• Mass rally on martyr s’ day: For a new Chattisgarh in a new India!

• Indo-Russian alliance: A dangerous alliance directed against the people of India and other peoples of this region

• Ghadri Mela – 2000 in Toronto a Resounding Success

• Message of Greetings to "Ghadari Mela 2000" from the CC of the CGPI

• Excerpts from CGPI speech at Chattisgarh rally

• Gate meeting at Modern Foods

• Only by struggle can we get our rights
  Militant meeting in Sanjay Colony, Delhi

Mass rally on martyr s’ day:

For a new Chattisgarh in a new India!

All across Rajnandgaon, Durg, Bhilai, and Raipur, the red and green flag of the Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha fluttered on the trees, the roundabouts and everywhere. From the night of the 27th, hundreds and thousands of activists started pouring in into Raipur town in buses and trains and tempos. There were children, there were girls and women, and there were the old. The massive mobilisation of women was a sight to behold.

Tens of thousands of people from over 2000 villages marched through the streets of Raipur for over three hours. They declared their resolve to create Chattisgarh free from exploitation and to bring to centre stage the pressing questions of livelihood of over 2 crore people in a land bountiful in natural resources. Slogans like "Hum banabo Nava Pehchan, raj karhi mazdoor Kisan", "Har haath Ko Kaam Do, Har khet ko Pani do", "jaun jamin main nagar jothi, uhi jamin ke malik hohi", "luteron ki jagir nahi, Chattisgarh hamara hai" rent the air, interspersed with the colourful and ryhthmic Panthi, Raut and Rilo (Bastariya) dances. In the process, the fighting workers and peasants of Chattisgarh shattered the conspiracy of silence of the rulers to confine the identity of Chattisgarh to the unseemly scramble for Chief Ministership, and debates over the loaves of office.

Chattisgarh is a vast region in the heart of India with over 2 crore people who speak Chattisgarhi, as well as a number of tribal dialects. It is a region with a large proportion of tribal peoples who historically never accepted colonial rule or the rule of the big capitalists and big landlords of India. It is one of the richest regions of India in terms of natural resources— forests, coal and other minerals. It is the region where one of the biggest "temples of modern India", the Bhilai Steel Plant, has been built, along with numerous other industries. It is also one of the poorest regions of India, with savage exploitation of the toiling masses. Chattisgarh is proof that capitalist development only brings devastation and ruin for the workers, peasants, women and youth; it leads to accumulation of wealth at one pole and poverty at the other. If Bhilai is a symbol of flourishing capitalism, even though today the threat of privatisation is looming large over the workers of Bhilai Steel Plant and other Public Sector enterprises. the rest of Chattisgarh region, with its grinding poverty, and workers toiling in the coalmines in the most unhygienic and difficult conditions, is also a symbol of the flourishing of capitalism. Today, with the bourgeoisie hell bent on pursuing the course of globalisation through liberalisation and privatisation, the conditions of the workers and peasants can only further deteriorate.

The rally concluded in a public meeting in Raipur’s Gandhi Maidan. The charged mood at the maidan emphasised that the new province is being created at a time when the peasantry of all the 16 districts is facing severe drought and the fear of indebtedness and migration, often with water within their reach. The lathi-charge on peasants of Village Lakholi who were demanding release of water from the Gangrel reservoir was strongly condemned by all the speakers. They pointed out that Chattisgarh is rich in water resources. But the past 53 years of neglect and discrimination have barely seen any investment in irrigation. Tandula Canal was built under British rule following repeated famines, but today peasants are denied use of its water. The large reservoirs of Gangrel, Kharkhana, Gondli and others are now reserved to supply the Bhilai Steel Plant and other other industries in Durg and Raipur exclusively. Only where peasants have through their own collective efforts created some small dams are the peasants relatively more secure. During the month of October, hundreds of actions were organised by the peasantry to secure water, with the peasantry raising the slogan "Chattisgarh ke baandh ke pani kakar?" (whom does the water of the dams of Chattisgarh belong to?).

