Landless poor peasants in Godavari region, under the leadership of CPI (ML) Red Star and AIKKS initiated land struggle in Godavari region in Andhra Pradesh. As a part of it, the struggling peasants handed over a memorandum to revenue divisional officer at Jungareddy Gudem on 17th April 2024. The memorandum demanded immediate release of surplus land to the landless poor peasants. CPI (ML) Red Star district secretary for united West Godavari Comrade J. Venkateswara Rao and AIKKS AP state president Com D Ranganatham led the struggle.

Copy of the memorandum:

To
The Honorable Revenue Divisional Officer and Divisional Magistrate, Jangareddygudem,

Respected Sir,

This is a humble petition submitted jointly by Jonnakuti Venkateswara Rao and other landless poor Dalits from Pangidigudem village, Angareddygudem Mandal, Eluru District.

Subject: Regarding the land ceiling lands of Pangidigudem village under the Land Reforms Act:

In 1975, under the Land Reforms Act, the landowner (Late) Chinnam Nagabhushanam, son of Ketu Rajamannar of R.S.R., submitted a declaration stating he owned around 350 acres of land. The then Land Reforms Tribunal (LRT), Kovvur, reviewed the declaration and determined that approximately 200 acres should be considered surplus land and distributed to the poor. Accordingly, the Court in LCC No. 2379KV975 ruled that the surplus land should be allocated to the needy.

The landowner appealed the decision in LRAJ, where it was registered as Appeal No. 198/1978. After review, about 20 acres of the 200 acres were exempted as drought-prone land by the LRAT on 17.09.1977. Still dissatisfied, the landowner filed a Civil Revision Petition in the then-unified Andhra Pradesh High Court under Petition No. 584/1978. The Court upheld the LRAT’s ruling.

Unhappy with that as well, the landowner filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court, which was registered as Petition No. 1073. In 1983, the Supreme Court ruled that the LRAT Eluru’s decision must be implemented.

However, corrupt revenue officials colluded with the landowners and defied the Supreme Court’s ruling by not distributing the land to the poor. Instead, they supported landowners in making sales and purchases, which amounted to contempt of court. From 1983 to 2004, the ceiling lands were not distributed.

In 2004, the villagers, upon learning this, protested demanding distribution of the ceiling land. The revenue officials, panicking, colluded again with the landowners, destroyed the original declaration submitted by Chinnam Nagabhushanam, and presented a new declaration on 11.09.2005 using some deceased or disqualified heirs. Only 41 acres were shown as surplus land in the new declaration, and the LIRT Angareddygudem gave a false judgment based on it.

Once again, the villagers protested demanding distribution of land per the Supreme Court verdict. Upon this, it was discovered that 57.48 cents of land in RS No. 150 and other survey numbers were not shown in the 2005 declaration. Consequently, under MC No. 420058, Section 145 was imposed on 04.07.2005, and the authorities promised to distribute the land to the poor — a promise still unfulfilled.

On behalf of the villagers, Jonakuti Venkateswara Rao, son of (Late) Gangaraju, SC (Mala), filed a complaint with the Honorable Lokayukta under Case No. C.No. 858/2018/91, which is under investigation. The Lokayukta ordered the Tahsildar, RDO of Angareddygudem, and District Collector to submit a report on the irregularities and illegal land sales in the ceiling lands of Pangidigudem, contempt of Supreme Court orders, and the 2005 declaration issued unlawfully by URT Angareddygudem.

However, the officials submitted a vague report without specifying what legal actions were taken and kept requesting adjournments, deceiving both the Court and the public, thereby causing loss to both the Government and the people while favoring landowners.

Meanwhile, some individuals from Pangidigudem — Datla Venkata Satya Tirupati Raju (Nani Babu) and Koppula Ravichandra Reddy — with political and financial influence, are pressuring the authorities to issue Pattadar Passbooks (title deeds) illegally, causing distress to the officials.

Simultaneously, upper-caste landlords filed Writ Petition No. 12445/2023 in the High Court, which was dismissed. The Court directed the Eluru District Collector to distribute ceiling lands to the poor per the orders of the Land Reforms Tribunal, Kovvur, and LRAT Eluru, in line with the Supreme Court verdict.

Therefore, we humbly request that you:

Review our petition.

Take legal action against the officials who, in 2005, illegally aided landowners and violated the Supreme Court ruling by only declaring 47 acres as surplus land, suppressing the original declaration by Chinnam Nagabhushanam.

