Cong Criticism Not Incorrect: Chaturanan

Senior CPI leader and Union agriculture minister Chaturaran Mishra agrees with some of the criticism levelled by the Congress Working Committee against the United Front government, and has asked convenor N Chandrababu Naidu to evolve a code of conduct to stop wranglings within the coalition.

In a letter to Naidu, Mishra has said the threatening posture adopted by the CWC in its Saturday resolution should be taken seriously. Congress criticism of fall in export and industrial growth are correct. The criticism that United Front is not working unitedly is also correct. Front parties attack each other openly and even by name. This should be stopped if we are to run this government, he said in the letter.

Mishra, however, defends the Left parties criticism of the government on the ground that lapses should always be pointed out, but the tune has to be friendly.

Of late, Mishra has been one of the most talked about leader within the coalition, mainly for the challenge thrown by him to Congress president Sitaram Kesri to withdraw support instead of issuing empty threats like the recent CWC resolution. Mishras views should be seen in the backdrop of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda demanding that it is high time the United Front snapped its ties with the Congress and prepared for elections.

Gowda has been emboldened by the Janata Dals Orissa unit which is openly against the United Front continuing in office with Congress support. Gowda is said to be keen on the October 3 meeting of the steering committee finalising a plan to prepare a common manifesto for the next elections.

Even though influential, Gowdas views do not seem to have found many takers within the coalition. Most leaders are of the view that the present arrangement should continue for some time. Apart from Gowda and the Left parties, most of the constituents would like to avoid mid-term elections.

We will ask Prime Minister IK Gujral to take the Congress threat seriously. We will also ask him about the fate of the proposed coordination committee between the United Front government and the Congress. There should not be any communication gap with the single largest supporting party, a senior Front leader said yesterday.

According to Left leaders, the need of the hour is to project the United Front as a political force. So far the steering committee has been screening governments decisions. It has failed to assume the political leadership of the Front, he said., and added that leaders should focus on highlighting the United Fronts achievements. And one way to do that is to hold joint rallies all across the country.

But rallies should not be in line with the ones organised before the recent Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. In Uttar Pradesh, rallies were organised by either the Left parties or the Samajwadi Party and other leaders would attend as invitees. Now we should concentrate on holding rallies of the United Front, he said.