Party national general secretary and staunch Marxist ideologue Prakash Karat feels that the Congress is the CPM’s main enemy in its capacity as the prime mover of the “neo-liberal economic policies” since 1991, “which have impoverished large sections of workers and peasants”. However, the more pragmatic Bengal leadership feels that this national-level “Congress is untouchable” stand should not be rigidly implemented in the state as the actual conditions there are drastically different from the country as a whole.

They reason that the CPM’s main poll adversary in West Bengal is the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool and that the Congress, with its roughly 14 per cent vote share, is just a minor player. Thus, treating the Congress as the main enemy in Bengal — on par with the Trinamool — would only help the latter consolidate its vote share and increase the CPM’s already high chances of defeat.

“We are going to Vijaywada and the tactical line will be framed at the CC meeting. Karat has already approved a separate resolution on West Bengal. Bengal will have a different strategy for the 2011 Assembly elections,” said a senior CPM leader in Kolkata.

“In Bengal the Trinamool Congress is the principal Opposition to the Left Front. Karat thinks that the party in Bengal should come forward with all its strength against the Congress. But once we engage in an anti-Congress campaign, it is the Trinamool that will get more space. Karat and the Delhi leaders fail to understand that the Trinamool is more potent a threat than the Congress. Moreover, we have better relations with the Central government and the Chief Minister wants to maintain this,” he said.

A total of about 400 delegates will be attending the extended CC meeting, of which 65 will represent Bengal. Apart from CC and the State Secretariat members, 40 odd State Committee members have been selected for the meeting. The meeting, say some insiders, is actually a part of Karat’s strategy to consolidate his authority prior to the Kerala and West Bengal elections.