National

People's Front leaders to visit Gujarat

By Our Special Correspondent

The former Chief Minister of West Bengal, Jyoti Basu, the Samajwadi Party chief and People's Front convener, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Aboni Ray (RSP) and Debobrata Biswas (AIFB) at a meeting in New Delhi on Thursday.

NEW DELHI APRIL 18. The People's Front today adopted a rigid posture and decided not to scale down its demand to discuss the Gujarat issue in the Lok Sabha under Rule 184.

After a meeting here, the Front leaders expressed concern at the violence in Gujarat and charged that claims by the Narendra Modi Government of having restored normality were <170>"totally false''.

They alleged that the relief camps were now being targeted.

The meeting also took note that "absolutely" no steps had been taken to rehabilitate the victims, numbering more than one and a half lakhs.

"Rather plots are being distributed to MPs and MLAs at concessional rates," the Front charged. Dissatisfied over the functioning of relief camps and the lack of rehabilitation work, the Front decided to send a delegation to the State on April 24 for a first-hand assessment.

The CPI(M) Parliamentary Party leader, Somnath Chatterjee, at whose residence the meeting was held, rejected the Government suggestion that the Opposition dilute its demand for a discussion in the Lok Sabha under a rule that did not entail voting.

Among those who attended the meeting, held under the chairmanship of Jyoti Basu, were the Front convener and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav, general secretaries, Harkishan Singh Surjeet (CPI-M), A.B. Bardhan (CPI) and Debabrata Biswas (AIFB), the RSP leader, Abani Roy, the CPI(M) politburo member, Sitaram Yechury, and the SP general secretary, Amar Singh.

The Defence Minister, George Fernandes, said here that starting today he would begin a four-day visit to various parts of Gujarat. He said that he would visit Ahmedabad, Godhra, Mehsana, Baroda, Surat and Kutch to review the relief and rehabilitation work and take people from various communities with him. He would also assess how much longer the Army would be needed in the State.

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