A day after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar acknowledged that his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee’s talk of a Federal Front has merit, Left parties on Friday began moving the pawns to ensure that their archrival Trinamool Congress leader does not get to occupy the centrestage of any Front in the national politics.
While CPM leader Sitaram Yechury met Janata Dal(U) chief Sharad Yadav to have a dialogue on the union of parties on the basis of alternative policies, CPI leader A B Bardhan made it clear that the idea of a Federal Front mooted by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was neither feasible nor would it inspire people’s confidence.
After the half-an-hour meeting with Sharad Yadav, Yechury said: “What we want are alternative policies. Left parties have called a political convention on July 1. It will discuss the alternative policy framework.”
Pointing out that the policies of both the Congress and the BJP were virtually similar, the CPM leader said that the country and the people needed some sort of alternative which could be worked out only by the active participation of the Left parties.
Yechury said: “You have to create an alternative quality framework and when you see any non-Congress, non-BJP government coming, it has to come out with such an understanding.”
Meanwhile, Bardhan said that a non-Congress, non-BJP coalition pursuing credible alternative policies on people’s issues would be accepted by the electors.
“The idea of a Federal Front floated by one or two Chief Ministers, which is supposed to bring together the Chief Ministers of states who have grievances against the step-motherly treatment meted out by the Congress-ruled Centre is neither feasible nor likely to inspire confidence among the voters,” Bardhan said in a statement.
The vetaran CPI leader said that only a non-Congress, non-BJP coalition which pursues credible alternate policies on people’s issues and which steers the country on a left and democratic course is the need of the hour.