Maoism in the HIMALAYAS
Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams: Chapter 221
Palash Biswas
Nepal PM Prachanda resigns; political crisis deepens! Nepal's prime minister resigned Monday amid a power struggle over his firing of the army chief, saying he was stepping down to "save the peace process" that brought the Himalayan nation out of a bloody decade-long civil war.
Nepali President Ram Baran Yadav has accepted the resignation tendered by Prime Minister Prachanda Monday evening.
Nepal govt blames India for debacle!
In an oblique reference to India, he said his party is ready to maintain "cordial relations" with the neighbouring countries but will "not accept any intervention".
"I will quit the government rather than remain in power by bowing down to the foreign elements and reactionary forces," Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' said.
It is being speculated here that Communist Party of Nepal-UML, which had withdrawn support to the Maoist-led government over the issue of General Rukmangad Katawal's removal, may try to form a government with the support of Nepali Congress, the second largest party in Parliament.
CPN-UML general secretary Jhalanath Khanal and former general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal are the two possible names doing the rounds for the post of prime minister.
The Maoists had accused the army chief of defying government orders not to hire new recruits, and reinstating eight generals the Defense Ministry had dismissed.
The president, who belongs to an opposition party, said the Maoist decision was "illegal and unconstitutional."
Mr. Prachanda called the president's move an attack on Nepal's infant democracy and the peace process. He said the president had no right to act as a parallel power. He said he is stepping down for the protection of democracy.
Hours later, the Maoists vowed to launch protests and shut down the government in protest.
"We have decided to begin mass protests ... and stall parliament until the president takes back his decision," the Maoists' party spokesman Nath Sharma said.
The party has substantial support in rural areas and is capable of gathering tens of thousands of people in the streets of Katmandu and other cities for demonstrations.
Nepal's Maoists fought a bloody, 10-year war against the government before joining the political mainstream in 2006, and then winning the most votes during elections last year that helped bring an end to the Himalayan country's centuries-old monarchy.
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, a former Maoist guerrilla leader, made the announcement on television Monday afternoon, one day after his firing of the army chief was rejected by President Ram Baran Yadav — who officially leads the army — and which caused some of his key political allies to withdraw from the ruling coalition.
Nepal's Maoist Prime Minister Prachanda resigned today after a clash of wills with the country's president, plunging the fragile state into a political crisis only months after it emerged from a bloody civil war.
Maoism in the HIMALAYAS would have rather a DEEPER Impact than we are habitual to assess! The former rebels went on to win the most seats in elections held last year, bringing Prachanda to the helm of the government. But in the past year, the Maoists have been criticized for muzzling the press and using violence to intimidate opponents.
The latest crisis could imperil the 2006 peace deal. As part of the deal, Nepal's monarchy was abolished, and a new constitution is being framed for the country.
After Dahal dismissed Katawal, the Maoist's main coalition partner, the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist Leninist), and other key coalition members withdrew from the government.
Dahal's Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) has the most members in the national assembly but does not hold a majority, and needs the support of smaller parties to stay in control of the government.
Immediately following the prime minister's announcement, authorities announced a ban on protests in key parts of Katmandu, including areas around the president's residence and office. Police in riot gear were deployed across the city.
Security forces had already been on alert, anticipating street clashes.
Earlier Monday, thousands of Maoist supporters rallied in Katmandu, the capital, to show support for the government and denounce the president's action. Elsewhere in the city, supporters of the main opposition, the Nepali Congress party, blocked traffic with burning tires, chanting slogans against the government and the Maoists.
There were no reports of any clashes between the two sides, but Home Ministry official Navin Ghimire said security forces were preparing to deal with unrest.
"We are expecting trouble and are prepared to stop violence in the streets. Policemen are on high alert and will be mobilized throughout the capital," Ghimire said.
The fall of the Maoist-led government had been predicted by analysts.
"It has become almost impossible for the Maoists to remain in government in the present situation," said Ameet Dhakal, editor of Republica, a leading newspaper, said Sunday in an interview. "It's a big crisis for the country now."
Anger against the government has been running high in Nepal, where much of the public blames the Maoists for power outages that can last more than 16 hours a day, fuel shortages that have created endless lines at gas stations, and rising prices for food and other household staples.
But the Maoists are still revolutionary heroes to many, especially among rural villagers who voted them into power last year in Nepal's first elections. The centuries-old monarchy was abolished soon after.
Nepali Times Editor Kunda Dixit says the Maoist decision had met with strong opposition from virtually all political parties.
"The Maoists are politically isolated," said Dixit. "All the other parties have now said that they were wrong. Their argument is that the Maoists bypassed the president, who is actually the ceremonial commander of the army, and they are using the threat of mob violence in order to get away with it."
The standoff between the Maoists and the army chief stems from his refusal to integrate former rebel fighters into the army as stipulated by the peace deal. The army chief says the fighters cannot join the military because they are politically indoctrinated.
Demonstrations were held in the capital, Kathmandu, by supporters of both the Maoists and the opposition. There are fears street protests by supporters of the former rebels will intensify following the Prime Minister's resignation.
New york Times reports:
Nepal’s prime minister resigned on Monday amid a power struggle over his firing of the army chief, saying he was stepping down to salvage democracy in the country and the peace process that brought the Himalayan nation out of a bloody decade-long civil war.
I announce, through this address, my resignation from the cabinet I have chaired so as to put an end to this difficult situation and create a positive environment for salvaging democracy, nationalism and the peace process that are currently at risk,” Prachanda, a former Maoist guerilla fighter, said in his 13-minute address.
Large clusters of people gathered in front of television shops in the capital, Katmandu, to watch the prime minister give his address, as many parts of the city didn’t have electricity due to an ongoing power crisis.
Prachanda’s party entered into competitive politics after signing a peace deal in 2006, ending a decade-long Maoist rebellion. He became prime minister in August after four months of political wrangling; in May, the nation’s elected constituent assembly declared the nation a federal republic, ending 239 years of Hindu monarchy.
But despite the Maoists’ rise to power, over 19,000 of their former fighters remain restricted to United Nations-monitored barracks under a peace accord.
