My Musings

Musings....... Left Wing Fascism While surfing through Quora app looking for something totally unrelated, I came across a question - “ Which dictator killed the most people-  Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin or Mao Zedong ? I was surprised to find the answer, Adolf Hitler only comes third in this list, only after Stalin and Mao !! We have generally attributed the fascism to right wing and have mostly ignored the fact that left wing fascism does exist. Though traditionally and historically considered a right wing phenomena, fascism identify itself even as left wing in the following sense - - [ ] Intolerance of its political opponents - [ ] Suppression of freedom of speech and lack of respect for democratic principles - [ ] Use of Violence. The term was popularised by sociologists and one such philosopher, Victor Klemperer described the close similarities between the Nationalist Socialist Regime and the German Democratic Republic ( Nazi Party). Most recently the term “left fascis

Musings....... It was with anger that I read the following news in my mobile newsfeed. That the right wing saffron outfit Hindu Mahasabha celebrated the 111th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhijis assassin Nathuram Godse in Madhya Pradesh. To add injury to insult, it’s national Vice President hailed him as a patriot!! At a time when all public functions and gatherings are banned due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, what was the urgency and need for such a commemoration escapes me. On November 15th 2019, the same outfit had observed Balidan Divas at its Gwalior office to mark the 70th anniversary of the hanging of Godse. Similarly during the time of the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh in 2017, the Hindu Mahasabha had tried to establish a temple in Godses name. Born Ramachandra Vinayak Godse, Nathuram was an active worker for the RSS and Hindu Mahasabha with alleged direct ties with Savarkar which is now well established with proof. Since the BJP government has come to power at t

Musings....... The Economic Survey of India 2017 estimates that the magnitude of interstate migration in India was close to 9 million annually between 2011 and 2016, while Census 2011 puts the total number of internal migrants in the country at a staggering 139 million. UP and Bihar are the biggest source states, followed closely by MP, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand. The major destination states are Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra and Kerala. These vulnerable population of India work in the construction, manufacturing, transport, services, hotel and domestic work market - marked by low pay and hazardous work conditions. The common issues they face at work is non- payment of wages, physical abuse, accidents and even death. Many informal sector disputes don’t even go to labour courts and those that manage to, languish in courts for lack of proof. They have poor access to health services - lack of insurance - and most often are forced to go back to their h