UPA's people-oriented policies were due to Left pressure: CPI

New Delhi, Feb 23 (UNI) Senior CPI leader A B Bardhan today said the Left parties have succeeded to a great extent in forcing the UPA Government to come out with such pro-poor policies like the National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme.

''It was mainly because of the Left parties' pressure that the Government stopped its privatisation drive. Had the Left's pressure not been there, most of the public sector undertakings would have gone into the hands of Ambanis, Mittals, Tatas and Birlas,'' he said at a meeting organised as part of the 21st State Conference of CPI's Delhi unit.

He asked the Government to implement the recommendations of the Sachar Committee for the uplift of the minorities.

The meeting was addressed by party's National Council secretaries Amarjeet Kaur and D Raja.

The two-day event organised by the Delhi CPI started with a rally and then converged into a meeting that was attended by hundreds of members and activists.

Mr Bardhan said the 20th Party Congress will start on March 23, the martyrdom day of Shahid Bhagat Singh and conclude on March 27.

Speaking on the occasion, Ms Amarjeet Kaur said the party was preparing to launch an agitation against the Government's measures of sealing, demolition, erasing of slums and ban of cycle rickshaws, among others.

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