Buddhadeb: Go back to your own class representatives; Organize people;

Build the party as people want it to be: Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee

Go back to your own class; organize people; build the party as people want it to be; this would be the slogan of the hour, affirmed party Polit Bureau member Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee while addressing the conference on the immediate task ahead to the party workers at Comrade Harkishen Singh Surjeet Mancha.

Analyzing the demographic scenario of the state Bhattacharjee averred that 67% of the state population is poor working class. So the poor rural habitation, agricultural labourers, urban poor, slum (Bustee) dwellers, homeless are the real class people Communist Party truly represents. These are our own class. The prime job of all party workers in the coming days is to organize these people under the Red Flag of CPI(M).

While discussing on some well debated issues like Singur, Nandigram etc. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said that the negative impact of Singur, Nandigram issues went against the party. But that does not mean the Industrial Policy of 1994 was wrong or the effort was fruitless. The prime focus of the Industrial Policy was that the Left Front government would oppose the fundamentals of neo-liberal development in India; while at the same time we would also take the opportunity, resultant to the neo-liberal initiative, of the abolition of ‘industrial licensing system’ that would enable us to initiate own policy to industrialize the state. On the issue of industrial investment in the state, Bhattacharjee averred that we decided that although we would invite industrial investment, our focal area was to develop only small and medium sector industrial sectors. One should remember that West Bengal prior to 1994 got investment from Japan, America, and the Left Front government could establish factories like Haldia Petrochemicals etc. It would therefore be wrong enough to tell that the Industrial Policy 1994 was not proper.

Talking however on the issue of land acquisition for industrialization Bhattacharjee went on saying that thousands of acres of land were acquisitioned before Singur and Nandigram events and 6 thousand acres of land were acquisitioned even after that; nothing happened there. Larger sections of people in Singur were in support of our decision; 80-85% job was accomplished; but the TATA group had withdrawn the project because of the opposition movement.

In Nandigram on the other hand after the first incident the government decided not to acquire land from the region. But centering the issue Maoists had taken the entry that resulted in massive violence and bloodshed. Police were not sent to acquire land there though the propagation went beyond that. And the firing incident led the situation against us. We should have however been more cautious while acquiring; we could not convince people the fact that the whole effort was for the development of the society. What is so the reason of doing something for the mass if they are not at all convinced?

Reiterating however the party central committee’s stand on neo-liberalism, Bhattacharjee affirmed that with the neo-liberal advancement natural resources, like, land, jungle, mines, are being hijacked by the big corporate forces; requisite was to make a clear understanding of that also. Unlike Maharashtra and Karnataka, the Left Front government never walked in the path of neo-liberalism; we had always initiated an alternative to the neo-liberal measures. Does distributing land to the poor people under land reform programmes even during the seventh Left Front government indicate neo-liberal measure? Decentralization in Panchayat system means neo-liberalism? We had initiated alternative measures to improve education, health, social security for the poor people of the state. We tried our best to improve conditions of scheduled castes, tribes, minorities and other downtrodden people.

Inviting only big industrial groups does not mean neo-liberal programming. We have been discussing the question of industrialization agenda in conferences since 1991; we passed resolutions too on industrialization in the last conference, averred Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

On Development and Struggle questions Bhattacharjee said that ‘development can never be an alternative to the class struggle; and we have never uttered that. But we must continue development programme to flower the class struggle. Our ‘Party Programme’ clearly states that there is nothing to lie down idle while running a government; we must work for the development of education, health, industry etc. The political objective behind such developmental works would be to enhance the space for class struggle and strengthen class movement.

On the contemporary adverse political situation in the state Bhattacharjee said that in many areas brutal violence are being unleashed in these days; so we have to move forward very carefully. Our prime objective is to regain the confidence of a large chunk of mass depressed with us earlier in the last election.

On the contemporary national and international questions Bhattacharjee affirmed that even in this neo-liberal programming we have materialist factors to ensure our progress. Global Capitalism is nowadays under severe crisis; people around the world are gradually launching agitation against capitalism. Here in India Manmohan Singh government too is under crisis; the growth of production is decelerating; agricultural and industrial growth rates are decreasing; price is essential commodities is soaring up recklessly. It would not sustain in India as being questioned in European states, America, Japan etc. We must therefore put enough importance in mass struggle and class movements; must organize our own class representatives under the Red Flag. This is our foremost task ahead. We are confident to accomplish the mission.

Courtesy: CPI(M) West Bengal Web Site