BRP BHASKAR
Gulf Today
THERE were two conspicuous absentees when leaders of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) in Kerala assembled at Perinthalmanna for the EMS Namboodiripad birth centenary celebrations, with general secretary Prakash Karat in attendance.
Conceived as an occasion to pay formal tribute to Namboodiripad, the tallest leader of his time, the centenary function assumed special significance as it provided Karat an opportunity to set the tone for the crucial state committee meeting at Thiruvananthapuram and central committee and politburo meetings to follow in New Delhi later in the week.
As it happened, Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan and party secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, protagonists in the long-playing sectarian drama in the state party, were not present.
Achuthanandan is the CPI-M's senior most leader in the state -- he is the only survivor among the central committee members who had walked out of the undivided Communist Party of India (CPI) to found the party -- and, arguably, the most popular one too. He was not at Perinthalmanna because the state party leadership did not want him. It had assigned him no task there.
Pinarayi Vijayan is the party's most powerful leader in the state. He had demonstrated his hold over the party machinery in the organisational elections held in advance of last year's party congress.
He was not at Perinthalmanna because he had to rush home, cancelling all public engagements, to attend the funeral of his elder brother. In his absence, Karat performed the tasks assigned to him.
Significantly, Achuthanandan's exclusion from the function came in the wake of strident demands in the party's state secretariat by Vijayan's supporters that the politburo should take action against him for flouting party discipline.
There were reports that ministers loyal to Vijayan had informed the state leadership that they could no longer work with the chief minister. The ministers quickly denied them to obviate possible criticism that the principle of collective responsibility of the council of ministers had been violated.
Achuthanandan's most recent act that angered the state leadership was his refusal to endorse its stand that Governor RS Gavai had acted unconstitutionally in granting permission to the Central Bureau of Investigation to prosecute Vijayan in the Lavalin case.
In an interaction with the media, Achuthanandan not only refused to endorse the party's criticism of the governor but justified his action by pointing out that the Supreme Court has ruled that governors can use discretion in such matters and other state governors, too, have acted in like manner.
The state committee, in a statement, diluted its criticism of the governor's action, apparently to stay within the bounds set by the politburo, which only said it was "unfortunate." It also dropped the oft-repeated declaration that the party would fight the Lavalin case politically. Now that the matter was going to the court, the party would fight it legally, the statement said.
The softer tone signified a tactical move. The party continued with demonstrations against the governor. Addressing one such demonstration, Left Democratic Front (LDF) convener Vaikom Viswan, who is a central committee member, said that anyone who remained impassive on the Lavalin issue was an enemy of the party.
Although no names were mentioned, the attack appeared to be directed against Achuthanandan, who has refused to toe the party line, and the LDF constituents, who have kept away from the public campaign against the governor.
The state committees of the CPI and the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the only other leftist parties in the LDF, while criticising the governor for rejecting the ministry's advice on the prosecution issue, dissociated themselves from the CPI-M stand that the Lavalin case was politically motivated.
The demand for Achuthanandan's removal from chief minister's post is expected to be raised by Vijayan's supporters at the state committee meeting which Karat is due to attend.
The next act of the sectarian drama will be enacted in the politburo, of which both Achuthanandan and Vijayan are members. At its meeting, scheduled for Friday, the majority faction's demand that Achuthanandan must step down as chief minister or be removed is sure to come up. Achuthanandan is expected to demand that Vijayan, who is facing a corruption charge, must step down from the post of party secretary or be removed.
Karat has said the party will move forward, making "corrections" in the government and the organisation in the light of the electoral defeat. The crucial question is whether the party can sacrifice either or both of the feuding leaders.
Showing posts with label Prakash Karat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prakash Karat. Show all posts
Monday, June 15, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Poll reverses set stage for fresh faction fight in CPI-M
BRP BHASKAR
Gulf Today
THE Left Democratic Front (LDF) has begun a review of the causes of its humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha elections. As was expected, there are indications that the rout will aggravate factionalism in the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which leads the front.
The LDF, which had bagged 18 of the state's 20 Lok Sabha seats in 2004, could get only four this time. All four seats were won by the CPI-M. The CPI, which contested four seats, and the Kerala Congress (Joseph), which contested one, drew a blank.
Neither CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan nor LDF convener Vaikom Viswan faced the media after the results became known on Saturday.
CPI state secretary Veliyam Bhargavan said the front's defeat was the result of a nationwide surge in favour of the Congress, which was seen as the most effective bulwark against the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The CPI-M state secretariat put forward a similar explanation in a written statement. It also claimed the impact of the efforts of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the ant-communist media to unify all anti-communist elements was also discernible in the Kerala verdict.
It added the party would look into the loss of some votes which the party and the front had traditionally received and take corrective measures in the working of the party and the LDF. During the long interval between polling and counting of votes, the state secretariat had called for reports from the party's lower units on possible vote losses.
The Pinarayi Vijayan faction, which controls the organisation, is expected to use these reports to take action against Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan's supporters for anti-party activities.
Findings by the lower committees that the Achuthanandan faction had neutralised party votes or even diverted them to the UDF would provide fresh ammunition for the demand for his resignation as chief minister.
Pinarayi followers had raised the demand at a recent meeting of the party state secretariat.
