Trinamool Congress hijacks key issues
Trinamool Congress has hijacked a few key issues which were once taken up by the CPIM to organise popular mass movements.
By ET Bureau |
KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress has hijacked a few key issues which were once taken up by the CPIM to organise popular mass movements.
For starters, Railway minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has recently opposed some provisions in the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007, during a meeting of the Union Cabinet. The other issue is the price rise, which the Trinamool Congress has now hijacked from the CPIM.
Significantly, the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill has proposed to allow private operators to purchase 70 per cent of the land that they would require for industrial projects directly from the land owners, especially farmers.
It is learnt that Mamata has categorically told the Cabinet that her party would not support such a Bill if the government decides togo ahead.
Interestingly, it was the CPIM which has been demanding the government���s active role in acquiring land for industrialisation, and before the Tatas pulled out the Nano project from Singur, the CPIM-led government had used its agencies like WBIDC to acquire land for Tata Motors.
The CPIM had not only demanded the government's direct role in land acquisition for industrialisation, but also implemented the same in Singur.
In so far as Trinamool's latest protests against rising prices go, it closely resembles the CPIM's statewide agitation in the late 60s against the rise in prices of essentials and has gained tremendous public support for themselves. The Marxists at that time had hung brinjals and other vegetables in public buses to symbolise the then Congress government's failure to check prices.
In a similar move, Trinamool Congress MLA, Madan Mitra on Saturday held a rally in the city protesting against the Left Front government's failure to rein in surging prices of essential commodities. Mitra and his henchmen held a unique rally with potatoes hanging around their necks.
The West Bengal government had sold potatoes in some select city markets at subsidised rates following a stiff hike in price of the commodity. But after a few days, the government had stopped selling potatoes in these markets at cheaper rate.
Trinamool Congress on Saturday criticised West Bengal finance minister Asim Dasgupta who had initiated the process of selling potato at cheaper rate saying that the government had been actually bypassing the issue of price rise and tried to extract political mileage by selling the item at cheaper rate.
For starters, Railway minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has recently opposed some provisions in the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007, during a meeting of the Union Cabinet. The other issue is the price rise, which the Trinamool Congress has now hijacked from the CPIM.
Significantly, the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill has proposed to allow private operators to purchase 70 per cent of the land that they would require for industrial projects directly from the land owners, especially farmers.
It is learnt that Mamata has categorically told the Cabinet that her party would not support such a Bill if the government decides togo ahead.
Interestingly, it was the CPIM which has been demanding the government���s active role in acquiring land for industrialisation, and before the Tatas pulled out the Nano project from Singur, the CPIM-led government had used its agencies like WBIDC to acquire land for Tata Motors.
The CPIM had not only demanded the government's direct role in land acquisition for industrialisation, but also implemented the same in Singur.
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In so far as Trinamool's latest protests against rising prices go, it closely resembles the CPIM's statewide agitation in the late 60s against the rise in prices of essentials and has gained tremendous public support for themselves. The Marxists at that time had hung brinjals and other vegetables in public buses to symbolise the then Congress government's failure to check prices.
In a similar move, Trinamool Congress MLA, Madan Mitra on Saturday held a rally in the city protesting against the Left Front government's failure to rein in surging prices of essential commodities. Mitra and his henchmen held a unique rally with potatoes hanging around their necks.
The West Bengal government had sold potatoes in some select city markets at subsidised rates following a stiff hike in price of the commodity. But after a few days, the government had stopped selling potatoes in these markets at cheaper rate.
Trinamool Congress on Saturday criticised West Bengal finance minister Asim Dasgupta who had initiated the process of selling potato at cheaper rate saying that the government had been actually bypassing the issue of price rise and tried to extract political mileage by selling the item at cheaper rate.
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