Declare Netaji’s birthday as ‘Desh Prem Diwas’, says Left

NEW DELHI: The Left parties urged the Centre on Friday to declare January 23, the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, as ‘Desh Prem Diwas’ (Patriot’s Day).

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the general secretaries of the four Left parties said Netaji is hailed by the people as a leader with unparalleled patriotism. “In these days, when the spirit of patriotism seems lacking among our countrymen owing to the frustration arising primarily out of the poor economic condition of the common man, it is necessary to give a call to the people on the historic birthday of Netaji to revive such a spirit.”

They said Netaji’s patriotism and secular values should help everyone work together for poverty eradication, and to take the country forward in the way patriots dreamt of, and for which they sacrificed everything. They pointed out that the proposal was submitted to the Netaji Centenary Celebration Committee in 1996.

The signatories include Prakash Karat of the CPI (M), A. B. Bardhan of the CPI, Debabrata Biswas of the All-India Forward Bloc and T. J. Chandrachoodan of the RSP.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

KERALA : CPI(M) to launch campaign against price rise, extremism

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) State committee has decided to launch a major campaign over extremism and price rise beginning next month.

The party State committee, which concluded its two-day meeting here on Friday, resolved to organise vehicle rallies in all districts from February 25 to March 5 and lay siege to Central government offices from March 8 to 12 on the question of price rise. Squads of CPI(M) workers would visit houses across the State and distribute pamphlets containing the party’s demands.

In a press note issued at the end of the meeting, the CPI(M) State committee came down heavily on the Congress and its allies for what it termed the United Democratic Front’s consistent support for extremist elements in the State. The CPI(M), the press note said, had always opposed attempts at communal polarisation in the State and there was no question of the party compromising on its stand on extremism. The UDF, on the contrary, had joined hands with Abdul Nasir Maudany when he was pursuing an extremist path and was currently in league with the National Development Front (NDF) and its latest avatar, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI). The UDF had unleashed a propaganda against the CPI(M) accusing it having entered into an electoral tie-up with the PDP only to cover up its own extremist links.

The LDF government had never wavered in investigating or initiating legal measures against Mr. Maudany. But the UDF had always tried to cover up extremist activities to serve its narrow political interests. Although the LDF government had taken steps to investigate and bring to book those involved in the attempt to murder former Chief Minister E.K. Nayanar, the UDF had not taken any follow-up measure. What it did, instead, was to ask the Crime Branch to withdraw the case. Of the eight cases pending against Thadiyantavide Nazir, an alleged extremist, one was connected with the conspiracy to murder Nayanar. Of the remaining cases, four involved crimes committed during UDF rule and three during the present LDF government. While the UDF had charged only one case against Nazir in connection with an attack on police personnel by NDF workers, investigations during the present government had found him to be involved in three incidents that had taken place during UDF rule.

The LDF had not entered into any electoral pact with the PDP. The UDF and a section of the media had unleashed such a massive propaganda when Mr. Maudany foreswore extremism and declared support for the LDF candidate in Ponnani after withdrawing the PDP candidate.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)