If we had anything to celebrate this 15^th August, it should be the 60^th anniversary of achieving dominion status, for to be specific that’s what our old and new rulers agreed to give us in 1947. Lord Mountbatten remained head of state (Governor General) while British heads of the three services, most British governors and the overwhelming majority of British civilian and military officials continued in office. Anyway, following formal independence India had a stint with nominal non-alignment, built up a diversified industrial base and developed a measure of bargaining capacity vis-à-vis different foreign powers. But beneath all this, old class relations and old ties of economic dependence on imperialism went on reproducing themselves, as did the dominant ideological and socio-cultural trends. The net result after 60 years lies before us.

On the development side, affluent India is certainly shining. Shining like a multi-colour laser show that creates the illusion of virtual reality, against the pitch-dark background of hunger and joblessness, suicides and starvation deaths, ignorance and cultural degradation, resurgence of mediaeval practices and growing class and social oppressions. If this is an inevitable fallout of the neoliberal growth model purchased from the WTO-IMF-WB, that model also has a politico-strategic dimension: the growing integration of the Indian state with the US war machine and the consequent blows to our independence and integrity. The latest instance of such sellout of our vital national interests comes in the shape of the 123 agreement between India and USA. Read in the context of the Hyde Act of the USA, to which this agreement is inextricably linked, the grave economic and strategic implications will be clear. For instance, the provisions of the said Act could be used to terminate the 123 agreement not only if India conducted a nuclear test but also if she failed to conform to the US foreign policy. Moreover, in the 123 agreement the acceptance on India’s part of safeguards in perpetuity has been clearly spelt out, but this has not been linked to a guarantee of fuel supply in perpetuity. The threat of a nuclear isolation thus looms large on India.

Combined with other treaties like the June 2005 Defence Framework Agreement and acts of closer diplomatic and military collaboration with the USA — such as the US-sponsored vote against Iran in the IAEA, the impending joint naval exercises with the participation of killer machines like USA Nimitz — the nuclear deal purports to take us back to a new, and worse, dominion status of sorts, this time under American domination. Under the glittering billboard of strategic partnership, India is actually sought to be turned into a dominated partner of the US warmongers.

But this is an eventuality we Indians will resolutely resist. CPI(ML) workers are already on the streets, along with other left, democratic and patriotic forces, protesting against this stinking gift of a treacherous government on the eve of Independence Day. The parliamentary Left has also voiced its opposition to the Nuke Deal. But if they mean it, if they are really to fight to safeguard the nation’s independence, they must first win political independence for themselves by breaking the shackles of strategic partnership with the Congress, the architect of the scandalous nuclear deal. It is clear that the Prime Minister has reneged on the promises he had made to the nation in this regard on the floor of the parliament; to continue to support him will be a treachery to the nation.

Masquerading as liberators, the Congress leadership in 1947 hijacked the hard-won harvest of people’s prolonged battles to foist on us a semi-colonial state with inbuilt tendencies towards deeper integration with imperialism. We must not allow it to play the dirty game again and redouble our efforts to carry to consummation the great struggle for swaraj and socialism, as Bhagat Singh used to say.

CPI(ML) Call for Protest Against Indo-US Nuke Deal

123 Agreement: A document of modern slavery

Left Parties must withdraw support from Manmohan Singh Govt.

The CPI (ML) Politburo has termed the 123 Agreement a document of modern slavery that is extremely dangerous for national security and sovereignty, and has called for a struggle against it till it is completely scrapped. The fact that this international treaty between India and US is guided by a national Act of the United States, the Hyde Act, has added a new chapter to international politics.

Successive central governments have pushed the country relentlessly into the strategic stranglehold of the biggest enemy of the world’s people – the US imperialism. The Indo-US nuclear deal is designed to mortgage the country’s strategic autonomy and international role to growing American control while India’s integration with the US-led global war will make India and her neighbourhood increasingly insecure. The implications are quite clear. After Afghanistan and Iraq, the US war machine is now headed towards Pakistan, and India has certainly enough reasons to feel alarmed. It is explicitly clear that the people of the country are against this Agreement. Manmohan Singh is working under the US dictate and his continuing in power even for a moment is not in national interest. Democratic norms demand that he should respect public opinion or quit, so that the country could be saved from further damage.

The Party Politburo has appealed to all left parties to accept the challenge of withdrawing support from Manmohan Singh government, who has misled the country and the parliament regarding this deal, and reply to his arrogance in a befitting manner. And at the same time also expose the BJP’s hypocrisy, who is another major exponent of pro-Americanism.

CPI(ML) Politburo member Swadesh Bhattacharya has called upon all left, democratic and patriotic forces to unite against this Agreement. The Party has invited all such parties, organisations and individuals to participate in nationwide protests on August 14.

Nationwide Protests Against Indo-US Nuke Deal

On August 14, CPI(ML) held protests across the nation demanding scrapping of the Indo-US Nuke Deal. In Delhi, CPI(ML) burnt the effigy of the Nuke Deal at Parliament Street and held a Protest Meeting that was addressed by Comrade Swadesh Bhattacharya, PB member CPI(ML), Swapan Mukherkjee, General Secretary of AICCTU, Kumudini Pati, General Secretary of AIPWA and Ravi Rai, General Secretary of AISA.

Effigy burnings, street corner meetings, and protest marches were held at Patna and in all major cities of Bihar including Arwal, Aurangabad, Jehanabad, Ara and Gaya; at Ranchi, Bokaro, Bagodar, Dhanbad and other centres in Jharkhand; Mansa and Ludhiana at Punjab; Gwalior and Bhind at MP; Karnal in Haryana, Jhunjhunu, Jaipur and Udaipur in Rajasthan; Bhilai in Chhattisgarh; Moradabad, Allahabad, Sonebhadra, Kanpur, Varanasi, Ambedkar Nagar in UP, and also a dharna at the Vidhan Sabha at Lucknow.