CPI(M) To Support Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh Polls: Sitaram Yechury

Yechury announced the party's aim to pool votes against the BJP to combat their 'Hindutva agenda.'

Yechury announced that the party would support whoever had the best chance of beating the BJP.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook/CPI(M))

Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary and former Rajya Sabha MP Sitaram Yechury announced that the party would support Samajwadi Party (SP) in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections on Friday, 4 February at a press conference in Delhi.

"Our appeal is clear in all five states, that we want to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Wherever possible, we are working with other parties to contest elections. Otherwise our party will contest from the least number of seats," he said, reported ANI.

The party is contesting from only four seats in the upcoming UP elections.

"Clearly, the main force that has a chance of defeating the BJP in Uttar Pradesh is the Samajwadi Party. So we will support them. Similarly in Punjab, we will support whoever can defeat the BJP."

Sitaram Yechury at a press conference, as per ANI.

He added that the party's primary agenda was to defeat the ruling party and would work towards the "broadest possible mobilisation of secular forces" against the Hindutva agenda, as per ANI.

Speaking at a press conference to release the party's Draft Political Resolution on 4 February, Yechury accused the BJP of "aggresively pursuing the Hindutva agenda of the fascistic Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)."

Adding that the party was promoting crony capitalism and imposing "full-fledged authoritarianism" in India, he said that the party launched a "systematic assault on all the fundamental pillars of our secular, democratic Constitution."

Uttar Pradesh is set to commence polling in seven phases, starting on 10 February. Votes will be counted on 10 March.

(With inputs from ANI)