Love, death and lawyers

The judgement that never came: Army rule in North East India (Chicken Neck, Rs 495) by Nandita Haksar and Sebastian M. Hongray describes itself as a collaboration between two human rights activists, one “Naga” and the other an “Indian”. That in itself is eloquent — under army rule ever since the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was imposed in 1958, Nagas have experienced a growing sense of alienation from the Indian State. The book gives an account of a counter-insurgency operation launched in 1987, codenamed Operation Bluebird. It also documents how a group of lawyers, activists and Naga villagers fought for justice in the wake of the army atrocities, and how the Indian legal system has denied them justice. The authors provide transcripts of appeals and complaints sent to the government that went unanswered. There are also other transcripts — of cables sent by the army denying all complaints of human rights violations and of cables that the army now denies sending at all. This is an important book, one that might break the nation’s selective amnesia about the Northeast.

The Tigerclaw Tree (Tranquebar, Rs 295) by P.A. Krishnan traces the story of four generations of a Tenkalai Iyengar family. Each generation struggles to deal with the family legacy, even as it is swept along with the political currents of its time. A thorny history, perhaps best embodied by the tigerclaw tree, the flowers of which resemble the claws of a tiger. First published in 1998, this new edition revives a “cult classic”. The story is peppered with pithy observations and softened by luxurious detail. Krishnan often displays an incisive choice in adjectives — recurring childbirth is “ablutionary”, for instance. But a “fuliginous kitchen” is hard to pull off, even with a heavy doze of irony.

Dowry Murder: Reinvestigating a cultural whodunnit (Penguin, Rs 399) by Veena Talwar Oldenburg reconstructs the history of dowry. The author explores the outlawed custom, arguing that it may not be the sole motive behind the “dowry deaths” that have continued unabated through India’s recent history. In pre-colonial India, in fact, the custom was meant to ensure a degree of independence for the woman and act as a “safety net”. It was only later that it became an instrument of oppression. Oldenburg locates her study in “colonial Punjab”, examining incidents that took place in the latter half of the 19th century and the latter half of the 20th century. The author’s personal experience is embedded in larger political and social factors in this intriguing study of a custom that has changed character with the changing times.

Two Fates: The story of my Divorce (Westland, Rs 150) by Judy Balan introduces you to Deepika, a Tamilian, who falls in love with Rishab, a Punjabi. They overcome parental opposition and get married. But Rishab is a graduate from IIT, we are reminded countless times, who feels “shortchanged” by the fact that he married a lowly literature student. Since the theme of the great Indian wedding seems to have been exhausted, authors have now switched to grand sagas of the Indian divorce. This, we are promised, will be hilarious. The couple quibble adorably over the colour of their living room and cannot help but make “passionate love” every now and then, while parents complain about the lack of babies. If only all divorces were the stuff of romantic comedies.