Gloria Indica
Hi! Welcome to the 17th edition of Gloria Indica, our newsletter written specifically for Wednesdays and Thursdays. If you’re reading this for the first time, then welcome. We’re tripping as always, but we need to go even higher and stay there, refusing to accept the mundane, the monotonous and the outright drudgery we see all around us today in the form of lies, misinformation and half-truths being peddled as authentic information. Rise beyond such mere narratives, dear readers.
Let’s start blazing.
Will Indian News Media Apologize? We Predict No. Not Needed. Can Rhea Sue?
We have confirmation that the Bombay High Court has granted bail to Bollywood actress Rhea Chakraborty. Quoting NDTV:
“Actor Rhea Chakraborty has been granted bail with conditions nearly a month after her arrest over drugs-related charges in the Sushant Singh Rajput case. Her brother Showik, however, has been denied any reprieve by the Bombay High Court. Another court had yesterday extended their judicial custody till October 20. Rhea Chakraborty “is not part of a chain of drug dealers” and “has not forwarded the drugs allegedly procured by her to somebody else to earn monetary other benefits,” the High Court said. “Since she has no criminal antecedents, there are reasonable grounds for believing that she is not likely to commit any offence while on bail,” said the judge.”
Our point is this, can Rhea C sue select Indian news channels for defamation, once her bail period ends after a month?
“Rhea Chakraborty also argued that the charges against her were too severe compared to the quantity of the drugs involved. She accused the drugs probe agency of spinning a false narrative that she was involved in illegal drugs trafficking and “harboured offenders”. The CBI is investigating the circumstances of Sushant Singh Rajput’s death and the Enforcement Directorate is looking into financial allegations raised by the actor’s father. The Narcotics Control Bureau stepped into the Sushant Singh Rajput investigations when WhatsApp chats retrieved from Rhea Chakraborty’s phone revealed alleged conversations involving the procuring of drugs.”
We think she can sue for defamation. We’re no law experts, but the language, the sleaze, the misogyny, everything is out there on video, after the news anchors embellished her name again and again, twisting it into conspiracy theories, and in fact openly called for her arrest way before the judicial process had even come into the picture. Rhea C should ideally sue them for tarnishing her name without any shred of evidence. But we don’t think she will do that. Because she would want this to end as soon as possible and get on with her life, rather than enter another legal mess. Better if she lets this furore die down once and for all.
Let’s keep blazing.
Beware of the Bad Logic All Around You
India’s 2000 Note Has Disappeared. Almost.
It is fair to say that no one really liked the 2000 rupee note in India. Frankly, we hated it because on a personal front, we went through a few weird times when no one had any change to exchange it for. We only managed to get change after buying a whole load of munchies like chocolates, fried chips, soft drinks and energy bars, including milk and eggs as well.
“It’s no wonder that the ₹2000 note is falling out of favour. Banks aren’t actively pushing it. RBI isn’t printing these notes anymore. And they are becoming a rare sight in ATMs these days. In fact, the Central Bank hasn’t printed a single ₹2000 note since June 2018. And it doesn’t seem as if this trend is going to reverse. Which brings us to the next question — What happens if the ₹2000 is slowly phased out?”
“Meanwhile, if you are arguing that people use these notes to conduct legitimate high-value transactions, remember there’s UPI, Paytm and Net Banking. It’s so much easier to deal with these tools than use actual physical currency. And don’t get me wrong I am not saying that the ₹2000 note is cursed or it’s evil. Bad people will find a way to finance bad things even if all high-value notes were phased out. All I am saying is that although the note looked cute, it probably wasn’t very useful. Maybe in a parallel universe where there’s no UPI, no credit cards, no Net banking the ₹2000 note is having a field day. But right here right now, I don’t see a lot of people crying over the disappearance of this fabled G̶P̶S̶ ̶N̶a̶n̶o̶c̶h̶i̶p̶ currency.”
The 2000 rupee note’s fabled journey heralded the start of India’s November, 2016 demonetization moment. The pandemic has probably consigned it to history’s dustbin.
Let’s keep blazing.
Do Your Own Research
We implore our readers to not believe in the popular narratives being peddled on short-form social media chats and mainstream Indian media. Use the internet (or books) and stay with it, and probably read only the long-form content, because although it may initially feel tedious or boring, trust us, you’ll learn more and not forget. The reason long-form content is the best is because it probably covers all the perspectives of a given topic rather than skim the surface and constrain the reader into a bubble, so to speak.
Let’s keep blazing.
Have a great day 🙂
Marijuana Maharaj 