Port Blair, Mar 02: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has decided to contest the forthcoming Panchayat-raj and Municipal elections throughout the islands. A decision to this effect was taken by the party in its Andaman and Nicobar State Organising Committee meeting held at Shaheed Bhavan, Anarkali, Port Blair today. The meeting of the party has also decided to take up various issues of the islanders with the authorities concerned.
In a resolution adopted in the meeting, CPI (M) has condemned the restrictions imposed on the democratic rights of the people in the islands by the BJP-led central government and bureaucratic-run Administration. The meeting noted that the authorities are denying permission to hold public meetings, corner meetings, mass dharna or any kind of public gathering by the political parties, trade unions, service associations, youth and student organizations, etc. Through another resolution the CPI (M) has demanded Covid -19 vaccination for the entire islanders on free of cost basis and to announce the schedule of vaccination. The CPI (M) has condemned the abolition of the Block level Panchayat Samities in the 3-tier Panchayat-raj by the BJP-led central government without any reason and demanded its restoration. CPI (M) through another resolution demanded to halt the on-going privatization of the Electricity Department and urged the central government to keep the power sector in government control in the islands. CPI (M) has also demanded to take effective steps by the central government to create jobs both in government as well as private sector for the local youths considering the growing unemployment among the educated youths in the islands. Though another resolution, the CPI (M) has demanded to fill up all the vacant posts in the Andaman and Nicobar Administration as thousands of posts are lying vacant for the last several years.
Earlier, addressing the State Organising Committee meeting and the General Body meeting in the evening, Mr. G. Ramakrishnan, Polit Bureau Member of the CPI (M), who arrived Port Blair yesterday, said that the economy of the country is crumbling while the BJP-led central government is appeasing the corporate sector by extending benefits to the tune of thousands of crores, even during the pandemic. He said that the Modi government has failed in all fields and only with the media hype it is surviving. He further said that during the lockdown period, a number of anti-people and anti-working class decisions have been taken by the government besides passing legislations to curb the rights of workers and farmers.
Mr. KG Das, Secretary, A & N State Organising Committee presented the report of the activities of the party in the islands and the situation in the islands during the Covid -19 pandemic. Mr. D. Lakshman Rao, State Secretariat Member presided over the meeting.
