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Remembering International Women’s Day

Congratulations. Let us celebrate. It is not for Women's Day alone. The Forbes magazine has come out with some good news about Indian women. Yes, the Forbes magazine, that talks about wealth and rich people! The magazine has proudly declared that, “It was a record-breaking year for women on the Forbes list of the world billionaires”. It seems two Indian women had made it to the list. So, time for celebrations. Needn't worry about finding a space to celebrate, as there is so much variety to choose from – we are really spoilt for choice.

Neo-Liberalism and Democracy

THE viability of democracy requires a belief among people that they can make a difference to their lives by participating in the democratic process. This belief may be a false one; it may be a mere illusion. But unless this illusion exists, people become not just cynical about the democratic process but despondent about their capacity to make any difference to their lives through their own efforts. Such despondency then leads to their quest for a “saviour” or a “messiah” supposedly endowed with extraordinary powers who can come to their rescue.

Camouflaging Aadhaar's Neo-Liberal Objectives1

IS Aadhaar compulsory? If so, what is its legal basis? Without Aadhaar, can one buy subsidised cooking gas? What is the government's policy on this? In fact, the UPA government’s response to these questions is marked by “intentional ambiguity”. Ambiguity is intentional because the intentions of the government are completely different from what it proclaims; hence, the ambiguity maintained is deliberate. The UPA government's strategy of “intentional ambiguity” regarding Aadhaar has had elements of obfuscation, misinterpretation, inconsistency and dishonesty.

Pete Seeger Will Keep on Singing

THAT was November 1977. One of the worst natural disasters – a typhoon and a tidal wave swept across the coastal Andhra Pradesh and in Krishna district alone more than 10,000 people lost their lives. Even before the government could wake up and organise relief measures, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), led by Comrade P Sundarayya personally visited the affected areas and organised relief efforts. As a part of the relief that was mobilised, a team from West Bengal visited the areas and distributed essential materials and also organised medical camps.

Pete Seeger

THE Communist Party of India (Marxist) mourns the demise of Pete Seeger, a singer, folk-song collector and songwriter who spearheaded an American folk revival and spent a long career championing folk music, who died on January 27. He was a simple man, who prided in calling himself as a “communist with a small 'c'”.
Pete Seeger was born on May 3, 1919 and was 94 at his death. He performed and recorded for six decades, and was still an activist: as recently as October 2011, he marched in New York City as part of the Occupy Wall Street protests.

AAP Kya Hai: Make Clear

DELHI chief minister's dharna attracted widespread attention. Some have termed this dharna as an example of 'mobocracy' and said lawmakers should not come out protesting on the streets. A petition was filed in the Supreme Court against the dharna, stating that the chief minister had violated the constitution, on which he had taken an oath. For the AAP, chief minister sitting on a dharna is its way of combining 'politics with activism' and one of the means to strengthen democracy.

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