Above photo: Hundreds of people gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to protest Israel’s brutal attacks on Gaza. CPI(M).
And Expose US Hypocrisy On Democracy.
Protesters in Delhi demanded Israel be declared an apartheid state and the Indian government break all diplomatic ties with it in solidarity with Palestinians.
Progressive groups in India held a national day of protest against Israel’s grave violations of the ceasefire in Gaza. The protestors also demanded the Indian government take a more assertive stand on the issue and stop indirectly aiding Israel’s criminal activities. The day of action was organized by the Palestine Solidarity Organization, a platform with participation from most of the left parties as well as student, women, and trade union organizations.
The central protest was organized in New Delhi where participants carried posters and banners denouncing Israel’s continued genocide in Gaza. They raised slogans against the Israeli occupation, its massacre of innocent Palestinian citizens, as well as US support for Israel’s criminal actions. They criticized the Indian government for its continued diplomatic ties with the apartheid state of Israel. Many also criticized the recent crackdown on immigrants’ participation in the movement for Palestine in the US which has targeted two Indian students as well as Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil.
Protesters demanded:
- the immediate end of the Israeli genocide
- the arrest of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for crimes against humanity as per the arrest warrants of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
- an end to India’s diplomatic relations with Israel
- the creation of an independent Palestinian state
Several leaders of the left movements spoke at the meeting including Subhashini Ali, polit bureau member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist); Dipankar Bhattacharya, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation; Mariyam Dhawle, Secretary of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA); Aishe Ghosh, former president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Student Union (JNUSU) and a leader of the Student Federation of India (SFI); along with several other student leaders.
Israel’s Criminal Acts In Gaza
Most of the speakers condemned the Israeli violation of the Gaza ceasefire earlier this week calling it a criminal act for which Israel must be held accountable by the international community.
After bombing and invading Gaza for almost 15 months and killing over 47,000 Palestinians, Israel finally agreed to a ceasefire in January this year. However, in an arbitrary move, it blocked the flow of humanitarian aid to the territory earlier this month starving millions of Palestinians.
On Tuesday, Israeli warplanes carried out indiscriminate bombings at various locations in Gaza killing over 400 people in a single day. Despite widespread condemnation, Israel has carried out several rounds of bombing in the besieged Palestinian territory. The total number of Palestinians killed since Tuesday is now at over 600, including over 200 children.
The Indian Government Enables The Genocide Of Palestinians, Groups Claim
Questioning the Indian government’s reluctance to clearly condemn Israel’s fresh ceasefire violations in Gaza, several speakers accused the Narendra Modi government of complicity in the Israeli genocide of Palestinians.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs said on Wednesday that it is “concerned about the situation in Gaza.” Though it demanded the release of the remaining hostages and an end to the blockade on humanitarian aid to Gaza it failed to mention the Israeli violations of the ceasefire or the killing of Palestinian citizens.
Going against India’s long term support for the Palestinian cause, the Modi government has also tried to block protests against Israel in the country earlier and punished expressions of solidarity with Palestinian people. It has maintained a very ambiguous stance on the Israeli war in Gaza in the UN too.
Noting how India’s failure to take a principled position on Israel’s criminal behavior is “shameful” and “unprecedented” Subhashini Ali also accused the Modi regime in the country of using its resources to negatively influence popular perceptions around the Palestinian question.
Ali claimed that Modi’s ultra-right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has pushed the false narrative that the question of Palestine is merely a question of religion. It was a part of its attempt to create hatred in India and make Palestinian resistance a sectarian cause. She rejected the narrative asserting that the Palestinian fight is a fight against imperialism, colonial occupation, and for the Palestinian people’s right to self determination.
Ali also underlined the steadfastness of the Palestinians who, despite facing bombings, death, and destruction for decades, have refused to surrender in front of the combined strength of imperialist oppression, and continue to fight an inspiring fight.
US Democracy Is Facade
Several speakers, such as professor Achin Vanayak and Dipankar Bhattacharya, cited the examples of Mahmoud Khalil, Badar Khan Suri, and Ranjani Srinivasan, university scholars in the US who have deen either detained or deported for their alleged participation in pro-Palestinian protests, and questioned the US’ assertions of being a democracy.
Speakers also questioned the Indian government’s silence on the mistreatment of its students. Abhigyan, leader of the All India Students Association (AISA) alleged that the silence may be a result of Modi’s attempts to save his close friend and billionaire Gautam Adani from his legal troubles in the US.
Adani, considered close to the BJP-led government in India, is facing criminal proceedings in the US for bribery and fraud linked to a deal between Adani Green Energy and a US firm.
Speakers called for mass nationwide mobilizations in the coming days in order to force the Indian government to change its position, to strengthen solidarity with Palestinians, and to break the false narratives created by the BJP government about the Palestinian resistance.