Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SIX HUNDRED THIRTY NINE
Palash Biswas
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GoM meet to decide on diesel, LPG prices next week
Kolkata: A day after oil firms hiked petrol rates by a steep Rs 5 per litre, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said a ministerial panel will decide on raising diesel, LPG and kerosene prices next week.
An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by Finance Minister is likely to deliberate on oil ministry's demand for a minimum Rs 4 a litre hike in diesel price and Rs 25 per cylinder increase in LPG rates to partly bridge the gulf between domestic prices and their international cost.
"A decision will be taken on raising prices of these items when the EGoM meets next week," Mukherjee told reporters here after meeting Congress MLAs elected in the West Bengal Assembly elections.
He, however, neither gave the date of the EGoM meeting nor the quantum of hike the panel may consider.
EGoM was originally scheduled to meet on May 11, a day after polling in West Bengal ended but the panel meeting was postponed and no new dates have been intimated yet.
Oil companies are losing Rs 18.19 on sale of every litre of diesel at current price of Rs 37.75 per litre in Delhi.
Besides, state oil firms lose Rs 29.69 a litre on kerosene and Rs 329.73 per 14.2-kg domestic LPG cylinder.
On the biggest ever hike in petrol prices, Mukherjee said the decision was taken by the oil companies as the government had deregulated petrol pricing in June last year.
Though Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum had been given freedom to decide on retail selling price of petrol, they informally consulted oil ministry on every revision.
The three had not revised rates since January as five crucial states including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala went to polls.
A day after state assembly results, the firms hiked petrol price by Rs 5 per litre which was less than half of Rs 10.50 a litre increase need to cover for cost of crude oil which had touched a two-and-half year high of $110 per barrel.
"Decision on petrol prices is taken by oil marketing companies," Mukherjee said. "For other petroleum products like diesel, LPG and kerosene there is the EGoM."
The Finance Minister said crude oil was ruling at $68 per barrel when diesel, LPG and kerosene rates were last revised in June 2010. Crude is now above $110 a barrel.
Source: PTI
Rangarajan favours law-backed autonomy for RBI but the pillars of modern economy -- liberalisation , privatisation and globalisation -- have come under sharp criticism from the Supreme Court which has favoured a relook into the functioning of free markets and suggested its regulation.Resisting from any sort of RESISTANCE against Extra Constitutional LPG Mafia Rule, The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) vowed to bounce back in West Bengal where it has been routed after for 34 long years. I have meanwhile interaction with Cross section of Society and NO Body seems top buy the Idea!Though friends believe that the Marxist Ideology has the most Valuable INNER STRENGTH of IDEOLOGY which may help TURNAROUND! But the ideology is VICTIMISED by the BRAHMIN leadership and the situation remains unchanged!A New York judge denied IMF chief Strauss-Kahn bail, despite an offer from his defense team to put up $1 mn in cash and surrender all his travel documents.But White House Expressed faith in IMF! How the Marxists would face the Challeges Global while remaining quite INACTIVE at HOME. Mind you, Mamata banked on Marxist Betrayal and led the Mass Movement against Neo Liberal Monopolistic Aggression. The Resistance was Hijacked by Mamata and the LEFT kept on Running Blind on the super Highway of FREE Market Capitalism! Will this situation would ever change? No way seem to open either for the SUFFERING EXCLUDED Majority ABORIGIN INDIGENOUS Humanscape as AMBEDKARITES fail to address the CRISIS and Devite form AMBEDKARITE Ideology!
I have been writing and speaking that PRANAB`s budget this year is an INTRODUTION to Second Phase of Neo Liberalism. He proposed Financial Reforms!RBI Autonomy would prove the Final Nail!
"We are contemplating further increasing the interest rate on Provident Fund from the present 9.5 per cent. The interest rate on EPF ( Employees Provident Fund )) was increased to 9.5 per cent recently.
"This time also we want to give more to the employees. We are working towards it", he said while inaugurating the Southern Zonal Office of Director General of Mines Safety here.
Kharge also said the Ministry was bringing in 32 amendments to the Mines Safety Act formulated in 1952 wherein a number of stringent steps would be introduced for the safety of mine workers.
"The steps include increasing the penalty for violating mines safety norms from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 lakh. In cases where a penalty of Rs 5,000 was being imposed, it will be increased to Rs 5 lakh.
"Similarly the punishment (for violating safety norms) will be increased from one year to five years imprisonment and in cases where the person was sentenced to three years, it will go up to seven", he said.
Kharge said the main objective of bringing the amendments was to make "all those concerned with the mines-- from the owner to the agent to the director-- accountable for the safety of mine workers".
The industry also had to be alert and take precautions to avert any disaster instead of acting only after the disaster takes place, he said.
"The proposed amendments have already been introduced in the Rajya Sabha and are now before the Standing Committee", Kharge said.
The minister appealed to Union Minister of state for Mines, Dhinsha J Patel, who was present on the occasion to instruct the officials in his department to direct mining lease holders to accord top priority to the safety of mine workers.
Kharge said Karnataka, which was under the control and jurisdiction of earlier Southern Zonal Office based at Hyderabad, would now come under the new zonal office.
"We are also thinking of opening a regional office and also a sub-regional office here provided we get the required sites for it. We will be writing to the Bangalore Development Authority and Karnataka Housing Board on this issue", he said.
Earlier, Patel said the Central government provides the guidelines for mining and it was for the state government to enforce it stringently.
He said granting of mining leases also comes under the purview of the state. "It is the state which earns royalty from it (mines)," he said.
Apart from bringing in amendments to the Mines Safety Act, the ministry was also considering reviving the mines which have been closed, he said.
The Finance Ministry notification last week raises the income tax exemption to 9.5 per cent interest income from 8.5 per cent.
The decision clears the air for the EPFO subscribers who were given increased interest rate by one percentage point for 2010-11, but the Finance Ministry had not matched the interest hike with a commensurate tax exemption.
In the absence of the commensurate income tax exemption, the subscribers were earning higher returns even as it was liable to income tax.
EPFO had decided to provide 9.5 per cent interest rate on PF deposits for 2010-11 after which it was endorsed by the Finance Ministry in March this year.
In 2001, Finance Ministry had allowed tax exemption on interest income of up to 12 per cent on PF deposits. This exemption prevailed till August 31,2010.
In August last year, Finance Ministry had notified tax exemption of upto 8.5 per cent tax on interest income on PF deposits from September 1, 2010, onwards which now stands superseded.
EPFO had decided to pay 9.5 per cent rate of return for 2010-11 after it found a surplus of Rs 1,731 crore. But the rate was stagnant at 8.5 per cent for five years since 2005-06.
EPFO had also maintained interest rate of 9.5 percent for three consecutive fiscals from 2002-03. The rate of return was 11 and 11.25 percent in 2000-01 and 2001-02 respectively.
The interest income was even higher at 12 per cent 10 years during 1989-90 to 1999-2000.
Expectations high as Jayalalithaa sworn in as CM
IBNLive.com - 52 minutes agoChennai: AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa took over as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for the third time on Monday. Jayalalithaa and her Cabinet colleagues were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Surjit Singh Barnala in Chennai.
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Nothing unconstitutional will be done in Karnataka: PM
Times of India - 21 minutes agoPTI | May 16, 2011, 10.52pm IST NEW DELHI/BANGALORE: The BJP on Monday launched a campaign seeking rejection of governor HR Bhardwaj's report recommending imposition of President's rule in Karnataka and his immediate recall, knocking at the doors of ...
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Expressing serious concern over the sudden spurt in post-poll violence in several districts, West BengalGovernor M K Narayanan today sought a detailed report from the state Chief Secretary on how to preventsuch incidents and restore peace.
Later speaking to newsmen, Chief Secretary Samar Ghosh said he had already asked every District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police to take all necessary steps, including sudden raids to recover illegal arms and ammunition from hideouts to prevent recurrence of violence among the supporters of rival political parties.
They had also been asked to maintain round-the-clock vigil in sensitive and trouble-prone areas.
As a result, he said a huge cache of illegal arms and ammunition had been recovered and seized by police from different areas and several people arrested since the poll results were delcared on May 13.
West Bengal Governor M.K. Narayanan on Monday sent a letter to Mamata Banerjee, leader of the Trinamool Congress Legislature Party, inviting her to form the next government in the State, sources in Raj Bhavan here said on Monday. The oath-taking ceremony will take place on May 20.
A Trinamool delegation met Mr. Narayanan on Sunday to formally stake the claim to form a government after electing Ms. Banerjee as the legislature party leader at a meeting. A copy of a resolution adopted at the meeting of the 184 newly-elected party candidates on Ms. Banerjee's election was submitted to him.
The Congress had submitted a letter pledging its support to the new government to the Governor.
At least three people, two belonging to the CPI(M) and one to the Trinamool Congress, had so far been killed and scores injured in incidents of post-poll violence in West Midnapore, South 24 Parganas, Bankura and Murshidabad districts.
"While acknowledging this defeat, there are some who are claiming the epitaph had been written for the Left in West Bengal. I am afraid they are mistaken," CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat said here.
Karat pointed out that despite losing power, the Left Front led by his party had got 41 percent of all votes polled and indeed its vote share had gone up by 1.1 million since the 2009 Lok Sabha election.
"We will discuss how to expand this base, recover lost ground. This means a long period of work, taking up people's issues and struggles, and rebuilding organizational influence," he said.
He said the CPI-M would study what shortcomings had crept in, and "how we can reconnect with people who have been alienated".
Karat said the CPI-M would await detailed reports from its state units before analysing what had gone wrong in West Bengal and Kerala, where the Left Democratic Front (LDF) lost the election very narrowly.
He said that in Kerala, the Left lost by just 155,000 votes. "The LDF has already decided that we shall be in the opposition and we shall continue to work for the pro-people policies."
"Unregulated laissez faire free markets would only lead to massive market failures, even with respect to those aspects in which markets are supposed to function efficiently," a bench of Justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar said.
"The falsity of the knee-jerk beliefs that markets are necessarily efficient, and will necessarily find optimal and just solutions for all problems, was again provided by the recent global financial crisis," the bench further said.
The apex court said that unthinking and extreme beliefs in liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation have led to many deleterious impacts globally which cannot be ignored.
"It is not a completely well accepted principle that liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation has led to the welfare or that it has been an unalloyed good of everyone," the court said.
It said the government needs to regulate free market, otherwise it would benefit only a few people leading to increased inequalities in the society.
"With respect to other social values and goals, it has also been shown that the complete evisceration of the power of the State to regulate the private sector would lead to massive redistributions of incomes, assets and resources in favour of the few, as against the multitude, thereby generating even greater inequalities.
"This would also suppress the ability of the State to exercise moral authority, and force, to keep competing interests, spread across groups, regions, and classes, from degenerating into a war of all against all," the apex court said.
The court passed the order while quashing notification of the Delhi government permitting Army Medical College to allocate 100 per cent seats for the children of Army personnel.
It said that the government cannot shy away from its constitutional responsibility to work for the welfare of people in the name of free markets.
"The necessity of such a role for the State should not be doubted, nor its Constitutional duty whittled down. This potential danger, and consequences, of evisceration of the role of the State was anticipated by the farmers of our Constitution," the court said.
Chairman of the Prime Minister's economic advisory panel and former RBI chief C Rangarajan has strongly supported Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao's demand for law-backed autonomy to the central bank.
"I think we really need to move towards a situation in which the central bank of the country acts according to what it considers to be the right thing to do. Therefore, autonomy for the RBI is a good thing and we should work towards it", Rangarajan, Chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) told PTI.
However, he said the RBI autonomy should be "reconciled" with the Finance Minister's accountability to Parliament.
"The Finance Minister is ultimately responsible for management of the economy. Therefore, we need to work out an arrangement by which the responsibility of the Finance Minister towards Parliament and the autonomy of the central bank are reconciled", Rangarajan said.
Subbarao recently pitched for a legally-backed formal autonomy for the apex bank to be able to deal more effectively with monetary issues, while maintaining that the Government has not interfered so far with the Reserve Bank's functional autonomy.
"...the central bank should be given legally-backed, formal autonomy", Subbarao said while addressing a meeting of the Central Bank Governance Group in Basel , Switzerland .
Although the RBI Act empowers the Government to give directions to the central bank in public interest, the Centre has thus far refrained from doing so.
India is expected to grow around 8.2 percent in the eleventh five-year plan, said Montek Singh Ahluwalia , the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission on Monday. The adviser was speaking at an event at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research in Mumbai.April inflation of 8.66% was high and RBI needs to manage the growth and inflation trade-off for faster growth, the RBI's chief said.
The recent hike in petrol prices by over Rs 5 per litre by state-run oil marketing companies will hit the common man by increasing cost of living leading to cost push inflation, says experts. Although the direct impact of fuel price hike on headline inflation will be low, the increase will have a bearing on prices of other items with rise in transportation cost.
"Since petroleum is an intermediary product, it enters into transportation cost. It will increase transportation cost and living cost. It will also result in cost push inflation leading to further price hike," C P Chandrashekhar, professor of economics, JNU told media.
The oil marketing companies on Saturday raised the price of petrol by over Rs 5 per litre evoking sharp reaction from political parties.
As regards the direct impact of price hike on inflation based on movement in the wholesale prices, CRISIL chief economist D K Joshi said, "It will increase inflation by around 10 bps."
The rate of headline, based on monthly WPI, for April was 8.66 per cent, down from 9.04 per cent a month ago.
Inflation can reach double digit any time this year, Chandrashekhar said, adding "the government is trying to defend the rise in petrol prices by saying that it can't do anything because the decision is taken by oil marketing companies."
Commenting on the decision to raise petrol prices, Yes Bank Chief Economist Shubhada M Rao said, "based on the April inflation numbers, the direct impact of the petrol price hike on headline WPI inflation would be around 10 bps."
Given the current inflation level which is likely to remain elevated until November closer to 9 per cent levels, Rao said, "we do expect the RBI to hike repo rate by another 50-75 bps during the course of the year."
Echoing views, Joshi said, "The RBI will have to increase the interest rates by 50 basis points in the course of year."
The Reserve Bank on May 3 raised its key lending rates by 50 basis points, for the ninth time since March 2010, to tame rising prices. Despite repeated increase in key policy rates, the inflation has remained much above the RBI's comfort level of 5-6 per cent.
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Government distances itself from decision to hike petrol prices
PTISHARE · PRINT · T+
PTIFinance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said the decision to increase petrol prices was taken by the oil marketing companies (OMCs). File photo
Amid protests from political parties over the hike in petrol prices, the government said the product was deregulated and the revision in the fuel rate was done by the oil marketing companies (OMCs).
It, however, admitted that the hike would have "some impact" on overall inflation.
"It was for the petroleum companies to decide at what point of time they will do so. When we deregulate it, then we have to leave it to the judgement of the OMCs," Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters here.
Later in a statement, he said the "international scenario on commodity prices does not appear good at present.... We will continue to monitor the situation and take necessary measures to address the inflationary pressures on the economy".
On the impact of the hike in petrol prices on inflation, he said, "There will be some impact on overall inflation due to the adjustment in the petrol prices effected by the oil marketing companies in the coming months."
OMCs on Saturday decided on the steepest ever hike of Rs 5 a litre in petrol prices.
Inflation in April stood at 8.66 per cent, as per data released on Monday.
Experts said the hike in petrol prices would impact the headline inflation and the numbers would become evident in the data for May, which will be released next month.
Chief Economic Adviser Kaushik Basu said the petrol pricing was decontrolled. "It's not something that the government is using as an instrument of fiscal policy management," he said.
He cited the international situation as a justification for the price revision.
"You have to understand that international commodity prices... The petrol prices are part of the global situation," Mr. Basu said.
Last month, crude oil had reached the two-and-a-half-year high of over USD 120 a barrel due to the ongoing political unrest in parts of the Middle East and North Africa which led to speculative buying. It is, however, trading at over USD 100 per barrel in global markets now.
Mr. Mukherjee had raised concerns on the issue of high global commodity prices at a recent meeting of the Asian Development Bank in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party blocked traffic in many parts of the national capital to protest against the hike in petrol prices. Other parties, including the Left and the Samajwadi Party, have also condemned the hike.
Keywords: petrol prices
Oil falls to below $99 as dollar rallies
PTISHARE · PRINT · T+
Oil prices fell below $99 a barrel on Monday in Asia as crude became more expensive for investors with other currencies amid a U.S. dollar rally.
Benchmark crude for June delivery was down 84 cents to $98.81 a barrel at midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract settled at $99.65 per barrel on Friday, up 68 cents.
In London, Brent crude for June delivery was down 44 cents to $113.39 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
Oil has retreated from a 30-month high near $115 at the beginning of the month as the dollar has strengthened.
"Crude oil continues to shadow the dollar to a large degree," Ritterbusch and Associates said in a report. "We still look for high negative correlation between the dollar and oil."
The euro fell to $1.4089 from $1.4110 late Friday. The euro reached $1.49 earlier this month.
Analysts are also closely watching for signs that soaring U.S. fuel costs gasoline tops $4 a gallon in some areas are undermining crude consumption.
Keywords: Crude prices, New York Mercantile Exchange, Brent crude
Big push to deregulation of savings rate
OOMMEN A. NINANSHARE · COMMENT · PRINT · T+
FILE PHOTOBank customers have something to rejoice as the Reserve Bank of India raised the savings bank account interest rate by 50 basis points to 4 per cent in its annual policy for 2011-12. The picture shows a busy day at a nationalised bank branch in Chennai.
In most countries, interest rates on savings bank accounts are set by commercial banks based on market conditions
Freeing savings bank rate is a complex issue in India. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently launched a debate on this issue by presenting a discussion paper prior to its Annual Monetary Policy for 2011-12.
While announcing the policy, the RBI has also raised the savings bank rate from 3.5 per cent fixed in 2003 to 4 per cent. The spread between savings deposit and term deposit rates has widened significantly in recent times. This was why the RBI raised the savings bank rate, while a decision on freeing these rates was pending before the central bank for a final decision.
"We want to be sure that it contributes to financial inclusion. So that it does not militate against financial inclusion," said the RBI Governor, D. Subbarao, in his post-policy press conference, referring to the deregulation of savings bank rate.
On raising the savings rate his deputy Subir Gokarn said that this rate had been at 3.5 per cent since 2003 all other rates have been deregulated, rates have moved up and down in the last eight years but this one had not and so as part of the overall adjustment, deregulation was still a debated proposition whether "we should let it go or not". But given the differential that had emerged between this rate and all the other rates, particularly in this upward cycle, the RBI thought that an adjustment was necessary.
With regard to all other interest rates, Dr. Subbarao has pointed out that "We moved away from regulation". Almost all interest rates, except the one on savings bank and NRI deposits which are administered as of now, are deregulated. So, "we believe that that is the way to move forward but again I want to say that we are open-minded and we would certainly respect and are being open to all the feedback that we get".
Now banks have complete freedom in fixing their domestic deposit rates, except interest rate on savings deposits, which continues to be regulated. In pursuance of the announcement made in the Annual Policy Statement for 2009-10, the Reserve Bank advised scheduled commercial banks to pay interest on savings bank accounts on a daily product basis with effect from April 1, 2010.
Prior to the introduction of a daily product method, interest on savings deposit account was calculated based on the minimum balance maintained in the account between the 10th day and the last day of each calendar month and credited to the depositor's account only when the interest due was at least Re.1 or more. After this change, the effective interest rate on savings bank deposits increased, benefiting the depositors.
Savings accounts are maintained for both transaction and savings purposes mostly by individuals and households. A savings account, being a hybrid product, provides the convenience of easy withdrawals, writing/collection of cheques and other payment facilities as well as an avenue for parking short-term funds which earn interest. The maintenance of savings bank deposit accounts, however, entails transaction costs. In fact, a term deposit doesn't involve transaction cost for banks.
Savings deposits are an important component of bank deposits. The average annual growth of savings deposits, which decelerated in the 1990s compared with that of the 1980s, accelerated sharply in the decade of the 2000s. In this decade, the average growth rate of savings deposits exceeded that of demand and term deposits, notwithstanding the growth in term deposits outpacing that of savings deposits during 2005-10. The RBI had raised several questions on this issue. Should savings deposit interest rate be deregulated at this point of time? Should savings deposit interest rate be deregulated completely or in a phased manner, subject to a minimum floor for some time? How can the concerns with regard to savers (senior citizens, pensioners, small savers, particularly in rural and semi-urban areas) be addressed in case savings deposit interest rate is deregulated? How serious are concerns relating to a possible intense competition among banks and asset-liability mismatches if savings deposit interest rate is deregulated? Should higher interest rate be paid on savings deposits without a cheque book facility?
Global experience
In sum, deregulation of savings deposit interest rates has both pros and cons. The RBI's view, as reflected in the discussion paper, was that savings deposit interest rate could not be regulated for all times to come when all other interest rates have already been deregulated as it created distortions in the system. International experience suggests, according to the RBI, that in most countries, interest rates on savings bank accounts are set by the commercial banks based on market interest rates.
Most countries in Asia experimented with interest rate deregulation to support overall development and growth policies. These resulted in positive real interest rates, which in turn contributed to an increase in financial savings.
Further the RBI argues that deregulation of savings bank deposit interest rate also led to product innovations.
The flowery points of the RBI are likely to give a push for a de-regulation. However, unlike many other countries in Asia as well as other parts of the world, the Indian situation is different. A large number of people in India are from the rural background with less saving.
The urban poor, migrated from the remote rural areas of the country too are having small savings.
The urban labourers send their weekly earnings through public sector banks (PSBs) to their dependants living in villages.
Further, with larger presence in rural and semi-urban areas, the PSBs would be having maximum number of small savings bank account holders. Generally, the PSBs were attracting small customers along with other high value depositors, who trust PSBs compared to other private sector banks.
Maintaining an account with huge balance in savings bank would be cheaper for banks than maintaining an account with small balances as transaction cost of banks would be higher in the case of small account holders. In the case of salaried employees, their salaries would be credited to a particular bank. As the regulator frees the savings bank rate, the private sector and foreign banks will offer boutique products and fascinating interest rates to attract these huge accounts from corporates as well as government organisations.
Deregulation of savings bank rate would work against financial inclusion as public sector banks saddle with all un-remunerative accounts and all high value accounts would migrate to the new generation private sector banks and the foreign banks. Always the small customer is at the receiving end.
Keywords: savings bank rate, savings account, RBI monetary policy
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/article2021329.ece
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Ram mandir will be built at Ayodhya despite legal hurdles: VHP
Indore, May 16 (PTI) VHP today claimed the Ram mandir will be built at Ayodhya despite the legal hurdles involved.
"A time will come when Muslim fraternity will itself ask Hindus to construct Ram mandir at Ayodhya," VHP international president Ashok Singhal Singhal told reporters here.
Singhal''s comments came in the backdrop of the recent status quo granted by the Supreme Court on the disputed site of the Ramjanambhoomi-Babri Masjid in Ayodhya and stay on the judgement of the Allahabad High Court.
He accused the Congress of deliberately implicating Hindu organisations like RSS and VHP.
On the alleged involvement of Hindu organisations in bomb blasts in the recent past in the country, Singhal said, "These are all manipulated and fabricated...It is a deliberate attempt to malign RSS leaders by the so-called secular Congress government."
Singhal said VHP will soon launch a tirade against "black money" stashed in foreign bank accounts.
16/05/2011 Rahul Gandhi takes farmers to meet PM
New Delhi: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi Monday took a delegation of farmers from Bhatta Parsaul village in Greater Noida Monday to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over controversial land acquisition and alleged atrocities were committed on the villagers by the Uttar Pradesh government.
"The farmers wanted to meet the prime minister and I facilitated it. People are being killed, women raped, I am quite concerned about the situation and it is still pretty bad," Gandhi told reporters outside the Prime Minister's Residence at 7 Race Course Road here.
The Congress general secretary, who took eight farmers with him to meet Manmohan Singh, said the prime minister gave them a "patient hearing".
Four people, including two policemen, were killed May 7 when villagers clashed with policemen for higher compensation for their lands acquired by the Uttar Pradesh government for development projects.
"The issues are more fundamental with regard to these villages. In large number of villages in Uttar Pradesh, all down the Agra highway where state oppression is being used, people are being murdered, women being raped, people have been thrashed and houses destroyed," he said.
Gandhi also handed over pictures of burnt bodies, ashes with bones and ransacked houses to the prime minister and later to the media.
"What I am concerned about is that how are we treating our own people. Most of the people said that they are more than happy to give land for development. Most poor people wanted development in the country and they are ready to sacrifice. The question is how we treat them - do we treat them fairly or we brutalise (them)," he said.
Replying to questions about delay in passage of the Land Acquisition Act, Rahul Gandhi said: "We are committed to the act and it is a complicated piece of legislation and we are working on it. We are confident that it will be passed in the next session."
Seeking a judicial inquiry into atrocities on farmers in the state, Gandhi demanded release of all jailed people.
Gandhi visited Bhatta Parsaul village last week, surprising the Mayawati government. He was later arrested and released.
The Congress has also announced a rally in Mayawati's native village Badalpur next month to keep up the momentum of its agitation against the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government on issues concerning the farmers.
Source: IANS
Rahul Gandhi takes farmers to meet PM
New Delhi: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi Monday took a delegation of farmers from Bhatta Parsaul village in Greater Noida Monday to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over controversial land acquisition and alleged atrocities were committed on the villagers by the Uttar Pradesh government.
"The farmers wanted to meet the prime minister and I facilitated it. People are being killed, women raped, I am quite concerned about the situation and it is still pretty bad," Gandhi told reporters outside the Prime Minister's Residence at 7 Race Course Road here.
The Congress general secretary, who took eight farmers with him to meet Manmohan Singh, said the prime minister gave them a "patient hearing".
Four people, including two policemen, were killed May 7 when villagers clashed with policemen for higher compensation for their lands acquired by the Uttar Pradesh government for development projects.
"The issues are more fundamental with regard to these villages. In large number of villages in Uttar Pradesh, all down the Agra highway where state oppression is being used, people are being murdered, women being raped, people have been thrashed and houses destroyed," he said.
Gandhi also handed over pictures of burnt bodies, ashes with bones and ransacked houses to the prime minister and later to the media.
"What I am concerned about is that how are we treating our own people. Most of the people said that they are more than happy to give land for development. Most poor people wanted development in the country and they are ready to sacrifice. The question is how we treat them - do we treat them fairly or we brutalise (them)," he said.
Replying to questions about delay in passage of the Land Acquisition Act, Rahul Gandhi said: "We are committed to the act and it is a complicated piece of legislation and we are working on it. We are confident that it will be passed in the next session."
Seeking a judicial inquiry into atrocities on farmers in the state, Gandhi demanded release of all jailed people.
Gandhi visited Bhatta Parsaul village last week, surprising the Mayawati government. He was later arrested and released.
The Congress has also announced a rally in Mayawati's native village Badalpur next month to keep up the momentum of its agitation against the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government on issues concerning the farmers.
Source: IANS
Preparation on for Mamata's swearing-in ceremony at Raj Bhavan
Press Trust of India, Updated: May 16, 2011 22:01 ISTAds by Google
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Kolkata: West Bengal Governor M K Narayanan today discussed the arrangements of the swearing-in-ceremony of Mamata Banerjee-led government at Raj Bhavan premises with the state administration.
State Chief Secretary Samar Ghosh said he was yet to be informed of the date for the purpose as well as the confirmation regarding the presence of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Apart from Ghosh, Home Secretary G D Gautama, DGP Naparajit Mukherjee, City Police Commissioner R K Pachnannda and ADG (IB) Banibrata Basu were also present in the meeting.
"While preparations have already started for the swearing-in venue, printing of invitation cards are yet to be done due to non-availability of the date," Ghosh said.TwitterNDTV SocialLive MessengerGmail BuzzPrint
The state secretariat of Writers' Buildings is being given a new look with necessary renovation and decoration before the new government takes over.
Work is on to renovate the chambers of the chief minister and other ministers while sniffer dog continued its security drill in the empty chamber of the chief minister.
To a question about complaints on removal of important files, Ghosh said he had asked the secretaries of Land and Land Reforms, Finance and Backward Class Welfare departments to look into the complaints.
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Story first published:
May 16, 2011 21:57 IST
Tags: Mamata's swearing-in, Raj Bhavan, West Bengal Chief Minister
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Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/preparation-on-for-mamatas-swearing-in-ceremony-at-raj-bhavan-106202?cp
Six tough challenges before Mamata
The Marxists may not believe in superstitions, but Friday the 13th is a date that will remain etched in their bitter memories for a long time. After 34 years in power, the Mamata Banerjee storm has not just cracked the Red bastion, but also crushed it in what is described as a landslide win for the Trinamool –Congress combine.
Writers Building will now don a fresh coat of green paint as the Trinamool Congress is all set to start a new era in Bengal politics.
Kolkata is often battered by a storm called Norwester - it cools the city but leaves behind ugly scars. Well, the same fate probably awaits the feisty Trinamool chief. After all the euphoria dies down and a smooth sailing in the elections, Mamata will face rough seas ahead.
Here are six challenges before the stormy petrel of Bengal.
Law and order
The CPM cadres in the rural areas and hinterland are armed to their teeth. There is bound to be violent clashes between the CPM cadres and the new folks in power. It is a matter of debate whether violence will be triggered by the CPM cadres or the Trinamool partymen. There is no doubt that the CPM will make matters very tough for the new government and will not allow it to settle down for the first 100 days.
In places like Nandigram, Keshpur and Jangalmahal, the TMC cadres may unleash a war of reprisal as many in the area were victims of state-sponsored violence. Will Mamata be able to rein in her partymen?
On the one hand there would be violence unleashed by the CPM and on the other by the TMC. Political analysts point out that Mamata has been following an eye for an eye policy while in the opposition. What the Marxists did, she outdid. Now the rules of the game will change.
Senior retired police officials and IPS officers had joined the TMC before the elections and are candidates of the party. If they win, Mamata will have to bank on them for advice and strategy to cap violence.
Revamping the police department
The police in Bengal will need a drastic change and overhaul. It is a well-known fact that the police in Bengal, especially in the rural areas, were used to taking orders from the local CPM bosses. In Writers Building, even Buddhadeb Bhattacharya did not have his way; his partymen gave orders behind his back to the police. These leaders were known to order the police not to arrest or act on people with Red leanings. Now this culture will have to change. Mamata will not only have to change this culture, but also make the police force neutral and efficient.
Again, the new dispensation cannot afford to make this change in the police at one shot. But Mamata cannot afford to wait for long too. The change has to be swift, smooth and efficient. Otherwise it may lead to a spiral of violence and anarchy.
Inviting Business
The way Mamata chased and booted out Tata Nano out of Singur has not gone down well with the industry. No doubt, she has people like Amit Mitra around. But inviting industries to set shop in Bengal will be an uphill task.
Even before the results were out, Mamata had sent her trusted lieutenants to industry majors and superstars like Aamir Khan. They were all given the TMC's vision document for Bengal and the lieutenants had pleaded with the industry heads to look at Bengal in a new light.
But a vision document alone will not provide light or confidence among industries to set shop in Mamata's new-look Bengal as the Tata episode is still fresh in the minds of many.
Derek O'Brien, Banerjee's trusted man for image-building exercises, was quoted in the Business Standard as saying: "Mamata Banerjee believes the rest of India wants to look at West Bengal differently now. We want to share our vision with toppers in various sectors like the industry, entertainment, education, health, etc. We wanted to reach out to them while people voted for change in Bengal." The list of recipients include the likes of Infosys, ITC, Bengal Ambuja, Indian Institutes of Management, Yashraj films, Aamir Khan productions and even Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupati's sports companies. "Altogether 500 copies of the twin documents were distributed. Around 400 copies were distributed inside the state and the rest across India," said O'Brien.
The inherent message was simple: Think about investing in Banerjee's Bengal. The Left Front, however, is confident that opportunity will never arise for the industries and it would retain power.
The 55-page vision document is divided in two parts.
The first part, consisting of 20 pages - printed in red - shows the dismal state of Bengal during the Left rule. The following part deals with what Didi wants to do if voted to power. Easier said than done.
But as bloggers said: Mamata cannot run Bengal the way she ran the Railways.
Cleaning Administration
For 34 years, the CPM had ruled Bengal and the administration is full of their men, deeply entrenched and politicised. Cleaning up the administration is going to be a big challenge for the TMC. Mamata cannot afford to violently shake up the administration and send everyone out. She will have to be careful in where she strikes, when and how. A surgical excision of one or two heads of departments and high-ranking secretaries could be the initial message. But when she goes down the ladder, the task is bound to be tough.
Economy
There can be no two opinions -- the state's economy is in shambles. With no industries for wealth generation, with agriculture not performing well, there is hardly any factor to prop up the sagging economy; it is in a state of inertia, some would say it is in a state of coma. The state's total debts have surpassed Rs 2 lakh crore, according to the TMC. Most of the money from the Treasuries is used to just pay salaries and pension.
Apart from attracting industries, Mamata will have to hard-bargain from the Centre to release more funds for her state. But how long can the Centre support her, unless she comes up with a plan of her own to generate wealth from within?
Cabinet formation
Since the TMC is a one-man (rather one woman) show, Mamata may not find it difficult to choose a cabinet of her liking. But accommodating the Congress will be a tough task. This will be easier than the other tasks before her.
The first 100 days are going to be crucial for Mamata and Bengal. Will she be able to bring an all-round paribarthan? Watch this space.
Why the Left lost West Bengal
One need not hunt for many reasons for the huge loss of face for the Left Front in West Bengal. Just two factors would sum up the reasons for the rout: Singur and Nandigram. Of course the ghosts of Singur and Nandigaram would come to haunt Mamata Banerjee too very soon.
So, why did the Left parties get mauled by the 'Bengal Tigress'?
The Left parties had laid a strong and impregnable foundation through massive and revolutionary land reforms after storming to power in 1977. The Left handed over power to the panchayats (rural bodies), thus empowering the people.
The Left could afford that move in the later part of 1970s to early 2000. But the economy started changing all over with the crumbling of state control and the licence raj. The economy's DNA underwent a massive change with a sharp focus on industrialisation and the role played by private parties. But Bengal found itself caught between two stools. On the one hand the State needed massive influx of funds as the Treasury was doing just two things - distributing salaries and pensions; on the other, the State did not have lands in its hand.
For industrialisation, the State needed to attract private players, but the land was with the people. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee tried to change the rules of the game in 2000 by trying to rope in big industries and forcefully taking over land. That is when trouble started; the land reforms that the Left parties heralded in 1977 became its nemesis 34 years later.
"Forcible land acquisitions were not accepted by the people. We went for industrialisation without any land map and land bank," said Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader and state Public Works Minister Kshiti Goswami.
Does he blame Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee for pushing hard his dream of industrialisation and thus leading to a string of electoral losses for the Front since 2008?
"It's not about blaming someone but the decisions were wrong. There was no clear planning, people were forced to leave their land...this is not right. The Left Front base was cemented by land reforms and distribution of land to the landless," he said.
Goswami feels "Nandigram, Singur were blunders. Our government went there without any plan and roadmap. People were against it and that is why we are all paying a heavy price," said Goswami.
Nandigram in East Midnapore district witnessed widespread violence in January 2007 when the region erupted in protest over proposed land acquisition for a special economic zone (SEZ).
Since then, a turf battle between the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the anti-acquisition grouping of farmland supporters backed by the Trinamool Congress led to repeated violence in the region.
Singur in Hooghly district too saw violent stirs against land acquired for Tata Motor's Nano small car project, forcing the company to shift its plant to Gujarat.
These two agitations reversed the state's electoral script. The Left Front, which has been winning all elections since 1977, was battered in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and last year's civic polls, besides losing a series of assembly by-elections.
Goswami said the main reason behind the Left Front's elephantine majority in the 2006 assembly elections was division of opposition votes.
"Last time the difference of votes between us and opposition was less than 1.5 percent, but we gained because of division of opposition votes," he said. But he feels that justice was not done to the massive mandate.
"Sections that had earlier supported the Left turned against them," analyst Mahesh Rangarajan told IANS, referring to the results of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls and the civic elections last year.
While 14 people lost their lives in March 2007's police firing in East Midnapore's Nandigram during a protest against land acquisition for an economic zone, a sustained Trinamool-led farmer agitation in Singur in Hooghly forced Tata Motors to shift its small car Nano factory to Gujarat.
Two years earlier, when the Left suffered its biggest setback till date, in the Lok Sabha election, it bled heavily in nine districts: Murshidabad, Nadia, North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, South 24 Parganas, East Midnapore, Howrah, Hooghly and Burdwan. In 2009, of 24 Lok Sabha seats, the Left was defeated in 22 seats by the TMC in this area.
This is a prime agricultural area, with small per capita land holding. The population comprises mostly farmers with modest income. This densely populated region has a majority of farmers from either scheduled castes or the minority community and since 2006, four major anti-Left peasant movements -- Singur (Hooghly district), Nandigram (East Midnapore), Bhangar (South 24 Parganas) and Katwa (Burdwan) - took place in this area. Scheduled castes and Muslims together form more than half the state's total voting population and their growing discontent had started eroding the support base of the Left in rural Bengal.
According to the internal assessment by the CPM, the "electoral killing field" had spread further with the Left clueless on what to do. The anti-Left sentiment made inroads in Burdwan, Hooghly and Birbhum, otherwise known as traditional strongholds of the Left. In the municipal elections of 2010, the Left had lost a number of municipalities in this area to the TMC.
Centre for Media Studies chairperson N. Bhaskara Rao said the Left had a better understanding than the Congress of people's issues when they came to power in 1977.
"They gave impetus to land reforms and distribution of wealth. These programmes touched a large section of people. They had better organisation at the grassroots," he said. Rao added that the Left Front used organisational strategies to gain support and retain control but did not reorient these strategies to the changing situation. He said Nandigram and Singur were the turning points in fostering anti-Left sentiment.
Shakeel Ahmed, the Congress in-charge of West Bengal, alleged that the Left Front had won so long by resorting to rigging and terror tactics and the 2011 polls "marked the beginning of its end in the national polity".
Nilotpal Basu of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), however, disagreed. According to him, the CPI-M-led coalition has survived seven terms because its rule has benefited an overwhelming majority, particularly the poor. "The government attained success in agrarian reforms, land distribution and recording of land of sharecroppers. Majority of beneficiaries are poor," he said. He has accused the Trinamool of confusing the people and stopping industrialisation.
Source: India Syndicate, IANS and Business Standard
Sensex dips 186 pts on fuel price hike and inflation fears
PTISHARE · PRINT · T+
PTIInvestors react as they watch the stock prices on a screen at a facade of Bombay Stock Exchange in Mumbai. File photo
The BSE Sensex dipped 186 points to 18,345 today following the steep rise in petrol prices, fuelling investor concerns that it would fan inflation and lead to further hike in interest rates that have already been hitting corporate margins.
Brokers said investors were also apprehensive that diesel rates, likely to be revised upwards within a few days, may be steep and add to inflationary pressures even more.
Although overall inflation slipped marginally during April, it is still high for comfort, they said.
Moderation in prices of food and manufactured items brought inflation marginally down to 8.66 per cent during the month, but experts have said that fuel rate hikes will impact overall prices in the near future.
Besides, brokers said FIIs continued to put pressure on the market amid weak global cues. FIIs sold shares nearly worth Rs 4,583 crore in the last two trading sessions.
The 30—share Bombay Stock Exchange index, Sensex, opened on a feeble note and remained in the negative terrain all through the day before ending at 18,345.03, a fall of 186.25 points or 1.01 per cent.
Similarly, NSE 50—issue index, Nifty, dropped by 45.75 points or 0.83 per cent to close at 5,499.00.
In all, 11 of the 13 sectoral indices closed in the red.
Realty, metal, banking, FMCG and refinery sectors were the major losers.
State—owned oil companies raised petrol prices by Rs 5 per litre with effect from Saturday midnight, the steepest hike since December 2008.
Meanwhile, Asian stock markets dipped after reports that Goldman Sachs downgraded Japanese and Korean shares. The key benchmark indices in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and Singapore settled down between 0.73 per cent and 1.36 per cent.
European stocks too were trading lower in afternoon deals. The CAC and DAX were down by about 1.4 per cent each, while the FTSE lost 0.9 per cent.
"The market players are worried that the petrol price hike and an imminent revision in diesel prices shortly will add to the inflationary pressures, triggering more rate hikes from the RBI. A weak trend across global markets also weighed on the sentiment on local bourses today," said Amar Ambani, Head of Research (India Private Clients), IIFL.
"FII selling remains a cause for concern for the Indian market as well. The market has turned volatile of late and thus it calls for extra caution on the part of the market players," Ambani added.
Overall, 26 out of 30 index—based counters finished with losses, while Hero Honda, Bharti Airtel, BHEL and TCS closed with gains.
The major losers were Jaipra Asso (3.20 pc), Bajaj Auto (2.72 pc), M&M (2.71 pc), Tata Steel (2.64 pc), DLF (2.58 pc), ONGC (2.36 pc), REL Infra (2.10 pc), HDFC (2.01 pc), Jindal Steel (1.87 pc), ITC (1.79 pc), ICICI Bank (1.70 pc), Hindalco (1.66 pc), REL Com (1.54 pc), SBI (1.20 pc), Infosys Tech (1.05 pc) and RIL (0.46 pc).
Among the sectoral indices, BSE—Realty dipped 1.47 per cent, Metal (1.45 pc), Bankex (1.18 pc), FMCG (1.02 pc) and Oil & Gas (0.97 pc).
The total BSE market breadth was negative with 1,713 stocks losing ground, while 1,052 finished with gains. The total turnover dropped to Rs 2,112.54 crore from Rs 2,840.44 crore last Friday.
Keywords: Sensex, markets, BSE
Farmers killed, women raped in UP villages: Rahul to PM
PTI | May 16, 2011, 09.30pm ISTNEW DELHI: Taking the land acquisition issue in Uttar Pradesh to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's door, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday complained to him about alleged "repression" and "murder" of farmers in the Mayawati-ruled state.
Emerging from a half-an-hour meeting, Gandhi alleged huge heaps of ash carrying burnt bodies have been found in the villages where farmers were agitating for better compensation for their land acquired by Mayawati government.
Gandhi also showed the Prime Minister pictures purportedly of bodies burnt and other forms of violence against farmers and their family members.
"The issue here is a more fundamental one with regard to these villages in particular and a large number of villages in UP all down the Agra highway, where state repression is being used, where people are being murdered.
"Quite severe atrocities taking place there....There is a set of large 74 heaps of ash there with dead bodies inside. Everybody in the village knows it. We can give you pictures. Women have been raped, people have been thrashed. Houses have been destroyed," Gandhi told reporters.
The AICC general secretary said he was "very concerned" about what was going on in the villages there and facilitated the meeting of farmers with the Prime Minister so that they can put forward their views and the PM listened to it. It was a delegation of eight persons.
To a question why the Centre is yet to amend the Land Acquisition Act even as he had met the Prime Minister even last year with the same demand, Gandhi said it was taking time as the legislation was a complex one.
"We are committed to Land Acquistion Act. Land Acquisition is a complicated piece of legislation that we are working at. We are confident that in the coming session, the Act will be passed," Rahul said.
He said the amendment is under consideration and "we are committed to it and realize that it is a complex piece of legislation. And that is why it is taking some time", Gandhi said adding the issue was a larger one.
"What I am concerned about how we are treating our people. Most of the people (farmers) said that they are more than happy to give their land for development. They said if a road is being built, they have no problem.
"Most poor people want development in the country and they are ready for the sacrifice. The question is how we treat those poor people. Do we treat them fairly or do we brutalize them? And that is why I brought these people to the PM because after all they are Indian people and we have to look after their interests as well," Gandhi said.
He said Singh listened "quite patiently" to the farmers who had good a conversation with them.
Uttar Pradesh goes to assembly polls next year and Congress, which is buoyant after an impressive performance in 2009 Lok Sabha elections in the state, is hoping to regain power in the state. Congress has been taking up the farmers'issues in a big way for quite a few years.
Centre, UP govt shadow boxing over farmers' issue: BJP
TNN | May 13, 2011, 04.03am ISTNEW DELHI: The BJP sideshow in the Congress-BSP game of one-upmanship over land acquisition and agitation by farmers continued on Thursday with the party alleging that the Centre and UP government were merely "shadow boxing" over the issue. Senior leaders including Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi were arrested as they staged protests and accused CM Mayawati of behaving like a dictator.
The BJP leaders were arrested for breach of peace under Section 151 CrPC which empowers police to arrest people without warrant or order from magistrate. Singh had started his 24-hour fast in the morning at Ambedkar Park to protest against atrocities on farmers by the UP government. He was later joined by Jaitley and other leaders.
Singh said if BJP government came to power it would form a commission to investigate all corruption cases against the Mayawati government. He continued his fast during detention in a Vasundhara guest house.
"Farmers' land is being forcibly occupied, they are not being paid compensation and as if that were not enough, they are now being shot," Jaitley said.
"The situation in UP is such that even legitimate protest is prohibited. This is an intolerant government. Our protest will continue irrespective of repression," Jaitley said, adding that Congress and BSP were together on the issue of corruption as evident in the 2G spectrum case in which BSP supported Congress and saved the UPA government.
Senior BJP leader L K Advani, however, seemed to have struck a discordant note when he indirectly praised Rahul Gandhi for his role. Asked if there was Congress-BSP connivance in allowing Rahul to visit Bhatta Parsaul village in Greater Noida, Advani said, "Whoever is supporting the cause of farmers is doing a good deed." The party has officially maintained that Rahul's presence in the village was "drama".
Advani demanded that the Land Acquisition Bill be amended at the earliest. "I feel the issue of land acquisition not only in Uttar Pradesh but in different parts of the country is a serious problem for farmers. Land is their only source of income. Some legal system should be there so that they do not have to face these problems," he said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Centre-UP-govt-shadow-boxing-over-farmers-issue-BJP/articleshow/8283828.cms
SC suspicious of ED's 'abrupt' chargesheet against Hasan Ali
Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN | May 13, 2011, 04.06am ISTNEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed suspicion about Enforcement Directorate's "abrupt" chargesheet against alleged money launderer Hasan Ali Khan, and asked the agency why it was filed without informing the government's High Powered Committee (HPC) supervising the multi-dimensional probe to unearth black money.
"Just a week ago, the government told us that it has constituted a 10-member HPC headed by revenue secretary. Why was the chargesheet not placed for scrutiny before it? If the ED thinks it was not necessary, then what is the utility of the HPC," asked a bench comprising Justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar.
The bench, which has been monitoring the ED probe into Khan's activities and black money issue, referred to ED's May 4 status report and said, "The ED informed us that the investigations were going on. There was not a word about filing of chargesheet. But two days later, we to our surprise find from the newspapers that a 900-page chargesheet has been filed. Why were we not informed about it when we are monitoring the investigations?"
An embarrassed solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam did some frenetic in-court consultation with ED officials and conceded that the chargesheet was not shown to the HPC, which was constituted on April 25.
"We will pass appropriate orders," the bench said, a remark which was interpreted to suggest that unhappiness with ED's conduct may lead the court to consider exploring a few options -- setting up of an SIT, putting a judge on the HPC or appointing experts to the committee – while pronouncing the order on July 4.
"We must express our reservations. When we asked what should be the mechanism to monitor the investigations into black money issue, you told us that the HPC was the answer to the court's apprehension. You said they have already started monitoring the investigations. Then why was the committee not shown the chargesheet. Why were we not informed about it," the bench asked.
"ED says it is difficult for the court or a judge to monitor a complex investigation like this. But it is making it difficult for the HPC to monitor the investigation by not showing it the chargesheet," it said.
The SG on May 4 had stoutly resisted setting up of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the trail of black money stashed abroad. In fact, the setting up of the HPC, which includes heads of CBI, Intelligence Bureau, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and Central Board of Direct Taxes, was seen as a government maneuver to pre-empt an SIT.
Petitioner Ram Jethmalani's counsel and senior advocate Anil Divan said ED's action indicated its lack of faith in the HPC.
Divan also stuck to his demand for an SIT while taking exception to government referring to SC as "overseer" in the context of the demand that the apex court exercise oversight over the investigation. The bench agreed with him, saying use of the term "overseer" for SC judge was undignified.
The bench had suggested that the government weigh the option of HPC's work being supervised by a retired or sitting judge of the apex court.
What miffed the bench of Justices Reddy and Nijjar was the secretive approach of ED in filing the chargesheet. When Subramaniam said that it should ideally have been placed before the HPC for scrutiny before being lodged in the special court, the bench said, "We are surprised. What ideally, you had told us that the HPC was the best monitoring mechanism created to take into account every possible aspect, and the very same HPC is not shown the chargesheet before it was filed."
Left leaders meet Governor over post-poll clashes
PTISHARE · PRINT · T+
The HinduA delegation of leaders of the Left Front after meeting West Bengal Governor M. K. Narayanan at Raj Bhavan in Kolkata on Monday. Photo: Sushanta Patronobish
Left leaders met Governor M.K. Narayanan and sought his intervention in ending what they described as a "reign of terror" unleashed by the Trinamool cadres against Left activists and organisations after the Friday poll results.
The CPI(M) has alleged that three of its activists have been killed in the clashes that were reported from some parts of West Bengal after the announcement of Assembly poll results.
A report from Howrah district said some police vehicles were damaged when police went to Chandrapur village to disperse activists of TC and CPI(M), who fought a pitched battle late last night.
"Today representatives of nine Left Front constituents and Workers' Party met the Governor and sought his intervention in ending the reign of terror unleashed by the Trinamool Congress on Left activists and organisations," CPI(M) central committee member Md Selim told newsmen after meeting Narayanan.
Mr. Selim alleged that three CPI(M) activists were killed and five injured since the announcement of the results but no FIR had been lodged or any arrests made.
He alleged that armed goons backed by TC were raiding the Left party offices and dropping the arms there to justify the attack. They are also dictating the police to book the Left workers under the arms case, he claimed.
Elected Left representatives in various panchayats and civic bodies are being ordered at gunpoint to resign, he said, adding thousands of Left workers and supporters along with women and children, were forcibly evicted from their homes.
Medical students of NRS Medical College hostel in the city were being evicted by the Trinamool Congress, he claimed.
"We have given the Governor a CD of the atrocities being committed by Trinamool Congress. We have requested him to take action within 48 hours. He has assured us that he will do it," Mr. Selim said.
Before meeting the Left Front delegation, the Governor also held a meeting with state DGP Naparajit Mukherjee and city Police Commissioner R.K. Pachnanda.
On hearing about clashes between TC and CPI(M) supporters at Chandrapur village under Amta police station in Howrah district, policemen rushed to the spot but the supporters of the two rival political parties attacked the police vehicles and damaged them, police sources said.
CPI(M) leader Pratush Mukherjee alleged that 15 houses of Marxist supporters were damaged by TC activists at Chandrapur village.
TC leader Biswanath Laha denied the CPI(M) allegations and instead claimed that CPI(M) activists attacked their supporters.
Prohibitory orders under section 144 CRPC were also clamped in some areas in two West Bengal districts — Paschim Medinipur and Howrah — following seizure of a huge quantity of illegal arms by villagers from alleged Marxist workers since conclusion of counting of votes on Friday, police said.
Keywords: Left Front, Trinamool-Left clash, post-poll violence, West Bengal Assembly polls
Bengal has maximum tainted legislators, says study
Among the states whose assembly results were declared last week, West Bengal has the maximum number of legislators with criminal cases pending against them -- at 35 percent, a study said Monday.
"Around 35 percent of MLAs (members of legislative assembly) of West Bengal, 29 percent of Tamil Nadu, 10 percent of Assam and 30 percent of MLAs from Puducherry have criminal cases pending against them," a statement from Election Watch, the election analysis wing of think tank Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), said.
The organisation did not analyse the fifth state, Kerala.
West Bengal has a total of 102 legislators with pending cases, as per their own declaration. At least 75 of them face serious charges like murder, attempt to murder, theft and kidnapping.
"All major parties have MLAs with pending criminal cases. Trinamool Congress has 69 MLAs out of 183 analysed (38 percent), Congress has 17 out of 42 (41 percent) and CPI-M (Communist PArty of India-Marxist) has 7 out of 40 (18 percent) MLAs analysed with pending criminal cases," the report said.
Ranking second among the four, union territory Puducherry has nine legislators with pending charges.
"Two MLAs out of these have declared serious IPC (Indian Penal Code) charges like voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons," ADR said.
In Tamil Nadu, 66 legislators have criminal cases pending against them, with the victorious AIADMK having highest number of 46 tainted legislators, 31 percent of its assembly strength.
DMK has seven out of 23 lawmakers (30 percent) with pending charges, CPI-M three out of 10 (30 percent) and PMK two out of its three legislators (67 percent).
"Thirty six MLAs out of these 66 analyzed have declared serious IPC charges like
murder, attempt to murder, robbery and extortion against them," said ADR.
In Assam, 13 of its 126 legislators have criminal cases pending against them.
Congress, which won the polls, has only four such legislators out of its assembly strength of 78 (five percent).
The Assam United Democratic Front (AUDF) has six lawmakers with pending cases, out of its strength of 18 (33 percent), while Trinamool Congress, Assom Gana Parishad and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have one each.
In addition, 37 percent of lawmakers in Assam, 52 percent in Tamil Nadu, 16 percent in West Bengal and 63 percent in Puducherry are multi-millionaires, the report said.
Source: IANS
Mamata's win is a tribute to our democracy
The five assembly election results have been on expected and yet not-so-expected lines. While the tide in favour of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal was apparent and visible, the Jayalalithaa-led killer wave against the DMK in Tamil Nadu was a much more silent one, though equally significant.
It brings to power two women in two large states in the country. Women, if you take Mayawati in UP and Sheila Dikshit in Delhi, will now be ruling just under one third of the country, in terms of the Lok Sabha seats they control.
It goes without saying that Mamata's win was historic, bringing to an end a 34-year-old Left rule in the eastern state. In the last 15 years, Mamata, who parted company with the Congress in 1997, to form her own Trinamool Congress, managed not only to take that Congress' place in West Bengal, but also to oust an entrenched Left front government. The significance of her victory, also a tribute to our democracy, however faulty, lies in the fact that as a woman, functioning in a male-dominated society and polity, she could do this without a godfather and without belonging to a political family.
Mamata had been working hard for this day. The turning point had come in the 2008 local elections in which her party fared well. But it was her performance in the 2009 general elections which convinced people that she could emerge as a viable alternative to the Left Front.
Unlike Mamata, Jayalalithaa, on the other hand, was relatively dormant during the last years. However, with the alliance she stitched up with the DMDK, she managed to emerge as an alternative to the DMK and emerge as the beneficiary of the aspiration for change in Tamil Nadu, which was as strong in the southern state, as it was in West Bengal, and not confined only to the urban centres, as had been expected.(As it always happens, there was a spill-off effect of Tamil Nadu in Puducherry where the AIDMK-led alliance will form the government.)
Corruption was obviously a major issue in these elections. With the mega 2G spectrum scam pointing to the involvement of DMK leaders A Raja and Karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi, the landslide for Jayalalithaa showed that there was silent and seething anger against the DMK which had been building up.
In Tamil Nadu, it manifested itself in a vote against the first family, and this was repeatedly asserted by Jayalalithaa all through the campaign -- it is a development which should alert political families in other states.
At public meetings the AIDMK chief addressed, people repeatedly made the point that while her earlier regime was also marked by corruption, she might do more for the state, since she did not have a family!
In Kerala too, the impeccable credentials of CPM's octogenarian CM VS Achutananandan was one of the reasons why the Left revived enough in the state to almost knock at the doors of power again. Though the Congress-led UDF is all set to form the government in Kerala, it was such a close call that had the Left managed just 3 seats more, it would have continued in power.
Going by the results of the 2009 general elections and the local elections held last year, the Congress-led UDF should have swept in Kerala. That this would happen was taken for granted till last year. Instead, the Congress won by the skin of its teeth. The various scams in Kerala involving the UDF's leaders in recent months obviously took a toll.
Tarun Gogoi's clean image was also responsible for giving the Assam chief minister a third term, as was his handling of the insurgency in the state, and his decision to open dialogue with the ULFA, and to initiate action in cases of corruption. He was helped in no small measure by a divided opposition. The AGP, as also the BJP, are trailing way behind in Assam. It would be enlightening to study the fineprint on why the Congress did well in Assam and not as well in Kerala as was expected.
The BJP was a hardly a player in these elections (which account for around 125 Lok Sabha seats) and the ascent of Mamata and Jayalalithaa in such a decisive way, also marks a strengthening of regional parties, which should worry both the mainline parties.
The results pose no immediate threat to the UPA government. A chastened DMK will stick with the Congress. Given a hostile state government, headed by Jayalalithaa, it will need a friendly Centre, as it has to deal with serious graft charges against some of its important functionaries, including the CM's daughter.
But the Congress will have to contend with a more assertive Mamata, flushed with her victory as a giant killer. This will, for instance, have a bearing on legislations like the Land Acquisition Act, which had been put on the backburner because of her reservations -- even as P Chidambaram has declared that the government planned to bring it in the monsoon session of Parliament.
She is not likely to rock the boat in Delhi, knowing that she will need the support, monetary or otherwise, of the central government in order to try and deliver on the promises she made. Conscious of her aam admi credentials, she may well come to play the role in UPA II that the Left parties played in UPA I. It is her Left-of-Centre politics which enabled her to replace the Left Front and she is not likely to forget that.
The victory of the Congress in Assam and Kerala, and in West Bengal, as the junior partner of the Trinamool Congress, should give the party a psychological boost, beleagured as it has been by scams. It could give the Congress a window of opportunity to do course correction.
It remains to be seen whether the prime minister seizes this opportunity to go in for a decisive reshuffle of his Cabinet that he has been talking about, but unable to effect, to bring in dynamism, and get rid of the deadwood.
While the results give the Congress cause for some satisfaction, it should not overlook the sub-text of the verdict, and that is the erosion in its base in the southern states.
In Tamil Nadu, it was reduced to five seats; it has not done as well in Kerala as it should have; it is out of power in Karnataka; and rebel Jagan Mohan Reddy's runaway 5.4 lakh victory in the Kadappa bypoll, and the continuing agitation for a separate Telangana state, is bad news for the party in Andhra Pradesh.
Copyright restricted. Under license from www.3dsyndication.com
Chief minister again, Jayalalithaa rolls out freebies
Chennai: AIADMK leader J. Jayalalithaa Monday became Tamil Nadu's chief minister for the third time since 1991, and immediately unleashed a barrage of sops for women and others from the poor families.
Back at Fort St. George, which houses the government secretariat, one of her first decisions was to order 20 kg of free rice for the poor and 35 kg for the very poor through the public distribution system.
Jayalalithaa ordered that educated poor women be presented free four-gram gold 'mangalsutra' in addition to the Rs.25,000 marriage assistance which is now given.
She doubled the marriage assistance for women with degree or diploma to Rs.50,000, besides also gifting them free mangalsutra.
While pension for the old, destitute, widows and differently abled women has been doubled to Rs.1,000, compensation paid to fishermen during the 45-day fishing ban period has also been hiked.
Women in state government service will now get six months of maternity leave.
The actor-turned-politician was clearly giving a big Thank You to the mass of poor for giving a huge mandate to her AIADMK-led alliance, virtually crushing the DMK.
A new department to be headed by a minister was established to monitor the implementation of the promises made in the AIADMK manifesto.
