The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India on Sunday criticised the Manmohan Singh government for its handling of the Baba Ramdev hunger strike and questioned the stealthy manner in which it negotiated with the yoga guru. They, however, deplored the police action at Ramlila Maidan and demanded immediate steps to bring back money illegally stashed abroad.
Terming the police action against Baba Ramdev and his supporters “deplorable and short-sighted,'' the Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) said scores of men and women were injured, some of them seriously, in the action. “There was no law and order issue involved here and the police action was unwarranted,'' it said in a statement.
The Polit Bureau said the manner in which the yoga guru's demands were drafted and the way he conducted his interactions with the government — coming to a secret agreement to withdraw the hunger strike on the basis of assurances, then reneging on it and announcing its extension — trivialised the serious issue of black money and made the protest farcical.
“Clearly the backstage deal between the government and Ramdev fell apart, but this brings little credit to either party and indeed raises question about the credibility of both. The presence of communal elements on Ramdev's stage also showed up his essential ideological bias,'' the statement noted.
The party said elimination of black money and need to repatriate the illegitimate money holdings of Indian citizens in foreign countries was a matter of utmost gravity and legitimate public concern. Even the Supreme Court had repeatedly criticised the government and the relevant executive authorities for their failure to taken firm and effective measures.
“It is clear that the Congress party and the UPA government are not in the least serious about tackling the issue of black money,'' the CPI(M) said adding that the names of those involved should be made public and the government must take urgent legal steps in this direction.
“Tirade surprising”
CPI Parliamentary Party leader Gurudas Dasgupta too criticised the government for conducting negotiations in a secretive way with the yoga guru. “The government sends four Union Ministers to negotiate with a person who reaches the national capital on a private jet and enters into discussions without any transparency. It is a mystery why suddenly religious leaders have become active on issues of people's concern, be it unearthing of black money or checking corruption,'' he told The Hindu .
