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Dhruv Saxena- BJP Bhopal IT Cell district coordinator was among the people arrested in an ISI spying conspiracy

Dhruv Saxena

BJP Bhopal IT Cell district coordinator Dhruv Saxena along with 10 others were booked under SEC 122 and 123 of IPC, which deal with collecting arms, information for waging war against the country. The state BJP unit embarrassed by this, has disowned Saxena.

As reported by various dailies in Madhya Pradesh, about 11 people have been arrested in the latest ISI spying conspiracy. According to DBPost, they were facilitating ISI by providing crucial information about Indian Army deployments. These men had been clandestinely operating various mediums to send classified information out to their Pakistan handlers. DBPost also reported that three of the detainees were working as handlers for ISI agents and either were running parallel telecom exchanges.  AltNews dug deeper to find more information about at least two of those who have been detained, namely Dhruv Saxena and Mohit Agarwal.

Dhruv Saxena, based on his social media profile, is a BJP/BJYM guy and the co-accused Mohit Agarwal is also friends with Dhruv on social media platform Facebook. While Anshul Tiwari, the BJYM President of Bhopal, refuses to acknowledge that Dhruv Saxena held a position in BJYM Bhopal, the now-expired bjymbhopal.org website retrieved from Google Cache clearly shows Dhruv as the district coordinator, IT Cell. In fact, the bjymbhopal.org website was made by Dhruv’s company Vocal Heart Infotech and is displayed at the bottom of the website in Google Cache. Dhruv Saxena’s social media profile shows that he is the Managing Director of Vocal Heart Infotech. Screenshots of the now expired BJYM Bhopal site showing the membership details of Dhruv Saxena and his Facebook work profile can be found on the AltNews Site.

Anshul Tiwari, The BJYM President of Bhopal, refuses to acknowledge that Dhruv Saxena held a position in BJYM Bhopal. The expired BJYM Bhopal site shows membership details of Dhruv Saxena

Saxena has also been seen with BJP National General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya. He had also been seen with Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan

So, the above information proves without a shadow of doubt that Dhruv Saxena is involved with BJP and has access to its topmost leaders.

It seems more than clear that, BJP which keeps raising the national-anti-national debate every single day has an ISI operative in their ranks standing shoulder to shoulder with their senior-most leaders.

(Based on Alt News Investigation)

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Turncoats from TMC including Rajeeb Banerjee headed to New Delhi in a chartered flight to join BJP

New boat-jumpers from TMC, including Rajeeb Banerjee, joined BJP, in the run-up to the West Bengal election 2021 as the weekend tour of Amit Shah to the state of West-Bengal stood cancelled.

Six Trinamul turncoats, including former minister Rajib Banerjee, joined the BJP at Amit Shah’s residence in Delhi late on Saturday after they took a chartered flight to the capital on the Union home minister’s “orders”.

“We have been handed over the BJP flag and formally inducted into the party by Amit Shah,” said Rajeeb Banerjee. The others who joined the BJP with him were expelled Trinamul MLA Baishali Dalmia, former mayor of Howrah-Rathin Chakraborty, MLA Prabir Ghoshal, former chairman of Ranaghat municipality-Parthasarathi Chattopadhyay and actor Rudranil Ghosh.

Also Read: Evolution of Anti-defection laws in India

Amit Shah added, “I am sure their induction will further strengthen the BJP’s fight for Sonar Bangla.”  BJP leader and a former member of TMC, Mukul Roy, along with his colleague Kailash Vijayvargiya were also present along with the turncoats.

Not giving much importance to the joining, Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh told a regional news channel, “It will not hamper the Trinamool at all. I just request all the turncoats to contest elections from their present constituencies only in the elections and do not switch to other seats.”

Also See: Trilateral fight in West Bengal- issue with the Left

BJP national vice-president Mukul Roy and the party’s Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya had accompanied five of the six inductees in the special flight to Delhi. Actor Ghosh did not take the flight to Delhi but was present at Shah’s home.

Also See: West Bengal 2021: Battleground for BJP and TMC

These inductions were to be held in Shah’s presence at a rally in Dumurjola on Sunday but he had to cancel his weekend Bengal visit on Friday. “Shah will address the rally at Dumurjola virtually,” Dalmia said outside Shah’s residence.

