Left parties on Tuesday made a fresh demand for discussion on the price situation in Parliament tomorrow under rules which entail voting, after both Houses were adjourned following opposition ruckus over the issue.
"We have submitted fresh notices in both Houses for discussion on the matter tomorrow under rules which entail voting. The notices have been submitted as an adjournment motion in Lok Sabha and under Rule 168 in Rajya Sabha," CPI(M) leaders Sitaram Yechury and Basudeb Acharia said in New Delhi.
"There have been several debates on price rise in both the Houses, but there has been no action by the government. Unless you have the pressure of voting, they will not act. Our move is intended to put pressure on the government," Yechury said. The Left parties had served similar notices for debate on the issue today also.
Maintaining that stocks of rice and wheat in government godowns were more than double the required quantity, he said "the grain is rotting as they are lying in the open at many places like Punjab. Why is the government holding on to them? Why can't it release them to the state governments for distribution through the PDS".
Reiterating the Left demand for banning of futures and forward trading in essential commodities and universalising PDS, Yechury said the government was not willing to accept these demands. "People continue to suffer as government says 'good monsoons will lead to good harvest'".
Pointing out that debate on price rise under an adjournment motion was allowed in April 2000 in the Lok Sabha, Acharia said there was no ground for the government to suggest that a discussion under a rule which entails voting cannot be allowed.
"If they are sure of their numbers, why are they afraid of allowing a debate under an adjournment motion? Rules do not prevent it," Acharia maintained.
Acharia and Yechury said the Left parties have met leaders of TDP, BJD and AIADMK to firm up floor coordination on the issue in the two Houses and would talk to Samajwadi Party and RJD tomorrow.
Besides the price rise issue, the CPI(M) would raise issues concerning the Bhopal gas disaster. "Dow Chemicals must be held responsible for clearing toxic waste lying in Bhopal for the past 26 years", Yechury said.
He said the government should learn from the US, with which it has a strategic relationship, as to how it was handling the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and asked British Petroleum to spend USD two billion for compensation. "But here we are completely exonerating Dow," he said.
The CPI(M) would also seek a discussion on illegal mining and demand nationalisation of mineral resources which were being "exported freely".
The major Left party would ask the government to take stern action to contain Hindutva terror, saying evidence gathered by investigating agencies have already pointed towards links between several terrorist incidents like Malegaon, Ajmer and Hyderabad blasts and Samjhauta Express explosion.
"We would equally want firm action against Muslim extremist organisations like the Popular Front of India (in Kerala). We are opposed to extremism of all varieties," Yechury said.
The recent spate of train accidents would also be strongly raised, with the CPI(M) leader saying that the number of accidents in one year has been "unprecedented".
"It is not a matter of politics (Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee being the Railway Minister). Railways carry a very huge number of people each day and it is an institution which binds India's integrity. If its safety standards are jeopardised, then it is a matter of grave concern," he said.
Describing the Jammu and Kashmir situation as "very critical", Yechury said the government should send an all-party parliamentary delegation there and initiate dialogue with all shades of public opinion to resolve the issue.
The issue of 70-day old blockade in Manipur and passage of women's reservation bill in Lok Sabha would also be raised by the party, he said.
Yechury also sought sending of an all-party team to Tamil refugee camps in Sri Lanka and demanded that government must impress upon Colombo to provide relief and rehabilitation to the Tamilians and work on granting full autonomy to Tamil regions under a united Sri Lankan framework.
Asked about the recent disclosure of secret US documents showing ISI links with Taliban, Yechury said the issue should be raised in the India-Pakistan talks. "That is why the talks are necessary. These are documentary evidences and that is why talks are necessary," he added. PTI
