Left keeps off UPA function to mark 4 years in office

New Delhi, May 22 (UNI) Left parties today decided not to participate in the UPA Government's celebrations of its four years in office as an apparent move to distance themselves from the Congress-led coalition in view of the November Assembly polls and the general elections next year.

While the junior partners in the Left Front- the RSP and the Forward Bloc- have decided to completely ignore the Government's official function to release the four years progress report and subsequent dinner hosted by Prime Minister Manmoahn Singh, CPI(M) and CPI leaders will participate in the dinner.

The Bahujan Samaj Party has also decided to completely boycott the celebrations in view of the government's refusal to grant a Rs 80,000 crore relief package for Bundelkhund.

Significantly, the Left parties are holding a special meeting tomorrow evening to chalk out their future course of action against the UPA Government's total failure to curb inflation, the Indo-US nuclear deal and the anti-workers and anti-people economic policies being pursued by it.

CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan told UNI that he along with his party colleague D Raja will attend the dinner and not the other functions.

A CPI (M) leader said party General Secretary Prakash Karat and polit bureau member Sitaram Yechury will attend the dinner only.

RSP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Abani Roy said there was no cause for celebrations.''What is there to celebrate, you tell us? We have decided not to participate in both the Government function and the dinner.'' Forward Bloc General Secretary and MP Debvrat Biswas when asked quipped,'' We have also decided not to participate in both the celebrations and the dinner.'' UNI KSA RP ND1740