NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Strengthening the CPI (Marxist) and increasing its mass base will be the focus of the 24th party Congress scheduled to be held in Madurai in April, interim co-ordinator of the party Prakash Karat said.
The Congress will also deliberate on the election of the new general secretary, the party’s top post.
Karat said increasing the party’s mass base is key as the Left has not grown in the country in the past few years.
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“The CPI(M)’s 24th party congress is going to be held in the first week of April in Madurai in Tamil Nadu. In this congress, we are going to discuss how we can strengthen the CPI(M) as a national party, increase its political influence and, mass base,” Karat told PTI.
“We think this should be given priority because the left in recent years has not grown in the country,” he said.
The CPI(M), which fielded 52 candidates in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, won four seats in all, two in Tamil Nadu and one each in Kerala and Rajasthan – up from three in 2019.
In 2004, at its peak, the CPI(M) had sent 43 MPs to the Lok Sabha, getting around 5.4 per cent of the total votes.
Karat added that the unity of Left parties is also an important issue that will be taken up.
“We are already working out how to unite all the Left parties and forces together so that we can project the Left platform and alternative policies,” he said.
The party’s former general secretary said that a stronger Left would contribute to the creation of a stronger, united opposition to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
“And the third thing, which is that this is not contradictory to each other, we think a stronger Left will also contribute to stronger united opposition to the BJP, that is the secular opposition parties. The left will be an important component of this wider unity,” he said.
The CPI(M) and other Left parties are a part of the opposition’s INDIA bloc.
The party, founded in 1964 and the largest of the Left bloc, faced a setback last year with the sudden demise of sitting general secretary Sitaram Yechury.
Karat said while his absence is felt, the party has a strong, collective leadership.
“For our party, it was a very crucial juncture, we had just begun the preparations for our party congress, which normally starts six months ahead of the meeting. His absence is definitely, keenly felt… but the party has a strong collective, leadership,” Karat said.
In the party congress, the CPI(M) will elect a new central committee, a politburo, and a general secretary.
As a part of the preparations, the party is holding several state-level meetings.
A three-day central committee meeting to discuss a draft political resolution for the upcoming party congress, held in Kolkata, concluded on Sunday. The central committee is second after the politburo in the CPI(M) leadership chain.
The resolution will be debated and adopted at the party congress and will set the party line on various issues.
According to the CPI(M) constitution, the All-India Party Congress is the supreme organ of the party and is convened by the central committee ordinarily once every three years.
At the meeting, the outgoing central committee will recommend a panel of names for the election of a successor committee.
A delegate can raise objections about any name in the panel proposed as well as propose any new name or names, with prior approval of the member.
The central committee then elects from among its members a politburo, including the general secretary. The number of members in the politburo is decided by the central committee.
There are 16 members in the CPI(M) Politburo at present, and 83 members are there in the central committee.
The 24th Congress of the CPI(M) will be held from April 2 to 6. (PTI)
