CPI(M) will not join hands with Congress for WB polls: Ali

CPI(M) today said it will neither stitch an alliance nor form a front with Congress for the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections.
"Our party has decided not to stitch an alliance with Congress for the West Bengal Assembly elections," Communist Party of India (Marxist) politburo member Subhashini Ali told reporters here.
"Neither are we going to form a front with Congress nor forge an alliance with it," Ali said replying to a query regarding speculations that her party is heading for a truck with Congress in West Bengal.
The CPI(M) leader alleged that the number of farmers committing suicide has gone up during the NDA regime headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to "anti-farmer policies".

"The NDA government is pursuing anti-farmer policies and has drastically reduced fertilisers subsidy to farmers in the budget, which the saffron party touted and claimed was pro-farmers," the former MP said.
Ali said the government is trying to encourage private players to buy agriculture produce directly from the farmers and feared that this free market entry concept is going to spell doom for agriculturists.

"The government's attempts to withdraw itself from purchasing agriculture produce from the farmers at Minimum Support Price (MSP) will make things bad to worse for the farmers," she said, adding that in Latin American countries, such practices have ruined the agriculture sector.

Ali said that inflation, unemployment were soaring in the country, but the NDA government was reducing spending on the welfare of SCs and STs and downtrodden.
"Besides this, the government has almost stopped funding the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Guarantee Act (MNREGA). All these moves have infuriated people. But, the NDA government and BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government have found democratic ways to curb public outbursts and protests," she said.
Ali said MP government has imposed pre-conditions for holding protests and demonstrations.
"MP government is asking the organisers of a protest to fill up a form mentioning the numbers of protesters, who are going to take part. In case the protesters' number goes up or down, the MP government is imposing a fine on the organisers for giving incorrect information," she said.