Earlier, she was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Surjit Singh Barnala at the University Centenary Hall. She will head a 34-member government.
Barnala also administered oath to the council of ministers.
All those present at the event, including Jayalalithaa, had a hearty laugh when C. Karuppasamy took oath rhythmically in a loud voice as the minister for animal husbandry.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Communist leader A.B. Bardhan, DMDK leader A. Vijayakanth and many Tamil film personalities were among the VIPs at the event.
Outside, thousands lined up on both sides of the road starting from Jayalalithaa's residence at Poes Garden and along the entire stretch of Kamaraj Salai on the Marina till the Madras University campus.
Two giant screens were installed outside the venue so that people could view the swearing in ceremony.
The AIADMK-led front won 203 seats in the 234-member Tamil Nadu assembly. The AIADMK itself won 150 seats -- 146 on its own and four by smaller parties who fought under its election symbol.
Jayalalithaa first became chief minister in 1991, in the wake of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's assassination, and again 10 years later.
Source: IANS
Yeddyurappa slams Governor's action, to sit on dharna
Bangalore: Slamming the Karnataka Governor for recommending dismissal of his government, Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa on Monday said the action amounted to an "affront" to the pride of the people of the State and the mandate given to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
"The Congress bosses in Delhi are using the Governor to commit anti-Constitutional acts. I will not allow the murder of democracy," he told reporters in Bangalore.
Mr. Yeddyurappa said, "The Governor's action amounts to an affront to the pride of the people of Karnataka and also the mandate of people given to BJP."
The Chief Minister said that he along with his ministerial colleagues and MLAs will stage a dharna in front of Raj Bhavan at noon to protest Governor H.R. Bhardwaj's decision to recommend dismissal of the BJP government.
He also lashed out the Governor for declining to meet 10 BJP MLAs when they went to Raj Bhavan to submit their letters of support and described it as an "insult" to elected representatives.
"The Governor's action in recommending dismissal of my government was anti-democratic as it enjoyed the support of 121 members," he said, adding, "Even now I am ready to prove my majority, if the Governor asks me."
He said he would also lead a delegation of MLAs and MPs to Delhi on Monday or Tuesday to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to protest against the Governor's action.
Mr. Yeddyurappa said the emergent Cabinet meeting called for Monday afternoon would take some important decisions.
The official residence of Mr. Yeddyurappa was abuzz with activity with Ministers, MLAs and BJP leaders thronging it.
--- 1
BJP fears central rule in Karnataka, writes to president
Karnataka's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) late Sunday said it apprehends that Governor H.R. Bhardwaj has sought the dismissal of its government here and urged President Pratibha Patil to reject "the unconstitutional move".
"We apprehend from media reports and activities of opposition parties that the governor might have recommended dismissal of our government," BJP spokesperson and former union minister V. Dhananjaya Kumar told reporters.
Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa shot off a letter to Patil asserting "there is no constitutional crisis in the state".
He also said that he "enjoys majority in the assembly" and hence Patil should not accept Bhardwaj's recommendations.
The governor's office late Sunday released a one-line communique stating Bhardwaj had sent "a special report" to the central government on the developments following the May 13 Supreme Court verdict restoring membership of 16 rebel law makers.
Of the 16, 11 were from BJP and five Independents.
The communique said: "In the context of recent judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of disqualification of MLAs delivered on 13.05.2011 and its implication to the developments in the State, His Excellency the Governor of Karnataka has submitted a special report to Government of India this evening."
Yeddyurappa, who released to the media his letter to President Patil, said copies had been sent to Manmohan Singh and union Home Minister P. Chidambaram.
He announced an emergency meeting of his cabinet Monday to take stock of the situation.
The BJP legislators will also meet Monday to decide the party's next step to save the government.
Source: PTI, IANS
Bhardwaj – Governor or Congressman?
Bangalore: Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj seems to be an expert in blurring the line between that of being the Constitutional head of State and that of a Congressman. He also has a single point agenda – to see the back of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa. And towards that agenda, he is known to bend the rules, interpret the Constitution to his liking and send the State into a political turmoil.
The talk in Bangalore is that with Bhardwaj in the Raj Bhavan, there is no need for two posts - that of Opposition leader and Congress chief. The Governor is playing the role of Opposition leader much better than Siddaramaiah and is more a true Congressman than G Parameshwara, the Karnataka Congress Party chief.
The Governor has been committing one Constitutional blunder after another, giving the BJP enough handle to operate political lever in Delhi to embarrass the Centre.
Here are Bhardwaj's blunders (some say he acted under instructions - read Congress):
On Friday, May 13, the Supreme Court dismissed the Karnataka High Court order upholding the disqualification of 11 BJP MLAs who had revolted against Yeddyurappa. This decision helped the BJP up its numbers in the Assembly. On the same day, the BJP won three Assembly seats in a bypoll by a huge margin that saw the Congress and JD(S) candidates losing their deposit.
The strength of the BJP went up from 105 to 120 in the 225 member Legislative Assembly.
Bhardwaj had expected the 11 rebel MLAs to go against Yeddyurappa. But when that did not happen, he decided to recommend President's rule. This move goes against the well-laid judgment of the Supreme Court in the Bommai case where the court had ruled that the strength of the government must be tested on the floor of the House. If Bhardwaj had any doubt, he should have asked Yeddyurappa to prove his strength on the floor of the Assembly.
But the Governor seems to have taken a strange stand saying that the voting is always manipulated in Karnataka Assembly. One could ask the question: Is voting not manipulated in the Lok Sabha or in the recent Public Accounts Committee that went into the 2G Spectrum scam?
The recommendation is bound to put the Centre in a spot, especially since Bhardwaj met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh just before taking the decision on recommending President's rule.
This is not the first time that Bhardwaj is trying to manipulate the provisions of the Constitution. In October last year, he had recommended President's rule soon after Yeddyurappa won a confidence vote after disqualifying 11 rebel MLAs and five independents. But the Centre did not go by his recommendations.
The Governor is known to commit major Constitutional blunders. A man who sat over the file of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi and allowed him to escape when he was the law minister, Bhardwaj seems to be a man in great hurry in Bangalore and, in the process, has always been stepping into blunderland. Here are a few instances:
Last year, Bhardwaj had instructed and then warned Legislative Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah on maintaining the status of the House as it existed before October 11. In effect, he told the Speaker that he cannot disqualify the rebel MLAs under the Anti-Defection Act.
Constitutionally speaking, the Speaker is the final authority in deciding on the Anti-Defection Act. The office of the Governor cannot issue any instructions. It is like President Prathiba Patil instructing Manmohan on the character of the Lok Sabha.
In October last year, the Governor first recommended President's rule over Karnataka and then did a U-turn by giving Yeddyurappa one more chance to prove his majority. Why? If he was convinced that the trust vote was not valid, what made him change his mind the next day?
The Governor was seen hobnobbing with Opposition leaders and the rebel BJP MLAs, entertaining them in the Raj Bhavan when the Supreme Court had made it clear through various rulings that the strength of the government should be decided on the floor of the House.
Whenever he received a memorandum from the Opposition Congress leaders, Bhardwaj used to directly write to the ministers concerned to give an explanation. He had summoned the then Tourism Minister Janardhan Reddy (who refused to go) and former Higher Education Minister Ramachandra Gowda.
This is the duty of the CM. Ideally, the Governor should have forwarded the letter to the CM seeking his opinion. It is like the BJP in Delhi petitioning the President over the Spectrum scam and the President summoning Raja to the Rashtrapathi Bhavan, ignoring the PM.
The Governor has also been seen showing a keen interest in the mining scandal and had issued instructions on certain files.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has gone hammer and tongs at Bhardwaj saying he had lost all impartiality and there is no constitutional crisis except for the one created by the gubernatorial office.
"The governor has completely lost his impartiality," senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley told the media in Delhi.
"We are of the considered opinion that there is neither a political crisis, nor any constitutional crisis in the state. It is a crisis being deliberately generated by the governor of the state. I will give you five facts, which clearly demonstrate that the governor of the state acted beyond the constitution. He has defied all norms of politics," said the leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha during the last crisis triggered by Bhardwaj.
Jaitley said the governor has allowed the Raj Bhavan to be used for political purposes, for the purposes of destabilising the state government and indulge in horse-trading.
"The constitutional mandate says (which late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi introduced) that a defector would be immediately disqualified. It is unprecedented that a constitution authority [governor] writing to the Speaker directing him not to exercise power under defection law.
"The governor almost threatened the Speaker and said that if he acted against him, his verdict will be not acceptable if he acts against the defectors," said Jaitley.
Politically, however, the reported move of Bhardwaj to recommend President's rule would be a boon for the beleaguered Yeddyurappa.
The BJP, including the increasing number of dissidents in the party against him, will now have to rally behind Yeddyurappa in spite of charges of corruption and illegal land deals hurled at him.
Source: India Syndicate
Also read:
Sack Yeddyurappa: Governor to Centre
Yeddyurappa slams Governor's action
IMF chief picked out of lineup in sexual assault case
New York: The maid who has accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the International Monetary Fund, of sexually assaulting her in his luxury hotel room picked the Frenchman out of a lineup.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn was picked out of a police line up by the hotel maid on Sunday night, according to media reports.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a likely candidate for 2012 Presidential race in France, has been charged with attempted rape, sexual assault and unlawful imprisonment.
The IMF chief has denied the charges against him.
"Strauss-Kahn will plead not guilty," William W. Taylor III, his lawyer, said in a statement.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn allegedly sexually assaulted the 32-year-old maid, who happened to be in his $3,000 a night suite at the Hotel Sofitel in Times Square on Saturday afternoon, thinking it was empty.
He also allegedly tried to lock her in the bathroom.
Before the incident, it was being widely speculated that Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a Socialist politician, had a chance at beating incumbent President Nicholas Sarkozy, who is plagued with all time low ratings.
Observers and rivals have said that the alleged charges will ruin Mr. Strauss-Kahn's chances at a political career.
AP reports from New York:
Hearing delayed
The arraignment for the IMF head who's accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid has been delayed.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn's lawyer says Mr. Strauss-Kahn agreed to an examination requested by prosecutors to obtain evidence in the case.
William Taylor says an arraignment set for Sunday night will now happen on Monday.
Source: PTI/ AP
PM reviews security threat from Pakistan, China
New Delhi: A day after Pakistan's spy chief threatened reprisal attacks in case New Delhi attempted a special operation against terror suspects on its soil, India Monday carried out a comprehensive review of its security preparedness amidst reports of the presence of Chinese soldiers in Pakistani Kashmir.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh chaired the review with the three armed forces chiefs providing their inputs to the assessment of the security situation against the back drop of the killing of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden by US special forces at Abbottabad in the heart of Pakistan May 2, sources said here.
Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha had warned India that an Abbottabad-like operation by New Delhi would invite a fitting response, with Pakistani armed forces having "identified" specific targets and carried out "rehearsals" to attack them.
The 90-minute meeting held at the Prime Minister's house was attended by Defence Minister A.K. Antony, National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon, Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik, Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma, Army Chief General V.K. Singh and Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar, the sources said.
At the meeting, the armed forces' preparedness to meet any security challenge that may be posed by terror networks in the region and conventional threats from Pakistan's armed forces came up for review.
"The prime minister was briefed on the overall security measures and the general preparedness of the defence forces. Issues like changing security situation in Pakistan and the situation along the Sino-Indian border were discussed," defence ministry officials said here.
This meeting comes less than a week after Antony held a similar two-day review of overall security of the country and coastal security in particular with maritime agencies and two days after the prime minister returned from Kabul, where he had discussed the latest developments with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai.
The Indian Army has also raised its alertness level in the wake of reports that Pakistan may try to infiltrate militants into Jammu and Kashmir.
It has also raised an alarm over Chinese military personnel's presence in Pakistani Kashmir in the guise of engineering workers and the threat posed by the large neighbour to the security of Jammu and Kashmir.
Source: IANS
2G no issue, Congress won't embrace AIADMK, says DMK
New Delhi: The 2G corruption row was "not a factor" in the Tamil Nadu polls, says DMK leader T.K.S. Elangovan, adding the Congress would not embrace the AIADMK that Monday took power in the state.
"It was not a factor or (even) a minor factor," Elangovan, the DMK spokesman, told IANS on telephone from Chennai, when asked if teh spectrum allocation scandal played a role in the DMK's crushing defeat.
A veteran of Tamil Nadu politics, Elangovan said he had no clue why the DMK was trounced so badly in the assembly election.
"It is difficult to find out the reasons. I don't know why it happened. People need a performing government and we performed well. All sections (of the society) benefited while people had suffered a lot during the (earlier) governments led by Jayalalithaa," he said.
The AIADMK-led coalition's sweeping win -- party leader J. Jayalalitha has become chief minister for a third time -- has led to speculation about new political alignments.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi has already called up Jayalalithaa to congratulate her.
Asked about a possible realignment of forces in Tamil Nadu, Elangovan expressed confidence that the Congress would not go with the AIADMK.
"I don't think the Congress will prefer the AIADMK. She (Jayalalithaa) is the most unreliable ally," he said.
Asked if the party was feeling let down by the Congress, whose ally the DMK is at the centre, Elangovan said the polls were for the state assembly and not for parliament.
"It was not an election for the central government, (it was to be decided) how our leaders performed and how Jayalalithaa performed," he said.
Elangovan said the spectrum controversy had little or no impact.
Former union communications minister A. Raja of the DMK is in jail in connection with the scam. DMK MP Kanimozhi, who is also the daughter of outgoing chief minister M. Karunanidhi, has been named an accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
"Even in Raja's Lok Sabha constituency of Nilgiris, we won two of the four assembly seats. (2G) was not a reason. Beyond that what happened, we will find out," he said.
Elangovan, who is an MP from Chennai North, said party leaders would be exonerated in the 2G case.
But he insisted that his party's image was "tarnished by the media".
He also said that corruption was not an issue in the Tamil Nadu elecltion as Jayalalithaa had herself faced corruption cases.
Elangovan evaded a direct reply when asked if the poll outcome would make it difficult to herald a generational change in the DMK's top echelons.
"That is a different question. We will see," he said, adding the party would not let Karunanidhi retire.
He said DMK cadres were upset with the election result but not demoralised.
"The results were surprising even for the people of Tamil Nadu."
Elangovan said DMK will call a meeting of its candidates to know their feedback on "how we failed".
He said the party expected to win 75-80 seats and its alliance to win about 140 seats. DMK could win only 23 of the 119 seats it contested while its ally Congress got five seats and the PMK three.
The AIADMK alliance swept the polls, winning 203 of 234 assembly seats.
Source: IANS
New hurdles for Posco's land acquisition plans
BHUBANESWAR: Orissa's plans to resume land acquisition for the Posco project in the state faced new trouble with project's supporters Monday refusing to cooperate unless their demands were met.
The state government earlier this month announced it would resume land acquisition for the steel and port project in Jagatsinghpur district May 18 despite local opposition.
Now United Action Committee , which has been supporting the project, said they will extend their cooperation to the local authorities only after fulfilment of their 29 demands.
These include more compensation for those who will lose their betel vines and lands and assurance of one job in the company for each of the proposed displaced families.
"We support the project. That does not mean people will accept whatever the government and the company decides," UAC president Anadi Rout said.
Senior district officials Monday held a meeting with the pro-Posco group members but it ended without any fruitful result.
"If the government starts the land acquisition process without settling the impending issues, we will not cooperate," Rout told IANS.
Posco had signed a memorandum of understanding June 22, 2005, for a 12 million tonne steel plant near the port town of Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district, some 100 km from Bhubaneswar.
The project has been touted as the largest foreign investment in India. There has been however no progress on ground yet because of local opposition.
The environment ministry earlier this month gave a final green clearance to the $12 billion project after the state government reiterated that no traditional forest dwellers were dependent on or cultivating land in the proposed project area.
The state government also has to renew its pact or sign a fresh pact with the company for the project. The five-year pact it signed in 2005 expired in June 2010.
Ready to name more witnesses, Gujarat cop tells probe panel
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat's senior IPS officer Sanjeev Bhatt told the Nanavati-Mehta commission that he could name other witnesses who would vouchsafe his presence at a crucial meeting called by Chief Minister Narendra Modi Feb 27,2002 in addition to the names he mentioned in his affidavit made before the Supreme Court.
"I will give the names of the witnesses only when asked by the Supreme Court since the issue was pending before the apex court", he said in his disposition before the judicial enquiry committee probing the 2002 riots.
Bhatt, who stated that at the meeting Modi had not only "directed" top police officers to "allow the Hindus to vent their anger", but also failed to issue any instruction even in the two subsequent meetings held on the next day.
The meeting was held at the chief minister's residence Feb 27, 2002 evening after the train carnage at the Godhra railway station early in the morning that left 58 people dead.
Bhatt was emphatic that he had attended all three meetings.
"The chief minister had called two meetings on February 28, the day of the bandh call, one in the forenoon and the other in late afternoon and I had attended booth the meetings in the company of my superior, the additional director general of police and state intelligence chief G.C. Raigar."
He claimed that by the time the second meeting was held, the intelligence department had "real-time information" about the mob build-up and the tense situation in the Gulberg Society in Ahmedabad.
Bhtt said that he had personally informed the chief minister about the build-up in Gulberg Society, the threat to the residents there, including to the former Congress member of the Lok Sabha, Ehsan Jafri, and the "complete police inaction" across the city.
But the chief minister did not give any instruction for protective action, Bhatt said.
He also claimed that the state director general of police (DGP), K. Chakravarthi, was present when he informed the chief minister about the situation in Gulberg.
Referring to the Feb 27 meeting, Bhatt stated that both the then state DGP and the Ahmedabad police commissioner, P.C. Pande, tried to convince the chief minister about the inherent dangers in the BJP supporting the Viswa Hindu Parishad's protest bandh call given for the next day as it would amount to the government supporting it.
Similarly the two top officers also tried to dissuade the chief minister from bringing the bodies of the train carnage victims from Godhra to Ahmedabad and from taking out the funeral procession with the bodies.
Pande even told the chief minister that this could lead to an incendiary situation, Bhatt said.
He added that he had also briefed the chief minister about the large scale mobilisation by the Sangh Parivar even in interior areas and the possibility of large scale violence.
The chief minister was also briefed about the paucity of police force to deal with the situation emerging out of such a course of action, Bhatt said.
Bhatt Monday moved an application seeking directions to authorities to allow him access to requisite and relevant information, records and documents of the state control room and the Intelligence Bureau, and the offices of the director general and inspector general of police for the period from Feb-Sept 17, 2002.
Mamata Banerjee to pursue mixed economy model in West Bengal
KOLKATA: Mamata Banerjee is likely to pursue a mixed economic model as she ventures to reconstruct a state in a deep financial mess. There will be a dash of socialism and sprinkling of capitalism motifs. Maximum priority will be given on growth in both farm and manufacturing sectors.
Amixed economy nurtures a market economy with strong regulatory control. It also has a variety of government sponsored schemes. Mamata, who rode on the success of one of the most protracted land battles in recent times to win the election, has quite expectedly promised steps to raise the state's agricultural productivity by focusing on agro research and improving farm mechanisation.
The chief minister-in-waiting has also promised to usher in quantum private investment in engineering, steel, tea, jute, textiles and food processing and to revive a chunk of the 58,000 closed but prospective industrial units. She plans to free the state's small-scale sector from inspection raj, which according to Trinamool Congress , had restricted its growth. "It can safely be assumed that Banerjee will follow a people-centric hybrid economic model. However, the focus will be focus on overall growth," a source in Trinamool said. In her avatar as railway minister, she has carefully nurtured a propoor image but this did not stop her from inviting private investment for railway development projects..
"We will attract large private investments in engineering, tea, jute, manufacturing and in all the fields which require such investments. We will focus on MSME and labour-intensive sectors to generate employment," Banerjee had told ETon May 13.
Trinamool has prepared a vision document on how the new government should rebuild the state, which over the past 34 years had been abused by an Alimuddin Street-controlled administration and decayed in every respect, be it social sectors like health and education or economic parameters like industrialisation and farm productivity. The vision statement will serve as the Bible for the new ministers after the Banerjee government takes oath possibly on May 18.
In the health and education sector, Banerjee plans strong government control. She has proposed a hub-and-spoke model in healthcare by connecting sub centres, primary health centres, district hospitals and super speciality hospitals in Kolkata. In education, she plans to overhaul the vocational programmes with emphasis on industrial training institutes to train industrial labour and improve their employability.
The populist leader as she is known to the world, quite expectedly plans special focus on labour intensive sectors such as textiles, apparel, leather, jute, tea, handicrafts, gems & jewellery and agrobased industries.
Can Mamata Banerjee remake West Bengal?
Here's the first critical question that Mamata Banerjee, chief minister-elect of Bengal, faces: should her government's swearing-in ceremony be held in the relative privacy of Kolkata's sprawling Governor's House or should she and her ministers take oath among lakhs of adoring supporters in Kolkata's Brigade Parade grounds?
The only factor militating against the second option, which she prefers, is the utter bankruptcy of Bengal's finances. Can Mamata's freshly minted government afford the luxury of hiring thousands of chairs and erecting a giant shamiana at the Brigade grounds? Does, in other words, Bengal's exchequer afford a party?
In booming India, there's no other regime that's stumped by a question like this. So, to understand what the Trinamool-Congress administration is really up against in their mandate to rebuild Bengal, it's important to understand the rot in a system gnawed away by the communist party-state for 34 years.
Brain Drain
For starters, there's been a massive erosion of human capital and skills through 30 years that's become a major drag on the entire economy. It'll be one of Mamata's greatest challenges. "If she can boost education, health care and the work culture of the state, a lot of the work will be done," says economist Abhirup Sarkar of the Indian Statistical Institute. Bengal's fall from grace, in fact, goes back a long way.
The British Raj had made the then Calcutta a manufacturing hub. Less than two decades after the British left India, large manufacturing projects turned away from Bengal. Its first chief minister, Bidhan Chandra Roy, set up practically the only large post-Independence projects in the state between 1948 and 1962, the Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Durgapur Steel and the massive Damodar Valley Corporation, modelled after America's Tennessee Valley Authority.
Apart from the sputtering Haldia Petrochemicals and a clutch of IT projects, the Left has nothing to show for the past 34 years. Compared to fast-industrialising states like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat, Bengal is a laggard. That shows in the numbers: from 1980, three years after the Left came to power, the state's share of India's manufacturing has fallen off a cliff. The state's share in the national manufacturing has dwindled to 2.9% in 2007-08 from 11.5% in 1980-81.
One big reason for the flight of capital was political violence in Bengal from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s. Another was the Left's agitation, while in Opposition, against the Congress, which it termed "Tata-Birla's government". In power, the Left continued its politics of strikes and agitation.
Recently, as ex-chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee tried to woo businesses back to the state, the red unions went about shutting down work: in 2006, of the 20 million man days lost in labour disputes across India, Bengal accounted for 12.5 million, or 62%. The next year was worse: 27 million man days were lost across India, with Bengal alone snatching away 24 million man days, or 87% of the total. Capital, which had voted with its feet, has preferred to stay out.
Buddha's course correction wasn't enough to halt poribartan
KOLKATA: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee , the Deng Xiaoping of Bengal politics, will go down as the last chief minister of an elected communist government that had long outlived its utility.
The signs were there since the late nineties. The communist government was fast losing its core support base among the urban poor - the class the party used to swear by. Even its rural base, won through land reforms, had reached saturation. The delivery mechanism was failing, leading to a massive exodus of rural and urban work force.
Bhattacharjee inherited this suffocating status quo that had given way to a system built on political patronage.
Buddhababu broke out of the old Left mindset and shook hands with the Tatas and the Indonesian Salim Group to put the state back on the industry map. But in doing so, he snapped the social equilibrium that had held the diverse interest groups together. Feeling let down by the CPM's callous land acquisition methods, a huge section of marginal farmers and bargadars switched loyalties and embraced Mamata Banerjee as the new messiah of entitlement politics.
And the genteel upwardly mobile middle class that backed him in 2006 with a hope that Brand Buddha would chart out a seamless growth path for a tech-savvy , shining Bengal, lost confidence in him when he failed to tackle the rising Mamata surge in Singur. What's more, Bhattacharjee could not carry on with the party ranks as some felt his steps deviated from Left politics.
In the social churn that followed, the ruling Marxists - once champions of path-breaking land reforms such as Operation Barga - lost their profarmer legacy nourished from the pre-Independence days of the Tebhaga peasant movement. The disintegration also bared the rot within the Left ranks. Singur and Nandigram thus became a rallying point for the dissenting millions and a sizable section of the intelligentsia who raised their voice against the Left despite the Big Brothers watching them. That fear was gone in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls with Mamata Banerjee turning the tables, with her raw courage, against the CPM hegemony.
Prodded by CPM general secretary Prakash Karat , the Bengal unit went on a course correction hoping that it would help tide over the poribartan. It didn't, despite the heavily loaded verbosity of the CPM's newfound hero Gautam Deb.
Frequent flip-flops by the CM and his party colleagues - especially Nirupam Sen and Gautam Deb - on policy issues such as setting up a chemical hub in Nandigram, and then at Nayachar, and then back to Nandigram, added to the confusion among public and eroded the government's authority it badly needed to tackle the problems of adivasis in Jangalmahal, the tea gardens in the Dooars and the Gorkhas in the Hills. Sensing what was imminent, a large chunk of bureaucrats sought transfer to Delhi and elsewhere.
Bhattacharjee chose to tread the rough road in a winall-lose-all charge. He skipped politburo meets to reach out to the districts and reassure the poor that his government hadn't dumped them. The playwright in him was yearning to script a comeback story.
Industrialists will be hoping for a reversal of policies in West Bengal
NEW DELHI: With Mamata Banerjee coming to power in West Bengal, industrialists in the state and elsewhere will be hoping for a reversal of policies that has made the state, once a vibrant industrial hub, a wasteland of capitalism.
Trinamool's advisors are planning to invite every major industrialist in the country, including Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata, to the swearing-in ceremony of Banerjee, who will go down in history as the person who almost single-handedly dislodged the longest Communist government in the world.
Banerjee has shown little by way of track record to gauge that she will run an industry-friendly government. After all, she fought tooth and nail against the Tata Nano factory that was coming up in Singur and Indonesia's Salim group's proposed chemical hub in Nandigram. But things will be different now. One of the biggest components of the massive anti-Left Front sentiment that swept the state and brought her to power is the utter lack of industrial development and the consequent lack of employment opportunities. Trinamool Congress will have to work to remedy the situation and attract capital flow.
Banerjee has maintained that she is pro-farmer, but not anti-industry. The message is that she opposed projects in Nandigram and Singur because the state was taking away land from the farmer to hand over to large industrial groups.
She is yet to express a coherent alternate policy paradigm, however. As Cabinet minister of the Union, she was the chief dissenter to the Land Acquisitions Bill. Now with her moving to run the state with her own compulsions to facilitate large industrial projects, her militant stand against land acquisition might undergo a change.
Another factor that will give industry hope about doing business in West Bengal will be the persuasion of some of her close advisors like former Ficci chairman Amit Mitra and economist Bibek Debroy.
Banerjee will need friends in the industry as she runs the government.
She and the party has been backed by the old business families of Kolkata, most of who do business outside. In effect, more money has flowed from Mumbai to finance Banerjee's campaign than from Bengal.
Mamata Banerjee walks full distance from log cabin to Writer's Building
KOLKATA: She stormed into national politics in 1984 defeating CPM's Somnath Chatterjee and earning the 'giant killer' tag. With her party Trinamool Congress' triumph in the West Bengal Assembly elections, more than 26 years later, Mamata Banerjee has achieved what many considered impossible even a few years back. It is not everyday that a feisty politician embarks on a laborious struggle to take on a 34-year regime single-handedly and still manages to win.
Life has come close to imitating it now. With Bengal voting for a historic change, the foreign media is camping outside the narrow by-lanes of 30B Harish Chatterjee Street, to understand the 'Mamata' phenomenon. Her ouster of the world's oldest elected Communist government is being covered by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the National Public Radio of Washington, BBC, France 24 and Al Jazeera. Global media interest is focused on this one Indian state where Communists have been thrown out of power by a lone woman.
Busy with campaigning for her party in Bengal's six-phase elections between April 18 and May 10, Didi has largely remained out of bounds for the foreign media. However, requests and reminders have been pouring in. Most media queries seem to revolve around what is so special about this petite woman clad in a white sari, who wears rubber slippers and who dwells in a nondescript 6X6 dwelling. How has she managed to throw out the Communist? How does she move millions from grassroots to board rooms? How does Mamata manage to inspire people in almost all walks of life, despite being a woman?
"The fact that she seems to inspire some kind of cult following among supporters and is perhaps one of the most unlikely figures to acquire such a status, is what has attracted the world media," said Derek O' Brien, Trinamool's spokesperson.
But it was not always so. "In my childhood, I never thought that I would enter politics, become an MP, find a place in the Union Cabinet or organise public meetings at Kolkata's Brigade Parade grounds," Mamata said. She joined politics while doing a BEd course at Shree Shiksayatan College in Kolkata.
It was her father Promileswar Banerjee who inspired her to get into public life. "My belief in humanitarianism is all because of my father's outlook," she said. Losing him, when she was barely 15, was perhaps the most shocking event in her life.
If her father had ushered her into public life, Rajiv Gandhi inspired her to take up a bigger role in politics. "Rajivji protected me like an elder brother and also surprised me one day by saying: 'Some selfish giants are trying to malign you. Don't be scared. I am making you the general secretary of the All India Youth Congress," she said.
On August 16, 1990, four days later after taking charge of Youth Congress in Bengal, she survived perhaps, the worst attack on her life, when Marxist buttonmen bludgeoned her almost to death. She severed ties with Congress in 1998 and floated the Trinamool Congress , which did not do too well in 2004 and 2006. It was the Singur agitation in 2007 that acted as the catalyst. The rest is history.
Decks cleared for biggest ever Indo-US defence deal of $4.1 billion 10 C-17 Globemaster-III aircraft
NEW DELHI: India may have ejected American fighters out of the $10.4 billion race to supply 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) but US really has no reason to crib. Decks have now been cleared for the biggest-ever Indo-US defence deal: the $4.1 billion contract for 10 C-17 Globemaster-III giant strategic airlift aircraft.
Defence ministry sources on Thursday said the Globemaster deal, a direct government-to-government contract under the American FMS (foreign military sales) programme, should get the "final nod" from the Cabinet Committee on Security "within this month".
"All issues connected to costing and offsets (under which Globemaster-manufacturer Boeing will plough back 30% of the contract value into India) have been resolved," said a source.
IAF certainly needs to augment its strategic airlift capability to swiftly move combat systems and troops over large national and international distances, given that it has just over a dozen Russian-origin IL-76 `Gajraj' aircraft. Capable of carrying a payload of almost 170,000 pounds and landing even at small forward airbases with semi-prepared runways, the four-engine rugged C-17s can transport tanks and troops over 2,400 nautical miles.
With mid-air refueling, C-17s can go even longer distances. Along with the C-130J `Super Hercules' aircraft already being inducted, the C-17s will play a significant role in countering China's massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, which includes five fully-operational airbases in Tibet.
That's not all on the US arms deals front. India is already conducting commercial negotiations for the around $1 billion "follow-on contract" for four more P-8I Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, eight of which were earlier ordered for $2.1 billion in 2009.
Similarly, negotiations for six more C-130J `Super Hercules' heavy-lift aircraft will begin soon. "IAF has already inducted two of the earlier six C-130Js ordered for $1.2 billion in 2008. Two more will come around July, with the last two in September-October," said the MoD source.
So, if all this is taken into account, US has notched up sales worth around $9 billion to India in the arena of military transport and reconnaissance aircraft alone.
If one adds other deals connected to military aviation, like the $822 million for 99 GE F-414 engines for Mark-II version of the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft and the $170 million for Harpoon Block-II anti-ship missiles, as well as the proposed ones for attack and heavy-lift helicopters, the overall figure will jump to well over $11 billion.
Consequently, all the brouhaha over India choosing a fighter over "a strategic partnership" in the MMRCA project has not gone down well. "We went purely by IAF's technical and flight evaluation in the MMRCA project," said the MoD source.
"While Eurofighter Typhoon and French Rafale were right up there in the laid-down 643 test-points, the others (American F/A-18 and F-16, Russian MiG-35 and Swedish Gripen) were not fully compliant. So, now Typhoon and Rafale will compete commercially for the project," he added.
FROM US, WITH LOVE
C-17 Globemaster-III: 10 of these rugged giant strategic airlift aircraft to be inducted from 2013-14 onwards under a $4.1 billion contract. Capable of carrying a payload of 164,900 pounds after taking off even from makeshift airstrips, C-17s will give India swift power projection capabilities. Another six C-17s likely to be ordered at a later stage.
P-8I Poseidon: 12 of these long-range maritime patrol aircraft to be inducted from early-2013 onwards, costing upwards of $3 billion, to plug surveillance gaps over Indian Ocean. Armed with torpedoes, depth bombs and Harpoon missiles, P-8Is will also boost anti-warship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
C-130J "Super Hercules": Six of these tactical airlift aircraft, customised for "special and covert operations", to be inducted within this year under a $1.2 billion contract. Negotiations in progress for another six C-130Js.
Assembly poll results to have big impact at Centre
NEW DELHI: UPA-2 and its rivals are tensely bracing for poll results in five states with the outcome on Friday likely to impact its grip on the Centre and recast its leverage with key allies for the rest of the term.
Optimism in the Congress camp is singed by conflicting exit polls results as well as the assessment that battles in swing states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala might hang by slim margins. Apart from unanimity over the CPM-led regime's exit in Kolkata, there is no certitude about other states that include tiny Puducherry and Assam.
Under siege over corruption scandals and Opposition attacks, Congress keenly anticipates a winning score line. It expects to claw back to power in Assam, ride the Mamata storm in West Bengal, turn tables on the Left in Kerala and pip AIADMK's J Jayalalitha with DMK as lead partner in Tamil Nadu.
An electoral lift will restore a missing bounce and Congress leadership will try and seize the reprieve to move on anti-corruption legislation and snip deadwood from a Cabinet that looks more than a touch moribund. It will strenuously counter the impression that the government is a hapless victim of avaricious allies and internal sloth.
A 5-0 margin is a thumping win but with some exit polls pointing to a late Left surge in Kerala and Jayalalitha nosing ahead in Tamil Nadu, it could well be 3-2. A faction-ridden Left winning in Kerala will be a huge disappointment for Congress. A DMK sunset will be less so although the southern ally promises to turn the tables on Amma.
Main Opposition BJP has low expectations, except in Assam. But while saffronites will be happy if Congress hits a bump, regional parties like AIADMK, Asom Gana Parishad and Left face an acid test. A historic win for Mamata will end 34 years of uninterrupted Left hegemony. If Amma loses, she may never quite recover. If AGP fails, it faces an unappealing future.
A net positive result is vital for Congress which hopes that a good showing will be a launching pad for a major overhaul of the Union Cabinet and top bureaucracy. If Puducherry - where an ex-CM poses a headache - and Assam slip out of its grasp, UPA-2 will experience a sinking feeling.
The Opposition scoring a 3-2 or 4-1 win - although not very likely - will deepen the perception of decline and paralysis. But in any other scenario, Congress's allies have more to worry about. West Bengal is a must win election for Mamata while DMK chief M Karunanidhi is fighting the fight of his life.
The fallout for the Centre is clear enough. Barring a negative score, the Manmohan Singh government will not be badly off. If Karunanidhi loses, he will be even more dependent on the Centre given the 2G scam cases involving former minister A Raja and his daughter Kanimozhi. If he wins, his power will be curbed as Supreme Court monitors 2G investigations.
A landslide will see Mamata extract her terms which will almost certainly include retaining Trinamool Congress control over railways, which she sees as a means to deliver electoral goodies to her state. This may temper jubilation over her exit from Rail Bhawan.
Congress is confident that old war horse Tarun Gogoi is set to pull off a remarkable win in Assam. Even if he does not get a majority, he will be able to rope in the Bodo Front and Badruddin Ajmal's Assam United Democratic Front, it is felt. AGP needs to claim that number one spot from Congress to do the same in company of BJP or the Bodos.
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges: Prakash Karat
CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat spoke to Sunday ET on how he and the party will respond to their biggest poll set back in years and where the CPM went wrong
Post-poll crisis for CPM
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges. We were in power for 34 years. A generation of CPM members and supporters have never been in Opposition. In Kerala, we are used to winning and losing elections.
Plans to step down as CPM chief.
I am going to make a proposal to the party about a retirement plan for the general secretary. There has to be a cap on the number of terms the general secretary can have. It can be two or three or four terms. The leadership will decide it. (Karat is on his second term as CPM general secretary now. The coming CPM party congress will decide on whether he gets a third term).
Retirement before or during the CPM party congress
I have certain views on the matter. I think it is proper the general secretary steps aside after a period to pave the way for a new leader. That will help the party prepare a new line of leadership in a time-bound manner. And the person who steps down can always continue as a member of the politburo, party secretariat, etc.
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "CPIM" redirects here. For other uses, see CPIM (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Communist Party of India or Communist Party of India (Maoist). This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010)
Communist Party of India (Marxist) Secretary-General Prakash Karat Leader in Lok Sabha Basudev Acharia[1] Leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechuri[1] Founded 1964 Headquarters New Delhi, India Newspaper People's Democracy(English),
Lok Lehar (Hindi),
Ganashakti (bengali),
Deshabhimani'' (Malayalam),
Theekathir (Tamil) Student wing Students Federation of India Youth wing Democratic Youth Federation of India Women's wing All India Democratic Womens Association Labour wing Centre of Indian Trade Unions Peasant's wing All India Kisan Sabha Ideology Communism
Marxism-Leninism ECI Status Recognised Party Alliance Left Front Seats in Lok Sabha 16 Seats in Rajya Sabha 14 Election symbol Website Official Website Politics of India
Political parties
Elections
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated CPI(M) or CPM) is a political party inIndia. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI(M) is leading the state government only in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of India. It was voted out after 34 years in power in West Bengal in elections whose results were declared in May 2011. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964. CPI(M) claimed to have 982,155 members in 2007.[2]
Contents
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[edit]History
[edit]Split in the Communist Party of India and formation of CPI(M)
CPI(M) emerged out of a division within the Communist Party of India (CPI). The undivided CPI had experienced a period of upsurge during the years following the Second World War. The CPI led armed rebellions in Telangana, Tripura and Kerala. However, it soon abandoned the strategy of armed revolution in favour of working within the parliamentary framework. In 1950 B.T. Ranadive, the CPI general secretary and a prominent representative of the radical sector inside the party, was demoted on grounds of left-adventurism.
Under the government of the Indian National Congressparty of Jawaharlal Nehru, independent India developed close relations and a strategic partnership with theSoviet Union. The Soviet government consequently wished that the Indian communists moderate their criticism towards the Indian state and assume a supportive role towards the Congress governments. However, large sections of the CPI claimed that India remained a semi-feudal country, and that class strugglecould not be put on the back-burner for the sake of guarding the interests of Soviet trade and foreign policy. Moreover, the Indian National Congress appeared to be generally hostile towards political competition. In 1959 the central government intervened to impose President's Rule in Kerala, toppling the E.M.S. Namboodiripad cabinet (the sole non-Congress state government in the country).
Simultaneously, the relations between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theCommunist Party of China soured. In the early 1960s the Communist Party of China began criticising the CPSU of turning revisionist and of deviating from the path of Marxism-Leninism.Sino-Indian relations also deteriorated, as border disputes between the two countries erupted into the Sino-Indian war of 1962.
During the war with China, a faction of the Indian Communists backed the position of the Indian government, while other sections of the party claimed that it was a conflict between a socialist and a capitalist state. Hundreds of CPI leaders, accused of being pro-Chinese, were imprisoned. Some of the nationalists were also imprisoned, as they used to express their opinion only in party forums, and CPI's official stand was pro-China. Thousands of Communists were detained without trial.[3] Those targeted by the state accused the pro-Soviet leadership of the CPI of conspiring with the Congress government to ensure their own hegemony over the control of the party.
In 1962 Ajoy Ghosh, the general secretary of the CPI, died. After his death, S.A. Dange was installed as the party chairman (a new position) and E.M.S. Namboodiripad as general secretary. This was an attempt to achieve a compromise. Dange represented the rightist faction of the party and E.M.S. the leftist faction.
At a CPI National Council meeting held on April 11, 1964, 32 Council members walked out in protest, accusing Dange and his followers of "anti-unity and anti-Communist policies".[4]
The leftist section, to which the 32 National Council members belonged, organised a convention in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh July 7 to 11. In this convention the issues of the internal disputes in the party were discussed. 146 delegates, claiming to represent 100,000 CPI members, took part in the proceedings. The convention decided to convene the 7th Party Congress of CPI in Calcutta later the same year.[5]
Marking a difference from the Dangeite sector of CPI, the Tenali convention was marked by the display of a large portrait of the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong.[5]
At the Tenali convention a Bengal-based pro-Chinese group, representing one of the most radical streams of the CPI left wing, presented a draft programme proposal of their own. These radicals criticised the draft programme proposal prepared by M. Basavapunniah for undermining class struggle and failing to take a clear pro-Chinese position in the ideological conflict between the CPSU and CPC.[6]
After the Tenali convention the CPI left wing organised party district and state conferences. In West Bengal, a few of these meetings became battlegrounds between the most radical elements and the more moderate leadership. At the Calcutta Party District Conference an alternative draft programme was presented to the leadership by Parimal Das Gupta (a leading figure amongst far-left intellectuals in the party). Another alternative proposal was brought forward to the Calcutta Party District Conference by Azizul Haque, but Haque was initially banned from presenting it by the conference organisers. At the Calcutta Party District Conference 42 delegates opposed M. Basavapunniah's official draft programme proposal.
At the Siliguri Party District Conference, the main draft proposal for a party programme was accepted, but with some additional points suggested by the far-left North Bengal cadre Charu Majumdar. However, Harekrishna Konar (representing the leadership of the CPI left wing) forbade the raising of the slogan Mao Tse-Tung Zindabad (Long live Mao Tse-Tung) at the conference.
Parimal Das Gupta's document was also presented to the leadership at the West Bengal State Conference of the CPI leftwing. Das Gupta and a few other spoke at the conference, demanding the party ought to adopt the class analysis of the Indian state of the 1951 CPI conference. His proposal was, however, voted down.[7]
The Calcutta Congress was held between October 31 and November 7, at Tyagraja Hall in southern Calcutta. Simultaneously, the Dange group convened a Party Congress of CPI in Bombay. Thus, the CPI divided into two separate parties. The group which assembled in Calcutta would later adopt the name 'Communist Party of India (Marxist)', in order to differentiate themselves from the Dange group. The CPI(M) also adopted its own political programme. P. Sundarayya was elected general secretary of the party.
In total 422 delegates took part in the Calcutta Congress. CPI(M) claimed that they represented 104,421 CPI members, 60% of the total party membership.
At the Calcutta conference the party adopted a class analysis of the character of the Indian state, that claimed the Indian big bourgeoisie was increasingly collaborating with imperialism.[8]
Parimal Das Gupta's alternative draft programme was not circulated at the Calcutta conference. However, Souren Basu, a delegate from the far-left stronghold Darjeeling, spoke at the conference asking why no portrait had been raised of Mao Tse-Tung along the portraits of other communist stalwarts. His intervention met with huge applauses from the delegates of the conference.[8]
[edit]Name
CPI(M) is offically known as भारत की कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी मार्क्सवादी(Bharat ki Kamyunist Party Marksvadi) in hindi, but it is often known as मार्क्सवादी कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी (Marksvadi Kamyunist Party, abbreviatedMaKaPa) in press and media circles. This name though has a very interesting story to tell. During its initial years after the split, the party was often referred by different names such as 'Left Communist Party' or 'Communist Party of India(Left)'. The party has used the name 'Left' because CPI people were dubbed as rightist in nature for their support to Congress-Nehru regime. During Kerala Legislative Assembly elections of 1965 the party has adopted the name 'Communist Party of India(Marxist)' in order to obtain its election symbol from the Election Commission of India.[9]
[edit]Early years of CPI (M)
The CPI (M) was born into a hostile political climate. At the time of the holding of its Calcutta Congress, large sections of its leaders and cadres were jailed without trial. Again on December 29–30, over a thousand CPI (M) cadres were arrested, and held in jail without trial. In 1965 new waves of arrests of CPI(M) cadres took place in West Bengal, as the party launched agitations against the rise in fares in the Calcutta Tramways and against the then prevailing food crisis. State-wide general strikes and hartalswere observed on August 5, 1965, March 10–11, 1966 and April 6, 1966. The March 1966 general strike results in several deaths in confrontations with police forces.
Also in Kerala, mass arrests of CPI(M) cadres were carried out during 1965. In Bihar, the party called for a Bandh (general strike) in Patna on August 9, 1965 in protest against the Congress state government. During the strike, police resorted to violent actions against the organisers of the strike. The strike was followed by agitations in other parts of the state.
P. Sundaraiah, after being released from jail, spent the period of September 1965-February 1966 in Moscow for medical treatment. In Moscow he also held talks with the CPSU.[10]
The Central Committee of CPI(M) held its first meeting on June 12–19, 1966. The reason for delaying the holding of a regular CC meeting was the fact that several of the persons elected as CC members at the Calcutta Congress were jailed at the time.[11] A CC meeting had been scheduled to have been held in Trichur during the last days of 1964, but had been cancelled due to the wave of arrests against the party. The meeting discussed tactics for electoral alliances, and concluded that the party should seek to form a broad electoral alliances with all non-reactionary opposition parties in West Bengal (i.e. all parties except Jan Sangh and Swatantra Party). This decision was strongly criticised by the Communist Party of China, the Party of Labour of Albania, the Communist Party of New Zealand and the radicals within the party itself. The line was changed at a National Council meeting in Jullunder in October 1966, were it was decided that the party should only form alliances with selected left parties.[12]
[edit]Naxalbari uprising
Main article: Naxalite At this point the party stood at crossroads. There were radical sections of the party who were wary of the increasing parliamentary focus of the party leadership, especially after the electoral victories in West Bengal and Kerala. Developments in China also affected the situation inside the party. In West Bengal two separate internal dissident tendencies emerged, which both could be identified as supporting the Chinese line.[13] In 1967 a peasant uprising broke out in Naxalbari, in northern West Bengal. The insurgency was led by hardline district-level CPI(M) leaders Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. The hardliners within CPI(M) saw the Naxalbari uprising as the spark that would ignite the Indian revolution. The Communist Party of China hailed the Naxalbari movement, causing an abrupt break in CPI(M)-CPC relations.[14] The Naxalbari movement was violently repressed by the West Bengal government, of which CPI(M) was a major partner. Within the party, the hardliners rallied around an All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries. Following the 1968 Burdwan plenum of CPI(M) (held on April 5–12, 1968), the AICCCR separated themselves from CPI(M). This split divided the party throughout the country. But notably in West Bengal, which was the centre of the violent radicalist stream, no prominent leading figure left the party. The party and the Naxalites (as the rebels were called) were soon to get into a bloody feud.
In Andhra Pradesh another revolt was taking place. There the pro-Naxalbari dissidents had not established any presence. But in the party organisation there were many veterans from the Telangana armed struggle, who rallied against the central party leadership. In Andhra Pradesh the radicals had a strong base even amongst the state-level leadership. The main leader of the radical tendency was T. Nagi Reddy, a member of the state legislative assembly. On June 15, 1968 the leaders of the radical tendency published a press statement outlining the critique of the development of CPI(M). It was signed by T. Nagi Reddy, D.V. Rao, Kolla Venkaiah and Chandra Pulla Reddy.[15] In total around 50% of the party cadres in Andhra Pradesh left the party to form the Andhra Pradesh Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, under the leadership of T. Nagi Reddy.[16]
[edit]Dismissal of United Front governments in West Bengal and Kerala
In November 1967, the West Bengal United Front government was dismissed by the central government. Initially the Indian National Congress formed a minority government led by Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, but that cabinet did not last long. Following the proclamation that the United Front government had been dislodged, a 48-hour hartal was effective throughout the state. After the fall of the Ghosh cabinet, the state was but under President's Rule. CPI(M) launched agitations against the interventions of the central government in West Bengal.
The 8th Party Congress of CPI(M) was held in Cochin, Kerala, on December 23–29, 1968. On December 25, 1968, whilst the congress was held, 42 Dalits were burned alive in the Tamil village of Kilavenmani. The massacre was a retaliation from landlords after Dalit labourers had taken part in a CPI(M)-led agitation for higher wages.[17][18]
The United Front government in Kerala was forced out of office in October 1969, as the CPI, RSP, KTP and Muslim League ministers resigned. E.M.S. Namboodiripad handed in his resignation on October 24.[19] A coalition government led by CPI leader C. Achutha Menonwas formed, with the outside support of the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Elections in West Bengal and Kerala
Fresh elections were held in West Bengal in 1969. CPI(M) contested 97 seats, and won 80. The party was now the largest in the West Bengal legislative.[20] But with the active support of CPI and the Bangla Congress, Ajoy Mukherjee was returned as Chief Minister of the state. Mukherjee resigned on March 16, 1970, after a pact had been reached between CPI, Bangla Congress and the Indian National Congress against CPI(M). CPI(M) strove to form a new government, instead but the central government put the state under President's Rule.
In Kerala fresh elections were held in 1970. CPI(M) contested 73 seats and won 29. After the election Achutha Menon formed a new ministry, including ministers from the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Formation of CITU
Main article: Centre of Indian Trade Unions Following the 1964 split, CPI(M) cadres had remained active with the All India Trade Union Congress. But as relations between CPI and CPI(M) soured, with the backdrop of confrontations in West Bengal and Kerala, a split also surfaced in the AITUC. In December 1969, eight CPI(M) members walked out of an AITUC Working Committee meeting. The eight called for an All India Trade Union Convention, which was held in Goa April 9–10, 1970. The convention decided that an All India Trade Union Conference be held on May 28–31 in Calcutta. The Calcutta conference would be the founding conference of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, a new pro-CPI(M) trade union movement.[21]
[edit]Outbreak of war in East Pakistan
In 1971 Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) declared its independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani military tried to quell the uprising. India intervened militarily and gave active backing to the Bangladeshi resistance. Millions of Bangladeshi refugees sought shelter in India, especially in West Bengal.
At the time the radical sections of the Bangladeshi communist movement was divided into many factions. Whilst the pro-Soviet Communist Party of Bangladesh actively participated in the resistance struggle, the pro-China communist tendency found itself in a peculiar situation as China had sided with Pakistan in the war. In Calcutta, where many Bangladeshi leftists had sought refuge, CPI(M) worked to coordinate the efforts to create a new political organization. In the fall of 1971 three small groups, which were all hosted by the CPI(M), came together to form the Bangladesh Communist Party (Leninist). The new party became the sister party of CPI(M) in Bangladesh.[22]
[edit]Party organization
CPI(M) got 5.66% of votes polled in last parliamentary election (May 2004) and it has 43 MPs. It won 42.31% on an average in the 69 seats it contested. It supported the new Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government, but without becoming a part of it. On 9 July 2008 it formally withdrew support from the UPA government explaining this by differences about the Indo-US nuclear deal and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement in particular.[23]
In West Bengal and Tripura it participates in the Left Front. In Kerala the party is part of the Left Democratic Front. In Tamil Nadu it was part of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). However, it has since withdrawn support.
Its members in Great Britain are in the electoral front Unity for Peace and Socialism with the Communist Party of Britain and the British domiciled sections of the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). It is standing 13 candidates in the London-wide list section of the London Assembly elections in May 2008.[24]
[edit]The structure
- The Politburo (PB)
- The Central Committee (CC)
- State Committees
- District Committees
[edit]Membership
As of 2004, the party claimed a membership of 867 763.[25]
State 2001 2002 2003 2004 % of party
members in
electorate Andhra Pradesh 40785 41879 45516 46742 0.0914 Assam 10480 11207 11122 10901 0.0726 Andaman & Nicobar 172 140 124 90 0.0372 Bihar 17672 17469 16924 17353 0.0343 Chhattisgarh 1211 1364 1079 1054 0.0077 Delhi 1162 1360 1417 1408 0.0161 Goa 172 35 40 67 0.0071 Gujarat 2799 3214 3383 3398 0.0101 Haryana 1357 1478 1477 1608 0.0131 Himachal Pradesh 1005 1006 1014 1024 0.0245 Jammu & Kashmir 625 720 830 850 0.0133 Jharkhand 2552 2819 3097 3292 0.0200 Karnataka 6574 7216 6893 6492 0.0168 Kerala 301562 313652 318969 316305 1.4973 Madhya Pradesh 2243 2862 2488 2320 0.0060 Maharashtra 8545 9080 9796 10256 0.0163 Manipur 340 330 270 300 0.0195 Orissa 3091 3425 3502 3658 0.0143 Punjab 14328 11000 11000 10050 0.0586 Rajasthan 2602 3200 3507 3120 0.0090 Sikkim 200 180 65 75 0.0266 Tamil Nadu 86868 90777 91709 94343 0.1970 Tripura 38737 41588 46277 51343 2.5954 Uttaranchal 700 720 740 829 0.0149 Uttar Pradesh 5169 5541 5477 5877 0.0053 West Bengal 245026 262882 258682 274921 0.579 CC staff 96 95 95 87 Total 796073 835239 843896 867763 0.1292
[edit]Leadership
The current general secretary of CPI(M) is Prakash Karat. The 19th party congress of CPI(M), held in CoimbatoreMarch 29-April 3, 2008 elected a Central Committee with 87 members. The Central Committee later elected a 15-member Politburo:
- Prakash Karat
- Sitaram Yechury
- S. Ramachandran Pillai
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
- Manik Sarkar
- M.K. Pandhe
- Biman Bose
- Pinarayi Vijayan
- K. Varadarajan
- B.V. Raghavulu
- Brinda Karat
- Nirupam Sen
- Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
- Mohammad Amin
The senior most member, V.S. Achuthanandan was removed from the Polit Bureau on July 12, 2009.
The 19th congress saw the departure of the last two members of the Polit Bureau who had been on the original Polit Bureau in 1964, Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu.[26]
[edit]State Committee secretaries
- Andaman & Nicobar: K.G. Das
- Andhra Pradesh: B.V. Raghavulu
- Assam: Uddhab Barman
- Bihar: Vijaykant Thakur
- Chattisgarh: M.K. Nandi
- Delhi: P.M.S. Grewal
- Goa: Thaelman Perera
- Haryana: Inderjit Singh
- Jharkhand: J.S. Majumdar
- Karnataka: V.J.K. Nair
- Kerala : Pinarayi Vijayan
- Madhya Pradesh: Badal Saroj
- Maharashtra: Ashok Dhawale
- Orissa: Janardan Pati
- Punjab: Charan Singh Virdi(Acting)
- Rajasthan: Vasudev Sharma
- Sikkim: Balram Adhikari
- Tamil Nadu: G.Ramakrishnan
- Tripura: Baidyanath Majumdar
- Uttaranchal: Vijai Rawat
- Uttar Pradesh: S.P. Kashyap
- West Bengal: Biman Bose[27]
[edit]The principal mass organizations of CPI(M)
- Democratic Youth Federation of India
- Students Federation of India
- Centre of Indian Trade Unions class organisation
- All India Kisan Sabha peasants' organization
- All India Agricultural Workers Union
- All India Democratic Women's Association
- Bank Employees Federation of India
- All India Lawyers Union
In Tripura, the Ganamukti Parishad is a major mass organization amongst the tribal peoples of the state. In Kerala the Adivasi Kshema Samithi, a tribal organisation is controlled by CPI(M).
This apart, on the cultural front as many as 12 major organisations are led by CPI(M).
[edit]Party publications
From the Centre, two weekly newspapers are published, People's Democracy (English) and Lok Lehar (Hindi). The central theoretical organ of the party is The Marxist, published quarterly in English.
[edit]Daily newspapers
- Ganashakti (West Bengal, Bengali)
- Deshabhimani (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Daily Desher Katha (Tripura, Bengali)
- Theekathir (Tamil Nadu, Tamil)
- Prajasakti (Andhra Pradesh, Telugu)
[edit]Weeklies
- Abshar (West Bengal, Urdu)
- Swadhintha (West Bengal, Hindi)
- Desh Hiteshi (Bengali)
- Janashakthi (Karnataka, Kannada)[28]
- Jeevan Marg (Maharashtra, Marathi)
- Samyabadi (Orissa, Oriya)
- Deshabhimani Vaarika. (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Ganashakti (Assamese, Assam)
[edit]Fortnightlies
- Lok Jatan (Madhya Pradesh, Hindi)
- Lok Samvad (Uttar Pradesh, Hindi)
- Sarfarosh Chintan (Gujarat, Gujarati)
[edit]Monthlies
- Samajik Nayaya Saamachar (hindi and english )
- Yeh Naya Raste (Jammu & Kashmir, Urdu)
- Lok Lahar (Punjabi)
- Nandan (Bengali)
- Marxist (Tamil language)
[edit]Theoretical publications
[edit]Publishing houses
- Leftword Publication
- CPI(M) Publication
- National Book Agency (West Bengal)
- Chinta Publication (Kerala)
- Prajasakti Book House (Andhra Pradesh)
- Deshabhimani Book House (Kerala)
- Natun Sahitya Parishad (Assam)
[edit]State governments
As of 2011, CPI(M) heads the state government in Tripura. Manik Sarkar is a chief minister belonging to the party. In Tripura, the party has a majority of its own in the state assemblies, but governs together with Left Front partners.
[edit]Splits and offshoots
Main article: Various Communist/Leftist Parties in India A large number of parties have been formed as a result of splits from the CPI(M), such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist),Marxist Communist Party of India, Marxist Coordination Committee in Jharkhand, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy, Communist Marxist Party and BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Vedi in Kerala, Party of Democratic Socialism in West Bengal, Janganotantrik Morcha in Tripura, theRam Pasla group in Punjab, Orissa Communist Party in Orissa, etc.
[edit]Elections
Main article: CPI(M) election results [edit]Lok-Sabha Elections
[edit]1967 General Election
1967 CPI(M) election results (seats won / seats contested / seats total / votes / % of total vote) Lok Sabha: 19 / 59 / 520 / 6246522 / 4.28% Elections to State Legislative Assemblies: Andhra Pradesh 9 / 83 / 287 / 1053855 / 7.61% Assam 0 / 14 / 126 / 61165 / 1.97% Bihar 4 / 32 / 318 / 173656 / 1.28% Haryana 0 / 8 / 81 / 16379 / 0.54% Himachal Pradesh 0 / 6 / 60 / 3019 / 0.39% Kerala 52 / 59 / 133 / 1476456 / 23.51% Madhya Pradesh 0 / 9 / 296 / 20728 / 0.23% Maharashtra 1 / 11 / 270 / 145083 / 1.08% Manipur 0 / 5 / 30 / 2093 / 0.67% Mysore 1 / 10 / 216 / 82531 / 1.10% Orissa 1 / 10 / 140 / 46597 / 1.16% Punjab 3 / 13 / 104 / 138857 / 3.26% Rajasthan 0 / 22 / 184 / 79826 / 1.18% Tamil Nadu 11 / 22 / 234 / 623114 / 4.07% Tripura 2 / 16 / 30 / 93739 / 21.61% Uttar Pradesh 1 / 57 / 425 / 272565 / 1.27% West Bengal 43 / 135 / 280 / 2293026 / 18.11%
In the 1967 Lok Sabha elections CPI(M) nominated 59 candidates. In total 19 of them were elected. The party received 6.2 million votes (4.28% of the nationwide vote). By comparison, CPI won 23 seats and got 5.11% of the nation-wide vote. In the state legistative elections held simultaneously, the CPI(M) emerged as a major party in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala a United Front government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad was formed.[29] In West Bengal, CPI(M) was the main force behind theUnited Front government formed. The Chief Ministership was given to Ajoy Mukherjeeof the Bangla Congress (a regional splinter-group of the Indian National Congress).