Prachanda, whose name means “the fierce one” in Nepali, wanted the guerrillas freed and integrated into the military, as prescribed under a U.N.-brokered peace agreement. But the army chief resisted those efforts and sparred repeatedly with the government.
The disagreement over the army chief fractured the nation’s ruling coalition on Sunday, and analysts said it put a serious question mark over the government’s ability to keep the ex-combatants in their cantonments.
The Communist Party of Nepal, a unified Marxist-Leninist party that holds the second highest number of seats in the 601-member Constituent Assembly, pulled out of the government on Sunday, accusing the Maoists of acting unilaterally.
Earlier Monday, Maoist cadres held demonstrations in the capital to protest the president’s decision to reinstate the army chief. Activists with the main opposition Nepali Congress party held counter rallies in support of the action, which was termed as “unconstitutional” by the Prachanda government.
Anger against the government has been running high in Nepal, where much of the public blames the Maoists for power outages that can last more than 16 hours a day, fuel shortages that have created endless lines at gas stations, and rising prices for food and other household staples.
But the Maoists are still revolutionary heroes to many, especially among rural villagers who voted them into power last year in Nepal’s first elections.
Sharon Otterman contributed reporting from New York.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/05/world/asia/05nepal.html?hp
In a big blow to Prachanda, Nepal President Ram Baran Yadav has asked Gen Rukmangad Katawal to remain as Nepal's army chief as his
Army chief Gen Rookmangud Katawal (centre). (Pic courtesy Nepal Army)
dismissal by the country’s prime minister does not meet the "constitutional requirements and due process".
"Since the dismissal of the army chief and the new appointment do not meet the constitutional requirements and due process, I hereby direct you to continue as the chief of the Nepali army," the Nepalese president said in a letter to Gen Katawal late Sunday night.
Blog: South Block screwed up BIG
Yadav's move came hours after Prachanda sacked the army chief who refused to step down plunging the country into a political crisis.
The president had on Sunday asked Prachanda, a former Maoist rebel leader, to follow constitutional provisions and seek a political consensus over firing Gen Katawal.
The letter asking Gen Katawal to remain in office also came after 18 political parties urged the president to protect the "constitution and block action against the army chief."
Sources at the Nepal president's office said Yadav, who is also the supreme commander of the army, intervened in the matter as the parties commanding majority in parliament requested for his intervention to defend the constitution.
Soon after the government announced its decision to fire the army chief, CPN (UML) quit the government in protest against the decision. After a standing committee meeting of CPN(UML) at Balkhu, its chairman Jhalanath Khanal said his party has withdrawn support to the government and called back its ministers.
The CPN(UML) has 108 members in the 601-member Constituent Assembly and its action has raised doubts over the survival of the multi-party coalition. Maoists have 229 members and it was not immediately clear whether the government was still in a majority.
Sources at the president's Office said copies of Yadav's letter to Gen Katawal were sent to all six regional headquarters of the army and Prime Minister's office.
For me, The HIMALAYAS have been a SINGLE GEOPOLITICS divided VERTICALLY by Political Borders! We share the same ECOLOGY, same Landscape and TOPOGRAPHY, same Human scape consisting of different Nationalities and Identities Aboriginal and Indigenous in Character, fighting for thousands and thousands years and Enslaved for thousands and thousands years! We share same ECOLOGY, Climate, Weather Cycle and Economy.
We have been EXPLOITED in the same ways!
We have been PERSECUTED and ALIENATED in the same way!
We have been dealing the ISSUES of the HIMALAYS in Nainital Samachar and PARAD sice the CHIPKO MOVEMENT before I was CONNECTED with North EAST and KASHMIR!
Tibet, BHUTAN, SIKKIM or GORKHLAND are not only Tourist destination for us as we have the FEELING to be ONE!
As the MONSOON links the HIMALAYAS with the sustenance of the PLAINS across the SOUTH ASIAN Divided Geopolitics bleeding, thus MAOISM links the Helpless Masses fighting for their rights in HILLS as well as Plains. Insurrections do unite the Himalayas with the rest of the SUBCONTINENT.
If you understand these EQUATIONS very well, only then you may UNDERSTAND the Relevance of STAND OFF CURRENT in Nepal!
Frankly, the GOVERNMENT of India , specially the BRAHMAN holding the FOREIGN Ministry NEVER do understand this!
As we have MISSING links of HISTORY in the Plains,the HIMALAYAS is also deprived of its HISTORY and HERITAGE. As the GENOCIDE Culture rules the SOUTH ASIAN Geopolitics, in the same way it OVERWHELMS the HIMALAYAS including North East and Kashmir under AFPSA umbrella with ZERO TOLERANCE!
Language of RELIGION is a little bit LOUD in the Himalayas as RELIGION directly is involved in Politics, Society and Economy and culture!
My village Basantipur is not very far way from Nepal border.In fact ENTIRE Kumaun and GARWAL along with the TERAI Jungle had been ruled by the GURKHAS until the SIGAULI TREATY after the GURKHA BRITISH war.
The BORDER is open. Nepalese are at home from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. The GURKHA Regiment is an ICONIC Force to DEFEND India. Specially in Nainital, we had to share the life with Nepalese people in every possible sphere!
Our people, the partition victim bengali refugees resettled in GOBIASARAI colonies and Ram Nagar area live along with the NEPALESE Border in district PILIBHIT of UP, now famous and focused thanks to BARUN GANDHI EXPLOSION!
Our friend Gobind ballabh Pant, the reporter of AAJTAK from Lucknow and ANAD SWARUP Verma have been involved with NEPALESE struggle for LIBERATION from the Beginning. Thanks to them, we used to be in touch with Prachand and Bhattai!
As Nepal's first Maoist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda announced his resignation in a televised address to the nation after an escalating quarrel with allies and President Ram Baran Yadav, a senior minister in the outgoing cabinet blamed India for the debacle, saying New Delhi's bureaucrats had committed an "enormous blunder".
"India supported the army and the president in their unconstitutional acts against democratic forces," Maoist finance minister Baburam Bhattarai said. "It was an enormous blunder. It is going to cost India all the goodwill it earned by supporting the pro-democracy movement during King Gyanendra's regime".
