Media under Severe Attack

THE World Press Freedom Day, as proclaimed by the United Nations, was observed on May 3. Coinciding with this, the World Press Freedom Index was published by the Reporters without Borders (Reporters Sans Frontieres). India’s ranking in the index fell from 142 in 2021 to 150 this year, out of 180 countries. In 2016, India had been ranked 133.

French Presidential Election: Three-Way Fight

EMMANUEL Macron has been elected president of France defeating the neo-fascist Marine Le Pen in the presidential run-off election. While Macron got 58.5 per cent of the vote, Le Pen received 41.5 per cent vote.There is relief in France and Europe that the far-right Le Pen has been stopped from capturing the key executive position in the country.

Judicial Evasion on Constitutional Cases

THE chief justice of India, N V Ramana, has stated in court that he would consider resuming the hearing of the petitions challenging the abrogation of Article 370 and the creation of two union territories by dismantling the state of Jammu & Kashmir in July, after the summer vacations. He said this in response to a request from senior lawyers for an early hearing of the case.

A New Level of Attacks on Muslims

THE month of April has seen a sharp escalation in the attacks on Muslims by the Hindutva forces. Using the nine-day Navaratri festival beginning on April 2 and culminating on Ram Navami day on April 10, the RSS outfits like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal have in a planned and organised manner utilised the Hindu new year day on April 2 and the Ram Navami processions on April 10 to target the Muslim community.The modus operandi has been the same in various parts of the country – processions with arms are taken out and as they pass through Muslim loc

Deepening Alliance with US Despite Ukraine

SOME political commentators have argued that the stand taken by the Modi government on the conflict in Ukraine shows that it is wrong to consider India a subordinate ally of the United States.

Towards the 23rd Congress: A Strengthened CPI(M) is Essential for the Fight against the Hindutva-Corporate Regime

THE 23rd Congress of the CPI(M) is being held at Kannur in Kerala from April 6-10. The Party Congress will set out the political direction of the Party for the next three years.The draft Political Resolution which was released more than two months ago by the Central Committee has been discussed at all levels of the Party. It will be finally taken up at the Congress for adoption after discussion by the delegates.

Desecularising the State

THE announcement by the Gujarat education minister that the Bhagavad Gita would be taught in schools as part of the syllabus for class 6 to class 12 students from the academic year 2022-23, is a flagrant breach of the secular principle of the State. It is a fundamental principle of all secular States that State-run schools do not impart religious instruction of any sort. The United States, France, Japan and a host of other countries follow this principle.

Pointers from the Assembly Elections

THERE are three major takeaways from the recent assembly elections in the five states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa. First, the decisive victory for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh for the second successive term and its success in Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa to retain its governments.Though the BJP and its allies got a lesser majority, their vote share has increased by 3.65 per cent to 45 per cent.

Ukraine Conflict: The Interplay of Contradictions

THE US-led NATO’s attempts to seek the high moral ground against aggression by the “brutal dictator Putin” reeks of hypocrisy and double-standards. Going by the shrill pronouncements of President Biden and Prime Minister Johnson, this is the first time peace has been shattered in Europe after the Second World War and the end of the Cold War. They completely ignore the fact that the first war in Europe after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 was the NATO aggression against Serbia and Yugoslavia in 1999.

Cut Down Excise Duties to Check Impending Inflation

THE tensions between Russia and the US-NATO in the past few weeks and the Russian military attack on Ukraine have sparked a big increase in international oil prices. The oil prices have surged and they stood over 100 dollars a barrel and gas prices have escalated by 62 per cent. This is going to have a direct impact on fuel prices and thereby inflation in India.Episodes of high inflation in the recent past have eroded the purchasing power of the common people.

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Peoples Democracy

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