THE 17th Manipur State Conference of CPI(M) was held at Comrade Soyam Satradhari Khul & Comrade Loushambam Yaima Hall in Imphal from December 15 to December 17. The conference concluded successfully with a resolute determination to multiply the strength of the Party and mass organisations and strengthen the Left and Democratic movement simultaneously. The conference was attended by 44 delegates including five women, drawn from the state’s four districts. The conference began with hoisting of the Party flag by Meitram Shamu, the most senior delegate and a comrade-in-arms of legendary Irawat Singh during the late 1940s and early ‘50s. The flag hoisting was followed by a floral tribute to the martyr’s column and condolence resolution. Welcoming the delegates, party sympathisers and other comrades to the inaugural session, state secretariat member Kshetrimayum Santa said the conference was being held at a time when the communal forces across the country are galloping their attack on the minority communities. Inaugurating the conference, CPI(M) Central Committee member and convener of Left Front in Tripura Khagen Das stated that the Red Flag we are hoisting here today was born through the martyrdom of comrade Irawat Singh and his followers for independent and democratic rights of the people. He said the 16th Lok Sabha election which was held in April and May of this year brought major changes in the country’s political scenario as the BJP got absolute majority with a vote share of only 31 percent. The election results showed that rise in prices of essential commodities, hike in petroleum and diesel prices, high level corruption, unemployment and misrule of the UPA government led to the anti-Congress wave and the opportunity fall to the major opposition group in the country. He also mentioned that there are no major changes in the grassroots as the Congress and BJP are both bourgeois parties in the country. The policy of the NDA government is only to enrich the rich while impoverishing the poor. The central government has supported the policy of the monopoly and corporate houses while the bulk of the workers which comprise 80 percent of the population of the country are facing the burden of the price hike. He then mentioned the policy of the Left Front government in Tripura distributing 35 kg of rice per month at the rate of Rs 2 per kg to BPL families through targeted Public Distribution System. Speaking on the national situation, Das said it is the neo-liberal economic trajectory pursued by both Congress and BJP that has given rise to two opposing classes in India – one was the glorified class and the other was exploited class comprising 90 percent of our population. He said it was mainly the neo-liberal path that was the fountainhead of rampant corruption and series of scandals. He urged the delegates and Party sympathisers to see the game of BJP and Congress which are following the same economic path. He stressed that BJP and Congress are the two sides of the same coin as they pursue the same economic policy. Gautam Das, editor of the Daily Desher Katha, organ of the Tripura State Committee of the CPI(M), also addressed the gathering. Addressing the delegates, Gautam Das said the results of the Lok Sabha polls did not reflect the true mood of the electorate. He said the Left parties, particularly CPI(M), has been demanding Proportionate Representation System in the country to ensure just and proper representation in Parliament. He said the RSS-BJP combined perpetrated more than 300 communal clashes across the country that claimed more than 100 innocent lives and at the same time destroyed thousands of houses. Even a church was burnt in Delhi by the divisive forces as they want to impose their Hindutva ideology to other religious community. He strongly spoke against the communal design of the Hindutva forces and said these forces should not be allowed to break the fabric of communal harmony and peaceful coexistence for the welfare and well-being of our population. The delegate session started with the election of Presidium Members, Steering Committee and Credential Committee in the evening of December 15. Veteran leaders Meitram Shamu, Ningthoukhongjam Rashi and Taibangjam Deben were the presidium members. CPI(M) state organising secretary Sarat Salam placed the 38-page Draft Report on behalf of the Manipur State Committee of CPI(M) to the delegates for threadbare discussion. Placing the Draft Report, Salam said the lack of functioning of primary unit at the level of mass fronts of the Party and non-functioning of many Party branches and other lower committees still continue and it is the main organisational weakness. He self critically said for all these weaknesses, the responsibilities lie with the state leadership of the party, particularly of the state secretariat. A total of 16 delegates participated in the discussion. The Draft Report was unanimously adopted with some amendments. The 17th conference of the Party adopted special resolutions on the condition of peasants and workers; employment and education; central sponsored projects in Manipur including irrigation; national highways and railways; atrocities against women; MGNREGA; communal harmony, national unity and integration; AFSPA and black laws; protection of NER people in the mainland India; corruption and nepotism; electoral reform; and on legislation to protect land and people of Manipur. In the mean time, the conference unanimously condemned the bomb blast that killed two persons and injured four others in the morning of 15 December, 2014 at MG Avenue, Imphal and appealed to the people of Manipur to maintain peace and harmony. Khogen Das, after adoption of the Draft Report and resolutions, stated that the state unit should intensify its struggle and expand the independent strength of the party which should be the most essential factor for the political advancement and organisational consolidation of the party towards Left and Democratic Alliance. He also cautioned that our party should not depend on other parties for our political fight. The conference elected 13-member State Organising Committee and three permanent invitees which in turn re-elected Sarat Salam as secretary, and state secretariat comprising Kshetrimayum Santa, Yumnam Ratan and Sougrakpam Roma Devi. The conference also elected two delegates to attend the 21st Party Conference of CPI(M) which will be held at Vishakhapatanam in April 2015. The two delegates are Sarat Salam and Kshetrimayum Santa. According to the Credential Committee Report, eight comrades had joined the Party before 1977, 33 joined between 1977 and 2014. Front wise break up showed 23 from Kisan Sabha, 13 from student front and 18 from peasant front of the total 44 delegates. Eighteen are graduates and eight postgraduates. Thirty delegates belong to the age group of 40-60. Occupational break up showed 22 from agriculture workers, four peasants, three lawyers and five teachers including one university teacher. The conference concluded with strong resolve and high hope. Khagen Das stressed the need to implement the resolutions adopted in practice and principle of collective work with individual responsibility in the functioning of every level of the organisation of the Party and mass fronts.