Sandeep Pandey

Sandeep Pandey is a social activist from India,. He co-founded Asha for Education with Deepak Gupta and V.J.P Srivatsoy while working on his Ph. D in Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. After graduating in 1991, he returned to India to teach at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. He founded a people's group named Asha Parivar that focuses on strengthening democracy at the grassroots.

His work at [http://www.ashaparivar.org Asha Parivar] is focused on Right to Information and other forms of citizen participation in removing corruption and improving the efficiency of governance. He leads National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM), the largest network of grassroots people's movements in India.Fact|date=March 2008. NAPM includes groups like "Fish Workers Forum" led by Fr. Tom Kochery, who organized protests against specific religious groups [http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2002/254/ Need your support for Fr. Pallth's struggle] . NAPM includes representatives of organizations like Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society, Madurai [http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:YAkeGVYAbSUJ:www.ces.uc.pt/emancipa/cv/gen/dietrich.html+Christian+Institute+for+the+Study+of+Religion+and+Society+National+Alliance+of+People%27s+Movements&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us Gabriele Dietrich] , and attracts activists like Mercy Mathew (a nun working among the Gond tribe who uses the name Dayabai) [http://infochangeindia.org/200402276546/Other/Changemaker/Dayabai-lady-of-fire.html Dayabai, lady of fire]

Pandey is an alumnus of the Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University.

In 2002, he caused a controversy when he was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for emergent leadership. At 37, he was also the youngest Indian to have received the award. During the acceptance speech he claimed that United States is the "biggest terrorist state" in the world and, when challenged by the Philippine media, he returned his prize money [http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/DI13Ae02.html 'Asia's Nobels' unfazed by controversy, By Dino Manrique ] .

Pandey lead an Indo-Pakistan peace march from New Delhi to Multan in 2005.

He has served as an adviser to the Indian government's Central Advisory Board for Education (CABE).

Controversies

Sandeep Pandey has made a number of claims suggesting that the governments of terror-hit states are oppressing people.

* He claims that Abu Basher from Azamgarh and Shahbaz Hussain from Lucknow have been “framed” by police and Intelligence agencies [http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?id=249817 Harassment: UP Police slams charge] regarding serial bombings claimed by Indian Mujahideen.
* He opposes armed forces of India resisting armed insurgencies in North East India [http://www.assamtimes.org/hot-news/481.html Assam, J&K top human rights violation in country: Dr Sandeep Pandey] .
* He opposes the efforts of the India government forces in Kashmir [http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200434.htm Kashmir is for Kashmiris only, Interview with Sandeep Pandey, Milli Gazettee, 16-31 Jan 2004] .
* He believes that the Muslim bombing suspects in India, such as Indian Mujahideen are unlikely to have been involved in such crimes because of their young age. [http://www.countercurrents.org/pandey090908.htm An Encounter With The Terror Police, By Sandeep Pandey, 09 September, 2008]

He and his National Alliance of People's Movements has targeted and opposed industrial development projects, specially in backwards regions. They have opposed

*Coca-Cola plant at Plachimada, Kerala [http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2005/1052.html National Alliance of People's Movements To Launch Indefinite Dharna Against Coca-Cola] . Fr. Alex Philip from his group was arrested in a related protest [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_21_42/ai_n26694771 Globalization is a 'mutant variety of colonialism,' activists sayNational Catholic Reporter, March 24, 2006 by Paul Jeffrey] .
*Vedanta Resources which wants to develop mining and refining aluminum in Orissa, one of the poorest states in India [http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2007-08/2007-08-08-voa46.cfm?CFID=42014466&CFTOKEN=17210845 Tribal People in India Want to Protect Indigenous Way of Life] .
*He opposes globalization of Indian economy. His group regards globalization to be a "mutant variety of colonialism" [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_21_42/ai_n26694771 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_21_42/ai_n26694771]

He supports de-militarization of the Indo-Pak borders. He claimed in 2004 that Nepal is fully secure even though it does not have an army [http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200434.htm ‘‘Kashmir is for Kashmiris only’] (that was before the capitulation of the royal government of Nepal, largely as a result of the Maoist insurgency).

Pandey is said to have been close to the Maoists/Naxalites [http://naxalwatch.blogspot.com/2005/10/sandeep-pandey-naxal-terrorist.html Alleged Naxal Links] . He was one of the invitees of the Maoist CPI-ML group for a meeting held to honor the kin of about a thousand Naxalites killed in encounters with the police [http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/nov/15naxal.htm CPI-ML faction to honour kin of 1000 Naxalites] . He has worked to free Dr. Binayak Sen who is in prison in the Raipur Jail for "sedition and conspiracy to wage war against the state".

He is opposed to BJP, a major political party in India. He calls BJP "anti-national than any political regime or any political outfit" [http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200434.htm ‘‘Kashmir is for Kashmiris only’ ] .

External links

* Asha Parivar — Sandeep Pandey's current focus : http://www.ashaparivar.org/
* Citizen News Service [http://mycitizennews.blogspot.com/search/label/Articles%20of%20Ramon%20Magsaysay%20Awardee%20Dr%20Sandeep%20Pandey] - collection of published writings of Sandeep Pandey
* National Alliance for People's Movement: http://www.worldbanktribunal.org/national-alliance-of-peoples-movement.html
*" [http://www.milligazette.com/Archives/2004/16-31Jan04-Print-Edition/1631200434.htm Kashmir is for Kashmiris only] " - Interview with Sandeep Pandey, Milli Gazettee, 16-31 Jan 2004.

ee also

*Right to Information Act

References