CPIM Andhra Pradesh State Conference begins

The 23rd state conference of the CPI(M) Andhra Pradesh state committee ahead of the 20th Party Congress began on Thursday (2nd February) in Khammam, Bhakta Ramdas Kala Kshetram, rechristened Comrade Harkishan Singh Surjeet Nagar. The Conference began with the hoisting of Party Flag by  Freedom fighter Parsa Satyanarayana. Com. Prakash Karat, CPIM General Secretary inaugurated the conference and delivered the inaugural address to a packed gathering . Over 750 delegates and observers  along with scores of prominent citizens and well wishers of the Party formed the gathering.

Strengthen the Party to Fight the Onslaught of Neo-Liberalism : Prakash Karat

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat stated while inaugurating the conference that CPI(M) will devote all its efforts in the coming period to strengthen itself because the need of the hour is a stronger Left in the country to fight back the onslaught of neo-liberal policies and to prevent communal forces from gaining ground. Towards this end it will take initiative to unite all Left forces and also rally all democratic and secular forces on people's issues.

Prakash Karat began his address by paying homage to the martyrs of Telangana armed struggle, many of whom were from Khammam district also. He said unlike non-Communist parties, CPI(M) conducts its affairs most democratically. “In our Party there is no 'high command' sitting in New Delhi issuing diktats. Our conferences upto the lowest levels discuss all issues democratically and chalk out their activity”, he said.

Karat lambasted the UPA government for focussing only on growth and refusing to see the all round deprivation of the masses. He said two decades of neo-liberal policies have increased growth but the benefits of that growth went only to a miniscule section of population. A shameless record of this government has been the consistently high double digit inflation rate for 38 months. People's lives are being attacked in the form of massive price rise and massive corruption. There is increased rural distress which is reflected in growing number of farmer suicides in many states of the country. In Andhra Pradesh in the month of January this year, a total of 160 farmers committed suicide, said Karat and held the central and state governments' policies responsible for this state of affairs. In Bengal also, ever since Trinamool Congress assumed power, the procurement machinery in the state has collapsed and indebtedness increased leading to number of suicides in the state, which was unheard of during the 34 years of Left Front rule.

Karat felt that it was because the CPI(M) and the Left had been consistently fighting against the government's neo-liberal policies and colloboration with imperialism, it has been targeted in Bengal where over 450 comrades were martyred. 177 of these comrades were murdered  by 'Maoists'. He said Trinamool Congress used 'Maoists' to weaken the CPI(M) and once that was achieved, it has started targeting them. “The 'Maoists' who keep claiming they were the most revolutionary force have actually played the most anti-revolutionary role in Bengal” charged Karat. He however noted that there is increased resistance in Bengal by farmers and other toiling sections against the anarchy of TMC rule. Karat concluded by saying that in the coming period the resistance against neo-liberal policies and imperialism is going to intensify.

CPI secretary K Narayana in his address said that only the Left parties had the moral right to fight against corruption because they have never been tainted by it. He said there is enough space for both the Left parties to expand instead of jostling in the same places. He expressed the willingness of his party to carry on a united fight against these anti-people policies.

CPI(M) state secretary and Polit Bureau member B V Raghavulu said that the 23rd state conference of the party will discuss on how to bring back the issues of people on to the political agenda of the state, which is reeling under political crisis. The issue of Telangana is deliberately being kept burning while the Congress bigwigs in Delhi keep watching the drama. He charged the Congress of playing with the future of the state. He felt the main opposition party in the state, the Telugu Desam, has also lost credibility due to its opportunistic stance on this issue. In such a situation it is the responsibility of the Left to bring the people's issues on to the political agenda. He said the true strength of Left parties must not be weighed in terms of seats or in terms of the coverage they get in media. It must be assessed in terms of the struggles it wages.

CPI(M) Polit Bureau members Brinda Karat and Sitaram Yechury are attending the conference that will conclude with a massive public meeting on February 4.

