By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : Kerala’s ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) Monday plunged into further trouble with another ally, the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), refusing to compromise on the Kozhikode seat.
JD-S, which has been contesting in Kozhikode since 1980, has been reportedly given the Wayanad seat by the LDF. But JD-S leaders reacted angrily to the news.
“At no cost will we give up the Kozhikode seat. I am the least surprised by this decision but we are yet to be officially communicated on this by the CPI-M (Communist Party of India-Marxist). Once it comes we will meet to make the final decision,” said
Kozhikode MP and JD-S party chief Veerendra Kumar.
Kumar termed the decision as “politically immoral”.
Earlier Monday, Communist Party of India (CPI) assistant secretary K.E. Ismail and state Food and Civil Supplies Minister C. Divakaran arrived at the CPI-M headquarters here to find a solution to the Ponanni seat deadlock. The seat has been with the CPI for years and it is hesitant to give it up.
“Discussions are going on and soon we will make a decision,” said Ismail.
The CPI-M, after talks within LDF, had earlier cleared the name of 50-year-old college principal Hussain Randathany for Ponanni seat to which the CPI initially agreed but later backed off.
Last week, the CPI even threatened to pull out of the LDF, formed back in 1980, but later resumed talks again.
In the 2004 elections, the CPI-M contested 14 seats, the CPI four and the JD-S and the Kerala Congress (Joseph) contested one seat each.
The Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Congress-S and the Nationalist Congress Party are also members of the ruling LDF that was formed in 1979.
Polls to the 20 Lok Sabha seats from Kerala are to be held on April 16.