Third Front of regional parties untenable - Left

New Delhi, May 3 (UNI) The Left parties today rejected the Third Front being floated by the regional parties as it lacked relevance, would not last long and had no meaning without their participation.

Rejecting the concept, the CPI(M), CPI and Forward Bloc said they could, however, extend and seek cooperation from the individual parties on issue to issue basis, as had been the case of joint struggle against forces of communalism and imperialism in the recent past.

The Left parties' assertion comes in the wake of the proposed meeting of the regional parties here on May 12, at which the leaders of the SP, AIADMK, Indian National Lok Dal, TDP, National Conference and Assam Gana Parishad are expected to consolidate their move.

Talking to UNI, CPI leaders A B Bardhan and Shamim Faizi made it clear that the concept of the so-called Third Front floated by the regional parties is not what the Left parties stand for.

''The Left parties have repeatedly pointed out that an alternative can be built on the basis of alternative plans, policies and programmes.'' ''As we know, these regional parties have swallowed the prescription of new economic liberalism. During their regime, they behaved as the Chief Executives of the World Bank rather than the Chief Ministers of their respective states,'' the CPI leaders said.

Forward Bloc National Secretary G Devrajan emphasised that the proposed meeting on May 12 has first to outline their approach to the key economic issues before seeking any response from the Left.

Mr Bardhan and Mr Faizi said if the regional parties failed to dissociate themselves from the path of so-called economic reforms, the Left can not even think of joining any such adventure.

The CPI fought the recent elections in UP with the declared goal of ousting ''the corrupt, inefficient and anti-people regime of the SP.'' ''Let us see how Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav reviews his defeat in the elections and what lessons he draws from the same?'' they added.

CPI(M) veteran and Polit Bureau member M K Pandhe said, ''You know, we don't have that good relations with the AIADMK of Ms Jayalalithaa or the Indian National Lok Dal of Om Prakash Chautala.'' The CPI(M) leader said the Left parties wanted to evolve a Third Front which is ''not an electoral front, but which is based on common understanding, agreed programmes and joint struggles on people's issues, be it the farmers, the working classes, the tribals, the underprivileged and the downtrodden.'' Mr Pandhe, however, made it clear that the concrete picture would emerge only after the outcome of the UP polls.

''But one thing is certain - the non-Congress, non-BJP Third Front is essentially associated with the Left parties in the country. So without them, it has no meaning,'' he said.

UNI