NEW DELHI: The Left parties on Monday condemned the Centre’s response to the US attacks on Venezuela and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) said that India’s stand was in sharp contrast to the position taken by other BRICS members such as Brazil and South Africa, which have unequivocally and strongly condemned US aggression and demanded the release of Maduro and his wife.
“The Narendra Modi-led BJP government’s response to the blatant aggression against Venezuela and the abduction of its President and wife by the United States armed forces, is craven and unworthy of India’s long held position of defence of independence and sovereignty of nations,” the Polit Bureau of the CPM said.
It also said that the statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) only expressed ‘deep concern at the developments in Venezuela’ and called for ‘dialogue to ensure peace and stability in the region’.
“There is not a word of condemnation about the gross violation of the United Nations Charter and international law – something which even some European allies of the US have mentioned… India’s stand is in sharp contrast to that taken by its BRICS partners like Brazil and South Africa who have unequivocally and strongly condemned the US aggression and demanded the release of President Maduro and his wife,” the party said in a statement.
The Polit Bureau said the pro-US stand was in line with the Modi government’s right-wing ideology and its strategic ties with the Trump administration.
“By this stand India has abdicated any claim to represent the interests of the Global South… The CPM demands that the Modi government abandon this disgraceful position and come out categorically against the US aggression and illegal acts in Venezuela,” the statement further read.
Through a statement, the National Secretariat of CPI also expressed its deep concern and anguish over the position adopted by the Government.
The party said that India’s stance represents a “shameful departure” from India’s historic commitment to non-alignment, anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism, and solidarity with oppressed nations of the Global South.
“The kidnapping of a sitting President by a foreign power is nothing short of state terrorism. It sets a dangerous precedent that threatens the sovereignty of all developing countries. If such acts are normalised, no nation of the Global South can feel secure from imperialist coercion, regime change operations, and military intimidation,” the party said.
Il also demanded that the Government immediately abandon its equivocal and pro-imperialist posture and clearly condemn the US aggression against Venezuela.
“India must raise its voice in defence of international law, national sovereignty, and the right of peoples to determine their own political and economic systems without external interference…India must stand firmly with non-aligned countries, with Latin America, with the Global South, and with all nations resisting imperialist domination. Silence in the face of such blatant illegality amounts to complicity,” the statement by the national secretariat of CPI said.
The party also reiterated its unwavering solidarity with the people and the legitimate government of Venezuela and called upon progressive forces worldwide to unite against imperialism, militarism, and neo-colonial aggression.
“Imperialism cannot be allowed to trample upon international law and national sovereignty with impunity,” it said.
Earlier, the CPI-(Marxist-Leninist)-Liberation (CPIML-Liberation) protested against the attack on Venezuela and its imperialist policies in New Delhi.
“This war is not just against Venezuela, but an open threat against every people in the region and across the world who strive to determine their own future free from imperialist dictates…Trump’s war on the people of Venezuela aims to impose a US backed colonial order. It seeks to crush the Bolivarian Revolution that overthrew a US-supported oligarchy and returned the nation’s oil wealth to the people.
“The war is to seize Venezuela’s oil once again for US multinational corporations and install a puppet government to serve imperialist interests,” said the Central Committee of the party.
