Democratic Rights’ Forum (DRF) Formed

The meeting of leading comrades active in the field of democratic rights movement held on 23-24 March at Ambedkar Bhavan, New Delhi, attended by Ad. C.B.Singh (Lucknow) and com. Monasur (Kanpur) from UP, Ad.Sabi Joseph, Kerala, com.Ashok Mathur, Rajasthan, Ad.Vivek Ranjan, Odisha, Ad. Kedar Anand, Chathisgarh and Ad. Arun Maji, general secretary of NDPI, com. Mangat Ram of NDPI and  com. Jaiprakash from the Anti-Caste Organization from Delhi. The meeting discussed the draft approach paper On Formation of Democratic Rights and Civil Liberties’ Movement for building a broad based democratic rights and civil liberties forum at all India level presented by com.K.N.Ramachandran, general secretary of the CPI(ML) in the meeting prsided by Ad.C.B.Singh. The orientation of the Paper was generally accepted by all. It will be developed taking the suggestions put forward and the message from com.C.Bhaskar Rao, geberal secretary of the OPDR (AP) who could not attand the meeting. Similarly com.Ved Bhusan, editor of The Kashmit Times, Ad. Rebati Ballabh Mohanty from Odisha and others from different states who could not attend the meeting had informed their consent to work as part of any all India forum organized in the meeting. It was decided that the Paper shall be developed based on the suggestions which came up in the meeting and shall be published for further discusion on it.

The meeting decided to constitute the Organizing Committee of the Democratic Rights’  Forum (DRF) with Ad. C.B.Singh as convener and Ad. Sabi Joseph, Ad. Vivek Ranjan, Ad. Kedar Anand, com. Monasur, com.Mangat Ram and com.Ashok Mathur as members. The meeting passed following resolutions:

1.     The DRF shall try to establish contacts with all forcesopposed to deployment of army and AFSPA in J&K and Northeastand to develop a countrywide movement in solidarity with the struggles waged by the peoples of these regions including the indefinite hunger strike continued by Irom Sarmila for more than 12 years to repeal AFSPA and to withdraw army policing. The DRF shall intensify the campaign for political solution of J&K and Northeast issues by involving the people.

2.     The DRF shall unite all forces who are against death penalty and develop a countrywide movement for its repeal.

3.     The DRF condemns the ghastly and secret manner in which the hanging of Afsal Guru was carried out. It demands that the UPA government should apologize for it. Even the democratic right to appeal for review and to approach the Supreme Court once again after the rejection of the long pending mercy petition was denied to him and to his family. The DRF demands that the dead body of Afsal Guru should be handed over to his family immediately.

4.     The DRF decided to send a fact finding team in solidarity with the struggle of the orkers of Manesar Maruti Suzuki car factory, where 140 workers are jailed for more than seven months and more than 500 workers are summarily dismissed.

5.     The DRF decided to send a fact finding team to Jagjitsinghpur district of Odisha where thousands of villagers of Paradeep area are struggling for last eight years against their displacement for acquiring land for POSCO, the South Korean based MNC.

The meeting decided to organize state level committees and to take up various issues of democratic rights violations uniting broad sections of democratic forces.

Organizational Principles

(Draft)

1.    Name: Its name shalll be Democratic Rights Forum (DRF).

2.    Aims and Objectives: The DRF shall work for the defence of the democratic rights and civil liberties and for their expansion and advancement.

3.    Structure: The DRF shall be a democratic forum with its functioning based on democratic consultation and consensus. At the same time it shall strive to co-ordinate different organizations, groups and individuals committed to work for the protection, expansion and advancement of the democratic rights and civil liberties at all levels.

