Left 'agrees' to Bhel selloff

The Left parties and the Congress today went into a huddle to clarify their respective bargaining positions vis a vis disinvestment following the Left's threat on Sunday to boycott the future United Progressive Alliance-Left co-ordination meetings.

According to top sources in the government and in the Congress, after UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi's telephonic conversation with the CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat, it seems the Left has more or less agreed to let Bhel disinvestment go through.

What they will require though is a strong assurance from the UPA government that no sleight of hand will be used to go through with disinvestment in other public sector undertakings (PSUs).

"The Congress' position in any talks with the Left parties will be to convince them that there are legal impediments to taking back Bhel disinvestment," said a source close to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi.

"But, PSUs mentioned in a Cabinet note, which was recently considered by the government, including PowerGrid, Maruti Udyog, Oil India Ltd, and Shipping Corporation, may be put on the back burner," said the source.

According to sources, an assessment made by Deputy Chairperson of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia that talked of disinvestment had sent the red signal to the Left.

"Our bargaining pitch will first be aimed at protecting the Bhel disinvestment, and then to ask for a lee way in others. Everything can be amicably resolved," said the source.

The Left appears to have reconciled to the fact that the Bhel disinvestment will have to go through. "The government will still have to give a strong legal reason for it though," said a senior Left leader.

"Apart from that the Left is not agreeable to any further disinvestment of PSUs. We were upset that sleight of hand," said a Left leader in the form of differentiation between disinvestment and privatisation, was used to go through with the Bhel deal," said the leader.

According to sources, foreign direct investment in the retail sector will be a casualty of this negotiation process.

In fact, by late evening senior CPI(M) leader and former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu had admitted that the Left's boycott of the UPA co-ordination committee meetings "was not permanent".

"The boycott is not a permanent feature," he said. With Gandhi set to return to Delhi tomorrow from her vacation in Shimla, the ground rules for negotiations are being laid.