[edit]1971 General Election
With the backdrop of the Bangladesh War and the emerging role of Indira Gandhi as a populist national leader, the 1971 election to the Lok Sabha was held. CPI(M) contested 85 seats, and won in 25. In total the party mustered 7510089 votes (5.12% of the national vote). 20 of the seats came from West Bengal (including Somnath Chatterjee, elected from Burdwan), 2 from Kerala (including A.K. Gopalan, elected from Trichur), 2 from Tripura (Biren Dutta and Dasarath Deb) and 1 from Andhra Pradesh.[30]
In the same year, state legislative elections were held in three states; West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. In West Bengal CPI(M) had 241 candidates, winning 113 seats. In total the party mustered 4241557 votes (32.86% of the state-wide vote). In Tamil Nadu CPI(M) contested 37 seats, but drew blank. The party got 259298 votes (1.65% of the state-wide vote). In Orissa the party contested 11 seats, and won in two. The CPI(M) vote in the state was 52785 (1.2% of the state-wide vote).[31]
[edit]1977 General Elections
In the 1977 Loksabha elections the CPM had fielded its candidtaes on 53 seats scattred around in 14 states and union terretories of India. It won 4.29% of the average votes polled in this election. The party had won 17 seats from West Bengal, 3 from Maharashtra and one each from Orrissa and Punjab. This election was done shortly after the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi and reflected a wide uproar of masses against her draconian rule. An coalition of Opposition parties was formed against the Congress regime, CPI(M) too supported this coalition by not fielding its candidates against the Janta Party.[32]
[edit]1980 General Elections
Janta Party coalition didnot last much and two years after since its formation India had faced the 1980's Loksabha Elections. This election had saw an increase in the vote percentage of CPI(M) and the party had bagged more seats then the previous elections. The Party had contested elections in the 15 states and union terretories of India, and fielded its candidates on 64 seats. The party had successfully won 37 seats in total. It has one 28 seats in West Bengal, 7 in Kerala, and 2 seats in Tripura. The party emerged out as the whole sole representative of the people of Tripura in this election.[33]
[edit]State Assembly Elections
[edit]1970s, 1980s, 1990s
This section requires expansion.
In the 1977 election, the CPI(M) gained the majority in the Legislative Assembly of the State ofWest Bengal, defeating the Congress (I). Jyoti Basu became the chief minister of West Bengal, an office he held until his retirement in 2000. The CPI(M) held the majority in the West Bengal government continuously since 1977, which ended in 2011 election.The party also won in Tripura winning 49 of the 60 seats. It has 3 MLAs in Rajasthan assembly. In Bihar it has an alliance with CPI(ML)L and CPI, it has 1 seat in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu it has worked for Dalit causes.
[edit]Presidential Elections
[edit]2002 Presidential Elections
In the 2002 Presidential elections, Left Front has announced Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as their Presidential Candidate. Against her was the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Candidate APJ Abdul Kalam.[34] CPIM's Leadership has announced that in form of Captain Lakshmi, they are fielding an 'Alternative Candidate'. They said that though it is clear that Captain Lakshmi cant be the President of India because of the opposition of BJP led NDA and Indian National Congress to her, but through this Presidential Election Left wants to raise key national issues, and make them heard to the masses.[35] Captain Lakshmi herself had pointed out that this Presidential election reflects the opposition of the Indian Left to the Communal-Secreterian Politics of BJP and solidarity with the religious minorities who have suffered a lot under the National Democratic Alliance's leadership.[36]
Captain Lakshmi Sehgal was an Indian Freedom Fighter, who had served as a Commander in the Indian National Army of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
[edit]2011 Assembly Elections
This section requires expansion.
The CPI(M) led coalitions lost the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala, CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front coalition with 68 seats lost to Indian National Congress led United Democratic Front's 72 seats in a neck to neck fought assembly elections. In West Bengal, CPI(M) alliance with 62 seats suffered a setback after 34 years of continuous rule, losing to Trinamool Congress alliance's 226 seats. Its Chief Minister candidate who is also an incumbent Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also lost from his Jadavpur assembly constituency.[37]
[edit]See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Communist Ghadar Party of India
- List of political parties in India
- Politics of India
- List of Communist Parties
- Election Results of Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Co-ordinating Committee of Communist Parties in Britain
- List of Communist Parties in India
[edit]References
- ^ a b http://cpim.org/content/pr-dasmunshis-statement
- ^ "Political-Organizational Report adopted at the XIXth Congress of the CPI(M) held in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, March 29-April 23, 2008".
- ^ The bulk of the detainees came from the leftwing of CPI. However, cadres of the Socialist Unity Centre of India and theWorkers Party of India were also targeted.[1]
- ^ The 32 were P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, T. Nagi Reddy,M. Hanumantha Rao, D.V. Rao, N. Prasad Rao, G. Bapanayya,E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, A.V. Kunhambu, C.H. Kanaran, E.K. Nayanar, V.S. Achuthanandan Removed, E.K. Imbichibava, Promode Das Gupta, Muzaffar Ahmad, Jyoti Basu,Abdul Halim, Hare Krishna Konar, Saroj Mukherjee, P. Ramamurthi, M.R. Venkataraman, N. Sankariah, K. Ramani,Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri, D.S. Tapiala, Dr.Bhag Singh, Sheo Kumar Mishra, R.N. Upadhyaya, Mohan Punamiya and R.P. Saraf. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 37.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 51.
- ^ Suniti Kumar Ghosh was a member of the group that presented this alternative draft proposal. His grouping was one of several left tendencies in the Bengali party branch. Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 32.
- ^ Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 52-54.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 54.
- ^ Basu, Jyoti. Memoirs - A Political Autobiography. Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1999. p. 189.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and U./nited Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 17-18
- ^ The jailed members of the new CC, at the time of the Calcutta Congress, were B.T. Ranadive, Muzaffar Ahmed, Hare Krishna Konar and Promode Das Gupta. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 44-5.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and United Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 234-235.
- ^ According to Basu (in Basu, Pradip; Towards Naxalbari (1953–67) : An Account Of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000.) there were two nuclei of radicals in the party organisation in West Bengal. One "theorist" section around Parimal Das Gupta in Calcutta, which wanted to persuade the party leadership to correct revisionist mistakes through inner-party debate, and one "actionist" section led by Charu Majumdarand Kanu Sanyal in North Bengal. The 'actionists' were impatient, and strived to organize armed uprisings. According to Basu, due to the prevailing political climate of youth and student rebellion it was the 'actionists' which came to dominate the new Maoist movement in India, instead of the more theoretically advanced sections. This dichotomy is however rebuffed by followers of the radical stream, for example the CPI(ML) Liberation.
- ^ On July 1 People's Daily carried an article titled Spring Thunder Over India, expressing the support of CPC to the Naxalbari rebels. At its meeting in Madurai on August 18–27, 1967, the Central Committee of CPI(M) adopted a resolution titled 'Resolution on Divergent Views Between Our Party and the Communist Party of China on Certain Fundamental Issues of Programme and Policy'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 46.
- ^ This press statement was reproduced in full in the central CPI(M) publication, People's Democracy, on June 30. P. Sundarayya and M. Basavapunniah, acting on behalf of the Polit Bureau of CPI(M), formulated a response to the statement on June 16, titled 'Rebuff the Rebels, Uphold Party Unity'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 48.
- ^ Some perceive that the Chinese leadership severely misjudged the actual conditions of different Indian factions at the time, giving their full support to the Majumdar-Sanyal group whilst keeping the Andhra Pradesh radicals (that had a considerable mass following) at distance.
- ^ Dalits and land issues
- ^ Untitled-1
- ^ officialwebsite of kerala.gov.in
- ^ Indian National Congress had won 55 seats, Bangla Congress 33 and CPI 30. CPI(M) allies also won several seats.ECI: Statistical Report on the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 56-59
- ^ The same is also true for the Workers Party of Bangladesh, which was formed in 1980 when BCP(L) merged with other groups. Although politically close, WPB can be said to have a more Maoist-oriented profile than CPI(M).
- ^ article in The Hindu, 9 July 2008: Left meets President, hands over letter of withdrawal
- ^ Unity For Peace and Socialism homepage
- ^ Membership figures fromhttp://www.cpim.org/pd/2005/0403/04032005_membership.htm. Electorate numbers taken fromhttp://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_2004/Vol_I_LS_2004.pdf.Puducherry is counted as part of Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh counted as part of Punjab.
- ^ "Nine to none, founders' era ends in CPM", The Telegraph(Calcutta), April 3, 2008.
- ^ List of State Secretaries
- ^ Janashakti has replaced the previous CPI(M) organ in Karnataka,Ikyaranga
- ^ In Kerala the United Front consisted, at the time of the election, of Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Muslim League, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Karshaka Thozhilali Party and the Kerala Socialist Party.[2]
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Lok Sabha Election
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Orissa Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ 1977 general elections ECI Report
- ^ 1980 General Elections ECI Report
- ^ Story in The Hindu
- ^ Sitaram Yechury on 2002 Presidential Elections
- ^ Captain Lakshmi's Interview
- ^ http://www.ndtv.com/elections/index.php
[edit]External links
Communist parties
[edit]
- CPI(M) election website
- CPI(M) web site
- Leftword Books CPI(M) publishing house
- CPI(M) Kerala State Committee
- CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee
[edit]Party publications
- People's Democracy
- Daily Desher Katha
- Deshabhimani
- Ganashakti
- Lok Samvad
- Prajasakti
- Theekathir
- Janashakthi
[edit]Articles
- Search For Ways To Keep Marx Alive Opinion on party structure by Sumanta Sen. The Telegraph Calcutta, India. March 31, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005.
- Veteran Communists Honoured News article on Party history conference. The Hindu. April 6, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- All you wanted to know about CPI-M News article on CPI-M. Rediff News. April 8, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- An Upbeat Left by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan. Frontline Volume 22 - Issue 09, April 23 - May 6, 2005
[show]Political parties in India
Categories: Communist parties in India | Communist Party of India breakaway groups | Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Party Constitution
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the Party shall be Communist Party of India (Marxist).
ARTICLE II
AIM
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is the revolutionary vanguard of the working class of India. Its aim is socialism and communism through the establishment of the state of dictatorship of the proletariat. In all its activities the Party is guided by the philosophy and principles of Marxism-Leninism which shows to the toiling masses the correct way to the ending of exploitation of man by man, their complete emancipation. The Party keeps high the banner of proletarian internationalism.
ARTICLE III
Flag
The flag of the Party shall be a red flag of which the length shall be one-and-a half times its width. At the centre of the flag there shall be a crossed hammer and sickle in white.
ARTICLE IV
Membership
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Any person residing in India, eighteen years of age or above who accepts the Programme and Constitution of the Party, agrees to work in one of the Party organisations, to pay regularly the Party membership dues (fee and levy as may be prescribed) and to carry out decisions of the Party shall be eligible for Party membership.
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(a) New members are admitted to the Party through individual application on the recommendation of two Party members. Party members who recommend an applicant must furnish the Party Branch or the unit concerned, full information about the applicant from personal knowledge and with due sense of responsibility. The Party Branch shall make recommendation to the next higher committee, if the applicant is to be admitted. The next higher committee takes a decision on all recommendations.
(b) All Party committees higher to the Party Branch and up to the Central Committee level have the power to directly admit new members to the Party.
- (a) All applications for Party membership must be placed before the appropriate committee within a month of their presentation and recommendation.
(b) If the applicant is admitted to the Party, he or she shall be regarded as a candidate member for a period of one year commencing from the date of such admission.
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If a leading member from another political party of local, district or state level comes to the Party, in addition to the sanction of Local Party Committee or District or State Committee, it is necessary to have the sanction of the next higher committee of the Party before he or she is admitted to membership of the Party. In exceptional cases the Central Committee or the State Committee can admit such members to full membership of the Party. And whenever a State Committee admits such members it should obtain previous sanction from the Central Committee.
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Members once expelled from the Party can be re-admitted only by the decision of the Party Committee which confirmed their expulsion or by a higher committee.
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Candidate members have the same duties and rights as full members except that they have no right to elect or be elected, or to vote on any motion.
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The Party branch recommending or the Party committee admitting candidate members shall arrange for their elementary education on the Programme, Constitution and the current policies of the Party and observe their development, through providing for their functioning as members of a Party branch or unit.
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By the end of the period of candidature, the Party branch or Party committee concerned shall discuss whether the candidate member is qualified to full membership. If a candidate member is found unfit,the Party branch or committee shall cancel his or her candidate membership. A report on admission to full membership shall be regularly forwarded by the branch or the Party committee concerned to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee may, on scrutiny of the report, alter or modify any such decision after consultation with the branch or the Party committee which has submitted the report. The District and State Committee will exercise supervisory power over the recruitment of candidates and over admissions to full membership and have the right to modify or reject the decision of the lower committee in this respect.
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A Party member may transfer his or her membership from one unit to another, with the approval of his or her unit and by sending his or her application through his or her unit to the higher unit under whose jurisdiction the concerned units function.
ARTICLE V
Party Pledge
Every person joining the Party shall sign the Party Pledge. This Pledge shall be:
"I accept the aims and objectives of the Party and agree to abide by its Constitution and loyally to carry out decisions of the Party."
"I shall strive to live up to the ideals of communism and shall selflessly serve the working class and the toiling masses and the country, always placing the interests of the Party and the people above personal interests."
ARTICLE VI
Membership Records
All membership records shall be kept under the supervision of the District Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Check-up of Party Membership
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There shall be annual check-up of Party membership by the Party organisation to which the Party member belongs. Any Party member who for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues shall be dropped from Party membership.
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A report on check-up of Party membership by a Branch or a Party committee concerned shall be sent to the next higher committee for confirmation and registration.
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There shall be right of appeal on decisions of droppage from Party membership.
ARTICLE VIII
Resignation from Party membership
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A Party member wishing to resign from the Party shall summit his or her resignation to the Party branch or to the Party unit to which he or she belongs. The unit concerned may accept the same, decide to strike his or her name off the rolls and report the matter to the next higher committee. If the resignation is on political grounds the unit may refuse to accept the resignation and may expel him.
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In the case where a Party member wishing to resign from the Party is liable to be charged with serious violation of party discipline which may warrant his or her expulsion and where such a charge is substantial, the resignation may be given effect to as expulsion from the Party.
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All such cases of resignations given effect to as expulsion shall be immediately reported to the next higher Party committee and be subject to the latter's confirmation.
ARTICLE IX
Membership Fee
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All Party members as well as candidates shall pay a Party membership fee of rupees two per year. This annual Party fee shall be paid at the time of admission into the Party and by March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned. If he or she does not clear the fee in due time his or her name shall be removed from the Party rolls. The Central Committee may extend this date if the circumstances warrant such extension.
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All Party fees collected from Party members by Party branches or units will be deposited with the Central Committee through the appropriate Party committees.
ARTICLE X
Party Levy
Every Party member must pay a monthly levy as laid down by the Central Committee. Those whose incomes are of annual or of seasonal character have to pay their levy at the beginning of the season or at the beginning of every quarter on the same percentage basis. If a member has failed to deposit his levy within three months after it is due, then his name is to be removed from the Party rolls.
ARTICLE XI
Duties of Party Members
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The duties of the Party members are as follows:
(a) To regularly participate in the activity of the Party organisation to which they belong and to faithfully carry out the policy, decisions and the directives of the Party;
(b) To study Marxism-Leninism and endeavour to raise their level of understanding;
(c) To read, support and popularise the Party journals and Party publications;
(d) To observe the Party Constitution and Party discipline and behave in the spirit of proletarian internationalism and in accordance with the noble ideals of communism;
(e) To place the interests of the people and the Party above personal interests;
(f) To devotedly serve the masses and consistently strengthen their bonds with them, to learn from the masses and report their opinions and demands to the Party, to work in a mass organisation, unless exempted, under the guidance of the Party.
(g) To cultivate comradely relations towards one another the constantly develop a fraternal spirit within the Party;
(h) To practice criticism an self-criticism with a view to helping each other and improving individual and collective work;
(i) To be frank, honest and truthful to the Party and not to betray the confidence of the Party;
(j) To safeguard the unity and solidarity of the Party and to be vigilant against the enemies of the working class and the country;
(k) To defend the Party and uphold its cause against the onslaught of the enemies of the Party, the working class and the country.
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It shall be the task of the Party organisation to ensure the fulfillment of the above duties by Party members and help them in every possible way in the discharge of these duties.
ARTICLE XII
Rights of Party Members
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Rights of the Party members are as following:
(a) To elect Party organs and Party committees and be elected to them;
(b) To participate in discussion in order to contribute to the formation of the Party policy and of the decisions of the Party;
(c) To make proposals regarding one's own work in the Party;
(d) To make criticism about Party committees and Party functionaries at Party meetings;
(e) To be heard in person in his or her unit when a Party unit discusses disciplinary action against him or her;
(f) When any Party member disagrees with any decision of a Party committee on organization he or she has a right to submit his or her opinion to the next higher committee. In case of political difference a member has the right to submit his or her opinion to the higher committee up to the Central Committee. In all such cases the Party member shall, of course, carry out the Party decisions and the difference shall be sought to be resolved through the test of practice and through comradely discussions;
(g) To address any statement, appeal or complaint to any higher Party organisation up to and including the Central Committee.
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It shall be the duty of Party organisations and Party functionaries to see that these rights are respected
ARTICLE XIII
Principles of Democratic Centralism
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The structure of the Party is based on, and its internal life is guided by, the principles of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism means centralised leadership based on inner-Party democracy under the guidance of the centralised leadership.
In the sphere of the Party structure, the guiding principles of democratic centralism are:
(a) All Party organs from top to bottom shall be elected;
(b) The minority shall carry out the decisions of the majority; the lower Party organisations shall carry out the decision and directives of the higher Party organs, the individual shall subordinate himself to the will of the collective. All Party organisations shall carry out the decisions and directives of the Party Congress and of the Central Committee;
(c) All Party committees shall periodically report their work to the Party organisation immediately below and all lower committees shall likewise report to their immediate higher committee;
(d) All Party committees, particularly the leading Party committees, shall pay constant heed to the opinions and criticism of the lower Party organisations and the rank-and-file Party members;
(e) All Party committees shall function strictly on the principles of collective decisions and check-up combined with individual responsibility;
(f) All questions of international affairs, questions of all-India character, or questions concerning more than one state or questions requiring uniform decisions for the whole country, shall be decided upon by the all-India Party organisations. All questions of a state or district character shall be ordinarily decided upon by the corresponding Party organisations. But in no case shall such decisions run counter to the decisions of a higher Party organisation. When the Central Party leadership has to take a decision on any issue of major state importance, it shall do so normally after consultation with the state Party organisation concerned. The state organisation shall do likewise in relation to districts;
(g) On issues which affect the policy of the Party on an all-India scale, but on which the Party's standpoint is to be expressed for the first time, only the Central leadership of the Party is entitled to make a policy statement. The lower committees can and should send their opinions and suggestions in time for consideration by the Central leadership.
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Basing itself upon the experience of the entire Party membership and of the popular movement, in the sphere of the internal life of the Party, the following principles of democratic centralism are applied:
(a) Free and frank discussion within the Party unit on all questions affecting the Party, its policy and work;
(b) Sustained efforts to activise the Party members in popularising and implementing the Party policies, to raise their ideological-political level and improve their general education so that they can effectively participate in the life and work of the Party;
(c) When serious differences arise in a Party committee, every effort should be made to arrive at an agreement. Failing this, the decision should be postponed with a view to resolving differences through further discussions, unless an immediate decision is called for by the needs of the Party and the mass movement;
(d) Encouragement of criticism and self-criticism at all levels, from top to bottom, especially criticism from below;
(e) Consistent struggles against bureaucratic tendencies at all levels;
(f) Impermissibility of factionalism and factional groupings inside the Party in any form;
(g) Strengthening of the Party spirit by developing fraternal relations and mutual help, correcting mistakes by treating comrades sympathetically; judging them and their work not on the basis of isolated mistakes or incidents, but taking into account their whole record of service to the Party.
ARTICLE XIV
All-India Party Congress
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The supreme organ of the Party for the whole country shall be the All-India Party Congress.
(a) The regular Party Congress shall be convened by the Central Committee ordinarily once every three years.
(b) An Extraordinary Party Congress shall be called by the Central Committee at its own discretion, or when it is demanded by two or more State Committees representing not less than one-third of the total Party membership.
(c) The date and venue of the Party Congress or of the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee at a meeting especially called for the purpose.
(d) Regular Party Congress shall be composed of delegates elected by the State Conferences as well as by Conferences of Party units directly under the all-India Party Centre.
(e) The basis of representation at a regular Party Congress and the basis of representation and method of election of delegates to the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee on the basis of total Party membership, strength of the mass movements led by the Party, strength of the Party in the respective States.
(f) The members of the Central Committee shall have the right to participate as full delegates in the Party Congress, whether regular or extraordinary.
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Functions and powers of the regular Party Congress are as follows:
(a) To discuss and act on the political and organisational report of the Central Committee;
(b) To revise and change the Party Programme and the Party Constitution.
(c) To determine the Party line on current situation;
(d) To elect the Central Committee by secret ballot.
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It elects a Credentials Committee which goes into the credentials of all the delegates and submits a report to the Congress.
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The Congress shall elect a Presidium for the conduct of its business.
ARTICLE XV
Central Committee
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(a) The Central Committee shall be elected at the Party Congress, the numbers being decided by the Party Congress.
(b) The outgoing Central Committee shall propose to the Congress a panel of candidates.
(c) The panel of candidates shall be prepared with a view to creating a capable leadership, closely linked with the masses, firm in the revolutionary outlook of the working class and educated in Marxism-Leninism.
(d) Any delegate can raise objection with regard to any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, but the prior approval of the member whose name is proposed is necessary.
(e) Any one whose name has been proposed shall have the right to withdraw.
(f) The panel proposed, together with the additional nominations by the delegates, shall be voted upon by secret ballot, and by the method of single distributive vote. In case there is no additional nomination, approval of the delegates will be taken by show of hands.
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The Central Committee shall be the highest authority of the Party between two all-India Party Congress.
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It is responsible for enforcing the Party Constitution and carrying out the political line and decisions adopted by the Party Congress.
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The Central Committee shall represent the Party as a whole and be responsible for directing the entire work of the Party. The Central Committee shall have the right to take decisions with full authority on any question facing the Party.
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The Central Committee shall elect from among it members a Polit Bureau including the General Secretary. The number of members in the Polit Bureau shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Polit Bureau carries on the work of the Central Committee between its two sessions and has the right to take political and organisational decisions in between two meetings of the Central Committee.
(a) The Central Committee shall elect a Secretariat from among its members. The number of members of the Secretariat shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Secretariat will, under the guidance of the Polit Bureau, look after the day-to-day work of the Party Centre and assist the Polit Bureau in the implementation of Central Committee decisions.
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The election of the secretaries of the State Committees and of editors of state Party organs shall require the approval of the Central Committee.
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(a) The Central Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-Party activity by two-thirds of the members present and voting and in any case by more than half the total strength of the Central Committee voting for such removal.
b) It can fill up any vacancy occurring in its composition by simple majority of its total members.
(c) In case member or members of the Central Committee are arrested the remaining members can coopt substitute member or members and they shall have full right as the original members but should vacate their places as the arrested members get released and assume their duties.
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The time between two meetings of the Central Committee shall not normally exceed three months and it shall meet whenever one third of its total members make a requisition.
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The Central Committee shall discuss and decide political and organisational issues and problems of mass movements and guide the State Committees and all-India Party fractions in mass organisations.
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The Central Committee is responsible for the Party finances and adopts the statement of accounts submitted to it by the Polit Bureau once a year.
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The Central Committee shall submit its political and organisational report before the Party Congress, whenever it is convened.
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With the aim of strengthening the revolutionary leadership of the Party and ensuring a check-up over the State and district organisations, the Central Committee sends representatives and organisers, who must work on the basis of special instructions laid down every time by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau.
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The Central Committee may when it deems necessary convene an extended session of the Central Committee, or Plenum or Conference. The Central Committee shall decide the basis of attendance and method of election of delegates for such bodies.
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In case of emergency or in case of large-scale arrests, the Central Committee, the State Committees, and the District Committees shall be reorganised into smaller compact bodies. The names for such reorganisation of Central Committee are prepared by the remaining members of the P.B. and should be approved by the members of the Central Committee inside and outside. The names for the reorganisation of State and District Committees are prepared by the remaining members of the respective committees and are to be approved by their next higher committee. They can form sub-committees as they deem it necessary, to discharge their functions and responsibilities. The reconstituted Central Committee is empowered to frame new rules for safeguarding the Party organisation. But when the situation normalises the elected Committees are restored.
ARTICLE XVI
State and District Party Organs
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The highest organ in the State or District shall be the State or the District Conference which elects a State or District Committee.
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(a) The organisational structure, the rights and functions of the State or District Party organs are similar to those enumerated in the articles concerning the Party structure and functions at the all-India level, their functions being confined to the State or district issues and their decisions being within the limit of the decisions taken by the next higher Party organ. In case it becomes necessary to increase the number of members of these Party Committees they can do so with the permission of the next higher committee.
(b) The State or District Committee shall elect a Secretariat including the secretary. But the State or District Committee may not have a Secretariat if permitted by the next higher committee.
(c) The State or District Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-party activity by a decision of majority of the total members of the State Committee or District Committee.
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(a) The State Committee shall decide on the area of the District Committee taking into account the needs of the movement. It may not necessarily be confined to administrative division.
(b) The State Committee shall decided on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XVII
Primary Unit
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(a) The primary unit of the Party is the Party Branch organised on the basis of profession or territory;
(b) Party members are to be organised on the basis of their occupation or vocation, when they are working in a factory or an institute or any industry. When such Branches are organised the members of such Branches shall be associate members of the Party branches in place of their residence or organised as auxiliary Branches there. The work to be allotted in their place of residence shall not be detrimental to the work allotted to them by their basic units in the factory or institute or occupation;
(c) The number of members in a Branch shall not be more than fifteen. The functions and other matters related to the Branch will be determined by the State Committee.
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The Branch is the living link between the masses of workers, peasants and other sections of the people within its area or sphere and the leading committee of Party. Its tasks are:
(a) To carry out the directives of the higher committee;
(b) Win the masses in the factory or locality for the political and organisational decisions of the Party;
(c) Draw in militants and sympathisers into activity to enroll them as new members and educate them politically;
(d) Help the district, local or town committee in its every day organisational and agitational work.
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To carry out the current work, the Branch elects its Secretary who is confirmed by the next higher committee.
ARTICLE XVIII
Central and State Control Commission
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The Party Congress shall directly elect a Central Control Commission consisting of not more than five members. The Chairperson of the Central Control Commission will be an ex-officio member of the Central Committee.
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The Control Commission shall take up:
(a) Cases of disciplinary action referred to it by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau;
(b) Cases of appeal where disciplinary action has been taken by the State Committee.
(c) Cases involving expulsion, suspension from full Party membership and decisions of droppage from Party membership against which an appeal has been made to the State Committee or to the State Control Commission and rejected.
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The decision of the Central Control Commission will be final and binding.
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The detailed rules for the functioning of the Control Commission shall be framed by the Central Committee after consultation with the Control Commission.
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In the eventually of a vacancy arising in the Central Control Commission between two party Congresses, the Central Committee shall have the right to fill the vacancy.
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The State Conference may elect a State Control Commission to go into the cases of disciplinary action. In whichever State the State Control Commission is set up, the functions and authority will be similar to that of the Central Control Commission, but within its own State.
ARTICLE XIX
Party Discipline
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Discipline is indispensable for preserving and strengthening the unity of the Party, for enhancing its strength, its fighting ability and its prestige, and for enforcing the principles of democratic centralism. Without strict adherence to Party discipline, the Party cannot lead the masses in struggles and actions, nor discharge its responsibility towards them.
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Discipline is based on conscious acceptance of the aims, the Programme and the policies of the Party. All members of the Party are equally bound by Party discipline irrespective of their status in the Party organisation or in public life.
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Violation of the Party Constitution and decisions of the Party as well as any other action and behaviour unworthy of a member of the Communist Party shall constitute a breach of Party discipline and is liable to disciplinary action.
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The disciplinary actions are :
(a) Warning;
(b) Censure;
(c) Public censure;
(d) Removal from the post in the Party;
(e) Suspension from full Party membership for any period but not exceeding one year;
(f) Expulsion.
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Disciplinary action shall normally be taken where other methods, including methods of persuasion, have failed to correct the comrade concerned. But even where disciplinary measure has been taken, the efforts to help the comrade to correct himself shall continue. In case where the breach of discipline is such that it warrants an immediate disciplinary measure to protect the interests of Party or its prestige, the disciplinary action shall be taken promptly.
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Expulsion from the Party is the severest of all disciplinary measures and this shall be applied with utmost caution, deliberation and judgement.
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No disciplinary measure involving removal from the post held in the Party, suspension from full Party membership other than suspension pending enquiry, expulsion from the Party, shall come into effect without confirmation by the next higher committee. In case of expulsion the penalised Party member shall be removed from all Party activities pending confirmation. The expelled member stands suspended from the Party till the expulsion is confirmed by the next higher committee. The higher committee will have to communicate its decision with six months.
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The comrade against whom a disciplinary measure is proposed shall be fully informed of the allegations, charges and other relevant facts against him or her. He or she shall have the right to be heard in person by the Party unit to which he or she belongs and shall have the right to submit his or her explanation to any other unit which takes action against him or her.
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When a member is simultaneously a member of two Party units, the lower unit can recommend disciplinary action against him or her but it shall not come into operation unless accepted by his or her higher unit.
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Party members found to be strike-breakers, drunkards, moral degenerates, betrayers of Party confidence, guilty of grave financial corruption can be summarily suspended from Party membership and removed from all responsible positions in the Party by the Party unit to which he belongs or by a higher Party body pending the issue of the charge-sheet to him and getting his explanation. This summary suspension and removal from all responsible positions in the Party cannot be extended for a period of more than three months.
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There shall be right of appeal in all cases of disciplinary action.
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The Central, State or District Committee has the right to dissolve and appoint new committees or take disciplinary action against a lower committee in cases where a persistent defiance of Party decisions and policy, serious factionalism, or a break of Party discipline is involved. But the State and District Committee will immediately report such action to the next higher committee for whatever action it deems necessary.
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In exceptional circumstances Party Committees in their discretion may resort to summary procedure in expelling members for grave anti-Party activities.
ARTICLE XX
Party Members in Elected Public Bodies
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Party members elected to Parliament, State Legislature or Administrative Council shall constitute themselves into a Party group and function under the appropriate Party Committee in strict conformity with the line of the Party, its policies and directives.
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The communist legislators shall unswervingly defend the interests of the people. Their work in the legislature shall reflect the movement and they shall uphold and popularize the policies of the Party.
The legislative work of the communist legislators shall be closely combined with the activity of the Party outside and mass movements and it shall be the duty of all communist legislators to help build the Party and mass organisations.
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The communist legislators shall maintain the closest possible contact with their electors and masses, keeping them duly informed of their legislative work and constantly seeking their suggestions and advice.
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The communist legislators shall maintain a high standard of personal integrity, lead an unostentatious life and display humility in all their dealings and contact with the people and place the Party above self.
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Salaries and allowances drawn by communist legislators and local body members are considered to be Party money. The Party Committee concerned shall fix up the wages and allowances of the members.
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Party members elected to local bodies such as corporations, municipalities, town or area committees, zilla parishads, block samities, gram panchayats shall function under the appropriate Party Committee or Party Branch. They shall maintain close day-to-day contacts with their electors and the masses and defend their interests in such elected bodies. They shall make regular reports on their work to the electors and the people and seek their suggestions and advice. The work in such local bodies shall be combined with intense mass activity outside.
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All nomination of Party candidates for election to Parliament, Legislatures or Councils or Centrally Administered areas shall be subject to approval by the Central Committee.
Rules governing the nomination of Party candidates for corporation, municipalities, district boards, local boards and panchayats shall be drawn up by the State Committees.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
ARTICLE XXI
Inner-Party Discussions
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To unify the Party, free and businesslike discussions of Party policy in the various organisations of the Party as a whole are useful and necessary. This is the inalienable right of Party members arising from inner-Party democracy. But interminable discussions on issues of Party policy which paralyse the unity and will of action of the Party would be a gross misuse of inner-Party democracy.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be organised on all-India scale by the Central Committee:
(a) Whenever it considers it necessary;
(b) Whenever over an important question of Party policy there is not sufficient firm majority inside the Central Committee.
(c) When an inner-Party discussion on all-India scale is demanded by State Committees representing one-third of total Party membership.
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A State Committee can initiate inner-Party discussion on an important question of Party policy concerning that particular State, either on its own, or on a demand of District Committees representing one-third Party membership in the State with the approval of the Central Committee.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be conducted under the guidance of the Central Committee which shall formulate the issues under discussion. The Central Committee which guides the discussion shall lay down the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted.
When the State Committee initiates the discussion, it can formulate the issues under discussion and the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted, with the approval of the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXII
Discussion Preparatory to Party Congress And Conferences
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Two months before the Party Congress, the Central Committee will release draft resolution for discussion by all units of the Party. It is obligatory on the part of the State Committees to render it into respective languages and forward to all Branch Committees the required number of copies in the shortest possible time after its release by the Central Committee Amendments to the resolution will be sent directly to the Central Committee which will place its report on them before the Party Congress.
- At each level, the Conference shall take place on the basis of reports and resolutions submitted by the respective Committees.
ARTICLE XXIII
Party Members Working in Mass Organisations
Party members working in mass organisations and their executives shall organise themselves into fractions or fraction committees and function under the guidance of the appropriate Party Committee, They must always strive to strengthen the unity, mass basis and fighting capacity of the mass organisations concerned.
ARTICLE XXIV
Bye-Laws
The Central Committee may frame rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it. Rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it may also be framed by the State Committees subject to confirmation by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXV
Amendment
The Party Constitution shall be amended only by the Party Congress. The notice of proposals for amending the Constitution shall be given two months before the said Party Congress.
RULES UNDER PARTY CONSTITUTION
(Adopted by the Central Committee in its Meeting on April 8-10, 1988)
Under Article IV, Section 10:
Membership
Regarding Transfer of Member from one unit to another or from one state to another:
(Explanation: Though in practice all transfers from one State to another are done by the CC, the particulars mentioned generally are inadequate. Therefore when a State asks the Centre to transfer a comrade to another State, it must specify the following so that a proper record is kept of each Party member at each level. The same would apply to transfers within the State.)
Rules : Transfer of Membership
The following particulars must be supplied along with the letter of transfer:
Name of comrade :
Age :
Year of joining the Party :
Unit to which he/she belonged :
Mass organisation in which he/she worked :
Levy amount per month and paid up to :
Any record of disciplinary action :
State from which he/she is to be transferred :
State to which he/she is to be transferred :
Year of renewal of Party membership :
Address where he/she can be contacted :
Auxiliary Groups:
(Explanation: The Salkia Plenum has directed that militants thrown up through mass struggles should be put into auxiliary groups, trained and educated so that they can be recruited as Party members. For this provision is to be made in the rules.)
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Party units should take steps to organise active participants and militants thrown up in the course of mass movements and from the mass organisations into auxiliary groups which are groupings of broad sympathizers.
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Party Committees should arrange for the education and training of such auxiliary group members about the Party Programme and basic policies, so as to equip them in a reasonable period of time to be capable of joining the Party as candidate members.
Under Article VI
Party Membership Records
Rule: The Constitution provides for the membership records to be kept under the supervision of the District Committee. While the final authority for veracity of the records and its authenticated copy will be the DC, the maintenance of records can be delegated to the intermediate/local committee in a State, if so decided by the State Committee concerned.
Under Article VII
Check-up of Party Membership
(Explanation: Clause (1) states that a Party member may be dropped from membership who "for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues". This is to safeguard against arbitrary droppages without the due reasons stated in the Constitution. Some specific rules are required on the procedure to be adopted.)
Rules
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The unit concerned which wishes to drop a member must do so after giving the member a chance to explain his or her position. The branch must convey the decision to drop the member in writing to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee, when confirming and registering the membership, must examine the list of droppages and give its specific opinion on the same.
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The committee concerned must submit a renewal report to the next higher committee giving details of the Party membership enrolment, droppages, transfers and composition of the membership.
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For renewal of Party membership there should be a renewal form to be filled up by the member concerned every year which includes basic data such as age, year of joining the Party, income and front in which working.
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The receipt for the membership fee has to be given to the member concerned.
Under Article IX
Membership Fee
Renewals: (Explanation: Article IX, Clause I states that the annual membership fee is to be paid by a member by "March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned."
If membership fees are deposited only by March end to the units, by the time it is forwarded to the District/State Committees, it takes time. So in practice now the CC gets the consolidated membership fees from the State over a varied period of time. Now the duration stretches from April to December even. There has to be a cut-off date by which the membership fees should reach the Centre.)
Rules
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Renewal of Party membership each year must be completed by March 31st.
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The State Committees must deposit the membership fees with the Centre by 31st May each year.
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In case of any contingency the date can only be extended by the Central Committee/PB.
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New enrolment during the current year of candidate membership fees to be remitted by the end of the year or before.
Note: New enrolment of candidate members (after the renewal period) continues throughout the year. Their fees are to be deposited with the Central Committee separately.
Under Article X:
Party Levy
Rules
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1. Party members levy rates: The Central Committee decides that the levy from Party members shall be collected as per the following rates:
For Income
Upto Rs.300 permonth 25 paise Rs. 301 to 500 per month 50 paise Rs. 501 to 1000 per month 0.5% Rs. 1001 to 3000 per month 1 % Rs. 3001 to 5000 per month 2 % Rs. 5001 to 7000 per month 3 % Rs. 7001 to 8000 per month 4 % Above Rs. 8000 per month 5 %
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If a member is to pay quarterly or annually, calculate his/her monthly income on the basis of his/her annual income and calculate amount which he or she has to pay applying the above rates.
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If spouse or any other member earning and contributing to the family income, is not a Party member, their income is not to be included, for the calculation of levy rates.
Note:
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Income means with regard to salaried employees and wage earners, all their total gross income, including DA and other allowances. Apart from this, if the member has additional income from land, business or houses, that too is to be added.
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In case of peasants, income after excluding actual amounts expended towards agricultural production.
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If a person is living off joint family income, then his share of income.
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In extreme cases, unemployment, drought or illness, if exemptions are to be given, it is for the respective State Committee to take necessary decision.
Note: The percentage share of local, area, district and state is to be decided by the State concerned.
Under Article XV, Section 10:
Central Committee Finances
Rules
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The Central Committee is authorised to appoint a Trust to manage its properties.
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The Central Committee is to decide each year, or as the case many be, the quantum each State will pay towards Party fund or special Party fund drive to run the Party's central apparatus.
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Polit Bureau will constitute a Finance Sub-Committee which will meet and
(a) Take decision on financial matters and expenditure involving amounts upto Rs. ten thousands only. Expenditure of higher limit will be referred to the P.B.
(b) Finance Sub-Committee will place quarterly accounts of the CC and its establishment to the Polit Bureau.
(c) Finance Sub-Committee will submit yearly accounts as approved by the PB to the Central Committee for its approval (as laid down by the Party Constitution).
(d) One member of the Sub-Committee will be incharge of the income and disbursement of the Party finances after which these will be passed over to the accounts incharge for finalisation and compilation.
(e) Half-yearly accounts of the Party organs and other establishments (if any) to be submitted to the Sub-Committee.
Under Article XVI: Sub-Clause 3(b):
State and district Party Organs, Setting up of Intermediate Committees
(Explanation: Clause 3(b) states, "The State Committee shall decide on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee)
The State Committee can decide to set up intermediate committees between the primary unit and the District Committee or the region under the following rules:
(a) The State Committee will decide the size of the committee to be set up.
(b) Such a committee will be elected by the conference of delegates at that level. The committee should elect a Secretary and /or the Secretariat.
(c) The criteria of election of delegates to the conference of the intermediate committee will be decided by the State Committee.
(d) The intermediate committee (local, area, zonal etc.) will exercise all those functions enumerated for the State/ District Committees, their function being confined to the local area or zone under its jurisdiction.
(e) Committees set up on an ad-hoc/nominated basis for coordination purposes will not have the general powers laid out for full-fledged elected committees. Their scope of work is to be guided by the decisions of the respective committees who appointed them.
(f) The number of delegates to the District Conference and the conferences of committees below the district will be decided by the State Committee.
Under Article XVI: Rules on Party Finances & Accounts
For Committees Below The CC (States & District Party Organs)
(Explanation: Similar to the rules framed for the CC finances and accounting, the following rules will apply to all the lower elected committees
(a) At State level (and for the intermediate/District committees as decided by the State Committee) finance sub-committee of the committee concerned will be constituted by the Secretariat.
(b) The sub-committee will be responsible for the disbursement of the money and maintenance of the accounts under the supervision of the Secretariat.
(c) The sub-committee will submit a six-monthly account to the Party Committee and this statement should be forwarded to the next higher committee.
(d) Annual accounts should be audited by the sub-committee and placed before the Party committee for approval.
(e) The State Committees will submit a copy of their annual accounts which is approved by the committee, to the Central Committee.
Under Article XVIII:
Rules For The Functioning Of The Central Control Commission
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On receipt of a reference or an appeal under Article XVIII, the Central Control Commission should take steps to investigate and decide upon the issue.
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No appeal can be preferred by any one other than the aggrieved Party member.
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The Central Control Commission shall have the right to directly correspond with the examine unit/units or persons concerned in order to ascertain facts and to arrive at conclusion.
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The Central Control Commission will ordinarily meet once in three months. The Chairperson shall call a meeting of the Central Control Commission after giving 14 days prior notice.
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Majority of the members constitute quorum of the meeting. The Central Control Commission can take a decision only if all the members agree or majority of the members of the Central Control Commission agree. A decision taken may be informed to the absent member or members.
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The Central Control commission may take decisions by consultation by correspondence among its members on such issues which are simple and not complicated.
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The Central Control Commission will communicate its decision to the appellant and the respective State Committee and the decision of the Central Control Commission has to be implemented immediately by the respective committees.
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The Central Control Commission will present before the Central Committee a consolidated report of its activities and decisions at least once in a year.
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These rules shall apply mutatis mutandis to State Control Commissions.
Procedural Rules For
Central Control Commission To Conduct Business
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On receipt of an appeal, the Chairperson of the Central Control Commission shall intimate about the case to the other members.
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The Chairperson shall also propose the immediate steps to be taken up for the investigation in a particular case. The other members of the Central Control Commission may send their proposals regarding the same.
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The Central Control Commission has the right to ask for any information which is required for deciding the appeal from the concerned committees and members and they should provide such information to the Central Control Commission within a period of two months and if no such information is received within this period, the Central Control Commission may proceed with the case.
Under Article XIX, Clause 13:
Party Discipline
Provision for summary expulsion in exceptional circumstance is meant for "grave" anti-Party activities. The means only under extremely serious circumstances such as when a member is found to be a spy or enemy agent or when the member's activities seriously compromise the Party's position, should it be invoked.
Under Article XX:
Party Members In Elected Bodies
Rules
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Each CPI(M) Parliament member has to pay levy amount as decided by the Central Committee to the Central Committee.
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The percentage of the levy share as fixed by the PB for the State will be remitted to the State Committee concerned (to the State the member belongs) each month.
(Explanation: Article XX Sub-clause (5) in the Constitution states that salaries and allowances drawn by Communist legislators and local body members are to be considered Party money. Earlier there was no system of pensions for MPs/MLAs. Now it is there. So the following rule.)
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Salaries and allowances of Communist legislators, local body members include pensions drawn by them, if any.
Under Article XXII
Discussions Preparatory To Party Congress And Conferences
The forums of the Party conferences will be utilised to discuss and review the work report since the past conference and political-organisational questions related to the implementation of the line laid down in the past conference/Congress. The discussion on the draft political resolution of the Congress will be conducted separately as per the provisions laid down in the Constitution.
Under Article XXIII
Party Members Working In Mass Organisations
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The Party Committee at Central, State and District levels may form sub-committee from amongst its members and any other member considered suitably equipped to guide the work of the Party members working in different mass fronts. They will specialise in the problems of the front, check up on Party building, guide and coordinate the activities of the Party members in different mass organisations, whether they exist as Party units or fraction committees, and see that Party policy in being followed and implemented.
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All the Party members working in a mass organisation or the elected bodies of that organisation at various levels constitute the fraction of that body. They have to function under the guidance and decisions of the respective Party committees.
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Fraction committees are to be set up from amongst the fraction members where there are large number of them working at different levels in a mass organisation. The fraction committee will be set up by the respective Party committee by including those comrades, apart from members of the Party committee if any, who are equipped with the required level of maturity or mass experience considered necessary by the Party committee.
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The fraction committee, as constituted above, should carry out the decisions of the respective Party committees in the Executive or General Council of the particular mass organisation, and all necessary measures to implement the decisions of Party Committees by the fraction in that mass organisation shall be taken by the fraction committee.
Adopted By the Eighth Congress, Cochin, December 23-29, 1968
Amendments made to the Constitution upto the XVIII Congress, April 2005, and to the rules by the Central Committee upto December 2005, have been incorporated.
The only factor militating against the second option, which she prefers, is the utter bankruptcy of Bengal's finances. Can Mamata's freshly minted government afford the luxury of hiring thousands of chairs and erecting a giant shamiana at the Brigade grounds? Does, in other words, Bengal's exchequer afford a party?
In booming India, there's no other regime that's stumped by a question like this. So, to understand what the Trinamool-Congress administration is really up against in their mandate to rebuild Bengal, it's important to understand the rot in a system gnawed away by the communist party-state for 34 years.
Brain Drain
For starters, there's been a massive erosion of human capital and skills through 30 years that's become a major drag on the entire economy. It'll be one of Mamata's greatest challenges. "If she can boost education, health care and the work culture of the state, a lot of the work will be done," says economist Abhirup Sarkar of the Indian Statistical Institute. Bengal's fall from grace, in fact, goes back a long way.
The British Raj had made the then Calcutta a manufacturing hub. Less than two decades after the British left India, large manufacturing projects turned away from Bengal. Its first chief minister, Bidhan Chandra Roy, set up practically the only large post-Independence projects in the state between 1948 and 1962, the Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Durgapur Steel and the massive Damodar Valley Corporation, modelled after America's Tennessee Valley Authority.
Apart from the sputtering Haldia Petrochemicals and a clutch of IT projects, the Left has nothing to show for the past 34 years. Compared to fast-industrialising states like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat, Bengal is a laggard. That shows in the numbers: from 1980, three years after the Left came to power, the state's share of India's manufacturing has fallen off a cliff. The state's share in the national manufacturing has dwindled to 2.9% in 2007-08 from 11.5% in 1980-81.
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One big reason for the flight of capital was political violence in Bengal from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s. Another was the Left's agitation, while in Opposition, against the Congress, which it termed "Tata-Birla's government". In power, the Left continued its politics of strikes and agitation.
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Recently, as ex-chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee tried to woo businesses back to the state, the red unions went about shutting down work: in 2006, of the 20 million man days lost in labour disputes across India, Bengal accounted for 12.5 million, or 62%. The next year was worse: 27 million man days were lost across India, with Bengal alone snatching away 24 million man days, or 87% of the total. Capital, which had voted with its feet, has preferred to stay out.
Buddha's course correction wasn't enough to halt poribartan
KOLKATA: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee , the Deng Xiaoping of Bengal politics, will go down as the last chief minister of an elected communist government that had long outlived its utility.
The signs were there since the late nineties. The communist government was fast losing its core support base among the urban poor - the class the party used to swear by. Even its rural base, won through land reforms, had reached saturation. The delivery mechanism was failing, leading to a massive exodus of rural and urban work force.
Bhattacharjee inherited this suffocating status quo that had given way to a system built on political patronage.
Buddhababu broke out of the old Left mindset and shook hands with the Tatas and the Indonesian Salim Group to put the state back on the industry map. But in doing so, he snapped the social equilibrium that had held the diverse interest groups together. Feeling let down by the CPM's callous land acquisition methods, a huge section of marginal farmers and bargadars switched loyalties and embraced Mamata Banerjee as the new messiah of entitlement politics.
And the genteel upwardly mobile middle class that backed him in 2006 with a hope that Brand Buddha would chart out a seamless growth path for a tech-savvy , shining Bengal, lost confidence in him when he failed to tackle the rising Mamata surge in Singur. What's more, Bhattacharjee could not carry on with the party ranks as some felt his steps deviated from Left politics.
In the social churn that followed, the ruling Marxists - once champions of path-breaking land reforms such as Operation Barga - lost their profarmer legacy nourished from the pre-Independence days of the Tebhaga peasant movement. The disintegration also bared the rot within the Left ranks. Singur and Nandigram thus became a rallying point for the dissenting millions and a sizable section of the intelligentsia who raised their voice against the Left despite the Big Brothers watching them. That fear was gone in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls with Mamata Banerjee turning the tables, with her raw courage, against the CPM hegemony.
Prodded by CPM general secretary Prakash Karat , the Bengal unit went on a course correction hoping that it would help tide over the poribartan. It didn't, despite the heavily loaded verbosity of the CPM's newfound hero Gautam Deb.
Frequent flip-flops by the CM and his party colleagues - especially Nirupam Sen and Gautam Deb - on policy issues such as setting up a chemical hub in Nandigram, and then at Nayachar, and then back to Nandigram, added to the confusion among public and eroded the government's authority it badly needed to tackle the problems of adivasis in Jangalmahal, the tea gardens in the Dooars and the Gorkhas in the Hills. Sensing what was imminent, a large chunk of bureaucrats sought transfer to Delhi and elsewhere.
Bhattacharjee chose to tread the rough road in a winall-lose-all charge. He skipped politburo meets to reach out to the districts and reassure the poor that his government hadn't dumped them. The playwright in him was yearning to script a comeback story.
Industrialists will be hoping for a reversal of policies in West Bengal
NEW DELHI: With Mamata Banerjee coming to power in West Bengal, industrialists in the state and elsewhere will be hoping for a reversal of policies that has made the state, once a vibrant industrial hub, a wasteland of capitalism.
Trinamool's advisors are planning to invite every major industrialist in the country, including Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata, to the swearing-in ceremony of Banerjee, who will go down in history as the person who almost single-handedly dislodged the longest Communist government in the world.
Banerjee has shown little by way of track record to gauge that she will run an industry-friendly government. After all, she fought tooth and nail against the Tata Nano factory that was coming up in Singur and Indonesia's Salim group's proposed chemical hub in Nandigram. But things will be different now. One of the biggest components of the massive anti-Left Front sentiment that swept the state and brought her to power is the utter lack of industrial development and the consequent lack of employment opportunities. Trinamool Congress will have to work to remedy the situation and attract capital flow.
Banerjee has maintained that she is pro-farmer, but not anti-industry. The message is that she opposed projects in Nandigram and Singur because the state was taking away land from the farmer to hand over to large industrial groups.
She is yet to express a coherent alternate policy paradigm, however. As Cabinet minister of the Union, she was the chief dissenter to the Land Acquisitions Bill. Now with her moving to run the state with her own compulsions to facilitate large industrial projects, her militant stand against land acquisition might undergo a change.
Another factor that will give industry hope about doing business in West Bengal will be the persuasion of some of her close advisors like former Ficci chairman Amit Mitra and economist Bibek Debroy.
Banerjee will need friends in the industry as she runs the government.
She and the party has been backed by the old business families of Kolkata, most of who do business outside. In effect, more money has flowed from Mumbai to finance Banerjee's campaign than from Bengal.
Trinamool's advisors are planning to invite every major industrialist in the country, including Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata, to the swearing-in ceremony of Banerjee, who will go down in history as the person who almost single-handedly dislodged the longest Communist government in the world.
Banerjee has shown little by way of track record to gauge that she will run an industry-friendly government. After all, she fought tooth and nail against the Tata Nano factory that was coming up in Singur and Indonesia's Salim group's proposed chemical hub in Nandigram. But things will be different now. One of the biggest components of the massive anti-Left Front sentiment that swept the state and brought her to power is the utter lack of industrial development and the consequent lack of employment opportunities. Trinamool Congress will have to work to remedy the situation and attract capital flow.
Banerjee has maintained that she is pro-farmer, but not anti-industry. The message is that she opposed projects in Nandigram and Singur because the state was taking away land from the farmer to hand over to large industrial groups.
She is yet to express a coherent alternate policy paradigm, however. As Cabinet minister of the Union, she was the chief dissenter to the Land Acquisitions Bill. Now with her moving to run the state with her own compulsions to facilitate large industrial projects, her militant stand against land acquisition might undergo a change.
Another factor that will give industry hope about doing business in West Bengal will be the persuasion of some of her close advisors like former Ficci chairman Amit Mitra and economist Bibek Debroy.
Banerjee will need friends in the industry as she runs the government.
She and the party has been backed by the old business families of Kolkata, most of who do business outside. In effect, more money has flowed from Mumbai to finance Banerjee's campaign than from Bengal.
Mamata Banerjee walks full distance from log cabin to Writer's Building
Mamata Banerjee walks full distance from log cabin to Writer's Building
KOLKATA: She stormed into national politics in 1984 defeating CPM's Somnath Chatterjee and earning the 'giant killer' tag. With her party Trinamool Congress' triumph in the West Bengal Assembly elections, more than 26 years later, Mamata Banerjee has achieved what many considered impossible even a few years back. It is not everyday that a feisty politician embarks on a laborious struggle to take on a 34-year regime single-handedly and still manages to win.
Life has come close to imitating it now. With Bengal voting for a historic change, the foreign media is camping outside the narrow by-lanes of 30B Harish Chatterjee Street, to understand the 'Mamata' phenomenon. Her ouster of the world's oldest elected Communist government is being covered by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the National Public Radio of Washington, BBC, France 24 and Al Jazeera. Global media interest is focused on this one Indian state where Communists have been thrown out of power by a lone woman.
Busy with campaigning for her party in Bengal's six-phase elections between April 18 and May 10, Didi has largely remained out of bounds for the foreign media. However, requests and reminders have been pouring in. Most media queries seem to revolve around what is so special about this petite woman clad in a white sari, who wears rubber slippers and who dwells in a nondescript 6X6 dwelling. How has she managed to throw out the Communist? How does she move millions from grassroots to board rooms? How does Mamata manage to inspire people in almost all walks of life, despite being a woman?
"The fact that she seems to inspire some kind of cult following among supporters and is perhaps one of the most unlikely figures to acquire such a status, is what has attracted the world media," said Derek O' Brien, Trinamool's spokesperson.
But it was not always so. "In my childhood, I never thought that I would enter politics, become an MP, find a place in the Union Cabinet or organise public meetings at Kolkata's Brigade Parade grounds," Mamata said. She joined politics while doing a BEd course at Shree Shiksayatan College in Kolkata.
It was her father Promileswar Banerjee who inspired her to get into public life. "My belief in humanitarianism is all because of my father's outlook," she said. Losing him, when she was barely 15, was perhaps the most shocking event in her life.
If her father had ushered her into public life, Rajiv Gandhi inspired her to take up a bigger role in politics. "Rajivji protected me like an elder brother and also surprised me one day by saying: 'Some selfish giants are trying to malign you. Don't be scared. I am making you the general secretary of the All India Youth Congress," she said.
On August 16, 1990, four days later after taking charge of Youth Congress in Bengal, she survived perhaps, the worst attack on her life, when Marxist buttonmen bludgeoned her almost to death. She severed ties with Congress in 1998 and floated the Trinamool Congress , which did not do too well in 2004 and 2006. It was the Singur agitation in 2007 that acted as the catalyst. The rest is history.
KOLKATA: She stormed into national politics in 1984 defeating CPM's Somnath Chatterjee and earning the 'giant killer' tag. With her party Trinamool Congress' triumph in the West Bengal Assembly elections, more than 26 years later, Mamata Banerjee has achieved what many considered impossible even a few years back. It is not everyday that a feisty politician embarks on a laborious struggle to take on a 34-year regime single-handedly and still manages to win.
Life has come close to imitating it now. With Bengal voting for a historic change, the foreign media is camping outside the narrow by-lanes of 30B Harish Chatterjee Street, to understand the 'Mamata' phenomenon. Her ouster of the world's oldest elected Communist government is being covered by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the National Public Radio of Washington, BBC, France 24 and Al Jazeera. Global media interest is focused on this one Indian state where Communists have been thrown out of power by a lone woman.
Busy with campaigning for her party in Bengal's six-phase elections between April 18 and May 10, Didi has largely remained out of bounds for the foreign media. However, requests and reminders have been pouring in. Most media queries seem to revolve around what is so special about this petite woman clad in a white sari, who wears rubber slippers and who dwells in a nondescript 6X6 dwelling. How has she managed to throw out the Communist? How does she move millions from grassroots to board rooms? How does Mamata manage to inspire people in almost all walks of life, despite being a woman?
"The fact that she seems to inspire some kind of cult following among supporters and is perhaps one of the most unlikely figures to acquire such a status, is what has attracted the world media," said Derek O' Brien, Trinamool's spokesperson.
But it was not always so. "In my childhood, I never thought that I would enter politics, become an MP, find a place in the Union Cabinet or organise public meetings at Kolkata's Brigade Parade grounds," Mamata said. She joined politics while doing a BEd course at Shree Shiksayatan College in Kolkata.
It was her father Promileswar Banerjee who inspired her to get into public life. "My belief in humanitarianism is all because of my father's outlook," she said. Losing him, when she was barely 15, was perhaps the most shocking event in her life.
If her father had ushered her into public life, Rajiv Gandhi inspired her to take up a bigger role in politics. "Rajivji protected me like an elder brother and also surprised me one day by saying: 'Some selfish giants are trying to malign you. Don't be scared. I am making you the general secretary of the All India Youth Congress," she said.
On August 16, 1990, four days later after taking charge of Youth Congress in Bengal, she survived perhaps, the worst attack on her life, when Marxist buttonmen bludgeoned her almost to death. She severed ties with Congress in 1998 and floated the Trinamool Congress , which did not do too well in 2004 and 2006. It was the Singur agitation in 2007 that acted as the catalyst. The rest is history.
Decks cleared for biggest ever Indo-US defence deal of $4.1 billion 10 C-17 Globemaster-III aircraft
Decks cleared for biggest ever Indo-US defence deal of $4.1 billion 10 C-17 Globemaster-III aircraft
NEW DELHI: India may have ejected American fighters out of the $10.4 billion race to supply 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) but US really has no reason to crib. Decks have now been cleared for the biggest-ever Indo-US defence deal: the $4.1 billion contract for 10 C-17 Globemaster-III giant strategic airlift aircraft.
Defence ministry sources on Thursday said the Globemaster deal, a direct government-to-government contract under the American FMS (foreign military sales) programme, should get the "final nod" from the Cabinet Committee on Security "within this month".