The workers from the coal mines of Dalli Rajahara, who were amongst the first to take up struggle against the backbreaking capitalist exploitation and the terrible working conditions, sang songs and recited poems depicting their heroic struggles. The theme of the September 28 rally was conditioned by the creation of the new state of Chattisgarh, which is to be formalised on November 1 this year. The leaders of the Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha as well as all the other speakers from different organisations clearly pointed out that the aim of the struggle was to bring workers and peasants to power. The aim of the struggle was a new Chattisgarh in a new India, a Chattisgarh and an India where the capitalists and imperialists will have no place and the working masses will decide their own destiny. The workers and peasants are fighting that the people have a roof over their head and food to eat, a school for their children, electricity and drinking water, and a hospital near their homes. They are fighting for security of life and livelihood. The working masses must have no illusions that the formation of Chattisgarh will resolve their problems. What is being created is the Chattisgarh of the capitalists. All the speakers referred to the intense dogfights amongst the MLAs of the two main bourgeois parties, the Congress and the BJP, over the loaves of office. The mouths of the capitalists and their pet politicans are watering at the thought of how they can more savagely exploit the rich natural resources of the people once the new state is formed. They are dreaming dreams of how they can sell the coal, the other minerals and the rich forests to the reactionary big bourgeoisie and the imperialists and get an even bigger share of the loot than before.

The Public meeting was addressed amongst others by Comrade Janak Lal Thakur, president of the CMM, Shri Trepan Singh Chauhan from Uttarakhand, Comrade AK Roy from Jharkand, leaders of the Adivasi Mukti Sangahtana (Sendhwa), women of the Bhopal gas peedith Mahila Udyog Sangathan as well as activists of the Ekta Parishad. The spokesperson of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, Comrade Prakash Rao, also addressed the rally. The rally concluded with mass singing of "hamar Sapna ke nawa Chattisgarh banabo bahni bhai" and the resolve to further intensify the movement.

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Indo-Russian alliance:

A dangerous alliance directed against the people of India and other peoples of this region

During his visit Putin signed a 3 billion dollar defence pact with India, set up an intra-governmental commission on military and technical cooperation, signed a MOU on nuclear energy, a contract for technology transfer, joint manufacturing and marketing of tanks, buy-back arrangements for Indian manufactured defence equipment, ten agreements on science and technology, civil aviation, agriculture, education and culture. In addition, India and Russia signed a Strategic Partnership Declaration that laid emphasis on "reworking past agreements for bilateral cooperation" and "setting bilateral relations on a new footing" and "building a common front against international terrorism, religious fundamentalism and separatism". In Mumbai, Putin addressed representatives of the top business houses of India, heads of the CII and FICCI, where he dwelt on the‘mutual need of India and Russia for each other’ on the front of trade and economic collaboration.

During the Cold War period, the Indian state established very close economic, military and political relations with the social-imperialist Soviet Union, which was contending with US imperialism for world hegemony. The Indo-Soviet Treaty for Peace, Friendship and Cooperation was an all-encompassing treaty that included collaboration in military affairs, space technology, nuclear energy, missile and submarine manufacture, science, education, culture and a whole host of other fields. The erstwhile Soviet Union was also one of the major trade partners of India and many enterprises were set up in India with Soviet collaboration. During the Cold War period, though the official position of the Indian state was to be "non-aligned", it allied closely with the Soviet Union on many issues, especially on affairs concerning the Indian subcontinent region, and pretended to voice the sentiments of the anti-imperialist forces in global fora, in the image of the social-imperialist Soviet Union. The Indo-Soviet alliance of the Cold War period was a reactionary, warmongering alliance. It had as its prime target the growing revolutionary struggles of the Indian workers and peasants at that time. It posed grave dangers for the Indian people and the peoples of the entire region.

