2021

[This paper was originally prepared in 1987 for CWDS (Centre for Women’s Development Studies). The first paragraph is a subsequent addition.]
Attack on women’s fundamental right to equality has been the common, continuing feature of the communal forces in India, of all hues irrespective of the religion from the particularly motivated interpretation of which they derive their ideological base and political support. Rape and gang rape have historically been integral part of communal pogroms, (…)

by Shubham Sharma *
The recently concluded by-elections in West Bengal witnessed a huge political retreat of the forces of Hindutva. The BJP not only lost all the four assembly segments to the TMC but saw a huge erosion in their vote share. In Dinhata, Shantipur, Khardaha and Gosaba, its vote share went down from 47.6% to 11.31%, 49.4% to 23.22%, 33.67% to 13.07 and 41.88% to 9.95%, respectively.
Although by-polls are not the best markers to assess a party’s electoral position but when (…)

BOOK REVIEW
Foreshadowing the Great Rebellion: The Vellore Revolt, 1806 by K.A. Manikumar
Orient BlackSwan
ISBN 9789354421181
Pages 288
Price: Rs 695
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About half a century before the 1857 Rebellion or the First War of Independence, hundreds of Indian soldiers of the East India Company revolted against the British in 1806 in Vellore in present day Tamil Nadu. It was brutally crushed and hundreds of soldiers were mercilessly slaughtered by the British. In many ways, the (…)

November 24, 2021
(For P. Sainath)
Remember how once we thumbed their nose, And dubbed them a “sack of potatoes?” Well, not any more; The food growers knock at the republic’s door When those that should have known better Have lost the grit and the skill To unravel the fetter That so imprisons the conglomerate will Of the land now sought to be ruled By an iron hand.
The pulpit looks askance At their knowledge of things That it was thought only the think-tank And the English language (…)

[21 Nov 2021
RS Statement on Repeal of Farm Laws
The battle has been won, but the war is still on
After over 15 months of farmers protests, Modi has finally been made to accept defeat and to come out and announce the repeal of the three farm laws. Indeed, this is a historic win. After dismantling the anti NRC/CAA movement, by staging Delhi riots and throwing the anti-Hindutva activists in prisons, this was the second formidable challenge for the Modi regime. We in Radical Socialist (…)

by Matthew Davies *
November 24, 2021
Billions of solar panels globally will soon come to the end of their lives, but when they get thrown away essential materials that are needed to make future panels are being wasted.
It is estimated that there will be 78 million tonnes of total waste by 2050. This is roughly 4 billion panels. But these panels have not been designed so that we can easily extract the elements within them again to use again, so it is likely that the majority of the (…)

by Claude Steiner * Lefter Than Thou Levelling, hierarchies, and leadership
Radical psychiatry’s main goal is to help human beings overcome alienation. Because overcoming alienation requires contact with other human beings in groups it is important that radical psychiatry provide guidelines for the healthy functioning and survival of groups. When people who are interested in radical changes organize groups they quite naturally wish to organize them along lines which differ from the (…)

* Thoughts on 2021 West Bengal Elections & A Future for the Left - A non-CPIM Left perspective | Samir Putatunda
* Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 & a hidden episode of India’s role | Sumanta Bannerjee
* This path of development is toxic | Arun Kumar
* Mexican women win abortion rights, state by state | Carli Pierson

Letter to the Readers, Mainstream, November 20, 2021
Under the Modi regime one thing we get for free every day is high public spectacle. Last week, the day after the speaking (and near force hugging some of the world leaders) at the Glasgow summit on climate, the Prime Minister could be seen dressed in military fatigues in the midst of soldiers in the Indian Himalayas. And this week we saw an incredible sight of Prime Minister Modi stepping out of a giant American-built military airplane (…)

[marron]
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Leftists have to regain the confidence of the people - Samir Putatunda a leader and co-founder of Party for Democratic Socialism (PDS)
Mainstream Desk
“CPI-M -led Left Front has lost popular support in the recent past for moving away from the people. It has gradually reached a point where, after 34 years in government, within 10 years of leaving the government, the Left in the State has not won a single seat in the Lok Sabha and Assembly. Due to political mistakes, the (…)