Communist Party of India (Marxist) Polit Bureau member and national leader Sitaram Yechury has called upon people to vote for secular and Left parties so that such an alliance can usher in alternative policies for inclusive development and welfare of people.
Addressing a meeting at the Sundaraiah Vignana Kendra in support of 10 CPI (M) candidates contesting from the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation area here on Tuesday, Mr. Yechury said that the question uppermost in people’s mind was whether the next government would be able to improve their lives and promise a better future for youth.
To tackle rising unemployment, declining development and increasing financial burden, the nation needs alternative policies where the government can invest in building infrastructure in all sectors and kick-start the economy to generate jobs for youth instead of giving it away in the form of concessions to corporates.
“There is no difference between the corrupt Congress and communal BJP as they both pursued policies that would profit corporates and not people’s lives,” he said.
The Left parties may be contesting only limited Assembly seats -- 37 out of 119 in Telangana. But with only 61 seats in Lok Sabha in 2004, Left parties were able to mount pressure on the UPA government to bring in the Right to Information Act, food security, Right to Education, Forest Land Act. “We need such pressure groups for pro-people policies,” he said.
Debunking the Gujarat model of development and the so called ‘Modi wave,’ Mr. Yechury said that in the human development index, Gujarat ranked sixth from the bottom among all States while Kerala stood first. “If indeed there is a ‘Modi wave,’ then why is Mr. Narendra Modi contesting from two seats?” he wondered.
Capitalists are backing Modi and manipulating opinion polls so that he gives concessions worth crores not only in Gujarat but also across the country, he said.
CPI (M) Polit Bureau member B.V. Raghavulu said Hyderabad owed its development to Public Sector Units. In the last 10 years, the Congress government had promoted disinvestment and Modi will only hasten it. It is time for employees of PSUs to decide whom to vote for- Left and secular forces or the BJP.
‘Historical blunder’Emphasising on amity and peace in Hyderabad to attract new investments and industries, he said Left and secular parties alone would fight against regional and communal divide.
Cautioning slum dwellers against taking money to vote, Mr. Raghavulu said, “You may get Rs.500 for your vote but tomorrow you will be paying through your nose for essentials.” Referring to Mr. Chandrababu Naidu’s remark that the TDP-BJP alliance was historical necessity, Mr. Raghavulu said it was historical blunder and it would adversely impact not only the TDP but also the State.
