TRIBUTES flowed during a state-level condolence meeting for Sitaram Yechury, general secretary of CPI(M), organised by the Bihar state committee of CPI(M) on October 1, 2024, at Ravindra Bhawan, Patna. Over 1,000 workers, peasants, women, youth, students, and intellectuals, gathered to honour Sitaram Yechury, who passed away unexpectedly on September 20.The news of his sudden demise shocked both the Party and the broader Left and democratic movements across the country.

COMRADE Sitaram Yechury, a revolutionary visionary leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), was a pioneer in recognising the grave threat posed by the fascist RSS's Hindutva ideology early on. Until his last breath, he dedicated his life to combating this right-wing, communal fascism. This was the view expressed by Prakash Karat, Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M) at a memorial meeting held in Kolkata on October 3.Besides Prakash Karat, Party state secretary Muhammad Salim and Polit bureau member Surya Mishra also addressed the gathering.

Below we publish the text of the speech delivered by Prabhat Patnaik at the memorial meeting held in New Delhi on September 28 to pay tributes to Comrade Sitaram YechurySITARAM Yechury, general secretary of the CPI(M), who passed away on September 12, belonged to the first batch of MA (Economics) students of Jawaharlal Nehru University; the faculty at the newly-established Centre for Economic Studies and Planning consisted of six members, of whom three including myself were in their late twenties with no previous experience of teaching in India while even our senior collea

THE results of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections are of great significance.  The victory of the National Conference-led alliance, winning 49 of the 90 seats, is a strong verdict against the Modi government and the BJP’s authoritarian steps to dismantle the state of J&K and deprive it of its special status.  The people of the Valley have also foiled the BJP’s campaign to field proxies and  encourage separatist elements to contest to divide the vote.  The fact that the BJP could poll only 2.2 per cent of the votes cast in the Valley shows the total rejection of the Hindutva forces’

A THOUSAND years ago, during the reign of Chola King Rajaraja, vast tracts of land, known as Brahmadeyam, were granted to brahmins. Successive kings followed this tradition, generously donating land to key administrative service providers, such as the army and palace staff. The ruling class of that era favoured a select few – primarily those close to them – elevating them to the status of landlords.