Goal of CPM to keep BJP away from power, says Yechury

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Monday said his party will support those outfits that have the ability to defeat the BJP in polls scheduled for February-March in five states. The goal of the CPM is to keep BJP away from power in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur, Yechury, who is on a visit to Bhopal to participate in a state-level CPM convention, told reporters. He said his party was also discussing this issue with other Leftist groups as the aim was to stop the division of anti-BJP votes by forging alliances. Claiming there was an anti-BJP atmosphere in UP, he said the CPM will talk to the Samajwadi Party (SP), which is the main contender for power there.