As the Divisional Magistrate, conduct a field-level investigation to protect the ceiling lands and distribute them to the truly landless Dalit poor as per the 1983 Supreme Court judgment.

Ensure no Pattadar Passbooks are issued to landowners on ceiling lands in RS. No. 222, 215/1.

Investigate various survey numbers (150, 74, 218, 132, 133, 120/1, 120/2, 11, 1/5, 215, 217, 222, 215/1, 215/3, 215/45) under Section 145 and implement the 1983 Supreme Court order.

Place: Pangidigudem
Date: 17-04-2025

Copy to:

District Collector, Eluru District

Revenue Principal Secretary, Andhra Pradesh, Amaravati

Chief Commissioner of Land Administration (CCLA), Andhra Pradesh

Yours faithfully,
On behalf of the village people
(Jonakuti Venkateswara Rao)
Aadhaar No. 4451310764868

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Allegations of India’s ‘expansionist designs’ and big-brotherly approach towards neighbouring South Asian countries are not new. Nowadays, this is often discussed with reference to the corporate involvement of Indian crony capitalist Adani, who is having the closest nexus with Modi regime. Recent mass protests against Adani in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, followed by the winding up of certain strategic Adani investments in them got much media attention too. However, in the case of Nepal, apart from the economic dimensions of Indian penetration as manifested in Adani’s infrastructure projects in electricity and airport construction, the qualitative turn in Indian expansionism in Nepal is in relation to the surging Hindu nationalist, pro-monarchy movement there.

After the abolition of monarchy in 2008, Nepal was declared a “secular” state and Article 4 of the 2015 Constitution of Nepal had incorporated it as a basic feature of the State. Since then, Rashtriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), formed in 1990, Nepal Janata Party (NJP) formed in 2004 with the same flag and color as the BJP, Hindu pro-monarchy organizations such as the Vishwa Hindu Mahasangh, etc., have been working overtime to restore monarchy in Nepal. In this effort, according to reports, Hindutva right wing groups or Parivar organisations from India led by RSS through its Shakas in Nepal, the largest number outside India, and its political tool BJP, have been directly and indirectly influencing and encouraging pro-monarchy Hindu organisations through material and ideological backing. It is said that all these efforts have got a further boost following the ascendance of BJP regime in India in 2014, that inspired all the pro-monarchy organisations to intensify their struggle for establishing a Hindurashtra in Nepal. As it’s manifestation, the Hindu nationalist landscape in Nepal, unlike in the past, has started displaying non-tolerance to eating beef including targeting of Christians and Muslims. This is a new trend in Nepal, where political Hinduism is successfully infiltrating even into the leadership of mainstream parties and even among many self-professed Nepali communists, who earlier had an uncompromising secular approach. And, when the far-right and multi-dimensional Hindutva offensive intensified, all the mainstream parties ranging from Maoists to Nepali Congress became apologists or even proponents of political Hinduism and “sanatan dharma”. Though secularism was inserted into the Constitution after the Maoists came to power, even they took no initiative for politicising or conscientizing the people regarding the idea of secularism and a secular way of life. It provided enough space for the reactionary forces to take advantage of the far-right shift in politics with their appeal to Hindutva.

In the same vein, casteism and ethnicity, which were inalienable components of erstwhile monarchy are also bouncing back with intensified vigour in Nepal. During the time of monarchy, for instance, it was the upper castes, who dominated the corridors of power, and who defined Nepal’s national identity, according to which, Nepal remained a Hindu state led by King as an avatar of Lord Bishnu, the Hindu god. The marginalised ethnic communities who disagreed with this formulation were targeted, and even disenfranchised for being disloyal to nation. These vulnerable sections who once wholeheartedly supported the anti-monarchy movement and upheld parliamentary democracy are once again driven to the peripheries with the resurgent Hindutva offensive. In this setback, the depoliticisation and degeneration of Nepali Left has a major role. Earlier, the political base of Maoists was the discriminated, lower caste ethnic groups together with the working class. Later, the embrace of neoliberalism and its ideology by Maoists demolished all those advancements of yesteryears.

