Dogs, democracy, and dead voters

Hello DoorDesi,

This Independence Day, I have you guys with me so I wanted to say something encouraging, something patriotic. I wanted this edition to be an independence day special where I covered stories of hope.

Instead this past week was so horrifying - from vote chori to SC’s stray dog ruling that it would have been delusional of me to write about meadows and waterfalls (especially with flashfloods claiming more meadows, waterfalls, and lives this week).

But in a way, I believe this IS an issue about hope. Hope that we finally might have a strong opposition that is asking the right questions, in the right way. Hope that once again, we, the people of India, have come down on the streets to protect about furry buddies. Hope that the facade of good governance is crumbling and that people are starting to see through communal politics.

Living away from India means all of this seems more like a theoritical concept rather than a practical reality. But I hope for a future where going back to India or staying back in India is a no-brainer for all of us. One where women who move abroad aren’t shocked by the fact that they can just walk back home at 1AM without holding their keys inbetween their fingers. One where politicians boast about the degrees they have, not the degrees they don’t. One where we are decent human beings before we are Indians.

I would like to end today’s letter with the enlightened words of Rabindranath Tagore:

Patriotism can’t be our final spiritual shelter. I will not buy glass for the price of diamonds and I will never allow patriotism to triumph over humanity as long as I live.

Thank you for tuning in today. You make my Sundays! Do not forget to scroll down for today’s Community Feature and meet one of our beloved DoorDesis.

Forever in your debt! 💌

Just the gist

🔗EC asks Rahul to cross his heart and hope to die

By now we all know that Rahul Gandhi has accused the Election Commission of teaming up with the BJP for what is being called “vote chori”. He presented evidence from one assembly constituency that his team of around 40 people gathered and analysed for almost 6 months.

The Election Commission has told Rahul Gandhi to either put his “vote chori” allegations under oath or apologise to the nation.They are using Rule 20(3)(b) of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 as their legal crutch. The problem though is that the rule only applies during the draft roll revision process, not 15 months after a Lok Sabha election.

Constitutional experts say the EC is either misreading the law or deliberately muddying the waters. The real remedy lies in Article 324, which obliges the EC to probe serious complaints about voter rolls, regardless of timing.

➡️ I repeat again, every chance you get, register to vote and fly back to vote. As someone who has been doing this for the past few years, it is not difficult. I will not say cliched stuff like ‘every vote counts‘. But it does! And more importantly, you have the right to vote. Exercise it, wherever you are! ✊

🔗Who let the (watch)dogs out?

I am here after having shed many tears over the court ruling when it came out a few days ago.

Supreme Court has decided that Delhi’s stray dogs should vanish from the streets and into shelters — permanently. Except, which shelters? Thus making a mass culling more likely than a humane shelter. The August 11 order gave municipal bodies just 8 weeks to round up every stray. What triggered this was a Times of India article about rising attacks on children, including infants.

But you know, in the most dire times, we Indians find strength in the collective so people got down on the streets. Delhi roads thronged with people protesting to save the desi doggos we have all grown up with from Bhallu to Kalia to Sundari, we have all fed, played with, and been loved by these strays.

Finally, on August 14, another bench reserved this order, which essentially means, they are not immedicately deliviering the judgement Which buys our indies some time, nothing more.

➡️ Are you tired of hearing #adoptdontshop? I do not care. Hear it from me again. If you have indies back home, great! If someone in your family or friend circle is looking to get a dog, encourage them to adopt. As a serial adopter, I can vouch for the fact that getting a special breed does not make you any happier. In fact, a lot of breeds that people in India get are not suited for the Indian climate. So if anything your life will be easier if you get indie!

🔗The crisis PR of the EC is not helping

Ahead of the Bihar elections, and as previously covered in DoorDesi, the Election Commission is conducting a special intensive revision (SIR) to update the electoral roll. As a result it was on its way to delete 65 lack names for various reasons. But that is when the thunder of accountability came rolling on them.

