CPIML Lib Kerala

ML Update 11 / 2012

2012-03-06T22:26:00.000+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 11, 06 – 12 MARCH 2012

The Mandate from JNU Students: AISA, March on!

After a gap of four years, Jawaharlal Nehru University students voted on March 1 to elect their union, and the verdict could not have been more emphatic in favour of the All India Students' Association (AISA), the flag-bearer of radical student politics in the campus. For the second successive term, AISA candidates swept the central panel. What was more, they all won by a thumping margin with the Presidential candidate polling more than 2000 votes leaving her SFI rival way behind, and for the first time AISA also secured a clear majority in the council, its candidates dominating the three biggest centres accounting for the largest number of students in the campus.

On one level, the outcome of the JNUSU election may be seen as just yet another corroboration of the well-known and deeply entrenched Left tradition of the JNU campus. For the last two decades AISA has had a fairly prominent presence in the campus, winning as many as seven presidential elections since its first historic rise in 1993. If it was the SFI-AISF combine which dominated the campus in the 1970s and 1980s, it is AISA which has been the main contender since the 1990s; and over the last few years AISA has also succeeded in reinforcing its ideological-political influence with adequate organisational network and sustained initiatives on every major issue that mattered for the students.

But if we look at the outcome in the context of the ongoing neo-liberal assault on and restructuring of higher education and the developing political situation in the country, the victory clearly sends out a much bigger message than a mere reiteration of JNU's traditional preference for the Left. The arena of higher education has been witnessing massive commercialisation making it increasingly impossible for students from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds to receive quality education or pursue careers of their choice. This implicit pro-rich and elitist bias is now being sought to be reinforced by a targeted truncation of campus democracy and student participation in politics. The Lyngdoh recommendations are essentially aimed at insulating the student community from the larger socio-political environment in the country. The JNU verdict has come as a resounding rebuff to this neoliberal restructuring of higher education.

AISA has been consistently campaigning against the neoliberal assault on higher education and within JNU AISA has emerged as the rallying centre for students fighting against the implicit elitist bias as well as the explicit authoritarian agenda of this neoliberal design. It is significant that the emphatic mandate for AISA has effectively marginalised every rightwing trend in student politics, be it the RSS-affiliated ABVP, the pro-Congress NSUI or the anti-reservation platform Youth for Equality.

The election of the JNUSU coincided on the one hand with the Assembly elections in the five states of Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa and Uttar Pradesh and the February 28 all-India industrial and rural strike called by trade unions and agricultural labour organisations. The AISA campaign in JNU, which clearly marked the leading voice in JNUSU election, effectively combined the immediate concerns of JNU students with the democratic demands and aspirations of the people joining the February 28 strike and participating in these Assembly elections. The campaign pulsated with the spirit of the growing popular resistance to corporate land-grab and illegal mining, mega scams and rampant loot of development funds, and repressive steps like Operation Greenhunt and the Armed Forces Special Powers Act that are propelling the Indian state's war on human rights.

The mandate for AISA also meant a clear rejection of SFI/CPI(M) in the celebrated citadel of Leftwing student politics. After West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura, JNU is known as the fourth key bastion of the CPI(M). In 2007 in the wake of Singur and Nandigram, JNU had rejected the SFI/CPI(M) attempt to defend the indefensible. As the CPI(M) gets ready for its 20th Congress, it is quite clear that the CPI(M) remains adamant and refuses to acknowledge the disgrace it has brought to the glorious history of communist-led peasant movement in the country and learn any real lesson from the debacle it has suffered in West Bengal. The JNU verdict clearly suggests that the CPI(M)'s own ranks, let alone the broader intelligentsia, remain unconvinced and critical of the CPI(M) leadership's arrogant refusal to acknowledge its basic mistakes.

It is indeed inspiring to note that while the corporate media have been busy peddling the likes of Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav as youth icons for the new generation, the student community in JNU has reiterated its overwhelming commitment to the legacy of Bhagat Singh and Chandrasekhar. AISA must now consolidate the gains and use this mandate to strengthen and radicalise the student-youth movement and forge stronger links with the broader democratic movement in the country. That can be the only true tribute to the legacy of Bhagat Singh, modern India's greatest youth icon, and our very own Chandrasekhar who was killed simply because he tried to connect the student radicalism of JNU to the peasant militancy in Bihar. AISA must march on.

AISA's Victory in JNUSU 2012

In the President's post, Sucheta De from AISA polled 2102 votes – probably the highest ever by a JNUSU candidate – defeating her nearest contender, Zico Dasgupta from SFI (who got 751 votes) with a colossal margin of 1351 votes. In the Vice President's post, Abhishek Kumar Yadav from AISA polled 1997 votes, defeating Anagha Ingole from SFI who got 1357 votes. In the post of General Secretary, Ravi Prakash of AISA polled 1908 votes as against the AISF candidate Durgesh Tripathi who got 989 votes. For the post of Joint Secretary, AISA's Mohd. Firoz Ahamed polled 1778 votes, as against Mohd. Altamash from SFI who got 1199 votes. The candidates from Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) – affiliated to the RSS and the BJP – polled a distant third on most posts.

In JNUSU, students directly elect the entire Students' Council, comprising the four office-bearers and Councillors representing various Schools or Centres. This time, AISA won 14 of the 29 Councillor seats in different Schools and Centres of JNU. The three biggest Schools in JNU, each with 5 Councillor posts, are the School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies (SLL&CS), School of Social Sciences (SSS), and School of International Studies (SIS). By winning a majority of Councillor posts, AISA secured the post of School Convenor in each of these Schools. In SLL&CS, AISA candidates defeated ABVP to sweep all 5 Councillor posts. In SIS and SSS, AISA won four of the 5 seats, with the fifth seat going to SFI. This is the first time the SFI has lost the Convenor-ship of the School of Social Sciences in the past two decades, possible much longer. AISA also won the post of Convenor in the School of Arts and Aesthetics.

The Lyngdoh norms and suspension of elections for the past four years was a deliberate ploy on part of the ruling establishment to foster depoliticisation among JNU students. Indeed, the stay on elections had led to disarray and passivity among other student groups in JNU. AISA, though, had remained very active – mobilising students in several landmark struggles in this period, in spite of there being no elected JNUSU. Key struggles in recent times, in which AISA played a leading role, include a sustained struggle against the Lyngdoh recommendations; a massive agitation against attempts to commercialise various facilities like electricity and levy 'user charges'; a long and successful struggle resulting in a landmark Supreme Court verdict with national implications, correcting the faulty definition of 'cut-off' marks in implementation of quotas for Other Backward Classes; and a successful struggle for recognition of madarsa certificates in JNU admissions.

Other significant struggles between 2004-2006, with a lasting impact, in which AISA played a leading role, include an agitation for the rights of contract workers on the JNU campus, and a struggle to get rid of a Nestle outlet on the campus, which threatened the livelihood of small tea vendors.

AISA has also campaigned and mobilised students in large numbers to challenge the UPA Government's package of education-related legislation that are a blueprint of privatisation. Hundreds of JNU students participated in AISA's August 2011 barricade at Parliament Street against corruption and corporate plunder. AISA stood in solidarity with people's movements at Jagatsinghpur against the POSCO steel plant, at Jaitapur and Koodankulam against nuclear plants, and mobilised students against the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act, communal violence, against state repression, fake encounters and custodial killings in the North East, Kashmir, forest areas, and other parts of the country.

The mandate for AISA is a mandate for all these consistent struggles and initiatives over the years.

Road Blockade in Tripura

On 22 February, CPI(ML)'s South Tripura DC and the District Unit of AIKM organized a road-blockade in Udaipur-Kankaban in support of the demand for compensation to flood-affected peasants, support-price for paddy, 65% NREGA fund for agricultural activities, and other demands. The blockade continued till the SDM came to the spot and assured a tripartite-meet to discuss the issues and find a solution. This blockade was a culmination of protests and deputations for the last six months. The Party DCS Com. Parths Karunakar, AIALA state president Com. Gopal Roy, Com. Lokman Hossain, Babul Duta and other led the agitation.

Some More Reports of the All India Strike

In Tamilnadu, AICCTU participated in the February 28th strike in all important industrial centres and areas of our work. In Chennai, AICCTU participated in a total of 3500 strong joint demonstration in two centres with 300 members. A 100% strike was ensured in all industries under AICCTU's leadership. The workers under the banner of AICCTU also ensured the participation of workers of TVS and TI groups in the strike. At Thiruvottiyur, another centre of big industries, AICCTU's presence ensured strike in almost all industries. There was an overwhelming response among transport workers and only very few buses were plying in the metro. AICCTU leaders Sekar, Palanivel , Jawahar , Kumaresh and Bharathi led the Strike initiatives.

In neighbouring Guduvancheery, AICCTU participated in a joint Rally along with AITUC with 80 members. In Thiruvellore, a Rally of 300 members under the banner of AIALA marched and 150 courted arrest. It was led by Janakiraman, state GS of AIALA and Bhuvana, Deputy GS of AICCTU.

In Coimbatore, the strike in Pricol, ITPL and Suba plastics was total. Traders in the Periyanayackanpalayam area also closed their shutters in response to our call. In Salem, 100 workers of AICCTU, the majority of them women, participated under the leadership of Chanramohan, state vice president of AICCTU. In Kuppanur of Salem, 16 AIALA members were arrested for picketing. Comrades Gopi and Ayyandurai led the agitation.

In Dindigul, a 250 strong rally was held which went through important roads and culminated in a mass meeting under the leadership of K G Desikan, state secretary AICCTU , Manivel, state executive member AICCTU, and Jayaveeram, District organising secretary of CPI(ML).

In Tanjore town, more than 100 members participated in a joint rally of 300 workers under the leadership of AICCTU state secretary Rajan. In Tanjore and Nagapatnam districts, there were demonstrations and road roko agitations at 6 centres in which more than 650 members took part.

In Namakkal dictrict , AICCTU participated at 3 centres in a joint rally. In Gandarvakottai of Pudukottai about 150 members participated in a rally organized by AIALA under the leadership of Comrade Valathan.

In Villupuram, 175 AIALA members courted arrest at Thirunavalur led by Comrade Venkatesan and 90 members courted arrest at Chenji. In a joint demo at Nagarkoil in Kanyakumari district, 100 members of AICCTU took part under the leadership of Comrade Antonymuthu.

About 200 Contract labours of the Ordnance Factory, Tiruchi went on strike and 50 members participated in a joint TU demo at Tiruverumbur. In Karur also AICCTU participated in a joint TU rally.

In Tirunelveli, more than 100 AICCTU workers participated in a joint demonstration. There was a scuffle when police, after giving permission for demonstration, tried to arrest the workers citing election code for the by-election in Sankarankoil in the district. It was led by Sankarapandian, state GS, Ramesh, state vice president and Ganesan, state EC member.

In Assam, the All India General Strike took the Shape of Assam Bandh. In Silchar, out of the 250 arrested while picketing the Deputy Commissioner's Office, more than 150, most of whom were ASHA women, were affiliated to AICCTU. At Badarpur Railway junction, Rail traffic was totally disrupted.

The oil sector too witnessed significant participation. The Digboi and the Numaligarh Refinery were totally at strike. The most remarkable was the scene in Oil India Head Quarter at Duliajan where the main organizer was the contractual and Motor Shramik Worker's Unions and unrecognized unions of regular workers. In Guwahati Refinery, the INTUC-affiliated Guwahati Refinery Workers' Union betrayed totally and was also exposed. However, the strike was 50%, due to efforts of AICCTU-affiliated united workmen's union – the only struggling contractual workers' union.

The all Assam contractor workers' union affiliated to AICCTU took active part in paralyzing works in Dinjan Army cantonment, Chabua Airforce Station and Mohanbari Air Port (partly).

Throughout the state, at various points, there was a road blockade. The Jorhat road-block was a joint initiative of AISA, AICCTU, ASCSS etc. and 50 were arrested. Due to call of strike by various transport workers union the General Strike took here a complete shape.

March to Assembly Against Death Sentence for Innocent Mahadalits in Amausi Case

On 21 February, the CPI(ML)led a massive protest march to the Bihar Assembly in Patna, to protest the recent verdict of death sentence to 10 and life sentence to 4 Mahadalits in the Amausi (Khagaria) massacre of 2009. Large numbers of mahadalits participated in the march, expressing angry protest against the biased verdict and the attitude of the Nitish Government towards the most oppressed mahadalits.

The Amausi carnage of 2009 was a fallout of the Nitish Government's adamant refusal to implement land reforms and give the mahadalit musahars the land that was their due. But instead of identifying the real masterminds of the massacre, the verdict of the local court in Khagaria has passed a death sentence on 10 innocents, including the popular mahadalit leader Bodhan Sada, and life sentence to 4 others. Participants in the March protested this verdict as reflective of deep bias and injustice.

The March began at JP roundabout and concluded at the Station roundabout. The procession was led by CPI(ML) leaders Arun Kumar Das from Khagaria, Ramesh Manjhi and Sharifa Manjhi from Patna district, AIPWA National General Secretary Meena Tiwari and State President Saroj Chaubey, RYA General Secretary Kamlesh Sharma and State Secretary Naveen Kumar, AISA State President Abhyuday, Patna city councillor Tota Chaudhury, workers' leader Murtaza Ali, Anita Sinha of AIPWA and others.

Scores of mahadalit women participated in the march, with placards and slogans saying, "Atrocities on Mahadalits, Shame on Nitish Govt", "Reality of Nitish's 'Sushasan' – Death Sentence for Mahadalits, While Ranveer Sena Chief Brahmeshwar Singh Goes Free", and "Nitish Kumar Come to Your Senses – Keep Promises to Mahadalits".

The protestors demanded a judicial enquiry into the Amausi massacre and a strong punishment for the real perpetrators. The death sentence to Bodhan Sada and the other convicts is a mockery of justice.

Speakers who addressed the gathering pointed out that Bodhan Sada is being painted as a 'Maoist Area Commander' and a ruthless killer – but the fact is that he is a popular mahadalit leader. His wife Amla Devi had been elected mukhiya from Barai panchayat, and had been killed by a Maoist squad, and the killers of Amla Devi are yet to be punished.

There are dozens of cases of land dispute in Khagaria district. Years ago, mahadalits got the land papers for ceiling surplus land that had belonged to absentee landlords, yet they are yet to get custody of the land. Instead these lands have been grabbed by others. And there are innumerable cases of false charges on mahadalits, of which the most common charge is that of being a Maoist extremist. Clearly the 'Maoist' tag is being used to deprive mahadalits of their rightful share of land. The protestors demanded a Legal Commission to investigate cases of land dispute and ensure justice for mahadalits.

The struggle against the unjust conviction of mahadalits in the Amausi case will continue.

Edited, published and printed by S. Bhattacharya for CPI(ML) Liberation from U-90, Shakarpur, Delhi-92; printed at Bol Publication, R-18/2, Ramesh Park, Laxmi Nagar, Delhi-92; Phone:22521067; fax: 22442790, e-mail: mlupdate@cpiml.org, website: www.cpiml.org

ML Update 10 / 2012

2012-03-01T00:10:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 10, 28 FEB – 05 MARCH 2012

International Women's Day and the Women's Movement in India

Woman is born in chains, but everywhere she is fighting to be free. It is a world-historic struggle being waged in different ways in different national settings.

In our country the peculiar Indian version of neoliberal model of growth preserves, profits from and in some cases reproduces in modified forms certain vestiges of feudalism in socio-economic structures, customs and value systems. The working people of India, women included, therefore have to suffer the worst of both worlds – feudal backwardness and obscurantism as well as modern capitalist expropriation and exploitation. Among them, it is women and children whose interests are most severely jeopardized in myriad ways, for example by the retreat of the neoliberal state from its welfare responsibilities and the state-sponsored corporate land-grab campaigns. In addition to the perennial violence of hunger, women are routinely subjected to all kinds of oppression, discrimination and sexual assaults, with people in high positions feeling free to indulge in such crimes and shielding other criminals. In this respect Congress-ruled Delhi and Rajasthan look exactly like, say, NDA-ruled Bihar and West Bengal under its first woman Chief Minister.

Attacks and obstacles notwithstanding, more and more women are coming out of their homes not only to take up traditional occupations but also to avail themselves of the new job opportunities, however limited, opened up by capitalist greed for exploiting cheap female labour. Even in the face of feudal- patriarchal opposition, they are trying to utilise the new opportunities – introduced by the provision of 50% reservation in panchayati raj institutions – for playing more active social and political roles as people's representatives. The net impact of all this is that on one hand women are drawn into a new vortex of oppression and struggle in the wider world, while on the other the new experiences equip them with a keener political awareness, a higher sense of dignity and self confidence. The taste of hard-won relative freedom generates among them a healthy urge for further extending its narrow confines.

The slow but irresistible changes in the lives and attitudes of Indian women – changes that are no less conspicuous in the countryside than in urban areas – cannot but incite the forces of feudal-patriarchal reaction into frenzied attempts to stop the wheels of history. Such attempts range from emotional appeals to 'the sacred duties and virtues' of Indian mothers and wives through all kinds of moral policing to physical assaults, fatwas, honour killings and so on. But repression only regenerates resistance and domination the determination to fight back. Braving all difficulties and pains, women of India continue their forward march. It is this cool determination and robust dynamism of ordinary Indian women that a revolutionary women's organisation tries to imbue with a communist consciousness and give the shape of an organized movement.

The practice of observing the 8th of March as International women's Day was initiated about hundred years ago by socialist leaders like Alexandra Kollontai. A grand new chapter was opened up in the history of the struggle for women's emancipation. A few years later the Communist International proclaimed in its programme complete social equality between man and woman in law and in real life, revolutionary transformation of husband-wife relationship and family code, status of social work to motherhood, social responsibility of nursing and education of children and adolescents and relentless struggle against all ideas and traditions that enslave women. Since then communists all over the world have steadfastly pursued this agenda as a most vital and inalienable component of the struggle for communism. On the occasion of International Women's Day let us all rededicate ourselves to this noble cause.

AIPWA protests growing violence on women in WB

The West Bengal unit of AIPWA is trying to build a protest campaign against the growing incidence of violence on women and the highly reprehensible anti-women role of the Administration led by the state's first-ever woman Chief Minister. On 24 February it played an active role in organising a protest march in Kolkata along with other comrades and mass organisations under the banner of CPI(ML). On 27 February a team of AIPWA leaders including state secretary Chaitali Sen went to the Writers' Buildings (the state secretariat) to submit a memorandum to the Home-cum-Chief Minister. The main demands included: Mamata Bannerjee must apologise to the people of West Bengal for shamelessly depicting the Park Street rape case as "concocted" and must relinquish the Home portfolio; removal of the Transport Minister Madan Mitra and the Kolkata Police Commissioner for their patriarchal statements; severe punishment of the criminals involved in the rape incidents and so on.

The deputation was received by a Joint Secretary of the Home Department. Comrades spaced a protest, raising slogans, both inside and in front of Writers' Building.They were eventually arrested but the protest continued in the police lock-up. After 6 PM they were unconditionally released.

India's Working Class Strike of 28 February

a Clear Mandate for Immediate Reversal of Ongoing Economic Policies

The CPI(ML) leader and General Secretary of All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) Comrade Swapan Mukherjee congratulated the working class for the unprecedented Countrywide General Strike on 28 February and termed this strike as a mandate for the reversal of ongoing economic policies of LPG.

He said that the workers ranging from organized to unorganized sector, from industrial workers to agricultural workers participated in this strike in numbers more than 10 crore, and particularly the contract workers employed in PSUs and govt. departments have played a major role in this strike. Many states witnessed Bandh during this strike. This strike is a warning to the central and various state governments that the working people of this country will not tolerate these exploitative, pro-corporate and anti-worker policies, and in the days to come they will go ahead with heightened struggles.

