Muralidharan

THE three-day Central Committee meeting of the CPI(M), being held at Bhubaneswar January 20-22, ended with a statement from General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet, full of optimism that the emergence of the third force at the nation level would not take long to materialize. The vacuum created by the loss of power by the National Congress, can only be filled by the third alternative. Failing in such an eventuality would mean failure to fulfill the aspirations of the people. "We are sure", Surjeet said, displaying the utmost confidence, "that we will succeed in these efforts". In the press conference which followed, Surjeet further added that talks have been held with the Samajwadi Party leader, Mulayam Singh, and the SP leader has responded positively on the question of joining such a front.

Ruling out the possibility of any of the secular allies of the BJP leaving the NDA and joining the front, Surjeet said it was not possible to visualize such a possibility in the immediate future. However, he emphasized, the masses following these parties are another matter; they are beginning to shift away, largely because these parties, despite their basic secular character, had failed in taking a bold stand against the communal agenda of the BJP.

Thus, Surjeet pointed out, whether it be on the question of the resignation of the three charge-sheeted union ministers, the issue of the temple construction at the disputed site at Ayodhya, or any other such issues, these allies, while demarcating themselves in words, have neither voted against the government, nor taken a firm stand. He replied in the affirmative to a question whether there was a possibility of such a formation coming into being before the elections to the four state assemblies.

Replying to a specific question he said that despite the challenge posed by the TMC-BJP combine, the Congress continues as the main opponent of the Left Front in West Bengal in the forthcoming assembly elections. He ruled out the possibility of any sort of adjustment with the Congress in order to fight the TMC-BJP.

In the case of Tamilnadu, however, Surjeet pointed out, while we will have seat adjustments with the AIADMK and the TMC, we cannot dictate terms to our ally on the question of their electoral adjustments. It is up to the AIADMK to consider with whom it can have seat adjustments, or alliance. As far as the CPI(M) is concerned, the most important task is to defeat the DMK-BJP alliance. All parties and forces that are opposed to the DMK-BJP combine should see that their votes are pooled to defeat the DMK-BJP combine. Surjeet revealed that the Party is discussing with the AIADMK and the Tamil Manila Congress on how this can materialize.

Central Committee member and West Bengal chief minister, Bhuddhadeb Bhattacharya, has been inducted into the Polit Bureau, to become the 18^th member of the Polit Bureau. At the 16^th Congress of the CPI(M), the Central Committee had elected a 17-member Polit Bureau. Announcing the new addition, Surjeet noted that among his many responsibilities, a chief minister has to take many take important decisions, including policy matters, requiring consultation at the highest consultative level. Accordingly, all other chief ministers of the Party are members of the Polit Bureau, Surjeet added.