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Bengal CM & TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee to fight state election from Nandigram-what could be her strategy to counter BJP

On Monday, in the run-up to the West Bengal election, to announce her candidature from the East Medinipur assembly constituency, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo, Mamata Banerjee returned to Nandigram. The move came as an attempt to take the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) head-on in what is increasingly looking to be her toughest political battle, from a place that in many ways had re-launched her a decade ago.

“I will contest from Nandigram. It is my lucky place.” she said, addressing a rally in the town, while reassuring voters from her constituency, Bhowanipore (in South Kolkata), that she would either field a good candidate, or might even contest from both seats.

Also See: Trilateral fight in West Bengal election

The move serves the twin purposes of snubbing the BJP and showing solidarity with farmers in the context of the farmers’ protests. Adhikari, who recently defected over to the BJP, had contested from Nandigram in 2016. Among those who have switched sides, Adhikari is considered to be the biggest loss of TMC. This was because he was having  a considerable influence not just in his hometown, East Medinipur, but also in Purulia, Bankura and West Medinipur. Reacting to Banerjee’s announcement, BJP President (Bengal unit), Dilip Ghosh, said that Banerjee has decided to contest from Nandigram because she was looking for a “safe seat”.

Also Read: Dilip Ghosh asked Chatradhar Mahato to leave TMC and join BJP

Adhikari, too, threw a challenge at Banerjee and said that if she is not defeated by a half lakh votes then he would quit politics. “If I am fielded by my party from Nandigram, I will defeat her by a margin of at least 50,000 votes or I will quit politics,” he stated. Adhikari, however, said that unlike the TMC, which is run “autocratically” by Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek, in BJP, the candidates are decided after discussion and it was for the party to take a call on his candidature. “I donot know from where I will be fielded, or whether I will be fielded,” he said, addressing BJP workers after a three-km roadshow.

Also See: West Bengal election 2021: Battleground for BJP and TMC  

Nandigram, it may be mentioned, has a dominant Muslim population and it may not be an easy win for BJP for more reasons than one.

Political commentator, Sabysachi Basu Ray Chaudhury, dubbed Mamata Banerjee’s decision to fight the polls from Nandigram, a political masterstroke. SBR Chaudhury added, “She has cornered Suvendu on the one hand and is also trying to connect with nationwide farmer-agitation.”

The Trinamool Congress is opposed to the Centre’s farm laws. Banerjee, it may be mentioned, was catapaulted to power on the back of a farmer-movement and an agitation against land-acquisition in Nandigram and Singur. The decision can surely bring Mamata Banerjee closer to the farmers’ protests.

Banerjee is presently an MLA from Bhawanipore constituency. “Nandigram is my elder sister and Bhawanipore is my younger sister. I will give a strong candidate from Bhawanipore also. I may fight from both seats. I am requesting our party president Subrata Bakshi that they should consider my candidature from Nandigram,” she said.

What is Mamata’s strategy to counter Adhikari and BJP?

The districts of Medinipur East and West have 16 and 18 constituencies, respectively. Mamata Banerjee made a pre-emptive move by ousting Suvendu Adhikari’s father and brother from Trinamool Congress. Why did she do it? She was aware that they will also quit eventually. She wanted to view the battlefield with clarity.

Mamata is happy that Suvendu Adhikari did not launch a new party. A new party could have harmed Mamata’s political capital more. Now it is a battle clearly against BJP, its communalism, and Modi and Shah’s politics, not endorsed by a large section of Bengal-voters, according to Mamata.

Some leaders did not get importance during Suvendu’s time in TMC. Mamata has now transferred full authority to them. Leaders like Sufiyan and Abu Taher are now organizing rallies.

The actual Nandigram is 28 km from where the police firing took place. Mamata plans to hold another meeting there. She will devote more time in the area to retain TMC’s stronghold over there. Every constituency there has a significant number of Muslim voters who, according to Mamata, will not back Suvendu Adhikari as he now belongs to BJP.

Technically, the saffron party has no organization there. They are just using Suvendu Adhikari and ex-TMC workers. They are trying to win over the masses via Modi’s and Suvendu’s photographs. As a countermeasure, Mamata has put out her photographs in posters.

TMC workers are enthralled by the decision of Mamata to fight the election from Nandigram. Why? Since Suvendu Adhikari’s constituency is Nandigram, there were expected difficulties due to the sudden shift. It would also mean a chance to take the battle to the defectors like Suvendu. Although he is not contesting this election, BJP might set him up to campaign in areas where he was popular.