The demands which the Striking workers are pressing include 1) concrete measures to contain price rise 2) concrete measures for creation of employment 3) Strict enforcement of all basic labour laws without any exception or exemption and stringent punitive measures for violations, 4) universal social security cover for the unorganized sector workers without any restriction and creation of a National Social Security Fund with adequate resources 5) Stoppage of disinvestment in central and state profit-making and socially strategic PSUs, 6) No Contractorisation of work of permanent/perennial nature and payment of wages and benefits to the contract workers at the same rate as available to the regular workers of the industry/establishment, 7) Amendment of Minimum Wages Act to ensure universal coverage irrespective of the schedules and fixation of statutory minimum wage at not less than Rs 10,000/- with indexation 8) Removal of all ceilings on payment and eligibility of Bonus, Provident Fund; Increase the quantum of gratuity, 9)Assured Pension for all, 10) Compulsory registration of trade unions within a period of 45 days and immediate ratification of the ILO Conventions nos 87 and 98.

The call was given by all the Central Trade Unions in the country and was endorsed by almost all the major Independent National Federations of employees and workers.

Massive response to the call of General Strike by the workers en masse visibly impacting almost all the sectors of the economy, viz., Coal, steel, petroleum, telecom, defence, banks, insurance, electricity, transport, port & dock, anganwadis, construction, brick-kilns, beedi etc., both in organized and unorganized sector is a fitting reply to the utter neglect and insensitivity of the Government towards the problems and miseries of crores of the working masses who are keeping the country's economy running. This is also a signal that the working people and their unions would in no way accept such indifference and neglect on the part of the Govt. and carry forward their struggle to a higher pitch if their basic demands are not addressed by the Govt. through concrete remedial action.

Karnataka: AICCTU undertook an extensive and elaborate campaign around the all-India strike on 28 Feb. 2012. For the first time, the strike campaign in Karnataka was organized as a part of Joint committee of Trade Unions that comprised 10 central trade unions. In addition to that we also printed our own pamphlets explaining our political approach to the issues and also separate posters.

The tempo for the campaign was set by all trade union call of 'Jail Bharo' on 8th November. Our participation in state level convention on 30 January was also very impressive. The convention was addressed by national leaders all trade unions along with the state leaders.

Bangalore: We could make a better presence in the campaign in areas surrounding Electronic City, Information Technology Park Ltd (ITPL) and Yelahanka. We joined Bike rallies and other propaganda meetings. In the meantime, one particular MNC workers in readymix concrete industry in Bangalore joined our union and consequently, local CITU was not willing to work jointly with us and the local joint campaign got disrupted. It was also a blessing in disguise as it evoked a sense of challenge among our workers and we organized separate bike rally and also strike enforcing rally and public meeting on the day of strike. The local CITU's refusal, in fact, resulted in voluntary mobilization of hundreds of workers in the strike rally. Workers marched through the streets of the bigger industrial belt of international capital in Bangalore and forced shut down of several companies where there was no union. The rally in surrounding areas of ITPL was very militant and culminated in a public meeting that was addressed by Com. Narayana Swamy, NCM, Somu, district secretary, Mani, treasurer, Govindaswamy, JS, Manjunath, district VP, Ashok, district JS, Sunil, JS and Kishore, Office secretary.

The rally at Veerasandra, near Electronic City was joined by AITUC workers and enforced strike in all factories where there was no union. The rallyists forced several companies to down their shutters and organized a public meeting at the end.

The rally and public meeting organized at the city centre was very militant and the traffic in the nerve centre of the city was thrown out of gear for more than 3 hours. Confrontation with the police in traffic regulation also resulted in mild lathi charge on some workers. CITU participated with full mobilization and few thousands of workers of all trade unions participated in the public meeting. Com. Shankar, all-India Vice President of AICCTU, Prasanna Kumar, state GS of CITU, Anantha Subba Rao, state GS of AITUC, Shivshankar, President of TUCC, Prakash, state leader of AIUTUC also addressed the gathering along with state leaders of other unions, HMS, BMS and INTUC. Com. Shankar called upon workers to rise in more militant struggles to give a fitting rebuff to the liberalization policies.

Koppal District: Here too, in spite of joint call and initiatives at state level, CITU decided to go alone in strike campaign. AICCTU organized independent campaign meetings at various industrial centres in the district including Gangavati, Karatagi and Koppal. The rally on 28th was attended by more than 500 workers from rice mills, construction, brick kilns and also auto technicians and taxi and tractor drivers.

Davanagere District: AICCTU organized an impressive rally at Harappanahalli and the public meeting at the end was addressed by CPI(ML) state secretary Ramappa among others. Hundreds of construction and agricultural labour participated in enforcing the strike.

AICCTU, for the first time organized a demonstration at Harihar second major town in the district. Prasad, NECM and Manju, NCM of AISA addressed the gathering along with other local leaders Beerappa and Basavaraj.

Mysore District: AICCTU organized a demonstration jointly with AITUC at HD Kote taluk and construction and agricultural labour participated in the demonstration.

Delhi: The highly successful strike in Delhi's Wazirpur Industrial area is very encouraging for militant trade union and workers' movement. Thousands of workers (at least five thousand) were out on the streets enforcing the strike with forceful assertion. They were highly energetic in their robust actions closing the factories. The workers also clashed with the police while encforcing the bandh in factories. AICCTU played key role in organizing the strike in this area. Mike campaign was undertaken by us for a full week prior to the strike. Students from AISA's DU unit led by AIPWA's National Secretary took active part in the week-long campaign. After the strike was successfully implemented, a huge mass meeting was held by AICCTU. Speakers from AITUC, CITU and UTUC also spoke in the meeting.

In Delhi's Bhorgarh Industrial area too a very impressive rally of thousands of workers led by AICCTU and CITU was held and strike enforced. Comrade Surendra Panchal, CPI(ML)'s State Committee member led the campaign on our behalf.

In Jhilmil and Patparganj Industrial areas too it was mainly the AICCTU and CITU that led the strike and campaign. Comrade VKS Gautam, AICCTU's Delhi President led the strike and campaign in these areas.

A notable development was the dharna in support of strike by the employees' union of Lala Ramswarup (LRS) Institute of Respiratory Diseases and TB Hospital at Mehrauli. The union is affiliated to the AICCTU. Our members in MTNL and AICCTU affiliated union participated in a joint protest at Jantar mantar.

DTC was partially affected and mass meeting of 400-500 at took place at DTC headquarters. AICCTU General Secretary Comrade Swapan Mukherjee addressed the meeting among other central leaders of other central trade unions. At Okhla AICCTU took out a procession of 100 workers.

Puducherry: AICCTU, AITUC, CITU, INTUC, BMS LPF, TUCC, AIUTUC formed a state level joint action committee to carry out the 5 points charter of demands call to go on general strike on 28th. A week long campaign was conducted throughout Puducherry and Karaikal regions from 20-27 February. At Nine centres the workers of all above central TUs courted arrest in Puducherry.

In rural area at Villlianur, AICCTU blockaded the railway track, in which hundreds of workers took part and most of them were women. Construction and agricultural workers were also present. It was led by Comrade S Balasubramanian, State Secretary of CPI(ML). All were arrested and later released in the evening.

In Puducherry town nearly one hundred and twenty five workers of various factories courted arrest. In Puducherry and Karaikal BSNL, LIC, Bank employees participated in the strike. The strike was total. A major union of state government workers namely 'Central Federation of government employees fully participated in the general strike and they took out a rally in the morning in Puducherry. Normal work was paralysed in UT of Puducherry.

Andhra Pradesh: Nine left parties held a dharna at Hyderabad and the leaders were arrested. Com. Murthy, Politburo member, was arrested from the Dharna. Nearly 100 workers took part in the dharna. In Khammam district of Andhra mainly in three mandals AICCTU held rallies. In Vijayawada, Krishna district and Visakapattnam Narasipetta rallies were held.

Odisha: CPI(ML) and AICCTU along with CITU, AITUC, AIUTUC, and HMS organised strike actions at Rayagada, Bhubaneswar, Rourkella, Kendrapara, Puri and Khurdha. Railway Sweepers Union joined at Bhubaneswar and Puri, autoworkers, Aanganwadi workers at Kendrapara and Zaro workers, Rickshaw pullers joined at Bhubaneswar along with other workers and transport workers' union at Rayagda.

At Puri Comrade Ashok Pradhan was arrested along with Dilip Samal of East Coast Railway Sweeper Workers Union. Protest was held by Maa Kalijayee Motorboat Workers Union and CPI(ML) at Balugan. At Rourkella protest was jointly held with CITU and AITUC under the leadership of Comrade NK Mohanty, President of AICCTU Odisha. At many places our comrades were arrested by the Odisha police.

The strike was a huge success in the State as towns and businesses were completely closed. The railways was affected in a big way and petrol pumps, autos, bus services were out of operation and banks and insurance companies were closed including Nabard and RBI.

Chhattisgarh: The blockade of the Maroda Gate of the Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) began early at 5:30 a.m. Here the AICCTU, AITUC, CITU, BMS, HMS and INTUC had jointly called the strike. Joint campaign was undertaken for the success of strike. Contract workers took active part in making the strike successful. The demonstration at this Gate was on till 3:30 p.m. led by TU leaders including Comrade Brijendra Tiwari. 90 percent of the SAIL Refractory Unit participated in the strike. Our members participated in the demonstrations at other four Gates also organised by other unions.

A demonstration was held at Bhilai Municipal Corporation. Prior to this the Bogda Bridge was blockaded at 5 a.m. The CMM Mazdoor Karyakarta Samiti held blockades at various points in industrial area that helped swell the number of striking workers. Workers at stone quarries in Raipur's Bangoli-Mura participated in the strike and held rally.

500-600 workers employed at Welcome Distillery and Rayalseema Concrete Sleepers situated at Kargiroad Kota in Bilaspur participated in the strike and took out a rally before congregating at Mandi Ground for a mass meeting. The rally and meeting was led by AICCTU's National Vice President and CMM's President Comrade Bhimrao Bagde. A memorandum addressed to the President of India was handed over to the SDM.

Comrades from AIALA participated in the joint dharna in Bilaspur town. Comrade Lalan from AICCTU addressed the dharna.

400-500 workers of State Ware House and Central Ware House at Raipur participated in the strike and a rally.

Sanitation workers working as contract workers in Bhilai town participated fully in the strike despite the fact that the BSP administration and the contractors had tried to terrorise the workers.

Punjab: Contract workers of PGI, Chandigarh, affiliated to AICCTU, and mess workers of Punjab Engineering College, Sec. 16 Hospital Union, Sec. 32 Hospital Union, workers from health sector's malaria department. The leaders of the hospital unions stated that they have been forced to go on strike by the continued apathy towards their issues by the administration and the govt. Brick-kiln and rural workers in Mansa and Sangrur led by AICCTU went on strike.

Andaman & Nicobar: AICCTU, CITU and BMS jointly conducted one week long street corner meetings and public meetings place to place propagating the 28th all-India Strike and staged one day Dharna at Tiranga Park, Port Blair. Thereafter a procession was also held through main Aberdeen Bazar to Secretariat gate, Port Blair and concluded the same there with the address by leaders of Central Trade Unions. BSNL and all the bank employees went on strike in A&N Islands.

Madhya Pradesh: At Gwalior, Nagar Nigam Karamchari Kalyan Morcha (municipal employees'welfare front) affiliated to AICCTU organised a rally and meeting at Bara. Gwalior was bandh on 28th. Comrade Rajaram, CCM, was present at the Bara meeting. In Bhind, Hamal workers and other Left TUs held a joint rally and meeting. More than 200 workers participated here.

Jharkhand: Thousands of workers affiliated to the Jharkhand Construction Workers' Union (AICCTU-affiliated) started marching from the CPI(ML) State office and reached Commisioner's office passing through the main streets. After handing over of memorandum there for Labour Minister the rally returned to Albert Ekka Square where a mass meeting was held.

Rural workers in Jharkhand participated in the strike enthusiastically at many places. Rallies were held in ten panchayats of Bagodar block in which thousands of people took part. Grand Trunk road was blockaded for two hours at Bagodar town. Rallies and meetings were held in five panchayats each of Saria and Birni blocks and each comprising hundreds of people. Rallies were also held in ten panchayats of Jamua and three of Dewari. Two places in Rajdhanwar and impressive rally at Gawan.

After a long gap an impressive rally and a public meeting was held at Gandeya Assembly constituency which was attended by senior Party leaders that included Party's General Secretary Comrade Dipankar, CPI(ML) leader and MLA Comrade Vinod Singh, Politburo member Comrade DP Bakshi and other district and State leaders.

In Garhwa, where our Party leaders and members have been subjected to torture and fabricated cases resulting in arrests, protest march was held that turned into mass meeting at Ranka turn. Impressive rallies were held in Bhawnathpur to make the strike a success. At Chautha village in Hazaribagh's Bishungarh, road was blockaded. Patratu block office was gheraoed by hundreds of Party workers. Demonstration was held in Gumla.

Mugma collieries (ECL) witnessed total strike. Strike in BCCL was nearly total. Partial strike (about 50 percent) in CCL Bermo due to anti-strike stance of BMS and INTUC at grassroot level and total opposition by the Dadai faction of INTUC. AICCTU led an effective campaign and several workers came forward spontaneously that made the strike successful. CCL Hazaribagh was completely affected by the strike. Partial strike in Bokaro Steel Plant, however about half of all contract workers went on strike. Banks and LIC were completely on strike all over Jharkhand.

Bihar: Agricultural workers struck work throughout the State and workers in Industrial areas around Patna went on strike. At Bhagalpur members of all the unions affiliated to the AICCTU- Bihar State Construction Workers' Union, Kamgar Mahasangh, municipal employees, transport workers' union and many others comprising about one thousand urban and rural poor took out rallies from three different locations in the city before merging at Kotwali square and marched to the Station through main areas of the city. Half of the participants of the rally were the domestic women workers. The rally was led by AICCTU's district president and secretary Comrades SK Sharma and Mukesh Mukt respectively.

In the rural areas and villages AICCTU and AIALA jointly organised rallies and meetings that were led by local and district leaders. Here brick kiln workers went on strike.

Tamil Nadu: The workers of PRICOL, a major auto company in Coimbatore went on complete strike led by AICCTU.

More than eight thousand workers of the All India Agricultural Labourers' Association (AIALA) struck work in over 80 panchayats covering eight districts of Tamil Nadu. In Tiruvallur district the strike was led jointly by AICCTU and AIALA. NREGA related irregularities was one of the important issues here for AIALA strike. The propaganda had reached about fifty thousand workers.

Assam: Besides the strike, contract workers affiliated to AICCTU went on strike at Air Force Station and Army Cantonment area. AICCTU activists and workers were arrested in front of the DC office in Silchar.

Rajasthan: In Jaipur a joint rally of 2500 was organised. In Udaipur AICCTU played major role in organizing raliies and strike. In Ajmer and Pratapgarh also we participated in joint rallies and strike.

West Bengal: Strike was very successful in WB.

AIALA's all India Rural Strike: As part of the nationwide rural strike call given by the AIALA, meetings were held in more than four hundred panchayats. Demonstrations were held at 35 blocks and roads were blockaded at several places.

Hosiery Movement Update: Bowing down to the militant workers' struggle and a successful industrial strike, hosiery factory owners in Shobhabazar conceded to raising overtime wages by a significant amount (about Rs 30/day). Many of the factories which hitherto paid below-minimum wages to their workers, have started paying minimum wages now. The victory of our movement, albeit partial, proves once again that the working class can snatch away their demands only through protracted struggle. AICCTU has also decided to survey 400 factories of the area, so that legal battle too could be initiated.

ഫെബ്രുവരി 28, 2012 ദേശീയ പൊതു പണിമുടക്ക്‌

2012-02-27T10:38:00.001+05:30

ഫെബ്രുവരി 28 -നു ദേശീയ പൊതു പണിമുടക്ക്‌ നടത്താനുള്ള കേന്ദ്ര ട്രേഡ് യൂണിയനുകളുടെ ആഹ്വാനം വമ്പിച്ച വിജയമാക്കുക

- ഉദാരവല്‍ക്കരണം, ആഗോളവല്‍ക്കരണം, സ്വകാര്യവല്‍ക്കരണം എന്നിവയ്ക്ക് എതിരായ സമരത്തെ ശക്തിപ്പെടുത്തുക .

- സ്ഥിര സ്വഭാവമോ തുടര്‍ച്ചയോ ഉള്ള തൊഴിലുകളില്‍ കരാര്‍വല്‍ക്കരണം ഉടന്‍ നിര്‍ത്തലാക്കുക .

- ഏതൊരു വ്യവസായ സ്ഥാപനത്തിലും മറ്റു തൊഴില്‍ സ്ഥാപനത്തിലും സ്ഥിരം തൊഴിലാളികള്‍ക്ക് നല്‍കുന്ന അതേ തോതിലുള്ള വേതനവും മറ്റു ആനുകൂല്യങ്ങളും കരാര്‍ തൊഴിലാളികള്‍ക്കും അനുവദിക്കുക.

- നിയമാനുസൃതം ആയ മിനിമം വേതനം 10 ,000 രൂപയില്‍ കുറയാത്ത വിധത്തില്‍ എല്ലാ വിഭാഗത്തിലും പെട്ട തൊഴിലാളികള്‍ക്കും സാര്‍വത്രികമായി ലഭ്യമാക്കുന്നതിനു വേണ്ടി മിനിമം വേജസ് ആക്റ്റ് ഉടന്‍ ഭേദഗതി ചെയ്യുക..

- ബോണസ് , പ്രോവിടെണ്ട് ഫണ്ട് എന്നിവയ്ക്കുള്ള അര്ഹതയ്ക്ക് നിശ്ചയിട്ടുള്ള എല്ലാ പരിധികളും നീക്കം ചെയ്യുക.ഗ്രാറ്റുവിറ്റി നിരക്ക് ഉയര്‍ത്തുക .

- എല്ലാവര്ക്കും പെന്‍ഷന്‍ ലഭ്യത ഉറപ്പു വരുത്തുക.

- ട്രേഡ് യൂണിയനുകളുടെ രജിസ്ട്രേഷന്‍ നടപടികള്‍ 45 ദിവസങ്ങള്‍ക്കുള്ളില്‍ നിര്‍ബന്ധമായും പൂര്‍ത്തിയാക്കും എന്ന് ഉറപ്പു വരുത്തുക. 87 ഉം 98 ഉം നമ്പര്‍ ILO കണ്‍വെന്ഷനുകള്‍ക്ക് അടിയന്തരമായി സര്‍ക്കാര്‍ ഔദ്യോഗിക അംഗീകാരം (ratification ) നല്‍കുക .

സി പി ഐ (എം എല്‍) ലിബറേഷന്‍ എ ഐ സി സി ടി യു

ML Update 09 / 2012

2012-02-23T20:09:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 09, 21 – 27 FEBRUARY 2012

Punish All Responsible for the West Bengal Government's Patriarchal Offensive on a Rape Complainant

The response of the West Bengal Government to a recent complaint of gang rape in the state capital, is yet another instance that has underlined the deeply patriarchal biases embedded in institutions of power and in the state machinery.

A woman reported that she had been gang-raped at gun-point in a moving car in Kolkata. She further stated that when she sought to file a complaint, she was subjected to humiliation and sexually suggestive remarks at the hands of the police. As this incident came to the light of the public, the West Bengal Police establishment and senior leaders of the Cabinet including even the Chief Minister herself, branded the rape complaint as false.

The Police Commissioner of Kolkata, RK Pachnanda, and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, both said the rape complaint was fabricated and 'staged' to malign the Government. The Chief Minister's media adviser said that the police was looking into the rape complainant's family background, cheating cases against her father, etc. Supposed 'holes' and 'inconsistencies' in the complainant's version were leaked selectively by police to the media. In other words, the complainant herself was treated as though she were a suspect whose innocence was on trial!

Meanwhile, a close aide of the Chief Minister, Minister Madan Mitra, resorted to the age-old patriarchal strategy to discredit rape complainants: insinuating that the complainant was of questionable moral character, since she was separated from her husband and visited nightclubs. Speaking to a TV channel, Mitra said, "Why did a woman with kids at home, who is separated from her husband, go to a nightclub? For all you know, she may still be drinking at a club."

