The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:
The action of the Delhi Police, to try and stop a seminar-cum-workshop being held at the Harkishan Singh Surjeet Bhavan in New Delhi on alternative policies with regard to the G20, was totally uncalled for and an attempt to suppress dissenting opinions being voiced.
The Surjeet Bhavan is owned by the CPI(M) where it conducts various activities, including Party education and seminars. Various civil society organisations, under the banner of We20, were conducting a meeting on the issues raised by the forthcoming G20 summit.
The police sought to stop the meeting stating that it had not got police permission. No police permission was ever required for such meetings or seminars in private buildings.
The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly protests against this arbitrary action of the Delhi Police. The Modi government must stop interfering, through the Delhi Police, in the democratic right of citizens to hold discussions and seminars in the capital.