People's Democracy

ANDHRA PRADESH

CPI(M) to Launch Movement

against Urban Reforms

THE CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh state committee has decided to launch a statewide fortnight-long protest movement against the Congress state government’s moves to impose greater burdens on urban dwellers in the name of ‘reforms’. This protest movement, which would be held in the second half of May, would also highlight other pressing people’s issues being neglected by the government.

This was decided at the two-day meeting of the state committee held in Hyderabad during April 25-26, 2012. Briefing newspersons about the meeting, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member and state secretary B V Raghavulu said that the condition of urban poor and lower middle classes is deteriorating speedily as they are facing multi-pronged attacks on their livelihoods. Under pressure from the Planning Commission, the state government is imposing greater burdens on the city dwellers in the form of user charges, waste tax, hike in other taxes etc. On the other hand, recently there has already been a hike in power tariff to the tune of Rs 4500 crore. Added to this is the talk of deregulation of diesel prices. All this will hit the common man hard, said Raghavulu.

People of the state are also reeling under various problems like shortage of drinking water, power cuts, lack of proper support prices for agricultural produce etc. But the government is hardly bothered about tackling these as it was focussing on another round of bye-elections for 18 assembly constituencies scheduled to be held on June 12. These elections were necessitated due to disqualification of the sitting MLAs of Congress who defied party whip and voted in favour of the no confidence motion as they had shifted to YSR party of Jaganmohan Reddy. Raghavulu criticised the government for ignoring these pressing issues of people and resorting to official misuse to win the bye-elections. He said the protest movement would take up these issues also.

CPI(M) TO CONTEST

INDEPENDENTLY

The state committee approved the decision of the state secretariat to contest the coming bye-elections independently and has called for making necessary arrangements in the constituencies identified. It has also decided that in the seats where the Party is not contesting, it must take its political line and campaign on bringing people’s issues to the fore. Raghavulu said the candidates for the five seats identified would be finalised shortly in consultation with the district committees. He revealed that Lok Satta party’s proposal for an electoral tie-up with CPI(M) for these bye-elections was discussed in the state committee. It was felt that the Party can take Lok Satta’s support and extend support to that party in other seats. However, discussions with that party are yet to be held, he said.

It may be noted here that there has been a political difference between CPI and CPI(M) regarding these bye-elections. The CPI has decided not to contest in these 18 seats. It also decided to support the TDP in 17 of the seats in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema and TRS in the lone seat Parakala seat in Telangana region. Unlike in the previous round of bye-elections where it extended support to CPI(M) in Kovur seat, this time it is supporting TDP candidates in the seats CPI(M) is contesting. The differences were acknowledged by the leadership of both the parties at the joint meeting held in M B Bhavan on April 20. Later, both stressed that this political difference would not come in the way of joint action of the two parties on people’s issues.

However, it was reported in the media that CPI state secretary K Narayana accused CPI(M) of having a ‘secret  agenda’ in taking the present political line. He hinted about CPI(M)’s intention of going with YSR Congress party in the 2014 elections. Raghavulu wrote a letter to CPI secretary on April 22 refuting these charges. He said it is the tradition of bourgeois parties to accuse each other of secret agendas and therefore it is unfortunate that he is also speaking on those lines. He reminded that CPI(M) contested independently in the March bye-elections and was continuing the same stand this time also. “To now search for a secret agenda that was non-existent when you supported us in March bye-election is really unfortunate”, he wrote. He requested restraint in remarks against a fellow Left party.

Answering a question at the press meet on April 26, Raghavulu expressed happiness at Narayana’s comment about laying to rest this controversy.

Announcing other decisions of the state committee, he said Comrade P Sundarayya birth centenary would be celebrated in a big way in the state , involving as widely as possible people outside the fold of Left also. May Day would be celebrated as a Struggle Day across the state in all mandals.

(INN)