Left Reconciled To Change In Uf Leadership

The Left parties appeared to have reconciled to the fact that a change of guard in the United Front is imminent, following the firm stand taken by the four regional parties, the TMC, the TDP, the DMK and the AGP.

However, they insist that they would not like the Front to have any truck with the Congress in the form of sharing power.

Although Left leaders were reluctant to give in to the Congress pressure to change the UF leader to get its support, they say that their foremost task is to maintain the UF unity.

Left leaders say that it was beyond political reason to dictate any other party to change its leader and the UFs succumbing to the Congress demand would send a wrong signal.

Although it is true that we are not wedded to one leader for all time to come. It is also true that we should not change our leader just because the Congress has demanded that, one senior Left leader said.

The Left parties are likely to take a formal decision on the matter when they meet today.

CPI secretary Atul Kumar Anjaan said the Left parties had a four point agenda now: each and every decision in the Front should be based on consensus, the unity of the Front should be preserved at all cost, there should be no coalition with the Congress and the UF should not succumb to Congress pressure.

Another senior Left leader explained that, since most of the Front constituents wanted to avoid a mid-term poll, the general view which was emerging was that they should choose a new leader to replace Gowda. If the Left parties continue with its tough stand with regard to change of leader, it may create rift in the Front which we want to avoid at all cost, he added.

At the UF steering committee meeting on Sunday, the Left parties were the only ones who backed Gowda.

Although no one formally raised the issue at the meeting, most of them kept on insisting on avoiding elections, obliquely referring to a change of guard.