NEW DELHI: The National front and the Left Front have decided to have floor coordination in Parliament when certain important cut motions which some of their members will be moving at the time of the consideration of the finance bill. This decision was taken when the leaders of the constituents of these two fonts met on Friday.
Janata Dal Parliamentary Party leader V.P.Singh who briefed reporters on this meeting said that there would be cut motions relating to fertilizer prices newsprint price hike labor participation in management and ex-servicemen’s pension schemes. A cut motion will be given also on the refusal of the govt to raise the income tax limit for salaried employees.
V.P.Singh noted with satisfaction that the govt had eventually yielded to the pressure from opposition parties and dropped the proposal to give Rs.100 crore to the Rajiv Gandhi foundation. This amount so saved can be utilized for the backward classes’ financial corporation for which the finance minister has not provided anything in his budget.
it was up to the govt Singh said to consider if it would like to save itself from the consequence of the cut motion on fertilizer prices just as it has chosen to do in connection with the budgetary proposal for the Rajiv Gandhi foundation He was critical of the technology of Italian origin obtained through a favored firm for fertilizer production and felt that it would hit farmers hard.
Singh stressed the need for emphasis on agriculture which continues to be the mainstay of Indian economy. Viewed against the stagnation in this sector and the declining share of agriculture in the gross national product even without there being any reduction in the number of people engaged in it Singh said the designs that would result in fertilizer price rise were particularly objectionable.
The Janata Dal leader evaded questions about possible floor coordination with the BJP on the proposed cut motions which have generated a degree of unanimity. When it was pointed out that his party colleague George Fernandes had the other day spoken about floor coordination with the BJP Singh said their decision was to have floor coordination between the National Front and the Left Front.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 9, 1991
