Military Veterans to Modi: ‘Dissent is Not Treason… It is the Essence of Democracy’

A group of 114 veterans of the Indian Armed Forces have written an open letter to the prime minister, chief ministers of states and lieutenant-governors of union territories, expressing their distress at “divisive” recent developments in the country which “go against the secular and democratic values enshrined in the constitution”. The letter is reproduced below.WE are a group of veterans of the Indian Armed Forces who have spent our careers working for the security of our country.

Serious Anomalies and Unjust GST Rate on Essentials Medicines

THE prime minister has been requested to ensure that essential medicines listed in the National List of Essential Medicines are kept outside the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 28, CITU leader J S Majumdar flagged serious anomalies in the tax structure for medicines fixed by the GST Council, disregarding a Supreme Court order and subsequent government notifications.The Supreme Court had in March 2003 issued an order giving two directions to the government – on controlling medicine prices and for preparing the National List of Ess

KARNATAKA: Stop BEML Privatisation

“BEML that has played an important part in defense production is being handed over to private parties at a paltry sum. The valuation of BEML at Rs 518.44 crores is ridiculously low, even less than the value of the land owned by the company. It is unimaginable that the government is selling a company of strategic importance that is running well and the one that had contributed to the exchequer to the extent of Rs 693.46 crores in 2016-17. Stop this privatization,” demanded A K Padmanabhan, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member and vice president of CITU.

AIPSN Expresses Grief at the Passing Away of Eminent Scientists

All India People's Science Network (AIPSN) expresses deep grief at the passing away of Professor Pushpa Mitra Bhargava, Professor Yash Pal and Prof U R RaoProfessor PM Bhargava the founder-director of Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) died on August 1. He was 89. Condoling his death, the All India Peoples Science Network issued a statement remembering the life and contributions of the professor.

Stop Social Boycott in Garagaparru village

IN the recent period both in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, attacks and atrocities on dalits are on an increase. In Telangana, during the last three months, there have been about 18 such instances. A considerable number of these attacks are happening when there are inter-caste marriages. Andhra Pradesh has registered several incidents – Deverapalli, Pachikapallam and particularly the social boycott in Garagaparru are some recent examples. Dalits are being socially boycotted since three months in this village.

CPI(M) Nationwide Campaign from August 15-31

Demands: · Loan waivers for the kisans· MSP at one and a half times the production costs and a central legislation ensuring this· Implement BJP’s electoral promise of creating two crore jobs every year.· Stop the large-scale privatisation of public sector and public services.· Immediately legislate the Women’s Reservation Bill as promised by the BJP in 2014 elections. · Conduct anti-communalism programmes all over the country during the month of September· Protesting against the growing attacks on dalits and Muslims, campaign for

Successful One Day Strike in BSNL

THE one day strike on July 27, called by the unions and associations of BSNL, was near total. The officers and workers of BSNL have massively responded to the strike call. The strike took place demanding wage revision from January 1, pension revision, superannuation benefits to the directly recruited employees and to stop the attacks on trade union rights in BSNL. The success of the strike was beyond expectations in almost all circles. Most of the customer care centres, administrative offices, and telephone exchanges wore a deserted look.

AIKS Calls for Intensified Struggles against Anti-farmer Policies

THE All India Kisan Sabha held its kisan council meeting in Thiruvananthapuram on Aug 1-2. It has called upon the peasantry to be prepared for countrywide united struggle to achieve its two main demands of remunerative prices at 50 per cent above the cost of production for all crops with procurement centres and comprehensive loan waiver including private credit, to stop mounting peasant suicides.AIKS units will participate in the August 9 district rally/jail bharo call of the Bhoomi Adhikar Andolan and organise the campaign/ strike in many districts across the country.

Thinking Together

Q. What is the CPI(M)’s basic stand on GST? Sarvartrik Brahma, KolkataTHE Central Committee of the CPI(M) in its meeting held from July 24 to 26, 2017 has adopted a resolution on Goods & Services Tax, which sets out its basic stand on GST. Earlier the Party had in a piecemeal fashion reacted to some aspects of GST particularly of how the GST would affect state governments and their rights.The Party has stated that the introduction of GST is part of the neo-liberal drive.

Build United Struggles for a Credible Alternative

THE political somersault by Nitish Kumar will rank as one of the biggest of its kind in India’s political history which, anyway, is replete with such opportunistic behaviour by bourgeois politicians. Nitish Kumar, after the success of the mahagathbandhan in the assembly elections in Bihar in 2015, had become the most prominent advocate of a grand anti-BJP alliance at the national level. Even as late as in April this year, he had advocated the unity of opposition parties to take on the BJP.

Search form

Peoples Democracy newsletter