"All issues connected to costing and offsets (under which Globemaster-manufacturer Boeing will plough back 30% of the contract value into India) have been resolved," said a source.
IAF certainly needs to augment its strategic airlift capability to swiftly move combat systems and troops over large national and international distances, given that it has just over a dozen Russian-origin IL-76 `Gajraj' aircraft. Capable of carrying a payload of almost 170,000 pounds and landing even at small forward airbases with semi-prepared runways, the four-engine rugged C-17s can transport tanks and troops over 2,400 nautical miles.
With mid-air refueling, C-17s can go even longer distances. Along with the C-130J `Super Hercules' aircraft already being inducted, the C-17s will play a significant role in countering China's massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, which includes five fully-operational airbases in Tibet.
That's not all on the US arms deals front. India is already conducting commercial negotiations for the around $1 billion "follow-on contract" for four more P-8I Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, eight of which were earlier ordered for $2.1 billion in 2009.
Similarly, negotiations for six more C-130J `Super Hercules' heavy-lift aircraft will begin soon. "IAF has already inducted two of the earlier six C-130Js ordered for $1.2 billion in 2008. Two more will come around July, with the last two in September-October," said the MoD source.
So, if all this is taken into account, US has notched up sales worth around $9 billion to India in the arena of military transport and reconnaissance aircraft alone.
If one adds other deals connected to military aviation, like the $822 million for 99 GE F-414 engines for Mark-II version of the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft and the $170 million for Harpoon Block-II anti-ship missiles, as well as the proposed ones for attack and heavy-lift helicopters, the overall figure will jump to well over $11 billion.
Consequently, all the brouhaha over India choosing a fighter over "a strategic partnership" in the MMRCA project has not gone down well. "We went purely by IAF's technical and flight evaluation in the MMRCA project," said the MoD source.
"While Eurofighter Typhoon and French Rafale were right up there in the laid-down 643 test-points, the others (American F/A-18 and F-16, Russian MiG-35 and Swedish Gripen) were not fully compliant. So, now Typhoon and Rafale will compete commercially for the project," he added.
FROM US, WITH LOVE
C-17 Globemaster-III: 10 of these rugged giant strategic airlift aircraft to be inducted from 2013-14 onwards under a $4.1 billion contract. Capable of carrying a payload of 164,900 pounds after taking off even from makeshift airstrips, C-17s will give India swift power projection capabilities. Another six C-17s likely to be ordered at a later stage.
P-8I Poseidon: 12 of these long-range maritime patrol aircraft to be inducted from early-2013 onwards, costing upwards of $3 billion, to plug surveillance gaps over Indian Ocean. Armed with torpedoes, depth bombs and Harpoon missiles, P-8Is will also boost anti-warship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
C-130J "Super Hercules": Six of these tactical airlift aircraft, customised for "special and covert operations", to be inducted within this year under a $1.2 billion contract. Negotiations in progress for another six C-130Js.
NEW DELHI: India may have ejected American fighters out of the $10.4 billion race to supply 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) but US really has no reason to crib. Decks have now been cleared for the biggest-ever Indo-US defence deal: the $4.1 billion contract for 10 C-17 Globemaster-III giant strategic airlift aircraft.
Defence ministry sources on Thursday said the Globemaster deal, a direct government-to-government contract under the American FMS (foreign military sales) programme, should get the "final nod" from the Cabinet Committee on Security "within this month".
"All issues connected to costing and offsets (under which Globemaster-manufacturer Boeing will plough back 30% of the contract value into India) have been resolved," said a source.
IAF certainly needs to augment its strategic airlift capability to swiftly move combat systems and troops over large national and international distances, given that it has just over a dozen Russian-origin IL-76 `Gajraj' aircraft. Capable of carrying a payload of almost 170,000 pounds and landing even at small forward airbases with semi-prepared runways, the four-engine rugged C-17s can transport tanks and troops over 2,400 nautical miles.
With mid-air refueling, C-17s can go even longer distances. Along with the C-130J `Super Hercules' aircraft already being inducted, the C-17s will play a significant role in countering China's massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, which includes five fully-operational airbases in Tibet.
That's not all on the US arms deals front. India is already conducting commercial negotiations for the around $1 billion "follow-on contract" for four more P-8I Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, eight of which were earlier ordered for $2.1 billion in 2009.
Similarly, negotiations for six more C-130J `Super Hercules' heavy-lift aircraft will begin soon. "IAF has already inducted two of the earlier six C-130Js ordered for $1.2 billion in 2008. Two more will come around July, with the last two in September-October," said the MoD source.
So, if all this is taken into account, US has notched up sales worth around $9 billion to India in the arena of military transport and reconnaissance aircraft alone.
If one adds other deals connected to military aviation, like the $822 million for 99 GE F-414 engines for Mark-II version of the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft and the $170 million for Harpoon Block-II anti-ship missiles, as well as the proposed ones for attack and heavy-lift helicopters, the overall figure will jump to well over $11 billion.
Consequently, all the brouhaha over India choosing a fighter over "a strategic partnership" in the MMRCA project has not gone down well. "We went purely by IAF's technical and flight evaluation in the MMRCA project," said the MoD source.
"While Eurofighter Typhoon and French Rafale were right up there in the laid-down 643 test-points, the others (American F/A-18 and F-16, Russian MiG-35 and Swedish Gripen) were not fully compliant. So, now Typhoon and Rafale will compete commercially for the project," he added.
FROM US, WITH LOVE
C-17 Globemaster-III: 10 of these rugged giant strategic airlift aircraft to be inducted from 2013-14 onwards under a $4.1 billion contract. Capable of carrying a payload of 164,900 pounds after taking off even from makeshift airstrips, C-17s will give India swift power projection capabilities. Another six C-17s likely to be ordered at a later stage.
P-8I Poseidon: 12 of these long-range maritime patrol aircraft to be inducted from early-2013 onwards, costing upwards of $3 billion, to plug surveillance gaps over Indian Ocean. Armed with torpedoes, depth bombs and Harpoon missiles, P-8Is will also boost anti-warship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
C-130J "Super Hercules": Six of these tactical airlift aircraft, customised for "special and covert operations", to be inducted within this year under a $1.2 billion contract. Negotiations in progress for another six C-130Js.
Defence ministry sources on Thursday said the Globemaster deal, a direct government-to-government contract under the American FMS (foreign military sales) programme, should get the "final nod" from the Cabinet Committee on Security "within this month".
"All issues connected to costing and offsets (under which Globemaster-manufacturer Boeing will plough back 30% of the contract value into India) have been resolved," said a source.
IAF certainly needs to augment its strategic airlift capability to swiftly move combat systems and troops over large national and international distances, given that it has just over a dozen Russian-origin IL-76 `Gajraj' aircraft. Capable of carrying a payload of almost 170,000 pounds and landing even at small forward airbases with semi-prepared runways, the four-engine rugged C-17s can transport tanks and troops over 2,400 nautical miles.
With mid-air refueling, C-17s can go even longer distances. Along with the C-130J `Super Hercules' aircraft already being inducted, the C-17s will play a significant role in countering China's massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, which includes five fully-operational airbases in Tibet.
That's not all on the US arms deals front. India is already conducting commercial negotiations for the around $1 billion "follow-on contract" for four more P-8I Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, eight of which were earlier ordered for $2.1 billion in 2009.
Similarly, negotiations for six more C-130J `Super Hercules' heavy-lift aircraft will begin soon. "IAF has already inducted two of the earlier six C-130Js ordered for $1.2 billion in 2008. Two more will come around July, with the last two in September-October," said the MoD source.
So, if all this is taken into account, US has notched up sales worth around $9 billion to India in the arena of military transport and reconnaissance aircraft alone.
If one adds other deals connected to military aviation, like the $822 million for 99 GE F-414 engines for Mark-II version of the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft and the $170 million for Harpoon Block-II anti-ship missiles, as well as the proposed ones for attack and heavy-lift helicopters, the overall figure will jump to well over $11 billion.
Consequently, all the brouhaha over India choosing a fighter over "a strategic partnership" in the MMRCA project has not gone down well. "We went purely by IAF's technical and flight evaluation in the MMRCA project," said the MoD source.
"While Eurofighter Typhoon and French Rafale were right up there in the laid-down 643 test-points, the others (American F/A-18 and F-16, Russian MiG-35 and Swedish Gripen) were not fully compliant. So, now Typhoon and Rafale will compete commercially for the project," he added.
FROM US, WITH LOVE
C-17 Globemaster-III: 10 of these rugged giant strategic airlift aircraft to be inducted from 2013-14 onwards under a $4.1 billion contract. Capable of carrying a payload of 164,900 pounds after taking off even from makeshift airstrips, C-17s will give India swift power projection capabilities. Another six C-17s likely to be ordered at a later stage.
P-8I Poseidon: 12 of these long-range maritime patrol aircraft to be inducted from early-2013 onwards, costing upwards of $3 billion, to plug surveillance gaps over Indian Ocean. Armed with torpedoes, depth bombs and Harpoon missiles, P-8Is will also boost anti-warship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
C-130J "Super Hercules": Six of these tactical airlift aircraft, customised for "special and covert operations", to be inducted within this year under a $1.2 billion contract. Negotiations in progress for another six C-130Js.
Assembly poll results to have big impact at Centre
Assembly poll results to have big impact at Centre
Assembly poll results to have big impact at Centre
NEW DELHI: UPA-2 and its rivals are tensely bracing for poll results in five states with the outcome on Friday likely to impact its grip on the Centre and recast its leverage with key allies for the rest of the term.
Optimism in the Congress camp is singed by conflicting exit polls results as well as the assessment that battles in swing states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala might hang by slim margins. Apart from unanimity over the CPM-led regime's exit in Kolkata, there is no certitude about other states that include tiny Puducherry and Assam.
Under siege over corruption scandals and Opposition attacks, Congress keenly anticipates a winning score line. It expects to claw back to power in Assam, ride the Mamata storm in West Bengal, turn tables on the Left in Kerala and pip AIADMK's J Jayalalitha with DMK as lead partner in Tamil Nadu.
An electoral lift will restore a missing bounce and Congress leadership will try and seize the reprieve to move on anti-corruption legislation and snip deadwood from a Cabinet that looks more than a touch moribund. It will strenuously counter the impression that the government is a hapless victim of avaricious allies and internal sloth.
A 5-0 margin is a thumping win but with some exit polls pointing to a late Left surge in Kerala and Jayalalitha nosing ahead in Tamil Nadu, it could well be 3-2. A faction-ridden Left winning in Kerala will be a huge disappointment for Congress. A DMK sunset will be less so although the southern ally promises to turn the tables on Amma.
Main Opposition BJP has low expectations, except in Assam. But while saffronites will be happy if Congress hits a bump, regional parties like AIADMK, Asom Gana Parishad and Left face an acid test. A historic win for Mamata will end 34 years of uninterrupted Left hegemony. If Amma loses, she may never quite recover. If AGP fails, it faces an unappealing future.
A net positive result is vital for Congress which hopes that a good showing will be a launching pad for a major overhaul of the Union Cabinet and top bureaucracy. If Puducherry - where an ex-CM poses a headache - and Assam slip out of its grasp, UPA-2 will experience a sinking feeling.
The Opposition scoring a 3-2 or 4-1 win - although not very likely - will deepen the perception of decline and paralysis. But in any other scenario, Congress's allies have more to worry about. West Bengal is a must win election for Mamata while DMK chief M Karunanidhi is fighting the fight of his life.
The fallout for the Centre is clear enough. Barring a negative score, the Manmohan Singh government will not be badly off. If Karunanidhi loses, he will be even more dependent on the Centre given the 2G scam cases involving former minister A Raja and his daughter Kanimozhi. If he wins, his power will be curbed as Supreme Court monitors 2G investigations.
A landslide will see Mamata extract her terms which will almost certainly include retaining Trinamool Congress control over railways, which she sees as a means to deliver electoral goodies to her state. This may temper jubilation over her exit from Rail Bhawan.
Congress is confident that old war horse Tarun Gogoi is set to pull off a remarkable win in Assam. Even if he does not get a majority, he will be able to rope in the Bodo Front and Badruddin Ajmal's Assam United Democratic Front, it is felt. AGP needs to claim that number one spot from Congress to do the same in company of BJP or the Bodos.
NEW DELHI: UPA-2 and its rivals are tensely bracing for poll results in five states with the outcome on Friday likely to impact its grip on the Centre and recast its leverage with key allies for the rest of the term.
Optimism in the Congress camp is singed by conflicting exit polls results as well as the assessment that battles in swing states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala might hang by slim margins. Apart from unanimity over the CPM-led regime's exit in Kolkata, there is no certitude about other states that include tiny Puducherry and Assam.
Under siege over corruption scandals and Opposition attacks, Congress keenly anticipates a winning score line. It expects to claw back to power in Assam, ride the Mamata storm in West Bengal, turn tables on the Left in Kerala and pip AIADMK's J Jayalalitha with DMK as lead partner in Tamil Nadu.
An electoral lift will restore a missing bounce and Congress leadership will try and seize the reprieve to move on anti-corruption legislation and snip deadwood from a Cabinet that looks more than a touch moribund. It will strenuously counter the impression that the government is a hapless victim of avaricious allies and internal sloth.
A 5-0 margin is a thumping win but with some exit polls pointing to a late Left surge in Kerala and Jayalalitha nosing ahead in Tamil Nadu, it could well be 3-2. A faction-ridden Left winning in Kerala will be a huge disappointment for Congress. A DMK sunset will be less so although the southern ally promises to turn the tables on Amma.
Main Opposition BJP has low expectations, except in Assam. But while saffronites will be happy if Congress hits a bump, regional parties like AIADMK, Asom Gana Parishad and Left face an acid test. A historic win for Mamata will end 34 years of uninterrupted Left hegemony. If Amma loses, she may never quite recover. If AGP fails, it faces an unappealing future.
A net positive result is vital for Congress which hopes that a good showing will be a launching pad for a major overhaul of the Union Cabinet and top bureaucracy. If Puducherry - where an ex-CM poses a headache - and Assam slip out of its grasp, UPA-2 will experience a sinking feeling.
The Opposition scoring a 3-2 or 4-1 win - although not very likely - will deepen the perception of decline and paralysis. But in any other scenario, Congress's allies have more to worry about. West Bengal is a must win election for Mamata while DMK chief M Karunanidhi is fighting the fight of his life.
The fallout for the Centre is clear enough. Barring a negative score, the Manmohan Singh government will not be badly off. If Karunanidhi loses, he will be even more dependent on the Centre given the 2G scam cases involving former minister A Raja and his daughter Kanimozhi. If he wins, his power will be curbed as Supreme Court monitors 2G investigations.
A landslide will see Mamata extract her terms which will almost certainly include retaining Trinamool Congress control over railways, which she sees as a means to deliver electoral goodies to her state. This may temper jubilation over her exit from Rail Bhawan.
Congress is confident that old war horse Tarun Gogoi is set to pull off a remarkable win in Assam. Even if he does not get a majority, he will be able to rope in the Bodo Front and Badruddin Ajmal's Assam United Democratic Front, it is felt. AGP needs to claim that number one spot from Congress to do the same in company of BJP or the Bodos.
NEW DELHI: UPA-2 and its rivals are tensely bracing for poll results in five states with the outcome on Friday likely to impact its grip on the Centre and recast its leverage with key allies for the rest of the term.
Optimism in the Congress camp is singed by conflicting exit polls results as well as the assessment that battles in swing states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala might hang by slim margins. Apart from unanimity over the CPM-led regime's exit in Kolkata, there is no certitude about other states that include tiny Puducherry and Assam.
Under siege over corruption scandals and Opposition attacks, Congress keenly anticipates a winning score line. It expects to claw back to power in Assam, ride the Mamata storm in West Bengal, turn tables on the Left in Kerala and pip AIADMK's J Jayalalitha with DMK as lead partner in Tamil Nadu.
An electoral lift will restore a missing bounce and Congress leadership will try and seize the reprieve to move on anti-corruption legislation and snip deadwood from a Cabinet that looks more than a touch moribund. It will strenuously counter the impression that the government is a hapless victim of avaricious allies and internal sloth.
A 5-0 margin is a thumping win but with some exit polls pointing to a late Left surge in Kerala and Jayalalitha nosing ahead in Tamil Nadu, it could well be 3-2. A faction-ridden Left winning in Kerala will be a huge disappointment for Congress. A DMK sunset will be less so although the southern ally promises to turn the tables on Amma.
Main Opposition BJP has low expectations, except in Assam. But while saffronites will be happy if Congress hits a bump, regional parties like AIADMK, Asom Gana Parishad and Left face an acid test. A historic win for Mamata will end 34 years of uninterrupted Left hegemony. If Amma loses, she may never quite recover. If AGP fails, it faces an unappealing future.
A net positive result is vital for Congress which hopes that a good showing will be a launching pad for a major overhaul of the Union Cabinet and top bureaucracy. If Puducherry - where an ex-CM poses a headache - and Assam slip out of its grasp, UPA-2 will experience a sinking feeling.
The Opposition scoring a 3-2 or 4-1 win - although not very likely - will deepen the perception of decline and paralysis. But in any other scenario, Congress's allies have more to worry about. West Bengal is a must win election for Mamata while DMK chief M Karunanidhi is fighting the fight of his life.
The fallout for the Centre is clear enough. Barring a negative score, the Manmohan Singh government will not be badly off. If Karunanidhi loses, he will be even more dependent on the Centre given the 2G scam cases involving former minister A Raja and his daughter Kanimozhi. If he wins, his power will be curbed as Supreme Court monitors 2G investigations.
A landslide will see Mamata extract her terms which will almost certainly include retaining Trinamool Congress control over railways, which she sees as a means to deliver electoral goodies to her state. This may temper jubilation over her exit from Rail Bhawan.
Congress is confident that old war horse Tarun Gogoi is set to pull off a remarkable win in Assam. Even if he does not get a majority, he will be able to rope in the Bodo Front and Badruddin Ajmal's Assam United Democratic Front, it is felt. AGP needs to claim that number one spot from Congress to do the same in company of BJP or the Bodos.
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges: Prakash Karat
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges: Prakash Karat
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges: Prakash Karat
CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat spoke to Sunday ET on how he and the party will respond to their biggest poll set back in years and where the CPM went wrong
Post-poll crisis for CPM
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges. We were in power for 34 years. A generation of CPM members and supporters have never been in Opposition. In Kerala, we are used to winning and losing elections.
Plans to step down as CPM chief.
I am going to make a proposal to the party about a retirement plan for the general secretary. There has to be a cap on the number of terms the general secretary can have. It can be two or three or four terms. The leadership will decide it. (Karat is on his second term as CPM general secretary now. The coming CPM party congress will decide on whether he gets a third term).
Retirement before or during the CPM party congress
I have certain views on the matter. I think it is proper the general secretary steps aside after a period to pave the way for a new leader. That will help the party prepare a new line of leadership in a time-bound manner. And the person who steps down can always continue as a member of the politburo, party secretariat, etc.
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "CPIM" redirects here. For other uses, see CPIM (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Communist Party of India or Communist Party of India (Maoist). This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010)
Communist Party of India (Marxist) Secretary-General Prakash Karat Leader in Lok Sabha Basudev Acharia[1] Leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechuri[1] Founded 1964 Headquarters New Delhi, India Newspaper People's Democracy(English),
Lok Lehar (Hindi),
Ganashakti (bengali),
Deshabhimani'' (Malayalam),
Theekathir (Tamil) Student wing Students Federation of India Youth wing Democratic Youth Federation of India Women's wing All India Democratic Womens Association Labour wing Centre of Indian Trade Unions Peasant's wing All India Kisan Sabha Ideology Communism
Marxism-Leninism ECI Status Recognised Party Alliance Left Front Seats in Lok Sabha 16 Seats in Rajya Sabha 14 Election symbol Website Official Website Politics of India
Political parties
Elections
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated CPI(M) or CPM) is a political party inIndia. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI(M) is leading the state government only in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of India. It was voted out after 34 years in power in West Bengal in elections whose results were declared in May 2011. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964. CPI(M) claimed to have 982,155 members in 2007.[2]
Contents
[hide]
[edit]History
[edit]Split in the Communist Party of India and formation of CPI(M)
CPI(M) emerged out of a division within the Communist Party of India (CPI). The undivided CPI had experienced a period of upsurge during the years following the Second World War. The CPI led armed rebellions in Telangana, Tripura and Kerala. However, it soon abandoned the strategy of armed revolution in favour of working within the parliamentary framework. In 1950 B.T. Ranadive, the CPI general secretary and a prominent representative of the radical sector inside the party, was demoted on grounds of left-adventurism.
Under the government of the Indian National Congressparty of Jawaharlal Nehru, independent India developed close relations and a strategic partnership with theSoviet Union. The Soviet government consequently wished that the Indian communists moderate their criticism towards the Indian state and assume a supportive role towards the Congress governments. However, large sections of the CPI claimed that India remained a semi-feudal country, and that class strugglecould not be put on the back-burner for the sake of guarding the interests of Soviet trade and foreign policy. Moreover, the Indian National Congress appeared to be generally hostile towards political competition. In 1959 the central government intervened to impose President's Rule in Kerala, toppling the E.M.S. Namboodiripad cabinet (the sole non-Congress state government in the country).
Simultaneously, the relations between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theCommunist Party of China soured. In the early 1960s the Communist Party of China began criticising the CPSU of turning revisionist and of deviating from the path of Marxism-Leninism.Sino-Indian relations also deteriorated, as border disputes between the two countries erupted into the Sino-Indian war of 1962.
During the war with China, a faction of the Indian Communists backed the position of the Indian government, while other sections of the party claimed that it was a conflict between a socialist and a capitalist state. Hundreds of CPI leaders, accused of being pro-Chinese, were imprisoned. Some of the nationalists were also imprisoned, as they used to express their opinion only in party forums, and CPI's official stand was pro-China. Thousands of Communists were detained without trial.[3] Those targeted by the state accused the pro-Soviet leadership of the CPI of conspiring with the Congress government to ensure their own hegemony over the control of the party.
In 1962 Ajoy Ghosh, the general secretary of the CPI, died. After his death, S.A. Dange was installed as the party chairman (a new position) and E.M.S. Namboodiripad as general secretary. This was an attempt to achieve a compromise. Dange represented the rightist faction of the party and E.M.S. the leftist faction.
At a CPI National Council meeting held on April 11, 1964, 32 Council members walked out in protest, accusing Dange and his followers of "anti-unity and anti-Communist policies".[4]
The leftist section, to which the 32 National Council members belonged, organised a convention in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh July 7 to 11. In this convention the issues of the internal disputes in the party were discussed. 146 delegates, claiming to represent 100,000 CPI members, took part in the proceedings. The convention decided to convene the 7th Party Congress of CPI in Calcutta later the same year.[5]
Marking a difference from the Dangeite sector of CPI, the Tenali convention was marked by the display of a large portrait of the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong.[5]
At the Tenali convention a Bengal-based pro-Chinese group, representing one of the most radical streams of the CPI left wing, presented a draft programme proposal of their own. These radicals criticised the draft programme proposal prepared by M. Basavapunniah for undermining class struggle and failing to take a clear pro-Chinese position in the ideological conflict between the CPSU and CPC.[6]
After the Tenali convention the CPI left wing organised party district and state conferences. In West Bengal, a few of these meetings became battlegrounds between the most radical elements and the more moderate leadership. At the Calcutta Party District Conference an alternative draft programme was presented to the leadership by Parimal Das Gupta (a leading figure amongst far-left intellectuals in the party). Another alternative proposal was brought forward to the Calcutta Party District Conference by Azizul Haque, but Haque was initially banned from presenting it by the conference organisers. At the Calcutta Party District Conference 42 delegates opposed M. Basavapunniah's official draft programme proposal.
At the Siliguri Party District Conference, the main draft proposal for a party programme was accepted, but with some additional points suggested by the far-left North Bengal cadre Charu Majumdar. However, Harekrishna Konar (representing the leadership of the CPI left wing) forbade the raising of the slogan Mao Tse-Tung Zindabad (Long live Mao Tse-Tung) at the conference.
Parimal Das Gupta's document was also presented to the leadership at the West Bengal State Conference of the CPI leftwing. Das Gupta and a few other spoke at the conference, demanding the party ought to adopt the class analysis of the Indian state of the 1951 CPI conference. His proposal was, however, voted down.[7]
The Calcutta Congress was held between October 31 and November 7, at Tyagraja Hall in southern Calcutta. Simultaneously, the Dange group convened a Party Congress of CPI in Bombay. Thus, the CPI divided into two separate parties. The group which assembled in Calcutta would later adopt the name 'Communist Party of India (Marxist)', in order to differentiate themselves from the Dange group. The CPI(M) also adopted its own political programme. P. Sundarayya was elected general secretary of the party.
In total 422 delegates took part in the Calcutta Congress. CPI(M) claimed that they represented 104,421 CPI members, 60% of the total party membership.
At the Calcutta conference the party adopted a class analysis of the character of the Indian state, that claimed the Indian big bourgeoisie was increasingly collaborating with imperialism.[8]
Parimal Das Gupta's alternative draft programme was not circulated at the Calcutta conference. However, Souren Basu, a delegate from the far-left stronghold Darjeeling, spoke at the conference asking why no portrait had been raised of Mao Tse-Tung along the portraits of other communist stalwarts. His intervention met with huge applauses from the delegates of the conference.[8]
[edit]Name
CPI(M) is offically known as भारत की कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी मार्क्सवादी(Bharat ki Kamyunist Party Marksvadi) in hindi, but it is often known as मार्क्सवादी कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी (Marksvadi Kamyunist Party, abbreviatedMaKaPa) in press and media circles. This name though has a very interesting story to tell. During its initial years after the split, the party was often referred by different names such as 'Left Communist Party' or 'Communist Party of India(Left)'. The party has used the name 'Left' because CPI people were dubbed as rightist in nature for their support to Congress-Nehru regime. During Kerala Legislative Assembly elections of 1965 the party has adopted the name 'Communist Party of India(Marxist)' in order to obtain its election symbol from the Election Commission of India.[9]
[edit]Early years of CPI (M)
The CPI (M) was born into a hostile political climate. At the time of the holding of its Calcutta Congress, large sections of its leaders and cadres were jailed without trial. Again on December 29–30, over a thousand CPI (M) cadres were arrested, and held in jail without trial. In 1965 new waves of arrests of CPI(M) cadres took place in West Bengal, as the party launched agitations against the rise in fares in the Calcutta Tramways and against the then prevailing food crisis. State-wide general strikes and hartalswere observed on August 5, 1965, March 10–11, 1966 and April 6, 1966. The March 1966 general strike results in several deaths in confrontations with police forces.
Also in Kerala, mass arrests of CPI(M) cadres were carried out during 1965. In Bihar, the party called for a Bandh (general strike) in Patna on August 9, 1965 in protest against the Congress state government. During the strike, police resorted to violent actions against the organisers of the strike. The strike was followed by agitations in other parts of the state.
P. Sundaraiah, after being released from jail, spent the period of September 1965-February 1966 in Moscow for medical treatment. In Moscow he also held talks with the CPSU.[10]
The Central Committee of CPI(M) held its first meeting on June 12–19, 1966. The reason for delaying the holding of a regular CC meeting was the fact that several of the persons elected as CC members at the Calcutta Congress were jailed at the time.[11] A CC meeting had been scheduled to have been held in Trichur during the last days of 1964, but had been cancelled due to the wave of arrests against the party. The meeting discussed tactics for electoral alliances, and concluded that the party should seek to form a broad electoral alliances with all non-reactionary opposition parties in West Bengal (i.e. all parties except Jan Sangh and Swatantra Party). This decision was strongly criticised by the Communist Party of China, the Party of Labour of Albania, the Communist Party of New Zealand and the radicals within the party itself. The line was changed at a National Council meeting in Jullunder in October 1966, were it was decided that the party should only form alliances with selected left parties.[12]
[edit]Naxalbari uprising
Main article: Naxalite At this point the party stood at crossroads. There were radical sections of the party who were wary of the increasing parliamentary focus of the party leadership, especially after the electoral victories in West Bengal and Kerala. Developments in China also affected the situation inside the party. In West Bengal two separate internal dissident tendencies emerged, which both could be identified as supporting the Chinese line.[13] In 1967 a peasant uprising broke out in Naxalbari, in northern West Bengal. The insurgency was led by hardline district-level CPI(M) leaders Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. The hardliners within CPI(M) saw the Naxalbari uprising as the spark that would ignite the Indian revolution. The Communist Party of China hailed the Naxalbari movement, causing an abrupt break in CPI(M)-CPC relations.[14] The Naxalbari movement was violently repressed by the West Bengal government, of which CPI(M) was a major partner. Within the party, the hardliners rallied around an All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries. Following the 1968 Burdwan plenum of CPI(M) (held on April 5–12, 1968), the AICCCR separated themselves from CPI(M). This split divided the party throughout the country. But notably in West Bengal, which was the centre of the violent radicalist stream, no prominent leading figure left the party. The party and the Naxalites (as the rebels were called) were soon to get into a bloody feud.
In Andhra Pradesh another revolt was taking place. There the pro-Naxalbari dissidents had not established any presence. But in the party organisation there were many veterans from the Telangana armed struggle, who rallied against the central party leadership. In Andhra Pradesh the radicals had a strong base even amongst the state-level leadership. The main leader of the radical tendency was T. Nagi Reddy, a member of the state legislative assembly. On June 15, 1968 the leaders of the radical tendency published a press statement outlining the critique of the development of CPI(M). It was signed by T. Nagi Reddy, D.V. Rao, Kolla Venkaiah and Chandra Pulla Reddy.[15] In total around 50% of the party cadres in Andhra Pradesh left the party to form the Andhra Pradesh Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, under the leadership of T. Nagi Reddy.[16]
[edit]Dismissal of United Front governments in West Bengal and Kerala
In November 1967, the West Bengal United Front government was dismissed by the central government. Initially the Indian National Congress formed a minority government led by Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, but that cabinet did not last long. Following the proclamation that the United Front government had been dislodged, a 48-hour hartal was effective throughout the state. After the fall of the Ghosh cabinet, the state was but under President's Rule. CPI(M) launched agitations against the interventions of the central government in West Bengal.
The 8th Party Congress of CPI(M) was held in Cochin, Kerala, on December 23–29, 1968. On December 25, 1968, whilst the congress was held, 42 Dalits were burned alive in the Tamil village of Kilavenmani. The massacre was a retaliation from landlords after Dalit labourers had taken part in a CPI(M)-led agitation for higher wages.[17][18]
The United Front government in Kerala was forced out of office in October 1969, as the CPI, RSP, KTP and Muslim League ministers resigned. E.M.S. Namboodiripad handed in his resignation on October 24.[19] A coalition government led by CPI leader C. Achutha Menonwas formed, with the outside support of the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Elections in West Bengal and Kerala
Fresh elections were held in West Bengal in 1969. CPI(M) contested 97 seats, and won 80. The party was now the largest in the West Bengal legislative.[20] But with the active support of CPI and the Bangla Congress, Ajoy Mukherjee was returned as Chief Minister of the state. Mukherjee resigned on March 16, 1970, after a pact had been reached between CPI, Bangla Congress and the Indian National Congress against CPI(M). CPI(M) strove to form a new government, instead but the central government put the state under President's Rule.
In Kerala fresh elections were held in 1970. CPI(M) contested 73 seats and won 29. After the election Achutha Menon formed a new ministry, including ministers from the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Formation of CITU
Main article: Centre of Indian Trade Unions Following the 1964 split, CPI(M) cadres had remained active with the All India Trade Union Congress. But as relations between CPI and CPI(M) soured, with the backdrop of confrontations in West Bengal and Kerala, a split also surfaced in the AITUC. In December 1969, eight CPI(M) members walked out of an AITUC Working Committee meeting. The eight called for an All India Trade Union Convention, which was held in Goa April 9–10, 1970. The convention decided that an All India Trade Union Conference be held on May 28–31 in Calcutta. The Calcutta conference would be the founding conference of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, a new pro-CPI(M) trade union movement.[21]
[edit]Outbreak of war in East Pakistan
In 1971 Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) declared its independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani military tried to quell the uprising. India intervened militarily and gave active backing to the Bangladeshi resistance. Millions of Bangladeshi refugees sought shelter in India, especially in West Bengal.
At the time the radical sections of the Bangladeshi communist movement was divided into many factions. Whilst the pro-Soviet Communist Party of Bangladesh actively participated in the resistance struggle, the pro-China communist tendency found itself in a peculiar situation as China had sided with Pakistan in the war. In Calcutta, where many Bangladeshi leftists had sought refuge, CPI(M) worked to coordinate the efforts to create a new political organization. In the fall of 1971 three small groups, which were all hosted by the CPI(M), came together to form the Bangladesh Communist Party (Leninist). The new party became the sister party of CPI(M) in Bangladesh.[22]
[edit]Party organization
CPI(M) got 5.66% of votes polled in last parliamentary election (May 2004) and it has 43 MPs. It won 42.31% on an average in the 69 seats it contested. It supported the new Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government, but without becoming a part of it. On 9 July 2008 it formally withdrew support from the UPA government explaining this by differences about the Indo-US nuclear deal and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement in particular.[23]
In West Bengal and Tripura it participates in the Left Front. In Kerala the party is part of the Left Democratic Front. In Tamil Nadu it was part of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). However, it has since withdrawn support.
Its members in Great Britain are in the electoral front Unity for Peace and Socialism with the Communist Party of Britain and the British domiciled sections of the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). It is standing 13 candidates in the London-wide list section of the London Assembly elections in May 2008.[24]
[edit]The structure
- The Politburo (PB)
- The Central Committee (CC)
- State Committees
- District Committees
[edit]Membership
As of 2004, the party claimed a membership of 867 763.[25]
State 2001 2002 2003 2004 % of party
members in
electorate Andhra Pradesh 40785 41879 45516 46742 0.0914 Assam 10480 11207 11122 10901 0.0726 Andaman & Nicobar 172 140 124 90 0.0372 Bihar 17672 17469 16924 17353 0.0343 Chhattisgarh 1211 1364 1079 1054 0.0077 Delhi 1162 1360 1417 1408 0.0161 Goa 172 35 40 67 0.0071 Gujarat 2799 3214 3383 3398 0.0101 Haryana 1357 1478 1477 1608 0.0131 Himachal Pradesh 1005 1006 1014 1024 0.0245 Jammu & Kashmir 625 720 830 850 0.0133 Jharkhand 2552 2819 3097 3292 0.0200 Karnataka 6574 7216 6893 6492 0.0168 Kerala 301562 313652 318969 316305 1.4973 Madhya Pradesh 2243 2862 2488 2320 0.0060 Maharashtra 8545 9080 9796 10256 0.0163 Manipur 340 330 270 300 0.0195 Orissa 3091 3425 3502 3658 0.0143 Punjab 14328 11000 11000 10050 0.0586 Rajasthan 2602 3200 3507 3120 0.0090 Sikkim 200 180 65 75 0.0266 Tamil Nadu 86868 90777 91709 94343 0.1970 Tripura 38737 41588 46277 51343 2.5954 Uttaranchal 700 720 740 829 0.0149 Uttar Pradesh 5169 5541 5477 5877 0.0053 West Bengal 245026 262882 258682 274921 0.579 CC staff 96 95 95 87 Total 796073 835239 843896 867763 0.1292
[edit]Leadership
The current general secretary of CPI(M) is Prakash Karat. The 19th party congress of CPI(M), held in CoimbatoreMarch 29-April 3, 2008 elected a Central Committee with 87 members. The Central Committee later elected a 15-member Politburo:
- Prakash Karat
- Sitaram Yechury
- S. Ramachandran Pillai
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
- Manik Sarkar
- M.K. Pandhe
- Biman Bose
- Pinarayi Vijayan
- K. Varadarajan
- B.V. Raghavulu
- Brinda Karat
- Nirupam Sen
- Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
- Mohammad Amin
The senior most member, V.S. Achuthanandan was removed from the Polit Bureau on July 12, 2009.
The 19th congress saw the departure of the last two members of the Polit Bureau who had been on the original Polit Bureau in 1964, Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu.[26]
[edit]State Committee secretaries
- Andaman & Nicobar: K.G. Das
- Andhra Pradesh: B.V. Raghavulu
- Assam: Uddhab Barman
- Bihar: Vijaykant Thakur
- Chattisgarh: M.K. Nandi
- Delhi: P.M.S. Grewal
- Goa: Thaelman Perera
- Haryana: Inderjit Singh
- Jharkhand: J.S. Majumdar
- Karnataka: V.J.K. Nair
- Kerala : Pinarayi Vijayan
- Madhya Pradesh: Badal Saroj
- Maharashtra: Ashok Dhawale
- Orissa: Janardan Pati
- Punjab: Charan Singh Virdi(Acting)
- Rajasthan: Vasudev Sharma
- Sikkim: Balram Adhikari
- Tamil Nadu: G.Ramakrishnan
- Tripura: Baidyanath Majumdar
- Uttaranchal: Vijai Rawat
- Uttar Pradesh: S.P. Kashyap
- West Bengal: Biman Bose[27]
[edit]The principal mass organizations of CPI(M)
- Democratic Youth Federation of India
- Students Federation of India
- Centre of Indian Trade Unions class organisation
- All India Kisan Sabha peasants' organization
- All India Agricultural Workers Union
- All India Democratic Women's Association
- Bank Employees Federation of India
- All India Lawyers Union
In Tripura, the Ganamukti Parishad is a major mass organization amongst the tribal peoples of the state. In Kerala the Adivasi Kshema Samithi, a tribal organisation is controlled by CPI(M).
This apart, on the cultural front as many as 12 major organisations are led by CPI(M).
[edit]Party publications
From the Centre, two weekly newspapers are published, People's Democracy (English) and Lok Lehar (Hindi). The central theoretical organ of the party is The Marxist, published quarterly in English.
[edit]Daily newspapers
- Ganashakti (West Bengal, Bengali)
- Deshabhimani (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Daily Desher Katha (Tripura, Bengali)
- Theekathir (Tamil Nadu, Tamil)
- Prajasakti (Andhra Pradesh, Telugu)
[edit]Weeklies
- Abshar (West Bengal, Urdu)
- Swadhintha (West Bengal, Hindi)
- Desh Hiteshi (Bengali)
- Janashakthi (Karnataka, Kannada)[28]
- Jeevan Marg (Maharashtra, Marathi)
- Samyabadi (Orissa, Oriya)
- Deshabhimani Vaarika. (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Ganashakti (Assamese, Assam)
[edit]Fortnightlies
- Lok Jatan (Madhya Pradesh, Hindi)
- Lok Samvad (Uttar Pradesh, Hindi)
- Sarfarosh Chintan (Gujarat, Gujarati)
[edit]Monthlies
- Samajik Nayaya Saamachar (hindi and english )
- Yeh Naya Raste (Jammu & Kashmir, Urdu)
- Lok Lahar (Punjabi)
- Nandan (Bengali)
- Marxist (Tamil language)
[edit]Theoretical publications
[edit]Publishing houses
- Leftword Publication
- CPI(M) Publication
- National Book Agency (West Bengal)
- Chinta Publication (Kerala)
- Prajasakti Book House (Andhra Pradesh)
- Deshabhimani Book House (Kerala)
- Natun Sahitya Parishad (Assam)
[edit]State governments
As of 2011, CPI(M) heads the state government in Tripura. Manik Sarkar is a chief minister belonging to the party. In Tripura, the party has a majority of its own in the state assemblies, but governs together with Left Front partners.
[edit]Splits and offshoots
Main article: Various Communist/Leftist Parties in India A large number of parties have been formed as a result of splits from the CPI(M), such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist),Marxist Communist Party of India, Marxist Coordination Committee in Jharkhand, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy, Communist Marxist Party and BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Vedi in Kerala, Party of Democratic Socialism in West Bengal, Janganotantrik Morcha in Tripura, theRam Pasla group in Punjab, Orissa Communist Party in Orissa, etc.
[edit]Elections
Main article: CPI(M) election results [edit]Lok-Sabha Elections
[edit]1967 General Election
1967 CPI(M) election results (seats won / seats contested / seats total / votes / % of total vote) Lok Sabha: 19 / 59 / 520 / 6246522 / 4.28% Elections to State Legislative Assemblies: Andhra Pradesh 9 / 83 / 287 / 1053855 / 7.61% Assam 0 / 14 / 126 / 61165 / 1.97% Bihar 4 / 32 / 318 / 173656 / 1.28% Haryana 0 / 8 / 81 / 16379 / 0.54% Himachal Pradesh 0 / 6 / 60 / 3019 / 0.39% Kerala 52 / 59 / 133 / 1476456 / 23.51% Madhya Pradesh 0 / 9 / 296 / 20728 / 0.23% Maharashtra 1 / 11 / 270 / 145083 / 1.08% Manipur 0 / 5 / 30 / 2093 / 0.67% Mysore 1 / 10 / 216 / 82531 / 1.10% Orissa 1 / 10 / 140 / 46597 / 1.16% Punjab 3 / 13 / 104 / 138857 / 3.26% Rajasthan 0 / 22 / 184 / 79826 / 1.18% Tamil Nadu 11 / 22 / 234 / 623114 / 4.07% Tripura 2 / 16 / 30 / 93739 / 21.61% Uttar Pradesh 1 / 57 / 425 / 272565 / 1.27% West Bengal 43 / 135 / 280 / 2293026 / 18.11%
In the 1967 Lok Sabha elections CPI(M) nominated 59 candidates. In total 19 of them were elected. The party received 6.2 million votes (4.28% of the nationwide vote). By comparison, CPI won 23 seats and got 5.11% of the nation-wide vote. In the state legistative elections held simultaneously, the CPI(M) emerged as a major party in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala a United Front government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad was formed.[29] In West Bengal, CPI(M) was the main force behind theUnited Front government formed. The Chief Ministership was given to Ajoy Mukherjeeof the Bangla Congress (a regional splinter-group of the Indian National Congress).
[edit]1971 General Election
With the backdrop of the Bangladesh War and the emerging role of Indira Gandhi as a populist national leader, the 1971 election to the Lok Sabha was held. CPI(M) contested 85 seats, and won in 25. In total the party mustered 7510089 votes (5.12% of the national vote). 20 of the seats came from West Bengal (including Somnath Chatterjee, elected from Burdwan), 2 from Kerala (including A.K. Gopalan, elected from Trichur), 2 from Tripura (Biren Dutta and Dasarath Deb) and 1 from Andhra Pradesh.[30]
In the same year, state legislative elections were held in three states; West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. In West Bengal CPI(M) had 241 candidates, winning 113 seats. In total the party mustered 4241557 votes (32.86% of the state-wide vote). In Tamil Nadu CPI(M) contested 37 seats, but drew blank. The party got 259298 votes (1.65% of the state-wide vote). In Orissa the party contested 11 seats, and won in two. The CPI(M) vote in the state was 52785 (1.2% of the state-wide vote).[31]
[edit]1977 General Elections
In the 1977 Loksabha elections the CPM had fielded its candidtaes on 53 seats scattred around in 14 states and union terretories of India. It won 4.29% of the average votes polled in this election. The party had won 17 seats from West Bengal, 3 from Maharashtra and one each from Orrissa and Punjab. This election was done shortly after the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi and reflected a wide uproar of masses against her draconian rule. An coalition of Opposition parties was formed against the Congress regime, CPI(M) too supported this coalition by not fielding its candidates against the Janta Party.[32]
[edit]1980 General Elections
Janta Party coalition didnot last much and two years after since its formation India had faced the 1980's Loksabha Elections. This election had saw an increase in the vote percentage of CPI(M) and the party had bagged more seats then the previous elections. The Party had contested elections in the 15 states and union terretories of India, and fielded its candidates on 64 seats. The party had successfully won 37 seats in total. It has one 28 seats in West Bengal, 7 in Kerala, and 2 seats in Tripura. The party emerged out as the whole sole representative of the people of Tripura in this election.[33]
[edit]State Assembly Elections
[edit]1970s, 1980s, 1990s
This section requires expansion.
In the 1977 election, the CPI(M) gained the majority in the Legislative Assembly of the State ofWest Bengal, defeating the Congress (I). Jyoti Basu became the chief minister of West Bengal, an office he held until his retirement in 2000. The CPI(M) held the majority in the West Bengal government continuously since 1977, which ended in 2011 election.The party also won in Tripura winning 49 of the 60 seats. It has 3 MLAs in Rajasthan assembly. In Bihar it has an alliance with CPI(ML)L and CPI, it has 1 seat in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu it has worked for Dalit causes.
[edit]Presidential Elections
[edit]2002 Presidential Elections
In the 2002 Presidential elections, Left Front has announced Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as their Presidential Candidate. Against her was the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Candidate APJ Abdul Kalam.[34] CPIM's Leadership has announced that in form of Captain Lakshmi, they are fielding an 'Alternative Candidate'. They said that though it is clear that Captain Lakshmi cant be the President of India because of the opposition of BJP led NDA and Indian National Congress to her, but through this Presidential Election Left wants to raise key national issues, and make them heard to the masses.[35] Captain Lakshmi herself had pointed out that this Presidential election reflects the opposition of the Indian Left to the Communal-Secreterian Politics of BJP and solidarity with the religious minorities who have suffered a lot under the National Democratic Alliance's leadership.[36]
Captain Lakshmi Sehgal was an Indian Freedom Fighter, who had served as a Commander in the Indian National Army of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
[edit]2011 Assembly Elections
This section requires expansion.
The CPI(M) led coalitions lost the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala, CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front coalition with 68 seats lost to Indian National Congress led United Democratic Front's 72 seats in a neck to neck fought assembly elections. In West Bengal, CPI(M) alliance with 62 seats suffered a setback after 34 years of continuous rule, losing to Trinamool Congress alliance's 226 seats. Its Chief Minister candidate who is also an incumbent Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also lost from his Jadavpur assembly constituency.[37]
[edit]See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Communist Ghadar Party of India
- List of political parties in India
- Politics of India
- List of Communist Parties
- Election Results of Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Co-ordinating Committee of Communist Parties in Britain
- List of Communist Parties in India
[edit]References
- ^ a b http://cpim.org/content/pr-dasmunshis-statement
- ^ "Political-Organizational Report adopted at the XIXth Congress of the CPI(M) held in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, March 29-April 23, 2008".
- ^ The bulk of the detainees came from the leftwing of CPI. However, cadres of the Socialist Unity Centre of India and theWorkers Party of India were also targeted.[1]
- ^ The 32 were P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, T. Nagi Reddy,M. Hanumantha Rao, D.V. Rao, N. Prasad Rao, G. Bapanayya,E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, A.V. Kunhambu, C.H. Kanaran, E.K. Nayanar, V.S. Achuthanandan Removed, E.K. Imbichibava, Promode Das Gupta, Muzaffar Ahmad, Jyoti Basu,Abdul Halim, Hare Krishna Konar, Saroj Mukherjee, P. Ramamurthi, M.R. Venkataraman, N. Sankariah, K. Ramani,Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri, D.S. Tapiala, Dr.Bhag Singh, Sheo Kumar Mishra, R.N. Upadhyaya, Mohan Punamiya and R.P. Saraf. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 37.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 51.
- ^ Suniti Kumar Ghosh was a member of the group that presented this alternative draft proposal. His grouping was one of several left tendencies in the Bengali party branch. Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 32.
- ^ Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 52-54.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 54.
- ^ Basu, Jyoti. Memoirs - A Political Autobiography. Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1999. p. 189.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and U./nited Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 17-18
- ^ The jailed members of the new CC, at the time of the Calcutta Congress, were B.T. Ranadive, Muzaffar Ahmed, Hare Krishna Konar and Promode Das Gupta. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 44-5.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and United Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 234-235.
- ^ According to Basu (in Basu, Pradip; Towards Naxalbari (1953–67) : An Account Of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000.) there were two nuclei of radicals in the party organisation in West Bengal. One "theorist" section around Parimal Das Gupta in Calcutta, which wanted to persuade the party leadership to correct revisionist mistakes through inner-party debate, and one "actionist" section led by Charu Majumdarand Kanu Sanyal in North Bengal. The 'actionists' were impatient, and strived to organize armed uprisings. According to Basu, due to the prevailing political climate of youth and student rebellion it was the 'actionists' which came to dominate the new Maoist movement in India, instead of the more theoretically advanced sections. This dichotomy is however rebuffed by followers of the radical stream, for example the CPI(ML) Liberation.
- ^ On July 1 People's Daily carried an article titled Spring Thunder Over India, expressing the support of CPC to the Naxalbari rebels. At its meeting in Madurai on August 18–27, 1967, the Central Committee of CPI(M) adopted a resolution titled 'Resolution on Divergent Views Between Our Party and the Communist Party of China on Certain Fundamental Issues of Programme and Policy'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 46.
- ^ This press statement was reproduced in full in the central CPI(M) publication, People's Democracy, on June 30. P. Sundarayya and M. Basavapunniah, acting on behalf of the Polit Bureau of CPI(M), formulated a response to the statement on June 16, titled 'Rebuff the Rebels, Uphold Party Unity'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 48.
- ^ Some perceive that the Chinese leadership severely misjudged the actual conditions of different Indian factions at the time, giving their full support to the Majumdar-Sanyal group whilst keeping the Andhra Pradesh radicals (that had a considerable mass following) at distance.
- ^ Dalits and land issues
- ^ Untitled-1
- ^ officialwebsite of kerala.gov.in
- ^ Indian National Congress had won 55 seats, Bangla Congress 33 and CPI 30. CPI(M) allies also won several seats.ECI: Statistical Report on the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 56-59
- ^ The same is also true for the Workers Party of Bangladesh, which was formed in 1980 when BCP(L) merged with other groups. Although politically close, WPB can be said to have a more Maoist-oriented profile than CPI(M).
- ^ article in The Hindu, 9 July 2008: Left meets President, hands over letter of withdrawal
- ^ Unity For Peace and Socialism homepage
- ^ Membership figures fromhttp://www.cpim.org/pd/2005/0403/04032005_membership.htm. Electorate numbers taken fromhttp://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_2004/Vol_I_LS_2004.pdf.Puducherry is counted as part of Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh counted as part of Punjab.
- ^ "Nine to none, founders' era ends in CPM", The Telegraph(Calcutta), April 3, 2008.
- ^ List of State Secretaries
- ^ Janashakti has replaced the previous CPI(M) organ in Karnataka,Ikyaranga
- ^ In Kerala the United Front consisted, at the time of the election, of Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Muslim League, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Karshaka Thozhilali Party and the Kerala Socialist Party.[2]
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Lok Sabha Election
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Orissa Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ 1977 general elections ECI Report
- ^ 1980 General Elections ECI Report
- ^ Story in The Hindu
- ^ Sitaram Yechury on 2002 Presidential Elections
- ^ Captain Lakshmi's Interview
- ^ http://www.ndtv.com/elections/index.php
[edit]External links
Communist parties
[edit]
- CPI(M) election website
- CPI(M) web site
- Leftword Books CPI(M) publishing house
- CPI(M) Kerala State Committee
- CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee
[edit]Party publications
- People's Democracy
- Daily Desher Katha
- Deshabhimani
- Ganashakti
- Lok Samvad
- Prajasakti
- Theekathir
- Janashakthi
[edit]Articles
- Search For Ways To Keep Marx Alive Opinion on party structure by Sumanta Sen. The Telegraph Calcutta, India. March 31, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005.
- Veteran Communists Honoured News article on Party history conference. The Hindu. April 6, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- All you wanted to know about CPI-M News article on CPI-M. Rediff News. April 8, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- An Upbeat Left by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan. Frontline Volume 22 - Issue 09, April 23 - May 6, 2005
[show]Political parties in India
Categories: Communist parties in India | Communist Party of India breakaway groups | Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Party Constitution
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the Party shall be Communist Party of India (Marxist).
ARTICLE II
AIM
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is the revolutionary vanguard of the working class of India. Its aim is socialism and communism through the establishment of the state of dictatorship of the proletariat. In all its activities the Party is guided by the philosophy and principles of Marxism-Leninism which shows to the toiling masses the correct way to the ending of exploitation of man by man, their complete emancipation. The Party keeps high the banner of proletarian internationalism.
ARTICLE III
Flag
The flag of the Party shall be a red flag of which the length shall be one-and-a half times its width. At the centre of the flag there shall be a crossed hammer and sickle in white.
ARTICLE IV
Membership
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Any person residing in India, eighteen years of age or above who accepts the Programme and Constitution of the Party, agrees to work in one of the Party organisations, to pay regularly the Party membership dues (fee and levy as may be prescribed) and to carry out decisions of the Party shall be eligible for Party membership.
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(a) New members are admitted to the Party through individual application on the recommendation of two Party members. Party members who recommend an applicant must furnish the Party Branch or the unit concerned, full information about the applicant from personal knowledge and with due sense of responsibility. The Party Branch shall make recommendation to the next higher committee, if the applicant is to be admitted. The next higher committee takes a decision on all recommendations.
(b) All Party committees higher to the Party Branch and up to the Central Committee level have the power to directly admit new members to the Party.
- (a) All applications for Party membership must be placed before the appropriate committee within a month of their presentation and recommendation.
(b) If the applicant is admitted to the Party, he or she shall be regarded as a candidate member for a period of one year commencing from the date of such admission.
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If a leading member from another political party of local, district or state level comes to the Party, in addition to the sanction of Local Party Committee or District or State Committee, it is necessary to have the sanction of the next higher committee of the Party before he or she is admitted to membership of the Party. In exceptional cases the Central Committee or the State Committee can admit such members to full membership of the Party. And whenever a State Committee admits such members it should obtain previous sanction from the Central Committee.
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Members once expelled from the Party can be re-admitted only by the decision of the Party Committee which confirmed their expulsion or by a higher committee.
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Candidate members have the same duties and rights as full members except that they have no right to elect or be elected, or to vote on any motion.
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The Party branch recommending or the Party committee admitting candidate members shall arrange for their elementary education on the Programme, Constitution and the current policies of the Party and observe their development, through providing for their functioning as members of a Party branch or unit.
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By the end of the period of candidature, the Party branch or Party committee concerned shall discuss whether the candidate member is qualified to full membership. If a candidate member is found unfit,the Party branch or committee shall cancel his or her candidate membership. A report on admission to full membership shall be regularly forwarded by the branch or the Party committee concerned to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee may, on scrutiny of the report, alter or modify any such decision after consultation with the branch or the Party committee which has submitted the report. The District and State Committee will exercise supervisory power over the recruitment of candidates and over admissions to full membership and have the right to modify or reject the decision of the lower committee in this respect.
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A Party member may transfer his or her membership from one unit to another, with the approval of his or her unit and by sending his or her application through his or her unit to the higher unit under whose jurisdiction the concerned units function.
ARTICLE V
Party Pledge
Every person joining the Party shall sign the Party Pledge. This Pledge shall be:
"I accept the aims and objectives of the Party and agree to abide by its Constitution and loyally to carry out decisions of the Party."
"I shall strive to live up to the ideals of communism and shall selflessly serve the working class and the toiling masses and the country, always placing the interests of the Party and the people above personal interests."
ARTICLE VI
Membership Records
All membership records shall be kept under the supervision of the District Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Check-up of Party Membership
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There shall be annual check-up of Party membership by the Party organisation to which the Party member belongs. Any Party member who for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues shall be dropped from Party membership.
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A report on check-up of Party membership by a Branch or a Party committee concerned shall be sent to the next higher committee for confirmation and registration.
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There shall be right of appeal on decisions of droppage from Party membership.
ARTICLE VIII
Resignation from Party membership
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A Party member wishing to resign from the Party shall summit his or her resignation to the Party branch or to the Party unit to which he or she belongs. The unit concerned may accept the same, decide to strike his or her name off the rolls and report the matter to the next higher committee. If the resignation is on political grounds the unit may refuse to accept the resignation and may expel him.
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In the case where a Party member wishing to resign from the Party is liable to be charged with serious violation of party discipline which may warrant his or her expulsion and where such a charge is substantial, the resignation may be given effect to as expulsion from the Party.
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All such cases of resignations given effect to as expulsion shall be immediately reported to the next higher Party committee and be subject to the latter's confirmation.
ARTICLE IX
Membership Fee
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All Party members as well as candidates shall pay a Party membership fee of rupees two per year. This annual Party fee shall be paid at the time of admission into the Party and by March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned. If he or she does not clear the fee in due time his or her name shall be removed from the Party rolls. The Central Committee may extend this date if the circumstances warrant such extension.
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All Party fees collected from Party members by Party branches or units will be deposited with the Central Committee through the appropriate Party committees.
ARTICLE X
Party Levy
Every Party member must pay a monthly levy as laid down by the Central Committee. Those whose incomes are of annual or of seasonal character have to pay their levy at the beginning of the season or at the beginning of every quarter on the same percentage basis. If a member has failed to deposit his levy within three months after it is due, then his name is to be removed from the Party rolls.
ARTICLE XI
Duties of Party Members
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The duties of the Party members are as follows:
(a) To regularly participate in the activity of the Party organisation to which they belong and to faithfully carry out the policy, decisions and the directives of the Party;
(b) To study Marxism-Leninism and endeavour to raise their level of understanding;
(c) To read, support and popularise the Party journals and Party publications;
(d) To observe the Party Constitution and Party discipline and behave in the spirit of proletarian internationalism and in accordance with the noble ideals of communism;
(e) To place the interests of the people and the Party above personal interests;
(f) To devotedly serve the masses and consistently strengthen their bonds with them, to learn from the masses and report their opinions and demands to the Party, to work in a mass organisation, unless exempted, under the guidance of the Party.
(g) To cultivate comradely relations towards one another the constantly develop a fraternal spirit within the Party;
(h) To practice criticism an self-criticism with a view to helping each other and improving individual and collective work;
(i) To be frank, honest and truthful to the Party and not to betray the confidence of the Party;
(j) To safeguard the unity and solidarity of the Party and to be vigilant against the enemies of the working class and the country;
(k) To defend the Party and uphold its cause against the onslaught of the enemies of the Party, the working class and the country.
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It shall be the task of the Party organisation to ensure the fulfillment of the above duties by Party members and help them in every possible way in the discharge of these duties.
ARTICLE XII
Rights of Party Members
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Rights of the Party members are as following:
(a) To elect Party organs and Party committees and be elected to them;
(b) To participate in discussion in order to contribute to the formation of the Party policy and of the decisions of the Party;
(c) To make proposals regarding one's own work in the Party;
(d) To make criticism about Party committees and Party functionaries at Party meetings;
(e) To be heard in person in his or her unit when a Party unit discusses disciplinary action against him or her;
(f) When any Party member disagrees with any decision of a Party committee on organization he or she has a right to submit his or her opinion to the next higher committee. In case of political difference a member has the right to submit his or her opinion to the higher committee up to the Central Committee. In all such cases the Party member shall, of course, carry out the Party decisions and the difference shall be sought to be resolved through the test of practice and through comradely discussions;
(g) To address any statement, appeal or complaint to any higher Party organisation up to and including the Central Committee.
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It shall be the duty of Party organisations and Party functionaries to see that these rights are respected
ARTICLE XIII
Principles of Democratic Centralism
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The structure of the Party is based on, and its internal life is guided by, the principles of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism means centralised leadership based on inner-Party democracy under the guidance of the centralised leadership.
