Popular movements will power Opposition: Karat

CPI(M) Polit Bureau member says Kerala offering strong resistance to growth of NDA

March 27, 2021 06:36 pm | Updated 06:45 pm IST - Kollam

The Opposition powered by popular movements will soon find its political reflection in India, asserts Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader and Polit Bureau member Prakash Karat.

In an exclusive interview to The Hindu , he added that electoral battles are only a small part of the elaborate counter strategy of the Left.

“In many places the Opposition parties are being actively suppressed for the last few years and it has been stepped up after the second term of Modi government. We cannot limit the fight to electoral battles alone as we are combating them politically and ideologically in all spheres,” he said.

The former general secretary points out that the Centre has been steamrollering various legislations and laws without listening to any voice of dissent.

“The three Farm Laws make a prime example of that and the Parliament had no real role in that. In such a situation the movements outside have grown like the farmer’s struggle that cuts across all political affiliations. The working class is up in arms against them and these protests are building up,” he said.

He agrees that the NDA is trying to grow all over the country and the State cannot be an exception, but quickly adds that Kerala, unlike other parts, offers strong resistance in the form of the LDF government.

“They are trying to grow by having some underhand dealings and alliances with political parties. In Kerala also we suspect selective understanding with the UDF and this is how they legitimise themselves. In Assam BJP was not a big force and Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) was the major regional party. They practically swallowed AGP, reducing it to a junior partner in the coalition,” he says pointing out that Congress' inefficiency to counter the BJP and RSS has helped NDA gain a headway in many places. But in Kerala they will not succeed, he stresses.

He also feels that the Left Front is on solid ground in Kerala despite all minor and major hiccups related to candidature and seat-sharing.

“Seat sharing went smoothly considering the fact that there were two new partners including Kerala Congress (M) and LJD. Very often people fail to understand the principle on which the candidature was fixed. We have decided to promote the new generation on electoral front,” he says.

He says some people who have been working in the parliamentary forums for long were shifted to the organisation while the upcoming cadres in various movements were brought to the fray.

“We have implemented a two successive term policy which doesn’t mean that the senior leaders will be kept out forever. Some may come back also,” he says.

Mr.Karat has been visiting Kerala for the last three decades during Assembly polls and the veteran politician says he was in for a novel experience this time.

“You can never underestimate the people of Kerala and assume what they are thinking. But this time there was a distinct difference as I couldn't sense any anti-incumbency sentiment. There are political forces working against the government, but the people want the Left to continue in power,” he says.

He adds that apart from ‘manufactured controversies,’ another new strategy he noticed was the use of Central agencies.

“They are used not against some particular leader or Minister, but to launch an all-out attack against the government and its flagship schemes. But what the ED or CBI is doing will cut no ice with the people of Kerala as they can gauge the situation from their real-life experience. If the LIFE Mission is a corrupt scheme used to divert funds, how's it possible to build 2.5 lakh houses? If KIIFB is doing illegal things, how could it execute so many projects,” he asks.

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