KOZHIKODE: More than a decade later, the Kerala CPM has been facing mounting pressure from the big boss. The severe drubbing in the recent assembly polls, especially after a historic continuity of two successive Left terms in power, left the central party with no choice but to set things right, at least to a certain extent.
This time around, not just the election debacle, but also the state leadership’s attempts to not own up the same, haven’t gone down well with the party top brass. The unusual actions at the extended committee is hence a follow-up of the Politburo’s stern directive in this regard.
In addition to general secretary M A Baby, four PB members – B V Raghavulu, Ashok Dhawale, K Balakrishnan and Vijoo Krishnan - were active in proposing changes to the state committee’s poll review before the CC. The same leaders were present at the extended meeting too.
It’s on the central leadership’s insistence that tangible actions were taken. “It’s not just about taking actions, but also to send out a message that action has been taken. The masses should feel that the party has undertaken reforms,” said a central leader. New faces and course correction steps are part of this move.
Considering the gravity of the situation in which the CPM has found itself in, the central leadership chose to intervene as per the discussions that were aired at the extended meet. Despite the state party asking delegates to focus on solutions, a slew of criticism rose against the state leadership. It’s in this backdrop that the central party decided to put its foot down once and for all.
The measures taken would help the party regain its lost support, General Secretary MA Baby told TNIE.
“All top leaders of the party right from BTR to EMS, Nayanar and VS have undergone disciplinary actions some time or the other. The central and state leaderships together took these decisions. We hope that these decisions will aid the party’s movement forward, and win back the confidence of our comrades and all our well-wishers,” he opined.
Why Pinarayi was spared
While state secretary M V Govindan was censured, veteran leader Pinarayi escaped unscathed. Since the meet pertains to organisational matters, the state secretary was held responsible, as per the practice followed by the party till date.
Sources said that while addressing the extended meet, party general secretary M A Baby apparently indicated that all leaders including Pinarayi are subject to corrective measures, citing examples of disciplinary actions faced by former leaders like EMS, E K Nayanar and V S Achuthanandan in the past.
Moreover there are indications that Pinarayi, considering his age, could step down as Leader of Opposition after some time. Since it’s a decision kept for later, the party chose not to propose the same at this point in time. Similarly the ongoing ED move against Pinarayi too played a role in the party’s decisions.
Will restructuring prove effective?
Political commentators opined that it’s important to now monitor whether the party will actually walk the talk.The central leadership has not been exerting such command over the state party for the past 28 years, especially in the last one decade, political commentator J Prabhash pointed out.
“At first look, it appears more of a give and take; a few were added, while a few others were dropped. However it’s a fact that with the central party exerting pressure, Pinarayi is weakening, though not to the extent deserved. He’s losing the firm grip that he had exerted earlier. Now that restructure has been done, what remains to be seen is to what extent the party can reach out to the masses, and corrective measures are implemented whether they can actually forgo their obsession with power and indulge in real-time politics,” he opined.