Left Parties Take Out Huge Peace Rally in Kolkata Against War, Terrorism, Communalism

A huge rally, called by the Left parties in Kolkata on Tuesday against terrorism and war-mongering, saw lakhs of people out on the streets.

The busy thoroughfare from Dharamtolla Lenin Statue Crossing to Sealdah was teeming with anti-war and anti-terrorism placards and red flags, calling for peace in the sub-continent, “but not on the conditions set by US imperialism.”

Peace activist Arindam Mukherjee told Newsclick that Tuesday’s march was “historic” with slogans reverberating against war-mongering, terrorism and the “ploy” to communally divide the country on communal lines.”

The peace march comes in the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack, killing 26 tourists, including a local pony man, as well as civilian and armed personnel killed during the escalation of tension with Pakistan.

“The country has been seeing polarisation on communal lines,” said Mukherjee.

Also, the US President Donald Trump “poking his nose” in an issue that concerns the two neighbours was an insult to the people of the country, he added.

He said a section of ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP)s  IT cell even said that “Pakistan will be taken over by India”, and fake videos were circulated in the social media.

“After Trump’s tweet on X, the Indian Prime Minister called for a ceasefire. This is a bilateral issue, not a tripartite issue. This rally is also against the narrative of linking terrorism with Islam,” he added.

Mukherjee said peace rallies should be taken to grassroot areas to dispel the counter-narrative of hatred, war and jingoism being spread by BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).”

Speaking to reporters before the rally began, Left Front chairman Biman Basu said the Pahalgam (Kashmir) incident was a nefarious one. He said the fact that Adil, the owner of pony, too, died at the hands of the terrorists to protect tourists and uphold Kashmiriyat, is being forgotten by the media.

Addressing the rally, Communist Party of India (Marxist) state secretary Mohd Salim said, “We had held a march in Kolkata right after the Pahalgam attack and had said that when the country is under attack, then it is necessary to keep the people of the country united at all costs. Unity is our forte, which terrorists tried to break by this heinous act. Even foreign secretary Vikram Misri has admitted that the aim of terrorists was to break peoples’ unity in the country. But strangely, the BJP IT cell has targeted the foreign secretary and trolled him and his daughter. Even the wife of the dead Navy lieutenant did not escape the abuse of the BJP IT cell for speaking in support of people’s unity. The IT cell people are working like associates of the terrorists within the country,”

Salim added that, “Strangely, the Prime Minister did not take any stance against this (attack on Misri and the Navy officer’s wife) and instead zeroed in on independent media outlet, The Wire, for publication of true news.”