CPM146;S double standards

The lead story in this week8217;s Organiser slams CPIM for ignoring 8220;grave security concerns8221; to lobby for a Chinese firm...

The lead story in this week8217;s Organiser slams CPIM for ignoring 8220;grave security concerns8221; to lobby for a Chinese firm, Hutchison Ports Holding, in the case of privatisation of ports. 8220;It is surprising,8221; says the article, 8220;that the biggest enemies of market economy, the communists, have suddenly discovered the virtues of openness, though only in one area of the economy. What is less surprising is CPM8217;s lobbying for HPH. For, the CPM has always promoted China8217;s interests, even during the Sino-Indian war.8221; The article also attacks the CPIM for its alleged double standards 8211; speaking out against the privatisation of airports while lobbying for ports to be handed over to the Chinese. Referring to the Left8217;s stance that Delhi and Mumbai airports should not privatised because of security and strategic reasons, it says, 8220;the communists8217; expressing concern for national interest is like the editor of Hustler sermonising about the virtues of a chaste life.8221;

8230;And other sins

The editorial takes off from the lead article and lambasts the CPIM for an assortment of sins. According to the editorial, 8220;It is unprecedented in the country8217;s democratic history that a political party interferes with the foreign policy and foreign direct investment issues. The Congress, the BJP or smaller regional formations have never pressurised their governments to support a particular country or a firm as blatantly as the CPM is doing today.8221; That apart, the editorial also lashes out at the CPIM for seeking presidential pardon for Mohammad Afzal; for 8220;hassling the Prime Minister8221; to bend before Pervez Musharraf at Havana; for asking India to canvass for Venezuela for a UNSC seat; and for promoting SEZs in West Bengal but opposing them in Congress and BJP-ruled states. The edit concludes: 8220;Political hypocrisy cannot be more immodest. Treason has never been so couched in dialectical secular mask. Ideological double-speak never had such currency as now under the UPA regime.8221; Phew!

US and NAM

Amid all the Left-bashing, veteran columnist M.V. Kamath8217;s article comes as a surprise. Kamath not only echoes the Left8217;s trenchant criticism of the US but also attacks New Delhi for kowtowing to Uncle Sam. Mocking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh8217;s claim that India would revitalise the NAM, he says, 8220;There is no NAM today and to think that it exists is to delude ourselves. India has neither the courage nor the desire to stand up to the US8230;8221; He goes on to cite Iran as an example. 8220;The US is threatening to bomb Iran out of existence, but Delhi seems to have lost its voice. It argues that it does not like to have another nuclear-armed state in its vicinity, which is a poor argument. Iran is not sending terrorists to India. Pakistan does 8211; and Pakistan is a nuclear state and proudly so. Iran8217;s neighbour, Israel is another nuclear state 8230;So, if Pakistan and Israel can be nuclear states, why should not Iran wish to be one? And if Britian and France can have nuclear weapons, why shouldn8217;t Iran have them too? It is pure racism.8221;

Hindu war on terror

In a full-page article on how to combat terrorism in India, Dr Subramaniam Swamy scoffs at those who advocate a measured or sober response and advocates 8220;massive retaliation8221; instead. Insisting that the ISI is financing anti-Indian organisations of every hue, Swamy suggests a series of counter measures: India must bomb terrorist-training camps in Pakistan and Bangladesh and be prepared for war as a result; it should fulfill 8220;our pre-1947 commitment to NWFP and openly help the Baluchis and Sindhis to meet their legitimate aspirations8221;; and should demand territory from Bangladesh for 8220;all those illegal Bangladeshis settled in India8221; and the 8220;northern one-third of Bangladesh cutting across from Khulna to Sylhet could then be annexed if Bangladesh goes to war with us.8221; But first and foremost, 8220;any policy to combat terrorism requires that each and every Hindu become committed to being virat Hindu, or otherwise be regarded a 8216;tankhiya8217; by Hindu society.8221; To be a virat Hindu, one must have a 8220;Hindu mindset8221; and never yield to terrorism and counter every terrorist act through massive retaliation, insists the Parivar8217;s new ideologue.

8212;Compiled by Manini Chatterjee