FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION
Prepare for the Coming Revolutionary Storms
People's Voice
Organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Ghadar Party of India
Volume 29 – Issue 8
Condemn attempts to whitewash state terrorism at Nandigram!
In the last fortnight, the Chief Minister
of West Bengal and other top leaders of
CPM have been engaged in a desperate
fire-fighting exercise to try and minimize
the immense damage done to their
reputation by the brutal killings and
atrocities on villagers at Nandigram
in March. Faced with the shock and
horror expressed across the board by
all sections of public opinion, including
the anguish of many of their own
supporters, the CPM leadership has
decided to brazen it out in true social-
fascist style.
The party has admitted nothing more than
that the "regrettable" loss of life may have
been due to "police excesses". Meanwhile,
the entire propaganda machinery of the
Lifting of the Freeze on SEZs:
Abolish the SEZ Act and the Land Acquisition Act!
Enact a new law to protect land
from being seized for capitalist
profiteering!
After 73 days the UPA Government
headed by Manmohan Singh has lifted
the ‘freeze’ on Special Economic
Zones, or SEZs. The policy had
been put on temporary hold following
massive protests against the seizure
of agricultural land by corporate
interests. Now it is being allowed
to be implemented with some minor
modifications, namely: (i) a cap has been
fixed on the total amount of land for an
SEZ (5000 hectares for multi-product
SEZs), (ii) minimum proportion of land to
be used for production of the specified
commodities will be 50% for all SEZs,
rather than 35% for some, and (iii) the
State Governments are advised to
avoid using the Land Acquisition Act to
Contribution – Rs. 5/-
CPM is engaged in a high-pitched exercise
to paint as black the villagers who fought
tooth and nail to resist moves to acquire
their land for the planned SEZ. It is the
poor and landless peasants like these who
have been the backbone of the militant
tradition of resisting colonial, feudal and
capitalist exploitation and oppression
in West Bengal, and of the communist
movement there. But now, when their
anger is directed against the CPM and
its government which have been acting
as the capitalists' instrument for the
takeover of their land, these same women
and men have become villains! It is absurd
to hear the "militant communist" leaders
of CPM self-righteously charging the
peasants of Nandigram with the 'crime'
of carrying arms, of "using women as
seize agricultural land, but rather leave
it to the ‘market forces’. With these
modifications, the freeze has been
lifted, paving the way for 53 SEZs to
be notified immediately. This will lead to
the transfer of hundreds of thousands
of hectares from the hands of peasants
and working families into the hands of
big capitalist corporations.
People’s Voice condemns this move of
the UPA Government, which is aimed
at enabling the rapid transfer of land
from peasants to big capitalists.
This is a dangerous trend, which
further threatens the livelihood of
the tillers, as well as food security,
availability of housing and shelter,
as well as protection of the natural
environment.
The lifting of the freeze deserves to
April 16-30, 2007
a shield", of "attacking the police", and
"violating the rule of law".
Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya
is doing his best to convince everyone
that the issue is now over and done
with, now that he has declared (after
the bloodbath) that the planned SEZ
will be relocated to some other place in
West Bengal, and since his government
has "agreed" with the Kolkata High Court
order for a CBI inquiry into the violence.
Not a word is being said about doing
anything for the people who have been
grievously hurt or bereaved through the
attacks on them, not just in March,
but also earlier in January. Not a word
is being said about the need to punish
Continued on page 4
be condemned because it represents
the refusal of the Government of India
to abolish the SEZ Act, as well as a
refusal to abolish the colonial Land
Acquisition Act – both popular demands
that have been raised by communists
and others who defend human rights
and democratic rights.
Continued on page 2
In this Issue
Voice of Party 2-3
 SEZ policy of the UPA government
 Uttar Pradesh Elections
World 4-5
 Iran reacts decisively
 Cooperation among the countries of
South Asia
Voice of Toilers & Tillers 6
 Delhi Municipal Corporation
elections
Voice of Party

Condemn the arrest of activists peacefully protesting the new

SEZ policy of the UPA government!
People's Voice condemns the arrest
of dozens of women and men activists
of different organisations who were
peacefully sitting on a dharna outside
the Union Commerce Ministry on April
9, 2007.

