Thinking Together

Thinking Together

The constitution of India provides for Hindi as an official language of the Indian Union.  There is also a provision that parliament may, by law, provide for the use of the English language even after a period of 15 years after the promulgation of the constitution.  At the same time, one or more languages can be declared as the official language of a state by the legislature of that state.  Is this a fair language policy?S Sekhar, BengaluruThe CPI(M) is for a democratic language policy keeping in view the fact that India is a multilingual country.  The cornerstone of such

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How does the CPI(M) view the prime minister’s efforts to convert India into a ‘cashless’ economy, or, where all transactions are undertaken digitally?Rajani MazumdarKolkata THE CPI(M) is opposed to the way in which digitalisation is being forced upon people by the Modi government for several reasons.The first is that the vast majority of Indians are part of the informal, unorganised economy.  About 400 million Indians are daily wage-earners earning less than Rs 300 a day.  In addition, there are millions of worker

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A writer, Kamal C Chavara, was arrested in Kerala on charges of sedition for a Facebook Post.  Why was this done on a complaint by the BJP youth wing?  Is this not an assault on the freedom of expression?Sudarshanan, Kozhikode The police had arrested Kamal Chavara on the basis of a complaint lodged by some members of the BJP Yuva Morcha in Kollam district.  After he was arrested in Kozhikode, it was announced by the police official that he has been charged under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code which is of sedition.The arrest of Chavara under this section was unwarran

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Two Maoists were killed by the police last month in a forest in Kerala. The CPI state secretary and other civil rights activists have condemned the killings alleging it was a false encounter. The LDF government is being accused of adopting the same approach as other state governments. Can you explain the CPI(M) position?·        P K Rajen, Kochi SOME Maoist squads have been operating in the forests in the tri-junction between Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for the past few years.

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The Supreme Court has decreed that all cinema halls should play the national anthem before starting of a film and people present in the hall should stand up during the playing of the anthem. Will this step help in promoting patriotism and nationalism? How does the CPI(M) view it?Harsh Kumar, Delhi THE Supreme Court has ordered that all cinema halls should play the national anthem before the beginning of a feature film. It has also decreed that all viewers in the hall are obliged to stand up to show respect to the national anthem.

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What is the CPI (M)’s critique of the Modi government’s demonetisation of 500 and 1000 rupee notes.  Is it not a step to root out black money in the economy?Raghunathan, CoimbatoreLET us examine the claims made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he declared the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. He said that “corruption, black money and terrorism are festering sores” and demonetisation “will strengthen the hands of the common man in the fight against corruption, black money and fake currency”.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared support for the struggle of the Balochi people during his Independence Day speech.  Since then, the Modi government has been actively supporting the cause of the Balochistan people in Pakistan.  What is the CPI(M)’s understanding on the issue?Piyush Kumar, DelhiBALOCHISTAN is a resource-rich province of Pakistan which borders Afghanistan and Iran.  There has been, over the decades, spurts of insurgency for seeking a separate status for Balochistan with some forces demanding independence. At different points of time, the armed insurgenc

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The union government wants to bring in simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.  Will this not be beneficial for the country?  What is the CPI(M) stand on this proposal? Gurmesh Singh, ChandigarhTHE BJP-led government is eager to initiate simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies.  Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come out supporting the idea of holding simultaneous elections.In September, the Modi government has sought the views of the people on the issue of holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and the state assemb

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Q. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill is pending in the Rajya Sabha since 2014. What is the CPI(M)’s stand?Rajasekharan, Chennai A. The Bill was introduced in February 2014 when the UPA II government was on its way out.

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Swami Vivekananda emerged as an iconic saint-philosopher who is credited for bringing a new momentum to the process of Hindu revivalism in the 19th century.  The Hindu nationalists spearheaded by RSS and its affiliates have and continue to project Swamiji as the leading light of militant Hindutva.  The CPI(M) and the Left have not taken it upon themselves to confront his ideas in a vigorous manner.  Why is it so?Biswajit Ghosh, Kolkata ANY Marxist approach to critically evaluate historical personalities who have profoundly influenced contemporary thinking begins with a bas

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