Tuesday, March 31, 2009
ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ?!
ಎಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ಬಂತು
ನಲವತ್ತೇಳರ ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ?
ಅವರ ಕುರ್ಚಿಯಲಿ
ಇವರು ಕುಳಿತರು
ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಬಂತು ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ?
ಕೆಂಪು ಕೋಟೆಯಲಿ
ಬದಲಾಯಿತು ಬಾವುಟ
ಬಾವುಟವಷ್ಟೇ ಬದುಕಲ್ಲ!!
ಗರಿ ಗರಿ ನೋಟಿನ
ಪರಿಮಳದಲ್ಲಿ
ರೊಟ್ಟಿ ತಟ್ಟಲೂ ಹಿಟ್ಟಿಲ್ಲ.
ಪಬ್ಬು ದಿಸ್ಕೋಗಳ
ಗೊಂದಲದಲ್ಲಿ ಮಬ್ಬಾಗಿ
ಹೋದವರ ಲೆಕ್ಕಿಲ್ಲ.
ಒಂದು ಓಟಿಗೆ
ಸಾವಿರವಂತೆ
ಎಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ಬಂತು ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ?
Indian Maoists get ready for battle ahead
cover. Beyond that point, the winding village road leads to the far-flung hamlets where Maoists have a strong presence. A 60-member strong Maoist Guerrilla Army has already taken position atop Kanaisar Hill bordering Jharkhand and West Bengal. Villagers of Loboni, Pachapani and Jamjurki are keeping their fingers crossed. They fear a bloody battle in this area as soon as the central forces start flush-out operations. "The Kanaisar Hill acts as a watchtower. One can figure out the police movement at least 10 km from Simlipal. Those who have gathered in the hills will retaliate immediately, " a villager from Pachapani said. The message has reached Belpahari police station. Scared of the Maoist retaliation, some of the serving sub-inspectors have managed to get transferred to Kotwali and other "safe" places. Others are waiting with bated breath for the central forces to take the lead. Chhatradhar Mahato, spokesperson of the Maoist-led People's Committee against Police Atrocities, sounded defiant. "How is it that the state home secretary talks of police action when the district magistrate is holding talks with our representatives? If police have their way, we will resist the move come what may," he said. Mahato also denied charges brought against them the day they mobbed the team of central forces. "Villagers gheraoed them, but nobody opened fire as claimed by the administration, " he said. Home secretary Ardhendu Sen was categorical about the police action. "We have to send polling parties to these areas. How will they reach there without police presence?" he said. Prodded by seniors, Mahato on Wednesday came to Kolkata to meet ailing writer Mahasweta Devi, who could not make it to their meeting at Pirkata some days ago. "Mahasweta Devi has been fighting for the cause of Kherias, Sabars and Adivasis since long. I have briefed her about the situation in Lalgarh," he said. Back in Jangalmahal, the situation remains tense. Police spread over in the camps are not in a position to venture out into the villages. "We don't want political parties to come to our village. Where were they all these months?" said a youth from Pachapani.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Growing again in the shadows
This is Nayakankottai in Dharmapuri district, the only village in the whole of Tamil Nadu to have statues of its Naxalite leaders, L Appu and Balan. The epitaph marks their contribution to the movement.
It was in their time the late 1970s that the movement reached its peak. Says Siddhanandam, one of the pioneers of the movement: "We were successful in doing away with the double tumbler system (one for Dalits and one for other castes), which was discriminatory. "
The 54-year-old, who has eluded police for the last 24 years, has been witness to the transition of communist China and the fall of the Soviet Union. Today, the recession has brought a smile to his face. "American capitalism has lost. Everybody believed in it. Now look what it has brought. It is the victory of socialism."
The Maoist movement in Dharmapuri was disbanded in 2003 after many of their leaders were either killed or arrested. These days,
however, the party is positive about regaining its base in the state. Its leaders believe current neo-liberal policies that have led to an "increased socio-political polarisation" favour it. "More and more people are joining the movement," says a Maoist source. "The party may have gone underground, but there has been a shift in strategy."
These days the Maoists focus on urban areas instead of the traditional rural pockets. The reason, again, is the same. They believe the new economic policies have created a divide within the urban population. The special economic zones have displaced millions of people in the urban (and rural) areas, spawning slums and deepening poverty. A late surge in the number of unorganised labour due to growing infrastructure activity gives the Maoists an ideological tool to win over people deprived of any guarantee of a dignified life.
