CPI(M) extended state committee to conduct post-poll review from today

Kozhikode, Sep 13 (IANS) The CPI(M)’s extended Kerala State Committee will begin a three-day meeting in Kozhikode on Sunday to conduct a comprehensive political and organisational review following the party’s major defeat in the recent Assembly elections.

CPI(M) General Secretary M.A. Baby will inaugurate the meeting at the AKG Auditorium attached to the party’s district committee office. The deliberations are expected to examine the political, ideological and organisational factors that contributed to the electoral setback and identify measures needed to rebuild the party.

The meeting comes at a crucial stage as the CPI(M) attempts to regain political direction, strengthen its grassroots machinery and reconnect with voters.

The leadership is expected to undertake a critical and self-critical assessment of the party’s functioning, extending beyond the immediate reasons for the defeat to the deeper weaknesses exposed during the election.

The discussions are also likely to focus on the party’s political messaging, campaign strategy, organisational coordination and ability to understand changing public expectations. Corrective measures aimed at improving communication between the leadership, party units and the public could figure prominently.

As many as 307 delegates will participate in the meeting. Kerala-based Politburo members M.A. Baby, Pinarayi Vijayan, M.V. Govindan and A. Vijayaraghavan will attend. Five other Politburo members — K. Balakrishnan, B.V. Raghavulu, Ashok Dhawale, Viju Krishnan and U. Vasuki — will participate as observers.

Central Committee members from Kerala, State Secretariat and State Committee members, district secretariat members and office-bearers of affiliated organisations will also be present.

Unlike its conventional review process, the CPI(M) began its assessment from the grassroots after the election results. Usually, the State Committee prepares the initial review and circulates it among lower committees for discussion. This time, however, the party first collected the views of organisational units at different levels.

The CPI(M) also sought direct feedback from members of the public to understand the reasons behind its defeat and perceptions about the party’s performance. Those responses, internal discussions and guidelines issued by the Central Committee were incorporated into the review report.

The State Committee subsequently examined and approved the document. It was then circulated among party units for further discussion. The final report and feedback gathered during that exercise will form the basis of the three-day deliberations in Kozhikode.

–IANS

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