Sign in

UP assembly polls: 6 Left parties join hands, to hold rally tomorrow

The Left parties will hold a joint rally on Laxman Mela ground on Wednesday to announce their campaign against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the Bahujan Samaj Party and a possible grand alliance of SP, Congress and socialist parties.

Published on: Nov 8, 2016, 16:06:17 IST
Hindustan Times | By , Lucknow
Share
Share via
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • whatsapp
Copy link
  • copy link

Even as the Samajwadi Party tests the waters for a grand alliance in UP, six major Left parties have decided to join hands ahead of the 2017 assembly election.

Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and leaders of five other Left parties will attend a joint rally in Lucknow on Wednesday. (Raj K Raj/ HT File Photo)
Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and leaders of five other Left parties will attend a joint rally in Lucknow on Wednesday. (Raj K Raj/ HT File Photo)

The Left parties will hold a joint rally on Laxman Mela ground on Wednesday to announce their campaign against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the Bahujan Samaj Party and a possible grand alliance of SP, Congress and socialist parties.

Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, CPI(M) national secretary D Raja, CPI(ML) general secretary Deepankar Bhattacharya, Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI-Communist) central committee member Satyavan, All-India Forward Bloc general secretary Debvrat Vishwash and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) general secretary TK Chandrachud will participate in the rally.

Read | Mulayam’s grand alliance plans for UP polls falter as Nitish to skip SP event

CPI state secretary Dr Girish said the Left parties will call for the defeat of communal, casteist, feudal and anti-poor forces in the assembly election.

“To check the division of secular votes, Left parties have decided to together contest assembly election. We are planning to field candidates on over 200 assembly seats. A final decision will be taken after the rally,” he said.

The Left parties had jointly contested the 2015 assembly election in Bihar and bagged over a dozen seats.

“The SP and BSP have lost their secular stand and Left parties have emerged as a genuine secular political force,” Dr Girish said.

Read | SP’s efforts to form grand alliance shows they have accepted defeat: Mayawati

“The feud in the Yadav family has left secular voters disenchanted with the SP. The BSP has also lost its credibility as it has earlier formed government in association with the BJP. Left parties will call upon the people to ensure the defeat of the NDA,” he said.

A senior leader of CPI (M) said the Left parties had launched a state-wide movement on the issue of price rise, corruption, unemployment, atrocities on Dalits and women, deteriorating law and order, communalism and political instability.

“More meetings and demonstrations will be organised by Left parties on issues related to the common man,” he said requesting anonymity. “Some smaller secular and Left parties have responded to our call and will soon join the alliance.”

  • Rajesh Kumar Singh
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Rajesh Kumar Singh

    Rajesh Kumar Singh is Assistant Editor, Hindustan Times at the political bureau in Lucknow. Along with covering politics, he covers government departments. He also travels to write human interest and investigative stories.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather and major national developments.