Religious feelings played up during polls: CPI(M)

Addressing a press conference here after the party State committee meeting here, Mr. Vijayan said a review of the election results of the constituencies in which the Left Democratic Front had suffered defeats found certain disturbing trends.

October 04, 2014 10:43 am | Updated May 23, 2016 04:35 pm IST - Thiruvananthapuram:

Communist Party of India (Marxist) State unit secretary Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday alleged that attempts were made during the recent Lok Sabha elections to stoke caste and religious feelings in certain constituencies.

Addressing a press conference here after the party State committee meeting here, Mr. Vijayan said a review of the election results of the constituencies in which the Left Democratic Front had suffered defeats found certain disturbing trends. The RSS-BJP combine had never lost an opportunity to mix communalism; attempts were made to stoke ill-feelings against minority communities. Minority fundamentalist groups had also succeeded in influencing the verdict. .

He alleged that a head of a religious denomination had appealed for votes in favour of the Congress in the last phase of electioneering.

Asked whether the CPI(M) endorsed the CPI’s action in connection with the Thiruvananthapuram election results, Mr. Vijayan said his party did not want to comment on the CPI’s action. “We have not examined their decisions. Bennet Abraham was fielded as the LDF candidate in the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency and the candidate selection was not the reason for the defeat. However, it did not get the kind of acceptability we had hoped for. The LDF was not able to poll even its own traditional votes.”

He said the leadership of caste organisations were hobnobbing with the BJP because these were dominated by the affluent sections which were keen on protecting their vested interests.

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