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| Nuclear deal: An insider's perspective |
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Most contributors to this post are up in arms, going gung-ho for the 'Indo-US Nuclear deal' in its current form, so much so that they beat the Left parties in their own game of slogan shouting.
Total Comments : 34 
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Shyamal Barua
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Amidst the rate of inflation touching a 7 year old high and food prices spiralling, losing 3 successive state elections and an internal bickering over Sonia's failing leadership and her backroom maneouvres to catapult her son Rahul to the party presidentship, it was obvious that the Congress(I) party, will look for an excuse to call an early general election, as hinted by the PM Mr. Manmohan Singh today, they have chosen to call it a day over the much debated Indo-US Nuclear deal and their talk of safeguarding the India specific concerns of the Hyde act are nothing but lies, utter lies and damned lies, besides the shameful act of going ga-ga with the repressive U.S Govt. led by world's numero-uno terrorist George Bush-Dick Cheney, when the rest of the world except for their partners in crime the Brits, are waiting to get over the worst nightmare term of the present Govt. in the November election this year! Since when U.S, who has been opposing India since the days of the cold war and arming our neighbour Pakistan to its teeth, has been so concerned about our welfare, that they are now willing to push the deal thru the next govt. in Januray, 2009, except that with the changing world order, they want India to be their defence outpost against China.
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Shyamal Barua
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After reading the article "Kalam backs Indo-US nuclear deal" in www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=133832 , I think it's time for the nation to support the deal. If Prof. Kalaam has backed the deal, who is regarded with immense regard and trust by one and all in India (more than Brijesh Mishra or even our P.M -Mr. Manmohan Singh), then soon there may be a consensus amongst the in the parliament but given the present US Govt. cornered by the international opinion against her, the time is ripe for GOI to bargain even harder to clinch the deal in her favour minus the dreaded clauses, which are detrimental to her interest. especially after the news report (http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080049373&ch=5/9/2008%208:02:00%20PM ) of "US Govt, gags Congress over N. Deal" , which clearly shows they are prepared to go any length to clinch the deal. Also in view of prolonged agitation in Tibet, sooner or later India has to take a stand in their favour and needs to have that extra muscle or teeth to deter any Chinese misadventure in Arunachal or Ladakh.
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Shyamal Barua
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New from Washington Post, Thursday February 14: "We’ll work with India to make N-deal happen: White House".: "No matter the renewed Left threat to block the civil nuclear deal, the US has said that it will continue to work with India to make the deal happen. White House spokesperson Dana Perino, asked if Washington was concerned at CPM leader Prakash Karat’s statement that India should not act now but instead hold talks with the new US Government after the November polls, commented: “A country like India needs to think about how it’s going to diversify its resources, not only for how make sure that the lights turn on when the kids are at home trying to do their homework, but also because they are facing environmental problems” she said. Agreeing with US Ambassador David Mulford’s recent remarks on the subject, Nicholas Burns said: “We don’t have all the time in the world we are, quite famously, in an election year in the United States. The Congressional calendar is crowded.”:- Well, since when Uncle Sam has been so concerned about India's environment and kid's homework is anybody's guess, except for the fact that when the US economy has taken a beating on all fronts, they are desperate to pull the Nuke deal through to salvage some of their lost pride and also bind India with the provisions of the Hyde pact. I thank Prakash Karat for scuttling the Nuke deal with the rogue regime of George Bush in US, murderer of over a million lives in Iraq, Afghanisthan and elsewhere and hope he stick to his guns until the new Govt. takes over in the U.S and spell out their policies. Let India and China, who are already blamed for their billions of dollars of investments in parts of Africa, where the undemocratic Govt.s are being legitimised by such deals, not align with the mother of all imperialists which is U.S of A.
