In photos: Moments that made India

Each decade of Independent India has been defined by certain events. We take a look at some of them, and the irony that shaped their future

Aug 15, 2019, 07:36 IST1 min

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1990s

THEN: Rajiv Goswami, a student at Delhi University, sets himself ablaze during protests against caste-based job reservations recommended by the Mandal Commission

NOW: Even as state governments increase caste-based reservations in jobs and education to appease various communities, the Telangana government is setting up a university exclusively for Dalit students

Image by Raveendran/ AFP / Getty Images

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2000s

THEN: Delhi High Court scraps a colonial-era law that criminalised homosexuality in India

NOW: The Kinnar Akhara, comprising transgender sadhus, including LGBTQ leader Laxmi Tripathi, takes a holy dip in the Ganga during Kumbh Mela, to reclaim the position held by the community in Hinduism

Image by DIBYANGSHU SARKAR/AFP/Getty Images

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2010s

THEN: Isro’s successful Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) proves the country’s space capabilities

NOW: Academics at an Indian Scientific Congress Association event claim that India’s mythological stories aren’t fiction, and that “we had 100 Kauravas from one mother because of stem cell and test tube technology”

Image by Pallava Bagla/ Corbis Via Getty Images