CPI pulls out from SPF, parleys on with others
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, February 29 2012: In a swift political development, the Communist Party of India has formally ended its decade long partnership with the Congress party by announcing a pull-out from the Secular Progressive Front (SPF) alliance even as leaders of non-Congress political organisations, including the CPI, deliberated on forming the next Government.

The CPI distancing from the SPF coalition was officially announced by the party's State secretary Dr M Nara Singh to newspersons at its BT Road Irabot Bhavan office today wherein he also informed that two CPI legislators in the SPF Government have also tendered their respective resignation papers.

The snapping of ties from the Congress-led SPF alliance followed a meeting of the CPI State Executive Council at Irabot Bhavan this afternoon which was presided by Dr M Nara.

Talking to newspersons, Dr Nara said Agriculture, CADA, Labour and Employment Minister Ph Parijat and his party colleague N Mangi, who was MANIDCO chairman stepped down from their respective posts with the duo submitting their resignation papers to the CPI state Secretary, who consequently handed over copies of the same to the Governor of Manipur Gurbachan Jagat and Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh.

The CPI executive council meeting thoroughly discussed the prevailing political situation arising out of the election to the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly and resolved to pull out from the SPF coalition, informed Dr Nara, who had been a Minister himself before the Congress-led SPF wrested power in the State.

Ph Parijat and N Mangi, who interacted with the media along with the party's State secretary cited a number of reasons for the CPI deciding to distance from the SPF fold in addition to levelling charges against the Congress party.

The trio explained that CPI had decided to enter the Congress-led SPF alliance from the Front's inaugural stint in 2002 based on the common minimum programme (CMP) that envisaged political solution to the vexed insurgency problem, protection of Manipur's territorial and emotional integrity, benefit the common people with a stable Government and streamline the public distribution system for welfare of the citizens.

They contended that contrary to the fundamental spirit of CMP, misgovernance by the SPF Government resulted in the State deeply mired in financial and political fiascos at various phases of its stint thereby losing faith of the masses.

Moreover, lack of transparency in governance and the law and order situation of the State getting complicated by each passing day compelled the CPI to ultimately distance from the SPF fold, reasoned the CPI leaders.

They also conceded that from the second stint of the SPF Government in 2007 there was ample strain in spirit of camaraderie among the coalition partners for the Congress began to take decisions on its own whenever important issues besieged the State and its people.

At the time of allocation of portfolios the coalition partners were not consented consequently leading to dissension among political parties in the SPF fold and disenchantment on the Congress-centric policy programmes, they said.

Listing alleged political hegemony by the majority Congress party, increase in the case of fake encounters, strain in the relationship between the hill and valley people, and accusing the Chief Minister of being arrogant, the CPI leaders said all these factors led to the party's executive council to decide on pulling out of the Front ahead of the declaration of the State election results.

They also pledged CPI's all possible contribution and endeavour to form a non-Congress Government in Manipur so that the existing insurgency problem could be solved expeditiously through political dialogue.

Even if CPI do not figure in the next Government, the party will work relentlessly to achieve the goal for an effective and transparent Government, they affirmed.

Soon after withdrawal of the CPI from the SPF coalition, party leaders were involved in a meeting of non-Congress political organisations at the State unit office of the All India Trinamool Congress today wherein diverse issues on forming a non-Congress Government in Manipur were deliberated in a threadbare manner.

It is said that besides Dr Nara and representatives of other political organisations, NCP state unit president Radhabinod Koijam, State unit chief of Trinamool Congress Kim Gangte and MPP president Dr Nimaichand Luwang attended the meeting during which repoll in 67 polling stations on March 4 also figured prominently.

It may be noted that CPI, Trinamool Congress and BJP were not a party to the pre-poll alliance of the four-party People's Democratic Front, which included the NCP, MPP, JD (U) and CPI (Marxist) .

However, in the wake of various complaints with regard to electoral mal-practices such as proxy voting and mis-matching of voters' photos during photo comparison, atleast 10 non-Congress political organisations have been working in unison to demand appropriate measures by the ECI for rectifying the electoral mal-practices.

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