2021

Recently, the eminent scholar, Chantal Mouffe, wrote a seminal book titled For a Left Populism (Verso, 2018). She argued: “Right-wing populism claims that it will bring back popular sovereignty and restore democracy, but this sovereignty is understood as ‘national sovereignty’ and reserved for those deemed to be true ‘nationals’...Left populism on the contrary wants to recover democracy to deepen and extend it. A left populist strategy aims at federating the democratic demands into a (…)

The role of the Election Commission of India (EC) with Sunil Arora, the Chief Election Commissioner at the helm is far from being impartial and neutral especially in West Bengal, His term is ending on 12 April and grapevine has it that a gubernatorial post awaits him as a reward of his unflinching performance of dancing to the tune of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his closest associates than honouring the august Nirvachan Sadan whose sanctity had been heightened by former CECs such as T (…)

by Dr. Nagender Madavaram*
India is attracting global attention for wrong reasons. The country has an astonishing history of coexistence with diversified cultures. Jews, Persians, Bahais, Tibetans and other ethnic groups got shelter in India when they were prosecuted by their respective governments for various reasons. India was a hope in Asia to accommodate the asylees. Indians welcomed the foreigners with open hearts for centuries. Prime Minister (PM) Modi Narender Modi damaged the (…)

by Neeraj Jain
As we write this, lakhs of peasants — men, women, youth and children — are camping at entry points to the country’s capital, demanding the scrapping of the three farm legislations recently imposed on the country by the present Central Government. It has been some time since the country has witnessed such powerful challenge to the malignant policies of the rulers. It is inspiring because it is organised around demands which are not just of the peasantry, but of all the (…)

IMPRESSIONS
We are so proud of our freedom that we don’t want even Covid to interfere with it. We mix and mingle with abandon thanks to our freedom. Figures show a spiralling of cases as the second wave of the pandemic is sweeping across the land. The situation is so serious that the Union Health Ministry has asked states to create "containment zones." Delhi accuses the states of inadequate testing and failure to isolate patients.
In fact the states did not even complete the (…)

by Biplove Kumar*
“These freedoms (economic, social and moral) are harder than the political, if only because they are constructive, less exciting and not spectacular” – Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.
The electoral season of West Bengal’s Nandigram has witnessed everything, which defines the contemporary traits of Indian political discourse. From Begum to Mir Jafar, from Bangladesh to Pakistan, from Chandi Path to Lord Rama, and last but not the least - the highly provocative statements (…)

For the first time since their second stint in power began, the Rajapaksa brothers are face-to-face with a solid wall of resistance from the international communty. On all the earlier occasions, even including in 2015 when the then Sri Lankan government itself co-sponsored the customary resolution at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) condemning the decades-long human rights abuses by all the parties involved in the 30-year-old civil war, the Sri Lankan establishment managed to (…)

by Nadi Hlaing and Michael Haack
4 April 2021 North Okkalapa in Yangon is renowned for its lawlessness and illicit activities but it has also been central to Myanmar’s protest movements for decades Since the February 1 coup, the battles between security forces and protesters in North Okkalapa have been some of the fiercest
Zarni was 20 years old when he received a life sentence for his involvement in Myanmar’s 1988 uprising, although he had his sentence commuted just in time to (…)

by R G Gidadhubli
Subsequent to the disintegration of the former Soviet Union, Central Asia was a scene of Great Game between major global powers, namely Russia, USA and Europe and China. Even as political ties have remained close and consistent with Russia, political and economic relations of the Central Asian States with China have increased. China has undertaken active interest in Central Asia. For instance, China’s Belt Road Initiative in Central Asia is an important project linking (…)

When Banglabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rehman , the first President of Bangladesh, also called the Father of the Nation and revered by millions as such, was assassinated on August 15, 1975 as a part of the wider efforts to overthrow his popular government, there were some additional aspects of this murder most foul which shocked the world.
All the family members present in the house ( together with servants ) were killed, including Mujib’s wife, a motherly figure for many beyond the family, (…)