No third RS term for Sitaram Yechury

New Delhi: The central committee of CPI(M) on Tuesday decided against giving a third term to its general secretary Sitaram Yechury in Rajya Sabha.

After hectic parleys which continued till late Tuesday evening, the party’s central committee voted against it, sources said.

The decision by the CPI(M)’s central committee is a setback to the Opposition as Mr Yechury played the role of chief strategist for uniting the Opposition against the Modi-led BJP government at the Centre.

The Opposition will now have to look for a candidate of Mr Yechury’s calibre to take on the might of the ruling NDA in the Rajya Sabha where, by next year, the treasury benches will be able to cobble up a majority.

Mr Yechury was instrumental in pushing the candidature of Gopalkrishna Gandhi as the Opposition’s vice-presidential nominee. But more importantly, Mr Yechury was a credible face of the Left at a time when his party’s Parliament tally was at its lowest.

Mr Yechury’s chances of getting a third term in the Upper House suffered a setback when the party politburo, citing party rules, had decided against the third term at its meeting on July 23.

The issue, however, came up for discussion at the central committee, the party’s highest decision making body, as the Bengal faction wanted Mr Yechury to get a third term.

The CPM has a rule barring its MPs from standing for the Upper House for a third term in order to give younger leaders a chance. Last month Mr Yechury himself ruled out a third term, saying that, as general secretary, he cannot violate the rule.

The party faction backing Mr Yechury’s argued that if the party general secretary does not get a third term, then the CPM would have no representation from Bengal after 2020.

The CPM won 26 seats in the Assembly elections in 2016.