Achuthanandan, who talked to media persons after the results were declared, was asked whether he would assume responsibility for the election reverses "What for?" he asked.
He denied that the election results were a verdict against the state government.
In response to a pointed question as to who was responsible for the reverses, he said the Politburo and the central committee, which meet in New Delhi this week, would decide that.
On Sunday, the national leaders of the CPI-M and other Left parties met in New Delhi for a preliminary discussion on the outcome of the elections, which had dashed their hopes of playing a major role in the formation of the new government at the Centre.
The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, which is only ten seats short of an absolute majority in the new Lok Sabha, is in a position to form a new government without the help of the Left, which anyway has been crippled by its losses in Kerala and West Bengal.
There are no doubt some common causes for the poor performance of the CPI-M and other Left parties in West Bengal and Kerala.
However, the reverses in Kerala have additional dimensions. They represent failure of Pinarayi Vijayan's policy of forging new alliances with parties of dubious background.
When former chief minister K. Karunakaran walked out of the Congress, Vijayan was keen to enter into an alliance with him. Achuthanandan, who opposed the move, was able to get the national leadership to scuttle it.
On the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, Vijayan struck a deal with People's Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Abdul Naser Ma'dani behind the back of the LDF partners.
Under the agreement, he gifted the CPI's Ponnani to an independent candidate of Ma'dani's choice in exchange for PDP's support in the remaining 19 seats.
The election results show that Vijayan's calculation that PDP help will help weaken the hold of the Muslim League in Malappuram district, has not worked out. The alliance with the PDP apparently alienated other Muslim groups from the party.
Unlike in West Bengal, the CPI-M faced a serious challenge in the state from members thrown out for anti-party activities. They worked against the party's candidates and put up their own candidates in some constituencies.
Achuthanandan is expected to draw attention to these factors and demand a change in the state party leadership. The party's national leadership, which is itself in the dock after the reverses, will not be able to meet his demand.
Gulf Today
THE Left Democratic Front (LDF) has begun a review of the causes of its humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha elections. As was expected, there are indications that the rout will aggravate factionalism in the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which leads the front.
The LDF, which had bagged 18 of the state's 20 Lok Sabha seats in 2004, could get only four this time. All four seats were won by the CPI-M. The CPI, which contested four seats, and the Kerala Congress (Joseph), which contested one, drew a blank.
Neither CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan nor LDF convener Vaikom Viswan faced the media after the results became known on Saturday.
CPI state secretary Veliyam Bhargavan said the front's defeat was the result of a nationwide surge in favour of the Congress, which was seen as the most effective bulwark against the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The CPI-M state secretariat put forward a similar explanation in a written statement. It also claimed the impact of the efforts of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the ant-communist media to unify all anti-communist elements was also discernible in the Kerala verdict.
It added the party would look into the loss of some votes which the party and the front had traditionally received and take corrective measures in the working of the party and the LDF. During the long interval between polling and counting of votes, the state secretariat had called for reports from the party's lower units on possible vote losses.
The Pinarayi Vijayan faction, which controls the organisation, is expected to use these reports to take action against Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan's supporters for anti-party activities.
Findings by the lower committees that the Achuthanandan faction had neutralised party votes or even diverted them to the UDF would provide fresh ammunition for the demand for his resignation as chief minister.
Pinarayi followers had raised the demand at a recent meeting of the party state secretariat.
Achuthanandan, who talked to media persons after the results were declared, was asked whether he would assume responsibility for the election reverses "What for?" he asked.
He denied that the election results were a verdict against the state government.
In response to a pointed question as to who was responsible for the reverses, he said the Politburo and the central committee, which meet in New Delhi this week, would decide that.
On Sunday, the national leaders of the CPI-M and other Left parties met in New Delhi for a preliminary discussion on the outcome of the elections, which had dashed their hopes of playing a major role in the formation of the new government at the Centre.
The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, which is only ten seats short of an absolute majority in the new Lok Sabha, is in a position to form a new government without the help of the Left, which anyway has been crippled by its losses in Kerala and West Bengal.
There are no doubt some common causes for the poor performance of the CPI-M and other Left parties in West Bengal and Kerala.
However, the reverses in Kerala have additional dimensions. They represent failure of Pinarayi Vijayan's policy of forging new alliances with parties of dubious background.
When former chief minister K. Karunakaran walked out of the Congress, Vijayan was keen to enter into an alliance with him. Achuthanandan, who opposed the move, was able to get the national leadership to scuttle it.
On the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, Vijayan struck a deal with People's Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Abdul Naser Ma'dani behind the back of the LDF partners.
Under the agreement, he gifted the CPI's Ponnani to an independent candidate of Ma'dani's choice in exchange for PDP's support in the remaining 19 seats.
The election results show that Vijayan's calculation that PDP help will help weaken the hold of the Muslim League in Malappuram district, has not worked out. The alliance with the PDP apparently alienated other Muslim groups from the party.
Unlike in West Bengal, the CPI-M faced a serious challenge in the state from members thrown out for anti-party activities. They worked against the party's candidates and put up their own candidates in some constituencies.
Achuthanandan is expected to draw attention to these factors and demand a change in the state party leadership. The party's national leadership, which is itself in the dock after the reverses, will not be able to meet his demand.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)