Those arrested were part of a peaceful

dharna who were carrying out a
signature campaign amongst the
people against the new SEZ policy of
the UPA government. Among those
who were actively participating in the
dharna were Medha Patkar, Comrade
Prakash Rao, Bijju Nayak, Rakesh Rafiq,
Chittaranjan Singh, Ajit Jha, BS Rawat,
Sree Prakash, Chandra Bhan and many
others. Many working women and men
who were passing by the dharna on the
pavement along the busy street took
time off to express their opposition to
the anti worker, anti peasant SEZ policy
of the government by signing on the big
banners held up by the activists.
The activists wanted a meeting with
the Union Commerce Minister to explain
why the new SEZ policy was anti people.
It is clear that the UPA government is
in no mood to listen to the voice of the
people. This is why, instead of organising
a meeting of the activists with the
Ministry, the police were instructed by
the government to arrest the peaceful
protestors.
It may be recalled that in the wake
of public outrage at the massacre in
Nandigram organised by the Left Front
Government of West Bengal, the Union
Government had declared it was putting
the SEZ's on hold until a new policy was
announced. It did not take more than
two weeks for the Indian and foreign
multinationals and their political parties
at the Center and in the different
states to get their act together to
continue with their SEZ policy. Now,
the Center has lifted the stay on the
SEZ's that had already been approved.
It has declared that private parties will
be free to expropriate peasants and
deprive them of their land and establish
SEZ's after giving them "compensation
according to the market”.
People’s Voice hails the just struggle of
the people against the anti worker and
anti peasant SEZ policy of the rulers.

Lifting of the Freeze on SEZs... Allocation of land for different socially Workers, peasants, and all working
necessary functions, with appropriate people in our country must demand
Continued from page 1
balance between agricultural use, not only that the anti-people SEZ Act
industrial use, commercial use, and the colonial Land Acquisition Act
The fact that the colonial Land
domestic use, parks and public areas, must both be abolished. We must also
Acquisition Act still remains in tact
etc., is something that has to be demand that a new law be enacted and
means that peasants have no effective
planned and managed to harmonise enforcing mechanisms established,
protection from their land being seized
different interests with each other and to prevent land from being bought by
by State governments, which are not
with the general interests of society. capitalist corporations, through any
legally bound to do what the Central
The people need to be the ones who route.
Government recommends regarding
agricultural land, which is a state make such decisions that affect their
lives. To advocate that land use be Land is not a commodity to be bought
subject.
left in the hands of ‘market forces’, and sold by private parties as they
as the UPA Government headed by like. It is a vital natural resource that
The modifications do not change the
Manmohan Singh is doing, means to belongs to nations and peoples. It
basic character of the SEZ Act, as
act in the narrow interest of the big needs to be secure in the hands of
a tool of the big capitalists to seize
monopoly capitalists. It means to those who till it, and over time, brought
any land they choose, by one method
serve those who want to grab prime under collective and social ownership
or another, to set up zones of special
land for reaping maximum profits for and control. It cannot be left to be
privileges for themselves, at the
themselves, with utter disregard for monopolized by self-serving private
expense of the rest of society.
every other interest. corporate interests.

