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KOLKATA — The Communist Party of India-Marxist-Leninist on Tuesday said that it is not backing any specific party or alliance in West Bengal but any political force which can defeat the BJP, contradicting the Left Front's claim.
"We are contesting only one of the 42 constituencies in West Bengal, which is Bardhaman-Purba. For that constituency, we will be seeking votes in support of our candidate. But in case of the remaining 41 constituencies in the state, we will appeal to the people to vote for any party except the BJP or for any party which can defeat the BJP," CPI-ML General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya told media persons here.
His statement was in total contradiction to the claims of Left Front Chairman Biman Bose that, barring the lone seat from where it is contesting, the CPI-ML will extend support to the Left Front-Congress arrangement in the state.
Asked about this, Bhattacharya said: "I do not know what Bimanda has said. But we are not giving any call to vote for any particular political party. Our only call is that the BJP should be defeated."
He also contended that his party is not in agreement with the theory floated by the Left Front and state Congress that the BJP and the Trinamool Congress are equally alarming.
"At the national level, the CPI-ML is a part of the opposition INDIA bloc. Other parties like the CPI-M, the Congress and Trinamool Congress are also part of that opposition bloc. So if we call for voting for any particular political party in that alliance, that will be a dichotomy on our part," Bhattacharya said.
The CPI-ML is contesting a total of seven Lok Sabha constituencies, out of which three are in Bihar, where the party has the maximum organisational strength, as well as one each in West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Andhra Pradesh.