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Left leaders question UPA government’s priorities

Mumbai: Debunking the policies of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government and distancing themselves from the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), especially after coming under attack for voting with the BJP in the trust vote, the Left parties on Monday made a strong pitch for a third front.

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan spoke here at a meeting of the CPI(M), the CPI and the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP). The meeting was part of the Left’s ongoing nationwide campaign against the nuclear deal and the policies of the Congress.

Mr. Karat questioned the priorities of the government. The regions of Jammu and Kashmir had become polarised. Terrorism continued unabated and the farm crisis was still acute. But the UPA’s focus was only on the nuclear deal. In July, seven Ministers were abroad negotiating the deal. He also demanded to know why there was no monsoon session of Parliament, slated for August 11.

He said the government avoided the session because it would have had to “manufacture” a consensus on every issue.

While the ongoing talks with the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) formed the backbone of the Left critique, the leaders said the UPA’s economic policies and its affinity to the United States was the fundamental cause for the burning problems, especially inflation.

Drawing a comparison between the Congress and the BJP on policy issues, Mr. Bardhan said that the BJP had encouraged forward trading which allowed big corporates to stock agricultural produce and push up prices. He referred to the official figures that said over 70 per cent lived on less than Rs. 20. How these people survived on that amount was a miracle, he said. “Truly, this is Incredible India.”

Mr. Bardhan accused the UPA of going against the Common Minimum Programme agreed upon at the time of forming the government.

Mr. Karat and Mr. Bardhan welcomed the support received from different quarters. Mr. Bardhan counted on the support of Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party, H.D. Deve Gowda’s Janata Dal (Secular), Chandra Babu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party, S.V. Jadhav of the PWP and independents for a strong third front.

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