2 April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8

Voice of Party
Uttar Pradesh Elections:
The struggle is to advance the agenda of the workers and
peasants!
Uttar Pradesh is in the throes of the
elections to the state assembly, with
the polling that began in the first
phase on April 7 extending to the first
week of May. Uttar Pradesh, as the
most populous state in the country, is
politically significant for the parties of
the bourgeoisie – the party that forms
the government will have a decided
advantage going into battle in the
general elections. Uttar Pradesh is also
extremely important for the working
class and peasantry in its struggle to
build an alternative to the rule of the
bourgeoisie.
This state was once the repository
of culture and learning, the seat of
flourishing arts. It has a long and
glorious history dating back many
centuries. In more recent history, it has
the record of being one of the states
that gave birth to a proud tradition of
anti-colonial fighters who fought till the
gallows with the dream of liberating the
Indian people from the hated colonial
yoke. However, the Uttar Pradesh of
today is but a pathetic shadow of its
past.
Uttar Pradesh is near the bottom
of the list when measured for 21
indicators including health care,
education, unemployment, poverty and
social deprivation.
The state accounts for 26 percent
of the infant mortality in the country,
76 out of every 1,000 infants do not
survive. In UP, at least 47 percent
of all children up to the age of three
are underweight and at least 14%
are "wasted" (the children suffer
from protein malnutrition), because
thousands of rural and urban families
cannot afford pulses or vegetables.
The workers and peasants of Uttar
Pradesh have not accepted their
conditions lying down. In the anti-
colonial struggle, as well as in the past
60 years, the workers and peasants
of Uttar Pradesh have fought valliantly
in defence of livelihood and rights. This
is the reason that the bourgeoisie
was forced to carry out limited land
reforms including land to the tiller in
the fifties and sixties in Uttar Pradesh.
The seventies and eighties witnessed
powerful peasant struggles and the
peasantry forming organisations that
claimed a share of power in the state
as well as in the center. The main party
of the bourgeoisie till the seventies,
the Congress Party, was repeatedly
challenged by other political forces,
particulary those emerging from the
peasantry and the intermediate strata
of the towns.
The period since the eighties has seen
the emergence of a number of political
parties of the intermediate strata with
a base in Uttar Prasdesh and having
all India aspirations. These include the
Samajwadi Party and the Bhaujan Samaj
Party. This period has also seen the rise
of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
as one of the principal parties of the
ruling class, with a strong base in Uttar
Pradesh. The Samajwadi Party and the
BSP have pretensions of representing
the down trodden sections of the
toilers and tillers. However, when the
conditions of the toilers and tillers of
Uttar Pradesh is reviewed, it can be
seen that the rule of the SP or BSP
has not addressed any of the problems
facing the workers and peasants,
women and youth of Uttar Pradesh.
Massive unemployment, extremely
poor quality of education, extremely
poor health services, combined with
increasing ruination of peasantry
is what stares the people of Uttar
Pradesh in the face.
The Congress, and later on the Bharatiya
Janata Party, have carried out blatant
and cynical caste and communal
mobilisation to divide the polity of
Uttar Pradesh over the decades. Now
the SP, BSP and other such parties
have joined the same bandwagon of
April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8
blatant and cynical caste and communal
mobilisation. As a result, the political
unity of workers and peasants, who
are facing great attacks as a result of
the capitalist offensive of liberalisation,
privatisation and globalisation, is greatly
endangered. Today, the people of Uttar
Pradesh are confronted with a terrible
situation wherein all these political
parties in fact organise on the basis of
extremely narrow sectoral interests of
caste and religion while all of them serve
the interests of the biggest monopolies
and multinationals.
The current election campaign in UP,
as previous campaigns, has brought
to stark visibility the deep rot in the
political process. The big bourgeoisie is
using the 7 phase elections to engineer
a verdict most suitable to itself. It is
using all kinds of weapons, including
the election commission, the media,
the deployment of large para military
forces, as well as the weapons of money
power and gangsterism to get a result
for its favoured combination.
Criminals convicted of murder and anti-
social activities have been put up by
all the parties in the fray. There is no
attempt to hide the blatantly cynical
acts of buying off candidates, putting
up independents just to cut a rival
party's vote, and the use of money and
gun power.
The political system and process in
place in our country will no doubt ensure
that one or the other or a combination
of the BJP, Congress, SP and BSP
and some others will come to power.
It is a fact that the Congress and the
BJP represent the interests of the
biggest exploiters and oppressors, the
imperialist bourgeoisie of India. It is also
a fact that the SP and BSP represent
the interests of intermediate strata
in UP, who in league with sections of
the big bourgeoisie want to use their
Continued on page 7
3
