BANNEDTHOUGHT
Banned or Suppressed Publications & Ideas in India
India is nominally a “democracy”, and claims to allow the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press. However, in recent years these claims have been shown to be quite hypocritical. The editors and those associated with various publications that the national and state governments dislike, especially those which promote revolutionary ideas, have been harassed and sometimes jailed, and some of these publications have been banned and suppressed. There has so far been insufficient outcry from those throughout the rest of the world who claim to support the freedoms of speech and the press. But we at bannedthought.org are attempting to do what we can to oppose these fascist-like actions of the Indian authorities. As part of that we will attempt to make publicly available all progressive publications, such as People’s March that the reactionary authorities try to suppress.
After the complete suppression of People’s March magazine in December 2007, a new publication, the CPI(Maoist) Information Bulletin, was launched by the revolutionaries in the spring of 2008. Since the Indian ruling class and their government certainly considers this magazine to be “illegal” and wants to suppress it, we are also making it available here. In addition, the editor of People’s March, P. Govindan Kutty, while prevented from publishing that magazine, began issuing a private circulation bulletin in 2008 named People’s Truth which we also make available here. Finally, in October 2009, the authorities allowed Mr. Kutty to start publishing People’s March again. We are continuing to make all these publications available here because whether they are formally suppressed or not, they are in practice kept from most of the masses in India.
In addition to these publications, we are helping to publicize the great mass struggle in the Lalgarh area of West Bengal. While a number of news reports about Lalgarh have been published in Indian newspapers (though almost always from the ruling class point of view), it is still difficult for most people to obtain thorough and up-to-date information about that ongoing struggle. We are also starting to make available reports about the disinformation campaigns that the government and ruling class media in India have been spreading about those who resist their rule, which are especially directed against the Maoist revolutionaries. And finally, we are attempting to expose the disturbing trends toward additional social repression in India, such as the notorious fascist law called the “Unlawful Activities Prevention Act” which pretty much allows the authorities to arrest anyone they want, any time they want. This trend has now gone so far that even military campaigns are being organized against the people, and especially against revolutionaries and the people’s mass struggles.
Contact us at: freespeech@bannedthought.org
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