July 19, 2008

The murky goings-on in the Capital prior to the trust vote next week is not only most unfortunate, its consequence could weaken our democratic structure. The signs of desperation in the Congress circles are palpable; hence concealing facts all kinds of myths are being propaganted by the party leadership from the supremo to the heir-apprent to the spokespersons; and now the PM, in an exclusive interview, has reiterated that the Indo-US nuclear deal is “beneficial to India’s growth, that it (…)

The media in general has made the question of the Indian Government’s ‘nuclear deal ‘ with the United States of America into an affair between the Congress and the Left parties; or to be precise a few leaders in select Left parties. Both the print and the electronic media report what they understand as happening between the two sides. This does not mean that there are no people who understand the intricacies of the deal. Even in the limited number of dailies and journals I see, several (…)

The following piece appeared as a letter in the Pakistani daily Dawn from where it is being reproduced with due acknowledgement.
For many years I had been searching for Suvira Mann to condole her husband K. C. Mann’s death, I just could not find her.
K. C. Mann, member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of India, and Suvira were very good friends of Mazhar’s, my husband, and mine when they lived in Lahore. We worked together and she was a great help. She happened to (…)

All conditions and regulations related to controversial Indo-US Nuclear Deal have been framed and finalised outside India in America. If the American Congress finally passes the agreement then the role of Indian Parliament is confined to merely accepting it. In this sense, this deal has been prepared by America, for America and in the interest of America. The interest of America lies in establishing its control on the market of India including its ‘defence market’. Whatever details have (…)

[(Aruna Asaf Ali’s Birth Centenary Celebrations Begin
Aruna Asaf Ali’s yearlong birth centenary celebrations have begun on July 16.
Born as Aruna Ganguly in Barisal (now Bangladesh) on July 16, 1909, she emerged as one of the most striking freedom fighters especially at the last stage of our battle for emancipation from foreign yoke. Her dedication to the cause of liberation of the toiling millions remained undiminshed till the very end and she tirelessly worked in various capacities to (…)

Generations spanning over centuries have been told that the French Revolution devoured its own children. In a sense, this could be said also of the Russian Revolution in which many of its heroes had themselves to face the firing squad.
There is however the other side, the heroic aspect of every revolution as it throws up leaders, and these in turn try to carry forward the revolution itself. Aruna Asaf Ali was one of these beautiful children reared by the Indian people’s revolution (…)

As the third anniversary of the Indo-United States (US) Nuclear Deal approaches on July 18, and the determined leaders—Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President George Bush—want it in ‘haste’ to prove their legacy before they depart from the throne, a larger issue of feasibility of the nuclear deal and national interest comes to the fore.
The issue of transparency and accountability in our democratic polity acquires prominence as information for the common people is grossly lacking (…)

It is now really over a decade that a comprehensive paper on subsidies was presented by the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) in 1997. The situation has changed drastically since then and there is a need to re-examine the issue. The main reasons are:
1. Implicit subsidies in various forms are growing both at the Central and State levels. Take, for instance, the large number of tax exemptions on Special Economic Zones (SEZs) granted by the government. They imply a big (…)

There are rare occasions when one is witness to the making of history before our own eyes. The dismantling of the 240-year-old Nepalese monarchy and the transformation of Nepal into a Republic has been one such occasion.
As rightly said by a senior Nepali leader, “A day comes once in a century. Today is day that Nepali’s long cherished dream has come true.”
It is true that it is a day of celebration for every justice and progress loving person on earth where people’s will (…)

The American President, Thomas Jefferson, in one of his observations, is known to have stated that “If I am given an opportunity to survive with a Government without newspapers or with newspapers without a Government, then, I would opt for the second option.” The utterance reflects the all-significant strain that freedom of all kinds, including the freedom of press and expression, underlies the American democratic experiment.1 This saying lies nailed on the walls of offices of various (…)