‘Common enemy’ BJP brings CPI, CPM together

HYDERABAD: The general secretaries of the Communist Party of India (CPI) and Communist Party of India - Marxist (CPM), D Raja and Sitaram Yechury, respectively, during a joint public meeting held in Hyderabad on Sunday, expressed their belief that the unity of Communist parties is both unprecedented and inevitable, as envisioned by Communist stalwarts. This marks the first time that State units of Communist parties have come together for such an event. The leaders coined the slogan “March together and fight together” from this common platform, pledging to hold talks at the national level as well.

CPI and CPM leaders also emphasised the importance of forming alliances with secular parties and people’s movements in order to “dethrone Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”Stating that the joint convention of CPI and CPM is unprecedented, Yechury said, “The joint leadership of Telangana communist parties have shown a new way forward. We (the CPI and CPM) will hold talks at the central party level”.

However, he acknowledged that unity between the CPI and CPM may not be possible at the national level and would depend on the local conditions of each state. Giving a reason for the unity of communist parties, Yechury said that BJP took Tripura State Assembly elections seriously, though it has just two MP seats because they felt that it would be not just their win but the defeat of communist parties.

Yechury explained that the reason for the unity of Communist parties is the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) serious consideration of the Tripura Assembly elections, despite the State having just two MP seats. The BJP recognised that it would not only be their victory but also the defeat of Communist parties, he added.“Our unity depends on how much strength we can add. We need to unify the secular and democratic forces to defeat the communal BJP,” Yechury said.

Reflecting on the ‘historical need’ for unity among Communist forces, CPI’s Raja noted that the day of the joint public meeting was also the death anniversary of Comrade C Rajeshwar Rao, who served as the General Secretary of CPI for a considerable period. Raja recounted that in the 1989 CPI congress held in Calcutta (now Kolkata), Rajeshwar Rao proposed a unification of the Communist movement based on principles, which was unanimously accepted by the party congress. Raja also highlighted that the BJP is attempting to replace the Indian Constitution with the oppressive Manusmriti and “murdering democracy.”He emphasised that both Communist parties must work together at all levels to coordinate mutual tasks.

‘BRS sought our support, not the other way round’

During a public meeting attended by the top leadership of the CPI and CPM, both parties made it clear that they are not aligning with the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), but it is the pink party which sought their support in the fight against “fascist forces.”

This statement comes at a time when parliamentary Communist parties are facing backlash from other Opposition parties for supporting the BRS. CPI and CPM National General Secretaries, Sitaram Yechury and D Raja, emphasized the importance of unity between parliamentary Communist parties and secular parties to overthrow the BJP.

CPI State secretary Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao said the CPI was the one that initially raised concerns about the BRS being aligned with the BJP when Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao carried the BJP flag.
He added that KCR has now come to the communist parties, rejecting the BJP’s politics.