.jpg?rect=0%2C0%2C1200%2C675&w=480&auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max)
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: "The collective wisdom of the party will prevail,” was how he responded, nearly a decade ago, as he arrived at Vizag airport to attend CPM’s 21st Party Congress that later elected him as its leader in the most challenging and turbulent period in its 60 years of existence. Over a period, he did succeed in showing party colleagues and comrades as to what he had meant by CPM’s collective wisdom.
Sitaram Yechury was one of those political leaders endowed with the rare combination of ideological commitment and practical wisdom.
A stalwart Marxist leader of the 21st century, he remained a key strategist for not just the Left, but the entire spectrum of the Opposition coalition, especially during the Narendra Modi regime, when he carved out a niche for himself in the Rajya Sabha.
Embodying CPM’s pleasant face, Yechury was also a pragmatic leader and a major proponent of electoral understanding with the Congress, as he felt defeating the BJP was of utmost importance. In an era when Left politics had fewer takers nationally, Yechury displayed uncanny clarity on the tactical political line CPM should toe to stay relevant in the country’s current political scenario.
It was this tactical line that made Yechury a leader loved and hated by Kerala CPM. Limited to an increasingly shrinking space where it held power, the Kerala party took a long time to realise the looming saffron threat.
Yechury had identified BJP as CPM’s bête-noire long back. It, however, took many years for the Kerala party to finally comprehend the point Yechury was trying to drive home, before the party assented to go in for a tactical understanding with other like-minded secular forces.
The 22nd Party Congress in Hyderabad that made a crucial shift in CPM’s political-tactical line, could well be termed as most decisive for Yechury. The Prakash Karat-led Kerala CPM and Yechury-led West Bengal group openly fought over the proposed political line—whether to opt for an understanding with the Congress or not.
The secretary was cornered and there were talks of replacing him. Fighting what appeared to be a losing battle, Yechury emerged successful, convincing his comrades as to why it was crucial to keep the windows open for the Congress.
Four years down the line, the Kerala CPM, however, retained the upper hand at the Kannur Party Congress. Yechury more or less decided to move with the times, as he tried to sell the Kerala model, in a bid to showcase the only remaining red bastion in the country. In the 2024 polls, the CPM chose to have state-level electoral understanding with regional parties and even with the Congress in some places. In other words, Yechury should be credited for transforming the CPM that was once bent on opposing Congress, into a more pragmatic political party to ensure its survival.
Noticeably it was his apparent favouring of veteran comrade V S Achuthanandan that made Yechury unappealing to Kerala CPM’s official faction that was for long led by Pinarayi Vijayan.
At a time when the VS-Pinarayi rivalry was at its peak, Yechury stood with the veteran leader, despite inviting the wrath of his own party colleagues. In fact it was Yechury’s backing and timely interventions that kept VS from taking an adamant call to leave the CPM, especially during the 2015 state conference where he was termed a renegade. No wonder, with Yechury at the helm, the party chose not to subject VS to any harsh disciplinary action even later.
In 2016, when the party chose Pinarayi over VS as the chief minister, it was ironically Yechury who had to execute the decision that could well be termed both clever and paradoxical. But he did his best to mollify VS, terming the veteran comrade as Kerala’s very own Fidel Castro who would continue to guide and inspire the party.
That even the opposition parties in the state chose to write to Yechury when they felt the CPM was going against Leftist ideals clearly indicate the authority and respect he had earned in state politics. The passing away of Yechury does therefore create a vacuum in Kerala’s political psyche.
HE DEDICATED HIS LIFE FOR WORKERS’ WELFARE: GOVINDAN
Kochi: Sitaram Yechury was a huge strength for the party, CPM state secretary M V Govindan said. “Yechury’s demise is a severe loss to Communist Movements in India and across the world. “He dedicated his life for the welfare of workers. He fought for the poor in and outside the parliament. His memories are inspiring. The party will observe three days mourning,” Govindan said.
CPM TO OBSERVE 3-DAY MOURNING
The CPM will observe a three-day mourning in Kerala following Yechury’s demise. All party conferences will be suspended for three days and the party flag will be lowered for a week. The party state committee has called upon all units to hold condolence meetings on Saturday. The death of Comrade Sitaram is a great loss for the CPM, democratic secularists and the entire country, the party state committee said in a statement. “Yechury’s style of speech always earned him the respect of even his political rivals. He maintained a wide range of friendships across borders within and outside the political arena,” it said. “With his demise, the party in Kerala has lost a leader who has given both ideological and organisational strength,” it observed.
AN INDELIBLE LOSS FOR NATION: ANTONY
KOCHI: Veteran Congress leader A K Antony said the death of Yechury was an indelible loss for the country when things were going on in a different way. “He should have been present at this juncture and it is an irreparable loss. We worked together during our term in the Upper House and also during the first UPA government. Yechury was also a strong votary for the Congress and the CPM to work together in national politics,” said Antony, adding that it was not only a big loss for secular India but also a personal loss for him as they were very good friends. He said, above all, it was a huge loss for the CPM.
