The Hindu : Q & A : V.S. Achuthanandan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 23, 2004

National

National - Elections 2004

Q & A : V.S. Achuthanandan

He is taciturn, very often inflexible when it comes to questions of ideology. A virulent fighter against corruption, V.S. Achuthanandan, is the main campaigner of the CPI (M)-led Left Democratic Front in Kerala. The CPI (M) strongman has no doubt that the Left will make the difference in the next Lok Sabha. In an interview with C. Gouridasan Nair, he sees the BJP and Congress as birds of the same feather and asserts that the contest for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in the State will be decided as much by the people's perceptions about the A.K. Antony regime and the `ill-effects' of its policies and decisions as by national issues. Excerpts:

How much of a presence will the Left have in the next Lok Sabha? How significant will it be?

On major national and international issues, both the BJP and the Congress have adopted similar positions. The Iraq war and the Palestinian question are examples of situations when India, which has the duty to play a leadership role among Third World and non-aligned nations, adopted a pro-American and a pro-Israeli position. We not only did not move our little finger to help Palestine, but also took positions that supported the Israeli regime. Similarly, on questions of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation, there has been nothing to differentiate between the BJP and the Congress. The economic policies pursued by the Congress Government earlier and the NDA Government later benefited only about eight per cent of the population. It was not the main Opposition, but the Left that tried to bring these issues to the fore in the last Lok Sabha. It thus goes without saying that a major presence for the Left and its allies in the next Parliament is of vital importance.

But how strong will be the Left contingent this time and what will be Kerala's contribution to it?

We will have a major presence in the next Lok Sabha. In the last Lok Sabha, we had 10 members from Kerala — nine from the CPI (M) and one from the Kerala Congress (Joseph). We will certainly increase our tally this time. We have already launched our campaign and, with all these allegations being traded by [the] Congress leaders, people know that only the Left and its allies would act with responsibility in Parliament. People do not have faith in the Congress. They have, for instance, seen that the Congress had not done anything to stop [the] demolition of the Babri Masjid and that on issues [affecting] the lives of the common man, only the Left parties have stood by them.

The indirect ties with the Congress in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere in India is something that the Left in Kerala has found difficult to explain. The BJP has been using this to question the credibility of the Left. How do you propose to tackle this problem?

This issue was there in the last election also. There were also attempts to blow it out of proportion and attack the CPI (M) and the Left. But the campaign did not have any impact in Kerala. Out of the 20 seats in the State, [the] CPI (M) won eight and [the] Kerala Congress (Joseph) one. Later, we had also won the Ernakulam byelection defeating the Congress. The same would happen this time. The crisis in the traditional industrial sector is quite serious. So is the crisis in the farm sector, particularly in view of the current dry spell. The Antony Government has also been indulging in indiscriminate privatisation in the fields of education and healthcare. The three years of [the] Antony Government have not offered any hope to the people. We are sure the people would react to all this.

From what you say, it appears that though this is an all-India election, issues specific to Kerala would have a major role in the poll ...

Certainly. The emphasis will certainly be on issues specific to the State because, for instance, though there were all these inter-State water disputes, nobody has dared to deny us our rightful share all these years. Two-third of prominence will be for Kerala-specific issues. But, at the same time, national issues will not be lost sight of.

The BJP claims that it will be able to open its account this time...

No. Neither because of the last four-and-a-half years of NDA rule or the situation in Kerala will the BJP be able to open its account in Kerala. They are campaigning that the minorities have begun to place faith in them. But have the NDA Ministers from Kerala been able to secure the assistance that is due to the State? They have no individuality and are unable to fight for th State's interests.

What will be the attitude of the minorities in this election?

Whether at the national or the State levels, [the] minorities are being persecuted. The Marad inquiry, for instance. The Antony Government is concerned about its survival. Mostly, this results in protection of RSS interests. Those in the State Cabinet, who claim [to] represent the minorities, are interested only in amassing wealth and not in safeguarding the interests of [the] minorities.

In the 2001 Assembly election, the UDF had secured 100 of the 140 seats in the Assembly. How can you then claim that you will be able to perform well this year?

There is a clear sign of rethinking among [the] voters and the wind is blowing in a different direction now as you might have seen with the outcome of the Ernakulam Lok Sabha byelection. Besides, the factional feud in the Congress is at its height and the administration is at a standstill. All this suggests that the UDF regime's failures will become more and more evident to the people.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National