THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The sudden demise of Sitaram Yechury has triggered speculation on who will succeed him as the CPM general secretary. In all likelihood, the CPM will go for a stop-gap arrangement and nominate a senior leader as the general secretary in-charge till the 24th Party Congress scheduled for next April in Madurai. Anyway, the party was to begin discussions on its new general secretary as Yechury was set to step down on completing his third term in April.
Sources said since there are major responsibilities in connection with the Party Congress, veteran leader and former general secretary Prakash Karat could be asked to handle the party affairs for the time being. A section feels that Brinda Karat could be given charge as she’s a known leader and a prominent woman face in national politics. If the CPM decides to go for a new face as a full-time general secretary, M A Baby or B V Raghavulu could be chosen.
The CPM politburo, set to meet after Yechury’s public homage on Saturday, will take a call in this regard and will present its recommendation before the central committee on September 27. “Since the Party Congress is around the corner, a senior leader will most probably be given temporary charge. The party set the age criteria to infuse new blood into the PB and CC,” said a senior leader. Going by the existing age cap of 75 years, a number of PB members, including Prakash, Brinda, Manik Sarkar, Surjya Kanta Mishra and Subhashini Ali, will give way to new faces at the Party Congress.
“The Party Congress can take a call on giving exemption to a leader. Though it’s unlikley, it would be wise to go with Brinda, as it would send out a message,” said a central committee member.
Baby’s chances depend on stand of party state unit
“To be a successor of Yechury, the party needs a leader who would be an acceptable face among other Opposition parties too, especially in view of coalition politics. The disputes within the party over its political line of having an understanding with the Congress too need to be taken into account,” said the central committee member.
Andhra leader Raghavulu, Kerala leader Baby and Nilotpal Basu from West Bengal would be the possible choices, if the party opts for a new face. A former state secretary, Raghavulu holds a good chance. The backing of the Kerala CPM would be crucial as it’s the only state where the party is in power.
In addition to Baby, the PB has Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, state secretary M V Govindan and A Vijayaraghavan from Kerala. Chances of Baby coming to the top office depends completely on the stand of the Kerala party, especially Pinarayi. Given the current equations within the party, it won’t be surprising if the Kerala CPM pushes for relatively junior Vijayaraghavan. It was Yechury who had succeeded Baby as SFI national president four decades ago. Hence if Baby succeeds Yechury, it could well be a coincidence.
If the West Bengal unit chooses to push for its nominee, Basu would be a more likely choice than Sen, who’s a trade union leader, or senior leader Mohammed Salim. Since Yechury remained a major proponent of the West Bengal line on many issues, especially wih regard to an electoral truck with the Congress, the WB CPM too could push for its nominee. The WB party would be keen to have someone who can tackle the tricky issue of state-level understandings with the Congress. A final decision on the new general secretary will depend on all these factors.
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