Atrocities against Dalits on the rise in Karnataka: CPI(M)

Communist Party of India (Marxist) State Committee member Maruthi Manpade has alleged that atrocities against the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes have been on the rise in Karnataka over the past few years and, among the south Indian States, Karnataka has reported the highest number of such cases. Quoting from a commission report, Mr. Manpade said here on Friday that over 1,700 cases of atrocities were reported in 2008 alone from the State. He alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party Government in Karnataka had failed to contain the cases of atrocities and provide compensation to the victims.

The Planning Commission had instructed the State Government to allocate Rs.7,300 crore to take up welfare measures for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, he said. The Government, however, allocated only Rs. 3,553 crore, Mr. Manpade charged. Further, he claimed that of the 75,000 applications the Government received from tribal people for land pattas as per the Forest Dwellers Act, 2006, it had issued only 300 pattas so far. To protest against the State Government's apathy, the State unit of the CPI(M) will stage a dharna in front of the Chief Minister's residence in Bangalore on June 10.
(Courtesy : The Hindu)

Mangalore Air Crash

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) is shocked at the crash of the Air India Express plane at Mangalore Airport. It is deeply grieved at the loss of lives of around 160 passengers and crew.

The Polit Bureau extends its heartfelt sympathy to all those who have lost their family members in the crash.

A proper enquiry must be expeditiously conducted to ascertain the cause for the crash and to take remedial measures if necessary.

Oppose Hike in Gas Prices

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) strongly opposes the decision of the government to increase the price of gas produced by the public sector companies from $ 1.8 per unit to $ 4.2 per unit. This doubling of the price in the Administered Price Mechanism (APM) has been done to bring it in line with the price approved by the government for the gas produced by the Reliance India Ltd (RIL).

The government decision seems motivated to ensure the market for RIL’s gas since the lower priced gas of the public sector enterprises would have been more attractive for the power and fertilizer producers.

By this step the additional burden of Rs. 8000 crore will be passed on to the consumers of power and fertilizers. The transport industry using CNG will also be affected.

The doubling of the APM gas price comes at a time when the country is witnessing high inflation and price rise. The benefits accruing to one corporate group seems more important for the government than public interest.

CITU DENOUNCES THE DOUBLING OF NATURAL GAS PRICE

BY THE INSENSITIVE GOVERNMENT

CITU strongly denounces the Government decision to increase the price of APM gas produced by ONGC and OIL form 1.79 dollar/unit to 4.2 dollar/unit in line with price approved by the Government for KG Basin Gas, supplied by Reliance India Limited which had earlier backed out of its offer of 2.34 dollar/unit to M/s NTPC.

The Government’s decision to increase the gas price is not for the improvement of the financial health of the PSUs but only to ensure RIL’s market as the power and fertilizer producers were opting for the low priced gas from ONGC and OIL. In the process, the additional burden of Rs. 8,000 Cr. approx. will be now passed on to the consumers of power and fertilizer for example cost of power tariff of plants using APM gas is likely to increase by Rs. 1/- per unit.

The CITU deplores the Government’s insensitivity and apathy to the woes of the inflation hit common man of the country. CITU further demands total review and scrutiny of Government’s gas pricing policy through CAG and Parliamentary Committees to expose the Government’s blatant misuse of executive power to foster one corporate group or other, at the cost of national interest.

AIDWA cadres court arrest across Tamil Nadu

All India Democratic Women Association staged a road blockade agitating against a slew of ‘grievances' against the government. Condemning the frequent power failure, urging State and Central governments to strengthen Public Distribution System (PDS), AIDWA called for a halt in both announced and unannounced power failures across the State. Further, it sought regularisation of ‘malfunctioning and dysfunctioning' NREGS programme in Tamil Nadu. Coming down on the Kalaignar's Housing Scheme, AIDWA stated that while majority of poor were landless, the Scheme's promise of construction of concrete houses for those with pattas would make no difference to the poor.

The road blockade, organised as part of the nation-wide agitation against various “flawed” policies of the government, was concluded after the AIDWA workers courted arrest.

