CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury on Sunday alleged that prime minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram are 'diverting' people's attention from real issues by claiming that India is on the path of development on par with the U.S.A.

"Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram are diverting people's attention from real issues by claiming the country is moving on the path of development on par with America," he said while addressing the inagural of the 20th state-level CPI(M) convention at Chikaballapur, about 50 km from Bangalore.

However, the CPI(M) leader did not elaborate on his comments.

Coming down heavily on the Congress led UPA government, he said it has lost crores of Rupees from 2G spectrum and failed to recover its market value from licencees retrospectively.

The policies pursued by UPA government have only helped the corporate world and made the rich richer and the poor poorer, Yechury said.

"Until and unless income of the common man is increased, there is no chance of any development in the country,"he said.

He also criticised BJP for its 'double standards,' saying the party was fighting for a strong Lokpal Bill, but reluctant to appoint a Lokayukta in Karnataka. "This clearly shows BJP is not keen on Lokayukta in the state," he added.

He alleged BJP had failed to initiate any development programmes in Karnataka as it is embroiled in various scams, including the illegal mining scam.