Mainstream Weekly

Resisting Majoritarian Onslaught

SC — 2018-12-23T21:14:22Z

EDITORIAL
As Mainstream enters the fiftyseventh year of its modest existence with this Annual Number, the nation is getting prepared for an intense electoral battle when the country faces its twentyfirst national polls for the Lok Sabha in five months time in the midst of numerous adversities-cum-complexities plaguing our polity.
Precisely a year ago on December 19, 2017 it was written in these columns:
..... the outcome of the UP Assembly elections this year found Narendra Modi and (…)

- 2018

The Valley of Incongruities / Do We Need Nehru Today? / Good-bye Feroze / Grim Warning from Bhopal / India-Pakistan: Imperative of Amity

2018-12-23T21:12:43Z

From N.C.'s Writings
The Valley of Incongruities
Whatever may be the substance of the much-advertised point of difference between Peking and Washington over the question of détente, it may be safely assumed that Gerald Ford's talks with Mao Tse-tung and his cohorts explored the further potentialities of Sino-American collusion, particularly in the countries of the Third World. Angola shows the enormity of this entente while the happenings in Bangladesh underscores this danger in our (…)

- 2018

Mahatma Gandhi — The Great Communicator

Nikhil Chakravartty — 2018-12-23T21:08:34Z

The following is the text of the Gandhi Peace Foundation Lecture 1995 delivered by Nikhil Chakravartty in New Delhi on January 30, 1995. It first appeared in Mainstream (October 3, 1998) after N.C.'s demise.
I am deeply touched by having been asked to deliver this year's Gandhi Peace Foundation Lecture. Nobody is more conscious than I am about my inadequacy in speaking on this sacred occasion, the day of the martyrdom of the greatest son of my country. Perhaps my only qualification to talk (…)

- 2018

An Initial Victory and the Struggle Ahead

Barun Das Gupta — 2018-12-23T21:05:50Z

Will the BJP learn any lesson from its resounding defeat in the Hindi heartland which has been its bastion since its inception? The cow-vigilantism of its self-appointed gau-rakshaks who proclaimed that the life of a cow is more valuable than that of a man, that bovicide is a greater crime than homicide, have been taught a lesson by the voters of the cow belt.
It is surprising how in the span of just four-and-a-half years the political party, that swept the polls in 2014, squandered the (…)

- 2018

A Hint of Spring

Badri Raina — 2018-12-23T21:02:58Z

The spell is broken.
The bewitching wand turns
To wood.
Paralysed slumber
Of years lifts an eyelid
And sees into the dark subterfuge.
There is a hint of spring in December.
A breach in the overcast
Reveals a newborn David,
Firing sure slingshot
Into Goliath's heart.
Hope seems no longer in vain.
The Republic breathes again.
Badri Raina

- 2018

Wintry Tale

2018-12-23T21:01:12Z

Wee-hours of a cold, harsh morning - a shroud of fog still hangs on the landscape; icy breeze blows through leaves, over beds of grass; signs of life are yet to stir. A bleak, melancholic look grips the atmosphere.
A homeless mortal lies on the cobbled footpath, his knees pressed to his head, arms around his ankles, drawing the semblance of heat from the torn blanket - a tale of misery scripted in an indifferent urban setting.
The grey eastern sky slowly brightens into a glow. The rising (…)

- 2018

Whither Politically tinkered Hinduism?

2018-12-23T20:51:12Z

by L.K. Sharma
How Indian politics fares under the spell of Hinduism is covered extensively by the media. It is time scholars studying religions such as Karen Armstrong wrote on the impact of politics on Hinduism. Can this unique religion be modified by politicians aided by frenzied devotees and Hollywood Hindus? This question has got little attention so far.
“Hindutva”, a political form of faith propa-gated by the ruling BJP and allied Right-wing groups, was injected with full force (…)

- 2018

Challenges of Dichotomous Growth in India

2018-12-23T20:48:55Z

by Arun Kumar
The election results from the three North and Central Indian States suggest that farmers, youth and small businessmen are unhappy. Some of them have been openly agitating. Why is this happening if the rate of growth of the economy is between seven and eight per cent, as the official figures suggest? Businessmen have agitated less because they fear an authoritarian government. The minorities and Dalits are upset for economic and social reasons. These marginalised groups are (…)

- 2018

Indian Communists and the Challenges for their Revival

2018-12-23T20:46:42Z

by Arun Srivastava
Indian Marxist-Leninists must counter the emerging threat of fascism. India has witnessed a massive political shift in the last four years with the BJP decisively replacing the Congress as the dominant political representative of the ruling classes. This has shaken the Congress. That is evident from the defensive posture of the grand old party. During the last four years of BJP rule, though the Congress has launched many struggles, the basic character of the protest (…)

- 2018

Babri Masjid: What should Muslims do?

2018-12-23T20:43:06Z

by Irfan Engineer
A section of Hindu supremacist organisations are once again mobilising to demand the construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple (RJT) in Ayodhya on the spot where the Babri Masjid once stood and was demolished on December 6, 1992. Provocative speeches are being made and threats issued. The sentiments of Hindus are being aroused around the construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple. The media too is playing ball and faithfully publicising the claims of the Hindu (…)

- 2018