S. Sudhakar Reddy was re-elected general secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI) at its 22nd national congress that concluded in Puducherry on Sunday. Gurudas Dasgupta was elected deputy general secretary.
The members of the central secretariat are Mr. Reddy, Mr. Dasgupta, D. Raja, MP, Shameem Faizee, Amarjeet Kaur, Atul Kumar Anjaan, Ramendrakumar, Pannian Ravindran, and K. Narayana from Andhra Pradesh. The congress also elected a 31-member national executive and a 124-member national council.
Mr. Reddy told reporters that the CPI had decided to re-establish the independent image of the Communist party as the champion of the poor by organising various struggles. “We want Left unity to defend secularism, democracy and independence and the freedom of speech.”
He said the party will observe May 14 as an all-India protest day, when party workers would stage a demonstration against the Land Acquisition Amendment Bill.
