Thiruvananthapuram: The ongoing wrangle between the CPI(M) and the CPI over the deputy leader of opposition (LoP) post in the Assembly intensified on Monday with CPI national general secretary D Raja asking LoP Pinarayi Vijayan to “be more accommodative” of allies within the LDF.
The remark comes days after Vijayan made it clear that a CPI(M) leader would be nominated as the deputy LoP in the Assembly, scotching the hopes of the CPI, which has been raising its demand for it.
“Our demand for a deputy LoP post is a genuine one. It is not unreasonable. Pinarayi Vijayan, as a senior leader of the Left movement in India, must be more accommodative. It will send the message across India that the Left parties are working together with proper understanding and commitment,” Raja told reporters in Delhi.
The senior CPI leader said that the issue can be negotiated well. “CPI is a part of the LDF and one of its important constituents. It should be discussed bilaterally. We are negotiating,” he said.
The tussle for the post between the two Left parties in Kerala has deepened the rift within the LDF coalition. Hours after Vijayan made it clear that the post would go to a CPI(M) leader, CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam hit back, saying that the remarks are “unbecoming of the political stature and the post that Vijayan holds.”
{{/usCountry}}The tussle for the post between the two Left parties in Kerala has deepened the rift within the LDF coalition. Hours after Vijayan made it clear that the post would go to a CPI(M) leader, CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam hit back, saying that the remarks are “unbecoming of the political stature and the post that Vijayan holds.”
{{/usCountry}}Viswam said that the general approach of the LDF in such situations is to resolve it through meetings between leaders of both parties. “If he has made such a unilateral statement, it does not suit the culture of the LDF,” he said.
There has been speculation that if the CPI is not given the deputy LoP post, it may stay away from formal meetings and protests of the LDF. The party may also choose to sit as a separate bloc inside the Assembly.
Though a deputy LoP has not been named, former finance minister and senior CPM leader KN Balagopal sits in the chair reserved for the deputy LoP.