Says a Naxal source: "Tamil Nadu has more than 40 cities with large numbers of migrants. A majority of them are poor. Besides the financially backward in the urban areas, we are targeting the middle class. They are fed up with corruption and failure of the state machinery in resolving their woes."
And then he adds. "Do you know Tamil Nadu is a state that has attracted huge investment, most of it in the rural areas? Multinational companies and Indian conglomerates have invested nearly Rs 3 lakh crore in the state, buying rural land for export-based trade. This has affected small-scale farmers and industries."
But why the sudden shift now? Has the movement failed to penetrate the rural areas? Some naxals agree. The say it could not penetrate the hinterland partly because of the Dalit movement and parties. "Recruiting cadres is tough due to the presence of Dalit parties who consider them their vote-bank. There have been many instances where they have turned police informants," says a party cadre.
The other reason is the failure to attract youth they constituted the mainstay of rebel activity in the early 1980s. "For every movement to succeed," says the cadre, "you require the support of youth. However, the rise in rural unemployment and lack of pro-farmer schemes has led many to migrate to the cities. This has affected our movement."
Some Naxalites believe the lack of proper planning crippled the movement in the last few years. "Even before it strengthened down south, the high command moved the whole cadre to Dharmapuri. Initially, the plan was to form a triangle linking the rebels in Tamil Nadu with Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka," says a Maoist-turned- sympathiser of the movement.
"But a lack of proper training and foresight saw the movement crumble as the police crushed it decisively," he says. "Even Maoists in Karnataka were forced to move their base to Shimoga from where they operate successfully. "
The Maoists admit to links with other separatist movements in South Asia, though they say the LTTE doesn't figure. All these movements come under one umbrella — the Coordination Committee of Maoist Parties and the Organisation of South Asia. They include parties from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Balochistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Kashmir. In fact, the Maoists have developed a variety of fraternal and non-fraternal ties with militant groups, including United Liberation Front of Asom, within India, the South Asian region and beyond.
A senior Naxalite says ULFA does provide arms to the Maoists, but not the LTTE. "Their arms are too sophisticated. They aren't suitable for our kind of operations." Another ultra says most of the weapons are of indigenous make. And sometimes they steal arms from the police. The seizure of parts of rockets and launchers from Ambattur near Chennai a few years ago provides some evidence that the manufacturing units are located in the state. But with police hot on their heels, the Maoists refuse to provide any information on training camps.
Crucially, a few years back, police successfully busted an arms training camp near Periakulam in the southern Theni district. "The party allocates nearly Rs 15 lakh for operations in Tamil Nadu. Most of it is through nidhi (fund-raising) and through funds allocated by the central committee," he says.
"Most of it is spent on party literature and payment of wages for full-timers, who number around 60," he adds.
What is the reason for the movement, which was completely crushed in the 1980s and 1990s, regaining its vitality? "It is mostly due to economic policies, failure to stem corruption and also failure to implement land reforms," says a Naxalite in a cocksure tone.
Even the report of an expert group to Planning Commission highlights similar reasons for the spread of the Maoist movement in India. "Naxalites typically operate in a vacuum created by inadequacy of administrative and political institutions, espouse local demands and take advantage of the prevalent disaffection and perceived injustice among the underprivileged and remote segments of the population.' ' The paper goes on to add that Naxalism ``is not merely a law and order problem; it has deep socio-economic dimensions."
So far, the Central government has released Rs 3,677.67 crore to the Naxal-affected states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. In 2006-07, nearly Rs 434.61 crore was allocated.
According to an Empowered Group of Ministers, the police alone cannot resolve the problem. States should address socio-economic issues such as land reforms, employment generation, healthcare, economic development and poverty alleviation.
As Siddhanandam points out, "For every action, there is a equal and opposite reaction." And it may be true. As Mao Zedong stated, "Fish were the militants, and the disgruntled peasantry constituted the water. So long as there was dissatisfaction among the peasantry, militants could operate freely."
Focus now on the masses
The Maoists are increasingly deploying their female cadre to expand their base in semi-urban and industrialised areas. The non-implementation of labour laws and the plight of unorganised sector workers and farmers in various parts of the country have helped the Maoists. "The female cadres are not involved in violent activities. They take jobs as labourers and through their interaction with the people, try to bring them into the Maoist fold," says a senior Naxal leader.