CPIM 20th Party Congress Draft Political Resolution released

The draft political resolution to be placed for the forthcoming 20th Party congress of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was released on Saturday at the Party headquarters in Delhi. The resolution will be  debated within all ranks of the CPI(M). Each and every party member can send amendments to the resolution till March 15th. The draft would be finally adopted at the party congress to be held in Kozhikode from April 4-9.  Com Prakash Karat, General Secretary of CPIM said while releasing the resolution, the central focus now would be on strengthening the party and stepping up its independent role. The resolution focus on building Left unity and project a Left and democratic alternative to counter the Congress and the BJP. CPIM P B Members Com. Sitharam Yechury and Com. K Varadarajan was also present during the ocassion.

For the full text of the Draft Political Resolution

http://www.cpim.org/documents/2012-20Cong-Draft-Pol-Res.pdf 

CPI(M) protests against ‘pankti bheda' in Uduppi Krishna temple

Nearly 3,000 members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) from different parts of the State held a public meeting and later took out a rally against “pankti bheda” (different seating arrangements for Brahmins and non-Brahmins during meals) and “jati bheda” (caste discrimination) at the Sri Krishna Math/Temple, here on Thursday.

They took out a rally from the Martyr's Memorial at Ajjarkad. The rally passed through the main streets of the town such as Taluk Office Road, Court Road, Kavi Muddana Road and Head Post Office and reached the S.M.S.P. Sanskrit College, where they were stopped by the police. The police arrested them and later released them.

Earlier, speaking at the public meeting, State secretary of the CPI(M) and former MLA G.V. Srirama Reddy said that practices such as “made snana” (where members of lower castes roll over plantain leaves containing the leftovers of Brahmins after their meals) and “pankti bheda” only showed that caste system existed in society. The statement of Higher Education Minister V.S. Acharya that skin diseases could be cured by “made snana” was the height of stupidity and superstition. “If that is so why should not Brahmins roll over the leaves? Why not close all the dermatology clinics in the State? It is shocking that Dr. Acharya, a trained physician, should be saying such things,” he said.

The statement of Vishwesha Tirtha Swamiji of Pejawar Math that people were participating in “made snana” on their own and it was not forced on them, was baffling. CPI (M) leader G.N. Nagaraj said that “pankti bheda” was being followed to keep the working classes segregated. The Pejawar seer had said that though he was against “pankti bheda”, the orthodox Brahmins were for it and he could not do anything about it. This only reinforced the caste system.

The seer's other statement that he would choose “shastras” (religious texts) over the Constitution was uncalled for, he said.

(Courtesy : The Hindu)

CPIM Kerala State Conference Signature Film released

The Signature film for the upcoming CPIM Kerala State Conference to be held in the capital city of Thiruvananthapuram was released on Thursday. The Film of 40 seconds which depicts the signatures of communist stalwarts is directed by noted award winning film director Lenin Rajendran. The film will be broadcasted in TV channels and Cinema Theatres in Kerala. Inscriptions and signatures of Karl Marx, Engles, Lenin, P Krishna Pillai, EMS, AKG are shown in the film which develops into the spirit of communism. The Film was released by noted filmmaker Shaji N Karun. Reception committee Chairman Com. M Vijayakumar, Convernor Com. Kadakampally Surendran were present on the occassion.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcVyZ2BobnU

CPIM Kannur District Conferene

CPIM Kannur District Conference was held in the town of Payyannur from 14th to 16th of January 2012. This was the last of the 14 District conferences in Kerala.

The District conference was opened by party State secretary Com. Pinarayi Vijayan. 375 delegates representing 43,433 party members in the district and 42 party district committee members attended the delegates' session of the conference. The party's political and organisational activities and agitations spearheaded by it since the last district conference was evaluated. The delegates paid floral tributes to 14 activists who laid down their life in attacks by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Popular Front of India in four years.

