RK Nagar: Consensus eludes PWF partners

Senior Left party sources revealed to DTNext that the state CPI had consulted its national secretary Sudhakar and national committee member D Raja on the issue and informed its decision to CPM to accept the invitation of the DMK which had publicly sought PWF’s “support in R K Nagar and beyond to defeat the benami government of the AIADMK.” 

A senior CPI leader, who admitted to the two communists not being on the same page on the RK Nagar by-poll issue, said they (CPI) had factored in national political climate in the aftermath of five state poll results and felt that it’s time they allied with a strong Dravidian party to keep BJP away from Tamil Nadu. 

Another key factor that had influenced CPI’s decision making was their rout in the 2016 Assembly polls in which the six parties drew a blank. “It was clear that the public mandate was not for the PWF and hence it was imperative to chart a new course. Our decision to support the DMK (in R K Nagar) was influenced by two reasons,” said a source in CPI, which has also attempted to persuade the CPM in this regard. 

Notably, the VCK, which seems equally keen on gravitating towards the DMK, but, had kept conspicuously silent, has chosen to play the waiting game as leaders of the three parties got in to a huddle late Tuesday, hopefully, to reach a consensus. 

A senior VCK leader requesting anonymity said they would accept any decision taken jointly by the two Communists. “It is necessary to maintain unanimity in decision making. Be it supporting the DMK or fielding our own candidate, VCK will accept the decision unanimously taken by the two Left parties,” the VCK leader added. VCK had unilaterally supported Congress candidates Narayanasamy in Nellithoppe despite the CPM wanting to field a PWF candidate there. It could be sufficiently understood from interactions with the Left and VCK leaders that CPM would not be able to convince the CPI this time as easily as it did in the recent past.

State BJP president Tamilisai Soundarajan on Tuesday said that her party would take call on contesting the RK Nagar by-poll at its executive committee meeting on Thursday. She said that it was a practice in the BJP to take decisions on contesting any poll or supporting any party in a election only at the executive meeting. Soundarajan also said that the party would organise a state-wide protest if the state Government failed to ensure proper supply of essential commodities at Public Distribution System outlets across Tamil Nadu.