CPI(M) will gear up for elections once dates are announced

Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s Tamil Nadu unit will gear up for elections once dates are announced, G. Ramakrishnan, state secretary, said here on Sunday. The party was, however, ready to face the polls, he said while flagging off the party's State-wide 'Meet the People' awareness campaign.

"At present CPI(M) is not in talks with any party on election, alliance or related issues. It is focusing on taking up people's issues - their suffering because of the anti-people policies of the Central and State governments," Mr. Ramakrishnan, who was reacting to Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's comments on election, said.

The CPI(M) leader also said that the party had not suffered a set back because of the exit of Tirupur MLA C. Govindasamy or his supporters. "We are not worried. And, in this region [western part of Tamil Nadu] we are as strong as ever."

Mr. Ramakrishnan said the party, through a State-wide campaign from August 22 to 29, was highlighting the impact of price raise, failure to redress farmers' grievances, eradication of untouchability, grant of patta for 25 lakh applicants and removal of encroachment on Government lands.

It was also focusing on the "wrong economic policies" of the Central and State governments that were causing untold hardship to the people and projecting an alternative economic plan.

As a culmination of the State-wide struggle, the party would hold meetings in six places across the State and national leaders would participate in the same. Sitaram Yechury would address a rally in Salem on September 4. The next day the party would hold a meeting in Tiruchi.

Similar meetings would also be conducted in Chennai, Kovilpatti and Neyveli

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

SFI sweeps Himachal University Students Union Election

Student Federation of India (SFI) has once again swept all the four seats at the Himachal Pradesh University campus, giving a big jolt to the ABVP, which had tried to gain popularity among students in the state this time by taking on the state BJP government on the issue of private universities and commercialisation of education. 

SFI also sweeped the posts of departmental representatives where it’s candidates won on 33 seats while ABVP managed to win 11 seats.Congress backed NSUI got a drubbing in the elections when none of it’s panel candidates could muster three digit votes in the SCA elections. 

Earlier this year, the Congress national general secretary Rahul Gandhi had visited HP University campus to mobilise membership for NSUI and Youth Congress. But the NSUI could not even manage a minimum of 100 votes each for four of its candidates,

SFI CEC congratulate students on HPU poll victory

The SFI Central Executive Committee extends its revolutionary greetings to the students of Himachal Pradesh for giving the SFI a sweeping victory in the Students’ Union Elections held in the state.

In the results declared yesterday the SFI has once again emerged victorious in the prestigious HP University in Shimla. Not only has the SFI won all four posts, the victory margins have increased significantly in all four posts. The results given below clearly show the increasing support for the SFI among the students in Himachal Pradesh University.

President                Khushi Verma          Victory Margin 449 (Last Year 406)

Vice President        Vipin Mehta             Victory Margin 292 (Last Year 182)

General Sec.           Sunita Ranot           Victory Margin 330 (Last Year 210)

Joint Sec.              Ankush Mandial        Victory Margin 443 (Last Year 378)

Total Department     43                          SFI  has won 33        (Last Year 28)

The SFI has swept the elections in Shimla District in all colleges except Sanjoli College. In the R K M V Girls College, the most renowned Girls’ College in the state, the SFI has won the President’s post by a margin of over 600 votes along with all central posts. The SFI  has  got elected  in Kotshera, Theog,  Chakmoh, HPU Evening college, Sarkaghat, Bangana, DAV Kangra ,  Baijnath , Rajpura , Chamba, Chowari,  . The SFI has won the post of president in Rampur, Jogendernagar as well.

The elections results are a fitting rebuff to the BJP State Government which had unleashed massive repression against the SFI to help the ABVP win the elections. The leadership of the SFI was implicated in false cases including those under Section 307 was used to put our comrades behind bars. In Hamirpur the SFI leadership was booked under Section 307 three times within a week! 

SFI Central Executive Committee member and Himachal Pradesh state President Vikram Singh was attacked physically by ABVP goons while campaigning in Dharamshala of Kangra district.

