ON July 31, 2020, over 150 activists of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), the Shramajeevi Sanghatana (a foreign-funded NGO whose leaders are close to the BJP) and other organisations from Palghar district left their own parties and organisations and joined the red flag in an enthusiastic programme that was organised at the Palghar tehsil office of the CPI(M), which is strategically located on the Mumbai-Delhi national highway. They hail from Palghar, Dahanu, Talasari, Jawhar and Vikramgad tehsils. They will all be first given work in mass fronts like the AIKS, CITU, AIDWA, DYFI and SFI.

After the introductory speech by AIKS leader from Palghar tehsil, Sudam Dhinda, CITU leader from Palghar tehsil, Harshal Lokhande, who had made sustained political and organisational efforts for months to bring about this change, placed the background. Some of the new entrants like Nilesh Vichare, Shivkumar Sharma and Syed Tailor then made effective speeches explaining what had made them leave their old parties and organisations and attracted them to the red flag. All of them were then welcomed with red scarves.

The gathering was then addressed by AIKS national president Ashok Dhawale, AIKS state vice presidents Barkya Mangat and Ratan Budhar, CITU state secretary and CPI(M) MLA Vinod Nikole, DYFI state president Sunil Dhanwa, DYFI district president and chairperson of the Talasari Tehsil Panchayat Samiti Nandu Hadal, AIKS leaders Kiran Gahala and Madhukar Dowala, CITU leader Bharat Walamba and AIDWA state joint secretary Heena Vanga. Many other leaders of the above mass fronts were also present.

All the above speakers, while welcoming the new entrants, explained the aims, objectives and distinguishing features of the red flag movement. They also outlined the current challenges posed by the Modi-led BJP government not only to the lives and livelihoods of the working people, but also to democracy, secularism and the constitution itself. They called for making the August 9 and August 20 nationwide call against the Modi regime a great success. The meeting concluded with resounding revolutionary slogans.

ANNIVERSARIES OF TOWERING
COMMUNIST LEADERS
On August 3, 2020, the death and birth anniversaries of two towering Communist leaders of Maharashtra were observed by the CPI(M) Thane-Palghar district committee by organising general body meetings of the Party simultaneously at eight places in the six tehsils of Vikramgad, Jawhar, Talasari, Dahanu, Wada and Shahapur. These meetings mobilised hundreds of Party members despite the paddy agricultural season, the Corona pandemic and the Raksha Bandhan ceremony which happened to be on the same day. 

It was the 56th death anniversary of Comrade Shamrao Parulekar, who died on August 3, 1965 while in detention at the Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai. Comrade Godavari Parulekar, and also Comrades B T Ranadive, Ahilya Rangnekar, P B Rangnekar, P K Kurane, Prabhakar Sanzgiri and many other leaders were also in detention from 1962-66 at the same time. Shamrao Parulekar was a freedom fighter, member of the first Central Committee of the CPI(M) elected in 1964, a former state secretary of the undivided CPI, the founder of the Maharashtra Rajya Kisan Sabha, a national office bearer of the AIKS, former MP in the Lok Sabha, and most important, the leader along with Godavari Parulekar, of the famous Warli Adivasi Revolt against landlordism from 1945-47 in the then Thane (now Palghar) district.

It was also the 121st birth anniversary of ‘Krantisinh’ Comrade Nana Patil, who was born on August 3, 1900. He was not only a freedom fighter, but the outstanding leader of the three and a half year old Satara parallel government against British rule from 1943-46, a former national president of the AIKS elected at its 13th conference at Dahanu in 1955, the most prominent peasant leader of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, and twice elected MP in the Lok Sabha, first from Satara district and then from Beed district.

All these general body meetings were addressed in various tehsils by CPI(M) Central Committee member Ashok Dhawale, state secretariat member and district secretary Barkya Mangat, state committee members Ratan Budhar, Vinod Nikole MLA, Kiran Gahala, Radka Kalangda, Lahani Dauda, Sunil Dhanwa and other district committee members.

While recalling the glorious legacy of these leaders and especially of the Warli Adivasi Revolt, the current political challenges posed by the Modi-led BJP regime were also highlighted and a call was given to make the nationwide class and mass front action call of August 9 and the Party action call of August 20 a great success.

Mass fronts in the district have printed 20,000 copies of an effective political leaflet for August 9 and a mass campaign is on in each tehsil to mobilise thousands of people in village level actions. Due to the Adivasi Day that is observed in tribal areas of the country on August 9, all actions in the district will take place on August 8.

On August 10, delegations will meet every tehsildar/SDO, submit memorandums and will try their best to solve the burning local issues of the people, like ration, work under MNREGA, health, forest rights, electricity bills and other problems. After August 20, delegations will meet the district collectors of Palghar and Thane for unresolved problems.