In the sphere of the Party structure, the guiding principles of democratic centralism are:
(a) All Party organs from top to bottom shall be elected;
(b) The minority shall carry out the decisions of the majority; the lower Party organisations shall carry out the decision and directives of the higher Party organs, the individual shall subordinate himself to the will of the collective. All Party organisations shall carry out the decisions and directives of the Party Congress and of the Central Committee;
(c) All Party committees shall periodically report their work to the Party organisation immediately below and all lower committees shall likewise report to their immediate higher committee;
(d) All Party committees, particularly the leading Party committees, shall pay constant heed to the opinions and criticism of the lower Party organisations and the rank-and-file Party members;
(e) All Party committees shall function strictly on the principles of collective decisions and check-up combined with individual responsibility;
(f) All questions of international affairs, questions of all-India character, or questions concerning more than one state or questions requiring uniform decisions for the whole country, shall be decided upon by the all-India Party organisations. All questions of a state or district character shall be ordinarily decided upon by the corresponding Party organisations. But in no case shall such decisions run counter to the decisions of a higher Party organisation. When the Central Party leadership has to take a decision on any issue of major state importance, it shall do so normally after consultation with the state Party organisation concerned. The state organisation shall do likewise in relation to districts;
(g) On issues which affect the policy of the Party on an all-India scale, but on which the Party's standpoint is to be expressed for the first time, only the Central leadership of the Party is entitled to make a policy statement. The lower committees can and should send their opinions and suggestions in time for consideration by the Central leadership.
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Basing itself upon the experience of the entire Party membership and of the popular movement, in the sphere of the internal life of the Party, the following principles of democratic centralism are applied:
(a) Free and frank discussion within the Party unit on all questions affecting the Party, its policy and work;
(b) Sustained efforts to activise the Party members in popularising and implementing the Party policies, to raise their ideological-political level and improve their general education so that they can effectively participate in the life and work of the Party;
(c) When serious differences arise in a Party committee, every effort should be made to arrive at an agreement. Failing this, the decision should be postponed with a view to resolving differences through further discussions, unless an immediate decision is called for by the needs of the Party and the mass movement;
(d) Encouragement of criticism and self-criticism at all levels, from top to bottom, especially criticism from below;
(e) Consistent struggles against bureaucratic tendencies at all levels;
(f) Impermissibility of factionalism and factional groupings inside the Party in any form;
(g) Strengthening of the Party spirit by developing fraternal relations and mutual help, correcting mistakes by treating comrades sympathetically; judging them and their work not on the basis of isolated mistakes or incidents, but taking into account their whole record of service to the Party.
ARTICLE XIV
All-India Party Congress
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The supreme organ of the Party for the whole country shall be the All-India Party Congress.
(a) The regular Party Congress shall be convened by the Central Committee ordinarily once every three years.
(b) An Extraordinary Party Congress shall be called by the Central Committee at its own discretion, or when it is demanded by two or more State Committees representing not less than one-third of the total Party membership.
(c) The date and venue of the Party Congress or of the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee at a meeting especially called for the purpose.
(d) Regular Party Congress shall be composed of delegates elected by the State Conferences as well as by Conferences of Party units directly under the all-India Party Centre.
(e) The basis of representation at a regular Party Congress and the basis of representation and method of election of delegates to the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee on the basis of total Party membership, strength of the mass movements led by the Party, strength of the Party in the respective States.
(f) The members of the Central Committee shall have the right to participate as full delegates in the Party Congress, whether regular or extraordinary.
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Functions and powers of the regular Party Congress are as follows:
(a) To discuss and act on the political and organisational report of the Central Committee;
(b) To revise and change the Party Programme and the Party Constitution.
(c) To determine the Party line on current situation;
(d) To elect the Central Committee by secret ballot.
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It elects a Credentials Committee which goes into the credentials of all the delegates and submits a report to the Congress.
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The Congress shall elect a Presidium for the conduct of its business.
ARTICLE XV
Central Committee
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(a) The Central Committee shall be elected at the Party Congress, the numbers being decided by the Party Congress.
(b) The outgoing Central Committee shall propose to the Congress a panel of candidates.
(c) The panel of candidates shall be prepared with a view to creating a capable leadership, closely linked with the masses, firm in the revolutionary outlook of the working class and educated in Marxism-Leninism.
(d) Any delegate can raise objection with regard to any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, but the prior approval of the member whose name is proposed is necessary.
(e) Any one whose name has been proposed shall have the right to withdraw.
(f) The panel proposed, together with the additional nominations by the delegates, shall be voted upon by secret ballot, and by the method of single distributive vote. In case there is no additional nomination, approval of the delegates will be taken by show of hands.
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The Central Committee shall be the highest authority of the Party between two all-India Party Congress.
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It is responsible for enforcing the Party Constitution and carrying out the political line and decisions adopted by the Party Congress.
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The Central Committee shall represent the Party as a whole and be responsible for directing the entire work of the Party. The Central Committee shall have the right to take decisions with full authority on any question facing the Party.
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The Central Committee shall elect from among it members a Polit Bureau including the General Secretary. The number of members in the Polit Bureau shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Polit Bureau carries on the work of the Central Committee between its two sessions and has the right to take political and organisational decisions in between two meetings of the Central Committee.
(a) The Central Committee shall elect a Secretariat from among its members. The number of members of the Secretariat shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Secretariat will, under the guidance of the Polit Bureau, look after the day-to-day work of the Party Centre and assist the Polit Bureau in the implementation of Central Committee decisions.
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The election of the secretaries of the State Committees and of editors of state Party organs shall require the approval of the Central Committee.
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(a) The Central Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-Party activity by two-thirds of the members present and voting and in any case by more than half the total strength of the Central Committee voting for such removal.
b) It can fill up any vacancy occurring in its composition by simple majority of its total members.
(c) In case member or members of the Central Committee are arrested the remaining members can coopt substitute member or members and they shall have full right as the original members but should vacate their places as the arrested members get released and assume their duties.
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The time between two meetings of the Central Committee shall not normally exceed three months and it shall meet whenever one third of its total members make a requisition.
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The Central Committee shall discuss and decide political and organisational issues and problems of mass movements and guide the State Committees and all-India Party fractions in mass organisations.
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The Central Committee is responsible for the Party finances and adopts the statement of accounts submitted to it by the Polit Bureau once a year.
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The Central Committee shall submit its political and organisational report before the Party Congress, whenever it is convened.
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With the aim of strengthening the revolutionary leadership of the Party and ensuring a check-up over the State and district organisations, the Central Committee sends representatives and organisers, who must work on the basis of special instructions laid down every time by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau.
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The Central Committee may when it deems necessary convene an extended session of the Central Committee, or Plenum or Conference. The Central Committee shall decide the basis of attendance and method of election of delegates for such bodies.
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In case of emergency or in case of large-scale arrests, the Central Committee, the State Committees, and the District Committees shall be reorganised into smaller compact bodies. The names for such reorganisation of Central Committee are prepared by the remaining members of the P.B. and should be approved by the members of the Central Committee inside and outside. The names for the reorganisation of State and District Committees are prepared by the remaining members of the respective committees and are to be approved by their next higher committee. They can form sub-committees as they deem it necessary, to discharge their functions and responsibilities. The reconstituted Central Committee is empowered to frame new rules for safeguarding the Party organisation. But when the situation normalises the elected Committees are restored.
ARTICLE XVI
State and District Party Organs
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The highest organ in the State or District shall be the State or the District Conference which elects a State or District Committee.
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(a) The organisational structure, the rights and functions of the State or District Party organs are similar to those enumerated in the articles concerning the Party structure and functions at the all-India level, their functions being confined to the State or district issues and their decisions being within the limit of the decisions taken by the next higher Party organ. In case it becomes necessary to increase the number of members of these Party Committees they can do so with the permission of the next higher committee.
(b) The State or District Committee shall elect a Secretariat including the secretary. But the State or District Committee may not have a Secretariat if permitted by the next higher committee.
(c) The State or District Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-party activity by a decision of majority of the total members of the State Committee or District Committee.
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(a) The State Committee shall decide on the area of the District Committee taking into account the needs of the movement. It may not necessarily be confined to administrative division.
(b) The State Committee shall decided on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XVII
Primary Unit
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(a) The primary unit of the Party is the Party Branch organised on the basis of profession or territory;
(b) Party members are to be organised on the basis of their occupation or vocation, when they are working in a factory or an institute or any industry. When such Branches are organised the members of such Branches shall be associate members of the Party branches in place of their residence or organised as auxiliary Branches there. The work to be allotted in their place of residence shall not be detrimental to the work allotted to them by their basic units in the factory or institute or occupation;
(c) The number of members in a Branch shall not be more than fifteen. The functions and other matters related to the Branch will be determined by the State Committee.
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The Branch is the living link between the masses of workers, peasants and other sections of the people within its area or sphere and the leading committee of Party. Its tasks are:
(a) To carry out the directives of the higher committee;
(b) Win the masses in the factory or locality for the political and organisational decisions of the Party;
(c) Draw in militants and sympathisers into activity to enroll them as new members and educate them politically;
(d) Help the district, local or town committee in its every day organisational and agitational work.
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To carry out the current work, the Branch elects its Secretary who is confirmed by the next higher committee.
ARTICLE XVIII
Central and State Control Commission
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The Party Congress shall directly elect a Central Control Commission consisting of not more than five members. The Chairperson of the Central Control Commission will be an ex-officio member of the Central Committee.
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The Control Commission shall take up:
(a) Cases of disciplinary action referred to it by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau;
(b) Cases of appeal where disciplinary action has been taken by the State Committee.
(c) Cases involving expulsion, suspension from full Party membership and decisions of droppage from Party membership against which an appeal has been made to the State Committee or to the State Control Commission and rejected.
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The decision of the Central Control Commission will be final and binding.
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The detailed rules for the functioning of the Control Commission shall be framed by the Central Committee after consultation with the Control Commission.
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In the eventually of a vacancy arising in the Central Control Commission between two party Congresses, the Central Committee shall have the right to fill the vacancy.
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The State Conference may elect a State Control Commission to go into the cases of disciplinary action. In whichever State the State Control Commission is set up, the functions and authority will be similar to that of the Central Control Commission, but within its own State.
ARTICLE XIX
Party Discipline
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Discipline is indispensable for preserving and strengthening the unity of the Party, for enhancing its strength, its fighting ability and its prestige, and for enforcing the principles of democratic centralism. Without strict adherence to Party discipline, the Party cannot lead the masses in struggles and actions, nor discharge its responsibility towards them.
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Discipline is based on conscious acceptance of the aims, the Programme and the policies of the Party. All members of the Party are equally bound by Party discipline irrespective of their status in the Party organisation or in public life.
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Violation of the Party Constitution and decisions of the Party as well as any other action and behaviour unworthy of a member of the Communist Party shall constitute a breach of Party discipline and is liable to disciplinary action.
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The disciplinary actions are :
(a) Warning;
(b) Censure;
(c) Public censure;
(d) Removal from the post in the Party;
(e) Suspension from full Party membership for any period but not exceeding one year;
(f) Expulsion.
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Disciplinary action shall normally be taken where other methods, including methods of persuasion, have failed to correct the comrade concerned. But even where disciplinary measure has been taken, the efforts to help the comrade to correct himself shall continue. In case where the breach of discipline is such that it warrants an immediate disciplinary measure to protect the interests of Party or its prestige, the disciplinary action shall be taken promptly.
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Expulsion from the Party is the severest of all disciplinary measures and this shall be applied with utmost caution, deliberation and judgement.
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No disciplinary measure involving removal from the post held in the Party, suspension from full Party membership other than suspension pending enquiry, expulsion from the Party, shall come into effect without confirmation by the next higher committee. In case of expulsion the penalised Party member shall be removed from all Party activities pending confirmation. The expelled member stands suspended from the Party till the expulsion is confirmed by the next higher committee. The higher committee will have to communicate its decision with six months.
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The comrade against whom a disciplinary measure is proposed shall be fully informed of the allegations, charges and other relevant facts against him or her. He or she shall have the right to be heard in person by the Party unit to which he or she belongs and shall have the right to submit his or her explanation to any other unit which takes action against him or her.
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When a member is simultaneously a member of two Party units, the lower unit can recommend disciplinary action against him or her but it shall not come into operation unless accepted by his or her higher unit.
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Party members found to be strike-breakers, drunkards, moral degenerates, betrayers of Party confidence, guilty of grave financial corruption can be summarily suspended from Party membership and removed from all responsible positions in the Party by the Party unit to which he belongs or by a higher Party body pending the issue of the charge-sheet to him and getting his explanation. This summary suspension and removal from all responsible positions in the Party cannot be extended for a period of more than three months.
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There shall be right of appeal in all cases of disciplinary action.
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The Central, State or District Committee has the right to dissolve and appoint new committees or take disciplinary action against a lower committee in cases where a persistent defiance of Party decisions and policy, serious factionalism, or a break of Party discipline is involved. But the State and District Committee will immediately report such action to the next higher committee for whatever action it deems necessary.
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In exceptional circumstances Party Committees in their discretion may resort to summary procedure in expelling members for grave anti-Party activities.
ARTICLE XX
Party Members in Elected Public Bodies
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Party members elected to Parliament, State Legislature or Administrative Council shall constitute themselves into a Party group and function under the appropriate Party Committee in strict conformity with the line of the Party, its policies and directives.
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The communist legislators shall unswervingly defend the interests of the people. Their work in the legislature shall reflect the movement and they shall uphold and popularize the policies of the Party.
The legislative work of the communist legislators shall be closely combined with the activity of the Party outside and mass movements and it shall be the duty of all communist legislators to help build the Party and mass organisations.
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The communist legislators shall maintain the closest possible contact with their electors and masses, keeping them duly informed of their legislative work and constantly seeking their suggestions and advice.
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The communist legislators shall maintain a high standard of personal integrity, lead an unostentatious life and display humility in all their dealings and contact with the people and place the Party above self.
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Salaries and allowances drawn by communist legislators and local body members are considered to be Party money. The Party Committee concerned shall fix up the wages and allowances of the members.
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Party members elected to local bodies such as corporations, municipalities, town or area committees, zilla parishads, block samities, gram panchayats shall function under the appropriate Party Committee or Party Branch. They shall maintain close day-to-day contacts with their electors and the masses and defend their interests in such elected bodies. They shall make regular reports on their work to the electors and the people and seek their suggestions and advice. The work in such local bodies shall be combined with intense mass activity outside.
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All nomination of Party candidates for election to Parliament, Legislatures or Councils or Centrally Administered areas shall be subject to approval by the Central Committee.
Rules governing the nomination of Party candidates for corporation, municipalities, district boards, local boards and panchayats shall be drawn up by the State Committees.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
ARTICLE XXI
Inner-Party Discussions
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To unify the Party, free and businesslike discussions of Party policy in the various organisations of the Party as a whole are useful and necessary. This is the inalienable right of Party members arising from inner-Party democracy. But interminable discussions on issues of Party policy which paralyse the unity and will of action of the Party would be a gross misuse of inner-Party democracy.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be organised on all-India scale by the Central Committee:
(a) Whenever it considers it necessary;
(b) Whenever over an important question of Party policy there is not sufficient firm majority inside the Central Committee.
(c) When an inner-Party discussion on all-India scale is demanded by State Committees representing one-third of total Party membership.
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A State Committee can initiate inner-Party discussion on an important question of Party policy concerning that particular State, either on its own, or on a demand of District Committees representing one-third Party membership in the State with the approval of the Central Committee.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be conducted under the guidance of the Central Committee which shall formulate the issues under discussion. The Central Committee which guides the discussion shall lay down the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted.
When the State Committee initiates the discussion, it can formulate the issues under discussion and the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted, with the approval of the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXII
Discussion Preparatory to Party Congress And Conferences
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Two months before the Party Congress, the Central Committee will release draft resolution for discussion by all units of the Party. It is obligatory on the part of the State Committees to render it into respective languages and forward to all Branch Committees the required number of copies in the shortest possible time after its release by the Central Committee Amendments to the resolution will be sent directly to the Central Committee which will place its report on them before the Party Congress.
- At each level, the Conference shall take place on the basis of reports and resolutions submitted by the respective Committees.
ARTICLE XXIII
Party Members Working in Mass Organisations
Party members working in mass organisations and their executives shall organise themselves into fractions or fraction committees and function under the guidance of the appropriate Party Committee, They must always strive to strengthen the unity, mass basis and fighting capacity of the mass organisations concerned.
ARTICLE XXIV
Bye-Laws
The Central Committee may frame rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it. Rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it may also be framed by the State Committees subject to confirmation by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXV
Amendment
The Party Constitution shall be amended only by the Party Congress. The notice of proposals for amending the Constitution shall be given two months before the said Party Congress.
RULES UNDER PARTY CONSTITUTION
(Adopted by the Central Committee in its Meeting on April 8-10, 1988)
Under Article IV, Section 10:
Membership
Regarding Transfer of Member from one unit to another or from one state to another:
(Explanation: Though in practice all transfers from one State to another are done by the CC, the particulars mentioned generally are inadequate. Therefore when a State asks the Centre to transfer a comrade to another State, it must specify the following so that a proper record is kept of each Party member at each level. The same would apply to transfers within the State.)
Rules : Transfer of Membership
The following particulars must be supplied along with the letter of transfer:
Name of comrade :
Age :
Year of joining the Party :
Unit to which he/she belonged :
Mass organisation in which he/she worked :
Levy amount per month and paid up to :
Any record of disciplinary action :
State from which he/she is to be transferred :
State to which he/she is to be transferred :
Year of renewal of Party membership :
Address where he/she can be contacted :
Auxiliary Groups:
(Explanation: The Salkia Plenum has directed that militants thrown up through mass struggles should be put into auxiliary groups, trained and educated so that they can be recruited as Party members. For this provision is to be made in the rules.)
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Party units should take steps to organise active participants and militants thrown up in the course of mass movements and from the mass organisations into auxiliary groups which are groupings of broad sympathizers.
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Party Committees should arrange for the education and training of such auxiliary group members about the Party Programme and basic policies, so as to equip them in a reasonable period of time to be capable of joining the Party as candidate members.
Under Article VI
Party Membership Records
Rule: The Constitution provides for the membership records to be kept under the supervision of the District Committee. While the final authority for veracity of the records and its authenticated copy will be the DC, the maintenance of records can be delegated to the intermediate/local committee in a State, if so decided by the State Committee concerned.
Under Article VII
Check-up of Party Membership
(Explanation: Clause (1) states that a Party member may be dropped from membership who "for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues". This is to safeguard against arbitrary droppages without the due reasons stated in the Constitution. Some specific rules are required on the procedure to be adopted.)
Rules
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The unit concerned which wishes to drop a member must do so after giving the member a chance to explain his or her position. The branch must convey the decision to drop the member in writing to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee, when confirming and registering the membership, must examine the list of droppages and give its specific opinion on the same.
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The committee concerned must submit a renewal report to the next higher committee giving details of the Party membership enrolment, droppages, transfers and composition of the membership.
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For renewal of Party membership there should be a renewal form to be filled up by the member concerned every year which includes basic data such as age, year of joining the Party, income and front in which working.
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The receipt for the membership fee has to be given to the member concerned.
Under Article IX
Membership Fee
Renewals: (Explanation: Article IX, Clause I states that the annual membership fee is to be paid by a member by "March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned."
If membership fees are deposited only by March end to the units, by the time it is forwarded to the District/State Committees, it takes time. So in practice now the CC gets the consolidated membership fees from the State over a varied period of time. Now the duration stretches from April to December even. There has to be a cut-off date by which the membership fees should reach the Centre.)
Rules
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Renewal of Party membership each year must be completed by March 31st.
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The State Committees must deposit the membership fees with the Centre by 31st May each year.
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In case of any contingency the date can only be extended by the Central Committee/PB.
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New enrolment during the current year of candidate membership fees to be remitted by the end of the year or before.
Note: New enrolment of candidate members (after the renewal period) continues throughout the year. Their fees are to be deposited with the Central Committee separately.
Under Article X:
Party Levy
Rules
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1. Party members levy rates: The Central Committee decides that the levy from Party members shall be collected as per the following rates:
For Income
Upto Rs.300 permonth 25 paise Rs. 301 to 500 per month 50 paise Rs. 501 to 1000 per month 0.5% Rs. 1001 to 3000 per month 1 % Rs. 3001 to 5000 per month 2 % Rs. 5001 to 7000 per month 3 % Rs. 7001 to 8000 per month 4 % Above Rs. 8000 per month 5 %
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If a member is to pay quarterly or annually, calculate his/her monthly income on the basis of his/her annual income and calculate amount which he or she has to pay applying the above rates.
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If spouse or any other member earning and contributing to the family income, is not a Party member, their income is not to be included, for the calculation of levy rates.
Note:
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Income means with regard to salaried employees and wage earners, all their total gross income, including DA and other allowances. Apart from this, if the member has additional income from land, business or houses, that too is to be added.
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In case of peasants, income after excluding actual amounts expended towards agricultural production.
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If a person is living off joint family income, then his share of income.
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In extreme cases, unemployment, drought or illness, if exemptions are to be given, it is for the respective State Committee to take necessary decision.
Note: The percentage share of local, area, district and state is to be decided by the State concerned.
Under Article XV, Section 10:
Central Committee Finances
Rules
-
The Central Committee is authorised to appoint a Trust to manage its properties.
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The Central Committee is to decide each year, or as the case many be, the quantum each State will pay towards Party fund or special Party fund drive to run the Party's central apparatus.
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Polit Bureau will constitute a Finance Sub-Committee which will meet and
(a) Take decision on financial matters and expenditure involving amounts upto Rs. ten thousands only. Expenditure of higher limit will be referred to the P.B.
(b) Finance Sub-Committee will place quarterly accounts of the CC and its establishment to the Polit Bureau.
(c) Finance Sub-Committee will submit yearly accounts as approved by the PB to the Central Committee for its approval (as laid down by the Party Constitution).
(d) One member of the Sub-Committee will be incharge of the income and disbursement of the Party finances after which these will be passed over to the accounts incharge for finalisation and compilation.
(e) Half-yearly accounts of the Party organs and other establishments (if any) to be submitted to the Sub-Committee.
Under Article XVI: Sub-Clause 3(b):
State and district Party Organs, Setting up of Intermediate Committees
(Explanation: Clause 3(b) states, "The State Committee shall decide on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee)
The State Committee can decide to set up intermediate committees between the primary unit and the District Committee or the region under the following rules:
(a) The State Committee will decide the size of the committee to be set up.
(b) Such a committee will be elected by the conference of delegates at that level. The committee should elect a Secretary and /or the Secretariat.
(c) The criteria of election of delegates to the conference of the intermediate committee will be decided by the State Committee.
(d) The intermediate committee (local, area, zonal etc.) will exercise all those functions enumerated for the State/ District Committees, their function being confined to the local area or zone under its jurisdiction.
(e) Committees set up on an ad-hoc/nominated basis for coordination purposes will not have the general powers laid out for full-fledged elected committees. Their scope of work is to be guided by the decisions of the respective committees who appointed them.
(f) The number of delegates to the District Conference and the conferences of committees below the district will be decided by the State Committee.
Under Article XVI: Rules on Party Finances & Accounts
For Committees Below The CC (States & District Party Organs)
(Explanation: Similar to the rules framed for the CC finances and accounting, the following rules will apply to all the lower elected committees
(a) At State level (and for the intermediate/District committees as decided by the State Committee) finance sub-committee of the committee concerned will be constituted by the Secretariat.
(b) The sub-committee will be responsible for the disbursement of the money and maintenance of the accounts under the supervision of the Secretariat.
(c) The sub-committee will submit a six-monthly account to the Party Committee and this statement should be forwarded to the next higher committee.
(d) Annual accounts should be audited by the sub-committee and placed before the Party committee for approval.
(e) The State Committees will submit a copy of their annual accounts which is approved by the committee, to the Central Committee.
Under Article XVIII:
Rules For The Functioning Of The Central Control Commission
-
On receipt of a reference or an appeal under Article XVIII, the Central Control Commission should take steps to investigate and decide upon the issue.
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No appeal can be preferred by any one other than the aggrieved Party member.
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The Central Control Commission shall have the right to directly correspond with the examine unit/units or persons concerned in order to ascertain facts and to arrive at conclusion.
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The Central Control Commission will ordinarily meet once in three months. The Chairperson shall call a meeting of the Central Control Commission after giving 14 days prior notice.
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Majority of the members constitute quorum of the meeting. The Central Control Commission can take a decision only if all the members agree or majority of the members of the Central Control Commission agree. A decision taken may be informed to the absent member or members.
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The Central Control commission may take decisions by consultation by correspondence among its members on such issues which are simple and not complicated.
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The Central Control Commission will communicate its decision to the appellant and the respective State Committee and the decision of the Central Control Commission has to be implemented immediately by the respective committees.
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The Central Control Commission will present before the Central Committee a consolidated report of its activities and decisions at least once in a year.
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These rules shall apply mutatis mutandis to State Control Commissions.
Procedural Rules For
Central Control Commission To Conduct Business
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On receipt of an appeal, the Chairperson of the Central Control Commission shall intimate about the case to the other members.
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The Chairperson shall also propose the immediate steps to be taken up for the investigation in a particular case. The other members of the Central Control Commission may send their proposals regarding the same.
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The Central Control Commission has the right to ask for any information which is required for deciding the appeal from the concerned committees and members and they should provide such information to the Central Control Commission within a period of two months and if no such information is received within this period, the Central Control Commission may proceed with the case.
Under Article XIX, Clause 13:
Party Discipline
Provision for summary expulsion in exceptional circumstance is meant for "grave" anti-Party activities. The means only under extremely serious circumstances such as when a member is found to be a spy or enemy agent or when the member's activities seriously compromise the Party's position, should it be invoked.
Under Article XX:
Party Members In Elected Bodies
Rules
-
Each CPI(M) Parliament member has to pay levy amount as decided by the Central Committee to the Central Committee.
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The percentage of the levy share as fixed by the PB for the State will be remitted to the State Committee concerned (to the State the member belongs) each month.
(Explanation: Article XX Sub-clause (5) in the Constitution states that salaries and allowances drawn by Communist legislators and local body members are to be considered Party money. Earlier there was no system of pensions for MPs/MLAs. Now it is there. So the following rule.)
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Salaries and allowances of Communist legislators, local body members include pensions drawn by them, if any.
Under Article XXII
Discussions Preparatory To Party Congress And Conferences
The forums of the Party conferences will be utilised to discuss and review the work report since the past conference and political-organisational questions related to the implementation of the line laid down in the past conference/Congress. The discussion on the draft political resolution of the Congress will be conducted separately as per the provisions laid down in the Constitution.
Under Article XXIII
Party Members Working In Mass Organisations
-
The Party Committee at Central, State and District levels may form sub-committee from amongst its members and any other member considered suitably equipped to guide the work of the Party members working in different mass fronts. They will specialise in the problems of the front, check up on Party building, guide and coordinate the activities of the Party members in different mass organisations, whether they exist as Party units or fraction committees, and see that Party policy in being followed and implemented.
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All the Party members working in a mass organisation or the elected bodies of that organisation at various levels constitute the fraction of that body. They have to function under the guidance and decisions of the respective Party committees.
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Fraction committees are to be set up from amongst the fraction members where there are large number of them working at different levels in a mass organisation. The fraction committee will be set up by the respective Party committee by including those comrades, apart from members of the Party committee if any, who are equipped with the required level of maturity or mass experience considered necessary by the Party committee.
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The fraction committee, as constituted above, should carry out the decisions of the respective Party committees in the Executive or General Council of the particular mass organisation, and all necessary measures to implement the decisions of Party Committees by the fraction in that mass organisation shall be taken by the fraction committee.
Adopted By the Eighth Congress, Cochin, December 23-29, 1968
Amendments made to the Constitution upto the XVIII Congress, April 2005, and to the rules by the Central Committee upto December 2005, have been incorporated.
CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat spoke to Sunday ET on how he and the party will respond to their biggest poll set back in years and where the CPM went wrong
Post-poll crisis for CPM
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges. We were in power for 34 years. A generation of CPM members and supporters have never been in Opposition. In Kerala, we are used to winning and losing elections.
Plans to step down as CPM chief.
I am going to make a proposal to the party about a retirement plan for the general secretary. There has to be a cap on the number of terms the general secretary can have. It can be two or three or four terms. The leadership will decide it. (Karat is on his second term as CPM general secretary now. The coming CPM party congress will decide on whether he gets a third term).
Retirement before or during the CPM party congress
I have certain views on the matter. I think it is proper the general secretary steps aside after a period to pave the way for a new leader. That will help the party prepare a new line of leadership in a time-bound manner. And the person who steps down can always continue as a member of the politburo, party secretariat, etc.
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "CPIM" redirects here. For other uses, see CPIM (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Communist Party of India or Communist Party of India (Maoist). This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010)
Communist Party of India (Marxist) Secretary-General Prakash Karat Leader in Lok Sabha Basudev Acharia[1] Leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechuri[1] Founded 1964 Headquarters New Delhi, India Newspaper People's Democracy(English),
Lok Lehar (Hindi),
Ganashakti (bengali),
Deshabhimani'' (Malayalam),
Theekathir (Tamil) Student wing Students Federation of India Youth wing Democratic Youth Federation of India Women's wing All India Democratic Womens Association Labour wing Centre of Indian Trade Unions Peasant's wing All India Kisan Sabha Ideology Communism
Marxism-Leninism ECI Status Recognised Party Alliance Left Front Seats in Lok Sabha 16 Seats in Rajya Sabha 14 Election symbol Website Official Website Politics of India
Political parties
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The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated CPI(M) or CPM) is a political party inIndia. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI(M) is leading the state government only in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of India. It was voted out after 34 years in power in West Bengal in elections whose results were declared in May 2011. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964. CPI(M) claimed to have 982,155 members in 2007.[2]
Contents
[hide]
[edit]History
[edit]Split in the Communist Party of India and formation of CPI(M)
CPI(M) emerged out of a division within the Communist Party of India (CPI). The undivided CPI had experienced a period of upsurge during the years following the Second World War. The CPI led armed rebellions in Telangana, Tripura and Kerala. However, it soon abandoned the strategy of armed revolution in favour of working within the parliamentary framework. In 1950 B.T. Ranadive, the CPI general secretary and a prominent representative of the radical sector inside the party, was demoted on grounds of left-adventurism.
Under the government of the Indian National Congressparty of Jawaharlal Nehru, independent India developed close relations and a strategic partnership with theSoviet Union. The Soviet government consequently wished that the Indian communists moderate their criticism towards the Indian state and assume a supportive role towards the Congress governments. However, large sections of the CPI claimed that India remained a semi-feudal country, and that class strugglecould not be put on the back-burner for the sake of guarding the interests of Soviet trade and foreign policy. Moreover, the Indian National Congress appeared to be generally hostile towards political competition. In 1959 the central government intervened to impose President's Rule in Kerala, toppling the E.M.S. Namboodiripad cabinet (the sole non-Congress state government in the country).
Simultaneously, the relations between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theCommunist Party of China soured. In the early 1960s the Communist Party of China began criticising the CPSU of turning revisionist and of deviating from the path of Marxism-Leninism.Sino-Indian relations also deteriorated, as border disputes between the two countries erupted into the Sino-Indian war of 1962.
During the war with China, a faction of the Indian Communists backed the position of the Indian government, while other sections of the party claimed that it was a conflict between a socialist and a capitalist state. Hundreds of CPI leaders, accused of being pro-Chinese, were imprisoned. Some of the nationalists were also imprisoned, as they used to express their opinion only in party forums, and CPI's official stand was pro-China. Thousands of Communists were detained without trial.[3] Those targeted by the state accused the pro-Soviet leadership of the CPI of conspiring with the Congress government to ensure their own hegemony over the control of the party.
In 1962 Ajoy Ghosh, the general secretary of the CPI, died. After his death, S.A. Dange was installed as the party chairman (a new position) and E.M.S. Namboodiripad as general secretary. This was an attempt to achieve a compromise. Dange represented the rightist faction of the party and E.M.S. the leftist faction.
At a CPI National Council meeting held on April 11, 1964, 32 Council members walked out in protest, accusing Dange and his followers of "anti-unity and anti-Communist policies".[4]
The leftist section, to which the 32 National Council members belonged, organised a convention in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh July 7 to 11. In this convention the issues of the internal disputes in the party were discussed. 146 delegates, claiming to represent 100,000 CPI members, took part in the proceedings. The convention decided to convene the 7th Party Congress of CPI in Calcutta later the same year.[5]
Marking a difference from the Dangeite sector of CPI, the Tenali convention was marked by the display of a large portrait of the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong.[5]
At the Tenali convention a Bengal-based pro-Chinese group, representing one of the most radical streams of the CPI left wing, presented a draft programme proposal of their own. These radicals criticised the draft programme proposal prepared by M. Basavapunniah for undermining class struggle and failing to take a clear pro-Chinese position in the ideological conflict between the CPSU and CPC.[6]
After the Tenali convention the CPI left wing organised party district and state conferences. In West Bengal, a few of these meetings became battlegrounds between the most radical elements and the more moderate leadership. At the Calcutta Party District Conference an alternative draft programme was presented to the leadership by Parimal Das Gupta (a leading figure amongst far-left intellectuals in the party). Another alternative proposal was brought forward to the Calcutta Party District Conference by Azizul Haque, but Haque was initially banned from presenting it by the conference organisers. At the Calcutta Party District Conference 42 delegates opposed M. Basavapunniah's official draft programme proposal.
At the Siliguri Party District Conference, the main draft proposal for a party programme was accepted, but with some additional points suggested by the far-left North Bengal cadre Charu Majumdar. However, Harekrishna Konar (representing the leadership of the CPI left wing) forbade the raising of the slogan Mao Tse-Tung Zindabad (Long live Mao Tse-Tung) at the conference.
Parimal Das Gupta's document was also presented to the leadership at the West Bengal State Conference of the CPI leftwing. Das Gupta and a few other spoke at the conference, demanding the party ought to adopt the class analysis of the Indian state of the 1951 CPI conference. His proposal was, however, voted down.[7]
The Calcutta Congress was held between October 31 and November 7, at Tyagraja Hall in southern Calcutta. Simultaneously, the Dange group convened a Party Congress of CPI in Bombay. Thus, the CPI divided into two separate parties. The group which assembled in Calcutta would later adopt the name 'Communist Party of India (Marxist)', in order to differentiate themselves from the Dange group. The CPI(M) also adopted its own political programme. P. Sundarayya was elected general secretary of the party.
In total 422 delegates took part in the Calcutta Congress. CPI(M) claimed that they represented 104,421 CPI members, 60% of the total party membership.
At the Calcutta conference the party adopted a class analysis of the character of the Indian state, that claimed the Indian big bourgeoisie was increasingly collaborating with imperialism.[8]
Parimal Das Gupta's alternative draft programme was not circulated at the Calcutta conference. However, Souren Basu, a delegate from the far-left stronghold Darjeeling, spoke at the conference asking why no portrait had been raised of Mao Tse-Tung along the portraits of other communist stalwarts. His intervention met with huge applauses from the delegates of the conference.[8]
[edit]Name
CPI(M) is offically known as भारत की कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी मार्क्सवादी(Bharat ki Kamyunist Party Marksvadi) in hindi, but it is often known as मार्क्सवादी कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी (Marksvadi Kamyunist Party, abbreviatedMaKaPa) in press and media circles. This name though has a very interesting story to tell. During its initial years after the split, the party was often referred by different names such as 'Left Communist Party' or 'Communist Party of India(Left)'. The party has used the name 'Left' because CPI people were dubbed as rightist in nature for their support to Congress-Nehru regime. During Kerala Legislative Assembly elections of 1965 the party has adopted the name 'Communist Party of India(Marxist)' in order to obtain its election symbol from the Election Commission of India.[9]
[edit]Early years of CPI (M)
The CPI (M) was born into a hostile political climate. At the time of the holding of its Calcutta Congress, large sections of its leaders and cadres were jailed without trial. Again on December 29–30, over a thousand CPI (M) cadres were arrested, and held in jail without trial. In 1965 new waves of arrests of CPI(M) cadres took place in West Bengal, as the party launched agitations against the rise in fares in the Calcutta Tramways and against the then prevailing food crisis. State-wide general strikes and hartalswere observed on August 5, 1965, March 10–11, 1966 and April 6, 1966. The March 1966 general strike results in several deaths in confrontations with police forces.
Also in Kerala, mass arrests of CPI(M) cadres were carried out during 1965. In Bihar, the party called for a Bandh (general strike) in Patna on August 9, 1965 in protest against the Congress state government. During the strike, police resorted to violent actions against the organisers of the strike. The strike was followed by agitations in other parts of the state.
P. Sundaraiah, after being released from jail, spent the period of September 1965-February 1966 in Moscow for medical treatment. In Moscow he also held talks with the CPSU.[10]
The Central Committee of CPI(M) held its first meeting on June 12–19, 1966. The reason for delaying the holding of a regular CC meeting was the fact that several of the persons elected as CC members at the Calcutta Congress were jailed at the time.[11] A CC meeting had been scheduled to have been held in Trichur during the last days of 1964, but had been cancelled due to the wave of arrests against the party. The meeting discussed tactics for electoral alliances, and concluded that the party should seek to form a broad electoral alliances with all non-reactionary opposition parties in West Bengal (i.e. all parties except Jan Sangh and Swatantra Party). This decision was strongly criticised by the Communist Party of China, the Party of Labour of Albania, the Communist Party of New Zealand and the radicals within the party itself. The line was changed at a National Council meeting in Jullunder in October 1966, were it was decided that the party should only form alliances with selected left parties.[12]
[edit]Naxalbari uprising
Main article: Naxalite At this point the party stood at crossroads. There were radical sections of the party who were wary of the increasing parliamentary focus of the party leadership, especially after the electoral victories in West Bengal and Kerala. Developments in China also affected the situation inside the party. In West Bengal two separate internal dissident tendencies emerged, which both could be identified as supporting the Chinese line.[13] In 1967 a peasant uprising broke out in Naxalbari, in northern West Bengal. The insurgency was led by hardline district-level CPI(M) leaders Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. The hardliners within CPI(M) saw the Naxalbari uprising as the spark that would ignite the Indian revolution. The Communist Party of China hailed the Naxalbari movement, causing an abrupt break in CPI(M)-CPC relations.[14] The Naxalbari movement was violently repressed by the West Bengal government, of which CPI(M) was a major partner. Within the party, the hardliners rallied around an All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries. Following the 1968 Burdwan plenum of CPI(M) (held on April 5–12, 1968), the AICCCR separated themselves from CPI(M). This split divided the party throughout the country. But notably in West Bengal, which was the centre of the violent radicalist stream, no prominent leading figure left the party. The party and the Naxalites (as the rebels were called) were soon to get into a bloody feud.
In Andhra Pradesh another revolt was taking place. There the pro-Naxalbari dissidents had not established any presence. But in the party organisation there were many veterans from the Telangana armed struggle, who rallied against the central party leadership. In Andhra Pradesh the radicals had a strong base even amongst the state-level leadership. The main leader of the radical tendency was T. Nagi Reddy, a member of the state legislative assembly. On June 15, 1968 the leaders of the radical tendency published a press statement outlining the critique of the development of CPI(M). It was signed by T. Nagi Reddy, D.V. Rao, Kolla Venkaiah and Chandra Pulla Reddy.[15] In total around 50% of the party cadres in Andhra Pradesh left the party to form the Andhra Pradesh Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, under the leadership of T. Nagi Reddy.[16]
[edit]Dismissal of United Front governments in West Bengal and Kerala
In November 1967, the West Bengal United Front government was dismissed by the central government. Initially the Indian National Congress formed a minority government led by Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, but that cabinet did not last long. Following the proclamation that the United Front government had been dislodged, a 48-hour hartal was effective throughout the state. After the fall of the Ghosh cabinet, the state was but under President's Rule. CPI(M) launched agitations against the interventions of the central government in West Bengal.
The 8th Party Congress of CPI(M) was held in Cochin, Kerala, on December 23–29, 1968. On December 25, 1968, whilst the congress was held, 42 Dalits were burned alive in the Tamil village of Kilavenmani. The massacre was a retaliation from landlords after Dalit labourers had taken part in a CPI(M)-led agitation for higher wages.[17][18]
The United Front government in Kerala was forced out of office in October 1969, as the CPI, RSP, KTP and Muslim League ministers resigned. E.M.S. Namboodiripad handed in his resignation on October 24.[19] A coalition government led by CPI leader C. Achutha Menonwas formed, with the outside support of the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Elections in West Bengal and Kerala
Fresh elections were held in West Bengal in 1969. CPI(M) contested 97 seats, and won 80. The party was now the largest in the West Bengal legislative.[20] But with the active support of CPI and the Bangla Congress, Ajoy Mukherjee was returned as Chief Minister of the state. Mukherjee resigned on March 16, 1970, after a pact had been reached between CPI, Bangla Congress and the Indian National Congress against CPI(M). CPI(M) strove to form a new government, instead but the central government put the state under President's Rule.
In Kerala fresh elections were held in 1970. CPI(M) contested 73 seats and won 29. After the election Achutha Menon formed a new ministry, including ministers from the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Formation of CITU
Main article: Centre of Indian Trade Unions Following the 1964 split, CPI(M) cadres had remained active with the All India Trade Union Congress. But as relations between CPI and CPI(M) soured, with the backdrop of confrontations in West Bengal and Kerala, a split also surfaced in the AITUC. In December 1969, eight CPI(M) members walked out of an AITUC Working Committee meeting. The eight called for an All India Trade Union Convention, which was held in Goa April 9–10, 1970. The convention decided that an All India Trade Union Conference be held on May 28–31 in Calcutta. The Calcutta conference would be the founding conference of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, a new pro-CPI(M) trade union movement.[21]
[edit]Outbreak of war in East Pakistan
In 1971 Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) declared its independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani military tried to quell the uprising. India intervened militarily and gave active backing to the Bangladeshi resistance. Millions of Bangladeshi refugees sought shelter in India, especially in West Bengal.
At the time the radical sections of the Bangladeshi communist movement was divided into many factions. Whilst the pro-Soviet Communist Party of Bangladesh actively participated in the resistance struggle, the pro-China communist tendency found itself in a peculiar situation as China had sided with Pakistan in the war. In Calcutta, where many Bangladeshi leftists had sought refuge, CPI(M) worked to coordinate the efforts to create a new political organization. In the fall of 1971 three small groups, which were all hosted by the CPI(M), came together to form the Bangladesh Communist Party (Leninist). The new party became the sister party of CPI(M) in Bangladesh.[22]
[edit]Party organization
CPI(M) got 5.66% of votes polled in last parliamentary election (May 2004) and it has 43 MPs. It won 42.31% on an average in the 69 seats it contested. It supported the new Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government, but without becoming a part of it. On 9 July 2008 it formally withdrew support from the UPA government explaining this by differences about the Indo-US nuclear deal and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement in particular.[23]
In West Bengal and Tripura it participates in the Left Front. In Kerala the party is part of the Left Democratic Front. In Tamil Nadu it was part of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). However, it has since withdrawn support.
Its members in Great Britain are in the electoral front Unity for Peace and Socialism with the Communist Party of Britain and the British domiciled sections of the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). It is standing 13 candidates in the London-wide list section of the London Assembly elections in May 2008.[24]
[edit]The structure
- The Politburo (PB)
- The Central Committee (CC)
- State Committees
- District Committees
[edit]Membership
As of 2004, the party claimed a membership of 867 763.[25]
State 2001 2002 2003 2004 % of party
members in
electorate Andhra Pradesh 40785 41879 45516 46742 0.0914 Assam 10480 11207 11122 10901 0.0726 Andaman & Nicobar 172 140 124 90 0.0372 Bihar 17672 17469 16924 17353 0.0343 Chhattisgarh 1211 1364 1079 1054 0.0077 Delhi 1162 1360 1417 1408 0.0161 Goa 172 35 40 67 0.0071 Gujarat 2799 3214 3383 3398 0.0101 Haryana 1357 1478 1477 1608 0.0131 Himachal Pradesh 1005 1006 1014 1024 0.0245 Jammu & Kashmir 625 720 830 850 0.0133 Jharkhand 2552 2819 3097 3292 0.0200 Karnataka 6574 7216 6893 6492 0.0168 Kerala 301562 313652 318969 316305 1.4973 Madhya Pradesh 2243 2862 2488 2320 0.0060 Maharashtra 8545 9080 9796 10256 0.0163 Manipur 340 330 270 300 0.0195 Orissa 3091 3425 3502 3658 0.0143 Punjab 14328 11000 11000 10050 0.0586 Rajasthan 2602 3200 3507 3120 0.0090 Sikkim 200 180 65 75 0.0266 Tamil Nadu 86868 90777 91709 94343 0.1970 Tripura 38737 41588 46277 51343 2.5954 Uttaranchal 700 720 740 829 0.0149 Uttar Pradesh 5169 5541 5477 5877 0.0053 West Bengal 245026 262882 258682 274921 0.579 CC staff 96 95 95 87 Total 796073 835239 843896 867763 0.1292
[edit]Leadership
The current general secretary of CPI(M) is Prakash Karat. The 19th party congress of CPI(M), held in CoimbatoreMarch 29-April 3, 2008 elected a Central Committee with 87 members. The Central Committee later elected a 15-member Politburo:
- Prakash Karat
- Sitaram Yechury
- S. Ramachandran Pillai
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
- Manik Sarkar
- M.K. Pandhe
- Biman Bose
- Pinarayi Vijayan
- K. Varadarajan
- B.V. Raghavulu
- Brinda Karat
- Nirupam Sen
- Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
- Mohammad Amin
The senior most member, V.S. Achuthanandan was removed from the Polit Bureau on July 12, 2009.
The 19th congress saw the departure of the last two members of the Polit Bureau who had been on the original Polit Bureau in 1964, Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu.[26]
[edit]State Committee secretaries
- Andaman & Nicobar: K.G. Das
- Andhra Pradesh: B.V. Raghavulu
- Assam: Uddhab Barman
- Bihar: Vijaykant Thakur
- Chattisgarh: M.K. Nandi
- Delhi: P.M.S. Grewal
- Goa: Thaelman Perera
- Haryana: Inderjit Singh
- Jharkhand: J.S. Majumdar
- Karnataka: V.J.K. Nair
- Kerala : Pinarayi Vijayan
- Madhya Pradesh: Badal Saroj
- Maharashtra: Ashok Dhawale
- Orissa: Janardan Pati
- Punjab: Charan Singh Virdi(Acting)
- Rajasthan: Vasudev Sharma
- Sikkim: Balram Adhikari
- Tamil Nadu: G.Ramakrishnan
- Tripura: Baidyanath Majumdar
- Uttaranchal: Vijai Rawat
- Uttar Pradesh: S.P. Kashyap
- West Bengal: Biman Bose[27]
[edit]The principal mass organizations of CPI(M)
- Democratic Youth Federation of India
- Students Federation of India
- Centre of Indian Trade Unions class organisation
- All India Kisan Sabha peasants' organization
- All India Agricultural Workers Union
- All India Democratic Women's Association
- Bank Employees Federation of India
- All India Lawyers Union
In Tripura, the Ganamukti Parishad is a major mass organization amongst the tribal peoples of the state. In Kerala the Adivasi Kshema Samithi, a tribal organisation is controlled by CPI(M).
This apart, on the cultural front as many as 12 major organisations are led by CPI(M).
[edit]Party publications
From the Centre, two weekly newspapers are published, People's Democracy (English) and Lok Lehar (Hindi). The central theoretical organ of the party is The Marxist, published quarterly in English.
[edit]Daily newspapers
- Ganashakti (West Bengal, Bengali)
- Deshabhimani (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Daily Desher Katha (Tripura, Bengali)
- Theekathir (Tamil Nadu, Tamil)
- Prajasakti (Andhra Pradesh, Telugu)
[edit]Weeklies
- Abshar (West Bengal, Urdu)
- Swadhintha (West Bengal, Hindi)
- Desh Hiteshi (Bengali)
- Janashakthi (Karnataka, Kannada)[28]
- Jeevan Marg (Maharashtra, Marathi)
- Samyabadi (Orissa, Oriya)
- Deshabhimani Vaarika. (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Ganashakti (Assamese, Assam)
[edit]Fortnightlies
- Lok Jatan (Madhya Pradesh, Hindi)
- Lok Samvad (Uttar Pradesh, Hindi)
- Sarfarosh Chintan (Gujarat, Gujarati)
[edit]Monthlies
- Samajik Nayaya Saamachar (hindi and english )
- Yeh Naya Raste (Jammu & Kashmir, Urdu)
- Lok Lahar (Punjabi)
- Nandan (Bengali)
- Marxist (Tamil language)
[edit]Theoretical publications
[edit]Publishing houses
- Leftword Publication
- CPI(M) Publication
- National Book Agency (West Bengal)
- Chinta Publication (Kerala)
- Prajasakti Book House (Andhra Pradesh)
- Deshabhimani Book House (Kerala)
- Natun Sahitya Parishad (Assam)
[edit]State governments
As of 2011, CPI(M) heads the state government in Tripura. Manik Sarkar is a chief minister belonging to the party. In Tripura, the party has a majority of its own in the state assemblies, but governs together with Left Front partners.
[edit]Splits and offshoots
Main article: Various Communist/Leftist Parties in India A large number of parties have been formed as a result of splits from the CPI(M), such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist),Marxist Communist Party of India, Marxist Coordination Committee in Jharkhand, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy, Communist Marxist Party and BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Vedi in Kerala, Party of Democratic Socialism in West Bengal, Janganotantrik Morcha in Tripura, theRam Pasla group in Punjab, Orissa Communist Party in Orissa, etc.
[edit]Elections
Main article: CPI(M) election results [edit]Lok-Sabha Elections
[edit]1967 General Election
1967 CPI(M) election results (seats won / seats contested / seats total / votes / % of total vote) Lok Sabha: 19 / 59 / 520 / 6246522 / 4.28% Elections to State Legislative Assemblies: Andhra Pradesh 9 / 83 / 287 / 1053855 / 7.61% Assam 0 / 14 / 126 / 61165 / 1.97% Bihar 4 / 32 / 318 / 173656 / 1.28% Haryana 0 / 8 / 81 / 16379 / 0.54% Himachal Pradesh 0 / 6 / 60 / 3019 / 0.39% Kerala 52 / 59 / 133 / 1476456 / 23.51% Madhya Pradesh 0 / 9 / 296 / 20728 / 0.23% Maharashtra 1 / 11 / 270 / 145083 / 1.08% Manipur 0 / 5 / 30 / 2093 / 0.67% Mysore 1 / 10 / 216 / 82531 / 1.10% Orissa 1 / 10 / 140 / 46597 / 1.16% Punjab 3 / 13 / 104 / 138857 / 3.26% Rajasthan 0 / 22 / 184 / 79826 / 1.18% Tamil Nadu 11 / 22 / 234 / 623114 / 4.07% Tripura 2 / 16 / 30 / 93739 / 21.61% Uttar Pradesh 1 / 57 / 425 / 272565 / 1.27% West Bengal 43 / 135 / 280 / 2293026 / 18.11%
In the 1967 Lok Sabha elections CPI(M) nominated 59 candidates. In total 19 of them were elected. The party received 6.2 million votes (4.28% of the nationwide vote). By comparison, CPI won 23 seats and got 5.11% of the nation-wide vote. In the state legistative elections held simultaneously, the CPI(M) emerged as a major party in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala a United Front government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad was formed.[29] In West Bengal, CPI(M) was the main force behind theUnited Front government formed. The Chief Ministership was given to Ajoy Mukherjeeof the Bangla Congress (a regional splinter-group of the Indian National Congress).
[edit]1971 General Election
With the backdrop of the Bangladesh War and the emerging role of Indira Gandhi as a populist national leader, the 1971 election to the Lok Sabha was held. CPI(M) contested 85 seats, and won in 25. In total the party mustered 7510089 votes (5.12% of the national vote). 20 of the seats came from West Bengal (including Somnath Chatterjee, elected from Burdwan), 2 from Kerala (including A.K. Gopalan, elected from Trichur), 2 from Tripura (Biren Dutta and Dasarath Deb) and 1 from Andhra Pradesh.[30]
In the same year, state legislative elections were held in three states; West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. In West Bengal CPI(M) had 241 candidates, winning 113 seats. In total the party mustered 4241557 votes (32.86% of the state-wide vote). In Tamil Nadu CPI(M) contested 37 seats, but drew blank. The party got 259298 votes (1.65% of the state-wide vote). In Orissa the party contested 11 seats, and won in two. The CPI(M) vote in the state was 52785 (1.2% of the state-wide vote).[31]
[edit]1977 General Elections
In the 1977 Loksabha elections the CPM had fielded its candidtaes on 53 seats scattred around in 14 states and union terretories of India. It won 4.29% of the average votes polled in this election. The party had won 17 seats from West Bengal, 3 from Maharashtra and one each from Orrissa and Punjab. This election was done shortly after the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi and reflected a wide uproar of masses against her draconian rule. An coalition of Opposition parties was formed against the Congress regime, CPI(M) too supported this coalition by not fielding its candidates against the Janta Party.[32]
[edit]1980 General Elections
Janta Party coalition didnot last much and two years after since its formation India had faced the 1980's Loksabha Elections. This election had saw an increase in the vote percentage of CPI(M) and the party had bagged more seats then the previous elections. The Party had contested elections in the 15 states and union terretories of India, and fielded its candidates on 64 seats. The party had successfully won 37 seats in total. It has one 28 seats in West Bengal, 7 in Kerala, and 2 seats in Tripura. The party emerged out as the whole sole representative of the people of Tripura in this election.[33]
[edit]State Assembly Elections
[edit]1970s, 1980s, 1990s
This section requires expansion.
In the 1977 election, the CPI(M) gained the majority in the Legislative Assembly of the State ofWest Bengal, defeating the Congress (I). Jyoti Basu became the chief minister of West Bengal, an office he held until his retirement in 2000. The CPI(M) held the majority in the West Bengal government continuously since 1977, which ended in 2011 election.The party also won in Tripura winning 49 of the 60 seats. It has 3 MLAs in Rajasthan assembly. In Bihar it has an alliance with CPI(ML)L and CPI, it has 1 seat in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu it has worked for Dalit causes.
[edit]Presidential Elections
[edit]2002 Presidential Elections
In the 2002 Presidential elections, Left Front has announced Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as their Presidential Candidate. Against her was the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Candidate APJ Abdul Kalam.[34] CPIM's Leadership has announced that in form of Captain Lakshmi, they are fielding an 'Alternative Candidate'. They said that though it is clear that Captain Lakshmi cant be the President of India because of the opposition of BJP led NDA and Indian National Congress to her, but through this Presidential Election Left wants to raise key national issues, and make them heard to the masses.[35] Captain Lakshmi herself had pointed out that this Presidential election reflects the opposition of the Indian Left to the Communal-Secreterian Politics of BJP and solidarity with the religious minorities who have suffered a lot under the National Democratic Alliance's leadership.[36]
Captain Lakshmi Sehgal was an Indian Freedom Fighter, who had served as a Commander in the Indian National Army of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
[edit]2011 Assembly Elections
This section requires expansion.
The CPI(M) led coalitions lost the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala, CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front coalition with 68 seats lost to Indian National Congress led United Democratic Front's 72 seats in a neck to neck fought assembly elections. In West Bengal, CPI(M) alliance with 62 seats suffered a setback after 34 years of continuous rule, losing to Trinamool Congress alliance's 226 seats. Its Chief Minister candidate who is also an incumbent Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also lost from his Jadavpur assembly constituency.[37]
[edit]See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Communist Ghadar Party of India
- List of political parties in India
- Politics of India
- List of Communist Parties
- Election Results of Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Co-ordinating Committee of Communist Parties in Britain
- List of Communist Parties in India
[edit]References
- ^ a b http://cpim.org/content/pr-dasmunshis-statement
- ^ "Political-Organizational Report adopted at the XIXth Congress of the CPI(M) held in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, March 29-April 23, 2008".
- ^ The bulk of the detainees came from the leftwing of CPI. However, cadres of the Socialist Unity Centre of India and theWorkers Party of India were also targeted.[1]
- ^ The 32 were P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, T. Nagi Reddy,M. Hanumantha Rao, D.V. Rao, N. Prasad Rao, G. Bapanayya,E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, A.V. Kunhambu, C.H. Kanaran, E.K. Nayanar, V.S. Achuthanandan Removed, E.K. Imbichibava, Promode Das Gupta, Muzaffar Ahmad, Jyoti Basu,Abdul Halim, Hare Krishna Konar, Saroj Mukherjee, P. Ramamurthi, M.R. Venkataraman, N. Sankariah, K. Ramani,Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri, D.S. Tapiala, Dr.Bhag Singh, Sheo Kumar Mishra, R.N. Upadhyaya, Mohan Punamiya and R.P. Saraf. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 37.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 51.
- ^ Suniti Kumar Ghosh was a member of the group that presented this alternative draft proposal. His grouping was one of several left tendencies in the Bengali party branch. Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 32.
- ^ Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 52-54.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 54.
- ^ Basu, Jyoti. Memoirs - A Political Autobiography. Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1999. p. 189.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and U./nited Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 17-18
- ^ The jailed members of the new CC, at the time of the Calcutta Congress, were B.T. Ranadive, Muzaffar Ahmed, Hare Krishna Konar and Promode Das Gupta. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 44-5.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and United Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 234-235.
- ^ According to Basu (in Basu, Pradip; Towards Naxalbari (1953–67) : An Account Of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000.) there were two nuclei of radicals in the party organisation in West Bengal. One "theorist" section around Parimal Das Gupta in Calcutta, which wanted to persuade the party leadership to correct revisionist mistakes through inner-party debate, and one "actionist" section led by Charu Majumdarand Kanu Sanyal in North Bengal. The 'actionists' were impatient, and strived to organize armed uprisings. According to Basu, due to the prevailing political climate of youth and student rebellion it was the 'actionists' which came to dominate the new Maoist movement in India, instead of the more theoretically advanced sections. This dichotomy is however rebuffed by followers of the radical stream, for example the CPI(ML) Liberation.
- ^ On July 1 People's Daily carried an article titled Spring Thunder Over India, expressing the support of CPC to the Naxalbari rebels. At its meeting in Madurai on August 18–27, 1967, the Central Committee of CPI(M) adopted a resolution titled 'Resolution on Divergent Views Between Our Party and the Communist Party of China on Certain Fundamental Issues of Programme and Policy'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 46.
- ^ This press statement was reproduced in full in the central CPI(M) publication, People's Democracy, on June 30. P. Sundarayya and M. Basavapunniah, acting on behalf of the Polit Bureau of CPI(M), formulated a response to the statement on June 16, titled 'Rebuff the Rebels, Uphold Party Unity'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 48.
- ^ Some perceive that the Chinese leadership severely misjudged the actual conditions of different Indian factions at the time, giving their full support to the Majumdar-Sanyal group whilst keeping the Andhra Pradesh radicals (that had a considerable mass following) at distance.
- ^ Dalits and land issues
- ^ Untitled-1
- ^ officialwebsite of kerala.gov.in
- ^ Indian National Congress had won 55 seats, Bangla Congress 33 and CPI 30. CPI(M) allies also won several seats.ECI: Statistical Report on the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 56-59
- ^ The same is also true for the Workers Party of Bangladesh, which was formed in 1980 when BCP(L) merged with other groups. Although politically close, WPB can be said to have a more Maoist-oriented profile than CPI(M).