But even this blatant misuse of state power has not been able to stop the SFI from emerging victorious. The Comrades of SFI in Himachal and our elected representatives in Students’ Unions have shown over the past years that only the SFI is capable of fighting for the rights of Students in the state. 

These elections have also been a slap in the face of the NSUI which has been acting as a stooge of Congress. None other than Rahul Gandhi himself had gone to campaign for the NSUI in HPU Shimla. Speaking in a seminar in the university he had asked the students to support the NSUI for making “Bharat Nirman” a success. The NSUI has finished third in the elections with no NSUI candidate polling more than hundred votes. Out of the 43 Department Representatives the NSUI has failed to get even a single seat. These results should convey a clear message to the hollow politics which Mr. Rahul Gandhi and others are trying to sell in the name of “Youth Power”. The SFI Central Executive Committee congratulates the Himachal Pradesh SFI for this splendid success in the elections.  

The Himachal Pradesh Election results have come immediately after the students union election result in Rajastahan where elections were held after a gap of 6 years. SFI has got its biggest victory in the election held in Rajasthan as well.

The results of Rajasthan and Himachal indicate the growing discontent within the student community against the anti-student policies of this government and they also mark the rejection of ABVP’s bankrupt and divisive politics, which cannot provide an alternative to these attacks. 

We also feel that unless Students’ Union Elections are held in all educational institutions democratic rights of the students cannot be defended and advanced. While congratulating the comrades from Himachal and Rajasthan the SFI CEC will start a determined and militant struggle across all campuses to demand holding of Students’ Union Elections.

Sudents union elections in Rajasthan

The Central Executive Committee of the Students’ Federation of India extends its revolutionary greetings to the students of Rajasthan for giving SFI its biggest ever mandate in the history of students union elections in the state. The CEC of SFI also takes the opportunity to congratulate the Rajasthan state committee of the organisation.

SFI had contested in 156 college and university elections of the state held on 25^th August, 2010. Candidates of SFI won in 224 central posts in these colleges. SFI recorded its win in the President post of 56 colleges. The most notable victory of SFI was registered in the Government Sri Kalyan College in Sikar which happens to be the biggest college in Rajasthan with student strength of over nine thousand students. SFI candidates won in all the four central posts of President, General Secretary, Vice President and Assistant Secretary in this college with a majority of more than thousand votes in all the posts. In the second largest college of the state namely Bikaner Government Dungar college SFI candidates won in the three central posts with a huge majority. SFI candidates won the President post in 56 colleges.

The students’ union elections in Rajasthan have been held after a long gap of six years. It was the SFI which fought consistently against this attack on the democratic rights of the students unleashed by the then BJP government and it’s Chief Minister Basundhara Raje Sindhia. The BJP had banned the union elections in the state.

SFI continued this struggle against the present Congress government also which was unwilling to hold the students union elections despite its earlier promises to do so. Militant programmes from the unit level was conducted and students under the leadership of SFI had gheraoed the state assembly in the demand of student union elections .the fact that the students  union  elections  were held is in itself a very big victory  of the democratic student movement of the state.

Sfi s massive victory in the election is a vindication of the politics of study and struggle which the SFI stands for.

Our comrades in Rajasthan have fought day in and day out to provide an alternative to the bankrupt policies of ABVP and NSUI.

We are confident that the advances which the SFI has made in these elections will continue to grow and SFI will emerge as the biggest organisation in the state.

Rich tributes paid to Basheerbagh martyrs

CPIM and CPI on Saturday observed the 10th anniversary of the police firing at Basheerbagh and paid tributes to those who laid down their life while protesting against the power tariff hike by the then Telugu Desam Government.

Leaders of the Left parties, while paying tributes to the martyrs, criticised that the successive governments for exploiting common people in the name of power reforms. Though the government temporarily went back on privatisation following the massive agitation against World Bank influenced electricity reforms, it still was pursuing the same policy, they said.