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Shyamal Barua
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Loksabha Speaker, Somnath Chatterjee's resolve to ensure compliance of parliamentary decorum by not allowing its members to disturb the proceedings of the house and its peace comes on a day when two very important instances of death of democracy has taken place in the country, both orchestrated by his party CPIM and their partner in crime Congress(I), turning blind eye for their own political goal, thereby mortgaging the country's internal law & order and its security & sovereignity to the U.S empire. 1)The situation in Nandigram on March 14 was not provocative enough to warrant police firing in which 14 people died, Calcutta High Court has observed in a judgment that termed the action “wholly unconstitutional”. - Subsequently on Nov 10 the goons and puppet police force of CPIM has indulged in recapturing Nandigram and adjoining villages from the BUPC(farmers committee against SEZ) with brutal force unparalled in the history of Independent India. 2) After months of opposing the nuclear deal with Prakash Karat even threatening to bring down the central govt., Somnath's CPIM have backstabbed the confidence of millions of ordinary Indian's faith reposed on them and approved the government starting crucial talks with a UN watchdog on a controversial civilian nuclear deal with the US and even starting a dialogue with the NSG. --And now knowing well that both CPIM and Congress has to face the music in parliament over above unconstitutional and criminal acts, he is talking of honoring Parliamentary decorum! A bunch of Hypocrites.. ; to hell with the rules...the Cong(I) and CPIM or any party cannot get away with getting the nuclear deal through secret backdoor political deals without proper debate inside(which now is a mutual staged event b/ween most parties) and outside the parliament and over the dead bodies of farmers of West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra, Maharashtra etc.
Posted : Saturday, November 17, 2007
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sushant chatterjee
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Shyamal da, you I wish you rather, continue being the best watchdog over this site ( YTJ).As it is your persuasive writing skills which could prevent the post from degenerating. And, yes, your query, regarding the need of my five page comments on the Kolkata suicide case in a related article by Sanjib Bhattacharya at: http://www.youthejournalist.com/article-comments.php?aid=2659&sid=26; to justify my effort to pen down my observations( which I felt were not so inferior, so as not to get published in a post like this), I was compelled to put it across to readers by posting it in the related article( which was again pushed out of the home page, instantly!).So, you would be the best person to watch over slanted, mischievous & yellow journalism. And, I will keep myself busy with the mainstream biggies( even if they are worse, still they have some standing).Although, you will come across comments from my side on this post as well, from time to time.
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sushant chatterjee
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And, type a 'Kumar' or any name that comes in your mind, in the 'search the author' section & you will be surprised to see so many Kumars, Sumeet's & the likes you used to contribute to this post, who have discontinued to be associated with this post. Even, the distinguished fellow writer, Mr. Satbir Bedi, recently had commented on his disillusionment with the post of cherry picking the articles. This post is simply interested in picking up authors, based on their use & throw policy, as per political convenience. It's no different. And, my disappointment is not with this post or its editors, whose intellectual level, I am hardly aware of. It is a little surprising, that your kind of person, chose not to go through each word & sentences of my five page comment on the Kolkata murder case & rushed into a counter comment, without getting the full picture of my article! As it is I am contemplating of getting associated with another post & in case, you can still spare time & energy, then, may I suggest you to open a site, in which columnists, like me would definitely like to play an active part.
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sushant chatterjee
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It would be deceiving ourselves by beliveing that the country's govermance is not crumbling at a breakneck speed; see all around & not just the PDS chaos in rural West Bengal. Why Bangla Desh even in America the reaction to strict no nuisance dicipline will be same all over the palnet, when it starts touching one's own anarchist lives.That's why the initial welcoming of improved living by Bangladeshi or Pakistani citizens, has vapourised, infavour of the wretched but more natural one, of which humans would rather wallow in.Operation blue star, if reports about terrorists making it a den operating to amke india killing fields, was necessary.IPKF in Sri Lanka was foolishness of a handful of whimsical minds.Remove central forces from any of the polls and see Bihar of the eighties haunting back at any of the polling booth acrocc the country.We are well past inculcating morals to those corrupt to the core & its childish to expect those in power to give up their comforts & become honets Yes morality could catch up the younger lots imagination, still untouched by the greed of the wretched ones of earlier generations.Dicipline need not be drilled into 1 billion people.The Army needs to make example of just a handful of those in power, who are abusing the position, that the people have given them.Automatically, the entire populace will fall in line.Things will improve with army rule, but yes had it been voluntary on part of each individual, it would have been the best.Unfortunately, population is one such major factor which will always be a impediment towards such a goal.There will always be crunch for everything & hence the never satisfying yearning.That's the reason, all the scandavian & other European culture is so superior.The armed forces have been kept busy fighting external threats( mostly created to keep the army occupied), so that, the Polity uninterruptedly enjoys the spoils of power.
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Shyamal Barua
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Sushant da, Going by the news report of K.P Nayar in Washington, in the Telegraph of Oct 15th titled, "Nuclear detour, the untold story
- Tactical shift not because of Left but to sidestep non-proliferation trap". The Indo-US nuclear deal is not dead. Contrary to the general perception, there is not even any slowdown in the operationalisation of the deal based on political considerations.
