Sanity, comrades

Strike one for rationality. Just when a dangerous political pastime 8212; seeking predictions about the Central government8217;s future from soothsayers 8212; seemed to be gaining popularity, the Left parties have done their bit to sort out the channels of communication. For more authentic hints about the government8217;s forthcoming decisions, refer instead to media-savvy communist leaders. In just the past few days, one of them 8212; Gurudas Dasgupta 8212; has informed us that the transfer of Balco shares has not taken place on the due date. He referred to a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to gather credibility for his disclosures, which included the maintenance of the rate of interest on provident fund at 9.5 per cent. A day later, his colleague 8212; Sitaram Yechury 8212; breezed out of a luncheon meeting with the prime minister, affixing huge question marks on the UPA government8217;s commitment to hiking FDI in the telecom sector and allowing World Bank and ADB experts to serve on Planning Commission consultative groups. And for anything not covered in these statements, their colleagues have been busy instructing the government 8212; on how to handle the situation in Manipur and in J038;K, on how to counter Uma Bharati8217;s yatra, on how to package employment guarantee schemes.

No thanks, comrades. Negotiating policy decisions is the prerogative of the government. By last count, there were any number of spokespersons available to the Manmohan Singh regime; we don8217;t need these self-appointed dispensers of news and views. Parliamentary democracy accords coalitions a matrix of ways and means to manage differences; by trade-unionising this subtle process, by constantly reminding the United Progressive Alliance that its government survives only on their approval, they are assuming extraconstitutional powers. And now by demanding that the government apprise them of key policy decisions before going public, so that surprise does not stir them to uncivility, they are seeking power without responsibility.

It was perhaps nothing more than a gentle reminder of political realities when this weekend Prakash Karat exhorted the UPA to firmly counter the BJP challenge. But it was apt. Having kept the Congress on edge for more than a hundred days now, the Left must feel obliged to point the ruling party to the actual opposition in Parliament. Sonia Gandhi should take note. As chairperson of the UPA-Left coordination committee, she may like to dwell on President Abdul Kalam8217;s pronouncements on his African tour. He spoke out, for instance, against veto powers at the United Nations. Prime Minister Singh may elaborate on that in New York in coming days. But what about the veto the Left seems to have appropriated on Raisina Hill?