Red Forces on the rise, say Left

New Delhi, May 21: Extrapolating Left gains in the recent assembly polls, Communist leaders today claimed that Left forces are on a comeback trail not only in India but also in various parts of the world in the wake of ''lopsided'' world economic order being pursued brazenly.

In separate interviews to UNI, the leaders of Left parties, which emerged stronger after the assembly polls following their best-ever performance in the Lok Sabha elections, said they had never been against development, modernisation and FDI per se ''but not at the cost of the have-nots''.

Their assertion, according to the CPI(M), CPI and Forward Bloc leaders, was indicated in the ''landside victory'' of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in West Bengal and wresting of power from the Congress-led UDF in Kerala, without compromising on the interests of the working classes.

They said the rise of the Left forces had also been visible in most of the Latin American and Asian countries, where they managed to form governments in Brazil, Peru and Chile and consolidated their positions in Nepal, France, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan among others.

CPI leader A B Bardhan said ''The comeback trail at the world level has been the direct result of the economic hardships the people suffered because of the new economic liberalism. Now they are resisting these and taking to the streets with a slogan 'there is an altenative.'' This is a boost to the Left forces, the CPI leaders said adding that frustrated peple were now voting for the Left parties. ''This has been more particular in the countries of Latin America and Asia.

The victories in Nicaragua, Venezuela, Argentina and Brazil and the massive upsurge in France reflect the people's disenchantment with the economic liberalisation presenting the world capitalist order as the only alternative,'' said Mr Bardhan.

In Asia, the people of the Third World were feeling the pinch of the ''WTO-dictated disaster'', said CPI National Secretary Shamim Faizi adding that it had given the Left an opportunity to win over new sections of people, including the middle classes as seen in West Bengal.

In Nepal also, it is the broadest possible unit of masses that had made the historic turnaround possible in that country, said Mr Faizi.

The Left obviously is the leading force in the struggle against the monarchy and for a republic, he added.

Senior CPI(M) leaders Brinda Karat and Rup Chand Pal said the people were now coming to believe that the Left had an alternatve framework which is ''people-centric'' as has been shown in West Bengal and Kerala.

On the home front, Mr Faizi said besides West Bengal and Kerala, the Left have made their entry in the assemblies in Pondicherry and Assam after a gap of five years. The Left's fight for implementation of the ''pro-people'' provisions of the Common Minimum Programme of the UPA government and its opposition to its economic reforms had earned the parties new supporters in all the states, he added.

''But the significant question before the Left is to capitalise on this general support, particularly in the Hindi heartland. So far, the Left had been projected as the one fighting for the workers and employees. Now it has turned towards the agricultural sector to consolidate its base in Western UP, Bihar and the Green Revolution belt of Punjab and Haryana,'' Mr Faizi said.

UNI