Kolkata: Whatever the results of the West Bengal elections, one of the big stories out of it is what's about to happen on Wednesday -- a public rally in Kolkata in which former chief minister and once CPM's poster boy Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee will share stage with Rahul Gandhi.
The CPM-Congress alliance is now almost a month old. But the Left has been coy about it, calling it an understanding. The Congress is much more up-front.
But what persuaded the reclusive Mr Bhattacharjee to step up to the plate? After all, holding a joint meeting with Rahul Gandhi is open defiance of the CPM Politburo's sacrosanct decision: no truck with the Congress.
But sources say the CPM in Bengal decided to come out, as it were, after something of fiasco on Sunday at Singur. That day, at a joint Congress-CPM rally, Congress's Adhir Chowdhury and CPM's Sitaram Yechuri were expected. But no one was sure they would share stage.
"People ask me how the CPM and the Congress are holding hands. People are amazed," he said. "But I say, if after 88 years, America's Barack Obama can go to Cuba and shake hands with Fidel Castro and declare they will work together, why can't we and CPM?"
"There is nothing official about it," he said about the understanding. "This is all happening because of pressure from the ground level. It is a response to the people's urge."
Reports of the Singur meeting reached CPM headquarters in Kolkata, about how Mr Yechuri had avoided Mr Chowdhury. And someone decided it was time to stop playing games.
The CPM-Congress alliance is now almost a month old. But the Left has been coy about it, calling it an understanding. The Congress is much more up-front.
But what persuaded the reclusive Mr Bhattacharjee to step up to the plate? After all, holding a joint meeting with Rahul Gandhi is open defiance of the CPM Politburo's sacrosanct decision: no truck with the Congress.
But sources say the CPM in Bengal decided to come out, as it were, after something of fiasco on Sunday at Singur. That day, at a joint Congress-CPM rally, Congress's Adhir Chowdhury and CPM's Sitaram Yechuri were expected. But no one was sure they would share stage.
Advertisement
"People ask me how the CPM and the Congress are holding hands. People are amazed," he said. "But I say, if after 88 years, America's Barack Obama can go to Cuba and shake hands with Fidel Castro and declare they will work together, why can't we and CPM?"
Advertisement
"There is nothing official about it," he said about the understanding. "This is all happening because of pressure from the ground level. It is a response to the people's urge."
Advertisement
Reports of the Singur meeting reached CPM headquarters in Kolkata, about how Mr Yechuri had avoided Mr Chowdhury. And someone decided it was time to stop playing games.
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
India vs Sri Lanka Squad 4 Takeaways: Hardik Pandya Snubbed From Leadership Group, Big Stars Ignored And More BJP Accuses Congress Of Inciting Violence Against PM Modi With 'Maut' And 'Hinsa' Remarks Monsoon Special: 2 Ways To Make Kolkata-Style Fish Fry For A Rainy Evening Windows Systems Restarting, Throwing Blue Screen Of Death Due To This Error Microsoft Windows Outage: How To Resolve Dreaded 'Blue Screen Of Death' Bilkis Bano Convicts' Bail Pleas Dismissed. What Supreme Court Said Central Railways Jobs 2024: Applications For 2,424 Apprentice Posts Begin "Too Little Too Late": Ola CEO Slams Google For Slashing Maps' Fee Flights, Markets, Banks, Stock Exchange: Microsoft Outage Crippling Sectors Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.