CPI(M) distances itself from Pandhe's comments on N-deal

New Delhi, Jun 25 (UNI) The Communist Party of India (Marxist) today made it clear that views expressed by Polit Bureau Member M K Pandhe on the Indo-US nuclear deal on June 23 did not represent party's views.

Clarifying the Party's stand on the nuke deal, Party General Secretary Prakash Karat said the Left parties were of the firm opinion that the government should not proceed to seek approval of the text of the India specific safeguards agreement from the Board of Governors of the IAEA.

He said as it was getting difficult for the Congress to promote the India-US strategic ties directly, it was taking recourse to false claims that nuclear energy would not only reduce our oil consumption at one stroke but also relieve us from power shortages.

Mr Karat said this raging double inflation was going to have a disastrous impact on the living of people, who had to deal with rampant increase in prices of all essential commodities. ''The Manmohan Singh government is squarely responsible for this dismal situation,'' he added.

The Left parties have called for a country-wide protest against the steep hike in petrol, diesel and cooking gas prices, he said, adding that the Central Committee of CPI(M) has denounced the price rise of petroleum products and has expressed strong opposition to any further hike.

''The Central Committee authorised the Polit Bureau to call for a country-wide protest, if the government announces a price increase,'' the General Secretary said.

Mr Karat said in no case the UPA government could pamper the private oil companies to make windfall profits and ignore the people, by increasing the prices of petrol and diesel as they were already suffering from escalating prices of essential commodities.

UNI BKS SW GT AS1833