New Delhi: Left leaders, including Sitaram Yechuri and Prakash Karat, today (July 17, 2004) met Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who apparently tried to iron out differences on major economic issues like hiking foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in telecom, aviation and insurance sectors.

"Left party's views on these issues (FDI) are well known and it was conveyed to the Finance Minister," sources told, adding the meeting was part of the process of consultation.

The meeting comes a day after Yechuri threatened to oppose FDI hike in civil aviation and telecom, any bill to raise the sectoral cap in insurance, and any other moves, which were not in conformity with the Common Minimum Programme.

The left parties also sought a coordination committee meeting with UPA (United Progressive Alliance).

CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday and is understood to have discussed the setting up of such a Committee to enable the supporting parties to coordinate with the UPA.

Although sources in the Finance Ministry confirmed about the meeting with Left leaders, they declined to elaborate. Left parties had expressed reservation about the Budget proposals to hike FDI limits in three key sectors of the economy.