THE RADICAL CONTENTS : Page No. HUMANIST Sh. Narottam Vyas is no more 4 Vol. 83 Number 5, August 2019 Articles and Features: Monthly journal of the Indian Renaissance Institute Editorial: Devoted to the development of the Renaissance ‘Emergency’ Then and Now 6 Movement and to the promotion of human Mahi Pal Singh rights, scientific temper, rational thinking and a humanist view of life. In Jharkhand, Modi Is Replicating 9 What He Did in Gujarat in 2002 Founder Editor: M.N. Roy Apoorvanand Advisor: Modi Govt Freezes Ads in Times Group, 11 Dr. Narisetti Innaiah ABP Group & The Hindu Editor: Mahi Pal Singh How RSS Betrayed the Anti-Emergency Struggle 12 Shamsul Islam Editorial Board: Ramesh Awasthi, Rekha Saraswat, The Establishment Has Sent 15 N.D. Pancholi, Dipavali Sen a Hard Core Message to Dissenters and Critics Printer and Publisher: Sidharth Bhatia Satish Chandra Varma Jai Shri Ram a License to Kill?: 17 Send articles and reports to: #IndiaAgainstLynchTerror Trends Mahi Pal Singh at E-21/5-6, Adila Matra Sector 3, Rohini, Delhi- 110085. (M) 09312206414, 08178491055, 07042548234 2019-An Election sans Integrity? 19 M.G. Devasahayam or E-mail them to: [email protected] or [email protected] Does the Indian Left have a Future 25 Ramchandra Guha Please send Subscription/Donation Cheques in favour of The ‘summer’ of the Right and the ‘fall’ of the Left 27 Dr. A. Raghu Kumar The Radical Humanist to: Satish Chandra Varma, Treasurer IRI, The Ideology of Radical Humanism has 33 A-1/103, Satyam Apartments, Vasundhra the Potentialities to Emancipate Enclave, Delhi- 110096. (M) 9811587576. Mankind from Drudgery Email ID: [email protected] Ramesh Korde Please Note: Authors will bear sole accountability for corroborating the facts that they In Man’s Own Image: 36 give in their write-ups. Neither the IRI/the By Ellen Roy and Sibnarayan Ray Publisher, nor the Editor of this journal will be Simplified by Vinod Jain responsible for testing the validity and authenticity of statements & information cited by the authors. 1,966 custodial deaths in India during 2018, 39 Also, sometimes some articles published in this India urged to ratify UNCAT journal may carry opinions not similar to the Radical Humanist philosophy; but they would be entertained here if the need is felt to debate and Walking through EVOLUTION at DARWIN‘s place 41 discuss them. Dr. Narisetti Innaiah August 2019 THE RADICAL HUMANIST 3 Sh. Narottam Vyas is no more On behalf of the Indian Renaissance Institute and The Radical Humanist, I pay our tributes to Sh. Narottam Vyas who breathed his last in the morning on 4th July 2019 at Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Hospital, Rohini, Delhi. He was diagnosed to be suffering from blood cancer and was admitted to the hospital on 24th June 2019. Sh. Vyas was an active member and a life trustee of the IRI. All of us send our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members of Mr. Vyas and share their sense of loss and grief at his sudden and sad demise. Mahi Pal Singh, (1932-2019) Secretary, IRI & Editor, The Radical Humanist Condolence Messages: 6TH July 2019 MESSAGE OF CONDOLENCE ON BEHALF OF IRI Indian Renaissance Institute (IRI) is deeply grieved over the sad demise of Shri Narottam Vyas at the age of 88 years and who was one of its life trustees. After completing an illustrious career in the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation whereof he retired as its Financial Commissioner in or around 1990, he had joined IRI and devoted whole-heartedly to its objectives and programmes towards promoting the renaissance movement and rationalist outlook in the country. Mr. Vyas attended almost all the meetings, conferences, seminars and discussions organized by the IRI whenever and wherever the same took place in various parts of India and made fruitful contributions to its deliberations and programmes. Eventually he became one of its life trustees. He also became its treasurer on which post he functioned for more than a decade and placed IRI on a sound financial footing. He had deep faith in the precepts of the radical humanism - the humanist philosophy propounded by M.N. Roy and his life was a living example as to what a true humanist should be. He was a pillar of strength to the IRI and his demise is a great loss to the humanist movement in general and to the IRI in particular. Indian Renaissance Institute pays its humble homage to his memory and conveys its deep condolences to the bereaved family. Ramesh Awasthi N.D. Pancholi Satish Chandra Varma Chairperson Vice-Chairperson Treasurer FOR AND ON BEHALF OF THE INDIAN RENAISSANCE INSTITUTE 4 THE RADICAL HUMANIST August 2019 Sad demise of Sh. Narottam Vyas, a senior The death of Narottam Vyas is very sad radical humanist and a very pleasant and and of course it is great loss to the humanist amicable human being, is a great loss to