COVER STORY
Red Star, Lode Star: Where Does The Left Stand With The Global Rise Of The Right
The global rise of the Right has made the Left not irrelevant but indispensable
Outlook Magazine - What’s Left Of The Left - 21 December 2025 Issue
The latest issue examines the cracks in the Left movement over the last century and the growing necessity for a rethink is the last one of Outlook’s trilogy: on the RSS, the Dravidian Movement and the Left. M.A. Baby, CPI(M) General Secretary, notes, its origins lie not in distant ideologies but in homegrown movements—from reformers like Vaikunta Swamikal to revolutionary anti-colonial struggles. Yet, as Dipankar Bhattacharya, CPI(ML) Liberation General Secretary, observes, the Left’s trajectory has been uneven, with missed opportunities and internal fractures coinciding with the rise of a resurgent Right. JNU Professor Amir Ali highlights the CPI(M)’s “Muslim problem,” where attempts to simultaneously appeal to Hindu nationalist and Muslim voters often alienate both, benefiting the BJP. Author Saira Shah Halim points out that women continue to face structural barriers to leadership, even as they form the backbone of movements. Student activism, too, remains crucial; as JNU Student Union President Aditi notes. Read these and more in Outlook's latest issue.
Why The Left Matters: A Century of Struggle, Social Justice And The Road Ahead
The future of the Left in India will be decided by the ability of the movement to rebuild and deepen its links with the working people.
Left’s Caste Blind Spot: Ambedkar And His Criticism of The Circle Of 'Brahmin Boys'
Dalit thinkers argue that caste as a dimension of social oppression was sidelined in communist practice. Intellectuals within the communist fold acknowledge that this neglect may be central to the crisis the Left faces today
Left-Brahmin, Right-Bahujan And Caste Of Ideologies
The Left needs to shrug its Left-Brahmin configuration to emerge with newer forms of solidarity.
Tracing The Naxalites: How India’s Maoist Insurgency Is Crumbling in 2025
The Maoist doctrine of agrarian armed struggle influenced sections of India’s Left since the 1940s and posed a major security threat to the State, only to crumble rather rapidly in 2025
The Right In The Left: Lessons And Limits
The challenge before communists is to use the lessons gleaned from historical hindsight to advance the movement today
The Left And The Muslim Question
Despite the more secular stance of especially the most important of the Left-wing parties, the CPI(M), there has been a Muslim problem the Left has always struggled with
Women Left Out: Gender At The Core
To secure the next century, the Left must fully embrace the idea that the fight for gender equality is not a secondary struggle; it must be the revolution itself
The Ruins Of An Idea: Capturing Shades Of The Left Across The Country
Factors like ideological rigidity, failure to adapt to a changing socio-political landscape, the rise of identity politics and Hindu nationalism and organisational weaknesses have led to the Left’s gradual decline in the country. Cramped rooms, high ceiling fans, dusty tables, plastic chairs and piles of files... the party’s offices across different cities now resemble spaces that are stuck in a time warp
Minimum Marxism: Reclaiming Class Politics
The Indian Left needs a fresh discourse on ways to solve caste and communal conflicts and not to fall prey to identity politics
Why The Left Matters: A Century of Struggle, Social Justice And The Road Ahead
The future of the Left in India will be decided by the ability of the movement to rebuild and deepen its links with the working people.
Left’s Caste Blind Spot: Ambedkar And His Criticism of The Circle Of 'Brahmin Boys'
Dalit thinkers argue that caste as a dimension of social oppression was sidelined in communist practice. Intellectuals within the communist fold acknowledge that this neglect may be central to the crisis the Left faces today
Left-Brahmin, Right-Bahujan And Caste Of Ideologies
The Left needs to shrug its Left-Brahmin configuration to emerge with newer forms of solidarity.
Tracing The Naxalites: How India’s Maoist Insurgency Is Crumbling in 2025
The Maoist doctrine of agrarian armed struggle influenced sections of India’s Left since the 1940s and posed a major security threat to the State, only to crumble rather rapidly in 2025
The Right In The Left: Lessons And Limits
The challenge before communists is to use the lessons gleaned from historical hindsight to advance the movement today
The Left And The Muslim Question
Despite the more secular stance of especially the most important of the Left-wing parties, the CPI(M), there has been a Muslim problem the Left has always struggled with
Women Left Out: Gender At The Core
To secure the next century, the Left must fully embrace the idea that the fight for gender equality is not a secondary struggle; it must be the revolution itself
The Ruins Of An Idea: Capturing Shades Of The Left Across The Country
Factors like ideological rigidity, failure to adapt to a changing socio-political landscape, the rise of identity politics and Hindu nationalism and organisational weaknesses have led to the Left’s gradual decline in the country. Cramped rooms, high ceiling fans, dusty tables, plastic chairs and piles of files... the party’s offices across different cities now resemble spaces that are stuck in a time warp
Minimum Marxism: Reclaiming Class Politics
The Indian Left needs a fresh discourse on ways to solve caste and communal conflicts and not to fall prey to identity politics
OTHER OUTLOOK MAGAZINE STORIES
Putin In India: Economic Push And Strategic Autonomy Shape A Relationship That Weathered Storms
The Modi-Putin summit may not have produced dramatic outcomes, but it has reaffirmed the durability of a relationship that has weathered geopolitical storms
How A Recent SC Judgement Puts Indian Federalism At Stake
India’s federation endured not because its design guaranteed balance, but because earlier governments exercised restraint
The Golden Harvest: The Indelible Imprint Of IPTA On Indian Cinema
The vision Indian People’s Theatre Association offered to Indian cinema continues to remain timeless—a commitment to art that invigorates citizens towards social betterment.
India’s Sanitation Crisis Is A Caste Crisis We Refuse To Acknowledge
It is not the lack of civic sense, but caste pride that is responsible for the Indian cleavage
Book Review: Katie Kitamura’s Audition Blurs Reality, Identity, And Desire
This Booker Prize-shortlisted novel walks a tight-rope between identity—real and imagined
Lovesong And Lament: A Review Of Anuradha Roy's Called By the Hills
This memoir is a beautifully crafted ode to the Himalaya as well as a cry from the heart about its continuing destruction
Who Is A Comrade?
Social media caricatures and campus crackdowns often distort the idea of a “Comrade”. Here’s what the word truly means in lived political struggle
