Karat to give more space to Bengal lobby

Although general secretary Prakash Karat managed to rally the party behind many of his decisions, the West Bengal unit, facing an unprecedented political challenge, is likely to get some maneuvering space from the Central leadership for electoral tactics ahead of the assembly elections slated for next year.

A politburo member told Business Standard while the party has decided to sharpen its attack on the Congress at the national level, in Bengal it will spare the Congress and target Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress. In Kerala, however, the CPI(M) will engage in a direct tussle with the Congress in the upcoming assembly election.

In the draft political resolution and the special resolution released today on two election-bound states, the party remained mum on the Congress for its political role in the eastern state.

Although at the national level, the party has targeted the Congress for its neo-liberal policies, in the state it is ready to partially accommodate the wishes of Bengal lobby. Bengal leaders have been lamenting the decision to withdraw support from the first UPA government that eventually resulted in Mamata Banerjee joining hand with the Congress substituting the Left parties.

Sitaram Yechury, politburo member of the party said that the biggest problem for the Left in West Bengal was the “index of opposition unity”. “The index of opposition unity is currently one in the state as all opposition forces have joined hands,” he said.

Meanwhile, more than 200 amendments to the draft resolution have been submitted in the meeting and a big chunk of them are from West Bengal.

In the resolution, the party has given a clarion call to rally behind the Bengal unit and redouble its efforts to fight the anti-communist and anti-Left forces. “The assembly elections in May 2011 will be a major battle between the forces representing the interests of working people social justice, secularism and sovereignty and the forces which are representing big capitalists, landlords, the rich and the vested interests,” said the resolution.

Karat and company has come under criticism from Bengal lobby for not realising the regional complexities and imposing a “one-size-fits all” policy. As a show of support, top leaders repeatedly avoided questions seeking details of the mistake committed in Bengal.

Although, in close-door meetings the Karat lobby has torn apart the Buddhadeb brigade and vice versa, in public forums, the two sides are trying their best to mount a fragile show of unity.