INDIA: Raise voice against the anti-people Acts of the BJP government! CPI(MAOIST)

 COMMUNIST PARTY OF INDIA (MAOIST) 

Central Committee 

Press Release 

26 September, 2023 

Raise voice against the anti-people Acts of the BJP government! 

Most of the scores of Acts passed and made in the monsoon and special sessions of the Parliament in 2023 by the Brahmanic Hindutva Fascist BJP government with its numerical strength are not only anti-people but concern the formation of Hindu rashtr, repression on the people, violation of tribal rights, saffronisation and corporate loot. Most of these are amendments to the anti-people, corporate favourable earlier Acts. 

The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill will become an Act after the approval of the President. It provides facilities to businessmen and merchants and makes easy the activities of several trades. It amends 183 clauses of 42 central Acts implemented through 19 Ministries. It comes under non-offense category. It means that any violation of these Acts will not be registered as a crime. It confines to compensation and fine. 

Let us take the example of Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Clause 27 D of the Act specifies a punishment of 2 or a minimum 1-year imprisonment and a Rs. 20,000 penalty for preparation of non-standard quality, spurious medicine. With the present Act, imprisonment can be avoided with a mere Rs. 5 lakhs. The provisions in the Environment (Preservation) Act, 1986, Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Act, 1981 have been changed to a punishment with a fine of Rs. 15 lakhs through a joint secretary. The Indian Forest Act had been amended and powers were given to punish the forest officers for the losses with compensation. The provision of imprisonment for 3 years in the Information and Technology Act, 2000 is amended and a provision to collect Rs. 25 lakhs took the place. Indian Post Office Act, 1898, Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 and other Acts were also amended in this manner. Earlier too, no capitalist had been punished as per these Acts. The provisions of the existing Act that is a light for consumers, patients and on the whole the people and a scope for struggle shall end the provisions and gives total exemption helps the big capitalists. Modi is with the corporates, for the corporates and is the confidence of the corporates. 

The Digital Personal Data Protection (DGDP) Bill made in the name of protection of privacy and the protection of data of the citizens is the veil of the stealth of data of citizens and a violation of their privacy. The government and its agencies can penetrate into the privacy of the citizens in the name of national security and disrupt phone calls, SMS, photo, video, computer etc. Thus, the government not only violates the fundamental rights of security and privacy of the data of citizens, but can also keep a vigil and deceive. The BJP government is making an attack on the Act of Right to Information and is searching a way to weaken it. The Forest Conservation (Amendment) Bill passed in the Parliament ends the original intention of the Act and is made to hand over the natural wealth and resources of the forest areas of the country to the domestic and foreign corporate companies. The Act is a danger to the survival, identity and self-respect of the tribal people. it shall end the Constitutional rights provided in the 5th Schedule, PESA, 6th Schedule and Forest Rights Act, 2006. Broad areas were kept outside the purview of the Act with several conditions and provisions. The non-Hindi speaking areas of the East and North East, one thousand square meters of the forest area along Railway line and common roads, the line of control of national importance and specified organisational structure related to national security, 100 kms of forest area of international borders, 10 hectares of forest area of organisational structure related to security, 5 hectares of organisational structure related to security in ‘Left Wing Extremism’ affected areas and finally, the area that is not notified in the government records after 1980 October 25 shall be exempted as per the Act. The government kept aside the historic judgment of the Supreme Court in 1996 that notified areas containing trees as forest. The name of the bill is changed to Forest Conservation and Promotion Act, 2023 and on the contrary leaves the forest and mineral resources of the country open to the loot of the corporates. 

Instead of continuing the hearing of the petitions filed against the annulment of Article 370 by the Supreme Court, the central government passed 4 bills in the Parliament regarding Jammu and Kashmir. Out of these, the Jammu 2 and Kashmir Re-organising (Amendment) Bill, 2023 removed the special status provided by the Constitution to Kashmir. It is against the people of Kashmir. However, the special status had never been implemented. 

The Bio-diversity (Amendment) Bill 2021 passed in the Rajya Sabha on 1st of August liquidates the intention to preserve bio-diversity and is retrogressive. The provision of imprisonment to crime of loss to bio-diversity was ended and an amendment of putting fine took the place. This benefits the capitalists to loot the biological resources and leaves them to destroy the bio-diversity. 

The special Constitutional provision to the Delhi government in Article 239 AA is weakened in the National Capital Territorial of Delhi Amendment Bill (GNCTD (Amendment)) Bill that degraded it to a position lower than Municipal Corporation. The sub-Clause (4) of Article 239 mentioned that the Chief Minister shall lend support and suggestion to the Lieutenant Governor (LG). This undoubted means that the Constitution provided representational and Parliamentary kind of government to Delhi. The present bill provided the control of the government officers to LG from the hands of the Ministers. Now the Ministers of Delhi government are at the mercy of the LG and his officers. The Supreme Court shall decide whether the Bill is just or not. 

The BJP government did not consider the judgment of the Supreme Court regarding the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commission and passed the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commission (Appointment, Services and Time period) Bill in Parliament. According to this, the procedure of appointment of Election Commissioner does not lie with the Chief Justice. It is given to a Central Cabinet Minister appointed by the Prime Minister. In this manner, control of the government had been established on a Constitutional body such as the Election Commission. 

Mines and Minerals (Development, rationalization) Amendment Bill amends the 1957 Act. This starts license policy to blast the mines. This gives way to give license to blast to big business men in the place of small business men and small-scale mining. It means that the path for the development of big business men and giant mining owners is facilitated. The Bill also removed nuclear minerals from the category of important minerals. This clearly means that these will be added to the general category of minerals and the lease for mining will be given to corporate companies. Similarly, Sea minerals (Development and Rationalisation) Amendment bill will provide 50-year lease for the mining of sea minerals to private (corporate companies) persons. Moreover, the Act provides exemption to loot and destroy the valuable bio-diversity under the Sea by domestic and foreign corporate companies. 

The India Penal Code (IPC), Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and Indian Evidence Act made during the British period are annulled and three bills are brought forth in its place, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (meaning Indian Judicial Code), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (meaning Indian Citizen Protection Code) and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (meaning Indian Evidence Bill). There are 313 amendments in the three bills. The three bills were named in Hindi, looking down the opposition from the opposition parties. We need to see the amendments to these Codes as a step towards the formation of Hindu rashtr. 

Therefore, our party calls upon the oppressed classes, the workers, farmers, small and medium capitalists, special social sections such as Dalit, tribal, religious minorities, women, Kashmir and North East nationalities, democrats, progressive, patriotic forces, left forces, civil rights organisations, human rights organisations to unite and raise voice with the demand to withdraw all the anti-people, traitorous Acts made in the monsoon session; against the Hindutva Fascist BJP government that is handing over the people’s natural wealth and resources to the domestic and foreign corporate giant companies with the support of government; and to go forth to build an organised people’s agitation to stop and fail the attempts of establishing Hindu rashtr/Brahmanic Hindutva Fascist India. 

Abhay 

Spokesperson 

Central Committee