJP protests. They are joined by activist Tara Krishnaswamy, lawyer Nikhil Narendran, and TNM's Tamil Nadu Bureau Chief, Shabbir Ahmed. Audio timecodes: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:01:33 - Headlines  00:08:25 - Arrest of...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss the aftermath of the Jantar Mantar protests, led by the Cockroach Janta Party. They are joined by senior journalist and editor of The Wire, Seema Chisti, and Peek TV co-founder Vedanta Agarwal. Audio timecodes: 00:00:00 - Introduction 00:02:43 - Headlines  00:09:01 - Aftermath of CJP protest 1:08:12 - Recommendati...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna discuss the protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar and the police violence unleashed on the protestors. The violence has injected new life into the Cockroach Janta Party’s resistance, with gatherings happening across the country. The hosts are joined by journalists Smita Sharma, Nikita Saxena, and Kavitha Muralidharan. Audio timeco...

In this week’s South Central hosts, Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna explore the churning in the country’s political Opposition. From TMC's dwindling numbers to DMK's tricky balancing act on the delimitation Bill. The hosts break down the realignment with senior journalist and Author Neerja Chowdhury and journalist Arvind Gunasekar. Is this about principles, or just who's placing the better bet...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first dives into the repeated targeting of YouTuber Raavan, who has been arrested five times over speeches critical of the Andhra Pradesh government, including one containing a controversial remark about Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan. The hosts are joined by senior journalist C Vanaja and Prof Murali Karnam of NALSAR Univ...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss senior journalist R Rajagopal’s letter regarding the removal of his name from the electoral rolls, denying him renewal of his passport. They are joined by R Rajagopal himself and Shivasundar, a senior activist and researcher who has been studying the election process. In the second part of the episode, the hosts...

In this episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by The Wire's Editor Seema Chishti and TNM's Karnataka Bureau Chief Anisha Sheth. They first discuss the controversy surrounding the Ayodhya Ram Temple, questioning the formation of the SIT and why agencies such as the CBI or the CAG have not stepped in. In the second half of the episode, the panel discusses MPs...

In this week's South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Anisha Sheth first discuss the RSS's longstanding reluctance to register itself as an organisation. They are joined by Shardool K of Newslaundry, who was part of the RSS for several years, and senior journalist Nikita Saxena. The panel unpacks how remaining unregistered has historically afforded the organisation plausible deniability, shield...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss politics, gender, and self-expression with Aleena, a prominent writer and poet. She is a Dalit feminist thinker from Kerala who won the Sahithya Academy Kanakashree Award for her poetry collection titled Silk Route.  In the second part of the episode, the hosts discuss illegal mining and quarrying, which per...

In this week’s South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss the recent political developments in Tamil Nadu and the resignation of the BJP’s former state head, Annamalai. They are joined by senior journalist RK Radhakrishnan. In the second part of the episode, hosts discuss the Kerala government’s proposal to allow three days of period leave every month for school girls....

In this episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss the cabinet change in Karnataka and what Siddaramaiah’s resignation will mean for the state’s politics. They are joined by professor and commentator Prithvi Datta Chandra Shobhi. In the second half of the episode, the hosts discuss the Cockroach Janta Party and what this new political movement could mean. The...

In this episode of South Central, hosts Pooja Prasanna and Anisha Sheth first discuss the unprecedented use of social media in Tamil Nadu by Vijay’s TVK and whether it has reshaped politics in the state. They are joined by journalist and translator Kavitha Muralidharan and TNM’s Associate Editor Nandini Chandrasekhar. In the second part of the episode, the hosts discuss the SIR process in Karnatak...