Centenary fete of Communist Party to commence on Thursday

Even as CPM begins its celebrations, CPI asserts the party was formed only in 1925

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: October 17, marks an epoch-making moment in the history of the Communist movement in India. As the CPM gears up for a year-long celebration to observe the centenary of the formation of the Communist Party in the country, the Left is now ironically caught in a shrinking space in India’s political landscape, while the challenges ahead are manifold. 

Curiously, even as the CPM begins its centenary fete celebrations on Thursday, the CPI asserts that the party was formed only in 1925. Going by the CPM’s official documents, the Second World Congress of the Communist International set the ground for the formation of the Community Party of India. 

It was formed on October 17, 1920, at Tashkent with seven members - M N Roy, Evelyn Roy-Trent, Abani Mukherjee, Rosa Fitingov, Mohammad Ali, Mohamad Shafiq and Acharya. Meanwhile, the Communist party of India, from which one faction splintered and formed the CPM in 1964 - maintains that the party was formed in December 1925. 

According to the CPI, it was in Kanpur that the first party conference was held. And there were debates over whether the party should be named Indian Communist Party or Communist Party of India. In 1921, noted Urdu poet and freedom fighter Maulana Hasrat Mohani put forth a Communist perspective at the Ahmedabad Session of the Indian National Congress, which raised the demand for complete independence for India, pointed out CPM Politburo leader MA Baby. 

“That Hasrat Mohani put forth the ideological and structural fight at the AICC meet in 1921 itself shows that the movement was already formed. The Communists were targeted by the British rulers across the country. Many of the conspiracy cases came up before 1925,” he said. 

The debate over its formation apart, Left leaders from both the CPM and the CPI agree that with the dawn of its centenarian celebrations, the Left parties need to indulge in some urgent introspection and drastic course correction. 

The Communist movement has undoubtedly made key contributions to the country’s political landscape and it is still very much relevant in India. At a time when the Communist movement is facing bigger challenges in the country, Left parties need to do some in-depth introspection and ensure necessary course-corrective measures. It also needs to urgently re-position itself to take on the multiple challenges as per changing times, said Baby.