World
Iran reacts decisively against Anglo – American provocation
The US imperialists and their British
allies have, in recent weeks, stepped
up provocations against Iran, increasing
their naval presence in the vicinity of
Iran and violating Iran’s airspace. On
March 23, 2007, Iran acted decisively
by arresting fifteen British naval
personnel abroad two British naval
boats which, it said, had intruded into
Iranian waters at Arvandrud.
While the UK made a hue and cry
claiming that the sailors were seized
when they were about a kilometer or so
inside Iraqi waters, they did not have
a satisfactory explanation as to what
British naval vessels were doing in the
waters so close to Iran in the first
place. In an area where the boundary
itself is very complicated, they had no
business to be in the sea belonging to
Iran and Iraq in the first place unless
their intentions were hostile.
Moreover, this incident had been
preceded by a massive build up of
heavily–armed US and British naval
presence in the Gulf region, ostensibly
to “put pressure” upon Iran. Only a few
weeks before, the UN Security council
had, at the instance of the US, invoked
sanctions against Iran for not giving up
its pursuit of atomic energy. While there
have been many aggravations against
Iran in the past, in recent weeks the
Anglo–American imperialists have really
stepped up provocation, which can be
seen from the following incidents:
• On November 1, 2006, at 21:30
local time, two British Black
Hawks (helicopters) from Royal
Navy hovered at the height of 150
meters at Khorramshahr, violating
Iranian airspace and they entered
Iraqi territory after 10 minutes;
• On January 27, 2007 a British
helicopter flew over the mouth of
Arvandrud (Arvand river) violating
Iran's airspace and left the area
after a warning from Iranian coast
guards
• Three British Navy boats entered
4 April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8
Khor Mousa mouth in Iranian
territorial waters on February 28,
2007
• On March 27, 2007, the US Navy
began its largest demonstration of
force in the Persian Gulf since the
2003 invasion of Iraq, led by a pair
of aircraft carriers and backed by
warplanes flying simulated attack
manoeuvres off the coast of Iran.
The manoeuvres bring together
two strike groups of US warships
and more than 100 US warplanes
to conduct simulated air warfare in
the crowded Gulf shipping lanes
• On Sunday, April 1, 2007, US war
planes violated Iranian airspace in
the province of Khuzestan
Thus, while the British were using
the disputed spatial position of its
naval boats when they were seized
to claim that the Iranians had acted
“illegally”, it cannot be disputed
Condemn attempts to...
Continued from page 1
those guilty of killing and attacking the
people, whether they were policemen or
their own party members. The attitude
clearly is: those people brought it
on themselves, they deserved what
happened to them, because they dared
to challenge us!
At the same time, great pressure is
being brought to bear on those within
the communist movement and those
sympathetic to it not to pursue their
criticism of the West Bengal government
and the CPM on the Nandigram issue,
in the name of "left unity" and not giving
a handle to the enemies of the Left to
attack it. This is the most pernicious
plank of all. It is not the criticism of the
CPM that is bringing discredit to the
communist movement, but it is the line
and policy of the CPM itself. This line
and policy has not just now, but from
its inception, been in the service of the
that the Anglo–Americans have very
deliberately stepped up warmongering
and intimidation of the people and
government of Iran and the other
countries of the region.
After a period of about twelve days,
during which the British government was
forced to enter into direct negotiations
with the government of Iran, the sailors
were released by the Iranian authorities
on the eve of Easter “as a gift to the
British people”.
By acting decisively and seizing the
offending naval vessels and arresting
the sailors on board, the government
of Iran has shown that it will not
tolerate violations of its sovereignty.
For standing up boldly against the
Anglo–American intimidation, the
government of Iran won the admiration
of peoples and governments all over the
world. In contrast, the Anglo–American
imperialists stood exposed as bullies
and provocateurs.
reactionary state and social system,
even while it has been cloaked in 'leftist'
colours. It is this cloak that has now
fallen off, revealing the fascism and the
defence of bourgeois interests that lies
underneath.
No communist, no person of
conscience should swallow the blatant
falsehoods and slander campaign being
orchestrated by the CPM leadership to
whitewash their crimes at Nandigram,
and pretend that it is now 'business as
usual'. The issue is not, as is being made
out, only one of which policy to follow to
bring "development" to West Bengal. It
is a matter of taking a principled and
consistent stand of opposition to all
forms of state terrorism, no matter
where it takes place. It is a matter
of ensuring that the guilty are not let
off and receive the punishment they
deserve. Only such a stand is worthy
of those who stand for the human and
democratic rights of the workers and
peasants and all oppressed people.
World
Why is there so little cooperation among the countries
of South Asia?
The meeting of the heads of government
of the seven countries of this region
(India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal,
Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives)
