Left divided,CPM to back Pranab

The Left parties failed to project a united front on whom to support in the presidential elections

The Left parties,just like the NDA,on Thursday failed to project a united front on whom to support in the presidential elections. So sharp was the divide that even in the CPM,which eventually backed the candidature of Pranab Mukherjee,the decision came down to the wire with party general secretary Prakash Karat swinging it in the Finance Ministers favour with his own supportive line.

Insiders said the heated discussion at the CPM Politburo meeting saw seven of the 15 members supporting the UPA candidate. At the forefront were the Politburo members from West Bengal,who felt that by favouring the UPA candidate they could irk the Trinamool Congress. But Brinda Karat,who is also from Bengal,was said to be against voting in favour of Mukherjee.

Sources said Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee who skipped the meeting gave it in writing that the party should back Mukherjee. The Bengal members,it is learnt,as also some central leaders including Sitaram Yechury argued that the party line had been to favour the candidate with the widest possible acceptance.

Members from Kerala and a couple of the central leaders including S R Pillai were against backing a Congress candidate given that the Left has been vehemently opposing UPAs economic policies. The debate was settled in favour of Mukherjee after Prakash Karat too made it clear that in the present situation,the FM had the widest acceptance. At a press conference later,he said the CPM had been supporting a Congress candidate since 1992. The only exception was in 2002 when it fielded Capt Lakshmi Sehgal against A P J Abdul Kalam. Supporting the UPA candidate does not mean supporting the government, he said.

The top decision-making bodies of the CPI and Forward Bloc too met at their respective offices on Thursday. The CPI Central Secretariat unanimously decided that it cannot support a Congress candidate. How can we support the architect of the neo-liberal economic policy of UPA II, CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta told The Indian Express. Given that CPI could not possibly back P A Sangma,who is backed by BJP,it decided to abstain. The RSP too took a similar line.

The Forward Bloc felt the Left should not link opposition to policies with the stand it takes on presidential polls. Supporting the UPA candidate will not weaken or dilute our struggle against the UPA, said its leader G Devarajan.

The Left parties,however,put up a show of unity later. As far as the Left Front is concerned,it will continue as ever. This is only one single instance when there is a difference of opinion, said senior CPI leader A B Bardhan.