Central Committee Communique
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) met in New Delhi on October 27-29, 2023. It has issued the following statement:
Kerala: Bomb Blast
The Central Committee strongly condemned the bomb blasts that took place at a convention centre in Ernakulam, which led to the unfortunate death of three persons and injuries to several others. The state police have already rounded up one suspect. The Central Committee condemned the comments on the social media by a union cabinet minister who without ascertaining the facts hurled communal slurs against Kerala and its people. The Central Committee called upon the people of Kerala to rise, as they have always done, against elements that seek to disrupt Kerala's unique and unparalleled social and communal harmony.
Israel's Genocidal Assaults on Palestinians
The Central Committee strongly condemned the refusal of the Modi government to vote for the UN General Assembly resolution calling for humanitarian ceasefire, protection to all civilians and immediate humanitarian aid. The abstention of the Modi government and its siding with the imperialist warmongers goes against the history and tradition of India’s support to the Palestinian cause. While standing with the UN resolution demands, the Central Committee expressed its solidarity with the suffering people of Palestine against the genocidal war being waged by Israel brazenly flouting all international laws. So far, officially, 8000 people have been killed of whom 4000 are children and the toll is going up every day, including killings being reported not just in Gaza but also in the West bank. The CPI(M) is part of the growing massive global public protests to force Israel to immediately declare a ceasefire, and the implementation of the UN mandated 2-State solution with East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian State with pre-1967 borders.
Assembly Elections
The Central Committee discussed the situation in four out of five states that are scheduled to hold assembly elections. In Rajasthan, the Central Committee endorsed the list of 17 candidates proposed by the state committee, which includes two sitting CPI(M) MLAs. In Chhattisgarh, the Party will contest in three seats; in Madhya Pradesh, the Party will contest in four seats, and in Telangana, discussions are going on.
Manipur
The situation in Manipur continues to deteriorate. This clearly demonstrates the total failure of the Modi government and the BJP's double-engine government in handling and controlling the situation. Ethnic polarisation in the state is being given a communal colour by merging such polarisation with religious identities.
Officially, the state police have declared a death toll of 175 (in reality, the figure will be much higher) and stated that at least 96 bodies remain unclaimed, with an additional 32 officially listed as missing. Official records show 5,172 cases of arson, including 4,786 houses and 386 religious places. A total of 5,668 firearms were looted and only 1,329 of these have been recovered.
Chief Minister Biren Singh must be immediately removed and the mayhem in Manipur must be brought to a halt.
Growing Economic Burdens on People
Busting the false claims generated by the Modi propaganda machinery, uncontrollable price rise and unemployment have led to a sharp decline in people’s income with household financial assets plummeting from 11.5 per cent to 5.1 per cent of the GDP between 2020-21 and 2022-23. This is leading to sharp rise in household indebtedness.
Onion prices are skyrocketing, MGNREGA continues to be starved leading to rural distress and India’s standing in the Global Hunger Index slumped to a historical low of 111 out of 125 countries.
One Nation-One Election
The high-level committee set up by the union government, under the chairmanship of Ram Nath Kovind, former president of India, to examine the implementation of this proposal has now sought the opinion of political parties and asked for the viewpoint of political parties in writing by January 18, 2024, keeping in mind the general elections a few months later. The Central Committee has taken a clear-cut position against this proposal. This proposal would constitute a twin assault on parliamentary democracy and federalism as enshrined in our constitution. Apart from significant amendments to the constitution, such a proposal would entail either curtailing or extending the life of state assemblies to synchronise them with Lok Sabha elections. When a government loses its majority on the floor of the house, its continuation is illegal. If central rule is imposed, denying people their right to elect a government, then it is anti-democratic.
Caste Census
The Central Committee asked the Modi government to conduct a caste census enumerating socio-economic status along with the 2021 General Census, which is long overdue. Such a caste census is necessary to ensure that legal entitlements, including reservations, reach all those who deserve them the most.
Bihar has conducted a state-level caste survey, and some other states have declared their intention to do so. The decision on conducting state-level surveys is the prerogative of the elected state governments. However, these cannot be a substitute for an all-India caste census, which is the essential basis to determine the disbursement of entitlements.
CC Calls
· The Central Committee called upon all our Party units to step up solidarity actions with the Palestinian people's struggle for a homeland and against Israeli genocidal aggression.
· In a bid to privatise electricity, the Modi government is proceeding to install smart meters with prepaid arrangements for electricity consumers. This is set to impose severe hardships on the people with higher rates and hand over electricity generation to private corporations for profit maximisation. This will impose unbearable burdens on the poor and the farmers. Protest actions must be organised to stop the installation of such meters wherever it is being implemented.
· The Central Committee decided to extend the Party's support to the countrywide Kisan-Mazdur Mahapadav being held between November 26-28.
· The Central Committee decided to extend the Party's support and solidarity with the parliament march call given by the dalit organisations and platforms on December 4, 2023.
