The Model Code of Conduct is a set of norms and guidelines to be followed by political parties, candidates, polling agents and covers under its ambit, eight provisions; namely, general conduct, meetings, processions, polling day, polling booths, observers, the party in power and election manifestos.[1] The Model Code of Conduct is enforced as soon as the Election Commission makes the[Read More…]

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s far right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is certain to get a second term in Indian general election. As results are coming in BJP on its has crossed the half way mark of 272 seats. BJP and allies are leading in 342 seats out of the 542 seats where elections are held. Congress the main opposition party[Read More…]

So, after 38 days of Election Campaigning, which started on the 11th of April, 2019, the World’s Largest Election, (and also, the most complex as well as the most expensive), finally came to an end on the 19th of May, 2019. After 7 stages of voting and the equivalent of 7000 million (7 billion) US Dollars spent on costs in[Read More…]

Uttar Pradesh in general, and Varanasi in particular, hold a significant value for BJP, as it is a parliamentary constituency of PM Narendra Modi. The nation had witnessed BJP’S mega political roadshow in Varanasi on Friday, 26 April 2019. Prominent political figures like Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Manoj Tiwari, Union minister JP Nadda, Mahendra Pandey etc, were in[Read More…]

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi ’s open threat to the voters has let the cat out of the bag. What she was essentially spelling out was that once the results are out and it informs her of the community and area who voted for her, she would then specifically focus her attention on the basis of the vote share she has[Read More…]

Dictators often infantilize people. They portray the people as their children, and themselves as great patriarchs. Stalin to Chacha Nehru to Nasser, many have presented themselves as the authoritative father figure. At present, Xi Jinping is repeating the same, presenting himself as the Communist (or Confucian?) Father of the Chinese nation. Modi and Trump seem to be great exceptions to[Read More…]

Be careful while criticising the Government. Of course you will be anti-national if you do so. But now it is more than that. Now you have to face the cursing Sants. The Sants of BJP through their deep penance and meditation in the Himalayas have acquired some special powers. Gods impressed by their deep tapasya appeared before them and inquired[Read More…]

Our country is known and admired across the world for its enormous diversity, pluralism and the mutual respect that unites millions of Indians in a multi-cultural ethos. This is the idea of India that our freedom movement held high. That is why the modern values of democracy and separation of religion from politics, for which our country’s freedom-fighters fought hard,[Read More…]

  In the age of branding where media decide what you need and impose upon you even the ‘leaders’ in the opposition, those who work tirelessly for the rights of the people are not merely ignored but forgotten too. Manas Jena is an activist intellectual contesting on Indian National Congress ticket from Jajpur reserved constituency of Odisha. As a friend[Read More…]

By fielding Sadhvi Pragya, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wants people to believe that she and other accused arrested in various blast cases were ‘framed in fabricated cases’ and that ‘saffron terror’ is a myth. But while doing so the, BJP has undermined the fact that Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur still remains a key accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast[Read More…]

  A Report by Dr. M. Bapuji, of  FMRRC                                                                                                  Prime Minister Narendra[Read More…]

The campaign narratives in this Lok Sabha elections seem to have incredibly turned into bizarre cacophony and nothing else. For the sitting government in the Centre, the narrative revolves only around Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We do not see any MP asking the electorates to vote for him or her. Instead, they are all asking the masses to vote for[Read More…]

The events following Pulwama terrorist violence which killed 49 CRPF personnel had nearly pushed India and Pakistan to the brink of war. Threat of use of nuclear weapons gave dreadful shiver to the people on both sides. The jingoists on either side of the border took no time with rhetoric to destroy the other. But the saner elements warned those[Read More…]

As election schedule has started, debates on victories and losses of political parties has picked up momentum. Among the factors which are responsible for outcome, the role of various lucrative offers to people is a topic of intense analysis by media and elite intellectuals. Common knowledge It is an open secret that huge amount of cash and liquor is distributed[Read More…]

In the current elections, a constituency which is attracting the nation is Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency in Bihar. The importance of this constituency is due to the fact that this constituency is being contested by Kanhaiya Kumar, a Students Union leader turned Politician. He was joined by thousands in the rally during the time of his filing of nomination. People[Read More…]

