Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee slowly returning to CPM's poll campaign

KOLKATA: Former West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee will address a CPI(M) rally at Barrackpore on Thursday, his second in less than a month, in a sign that the veteran leader is returning to the Left party’s election campaign process.

CPI(M) has organised a gathering at the industrial belt of Barrackpore in North 24-Parganas district to condemn what they call the Mamata Banerjee government's failure to industrialise the state, protest recent hike in electricity tariffs, and demand subsidised essential food materials for everyone. Bhattacharjee will be the key speaker at the rally.

On January 16, Bhattacharjee had kicked off a CPI(M) procession from Singur; it ended in West Midnapore's Salboni on January 22. In November, the former chief minister had kicked off another jatha of more than 100 mass organisations at Jadavpur, the assembly constituency that he had been representing till his defeat in 2011.

Bhattacharjee has not attended any CPI(M) politburo or central committee meeting held outside Kolkata since his defeat in 2011 assembly elections, mainly due to his illness. He had urged the party leadership to drop him from both the two apex bodies of the organisation. He is not a member of the politburo the topmost party unit, but is a permanent invitee to its central committee.

CPI(M) insiders said Bhattacharjee will address some select party gathering in and around Kolkata as part of the election campaigns.

“‘Buddhada’ can't travel extensively as he is still not very well. Doctors also advised him not to take the risk of extensive travelling. But he has assured us that he will try his best to address campaign rallies in Kolkata and it's adjacent districts like North and South 24-Parganas and Howrah,” said Goutam Deb, CPI(M) central committee member and secretary of the party's North 24-Parganas district, which is organising party gathering at Barrackpore on Thursday.