Bombay Lefties

In countries with a good tradition of Formal Representation with elections, the pipe-dream of “Compact Revolutionary Zone” following a 1930s/40s model and also blinding oneself to what the condition of millions of Chinese workers is in so-called communist China of today is probably not the best informed way of trying to effect social change. With all its deficiencies, there does exist a framework and tradition of representation in our cities.

Maoist groups are known to use violence against each other.

Trotskyists reply by saying-When they do not have strength of argument, they use argument of strength.

Some of the social democrat trade unionists have joined the sugar lobby satraps.

You can still find some of the old vanguard sitting in the garden at Horniman circle in the Fort area of Bombay, discussing the murder of the Communist MLA Krishna Desai in the sixties and the way the government entices former Naxalites with rewards and amnesty.

Then there are the killings after the talks, both by the police and the rival groups.

“It is a good business model some of our college drop outs are following. Do extortion for social change for a few years and then settle down with a grant from the government,” one Old-Fox commented, sitting in the Horniman circle.

Petty bourgeois romantics in campus mid night debates are still found aplenty. People whose idea of social change with guns finds some of the more motivated going to forest areas only to learn about the inner workings of extortions and killings.

Some of them are still campaigning for OBC reservations, and though intelligent, they seem to be blinded to the debates regarding “Creamy layer formation within the OBCs” when facing their party ideologues.

Whatever happened to the guiding principle of the big revolutions-French and Russian which showed the world that the history of mankind is not that of corrupt indifferent monarchies and that humans can take their history into their own hands and shape it?

But how will social change take place? And which section of society has the requisite mass to bring it about?
The American revolutionary Thomas Paine wrote in “The Rights of Man” that change can take place through the Mob, through military or through legislation. We have to see what our level is. Mao added the “power flows through the barrel of the gun” terminology which found resonance in many young romantics the world over and some yet remember Calcutta “Great Terror” days of the seventies which saw new vocabulary added-You cannot make an omellette without breaking the egg.

Some eggs…and heads were broken.

A FREE CUP OF TEA

Ganesh, the owner of the tea stall, took out a 500 rupee note and gave it to the suspended student union leader.

“You are going to require it in the coming days. I know how well our unions are organized. In a few days, when the heat is over, the students are all going to go back to their class rooms, and some of the vocal ones will even blame you for your temperament,” he said, having seen many such cases over the decades.

“I have been part of a union which was formed in the 1930s”‘ Ganesh said.

“My factory closed down a decade ago, but the union registers, records, files are still there with me and our case is still going on in the court, though only three persons are regularly following it. I still bump into my co-workers in the streets sometimes and when some of them come to my tea-stall, I give them a free cup of tea with Vada-Pao.”

He then busied himself with the accounts of the previous day’s collections.

The next time they met at the Dadar railway station.
They had been in the discussion room together. One of the students had asked the speakers a simple question.

“You talk about our struggles in the villages and forests. But what is our legacy in the city trade unions?” No one could give a convincing answer.

Later, over another ‘free cup of tea’ Ganesh told of some workers from the closed mills, their lives-families destroyed, who are still hoping that their mills will reopen. A sad part which not many want to talk about but that does not mean it does not exist.
These workers are a social reality.

Another time, after the night train to Pune, Ganesh clearly said-“Define the agenda of the meeting friends” not being overawed by some of the ‘big-names’ who had gathered in the meeting. The talk about creating ‘liberated zones’ was not new to him.

He had seen many such meetings where even maps were taken out, and plans were chalked out. “In three years all the forests will be captured. In five, we will take the villages” one ‘big-name’ had said ten years ago.

For Ganesh, the romance also included what program they had for health and education. Who would take care of the tuberculosis patients and how will the postal and water services be organized. He had seen sick patients lie on the streets in front of the hospital where he had his tea stall.

He knew one man in his seventies who would come for his prostate check up every month from a village, and not bring his sons as they would waste away all his money.

The lone old man with the bifocals being pushed into the local train by the crowd, holding on tightly to his “Pishwi” (hand-bag in Marathi) in his hand which had his medicines, prescriptions and Employees Insurance card symbolized many different things to Ganesh. Issues of health, family, insurance, pension, all embodied in this frail man who found it difficult to pass urine, with a broken bifocal lens, and a ‘Pishwi”, worried and careful not to lose his employees insurance card.

How will you look after the young and old, the sick and infirm? That is an important question which lies at the core of every society. No so-called revolutionary can avoid it under the garb of logistics of guns and grenades.

“It is not the question of just killing a few ill-trained corrupt policemen” he used to say.

Some people hated him for asking these questions. Some called him various names, which are usual in these circles-…Revisionist, Capitalist Roader..the usual clichés which avoid the core specific issues.

What about education, primary, secondary and higher? He continued. Do you have a program for that?

One of his friends later told him to be a bit careful in these Pune meetings. Disappearances have occurred after the meetings.

“It does not quite matter to me,” Ganesh said.
“I have lived my life. Do you think I like looking at the accounts of my tea stall, when once I used to keep the accounts of my union” he asked.

While returning from Pune, he was attacked vociferously by one of the members.

Ganesh smiled quietly and just asked one question-Tell me one instance in my writings or work where I have spoken against the common working man.

They will meet again at Horniman Circle to continue their discussion.
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