— Photo: PTI

TAKING STOCK: West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee with CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat at the party's central committee meeting in Kolkata on Tuesday.

KOLKATA: The three-day meeting of the central committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) got underway here on Tuesday with the focus of discussions being the strategy to be adopted by the party for the coming Assembly elections in Punjab, Manipur and Uttaranchal as well as for the polls due in Uttar Pradesh.

Over the next few days the committee will take stock of the political situation in the country and matters related to the party organisation.

Also expected to come under the scanner are the foreign policies of the United Progressive Alliance Government, particularly in the wake of the nuclear agreement with the United States recently endorsed by the U.S. Government but which has drawn criticism for its failure to address the concerns of Parliament.

Discounting reports in a section of the media, M.K. Pandhe, a member of the CPI (M) Polit Bureau, reiterated that the party had yet to decide on its electoral line in Uttar Pradesh even though it was felt that the Bharatiya Janata Party should not be allowed to extract any advantage from the emerging polarisation of communal forces.

The economic policies of the UPA Government under fire from the CPI (M) leadership, the rise in prices of essential commodities, the agrarian crisis, growing unemployment and the Centre's failure to keep to its commitment to the Common Minimum Programme are also likely to feature in the discussions.

Land acquisition

Matters related to the acquisition of land for the setting up of new industries, urban spaces and infrastructure are also expected to be discussed.

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