Comrade P. Jayarajan has been re-elected district secretary. A 45-member district committee was elected unanimously by the delegates at the conference. The newly elected committee includes six new members. The new members are P. Balan and P.V. Gopinath, area committee secretaries of Pinarayi and Sreekantapuram respectively; P.V. Krishnan, Centre of Indian Trade Unions; K. Leela, All-India Democratic Women's Association; V. Shivadasan, Students Federation of India; and A.N. Shamseer (Democratic Youth Federation of India).

A red volunteer march was held here in the evening to mark the conclusion of the district conference. Lakhs of party workers thronged the street to reach the public meeting venue.  Party State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, Polit Bureau member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Central committee members E.P. Jayarajan and P.K. Sreemathi, Kasaragod MP P. Karunakaran led the procession.
Leader of the Opposition Comrade V.S. Achuthanandan inaugurated the public function to mark the end of the three-day meet.

CPIM Alappuzha District Conference

The three-day CPIM Alappuzha District Conference was held in the town of Alappuzha from 9th to 11th January.  Punnapra-Vayalar veteran Com P.K. Chandranandan hoisted the flag for the conference, after which revolutionary singer P.K. Medhini was felicitated by Com. Pinaryi . Vijayan and Com V S Achuthanandan, CPI(M) Central Committee members T.M. Thomas Isaac, P. Karunakaran, M.A. Baby, E.P. Jayarajan, and M.C. Josephine were among those present at the dias. The delegate session was inaugurated by Com. Pinarayi Vijayan. 

C.B. Chandrababu

343 delegates and 42 district Committee members representing 33,009 members in the district participated in the conference. District Secretary Com. Chandrababu placed the organisational - political report upon which debate was done for 2 days.

On the final day of the conference the delegates elected 43-member district committee and  C.B. Chandrababu to continue as the district secretary. A huge rally of 1 lakh party sympathisers was taken out on the streets of Alappuzha Town. Around 15000 Red volunteers added colour to the rally. The public meeting after the rally which ended at the EMS stadium was inaugurated by Com. V S Achuthanandan.

CPIM Madhyapradesh State Conference

Go to People, Intensify Result Oriented Struggles’

WE all want a strong and capable Lokpal but that this only can help us get rid of the corruption is a meek possibility. The Lokpal bill put forth by the government does not much inspire because the corporate houses, who are the biggest source of corruption, have been kept out of its purview. So said Prakash Karat at the 13th state conference of the CPI(M) in Madhya Pradesh, also stressing that the policies of the UPA-2 government are responsible for the excruciating price rises. In his address, he also referred to a host of other burning issues including the spate of farmers’ suicides in the country. 

Prakash Karat, general secretary of the CPI(M), was in Rewa for inauguration of the three day state conference of the party at Yamuna Prasad Shastri Nagar from  December 26 to 28. He was addressing a public meeting at Padmadher Park in the city, which was preceded by a long and disciplined procession of party members and supporters. He said the CPI(M) is against the destructive policies of liberalisation which are leading to widespread corruption, increasing poverty and causing suicides.  He said that wherever a government of the BJP exists, it is mired in corruption, as in Karnataka, in Chhattisgarh or MP. In Karnataka, the BJP CM went to jail on charges of corruption. Just like the BJP, corruption is prevalent in Congress governments also. He said the CPI(M) and the Left supported the UPA-1 government in order to prevent the communal forces from staging a comeback to power, but the Left had to withdraw support due to the wrong and anti-people policies of the government which also bowed down before the US diktat and decided to enter a pact on atomic deal.

Prakash Karat also flayed the government’s adamant attitude on allowing FDI in retail trade that would deprive crores of people of their daily bread. Referring to the policies of the central government under the NDA and UPA, he said there is no difference between the Congress and the BJP as both are pro-corporate and pro-imperialist.

CPI(M) state secretary Badal Saroj also addressed the meeting, debunking the prejudiced, bankrupt and communal policies of the present state government and terming it as the most corrupt government ever in Madhya Pradesh. He described the way the lands of farmers from Dambhora to Lilji were being confiscated. Landless farmers and tribals are being displaced.  He said the CPI(M) would continue to fight in order to save the land of the people.