In the southern districts, the Maoists are making their presence increasingly felt. This area includes Theni, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Coimbatore and Ramanatha-puram. They are also trying to use the Sri Lankan Tamil issue to broaden their appeal. They feel nobody can do politics in the state without the issue. "If you can back Palestine, Kosovo and other separatist movements, then why don't you back the Tamils in Sri Lanka for a separate Eelam?" one of their leaders asks. Their pro-Tamil stance has enabled the Maoists to recruit more people.
But do the Maoists have LTTE connections? "The Tigers don't back any movement waging an armed struggle against the Indian state," says a senior Naxalite. But he adds that some ex-LTTE cadre did give them arms training. "These people came to India after leaving the organisation, and formed communist groups," he says.
`Naxals Will Rise Again Like The Phoenix'
PHOTOS: SYED MAZHER ALI
What is your information about the killings of policemen by Naxals in Gadhchiroli district in Maharashtra?Initially, it was shown as an encounter and it was claimed that the CPI (Maoist) [the Naxals' party] had suffered heavy losses. But it was revealed later that a landmine had killed 17 policemen and the Naxals hadn't suffered any losses. Such lies are spoken only to maintain police morale.
The Chhattisgarh Government says the 19 people killed by the Salwa Judum [police-backed anti-Naxal tribal militia] in Dantewada last month were Naxals and not innocent villagers. That's a lie. Those killed were innocent adivasis [tribal people]. They belonged to villages that have long resisted government pressure to abandon their villages and move to the Salwa Judum camps. That's why the Salwa Judum kidnapped and killed them. We expected this after [Chief Minister] Raman Singh claimed his victory in the Chhattisgarh election last year was the people's approval of the Salwa Judum violence. Of course, now that the Supreme Court has ruled against the Salwa Judum, the state may abandon that and hire one or two thousand from them as regular police and turn it into a paramilitary force like Andhra's Greyhounds. The BJP is a fascist and a terrorist party and may naturally go this way.
The government says it is the Naxals who have terrorised the people.False. Why do people support the Naxals if they are terrorised? Most people are kept in Salwa Judum camps by force. Many want to go back to their villages.
Hasn't Naxalism collapsed in Andhra Pradesh since the police began killing Naxal leaders and squads in 2005? We suffered heavy losses in the region of Nallamara forests [in south Andhra Pradesh] as it isn't contiguous with Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. But the Naxal leadership of Telangana [in north Andhra Pradesh] now works from these adjacent states. The Andhra leadership is guiding the Orissa movement also.
Strategically, the picture is not so gloomy. During the Telangana armed struggle of the 1940s, all the leaders were killed in Warangal and Nalgonda districts. But the struggle revived. In Srikakulam district, where the movement was strongest since 1968, the top leaders were wiped out by 1972. The movement was rebuilt during the Emergency [1975- 77]. During 1978-80, every single district secretary of the party was killed in fake encounters. The movement rose again.
Like the Phoenix, we would rise again from the ashes. Even the enemy can't say the whole thing is over. For 30 years the armed struggle has been on in one place or the other. The people are overwhelmingly with the Naxals because, if nothing else, the movement has brought them selfrespect after decades of bonded labour, torture and destruction. The Naxals don't accept the lordship of the landlords.
Would you say holding talks with the Andhra Pradesh Government was a bad idea as the Naxals came out and police got wind of their hideouts?In principle, no, it wasn't. Karl Marx says you can use any form of struggle. We gained politically from the talks. The middle class is now convinced that if the Naxals take power, they will have a perspective on every aspect, such as democratic rights, land reforms and self-reliance. The greatness of the revolutionary party lies in that it agreed to the talks because the people wanted talks, despite the brutal nine-year rule of Chandrababu Naidu and despite the fact that we had no illusion about the Congress rule since.
The Chhattisgarh Government says Naxal leaders driven from Andhra are creating trouble in Chhattisgarh. Forty percent of the Naxal militia, including the women, in Chhattisgarh is adivasi. The movement has built up in Chhattisgarh since 1980. Its district level leadership comes from within. In Dantewada alone, the Chhatra Natya Manch, the cultural group that supports the movement, has 6,000 members.