4.    Organizational Form: At all India level it shall have an All India General  Council (AIGC) to be elected by All India Conferences of representatives elected by state level conferences and organizations, groups and individuals  affiliated to it which is convened every two years and an Executive Committee elected by the AIGC with their offices at Delhi. For carrying out day to day functioning it shall have a Central Working Group (CWG). The CWG consists of the chairman, a vice chairman and other office bearers such as general secretary, five secretaries to coordinate activities in Southern, Western, Eastern, Northern zones and of the CWG and a tresurer elected by the AIGC. The number of members of the All India state and district councils and respective executive committees shall be decided in the respective conferences.

5.    The state level conferences held every two years shall constitute State Councils (SCs) of the DRF, and an executive committee which shall lead the state level activities, and the district level conferences shall elect the district level councils and district executive committees of the DRF. For carrying out day to day functioning of the SCs it shall also have State Working Groups (SWGs). The SWGs shall consist of the State chairman, secretary and three secretaries, with one of them having responsibility of the treasurer, who shall be elected by the SCs. The same principles are be followed at the district level also.

6.    All these Councils shall work based on consensus.

7.    The Editorial Board for the central DRF publications shall be elected by the AIGC and for the publications at state level by the SCs respectively.

8.    Organizations, groups and individuals who are prepared to accept the Approach Paper and Organizational Principles of the DRF and are ready to function based on these and affiliated to the AIGS, can be enrolled as its constituents and their representative can be taken in the AIGC or SCs, as the case may be.

9.     The AIGC shall elect the Executive Committee and the CWG consisting of  the office bearers and the SCs shall elect the SWGs and the state level office bearers once in two years. The bi-annual conferences shall discuss and finalize the reports, audited accounts and future programs presented by respective councils. In extra ordinary situations All India and state level councils, which are sceduled to meet twice in a year, shall be convened by giving one month notice to its members.

10.                         The accounts of the DRF at different levels shall be audited bi-annually by three auditers elected by respective councils.

11.    Funds: Respective Executive committees can generate necessary funds for the fuctioning of the DRF from public by way of contributios.

12.   The amendments to the Organizational Principles shall be by way of majority decisions of the All India General Council.

Motion of Non-Confidence is moved in the People’s Parliament against the Ruling Governments

