By IANS
Kolkata : Veteran leader of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Jyoti Basu Tuesday ruled out the immediate possibility of formation of a Third Front as an alternative to the Congress and the BJP.
“I do not see the possibility of formation of a Third Front now,” Basu told reporters after attending the CPI-M state secretariat meeting here.
“The rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the recent electoral setbacks suffered by the Congress has created a complex political situation, forcing us to support the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre.”
Basu’s statement came in the wake of CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat’s remark at a rally in Chandigarh Dec 28, in which he had said, “We will soon launch a new ‘manch’ which will act as a third alternative to the Congress and the BJP.”
“We are in favour of a Third Front. …The process has been started,” Karat said at the rally.