Even as the Left parties continue to “introspect on mistakes” in West Bengal, they will continue their efforts to form an alternative to the Congress and the BJP at the national level after the Lok Sabha elections, Communist Party of India national secretary D. Raja has said.
“I agree that there might be some mistakes. We continue our introspection on our electoral performance in West Bengal and other States. But one thing is clear: the party [the Trinamool Congress] that replaced the Left Front in West Bengal is not successful… We feel there are chances of revival or recovery there,” he said here.
"AIADMK will have to regret" Talking to The Hindu on a range of issues, Mr. Raja said AIADMK leader Jayalalithaa would “regret” sending the Left parties out of alliance in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. “She must have had some reasons or compulsion for the decision.”
He wondered why she had not uttered a single word against the BJP in her campaign while being aggressive against the Congress.
Mr. Raja did not rule out the possibility of the DMK keeping its options open in the post-poll scenario as the party was once part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance at the Centre.
"Will prove pollsters wrong" Disagreeing with pollsters’ prediction that the Left parties might not do well, he said: “We have seen enough signs of revival in West Bengal also; we are contesting in 18 seats in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.” The Left would prove they were a force to reckon with. “The Left Democratic Front is expected to do well in Kerala.”
But “we feel there is an onslaught on the Left parties, especially [by] the corporate bodies, to prevent our strong presence in Parliament,” he added.
On BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s disclosure on his marital status, he said: “It is nothing but hiding the fact.”
