Lok Sabha polls: RMP decision on Friday

K.K. Rema, wife of the slain leader T.P. Chandrasekharan, has opted out of the race.

The Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) will meet here on Friday to take a call on fielding candidates for the Lok Sabha polls.

The party has chalked out plans for a tie-up with like-minded parties after holding district-level conventions. Modalities are being worked out with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Forward Bloc, N. Venu, State secretary, said.

Meanwhile, K.K. Rema, wife of the slain leader T.P. Chandrasekharan, has opted out of the race.

“I have no plans to contest the elections. I have asked party leaders not to consider me in any constituency,” she told

The Hindu.

Previously, the party had announced that it would nominate candidates in nine Lok Sabha constituencies, including Vadakara. “Now we will have to rework our strategy following the political developments in the State. We have to look into all aspects,” Mr. Venu said.

Strategy

Party leaders fear that nominating candidates in Kozhikode and Vadakara will only help the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in these two seats.

The role of dissidents in the 2009 polls had ensured the defeat of CPI(M) nominees - P.A. Mohammed Riyas and P. Sathidevi - in Kozhikode and Vadakara respectively. However, they feel the strategy may not work this time.

Then, the dissidents had come under a common platform, Edathupaksha Ekopana Samiti, in many segments. Chandrasekharan, who was a candidate in Vadakara, secured over 21,000 votes. Incidentally, Ms. Sathidevi had won the seat by a margin of 1.30 lakh in the 2004 elections.

Dissidents’ role

The RMP leaders said the party could have mustered more than 40,000 votes in the Onchiyam- Eramala- Choorode – Azhiyoor belt. But the dissidents transferred its votes to Mullappally Ramachandran, Congress nominee, at the last moment.

Similarly, CPI(M) dissident candidate P. Kumarankutty received over 5,500 votes in the Kozhikode constituency.

Mr. Kumarankutty could have also obtained 15,000 votes from the constituency but the dissidents had planned to transfer the majority of their votes to Congress candidate M.K. Raghavan, who won by a slender margin.