The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Sunday announced that it would form an alliance in Odisha by joining hands with the Congress and other regional political parties to take on the BJD and the BJP in the coming elections.

CPI general secretary D Raja said, “At the State level, we think the BJD’s politics of equidistance from communal forces and secular parties will not help Odisha in any way; so, we will fight against the BJD. Besides, taking into account State-specific issues and balance of political forces in Odisha, our party is trying to create an alliance with the Congress, the CPI(M) and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) to fight the elections collectively.”

He further alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has failed to fulfil the promises he had made before the 2014 elections. “He talked about black money, but he has now stopped talking about it. He promised to create jobs for youths but failed to do so. Farmers are in distress across the country while all institutions are under attack, be it the CBI, the RBI or the Medical Council,” said Raja.

Adding that ‘Desh Bachao BJP Hatao’ has become a slogan across the country, Raja said his party is serious about the concern of the people that in order to save the country and the secular, democratic fabric of our society, it has become imperative to defeat the BJP’ in the elections.

OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik admitted about the discussions on the issue of alliance but said talks over the terms of sharing of seats and other formalities are yet to be finalised.