Latest news with #Chaudhury
Hindustan Times
28-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Hindustan Times
At India's No-Agenda Spaces, read, laze, lounge in a stranger's home
It isn't often one has the chance to simply be, with no agenda, no demands on one's time or presence, no one even asking what you're up to. Meghna Chaudhury home is 'open' five days a week, from 12.30 pm to 4.30 pm. In urban-planning jargon, a space where one can unwind in this manner is, of course, called a third place (after home and work). A park or waterfront, a library or even a local café can typically serve this function. The idea is that one should be able to walk in alone, unannounced, with no need for small talk, and simply relax from the pressures and demands of the day. There aren't many spaces like this in urban India. Parks can feel unsafe, especially if one isn't a man. Lounging or 'loitering' can invite stares or worse. Earlier this year, Meghna Chaudhury, 36, decided to do something about this. In January, the mental-health advocate (she is pursuing a Master's degree in global mental health) declared her home in Indiranagar, Bengaluru, a No-Agenda Space. The 'anti-performance', 'anti-small-talk' environment is now 'open' five days a week, from 12.30 pm to 4.30 pm. Slots must be reserved in advance, and ID shown at the door (for safety reasons). After that, one may walk in silently if one chooses, read on the couch, lounge in the balcony, even grab a snack from the 'food box' in the kitchen. Her dog Millimeter has been excited to welcome visitors, but one may choose to ignore her if one pleases. About 200 books sit on shelves, up for grabs. There are art supplies too. But many people simply come in, sit down and do nothing, enjoying a little quiet time by themselves, Chaudhury says. Slots can be booked via a Google Docs link available in her Instagram bio (@meghnachaudhury). Identity proof must be sent in via SMS before the address is shared. This, and a fee of ₹ 80, are all the precautions Chaudhury has taken. (Also, the space is not currently open to men.) 'It's insane how worried everybody was. I was only ever worried about protecting my headspace, but honestly people have been outstanding. Everybody respects my boundaries,' she says. At the heart of her initiative was a mission to enable asymmetrical relationships in a transactional world, Chaudhury says. This has been a joy to witness, she adds. 'Women who live nearby and met here have started to meet socially. Visitors have thanked me with handwritten notes. I wish people gave me more handwritten notes. I love them,' she says. In an even-more-heartening development, four women across Bengaluru, and one in Mumbai, have already followed in her footsteps. Financial consultant Mugdha Cheemakurthy has hosted No Agenda Thursdays in Domlur since April 10. She asks that people contribute to the space via money or via snacks, trinkets or tiny items of home decor. Since March 25, tax consultant Parul Jain in Bommanahalli has invited strangers in, free (her space is also not currently open to men). Vidhu Vinod, 35, a marketing and strategy executive, opened up her home in Kaggadaspura in March. She isn't charging a fee yet but is considering asking visitors to donate to her favourite NGO, Hold My Paws. In Mumbai, nutritionist and personal trainer Shruti Jahagirdar has been inviting women in every Sunday since April 6. Each of these women has cited Chaudhury as their inspiration. 'I think this kind of space is so utterly simple and necessary,' Vinod says. Chaudhury hopes more will emerge over time. 'Today's world is so rushed. I hope that when people enter these spaces, they can live for a bit on a clock or pace of their choice. Things are also so transactional,' she adds. 'Here, the transaction is simply to care.'
Indian Express
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Tripura CPM flays vandalism over Congress leader Roy Barman's remark about BJP: ‘What kind of rule of law is this?'
A day after BJP activists broke open the MLA Hostel's gate in Agartala demanding the resignation of Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman over his 'BJP leaders urinate on tribals' remark, Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury targeted Tripura's ruling party on Thursday over rule of law and democratic rights. 'I have seen Sudip Roy Barman's statement…The photo had gone viral. We don't know whether any action has been taken against them. Did he (Sudip Roy Barman) commit any mistake by saying this? If it is a mistake, then you reply either through a press conference or a public meeting, or reply to him or his party,' the CPM MLA said. Citing incidents of CPM workers being attacked, Chaudhury said his party's office was attacked at Bishalgarh on June 17 and that an attempt had been made to 'foil' a CPM conference at Takarjala in Sepahijala district on Tuesday. 'What kind of democracy is this? What kind of rule of law is this? It's unfortunate,' he said. 'If a party has some flaws, naturally another party will criticise it. If a statement is untrue, the other party will make this clear or condemn the statement. This is our country's political culture. Our democracy and our Constitution allow this,' the CPM leader added. Chaudhury emphasised that the state must protect constitutional rights, human rights, and natural rights. Sudip Roy Barman's controversial remark referred to an incident in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district where a purported BJP activist, Pravesh Shukla, urinated on a member of the Kol tribe last year. Defending his remark, Barman said on Wednesday that he had merely stated a fact. 'The reality is that the BJP hates Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, OBC, minorities, etc. How else can someone urinate on another person?' he added.
