Mainstream Weekly

Most recent articles

• The Ideological Battle in Bangladesh

  14 April 2013, by Barun Das Gupta

  Pakistan as a country was born with the seeds of its eventual dismemberment lying embedded in the very process of its birth and subsequent evolution. The third paragraph of the momentous Pakistan Resolution of the Muslim League, adopted at Lahore on March 23, 1940, said:
  “Resolved that it is the considered view of this Session of the All India Muslim League that no constitutional plan would be workable in this country or acceptable to the Muslims unless it is designed on the following (…)

• Honouring Ambedkar

  14 April 2013, by Nikhil Chakravartty

  From N.C.’s Writings
  April 14 this year marks the 122nd birth anniversary of Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar. On this occasion we are reproducing the following piece by N.C. and a few relevant articles to offer our sincere homage to the abiding memory of that towering personality.
  The award of the Bharat Ratna posthumously on B.R. Ambedkar raises mixed feelings. No doubt Ambedkar was one of the stalwarts of modern India; the high-water mark of his career was that he contributed most (…)

• Is Ambedkar a Modern-day Messiah?

  14 April 2013

  by R. Akhileshwari
  As Dalit assertion is taking shape and Dalit power is being manifested, the relationship between Dalits and their icon, B.R. Ambedkar, is being discussed publicly for the first time. And for the first time ever, he is being acknowledged by the mainstream society in India as the second greatest Indian, which is really amazing considering the fact that this section of society had mostly a negative assessment of Ambedkar, as someone who was responsible for tearing up the (…)

• Memoirs of Chandal Jeevan: An Underdog’s Story

  14 April 2013, by A K Biswas

  REVIEW ARTICLE
  Itibritte Chandal Jeevan, Vol. I by Manoranjan Byapari; Priya Sipla Prakashan, Kolkata; Rs 250.
  Part-I
  Uncommon Memoirs
  He is no pedigree, nor has any pillar of support. He does not rest on the laurels of ancestral tradition of letters. Nonetheless he is a unique phenomenon with no parallel in Bengali literature, if not in Indian literature. His arrival at the centre of the glittering world of creative Bengali literature and adulation in train has left his readers and (…)

• Russia: Has Putin Won the Battle Against Oligarchs?

  14 April 2013

  by R.G. Gidadhubli
  The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, has complex relations with the Russian oligarchs, the ‘New Class of Billionaires’. Being an experienced wrestler, he has displayed his total control over those who have confronted and challenged him. For instance, Boris Berezovsky, who committed suicide in March 2013 in England, was once acclaimed as the ‘Godfather of the Kremlin’ and ‘King Maker’ in Russia during Boris Yeltsin’s era since he could pull down regional governments at (…)

• Gandhi’s Model of Civilisation and its Present Relevance

  14 April 2013

  by Raj Narayana Das
  Great men are either born great, or achieve greatness. And sometimes it is thrust upon some of them. Where does Gandhi stand in this Shakespearean classification? Certainly Gandhi achieved greatness. But I do not want to lift Gandhi to the level of a deity, nor do I want to use such an expression as Gandhism. That would amount to doing grave injustice to him. Because Gandhi denied that he had established a sect. To quote him, “I have no desire to establish a sect. I am (…)

• Hugo Chavez — A Tumultuous Life comes to a Painful End

  14 April 2013, by Sheel Bhadra Kumar

  TRIBUTE
  Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias, President of Venezuela, battling with prolonged cancer, died on March 5, 2013 at the age of 58. He was an epic figure who symbolised the radical transfor-mation of Latin America. He was a defining personality in the western hemisphere’s politics for 14 years. The deep emotional outpouring that followed the death of the Venezuelan President speaks volumes about his popularity and public support. In an era of crony-capitalism, Chavez was someone we will (…)

• Political Role of Women in the Chinese National Movement (1921-1949)

  14 April 2013

  by Namrata Hasija
  The Communist Party of China (CCP) was formed in 1921, under the influence of Marxist-Leninist thought and the October Revolution in Russia. The phase from 1927 to 1949 was most crucial in the history of Chinese nationalism. This period can be further divided into two periods, that is, from 1927 to 1937 (civil war between the Communist Party and Kuomintang) and 1937 to 1945 (war against Japanese aggression). During this period the position of women was pathetic because of (…)

• Tribute: Prem Singh

  14 April 2013

  Dr Prem Singh, the well-known progressive writer, journalist and academic, passed away in Punjab more than two-and-a-half months ago on January 23, 2013 after a brief illness. He was hospitalised the previous night.

• Veteran Socialist Thinker Mastram Kapur Is No More

  14 April 2013

  COMMUNICATION
  Veteran socialist thinker and Hindi writer Dr Mastram Kapur passed away in Delhi today in the evening. Dr Kapur, a staunch follower of Dr Rammanohar Lohia, had done a monumental work of editing and compiling Dr Lohia’s writings in Hindi and English in nine volumes. He was a prolific writer in Hindi and used to write fiction, poetry, essays and literature for children. He has several books to his credit.
  Born on December 22, 1926 in Sakadi village of Himachal Pradesh, Dr (…)