Interview/ M.A. Baby, general secretary, CPI(M)
Q/ The left often unites in struggles but contests elections separately or allies with non-left parties. Why not prioritise a stronger, independent left platform, even at short-term electoral cost, to rebuild the parliamentary left?
Left unity cannot be an arrangement activated during strikes and movements and then sidelined during elections. If we want to rejuvenate the left, we have to strengthen political and ideological unity alongside united struggles. We also need to understand that electoral tactics always emerge from concrete political conditions. The Indian left has had to confront the rise of communal authoritarianism on one side and neoliberal consolidation on the other. In many situations, tactical understandings with non-left forces have been shaped by the need to isolate larger reactionary forces. That should not be confused with abandoning independent left politics.
Even at the 24th Party Congress of the CPI(M), we reiterated that sustained work among workers, peasants, youth, women, students and oppressed communities, through mass struggles and ideological intervention, is the only way to strengthen both the party and the left. Left unity is not a mere slogan. It has to be built through common struggles, political dialogue and principled engagement. Differences among left forces exist and should not be hidden. But at a time of deepening inequality, attacks on democratic rights and aggressive communal politics, there is also a historic responsibility to expand and deepen left unity.
Q/ The CPI(M) regularly launches rectification drives after electoral setbacks. Has the party reviewed why earlier efforts fell short, and do post-election remarks by Kerala leaders suggest concerns about inner-party democracy and freedom of expression?
Criticism and self-criticism are cornerstones of inner-party democracy. This is not limited to reviewing electoral setbacks alone. It is a continuous process, and so are rectification drives. Our central committee adopted a resolution on the rectification campaign in October 2009. That document emphasised that rectification is a “continuous process in order to protect the revolutionary character of the party”. In that context, we identified certain alien tendencies that had crept into the party at various levels and ways of countering them. It would be wrong to say that rectification drives have failed. But yes, more needs to be done, and we will certainly undertake that exercise. There has been no suppression of freedom of expression inside the CPI(M). At the same time, we feel that we need to consciously encourage free and frank discussion.
Q/ With state governments constrained within parliamentary democracy, how does the CPI(M) define the distinctiveness of left governance?
Left front governments function within the framework of a bourgeois-landlord state and parliamentary democracy. They can implement pro-people measures, expand democratic rights and contribute, in a limited manner, to altering the balance of class forces. The updated party programme also speaks about exploring the possibilities of alternate policies. Peoples Plan [in Kerala] was one such experiment.
Under our federal structure, state governments have limited fiscal and policy autonomy. This has become more pronounced since the BJP came to power in 2014, with increasing encroachment on states’ limited powers and greater centralisation.
