“Backing UPA candidate is a grave error which will harm party”
The CPI(M) has expelled Prasenjit Bose, convener of the research unit of the party who had questioned the leadership’s decision to support UPA nominee Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential elections.
Mr. Bose resigned from the party on Friday stating that backing the candidature of Mr. Mukherjee was in violation of the Political Resolution adopted at the 20th Party Congress held in April. It had prescribed that the party should politically fight the Congress and the BJP.
Terming the decision a “grave error which will harm the party and disturb Left unity,” Mr. Bose said the party had been committing one mistake after another since 2007. He listed “coercive” land acquisition in West Bengal, the Nandigram police firing and allowing the UPA government to approach the IAEA with the nuclear deal as some of the mistakes by the leadership.
“The same leadership is committing yet another costly mistake, refusing to learn anything from the past.”
The Polit Bureau, in a statement, rejected Mr. Bose’s resignation and charged that the contents of the letter maligned the political line of the party.
After an intense debate marked by differences within the party, the CPI(M) on Thursday said it had decided to support Mr. Mukherjee on the logic that he was the candidate who had the “widest acceptance.”
At the same time, the party made it clear that it would continue to oppose the UPA government and resolutely fight its “neo-liberal economic policies” which were against the interests of the people.
The Left parties are divided on the stand in the Presidential election. While the CPI(M) and the Forward Bloc have sided with Mr. Mukherjee, the CPI and the RSP decided to abstain.
The NDA, which had hoped that the former President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, would contest, was left with no option but to back the candidate sponsored by the BJD and the AIADMK, P.A. Sangma, after Mr. Kalam declined to contest.
Indications are that the Trinamool Congress’ decision to oppose Mr. Mukherjee and pressure from the West Bengal unit influenced the thinking of the CPI(M) on the Presidential election.
In his letter, Mr. Bose had said: “The disruption of Left unity, following the Polit Bureau’s decision, also goes counter to the stated objective of strengthening the Left unity and the alliance of the Left and democratic forces.
“What was the pressing need to extend support to a Congress candidate even at the cost of breaking Left unity? Such brazen violation of the political line by the party leadership within less than three months of the party Congress is bewildering. There is no explanation as to whether the political situation has changed since April, and if so, how?”
He said if the consideration of the CPI(M) was that the strength of the Left in the electoral college was numerically too weak to field its own candidate against both the Congress and the BJP-backed candidates, then the natural choice should have been to abstain from the polls. “That is the stand adopted by the CPI and the RSP and it is an eminently reasonable, transparent and principled position.”
Mr. Bose argued that the criteria of “widest acceptance” adopted by the CPI(M) was a peculiar argument because the present acceptance of Mr. Mukherjee’s candidature cutting across party lines, from the ruling Congress and the DMK, which were neck-deep in corruption and venality, to the communal-chauvinistic Shiv Sena, had something very sinister about it.
CPM should have obtained from voting in the presidential elections like the CPI and the RSP. There is an unbridgeable gap between what the CPM preaches and proclaims and what it does. If the CPM is really interested in the Left unity then it should prove its credentials.
Why should CPM side with Ms Mamata Banerjee, whose main priority is to be on the front pages of all the newspapers. If CPM endorses, Mamata's decision to oppose Pranab Mukherjee, She would support Pranab and vice versa. I remember from my college days. Lalu Prasad was asked why he was having too many children, when the central government was promoting family planning. He said at the time that his policy was to oppose the central government. This is how he won the hearts of the illiterate masses.
A young comrade differs from the party behemouths and submits his resignation from the party. But, the party would not accept his resignation and in the true Stalinist tradition decides to 'expel' him! Too bad they did not get a chance of summoning the erring comrade and stage a 'self confession' show. That would have taken them back to the good old nostalgic days.
CPM's basic ideology of giving common people a comfortable living is defeated by the wrong economic policies followed by the UPA Govt.in general,implemented by the Prime Minster and the Finance Minister Pranab Mukarji in particular. Therefore CPM's support of Pranab for the President's post is not only suicidal for the party but also considered to be an anti-people move. For political reasons they need not support Sangma since he is supported by BJP their arch enemy in politics but they should not have taken the decision of supporting UPA supported candidate which shows clearly they are time servers.
