CPM for popular struggle against corruption

In an editorial in the forthcoming issue of the “People’s Democracy,” Yechury has said: “It is necessary to intensify popular struggles to put pressure on this government and force it to take effective action against those found guilty. The telecommunications minister continues to hold office even after the CAG report has revealed that a total sum of Rs 1,76,379 crore was the loss to the government’s exchequer due to his ministry’s decisions on the sale of the 2G spectrum.”  

Crony capitalism

According to Yechury, mega scams in mining, the 2G spectrum sales, the Commonwealth Games and the Adarsh Housing Society allotments “are part of the vastly growing crony capitalism under the neo-liberal economic reforms dispensation.”

He wonders how, even after his aversion to crony capitalism, the prime minister has retained Raja in his cabinet, “The prime minister is, on record, to say that India can ‘ill-afford’ crony capitalism. Yet, his own cabinet has members against whom serious charges of corruption through crony capitalism remain.”  

Yechury says that as the CAG report has been submitted to the president “the matter must be thoroughly investigated, if needed, through the constitution of a joint parliamentary committee (JPC)”. According to Yechury, “the removal of Suresh Kalmadi as an AICC secretary cannot cover up the various scams associated with the CWG, and the damage control exercise of asking the chief minister to resign cannot be the excuse to sweep the matter under the carpet.

Apart from legitimate issues of morality, curbing corruption in higher places is absolutely necessary to channel resources to improve the livelihood of the vast majority of our people.”