CPI(M) striving for secular alternative to UPA, NDA: Pillai

Stating that Congress lacked strength to take on BJP in the Lok Sabha polls, senior CPI(M) leader S Ramachandran Pillai today asserted that a united platform of the Left, secular and democratic forces would emerge as an alternative to UPA and NDA.
Inaugurating the month-long 'Kerala raksha march" led by party state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan at the martyrs' memorial at Vayalar near here, Pillai said CPI(M) had begun effective moves to build such an alternative.
"All those secular and democratic forces opposed to the Congress and the BJP would be brought on such a platform," he said.
Mounting a scathing attack on the Congress-led governments at the Centre and in Kerala, Pillai said they had been pursuing policies that suited only the interests of the corporates by totally neglecting the common man.

While a drubbing was awaiting the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls, the Left would put up a splendid performance in states like West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura, he said.
The 26-day-long road show campaign, also an exercise to crank up the party for the Lok Sabha polls, will cover the length and breadth of the state, highlighting "failures" of the Congress-led governments at the Centre and the state.

Five main themes of the campaign are price rise, need to strengthen PDS, danger posed by communalism, corruption and solar scam.
Public meetings would be organised in 126 centres during the yatra, covering 140 Assembly segments in the state.

Apart from Vijayan, party leaders A Vijayaraghavan, E P Jayarajan, P K Sreemathy, A K Balan, M V Govindan, Elamarom Kareem and Baby John would join the march.
Senior leader V S Achuthandan and party polit bureau member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan were present at the inauguration.