Mamata, in this decision, has essentially accepted Suvendu’s challenge that he had thrown at her at a recent rally saying that if she held a rally in Nandigram, he will do the same. So, now the fight will be between Mamata and Suvendu.

Apart from Muslims, many of the scheduled caste voters also may not support BJP as they have been loyal to Mamata. So, it remains to be observed how BJP will counter it.

Idea of Nandigram

Nandigram is not a single village. It is rather a symbolic crux of Bengal politics. It was through the Nandigram movement that Mamata tasted success. The movement had begun in Singur and ended in Nandigram.

In 2007, Nandigram faced a crisis when a police firing in connection with land acquisition for a 14,000-acre chemical hub project by Indonesia’s Salim Group killed 14 people. The then opposition had pegged the number of people killed at 50.

The incident brought the Opposition and the intelligentsia together who raised the slogan “Paribartan Chai”, which resounded through Bengal. Coupled with the land agitation movement led by Banerjee in Singur that drove out Tata Motors’ Nano project, it marked the beginning of end of the Left Front regime in West Bengal.

As for this year’s state election, Mamata will be holding many rallies and padayatras. And for farmers, whose numbers are significant in the area, she would be making certain announcements after February when election dates are published.

On Monday, Mamata sounded the bugle for her electoral war in Nandigram to combat Suvendu’s politics and oust the probability of BJP’s settlement in the area. Technically, Mamata wants to put a stop to BJP’s aspiration to rule in the area. And Nandigram is very symbolic in that aspect.

Monday’s crowd was pretty positive. So, tit-for-tat politics will continue but Mamata has faith in her people and she believes that only deep contact will make the victory possible.

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West Bengal is a tough battlefield for BJP-an overview from historical, cultural & economic standpoints

The upcoming election in West Bengal is more about the fight between TMC and BJP than anything else, although others have aligned themselves to put up a strong fight to both the parties. For example, the Left and Indian National Congress have recently declared their joint stand in the West Bengal election. But, the interesting thing to note is the approach taken by the saffron wing which is mostly based on religious polarization, without giving attention to the background of the state.

Also see: Trilateral fight in West Bengal election 2021

The leadership of BJP has been trying to catch the nerve and sentiments of the state of Bengal for more than two decades, but without a true and complete understanding of the background of the culture and sociology of the state. The BJP has never been able to gauge the depth of syncretism in the soul of Bengal. It goes beyond the economic realm in the aspect of understanding of the state.

The music and food of the state go beyond the narrow lens of understanding of the saffron party. Before the Durga puja, last year, with regards to food culture, the BJP was trying to peddle religious nationalism under the garb of vegetarianism through various small groups which was criticized heavily. Similar cases of ignorance are found with regards to the party’s understanding of the music. For example, Baul music and the associated culture of Bengal, which captures the essence of the rural Bengal mind, will forever elude the constricted compartmentalized mindset of the BJP acolytes who consider it no more useful than treating political leaders coming into a tribal home for lunch.  They are largely ignorant that the singers of Baul songs are influenced by an unorthodox devotional tradition which has absorbed the ideas from Hinduism, Buddhism, Sufi Islam, Vaishnavism sect, and the overall Bengali culture. Despite having been influenced by all of the mentioned segments, Baul culture is distinct from all of them. The ignorance of the BJP is more comprehensive and widespread than their incomplete grasp over the music culture of West Bengal.

While the BJP and its party leaders hint at exclusive ownership and involvement of Hindus in the cultural programmes, they can be expected to be shocked by the association between various cultures in Bengal. In the medieval age, the state had the rule of Hussain Shahi dynasty, who were great patrons of Krishna’s Bhakti literature. It is not common knowledge that they were the financers of probably the first Bengali Mahabharata, which was composed after the conquest of Chittagong by Paragal Khan, composed by Kabindra Parameshwara. This kind of historical background had laid a strong foundational ground for the growth of syncretism based culture reflected during festivals like Durga Puja where, apart from the regular Hindu ones, many Muslim murtikaars also sculpt out idols of the Goddess & her entourage. This has always eluded BJP’s understanding trained to portray the supremacy of one religion, somewhat reflective of Arya samaj. In closer familiar grounds like in UP, the BJP deliberately turns a blind eye to the association of the Nath sampradaya, the religious alma mater of Yogi Adityanath, with other communities & ideas like Sufism.

