Central Committee member A.K. Balan hosting the party flag at the venue of delegate meeting of the State Conference of Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Kollam on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: C. SURESHKUMAR
Strengthening the party’s organisational activities to resist attempts from various quarters to communalise minority communities is one of the prime focus areas of the political-organisational report of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)]’s Kerala unit presented by the party State secretary M.V. Govindan on the opening day of the 24th CPI(M) State Conference at Kollam on Thursday. The report also called for concrete steps to correct “wrong tendencies” that have crept into the party.
Addressing a press conference after presenting the report, Mr.Govindan said that the CPI(M)‘s increasing influence among minority communities has prompted the Muslim League to align with communal organisations such as Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) and Jamaat-e-Islami. Though the Congress is currently the beneficiary of such attempts, this could have “far-reaching consequences” for Kerala’s polity and society, he said.
“The minority communities are being pushed towards organisations that are working to build a theocratic state. Though these steps are being taken by placing CPI(M) as their main enemy, it will end up depleting the Muslim League’s base. On the other hand, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) earlier used to vote in favour of Congress-led UDF, following which they had an alliance too. But, now the UDF votes are going to the BJP, as we have seen right from the Nemom constituency and recently in Thrissur as well as in the recent ward byelection in Thiruvananthapuram Corporation. The CPI(M) will formulate practical programmes to resist the interventions of communal forces,” said Mr.Govindan
The organisational report also views the Church’s Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) as an RSS front organisation to communalise Christian sections by injecting anti-Muslim sentiments in them. The party understands this as a planned attempt to divide the minority communities to benefit the RSS and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP-led Union government is attempting to economically strangle the State to scuttle the developmental as well as welfare programmes of the LDF government. The report also takes note of the attempts by a large section of the right wing-aligned mainstream media’s attempts to whip up public anger against the State government.
The CPI(M) will also step up its activities to turn Kerala into a State which is more friendly to women. It will also expand its palliative care activities.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M), presented the New Pathways for a Nava Keralam document in the afternoon. The six part document looks at the progress of the steps laid out in the Nava Keralam document that he had presented in the previous State conference at Ernakulam in 2022 as well as chalks out an action plan to improve the quality of life of Keralites to the level of developed/semi-developed countries. The document lays out steps to build on the ongoing programmes to build a knowledge society and address joblessness by generating 20 lakh jobs. The jump in IT exports, the development of the Vizhinjam International Seaport and the ongoing implementation of the Kochi-Coimbatore industrial corridor project are expected to provide a push to these plans.
“A third term for the LDF is guaranteed if we go ahead and implement the plans laid out in these two documents,” said Mr.Govindan
Published – March 06, 2025 09:29 pm IST
