Dheeraj Kalgutkar

I’m a slow reader and a human, there are times when I miss reading something and there are times when I choose to not react if I feel I know not enough, West Bengal’s Panchayat elections were one of them. This one is on West Bengal and the elections that were concluded some time back, but do not fret, what happened in Bengal wasn’t a stray incident that loses its relevance after a day or week, the Bengal election will come to haunt us in future if we do not pay attention to it. In West Bengal, Of the 58,792 seats in total, one-third is where opposition (left front and BJP) didn’t field their candidates. Mamata Banerjee’s TMC won them uncontested. Across the country we see these uncontested seats where candidates win without a fight and people (or supporters of that candidate) celebrate this as some macho victory but they forget that this is anathema to the practice of democracy. What do you think? All the people in a constituency love their one leader, so much so that not one ...

Time and again, strikes have ignited the debate whether they are rightful to be called as 'constitutional'. Out constitution allows them to register their voice and concern but Supreme Court in its land-mark judgement maintains that, nobody must be forced to participate and shut their premises just because some wish so. Further your ways of protest in no way shall affect other people's business from sailing smooth. In contrast to every judgement and law of land, strikes across the nation have proved to be fatal and dangerous. Recent being the one called by 11 trade unions mostly CITU, an active arm of CPM. 'Bharath Bandh' as they call it, turned violent in many cities namely Noida's industrial area where hoodlums numbering around hundred throwed stones at factories and even opened fire into numerous vehicles later on. 48 hour strike which went into cold storage first day except that unexpected incident in Noida turned more harsher and viol...