KOZHIKODE: As the countdown begins for the 20th CPM Party Congress here, the party is gearing up for a significant policy change especially in its approach to combat the neo-liberal policies followed by the government at the Centre. Abandoning the Third Front agenda through which the party intended to field regional parties on a single platform, the CPM leadership has now envisaged a ‘Left and Democratic Programme’ as the real Left alternative to bring about a fundamental social transformation in the country.Talking to Express on this broad-based Left political alternative, CPM Politburo member S Ramachandran Pillai said: “The constitution of the Left and Democratic platform is a long process to be built up through a process of movements and struggles. The party will rally with non-Congress and non-BJP forces which can play a role in protection of democracy, national sovereignty, secularism, federalism and defence of the people’s livelihood and rights. The emergence of such joint platforms should help the process of building the alliance of the Left and democratic forces against the Congress and the BJP, who pursue neo-liberal policies and advocate a pro-US foreign policy.” Stating that the Left and Democratic Programme is not an immediate election agenda of the CPM, Ramachandran Pillai pointed out that there would be electoral understandings with certain regional political parties if required.Under the Left and Democratic Programme, CPM has listed a 12-point agenda including thoroughgoing land reforms and a democratic transformation of agrarian relations, strict regulation of international money flows and nationalisation of mining and natural oil resources, restructuring of centre-state relations, effective democratic decentralisation and development of public education and public health systems.The veteran CPM leader said the constitution of a Third Front in the country was ‘not practical given the opportunistic and power-based politics pursued by the regional parties.’ “Regional parties either associate with the Congress or with the BJP and form Governments at the Centre. Neither they discuss the impact of neo-liberal policies pursed by the Congress and the BJP nor they question the government’s alliance with the United States. They are not always keen about the national policies and often look at things in an opportunistic attitude and engage in power-based politics. It’s only the Left parties who always engage in moulding public opinion against the neo-liberal economic reforms. Hence, constitution of a Third Front appears impractical,” Ramachandran Pillai said.According to the draft political resolution of the 20th Party Congress, the Party’s approach should be to cooperate with the non-Congress secular parties in Parliament on issue basis despite the vacillations shown by these parties. Outside Parliament, the Party can have united actions on people’s issues to widen the movement.
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