11-22-2007, 02:47 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Kolkata burning </b>
The Pioneer Edit Desk
CPM paid back 'in its own coin'
It is extremely unfortunate that the All-India Minorities Forum, which is really a Muslim outfit, should have led a violent agitation in Kolkata on Wednesday ostensibly to protest against the atrocities committed by the CPI(M)'s hoodlum brigade in Nandigram. While it is true that most of the victims of the Marxist mayhem in Nandigram are Muslims -- the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind claims 30,000 Muslim villagers have been rendered homeless and have had to take shelter in make-shift camps -- that does not justify mobs going on the rampage in Kolkata's Muslim-dominated areas. If the entire nation is aghast at the murder, loot, arson and rape committed by armed brigands owing allegiance to the CPI(M) in Nandigram's villages, it is not because the victims are largely Muslims.<b> The voices of protest raised across the country, more so in West Bengal, are those of people who are appalled by the brutalities committed by the State's ruling party which sees nothing wrong with bludgeoning opponents of its policies into submission. It is the gross abuse of power and shocking display of lawlessness by the CPI(M) that have caused widespread revulsion against the Marxists and sympathy for their hapless victims</b>. What the dubious organisation that called Wednesday's shutdown in Kolkata has done is to try and convert a larger political issue, centred on Marxist thuggery and duplicity, into a Muslim grievance. This does injustice to the countless who have lost their lives and limbs while resisting the CPI(M)'s armed cadre and the many more who have had to flee their home and hearth. It also reflects the predilection of 'Muslim leaders', such as they are, to seize upon each and every opportunity to make sectarian political capital out of people's misery, unmindful of the consequences of their remarkably short-sighted politics of avoidable violence. That those who masterminded Wednesday's violence, including attacks on innocent people and a school bus, also tagged on the demand to cancel the visa given to dissident Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen to their protest against the CPI(M)'s misdeeds in Nandigram speaks volumes about their real agenda. This is a sure fire recipe to alienate people and invite criticism, which will neither help the victims of Nandigram nor help bring the guilty men of the CPI(M) to book.
Of course, the CPI(M) has only itself to blame for the mess and anarchy that have begun to engulf West Bengal.<b> The Left Front Government it leads does not command any authority and has abdicated its responsibilities and constitutional obligations, allowing the party to set up a state within the state. </b>The police force has been rendered useless, as was demonstrated, though not for the first time, when it failed to fob off the lumpen elements who took over the streets of central Kolkata, running riot without any hindrance. By pandering to the lowest common denominator of the community and the clergy in the name of 'secular politics', the CPI(M) has emboldened them to a point where they believe they are above the law of the land. In a sense, Wednesday's violence reflects the pathetic state of governance in West Bengal; the CPI(M) has at last met its comeuppance with Muslims paying the party back, to quote Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, "in its own coin". So much for Marxists pretending to be the sole protectors of Muslims and heaping abuse on others for not doing enough to safeguard their rights. Meanwhile, West Bengal continues to suffer.
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The Pioneer Edit Desk
CPM paid back 'in its own coin'
It is extremely unfortunate that the All-India Minorities Forum, which is really a Muslim outfit, should have led a violent agitation in Kolkata on Wednesday ostensibly to protest against the atrocities committed by the CPI(M)'s hoodlum brigade in Nandigram. While it is true that most of the victims of the Marxist mayhem in Nandigram are Muslims -- the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind claims 30,000 Muslim villagers have been rendered homeless and have had to take shelter in make-shift camps -- that does not justify mobs going on the rampage in Kolkata's Muslim-dominated areas. If the entire nation is aghast at the murder, loot, arson and rape committed by armed brigands owing allegiance to the CPI(M) in Nandigram's villages, it is not because the victims are largely Muslims.<b> The voices of protest raised across the country, more so in West Bengal, are those of people who are appalled by the brutalities committed by the State's ruling party which sees nothing wrong with bludgeoning opponents of its policies into submission. It is the gross abuse of power and shocking display of lawlessness by the CPI(M) that have caused widespread revulsion against the Marxists and sympathy for their hapless victims</b>. What the dubious organisation that called Wednesday's shutdown in Kolkata has done is to try and convert a larger political issue, centred on Marxist thuggery and duplicity, into a Muslim grievance. This does injustice to the countless who have lost their lives and limbs while resisting the CPI(M)'s armed cadre and the many more who have had to flee their home and hearth. It also reflects the predilection of 'Muslim leaders', such as they are, to seize upon each and every opportunity to make sectarian political capital out of people's misery, unmindful of the consequences of their remarkably short-sighted politics of avoidable violence. That those who masterminded Wednesday's violence, including attacks on innocent people and a school bus, also tagged on the demand to cancel the visa given to dissident Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen to their protest against the CPI(M)'s misdeeds in Nandigram speaks volumes about their real agenda. This is a sure fire recipe to alienate people and invite criticism, which will neither help the victims of Nandigram nor help bring the guilty men of the CPI(M) to book.
Of course, the CPI(M) has only itself to blame for the mess and anarchy that have begun to engulf West Bengal.<b> The Left Front Government it leads does not command any authority and has abdicated its responsibilities and constitutional obligations, allowing the party to set up a state within the state. </b>The police force has been rendered useless, as was demonstrated, though not for the first time, when it failed to fob off the lumpen elements who took over the streets of central Kolkata, running riot without any hindrance. By pandering to the lowest common denominator of the community and the clergy in the name of 'secular politics', the CPI(M) has emboldened them to a point where they believe they are above the law of the land. In a sense, Wednesday's violence reflects the pathetic state of governance in West Bengal; the CPI(M) has at last met its comeuppance with Muslims paying the party back, to quote Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, "in its own coin". So much for Marxists pretending to be the sole protectors of Muslims and heaping abuse on others for not doing enough to safeguard their rights. Meanwhile, West Bengal continues to suffer.
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