Shame on the Biggest Democracy….

One news item that really disturbs me each day as I pick up the newspaper is the sham-of-a-democracy in Nandigram. It is sad that the state government is not paying any heed to the red-terror on the streets of the town. The irony is that CPM is doing all this to acquire land for a foreign company (under the controversial SEZ policy) to set up a chemical plant (what about the Left’s constant clamor about anti-capitalism?).

Nandigram is a rural area in Purba Medinipur district in West Bengal. It is located about 70 km south-west of Kolkata, on the south bank of the Haldi River. The West Bengal government recently decided that the Salim Group would set up a chemical hub at Nandigram under the SEZ policy. This lead to resistance by villagers, and clashes with police that left 14 villagers dead, and accusations of police brutality. Now however the event has taken a political angle. The Communist Party of India has a strong presence in the area. While it is all for acquiring the land and finishing any opposition (quite literally), the opposition parties (TMC, Congress, Jamiyate Ulema-e-hind)-backed Bhumi Uchched Protirodh Committee (BUPC) is opposing this forceful land acquisition. This has resulted in rioting and killings on the streets.

Shameful however is the way in which this issue is being handled by the West Bengal government. The Chief Minister, after much (intentional) delay sent the CRPF to the area to take control of the mayhem, but the government is making sure that the interiors are still being controlled by the CPM-led terror squads. The BJP (like always) is just adding fuel to fire, and the Congress-led UPA is sitting quiet on the issue, probably waiting to use this against the CPM in the next elections.

This incidence is a clear black mark on India’s democratic ideology, as thousands of people are being deprived of their basic right – the right to live. Wake-up Supreme Court, Governor, and the Political Parties and read Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, just in case you have forgotten about this little clause that confers the right-to-life.