End Mandatory Aadhar

THE Tribune newspaper published an investigative report on January 4 about how its reporter could get access to details of more than one billion Aadhar numbers. The reporter paid Rs 500 through Paytm to a vendor after which a gateway was created with a login ID and password which enabled her to get any name, address, photo, phone number and email-id of a person registered with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).Though biometric data was not made available, this explosive revelation has debunked the stand of UIDAI and the central government that its database canno

Legitimising Corporate Influence and Bribery

THE details of the scheme of electoral bonds outlined by the finance minister in parliament have only confirmed what was apprehended when the proposal for electoral bonds was first announced in the January 2017-18 budget. The scheme is nothing but a way of harnessing corporate funding for the ruling party and facilitating the takeover of the political system by big money.According to the finance minister, the electoral bond will be a bearer instrument in the nature of a promissory note.

Resolve for 2018

LOOKING back at the year 2017 that has just ended, there is an important aspect of the national situation that must be noted. The year unfolded with the forces of reaction on the ascendant. But by the last quarter of the year, the forces of resistance against the right wing offensive had begun to assert themselves and make their presence felt.The people have borne the brunt of the right-wing offensive in the year 2017. Under the Modi regime, the Hindutva forces became more emboldened.

Red Star over Nepal

THE big victory for the alliance of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) in the federal and provincial elections is a politically significant development for Nepal. It will have its repercussions in South Asia too. The Communist alliance has won a decisive majority in the parliament elections held under the new constitution adopted in September 2015.

Turmoil over Jerusalem

PRESIDENT Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has met with universal opposition and concern. All the major European allies of the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom have spoken out. All Arab countries have opposed the step. In the United Nations Security Council, all the fourteen members apart from the US, deplored the decision.

Modi’s Malign Campaign

THE Gujarat election campaign has witnessed the lowest levels of vituperative communal rhetoric and scare-mongering targeting Muslims. The main culprit for this base campaign is Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself. The election speeches of Narendra Modi were marked by a string of allegations and canards which were meant to create a communal imagery of Muslims and link them to Pakistan. Rahul Gandhi becoming Congress president would usher in `Aurangzeb raj’; some obscure Kashmiri Muslim Congress worker is accused of casting a slur on Narendra Modi’s parentage; it was alleged that some ret

Curb Crimes against Women

THE latest report of the National Crimes Records Bureau (NCRB) reveals a steady increase in crimes against women and an alarming rise in sexual assaults on children. In 2016, 3.4 lakh cases of crimes against women were registered. This is a 2.9 per cent increase over the previous year. Of these 32 per cent concerned domestic violence, 25 per cent sexual harassment and 11.5 per cent rape. Statistics relating to crimes against women are always an underestimate as many cases go unreported, or, FIRs are not registered.

25th Anniversary of Demolition of Babri Masjid

DECEMBER 6 marks the completion of 25 years of the demolition of the Babri Masjid at Ayodhya. This was a momentous day for India. What was demolished was not just a 16th century mosque, but it was a direct challenge to the Indian Constitution and its secular-republican values.December 6, 1992 can be seen as the milestone from where began the march of the Hindutva forces for political power. 25 years later, those forces are ensconced in the seat of power in Delhi.What were the deceitful moves by the RSS-led forces then? They betrayed a solemn oath given to the Supreme Court that whateve

Padmavati: Hindutva’s Cultural Repression

THE way the film Padmavati is being pilloried and the director and the main actor threatened with beheading shows how mob rule has become one of the hallmarks of Modi raj.

Assam: Ensure Fair Process of Updating NRC

THE draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) for Assam is to be published by December 31, 2017 as per the direction of the Supreme Court of India. The updating of the NRC of 1951 constitutes a key part of the implementation of the Assam Accord of 1985 which had fixed March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date for determining illegal migrants who came after that date.The updating of the NRC is thus a vital step in settling the “foreigners” issue in Assam. It would allay the fears about illegal migration harboured by the Asomiya and indigenous communities.

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Peoples Democracy

Editorial