After the Congress, the Left parties have chalked out a week-long protest against the Narendra Modi government over the Rafale deal, beginning with a Jan Adalat here on October 13.
These parties are demanding the resignation of Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and a joint parliamentary committee to probe the deal.
At the Jan Adalat, defence experts will be called in to answer questions over the deal. For now, the Left parties have decided not to invite other Opposition parties for the Jan Adalat. This will be followed by a nationwide campaign by Jan Ekta Jan Adhikar Andolan (JEJAA), the grouping of organisations affiliated to the Left parties, from October 22 to 28.
Meetings in all districts
These organisations will hold public meetings and seminars, and stage a demonstration in districts on October 28. The JEJAA, which comprises traders, farmers, students, teachers, labour and social unions, claims to have 20 crore members.
“The Bofors scam was just worth ₹64 crore; the Rafale deal we have heard may go up to ₹41,000 crore. In the Bofors case, there was a middleman, Ottavio Quattrocchi; but in the Rafale deal, the Prime Minister is directly involved,” JEJAA convener Hannan Mollah said.
“They want to shut us up by calling us urban naxals. It is a diversionary tactic to close down questions,” said Kavita Krishnan, a CPI(ML) polit bureau member.
