Another illiterate uses religion for hatred
☕ India’s Morning Briefing: Thu, November 06
Hello, and welcome to the brief.
Today, the Bombay High Court officially confirmed our worst fears: the machines are hallucinating, and our tax officials are blindly copying their homework.
Welcome to the 147th edition of The India Brief
Do not miss the deep dive in the end
1. The National Brief
🛡️ Rajnath Singh: ‘Do Not Drag Army Into Politics’
Defence Minister; rebukes Rahul Gandhi in poll-bound Bihar.
Accuses him; of “creating anarchy.”
Re-frames “10% control” claim; as implying caste-reservation in military.
States Army has one religion; “Sainya Dharma” (Religion of Soldiery). 🔗
India Slams Pakistan at Doha Social Summit
Union Labour Minister Mandaviya; addresses World Summit for Social Development.
Counters Pak. President Zardari’s claims; of India “weaponising water”.
Mandaviya accuses Pakistan; of “abusing an international forum” & “peddling disinformation.”
Asserts Pakistan undermined; Indus Waters Treaty with “sustained hostility”.
You have to admire the commitment. It doesn’t matter if it’s a climate summit, a G20 dinner, or, in this case, a summit on social development—give India and Pakistan a microphone in the same room, and it will turn into a fight over Kashmir and water.
🗿 The Deeper Take: This is the “Indo-Pak Diplomatic Script,” unchanged for 50 years. For both nations, all international forums are just extensions of their bilateral conflict. The actual topic—social development—is irrelevant. It’s a stage to perform their grievances for a global audience, a pattern of diplomatic theatre that has become an end in itself. 🔗
🕌 Mumbai BJP Leader Warns Against ‘Imposing a Khan’
Following Zohran Mamdani’s NYC mayoral win; Mumbai BJP chief Ameet Satam posts warning.
Vows; party would “not tolerate to impose a ‘Khan’ on Mumbai.”
Links this; to what he termed “vote jihad” ahead of local polls.
Ah, yes. A Muslim man of Indian heritage wins an election in New York, and the first reaction from a Mumbai politician is... unfortunately this.
💰 The Signal: The “currency” here is communal polarisation. Satam is not analysing US politics; he is using Mamdani’s name and religion as a domestic political tool. His statement is a calculated signal intended to consolidate his Hindu base ahead of Mumbai’s mayoral polls by manufacturing an “other” and a threat. 🔗
2. The Economic & Legal Brief
🤖 Bombay HC Slams Tax Notice Based on ‘AI Facts’
Bombay High Court; nullifies Rs 22 crore tax notice.
Assessing Officer; cited three non-existent court rulings to justify the demand.
Officer “blindly relied” on; AI-generated outputs.
Court warns; against using AI in quasi-judicial functions without cross-verification.
This is chef’s kiss perfect. A tax officer, needing to justify a massive bill, essentially asked an AI for “three court cases that support my claim” and didn’t bother to check if they were real. The AI “hallucinated,” and the officer got roasted by the High Court.
The Deeper Take: This case sets a massive legal precedent. The court’s warning establishes a new, higher standard of human accountability for AI-generated work. It means “the AI told me so” is officially not a legal defence, forcing a system-wide reckoning with how AI can be used in law. 🔗
🛢️ Indian Refiners to Cut Russian Crude Imports
Indian refiners; including Reliance Industries, to reduce direct imports of Russian crude.
Follows; new US sanctions on Russian firms Rosneft and Lukoil, effective Nov 21.
Three refiners; (accounting for over half of Russian imports) will comply.
India; likely to increase procurement from Middle East & Latin America.
Well, the “buy-Russian-oil-for-cheap” party seems to be winding down. India’s “multi-alignment” policy just met its match: a private company’s (RIL) sanctions compliance department. 🔗
📈 RBI Drafts Simpler External Borrowing Rules
RBI; released draft regulations to simplify External Commercial Borrowing (ECB).
Aims to; expand the base of eligible borrowers and lenders.
Proposes; linking borrowing limits to a firm’s financial strength (e.g., up to 300% of net worth).
Replaces; previous hard caps (like the $750M cap).
The RBI is basically saying, “If you want to borrow money from foreigners, we’re going to make the paperwork way less painful.” This is the sound of red tape being (cautiously) cut.
The Deeper Take: This is the RBI subtly opening the “foreign capital” taps. The “And Then What?” is that Indian companies, especially in infrastructure, will find it easier to fund big projects. It’s a pro-growth move, but it also increases the economy’s exposure to global currency fluctuations. 🔗
3. The Global Brief
US Govt Shutdown Becomes Longest in History
US government shutdown; enters 36th day.
Breaks record; as longest in US history (old record: 35 days in 2019).
Impasse continues; over border wall funding demands.
Congressional leaders; are not in active negotiations.
Congratulations, America. You broke the record. Your government has now been “closed for maintenance” longer than any other time in history. It’s a sad landmark, like winning a “world’s worst-behaved toddler” competition.🔗
Putin Plans to Resume Nuclear Tests
Russian President Vladimir Putin; ordered officials to submit proposals for resuming nuclear tests.
This move; is a direct response to President Trump’s recent statements.
Russia; had already revoked its ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 2023.🔗
Canada Proposes ‘Mass Visa Cancellation’ Powers
Canadian govt; seeking new powers to cancel temporary visas en masse.
Internal documents; explicitly cite “country-specific challenges” and rising fraud from India and Bangladesh.
