Kerala   

Bid to end SEZ row at LDF meet

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: What was conceived as a routine meeting of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) State committee on Monday is turning out to be a crucial one for the ruling alliance on account of the stand-off between the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the CPI over the latter’s demand for a State-level law to govern special economic zones (SEZs).

Either side is keeping its fingers crossed about the outcome, but there are straws in the wind to suggest a keen bid by each to end the stand-off and facilitate submission of the 10 SEZ proposals cleared by the secretaries’ panel to the Centre before the September 30 deadline.

The CPI leadership is set on extracting an assurance on SEZ legislation at the earliest and may well cite the legislative initiatives undertaken by many other States and the provisions in the Central SEZ Act of 2005, which, the party feels, offer scope for enabling legislation at the State level.

The CPI insists on a specific SEZ law because the party is of the view that legislation is necessary to enforce the 12-point guidelines approved by the LDF committee at its last meeting. The CPI(M) does not think that a law is absolutely essential at this point of time. The party feels that the present SEZ promoters can be brought around to accept a policy statement on SEZs to be approved by the Cabinet. Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, who led the discussions at the last LDF committee meeting, had informed the meeting that a majority of the promoters had agreed to abide by the conditions. Although the last meeting of the Cabinet was expected to clear the proposals approved by the secretaries’ panel, it could not do so as the CPI Ministers insisted on the government deciding on specific legislation.

The CPI stand had resulted in some tension in the Cabinet meeting and it was decided to take up the matter at a special meeting of the Cabinet on Monday after the LDF arrived at a final decision.

The LDF panel will meet in the morning and the Cabinet meeting is scheduled for the evening. The CPI claims that the LDF committee had decided to go in for legislation.

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