The Communist (Marxist) Party of India General Secretary, Sitaram Yechury, in a political briefing at the Coimbatore Malayalam Samaj in Gandhipuram here on Tuesday demanded that GST on all food items should be withdrawn. He reiterated that it was the duty of all secular people in India to join hands together to prevent the BJP from returning to power in 2024.
Coimbatore: A political public briefing was held by the Communist (Marxist) Party of India at the Malayalam Samaj in Gandhipuram, Coimbatore. CPI(M) General Secretary, Sitaram Yechury, MP P R Natarajan and many others participated in it.
In this event, a red uniform rally was held in Sivananda Colony to demand for a reduction of GST and protest against the increase in petrol and diesel prices. Sitaram Yechury spoke at the meeting saying, "Assembly elections are going to be held in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. People of these states will give a befitting reply to the BJP in this election. Pondicherry has a double engine problem. There, the two State administrations are working as twin engines. These two engines clash over language issues. BJP is trying to impose a single language, Hindi and trying to say only 'Hindustan.' I am an Indian and want to give equal opportunities to everyone in India. The Central Government should respect the sentiments of all Indians. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the Governors are trying to control the Universities by acting as Chancellors. The Pondicherry Governor does not sign laws for State Government schemes. The education sector is being targeted by the Governors trying to bring Hindutva into education. They are trying to make India a Hindutva country by bringing a monoculture. BJP is working to run a fascist State. They are working to sell the country to corporates by their corporate and sectarian alliance. Public sector institutions are being looted. BJP is looting the entire economic sovereignty."
"Coimbatore trade associations consulted me this morning. They usually don't call Communists but this time they called me and told me about the damage caused by the Central Government. They said that they have been severely affected by the policies of the Union Government. Big corporates have expressed fear of getting involved in pump manufacturing. In Coimbatore, the textile sector has been affected by GST. There is no one except the Communist Party to protect the small and medium entrepreneurs. BJP's policy is ruthless. This is an opportunity for us to mobilize manufacturers.
I request everyone to use this opportunity to unite," reiterated Sitaram Yechury.
He further said that farmers are the biggest consumers of pump sets but the BJP government has not fulfilled any of its promises to the farmers. "In 2023, farmers and workers will unite in front of the Parliament in Delhi. Everyone should unite with the struggle of farmers. At the culmination of the protests, Modi's Government should be overthrown. Also, GST on food items is responsible for the price hike. India has never had a tax on food items. Gandhi protested against the imposition of tax on salt. But GST is being levied for all the food items in India. GST has been levied on the waffle I ate in Coimbatore today. GST on all food items and tax on petrol should be withdrawn. BJP should be kicked out of Delhi. For that, all the secular people across India should unite. We are engaged in working for such unity. It is our duty to prevent BJP from returning to power in 2024. Tamil Nadu has already had a twin engine regime in the AIADMK-BJP alliance. We all worked together to get them out. That feat is yet to be repeated at the national level. People of Coimbatore have many achievements. You made the Communists win in the last parliamentary elections. Similarly, work to oppose BJP rule again," urged the CPI(M) General Secretary, Sitaram Yechury.