The Maoist leader, who had earlier said he had learnt the ABC of Marxism in New Delhi's prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University, where he was a doctorate student in the 80s, blamed the "bureaucrats" in New Delhi for the fall of the Maoist government.
"The politicians are busy with the elections and the decisions are being taken by blundering bureaucrats," he said. "The Indian people and parties should take note of this and India should review its bureaucracy policy."
While announcing his resignation, Prachanda had accused the opposition, some of his own allies and "foreign powers", meaning India, of conspiring against his eight-month government and encouraging the president to work outside his constitutional role by abetting the army.
Bhattarai said his party would now begin a struggle on the streets and from the floor of interim parliament to amend the President's unconstitutional move to reinstate the army chief Gen Rookmangud Katawal, who was sacked by his party Sunday.
However, he said that the new struggle would be a peaceful one.
"Both Katawal and Ram Baran Yadav must be sacked since they acted against the constitution," he said. "Till that is done, we will continue our struggle."
Bhattarai also said that his party would start impeachment proceedings against the president.
If the Maoists' former allies, the communists, move to form a new government supported by the opposition Nepali Congress, Bhattarai said his party would consider supporting or joining it if it takes steps against the president.
In 2006, India had brought the Maoists, who were then an underground party, and the mainstream Nepali parties together who unitedly began a pro-democracy movement that ended King Gyanendra's army-backed regime.
But since the Maoists won the election last year and came to power — against New Delhi's expectations, relations between the two soured.
Nepal's Prime Minister Prachanda resigned on Monday after his Maoist government's decision to sack the army chief was scuttled by the President, deepening the political crisis and raising the spectre of renewed rebel unrest in the country.
"I have resigned from the post of prime minister from today for the protection of democracy and peace," 54-year-old Prachanda, who had taken the reins of the country eight months ago, said in a televised address to the nation.
Expressing serious concern over the political crisis in Nepal after the sacking of the army chief, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged all political parties in the country to resolve the crisis through "dialogue and consensus".
In a statement issued at the UN headquarters in New York, the Secretary General urged all the political parties to fully respect the provisions of the constitution.
"The Secretary-General is seriously concerned about the current political crisis in Nepal centered on the relationship between the government and the chief of army staff, and the possible risks posed to the peace process," said a statement issued by his spokesperson's office.
"The Secretary-General calls on all concerned to resolve the crisis through dialogue and consensus, with full respect for the provisions of the constitution," the statement said.
The RESIGNATION announcement came after President Ram Baran Yadav directed Army Chief General Rukmangad Katawal to continue in office, saying his dismissal by the cabinet does not "meet the constitutional requirements and due process."
The Maoist regime accused Katawal of defying the government's orders by reinstating eight Generals retired by the Maoist administration.
"The move by the President is an attack on this infant democracy and the peace process," Prachanda said, accusing him of taking an "unconstitutional and undemocratic decision."
"The interim constitution does not give any right to the president to act as a parallel power," said Prachanda, whose government was reduced to a minority after key ally CPN-UML announced withdrawal of support due to differences over the removal of Katawal.
The political crisis, which follows months of tussle between the premier and the army chief over the induction of former Maoist rebels into the army, is threatening the fragile peace process in the country that witnessed a decade-long insurgency waged by the Maoists before they returned to mainstream in 2006 after singing a peace deal.
While announcing the resignation, Prachanda accused "national and international reactionary forces" of hatching a "conspiracy" against his government and the nascent republic which abolished its 240-year-old monarchy in May last year.
"I will quit the government rather than remain in power by bowing down to the foreign elements and reactionary forces," said Prachanda, whose government was sworn in on August 15 last year after the Maoists emerged as the single largest party in the Constituent Assembly elections.
In an oblique reference to India, he said his party is ready to maintain "cordial relations" with the neighbouring countries but will "not accept any intervention". Prachanda accused "reactionary forces" of obstructing the Maoist government in its efforts to introduce various reform programmes. He admitted that the government could not perform up to the expectations of people "due to various obstacles put by regressive forces and ongoing shutdowns and agitations".
He also said he is committed to democracy, human rights and press freedom and asserted his party's commitment to the peace process.
Earlier, another top Maoist leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara had said the Madhesi-origin President's move is tantamount to a "constitutional coup" which has put the "peace process in peril". "We have decided to fight against the (President's) move in the court, streets and Parliament," senior Maoist leader Bahadur Rayamajhi had said.
It is being speculated here that CPN-UML may try to form a government under its leadership as Nepali Congress, the second largest party in Parliament, has already given a green signal. Party's general secretary Jhalanath Khanal and former general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal are the two possible names doing the rounds for the top post.
Currently, the Maoist strength in the 601-member Constituent Assembly is 238. The NC has 112 seats, UML 108, Madhesi People's Rights Forum 53, Terai Madhes Democratic Party 21 and Sadbhavana Party nine seats. A minimum of 301 seats are required to form a government.
Govt asks SSB to step up vigil at Indo-Nepal In the wake of the political crisis in neighbouring Nepal, the Union home ministry has directed SSB, the border guarding force to remain
on high alert.
The force has been asked to step up vigil along the 1,751-kilometre Indo-Nepal border, a senior home ministry official said.
According to a SSB official at the headquarters here, orders have been issued to field formations to heighten vigil and check any possible attempts of infiltrations.
The political crisis in the Himalayan nation deepened with the Maoists terming President Ram Baran Yadav's directive that sacked Army Chief General Rukmangad Katawal should continue in office as a "constitutional coup" and threatened to move court against it.
Nepal political crisis unfortunate but internal matter: Congress
Expressing concern over developments in Nepal, Congress on Monday said the political crisis there in wake of the sacking of the Army chief was most unfortunate but maintained it's the country's "internal matter".
Commenting on the Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal's decision to sack the Army chief R Katawal without taking his allies of his government into confidence, party spokesperson M Veerappa Moily said, "It's a coalition government. If you do not take your allies into confidence, you are then inviting trouble."
"We are greatly concerned with developments there. It is most unfortunate. We do not want the process of democratisation should fail in Nepal," Moily added.
