By IANS,
New Delhi : Smarting from its electoral drubbing, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo met Monday without two crucial members — West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and Kerala Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.
Dismissing speculation that Bhattacharya had stayed away as a sign of protest over the way the party had handled its election strategy, a party leader said he was in Kolkata to look after the “law and order situation in the post poll scenario”.
Balakrishnan, it was learnt, had arrived here Sunday to take part in the meeting but had to rush back after four people were killed in police firing in Thiruvananthapuram.
Biman Bose, chairperson of West Bengal’s ruling Left Front, also rejected as “gossip” reports that Bhattacharya had offered to resign from the chief minister’s post following the Left rout in Lok Sabha elections in the state.
The CPI-M, in its worst performance ever, managed to win only 16 seats all over India. In total, the four-party Left grouping got 22 seats.