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New Delhi: The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), determined to oust Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government over the India-US nuclear deal, is in a spot, thanks to Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee's refusal to quit his post, party sources say.
Although the CPI-M has hinted amply that Chatterjee should quit the speaker's post after the Left withdrew its legislative support to the Congress-led government, Chatterjee is no mood to give up the post, the sources said.
However, the CPI-M has been maintaining that the decision was left to Chatterjee himself.
"Any decision on the speaker's post will be taken by the speaker himself," CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat said in a statement.
"We do not want the office of the speaker being dragged into any unnecessary controversy," Karat said, referring to the media reports about Chatterjee's possible resignation.
Chatterjee, a CPI-M MP from Bolpur in West Bengal, was elected the speaker as a part of CPI-M-led Left parties' understanding with the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in 2004.
When it decided to withdraw its support, the CPI-M leadership conveyed to Chatterjee that the party wanted him to put in his papers, the sources said.
But Chatterjee, who will turn 79 on July 25, is believed to have argued that such a move would cast a shadow on the speaker's office as it is above party politics.
However, the CPI-M leadership feels that Chatterjee's resignation was vital in emphasising the party's opposition to the government's stance on the contentious nuclear deal and to put the government into a crisis.
Once Chatterjee resigns, the UPA government will be forced to elect a new speaker. On the other hand, the Congress prefers Chatterjee continuing as speaker.
Attracting attention
Dissent surfaced in the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) yesterday with West Bengal Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty saying it would not be correct to vote against the Congress-led government along with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
However, Chakraborty said in a letter to CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat that he was only trying to attract the party's attention to his opinion.
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