Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A hunger strike in which an aggrieved person or party sits down and refuses to move from a place associated with the party believed to be the source of the grievance, especially the entrance to a building or the door of a residence.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A coercive measure resorted to in the East Indies by a creditor, complainant, or claimant, who sits at the door of the debtor, without tasting food, until the debt is paid or the demand is complied with: as, to sit dharna (or in dharna).

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A debt collector in India who sits on the doorstep of a debtor until the debt is paid.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Hindi dharnā, from Prakrit dharaṇa, from Sanskrit dharaṇam, act of supporting, stay; see dher- in Indo-European roots.]

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Examples

  • Saxena, in his application, has questioned the veracity of the medical report, claiming that on the day of her court hearing, she was busy staging a 'dharna' at the collector's office at Nandurbar in Maharashtra.

    Gaea Times (by Simple Thoughts) Breaking News and incisive views 24/7 2010

  • Saxena, in his application, has qustioned the veracity of the medical report claiming that on the day, she was busy staging a 'dharna' at the collector's office at Nandurbar in Maharashtra.

    Daily News & Analysis 2010

  • The former Andhra Chief Minister will reach Tirupati on August 7 and lead a 'dharna' (sit-in demonstration) with over 20,000 TDP workers in front of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams

    Zee News : India National 2010

  • Demanding to increase the cosmetic charges and release of pending scholarships, large number of students staged a 'dharna' before the Collectorate under the aegis of Akhila

    The Hindu - Front Page 2010

  • Chairman of moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umer Farooq staged a 'dharna' at

    The Times of India 2010

  • Saxena, in his application, has qustioned the veracity of the medical report claiming that on the day, she was busy staging a 'dharna' at the collector's office at Nandurbar in Maharashtra.

    Analysis 2010

  • Saxena, in his application, has questioned the veracity of the medical report, claiming that on the day of her court hearing, she was busy staging a 'dharna' at the collector's office at Nandurbar in Maharashtra.

    Gaea Times (by Simple Thoughts) Breaking News and incisive views 24/7 Ians 2010

  • The high voltage drama of 'dharna' byChandrababu Naidu, former chief minister of Andhra

    Daily News & Analysis 2010

  • Saxena, in his application, has qustioned the veracity of the medical report claiming that on the day, she was busy staging a 'dharna' at the collector's office at Nandurbar in Maharashtra.

    Analysis 2010

  • Senior police officers visited the spot and assured the protesters that their complaints would be looked into, persuading them to call off their 'dharna', police said.

    Daily News & Analysis 2010

Comments

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  • dharna - A method of collecting a debt in which the person who is owed

    money sits on the debtors doorstep until payment is made, or the debtor

    starves to death

    February 28, 2009