THE BJP-led Maharashtra state government and its police have served an unprecedented notice threatening to extern four prominent CPI(M) activists Vinod Nikole (CITU leader), Chandrakant Gorkhana (AIKS leader), Dinesh Aakre and Shankar Govari (DYFI leaders) from three districts, namely Thane, Palghar and Nashik, for a period of two years. It is very clear that such vindictive actions are being taken under the pressure of the BJP-led state government, which is influenced by its local leaders, factory owners, unlawful prawns project owners, the corrupt ration lobby and the rapacious land mafia. The externment notice has been served in order to suppress the movement for justice of the common people. Apart from this, the local police have registered false and baseless cases against many CPI(M) activists.

BJP-RSS TARGETING OF CPI(M)

For the last two decades, the BJP-RSS has been targeting the CPI(M) in its base in Thane-Palghar district. There have been constant physical attacks on Party activists in Talasari tehsil, which have been strongly resisted. Five years ago in 2012, Martyr Mathi Ozare, a courageous adivasi woman activist of the AIDWA from Vasa village of Talasari tehsil, was brutally killed by crushing her head with stones by local BJP goons, only because she bravely refused to stop her campaigning for the CPI(M) in the zilla parishad and panchayat samiti elections.

Before that, on Republic Day, January 26, 1997, Lakshya Beej and Babu Kharpade, activists of the AIKS and DYFI, were the victims of firing by the police of the then BJP-Shiv Sena government in Kavada village of Talasari tehsil. The same night, moreover, more than 100 prominent leaders and activists of the CPI(M) in the district were imprisoned for a month. Police terror was let loose in the villages of Talasari tehsil and in Thane district as a whole. It was through such cowardly repressive tactics that the BJP-RSS plot for winning the zilla parishad and panchyat samiti polls to be held in early March 1997 was hatched. However, such an ignoble plot was foiled by thousands of courageous red flag activists. The CPI(M) wiped out both the BJP and the Congress in that election in Talasari tehsil and increased its seats and votes in the district.

The biggest irony is that, while on the one hand CPI(M) activists constantly fighting for people’s rights are being threatened with externment, on the other hand no action is being taken against the sitting BJP MLA from Dahanu, Pascal Dhanare, who was caught for openly demanding 100 boxes of liquor from excise officials to distribute amongst the voters. He also shamelessly told the excise officials that it was extortion that he was indulging in and dared them to complain against him. This news was flashed in all sections of the print and electronic media.  In spite of all this, his own Party’s state government has naturally taken no action.

Despite all the blatant use of corruption and extortion by the BJP, the CPI(M) swept the first election to the Talasari Nagar Panchayat that was held on November 27, 2016, by winning 11 seats out of 17. The BJP won just four seats and the NCP won only two seats. This CPI(M) victory again signified the victory of people’s power over the massive money power of the BJP and the NCP. Talasari was a gram panchayat till now, which was also won for six decades by the CPI(M).

SPIRITED MASS ACTION

To focus on this glaring contradiction and to express people’s rage on the same, on January 13, 2017, the CPI(M) Thane-Palghar district committee called for the districtwide march to the Dahanu SDO office and the Dahanu police station. The three main demands were: Withdraw the externment notice against CPI(M) activists; stop lodging false police cases on Party activists; and lodge an extortion and corruption case on the BJP MLA and arrest him. Massive preparations were made for over a fortnight by conducting several public meetings in villages. Over 20,000 leaflets were distributed in the district. To make this march a grand success, activists of the AIKS, CITU, AIDWA, DYFI and SFI worked very hard and with determination.

The unrest in the people was already there due to injustice done to the four activists. They remembered the autocratic acts by the previous BJP government on several comrades, their homes and families. Many male comrades had to take shelter in the forest or go underground for months due to intense police repression. During this time, it was the women who bravely managed their homes, their children and their villages.

Because of this anger against the BJP regime and its police, over 20,000 people from Dahanu, Talasari, Wada, Shahapur, Palghar, Vikramgad, Jawhar and Mokhada tehsils participated in the march. The entire city of Dahanu was painted red with the flags of the Party. In the raging afternoon heat, the march started from the KT Nagar ground with resounding slogans.

