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Basu wants Left to join Cong-led govt
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V.P. Singh for Left joining govt
Thackeray against Sonia, disinvestment
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No ‘scapegoat’ for defeat, says BJP
Karunanidhi to meet Sonia
Chautala should quit: Jindal
Unsuccessful TDP candidate commits suicide
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Scrap disinvestment policy, says Left
New Delhi, May 14 After an informal meeting of leaders belonging to the two parties, CPI General Secretary A.B. Bardhan said that new government would have to do away with the policy of disinvestment of PSUs. “We have to reverse the process of Arun Shouries. Disinvestment in IOC and BPCL should be scrapped,” he said. The reaction of the Left parties sent jitters in the stock market with the oil firms’ shares losing up to 17 per cent during the day-long trading. The PSU Index fell by over 14 per cent to 3223.32 points, the lowest ever in its history as domestic and foreign investors dumped these scrips. Mr Bardhan said the new parties in the proposed coalition should work out a common minimum programme immediately on some basic needs that would essentially exclude disinvestment in profit-making PSUs. CPM General Secretary Harkishen Singh Surjeet said, “We cannot afford it (disinvestment programme followed by the NDA). We oppose disinvestment of profit-making PSUs. All mistakes of the NDA government have to be rectified” “This disinvestment policy has seriously harmed the country. The present mandate is a reflection of people’s verdict on the wrong economic policies of the NDA government. This policy has to be changed.” CPM leader Sitaram Yechury said the law enacted by Parliament to restrict the number of ministries at the Centre would help us to scrap the Disinvestment Ministry as it was a totally unnecessary ministry. “There is no need to disinvest profit-making PSUs identified as Navratnas. The other profit-making PSUs need to be strengthened and made more efficient,” he said. About loss-making PSUs, he said the government should try to make them more viable by bringing in more private investment through joint venture and if every effort failed then a decision to dispose off such PSUs could be taken in consultation with management and workers. Asked about the government formation, Mr Bardhan said the Left parties were discussing all modalities to find a coalition. “We want to assess the reactions of other parties. We are trying to contact Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, NCP leader Sharad Pawar and DMK chief M. Karunanidhi,” he said Asked what could be the reservations for joining the government, he said, “We will have to see what will be the policies of the new government. What will be the common minimum programme and what will be the economic policy.” He went on to add that he was not spelling out the issues like agriculture, labour and industrial policies as these would be part of the discussions. “We are making efforts to unite all supporting parties who have played a role in defeating the BJP,” Surjeet said. Meanwhile, the CPI has placed before the Congress President several conditions for partnership in power at the Centre. These include commitment for creation of a Ministry of Employment, scrapping of the NDA government’s Disinvestment Policy and constitution of a sub-committee to review history text books. Mr Bardhan said here today that he told the Congress President, that there could be no question of running the government without a common minimum programme for governance. Mr Bardhan said that he also impressed upon the Congress leadership the need to abolish the Ministry of Disinvestment. “Development must be accompanied by growth and employment. If necessary, they should set up a Ministry of Employment. There are 10 crore persons in the country who are unemployed. There should not be any downsizing or jobless growth.’’ The CPI General Secretary also discussed with former Finance Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, the economic policies of the Congress-led government. Mr Bardhan said that he would urge the Congress to curb communal propaganda, abolish POTA, withdraw all Indian mercenaries from Iraq and reiterate support for the Palestinian freedom struggle. “The dialogue with Pakistan must go on. It is India which is negotiating not Mr Vajpayee,’’ he said. |
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Basu wants Left to join Cong-led govt
Kolkata, May 14 He today met the Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and other leaders and exchanged views on the party’s future role in the formation of the new coalition government. Afterwards, they left for New Delhi to attend the party’s politburo and the central committee meetings beginning tomorrow. At the party meeting Mr Basu said in the changing political scenario, it was necessary that the CPM and secular parties join the new government. But he insisted the Congress and other secular parties should agree to a common-minimum programme. Mr Basu, however, does not like to insist the politburo and the central committee to accept his proposal as it is. He wants the party should seriously discuss matter and take decision accordingly. Left Front Chairman, Biman Bose said they had not taken any decision on joining the Congress-led government. But it is true that a section in our leadership has been suggesting that they should join the new government instead of supporting it from outside, which might give a wrong signal to the people, he said. |
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V.P. Singh for Left joining govt
New Delhi, May 14 He, however, circumvented the issue whether parties like the SP and the BSP should get into the government. “Left parties should join the government in the larger interest of the country. For the Cabinet to reflect the political reality and send a signal of stability, the second largest party (CPM) should not be outside the government,” he told reporters here. He said unlike during the United Front Government, when only CPI participated in the ministry, all four Left parties should be in the government. Mr V.P. Singh said he had spoken to Marxist leader Jyoti Basu in this regard and would speak to him again to impress upon him that to wipe out communal and fascist forces, the strength of the Left parties was necessary. At the same time, the former Prime Minister, who had a meeting with CPM General Secretary Harkishen Singh Surjeet this morning, said the Left would not get a better opportunity to establish itself in the heartland. So far they were in the periphery, he said. Mr V.P. Singh said for the sake of stability, the Congress must “rope in” its alliance partners like the RJD, the Lok Janshakti Party and the DMK and also “take into confidence” all non-BJP parties like the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Janata Dal (Secular) headed by H D Deve Gowda and former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar. “Surjeet is in touch with the SP,” he said. The former Prime Minister said he had spoken to DMK chief M. Karunanidhi to persuade him that his party should join the government at the Centre. |
