The Hindu : National : SUCI calls for State-wide bandh today

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SUCI calls for State-wide bandh today

Raktima Bose

KOLKATA: The Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI) has called a 12-hour State-wide bandh on Tuesday in protest against the rising prices of essential commodities and the alleged atrocities by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on political opponents throughout West Bengal.

According to Provash Ghosh, secretary of the SUCI, the bandh has been called on four demands. “Primarily it is in protest against the increasing prices of essential commodities for which both the Centre and the State government are responsible. We also demand the immediate withdrawal of security forces from the Maoist-affected Lalgarh region in the State’s Paschim Medinipur district and solve the issue through dialogue,” Mr. Ghosh told The Hindu.

Immediate stoppage of the CPI(M)’s alleged violence in the State and working out a viable solution for students of the Primary Teachers’ Training Institutes are the SUCI’s other demands.

No Trinamool support

The SUCI is an electoral ally of the Trinamool Congress, and holds a seat in Parliament and two in the State Assembly. The Trinamool, however, declared that it would not support the bandh.

Partha Chatterjee, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly and a senior Trinamool leader, said the party did not want to “burden people with another bandh while they are already struggling with the price rise issue.”

“Calling bandhs alone cannot solve the issue of rising prices of essential commodities. Our party believes in mobilising public opinion against the issue by holding rallies in the districts as well as pressurising the State government into taking effective measures. So we are not supporting the SUCI bandh,” Mr. Chatterjee said.

Police officials said precautionary measures would be taken to prevent untoward incidents.

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