Third Front to form panel to take on UPA Govt

In a first step towards concretising their new-found friendship, aspiring Third Front partners..

In a first step towards concretising their new-found friendship, aspiring Third Front partners — the Left, UNPA parties, BSP and JD(S) — are likely to set up a coordination committee for launching a joint campaign against the UPA Government even as the RLD’s continuance in the grouping is unclear.

The mechanism, which would have one member each from all the parties, to facilitate formal consultations among the 10-party grouping was being worked out and might be constituted by the end of this month, said sources in the parties.

Though the final shape of the committee was being worked out, sources said senior CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, CPI national secretary D Raja, BSP’s Satish Chandra Mishra, TDP’s Yerran Naidu and JD(S)’s Danish Ali could be members of the committee.

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A meeting of all the parties is likely to take place by the end of this month to finalise the dates and mode of the campaign, broadly on the five issues identified by them. Both BSP supremo Mayawati and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu are likely to attend the meeting.

Though Left leaders exuded optimism about the longevity of the newly-formed grouping, cracks have already appeared after Mayawati decided to field candidates in all the 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh, dashing the hopes of RLD’s Ajit Singh to clinch an alliance with the BSP.

Singh, who had joined hands with the Left, UNPA and BSP to vote against the Government, hoping to have a seat-sharing arrangement with the BSP in UP in the next elections, has approached CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and his CPI counterpart A B Bardhan to play the role of mediators.

Karat, Bardhan and Raja held a luncheon meeting with JD(S) leader H D Deve Gowda on Thursday, ostensibly to chalk out the campaign. For the record, Bardhan said they discussed the latest political developments and the Ajit Singh issue did not figure in the talks.

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What is worrying the Left is that the RLD leader is in touch with the BJP and Congress, both of which are trying to woo him to their side. Singh, who has a sizeable votebank in Western UP, is said to be weighing the options available before taking a decision.

While Bardhan sought to play down the Ajit Singh issue, Deve Gowda said he had been meeting the RLD leader regularly and might call on him again soon.

Gowda refused to elaborate on it but said “currently the final shape of the alliance is not known. There is no Laxman Rekha to it as of now”. Asked to comment on the RLD chief’s reported displeasure, Bardhan said, “He is entitled to his own opinion.”

Sources in the Left were also not too enthusiastic about entering into an electoral understanding with the BSP outside Uttar Pradesh as was done with the Congress in the last Lok Sabha elections by the CPI(M) and CPI.

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“The prospects are not very bright,” a senior Left leader told The Indian Express.