Thousands of people all across India took to the streets yet last week to express solidarity with Palestine and demand the immediate end of all hostilities Israeli attacks. The protesters demanded the Indian government sever all ties with the genocidal regime in Israel, terming relations with it a betrayal of the country’s anti-colonial legacy.
The mobilizations were carried out across universities, outside state institutions, and as city centers in various Indian states throughout the week despite the attempts by some state authorities and right wing groups to disrupt them.
In one such protest in Hyderabad on Wednesday, October 8, at least eight student activists were booked by the police after they resisted an assault on their protest by right-wing student groups. The police allegedly participated in the attack and tried to snatch the banners and the Palestinian flags.
Another similar protest, led by various student organizations in Delhi University, faced attacks from right-wing student groups on Thursday.
The protests and solidarity rallies were called to mark the occasion of two years of Israeli genocide in Gaza by the country’s major left parties, including the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, and several others.
Mobilizations were also organized by student groups such as the Student Federation of India (SFI) and women’s groups, such as the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), among others.
Read More: Within the US, pro-Palestine movement vows to continue struggle for lasting peace
One protest gathering, organized by the left parties in Hyderabad, was disrupted by the police when it arrested the Telangana state secretary of the CPI (M), John Wesley, and others, as they led a march in solidarity with Palestinians in the city on Tuesday.
SFI decided to organize 18,000 demonstrations across the country between October 8 and October 15 in memory of 18,000 Palestinian children killed by the Israeli regime in Gaza since the beginning of the war in 2023.
The protesters expressed hope that the ceasefire announced on Thursday will be implemented unlike in the past when Israel deliberately violated similar ceasefire announcements.
More than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed and millions displaced in the Israeli war on Gaza which has also destroyed almost all civilian infrastructure in the besieged territory.
No relation with the Zionists
Addressing a meeting in Delhi on Thursday, Arun Kumar, polit bureau member of CPI (M) condemned the Indian state’s growing collaboration with Israel despite its genocidal characteristic. He called it a betrayal of India’s anti-colonial legacy and demanded a complete boycott of Israel.
Arun expressed his apprehension that the ceasefire announced on Thursday will be observed by Israel in its true spirit. The most optimistic scenario is that “the killing of Palestinians in the way it was done all these years may stop for now. However, that would not mean the end of the Israeli war against the Palestinians. There cannot be a real peace in the region until a separate and independent Palestinian state is created,” Arun said.
A US-mediated ceasefire was announced last Wednesday night (Gaza time). The ceasefire deal provides for the release of all hostages by Hamas in return for the gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Read More: Israeli withdrawal, captive for prisoners swap, and entry of aid: What’s in the Gaza ceasefire deal?
Addressing the gathering of teachers, students, and workers, Amarjeet Kaur, leader of the CPI, accused the Indian government of failing Palestine and the values of India’s freedom struggle by aligning with Zionist Israel.
She claimed the closeness between Zionism and Hindutva, the ideology of the ruling dispensation in India, are similar in their hatred towards people of other religious denominations. This hatred is their common bond which is furthered by imperialist interests, Amarjeet claimed.
She questioned the growing collaboration between Indian and Israeli companies and noted that this is primarily in the field of weapons manufacturing and trade. Amarjeet noted that India buys more than 48% of all Israeli weapons it exports. She called it a shameful and dangerous development.
The Palestinian struggle for self determination is a struggle which cannot be killed, irrespective of the military and economic means applied. She asserted and proclaimed that India’s working classes and left parties will always stand with Palestinian struggle.
A similar large gathering was held in Chennai, capital of India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. It was addressed by state CPI (M) secretary P Shanmugam and Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin.
Both speakers highlighted the role of the US in Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, noting how it has supplied billions of dollars worth of weapons to Israel in the last two years and prevented the UN from taking any effective measures to end the war.
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