The drama of the resignation of Dinesh Trivedi as Railway Minister after the presentation of the Railway Budget reflects badly on the Trinamul Congress and the functioning of the UPA government. What is of least concern for the TMC leader, who was herself the railway minister ten months ago, is the perilous state of the railways which is in a financial mess and where safety aspects are being neglected.
As the Wikileaks cables from around the world have shown, the United States pursues single-mindedly its imperialist interests. The unfortunate part is the complicity of the Manmohan Singh government in furthering some of these interests.
The Polit Bureau demanded that the government rescind the increase in customs and excise duties for petrol and diesel. If this is not done, the Party will move a cut motion on the Finance Bill in this regard. The Party will hold consultations with all the secular opposition parties to coordinate the opposition to the Budget provisions.
