There can be no Left unity between the CPM and CPI if it is only to be directed against the Janata Party, E M S Namboodiripad, general secretary of the CPM, said. If the Kerala coalition between the Congress and the CPI was hindering unity between the CPM and the CPI, Namboodiripad said this was a big factor. He added the CPM’s relations with the Janata were based on the commitment to democracy. On this point, the CPM was still with the Janata but on the socio-economic questions the CPM was never with the Janata. Within the Janata there were both radical and reactionary groups and the CPM was waiting to see which would predominate, Namboodiripad said. Among the reactionaries, he singled out the RSS. The struggle within the Janata was not just a factional struggle but also one between differing ideological forces. The RSS represented the force of obscurantism and communalism, he said. Janata’s outreach Not having an absolute majority of its own, the Janata Party is making serious efforts to enlist the support of opposition parties like the CPM and the All-India Anna DMK for the joint session of the two Houses of Parliament on May 16. The joint session has been summoned to secure the passage of the Banking Service Commission (Repeal) Bill, rejected by the Rajya Sabha in December last. The question of the AIADMK extending its support to the government at this juncture is reported to have figured in the discussions between Prime Minister Morarji Desai and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M G Ramachandran. The AIADMK has 28 members in both the Houses. Atal’s foreign policy The External Affairs Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee hit out at the detractors of the Janata government’s foreign policy and declared that the new diplomatic initiatives had won India the trust of its neighbours and established equality with the great powers.
