MAHARASHTRA : CPI(M) Supports Bandh to Denounce Violence against Dalits

THE CPI(M) Maharashtra state committee has, in a statement issued on January 2, called upon all democratic and secular minded people in the state to extend their full support to the joint Maharashtra bandh call on January 3, the birth anniversary of Savitribai Phule. The bandh has been called by various Ambedkarite and Left groups to denounce the January 1 attacks by casteist and communal forces on lakhs of dalits who had gathered at Bhima Koregaon in Pune district to pay homage to martyrs on the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle in which the hated casteist Peshwa rule was def

SOLIDARITY PROGRAMME IN WEST BENGAL: Tripura will Resist Enemies of the People

THE people of Tripura will not bow down before enemies of the people and will not allow single space to secessionists and communal forces. Despite the obstacles imposed by the centre and by the trouble makers, they will march to another victory. CPI(M) Polit Bureau member and chief minister of Tripura, Manik Sarkar, asserted with conviction at a public meeting in Kolkata on December 28. The meeting was organised by the CPI(M) West Bengal state committee to express solidarity with the struggling people of Tripura.

A Year of Willful Economic Disaster

THE uniqueness of 2017 lies in the fact that never before has the country seen a government-caused economic crisis as serious as was witnessed in this year. There have certainly been worse years for the people, such as 1965-66, 1966-67, and 1973-74, each of which saw massive inflation. But these were years when economic hardships occurred for reasons that had nothing to do proximately with government policy. 1965-66 and 1966-67 when the “Bihar famine” had occurred, had seen a sharp drop in food grains output, a drop that had lasted two years.

Legitimising Corporate Influence and Bribery

THE details of the scheme of electoral bonds outlined by the finance minister in parliament have only confirmed what was apprehended when the proposal for electoral bonds was first announced in the January 2017-18 budget. The scheme is nothing but a way of harnessing corporate funding for the ruling party and facilitating the takeover of the political system by big money.According to the finance minister, the electoral bond will be a bearer instrument in the nature of a promissory note.

India’s Industrial Sector: Myth and Reality

ONE of the elements of the so-called revival in GDP growth in the second quarter of the current year (2017-18) was an apparent rebound of manufacturing sector growth. The year-on-year growth rate of manufacturing, which had dipped to 1.2 per cent in Q1 of 2017-18 jumped to 7.0 per cent in Q2. On the face of it, therefore, the industrial sector is back on track after a brief demonetisation induced slowdown.

UITARAKHAND: Sixth State Conference of CPI(M)

THE sixth state conference of the Uttarakhand unit of the CPI(M) commenced on December 16, at Bhagwati Palace in Almora. The venue was dedicated to the memory of Comrades Nagendra Saklani and Bholu Bhandari who were martyred fighting against the Tihari Kingdom.A procession marched through the streets of the city before the commencement of the conference. It culminated in a rally which was addressed by Party leadership.

The Week in Parliament

THE delayed Winter Session of Parliament began on a stormy note on December 15 with opposition members in the Rajya Sabha persistently demanding an explanation from the government on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation about Pakistan's interference in the Gujarat assembly election.

CPI(M) Remembers Nalua Martyrs

A huge rally was organised by the CPI(M) at Nalua, under Hrishyamukh assembly constituency of Belonia, in Tripura on December 22 to remember the four martyrs of Nalua. Comrades Niresh Debnath, Manik Nama, Sushil Mahajan and Swapan Debnath were brutally murdered on December 22, 1989 during the semi fascist Congress TUJS regime. Their bodies were brutality chopped off and buried. Three bodies were recovered few days later. The then chief minister Sudhir Majumdar was holding a meeting in the same area. However the skeleton of Comrade Sushil Mahajan was recovered only in 1993.

TN: Battle against Caste-Based Violence and Honour Killings

FOR Kausalya, a battle has been won but the war lies ahead. The young woman from Tamil Nadu has scored a legal victory in her fight for justice for her slain husband, but she is determined to carry forward her battle against caste-based violence and honor killings.Kausalya, in her early 20s, and her husband V Sankar came under a mercenary attack in Udumalpet town in Tamil Nadu’s Tirupur district in March 2016 for their inter-caste marriage. While Kausalya survived the attack, perpetrated by her father, Sankar succumbed to his injuries.

Latin America: Staring at Challenges

IN the run-off for Chilean presidential elections held on December 17, right-wing, businessman Sebastian Pinera (representing the coalition ‘Let's Go Chile’) won securing 54 per cent of the votes. He has defeated centre-left ruling coalition (New Majority) candidate Alejandro Guillier. The run-off was called as the election could not be decided in the first round with no candidate able to secure the mandatory 50 per cent of the polled votes.

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