Kolkata (PTI): The CPI(M) on Wednesday distanced itself from West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's remarks that he does not support any bandh, which has generated a country-wide repercussion, forcing the Left allies to plan to raise the issue at its next meeting.

"This is not our party's stand," the state secretary of the party Biman Bose, who is also the Left Front chairman, told reporters today when his reaction was sought on the Chief Minister's anti-bandh remarks.

Later, at a meeting to mourn the death of Harkishan Singh Surjeet where the Chief Minister was also present, Bose said that it was the fundamental right of workers to take recourse to strike to fulfil their just demands.

"If workers are deprived by owners, they cannot take law in their own hands. Strike is a weapon to fulfil their demands."

Defending the right to call bandh, veteran Left leader and general secretary of the Forward Bloc Ashok Ghose told PTI the Chief Minister's views had triggered an unnecessary controversy which had not just been restricted to his party alone but to others also.

"He is not only the Chief Minister, but also a politburo member of the CPI(M)," he pointed out.

The allies were taking an initiative to get a Left Front meeting convened to discuss the issue, he said.

The Chief Minister on Tuesday said he does not support any bandh and would not be silent if one was called by his party CPI(M) at an Assocham interactive session when asked about his reaction on state-sponsored bandhs.