Karat slams government policies to curb inflation

DURGAPUR - Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat Monday flayed the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s proposed policy of allowing foreign investment in retail market in order to curb inflation.

“The government now wants to give permission to foreign investment in retail trade. Few days back a statement came out from the Prime Minister’s office regarding various steps needed to be taken to control inflation. And in that one of the proposals was to allow foreign investment in retail trade. The logic is that inflation is due to our shopkeepers and markets and if foreign investors come, inflation can be controlled,” Karat told a seminar here.

“We need to see the root cause of such policies. They are talking about disinvestments in public sector since the (P.V.) Narashima Rao government. Attempts were being made to privatise the public sector units by disinvestments. But it was not possible due to protest by working class and Left forces of the country,” said Karat.