- ^ article in The Hindu, 9 July 2008: Left meets President, hands over letter of withdrawal
- ^ Unity For Peace and Socialism homepage
- ^ Membership figures fromhttp://www.cpim.org/pd/2005/0403/04032005_membership.htm. Electorate numbers taken fromhttp://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_2004/Vol_I_LS_2004.pdf.Puducherry is counted as part of Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh counted as part of Punjab.
- ^ "Nine to none, founders' era ends in CPM", The Telegraph(Calcutta), April 3, 2008.
- ^ List of State Secretaries
- ^ Janashakti has replaced the previous CPI(M) organ in Karnataka,Ikyaranga
- ^ In Kerala the United Front consisted, at the time of the election, of Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Muslim League, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Karshaka Thozhilali Party and the Kerala Socialist Party.[2]
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Lok Sabha Election
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Orissa Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ 1977 general elections ECI Report
- ^ 1980 General Elections ECI Report
- ^ Story in The Hindu
- ^ Sitaram Yechury on 2002 Presidential Elections
- ^ Captain Lakshmi's Interview
- ^ http://www.ndtv.com/elections/index.php
[edit]External links
Communist parties
[edit]
- CPI(M) election website
- CPI(M) web site
- Leftword Books CPI(M) publishing house
- CPI(M) Kerala State Committee
- CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee
[edit]Party publications
- People's Democracy
- Daily Desher Katha
- Deshabhimani
- Ganashakti
- Lok Samvad
- Prajasakti
- Theekathir
- Janashakthi
[edit]Articles
- Search For Ways To Keep Marx Alive Opinion on party structure by Sumanta Sen. The Telegraph Calcutta, India. March 31, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005.
- Veteran Communists Honoured News article on Party history conference. The Hindu. April 6, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- All you wanted to know about CPI-M News article on CPI-M. Rediff News. April 8, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- An Upbeat Left by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan. Frontline Volume 22 - Issue 09, April 23 - May 6, 2005
[show]Political parties in India
Categories: Communist parties in India | Communist Party of India breakaway groups | Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Party Constitution
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the Party shall be Communist Party of India (Marxist).
ARTICLE II
AIM
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is the revolutionary vanguard of the working class of India. Its aim is socialism and communism through the establishment of the state of dictatorship of the proletariat. In all its activities the Party is guided by the philosophy and principles of Marxism-Leninism which shows to the toiling masses the correct way to the ending of exploitation of man by man, their complete emancipation. The Party keeps high the banner of proletarian internationalism.
ARTICLE III
Flag
The flag of the Party shall be a red flag of which the length shall be one-and-a half times its width. At the centre of the flag there shall be a crossed hammer and sickle in white.
ARTICLE IV
Membership
-
Any person residing in India, eighteen years of age or above who accepts the Programme and Constitution of the Party, agrees to work in one of the Party organisations, to pay regularly the Party membership dues (fee and levy as may be prescribed) and to carry out decisions of the Party shall be eligible for Party membership.
-
(a) New members are admitted to the Party through individual application on the recommendation of two Party members. Party members who recommend an applicant must furnish the Party Branch or the unit concerned, full information about the applicant from personal knowledge and with due sense of responsibility. The Party Branch shall make recommendation to the next higher committee, if the applicant is to be admitted. The next higher committee takes a decision on all recommendations.
(b) All Party committees higher to the Party Branch and up to the Central Committee level have the power to directly admit new members to the Party.
- (a) All applications for Party membership must be placed before the appropriate committee within a month of their presentation and recommendation.
(b) If the applicant is admitted to the Party, he or she shall be regarded as a candidate member for a period of one year commencing from the date of such admission.
-
If a leading member from another political party of local, district or state level comes to the Party, in addition to the sanction of Local Party Committee or District or State Committee, it is necessary to have the sanction of the next higher committee of the Party before he or she is admitted to membership of the Party. In exceptional cases the Central Committee or the State Committee can admit such members to full membership of the Party. And whenever a State Committee admits such members it should obtain previous sanction from the Central Committee.
-
Members once expelled from the Party can be re-admitted only by the decision of the Party Committee which confirmed their expulsion or by a higher committee.
-
Candidate members have the same duties and rights as full members except that they have no right to elect or be elected, or to vote on any motion.
-
The Party branch recommending or the Party committee admitting candidate members shall arrange for their elementary education on the Programme, Constitution and the current policies of the Party and observe their development, through providing for their functioning as members of a Party branch or unit.
-
By the end of the period of candidature, the Party branch or Party committee concerned shall discuss whether the candidate member is qualified to full membership. If a candidate member is found unfit,the Party branch or committee shall cancel his or her candidate membership. A report on admission to full membership shall be regularly forwarded by the branch or the Party committee concerned to the next higher committee.
-
The higher committee may, on scrutiny of the report, alter or modify any such decision after consultation with the branch or the Party committee which has submitted the report. The District and State Committee will exercise supervisory power over the recruitment of candidates and over admissions to full membership and have the right to modify or reject the decision of the lower committee in this respect.
-
A Party member may transfer his or her membership from one unit to another, with the approval of his or her unit and by sending his or her application through his or her unit to the higher unit under whose jurisdiction the concerned units function.
ARTICLE V
Party Pledge
Every person joining the Party shall sign the Party Pledge. This Pledge shall be:
"I accept the aims and objectives of the Party and agree to abide by its Constitution and loyally to carry out decisions of the Party."
"I shall strive to live up to the ideals of communism and shall selflessly serve the working class and the toiling masses and the country, always placing the interests of the Party and the people above personal interests."
ARTICLE VI
Membership Records
All membership records shall be kept under the supervision of the District Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Check-up of Party Membership
-
There shall be annual check-up of Party membership by the Party organisation to which the Party member belongs. Any Party member who for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues shall be dropped from Party membership.
-
A report on check-up of Party membership by a Branch or a Party committee concerned shall be sent to the next higher committee for confirmation and registration.
-
There shall be right of appeal on decisions of droppage from Party membership.
ARTICLE VIII
Resignation from Party membership
-
A Party member wishing to resign from the Party shall summit his or her resignation to the Party branch or to the Party unit to which he or she belongs. The unit concerned may accept the same, decide to strike his or her name off the rolls and report the matter to the next higher committee. If the resignation is on political grounds the unit may refuse to accept the resignation and may expel him.
-
In the case where a Party member wishing to resign from the Party is liable to be charged with serious violation of party discipline which may warrant his or her expulsion and where such a charge is substantial, the resignation may be given effect to as expulsion from the Party.
-
All such cases of resignations given effect to as expulsion shall be immediately reported to the next higher Party committee and be subject to the latter's confirmation.
ARTICLE IX
Membership Fee
-
All Party members as well as candidates shall pay a Party membership fee of rupees two per year. This annual Party fee shall be paid at the time of admission into the Party and by March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned. If he or she does not clear the fee in due time his or her name shall be removed from the Party rolls. The Central Committee may extend this date if the circumstances warrant such extension.
-
All Party fees collected from Party members by Party branches or units will be deposited with the Central Committee through the appropriate Party committees.
ARTICLE X
Party Levy
Every Party member must pay a monthly levy as laid down by the Central Committee. Those whose incomes are of annual or of seasonal character have to pay their levy at the beginning of the season or at the beginning of every quarter on the same percentage basis. If a member has failed to deposit his levy within three months after it is due, then his name is to be removed from the Party rolls.
ARTICLE XI
Duties of Party Members
-
The duties of the Party members are as follows:
(a) To regularly participate in the activity of the Party organisation to which they belong and to faithfully carry out the policy, decisions and the directives of the Party;
(b) To study Marxism-Leninism and endeavour to raise their level of understanding;
(c) To read, support and popularise the Party journals and Party publications;
(d) To observe the Party Constitution and Party discipline and behave in the spirit of proletarian internationalism and in accordance with the noble ideals of communism;
(e) To place the interests of the people and the Party above personal interests;
(f) To devotedly serve the masses and consistently strengthen their bonds with them, to learn from the masses and report their opinions and demands to the Party, to work in a mass organisation, unless exempted, under the guidance of the Party.
(g) To cultivate comradely relations towards one another the constantly develop a fraternal spirit within the Party;
(h) To practice criticism an self-criticism with a view to helping each other and improving individual and collective work;
(i) To be frank, honest and truthful to the Party and not to betray the confidence of the Party;
(j) To safeguard the unity and solidarity of the Party and to be vigilant against the enemies of the working class and the country;
(k) To defend the Party and uphold its cause against the onslaught of the enemies of the Party, the working class and the country.
-
It shall be the task of the Party organisation to ensure the fulfillment of the above duties by Party members and help them in every possible way in the discharge of these duties.
ARTICLE XII
Rights of Party Members
-
Rights of the Party members are as following:
(a) To elect Party organs and Party committees and be elected to them;
(b) To participate in discussion in order to contribute to the formation of the Party policy and of the decisions of the Party;
(c) To make proposals regarding one's own work in the Party;
(d) To make criticism about Party committees and Party functionaries at Party meetings;
(e) To be heard in person in his or her unit when a Party unit discusses disciplinary action against him or her;
(f) When any Party member disagrees with any decision of a Party committee on organization he or she has a right to submit his or her opinion to the next higher committee. In case of political difference a member has the right to submit his or her opinion to the higher committee up to the Central Committee. In all such cases the Party member shall, of course, carry out the Party decisions and the difference shall be sought to be resolved through the test of practice and through comradely discussions;
(g) To address any statement, appeal or complaint to any higher Party organisation up to and including the Central Committee.
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It shall be the duty of Party organisations and Party functionaries to see that these rights are respected
ARTICLE XIII
Principles of Democratic Centralism
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The structure of the Party is based on, and its internal life is guided by, the principles of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism means centralised leadership based on inner-Party democracy under the guidance of the centralised leadership.
In the sphere of the Party structure, the guiding principles of democratic centralism are:
(a) All Party organs from top to bottom shall be elected;
(b) The minority shall carry out the decisions of the majority; the lower Party organisations shall carry out the decision and directives of the higher Party organs, the individual shall subordinate himself to the will of the collective. All Party organisations shall carry out the decisions and directives of the Party Congress and of the Central Committee;
(c) All Party committees shall periodically report their work to the Party organisation immediately below and all lower committees shall likewise report to their immediate higher committee;
(d) All Party committees, particularly the leading Party committees, shall pay constant heed to the opinions and criticism of the lower Party organisations and the rank-and-file Party members;
(e) All Party committees shall function strictly on the principles of collective decisions and check-up combined with individual responsibility;
(f) All questions of international affairs, questions of all-India character, or questions concerning more than one state or questions requiring uniform decisions for the whole country, shall be decided upon by the all-India Party organisations. All questions of a state or district character shall be ordinarily decided upon by the corresponding Party organisations. But in no case shall such decisions run counter to the decisions of a higher Party organisation. When the Central Party leadership has to take a decision on any issue of major state importance, it shall do so normally after consultation with the state Party organisation concerned. The state organisation shall do likewise in relation to districts;
(g) On issues which affect the policy of the Party on an all-India scale, but on which the Party's standpoint is to be expressed for the first time, only the Central leadership of the Party is entitled to make a policy statement. The lower committees can and should send their opinions and suggestions in time for consideration by the Central leadership.
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Basing itself upon the experience of the entire Party membership and of the popular movement, in the sphere of the internal life of the Party, the following principles of democratic centralism are applied:
(a) Free and frank discussion within the Party unit on all questions affecting the Party, its policy and work;
(b) Sustained efforts to activise the Party members in popularising and implementing the Party policies, to raise their ideological-political level and improve their general education so that they can effectively participate in the life and work of the Party;
(c) When serious differences arise in a Party committee, every effort should be made to arrive at an agreement. Failing this, the decision should be postponed with a view to resolving differences through further discussions, unless an immediate decision is called for by the needs of the Party and the mass movement;
(d) Encouragement of criticism and self-criticism at all levels, from top to bottom, especially criticism from below;
(e) Consistent struggles against bureaucratic tendencies at all levels;
(f) Impermissibility of factionalism and factional groupings inside the Party in any form;
(g) Strengthening of the Party spirit by developing fraternal relations and mutual help, correcting mistakes by treating comrades sympathetically; judging them and their work not on the basis of isolated mistakes or incidents, but taking into account their whole record of service to the Party.
ARTICLE XIV
All-India Party Congress
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The supreme organ of the Party for the whole country shall be the All-India Party Congress.
(a) The regular Party Congress shall be convened by the Central Committee ordinarily once every three years.
(b) An Extraordinary Party Congress shall be called by the Central Committee at its own discretion, or when it is demanded by two or more State Committees representing not less than one-third of the total Party membership.
(c) The date and venue of the Party Congress or of the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee at a meeting especially called for the purpose.
(d) Regular Party Congress shall be composed of delegates elected by the State Conferences as well as by Conferences of Party units directly under the all-India Party Centre.
(e) The basis of representation at a regular Party Congress and the basis of representation and method of election of delegates to the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee on the basis of total Party membership, strength of the mass movements led by the Party, strength of the Party in the respective States.
(f) The members of the Central Committee shall have the right to participate as full delegates in the Party Congress, whether regular or extraordinary.
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Functions and powers of the regular Party Congress are as follows:
(a) To discuss and act on the political and organisational report of the Central Committee;
(b) To revise and change the Party Programme and the Party Constitution.
(c) To determine the Party line on current situation;
(d) To elect the Central Committee by secret ballot.
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It elects a Credentials Committee which goes into the credentials of all the delegates and submits a report to the Congress.
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The Congress shall elect a Presidium for the conduct of its business.
ARTICLE XV
Central Committee
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(a) The Central Committee shall be elected at the Party Congress, the numbers being decided by the Party Congress.
(b) The outgoing Central Committee shall propose to the Congress a panel of candidates.
(c) The panel of candidates shall be prepared with a view to creating a capable leadership, closely linked with the masses, firm in the revolutionary outlook of the working class and educated in Marxism-Leninism.
(d) Any delegate can raise objection with regard to any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, but the prior approval of the member whose name is proposed is necessary.
(e) Any one whose name has been proposed shall have the right to withdraw.
(f) The panel proposed, together with the additional nominations by the delegates, shall be voted upon by secret ballot, and by the method of single distributive vote. In case there is no additional nomination, approval of the delegates will be taken by show of hands.
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The Central Committee shall be the highest authority of the Party between two all-India Party Congress.
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It is responsible for enforcing the Party Constitution and carrying out the political line and decisions adopted by the Party Congress.
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The Central Committee shall represent the Party as a whole and be responsible for directing the entire work of the Party. The Central Committee shall have the right to take decisions with full authority on any question facing the Party.
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The Central Committee shall elect from among it members a Polit Bureau including the General Secretary. The number of members in the Polit Bureau shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Polit Bureau carries on the work of the Central Committee between its two sessions and has the right to take political and organisational decisions in between two meetings of the Central Committee.
(a) The Central Committee shall elect a Secretariat from among its members. The number of members of the Secretariat shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Secretariat will, under the guidance of the Polit Bureau, look after the day-to-day work of the Party Centre and assist the Polit Bureau in the implementation of Central Committee decisions.
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The election of the secretaries of the State Committees and of editors of state Party organs shall require the approval of the Central Committee.
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(a) The Central Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-Party activity by two-thirds of the members present and voting and in any case by more than half the total strength of the Central Committee voting for such removal.
b) It can fill up any vacancy occurring in its composition by simple majority of its total members.
(c) In case member or members of the Central Committee are arrested the remaining members can coopt substitute member or members and they shall have full right as the original members but should vacate their places as the arrested members get released and assume their duties.
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The time between two meetings of the Central Committee shall not normally exceed three months and it shall meet whenever one third of its total members make a requisition.
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The Central Committee shall discuss and decide political and organisational issues and problems of mass movements and guide the State Committees and all-India Party fractions in mass organisations.
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The Central Committee is responsible for the Party finances and adopts the statement of accounts submitted to it by the Polit Bureau once a year.
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The Central Committee shall submit its political and organisational report before the Party Congress, whenever it is convened.
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With the aim of strengthening the revolutionary leadership of the Party and ensuring a check-up over the State and district organisations, the Central Committee sends representatives and organisers, who must work on the basis of special instructions laid down every time by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau.
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The Central Committee may when it deems necessary convene an extended session of the Central Committee, or Plenum or Conference. The Central Committee shall decide the basis of attendance and method of election of delegates for such bodies.
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In case of emergency or in case of large-scale arrests, the Central Committee, the State Committees, and the District Committees shall be reorganised into smaller compact bodies. The names for such reorganisation of Central Committee are prepared by the remaining members of the P.B. and should be approved by the members of the Central Committee inside and outside. The names for the reorganisation of State and District Committees are prepared by the remaining members of the respective committees and are to be approved by their next higher committee. They can form sub-committees as they deem it necessary, to discharge their functions and responsibilities. The reconstituted Central Committee is empowered to frame new rules for safeguarding the Party organisation. But when the situation normalises the elected Committees are restored.
ARTICLE XVI
State and District Party Organs
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The highest organ in the State or District shall be the State or the District Conference which elects a State or District Committee.
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(a) The organisational structure, the rights and functions of the State or District Party organs are similar to those enumerated in the articles concerning the Party structure and functions at the all-India level, their functions being confined to the State or district issues and their decisions being within the limit of the decisions taken by the next higher Party organ. In case it becomes necessary to increase the number of members of these Party Committees they can do so with the permission of the next higher committee.
(b) The State or District Committee shall elect a Secretariat including the secretary. But the State or District Committee may not have a Secretariat if permitted by the next higher committee.
(c) The State or District Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-party activity by a decision of majority of the total members of the State Committee or District Committee.
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(a) The State Committee shall decide on the area of the District Committee taking into account the needs of the movement. It may not necessarily be confined to administrative division.
(b) The State Committee shall decided on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XVII
Primary Unit
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(a) The primary unit of the Party is the Party Branch organised on the basis of profession or territory;
(b) Party members are to be organised on the basis of their occupation or vocation, when they are working in a factory or an institute or any industry. When such Branches are organised the members of such Branches shall be associate members of the Party branches in place of their residence or organised as auxiliary Branches there. The work to be allotted in their place of residence shall not be detrimental to the work allotted to them by their basic units in the factory or institute or occupation;
(c) The number of members in a Branch shall not be more than fifteen. The functions and other matters related to the Branch will be determined by the State Committee.
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The Branch is the living link between the masses of workers, peasants and other sections of the people within its area or sphere and the leading committee of Party. Its tasks are:
(a) To carry out the directives of the higher committee;
(b) Win the masses in the factory or locality for the political and organisational decisions of the Party;
(c) Draw in militants and sympathisers into activity to enroll them as new members and educate them politically;
(d) Help the district, local or town committee in its every day organisational and agitational work.
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To carry out the current work, the Branch elects its Secretary who is confirmed by the next higher committee.
ARTICLE XVIII
Central and State Control Commission
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The Party Congress shall directly elect a Central Control Commission consisting of not more than five members. The Chairperson of the Central Control Commission will be an ex-officio member of the Central Committee.
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The Control Commission shall take up:
(a) Cases of disciplinary action referred to it by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau;
(b) Cases of appeal where disciplinary action has been taken by the State Committee.
(c) Cases involving expulsion, suspension from full Party membership and decisions of droppage from Party membership against which an appeal has been made to the State Committee or to the State Control Commission and rejected.
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The decision of the Central Control Commission will be final and binding.
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The detailed rules for the functioning of the Control Commission shall be framed by the Central Committee after consultation with the Control Commission.
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In the eventually of a vacancy arising in the Central Control Commission between two party Congresses, the Central Committee shall have the right to fill the vacancy.
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The State Conference may elect a State Control Commission to go into the cases of disciplinary action. In whichever State the State Control Commission is set up, the functions and authority will be similar to that of the Central Control Commission, but within its own State.
ARTICLE XIX
Party Discipline
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Discipline is indispensable for preserving and strengthening the unity of the Party, for enhancing its strength, its fighting ability and its prestige, and for enforcing the principles of democratic centralism. Without strict adherence to Party discipline, the Party cannot lead the masses in struggles and actions, nor discharge its responsibility towards them.
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Discipline is based on conscious acceptance of the aims, the Programme and the policies of the Party. All members of the Party are equally bound by Party discipline irrespective of their status in the Party organisation or in public life.
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Violation of the Party Constitution and decisions of the Party as well as any other action and behaviour unworthy of a member of the Communist Party shall constitute a breach of Party discipline and is liable to disciplinary action.
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The disciplinary actions are :
(a) Warning;
(b) Censure;
(c) Public censure;
(d) Removal from the post in the Party;
(e) Suspension from full Party membership for any period but not exceeding one year;
(f) Expulsion.
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Disciplinary action shall normally be taken where other methods, including methods of persuasion, have failed to correct the comrade concerned. But even where disciplinary measure has been taken, the efforts to help the comrade to correct himself shall continue. In case where the breach of discipline is such that it warrants an immediate disciplinary measure to protect the interests of Party or its prestige, the disciplinary action shall be taken promptly.
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Expulsion from the Party is the severest of all disciplinary measures and this shall be applied with utmost caution, deliberation and judgement.
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No disciplinary measure involving removal from the post held in the Party, suspension from full Party membership other than suspension pending enquiry, expulsion from the Party, shall come into effect without confirmation by the next higher committee. In case of expulsion the penalised Party member shall be removed from all Party activities pending confirmation. The expelled member stands suspended from the Party till the expulsion is confirmed by the next higher committee. The higher committee will have to communicate its decision with six months.
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The comrade against whom a disciplinary measure is proposed shall be fully informed of the allegations, charges and other relevant facts against him or her. He or she shall have the right to be heard in person by the Party unit to which he or she belongs and shall have the right to submit his or her explanation to any other unit which takes action against him or her.
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When a member is simultaneously a member of two Party units, the lower unit can recommend disciplinary action against him or her but it shall not come into operation unless accepted by his or her higher unit.
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Party members found to be strike-breakers, drunkards, moral degenerates, betrayers of Party confidence, guilty of grave financial corruption can be summarily suspended from Party membership and removed from all responsible positions in the Party by the Party unit to which he belongs or by a higher Party body pending the issue of the charge-sheet to him and getting his explanation. This summary suspension and removal from all responsible positions in the Party cannot be extended for a period of more than three months.
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There shall be right of appeal in all cases of disciplinary action.
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The Central, State or District Committee has the right to dissolve and appoint new committees or take disciplinary action against a lower committee in cases where a persistent defiance of Party decisions and policy, serious factionalism, or a break of Party discipline is involved. But the State and District Committee will immediately report such action to the next higher committee for whatever action it deems necessary.
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In exceptional circumstances Party Committees in their discretion may resort to summary procedure in expelling members for grave anti-Party activities.
ARTICLE XX
Party Members in Elected Public Bodies
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Party members elected to Parliament, State Legislature or Administrative Council shall constitute themselves into a Party group and function under the appropriate Party Committee in strict conformity with the line of the Party, its policies and directives.
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The communist legislators shall unswervingly defend the interests of the people. Their work in the legislature shall reflect the movement and they shall uphold and popularize the policies of the Party.
The legislative work of the communist legislators shall be closely combined with the activity of the Party outside and mass movements and it shall be the duty of all communist legislators to help build the Party and mass organisations.
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The communist legislators shall maintain the closest possible contact with their electors and masses, keeping them duly informed of their legislative work and constantly seeking their suggestions and advice.
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The communist legislators shall maintain a high standard of personal integrity, lead an unostentatious life and display humility in all their dealings and contact with the people and place the Party above self.
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Salaries and allowances drawn by communist legislators and local body members are considered to be Party money. The Party Committee concerned shall fix up the wages and allowances of the members.
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Party members elected to local bodies such as corporations, municipalities, town or area committees, zilla parishads, block samities, gram panchayats shall function under the appropriate Party Committee or Party Branch. They shall maintain close day-to-day contacts with their electors and the masses and defend their interests in such elected bodies. They shall make regular reports on their work to the electors and the people and seek their suggestions and advice. The work in such local bodies shall be combined with intense mass activity outside.
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All nomination of Party candidates for election to Parliament, Legislatures or Councils or Centrally Administered areas shall be subject to approval by the Central Committee.
Rules governing the nomination of Party candidates for corporation, municipalities, district boards, local boards and panchayats shall be drawn up by the State Committees.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
ARTICLE XXI
Inner-Party Discussions
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To unify the Party, free and businesslike discussions of Party policy in the various organisations of the Party as a whole are useful and necessary. This is the inalienable right of Party members arising from inner-Party democracy. But interminable discussions on issues of Party policy which paralyse the unity and will of action of the Party would be a gross misuse of inner-Party democracy.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be organised on all-India scale by the Central Committee:
(a) Whenever it considers it necessary;
(b) Whenever over an important question of Party policy there is not sufficient firm majority inside the Central Committee.
(c) When an inner-Party discussion on all-India scale is demanded by State Committees representing one-third of total Party membership.
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A State Committee can initiate inner-Party discussion on an important question of Party policy concerning that particular State, either on its own, or on a demand of District Committees representing one-third Party membership in the State with the approval of the Central Committee.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be conducted under the guidance of the Central Committee which shall formulate the issues under discussion. The Central Committee which guides the discussion shall lay down the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted.
When the State Committee initiates the discussion, it can formulate the issues under discussion and the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted, with the approval of the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXII
Discussion Preparatory to Party Congress And Conferences
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Two months before the Party Congress, the Central Committee will release draft resolution for discussion by all units of the Party. It is obligatory on the part of the State Committees to render it into respective languages and forward to all Branch Committees the required number of copies in the shortest possible time after its release by the Central Committee Amendments to the resolution will be sent directly to the Central Committee which will place its report on them before the Party Congress.
- At each level, the Conference shall take place on the basis of reports and resolutions submitted by the respective Committees.
ARTICLE XXIII
Party Members Working in Mass Organisations
Party members working in mass organisations and their executives shall organise themselves into fractions or fraction committees and function under the guidance of the appropriate Party Committee, They must always strive to strengthen the unity, mass basis and fighting capacity of the mass organisations concerned.
ARTICLE XXIV
Bye-Laws
The Central Committee may frame rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it. Rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it may also be framed by the State Committees subject to confirmation by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXV
Amendment
The Party Constitution shall be amended only by the Party Congress. The notice of proposals for amending the Constitution shall be given two months before the said Party Congress.
RULES UNDER PARTY CONSTITUTION
(Adopted by the Central Committee in its Meeting on April 8-10, 1988)
Under Article IV, Section 10:
Membership
Regarding Transfer of Member from one unit to another or from one state to another:
(Explanation: Though in practice all transfers from one State to another are done by the CC, the particulars mentioned generally are inadequate. Therefore when a State asks the Centre to transfer a comrade to another State, it must specify the following so that a proper record is kept of each Party member at each level. The same would apply to transfers within the State.)
Rules : Transfer of Membership
The following particulars must be supplied along with the letter of transfer:
Name of comrade :
Age :
Year of joining the Party :
Unit to which he/she belonged :
Mass organisation in which he/she worked :
Levy amount per month and paid up to :
Any record of disciplinary action :
State from which he/she is to be transferred :
State to which he/she is to be transferred :
Year of renewal of Party membership :
Address where he/she can be contacted :
Auxiliary Groups:
(Explanation: The Salkia Plenum has directed that militants thrown up through mass struggles should be put into auxiliary groups, trained and educated so that they can be recruited as Party members. For this provision is to be made in the rules.)
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Party units should take steps to organise active participants and militants thrown up in the course of mass movements and from the mass organisations into auxiliary groups which are groupings of broad sympathizers.
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Party Committees should arrange for the education and training of such auxiliary group members about the Party Programme and basic policies, so as to equip them in a reasonable period of time to be capable of joining the Party as candidate members.
Under Article VI
Party Membership Records
Rule: The Constitution provides for the membership records to be kept under the supervision of the District Committee. While the final authority for veracity of the records and its authenticated copy will be the DC, the maintenance of records can be delegated to the intermediate/local committee in a State, if so decided by the State Committee concerned.
Under Article VII
Check-up of Party Membership
(Explanation: Clause (1) states that a Party member may be dropped from membership who "for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues". This is to safeguard against arbitrary droppages without the due reasons stated in the Constitution. Some specific rules are required on the procedure to be adopted.)
Rules
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The unit concerned which wishes to drop a member must do so after giving the member a chance to explain his or her position. The branch must convey the decision to drop the member in writing to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee, when confirming and registering the membership, must examine the list of droppages and give its specific opinion on the same.
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The committee concerned must submit a renewal report to the next higher committee giving details of the Party membership enrolment, droppages, transfers and composition of the membership.
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For renewal of Party membership there should be a renewal form to be filled up by the member concerned every year which includes basic data such as age, year of joining the Party, income and front in which working.
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The receipt for the membership fee has to be given to the member concerned.
Under Article IX
Membership Fee
Renewals: (Explanation: Article IX, Clause I states that the annual membership fee is to be paid by a member by "March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned."
If membership fees are deposited only by March end to the units, by the time it is forwarded to the District/State Committees, it takes time. So in practice now the CC gets the consolidated membership fees from the State over a varied period of time. Now the duration stretches from April to December even. There has to be a cut-off date by which the membership fees should reach the Centre.)
Rules
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Renewal of Party membership each year must be completed by March 31st.
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The State Committees must deposit the membership fees with the Centre by 31st May each year.
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In case of any contingency the date can only be extended by the Central Committee/PB.
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New enrolment during the current year of candidate membership fees to be remitted by the end of the year or before.
Note: New enrolment of candidate members (after the renewal period) continues throughout the year. Their fees are to be deposited with the Central Committee separately.
Under Article X:
Party Levy
Rules
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1. Party members levy rates: The Central Committee decides that the levy from Party members shall be collected as per the following rates:
For Income
Upto Rs.300 permonth 25 paise Rs. 301 to 500 per month 50 paise Rs. 501 to 1000 per month 0.5% Rs. 1001 to 3000 per month 1 % Rs. 3001 to 5000 per month 2 % Rs. 5001 to 7000 per month 3 % Rs. 7001 to 8000 per month 4 % Above Rs. 8000 per month 5 %
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If a member is to pay quarterly or annually, calculate his/her monthly income on the basis of his/her annual income and calculate amount which he or she has to pay applying the above rates.
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If spouse or any other member earning and contributing to the family income, is not a Party member, their income is not to be included, for the calculation of levy rates.
Note:
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Income means with regard to salaried employees and wage earners, all their total gross income, including DA and other allowances. Apart from this, if the member has additional income from land, business or houses, that too is to be added.
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In case of peasants, income after excluding actual amounts expended towards agricultural production.
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If a person is living off joint family income, then his share of income.
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In extreme cases, unemployment, drought or illness, if exemptions are to be given, it is for the respective State Committee to take necessary decision.
Note: The percentage share of local, area, district and state is to be decided by the State concerned.
Under Article XV, Section 10:
Central Committee Finances
Rules
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The Central Committee is authorised to appoint a Trust to manage its properties.
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The Central Committee is to decide each year, or as the case many be, the quantum each State will pay towards Party fund or special Party fund drive to run the Party's central apparatus.
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Polit Bureau will constitute a Finance Sub-Committee which will meet and
(a) Take decision on financial matters and expenditure involving amounts upto Rs. ten thousands only. Expenditure of higher limit will be referred to the P.B.
(b) Finance Sub-Committee will place quarterly accounts of the CC and its establishment to the Polit Bureau.
(c) Finance Sub-Committee will submit yearly accounts as approved by the PB to the Central Committee for its approval (as laid down by the Party Constitution).
(d) One member of the Sub-Committee will be incharge of the income and disbursement of the Party finances after which these will be passed over to the accounts incharge for finalisation and compilation.
(e) Half-yearly accounts of the Party organs and other establishments (if any) to be submitted to the Sub-Committee.
Under Article XVI: Sub-Clause 3(b):
State and district Party Organs, Setting up of Intermediate Committees
(Explanation: Clause 3(b) states, "The State Committee shall decide on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee)
The State Committee can decide to set up intermediate committees between the primary unit and the District Committee or the region under the following rules:
(a) The State Committee will decide the size of the committee to be set up.
(b) Such a committee will be elected by the conference of delegates at that level. The committee should elect a Secretary and /or the Secretariat.
(c) The criteria of election of delegates to the conference of the intermediate committee will be decided by the State Committee.
(d) The intermediate committee (local, area, zonal etc.) will exercise all those functions enumerated for the State/ District Committees, their function being confined to the local area or zone under its jurisdiction.
(e) Committees set up on an ad-hoc/nominated basis for coordination purposes will not have the general powers laid out for full-fledged elected committees. Their scope of work is to be guided by the decisions of the respective committees who appointed them.
(f) The number of delegates to the District Conference and the conferences of committees below the district will be decided by the State Committee.
Under Article XVI: Rules on Party Finances & Accounts
For Committees Below The CC (States & District Party Organs)
(Explanation: Similar to the rules framed for the CC finances and accounting, the following rules will apply to all the lower elected committees
(a) At State level (and for the intermediate/District committees as decided by the State Committee) finance sub-committee of the committee concerned will be constituted by the Secretariat.
(b) The sub-committee will be responsible for the disbursement of the money and maintenance of the accounts under the supervision of the Secretariat.
(c) The sub-committee will submit a six-monthly account to the Party Committee and this statement should be forwarded to the next higher committee.
(d) Annual accounts should be audited by the sub-committee and placed before the Party committee for approval.
(e) The State Committees will submit a copy of their annual accounts which is approved by the committee, to the Central Committee.
Under Article XVIII:
Rules For The Functioning Of The Central Control Commission
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On receipt of a reference or an appeal under Article XVIII, the Central Control Commission should take steps to investigate and decide upon the issue.
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No appeal can be preferred by any one other than the aggrieved Party member.
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The Central Control Commission shall have the right to directly correspond with the examine unit/units or persons concerned in order to ascertain facts and to arrive at conclusion.
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The Central Control Commission will ordinarily meet once in three months. The Chairperson shall call a meeting of the Central Control Commission after giving 14 days prior notice.
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Majority of the members constitute quorum of the meeting. The Central Control Commission can take a decision only if all the members agree or majority of the members of the Central Control Commission agree. A decision taken may be informed to the absent member or members.
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The Central Control commission may take decisions by consultation by correspondence among its members on such issues which are simple and not complicated.
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The Central Control Commission will communicate its decision to the appellant and the respective State Committee and the decision of the Central Control Commission has to be implemented immediately by the respective committees.
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The Central Control Commission will present before the Central Committee a consolidated report of its activities and decisions at least once in a year.
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These rules shall apply mutatis mutandis to State Control Commissions.
Procedural Rules For
Central Control Commission To Conduct Business
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On receipt of an appeal, the Chairperson of the Central Control Commission shall intimate about the case to the other members.
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The Chairperson shall also propose the immediate steps to be taken up for the investigation in a particular case. The other members of the Central Control Commission may send their proposals regarding the same.
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The Central Control Commission has the right to ask for any information which is required for deciding the appeal from the concerned committees and members and they should provide such information to the Central Control Commission within a period of two months and if no such information is received within this period, the Central Control Commission may proceed with the case.
Under Article XIX, Clause 13:
Party Discipline
Provision for summary expulsion in exceptional circumstance is meant for "grave" anti-Party activities. The means only under extremely serious circumstances such as when a member is found to be a spy or enemy agent or when the member's activities seriously compromise the Party's position, should it be invoked.
Under Article XX:
Party Members In Elected Bodies
Rules
-
Each CPI(M) Parliament member has to pay levy amount as decided by the Central Committee to the Central Committee.
-
The percentage of the levy share as fixed by the PB for the State will be remitted to the State Committee concerned (to the State the member belongs) each month.
(Explanation: Article XX Sub-clause (5) in the Constitution states that salaries and allowances drawn by Communist legislators and local body members are to be considered Party money. Earlier there was no system of pensions for MPs/MLAs. Now it is there. So the following rule.)
-
Salaries and allowances of Communist legislators, local body members include pensions drawn by them, if any.
Under Article XXII
Discussions Preparatory To Party Congress And Conferences
The forums of the Party conferences will be utilised to discuss and review the work report since the past conference and political-organisational questions related to the implementation of the line laid down in the past conference/Congress. The discussion on the draft political resolution of the Congress will be conducted separately as per the provisions laid down in the Constitution.
Under Article XXIII
Party Members Working In Mass Organisations
-
The Party Committee at Central, State and District levels may form sub-committee from amongst its members and any other member considered suitably equipped to guide the work of the Party members working in different mass fronts. They will specialise in the problems of the front, check up on Party building, guide and coordinate the activities of the Party members in different mass organisations, whether they exist as Party units or fraction committees, and see that Party policy in being followed and implemented.
-
All the Party members working in a mass organisation or the elected bodies of that organisation at various levels constitute the fraction of that body. They have to function under the guidance and decisions of the respective Party committees.
-
Fraction committees are to be set up from amongst the fraction members where there are large number of them working at different levels in a mass organisation. The fraction committee will be set up by the respective Party committee by including those comrades, apart from members of the Party committee if any, who are equipped with the required level of maturity or mass experience considered necessary by the Party committee.
-
The fraction committee, as constituted above, should carry out the decisions of the respective Party committees in the Executive or General Council of the particular mass organisation, and all necessary measures to implement the decisions of Party Committees by the fraction in that mass organisation shall be taken by the fraction committee.
Adopted By the Eighth Congress, Cochin, December 23-29, 1968
Amendments made to the Constitution upto the XVIII Congress, April 2005, and to the rules by the Central Committee upto December 2005, have been incorporated.
CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat spoke to Sunday ET on how he and the party will respond to their biggest poll set back in years and where the CPM went wrong
Post-poll crisis for CPM
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges. We were in power for 34 years. A generation of CPM members and supporters have never been in Opposition. In Kerala, we are used to winning and losing elections.
Plans to step down as CPM chief.
I am going to make a proposal to the party about a retirement plan for the general secretary. There has to be a cap on the number of terms the general secretary can have. It can be two or three or four terms. The leadership will decide it. (Karat is on his second term as CPM general secretary now. The coming CPM party congress will decide on whether he gets a third term).
Retirement before or during the CPM party congress
I have certain views on the matter. I think it is proper the general secretary steps aside after a period to pave the way for a new leader. That will help the party prepare a new line of leadership in a time-bound manner. And the person who steps down can always continue as a member of the politburo, party secretariat, etc.
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "CPIM" redirects here. For other uses, see CPIM (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Communist Party of India or Communist Party of India (Maoist). This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010)
Communist Party of India (Marxist) Secretary-General Prakash Karat Leader in Lok Sabha Basudev Acharia[1] Leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechuri[1] Founded 1964 Headquarters New Delhi, India Newspaper People's Democracy(English),
Lok Lehar (Hindi),
Ganashakti (bengali),
Deshabhimani'' (Malayalam),
Theekathir (Tamil) Student wing Students Federation of India Youth wing Democratic Youth Federation of India Women's wing All India Democratic Womens Association Labour wing Centre of Indian Trade Unions Peasant's wing All India Kisan Sabha Ideology Communism
Marxism-Leninism ECI Status Recognised Party Alliance Left Front Seats in Lok Sabha 16 Seats in Rajya Sabha 14 Election symbol Website Official Website Politics of India
Political parties
Elections
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated CPI(M) or CPM) is a political party inIndia. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI(M) is leading the state government only in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of India. It was voted out after 34 years in power in West Bengal in elections whose results were declared in May 2011. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964. CPI(M) claimed to have 982,155 members in 2007.[2]
Contents
[hide]
[edit]History
[edit]Split in the Communist Party of India and formation of CPI(M)
CPI(M) emerged out of a division within the Communist Party of India (CPI). The undivided CPI had experienced a period of upsurge during the years following the Second World War. The CPI led armed rebellions in Telangana, Tripura and Kerala. However, it soon abandoned the strategy of armed revolution in favour of working within the parliamentary framework. In 1950 B.T. Ranadive, the CPI general secretary and a prominent representative of the radical sector inside the party, was demoted on grounds of left-adventurism.
Under the government of the Indian National Congressparty of Jawaharlal Nehru, independent India developed close relations and a strategic partnership with theSoviet Union. The Soviet government consequently wished that the Indian communists moderate their criticism towards the Indian state and assume a supportive role towards the Congress governments. However, large sections of the CPI claimed that India remained a semi-feudal country, and that class strugglecould not be put on the back-burner for the sake of guarding the interests of Soviet trade and foreign policy. Moreover, the Indian National Congress appeared to be generally hostile towards political competition. In 1959 the central government intervened to impose President's Rule in Kerala, toppling the E.M.S. Namboodiripad cabinet (the sole non-Congress state government in the country).
Simultaneously, the relations between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theCommunist Party of China soured. In the early 1960s the Communist Party of China began criticising the CPSU of turning revisionist and of deviating from the path of Marxism-Leninism.Sino-Indian relations also deteriorated, as border disputes between the two countries erupted into the Sino-Indian war of 1962.
During the war with China, a faction of the Indian Communists backed the position of the Indian government, while other sections of the party claimed that it was a conflict between a socialist and a capitalist state. Hundreds of CPI leaders, accused of being pro-Chinese, were imprisoned. Some of the nationalists were also imprisoned, as they used to express their opinion only in party forums, and CPI's official stand was pro-China. Thousands of Communists were detained without trial.[3] Those targeted by the state accused the pro-Soviet leadership of the CPI of conspiring with the Congress government to ensure their own hegemony over the control of the party.
In 1962 Ajoy Ghosh, the general secretary of the CPI, died. After his death, S.A. Dange was installed as the party chairman (a new position) and E.M.S. Namboodiripad as general secretary. This was an attempt to achieve a compromise. Dange represented the rightist faction of the party and E.M.S. the leftist faction.
At a CPI National Council meeting held on April 11, 1964, 32 Council members walked out in protest, accusing Dange and his followers of "anti-unity and anti-Communist policies".[4]
The leftist section, to which the 32 National Council members belonged, organised a convention in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh July 7 to 11. In this convention the issues of the internal disputes in the party were discussed. 146 delegates, claiming to represent 100,000 CPI members, took part in the proceedings. The convention decided to convene the 7th Party Congress of CPI in Calcutta later the same year.[5]
Marking a difference from the Dangeite sector of CPI, the Tenali convention was marked by the display of a large portrait of the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong.[5]
At the Tenali convention a Bengal-based pro-Chinese group, representing one of the most radical streams of the CPI left wing, presented a draft programme proposal of their own. These radicals criticised the draft programme proposal prepared by M. Basavapunniah for undermining class struggle and failing to take a clear pro-Chinese position in the ideological conflict between the CPSU and CPC.[6]
After the Tenali convention the CPI left wing organised party district and state conferences. In West Bengal, a few of these meetings became battlegrounds between the most radical elements and the more moderate leadership. At the Calcutta Party District Conference an alternative draft programme was presented to the leadership by Parimal Das Gupta (a leading figure amongst far-left intellectuals in the party). Another alternative proposal was brought forward to the Calcutta Party District Conference by Azizul Haque, but Haque was initially banned from presenting it by the conference organisers. At the Calcutta Party District Conference 42 delegates opposed M. Basavapunniah's official draft programme proposal.
At the Siliguri Party District Conference, the main draft proposal for a party programme was accepted, but with some additional points suggested by the far-left North Bengal cadre Charu Majumdar. However, Harekrishna Konar (representing the leadership of the CPI left wing) forbade the raising of the slogan Mao Tse-Tung Zindabad (Long live Mao Tse-Tung) at the conference.
Parimal Das Gupta's document was also presented to the leadership at the West Bengal State Conference of the CPI leftwing. Das Gupta and a few other spoke at the conference, demanding the party ought to adopt the class analysis of the Indian state of the 1951 CPI conference. His proposal was, however, voted down.[7]
The Calcutta Congress was held between October 31 and November 7, at Tyagraja Hall in southern Calcutta. Simultaneously, the Dange group convened a Party Congress of CPI in Bombay. Thus, the CPI divided into two separate parties. The group which assembled in Calcutta would later adopt the name 'Communist Party of India (Marxist)', in order to differentiate themselves from the Dange group. The CPI(M) also adopted its own political programme. P. Sundarayya was elected general secretary of the party.
In total 422 delegates took part in the Calcutta Congress. CPI(M) claimed that they represented 104,421 CPI members, 60% of the total party membership.
At the Calcutta conference the party adopted a class analysis of the character of the Indian state, that claimed the Indian big bourgeoisie was increasingly collaborating with imperialism.[8]
Parimal Das Gupta's alternative draft programme was not circulated at the Calcutta conference. However, Souren Basu, a delegate from the far-left stronghold Darjeeling, spoke at the conference asking why no portrait had been raised of Mao Tse-Tung along the portraits of other communist stalwarts. His intervention met with huge applauses from the delegates of the conference.[8]
[edit]Name
CPI(M) is offically known as भारत की कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी मार्क्सवादी(Bharat ki Kamyunist Party Marksvadi) in hindi, but it is often known as मार्क्सवादी कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी (Marksvadi Kamyunist Party, abbreviatedMaKaPa) in press and media circles. This name though has a very interesting story to tell. During its initial years after the split, the party was often referred by different names such as 'Left Communist Party' or 'Communist Party of India(Left)'. The party has used the name 'Left' because CPI people were dubbed as rightist in nature for their support to Congress-Nehru regime. During Kerala Legislative Assembly elections of 1965 the party has adopted the name 'Communist Party of India(Marxist)' in order to obtain its election symbol from the Election Commission of India.[9]
[edit]Early years of CPI (M)
The CPI (M) was born into a hostile political climate. At the time of the holding of its Calcutta Congress, large sections of its leaders and cadres were jailed without trial. Again on December 29–30, over a thousand CPI (M) cadres were arrested, and held in jail without trial. In 1965 new waves of arrests of CPI(M) cadres took place in West Bengal, as the party launched agitations against the rise in fares in the Calcutta Tramways and against the then prevailing food crisis. State-wide general strikes and hartalswere observed on August 5, 1965, March 10–11, 1966 and April 6, 1966. The March 1966 general strike results in several deaths in confrontations with police forces.
Also in Kerala, mass arrests of CPI(M) cadres were carried out during 1965. In Bihar, the party called for a Bandh (general strike) in Patna on August 9, 1965 in protest against the Congress state government. During the strike, police resorted to violent actions against the organisers of the strike. The strike was followed by agitations in other parts of the state.
P. Sundaraiah, after being released from jail, spent the period of September 1965-February 1966 in Moscow for medical treatment. In Moscow he also held talks with the CPSU.[10]
The Central Committee of CPI(M) held its first meeting on June 12–19, 1966. The reason for delaying the holding of a regular CC meeting was the fact that several of the persons elected as CC members at the Calcutta Congress were jailed at the time.[11] A CC meeting had been scheduled to have been held in Trichur during the last days of 1964, but had been cancelled due to the wave of arrests against the party. The meeting discussed tactics for electoral alliances, and concluded that the party should seek to form a broad electoral alliances with all non-reactionary opposition parties in West Bengal (i.e. all parties except Jan Sangh and Swatantra Party). This decision was strongly criticised by the Communist Party of China, the Party of Labour of Albania, the Communist Party of New Zealand and the radicals within the party itself. The line was changed at a National Council meeting in Jullunder in October 1966, were it was decided that the party should only form alliances with selected left parties.[12]
[edit]Naxalbari uprising
Main article: Naxalite At this point the party stood at crossroads. There were radical sections of the party who were wary of the increasing parliamentary focus of the party leadership, especially after the electoral victories in West Bengal and Kerala. Developments in China also affected the situation inside the party. In West Bengal two separate internal dissident tendencies emerged, which both could be identified as supporting the Chinese line.[13] In 1967 a peasant uprising broke out in Naxalbari, in northern West Bengal. The insurgency was led by hardline district-level CPI(M) leaders Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. The hardliners within CPI(M) saw the Naxalbari uprising as the spark that would ignite the Indian revolution. The Communist Party of China hailed the Naxalbari movement, causing an abrupt break in CPI(M)-CPC relations.[14] The Naxalbari movement was violently repressed by the West Bengal government, of which CPI(M) was a major partner. Within the party, the hardliners rallied around an All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries. Following the 1968 Burdwan plenum of CPI(M) (held on April 5–12, 1968), the AICCCR separated themselves from CPI(M). This split divided the party throughout the country. But notably in West Bengal, which was the centre of the violent radicalist stream, no prominent leading figure left the party. The party and the Naxalites (as the rebels were called) were soon to get into a bloody feud.
In Andhra Pradesh another revolt was taking place. There the pro-Naxalbari dissidents had not established any presence. But in the party organisation there were many veterans from the Telangana armed struggle, who rallied against the central party leadership. In Andhra Pradesh the radicals had a strong base even amongst the state-level leadership. The main leader of the radical tendency was T. Nagi Reddy, a member of the state legislative assembly. On June 15, 1968 the leaders of the radical tendency published a press statement outlining the critique of the development of CPI(M). It was signed by T. Nagi Reddy, D.V. Rao, Kolla Venkaiah and Chandra Pulla Reddy.[15] In total around 50% of the party cadres in Andhra Pradesh left the party to form the Andhra Pradesh Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, under the leadership of T. Nagi Reddy.[16]
[edit]Dismissal of United Front governments in West Bengal and Kerala
In November 1967, the West Bengal United Front government was dismissed by the central government. Initially the Indian National Congress formed a minority government led by Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, but that cabinet did not last long. Following the proclamation that the United Front government had been dislodged, a 48-hour hartal was effective throughout the state. After the fall of the Ghosh cabinet, the state was but under President's Rule. CPI(M) launched agitations against the interventions of the central government in West Bengal.
The 8th Party Congress of CPI(M) was held in Cochin, Kerala, on December 23–29, 1968. On December 25, 1968, whilst the congress was held, 42 Dalits were burned alive in the Tamil village of Kilavenmani. The massacre was a retaliation from landlords after Dalit labourers had taken part in a CPI(M)-led agitation for higher wages.[17][18]
The United Front government in Kerala was forced out of office in October 1969, as the CPI, RSP, KTP and Muslim League ministers resigned. E.M.S. Namboodiripad handed in his resignation on October 24.[19] A coalition government led by CPI leader C. Achutha Menonwas formed, with the outside support of the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Elections in West Bengal and Kerala
Fresh elections were held in West Bengal in 1969. CPI(M) contested 97 seats, and won 80. The party was now the largest in the West Bengal legislative.[20] But with the active support of CPI and the Bangla Congress, Ajoy Mukherjee was returned as Chief Minister of the state. Mukherjee resigned on March 16, 1970, after a pact had been reached between CPI, Bangla Congress and the Indian National Congress against CPI(M). CPI(M) strove to form a new government, instead but the central government put the state under President's Rule.
In Kerala fresh elections were held in 1970. CPI(M) contested 73 seats and won 29. After the election Achutha Menon formed a new ministry, including ministers from the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Formation of CITU
Main article: Centre of Indian Trade Unions Following the 1964 split, CPI(M) cadres had remained active with the All India Trade Union Congress. But as relations between CPI and CPI(M) soured, with the backdrop of confrontations in West Bengal and Kerala, a split also surfaced in the AITUC. In December 1969, eight CPI(M) members walked out of an AITUC Working Committee meeting. The eight called for an All India Trade Union Convention, which was held in Goa April 9–10, 1970. The convention decided that an All India Trade Union Conference be held on May 28–31 in Calcutta. The Calcutta conference would be the founding conference of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, a new pro-CPI(M) trade union movement.[21]
[edit]Outbreak of war in East Pakistan
In 1971 Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) declared its independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani military tried to quell the uprising. India intervened militarily and gave active backing to the Bangladeshi resistance. Millions of Bangladeshi refugees sought shelter in India, especially in West Bengal.
At the time the radical sections of the Bangladeshi communist movement was divided into many factions. Whilst the pro-Soviet Communist Party of Bangladesh actively participated in the resistance struggle, the pro-China communist tendency found itself in a peculiar situation as China had sided with Pakistan in the war. In Calcutta, where many Bangladeshi leftists had sought refuge, CPI(M) worked to coordinate the efforts to create a new political organization. In the fall of 1971 three small groups, which were all hosted by the CPI(M), came together to form the Bangladesh Communist Party (Leninist). The new party became the sister party of CPI(M) in Bangladesh.[22]
[edit]Party organization
CPI(M) got 5.66% of votes polled in last parliamentary election (May 2004) and it has 43 MPs. It won 42.31% on an average in the 69 seats it contested. It supported the new Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government, but without becoming a part of it. On 9 July 2008 it formally withdrew support from the UPA government explaining this by differences about the Indo-US nuclear deal and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement in particular.[23]
In West Bengal and Tripura it participates in the Left Front. In Kerala the party is part of the Left Democratic Front. In Tamil Nadu it was part of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). However, it has since withdrawn support.
Its members in Great Britain are in the electoral front Unity for Peace and Socialism with the Communist Party of Britain and the British domiciled sections of the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). It is standing 13 candidates in the London-wide list section of the London Assembly elections in May 2008.[24]
[edit]The structure
- The Politburo (PB)
- The Central Committee (CC)
- State Committees
- District Committees
[edit]Membership
As of 2004, the party claimed a membership of 867 763.[25]
State 2001 2002 2003 2004 % of party
members in
electorate Andhra Pradesh 40785 41879 45516 46742 0.0914 Assam 10480 11207 11122 10901 0.0726 Andaman & Nicobar 172 140 124 90 0.0372 Bihar 17672 17469 16924 17353 0.0343 Chhattisgarh 1211 1364 1079 1054 0.0077 Delhi 1162 1360 1417 1408 0.0161 Goa 172 35 40 67 0.0071 Gujarat 2799 3214 3383 3398 0.0101 Haryana 1357 1478 1477 1608 0.0131 Himachal Pradesh 1005 1006 1014 1024 0.0245 Jammu & Kashmir 625 720 830 850 0.0133 Jharkhand 2552 2819 3097 3292 0.0200 Karnataka 6574 7216 6893 6492 0.0168 Kerala 301562 313652 318969 316305 1.4973 Madhya Pradesh 2243 2862 2488 2320 0.0060 Maharashtra 8545 9080 9796 10256 0.0163 Manipur 340 330 270 300 0.0195 Orissa 3091 3425 3502 3658 0.0143 Punjab 14328 11000 11000 10050 0.0586 Rajasthan 2602 3200 3507 3120 0.0090 Sikkim 200 180 65 75 0.0266 Tamil Nadu 86868 90777 91709 94343 0.1970 Tripura 38737 41588 46277 51343 2.5954 Uttaranchal 700 720 740 829 0.0149 Uttar Pradesh 5169 5541 5477 5877 0.0053 West Bengal 245026 262882 258682 274921 0.579 CC staff 96 95 95 87 Total 796073 835239 843896 867763 0.1292
[edit]Leadership
The current general secretary of CPI(M) is Prakash Karat. The 19th party congress of CPI(M), held in CoimbatoreMarch 29-April 3, 2008 elected a Central Committee with 87 members. The Central Committee later elected a 15-member Politburo:
- Prakash Karat
- Sitaram Yechury
- S. Ramachandran Pillai
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
- Manik Sarkar
- M.K. Pandhe
- Biman Bose
- Pinarayi Vijayan
- K. Varadarajan
- B.V. Raghavulu
- Brinda Karat
- Nirupam Sen
- Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
- Mohammad Amin
The senior most member, V.S. Achuthanandan was removed from the Polit Bureau on July 12, 2009.
The 19th congress saw the departure of the last two members of the Polit Bureau who had been on the original Polit Bureau in 1964, Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu.[26]
[edit]State Committee secretaries
- Andaman & Nicobar: K.G. Das
- Andhra Pradesh: B.V. Raghavulu
- Assam: Uddhab Barman
- Bihar: Vijaykant Thakur
- Chattisgarh: M.K. Nandi
- Delhi: P.M.S. Grewal
- Goa: Thaelman Perera
- Haryana: Inderjit Singh
- Jharkhand: J.S. Majumdar
- Karnataka: V.J.K. Nair
- Kerala : Pinarayi Vijayan
- Madhya Pradesh: Badal Saroj
- Maharashtra: Ashok Dhawale
- Orissa: Janardan Pati
- Punjab: Charan Singh Virdi(Acting)
- Rajasthan: Vasudev Sharma
- Sikkim: Balram Adhikari
- Tamil Nadu: G.Ramakrishnan
- Tripura: Baidyanath Majumdar
- Uttaranchal: Vijai Rawat
- Uttar Pradesh: S.P. Kashyap
- West Bengal: Biman Bose[27]
[edit]The principal mass organizations of CPI(M)
- Democratic Youth Federation of India
- Students Federation of India
- Centre of Indian Trade Unions class organisation
- All India Kisan Sabha peasants' organization
- All India Agricultural Workers Union
- All India Democratic Women's Association
- Bank Employees Federation of India
- All India Lawyers Union
In Tripura, the Ganamukti Parishad is a major mass organization amongst the tribal peoples of the state. In Kerala the Adivasi Kshema Samithi, a tribal organisation is controlled by CPI(M).
This apart, on the cultural front as many as 12 major organisations are led by CPI(M).
[edit]Party publications
From the Centre, two weekly newspapers are published, People's Democracy (English) and Lok Lehar (Hindi). The central theoretical organ of the party is The Marxist, published quarterly in English.
[edit]Daily newspapers
- Ganashakti (West Bengal, Bengali)
- Deshabhimani (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Daily Desher Katha (Tripura, Bengali)
- Theekathir (Tamil Nadu, Tamil)
- Prajasakti (Andhra Pradesh, Telugu)
[edit]Weeklies
- Abshar (West Bengal, Urdu)
- Swadhintha (West Bengal, Hindi)
- Desh Hiteshi (Bengali)
- Janashakthi (Karnataka, Kannada)[28]
- Jeevan Marg (Maharashtra, Marathi)
- Samyabadi (Orissa, Oriya)
- Deshabhimani Vaarika. (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Ganashakti (Assamese, Assam)
[edit]Fortnightlies
- Lok Jatan (Madhya Pradesh, Hindi)
- Lok Samvad (Uttar Pradesh, Hindi)
- Sarfarosh Chintan (Gujarat, Gujarati)
[edit]Monthlies
- Samajik Nayaya Saamachar (hindi and english )
- Yeh Naya Raste (Jammu & Kashmir, Urdu)
- Lok Lahar (Punjabi)
- Nandan (Bengali)
- Marxist (Tamil language)
[edit]Theoretical publications
[edit]Publishing houses
- Leftword Publication
- CPI(M) Publication
- National Book Agency (West Bengal)
- Chinta Publication (Kerala)
- Prajasakti Book House (Andhra Pradesh)
- Deshabhimani Book House (Kerala)
- Natun Sahitya Parishad (Assam)
[edit]State governments
As of 2011, CPI(M) heads the state government in Tripura. Manik Sarkar is a chief minister belonging to the party. In Tripura, the party has a majority of its own in the state assemblies, but governs together with Left Front partners.
[edit]Splits and offshoots
Main article: Various Communist/Leftist Parties in India A large number of parties have been formed as a result of splits from the CPI(M), such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist),Marxist Communist Party of India, Marxist Coordination Committee in Jharkhand, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy, Communist Marxist Party and BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Vedi in Kerala, Party of Democratic Socialism in West Bengal, Janganotantrik Morcha in Tripura, theRam Pasla group in Punjab, Orissa Communist Party in Orissa, etc.