The end of the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the bi-polar division of the world led the Indian ruling bourgeoisie to rework its global strategies and alliances. The US imperialists have been working out their post cold war strategy for South Asia with India occupying a special place in this strategy. The US has changed gear and is tending to support India’s position on Kashmir against Pakistan; it is actively entering into various engagements with the Indian state, such as the "joint offensive against international terrorism". The Indian bourgeoisie sees both economic and political prospects in collaborating with US imperialism and giving up its earlier pretense of "anti-imperialism" on the global arena. Clinton’s recent visit to India and Vajpayee’s visit to the US were a declaration to the world of these aims and perspectives of the Indo-US relationship.

The Indian state has made intense diplomatic efforts to promote Putin’s visit as being not less important than Clinton’s visit. Putin was accorded the same diplomatic status and bestowed the same honours as Clinton. The Indian news media declared that Russia is a "more reliable ally on the issue of Kashmir, India’s bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council and the nuclear armaments issue". Putin stressed that "Russia needs India" because without the Indian military purchases, which amount to nearly $2 billion a year, the Russian arms industry would sink. About 85 % of Indo-Russian trade is currently financed by repayments made by India of old rupee-rouble loans. The Indian bourgeoisie wants to change this situation, given the present low status of the rouble. Hence, the great interest in "setting Indo-Russian trade relations on a new footing" in the present world scenario, at the end of the Cold War.

In his speech to Parliament, Putin elaborated on "the need for a multipolar world order, democratisation of international relations and the fight against international terrorism". He gave unconditional support to India’s stand on Kashmir and the LOC. He sought India’s support to deal with "terrorism" in Afghanistan. He allayed the fears of the Indian state regarding a proposed Russian engagement with Pakistan to control Chechnya. He stressed that Indo-Russian relations would be a "stablising factor" in this region and in the world, that he "considered India as a reliable partner in building the new world order".

These perspectives and goals of the Indo-Russian relations, that this visit of Putin was intended to set the seal on, are essentially no different from the perspectives and goals of the Indo-US relations in the present period. No wonder then that Prime Minister Vajpayee was emphatic in clarifying that "Indo-Russian and Indo-US relations are not mutually exclusive". In the post cold war era, the Indian bourgeoisie is exploiting the potential of collusion with both these powers and furthering its own position in the name of being a champion against terrorism.

The big capitalists and the bureaucracy gushed over this "young", "dynamic" President, "the first Russian President without a communist past". The spokespersons of the bourgeoisie shamelessly boasted that this visit proves that "Indo-Russian friendship has always been rooted more in geo-strategic compulsions than in ideological considerations", thus admitting the real aim behind this alliance. All this clearly exposes the fact that the Indo-Russian alliance today, just like the Indo-US alliance, is an imperialist, reactionary alliance. It is stripped of the cloak of "anti-imperialism" that used to hide its real nature in the past. It is an alliance directed against all the peoples of this region, against the revolutionary and liberation struggles of the people in India and in the sub-continent. It is a factor for war and increasing imperialist penetration and domination in the region.

The Indian big bourgeoisie, which holds political power, is a thoroughly reactionary class. Its sole aim is to enrich itself further and become more powerful through the unbridled exploitation of the land, labour and natural resources of the Indian masses, through the sell out of the land, labour and natural resources of India to the imperialists, through brutally crushing the revolutionary and national liberation struggles of the Indian people and their aspirations for a life of freedom and dignity, through war and aggression against the neighbouring countries and peoples of this region. The Indian bourgeoisie entertains ambitions of becoming an imperialist power itself and towards this end, it has always tried to ally itself with one or more of the imperialist powers, to gain the maximum advantage for itself. This has been and remains the motivation behind all the alliances and deals that the Indian bourgeoisie makes with the imperialist powers, including the Indo-Russian alliance. As one of the leading newspapers reporting on the Putin visit put it, the Indian diplomacy and strategy is to focus on "leveraging the major balancers of power for maximum influence".