"It's an internal matter of Nepal government. UPA government or Congress is not going to interfere in their internal issue," he said.
Moily pleaded ignorance about any meeting between Nepal's former king Gyanendra and Sonia Gandhi. He categorically said, "Neither the Congress party nor the UPA government has anything to do with the political development in Nepal."
He was responding to queries whether Gyanendra's meeting with Sonia could be a reason for his sacking as he was perceived to be close to India.
After Prachanda resigned from the prime minister post, the party's central secretariat meeting was holding in capital Kathmandu to ensure further steps.
"To outline the further strategic political movement after resigning from the coalition government, we have call on a meeting," UCPN-M spokesperson Dinanath Sharma told Xinhua just after the Prachanda's resignation.
Talking to Xinhua, Sharma said that the party will assist the peace process by writing new constitution even being outside of the government.
"We will do our best to constitutionalize democracy in the nation for which our party is committed," Sharma said, adding that the party did not struggle for "post" in the government.
Earlier on Monday, Prachanda delivered his special message following the current political chaos intensified after President Ram Baran Yadav put veto power on sacking of Chief of Army Staff Rookmangud Katawal.
In his 14 minute-long speech, Prachanda said that his party had succeeded to establish republican government ending 240 years old Monarchy. "Outer element are plotting against us which is biggest challenge for us," said Prachanda.
He addressed the nation as the first elected Prime Minister of republican government.
"We may not have achieved the progress like you," he said, indicating the former governments and the political parties in his speech, adding that his party will not conceal its fragility like other parties.
The political turn came after UCPN-M failed to gather political consensus on Chief of Army Staff row which further developed the resignation of Prime Minister.
However, his resignation is yet to submit before President Yadav.
Nepal's Prime Minister Prachanda announces his resignation from his office during a nationwide broadcast in Kathmandu May 4, 2009. Prachanda resigned on Monday from the cabinet after a crisis sparked by his sacking of the country's army chief.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
Photo Gallery>>>
Just before Prachanda's address in the name of nation, District Administration Office (DAO) of Kathmandu on Monday imposed prohibitory orders in some areas of the Nepali capital of Kathmandu.
The areas include Nepali President's residence in Shital Niwas and Army Headquarters and its surrounding areas.
All types of protests have been banned in and around these areas. Security personnel have also been posted at campuses in large numbers to avoid any untoward incident.
The Nepali government led by the UCPN-M on Sunday morning decided to sack Chief of Army Staff Rookmangud Katawal without the coalition's consensus. The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN- UML), which is the second largest party of the five-member ruling coalition, and Sadbhavana Party led by Rajendra Mahato pulled out from the coalition government.
Late on Sunday, Nepali President Ram Baran Yadav faxed a special instruction to Katawal, asking him to continue in his office, which the UCPN-M leaders termed unconstitutional and meaningless.
The UCPN-M emerged from the Constituent Assembly elections in April 2008 as the single largest party and led the formation of the first republic government in August 2008.
Ahead of that, the formerly Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) led by Prachanda signed the Comprehensive Peace Accord with the then government in November, 2006, ending the decade civil war in Nepal.
Fierce yet charming: Nepal's Maoist PM resigns
2 hours ago
KATHMANDU (AFP) — Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who resigned as Nepal's prime minister Monday, transformed himself from a terrorist with a price on his head into a national leader who attended meetings alongside the US president.
Known as Prachanda -- or "the fierce one" -- he spent years hiding in Nepal's jungles and hills, directing a Maoist guerrilla war that left at least 13,000 people dead and brought the Himalayan nation to its knees.
In 2006, he signed a peace deal with the mainstream parties that paved the way for the abolition of the world's last Hindu monarchy and his rise to power via the ballot box.
Soon after taking office in August 2008, he travelled to the US -- where his Maoist party is still on terrorism blacklists -- to rub shoulders with the then President George W. Bush at the United Nations General Assembly.
"Some miracle has happened," Prachanda, 54, said during his visit. "It's just like a sweet dream for me."
Born a Brahmin from the top of the strict Hindu caste system, Prachanda spent his childhood herding goats and buffalo to help his impoverished family.
"Grandfather was a well-to-do farmer. But later on, lean times set in when family land holdings were fragmented," he explained recently.
He turned to communism at a young age after experiencing Nepal's crushing poverty and inequality firsthand, and says Lenin remains his role model.
"I never really understood why we had to struggle so hard to survive from day to day while our neighbours had all the luxuries," he said.
Prachanda officially joined the communists in 1980 at the age of 25 and worked as a schoolteacher and then on US-funded aid projects.
Inspired by the Cultural Revolution in China, as well as Peru's Shining Path movement, he became convinced that an armed insurgency was the only way to bring radical change to one of the world's poorest countries.
Promoted to lead the Maoists, he launched their "People's War" in 1996 with attacks on police posts in the rural west of the country.
The revolt grew into a conflict that saw the Maoists battle security forces to a standstill and secure control of large swathes of the countryside.
Now the proud father of three grown-up children, he cuts an affable figure in public, charming many with his easy conversation and warm manner.
Prachanda's life as a violent renegade may be over, but the collapse of his government over his attempt to sack the army chief opens another chapter of uncertainty and possible unrest for Nepal.
'Nepal crisis should be resolved through democratic means'
Kolkata (PTI): Expressing concern over the prevailing political turmoil in Nepal following sacking of army chief R Katawal, the CPI(M) on Monday said the crisis should get resolved through democratic means.
"The CPI(M) wants that whatever solution is found out should be within the democratic process," CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury told reporters here.
"It is a serious development...it should be resolved through democratic means and discussion in political process ...unless this happens whatever the people have achieved in Nepal through struggle will be derailed," he said, adding that there should be no external interference in the neighbouring country's development.
"India has not interfered earlier in Nepal and not doing so now. I feel it (India) should not interfere in the crisis," Mr. Yechury said.
Nepal plunged into a crisis on Sunday after the ruling Maoist party sacked Army Chief Gen Rukmangad Katawal for alleged defiance of government orders.
The action of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as "Prachanda", triggered protests from most political parties in the coalition.