took place in New Delhi on April 3-4,
2007. The South Asian Association
for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was
founded nearly two decades ago, but
to this date, regional cooperation here
has been extremely low. In fact, South
Asia is considered one of the “least
integrated regions of the world”. For
instance, trade among the countries
of this region is extremely limited: less
than 2% of the GDP of the region, and
much less than the trade of these
countries with the outside world. This
is in spite of the existence of factors
that usually make for good trade, like
geographical proximity, similar cultural
preferences, and a long history of
intraregional trade in the past. While
the region as a whole has abundant
energy reserves (especially coal, hydro-
electric power and natural gas), many
countries here are energy-deficient.
Still, there is very little sharing of
energy resources. Cross-border trade
too is very limited, since the costs are
high and the difficulties facing traders
formidable.
Normal movement of peoples across
borders is also extremely limited, despite
the fact that the peoples living along
the borders of these countries have
traditionally had very close ties. Where
movement of peoples does take place, it
is often branded as “illegal migration”,
as refugee influx, or even worse, as
“cross-border terrorism”. Movement
of people faces not only administrative
and legal hurdles, but train, bus and
air connectivity and telecommunication
links between the countries is also poor.
Despite the personal and family ties
many people in these countries have
with others across the border, only 7%
of the international calls made from
this region are to countries within the
region, in contrast to, for example, 71%
in the East Asian region.
Despite its great natural and human
resources, South Asia is one of the
poorest regions of the world. It has
the largest number of poor people of any
region in the world. It has the largest
number of people who cannot read or
write. Living conditions, including the
health status, of the majority of the
population is low, and it is the only
region of the world where the number
of females is less than the number of
males, revealing the particularly harsh
conditions faced by its women and girls.
The countries here also share the legacy
of colonial subjugation that turned this,
one of the most economically productive
and flourishing regions of the world in
pre-colonial times, into one of the most
backward.
Given their common problems and
experiences, and their shared histories,
a much greater level of cooperation
among the South Asian countries would
have been expected. The main reason
that this is not so is, firstly, because
the British colonialists deliberately
instigated divisions among the nations
and peoples of the region, and secondly,
because the ruling classes of these
countries have further entrenched and
deepened these divisions as part of
their strategy to defend and advance
their own interests. In this respect,
the Indian ruling class bears the main
responsibility. Being the ruling class
of a country far bigger than any of the
others, and commanding far greater
resources and military power, it has
always considered itself as the overlord
of the region. It has fought several
wars with Pakistan, and has sent its
army into Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
It has used its geographical position
at the centre of this region, as well as
its economic clout, against countries
like Nepal and Bangladesh. Both in the
north-east and north-west regions, it
has deployed massive concentrations
of troops and fenced off borders in
the name of a “security threat” and
insurgency in those regions. The other
countries of this region know very well
April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8
that if they cross the Indian state,
either economically or politically, it can
make things extremely difficult for them
in various ways.
This is the main reason why the
establishment of SAARC has made
little difference on the ground in all
these years. So sharp have been the
contradictions that in many years it has
not been able to even hold its annual
summit. The peoples of this region have
paid the price for the lack of cooperation
and goodwill amongst their political
establishments in various ways. It has
prevented them from looking to each
other for common solutions to their
common problems. Above all, the lack
of unity and mutual suspicions have
permitted imperialist powers like the
US to make greater inroads into the
region, and have pushed the countries
along the costly road of increasing
militarization.
14th Summit of SAARC
The 14th Summit of SAARC in New Delhi
took place against this background.
One feature of this Summit was the
increased interest of countries outside
the region in the affairs of SAARC.
Afghanistan, which languishes under
American imperialist occupation, was
admitted as a full member (the eighth).
For the first time, China, Japan,
South Korea and the United States
were formally allowed to participate
as “observers”. Whereas the US and
China have definite political interests
in the region, all four countries are
increasingly interested in the region as
a huge and growing market and source
of raw materials as well as a field for
investment, under the conditions where
several of the countries are liberalizing
their economies and opening up to
foreign capital.
The admission of Afghanistan as member,
(which India pushed for), and of China as
Continued on page 8
5
Voice of Toilers & Tillers