The march was led by CPI(M) central secretariat member Ashok Dhawale, state secretary and Central Committee member Narasayya Adam, Central Committee member Mahendra Singh, veteran leader L B Dhangar, ex-MP Lahanu Kom, district secretary and state secretariat member Barkya Mangat, state secretariat members Mariam Dhawale and Kisan Gujar, Nashik district secretary and state committee member Sunil Malusare, Ahmednagar district secretary and state committee member Ajit Nawale and state committee members from Thane-Palghar district Edward Vartha, Ratan Budhar, Lahani Dauda and Sunil Dhanwa.

The massive rally was converted into a public meeting after walking through the major roads of Dahanu and conducting angry demonstrations at the police station. The public meeting was addressed by all the above leaders. Narasayya Adam lashed out at the authoritarian and anti-people policies of the BJP-led state and central government, including the demonetisation fiasco which had ruined the people. He warned the government that we are not afraid of externment orders or police cases and are the kind of activists who fight to the death for people’s rights. But we shall never put up with injustice.

In the public meeting presided over by Lahanu Kom, other district leaders who also spoke were Radka Kalangda, Vansha Dumada, Lakshman Dombre, Kiran Gahala, Bharat Valamba, Sudam Dinda, Ramdas Waingade, Prachi Hatiwlekar, Heena Vanga, Kavita Ware and also Vinod Nikole and Chandrakant Gorkhana, who were themselves facing the externment notices.

Meanwhile, a delegation met the SDO who had taken new charge just two days ago. Ashok Dhawale, in his concluding speech, conveyed the gist of the discussion. The lady officer who had newly joined, requested a month’s time to review the externment notices and assured that no injustice will be done to the red flag. The moment he announced this, the entire audience was jubilant. He also lashed out at the range of anti-people policies and communal conspiracies of the BJP-led regimes in the state and at the centre, and warned that if the externment notices were not withdrawn, we will call for a blockade of the entire Dahanu city. The public meeting then concluded with resounding revolutionary slogans.

The Dahanu rally was excellently covered by all the print and electronic media. Significantly, CPI(M) and AIKS literature worth over Rs 30,000 was sold out during this rally.

AIDWA Observes Birth Anniversary of Savitribai Phule

A 3,000-strong rally and public meeting was organised in Talasari by the AIDWA Thane-Palghar district committee on January 3, 2017 to mark the birth anniversary of the great social reformer Savitribai Phule, who was the pioneer of women’s education in Maharashtra, the saviour of hundreds of widows and orphans and a nurse to hundreds of plague victims. The public meeting was held to salute the legendary work by her in the 19th century and to encourage women to carry forward her legacy through the work by AIDWA.

Women gathered for this meeting from all the rural tehsils, even from the remotest areas, with or without the availability of proper transport. The main speaker at this public meeting was Mariam Dhawale, general secretary of AIDWA. While stressing the importance of Savitribai’s work, she also elaborated on the present condition of girls’ education and the security problems they are facing in Savitribai’s own state. Mariam Dhawale held the current central and state BJP government and its regressive, anti-women policies responsible for this deteriorating condition of women and appealed to all to unite under the banner of AIDWA and fight for their rights.

Veteran AIDWA leader Hemlata Kom, Rasila Dhodi, district secretary Lahani Dauda, district secretariat members Tai Bendar, Pramila Sathe, Heena Vanga also addressed the meeting which was presided over by district president Prachi Hatiwlekar.

REMARKABLE FLAG HOISTING IN 111 VILLAGES

The AIDWA central executive committee had suggested at least 11 flag-hoistings in every district before the 11th All India conference held at Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh. The Thane-Palghar district committee of AIDWA welcomed this unique campaign with enthusiasm and decided to hold the flag-hoisting in each unit and village committee. This novel idea got tremendous response from women. Not just 11, but 111 units held the flag-hoisting in their villages very successfully. Flags engraved with the three point AIDWA motto of ‘freedom, equality and women’s emancipation’ were saluted with enthusiasm and respect by thousands of women all over Thane-Palghar district.

Everywhere the local senior most woman activist was selected for the honour of hoisting the flag. These activists shared with pride their experiences in the movement of fighting against the oppressive landlords which was led by the legendary leaders Shamrao and Godavari Parulekar.

Women, who are invariably convivial by nature, made the flag hoisting more interesting by floral and rangoli decorations, various folk dances and singing revolutionary songs. All the main activists of the district took this as an opportunity to reach out to every single woman member of AIDWA, to understand their problems and their expectations from the organisation.  The intensity of the basic problems faced by majority of people - land, water, ration, employment, education etc. was revisited. These flag hoistings turned into a big campaign to intensify the AIDWA’s struggle over these perennial issues.