The cadre said that the subsidy on ration should be hiked with immediate effect. The PDS , plagued by ills, should be strengthened. The drinking water scarcity must be eradicated. The water supply in all towns and cities had to be regularised.The members raised slogans demanding the Central and State governments to take immediate steps to control price rise besides seeking a ban on online trading of essential commodities.
Around 10,000 women courted arrest across the state.

Minister Raja Should Resign

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The outcome of the 3G spectrum auction convincingly proves that Union Communication Minister, Shri A. Raja, was clearly involved in corrupt practices by selling 2G spectrum to some industrialists by manipulating TRAI recommendations. Whereas 3G spectrum could fetch Rs. 70,000 crores, 2G spectrum was sold at a paltry sum of Rs. 2000 crores only. Shri Raja had done so by blatantly violating the law causing a huge loss to the public exchequer.

Despite repeated demands made in parliament and outside, Shri A. Raja is nonchalantly continuing to stick to his position. Such a situation cannot be allowed to be continued.

The CPI(M) demands that Shri A. Raja should immediately resign from his post pending a high power enquiry into the entire 2G spectrum scam.

If the minister refuses to resign, the Prime Minister should sack him to maintain the dignity of the high post Shri A. Raja is holding in the Government.

Wild Allegations by TMC

Sitaram Yechury and Basudev Acharia met the Home Minister today evening and handed over a letter on the unsubstantiated and wild allegations leveled by the TMC. We are releasing the text of the letter:

 

*************

 

Dear Home Minister,

 

We seek to draw your attention and intervention in a serious situation that is developing in the course of the current election campaign to municipal corporations in the state of West Bengal.

 

The enclosed letter from the Chairman of the Left Front, Shri Biman Basu, explains how the Trinamul Congress leader and Union Railway Minister is deliberately stoking panic and terror amongst the Muslim minority population claiming that she has secret information that a section of the police will help the Left Front in unleashing communal violence in the state.

 

You are surely aware that during the last thirty three years of the Left Front Government in West Bengal, the state and its people have seen unprecedented communal harmony and fraternity. This record makes all of us proud in India and is often portrayed as the symbol of India’s strength in secular democracy. You will surely agree that any effort to blemish this record are not in the interests of our country’s unity and integrity. Further, casting such wild and unsubstantiated allegations, especially by a Union Cabinet Minister, also violates the provisions of the Representation of People Act, 1951.

 

If indeed the TMC leader and Union Minister does possess some secret information we request you as the Union Home Minister to obtain such information and act on it in consultation with the state government. If on the contrary, there is no such information, as surely is the case, then may we request you to set at rest the apprehensions and tensions that have resulted from the Union Minister’s utterances.

CPIM to rule 12 Panchayats in Karnataka

CPIM candidates have won in 322 panchayat wards in the elections held to local bodies in Karnataka. Above all CPIM will be ruling 12 Panchayats in the state independenthly. Of the total candidates elected 25 % are women.  

Party made strong presence in the panchayat elections in Chickbelapur, Gulbarga, Mangaluru, Gadhak, Beedar, Uduppi, Belgaum and Mandya districts. Julipalaya, Paragod, Kanadavarappalli, Kuruthuppallai, Somanadhapura, Paattapalaya are the panchayats in Chickbelapur  district that CPI M won alone. Majority seats  in Thiru malai, Ulleyeri, Somanahalli, Hambasandra panchayats in Gundibanda Taluk had been captured by CPIM. Vanaguruve Panchayat in Uthara kannada District is also wrested by CPIM. 

Of the 26 seats in Juliyappalaya panchayat CPIM won 22 seats. In Gulbarga district CPIM will rule a panchayat with the help of alliance parties. Of the total 5474 panchayat seats in the state, Congress and Janatadal is having the upper hand.

Rich tributes paid to Com. P Sundarayya on his 25th Memorial Day

Rich tributes were paid to Puchalapalli Sundaraiah, on the occasion of his 25th  death anniversary, here on Wednesday. The CPI (M) Vijayawada city unit organised a meeting to pay tributes to him.

