Southern States - Tamil Nadu   

Third front not possible now, says CPI (M)

By Our Special Correspondent

Chennai June 18. The CPI M) today dealt a sledgehammer blow to the Congress proposal for forming a third front in Tamil Nadu, asserting that there was no possibility of such an alternative front now.

"As things stand now, there is no possibility for a third front," the State secretary, N. Varadarajan, told the media, after a meeting of the party executive here.

To a specific question whether the CPI (M) would align with the DMK or the AIADMK in the Lok Sabha elections, he insisted that the party would take a decision on tie-up depending on the situation prevailing on poll-eve.

DMK, AIADMK draw flak

However, Mr. Varadarajan criticised both the AIADMK — for allegedly pursuing the BJP's Hindutva agenda — and the DMK for continuing in the National Democratic Alliance Government at the Centre despite its pro-Hindutva policies.

When the BJP-led NDA regime was pursuing economic liberalisation and cutting subsidies and when the Government took a pro-Hindutva stand on the Ayodhya dispute, why was the DMK still continuing there?

As for the AIADMK, though it had no alliance with the BJP, the party was pursuing only its policies and ideologies, Mr. Varadarajan insisted, citing the anti-forcible conversion law enacted by the Jayalalithaa Government. While the BJP was a national danger, in Tamil Nadu, the CPI(M) considered AIADMK a danger.

Lining up charges against the AIADMK regime, he said there was an acute shortage of drinking water, but the State failed to take adequate steps to tackle the situation. Despite the water crisis, the Centre and the State had given clearance for a multinational to exploit ground water at Sivaganga town. The State Government had cut education subsidies, deprived private school students of free and concessional passes and hiked the prices of textbooks, raising the dangerous prospect of education becoming a preserve of the affluent.

The CPI(M) executive decided to hold a conference in Madurai on July 12, protesting political killings and denial of civil and democratic rights in the State. A rally would be held at Rameswaram on July 24 opposing the rising communalism in the country. As a prelude to the parliamentary election campaign, a people's movement would be launched from August 16 to 31, protesting the anti-people policies of the State and Central Governments.

The party adopted a resolution urging the State Government to provide protection for the shooting of Kamal Hassan's Sandiyar and appealed to the Puthiya Tamizhagam leader, K. Krishnasamy, to give up his protest against the movie.

A critical review of the film after it was released would be an apt democratic practice, the party said.

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