Those writing epitaph of CPM, Left will be proved wrong: Karat

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New Delhi, May 16 : After its severe electoral reverses in West Bengal, the CPI(M) today claimed it had garnered the support of 1.96 crore voters but accepted that people had "decisively voted for a change" after 34 years of Left rule.
But those writing "an epitaph for the CPI(M) and the Left will be mistaken and proved wrong", party General Secretary Prakash Karat told reporters here after a day-long meeting of the Politburo.
"Despite the electoral reverses, the Left Front has got the support of 1.96 crore people which is over 41 per cent of the votes polled," he said.
While the Left''s vote share increased by 11 lakh between 2009 Lok Sabha polls and now, Trinamool Congress-Congress combine''s votes increased by 34 lakh.
"It is evident that people have opted for a change and the circumstances that led to this mood among the people should be properly assessed," he said, adding the situation would be examined seriously and necessary steps taken to overcome shortcomings and "reconnect with the people who have been alienated."
Karat refuted speculation that former Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had quit or had offered to resign from the Politburo, saying "nobody has resigned or even offered to resign."
He said Bhattacharjee did not attend today''s meeting because of the "grim situation" in West Bengal where large- scale attacks were now being launched against the Left and CPI(M) functionaries and offices.
Observing that the Left Front government had made "significant achievements" in the last 34 years, he said despite these, there were shortcomings in the political, governmental and organisational spheres.
In Kerala, Karat said the LDF polled 45.13 per cent of the votes cast which was "only 0.89 per cent less than that of the UDF."
Noting that LDF fell short of a majority by three seats, he said its electoral performance showed "people have generally appreciated the work of the LDF government."
Responding to a spate of questions on former Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, Karat said his role was "very important in rallying large sections of the people. .... There was greater unity in the LDF this time (than in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls)," besides other factors.
Asked whether there was any "internal sabotage" in Kerala, Karat said, "There is no such report. In some particular constituencies, we expected to win but we lost. We will examine how that happened."
He said CPI-M Central Committee will meet in Hyderabad on June 10-12 after a detailed review of the results by the State Committees to ascertain the causes of defeat.