Left Leaders Open To Joining Sonia Govt

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New Delhi, May 13: The senior leadership of Left Parties is in a mood to be part of a Congress-led coalition government. The leaders said they have no aversion to Sonia Gandhi and Ms Gandhi’s foreign origin “is a ridiculous issue and not a stumbling block to their party’s support.” They said the foremost goal is to have a secular alliance to replace the BJP-NDA.

Speaking on the sidelines of television chatshows, where they were more cautious, Left leaders made no secret of their view that denying Jyoti Basu the job of Prime Minister on an earlier occasion was a historic blunder. “This time is different, but don’t quote me,” one politburo member said.

The leaders confirmed having had back-channel communication with Congress emissaries and sharing their personal views. These leaders refused to say anything more in public before a decision is cleared by their respective politburo and the central committees over the weekend.

The Left’s support will hinge on a common minimum programme and certain “adjustments” in the Congress’s ideas on the management of the economy, a cautious CPM general-secretary Harkishen Singh Surjit said at his residence.

With a bit of prodding, Mr Surjit confirmed that the Left’s refusal to form a Basu-led government was a blunder. He then repeated what his colleagues had been saying: “The situation (now) has changed.”