Below we publish the note submitted by Sitaram Yechury, general secretary of CPI(M), at the meeting of heads of all political parties represented in parliament on June 19, 2019.ON behalf of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), I express my thanks for being invited to this meeting and present our views.  The listed agenda consists of five issues: (a) ways to improve the productivity of the parliament; (b) one country one election; (c) building of a New India in the 75th year of Independence; (d) programme and commitments to celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary; and

THOUSANDS of people marched through streets in Kolkata, protesting against ongoing post-poll violence in West Bengal. Left parties and other supporting parties participated in the massive rally.West Bengal is witness to unending violence perpetrated by the TMC and the BJP in different parts of the state. More than 10 people have already died in clashes. Apart from loss of life, attack on houses, shops, arson, terror in villages have increased. In parts of the state, particularly in Barrackpore industrial area, this has turned communal too.

THE “Gross Domestic Product” is a concept rooted in an epistemic position which is intrinsically incapable of recognising the existence of a “surplus” in society. A simple example will make this clear. Suppose we have an agrarian economy in which 100 peasants produce 100 units of food; and suppose 50 of these are taken by an overlord through taxes, for consumption by his family and hangers-on. These 50 units will be readily recognised as constituting a “surplus” out of the total output of 100. But the concept of GDP would not recognise this.

IN the first two weeks of June, about a dozen young men and journalists have been arrested across the country, primarily for social media posts critical of BJP chief ministers and leaders. After the Narendra Modi government assumed office for a second term, such news started trickling in from various parts of the country, particularly states ruled by the BJP.The Uttar Pradesh government, led by the BJP, led the effort to threaten and intimidate, thereby silence critical voices.

THE New York Times recent report that the US Cyber Command has planted “malware” – read cyber bombs – deep into the Russian grid, should worry not just the Russian people, but all of us.  Taking down a country’s grid leads to blackouts, and disrupts a country’s vital infrastructure: communication networks such as metros, railways, airports, hospitals, telecommunications including cell phones; it can lead to failure of hydroelectric plants and dams causing devastating floods, nuclear plants outages and possible meltdown.