Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar has exuded confidence that the Left will do better in the next Lok Sabha elections as compared to the last time.
Maintaining that Left parties have been consistently raising issues directly afflicting the people, the CPI(M) Politburo member said his party was expected to "do better in 2014 Lok Sabha elections than the last time... There is no reason why we will do badly compared to the last time".
In a freewheeling discussion with PTI here, Sarkar, who has been chief minister of the northeastern state for four consecutive terms, said the Left's strength declined only in the "electoral aspects, but not in the minds of the people".
To questions on projections regarding the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and the post-poll situation, he said it was difficult to say now what would happen then. "Let some more days pass, then we will be able to tell."
The 64-year-old CPI(M) leader said winning or losing an election depended on many factors. "Issues like casteism and communalism dominate our country's elections. Along with that, muscle, money and media power are used. So, we are finding it little difficult to face these powers.
"Moreover, our development is not even across the country. We are not denying that fact. Casteist approach, identity politics and now religious and communal sentiments are getting linked to elections. Sometimes, even regional sentiment has come to the fore," Sarkar said.
Without naming any party, he said they were trying to "influence the mindset of people through such factors, which do not integrate people but completely disintegrated them".
