Montek Singh Ahluwalia, well known champion of free market reforms and currently Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission under the Manmohan Singh government, was recently interviewed by Tom Leander in the international media. Asked about privatisation of banks, Montek said, "That's one respect in which our reforms have differed from the reforms of other developing countries. Solid support for privatisation doesn't actually exist. A lot of people say that's because of the Left's power in government, but it’s the public that opposes privatisation."

This is a rare admission of fact by one of the champions of privatisation. It is an admission that he and his government are pushing an agenda that is unacceptable to the majority of Indian people.

Asked how the government is coping with the public opposition to privatisation, Montek Singh said, "We are trying to couch it in other terms". This is another admission, a clear confession of consciously planning to deceive the people. He pointed to the example of the banking system in India, where private ownership was only 5% about 30 years ago, but now it is 25%, and according to Montek it could cross 50% some years later. So by allowing private enterprises to compete with public entities, it is possible to achieve the same end goal without privatisation as such, that is without selling public assets to private bidders.

The UPA government headed by Manmohan Singh is pushing an extremely unpopular anti-people agenda, just like the previous NDA government headed by Vajpayee. Montek is admitting that the bourgeoisie is dishing out old medicine with a new label to deceive the people.

Montek Singh observes that the people are opposed to selling public assets to private owners because they think that "robber barons will make a lot of money". Montek thinks this is a foolish thought that Indian people have. In actual fact, this is a very sound thought, which is consistent with the actual track record of privatisation in India. Who gained from the sale of Modern Foods and Balco? Who is gaining from the privatisation of airports? Is it not Hindustan Levers, Sterlite, Tatas and Birlas, Ambanis and other monopoly capitalists of Indian and international origin? Did these robber barons not make a lot of money?

The program of privatization was launched by the bourgeoisie and its ideologues and economists like Ahluwalia with big fanfare in the nineties. It was a program to enrich the biggest Indian and foreign monopolies through the loot of public assets. The ideologues of this privatization carried out a no holds barred campaign berating the public sector and justifying its privatization. The valiant struggle of the working class and people, led by communists, as well as the negative experience of privatization witnessed by people, led to a situation wherein the privatization program became completely discredited in the eyes of the broad masses of people. However, from Montek Singh’s comments, it is clear, that the bourgeoisie and Montek Singh is committed to the sale of public assets to the Indian and foreign monopolies. He is merely counseling his capitalist friends to be patient. Working class and people must remain vigilant to face fresh onslaught from the bourgeoisie on this front.