Moral judgements on a woman's personal life, and all sorts of details about her family background, were invoked in order to discredit her complaint of rape – in violation of the well-established principle, oft upheld by the Supreme Court, that irrelevant details about the rape complainant's personal life and 'character' cannot be used to undermine rape complaints.

Eventually, the rape complaint was vindicated, with the Kolkata police arresting three of the accused. The medical evidence clearly showed injuries consistent with the assault described by the complainant. Also, it emerged that so-called 'inconsistencies' and 'falsehoods' in the complainant's statement had a perfectly logical explanation.

The kind of attitudes displayed by the West Bengal police and government are, unfortunately, all too common when it comes to rape complaints, and this is undoubtedly one of the factors contributing to the rise in sexual violence on women. Recently, a DGP of Andhra Pradesh blamed women for 'provoking' rape by wearing fashionable clothes. His remarks were soon echoed by many in responsible positions in other states, too. According to such patriarchal discourse, rape is not rape, when it happens to women who do not conform to prescribed norms of behaviour. And the credibility of any rape complainant can be undermined by questioning her clothes, her behaviour, or her morality. And Governments, realising that rape cases and police insensitivity reflect badly on their regime, are often quick to stoke patriarchal 'doubts' about the rape complainant's character and credibility. Not long ago, Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister, eager to cover up allegations of rape against an MLA of his party, questioned Rupam Pathak's character on TV channels. The Delhi Police chief, responding to charges of police insensitivity in cases relating to violence against women, said that women who ventured out without a (male) guardian at 2 am, have only themselves to blame for rape.

In West Bengal itself, the statements made by Mamata Banerjee and Madan Mitra echo the remarks made by their predecessors in similar circumstances. Responding to the mass rape at Birati in 1990, a leader of the ruling CPIM's women's organisation had referred to the questionable moral antecedents of the victims. In the Dhantala mass rape case of 2003, the West Bengal Women's Commission had dismissed the rape charges as 'concocted lies.' In another instance of rape of a woman CPI(M) supporter in Cooch Behar in 2003, allegedly by CPIM activists, the then State Secretary of the CPIM had deemed the charge to be 'concocted', and had questioned the 'character and lifestyle' of the complainant. In the case of the rape and murder of Tapasi Malik in Singur, too, senior CPIM leaders had made patriarchal insinuations about Tapasi and her family, in order to defend their own cadre who were accused.

This trend of branding rape complainants as liars by invoking their 'character' is rampant in society. But when those in positions of power and responsibility do so, it is even more serious and condemnable. If such persons go unpunished, it can only encourage this trend, and embolden perpetrators of violence on women.

The West Bengal Chief Minister owes a public apology to the rape complainant, for the shameful way in which the latter was branded a liar by the Government, and by the CM personally. The Chief Minister should also relinquish the Home portfolio that she now holds, as a penalty for the way in which she sought to malign a rape complainant, and bias the police proceedings. For his highly offensive remarks, Madan Mitra must be removed from his position in the Cabinet. The charges of sexual harassment against police personnel must be speedily investigated and sternly punished. The Kolkata Police Commissioner must be dismissed for his irresponsible statements that were a great injustice to the rape complainant. It may be remembered that, following his public pronouncements justifying the honour crimes of industrialist Ashok Todi towards Rizwan-ur Rehman, the then Police Commissioner had to lose his post. This time, too, the current Police Commissioner must go.

WB: CPI(ML)'s 9th State Conference

The 9th State Conference of West Bengal State Committee was held from 18th to 20th February 2012 at Ashokenagar, 24 North Parganas, in which 349 delegates and 31 observers and guests from all over the State participated. The delegate session was preceded by a lively cultural programme and a discussion on the present situation of West Bengal which was addressed by Nabarun Bhattacharya, eminent poet, and Party's General Secretary Comrade Dipankar Bhattacharya. Comrade Dipankar highlighted the specific features under TMC rule, exposed the opportunism of CPI(M)'s left democratic alternative and clarified CPI(ML)'s position on this question. He emphasised on the need of building a fighting left democratic unity and building new areas of peasant struggle. Before the delegate session, the red flag was hoisted by veteran Party leader Comrade Sankar Mitra. Central Committee members, district secretaries, leaders of different mass organisations offered floral tributes and all the delegates and observers observed a minute's silence in memory of the martyrs.

The delegate session started after Comrade Partho Ghosh, the outgoing State Secretary placed the draft document before the house. Altogether 97 delegates took part in the deliberation and various suggestions enriched the debate discussion. Comrade V Shankar (CCM) from Karnataka was the central observer, and veteran Politburo member Comrade Swadesh Bhattacharya also addressed this session. The leader of CPRM- Comrade Taramani Rai and leader of Marxbadi Manch were also present.

This conference was marked by a vibrant presence of the students, fighting peasants, workers, and all the delegates were of the opinion that the situation is impregnated with new possibilities. The conference resolved to take up the challenges to expand and strengthen the Party. The TMC-led Govt is fast losing its credibility and the real character of this Govt is gradually being exposed.

After debate and discussion, the final draft was accepted unanimously and 39-member new State Committee was elected, in which 10 new members were elected. Comrade Partha Ghosh was reelected as the State Secretary. The conference resolved to protest against the rape incident which took place in the heart of Kolkata and expose the role of the CM who denied this shameful incident on the pretext of a conspiracy against her Govt. The conference also resolved to make success the all India general strike on 28 February all over the state.

Hosiery Workers' Struggle

Hosiery workers of Sobhabazar area in Kolkata are fighting back a decades old system of inadequate overtime wages and lack of basic workplace amenities. According to existing labour laws they should be getting 8 hours' equivalent of wages for 4 hours overtime. But whereas they are bound to work overtime almost everyday, they get a pittance overtime wage of Rs. 45/day (their minimum wage stands at Rs 164/day).

CPI(ML) Liberation's AICCTU-led Kolkata Hosiery Workers' Union has waged a struggle demanding (1) proper overtime wages and (2) revision of minimum wages, which have remained stagnant for the last 13 years. Hosiery workers of this region have to work amidst extra-economic coercion. They don't have ID cards, they lack proper sanitation facilities and they don't even have an attendance registrar. 3rd January 2012 onwards, they have started the movement, skipping overtime work. On 17th January, 3rd February and 7th February, they took out massive processions reiterating their demands. On 19th January and 8th February, workers participated in a huge mass meeting where representatives from workers and All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) voiced the workers' demands. Throughout this period the workers repeatedly attempted to have a dialogue with the factory owners' association which the latter bluntly refused.

The movement was peaceful and democratic from start till 9th February. But on the night of 9th February, factory owners sent in TMC goons to break the resolve of the workers. Workers retaliated with a massive industrial strike on the next day. They gheraoed Shyampukur and Jorabagan Police stations demanding immediate intervention by law enforcement agencies.

They rallied through the entire area, where some of the workers were beaten up. But the resolve of the workers stands undaunted and they are certain about their victory. Student activists from All India Students' Association (AISA) also joined the rallies in solidarity with the workers.

Panchayat Polls in Odisha

In the recent panchayat elections in Odisha, corporate houses, which are plundering the state's precious resources with the collusion of the Government, came to bail out the Naveen Patnaik Government, which was facing problems in the wake of outcry against corporate plunder and atrocities, of which the Pipili gang rape was the most recent instance. To top it all, the liquor tragedy, with its death toll reaching 38 till date, too took place. However, Naveen Patnaik's face-saving measures, combined with the money power backing of corporate houses, aided by the lack of credibility of Congress and BJP, managed to secure a majority of the zila parishad seats.

Though CPI(ML) Liberation could not retain three zila parishad seats, we won seven sarpanch seats, three samiti member seats, and more than 100 ward member seats in Raigada, Koraput, Puri, Kendujhar, and Kendrapada.

Reports from Madhya Pradesh

Bhind: A public meeting was held on 17th February in Bhind town centring on women's oppression, State Govt's (led by BJP) corruption and the upcoming countrywide trade unions' strike on 28th February. The 28th February strike was the main issue discussed. The meeting decided to consistently against corruption in the State and a planned propaganda campaign was decided for the 28th February strike. The organisers of the meeting were CPI(ML), AISA, AICCTU and AIPWA. The speakers at the meeting were Comrades Prabhat Kumar (Party's Central Committee member), veteran communist and Party leader Devendra Singh Chauhan and AIPWA's National Secretary Suraj Rekha Tripathi.

Gwalior: Conference of municipality employees' welfare front was held on 18th February at Bara in Gwalior that was also attended by CPI(ML) Central Committee member Comrade Prabhat Kumar besides trade union leader Comrade Ashok Khan and Comrade Haji Usman. The Conference also elected new office bearers and gave a call for making the 28th February strike successful. The Conference discussed more on the issues of sanitation workers. The workers in the conference have decided to campaign till 27th for the strike on the 28th and that they will hold a dharna at Bara on 28th wearing black badges. More than 70 delegates participated in the conference.

Make the Call by Central Trade Unions for Nationwide General Strike on 28 February

a Grand Success

Strengthen the Struggle against Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation

Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)

All India Central Council of Trade Unions

(AICCTU)

Press Release All India Students’ Association (AISA) 16/2/2012

2012-02-16T23:33:00.000+05:30

Press Release
All India Students’ Association (AISA)
16/2/2012

AISA and Students of Sociology Department (DU) Successfully
Screen Jashn-e-Azaadi in DU, Braving
Attacks and Threats by ABVP and ‘Bhagat Singh Kranti Sena’!
... Hundreds of Delhi University Students
Participate in Film Screening and Discussion with Sanjay Kak, Director
of Jashn-e-Azaadi!!
Today hundreds of DU
students and teachers participated the screening of the documentary
film Jashn-e-Azaadi
organized by AISA and students of sociology in the Department of Sociology,
Delhi University. “Predictably this
screening had to held in the teeth of opposition from right-wing fascist forces
like ABVP and the Bhagat Singh Kranti
Sena, who tried their level best to stall the screening. Moreover,
the DU administration and the Delhi Police also shamefully sided with these
forces and tried to pressurize the Sociology department to stop the screening”,
said Harshvardhan Tripathi Secretary DU, AISA.

AISA had taken proper
permission for this programme on Monday itself (13th of February,
2012). However, the DU administration and the Delhi
police tried to prevent the movie from being screened. Since early this
morning, the Delhi police kept calling the organizers (AISA representatives),
stating that the Police has been receiving “threats” from ABVP and Bhagat Singh
Kranti Sena. These forces openly told the Police that they would disrupt the
screening, if it was allowed. “Instead
of giving protection and preventing the hooligans from the entering the
premises of Delhi School of Economics, Delhi police kept pressurizing the
organizers to cancel the screening”, added Harshvardhan. The DU
administration initially also tried to pressurize the sociology department and
the organizers to cancel the programme.

However, the Sociology department stood firm in its defence of academic
freedom. They demanded that the
DU administration give in writing details of legal and academic grounds on
the basis of which the film screening should be cancelled. Unable to give any
logical response to this, the DU administration changed its stand and in a
written statement, it told the Sociology department that the film screening
could carry on. And so, the programme was held.

Commenting on today’s
incident, director Sanjay Kak said, “By defending their
right to screen the film, the Delhi School of Economics has stood for the best
traditions of academic independence. And by coming in large numbers despite the
intimidation, students have shown themselves to that trust. Thanks to AISA for
showing the way.” The film screening in DU today was followed by a
discussion with the director Sanjay Kak,
who pointed out that disruption of his movie or any other talk on Kashmir
serves the simple purpose of not letting the people know the reality in Kashmir.

AISA condemns the role
of the Delhi police, which instead of preventing the goons from entering the
premises of DSE, escorted them till the gates of Sociology department where
they were stopped by the huge gathering of teachers and students.
This incident should
also be seen in the light of the DU administration’s recent move to
remove AK Ramanujam’s
essay ‘Three Hundred Ramayanas’ from
BA History syllabus. Yesterday, several
groups in DU (including AISA) unitedly organized a massive seminar in DU against
such draconian attacks on academic freedom by right-wing forces. And today’s
incident is yet another victory of progressive forces who have been fighting to
reclaim the campus space from corporate and fascist take over. It is a victory
for campus democracy, against hooliganism and for a culture of debate and
discussion.

ML Update A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine Vol. 15 No. 08 14 - 20 FEB 2012

2012-02-16T23:30:00.000+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15 No. 08 14 - 20 FEB 2012

Karnataka's Porn Scandal:

Shame on BJP's Hypocrisy and Insult to Women

The recent 'porngate' scandal in Karnataka, in which three BJP Ministers were caught by a TV channel, viewing a porn clip inside the Assembly, has exposed the BJP's bankruptcy and moral double standards thoroughly. The Ministers in question have had to resign, but such damage control measures are far from adequate.

The BJP and its sister organizations in the Sangh brigade are notorious for imposing 'dress codes' on women, and assaulting women who defy these codes. In BJP-ruled Karnataka, the Government has defended and protected saffron goons who have attacked women for visiting pubs, or sitting in public with male friends. Around this time every year, there are reports of Sangh goons attacking couples who celebrate Valentine's Day. Now, the world has seen how these self-proclaimed custodians of morality and self-appointed 'protectors of Indian womanhood,' while away their time inside the Assembly, watching clips of sexual violence on women.

One of the ex-Ministers caught in the act, has claimed that, in the context of a debate in the Assembly over a controversial party, they were watching a video of such a party held in a foreign country, in which a woman is gang-raped by the men she was dancing with. In other words, the clip being watched was not just a sex video, it was a video of a gang-rape! The BJP MLA's bizarre 'defence' only underlines how much of pornography involves content that is violent and exploitative towards women. Newspapers have reported that this clip of sexual violence was shared and watched by several more BJP MLAs, before the TV cameras caught two of them on camera.

One of the MLAs caught viewing the clip, was the Women and Child Development Minister CC Patil, who, just a few weeks ago, said that women 'invited' rape by dressing indecently. A Minister holding the portfolio for women's welfare, spends his time in the Assembly watching a gang-rape video with his male colleagues – and then brazenly justifies rape by blaming it on women's 'indecency'! There could be no better proof for the fact that those who seek to police women's dress and conduct have much in common with those who perpetrate sexual violence on women.

Although the BJP, in a hasty damage control exercise, has had to get the three Ministers to resign, the MLAs and the party too remain unrepentant. The BJP has refused to expel the MLAs. The Goa Chief Minister from the BJP has said that the MLAs were 'only watching' and not 'doing anything.' The Jharkhand Assembly Speaker, also from the BJP, has said there is nothing wrong in watching videos in Assembly, and he would have taken no action on such MLAs if the incident had taken place in his Assembly!

The contrast between BJP's moral sermonising and moral policing of women, and the conduct of its elected representatives in Assembly, is especially glaring. But violence and exploitation of women by elected representatives is common in other parties too. Former Uttarakhand CM from Congress, ND Tiwari, is accused of granting licenses for petrol pumps etc in exchange for sexual favours. In Rajasthan, Congress Minister Mahipal Maderna and MLA Malkhan Singh, are implicated in the murder of a dalit nurse, Bhanwari Devi, with whom they had sexual relations, in exchange for waiving her transfer to a remote area. A series of MLAs of the ruling BSP in Uttar Pradesh are implicated in rape, kidnapping, and murder of women. Former BJP MLA from Purnea Raj Kishore Kesri was implicated in the long-term rape and harassment of Rupam Pathak in Bihar. Between 2007 and 2010, several other BJP MLAs in Karnataka, too, have been implicated in violence towards women, including rape, blackmail, and murder.

The resignation from Ministerial posts is far from enough. The Assembly membership of all the BJP MLAs who shared and viewed the gang-rape video inside the Karnataka Assembly must be terminated. They have violated every norm of public conduct and women's rights and dignity, and no longer have any right to call themselves people's representatives.

Congress' Crocodile Tears for Fake Encounters

Yet again, Congress leaders are attempting to exploit public anger against fake encounters of minorities for votes – while their Government continues to defend the same fake encounters. After Digvijay Singh, it was Salman Khursheed's turn. Addressing an election meeting at Azamgarh, Khursheed claimed that Sonia Gandhi broke down and shed tears when shown photographs of the Batla House killings, and asked him to take up the matter with the Prime Minister.

NHRC norms require that every 'encounter' be treated as a murder unless proved by a judicial probe to have been in self-defence. Yet, in spite of a host of unanswered questions regarding the Batla House killings, no probe was allowed. The very agencies that carried out the 'encounter', have given themselves a clean chit, and the Home Minister in Congress' Central Government repeatedly assures that the 'encounter' was 'genuine.'

Why, in spite of Sonia's tears, did the Home Ministry and UPA Government refuse to allow any impartial probe into the Batla House 'encounter'? Khursheed explained to his Azamgarh audience that though the Congress sincerely wished to probe the killings, they dropped their plans to do so, fearing an impact on the 2009 parliamentary elections! In other words, Khursheed is saying that for the Congress, justice for victims of fake encounters can be, and in fact was, sacrificed for fear of jeopardising electoral prospects!

The minority youth of Azamgarh have borne the brunt of the worst witch-hunt and communal profiling in the wake of the Batla House killings. Azamgarh has been branded 'atankgarh' (bastion of terror), and Muslim youth from the area have found their safety, dignity, and job prospects badly affected by state-sponsored prejudice. When the very same Congress whose Government has prevented any probe that might establish inconvenient truths about Batla House, and whose investigative agencies are spearheading the witch-hunt of Muslim youth in a host of cases, claims to shed tears for the Batla House victims on the eve of elections, it adds insult to injury.

AIPWA 6th National Conference Held at Vijaywada

The 6th National Conference of All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) took place on 8-9 February at Vijaywada. The entire city was decorated with colourful posters and flags. The women, from around 20 states, marched in a spirited rally from the railway station to Thomalapalli Kalakshetram (renamed Panchadi Nirmala Hall, while Vijaywada was renamed Snehalata Nagar after the martyrs of the Srikakulam movement). Throughout the rally, women raised slogans in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Bengali, Assamese, Nepali, Hindi, Telugu and other languages, demanding women's rights and equality. Cultural teams of the Andhra Pradesh Jansanskritika Mandali and of women of the Lambada tribe of Andhra Pradesh, danced in front of the procession, and were spontaneously joined by many women comrades from various states.

Inaugural Session

On reaching the Thomalapalli Kalakshetram, veteran AIPWA leader Comrade Meera hoisted the AIPWA flag, and AIPWA's National and State-level leaders paid floral tribute to the martyrs' memorial, after which a minute's silence for the martyrs was observed.

The inaugural session began with a revolutionary song performed by the Andhra Pradesh Jansanskritika Mandali. AIPWA leaders and guests were seated on the dais – including AIPWA President Srilata Swaminathan, General Secretary Meena Tiwari, Sanjila Ghising, General Secretary of the Democratic Revolutionary Women's Front (DRWF) of Darjeeling, Durga Bhawani, State Vice President of NFIW, Challapalli Vijaya, State President of the Stree Vimukti Sangathan, AIPWA Vice Presidents Saroj Chaubey and Pratima Engheepi, National Secretaries Nagmani, Chaitali Sen, Shashi Yadav, Sunita, and AIPWA leaders from all states.

The Conference was inaugurated by AIPWA National President Srilata Swaminathan. In her inaugural address, Comrade Srilata said that governments and the powerful sections of society are only giving women discrimination, violence, and insults. But women are determined to resist all this, and will fight and win jobs, freedom, and dignity. She spoke of the many forms of discrimination and violence being faced by women in India, and of AIPWA's struggles against the same.

Addressing the gathered women, Comrade Nagamani, State Secretary of AIPWA in Andhra Pradesh, spoke of women's struggles against exploitative MFIs, against rapes and acid attacks in the state. She said women from all over the country had rejected and protested the shameful statement by Andhra Pradesh DGP Dinesh Reddy, that women 'invited' rape by 'provocative' clothes.

Comrade Durga Bhawani, State Vice President of NFIW, and Challapalli Vijaya, State President of the Stree Vimukti Sangathan addressed the inaugural session, expressing good wishes for the Conference, and calling for united struggles by women and women's groups against the many challenges faced by the women's movement.

