KARNATAKA CM Siddaramayya claims his is an ‘AHinDa’ (government of and for minorities, backwards and dalits) government. But every week events and developments confirm it is anything but true. Two incidents of atrocities on dalits last week in which CPI(M) intervened bear it out clearly. Attacks on dalit homes started in Sigaranahalli (in Hassan district) to ‘punish’ entry of dalit women to a temple (a ‘crime’ according to caste Hindus). In Hulivana village (of Mandya district) the ‘crime’ of a dalit youth was that he fell in love with a caste Hindu girl and married her.
ON his way to release the Kannada Daily at Kasaragod on September 10, Sitaram Yechury, CPI(M) general secretary, visited Sundara Malekudiya who was admitted to a hospital in Mangaluru on September 3.48 year old Sundara Malekudiya, a tribal residing at the hilly area of Neriya village of Dakshina Kannada district, was assaulted by a landlord, Gopala Gowda with a weed-cutting machine on July 27. He had suffered serious injury on his left elbow and has lost two fingers in his right hand.
WAS it a mere coincidence? The day Britain and the world was trying to reconcile with the stunning spectacle of Jeremy Corbyn being elected as leader of the Labour Party, London and other major cities across Europe were witnessing massive ‘welcome refugees’ rallies of people.
ELECTIONS to both Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) and Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) were held on 11th September. Both these elections were being held at time when, after the first 500 days of the Modi regime, all the tall claims of ‘achhe din’ have withered away. The assaults on people’s rights and livelihood continue unabated, with unrelenting price rise and attempts to dilute various labour laws.
THE seventh Asia-Pacific Regional Conference in Solidarity with Cuba, was held in Hanoi, Vietnam on September 8-9, 2015. 220 delegates from 18 countries participated in this conference.The Vietnamese Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) hosted this Conference with support from the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and the government of Vietnam. The president of VUFO, Vu Xuan Hong said the event is taking place in the historical context of Cuba and the US declaring the normalisation of bilateral relations.
RIGHTS achieved by the working class all over the world are the result of bitter class struggles and sacrifices and not as mercy from any quarter. And this is equally true both for industrial and public services workers. In fact, trade union movement and right to strike are synonymous. It can be said that right to strike is the birthright of workers. The working class cannot forego right to collective bargaining including right to strike, whatever may be the circumstances.To paraphrase Lenin, strike is the most powerful weapon of democratic trade union movement.
THE working class of the country observed countrywide general strike on September 2, 2015. The strike was called by all the eleven central trade unions. Twelve major demands of the workers as well as other sections of the toiling people were raised by the trade unions. BMS, the trade union wing of the RSS was part of the national convention of central trade unions held in May 2015 from which the strike call was given.
The following is the statement supporting AR Rahman, issued by SAHMAT on September 17.
WE welcome and whole-heartedly support the statement of musician AR Rahman where he speaks about his decision to compose music for the Iranian film ‘Muhammad: Messenger of God”’. He has thoughtfully struck the right note as he has answered questions raised (completely out of line) by the Raza Academy, about why he chose to compose songs for the film.
HE is an icon of humanity not an Ezhava idol.It is rather unfortunate that we are living in an age when the lights kindled by the renaissance movements are sought to be extinguished by the revivalist forces of various hues all over the country.