The public meeting was also addressed by Ram Narayan Kurariya, Pramod Pradhan, Sandhya Shaily and the CPI(M)’s Rewa district secretary Girijesh Singh Senger.  The attendance in public meeting was a subject of discussion in the city where people realised that the Shastri era of struggles is back again.

INAUGURAL SESSION

While inaugurating the 13th state conference of the CPI(M), Prakash Karat explained in detail the present international situation. He said it is clear from the agitation which started in the USA and spread over to 160 countries, that capitalism is unable to overcome its crisis. Those very people who were, at the fall of the USSR 20 years ago, saying that there was no alternative to capitalism, are today feeling the need of a new system which is against globalisation, liberalisation, privatisation policies. In the USA, Wall Street was gheraoed against the loot being perpetrated by the corporate world, while 13 out of 23 countries of Latin America today have governments which chose alternative paths of development other than the capitalist path. On the other hand, the US and other capitalist countries are planning to capture oil and other natural resources of other countries and attacking them for the purpose. After Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, now Iran is their target.

Describing the changed political scenario in India, the CPI(M) general secretary said the ruling classes are now targeting the Left and 417 comrades gave their life in West Bengal alone since Lok Sabha elections. He also made suggestions to develop work in the Hindi speaking states including Madhya Pradesh. 

A five member presidium comprising Ashok Tiwari, Budhsen Singh Gond, Ram Vilas Goswami, P N Mahore and Sandhya Shaily conducted the proceedings of the conference.

POLITICAL

REPORT

State secretariat member Jasbinder Singh presented the political report detailing the experience of struggles and its implementation.  The 55 page report dealt with the situation in MP in detail, referring to numerous burning issues after having briefed the international and national situation. The report dwelt on the ideological and psychological effects of liberalisation policies on a section of the working class and middle class, evaluated the activities of the NGOs and other political parties in the state and suggested five main tasks. On behalf of their respective delegations, 39 delegates joined in the discussion on this report.

The unanimously accepted report gave a call for result oriented struggles on local issues, a continuous political campaign and retrieval of mass organisations out of the rut of routinism in order to make them pro-struggle.

State secretary Badal Saroj placed a 41 page organisational report.  It dealt with class and mass organisations, their membership, the condition of branch functioning, review of functioning of the district and state committees and of the state centre, state of democratic centralism, priority sector and our experiences of education and ideological work, wholetimer and cadre policy, parliamentarism and chunavbaji, functioning of elected representatives and communist life style etc, in the light of the rectification document. The report took stock of work in the direction of progressive values and reform movements.  It also discussed the fund collection. As many as 36 delegates took part in the discussion on this report.

Giving the reason behind the tough self-critical reports placed in the conference, the state secretary said it was the part of an attempt to know why we could not use the opportunities that came to us. It was not a small thing if a small party emerged as the leader of the anti-displacement struggle, a leader of tribal agitations, a champion of workers’ unity and of women’s issues, if it took initiatives on the youth front. Many comrades kept the red flag flying high even in conditions of political alienation and heavy suppression, and took the party to so far untouched heights. It is clear that by changing our own functioning qualitatively, we may convert the people’s goodwill into a well organised political base in a short period, which is the need of hour.

Addressing the conference, CPI(M) Central Secretariat member Neelotpal Basu said Maoism has become a misleading noun nowadays. Maoists are working as tools in the hands of the bourgeoisie and imperialists against the organised Left. In Bengal, they are massacring the CPI(M) activists to the glee of the Congress, TMC and other anti-Left groups while home ministries in Delhi and Kolkata are sitting with eyes closed. The Hindi speaking areas and other areas must powerfully protest against this.

