THE Haryana state secretariat of the CPI(M) has appealed to all sections of the people to remain vigilant against the attempts of certain political forces to create caste polarisation for electoral gains in the coming Lok Sabha polls by using the issue of reservations. In a press release issued from Rohtak on March 14, the party’s state secretary, Inderjit Singh, said the Congress party was destroying the jobs and admission opportunities through its policies of privatisation on the one hand while it was seeking to take credit for reservation to a particular caste on the other hand. Singh said that but for the Left, no political party was opposing the policies of privatisation which were mainly responsible for job losses and shrinking of educational opportunities. Most of these parties have been trying to arouse the caste sentiments by using the reservation issue on various occasions. The CPI(M) has reiterated its stand in the election manifesto favouring reservation in private sector also. The CPI(M) thinks that while the economically weaker sections of the general category should also get some quota in reservations in view of the acute agrarian crisis and unprecedented unemployment, the already existing quota for other communities and castes should not be affected. Therefore, the 50 percent cap on reservations will have to be increased by a constitutional amendment in order to accommodate more sections who also need reservations. The party has urged upon all toiling sections of the masses to preserve their unity and social amity so that their united struggle against the policies that are ruinous for their livelihood is not weakened due to the casteist and other parochial slogans.