FINANCE minister Arun Jaitley has characterised the expanding revolt by eminent award winning writers against the growing assault on constitutional fundamental rights by a neo-conservative regime, as a ‘paper rebellion’ and a manufactured revolt. Such a statement shows that the NDA government is either blissfully ignorant of history or has refused to learn its lessons from past experience. It also shows the brutal power and arrogance of a majoritarian regime that is determined to curb dissent and spread religious intolerance.
THE fact that a riot in which two people belonging to the minority community were lynched and escaped death only because they were rescued by the police occurred in Karhal, Mainpuri which is a bastion of the Samajwadi Party in which all other parties have been marginalised is a matter of great concern. Mukut Singh, state secretariat member, CPI(M) visited Karhal on October 14 after the market re-opened. He had been closely monitoring the situation from October 9 onwards. His report is as follows:A cow belonging to Thakur Ghanshyam Singh died on the 8th night. He appealed to two Quraishi
THE central executive committee of the Students’ Federation of India in a statement issued on October 20, has strongly condemned the latest move of the University Grants Commission (UGC) to scrap non-NET fellowships for the researchers. SFI has urged its units across the nation to be vigilant and be ready to resist any such anti-student moves. Such a move is coming at a juncture when the researchers from all the streams are demanding for an enhancement in non-NET fellowship so that they could pursue their academic endeavour and do quality research.
THE All India Kisan Sabha, in a statement issued on October 17, has condemned the blatant efforts of the BJP government in Gujarat to facilitate corporate land-grab and provide legal sanction to illegal land transactions. Amendments to Gujarat Agricultural Lands Ceiling Act and Gujarat Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Law will lead to drastic alteration of land use and surplus government land can now be allotted to corporates on the pretext of “public purpose”.
The following is the letter written to the president of India, Pranab Mukherjee by the creative and academic community of West Bengal, by all members of PEN International, India, West Bengal Branch, by the creative community of Gujarat and Maharashtra and by many eminent writers.AS citizens of a democratic country, we are deeply concerned about the growing culture of murderous intolerance and the brazen assault on the fundamental right to life of those who maintain the core values of diversity, plurality and tolerance of which you yourself have recently reminded us.
A MEETING of the four Left Parties - CPI, CPI(M), CPM Punjab and CPI(M-L) Liberation held on October 20 at Chandigarh to discuss the current situation in Punjab concluded that the desecration of Guru Granth Sahib is the handiwork of agencies who want to disturb peace in Punjab. They blamed the Akali-BJP government for the fast deteriorating situation in Punjab and held it responsible for the inept manner in which it was handled.
THE RSS and dozens of its so-called socio-cultural outfits have become very aggressive in unleashing violence during recent months since the BJP assumed power on its own under the leadership of Narender Modi. In spite of false tall promises and acute anti incumbency against the UPA-2 government, the BJP had got a mere 31 percent of the vote share.
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement on October 21.THE Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly condemns the murderous attack on a dalit family in Faridabad district of Haryana.
THE war in Syria took a significant change with the entry of Russia. Russian president Vladimir Putin in his address to the UN General Assembly on the occasion of its 70th anniversary, questioned US hegemony and its uncalled for interference in the internal affairs of sovereign countries. Two days after, on the request of Syrian government, Russian air force began its targeted attack on ISIS.