Left parties return to UPA coordination panel meets

The Left parties today decided to return to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA)-Left Coordination Committee, following the government's decision to put the Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd disinvestment in abeyance.

In a joint statement issued after an hour-long meeting at the Central Committee office of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) here, representatives of the four Left parties said they had considered the letter sent by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, conveying the government's decision not to proceed with the BHEL disinvestment.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had earlier informed that the government did not intend to sell BHEL shares "and other Navaratna companies". In view of this development, the Left parties decided to resume participation in the coordination committee, said the statement.

The Left parties had suspended their participation in the coordination committee meets in June in protest against the government's move to disinvest 10 per cent equity in BHEL.

Although the Left parties managed to reach a consensus on returning to the coordination committee today, it was not without serious differences of opinion on the issue. CPI General Secretary AB Bardhan and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) Central Committee member Abani Roy were in favour of deferring any decision on it.

The RSP leader argued that the government had only put the BHEL disinvestment in abeyance and not abandoned it completely. He expressed strong reservations about the government's intentions in the the proposed labour reforms, FDI in retail, hike in the prices of petroleum products, pro-US foreign policy portrayed by its anti-Iran vote in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Indo-US nuclear agreement, and the absence of any commitment to the unorganised sector and agriculture workers.

There were several issues on which the Left parties had to confront the government and therefore, resuming participation in the UPA-Left Coordination Committee would serve no purpose, argued Roy.

Bardhan suggested that no decision should be taken in haste and that the government's next move should be closely watched for some time before any conclusion was made. CPI(M) Politburo member Sitaram Yechury and All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) General Secretary Debabrata Biswas, however, strongly advocated return to the coordination committee. They said their boycott had served the purpose, forcing the government to backtrack on BHEL disinvestment. CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat remained a patient listener.

AIFB's eagerness to return to the committee came as a surprise to many a comrade, as this party, along with the RSP, had been the most critical of the government's policies.

The Left parties may have bridged their differences on the issue of returning to the coordination committee, but their decision will come under scrutiny next month when the IAEA board meets to decide on referring Iran to the United Nations Security Council.

The Congress has welcomed the decision of the Left parties.