Condemn the attack on Prashant Bhushan!

Unite in defence of the Right to Conscience!

Statement of the Central Committee of Communist Ghadar Party of India, 13th October, 2011

The Communist Ghadar Party of India condemns in the strongest possible terms the savage physical attack on the respected lawyer and activist, Prashant Bhushan, when he was giving an interview to a TV channel on October 12, 2011.

Unite in defence of the Right to Conscience!

Statement of the Central Committee of Communist Ghadar Party of India, 13th October, 2011

The Communist Ghadar Party of India condemns in the strongest possible terms the savage physical attack on the respected lawyer and activist, Prashant Bhushan, when he was giving an interview to a TV channel on October 12, 2011.

Prashant Bhushan was attacked because he defended the right of Kashmiri people to self-determination, and argued for a referendum in Kashmir.  He called for the repeal of the fascist Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, and the withdrawal of the armed forces into their barracks. This political viewpoint is based on the principle that the right to determine the future of Kashmir belongs to the Kashmiri people, and not to the governments of India or Pakistan or anyone else.   

The view expressed by Prashant Bhushan is also the view of the vast majority of Kashmiris and of all progressive parties and enlightened individuals in our country.  The issue is not merely that those in power disagree with this view.  The issue is that one who publicly expresses this view is being physically attacked as being pro-Pakistan and anti-India.  He is being denied even the right to express his dissent with the official line that “Kashmir is an integral part of India”, which means that the right to decide the political destiny of Kashmir lies in the hands of the Indian Parliament.

The Congress Party and the BJP are accusing each other of being behind the attack. The fact is that both these parties are opposed to the right of the Kashmiri people as well as the right of every citizen to his or her conscience on this subject. Both these parties repeat the official line and have a long track record of unleashing violence to suppress dissent.  Both these parties have organised communal bloodbaths to further their political goals. Both these parties defend AFSPA and the army rule in Kashmir, Manipur, Nagaland and other regions.

The responsibility for this heinous attack rests squarely on the ruling authority – that is, the Indian state and its intelligence agencies and the principal parties in Parliament. The intelligence agencies as well as the main parties of the big capitalists nurture various fascist groups to carry out such attacks on those who express dissenting views.  Such groups prop up regularly with new names such as “Ram Sena” or “Bhagat Singh sena”. 

As always, the working class and toiling majority of people want and demand that the truth about who masterminded this attack be brought out convincingly.  If it is not, it will only confirm that it is a state-organised attack.

The Communist Ghadar Party of India calls on all parties and organisations of the working class, peasantry, national –democratic movements and human rights activists to raise our united voice in defence of the right to conscience. Let us condemn the use of force to settle political problems!  Let us demand that the truth be established and the guilty be punished for the attack on Prashant Bhushan!

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