Chhattisgarh aims to copy the Andhra `model' of wiping out the Naxals. The Centre and the state are coordinating on this. No Prime Minister ever spoke on the Naxals. But Manmohan Singh has repeatedly said Naxalism is cancerous and a bigger threat than the threat of terrorism. You must see this in the context of the government's imperialist policies of globalisation. For the first time, trade organisations are talking about the Naxal `problem'. The Naxals represent the people's rights to self-reliance against MNC interests.
All political parties support the MNCs. Manmohan Singh and [Union Home Minister] P Chidambaram are World Bank agents. When the Finance Minister becomes the Home Minister, it only means the Home Ministry serves the interests of industry and finance. You can't reach anywhere if you view this only from the point of view of violence versus nonviolence. There is mass resistance to the Tatas' steel project in Chhattisgarh, as is to the Posco steel project in Orissa.
But why oppose industrialisation?We don't. Did we close down the public sector? Lakhs lost their jobs with the closure of IDPL and Allwyn. Did we do that?
The Naxals have massed in Orissa. Is that the next battleground then?The movement is now very strong in Orissa. The government there is creating a Salwa Judum in south Orissa, adjoining north Andhra, and in Mayurbhanj, which adjoins Jharkhand.
What's the Naxals' key agenda?Land to the tiller, workers' rights over the factory, and political power to the people, flowing from the grassroots. The Maoist theory explains that you first occupy the land of the village; the landlord then sends his mafia; you fight back; then the police come in support of the landlord; you then adopt guerilla methods to fight the police and the state. The economic programme is to occupy the land, the military programme is the guerilla struggle, and the political programme is to bring power to the people by organising gram rajya [village rule] committees. In 1995, the party decided to adopt alternative development programmes for drinking and irrigation water and primary health and education, among others, under the gram rajya committees. The party asked people not to pay taxes to the government and not vote in elections. That's how it defies the state.
The state claims to work for the same issues of water, health and education. It only claims to work on these issues, but doesn't practice what it says. Uneven development is an imperialist characteristic.
Why do the Naxals reject elections? The 60-year Parliamentary history is a hurdle for the revolution. One has to overcome that to achieve people's power.
Is Naxalism on an irreversible decline?The people are looking forward to the Naxals' comeback. They know it is only a lull. In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote these are the worst days and also the best days. All the political parties, from Narendra Modi to Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, are united in their repression of the people. But everyone fighting imperial globalisation — not only the revolutionaries but true patriots, Gandhians, Sarvodaya people, Lohiaites, nationalists, Muslims, minorities, advisasis, dalits and women — have hopes only in the alternative revolutionary movement. They see that only the Naxals can protect our sovereignty, under threat especially from the SEZs.
Why must the revolution kill people?The movement doesn't believe in killing. It only believes in resistance. Ours is revolutionary violence as against the violence of the ruling class and the state. All the tools of exercising violence are in the hands of the propertied classes. You get a gun license if you have five acres of land. The whole effort of Marxism is to reinforce people to resist state violence.
Is Gandhian nonviolence irrelevant? Even Gandhians realise Gandhi is not relevant. [Former Prime Minister] VP Singh once said if he were 20 years old he would join the CPI (Maoist).
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 7, Dated Feb 21, 2009
`Naxals Will Rise Again Like The Phoenix'
PHOTOS: SYED MAZHER ALI
What is your information about the killings of policemen by Naxals in Gadhchiroli district in Maharashtra?Initially, it was shown as an encounter and it was claimed that the CPI (Maoist) [the Naxals' party] had suffered heavy losses. But it was revealed later that a landmine had killed 17 policemen and the Naxals hadn't suffered any losses. Such lies are spoken only to maintain police morale.
The Chhattisgarh Government says the 19 people killed by the Salwa Judum [police-backed anti-Naxal tribal militia] in Dantewada last month were Naxals and not innocent villagers. That's a lie. Those killed were innocent adivasis [tribal people]. They belonged to villages that have long resisted government pressure to abandon their villages and move to the Salwa Judum camps. That's why the Salwa Judum kidnapped and killed them. We expected this after [Chief Minister] Raman Singh claimed his victory in the Chhattisgarh election last year was the people's approval of the Salwa Judum violence. Of course, now that the Supreme Court has ruled against the Salwa Judum, the state may abandon that and hire one or two thousand from them as regular police and turn it into a paramilitary force like Andhra's Greyhounds. The BJP is a fascist and a terrorist party and may naturally go this way.