Delhi Municipal Corporation elections:

Anti-democratic character of Party dominated political system

and process exposed!
The campaign of the Jan Pratinidhi
Manch to select and elect peoples
candidates makes a significant
advance!

The recently concluded Municipal

Corporation elections in Delhi once again
revealed sharply the completely anti-
democratic character of the present
party dominated political system and
process. At the same time, perhaps for
the first time in Delhi, a force emerged
on the political arena from amongst the
working people which had the courage
to take head on this Party dominated
that the people have heard innumerable exercise their control over the elected
political system and process and field
times before and have ceased to believe representative. This won them a lot of
candidates for the Corporation elections.
in, failed to inspire anyone. respect and support from the people,
As a result a whiff of fresh air was felt
who clearly appreciated the principled
in the state of Delhi, with hundreds of
On the other hand, the Jan Pratinidhi stand of these candidates.
people from all walks of life, young and
Manch, consisting of residents’
old, women and men, campaigning for an
organizations across the social Candidates sponsored by Jan Pratinidhi
alternative to party rule.
spectrum, from upper and middle class Manch stood for the MCD elections
colonies to slums and resettlement in eleven wards of Delhi. Through
The MCD elections took place at a time
colonies, boldly launched its campaign of street corner meetings, door to door
when the livelihood and rights of the
selection of candidates by the residents contacts, leaflets, street plays, etc.,
people of Delhi have been under severe
themselves. This campaign addressed the candidates of the Jan Pratinidhi
attack, as a result of the sealing of shops
the urgent need to challenge the Manch and their supporters explained
and small commercial establishments
domination of the narrow, self-serving to the people that this initiative of Jan
to make way for massive malls and
agenda of the big political parties of Pratinidhi Manch has been launched to
retail outlets of the big multinationals,
the establishment on the residents of challenge the existing political process.
the ruthless demolition of slums and
Delhi and bring the actual concerns of A leaflet distributed in one of the areas
eviction of thousands of working people
the people to the forefront by directly explained that “ . . . those candidates,
with no proper rehabilitation, the
involving the people in governance through who have spent lakhs and crores of
vicious attacks on hawkers, vendors
their own selected representatives, or rupees to get the party tickets, would
and rickshaw pullers, the imposition
Jan Pratinidhis. In several wards across first loot the public to make up this
of a master plan that does not reflect
Delhi, public meetings of the residents’ money and would work according to the
the needs and aspirations of the vast
ward committees were held, at which agenda set by the political party bosses.
majority of the residents of Delhi but
the residents selected and put up This is what has been going on for so
the interests of only the big monopoly
candidates from amongst themselves. many years; we are allowed to vote
capitalists. Both the major political
In accordance with the guiding principles once every five years, but have no say
parties, the Congress Party and the
of the Jan Pratinidhi Manch, these in the selection of the candidates and
BJP had suffered a complete loss of
candidates took a solemn oath before therefore end up voting for the ‘least
credibility. According to newspaper
the residents, that they would work for evil’. That is how we are completely
reports and first-hand accounts, both
the interests of the people of the ward marginalized from the political process
these parties, ridden by factional
and be accountable to them, rather and are deprived of the right to make
infighting, were openly selling their party
than to any political party or vested and implement decisions that affect
tickets for lakhs and crores of rupees.
interest. They also signed an affidavit our lives . . . In complete contrast to
They had a hard time finding ‘credible’
stating that on being elected, if they the candidates of the political parties,
candidates to put up for the MCD
failed to perform in the interests of the the candidates of the JPM have been
elections. The weary and lack-lustre
people of the ward, they would step selected by the residents from amongst
election campaign of the candidates
down from their post. This was done themselves and have to be accountable
of these parties, full of false promises
to ensure that the people are able to to the residents for their actions.”