For silent inspiration with your camera and film, Rakesh Sharma,this one’s for you. A powerful PM? In the days following the electoral victory of the Modi, ran an article in an otherwise modest The Hindu, “Coming soon, a powerful PMO (Prime Minister’s Office)”. [1]The proclamation uncritical as it is and reflected surely in other media outlets at the time in[Read More…]

An Appeal in the context of elections 2019 Elections to Lok Sabha and some Vidhan Sabhas are taking place at a time when the country is passing through a period of grave crisis. Besides leading to the formation of a new government, outcomes of the current elections will have a deep impact on the future shape of the Indian society,[Read More…]

Candidates  of  the  Opposition  parties  as  well  as   Independents  should  immediately  approach  the  UN   to  send  observers  to  India  to  conduct  an  independent  survey  of  the  coming  month  long  Lok  Sabha  polls.  The  BJP-ruled  Indian  state  is  fast  approaching  the  status  of   authoritarian  regimes  which  manipulate  the  electoral  process   to  perpetuate  themselves in  power (as  in  some  countries in  South-East [Read More…]

We can choose not to see what we don’t want to – but we can do so only at our own peril As a boy, the German novelist Max von der Grun heard  the news of Hitler becoming the Reich Chancellor over the radio on 30 January, 1933 . Two days later, he and his family listened to Hitler speaking[Read More…]

For centuries now we, the Adivasis, fisherfolk, hill, forest dwellers and others who are the original inhabitants of the Indian sub-continent have been systematically pushed off our ancestral lands  and forcibly confined to small, remote and increasingly vulnerable corners of the country. In this process we have been subjected to unspeakable atrocities bordering on genocide by successive regimes ruling what has been styled as the ‘world’s[Read More…]

We the Wonderful Cows of India With a population of 19 crore Worshipped in the name of Gau Matas Do not have rights of our own Despite being provided with Aadhaar card And being upgraded to that of a divine symbol We do not have right to vote In a regime which is cow friendly At a time, when we[Read More…]

India is having its first national election in five years. Partisanship in India is no better than in the United States. Probably much worse. Political party choices polarize families, friends, and whole communities and every election season can be a very divisive time. No wonder then that the U.S.’s nearly 4.5 million Indian-Americans watch India’s elections with sharp eyes. A[Read More…]

The contemporaneity of present day politics in India, as far as both the government and the opposition is concerned, is characterized by an absence of any real difference of policy vision across the political spectrum. The trend actually has been of gradual diminishing of difference between various political parties. Defection from one party to the other has become a matter[Read More…]

Telangana State (TS), with 17 Lok Sabha constituencies, goes to the Loksabha (Parliament) polls in the first phase on April 11. After the deadline for withdrawal of nominations ended March 28 Thursday, a total of 443 candidates remained in the fray in Telangana with Nizamabad Constituency topping the list with 185 candidates, including over 170 farmers.    Nizamabad farmers, mostly[Read More…]

Ache din denied Antinational population widened Banks weakened Bethi Bachao Beti Padao undermined Beef discourse brought in to shape discourse on food habits Bhakt culture promoted Big corporates let out – malya and modi Black Money brought in and 15 lakh deposited to Bank account Casteist (manuwadi) forces brought in Chowkidaar of rich and powerful created Communal incidents created Constitution[Read More…]

Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. You do not have to be a psephologist to predict the outcome of the critical General Election that India will hold two weeks from now if the opposition does not get its act together. On the one hand, you have the ruling BJP and Narendra Modi, ably aided[Read More…]

These Trinity of Telugu personalities gave voters the right to information about contestants: They are petitioner Professor Trilochan Shastry of Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), eminent advocate Padma Bhushan PP Rao and renowned justice of Supreme Court P Venkatram Reddy (with other distinguished colleagues) These Trinity of Telugu personalities gave voters the right to information about contestants: They are petitioner[Read More…]

Memorandum to the Chief Election Commissioner on violations of the Election Code by political parties by illegal and manipulative use of Religion in the Election Campaign, and defaming India’s Defence forces To the Chief Election commissioner And Members of the Election Commission of India New Delhi Dear Sirs The All India Peoples’ Forum represents a cross section of the people[Read More…]

There is no more drama over who is to contest from Wayanad on Congress ticket. The grand-old party has announced its candidate in the constituency after a height of uncertainty prolonging over a week. It is none other than the party president Rahul Gandhi, the next proposed prime minister if people votes United Progressive Alliance (UPA) to power. But the[Read More…]