Comrade Sanjila Ghising of the DRWF spoke of the dual struggle of the women from Darjeeling: for their national identity, as well as for women's rights. After her speech, comrades of the DRWF felicitated all the AIPWA leaders and guests by draping scarves representing the Gorkha cultural tradition.

Comrade Meena Tiwari, National General Secretary of AIPWA, gave the concluding address at the Inaugural session. She said that the women marching on Vijaywada's streets, were raising slogans in different languages – but their spirit was the same: they were determined to resist oppression and win women's rights. She said that the Prime Minister and President had recently said that India's scores on sex ratio, maternal mortality, and other social indicators of women's well-being are a 'national shame.' But, she said, these leaders had no right to call the situation of women a national shame, because their own policies are responsible above all for this shameful state of affairs.

Not only the market, but even the Government, she said, were treating women like cheap labour and objects of exploitation. Not only is their labour inside the home unpaid, even their work outside in Government schemes, remains shamefully underpaid. She said, "History is witness that whatever rights women have achieved have only been through women's own struggles. We'll carry forward that legacy, and fight and win jobs, freedom, and dignity for women."

The Inaugural session was conducted by AIPWA National Secretary Kavita Krishnan.

Delegate Session

The delegate session of the 6th National Conference continued in the evening of 8 February as well as on 9th February. 425 women delegates from 17 states discussed their experiences of struggles, and to plan how to confront the challenges facing the women's movement today. A presidium comprising Comrades Saroj Chaubey, Gauri De, Gunni Oran, Bhadrawati, Jasbir Kaur, Mona Lisa Tissopi, Thenmozhi, Gandhimati, T Aruna and Kavita Krishnan conducted the Conference.

Solidarity Messages from the South Asia Solidarity Group (London) and Working Women Alliance of Bangladesh (Bangladesh Sramajibi Nari Moitree) were read out at the Conference.

Women workers in ASHA, anganwadi, and mid-day meal schemes in Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Assam and other states shared their experiences of how they work in crucial health and education schemes of the central government, yet they are paid only a pittance of honorarium and no regular salary, with no job security. It was decided that AIPWA would intensify its efforts to organise these lakhs of women workers to secure their rightful place as government employees.

Women delegates discussed their experiences of struggles against many instances of atrocities against women by police officers and powerful people, including MLAs. They noted that in many cases of rape and harassment, we saw that the perpetrators get open protection of police stations and MLAs. It is difficult even to lodge an FIR, and even if one succeeds in lodging an FIR, the accused are not arrested.

Women from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab discussed the phenomenon of 'honour' killings. In these states, 'khap panchayats' have harassed and even killed couples who marry by choice, breaking caste traditions. Women from other states said that in fact, this phenomenon is spreading across the country. If women marry by choice, they are either forced to marry someone else, or killed. The Conference stressed that is needed to resist such assaults on women's right to decide about their own life.

Women discussed the struggles of women who are members of SHGs and exploited by Micro finance institutions. They demanded a ban on MFIs and easy government bank loans for women.

The Conference stressed the need to struggle for women's right to dignified and secure jobs, which are crucial for women's self-reliance. The Conference also condemned the Law Ministry's proposal to dilute and dowry harassment law (Section 498 A).

The Conference elected a 95-member National Council, which in turn elected a 31-member National Executive. Comrades Srilata Swaminathan and Meena Tiwari were re-elected National President and Secretary, while Comrades Saroj Chaubey, Tahira Hasan, Kumudini Pati, Rati Rao, Medha Thatte, Mukta Manohar, Bharti S Kumar, Pratima Engheepi, Susheela Tigga, Anju Borkataky, Premlata Pandey and Sudha Choudhury were elected Vice Presidents, and Comrades Sunita, Anjali, Shashi Yadav, Chaitali Sen, R Nagamani, and Kavita Krishnan were elected National Secretaries.

The Conference passed resolutions demanding cancellation of the Assembly membership of the BJP MLAs of Karnataka Assembly who were caught watching a gang-rape video inside the Assembly; demanding that the Andhra Pradesh DGP who blamed women for provoking rape, be made to quit; condemning the Norway government's decision to separate two children of Indian origin from their parents on flimsy grounds; rejecting the Government's food security bill as a farce, and demanding a genuine food security bill that would truly address the widespread malnutrition and hunger, especially of women and children; expressing protest against the gang rape and murderous assault of a dalit girl by goons of the ruling BJD in Odisha, and condemning the Odisha Women's Commission report that denied the gang rape took place; expressing solidarity with the struggle for a separate Gorkhaland and Telangana; and condemning the violence on anti-nuclear protestors including a large number of women at Koodankulam, and demanded scrapping of the Koodankulam project.

Comrade T Aruna delivered a vote of thanks to all those who helped to make the Conference a success. CPI(ML)'s Andhra Pradesh Secretary, Comrade Murthy, expressed good wishes for the AIPWA Conference and confidence that AIPWA would grow stronger in the days to come.

Delegates at the Conference responded to a call for funds for the forthcoming 9th Party Congress of the CPI(ML), and contributed to a collection in the Conference hall itself.

All the volunteers from Andhra Pradesh and other states were warmly felicitated and thanked for their immense efforts in making the Conference a success.

Cultural Evening

On the evening of 8 February, a cultural evening was organised, in which women from almost all the states participated with great enthusiasm, expressing the progressive and struggling cultural aspect of the women's movement very well. The artists depicted their local struggles through folk dances and songs, as well as in individual compositions and poetry. The music and dance expressed struggles against the corporate plunder of land and resources, repression on people's resistance, women's resistance against inequality and violence, and their struggle for dignity and rights.

In the morning, Lambada women dressed in their traditional costume, and comrades of the Andhra Pradesh Jan Sanskritika Mandali dressed in red with red flags aloft, had led the Rally, while women from many states spontaneously joined them in dancing.

The cultural evening began with a graceful Bihu dance by Assam AIPWA comrades. Comrade Nagamani of Kakinada along with her team members, presented rousing songs that had the audience clapping to the beat, and also performed a musical play. Tamilnadu's AIPWA comrades presented a song and dance, and Jharkhand's women's cultural team, Prerna, presented a traditional 'jhoomar' dance. Narender Kaur and Kiran of Punjab, Sunetra Sengupta of West Bengal, Kusum Verma of Varanasi recited poetry related to women's lives and struggles. The team of Karbi Anglong women comrades presented progressive and revolutionary Karbi songs. Many women comrades sang individual songs –in Kudukh and Santhali languages, in Tamil, Assamese, Kannada and in many of the languages of Bihar. Comrade Meera Chaturvedi of West Bengal sang several songs in Bhojpuri, Bengali, Nepali, and, when requested by the audience, in Assamese too.

In response to 'Why this Kolaveri,' ('kolaveri' means 'killer rage' in Tamil), Comrade Srilata Swaminathan sang a spirited 'We want Kolaveri,' on the women's movement and AIPWA's struggles.

The cultural evening was conducted by AIPWA National Executive member Uma Gupta. The number of women participants in the cultural evening kept growing longer, and eventually, the programme had to be regretfully concluded, though the songs and dances continued even at the places where the delegates were staying! What was remarkable was that the participants ranged from 20-year-old Lakhimani from Jharkhand to 70-year-old Lakhrani Kunwar from Bihar.

An important part of the cultural aspect of the Conference was a painting exhibition on the theme, "Women's oppression, Women's Resistance," by two young artists, Anupam Roy and Bablu Paul, and a poster exhibition by Kusum Verma from Varanasi. The exhibition of posters and paintings began on the first day, and continued till the end of the Conference. The paintings, prepared over a period of two months of painstaking and tireless efforts by the artists, were appreciated by several intellectuals as well as by the delegates from various states.

Protest March at Garhwa Against State Repression

On 13 February, a massive and spirited protest march took place against the ongoing state repression and witch-hunt of ordinary villagers and CPI(ML) activists in the name of combating Maoists. Defying rain, and heavy intimidatory police deployment, thousands of men and women participated in the march and mass meeting.

Marching with red flags aloft, protestors demanded the release of CPI(ML) comrades Ramdas Minz (elected mukhiya of Badgad village), and Fida Husain, and an end to the harassment and repression of villagers and CPI(ML) activists in Garhwa and the rest of Jharkhand in the name of combating Maoists. Comrades Ramdas Minz and Fida Husain had been arrested in the course of a struggle on a local issue, and were subsequently tortured and booked for collusion in a land mine blast conducted by the Maoists. While both were taken into police custody on 21 January itself, their arrest has been shown on 23 January and they were produced in court on 24 January.

CPI(ML)'s Comrade Sita Paswan's family has not yet been provided with the seizure list of items confiscated during the police raid, though the police has claimed that false currency was found during the raid.

Recently, facts came to light regarding the brutal killing of a deaf and mute cattle herder, Lucas Minz, by CRPF personal in Latehar district of Jharkhand. The incident reportedly took place on January 31, 2012, during the joint operation by the CRPF and District Police, who claimed to be conducting an operation against Maoists. Lucas Minz, who was herding cattle near Koel River, was reportedly shot dead when, being mute, he failed to respond to queries by CRPF and Police Jawans. Having shot him dead, the security forces buried him in the sands. His family hunted in vain for him, and only on 6 February, villagers found the body and identified it. But the police then threatened the villagers and Minz's family with dire consequences, and forced them to bury the body again. Only on February 12, did the family, assisted by CPI(ML)'s Latehar comrades, forced the police to file an FIR against the brutal killing. In another incident on January 1, a driver named Rajendra Yadav was also branded a 'Maoist' and gunned down by police. The CPI(ML)'s protest march on 13 February demanded justice for Lucas Minz and Rajendra Yadav, and severe punishment for their killers.

Marching at the head of the procession were Comrade Dipankar Bhattacharya, General Secretary of CPI(ML), Comrade Janardan, State Secretary of the party in Jharkhand, Rajaram Singh, Central Committee member of CPI(ML), Vinod Singh, CPI(ML) MLA in the Jharkhand Assembly, Sushma Mehta, Zila Parishad Chairperson, Rahina Begum, pramukh of Danda panchayat, Comrades Sogra Bibi, and Kishore Kumar. The mass meeting was presided over by Comrade Kalicharan Mehta. Comrade Ravindra Rai conducted the proceedings. The chief speaker at the meeting was Comrade Dipankar Bhattacharya, and other speakers included Comrade Vinod Singh, Comrade Rajaram Singh, Comrade Rahina Begum, Comrade Sogra Bibi, Comrade Kanhai Singh of Latehar, and Suneeta Kerketta, wife of Comrade Ramdas Minz.

Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda had visited Garhwa on February 12 and was in Garhwa till the morning of February 13. The protestors raised spirited slogans against Munda, and demanded that the CM answer for the killing of Lucas Minz and arrests of innocent villagers and CPI(ML) activists.

Edited, published and printed by S. Bhattacharya for CPI(ML) Liberation from U-90, Shakarpur, Delhi-92; printed at Bol Publication,
R-18/2, Ramesh Park, Laxmi Nagar, Delhi-92; Phone:22521067; fax: 22518248, e-mail: mlupdate@cpiml.org, website: www.cpiml.org

ML Update 08 / 2012

2012-02-15T12:42:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15 No. 08 14 - 20 FEB 2012

Karnataka's Porn Scandal:

Shame on BJP's Hypocrisy and Insult to Women

The recent 'porngate' scandal in Karnataka, in which three BJP Ministers were caught by a TV channel, viewing a porn clip inside the Assembly, has exposed the BJP's bankruptcy and moral double standards thoroughly. The Ministers in question have had to resign, but such damage control measures are far from adequate.

The BJP and its sister organizations in the Sangh brigade are notorious for imposing 'dress codes' on women, and assaulting women who defy these codes. In BJP-ruled Karnataka, the Government has defended and protected saffron goons who have attacked women for visiting pubs, or sitting in public with male friends. Around this time every year, there are reports of Sangh goons attacking couples who celebrate Valentine's Day. Now, the world has seen how these self-proclaimed custodians of morality and self-appointed 'protectors of Indian womanhood,' while away their time inside the Assembly, watching clips of sexual violence on women.

One of the ex-Ministers caught in the act, has claimed that, in the context of a debate in the Assembly over a controversial party, they were watching a video of such a party held in a foreign country, in which a woman is gang-raped by the men she was dancing with. In other words, the clip being watched was not just a sex video, it was a video of a gang-rape! The BJP MLA's bizarre 'defence' only underlines how much of pornography involves content that is violent and exploitative towards women. Newspapers have reported that this clip of sexual violence was shared and watched by several more BJP MLAs, before the TV cameras caught two of them on camera.

One of the MLAs caught viewing the clip, was the Women and Child Development Minister CC Patil, who, just a few weeks ago, said that women 'invited' rape by dressing indecently. A Minister holding the portfolio for women's welfare, spends his time in the Assembly watching a gang-rape video with his male colleagues – and then brazenly justifies rape by blaming it on women's 'indecency'! There could be no better proof for the fact that those who seek to police women's dress and conduct have much in common with those who perpetrate sexual violence on women.

Although the BJP, in a hasty damage control exercise, has had to get the three Ministers to resign, the MLAs and the party too remain unrepentant. The BJP has refused to expel the MLAs. The Goa Chief Minister from the BJP has said that the MLAs were 'only watching' and not 'doing anything.' The Jharkhand Assembly Speaker, also from the BJP, has said there is nothing wrong in watching videos in Assembly, and he would have taken no action on such MLAs if the incident had taken place in his Assembly!

The contrast between BJP's moral sermonising and moral policing of women, and the conduct of its elected representatives in Assembly, is especially glaring. But violence and exploitation of women by elected representatives is common in other parties too. Former Uttarakhand CM from Congress, ND Tiwari, is accused of granting licenses for petrol pumps etc in exchange for sexual favours. In Rajasthan, Congress Minister Mahipal Maderna and MLA Malkhan Singh, are implicated in the murder of a dalit nurse, Bhanwari Devi, with whom they had sexual relations, in exchange for waiving her transfer to a remote area. A series of MLAs of the ruling BSP in Uttar Pradesh are implicated in rape, kidnapping, and murder of women. Former BJP MLA from Purnea Raj Kishore Kesri was implicated in the long-term rape and harassment of Rupam Pathak in Bihar. Between 2007 and 2010, several other BJP MLAs in Karnataka, too, have been implicated in violence towards women, including rape, blackmail, and murder.

The resignation from Ministerial posts is far from enough. The Assembly membership of all the BJP MLAs who shared and viewed the gang-rape video inside the Karnataka Assembly must be terminated. They have violated every norm of public conduct and women's rights and dignity, and no longer have any right to call themselves people's representatives.

Congress' Crocodile Tears for Fake Encounters

Yet again, Congress leaders are attempting to exploit public anger against fake encounters of minorities for votes – while their Government continues to defend the same fake encounters. After Digvijay Singh, it was Salman Khursheed's turn. Addressing an election meeting at Azamgarh, Khursheed claimed that Sonia Gandhi broke down and shed tears when shown photographs of the Batla House killings, and asked him to take up the matter with the Prime Minister.

NHRC norms require that every 'encounter' be treated as a murder unless proved by a judicial probe to have been in self-defence. Yet, in spite of a host of unanswered questions regarding the Batla House killings, no probe was allowed. The very agencies that carried out the 'encounter', have given themselves a clean chit, and the Home Minister in Congress' Central Government repeatedly assures that the 'encounter' was 'genuine.'

Why, in spite of Sonia's tears, did the Home Ministry and UPA Government refuse to allow any impartial probe into the Batla House 'encounter'? Khursheed explained to his Azamgarh audience that though the Congress sincerely wished to probe the killings, they dropped their plans to do so, fearing an impact on the 2009 parliamentary elections! In other words, Khursheed is saying that for the Congress, justice for victims of fake encounters can be, and in fact was, sacrificed for fear of jeopardising electoral prospects!

The minority youth of Azamgarh have borne the brunt of the worst witch-hunt and communal profiling in the wake of the Batla House killings. Azamgarh has been branded 'atankgarh' (bastion of terror), and Muslim youth from the area have found their safety, dignity, and job prospects badly affected by state-sponsored prejudice. When the very same Congress whose Government has prevented any probe that might establish inconvenient truths about Batla House, and whose investigative agencies are spearheading the witch-hunt of Muslim youth in a host of cases, claims to shed tears for the Batla House victims on the eve of elections, it adds insult to injury.

AIPWA 6th National Conference Held at Vijaywada

The 6th National Conference of All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) took place on 8-9 February at Vijaywada. The entire city was decorated with colourful posters and flags. The women, from around 20 states, marched in a spirited rally from the railway station to Thomalapalli Kalakshetram (renamed Panchadi Nirmala Hall, while Vijaywada was renamed Snehalata Nagar after the martyrs of the Srikakulam movement). Throughout the rally, women raised slogans in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Bengali, Assamese, Nepali, Hindi, Telugu and other languages, demanding women's rights and equality. Cultural teams of the Andhra Pradesh Jansanskritika Mandali and of women of the Lambada tribe of Andhra Pradesh, danced in front of the procession, and were spontaneously joined by many women comrades from various states.

Inaugural Session

On reaching the Thomalapalli Kalakshetram, veteran AIPWA leader Comrade Meera hoisted the AIPWA flag, and AIPWA's National and State-level leaders paid floral tribute to the martyrs' memorial, after which a minute's silence for the martyrs was observed.

The inaugural session began with a revolutionary song performed by the Andhra Pradesh Jansanskritika Mandali. AIPWA leaders and guests were seated on the dais – including AIPWA President Srilata Swaminathan, General Secretary Meena Tiwari, Sanjila Ghising, General Secretary of the Democratic Revolutionary Women's Front (DRWF) of Darjeeling, Durga Bhawani, State Vice President of NFIW, Challapalli Vijaya, State President of the Stree Vimukti Sangathan, AIPWA Vice Presidents Saroj Chaubey and Pratima Engheepi, National Secretaries Nagmani, Chaitali Sen, Shashi Yadav, Sunita, and AIPWA leaders from all states.

The Conference was inaugurated by AIPWA National President Srilata Swaminathan. In her inaugural address, Comrade Srilata said that governments and the powerful sections of society are only giving women discrimination, violence, and insults. But women are determined to resist all this, and will fight and win jobs, freedom, and dignity. She spoke of the many forms of discrimination and violence being faced by women in India, and of AIPWA's struggles against the same.

Addressing the gathered women, Comrade Nagamani, State Secretary of AIPWA in Andhra Pradesh, spoke of women's struggles against exploitative MFIs, against rapes and acid attacks in the state. She said women from all over the country had rejected and protested the shameful statement by Andhra Pradesh DGP Dinesh Reddy, that women 'invited' rape by 'provocative' clothes.

Comrade Durga Bhawani, State Vice President of NFIW, and Challapalli Vijaya, State President of the Stree Vimukti Sangathan addressed the inaugural session, expressing good wishes for the Conference, and calling for united struggles by women and women's groups against the many challenges faced by the women's movement.

Comrade Sanjila Ghising of the DRWF spoke of the dual struggle of the women from Darjeeling: for their national identity, as well as for women's rights. After her speech, comrades of the DRWF felicitated all the AIPWA leaders and guests by draping scarves representing the Gorkha cultural tradition.

Comrade Meena Tiwari, National General Secretary of AIPWA, gave the concluding address at the Inaugural session. She said that the women marching on Vijaywada's streets, were raising slogans in different languages – but their spirit was the same: they were determined to resist oppression and win women's rights. She said that the Prime Minister and President had recently said that India's scores on sex ratio, maternal mortality, and other social indicators of women's well-being are a 'national shame.' But, she said, these leaders had no right to call the situation of women a national shame, because their own policies are responsible above all for this shameful state of affairs.

Not only the market, but even the Government, she said, were treating women like cheap labour and objects of exploitation. Not only is their labour inside the home unpaid, even their work outside in Government schemes, remains shamefully underpaid. She said, "History is witness that whatever rights women have achieved have only been through women's own struggles. We'll carry forward that legacy, and fight and win jobs, freedom, and dignity for women."

The Inaugural session was conducted by AIPWA National Secretary Kavita Krishnan.