Also see: The History of Nath Sampradaya

Nearer to modern times in the nineteenth century, Bengal had witnessed sabhas and debate societies in Calcutta and the surrounding suburban regions spearheaded by the Brahmo samaj. Akshay Kumar Dutta was a progressive social reformer, who just like his contemporary Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, refused to be drawn into debates on supernatural matters and God when there were so many social maladies to deal with around. BJP would never be able to understand the gigantic impact that these thought leaders have on the population in Bengal. They would be mistaken to assume that bringing in religious denominations would fetch them political capital.  There is also the lesser-known name of Ashwini Kumar Dutta, a teacher who had been a headmaster at the Chatra Nandalal Institution at Serampore and believed in reconciliation between the groups of moderates and extremists in the Indian national congress, especially after the infamous Surat split of 1907. This idea of the sociological history of Bengal always falls in the umbra region of the BJP’s narrow understanding map.

Also Read: Journey from Ishwar Chandra to Vidyasagar & the movement of women emancipation

BJP must be thinking that they will be the first to pitch the nationalistic idea of Make in India as bait to the Bengalis prior to Bengal election. But, they do not know that the idea of industries and local consumption had its origin in Bengal. Many decades prior to independence, Ashwini Kumar Dutta had founded Swadesh bandhab samiti to promote the consumption of indigenous products. Similarly, Prafulla Chandra Ray had founded the Bengal chemicals and Pharmaceuticals in 1901 and Purnendu chatterjee, a doctorate from UC Berkeley had established the Chatterjee group in 1989. The Haldia Petrochemicals, the world’s first producer of purest quality of cyclopentane is under the Chatterjee group.

Also see: Battleground of Bengal election 2021

The factor of deindustrialization of Bengal over the later years of Left rule can be used to throw the economic tokens as baits. But, what BJP would not be able to hide is the collection of the fallouts of the divisive politics over its handling of the issue of student protests in Delhi, the CAA-NRC issue and the recent ongoing protests of the farmers, where the party is now thinking to approach the Akal Takht to help defuse the situation. It is worthwhile to note that in November, last year, the Takht had castigated the current regime of EVM-manipulation. In this regard, the BJP leadership must be concerned because as there has been effort to build a national coalition consisting of TMC, NCP, SAD, TRS and others against the saffron brigade.

Also Read: Beginning of National front- Sharad Pawar comes in support of Mamata Banerjee against the saffronisation of Bengal

BJP would be foolish to map the Bengal in the same way as the Hindi heartland states like UP and others and to incorporate the religious factors to use in the upcoming election. West Bengal just like Kerala clearly understands the cost of bringing in the divisive ideology into the state polity. Just like Punjab, West Bengal understands the cost of religious polarization, whose horrific results were borne in 1947 by both the states in terms of human lives. It clearly understands the difference between Tagore’s nationalism and the jingoism being peddled as nationalism. The state can clearly demarcate between the original Tagore and Vivekananda on one hand and a charlatan on the other.

Therefore, West Bengal would be a tough patch for BJP to consolidate and make gains in the upcoming state election.

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Matua factor in election battle in Bengal: UP deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya tours Bengal as BJP plays Hindu card

Keshav Prasad Maurya

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, on his second visit in about two weeks in an ideal opportunity in West Bengal, engaged with Matuas, a Dalit refugee group with origin in Bangladesh. The impact of this group is assumed to be spread in more than 50 assembly seats in the state. The visit was in preparation for the upcoming state election in West Bengal.

Matua – the Namasudras

Classified as a Scheduled Caste (SC), Matuas are Namasudras or lower caste Hindu refugees who have moved to West Bengal from neighbouring Bangladesh (earlier East Pakistan). The group has stayed in Bengal for quite a long time since the partition. They comprise the state’s second-biggest Scheduled Caste populace. Generally amassed in North and South 24 Parganas, & Howrah they are also spread across border regions like Nadia, Cooch Behar, North and South Dinajpur and Malda.

The Namasudras constitute 17.4 percent of the SC populace, the second biggest block in the state after the Rajbanshis in north Bengal. An Overwhelming majority of Bengal’s 1.8 crore SC populace (at 99.96%) are Hindus. Of its 42 Lok Sabha seats, Bengal has 10 seats held for Scheduled Castes of which BJP has stowed four – Coochbehar, Jalpaiguri, Bishnupur, and Bongaon in 2019. Understanding the importance of a saffron influence among SCs, the BJP has been striving to get its caste arithmetic directly into Bengal polity.

