THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On August 15, 2021, CPM ended decades of confusion and hoisted the Tricolour at all its party offices. This year too, it will celebrate Independence Day in a big way. The function will also see CPM workers take the pledge to protect the Constitution.
It was the same Constitution that cost Saji Cherian his ministership earlier this month after he claimed it facilitated exploitation of the poor and downtrodden. Facing backlash, CPM had asked Cherian to quit.
The party has decided to celebrate Independence Day in a grand manner this year. The party central committee had issued a directive to all state units to hoist the national flag last year too, based on a formal demand from the West Bengal Unit. This time, state committees have been asked to organise a two-week-long celebration from August 1 to 15.
The CPM state secretariat, which met in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday, decided to conduct the celebrations in association with CPI. “The CPI central committee too decided to celebrate Independence Day. We will organise programmes at major centres of the Independence movement in the state and honour freedom fighters,” said CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.
After 1947, Tricolour not hoisted till ’21
Campaign on protests led by Communist movements during the freedom struggle will be held too. As per CPM party documents, then state secretary P Krishna Pillai had hoisted the national flag in front of the party office on August 15, 1947. However, the second party congress held next year had observed that the freedom was not complete and that it would only help capitalists not the proletariat. This debate - whether the freedom was real and complete - had lingered long, prompting CPM to keep away from visible celebrations of Independence Day. It put an end to the practice last year.