Delegate Session

The delegate session of the 6th National Conference continued in the evening of 8 February as well as on 9th February. 425 women delegates from 17 states discussed their experiences of struggles, and to plan how to confront the challenges facing the women's movement today. A presidium comprising Comrades Saroj Chaubey, Gauri De, Gunni Oran, Bhadrawati, Jasbir Kaur, Mona Lisa Tissopi, Thenmozhi, Gandhimati, T Aruna and Kavita Krishnan conducted the Conference.

Solidarity Messages from the South Asia Solidarity Group (London) and Working Women Alliance of Bangladesh (Bangladesh Sramajibi Nari Moitree) were read out at the Conference.

Women workers in ASHA, anganwadi, and mid-day meal schemes in Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Assam and other states shared their experiences of how they work in crucial health and education schemes of the central government, yet they are paid only a pittance of honorarium and no regular salary, with no job security. It was decided that AIPWA would intensify its efforts to organise these lakhs of women workers to secure their rightful place as government employees.

Women delegates discussed their experiences of struggles against many instances of atrocities against women by police officers and powerful people, including MLAs. They noted that in many cases of rape and harassment, we saw that the perpetrators get open protection of police stations and MLAs. It is difficult even to lodge an FIR, and even if one succeeds in lodging an FIR, the accused are not arrested.

Women from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab discussed the phenomenon of 'honour' killings. In these states, 'khap panchayats' have harassed and even killed couples who marry by choice, breaking caste traditions. Women from other states said that in fact, this phenomenon is spreading across the country. If women marry by choice, they are either forced to marry someone else, or killed. The Conference stressed that is needed to resist such assaults on women's right to decide about their own life.

Women discussed the struggles of women who are members of SHGs and exploited by Micro finance institutions. They demanded a ban on MFIs and easy government bank loans for women.

The Conference stressed the need to struggle for women's right to dignified and secure jobs, which are crucial for women's self-reliance. The Conference also condemned the Law Ministry's proposal to dilute and dowry harassment law (Section 498 A).

The Conference elected a 95-member National Council, which in turn elected a 31-member National Executive. Comrades Srilata Swaminathan and Meena Tiwari were re-elected National President and Secretary, while Comrades Saroj Chaubey, Tahira Hasan, Kumudini Pati, Rati Rao, Medha Thatte, Mukta Manohar, Bharti S Kumar, Pratima Engheepi, Susheela Tigga, Anju Borkataky, Premlata Pandey and Sudha Choudhury were elected Vice Presidents, and Comrades Sunita, Anjali, Shashi Yadav, Chaitali Sen, R Nagamani, and Kavita Krishnan were elected National Secretaries.

The Conference passed resolutions demanding cancellation of the Assembly membership of the BJP MLAs of Karnataka Assembly who were caught watching a gang-rape video inside the Assembly; demanding that the Andhra Pradesh DGP who blamed women for provoking rape, be made to quit; condemning the Norway government's decision to separate two children of Indian origin from their parents on flimsy grounds; rejecting the Government's food security bill as a farce, and demanding a genuine food security bill that would truly address the widespread malnutrition and hunger, especially of women and children; expressing protest against the gang rape and murderous assault of a dalit girl by goons of the ruling BJD in Odisha, and condemning the Odisha Women's Commission report that denied the gang rape took place; expressing solidarity with the struggle for a separate Gorkhaland and Telangana; and condemning the violence on anti-nuclear protestors including a large number of women at Koodankulam, and demanded scrapping of the Koodankulam project.

Comrade T Aruna delivered a vote of thanks to all those who helped to make the Conference a success. CPI(ML)'s Andhra Pradesh Secretary, Comrade Murthy, expressed good wishes for the AIPWA Conference and confidence that AIPWA would grow stronger in the days to come.

Delegates at the Conference responded to a call for funds for the forthcoming 9th Party Congress of the CPI(ML), and contributed to a collection in the Conference hall itself.

All the volunteers from Andhra Pradesh and other states were warmly felicitated and thanked for their immense efforts in making the Conference a success.

Cultural Evening

On the evening of 8 February, a cultural evening was organised, in which women from almost all the states participated with great enthusiasm, expressing the progressive and struggling cultural aspect of the women's movement very well. The artists depicted their local struggles through folk dances and songs, as well as in individual compositions and poetry. The music and dance expressed struggles against the corporate plunder of land and resources, repression on people's resistance, women's resistance against inequality and violence, and their struggle for dignity and rights.

In the morning, Lambada women dressed in their traditional costume, and comrades of the Andhra Pradesh Jan Sanskritika Mandali dressed in red with red flags aloft, had led the Rally, while women from many states spontaneously joined them in dancing.

The cultural evening began with a graceful Bihu dance by Assam AIPWA comrades. Comrade Nagamani of Kakinada along with her team members, presented rousing songs that had the audience clapping to the beat, and also performed a musical play. Tamilnadu's AIPWA comrades presented a song and dance, and Jharkhand's women's cultural team, Prerna, presented a traditional 'jhoomar' dance. Narender Kaur and Kiran of Punjab, Sunetra Sengupta of West Bengal, Kusum Verma of Varanasi recited poetry related to women's lives and struggles. The team of Karbi Anglong women comrades presented progressive and revolutionary Karbi songs. Many women comrades sang individual songs –in Kudukh and Santhali languages, in Tamil, Assamese, Kannada and in many of the languages of Bihar. Comrade Meera Chaturvedi of West Bengal sang several songs in Bhojpuri, Bengali, Nepali, and, when requested by the audience, in Assamese too.

In response to 'Why this Kolaveri,' ('kolaveri' means 'killer rage' in Tamil), Comrade Srilata Swaminathan sang a spirited 'We want Kolaveri,' on the women's movement and AIPWA's struggles.

The cultural evening was conducted by AIPWA National Executive member Uma Gupta. The number of women participants in the cultural evening kept growing longer, and eventually, the programme had to be regretfully concluded, though the songs and dances continued even at the places where the delegates were staying! What was remarkable was that the participants ranged from 20-year-old Lakhimani from Jharkhand to 70-year-old Lakhrani Kunwar from Bihar.

An important part of the cultural aspect of the Conference was a painting exhibition on the theme, "Women's oppression, Women's Resistance," by two young artists, Anupam Roy and Bablu Paul, and a poster exhibition by Kusum Verma from Varanasi. The exhibition of posters and paintings began on the first day, and continued till the end of the Conference. The paintings, prepared over a period of two months of painstaking and tireless efforts by the artists, were appreciated by several intellectuals as well as by the delegates from various states.

Protest March at Garhwa Against State Repression

On 13 February, a massive and spirited protest march took place against the ongoing state repression and witch-hunt of ordinary villagers and CPI(ML) activists in the name of combating Maoists. Defying rain, and heavy intimidatory police deployment, thousands of men and women participated in the march and mass meeting.

Marching with red flags aloft, protestors demanded the release of CPI(ML) comrades Ramdas Minz (elected mukhiya of Badgad village), and Fida Husain, and an end to the harassment and repression of villagers and CPI(ML) activists in Garhwa and the rest of Jharkhand in the name of combating Maoists. Comrades Ramdas Minz and Fida Husain had been arrested in the course of a struggle on a local issue, and were subsequently tortured and booked for collusion in a land mine blast conducted by the Maoists. While both were taken into police custody on 21 January itself, their arrest has been shown on 23 January and they were produced in court on 24 January.

CPI(ML)'s Comrade Sita Paswan's family has not yet been provided with the seizure list of items confiscated during the police raid, though the police has claimed that false currency was found during the raid.

Recently, facts came to light regarding the brutal killing of a deaf and mute cattle herder, Lucas Minz, by CRPF personal in Latehar district of Jharkhand. The incident reportedly took place on January 31, 2012, during the joint operation by the CRPF and District Police, who claimed to be conducting an operation against Maoists. Lucas Minz, who was herding cattle near Koel River, was reportedly shot dead when, being mute, he failed to respond to queries by CRPF and Police Jawans. Having shot him dead, the security forces buried him in the sands. His family hunted in vain for him, and only on 6 February, villagers found the body and identified it. But the police then threatened the villagers and Minz's family with dire consequences, and forced them to bury the body again. Only on February 12, did the family, assisted by CPI(ML)'s Latehar comrades, forced the police to file an FIR against the brutal killing. In another incident on January 1, a driver named Rajendra Yadav was also branded a 'Maoist' and gunned down by police. The CPI(ML)'s protest march on 13 February demanded justice for Lucas Minz and Rajendra Yadav, and severe punishment for their killers.

Marching at the head of the procession were Comrade Dipankar Bhattacharya, General Secretary of CPI(ML), Comrade Janardan, State Secretary of the party in Jharkhand, Rajaram Singh, Central Committee member of CPI(ML), Vinod Singh, CPI(ML) MLA in the Jharkhand Assembly, Sushma Mehta, Zila Parishad Chairperson, Rahina Begum, pramukh of Danda panchayat, Comrades Sogra Bibi, and Kishore Kumar. The mass meeting was presided over by Comrade Kalicharan Mehta. Comrade Ravindra Rai conducted the proceedings. The chief speaker at the meeting was Comrade Dipankar Bhattacharya, and other speakers included Comrade Vinod Singh, Comrade Rajaram Singh, Comrade Rahina Begum, Comrade Sogra Bibi, Comrade Kanhai Singh of Latehar, and Suneeta Kerketta, wife of Comrade Ramdas Minz.

Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda had visited Garhwa on February 12 and was in Garhwa till the morning of February 13. The protestors raised spirited slogans against Munda, and demanded that the CM answer for the killing of Lucas Minz and arrests of innocent villagers and CPI(ML) activists.

Edited, published and printed by S. Bhattacharya for CPI(ML) Liberation from U-90, Shakarpur, Delhi-92; printed at Bol Publication,
R-18/2, Ramesh Park, Laxmi Nagar, Delhi-92; Phone:22521067; fax: 22518248, e-mail: mlupdate@cpiml.org, website: www.cpiml.org

ML Update 07 / 2012

2012-02-08T18:32:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 07, 07 – 13 FEBRUARY 2012

Malevolent Mamata and the Dance of Death in West Bengal

Safar Molla, an enterprising marginal farmer of Kaltikuri village in Bardhaman district, had lost his father at an early age and had been maintaining the family since then against heavy odds. Thanks to spiralling input prices including irrigation costs, he had to take loans and leave some bills unpaid, expecting a bumper paddy crop that would allow him to pay back. And a bumper harvest it indeed was! But he could not be happy. The market price was clearly lower than his cultivation costs. With no help from the government forthcoming, there was no way he could pay the bills and save his and his family's honour. On 18 November he consumed some of the pesticide he had bought to protect his well-cared crops. He was only 17. Before and after him some 30 peasants, including a few sharecroppers, committed suicide since the middle of October last year under similar circumstances.

Vikram Singh of Kolkata Tramways Corporation was one among the many workers of five public transport corporations in West Bengal who were not receiving their salaries and other dues like retirement benefits for the past four months because the state government suddenly stopped subsidising these units. Surviving on borrowed money, Vikram was perhaps expecting some relief from the new, avowedly pro-peasant government. What he got instead was the transport minister's statement that workers won't be paid unless and until they pull their corporations out of the red and that the workforce will be downsized. Hearing this in a news broadcast, the 28-year-old worker immediately hanged himself, leaving behind his pregnant wife and a girl child.

The tragic stories of Safar, Vikram and others like them typify the plight of peasants and workers in post-"change" Bengal. In the case of starving transport workers, the blatantly irresponsible policy of the state government is directly to blame. As for the distressed peasants who are helpless victims of a deep agrarian crisis generated by successive governments at state and central levels, the TMC-led government has betrayed a total lack of political will to help them out. It has failed to make adequate arrangements for state procurement of paddy at minimum support price, leaving the peasants to the mercy of private rice mill owners and their agents. The latter are forcing the farmers into distress sale of their crop at prices much lower than the MSP, which itself is way below actual production costs. Mamata Banerjee claims she is not in a position to help, because the MSP is determined by the Central Government. But why can't she pressure that government, as she claims to have successfully done in some other cases, to properly determine the MSP? Alternatively, why doesn't she add bonus, as state governments have often done, to the MSP to save the cultivators? She pleads a severe funds crunch, but why doesn't she use the available money on saving human lives rather than on beach festivals, doling out favours to youth clubs and increasing the salaries and daily allowances of ministers and MLAs?

Lacking proper answers to such pertinent questions, Ms Banerjee has fallen back on a shameless denial mode. Instead of taking prompt action to save lives, including the lives of babies who are dying in horrifying numbers in state-run hospitals, she blames the media, the opposition parties and even her coalition partner Congress for blowing things out of proportion. She claims, for example, that barring one incident, the peasants who committed suicides did so for purely personal reasons unrelated to debt burden or non-availability of remunerative prices!

Matching its criminal negligence in protecting human life, the government has stepped up attacks on people's right to protest and get organised. The labour minister has announced that police personnel and government employees would no longer be allowed to form trade unions or hold rallies against the government. Meanwhile, public transport corporations have initiated the process of laying off the so-called irregular/temporary/ contract workers who have been serving their concerns for years on end.

But such attacks have only prompted the workers and employees to close their ranks and fight back. In a momentous move, 'temporary' workers in the Balurghat depot (North Dinajpur district) of North Bengal State Transport Corporation have formed a joint struggle platform comprising CITU-led and INTUC-led unions and struck work with full support of permanent workers, paralysing bus services in large parts of the district. In many places jute, potato and paddy growers have voiced their protest by destroying their crops which cannot be sold even at cost prices.

To be sure, this is only the beginning. The new government is fast exposing itself. The hour has arrived, perhaps sooner than many expected, for genuine left and democratic forces to unite and unfurl the banner of resistance against the autocratic ways of this anti-worker, anti-peasant government.

CPI(ML) Statement on SC Verdict on 2G Scam

New Delhi, 2 February, 2012

The CPI(ML) welcomes the Supreme Court verdict on the 2G scam, in which the Court has ordered cancellation of 122 licenses issued in 2008 and penalized corporations that benefited from corruption.

The verdict is also a decisive blow to the UPA Government which had consistently been denying the 2G scam entirely. In particular, the present Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal had, on record, repeatedly claimed 'zero loss' in the 2G allocations, and had rubbished any demand for cancellation of licenses. The SC verdict has exposed such propaganda by the UPA Government to be deliberately misleading and false attempts to cover up the scam.

The entire UPA Government, including the Prime Minister and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and the present Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, are collectively responsible, not only for the massive scam, but for covering up corruption and attempting to protect the corrupt. The CPI(ML) demands that the UPA Government immediately resign.

Central Committee, CPI(ML)

Make the Call by Central Trade Unions for Nationwide General Strike on 28 February a Grand Success

Strengthen the Struggle against Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation

The call for All-India general strike on 28 February 2012 is being received warmly among the working people. AICCTU has organised convention in several states and the efforts are intensifying for campaign and mobilisation at the district and industrial area level for the strike. The fighting potential of the workers against extreme injustice and traitorous UPA-2 and the state governments of different colours is being reflected in militant struggles and angry outbursts here and there. The February 28 strike will be the last warning to the Manmohan Singh Govt against its betrayal of the nation and especially the working class.

The incident at Yanam in Puducherry is on similar pattern to the incidents of Noida, Badanagar (WB), Ghaziabad, Pricol in Coimbatore where intense violations of labour laws and denial of very basic rights of workers coupled with violent aggression on workers using the paid goons and police and administration has resulted in corporate officials also facing the wrath of workers. On 2nd February a successful bandh of Puducherry and road blockades was organised (on the initiative of CPI(ML) and AICCTU) on the call of all Left parties. On 5 February a team of AICCTU was due to visit Yanam.

7th Tamil Nadu State Conference of AICCTU

Resolve to Make the All-India Strike a Grand Success

AICCTU held its 7th state conference at Colochel, Kanyakumari on 28th and 29th January 2012 at Comrade Singaravelar Hall and the Dias was named Comrade Srinivasa Rao.

The Conference began on 28th January with hoisting of the Flag by Comrade Thenmozhi, State Vice President. This was followed by the leaders paying floral tribute at the martyrs' column. Immediately after the open session of the Conference started which was conducted by AICCTU State General Secretary Comrade NK Natarajan. The open session was also addressed by trade union leaders of Left parties and fraternal organisations. Comrade SS Thiagarajan, State General secretary of AITUC in his address, recalled the Pricol incident where false charges were framed against leaders of the union including Comrade S Kumarasamy and AITUC stood with AICCTU in that hour of challenge. Now in Yanam of Puducherry workers' struggle for wage rise in a ceramic factory led by AITUC has met the same fate. Forces that branded AICCTU as terrorist organization, can readily brand AITUC the same after Yanam incident. Comrade Sukumaran, State Secretary of CITU referred to the demand raised by AICCTU for Trade Union Recognition Act in line with West Bengal Amendment, and said CITU will also strive with AICCTU in achieving this demand. State President of AIUTUC, Comrade Anavarathan also spoke. Comrade Rajiv Dimri, National Secretary of AICCTU and Comrade Balasundaram, State Secretary of CPI(ML) were on the dias.

Comrade Balasubramaniam, all-India Secretary of AICCTU, after his brief speech inaugurated the poster exhibition on "History of capitalism and of struggles against it". This colourful exhibition enthused all visitors including leaders, delegates and general workers. Comrade S Kumarasamy, National President of AICCTU delivered the concluding speech of open session. All guests were presented with mementos.

On 28th evening a public meeting was held, where hundreds of workers from different parts and industrial sectors participated. Meeting was presided over by Comrade Antony Muthu. Meeting was also addressed by Mr SP Udhayakumar, Convenor, Peoples' movement against Nuclear Energy which is spearheading anti-nuclear plant movement with the participation of tens of thousands of local people in and around Koodankulam among other leaders of AICCTU. Public meeting was also addressed by Comrade Bharathi, State President of All India Students' Association (AISA), Comrade Janaki Raman, State General Secretary of All India Agricultural Labourers' Association (AIALA) and Comrade Thenmozhi of AIPWA.

On 29th, delegate session began with greetings message from Comrade Bharadwaj, Karnataka State leader of AICCTU who also participated along with com Kalaivanan. Comrade John Kerimeli and Comrade Venugopal of Kerala also attended the two day session. While addressing the delegates Comrade Rajiv Dimri, National Secretary of AICCTU and central observer, congratulated TN comrades not only for wider expansion of AICCTU in various sectors like powerloom, beedi and construction but also for the new initiative taken by TN AICCTU in campaigning for Trade Union Recognition Act, Implementation of Factories act under section 85(1) in powerloom sector, amendments in standing order with regard to apprentices/trainees and also for the implementation of Migrant Labour Act with TN rules.

After passing the draft document unanimously, conference elected 128 state council members that in turn elected 52 executive committee members and 23 office bearers which includes com NK Natarajan, President, Comrade Jawahar, Honorary President and Comrade T Sankarapandian, General secretary. Comrade S Kumarasamy addressed the gathering stressing the importance of mobilizing large number of workers in the February 28 strike. He called for immediate convening of district bodies and make all out effort for resounding success of the strike. At Pricol also there is a stalemate in negotiations and Pricol union has already served a strike notice and it will commence from February 9, 2012. He called upon the delegates and affiliated unions to extend all their support and solidarity for the successful strike of the Pricol workers.

Resolutions passed in the conference: -

1. When the government is in support of corporate loot and plunder of natural resources, when there is an increased attack on the livelihoods and democratic rights of the workers, when the Supreme Court of India declares the sanctity of private property, the February 28 all India strike is called by Central Trade unions and conference resolves to make the strike a resounding success.

2. Conference demands from the State Legislature to pass a resolution to permanently closedown Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant.

3. Conference declares its solidarity with the ongoing strike by thousands of workers in powerloom sector in Kumarapalayam area led by AICCTU demanding 100 percent increase in wages.

4. It resolved to extend full support and solidarity for hunger fast and subsequent strike called by Pricol union.

5. Conference strongly condemned the death under police custody of Regency Ceramic factory trade union leader Comrade Murali Mohan at Yanam area of Puducherry, demanding immediate arrest of those responsible for his murder. It also condemned the police firing on agitating workers.