Also see: Trilateral fight in West Bengal election 2021

 

Maurya visit

Maurya, an OBC leader, associated and connected with Matuas, additionally talked about the alleged neglect of Bangladeshi Hindu Community, who he claimed were denied citizenship rights because of vote bank concerns. This point was also stressed by the BJP men going with Maurya on his Bengal campaign.

The Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh (Keshav Prasad Maurya) on his previous meeting had said that the BJP, after coming in West Bengal, will deal with the complaints of the Matuas who are refugees  holding influence in numerous seats in the election bound state.

Maurya said while addressing a meeting of leaders and supporters in Uluberia assembly segment, “When we structure our administration in West Bengal, we will re-establish the honour of Bangladeshi Hindus and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) could well assist to ensure that they get their due. The BJP under the Prime Minister has been doing a lot of things for poor people; however the advantages are not arriving at Bengal.”

Engaging with such a key vote bank chunk is indeed playing the Hindu card. It is clearly a part of BJP’s arrangement of engagement on religious-identity lines in West Bengal.

Also see: Battleground of Bengal election 2021

 

Playing the caste card

In the 2017 UP polls, the BJP had focused on OBCs and Dalits to come to power in the most crowded state after 14 years. From that point onward, the BJP has kept on associating with OBCs and backward castes to hold onto its political strength.

“There is incredible demand for Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s rallies in WB,” a senior BJP leader said. It has been suggested that Yogi will visit West Bengal soon. Different cadres from UP, committed to the party and its belief system, especially those who know Bengali language and culture would be consistently shipped off to West Bengal to build up an association with the electorate there through road corner meetings, another party leader added.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has set an objective for BJP winning 200 of the 294 assembly seats in West Bengal Vidhan Sabha. UP BJP representative Harish Chandra Srivastava, stated, “It is not at all an ambitious objective. In the 2019 Lok Sabha poll in West Bengal, we got 40% of the vote share, against 43 percent of the TMC, and stowed 18 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats.” In the 2016 Assembly election, the BJP had improved its vote share to 10.3 percent against 4.1 percent votes it got in the 2011 state polls. “In 2014 LS Poll, the BJP got 17 percent votes and won two seats as well. So the party’s graph  has been growing,” said Maluka Khanna,  a professor of political theory from Lucknow University.

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BJP needs to be stopped through alternative approach, said Sitaram Yechury

CPM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury asserted that verbal opposition is not enough to tackle BJP. He also said that the BJP has to be dealt with alternative policies and that is what the Left front wants to do. He accused the central government led by BJP and the state government led by TMC of trying to turn the upcoming West Bengal polls into a bipolar event between them. He also stated that there is difference between the stated intent and the deeds of the TMC-led state government.

The two-day state committee meeting of the CPM has started on Sunday at Alimuddin Street, Kolkata. There, the party’s state secretary Suryakanta Mishra said that the secular forces, including the Congress, had reached an understanding on the basis of programmes against the central and state governments. He added that this movement needs to be strengthened. He also admitted that there was some delay in the alliance process.

Also see: Trilateral fight in West Bengal election 2021

The district representatives (CPM) gave their report at the meeting on how the programme to counter BJP and TMC is progressing in the districts. At the end of the first day’s meeting, Yechury explained on the occasion of the founding day of the party’s Bengali mouthpiece at Promod Dasgupta Bhaban that if the BJP is to be pushed hard in the country, it is necessary to stop them in West Bengal.

“In Bihar, the grand alliance (almost) lost to the NDA,” Yechury said. He added that some observers ask why there will not be a grand alliance (against BJP) in Bengal. But the situation, he added, varies from state to state. On the remote possibility of a grand alliance against the BJP, Yechury stated, “What has happened in Bihar is not possible in Bengal. In politics, two and two always do not make four, it can even be zero. “

Calling for the defeat of the BJP in all elections including the upcoming election in Bengal, the CPM general secretary said, “The goal of the RSS since 1925 is to create a fascist, Hindutva state. That is the goal they are pursuing now. There is no comparison of others with BJP-RSS combine.”

