Call the bluff

The decision by the Left parties to suspend their participation in the co-ordination process set up by the UPA coalition is by far the most obstructionist move made by the group.

Over the past year, the Left has aggressively resisted many actions by the government, most of which would have been considered reasonable from a mainstream viewpoint.

They have got their way on some issues but, thankfully, not on all. The relatively modest grades that the first year performance of the government earned, including from the Prime Minister himself, are closely linked to it being consistently on the defensive vis-a-vis the Left.

Even after all that, the perception that a dialogue was on between the government and the Left and that some mutually acceptable resolution of sticky issues would be found through the co-ordination process, provided some reassurance.

Pulling out of the process has destroyed that reassurance and the country must now look forward to a period of heightened uncertainty about the government's ability to implement any agenda at all.

The immediate provocation for the Left's ire is the decision to divest 10 per cent of Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel), one of the few consistently successful public enterprises.

No change of control or management is envisaged; the government is simply cashing in on a large appetite in the market for this company's stock.

And the money is not going into the general kitty. It will flow into the newly constituted National Investment Fund, which has explicit mandates to make strategic investments in other public enterprises and social sector programmes.

By any yardstick, this would seem entirely consistent with both the letter and spirit of the Common Minimum Programme (CMP). But the Left has chosen to take the government to what would appear to most observers as the brink of a precipice.

The government must respond decisively and aggressively. It simply cannot allow itself to be tied in knots by the obscurantism of the Left. If it does, the country is in for a completely rudderless future.

The response should be two-pronged. First, it should go ahead with the phased dilution of shareholding in successful public enterprises, taking full advantage of the buoyant markets and the correspondingly high valuations for these companies.

Any alternative would be time-consuming and today's opportunity may be lost. The message to be sent to the public at large is that this is an entirely legitimate way to raise resources to pursue the objectives of the CMP that the Left itself had signed on to.

If the Left wants to play the spoilt child, that is its loss. In the process, it is letting its constituency down by forsaking the opportunity to influence policy outcomes in a constructive way.

Second, the political compulsions of the Left need to be recognised. It needs to take something into the campaign for the West Bengal and Kerala assembly elections next year.

A functional National Investment Fund, with a clearly laid- down process for disbursing money, in which the Left parties have a say, might do the trick. Aggressive realpolitik, with some sensitivity, is the need of the hour.