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UPA-Left differences widen

	June 27, 2005

Differences between the Manmohan Singh Government and the Left parties over economic issues and policies are widening. The differences have come to the fore on the question of disinvestment of 10 per cent Government stake in the state owned Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) and last week’s hike in the prices of petrol and diesel.

Representatives of the Left parties held a meeting with the Prime Minister and UPA chairperson on Sunday, June 19, but were unable to convince the Government to go back on the decision on BHEL disinvestment. The Government stuck to its line that privatisation and disinvestment cannot be equated. It asserted that disinvestment does not amount to privatisation if the public sector character of an undertaking is maintained. Refusing to go back on the BHEL decision, the Manmohan Singh Government instead gave an assurance that the character of the Navratanas (giant public sector undertakings) would not be altered and that it would meet all capital requirements of such PSUs in future.

The Left delegation at the meeting comprised CPI(M) Politburo members Harkishan Singh Surjeet and Sita Ram Yechury, CPI’s D. Raja and RSP’s Abani Roy. Apart from the Prime Minister and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister Shivraj Patil were present at the meeting.

CPI leader D. Raja said after the meeting, “We have agreed to disagree.” Asked if that meant that the Government would go ahead with its decision, Raja said : “I do not know what the Government is going to do. We strongly oppose it (disinvestment).” CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury, said : “We still oppose the 10 per cent disinvestment of BHEL. We will further discus the matter among ourselves and continue to protest against the Government’s decision.

According to Left sources, Chidambaram said the proposed disinvestment was well within the 24 per cent FII cap for the PSU. He said BHEL employees would be offered a part of the shares being off-loaded.

According to reports, Left leaders told the Prime Minister and his colleagues that their opposition to the disinvestment move was total and that the Government should be aware of the repercussions. They pointed out that continuation of PSUs was important because they are the only industrial units which have a quota for SCs and STs.

Though the Left Front Government in West Bengal has carried out a sweeping programme of PSU reforms, either privatising or closing down sick units, at the national level, the Left has sternly opposed such moves.



Prakash Karat warning

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat has said that the Government should understand that its survival depends on the people. Addressing a news conference in Hyderabad on June 24, he said the Government will become unpopular if it goes on isolating various sections of the people. It should learn from what happened to the BJP earlier. Karat said the CPI(M) wanted to convey to the Government that it should not deviate from the Common Minimum Programme. “It has committed the first serious breach of the CMP by planning divestment in BHEL, as part of the budget proposal to disinvest Rs.10,000 crore. BHEL is a major public sector undertaking and one of the navratanas”

Karat said if BHEL wanted to raise capital it could be allowed to do so on its own. But the Government’s involvement in the affair would be akin to the method adopted by the BJP-led Government earlier. “For us, it is a creeping form of privatisation and we have asked the Government to reconsider the move.

On the hike in fuel prices, he said the Left parties were left with no alternative, but to stage demonstrations across the country from June 28. “Despite our efforts to make the Government explore the five alternatives including a re-look at the excise duty structure, the Government has gone ahead. It should know that it cannot carry on with such anti-people decisions.”

Left parties held their own coordination meeting on June 26 to decide on their future course of action. The meeting discussed the June 28 agitation programme to protest against the increase in oil prices as well as the Government’s move to reduce its stake in profit-making public sector undertakings.



CPI to adopt hard posture against UPA Government

CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan has said that his party will adopt a hard posture against the Manmohan Singh Government because of its failure to deliver to the poor, the people who brought it to power. Speaking at Shahbad, in Haryana, he said the Left parties had already given many chances to the Union Government to perform according to the Common Minimum Programme and address concerns of the common man.

Bardhan said the Government should rollback 50 paise per litre road development cess on petrol and diesel, modernise refineries to cut down losses and stop interference of international agencies in deciding the prices of essential commodities. He said several social issues which as the scheme to generate employment, the proposed Employment Guarantee Act and Women Reservation Bill were still crying for attention.



Woman leader quits CPI

The CPI suffered a jolt last week when a prominent woman leader Sebha Farooqi who was a member of its national executive, quit the party to join the CPI(M). In a statement, she said the CPI had become a party of press releases without any serious political agenda.

Charging a section of the party leadership with being non-serious, she said : “There has been no serious debate on the issues of minorities, dalits or sustained campaigns on land reform or caste oppression or saffornisation in the last few years.”

In north India, where he CPI once had pockets of stronghold, Farooqi claims that the “structure of the party was collapsing “ because of lack of an urge to start a campaign.

Daughter-in-law of veteran CPI leader M. Farooqi and daughter of Ghulam Rabbani “Taliban,” former president of the Progressive Writers Association, Sebha says she resigned primarily due to the party’s lack of seriousness on women’s issue. During the Bihar Assembly poll, “no woman was given a ticket,” she says. According to her, “Issues of female foeticide, rape and reservation are political issues to which party has not paid enough attention.