As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) grows from strength to strength, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) is scouting for a possibly ally in Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
On Wednesday, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal met his Kerala counterpart, Pinarayi Vijayan, hours before the CPI(M) central committee decided to go for a campaign on people’s issues and rope in more parties for the cause.
“There is a need for an alliance of all good people to fight the BJP,” Kejriwal said after his breakfast meeting.
Announcing its mass campaign against issues like curtailment on PDS and Mnrega jobs and making Aadhaar mandatory for social benefits, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said, “We will consult first with non-Congress secular parties,” laying the red carpet for AAP, a bête noire of the Congress.
Secular supervision
Yechury also set the possible tone for a fight in the upcoming Presidential election.
“For our country... the secular supervision of the President is very important,” Yechury said after a meeting of the Central Committee. Although he said that President should be decided by consensus, “secular supervision” indicates that Opposition will not agree to an RSS nominee.