2021

The Communist movement in India is almost a century old now and remains an important actor in the Indian political scene. From fighting the British imperialists to the inequalities of the Indian society, the Communist Left is one force which was at the forefront of these struggles and gave it a progressive ideological shape. After Independence too, through its leadership of the working class, peasant, youth, students and women’s movements it continued to be a major progressive force and (…)

by P. S Jayaramu *
(September 13, 2021)
Events in Afghanistan culminating with the withdrawal of American troops in a hasty manner and the swiftness with which the Taliban took control of the capital city of Kabul with no resistance from the Afghan militia in the absence of backup support by American soldiers has led to widespread analysis about the pros and cons of the development. While I dealt with this theme in a previous article in these columns calling it an abdication of the Biden (…)

One month since they grabbed power in Kabul, the Taliban have been increasingly called to sort out growing contradictions both within the group and with Pakistan, their sole mentor and manipulator.
A Taliban commander has blurted out against the ISI for trying to dominate the new government in Afghanistan, alleging that the ISI Director-General Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed exerted his influence and command over the Taliban to such n extent that he was able in th end to prevent the (…)

by R.G.Gidadhubli*
September 7, 2021
On the 27th August 2021 a group of independent media in Russia including Forbes, Novaya Gazeta, Dozhd, and Meduza – issued six demands, including the rescinding of the Russian a law labeling certain independent media and journalists as “Foreign Agents”. This was in response to the policy of the Russian Government which has recently amended the law known as ‘Foreign Agent’ act passed in 2012 and modified repeatedly. An effort has been made to (…)

by Susan Sontag (1967)
I
Every era has to reinvent the project of "spirituality" for itself. (Spirituality = plans, terminologies, ideas of deportment aimed at the resolution of painful structural contradictions inherent in the human situation, at the completion of human consciousness, at transcendence.)
In the modern era, one of the most active metaphors for the spiritual project is "art." The activities of the painter, the musician, the poet, the dancer et al, once they were grouped (…)

* Gandhi, Godot and Pandemic Plague | Muzaffar Assadi
* Language Policy in India With Reference to Northeast Tribes | J J Roy Burman
* Taliban get a government! | M K Bhadrakumar
* The Kharasrota River Not for Sale | Bhabani Shankar Nayak
* Some thoughts on the Ganesh festival and related matters | S G Vombatkere
* A Sordid Saga of Caste And Backwardness Politics | P Radhakrishnan

Letter to the Readers, Mainstream, September 11, 2021
For the past ten months farmers from Punjab, Haryana regions mostly but with support from other parts of India have been engaged in a protest movement against three farm laws brought in by the Modi Government. The most remarkable thing about this farmers agitation which started on November 26, 2020 has been that it has remained peaceful except for a few incidents of violence witnessed on the January 26, 2021. The Modi government and the (…)

IMPRESSIONS
Those who have an ideological baggage to sell tend to overdo things, making them look foolish in the process. The latest example is the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) and the way it fell into a booby trap. This is supposed to be a scholarly organisation with no links to politics and politicians. But it has now been pushed into taking political sides. The result is that the ICHR lost, and the political operators did not win.
The objective of the ICHR is (…)

by Muzaffar Assadi
Two accusations have been levelled against Gandhi while detailing the pandemic plague during the last century: that Gandhi had less concern about taking up the case of pandemic plague in India than in South Africa. Secondly, the plague was not the major reason that made him a nationalist leader.
Gandhi went to South Africa in the year 1893. The plague spread to the Indian colony in South Africa in 1904. As part of apartheid policy, Indians were settled in an exclusive (…)

The language issue has become a highly sensitive agenda in the nation building process all over the globe, India not excluded. According to Khare (2002) language being a channel of communication, it has two major roles in society. It influences distribution of power and wealth, particularly in an under literate society. It also acts as an emotional and culture cement for social bonding. The language issue in India has been a major prickly point of politics since the nation- state was founded (…)