6 April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8

Voice of Toilers & Tillers
The election campaign of the Jan
Pratinidhi Manch reflected the boldness
and vitality of the candidates and
activists and their enthusiasm for taking
far and wide the new trend that they
are setting. The simplicity and courage
of the campaigners, their direct appeal
to the best sentiments of the people,
their challenge to the established
political parties and the existing political
process, the bold banners, placards and
T-shirts bearing the election symbol
“torch”, the catchy slogans, the street
corner meetings attended by hundreds
of residents, the enthralling street
play performances by the youth and
children which stripped off the mask of
‘democracy’ of the existing electoral
process through many a delightful
and comic scene – all this won the
hearts of the residents, many of whom
contributed generously for the campaign
and election expenses of the candidates.
The campaign of JPM was carried out
with very moderate expenses, met
mainly by voluntary contributions from
the residents of the ward, in complete
contrast to the campaign of the political
parties who gave out huge sums of
money and other forms of allurement
to secure votes. This was such a novel
experience in Delhi that even the press
and television media had to report on it
again and again.
The Congress Party, BJP and other
established political parties tried many
tricks to thwart the campaign of the
JPM. The Congress, BJP and other
parties of the ruling class could not
believe that there was actually a force
willing to stand up to them. As most of
candidates who stand as independents
are either dumy candidates of this or
that political party or stand for the
purpose of advancing personal agendas,
these parties became worried about
the political impact of the campaign of
the JPM. Apart from the open use of
money power and muscle power, which
is the norm with these parties and was
witnessed amply in these elections as
well, nefarious efforts were made to
buy off specific candidates supported
by the JPM or to put pressure on them
to give up. Some JPM candidates and
their supporters received threats.
However, all the candidates sponsored
by the JPM courageously resisted
these pressures. On the day of polling,
in at least one of the wards where a
JPM candidate commanded significant
support among the youth, large-scale
rigging was organized and provocations
were staged, together with fierce
police lathi charge on the residents
who came to vote. Such incidents
were also reported from several other
wards across the city, but the state
machinery and the media were content
with reporting that the “situation had
been brought under control”! Such
were the “free and fair” elections to
the MCD, which brought in a sweeping
victory for BJP, replacing the Congress
Party that had earlier held sway.
The people of Delhi whose homes have
been destroyed, shops have been sealed
and livelihood taken away, cannot afford
to forget that neither the BJP nor the
Congress Party politicians came to
their aid when they were under attack.
Instead, the politicians of both these
parties shamelessly took cover behind
the Supreme Court orders and pleaded
helplessness! Under the present political
system, when the anger of the people
rises, the ruling bourgeoisie organizes
a change of the team in the positions
of power through elections, only to
continue the same program as before,
with different faces. This is what has
happened in these elections as well. We
cannot expect any let-up in the attacks
on our livelihood and rights as a result of
the change of team in the MCD.
People’s Voice congratulates the Jan
Pratinidhi Manch for this extremely
important and bold campaign. The
Uttar Pradesh Elections:
Continued from page 3
control over UP to fatten themselves at
the cost of the workers and peasants.
Plunder of the land and resources,
plunder of the state exchequer is
the goal of all these parties. It is no
wonder that a life and death struggle is
being waged by all these parties, every
possible weapon, to capture power.
April 16-30 2007 – Volume 29 – Issue 8
campaign launched by the Jan Pratinidhi
Manch in the MCD elections 2007 – the
selection of candidates by the ward
residents from amongst themselves,
the steps to ensure people’s control
over and accountability of the elected
representatives, the participation in
the elections on a non-party basis,
without the use of money power
or muscle power or other forms of
allurement – represents an important
step in the direction of breaking the
stranglehold of the big political parties,
who shamelessly serve the interests of
the biggest capitalist monopolies, Indian
and foreign, in the “name of the people”.
The slogan of the Jan Pratinidhi Manch
“Party pratinidhi nahin, jan pratinidhi!”
(“Not party candidates, but people’s
candidates!”) caught the imagination
of the residents during the election
campaign and is gaining popularity
among the masses of Delhi day by day.
Each one of the several thousand votes
secured jointly by the JPM candidates
represents a breach in this party-
dominated political process, a call for a
thorough-going renewal of this political
process and a decisive step in the
direction of bringing political power into
the hands of the people. The activists
of the Jan Pratinidhi Manch have
reported that they are summing up
their experiences, consolidating their
gains and chalking out their plans for
taking this campaign widely among all
sections of the people of Delhi and other
parts of India in the coming months.
People’s Voice wishes the Jan Pratinidhi
Manch success in its struggle and work
to bring political power into the hands
of the people.
The task confronting the workers
and peasants of Uttar Pradesh is
how to ensure that the concerns of
workers and peasants over issues of
livelihood and rights are brought to
center stage. Workers and peasant
organisations must boldly challenge this
criminalisation and communalisation of
politics, the domination of the political
system and process by criminalised
parties of the bourgeoisie.
7
 Lok Awaz Publishers & Distributors,
Letters to Editor E–392, Sanjay Colony, Okhla Phase-II, New Delhi - 110020