The situation aggravated further when President Ram Baran Yadav asked the Army Chief to continue in his post as his dismissal by the prime minister did not meet the "constitutional requirements and due process".
Congress cannot form government on its own: Yechury
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury on Sunday said the Congress cannot form a government on its own
after the general elections.
"After three phases of election, the Congress has realised that it cannot form the government this time at the centre on its own strength," Yechury said here.
The possibility of a non-Congress non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government is growing by the day, he said.
Yechury said that the Left-led third alternative could bring reforms in policy making initiatives so the ongoing economic recession could be tackled in India.
Asked whether the CPI-M will join the government if the Third Front comes to power, Yechuri said: "That will only be decided after polls. We cannot say anything now. Our party's central committee will take the final decision on the matter."
Ram Baran Yadav: The man who defied the Maoists 4 May 2009, 1912 hrs IST, TNN
KATHMANDU: Last year, Ram Baran Yadav, a Madhesi doctor from the restive Terai plains, made history when he became the first president of a newly republic Nepal, replacing deposed king Gyanendra as the constitutional head of state.
A former health minister, the 60-year-old became the Nepali Congress party’s surprise candidate for the presidential race after the Maoists refused to nominate NC chief and former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala due to fears that he would try to set himself up as a parallel power centre, cramping the style of the Maoist-led government.
Blog: South Block screwed up BIG
The fears came true Sunday after Yadav countermanded the ruling Maoists’ order to sack army chief Gen Rookmangud Katawal and ordered him to continue in his post. In doing so, the president has triggered a debate as to whether he stepped out of his ceremonial role. While the Maoists are accusing him of committing a coup against the constitution, a defiant Yadav on Monday defended his role by issuing a press statement in which he said it was within his rights as the custodian of the constitution and supreme commander of the army.
Yadav, once the Man Friday of Koirala who refused to leave the party and join the Madhesi movement, still retains strong links with the NC though he resigned as an NC lawmaker after becoming president. His son Chandra Mohan Yadav was fielded by the NC during this year’s byelections from his constituency. However, the president’s son was rejected by the voter and came a poor third.
It was anticipated that Yadav would oppose the Maoist decision since the NC was against it. His work became easier after the Maoists’ allies also protested and 18 parties petitioned him to halt the Maoist order.
Besides the parties, Yadav also drew support from the international community. A group of eight countries, including India, the US, UK and China, had asked Prachanda not to fire Katawal.
But his defiance has made Yadav the new target of the Maoists, who are planning to impeach him. The former rebels will also try to mobilise public opinion against the first president. Whatever his motive, Yadav however creates a negative precedent of the head of state locking horns with the executive and that too on an issue as sensitive as the army.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/Ram-Baran-Yadav-The-man-who-defied-the-Maoists/articleshow/4483106.cms
Yechury confident of a Third Front govt
Font Size -A +A
Express News Service
Posted: May 04, 2009 at 0412 hrs IST
Kolkata Blaming the Congress and the BJP for dividing the country into “Suffering India” and “Shining India”, CPM politburo member Sitaram Yechury said the demand for a non-Congress, non-BJP government at the Centre was growing by the day.
Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Yechury said: “I am confident that the Third Front will come to power this time. Even UPA and NDA partners are giving a second thought to their continuing support to the Congress and BJP. This is evident from the statements made by the leaders of those constituents.” Reacting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s terming the Left as a “good ally”, Yechury said even Singh was not sure of returning to power. Hence, he was making such statements.
He also called for a political consensus in ensuring independence for the CBI. Referring to the controversy over the CBI’s decision to remove Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi from Interpol’s list of wanted people, he said: “Nearly 20 years after the Bofors scandal came to light, we still don’t know the truth. The CPM feels all political parties will have to work out a system to maintain the independence of the CBI,” he said.
Criticising senior BJP leader L K Advani’s allegation that the CBI was being used politically, Yechury said Advani was the Home Minister for six years, during which no complete investigation was done.
As for the Third Front not announcing a prime ministerial candidate, Yechury said doing so would amount to “betrayal” of the voters trust. A party should decide on its PM candidate only when it achieves a majority in the Parliament.
On global slowdown, Yechury said: “The economic meltdown has claimed 1 lakh jobs in the organised sector and 5 lakh people have returned to Kerala after losing their jobs in Gulf countries.”
“The only way to counter the dangers of recession is to increase government investment in infrastructure, which will create jobs and consequently a domestic market. In fact, China is investing far more than India,” he added.
Mayawati repeats: Reservation for Muslims
Chinki Sinha
Posted: May 04, 2009 at 2356 hrs IST
Print Email To Editor Post Comments
Most Read Articles
Related Articles
Everyone was in dark about Babri demolition,...Adultery business booming in recessionPonting to lead Australia in all formats til...Bollywood Stars who gave Voting Day a missWith network set in LS polls, parties eye as...Nepal PM Prachanda resigns; political crisis...
Tytler, Sajjan shouldn't have got the ti...Jagdish Tytler granted bail in defamatio...Sajjan Kumar smiles as brother gets his ...Jagdish Mukhi declares assets worth Rs 2...
New Delhi In A shift from the issues taken up by the Congress and the BJP in their respective rallies in the Capital on Sunday, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati reiterated her stand on reservation for Muslims. She touched upon the Dalit agenda too, asking the people to not vote for “anti-Dalit” Congress.
Addressing the thousands who braved the searing heat to hear her at the Ramlila Grounds, the Dalit leader called upon Muslims to vote for the party. She said only the BSP had given tickets to three Muslim candidates in Delhi, emphasising on the party’s slogan: “Jiski jitni bhagidari, uski utni hissedari.”
She took on the Congress for not fielding a single Muslim candidate in any of the seven constituencies. She also referred to the Sachar Committee report and criticised the ruling party for not implementing any of its recommendations for the betterment of the community.
“This is an appeal to the Muslims. I want to tell them that our party has given them tickets so that they join our vote base and win,” said Mayawati. “You have to bring us to power. We have reached here because of you.”
Invoking Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar, Mayawati targeted the Congress for being “anti-Dalit”.
Accusing the Congress of “ill-treating” Ambedkar, she asked the voters to avenge his defeat in the 1952 Lok Sabha elections at the hands of a Congress candidate.
