THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As the curtain falls on the CPM district conferences, for the first time in its history, by design or by chance, three district secretaries the party has chosen belong to the Muslim community. The party leadership, however, explains it away as a natural development.
Meanwhile, two district secretaries — Raju Abraham in Pathanamthitta and C V Varghese in Idukki — represent the Christian community. The leadership was also careful to elect fresh and clean-image faces to lead the CPM in all 14 districts.
K Rafeeq in Wayanad, M Mehboob in Kozhikode and K V Abdul Khader in Thrissur are the new district secretaries from the Muslim community. Though Wayanad (P A Muhammad) and Thrissur (A C Moideen) have had district secretaries belonging to the minority community, it is for the first time Kozhikode is getting a secretary from the community.
Though the CPM state leadership claims that the election of new secretaries is a normal process considering the organisational skills and leadership qualities, party insiders term the appointments in Wayanad and Thrissur as a strategic move.
“CPM has made a calculated move given that Wayanad is a district with a high Muslim concentration where Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi won elections with the help of the IUML. CPM has been trying to make inroads into the community and the new move shows that the party is sensing a positive response,” a Left leader tells TNIE.
Rafeeq had been serving as the DYFI district secretary. Coming from the League bastion of Vellamunda, Rafeeq was instrumental in attracting many youths from the minority community to the organisation. According to the CPM leadership, in recent years, new cadre have joined the CPM from the IUML strongholds of Meppadi, Thondernadu, Panamaram, Kaniyambetta and Kambalakkad too.
In Thrissur too, Abdul Khader’s elevation is being viewed as a move to keep pace with the fast-changing political geography in the district. Khader, who represented Guruvayur in the assembly for 15 years, has a clean slate to start with.
In all his contests, Khader managed to maintain a lead in Guruvayur town which is a Hindu-dominated area. “The CPM is presenting Khader, a secular and at the same time a leader belonging to the Muslim community, against both the IUML and other Muslim fringe groups,” a CPM Thrissur district committee member says.
In Kozhikode, the development is seen as a change that was in the making for the past few years. “The organic relation with the minority community and the party has improved as they now recognise that the CPM is not against beliefs. Our stand against majority and minority communalism is being increasingly accepted,” former Kozhikode district secretary P Mohanan says.
A district secretary from a Christian minority section too is a first for the CPM. The arrival of Raju Abraham, a Knayaya Jacobite, to the helm of the party in Pathanamthitta could resonate with many in the coming months. “All denominations from the minority community now have representation in different area committees,” CPM leader Udayabhanu says.
In Idukki, though P M Manuel had served as the district secretary earlier, the election of Varghese is seen as a signal to the Christian community. “The decision should be seen in the background of the UDF-BJP’s move to have an upper hand in the district using minority politics,” says a former Idukki district secretary.
New district secretaries
Thiruvananthapuram
V Joy - Second term as district secretary - Varkala MLA Kollam
S Sudevan - Third term as district secretary - Former district panchayat vice-president
Pathanamthitta
Raju Abraham - First term as district secretary - Former Ranni MLA
Idukki
C V Varghese - Second term as district secretary - District Planning Council vice-chairman
Alappuzha
R Nazar - Third term as district secretary - Former district panchayat president
Kottayam
A V Russel - Second term as district secretary - Former DYFI central committee member
Ernakulam
C N Mohanan - Third term as district secretary - CPM state committee member
Thrissur
K V Abdul Khader - First term as district secretary - Former Guruvayur MLA
Palakkad
E N Sureshbabu - Second term as district secretary - CITU district vice-president
Malappuram
V P Anil - First term as district secretary - District Sports Council president
Wayanad
K Rafeeq - First term as district secretary - District Football Association president
Kozhikode
M Mehboob - First term as district secretary - Consumerfed chairman
Kannur
M V Jayarajan - Third term as district secretary - Former MLA
Kasaragod
M Rajagopalan - First term as district secretary - Trikaripur MLA