THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Struggling to find a foothold following the LDF’s massive defeat in the assembly elections, socialist parties in the front are set to come together to form a common platform.
Proposed to be led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the only party in the coalition save the CPM and the CPI to have representation in the house, it is being conceived as a political outfit with a broad socialist base.
Faced with an existential crisis, three other LDF constituents — the Indian Socialist Janata Dal (ISJD), the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress (S) — are likely to join hands with the RJD in this political venture.
Sensing a crisis in these parties after the massive drubbing, the RJD also plans to reach out to other parties to be part of the common platform.
Sources said senior leaders of these parties have already sent feelers to each other, sensing the futility of remaining minor parties with no legislative representation.
Initially, it would be a platform for parties to arrive at a working relation and common talking points. At a later stage, the parties will discuss the scope of a merger while bringing more clarity on other finer aspects, such as the name of the outfit and leadership structure.
“It seems the right moment to form a political party through the merger of these four parties. If the socialist democratic parties join the RJD platform, it would be a new outfit. What’s the point in remaining individual parties? It would only lead to an existential crisis. Parties of a democratic socialist nature should come together. RJD is willing to take the lead in this regard,” Varghese George, secretary general of RJD, told TNIE.
A new outfit with footprints across the state would lend the socialists more bargaining power within the front. The leaders feel that the move would be welcomed by the CPM, which had earlier proposed that Janata parties within the front should work as a single bloc.
The move would also go a long way in retaining the presence of these parties and leaders in state politics.
“We are in a period when the very concepts of socialism and democracy are under grave threat. A first round of talks were held with leaders and it was felt that steps should be taken to uphold these ideals in today’s society. This led to the new thought of a common platform,” said former minister and ISJD leader K Krishnankutty.
Talks are also being held with other leaders like A K Saseendran of NCP and Ramachandran Kadannappalli of Congress (S).
