M V Govindan
THE CPI(M) Kerala state committee organised a Janakeeya Prathirodha Jatha (People’s Resistance March) through all the 140 assembly constituencies in the state against the growing communalisation in the country, the anti-people policies of the central government, and the neglect of Kerala by the centre. The 27-day march was held from February 20 to March 18 following a decision of the Central Committee of the Party.
The march was led by CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan Master. The permanent members of the jatha included Central Committee member C S Sujatha, state secretariat members P K Biju and M Swaraj, Jaik C Thomas and K T Jaleel. The jatha was inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at Kumbala in Kasaragod district on February 20. Thousands of people from this linguistic minority region participated in the inaugural ceremony. The huge gathering at Kumbala was an indication of the support the jatha would draw in the subsequent days.
The jatha received rousing receptions in all designated centres during its march. In a majority of the reception centres, participation of the people had surpassed the expectations of the organisers and created a situation where the reception centre could not contain the entire crowd. The jatha reached out to 14,05,824 people in 129 centres in 27 days. Majority of the participants in each reception centre were women. A large number of youth also participated in meetings. The jatha concluded in Trivandrum on March 18. The concluding ceremony was inaugurated by CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury.
In addition to giving rousing reception to the jatha, each centre acted as a point to impart pertinent political education to the gathered masses. The participants carefully listened to the speeches, each lasting about one-and-a-half hours. The members of the jatha interacted with the people, initiated debates and enquired about various matters. It will surely be helpful politically in a big way in the future. The response from the reception centres points to the fact that the people are aware about the hostile attitude of the central government against Kerala and the communal agenda of the ruling dispensation at the centre. The response is also an indication of the widespread support of the common people to the Left Democratic Front government in Kerala.
The decision to line up Red Volunteers as part of the campaign was taken by the Party after a long period. A total of 47,026 volunteers lined up for the jatha. Of them, 7,962 were women. A gender-neutral uniform was picked for the volunteers. Steps will be taken to transform the volunteers into voluntary workers in future.
The jatha also had daily meetings with important civic dignitaries in each centre. Many dignitaries from different spheres of the society who have hitherto maintained a distance from the Party came to the jatha, extended their support and shared their views. A cross-section of society such as writers, religious leaders, industrialists and film stars were involved in the jatha. The support, suggestions, and grievances about various programmes of the LDF government were taken up and discussed in the meetings. The leader of the jatha gave assurance that actions will be taken up to discuss matters at the Party level and at the government level accordingly. The public figures also publicly announced that they would firmly stand with the CPI(M) against the fight against communalism.
Various sections of the people who were the beneficiaries of different programmes of the government came to the jatha to express their gratitude. It was delightful to see those who are the beneficiaries of Life Mission and got houses and were allotted title deeds of land had come and welcomed the jatha with their farm produce. It was an emotional scene when fishermen from Ponnani who received houses through the Punargeham Project came to welcome the captain of the jatha. Ponnani has received a maximum number of houses under the project. Those who have received advice memo through the special recruitment drive of the LDF government to join as forest beat officers from the tribal communities have extended their gratitude and warmly welcomed the jatha captain with forest honey. Many youths who are the beneficiaries of the start-up initiatives of the government also came to express their thanks. In Vaikom, Kerala Paper Product Limited employees came to express their gratitude for the takeover and opening of HNL Velloor Mill, locked up by the central government. Linguistic minorities, plantation workers and minority sections also participated in the jatha. The jatha captain was welcomed at the Aanchal reception centre by a group of workers from the closed Punaloor paper mill who have received land title deeds from the LDF government. The jatha was also welcomed by men and women from the tribal hamlets located deep inside the forest. Tribal leader Raman Rajamannan extended a customary reception to the jatha. The jatha was welcomed by people with enthusiasm not just in the usual strongholds of the Party but also in minority dominated districts like Malappuram, Idukki, Ernakulam and Kottayam.
Due to the huge participation and wide acceptability, the mainstream media could not neglect the jatha and reported its proceedings extensively. Everyday morning, the captain of the jatha conducted press meetings. Social media platforms have been effectively used for widespread publicity and to explain the objectives of the jatha to the public. The social media team was active with the jatha from the beginning to the end. The march has, without doubt, created a wave among the socio-political spheres of Kerala and given a fillip to the CPI(M) and the Left Democratic Front government.
