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Sunday, Apr 20, 2008
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Left-UNPA leaders court arrest against price rise

Anita Joshua

Government policies blamed for current situation

— Photo: Shanker Chakravarty

Joint protest: UNPA and Left leaders (from left) Amar Singh, A.B. Bardhan, D. Raja, N. Chandrababu Naidu, Prakash Karat, Mulayam Singh, Sitaram Yechury and Yerrannaidu take out a procession against high prices of essentials in New Delhi on Saturday.

NEW DELHI: Amid demands that the Left parties save the country rather than the government, the entire Left leadership on Saturday courted arrest in the capital along with leaders of the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) in protest against rising prices.

Part of the week-long joint action planned by the Left parties and UNPA on the issue, the protest was preceded by a convention in which the Government came under attack for its ‘flawed policies’ that had led to this situation.

In a joint memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Left parties and the UNPA said the measures taken by the United Progressive Alliance government against inflation were ineffective. They said the government should ban futures trading in all essential commodities, withdraw all Bills allowing foreign direct investment in the commodities market, universalise the Public Distribution System, roll back the oil price hike, strengthen the essential commodities law and change the taxation structure of petroleum products.

Addressing workers from all the parties after courting arrest, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat said the protests would be stepped up if no concrete measures were announced by April 23 to arrest prices. Also, he said efforts were on to forge a third alternative.

Earlier, speaking at the convention, Mr. Karat said only people’s action would force the government to take action. Alleging that the government was not particularly concerned by the price rise, he said as it was eager to take credit for the nine per cent growth of the economy, it should also take responsibility for the inflation.

His counterpart in the CPI, A.B. Bardhan, said the government should proceed against hoarders, particularly the big multinationals.

‘Save country, not government’

The first among the speakers to ask the Left parties to “save the country, not the government” was journalist M.J. Akbar who sought to link inflation directly with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s economics.

His slogan was echoed by UNPA chairman Mulayam Singh and the former Haryana Chief Minister and Indian National Lok Dal leader Om Prakash Chautala.

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