People's Democracy

DYFI Stages Demo against Graft, Price Rise

Nayan Bhuyan

THE Democratic Youth federation of India, Assam state committee staged a spirited demonstration in Guwahati on September 15 in protest against corruption and price rise and for education and employment. The demonstration was organised at Lakshidhar Bora Kshetra near the historic Dhighalipukhuri. The protesters who gathered at the venue from 11 am in the morning shouted slogans and displayed placards and festoons. Later at 2 pm, the state committee of the DYFI submitted a memorandum addressed to the prime minister through the deputy commissioner, Kamrup (metro) district. A meeting was also organised after the demonstration where state secretary of the DYFI Nayan Bhuyan explained the demands raised by the organisation. He said that the policies of neo-liberalisation pursued by the centre are the root of the all-pervasive corruption in the country, paving way to the corporate sector in nexus with unscrupulous elements in the government plundering the country’s resources. It is in this context that the people are voicing strongly for a powerful and effective Lokpal with the prime minister under its ambit. Again, no effective steps have been taken by the government to tackle the issue of prise-rise to give relief to the common people. On the other hand, the oil companies are subjecting the common people to severe distress under the false pretext of losses after the central government abolished the administrative price mechanism for petrol. The DYFI also criticised the state government’s role so far as the land-swap deal with Bangladesh is concerned. The land-swap deal was done without having any discussion on the matter with anybody and by keeping the people totally in dark. The DYFI further decried the state government’s role of going ahead with the Lower Subansiri Hydro-electric power project without addressing the genuine concerns of the people and thus resorting to a path of conflict with the people. The meeting was also addressed by the state secretary of the All India Lawyers Union Ashis Dasgupta, former SFI state secretary Suprakash Talukdar, former MLA Ananta Deka, and former DYFI state president Prabin Das. A seven-point demand charter was f handed over to the on duty magistrate by the DYFI state president Pearul Islam. Similar programme was organised in Tezpur of the Sonitpur district where a large number of youth and students participated. The district committees of Cachar and Karimganj also organised demonstrative programmes at Silchar and Karimganj respectively on that day.