Leaders of Left parties, Vaiko call on Jayalalithaa

Leaders of Left parties, along with MDMK general secretary Vaiko, on Friday met AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa to discuss preparations for the nation-wide hartal on April 27 to highlight spiralling prices of essential commodities

Leaders of the Left parties, along with MDMK general secretary Vaiko, calling on AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa at her residence in Chennai on Friday.

Leaders of Left parties, along with MDMK general secretary Vaiko, on Friday met AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa to discuss preparations for the nation-wide hartal on April 27 to highlight spiralling prices of essential commodities owing to the new economic polices of the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre.

A joint statement issued by the leaders called upon people to participate in the protest and make it a success.

“Our co-ordination will certainly continue in future,” Mr. Vaiko told reporters waiting outside Ms. Jayalalithaa's Poes Garden residence.

This is the first time that the leaders of the AIADMK front, formed during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, are coming together for joint action.

“It assumes significance in the sense that five political parties have joined hands against the Congress-led government at the Centre in which the DMK is a partner,'' G. Ramakrishnan, State secretary of the CPI (M), told TheHindu.

The Left parties have been organising events and protests independently after the Lok Sabha elections. The CPI (M) even refused to share the dais with the AIADMK during by-elections to many Assembly constituencies, thought it supported the AIADMK candidates.

The PMK, which was part of the AIADMK combine in the Lok Sabha polls, snapped ties and rejected the offer of support by the AIADMK leadership in the by-election to Pennagaram.

Explaining the purpose of the meeting, Mr. Vaiko said economic policies of the UPA government had affected all sections of society. The cut in subsidy for fertilizers had led to increase in price of fertilizers and farmers were bearing the brunt.

“We call upon the people of Tamil Nadu, traders and trade unions to take part in the protest and make it a success,'' said G. Ramakrishnan and senior CPI leader R. Nallakannu. Former State secretary of the CPI (M) N. Varadarajan, CPI deputy secretary C. Mahendran and general secretary of the Forward Bloc P.V. Kathiravan were among those who met Ms. Jayalalithaa. AIADMK whip K.A. Sengottaiyan and party MP M. Thambidurai were present.