6. It demanded the state government to roll back the increased prices of milk and bus fare. It also urged the state government to give up the proposed increase in power tariff.

Joint TU State Convention at Bangalore

A joint State Convention of all trade unions was held at Bangalore on 30 January 2012 to highlight the issues of February 28 all-India strike and to mobilize workers and cadres in making the strike successful.

Comrade Shankar, VP of AICCTU paid tributes to the workers murdered at Yenam, Andhra part of Puducherry and called upon workers to make the strike successful. He also said that trade unions have major role in imbibing more militant character to struggles in view of rising onslaught of capital on workers. He also said that outbursts like Noida and Pricol cannot be ruled out if necessary protection is not provided to workers against rampant exploitation by the capital. He called upon workers to rise against UPA government at the centre and the state BJP government for their anti-worker, anti-people, pro-ruling class policies.

All India president of CITU AK Padmanabhan, National Secretary of AITUC Sachdeva, National President of TUCC Shivshankar, AIUTUC leader Radha Krishnan were among other all India leaders that addressed the convention.

Comrade Bharadwaj, State President also addressed the convention while Appanna, State Secretary was part of the joint presidium.

Joint Convention in Rajasthan

The Rajasthan State level joint TU's took a decision to prepare for the all India Strike call for 28th February by holding seminars and other programmes in all the five divisions of Rajasthan. On 30th January the Ajmer division held a meeting under the leadership of AICCTU which was organised by Com Bhavari Devi and at which all major centrally recognised TUs were present.

In Jaipur a Conference was held on 3rd February, at which central leaders of all the main TUs were present. Comrades Gurudas Dasgupta of AITUC and Tapan Sen of CITU along with Dr. Reddy of INTUC and BM Rai of BMS were also present. AICCTU was represented by Comrade Srilata. In her speech she made clear the demands that the TUs had placed before the Finance Minister in January that they wanted addressed in the Union Budget. As she was the only leader present who represented the unorganised sector she primarily laid stress on the demands of that sector such as NREGA being extended to towns and cities, the central fund of 4% for the unorganised sector, 10.000/- minimum wage, stopping the practice of contractorisation etc.

Comrade Anand was the main organiser in Jaipur for the TU conference on behalf of AICCTU. Comrade Mahesh Chaumal, State General Secretary of Rajasthan Construction Workers Union also addressed the gathering and stressed the active participation of AICCTU in the coming national strike programme. Comrade Suresh Lohar was a member of the Presidium at this joint TU Conference

Demonstration by RYA against Kulak-Police High Handedness

In Kattumannarkudi of Cuddalore district a militant demonstration was held by Revolutionary Youth Association (RYA) on 25th January against Kulak-Police high handedness. In the back drop of panchayat election results in October, some heated verbal exchanges took place in Rajasoodamani village of Mela Radampur Panchayat between the two contending parties. With the ulterior motive of suppressing one dalit section of the village an AIADMK kulak belonging to Vanniar caste employed the police. The police without any provocation assaulted the youth and women of the village. A police Sub-Inspector also got injured in the protest and reaction that followed the police excesses. The police slapped several false cases against the youths including district committee member of CPI(ML).

Taking advantage of the situation, as the men implicated in false cases were not present in the village, the panchayat President and his men, led by the AIADMK kulak forced the women and children out of the village. Everyday they harassed the women and children in various ways. Police refused even to receive the complaints and acted against the victims only. When CPI(ML) and AIALA leaders on behalf of the victims went to the police station to lodge a complaint they were threatened by the henchmen of the Kulak. Party District Secretary Ammaiyappan was also roughed up inside the police station. Complaints were lodged with DGP and DSP by CPI(ML) State Secretary personally. A team of leaders led by State Secretary prevailed over the Thasildar to take steps to rehabilitate the people back in the village. The peace meeting convened by the Thasildar was also foiled by the AIADMK kulak. Even after the people got bail the panchayat President and their men made every effort to prevent their entry into the village.

Along with State Secretary, Balasundaram, State Committee members Ammaiyappan, Ilangovan, village women, children and the youth got bail. They put pressure on the Tehsildar and DSP to provide protection to the affected people. Protesting the kulak-police high handedness a protest demonstration was held. Around 130 students, youth and women assembled for the militant demonstration. RYA district leaders Rajasankar, Dhanavel, CPI(ML) leaders Ammaiyappan, Ilangovan and Party State Secretary Balasundaram addressed the demonstration. The demonstration also condemned Government's inaction and arbitrariness in the distribution of relief to the Thane victims. In the face of the demonstration the administration was forced to take immediate steps to speed up the relief distribution. This has evoked good response among the rural and urban poor.

ML UPDATE 6 / 2012

2012-02-02T14:41:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15 No. 06 31 JAN - 6 FEB 2012

Stop Making Muslim Youth Pawns of the

Cynical Game Between Competing Investigative Agencies

The recent case of Naqee Ahmad from Darbhanga, Bihar, is a reminder of how Muslim youth are becoming pawns in the cynical and cruel game played by competing anti-terror agencies. This young man, till recently an informer helping the Delhi Police Special Cell with their investigations in blast cases, turned overnight into one of the main accused by the Maharashtra ATS in the 13/7 Mumbai blast case.

As facts unravelled, it was revealed that the two investigative agencies had been having a tug-of-war over Naqee for some weeks. A letter by Naqee's uncle revealed that the Maharashtra ATS had confined Naqee's brothers under house arrest in their own factory in Mumbai, on the pretext of 'protection' from the Delhi police!

After the Maharashtra ATS announced that it had 'cracked' the case and arrested Naqee, the Delhi Police Special Cell and Home Ministry floundered for a while. But instead of defending their informer, they chose to 'congratulate' the ATS for solving the case. The Delhi Police and Home Ministry obviously felt that it was better to maintain mutual solidarity and sacrifice the hapless informer rather than risk exposing the tactics of false framing that all investigative agencies, after all, employ!

As the credibility of the anti-terror investigations came under a cloud, the ATS chief hastened to assure that there was no 'rivalry' between the agencies. However, he 'emphatically' stated that competition between investigative agencies was not only natural but in fact desirable – "Tell me which police officer does not want to detect this kind of blast case." Unfortunately, what remains unacknowledged is that in the cynical competition to 'crack' blast cases and win medals, innocent Muslim youth end up being framed. The framing of Naqee came to light because of the tussle between two agencies over him. Now, when the Home Ministry assures better 'cooperation' and 'sharing of information' between agencies in future, does it mean that agencies must take care to frame individuals who are not already ear-marked by other agencies?

In the race for 'gallantry' medals, truth and justice are victims. In 2008, the CBI told a court how the Special Cell of Delhi Police had framed Md. Qamar and Irshad Ali as terrorists, whereas they were proven to be police informers. The officer responsible for the frame-up was a recipient of the President's gallantry award. On Republic Day this year, another police officer, Ankit Garg, responsible for heinous custodial sexual violence on an adivasi woman in Chhattisgarh (a medical examination ordered by the Supreme Court found stones shoved inside her private parts) received a gallantry award.

Recently, the Supreme Court has ordered a probe into the long series of encounters which took place between 2002 and 2006 in Gujarat. The apex Court observed that whenever a fake encounter is alleged, the Gujarat Government "initially stoutly denies it" but admits it "when the matter is scratched even slightly" and the facts come to light. Surely this is an observation that holds true beyond Gujarat. Virtually every terror case or encounter anywhere in the country, which has actually been subjected to a searching and impartial probe, has proven to be 'fake.'

In fact, the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court and NHRC stipulate that every encounter must be presumed a murder till proven otherwise. Yet, in most cases, there is no probe. In the infamous Batla House case, the Central Government has resolutely resisted any impartial probe. Only when the Congress cynically eyes votes in Azamgarh and UP do its leaders term Batla House to be a fake encounter!

After Azamgarh, investigative agencies are now painting upper Bihar as the next site for witch-hunt of Muslim youth. Meanwhile, Raj Thackeray and his ilk have found an ideal opportunity to combine their campaign of regional chauvinism with their communal fascism. In the wake of Naqee's arrest, Raj Thackeray declared that migrants were responsible for terror in Mumbai, and ridding the city of migrants was the way to free it of terror attacks.

It is urgent that we challenge and resist the politics of false framing and fake encounters which are claiming innocent Muslim youth as its fodder. Investigative officers responsible for such frame-ups and fake encounters must be severely punished. Shameful and heinous crimes cannot be covered up with 'gallantry' medals, without an outcry from democratic forces in society.

Hunger Fast by AIKMS Against Land Grab in TN

A 136 km stretch of the Ulundurpet-Salem 4-laning project under the BOT model, estimated at Rs 941 core, was awarded to Reliance (RIL). For this project, 460 acre land was acquired by the NHAI from 5000 peasants and farmers, at a very meagre compensation. Flouting all norms and rules, the roadways authority, in connivance with the State government officials, and Revenue and Highways departments, grabbed lands worth several hundred crores. People were cheated by undervaluing the land, and getting thumb impressions or signatures on blank forms. Those who bribed the officials with hefty sums were awarded hefty compensations, while those unable to bribe the officials got a raw deal. Those who refused to bribe faced nightmarish experiences. Even after the project stands completed and opened to traffic, poor peasants, hut dwellers and farmers are yet to get the compensation they were promised.

Affected peasants approached our party. On December 14 2011, peasants and farmers attended a meeting convened by AIKMS at Kallakurichi, where it was decided to go for series of struggles. As decided at the meeting, a hunger fast and demonstration, from morning to evening, was held on January 23 in Kallakurchi in front of the Taluk office. Peasants, small shop owners, farmers and other including women participated in the fasting. The demands are: Rs 10 lakh must be given with 3 years interest per cent of land; jobs must be provided for the very poor families; the Government must order an enquiry to investigate the malpractices; and the erring officials must be severely punished. If the demands were not met within 15 days, the protestors would gherao the collector's office.

The hunger fast was led by Comrade Gopalakirshnan, convener of the struggle committee. K Periyasamy, advocate on behalf of the committee, introduced the protest. AIALA National Vice-President Balasundaram, State President TKS Janardhanan, CPIML's Villupuram district secretary Venkatesan, CPIML's Cuddalore district Secretary Ammaiyappan, SCM and Party in-charge for the Salem district Chandramohan, and others addressed the demonstration. Several peasants who were affected by the project narrated their experiences. At the end the leaders submitted a memorandum to the Tahsildar.

Resolutions were passed, condemning the lethargic attitude of the administration in carrying out rehabilitation and reconstruction work affected by the Thane Cyclone. The fast also demanded immediate arrest of the policemen who raped Irula adivasi women near Tirukkovilur.

Rice Mill Workers' Protest in Karatagi, Karnataka

Hundreds of rice mill workers marched on the streets of Karatagi, Koppal district on 18 January, carrying AICCTU flags. They demanded better wages and better service conditions, and enforcement of the Factories Act, including introduction of legally mandatory attendance and wage registers. Interestingly, the Koppal district Rice Mill Owners Association leaders were forced to come to the negotiating table in front of District Commissioner only a week back, and agreed to introduce attendance and wage registers. The state of implementation of legally mandated labour laws is so pathetic that the district administration had to issue an order for the same! An agreement was also signed between AICCTU and Rice Mill Owners Association, for giving minimum wages, PF and other service condition related matters that are legally mandatory.

The AICCTU unit among the rice mill workers was formed by the latter when owners beat up one of the trade union leaders and then slapped an attempt-to-murder case on workers' leaders in connivance with the local police. The incident was a triggering point, and workers and the union got disillusioned with the owners, and decided to affiliate their union with AICCTU.

The area has never seen a fighting union for decades. No other established unions could make an entry for this long. We have broken the tradition and have unfurled the red banner in the fortress of rice mill owners.

The rally was flagged off after the inauguration of office in the main Bazaar by Comrade Shankar, Vice President of AICCTU. The rally was led by Com. Virupakshappa, AICCTU taluk president and Com. Bharadwaj, State President. Mallappa Meti, President of the newly affiliated union, presided over the public meeting that followed. Com.Vittappa Gorentli, Syed Ashmuddin, lawyer, Basavaraj Silavendar, district leader of AITUC and Peer Pasha of a magazine, Labour Line, and Basavangouda, NCM of AICCTU addressed the gathering. Com. Shankar called upon workers to fight the brutalities and blatant exploitation of the rice mill owners in the region.

State Party School in Mysore

The state unit of the party organized a first ever 4-day long party school in Karnataka to facilitate the development of new cadres and leaders. The party in Karnataka is yet to come to grips with the art of party building, in spite of relatively better expertise in developing mass struggles and mass organisations. The school was aimed at overcoming this lacuna by developing a fresh batch of leaders equipped with Marxist ideology.

On the first day, Professor Lakshminarayana lucidly explained 'basic Marxism' while Doctor Lakshminarayana, State Convener of IIMS dealt with the subject 'class struggle and the state'. On the second day, Com. Ayyappa Hugar, editor of 'Varga Samara' magazine spoke on 'Mao and his teachings'. The discussion that followed was very lively. Dr. Lakshmi made a 'comparative study of political parties, class base and their politics'. The third day began with discussion, led by Comrade Shankar, on party programme and the strategy of Indian revolution. A panel of teachers, including PA Kumar and AIPWA Vice-President Rati Rao, organized discussion on questions of women, nationality, caste, religion and neo-liberalism. The fourth day was the session on 'Socio-economic, political situation of Karnataka and our strategic perspective'.

Screening of radical films and discussions were organized on all three evenings. Com. Bharadwaj, party state leading team member presided over the 4-day school while Javaraiah, another SLTM, conducted the proceedings. Comrade Venugopalan, the party's Kerala SLTM who joined the school, made the concluding remarks.

Left Parties' Delegation Visits Workers Injured in Police Firing at Yanam

The struggle of workers of the Regency Ceramic Company at Yanam district of Puducherry state highlights yet another instance of the abysmal state of workers' rights and labour laws in the country.

Over a long period of time, the workers have been agitating for proper payment of wages in the company. Among the 1200 workers, only 400 were regularized from the contract. All the other 800 workers were contract employees. Among these 800, many of them were working for more than 5 years and were not regularized. There was united agitation by all the workers for proper payment, for the betterment of working conditions, and for regularization of the relatively senior workers at least. Worst of all, even the permanent employees were not being paid properly and consistently.

There are no labour laws implemented at the work place. The workers were not allowed to form a union to address their issues. Even the registered union was cancelled by the management, which has also used tactics of 'divide and rule' to weaken the workers' struggle. The workers began a strike in protest against the management's attitude. Instead of hearing the workers' grievances, the management has deployed police force to crush the agitation. And the police have obliged with brutal violence against workers.

The police arrested the workers' leader Murali Mohan. On the way to the police station, he was beaten up so badly in the van that he lost his life. The workers followed the vehicle to the police station, and protested to demand the immediate release of Murali Mohan. The police claimed that Murali Mohan died of a heart attack. Once the workers realised the truth, they began a serious agitation in front of the police station against the custodial killing.

The CI then gave orders for firing, directly, without resorting to lathicharge or teargas to disperse the protestors. 9 workers were hospitalised with bullet injuries from the police firing, and the condition of 5 is still critical.

The angered workers then attacked the Vice Chairman of the company, and he died after being beaten up by them. Factory property and vehicles were also burnt by workers in their fury.

Our fact finding delegation found that no damage occurred to the machinery. Among the 11 machines, 3 were stopped by the management themselves for repair. The remaining 8 machines were in perfect working condition. The only damage was to the outside property and vehicles. But the management is trying to hike the estimation of damages heavily, using these exaggerated estimates to book cases against the workers.

Major ruling class parties of Puducherry have tried to play down the serious underlying issues of violation of workers' rights and labour laws, and custodial killing.

A joint meeting of 11 Left parties from Andhra Pradesh, held on 28/01/12, held the management responsible for the incident, and demanded a judicial enquiry. A decision was taken by all left parties to send a delegation to Yanam on Sunday (29/01/12).

Comrade Satyanarayana (District secretary of CPI(ML) in East Godavari), Comrade Narasaraju (State committee member), and Comrade Nageswara Rao (state president of AICCTU) represented CPIML (Liberation) in the delegation of Left parties. The delegation attended the cremation of Murali Mohan and met the District Collector to submit their report and demands.

The demands raised by the delegation include:

1. 25 lacs ex gratia to Murali Mohan's family

2. Job to his family

3. 5 lacs ex gratia to each of the persons injured and hospitalised

4. Judicial enquiry into the incident by a judge

5. Cases must be booked against SI and CI under sections 302 and SC/ST atrocities

6. The functioning of the factory must be started immediately considering the problems of workers problems.

7. In case of refusal by management to start the factory, the government must take the responsibility and run the factory, allowing the workers to form unions

8. The labour laws must be implemented strictly and the workers grievances must be solved.

Domestic Women Workers' Union Conference in Delhi

The Gharelu Mahila Kamgar Union (domestic women workers' union) affiliated to AICCTU held its first conference at Mayur Vihar Extension, Delhi. The Conference began with an introductory speech by Comrade Shyam Kishor, Delhi Secretary of AICCTU, in which he outlined the issues of struggle and said that all over the country, wherever women domestic workers had organised themselves and struggled, they had forced governments and employers to recognise their rights.

Women workers narrated their experiences at the Conference, in which a considerable number of domestic workers had gathered.

Phula Devi said that "we work in the big apartments and homes of the well-off, where we receive neither minimum wages nor respect. We are not even allowed to use the toilet and are sometimes even denied a drink of water."

Pushpa Devi said, "I'm from Bihar and my husband is no more. As a rule, domestic workers in Delhi are migrants, coming to Delhi in search of work. But we are denied identity cards and ration cards, and struggle to survive. We do all the house work in hundreds of homes – sweeping, mopping, washing vessels and clothes and even shoes, caring for kids and cooking – but we are underpaid and overworked. Even when we are asked to do extra work, we are not paid for it. We must demand that the Government regulate proper hours and terms of our work and ensure minimum wages."

Susheela said, "We women work at 'Ashiana' and other apartment blocks in the area, but we ourselves have no stable homes. Prices, house rent, water and electricity bills keep rising, but our employers see no need to raise our wages. All of us, whether we come from Bihar, Bengal, Odisha or UP, must unite struggle for our rights."

Meena talked of how the women are on the go from 6 am onwards even in cold weather – and even if they are five minutes late they get a scolding. If they take leave for a child's sickness, too, they are in danger of losing their job, and there is always some other woman desperate enough to take the job at a lower wage. Women workers needed to unite to make sure that no one worked for less than an accepted minimum wage.

Gharelu Mahila Kamgar Union leader Shyamli spoke of the experience of creating the union in NOIDA in the NCR region, and the need to strengthen the AICCTU and CPI(ML). She said, "Women are enslaved – at birth to their father, then to their husband, then in old age to the son – and when we seek to stand on our own feet at the workplace, there too we find ourselves enslaved. We need to say, we'll not tolerate such slavery anymore!"

Comrades Anjana and Renu also spoke at length about the issues that needed to be raised.

As the concluding speaker, AICCTU State President Gautam spoke of the ILO Convention on Domestic Labour, which obligated countries to protect the rights of domestic labourers, the bulk of whom were migrants and women. He called to draw large numbers of women workers into the union and intensify the struggle to force the Government to pass a law protecting domestic workers' rights.

The Conference was conducted by AIPWA Secretary Kavita Krishnan. At the end, the Conference elected a 15-member committee including Comrades Pushpa Devi as President, Vimla as VP, Anjana as Secretary, and Meena, Meena Devi, Nema, Rohini, Savitri, Sushila, Phula Devi, Renu, Geeta, Premvati, Maya and Meena Ojha as members.

The Conference passed a charter of demands to be presented to the Delhi government, including a law for Domestic Workers, minimum wages, regulated work, hours of work, and mandatory holidays, payment of full salary in case of being sacked, toilet and drinking water facilities at the workplace and social security for domestic workers.

Comrade Sanjay Sharma, Delhi State Secretary of CPI(ML) was also present at the Conference.