The Indo-Russian alliance is a very dangerous alliance, targeted against the freedom and peace loving peoples, the working and oppressed of India and the world. It must be resolutely opposed by the working class and all the oppressed.

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The Mela lasted from 4:00 p.m. until after 10:00 p.m., during which the attention and interest of the audience never waned and was fully captured. The main theme which captivated the gathering was of paying homage to and honouring all the revolutionaries and martyrs of India of the past 100 years - the activities of struggle and sacrifice for the cause of India’s independence, and of the liberation and emancipation of her people from colonial bondage, exploitation and oppression, of many of whom had originated in Canada and North America. This homage and honour was paid in a living and moving way. It was not just singing songs to the heroes of the past. Rather, it showed that all the people participating clearly realized that the goals of the Ghadris had not been accomplished, inspite of great work, struggle and sacrifice, so clearly evident in the present terrible conditions of life of the vast majority of the people in our motherland India, and that the work of the Ghadrites must go on. It was clearly felt that this event was the beginning of a new chapter in the contribution of the people of Indian origin living in Canada and North America to carry on the work of the Ghadrites, in the same path and with the same revolutionary spirit, until the liberation and emancipation of the over 1 billion people of India, and in fact of the people of the whole of South Asia, from the degrading and humiliating conditions of life in a society controlled by the exploiters, both native and foreign, is achieved.

The Mela Hall was decorated with banners and Nishaans of the Ghadar Party. A bright red banner with the call Hum hai iske malik, hum hai hindustan, mazdoor, kisan, aurat aur jawaan greeted the guests as they arrived.A beautiful exhibition of the photos of the Ghadri Babas was held outside the main hall where the program was held. It greeted and caught the attention of all those coming in streams to attend this program. It was very inspiring, as the photos with names and descriptions of many of the revolutionaries and martyrs of the past was available for all to see and reflect on. There was also a beautiful booklet produced for the occasion by the organizing committee, which was available on the tables outside the door. Some members of the organizing committee were also manning the tables outside, where financial contributions to the Mela were being accepted and registered. Many contributions came from ordinary workers – in one instance, an older worker had collected contributions from all the workers in his place of work, such was the spirit which preceded the event and which clearly flowed into it.

The program started with the welcoming speech by the convenor of the organizing committee, Iqbal Singh. The program was organized and conducted in such a manner that the speeches were interspersed with cultural items, and the reading of the several messages of support received from organizations within Canada and from India. Everybody attending, whether they stayed for the entire 6 hours of the unbroken program or not, was thus able to get a taste of the broad range of the presented items.

In the speeches and presentations, the history of the Ghadri Babas, and of the Ghadri movement, was presented by three speakers Onkar Preet, Gurbachan Singh Sooch and Gurdev Singh, each covering a distinct phase. The history presented the inspiring work of the founders of the Ghadri movement in North America starting in the early 1900s and the founding of the Ghadar Party in 1913, where the deeds and work of the martyrs such as Kartar Singh Sarabha and Mewa Singh was highlighted. It also delved into the work carried out in the 1930s and 40s in the context of India’s struggle for independence. It then spoke broadly of the latest phase of this history and work of the contemporary times, from the 1960s to the present, under the conditions in India where the political power has been usurped by the exploiters and the dreams and ideals of the Ghadris have been trampled upon. In this period, those continuing on the path of the Ghadrites were organized in Canada and North America, under the leadership of Hardial Bains, to not only support the revolutionary struggles in India, such as the Naxalbari movement, but also join shoulder to shoulder with the Canadian working class and people to fight the racist attacks, where they were singled out as immigrants, as part of the general onslaught against the people of Canada by the ruling classes to maintain their capitalist system of exploitation and oppression.

