sitaram yechury


	Politics The pen-pushers of the Indian ruling classes are busy drumming up an illusory consensus on the process of economic liberalisation. Two Bourgeois Combinations & Alternative Whenever the Congress is seen supporting the proposals of the BJP, it takes the plea that this is a commitment it had made in its manifesto. Labour Relations Technological changes are not something new that are happening only now.

The pen-pushers of the Indian ruling classes are busy drumming up an illusory consensus on the process of economic liberalisation. The Indian ruling classes, particularly the Indian big business, are finding the present political dispensation the best that they have ever had, to further their loot of India's resources and intensify the exploitation of the vast masses of Indian people. Since the "reform" process began under the Congress regime in 1991, Indian big business never found the going so good, for various reasons.

First, the present Vajpayee-led government is one that US imperialism find itself most comfortable with. On a wide range of issues -- from nuclear policy to economic "reforms" -- this Vajpayee-led government is more than willing not merely to succumb to US pressures but to go a step ahead and further the imperialist interests.

Secondly, the main opposition party, the Congress, is meekly toeing along, supporting the economic policy measures under the pretext that "the BJP is hijacking our economic agenda." Thus, unlike the period 1991-96, when the BJP opposed many economic "reforms" under its populist and dishonest slogan of "Swadeshi", the present situation is one where the ruling combination and the main opposition party are acting in unison in the process of mortgaging India.

Thirdly, the non-Congress, non-BJP ruling class parties have, during this period, appeared more eager to further the policy of reckless liberalisation. This is quite different from the situation during the United Front period when some of these very parties like the TDP and, DMK were united with the Left on the issue of secularism but had differences on economic policies. Though the Indian industry welcomed Mr Chidambaram's budgets, many a regressive economic measure -- for example, privatisation of insurance sector -- could not be pushed through, primarily because of the objections from the CPI(M) and the Left. Imperialism and the Indian big business today feel relieved that such a situation does not exist. In fact, during the course of the recent elections, they made all efforts and left no stone unturned to ensure that no combination of parties relying on Left support comes to power at the centre.

It is this political situation that is emboldening Indian big business and their media "voices" to continuously give unsolicited advice of "delinking politics from economics." Those on the liberalisation bandwagon must be told that politics, shorn of its rhetoric, has basically got to do with economics. That is why all along economics has always been considered as political economy. It is economic policies that determine the livelihood and status of the people in any civil society. Which class or classes in society will garner what share of the national product is determined by political policies. By seeking to delink politics from economics, what is being stated is that there should be no interference in the process of loot that the Indian big business and the corporate world are currently engaging in. This is the real meaning of the current catch phrase of "keeping politics away from economics."

This, in itself, is unfiltered politics. The ruling classes are trying to shed the encumbrance of political compulsions and uncomfortable realities like poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, disease, squalor, etc. They wish clean and clear run to exploit the masses without any restriction, without any questions raised. This is the politics of the ruling classes: Do not interfere in our right to exploit to the maximum!

The Indian big business must be told that the job of governance is to take care of the welfare of the people. The government is not a mere accountant maintaining balance between revenue and expenditure. Civil societies have governments to take care of the people's needs. However, in a class divided society, the governments, in the final analysis, always protects the interests of the ruling classes. Indian big business, today, is urging the present government to give up even the pretence of looking after people's welfare. The Vajpayee government, it is clear, is more than willing to do this. And the Congress, it is more than clear, is playing the role of the eager drummer boy.

Thus, the process of transforming the Indian Republic into an "India Pvt Ltd. Co," has got a shot in the arm with the present Vajpayee government. The so-called "second generation reforms" are nothing but a smoke-screen to hand over the assets of the Indian people and the control of the Indian economy to multinational corporations and Indian big business.

Through these columns, we have repeatedly argued that the present process of economic liberalisation undertaken by India would result in the increasing mortgaging of our economy, on the one hand, and increasing economic onslaughts on the vast majority of the people, on the other. The latter would occur due to pressures on the government to reduce its expenditures, which would be reflected in significant cuts in social welfare expenditure and subsidies which are already too little to meet the needs of the Indian people.