The following Motion of Non-Confidence is moved in the People’s Parliament against the Ruling Governments and the Ruling System; the Motion calls for removing the existing reactionary, corrupt system and replacing it with a People’s Alternative Based on People’s Manifesto evolved through discussion among the masses.1. The People’s Parliament at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, on 15th March, declares non-confidence in the UPA government at centre, in the state governments and the entire ruling system in which both the ruling and opposition parties are colluding with each other for speeding up the imposition of the neo-liberal policies, for saving the scamsters, and for strengthening the communal, caste, fascist forces, cuttinig at the root of even the existing secular, democratic values. 2. Through the latest railways’ and central budgets the UPA government has further sped up imposition of the neo-liberal policies. It is leading to unprecedented price-rise, intensifying corruption in all fields, unemployment, and all-round impoverishment of the masses. The     consecutive governments have opened the economy to the corporate houses, MNCs and FDIs, and privatization is sped up through Private-Public-Partnership (PPP). The prices and service / freight charges are hiked by linking them with the prices of ‘de-controlled’ diesel and services. 3. The defense expenditure is enhanced to more than Rs. 2 trillion, with a large part siphoned to ruling party funds through numerous scams. Virtuaal military rule is continued in J&K and Northeast along with the imposition of AFSPA, which is being extended to Chathisgarh. Secret hanging of Afsal Guru shows the extent of criminalization of the state apparatus, communal fascist attitude of the ruling system and the refusal to resolve the Kashmir question through political means involving the people. In the name of development, dalits, adivasis, minorities and women along with all other oppressed sections and classes are coming under increasing attacks including displacement from their land.4. As a result, in all the states people’s movements against neo-liberal policies are getting strengthened. There was massive mobilization of people against intensifying corruption at Delhi and other urban centres. Again tens of thousands got mobilized when another girl was gang raped in Delhi streets, with students, youth, women and other sections occupying the streets in Delhi, challenging the ruling system. Against displacement of tens of thousands of families for numerous projects like Narmada like large dams, for providing millions of acres of land for MNCs/ Corporate projects, for nuclear plants etc and against the ecological destruction created by these projects millions of people have come out in protest. In spite of all these, the institutionalized parties, both on the ruling as well as opposition side are colluding with each other to intensify attacks on people, even while competing with each other for power. In one form or other, they repeat that there is no alternative to neo-liberal policies. The administration serves patriarchy and neo-liberal lust, consumerism, caste system and communal appeasement, surrendering to communal fascist forces. The caste- based oppression, ghastly attacks on dalits, adivasis and women, suppression of minorities and loot of the toiling masses have intensified.5. When the whole running system is degenerating fast, as a reflection of it, the parliament has become a useless debating, and often shouting club of agents of imperialists, especially US imperialists, and MNCs/ Corporate houses, scamsters, rapists, criminals and mafias, or of reformists who have thrown their past revolutionary spirit to Bay of Bengal or Arabian Sea, bereft of any power. Instead of representing people the present parliament members are representing people’s enemies, the handful of native elite classes and foreign capital interests. They represent the Brahmanical system which enslaves the people to loot of the imperialists and their agents6. This situation demands that all those fighting against these anti-people ruling class policies and are against the neo-liberal policies, who demand people oriented development, and all round democratization of the polity should get together for a People’s Alternative based on a People’s Manifesto to put an end to the present   reactionary, corrupt ruling system and its anti-people policies. This People’s Manifesto should be developed through countrywide discussion among the masses using all possible avenues. 7. The People’s Parliament attended by  progressive, secular, democratic and left forces and individuals along with representatives of the ongoing people’s resistance movements in different  parts of the country, organized at Janta Mantar, New Delhi, on 15th March with the slogans: Struggle against Price Rise, Corruption, Evictions, FDI in Retail and Attacks on Democratic Rights! Fight caste-adivasi-gender-minority oppression! Down with neo-liberal policies! Strengthen people’s alternative against all ruling parties and communal fascists!, declares non-confidence in the present central and state governments, and in the reactionary ruling system which have gone against all the promises given during the independence struggle.8. This People’s Parliament calls on the masses of people and all progressive, democratic, secular and left forces to throw out these corrupt anti-people parties and the ruling system fostered by them, from power, and to get mobilized through all forms of people’s movements to replace it with the broadest possible People’s Alternative based on a People’s Manifesto with the following basic orientation:(1)  Smash imperialist globalization and neo-liberal policies; End imperialist domination through IMF, World Bank, WTO and MNCs. (2) Defend existing Constitutional, democratic and secular rights and fight for their expansion; All fields of administration and judiciary should function within the Constitutional framework, not under neo-liberal framework. (3) Prosecute all corrupt through special courts; Bring in to force Lokayukta like agencies with full power for this purpose; Confiscate all black- money deposited in foreign banks and other hide-outs.  (4) Stop all displacements for Neo-liberal Projects; Confiscate all lands from mafias, big landlords etc; Implement land reforms based on land to the tiller and provide all out assistance to the farmers for agricultural development. (5) End price-rise; Implement universal Public Distribution System; Ensure education, healthcare, housing and employment for all. (6) Implement need based wages, job security and democratic rights of working class; Stop contract and casual labour system. (7) Ensure Adivasis’ right over their land and natural resources; Implement autonomous councils based on Sixth Schedule in Adivasi areas; Organise dalits, adivasis and minorities and end caste-based and communal oppression; Realize  caste-less and secular society. (8) End all forms of gender discrimination; Ensure women’s equality in all fields. (9) Scrap AFSPA, UAPA and all other black laws; Withdraw military from Jammu- Kashmir and Northeast; End state terror and achieve all round democratization of the administration and society. (10) Abolish imperialist promoted ‘development’ policies which devastate nature and impoverish masses; Implement people oriented, sustainable and eco-friendly development paradigm.       Moved by the presidium of the People’s Parliament.