AGARTALA, June 15 (TIWN): Last three decades of coalition policy with small regional ‘bourgeoist’ political parties to build struggle against Congress and Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) in national political sphere was questioned in the last meeting of the party’s central committee, CPI (M) Tripura state general secretary Bijan Dhar said here today.

Addressing the media at the party’s state headquarters in Melarmath here this afternoon, Dhar said that the issue was discussed at a state committee meeting in Tripura which concluded on Saturday. There is a perception that the coalition policy with such parties led to decline in our public support across the country, especially in areas outside our usual presence like Kerala, Tripura and West Bengal, he said and added that the CPI (M) party congress scheduled to be held next year would decide on the issue.

The party’s central committee resolved in its last meeting held from June 07-June 08 to re-examine its political tactical line, Dhar added.

CPI (M) staged candidates in 98 seats in the recently concluded Lok Sabha election across India – the highest ever candidates from the party in its history. Barely ten managed to win, two with very low margin in West Bengal.

A nationwide post-poll analysis showed that the party had better results in ST reserved seats, CPI (M) Tripura state secretary Bijan Dhar said here today. He added that average result of the party in the Lok Sabha election was the worst in its history. “We missed scopes of further better results in Kerala. As for West Bengal, we couldn’t largely overcome our drawbacks”, he admitted.

Speaking about the party’s strategies for coming three tier panchayat election in Tripura, Dhar today said that all candidates for gram panchayats and panchayat samity seats would be declared byMonday. “Candidates are being declared daily from party authorities of concerned localities. The process will end tomorrow”, he said adding that the poll alliance with CPI, Forward Block and RSP was played up in gram panchayats and panchayat samities but not in ZIlla Parishad election. “Only CPI (M) will stage candidates in 116 seats from eight Zilla Parishads that go to elections on July 15”, Dhar said. He added that the party has gone for large scale promotion of new faces in the Zilla Parishad seats.

“We feel there is a need to bring those people into the party organization who have served quite some time in the Zilla Parishad bodies”, he said. The CPI (M) veteran further stated that new faces would be imminent in all spheres of the panchayat election due to 50 percent women reservation which would be introduced this year.