“It will be the fullest effort of both the BJP and the TMC to turn the West Bengal elections into a bipolar event,” Yechurry said at a programme at Kolkata to mark the 54th anniversary of Ganashakti, CPI(M)’s mouthpiece in West Bengal.

Also see: Battleground of Bengal election 2021

“Alternate policies are required if they (BJP) are to be defeated politically,” Yechury said. He claimed that the main issues of people’s sufferings during the lockdown, joblessness, and economic distress are being deliberately shrouded by the Trinamool Congress and the saffron party to keep other parties at bay.

He said that the TMC in West Bengal is facing anti-incumbency and the displeasure of the people. He also said that an atmosphere of violence and hatred has been created in the state.

He accused both the saffron party and the Mamata Banerjee-led ruling party in the state of not providing succour to the people during difficult economic situation precipitated by the Covid19 pandemic. Yechury said that just as the BJP at the Centre has brought farm laws against the peasants’ interests, the TMC government is also not giving the declared minimum support price for paddy to the farmers.

He said that it is the Left parties that are agitating against the new farm laws in the farmers’ protests and against the amended labour laws in the country.

Yechury alleged that the goal of the BJP and the RSS is to destroy the constitution of the country and to create a fascist, fundamentalist, and Hindu nation. He claimed that the new symbols of this goal are Ram Temple in Ayodhya and the new Parliament building, signifying a new India of their making. The CPM General Secretary said that in order to maintain a democratic and secular system, it is essential and imperative to keep the BJP away from power and defeat it in the elections.

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Forward bloc’s idea of all non-BJP parties sharing stage with TMC on the Birth Anniversary of Netaji has perplexed the Left front

The initiative taken by the Forward Bloc to include leftist parties and individuals in the same programme with the Trinamool Congress on January 23 on the occasion of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s 125th birthday has generated a sense of perplexity for the Left and has raised new questions. A section of the political establishment is beginning to see the Forward Bloc initiative ahead of the Assembly polls as an attempt to bring the anti-BJP secular forces under one umbrella.

As a result, several leftist parties, including the CPM, do not want to take any risk in this regard. At a recent meeting of the Left Front parties, the Forward Bloc leadership was asked to consider alternatives to the programme.

However, the Forward Bloc is still adamant over this approach of unison (of non-BJP forces) to the programme. However, in this situation, they are going to hold bilateral talks with the CPM. According to a source in the Front, the Netaji Janmajayanti Committee of the party has planned several programmes this year on the occasion of the 125th birthday of Subhash Chandra Bose.

Also see: Trilateral fight in West Bengal election 2021

Recently the committee has been further expanded to include representatives of non-BJP parties. Leaders of all non-BJP parties, (in West Bengal) including the Trinamool Congress and the CPM, were present at the meeting. Later, the issue of joining the ruling party in the state on one platform was brought at the centre of attention in the political arena and discussion. As a result, the left parties now want to walk the path of change. Politically speaking, to the Left front, the matter is now somewhat akin to allying with arch-rival and enemy. The front is caught in a catch 22 situation.

Left leaders feel that if Biman Basu and Suryakant Mishra walked side by side in the procession with the Partha Chatterjee on January 23, a wrong message could be sent to the people before the vote. At a recently held meeting, the front’s allied leaders asked Naren Chatterjee, the state secretary of the Forward Bloc, and Hafiz Alam Sairani, another top leader in the party, to change their minds.

Also see: Battleground of Bengal election 2021

Some observers have noted that many may apparently consider the initiative apolitical. But when political leaders step together, it is no longer apolitical. Past experience speaks for itself. Therefore, left leaders including Biman Basu and Suryakanta Mishra have appealed to the Forward Bloc to think of alternatives.

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Update on farmers’ protests-centre talks about setting committee-BJP ground-level workers want the farm laws repealed as they cannot face people

Update on farmers’ protest

Today was the day of the sixth round of talks between farmers and the central government planned to be held at the Vigyan Bhavan. While the farmers are getting support from all quarters of the society, the GOI is increasingly getting on a back foot. In parallel developments regarding the farmers’ protests, the operations of Jio and Reliance retail malls across the country have taken a huge hit as the power supply to many (around 1300-1500) towers (of Jio) have been cut by the farmers. This is in retaliation against the farm-laws. The farmers and many observers believe that the farm-laws with numerous loopholes have been designed and passed in the middle of the pandemic in a parliament which had no question hour to benefit only the Ambani and Adani groups that have significant operations in Agro-business and are known to be close to modi-shah. Some other important updates on today’s farmers-government meeting have been listed here.