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Reddy sworn in Andhra CM
Hyderabad, May 14 The Governor, Mr Surjit Singh Barnala, administered the oath of office and secrecy in Telugu at Lal Bahadur Stadium in the presence of thousands of Congress activists. The Chief Minister also announced waiving off Rs 1,100 crore worth of electricity dues from farmers. His gesture of free power to the farm sector will cost the exchequer to the tune of Rs 400 crore a year. Addressing the public after the ceremony, Mr Reddy said his government would take every possible step to ensure that farmers were not driven to committing suicides. “This government will sincerely work for the welfare of the farmers,” the Chief Minister declared. Mr Reddy is expected to take a few more days to complete the exercise for forming the Cabinet as the Central party leadership is busy with New Delhi developments. |
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Thackeray against Sonia, disinvestment
Mumbai, May 14 Though a traditional opponent of the Left parties, Thackeray said today that he supported the Left parties’ demand for calling a halt to the selling off of profit-making Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). “The Shiv Sena agrees with the demand made by Left parties for scrapping the disinvestment of profit-making PSUs,” Thackeray told mediapersons at his residence in suburban Bandra. Thackeray also blamed the BJP for going back on its Hindutva agenda for the defeat of the NDA government. “Most of the parties in the NDA chanted the ‘Ram-Ram’ mantra when it suited them and then abandoned it. This gave a wrong message to the people,” Thackeray said. Thackeray, however, felt that the Congress-led government would not be able to complete its full term. “I can’t say whether Sonia Gandhi has the maturity and statesmanship of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in managing a 24-party coalition for six years,” the Shiv Sena chief said. A strong opponent of Sonia Gandhi due to her foreign origin, Thackeray ridiculed yesterday’s electoral verdict. “Does not India have a capable leader that we have to accept an Italian as a prime minister?” he asked. Thackeray admitted that he was shocked by the defeat of Lok Sabha Manohar Joshi. |
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No ‘scapegoat’ for defeat, says BJP
New Delhi, May 14 Ruling out any boycott or agitation within Parliament if Congress President Sonia Gandhi becomes Prime Minister, the BJP asserted that it would continue to “believe” that high constitutional posts should not be held by people of foreign origin. Addressing his first press conference after the Lok Sabha results, BJP President M. Venkaiah Naidu did not reveal whether outgoing Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee would be the Leader of the Opposition. In response to a question on the foreign origin issue, the BJP President said, “We are not opposed to Sonia Gandhi in person but our conviction is that Constitutional posts like President, Vice-President and Prime Minister should be held by people of Indian origin. She was not projected as the prime ministerial candidate.” On demands that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa should step down in the wake of the NDA’s debacle in the two states, the BJP chief shot back, “the Congress is still in power in Kerala, where they did not get a single seat out of 20 while in Punjab, where they have a government, the NDA got maximum seats. The same logic should be applied in these two states.” Briefing about the Central Parliamentary Board (CPB) meeting at Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s residence, he said the leaders took an overview of the electoral outcome and the broad conclusion was that the results needed to be analysed and studied deeper. Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, Union Ministers Jaswant Singh and Murli Manohar Joshi besides party General Secretaries Pramod Mahajan, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Sanjay Joshi attended the 90-minute meeting, which was followed by a meeting of the party’s Central office-bearers. Asked about Mr Advani’s claim of a pro-incumbency wave after his ‘Bharat Uday Yatra’, Mr Naidu said, “All our assessments have gone wrong. The results were not expected by anyone in the country, including our opponents. The general perception was that we would be short of a majority and there would be some new alignments. We also could not sense any anti-incumbency.” Asked whether Mr Advani’s ‘Bharat Uday’ failed, he said, “there should be more shining.” “Our focus will be on correctives. We are open-minded. We have seen ups and downs in our career and have the capacity to absorb this setback,” he said. Asked whether he gave Mrs Sonia Gandhi the credit for Congress’ stunning performance, he said, “the Congress had 145 seats even during Mr Sitaram Kesri’s tenure as party President.” Asked about VHP leader Praveen Togadia’s comments that the BJP had betrayed the Hindus, he said, “We did not agree with them then. We don’t agree with them now. We have always believed in justice for all and appeasement of none.” |
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Karunanidhi to meet Sonia
Chennai, May 14 Mr Janardan Reddy arrived here last night as an emissary of Ms Gandhi and urged Dr Karunanidhi that the DMK should join the government and not merely extend outside support. Dr Karunanidhi told him the DMK executive committee would meet tomorrow and discuss the issue. The DPA will also meet at the DMK headquarters tomorrow. He would also talk to Ms Gandhi to invoke Article 356 in Tamil Nadu. |
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Chautala should quit: Jindal
New Delhi, May 14 Mr Chautala should quit on moral grounds as two of his sons contesting Bhiwani and Kurukshetra lost to the Congress candidates, Mr Jindal said during victory celebrations at his residence here. |
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Unsuccessful TDP candidate commits suicide
Anantapur, May 14 Mr K.M. Rahamatullah, who had contested for the first time, was defeated by Congress candidate B. Narayana Reddy. The police said that the TDP nominee had shot himself in the temple. According to close friends, Mr Rahamatullah believed that his defeat was due to the non-cooperation of his partymen and cadres who “pretended” to work for him. Unable to bear the attitude of his own partymen, Mr Rahamatullah took the extreme step, they said.
— UNI |
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