Victim’s Family Meets President, Demands Justice

On January 7, 2014, the father and other family members of Swapna Kumari Jha, the girl who was recently burnt to death after having been subjected to gang rape twice in West Bengal, met the president of India at New Delhi to press the demand that justice be done to the deceased. Led by Sitaram Yechury, leader of the CPI(M) group in Rajya Sabha, a CP(M) delegation accompanied the family. Former Rajya Sabha member Brinda Karat, Rajya Sabha member Shyamal Chakraborty, AIDWA general secretary Jagmati Sangwan and SFI joint secretary Shatrup Ghosh were other members of the delegation.

Afghanistan: Karzai Talks Tough

THE visit of the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, to India in the second week of December came at a time when negotiations with the Americans on the future of their forces in his country were poised at a critical stage. Before Karzai landed in Delhi, there were reports that the Obama administration had asked India to intervene on its behalf and persuade President Karzai to put his signature to the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) on the presence of US troops in Afghanistan after 2014.

Protest Actions Continue

BIHAR: The heart wrenching incident of twice raped girl, who was later on burnt to death on December 31, 2013 in Madhyamgram area near Kolkata, evoked spontaneous protest all across Bihar, cutting across political affiliations.

Tributes to a Revolutionary Dreamer

ON a crisp sunny day as the world ushered in the first day of 2014, the Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (SAHMAT) organised a day long festival to remember the 25 years of Safdar Hashmi’s martyrdom. The Constitution Club Annexe was the venue of this memorable and important political and social event. The extravaganza like shows had artists from varied walks of life coming together on a common platform to remember an exceptional person whose life was cruelly cut short by those who were not comfortable with Safdar’s outspoken, non-conformist and radical methods.

CPI(M) Launches Election Campaign

THE CPI(M) has formally launched its election campaign with alternative policies as the main theme for mobilising the toiling masses and socially marginalised sections in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. Both Left parties have already announced to contest four constituencies viz CPI from Karnal and Ambala while CPI(M) from Sirsa and Hisar.

Himachal DYFI Holds Ninth Conference

THE ninth state conference of the Himachal Pradesh unit of DYFI, held on 21st and 22nd December 2013 at Nahan, was attended by 66 delegates and observers, including 10 young women, representing a membership of 19,560.

Comrade Mrinal Das

COMRADE Mrinal Das, a member of the CITU working committee and secretary of the West Bengal state committee of CITU, breathed his last on January 4, 2014, owing to a sudden and massive heart attack. He was 66.

AIDWA Observes Savitribai Phule Birth Anniversary

MORE than 5,500 adivasi women from around 100 villages of the Talasari, Dahanu, Palghar, Vikramgad, Jawhar, Wada and Shahapur tehsils of Thane district gathered at the Comrade Godavari Shamrao Parulekar Bhavan at Talasari on January 3, 2014, to observe the birth anniversary of legendary social reformer Savitribai Phule who was born that day in 1831.

Police Attack Students; Hurl Grenades on Campus

ON January 9, 2014, students in Thiruvananthapuram were brutally attacked by the police when they staged a protest against the UDF government’s move to commercialise education by granting autonomous powers to several educational institutions. Police lathicharged the students and used water cannons on them. They hurled grenades on University College campus, one of the premier educational institutions in the state, resulting in injuries to some student activists.

Safdar’s Red-hot Life

THE site of Safdar Hashmi’s killing is Jhandapur, a small settlement in the heart of the sprawling Site IV Industrial Area in Sahibabad on the outskirts of Delhi. Over the past decade or so, however, several factories and industrial units in the area have closed down, giving way to malls, cineplexes, hotels, office complexes, luxury car showrooms, educational institutions, and so on. The nearby interstate bus terminal, a new railway station and the Delhi metro have all contributed to this process and accelerated it.

Search form

Peoples Democracy newsletter