The government says it is the Naxals who have terrorised the people.False. Why do people support the Naxals if they are terrorised? Most people are kept in Salwa Judum camps by force. Many want to go back to their villages.
Hasn't Naxalism collapsed in Andhra Pradesh since the police began killing Naxal leaders and squads in 2005? We suffered heavy losses in the region of Nallamara forests [in south Andhra Pradesh] as it isn't contiguous with Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. But the Naxal leadership of Telangana [in north Andhra Pradesh] now works from these adjacent states. The Andhra leadership is guiding the Orissa movement also.
Strategically, the picture is not so gloomy. During the Telangana armed struggle of the 1940s, all the leaders were killed in Warangal and Nalgonda districts. But the struggle revived. In Srikakulam district, where the movement was strongest since 1968, the top leaders were wiped out by 1972. The movement was rebuilt during the Emergency [1975- 77]. During 1978-80, every single district secretary of the party was killed in fake encounters. The movement rose again.
Like the Phoenix, we would rise again from the ashes. Even the enemy can't say the whole thing is over. For 30 years the armed struggle has been on in one place or the other. The people are overwhelmingly with the Naxals because, if nothing else, the movement has brought them selfrespect after decades of bonded labour, torture and destruction. The Naxals don't accept the lordship of the landlords.
Would you say holding talks with the Andhra Pradesh Government was a bad idea as the Naxals came out and police got wind of their hideouts?In principle, no, it wasn't. Karl Marx says you can use any form of struggle. We gained politically from the talks. The middle class is now convinced that if the Naxals take power, they will have a perspective on every aspect, such as democratic rights, land reforms and self-reliance. The greatness of the revolutionary party lies in that it agreed to the talks because the people wanted talks, despite the brutal nine-year rule of Chandrababu Naidu and despite the fact that we had no illusion about the Congress rule since.
The Chhattisgarh Government says Naxal leaders driven from Andhra are creating trouble in Chhattisgarh. Forty percent of the Naxal militia, including the women, in Chhattisgarh is adivasi. The movement has built up in Chhattisgarh since 1980. Its district level leadership comes from within. In Dantewada alone, the Chhatra Natya Manch, the cultural group that supports the movement, has 6,000 members.
Chhattisgarh aims to copy the Andhra `model' of wiping out the Naxals. The Centre and the state are coordinating on this. No Prime Minister ever spoke on the Naxals. But Manmohan Singh has repeatedly said Naxalism is cancerous and a bigger threat than the threat of terrorism. You must see this in the context of the government's imperialist policies of globalisation. For the first time, trade organisations are talking about the Naxal `problem'. The Naxals represent the people's rights to self-reliance against MNC interests.
All political parties support the MNCs. Manmohan Singh and [Union Home Minister] P Chidambaram are World Bank agents. When the Finance Minister becomes the Home Minister, it only means the Home Ministry serves the interests of industry and finance. You can't reach anywhere if you view this only from the point of view of violence versus nonviolence. There is mass resistance to the Tatas' steel project in Chhattisgarh, as is to the Posco steel project in Orissa.
But why oppose industrialisation?We don't. Did we close down the public sector? Lakhs lost their jobs with the closure of IDPL and Allwyn. Did we do that?
The Naxals have massed in Orissa. Is that the next battleground then?The movement is now very strong in Orissa. The government there is creating a Salwa Judum in south Orissa, adjoining north Andhra, and in Mayurbhanj, which adjoins Jharkhand.
What's the Naxals' key agenda?Land to the tiller, workers' rights over the factory, and political power to the people, flowing from the grassroots. The Maoist theory explains that you first occupy the land of the village; the landlord then sends his mafia; you fight back; then the police come in support of the landlord; you then adopt guerilla methods to fight the police and the state. The economic programme is to occupy the land, the military programme is the guerilla struggle, and the political programme is to bring power to the people by organising gram rajya [village rule] committees. In 1995, the party decided to adopt alternative development programmes for drinking and irrigation water and primary health and education, among others, under the gram rajya committees. The party asked people not to pay taxes to the government and not vote in elections. That's how it defies the state.
The state claims to work for the same issues of water, health and education. It only claims to work on these issues, but doesn't practice what it says. Uneven development is an imperialist characteristic.
Why do the Naxals reject elections? The 60-year Parliamentary history is a hurdle for the revolution. One has to overcome that to achieve people's power.
