Yechury takes responsibility for CPI-M's poor poll show

CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury took the responsibility on Thursday for his party's dismal performance in the Lok Sabha polls, saying as the chief of the party, he was the "first" person who was accountable for its poor show.

Speaking at a press conference here after the trends showed that the Left Front was virtually routed in its bastions of Kerala and West Bengal, Yechury said it was time for the entire opposition to introspect.

"The people of the country have given a decisive verdict in BJP's favour in this highly-polarised election and it is now time for us to introspect and analyse what went wrong. We will hold a politburo meeting on May 26-27 and a central committee meeting from from June 7-9.

"As the general secretary of the party, the first responsibility of the loss is with me. There will be accountability," he said, when asked if heads would roll in the party after the dismal poll performance.

Refusing to reply to queries on the reason behind the Left Front's route in West Bengal, Yechury said no conclusive explanation could be given before analysing the results thoroughly.

The trends show that in West Bengal, a state ruled by the CPI(M)-led Left Front for 34 uninterrupted years, the party may draw a blank in its worst performance ever.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is currently leading in two seats in Tamil Nadu -- Coimbatore and Madurai -- by more than one lakh votes each and one in Kerala by around 9,000 votes.

The Left Front, which is likely to register its worse poll show since 1952, is leading in only six seats so far -- the CPI(M) in three, the CPI in two and the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) in one.

"The CPI(M) has suffered a serious setback in this election. We shall introspect the reasons for this and draw proper lessons for the future.

"There are very big challenges ahead regarding the defence of our secular, democratic republic, the institutions of constitutional authority, people's rights and livelihood issues," Yechury said.