The electoral debacle that the party suffered in the last parliamentary and assembly polls will come under sharp focus at the 20th Congress of the CPI-M as delegates on Thursday began discussions on the draft political resolution presented by party General Secretary Prakash Karat.

The defeat of the Left Front in West Bengal for the first time since 1977, after being in power for 34 years, is "a serious setback" for the entire Left and democratic movement in the country, which the party is now striving to forge as an alternative force at the national level, the draft says.

The party does not see the "narrow" electoral victory of Congress-led UDF in Kerala by a one per cent margin and three seats, as a rejection of the previous LDF government and its policies.

However, the party wants to explore the reasons for the failure in both states and work towards winning back the support of the people.

Building of a Left-democratic alternative against ruling Congress-led UPA and opposition NDA led by BJP, both "wedded to neo-liberal economic reforms", has been described in the draft as the main task of the CPI-M.

For this, the party has to expand its base across the country and regain people?s support where the party scored poorly in polls, the draft says, adding, only a strong CPI(M) could strengthen Left unity and thereby draw democratic forces to its fold in order to defend secularism and federalism.