He may have failed to block operationalisation of the Indo-US nuclear deal, but CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat has not lost hope and is preparing to prop up a government that can terminate the agreement post-Lok Sabha elections.

While virtually setting a pre-condition that his party’s support would be for a coalition which can annul the nuclear deal, the CPI(M) top boss also admitted that his quest for cobbling up a third alternative will not materialise before the next elections and the CPI(M) was instead looking for an electoral alternative.

“The struggle to rescind or reverse this agreement is not over. If this Government goes ahead with the deal, with the next government, obviously it cannot be a Congress-led government, our goal will be to see that it takes the step of terminating the 123 Agreement,” he said after the two-day meeting of the Politburo.

Asked if this meant the CPI(M) would support the BJP, which has already announced that it will renegotiate the deal if it comes to power, Karat said his party’s line was to defeat the “communal” BJP and oppose the Congress and it will work towards forming an electoral alternative to both these parties.

Asked how he was so confident that the Congress would not return to power, the CPI(M) general secretary said: “We will work for it...Our political battle is here and not in Vienna or Washington.”

The Poliburo, which met for the first time after the Left withdrew support to the UPA Government, decided to look into options of entering into electoral understandings with parties on a state-to-state basis besides discussing the Singur controversy and other issues. “We believe that the third alternative should emerge through joint activities and struggles on policies and programmes bringing together various forces. But our work could not be done. Elections are coming soon. So we are working for a immediate electoral alternative keeping in view the Lok Sabha elections,” he said.

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