CALCUTTA, 26 May 2004 — Indian Communist party senior leader Somnath Chatterjee, a key ally of the new Congress-led government, will become speaker of the lower house of Parliament, his party said yesterday.
“We have agreed to spare Somnath Chatterjee as speaker of the lower house of Parliament,” Communist leader Harkishen Singh Surjeet told reporters after a meeting in the West Bengal state capital Calcutta.
The Congress party had suggested the name of Chatterjee, but his Communist Party of India (Marxist) colleagues had been in two minds as he was a key speaker who articulated the party’s position in parliamentary debates.
They had also hesitated as they thought it might compromise their stance of not joining the government but supporting it from outside.
Surjeet also said the party was discussing the draft of the common working agenda for the Congress-led coalition government and were going to finalize their position by today.
The Communists key demands include not allowing the sale of state equity in profit-making government firms or any sellout of petroleum companies besides providing greater employment to farmers and the poor.
Party officials said their politburo was also likely to demand guarantees that legislation be pushed through reserving 33 percent of parliamentary seats for women.
“We have thoroughly discussed the common minimum program of Congress. Politburo members feel there is no need for an alternative to it. Politburo members have suggested some corrections in the program,” Singh said.
He added the issue will be discussed with other leftist parties today before giving their inputs to Congress.
The support of 61 MPs from four leftist groups, including the powerful Communist Party of India (Marxist), is vital for the survival of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Congress-led government, which took office on Saturday.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Calls Indian Counterpart, Vows to Deepen Peace
Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri called his new Indian counterpart Natwar Singh yesterday and both pledged to accelerate the India-Pakistan peace initiative, a spokesman said.
“Both ministers expressed their determination to continue and further expedite the present process in India-Pakistan relations, building upon the support provided by the people in both the countries,” Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna told reporters.
Natwar also emphasized the need to continue the talks in an atmosphere “free from the menace of terrorism and violence.”
On Sunday, rebels in Kashmir carried out a land mine attack on a bus crowded with Indian troops and their families which left 29 people dead.
The new government’s first Cabinet meeting Sunday condemned the bloodshed.
