Communist Party of India(Marxist)
23rd Party Congress
April 6-10, 2022
Kannur, Kerala
BRIEFING the media after the January 7-9, Central Committee meeting at Hyderabad, CPI(M) general secretary, Sitaram Yechury announced that the 23rd Party Congress would be convened from April 6-10, 2022, at Kannur, Kerala.
The CC discussed and adopted unanimously the draft Political Resolution to be placed before the Party Congress. The Polit Bureau has been authorised by the Central Committee to finalise the draft on the basis of the discussion and the concrete amendments moved by Central Committee members.
The CPI(M) practises a vibrant inner-party democracy. The CPI(M) Party constitution mandates that the draft Political Resolution be released publicly to Party ranks two months before the Party Congress convenes. Accordingly, this draft will be released at the beginning of February 2022. Every Party member has the right to send concrete amendments/suggestions directly to the Central Committee. These are properly processed and a report on pre-Congress amendments will be presented to the Party Congress.
PRINCIPAL TASK: DEFEAT BJP
Following the announcement of the poll schedule for the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur, Yechury said that defeating the BJP is the primary task in these elections. The CPI(M) will adopt suitable electoral tactics in order to maximise the pooling of anti-BJP votes in these states.
Yechury also explained that there is an inalienable link between defeating BJP and improving the lives of ordinary people as well as ensuring the constitutional mechanism intact.
He said that the people are more and more getting dissatisfied with the kind of economic policies pursued by the Modi government. The abject failure of the central government is more evident in its failure to protect people’s lives and livelihoods during the Covid phase. He flayed the central government for its illogical vaccination policy.
Yechury demanded the central government publish a white paper on indirect taxes collected through the sale of petro products and the subsidies spent in the last seven years.
Targeting the BJP government, he said the unmindful policies of the Modi regime led to an increase in unemployment, poverty and hunger to the levels India has not seen in its 75 years of independence.
Yechury called on the Election Commission of India to exercise its rights and assert its constitutional authority while conducting elections. There is a need to reform the electioneering process in India as the existing systems failed to contain the violations of the code of conduct. He also called on the election commission to take steps on war footing to regulate the role of money in elections. He reminded that the ruling BJP amassed wealth through the unconstitutionally instituted electoral bonds. He also recollected various reports of the political donations through electoral bonds, BJP is garnering 80 per cent with which it is able to circumvent the electoral process by resorting to gross abuse of money power. Through electoral bonds, he alleged that the BJP institutionalised and legalised political corruption.
THERE WOULD BE NO ALL-INDIA FRONT BEFORE ELECTIONS
Responding to questions, Yechury clarified that there is no possibility of forming any all-India alternative front before the general elections. He reminded the journalists that National Front, National Democratic Alliance, United Front and United Progressive Alliance, all came into existence only in the post-poll scenarios. While responding to the questions relating to electoral adjustments, he categorically said that would be decided keeping in view the concrete conditions prevailing in each state as and when the situation arises.
Yechury further clarified that the Party would welcome any political formation that sets defeating BJP as its political goal. He said that as the Samajwadi Party is the one capable of defeating BJP, the Party would support SP in forthcoming Uttar Pradesh elections. He also revealed that the CPI(M) is in consultations with other Left parties to evolve a common approach in the forthcoming assembly elections.
KCR SHOULD SPELL OUT HIS STAND
In a response to another question, Yechury said that the onus is on the TRS chief to spell out his stand towards BJP. Tammineni Veerabhadram, secretary of Telangana state committee of the Party intervened to respond that there is no such call from TRS to defeat BJP, as of now. He told that the TRS government is also implementing anti-people policies which are being fought intensively.
