Cong, regional parties should follow Bengal experience- Left

New Delhi, June 22 (UNI) Encouraged by the uninterrupted three- decades rule in West Bengal, the Left parties today asked the Congress and the regional parties to follow their "role model" for socio- economic growth within the constraints of the capitalist framework.

A day after the Left Front( LF) achieved the world distinction of 30 years of a democratic rule in any state, top leaders of CPI(M), CPI and Forward Bloc said the UPA government should also go back to its much hyped" economic growth with human face." CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan said," the Congress that is the leading party at the Centre should draw a proper lesson from the West Bengal experience. India Shining with relief to the masses always remains an illusion and brings disaster for political parties." The veteran Communist and freedom fighter, Mr Bardhan said the Left Front's completion of six "successful and proud" assembly terms in West Bengal was not only a historic event but had also set certain examples for the future course of political parties in the country.

On the "consolidation" of the LF rule in other parts of the country, CPI(M) stalwart and Rajya Sabha member Sitaram Yechury asked all the political parties to join people's movements against lingering threats of communalism and "imposition of ruinous" economic policies on the country responsible for creating grave agrarian crisis including farmers suicides, jobless growth, deepening economic divide and increasing social unrest among other things.

CPI National Secretary Shamim Faizi, while cautioning the regional parties, mainly the SP and TDP to shun the trend of announcing largesse on the eve of elections, said," This is the betrayal of the democratic spirit.People judge political parties on the base of performance and not the doles." Referring to the West Bengal experience, Mr Yechury, the party polit bureau member, said," the experience suggests that even it is possible to beat the incumbency factor by accelerating economic growth by implementing land reforms, strengthening the panchayati raj institutions to involve the ruralites and agriculturists in the development process." " This has not been done at the national level," Mr Yechury observed, while adding that another feature of the success of the West Bengal experience was to maintain law and order, communal amity and social fabric under all trying circumstances, be it anti-Sikh riots in 1984 or post-Babri Masjid demolition riots in the 1990s.

CPI national Secretary Shamim Faizi said after making agrarian economy self- sufficient," now we have turned to industrial development." Only yesterday CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat supported private investment for a strong industrial base, while pleading to protect trade unions and workers rights. Top industrialist Mukesh Ambani said in Kolkata," West Bengal has potential," which is why his group is thinking big. He listed various projects to be set up in the state. He announced two big projects worth Rs 4000 crore to mark the completion of 30 years LF rule in the state.

Mr Faizi said,"Of course, during the course of three decades, the Left have learnt many lessons, particularly in the sector of industrial relations.. There have been some improvement in the functioning of TUs." " As the Left Front overwhelmingly dominates the TUs front in the state, competitive extremism in industrial relations has gone down.

However, some sections still are under the illusion that this calm on the TUs front is as if we have deviated from our basic ideology. The fact remains the TUs movment all over the world has shed extremism and undue militancy." Forward Bloc national Secretary G Devrajan pointed out that the LF uninterrupted rule was essentially the victory of Left unity based on mass struggles on people's issues.

" We strongly defended PSUs in the Left ruled states-also in Kerala and Tripura, Agriculture is our base and industry is our future," Mr Devrajan said, while urging the Manmohan Singh government to take immediate steps to come to the rescue of the agriculture sector which not only contributed as much as 25 per cent of the GDP but also constitutes a livelihood for country's 70 per cent population.

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