Indian Express
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Tripura CPM leader Jitendra Chaudhury draws BJP ire for ‘the taller one is, the dumber one is' remark
Tripura Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ratan Lal Nath criticised Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury on Tuesday for his remark that 'the taller one is, the dumber one is' and demanded the CPM MLA apologise for allegedly body-shaming tall people. 'He directly insulted tall people. He should apologise in public if he made the statement in sound condition. Or else, I will ask his party leaders to arrange for his immediate treatment,' said Lal, a senior BJP leader. Chaudhury's remark, made during a political gathering at Harina in South Tripura on Monday, touched a raw nerve with the ruling BJP, given that the party's MP Biplab Kumar Deb, who is tall and a fitness enthusiast, would often face sharp jibes from the CPM over some of his controversial comments when he was the chief minister. The Leader of the Opposition did not name anyone, though. Reacting to Chaudhury's remark, Lal cited the examples of several eminent people such as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Rabindranath Tagore, Satyajit Ray, Bengali actor Soumitra Chattopadhyay, wrestler Satpal Singh, Amitabh Bachchan, cricketer Ishant Sharma, Odisha's former chief minister Biju Patnaik, and Tripura's longest-serving chief minister Manik Sarkar. The BJP minister said Chaudhury insulted all these people with his remark and that he implied they were not intelligent. Lal further said Chaudhury was dropped from former chief minister Sarkar's cabinet over his alleged involvement in a ginger scam that took place during Left Front rule, adding that a file had been maintained documenting the CPM leader's alleged misdeeds.
Indian Express
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Bulldozers arrive in Assam village as drive to evict over 600 families from wetlands begins
The Assam government Monday launched a massive drive to evict over 600 families from a 1,550-bigha wetland area in Goalpara district. The eviction and demolition of homes began with heavy security deployment on Monday morning in Goalpara district's Hasila Beel village, where most of the residents are Bengali-origin Muslims. Goalpara DC Khanindra Chaudhury, who oversaw the eviction drive, said the residents had been illegally encroaching on government land. 'This is actually a wetland, and we had issued notices both in 2023 and 2024 to the illegal encroachers to vacate the area themselves. Some people still had not left, and on Friday, we issued notices again. Almost 20-25% of the people have left by themselves,' he told reporters. The administration has estimated that 667 houses would be evicted. However, the drive was not completed on Monday as it was hampered by rain in the afternoon. 'It has been peaceful and there has been no resistance,' said Chaudhury. Suleman Ali (50), whose house was demolished on Monday, expressed distress at the lack of rehabilitation arrangements. He said his family had been living on this land for over 70 years and that he had been born there. 'The demolitions started two days after the notice was given, which is not enough time to gather all our belongings and make arrangements. We had a pucca house here. The children have exams in a few days. They are in terror now, and I am very worried about their future. We stood in the rain for two hours after they demolished our house, and now the police have told us not to set up any kind of tent or shelter here. I don't know where we will spend the night. There should have been some kind of rehabilitation arrangement for us, we are completely landless people,' he said. Leaders of the All Assam Minority Students' Union (AAMSU) arrived at the site on Monday afternoon. AAMSU president Rejaul Karim Sarkar also said there should have been a proper rehabilitation plan. 'The Supreme Court has already given guidelines that people cannot be evicted in this way without rehabilitation. If they are given notices one day and the bulldozers are operated the next day, the people will not be able to gather all their belongings and leave. These people are all from Goalpara, who have been living here for 50-60 years after being affected by river erosion in riverine areas. The government's first responsibility was to come up with a rehabilitation plan for them or to give them some time,' he said.
Indian Express
03-06-2025
- Climate
- Indian Express
CPM should shut down offices and go to China, says Tripura BJP MP Biplab Kumar Deb
Tripura BJP MP Biplab Kumar Deb said on Tuesday that the CPM should shut down its offices and go to China, responding to the Opposition party's condemnation of the encounter killing of 27 Maoists, including their general secretary Nambala Kesavarao, in Chhattisgarh. The party's Politburo had claimed that appeals for peace from Maoists had been ignored and that the central government as well as BJP-led the state government had chosen to ignore the possibility of dialogues with the rebels. 'The CPM is a banned organisation. Naxals are a banned organisation. Speaking of the banned organisation, the CPM has no place in democracy. If they have shame, they should close their party offices and go to China. They don't have a place in Tripura,' Deb told reporters on the sidelines of a visit to a flood relief camp at Durga Chowmuhani in Agartala. On May 23, Biplab Kumar Deb termed the CPM 'anti-national' for criticising the Centre over the killing of the Maoists. His comments came even though CPM Politburo member and state secretary Jitendra Chaudhury clarified that his party wasn't opposed to any form of military offensive against Maoists or any other radical elements. Rather, Chaudhury said, the party had said the central government had ignored offers of surrender the slain Maoists had allegedly made. 'The CPM or any other patriotic political party or organisation in the country is obviously not opposed to military offensives against terrorists. But while the government is holding peace talks in Nagaland, the central government's move to reject offers of surrender from Maoists and rejecting their plea to return to normal life is not the way things are done…..' Chaudhury said soon after the BJP criticised the Politburo statement. Chaudhury also claimed that while the BJP high command, central government or the Chhattisgarh government didn't criticise the CPM Politburo's statement, some leaders of the saffron party in Tripura were trying to confuse people. During his visit to flood relief camps at Agartala, Biplab Deb continued his tirade against the CPM while distributing food packets. 'Waterlogging in the houses of most people staying in the shelters has reduced. Now they will need to clean their houses in a few days and we have provided food packets to every family so that they have food after reaching home…,' the former chief minister said. Tripura is witnessing heavy rain and thunderstorms that have forced 10,813 people to abandon waterlogged houses and shelter in government camps. As many as 219 houses were damaged in Gomati, Khowai, Sepahijala, South Tripura, and North Tripura districts. However, the assessment of damage is ongoing.
