Communist Party of India (Marxist) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury on Saturday said his party would oppose the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill in the Rajya Sabha on Monday. The Bill, passed by voice vote in the Lok Sabha, seeks to replace an ordinance promulgated in October and to provide for fresh auction of 204 coal blocks, the allocation of which were cancelled by the Supreme Court.
Addressing a press conference here, Mr. Yechury accused the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government of reversing an established parliamentary practice of routing the bills on any new legislation through the Standing Committee. The government pushed the Bill through in the Lok Sabha by a voice vote without parliamentary scrutiny, owing to the “arrogance and sheer majority” of the ruling party, Mr Yechury said. Stating that his party was always opposed to coal mining by private operators, Mr Yechury alleged that when the country required coal for its thermal generators, it was being exported by the private mine operators.
Tea workers’ plightThe CPI(M) leader also accused the NDA government of being unfair to the northeastern region. It had put on hold the North East Industrial Investment Promotion Policy and had also decided to stop the bulk procurement of subsidised rice distributed to tea garden workers in Assam as ration. Withdrawing the ration, which was part of their wage, would put a huge burden on the workers and their families, he said.