Is Naxalism on an irreversible decline?The people are looking forward to the Naxals' comeback. They know it is only a lull. In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote these are the worst days and also the best days. All the political parties, from Narendra Modi to Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, are united in their repression of the people. But everyone fighting imperial globalisation — not only the revolutionaries but true patriots, Gandhians, Sarvodaya people, Lohiaites, nationalists, Muslims, minorities, advisasis, dalits and women — have hopes only in the alternative revolutionary movement. They see that only the Naxals can protect our sovereignty, under threat especially from the SEZs.
Why must the revolution kill people?The movement doesn't believe in killing. It only believes in resistance. Ours is revolutionary violence as against the violence of the ruling class and the state. All the tools of exercising violence are in the hands of the propertied classes. You get a gun license if you have five acres of land. The whole effort of Marxism is to reinforce people to resist state violence.
Is Gandhian nonviolence irrelevant? Even Gandhians realise Gandhi is not relevant. [Former Prime Minister] VP Singh once said if he were 20 years old he would join the CPI (Maoist).
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 7, Dated Feb 21, 2009
Friday, March 13, 2009
CLARIFICATION BY CPI - MAOIST.
yes, we attacked the house of aruna kirana , landlord family near by agumbe, in theertha halli talluk of shimoga district.they were notorious landlords. They are looters,attackers on poor people, arsoners,political exploiters,they snatched sevaral peices of lands of poor peaseants.they torched few houses of poor families.they also molested,misused sevaral women.So our plga force implemented party,s decision of teaching them a lesson.
This was decided by people's court.
we torched their house,vehicles, areca godown,and thrashed a Gun.We also seized two weapons from them.we did not loot any thing. That phone call was made by our p.l.g.a comrade and a malenaadu area committee member.a press statement was also issued by that area committee
PUBLIC MEETING ON BINAYAK SEN
Binayak Sen, doctor and civil rights activist, has been in prison since 14 May 2007, when he was arrested under the Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act (which allows arrest up to 90 days without charge) on suspicion of 'involvement' with Maoist insurgents. The mineral-rich central Indian state of Chhattisgarh has seen massive forced displacement of adivasi (tribal) people to make way for the exploitation of resources by private companies in recent years. In this context, a civil war-like situation has emerged in the state, marked by brutal conflict between the state and the Maoists, who control significant stretches of territory. Binayak and Ilina Sen have been campaigning for human rights in Chhattisgarh for many years, and have been outspoken opponents of the Salwa Judum, a state-sponsored paramilitary terror initiative, which has involved arming local people 'against Maoists' and thus unleashing even deeper strife in the state. Soon after helping expose police involvement in the killing of 12 tribal people on 31 March 2007, Binayak Sen was targeted and imprisoned. His applications for bail have repeatedly been rejected by Indian courts.Sen is nationally and globally known for his work in community health. In 1983, he was instrumental in setting up the community-based Shaheed Hospital for mine-workers, and, later, was a member of the state advisory committee initating community-based health programmes across the state. Recently, while in jail, he was awarded the Jonathan Mann Award by the Global Health Council for his work with impoverished communities and his commitment to human rights.Sen's advocacy and activism, in the fields of both health and civil rights, have been a persistent thorn in the side of the Chhattisgarh government and, at a deeper level, the Indian state and its neo-liberal agenda. The embarrassingly flimsy 'evidence' on which he was arrested was his visits to a Maoist leader in jail, visits he had undertaken as state general secretary of the People's Union for Civil Liberties, to provide medical and legal assistance, with the full knowledge and permission of the jail authorities. It is impossible to see his arrest, and the continued refusal of bail, as anything other than a very deliberate attempt by the state to thwart dissidence expressed in any form, and to avert uncomfortable questions about its role and agenda.
For further details contact: Subir Sinha (ss61@soas.ac. uk), Nandini Nayak (nandini@soas. ac.uk), Aditya Sarkar (bhochka@gmail. com, bhochka_81@yahoo. co.uk)
Saturday, March 07, 2009
ನಕ್ಸಲರ ಬಹಿರಂಗ ಸಭೆ.