According to IAEA sources in Vienna, India has concluded that it wants to put off signing an additional protocol and safeguards agreements with the IAEA.
In “informal” discussions, Indians in charge of operationalising the deal have told IAEA officials that they will sign these two documents only after the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) finds a way to allow its members to engage in nuclear commerce with India followed by an absolute certainty that the US Congress will vote for the 123 Agreement successfully negotiated between Washington and New Delhi.
They said it became clear that India would be burning its boats if it blindly went ahead and signed an additional protocol and safeguards agreements with the UN’s nuclear watchdog without an exit route that took into account the constantly changing global non- proliferation environment and the US domestic political situation.
This realisation came from the challenge that under New Delhi’s “separation plan” to facilitate the deal and the subsequent 123 Agreement, India has to put its civilian nuclear facilities under IAEA safeguards in perpetuity.
That means if India signs the two IAEA agreements and then the NSG refuses to change its rules, not only the UPA government, but any future government will be trapped under intrusive oversight of its nuclear facilities while the global nuclear cartel continues its apartheid against New Delhi. It could be worse if the US Congress rejects the 123 Agreement after India is stuck with new commitments to the IAEA, which it has avoided for decades. "
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sushant chatterjee
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There's alot more to it than what meets the eye.And, I am sure the fellow commentrator, must surely be aware of.Firstly, lets not assume, that the dael is dead( although I may have a differnet opinon-about the deal- to the earlier one). It is true, that Prakash Karat's unwavering & farsightedness, unlike some of his comrades, has swayed the entire political discourse, in favour of the Left, at least for some time to come, but, the Prime Ministers & Sonia Gandhi's climdown has also been influenced, to the recent gain in partisanship in the US congress, whcih has been a huge loss, for the Indian foreign policy makers, since the last time- just a few months back- when the Indian goverment & the Bush administration had managed to stich an awesome bi-partsanship, among the Republicans & the Dems,on the nuke deal issue.Some from the influential members of the Senator & the Congress, who wre staunchly from the Indian Caucus, very recently, went turtle & ballastic against the deal.Even the reports from the various indian emmisories, across world capitals, too have suggested a sudden weakening of India's hold over the matter,it could be that this change may have borne out of the anticipation of a change in the White house( Hillary too has oflate spoken against the deal).Or, it could simply be the lackadiasical approach,, on part of the foreign office.ANd, the Pm too may have his own share of guilt; the Left was going along well, till that needlessly fatal interview popped up.But, even after that, there was ample opportunity, for those delegated, to mend things & not let things deteriorate, to such a pass.
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Shyamal Barua
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So after the initial hoopla and gungho attitude to push the Indo-US nuclear deal through, the Congress made an U-turn and I think the deal is going to die with the Neo Cons in USA losing power next year, which is a great victory over the
US's international plans to rope all nations into a one-way nuclear fuel
cartel.
And this might actually help the Indian indigenous state
nuclear industry, forcing them to perhaps divert the *military* arms
plutonium and U235 into the civilian sector, given the rather massive
expansion the gov't supposedly is planning. The Congress President Sonia Gandhi reportedly remarked that the Indian left has not played a constructive role of coalition politics by opposing the deal. Well, coalition poltics is not about being part of a sinister plot of mortgaging or selling the country's security & sovereignity to the imperialist US, but rather palying a watchdog to reverse any such move or even playing spoilsport to any such game or deal. I however feel sorry for the pro deal authors and commentators of this post.
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Shyamal Barua
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It was sheer hypocrisy on the part of the Dean of Columbia University who criticised the Iranian president for his earlier remarks of the Nazi holocaust of Zews being exaggerated by the western media and removing the map of Israel from middle east as Hitlerisque, without checking his own country's record of nuclear holocaust in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and its continuous legacy of military onslaught on the 3rd world countries including its hobnobbing with puppet military regimes to achieve its hegemonic design. Mr. Ahmedjinad may have expressed his hatred for the zionists openly, the U.S academician, politicians and bureaucrats has always laced their bitter pills to the 3rd world countries laced with sugar coating outside, much in the same way the Mr. Nichol;as Burns, U.S-Under Secretary delivered his speech about US Policy in South Asia, which readers may browse thru in http://www.ciaonet.org/wps/asoc020/index.html . Uncle Sam, like the erstwhile East India Company of England has set its sight on the Indian subcontinent, from Burma to Afghanistan, for next 50 years.
