NEW DELHI, 29 June 2005 — The powerful Communist parties yesterday took to the streets nationwide to protest against a hike in fuel prices and the privatization of bluechip companies. The strike evoked mixed response.
The protests took place even as coalition Chairperson Sonia Gandhi spoke to Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) General Secretary Prakash Karat following the decision of four Left parties to boycott coordination meetings to protest against the proposed disinvestment of public sector companies.
Despite Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s efforts at a patch-up earlier, Left activists pressed ahead with its “Action Day” of protests against the hike of Rs.2.50 per liter for petrol and Rs.2 for diesel.
Major left-wing leaders and activists, carrying red banners and flags, staged a noisy demonstration on one of the busiest streets of New Delhi, forcing police to divert traffic.
Police later brought in water cannons to disperse the crowd of hundreds which broke through security barricades at the key ITO intersection, witnesses said.
The protests had the maximum impact in Left-ruled states such as West Bengal, Tripura and Kerala. In Delhi and Bihar, the response was only partial — with protesters even courting trouble with the police barricades — but many other states responded even less.
Waving red flags and banners, activists shouted slogans and blocked traffic in the afternoon in Delhi’s crowded ITO intersection. Trucks, buses and other vehicles were stopped for hours as the protestors lay down on the streets, forcing the police to deploy water cannons to disperse them.
Among the key leaders spotted at the protest were CPM politburo members Brinda Karat and M.K. Pandhe and CPI leader D. Raja.
“There has been a very good response to our call for protest. The government cannot undermine this and take it lightly,” Raja said. “This is a very serious message. The government will have to reconsider its decision.”
Brinda Karat said the fuel price hike was unfair and unjustified and had to be rolled back in the interest of the people.
She believed the hike had nothing to do with global oil rates and was more due to internal taxation.
The protesters mainly stopped traffic in various parts of the country.
Tens of thousands of trucks went off the road in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra and rallies were held in various places in neighboring Karnataka. Rail and road traffic was impacted somewhat due to diversions.
The prime minister had earlier spoken to Karat to assure him that the Left’s grievances would be addressed after Sonia returned from Simla.
The Left, with 61 lawmakers, props up the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. It has gone on the warpath against the government on various economic policies, including the proposed sale of government equity in profit making public sector company Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.
