The CPM, after the CPI, has shown intent of breaking away from the INDIA bloc in Jharkhand.

In a development on Tuesday evening, the CPM released a letter addressed to the CPI Jharkhand unit before the media, showing its intent to put up a candidate in the Chatra parliamentary seat and appealing to the CPI to withdraw its candidate from Chatra. The CPM alleged that the CPI had announced its candidates in four Lok Sabha seats of the state arbitrarily.

Significantly, the Congress and the JMM leaders have announced that the Chatra seat has been given to the RJD on behalf of the INDIA bloc.

In case, both the CPI and CPM field candidates in Chatra, it would be the first instance in Jharkhand Parliamentary polls (since the state was carved out of Bihar in 2000) that both Left parties would be pitted against each other in a constituency.

The letter written by CPM state secretary Prakash Viplav addressed to CPI senior leader Bhubaneshwar Prasad Mehta and CPI state secretary Mahendra Pathak mentions that from the newspaper report on Tuesday, they came to learn about the CPI fielding candidates in eight Lok Sabha seats.

The letter also draws attention to the meeting between CPI and CPM leaders on March 8 in Ranchi in which the CPM had requested support for its candidates in Rajmahal and Chatra Lok Sabha seats of Jharkhand.

“However, this request seems to have been overlooked and the CPI has announced a candidate in the Chatra Lok Sabha seat which has created confusion among Left constituent units,” the letter states.

The letter states that announcing candidates “arbitrarily” without consultations with other Left parties would be a stumbling block in the unity among the Left parties which is crucial to defeating BJP in Jharkhand.

The letter requests the CPI unit to withdraw its candidate from the Chatra seat in favour of the CPM candidate.

“We have already finalized our candidate Jainendra Singh who is a well-known cooperative movement leader of the state for contesting from the Chatra constituency. If CPI does not consider our letter then we have no option but to have a friendly fight with CPI in Chatra,” said Prakash Viplav.

CPI secretary Mahendra Pathak was adamant about fielding their candidate from Chatra. “We announced our candidate yesterday (Monday) and have even allotted a party symbol. There is no way we can withdraw our candidate at this juncture,” said Pathak.

Ever since the creation of Jharkhand, there has been only one instance in 2019 Assembly elections when the CPI and the CPM pitted candidates in one Assembly seat (Baharagora falling under Jamshedpur parliamentary constituency). However, this would be the first instance in Lok Sabha polls of both Left parties putting candidates against each other in one constituency.

Meanwhile, Congress state spokesperson Rakesh Kumar Sinha said that the INDIA bloc has given the Chatra seat to the RJD.

“The RJD will field its candidate on behalf of the INDIA bloc in Chatra,” said Sinha.

RJD state spokesperson Manoj Kumar said that the return of Girinath Singh who switched over from BJP to RJD in Patna would strengthen the party in Chatra and Palamau region.

“Party would announce its candidate for Chatra in a day or two and there is a strong possibility of Girinath Singh ji being our candidate from that seat,” said Manoj Kumar.

There are 14 Lok Sabha seats in Jharkhand and neither the CPI nor the CPM have any MPs or MLAs.