By IANS,
New Delhi : A day after the Congress party attacked the Left over its three decades of “misrule” in West Bengal, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Monday refuted the claims and said the Congress was using “selective statistics” for political gain.
CPI-M politburo member Brinda Karat Monday lashed out at senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee, who released the party’s report card that showed that the levels of hunger, poverty and unemployment, along with the crime rate, had gone up in West Bengal.
“Pranab Mukherjee appreciated the West Bengal government on Feb 2 and March 2 for undertaking development programmes. This shows his doublespeak. He now has to answer why this double standard in just one month,” Brinda Karat said.
Mukherjee released a report titled ’30 years of Left Front rule in West Bengal: A development report card’. The report alleged that the CPI-M-led government failed to provide proper health, education and generate employment in the state.
Refuting the findings, Brinda Karat said: “The Congress document shows that the West Bengal government has been doing well enough on the indices of poverty, hunger and malnutrition and education. Selective statistics should not be looked and used for political motives.”
Taking on the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA), she said: “What is the report card of the UPA? Did they tell the people that Maharashtra has the highest number of farmer suicides. The Congress party has entirely ignored the agriculture factor and plight of farmers.”
Brinda Karat also criticised the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for writing off the Third Front.
“Both Congress and BJP have tried to scuttle the Third Front, but it finds regular mention by them. This shows their desperation for power. Their efforts of ensuring a two party system has failed,” she added.
Referring to the BJP fielding Jaswant Singh from Darjeeling and the party aligning with the pro-Gorkhaland party Gorka Janamukti Morcha (GJM) for the polls, Brinda Karat said: “The BJP has fielded senior leader Jaswant Singh from Darjeeling constituency on the shoulders of an outfit which is out to divide Bengal on the basis of ethnic and linguistic identity.”
She also released the CPI-M’s audio CD for the poll campaign called “Aaina”.