Letters
Unequal Compensation to Victims
W
The choice of the site and timing at Malegaon on September 8 makes it obvious that it is the result of the diabolical design of anti-Muslim forces to avenge the loss of lives in the Mumbai blasts and earlier incidents in which the victims were mostly Hindus. There is a need for human rights groups and peace activists to raise the demand of bringing all Hindu extremist leaders and organisations that have been openly preaching and practising violence, under investigation.
Can there be a secular state without secular justice? The compensation announced by the government for each life lost in Malegaon, the majority of whom are Muslims, is just one-fifth of that given to the victims of the Mumbai blasts, the majority of whom were Hindus. Is it that Manu’s laws are still in operation in India? Such a glaring disparity in according ex gratia compensation to victims of violence is the rule in India, not an exception. Will any group ask the home ministry to provide full information on compensation paid to victims of various massacres, pogroms and riots and explain the reasons for disparity in payment of compensation, which has ranged between 1:100 and even more. The National Commission on Minorities has failed to provide a comparative statement even four months after our request in just a few cases: Nellie (Assam) (1983), Delhi (1984), Hashimpura (Meerut) (1987), Gujarat 2002, Marad (Kerala) 2004, that we had asked for.
The Mumbai bomb blasts occurred in July 2006 and the Malegaon blasts in September 2006. Why this disparity of 5:1? What an irony, that almost the same day prime minister Manmohan Singh sends missives to chief ministers for fairness to Muslims, ensuring their due share in national life under the prime minister’s 15 Point Programme.
The secular intellectual class must ask the question: What has the Indian state done to ensure to Muslims equality of status and opportunity, and effective equality before the law?
IQBAL A ANSARI
Secretary General, Minorities Council
Aligarh
Land Struggle in Singur
T
Singur is a fertile agricultural region. Even agricultural workers from the neighbouring district of Burdwan (which itself is a fertile region) come to Singur to earn their livelihood.The depeasantisation policy of the government will lead to loss of sources of livelihood of the local population. It is ironic that this is the same Left Front
(Continued on p 4088)
Subscription
Inland
(Rs)
Six One Two Three months year years years
Institutions – 1250 2300 3300 Individuals 500 935 1750 2500
Concessional Rates
Teachers/Researchers – 685 – 1800 Students – 450 – –
Concessional rates are available only in India. To avail of concessional rates, certificate from relevant institution is essential. Remittance by money order/bank draft preferred. Please add Rs 35 to outstation cheques towards bank collection charges.
Nepal and Bhutan
Institutions – 1500 – 4150 Individuals – 1250 – 3500
Foreign
(US $)
Air Mail Surface Mail
Institutions
1yr 2yrs 3yrs 1yr 2yrs 3yrs Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh 80 150 200 65 120 175 Other countries 150 275 375 90 170 240
Individuals Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh 50 90 125 30 50 75 Other countries 100 175 240 65 120 170
All remittances to:
Economic and Political Weekly
Economic and Political Weekly
Hitkari House, 284 Shahid Bhagatsingh Road, Mumbai 400 001 Phones: 2269 6072/73 Fax: (022) 2269 6072 epw.mumbai@gmail.com edit@epw.org.in Editor (December 1969-January 2004) : Krishna Raj
Editor : C Rammanohar Reddy
Deputy Editor : Bernard D’Mello
Senior Assistant Editors : Anuradha Kumar, Lina Mathias, Sheba Tejani, Bharati Bhargava (Delhi)
Editorial Staff : Prabha Pillai
Editorial Assistant : P S Leela
Editorial Consultant : Gautam Navlakha (Delhi)
Circulation : Gauraang Pradhan (Manager), B S Sharma circulation@epw.org.in
Advertisement Manager : Kamal G Fanibanda advt@epw.org.in
General Manager and Publisher : K Vijayakumar
EPW Research Foundation
C 212, Akurli Industrial Estate, Kandivali (East) Mumbai 400 101, Phones: 2887 3038/3041 Fax: (022) 2887 3038. epwrf@vsnl.com
Director : S L Shetty
Economic and Political Weekly September 23, 2006
Letters
(Continued from p 3994)
government that strengthened its support in rural Bengal by giving some legal rights to bargadars and agricultural labourers in the early years of its rule.
It is significant that the women of Gopalnagar, Beraberi and KGD gram panchayat areas of Singur are playing a prominent role in the land struggle. The women of many landless families in Singur depend on rearing cows and goats for their livelihood. The transformation of agricultural land into industrial estate will lead to loss of many such land-dependent supplementary livelihoods.
ARUP KUMAR SEN
Kolkata
Bt Cotton
T
(iv) the effects of Bt entering the food chain since in India the plant and the seed are used for cattle feed and the seed is pressed for cotton seed oil.
Any study/research/propagation of the Bt technology must be done in context. Looking at the profit margins of Bt technology and suggesting policy is not an irresponsible argument.
Many of the suggestions given by the authors seem disconnected from reality. The reality of Indian agriculture is much too complex and is so closely intertwined with our lives and culture that to isolate the monetary aspect of a certain technology from the whole is inappropriate.
VIVEK CARIAPPA
Mysore
Notes to Contributors
Here are some guidelines fortake up to six to eight months from the address, day-time phone numbers andauthors who wish to make date of acceptance to appear in the email address. submissions to the journal. EPW. Every effort will, however, be made (The email address of writers in the Special
to ensure early publication. Papers with Article, Commentary and Discussion
Special Articles
immediate relevance for policy would be sections will be published at the end ofEPW welcomes original research papers considered for early publication. Please the article.)
in any of the social sciences.
note that this is a matter of editorial * Authors are requested to prepare their
* Articles must be no more than 8,000
judgment. soft copy versions in text formats. PDF
words, including notes, references
versions are not accepted by the EPW.
and tables. Longer articles will not be Commentaries
Authors are encouraged to use UK Englishprocessed. EPW invites short contributions to the spellings (Writers using MS Word or
Letters
this along with the submitted paper. poses challenges in processing.
Readers of EPW are encouraged to send comments and suggestions (300-400 words)
* Graphs and charts prepared in MS * All submissions will be acknowledged
Office (Word/Excel) or equivalent software immediately on receipt with a reference
on published articles to the Letters column. number. Quoting the reference numberare preferable to material prepared in
All letters should have the writer’s full name in inquiries will help.
jpeg or other formats.
and postal address. * EPW posts all published articles on its web site and may reproduce them on CDs.
* Every effort is taken to complete early
processing of the papers we receive.
Discussion
Since we receive more than 35 articles Address for communication:
EPW encourages researchers to comment
every week and adequate time has to be Economic and Political Weekly,
on Special Articles. Submissions should be
provided for internal reading and external Hitkari House,
1,000 to 2,000 words.
refereeing. It can take up to four 284 Shahid Bhagatsingh Road, months for a final decision on whether General Guidelines Mumbai 400 001, India. the paper is accepted for publication. * Writers are requested to provide full Email: edit@epw.org.in,
* Articles accepted for publication can details for correspondence: postal epw.mumbai@gmail.com
Economic and Political Weekly September 23, 2006
Comments
EPW looks forward to your comments. Please note that comments are moderated as per our comments policy. They may take some time to appear. A comment, if suitable, may be selected for publication in the Letters pages of EPW.