The most significant “left” party of India, the CPI (M) announced its political manifesto for the upcoming 15th general election.¹ Despite being a socialist country at its base, Communist front never gained any political importance on Indian political frame and always remained restricted to a limited regional area of West Bengal, Kerala and a little more part of south Indian states. Yet, for the 14th general assembly and making of the previous government, CPI (M) played an important role, the left front had balance of power and a political agreement with Congress for the most part of last government tenure and then they walked out against each other last year when the term of government was about to be completed.
Now once again, the communist are seeking grounds for their political existence in India. CPI (M) is the major force trying to raise a third front to work for creating a non-Congress, non-BJP government. We will see the political manifestos and ideologies of the Congress lead UPA front and BJP lead NDA front later on, here let us discuss the recently issued manifesto of CPI for the upcoming elections.
Protectionist Communist India
Despite the fact that Indian and even Chinese government are against the protectionist moves of USA and want to establish Free Market², CPI-M has mentioned its protectionist idea in the manifesto.
The CPI-M has proposed a full stop for privatization of profitable state firms, obviously, being communist they want to control the profitable sectors; they have proposed a ban on foreign investment in the retail sector.
Now such an idea can be put forth only by communists.
In the current scenario of economic crisis, when whole world is facing economic slump, the Indian GDP has also suffered a huge drop from 9% growth to 5.1% growth. It is well explained and well-experienced fact that direct foreign investment causes the major improvement and growth of the economy, raises the job opportunities, productivity, and hence reduces the poverty, Direct investment is always better than the foreign aid and loans for the government from other governments because it reduces the chances of wastage of capital because of red-carpeting, corruption and government involvement, also, the efficiency of direct foreign investment is much more than the foreign aid because investment provides incentives of profit for both the investors and the sector getting the investment.³
The major economic issue of India is the decrease in foreign investment as it simultaneously decreases the productivity, betterment of infrastructure and progress and hence increases unemployment. Thus, such a political move by CPI-M may seem to be anti-rich or anti-capitalist, basically, it is anti-poor and any such ban will harm the Indian economy further.
Increasing Taxes on Rich
CPI-M has proposed an increase in taxes on rich industrial houses of India, obviously, the main agenda of communists always remain looting the rich, wasting major part of that money, and distributing the left-over in poor.
The communists really believe that money falls from sky, and if money is distributed equally, things will be better, but the reality is different. Neither the money falls from sky nor does it grow on trees.
Communists support the robbery of the producer on the name of “social justice”. What they ignore is, a poor is not poor because someone is rich, and by looting the rich and distributing his richness in poor, the poverty cannot be reduced, it will further increase.
Anyone looking into the matter with a keen eye will understand that this proposal from CPI-M is again not only anti-Indian but it is anti-poor too and surely is against socialist justice.
For a call of justice, one cannot discriminate people on the name of economic class. Just because some are rich and majority is poor one cannot call for looting the rich, and if some political party proposes such robbery, it is nothing but unjust.
Yet the matter is not of social justice. The rich already are paying for all wasteful expenses of government and a further increase in taxes also will not make them poor, yet the incentive to produce more will be lost and that will increase poverty. Obviously, these pseudo-intellectuals have nothing to do with economic facts, realistic procedures, and rational approach towards life, liberty and citizenship.⁴
Socialists and communists often bemoan and criticize the capitalist emphasis on profits and loss and the rational way to increase profit, poverty and hence reduce poverty of whole society. Instead of trying to emphasize on removing poverty, they try to workout a plan to reduce economic differences and focuses on distributing the wealth. The left often overlook the fact that for distributing the wealth, the first and foremost step is to produce wealth, and when a nation have to produce wealth to reduce poverty as it is the only way, the free market is the only viable option.
Swaminathan Aiyer explained the issue of left in his article for Times of India properly.⁵
When India is already facing economic slump and the Indian economy may face the first ever deflation period since 1991 in near future, any move of increasing taxes will harm Indian economy further and basically, it will cause more unemployment, poverty and corruption, it will spread more social-unjust.
Blocking the Nuclear Deal
CPI-M has also proposed a checking block on Indo-US nuclear deal for provision of nuclear power plants. Since always, Indian left has opposed the Indo-US nuclear deal. Being a libertarian, I have no interest in this big government policy too, yet considering the current scenario when India is surely unable to provide electricity to most of the rural area and major part of urban India faces black-outs and power-cuts, what options does the CPI-M provides to tackle the situation?
Being environment friendly, the communists opposes coal thermal plants too, so how will they solve out the power crisis? Nuclear power plants are the only viable options at present to tackle the ever-increasing power crisis. Even the communist ruled state West Bengal is suffering from power cuts. The need is, to not only introduce the new nuclear technology to produce and provide electricity, but also induce private sector in producing electricity through nuclear plants.
Obviously, this proposal is also anti-poor, anti-development and anti-India, it is irrational, illogical and inappropriate too, but communists can propose such measure because they never think about production and increasing productivity, their main issue is distribution, first they want to rob and control all production process and than they want to distribute, without having any idea of how the wealth is produced.
Inflation, Price Control
CPI-M has also lashed out the current UPA government over the issue of inflation and has proposed to decrease fuel prices. The idea of price control through taxes and subsidies is nothing new and is based on the same principle of distribution without looking for production. A government can surely subsidize fuel prices and hence decrease them, but government cannot produce fuel. By reducing fuel prices, the government increases taxes and prices on other commodities hence it solves nothing.
On the other hand, by decreasing fuel prices from their actual cost, the government will provide incentive for further misuse and wastage of fuel and that will further increase the pollution and the so-called green house effect.
Just as carbon taxes are a ridiculous idea, decreasing fuel prices through subsidies is also ridiculous, it does not support any poor nor decreases poverty, although it will increase wastage pollution and misuse.
The Gujarat Issue
The manifesto has yet again criticized Gujarat riots and has proposed to provide compensation for the riot victims; furthermore, they have proposed to set some new preventive laws against agitation and riots. The Gujarat pogrom was the evidence of the fact that monopoly of government over security forces can be dangerous, and the issue can be tackled with only by promoting the idea of private security system and emphasis on “self-defense”⁶ . Making further bulgy regularities holds no value nor does it provide any solution. How can any political party suggest further big interventionist and totalitarian government as the solution for the crimes of totalitarianism of government? On the other hand, whole manifesto simply ignored the issue of Nandigram and Singur, there is nothing about property rights for the farmers and poor living in slums. There is no mentioning about the illogical SEZ. There is nothing about Narmada issue and related property rights of the people deemed to be displaced because of the Narmada Dam issue.
We have seen how the policy of government compensation created blood ridden riots and murders in Nandigram and Singur, obviously, by proposing compensation for Gujarat victims, CPI-M has tried to invoke emotional support without providing any rational solution.
Overall, the election manifesto of the left provides no rational point to debate and elect. The problem with Indian election scenario is, the other fronts are also not much rational nor are they much different from the left, even the extreme right of India is basically socialist and anti-individual liberty. We will see the political issues of other parties and national fronts, as they will come on and then we may discuss how to solve out this problem of intellectual bankruptcy in Indian political environment.

1. CPM releases manifesto, Livemint news [↩]
2. China, India call for Free Market, Reason for Liberty [↩]
3. Foreign Aid versus Foreign Investment, Reason for Liberty [↩]
4. Population, Poverty and Production, Reason for Liberty [↩]
5. Swaminath Aiyer, Times of India [↩]
6. Self-Defense, Reason for Liberty [↩]