The Nandigram Tragedy

The Editor,
PV.
Sir,
This letter is being written to express
my deep anger and sorrow at the
unspeakable tragedy that met at
least dozens of hapless men, women
and children in Nandigram, and also
to express my solidarity with the
statement on the matter issued by the
CC of the party. The events speak for
themselves: irrespective what the Chief
Minister Mr. Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
may say, what the CBI or any other
enquiry may find, or what the courts
may see and choose to say, the events
represent one of the worst atrocities
against a defenceless section of the
society. It stands in the same league
as the 1984 post-assassination riots,
the 1992-93 post-Babri and Bombay
riots, and the 2002 state organized
Gujarat genocide. These events
prove what the party has been saying
all along: the people of India face the
gravest danger from the big bourgeoisie,
their political parties and the state
organs. The facade of liberal democracy
donned by the CPI(M) as the 'human
face' of the political spectrum has been
ripped off once and for all. Any one
who had any illusions about their real
agenda, which is that of facilitating the
entrenchment of the interests of the
big bourgeoisie, domestic and foreign,
to create conditions for the outright
naked exploitation of the valuable
natural resources, and the labour of
its peoples to enrich a handful of blood
suckers, may now see what they really
stand for. Hiding behind the well-worn
and tired cliche of brining `law and
order' to a rebellious region, using the
most brutal state apparatus and cadre
of lumpens, they carried out a brazen
attack to terrorize the people of
Nandigram to yield and submit. Even
though for the moment it has been
said that the SEZ will not be set up
in Nandigram, keeping in mind that
their word has no credibility among
the rank and file of the people, the
message has been sent loud and clear
that they will stop at nothing to
pursue the path of liberalization and
privatization, hiding behind the slogan
of industrialization in West Bengal.
All men and women of conscience
must join in condemning the events of
Nandigram. The working class and the
revolutionary movement must come
together and expose the wolf that lurks
in the communist camp for what it is.
Sincerely,
A. Narayan
Bangalore

Why is there so little...
Continued from page 5
an observer (which India was unhappy
with but Nepal and other SAARC member
countries pushed for) reveal some of
the changing dynamics within SAARC.
The Indian bourgeoisie is interested in
projecting itself as a world power, not
just a South Asian power. For this it
needs to ensure that its contradictions
with its immediate neighbors within
SAARC are kept in manageable terms.
Thus it was that it was noticeable that
the representatives of India, Pakistan
and Bangladesh kept their animosities
in check during the Summit.
Various platitudes were repeated
about the need to step up cooperation.
However, little was achieved in terms
of substantially removing the barriers
towards greater cooperation, apart
from token promises to ease some visa
restrictions, improve connectivity and
consider trade facilitation measures, as
well as set up a South Asia Development
Fund and a South Asian University. The and Pakistan with the imperialists, and
Summit Declaration also referred to the imperialist strivings of the Indian
cooperation against terrorism as part ruling class are major impediments to
of other “transnational crimes”. cooperation and unity in this region. The
peoples aspiring for this cooperation
Real cooperation and unity in the and unity must demand an end to the
region is something that is desired by warmongering, militarization, cynical
all the peoples that reside here. The use of communal politics and the politics
block to this comes precisely from the of one-upmanship among the member
ruling class of India and some other states, starting with the Indian state.
countries and from the US and other This is necessary to free the energies of
imperialists who do not want the the one and a half billion people of South
peoples of South Asia to live in peace Asia, who constitute one-quarter of the
with each other. The colonial legacy, world's population, and to enable them
the partition of the subcontinent along to take up the burning issue of getting
communal lines, the extremely close rid of their poverty, backwardness and
connections of the ruling class of India exploitation.
Request to Readers
We request our readers to send in reports/articles on the life and struggles
of workers, peasants, women, youth and every section of the working people.
This will contribute to strengthening the political unity and struggles of
workers and peasants for the renewal of Indian society
Internet Edition of
Mazdoor Ekta Lehar &
People's Voice at http://www.cgpi.org, e-mail:mail@cgpi.org