The organizers of the Mela had invited Comrade Chain Singh Chain of Desh Bhagat Yaadgar Hall in Jullunder, India to be the Chief Guest. The veteran revolutionary, Chain Singh, received sustained applause as he described the work of the Desh Bhagat Yaadgar Committee to solve the problems of restoring the unity of Indian communists to lead the Indian people’s struggle so that the unfinished tasks of the Ghadri Babas can be completed and the workers and peasants of India can become her rulers. Another veteran guest speaker, author Kesar Singh of Edmonton, described passionately his experience in the Azaad Hind Fauz in the decade before India’s independence and through many anecdotes from his life, called upon the youth not to ask who was Mewa Singh as some toadies in Canada do today, but to answer Yes in millions when asked "Kaun Banega Mewa Singh"? After this Kulwinder Khaira presented a brief outline of the deeds of Mewa Singh. Inspiring speech was given by Bibi Veeran, a militant fighter for the rights of oppressed women brought up by the late well known Ghadri leader Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna. A representative of the Association of Indian Progressive Study Groups addressed the Mela and explained the work of the AIPSG to involve people in discussing the Call given by Hardial Bains to Break With the Past. The time is for India to renew all the institutions, systems and theories, not to refurbish the past to facilitate its continuation but to make a permanent break so that the ideals of the ghadrites can be realized.

Messages of support for the program which had been received by the organizing committee were read out. These messages came from the Central Committee of the Communist Ghadar Party of India, from Harkishan Singh Surjeet of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the People’s Front in Toronto, and from the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist).

The cultural program included numerous patriotic and progressive songs, sung by youth and young children, to the accompaniment of various instruments played by various young musicians. Several poems written by inspired people for, and befitting, the occasion, and on the theme of the Ghadri Mela and of the relevance of the Ghadri movement today, were recited. A beautiful Gidda dance was performed. There was also a short play which concluded the cultural part of the program. All the cultural presentations were made by local artists in the community in the Toronto area. It was clearly evident that the cultural enthusiasts and workers had clearly grasped the progressive and Ghadri spirit, were inspired by it, and were serious to make their own contributions to develop this further in the cause of their work and struggle.

The overall spirit and theme which permeated the Ghadri Mela in Toronto was that the work which had been started by the Ghadris, dating back to the first Ghadar of 1857, the First War of Independence of the Indian people against the British colonizers, then taken up by the Ghadris of Indian origin in North America and by the Ghadar Party they founded in 1913, had still to be carried on. In fact the conditions of the ruthless exploitation and oppression were now engulfing more people than in the days of the Ghadri Babas. This work, and the Ghadar itself, are a crying need for contemporary times. It has to be carried out in contemporary conditions. It requires building the unity of all the patriotic and revolutionary forces in struggle against the common enemy, the Indian ruling classes of big capitalists and landlords, and their foreign imperialist collaborators and supporters, such as the US imperialists. This work must be carried on until final victory, and the people of India build a new society, free of exploitation and oppression, fulfilling the fondest dreams of the Ghadris and according to their ideals. This is the best homage and honour that can be paid to the Ghadri martyrs. It is what the present generation, including young and old, men and women, are determined to do.

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Message of Greetings to "Ghadari Mela 2000" from the CC of the CGPI

The Communist Ghadar Party of India sends its militant revolutionary greetings to you, the patriotic and progressive people of Indian origin from all across the world who have gathered in Toronto on the occasion of the Ghadari Mela 2000.

Indians and other South Asians have many different ideologies and beliefs. But there is one thing that binds us all together. We are the products of an ancient civilisation that has nurtured in us the spirit of revolt against any form of oppression or injustice. Our history, our philosophy and our political theory militate against the values that are being imposed on India and the world today by the imperialists, capitalists and all the retrogressive forces of the world. The anti-social offensive launched by world imperialism and the Indian reactionary bourgeoisie has placed a big question mark over the very fate and future of India and South Asia.

Indian civilisation is today standing at the crossroads. The challenge before us, as was the challenge before the Bhaktas, before the fighters of the 1857 war of independence, and of the Ghadari babas and other fighters of the anti-colonial freedom struggle, is to take our country through these crossroads and onto the high road of civilisation.