@Suresh Deman: Please give this 'imperialistic' slogans a rest. That world doesn't exist anymore. Communist party of erstwhile USSR is non-existent and China has moved on long time back with its own 'imperialistic' ambitions. Indian left has to think Indian, India's national interests or be perished. People like Prasenjit Bose may win a few campus elections but let us see their mettle when faced with popular elections in country like India. It is easy to criticize others when Bose enjoyed the privileges that came as the TV spokesperson on the back of the power and political relevancy made possible for the CPM's Bengal unit by winning successive state elections.
It is strange that Prasenjith did not resign at the time of Nandigram firings or at the time other issues cited by him happened.There are substantial reasons to resign from the Party than the one cited by him. There is nothing new or revolutionary in the decisions of the 20th Party congress. It is the same old line they have been propagating for many years/Congresses. With no new thinking or slogan to advance towards their stated objective or to win over the masses who have left them in West Bengal,the CPI(M) has been hoping to cash in on the mistakes the Mamata Govt and her Party will be committing.The opportunity came in the form of her decision to oppose the candidature of Pranabda, which CPI(M), especially its Bengal Unit wants to capitalise.
CPI(M) and Forward Bloc parties are being hypocritical in hiding behind the bizarre argument of 'widest acceptance' to support Mr. Pranab Mukherjee when the unsaid reason for their support is Mr. Pranab Mukherjee being a fellow Bengali. Mr. Prasenjit's observations vis a vis his former party's mishandling the issue are all valid. The newly coined theory of 'widest acceptance' would prove costly to the left parties in the future.
Think CPM,Think. CPM thinking in air to build communist castle in air.CPM has already forgot fighting creatively and tough. CPM become statstical analysers and continual meet masters as how to do and what to ,but do nothing. They need alliances to bring up others.CPM lost its identity,Its better close its shop and open social democratic face as communist parties done in Europe.
Well done Prasenjit and we unequivocally condemn CPM decision to expel you. In fact, CPM failure to pursue the anti imperialist line stands out in glaring contrast with the Venezuelan experiment. In 2007 CPM helped to proposed the name of Pranab Mukherjee as the UPA consensus candidate for the office of The President forgetting that he was the chief architect for the military cooperation agreement with the United States. This created a big credibility gap about its sincere commitment to anti imperialist course. CPM is not known to have taken up cudgel in the public against Pranab Da's Speech at Carnegie Foundation a couple of years back where he had talked about, 'Total convergence' of values and interests between the US and India. He again harped on the same theme in his address at the Defence Staff College in New Delhi. While speaking in New York before the Council for foreign relations, he again mentioned, 'deepening convergence of values and interests'.
Sir The explanation offered by CPIM to support Pranab, a congress candidate was very feeble. "The candidate with the widest possible acceptance", was trivial. CPIM has to exhibit the honesty to tell the nation that, the PB forced to compromise on ideological and strategic positions to satisfy the regional loyalties of the Bengali comrades. In fact the Bengali comrades, this time don't allow Mr.Karat and their group to repeat the 'Himalayan Blunder' happened in the case of Jyoti Basu before. By the decision the PB members from Bengal made it certain that their 'Badralog', Pranab Dada will win the Presidential title and by the way proved beyond doubt that Blood is thicker than ideology!!!
Prasanjit Bose has stated verbatim what I thought.Now,CPM will vote alongwith the corrupt Congress for a Congress candidate who advocated for corruption .CPI and RSP have taken a somewhat acceptable stand.There is also no proper reason for their refrain from support to Mr.Sangma.But,the stand of CPM is totally unacceptable.This is nothing but sectarian,regionlistic support with some other calculations only .CPM will not be pardoned by people for this unprincipled stand with word manipulations.
CPM exposed once again undemocratic party by taking action against prasenjit bose. supporting congress pranap and reason telling by CPM has no logic. Always says CPI is congress supporter now? alienating its own party congress decision
And the CPI(M) prides itself on being democratic when it is not even able to brook dissent.
It was a politically correct pragmatic decision by CPM to support Pranab Mukherjee candidacy. He always had a cordial relation with CPM in West Bengal and it matters for the Bengali people that one of them attains the highest office of the land (even if ceremonial only) given the sacrifice that Bengal made for India's independence movement and resulting partition. Prasenjit Bose along with Prakash Karat engineered Left withdrawal of support for UPA I govt that ultimately resulted in the total rout of CPM in it's 'mothership' state West Bengal. Buddhadeb B govt steps for industrialization were on the right track even as the land acquisition policy implementation was incorrect. But industrialization was a must since job opportunity in a fixed amount of land is ultimately limited and diminishing with increased rural population. Left govt paid the price of years of misrule and grassroot level corruption but it is probably didn't deserve the routing it got given the current alternative.
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