Editorial "CHANGE THE WORLD, SAVE THE PLANET" in 15-31 May 2013 issue, Vol. 9, Part 1, Nos. 9-10 of LAW ANIMATED WORLD

CHANGE THE WORLD, SAVE THE PLANET!

Yes, to save our planet from utter ruin (terracide) by the current capitalist industrialization processes and social systems, it is essential to change the world i.e. the modes of production, distribution and governance presently oppressing the world people. On this depends even the survival of our Mother Earth – the only planet in the universe known to generate and support any bio-species. As in case of all progressive movements, which till date have recorded significant successes in achieving basic human rights and civil liberties for the people in general, it is the working classes of the world who have to stand and fight in the forefront of the struggle for such a crucial change. As Marx and Engels declared long back, working classes cannot liberate themselves except by liberating the whole society from the trammels of the suffocating capitalist order and ultimately obliterating their own existence for the emergence of a classless society of cooperating individuals. The present trend of hazardous industrialization and greedy profiteering processes have brought ruin to the ecosystems in the world and given rise to the dangerous climate change phenomena threatening the very existence of the life systems. In this background, everywhere among the most progressive sections, the concept of eco-socialism is gaining ground. It sees the ultimate welfare of the humankind in harmonious living with all other bio-species and on the destruction of the inhumanly greedy capitalist globalization processes by fully protecting the rights of the Mother Earth and of all humans as dignified individuals. The importance of such an initiative and struggle by the people is once again underscored by the recent Occupy-Gezi protests in Taksim Square, Istanbul which started as righteous protests by a few individuals against the razing of the Gezi Park but have now snowballed into an immense mass movement encompassing lakhs of people from not only the working classes but several other sections of the society, fighting for the protection of their environmental wellbeing as also for the destruction of the oppressive capitalist systems. We wish every success to the Turkish people as also the people of the world in this and such other seminal struggles §§§

Editorial "NaMonia and Changing Equations" in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15 June 2013, Vol. 9, Part 1, No. 11 issue

NAMONIA AND CHANGING EQUATIONS

The political landscape in India is changing fast with different national and regional parties preparing for the forthcoming parliamentary elections in 2004 and the raging NaMonia [a term coined to describe the fanatical admiration for the Gujarat CM Narendra Modi in BJP circles]  in the most potential challenger – the Bharatiya Janata Party – is disturbing not only the general secular-minded public but also causing much discontent among veterans in that party even, as illustrated by the recent resignation drama enacted by Lal Krishna Advani. Though it is true that more bloodshed has been caused in communal riots during the Congress regimes than under the BJP rule, the definite commitment of that party to a pro-Hindu political and governance system coupled with the atrocities against minorities in Gujarat under Modi have made that party a virtual outcast for several centre/left parties. Strangely, that party patriarch, Advani, who was indeed responsible for the rise of Hindutva forces by his famous rath yatra and then destruction of Babri Masjid and commitment to the construction of Ramjanambhoomi Mandir, all of which were key factors catapulting that party with mere 2 MPs to the ruling echelons with Vajpayee as the No. 1 [and PM] followed by himself as No. 2 [and Dy. PM], alone could have to some extent mollified the aversion and discontent of other parties towards BJP by his more mature and more-liberal-now approaches. But, it is perplexing and also saddening to see such a veteran, who should have been normally accepted as the No. 1 and pushed as the prime ministerial candidate, being shunned by younger upstarts in that party out of their NaMonia. Now that Nitish Yadav of JD (U) has also broken alliance with the BJP, it seems the coming elections can be damaging to it and lend a definite advantage to the incumbent ruling party, though it is steeped in the mire of corruption, loathed by the public in general and badly mauled by attacks from the left-extremists and other terrorists. Parliamentary left parties, with no vision or program for forging a left democratic front even, seem to be in the lurch and may but tail this or that centre/left national/regional parties with all their illusions about, and in their peaceful march to, parliamentary socialism.  §§§

Jagriti - Aao Bachchon Tumhen Dikhayen Jhanki Hindustan Ki

Raj Kapur songs collection

A Video that must be watched

Editorial, WORKERS OF THE WORLD, DIVIDE!?, in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 April 2013 issue, Vol. 9, Part 1, No. 8.

