Monday, January 17 2005 11:32 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Kolkata: Veteran CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) leader Jyoti Basu yesterday (Jan 16, 2005) said that the "main challenge" before the party was to expand its base beyond the West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura.

"We are experiencing a peculiar political situation. We have provided support to the Congress to form a coalition Government at the Centre even though we had opposed the policies of the party all these years. This was to keep the communal forces at bay," Basu told a meeting of the party's Kolkata district conference.

Regretting that the party's influence was still limited to three states, he said all efforts should be made to expand it in other states too.

"This was the main challenge before us in the new political scenario not experienced earlier," he said.

On supporting the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) Government, Basu made it clear that the party wanted "communal" forces to be kept at bay. At the same time, the CPM wanted to extract as much relief from the Government for the poor and working class as possible, Basu said.

Calling for maintaining discipline in the backdrop of reported differences in party organisations that came to the fore in recent conferences in some districts, he told cadres, that they should obey the party decisions at all cost.

"There may be differences, but the partymen would have to obey party decision", Basu said.