Kolkata
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Sunday organized a mega
rally here, with its leaders explaining the rationale behind warming
up to capitalism to wooing farmers and flaying the US for dictating
India's foreign policy.
"The US wants India as its junior partner to launch attack against
countries like Iran and other West Asian nations. India should not
fall into that trap," CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat said at
the rally at the Brigade Parade ground here.
"America is pressuring India to follow in its footsteps. They want
us as their junior partner. So we oppose India's military agreement
with the US and the joint exercises. It is against our sovereign
foreign policy," said Karat.
"The US has destroyed Iraq and now has trained its eyes on Iran for
gas and oil. Our policy instead should be to go with Iran," Karat
said.
Slamming the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, Karat said: "It is not
nuclear cooperation. It means our foreign policy would be dictated
by the US."
With the Nandigram episode creating an open rift between the CPI-M
and its Left Front allies like Forward Bloc and the Revolutionary
Socialist Party (RSP), the CPI-M leader called for a left unity to
pave the way for a third alternative in the centre.
"There is a conspiracy to weaken the left unity in West Bengal. The
turnout at the rally proves how we have fought for the farmers,
laborers and minority community. But all left parties should come
together now," he said.
"The CPI-M, being the largest party, has more responsibility to keep
the unity intact. We want a third alternative but that is only
possible when we unite. Bengal is on the vanguard of this movement
because for three decades we are in power here," he said.
Speaking at the rally, communist patriarch Jyoti Basu said the
debate of socialism versus capitalism is meaningless since a single
province of India (West Bengal) cannot implement socialism in an
isolated manner.
"Socialism is never possible in a single state. Socialism is far way
now. We have to first seize power at the centre and then implement
it. We cannot lie now living in a capitalist system," the
94-year-old leader said.
"In the last election, 80 percent vote was cast in West Bengal. Of
that, we got 50 percent votes. But we have no room for complacency,"
he said.
"We never lie. Even our chief minister (Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee)
apologizes when he makes a mistake," Basu said.
While Karat flayed the US and Basu explained the rationale behind
warming up to capitalism, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee harped on
improving agricultural produce further while taking forward
industrialization.
"We are not bothered about the price of a car. We are bothered about
the 6,000 people who would get jobs in Singur. Whether it is Singur
or Siliguri (north Bengal), we will try to acquire land as little as
possible and ensure that the land losers are looked after by our
government," Bhattacharjee said.
"We don't care if America or China or Tata and Birla is coming. We
want employment," said Bhattacharjee, welcoming capital irrespective
of the color of the currency.
"We could not do it in Nandigram but now we will set up the chemical
hub in Nayachar (a river island in the same East Midnapore
district). So many people would get jobs," Bhattacharjee said.
The chief minister said it is only in West Bengal that 86 percent of
the poor in villages are farmland owners.
"You will not find this in Bihar. It is only possible in Bengal," he
said.
"We are on the forefront in agriculture but we need to develop it
further so that the farmer can earn more," Bhattacharya said.
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