[edit]Elections
Main article: CPI(M) election results [edit]Lok-Sabha Elections
[edit]1967 General Election
1967 CPI(M) election results (seats won / seats contested / seats total / votes / % of total vote) Lok Sabha: 19 / 59 / 520 / 6246522 / 4.28% Elections to State Legislative Assemblies: Andhra Pradesh 9 / 83 / 287 / 1053855 / 7.61% Assam 0 / 14 / 126 / 61165 / 1.97% Bihar 4 / 32 / 318 / 173656 / 1.28% Haryana 0 / 8 / 81 / 16379 / 0.54% Himachal Pradesh 0 / 6 / 60 / 3019 / 0.39% Kerala 52 / 59 / 133 / 1476456 / 23.51% Madhya Pradesh 0 / 9 / 296 / 20728 / 0.23% Maharashtra 1 / 11 / 270 / 145083 / 1.08% Manipur 0 / 5 / 30 / 2093 / 0.67% Mysore 1 / 10 / 216 / 82531 / 1.10% Orissa 1 / 10 / 140 / 46597 / 1.16% Punjab 3 / 13 / 104 / 138857 / 3.26% Rajasthan 0 / 22 / 184 / 79826 / 1.18% Tamil Nadu 11 / 22 / 234 / 623114 / 4.07% Tripura 2 / 16 / 30 / 93739 / 21.61% Uttar Pradesh 1 / 57 / 425 / 272565 / 1.27% West Bengal 43 / 135 / 280 / 2293026 / 18.11%
In the 1967 Lok Sabha elections CPI(M) nominated 59 candidates. In total 19 of them were elected. The party received 6.2 million votes (4.28% of the nationwide vote). By comparison, CPI won 23 seats and got 5.11% of the nation-wide vote. In the state legistative elections held simultaneously, the CPI(M) emerged as a major party in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala a United Front government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad was formed.[29] In West Bengal, CPI(M) was the main force behind theUnited Front government formed. The Chief Ministership was given to Ajoy Mukherjeeof the Bangla Congress (a regional splinter-group of the Indian National Congress).
[edit]1971 General Election
With the backdrop of the Bangladesh War and the emerging role of Indira Gandhi as a populist national leader, the 1971 election to the Lok Sabha was held. CPI(M) contested 85 seats, and won in 25. In total the party mustered 7510089 votes (5.12% of the national vote). 20 of the seats came from West Bengal (including Somnath Chatterjee, elected from Burdwan), 2 from Kerala (including A.K. Gopalan, elected from Trichur), 2 from Tripura (Biren Dutta and Dasarath Deb) and 1 from Andhra Pradesh.[30]
In the same year, state legislative elections were held in three states; West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. In West Bengal CPI(M) had 241 candidates, winning 113 seats. In total the party mustered 4241557 votes (32.86% of the state-wide vote). In Tamil Nadu CPI(M) contested 37 seats, but drew blank. The party got 259298 votes (1.65% of the state-wide vote). In Orissa the party contested 11 seats, and won in two. The CPI(M) vote in the state was 52785 (1.2% of the state-wide vote).[31]
[edit]1977 General Elections
In the 1977 Loksabha elections the CPM had fielded its candidtaes on 53 seats scattred around in 14 states and union terretories of India. It won 4.29% of the average votes polled in this election. The party had won 17 seats from West Bengal, 3 from Maharashtra and one each from Orrissa and Punjab. This election was done shortly after the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi and reflected a wide uproar of masses against her draconian rule. An coalition of Opposition parties was formed against the Congress regime, CPI(M) too supported this coalition by not fielding its candidates against the Janta Party.[32]
[edit]1980 General Elections
Janta Party coalition didnot last much and two years after since its formation India had faced the 1980's Loksabha Elections. This election had saw an increase in the vote percentage of CPI(M) and the party had bagged more seats then the previous elections. The Party had contested elections in the 15 states and union terretories of India, and fielded its candidates on 64 seats. The party had successfully won 37 seats in total. It has one 28 seats in West Bengal, 7 in Kerala, and 2 seats in Tripura. The party emerged out as the whole sole representative of the people of Tripura in this election.[33]
[edit]State Assembly Elections
[edit]1970s, 1980s, 1990s
This section requires expansion.
In the 1977 election, the CPI(M) gained the majority in the Legislative Assembly of the State ofWest Bengal, defeating the Congress (I). Jyoti Basu became the chief minister of West Bengal, an office he held until his retirement in 2000. The CPI(M) held the majority in the West Bengal government continuously since 1977, which ended in 2011 election.The party also won in Tripura winning 49 of the 60 seats. It has 3 MLAs in Rajasthan assembly. In Bihar it has an alliance with CPI(ML)L and CPI, it has 1 seat in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu it has worked for Dalit causes.
[edit]Presidential Elections
[edit]2002 Presidential Elections
In the 2002 Presidential elections, Left Front has announced Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as their Presidential Candidate. Against her was the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Candidate APJ Abdul Kalam.[34] CPIM's Leadership has announced that in form of Captain Lakshmi, they are fielding an 'Alternative Candidate'. They said that though it is clear that Captain Lakshmi cant be the President of India because of the opposition of BJP led NDA and Indian National Congress to her, but through this Presidential Election Left wants to raise key national issues, and make them heard to the masses.[35] Captain Lakshmi herself had pointed out that this Presidential election reflects the opposition of the Indian Left to the Communal-Secreterian Politics of BJP and solidarity with the religious minorities who have suffered a lot under the National Democratic Alliance's leadership.[36]
Captain Lakshmi Sehgal was an Indian Freedom Fighter, who had served as a Commander in the Indian National Army of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
[edit]2011 Assembly Elections
This section requires expansion.
The CPI(M) led coalitions lost the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala, CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front coalition with 68 seats lost to Indian National Congress led United Democratic Front's 72 seats in a neck to neck fought assembly elections. In West Bengal, CPI(M) alliance with 62 seats suffered a setback after 34 years of continuous rule, losing to Trinamool Congress alliance's 226 seats. Its Chief Minister candidate who is also an incumbent Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also lost from his Jadavpur assembly constituency.[37]
[edit]See also
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- Communist Ghadar Party of India
- List of political parties in India
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- Co-ordinating Committee of Communist Parties in Britain
- List of Communist Parties in India
[edit]References
- ^ a b http://cpim.org/content/pr-dasmunshis-statement
- ^ "Political-Organizational Report adopted at the XIXth Congress of the CPI(M) held in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, March 29-April 23, 2008".
- ^ The bulk of the detainees came from the leftwing of CPI. However, cadres of the Socialist Unity Centre of India and theWorkers Party of India were also targeted.[1]
- ^ The 32 were P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, T. Nagi Reddy,M. Hanumantha Rao, D.V. Rao, N. Prasad Rao, G. Bapanayya,E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, A.V. Kunhambu, C.H. Kanaran, E.K. Nayanar, V.S. Achuthanandan Removed, E.K. Imbichibava, Promode Das Gupta, Muzaffar Ahmad, Jyoti Basu,Abdul Halim, Hare Krishna Konar, Saroj Mukherjee, P. Ramamurthi, M.R. Venkataraman, N. Sankariah, K. Ramani,Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri, D.S. Tapiala, Dr.Bhag Singh, Sheo Kumar Mishra, R.N. Upadhyaya, Mohan Punamiya and R.P. Saraf. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 37.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 51.
- ^ Suniti Kumar Ghosh was a member of the group that presented this alternative draft proposal. His grouping was one of several left tendencies in the Bengali party branch. Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 32.
- ^ Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 52-54.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 54.
- ^ Basu, Jyoti. Memoirs - A Political Autobiography. Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1999. p. 189.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and U./nited Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 17-18
- ^ The jailed members of the new CC, at the time of the Calcutta Congress, were B.T. Ranadive, Muzaffar Ahmed, Hare Krishna Konar and Promode Das Gupta. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 44-5.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and United Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 234-235.
- ^ According to Basu (in Basu, Pradip; Towards Naxalbari (1953–67) : An Account Of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000.) there were two nuclei of radicals in the party organisation in West Bengal. One "theorist" section around Parimal Das Gupta in Calcutta, which wanted to persuade the party leadership to correct revisionist mistakes through inner-party debate, and one "actionist" section led by Charu Majumdarand Kanu Sanyal in North Bengal. The 'actionists' were impatient, and strived to organize armed uprisings. According to Basu, due to the prevailing political climate of youth and student rebellion it was the 'actionists' which came to dominate the new Maoist movement in India, instead of the more theoretically advanced sections. This dichotomy is however rebuffed by followers of the radical stream, for example the CPI(ML) Liberation.
- ^ On July 1 People's Daily carried an article titled Spring Thunder Over India, expressing the support of CPC to the Naxalbari rebels. At its meeting in Madurai on August 18–27, 1967, the Central Committee of CPI(M) adopted a resolution titled 'Resolution on Divergent Views Between Our Party and the Communist Party of China on Certain Fundamental Issues of Programme and Policy'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 46.
- ^ This press statement was reproduced in full in the central CPI(M) publication, People's Democracy, on June 30. P. Sundarayya and M. Basavapunniah, acting on behalf of the Polit Bureau of CPI(M), formulated a response to the statement on June 16, titled 'Rebuff the Rebels, Uphold Party Unity'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 48.
- ^ Some perceive that the Chinese leadership severely misjudged the actual conditions of different Indian factions at the time, giving their full support to the Majumdar-Sanyal group whilst keeping the Andhra Pradesh radicals (that had a considerable mass following) at distance.
- ^ Dalits and land issues
- ^ Untitled-1
- ^ officialwebsite of kerala.gov.in
- ^ Indian National Congress had won 55 seats, Bangla Congress 33 and CPI 30. CPI(M) allies also won several seats.ECI: Statistical Report on the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 56-59
- ^ The same is also true for the Workers Party of Bangladesh, which was formed in 1980 when BCP(L) merged with other groups. Although politically close, WPB can be said to have a more Maoist-oriented profile than CPI(M).
- ^ article in The Hindu, 9 July 2008: Left meets President, hands over letter of withdrawal
- ^ Unity For Peace and Socialism homepage
- ^ Membership figures fromhttp://www.cpim.org/pd/2005/0403/04032005_membership.htm. Electorate numbers taken fromhttp://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_2004/Vol_I_LS_2004.pdf.Puducherry is counted as part of Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh counted as part of Punjab.
- ^ "Nine to none, founders' era ends in CPM", The Telegraph(Calcutta), April 3, 2008.
- ^ List of State Secretaries
- ^ Janashakti has replaced the previous CPI(M) organ in Karnataka,Ikyaranga
- ^ In Kerala the United Front consisted, at the time of the election, of Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Muslim League, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Karshaka Thozhilali Party and the Kerala Socialist Party.[2]
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Lok Sabha Election
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Orissa Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ 1977 general elections ECI Report
- ^ 1980 General Elections ECI Report
- ^ Story in The Hindu
- ^ Sitaram Yechury on 2002 Presidential Elections
- ^ Captain Lakshmi's Interview
- ^ http://www.ndtv.com/elections/index.php
[edit]External links
Communist parties
[edit]
- CPI(M) election website
- CPI(M) web site
- Leftword Books CPI(M) publishing house
- CPI(M) Kerala State Committee
- CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee
[edit]Party publications
- People's Democracy
- Daily Desher Katha
- Deshabhimani
- Ganashakti
- Lok Samvad
- Prajasakti
- Theekathir
- Janashakthi
[edit]Articles
- Search For Ways To Keep Marx Alive Opinion on party structure by Sumanta Sen. The Telegraph Calcutta, India. March 31, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005.
- Veteran Communists Honoured News article on Party history conference. The Hindu. April 6, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- All you wanted to know about CPI-M News article on CPI-M. Rediff News. April 8, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- An Upbeat Left by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan. Frontline Volume 22 - Issue 09, April 23 - May 6, 2005
[show]Political parties in India
Categories: Communist parties in India | Communist Party of India breakaway groups | Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Party Constitution
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the Party shall be Communist Party of India (Marxist).
ARTICLE II
AIM
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is the revolutionary vanguard of the working class of India. Its aim is socialism and communism through the establishment of the state of dictatorship of the proletariat. In all its activities the Party is guided by the philosophy and principles of Marxism-Leninism which shows to the toiling masses the correct way to the ending of exploitation of man by man, their complete emancipation. The Party keeps high the banner of proletarian internationalism.
ARTICLE III
Flag
The flag of the Party shall be a red flag of which the length shall be one-and-a half times its width. At the centre of the flag there shall be a crossed hammer and sickle in white.
ARTICLE IV
Membership
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Any person residing in India, eighteen years of age or above who accepts the Programme and Constitution of the Party, agrees to work in one of the Party organisations, to pay regularly the Party membership dues (fee and levy as may be prescribed) and to carry out decisions of the Party shall be eligible for Party membership.
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(a) New members are admitted to the Party through individual application on the recommendation of two Party members. Party members who recommend an applicant must furnish the Party Branch or the unit concerned, full information about the applicant from personal knowledge and with due sense of responsibility. The Party Branch shall make recommendation to the next higher committee, if the applicant is to be admitted. The next higher committee takes a decision on all recommendations.
(b) All Party committees higher to the Party Branch and up to the Central Committee level have the power to directly admit new members to the Party.
- (a) All applications for Party membership must be placed before the appropriate committee within a month of their presentation and recommendation.
(b) If the applicant is admitted to the Party, he or she shall be regarded as a candidate member for a period of one year commencing from the date of such admission.
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If a leading member from another political party of local, district or state level comes to the Party, in addition to the sanction of Local Party Committee or District or State Committee, it is necessary to have the sanction of the next higher committee of the Party before he or she is admitted to membership of the Party. In exceptional cases the Central Committee or the State Committee can admit such members to full membership of the Party. And whenever a State Committee admits such members it should obtain previous sanction from the Central Committee.
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Members once expelled from the Party can be re-admitted only by the decision of the Party Committee which confirmed their expulsion or by a higher committee.
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Candidate members have the same duties and rights as full members except that they have no right to elect or be elected, or to vote on any motion.
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The Party branch recommending or the Party committee admitting candidate members shall arrange for their elementary education on the Programme, Constitution and the current policies of the Party and observe their development, through providing for their functioning as members of a Party branch or unit.
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By the end of the period of candidature, the Party branch or Party committee concerned shall discuss whether the candidate member is qualified to full membership. If a candidate member is found unfit,the Party branch or committee shall cancel his or her candidate membership. A report on admission to full membership shall be regularly forwarded by the branch or the Party committee concerned to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee may, on scrutiny of the report, alter or modify any such decision after consultation with the branch or the Party committee which has submitted the report. The District and State Committee will exercise supervisory power over the recruitment of candidates and over admissions to full membership and have the right to modify or reject the decision of the lower committee in this respect.
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A Party member may transfer his or her membership from one unit to another, with the approval of his or her unit and by sending his or her application through his or her unit to the higher unit under whose jurisdiction the concerned units function.
ARTICLE V
Party Pledge
Every person joining the Party shall sign the Party Pledge. This Pledge shall be:
"I accept the aims and objectives of the Party and agree to abide by its Constitution and loyally to carry out decisions of the Party."
"I shall strive to live up to the ideals of communism and shall selflessly serve the working class and the toiling masses and the country, always placing the interests of the Party and the people above personal interests."
ARTICLE VI
Membership Records
All membership records shall be kept under the supervision of the District Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Check-up of Party Membership
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There shall be annual check-up of Party membership by the Party organisation to which the Party member belongs. Any Party member who for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues shall be dropped from Party membership.
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A report on check-up of Party membership by a Branch or a Party committee concerned shall be sent to the next higher committee for confirmation and registration.
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There shall be right of appeal on decisions of droppage from Party membership.
ARTICLE VIII
Resignation from Party membership
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A Party member wishing to resign from the Party shall summit his or her resignation to the Party branch or to the Party unit to which he or she belongs. The unit concerned may accept the same, decide to strike his or her name off the rolls and report the matter to the next higher committee. If the resignation is on political grounds the unit may refuse to accept the resignation and may expel him.
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In the case where a Party member wishing to resign from the Party is liable to be charged with serious violation of party discipline which may warrant his or her expulsion and where such a charge is substantial, the resignation may be given effect to as expulsion from the Party.
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All such cases of resignations given effect to as expulsion shall be immediately reported to the next higher Party committee and be subject to the latter's confirmation.
ARTICLE IX
Membership Fee
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All Party members as well as candidates shall pay a Party membership fee of rupees two per year. This annual Party fee shall be paid at the time of admission into the Party and by March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned. If he or she does not clear the fee in due time his or her name shall be removed from the Party rolls. The Central Committee may extend this date if the circumstances warrant such extension.
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All Party fees collected from Party members by Party branches or units will be deposited with the Central Committee through the appropriate Party committees.
ARTICLE X
Party Levy
Every Party member must pay a monthly levy as laid down by the Central Committee. Those whose incomes are of annual or of seasonal character have to pay their levy at the beginning of the season or at the beginning of every quarter on the same percentage basis. If a member has failed to deposit his levy within three months after it is due, then his name is to be removed from the Party rolls.
ARTICLE XI
Duties of Party Members
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The duties of the Party members are as follows:
(a) To regularly participate in the activity of the Party organisation to which they belong and to faithfully carry out the policy, decisions and the directives of the Party;
(b) To study Marxism-Leninism and endeavour to raise their level of understanding;
(c) To read, support and popularise the Party journals and Party publications;
(d) To observe the Party Constitution and Party discipline and behave in the spirit of proletarian internationalism and in accordance with the noble ideals of communism;
(e) To place the interests of the people and the Party above personal interests;
(f) To devotedly serve the masses and consistently strengthen their bonds with them, to learn from the masses and report their opinions and demands to the Party, to work in a mass organisation, unless exempted, under the guidance of the Party.
(g) To cultivate comradely relations towards one another the constantly develop a fraternal spirit within the Party;
(h) To practice criticism an self-criticism with a view to helping each other and improving individual and collective work;
(i) To be frank, honest and truthful to the Party and not to betray the confidence of the Party;
(j) To safeguard the unity and solidarity of the Party and to be vigilant against the enemies of the working class and the country;
(k) To defend the Party and uphold its cause against the onslaught of the enemies of the Party, the working class and the country.
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It shall be the task of the Party organisation to ensure the fulfillment of the above duties by Party members and help them in every possible way in the discharge of these duties.
ARTICLE XII
Rights of Party Members
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Rights of the Party members are as following:
(a) To elect Party organs and Party committees and be elected to them;
(b) To participate in discussion in order to contribute to the formation of the Party policy and of the decisions of the Party;
(c) To make proposals regarding one's own work in the Party;
(d) To make criticism about Party committees and Party functionaries at Party meetings;
(e) To be heard in person in his or her unit when a Party unit discusses disciplinary action against him or her;
(f) When any Party member disagrees with any decision of a Party committee on organization he or she has a right to submit his or her opinion to the next higher committee. In case of political difference a member has the right to submit his or her opinion to the higher committee up to the Central Committee. In all such cases the Party member shall, of course, carry out the Party decisions and the difference shall be sought to be resolved through the test of practice and through comradely discussions;
(g) To address any statement, appeal or complaint to any higher Party organisation up to and including the Central Committee.
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It shall be the duty of Party organisations and Party functionaries to see that these rights are respected
ARTICLE XIII
Principles of Democratic Centralism
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The structure of the Party is based on, and its internal life is guided by, the principles of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism means centralised leadership based on inner-Party democracy under the guidance of the centralised leadership.
In the sphere of the Party structure, the guiding principles of democratic centralism are:
(a) All Party organs from top to bottom shall be elected;
(b) The minority shall carry out the decisions of the majority; the lower Party organisations shall carry out the decision and directives of the higher Party organs, the individual shall subordinate himself to the will of the collective. All Party organisations shall carry out the decisions and directives of the Party Congress and of the Central Committee;
(c) All Party committees shall periodically report their work to the Party organisation immediately below and all lower committees shall likewise report to their immediate higher committee;
(d) All Party committees, particularly the leading Party committees, shall pay constant heed to the opinions and criticism of the lower Party organisations and the rank-and-file Party members;
(e) All Party committees shall function strictly on the principles of collective decisions and check-up combined with individual responsibility;
(f) All questions of international affairs, questions of all-India character, or questions concerning more than one state or questions requiring uniform decisions for the whole country, shall be decided upon by the all-India Party organisations. All questions of a state or district character shall be ordinarily decided upon by the corresponding Party organisations. But in no case shall such decisions run counter to the decisions of a higher Party organisation. When the Central Party leadership has to take a decision on any issue of major state importance, it shall do so normally after consultation with the state Party organisation concerned. The state organisation shall do likewise in relation to districts;
(g) On issues which affect the policy of the Party on an all-India scale, but on which the Party's standpoint is to be expressed for the first time, only the Central leadership of the Party is entitled to make a policy statement. The lower committees can and should send their opinions and suggestions in time for consideration by the Central leadership.
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Basing itself upon the experience of the entire Party membership and of the popular movement, in the sphere of the internal life of the Party, the following principles of democratic centralism are applied:
(a) Free and frank discussion within the Party unit on all questions affecting the Party, its policy and work;
(b) Sustained efforts to activise the Party members in popularising and implementing the Party policies, to raise their ideological-political level and improve their general education so that they can effectively participate in the life and work of the Party;
(c) When serious differences arise in a Party committee, every effort should be made to arrive at an agreement. Failing this, the decision should be postponed with a view to resolving differences through further discussions, unless an immediate decision is called for by the needs of the Party and the mass movement;
(d) Encouragement of criticism and self-criticism at all levels, from top to bottom, especially criticism from below;
(e) Consistent struggles against bureaucratic tendencies at all levels;
(f) Impermissibility of factionalism and factional groupings inside the Party in any form;
(g) Strengthening of the Party spirit by developing fraternal relations and mutual help, correcting mistakes by treating comrades sympathetically; judging them and their work not on the basis of isolated mistakes or incidents, but taking into account their whole record of service to the Party.
ARTICLE XIV
All-India Party Congress
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The supreme organ of the Party for the whole country shall be the All-India Party Congress.
(a) The regular Party Congress shall be convened by the Central Committee ordinarily once every three years.
(b) An Extraordinary Party Congress shall be called by the Central Committee at its own discretion, or when it is demanded by two or more State Committees representing not less than one-third of the total Party membership.
(c) The date and venue of the Party Congress or of the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee at a meeting especially called for the purpose.
(d) Regular Party Congress shall be composed of delegates elected by the State Conferences as well as by Conferences of Party units directly under the all-India Party Centre.
(e) The basis of representation at a regular Party Congress and the basis of representation and method of election of delegates to the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee on the basis of total Party membership, strength of the mass movements led by the Party, strength of the Party in the respective States.
(f) The members of the Central Committee shall have the right to participate as full delegates in the Party Congress, whether regular or extraordinary.
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Functions and powers of the regular Party Congress are as follows:
(a) To discuss and act on the political and organisational report of the Central Committee;
(b) To revise and change the Party Programme and the Party Constitution.
(c) To determine the Party line on current situation;
(d) To elect the Central Committee by secret ballot.
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It elects a Credentials Committee which goes into the credentials of all the delegates and submits a report to the Congress.
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The Congress shall elect a Presidium for the conduct of its business.
ARTICLE XV
Central Committee
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(a) The Central Committee shall be elected at the Party Congress, the numbers being decided by the Party Congress.
(b) The outgoing Central Committee shall propose to the Congress a panel of candidates.
(c) The panel of candidates shall be prepared with a view to creating a capable leadership, closely linked with the masses, firm in the revolutionary outlook of the working class and educated in Marxism-Leninism.
(d) Any delegate can raise objection with regard to any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, but the prior approval of the member whose name is proposed is necessary.
(e) Any one whose name has been proposed shall have the right to withdraw.
(f) The panel proposed, together with the additional nominations by the delegates, shall be voted upon by secret ballot, and by the method of single distributive vote. In case there is no additional nomination, approval of the delegates will be taken by show of hands.
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The Central Committee shall be the highest authority of the Party between two all-India Party Congress.
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It is responsible for enforcing the Party Constitution and carrying out the political line and decisions adopted by the Party Congress.
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The Central Committee shall represent the Party as a whole and be responsible for directing the entire work of the Party. The Central Committee shall have the right to take decisions with full authority on any question facing the Party.
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The Central Committee shall elect from among it members a Polit Bureau including the General Secretary. The number of members in the Polit Bureau shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Polit Bureau carries on the work of the Central Committee between its two sessions and has the right to take political and organisational decisions in between two meetings of the Central Committee.
(a) The Central Committee shall elect a Secretariat from among its members. The number of members of the Secretariat shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Secretariat will, under the guidance of the Polit Bureau, look after the day-to-day work of the Party Centre and assist the Polit Bureau in the implementation of Central Committee decisions.
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The election of the secretaries of the State Committees and of editors of state Party organs shall require the approval of the Central Committee.
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(a) The Central Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-Party activity by two-thirds of the members present and voting and in any case by more than half the total strength of the Central Committee voting for such removal.
b) It can fill up any vacancy occurring in its composition by simple majority of its total members.
(c) In case member or members of the Central Committee are arrested the remaining members can coopt substitute member or members and they shall have full right as the original members but should vacate their places as the arrested members get released and assume their duties.
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The time between two meetings of the Central Committee shall not normally exceed three months and it shall meet whenever one third of its total members make a requisition.
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The Central Committee shall discuss and decide political and organisational issues and problems of mass movements and guide the State Committees and all-India Party fractions in mass organisations.
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The Central Committee is responsible for the Party finances and adopts the statement of accounts submitted to it by the Polit Bureau once a year.
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The Central Committee shall submit its political and organisational report before the Party Congress, whenever it is convened.
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With the aim of strengthening the revolutionary leadership of the Party and ensuring a check-up over the State and district organisations, the Central Committee sends representatives and organisers, who must work on the basis of special instructions laid down every time by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau.
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The Central Committee may when it deems necessary convene an extended session of the Central Committee, or Plenum or Conference. The Central Committee shall decide the basis of attendance and method of election of delegates for such bodies.
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In case of emergency or in case of large-scale arrests, the Central Committee, the State Committees, and the District Committees shall be reorganised into smaller compact bodies. The names for such reorganisation of Central Committee are prepared by the remaining members of the P.B. and should be approved by the members of the Central Committee inside and outside. The names for the reorganisation of State and District Committees are prepared by the remaining members of the respective committees and are to be approved by their next higher committee. They can form sub-committees as they deem it necessary, to discharge their functions and responsibilities. The reconstituted Central Committee is empowered to frame new rules for safeguarding the Party organisation. But when the situation normalises the elected Committees are restored.
ARTICLE XVI
State and District Party Organs
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The highest organ in the State or District shall be the State or the District Conference which elects a State or District Committee.
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(a) The organisational structure, the rights and functions of the State or District Party organs are similar to those enumerated in the articles concerning the Party structure and functions at the all-India level, their functions being confined to the State or district issues and their decisions being within the limit of the decisions taken by the next higher Party organ. In case it becomes necessary to increase the number of members of these Party Committees they can do so with the permission of the next higher committee.
(b) The State or District Committee shall elect a Secretariat including the secretary. But the State or District Committee may not have a Secretariat if permitted by the next higher committee.
(c) The State or District Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-party activity by a decision of majority of the total members of the State Committee or District Committee.
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(a) The State Committee shall decide on the area of the District Committee taking into account the needs of the movement. It may not necessarily be confined to administrative division.
(b) The State Committee shall decided on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XVII
Primary Unit
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(a) The primary unit of the Party is the Party Branch organised on the basis of profession or territory;
(b) Party members are to be organised on the basis of their occupation or vocation, when they are working in a factory or an institute or any industry. When such Branches are organised the members of such Branches shall be associate members of the Party branches in place of their residence or organised as auxiliary Branches there. The work to be allotted in their place of residence shall not be detrimental to the work allotted to them by their basic units in the factory or institute or occupation;
(c) The number of members in a Branch shall not be more than fifteen. The functions and other matters related to the Branch will be determined by the State Committee.
-
The Branch is the living link between the masses of workers, peasants and other sections of the people within its area or sphere and the leading committee of Party. Its tasks are:
(a) To carry out the directives of the higher committee;
(b) Win the masses in the factory or locality for the political and organisational decisions of the Party;
(c) Draw in militants and sympathisers into activity to enroll them as new members and educate them politically;
(d) Help the district, local or town committee in its every day organisational and agitational work.
-
To carry out the current work, the Branch elects its Secretary who is confirmed by the next higher committee.
ARTICLE XVIII
Central and State Control Commission
-
The Party Congress shall directly elect a Central Control Commission consisting of not more than five members. The Chairperson of the Central Control Commission will be an ex-officio member of the Central Committee.
-
The Control Commission shall take up:
(a) Cases of disciplinary action referred to it by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau;
(b) Cases of appeal where disciplinary action has been taken by the State Committee.
(c) Cases involving expulsion, suspension from full Party membership and decisions of droppage from Party membership against which an appeal has been made to the State Committee or to the State Control Commission and rejected.
-
The decision of the Central Control Commission will be final and binding.
-
The detailed rules for the functioning of the Control Commission shall be framed by the Central Committee after consultation with the Control Commission.
-
In the eventually of a vacancy arising in the Central Control Commission between two party Congresses, the Central Committee shall have the right to fill the vacancy.
-
The State Conference may elect a State Control Commission to go into the cases of disciplinary action. In whichever State the State Control Commission is set up, the functions and authority will be similar to that of the Central Control Commission, but within its own State.
ARTICLE XIX
Party Discipline
-
Discipline is indispensable for preserving and strengthening the unity of the Party, for enhancing its strength, its fighting ability and its prestige, and for enforcing the principles of democratic centralism. Without strict adherence to Party discipline, the Party cannot lead the masses in struggles and actions, nor discharge its responsibility towards them.
-
Discipline is based on conscious acceptance of the aims, the Programme and the policies of the Party. All members of the Party are equally bound by Party discipline irrespective of their status in the Party organisation or in public life.
-
Violation of the Party Constitution and decisions of the Party as well as any other action and behaviour unworthy of a member of the Communist Party shall constitute a breach of Party discipline and is liable to disciplinary action.
-
The disciplinary actions are :
(a) Warning;
(b) Censure;
(c) Public censure;
(d) Removal from the post in the Party;
(e) Suspension from full Party membership for any period but not exceeding one year;
(f) Expulsion.
-
Disciplinary action shall normally be taken where other methods, including methods of persuasion, have failed to correct the comrade concerned. But even where disciplinary measure has been taken, the efforts to help the comrade to correct himself shall continue. In case where the breach of discipline is such that it warrants an immediate disciplinary measure to protect the interests of Party or its prestige, the disciplinary action shall be taken promptly.
-
Expulsion from the Party is the severest of all disciplinary measures and this shall be applied with utmost caution, deliberation and judgement.
-
No disciplinary measure involving removal from the post held in the Party, suspension from full Party membership other than suspension pending enquiry, expulsion from the Party, shall come into effect without confirmation by the next higher committee. In case of expulsion the penalised Party member shall be removed from all Party activities pending confirmation. The expelled member stands suspended from the Party till the expulsion is confirmed by the next higher committee. The higher committee will have to communicate its decision with six months.
-
The comrade against whom a disciplinary measure is proposed shall be fully informed of the allegations, charges and other relevant facts against him or her. He or she shall have the right to be heard in person by the Party unit to which he or she belongs and shall have the right to submit his or her explanation to any other unit which takes action against him or her.
-
When a member is simultaneously a member of two Party units, the lower unit can recommend disciplinary action against him or her but it shall not come into operation unless accepted by his or her higher unit.
-
Party members found to be strike-breakers, drunkards, moral degenerates, betrayers of Party confidence, guilty of grave financial corruption can be summarily suspended from Party membership and removed from all responsible positions in the Party by the Party unit to which he belongs or by a higher Party body pending the issue of the charge-sheet to him and getting his explanation. This summary suspension and removal from all responsible positions in the Party cannot be extended for a period of more than three months.
-
There shall be right of appeal in all cases of disciplinary action.
-
The Central, State or District Committee has the right to dissolve and appoint new committees or take disciplinary action against a lower committee in cases where a persistent defiance of Party decisions and policy, serious factionalism, or a break of Party discipline is involved. But the State and District Committee will immediately report such action to the next higher committee for whatever action it deems necessary.
-
In exceptional circumstances Party Committees in their discretion may resort to summary procedure in expelling members for grave anti-Party activities.
ARTICLE XX
Party Members in Elected Public Bodies
-
Party members elected to Parliament, State Legislature or Administrative Council shall constitute themselves into a Party group and function under the appropriate Party Committee in strict conformity with the line of the Party, its policies and directives.
-
The communist legislators shall unswervingly defend the interests of the people. Their work in the legislature shall reflect the movement and they shall uphold and popularize the policies of the Party.
The legislative work of the communist legislators shall be closely combined with the activity of the Party outside and mass movements and it shall be the duty of all communist legislators to help build the Party and mass organisations.
-
The communist legislators shall maintain the closest possible contact with their electors and masses, keeping them duly informed of their legislative work and constantly seeking their suggestions and advice.
-
The communist legislators shall maintain a high standard of personal integrity, lead an unostentatious life and display humility in all their dealings and contact with the people and place the Party above self.
-
Salaries and allowances drawn by communist legislators and local body members are considered to be Party money. The Party Committee concerned shall fix up the wages and allowances of the members.
-
Party members elected to local bodies such as corporations, municipalities, town or area committees, zilla parishads, block samities, gram panchayats shall function under the appropriate Party Committee or Party Branch. They shall maintain close day-to-day contacts with their electors and the masses and defend their interests in such elected bodies. They shall make regular reports on their work to the electors and the people and seek their suggestions and advice. The work in such local bodies shall be combined with intense mass activity outside.
-
All nomination of Party candidates for election to Parliament, Legislatures or Councils or Centrally Administered areas shall be subject to approval by the Central Committee.
Rules governing the nomination of Party candidates for corporation, municipalities, district boards, local boards and panchayats shall be drawn up by the State Committees.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
ARTICLE XXI
Inner-Party Discussions
-
To unify the Party, free and businesslike discussions of Party policy in the various organisations of the Party as a whole are useful and necessary. This is the inalienable right of Party members arising from inner-Party democracy. But interminable discussions on issues of Party policy which paralyse the unity and will of action of the Party would be a gross misuse of inner-Party democracy.
-
Inner-Party discussion shall be organised on all-India scale by the Central Committee:
(a) Whenever it considers it necessary;
(b) Whenever over an important question of Party policy there is not sufficient firm majority inside the Central Committee.
(c) When an inner-Party discussion on all-India scale is demanded by State Committees representing one-third of total Party membership.
-
A State Committee can initiate inner-Party discussion on an important question of Party policy concerning that particular State, either on its own, or on a demand of District Committees representing one-third Party membership in the State with the approval of the Central Committee.
-
Inner-Party discussion shall be conducted under the guidance of the Central Committee which shall formulate the issues under discussion. The Central Committee which guides the discussion shall lay down the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted.
When the State Committee initiates the discussion, it can formulate the issues under discussion and the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted, with the approval of the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXII
Discussion Preparatory to Party Congress And Conferences
-
Two months before the Party Congress, the Central Committee will release draft resolution for discussion by all units of the Party. It is obligatory on the part of the State Committees to render it into respective languages and forward to all Branch Committees the required number of copies in the shortest possible time after its release by the Central Committee Amendments to the resolution will be sent directly to the Central Committee which will place its report on them before the Party Congress.
- At each level, the Conference shall take place on the basis of reports and resolutions submitted by the respective Committees.
ARTICLE XXIII
Party Members Working in Mass Organisations
Party members working in mass organisations and their executives shall organise themselves into fractions or fraction committees and function under the guidance of the appropriate Party Committee, They must always strive to strengthen the unity, mass basis and fighting capacity of the mass organisations concerned.
ARTICLE XXIV
Bye-Laws
The Central Committee may frame rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it. Rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it may also be framed by the State Committees subject to confirmation by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXV
Amendment
The Party Constitution shall be amended only by the Party Congress. The notice of proposals for amending the Constitution shall be given two months before the said Party Congress.
RULES UNDER PARTY CONSTITUTION
(Adopted by the Central Committee in its Meeting on April 8-10, 1988)
Under Article IV, Section 10:
Membership
Regarding Transfer of Member from one unit to another or from one state to another:
(Explanation: Though in practice all transfers from one State to another are done by the CC, the particulars mentioned generally are inadequate. Therefore when a State asks the Centre to transfer a comrade to another State, it must specify the following so that a proper record is kept of each Party member at each level. The same would apply to transfers within the State.)
Rules : Transfer of Membership
The following particulars must be supplied along with the letter of transfer:
Name of comrade :
Age :
Year of joining the Party :
Unit to which he/she belonged :
Mass organisation in which he/she worked :
Levy amount per month and paid up to :
Any record of disciplinary action :
State from which he/she is to be transferred :
State to which he/she is to be transferred :
Year of renewal of Party membership :
Address where he/she can be contacted :
Auxiliary Groups:
(Explanation: The Salkia Plenum has directed that militants thrown up through mass struggles should be put into auxiliary groups, trained and educated so that they can be recruited as Party members. For this provision is to be made in the rules.)
-
Party units should take steps to organise active participants and militants thrown up in the course of mass movements and from the mass organisations into auxiliary groups which are groupings of broad sympathizers.
-
Party Committees should arrange for the education and training of such auxiliary group members about the Party Programme and basic policies, so as to equip them in a reasonable period of time to be capable of joining the Party as candidate members.
Under Article VI
Party Membership Records
Rule: The Constitution provides for the membership records to be kept under the supervision of the District Committee. While the final authority for veracity of the records and its authenticated copy will be the DC, the maintenance of records can be delegated to the intermediate/local committee in a State, if so decided by the State Committee concerned.
Under Article VII
Check-up of Party Membership
(Explanation: Clause (1) states that a Party member may be dropped from membership who "for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues". This is to safeguard against arbitrary droppages without the due reasons stated in the Constitution. Some specific rules are required on the procedure to be adopted.)
Rules
-
The unit concerned which wishes to drop a member must do so after giving the member a chance to explain his or her position. The branch must convey the decision to drop the member in writing to the next higher committee.
-
The higher committee, when confirming and registering the membership, must examine the list of droppages and give its specific opinion on the same.
-
The committee concerned must submit a renewal report to the next higher committee giving details of the Party membership enrolment, droppages, transfers and composition of the membership.
-
For renewal of Party membership there should be a renewal form to be filled up by the member concerned every year which includes basic data such as age, year of joining the Party, income and front in which working.
-
The receipt for the membership fee has to be given to the member concerned.
Under Article IX
Membership Fee
Renewals: (Explanation: Article IX, Clause I states that the annual membership fee is to be paid by a member by "March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned."
If membership fees are deposited only by March end to the units, by the time it is forwarded to the District/State Committees, it takes time. So in practice now the CC gets the consolidated membership fees from the State over a varied period of time. Now the duration stretches from April to December even. There has to be a cut-off date by which the membership fees should reach the Centre.)
Rules
-
Renewal of Party membership each year must be completed by March 31st.
-
The State Committees must deposit the membership fees with the Centre by 31st May each year.
-
In case of any contingency the date can only be extended by the Central Committee/PB.
-
New enrolment during the current year of candidate membership fees to be remitted by the end of the year or before.
Note: New enrolment of candidate members (after the renewal period) continues throughout the year. Their fees are to be deposited with the Central Committee separately.
Under Article X:
Party Levy
Rules
-
1. Party members levy rates: The Central Committee decides that the levy from Party members shall be collected as per the following rates:
For Income
Upto Rs.300 permonth 25 paise Rs. 301 to 500 per month 50 paise Rs. 501 to 1000 per month 0.5% Rs. 1001 to 3000 per month 1 % Rs. 3001 to 5000 per month 2 % Rs. 5001 to 7000 per month 3 % Rs. 7001 to 8000 per month 4 % Above Rs. 8000 per month 5 %
-
If a member is to pay quarterly or annually, calculate his/her monthly income on the basis of his/her annual income and calculate amount which he or she has to pay applying the above rates.
-
If spouse or any other member earning and contributing to the family income, is not a Party member, their income is not to be included, for the calculation of levy rates.
Note:
-
Income means with regard to salaried employees and wage earners, all their total gross income, including DA and other allowances. Apart from this, if the member has additional income from land, business or houses, that too is to be added.
-
In case of peasants, income after excluding actual amounts expended towards agricultural production.
-
If a person is living off joint family income, then his share of income.
-
In extreme cases, unemployment, drought or illness, if exemptions are to be given, it is for the respective State Committee to take necessary decision.
Note: The percentage share of local, area, district and state is to be decided by the State concerned.
Under Article XV, Section 10:
Central Committee Finances
Rules
-
The Central Committee is authorised to appoint a Trust to manage its properties.
-
The Central Committee is to decide each year, or as the case many be, the quantum each State will pay towards Party fund or special Party fund drive to run the Party's central apparatus.
-
Polit Bureau will constitute a Finance Sub-Committee which will meet and
(a) Take decision on financial matters and expenditure involving amounts upto Rs. ten thousands only. Expenditure of higher limit will be referred to the P.B.
(b) Finance Sub-Committee will place quarterly accounts of the CC and its establishment to the Polit Bureau.
(c) Finance Sub-Committee will submit yearly accounts as approved by the PB to the Central Committee for its approval (as laid down by the Party Constitution).
(d) One member of the Sub-Committee will be incharge of the income and disbursement of the Party finances after which these will be passed over to the accounts incharge for finalisation and compilation.
(e) Half-yearly accounts of the Party organs and other establishments (if any) to be submitted to the Sub-Committee.
Under Article XVI: Sub-Clause 3(b):
State and district Party Organs, Setting up of Intermediate Committees
(Explanation: Clause 3(b) states, "The State Committee shall decide on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee)
The State Committee can decide to set up intermediate committees between the primary unit and the District Committee or the region under the following rules:
(a) The State Committee will decide the size of the committee to be set up.
(b) Such a committee will be elected by the conference of delegates at that level. The committee should elect a Secretary and /or the Secretariat.
(c) The criteria of election of delegates to the conference of the intermediate committee will be decided by the State Committee.
(d) The intermediate committee (local, area, zonal etc.) will exercise all those functions enumerated for the State/ District Committees, their function being confined to the local area or zone under its jurisdiction.
(e) Committees set up on an ad-hoc/nominated basis for coordination purposes will not have the general powers laid out for full-fledged elected committees. Their scope of work is to be guided by the decisions of the respective committees who appointed them.
(f) The number of delegates to the District Conference and the conferences of committees below the district will be decided by the State Committee.
Under Article XVI: Rules on Party Finances & Accounts
For Committees Below The CC (States & District Party Organs)
(Explanation: Similar to the rules framed for the CC finances and accounting, the following rules will apply to all the lower elected committees
(a) At State level (and for the intermediate/District committees as decided by the State Committee) finance sub-committee of the committee concerned will be constituted by the Secretariat.
(b) The sub-committee will be responsible for the disbursement of the money and maintenance of the accounts under the supervision of the Secretariat.
(c) The sub-committee will submit a six-monthly account to the Party Committee and this statement should be forwarded to the next higher committee.
(d) Annual accounts should be audited by the sub-committee and placed before the Party committee for approval.
(e) The State Committees will submit a copy of their annual accounts which is approved by the committee, to the Central Committee.
Under Article XVIII:
Rules For The Functioning Of The Central Control Commission
-
On receipt of a reference or an appeal under Article XVIII, the Central Control Commission should take steps to investigate and decide upon the issue.
-
No appeal can be preferred by any one other than the aggrieved Party member.
-
The Central Control Commission shall have the right to directly correspond with the examine unit/units or persons concerned in order to ascertain facts and to arrive at conclusion.
-
The Central Control Commission will ordinarily meet once in three months. The Chairperson shall call a meeting of the Central Control Commission after giving 14 days prior notice.
-
Majority of the members constitute quorum of the meeting. The Central Control Commission can take a decision only if all the members agree or majority of the members of the Central Control Commission agree. A decision taken may be informed to the absent member or members.
-
The Central Control commission may take decisions by consultation by correspondence among its members on such issues which are simple and not complicated.
-
The Central Control Commission will communicate its decision to the appellant and the respective State Committee and the decision of the Central Control Commission has to be implemented immediately by the respective committees.
-
The Central Control Commission will present before the Central Committee a consolidated report of its activities and decisions at least once in a year.
-
These rules shall apply mutatis mutandis to State Control Commissions.
Procedural Rules For
Central Control Commission To Conduct Business
-
On receipt of an appeal, the Chairperson of the Central Control Commission shall intimate about the case to the other members.
-
The Chairperson shall also propose the immediate steps to be taken up for the investigation in a particular case. The other members of the Central Control Commission may send their proposals regarding the same.
-
The Central Control Commission has the right to ask for any information which is required for deciding the appeal from the concerned committees and members and they should provide such information to the Central Control Commission within a period of two months and if no such information is received within this period, the Central Control Commission may proceed with the case.
Under Article XIX, Clause 13:
Party Discipline
Provision for summary expulsion in exceptional circumstance is meant for "grave" anti-Party activities. The means only under extremely serious circumstances such as when a member is found to be a spy or enemy agent or when the member's activities seriously compromise the Party's position, should it be invoked.
Under Article XX:
Party Members In Elected Bodies
Rules
-
Each CPI(M) Parliament member has to pay levy amount as decided by the Central Committee to the Central Committee.
-
The percentage of the levy share as fixed by the PB for the State will be remitted to the State Committee concerned (to the State the member belongs) each month.
(Explanation: Article XX Sub-clause (5) in the Constitution states that salaries and allowances drawn by Communist legislators and local body members are to be considered Party money. Earlier there was no system of pensions for MPs/MLAs. Now it is there. So the following rule.)
-
Salaries and allowances of Communist legislators, local body members include pensions drawn by them, if any.
Under Article XXII
Discussions Preparatory To Party Congress And Conferences
The forums of the Party conferences will be utilised to discuss and review the work report since the past conference and political-organisational questions related to the implementation of the line laid down in the past conference/Congress. The discussion on the draft political resolution of the Congress will be conducted separately as per the provisions laid down in the Constitution.
Under Article XXIII
Party Members Working In Mass Organisations
-
The Party Committee at Central, State and District levels may form sub-committee from amongst its members and any other member considered suitably equipped to guide the work of the Party members working in different mass fronts. They will specialise in the problems of the front, check up on Party building, guide and coordinate the activities of the Party members in different mass organisations, whether they exist as Party units or fraction committees, and see that Party policy in being followed and implemented.
-
All the Party members working in a mass organisation or the elected bodies of that organisation at various levels constitute the fraction of that body. They have to function under the guidance and decisions of the respective Party committees.
-
Fraction committees are to be set up from amongst the fraction members where there are large number of them working at different levels in a mass organisation. The fraction committee will be set up by the respective Party committee by including those comrades, apart from members of the Party committee if any, who are equipped with the required level of maturity or mass experience considered necessary by the Party committee.
-
The fraction committee, as constituted above, should carry out the decisions of the respective Party committees in the Executive or General Council of the particular mass organisation, and all necessary measures to implement the decisions of Party Committees by the fraction in that mass organisation shall be taken by the fraction committee.
Adopted By the Eighth Congress, Cochin, December 23-29, 1968
Amendments made to the Constitution upto the XVIII Congress, April 2005, and to the rules by the Central Committee upto December 2005, have been incorporated.
Post-poll crisis for CPM
The Bengal loss is a big setback and throws up many challenges. We were in power for 34 years. A generation of CPM members and supporters have never been in Opposition. In Kerala, we are used to winning and losing elections.
Plans to step down as CPM chief.
I am going to make a proposal to the party about a retirement plan for the general secretary. There has to be a cap on the number of terms the general secretary can have. It can be two or three or four terms. The leadership will decide it. (Karat is on his second term as CPM general secretary now. The coming CPM party congress will decide on whether he gets a third term).
Retirement before or during the CPM party congress
I have certain views on the matter. I think it is proper the general secretary steps aside after a period to pave the way for a new leader. That will help the party prepare a new line of leadership in a time-bound manner. And the person who steps down can always continue as a member of the politburo, party secretariat, etc.
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010) |
Communist Party of India (Marxist) | |
---|---|
Secretary-General | Prakash Karat |
Leader in Lok Sabha | Basudev Acharia[1] |
Leader in Rajya Sabha | Sitaram Yechuri[1] |
Founded | 1964 |
Headquarters | New Delhi, India |
Newspaper | People's Democracy(English), Lok Lehar (Hindi), Ganashakti (bengali), Deshabhimani'' (Malayalam), Theekathir (Tamil) |
Student wing | Students Federation of India |
Youth wing | Democratic Youth Federation of India |
Women's wing | All India Democratic Womens Association |
Labour wing | Centre of Indian Trade Unions |
Peasant's wing | All India Kisan Sabha |
Ideology | Communism Marxism-Leninism |
ECI Status | Recognised Party |
Alliance | Left Front |
Seats in Lok Sabha | 16 |
Seats in Rajya Sabha | 14 |
Election symbol | |
Website | |
Official Website | |
Politics of India Political parties Elections |
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated CPI(M) or CPM) is a political party inIndia. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI(M) is leading the state government only in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of India. It was voted out after 34 years in power in West Bengal in elections whose results were declared in May 2011. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964. CPI(M) claimed to have 982,155 members in 2007.[2]
Contents[hide] |
[edit]History
[edit]Split in the Communist Party of India and formation of CPI(M)
CPI(M) emerged out of a division within the Communist Party of India (CPI). The undivided CPI had experienced a period of upsurge during the years following the Second World War. The CPI led armed rebellions in Telangana, Tripura and Kerala. However, it soon abandoned the strategy of armed revolution in favour of working within the parliamentary framework. In 1950 B.T. Ranadive, the CPI general secretary and a prominent representative of the radical sector inside the party, was demoted on grounds of left-adventurism.
Under the government of the Indian National Congressparty of Jawaharlal Nehru, independent India developed close relations and a strategic partnership with theSoviet Union. The Soviet government consequently wished that the Indian communists moderate their criticism towards the Indian state and assume a supportive role towards the Congress governments. However, large sections of the CPI claimed that India remained a semi-feudal country, and that class strugglecould not be put on the back-burner for the sake of guarding the interests of Soviet trade and foreign policy. Moreover, the Indian National Congress appeared to be generally hostile towards political competition. In 1959 the central government intervened to impose President's Rule in Kerala, toppling the E.M.S. Namboodiripad cabinet (the sole non-Congress state government in the country).
Simultaneously, the relations between the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and theCommunist Party of China soured. In the early 1960s the Communist Party of China began criticising the CPSU of turning revisionist and of deviating from the path of Marxism-Leninism.Sino-Indian relations also deteriorated, as border disputes between the two countries erupted into the Sino-Indian war of 1962.
During the war with China, a faction of the Indian Communists backed the position of the Indian government, while other sections of the party claimed that it was a conflict between a socialist and a capitalist state. Hundreds of CPI leaders, accused of being pro-Chinese, were imprisoned. Some of the nationalists were also imprisoned, as they used to express their opinion only in party forums, and CPI's official stand was pro-China. Thousands of Communists were detained without trial.[3] Those targeted by the state accused the pro-Soviet leadership of the CPI of conspiring with the Congress government to ensure their own hegemony over the control of the party.
In 1962 Ajoy Ghosh, the general secretary of the CPI, died. After his death, S.A. Dange was installed as the party chairman (a new position) and E.M.S. Namboodiripad as general secretary. This was an attempt to achieve a compromise. Dange represented the rightist faction of the party and E.M.S. the leftist faction.
At a CPI National Council meeting held on April 11, 1964, 32 Council members walked out in protest, accusing Dange and his followers of "anti-unity and anti-Communist policies".[4]
The leftist section, to which the 32 National Council members belonged, organised a convention in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh July 7 to 11. In this convention the issues of the internal disputes in the party were discussed. 146 delegates, claiming to represent 100,000 CPI members, took part in the proceedings. The convention decided to convene the 7th Party Congress of CPI in Calcutta later the same year.[5]
Marking a difference from the Dangeite sector of CPI, the Tenali convention was marked by the display of a large portrait of the Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong.[5]
At the Tenali convention a Bengal-based pro-Chinese group, representing one of the most radical streams of the CPI left wing, presented a draft programme proposal of their own. These radicals criticised the draft programme proposal prepared by M. Basavapunniah for undermining class struggle and failing to take a clear pro-Chinese position in the ideological conflict between the CPSU and CPC.[6]
After the Tenali convention the CPI left wing organised party district and state conferences. In West Bengal, a few of these meetings became battlegrounds between the most radical elements and the more moderate leadership. At the Calcutta Party District Conference an alternative draft programme was presented to the leadership by Parimal Das Gupta (a leading figure amongst far-left intellectuals in the party). Another alternative proposal was brought forward to the Calcutta Party District Conference by Azizul Haque, but Haque was initially banned from presenting it by the conference organisers. At the Calcutta Party District Conference 42 delegates opposed M. Basavapunniah's official draft programme proposal.
At the Siliguri Party District Conference, the main draft proposal for a party programme was accepted, but with some additional points suggested by the far-left North Bengal cadre Charu Majumdar. However, Harekrishna Konar (representing the leadership of the CPI left wing) forbade the raising of the slogan Mao Tse-Tung Zindabad (Long live Mao Tse-Tung) at the conference.
Parimal Das Gupta's document was also presented to the leadership at the West Bengal State Conference of the CPI leftwing. Das Gupta and a few other spoke at the conference, demanding the party ought to adopt the class analysis of the Indian state of the 1951 CPI conference. His proposal was, however, voted down.[7]
The Calcutta Congress was held between October 31 and November 7, at Tyagraja Hall in southern Calcutta. Simultaneously, the Dange group convened a Party Congress of CPI in Bombay. Thus, the CPI divided into two separate parties. The group which assembled in Calcutta would later adopt the name 'Communist Party of India (Marxist)', in order to differentiate themselves from the Dange group. The CPI(M) also adopted its own political programme. P. Sundarayya was elected general secretary of the party.
In total 422 delegates took part in the Calcutta Congress. CPI(M) claimed that they represented 104,421 CPI members, 60% of the total party membership.
At the Calcutta conference the party adopted a class analysis of the character of the Indian state, that claimed the Indian big bourgeoisie was increasingly collaborating with imperialism.[8]
Parimal Das Gupta's alternative draft programme was not circulated at the Calcutta conference. However, Souren Basu, a delegate from the far-left stronghold Darjeeling, spoke at the conference asking why no portrait had been raised of Mao Tse-Tung along the portraits of other communist stalwarts. His intervention met with huge applauses from the delegates of the conference.[8]
[edit]Name
CPI(M) is offically known as भारत की कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी मार्क्सवादी(Bharat ki Kamyunist Party Marksvadi) in hindi, but it is often known as मार्क्सवादी कम्युनिस्ट पार्टी (Marksvadi Kamyunist Party, abbreviatedMaKaPa) in press and media circles. This name though has a very interesting story to tell. During its initial years after the split, the party was often referred by different names such as 'Left Communist Party' or 'Communist Party of India(Left)'. The party has used the name 'Left' because CPI people were dubbed as rightist in nature for their support to Congress-Nehru regime. During Kerala Legislative Assembly elections of 1965 the party has adopted the name 'Communist Party of India(Marxist)' in order to obtain its election symbol from the Election Commission of India.[9]
[edit]Early years of CPI (M)
The CPI (M) was born into a hostile political climate. At the time of the holding of its Calcutta Congress, large sections of its leaders and cadres were jailed without trial. Again on December 29–30, over a thousand CPI (M) cadres were arrested, and held in jail without trial. In 1965 new waves of arrests of CPI(M) cadres took place in West Bengal, as the party launched agitations against the rise in fares in the Calcutta Tramways and against the then prevailing food crisis. State-wide general strikes and hartalswere observed on August 5, 1965, March 10–11, 1966 and April 6, 1966. The March 1966 general strike results in several deaths in confrontations with police forces.
Also in Kerala, mass arrests of CPI(M) cadres were carried out during 1965. In Bihar, the party called for a Bandh (general strike) in Patna on August 9, 1965 in protest against the Congress state government. During the strike, police resorted to violent actions against the organisers of the strike. The strike was followed by agitations in other parts of the state.
P. Sundaraiah, after being released from jail, spent the period of September 1965-February 1966 in Moscow for medical treatment. In Moscow he also held talks with the CPSU.[10]
The Central Committee of CPI(M) held its first meeting on June 12–19, 1966. The reason for delaying the holding of a regular CC meeting was the fact that several of the persons elected as CC members at the Calcutta Congress were jailed at the time.[11] A CC meeting had been scheduled to have been held in Trichur during the last days of 1964, but had been cancelled due to the wave of arrests against the party. The meeting discussed tactics for electoral alliances, and concluded that the party should seek to form a broad electoral alliances with all non-reactionary opposition parties in West Bengal (i.e. all parties except Jan Sangh and Swatantra Party). This decision was strongly criticised by the Communist Party of China, the Party of Labour of Albania, the Communist Party of New Zealand and the radicals within the party itself. The line was changed at a National Council meeting in Jullunder in October 1966, were it was decided that the party should only form alliances with selected left parties.[12]
[edit]Naxalbari uprising
At this point the party stood at crossroads. There were radical sections of the party who were wary of the increasing parliamentary focus of the party leadership, especially after the electoral victories in West Bengal and Kerala. Developments in China also affected the situation inside the party. In West Bengal two separate internal dissident tendencies emerged, which both could be identified as supporting the Chinese line.[13] In 1967 a peasant uprising broke out in Naxalbari, in northern West Bengal. The insurgency was led by hardline district-level CPI(M) leaders Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. The hardliners within CPI(M) saw the Naxalbari uprising as the spark that would ignite the Indian revolution. The Communist Party of China hailed the Naxalbari movement, causing an abrupt break in CPI(M)-CPC relations.[14] The Naxalbari movement was violently repressed by the West Bengal government, of which CPI(M) was a major partner. Within the party, the hardliners rallied around an All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries. Following the 1968 Burdwan plenum of CPI(M) (held on April 5–12, 1968), the AICCCR separated themselves from CPI(M). This split divided the party throughout the country. But notably in West Bengal, which was the centre of the violent radicalist stream, no prominent leading figure left the party. The party and the Naxalites (as the rebels were called) were soon to get into a bloody feud.
In Andhra Pradesh another revolt was taking place. There the pro-Naxalbari dissidents had not established any presence. But in the party organisation there were many veterans from the Telangana armed struggle, who rallied against the central party leadership. In Andhra Pradesh the radicals had a strong base even amongst the state-level leadership. The main leader of the radical tendency was T. Nagi Reddy, a member of the state legislative assembly. On June 15, 1968 the leaders of the radical tendency published a press statement outlining the critique of the development of CPI(M). It was signed by T. Nagi Reddy, D.V. Rao, Kolla Venkaiah and Chandra Pulla Reddy.[15] In total around 50% of the party cadres in Andhra Pradesh left the party to form the Andhra Pradesh Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries, under the leadership of T. Nagi Reddy.[16]
[edit]Dismissal of United Front governments in West Bengal and Kerala
In November 1967, the West Bengal United Front government was dismissed by the central government. Initially the Indian National Congress formed a minority government led by Prafulla Chandra Ghosh, but that cabinet did not last long. Following the proclamation that the United Front government had been dislodged, a 48-hour hartal was effective throughout the state. After the fall of the Ghosh cabinet, the state was but under President's Rule. CPI(M) launched agitations against the interventions of the central government in West Bengal.
