New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS): In a recent statement on seat allocation within the INDIA bloc, D. Raja, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI), on Monday called for cooperation among alliance members and remarked that unity was imperative to defeat the BJP.

Reflecting on the recent elections, he told IANS, “Haryana elections are over, Jammu and Kashmir elections are over. After the results, our party, the CPI, has appealed to all INDIA bloc parties for serious introspection on working with mutual trust and mutual accommodation at the time of seat sharing.”

He highlighted that the expected seat-sharing arrangement did not materialise in Jharkhand, where the CPI and CPM were not accommodated by the Congress-Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) alliance.

In Maharashtra, however, the CPI leader acknowledged progress, crediting senior leader Sharad Pawar's role in the allocation process.

“He took a very accommodative position, and they allotted one seat to the CPI. We hope other parties also receive seats, and we’ll have to wait and see the final outcome,” he remarked.

Emphasising the alliance’s main objective, he concluded, “Our primary objective must be to defeat the BJP and its allies. For that, unity is imperative, it is not just an option, but an imperative. All secular democratic parties under the INDIA banner must work unitedly with a proper seat-sharing arrangement.”

The INDIA bloc, led by the Congress, is facing internal friction as several regional partners express dissatisfaction with the Congress' management of the alliance, especially ahead of the Jharkhand and Maharashtra Assembly elections.

The voters from Maharashtra will be casting their ballots on November 20 in a single phase. The counting of votes is scheduled for November 23.