THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The ideological debates revolving around the Women’s Wall have taken forward the cause of women a lot in recent days, said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The wall will be a milestone in the history of modern Kerala as it has already brought a new lease of life to women’s movements in the state.
There is a section who suggest the CPM has been drifting towards identity politics of late, leaving behind the class politics it has been following over the years, he said. Their arguments are not valid; the fight against caste and gender oppression is part of the class struggle. The Communist party believes the liberation of women is part of social liberation, he said.
Those who try to malign the image of the party do not have much knowledge of history, as our renaissance leaders and social reformers - Sree Narayanan Guru, Chattampi Swamikal, V T Bhattathiripad, Mannathu Padmanabhan - had actively supported the upliftment of women in history.
“Similarly, the contribution of Muslim renaissance leaders like Makati Thangal, Vakkom Moulavi and Haleema Beevi cannot be forgotten. So also with Akkamma Cherian who was at the forefront of the people’s struggle in Travancore in the pre-independence era,” he said.