Counterview

MV Ramana                     Suvrat Raju  By A Representative A major danger awaits Gujarat, if two senior physicists are to be believed. Suvrat Raju and MV Ramana, who have worked as scholars in the US, have said that the “most baffling feature” of the recent nuclear deal between the US and India is that it would allow Westinghouse, the top US company which has entered into an agreement with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), to supply two nuclear reactors for the proposed Mithi Virdi nuclear power plant in Gujarat which are “expensive and untested”.

Romel Sutariya leading a rally in Chhotaudepur By A Representative In a curious move, the Gujarat government has imposed curfew under Section 144, prohibiting assembly of more than ten people in the predominantly tribal district of Chhotaudepur, till February 14. The order, dated January 31, 2015, says that it has been “imposed in order to prevent terrorist activities in Chhotaudepur town and all the talukas of the district”. The order adds that it has been necessitated to “ensure law and order, peace and security”, and “no procession or gathering” could be held during the period.

Jayram Gamit By A Representative Reports from the tribal belt of South Gujarat have said that a senior tribal farmers' leader, Jayram Gamit, has been "mysteriously picked up” by the cops from Tapi district under the Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA Act) ahead of a major protest the organization he and another senior activist, Romel Sutariya, lead were going to launch and the land mafia. Talking with Counterview from Chhotaudepur, Sutariya said, the district collector, Ranjeet Kumar, was under “tremendous pressure” from the local ruling party politicians to arrest Gamit following their campaign against efforts to hand over large tracts of tribal land to land tribals, particularly those who were mining the area surrounding the river.

By A Representative In a sharply-worded report, Human Rights Watch, the influential US-based non-profit organizations, has has said that, after coming to power, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, despite his “commitment” to freedom of speech, “has not ended state censorship or taken decisive action against ultranationalist and other religious militant groups.” On the contrary, the government under him has “tightened restrictions on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)”, the reason being that they are “highly critical” of big development projects' “negative impact on environment, health and livelihood.”.

Ashok Shrimali with Achyut Yagnik By A Representative A senior activist of Gujarat, Ashok Shrimali, has created a stir in a closed-door Gujarat farmer leaders' consultation in Ahmedabad at Khet Bhawan, next to Gandhi Ashram, saying that tribal, Dalit and other marginalised community farmers' plight was being "summarily ignored" by those seeking to fight against the "retrograde" land acquisition ordinance. Shrimali said, this is happening despite the fact that they know it is these farmers who will suffer the most because of the recent Government of India ordinance, which has done away with social impact assessment and consent clauses.

By A Representative Clear indications have emerged that, following the controversial nuclear deal between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the US would now insist that India should bend and water down the 2010 nuclear liability law, Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act (CLNDA). In an unsigned editorial, America's powerful business daily, "Wall Street Journal" (WSJ) has said that the deal was a "test" whether India would allow market forces to play a role in supplying nuclear technology, and if the "red tape" which still exists in the form of this liability is done away with.

EAS Sarma By A Representative Even before the ink could dry on the Modi-Obama nuclear deal, anti-nuclear campaigners have taken strong exception to what they consider as “shameful capitulation” to US MNCs like Westinghouse and General Electrical (GE), which have lined up to supply key technology to the proposed plants in India at Mithi Vidri in Gujarat and Kovvada, Andhra Pradesh. Senior activist Kumar Sundaram and former power secretary, Government of India, Dr EAS Sarma have accused the Modi government for agreeing to allow taxpayers’ money to be spent as insurance cover in case of a nuclear disaster.

By A Representative Ahead of Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel’s stone-laying ceremony of the Maruti-Suzuki plant at Hansalpur in North Gujarat on Wednesday, the state police swooped on a dozen-odd farmer leaders apprehending that they would stage a protest. While one of them, Laljibhai Desai, was put under house arrest, others were detained. According to sources of the Jameen Adhikar Andolan Gujarat (JAAG), which a year ago spearheaded an agitation against land acquisition at Hansalpur (click HERE to read), the police told farmer activists that the arrests were “precautionary.”

Sikh farmers from Loria village By A Representative A small town in Kutch district, Loria, is once again in news more than a year after the local Sikhs settlers were attacked by powerful persons in the region in October 2013. Sikh farmers from the village have complained to their brethren in Bhatinda district in Punjab that political activists associated the ruling BJP of district Bhuj have “attacked” them. Punjab media, quoting Loria farmers, said, farmer Jagjeet Singh was “injured” though “others managed to save their lives with difficulty”. The attackers destroyed the two cars.

By A Representative Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s estranged wife Jashodaben has finally got international attention. Premier US daily, “The Washington Post” (January 25), has taken note of her state on the day American President Barack Obama arrived in India, commenting, “She’s waiting for him, as she has been all her life. But when IPrime Minister Narendra Modi dines with Barack and Michelle Obama at a glittering banquet Sunday night, his wife won’t be by his side.” It adds, “Modi, 64, kept his teenage marriage a secret for decades during his political ascent and only last year admitted that his wife exists.”