CPI State Secretary K. Narayana demanded that the Congress leaders, who had joined them in paying homage to the victims of police firing, should also show their solidarity with the families of those killed recently in Sompeta where police fired on those protesting against setting up of thermal power plant.

Senior CPI leader Suravaram Sudhakara Reddy said that the government was once again bowing to the dictates of globalisation policy and people should resist it. CPI (M) State secretary B. V. Raghavulu said that electricity was for people and not for contractors.

Rich tributes were paid to those killed during the agitation against the power tariff hike at Basheerbagh in Hyderabad 10 years ago, at a meeting organised by the left parties near Tenneti Viswanatham statue, Jagadamba junction in Visakhapatnam

The agitation against the World Bank policies 10 years ago received world-wide attention and because of it, domestic electricity consumers were spared from additional burden even now, said CPI (M) district secretary Ch. Narasinga Rao.

Mr. Narasinga Rao and CPI city secretary Ch. Raghavendra Rao wanted people to continue the agitation against pollution-creating power plants, mining projects and other anti-people acts of the Government by drawing inspiration from the Basheerbagh agitation.

City secretaries of CPI (M) K. Lokanadham, CPI leaders Pydi Raju and others participated.

A photo exhibition on Basheerbagh incident was held.
(Courtesy : The Hindu)

Prakash Karat on Kashmir Situation

I have visited Srinagar along with my colleague and member of the Central Committee of the CPI (M), Mohammad Salim. We have met people from various walks of life and members of the CPI (M) and the CPI to hear their views about the serious situation prevailing in Kashmir.

First of all, let me state how appalled and shocked we are at the deaths of 62 young boys and girls in the past few weeks due to firing by the central para-military and police forces. There can be no justification whatsoever for these needless deaths when the protesting youth were only resorting to throwing stones. The families of all those who died have suffered an irreparable loss. We convey our heartfelt sympathy to all the bereaved families.

There has to be an immediate end to these brutal and inhuman police firings. There has to be a strict no firing policy to face stone throwing crowds. Other measures are to be resorted to in such confrontations.

The state administration should also provide for adequate compensation to those injured in the police actions and rehabilitation measures for those who have permanent disabilities.

In order to help restore normalcy, the administration should release all juveniles who have been detained and lodged in prisons.

We appeal to people, particularly the youth to pursue their protest through peaceful means.

The Central Government should stop treating the problem in Kashmir as a law and order problem which can be resolved through administrative measures. The government should amend Armed Forces Special Powers Act to remove certain draconian provisions. Till then, the Disturbed Areas Act should be withdrawn from Srinagar and Certain other civilian areas given the significant decrease in militant activities. This will make the use of the AFSPA redundant in these areas.

The Prime Minister’s assurance about zero tolerance for human rights violations should be implemented. Action against those guilty in the Pathribal incident and the recent Machil fake encounter case should be taken.

There is urgent need to generate employment for the youth in Kashmir. This must be accompanied by the rehabilitation of the thousands of former militants who need jobs and other assistance.

Given the major economic losses suffered due to the continued curfews and hartals for the past two months, the government has to compensate and revive trade and other economic activities of different sections of the people. Similarly, the disruption of education of the children due to closure of schools and other institutions should also be addressed.

The CPI(M) has been consistently advocating the need for a sustained political dialogue with all sections in the State to eventually reach a political settlement. It is unfortunate that the UPA II government has totally failed to pursue this path.

The way forward is by recognizing the special status of the state and the need to assure the Kashmiri people of their identity. These require a new political framework in which the bedrock is maximum autonomy.

The CPI(M) will discuss in its next Central Committee meeting this issue in depth and come out with a clear-cut position.

In the meantime, the Central Government should pursue the Confidence Building Measures with Pakistan which can widen the canvas of ties and relations across the LOC.

This is the time, all democratic minded persons, organisations and groups should appeal and work for restoration of peace and normalcy so that people can express their views and maintain their rights to protest peacefully. We shall strive to get the Government of India to address the political issues without further delay.