The 8th Party Congress of CPI(M) was held in Cochin, Kerala, on December 23–29, 1968. On December 25, 1968, whilst the congress was held, 42 Dalits were burned alive in the Tamil village of Kilavenmani. The massacre was a retaliation from landlords after Dalit labourers had taken part in a CPI(M)-led agitation for higher wages.[17][18]
The United Front government in Kerala was forced out of office in October 1969, as the CPI, RSP, KTP and Muslim League ministers resigned. E.M.S. Namboodiripad handed in his resignation on October 24.[19] A coalition government led by CPI leader C. Achutha Menonwas formed, with the outside support of the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Elections in West Bengal and Kerala
Fresh elections were held in West Bengal in 1969. CPI(M) contested 97 seats, and won 80. The party was now the largest in the West Bengal legislative.[20] But with the active support of CPI and the Bangla Congress, Ajoy Mukherjee was returned as Chief Minister of the state. Mukherjee resigned on March 16, 1970, after a pact had been reached between CPI, Bangla Congress and the Indian National Congress against CPI(M). CPI(M) strove to form a new government, instead but the central government put the state under President's Rule.
In Kerala fresh elections were held in 1970. CPI(M) contested 73 seats and won 29. After the election Achutha Menon formed a new ministry, including ministers from the Indian National Congress.
[edit]Formation of CITU
Following the 1964 split, CPI(M) cadres had remained active with the All India Trade Union Congress. But as relations between CPI and CPI(M) soured, with the backdrop of confrontations in West Bengal and Kerala, a split also surfaced in the AITUC. In December 1969, eight CPI(M) members walked out of an AITUC Working Committee meeting. The eight called for an All India Trade Union Convention, which was held in Goa April 9–10, 1970. The convention decided that an All India Trade Union Conference be held on May 28–31 in Calcutta. The Calcutta conference would be the founding conference of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, a new pro-CPI(M) trade union movement.[21]
[edit]Outbreak of war in East Pakistan
In 1971 Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) declared its independence from Pakistan. The Pakistani military tried to quell the uprising. India intervened militarily and gave active backing to the Bangladeshi resistance. Millions of Bangladeshi refugees sought shelter in India, especially in West Bengal.
At the time the radical sections of the Bangladeshi communist movement was divided into many factions. Whilst the pro-Soviet Communist Party of Bangladesh actively participated in the resistance struggle, the pro-China communist tendency found itself in a peculiar situation as China had sided with Pakistan in the war. In Calcutta, where many Bangladeshi leftists had sought refuge, CPI(M) worked to coordinate the efforts to create a new political organization. In the fall of 1971 three small groups, which were all hosted by the CPI(M), came together to form the Bangladesh Communist Party (Leninist). The new party became the sister party of CPI(M) in Bangladesh.[22]
[edit]Party organization
CPI(M) got 5.66% of votes polled in last parliamentary election (May 2004) and it has 43 MPs. It won 42.31% on an average in the 69 seats it contested. It supported the new Indian National Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government, but without becoming a part of it. On 9 July 2008 it formally withdrew support from the UPA government explaining this by differences about the Indo-US nuclear deal and the IAEA Safeguards Agreement in particular.[23]
In West Bengal and Tripura it participates in the Left Front. In Kerala the party is part of the Left Democratic Front. In Tamil Nadu it was part of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). However, it has since withdrawn support.
Its members in Great Britain are in the electoral front Unity for Peace and Socialism with the Communist Party of Britain and the British domiciled sections of the Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). It is standing 13 candidates in the London-wide list section of the London Assembly elections in May 2008.[24]
[edit]The structure
- The Politburo (PB)
- The Central Committee (CC)
- State Committees
- District Committees
[edit]Membership
As of 2004, the party claimed a membership of 867 763.[25]
State | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | % of party members in electorate |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Andhra Pradesh | 40785 | 41879 | 45516 | 46742 | 0.0914 |
Assam | 10480 | 11207 | 11122 | 10901 | 0.0726 |
Andaman & Nicobar | 172 | 140 | 124 | 90 | 0.0372 |
Bihar | 17672 | 17469 | 16924 | 17353 | 0.0343 |
Chhattisgarh | 1211 | 1364 | 1079 | 1054 | 0.0077 |
Delhi | 1162 | 1360 | 1417 | 1408 | 0.0161 |
Goa | 172 | 35 | 40 | 67 | 0.0071 |
Gujarat | 2799 | 3214 | 3383 | 3398 | 0.0101 |
Haryana | 1357 | 1478 | 1477 | 1608 | 0.0131 |
Himachal Pradesh | 1005 | 1006 | 1014 | 1024 | 0.0245 |
Jammu & Kashmir | 625 | 720 | 830 | 850 | 0.0133 |
Jharkhand | 2552 | 2819 | 3097 | 3292 | 0.0200 |
Karnataka | 6574 | 7216 | 6893 | 6492 | 0.0168 |
Kerala | 301562 | 313652 | 318969 | 316305 | 1.4973 |
Madhya Pradesh | 2243 | 2862 | 2488 | 2320 | 0.0060 |
Maharashtra | 8545 | 9080 | 9796 | 10256 | 0.0163 |
Manipur | 340 | 330 | 270 | 300 | 0.0195 |
Orissa | 3091 | 3425 | 3502 | 3658 | 0.0143 |
Punjab | 14328 | 11000 | 11000 | 10050 | 0.0586 |
Rajasthan | 2602 | 3200 | 3507 | 3120 | 0.0090 |
Sikkim | 200 | 180 | 65 | 75 | 0.0266 |
Tamil Nadu | 86868 | 90777 | 91709 | 94343 | 0.1970 |
Tripura | 38737 | 41588 | 46277 | 51343 | 2.5954 |
Uttaranchal | 700 | 720 | 740 | 829 | 0.0149 |
Uttar Pradesh | 5169 | 5541 | 5477 | 5877 | 0.0053 |
West Bengal | 245026 | 262882 | 258682 | 274921 | 0.579 |
CC staff | 96 | 95 | 95 | 87 | |
Total | 796073 | 835239 | 843896 | 867763 | 0.1292 |
[edit]Leadership
The current general secretary of CPI(M) is Prakash Karat. The 19th party congress of CPI(M), held in CoimbatoreMarch 29-April 3, 2008 elected a Central Committee with 87 members. The Central Committee later elected a 15-member Politburo:
- Prakash Karat
- Sitaram Yechury
- S. Ramachandran Pillai
- Buddhadeb Bhattacharya
- Manik Sarkar
- M.K. Pandhe
- Biman Bose
- Pinarayi Vijayan
- K. Varadarajan
- B.V. Raghavulu
- Brinda Karat
- Nirupam Sen
- Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
- Mohammad Amin
The senior most member, V.S. Achuthanandan was removed from the Polit Bureau on July 12, 2009.
The 19th congress saw the departure of the last two members of the Polit Bureau who had been on the original Polit Bureau in 1964, Harkishen Singh Surjeet and Jyoti Basu.[26]
[edit]State Committee secretaries
- Andaman & Nicobar: K.G. Das
- Andhra Pradesh: B.V. Raghavulu
- Assam: Uddhab Barman
- Bihar: Vijaykant Thakur
- Chattisgarh: M.K. Nandi
- Delhi: P.M.S. Grewal
- Goa: Thaelman Perera
- Haryana: Inderjit Singh
- Jharkhand: J.S. Majumdar
- Karnataka: V.J.K. Nair
- Kerala : Pinarayi Vijayan
- Madhya Pradesh: Badal Saroj
- Maharashtra: Ashok Dhawale
- Orissa: Janardan Pati
- Punjab: Charan Singh Virdi(Acting)
- Rajasthan: Vasudev Sharma
- Sikkim: Balram Adhikari
- Tamil Nadu: G.Ramakrishnan
- Tripura: Baidyanath Majumdar
- Uttaranchal: Vijai Rawat
- Uttar Pradesh: S.P. Kashyap
- West Bengal: Biman Bose[27]
[edit]The principal mass organizations of CPI(M)
- Democratic Youth Federation of India
- Students Federation of India
- Centre of Indian Trade Unions class organisation
- All India Kisan Sabha peasants' organization
- All India Agricultural Workers Union
- All India Democratic Women's Association
- Bank Employees Federation of India
- All India Lawyers Union
In Tripura, the Ganamukti Parishad is a major mass organization amongst the tribal peoples of the state. In Kerala the Adivasi Kshema Samithi, a tribal organisation is controlled by CPI(M).
This apart, on the cultural front as many as 12 major organisations are led by CPI(M).
[edit]Party publications
From the Centre, two weekly newspapers are published, People's Democracy (English) and Lok Lehar (Hindi). The central theoretical organ of the party is The Marxist, published quarterly in English.
[edit]Daily newspapers
- Ganashakti (West Bengal, Bengali)
- Deshabhimani (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Daily Desher Katha (Tripura, Bengali)
- Theekathir (Tamil Nadu, Tamil)
- Prajasakti (Andhra Pradesh, Telugu)
[edit]Weeklies
- Abshar (West Bengal, Urdu)
- Swadhintha (West Bengal, Hindi)
- Desh Hiteshi (Bengali)
- Janashakthi (Karnataka, Kannada)[28]
- Jeevan Marg (Maharashtra, Marathi)
- Samyabadi (Orissa, Oriya)
- Deshabhimani Vaarika. (Kerala, Malayalam)
- Ganashakti (Assamese, Assam)
[edit]Fortnightlies
- Lok Jatan (Madhya Pradesh, Hindi)
- Lok Samvad (Uttar Pradesh, Hindi)
- Sarfarosh Chintan (Gujarat, Gujarati)
[edit]Monthlies
- Samajik Nayaya Saamachar (hindi and english )
- Yeh Naya Raste (Jammu & Kashmir, Urdu)
- Lok Lahar (Punjabi)
- Nandan (Bengali)
- Marxist (Tamil language)
[edit]Theoretical publications
[edit]Publishing houses
- Leftword Publication
- CPI(M) Publication
- National Book Agency (West Bengal)
- Chinta Publication (Kerala)
- Prajasakti Book House (Andhra Pradesh)
- Deshabhimani Book House (Kerala)
- Natun Sahitya Parishad (Assam)
[edit]State governments
As of 2011, CPI(M) heads the state government in Tripura. Manik Sarkar is a chief minister belonging to the party. In Tripura, the party has a majority of its own in the state assemblies, but governs together with Left Front partners.
[edit]Splits and offshoots
A large number of parties have been formed as a result of splits from the CPI(M), such as Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist),Marxist Communist Party of India, Marxist Coordination Committee in Jharkhand, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy, Communist Marxist Party and BTR-EMS-AKG Janakeeya Vedi in Kerala, Party of Democratic Socialism in West Bengal, Janganotantrik Morcha in Tripura, theRam Pasla group in Punjab, Orissa Communist Party in Orissa, etc.
[edit]Elections
[edit]Lok-Sabha Elections
[edit]1967 General Election
1967 CPI(M) election results | |
(seats won / seats contested / seats total / votes / % of total vote) | |
Lok Sabha: | 19 / 59 / 520 / 6246522 / 4.28% |
---|---|
Elections to State Legislative Assemblies: | |
Andhra Pradesh | 9 / 83 / 287 / 1053855 / 7.61% |
Assam | 0 / 14 / 126 / 61165 / 1.97% |
Bihar | 4 / 32 / 318 / 173656 / 1.28% |
Haryana | 0 / 8 / 81 / 16379 / 0.54% |
Himachal Pradesh | 0 / 6 / 60 / 3019 / 0.39% |
Kerala | 52 / 59 / 133 / 1476456 / 23.51% |
Madhya Pradesh | 0 / 9 / 296 / 20728 / 0.23% |
Maharashtra | 1 / 11 / 270 / 145083 / 1.08% |
Manipur | 0 / 5 / 30 / 2093 / 0.67% |
Mysore | 1 / 10 / 216 / 82531 / 1.10% |
Orissa | 1 / 10 / 140 / 46597 / 1.16% |
Punjab | 3 / 13 / 104 / 138857 / 3.26% |
Rajasthan | 0 / 22 / 184 / 79826 / 1.18% |
Tamil Nadu | 11 / 22 / 234 / 623114 / 4.07% |
Tripura | 2 / 16 / 30 / 93739 / 21.61% |
Uttar Pradesh | 1 / 57 / 425 / 272565 / 1.27% |
West Bengal | 43 / 135 / 280 / 2293026 / 18.11% |
In the 1967 Lok Sabha elections CPI(M) nominated 59 candidates. In total 19 of them were elected. The party received 6.2 million votes (4.28% of the nationwide vote). By comparison, CPI won 23 seats and got 5.11% of the nation-wide vote. In the state legistative elections held simultaneously, the CPI(M) emerged as a major party in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala a United Front government led by E.M.S. Namboodiripad was formed.[29] In West Bengal, CPI(M) was the main force behind theUnited Front government formed. The Chief Ministership was given to Ajoy Mukherjeeof the Bangla Congress (a regional splinter-group of the Indian National Congress).
[edit]1971 General Election
With the backdrop of the Bangladesh War and the emerging role of Indira Gandhi as a populist national leader, the 1971 election to the Lok Sabha was held. CPI(M) contested 85 seats, and won in 25. In total the party mustered 7510089 votes (5.12% of the national vote). 20 of the seats came from West Bengal (including Somnath Chatterjee, elected from Burdwan), 2 from Kerala (including A.K. Gopalan, elected from Trichur), 2 from Tripura (Biren Dutta and Dasarath Deb) and 1 from Andhra Pradesh.[30]
In the same year, state legislative elections were held in three states; West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. In West Bengal CPI(M) had 241 candidates, winning 113 seats. In total the party mustered 4241557 votes (32.86% of the state-wide vote). In Tamil Nadu CPI(M) contested 37 seats, but drew blank. The party got 259298 votes (1.65% of the state-wide vote). In Orissa the party contested 11 seats, and won in two. The CPI(M) vote in the state was 52785 (1.2% of the state-wide vote).[31]
[edit]1977 General Elections
In the 1977 Loksabha elections the CPM had fielded its candidtaes on 53 seats scattred around in 14 states and union terretories of India. It won 4.29% of the average votes polled in this election. The party had won 17 seats from West Bengal, 3 from Maharashtra and one each from Orrissa and Punjab. This election was done shortly after the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi and reflected a wide uproar of masses against her draconian rule. An coalition of Opposition parties was formed against the Congress regime, CPI(M) too supported this coalition by not fielding its candidates against the Janta Party.[32]
[edit]1980 General Elections
Janta Party coalition didnot last much and two years after since its formation India had faced the 1980's Loksabha Elections. This election had saw an increase in the vote percentage of CPI(M) and the party had bagged more seats then the previous elections. The Party had contested elections in the 15 states and union terretories of India, and fielded its candidates on 64 seats. The party had successfully won 37 seats in total. It has one 28 seats in West Bengal, 7 in Kerala, and 2 seats in Tripura. The party emerged out as the whole sole representative of the people of Tripura in this election.[33]
[edit]State Assembly Elections
[edit]1970s, 1980s, 1990s
This section requires expansion. |
In the 1977 election, the CPI(M) gained the majority in the Legislative Assembly of the State ofWest Bengal, defeating the Congress (I). Jyoti Basu became the chief minister of West Bengal, an office he held until his retirement in 2000. The CPI(M) held the majority in the West Bengal government continuously since 1977, which ended in 2011 election.The party also won in Tripura winning 49 of the 60 seats. It has 3 MLAs in Rajasthan assembly. In Bihar it has an alliance with CPI(ML)L and CPI, it has 1 seat in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu it has worked for Dalit causes.
[edit]Presidential Elections
[edit]2002 Presidential Elections
In the 2002 Presidential elections, Left Front has announced Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as their Presidential Candidate. Against her was the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's Candidate APJ Abdul Kalam.[34] CPIM's Leadership has announced that in form of Captain Lakshmi, they are fielding an 'Alternative Candidate'. They said that though it is clear that Captain Lakshmi cant be the President of India because of the opposition of BJP led NDA and Indian National Congress to her, but through this Presidential Election Left wants to raise key national issues, and make them heard to the masses.[35] Captain Lakshmi herself had pointed out that this Presidential election reflects the opposition of the Indian Left to the Communal-Secreterian Politics of BJP and solidarity with the religious minorities who have suffered a lot under the National Democratic Alliance's leadership.[36]
Captain Lakshmi Sehgal was an Indian Freedom Fighter, who had served as a Commander in the Indian National Army of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
[edit]2011 Assembly Elections
This section requires expansion. |
The CPI(M) led coalitions lost the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal. In Kerala, CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front coalition with 68 seats lost to Indian National Congress led United Democratic Front's 72 seats in a neck to neck fought assembly elections. In West Bengal, CPI(M) alliance with 62 seats suffered a setback after 34 years of continuous rule, losing to Trinamool Congress alliance's 226 seats. Its Chief Minister candidate who is also an incumbent Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also lost from his Jadavpur assembly constituency.[37]
[edit]See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
- Communist Ghadar Party of India
- List of political parties in India
- Politics of India
- List of Communist Parties
- Election Results of Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Co-ordinating Committee of Communist Parties in Britain
- List of Communist Parties in India
[edit]References
- ^ a b http://cpim.org/content/pr-dasmunshis-statement
- ^ "Political-Organizational Report adopted at the XIXth Congress of the CPI(M) held in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, March 29-April 23, 2008".
- ^ The bulk of the detainees came from the leftwing of CPI. However, cadres of the Socialist Unity Centre of India and theWorkers Party of India were also targeted.[1]
- ^ The 32 were P. Sundarayya, M. Basavapunniah, T. Nagi Reddy,M. Hanumantha Rao, D.V. Rao, N. Prasad Rao, G. Bapanayya,E.M.S. Namboodiripad, A.K. Gopalan, A.V. Kunhambu, C.H. Kanaran, E.K. Nayanar, V.S. Achuthanandan Removed, E.K. Imbichibava, Promode Das Gupta, Muzaffar Ahmad, Jyoti Basu,Abdul Halim, Hare Krishna Konar, Saroj Mukherjee, P. Ramamurthi, M.R. Venkataraman, N. Sankariah, K. Ramani,Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Jagjit Singh Lyallpuri, D.S. Tapiala, Dr.Bhag Singh, Sheo Kumar Mishra, R.N. Upadhyaya, Mohan Punamiya and R.P. Saraf. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 37.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 51.
- ^ Suniti Kumar Ghosh was a member of the group that presented this alternative draft proposal. His grouping was one of several left tendencies in the Bengali party branch. Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 32.
- ^ Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 52-54.
- ^ a b Basu, Pradip. Towards Naxalbari (1953-1967) – An Account of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000. p. 54.
- ^ Basu, Jyoti. Memoirs - A Political Autobiography. Calcutta: National Book Agency, 1999. p. 189.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and U./nited Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 17-18
- ^ The jailed members of the new CC, at the time of the Calcutta Congress, were B.T. Ranadive, Muzaffar Ahmed, Hare Krishna Konar and Promode Das Gupta. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 44-5.
- ^ M.V.S. Koteswara Rao. Communist Parties and United Front - Experience in Kerala and West Bengal. Hyderabad: Prajasakti Book House, 2003. p. 234-235.
- ^ According to Basu (in Basu, Pradip; Towards Naxalbari (1953–67) : An Account Of Inner-Party Ideological Struggle. Calcutta: Progressive Publishers, 2000.) there were two nuclei of radicals in the party organisation in West Bengal. One "theorist" section around Parimal Das Gupta in Calcutta, which wanted to persuade the party leadership to correct revisionist mistakes through inner-party debate, and one "actionist" section led by Charu Majumdarand Kanu Sanyal in North Bengal. The 'actionists' were impatient, and strived to organize armed uprisings. According to Basu, due to the prevailing political climate of youth and student rebellion it was the 'actionists' which came to dominate the new Maoist movement in India, instead of the more theoretically advanced sections. This dichotomy is however rebuffed by followers of the radical stream, for example the CPI(ML) Liberation.
- ^ On July 1 People's Daily carried an article titled Spring Thunder Over India, expressing the support of CPC to the Naxalbari rebels. At its meeting in Madurai on August 18–27, 1967, the Central Committee of CPI(M) adopted a resolution titled 'Resolution on Divergent Views Between Our Party and the Communist Party of China on Certain Fundamental Issues of Programme and Policy'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 46.
- ^ This press statement was reproduced in full in the central CPI(M) publication, People's Democracy, on June 30. P. Sundarayya and M. Basavapunniah, acting on behalf of the Polit Bureau of CPI(M), formulated a response to the statement on June 16, titled 'Rebuff the Rebels, Uphold Party Unity'. Source: Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 48.
- ^ Some perceive that the Chinese leadership severely misjudged the actual conditions of different Indian factions at the time, giving their full support to the Majumdar-Sanyal group whilst keeping the Andhra Pradesh radicals (that had a considerable mass following) at distance.
- ^ Dalits and land issues
- ^ Untitled-1
- ^ officialwebsite of kerala.gov.in
- ^ Indian National Congress had won 55 seats, Bangla Congress 33 and CPI 30. CPI(M) allies also won several seats.ECI: Statistical Report on the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ Bose, Shanti Shekar; A Brief Note on the Contents of Documents of the Communist Movement in India. Kolkata: 2005, National Book Agency, p. 56-59
- ^ The same is also true for the Workers Party of Bangladesh, which was formed in 1980 when BCP(L) merged with other groups. Although politically close, WPB can be said to have a more Maoist-oriented profile than CPI(M).
- ^ article in The Hindu, 9 July 2008: Left meets President, hands over letter of withdrawal
- ^ Unity For Peace and Socialism homepage
- ^ Membership figures fromhttp://www.cpim.org/pd/2005/0403/04032005_membership.htm. Electorate numbers taken fromhttp://www.eci.gov.in/SR_KeyHighLights/LS_2004/Vol_I_LS_2004.pdf.Puducherry is counted as part of Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh counted as part of Punjab.
- ^ "Nine to none, founders' era ends in CPM", The Telegraph(Calcutta), April 3, 2008.
- ^ List of State Secretaries
- ^ Janashakti has replaced the previous CPI(M) organ in Karnataka,Ikyaranga
- ^ In Kerala the United Front consisted, at the time of the election, of Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Muslim League, the Revolutionary Socialist Party, the Karshaka Thozhilali Party and the Kerala Socialist Party.[2]
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Lok Sabha Election
- ^ ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Orissa Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Election, ECI: Statistical Report on the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Election
- ^ 1977 general elections ECI Report
- ^ 1980 General Elections ECI Report
- ^ Story in The Hindu
- ^ Sitaram Yechury on 2002 Presidential Elections
- ^ Captain Lakshmi's Interview
- ^ http://www.ndtv.com/elections/index.php
[edit]External links
Communist parties |
---|
[edit]
- CPI(M) election website
- CPI(M) web site
- Leftword Books CPI(M) publishing house
- CPI(M) Kerala State Committee
- CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh State Committee
[edit]Party publications
- People's Democracy
- Daily Desher Katha
- Deshabhimani
- Ganashakti
- Lok Samvad
- Prajasakti
- Theekathir
- Janashakthi
[edit]Articles
- Search For Ways To Keep Marx Alive Opinion on party structure by Sumanta Sen. The Telegraph Calcutta, India. March 31, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005.
- Veteran Communists Honoured News article on Party history conference. The Hindu. April 6, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- All you wanted to know about CPI-M News article on CPI-M. Rediff News. April 8, 2005. Accessed April 8, 2005.
- An Upbeat Left by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan. Frontline Volume 22 - Issue 09, April 23 - May 6, 2005
|
Party Constitution
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the Party shall be Communist Party of India (Marxist).
ARTICLE II
AIM
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) is the revolutionary vanguard of the working class of India. Its aim is socialism and communism through the establishment of the state of dictatorship of the proletariat. In all its activities the Party is guided by the philosophy and principles of Marxism-Leninism which shows to the toiling masses the correct way to the ending of exploitation of man by man, their complete emancipation. The Party keeps high the banner of proletarian internationalism.
ARTICLE III
Flag
The flag of the Party shall be a red flag of which the length shall be one-and-a half times its width. At the centre of the flag there shall be a crossed hammer and sickle in white.
ARTICLE IV
Membership
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Any person residing in India, eighteen years of age or above who accepts the Programme and Constitution of the Party, agrees to work in one of the Party organisations, to pay regularly the Party membership dues (fee and levy as may be prescribed) and to carry out decisions of the Party shall be eligible for Party membership.
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(a) New members are admitted to the Party through individual application on the recommendation of two Party members. Party members who recommend an applicant must furnish the Party Branch or the unit concerned, full information about the applicant from personal knowledge and with due sense of responsibility. The Party Branch shall make recommendation to the next higher committee, if the applicant is to be admitted. The next higher committee takes a decision on all recommendations.
(b) All Party committees higher to the Party Branch and up to the Central Committee level have the power to directly admit new members to the Party.
- (a) All applications for Party membership must be placed before the appropriate committee within a month of their presentation and recommendation.
(b) If the applicant is admitted to the Party, he or she shall be regarded as a candidate member for a period of one year commencing from the date of such admission.
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If a leading member from another political party of local, district or state level comes to the Party, in addition to the sanction of Local Party Committee or District or State Committee, it is necessary to have the sanction of the next higher committee of the Party before he or she is admitted to membership of the Party. In exceptional cases the Central Committee or the State Committee can admit such members to full membership of the Party. And whenever a State Committee admits such members it should obtain previous sanction from the Central Committee.
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Members once expelled from the Party can be re-admitted only by the decision of the Party Committee which confirmed their expulsion or by a higher committee.
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Candidate members have the same duties and rights as full members except that they have no right to elect or be elected, or to vote on any motion.
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The Party branch recommending or the Party committee admitting candidate members shall arrange for their elementary education on the Programme, Constitution and the current policies of the Party and observe their development, through providing for their functioning as members of a Party branch or unit.
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By the end of the period of candidature, the Party branch or Party committee concerned shall discuss whether the candidate member is qualified to full membership. If a candidate member is found unfit,the Party branch or committee shall cancel his or her candidate membership. A report on admission to full membership shall be regularly forwarded by the branch or the Party committee concerned to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee may, on scrutiny of the report, alter or modify any such decision after consultation with the branch or the Party committee which has submitted the report. The District and State Committee will exercise supervisory power over the recruitment of candidates and over admissions to full membership and have the right to modify or reject the decision of the lower committee in this respect.
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A Party member may transfer his or her membership from one unit to another, with the approval of his or her unit and by sending his or her application through his or her unit to the higher unit under whose jurisdiction the concerned units function.
ARTICLE V
Party Pledge
Every person joining the Party shall sign the Party Pledge. This Pledge shall be:
"I accept the aims and objectives of the Party and agree to abide by its Constitution and loyally to carry out decisions of the Party."
"I shall strive to live up to the ideals of communism and shall selflessly serve the working class and the toiling masses and the country, always placing the interests of the Party and the people above personal interests."
ARTICLE VI
Membership Records
All membership records shall be kept under the supervision of the District Committee.
ARTICLE VII
Check-up of Party Membership
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There shall be annual check-up of Party membership by the Party organisation to which the Party member belongs. Any Party member who for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues shall be dropped from Party membership.
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A report on check-up of Party membership by a Branch or a Party committee concerned shall be sent to the next higher committee for confirmation and registration.
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There shall be right of appeal on decisions of droppage from Party membership.
ARTICLE VIII
Resignation from Party membership
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A Party member wishing to resign from the Party shall summit his or her resignation to the Party branch or to the Party unit to which he or she belongs. The unit concerned may accept the same, decide to strike his or her name off the rolls and report the matter to the next higher committee. If the resignation is on political grounds the unit may refuse to accept the resignation and may expel him.
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In the case where a Party member wishing to resign from the Party is liable to be charged with serious violation of party discipline which may warrant his or her expulsion and where such a charge is substantial, the resignation may be given effect to as expulsion from the Party.
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All such cases of resignations given effect to as expulsion shall be immediately reported to the next higher Party committee and be subject to the latter's confirmation.
ARTICLE IX
Membership Fee
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All Party members as well as candidates shall pay a Party membership fee of rupees two per year. This annual Party fee shall be paid at the time of admission into the Party and by March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned. If he or she does not clear the fee in due time his or her name shall be removed from the Party rolls. The Central Committee may extend this date if the circumstances warrant such extension.
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All Party fees collected from Party members by Party branches or units will be deposited with the Central Committee through the appropriate Party committees.
ARTICLE X
Party Levy
Every Party member must pay a monthly levy as laid down by the Central Committee. Those whose incomes are of annual or of seasonal character have to pay their levy at the beginning of the season or at the beginning of every quarter on the same percentage basis. If a member has failed to deposit his levy within three months after it is due, then his name is to be removed from the Party rolls.
ARTICLE XI
Duties of Party Members
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The duties of the Party members are as follows:
(a) To regularly participate in the activity of the Party organisation to which they belong and to faithfully carry out the policy, decisions and the directives of the Party;
(b) To study Marxism-Leninism and endeavour to raise their level of understanding;
(c) To read, support and popularise the Party journals and Party publications;
(d) To observe the Party Constitution and Party discipline and behave in the spirit of proletarian internationalism and in accordance with the noble ideals of communism;
(e) To place the interests of the people and the Party above personal interests;
(f) To devotedly serve the masses and consistently strengthen their bonds with them, to learn from the masses and report their opinions and demands to the Party, to work in a mass organisation, unless exempted, under the guidance of the Party.
(g) To cultivate comradely relations towards one another the constantly develop a fraternal spirit within the Party;
(h) To practice criticism an self-criticism with a view to helping each other and improving individual and collective work;
(i) To be frank, honest and truthful to the Party and not to betray the confidence of the Party;
(j) To safeguard the unity and solidarity of the Party and to be vigilant against the enemies of the working class and the country;
(k) To defend the Party and uphold its cause against the onslaught of the enemies of the Party, the working class and the country.
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It shall be the task of the Party organisation to ensure the fulfillment of the above duties by Party members and help them in every possible way in the discharge of these duties.
ARTICLE XII
Rights of Party Members
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Rights of the Party members are as following:
(a) To elect Party organs and Party committees and be elected to them;
(b) To participate in discussion in order to contribute to the formation of the Party policy and of the decisions of the Party;
(c) To make proposals regarding one's own work in the Party;
(d) To make criticism about Party committees and Party functionaries at Party meetings;
(e) To be heard in person in his or her unit when a Party unit discusses disciplinary action against him or her;
(f) When any Party member disagrees with any decision of a Party committee on organization he or she has a right to submit his or her opinion to the next higher committee. In case of political difference a member has the right to submit his or her opinion to the higher committee up to the Central Committee. In all such cases the Party member shall, of course, carry out the Party decisions and the difference shall be sought to be resolved through the test of practice and through comradely discussions;
(g) To address any statement, appeal or complaint to any higher Party organisation up to and including the Central Committee.
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It shall be the duty of Party organisations and Party functionaries to see that these rights are respected
ARTICLE XIII
Principles of Democratic Centralism
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The structure of the Party is based on, and its internal life is guided by, the principles of democratic centralism. Democratic centralism means centralised leadership based on inner-Party democracy under the guidance of the centralised leadership.
In the sphere of the Party structure, the guiding principles of democratic centralism are:
(a) All Party organs from top to bottom shall be elected;
(b) The minority shall carry out the decisions of the majority; the lower Party organisations shall carry out the decision and directives of the higher Party organs, the individual shall subordinate himself to the will of the collective. All Party organisations shall carry out the decisions and directives of the Party Congress and of the Central Committee;
(c) All Party committees shall periodically report their work to the Party organisation immediately below and all lower committees shall likewise report to their immediate higher committee;
(d) All Party committees, particularly the leading Party committees, shall pay constant heed to the opinions and criticism of the lower Party organisations and the rank-and-file Party members;
(e) All Party committees shall function strictly on the principles of collective decisions and check-up combined with individual responsibility;
(f) All questions of international affairs, questions of all-India character, or questions concerning more than one state or questions requiring uniform decisions for the whole country, shall be decided upon by the all-India Party organisations. All questions of a state or district character shall be ordinarily decided upon by the corresponding Party organisations. But in no case shall such decisions run counter to the decisions of a higher Party organisation. When the Central Party leadership has to take a decision on any issue of major state importance, it shall do so normally after consultation with the state Party organisation concerned. The state organisation shall do likewise in relation to districts;
(g) On issues which affect the policy of the Party on an all-India scale, but on which the Party's standpoint is to be expressed for the first time, only the Central leadership of the Party is entitled to make a policy statement. The lower committees can and should send their opinions and suggestions in time for consideration by the Central leadership.
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Basing itself upon the experience of the entire Party membership and of the popular movement, in the sphere of the internal life of the Party, the following principles of democratic centralism are applied:
(a) Free and frank discussion within the Party unit on all questions affecting the Party, its policy and work;
(b) Sustained efforts to activise the Party members in popularising and implementing the Party policies, to raise their ideological-political level and improve their general education so that they can effectively participate in the life and work of the Party;
(c) When serious differences arise in a Party committee, every effort should be made to arrive at an agreement. Failing this, the decision should be postponed with a view to resolving differences through further discussions, unless an immediate decision is called for by the needs of the Party and the mass movement;
(d) Encouragement of criticism and self-criticism at all levels, from top to bottom, especially criticism from below;
(e) Consistent struggles against bureaucratic tendencies at all levels;
(f) Impermissibility of factionalism and factional groupings inside the Party in any form;
(g) Strengthening of the Party spirit by developing fraternal relations and mutual help, correcting mistakes by treating comrades sympathetically; judging them and their work not on the basis of isolated mistakes or incidents, but taking into account their whole record of service to the Party.
ARTICLE XIV
All-India Party Congress
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The supreme organ of the Party for the whole country shall be the All-India Party Congress.
(a) The regular Party Congress shall be convened by the Central Committee ordinarily once every three years.
(b) An Extraordinary Party Congress shall be called by the Central Committee at its own discretion, or when it is demanded by two or more State Committees representing not less than one-third of the total Party membership.
(c) The date and venue of the Party Congress or of the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee at a meeting especially called for the purpose.
(d) Regular Party Congress shall be composed of delegates elected by the State Conferences as well as by Conferences of Party units directly under the all-India Party Centre.
(e) The basis of representation at a regular Party Congress and the basis of representation and method of election of delegates to the Extraordinary Party Congress shall be decided by the Central Committee on the basis of total Party membership, strength of the mass movements led by the Party, strength of the Party in the respective States.
(f) The members of the Central Committee shall have the right to participate as full delegates in the Party Congress, whether regular or extraordinary.
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Functions and powers of the regular Party Congress are as follows:
(a) To discuss and act on the political and organisational report of the Central Committee;
(b) To revise and change the Party Programme and the Party Constitution.
(c) To determine the Party line on current situation;
(d) To elect the Central Committee by secret ballot.
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It elects a Credentials Committee which goes into the credentials of all the delegates and submits a report to the Congress.
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The Congress shall elect a Presidium for the conduct of its business.
ARTICLE XV
Central Committee
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(a) The Central Committee shall be elected at the Party Congress, the numbers being decided by the Party Congress.
(b) The outgoing Central Committee shall propose to the Congress a panel of candidates.
(c) The panel of candidates shall be prepared with a view to creating a capable leadership, closely linked with the masses, firm in the revolutionary outlook of the working class and educated in Marxism-Leninism.
(d) Any delegate can raise objection with regard to any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, but the prior approval of the member whose name is proposed is necessary.
(e) Any one whose name has been proposed shall have the right to withdraw.
(f) The panel proposed, together with the additional nominations by the delegates, shall be voted upon by secret ballot, and by the method of single distributive vote. In case there is no additional nomination, approval of the delegates will be taken by show of hands.
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The Central Committee shall be the highest authority of the Party between two all-India Party Congress.
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It is responsible for enforcing the Party Constitution and carrying out the political line and decisions adopted by the Party Congress.
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The Central Committee shall represent the Party as a whole and be responsible for directing the entire work of the Party. The Central Committee shall have the right to take decisions with full authority on any question facing the Party.
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The Central Committee shall elect from among it members a Polit Bureau including the General Secretary. The number of members in the Polit Bureau shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Polit Bureau carries on the work of the Central Committee between its two sessions and has the right to take political and organisational decisions in between two meetings of the Central Committee.
(a) The Central Committee shall elect a Secretariat from among its members. The number of members of the Secretariat shall be decided by the Central Committee. The Secretariat will, under the guidance of the Polit Bureau, look after the day-to-day work of the Party Centre and assist the Polit Bureau in the implementation of Central Committee decisions.
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The election of the secretaries of the State Committees and of editors of state Party organs shall require the approval of the Central Committee.
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(a) The Central Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-Party activity by two-thirds of the members present and voting and in any case by more than half the total strength of the Central Committee voting for such removal.
b) It can fill up any vacancy occurring in its composition by simple majority of its total members.
(c) In case member or members of the Central Committee are arrested the remaining members can coopt substitute member or members and they shall have full right as the original members but should vacate their places as the arrested members get released and assume their duties.
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The time between two meetings of the Central Committee shall not normally exceed three months and it shall meet whenever one third of its total members make a requisition.
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The Central Committee shall discuss and decide political and organisational issues and problems of mass movements and guide the State Committees and all-India Party fractions in mass organisations.
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The Central Committee is responsible for the Party finances and adopts the statement of accounts submitted to it by the Polit Bureau once a year.
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The Central Committee shall submit its political and organisational report before the Party Congress, whenever it is convened.
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With the aim of strengthening the revolutionary leadership of the Party and ensuring a check-up over the State and district organisations, the Central Committee sends representatives and organisers, who must work on the basis of special instructions laid down every time by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau.
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The Central Committee may when it deems necessary convene an extended session of the Central Committee, or Plenum or Conference. The Central Committee shall decide the basis of attendance and method of election of delegates for such bodies.
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In case of emergency or in case of large-scale arrests, the Central Committee, the State Committees, and the District Committees shall be reorganised into smaller compact bodies. The names for such reorganisation of Central Committee are prepared by the remaining members of the P.B. and should be approved by the members of the Central Committee inside and outside. The names for the reorganisation of State and District Committees are prepared by the remaining members of the respective committees and are to be approved by their next higher committee. They can form sub-committees as they deem it necessary, to discharge their functions and responsibilities. The reconstituted Central Committee is empowered to frame new rules for safeguarding the Party organisation. But when the situation normalises the elected Committees are restored.
ARTICLE XVI
State and District Party Organs
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The highest organ in the State or District shall be the State or the District Conference which elects a State or District Committee.
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(a) The organisational structure, the rights and functions of the State or District Party organs are similar to those enumerated in the articles concerning the Party structure and functions at the all-India level, their functions being confined to the State or district issues and their decisions being within the limit of the decisions taken by the next higher Party organ. In case it becomes necessary to increase the number of members of these Party Committees they can do so with the permission of the next higher committee.
(b) The State or District Committee shall elect a Secretariat including the secretary. But the State or District Committee may not have a Secretariat if permitted by the next higher committee.
(c) The State or District Committee shall remove any member from itself for gross breach of discipline, misconduct or for anti-party activity by a decision of majority of the total members of the State Committee or District Committee.
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(a) The State Committee shall decide on the area of the District Committee taking into account the needs of the movement. It may not necessarily be confined to administrative division.
(b) The State Committee shall decided on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee.
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(a) The primary unit of the Party is the Party Branch organised on the basis of profession or territory;
(b) Party members are to be organised on the basis of their occupation or vocation, when they are working in a factory or an institute or any industry. When such Branches are organised the members of such Branches shall be associate members of the Party branches in place of their residence or organised as auxiliary Branches there. The work to be allotted in their place of residence shall not be detrimental to the work allotted to them by their basic units in the factory or institute or occupation;
(c) The number of members in a Branch shall not be more than fifteen. The functions and other matters related to the Branch will be determined by the State Committee.
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The Branch is the living link between the masses of workers, peasants and other sections of the people within its area or sphere and the leading committee of Party. Its tasks are:
(a) To carry out the directives of the higher committee;
(b) Win the masses in the factory or locality for the political and organisational decisions of the Party;
(c) Draw in militants and sympathisers into activity to enroll them as new members and educate them politically;
(d) Help the district, local or town committee in its every day organisational and agitational work.
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To carry out the current work, the Branch elects its Secretary who is confirmed by the next higher committee.
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The Party Congress shall directly elect a Central Control Commission consisting of not more than five members. The Chairperson of the Central Control Commission will be an ex-officio member of the Central Committee.
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The Control Commission shall take up:
(a) Cases of disciplinary action referred to it by the Central Committee or Polit Bureau;
(b) Cases of appeal where disciplinary action has been taken by the State Committee.
(c) Cases involving expulsion, suspension from full Party membership and decisions of droppage from Party membership against which an appeal has been made to the State Committee or to the State Control Commission and rejected.
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The decision of the Central Control Commission will be final and binding.
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The detailed rules for the functioning of the Control Commission shall be framed by the Central Committee after consultation with the Control Commission.
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In the eventually of a vacancy arising in the Central Control Commission between two party Congresses, the Central Committee shall have the right to fill the vacancy.
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The State Conference may elect a State Control Commission to go into the cases of disciplinary action. In whichever State the State Control Commission is set up, the functions and authority will be similar to that of the Central Control Commission, but within its own State.
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Discipline is indispensable for preserving and strengthening the unity of the Party, for enhancing its strength, its fighting ability and its prestige, and for enforcing the principles of democratic centralism. Without strict adherence to Party discipline, the Party cannot lead the masses in struggles and actions, nor discharge its responsibility towards them.
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Discipline is based on conscious acceptance of the aims, the Programme and the policies of the Party. All members of the Party are equally bound by Party discipline irrespective of their status in the Party organisation or in public life.
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Violation of the Party Constitution and decisions of the Party as well as any other action and behaviour unworthy of a member of the Communist Party shall constitute a breach of Party discipline and is liable to disciplinary action.
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The disciplinary actions are :
(a) Warning;
(b) Censure;
(c) Public censure;
(d) Removal from the post in the Party;
(e) Suspension from full Party membership for any period but not exceeding one year;
(f) Expulsion.
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Disciplinary action shall normally be taken where other methods, including methods of persuasion, have failed to correct the comrade concerned. But even where disciplinary measure has been taken, the efforts to help the comrade to correct himself shall continue. In case where the breach of discipline is such that it warrants an immediate disciplinary measure to protect the interests of Party or its prestige, the disciplinary action shall be taken promptly.
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Expulsion from the Party is the severest of all disciplinary measures and this shall be applied with utmost caution, deliberation and judgement.
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No disciplinary measure involving removal from the post held in the Party, suspension from full Party membership other than suspension pending enquiry, expulsion from the Party, shall come into effect without confirmation by the next higher committee. In case of expulsion the penalised Party member shall be removed from all Party activities pending confirmation. The expelled member stands suspended from the Party till the expulsion is confirmed by the next higher committee. The higher committee will have to communicate its decision with six months.
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The comrade against whom a disciplinary measure is proposed shall be fully informed of the allegations, charges and other relevant facts against him or her. He or she shall have the right to be heard in person by the Party unit to which he or she belongs and shall have the right to submit his or her explanation to any other unit which takes action against him or her.
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When a member is simultaneously a member of two Party units, the lower unit can recommend disciplinary action against him or her but it shall not come into operation unless accepted by his or her higher unit.
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Party members found to be strike-breakers, drunkards, moral degenerates, betrayers of Party confidence, guilty of grave financial corruption can be summarily suspended from Party membership and removed from all responsible positions in the Party by the Party unit to which he belongs or by a higher Party body pending the issue of the charge-sheet to him and getting his explanation. This summary suspension and removal from all responsible positions in the Party cannot be extended for a period of more than three months.
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There shall be right of appeal in all cases of disciplinary action.
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The Central, State or District Committee has the right to dissolve and appoint new committees or take disciplinary action against a lower committee in cases where a persistent defiance of Party decisions and policy, serious factionalism, or a break of Party discipline is involved. But the State and District Committee will immediately report such action to the next higher committee for whatever action it deems necessary.
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In exceptional circumstances Party Committees in their discretion may resort to summary procedure in expelling members for grave anti-Party activities.
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Party members elected to Parliament, State Legislature or Administrative Council shall constitute themselves into a Party group and function under the appropriate Party Committee in strict conformity with the line of the Party, its policies and directives.
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The communist legislators shall unswervingly defend the interests of the people. Their work in the legislature shall reflect the movement and they shall uphold and popularize the policies of the Party.
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The communist legislators shall maintain the closest possible contact with their electors and masses, keeping them duly informed of their legislative work and constantly seeking their suggestions and advice.
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The communist legislators shall maintain a high standard of personal integrity, lead an unostentatious life and display humility in all their dealings and contact with the people and place the Party above self.
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Salaries and allowances drawn by communist legislators and local body members are considered to be Party money. The Party Committee concerned shall fix up the wages and allowances of the members.
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Party members elected to local bodies such as corporations, municipalities, town or area committees, zilla parishads, block samities, gram panchayats shall function under the appropriate Party Committee or Party Branch. They shall maintain close day-to-day contacts with their electors and the masses and defend their interests in such elected bodies. They shall make regular reports on their work to the electors and the people and seek their suggestions and advice. The work in such local bodies shall be combined with intense mass activity outside.
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All nomination of Party candidates for election to Parliament, Legislatures or Councils or Centrally Administered areas shall be subject to approval by the Central Committee.
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To unify the Party, free and businesslike discussions of Party policy in the various organisations of the Party as a whole are useful and necessary. This is the inalienable right of Party members arising from inner-Party democracy. But interminable discussions on issues of Party policy which paralyse the unity and will of action of the Party would be a gross misuse of inner-Party democracy.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be organised on all-India scale by the Central Committee:
(a) Whenever it considers it necessary;
(b) Whenever over an important question of Party policy there is not sufficient firm majority inside the Central Committee.
(c) When an inner-Party discussion on all-India scale is demanded by State Committees representing one-third of total Party membership.
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A State Committee can initiate inner-Party discussion on an important question of Party policy concerning that particular State, either on its own, or on a demand of District Committees representing one-third Party membership in the State with the approval of the Central Committee.
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Inner-Party discussion shall be conducted under the guidance of the Central Committee which shall formulate the issues under discussion. The Central Committee which guides the discussion shall lay down the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted.
When the State Committee initiates the discussion, it can formulate the issues under discussion and the manner in which the discussion shall be conducted, with the approval of the Central Committee.
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Two months before the Party Congress, the Central Committee will release draft resolution for discussion by all units of the Party. It is obligatory on the part of the State Committees to render it into respective languages and forward to all Branch Committees the required number of copies in the shortest possible time after its release by the Central Committee Amendments to the resolution will be sent directly to the Central Committee which will place its report on them before the Party Congress.
- At each level, the Conference shall take place on the basis of reports and resolutions submitted by the respective Committees.
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Party units should take steps to organise active participants and militants thrown up in the course of mass movements and from the mass organisations into auxiliary groups which are groupings of broad sympathizers.
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Party Committees should arrange for the education and training of such auxiliary group members about the Party Programme and basic policies, so as to equip them in a reasonable period of time to be capable of joining the Party as candidate members.
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The unit concerned which wishes to drop a member must do so after giving the member a chance to explain his or her position. The branch must convey the decision to drop the member in writing to the next higher committee.
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The higher committee, when confirming and registering the membership, must examine the list of droppages and give its specific opinion on the same.
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The committee concerned must submit a renewal report to the next higher committee giving details of the Party membership enrolment, droppages, transfers and composition of the membership.
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For renewal of Party membership there should be a renewal form to be filled up by the member concerned every year which includes basic data such as age, year of joining the Party, income and front in which working.
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The receipt for the membership fee has to be given to the member concerned.
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Renewal of Party membership each year must be completed by March 31st.
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The State Committees must deposit the membership fees with the Centre by 31st May each year.
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In case of any contingency the date can only be extended by the Central Committee/PB.
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New enrolment during the current year of candidate membership fees to be remitted by the end of the year or before.
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1. Party members levy rates: The Central Committee decides that the levy from Party members shall be collected as per the following rates:
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If a member is to pay quarterly or annually, calculate his/her monthly income on the basis of his/her annual income and calculate amount which he or she has to pay applying the above rates.
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If spouse or any other member earning and contributing to the family income, is not a Party member, their income is not to be included, for the calculation of levy rates.
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Income means with regard to salaried employees and wage earners, all their total gross income, including DA and other allowances. Apart from this, if the member has additional income from land, business or houses, that too is to be added.
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In case of peasants, income after excluding actual amounts expended towards agricultural production.
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If a person is living off joint family income, then his share of income.
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In extreme cases, unemployment, drought or illness, if exemptions are to be given, it is for the respective State Committee to take necessary decision.
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The Central Committee is authorised to appoint a Trust to manage its properties.
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The Central Committee is to decide each year, or as the case many be, the quantum each State will pay towards Party fund or special Party fund drive to run the Party's central apparatus.
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Polit Bureau will constitute a Finance Sub-Committee which will meet and
(a) Take decision on financial matters and expenditure involving amounts upto Rs. ten thousands only. Expenditure of higher limit will be referred to the P.B.
(b) Finance Sub-Committee will place quarterly accounts of the CC and its establishment to the Polit Bureau.
(c) Finance Sub-Committee will submit yearly accounts as approved by the PB to the Central Committee for its approval (as laid down by the Party Constitution).
(d) One member of the Sub-Committee will be incharge of the income and disbursement of the Party finances after which these will be passed over to the accounts incharge for finalisation and compilation.
(e) Half-yearly accounts of the Party organs and other establishments (if any) to be submitted to the Sub-Committee.
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On receipt of a reference or an appeal under Article XVIII, the Central Control Commission should take steps to investigate and decide upon the issue.
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No appeal can be preferred by any one other than the aggrieved Party member.
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The Central Control Commission shall have the right to directly correspond with the examine unit/units or persons concerned in order to ascertain facts and to arrive at conclusion.
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The Central Control Commission will ordinarily meet once in three months. The Chairperson shall call a meeting of the Central Control Commission after giving 14 days prior notice.
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Majority of the members constitute quorum of the meeting. The Central Control Commission can take a decision only if all the members agree or majority of the members of the Central Control Commission agree. A decision taken may be informed to the absent member or members.
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The Central Control commission may take decisions by consultation by correspondence among its members on such issues which are simple and not complicated.
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The Central Control Commission will communicate its decision to the appellant and the respective State Committee and the decision of the Central Control Commission has to be implemented immediately by the respective committees.
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The Central Control Commission will present before the Central Committee a consolidated report of its activities and decisions at least once in a year.
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These rules shall apply mutatis mutandis to State Control Commissions.
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On receipt of an appeal, the Chairperson of the Central Control Commission shall intimate about the case to the other members.
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The Chairperson shall also propose the immediate steps to be taken up for the investigation in a particular case. The other members of the Central Control Commission may send their proposals regarding the same.
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The Central Control Commission has the right to ask for any information which is required for deciding the appeal from the concerned committees and members and they should provide such information to the Central Control Commission within a period of two months and if no such information is received within this period, the Central Control Commission may proceed with the case.
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Each CPI(M) Parliament member has to pay levy amount as decided by the Central Committee to the Central Committee.
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The percentage of the levy share as fixed by the PB for the State will be remitted to the State Committee concerned (to the State the member belongs) each month.
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Salaries and allowances of Communist legislators, local body members include pensions drawn by them, if any.
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The Party Committee at Central, State and District levels may form sub-committee from amongst its members and any other member considered suitably equipped to guide the work of the Party members working in different mass fronts. They will specialise in the problems of the front, check up on Party building, guide and coordinate the activities of the Party members in different mass organisations, whether they exist as Party units or fraction committees, and see that Party policy in being followed and implemented.
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All the Party members working in a mass organisation or the elected bodies of that organisation at various levels constitute the fraction of that body. They have to function under the guidance and decisions of the respective Party committees.
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Fraction committees are to be set up from amongst the fraction members where there are large number of them working at different levels in a mass organisation. The fraction committee will be set up by the respective Party committee by including those comrades, apart from members of the Party committee if any, who are equipped with the required level of maturity or mass experience considered necessary by the Party committee.
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The fraction committee, as constituted above, should carry out the decisions of the respective Party committees in the Executive or General Council of the particular mass organisation, and all necessary measures to implement the decisions of Party Committees by the fraction in that mass organisation shall be taken by the fraction committee.
ARTICLE XVII
Primary Unit
ARTICLE XVIII
Central and State Control Commission
ARTICLE XIX
Party Discipline
ARTICLE XX
Party Members in Elected Public Bodies
The legislative work of the communist legislators shall be closely combined with the activity of the Party outside and mass movements and it shall be the duty of all communist legislators to help build the Party and mass organisations.
Rules governing the nomination of Party candidates for corporation, municipalities, district boards, local boards and panchayats shall be drawn up by the State Committees.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy and would uphold the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
ARTICLE XXI
Inner-Party Discussions
ARTICLE XXII
Discussion Preparatory to Party Congress And Conferences
ARTICLE XXIII
Party Members Working in Mass Organisations
Party members working in mass organisations and their executives shall organise themselves into fractions or fraction committees and function under the guidance of the appropriate Party Committee, They must always strive to strengthen the unity, mass basis and fighting capacity of the mass organisations concerned.
ARTICLE XXIV
Bye-Laws
The Central Committee may frame rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it. Rules and bye-laws under the Party Constitution and in conformity with it may also be framed by the State Committees subject to confirmation by the Central Committee.
ARTICLE XXV
Amendment
The Party Constitution shall be amended only by the Party Congress. The notice of proposals for amending the Constitution shall be given two months before the said Party Congress.
RULES UNDER PARTY CONSTITUTION
(Adopted by the Central Committee in its Meeting on April 8-10, 1988)
Under Article IV, Section 10:
Membership
Regarding Transfer of Member from one unit to another or from one state to another:
(Explanation: Though in practice all transfers from one State to another are done by the CC, the particulars mentioned generally are inadequate. Therefore when a State asks the Centre to transfer a comrade to another State, it must specify the following so that a proper record is kept of each Party member at each level. The same would apply to transfers within the State.)
Rules : Transfer of Membership
The following particulars must be supplied along with the letter of transfer:
Name of comrade :
Age :
Year of joining the Party :
Unit to which he/she belonged :
Mass organisation in which he/she worked :
Levy amount per month and paid up to :
Any record of disciplinary action :
State from which he/she is to be transferred :
State to which he/she is to be transferred :
Year of renewal of Party membership :
Address where he/she can be contacted :
Auxiliary Groups:
(Explanation: The Salkia Plenum has directed that militants thrown up through mass struggles should be put into auxiliary groups, trained and educated so that they can be recruited as Party members. For this provision is to be made in the rules.)
Under Article VI
Party Membership Records
Rule: The Constitution provides for the membership records to be kept under the supervision of the District Committee. While the final authority for veracity of the records and its authenticated copy will be the DC, the maintenance of records can be delegated to the intermediate/local committee in a State, if so decided by the State Committee concerned.
Under Article VII
Check-up of Party Membership
(Explanation: Clause (1) states that a Party member may be dropped from membership who "for a continuous period and without proper reason has failed to take part in Party life and activity or to pay Party dues". This is to safeguard against arbitrary droppages without the due reasons stated in the Constitution. Some specific rules are required on the procedure to be adopted.)
Rules
Under Article IX
Membership Fee
Renewals: (Explanation: Article IX, Clause I states that the annual membership fee is to be paid by a member by "March end of each year to the branch or unit secretary by the member concerned."
If membership fees are deposited only by March end to the units, by the time it is forwarded to the District/State Committees, it takes time. So in practice now the CC gets the consolidated membership fees from the State over a varied period of time. Now the duration stretches from April to December even. There has to be a cut-off date by which the membership fees should reach the Centre.)
Rules
Note: New enrolment of candidate members (after the renewal period) continues throughout the year. Their fees are to be deposited with the Central Committee separately.
Under Article X:
Party Levy
Rules
For Income
Upto Rs.300 | permonth | 25 paise |
Rs. 301 to 500 | per month | 50 paise |
Rs. 501 to 1000 | per month | 0.5% |
Rs. 1001 to 3000 | per month | 1 % |
Rs. 3001 to 5000 | per month | 2 % |
Rs. 5001 to 7000 | per month | 3 % |
Rs. 7001 to 8000 | per month | 4 % |
Above Rs. 8000 | per month | 5 % |
Note:
Note: The percentage share of local, area, district and state is to be decided by the State concerned.
Under Article XV, Section 10:
Central Committee Finances
Rules
Under Article XVI: Sub-Clause 3(b):
State and district Party Organs, Setting up of Intermediate Committees
(Explanation: Clause 3(b) states, "The State Committee shall decide on the various Party organs to be set up between the primary unit (the Branch) and the District or the region and shall make necessary provisions relating to their composition and functioning. This will be done in accordance with the rules laid down by the Central Committee)
The State Committee can decide to set up intermediate committees between the primary unit and the District Committee or the region under the following rules:
(a) The State Committee will decide the size of the committee to be set up.
(b) Such a committee will be elected by the conference of delegates at that level. The committee should elect a Secretary and /or the Secretariat.
(c) The criteria of election of delegates to the conference of the intermediate committee will be decided by the State Committee.
(d) The intermediate committee (local, area, zonal etc.) will exercise all those functions enumerated for the State/ District Committees, their function being confined to the local area or zone under its jurisdiction.
(e) Committees set up on an ad-hoc/nominated basis for coordination purposes will not have the general powers laid out for full-fledged elected committees. Their scope of work is to be guided by the decisions of the respective committees who appointed them.
(f) The number of delegates to the District Conference and the conferences of committees below the district will be decided by the State Committee.
Under Article XVI: Rules on Party Finances & Accounts
For Committees Below The CC (States & District Party Organs)
(Explanation: Similar to the rules framed for the CC finances and accounting, the following rules will apply to all the lower elected committees
(a) At State level (and for the intermediate/District committees as decided by the State Committee) finance sub-committee of the committee concerned will be constituted by the Secretariat.
(b) The sub-committee will be responsible for the disbursement of the money and maintenance of the accounts under the supervision of the Secretariat.
(c) The sub-committee will submit a six-monthly account to the Party Committee and this statement should be forwarded to the next higher committee.
(d) Annual accounts should be audited by the sub-committee and placed before the Party committee for approval.
(e) The State Committees will submit a copy of their annual accounts which is approved by the committee, to the Central Committee.
Under Article XVIII:
Rules For The Functioning Of The Central Control Commission
Procedural Rules For
Central Control Commission To Conduct Business
Under Article XIX, Clause 13:
Party Discipline
Provision for summary expulsion in exceptional circumstance is meant for "grave" anti-Party activities. The means only under extremely serious circumstances such as when a member is found to be a spy or enemy agent or when the member's activities seriously compromise the Party's position, should it be invoked.
Under Article XX:
Party Members In Elected Bodies
Rules
(Explanation: Article XX Sub-clause (5) in the Constitution states that salaries and allowances drawn by Communist legislators and local body members are to be considered Party money. Earlier there was no system of pensions for MPs/MLAs. Now it is there. So the following rule.)
Under Article XXII
Discussions Preparatory To Party Congress And Conferences
The forums of the Party conferences will be utilised to discuss and review the work report since the past conference and political-organisational questions related to the implementation of the line laid down in the past conference/Congress. The discussion on the draft political resolution of the Congress will be conducted separately as per the provisions laid down in the Constitution.
Under Article XXIII
Party Members Working In Mass Organisations
Adopted By the Eighth Congress, Cochin, December 23-29, 1968
Amendments made to the Constitution upto the XVIII Congress, April 2005, and to the rules by the Central Committee upto December 2005, have been incorporated.
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