Grave dangers confront our peoples today. The rulers of India are hell bent on pursuing a road that is pushing our country and its peoples to disaster on all fronts. In the sphere of the economy, they are pushing with a vengeance the policy of globalisation through liberalisation and privatisation to intensify, in collaboration with the foreign imperialists, the all round exploitation and plunder of the land, labour and resources of our people. In the sphere of the polity, the powerlessness of the vast masses has never been more apparent than today, despite the existence of dozens of political parties all claiming to represent this or that section of the "people". Criminalisation and communalisation of the polity and the growth of state terrorism is all pervasive. The foreign policy of the Indian government is an extension of its reactionary anti-worker, anti-peasant, anti-people policy at home. It is an imperialist-chauvinist, predatory policy towards the weaker nations and states, like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, and others. It is, at the same time, a policy of collaboration and contention with other imperialist states, the policy of laying down the red carpet to imperialist capitalist marauders to plunder India at will. It is a policy that holds the grave danger of India being embroiled in imperialist reactionary wars.

The crisis of values has never been more evident than today. The BJP talks about "hindutva" as if it is committed to the values that the Indian people have given birth to and nourished through the millennia. Others talk about "sikh heritage", "maratha pride", "tamil pride", "telugu pride" and so on. And these are the very forces who are putting Indian values to the sword, and embracing with glee and falling without shame at the feet of the values of 19th century Europe.

Indians developed the philosophy and guiding principle of statecraft, that the state is duty bound to provide Sukh and Suraksha to its citizens. Indian political thought clearly establishes that the "Well being of all is the condition for the well being of each and the well being of each is the condition of the well being of all". They establish the indivisible unity between rights and duties of the individuals towards state and the society, and of the state and society to its members including each of the collectives. In complete opposition to these values, the Indian ruling class and their political representatives, the votaries of "Hindutva" and others have openly embraced the western imperialist reactionary value that society has no responsibility to its members, that each one must fend for himself or herself, that the strong shall lord it over the weak, that might is right.

Today, the sharpest clash is taking place in the Indian mind—that is, in the mind of over one billion Indians residing in India or residing abroad—on the following questions. To whom does India belong? Who should set the direction of the economy and what should this direction be? Who should control political power and what should be the content and form of this political power? What should be the relation between the individuals and collectives with society? What should be the relation between India and its neighbours in South Asia and India and all the other countries of the world? What should the values of India be?

Eighty seven years ago, the ghadar patriots rose to the clarion call to liberate the motherland from colonial rule by force of arms. In August 1947, Indians won a partial victory. Victory, because direct colonial rule ended. Partial, because the independence that was achieved was formal—a clean break with the colonial past was not made. The collaborators and toadies rode to power in August 1947 on the backs of the sweat, blood and sacrifice of tens of thousands of martyrs and fighters for freedom. The state, as well as the values that were enshrined in the Constitution of 1950, were a complete negation of the values and principles of statecraft developed by Indians through the ages. They were a complete betrayal of the values and aspirations of the fighters for freedom against colonialism. Today, the ghost of the failure to make a clean break with the past in August 1947 continues to haunt all of us Indians.

Fifty three years of this formal independence have clearly confirmed that the only way forward for Indian civilisation to progress is to make that clean break with the past, which we could not make in August of 1947. The Communist Ghadar Party of India is fighting for an immediate end to the bourgeoisie’s anti-worker, anti-people, anti-national and anti-social program of privatisation and liberalisation; for the democratic renewal of India on the basis of vesting sovereignty in the hands of the people; for the reconstitution of the Indian Union as a voluntary union of consenting nations, nationalities and tribal peoples; for the overthrow of capitalism as the condition for the completion of the democratic, anti-colonial, anti-feudal and anti-imperialist struggle; and for the building of socialism.