When I heard the news of Bihar’s electoral alliance against BJP, I remembered a private conversation a few months back in Oxford with a member of India’s parliament who also had been a minister in one state government in India. We had agreed for one-hour meeting, but the conversation became so absorbing that we spent four hours in which many[Read More…]

India has witnessed a drastic rise in attacks on human rights activists, journalists, lawyers, farmers, adivasis, RTI activists, students, academicians, workers, protestors etc. opposing anti-people policies of the government and protesting human rights violations. The constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of speech and expression, association and assembly are under severe threat. Several people across the country have been criminalized in false and[Read More…]

In the current elections to the Lok Sabha and the Andhra Pradesh Assembly Defeat the ruling coalition at the Centre, the BJP-led NDA, that is pro-American super power, and pro-landlord classes! Defeat the Telugu Desam Party, an ally of reactionary BJP until recently, that carried on anti-people rule in Andhra Pradesh! Support the candidates of communist revolutionaries who are fighting[Read More…]

Seeing the media sensitivity towards current electoral trends, the Election Commission of India (ECI), a constitutional body responsible for conducting elections, has come up with the extra precautionary measures to monitor the media’s critical role in the upcoming general election However, measures adopted by the ECI to tackle false and misleading contents flooding on the mainstream media and social media[Read More…]

The CPI-M in Telangana state (TS) had taken two major initiatives in recent past. It took initiative to form T-MASS, and later a BLF to fight elections. The Secretary of CPM of TS, Tammineni Veerabhadram, a CC Member, is the General Secretary of both these Fronts, indicating its decisive role in both. The Chairman of T-MASS is Prof. Kancha Ilaiah,[Read More…]

A child miseducated is a child lost – John F Kennedy While all the mainstream parties are busy issuing statements of promises to various sections of society, there is little concern for the children who are at present outside the electoral process. These ‘ non- voters’ are being neglected and the potential of ‘ future’ voters is not being discussed[Read More…]

Rahul Gandhi’s minimum income announcement has jolted the government. Even if it is merely a political announcement during the poll season and we will have to see its repercussions as well as how it is implemented but that comes later. The political announcements need to be critiqued either by the politicians or discussed by the economists but what is happening[Read More…]

Sustaining a democratic system through periodic free and fair elections is one of the most critical political challenges the world has witnessed. Across countries, people have run the risk of their lives to call for free elections, democratic accountability, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Though elections are widely recognised as the indispensable foundation of democracy, there are[Read More…]

A Critique – by Dr. K. S. Sharma Chief Minister – Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Policies – Programmes X-rayed is the Title of a mega-volume of 672 Pages in Kannada,  traversing and x-raying the two decades of Narendra Modi’s Political travelogue.  In order to provide a Bird’s Eye-view of this long travelogue,  a concise summary in English has been sketched[Read More…]

A-Z Reasons – Why No to Vote for Modi in 2019 Letter Reasons A Anti-Minority-Dalit-Women-Working Class – The BJP / RSS displays a clear Anti-Dalit-Minority-Working Class attitude as reflected in its policies and ideological leanings. B Big Brother – This is a government run by Mota Bhai (Big Brother), an unconstitutional figure who in connivance with another Big Brother (Prime[Read More…]

Wake Up India: Essays for Our Times – continued A democracy needs at least two big parties and to rotate them. Time to rotate and give the baton to the Congress and its allies now. Demonetisation failed to bring back any black money. In fact, the BJP government is being asked to give an explanation for the excess money it[Read More…]

The coming 2019 may prove to be a watershed in India’s political history, as were the 1977 elections forty-two years ago.  In 1977, elections were held after a declared Emergency, during which the Constitution was suspended, political activity disallowed and opposition leaders and activists imprisoned. The success of non-Congress parties in those elections strengthened the electoral system in Indian democracy.[Read More…]

The coming 2019 may prove to be a watershed in India’s political history, as were the 1977 elections forty-two years ago.  In 1977, elections were held after a declared Emergency, during which the Constitution was suspended, political activity disallowed and opposition leaders and activists imprisoned. The success of non-Congress parties in those elections strengthened the electoral system in Indian democracy.[Read More…]