Old prejudice dies hard: Why the Left still doesn't trust NGOs

Decades ago, when I was a student at Delhi University, the Left-wing student organisations, one of which I was a part of, would hold a highly negative view of NGOs. They would go so far as to castigate them as imperialist or CIA agents -- just because they were foreign-funded, by bodies such as Amnesty, Oxfam, Human Rights Watch, and Greenpeace.

The view reflected what the leaders of the two Communist parties -- CPI and CPI-M -- would take. The reason seemed simple to them: the foreign organisations that funded the NGOs were critical of human rights records in the then Soviet Union and China. Guided by their foreign "supporters", both Communist parties opposed NGOs.

I too would take a somewhat negative view of NGOs until I came to Ahmedabad in 1993 to join the Times of India as assistant editor. Among those I first met to acclimatise myself with Gujarat's socio-political life were intellectuals and activists. I found that, contrary to what the Communist leaders thought, NGOs had a huge reserve of information to help me as a journalist -- something the Communists couldn't even fathom.

Among those who became central to guiding me were Achyut Yagnik, Martin Macwan, Gagan Sethi, Hanif Lakdawala, Prafull Trivedi, Sukhdev Patel, Nafisa Barot, and Anil Patel. Their deep understanding of different aspects of Gujarat's society -- and even its politics -- surprised me. Frankly, it is they who made me aware of casteism and communalism. For the first time I began seeing things beyond class struggle.

The reason I write this piece is that a recent article penned and distributed by a global Left-wing communications network appears to suggest that the Left across the globe has not yet fully shed its dislike for NGOs. The article claims that the answer to the rise of the ultra-right wave in Asia is "not the liberal politics that have been sold by the Western-funded NGOs and think tanks that for decades have portrayed themselves as the vanguards of democracy against fascism."

While this article does not declare NGOs imperialist or CIA agents, it seems the author, at the back of his mind, thinks exactly that. Let me quote the article: "Indeed, they (NGOs and think tanks) are, in the best case, completely ineffective, and in the worst case actively harmful."

Ironically, the ultra-right is now barring foreign funds to NGOs, calling them anti-national. And, in the United States, the foreign donors who had funded our NGOs are under scanner. I wonder what the Left has to say about this.

Comments

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. I don't know who owns this site, for there is nothing on it in the About Us link. It merely says, the Nashik Corporation site "is an educational and news website of the municipal corporation. Today, education and payment of tax are completely online." It goes on to add, "So we provide some of the latest information about Property Tax, Water Tax, Marriage Certificate, Caste Certificate, etc. So all taxpayer can get all information of their municipal in a single place.some facts about legal and financial issues that different city corporations face, but I was least interested in them." Surely, this didn't interest...

Disappearing schools: India's education landscape undergoing massive changes

The other day, I received a message from education rights activist Mitra Ranjan, who claims that a whopping one lakh schools across India have been closed down or merged. This seemed unbelievable at first sight. The message from the activist, who is from the advocacy group Right to Education (RTE) Forum, states that this is happening as part of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, which floated the idea of school integration/consolidation.

Did Bank of India send a fake SMS, or is its website under attack?

On the evening of February 14, after banking hours, I received a strange SMS from Bank of India (BOI)—where I maintain a very small, largely inactive account. I had opened it years ago simply because a branch was located near my home. However, finding their services quite poor, I rarely use it anymore.

A story Gujarat forgot: Dalits and the Dakor temple movement

The other day, I was talking with Martin Macwan, a well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader. He revealed to me an interesting chapter of the Gandhian movement in Gujarat — how Ravishankar Maharaj (1884–1984), a prominent Gandhian social reformer of the state, played a pivotal role in the struggle for temple entry for Dalits (then referred to as Harijans) in the late 1940s.

Varnashram Dharma: How Gandhi's views evolved, moved closer to Ambedkar's

My interaction with critics and supporters of Mahatma Gandhi, ranging from those who consider themselves diehard Gandhians to Left-wing and Dalit intellectuals, has revealed that in the long arc of his public life, few issues expose his philosophical tensions more than his shifting stance on Varnashram Dharma—the ancient Hindu concept that society should be divided into four varnas, or classes, based on duties and aptitudes.

Top Hindu builder ties up with Muslim investor for a huge minority housing society in Ahmedabad

There is a flutter in Ahmedabad's Vejalpur area, derogatorily referred to as the "border" because, on its eastern side, there is a sprawling minority area called Juhapura, where around five lakh Muslims live. The segregation is so stark that virtually no Muslim lives in Vejalpur, populated by around four lakh Hindus, and no Hindu lives in Juhapura.

Caste, class, and Patidar agitation: Veteran academic 'unearths' Gujarat’s social history

Recently, I was talking with a veteran Gujarat-based academic who is the author of several books, including "Social Movements in India: A Review of Literature", "Untouchability in Rural India", "Public Health and Urban Development: The Study of Surat Plague", and "Dalit Identity and Politics", apart from many erudite articles and papers in research and popular journals.

Remembering R.K. Misra: A 'news plumber' who refused to compromise

It is always sad when a journalist colleague passes away — more so when that person has remained firm in his journalistic moorings. Compared to many others, I did not know R.K. Misra, who passed away on February 23 after a long illness, very intimately, but we interacted occasionally over the years.

Most strategically constructed, Rahul's Parliament speech a solo act in franchise era

I am compelled to refer to a blog by communications expert Tushar Panchal titled "The Grip, the Choke, and the Follow-Through." Forwarded to me by a friend, it calls Rahul Gandhi's Parliament intervention on February 11, 2026, the "most strategically constructed speech of his parliamentary career."

Search This Blog