Left threatens more stir if no rollback of prices

The Left parties today threatened to intensify their protests against the fuel price hike inside and outside parliament if the government did not roll back the hike in fuel prices.

The Left parties on Monday threatened to intensify their protests against the fuel price hike inside and outside parliament if the government did not roll back the hike in fuel prices.

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Claiming that people in many parts had come out "spontaneously" to join the nationwide shutdown against the hike, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury said: "Left parties and other secular parties will sit together and discuss the future course of action."

He said the issue would be raised in parliament when the monsoon session begins this month.

"The issue will rock parliament if there is no roll back," Yechury told IANS.

He rejected the notion that the Left and BJP were fighting together against the Congress-led government on the issue.

"We first called the shutdown. After that the BJP announced their Bharat Bandh. We (Left and secular parties) are moving separately," Yechury said.

"The momentum of this strike and bandh has to be carried forward," is how CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat put it.

"In the forthcoming parliament session, this should be raised as the major issue," Karat told a television channel.

He also rejected as "useless speculation" reports that West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was against the shutdown.