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sushant chatterjee
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And, I will get back to you, on this issue.And I am certain that I will defeat you on this matter.And I am beginning to to like your thoughts as well!
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sushant chatterjee
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Shyamal da, with due respect to you, & the very legitimate points that you have countered me,I would still like to emphasise( spelling may be wrong), that WE DO NEED TO DRILL IN THE DICIPLINE.AND MILITARY IS THE ONLY SOLUTION.REGARDS
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Shyamal Barua
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Understand that corruptions galore in our body-politik of bureaucracy, executive, police & administration and even sections of media which has led to total distrust in the present system and hence your recommendation of Army rule to instill a armylike like discipline and punishment to bring about a total change in the system.However even in our next door neighbour Bangladesh, the people (if you recall the recent student violence across the country) have started rejecting the Army backed emergency rule of 8 months so far( www.ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/070915/world/bangladesh_politics_military). In fact too much militarisation of politics have taken place in India from attacking the Golden Temple, deputing IPKF in Sri Lanka, conducting elections in states under president's/Army rule etc. Easy recourse to using the sword arm of the state seems to have lulled the centre and the states into deeper complacency. The army's frequent and visible presence is not an indication of our national strength; quite to the contrary, it signifies failed policies, poor governance and paralysed institutions of the state machinery. Pls check out www.ciaonet.org/olj/sa/sa_july01shv01.html . The sense of discipline(mostly in curbing unlimited consumerism and luxury) and honesty (in all walks of life) need to be inculcated through education and equal opportunity instead of drilling it from the top, impossible in country of 1.2 billion, when the same has not been possible in the 230 yr old year democracy of USA, where corruption in high places has come to such a pass that the recent B-52 Nuke flight in U.S west coast is suspected to be a covert operation to escalate a nuclear attack on Iran ( http://houston.craigslist.org/pol/417171235.html ) .
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sushant chatterjee
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Why so quiet. Afraid, like those bastards ruling!
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sushant chatterjee
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Hello, Shyamal da!
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sushant chatterjee
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The word dictatorship could possibly be, quite misleading. In context to Army rule, such words & imaginary fear, like the rule of the gun, or the scary figures like Idi Amin or Augusto Pinochet, so ingrained in our minds that we are blinded to plain rationality. To challenge the views on the short lived or abject failure of non democratic forces, in the countries mentioned, is the last thing on my mind and I trust the my fellow knowledgeable commentator. But, I am certain, that there’s a world of difference between our men in uniform & the ones mentioned here, whose inherent character is violent, on a much more broader scale & deep rooted.. Indian armed forces are the most disciplined & certainly the best section- polity, media, judiciary, executive, bureaucrats etc- in our society
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sushant chatterjee
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Our country may be vast, but there are many other parameters, which are conducive for an effective implementation of Military rule; firstly, the populace, is so frustrated with the inefficiency & exploitation, of the ruling elites, that, any improvement, by a well regimented & structured organization like the Army, will be more than welcome. Even, the business & entrepreneur class would begin to see the advantages of cutting down the red tape. It would be the end of the middlemen culture leading to well planned productivity, percolating down to the weakest sections. People, may or may not have the liberty to excesses, inside their four walls, but, no more hooliganism on the streets, under military rule. Possibly, even in Ram Rajya, there were discrepancies in the form of governance and we can’t expect it to be absolutely perfect, at any point of time. There would be incidences, as reported of China, but considering the size & population, the progress & timely rectifying the mistakes, towards balancing for an equitable society, ahs been a hall mark of the Chinese leadership. And, most importantly, there’s the all important effort towards betterment, so unlike our leadership.
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sushant chatterjee
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Emergency under the politician Indira Gandhi, is not what is being suggested, which would inevitably fail, every time. Nor, are all pervasive soldiers & Generals in our living rooms, been envisioned here. It is the discipline, the uplift of the basic moral character of the nation, which is being sought, from the men in uniform; for them to lead & if necessary enforce on us, to get out of the rut that we are so speedily getting into; that’s the only panacea, towards, saving the nation, from unimaginable chaos( the recent beating of the black marketers of food grains & the associated politicians, by the villagers in West Bengal portends of the future.
