1965 war hero Abdul Hamid's name restored at UP school entrance after backlash
Ghazipur (UP), Feb 18 (PTI): Following protests by the family of 1965 war hero Abdul Hamid, education authorities in Ghazipur reinstated his name at the entrance of the government primary school in his native village, days after it was removed during recent paint work.
The school, located in Dhamupur village under Jakhanian tehsil, about 35 km from the district headquarters, was originally named after Param Vir Chakra awardee Abdul Hamid, who studied there during his childhood.
However, five days ago, after repainting the school, the Basic Education Department replaced his name with "PM Shri Composite School" at the main gate, sparking outrage.
Initially, education officials attempted to pacify the family by writing Hamid's name on a wall instead of restoring it at the entrance. However, Hamid's grandson, Jameel Ahmad, escalated the matter to higher authorities.
"Today (February 18), the name of the school was restored at the main entrance as 'Shaheed Veer Abdul Hamid PM Shri Composite School, Dhamupur, Jakhanian, Ghazipur district,'" Ahmad confirmed.
Hamid's family criticised the Basic Education Officer Hemant Rao for removing his name in the first place.
"It was an inexcusable mistake to erase the name of a war hero who sacrificed his life for the nation," Ahmad said.
Samajwadi Party president and former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav slammed the BJP-led state government over the issue.
"It is extremely reprehensible and indecent that those who sacrificed their lives for the country are getting less importance than someone. Now all that remains is that some people change the name of the country from 'India' to 'BJP'," Yadav said on X.
"Those who neither played any role in getting independence nor in saving the independence, how can they know the importance of martyrs," he added.
ये बेहद निंदनीय और अशोभनीय है कि देश के लिए शहीद होने से अधिक महत्व किसी और को दिया जा रहा है। अब बस यही बाक़ी है कि कुछ लोग देश का नाम ‘भारत’ की जगह ‘भाजपा’ रख दें।
— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) February 18, 2025
जिन्होंने न आज़ादी दिलाने में कोई भूमिका निभाई, न ही आज़ादी बचाने में वो शहीदों का महत्व क्या जानें।। pic.twitter.com/CY6Lvls6WL
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Marxism will remain relevant despite Left electoral's losses, says general secretary M A Baby
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) General Secretary M A Baby on Thursday asserted that the Left movement would remain relevant despite not being in power in any state, saying the ideology would continue to endure as long as social and economic inequalities persist.
Hitting back at BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar over his reported remarks that Marxism had become irrelevant, Baby, in an interview with PTI Videos, said, "So long as there is division in society, so long as there is exploitation of the majority of workers, peasants and ordinary masses by a handful of billionaires, Marxism will remain relevant."
"That perhaps Mr Rajeev Chandrasekhar may not be able to understand, but this is the fact of the matter," he said.
Baby acknowledged that the CPI(M)-led Left was currently without an elected government in any state, but maintained that electoral setbacks would not diminish the movement's role.
"We may not have an elected government in any state. There were occasions when we didn't have a government. But the red flag and the commitment to organise and struggle for the rights of the dispossessed, marginalised and exploited will always be upheld by CPI(M) and the Left movement," he said.
He said the Left continued to enjoy support among workers, peasants, agricultural labourers, youth, students and women, and argued that the movement remained necessary because "oppression and assault" continued in society.
"So long as such problems exist in society, the red flag and the working class movement will continue to work among the masses," the Left leader said.
Exuding confidence on the Left's revival, Baby said the party would reflect on the reasons behind its electoral loss.
"We may be rejected in one election, but we will stage our comeback by understanding what went wrong with us," he said, adding, "We will listen to people and we will come back with higher strength."
Baby also criticised the Congress over reported factional tensions in Kerala after the Congress-led United Democratic Front's victory in the state.
"The way they are behaving is being watched by the people of Kerala," he said, referring to infighting within the Congress.
"Those who have given a massive majority to Congress and UDF would be watching all this," he added, while urging party leaders to "settle the problem in an amicable, democratic manner".
Referring to West Bengal, Baby alleged that violence had escalated following the BJP's victory in the state assembly polls.
"It is quite unfortunate that the moment BJP snatched a massive victory in West Bengal, violence has also started on a big scale," he said.
He also accused the Trinamool Congress of being "notorious for violent activities" and alleged that the "RSS-controlled BJP" had "unleashed violence in many places" after the election results.
"This is not good for Bengal, not good for the country. We wish and hope that normalcy would be restored as soon as possible," he said.
Baby said the CPI(M) and the Left in West Bengal would continue efforts to "pacify people" and avoid violence and confrontation.
Asked about former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan not reacting publicly to the election results, Baby said Vijayan would respond "at an appropriate time".
