HYDERABAD, Dec 30: The Communist Party of India (CPI) has decided to keep open its option of either extending or taking support from the Congress after the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in order to keep Bharatiya Janata Party out of power. However, the CPI would not have any alliance with the Congress for the elections.Though the CPI national council, which concluded its two-day meeting here on Monday, appealed to voters to give the United Front a clear majority so that it need not depend on others for support, the Left party is not averse to being flexible if the post-poll situation so warrants.
While endorsing the poll tactics finalised by the national executive committee, the council chose to differentiate between the BJP and the Congress by declaring the former as the principal rival. Defeat the BJP to save the country, was its call to the people.
Addressing mediapersons, CPI general secretary A B Bardhan lashed out at the BJP by terming it a ``reactionary, rightist communal party out to divide the
nation on communal lines.'' Stating that it was a mask of the RSS, he said, ``BJP has left nothing and added nothing to its communal agenda.''
Flanked by national secretaries D Raja and Shameem Faizee and Andhra unit secretary S Sudhakar Reddy, Bardhan stated that the Left ``would do anything to keep the BJP out of power and bring the UF back to power''.
Asked whether the party would take the support of the Congress in the event of a hung parliament after the polls, he replied that the issue would be addressed only after the results were out but did not rule out such a possibility.
``Why should I commit on it now? Anyway our efforts are to secure full majority to the UF and trounce the BJP,'' Bardhan said. As far as the CPI was concerned, the Congress is a secular party though it had made questionable compromises with the communal forces several times in the past, he observed.
He alleged that big business houses were contributing huge amounts to boost the image of the BJP and in furtherance of this
objective, organised bogus poll-eve surveys to project a wave in favour of the party. ``These surveys are being conducted by the paid agents of the BJP,'' Bardhan charged.
On the large scale desertions from the Congress into the BJP, he felt that the presence of ``a few dejected, disgruntled and frustrated elements'' cannot brighten the prospects of the BJP. ``Though the desertions are a loss to the Congress, they cannot benefit the BJP,'' he felt.
On the efforts by former Bihar chief minister and Rastriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad Yadav to form a secular front, the CPI preferred to play safe. Though Bardhan ruled out the possibility of such a front, he did not oppose the proposal as such.
``Except the Congress, no one is interested in a secular front. Let them defeat the BJP wherever they can. We will support them where there is no UF candidate and the fight is between the BJP and the Congress or any other secular party,'' he explained.
The CPI national council has come to the conclusion that theera of single party rule was over and the efforts by both the Congress and the BJP testified the fact.
The UF too should not lag behind in harping on `stability' mantra as the UF regime had not fallen on its own, but because of the Congress.
Though the exact number of seats to be contested by the party would be finalised only in consultation with the other UF constituents, the CPI national council decided to claim around 45 seats. The CPI contested 43 seats in the last election.
Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
