Left fighting a lost battle

An internal assessment of the CPM regarding the outcome in municipal bodies,including Kolkata and Bidhan Nagar Salt Lake,has predicted pathetic results. The concerned district committees of the party have reported to the CPM headquarters at Alimuddin Street that it will be difficult for the Left Front to regain its lost urban vote-bank. They will not be able to retain most of the 54 municipalities out of the 81 that they had won in 2005,CPM sources said.

CPM sources added that the report sent by 15 district committees has shocked the top leaders as for the past one year the government and the party had taken a number of measures to regain their lost ground. The reports says a large chunk of committed Left voters have shifted their loyalties to the Trinamool right from the time of the Panchayat polls of May 2008. This trend was evident in the subsequent elections. The report says seven per cent voters,who were once committed to the Left,have shifted allegiance due to the nepotism of those elected to the local bodies.

CPM spokesman Md Selim declined to comment on the prospect of the party. Hafiz Alam Sairani,Forward Bloc spokesman,said the committed voters of Left Front have voted for the Opposition in the recent polls. RSP leader Manoj Bhattacharya admitted that some of the civic bodies will go out of the Left control. It will be a tough battle for us, he said.