Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's decision to appoint economist Montek Singh Ahluwalia as the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission has annoyed the Left parties.
Reason? The Left Front fears that Ahluwalia is a point man for the International Monetary Fund which might dictate the priorities for India's economic growth under the new United Progressive Alliance government.
The main Left parties -- the Communist Party of India (Marxist), and the Communist Party of India -- have officially not released any statement opposing Ahluwalia's appointment, but senior communist leaders said that Ahluwalia's selection to the key post is not the right move.
"The Left parties are concerned about Ahluwalia's appointment as Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. We are not very happy with it," CPI National Secretary D Raja told rediff.com on Friday.
"We know that a government's policies are not decided by a single man. So we are not taking it up as a big issue, though we do not favour his appointment," Raja said.
The Left parties have consistently held that most of India's economic reforms that began in 1991 were decided by the IMF and the World Bank. They argue that under the IMF-World Bank-dictated model, the priorities for India's economic growth are determined not in the interests of the Indian people but for a narrow affluent section at home and foreign capitalists.
The Left Front alleges that the IMF policies have helped only 10 per cent of India's population at the expense of the remaining 90 per cent.
CPI-M politburo member and senior Kerala politician V S Achuthanandan wondered why a high-profile IMF official is being taken as the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.
He argued that there are a number of able economists in the country who can do a wonderful job in the Planning Commission. "We will judge the Planning Commission now by the kind of economic policies it will frame in the coming days," Achuthanandan said.
Leaders in the Left said that they will closely monitor if the Planning Commission's programmes are in consonance with the UPA government's Common Minimum Programme after Ahluwalia takes charge on July 1.
Hardline communist leaders, especially from Kerala, said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh must be apprised of their 'displeasure' at the appointment of 'IMF man' Ahluwalia. But CPI-M General Secretary Harikishen
Singh Surjeet has shot down the proposal.
Ahluwalia, a close friend of Prime Minister Manmohan, is the first Director of the Independent Evaluation Office of the IMF in New York. He assumed the IMF office on July 9, 2001.
Prior to taking up his position at the IMF, Ahluwalia was a member of the Planning Commission in New Delhi as well as a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the prime minister. He had also previously served as finance secretary, ministry of finance; secretary, department of economic affairs; commerce secretary; special secretary to the prime minister; and economic advisor, ministry of finance.
The Independent Evaluation Office was established in 2001 to provide objective and independent evaluation on issues related to the IMF. It operates independently of the IMF management and at arm's length from the IMF's executive board.
