Patna : The Centre has to comply with the Supreme Court's directive on providing free foodgrains to the poor despite Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's reservations, CPI-M General Secretary Prakash Karat said on Thursday.
"We know that the PM has objections, but the Apex Court has passed an appropriate order for this," Karat told a press conference here. The court had made it clear that foodgrains should be distributed free among the poor instead of allowing it to rot in FCI godowns, he said.
"Instead of wasting the foodgrains, we believe it will be better that it should help people facing severe drought in Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal," the CPI-M leader said. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar should seek such foodgrains from the Centre for distribution in drought-hit districts of the state, he said.
Karat also announced that CPI-M will contest in 30 of the 243 Assembly seats in Bihar where the party has forged an alliance with Left parties CPI and CPI-ML (Liberation). Asked whether his party intended to ally with the RJD as in the past, Karat said "the situation at that time was quite different."
The details of the constituencies and candidates would be announced by the party after holding consultations with allies, he said. Karat said price rise, unemployment, backwardness and poverty would be the electoral issues of the party. "We will highlight the anti-people and faulty policies of the state and central government responsible for the price rise and other problems," he said.
To another question, Karat said his party was also making efforts to strengthen and expand its base in the Hindi heartland. PTI