Next round of talks between farmers and GOI planned for January 04, 2021

In the sixth round of talks held today, the government has offered to withdraw the electricity amendment bill and to remove the penal provisions on farmers in cases of stubble burning.  The unions have also stated that the provision of irrigation subsidies paid through the states be continued. The government has also asked the farmers to send the elderly, the women, and the children back home. No final conclusion could be attained in today’s talks, and the next round of talks is scheduled for January 04, 2021. 

Farmers determined to continue the movement-Centre offers to set up a committee to discuss farmers’ issues

Today, the leaders of the farmers’ unions are attending a meeting with the Centre, demanding the scrapping of the new farm-laws. In the counter-offer, the government has avoided talks of scrapping the laws but has said that it can set up a committee to discuss the farmers’ issues. This clearly shows that the GOI is evading and delaying the issue as far as possible. On the other hand, the farmer leaders at the outset of today’s round of talks had said that today’s talks would be decisive nevertheless next round of talks is scheduled for the first week of January (Jan 04, 2021).

Akhilesh Yadav claims that ground-level BJP workers want withdrawal of farm-laws

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday claimed that the ruling BJP’s ground-level workers also want the withdrawal of three new farm laws as they feel that they will not be able to face the people.

Thousands of farmers, mainly from Punjab and Haryana, are protesting at various borders of the national capital for more than a month against the three new laws. In this regard, in a tweet in Hindi, the SP chief has said, that the BJP government should not ‘cheat’ farmers of the entire country for the benefit of a few rich friends and in today’s talks, should withdraw the agriculture laws. The truth is that the ground-level worker of the BJP also wants the same because he is not able to garner the courage to go among the general people. The political leadership of India has never been so barren.

In the meeting, Ministers join union leaders to share langar food

Three union ministers joined farmer-union leaders on Wednesday to share ‘langar’ food arranged by protesting farmers during their sixth round of talks to resolve the deadlock over new farm laws.

The ‘langar’ (community kitchen) food had arrived in a van at the meeting venue, Vigyan Bhawan, after around two hours of discussions had taken place and the two sides took a break for tea and snacks. Sources present at the venue said that Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Food and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Commerce Som Parkash joined the farmer-leaders to share their langar food during the break.

Farmer leaders said that the talks (sixth round) were continuing and that they were going ‘agenda wise’.

During the last few meetings, as a sign of protest, farmer leaders have been arranging their own lunch, snacks, and beverages while refusing to have the food organized by the government. At one such meeting, farmer-leaders had even invited the ministers to langar at their protest site on Singhu border.

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AIADMK leader stated clearly that BJP must toe in as a second fiddle in TN polls or leave the alliance

The ruling AIADMK, in its first poll rally on Sunday bluntly told its ally BJP that it cannot make a dent in Tamil Nadu. AIADMK clearly ruled out accommodating the saffron party in the government if it won the assembly elections, due next year, and retained power.

The BJP has to endorse Chief Minister K Palaniswami’s candidature for the CM’s post for the polls. The AIADMK indicated at its meet that the saffron party also needs to agree to its other terms like non-participation in government and if not, should rethink of its 2021 electoral options.

Pointing to the deaths of AIADMK’s top leader J Jayalalithaa and DMK’s M Karunanidhi who opposed her, senior leader and AIADMK Deputy Coordinator K P Munusamy said that in the absence of such leaders, ‘many’ parties were now trying to make a political entry into Tamil Nadu and succeed.

KP Munusamy said that some national parties, who he called as “opportunists, betrayers and a crowd”, were blaming the Dravidian outfits, alleging that they ruined Tamil Nadu by their 50 plus year rule of the state. Munusamy wondered how accusations of inefficiency could be hurled against the AIADMK government when the Centre had given so many awards to Tamil Nadu for its stellar performance in many sectors.

Munusamy also added that on an overall basis, the state had a superior infrastructure and facilities, be it education or health care amenities. He added that all such forces eying political gains should realize that Tamil Nadu would not endorse them as Dravidian ideology is the bedrock of the state’s social and cultural milieu.

