By Binoy Viswam
The 24th Congress of the Communist Party of India will be marked as the Congress of confidence and rejuvenated spirit. The Party Congress held in the historic city of Vijayawada gave new impetus to the Party to march forward. Each moment of the Congress from October 14 to 18 was full of content as 872 delegates along with alternate delegates, observers and invitees devoted their experience and energy to strengthen the Party and chart a new path for the future.
Communists are duty bound to understand the objective and subjective conditions in which they have to fight and win the battles of utmost importance. In fact the Party Congress is the penultimate forum to take stock of the past activities. The discussions and sessions of the 24th Congress of CPI are important not only for the communists of the country. Its appeal for unity and struggle has great relevance for the secular, democratic and the other left forces of the country. People view the CPI as the party of dedicated struggles for the realization of a new India. The rally to mark the beginning of the party Congress on October 14 was massive and inspiring. Tens of thousands of men and women joined together making the streets of Vijayawada a roaring ocean of the Red. It was the declaration of the CPI to gain more strength to play a convincing role in moulding the future of the country.
Communists, based on their scientific ideology of Marxism are duty bound to undertake the task of clear analysis of the existing realities before them. The 24th Congress could successfully accomplish this task and prepare for its future course of action in unambiguous terms. In fact, it could rightly be called as ‘historic’. Experience and maturity of the seniors intertwined with the dynamism and vitality of the young contributed to the resounding success of the Congress. The credential report of the 24th Congress throws light on this fact: 51.2 percent of the delegates were less than 60 years. Some of them were even in their twenties. Many of the delegates were the leaders of mass struggles and movements for the rights of workers, peasants, Dalits, Adivasis, minorities, women, youth, and students. Three delegates from Lakshadweep including the secretary of the state unit could not attend the congress as they were imprisoned by the administration for raising their voice for the people’s rights. In that way, it can be called as the Congress of united will and unflinching optimism upheld by generations of communists.
The ‘communist specialists’ in right wing media did their over time job this time also to discover organizational and political differences within the CPI. They propagated that the guideline regarding the age limit will be nullified by the Congress. They further campaigned that on political line also serious differences exist inside the party. To their utter disappointment, nothing of that sort occurred in the 24th Congress. Of course, there were serious and in-depth discussions on organizational and political matters in the Congress. In fact, such discussions with criticism and self-criticism are the soul of the Communist Party Congress. The party find the way for its onward voyage through this democratic process only. This culture and discipline are unthinkable in any party of the right wing. In most cases, their leaders are appointed. In rare situations, when there is election, contestants and their party leaders take extra care for not uttering a single word about policies! That cannot be the communist way!
The patriotic fervour of the communists is distinctly different from the pseudo nationalism of the right extremists. The communists are committed to their land and their people in unequivocal terms. At the same time, they uphold the banner of internationalism through which their fraternity with the toiling masses from all over the world is expressed. As a symbol of this fraternity the 24th Congress had the honour to receive 17 fraternal delegations from 16 countries. Their presence in the CPI Congress is a gentle reply to the vindictive campaign unleashed by Imperialist propaganda machinery that everywhere communism is dead!
All the documents related to the Party Congress were adopted unanimously, after thorough discussions. Apart from state delegations, they were debated in separate commissions too. The commissions were categorised as 1) Political resolutions, 2) Political review report, 3) Organizational report, 4) Program and constitution. Each one dealt with the amendments to each document. The political resolution, after analysis of the political economic developments in the country, gave the call for a broad coalition of secular democratic and left forces. The country needs a change. RSS-BJP rule has ruined the foundations of our great country.
The government with its anti-people stance, controlled by fascist RSS, needs to be thrown out. The CPI is absolutely clear about the main enemy in the ongoing fight in defence of secularism, democracy and socialist goal which forms the foundation of our Constitution. The RSS-BJP led right reactionary forces could be defeated only through the coming together of secular, democratic forces. The composition and character of such a united move may not be of uniform nature all over the country. It may vary from state to state. The people have conveyed their intention to move along with such forces wherever they felt that it was a reliable alternative to RSS-BJP. The Left has to play an important political role in the given complex situation. The CPI is always aware of this task and stands for the purposeful unity of the left forces. In the inaugural session of the 24th Party Congress leaders of CPI(M), CPI (ML), Forward Block were present and reiterated their positions on left unity. RSP, not present due to their organizational preoccupations shared the same understanding of fighting together.
The Party Congress underlined the necessity of building a much stronger CPI. The comrades who took part in the discussions called for consistent plan of action in this regard. Three years away from now the CPI is to celebrate its 100th anniversary. Its proud history of struggle and sacrifice speaks voluminously about the role of the Communists in achieving and safeguarding freedom and social progress. Anchoring upon that great heritage, the party has to undertake that challenging task of today. In an important resolution, the party decided to increase the membership to 10 lakhs by the Centenary year and document its history in all the states and districts. In order to equip the Communist Party with ideological, political and organizational preparedness, the party has miles to go. It cannot sleep or rest without accomplishing those bounden tasks. The 24th Party Congress, its debates and discussions is the clarion call to march forward in this direction, under the inspiring values of the Red flag! (IPA Service)
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