the movement. He was doing yeoman service to RH movement. We’ll greatly miss him in the the renaissance institute. RH/ IRI meetings. Our sincere condolences Dr. Narisetti Innaiah to the bereaved family and friends. Dr. Ramesh Awasthi, This comes as a great shock. We have just Chairman, IRI met 3 months back and exchanged pleasantries. I recall Shri Vyas ji attending practically all IRI So sorry to hear this sad news. It’s a great conferences, even if they are away from Delhi loss to the humanist movement in India. My and he kept bringing out suggestions that were heart pours out for him and his family. My very relevant for betterment of IRI. He carried deepest condolences. a smiling face persona and the movement would Veeranna Gumma miss his presence. Kiran Nanavati So so much sad for this unexpected death news. I talked with him as he was in his usual I am shocked to hear the news of the sad cheerful mood in our last Delhi Meet! Really demise of Shri Narottam Vyas ji. He was very we can’t know “where is our beginning and encouraging and active member of IRI. I pay where our end!” my humble tribute to him. Anjali Chakroborty Vidya Bhushan Rawat “Selections from The Radical Humanist” on the website ‘Selections from The Radical Humanist’ Volume I (1970 to 2005) and II (2006 to 2018) containing articles by all-time greats like M.N. Roy, (Justice) V.M. Tarkunde, Prof. Sib Narayan Ray, (Justice) Rajindar Sachar, (Justice) R.A. Jahagirdar, Kuldip Nayar and others on democratic freedoms, radical humanism, human rights, and emancipation of the downtrodden are now available at the website www.lohiatoday.com on the periodicals page where ‘The Radical Humanist’ magazine is put every month. The two volumes are also available at www.academia.edu and have been accessed by more than 500 people from various Indian cities and across the world from more than 35 countries. Readers may download these volumes from there and read whenever they like. - Mahi Pal Singh August 2019 THE RADICAL HUMANIST 5 Articles and Features : Editoral ‘Emergency’ Then and Now Mahi Pal Singh While addressing the first session of Lok of ruling also. If he does not, then he cannot get Sabha on 25th June 2019, the anniversary of away with it because the people watch his every promulgation of internal ‘Emergency’on the move as they watched every move of Mrs. night of 25th June 1975 by the then Prime Gandhi and punished her by removing her from Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi under Article 352 power when time came. During the 1975 of the Constitution, speaking on the vote of ‘Emergency’, the press was muzzled through thanks to the President for his address to imposition of censorship; today the same press Parliament a day earlier, the second time elected and electronic media has been made subservient Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, referred to him through the influence of money power, to that and criticised the Congress Party for or by getting unfriendly journalists removed from imposition of the Emergency on the country. It their positions, like Punya Prasoon Vajpayee. was indeed a black chapter in the history of the Only recently Ads in Times Group, ABP Group country and needs to be criticised by one and & The Hindu were frozen by the Modi all because at that time censorship was imposed government for not toeing his line. In Modi on the press, fundamental rights of the people regime 2.0, what is it if not press censorship 2.0 including the right to life were suspended and after the ‘Emergency’ regime of Mrs. Gandhi? about one lakh people including leaders of all Through refusal again and again to appoint opposition parties and their workers were judges recommended by the Collegium, the arrested under Maintenance of Internal Security government is using its pressure to get Act (MISA) which was a draconian law at that committed judges in the top judiciary, committed that time. Civil liberties of the people were to its Hindutva ideology and favourable to the completely undermined. The Congress Party present rulers. All other ministers in his ministry, was not guilty only of imposition of the as in his earlier rule 1.0, except Amit Shah, are ‘Emergency’ regime and concentration of lame duck ministers and all the powers are powers in one person, Mrs. Indira Gandhi, by concentrated in Mr. Modi who is today no less making other ministers in her ministry mere authoritarian than Mrs. Gandhi in 1975. puppets, but also of undermining the judiciary Thousands of political leaders and workers by appointment of committed judges to the apex were arrested and put behind the bars in 1975 court and through the constitutional amendment under the most draconian law at that time, 42 took away the power of the judiciary to Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) judicial review of the laws passed by the because Mrs.