Munusamy further added that Tamil Nadu’s socio-political landscape was nurtured by the Dravidian movement, which was built on the ethos of Tamil culture, language and valour and hence the state was entirely different from the rest of the country. The distinctive feature and undercurrent of the Dravidian movement has effectively blocked the entry of national parties into the state for over half a century, he said, adding that it was only the offshoots of the movement, AIADMK and DMK that have been ruling Tamil Nadu since 1967.

The Tamil Nadu BJP, in general, is opposed to Dravidian politics, which, it had often said, showed some tendencies of separatism, resulting in the state going off the national mainstream. Of late, the saffron party had not targeted the AIADMK on the ground of Dravidian ideology.

Munusamy made the remarks in the presence of Chief Minister K Palaniswami, Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and other senior leaders. In his fiery speech, Munusamy, a senior leader seen as close to Panneerselvam, who is also the party coordinator, was clear in his message that BJP cannot succeed independently in Tamil Nadu and was very much dependent on AIADMK. He also hinted that BJP should accept that AIADMK was the senior partner, endorse the candidature of Palaniswami or the saffron party may reconsider its electoral options for the 2021 polls. Though Munusamy did not mention BJP by name directly, it was clear that the message was intended for the national party that led the Central government.

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Update on Farmers’ protests- Tikait receives threat-RLP quits NDA- MP Harinder Singh Khalsa quits BJP

It has been a month since farmers from Punjab and Haryana, and other states began their protest march to the national capital and camped near the capital seeking the removal of the three controversial farm laws passed by the central government in September. Groups of farmers from other states like Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu will be either joining the protests or have already joined.

The farmers have refused to hear any of the fake promises of the PM who has time and again tried to cajole the farmers (using religion wherever possible, like visiting Gurudwara) and avoiding direct talks. The PM has remained away from direct interaction which clearly shows either lack of his grasp over the situation or fear of facing scathing criticisms from the farmers.

Till now, five rounds of talks have been held between farmer groups and Union ministers which have remained inconclusive. The protesters had held a meet to discuss the Centre’s latest invitation for talks, with some of them indicating that they might resume dialogue in order to find a solution to the deadlock. Another meeting of farmer-groups was to be held on Saturday where a formal decision was to be taken on the invite for the resumption of talks. Activist Yogendra Yadav said that the farmers are ready to resume discussions from Tuesday, December 29.

The Centre has projected that the new laws will eliminate middlemen and will allow farmers to sell their produce across India. However, the farmers maintain that the laws and their loopholes would demolish the Minimum Support Price (MSP) policy and do away with the wholesale market system.

Bhartiya Kisan Union Spokesperson receives death threat

Rakesh Tikait, Spokesperson, Bhartiya Kisan Union alleged that he received a life-threatening phone call. “It was a phone call from Bihar. They were threatening to kill me with arms. I have forwarded the recording to the police captain. They will do what is needed to be done next,” he said.

MSP should be part of talks: Tikait

Farmer-leader Rakesh Tikait stated that modalities for repeal of the three farm laws, and legal guarantee for MSP should inevitably be part of agenda for talks with government.

RLP quits NDA over farm bills as stated by party chief Hanuman Beniwal

After Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Rajasthan’s Rashtriya Loktantric Party (RLP) chief Hanuman Beniwal also walked out of National Democratic Alliance. While addressing farmers’ rally in Shahjahanpur of Alwar, Beniwal said, “Bye-bye. We are quitting NDA. Nothing is above the pride of farmers in the country.” State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Mukesh Pareekh said that Beniwal’s party is an independent party and one man’s party.

Former Lok Sabha MP Harinder Singh Khalsa quits BJP citing government’s negligence towards farmers

Former Lok Sabha MP Harinder Singh Khalsa resigned from BJP on Saturday citing  negligence of  government towards the farmers. He said that he is resigning “in protest against the insensitivity shown by party leaders & the government towards the sufferings of the farmers, their wives, and children protesting against the three agrarian laws”.

Saamna said, Centre indifferent towards farm stir

Amid the ongoing farmers’ protest, Shiv Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ on Saturday said that the Congress party has turned “feeble and disintegrated” and further suggested that all anti-BJP parties including the Sena should come together under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) to provide a formidable alternative. Saamana added that those in power at the Centre were indifferent towards the farmers’ agitation and added that instead of blaming the government, the main opposition party should introspect about its leadership issue.

(Source: PTI )