The Communist Ghadar Party of India has put forth this program to unite the working class and toiling peasantry, the women and youth—all the peoples of India in one revolutionary front for the realisation of the above aims. Indian patriots and revolutionaries gave birth to communism on Indian soil many decades ago. Communists have made great sacrifices in defence of the rights of the toiling masses and for the building of an India free from exploitation of persons by persons. Communism in India has suffered its greatest setback because of conciliation with European social democracy, whose most ugly mascots today in the West are Clinton and Blair, and in India, the likes of Sonia Gandhi. Conciliation with the theory and practice of multi-party parliamentary democracy in the sphere of politics, with the theory and practice of the Nehruvian "socialistic pattern of society" in the earlier period and capitalist globalisation through liberalisation and privatisation today—this has wreaked havoc with the movement of the Indian working class and people for deep going social transformations. India needs a clean break from capitalism and the colonial legacy in a profound sense. Communism in India needs to make a clean break with multi party parliamentary democracy and all vestiges of European social democracy in order to provide leadership to the Indian people in this great struggle.

At the beginning of the 21st century, it is amply clear that the crucial question in India and the world today is the form and content of political power and who wields it. The theory and practice of representative democracy was developed by the capitalists of Europe to keep the working masses out of power. Representative democracy in India has achieved the same purpose. The workers, peasants, women and youth are saying loud and clear that they will no longer be satisfied with this kind of democracy. They are expressing loud and clear that they are the real masters of India, that a new political power in India must be created that ensures this in its very form and content. The Communist Ghadar Party of India is working to develop precisely this new kind of political power and rally all the oppressed and disempowered for the establishment of the same. It is the solemn duty of all patriots and communists, wherever they may be, to fight unitedly and single-mindedly for political power in the hands of the workers and peasants.

In organising Ghadari Mela 2000 in Toronto, in the heartland of imperialism, Indian patriots and communists of North America have boldly declared that their hearts beat in unison with the workers and all the oppressed of India, no matter that a distance of more than 10,000 miles separates India and Canada. You are the worthy descendents and upholders of the traditions of the Ghadar Party, of heroes like Kartar Singh Sarabha and Mewa Singh. Let us pledge today to fight for the India of our dreams. An India where its real masters — her workers and peasants, her women and youth, her progressive intelligentsia will actually wield power and steer the course of a bright future for our motherland and her people.

Hum hai iske Malik, Hum hai Hindustan, Mazdoor Kisan, Aurat aur Jawan!

Inquilab Zindabad!

Warm revolutionary greetings

Lal Singh

General Secretary, Communist Ghadar Party of India

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Excerpts from CGPI speech at Chattisgarh rally

We are filled with the deepest emotions to be a part of this glorious and inspiring rally and public meeting organised by the fighters of the Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha(CMM).

The bourgeoisie is fighting like cats and dogs for the loaves of office of the new state of Chattisgarh. You workers and peasants and women and youth are fighting for a land free from exploitation and oppression. Comrades, you are the real Chattisgarh! You are the masters of this land. You are waging the struggle to throw the exploiters and oppressors and their hated economic and political system which has brought nothing but death and destruction on this beautiful land and brave people. You are waging the struggle to throw the usurpers out of power and establish the kingdom of workers and peasants on this land.

53 years of flourishing of capitalism, 53 years of the colonial legacy has shown conclusively that without making a clean break with capitalism and the colonial legacy there is no future for the Indian people. Capitalism and the colonial legacy has meant that the tolling masses have been deprived of everything and the entire country has been transformed into the private property of the big capitalists and imperialists to be plundered at will. Indians are rebelling against this. All over India and whereever Indians have emigrated, the resounding call is being raised "Hum hai iske malik, hum hai hindustan, Mazdoor Kisan, Aurat aur jawan". This is the content of what you brave people who have assembled here in this worker and peasant assembly have boldly declared. The day is not far off when the toilers and oppressed will realise this slogan. Onward with the struggle, comrades! Victory belongs to us!

