The Hindu : Kerala News : We will stay with LDF, says Veerendrakumar

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We will stay with LDF, says Veerendrakumar

Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Janata Dal (Secular) State president M.P. Veerendrakumar, MP, has said he and his colleagues in the JD(S) will continue in the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) even after the party’s proposed merger with the Samajwadi Party (SP) next month.

Inaugurating a State-level delegates’ session of the Yuva Janata Dal here on Sunday, Mr. Veerendrakumar said he already had discussions with CPI(M) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan and CPI State secretary Veliyam Bhargavan in this regard. Samajwadi Party leaders Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar Singh had discussions with CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat on the subject well before the merger move was made public. “We could not remain a part of the party led by Deve Gowda. The LDF also cannot envisage such a situation,” he said.

The JD(S) State president said he was making the position clear because there were attempts by certain sections to make it appear that the JD(S) was planning to go with the UDF after the merger. The JD(S) had nothing to do with the UDF.

“We too had played a small part in the formation of the LDF and I was myself the front convener twice. We have not thought of moving out of the LDF and going into any other alliance,” Mr. Veerendrakumar said.

The State JD(S), he pointed out, was constrained to take the decision to merge its identity with one of the erstwhile Janata Parivar entities as otherwise it would have had to remain for all practical purposes as the Kerala unit of the Janata Dal (S) led by H.D. Deve Gowda, who had allied with the BJP to make his son H.D. Kumaraswamy the Chief Minister of Karnataka.

The Kerala unit had severed links with Mr. Deve Gowda immediately after the event.

“Our decision has been proved right by the outcome of the Karnataka Assembly elections. Mr. Gowda is singularly responsible for having given the BJP the opportunity to grow in Karnataka and he is the one BJP leader L.K. Advani must thank for his party’s victory in the Assembly polls,” Mr. Veerendrakumar said.

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