THE Draft Organisational Report was placed by B V Raghavulu, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, on April 4. At the outset, Raghavulu mentioned that the Organisational Report is not a standalone document but is a continuation of the Political Review Report, which evaluated the implementation of the Political Tactical Line adopted at the 23rd Congress in 2022. The Review Report acknowledged the political tactical line's role in achieving partial electoral gains against the BJP and in mobilising united struggles by workers, peasants, women, youth, and students across the country.

Party membership has grown since the last Party Congress – from 9,85,757 in 2021 to 10,19,009 in 2024. The percentage of women members rose from 18.2 per cent to 20.2 per cent in 2024, while youth representation increased from 19.5 per cent in 2021 to 22.6 per cent in 2024.

The Party continues to maintain a strong class composition, with 48.25 per cent of members from the working class, 17.79 per cent from among agricultural workers, and 9.93 per cent being poor peasants – making a total of 75.97 per cent from the basic classes. The membership of mass organisations has grown by 64 lakhs since the last Congress.

However, the Draft Organisational Report also highlights a persistent failure to expand and consolidate the independent mass base of the Party.

While reaffirming the correctness of the political tactical line, the Organisational Report points to weaknesses in its implementation, which have impeded the Party’s growth. Raghavulu underscored that the Party organisation is the very instrument through which the political line is executed. Talking about the quality of Party membership, he said even the best political line and the most practical, achievable tasks will fail if Party members are not actively involved in their implementation. As vital links to the people at the grassroots level, their role is indispensable. This is why the Party places utmost importance on improving the quality of its membership.

An analysis of 2024 membership data points to lax recruitment practices in some areas and inadequate adherence to the prescribed process of inducting candidate members through auxiliaries, coupled with political education and training.

The five-point renewal criterion helps in improving membership quality. The responsibility to improve organisational functioning lies with the state and district committees, which must ensure consistent implementation and rigorous application of the five-point criteria during the membership renewal process.

Closely tied to improving membership quality is the regular and active functioning of branches, Raghavulu said. Strengthening branch activity requires local and district committees to take responsibility by guiding and training branch secretaries. Organising workshops for branch secretaries is essential to build their capacity, he noted. The effectiveness of local and district committees is critical to this process. State committees must prioritise training local and district committee members through regular workshops focused on branch functioning, local struggles, ideological work, and mass mobilisation, he underlined.

Party committees, secretariats, and fraction committees are composed of wholetimers whose political commitment, initiative, mass orientation, and fighting spirit shape the effectiveness of our organisation. Without regular ideological steeling, these cadres risk becoming routinised, demotivated, or careerist.

Although the Party issued guidelines for a comprehensive wholetimer policy and directed their implementation across all states, reviews show limited progress. In most states, wholetimer allowances remain inadequate, payments are delayed, special funds exist only in a few, and periodic work/performance reviews are lacking. This neglect of Party’s valuable asset – wholetimers – underscores the urgent need to implement the Party’s policy.

Raghavulu mentioned that the Kolkata Plenum also emphasized rejuvenating Party leadership by reducing the average age of committee members. Age limits were introduced ahead of the 23rd Congress, along with guidelines for utilising experienced comrades relieved due to age. While the initiative has largely been positive, some relieved comrades remain unassigned or underutilised – this must be rectified.

The Draft Organisational Report points out that while the Central Committee has been meeting regularly, discussing agendas, and taking decisions, its current format limits space for reviewing struggles, campaigns, mass fronts, and assessing the implementation of political, organisational tasks. The new Central Committee must restructure its meeting format to enhance effectiveness and ensure thorough reviews of Party work, the report noted.

The Report also highlights a major weakness which lies in the failure to convert mass struggles into political influence and Party growth. This demands a serious review of how Party subcommittees and fraction committees are conducting political work within mass fronts.

In response to the challenges posed by neoliberal capitalism and the rise of Hindutva communalism, the Party resolved to expand into new areas and focus on specific social sections. The Report also emphasized that a comprehensive ideological counteroffensive is required across various fronts.

Concluding the presentation, Raghavulu stressed that the Party’s growth cannot be left to spontaneity or favourable circumstances. It requires conscious intervention through well-prepared plans aligned with local possibilities and available resources. Once formulated, the Party committees and the all-India centre must regularly support and monitor implementation to ensure consistent progress in the states. Reiterating the five important tasks – improving the quality of Party membership; revitalising Party branches; increasing youth enrollment; intensifying the fight against Hindutva communalism; and expanding the scope of local struggles – Raghavulu said that the path ahead is challenging, but with determination and discipline, we can strengthen our organisation, intensify the struggle against Hindutva forces, and build the Left and Democratic alternative. Recalling the words of Stalin, “After a correct political line has been given, organisational work decides everything, including the fate of the political line itself – its success or failure,” Raghavulu ended by saying, “Let us hold fast to these words. Let us keep our faith in the people. Let us believe in the power of class struggle. Let us march forward.”

Discussions on the Draft Organisational Report took place on April 5. A total of 55 delegates took part in the discussions. On April 6, reply to the discussions was given by B V Raghavulu. Prakash Karat, as the convenor of the outgoing Organisational Sub-Committee of the CPI(M), also spoke on the discussions. Later the Draft Organisational report was adopted unanimously.