The Hindu : CPI deplores announcement of election-eve sops

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 14, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Cuddapah

CPI deplores announcement of election-eve sops

By Our Staff Reporter

CUDDAPAH, JAN. 13. Leaders of the Communist Party of India (CPI) on Tuesday lambasted the Central and State Governments for announcing sops requiring hundreds of crores of rupees, resembling a `mini-budget' at the fag-end of the financial year, allegedly with an eye on the coming elections to the State Assembly and the Lok Sabha.

The CPI district executive meeting held here on Tuesday adopted a resolution opposing the dissolution of the Assembly and a similar plan by the NDA and termed it a mockery of democracy, the district CPI secretary, G. Obulesu, told a press conference here. The meeting observed that polls were being advanced without giving specific and justifiable reasons, he said.

Ridiculing the contentions of the BJP and the TDP that they would go to polls on the development plank, Mr. Obulesu alleged that the so-called development had benefited the rich and influential sections, but ignored farmers, industrial workers, artisans and poor sections. Resenting the State Government's move to allot 35,000 cell phones to DWCRA members, he said the Centre was reducing duties on cell phones to help the TDP.

The CPI executive decided to take out prachara jatha from February 10 in all the 11 Assembly constituencies in the district and attend a Rayalaseema-level public meeting at Anantapur on February 16, he said. The Cuddapah municipal administration was haphazard with poor maintenance of roads, drains, insanitation and mosquito menace, he alleged. The party would launch an agitation by the month-end on the wayward municipality affairs in Cuddapah, he said.

The party would mop up public donations to the tune of Rs. 5 lakhs in the district by urging the people to give their `vote and a note', to increase the party's representation in the Assembly and Parliament, the CPI secretary stated. The tour of Election Commission officials in Cuddapah district was `farcical' as they did not visit places where enrolment of bogus voters was done, he alleged. The EC officials merely announced inclusion of 1.02 lakh new voters and deletion of 1.04 lakh bogus voters, without comprehensively examining the issue, he alleged.

The CPI leaders, K. Linga Murthy, P. Krishnamurthy, P. Chennakesava Reddy, Venkatasubbaiah and AITUC leaders, B. Ramaiah and W. Ramu, also participated.

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CPI deplores announcement of election-eve sops