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Left resistance prevented crisis: Karat

Special Correspondent

— Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

Discussing a point at the P. Ramamurti centenary celebration are CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and N. Varadarajan (left), the party’s Tamil Nadu State secretary, in Chennai on Tuesday. At right is Vaigai, daughter of Ramamurti.

CHENNAI: If Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram could claim that India was not affected by the U.S. financial crisis and relatively insulated, it was because the Left parties did not allow him to liberate the financial sector, said CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat on Tuesday.

Addressing a public meeting organised by the CITU to mark the birth centenary celebrations of Communist leader P. Ramamurti, he said in the U.S. all the five big financial capital institutions, which led the global push for finance capital, have ceased to exist.

The irony was that the Bush administration was nationalising some of them to make them survive.

“Let us see how the Manmohan Singh government and Finance Minister dare to bring any legislation in Parliament to push through the financial sector liberalisation,” he said.

Stating that the financial crisis faced by the U.S. was comparable to the 1929 Great Depression, he said, “The Bush administration which swears by the free market, which says the market should rule and there should be no State intervention was planning to bail out the big bankers, big capitalists and big speculators by providing $700 bn dollars.”

He said the U.S. government was going to finance and subsidise the big capital financial institutions, so that they could recoup their losses.

Criticising the Manmohan Singh government for pursuing the American model of financial capital in our country, he recalled Mr. Chidambaram’s statement that whatever happened in America would not affect India and he would continue with the financial sector reforms.

Recalling how Ramamurti fought the agreement between BHEL and German major Siemens, he said the Left intervention prevented the UPA government’s plans to divest the shares of BHEL.

Accusing Dr. Singh of betraying the people of the country by going to the U.S. without discussing the India-U.S. nuclear deal in Parliament as promised by him earlier, he said the Left would continue to oppose the deal irrespective of whether the U.S. Congress adopted the 123 agreement or not.

Daring the Congress to take the issue to the people in the next elections, he said the people reared on ‘anti-imperialism’ would not accept it.

CPI(M) state secretary N. Varadarajan said both the CPI(M) and the CPI would work together to create a strong front in Tamil Nadu as an alternative to both the Congress and the BJP combinations. The meeting with Desiya Murpokku Dravidar Kazhagam was part of such efforts, he added.

Earlier Mr. Karat released a commemorative souvenir produced by the party’s official organ in Tamil, Theekathir. Senior communist leaders, including N. Sankaraiah, R. Umanath and R. Nallakannu, recalled their association with Ramamurti.

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