“The voting rights were given to you by Babashaeb. You have to keep this in mind,” she said. “If you sell your votes for money, you are selling the honour of your daughters and sisters.”
Reading out from her written speech, Mayawati said her party had two upper caste candidates too, proving that the BSP had transcended the Dalit tag and was now a ‘sarvajan samaj’ party.
Mayawati was accompanied by Nasimuddin Siddiqui and Satish Chandra Mishra, the two BSP leaders who are busy wooing Muslims and upper caste votes in Delhi.
Mishra, BSP’s national general secretary and Rajya Sabha member, is a Brahmin.
“I had no political background. But now I will always be associated with the BSP. She (Mayawati) has always focused on everyone,” Mishra said.
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Mayawati-repeats-Reservation-for-Muslims/454052/
Sonia says NDA treated terrorists as guests
Font Size -A +A
Agencies
Posted: May 04, 2009 at 1537 hrs IST
Farukkhabad Ridiculing BJP's "soft on terror" charges, Sonia Gandhi on Monday attacked the saffron party, saying while Congress "effectively and firmly" countered terrorism, the erstwhile BJP-led government "treated terrorists like guests".
"During Congress rule terrorism was countered effectively and firmly, whereas during BJP regime terrorists were treated like guests and released in their own country," Sonia said here, while addressing an election rally in support of party nominee Salman Khursheed.
"The entire country knows that Rajiv Gandhi and Indira Gandhi laid down their lives for the nation's sake," she said, adding the party handled the terror issue "with an iron fist".
The Congress President asked BJP to stop "preaching on terrorism and instead introspect its own failures." Gandhi also took a dig at NDA's India Shining slogan during the previous general elections. "When farmers were facing a tough situation and future of youths was in dark, the BJP saw India as shining.
"BJP had made a lot of promises during earlier elections and the NDA regime, but failed to deliver," she charged, adding it was Congress which entered the election arena with the issue of turning India into a developed and strong nation.
Left U-turn? Yechury doesn't rule out support to UPA
Font Size -A +A
Agencies
Posted: May 04, 2009 at 1324 hrs IST
Kolkata Despite CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat having categorically ruled out support to a Congress-led government at the Centre again, senior party politburo member Sitaram Yechury on Monday said the party's next step would be decided only after the elections.
"We will decide what will happen post-election, but right now our objective till the elections are over is the third alternative. However, we do not think the need to support a Congress-led government will arise," Yechury told a press conference in Kolkata.
Asked about Karat's statement in Kolkata recently that the Left would not extend support to a Congress-led coalition again, Yechury said, "I do not know in what context he had said this. We will meet and decide what will happen post-election."
Yechury said the Congress leaders were openly saying after the third phase of the elections that they would take support of the Left if the opportunity to form a government arose.
"But this is an admission of their realisation that they are not coming back to power. Our objective is to form a Third Front government and we are confident about that," he said.
Asked if the Left was approached to support a Congress-led coalition minus Manmohan Singh as the prime minister, he said they were not concerned about individuals, but issues.
Sensex at 7-month high; surges 731 pts
Mumbai The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday surged to touch a seven-month high, recording the biggest one-day gain of the year, as strong risk appetite on a brighter outlook for the global economy lifted markets across the globe.
The Sensex spurted by 731.50 points, the largest single-day gain this year, to 12,134.75, a level never seen after October 3 last year. Monday's 6.41 per cent surge took the Sensex over 50 per cent above the 2009 low in early March.
In a similar fashion, the 50-share National Stock Exchange index zoomed by 180.05 points, or 5.18 per cent, to 3,654.00. It regained 3,600 level after October last year.
The current rally was mostly attributed to a sharp upsurge in stocks of metal, information technologies and banking.
Trading sentiment got a boost after stocks in Europe and Asia rose, US futures advanced and the yen weakened as a report showing China’s manufacturing expanded for the first time in nine months is seen among the signs that the global recession is easing.
Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index climbed 0.7 per cent and Standard and Poor¿s 500 Index futures 0.6 per cent on reports that the CLSA China Purchasing Managers’ Index rose in April on decline in export orders moderating, and government stimulus spending.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index of 23 developing economies climbed 3.7 per cent to 687.47, the highest since October 6, Russia’s Micex by 3 per cent, and Taiwan¿s Taeix index by 5.6 per cent.
Marketmen said the upsurge in the stock markets was partly supported by foreign funds, which remained net buyers in the Indian stock markets, bringing back confidence among retail investors.
They said the foreign investors bought stocks worth 1.3 billion dollars in April, the most since October 2007.
The metal index gained the most, rising 8.77 per cent to 7,489.47, following a steep rise in stocks of Sterlite Industries and Tata Steel. All the 15 participants of the sectoral index were significantly higher.
The information technology sector index was the second-best performer, adding 8.40 per cent to 2,887.04, followed by the banking index, which was up 7.89 per cent to 6,133.53. The capital goods index rose 5.88 per cent to 8,374.17.
The tech index rose 5.86 per cent to 2,289.78, FMCG 5.43 per cent to 2,208.74, realty 4.96 per cent to 2,236.09, auto 4.62 per cent to 3,659.73, consumer durables 4.23 per cent to 1,831.97, oil and gas 3.87 per cent to 8,447.48, power 3.31 per cent to 2,182.59, PSU 2.99 per cent to 6,038.81 and healthcare 1.49 per cent to 3,113.69.
Drugmakers facing takeover threat: Panel
New Delhi Warning of significant takeover threats for most Indian drugmakers by their large foreign peers, an inter-ministerial task force has suggested the Government act proactively to strengthen the pharma industry.
"(The) Indian pharmaceutical industry being fragmented with small balance sheet sizes, takeover by global pharmaceutical companies would adversely affect the health interests of the nation," the task force has said in its recommendations to the Commerce Ministry.
"India is exposed to the threat of takeovers from global big pharmaceutical companies under the new IPR regime," it noted.
The task force was set up under the aegis of the Commerce Ministry for suggesting "Strategy for Increasing Exports of Pharmaceutical Products".