Garhwa Update

Among those CPI(ML) activists of Badgad village arrested on January 21, Budlal Kerketta and Mahfuz Ansari, were missing from custody since January 25. Following intense protests, they have been released on January 29. They had been taken to Chhattisgarh and tortured severely. The others arrested - mukhiya Ramdas Minz and Fida Husain - are said to be in jail, but their families are not being allowed to meet them.

The security guard of the elected Chairperson of the Zila panchayat is still a hostage of the Maoists. Some efforts at mediation are reportedly underway but there is no headway yet. The wife and mother of the security guard attempted self-immolation outside the thana in Garhwa on January 28, accusing the police of inaction.

The police are still peddling the theory that the villagers and comrades doing the road blockade on January 21 had laid a trap in collusion with Maoists. The police men's association has in fact petitioned that CPI(ML) leader and Zila Panchayat chairperson Sushma Mehta too be charged as a conspirator in the blast. The Maoists, by timing their blast to coincide with the mass protest, have facilitated the repressive drive by police, allowing them to brand each and every mass protest on the most innocuous of issues as 'Maoist-inspired' or 'Maoist-instigated'.

The CPI(ML)'s protests in the region and in Jharkhand are on, in the face of all odds, demanding that the arrested villagers be released, those responsible for custodial torture and the appalling rights violations be punished, an end to the repression of mass movements in the name of curbing Maoists, and steps to secure the safe and speedy release of the hostage guard.

Obituary

Comrade Govindarajan, aged 78, former state secretary of the party in Karnataka, breathed his last on 27 January 2012. He suffered multiple haemorrhages on the morning of 21 January, that could not be arrested, and was in the Intensive Care Unit of a private hospital since then.

Com. Govindarajan upheld the red flag and stood firm in the most difficult times for the party in the state. He played a major role in getting the party's first trade union in the state, Karnataka General Labour Union, registered and also played a key role in the second phase of our trade union work in Bangalore.

He also spent 22 days in jail for supplying medicines to the women activists including AIPWA activists who protested against Beauty Pageant in Bangalore in 1996.

When the party office was raided for opposing police brutalities on the virtual uprising by garment workers in Peenya in 2001 on the issue of PF settlement, he was also arrested along with Com. Shankar.

He also played a big role in publishing our first Kannada magazine "Kannada Liberation" in its initial years. A large number of workers also benefited from his legal knowledge, acquired through practice of struggles. The working class work initiated in Peenya by our party under his leadership in the beginning of 2000 sowed the seeds for the party's development in Karnataka today.

Red Salute to Com. Govindarajan!

ML Update 05 / 2012

2012-01-25T23:11:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 05, 24 – 30 JANUARY 2012

'Green Hunt' in Jharkhand:

State Repression and Witch-hunt Against CPI(ML)

ollowing a landmine blast by CPI(Maoist) in Garhwa, Jharkhand, CPI(ML) leaders were abducted by Maoists, and the police is implicating the CPI(ML) in the blasts, and torturing its local village activists for 'conspiring' with Maoists.

Local village activists of the CPI(ML) including elected mukhiya Ramdas Minz were leading a protest at Badgad village in Bhandaria block in Garhwa district, demanding that the Bhandaria BDO meet them and address their grievance over the site chosen for a health centre.

A landmine blast by Maoists claimed the lives of several policemen who were accompanying the BDO to meet the agitating villagers. The Maoists also abducted Comrade Sushma Mehta, elected Zila Parishad Chairperson from the CPI(ML) and CPI(ML)'s Jharkhand State Committee member Comrade Akhtar Ansari who were on their way to the protest site, along with Comrade Sushma's security guard and the driver of their car.

Shamefully, instead of making efforts to rescue the abducted CPI(ML) leaders and others, the Jharkhand police falsely implicated the CPI(ML) in the landmine blast, alleging that the roadblock and protest were being held by the party as a ploy to 'lure' the policemen into the Maoist trap. In his press conference, the DGP even refused to acknowledge that the abduction had taken place. Several CPI(ML) activists included the Badgad mukhiya were tortured and beaten up in custody in the name of 'interrogations' to establish 'links' with Maoists.

The Maoists owned up the abduction, and subsequently three of the hostages including both CPI(ML) leaders were released on January 24, though the guard continues to remain a hostage to the Maoists. The Garhwa bandh called by the party on 24 January was very successful, but several CPI(ML) activists including Party state committee members Anant Prasad Gupta and Kalicharan Mehta, veteran CPI(ML) leader Kishore Kumar and President of Danda Panchayat Samiti (Block council) Comrade Rahina were severely injured in a brutal assault by the police. All these comrades are hospitalised with fractured limbs.

Garhwa is still very much in the grip of feudal forces and the feudal power centres in the district deeply resent the growing assertion of the rural poor with the CPI(ML). There have been powerful struggles for land redistribution, ration cards, against corruption in welfare schemes, and for workers' minimum wages and rights. On the basis of these struggles Party candidates polled impressive votes in the district in the last Assembly elections and won many victories in the panchayat elections held in 2011. Sushma Mehta was elected Zila Parishad chairperson and Party nominees also won many panchayats and blocks.

The police and local administration have for some time now, launched an all-out drive to falsely implicate the CPI(ML) leaders and discredit the party, to crush the growing assertion of the party in Garhwa.

Not long ago, in Garhwa, the police raided the home of CPI(ML) activist Sita Paswan, claiming without any evidence, that fake currency had been found, indicating CPI(ML) leaders' links with 'ISI'. Similarly, the effort is on to link CPI(ML) with Maoists and intimidate CPI(ML)'s mass base.

By fabricating a link between a mass democratic protest by villagers with a Maoist blast, the Jharkhand police and Government are trying to tar every democratic protest with the brush of 'terrorism', to justify crackdown on every such protest in the name of anti-Maoist operations and Green Hunt.

The Maoist actions of massacring policemen, abducting political activists, and holding a security guard hostage are highly reprehensible and condemnable. Further, as is happening in Garhwa now, such actions are inevitably used by the state as a pretext to unleash repression on activists of mass struggles. The brunt of this repression is borne by the mass of rural people and activists emerging from these oppressed sections. It is these activists, too, who are the targets for Maoist abductions and killings – which can only serve the interests of the ruling class and the state. In the case of the assassination of Comrade Mahendra Singh by the Maoists, the killing directly benefited the corrupt nexus of police, politicians, and mining mafia. The killing by Maoists of social activist Niyamat Ansari too benefited none but the contractors and politicians benefiting from MNREGA corruption.

Seeking to discredit and crush the CPI(ML)'s assertion by hook or crook, the Jharkhand Government and police are indulging in a witch-hunt and outright repression of CPI(ML) activists and leaders. But history has shown, time and again, that such repressive tactics have failed in the face of revolutionary determination and resistance. The party calls upon its supporters and democratic people to beat back this political conspiracy and emerge victorious!

Fact line on Maoist Abduction and State Repression of CPI(ML) Activists in Garhwa in the Wake of the Maoist Blasts

The facts:

On 21 January 2012, an agitation by local villagers demanding the shifting of the proposed site of a health centre was being led by elected mukhiya and CPI(ML) activist Ramdas Minz, at Badgad village in Bhandaria block in Garhwa district. The police arrested Comrade Ramdas Minz during the agitation, but the protest continued, blockading the road with the demand that the Bhandaria BDO meet them and address their grievance.

Comrade Sushma Mehta, elected Zila Parishad Chairperson and well-known local leader of the CPI(ML) was coming from Garhwa by car to the protest site, along with CPI(ML)'s Jharkhand State Committee member Comrade Akhtar Ansari.

A land mine blast by Maoists in the same area claimed the lives of several policemen, though the BDO's car, apparently on the way to meet the agitating villagers, passed safely. When Comrade Sushma's vehicle approached the area, the Maoists stopped the car and snatched the gun from Comrade Sushma's bodyguard. Comrade Sushma, her bodyguard Sunesh Ram, CPI(ML) State Committee member Comrade Akhtar Ansari, and the driver of the car, Ahmed, were abducted by the Maoists.

The Jharkhand police made no attempt to rescue the hostages, and instead falsely implicated the CPI(ML) in the landmine blast, alleging that the roadblock and protest were being held by the party as a ploy to 'lure' the policemen into the Maoist trap. Several of our activists: Comrade Ramdas Minz, elected mukhiya from the CPI(ML), Fida Husain, Annu Lakra, Maqsud Ansari and Budlal Kerketta - who had been protesting at Badgad with the demand that the site of a health centre be decided by villagers rather than at the behest of contractors - are being tortured and beaten up in custody in the name of 'interrogations' to establish 'links' with Maoists.

Three of the people (Comrades Sushma Mehta and Akhtar Ansari and their driver) were released on 24 January, though the security guard continues to remain a hostage.

CPI(ML)'s Garhwa bandh on 24 January got overwhelming support of local people. Impressive mobilisation also happened in Majhiaon, Nagar Untari, Bhawnathpur amd Ramuna. However, it seemed that police were avenging the Maoist blasts by venting their anger on peaceful protestors. In the lathicharge women, older people, none was spared. Over a dozen CPI(ML) activists were severely injured, with broken limbs, in a brutal lathicharge on a peaceful protest during the bandh. Those injured include Comrade Sushma's husband Comrade Kalicharan Mehta, her father Comrade Kishor Kumar, Comrade Rahina Begum, the elected Pramukh of Danda block in Garhwa district, and the party's State Standing Committee Member Comrade Anant Gupta whose left leg has been broken.

The CPI(ML) activists who have been in police custody since January 21 were produced in front of a magistrate and charged only on 24 January. As we go to press, we learn that they have been shifted to Garhwa thana from Badgad thana, and may soon be sent to jail.

Earleir on 22 January, protests were organised all over Palamu that included Garhwa, Daltonganj, Chhatarpur, Barwadih, Nagar Untari, Ramuna and Dhurki in which more than thousand people took to the streets in protest of the arrests and abduction of our comrades by Maoists. On 23 January, protests were held throughout the State. At Ranchi, Jharkhand's capital, a dharna was held at Albert Ekka roundabout attended by senior Party leaders. Protest marches and demonstration were held in all the sub-divisions and blocks of Giridih district. Dharna was held at Randheer Verma Chowk in Dhanbad. Demonstration wa held at Jhanda Chowk in Koderma. Protest meetings were organised at Ramgarh, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, DUmka, Mohanpur in Deoghar, Lohardaga, Barwadih and Manika in Latehar, apart from several other places. There was thick participation from people in these protests of 22nd and 23rd that helped to put pressure on the State Govt as well as the Maoists.

A CPI(ML) delegation met with the Jharkhand Governor and demanded action against concerned officials for the criminal apathy of the Government in releasing those taken hostage by the Maoists, and for unleashing state terror and custodial violence against CPI(ML) activists who had been involved in peaceful protests and now are falsely accused of involvement in the Maoist blasts. The Governor did not seem very serious towards the issues raised by us, however, he tried to assure us that nobody should suffer injustice.

A CPI(ML) delegation comprising its State Secretary Comrade Janardan Prasad, CC member Comrade Suvendu Sen and Bagodar MLA Comrade Vinod Singh demanded the DG of Police for urgent intervention. We, however were given the impression that for the DGP controlling the reaction emanating from the massacre of policemen was the only priority.

Condemning the Maoist blast and abduction, as well as the ongoing state repression and police brutality in the strongest terms, the CPI(ML) reiterated its demand that the State and Central Governments make every effort to secure the safe release of the abducted guard; and to end the appalling conspiracy and campaign by the Jharkhand police and administration to suppress democratic people's movements led by the CPI(ML).

Outrage Against Gang Rape in Odisha

Odisha's BJD Government has been rocked to the foundations by protests against the brutal gang rape and attempted murder of a 19-year-old dalit girl in Arjungoda, in Pipili constituency of Puri district. In the wake of the incident and the protests, Naveen Patnaik has been forced to get a Cabinet Minister Pradeep Maharathy to resign following allegations that he has been shielding the rapists.

Maharathy is a notorious mafia of the area and is the BJD MLA from Pipili. The four rapists are known to be close associates of Maharathy and members of BJD's local goon brigade. They gang-raped the 19-year-old, and then strangled her, leaving her for dead. Her parents found her in a coma. But when they went to the Pipili Hospital, they found that the hospital, under pressure from Maharathy, refused to admit her. The Cuttack Medical College Hospital also refused to admit her. The Pipili Police Station refused to let them lodge an FIR. When they approached the State Women's Commission in Bhubaneshwar, they were told to 'come back tomorrow.'

Only when the parents approached the State Human Rights Commission did they get some relief, with the SHRC demanding an explanation from police and doctors for their inaction. The media also picked up the story at this point.

The victim's family had first approached the police station on November 18. But the FIR could be lodged only on January 9, following intervention by the Odisha High Court.

The girl is the key eyewitness in the gang rape of her friend in 2008. Her friend was mysteriously killed and she herself was attacked twice since 2008, in an attempt to silence her. And now, she herself has been gang-raped and left nearly dead, but the BJD Government has been protecting the perpetrators.

The first protest in the state on this issue was held by the AIPWA and CPI (ML) Liberation in the state capital, Bhubaneshwar, on 9 January. The protest was led by State Committee member Radhakant Sethi, Sanjukta Panigrahi of AIPWA, Mahendra Parida, National Secretary of AICCTU, Comrades Janaki Rao, Upendra Sahoo, Seema Sethi and others.

Subsequently, all Opposition parties in the state protested the incident, demanding a CBI probe and resignation of the Chief Minister. The entire spectrum of political opposition, media, social groups and NGOs united under the banner of Odisha Gan Samaj, convened by two senior journalists.

The Odisha HC has directed the Government to provide proper treatment to the girl, protection to her and her family, and punishment for culprits and officials who tried to cover up the matter.

The girl is unlikely to recover, since she has suffered from a brain haemorrhage. In a face-saving attempt, Naveen Patnaik has got Maharathy to resign from the Cabinet and has ordered a judicial probe. But judicial probes are widely perceived as eyewash in Odisha; since in Naveen's tenure there have been 17 judicial probes on various issues. Many of them are yet to submit a report, and in cases where reports have been submitted, no action has been taken. The Inspector-in-Charge of Pipili police station, Amulya Champatiray, was first transferred to police HQs at Puri, and then suspended on charges of dereliction of duty.

But these measures cannot assuage the outrage felt by people in the State against the heinous gang rape and murderous assault and cold-blooded cover up and protection of perpetrators by the ruling establishment. The protests continue demanding a CBI enquiry and resignation of the CM.

Struggles For Rights of Cyclone Affected in TN

CPIML, AIALA and AIPWA held daily road roko, gherao, and protest demonstrations between 4 -21 January in the cyclone-affected areas, to press for speedy relief and rehabilitation. On 4th January, a demo at the Town Panchayat Office turned into a gherao of the Tehsildar, led by the CPI(ML) State Secretary. For over an hour, a large number of people including a large number of Muslim women thronged the Tahsildar's chamber. The latter assured that electricity, water and PDS distribution would be resumed forthwith. In Tirunavalur block, several demonstrations were held in which angry people encircled the RDO Sub-Collector, Tehsildar and Revenue Inspectors, forcing these officials to order a fresh survey of the affected families. In one incident, the administration deployed forces to disperse the agitators. Party District Secretary Venkatesan intervened, and the protesting people compelled the Rapid Action Force to retreat. Protestors led by our party blockaded the NH 45 more than thrice.

More than 3000 people participated in these protests, from both the Dalit and Vanniar (most backward) communities. On 8 January, CPI(ML) and All India Agricultural Labourers' Association (AIALA) activists occupied government buses in Senthanadu, and the protests spread further. Of the total 44 panchayats in the block, our agitations and demonstrations covered around 20. Of the total 17000 families, 5000 families (20000 people of the total 70000 in the block) got the relief amount of Rs 2500 each. The District administration's plan was to distribute relief in a very limited section. Now people from many adjoining villages are approaching the CPI(ML) and AIALA for help in taking forward their demands.

In Cuddalore district, a road-roko was organized on 14 January, in which more than 250 people participated, forcing the administration to order a fresh survey. Just 14 families were in the initial list, after the fresh survey, the number jumped to around 200!

District Secretaries Comrades Venkatesan and Ammaiyappan and other district committee members and mass organisation leaders are actively organizing the protests.

Workers and AICCTU in TN Raise Fund for the Cyclone Victims

Cyclone Thane: TN government's callousness in relief and rehabilitation measures has only added to the woes of the cyclone affected people. Even after 3 weeks people in many parts of the districts affected by cyclone are not getting adequate food.

All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) appealed to the workers to fight against the indifference of the Jayalalitha Govt toward the cylone affected people and to come forward to help them. Within 2 days Pricol workers mobilized Rs.53,000 and workers in Chennai mobilized Rs.70,000 toward the relief fund. Contract workers of Hyundai who earn less than Rs.6000 a month participated enthusiastically in the relief fund mobilizing activities and they too contributed to the relief fund. TIDC workers contributed Rs.20,000. In Tirunelveli, AICCTU leaders and cadres approached the small vendors in the main market and mobilized Rs.10,000 in a day. Similar fund-raising was also conducted by AICCTU in Namakkal and powerloom workers contributed for the relief fund. In addition to the ongoing preparations for the 7th State Conference of AICCTU, AICCTU leaders and activists all over the state have collected over Rs 1 lakh in relief funds. The relief funds will be distributed in a public programme in Cuddalore, Villupuram, and Puduchery in the first week of February.

Rajasthan: AIPWA's 2nd State Conference Held

The 2nd State Conference of the All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) was held in Jaipur on 23rd January with the call to "Fight against oppression, discrimination and violence, fight for employment, emancipation and justice". Women delegates from several districts like Pratapgarh, Bhilwada, Tonk, Udaipur, Jaipur and Ajmer actively participated in the Conference and the debates and discourse.

Comrade Srilata Swaminathan, National President of AIPWA inaugurated the Conference and hoisted the flag. She said that equality, dignity and respect, and a repression-free society is still a dream for women. Despite all sorts of official schemes the women are continuing to fall victims of feudal, capitalist oppression, repression and exploitation. Emancipation is only possible through resolute struggle, that in turn is possible only through a fighting organisation like AIPWA. CPI(ML)'s State Secretary, Comrade Mahendra Chaudhary also addressed the Conference. Several women delegates spoke in the Conference.

The Conference adopted 11 political resolutions mainly centring on NREGA, employment, pensions, BPL, price rise, withch-hunt, honorarium, 33% women's reservation among others. The Conference elected a 13 member State Executive Council. Comrade Sudha was elected State Secretary and Comrade Bhanwari as President. The Conference concluded with the participants taking pledge to build struggle on the resolutions and spread and strengthen the organisation in Rajasthan.

AIPWA's Udaipur District Conference was also held recently, at Salumber on 15 January.

Obituary

The Party in Punjab suffered a tragic loss when Comrade Paramjeet Singh Ghuman, a young promising organizer from agricultural labour background in Bathinda district, passed away at the Chandigarh PGI hospital in the early hours of 21 January following a motor-cycle accident a few days ago. Comrade Paramjeet (35) had been actively involved in the ongoing Assembly election campaign in Maur constituency in Bathina district. The funeral took place on 23 January afternoon in his village and was attended by hundreds of people from his village and many Party leaders and activists including Comrades Swapan Mukherjee, CC incharge for Punjab, Rajvinder Singh Rana, secretary of Punjab state unit, Ruldu Singh, President of All India Kisan Mahasabha and Party candidates in the Assembly election including Comrades Bhagwant Samao, Gurjant Singh and Harvinder Sema. Comrade Paramjeet was a brick kiln worker and became a full-time Party organizer in 2009 in the wake of the militant movement of the rural poor in Mansa district for homestead land. He is survived by his wife and three children. The Party pays homage to this young comrade and expresses deep condolences to the bereaved family members.

ML Update 04 / 2012

2012-01-19T08:54:00.001+05:30

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15, No. 04, 17 – 23 JANUARY 2012

Children in Manmohan's India – Starved and Stunted

PM Manmohan Singh would like us to believe that adopting the policies of liberalisation have put India on the fast track towards becoming a global superpower. Recent studies have, however, called his bluff, showing that when it comes to tackling hunger and basic literacy, India's showing is among the worst in the world.

