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Yechury re-elected CPI(M) general secy for third term
Yechury’s reappointment as CPI M general secretary in Kannur came at a time the party is facing a stiff challenge at the national level, with its strength reducing considerably in some of its erstwhile forts like West Bengal and Tripura.
Sitaram Yechury was re-elected as general secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist) as the four-day 23rd party congress in Kannur concluded on Sunday.
West Bengal leader Ramachandra Dome was elected to the Politburo, becoming the first Dalit face in the party’s highest body.
Yechury’s reappointment came at a time the party is facing a stiff challenge at the national level, with its strength reducing considerably in some of its erstwhile forts like West Bengal and Tripura.
“Enough challenges are ahead for the party. Our leaders never retire but since there is an age cap, they will be active in other forums of the party,” the CPI(M) leader said.
Yechury was referring to the party’s decision to fix 75 as the age limit for members of the central committee and Politburo. Besides Dome, Left Democratic Front state convener A Vijayaraghavan and All India Kisan Sabha president Ashok Dhawale were also inducted into the Politburo following the retirement of leaders S Ramachandran Pillai, Biman Bose and Hanan Mollah.
The Politburo comprises 17 members.
The new central committee, meanwhile, now has 15 women representatives and 17 new members. Among those elected to the committee were Kerala finance minister K N Balagopal and industry minister P Rajee. State women commission chief P Sathidevi and former MP C S Sujata were also inducted.
Yechury joined the Students Federation of India, the party’s student body, in 1974, and was later elected as the outfit’s national president. Arrested during the Emergency, he served twice as president of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union. He was elevated to the central committee in 1985 and Politburo in 1992, and succeeded Prakash Karat as general secretary in 2015.
Kerala is the only state where the CPI(M) is in power.
During discussions on a draft political resolution, the party spoke about the need for an alternative to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre and raised stiff opposition against having any alliance with the Congress. While the West Bengal unit spoke in favour of an alliance, the Kerala unit opposed it on the grounds that the Congress often diluted its position on secularism and economic policies, people familiar with the matter said.
Meanwhile, central committee member and former Kerala women commission chairperson M C Josephine (74) collapsed after suffering a heart attack at the congress venue on Saturday evening. She was rushed to a hospital where she died on Sunday.
Josephine’s body was brought back to the venue on Sunday so that people could pay their last respects.
“She was a leader wedded to her ideology and excelled in all fields of work she adopted,” chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.
