Ruling Front calls for Left forces to unite against Chowdhury

Ruling Front calls for Left forces to unite against Chowdhury
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

CALCUTTA, OCT 15: In what is largely being perceived as a move to counter the Saifuddin "factor" in West Bengal, the Left Front on Saturday unanimously resolved to invite all Naxalite factions and other Left democratic forces to join hands with the ruling Front. The first to respond to the call was the Santosh Rana faction of the CPI(ML) but most others seemed not too inclined to follow suit.

Expelled CPM leader Saifuddin Chowdhury had publicly announced that he would form a new outfit which would accommodate all Left democratic and anti-communal forces who are not within the ruling Front. Asim Chatterjee of the Communist Revolutionary League of India - which was a constituent of the Left Front - has already left the Front and joined the Saifuddin camp.

It is apprehended that after the CPM conclave in Thiruvananthapuram next week where the CPM's updated party programme will be adopted, there may be more who desert and ultimately join hands with Chowdhury.

The Left Front's move is being interpreted as one to thwart any possibility of the formation of an "alternative Left platform" on the eve of the State Assembly elections. A similar appeal was made to the SUCI sometime back on behalf of the CPM. The SUCI has small but well-entrenched pockets of influence in West Bengal. Similarly, the numerous Naxalite groups also have different areas of influence in districts like Nadia, Murshidabad, Midnapore and others in north Bengal.

When contacted, Santosh Rana said that his party has wide differences in perceptions over various issues with the CPM. "But there is need for a common platform to be launched for Left forces to fight the the fascist and communal forces like the BJP. My party's response to the LF call is positive," he said.

Kartick Pal of the CPI(ML-Liberation), however, turned down the appeal, saying: "We are not willing to share the stigma of 24-year's misrule of the CPM. It is they whose misrule has allowed forces like the BJP and the Trinamool Congress to make steady inroads." He felt there was enough scope for an alternative Left platform to be launched.

The Left Front's bid for support from the ultra Left bloc has other considerations, too, said political circles. It was said that the move mooted by the CPM, aims at roping in Naxalite support in several other adjoining states like Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and the Jharkhand region.