CPI(M) leaves Oppn meeting midway

Increasing influence of Trinamool Congress in Opposition camp and reluctance to see itself as an ally of Congress has made CPI(M) distance itself from future Opposition programmes.
 
CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury on Friday left a meeting of 17 Opposition parties midway, which called by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to chalk out future strategy.
 
Yechury "deliberately leaving" after 40 minutes into the meeting came after he put his party's views about building an alternative narrative and "indulging in any tamasha", sources said. Another opposition party NCP did not attend the meeting.
 
The CPI(M) was part of formal and informal meetings of opposition in the past couple of months and stood together in the Presidential and Vice Presidential polls as well as floor coordination in Parliament. However, it has hardened its stand with its Central Committee deciding against taking Congress support to send Yechury to Rajya Sabha.
 
The Bengal unit, which demanded Yechury's renomination, had argued that the CC decision would make Congress and TMC closer in the state that would go against CPI(M)'s interest.
 
In the meeting, sources said, Yechury said the Left parties are working towards building an alternative narrative against NDA government through people's struggle.
 
Sources said there was a suggestion, which was keenly supported by some parties, that there should be joint public meetings in major cities. However, Yechury said the Left has a problem with such a programme as "just meetings alone would electoral alliance". The CPI(M) leader told the meeting that they have problems with Congress on electoral alliance.
 
"Such meetings are not effective. It would look more like a 'tamasha' if we go to public without any narrative," sources quoted Yechury as saying. He said if there is a people's struggle, the Left would support but reminded them some of the parties had chickened out on protest against demonetisation.
 
Referring to JD(U) leaving the Grand Alliance, he also cautioned against rushing to stitch up 'Maha Gadbandhan' elsewhere as cosmetic political moves would not work. To buttress his point, he then pointed to the absence of NCP leaders in the meeting and said one need to have programmes.
 
Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad then asked Yechury whether his party would attend programmes called by other parties. To this, another senior Congress leader A K Antony quipped the CPI(M) will have to go step by step.