Kerala: CPI refuses to budge on deputy LoP claim, says one party should not hold all key posts

Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 12 (PTI) The CPI on Sunday refused to back down on its demand for the post of Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, with party state secretary Binoy Viswam asserting that no single constituent should hold all key positions in the CPI (M)-led LDF. The CPI is the second-largest constituent of the LDF after the CPI(M). The party has been demanding for the post of deputy LoP after LDF's defeat in the Assembly polls held in April. Addressing a gathering at the P K Vasudevan Nair memorial event here, Viswam said there was "absolutely no dispute or doubt" within the CPI on the issue. "That position rightfully belongs to the CPI," he said. Viswam added the party's demand was intended to strengthen, and not weaken, the LDF by ensuring equitable sharing of responsibilities among its constituents. "No one can back out or escape by citing past precedents. If precedents need to be changed, they must be changed. Precedent is not what is important; politics is what matters. Precedent is not what is important; what matters is the LDF. The LDF must move forward as a true coalition," he said. He said the CPI was not seeking the post because of its stature or the privileges attached to it, such as staff, salary, vehicle or official residence. "It is not about the stature of the post. The CPI has even shared the Chief Minister's post in the past. So the deputy Leader of the Opposition's post is not something we are seeking because of its status. What matters is the principle that all key positions should not remain with one party," he said. Currently, CPI (M) veteran and former CM Pinarayi Vijayan is the LoP. Viswam said all important positions and responsibilities in the LDF should be shared among its constituent parties. "When the CPI insists that the post of deputy Leader of the Opposition should be given to it, it is not to weaken the LDF, but to strengthen it. The situation where all positions are held by a single party must change. The CPI wants all positions to be shared among the constituent parties of the LDF," he said. Referring to the manner in which the issue was raised, Viswam rejected suggestions that the CPI had gone public without first taking it up within the coalition. "The CPI did not raise this issue publicly at the outset. It was first discussed within the LDF. We sent a formal letter and received a reply. Only thereafter was the issue raised publicly. It is incorrect to suggest that the CPI is making this demand only because it has spoken in public," he said. He said the CPI knew when and how issues should be raised, both within the front and in public, and described it as a political tradition inherited from leaders such as P K Vasudevan Nair, Achutha Menon and M N Govindan Nair. Earlier, Vijayan had described the issue of appointing a deputy LoP as a "closed chapter", indicating that no further discussion was required on the matter. PTI TBA TBA SA