Left parties launch anti-price rise protests

New Delhi, Jul 17: On the first day of the three-day anti-price rise stir, activists of Left parties today took to the streets to demand stoppage of forward trading and reversing amendments in Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) among others to contain the spiralling price rise.

The Left Democratic Front in Kerala comprising the CPI(M), CPI, Forward Bloc and RSP organised demonstrations and meetings at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Kozhikode and Palakkad among other places. The NCP and Kerla Congress workers also participated in the protests, according to Left leaders M K Pandhe and Shamim Faizi.

At Thiruvananthapuram, CPI(M) State Secretary Pinarayi Vijayan and his CPI counterpart Veliyam Bhargavan addressed protestors, who carried red flags and banners urging the UPA government to reverse amendments, carried out during the tenure of the Vajpayee government to cotrol the rise in prices of essential commodities.

In Andhra Pradesh, protestors held meetings and demonstrations in front of District Collector offices at Vishakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Warangal, Nalganda and Tiruputi.

The Left parties will stage rallies in Kolkata and New Delhi on Wednesday. Mumbai and Nagpur will witness rallies tomorrow.

The parties had earlier planned to organise week-long protests from July 13, but had to cancel their plan after the serial blasts in Mumbai.

Emphasising on the reversal of amendments in the ESMA, the Left parties said the numbers of the essential commodities declined from 70 in 1989 to 15 during the NDA regime. ''These have contributed to most of the price rise,'' said Dr Pandhe, President of CITU.

Besides, these amendments had jeopardised the government's capability to check ''reckless profiteering'' in trade of essential commodities by stockists and hoarders, said the CPI (M) Polit Bureau member.

The Left leaders referred to two NDA orders of 2002 and 2003, which removed the licensing requirements, stock limits, movement restrictions on items like wheat, grains, sugar, edible oilseeds, pulses, jaggery, flour and vegetable oils.

UNI