WITH Bay of Bengal to their side, a vast sea of humanity, consisting of workers, peasants and other toiling people, marched on the adjacent beach road of Visakhapatnam, braving the hot sun to participate in the huge public meeting, marking the culmination of the 21st Congress of the CPI(M).

Women, children, youngsters, tribals, dalits joined the multitudes who have come from far off places to hear the leaders speak and learn from them about the decisions of the 21st Congress, for whose success all of them had contributed to the best of their abilities. When the delegates of the Congress joined them in the march, they enthusiastically greeted them and cheered them, irrespective of the linguistic barrier that divided them.

The faces of little children, who sat on the shoulders of their parents lit up with joy, as the delegates reciprocated their greetings by shaking hands or waving hands at them. The atmosphere was so electrifying that the entire city reverberated with slogans, red salutes, lal salaams and giving voice to the demands concerning the livelihood of the people. This josh of the crowds merged with the multilingual slogans raised by the delegates. To the eager onlookers, one thing became amply clear – linguistic differences are only superfluous when the question confronting them is hunger, poverty, unemployment, rising prices and that of struggle to overcome all these odds. The slogans reached a crescendo, when the leaders of the Party joined the masses, matched their steps with them and greeted them.

The famed discipline of the CPI(M) was also on display during the entire period of the march. Thousands of red shirt and red saree volunteers marched impressively from the RTC Complex at 3 pm to RK Beach, which was christened as Makineni Basavapunnaiah Nagar, where the public meeting was held. People of the city were heard discussing with astonishment the disciplined march of the CPI(M), remembering what they had witnessed in their city on earlier occasions.

Even as these streams of red uniformed volunteers were marching from different points in the city to merge at the venue of the public meeting, the city was bursting at its seams with hundreds of thousands of people descending from all over the Telugu speaking states. Interestingly, people from neighbouring states also joined the marchers.

The venue of the public meeting bore a festive atmosphere. There were red kites flying in the sky, boats adorned with red flags and festoons were floating in the sea, near the venue, welcoming and greeting the participants of the rally. People were perched on top of the buildings on the road adjoining the beach to catch a glimpse of the proceedings. The entire area wore a look of red, the colour of struggle and sacrifice. The composition of the crowd showcased the strength of the CPI(M). It is estimated that the crowd extended to a distance of 3 km from the dais and to enable them to follow the proceedings carefully, huge television screens were put up.

CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, BV Raghavulu presided over the public meeting. He explained in a nutshell the proceedings of the Party Congress and all the issues concerning people that were discussed in the Congress. Thanking the people who had helped in the successful hosting of the Party Congress, he stated that but for their painstaking efforts, it would have been impossible to organise this mammoth Congress, particularly in the aftermath of the Hudhud devastation that had ripped through this part of the state. In the run-up to the Congress, Party cadre visited 3 lakh households in Vizag and solicited their support. There was tremendous support from all sections of the people, he told.

Prakash Karat, the outgoing general secretary, while addressing the public meeting, exuded confidence that the CPI(M) will be built and expanded throughout the country in the days to come by relentlessly fighting against the anti-people policies of the Modi government. CPI(M) will do everything in its power to mobilise people and launch powerful united movements to fight against neo-liberal and communal policies of the BJP government. Pointing to the massive gathering at the public meeting, he lampooned the hollowness of the campaign to project the CPI(M) as a spent force, with discredited ideology. The way lakhs of people attended the public meeting, reposing confidence on the Party, speaks volumes about the inherent strength of the CPI(M) and their confidence on socialism, he remarked. He quoted the huge presence of public sector units located in Vizag and asserted that the CPI(M) shall resist all ill-conceived moves of the government to privatise the PSUs of our country. He said CPI(M) shall not allow tribal people to be dispossessed by the governments in the name of establishing industrial units.

Newly elected general secretary, Sitaram Yechury, addressing the gathering called upon the people to come and support the CPI(M) to bring forth the much needed change in our country. Future belongs to the communists and their struggles for the betterment of the people, he asserted. The Party Congress has decided to unleash class struggles and in order to make it happen the Party has to be strengthened independently, he said. Our priority is the unity of all Left forces and to build a Left Democratic Front on peoples’ issues, he stated. Paying homage to thousands of Party cadres, who laid down their lives for the cause of the people, he pledged to uphold their legacy. Despite the brutal attacks on the democratic rights of the toiling classes by the TMC government, he praised the valour of the people of Bengal, who are resisting the repression let loose on them.

Criticising the BJP government for trying to communalise the entire educational system and inject rabid communal poison in all spheres of the society, which is a grave threat to the composite culture of India, he vowed to fight it tooth and nail. We shall work with the theme, ‘change India for a better India’, he declared.

He narrated an anecdote from Ramayana, in which the ceremonial horse let loose by Rama during the Ashwamedhayaga, was stopped and taken hostage by Lava and Kusa the twin brothers. In a similar way, the unleashing of the lethal mix of communal and neo-liberal policies by the BJP government, will be prevented by the twin brothers – workers and peasants, he asserted amidst thunderous cheers.

Polit Bureau member and secretary of West Bengal state committee Surjya Kanta Mishra, in his brief address said that communists and democratic sections of Bengal are passing through a difficult time, with increasing attacks by the ruling Trinamool Congress goons. Democratic rights are being trampled upon openly. He said that the Party state committee, during its recent state conference, decided to rectify and overcome the mistakes and organise the working class to face the onslaught of the TMC.

Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat started her address in chaste Telugu, which was cheered and widely applauded by all. She said that the ruling classes were targeting the Red flag, because their anti-people policies were challenged by it. It is the Red flag that stood by the rights of the poor people, dalits and tribals, and women and made them join their struggle against these policies. It is only the Red flag that will give protection to women, she asserted. The implementation of neo-liberal economic policies has badly impacted various social groups and the 21st Congress has decided to take up the issues of various social groups in future, she declared. The attacks on women are unabating and sexual assaults on women are taking place every 16 minutes in our country, she said with anguish. The 21st Congress has passed a resolution, demanding the central government to evolve a code of conduct for men, in order to combat the attacks on women, she informed.

Polit Bureau member and chief minister of Tripura, Manik Sarkar, while greeting the public meeting explained the significant achievements of the CPI(M) led government of Tripura in ameliorating the status of toiling sections. He announced in the midst of cheers that Tripura now occupied the first position in education, even moving ahead of Kerala, from the 15th position it had occupied once upon a time. He highlighted the fact that around three lakh famers committed suicide during the UPA rule and eleven thousand ended their lives during the ten-months of BJP government, whereas in Tripura, not a single farmer committed suicide till date. Despite the constraints imposed by the central government, Tripura government has been serious in implementing the MGNREGA, by providing 90 days of employment, every year, he asserted. He called upon the people to support the struggles of the CPI(M) so as to force the ruling governments to implement social welfare schemes.

Polit Bureau member and secretary of the CPI(M) Kerala state committee Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, said that the ruling UDF in Kerala was governing according to the diktats of the religious and caste organisations. The ongoing crisis in the ruling coalition was the result of its yielding to the pressures of such communal and casteist forces. Corruption has crept into all spheres of administration and ministers were continuing in the government, despite being indicted in many scams, he said. Pointing out to the incidents where the ruling Congress MLAs molested women MLAs inside the assembly, he brought to light the degenerated political culture of the Congress party. He exuded confidence that people, who are tired of this corrupt government will give a befitting reply to the UDF in the hustings.

P Madhu, secretary of the AP state committee of the CPI(M), cautioned the BJP and TDP governments to desist from repressive measures and said that the Party will mobilise workers and peasants to fight against all such measures. He lambasted the TDP government for camping in Singapore and China, when the Rayalaseema and Uttaraandhra regions are reeling under severe drought. The TDP government is trying to usurp lands from the farmers of Sompeta, Polaki and Kakarala in the guise of establishing nuclear plants and warned that they will be met with severe resistance if they don’t give up these anti-people measures. The Chandrababu government is trying to intimidate leaders of the Party and mass organisations, and cadres through arrests etc, but the cadres are not cowed down by these terror tactics and are resolute in building united struggles, he remarked. In the state of AP, CPI(M), will be a great force to reckon with in the days to come, he said with confidence.

V Srinivasa Rao and MA Gafoor, Central Committee members also spoke in the public meeting. Revolutionary songs were sung, before and after the public meeting, which engaged and enthused the participants in the public meeting. The rally and the Congress gave a lot of confidence, not only to the rank and file of the Party, but also all its sympathisers and well-wishers that the future belongs to the toiling people.

ARISE IN STRUGGLE

THE 21st Congress of the CPI(M) began with the flag hoisting by Mohd Amin, followed by paying floral tributes at the Martyrs Column. The open session of the Congress began in the morning on April 14. B V Raghavulu, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, welcomed the leadership of the Party and the leaders of the Left Parties on to the dais. S Ramachandran Pillai Polit Bureau member, presided over the inaugural session of the Party Congress. P Madhu, chairman of the reception committee delivered the welcome address. Prakash Karat, general secretary of the CPI(M) inaugurated the Congress. S Sudhakar Reddy, general secretary of CPI, Debabrata Biswas, general secretary of AIFB, Provash Ghosh, general secretary of SUCI (C), Abani Roy, leader of the RSP, Kavitha Krishnan, of Polit Bureau member of the CPI(ML) (Liberation) greeted the Congress. In their address to the Congress, they emphasised on building Left unity to launch an offensive against the anti-people policies and the communal polarisation of the BJP led Modi government.

The delegate session of the 21st Congress of the CPI(M) began in the afternoon of April 14. A seven member presidium was elected to conduct the Congress. It consisted of S Ramachandran Pillai (convenor), AK Balan, MA Gafoor, Madan Ghosh, Mariam Dhawale, Jitendra Chowdhury and Rakesh Singha. The Congress elected the Polit Bureau as the steering committee. A resolutions committee consisting of Brinda Karat (convenor), Thomas Issac, Nilotpal Basu, K Hemalata, VK Ramachandran, and a credentials committee consisting of Sudha Sundararaman (convener) KK  Shailaja, Tikender Singh Panwar and Mridul De, a minutes committee comprising J S Mazumdar (convenor), Anjan Bera, K N Umesh and Madhu Garg were also elected.

The delegate session of the Congress proceeded from April 14 afternoon to April 19 morning. Three reports – Draft Review Report on the Political-Tactical Line, Draft Political Resolution and Draft Political-Organisational Report were placed, discussed and adopted by the Congress. The new Central Committee, Control Commission, Polit Bureau and general secretary were elected by the Congress on April 19. The 21st Congress concluded with a huge rally and public meeting in Visakhapatnam in the afternoon, on April 19.