Press Statement
The leaders of Left Parties – Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, Revolutionary Socialist Party and Forward Bloc – met today. They have issued the following statement:
On Women’s Reservation Bill
The Left Parties discussed the issue of one-third reservation for women in parliament and state legislatures. In this connection, the Left Parties wanted the government to bring the original Bill providing one-third reservation for women in the forthcoming session of parliament. This will be in keeping with the commitment made in the Common Minimum Programme.
Further delay in the matter will be unwarranted.
On India-Pakistan-Iran Gas Pipeline Project
The Left Parties expressed concern at the remarks made by the Prime Minister to an American newspaper in which he has reported to have said that the pipeline project is fraught with difficulties, among which is that no international consortium is coming forward to underwrite the project.
It is unfortunate that the Prime Minister has made such remarks in Washington when it is well-known that the United States is oppose to the project. The Prime Minister should immediately clarify whether the commitment to the pipeline project has been diluted as a result of his visit to United States.
The Left Parties consider the going ahead of the pipeline project as an acid test for the UPA government’s commitment to an independent policy serving national interests.
Manipur Situation
The Left Parties expressed serious concern at the worsening situation in Manipur. The Left Parties urged the Central government to intervene immediately to restore the road and other communications so that normalcy returns to the state.
The Left Parties will be writing a joint letter to the Prime Minister in this regard.
Those who attended the meeting:
CPI : A. B. Bardhan , D. Raja
CPI(M): Prakash Karat, H. K. Surjeet, Sitaram Yechury
AIFB : Debabrata Biswas, G. Devarajan
RSP : Abani Roy, Manoj Bhattacharya