On the occasion, CPI (M) state secretary and Polit bureau member B.V. Raghavulu stressed on the need to reach the masses and the oppressed taking a cue from life and personality of Sundaraiah. The simplicity, humanity behind the sacrifice, and commitment were some of the facets of Sundaraiah's success. His simplicity was to reach common man and mingle with them. And, his sacrifice had a face of humanity as he distributed his lands for landless. Likewise, he never went back in time of difficulties, he said, adding, these qualities were need of hour to achieve the Sundaraiah's goals and objectives. “The people, world over, were confronting many new problems like abuse of natural resources by few rich people, and growing Capitalism. These rich people were driving the people towards socialism. New forces were seeking inspiration from life of Sundaraiah and Marxism to resolve these problems. And, hence, it was necessary to gear up for setting up socialist society,” he said.

The ruling Congress and many political parties have stopped thinking about the problems the common man was facing as they were more interested in power, and struggling with internal squabbles. The people were in dire need of political party like CPI (M) to agitate in behalf of them, he said. Stating that CPI(M) Party Congress which was due in February 2010, could not be organised due to elections in many states. The all India meeting was postponed to 2012, and extended central committee meeting would be organised in Vijayawada from August 7 to 10. As many as 370 delegates would attended the meeting to discuss the political developments in last three years and chalk out future action plan, he said, and recalled that all India meeting conducted in 1982, when Sundaraiah was alive, in Vijayawada was a grand success. CPI(M) central committee member Paturi Ramaiah, district secretary V. Umamaheswara Rao, city secretary R. Raghu, floor leader in VMC Ch. Babu Rao and others were present.

NALGONDA: The CPI (M) district secretary Nandyala Narasimha Reddy called upon party cadres to draw inspiration from Puchalapalli Sundarayya and relentlessly strive to realise his ideals. Speaking at a meeting commemorating the 25th death anniversary of Mr Sundarayya at Dhoddi Komraiah Bhavan here on Wednesday, Mr. Narasimha Reddy described Mr. Sundarayya as a champion of the working class movement and an epitome of selfless service.

KADAPA: Communist stalwart Puchalapalli Sundarayya was a revolutionary planner par excellence, built progressive movements and would always be an inspiration to the Communist movement, CPI(M) district secretary B. Narayana and district secretariat member N. Ravisankar Reddy asserted on Wednesday.

Paying rich homage while observing Sundarayya's 25th death anniversary at the party office, they said Puchalapalli Sundarayya left an indelible mark on integrated water schemes, land issues and priorities for the State in books authored by him. His books on - A.P. Comprehensive Water Schemes, Poor and Land Distribution, Prajarajyam in Visalandhra – were invaluable. He not only countered casteism in his native village, established coolie sanghams, undertook salt satyagraham, picketed toddy shops but spearheaded the Telangana Armed Struggle, all aimed at building a new social order, the CPI(M) leaders asserted.

Dissolution of MCI

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The removal of Ketan Desai from the post of Director of MCI is a much belated and required step. The prima facie evidence of corruption at the top levels of MCI required firm Government intervention. The CPI(M) had urged the Government in Parliament to take action to remove Desai, ensure accountability and Parliamentary oversight on such bodies like the MCI through required amendments to the MCI Act, while protecting the autonomy of the MCI.

However utilizing the need for removal of Desai, the Government has brought an ordinance to dissolve the entire council shortly after the Parliament session. This shows the absence of minimum democratic norms. The Government should have taken Parliament into confidence before dissolving an autonomous body set up by an Act of Parliament.

Secondly, since health is a state subject and medical education is on the concurrent list it was mandatory for the Central Government to have consulted State Governments by calling an emergency meeting of the Central Council of Health and Family Welfare. In the dissolved Medical Council, State Governments had their representatives. The seven member Board of Governors now appointed through the ordinance consists entirely of centrally nominated persons. This is a violation of federal principles and is an injustice to the States.

The ordinance reflects a policy of overcentralisation of powers in the hands of the Central Government which does damage to the federal character of the Constitution. The CPI(M) calls upon the Central Government to immediately call a meeting of the Central Council and ensure that the rights of the States are not bypassed.