HYDERABAD: A cloud of shadow hangs over the prospective alliance between the Congress and communist parties as the grand old party apparently reversed its initial offer of two seats each to the CPI and CPM in the upcoming Assembly elections scheduled for November 30.
The Congress appears to have scaled back its commitment and is now offering one MLA and one MLC seat each to the two Left parties. This change in the Congress’ stance has led to a significant impasse, with the communist parties standing firm on their demand for a minimum of two seats in the Assembly elections. The deliberations are still on to resolve the issues and strike an alliance.
Recent statements by CPM State secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram underscored the position of the communist parties. He emphasised they are unwilling to accept a single constituency as part of the alliance and have conveyed their preparedness to contest the elections independently. Veerabhadram went further and issued an ultimatum to the Congress to finalise the allocation of two seats, specifying Miryalaguda and Wyra as their preferred segments.
Similarly, the CPI too is unwavering in its stance, refusing to settle for just one seat. Initially, the Congress had shown an inclination to allocate Kothagudem and Chennur to the CPI and Miryalaguda, along with another segment, to the CPM. However, a recent shift in the political situation indicates that the Congress is thinking of offering the Chennur ticket to a family associated with BJP’s national executive board member and MP G Vivek, contingent upon their joining the Congress ranks.
Insiders familiar with the developments reveal that at present, the Congress is likely to limit their offer to just a single ticket each for the CPI and CPM.It may be recalled that this discord echoes the previous rifts of the Left parties with the ruling BRS. The communist parties severed their alliance with the BRS due to disagreements over seat-sharing. It remains to be seen how the Congress will accommodate the communist parties to strike an alliance.