The Left parties Friday reacted coolly to the formation of a third force opposed to Congress and BJP, with the CPI-M saying it has its own ideas as to what constituted such an alternative while the CPI and RSP raised doubts over the venture being spoken about by some regional parties.
"Our party has its own understanding of what should constitute the third alternative. We will discuss the matter in the context of the overall political situation after the assembly elections," CPI-M General Secretary Prakash Karat told PTI.
Karat has been a champion of the cause of a third front for quite some time, but had said earlier that it would take some time for such an alternative to evolve and it was possible only through a people's movement.
The CPI also echoed similar views with its National Secretary D Raja saying there was "no such readymade thing" about the third alternative. Raja said in the past several such fronts were formed like the United Front and the People's Front. "Whatever may be the front or alternative, it must emerge from people's movement on two planks -- fighting communalist-fascist politics and the neo-liberal, anti-people economic policies".
Besides, he said what was known was only the announcement of a Third Force by Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Telugu Desam Party supremo N Chandrababu Naidu. "Nothing is known about their policies and programmes".