The main pressure on the movement comes from the efforts of the bourgeoisie to impose parliamentarism and excitative terrorism on the movement. All of you know from the experience of work and struggle, how the bourgeoisie desperately tries to lure the workers and peasants movement into these traps it has set. Both are the preferred weapons of the bourgeoisie to destroy the movement, and to prevent the workers and peasants from creating a real alternative to capitalism and the colonial legacy. We must rally the toiling masses around a program of deepgoing transformations, a program of building the mechanisms of power so that the toiling masses are enabled in the exercise of political power, in order to orient the economy in a direction favourable to themselves. The work of "nirmaan" which has been central to the movement of workers and peasants of Chattisgarh is part of this work to create the alternative.

In August 1947, power was transferred from London to New Delhi. It remained in the hands of exploiters. We are fighting for a qualitative change of this power, its transfer into the hands of the workers and peasants of all the different nations and nationalities and tribal peoples. A centralised power which is democratic at the same time, so that the workers and peasants and women and youth in the mohallas and villages, factories and fields, schools and colleges and all the workplaces, will determine their own destiny and in a unified manner determine the destiny of India. Comrades, the struggle raging in Chattisgarh today is an integral part of this one struggle for a new India of the workers and peasants.

Red salute to the martyrs!

Onward with the struggle for a new Chattisgarh in a new India!

Hum hai Iske Malik, Hum hai Hindustan, Mazdoor Kisan, Aurat aur jawan!

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A gate meeting was held on 9th October '00 at the Modern Foods Lawrence Road (Delhi) Unit, to protest against the illegal suspension, on the basis of flimsy, trumped up charges, of Comrades Govind Yadav, V K Narang and Ganesh Thakur, who are the General Secretary, President, and Treasurer respectively of the Modern Food Employees Union.

The workers of Modern Food Industries have been fighting a heroic battle against the illegitimate selling-off of Modern Foods at a pittance by the Government of India to the multinational monopoly Hindustan Lever. Modern Food Employees Union and the Lok Raj Sangathan have filed a public interest litigation against this sale in the Delhi High Court. The struggle being waged against privatisation has become a thorn in the flesh of Hindustan Lever and the government. The Lever management has been hunting for some pretext to get rid of these comrades and clear the way for unbridled exploitation of the workers and assets of Modern Foods.

Comrade Govind Yadav, addressing the meeting, pointed out that the three of them had been suspended so that the rest of the workers could be easily suppressed. This was however a blunder on the part of the management. The workers of Modern Foods are strongly united, and will intensify their struggle further.The workers of Modern Foods have been fighting for many years. Today, their fight is not merely for a few economic demands, but against the entire policy of privatisation being carried out by the government as part of which they are selling off the assets of the public sector. This fight led by the Modern Foods Employees Union is against the wholesale attack of the rights of workers, and has dealt a resounding slap on the faces of the government and the management of Hindustan Lever.

The unity with which the workers of Modern Foods have carried on the struggle so far is guarantee that they will be victorious. People's Voice fully supports the struggle of the heroic workers of Modern Foods.

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Militant meeting in Sanjay Colony, Delhi

Only by struggle can we get our rights

Throughout India, vast masses of people are deprived of water, electricity and indeed the right to live decently like human beings.The struggle of workers and peasants for electricity and water is now taking place all over the country, from the parched fields of Chattisgarh and Orissa, to Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat and other provinces.

The youth of Sanjay Colony, a slum in the Okhla Industrial Area of Delhi which was established over 25 years ago, have now taken up the task of organsing to get electricity and water for their homes. A mass campaign has been launched by the youth of the colony. As part of this campaign, a meeting was organised by Lok Raj Sangathan and Naujawan Bharat Sabha on October 2 on the issue of water and electric supply to the residents. Hundreds of residents, and in particular, youth participated in the meeting. A lively street play depicted the atrocities committed by the police on common people.

Speakers pointed out that parliamentary political parties only come to us at the time of elections, every five years, and take our votes, after which they have no need for us. We must not become tails of various political parties, but must rely on our own strength.The meeting resolved to develop the struggle for rights and build the fighting organisation of the toiling masses in the colony.

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