Facts testify that this is precisely what is happening. In an answer to a question in the parliament, the state minister for finance announced that India's debt repayment liabilities almost doubled since 1996-97 and touched Rs 4,29,497 crore in 1998-99. The interest payment on the debt has continuously risen from Rs 59,478 crore in 1996-97 to Rs 65,637 crore in 1997-98 and Rs 77,248 crore in 1998-99. Interest payments alone constitute nearly the whole of India's fiscal deficit. If the aim is to reduce this fiscal deficit, then what needs to be done is to stop mortgaging India any further. Instead, the present government not only continues but intensifies the policies precisely in this direction.

On the other hand, the direct tax collections during April-October this year amounted to Rs 22,592 crore, representing only a 5.9 per cent growth over the corresponding period last year. In this connection, it must be noted that the current budget estimated direct tax collections to grow at the rate of 19 percent. Personal income tax collections grew by 16.63 per cent, much lower than the budgeted target of 25.6 per cent (Business Line, December 18). The worst case, however, is of revenues from the corporate taxes. These registered a paltry 0.1 per cent growth as against the targetted 14 per cent.

It is thus clear that, with revenue collections falling far short of the target, the pressures on the government to reduce its expenditures will be further mounted. This would lead to further reductions in governmental expenditure in those crucial areas which have a direct bearing on the wellbeing and livelihood of the vast majority of Indians. Already education, health care facilities, etc., are beyond the reach of India's majority. The public distribution system is virtually in a shambles. Making public the Official figures on the people below poverty line has been stopped.

It is in this background that the clamour by Indian big business for greater privatisation and liberalisation must be seen. The Vajpayee government, instead of addressing to the needs of the majority of the Indian people, has sucked up to the big business and set up eight groups headed by big industrialists to "recommend" further "reforms". Big business is thus being told to advise the government as to how their interests can be furthered! These groups include the Ambanis who are to recommend on the privatisation of education, Goenkas on privatisation of the public sector, and so on. The Indian big business, led by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), is today acting like the Vanara Sena of the present BJP-led distortion of Ram Rajya.

What is more audacious is the fact that the CII appointed itself as a task force for the government and recently recommended the closing down of three nationalised banks and privatisation of other nationalised banks, with government equity being reduced to a mere 25 per cent. The ostensible reason for the recommendation about closing down the UCO bank, the UBI and the Indian Bank is that they have a high proportion of non-performing assets (NPAs). NPAs are loans taken from the banks and not returned. Today, from the latest figures reluctantly provided by the government, there are more than Rs 51,710 crore locked up as NPAs in the nationalised banks. Of this, more than Rs 30,000 crore are loans taken by the members of the CII, who are refusing to return this amount. What is worse is that five out of the nine members of this CII team have defaulted to the tune of Rs 107 crore to these very three banks whose closure they recommend (The Hindustan Times, December 19).

Such a fraud is being perpetrated on the Indian people in the name of "national interest"! If the CII is actually concerned about national interest, they should first of all ensure that their members return to the nationalised banks the public money that they continue to illegally hold. Nationalisation of banks was undertaken precisely to protect the consumer and the country from such unscrupulous industrialists who utilise dpeople's money for their private profit, refused to repay loans and, thus, declared the banks bankrupt. In the process, millions of people having accounts in these banks lost their life-time savings. What the Indian big business is asking today is to return to that "golden period." Mr. Vajpayee & Co are happily obliging them!

Similarly, the cries for privatisation also emanate from the so-called "national interest'" The ostensible reason paraded is the so-called inefficiency of the public sector. And, such a charge comes from whom? From the private corporate sector in which more than six lakh units are either sick or closed down. So much for their efficiency!

Thus,the so-called "second generation reforms" are nothing but a naked attempt to sell whatever is left of India's economic assets. It is a naked expression of a class rule of the Indian ruling classes who, with a vengeance, want to intensify the exploitation of the Indian people. By seeking to separate politics from economics, what the ruling classes seek is to divert the attention of the people away from their inhuman class rule. Politics, according to them, should be satisfied with issues of mandir, masjid, reservations, etc., and not go into the very basic and fundamental issues that govern the quality of the life of the vast masses of the people. It is this ruling class politics which increases the miseries of the people and needs to be rebuffed.

The speed with which these reforms are being pushed through, indicates, the desperation of both imperialism and the Indian ruling classes. The Indian people will not allow this mortgaging of our economy. If the BJP and the Congress seek to come together to put India on sale, both will be rejected by the people. All patriotic Indians who hold as supreme the interests of their country and the livelihood of their billion strong people must, in unison, oppose these "reforms" which, in the name of modernising India, will actually end up in pauperising India and its people.