According to industry experts, there are more than 10,000 drug manufacturers in the country and most of them are small-sector units operating in the generic segment.
With a large number of drugs going off-patent in developed markets like the US and Europe, Indian companies are expected to garner a lion's share in the segment.
According to the report, drugs worth 40 billion dollars in the US and 25 billion dollars in Europe are expected to go off-patent soon and this opens a vast opportunity for the domestic industry.
SC fixes July 28 for hearing black money issue
New Delhi The Supreme Court on Monday posted for July 28 the hearing on the petition accusing government of inaction in bringing back black money stashed in foreign banks.
Without issuing notice to the government, a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan allowed the petitioners Ram Jethmalani, senior advocate, and five others to file a comprehensive rejoinder to the affidavit filed by the Centre on May 2 on the issue.
The Bench also said that the Centre can also respond to the written submissions filed by the petitioners, raising objections against the delay in filing of the affidavit in which it alleged that the petitioners had links with the BJP.
The petitioners accused the government of not honouring the April 22 promise of filing the affidavit within 48 hours.
They said that the assurance to file the affidavit within 48 hours was given to avoid issuance of notice.
They said that in the affidavit the government had used the word "alleged deposits" which is directly contrary to everyone's perception and knowledge including that of the Prime Minister.
Senior advocate Anil Diwan, appearing for the petitioners alleged that the affidavit filed by the government has not dealt with the facts that there was a fake passport case against Pune-based businessman Hasan Ali Khan and investigations relating to money laundering were also being undertaken against him, and that he was involved in transactions with Saudi Arabian arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi.
Pointing out various inactions against Khan who allegedly has stashed money in a Swiss Bank, the petitioners in written submissions said, "Is it not unreasonable to infer that the government is interested in protecting powerful individuals, who may be using Khan and his wife as their nominee/benamidar".
Further, Diwan said, "The most important factor is that not even a single individual has been apprehended/interrogated by the government in the last five years in relation to money laundering and slush funds from illicit funds, parked abroad."
Besides Jethmalani, five others including former Punjab DGP K P S Gill and former Secretary General of Lok Sabha Subhash Kashyap, who are petitioners, have alleged that government was not taking action on the issue.
The PIL assumes importance as BJP's prime ministerial candidate L K Advani besides Left parties and others have been pressing the government to approach the foreign banks for bringing back the black money.
The petition sought a direction to the Centre to take up with the foreign banks, particularly the UBS Bank, Switzerland, the issue of freezing of accounts of Indian businessmen, politicians and other influential persons illegally holding their assets in such financial institutions.
The six petitioners, whom their counsel Diwan described as "super senior" citizens, had submitted that if the Rs 70 lakh crore, purportedly stashed in foreign banks, are retrieved it would substantially remove poverty in the country and promote its development.
In the 29-page affidavit, the government had said it has received information about Indian account holders in a German Bank but did not reveal the names on grounds of "confidentiality".
The Ministry of Finance, in the affidavit, said German government made available the information after persistent follow up since February 2008 "on condition of strict confidentiality of contents under the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA)."
It had said the German government provided the information on March 18 this year about the Indian account holders in the LGT Bank, Liechtenstein. On the issue of deposits in banks in Switzerland, the affidavit had said
Government has acted with utmost expedition. The government had said that the PIL filed by former Law Minister and noted jurist Jethmalani and five others, accusing it of inaction was a "wild, reckless and baseless allegation".
Asia must tackle poverty, climate change: ADB
Bali Asia must do more to cut poverty and take the lead in fighting global warming, the Asian Development Bank president said on Monday, as the region emerges
from the economic crisis with more clout on the world stage.
The global turmoil suggests the era of rich Western nations having unlimited appetite for Asia's exports "has passed," Haruhiko Kuroda told the bank's annual meeting in Bali, Indonesia. That puts the onus on the region's governments to boost their own domestic economies, he said.
Faced with the worst global slump since World War II, many of Asia's economies are contracting as demand for their exports - long the engine of the region's growth - evaporates.
Indonesia's Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the severity of the downturn is "rivaling the Great
Depression" of the 1930s. Swine flu - which is only confirmed in two cases in Asia so far - is another challenge but the region's experience with SARS and bird flu means it is "well equipped" to respond, she said.
The financial crisis is an opportunity for Asian nations to restructure their economies to become less export-dependent - "to become not only a major source of goods and services but also a major destination," Kuroda said.
The US delegation head, Karen Mathiasen, said such a "profound adjustment" won't be easily realised but is essential to sustaining an economic recovery.
Poll worries to moderate foreign inflows
Font Size -A +A
Reuters
Posted: May 04, 2009 at 0956 hrs IST
Mumbai A surge of foreign inflows that helped lift Indian stocks 40 per cent in eight weeks may lose steam on questions over valuations and the outcome of national polls, but the economy's prospects will remain a magnet for investors.
India has been a big beneficiary of optimism in world markets since early March that things were on the mend, with foreigners sending more than $7 billion into Asian stocks outside Japan in the seven weeks to April 24 as their risk appetite returned.
However, fund managers are cautious on further near-term gains for the broader market as the world's second-most populous nation votes against a backdrop of a sharply slowing economy.
"The general election in India is one event which many global investors want behind them," said Paul Parambi, head of international business for Kotak Mahindra Bank.
Another coalition government is expected, and analysts are worried that Congress, which leads the current coalition, or the main national opposition Bharatiya Janata Party may have to cede policy influence to smaller caste-based or regional parties to form a government.
That could delay privatisations and other planned reforms, such as an opening up of the banking and insurance sectors.
In 2004, when Congress won an unexpected victory but had to rely on communist parties for support, the stock market fell 17 per cent in two days to its lowest close for the year. But by the end of 2004, the market had risen 47 per cent from that close.
"You had your run and now you back off ... because you have to cross this event," said Samir Arora, who manages about $200 million at Helios Capital Management in Singapore.
Foreign portfolio investors have poured about $1.5 billion into Indian shares in seven weeks to April 23, trimming their net sales for the year to under $400 million, after selling $13 billion in 2008.
Indian shares have jumped from 2009 lows hit in early March, including a 17.5 per cent rise in April, its biggest monthly gain in 10 years.
