Two-day CPM politburo from today

Top leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) will once again slug it out at a two-day politburo meeting starting Saturday, on whether the party should have a "political understanding" with the   Congress to take on the BJP government.

The meeting coincides with the party's Gujarat unit resolving to vote out the BJP, a euphemism for supporting the Congress in the Assembly polls in that state. The party did not field any candidate in Bhavnagar, where it has considerable strength.

Leaders supporting the view that the doors should not be closed on the Congress are likely to cite the call to vote for those who can defeat the BJP and not fielding candidates in at least two seats where CPM has considerable strength.

Saturday's discussion to finalise the outline for the political resolution comes after two rounds of meetings of the politburo and one of Central Committee earlier. At those meetings, no consensus on the lines proposed by General Secretary Sitaram Yechury and Politburo member Prakash Karat could be reached.

While the politburo, where Karat faction has a majority, did not want any understanding with the Congress, Yechury had argued that the help of all secular and democratic forces was essential to take on the BJP. The Central Committee, where Yechury's line got a slight edge, asked the politburo to reconcile differences.

Yechury-Karat clash

Yechury has prepared the draft for Saturday's meeting arguing that suitable electoral tactics should be worked out to oust the BJP from power "without entering into an alliance or forming Front with any bourgeois party" while having an understanding in fights with all parties.

However, Karat faction in the politburo has circulated another draft rejecting any understanding with Congress. It argues that the party cannot have any alliance or political understanding with Congress. However, it says that at the time of election, CPM can ally with regional parties, which are in alliance with Congress.

This, sources said, the Yechury faction thinks is a   contradiction as it will force the party to deal with the Congress once an alliance is struck with its regional allies.