Thursday, July 26, 2012

SFI Kerala State Conference begins



The 31st State Conference of the Largest students organization in the State, Students Federation of India,  officially began with the hoisting of flag at the public meeting venue, Fort Maithanam rechristened in the name of the great martyr Com. K V Sudheesh in Palakkad Town. The conferece will be from 26th to 29th July.  Reception committee chairman Com. M B Rajesh MP hoisted the flag.  

Students federation of India (SFI) is the largest student movement in the state having a membership of around twelve lakhs. SFI which formed in the year 1970, in its march forward under the banner of independence Democracy, socialism for the past forty years was able to withstand stiff resistance offered by enemies of the people. In the battle for a better future several of my comrades were killed tortured and academically victimized. The organization has outlived all this and become a leading force in uniting the students basis of martyrdom and glorious sacrifies of the rank and file of the organization. I welcome all students to join SFI the true inheritors of the glorious traditions of the pre-independence student movement to march forward for the well wish of student community in the state and to join hands with struggle of the exploited sections of our society for a social transformation.

SFI State president K.V. Sumesh, and secretary P. Biju said a rally, in which 25,000 students would participate, would be taken out from the Government Victoria College ground to Fort Maidan at 3 p.m. on Thursday. CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan will inaugurate a public meeting to be held after the rally. Book Exhibition, Seminars, Short Film Festival, Arts Competitions etc were conducted as part of the conference which attracted a large section of the students.

The delegates session of the  conference  will be inaugurated by famous Atomic Scientist Subhiman Sen on Friday 27th July. The Delegate session will be held in the Town hall named after the martyr com. Aneesh Rajan.

Left parties Chalo Secretariat Protest against AP electricity tariff ‎


Leaders and activists of the Left parties were arrested by police when they tried to storm the State Secretariat on Wednesday morning. 

The Left parties have given a call for “Chalo Secretariat”in protest against the recent hike in power tariff in the name of fuel surcharge adjustment. Tension prevailed in the area for sometime as the Left leaders including CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghavulu, his CPI counterpart K. Narayana, former CPI (M) MP P. Madhu, party’s State secretariat member Y.V. Rao and AP Ryotu Sangham leader K. Ramakrishna resisted the attempts to arrest them.

The leaders jostled with the policemen who were firm on foiling their moves to reach the Secretariat. While Mr. Raghavulu was arrested at the busy Liberty cross roads, police chased Dr. Narayana as he ran towards Dr. B.R. Ambedkar statue situated on the road leading to the seat of State administration and arrested him.

"Congress gave an assurance before elections that people won't be burdened over electricity tariff. We are asking them to absorb the burden without troubling people as per their promise. Instead, the government is acting against us," CPI State Secretary K Narayana said. Raghavulu alleged that the state government was only suppressing opposition parties who wanted the people to be spared of the burden over electricity tariff. Recalling that an agitation led by Left parties over electricity issues during the Telugu Desam regime had an enormous impact against the government, he warned the Congress government that a similar fate would befall it.
Mr. Ramakrishna, who managed to give a slip to police, could reach the main entrance of the Secretariat where he along with some of the activists were taken into custody. Elaborate arrangements were made in view of the Left parties’ call with several companies of police posted at vantage points leading to the Secretariat besides regulating traffic movement on the major roads around the Secretariat.

The Left parties leaders and activists were later moved to different police stations even as the police pickets continued to be posted as the parties appeared firm on staging their protest after release.

Violence in Assam

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) expresses its grave concern at the escalating violence in Assam which is taking a communal turn and is spreading from the Bodo Territorial Administered District and Kokhrajar to neighbouring districts and areas. It is indeed deeply disturbing that over 35 people have lost their lives, several are untraced, over 50 villages have been burnt, thousands have been forced to flee from their homes. Tragically the insecurity is so high among all communities that even those in relief camps do not feel safe.

This is a monumental failure of the Congress led Government in Assam which refused to take timely action allowing the tensions to increase from the first incident on July 6th. Even earlier the warning signs of distrust and tensions among different communities was ignored. The Central Government must explain why it too delayed its response to the violence. 

The CPI(M) also strongly condemns the motivated propaganda that seeks to justify the violence against the minority community in the name of illegal migration from Bangladesh. This is a total fabrication since the large majority of people in these areas are Indian citizens who have been living in the area for decades having been displaced from their own areas due to the erosion of their land by the Brahmaputra and other rivers. It is the tragedy of Assam, a state which has multi-lingual, multi-religious and different communities that the dominant political parties should practice a politics which divide and weaken people’s unity leading to repeated bouts of violence.

It demands that the Government take immediate steps to restore law and order. All those who are directly involved in the violence must be identified and punished severely. The Government must give full compensation to the families whose members have been killed.It must give compensation to those injured. Proper arrangements must be made for relief in the camps where security must be ensured. The CPI(M) appeals to the people to restore peace and to put an end to this fratricidal violence, isolating the trouble makers.
A delegation of MPs from the CPI(M) will be visiting Assam shortly.