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    After CAA, NRC, special revision in Bihar new effort to disenfranchise, says Baby

    Speaking at the valedictory session of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers and Artists Association (TNPWAA), Baby said that while 50 years ago the country faced a declared Emergency, today’s crisis is more insidious and deeply rooted.

    After CAA, NRC, special revision in Bihar new effort to disenfranchise, says Baby
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    DMK MP Kanimozhi, CPM general secretary MA Baby and CPM MP Su Venkatesan sharing a moment at the event

    CHENNAI: CPM general secretary MA Baby on Friday said the Indian society is facing a far more dangerous threat today than during the Emergency, and called for a collective cultural and political detoxification to confront the "poisonous forces of neo-fascism" that have permeated all aspects of national life.

    Speaking at the valedictory session of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers and Artists Association (TNPWAA), Baby said that while 50 years ago the country faced a declared Emergency, the current crisis is more insidious and deeply rooted.

    "Back then, we fought against the darkness (of the Emergency). Today, we are confronted with poisonous forces of darkness that have injected communal poison into every cell of Indian society," he said. "The human body is made of cells. Similarly, every segment of our society is now affected by this communal and neo-fascist poison."

    He emphasised that defeating such forces politically is necessary but not sufficient. "The Indian society needs to be detoxified politically and culturally. That is the essential task of cultural organisations like TNPWAA. This is not only a political struggle, but a cultural one too," he said.

    The meeting was attended by DMK Parliamentary Party leader Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, CPM’s Madurai MP Su Venkatesan, TNPWAA president Madukkur Ramalingam and its general secretary Aadhavan Dheetchanya.

    Baby drew historical parallels with Nazi Germany, warning that India is witnessing similar authoritarian patterns. "Just as Hitler’s regime introduced the Nuremberg Laws to disenfranchise people, we now see comparable efforts in the Citizenship Amendment Act and the NRC. Now it's SIR, the special intensive revision of the voters list in Bihar," he said.

    Referring to the killings of rationalists and dissenters such as Kalburgi, Gauri Lankesh and Govind Pansare, Baby said the same ideological weapon that killed Mahatma Gandhi was still at work.

    "The revolver that killed Gandhi did not stop its work. That violence and hate continue to operate — not in form, but in ideology," he said, noting the ideological roots in the RSS.

    "TNPWAA was born in a time of darkness, and history has come full circle. Its role is more vital than ever. In a society where even comedians are being charged with speaking out, artists and writers must again rise to resist the growing darkness," Baby said.

    DTNEXT Bureau
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