CPI(M) will be represented by its Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas at the INDIA bloc meeting on Monday, sources said, even as the Left party continues to await a response from the Congress over allegations made during the Kerala Assembly election campaign.
According to sources, CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby recently wrote to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge seeking clarification on remarks by senior Congress leaders that suggested a political understanding between the CPI(M) and the BJP in Kerala.
The letter, copies of which were also shared with other INDIA bloc constituents, argued that such accusations were inconsistent with the spirit of cooperation underpinning the opposition alliance.
The Left party has maintained that it is awaiting a clarification from the Congress on the matter.
Sources in the CPI(M) said no response has been received from the Congress so far, and Brittas is expected to raise the issue at Monday’s meeting.
In the communication, Baby expressed concern that charges levelled by Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Kharge, went beyond routine electoral criticism and raised questions about the functioning of an alliance formed to collectively challenge the BJP.
The issue has remained a flashpoint between the two parties since the Kerala Assembly elections.
Senior leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc are scheduled to meet in New Delhi on Monday to discuss a joint strategy against the BJP-led government and reinforce opposition unity.
TMC supremo and former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, Rahul Gandhi and Kharge are among those likely to attend, sources said.
The DMK and the AAP are unlikely to participate in the meeting.
The meeting comes in the backdrop of recent Assembly elections in which the TMC and the DMK were voted out of power in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, respectively.
(With inputs from PTI)