With the Indo-US nuclear deal causing serious strains in the Left ties with the United Progressive Alliance government, Communist Party of India-Marxist is expected to reveal its strategy on Saturday afternoon amid suggestions from allies that it was time to redefine ties and extend merit-based support.
While CPI-M leaders have made it clear that they would not withdraw their support to the UPA coalition, Left leaders have been maintaining that what they are expecting the minimum from the government was that it should not operationalise the deal.
In the midst of the two-day politburo meeting of the Marxist party, which has the largest Left component of 43 members of Parliament in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hosted a private dinner for senior party leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya.
Senior Congress leader and Union Minister Pranab Mukherjee, a known trouble-shooter of the ruling alliance, was also present at the dinner meeting.
The standoff between the Left and the government worsened last week in the wake of Dr Singh's interview in which he dared the key supporting parties to withdraw support to the Congress-led coalition.
Revolutionary Socialist Party leader Abani Roy said it is "high-time" that the Left review its support to the government otherwise it will become a "laughing stock" among the people.
"Something should be done. Either pull out from the UPA-Left coordination committee or make the support issue-based," said Roy, whose party is a minor constituent of the Left bloc having three MPs in Lok Sabha.
Indo-US Nuclear Tango
Analysis: Have the Left, UPA reached breaking point?