As the Communist Party of India (Marxist) holds its 24th party congress in Madurai, this is not the first time that the temple city in Tamil Nadu has hosted the Left party's meet.
Known as the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu, Madurai hosted the third congress of the Communist Party of India (CPI) in 1953. A split in the CPI in 1964 led to the formation of the CPI(M) and its ninth conference was also held in Madurai in 1972.
The city has been coloured red with the sickle-and-hammer flag of the CPI(M) and huge hoardings of icons like Karl Marx, Frederick Engels, V I Lenin and Joseph Stalin to welcome delegates from all over the country. The venue of the congress, the Thamukkam ground, has also hosted the Left party's meetings earlier.
Speaking at the inaugural session, CPI-M's interim coordinator Prakash Karat said five of the delegates attending the congress -- Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, former Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar, Left Front chairman Biman Bose, S Ramachandran Pillai and N Ram -- had also attended the meet in 1972.
"The party congress is the most important and supreme forum for a communist party. It is, therefore, appropriate that we are holding this Congress in Madurai, a city endowed with the ethos of ancient Tamil literature and culture and which harmoniously combines the history of more than eight decades of the working-class and communist movement," Karat said.
He recalled the efforts of leaders like P Ramamoorthi, K T K Thangamani, N Sankariah and K P Janaki Ammal, and said they made distinctive contributions to the development of the party in Madurai and Tamil Nadu.
Bose recalled the earlier party congresses held in Madurai.
"In 1953, political questions started hovering over the minds of the comrades about the line that was to be adopted. The party programme was not sorted out. When the seventh party congress took place (in 1964), the party could discuss about the development of the organisation, how to implement the party line and the party's programmatic understanding, which was accepted at the seventh party congress in Kolkata," he said.
In a post shared on social media ahead of the 24th party congress, recalling the ninth congress, the CPI(M) had said important developments over the previous years, including the installation and subsequent dismissal of party-led governments in West Bengal and Kerala, were taken note of, as was the split in the Congress party, Indira Gandhi's massive electoral victory and the liberation of Bangladesh.
The CPI(M) had also noted the "semi-fascist terror" directed mainly against the party in West Bengal as well as the violent repression and rigging of elections.
The party congress warned about the increasing danger of centralisation of power and the threat to democracy.
Bose said the present situation is similar to what prevailed at that time.
"The 24th party congress in Madurai is also being held in a situation which is very crucial, internationally and nationally. The right-wingers ... the corporate nexus and their game plans are going on seriously. At this juncture, what we are to do, how we are to do it and how we can build and strengthen our party properly are going to be discussed in the congress," he said.
Bose added that the party needs to reach out to villages, urban areas, cities, factories, fields, colleges, universities and all other institutions where people work.
The all-India party congress is usually convened by the central committee of the CPI(M) once every three years. The meeting that started on Wednesday will conclude on April 6.
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