The Global Hunger Index 2011 ranks India at 67th place amongst 81 countries, shockingly, behind even other South Asian neighbours like Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and other notoriously poor and backward countries like Sudan. The GHI held that 21% Indians are undernourished, nearly 44% of India's under-5 children underweight, and 7% of them die before they reach five years.

Meanwhile, Indian students scored bottom at the tests conducted by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which assessed the ability of 15-year-old students at basic reading, maths and science. 16,000 students from 400 schools in Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh (both enjoying relatively high ranking on human development indicators among Indian states) participating in the PISA exercise, scoring the lowest scores in the world, second only to Kyrghistan. A very small percentage of students in these states had even baseline proficiency in reading, mathematics and science.

Ironically, the UPA Government, itself responsible for the abysmal conditions of food security and schooling, has tried to present a 'human face' of concern for these issues.

Releasing a recent 'HUNGaMA' (Hunger and Malnutrition) report prepared by some corporates and NGOs and backed by MPs cutting across party lines, the PM said it was a 'national shame' that in the 100 focus districts of the study, 42% of children under five are underweight and 59% are stunted. And HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has just released the Annual Survey of Education Report (ASER) on rural India, prepared by an NGO, Pratham. This report, studying both government and private schools in rural India, shows rising enrolment in school, but declining attendance, over-reliance on private tuitions, and a marked decline in reading and mathematical ability of children in the age group between six and 14.

If hunger and malnutrition are indeed a national shame, why is the Prime Minister paying mere lip service to the issue? The GHI report holds that steep hikes in food prices are mainly responsible for global hunger. The Indian Government has completely failed to curb hikes in food prices. The National Food Security Bill tabled in Parliament recently is an insult to those who are battling hunger. It persists with the 'targeting' method, rather than providing universal coverage. While the Government was forced to back down on its Rs 26/Rs 32 poverty criteria, the Bill's 'priority' section covers only a small section of the population beyond this infamous poverty line. The Bill proposes to fix the state-wise numbers for the 'priority' (BPL) section arbitrarily from above. The actual amount of food rations per family will be reduced when the Bill comes into effect, and the subsidised rates for food grain too are higher than those prevalent now in many states. Many current APL card-holders will find themselves deprived of coverage when the Bill comes into effect. Further, food grain rates for APL beneficiaries, instead of being fixed, are tagged at half the MSP, and are therefore vulnerable to fluctuations and hikes. The criteria for the BPL census are designed to exclude a large number of the poor. Above all, the Bill allows the Central Government to declare a shift from food entitlements to cash transfers, and tags the entire PDS to the highly controversial Aadhaar (UID) scheme.

In spite of a Supreme Court directive, the Government is yet to universalise the ICDS scheme, which is the main scheme dedicated to improving nutrition and survival of women and children. The Government's fund coverage for ICDS is still highly inadequate. As a result, over 1 lakh anganwadis remain unoperational, while those that do operate often lack the most basic facilities. Anganwadi workers are extremely underpaid and overworked. Now, the Government is talking of 'restructuring' the ICDS in keeping with World Bank recommendations, and is proposing to privatise the ICDS on a 'PPP' model. Such measures can only help food marketing companies prey on the malnutrition of women and children for profit.

Faced with the PISA rankings and the ASER report, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal was quick to shift the blame for poor schooling standards to state governments. However, the facts stare us in the face – Sibal's much-hyped 'Right to Education Act' has done precious little to improve the quality of schooling in India. The RTE did nothing to end the discriminatory divide in schooling, whereby a small number of rich children avail of good schooling at select private schools at high fees; while the bulk of students are doomed to schools which lack the most basic educational facilities. Interestingly, while the ASER report shows that more and more children are shifting to private schools, it also shows that most private schools too lack the minimum educational and infrastructural criteria laid down by the RTE, and the educational performance of students in these private schools too is far below the mark. This means that the private school industry that is mushrooming all over the country, extorting high fees and exploiting the hunger for education, is also lacking in basic educational standards!

It is notable that China's performance in the PISA ranking is among the highest in the world, topping the rankings in maths and science. This ought to be a reminder to India, that quality schooling for every student is possible only when the Government makes schooling a priority. As long as privatisation of education remains the norm; as long as educational access remains contingent on the ability to pay high fees; as long as government schools are starved while private players are free to prey on students and profit from education, students in India will remain educationally deprived.

Thanks to the Indian Government's pro-liberalisation policies, India's future generation of children are starved of nutrition and learning, and stunted both physically and intellectually. No cosmetic measures promising 'right to education' or 'right to food' can carry any credibility until and unless these rights are guaranteed universally to all, and backed by a serious shift in policy priorities.

CPI(ML) Holds Massive Rally in Kolkata for Land-Livelihood-Democracy

On 10 January 2012, Kolkata witnessed an unprecedented rally of the toiling masses, defying the inclement weather and assembled at Rani Rashmoni Avenue demanding "Land-Livelihood and Democracy", at the call of CPI(ML) State Committee of West Bengal. People from various backgrounds rallied in thousands and thousands, protesting against the anti-people policies of the new government that betrayed the left legacy of West Bengal, sending a message in no uncertain terms that CPI(ML) is the only Left alternative against the TMC-Congress combine State Government.

Unregistered agrarian labourers who had been evicted from their land, landless poor peasants, farmers who have been denied of their remunerative prices, minority community, left masses from other workers of transport industry, contract workers particularly from Public Health Engineering, Left parties, workers of Tea-Garden, Bidi, ASHA & midday meal female workers, students-youth-intellectuals, cultural workers – were the main components of this gathering.

Within a short span of 7 months, the sheen of TMC's slogan of 'Ma-Mati-Manush' (Mother-Motherland-People) has started tearing asunder. The TMC-Congress Govt rode to power, on the back of peasant revolt that rocked the polity in the aftermath of Singur and Nandigram. But this government has started showing criminal apathy towards the real demands of the peasants and farmers, and the entire rural Bengal is again in the throes of a new agrarian crisis. Till date, 21 peasants have committed suicide, the TMC goons have unleashed a reign of terror, extortion has become the order of the day. The entire educational sphere is experiencing widespread anarchy, State's health system has collapsed, crisis is looming large in all corners of human life and dignity. This government has failed on all fronts. Lakhs and crores of central fund remains unutilised, MGNREGA has turned out to be a cruel joke.

The slogan "Land-Livelihood-Democracy" was against this fast deteriorating political scenario. Three big rallies, from Sealdah and Howrah station and another from Subodh Mullick Square started simultaneously, with red flags, festoons, banners, and slogans, which culminated at Rani Rashmoni Avenue. Comrade Partha Ghosh presided over the mass meeting and read the text of charter of demands before the gathering. After that, leaders of different mass organisations made speeches. Com. Dipankar, CPI(ML) General Secretary was the main speaker. He said that if the people of West Bengal voted for a change in favour of Land-Livelihood and Democracy, they shall again change the government if their hopes and aspiration remain unfulfilled. He exposed the hypocrisy of TMC government, and said the people of Singur have not yet received any compensation. Just a few days back 174 people died in 24 Parganas(S) after consuming poisonous liquor, 18 peasants committed suicide, 12 of them only from Burdwan. Mother and sisters lost thier lives at Magrahat after police fired upon the poor villagers. But Chief Minister of the self proclaimed Ma-Mati-Manush government didn't care to visit and meet the victims. This government has declared that it will not tolerate land robbery and is bent upon to seize all the land hitherto occupied by the peasants in rural Bengal. He also called for a genuine revolutionary left unity and independent left assertion in West Bengal.

Comrade Sufiyan's Martyrdom-day Celebrated with Protest in Bhojpur

"The heroes that fight crime, those that risk their life and embrace martyrdom for a better society against forces of darkness become immortal and inspiration for others." These were the words of Jasam's Bihar President Ram Nihal Gunjan remembering Comrade Sufiyan at a protest meeting held in Arrah on his 4^th Martyrdom anniversary protesting frequently recurring incidents of crime. Comrade Sufiyan sacrificed his life in the anti-crime struggle. He was a hero of anti-crime and anti-communalism struggles in Bhojpur. He thwarted all designs to disgrace the Muslim community in the district. Speakers at the protest meeting said that intensifying all round struggle against the criminal forces is the only true tribute to him.

Cyclone 'Thane': Devastation Multiplied by Govt. Callousness

On 30-12-2011 Thane hit Puducherry and Cuddalore and villlupuram districts of Tamilnadu and caused unprecedented damage to infrastructure, crops, fishing boats and nets, and houses especially huts and the total green cover in Puducherry district of the UT of Puducherry. Four lakh huts were damaged in Cuddalore and Villupuram districts alone. A total of 10 lakhs acres of farm land of 8 districts, namely cuddalore, Villupuram, Nagai, Thiruvarur, Kanchipuram, Thiruvallur, Tanjore and Ariyalur faced disastrous damage.

On 4^th January 2012 a team led by Com. Balasundaram (State Secretary, Tamilnadu) and comprising several others including Com. Balasubramanian (State Secretary, Puducherry Union Territory) visited various villages of the affected area and met people. The team travelled 280 Km and had close interaction with the victims.

Comrade Balasundarm, on behalf of the team, held a press conference on 6^th January to publish the findings of the team, the estimate of the loss and the pathetic status of the relief work being provided by the Government. The meteorological dept at Chennai warned about the cyclone on 24^th December itself and about the probable severity with wind speeds of 150km/hr. The warning was repeated for several days and the Government had more than six days to act, but it chose not to act. The Government did not step into precautionary action. All the district administrations remained inactive and this is the root cause of severe damage caused by the cyclone.

The Congress Government in Puducherry led by its Chief Minister Rangasamy not only failed to take precautionary steps to handle foreseen disaster but was also callous in responding swiftly even after 10 days since 'Thane' hit over Puducherry region. The government announced and paid a solatium of Rs. 2000/- to each ration card holder family and kept idle for days.

Not even single hut can be constructed with the relief amount, Rs 2500/ 5000, declared by the Government. Paddy farmers are asking for Rs 10,000 per acre lost. The Government has declared Rs 4000 per acre. The farmers are annoyed and in grief. Cashew gardens from which a farmer earns more than 30000 per year are totally destroyed in Cuddalore, Villupuram Districts. The Government has decided to provide a paltry amount of Rs 3600 per acre. It is estimated that loss faced by cashew farmers is Rs 300 Crores, in Cuddalore District alone.

Condemning the lethargic attitude of the Puducherry government, Puducherry State Council of AICCTU and Movement for Protection of Roofless jointly held a massive protest Dharna in front of District Collector's office on 10 January, demanding speedy relief and rehabilitation measurers to all affected people. The demonstration was jointly led by S. Motilal State Secretary, AICCTU and J. Sakthivelu, Co-Convenor Movement for Protection of Roofless. A memorandum was submitted to the Chief Minister through the district Collector.

The CPI(ML) has demanded that the UPA Government at the centre and AIADMK and Congress govts in the two states should expedite the relief and rescue work for speedy recovery of affected people and properties, immediate release of Rs. 2,000 crores as interim relief to the UT of Puducherry, because the UT is fully dependent on the centre economically and appropriate compensation to the families of cyclone victims.

After 2004 Tsunami many demanded that coaster shelterbelts should be created. Seven years have passed and the Government is ritually paying homage to the people lost during Tsunami, and has failed to establish any worthy shelterbelt along the coasts, rather it was busy in missapprobriating Tsunami relief funds. If shelterbelts were in place the damage caused by Thane could have been minimized. We should note that the Cyclone travalled 107 Km inland. Guidelines under Disaster Management Act regarding prepardness, management, relief and reconstruction have not been followed and structures are not being created. And this is another reason for the severity of the disaster caused by this cyclone.

Domestic Women Workers' Union Conference

The second annual conference of Noida unit of Gharelu Mahila Kamgar Union (Domestic Women Wokers' Union) was held on 11 January 2012. Around eighty domestic women workers from Noida attended this conference. This was addressed by AICCTU General Secretary Swapan Mukherjee where he emphasized on expanding the union and need to develop more leaders from among domestic women workers. Many domestic workers narrated their work conditions and demanded a safe and secure work atmosphere which can only be achieved if the Government takes initiatives in this direction and recognize the work of domestic workers. Comrade Shyamkishore Yadav said that more intense work needs to be done in this regard along with developing more professional approach towards building an union in a highly unorganized and vulnerable segment of society which at the same time is highly neglected and made deprived by the governmental discrimination. The conference was also addressed by Sanjay Sharma, Chandrabhan Singh, Aslam Khan and many others. A 25-member Executive Committee with Shyamali Sarkar as President was elected by the Conference.

Party GBM in DTC

DTC Party unit held its 8^th Sector GBM on 14 January 2012 where it was resolved to expand anti-privatisation campaign further among new workers who are mainly employed under contract, casual or by private corporations like Tata. The delegates were unanimous on the task of providing political edge to the prevailing discontent in DTC after two decades of privatisation and contractorisation. The GBM also resolve to fulfill various organisational targets towards the preparations of the 9^th Congress of the the Party. They resolved to march towards being the biggest union in this important wing of the transport sector. A programme was also chalked out to hold a mass-convention against corruption and privatisation of public transport in Delhi.

The GBM was inaugurated by CC member Prabhat Kumar. He praised the role of transport workers in building the party in Delhi. Delhi State Secretary Sanjay Sharma delivered the concluding speech where he called upon to address the new challenges before the working class movement. A 15-member Sector Committee was elected by the GBM which in turn re-elected Comrade Shankaran as its Secretary. The GBM contributed Rs. 5000 for the Party's 9^th Congress Fund.

Views and Proposals of AICCTU submitted in the pre-Budget consultation meeting with Finance Minister (on 16 January 2012) for the forthcoming Union Budget 2012-13

To begin with, we are constrained to say that the views and proposals submitted by central trade unions in the pre-budget consultation meetings every year either do not find any place in the budget or are addressed in the form of some cosmetic measures, which too are not implemented as can be seen from the examples of "Unorganised Workers' Social Security Act 2008" and increase in the honorarium of Anaganwadi workers in the last budget. The issues of unorganized, contract workers, honorarium/incentive based workers like ASHA, Anganbadi, Mid-day meal, etc. working in several lakhs, implementing the most important schemes of the govt. but living in miserable conditions, do not find due importance in the budgets.

We are afraid that if this continues it will make this exercise of pre-consultation meetings with central trade unions very formal.

It is becoming clearer day by day that under the regime of economic globalization i.e. policies of LPG the economic growth does not equate with wellness of people. Our country continues to be at the bottom in regard to most of human development and social indices particularly hunger and malnutrition and, peasants continue to commit suicides. This trend of committing suicides has even extended to among jobless people in urban areas.

Even the note on "State of Indian Economy", sent by MOF to us appears more interested in giving details of GDP and outflow and inflow of foreign capital without proper assessment of actual impact of the economic growth on the people particularly regarding the mounting unemployment, growing agricultural crisis, inflation, declining real wages, etc.

One slogan has emerged universally which epitomizes the crux of ongoing situation. "We are the 99%"- this slogan emerging from "Occupy Wall Street" movement has universally symbolized the growing anger against the policies of economic globalization and their growing rejection, and at the same time has symbolized the demand of working people for bringing the policies and measures for the 99%, and not 1%. The views and proposals raised by we all central trade unions collectively in our memorandum submitted in this pre- budget meeting also reflect the same.

So, in view of the prevailing situation in the country and also the ongoing global crisis, we urge upon you that the coming budget should be working people-oriented with focus on addressing the issues of unorganized labour, domestic workers, honorarium/incentive workers particularly increasing their minimum wages, bringing them under social security cover and extending the coverage of all govt. schemes and statutory benefits to them; the issues of poverty, unemployment and social infrastructure; with focus on strengthening the purchasing power of working people and domestic market, and on resource mobilization through taxing the corporate and the rich, unearthing huge accumulation of black money including the huge unaccounted money in tax heavens abroad, recovering the NPAs etc. and putting a halt on extending all kinds of concessions and sops to the corporate and the rich. So, with this end in view we would, apart from extending full support to the joint memorandum submitted here, like to reiterate the following demands for the coming budget for serious consideration by the government:

a) Make Massive public investment in agriculture and rural sector and guarantee the implementation of land reforms. b) Housing for urban poor (workers' colonies) and land puttas for rural poor.
For all unorganized workers- Universal coverage of all employments under Minimum Wage Act and fixation of statutory minimum wage not less than Rs 10,000/- per month with indexation. Extend PDS and the benefits like PF, ESI, bonus, etc to all unorganized workers. Grant status of govt. employee to honorarium workers, like ASHA and Anganbadi and others, and for now, regularize them and bring them under the coverage of statutory minimum wage and social security. It may be noted that ASHA workers have been applauded by the health ministry of govt. for bringing down the infant mortality rate to more than half and doing excellent service in rural health sector. The survival of this important NRHM scheme depends on their well being.
Assured Pension for all including all unorganized workers- Against the measly pension the working people are getting, the proposed pension in the range of 100 to 1000 is unjustified. The pension should not be less than Rs. 7500/ with VDA for all pensioners/workers, who toil for their entire life for progress of the nation. Also stop privatization and FDI in Pension and withdraw the PFRDA Bill being introduced. Stop the move to reduce interest rate on PF. Raise this rate to 12.5%.
National fund for unorganized workers with allocation of 4% of GDP in present situation. b) Inclusion of agricultural workers under the "Unorganised Workers Social Security Act 2008". Also a Separate Act for agricultural workers.
No to Contractorisation and outsourcing of work of permanent / perennial nature. Till the contractorisation is abolished payment of wages and benefits to such workers at the same rate as available to the regular workers of the industry/establishment
Bring Urban employment scheme in the lines of NREGA and provide employment under NREGA for a minimum period of 200 days.
Take stringent measures against hoarders and ban forward trading in food grains to curb Price rise, and take other protective measures against price rise.
Lift ban on recruitment in govt. and public sector.
Stop disinvestment in CPSUs and provide budgetary support for revival of sick CPSUs.
For protection of migrant workers bring legislation in line with SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

ML UPDATE Vol 15 No 03 ; 10-16 Jan 2012

2012-01-17T11:03:00.001+05:30

വാല്സാദ് ജില്ലയില്‍ ഒരു വനിതാ സര്പന്ജ് ഉള്‍പ്പെടെ 13 ഇല്‍ 10 സീറ്റുകള്‍ നേടിയ സീ പീ ഐ (എം എല്‍) ന്നു പഞ്ചായത്ത് തെരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പില്‍ ഗുജറാത്തില്‍ ആദ്യമായി വിജയം ; ജ്ഹരോളി പഞ്ചായത്തിലെ ഒരു വാര്‍ഡിലും പാര്‍ട്ടിയുടെ പാര്‍ട്ടിയുടെ സ്ഥാനാര്‍ഥി വിജയിച്ചു .ജയിച്ച സ്ഥാനാര്‍ഥികള്‍ എല്ലാവരും ആദിവാസി വിഭാഗത്തില്‍പ്പെടുന്നവര്‍ ആണ് .

ML UPDATE 03 / 2012

ML Update

A CPI(ML) Weekly News Magazine

Vol. 15 No. 03 10 - 16 JANUARY 2012

യൂ പി തെരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പില്‍ പാര്‍ട്ടി മുന്നോട്ടു വെക്കുന്ന മുദ്രാവാക്യങ്ങള്‍:
അഴിമതിക്കാരെയും കൊള്ളക്കാരെയും വര്‍ഗീയ പ്രചാരകരെയും പാഠം പഠിപ്പിക്കൂ!
വളര്‍ത്താനും അഴിമതിയും ഭരണകൂട അടിച്ചമര്‍ത്തലും എതിര്‍ക്കുക!
കൊള്ളക്കാര്‍ക്കും ബാലാല്സംഗക്കാര്‍ക്കും സംരക്ഷണം നല്‍കുന്ന ഭരണത്തിനെതിരെ ദരിദ്രരുടെ സംഘടിത രാഷ്ട്രീയ ശക്തി വളര്‍ത്താന്‍ ഭാ ക പ (മാ ലെ )യെ വിജയിപ്പിക്കുക!