Western Sahara: War Clouds Looming

THE war between Morocco and the Polisario Front, which represents the government of Western Sahara that ended in 1991, is now threatening to erupt again. The Moroccan government which occupied a major chunk of the territory after the hasty withdrawal of the Spanish colonial power in 1974, has refused to honor its commitments to the international community and allow the holding of a United Nations supervised referendum. The former UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, had said last year that Morocco was in illegal “occupation” of the territory.

West Bengal Protests Attempts of Polarisation

SANGH Parivar’s attempts to sow seeds of polarisation in West Bengal have elicited reactions from various quarters. RSS-VHP-BJP combine chose Ramnavami and Hanuman Jayanti to create tensions and disturb the environment. In many areas, they carried swords in religious processions. Instead of taking immediate steps, TMC leaders and activists joined them.Left and progressive secular sections of the state have taken the challenge of resisting communal forces. Numerous rallies, processions have been organised throughout the state to condemn the provocation of Sangh Parivar.

Tripura Govt Will Protect 10323 Teachers Affected by SC Order

THE Supreme Court’s rejection of Special Leave Petitions against the judgement of the Tripura High Court which set aside the appointment of 10,323 school teachers without considering the far-reaching effect, disappointed large sections of people of Tripura including teachers and students. A division bench led by the then Tripura High Court Chief Justice Dipak Gupta (recently elevated to the Supreme Court) by its order dated May 7, 2014 quashed the appointment of 10,323 teachers which include 1,102 post-graduate teachers, 4,856 graduate teachers and 4,856 under-graduate teachers.

THE WEEK IN PARLIAMENT

THE Rajya Sabha passed the four GST Bills -- The Central Goods and Services Tax Bill, 2017, The Integrated Goods and Services Tax Bill, 2017, The Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Bill, 2017 and The Union Territory Goods and Services Tax Bill, 2017. CPI(M) MPs moved several amendments and asked for division but was defeated. Speaking on this, Sitaram Yechury said the fundamental problem with the GST is that it concerns the federal structure of the Constitution. The government refused to heed our request and brought this as a Money Bill.

March 19 Study Circles in all Branches: A Unique Experience

ALONG with our continuous struggle for restoration of democracy and against fascistic attacks by the TMC and its government, West Bengal state committee has placed special emphasis on Party education among the comrades. State level permanent party school (Promode Dasgupta Education Centre) is functioning regularly. State level schools are held regularly. At the district level, party schools are being held quite regularly. Some of the district committees have set up their own permanent schools.

SFI Condemns Attack on Its Leaders in Kerala

THE central executive committee of SFI, in a statement issued on April 10, has condemned the attack on M Vijin, SFI Kerala state secretary, Ashitha, Kerala University Union chairperson and other students by the goons of Vellappalli Natesan Engineering College, a self-financing institute in Alappuzha.Arsh, a second year student hailing from Thiruvananthapuram, attempted to end his life on April 8, by hanging himself in the hostel room, after cutting his vein. He survived the attempt as his collegemates rushed him to a hospital.

Slaughter House Ban: Gainers and Losers

THE BJP’s massive majority in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections led to the anointment of Yogi Adityanath as the chief minister. And in his very first pronouncement, the ‘Yogi’ ordered the ban of slaughter houses in the state. The argument made by the newly elected government was that these slaughter houses were not following the National Green Tribunal guidelines and hence they should be closed. Close on the heels of this pronouncement was the amendment in the Gujarat government’s law which stipulated that a person who killed a cow would get life imprisonment.

Srinagar Bye Election

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement on April 10, 2017 THE miserably low turnout in the bye elections to the Srinagar parliamentary seat in the state of Jammu & Kashmir reduces the electoral process to a total farce. Further, it displays the deep degree of alienation of the people in the state of Jammu & Kashmir. The 7.14 percent turn-out in these elections is the lowest ever recorded in any Lok Sabha polls in the state.The issue of our country’s internal security and sovereignty is non-negotiable.

Condemn US Military Attack on Syria

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement on April 10, 2017.THE Polit Bureau strongly condemns the unilateral decision of the US president Donald Trump to conduct a missile attack against a Syrian airbase under the pretext of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government.

The First Steps Towards The Protection of Motherhood

Alexandra Kollantai, was a prominent leader of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, who joined the Bolsheviks. She became a member of the Central Committee in 1917. After the October Revolution, she became the Commissar for Social Welfare in the revolutionary government. She made her mark in bringing women to revolutionary politics. Below we publish the excerpts of an article written by her in 1918.The idea of establishing a Department for the Protection of Mother and Child arose in the heat of the October battles.

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