The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) and the CPI (ML) Red Star on Monday addressed a joint press conference to announce their support for each other and to lash out against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress.
Both the parties, which have been working in collaboration for three years, on Monday announced the formation of the CPI (ML) Red Star Maharashtra State Committee, in Pune on Sunday, with Comrade Arun Velaskar as its secretary.
“The BJP is trying to undermine even the minimal democratic space that exists under a parliamentary system. Constitutional norms are being sabotaged in the interest of the corporate class. People are being polarised under the garb of the Hindutva narrative. Constitutional institutions such as the Supreme Court have also been penetrated by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS),” K.N. Ramchandran, general secretary, CPI (ML) Red Star, said.
He said mainstream parties are sticking to neoliberal policies and vote bank politics, which encouraged the two Communist parties to merge. “We call for Communist forces to build a powerful party with anti-capitalist democratic programmes. We look forward to our merger strengthening efforts towards building a powerful centre for Communist revolutionaries in India, by joining hands with women, Dalits, Adivasis and other backward sections facing the brunt of the fascist tendencies of BJP,” he said.
Pravin Nadkar, secretary, CPI (ML) Maharashtra, said the current political scenario is a reflection of how politics has become a business and that the committee aims to fight not just the BJP and RSS, but also the capitalist forces behind them.
“In our three years of working together, we worked on caste annihilation, farmers’ issues, problems faced by the various tribes among others. Our committee, comprising 35 members as of now, witnesses representation from Dalits, Adivasis, women and other minority communities,” Mr. Ramchandran said.
