Fuel price hike draws flak at CPM meet

Hyderabad, June 9 (UNI) The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government's decision to hike the prices of petrol and diesel, ignoring the Left's suggestions came under sharp criticism at the three-day CPI (M) Central Committee meeting here today.

Taking part in the debate on the report submitted by Party General Secretary Prakash Karat, committee members expressed displeasure over the performance of the Manmohan Singh Government on various fronts, especially the cut in food subsidy, disinvestment and foreign policy with 'US tilt,' incuding the Iran nuclear issue, party sources said.

Members of the highest policy-making body wanted the party leadership to take a lead in channelising the people's resentment against the fuel price hike by involving non-Bharatiya Janata Party and non-Congress parties to force the government to roll back the hike.

The 83-member central committee comprising among others Chief Ministers Buddhadeb Bhattacharya (West Bengal), V S Achuthanandan (Kerala), Manik Sarkar (Tripura) and Politburo Member Sitaram Yechury will adopt the political resolution tomorrow after the brain storming session.

Former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu and Marxist vetaran Harkishan Singh Surjeet could not attend the meeting due to ill health.

Meanwhile, Politburo Member and State Secretary B V Raghavulu told mediapersons the issue of separate state for Telangana would not figure at the meeting.

The CPI(M) had amply made it clear that it was against the creation of new states, re-drawing the map of states formed on linguistic basis, he pointed out.

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