SEZs: BKS fires broadside at BJP

Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, Aug 19 (UNI) The Sangh Parivar's principal ally Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of supporting the ''controversial'' Special Economic Zone (SEZ) concept and said it was first conceived by the saffron party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

''All political leaders are supporting SEZs. Even the Left, which never tires of being pro-labourer and pro-farmer, is doing the same thing in West Bengal as BJP regimes are doing in Rajasthan and Gujarat and the Congress is doing in Maharashtra,'' BKS General Secretary Dinesh Kulkarni told UNI.

Pointing out that NDA government's Minister Murasoli Maran was the first to draft a scheme for setting up SEZs, Mr Kulkarni added the concept was lethal for India's sovereignty.

''The SEZ law, passed in 2005, must be repealed forthwith. It is at the cost of fertile land that is the lifeline of crores of peasants. The BKS National Working Committee, which met on July 21 and 22 at Gorakhpur, decided to launch a widespread agitation against SEZs,'' he said.

The first phase would be a public awakening campaign and under the second sit-in and demonstrations would be conducted at block level from September 25 to October 2.

''The entry of multinational companies in the retail sector is also lethal,'' Mr Kulkarni added.

UNI