Chennai, June 11 (IANS) In a significant political development that further underlines the shifting alliance equations in Tamil Nadu following the recent Assembly elections, the State Communist Party of India (CPI) Secretary M. Veerapandian said on Thursday that the party cannot be part of a DMK-led electoral alliance under the prevailing political circumstances.
The statement comes close on the heels of CPI-M State Secretary P. Shanmugam’s recent assertion that the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance had effectively ceased to exist.
Veerapandian’s remarks indicate a growing recognition among Left parties that the political alignment which dominated Tamil Nadu politics for several years has undergone a major transformation.
Addressing reporters after a two-day meeting of the CPI State Executive Committee, Veerapandian said the current political scenario had changed drastically after the recent state Assembly elections.
He added that the Congress, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), which were major constituents of the DMK-led alliance, are now part of the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government, while the Left parties are extending outside support to the administration.
“The Congress has moved away, the DMK has announced that it will not be part of the INDIA bloc, and several other parties have joined the TVK-led government. Under these circumstances, there is no scope for the earlier alliance structure to continue functioning as a united electoral front,” he said.
However, Veerapandian clarified that the CPI does not regard any major political party in Tamil Nadu as an enemy, except the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, which he described as the party’s principal ideological opponents.
He said the CPI continues to view the DMK, AIADMK and TVK as democratic forces and remains open to working with them on issues concerning public welfare, secularism, social justice, farmers and workers.
Explaining the CPI’s decision to extend outside support to the TVK government, Veerapandian added that the party was respecting the mandate delivered by the electorate.
He noted that TVK had emerged as the single largest force with 108 seats and therefore had the democratic right to form the government.
The State CPI Secretary also dismissed suggestions that former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin had influenced the CPI’s political decisions, stressing that Communist parties function through collective decision-making processes and organisational consultations.
While ruling out participation in a DMK-led alliance for now, the CPI leader said the party would continue to coordinate with Left and democratic forces and take decisions on future electoral contests, including by-elections, local body polls, Assembly and Parliamentary elections, based on the political situation prevailing at the time.
–IANS
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