The CPI(M) on Monday said that countering both the BJP and the TMC was important in Bengal even though the Left’s primary objective was to defeat the saffron party. “Our primary objective is to defeat the BJP. But in West Bengal, anti-incumbency and anti-TMC anger are deep-rooted. Here, if we stand in a coalition against the BJP, then all the anti-TMC votes will swing towards the BJP. So, we have to counter both the BJP and the TMC here. Otherwise, the BJP will benefit. We should also be alert to ensure anti-incumbency votes do not go to the BJP,” CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury told reporters after a meeting of the party’s state committee.
