CPI leader Pramod Gogoi dies

Veteran CPI leader, former Assam minister and President of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) Comrade Pramode Gogoi died at Guwahati on April 6th Morning. Comrade Gogoi, who was also Vice President of World Federation of Trade Union, played an active role in the refinery movement, the language movement and anti-dam movement in Assam.

Comrade Pramode Gogoi who joined politics at an early age during the freedom struggle was one of the tallest leader of the Left movement in the entire North Eastern region. He championed the cause of working people and played an important role in organizing the trade unions of different segments of workers including oil employees.

Comrade Gogoi was elected to the Assam Legislative Assembly more than half a dozen time and was minister of the cabinet rank twice in the coalition government. Comrade Gogoi who attended the 21st Party Congress at Patna and was elected to the National Executive and had been Secretary of the National Council in the past returned to Assam capital day before. After some complain of shivering he was admitted to hospital where brain hammerage proved fatal.

The National Secretariat of the CPI sends heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and leadership and rank and file of the Assam unit and dip the Red Flag in memory of the veteran dear leader Comrade Pramode Gogoi. Assam cut across party lines in paying glowing tributes to the veteran Leftist leader who passed away in Guwahati.

The state secretary of the CPI (M) Udhav Barman said that Gogoi was a very popular leader and this was evident from the fact that he was elected to the assembly five times. The Asom Gana Parishad, Bharatiya Janata Party and All India United Democratic Front also deeply mourned the death of Gogoi.

CPIM Party Congress souvenir released

Communist Party of India Marxist CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat released the souvenir of the CPI(M) 20th Party Congress during a function on Friday at the media centre in the conference nagar.

The souvenir, brought out in Malayalam and English, mainly comprises essays on the development of working class movements in different parts of the world by Karl Marx, Fredrick Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Georgi Dimitrov, P. Krishna Pillai, E.M.S. Namboodiripad, and A.K. Gopalan.

The souvenir also has analyses of the party congresses held till now; evaluations of the current political scenario; anecdotes from history; and rare photographs of leaders and events. It also contains the history of the Communist Party.

Photographs and other details of the extensive preparations with mass participation for the 20th Party Congress have also been included in the souvenir, which was released by Ms. Karat by handing over a copy to CPI(M) State Secretariat member V.V. Dakshinamurthy at the party congress media centre here. CPI(M) leader Elamaram Karim was also present.

Courtesy : The Hindu

Delebration on Draft Ideological resolution going on

The Draft resoultion on Some Ideological Issues moved by PB Member Com. Sitaram Yechury seeks to map an Indian road to Socialism even as it attempts to learn from the experience of all socialist struggles. The draft is bound by a commitment to creative application of Marxism Leninism to Indian conditions and the updated party programme of 2000. Setting aside suggestions that CPI(M) has rejected the Chinese model and embraced the Latin American path in its ideological positioning, party politburo member Sitaram Yechury today said the path of revolution and social transformation in the country would be based on "concrete Indian conditions."

"Not at all" was Yechury's answer when a question was put to him on the issue at the daily briefing at the venue of the 20th Congress of the CPI-M here.

"There is no question of taking a position that one path is right and the other is wrong. We have just analysed the experiences in China, Cuba, Latin America and South Africa to learn what is relevant so that we can develop our own movement," he said.

Yechury said China has become the second largest economy in the world.

"China is thriving. Living standards have improved there. But there are also deficiencies which a socialist country should not have. They are trying to resolve this," he said.

He said the main thrust of the ideological document, presented by him at the Congress, was on the challenges thrown by "imperialist globalisation" across the world in the last two decades and how to strengthen the political alternative in India to counter the challenges.

Yechury said the very birth of CPI(M) was based on its stand that the path of revolution or social transformation in the country would be based on the Indian path and not by imitating Russian or Chinese models.

"And that led to the three-way division of Communist parties in India," he said.

"Global capitalism was facing a crisis of the worst kind with increasing economic inequalities and jobless growth reported from many countries", he said adding "we are looking into issues to be resolved in Indian conditions for which the Left democratic alternative will be strengthened," he said.

Yechury said CPI(M) would strive for transition from capitalism to socialism "based on people's will and through peaceful means".

Asked whether "identity politics" based on caste and ethnicity had marginalised the Left in north Indian states, he said CPI(M) was for strengthening the positives of "identity politics" and combating the negatives.

As for ethnicity, there was a genuine sense of alienation and discontentment among some sections but the movement against oppression was being used for "disruptive" purposes, he said.

In caste-based formations also, there should be distinction between revolt against oppression and certain caste leaders are using the situation for political expediency.

The discussion on the ideological document is progressing at the Congress. A total of 27 delegates had taken part in the discussion so far, Yechury said. The resolution would be adopted after his reply tomorrow.

The draft ideological document, presented by Yechury, says "negative tendencies" like economic inequalities,unemployment, corruption and nepotism have surfaced in socialist countries, including China, which have embarked on a course of reforms to meet the challenges of present-day world realities.