The Supreme Court has asked a very simple question the Election Commission seems allergic to: if you’re deleting 65 lakh names from Bihar’s voter rolls, why not just publish them online? The logic is straightforward - if someone finds themselves mysteriously “dead” or “migrated,” they should have 30 days to fix it. The ECI’s defence is “please, don’t make me do this!“. They say parties already get the lists, but voters themselves apparently don’t need to know. After the Court’s push, the poll body has grudgingly agreed to make the deletions searchable at the district level.

➡️ So for the second time in one newsletter issue, book a flight, go home, VOTE if you are from Bihar. October, November is the timeline. Do remember that the dates differ for constituencies. One hack is to look up what the date was for your constituency in the last three elections. That will help you determine in what order the elections happen across your state. I did that for the Jharkhand assembly election last year. Worked!

🔗Independence speeches that sound like #AD

Since we don’t get a press conference from our Prime Minister anymore, we take what we get. But what we get nowadays are some excessive chest thumping and the occassional #Ad. This year’s Independence Day speech was no different where we heard a manifesto on steroids. The PM saluted soldiers of Operation Sindoor for striking deep into enemy territory, praised farmers for filling granaries, and promised a self-reliant Bharat powered by solar panels, nuclear reactors, and semiconductors we should’ve built 50 years ago. And then there was the glowing review of the RSS for their 100 years of “nation-building.” On the nation’s 79th Independence Day, RSS was getting the birthday cards. Even darker notes? A “Demographic Mission” to counter so-called infiltrators.

➡️ This Independence Day hit different with strays being threatened, our voter rights being snatched, and people just getting more and more jaded.

Keeping up with the internet

🔗Identity politics at the bleachers

Many of us saw videos of a banner with Tagore’s verses about Bengali pride unfurled at Salt Lake stadium.

Football in Kolkata has always been more than sport—it’s theatre, protest, and religion rolled into one. Last week, Mohun Bagan fans unfurled Tagore verses on Bengali pride, while East Bengal supporters reminded everyone that speaking Bangla shouldn’t make you a “Bangladeshi.” Both clubs won their matches, but the real spectacle was in the stands, where politics has long found its loudest megaphone. This comes on the heels of cases of Bengali migrants across the country being harassed.

From anti-CAA chants to outrage over a murdered doctor, stadium tifos have turned Salt Lake into Bengal’s unofficial parliament.

➡️ With the West Bengal assembly elections approaching next year, let’s see how the sport provides a stage for political expression!

Desi culture

🔗 This Independence Day, read a book

In 1947, Partition tore families apart, forcing millions to rebuild from nothing. Among them were Balraj, a teenager from Malakwal who sold coal and pens to survive in Delhi, and Bhag, a 16-year-old from Dera Ismail Khan who arrived with her widowed mother and siblings, unsure if Delhi would ever feel like home. At Kingsway Camp, they met — two refugees who, in a world of bloodshed and uncertainty, found in each other a reason to hope. Their love led to marriage in 1955 and the birth of Bahrisons, now one of Delhi’s most iconic bookstores.

In their own words “Our goal is to provide books that encourage critical thinking and constructive action on the key political, cultural, social, economic and ecological issue shaping life in the Indian sub-continent and in the world. In this way, we hope to give expression to a wide diversity of democratic and social movements…“

➡️ Next time you are in Delhi, give it a visit. Remember the history that laid the foundation of the bookstore. And also, after you are done reading this issue, read a book.

They always come for books first!

💌 Community feature

Every week, one of you sends a little postcard from your DoorDesi life — a snapshot, a story, a moment worth sharing. Think of it as our way of waving hello across cities, countries, and dosa queues.

🥪This week’s Community postcard is all heart and it is coming from the Netherlands.

Srinivas lives in Eindhoven, the Netherlands where she works as a Sr. Product Manager. Hi Srini! 👋

Wanna share a postcard of your own? Drop me a text or reply to this email and I will share the template with you. Let’s curate this space together, pretty please!

With love on behalf of two women who cringe at the mention of chai tea latte,

Sudeshna

Co-Founder, DoorDesi 💃

Housekeeping

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