Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan exchanging pleasantries with a Christian priest Mathews Vazhakkunam, who was to present a paper at a seminar against fascism organised by the Keluettan Study and Research Centre, in Kozhikode on Saturday. | Photo Credit: K. Ragesh more-in Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said that the policies of the Congress could not offer a ‘political alternative’ to the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was here on Saturday to inaugurate a seminar organised by the Keluettan Study and Research Centre, a party thinktank, against ‘communal fascism’. Mr. Vijayan, also a Polit Bureau member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said the policies of the BJP and the Congress were equally ‘anti-people’. Alliances against the BJP involving the Congress had not been successful in the recent past, he said, while referring to the examples in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. “In UP, the Samajwadi Party joined hands with the Congress. But the BJP came to power. In Bihar, though the grand alliance against the BJP could come to power, a major ally, the Janata Dal (United), switched over to the BJP camp later. It happened because the alliances were not based on policies,” he said. The CPI(M) leader said that the need of the hour was the coming together of various organisations opposed to the policies of globalisation and communalism. In the fight against communalism, the support of those who had earlier joined hands with communal outfits could be sought. Forces that support neoliberal policies and those who oppose them could also be part of that alliance. “When it comes to a political alliance and government formation, the alliance should be strictly based on political policies, nothing else,” the Chief Minister said. CPI(M) State unit secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan too echoed similar sentiments, saying that grand alliances could not resist the BJP and they would only turn counterproductive. “An alternative to the BJP will be possible only through projecting a policy against the neoliberal economic policies. The Congress will not be of any help,” he said. Mr. Balakrishnan claimed that communal parties could come to power only because of the implementation of neoliberal policies. Only class-based struggles could provide an alternative, Mr. Balakrishnan added.

Stay updated with all the Latest Kozhikode headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.