WORKERS OF THE WORLD, DIVIDE!?

 On the eve of the glorious festival cum fighting day of the world working class, we are quite sad to thus parody the clarion call of Karl Marx, evolved in the course of generations of intrepid working class struggles for socio-economic justice and humanist liberation. However, the existing sad state of affairs in the country and the world over is that workers are sought to be, and in reality also are, divided on sundry categories – of race, gender, country and region – and tend to quarrel with sections among themselves than putting up a united struggle against corporate plunderers. This disease has widely spread to Andhra Pradesh also or else it would be difficult to understand the rabid opposition to the allotment of captive iron ore mining rights to the prestigious Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited [of ‘Navaratna’ status], a wholly Government of India owned undertaking, running one of the largest integrated steel plants in the world at Visakhapatnam, which by the way has also thereby expressed its intent “to set up commensurate value addition facilities such as Beneficiation Plant, Pelletisation Plant, Steel Mill, depending on the quantum of iron ore  reserves available at Bayyaram (Khammam District) and other proposed allotment of mines in Warangal and Karimnagar districts.” And the sadder part is the participation of misguided workers of the region in, and the espousal by the ‘left’ parties/groups of, this unjust agitation which hurts more the interests of the working people at large than in any way contributing to the progress of the region/state. We endorse the view that any labor movement worth its name “must be multiracial, multi-gender, multi-aged, skilled/non-skilled, …… LGBT-inclusive, and so on…” and as such strongly condemn such anti-people, anti-labor moves by vested interests and misguided parties/persons and call for broad and harmonious unity and struggle of working persons irrespective of all divides. In contrast, we really appreciate the campaign by Manda Krishna Madiga espousing the just causes of all old persons and widows, many of whom may be present or former workers, which good effort has also drawn applause from all right-thinking persons cutting across all sectional/political divides. §§§

Editorial: 'A FORUM OF LAST RESORT' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15 April 2013, Vol. 9, Part 1, No. 7 issue

A FORUM OF LAST RESORT

  is certainly required in our Indian conditions, of course not as a Court to direct or command, but as an entity to pressurize and lobby for, the needed justice tempered with social consciousness and mercy, in some extreme cases of maladministration of justice or executive excesses. The highly intellectual but eccentric Justice Katju has mooted the launching of a Court of Last Resort saying “It has been felt for quite some time that injustice is being done to a large number of people who have been languishing in jail either as under trials whose cases have not been heard for several years, or who have unjustly remained incarcerated, either because: (1)  The police have fabricated evidence against them, or (2)  For want of proper legal assistance, or (3)  Who have had to spend many years in jail and ultimately found innocent by the court;” and curiously projected himself as the champion of ‘minorities’ whom he singled out as the usual victims. And generally he appeals for mercy to such persons from minorities/some high profile figures but overlooks the woes and weal of innumerable persons from working class, peasant and tribal communities who are languishing in jails just for demanding their rights and facilities on the allegations of aiding and abetting extremism and terrorism. He remembers and fights for pardon to Sanjay Dutt, who in our opinion could be let out on probation but with strict directions for community service in public toilets, or sweeping roads, etc. in vindication of his own propagated filmi principle of gandhigiri, but forgets to even consider the woes and weal of a Soni Sori who was so cruelly tortured and is now again imprisoned for espousing the causes of tribal women in Chattisgarh; and also conveniently does not refer to Afzal Guru who was so unjustly dealt with and whose hanging has given rise to renewed terror in the Kashmir valley and elsewhere. Such a Forum, we do not prefer the appellation ‘Court’, should take up sensitive issues like stopping the hanging of politically motivated convicts/terrorists like Bhullar which, if carried out, could give rise to explosive situations harmful to the unity and security of the country and again give fillip to wild terrorist activities in the name of Khalistan, Eelam, etc. Also it should do all in its power to secure justice to the oppressed people like the Chattisgarh tribals or Suzuki workers so unjustly left to rot in jails without bail even. §§§