BJP, Left to launch series of agitations against UPA today

NEW DELHI - The BJP and the Left parties on Thursday plan to intensify their protests on the price rise issue against the government.

According to reports, senior BJP leaders including, LK Advani, Nitin Gadkari and Sushma Swaraj, will lead a protest march to Rashtrapati Bhawan and hand over a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil on the issue.

They will also hand over 10 crore signatures collected from common people over the last few months against rising prices.

Besides handing over a memorandum against the price rise, party workers would also hold ‘garib panchayats’ at the grassroots level to involve the common man in issues like rising food prices.

Party workers will also stage a ‘dharna’ outside all CBI offices to protest the ‘misuse’ of the premier investigation agency.

The Left plans to stage a sit-in inside Parliament to protest the spiralling prices of essential commodities.

The Left would soon chalk out their future course of action on how to take on the government on the issue of price rise

On Wednesday, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar rejected the opposition’s demand for a vote on the price rise issue and adjourned House proceedings for the day.

Kumar said the price rise is a matter of concern and may be discussed in any form other than the adjournment motion.

Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj said the opposition could demand a discussion under various rules, but it wanted the adjournment motion under which there was no need for the government to resign even if the motion was passed.

“We just want to censure the government. The government will not fall if the motion is passed by the House,” she added. (ANI)