Move follows; a surge in asylum claims from Indian nationals, rising from 500/month in 2023 to 2,000/month by July 2024.🔗
🌍 UN: Climate Adaptation Finance Gap is Over $310B
A UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report; found the gap in climate adaptation finance has widened.
Developing countries; need $310B - $365B per year to prepare for climate impacts.
In 2023; developed nations provided only $26 billion, leaving a massive shortfall.
That’s not a “gap.” That’s a canyon. The world needs over $310 billion a year and is getting $26 billion. That’s like needing a fire truck and getting a single bucket of water.
The Deeper Take: This report is the UN officially stating that the “adaptation” pillar of the Paris Agreement is a total failure. The “And Then What?” is grim: this gap guarantees that future climate shocks (floods, droughts, storms) in developing nations will be unmitigated catastrophes, leading to mass displacement and state instability. 🔗
🗽 Zohran Mamdani Elected NYC’s Youngest Mayor
Zohran Mamdani; won the New York City mayoral election.
Becomes; the city’s youngest mayor in over a century, and its first Muslim mayor.
Son of; Indian filmmaker Mira Nair and professor Mahmood Mamdani.
Quoted; Nehru’s “Tryst with Destiny” speech at his victory rally.🔗
4. Science, Society & The Street
🛰️ ISRO-NASA’s ‘Planet Scanner’ Set to Go Live
NISAR satellite; joint ISRO-NASA project, to be declared operational on Nov 7.
ISRO Chairman; V. Narayanan confirmed data calibration is complete.
World’s most expensive; Earth observation satellite (2,400 kg).
Will scan; entire planet twice every 12 days.
It’s the ultimate global surveillance tool, but for, you know, science. NISAR will be able to see if a forest is shrinking or if a patch of ice is melting, every 12 days, forever. Incredibly cool, and just a tiny bit terrifying.
The Chessboard: While publicly a “climate research” tool, NISAR is a powerful strategic intelligence asset. Its L-band radar penetrates forest canopies. This gives India and the US an unprecedented, 12-day-refresh “God’s eye view” of military movements in sensitive border areas, if it is used for that purpose. 🔗
📣 West Bengal Unions Threaten MGNREGA Protests
Agricultural worker unions; in West Bengal (NREGA Sangharsh Morcha) threatened protests.
Demand; the MGNREGA 100-day work scheme be resumed by December.
Follows; a Supreme Court order that dismissed the Centre’s petition, clearing the way.
The scheme; has been halted in the state for three years.
After three years and a Supreme Court win, Bengal’s workers are (understandably) asking, “So... can we get back to work now?” They’re threatening to protest to get the government to... obey the Supreme Court.
💰 The Bottom Line: This is a fight over who gets the credit. The “currency” is votes. With state elections next year, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) wants to frame the scheme’s return as a political victory won by them. The protest threat is a way for worker unions to reclaim the narrative and ensure the focus is on their demands. 🔗
5. The Uplifting File
🏏 Rishabh Pant Returns to Test Squad as Vice-Captain
Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant; has returned to India’s Test squad for the South Africa series.
Marks his comeback; from a foot fracture sustained in July.
Pant; has been named Vice-Captain for the two-match series.
Proved his fitness; by scoring 90 in an India A match.
He’s back. The agent of chaos, the reverse-scooping, one-handed-six-hitting menace is back in the Test side. And as Vice-Captain, no less. Cricket just got 100% more entertaining.🔗
🪔 Varanasi Glows for Dev Diwali
The festival of Dev Diwali; was celebrated in Varanasi on Nov 5.
Believed; to be the “Diwali of the Gods,” it marks Lord Shiva’s victory over the demon Tripurasura.
Ghats on the Ganga; from Ravidas Ghat to Raj Ghat, were lit with thousands of earthen lamps (diyas). 🔗
The Deep Dive
The 150-Year-Old Playbook
Let’s be clear about what happened. A politician in Mumbai saw a Muslim man win an election in New York , and his immediate, muscle-memory reaction was to warn of a “vote jihad”. It’s a comically absurd leap, but it’s also the entire playbook.
This isn’t an ‘ancient, thousand-year hatred’. That’s the myth. This is a 150-year-old political technology. Many historians argue pre-colonial Hindu-Muslim identities were far more fluid. The hard, weaponised divide was a deliberate British project. Their “Divide and Rule” strategy was not just a slogan; it was policy. The 1905 Partition of Bengal and the 1909 Morley-Minto Reforms (which introduced separate electorates) were the masterstrokes. They successfully institutionalised the idea that your religion was your only political identity, a tool to “weaken the unity of the nationalist movement”.
That colonial playbook was never discarded; it was just inherited. For a politician, manufacturing an ‘other’ is the cheapest way to consolidate a ‘us’. But today, it’s more than just politics. It’s a business. As research shows, social media platforms have a financial incentive to amplify polarisation; “hateful content attracts more user engagement”. Hate has become a “lucrative undertaking”. It’s an entire ecosystem, where politicians supply the grievance and tech platforms supply the outrage. We just pay the price.
Q: A politician used a New York election to warn of a “Khan” in Mumbai. If this divide is a political tool that’s now a profitable “rage-bait” industry, how do you even begin to defuse it?
Reply with your thoughts.
Stay sharp,
Aditya S.
Editor, The India Brief
Your take on how religion gets weaponized by those using it for hatred is sobering. The way you highlight the disconnect between the actual teachings and how they're twisted for personal agendas is an important message. These kinds of curated briefings that cut through the noise are so valuable.