Sarkar blames money power for LF debacle

Agartala: Outgoing Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar has blamed the ''unimaginable money power'' and ''continuous onslaught of media'' as the reason behind the party's debacle in the just-concluded Assembly polls in the state.

The poll result was ''unexpected'' and people of the state and the country has noticed how the BJP used its all-out effort to oust the Left Front government, Sarkar said in an interview to 'Ganashakti', the party's mouthpiece in West Bengal on Sunday.

The Centre, he said, had in fact created an ''economic blockade'' against the government by reducing the central allocations in MGNREGA and housing schemes, among others.

In the interview, which was also published in the CPI-M mouth piece 'Daily Desherkatha' here on Monday, Sarkar, also a CPI-M Politburo member, said ''The Left parties had fought the elections with all their might and the people were their main force to fight against the unimaginable money power and continuous onslaught of media''.

He said that the CPI-M would review the causes of its debacle in the just-concluded Assembly elections in the state after all the information are made available.

''It is observed that the BJP-Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) (alliance) could manage to win the major portion of the anti-Left forces into their fold.

''We (Left Front) have secured 45 per cent votes. It is also a fact that a portion of votes that we secured earlier has also gone in favour of the (BJP-IPFT) alliance. We will review why it had happened,'' Sarkar said.

He said, the CPI-M's movement for ideology and alternative principle would continue and never stop.

Sarkar claimed that the incidents of attack on Left workers and setting fire to the party offices has started coming in and added that the people who had voted for the BJP responding to their call for change perhaps did not want such atmosphere after the elections.

"I think these should be stopped henceforth. We hope their (BJP-IPFT) party leadership will take a positive step to stop these," he added.