Congress asks CPI-M to spell out its China 'policy'

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 15 (IANS) Leader of Opposition and Congress leader V.D.Satheesan on Saturday asked the CPI-M to spell out its policy on China as two of its top leaders have been speaking in "different tones".

It was veteran CPI-M politburo members S. Ramachandran Pillai and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who in a space of days, came out with different positions on China and this was what Satheesan took advantage of.

The Congress leader asked the CPI-M to "come clean on what's more important our national interest or the China's Communist party's interest."

"Wish to know if the CPI-M here is controlled and guided by the Chinese Communist party," said Satheesan.

The "conflicting views" of the two top CPI-M leaders surfaced early this week at their ongoing party meetings at Kottayam and here.

It was Pillai who first said at the Kottayam district CPI-M party meeting that China has grown to the stature of questioning American imperialism and went on to add that they have become powerful and is facing a global attack, directed to target their achievements.

He said America is leading the alliance to attack China and India is also part of it and the CPI-M is the target of the anti-China campaign in India.

Vijayan while addressing the Thiruvananthapuram district committee here the other day said they had raised the criticism that as a socialist country China was not willing to adopt a proper stand against imperialist countries while their stand on China remains the same as always.

Vijayan pointed out that China themselves have declared that they are being troubled by the issues of inequalities and corruption.

Satheesan said China for long has been trying to create trouble in India and it's at that time it's strange and surprising that the CPI-M is speaking of the policies of China.