Anti-BJP parties must put up a united fight: P Chidambaram

Guwahati: Former Union finance minister and Rajya Sabha MP, P. Chidambaram on Thursday appealed to the anti-BJP parties in the Northeast to unite and remain committed to their political parties if they wish to return to power.

“If you wish to defeat the BJP, all anti-BJP parties in the Northeast must come together,” the veteran Congress leader said. He was addressing media persons on the sidelines of the state-level training camp for party members here.

A three-day camp has been organised by the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) at Srimanta Sankardev Kalakshetra. About 700 party leaders and members are attending the camp held with an objective to rebuild the party.

“But (if) opposition parties are not willing to join the non-BJP front, then people will question the seriousness of the parties that are opposing the BJP in the Northeast. If the region has to progress faster, parties and politicians must hold steadfast to certain ideologies, whether you win or lose elections,” Chidambaram said.

Responding to a query on why none of the states in the Northeast is currently under Congress, the Congressman was quick to point: “There was a time when none of the states was under any other party except the Congress. The problem in the Northeast is that there are no lasting ideological commitments. Regional parties tend to change their positions very frequently, which is unfortunate.”

“Look at the number of ministers in the Northeast who were Congressmen…I wouldn’t be surprised if the Congress comes back to power in Delhi, they might switch back to the Congress,” he said.

“The failure of the party in the Northeast is because there have been leaders who were not willing to stay on the path of ideological commitments,” he added.