THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after the Congress suffered a huge setback in the state assembly polls at the hands of the BJP, the CPM Kerala leadership has once again raised the issue of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi contesting against the Left front from the Wayanad constituency.
At a press conference held on Monday, party state secretary and politburo member MV Govindan criticised the Congress move and said that any politician who has common sense knows that Rahul Gandhi should not contest from Kerala in the coming parliament election.
“There is no BJP in Kerala. Rahul should contest against the BJP, not against the LDF. If the Congress leader contests against the LDF, it will give the message that Congress’ main rival is not BJP, but the Left parties. Rahul should contest from BJP strongholds,” he said.
Rahul Gandhi, the sitting MP from Wayanad, defeated the CPI candidate by a margin of 4.31 lakh votes in the 2019 parliament election.
The UDF had recorded a landslide victory by winning 19 out of 20 parliament seats in the Rahul wave in Kerala in 2019. Rahul’s candidature in Wayanad got the attention of political circles after AICC general secretary Tariq Anwar told media that the Congress leader would contest from Wayanad.
Govindan also said that Congress will not have existence in Kerala without the support of the Muslim League. “Without the League’s support could Rahul Gandhi contest from Wayanad? He is contesting in Kerala against CPI which is part of INDIA front, because Congress couldn’t win in Uttar Pradesh. Congress does not have influence in Hindi heartland states. The election results have proved it. Congress has come to a situation in which it could not even lead the INDIA front,” he said.
CPM leader also made it clear that it is the CPM’s position that, rather than forming a political front nationally, the opposition should consider each state as a unit. Then it should analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the state-wise parties and choose the party that has the strength to take on BJP. “Now the Congress has even failed to create unity in INDIA front. In Rajasthan, it was the Congress that spoiled the chances of CPM winning against BJP in the Bhadra constituency,” he said.
Govindan also dismissed the charge that CPM was trying to woo the Muslim League. “It is not in the agenda of the CPM to bring in League into the LDF fold. On common national and international issues, we had been cooperating with like-minded parties,” he said.