CPI(M) Polit Bureau has issued the following statement on August 27

THE Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) strongly disapproves of the manner in which the Reserve Bank of India’s reserves are being sought to be utilised to meet the fiscal deficit. Similarly, in the past, profit making public sector navaratnas like ONGC had been fleeced to meet the Modi government’s extravagant expenditure like those on propaganda.

The RBI is the monitoring authority and lender of the last resort. Its financial stability is the insurance to protect our economy from monetary or financial instability or crisis generated globally.

This government has now forced the RBI to part with a whopping Rs 1.76 lakh crores. During the past five years, the Modi government has siphoned off Rs 99.99 per cent of the RBI’s net profits every year. On top of this comes the current transfer.

The surplus transfer termed as “dividend” to the government is almost double the previous record of Rs 65,896 crores. The economic slowdown is also compounding the problems of the navaratnas.

With the unemployment rate crossing 9 per cent, the highest in decades, such transfer of surplus to meet the government’s expenditure and to contain the burgeoning fiscal deficit is hurting both the economy and the livelihood status of our working people.

Prime Minister Modi spoke of respecting “wealth creators”. Wealth can be created only when value is generated. The vast army of working people today have no work to generate value. All sections, farmers, workers, MSMEs, youth and women workers are being badly hurt.

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) calls upon all its units in the country to organise protests against this merciless assault on our economy and people’s livelihood.