It is in this context that, as noted above, the ideological and material penetration of the Sangh Parivar from India, whose leaders on several occasions have stated their preference for Nepal as a Hindu state, assumes significance. Rajnath Singh, current Indian defence minister, who was the president of BJP in 2010 had expressed his wish of Nepal regaining it’s true identity by again becoming a Hindu state. Yogi Adityanath had even wrote letter to the Nepali prime minister in 2015, asking him to declare Nepal a Hindu nation. Hence the resurgence of the pro-monarchy Hindu nationalist movement in Nepal needs to be seen in the broader neofascist context of the patronage from the strengthening Hindutva regime in India. It’s latest manifestation has been the display of India’s UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s poster alongside a poster of ousted Nepali King Gyanendra at a pro-monarchy rally in Kathmandu on 9 March 2025. Of course, the close ties between Adityanath’s Gorakhnath Mutt, located in Gorakhpur in India, and Nepal’s royal family are widely known. Yogi is an open proponent of a Hindu state in Nepal. He called the Nepali parliament that declared Nepal a secular state as “kangaroo parliament” and termed the declaration as “unconstitutional”. Since Yogi had already made his reactionary stand clear, this was not a new thing. However, when the display of his poster with that of King went viral in social media, it led to widespread condemnation even among pro-monarchy sections and triggering a war of words among the Nepali political circles and even in international media, against Indian expansionist designs in Nepal. This has revived the traditional anti-India sentiment among many a section in Nepali society too. Still, in the absence of a powerful progressive, democratic and secular alternative, the current situation in Nepal does not augur well for the days ahead.

(Editorial, Red Star Monthly – April 2025)

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Mariyam from Fatima Shaikh Study Circle also spoke on the occasion. Pravin Deshmukh(Anis) was the President of the public meeting program and Comrade Akshay(AIRSO) hosted the meeting.

Every speaker underlined the need for a collective struggle against fascism. AIRSO students sang revolutionary songs, which motivated and encouraged the comrades.

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impact of Trump’s ‘America First’ Policy on Post Cold War European Geopolitics

The dramatic shift in US postwar strategic approach towards Europe, as part of Trump’s ‘America First’, “isolationist” and “protectionist” policy, has already sent shock-waves to EU headquarters. Among the series of steps initiated by far-right and neofascist Trump, the most striking is his tirade against NATO, the most powerful US-led postwar military alliance with its anti-Communist and Islamophobic ideological orientation. For instance, Trump is the first Yankee leader who openly declared that “expansion of NATO” was the reason for the Ukraine conflict. He also alleged that formation of 27-member EU was with the intention to “screw the United States”. Further, violating the established precedent of holding US-Russia talks in European headquarters, for the first time in postwar history, US-Russia talks on ending war in Ukraine was held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, totally sidelining EU and ignoring Ukraine, which is nothing but a proxy in the inter-imperialist conflict between US-led NATO and Russia.

While putting the responsibility of Ukraine security on European shoulders, Trump, the chief imperialist master, in his unilateral proposal, has offered no security guarantee to Ukraine in exchange for the latter transferring it’s strategic rare earth minerals to be extracted by US Military-Industrial Complex. And, in spite of EU’s stature as US’ main postwar strategic political-economic and military partner, Trump’s stern warning on imposing a wholesale 25% tariff on EU has already sent shockwaves across its 27-member countries.

Meanwhile, even as the future of NATO in its present form is uncertain, and amid grave concerns among EU allies in NATO about US funding and commitment to the alliance, Trump has already entered into a deal with Putin for sharing the precious mineral resources and dividing the ‘spheres of influence’ within Ukraine, that has become a typical neocolony today. The reported ‘altercation’ between the master and his lackey, Trump and Zelenskyy, both far-right neofascists at their respective levels, in his talks with Trump, and the White House asking Zelenskyy and his entourage to leave the office, are not going to change the direction of Trumpian move to retreat from earlier neocolonial global commitments.

Trump’s deal with Putin will have its indirect impact on US approach to China, the latter being the closest strategic ally of Russia, and is even effectively contending with US. At the same time, Trump’s overall foreign policy being propelled by immediate corporate-financial interests of leading billionaire financial oligarchy in US, will definitely result in a re-configuration in inter-imperialist contradictions in the days ahead. In this sense, Trump’s reshaping of decades-old US-EU relations, that began with Marshall Plan or European Reconstruction Program, as a pillar of Truman’s Cold War against global Communism, followed by NATO, etc., is only the begining of restructuring of US foreign policy in tune with MAGA (Make America Great Again).

Trump’s plan of Gaza cleansing and permanent relocation of about 2 million Palestinians to other Arab countries like Jordan and Egypt and to transform Gaza into a seaside resort, is also in conformity with economic interests of America. His Ukraine plan is a replica of the ‘Gaza project’ that worked behind the superimposed truce between Hamas and Israel, which is now proved as a trap on the Palestinians. No doubt, the details of the geopolitical manifestations of ‘Trumpism’ are to unfolded in the coming days.

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