Gujarat Assembly Dissolved

Date: 
Friday, July 19, 2002

Press Statement

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly condemns the diabolic decision of the Gujarat Cabinet to dissolve the Assembly immediately. This is being done to force an early election in the state, so that the BJP can exploit to its political advantage, the sharply polarised communal situation in the state.

Many political parties and well meaning Indian patriots have held that until normalcy is restored in the state and proper rehabilitation of the lakhs of victims of the worst State-sponsored communal carnage that India has seen in recent years is completed, the elections should not be held. This is all the more so, given the fact that the present term of the government expires only in March 2003. The Chief Election Commissioner has recently gone on record boldly and correctly to state that early elections in Gujarat cannot be forced on the Election Commission. The CPI(M) urges upon the Election Commission not to be pressured by the cynical moves of the BJP state government in Gujarat.