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Shyamal Barua
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Well that would amount to dictatorship and history across the world (Chile, Philipines, Uganda and others) has shown that you cannot rule a nation under the threat of guns, let alone a vast country like India. The excesses of Communist dictatorship and KGB-NKVD in Russia also resulted in their fall and breakdown and the masses in the Chinese countryside are also getting restive against their military junta (CPRA). The Latin American Bolivarian socialism with worker's co-operative movement and participation (from Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela to even parts of Mexico, Argentina, Brasil, Cuba etc.) are gaining ground and better alternative than communist dictatorship of the proletariat. In India even the brief emergency rule by late Indira in 1975 was sqaurely rebuffed by the general people.leading to the fall of central Govt. and her arrest.
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sushant chatterjee
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Shyamal da, arn't you avoiding the benefits of army rule in our decayed system?
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Shyamal Barua
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You ae right about the hypocrites and the self servients. However they belong mostly to the bourgeoise and petty bourgeois class (the haves) and very few amongst the lowly paid working and unemployed class (the have nots). The process is on for a strategic coalition of the ultra left parties of this oppressed class under the banner of Communist Ghadar Party of India, who's resolution at the all India congress since 1998 are available at their archive of people's voice vide link http://pv.cgpi.org/pvarchives.htm as well as http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-05/d05-032.htm of which I am an sympathiser/supporter. In todays world of global village, it is very important for any social movement to be part of a global movement and I have found the Ghadar party to be different from other bourgeois communist or socialist parties ..
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sushant chatterjee
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I had started a blog more than a year ago:www.sushantchatterjee.blogspot.com, without any knowlegde of it being a ultra left or right leanings.no one visited & I too stopped posting.I send all my submisions to the mainstream media, aware of all their fallacies.No one came forward to seek genuinely, efforts for the welfare of the people or the nation.All are hypocrites.An army, which generates such a fearfull image, among the most lawless & morally corrupt people is the only panacea for the kind of in creasing anarchy, in a country like India.And, it is surprising that those who, deride the political system in support of armed revolution, still advocate in favour of the most repulsive democratic system. Give me a better financial status. And,I'll give you freedom.And, there lies the tale!
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Shyamal Barua
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Dada, I don't know if you are aware of the ultra left blogs (there are national and international seminars & conferences held as well by activists & sypathisers) that encourages exchange of ideas amongst individqals, groups like : naxalrevolution.blogspot.com , lalsalaam.wordpress.com , maoistresistance.blogspot.com , southpawpunch.blogspot.com (India page) , http://naxalresistance.wordpress.com/2007/06/04/indias-reds-gather-in-delhi-talk-of-another-freedom-movement/ , and lot of others. While some of them are quite good and do offer a platform for convergence of ideas and actions for future struggles but some of them are not for want of dedicated and sincere moderators. Pls do not think that the sympathisers, contributors or the activists of ultra left movements (not mainstream politics as they do not recognise the existing political system and are mostly underground) are anti social or ruffians but rather in most cases are well educated and learned lot . The notion that a Naxalite is someone who hates his country is naive and usually idiotic. He is, more likely, one who likes his country more than the rest of us, and is thus more disturbed than the rest of us when he sees it debauched. He is not a bad citizen turning to crime; he is a good citizen fighting for justice and equality. Late Hiren Mukherjee actually said about them : 'Sarajibon Dhum udgiron korar theke ekbar jwole utha anek bhalo'! More later..
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shyamal barua
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Are you talking of a draconian Army rule of the generals? Oh no! Or may be a mutiny by the lower ranks in the Army which is not feasible. They will be worse than the present bourgeoise parliamentary democracy now. You may read prof. Sibnarayan Roy's biography (Vol 3) of M.N.Roy published by Minerva Associates Pvt. Ltd, 7-B, Lake Place, Kolkata - 700029. The second one deals with the
Comintern years of Roy, which was refuted by the Russian politburo. See the M.N.Roy portion of www.revolutionarydemocracy.org/rdv3n2/india.htm where the 1992 CPI(ML) conference had criticised him M.N. Roy,who would have been a victim of Stalin's purges, but for his timely escape to Switzerland after his return from China.Roy made a distinction between good men and great men and judged Stalin to be great man who saved the world from the Nazis and the Fascists. A series of articles by Roy are
published as "If I were Stalin". Roy was active in politics after his release from prison, but his second world war stance in favour of the British was disastrous
politically. It is indeed a pity that he was not more active in world politics. If death as a consequence of his accidental fall down a 150 feet hill had not intervened, he would have established the Indian Renaissance Institute as a premier think tank for the world, which have undergone much transformation following end of cold war and post 9/11 but we are still trying to find an indegineous revolution for India.
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