Left,Right join hands in bandh against Centre

Mulayam instead participated in a joint protest with CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat,CPI leaders S Sudhakar Reddy and D Raja,TDP’s Chandrababu Naidu and JD(S)’s H D Deve Gowda just some metres away. They all courted arrest along with Yechury and Bardhan,but were later released.

While stating that there was no formal alliance at present,Mulayam said Thursday’s united action had the potential of evolving into another front. Asked whether this would lead to the emergence of a Third Front,he said: “What will be a bigger example than this?”

Stating that his party would “not tolerate” anti-people decisions like an increase in diesel prices and FDI in retail,Mulayam reiterated that the SP was supporting the UPA government only to keep “communal forces” at bay. “But we will not support price rise,” he said.

He said if the UPA government did not roll back its decisions immediately,“we will announce together a strategy to hold a big agitation.” Karat urged Mulayam to lead the fight against the government,both inside and outside Parliament.

Interestingly,although the BJD was among the eight parties that had given the protest call,none of its leaders was present. Karat said the BJD had observed a protest day on September 17. In Bhubaneswar,BJD leader and Orissa minister Kalpataru Das said the party decided not to join the bandh as it coincided with Nuakhai festival.

But even as Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik,who was in Delhi,claimed that his party would not support the UPA and dismissed reports of Congress leaders having approached him,there were indications that the BJD is seeking to maintain equidistance from both the BJP and Congress.

Meanwhile,both Gadkari and Bardhan tried to play down the issue of the Left and BJP coming together. “It was a platform of traders. They had invited all of us to protest against allowing FDI in retail. We are all opposed to that decision,” said Bardhan,adding that they may have different ideologies but “are one” when it comes to fighting for the people. He even praised Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee for her decision to pull out of the UPA government.

Gadkari said it was a non-political platform as the issue was of the livelihood of traders. At one point,Yechury was seated between JD(U) president Sharad Yadav and Gadkari.

Both Bardhan and Joshi accused the government of opening up the retail sector to FDI at the instance of the US. Bardhan said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was trying to “please” US President Barack Obama while Joshi claimed the Congress was trying to make traders and people “slaves” of the US and other western countries.