The 13th state conference of the CPI(M) concluded with the call to go to the people and intensify result oriented struggles on people’s issues. Re-elected state secretary Badal Saroj reiterated in his concluding speech that today’s conditions of the people’s anger against hunger, poverty and unemployment, their growing animosity towards the Congress, BJP and other bourgeois landlord parties and the worldwide developments which confirmed the continuing relevance of Marxism are favourable factors for the growth of the party and the mass organisations led by it. He said we must use it for development of the struggle on the people’s issues in the state.

The conference elected a 30-member state committee including 6 women. In its turn, the new state committee re-elected Badal Saraj as secretary with 9 other secretariat members. The conference also elected delegates to the all-India party congress.

On behalf of new state committee, Badal Saroj declared that in connection with the February 28 strike of central trade unions, a political campaign against the disastrous policies would be launched. There would also be statewide agitations on issues like displacement, hunger, health, price rise, atrocities against women, dalit, minority and tribal people, and on demands related to electricity, water and roads. He urged the party members and supporters to develop result oriented agitations on local issues as well.

CPIM Kannyakumari District Conference

The 20th Kanyakumari district conference of Communist Party of India (Marxist) was held at Thuckalay from 5th to 8th January. The conference was inaugurated by CPIM CC Member Com U Vasuki.

The flag brought from Kollencode was received by District committee member K. Madhavan. Flag rope brought from Boothapandi was received by District Secretariat member M. Annadurai. The flag pole brought from Kollencode was received by District Secretariat member V.Ponnusamy. The district secretary Com. Murugesan, former member of Lok Sabha A.V.Bellarmine and others were participated in the function held in front of Thuckalay bus stand. The senior district committee member Com. Krishnankutty, hoisted the conference flag. The torch (jothi) in memory of former M.L.A. Hemachandaran from Mathur, G.S.Mani from Vettunthi near Marthandam, Divakaran of Cherukol and Perumal of Tamaraikulam were brought to the conference venue at Thuckalay.

Various resolutions were passedduring the conference. Com Murugesan was re elected as the District Secretary. on the concluding day a mass rally was organised in which around 20000 people participated. Red Volunteers march through the streets. Com. U Vasuki inaugurated the public rally.

CPIM Palakkad District Conference

The Palakkad district conference of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was held at Vadakkenchery, from January 6 to 8. The conference was inaugurated by party State secretary Com. Pinarayi Vijayan

Central Committee members Comrades V.S. Achuthanandan. P. Karunakaran, M.A. Baby, A. Vijayaraghavan, P.K. Sreemathy, and party State secretariat members T. Sivadasa Menon, A.K. Balan, and V.V. Dakshinamurthy were present during the conference. The conference was attended by 366 delegates, including 43 district committee members.

Com. C.K. Rajendran was elected as the new district secretary unanimously. 41 member district committe was also elected by the conference.

The conference concluded with a red volunteer march and a public rally. The meeting was inaugurated by Com. V S Achuthanandan.

CPI(M) Ernakulam District Conference

The three-day district conference of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was held from 5th January to 9th January in the town of North Paravoor. The conference was inaugurated by party P B Member Com. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan . Party CC members Comrades Paloli Mohammed Kutty, P.K.Gurudasan, T.M Thomas Isaac, Vaikom Viswom took part in the event.

375 delegates, representing different area committees in the district participated in the deliberations and all the delegates unanimously accepted the report presented by the district secretary. During the conference, the party unit passed about 10 resolutions including those calling for limiting the water level at Mullaperiyar reservoir and asking the State Government to desist from the move to sideline the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation from implementing the proposed Kochi metro rail project.

The Conference unanimously elected Com. M.V. Govindan as district secretary and formed a 43-member district committee.


A massive rally was held in the town in which tens of thousands of party workers and 10000 Red Volunteers marched through the street. The rally was accompanied by bands, floats and cultural troupes. The rally concluded at the municipal recreation ground where CPI (M) Polit Bureau member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan received the red-salute from volunteers. This was followed by a public meeting presided over by the newly elected district secretary M.V. Govindan. M.C.Josephine, S.Sarma, MLA and N.A. Ali were among those spoke in the meeting.