Stocks such as outsourcer Wipro, India's top vehicle maker Tata Motors, top real estate developer DLF and engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro rose more than 20 per cent in the month.
Senior fund managers said investors were now making cautious forays into emerging markets such as India, but economic conditions were still too hazy to call it a revival, with the worries about swine flu an added concern for global markets.
Parambi, whose firm manages offshore client assets worth about $1.2 billion, said the market needed to consolidate to see significant further inflows.
Most of the money flowing into India has been into the stock markets, with bond investors wary of a heavy pipeline of supplies due to a worsening fiscal deficit.
Still, foreign investors have invested nearly $300 million in debt in April, trimming their net sales for 2009 to about $950 million.
RISING LOSSES, FALLING GROWTH
India's economy is expected to have grown less than 7 per cent in the 2008/09 fiscal year that ended on March 31, slowing from rates of 9 per cent or more in the previous three years.
And growth is expected to slow to a 7-year low below 6 per cent in 2009/10 as the global slowdown hits Asia's third-largest economy harder than expected.
Corporate results so far have not been encouraging, with nearly a quarter of the more than 150 firms to release March quarter results reporting losses so far, according to Morgan Stanley analysts.
Indian share valuations meanwhile have gone up sharply in the last two months -- the main index now trades at more than 13 times its 12-month forward earnings, up from about 9.5 times in early March -- moderating their attraction.
"I think people are reading too much into revival too early. I don't think it will last," said Jayesh Shroff, who manages about $1 billion in equities at the domestic mutual fund unit of State Bank of India.
However, India is still growing reasonably strongly and is one of the few emerging markets that could still show positive earnings growth for the year, analysts said.
"We think India's outperformance will continue," Sridhar Sivaram, who oversees about $2 billion in Indian equities at Morgan Stanley, said.
And with one in every six human beings on earth, a large domestic market and favourable demographics, India still presents an attractive long-term opportunity for global investors.
"Though we may see some caution from investors ahead of the elections, the outlook is still positive," said Callum Henderson, head of global FX strategy at Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore.
Tamil Tigers 'conscripting children to fight Lankan army'
London Tamil Tiger rebels, cornered in a small stretch of land in Sri Lanka, are conscripting children, including girls as young as 11, to fight the island nation's army, senior Lankan army officers have claimed.
"It's like looking at your own child. Quite large numbers of the dead are under 16. They grab them from their parents and they try to pull them back they get shot. These children have the dog tags and cyanide capsules.
"The younger children (captured) go for rehabilitation programme," Brig Priyantha, who commands an artillery division in the north, told British newspaper 'The Daily Telegraph'.
Agreed his colleague, an officer who identified himself as ‘Roan’: "Considerable numbers of the dead (are) child soldiers. The youngest was around 12."
At Puthumatalan Lagoon, the edge of the no-fire zone, where thousands of civilians have escaped heavy fighting last month, Major-General Jaggath Dias, General Officer Commanding of 57th Division, also said his men were fighting with girls.
He said some of those his men had captured had their hair cut short to shame them for trying to run away from the front line.
"Girls as young as eleven. Our soldiers have seen them on the front line. It's very difficult to shoot a child. But it does not matter what age, you have to shoot," the British newspaper quoted Dias as saying.
A soldier guarding an abandoned clinic at Mullaitivi, a few miles from the front line, said as many as "seven out of ten were below 15" adding that in the last year an increasing number of LTTE fighters appeared to be young women.
Job In Nepal
Companies hiring for India & Abroad
MonsterIndia.com Amer. Univ. of Antigua
NYS Approved - Hospital Integrated
www.auamed.org Free Indian Marriage Site
100000+ Profiles Listed On Various
BharatMatrimony.Com/Register-Fre
Ads by Google
Discuss this story on expressindia forums
Everyone was in dark about Babri demolition, says Uma
Aligarh After former BJP leader Kalyan Singh's claim that he was kept in the dark about the Babri masjid demolition, another temple movement leader Uma Bharti on Monday said that "everyone" was in the dark about the demolition.
"...In fact, everyone was in the dark about the demolition except those who did it. We still don't know who did it," she said at Atrauli near here. When asked about Kalyan's claim that he in particular was kept in dark, Uma said she was not aware of it.
"I don't know anything about it. Advani ji and (H V) Sheshadri ji (of RSS) have also said this (that they were not aware that the mosque will be demolished)," she added. The Bharatiya Jan Shakti leader claimed that people who demolished the mosque are yet to be identified. Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh on Saturday had claimed that he was misled by two BJP leaders and was not told that the demolition of the Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992 had been planned well in advance.
It was on the assurance of the two BJP leaders, whom he did not name, that he gave an affidavit in the Supreme Court promising to ensure the security of the 16th century Mughal period monument, Singh said.
He said he was given to understand that a symbolic "kar seva" would be performed for the construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya.
When asked about the two BJP leaders Kalyan was referring to, Uma said: "I am not aware." She said her support for BJP candidates in the Lok Sabha election should not be considered a step forward in rejoining the party which she had left a few years ago.
Meanwhile, addressing an election rally at Atrauli, the pocket borough of Kalyan Singh, Uma said out of the several prime ministerial candidates in race, BJP leader L K Advani was the only one who was a "rashtra bhakta and Ram bhakta...he outshines others like a diamond". "I told Advani that my party will only support the BJP in elections but will not merge with his party. Money is required to contest elections. As we have no money to contest, we decided to extend support to BJP as we share the same ideology," she told the gathering consisting mainly of Lodh-Rajpoot voters.
Uma also represents the same community. While the former BJP firebrand leader attacked Mulayam Singh Yadav during her speech, she made no mention of Kalyan Singh.
She also attacked Bollywood actor and SP leader Sanjay Dutt. "I was shocked when Sanjay Dutt claimed that he was tortured by police as his mother was a Muslim. He...can say anything. But a person like Mulayam Singh should have ensured that no such thing is said which will further the communal divide in the country," she said.
candidate from Barasat, was damaged by Trinamool activists at Ashokenagar in North 24 Parganas district, Bose alleged.