“My hair turned grey, arguing with Chidambaram,” Karat added sarcastically noting that the Left and the Government exchanged at least 20 letters on crucial economic issues in the last four years.

Replying to the Prime Minister’s statement, he said the Government wanted to increase the FDI cap in insurance and banking sectors all these years, but could not do it because of the Left opposition. “We even cited the case of AIG itself which was under scrutiny for bad accounting practice. We told them what is the need for bringing in such companies here,” he said.

“The Finance Minister was arguing that we have to capitalise weak banks and allow foreign banks to come and take them over. Had it happened at that time, all our banks would have collapsed now,” he said.

“How the Government has strengthened the banking and insurance sectors I am unable to understand,” he said. Referring to the losses suffered by big companies in the wake of the stock market collapse, he said, “The Government is working to ensure that all the fat cats do not suffer.”

In scathing criticism of the Government’s economic policies, he said the effect of the financial meltdown would be felt soon. “This is going to lead to the loss of lakhs and lakhs of jobs ,” he added.

He said the Left would continue to struggle against the neo-liberal economic policies and raise its voice against compromising and eroding of national sovereignty by foreign and economic policies in place in the last one-and-a- half decades. Not forgetting to attack the Government’s foreign policy on which the Left parted company with the UPA, he said the Prime Minister and the Government had hitched India with the US at a time when Washington’s political and economic hegemony was waning.