While CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat drew flak for propping up a rickety third front on the eve of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the decision to withdraw the party’s support for the UPA government over the Indo-US nuclear deal has been endorsed by the 20th party congress.
These formed the highlights of the draft political resolution and the political review report adopted at the triennial meet of the party, here on Friday.
Of the 804 delegates, only two, from Andhra Pradesh, voted against the draft political resolution, raising their state-specific issues. They were, it is learnt, against the party having any truck with regional parties. Apart from the 3713 pre-congress amendments, 349 amendments were taken up on Friday. About 47 delegates participated in the discussions over the last two days.
Replying to discussions, Karat said the participation of delegates and the amendments reflected the strong unity in the party on the political assessment, review and future direction that the party should take.
Later, briefing reporters, politburo member Brinda Karat said the left democratic alternative proposed by the party had nothing to do with the electoral politics and it was meant to be a unity of the forces opposed to the neo liberal policies of the Congress and the BJP. The alliance during polls depended on the concrete situations existing at that point of time and the party would decide on such matters only during the election time.
Sexual harassment: Brinda said the party would take a strong view of the complaints of sexual harassment, and such things will not be tolerated. “We are very clear that not a single case of sexual misconduct will be tolerated,’’ she said while answering a question on the involvement of certain state CPI(M) leaders in such cases.
Maoists criticised: She contested the claims that the Maoists were fighting for the rights of the adivasis. “Maoists have degeneratd into goons who recklessly kill people who oppose them. They are using adivasis as a cover,’’ she said, alleging that the CPI(M) activists were under attack from the Maoists in West Bengal and Jharkhand.