The 93rd Anniversary of Salt Satyagraha that lasted for 24 days can provide important lessons for appreciating India’s pluralism of religions, castes, languages, cultures, governance ideologies, and host of other diversities. The 78 trusted volunteers who accompanied Mahatma Gandhi came from various backgrounds and cultural sensibilities. As a commodity of everyday use, Gandhiji was convinced that salt provided a common rallying point[Read More…]

The Ministry of Culture, Government of India, is celebrating the spirit of “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” in 2022 to mark 75 years of India’s independence. It is well-timed and relevant to know that Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has produced many freedom fighters who fought for independence. While we are celebrating the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, present-day India is going through[Read More…]

The   British left us 75 years ago, with India now self-governed and politically independent. with a secular and democratic constitution. However it was not a triumph of people’s liberation, with transfer of power not accomplished as a result of an anti-feudal and anti-imperialist revolution.  Even after independence there was inadequate space to democratically organise and imperialist capital continued to penetrate[Read More…]

Indians are going to unfurl the tricolour to celebrate the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence on 15th of August 2022. Indian freedom struggle has not only shaped India as a modern constitutional democracy but also shaped the nature of state, society and citizenship. The anti-colonial, anti-capitalist, anti-feudal and anti-imperialist struggle were the four pillars of Indian freedom struggle that laid[Read More…]

The Independence Day is always a proud day for all citizens of India. This year it is all the more so as this is the 75th Independence Day. However at the same time there is growing concern about the increasing erosion of some essential precepts of the freedom movement during the last eight years or so of the NDA/BJP regime.[Read More…]

The freedom movement of India is a highly inspiring chapter of world history. With their deeds and not just their words, year after year so many freedom fighters gave highly inspiring examples of facing very tough challenges in highly courageous ways, often making big sacrifices with a smile and freedom movement slogans and songs on their lips. The broad message[Read More…]

In one of the most inspiring examples of highly courageous spontaneous actions based on the unity of people, parallel governments were formed by freedom fighters in several parts of India in the course of the Quit India Movement in 1942. Although generally four such leading efforts have been identified in Satara ( Maharashtra), Talcher ( Odisha), Tamluk ( W.Bengal) and[Read More…]

A fascinating aspect of the freedom movement of India relates to very useful inter-actions among various streams of the movement, and their various meeting points. An interesting chapter of this concerns the family of Lala Gurudas Mal Talwar ( sometimes also written as Gurdasmal) whose various members contributed in very important ways to different streams of the freedom movement. This[Read More…]

One disturbing and intriguing aspect of current opposition politics is the persistent illusion that but for a few exceptions it is business as usual in politics.It is not.There is a vast,far-reaching but insidious and unobtrusive plan at work to change the character of the state.The campaign is two-pronged,both from the level of the state and the level of popular mobilization.Every[Read More…]