ಪಶ್ಚಿಮ ಘಟ್ಟದಲ್ಲಿ ನಕ್ಸಲೀಯ ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆ ಆರಂಭಗೊಂಡ ನಂತರ ಇದೇ ಪ್ರಥಮ ಬಾರಿಗೆ ನಕ್ಸಲರು ಇಂತಹ ಬಹಿರಂಗ ಸಭೆ ನಡೆಸಿದ್ದು, ಇದರ ಮೂಲಕ ಮಲೆನಾಡು ಭಾಗದಲ್ಲಿನ ತಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರಾಬಲ್ಯವನ್ನು ಪ್ರದರ್ಶಿಸಿದಂತಾಗಿದೆ.
ಗುರುವಾರ ಸಂಜೆ ೬.೩೦ ರ ಸುಮಾರಿಗೆ ನಕ್ಸಲ್ ನಾಯಕ ಬಿ.ಜಿ.ಕೃಷ್ಣಮೂರ್ತಿ , ಮಂದಗಾರು ಲತಾ, ಹೊಸಗದ್ದೆ ಪ್ರಭಾ ಒಳಗೊಂಡಂತೆ ೧೩ ಜನರ ಶಸ್ತ್ರಸಜ್ಜಿತ ತಂಡ ಬುಕ್ಕಡಿಬೈಲಿಗೆ ಭೇಟಿ ನೀಡಿ ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಮನೆಮನೆಗೆ ತೆರಳಿ ಸಭೆಗೆ ಬರುವಂತೆ ಸೂಚಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ನಂತರ ಆರಂಭಗೊಂಡ ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿ.ಜಿ. ಕೃಷ್ಣಮೂರ್ತಿ ಮಾತನ್ನಾಡಿ ಪಿ.ವಿ ನರಸಿಂಹರಾವ್ ಕಾಲದಿಂದ ಆರಂಭಗೊಂಡು ಈಗಿನವರೆಗಿನ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಸರಕಾರದ ನೀತಿಗಳನ್ನು ಬಲವಾಗಿ ಖಂಡಿಸುವುದರೊಂದಿಗೆ ರಾಜ್ಯ ಸರಕಾರದ ನಿಲುವುಗಳ ವಿರುದ್ಧವೂ ಕಿಡಿಕಾರಿದ್ದಾಗಿ ತಿಳಿದುಬಂದಿದೆ.
ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇದರ ಕುರಿತು ಕ್ರಾಂತಿಗೀತೆಗಳನ್ನು ಹಾಡಿ, ಕರಪತ್ರಗಳನ್ನು ಹಂಚಲಾಗಿದೆ. ತಮ್ಮ ಹೋರಾಟವನ್ನು ಬೆಂಬಲಿಸುವಂತೆ ಕರೆನೀಡಿ ಹಳ್ಳಿಬಿದರಗೊಡಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಇತ್ತೀಚಿಗೆ ಮನೆಯೊಂದಕ್ಕೆ ಬೆಂಕಿ ಹಚ್ಚಿದ ಪ್ರಕರಣವನ್ನು ಬಲವಾಗಿ ಸಮರ್ಥಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ.
ಪೂರ್ಣ ವಿವರಳಿಗೆ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕ್ಲಿಕ್ ಮಾಡಿ.
Sringeri: Naxals hold public meeting
Sringeri:
A naxal team led by B G Krishnamurthy conducted a public meeting in Bukkadibail in Nemmaru Gram Panchayat in Sringeri taluk on Thursday.
This is the first time that the Naxals are holding an open meeting after they started their activities in the Western Ghat. On Thursday at around 6.30 pm, armed Naxal leaders B G Krishnamurthy, Mandagaru Latha, Hosagadde Prabha and 13 others visited some houses and directed the people to take part in the meeting. The meeting commenced at 8 pm.
Addressing the gathering, Krishnamurthy condemned the successive Union government policies and also spoke against State government. Revolutionary songs were sung and handouts were distributed. Naxals called upon the villagers to support them in their activities. They also justified the recent incident of setting a house ablaze at Hallibidaragodu and warned of serious action against the informers. They have also warned against those who sell illicit liquor.The meeting was held in front of Taluk Panchayat former president T S Umesh’s shop. It was said that at around 10 pm, the ANF team had started its combing in Bukkadibail and surrounding areas. On Friday, Naxals were having food in the arecanut plantations of a farmer and the ANF team were collecting details on Naxals from a house which was 100 metres away from the plantation. When a villager informed the Naxals on the arrival of ANF team, they said “ You protect yourself,” and disappeared.