People's Democracy

     DELHI

CPI(M) Protests Against Coalgate Scam

    HUNDREDS of CPI(M) activists from Delhi, Ghaziabad and Noida gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on September 5, 2012 to protest against coal blocks allocation scam. A dharna and a public meeting was organised.  The meeting was addressed by CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat, Central Committee member and Delhi state secretary PMS Grewal, K M Tiwari, Asha Sharma and Anurag Saxena, state secretariat members. The public meeting was later on joined by four members of parliament.  The meeting was chaired and conducted by Delhi secretariat member, Vijender Sharma.

     Speaking on the occasion, Brinda Karat said that out of 142 allocations, 70 to 76 were made to private companies without following proper procedures. Most of the private companies captured the land and assets to increase their value in the share market. However, none of them have mined the allocated areas. Both the Congress and the BJP have helped private parties like Jindal and Reddy Brothers. She also pointed out that coal is a national natural resource which should not be opened for private parties to destroy it. PMS Grewal in his address said that in most of the scandals, the Congress has blamed the allies or the other ministers keeping Manmohan Singh clean. Now it is very much clear that Manmohan Singh himself is involved in this. Ramchander Dom stressed the need to fight corruption both inside and outside the parliament. In the end, an effigy of the prime minister was burnt.