The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Forward Bloc to extend conditional support

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 07, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Forward Bloc to extend conditional support

By Our Staff Reporter

MADURAI, SEPT. 6. The All-India Forward Bloc (AIFB) will extend conditional support to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government "to keep the communal Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) away from power."

Claiming that the AIFB would continue its fight against imperialism, capitalism and communalism, the all-India general secretary, Debabrata Biswas, told presspersons here today that the AIFB was aware of the "bourgeoisie character of the Congress" but still the national council decided to extend conditional support with the positive programme of keeping the communal BJP away from power and at the same time try to ensure that the Common Minimum Programme for the working class was implemented.

"The moment we find the UPA Government not being serious about implementation of the CMP, we would definitely review our position," he said.

Asked to spell out the AIFB's stand on support to the Centre, in the context of his statement earlier during the press conference that the Congress had miserably failed to deliver the goods for the working class and that the BJP was pursuing its communal agenda, Mr. Biswas said that only the leadership of Left parties could provide an alternative force.

Left coordination

"We are supporting the Congress because it is secular and we do not want another Godhra to be re-enacted," he said, adding the unity of the working class meant the unity of the Left parties and the AIFB wanted the Left coordination to percolate to the grass roots to provide an alternative at the Centre.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu